Category: Bible Reading & Meditation

“We should not absent ourselves from the assembly, as some do, but encourage one another; and this all the more because you see that the Day draws near.” –Hebrews 10:25 When we gather in Jesus’ name, He has promised to be with us in a special way (Mt 18:20). In Jesus’ special presence, we are more deeply united with Him and with one another. In this deeper unity, we have greater knowledge of and openness to God’s will. Therefore, when we pray together, we express better the will of God, and our prayers are answered (Mt 18:19). In this great...

“You do not understand this parable? How then are you going to understand other figures like it?” –Mark 4:13 Jesus wants us to take ownership of our understanding of our faith. He wants us to ask questions as did the apostles (see Mk 4:10), to study, to probe deeply and persistently until we understand the meaning. Jesus tells parables so we might have the chance to ponder the Word, nourish it, and make it grow. When asked why He only taught the crowds in parables, Jesus quoted Isaiah 6:10 (see Mk 4:12). Jesus knows that the hearts of people in...

“Whoever does the will of God is brother and sister and mother to me.” –Mark 3:35 Jesus said that He came for division, to divide a family three against two (Lk 12:52). He meant that some family members would receive Him while others would reject Him, at least for a time. For those who love Jesus, love their families, and yet have been rejected within their families because of their love for Jesus, there is great pain. Yet Jesus offers the greatest consolation amidst this pain: by doing the will of God, we are adopted and transplanted into the family...

“Promote their knowledge of the truth as our religion embodies it.” –Titus 1:1 No matter how well or poorly I teach the Scriptures through this booklet, you can almost immediately at least double the insights you receive from reading the Scriptures for the daily Mass by deciding to share anything you receive. If you put any light you receive on the lampstand (Mk 4:21), you will receive more light. “In the measure you give you shall receive, and more besides” (Mk 4:24). Understanding the Bible is not so much a matter of intelligence, but of sharing. To share the good...

“They immediately abandoned their nets and became His followers.” –Mark 1:18 When a fish is caught and taken out of the water, it dies. The former watery world that it knew “is passing away” (1 Cor 7:31). Similarly, everything changes when we enter into the kingdom of God. Living in God’s kingdom is as different from our pre-Christian life as it is for that fish trying to live on land. Lifestyles that worked underwater no longer work in fresh air. In order for the fish to live on land, it literally has to die to its old life. The fish...