Tagged: verse for the day

“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.” –Mark 12:30 Christianity is not merely about loving God. Before Christ came to earth, many people loved God. Millions of non-Christians throughout the world love God now. Christianity is unlike any other religion, however, because it is about loving God as He is. Only Christians know and believe that God is our Father (Abba), that God is Love (1 Jn 4:8, 16), and that God is Trinity: three Persons in one God. Because in Christ we...

“Oh, that today you would hear His voice…” –Psalm 95:7 In today’s first reading, God shares a point of view with many people who are disgruntled with religion. God is dissatisfied with the behavior of His people. He is disturbed by what He sees when He looks at those who were supposed to be faithful to His call. In fact, He is angry with His people, and His anger bursts forth through the prophet Jeremiah: “Faithfulness has disappeared; the word itself is banished from their speech” (Jer 7:28). To this point, numerous people would agree completely with God: “Yes, the...

“Not the smallest letter of the law, not the smallest part of a letter, shall be done away with until it all comes true.” –Matthew 5:18 During Lent, we imitate Jesus in the desert when He overcame the temptations of the devil. Satan tempts us not only to rebel totally and defiantly against the Lord but also to “cut corners” and mildly modify God’s commands. Jesus, however, challenges us: “I assure you: until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter of the law, not the smallest part of a letter, shall be done away with until it all...

“I canceled your entire debt when you pleaded with me. Should you not have dealt mercifully with your fellow servant, as I dealt with you?” –Matthew 18:32-33 Jesus probably could not emphasize forgiveness more. He taught us to pray to be forgiven as we forgive those who have sinned against us (Mt 6:12). Jesus commanded us to forgive seventy times seven times, that is, indefinitely, or be handed “over to the torturers” (Mt 18:34). Even while hanging on the cross, Jesus prayed before His death: “Father, forgive them; they do not know what they are doing” (Lk 23:34). The last...

“Leave it another year, while I hoe around it and manure it; then perhaps it will bear fruit. If not, it shall be cut down.” –Luke 13:8-9 The Lord calls us to repent not only of sins of commission but also of omission. In today’s Gospel reading, He calls us to repent of not bearing fruit, that is, of not sharing our faith and leading others to new life in Christ. If we do not bear fruit spiritually, we will be cut down (Lk 13:9) and thrown into the fire (Jn 15:6). We will come to a tragic end (Lk...