"Ang inyo ngalan nasulat sa langit"

Ebanghelyo subong nga Adlaw (Lucas 10:17-24)

Sabado (Oktubre 5)

Ang 72 nagbalik nga puno sang kalipay. Nagsiling sila, “Ginoo, bisan pa ang mga yawa nagtuman sa amon tungod sa imo ngalan!”

Si Jesus nagsabat sa ila, “Nakita ko si Satanas nga nahulog subong sang kilat gikan sa langit.

Pamatii ninyo ini! Ginhatag ko sa inyo ang gahom sa pagtapak sa mga man-og kag mga iwiiwi, kag sang tanan nga gahom sang Kaaway, kag wala sing bisan ano nga makahalit sa inyo.

Pero indi kamo magkalipay tungod kay ang malaut nga mga espiritu nagatuman sa inyo, kundi magkalipay kamo kay ang inyo ngalan nasulat sa langit.”

Sa amo nga takna si Jesus nga puno sing kalipay sang Espiritu Santo nagsiling, “O Amay, Ginoo sang langit kag duta, nagapasalamat ako sa imo kay ang imo gintago sa mga maalam kag may tinun-an imo ginpakita sa indi mga maalam. Huo, Amay, kay amo ini ang ginpakamaayo mo.

“Gintugyan sa akon sang Amay ang tanan nga butang. Wala sing may nakakilala sa Anak luas sa Amay, kag wala sing may nakakilala sa Amay luas sa Anak kag sa mga luyag sang Anak ipahayag ang Amay.”

Dayon si Jesus nag-atubang sa iya mga gintuton-an kag nagsiling sini sa ila lamang, “Bulahan kamo nga makakita sang mga butang nga inyo ginatan-aw.

Nagasiling ako sa inyo nga madamo sang mga propeta kag mga hari ang naghandom sa pagtan-aw sang inyo ginatan-aw karon, pero indi sila makakita, kag sa pagpamati sa inyo ginapamatian, pero wala sila makabati.” 

Prayers:

"Most High and glorious God, enlighten the darkness of our hearts and give us a true faith, a certain hope and a perfect love. Give us a sense of the divine and knowledge of yourself, so that we may do everything in fulfillment of your holy will; through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Prayer of Francis of Assisi, 1182-1226)

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Reflection of the Daily Gospel:

Do you know and experience in your personal life the joy of the Lord? The scriptures tell us that "the joy of the Lord is our strength" (Nehemiah 8:10). Why does Jesus tell his disciples to not take joy in their own successes, even spiritual ones? Jesus makes clear that the true source of our joy is God himself, and God alone. Regardless of the circumstances, in good times and bad times, in success or loss, God always assures us of victory in Jesus Christ. Jesus assures his disciples that he has all power over evil, including the power of Satan and the evil spirits or fallen angels who conspire against us. In fact, that is why Jesus came into the world to overthrow the evil one (John 12:31). We, too, as disciples of Jesus have been given spiritual authority and power for overcoming the works of darkness and evil (1 John 2:13-14).

Jesus thanks the Father in heaven for revealing to his disciples the wisdom and knowledge of God. What does Jesus' prayer tell us about God and about ourselves? First, it tells us that God is both Father and Lord of earth as well as heaven. He is both Creator and Author of all that he has made, the first origin of everything and transcendent authority, and at the same time, goodness and loving care for all his children. All fatherhood and motherhood is derived from him (Ephesians 3:14-15). Jesus' prayer also contains a warning that pride can keep us from the love and knowledge of God. What makes us ignorant and blind to the things of God? Sinful pride springs from exaggerated self-centeredness. It closes the mind to God's truth and wisdom for our lives. The angels fell into pride and were cast out of heaven. The virtue of humility, the only true remedy against false pride, and which is very different from the feelings of inferiority and low self-esteem, leads us to a true recognition of who we are in God and of our dependence on God.

Jesus contrasts intellectual pride with child-like simplicity and humility. The simple of heart are like "babes" in the sense that they see purely without pretense and acknowledge their dependence and trust in one who is greater, wiser, and more trustworthy. They seek one thing – the "summum bonum" or "greatest good" who is God himself. Simplicity of heart is wedded with humility, the queen of virtues, because humility inclines the heart towards grace and truth. Just as pride is the root or every sin and evil, so humility is the only soil in which the grace of God can take root. It alone takes the right attitude before God and allows him as God to do all. God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble (Proverbs 3:34, James 4:6). The grace of Christ-like humility inclines us to God and disposes us to receive God's wisdom. Nothing can give us greater joy than the knowledge that we are God's beloved and that our names are written in heaven. Do you seek to be like Jesus Christ in humility and simplicity of heart?

Jesus makes a claim which no one would have dared to make: He is the perfect revelation of God. One of the greatest truths of the Christian faith is that we can know the living God. Our knowledge of God is not simply limited to knowing something about God, but we can know God personally. The essence of Christianity, and what makes it distinct from Judaism and other religions, is the knowledge of God as our Father. Jesus makes it possible for each of us to personally know God as our Father. Saint Augustine of Hippo wrote: "God loves each of us as if there were only one of us to love."

To see Jesus is to see what God is like. In Jesus we see the perfect love of God – a God who cares intensely and who yearns over men and women, loving them to the point of laying down his life for them upon the cross. Jesus is the revelation of God – a God who loves us completely, unconditionally and perfectly. Jesus also promises that God the Father will hear our prayers when we pray in his name. That is why Jesus taught his followers to pray with confidence, "Our Father who art in heaven ...give us this day our daily bread." Do you pray to your Father in heaven with joy and confidence in his love and care for you?