"Ang iya tion wala pa mag-abot"

Ebanghelyo subong nga Adlaw (Juan 7:1-2, 10, 25-30) 

Sa tapos sini, si Jesus nagpanglakaton sa kadutaan sang Galilea. Indi sia luyag magpanglakaton sa Judea, kay ang mga pangulo sang mga Judio buot magpatay sa iya. 

Malapit na ang piesta sang mga Judio nga ginatawag Piesta sang mga Tolda. 

Sang makalumbos ang mga utod ni Jesus sa pagpamiesta, nag-apas sa ila si Jesus sa tago lamang, kag wala mahibaloi. 

May mga taga-Jerusalem nga nagsiling, “Indi bala amo ini nga tawo ang ila ginahingabot nga patyon? 

Tan-awa ninyo, nagahambal sia sa atubangan sang mga tawo, kag wala gid sing may nagahambal batok sa iya! Nahibaluan gid ayhan sang mga pangulo nga sia amo ang Cristo? 

Pero kon ang Cristo magkari wala sing may makahibalo kon diin sia magikan. Kag kita tanan nakahibalo kon taga-diin ini nga tawo.” 

Sang nagatudlo si Jesus sa templo nagsiling sia sa mabaskog nga tingog, “Nakilala gid bala ninyo ako, kag nakahibalo bala kamo kon diin ako maghalin? Wala ako magkari sa akon kaugalingon nga luyag. Pero sia nga nagpadala sa akon amo ang matuod. Wala ninyo sia makilala, pero ako nakakilala sa iya, kay ako nagikan sa iya, kag sia nagpadala sa akon.” 

Gintinguhaan nila nga dakpon sia, pero wala sing may nagdakop sa iya, kay ang iya tion wala pa mag-abot. 

Prayers: 

“Eternal God, who are the light of the minds that know you, the joy of the hearts that love you, and the strength of the wills that serve you; grant us so to know you, that we may truly love you, and so to love you that we may fully serve you, whom to serve is perfect freedom, in Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Prayer of Saint Augustine) 

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Reflection of the Daily Gospel: 

What can hold us back from doing the will of God? Fear, especially the fear of death, can easily rob us of courage and the will to do what we know is right. Jesus met opposition and the threat of death with grace and determination to accomplish his Father’s will. Jesus knew that his mission, his purpose in life, would entail sacrifice and suffering and culminate with death on the cross. But that would not be the end. His “hour” would crush defeat with victory, condemnation with pardon and freedom, and death with glory and everlasting life. He willingly suffered and went to the cross for our sake, to redeem us from sin and to restore our relationship with God the Father. Saint Augustine of Hippo (354-430 AD) says: “Our Lord had the power to lay down his life and to take it up again. But we cannot choose how long we shall live, and death comes to us even against our will. Christ, by dying, has already overcome death. Our freedom from death comes only through his death. To save us Christ had no need of us. Yet without him we can do nothing. He gave himself to us as the vine to the branches; apart from him we cannot live.” 

No one can be indifferent with Jesus for long. What he said and did – his signs and wonders – he did in the name of God. Jesus not only claimed to be the Messiah, God’s Anointed One. He claimed to be in a unique relationship with God and to know him as no one else did. To the Jews this was utter blasphemy. The religious authorities did all they could to put a stop to Jesus because they could not accept his claims and the demands he made. We cannot be indifferent to the claims which Jesus makes on us. We are either for him or against him. There is no middle ground. We can try to mold Jesus to our own ideas and preferences or we can allow his word to free us from our own ignorance, stubborn pride, and deception. Do you accept all that Jesus has said and done for you with faith and reverence or with disbelief and contempt? The consequences are enormous, both in this life and in eternity.