St.Don Bosco Church

21/06/2020

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WO_2hq77OcA

Catholic Diocese of Lucknow
Holy Mass / Hindi / 12th Sunday of the Year/Most Rev. Dr. Gerald J. Mathias | LIVE

Holy Mass / Hindi / 12th Sunday of the Year/Most Rev. Dr. Gerald J. Mathias | LIVE मिस्सा के पाठ 📖 ▪️ पहला पाठ- नबी येरेमियस 20:10-13 ▪️ भजन - स्तोत्र 68 ▪️ ...

05/02/2020

"Cast all your anxiety upon him; for he careth for you."
1Peter 5:7

22/02/2017

1 JOHN 4:1-21
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
1 John 4:1-21: In today’s reading believers are warned to ignore false teachers who deny that Jesus was really a human being. The author of this letter describes how believers can distinguish between God’s true Spirit and a spirit that is false. Verses 7-21 provide a comprehensive reading about God’s love and Christ’s command to love others.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: 1 JOHN 4:19
We love because God first loved us.
TODAY'S READING
THE TRUE SPIRIT AND THE FALSE SPIRIT

1My dear friends, do not believe all who claim to have the Spirit, but test them to find out if the spirit they have comes from God. For many false prophets have gone out everywhere.2This is how you will be able to know whether it is God's Spirit: anyone who acknowledges that Jesus Christ came as a human being has the Spirit who comes from God.3But anyone who denies this about Jesus does not have the Spirit from God. The spirit that he has is from the Enemy of Christ; you heard that it would come, and now it is here in the world already.
4But you belong to God, my children, and have defeated the false prophets, because the Spirit who is in you is more powerful than the spirit in those who belong to the world.5Those false prophets speak about matters of the world, and the world listens to them because they belong to the world.6But we belong to God. Whoever knows God listens to us; whoever does not belong to God does not listen to us. This, then, is how we can tell the difference between the Spirit of truth and the spirit of error.
GOD IS LOVE

7Dear friends, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Whoever loves is a child of God and knows God.8Whoever does not love does not know God, for God is love.9And God showed his love for us by sending his only Son into the world, so that we might have life through him.10This is what love is: it is not that we have loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the means by which our sins are forgiven.
11Dear friends, if this is how God loved us, then we should love one another.12 No one has ever seen God, but if we love one another, God lives in union with us, and his love is made perfect in us.
13We are sure that we live in union with God and that he lives in union with us, because he has given us his Spirit.14And we have seen and tell others that the Father sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.15If we declare that Jesus is the Son of God, we live in union with God and God lives in union with us.16And we ourselves know and believe the love which God has for us.
God is love, and those who live in love live in union with God and God lives in union with them.17Love is made perfect in us in order that we may have courage on the Judgment Day; and we will have it because our life in this world is the same as Christ's.18There is no fear in love; perfect love drives out all fear. So then, love has not been made perfect in anyone who is afraid, because fear has to do with punishment.
19We love because God first loved us.20If we say we love God, but hate others, we are liars. For we cannot love God, whom we have not seen, if we do not love others, whom we have seen.21The command that Christ has given us is this: whoever loves God must love others also.
REFLECT
Today’s reading reminds us that God is love. What is the key teaching in verses 19-21? How have you experienced God’s love recently?
PRAY
Holy God, you are indeed love. Thank you for showing your love for me and for all people through the love of Jesus. Help me to love others as I seek to live in union with you. May your love be perfected in me. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Those who feel unloved

21/02/2017

1 JOHN 3:1-24
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
1 John 3:1-24: Children of God are so called because of God’s great love for them. The writer argues that those who do what is right are righteous, whereas those who continue to sin belong to the Devil. Children of God are commanded to love one another and believe in God’s Son, Jesus.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: 1 JOHN 3:24A
Those who obey God’s commands live in union with God and God lives in union with them.
TODAY'S READING
CHILDREN OF GOD

1 See how much the Father has loved us! His love is so great that we are called God's children—and so, in fact, we are. This is why the world does not know us: it has not known God.2My dear friends, we are now God's children, but it is not yet clear what we shall become. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he really is.3Everyone who has this hope in Christ keeps himself pure, just as Christ is pure.
4Whoever sins is guilty of breaking God's law, because sin is a breaking of the law.5 You know that Christ appeared in order to take away sins, and that there is no sin in him.6So everyone who lives in union with Christ does not continue to sin; but whoever continues to sin has never seen him or known him.
7Let no one deceive you, my children! Whoever does what is right is righteous, just as Christ is righteous.8Whoever continues to sin belongs to the Devil, because the Devil has sinned from the very beginning. The Son of God appeared for this very reason, to destroy what the Devil had done.
9Those who are children of God do not continue to sin, for God's very nature is in them; and because God is their Father, they cannot continue to sin.10Here is the clear difference between God's children and the Devil's children: those who do not do what is right or do not love others are not God's children.
LOVE ONE ANOTHER

11 The message you heard from the very beginning is this: we must love one another.12 We must not be like Cain; he belonged to the Evil One and murdered his own brother Abel. Why did Cain murder him? Because the things he himself did were wrong, and the things his brother did were right.
13So do not be surprised, my friends, if the people of the world hate you.14 We know that we have left death and come over into life; we know it because we love others. Those who do not love are still under the power of death.15Those who hate others are murderers, and you know that murderers do not have eternal life in them.16This is how we know what love is: Christ gave his life for us. We too, then, ought to give our lives for others!17If we are rich and see others in need, yet close our hearts against them, how can we claim that we love God?18My children, our love should not be just words and talk; it must be true love, which shows itself in action.
COURAGE BEFORE GOD

19This, then, is how we will know that we belong to the truth; this is how we will be confident in God's presence.20If our conscience condemns us, we know that God is greater than our conscience and that he knows everything.21And so, my dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have courage in God's presence.22We receive from him whatever we ask, because we obey his commands and do what pleases him.23 What he commands is that we believe in his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as Christ commanded us.24Those who obey God's commands live in union with God and God lives in union with them. And because of the Spirit that God has given us we know that God lives in union with us.
REFLECT
What distinguishes God’s children from the Devil’s children? In what ways do you demonstrate that you are a child of God? Reread verse 18. How would you define the ways true love shows itself in action?
PRAY
Lord God, thank you for loving me and calling me to be your child. Teach me to obey your commands so that I may live in union with you and in a way that demonstrates true love in action. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Those empowered to enact public policy

20/02/2017

1 JOHN 2:7-29
GNT
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
1 John 2:7-29: Believers are encouraged to love others and “live in the light.” The “world” in this passage pertains to the realm of evil which is temporary, whereas eternal life is promised to those who do the will of God.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: 1 JOHN 2:10
If we love others, we live in the light, and so there is nothing in us that will cause someone else to sin.
TODAY'S READING
THE NEW COMMAND

7 My dear friends, this command I am writing you is not new; it is the old command, the one you have had from the very beginning. The old command is the message you have already heard.8However, the command I now write you is new, because its truth is seen in Christ and also in you. For the darkness is passing away, and the real light is already shining.
9If we say that we are in the light, yet hate others, we are in the darkness to this very hour.10If we love others, we live in the light, and so there is nothing in us that will cause someone else to sin.11But if we hate others, we are in the darkness; we walk in it and do not know where we are going, because the darkness has made us blind.
12I write to you, my children, because your sins are forgiven for the sake of Christ.13I write to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you have defeated the Evil One.
14I write to you, my children, because you know the Father. I write to you, fathers, because you know him who has existed from the beginning. I write to you, young people, because you are strong; the word of God lives in you, and you have defeated the Evil One.
15Do not love the world or anything that belongs to the world. If you love the world, you do not love the Father.16Everything that belongs to the world—what the sinful self desires, what people see and want, and everything in this world that people are so proud of—none of this comes from the Father; it all comes from the world.17The world and everything in it that people desire is passing away; but those who do the will of God live forever.
THE ENEMY OF CHRIST

18My children, the end is near! You were told that the Enemy of Christ would come; and now many enemies of Christ have already appeared, and so we know that the end is near.19These people really did not belong to our fellowship, and that is why they left us; if they had belonged to our fellowship, they would have stayed with us. But they left so that it might be clear that none of them really belonged to us.
20But you have had the Holy Spirit poured out on you by Christ, and so all of you know the truth.21I write you, then, not because you do not know the truth; instead, it is because you do know it, and you also know that no lie ever comes from the truth.
22Who, then, is the liar? It is those who say that Jesus is not the Messiah. Such people are the Enemy of Christ—they reject both the Father and the Son.23For those who reject the Son reject also the Father; those who accept the Son have the Father also.
24Be sure, then, to keep in your hearts the message you heard from the beginning. If you keep that message, then you will always live in union with the Son and the Father.25And this is what Christ himself promised to give us—eternal life.
26I am writing this to you about those who are trying to deceive you.27But as for you, Christ has poured out his Spirit on you. As long as his Spirit remains in you, you do not need anyone to teach you. For his Spirit teaches you about everything, and what he teaches is true, not false. Obey the Spirit's teaching, then, and remain in union with Christ.
28Yes, my children, remain in union with him, so that when he appears we may be full of courage and need not hide in shame from him on the Day he comes.29You know that Christ is righteous; you should know, then, that everyone who does what is right is God's child.
REFLECT
Reread verses 9-11. What does it mean to live in the light? What does it mean to be in the darkness? In verses 12-14, Christians of various levels of maturity are being addressed. What are they being told? Are there people who need to hear this message today?
PRAY
Lord Jesus, help me to love others, live in the light, and follow your teachings. As your child, I want to do what is right. Thank you for forgiving my sins and keeping me close in union with you. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Friends who are in conflict

17/02/2017

JOHN 8:21-47
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
John 8:21-47: The debate between Jesus and his opponents intensifies, and Jesus declares them to be children of the devil.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: JOHN 8:31B, 32
[Jesus said]: “If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples; you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
TODAY'S READING
YOU CANNOT GO WHERE I AM GOING

21Again Jesus said to them, “I will go away; you will look for me, but you will die in your sins. You cannot go where I am going.”
22So the Jewish authorities said, “He says that we cannot go where he is going. Does this mean that he will kill himself?”
23Jesus answered, “You belong to this world here below, but I come from above. You are from this world, but I am not from this world.24That is why I told you that you will die in your sins. And you will die in your sins if you do not believe that ‘I Am Who I Am’.”
25“Who are you?” they asked him.
Jesus answered, “What I have told you from the very beginning. 26I have much to say about you, much to condemn you for. The one who sent me, however, is truthful, and I tell the world only what I have heard from him.”
27They did not understand that Jesus was talking to them about the Father.28So he said to them, “When you lift up the Son of Man, you will know that ‘I Am Who I Am’; then you will know that I do nothing on my own authority, but I say only what the Father has instructed me to say.29And he who sent me is with me; he has not left me alone, because I always do what pleases him.”
30Many who heard Jesus say these things believed in him.
THE TRUTH WILL SET YOU FREE

31So Jesus said to those who believed in him, “If you obey my teaching, you are really my disciples;32 you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”
33 “We are the descendants of Abraham,” they answered, “and we have never been anybody's slaves. What do you mean, then, by saying, ‘You will be free’?”
34Jesus said to them, “I am telling you the truth: everyone who sins is a slave of sin.35A slave does not belong to a family permanently, but a son belongs there forever.36If the Son sets you free, then you will be really free.37I know you are Abraham's descendants. Yet you are trying to kill me, because you will not accept my teaching.38I talk about what my Father has shown me, but you do what your father has told you.”
39They answered him, “Our father is Abraham.”
“If you really were Abraham's children,” Jesus replied, “you would do the same things that he did.40All I have ever done is to tell you the truth I heard from God, yet you are trying to kill me. Abraham did nothing like this!41You are doing what your father did.”
“God himself is the only Father we have,” they answered, “and we are his true children.”
42Jesus said to them, “If God really were your Father, you would love me, because I came from God and now I am here. I did not come on my own authority, but he sent me.43Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to listen to my message.44 You are the children of your father, the Devil, and you want to follow your father's desires. From the very beginning he was a murderer and has never been on the side of truth, because there is no truth in him. When he tells a lie, he is only doing what is natural to him, because he is a liar and the father of all lies.45But I tell the truth, and that is why you do not believe me.46Which one of you can prove that I am guilty of sin? If I tell the truth, then why do you not believe me?47He who comes from God listens to God's words. You, however, are not from God, and that is why you will not listen.”
REFLECT
Reread verses 31 and 32. What does being set free by the truth mean to you? What does Jesus say when his opponents claim to be Abraham’s children (verses 39, 40)? In the ensuing dialogue, how does Jesus challenge their claim to be children of God (verses 42-47)? How do you demonstrate that you are a child of God?
PRAY
Lord Jesus, as your follower I believe that your Word is truth that indeed sets me free. You have revealed God’s love to me and made me a child of God. Continue to guide me in the way of truth. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Teachers

16/02/2017

JOHN 8:1-20
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
John 8:1-20: The religious leaders bring to Jesus a woman caught in adultery and seek to test him by asking for his judgment in the matter. Jesus once again confounds them with his response. Jesus declares that he is “the light of the world.”
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: JOHN 8:12B
“I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”
TODAY'S READING
THE WOMAN CAUGHT IN ADULTERY

[ 1Then everyone went home, but Jesus went to the Mount of Olives.2Early the next morning he went back to the Temple. All the people gathered around him, and he sat down and began to teach them.3The teachers of the Law and the Pharisees brought in a woman who had been caught committing adultery, and they made her stand before them all.4“Teacher,” they said to Jesus, “this woman was caught in the very act of committing adultery.5 In our Law Moses commanded that such a woman must be stoned to death. Now, what do you say?”6They said this to trap Jesus, so that they could accuse him. But he bent over and wrote on the ground with his finger.7 As they stood there asking him questions, he straightened up and said to them, “Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her.”8Then he bent over again and wrote on the ground.9When they heard this, they all left, one by one, the older ones first. Jesus was left alone, with the woman still standing there.10He straightened up and said to her, “Where are they? Is there no one left to condemn you?”
11“No one, sir,” she answered.
“Well, then,” Jesus said, “I do not condemn you either. Go, but do not sin again.”]
JESUS THE LIGHT OF THE WORLD

12 Jesus spoke to the Pharisees again. “I am the light of the world,” he said. “Whoever follows me will have the light of life and will never walk in darkness.”
13 The Pharisees said to him, “Now you are testifying on your own behalf; what you say proves nothing.”
14“No,” Jesus answered, “even though I do testify on my own behalf, what I say is true, because I know where I came from and where I am going. You do not know where I came from or where I am going.15You make judgments in a purely human way; I pass judgment on no one.16But if I were to do so, my judgment would be true, because I am not alone in this; the Father who sent me is with me.17 It is written in your Law that when two witnesses agree, what they say is true.18I testify on my own behalf, and the Father who sent me also testifies on my behalf.”
19“Where is your father?” they asked him.
“You know neither me nor my Father,” Jesus answered. “If you knew me, you would know my Father also.”
20Jesus said all this as he taught in the Temple, in the room where the offering boxes were placed. And no one arrested him, because his hour had not come.
REFLECT
The Law of Moses required that, in the matter of adultery, two witnesses were needed (Deuteronomy 17:6; 19:15). Thus the Pharisees were in violation of the legal requirements in not presenting witnesses. What is your reaction to how Jesus handled the matter? What did he say to the woman? How did Jesus respond to the Pharisees when they asked him about his father (verse 19)?
PRAY
Lord Jesus, you are the light of the world. Teach me to live in the light of your love. Thank you for your love and mercy, and for the chance to live a new life in you. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Victims of human trafficking and prostitution

15/02/2017

JOHN 7:32-52
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
John 7:32-52: Jesus continues to speak openly in the Temple, and some of the religious leaders seek to have him arrested. Division arises among the people listening to Jesus.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: JOHN 7:37B, 38A
Jesus stood up and said in a loud voice, “Whoever is thirsty should come to me, and whoever believes in me should drink.”
TODAY'S READING
GUARDS ARE SENT TO ARREST JESUS

32The Pharisees heard the crowd whispering these things about Jesus, so they and the chief priests sent some guards to arrest him.33Jesus said, “I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I shall go away to him who sent me.34You will look for me, but you will not find me, because you cannot go where I will be.”
35The Jewish authorities said among themselves, “Where is he about to go so that we shall not find him? Will he go to the Greek cities where our people live, and teach the Greeks?36He says that we will look for him but will not find him, and that we cannot go where he will be. What does he mean?”
STREAMS OF LIFE-GIVING WATER

37 On the last and most important day of the festival Jesus stood up and said in a loud voice, “Whoever is thirsty should come to me, and38 whoever believes in me should drink. As the scripture says, ‘Streams of life-giving water will pour out from his side.’” 39Jesus said this about the Spirit, which those who believed in him were going to receive. At that time the Spirit had not yet been given, because Jesus had not been raised to glory.
DIVISION AMONG THE PEOPLE

40Some of the people in the crowd heard him say this and said, “This man is really the Prophet!”
41Others said, “He is the Messiah!”
But others said, “The Messiah will not come from Galilee!42 The scripture says that the Messiah will be a descendant of King David and will be born in Bethlehem, the town where David lived.”43So there was a division in the crowd because of Jesus.44Some wanted to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him.
THE UNBELIEF OF THE JEWISH AUTHORITIES

45When the guards went back, the chief priests and Pharisees asked them, “Why did you not bring him?”
46The guards answered, “Nobody has ever talked the way this man does!”
47“Did he fool you, too?” the Pharisees asked them.48“Have you ever known one of the authorities or one Pharisee to believe in him?49This crowd does not know the Law of Moses, so they are under God's curse!”
50 One of the Pharisees there was Nicodemus, the man who had gone to see Jesus before. He said to the others,51“According to our Law we cannot condemn people before hearing them and finding out what they have done.”
52“Well,” they answered, “are you also from Galilee? Study the Scriptures and you will learn that no prophet ever comes from Galilee.”
REFLECT
What caused division among the people listening to Jesus’ teachings (verses 40-44)? Why did some believe that Jesus was the Messiah and others did not? What did Nicodemus say to the religious authorities (verses 50, 51)? Within your community of faith, are there times when divisiveness occurs? If so, what are the causes? How are such matters resolved?
PRAY
Holy Jesus, you are the Messiah. Yes, Lord, I believe in you and thirst for your Word and the life-giving water you offer. Draw me close to you and teach me to do your will. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Those in need of clean water

14/02/2017

JOHN 7:10-31
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
John 7:10-31: The Festival of Shelters (also known as the Festival of Booths or Tabernacles) was a fall agricultural celebration that commemorated God’s providing for the people during their journey in the desert following the exodus from Egypt (Exodus 23:16; Leviticus 23:33-43; Deuteronomy 16:13-17). Jesus attends the festival in secret, but midway through the festival he teaches in the Temple. The Jewish authorities are surprised by Jesus’ teachings and knowledge.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: JOHN 7:16
Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own teaching, but it comes from God, who sent me.”
TODAY'S READING
JESUS AT THE FESTIVAL OF SHELTERS

10After his brothers had gone to the festival, Jesus also went; however, he did not go openly, but secretly.11The Jewish authorities were looking for him at the festival. “Where is he?” they asked.
12There was much whispering about him in the crowd. “He is a good man,” some people said. “No,” others said, “he fools the people.”13But no one talked about him openly, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities.
14The festival was nearly half over when Jesus went to the Temple and began teaching.15The Jewish authorities were greatly surprised and said, “How does this man know so much when he has never been to school?”
16Jesus answered, “What I teach is not my own teaching, but it comes from God, who sent me.17Whoever is willing to do what God wants will know whether what I teach comes from God or whether I speak on my own authority.18Those who speak on their own authority are trying to gain glory for themselves. But he who wants glory for the one who sent him is honest, and there is nothing false in him.19Moses gave you the Law, didn't he? But not one of you obeys the Law. Why are you trying to kill me?”
20“You have a demon in you!” the crowd answered. “Who is trying to kill you?”
21Jesus answered, “I performed one miracle, and you were all surprised.22 Moses ordered you to circumcise your sons (although it was not Moses but your ancestors who started it), and so you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath.23 If a boy is circumcised on the Sabbath so that Moses' Law is not broken, why are you angry with me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?24Stop judging by external standards, and judge by true standards.”
IS HE THE MESSIAH?

25Some of the people of Jerusalem said, “Isn't this the man the authorities are trying to kill?26Look! He is talking in public, and they say nothing against him! Can it be that they really know that he is the Messiah?27But when the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from. And we all know where this man comes from.”
28As Jesus taught in the Temple, he said in a loud voice, “Do you really know me and know where I am from? I have not come on my own authority. He who sent me, however, is truthful. You do not know him,29but I know him, because I come from him and he sent me.”
30Then they tried to seize him, but no one laid a hand on him, because his hour had not yet come.31But many in the crowd believed in him and said, “When the Messiah comes, will he perform more miracles than this man has?”
REFLECT
Why were the Jewish authorities surprised by Jesus’ teachings (verse 15)? How did Jesus respond to them (verses 16-19)? In today’s reading, what questions were raised concerning Jesus as the Messiah? How did Jesus respond?
PRAY
Lord Jesus, I want to do what God wants. Teach me not to seek to gain glory for myself. May I glorify you in all my words and actions. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Those who perform acts of service with true humility

09/02/2017

JOHN 5:1-29
(GNT)
God’s Faithful Word of Love
INTRODUCTION
John 5:1-29: Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath, and his action angers the Jewish authorities who are now determined to kill him.
TODAY'S SCRIPTURE: JOHN 5:23B
[Jesus said]: “Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.”
TODAY'S READING
THE HEALING AT THE POOL

1After this, Jesus went to Jerusalem for a religious festival.2Near the Sheep Gate in Jerusalem there is a pool with five porches; in Hebrew it is called Bethzatha. 3A large crowd of sick people were lying on the porches—the blind, the lame, and the paralyzed. 5A man was there who had been sick for thirty-eight years.6Jesus saw him lying there, and he knew that the man had been sick for such a long time; so he asked him, “Do you want to get well?”
7The sick man answered, “Sir, I don't have anyone here to put me in the pool when the water is stirred up; while I am trying to get in, somebody else gets there first.”
8Jesus said to him, “Get up, pick up your mat, and walk.”9Immediately the man got well; he picked up his mat and started walking.
The day this happened was a Sabbath,10 so the Jewish authorities told the man who had been healed, “This is a Sabbath, and it is against our Law for you to carry your mat.”
11He answered, “The man who made me well told me to pick up my mat and walk.”
12They asked him, “Who is the man who told you to do this?”
13But the man who had been healed did not know who Jesus was, for there was a crowd in that place, and Jesus had slipped away.
14Afterward, Jesus found him in the Temple and said, “Listen, you are well now; so stop sinning or something worse may happen to you.”
15Then the man left and told the Jewish authorities that it was Jesus who had healed him.16So they began to persecute Jesus, because he had done this healing on a Sabbath.17Jesus answered them, “My Father is always working, and I too must work.”
18 This saying made the Jewish authorities all the more determined to kill him; not only had he broken the Sabbath law, but he had said that God was his own Father and in this way had made himself equal with God.
THE AUTHORITY OF THE SON

19So Jesus answered them, “I tell you the truth: the Son can do nothing on his own; he does only what he sees his Father doing. What the Father does, the Son also does.20For the Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing. He will show him even greater things to do than this, and you will all be amazed.21Just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, in the same way the Son gives life to those he wants to.22Nor does the Father himself judge anyone. He has given his Son the full right to judge,23so that all will honor the Son in the same way as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him.
24“I am telling you the truth: those who hear my words and believe in him who sent me have eternal life. They will not be judged, but have already passed from death to life.25I am telling you the truth: the time is coming—the time has already come—when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear it will come to life.26Just as the Father is himself the source of life, in the same way he has made his Son to be the source of life.27And he has given the Son the right to judge, because he is the Son of Man.28Do not be surprised at this; the time is coming when all the dead will hear his voice29 and come out of their graves: those who have done good will rise and live, and those who have done evil will rise and be condemned.
REFLECT
How did Jesus respond to those who challenged his healing the man on the Sabbath (verses 17, 19-29)? What do these verses tell you about God? What angered the Jewish authorities (verse 18)? After the man had been healed, why did Jesus tell him to “stop sinning” (verse 14)? Once we have received God’s forgiveness, is it hard to stop sinning? Explain.
PRAY
Gracious God, even when I sin, you look upon me with love and compassion and offer me forgiveness. Help me when I am weak and tempted to sin, and remind me that you are “always working,” ready to reach out to me in mercy and love. Amen.
PRAYER CONCERN
Those struggling with temptation