Jesus' Strong Teaching

Food for Life.

6 “Do not give what is holy to dogs,[a] or throw your pearls before swine, lest they trample them underfoot, and turn and tear you to pieces.
7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened. 9 Which one of you would hand his son a stone when he asks for a loaf of bread,[b] 10 or a snake when he asks for a fish? 11 If you then, who are wicked, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give good things to those who ask him.
12 [c]“Do to others whatever you would have them do to you. This is the law and the prophets.
13 [d]“Enter through the narrow gate;[e] for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. 14 How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few.-Matthew7:6-14

Jesus says it all. Everything is as clear as water. What do you say? 

Rooted in Love

Blessedness rooted in Love.

1 [a]When he saw the crowds,[b] he went up the mountain, and after he had sat down, his disciples came to him. 2 He began to teach them, saying:
[c]
3 “Blessed are the poor in spirit,[d]
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
4 [e]Blessed are they who mourn,
for they will be comforted.
5 [f]Blessed are the meek,
for they will inherit the land.
6 Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness,[g]
for they will be satisfied.
7 Blessed are the merciful,
for they will be shown mercy.
8 [h]Blessed are the clean of heart,
for they will see God.
9 Blessed are the peacemakers,
for they will be called children of God.
10 Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness,[i]
for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
11 Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me. 12 [j]Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.-Matthew5:1-12

Who are the blessed? Those who are poor in spirit, who mourn, who are meek, who hunger and thirst for righteousness, who are merciful, who are clean of heart, who are peacemakers, who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness and those who are insulted and persecuted because of Jesus. The Beatitudes is a teaching of Jesus, and Jesus is Love. Therefore, the Beatitudes are all about Love or rooted in Love. It is a love that makes one selfless and sacrificing for others.

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Truly Stubborn

A heart that refuses to believe is hard to convince.

40 Some in the crowd who heard these words said, “This is truly the Prophet.” 41 Others said, “This is the Messiah.” But others said, “The Messiah will not come from Galilee, will he? 42 Does not scripture say that the Messiah will be of David’s family and come from Bethlehem, the village where David lived?” 43 So a division occurred in the crowd because of him. 44 Some of them even wanted to arrest him, but no one laid hands on him.45 So the guards went to the chief priests and Pharisees, who asked them, “Why did you not bring him?” 46 The guards answered, “Never before has anyone spoken like this one.” 47 So the Pharisees answered them, “Have you also been deceived? 48 Have any of the authorities or the Pharisees believed in him? 49 But this crowd, which does not know the law, is accursed.” 50 Nicodemus, one of their members who had come to him earlier, said to them, 51 “Does our law condemn a person before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?” 52 They answered and said to him, “You are not from Galilee also, are you? Look and see that no prophet arises from Galilee.”-John7:40-53

As I read the Gospel reading, I cannot help but be amazed at the stubbornness and hardness of the hearts of some people in the crowd, chief priests and Pharisees. Even if Jesus did or said something great already, still they have a ready excuse to discredit Him. Nicodemus is one of the Pharisees. It is with logic that he asked, 'Does our law condemn a person before it first hears him and finds out what he is doing?' Yet, the others still found a way to discredit not only Jesus but Nicodemus' logic too.

Sometimes in life, despite speaking the truth, despite doing good, others will never be convinced of our goodness simply because they know us, where we come from, who our family is, the past sins we committed and regretted. Jesus is teaching us not to be discouraged since He was in the exact situation already. If others are not and will never be convinced of our goodness, Jesus is assuring us that He sees the sincerity in the minds and hearts of each one of us, and, will never leave our side.

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Hard to Convince

A heart that refuses to believe is difficult to convince.

1 [a]After this, Jesus moved about within Galilee; but he did not wish to travel in Judea, because the Jews were trying to kill him. 2 But the Jewish feast of Tabernacles was near. 3 So his brothers[b] said to him, “Leave here and go to Judea, so that your disciples also may see the works you are doing. 4 No one works in secret if he wants to be known publicly. If you do these things, manifest yourself to the world.” 5 For his brothers did not believe in him.... 14 When the feast was already half over, Jesus went up into the temple area and began to teach. 15 [f]The Jews were amazed and said, “How does he know scripture without having studied?” 16 Jesus answered them and said, “My teaching is not my own but is from the one who sent me. 17 Whoever chooses to do his will[g] shall know whether my teaching is from God or whether I speak on my own. 18 Whoever speaks on his own seeks his own glory, but whoever seeks the glory of the one who sent him is truthful, and there is no wrong in him. 19 Did not Moses give you the law? Yet none of you keeps the law. Why are you trying to kill me?” 20 The crowd answered, “You are possessed![h] Who is trying to kill you?” 21 Jesus answered and said to them, “I performed one work[i] and all of you are amazed 22 because of it. Moses gave you circumcision—not that it came from Moses but rather from the patriarchs—and you circumcise a man on the sabbath. 23 If a man can receive circumcision on a sabbath so that the law of Moses may not be broken, are you angry with me because I made a whole person well on a sabbath? 24 Stop judging by appearances, but judge justly.”25 So some of the inhabitants of Jerusalem said, “Is he not the one they are trying to kill? 26 And look, he is speaking openly and they say nothing to him. Could the authorities[j] have realized that he is the Messiah? 27 But we know where he is from. When the Messiah comes, no one will know where he is from.” 28 So Jesus cried out in the temple area as he was teaching and said, “You know me and also know where I am from. Yet I did not come on my own, but the one who sent me, whom you do not know, is true. 29 I know him, because I am from him, and he sent me.” 30 So they tried to arrest him, but no one laid a hand upon him, because his hour had not yet come.-John7:1-30

Here, the people are torn between believing Jesus and hating Him. It seems that people have a lot of reasons and excuses to discredit Jesus. For them, Jesus is not worthy of the Knowledge of God, not worthy of the God-given gifts, not worthy to do miracles, not worthy to teach simply because they know Him, where He came from. A heart that refuses to believe is hard to convince. For them, it is much better to see somebody suffer rather than be healed or be helped on a Sabbath. Jesus' Words ring true for us also - 'Stop judging by appearances, but judge justly.' Jesus is teaching us that all works that origin from God is good. Who then are we to judge if a good act helped another?

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Teaching Authority

Jesus fulfilled the Law.

17 [a]“Do not think that I have come to abolish the law or the prophets. I have come not to abolish but to fulfill. 18 Amen, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law, until all things have taken place. 19 Therefore, whoever breaks one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do so will be called least in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever obeys and teaches these commandments will be called greatest in the kingdom of heaven.[b]-Matthew5:17-19

The gospel reading made me wonder about something and made me remember someone. A world-renowned boxer was initially known for being a devout Catholic. So many people were touched at his piety. One day, he announced that he would leave the Catholic Church in favor of a born-again religious sect. I do not want to judge him, but it made me, and so many others, wonder if he did this just so that he can include it in his achievements - self-made man, millionaire, world-class boxer, philanthropist, politician (sic) and now a preacher. Can anybody preach just like that? Is the desire to be a motivational speaker enough reason to leave a Church in favor of another? What is more important - to preach the Scriptures with one's experiences as fuel, or to preach the Scriptures with years of studies as fuel? Preaching and evangelizing are noble acts and I am touched by men and women who do it, but can anybody just do it? Is there danger if somebody is just plucked from nowhere to do it?

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Living Life to the Fullest

How must we enjoy life to the fullest?

22 He said, “The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes, and be killed and on the third day be raised.”23 Then he said to all, “If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily[a] and follow me. 24 For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it. 25 What profit is there for one to gain the whole world yet lose or forfeit himself?-Luke9:22-25

So many people would say or greet another with this simple message, "Enjoy life." But what is the formula for enjoying life? I have read stories, encountered people who say that to enjoy life, one must travel, shop, party, be with friends, spend, beautifying oneself, eat and drink, and so forth. These are not bad or evil. However, these are not the real key or answer to enjoying life to the fullest. To live life to the fullest is simply by following Christ - a life of simplicity and poverty, of respect, of love, of generosity, of compassion, of mercy, of prayer, of humility, of doing the will of God. An expensive bag gives one happiness that lasts for a short time only. A bag, no matter how expensive it is, is still a bag at the end of the day. The happiness through generosity that we do to others lasts for a long time. Even if we forget, other people remember it. The goodness we do to others, contribute to the change of the world and teaches others to be good as well. We live in this world but it doesn't mean we have to be worldly. Everything is created good and Jesus is inviting us to complement it by doing good also. Seemingly our world is evil, but God and His goodness - through our goodness also - will always triumph.

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L'amour

Walk the Talk.

21 They went to Capernaum, and when the Sabbath came, Jesus went into the synagogue and began to teach. 22 The people were amazed at his teaching, because he taught them as one who had authority, not as the teachers of the law. 23 Just then a man in their synagogue who was possessed by an impure spirit cried out, 24 “What do you want with us, Jesus of Nazareth? Have you come to destroy us? I know who you are—the Holy One of God!”

25 “Be quiet!” said Jesus sternly. “Come out of him!” 26 The impure spirit shook the man violently and came out of him with a shriek.

27 The people were all so amazed that they asked each other, “What is this? A new teaching—and with authority! He even gives orders to impure spirits and they obey him.” 28 News about him spread quickly over the whole region of Galilee.-Mark1:21-28

How did Jesus teach? Why is it that it is with authority? Can it be imitated? For me, Jesus taught with authority because He did not preach alone but lived out what He taught. He did not pass the 'yoke' and 'burden' to the people, but He helped carry the 'yoke' and the 'burden.' What's great is that Jesus' yoke and burden are easy and light, and can be imitated. The very heart of Jesus' Words, Teaching, Actions and Thought center on Love. And Love is easy for all who are open to it. Love is not about romance only, or the sweetness of it only, or the hardships one experiences for a ladylove. True love forgives, gives, understands, and so much more. Pope Francis said, "Do not scold; heal." Love does not scold, it heals. However, healing, mercy, compassion and understanding does not mean toleration of evil.

I understand why "Frozen" was a major box office hit for animated movies. At first, I thought that a prince charming will save the day, or a hero will save the day, or an act of true love has to be a first kiss just like the other fairy tale stories. I was greatly surprised and truly touched that this time, an act of true love was between the sisters - that is when Anna sacrificed her life for her sister, Elsa. Now that's living out Love!

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Simply Love

Jesus' yoke is easy!

28 “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.”-Matthew11:28-30

As I read the Gospel reading, two words came to my mind, the "What" and the "How." What is the "yoke" and what is the "burden?" Yoke is the teaching, while the Burden is its application or implementation. The Jewish instruction during the time of Jesus was very complicated. The Law spawned into many practices, traditions, rituals, ceremonies and the like. Any pupil will have difficulty memorizing it all. Thus, the yoke makes one weary. The application or implementation of it is also burdensome.

A classic example is the ritual of a cleansed leper [I would have wanted to write them all here but the ritual is too long]. The cleansing ritual is too long and in stages as well. But notice that with Jesus, it is simply "Go your way. Your faith has saved you." As a Catholic, I do not remember anybody having to show themselves to the priest after getting cured from ailments like cancer, stomach pains, bleeding and the like. Of course anybody can show themselves to a priest to thank them for prayers but it is not mandatory or a high-level requirement to do so.

Jesus' yoke is indeed easy and His burden light. The summary of the Bible is set on two greatest commandments only - Love of God and Love of Neighbor. Or simply put, LOVE. Love is Jesus' yoke. And what of the burden or the teaching's application or implementation? Acts of love! Acts of love need not be great. It can even be just a small one. It can even be done by being kind and respectful to others like saying "Thank you" to the waiter. Even a smile is an act of love.

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