THE WORD BECAME FLESH

Tuesday of the 2nd Week of Easter, 2022

Acts 4:32-37

Ps 93

John 3:7-15

One in heart and Soul

Dear friends in Christ, the early Church provides a model of what a good community should be. A place where people are united heart and soul. This is a place where no one thinks only of the self but of the entire community and their interest comes only after that of the people they are called to serve. What is the real unifying factor in a peaceful home and society?

Our Gospel passage today from John 3:7-15 provides an answer—“You must be born anew.” This was in answer to Nicodemus who had asked Jesus what he needed to do, to be saved. When Nicodemus probed further on what this means, Jesus told him, “Are you a teacher in Israel and yet do not understand this?… No one has ascended into heaven but he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” To be born anew demands faith in Jesus—the rebirth through the waters of Baptism is a sacrament that marks a break from the life of the earthly man, which we inherited from Adam. Anointed in Christ, one becomes a new creation in God, set apart on the way to salvation. Those received into this new life in Christ, are called out of the darkness of sin, into the wonderful light of God’s glory. They are expected then, to live in the world, without becoming engrossed in it. In this world and society where striving for personal survival is the norm— even when it comes at the expense of others, a Christian is called to be outstanding in living for others.

Our first reading today (Acts 4:32-37) tells us of how the early Church went about it. “The company of those who believed were of one heart and soul, and no one said that any of the things which he possessed was his own, but they had everything in common.” The man who opened the door to this communal way of using their material wealth was Joseph Barnabas(which means, son of encouragement), a Levite from Cyprus, who sold his field, brought the money, and laid it at the apostles’ feet. The whole essence of that was to make sure that the poor ones in the community were provided for, from the common purse. It is unfortunate that in our own time, the powerful ones rob the poor or even the little ones they have to live on. Christianity demands a change of attitude in the way we look at the commonwealth. We must be seen to be contributing more to the common purse than we are taking out of it. In that way, no one will live in abject poverty where others have too much and a lot to waste. Five thousand people fed on five loaves and they had much leftover, why is it the billions we hear of every day cannot go round? What is your contribution to the commonwealth?

Let us pray: We look to you Lord, help us to be generous in our dealings with others. Amen. 

+Remain blessed