This week, the readings at Mass remind us of God’s presence in our midst and within our lives. We are called to put our trust and faith in Him, especially during difficult and challenging moments. We are reminded that we have truly become God’s children whom He has gathered from all nations and received from Him the gift of His own Holy Spirit and love.
In our first reading today (Acts 4:23-31), we hear of the moment when the Apostles St. Peter and St. John are released from their ordeal of being interrogated by the Sanhedrin, the Jewish High Council. The members of the Sanhedrin are unhappy about the works and the teachings that the apostles are doing in the community and they want them to stop. They threaten the apostles, but this will not be enough to stop the Apostles from the serving God as the Sprit moves them.
The disciples are joyful to receive the two Apostles back safely, and they pray to God, giving thanks for all that He has done for them. They also pray for guidance and strength to be able to face the challenges and trials that will certainly come their way. They trust in the Lord fully and ask Him to stretch out His hand and provide them with strength and healing that they might be able to endure through the difficult moments.
In today’s Gospel (John 3:1-8), and continuing into tomorrow’s, we hear of the encounter between Jesus and Nicodemus who is one of the few Pharisees who is sympathetic to the Jesus and His teachings. In fact, Nicodemus so admires Jesus that he becomes Christ’s secret follower. Nicodemus finds compelling the truth taught by Jesus and is deeply moved by what he has heard in those teachings. Nicodemus tells the Lord how he truly believes that Christ is come from God and is sent by Him into the world for its salvation. The Lord then tells him that no one can truly see the kingdom of God unless he or she is born again, born in the Spirit.
Essentially Jesus teaches us that we are ‘reborn’ into this new life through baptism. After baptism we no longer live just according to our flesh, but we also live according to the Spirit, the Holy Spirit who God sends to us. This is significant because we are called to live in holiness and strive for that holiness at all times, in all of our actions, words and deeds. We are called to be genuine witnesses of His Resurrection in our own communities, to be faithful even in the midst of the opposition and the challenges we will encounter throughout this journey of faith.
So what is this new life like? Tuesday’s reading from Acts tells us that the early Christians lived a life of prayer and thanksgiving. They lived in true community with each other, “with one heart and mind.” Everyone worked, but no one claimed that their possessions were their own. They shared everything and no one lived in need. In short, they continued to live in the world, but they were not of the world.
May the Lord be with us always, just as He was with His early disciples, blessing them, providing them with strength and courage. May God be with us too and may He give us the strength and courage to follow in the footsteps of the Apostles. Amen.
May God Bless You and Grant You His Peace!