First reading Acts 14:5-18
We have come with good news to turn you to the living God
Eventually with the connivance of the authorities a move was made by pagans as well as Jews to make attacks on the apostles and to stone them. When the apostles came to hear of this, they went off for safety to Lycaonia where, in the towns of Lystra and Derbe and in the surrounding country, they preached the Good News.
A man sat there who had never walked in his life, because his feet were crippled from birth; and as he listened to Paul preaching, he managed to catch his eye. Seeing that the man had the faith to be cured, Paul said in a loud voice, ‘Get to your feet – stand up’, and the cripple jumped up and began to walk.
When the crowd saw what Paul had done they shouted in the language of Lycaonia, ‘These people are gods who have come down to us disguised as men.’ They addressed Barnabas as Zeus, and since Paul was the principal speaker they called him Hermes. The priests of Zeus-outside-the-Gate, proposing that all the people should offer sacrifice with them, brought garlanded oxen to the gates. When the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard what was happening they tore their clothes, and rushed into the crowd, shouting, ‘Friends, what do you think you are doing? We are only human beings like you. We have come with good news to make you turn from these empty idols to the living God who made heaven and earth and the sea and all that these hold. In the past he allowed each nation to go its own way; but even then he did not leave you without evidence of himself in the good things he does for you: he sends you rain from heaven, he makes your crops grow when they should, he gives you food and makes you happy.’ Even this speech, however, was scarcely enough to stop the crowd offering them sacrifice.
Responsorial Psalm 113B(115):1-4,15-16
Not to us, Lord, but to your name give the glory.
or
Alleluia!
Not to us, Lord, not to us,
but to your name give the glory
for the sake of your love and your truth,
lest the heathen say: ‘Where is their God?’
But our God is in the heavens;
he does whatever he wills.
Their idols are silver and gold,
the work of human hands.
May you be blessed by the Lord,
the maker of heaven and earth.
The heavens belong to the Lord
but the earth he has given to men.
Gospel John 14:21-26
The Advocate, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you everything
Jesus said to his disciples:
‘Anybody who receives my commandments and keeps them
will be one who loves me;
and anybody who loves me will be loved by my Father,
and I shall love him and show myself to him.’
Judas – this was not Judas Iscariot – said to him, ‘Lord, what is all this about? Do you intend to show yourself to us and not to the world?’ Jesus replied:
‘If anyone loves me he will keep my word,
and my Father will love him,
and we shall come to him and make our home with him.
Those who do not love me do not keep my words.
And my word is not my own:
it is the word of the one who sent me.
I have said these things to you while still with you;
but the Advocate, the Holy Spirit,
whom the Father will send in my name,
will teach you everything
and remind you of all I have said to you.’
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Keeping Jesus’ commandment of love
“Anybody who receives my commandments and keeps them will be one who loves me.” What is Jesus’ commandment? In John 13:34, He tells us, “You must love one another as I have loved you.” By loving our neighbour, our love for Jesus becomes real and concrete. To keep His commandment, then, is to love the other person in the same way that Jesus loves, i.e. a love that always goes beyond feelings and is based on the decision to look always for the good of the other, even at the expense of oneself.
Sometimes, we find that Jesus’ self-giving love goes against the selfish love we experience in ourselves and the world. Yet, He reminds us that we are not alone in our efforts to love like Him because He gives us the Holy Spirit, the Helper who never tires of teaching and giving us the grace we need to love like Jesus. With the Holy Spirit’s help, we are encouraged to keep Jesus’ commandment of love today and always. Let us hope that our little acts of love bring others, in turn, to know and love Jesus.
Reflective question:
How can I keep Jesus’ commandment today?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year B” by Sr Maria Jose FMVD.
