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THE TRUTH SETS US FREE
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03-24-2021, 01:02 PM
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THE TRUTH SETS US FREE
THE TRUTH SETS US FREE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [DANIEL 3:14-20.91-92.95; JOHN 8:31-42] Many people are seeking freedom in the world. But the freedom that they seek is pure slavery. Freedom for them means being able to do what they like without restrictions, whether in words, pictures, speech or in action. For them, freedom means not being restricted by any law. There is no right or wrong. Everything is relative and contextualized. Absolute personal freedom is what the world is championing today, at the expense of the greater good of the community and the freedom of others. When we reduce freedom to self-indulgence, in truth, it means that we are slaves, slaves to our passion, desires, attachments, feelings and emotions. We are no longer in charge of ourselves but our passions rule us. So long as pleasures rule us, we are slaves. Indeed, what the world is seeking is slavery, not true freedom. They claim that they are free to do what they like. In truth, they are not doing what they like but sin makes them do what sin likes. Unfortunately, the world is blind. They are so blind that they do not know that they are actually slaves to themselves and the world. This was the case of the Jews. They denied that they were slaves. They said to Jesus, “We are descended from Abraham and we have never been the slaves of anyone; what do you mean, ‘You will be made free’?” The reply of Jesus was that “everyone who commits sin is a slave.” When we cannot resist sin, it means that we are not in control of ourselves. When we miss the goal of life and stray away from what we are called to be, it is sin because sin is to miss the mark. This is the tragic situation in the world today. Evil today is glorified as something good. (cf Isa 5:20) Self-indulgence is promoted by a consumeristic world and a world of individualism. Today, we worship ourselves as if we are gods. Indeed, sin is the greatest form of slavery because it blinds us to who we truly are. Sin is a failure to live as sons and daughters of God. We are created to share in the life God, His truth and love. This is the dignity of human beings, created in the image and likeness of God. Sin prevents one from recognizing his dependence on God and sets one up in opposition to Him. It is a rejection of God’s plan for humanity by the refusal to follow the laws that God has established in creation. When we sin, we not only offend our neighbours but we also offend God. The more we give in to sin, the more we cannot get out of our sinful habits. They have a hold over us. Today, Jesus wants to help us to gain true freedom as sons and daughters of God. To the Jews who believed in Him Jesus said, “If you make my word your home you will indeed be my disciples, you will learn the truth and the truth will make you free.” Jesus shows us how we can be truly sons and daughters of God. He is truly the Son of God not simply by origin but truly, as seen in His life of obedience to the Father. His divine sonship is proven by His obedience to the Father even unto death. His very life, His words and actions, His whole demeanor reveals the Father’s love and mercy. Hence, He said, “Now the slave’s place in the house is not assured, but the son’s place is assured. So if the Son makes you free, you will be free indeed.” The way to regain our sonship and daughtership is to be disciples of our Lord by obeying His Word. Unless we walk the way of truth as taught by our Lord in the scriptures, we are not truly the sons and daughters of God. The Lord warns us that being sons and daughters of God cannot simply be a nominal reality. Many of us are baptized but only in name, not in truth. This was the mistake of the Jews. They claimed to be sons of Abraham and have God as their Father. But Jesus said that their father was the devil, the father of lies. “You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (Jn 8:44) One can be a descendent of Abraham and likewise a baptized Catholic and yet not be a Christian! This was what the Lord said to them, “I know that you are descended from Abraham; but in spite of that you want to kill me because nothing I say has penetrated into you. What I, for my part, speak of is what I have seen with my Father; but you, you put into action the lessons learnt from your father.” When they insisted that Abraham was their Father, the Lord retorted, “If you were Abraham’s children, you would do as Abraham did. As it is, you want to kill me when I tell you the truth as I have learnt it from God; that is not what Abraham did. What you are doing is what your father does.” It is also a timely reminder for us too. Are we truly the sons and daughters of our heavenly Father and the brothers and sisters of our Lord Jesus Christ? If we are, then we would not behave like the sons and daughters of the Devil. Do our lives reflect God’s love and mercy, joy and peace, or that of someone dominated by anger, greed, selfishness, pride and lust? We will know from our lives whether we are truly free as the sons and daughters of God. Jesus said, “If God were your father, you would love me, since I have come here from God; yes, I have come from him; not that I came because I chose, no, I was sent, and by him.” Our good works therefore, like that of Jesus, would reveal our true identity as God’s children. We must wake up to the truth that true sonship and daughtership cannot be dependent on race, religious affiliation and tradition. This was the mistake of the Israelites and the Jews. They thought that just because they were the Chosen People of God, they were guaranteed salvation regardless how they lived their lives. If God is our Father, or if we are truly descendants of Abraham, then we must be shaped and molded by their way of life. We cannot claim security as the Jews did by being related to Abraham biologically. It is true that Abraham was a Father of faith but not just for the Jews but for the entire humanity because God made His Covenant with him that he would be the father of nations. But we cannot cling to tradition alone. More importantly, we need to learn from his spiritual fatherhood. Unless we walk in obedience to God and in faith, we cannot find salvation even if we were related to Abraham genealogically. This is why Catholics cannot simply think that baptism is a guarantee of their salvation, and live on the spiritual capital of the religion. Rather, we must welcome Jesus just as Abraham welcomed strangers who were God’s messengers in disguise with great hospitality. (Gn 18:1-8) But instead of welcoming Jesus, the messenger of God, the Jews wanted to kill Him, which was not what Abraham would have done. This clearly showed that Abraham was not their spiritual father. True freedom comes from faith in Christ. Jesus leads to authentic freedom. Only Jesus can enlighten us in the truth and empower us by giving us His Holy Spirit to walk in the truth. Let us therefore follow the example of the three young men in the first reading. They were true to themselves and their belief in God. When the King asked, “is it true that you do not serve my gods, and that you refuse to worship the golden statue I have erected?” they answered truthfully, “Your question hardly requires an answer: if our God, the one we serve, is able to save us from the burning fiery furnace and from your power, O king, he will save us; and even if he does not, then you must know, O king, that we will not serve your god or worship the statue you have erected.” Truth set them free from fear of pain and even death. True freedom is when we are free for truth and free for God. Not even death can hold us back! As a consequence, the Lord protected and saved the three young men from the burning furnace. As we walk in truth and freedom, we will also lead others to freedom, just as they revealed the truth to the King. |
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