Community Word: Jesus Christ is the reflection of God’s love in us and for us.
Order: “You who fear the Lord, praise him;… give glory to him; revere him, all you descendants of Israel!” (Ps 22:24)
Reflection:
Lent is a journey towards strengthening our spiritual life. In the readings of the first Sunday of Lent, our Lord teaches us, that to start this spiritual journey, we have to conquer temptations that come our way through the power of God’s word. We can make this a season of opportunity to renew our personal encounter with Jesus by living as Jesus lived his life. “This is how we know that we are in him: he who claims to live in him must live as he lived,” (1Jn 2:5).
The theme for the second Sunday of Lent is: We are a reflection of God’s love when we listen to His voice. We give glory to God when we listen to Jesus, His beloved Son, and are guided by His word at all times. “Speak, Lord. I am your servant and I am listening,” (1 Samuel 3:10). God speaks to us in many ways, sometimes when we are at prayer, or in quiet contemplation, sometimes through people we encounter throughout the day. We just have to be sensitive to the leadings of the Holy Spirit. We must keep an open mind and an obedient heart. What matters is not just knowing His word, but in faithfully living it.
On the third Sunday of Lent, theme is: We are a reflection of God’s love when we allow Him to cleanse us of our imperfections. Despite our human weakness and sinfulness, God has implanted in us an inherent goodness that directs us to do our best to be good Christians, and to worship and serve Him in spirit and in truth. We just have to be ready to admit and repent of our transgressions. “Have mercy on me, O God, in your love. In your great compassion blot out my sin. Wash me thoroughly of my guilt; cleanse me of evil,” (Ps 51:3-4).
The fourth Sunday’s theme is: We are a reflection of God’s love when we believe in Him and live in His truth. And the truth we need to live by is: “God so loved the world that he gave his only Son that whoever believes in him may not be lost, but may have eternal life,” (Jn 3:16). The Son of God who laid down his life to deliver us from sin and give us fullness of life, is the manifestation and greatest sign of the Father’s love for all men. We live in Christ’s truth when we live our lives in accordance to the reason we have been created: to know him, to love him, and to be with him forever in heaven. “As most beloved children of God, strive to imitate him. Follow the way of love, the example of Christ who loved you. He gave himself up for us and became the offering and sacrificial victim whose fragrance rises to God,” (Eph 5:1-2).
The theme for fifth Sunday is: We are a reflection of God’s love when we follow the Lord and serve Him in His people. “If you say I know Jesus but do not fulfill his commands, you are a liar and the truth is not in you. But if you keep his word, God’s love is made complete in you,” (1Jn 2:5). Jesus solemnly assures us that “unless the grain of wheat falls to the earth and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit,” (Jn 12:24). We have to die to ourselves for God’s will to be accomplished in us. By surrendering our lives to God and to His perfect will for us, we become truly His servants.
Palm Sunday’s theme is: We are a reflection of God’s love when we confess that Jesus Christ is Lord. “Those who confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in them and they in God,” (1Jn 4:15). Praising God, repenting of our sins, and worshipping Him are good. But it takes more than this for us to be truly transformed. “Not everyone who says to me: Lord! Lord! will enter the kingdom of heaven, but the one who does the will of my heavenly Father,” (Mt 7:21).
The passion story demonstrates how Jesus perceived his suffering and death on the cross as an opportunity to show his love of the Father and his love for us. It should also teach us to accept our crosses in life as opportunities for personal sacrifice and thanksgiving to God. “For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all, teaching us to reject an irreligious way of life and worldly greed, and to live in this world as responsible persons, upright and serving God, while we await our blessed hope – the glorious manifestation of our great God and Savior Christ Jesus,” (Tit 2:11-13). Our attitude and response to Jesus not only reveals who we are but also determines our destiny.
Reflection Questions:
1. Does your lifestyle show you to be a person who has truly encountered Jesus, and that he lives in you?
2. Before God and for God, could you claim all your plans and actions are motivated by love for him and the desire to glorify His name?
Please download in PDF format.
