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Praying to the Father

by Food For Thought on May 14, 2013 · 

At the Last Supper, Jesus glorifies his Father and speaks of his own glory, the glory of the cross which exemplifies his great love for us sinners and the reversal of our condemnation. The greatest gift a son can give to his father is to be obedient to him. Jesus was obedient to his Father until death, even death on the cross – the ultimate glorification. The essence of our faith is the knowledge that God is our Father. Through the cross, Jesus made it possible for all of us to recognize this truth. Jesus also speaks of the Father bringing glory to the Son through the great mystery of the incarnation and the cross. There is no greater proof of God’s love for us than Christ’s cross. In the cross we see a love that is unconditional, complete, perfect.

Jesus prays to the Father for his disciples that he would soon be leaving behind. He is concerned as a mother for her children, to keep them, to keep us believers, safe and protected because we belong to the Father who, in turn, endorsed us to Jesus. We belong to God because we believe in Jesus. How generous God is. And we are so undeserving.


36 posted on 05/14/2013 6:44:59 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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To: Salvation
One Bread, One Body

One Bread, One Body

 


<< Tuesday, May 14, 2013 >> St. Matthias
Pentecost Novena - Day 5

 
Acts 1:15-17, 20-26
View Readings
Psalm 113:1-8 John 15:9-17
 

"THE SPIRIT AND THE BRIDE" (Rv 22:17)

 
"The saying in Scripture uttered long ago by the Holy Spirit through the mouth of David was destined to be fulfilled in Judas." —Acts 1:16
 

While the Church, about to be born at Pentecost, was praying in the upper room (see Acts 1:14), Peter stood up and quoted two obscure sentences from the Psalms (Acts 1:20). The first one, Psalm 69:26, if applied to Judas Iscariot's apostleship, sounded as if no one should take Judas' place, although the quote was probably applied to the field in which Judas died. The second quote, Psalm 109:8, if applied to Judas, seems to call for apostolic succession. The apostles accepted Peter's prophetic interpretation of these two Scripture passages. Thus, we have the first apostolic succession. This is the only way by which we can objectively determine whether a group which calls itself a "church" is truly the Church founded by Jesus. Thus, Peter's primacy, his leadership of the apostles, and apostolic succession were already beginning to be established in the Church in the womb of the upper room before the Church was born at Pentecost.

The Holy Spirit and the Church, especially the hierarchical aspects of the Church, go together. The coming of the Holy Spirit and the birthday of the Church were simultaneous. The Spirit and the Bride of Christ, the Church, both say the same thing (see Rv 22:17). The Spirit is Truth (1 Jn 5:6), and the Church is the pillar and bulwark of truth (1 Tm 3:15). If we are in the Spirit, we must be in the Church in a deep way.

 
Prayer: Holy Spirit, produce in me Your fruit of love (Gal 5:22), especially love for the Church (see Eph 5:25).
Promise: "It was not you who chose Me, it was I Who chose you to go forth and bear fruit. Your fruit must endure." —Jn 15:16
Praise: St. Matthias rejoiced when whipped as punishment for teaching about Jesus (Acts 5:40). He was continually "teaching and proclaiming the good news of Jesus the Messiah" (Acts 5:42).

37 posted on 05/14/2013 6:55:14 PM PDT by Salvation ("With God all things are possible." Matthew 19:26)
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