To fulfil our life is to offer it like Jesus
Listening to the Spirit
Hail, Redeemer, King divine!
Priest and Lamb, the throne is thine;
King whose reign shall never cease,
Prince of everlasting peace
Angels, saints, and nations sing:
“Praise be Jesus Christ, our King;
Lord of earth and sky and sea,
King of love on Calvary.”
Christ, thou King of truth and might,
Be to us eternal light,
Till in peace each nation rings
With thy praises, King of kings.
Listening to the Word
The rulers sneered at Jesus and said, “He saved others, let him save himself if he is the chosen one, the Christ of God.” Even the soldiers jeered at him. As they approached to offer him wine they called out, “If you are King of the Jews, save yourself.” Above him there was an inscription that read, “This is the King of the Jews.”
Now one of the criminals hanging there reviled Jesus, saying, “Are you not the Christ? Save yourself and us.” The other, however, rebuking him, said in reply, “Have you no fear of God, for you are subject to the same condemnation? And indeed, we have been condemned justly, for the sentence we received corresponds to our crimes, but this man has done nothing criminal.” Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” He replied to him, “Amen, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise.”
Reflection
Why did one of the criminals go to Heaven?
The reason is that he understood that one saves him/herself in OFFERING HIS/HER OWN LIFE.
He understood the way of Jesus, the way chosen by the “Christ of God.”
To fulfill our life is to offer it LIKE JESUS!!
To live is to die…to be happy is to lay down our lives like Him. What does it mean this sentence for our lives? If I am a student, I need to spend time, energies, commitment to learn and to increase my knowledge. If I am a worker, I need to do well in my job, to be honest, and to make something that contributes to the common good. If I am a youth to die means to serve my family, my friends, my parish, the group of friends. How to do it? Why should I serve my friends? Because in doing so, you become a fulfilled person and you decrease your being selfish and capricious.
If you have a family, to die means to be faithful to your wife or husband. To die is to wake up every morning to go to work. To die is to have in mind your husband/wife and your children, without being led astray by vices, and immoral behaviors.
Dear friends, we will be with Jesus in Paradise, because we have understood that paradise is
TO OFFER ONE LIFE, to entrust our life to God, to surrender our life to Him, so that we can become INSTRUMENTS OF SALVATION LIKE HIM.
Jesus through the Cross saves the world. We do the same taking our cross and following Him.
“TODAY you will be with me in Paradise”
Reflection Questions
Gospel Reflections
Allowing Jesus to Change Us
Who Is Jesus for Me? From Encounter to Mission
