BE STRONG, FEAR NOT…

Isaiah 35:1-10 
1 The wilderness and the dry land shall be glad, the desert shall rejoice and blossom; like the crocus2 it shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall be given to it, the majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the LORD, the majesty of our God.
3 Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.4 Say to those who are of a fearful heart, “Be strong, fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”
5 Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped;6 then shall the lame man leap like a hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing for joy. For waters shall break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert;7 the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; the haunt of jackals shall become a swamp, the grass shall become reeds and rushes.
8 And a highway shall be there, and it shall be called the Holy Way; the unclean shall not pass over it, and fools shall not err therein.9 No lion shall be there, nor shall any ravenous beast come up on it; they shall not be found there, but the redeemed shall walk there.10 And the ransomed of the LORD shall return, and come to Zion with singing; everlasting joy shall be upon their heads; they shall obtain joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away.

Luke 5:17-26 

17 On one of those days, as he was teaching, there were Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting by, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem; and the power of the Lord was with him to heal.
18 And behold, men were bringing on a bed a man who was paralyzed, and they sought to bring him in and lay him before Jesus;19 but finding no way to bring him in, because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down with his bed through the tiles into the midst before Jesus.
20 And when he saw their faith he said, “Man, your sins are forgiven you.”
21 And the scribes and the Pharisees began to question, saying, “Who is this that speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins but God only?”22 When Jesus perceived their questionings, he answered them, “Why do you question in your hearts?
23 Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven you,’ or to say, ‘Rise and walk?
24 But that you may know that the Son of man has authority on earth to forgive sins”–he said to the man who was paralyzed–“I say to you, rise, take up your bed and go home.”25 And immediately he rose before them, and took up that on which he lay, and went home, glorifying God.26 And amazement seized them all, and they glorified God and were filled with awe, saying, “We have seen strange things today.”

MEDITATION

ISAIAH PROPHECY that God will manifest His magesty and glory during the most dry barren times when we are at our weakest swamped by fear and sin. On this occasion, Yahweh shall direct us to follow a new path; a Holy Way, where those who have been redeemed by Yahweh shall find joy and gladness and be immune from the allures of the Satan.

THE GOSPEL READING: Four determined men carried the near lifeless body of their friend up to the second floor, to then lower him down to Christ who was teaching a convocation of Hebrew scholars from various parts of Judah, in a packed ground floor room. Awestruck by the “faith” of these four ‘pall-bearers,’ our Lord noted that the faith of these four men had secured the healing and restoration of their friend who was paralyzed by sin. 

Our Lords act of mercy ellicited a visceral negative reaction from the scribes and Pharisees who unthinkingly acknowledged that Christ was God incarnate, who not only heal bodily afflictions, but He also posses the power to forgive mans deep-rooted sin! Upon His ressurection from the dead, Christ found it nessesary to pass on the power to forgive sins (Jn 20:22-23) to the apostles. Paul apptly refer to the Sacred Rite of Confession as the “ministry of the mercy of God.”1Cor 4:1 More often than not we are no different to the Pharisees who desire bodily healing, whereas we do not aknowledge that deep rooted sin have paralyzed and compromised our soul. We are called to not fear, but be strong and muster up the courage to lower ourselves to Christ. We who are on the journey and are strong are called to carry in prayer our friends and loved ones who struggle with sin to Christ for healing, hoping that they approach the Sacrament of Confession also.

LET US PRAY:Psalms 85:9-13

9 Surely his salvation is at hand for those who fear him, that glory may dwell in our land.10 Steadfast love and faithfulness will meet; righteousness and peace will kiss each other.11 Faithfulness will spring up from the ground, and righteousness will look down from the sky.12 Yea, the LORD will give what is good, and our land will yield its increase.13 Righteousness will go before him, and make his footsteps a way.

Commentary. Henry R SYLVESTER Note: The daily scripture readings are taken from the Roman Missal which the Catholic Church use in the daily Celebration of the Holy Eucharist throughout the world.Some weekly readings may differ because of the celebration of local feast days.