Holy Gospel of Jesus Christ according to Saint Matthew 21, 23-27
When Jesus had come into the temple area,
the chief priests and the elders of the people approached him
as he was teaching and said,
“By what authority are you doing these things?
And who gave you this authority?”
Jesus said to them in reply,
“I shall ask you one question, and if you answer it for me,
then I shall tell you by what authority I do these things.
Where was John’s baptism from?
Was it of heavenly or of human origin?”
They discussed this among themselves and said,
“If we say ‘Of heavenly origin,’ he will say to us,
‘Then why did you not believe him?’
But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we fear the crowd,
for they all regard John as a prophet.”
So they said to Jesus in reply, “We do not know.”
He himself said to them,
“Neither shall I tell you by what authority I do these things.”
God is our authority
1) Authority. We all know people who guide us in life with authority, giving example with their life and testimony. These people are leaders who, with their authority help you improve in life, without putting you down. But there is also authoritarianism, a false authority, that we are all tempted to exercise. If we are authoritarian, we separate and create distance rather than be at the side of the other along the path of life. This is something that can happen at work and home also with members of our family. Authority is a gift of God. If we are responsible of someone, it is good to pray first for that person because we have to see that that person gets to be better and improves in life.
2) ‘We do not know’. There are times when we reply in the same way to crucial moments or situations in life as we do in irrelevant ones. We evade deciding because we don’t care, or we don’t want to take risks, focusing more on our own convenience, than on the truth instead of defending the truth and enlightening life through it. This may even lead us to turn around, in our values, our thoughts… It is important to go back to your true self, to the integrity of your intentions – that’s God’s will in your life. Don’t get carried away by comments or your own convenience, stick to the truth and behave accordingly, because over time the truth always comes to light and puts things in order.
3) Saying. The art of being wise is the ability to know when to say something. The key to this is not hiding or changing the truth but having the ability to say things at the correct moment and with the appropriate prudence. There are probably many people around you who praise you when things go well, but they can turn their back on you in difficult times. Ask the Holy Ghost, to inspire you how to act on every occasion and say things at the right moment. Anyone who falls can rise, but in the heart of a Christian, rising is done with strength and joy, not with resentment and malice. Jesus is near, He is coming!
God bless you in the name of the Father, of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.Always remember Heaven is our Goal.
