WHAT WE OUGHT TO DO - 1/22/23 (Third Sunday in Ordinary Time)

Gospel

Mt 4:12-23 

When Jesus heard that John had been arrested,

he withdrew to Galilee.

He left Nazareth and went to live in Capernaum by the sea,

in the region of Zebulun and Naphtali,

that what had been said through Isaiah the prophet

might be fulfilled:

Land of Zebulun and land of Naphtali,

the way to the sea, beyond the Jordan,

Galilee of the Gentiles,

the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light,

on those dwelling in a land overshadowed by death

light has arisen.

From that time on, Jesus began to preach and say,

“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”

As he was walking by the Sea of Galilee, he saw two brothers,

Simon who is called Peter, and his brother Andrew,

casting a net into the sea; they were fishermen.

He said to them,

“Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men.”

At once they left their nets and followed him.

He walked along from there and saw two other brothers,

James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John.

They were in a boat, with their father Zebedee, mending their nets.

He called them, and immediately they left their boat and their father

and followed him.

He went around all of Galilee,

teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom,

and curing every disease and illness among the people.

Reflection:

A blessed Sunday to all of us! When the disciples were called by Jesus, they immediately left their net and boat, including the father. This is proof that God is much more important to them than anything and anyone in their lives - whether it's work or livelihood, family or themselves. How about us? Are we able to leave our chores at home and any distractions to go to church?

We don't have to be one of the twelve apostles to say that we too can leave something for God. By leaving things in our lives that are not as important as God to pray and go to church, we fulfill our obligation. The Holy Mass is our obligation as Catholics. Furthermore, leaving and following God must be done out of love.

We must know that the work of the world and the work of God will not be compatible or united. The activities in the world are: excessive shopping for unnecessary things, following trends, being busy with clothes, material things, and so on. Being a true Christian in the act or life of obedience to God is prayer, Mass, and confession.

After this, we should dedicate our time to good deeds and helping others such as serving God, the Church and our neighbors as much as possible. All this is painful and difficult for the selfish people who only want to serve their own desires. But, if we only know how short our lives are here on earth, and we don't even know when we will die, we will prefer to prioritize our obedience to God through the deeds mentioned above.

Those are the only ones we can take to Heaven. Those are the only things that can give us treasures in Heaven, not the things that easily pass away here on earth that we think are important which we will just leave them behind. God is the only One who will remain compared to everything. Amen. +

Let's ponder on it. Amen. +

May the Loving and Almighty God bless us all, and may He protect us from temptation and evil now and forever. Amen. +

Reflections by FMMJ

Translations to English by CJT

Full readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/012223.cfm