Philip Raj csc
Readings: 1 Thes 4:13-18; Lk 4: 16 – 30
The readings of today speak about fulfilment of God’s promises.
In the gospel reading God fulfils the promise that he made through the prophet Isaiah. God loved the world so much that he sent his only Son Jesus to proclaim liberty to the captives, sight to the blind and to set at liberty those who are oppressed.
The sad part is that Jesus was rejected by his own people. They failed to recognize Jesus as the Son of God. In our day-to-day life, God speaks to us in various ways, but we do not pay attention to them and try to ignore them as much as possible. It may be because our faith in God is wavering and shallow.
First reading reminds us that God the Father raised Jesus from the dead and in a similar way we will also be raised to partake in his glory. This is the promise God gives to all of us. We must have faith in the Lord that he will save us, and we will be with him forever. We have seen lots of instances in the Old Testament how God the Father was faithful to his promises despite people’s lack of faith and trust. We are invited to deepen our faith and to have strong conviction in the promises of God.