Grace and peace in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
The theme for today is found in the Old Testament reading. “And Jehovah said to Samuel, Do not look at his countenance, or at the height of his stature, because I have rejected him; because Jehovah does not see what man sees; because man looks at what is before his eyes, but Jehovah looks at the heart. ”
Many times when young people look for a boyfriend or boyfriend, we say one should not consider only appearance. Because it is the nature of a young man or woman to look for who is most beautiful. But, what is more important is the character of a boyfriend or girlfriend. Also common values and goals to support a relationship. For the Christian, above all it is a couple that has the same faith inside their hearts.
However, God created us as beings of five senses. This week I asked the preschool children, if you had to lose one of the five senses, which sense would you want to lose? To lose any of them would be a sad thing. Without the eyes, we could not see the colors, the sunlight, the smiles of others. Without ears, no music or sound of birds. Without the tongue, we could not enjoy our food. Without smell, no fragrance of flowers. Without touch, we could not feel the hugs of friends and family. The five senses are a blessing from God to us. But sometimes they limit us.
In our text, we find a male beauty contest. It is not a sin to celebrate Carnival or another occasion with a beauty contest, but we must remember there are circumstances when the appearance is not the most important aspect.
This is the background of the story. “And Jehovah said to Samuel, How long have you mourned for Saul, whom I have rejected so that he will not reign over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and come; I will send you to Jesse of Bethlehem; because of his sons I have provided myself with a king. And Samuel said: How will I go? If Saul understands, he will kill me. Jehovah replied: Take a calf from the cow with you, and say: I have come to offer sacrifice to Jehovah. And call Jesse to sacrifice, and I will teach you what to do; and you will anoint one as I tell you. So Samuel did as Jehovah told him: and after he arrived in Bethlehem, the elders of the city came out to meet him with fear, and said, Is your coming peaceful? And he replied: Yes, I come to offer sacrifice to Jehovah; sanctify yourselves, and come with me to the sacrifice. ”
Samuel's true mission was to pour oil on the head of the next king of Israel, because Saul disobeyed God and lost God's favor. But, it was not Samuel's purpose to incite rebellion.
So, when Jesse came to the sacrifice with his seven sons, the prophet reviewed them. Each one seemed very qualified to be king by their appearance. But, with the help of the Holy Spirit, Samuel saw that none was worthy of being king. Therefore, Samuel asked Jesse, “Are all your sons here? And he replied: There is still the youngest, who feeds the sheep. And Samuel said to Jesse, Send for him, because we will not sit at the table until he comes here. So he sent for him, and brought him in; who was fair, of good aspect and beautiful looking. Then Jehovah said: Get up and anoint him, because he is the one. And Samuel took the horn of oil, and anointed him from among his brothers; and from that day forward the Spirit of Jehovah came upon David. ”
As human beings, our judgment is not perfect. We cannot see the depths of the heart as God does. As St. Paul says in the epistle (1 Corinthians 13: 1-13), “And now we see as in a mirror, darkly; but then we will see face to face; now I know in part; but then I will know as I am known. ”
And many times we don't want to see that we don't want to know. In our gospel (Luke 18: 31-43), our Lord announced His death. "Behold, we go up to Jerusalem, and all the things that were written by the prophets about the Son of Man will be fulfilled. For he will be delivered to the Gentiles, and will be mocked, and insulted, and spat upon. And after they have scourged him, they will kill him, but on the third day he will rise again. "
It's so clear, isn't it? "But they didn't understand any of these things, and this word was hidden from them, and they didn't understand what was said." The twelve men chosen by the Lord to be apostles had their eyes to read the prophecies of the Old Testament and their ears to hear the words of Jesus himself. But they didn't want to pay attention to something unpleasant. They preferred to think of the Messiah as a hero in the manner of David or Moses, someone who would raise an army to defeat the Roman Empire. But in His resurrection, Jesus did not overcome an army, but much more: death, sin and the devil.
The disciples were spiritually blind. On the other hand, the blind man on the road to Jericho had the spiritual vision. “Then he shouted, saying: Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me! And those who went before rebuked him to keep quiet; but he shouted much more: Son of David, have mercy on me! Jesus then, stopping, commanded them to bring him; and when he arrived, he asked, saying: What do you want me to do for you? And he said, Lord, that I may receive my sight. And Jesus said to him: Receive your sight, your faith has saved you. "
Through his faith, the blind man received his sight and the promise of eternal life. Today we have the same promise in baptism, the same faith that is the gift of the Holy Spirit. In addition, we have more than the apostles, because Jesus has accomplished that mission in His death and resurrection and we have the testimony of these same apostles of hHs resurrection. In ourselves, we only have our eyes and other limited senses. But in Jesus, we have the guidance and wisdom of the Holy Spirit. In these things we have the peace that surpasses all understanding. Amen.
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