Elija Mission

Mt 8:5-17

When he went into Capernaum a centurion came up and pleaded with him. ‘Sir,’ he said, ‘my servant is lying at home paralysed and in great pain. ‘Jesus said to him, ‘I will come myself and cure him. ‘The centurion replied, ‘Sir, I am not worthy to have you under my roof; just give the word and my servant will be cured. For I am under authority myself and have soldiers under me; and I say to one man, “Go,” and he goes; to another, “Come here,” and he comes; to my servant, “Do this,” and he does it.’ When Jesus heard this he was astonished and said to those following him, ‘In truth I tell you, in no one in Israel have I found faith as great as this. And I tell you that many will come from east and west and sit down with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob at the feast in the kingdom of Heaven; but the children of the kingdom will be thrown out into the darkness outside, where there will be weeping and grinding of teeth. And to the centurion Jesus said, ‘Go back, then; let this be done for you, as your faith demands.’ And the servant was cured at that moment.’

And going into Peter’s house Jesus found Peter’s mother-in-law in bed and feverish. He touched her hand and the fever left her, and she got up and began to serve him. That evening they brought him many who were possessed by devils. He drove out the spirits with a command and cured all who were sick. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: He himself bore our sicknesses away and carried our diseases. Read More

Mt 8:1-4 

After Jesus had come down from the mountain large crowds followed him. Suddenly a man with a virulent skin-disease came up and bowed low in front of him, saying, ‘Lord, if you are willing, you can cleanse me.’ Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him saying, ‘I am willing. Be cleansed.’ And his skin-disease was cleansed at once. Then Jesus said to him, ‘Mind you tell no one, but go and show yourself to the priest and make the offering prescribed by Moses, as evidence to them.’ Read More

Mt 7:21-29

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: “not every one who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of my Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to me, ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in your name, and cast out demons in your name, and do many mighty works in your name?’  And then will I declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from me, you evildoers.’ “Every one then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house upon the rock; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat upon that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.  And every one who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house upon the sand; and the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell; and great was the fall of it.” And when Jesus finished these sayings, the crowds were astonished at his teaching, for he taught them as one who had authority, and not as their scribes. Read More

Acts 13:16,22-26

Paul stood up, raised his hand for silence and began to speak: ‘Men of Israel, and fearers of God, listen! After he deposed Saul and raised up David to be king, whom he attested in these words, “I have found David son of Jesse, a man after my own heart, who will perform my entire will.” To keep his promise, God has raised up for Israel one of David’s descendants, Jesus, as Saviour, whose coming was heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole people of Israel. Before John ended his course he said, “I am not the one you imagine me to be; there is someone coming after me whose sandal I am not fit to undo.” My brothers, sons of Abraham’s race, and all you godfearers, this message of salvation is meant for you.’ Read More

Mt 7:6,12-14

‘Do not give dogs what is holy; and do not throw your pearls in front of pigs, or they may trample them and then turn on you and tear you to pieces. So always treat others as you would like them to treat you; that is the Law and the Prophets. Enter by the narrow gate, since the road that leads to destruction is wide and spacious, and many take it; but it is a narrow gate and a hard road that leads to life, and only a few find it.’ Read More

Mt 7:1-5

Do not judge, and you will not be judged; because the judgements you give are the judgements you will get, and the standard you use will be the standard used for you. Why do you observe the splinter in your brother’s eye and never notice the great log in your own? And how dare you say to your brother, “Let me take that splinter out of your eye,” when, look, there is a great log in your own? Hypocrite! Take the log out of your own eye first, and then you will see clearly enough to take the splinter out of your brother’s eye.

Read More

Mt 10:26-33

At that time, Jesus said to his disciples: do not be afraid of them. Everything now covered up will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops. Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny? And yet not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. So there is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than many sparrows. ‘So if anyone declares himself for me in the presence of human beings, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven. But the one who disowns me in the presence of human beings, I will disown in the presence of my Father in heaven.

Read More

Phil 4:4-9, 11-13

Rejoice in the Lord always; again I will say, Rejoice. Let all men know your forbearance. The Lord is at hand. Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which passes all understanding, will keep your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is gracious, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things. What you have learned and received and heard and seen in me, do; and the God of peace will be with you. Read More

In the passage we meditated on yesterday, St. Paul emphasized that it was not the Law that saved him—even though, as a devout Jew, he had always strictly observed it—but rather the undeserved gift of faith in Jesus Christ. In the following verses, he reiterates this point:

Phil 3:9-21

Not having a righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith; [I seek to] know him and the power of his resurrection, and may share his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained this or am already perfect; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me his own.

Read More

After reflecting on the passage from the Letter to the Philippians yesterday, the Apostle Paul goes on to speak with great affection about his colleague Timothy, whom he regards as a son in Christ and whom he wishes to send to the community in Philippi. The warmth of these verses (Philippians 2:19–22) is striking and reveals much about the Apostle’s heart. He also intends to send Epaphroditus, who nearly died for the Gospel. However, he recovered to the joy and comfort of all (vv. 25–27). Paul’s longing to visit the community in Philippi in person is evident in several passages of the epistle (Phil 1:27; 4:1). “I trust in the Lord that shortly I myself shall come also.” (Phil. 2:24)

The apostle then returns to offer guidance to the young community. On this occasion, it is first of all a warning:

Read More