“THE GOOD SHEPHERD LAYS DOWN HIS LIFE FOR THE SHEEP” (John 10:11)

Friday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time 1 (03 Nov 2017- Memorial of St. Martin de Poress)

My dear, Jesus is the good Shepherd who lays down his life for the sheep. He goes on working among us with the Father (cf. John 5:17). He does not need to take permission from anybody in order to carry on this work in us, and nobody or law can stop him (see Luke 14:1-6).

Do you know what? Not even death could stop him from saving us. No angel of death and peril would stop him from saving you. Amen

And just as he saves, he asks us to assist him in saving others. We too can lay down our lives for the salvation of others (see 1 John 3:16). St Paul sets an example for us in his letter to the Romans (Rom 9:1-5). For the glory of God and for the salvation of others, he desired that he could lay down his life for others.

All you need to do is to detach yourself from the world and focus on Christ. St Martin de Porres was an epitome of that detachment. He was always thinking of the good of others even at the expense of his own comfort. There was a story told about him on how he used to help the poor with the money his mother was giving him for an errand. He lived himself for others.

He belonged to a class that were considered as ‘not-fully-humans’ (negroes) but at his death, all those who considered themselves as ‘men of ranks’ in the society turned out to carry him to his grave.

Can you join Christ today to lift up the pain in another’s heart? Don’t let your desire for your own comfort stop you from doing that. And as we go out, seeking to do so, may he save you from all your pains and worries, and save your soul from eternal damnation. Amen.

Have a great day under the protective power of Christ. Peace be with you.