OXYGEN

02 Jul
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Genesis 22:1-19

It happened that God put Abraham to the test. ‘Abraham, Abraham,’ he called. ‘Here I am’ he replied. ‘Take your son,’ God said ‘your only child Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah. There you shall offer him as a burnt offering on a mountain I will point out to you.’

Rising early next morning Abraham saddled his ass and took with him two of his servants and his son Isaac. he chopped wood for the burnt offering and started on his journey to the place God had pointed out to him. On the third day Abraham looked up and saw the place in the distance. Then Abraham said to his servants, ‘Stay here with the donkey. The boy and I will go over there; we will worship and come back to you.’

Abraham took the wood for the burnt offering, loaded it on Isaac, and carried in his hands the fire and the knife. Then the two of them set out together. Isaac spoke to his father Abraham. ‘Father’ he said. ‘Yes, my son’ he replied. ‘Look,’ he said ‘here are the fire and the wood, but where is the lamb for the burnt offering?’ Abraham answered, ‘My son, God himself will provide the lamb for the burnt offering.’ Then the two of them went on together.

When they arrived at the place God had pointed out to him, Abraham bult an altar there, and arranged the wood. Then he bound his son Isaac and put him on the altar on top of the wood. Abraham stretched out his hands and seized the knife to kill the son.

But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven. ‘Abraham, Abraham’ he said. ‘I am here’ he replied. ‘Do not raise your hand against the boy’ the angel said. ‘Do not harm him, for now I know you fear God. You have not refused me your son, your only son.’ Then looking up, Abraham saw a ram caught by its horns in a bush. Abraham took the ram and offered it as a burnt-offering in place of his son. Abraham called this place ‘The Lord provides’, and hence the saying today: On the mountains the Lord provides.

the angel of the Lord called Abraham a second time from heaven. ‘I sear by my own self – it is the Lord who speaks – because you have done this, because you have not refused me your son, your only son, I will shower blessings on you, I will make your descendants as many as the stars of heaven and the grains of sand on the seashore. Your descendants shall gain possession of the gates of their enemies. All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience.’

Abraham went back to his servants, and together they set out for Beersheba, and he settled in Beersheba.
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Matthew 9:1-8

Jesus got in the boat, crossed the water and came to his own town. Then some people appeared, bringing him a paralytic stretched out on a bed. Seeing their faith, Jesus said to the paralytic, ‘Courage, my child, your sins are forgiven.’ And at this some scribes said to themselves, ‘This man is blaspheming.’ Knowing what was in their minds Jesus said, ‘Why do you have such wicked thoughts in your hearts? Now, which of these is easier: to say, ‘Your sins are forgiven”, or to say, “Get up and walk”? But to prove to you that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,’ – he said to the paralytic – ‘get up, and pick up your bed and go off home.’ And the man got up and went home. A feeling of awe came over the crowd when they saw this, and they praised God for giving such power to men.
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When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, “Courage, child, your sins are forgiven”

What does it mean to you to have faith? For me, I have often associated faith with a feeling of awe and complete trust that God is real and watching closely over me. Unfortunately, this feeling never lasts and there will always be periods of dryness where God feels far away. During such moments, I often think that since I cannot feel God, He must be far away from me and cannot see me. As a result, I convince myself that it is “okay” to slacken in my walk with Christ, it becomes more acceptable for me to sin and to give in to daily temptations.

Thankfully, God is ever forgiving and merciful and never gives up on me. He constantly reminds me not to rely solely on ‘feelings’, but to also realize that He is more than the feelings of awe that I get at times. So, what then does faith mean? Today’s readings provide some answers.

In the first reading, we see Abraham willing to sacrifice his only son out of obedience to God. If God asked us to sacrifice our only child, will we do it? Or maybe in a less dramatic example: If God asked us to sacrifice certain things in our lives that hold us back from following Him fully, will we? I think that it will be very hard for us to do. Yet, Abraham did it. Although he did not want to lose his beloved and only son, he had faith that God was God; thus God knew better than him. In this reading, then, Abraham’s faith in God was expressed through his obedience.

In the Gospel, on the other hand, the paralytic’s friends expressed their faith in God when they carried him to Jesus. They heard about Jesus’ power to heal and believed that Jesus would be able to heal their friend; hence, they carried their friend all the way to lay him before Jesus.

My dear friends, what do these two readings teach us about our personal faith in Jesus? The first reading shows us that faith can take the form of obedience to God’s will, even if it opposes our own will. The second reading reminds us that to have faith means to come before Jesus with our petitions. Together, these two readings demonstrate that true faith requires action. Both Abraham and the group of friends took action in spite of not knowing what the outcome would believe. They had faith in God and took action as a result of this. As a result of their faith, God poured out His blessings, mercy, and fulfilled their desires.

Therefore, let us learn from these biblical figures. Let us present our problems, anxieties, hopes, and dreams before our Lord. And always be ready to obey Him, regardless of the suffering it may cost us. For to truly be men and women of faith, we must not just say, “Lord, I have faith”, but must also take actions in faith.

(Today’s OXYGEN by Jean Cheng)
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Prayer: Holy Spirit, make me a child of true faith. Help me not to just say “Lord, I have faith”, but to also take actions in faith that my God will always be there to take care of me.

Thanksgiving: We give thanks to God for we are confident that our actions in faith will be met with abundant blessings and love from Him.

Upcoming Readings:
Fri, 03 Jul – Ephesians 2:19-22; John 20:24-29; Feast of St Thomas, Apostle
Sat, 04 Jul – Genesis 27:1-5.15-29; Matthew 9:14-17; Memorial for St Elizabeth of Portugal
Sun, 05 Jul – Ezekiel 2:2-5; 2 Corinthians 12:7-10; Mark 6:1-6; Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time