SUNDAY DAY SERVICE --- February 17, 2013
PART 2
AFTER THE GOSPEL of THE MASS
( The Healing Conversion back to Christ )
TITLE:
If Life Could Give One True Friend
The second wound to Jesus’ heart
The “Fervent Yes” that became a “Fearful No’ “
The Human Respect –“Fearful ‘No ‘ ” that brought Infinite TEARS
A- Peter’s Denial
B- The Sorrow of Peter
C- The Tears that Never Ceased
Matthew 26: 69--75
Mark 14: 66- 72
Luke 22: 56-62
John 15- 18; 25-27
REFLECTIVE THOUGHTS:
1- The Tears of The Man Called Peter..Love is Deep. It wounds.
2- Love once given was never meant to be taken back.
3- Has anyone ever said to someone: “I love You”, and then, confronted
by other jealous and envious humans cause one to surrender a
“No”, and thus becomes a Victim of the sin of Human Respect?
4- Such is the wound that hurt the Sacred Heart of Christ by Judas and
then by Peter. One despaired; the other cried and came back.
5- Are you a friend who became weak..a friend who said “I Love You”?
6- But then fearful by the crowds, the person questioning your good
love, and like Peter, you firmly said: “No, I know not the person.. this
woman, this man. NO! I know not this person.
Such is the story of the second wound to the heart of Christ.
Such is the wound in the story of the Beloved “Yes” and “No” and converted
Peter. He said three times:
“ I Know Not The MAN.” And then he went out and cried.
!-
What does YES mean?
agreement – ready – more emphatic statement of surrender
interest – attentiveness -- dept within – expression of affirmation
2-
What does “No” mean?
expressing negativeness –alternative choice ---- negation – denial
3-
Fervor?
intensity of feeling –intense heat or love –passion : I’LL die for you!!!
4-
Fear?
to be afraid or apprehensive – fear for their lives or status in life
5-
Human Respect?
Moral courage is needed against human respect
v.g. The heroic deeds of soldiers on a battlefield arouse admiration and
enthusiasm. One is ready to sacrifice one’s own life for the protection of
others for honor and safety of a person or country. But in spite of his
battle success, at times one can become weak and surrenders his or her
moral conscience rights for fear from a scornful eyes, remarks not nice, a
scornful eye from another, or a sarcastic smile of tolerance, whatever.
Like teens suffer… join the pack. ..sizzy – or chicken – or mama’s boy.
Physical courage is not lacking, but such a one if victim Human respect lacks
courage which can win for us a decisive victory in the battle of life, then such
person , man or woman, has the lack of moral courage. Such a one becomes a
victim to one or to the most powerful enemies of the soul… human respect
Definition:
Human respect is that sinful shyness which makes a man or woman ashamed of
being considered good, dutiful, honest, true friend , .
It is the vain fear which causes a man or a woman to shrink from fulfilling ones
obligations according to the dictates of conscience because one fears to be
ridiculed . So, one to remain part of the gang, surrenders to the gang.
In one thought, one who yields to human respect is a coward, and cannot be
trusted. This person does not mean what was once said or professed.
APPLICATION
to a “Yes” to Christ in today’s Altar Call:
Will you in this Lent Opportunity
surrender Christ for the acceptance of the crowd, of for the vain passing
pleasure of sin???
May Peter show us the way back to the heart of Christ who loves us and still
trusts us even in our weaknesses.
Let us not stop with our tears of repentance and thankfulness that God as we
said in the first part of this service….
GOD LOVES YOU…. GOD LOVES US>
JUST ONE FRIEND ………