Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Năm Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh

Suy Niệm Tin Mừng Thứ Năm Tuần thứ 4 Phục Sinh
            Mùa Phục Sinh là mùa mang lại cho chúng ta một thông điệp của hy vọng trong sự sống lại với Chúa Kitô trong cuộc sống mới. Trong bài Tin Mừng, Chúa Kitô cho chúng ta biết rằng bất cứ ai tiếp đón một trong những người Ngài gởi đến là tiếp nhận Ngài.  Và bất cứ ai tiếp nhận Chúa Kitô là tiếp nhận Chúa Cha, Ngưòi  đã sai Chúa Giêsu Kitô đến.
            Qua phép rửa tất cả chúng ta được Chúa Kitô giao nhiệm vụ và sai đi để tham gia với Ngài trong nhiệm vụ rao truyền Tin Mừng của Ngài đến với mọi người. Mỗi người chúng ta được kêu gọi nên thánh; chúng ta có nhiệm vụ phải thay đổi lối sống của chúng ta cho tốt hơn, để được sống lại với Chúa Kitô trong cuộc sống mới, để trở nên những chứng nhân tình yêu của Ngài và là niềm hy vọng trong sự sống lại và sự chiến thắng của Ngài.
            Chúa Giêsu đã bảo đảm với chúng ta rằng Ngài sẽ ở lại với chúng ta cũng như Ngài đã sai chúng ta đến để làm chứng cho Ngài, Ngài hứa với chúng ta là Ngài sẽ ban ân sủng của Ngài cho chúng ta và sẽ hỗ trợ chúng ta  trong việc chia sẻ Tin Mừng tuyệt vời của Ngài cho tất cả mọi người được  biết  là Chúa Giêsu Kitô đã sống lại, và Thiên Chúa đã yêu thương chúng ta. Chúng ta hãy tin tưởng vào Ngài trong những lời kêu gọi và và hợp tác với Ngài sứ mạng tuyệt vời này.
 
Reflection Thursday 4th of Easter 2016
            The season of Easter gives us the message of hope in rising to new life with Christ.  In the Gospel reading, Christ tells us that whoever receives the one he has sent receives him. And whoever received Christ receives the Father who has sent him.
            In baptism all of us are commissioned and sent by Christ to join him in his mission.  We are called to holiness; we are tasked to change for the better, to rise to new life with Christ, to become witnesses of his love and of hope in his resurrection and triumph. 
            Jesus' words assures that he will be with us as he send us to be his witnesses, He assures us of his grace and assistance to share the wonderful news that Christ has risen, that God loves us.  Let us trust him in this wonderful call and mission.
 
Thursday 4^th week of Easter 2025
When Jesus had washed the disciples’ feet, he said to them: “Amen, amen, I say to you, no slave is greater than his master nor any messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you understand this, blessed are you if you do it.” John 13:16–17
During this, the Fourth Week of Easter, we return to the Last Supper and will spend a few weeks considering the discourse Jesus gave that Holy Thursday evening to His disciples. The question to ask yourself today is this: “Are you blessed?” Jesus says that you are blessed if you “understand” and “do” what He teaches His disciples. So what did He teach them?
Jesus offers this prophetic action by which He took on the role of a slave by washing the disciples’ feet. His action was much louder than words, as the saying goes. The disciples were humbled by this act, and Peter, at first, refused it. There is little doubt that this humble act of service, by which Jesus lowered Himself before His disciples, made a strong impression upon them.
The worldly view of greatness is much different than the one Jesus taught. Worldly greatness is a process of elevating yourself in the eyes of others, striving to let them know just how good you are. Worldly greatness is often driven by a fear of what others may think of you, and a desire to be honored by all. But Jesus wants to be clear that we will only be great if we serve. We must humble ourselves before others, holding them and their goodness up, honoring them and showing them the deepest love and respect. By washing their feet, Jesus completely abandoned the worldly view of greatness and called His disciples to do the same.
Humility is difficult to understand at times. This is why Jesus said, “If you understand this…” He realized that the disciples, as well as all of us, will struggle with understanding the importance of humbling ourselves before others and serving them. But if you do understand humility, you will be “blessed” when you live it. You will not be blessed in the eyes of the world, but you will be truly blessed in the eyes of God.Humility is especially accomplished when we purify our desire for honor and prestige, when we overcome all fear of being mistreated, and when, in place of this desire and fear, we desire abundant blessings upon others, even before ourselves. This love and humility is the only way to this mysterious and profound depth of love.
Reflect, today, upon this humble act of the Son of God, the Savior of the World, lowering Himself before His disciples, serving them as if He were a slave. Try to imagine yourself doing this for others. Think about various ways that you can more readily go out of your way to put others and their needs before your own. Seek to eliminate every selfish desire you struggle with and identify any fear that keeps you from humility. Understand this gift of humility and live it. Only then will you be truly blessed.
My humble Lord, You set for us the perfect example of love when You chose to serve Your disciples with great humility. Help me to understand this beautiful virtue and to live it. Free me from all selfishness and fear so that I may love others as You have loved us all. Jesus, I trust in You
 
Thursday 4^th week of Easter 2025
Opening Prayer: Lord God, you are all-powerful and know all things. You know how my life will unfold and how I will be judged. I renew my trust in you that you will guide me and bring me to safe harbor. Strength me in times of temptation and trial so that I may share in the victory of your Son.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Washing Feet at the Last Supper: It is understood that John wrote his Gospel for several reasons: first, to defend the divinity of Jesus; second, to add to what the other three Gospels already proclaimed; and third, to proclaim the mystery of the sacraments of the Church. John, then, did not need to recount the institution of the Eucharist at the Last Supper. What he wanted to add to those narrations in Matthew, Mark, and Luke were Jesus’ actions, the commandment of love, and the promise of sending the Holy Spirit. What does the washing of feet mean? First, it recalls the ritual washings commanded by Moses. These ritual washings symbolized how the people of God needed to separate themselves from the uncleanliness of sin. Second, they recalled the ritual washing of the bride before her marriage. The marriage between God and humanity would be consummated on the Cross of Jesus. And so we see Jesus at the Last Supper humbly washing his bride’s feet. Third, the washings signified the self-emptying of Jesus. Jesus assumed our human nature and identified himself with the humble actions of a servant. In this way, the washing of feet symbolically anticipated his death on the Cross. Fourth, the humble action of washing feet looks forward to the ministry of the Church, which seeks to cleanse the new people of God from their sin in the Sacrament of Reconciliation after the fundamental and initial washing of Baptism.
2. Believe that I AM: At the Last Supper, Jesus highlights how he is telling his disciples beforehand what is going to happen to him so that they may believe that he is God, “that I AM.” From the other Gospels, we know that Jesus announced his passion, death, and resurrection three times on the final journey to Jerusalem. At the Last Supper, he announced that he would be betrayed and that this betrayal was pre-announced in the Psalms. As Psalm 41:8-10 proclaims: “All those who hate me; they imagined the worst about me … Even my trusted friend, who ate my bread, has raised his heel against me.” If we continue to read Psalm 41, it goes on to manifest hope that God will grant his servant the grace and gift of resurrection: “But you, Lord, take note of me to raise me up that I may repay them” (Psalm 41:11). Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead, and raise the just to eternal life and condemn the unjust to eternal death.
3. Receiving Jesus: At the end of today’s Gospel, Jesus speaks about the mystery of receiving his disciples, himself, and his Father. When we receive either one of Christ’s disciples or someone in need, we are receiving Jesus. We need to receive the poor because in receiving them, caring for them, and giving ourselves to them, we receive Jesus, care for Jesus, and give ourselves to Jesus. And when we receive Jesus and welcome him, we receive and welcome the Father, who sent and sends Jesus. 
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I believe that you are the Christ and the Son of God. You have called me to be your disciple and follow you on the way that leads to the Cross. Keep me close to you so that I may learn your ways and truly be your disciple in this world.
Thursday 4^th week of Easter
Opening Prayer: Lord, you taught the Apostles to pray, and they were unstoppable in their mission as your messengers. Help me to pray well now, so I can hear your words of encouragement and be sent out to help my wounded brothers and sisters. 
Encountering Christ:
Christ’s Messengers: Jesus sent out the Apostles; in fact, that is what the word “Apostle” means—someone who is sent out, a messenger. They had been given a message uniquely their own; no one else could duplicate it. They had been with Jesus during his life.  Although most of them ran away, they were nearby when he died. They were witnesses of the empty tomb and then saw him risen from the dead. They were witnesses to the Resurrection. As his first-hand witnesses, the Apostles were sent out by Jesus to spread the Good News—that Jesus had risen from the dead and that through his death and Resurrection we are all saved from sin. Later, St. Paul was also called an Apostle because he saw the Risen Lord while on his way to Damascus.  
Respect: Since the Apostles were sent by Christ, they received the same respect from the early Christians as would have been given Jesus if he had come to them. The Apostles were their (and our!) link to Jesus. In fact, the early Church used this criterion to decide what books would be in the New Testament: If there was reasonable evidence that a book had been written by one of the Apostles, or at least a disciple who had contact with Jesus, the early Church considered it a part of the New Testament. The authorship of some books was in doubt, and those did not make it into the New Testament. The early Church respected the words of these messengers chosen by Jesus as if Jesus had written them himself.
We Are Also His Messengers: Jesus also sends us. We aren’t apostles in the same way the Twelve and St. Paul were Apostles, but we are still called to bear witness to Jesus.  We are called to witness to his love in our life: all the things he has done for us, all of his favors and gifts, and the graces he has given us to help us grow into better, more virtuous people. The longer we have followed him, listened to him speak in our hearts, and felt his power in our everyday life, the more we can bear witness to him. Jesus gives us all of these things for our benefit, but also so that we can also spread the good news. By our lives, we can bring hope to others in this world who need it so much!