SELF-CONTROL

“Do not be governed by your passions, restrain your desires. If you allow yourself to satisfy your desires, this will make you the laughing-stock of your enemies. Do not indulge in luxurious living; do not get involved in such society. Do not beggar yourself by banqueting on credit when there is nothing in your pocket. A drunken workman will never grow rich, and one who makes light of small matters will gradually sink. Wine and women corrupt intelligent men, the customer of whores looses all sense of shame. Grubs and worms will have him as their legacy, and the man who knows no shame will lose his life” {Sirach 18:30-19:1-3}

“To build your house with other people’s money is like collecting stones for your own tomb” (Sirach 21:8).

MARY/MARIA: NOMENCLATURE THAT EXUDES BIAS

Why this uncomfortable feeling amongst people when the name Mary/Maria is mentioned during discussions or sharing of the Word?

GOD is GOD (“I am, who is” Ex.3:14) no doubts about that but from Genesis through Revelation which is the Word of God as well as God {‘in the beginning was the Word: the Word was with God and the Word was God’ Jn.1:1} you cannot discuss about God without calling the names of people who had special encounter negatively or positively with God hence you sing “God of Elijah send down fire; 1 Kgs.18:38” and ‘Abrahams blessings are mine; Gen.12:3’ nobody will argue with you but once you call Mary (Lk.1:27) or pray back the words of God through Archangel Gabriel where God first saluted His creature thus “Rejoice, you who enjoy God’s favor! The Lord is with you…Look! You are to conceive in your womb and bear a son and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High…” [Lk.1:28-38] and the word of God which must be fulfilled by every living soul that wants to be saved as Christ our Good Master (Mk.10:17) did on the cross {“after Jesus had taken the wine he said, It is fulfilled; and bowing his head he gave up his spirit” Jn.19:30} is being honored by Catholics continually thus ‘…yes, from now onwards all generations will call me blessed, for the Almighty has done great things for me Holy is his name’ (Lk.1:48-49).

Honoring Virgin Mary who is the Mother of all those who obey the commandment of God and all who witness to Jesus (“Then the dragon was enraged with the woman and went away to make war on the rest of her children, who obey God’s commandments and have in themselves the witness of Jesus” Rev.12:17) is a continuous prayer of repetition and worship to GOD who first made this prayer through the mouth of the archangel Gabriel [sky and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away; Mtt.24:35]because God does not change {‘No; I the Lord, do not change and you have not ceased to be children of Jacob’ Mal.3:6} and (“Jesus Christ is the same today as he was yesterday and as he will be forever” Heb.13:8).

Have you said your Holy Rosary today?

Sacrament of Reconciliation/Indulgence

“Do not imagine that I have come to abolish the law or the Prophets. I have come not to abolish but to complete them” (Mtt.5:17) hence he was aware of this passage “Come let us talk this over, says the Lord. Though your sins are like scarlet, they shall be white as snow; though they are red as crimson, they shall be like wool” [Isaiah 1:18] as a stepping stone to reconciling a soul with God; a deeper resolve never to repeat such lifestyle again because there is penalty for each sin committed by man (‘do not be drawn to a sin twice over, for you will not go unpunished even once’ Sirach 7:8) though God has granted forgiveness {“The Lord our God, you answered them, you were a God of forgiveness to them, but punished them for their sins” Ps.99:8} hence the confession of our sins to God through legally ordained catholic Priests who maintain the apostolic succession of the foundation laid on the apostles and prophets after resurrection (‘after saying this he breathed on them and said: Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone’s sins, they are forgiven; if you retain anyone’s sins they are retained’ Jn.20:22-23) is second phase to submitting one’s sinful nature to God.

The last stage is the full indulgence given by legally ordained and loyal High priests (Bishops/Pastors/Shepherd) of the Church (Christ the Head of the Church; Eph.5:23) on specific days designated by the church (Maundy Thursdays, ordinations, all souls day and confirmation mass) as a checkmate on its abuse or misuse as individual or group [‘give a shepherd’s care to the flock of God that is entrusted to you: watch over it, not simply as a duty but gladly, as God wants; not for sordid money but because you are eager to do it ’ 1 Pet.5:2] and the partial indulgence we can gain for ourselves through alms-giving {‘almsgiving is a most effective offering for all those who do it in the presence of the Most High’ Tob.4:11}, mortification (“for my part, far be it from me to sin against the Lord by ceasing to pray for you or to instruct you in the good and right way” 1 Sam.12:23), ejaculatory prayers [‘so confess your sins to one another and pray for one another to be cured; the heartfelt prayer of someone upright works very powerfully’ James 5:16], fasting and prayers (‘one day while they were offering worship to the Lord and keeping fast the Holy Spirit said. I want Barnabas and Saul set apart for the work to which I have called them’ Acts.13:2).

Indulgence is the cleansing of the effects of sins that have been forgiven through the sacrament of reconciliation (Jn.20:22-23) granted to the Church through Christ the Head of the Church {Eph.5:23} represented by the High Priests in the different dioceses in unity (1 Cor.3:11) with the primacy of the High Priest of Rome who takes the successive position of St. Peter in line with this passage “So I now say to you: You are Peter and on this rock I will build my community. And the gates of the underworld can never overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of Heaven: whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven; whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” {Mtt.16:18-19}.

ST. ANTHONY OF PADUA (APOSTASY & HERESY):

The 13^th day of June, the Church celebrates the memorial of a great and loyal son Anthony of Padua who fought heretical teachings (division and separation from the One, Holy, Catholic & Apostolic Church) against the Mother Church (Catholic; Mtt.16:18-19) during his days by standing on the TRUTH (JESUS; Jn.14:6) without submitting to intimidations from secularism and the ruling authorities just like Job in the scripture who refused to yield to the advice of his ‘friends’ thus “far from admitting you to be in the right, I shall maintain my integrity to my dying day” {Job 27:5} and this helped to strengthen the faith of most members of the church both the clergy and the lay-faithful in accord with the words of Christ to St. Peter “Simon, Simon! Look, Satan has got his wish to sift you all like wheat; but I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail and once you have recovered, you in turn must strengthen your brothers” (Lk.22:31-32) hence the tongue of this loyal son of the Church is still alive till today as a sign of continuous witness to the truth which is the fundamental purpose of our existence here on earth (“…I was born for this, I came into the world for this, to bear witness to the truth and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice…” Jn.18:37) because ‘you will come to know the truth and the truth will set you free’ (Jn.8:32) and as the bones of Elisha raised a dead man to life (2 kgs.13:20-21), the intercessory role of St. Anthony of Padua before Christ the Head of the Church (Eph.5:23) has not stopped finding lost things especially on the cases of apostasy (giving up freely on ones faith because of odd circumstances like search for marriage partner, death of loved ones, lack of understanding about the doctrines of the church, persecutions from neighbors, misdemeanors on the side of the priests, financial/career problems, heretical teachings from outsiders e.t.c) and heresy thus

THE CHURCH:

As members of the Church are we at the level of “it does not matter” slogan in our sharing of the word and lifestyles as against the injunctions of Christ ‘God is spirit and those who worship must worship in spirit and truth’ (Jn.4:24) and ‘…and there will be only one flock, one shepherd.’ (Jn.10:16)?

As members of the body of Christ; the Church are we at the level of giving up on the fight (Gal.5:17, Eph.6:12) against heresy and apostasy because of persecutions and trials as against the admonitions of Christ ‘many false prophets will arise; they will deceive many and with the increase of lawlessness, love in most people will grow cold; but anyone who stands firm to the end will be saved’ (Mtt.24:11-13)?

As people opportuned to be born and bred within the Church are we at the verge of submitting to apostasy and heresy because of problems, persecutions and trials as against the words of Our Lord Jesus “Jesus said to him Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God” (Lk.9:62), ‘do not desert an old friend; the new one will not be his match. New friend, new wine; when it grows old, you drink it with pleasure’ (Sirach 9:10) and “then turning to his disciples he spoke to them by themselves, blessed are the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see and never saw it; to hear what you hear and never heard it” {Lk.23-24}?

As people who were not bred within the Church, life of sacrifice (Christianity; Jn.15:13) without sacrifice is a contradiction thus ‘the Lord says this, stand at the crossroads and look, ask for the ancient paths: which was good way? Take it and you will find rest for yourselves. But they have said, we will not take it’ {Jer.6:16} though this seems difficult or humanly impossible (“for nothing is impossible to God” Lk.1:37).

RIGHTEOUSNESS:

As people called to uphold righteousness in all ramifications (‘let the Word of Christ in all, its richness find a home with you. Teach each other and advise each other in all wisdom. With gratitude in your hearts sing psalms and hymns and inspired songs to God and whatever you say or do, let it be in the name of the Lord Jesus, in thanksgiving to God the Father through him’ Col.3:16-17) are we gradually giving in to the slogan of ‘anything can go/ man is not a stick’? while we are admonished thus “flee from sin as from a snake, if you approach it, it will bite you” [Sirach 21:2], ‘do not get heated about the wicked or envy those who do wrong. Quick as the grass they wither, fading like the green of the fields’ {Ps.37:1-2}, “do not take pleasure in what pleases the godless; remember they will not go unpunished here below” (Sirach 9:12), ‘my brothers, never slacken in doing what is right’ (2 Thess.3:13) and “be careful that no one is deprived of the grace of God and that no root of bitterness should begin to grow and make trouble; this can poison a large number” [Heb.12:15] in essence we should watch closely the slogan or scriptural passage we use to back-up our misdemeanor.

Are we at the verge of giving up on righteousness for any reason at all? ‘righteousness exalts a nation, sin is a reproach to the people’ (Prov.14:34) because immediately you succumb to that temptation; yourself, immediate family, neighbors, friends, extended family, company, school, church and the world will feel its effect directly or indirectly thus submitting to a quickie/fling in the office with the Area manager happens on a day the Branch manager decided to pay an unscheduled visit to the Area office and you are caught in the act, insulted and humiliated. Your husband/wife/children/school/church will be made to share in the shame and scandal with you (1 Cor.15:34), for those who are single; you are tagged ‘whore for life’ (1 Cor.3:16-17), neighbors/colleagues/friends/family relations will be tempted to call you names even as they reflect on ways of indulging in the same act without being caught (Mtt.26:24), company/institution will spend resources/time meant for its growth to convene an emergency board meeting to decide your fate (Jude 1:23), the world temperature in sin will be increased trampling on the Son of God, treating the blood of the covenant which sanctified us as if it were not holy as well as insulting the Spirit of Grace (Heb.10:29).  

Are we already attuned to sin because the scripture said ‘all have sinned and fallen short of God’s glory’ forgetting this “what if some of them were unfaithful? Do you think their lack of faith could cancel God’s faithfulness? Out of the question! God will always be true even if no human being can be relied on. As scripture says: that you may show your saving justice when you pass sentence and your victory may appear when you give judgment” (Rom.3:3-4), ‘if after we have been given knowledge of the truth, we should deliberately commit any sins, then there is no longer any sacrifice for them. There is left only the dreadful prospect of judgment and of the fiery wrath that is to devour your enemies’ {Heb.10:26-27} and “the Lord made everything for its own purpose, yes even the wicked for the day of disaster” [Prov.16:4]. Nobody goes by the nomenclature unfaithful/enemy/wicked but we can modify these passages by replacing our names and personality with the ones stated above.

Are you above correction because you are a priest (‘everyone no matter how firmly he thinks he is standing, must be careful he does not fall’ 1 Cor.10:12, “I know about your behavior: how you are reputed to be alive and yet are dead” Rev.3:1b), posses a spiritual gift/ servile talent hence should segregate from the Church {‘so with you, as you are eager to have spiritual powers, aim to be rich in those which build up the community’ 1 Cor.14:12, “but in case I should be delayed, I want you to know how people ought to behave in God’s household_ that is, in the Church of the living God; pillar and support of the truth” 1 Tim.3:15}, do not preach to me about separation from the One Church of Christ, the Trinity, decency in speech, thoughts, friendships, behavior and dressing, abortions, habitual lying e.t.c because we are not of the same faith [‘there is one Body, one Spirit, just as one hope is the goal of your calling by God. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, and one God and Father of all, over all, through all and within all. Eph.4:4-6], your sharing the Word will be time wasting since we are not of the same religion (‘so that all beings in the heavens, on earth and in the underworld should bend the knee at the name of Jesus and that every tongue should acknowledge Jesus Christ as Lord, to the glory of God the Father’ Phil.2:10-11, “since human beings die only once, after which comes judgment” Heb.9:27).

Let us implore the intercessory role of St. Anthony of Padua before God for the grace to conquer these weak aspects of our Christian vocation since he is among the company of saints in heaven whose prayers ascend the throne of God’s presence as pleasing incense (Rev.5:8, 8:4) for us their brethren through our communion with the saints (Heb.12:1, 22-24).

St. Anthony of Padua………….Pray for us.

Anthooo…………………………….Padua.

MARRIAGE/ THE CALL

 “There are eunuchs born born so from their mother’s womb, there are eunuchs made so by human agency and there are eunuchs who have made themselves so far the sake of the kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can” {Mtt.19:12}.

In essence there are people who will not marry before death comes knocking (just like the four young air-hostess of Dana Airfrik) ‘you too must stand ready because the Son of man is coming at an hour you do not expect’ [Lk.12:40] so why the rush for a job that will make you expose your nakedness to the world with a view to draw a lot of men around you from where a seeming husband will emerge which may not finally come and other ungodly acts we indulge in order to get a spouse as well as different places we rush into for the miracle of marriage partner while God said “Israel, the lord who created you says, Do not be afraid—I will save you. I have called you by name – you are mine” (Isaiah 43:1)

There are people who will marry and they will not give birth to any child before death comes visiting because God designed it so for His own glory (‘Our God is in heaven and he does whatever He wills’ Ps.115:3) and “he answered, have you not read that the creator from the beginning made them male and female and that he said: this is why a man leaves his father and mother and becomes attached to his wife and the two become one flesh? They are no longer two, therefore but one flesh. So then what God has united, human beings must not divide” (Mtt.19:4-6) hence why the haste in opening your legs to different men both prayer counselors and others in a bid to get pregnant after all you thought: I maintained my virginity till marriage (physical virginity while virginity was designed by God to be wholistic; body, mind and spirit) or men being quick to start trying their luck with anything that has vagina in order to maintain their lineage or marrying pregnant women whose scan result has proven to have male sex within the womb but at birth such child comes out lifeless or as a female just like king Henry the Earth lose their faith and integrity due to the unconsciousness that Our God does whatever He wills (Ps.115:3)

There are people (men and women) who by their lifestyle within their youthful days will deny themselves the opportunity of either getting into marriage or giving birth thus “but a woman will be saved through having children, if she perseveres in faith and love and holiness with modesty” (1 Tim. 2:15). This applies to both man and woman because both sex belong to the specie of man created by God in Genesis (Gen.1:27) thus we should watch our movements from one prayer house to another in search of spouse (‘then the Lord said to me, the prophets are prophesying lies in my name; I have not sent them, I gave them no orders, I never spoke to them. Delusive visions, hollow predictions, daydreams of their own, that is what they prophesy to you’ Jer.14:14), getting into promiscuity (adultery, fornication, fingering; insert your finger into my vagina/caressing of breasts/buttocks/penis as a sign of appreciating (condemning) each other’s body part, oral-sex; suckle my breast/buttocks/vagina/penis as a sign of luv (lust) for me , voyeurism; provide me with half-nude/nude pictures of yourself, exhibitionism; give me a strip tease as a birthday present) with the slogan “after all we will still get married” remember ‘if anybody should destroy the temple of God, God will destroy that person, because God’s temple is holy and you are that temple’ [1 Cor.3:17] and indecency of all sorts both within and outside the home/room after which we go about praying “forgive the sins and errors of my youth. In your constant love and goodness, remember me Lord!” (Ps.25:7) and He does forgive {‘the Lord says this, Now let’s settle the matter. You are stained red with sin but I will wash you as clean as snow. Although your stains are deep red, you will be as white as wool’ Isaiah 1:18} but there is a punishment for each sin that has been forgiven thus “if after we have been given knowledge of the truth, we should deliberately commit any sins, then there is no longer any sacrifice for them. There is left only the dreadful prospect of judgment and of the fiery wrath that is to devour your enemies” (Heb.10:26-27) just like David was forgiven his sins but the sword used to kill Uriah the Hittite is actively battling the current states of Israel and Palestine as God promised (2 Sam.12:10) till date. The effects of these sins that have been forgiven via the sacrament of reconciliation (Jn.20:22-23) can be cleansed via indulgence given by legally ordained and obedient Bishops of the Church of Christ (‘Out of the men who have been with us the whole time that the Lord Jesus was living with us, from the time when John was baptizing until the day when he was taken up from us, one must be appointed to serve with us as a witness to his resurrection’ Acts. 1:21-22, Heb.5:4, Ex.28:1-4), mortification, fasting & prayers (‘One day while they were offering worship to the Lord and keeping a fast, the Holy Spirit said, I want Barnabas and Saul set apart for the work to which I have called them’ Acts.13:2) and almsgiving with good intention (“almsgiving is a most effective offering for all those who do it in the presence of the Most High” Tob.4:11). This is a call to flee from sin (Sirach 21:2) as well as activate a practical (Col.3:16-17, 1 Cor.10:31), genuine (1 Pet.4:8) and consistent (1 Thess.5:17) prayer life in order to positively augment our status and lifespan on earth in future as Hezekiah did during his sickness after being faithful to God during his youthful days (2 kgs.18:6-7, 2kgs 20:1-6, Isaiah 38:1-6).

There are people who are made impotent and barren by human agencies like those who import fake drugs into the country in a bid to make fast money as well as become notorious {‘we brought nothing into the world and we can take nothing out of it’ 1Tim.6:7}, security agencies; men who guide the queen of England and other kingdoms with such inhuman security attributes, fake and unscrupulous medical practitioners both scientific and native, tribes/ethnic groups that mutilate the genitals of their young ones, men/women who castrate/mutilate themselves or others in order to extricate reproduction with regards to different dirty/filthy acts of promiscuity.

There are people who are called and chosen (‘how blessed are those whom you choose and invite to dwell in your courts’ Ps.65:4) to willingly give up their sexuality (sexual desires, obligations and passions) for the sake of promoting the kingdom of God (Priests, Rev. Sisters/Brothers/Nuns/Monks and others) hence with mere carnal mind they have no husband/wife/children as well as progeny but in reality all the members of their congregation/parishioners and the entire people of God whom they have encountered in their missionary activities takes the place of these and also a share in the kingdom of God thus “Jesus said, In truth I tell you there is no one who has left house, brothers, sisters, mother, father, children or land for my sake and for the sake of the gospel who will not receive a hundred times as much as houses, brothers, sisters, mothers, children and land persecutions too now in this present time and in the world to come eternal life. Many who are first will be last and the last, first (Mk.10:29-31).

The question is where do I belong (“call to me and I will answer you; I will tell you great secrets of which you know nothing” Jer.33:3) hence we need to go down on our knees and implore the heavens for a revelation on the best avenue that we need to adopt in order to fully actualize his plans (‘yes, I know what plans I have in mind for you, the Lord declares, plans for peace, not for disaster, to give you a future and a hope’ Jer.29:11) of bearing witness to Him with our lives here on earth (“…I was born for this, I came into the world for this, to bear witness to the truth and all who are on the side of truth listen to my voice” Jn.18:37)and how ductile/willing are we towards the possible result/revelation that God will give us when we pray (‘and now you see me on my way to Jerusalem in captivity to the Spirit; I have no idea what will happen to me there except that the Holy Spirit in town after town has made it clear to me that imprisonment and persecution await me. But I do not place any value on my own life, provided that I complete the mission the Lord Jesus gave me to bear witness to the good news of God’s grace’ Acts.20:22-24) or taking the path used by Jonah {“Jonah set about running away from the Lord and going to Tarshish. He went down to Jaffa and found a ship bound for Tarshish; he paid his fare and boarded it, to go with them to Tarshsish, to get away from the Lord…and taking hold of Jonah they threw him into the sea and the sea stopped raging” Jonah 1:1-16}.

Adultery

"for the precept is a lamp, the teaching is a light; correction and discipline are the way to life, preserving you from the woman of bad character, from the wheedling talk of a woman who belongs to another. Do not covet her beauty in your heart or let her captivate you with the play of her eyes; a prostitute can be bought for a hunk of bread, but a married woman aims to snare a precious life" {Prov.6:23-26}

THE BODY AND BLOOD OF CHRIST

This is the epicenter of any human being that is adjudged as a Christian or who believes he/she is called to be a shareholder in the Divinity of the Son of God {‘Jesus replied to them: In all truth I tell you, if you do not eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. Anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood has eternal life and I shall raise that person up on the last day’ Jn.6:53-54} and the only reason why the world is still in existence thus “I am the living bread which has come down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world” [Jn.6:51]. This food is strictly reserved for Catholic priests to prepare (‘then he took bread and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them saying, this is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me. He did the same cup after supper and said ‘this cup is the covenant in my blood poured out for you’ Lk.22: 19-20) then what will happen to those who do not partake in this meal yet they adjudge themselves as Christians which is the name the first community of believers were called by pagans after the Pentecost because they were united in belief, actions and ideologies. Friends we need to continue offering prayers for those outside the mystical body of Christ (the Church; Mtt.16:18) where Christ is the Head of the body the Church and saves the whole body (Eph.5:23) to come back to the one and only gateway to the sheepfold (Jn.10:1) thereby working in accordance with the will of Christ our Head thus ‘…and there will be only one flock, one shepherd’ {Jn.10:16} in unity of faith, believe, worship and actions (Jn.17:11,20-23, Eph.4:4-6) since we are called to walk towards the actualization of the kingdom of God on earth (‘your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in Heaven’ Mtt.6:10) by opening up to Grace and the guidance of the Holy Spirit {allow the message of God in all its richness find a place within your heart}.

OUR DISPOSITION TO THE EUCHARISTIC JESUS

Those of us who are opportuned to be born inside the church of Christ (Catholic; Mtt.16:18-19) and those who were accepted later on due to different circumstances of life:

how do we react to the highest sacrifice (‘No one can have greater love than to lay down his life for his friends’ Jn.15:13) and event (“…and if there is no shedding of blood, there is no remission” Heb.9:22)that takes place every day which is the backbone of the world’s continued existence despite its sins that have gone far greater than that of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen.19:1-29) being the same God of the old testament that consumed the 250 members of Levi with fire and swallowed the family of Korah by opening up the ground (Num.16:16-35) and struck Ananias and Sapphira dead for lying in the new testament just for being unwilling in offering sacrifice to the Church whose Head Christ was, is and will be forever (Eph.5:23, Heb.13:8).

Ministerial priests of God who attend to this Supreme Sacrifice of the Cross (‘it is finished/fulfilled Jn.19:30) with grudging mind, rushing through the preface whether singing or reciting, inability to live out what you preach via disunity amongst yourselves in the presbyterium including other canker like sex-scandals against the vow of chaste celibacy (Mtt.19:12), squandamania mentality of parish funds against the spirit of self-control (2 Tim.1:6-7), life of affluence against the vow of poverty (Mtt.5:3), disobedience to Church authority against the vow of humility (Mtt.5:4) and unity of the one body of Christ (Eph.4:4-6) and unprepared homilies that bear half truth remember God threatened to curse your blessings (‘and now priests, this commandment is for you, if you will not listen, if you will not sincerely resolve to glorify my name says the Lord of Sabaoth, I shall certainly lay a curse on you and I shall curse your blessing…’ Mal.2:1-2) hence you should be like Christ who you celebrate thus St.Paul advised 'imitate me as I imitate Christ'.

All these and many more make the people of God to lose faith in this mystery or partake in this trans-substantiation without transformation of the mind and spirit towards a higher goal in life and the society hence there is an arithmetic increase in the number of Catholics in the world aligned with a geometric increase in crimes like:

Idolatry both in speech, thinking, behavior, dressing and approach to life’s events, businesses, knowledge/property/wealth-acquisition, politics, religion e.t.c ("you shall not make yourself a carved image or any likeness of anything in heaven above or on earth beneath or in the waters under the earth. you shall not bow down to them or serve them. For I the Lord your God am a jealous God and I punish a parent’s fault in the children and the great-grandchildren among those who hate me; but I act with faithful love towards thousands of those who love me and keep my commandments” Ex.20:4-6)

False teachings (Heresy and apostasy; Gal.5:20-21) and prophets everywhere with majority of its secret and open followers as Catholics (Jer.14:14, Heb.13:9) there is only one Church instituted by Christ here on earth (Mtt.16:18-19) with Christ as the head (Eph.4:23).

Buying and selling on Sundays and other holy days of obligation with impunity in different markets, business empires, schools, institutions as well as other related profanements (Neh.10:31-32).

Disobedience to parents, seniors and other constituted authorities (Eph.6:1-2, Col.3:18-21). This is the first commandment that has a blessing attached to it. Irresponsibility and recalcitrant attitudes of various forms towards our parents, seniors and constituted authorities ('he summoned his son Tobias and told him, when I die give me an honorable burial. honor your mother and never abandon her all the days of your life. Do all that she wants and give her no reason for sorrow. Remember my child all the risks she ran for your sake when you were in her womb. and when she dies, bury her at my side in the same grave' Tob.4:3-4) by way of leaving luxurious lives in the city while the members of our nuclear families are starving and suffering from mal-nutrition. Questioning every change in your institutions, environments, offices, schools, church e.t.c even when the reasons behind them are morally sound.

Assassination and kidnapping of individuals and character at its highest order, using vulgar statements on people (Eph.4:29). Murder of various degree including abortions (‘the life of every human being is in the blood… that is why I told the Israelites: none of you will consume blood, nor will any resident alien consume blood’ Lev.17:11-12)

Promiscuity of various order (fornication, incest, adultery, pornography, prostitution, lesbianism, homosexuality, buying and selling of condoms, indecent clothing’s and other artificial birth control pills while aiding and abating this dirty lifestyles, exhibitionism; exposing ones nakedness by wearing skimpy/mini/hot mini/short-skirts, bomb-shots, boxers, sleeveless singlet’s/tops, show breast/back/tummy tops/gowns) or projecting ones sexual organs or under wears by wearing tight tops, trousers, skirts, gowns that hang above the knees as well as ones that are very tight or transparent to display ones under wears , voyeurism; gazing at people (Mtt.5:28-29) with the above dressing sense or hanging, gazing as well as keeping nude or half-nude pictures within our laptops, rooms, phones, offices e.t.c, feeding our minds with erotic novels, newspapers and magazines when we go back to the inclinations of the flesh ('when self-indulgence is at work the results are obvious: sexual vice, impurity,and sensuality, the worship of false gods and sorcery; antagonisms and rivalry, jealousy, bad temper and quarrels, disagreements, factions and malice, drunkenness, orgies and all such things. and about these, I tell you now as I have told you in the past that people who behave in these ways will not inherit the kingdom of God' Gal.5:19-21) after swallowing the body and blood of Christ without the right mind-set hence taking the curse placed on Judas on ourselves “his place let another take” which makes satan to control your affairs rather than Holy Spirit that is renewed (Isaiah 40:31) within man when King of Glory enters the soul [look, I am standing at the door, knocking. If one of you hears me calling and opens the door, I will come in to share a meal at that person’s side; Rev.3:20].

Cheating and deception in offices, homes, church, markets, schools e.t.c between those have higher level of understanding and the weaker ones by way of manipulating peoples mind in order to defile their integrity or subject them to pain and ridicule as well win undeserved favor/grades forgetting that whatever seed a man sows he shall reap (Gal.6:7).

Involving in extra-marital affairs even after the admonition that whoever destroys the temple of God within the Soul will be destroyed (1 Cor.3:16-17). Married and single remember whatever God has joined together let no man put asunder (Mtt.19:6) by way of indecent exposure of a woman’s nakedness within the house for the spiritual discomfort (impure thoughts; Mtt.5:26-27) or sensate pleasure (Mtt.5:29-30) of the house-boys whether small or big, brother-in-laws, cousins, visitors, husband friends, covert lesbian friends e.t.c.

Involving in real sex with those mentioned above yet will be the first to sigh and call others who were caught in the act bad names like nymphomaniac, sex-addict, weird or loose woman e.t.c forgetting that while you point one accusing finger on anybody four is pointing back at you thus ‘rid yourselves, then of all spite, deceit, hypocrisy, envy and carping criticism. Like new-born babies all your longing should be for milk- the unadulterated spiritual milk which will help you to grow up to salvation, at any rate if you have tasted that the Lord is good {1 Pet.2:1-3}.

Inordinate attachment to wealth, women and wine (1 Tim.6:17, Prov.5 & Gal.5:21) which puts of the fire of God’s fear in man thus “…you need to do one thing more. Go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come follow me. But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth” {Mk.10:21-22}. Many of us accused David of cheating (2 Sam.11) yet who are the major customers to brothels and girls hostels in the campuses today? This same men will threaten as well as blow up your brains if they see you around their daughters forgetting that no one can deceive God since what a man sows he shall reap (Gal.6:7). We also point accusing fingers on our relations who drive flashy cars and live in mansions for not being charitable enough with their God-giving wealth yet we have 4-5 boxes filled with clothes, jewelleries, shoes, e.t.c that have not been worn for the past months and counting as well as wasting food and drinks with impunity while others are starving. Anything that is within your keep that is not useful to you within the year should be given to those who will use them as well as bless you for being generous when it is done with the love of God (‘almsgiving is a most effective offering for all those who do it in the presence of the Most High’ Tobith 4:11) even landed properties and liquid cash because the enemy/children might misuse them after your demise while making mockery of your sufferings.

Unforgiving spirit which makes the complete manifestation of the sevenfold (Rev.4:5) gifts of the Holy Spirit inactive because the scriptures conditions us to forgive one another as God has forgiving us in Christ (Eph.4:32) thus ‘yes, if you forgive others their failings, your heavenly Father will forgive you yours; but if you do not forgive others, your Father will not forgive your failings either’ [Mtt.6:14-15]. Retaliating at the slightest provocation with or without veto power/position.

However, we should attend the Holy Sacrifice of the altar with dignity, attention and devotion as if it were our last on earth thus “since human beings die only once, after which comes judgment, so Christ too, having offered himself only once to bear the sin of many will manifest a second time, sin being no more to those who are waiting for him to them salvation” [Heb.9:27-28] while allowing its real fruits to manifest in every of our dealings with others hence ‘whatever you eat then or drink and whatever else you do, do it all for the glory of God’ {1 Cor.10:31} and “whatever you say or do, let it be in the name of the Lord Jesus, in thanksgiving to God the Father through him (Col.3:17).

More still, we need faith to cherish and reverence the Eucharistic JESUS as well as align our minds to the mystery it bears for the growth of our lives and our society (“…this is my flesh which will be given for the life of the world” Jn.6:51) because ‘only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for or prove the existence of realities that are unseen’ (Heb.11:1) and it was because of his faith that Enoch was taken up and did not experience death: he was no more because God took him, because before assumption he was acknowledged to have pleased God. Now it is impossible to please God without faith, since anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and rewards those who seek him (heb.11:5-6) as this will help us to adopt the correct decorum for going to receive Him on the altar as on the day of our first Holy communion as well as going to adore, reverence, worship, dialogue with Him in the adoration chapels situated at different catholic parishes, and chaplaincies (‘come to me all you who labor and are overburdened and I will give you rest…’ Mtt.11:28-29).

THE POWER OF THE EUCHARIST

Jesus is the Son of God (‘He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David’ Lk.1:32) as well as God (“the Lord declared to my Lord, Take your seat at my right hand, till I have made your enemies your footstool…” Ps.110:1-7) hence it was only the blood of this Son could appease the Father for the sins of the world inherited from Adam and Eve and our current society thus “…and if there is no shedding of blood, there is no remission” {Heb.9:22} and ‘…the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world’ [Jn.6:51]. Having lived on earth and understanding human frailty though did not sin (the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak) he thought them about the need for prayers in order to renew ones strength to survive all that is going to happen and to be united as well as consistent with the teachings of the Son of Man (‘stay awake, praying at all times for the strength to survive all that is going to happen and to hold your ground before the Son of Man’ Lk.21:36) and gave them His body and blood as a real food for this renewal of strength (covenant) within them because “you are the men who have stood by me faithfully in my trials and now I confer a kingdom on you just as my Father conferred one on me: you will eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and you will sit on thrones to judge the twelve tribes of Israel” [Lk.22:28-30]and for those who will accept Him (Jesus; Jn.1:12)through obedience to apostolic teachings (‘I pray not only for these but also for those who through their teaching will come to believe in me’ Jn.17:20) in essence the apostles represented by legally ordained catholic priests/high-priests (bishops) with obedience to the apostolic teachings derived from Christ the Head of the Church (‘since as Christ is head of the Church and saves the whole body…’ Eph.5:23) who is aware of other sheep He has which are not of this fold but must be lead by Him in His own way which will spur them to submit their WILL-POWER to listen to His voice in order to become part of the only one flock whose one shepherd He was/is/ will always remain (“and there are other sheep I have that are not of this fold, and I must lead these too. They too will listen to my voice and there will be only one flock, one shepherd” Jn.10:16).

All the seven sacraments of the Church; the body of Christ our Head (Eph.5:23) representing the seven Spirits of God (Rev.4:5) is a mystery since man cannot with his ordinary scientific and technological reasoning fathom the reason behind most of his behaviors and events around him what more of the God who created him and made him master of every other thing he created before him (Gen.1:26-27) thus ‘when they arrived he looked at Eliab and thought, this must be the Lord’s anointed now before him, but the Lord said to Samuel, take no notice of his appearance or his height, for I have rejected him; God does not see as human beings see; they look at appearances but the Lord looks at the heart’ (1 Sam.16:6-7), “how hard for me to grasp your thoughts, how many God there are! If I count them them, they are more than the grains of sand; if I come to an end, I am still with you” [Ps.139:17-18] and ‘for as the heavens are as high above earth as my ways are above your ways, my thoughts above your thoughts’ (Isaiah 55:9) hence He retorted “Turn to me and you will be saved, all you ends of the earth, for I am God and there is no other. By my own self I swear it; what comes from my mouth is saving justice, it is an irrevocable word: all shall bend the knee to me, by me every tongue shall swear” (Isaiah 45:22-23), ‘God said to Moses, I am he who is and he said, this is what you are to say to the Israelites, I am has sent me to you’ (Ex.3:14) and Jesus said “I am the living bread which has come down from heaven. Anyone who eats this bread will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is my flesh, for the life of the world… anyone who does eat my flesh and drink my blood has eternal life and I shall raise that person up on the last day. For my flesh is real food and my blood is real drink…” {Jn.6:51-59}. This will be the lot of those who believe and draw closer to the highest event of the world for any day (the Holy Sacrifice of Mass; Jn.15:13) thus ‘but to those who did accept him he gave power to become children of God, to those who believed in his name’ [Jn.1:12] and “the nearer you go to God, the nearer God will come to you…” (James 4:8).

For this purpose we need faith to understand the mystery behind this sacrament of the body and blood of Our Lord Jesus Christ which has in it the Divinity, Personality, Glory, Anointing, Healing, Wisdom, Saving-justice, Soul, Body and Blood, Security, Infinite e.t.c of the Triune God. A priest Fr. M. Etekpo defined the five letter word faith as:

F—Follow all God’s guidance (Gal.5:18)

A—Act on all God’s guidance (Rev.3:20)

I—Intimacy with God (James 4:7-8)

T—Trust wholly in God (Prov.3:5)

H—Hope for the best (Ps.37:5)

Hence the scripture stated ‘Only faith can guarantee the blessings that we hope for, or prove the existence of realities that are unseen’ (Heb.11:1) and “Now it is impossible to please God without faith, since anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and rewards those who seek him” {Heb.11:6} thus ‘Jesus answered, have faith in God. In truth I tell you, if anyone says to this mountain, be pulled up and thrown into the sea, with no doubt in his heart but believing that what he says will happen, it will be done for him’ [Mk.11:22-23] because he has promised to honor the prayers of his faithful {‘Call to me and I will answer you; I will tell you great secrets of which you know nothing’ Jer.33:3}.

If the woman with the issue of blood touched the fringe of his cloak with faith and received healing (Mtt.9:18-26) then we who share in this Divine banquet should approach this table with faith (“since in Jesus, the Son of God, we have the supreme high priest who has gone through the highest heaven, we must hold firm to our profession of faith. For the high priest we have is not incapable of feeling our weaknesses with us, but has been put to the test in exactly the same way as ourselves, apart from sin. Let us then have no fear in approaching the throne of grace to receive mercy and to find grace when we are in need of help” Heb.4:14-16) for transformation in our old nature (‘the nearer you go to God, the nearer God will come to you…’ James 4:8) and Grace of fidelity to God as we carry our cross after him (‘anyone who does not take his cross and follow in my footsteps is not worthy of me’ Mtt.10:38) as well as the power of consistency in righteousness within ourselves (‘may he enlighten the eyes of your mind so that you can see what hope his call holds for you, how rich is the glory of the heritage he offers among his holy people and how extraordinarily great is the power that he has exercised for us believers; this accords with the strength of his power’ Eph.1:18-19)and support for others (“act wisely with outsiders, making the best of the present time. Always talk pleasantly and with a flavor of wit but be sensitive to the kind of answer each one requires” Col.4:5-6)

ACTIVITIES THAT WILL HELP DRAW US CLOSER TO THE EUCHARISTIC JESUS

1.       Attending the Sacrament of reconciliation with the intention, determination, zeal and passion of renouncing and rejecting those sins by changing environment; friends, videos, pictures, clothes, places, groups, illusive beliefs (‘no one can be upright’ yet the scripture stated “for though the upright falls seven times, he gets up again; the wicked are the ones who stumble in adversity” Prov.24:16) and {‘I can’t stop committing this sin’ yet we often read this passage “There is nothing I cannot do in the One who strengthens me” Phil.4:13} e.t.c that makes us to give what is sacred to dogs (Mtt.7:6).

2.       Punctuality to Holy Mass everyday whether morning or evening because it is only those who wait on him that will have their strength renewed making them sprout wings like eagles, run without being weary as well as walk without being tired(Isaiah 40:31) bearing in mind that the days are evil. The word ‘late’ for the dead is not different from the word “late” for those that keep to every other appointment apart from the one we have with GOD hence we are alive in the world but DEAD in the sight of God (‘it is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God’ Heb.10:31).

3.       Attending Holy Mass without a unique intention (Heb.4:16) hence getting easily distracted by any slightest provocation as well as coming to church without Holy Bible or even not opening it throughout the homily period. Holy Mass should be attended with dignity, devotion and attention by both priests and the lay-faithful. Unkempt and indecent dresses makes others uncomfortable since any action (sacrifice/prayer; 1 Cor.10:31, Col.3:17) that is no rooted on love of God, neighbor and self (1 Cor.13:1-13) is void, we should learn to adjust in order to accommodate others.

4.       Worthy reception of the Holy Eucharist to avoid receiving a death sentence to the soul like what happened to Judas (‘then satan entered into Judas, surnamed Iscariot, who was one of the twelve” Lk.22:3) which results in committing sin with impunity while leaving on the grace of last conscience.

5.       Visit to the Eucharistic Jesus exposed with the Monstrance or within the tabernacle in order to dialogue with the ALONE (‘come to me all you who labor and are overburdened, I will give you rest…’ Mtt.11:28-29). In the Eucharist; all the fullness of the Triune God is present and is ready to give blessings, favors, intuitions, directions, peace, fertility, healing, grace, liberation, wisdom e.t.c (Heb.4:16, James 1:5) because “as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so must the Son of man be lifted up so that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him” [Jn.3:14-15].

CAUTION ON EVENTS WITHIN THE HOLY MASS:

1.       People who enter the Church without reverence for the crucifix or Christ in the tabernacle hence walking in majestically to their sits as if entering a cinema also persons who dressing attitude to church cannot de differentiated from night-club attires in the name mini/skimpy/short/very tight/V-neck/transparent clothes for both male and female as well as unkempt appearance of any form in the name of glamour/fashion.

2.       Choristers who tend to introduce Jazz into the sacred liturgy; Holy Mass is solemn and should be treated in that regards with regards to all songs rendered within the celebration while concert songs should be for stage performance. Latin rites should be prepared well for proper articulation and pronunciation in order to maintain the decorum of the celebration.

3.       Lay-readers (lectors) who climb the altar for readings/psalms/prayer of the faithful should wear their well-buttoned robes as well as cover their hair with proper head-ties and not handkerchiefs (for ladies) in order to avoid exposing ones nakedness on the altar or promoting lust via mini/skimpy/short/very tight/V-neck/transparent clothes. They should also prepare the readings ahead of time in order to proclaim the WORD and stop mumbling over the wordings.

4.       Altar knights, who are unaware of where they are standing (‘come no nearer, he said. Take off your sandals for the place where you are standing is holy ground’ Ex.3:5) hence talk freely, sleep on the altar as well as walk without decorum on the altar.

5.       Priests should prepare for homilies in order to avoid inducing people with sleeping tablets even though some people plan to sleep during the liturgy of the word from their homes but whatever is worth doing is worth doing well especially when they are embellished with biblical back-ups (2 Thess.3:13). The preface should also be prepared as well as taken with articulation and comments of commendation or correction from observations made within the liturgy of the word should be made at the beginning of the homily in order to remind people of where they are and what is taking place; the world’s highest event (Heb.9:22, Jn.6:51) where the Triune GOD, the spirits of the just, the angels and the living inter-mingle (Heb.12:22-24) hence blessings or curses can be taken back home (Gal.6:7) especially altar-servers, choristers disposition to singing, lectors reading/dressing modes, agents of darkness; kidnappers, thieves, side-commentators/noise-makers, indecency in dressing e.t.c.

6.       People going to receive the Eucharistic JESUS with hands akimbo as if they are going to see a dead person (corpse) or those with hands flying as if they are matching in a sports field as well as indecency in dresses worn to the altar/church with over-customized face hence putting some people into the temptation of returning to their sits for having you stand before them in the communion line or change their intention of receiving Christ because of your half-nude attire clinging next to them in the church {Gal.6:7}.

A LADY WHO SAID SHE CANNOT SPEND AN HOUR WITHOUT FORNICATION AT THE AGE OF 27:

Many were saying give your life to JESUS (Mtt.1:24) for he is our Savior; yes this is the one first, basic and important step but is that all?

Such a person needs to be informed about good works that compliments faith as JESUS himself retorted ‘it is not anyone who says to me, Lord, Lord who will enter the kingdom of Heaven but the person who does the will of my Father in Heaven’ [Mtt.7:21] also St. James rightly stated “how does it help my brothers when someone who has never done a single god act claims to have faith? Will that faith bring salvation? {James 2:14}

Hence such a person needs to flee from this sin as a snake (Sirach 21:2)as well as renounce it which involves change of  environment thus

Be informed that as a human being (imago Dei; image of God: Gen.1:26-27) you are masters of everything including your passions hence “do not be governed by your passions, restrain your desires. If you allow yourself to satisfy your desires, this will make you the laughing-stock of your enemies” {Sirach 18:30-31}

Change the type of friends you keep or hang out with new ones who practice genuine Christianity not lip-service Christians (‘this people worship me with their mouths but their hearts are far away from me’ Mtt.15:8) because bad company ruins good moral (1 Cor.15:34) hence “cultivate your neighbors to the best of your ability and consult with the wise. For conversation seek the intelligent, let all your discussions bear on the law of the Most High. Have the upright for your table companions and let your pride be in fearing the Lord” {Sirach 9:14-16}.

Change the type of books you read, videos and films you buy, watch and keep around you, pictures you watch, download on your phones and laptops and hang in your rooms, shops and company’s and the places you visit because all these things are the gateways through which we feed our thoughts, thoughts control our passions and desires which manifest themselves in our speech, reasoning and actions hence “More than else, keep watch over your heart, since here are the wellsprings of life” (Prov.4:23) and ‘out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks’

Change the type of clothes you wear as well as your entire fashion sense because when you wear tops that are too-tight to your breast; you always the screeching of such tops against your nipples which excites lustful passions in some women or tops that reveals your breast and makes you admire your breast more than necessary which also has been proven psychologically and medically to be a medium of sexual ecstasy on most women or those admiring you whether male or female colleagues hence you hear accusing statements and expressions of inner lust from such people as this “you are looking sexy, cute, sharp, hot e.t.c in tandem with this passage ‘…the accuser of our brethren who accuses them day and night before our God’ {Rev.12:10} while some will fornicate with you in their hearts (‘if anyone looks at a woman lustfully, he has committed fornication with her in his heart’ Mtt.5:27) as others will go home masturbating while calling your name since you are very quick at giving out your names to people who compliment your indecent dressing mode.

You need to spend more time reading the WORD (‘in the beginning was the WORD, the WORD was with GOD and the WORD was GOD’ Jn.1:1) as you implore the Holy Spirit of God (‘after making man out of the dust of the earth, He breathed into him the breath of life’ Gen.2:7) in you to aid your understanding of the Scriptures in the right sense (“any of you who lacks wisdom must ask God, who gives to all generously and without scolding; it will be given” James 1:5) as you open your self to HIS GRACE and the guidance of the Holy Spirit (‘but when you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law’ Gal.5:18) because with God nothing is impossible (Lk.1:37).Also visit Christ in the Blessed Sacrament as often as possible "come to me all you who labor and overburdened and I will give you rest" (Mtt.11:28-29). Entrust yourself to the purity of Our Mother who was conceived immaculate, she gave birth to Christ immaculate, died immaculate and still reigns in Heaven Immaculate as Queen of Heaven and earth interceding for us her children every second (Rev.12:17).

Men who exploit people of this category who come around you with a quest for fingering, oral-sex, fornication, massaging, and prostitution or for counseling/help/prayers should be mindful of the words of Christ (Mtt.18:6, Mk.9:42, Lk.17:1-2) “anyone who leads any of these little ones of mine into sin is better thrown into the ocean with a big-stone hung around his neck” so you better practice self-control than inflict more pains on these people who need our help.

Ladies who admire those who go on skimpy dresses like trousers, tight-tops, tight-skirts, hot-mini, see-through apparels (clothes that reveal under wear), show back/breast/tummy, shot-bomb, sleeveless e.t.c as well as other funny fashion life-style of fixing artificial nails, weavons, eye-lashes, attachments, lip-sticks, color-rioting in the name of make-ups for what God was not able to make well that depicts and often transfers the wicked and promiscuous life of Jezebel into them should be careful because all that glitters is not gold. Many who are finding it difficult to control their sexual libido and would freely open their legs to any man as well as dogs, cats, horses, rabbits their fingers, candle-sticks, banana-sticks and sexual vibrators were those who said let me just have a fling or a quickie with their boyfriends during campus days, house-boys when the husband went for a trip, office-colleague inside the comfort-room/main office behind closed doors after office hours, inside the change-over cubicle within boutiques when there is no other customer, at the back of the house when no one seems to be watching e.t.c. You sit in your grace-filled realm as a child of GOD admiring them or planning how to join their social status while they weep every second as they pray God to grant them the Grace of last return and denunciation of their present predicament. They might receive answers to their prayers towards the tail-end of their lives and they will be giving few strokes (purgatory) according to St. Luke gospel “the one who did not know, but has acted in such a way that deserves a beating, will be given fewer stokes…” (Lk.12:48) but “the servant who knows what his master wants but has got nothing ready and done nothing in accord with those wishes will be given a great many strokes of the lash” {Lk.12:47} because Ezekiel prophesied thus “if I say to someone upright: you are to live and then trusting in this uprightness, he does wrong none of the uprightness will be remembered; because of the wrong doing he will die. If however I say to someone wicked: you are to die and he turns back from sin and does what is lawful and upright, if he returns pledges, restores what he has stolen, keeps the laws that give life and no longer does wrong, he will live and will not die” (Ezek.33:13-15) but do not wait for last minute rush because the hour, time and moment that the master will come you do not know (Lk.12:35-36) in essence ‘make the best of the present time for it is a wicked age’ (Eph.5:16)by spending every passing second as if it were my (your) last. Those who died today you are not holier, healthier, stronger or better than them.

WHY ARE YOU ANGRY?

WHY ARE YOU ANGRY? (Gen.4:6)

“The Lord God asked Cain, why are you angry and downcast? If you are doing right, surely you ought to hold your head high! But if you are not doing right, Sin is crouching at the door hungry to get you. You can still master him. Cain said to his brother Abel, let us go out and while they were in the open country, Cain set on his brother Abel and killed him” (Gen.4:6-8).

This question is no longer directed to Cain today but you and I since Cain has gone to the world beyond long time ago. I now put this question to you and I because the Word is not all about ‘tell them slogan’ but it is a double edge sword (Heb.4:12) of the Spirit of God which encourages those who are walking in the right path to keep on the good fight of faith as they guard against the yeast of the Pharisees, admonishing those who are lukewarm to rise up thus ‘since by your obedience to the truth you have purified yourselves so that you can experience the genuine love of brothers, love each other intensely from the heart; for your new birth was not from any perishable seed but from imperishable seed, the living and enduring Word of God. For all its humanity is grass and all its beauty like the wild flowers. As grass withers, the flower fades but the Word of the Lord remains forever and this Word is the Good News that has been brought to you (1 Pet.1:22-25), marks us as God’s own (‘but now in Christ Jesus, you that used to be so far off have been brought close by the Blood of Christ’ Eph.1:13), regenerates us as we respond to the directives of the Holy Spirit (“so for anyone who is in Christ, there is a new creation: the old order is gone and a new being is there to see”2 Cor.5:17) and the Gospel (‘Jesus answered: In all truth I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God without being born through water and the Spirit’ Jn.3:5), strengthens us as we seek to please God (“In the abundance of his glory may he, through his Spirit enable you to grow firm in power with regard to your inner self” Eph 3:16), convicts our hearts of sin (‘and when he comes, he will show the world how wrong it was about sin and about who was in the right and about judgment’ Jn.16:8) and guarantees our inheritance of the things above (“who is the pledge of our inheritance for the freedom of the people whom God has taken for his own for the praise of his glory” Eph. 1:14).

Hence why do you get irritated when your neighbor’s children progresses before your own children? Yet you stumble over this passage often ‘but when the completion of the time came, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born a subject of the law, to redeem the subjects of the law so that we could receive adoption as sons’ {Gal.4:4-5} and we often allow this bad feeling to lead into hateful feelings that places egocentrism over righteousness thus we begin to look for ways of destroying lives and properties via poisoning, betrayal of any sort, unleashing hired assassins and kidnappers, burning people’s homes e.t.c while attributing them to devils handwork or even attempt the other extreme where friends, parents, siblings, life-partners, relations ignite the passions of evil in us by luring our generation into prostitution with dubious students, lecturers, managers or heads of administrations in order to get admissions, pass semester examinations, get promotion in offices, sale our products in the market, bring people to your fellowships, meet up with the social status of our new environment, win a political position, get marriage partners e.t.c with idolatrous statements like “use what your mother gave you to get what you want”, ‘if you can beat them, you join them’, “Do not allow people to notice your righteousness any other place apart from the church lest you will not make it to the top”, ‘when you get to Rome behave like the Romans’ e.t.c.

Forgetting that you may end up getting all these things as you planned but like the rich fool, you may not live to partake in its spoil because the hour, day and time when death (Lk.12:40) will come knocking at your door, you do not know hence exchanging our heavenly birthright (Phil.3:20) for the fire that burns with sulphur and brimstone (Rev.21:8) for a position, fashion, wealth, fame e.t.c that will be used by others with a curse attached to it (Ex.20:5) for the children that follow the evil paths of their parents (Ezek.33:14-16).

Why are you annoyed with the person who told you to stop lying with your phone because your caller was made to believe you are in Enugu while you are in Lagos remember all sort of liars are heading for the lake that burns with sulphur and brimstone; the second death (Rev.21:8) including those who impersonate for people during Examinations as well as copying from other people works or carrying written materials into the hall, those secretaries who pick up the phone under duress to inform their clients of the managers purported absence from the country while he is directly beside the phone table, men and women who turn their children, maids or houseboy’s into a canker of deceit whereby they tell-off their debtors, people who forge certificates to get admissions, jobs, promotions, contracts e.t.c , people who give bribe as well as take in order to transfer another’s opportunity to undeserving people who lie to would-be spouse about their fertility condition in collaboration with laboratory attendants, nurses and doctors for a certain amount of money, medical practitioners who decide to take the place of God by exchanging male and female children between mothers who have complimenting preference in the sex of their new born child which ends up raping his seeming sisters and mother as well as killing the seeming father and vice versa.

Why are you annoyed with the person who tells you to cover your breast, laps and buttocks?

some prying eyes and the weak in spirit may be fornicating with you in their hearts (Mtt.5:27-28) in your bid to look trendy, sexy, cute and smart in the realm of worldly fashion including your houseboy/brother-in-law/visitors/husband friends/male friends e.t.c who goes somewhere squeezing his penis with soap and water while calling your name hence accusing you before God in line with Rev.12:10 “…the accuser, who accuses our brethren day and night before our God…” and your maid(s)/daughter(s)/sister(s)/sister(s)-in-law/holiday-relations whose decent clothes you burnt and replaced with promiscuous attires hence luring your undisciplined husband and other male contemporaries in between her thighs while you sit back in your house blaming everybody and everything except yourself for the problems in your family because you parade the whole house/lodge on boxers, transparent night-gowns, trousers, V-neck & tight tops, bomb shots, mini & tight skirts e.t.c forgetting that these human parts are the first to be swallowed by maggots and ants (Isaiah 14:11) once death strikes, righteousness exalts a nation while sin is a reproach to the people  (Prov.14:34)and “do not delude yourself: God is not to be fooled; whatever someone sows that is what he will reap (Gal.6:7). What an unfair treatment on our spirit which stands to be punished by the sins committed by the flesh at the judgment (1 Cor.15:50) but when the spirit of man controls the undertakings of man; some part of the flesh or the whole body does not inherit incorruptibility just like Christ at the Resurrection (Mtt.28:1-8), Elisha’s body prophesied at death (Sirach 48:13) and a dead man whose corpse touched Elisha’s bones came to life (2 Kgs.13:20-21), Our Mother (Rev.12:17); the Blessed Virgin Mary was taken up into heaven soul and body in fulfillment of Psalm 16:10 (for you will not abandon me to sheol, you cannot allow your faithful servant to see the abyss), the tongue of St. Anthony of Padua is still fresh as at the day he died till today, the corpse of St. Bernadette is still lying in state as at the day of his burial till today and other saints as well as holy men and women who have died yet still communicate with us because “when Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin but the spirit is alive because you have been justified” {Rom.8:10} which is rephrased in latin as ‘vita mutamor non tollitur [life is transformed not destroyed]’ for those who believe.

Why is your spirit downcast because you did not graduate with your contemporaries?

Those who graduated have not gone for service, those who went for service; on their way to the camp lost their lives, those who are serving in some rural/urban areas are not finding it funny, those who are in the private companies the so much acclaimed oil companies are wishing for a transfer, break or reduction in the load of work. The flesh seeks to satisfy the satiety of man i.e the yearning of a man’s soul for God (‘As a deer yearns for running streams, so I yearn for you, my God’ Ps.42:1) with things that are visible like

 wine (eating and drinking) while Paul stated “for it is not eating and drinking that make the kingdom of God, but saving justice peace and joy brought by the Holy Spirit” [Rom.14:17],

 Women (marriage and lustful passions) ‘…there are eunuchs who have made themselves so for the sake of the kingdom of Heaven. Let anyone accept this who can’ (Mtt.19:12) thus “for when they rise from the dead, men and women do not marry; no they are like the angels in heaven” (Mk.12:25),

Wealth (inordinate desire for money and property) ‘in reply Balaam said to Balak’s envoys, even if Balak gave me his house full of silver and gold, I could not go against the order of the Lord my God in anything, great or small’ {Num.21:18} because “the Lord gives death and life, brings down to sheol and draws up; the Lord makes poor and rich, he humbles and also exalts” (1 Sam.2:6-7) and

Ritual Evangelist (Surface-coated piety) ‘this people honor me only with lip-service while their hearts are far from me. Their reverence of me is worthless: the lessons they teach are nothing but human commandments’ [Mtt.15:8-9], “…I know about your behavior: how you are reputed to be alive and yet ye are dead” {Rev.3:1b} and ‘Jesus looked steadily at him and he was filled with love for him and he said, you need to do one thing more. Go and sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasure in heaven; then come follow me. But his face fell at these words and he went away sad, for he was a man of great wealth’ (Mk.10:21-22).

People under this terrain include all those who ordained themselves bishops (pastor, pastores latin derivation for shepherd/high priest) against this passage ‘no one takes this honor upon himself but is chosen as Aaron was’ (Heb.5:4) and preach loyalty to Christ while standing on the platform of disobedience to the head of the Church; Christ (Eph.5:23) who is represented by the bishop of Rome who has the apostolic succession of St. Peter (Mtt.16:18-19) hence the teachings of the church is guided by the continued presence of Christ in the Sacrifice of His Body and Blood which is re-enacted every day on the altar by genuine Catholic Priests (Lk.22:19-20) and the ever dynamic Power of Pentecost (Holy Spirit) which holds every member of the church united in believe that we have one Lord, one baptism, one faith  and one God and Father of all, over all, through all and within all (Eph.4:5-6) as He proceeds from the Father and the Son (“He will glorify me since all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine. Everything the Father has is mine; that is why I said: all he reveals to you will be taken from what is mine” Jn.16:14-15) and this full power of the Trinity is renewed, revived, revered, re-affirmed and re-ascertained on the life of the Church by the imposition of the sign of the Trinity, faith in Christ’s death on the cross which brought us fulfillment (Jn.19:30), victory over the enemy; devil (1 Pet.5:8-9)  and continued persecution in the world (Jn.16:33) and passion for Genuine love(Jn.15:13) as is visible at the beginning and end of all the ritual prayers of the Church which is the only pathway a human being and all that he does as well as owns can be sanctified as well as brought into the domain of the Triune God hence “…baptise them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” {Mtt.28:19}