TRANSFORMED BY THE LORD

I have a brother who lives a carefree life. Occasionally, he appears in troubles and fights in our barangay. In his problems, he will call my parents at home and beg for help. My father will immediately go to the barangay hall to settle the problems my brother initiated. One of our neighbors once commented, "Why don't you leave him alone and let him solve his own problems?" My father replied, "How can I forsake him, he is my son."  To this day, my brother still engages in occasional fights, and my father never tires in helping my brother. Parents will always be faithful to their children; faithful in guiding them to live a good life, however difficult it may be. I pray for that day when my brother would realize how much our father loves him, and when he ceases to give him some headaches in life.

God knows us: our unfaithfulness and fragility, and He never stops in extending His loving hands to redeem us. God knows Peter; he is impulsive, weak, and fearful. More than Peter reaming in Jesus, it is the Lord who had always made Himself present in the life of Peter. Whether on the shore of the sea of Tiberias or on his way out of Rome, the Lord has always been there for Peter, to redeem him from his blunders, to remind him of his identity as an apostle and shepherd, to reiterate to him who should he rely on, from whom his strength lies (God).

Before a burning charcoal, Peter denied Jesus three times. Before a burning charcoal, Peter was given the opportunity to profess his love for Jesus three times. From a supper to a breakfast, Jesus revealed His true identity to Peter. From a night of fruitless fishing, Peter was led to a new dawn of shepherding. Peter was strengthened by the faithfulness of God, and opportunities to redeem himself, in his life. He was transformed from one who rejected Jesus, to one who confessed love to Jesus; from a fisherman to a shepherd who was ready to die for his flock. Indeed, God provides means to redeem us, as He did for Peter. And Peter was never the same again; from a fisherman to a shepherd. This is God's expression of His desire for us not to slide backward in our journey towards Him, nor to be stuck in our sinful and murky present. He wants us to move forward; onward to the fulfillment of His plans in our life.   

God is faithful. He will never tire from redeeming us every time we succumb to sin or every time we turn our back from Him. He will approach us and put direction to our life. And we cannot but praise the Lord for He has rescued us.

The faithfulness of God bears fruit in our acceptance of the mission He bestows upon us. The love of God and love for God moves us to imitate Him, to be His missionaries and to love like Him. As God loves us, we learn to love him and do His will in our life, though this may entail sufferings, difficulties, and ultimately death. It may not be actual death, but dying in our selfishness and sins mark our act of loving and following Jesus. Wounds of suffering and death are marks of Christian discipleship. And cheerfully we bear these wounds, as the Lamb of God, though wounded and scarred by sin of man, is gloriously enthroned and praised in heaven (Rev 5:11-14).

The Lord asked Peter: Do you love me? Peter's affirmative response was followed by an invitation from Jesus: Follow me. It was short of asking: Are you ready to die with me? Mistreatment, after all, is part of our Christian mission. The wounds and suffering are permanent marks of our mission to preach God.

As Peter was transformed to a shepherd, he assumed a mission: to tend and feed God's flock. It is a difficult task far different from his profession as a fisherman. He would be persecuted on the account of preaching about the Risen One. Peter would be brought to places he never wanted. Weak as he is, he would be tempted to surrender and deny Jesus once again. But God would always redeem him, for Peter was willing to be saved. He knows to whom shall he go when he fails. God strengthens Peter throughout his mission. And in a like manner, God is always with us, especially in moments of failure, when our efforts bear no catch.

With joy, we suffer for the sake of Christ in the name of obedience to God. Like the apostles, we too can rejoice that we had been found worthy to suffer dishonor for the sake of God (Acts 5:27-32, 40B-41). We are blessed, not because of our own strength, but because of God who is present in our midst accompanying us. Should we ever have a miraculous catch, it is not because of our own skills, but through Jesus who instructs us, who guides us always. By God's power and might, our works and efforts can bear fruit. It is not the overnight efforts of the apostles that gave them a bountiful catch, but the words and instructions of Christ heeded by the apostles. "Cast into them" He said, as if to say "Try one more time but now with Me, with My guidance." And they had a miraculous catch. And they recognized the Lord. They recognized the cause of their joy in their lives: It is the Lord.