Our Faith

3rd Sunday of Lent


First Reading
Exodus 3:1-8, 13-15

The Burning Bush

Moses pastured the sheep of Jethro his father in law, priest of Midian. One day he led the flock to the far side of the desert and came to Horeb, the mountain of God. The angel of Yahweh appeared to him by means of a flame of fire in the middle of a bush. Moses saw that although the bush was on fire it did not burn up. Moses thought, “I will go and see this amazing sight, why is the bush not burning up. Yahweh said that Moses was drawing near to look and God called him from the middle of the bush. Moses! Moses s! He replies,” Here I am.” Yahweh said to him , Do not come near; take off your sandals because the place you are standing now is holy ground”, And God continued, I am the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob.
Moses hid his face lest his eyes look on God. Yahweh said I have seen the humiliation of my people in Egypt and I hear their cry when they are cruelly treated by their taskmasters. I know their suffering. I have come down to free them from the power of the Egyptians and to bring them up from that land to a beautiful spacious land, a land flowing with milk and honey, to the territory of the Canaanites, the Hitites, the Ammonites, the Perizzites, the Hivites and the Jebusites.
Moses answered God,” If I go to the Israelites and say to them: The God of your fathers has sent me to you, they will ask me: What is his name? What shall I answer them? “God said to Moses, I am who I am. This is what you will say to the sons of Israel: I am sent to you.” God then said to Moses “ You will say to the Israelites: Yahweh the God of your father s, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac and the God of Jacob has sent me.”That will be my name forever and by this name they shall call upon me for all generations to come.


Second Reading
I Corinthians 10:1-6, 10-12

Faith Demands Sacrifice

Let me remind you, brothers and sisters, about our ancestors. Al l of them was under the cloud and all crossed the sea. All went the baptism of the land and of the sea to join Moses and all of them ate from the same manna and all of them drank from the same spiritual drink. For you know that they drink from the same spiritual rock following them, and the rock was Christ. However, most of them did not please God and the desert was strewn with their bodies. All of this happened as an example for us, so that we may not become the people of evil desires, as they did nor grumble as some of them did and were cut down by destroying angel.
These things happened to them as an example, and they were written as a warning for us, as the last times come upon us. Therefore, if you think you stand, beware, lest you fall. No trial greater than human endurance has overcome you. God is faithful and will not let you be tempted beyond your strength. He will give you, together with the temptation, the strength to escape and resist.

Gospel Reading
Luke 13:1-9

The fig Tree without a fruit

One day some persons told Jesus what had occurred in the temple: Pilate had Galileans killed and their blood mingled with the blood of their sacrifices. Jesus replied, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans because they suffered this? I tell you: no .But unless you change your ways, you will all perish as they did.
And all these persons in SIloah who crushed when the tower fell, do you think they were guiltier than all the others in Jerusalem? I tell you: no. But unless they change their ways, you will all perish as they did.
And Jesus continued with this story, A man had a fig tree growing in his vineyard and he came looking for fruit on it but found none. Then he said to the gardener: Look here, for three years now I have been looking for figs on this tree and I have found none. Cut it down, why it should use up the ground? The gardened replied: Leave it one more year, so that I may dig around it and add some fertilizer and perhaps it will bear fruit from now on. But if it doesn’t you can cut it down.

Questions for reflection:
1. Do you believe in second chances?
2. Do you believe that you deserve a second chance?
3. Do you accept everything that God gave you and trust him completely?
A lot of things happen to us everyday. Sometimes though we plan everything out, something will go wrong and we wonder if God is testing us or if it was just your fault. We wonder if it is all for the better, and If it is all for the better then why are we not happy with what happen. But like the birds in the wild who were taken care of by God, who are we to question his plans for us. He provides us with everything that we need and He knows what is best for us.