Reading and meditation on the Word of God on Wednesday of the third week of Lent, March 11, 2026

Delivered by Vici from the Parish of Saint John the Baptist in the Archdiocese of Jakarta, Indonesia. Deuteronomy 4: 1.5-9; Rs psalm 147: 12-13.15-16.19-20; Matthew 5: 17-19.DO WHAT IS TAUGHT The title for our meditation today is: Do What IsTaught. Two aspects from our human nature, according to God the Creator, thatmake us superior to other living creatures are reason and freedom. God entrustsus to use freely and effectively these two natural qualities. In reality thereare always two choices on the how to use our reason and freedom. One is when wechoose to follow our own will which can lead us to sin and sufferings, andanother is when we choose to follow God's teachings and laws which certainly bringus to happines. For the second choice, our reason and freedomrecognize their limits when they must stand in the same position andcollaborate with God's will. No matter how smart a person is, he finallyrealizes that God's intelligence exceeds him. Likewise he can exercise hisfreedom for any posibility or any purpose, but finally he will recognize thatGod is more powerful than him. To this extent, it is actually faith that hasthe ability to explain on the greatness and omnipotence of God, which is to beaccepted by our reason and freedom. Today, we learn about how with reason and freedom, wedo what God teaches us to do. The normal way to do is that our naturalabilities can collaborate with God's grace. The first reading from the book ofDeuteronomy describes the teaching about the divine commandments orregulations. Moses asked God's people to always obey and be faithful to whatwas already determined by God. This is what we usually call the commandments ofGod. This obedience and discipline do not reduce the roleof our reason and freedom, instead our reason and freedom assume a plus point,namely the Divine wisdom. The function of the mind for this sense is toremember, to understand, and to express in a correct manner what God teaches us. The function of freedom is tospread the truth so that it can enlighten and direct our life in the way of theLord until we arrive in perfection.  A faithful and obedient person of faith has animportant and demanding task to do what God intructs to do. One's baptismalpromises and membership in the Church bear a specific mission, which is theresponsibility to teach religious instructions to others, it could be relativesor friends, and even unknown people. This responsibility is primarily taken upby individuals because it is basically attached to each one's calling. But aresponsible and dedicated follower of Christ is also demanded to be a social anda public servant who is sent by the Lord Jesus and constantly assisted by theHoly Spirit to teach others about God and His works of salvation. The biblicalexpression for this type of responsibility is commonly known as the salt andthe light of the world. Our real vocation in this world is indeed to becomesalts and lights of the world. Then life as Christians is actually manifestedin the action of teaching and learning from one another. Let'spray. In the name of the Father ... O Father of all wisdom, fill us always withYour teachings and precepts that help us to become wise like You. Hail Mary,full of grace ... In the name of the Father ...