The Kingdom of God is among you

Wis. 7:22-8:1, Lk. 17:20-25. Wisdom is like a golden thread interwoven through life, which draws and inspires us towards God. This wisdom “penetrates and pervades all things.” In today's first reading, wisdom calls us to live with integrity and form healthy relationships with others, so that the grace of God can flourish among us. Honesty and integrity come through wisdom, which is God’s supreme gift to us. Wisdom also praises those who sacrifice their lives for the ideals. Life is a testing-place, a furnace that refines the divine image in us. Our God is compassionate and good, always creatively at work in our world to refine us and tested us like gold in the furnace to be suite for His reign.

We may feel indignant at all of the injustice in our world and we would like to know how long it will all last. In today's Gospel, the Pharisees wanted to know: “When will the reign of God come?” In His answer, Jesus shelves the question of when it will come and focuses instead on how the Kingdom of God is coming. The Kingdom is not to be identified with a particular point of time, contrary to those who try to predict the end of the world on such and such a day. He refuses to locate the reign of God “here” or “there.” There is no 'all-holy' place where God dwells, rather than in everywhere. In answer to the question, Jesus gave baffling but also consoling answer: The Kingdom of God is already here among us. Within our hearts, the reign of God has already begun. Through our union with Jesus, we already have a foretaste of eternal life. From Him we find strength to do what is right and sense that our life is a gift.

May the Wisdom of God dwell within us and make us discern the reign of God in our lives! Amen!! Good morning and have a wonderful day!!!