20250707 SEEKING ASSURANCE FROM THE LORD
07 July 2025, Monday, 14th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Genesis 28:10-22 |
Jacob's dream of the ladder at Bethel
Jacob left Beersheba and set out for Haran. When he had reached a certain place he passed the night there, since the sun had set. Taking one of the stones to be found at that place, he made it his pillow and lay down where he was. He had a dream: a ladder was there, standing on the ground with its top reaching to heaven; and there were angels of God going up it and coming down. And the Lord was there, standing over him, saying, ‘I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. I will give to you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants shall be like the specks of dust on the ground; you shall spread to the west and the east, to the north and the south, and all the tribes of the earth shall bless themselves by you and your descendants.
‘Be sure that I am with you; I will keep you safe wherever you go, and bring you back to this land, for I will not desert you before I have done all that I have promised you.’
Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Truly, the Lord is in this place and I never knew it!’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awe-inspiring this place is! This is nothing less than a house of God; this is the gate of heaven!’ Rising early in the morning, Jacob took the stone he had used for his pillow, and set it up as a monument, pouring oil over the top of it. He named the place Bethel, but before that the town was called Luz.
Jacob made this vow, ‘If God goes with me and keeps me safe on this journey I am making, if he gives me bread to eat and clothes to wear, and if I return home safely to my father, then the Lord shall be my God. This stone I have set up as a monument shall be a house of God.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 90(91):1-4,14-15 |
My God, in you I trust.
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High
and abides in the shade of the Almighty
says to the Lord: ‘My refuge,
my stronghold, my God in whom I trust!’
My God, in you I trust.
It is he who will free you from the snare
of the fowler who seeks to destroy you;
he will conceal you with his pinions
and under his wings you will find refuge.
My God, in you I trust.
Since he clings to me in love, I will free him;
protect him for he knows my name.
When he calls I shall answer: ‘I am with you,’
I will save him in distress.
My God, in you I trust.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Jn6:63,68 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Your words are spirit, Lord, and they are life;
you have the message of eternal life.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Tim1:10 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Our Saviour Jesus Christ abolished death
and he has proclaimed life through the Good News.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 9:18-26 |
'Your faith has restored you to health'
While Jesus was speaking, up came one of the officials, who bowed low in front of him and said, ‘My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her and her life will be saved.’ Jesus rose and, with his disciples, followed him. Then from behind him came a woman, who had suffered from a haemorrhage for twelve years, and she touched the fringe of his cloak, for she said to herself, ‘If I can only touch his cloak I shall be well again.’ Jesus turned round and saw her; and he said to her, ‘Courage, my daughter, your faith has restored you to health.’ And from that moment the woman was well again.
When Jesus reached the official’s house and saw the flute-players, with the crowd making a commotion he said, ‘Get out of here; the little girl is not dead, she is asleep.’ And they laughed at him. But when the people had been turned out he went inside and took the little girl by the hand; and she stood up. And the news spread all round the countryside.
SEEKING ASSURANCE FROM THE LORD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Gn 28:10-22; Ps 91:1-4,14-15; Mt 9:18-26]
We can imagine how fearful and uncertain Jacob was about his future. First, he was fleeing from his brother who wanted to kill him. He was on the run, and there was always a possibility that Esau might catch up with him, putting him in mortal danger. Second, he knew he had cheated Esau of his birthright. This raised questions: Was he truly the one God would choose to be Abraham’s descendant and the father of many nations? Or could he not be, since he had cheated his way into that position? Perhaps it was merely his own will and not part of God’s plan. Third, he was travelling alone to a distant land. Haran was 5340 km from Beersheba. Would he be safe from brigands and enemies? Would he be able to find his way there safely? These were the questions confronting Jacob as he fled for his life.
So too was the fear of the woman with the haemorrhage. She was desperate, but she felt guilty for touching a holy man and contaminating Him. She had spent all her money on doctors, yet there was no cure. As a result, she felt unworthy and an outcast because her conditioned deemed her unclean. She sought healing for her illness which caused her much inconvenience. She was also embarrassed to let people know of her ailment, fearing she would be ostracised. She was in a dilemma, but she took courage. She said to herself, “If I can only touch his cloak I shall be well again.”
The relatives of the girl who died must have been distraught. What father or mother would not feel sad to have their child die young? It must have been truly heartbreaking for them to lose a child. “While Jesus was speaking, up came one of the officials, who bowed low in front of him and said, ‘My daughter has just died, but come and lay your hand on her and her life will be saved.’ Jesus rose and, with his disciples, followed him.” Jesus must have been extremely sad. But He gave him hope by immediately following him to his house.
In all these cases, God showed Himself to be supportive and consoling. God assured Jacob by confirming His promises and divine protection from all harm. God said, “I am the Lord, the God of Abraham your father, and the God of Isaac. I will give to you and your descendants the land on which you are lying. Your descendants shall be like the specks of dust on the ground; you shall spread to the west and the east, to the north and the south, and all the tribes of the earth shall bless themselves by you and your descendants. Be sure that I am with you; I will keep you safe wherever you go, and bring you back to this land, for I will not desert you before I have done all that I have promised you.” This was all that Jacob needed to know: that he was the chosen one to realize the promise made to Abraham and that God would protect him from all harm and evil.
Christ assured the mourners that the child was not dead but sleeping. “When Jesus reached the official’s house and saw the flute-players, with the crowd making a commotion he said, ‘Get out of here; the little girl is not dead, she is asleep.'” Indeed, Jesus gave hope to all those who were desperate. He never spoke to them in a way that made them feel hopeless. He assured the woman that she was healed of her ailment because of her faith. “Jesus turned round and saw her; and he said to her, ‘Courage, my daughter, your faith has restored you to health.'” It was a necessary affirmation because she might have doubted that she was healed as, especially as she had touched Jesus’ cloak without His permission. To remove any doubt about the healing grace of God that flowed to her, Jesus assured that she was healed. We read that “from that moment the woman was well again.”
We too need assurance in the different moments of our lives. We need confirmation in our weaknesses, especially during trials and sickness. We need assurance when we receive a new appointment or an office in which we feel inadequate. We need assurance when we are faced with opposition to our plans and doubt whether our plans are from Him. All of us need assurance. Even Jesus needed assurance before He began His mission. It was at His baptism that a voice came from heaven to affirm Him. “And a voice from heaven said, “This is my Son, the Beloved, with whom I am well pleased.” (Mt 3:17). Then again, before His final entry to Jerusalem for His passion, the Father reassured the Lord of the direction He was taking when, at the Transfiguration, He was seen conversing with Moses and Elijah, representatives of the Law and the Prophets; and finally, “while he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, ‘This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!'”
How does God assure us? God assures us through dreams. This was how the Lord spoke to Jacob, and to Joseph – both Jacob’s son and the spouse of Mary. Dreams remain an important vehicle by which God conveys His message to us. In the Bible, God spoke to the prophets through visions and dreams. And He continues to speak to us through dreams and visions today. We should pay attention to our dreams. However, we must be careful that not all dreams are from God; some could be from our subconscious desires. So, we need to discern carefully whether such dreams are from God. I have seen many who, after “resting in the Spirit”, found closure for some painful past events when they received images and visions of loved ones whom they needed to hear or see.
Secondly, God appears to us through shrines and monuments like Bethel. “Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said, ‘Truly, the Lord is in this place and I never knew it!’ He was afraid and said, ‘How awe-inspiring this place is! This is nothing less than a house of God; this is the gate of heaven!’ Rising early in the morning, Jacob took the stone he had used for his pillow, and set it up as a monument, pouring oil over the top of it. He named the place Bethel, but before that the town was called Luz.” Bethel means House of God. Bethel later became an important shrine in the history of Israel. Upon the death of King Solomon, the kingdom of Israel was split into two. Jeroboam, the first king of the northern Kingdom of Israel, made two calves of gold and set one up in Bethel, and the other in Dan, in the far north of his kingdom. This was to deter the people from having to go to Jerusalem to worship in the temple there. Like the Israelites, we today make pilgrimages to Holy Land and to shrines of apparitions and saints. Such monuments and shrines remain sacred and useful for people to remember the love and mercy of God and His messages to humanity through the saints. Thus, there is a purpose for us to promote pilgrimages to shrines, because lives are touched.
Thirdly, God gives us assurance through healing miracles. There is nothing quite like a personal healing touch from the Lord. We read that Jesus “went inside and took the little girl by the hand; and she stood up.” He could have healed her by a word; He did not even need to go to the house, just as he healed the servant of the centurion. But Jesus wanted to give them assurance of His presence and His support. So, not only did He go to the house, He even took the girl by the hand. Indeed, in the New Testament, Jesus proclaimed the Good News not just with words but with deeds, especially miracles. After commissioning His disciples, Jesus said, “And these signs will accompany those who believe: by using my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up snakes in their hands, and if they drink any deadly thing, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.” (Mk 16:7f)
Fourthly, God gives us His assurance through the Scriptures, especially in the psalms, where we hear the testimonies of biblical persons. When we hear the psalmist praising God for deliverance, we find strength and hope as well. We also must testify to God’s love in our lives. After healing the girl, we read that “the news spread all round the countryside.” We too must thank God by testifying to how He has worked in our lives. Through our stories of faith, we can assure others that God will hear their prayers as well. We need to testify to God’s love in our lives and how he has helped us.
Finally, God can assure us through positive signs. In the Bible, we often hear of biblical persons asking the Lord for a sign to confirm their vision or their mission. “Jacob made this vow, ‘If God goes with me and keeps me safe on this journey I am making, if he gives me bread to eat and clothes to wear, and if I return home safely to my father, then the Lord shall be my God. This stone I have set up as a monument shall be a house of God.'” So too, we read in the book of Judges about figures like Gideon, Moses, and the prophets, where God gave them signs to confirm the authenticity of their call or vision. It is not wrong to ask for signs to confirm His call for us. We should ask so that we can be confident of our calling and direction in life.
But in the final analysis, we need faith like the woman, first and foremost. Only with the faith of the woman can we be restored and be healed. God desires that we have faith in Him. We must therefore be like Jacob who, after receiving the vision in a dream, went forth courageously to realize the dream that God had for him. We too must not be discouraged. Once we have heard His call and received affirmation from the Lord through His angels, messengers, or directly in prayer, we must with confidence pursue our mission to the end.
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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