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Q4 The passage teaches us that as Christian, we need to be ready at all times for we do not know when the day or hour of the coming of the Son of Man. Those the Lord finds worthy will be saved. Therefore, we need to take heed of this warning. We have to bear in mind that Jesus comes for all people. Not only to the people of His time but also to us . We have to bear in mind what happened during His time will also happen to us roday. We need to be prepared and live holy and godly lives so that we can look forward to His second coming. As witnesses of God, we need to be an example for others, to have our prayer life in order and live according to the will of God. Jesus has commanded us to love our neighbors as ourselves. We need one another to grow in our spiritual lives and to reach out to those who are in need and to help them be ready for the second coming.

Q3 First Jesus has indicated that He must suffer and rejected by this generation. Then destruction comes in. He gives two examples of Noah and Lot. We are not to take all these lightly. We must always be prepared as Jesus said that He will come like a thief in the night. We have to decide where want to spend eternity. If we profess our faith with Christ then we have to live life worthy of Him. To know that we will one day enjoy the Kingdom He has prepared for us.

Q2 The disciples will not know the day and hour of Jesus' coming. Jesus warned them not to be lured by false christs and false prophets doing great signs and miracles. However, they are to observe the lightning which flashes and lights up the sky from one end to the other. This will be seen at great distance and lights up a huge area. Then they will know the coming of the Kingdom.

Q1 Jesus came to proclaim the Good News of Salvation to mankind. Thus through the teachings of Christ, the Word will be sown into our hearts and eventually grow. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit, we are led to live life worthy of the Kingdom. For we live and move and have our being in Christ Jesus. Through the guidance of the Holy Spirit, living life that is right with God and with the fellowship of our sisters and brothers in Christ, the Kingdom of God is present today.

Q4 Jesus came to save not only the Jews but all mankind. Thus the Kingdom is meant for everyone. To be a follower of Christ is not an easy task. That is why He gave us a Spirit of boldness to help us persevere in times of trials and persecutions. We are facing the dark forces of the world and in order to get into the Kingdom of God we need to fight and struggle through all the hardships and forces that are hindering our path. Our focus must be on Jesus in order to gain entry into the Kingdom prepared for us.

Q3 God has given us a free will. Being a loving God, whatever action we do there is always a response from God. God never leave us orphan. He knows us before we were formed in our mother's womb. Everything comes from Him. Therefore, asking, seeking, and knocking is so essential to our looking forward to the Kingdom. Due to our weaknesses, impatience, no confidence, etc., we tend to give up easily. In this fast world where everything is instant, we tend to take our God the same way not realizing that God will work everything beautiful for us in His time not our time, in His way and not our way. We expect a "Yes" always to our every request but sometimes God's "No" turns out better for He knows best after all He will give us our needs not our wants. We must always have the pressure to approach the throne of grace with confidence. We need to be in prayer daily with God and have a conversation with Him. When in prayer, we need to have faith, trust, belief and confident and trusting in His word all our needs will be attended to.

Q2 Seeking God's Kingdom means to place God as our number one priority in our lives. God must be the most important person in our whole being before ourselves, our family and others. Thus knowing His will for us. Seeking God's righteousness not only mean in religious observances but beyond that. We need to daily hungering for Him until we have an intimate relationship with Him and be immersed in Him also. Thus allowing God to transform us into His image and likeness. God is love and if God is in us, we will naturally tend to adopt His virtues and apply it to our families and those we come into contact with. God is our provider. He will supply all our needs according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. (Phil.4:19) All we need to do is place our hope and trust in Him. God is all faithful. If we seek and abide in Him and His righteousness, all things will be given to us as promised in Matt. 7:9-11. "What man is there among you when his son shall ask him for a loaf, will give him stone" or if he shall ask for a fish, he will not give him a snake, will he? If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more shall your Heavenly Father give what is good to those who ask Him."

Q1 Yes and no. Depending on where your priority is - God or money. If one truly trust in Jesus, one does not need so much money for God is our providence. No, this is not hyperbole. God is our creator. He knows us through and through, our weaknesses and our strength. With His tremendous love for us, He has sent His only begotten Son to die and save us from the snares of the devil. In order to protect us, Jesus at times has to be harsh on His words. Figuratively or literally He has to get His message through to us so that we can distinguish the right from the wrong. Definitely wealthy people can serve God. After all their riches are blessings from God. God is eternal whereas riches are temperary things. It can be taken away from them or added a hundred fold depending on God. So smart wealthy people need to put their focus right with God.

Q4 In the Parable of the Soils, Jesus is showing to us the tools we need to help ourselves as well as others to grow in the 'Message of the Kingdom.' It is the spiritual growth of oneself and how to sustain and persevere on. It i important that we need to sow our seeds of faith in good soil and through daily cultivating and nurturing the soil, we can produce fruits that will last,so that the good news can spread to others who hunger for it. We are assigned such tasks and made disciples to reach out to them to come and taste the goodness of the Lord and in the hope of expanding the realm and reign of the King.

Q3 "By their fruits you shall know them" If we the good seeds are nurtured, harvested, we begin to grow in Gods character and produce good heart by the help of the Holy Spirit. Together with the spiritual gifts bestowed upon us, we will help to build the Kingdom of God here on earth. Each one of us has a different gift and through the manifestation of this gift we reach out to those who hunger for the Word of God thus producing and yielding, 30, 60 and 100 fold.

Q2 The order of the most dangerous thorn which Jesus mentioned depends on the individual whose life is affected. How one sees the situation and analyze it. Each one of us have a bit of every thorn in us. We must learn to master over it and not be slave to it. We take it as our trials and pray for God's strength and graces to overcome them rather than to be controlled by them. Every human being has problems (thorns) in our lives. It is a matter of how we handle them, who we can depend on for help, ourselves or God to come and free us from these bondages. As long as we are in this world, we cannot run away from all these temptations. As Jesus told us to be in the world but not of the world.

Q1 There are many people who are not receptive of Jesus' teachings. Their ears are closed for the Word to penetrate into their being. These are the unbelievers'. Next we have those who hear the Word but because of life's problems, their focus and attention are at the wrong place instead of their trust unto God. These are the 'worldly' ones. Then we have those who cannot persevere, when trials and tribulations come their way. The Spirit is willing but the flesh is weak. There are no depths in their faith. These are the 'weaklings'. There are lots of Sunday worshipers (Christians) who go to church just to fulfill their Sunday obligations and will have nothing more than that. The world which is so advanced in everything has influences many to sway away from God. The challenges they have to face, the heavy load they laid on their shoulders and the race they need to compete with one another has taken a lot of toil on them because many rely on their own strength instead of God's strength.

4 Repentance is the vital key to the Kingdom of God. The Israelites were cast out from the sight of God because of their sinful living. Sodom and Gomorrah were destroyed because of their loose living. God caused the great flood and wiped out the people on earth. If we value ourselves as followers of Christ then we have to imitate His ways for Jesus is without sins. Baptism is the passport to eternal life. As Jesus said in John 3:5 no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. Everyone of us are born with the original sins of Adam and Eve and through baptism we are cleansed, sanctified and made righteous before God. Literally no, Christ cannot reign in an unrepentant heart. However, our God is a merciful and forgiving God, slow to anger and abounding in love. God comes for all, not only to the Christians but also to the non-Christians. (Acts 10:44-47) He has given us a free will to choose. To live or to die.

3 John the forth-runner for Jesus, is to prepare the people for the coming Messiah. Whereas Jesus is the Saviour, the Messiah, who comes to fulfill the will of God. Thus John baptised the people with water, that is cleansing their sins for repentance. Whereas Jesus came to immerse them with the Holy Spirit and with power. Definitely yes. With the guidance and prompting of the Holy Spirit I will be walking in the light of God and is pleasing to Him. If I am not repentant of my sins and refused to accept God's Spirit in my life, I am preventing this in my life. However, if I am humble before God and live life according to God's teachings and be guided by His Holy Spirit I am blessed and saved.

2 John's baptism have offended a Jew's national pride by calling them to humility and repentance. Since they claimed Abraham to be their father the refused to admit they were sinners. It is the poor, the oppressed and mostly the Gentiles who welcome John's baptism. The Jews especially the Pharisees, the Sadducees, the teachers of the law, the learned, those of high authorities and the higher class of people who resisted it. They have considered themselves as God's chosen people and are always perfect in the sight of men and God.

1 Jesus has taught us that sins mean death and if we want to be a true Christian, we need to turn away from sins and live righteous life pleasing to God. If one wants to be true follower of Christ one needs to live according to His teachings otherwise we will have to face the wrath of God. eg. if one commits any crime or wrong doing the truth will one day be revealed and the guilty one will have to pay for his actions and be punished. The circular world is full of corrupt and greed. When one focus too much on material things and it's influences rather than God then one will be blinded and will find hard in realizing his own sins. As we have been warned not to serve two masters. It depends on oneself who they would want to follow, to be saved and receive eternal life or be doomed in hell.

Q3 In the sight of the circular world definitely it is unwise. However for Paul he is adamant and believe that Onesimus was a new being since he was the one and also Philemon owes Paul and this may be a pay back time from Philemon. Christ vouches for us through His death on the cross,freeing us from our sins so that we can enjoy eternal life. Forgiveness and love of neighbour is what we learned from our God. So whenever a person is down and out and find no way out that is the time we should step in to help. Whatever little goes a long way. As Jesus said: "Whatsoever you do to the least of these people you are doing unto me."

Q2 Paul did not do that because he seeks Philemon's action out of his won free will and to allow Philemon's response to his own heart and conscious. As a leader of the church, Pilemon should seek the wisdom of God on how to act. At any eventuality, Philemon cannot blame Paul and also to build his moral character. As a leader of the church, Philemon should lead by example.

Q1 Paul sends Onesimus back to Philemon because of reconciliation. Onesimus once a slave cane to Paul for help and was converted. Paul trained him well and felt that it is time to send him back to Philemon in a way Philemon being the leader of the church may accept and forgive him for all his wrong doing. It is necessary for Paul to do this because:- On the basis of love - as a brother who is rich in love. On the basis of Paul's age; of Honoring Paul's sufferings; of Paul's spiritual fatherhood of Onesimus; of Onesimus's usefulness to Paul; of Paul's affection for Onesimus and of Philejmon's debt to Paul. Onesimus needs to start all over again as a new born Christian. It is vital that he seeks forgiveness for his past deeds since God has forgiven him of his sins.

Q4 Archippus was singled out in verse 17 because as a leader in the church of Colossae he was called for an exhortation and to see that he completes the work he has received in the Lord. Archippus , a fellow soldier of Paul is the restorer of the various ministries in the church. He is also the evangelist who is called to rebuild and put in order what the Colossians have side-tracked, to rebuild their commitment and faith back to the church so that it can be placed in their proper order and to guide others who are unattended to. He reminds me of a time when I saw that the ministry I am involved in was becoming lax and the people would serve the Lord at their own pleasure and fancies. There are no commitment in their services and the fellowship with one another are just casual. They are spiritually dead. So when the time comes for election I took the initiative to volunteer and hold office as chairperson. With the help of the parish priest I conducted formation sessions and retreats to uplift their spiritual life and ends up with fellowship dinner at the end of their year. Immediately they were transformed and the zeal for the Lord is charged onto them. Praise the Lord.

Q3 When sharing our faith with non-believers Paul has instructed us the utmost importance of how to conduct ourselves. We need to be wise and loving. He calls for practical wisdom and to take full advantage of every opportunity given. Sometimes we let opportunities slip by because there are Christians who acted in outrageous ways. They don't portray as loving, open and caring people and when they speak their conversations are not full of grace. They are at times in a spiritual warfare in which Satan is seeking to poison people's minds against Christians. The ingredients we need to represent Christ well are: First we need to be 'seasoned with salt' so that it can bring out the taste. Then we add in lots of love. which are unique tang for our testimony. Next we blend in a special flavor of grace that the world needs. We need to know our bible well in order to answer everyone at any eventuality regarding our faith. Finally we seize the opportunities God gives and be gracious and gentle in our reply.

Q2 Paul's prayer request from the Colossian believers are for God to provide them with opportunities to speak the Word and help them proclaim the Word with clarity. Open door means an opportunity for Paul to be able to proclaim the message so that his ministry will be effective and be able to speak with clarity and that the message will be communicated. Every evangelist needs prayers support. Even though Paul is an old hand at this he still needs the support of the communities to intercede for him so that his ministry may be more effective.

Q1 The guidelines that Paul gives us to form our praying habits are:- PERSISTENCE - on going. Every Christian must always have a set time of prayer. Daily we feed our body with food likewise we need to feed our soul with prayers. ALERTNESS - be attentive. In prayers, we meet with an important person that is God. We must focus our attention well as we are communicating with God and want to listen to what He says to us. THANKFULNESS - 2 Thes. 5:16-18 'Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks for this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus.' Always be thankful and grateful to God for everything. He is in control of us. Thank Him for the smallest thing and for big things. Thanksgiving is our gratitude to God for all that He has supplied for us. When communicating with God daily and regularly, my spiritual life will be transformed and strengthened and my attitude and outlook of life and with people will be more courteous and sincere. "Yet those who wait for the Lord, will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary." (Isaiah 40:31) They will help us rid ourselves of the old way of life, our negative thinking, our selfishness etc. We will be able to reach out to others in need and to appreciate them and be compassionate like Jesus.

Q1 The guidelines that Paul gives us to form our praying habits are:- PERSISTENCE - on going. Every Christian must always have a set time of prayer. Daily we feed our body with food likewise we need to feed our soul with prayers. ALERTNESS - be attentive. In prayers, we meet with an important person that is God. We must focus our attention well as we are communicating with God and want to listen to what He says to us. THANKFULNESS - 2 Thes. 5:16-18 'Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, in everything give thanks for this is God's will for us in Christ Jesus.' Always be thankful and grateful to God for everything. He is in control of us. Thank Him for the smallest thing and for big things. Thanksgiving is our gratitude to God for all that He has supplied for us. When communicating with God daily and regularly, my spiritual life will be transformed and strengthened and my attitude and outlook of life and with people will be more courteous and sincere. "Yet those who wait for the Lord, will gain new strength; they will mount up with wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary." (Isaiah 40:31) They will help us rid ourselves of the old way of life, our negative thinking, our selfishness etc. We will be able to reach out to others in need and to appreciate them and be compassionate like Jesus.

Q4 Paul instructions to masters -- employers are that anyone who does wrong will be repaid for his wrong and there are no favoritism. They are to provide the slaves- employees with what is right and fair, because they must remember they have a Master in heaven. We are all equal before God and the gospel has set us free. If employers sought to live by this rule and treat the employees with dignity and respect then the working place will be a healthier place. There will be team work and the productivity will be great. There will be mutual and cordial understanding for one another and the respect for the employers will be accorded.