Fr. Jorge Miró shares with Exaudi readers his commentary on the Gospel of this Sunday, May 4, 2025, entitled “Jesus Approaches, Takes the Bread, and Gives It to Him!”

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Last Sunday, the Word of God spoke to us that faith is a mystery that we will never fully understand, and we saw that this faith in Jesus Christ has two immediate consequences: ecclesiastic and its missionary character.

Today, the Word of God insists on this. Furthermore, it invites us to joy and discipleship as the fruits of a personal encounter with Jesus Christ.

The joy of a Christian is not a mere feeling. It is the joy of encountering the living and risen Jesus Christ. It is the joy that springs from the certainty that God never ceases to love you; from the experience that the Risen Lord is with you every day; the joy that is born from the certainty that nothing and no one can separate us from the love of God manifested in Christ Jesus.

Christian joy is one of the fruits of the Holy Spirit that God gives to those who obey him; it is often linked to pain, to the cross, but it flows into the new life that is the Passover of the Lord, which makes all things new. For this reason, the apostles left the Sanhedrin happy to have deserved that outrage for Jesus Christ.

And then they see that they can live only in gratitude and praise, because, as we sang in the Psalm: You raised me from the pit when I went down to the grave… You turned my mourning into dancing. Lord, my God, I will give you thanks forever. For the Lamb who was slain is worthy to receive power… and honor and glory and praise.

Furthermore, those who have truly encountered the Lord are not content to remain curious, a spectator, or a scholar. Those who, through the gift of the Holy Spirit, have been able to respond like Peter: “Lord, you know everything, you know that I love you,” hear a call from the Lord: “Follow me.”

This path is discipleship. Why? By pure grace, by pure love. The choice is free.

Do not worry about your poverty. Look how poor Peter was after denying Jesus! The poorer you see yourself and recognize yourself, the better! The more you will let the Lord do! Self-sufficiency, pride, and appearance hinder the action of God’s grace.

And how do we know that we are responding to the call? Well, if you accept the call, the Word has given us some clues:

You will stretch out your hands, and another will dress you and carry you where you do not want to go. You will no longer pretend to be the god of your life and your story, but you will proclaim Jesus as Lord of your life, of your whole life. Likewise, you will no longer be able to “use” God to pretend that He does your will, but you will desire to be able to live doing His will.

Follow me: The Lord invites you to live a new life, the life that the Holy Spirit is creating in you, if you let Him do it. That is why you must abandon your plans, especially your plan for holiness and your plan for community.

Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find. You will feel called and sent on a mission; the one the Lord entrusts to you, not the one you like.

And the elders fell down and worshipped. You will place Jesus Christ at the center of your life. You will live in praise, seeking His glory, because we must obey God before men.

Come, Holy Spirit!