"Mahimo Bala Nga Indi Pagpakaunon Ang Mga Bisita Sa Kasal Samtang Kaupod Pa Nila Ang Nobyo?"

Ebanghelyo subong nga Adlaw (Marcos 2:18-22)

Ang mga sumulunod ni Juan nga manugbautiso kag ang mga Pariseo nagapuasa. May mga tawo nga nagpalapit kay Jesus kag nagpamangkot, "Ngaa ang mga sumulunod ni Juan kag ang mga sumulunod sang mga Pariseo nagapuasa pero ang imo iya wala?"

Nagsabat si Jesus sa ila, "Mahimo bala nga indi pagpakaunon ang mga bisita sa kasal samtang kaupod pa nila ang nobyo? Siyempre, indi mahimo!

Pero magaabot ang tion nga ang nobyo kuhaon sa ila, kag amo na ina ang ila pagpuasa."

Ginsugiran pa gid sila ni Jesus sang mga paanggid, "Indi maayo nga itukap sa daan nga bayo ang bag-o nga tela nga wala pa malabhan, tungod nga magakulo ang bag-o nga tela kag magadako pa gid ang gisi.

Indi man maayo nga ibutang ang bag-o nga bino sa daan nga suludlan nga panit. Kay mabusdik ang suludlan kag mausik ang bino, kag pareho nga indi na mapuslan. Gani kinahanglan gid nga ang bag-o nga bino ibutang sa bag-o nga suludlan nga panit."

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Meditation:
Which comes first, fasting or feasting? The disciples of John the Baptist were upset with Jesus' disciples because they did not fast. Fasting was one of the three most important religious duties, along with prayer and almsgiving. Jesus gave a simple explanation. There's a time for fasting and a time for feasting (or celebrating). To walk as a disciple with Jesus is to experience a whole new joy of relationship akin to the joy of the wedding party in celebrating with the groom and bride their wedding bliss. But there also comes a time when the Lord's disciples must bear the cross of affliction and purification. For the disciple there is both a time for rejoicing in the Lord's presence and celebrating his goodness and a time for seeking the Lord with humility and fasting and for mourning over sin. Do you take joy in the Lord's presence with you and do you express sorrow and contrition for your sins?

Jesus goes on to warn his disciples about the problem of the "closed mind" that refuses to learn new things. Jesus used an image familiar to his audience – new and old wineskins. In Jesus' times, wine was stored in wineskins, not bottles. New wine poured into skins was still fermenting. The gases exerted gave pressure. New wine skins were elastic enough to take the pressure, but old wine skins easily burst because they were hard. What did Jesus mean by this comparison? Are we to reject the old in place of the new? Just as there is a right place and a right time for fasting and for feasting, so there is a right place for the old as well as the new. Jesus says the kingdom of heaven is like a householder who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old (Matthew 13:52). How impoverished we would be if we only had the Old Testament or the New Testament, rather than both. The Lord gives us wisdom so we can make the best use of both the old and the new. He doesn't want us to hold rigidly to the past and to be resistant to the new work of his Holy Spirit in our lives. He wants our minds and hearts to be like new wine skins – open and ready to receive the new wine of the Holy Spirit. Are you eager to grow in the knowledge and understanding of God's word and plan for your life?

"Lord Jesus, fill me with your Holy Spirit, that I may grow in the knowledge of your great love and truth. Help me to seek you earnestly in prayer and fasting that I may turn away from sin and wilfulness and conform my life more fully to your will. May I always find joy in knowing, loving, and serving you."