03-03-2014, 12:11 PM
GOD IS FAITHFUL TO HIS CREATION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: ISAIAH 49:14-15; 1 COR 4:1-5; MATTHEW 6:24-34
http://www.universalis.com/20140302/mass.htm
We are just like the Israelites in exile. They had lost everything that was important to them, their kingdom, their land and the Temple. Exiled from their homeland, life was meaningless. Like them, we too may be going through difficult times: some facing financial difficulties, many going through difficult, complicated and tumultuous relationships, yet others, sick with all kinds of illnesses and pains, especially terminal illnesses and devastating depression. There seems to be no way out. We live in fear and in the shadow of death each day. Life seems aimless: nothing but drudgery and a hellish experience.
Yet prophets like Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Isaiah kept reassuring them that God would deliver them. They would return to their homeland and be given a new life and a new spirit. So too, we hear the prophets of today, our priests and friends reassuring us of God’s healing grace and His promise of liberation. We have also witnessed many people who have been healed by the Lord. But it seems that we are not the privileged ones.
Why has God abandoned us? This was the question that the exiled Israelites asked. Has God not forgiven them? Does He no longer love Israel anymore? Are they cursed forever and left to their disgrace and misery? Indeed, they were saying, “The Lord has abandoned me, the Lord has forgotten me.” Isn’t this what some of us are feeling, especially when our prayers for healing are not answered and divine help does not appear to be forthcoming? Is it because God is punishing me? Is it because of my sinful past that God no longer cares for me? Perhaps, I am unworthy to come to the Lord. If we are feeling doubtful about the love of God for us, then the words of Isaiah also apply to us.
The Lord spoke to Zion through Isaiah, saying, “Does a woman forget her baby at the breast, or fail to cherish the son of her womb? Yet even if these forget, I will never forget you.” It is unthinkable that a mother could forget her baby, not just at her breast but even in her womb. If such is the faithful, tender, forgiving and everlasting love of a mother, then how much more is the love of God! God is often portrayed in the scriptures as a mother loving His children. Prophet Hosea spoke of the tender love of God calling Israel His child and how His heart was overwhelmed by the infidelity of His people. (cf Hos 11:8-9)
In the gospel, Jesus complements the other dimension of God as our father. In assuring us of the Father’s care and love for us, He went beyond speaking of God simply as a creator, a distant God, a retired architect of the world but a personal God who loves each of His creatures personally. He said, “Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they are?” If God would look after the birds and the fields, how much more would the Father care for us all!
Then why is He not responding to our cries? This is our dilemma. If God professes to love us as His own, then why does He not heal us or deliver us from the crippling situation we are in. What then are the reasons that we have not been able to avail ourselves of His divine assistance?
Firstly, we could be seeking the wrong priorities in life. We are concerned only with food and our body. It is not wrong of course to pray for our material and physical well-being. The Lord’s Prayer includes the petition for daily bread. But we must see material needs in perspective. Jesus, after speaking of His Heavenly Father’s care for us, exhorts us, “That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, nor about your body and how you are to clothe it. Surely life means more than food, and the body more than clothing!”
Accordingly, Jesus spells out happiness in terms of the kingdom of God. He said, “Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well.” Isn’t this is what we pray right at the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer, “Your kingdom come. You will be done on earth as in heaven.”
To seek first the Kingdom and His righteousness is to seek the will of God. True peace of mind and joy come when we do God’s will, which is to live the life of the Kingdom as taught by Jesus and so concisely captured in the beatitudes. Unless God and His kingdom are our priority, we will be placing our priority on the wrong things. Rather than making things our priority, the values of the kingdom must be the ultimate values that we hold on to. Otherwise, we become a slave to things, especially money, which Jesus calls mammon.
But we cannot serve God and mammon. There is no question of compromise as Jesus taught us, “No one can be the slave of two masters.” When money and things, and even bodily health, become all important to the extent of usurping God’s position as the absolute in our lives, we will become slaves to them. Conversely, to seek God’s kingdom is to aspire to the values that bring real happiness for a sound mind, body and spirit. By giving God the first place in our lives, we learn how to live an integrated life, free from fear, anxiety and guilt.
Having a clear conscience is the beginning of the healing process and the freedom from anxiety and guilt. If we avoid the seven capital sins; if we repent and confess the sins of our past life, we will then be able to receive His healing grace. We will no longer fear because His presence will be in us. Once we give ourselves to the Lord and His kingdom, our lives will be in order. If our ultimate concern is our salvation and His will, we can trust Him to provide what we need to carry out that will. If He does not, it means that He wants to use us in other ways, including our sicknesses and even our sufferings, to bring glory to Him, as in the case of Paul, who suffered much for the Lord, whether it was hunger, persecution or even the thorn in his flesh that was never removed.
The second reason why we cannot receive God’s grace is because we tend to worry. It shows a lack of faith and trust in God. Anxiety will cause us to rely on ourselves than on Him. It is a denial of His omnipotence and love. Instead of acknowledging Him to be the Lord of our lives, we seek to be our own gods. Isn’t this the reprimand of Jesus when He said, “Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith?”
We must realize that we are not in control. Life is unpredictable. Recognizing the capricious nature of life, Jesus advised us therefore, “do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” So rather than worrying, Jesus invites us to overcome our fear and anxiety by handing over our problems to the Lord and relying on His divine providence. Since God is faithful to His creation, He will not abandon us, regardless of whatever situation we are in. We can only trust in His wisdom and divine plan for us all.
A firm confidence in the Lord will help us to live a peaceful life in freedom from sin and its consequences. The psalmist makes it clear that we must trust in God alone. In saying that “Only in God is my soul at rest”, he elicits from us an absolute faith in God, echoing the first commandment that there is no other god but the God of Israel alone. To substitute Him with other things as our ultimate concern is to dethrone Him from the center of our lives. We must let God reign in our hearts and be the Lord of our lives.
Trust in God of course does not exempt us from living a responsible life. It entails that we live responsibly, according to our vocation, whether as a parent, youth or worker. It means that we must look after our physical health as much as possible. It means that we must have sufficient rest, observe a proper diet and exercise often. If we want to have peace, we must live a life of integrity and honesty. It must be a life in accordance with natural and divine laws. Only by living a righteous and integrated life, will we not bring sorrow and misery to ourselves and to our loved ones. So long as we live fully in the present and live responsibly, then tomorrow will naturally take care of itself. If not, we are going to not only suffer the consequences of our sins and folly, but also transmit their effects on generations to come, especially those who love us and are dear to us.
Finally, let us also remember that our life is not only on this earth and for this earth. We must not forget that life here is short, but eternity is long and everlasting. If we are short-sighted and seek to satisfy our cravings of this earth, which are fathomless, we will not only frustrate ourselves in this life but we also thwart our place with God in the life to come. Even if we are successful and healthy, let us not fall into complacency because all these will not last.
So in the final analysis, let us be assured that God loves us, and as our stronghold and salvation, He will look after us. In His own time and in His own ways, He will provide for us and give us the peace and joy we are seeking. All He asks is that we surrender our lives to Him, all our fears and worries, our desires and our sins, so that He will be able to be the Lord of our lives. Let us therefore join the psalmist in saying, “With God is my safety and my glory, he is the rock of my strength; my refuge is in God. Trust in him at all times, O my people! Pour out your hearts before him. In God alone is my soul at rest!”
SCRIPTURE READINGS: ISAIAH 49:14-15; 1 COR 4:1-5; MATTHEW 6:24-34
http://www.universalis.com/20140302/mass.htm
We are just like the Israelites in exile. They had lost everything that was important to them, their kingdom, their land and the Temple. Exiled from their homeland, life was meaningless. Like them, we too may be going through difficult times: some facing financial difficulties, many going through difficult, complicated and tumultuous relationships, yet others, sick with all kinds of illnesses and pains, especially terminal illnesses and devastating depression. There seems to be no way out. We live in fear and in the shadow of death each day. Life seems aimless: nothing but drudgery and a hellish experience.
Yet prophets like Jeremiah, Ezekiel and Isaiah kept reassuring them that God would deliver them. They would return to their homeland and be given a new life and a new spirit. So too, we hear the prophets of today, our priests and friends reassuring us of God’s healing grace and His promise of liberation. We have also witnessed many people who have been healed by the Lord. But it seems that we are not the privileged ones.
Why has God abandoned us? This was the question that the exiled Israelites asked. Has God not forgiven them? Does He no longer love Israel anymore? Are they cursed forever and left to their disgrace and misery? Indeed, they were saying, “The Lord has abandoned me, the Lord has forgotten me.” Isn’t this what some of us are feeling, especially when our prayers for healing are not answered and divine help does not appear to be forthcoming? Is it because God is punishing me? Is it because of my sinful past that God no longer cares for me? Perhaps, I am unworthy to come to the Lord. If we are feeling doubtful about the love of God for us, then the words of Isaiah also apply to us.
The Lord spoke to Zion through Isaiah, saying, “Does a woman forget her baby at the breast, or fail to cherish the son of her womb? Yet even if these forget, I will never forget you.” It is unthinkable that a mother could forget her baby, not just at her breast but even in her womb. If such is the faithful, tender, forgiving and everlasting love of a mother, then how much more is the love of God! God is often portrayed in the scriptures as a mother loving His children. Prophet Hosea spoke of the tender love of God calling Israel His child and how His heart was overwhelmed by the infidelity of His people. (cf Hos 11:8-9)
In the gospel, Jesus complements the other dimension of God as our father. In assuring us of the Father’s care and love for us, He went beyond speaking of God simply as a creator, a distant God, a retired architect of the world but a personal God who loves each of His creatures personally. He said, “Look at the birds in the sky. They do not sow or reap or gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they are?” If God would look after the birds and the fields, how much more would the Father care for us all!
Then why is He not responding to our cries? This is our dilemma. If God professes to love us as His own, then why does He not heal us or deliver us from the crippling situation we are in. What then are the reasons that we have not been able to avail ourselves of His divine assistance?
Firstly, we could be seeking the wrong priorities in life. We are concerned only with food and our body. It is not wrong of course to pray for our material and physical well-being. The Lord’s Prayer includes the petition for daily bread. But we must see material needs in perspective. Jesus, after speaking of His Heavenly Father’s care for us, exhorts us, “That is why I am telling you not to worry about your life and what you are to eat, nor about your body and how you are to clothe it. Surely life means more than food, and the body more than clothing!”
Accordingly, Jesus spells out happiness in terms of the kingdom of God. He said, “Set your hearts on his kingdom first, and on his righteousness, and all these other things will be given you as well.” Isn’t this is what we pray right at the beginning of the Lord’s Prayer, “Your kingdom come. You will be done on earth as in heaven.”
To seek first the Kingdom and His righteousness is to seek the will of God. True peace of mind and joy come when we do God’s will, which is to live the life of the Kingdom as taught by Jesus and so concisely captured in the beatitudes. Unless God and His kingdom are our priority, we will be placing our priority on the wrong things. Rather than making things our priority, the values of the kingdom must be the ultimate values that we hold on to. Otherwise, we become a slave to things, especially money, which Jesus calls mammon.
But we cannot serve God and mammon. There is no question of compromise as Jesus taught us, “No one can be the slave of two masters.” When money and things, and even bodily health, become all important to the extent of usurping God’s position as the absolute in our lives, we will become slaves to them. Conversely, to seek God’s kingdom is to aspire to the values that bring real happiness for a sound mind, body and spirit. By giving God the first place in our lives, we learn how to live an integrated life, free from fear, anxiety and guilt.
Having a clear conscience is the beginning of the healing process and the freedom from anxiety and guilt. If we avoid the seven capital sins; if we repent and confess the sins of our past life, we will then be able to receive His healing grace. We will no longer fear because His presence will be in us. Once we give ourselves to the Lord and His kingdom, our lives will be in order. If our ultimate concern is our salvation and His will, we can trust Him to provide what we need to carry out that will. If He does not, it means that He wants to use us in other ways, including our sicknesses and even our sufferings, to bring glory to Him, as in the case of Paul, who suffered much for the Lord, whether it was hunger, persecution or even the thorn in his flesh that was never removed.
The second reason why we cannot receive God’s grace is because we tend to worry. It shows a lack of faith and trust in God. Anxiety will cause us to rely on ourselves than on Him. It is a denial of His omnipotence and love. Instead of acknowledging Him to be the Lord of our lives, we seek to be our own gods. Isn’t this the reprimand of Jesus when He said, “Now if that is how God clothes the grass in the field which is there today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, will he not much more look after you, you men of little faith?”
We must realize that we are not in control. Life is unpredictable. Recognizing the capricious nature of life, Jesus advised us therefore, “do not worry about tomorrow: tomorrow will take care of itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.” So rather than worrying, Jesus invites us to overcome our fear and anxiety by handing over our problems to the Lord and relying on His divine providence. Since God is faithful to His creation, He will not abandon us, regardless of whatever situation we are in. We can only trust in His wisdom and divine plan for us all.
A firm confidence in the Lord will help us to live a peaceful life in freedom from sin and its consequences. The psalmist makes it clear that we must trust in God alone. In saying that “Only in God is my soul at rest”, he elicits from us an absolute faith in God, echoing the first commandment that there is no other god but the God of Israel alone. To substitute Him with other things as our ultimate concern is to dethrone Him from the center of our lives. We must let God reign in our hearts and be the Lord of our lives.
Trust in God of course does not exempt us from living a responsible life. It entails that we live responsibly, according to our vocation, whether as a parent, youth or worker. It means that we must look after our physical health as much as possible. It means that we must have sufficient rest, observe a proper diet and exercise often. If we want to have peace, we must live a life of integrity and honesty. It must be a life in accordance with natural and divine laws. Only by living a righteous and integrated life, will we not bring sorrow and misery to ourselves and to our loved ones. So long as we live fully in the present and live responsibly, then tomorrow will naturally take care of itself. If not, we are going to not only suffer the consequences of our sins and folly, but also transmit their effects on generations to come, especially those who love us and are dear to us.
Finally, let us also remember that our life is not only on this earth and for this earth. We must not forget that life here is short, but eternity is long and everlasting. If we are short-sighted and seek to satisfy our cravings of this earth, which are fathomless, we will not only frustrate ourselves in this life but we also thwart our place with God in the life to come. Even if we are successful and healthy, let us not fall into complacency because all these will not last.
So in the final analysis, let us be assured that God loves us, and as our stronghold and salvation, He will look after us. In His own time and in His own ways, He will provide for us and give us the peace and joy we are seeking. All He asks is that we surrender our lives to Him, all our fears and worries, our desires and our sins, so that He will be able to be the Lord of our lives. Let us therefore join the psalmist in saying, “With God is my safety and my glory, he is the rock of my strength; my refuge is in God. Trust in him at all times, O my people! Pour out your hearts before him. In God alone is my soul at rest!”