[stephenkhoo]

DISCIPLESHIP AND COMMUNION FOR MISSION
SCRIPTURE READINGS: ISA 8:23-9:3; 1 COR 1:10-13,17; MT 4:12-23
http://www.universalis.com/20140126/mass.htm



We are living in a critical age of crises. There is a crisis in humanity. Many wars are being fought and terrorism in the world is growing. The family is in crisis because the sanctity of marriage is no longer recognized. Values such as fidelity and commitment in love and relationships are no longer cherished. Our young people are in crisis because they are raised in an environment that no longer supports a holistic formation in faith and love. Many are dysfunctional because they come from one parent family or parents of the same sex. Morality is in crisis for virtues such as humility, honesty, generosity, sacrifice and hard work are despised. People want to be worshipped as idols, to be above all others and if possible by the shortest means, even if it involves cheating or using unscrupulous ways. The loss of moral values has resulted in a decadent society. This has led to a crisis in meaning, for materialism cannot give meaning to humanity. All these crises are rooted in the crisis of faith, a situation brought about by secularism and relativism.

Thus, to a great extent, we are just like the Israelites in the first reading. They too were living in darkness because they were in bondage and misery. Indeed, they were living “in a land of deep shadow.” Like them too, we are waiting for someone to deliver us from the yoke that is weighing on us. Yes, in such a time, we need the Light to give us hope, courage and direction.

Christians are a people of hope. We do not fall into despair. The Good News today is that Jesus is our Light. He is the fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah. He is that great light that the people who walk in darkness have seen. Indeed as Isaiah prophesied, He will make “their gladness greater … their joy increase.” It is within this context that Matthew in today’s gospel cites from Isaiah the same text to situate the inauguration of the ministry of Jesus. That Jesus began His ministry at Galilee, which is where Zebulun and Naphtali are located, implies that the mission of Jesus is to the Gentiles and to the whole world, beginning in Israel.

In place of the Kingdom of Darkness, Jesus has come to give us the kingdom of God. Hence, Jesus began His mission by proclaiming, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is close at hand.” Yes, Jesus has come to give us the life of the kingdom, which is the life of God. Only a life lived under the Lordship of God and of Christ can set us free from a useless way of life, a self-centered life focused on the pursuits of the world. The kingdom life that Jesus comes to offer us is our reconciliation with God, for without the restoration of our relationship with God, we cannot know our purpose in life, nor ourselves. Most of all, the Kingdom life is a life of unity and love, a hope that the world desires.

Two conditions are necessary to make the Kingdom a reality in our lives, namely, repentance and belief. Repentance is not simply about confessing our sins or feeling sorry for our wrongdoings. Rather, repentance is a change of mind and a change of lifestyle. It calls for recognition of our sins and those attitudes in our lives that bring inner division within us, manifested in our broken relationships with others. So, repentance requires a life-change and a transformation of heart and mind. Repentance is to turn away from a useless way of life and turn to Jesus. It is not enough to turn away from sin. In fact, it is impossible to turn away from sin directly because sin will run after us and overpower us. Rather, the way to turn away from sin is by turning to Jesus. When we turn to Jesus, naturally, we turn away from sin. When we turn to the light, darkness is vanquished. So conversion is not so much about giving up our sins, but rather, giving ourselves to Jesus. In the process of giving ourselves to Jesus, we give up our sins.

This is what Jesus meant when He said that the kingdom of God is near at hand. It is so near. How near? What is needed is an act of the will and an act of faith in Jesus. If that were the case, then why do people still refuse to give themselves to Jesus? This is because they do not believe in Jesus as the Good News. So repentance must be accompanied by faith and belief. Unless we have faith in Jesus as the Good News both in person and in His message, we will not give up our sins. Truly, if we do not want to give up our sinful and selfish lives, it is because we have not yet encountered something or someone greater than what we already have. Understandably, if you have not encountered Jesus as the Good News, why would you give your total surrender and love to Him?

But what does faith entail? To have faith in Jesus is to take Jesus at His word, to believe that He is the Good News in person and the self-communication of God’s love in person. So faith is to put your trust in someone or something. From this perspective, faith is to put our total trust in Jesus as the unconditional love of God in person. And we can put this trust in Jesus because His works and words demonstrate His claim as the incomprehensible love of God. The gospel tells us that “He went round the whole of Galilee teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the Good News of the kingdom and curing all kinds of diseases and sickness among the people.” So Jesus is someone whom we can put our trust and hope in.

But faith is not simply trusting in what Jesus can do for us. Faith is to believe in every word of Jesus, including His teachings as to how we can live in the kingdom. So faith involves a concrete way of living, a lifestyle that corresponds with that of Jesus. Faith requires a response not only of mind and heart but a total way of life in Christ. That is why, after proclaiming the gospel of repentance, Jesus said, “Follow me.” The command to follow Jesus exacts from us an immediate and total response like that of the disciples. Indeed, because it is a divine command, one cannot wait. Only because we trust in Jesus, we can follow Him and leave everything behind. It is in the following of Jesus in discipleship that what is promised becomes a reality experienced. Indeed, those who give themselves to the gospel life cannot but find joy, freedom and meaning.

However, the privilege of knowing Christ and being called by Him is not for our sake only. Rather, our calling to be Christ’s disciples is for the sake of mankind. Like Israel, we are called to be the Light to all the nations. We are all called to be fishers of men. Indeed, all of us, no matter who we are, have a responsibility to be the Light of Christ in the world. That Jesus chose fishermen as His first disciples means that Jesus wants to choose ordinary people for the extraordinary task of bringing others into the community of faith. Yes, God has chosen ordinary people to shame the wisdom of the world. As long as we give ourselves to Jesus, He can accomplish far greater things through us than we can imagine Through the ordinary circumstances of our daily lives and work situations, we can draw. people to Christ when they see us living in the light of truth and love.

This mission however is not to be accomplished alone. We are not only called to be disciples of Jesus as individuals, we are called to be His Church. We are called not only to belong to Jesus but also to belong to His Church, His Body. Mission must always be accomplished in unity with each other. Unless, we are united in faith, doctrines and Christian practice, we will not be credible witnesses of our Lord. This is precisely the greatest challenge to our mission in the Church today. Whilst the world suffers from a crisis of faith, the risk of the Catholic Church is that it has become divided. And once we are divided, the world will ignore our message as we lack credibility and the force of unity. This is what the world and Satan want to see in the Church. The secularized world is hostile not to individual Christians or Catholics, but to us as a community of faith. As individuals, each one of us cannot be a significant sign in the world but as a Body of believers, we will become a potent force and a sign that could not be ignored.

In Matthew’s gospel, Jesus’ calling of four fishermen to be His disciples indicates that He intends His Church to be in mission as a community. That is why we must be careful not to reduce the mission of the Church to that of individual discipleship, but to a shared discipleship of the community in which all have fellowship and ministry. Thus, when we undertake the mission of Church in an individualistic manner, we can cause greater harm to the Church than good.

Truly, we will make ourselves less a light of Christ if we fall into the same trap as the Christians in Corinth. An individualistic mission is contrary to the Spirit of the gospel. We must be careful of arrogance, pride and intolerance. Instead of focusing on ourselves, we must center on Christ and on the power of His cross. Instead of relying upon the teachings of some special teachers, we must rely on the teachings of the Magisterium, the Church. Instead of giving allegiance to our favourite teachers or leaders, our allegiance must be given to Christ only, who speaks through the authorized leaders, that is, the Bishops appointed by Him for the Church. Yes, we must be careful of misplaced loyalty or taking things into our own hands making ourselves self-appointed leaders. There is nothing more divisive in the Church than to form ourselves into party, cliques, and factions. Our loyalty must be placed in Christ and the successors of Christ.

Consequently, we must return to the basics and the foundation of our faith. Following Christ is prior to mission and presupposes mission. We cannot be a light to the world by the way we live or by the words we proclaim unless we are in touch with the Light. Living out our disciples in community therefore makes us a persuasive witness in the world of Christ as our Light and the source of truth and unity.