20261031 IN CHRIST WE DO ALL FOR THE GLORY OF GOD
31 October 2026, Saturday, 30th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Philippians 1:18-26 |
Life to me is Christ; but death would bring me more
Christ is proclaimed; and that makes me happy; and I shall continue being happy, because I know this will help to save me, thanks to your prayers and to the help which will be given to me by the Spirit of Jesus. My one hope and trust is that I shall never have to admit defeat, but that now as always I shall have the courage for Christ to be glorified in my body, whether by my life or by my death. Life to me, of course, is Christ, but then death would bring me something more; but then again, if living in this body means doing work which is having good results – I do not know what I should choose. I am caught in this dilemma: I want to be gone and be with Christ, which would be very much the better, but for me to stay alive in this body is a more urgent need for your sake. This weighs with me so much that I feel sure I shall survive and stay with you all, and help you to progress in the faith and even increase your joy in it; and so you will have another reason to give praise to Christ Jesus on my account when I am with you again.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 41(42):2-3,5 |
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
Like the deer that yearns
for running streams,
so my soul is yearning
for you, my God.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
My soul is thirsting for God,
the God of my life;
when can I enter and see
the face of God?
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
I would lead the rejoicing crowd
into the house of God,
amid cries of gladness and thanksgiving.
My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life.
Gospel Acclamation | cf.Col3:16a,17 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Let the message of Christ, in all its richness,
find a home with you;
through him give thanks to God the Father.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 14:1,7-11 |
Everyone who exalts himself shall be humbled
Now on a sabbath day Jesus had gone for a meal to the house of one of the leading Pharisees; and they watched him closely. He then told the guests a parable, because he had noticed how they picked the places of honour. He said this, ‘When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take your seat in the place of honour. A more distinguished person than you may have been invited, and the person who invited you both may come and say, “Give up your place to this man.” And then, to your embarrassment, you would have to go and take the lowest place. No; when you are a guest, make your way to the lowest place and sit there, so that, when your host comes, he may say, “My friend, move up higher.” In that way, everyone with you at the table will see you honoured. For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the man who humbles himself will be exalted.’
IN CHRIST WE DO ALL FOR THE GLORY OF GOD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Philippians 1:18-26; Psalm 42:2-3,5; Luke 14:1, 7-11]
Pride is the first capital sin, and it is the root of all sins. It was pride that caused the fall of Adam and Eve because they desired to be like God without God. They sought access to full knowledge and power apart from God’s grace. Thus, they abused the freedom given to them–a freedom intended to give glory to God, which they instead used for self-glorification. Indeed, all other sins stem from a lack of humility. We desire to be better than others, and failing that, we become angry and envious. Pride, therefore, lies at the root of our misery and unhappiness.
In the Gospel, Jesus told the guests a parable about choosing a seat of honour. Observing how the guests chose the places of distinction, the Lord offered this advice: “When someone invites you to a wedding feast, do not take your seat in the place of honour. A more distinguished person than you may have been invited, and the person who invited you both may come and say, ‘Give your place to this man.’ And then, to your embarrassment, you would have to go and take the lowest place.” The truth remains that we ought not to assign ourselves places of honour; rather, we should allow ourselves to be seated by our host. “No; when you are a guest, make your way to the lowest place and sit there, so that, when your host comes, he may say, ‘My friend, move up higher.'” (Lk 14:8-10).
In other words, only God can grant us true honour, and on our part, we must humbly accept where He places us. We do not bestow glory upon ourselves. Mary expressed this deep humility in the Magnificat in response to God choosing her for her role in Christ’s salvific work: “My soul magnifies the Lord, and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for he has looked with favour on the lowliness of his servant. Surely, from now on all generations will call me blessed; for the Mighty One has done great things for me, and holy is his name.” (Lk 1:46-49). God exalts the humble and brings down the proud: “He has shown strength with his arm; he has scattered the proud in the thoughts of their hearts. He has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly.” (Lk 1:51-52).
Indeed, the Lord reminds us that any glory that is truly ours is given by God; we deserve no glory of our own making. Yet God will exalt those who are humble and lowly: “For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the man who humbles himself will be exalted.” (Lk 14:11). This is why humility is necessary–the Lord Himself was glorified through His self-emptying and passion. In this same letter, St. Paul appeals to Christ as the ultimate model of humility: “Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, but emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, being born in human likeness. And being found in human form, he humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death–even death on a cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” (Phil 2:3-11).
Humility is therefore a prerequisite in ministry and evangelisation. We cannot accomplish great things for God if we place ourselves at the centre of our work. Regrettably, while many profess to serve God, behind that service often lies a desire for self-glorification, attention, honour, and appreciation. It is not about humble, selfless service for the greater glory of God, but about ourselves. St. Paul hints at this in the first reading when he writes: “What does it matter? Just this, that Christ is proclaimed in every way, whether out of false motives or true; and in that I rejoice.” (Phil 1:18). This is so true in our lives as well: within the Church, clergy and laity alike serve with varying motives. While it is not ours to judge their hearts, we recognise that some serve from selfish motives rather than a pure love for the good of the Church.
Yet St. Paul makes it clear that even when people serve for reasons that are less than noble, we should rejoice so long as God is glorified. Because we cannot know the true motives of others, we must refrain from passing judgment: “Do not pronounce judgment before the time, before the Lord comes, who will bring to light the things now hidden in darkness and will disclose the purposes of the heart. Then each one will receive commendation from God.” (1 Cor 4:5). So long as God receives the glory, we can rejoice. As Paul wrote to the Colossians: “Whatever your task, put yourselves into it, as done for the Lord and not for your masters, since you know that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward; you serve the Lord Christ.” (Col 3:23-24).
Indeed, our primary goal in life is to glorify God, just as Jesus and our Blessed Mother did. In the final hours of His earthly life, Jesus prayed to the Father: “I glorified you on earth by finishing the work that you gave me to do. So now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had in your presence before the world existed. I have made your name known to those whom you gave me from the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have kept your word.” (Jn 17:4-6). St. Paul echoes this imperative: “Whatever you do, do everything for the glory of God.” (1 Cor 10:31). This was Paul’s singular desire in all he said and did. Even in the face of imminent imprisonment or death, he stood ready to live or die for the Lord, saying: “It is my eager expectation and hope that I will not be put to shame in any way, but that by my speaking with all boldness, Christ will be exalted now as always in my body, whether by life or by death.” (Phil 1:20). Despite intense opposition, Paul refused to be cowed; he was prepared to suffer and die so that Christ’s name would be magnified. It was always about Christ, never about himself.
We can only live this way if Jesus is the absolute centre of our lives. St. Paul writes: “For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labour for me; and I do not know which I prefer. I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.” (Phil 1:21-26). In the final analysis, it does not matter whether we live or die, as Paul tells the Romans: “We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.” (Rom 14:7-9). Thus, even in the midst of suffering, Paul continues to rejoice in the Lord.
This is why we need to be people who cultivate a deep relationship with the Lord in the Spirit through prayer. St. Paul wrote, “Yes, and I will continue to rejoice, for I know that through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ this will turn out for my deliverance.” (Phil 1:19). We depend entirely on prayer. As the Responsorial Psalm says: “Like the deer that yearns for running streams, so my soul is yearning for you, my God. My soul is thirsting for God, the God of my life; when can I enter and see the face of God?” (Ps 42:1-2).
Unless we thirst to be with the Lord as St. Paul did, we inevitably make ourselves the centre of all that we do. To place Christ at the centre of our lives, our ministries, and our labour, we must abide in Him first. We need to be filled with love for Christ, immersed in His mind, and identified with His heart. When we know that Christ is in us and with us, we can do everything in life. As St. Paul said: “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Rom 8:37-39).
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved
