20260930 UNCOMPROMISING DEMANDS OF DISCIPLESHIP
30 September 2026, Wednesday, 26th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Job 9:1-13,14-16 |
How can man be in the right against God?
Job spoke to his friends:
Indeed, I know it is as you say:
how can man be in the right against God?
If any were so rash as to challenge him for reasons,
one in a thousand would be more than they could answer.
His heart is wise, and his strength is great:
who then can successfully defy him?
He moves the mountains, though they do not know it;
he throws them down when he is angry.
He shakes the earth, and moves it from its place,
making all its pillars tremble.
The sun, at his command, forbears to rise,
and on the stars he sets a seal.
He and no other stretched out the skies,
and trampled the Sea’s tall waves.
The Bear, Orion too, are of his making,
the Pleiades and the Mansions of the South.
His works are great, beyond all reckoning,
his marvels, past all counting.
Were he to pass me, I should not see him,
nor detect his stealthy movement.
Were he to snatch a prize, who could prevent him,
or dare to say, ‘What are you doing?’
How dare I plead my cause, then,
or choose arguments against him?
Suppose I am in the right, what use is my defence?
For he whom I must sue is judge as well.
If he deigned to answer my citation,
could I be sure that he would listen to my voice?
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 87(88):10-15 |
Let my prayer come into your presence, O Lord.
I call to you, Lord, all the day long;
to you I stretch out my hands.
Will you work your wonders for the dead?
Will the shades stand and praise you?
Let my prayer come into your presence, O Lord.
Will your love be told in the grave
or your faithfulness among the dead?
Will your wonders be known in the dark
or your justice in the land of oblivion?
Let my prayer come into your presence, O Lord.
As for me, Lord, I call to you for help:
in the morning my prayer comes before you.
Lord, why do you reject me?
Why do you hide your face?
Let my prayer come into your presence, O Lord.
Gospel Acclamation | Ps118:105 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Your word is a lamp for my steps
and a light for my path.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 9:57-62 |
'I will follow you wherever you go'
As Jesus and his disciples travelled along they met a man on the road who said to him, ‘I will follow you wherever you go.’ Jesus answered, ‘Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.’
Another to whom he said, ‘Follow me’, replied, ‘Let me go and bury my father first.’ But he answered, ‘Leave the dead to bury their dead; your duty is to go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.’
Another said, ‘I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say goodbye to my people at home.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.’
UNCOMPROMISING DEMANDS OF DISCIPLESHIP
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [JOB 9:1-13,14-16; LUKE 9:57-62]
Today’s Scripture readings are very demanding for anyone who wants to be a disciple of the Lord. In the First Reading, Job had lost everything that was dear to him. He was suffering not just the personal loss of loved ones and property, but was also afflicted with painful boils and loathsome sores covering his entire body from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head. But most of all, he faced the agonising possibility of losing his soul because he was accused of committing sins against God. What mattered to him most was being in a right relationship with God–far more than longing for health, wealth, or family. Hence, his desire to justify himself before God. Yet, during his woes, he was in danger of losing faith because he could not understand what was happening to him. We, too, would have felt as Job did if we were in the same situation, especially when we feel innocent before God.
But the truth is that we cannot challenge the justice and wisdom of God. God is all-wise and all-powerful. He keeps the moral order of the universe in place; He is the sovereign Creator of heaven and earth. Hence, Job remarked, “How can man be in the right against God? If any were so rash as to challenge him for reasons, one in a thousand would be more than they could answer. His heart is wise, and his strength is great: who then can successfully defy him?” It was through this realisation of God’s awesomeness and might that Job was able to surrender in faith to God’s will and plan.
It is within this context that we can better appreciate the brutal honesty of Jesus regarding the demands of discipleship. The Gospel begins by saying, “Jesus and his disciples travelled along.” They were on a journey, which the same evangelist later uses figuratively in Acts to signify the Christian way of life: “the Way of the Lord” (Acts 18:25). As they make their way, Luke presents three sayings of Jesus about what discipleship requires. These are not simply “nice-to-have” qualities; they are required of every disciple of our Lord. They are necessary requirements because the presence of the Kingdom, while bringing peace and joy, will be preceded by rejection and persecution.
Without a focused commitment, we will fall away in the face of temptations and persecutions. Total commitment is demanded by our Lord. It is not enough to merely imitate Him; we must live in the very conditions of His life. Jesus paired mercy with an astonishing call to commitment because it was His loving mercy and commitment that kept Him on the road–that led Him to fully obey the Father’s will, even at the cost of losing His life and suffering martyrdom for the Gospel. This uncompromising commitment to Him is required simply because He is the Lord, just as Job surrendered his entire life and suffering to the wisdom and mercy of God. So too, it was crucial that Jesus spoke with complete honesty to His would-be disciples. He did not mince His words or soften the demands as many of us do out of fear that people might not join us if expectations are too high. As Chesterton once said, “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting. It has been found difficult and left untried.”
To the first would-be disciple, Jesus was transparent about the hardship involved in discipleship. To the man on the road who said, “I will follow you wherever you go,” Jesus answered, “Foxes have holes and the birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” How many of us take these words seriously? Many people become Christians expecting an easier life–blessings from God, riches, and freedom from illness until they die, as taught by the prosperity Gospel. They view Christianity as a path to worldly blessings, wealth, influence, luxury, and power. In truth, few of us are ready to carry the cross of suffering, sacrifice, rejection, and persecution to follow Him. Being a Christian today in some places is little more than a conventional norm to gain societal acceptance.
Yet, the plain truth is that following Jesus means sharing in His conditions, where sometimes we do not even have time to rest or a comfortable place to stay. Some of us might even face homelessness due to persecution from our own families and communities, especially when converting from another religion. No one who commits to following Jesus is promised a life of ease. If Christianity has not brought discomfort to your life, then something is amiss. Anyone committed to love and service will suffer the discomfort of loving difficult people, giving until it hurts, being rejected by society, and even facing persecution for daring to speak the truth and be the voice of the marginalised. Discipleship requires us to trust that God will provide for all our needs and stand by us in our difficulties and challenges, especially when facing rejection. Like the man on the road, our offer to God must be open-ended–meaning we will go wherever Jesus leads. This is particularly true for priests, religious sisters/brothers, and lay missionaries. Following Jesus is a demanding commitment.
Secondly, discipleship cannot wait, because it is the Lord who calls. The summons to discipleship is not just any ordinary invitation. With the second would-be disciple, Jesus raised the bar of commitment even higher. He said, “Follow me.” The man replied, “Let me go and bury my father first.” But Jesus answered, “Leave the dead to bury the dead; your duty is to go and spread the news of the kingdom of God.” This demand startles us because–not only in the Bible, but in most cultures–filial piety toward our parents is a sacred duty. We are called to show them respect, care for them, and provide for their welfare until they die. How, then, could Jesus tell the man to neglect the burial of his father? Understanding the context of Jesus’ statement, the man was likely not saying his father had just died; if that were the case, Jewish custom would have required burial on the same day. More likely, his father was elderly, and the man was asking permission to delay following the Lord until he had fulfilled his ongoing obligations to his father.
Yet again, Jesus’ demand was clear: when it comes to the work of God, no delay is permitted. God’s call is urgent. The man was called to do the greater thing–to serve God. His father would have been glad as well if he truly honoured God. Delaying a “yes” to God’s call ultimately means being untrue to his father’s deepest spiritual needs. Clearly, God must take priority in our lives. Even valid reasons should not stand in the way of discipleship. The proclamation of the Good News is urgent. Prolonged delay is the work of the Evil One, who wants us to keep postponing our commitment until our passion for the Gospel fades under the weight of mundane worldly concerns. Life is short, and time is limited for us to proclaim the Good News far and wide! This is the responsibility of all disciples: God’s interests must take priority over our own!
Finally, the third would-be follower asks to bid his family goodbye, saying, “I will follow you, sir, but first let me go and say goodbye to my people at home.” Going back to our family in this context implies hanging on to our old life and past. It shows we are not yet ready to let go of everything to follow Him. When we allow attachments to people and things to tether us, we cannot fully be His disciples because we lack focus and singular commitment. This is why the Lord said to him, “Once the hand is laid on the plough, no one who looks back is fit for the kingdom of God.” When we look back, we lose our direction. As the Lord implied, if you are ploughing while looking behind you, you cannot cut a straight furrow.
There may be a time later for goodbyes, but that remains secondary. A disciple must not condition their commitment by placing others before the Lord or by allowing memories of the past to distract them. The call must come first and remain the central focus of one’s life. Discipleship is not an optional addition to what we are already doing; it is a total commitment to living out the life of Christ wherever we are called, in whatever vocation or work we perform. Truly, nothing must stand in the way when we follow our Lord. If we truly believe Jesus is our Lord and God, then like Job, we must submit in faith and surrender ourselves completely in service to Him. We must make a choice: comfort, convention, and custom–or Christ?
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.
