20260711 COURAGE IN STANDING UP FOR JESUS
11 July 2026, Saturday, 14th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading | Isaiah 6:1-8 |
Isaiah's lips cleansed with a burning coal
In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord of Hosts seated on a high throne; his train filled the sanctuary; above him stood seraphs, each one with six wings: two to cover its face, two to cover its feet, and two for flying.
And they cried out to one another in this way,
‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Hosts.
His glory fills the whole earth.’
The foundations of the threshold shook with the voice of the one who cried out, and the Temple was filled with smoke. I said:
‘What a wretched state I am in! I am lost,
for I am a man of unclean lips
and I live among a people of unclean lips,
and my eyes have looked at the King, the Lord of Hosts.’
Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding in his hand a live coal which he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. With this he touched my mouth and said:
‘See now, this has touched your lips,
your sin is taken away,
your iniquity is purged.’
Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying:
‘Whom shall I send? Who will be our messenger?’
I answered, ‘Here I am, send me.’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 92(93):1-2,5 |
The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed.
The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed;
the Lord has robed himself with might,
he has girded himself with power.
The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed.
The world you made firm, not to be moved;
your throne has stood firm from of old.
From all eternity, O Lord, you are.
The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed.
Truly your decrees are to be trusted.
Holiness is fitting to your house,
O Lord, until the end of time.
The Lord is king, with majesty enrobed.
Gospel Acclamation | 1Jn2:5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Whenever anyone obeys what Christ has said,
God’s love comes to perfection in him.
Alleluia!
Gospel |
Matthew 10:24-33 |
Everything now hidden will be made clear
Jesus instructed the Twelve as follows: ‘The disciple is not superior to his teacher, nor the slave to his master. It is enough for the disciple that he should grow to be like his teacher, and the slave like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, what will they not say of his household?
‘Do not be afraid of them therefore. For everything that is now covered will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops.
‘Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell. Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny? And yet not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. So there is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than hundreds of sparrows.
‘So if anyone declares himself for me in the presence of men, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven. But the one who disowns me in the presence of men, I will disown in the presence of my Father in heaven.’
COURAGE IN STANDING UP FOR JESUS
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISA 6:1-8, MT 10:24-38]
It is not easy to be a Christian in today’s world. Witnessing to Christ, professing Him as the Saviour of the world, and confessing Him as our Lord is often considered arrogant by the world. There is pressure from society to be more modest when confessing our faith in Christ. This challenge applies not only to the question of beliefs; it is equally challenging to propose the Gospel values taught by our Lord to the world. All the teachings of the Bible are being challenged by relativism, materialism, and humanism. Whether regarding the traditional understanding of marriage, sex, family, the dignity of life, or authentic freedom, these truths are dismissed as outdated, impractical, irrelevant, and impossible.
It is easier for us to succumb to such pressures than to stand up for Jesus. That is why many Catholics can be cowardly in professing their faith. They are afraid to be seen as Catholics in the world and at their workplaces for fear of being challenged, ridiculed, or even discriminated against. This is understandable; we are afraid of suffering and rejection. We feel the need to belong to the world so that we can feel safe. Yet, we know that we are in the world but do not belong to the world. This is what the Lord says to us (cf. Jn 15:19). Jesus warns us, “So if anyone declares himself for me in the presence of men, I will declare myself for him in the presence of my Father in heaven. But the one who disowns me in the presence of men, I will disown in the presence of my Father in heaven.” If we are afraid to stand up for Jesus, we will eventually betray ourselves and lose our faith. Either we transform the world, or the world will secularise us. By not standing up for Jesus, the issue is not so much that He will disown us, but that we will eventually disown Him. There is no neutrality in faith. Either we are for Christ or against Him.
In the face of such challenges, how, then, can we remain faithful to God? Firstly, the Gospel warns us that Jesus, our Master, suffered the same fate, and therefore we are not exempt. “If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, what will they not say of his household?” Indeed, although Jesus did good for the people — healing them of their illnesses, setting them free from the bondage of the Evil One, exhorting them to repentance, calling them to live a life of authenticity and integrity, and reconciling everyone to God and to each other by advocating for the brotherhood of all and the equality of all men and women — He was still grossly misunderstood. The Jewish leaders felt threatened by Him, the political leaders felt He might be a threat to their power, and the common people projected their own political hopes onto Him. When Jesus failed to deliver on these expectations, He was put to death.
We can learn from the courage of our Lord. He was confident that even if He were innocently condemned and put to death, justice would prevail in the end. Hence, He advised us, “Do not be afraid of them, therefore. For everything that is now covered will be uncovered, and everything now hidden will be made clear. What I say to you in the dark, tell in the daylight; what you hear in whispers, proclaim from the housetops.” Indeed, like Jesus, we will be misunderstood. The Church has often been misunderstood in her teachings, whether doctrinal or moral. But history will unveil the truths that the Church of Christ has consistently maintained all these years. We have confidence that the Lord, who looks after the Church, will protect her and that the gates of hell will not overcome it: “And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven” (cf. Mt 16:18-19). We, too, can let history judge us and humanity. The truth will prevail in the end because, as Jesus said, what is hidden will eventually be made clear.
Hence, we should not be afraid even of death. “Do not be afraid of those that kill the body but cannot kill the soul; fear him rather who can destroy both body and soul in hell.” This was the faith of the Church Fathers. If the Church has remained faithful, it is because there have always been Christians ready to die for their faith and beliefs. The martyrs of the Church testified to the truth about death. When death is no longer feared, then, as St. Paul said, we have overcome the power of death: “For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For ‘God has put all things in subjection under his feet'” (cf. 1 Cor 15:25-27). With the resurrection of Christ, we know that death is not the final word. This last enemy of humanity has been overcome by the death and resurrection of Christ. Jesus has demonstrated that death does not have the final say; eternal life does.
Let us take consolation in the fact that the Lord will look after us. He will surely protect and guide us. He assures us, “Can you not buy two sparrows for a penny? And yet not one falls to the ground without your Father knowing. Why, every hair on your head has been counted. So there is no need to be afraid; you are worth more than hundreds of sparrows.” Indeed, let us take heart that no matter what trials come our way, He will help us to overcome them. He does not take away our pains, just as His Father did not take away His suffering, but He will empower us with the strength of His Holy Spirit to keep us strong, wise, and faithful. Furthermore, He assured us that those who endure to the end will be saved: “But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this good news of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the world, as a testimony to all the nations; and then the end will come” (cf. Mt 24:13-14).
How can we do what Jesus did? We need to be empowered and sent by Him, just as Isaiah was. The prophet Isaiah was given a vision of the heavenly court before he was called. He “saw the Lord seated on a high throne; his train filled the sanctuary; above him stood seraphs, each one with six wings: two to cover its face, two to cover its feet and two for flying. And they cried out to one another in this way, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts. His glory fills the whole earth.’ The foundations of the threshold shook with the voice of the one who cried out, and the Temple was filled with smoke.” It must have been a powerful vision of God. Those of us who have had a glimpse of God in our dreams or a profound religious encounter in prayer will understand how much more life-changing this vision must have been for Isaiah.
We know that we have encountered God when we become conscious of our total unworthiness and sinfulness. Isaiah’s reaction to the encounter was, “What a wretched state I am in! I am lost, for I am a man of unclean lips and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have looked at the King, the Lord of hosts.” We feel unworthy to come before the Lord. Realising our sinfulness is always a consequence of entering into the presence of the Lord. This explains the radical transformation that follows. But it is more than just the realisation of our utter unworthiness; it is the assurance of the forgiveness of our sins. “Then one of the seraphs flew to me, holding in his hand a live coal which he had taken from the altar with a pair of tongs. With this, he touched my mouth and said: ‘See now, this has touched your lips, your sin is taken away, your iniquity is purged.'” This was also the experience of Moses and Gideon in their Old Testament calls (cf. Ex 3; Judges 6:11-18), as well as the calls of Peter and Saul in the New Testament (cf. Lk 5:1-11; Acts 9:1-19). Their encounters with God made them aware of their sinfulness, but at the same time, God reassured them that their sins were forgiven. They were given His assurance of divine assistance and protection: “I will be with you; and this shall be the sign for you that it is I who sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God on this mountain” (Ex 3:12).
When we have been loved unconditionally, the desire to proclaim His love is a natural consequence. We want to announce to the world how much God loves them too, just as He has loved us. God does not grant us a personal encounter with Him without also sending us out on a mission. Like the prophets before him — such as Moses and Elijah –Isaiah “heard the voice of the Lord saying: ‘Whom shall I send? Who will be our messenger?’ I answered, ‘Here I am, send me.'” God, too, chose Peter to be the leader of the Twelve and the rock of the Church. St. Paul was given back his sight so that he could lead all peoples back to God through the proclamation of Jesus as the Christ and the Lord of all: “Go, for he is an instrument whom I have chosen to bring my name before Gentiles and kings and before the people of Israel; I myself will show him how much he must suffer for the sake of my name” (Acts 9:15-16).
Without a personal encounter with the Risen Lord, our faith remains weak. This explains why, although many priests, religious, and laypeople have faith in God and love the Church, their witnessing is weak; they have not had a personal, transforming encounter with the Lord. Their faith is dependent on hearsay and academic study. Because they lack a real encounter with the Lord, they give in to temptation in times of trial and challenge. This is not surprising, because they then begin to wonder where God is. Doubts enter their minds as to whether what they are teaching is true and whether Jesus is real.
Of course, those who receive a special encounter with the Lord must continue to grow to become more like Christ. Failing to do so is the mistake of many who have received such an encounter. They do not continue to nurture this relationship with the Lord through prayer, study, and sharing their faith within a community. Eventually, they too lose their faith. Hence, “Jesus instructed the Twelve as follows: ‘The disciple is not superior to his teacher, nor the slave to his master. It is enough for the disciple that he should grow to be like his teacher, and the slave like his master.'” This is an ongoing process. We must never stop growing in our understanding of our faith in Christ and our relationship with Him. In this way, we will remain faithful to Christ and be courageous in standing up for the truth and the Gospel of our Lord.
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
