20140711 STRENGTHENING OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE AS THE WAY TO REMAIN IN THE
MERCIFUL LOVE OF GOD
Reading 1, Hosea 14:2-10
3 Provide yourself with words and come back to Yahweh. Say
to him, 'Take all guilt away and give us what is good, instead of bulls we will dedicate to
you our lips.
4 Assyria cannot save us, we will not ride
horses any more, or say, "Our God!" to our own handiwork, for you are
the one in whom orphans find compassion.'
5 I shall cure them of their disloyalty, I shall love them
with all my heart, for my anger has turned
away from them.
6 I shall fall like dew on Israel, he will bloom like
the lily and thrust out roots like the cedar of
Lebanon;
7 he will put out new
shoots, he will have the
beauty of the olive tree and the fragrance of Lebanon.
8 They will come back
to live in my shade; they will grow wheat
again, they will make the
vine flourish, their wine will be as
famous as Lebanon's.
9 What has Ephraim to do with idols any more when I hear
him and watch over him? I am like an evergreen cypress, you owe your
fruitfulness to me.
10 Let the wise understand these words, let the
intelligent grasp their meaning, for Yahweh's ways are straight and the upright
will walk in
them, but sinners will stumble.
Responsorial Psalm, Psalms 51:3-4, 8-9, 12-13, 14, 17
4 Against you, you alone, I have sinned, I have done what
you see to be wrong, that you may show your saving justice when you
pass sentence, and your victory may appear when you give judgement,
9 Turn away your face from my sins, and wipe away all my
guilt.
12 Give me back the joy of your salvation, sustain in me a
generous spirit.
14 Deliver me from bloodshed, God, God of my
salvation, and my tongue will acclaim
your saving justice.
Gospel, Matthew 10:16-23
16 Look, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so
be cunning as snakes and yet innocent as doves.
17 'Be prepared for people to hand you over to sanhedrins
and scourge you in their synagogues.
18 You will be brought
before governors and kings for my
sake, as evidence to them and to the gentiles.
19 But when you are handed over, do not worry about how to
speak or what to say; what you are to say will be given to
you when the time comes,
21 'Brother will betray
brother to death, and a father his child; children will come
forward against their parents and have
them put to death.
22 You will be
universally hated on account of my name; but anyone who stands firm to the end will be saved.
23 If they persecute you in one town, take refuge in the next;
and if they persecute you in that, take refuge in another. In truth I tell
you, you will not have
gone the round of the towns of Israel before the Son of man comes.
Scripture
Reflection
STRENGTHENING OUR SPIRITUAL LIFE AS THE WAY TO REMAIN IN
THE MERCIFUL LOVE OF GOD
Indeed,
how true are the words of Hosea for all of us when he said, “your iniquity
was the cause of your downfall.” Truly, most of our sufferings
come from our foolish mistakes and sins which we have committed. Whether
it is due to ignorance or deliberate ignorance, when we sin, we always hurt
ourselves and those people whom we love. But more than that, sins do not
just affect us in the present, but will affect our loved ones in the
future. We all are aware of what people call “ancestral sins”, that is
the effects of the sins of our forefathers and the effects of our sins upon our
present generation and the generations to come, “until the third or fourth
generations”, as the bible tells us. This is better understood as the effects
of original sin, which is more psychological and emotional than biological, and
which can lead us to commit personal sins. However, it must not be
interpreted per se as the transmission of personal sins, for such sins cannot
be transmitted. Nevertheless, they are still called sins because they
bring about our estrangement from God and from others.
But our
experience of God’s love for us assures us that we need not live in our
past, nor be fearful of the future. We only have to come back to the
Lord our God. These are the words of Hosea, “Israel, come back to the
Lord your God. Provide yourself with words and come back to the Lord. Say to
him, ‘Take all iniquity away so that we may have happiness again and offer you
our words of praise.” The only way to break the cycle of sins and the
effects of sin is to turn away from sin. This is the first prerequisite
for healing of our family tree and our individual healing.
Healing
of our brokenness and sinfulness and the effects of sin on our psychological
state can only come about if we stop relying on ourselves, our strength,
talents, wealth or power but on Him alone. Indeed, Hosea reminds us
“Assyria cannot save us. We will not ride horses any more.” In other
words, we cannot be healed by human might and ingenuity. We must not
think that science and technology, power and wealth can bring us real happiness
in life and help us to overcome the self-centeredness and individualistic
approach to life today.
Indeed,
by giving ourselves to the Lord and surrendering our lives to Him, especially
our sins of pride and self-will, we will come to realize that only God can heal
our brokenness. And the good news is that God wants to heal us.
We only need to pray as the Israelites did, “Our God! To what our own hands
have made, for you are the one in whom orphans find compassion.” Truly,
we have not only heard but many of us have experienced the healing love of God
as Hosea said, “I will heal their disloyalty, I will love them with all my
heart, for my anger has turned from them. I will fall like dew on Israel.
He shall bloom like the lily, and thrust out roots like the poplar, his shoots
will spread far; he will have the beauty of the olive and the fragrance of
Lebanon.”
Having
experienced the power and healing love of God, let us not turn back to our
past again. Hosea reminds us, “Let the wise man understand these
words. Let the intelligent man grasp their meaning. For the ways of the Lord
are straight, and virtuous men walk in them, but sinners stumble.” We
must now make resolve to walk in the right path and the ways of the Lord.
This brings us back to the question of how we can walk in this path so that we
can blossom as Hosea tells us.
Yet,
we must not be deluded into thinking that living a righteous life is easy in
the world. Many
have been touched by the Lord at some point in their lives, yet quite often,
many do not sustain that love the Lord has poured into their hearts. They
do not prepare themselves by growing in the Lord to face the cunning
temptations of the Evil One in the world. In seeking to live an
upright life, one of honesty and integrity, we will be persecuted as Jesus
warned us, “Beware of men: they will hand you over to the Sanhedrin and scourge
you in their synagogues. You will be dragged before governors and kings
for my sake, to bear witness before them and the pagans.”
Realizing
the challenges ahead of us, let us stand firm. We will share our Master’s fate;
no less. Like Him, Jesus forewarned His disciples, “You will be hated by
all men on account of my name; but the man who stands firm to the end will be
saved. If they persecute you in one town, take refuge in the next; and if
they persecute you in that, take refuge in another.” We must not succumb
too easily in our fight against sin and the temptations of the world, not even
when under threat.
How
can we keep ourselves afloat in the world unless we bear in mind the words of
God through Hosea?
“They will come back to live in my shade; they will grow corn that flourishes,
they will cultivate vines as renowned as the wine of Helbon. What has Ephraim
to do with idols any more when it is I who hear his prayer and care for him? I
am like a cypress ever green, all your fruitfulness comes from me.“ In other
words, we must live in Jesus and be one with Him in Spirit, for Jesus warns us,
“Remember, I am sending you out like sheep among wolves; so be cunning as
serpents and yet as harmless as doves.”
But
in union with Jesus, we can handle all forms of opposition because as Jesus assured us “when they
hand you over, do not worry about how to speak or what to say; what you are to
say will be given to you when the time comes; because it is not you who will be
speaking; the Spirit of your Father will be speaking in you.” Yes, with
Jesus in our mind, the Spirit in our heart, and the Father protecting us, we
can face the world with courage, clinging to Him who will sustain us until we
complete our journey on earth. It will no longer be us against the world but
God versus the world. With God and us, we are always more powerful than
any force on earth, seen or unseen.
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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