20140914 SHARING IN CHRIST’S TRIUMPH OVER THE CROSS
First
reading Numbers 21:4-9 ©
On
the way through the wilderness the people lost patience. They spoke against God
and against Moses, ‘Why did you bring us out of Egypt to die in this
wilderness? For there is neither bread nor water here; we are sick of this
unsatisfying food.’
At this God sent fiery serpents among the
people; their bite brought death to many in Israel. The people came and said to
Moses, ‘We have sinned by speaking against the Lord and against you. Intercede
for us with the Lord to save us from these serpents.’ Moses interceded for the
people, and the Lord answered him, ‘Make a fiery serpent and put it on a
standard. If anyone is bitten and looks at it, he shall live.’ So Moses fashioned
a bronze serpent which he put on a standard, and if anyone was bitten by a
serpent, he looked at the bronze serpent and lived.
Psalm
Psalm
77:1-2,34-38 ©
Never
forget the deeds of the Lord.
Give
heed, my people, to my teaching;
turn your ear to the words of my mouth.
I
will open my mouth in a parable
and reveal hidden lessons of the past.
Never
forget the deeds of the Lord.
When
he slew them then they would seek him,
return and seek him in earnest.
They
would remember that God was their rock,
God the Most High their redeemer.
Never
forget the deeds of the Lord.
But
the words they spoke were mere flattery;
they lied to him with their lips.
For
their hearts were not truly with him;
they were not faithful to his covenant.
Never
forget the deeds of the Lord.
Yet
he who is full of compassion
forgave them their sin and spared them.
So
often he held back his anger
when he might have stirred up his rage.
Never
forget the deeds of the Lord.
Second
reading
Philippians
2:6-11 ©
His
state was divine,
yet
Christ Jesus did not cling
to
his equality with God
but
emptied himself
to
assume the condition of a slave
and
became as men are;
and
being as all men are,
he
was humbler yet,
even
to accepting death,
death
on a cross.
But
God raised him high
and
gave him the name
which
is above all other names
so
that all beings
in
the heavens, on earth and in the underworld,
should
bend the knee at the name of Jesus
and
that every tongue should acclaim
Jesus
Christ as Lord,
to
the glory of God the Father.
Gospel
Acclamation
Alleluia,
alleluia!
We
adore you, O Christ,
and
we bless you;
because
by your cross
you
have redeemed the world.
Alleluia!
Gospel John 3:13-17 ©
Jesus
said to Nicodemus:
‘No
one has gone up to heaven
except
the one who came down from heaven,
the
Son of Man who is in heaven;
and
the Son of Man must be lifted up
as
Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert,
so
that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.
Yes,
God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son,
so
that everyone who believes in him may not be lost
but
may have eternal life.
For
God sent his Son into the world
not
to condemn the world,
but
so that through him the world might be saved.’
SHARING
IN CHRIST’S TRIUMPH OVER THE CROSS
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: NUM 21:4-9; PHIL 2:6-11; JN 3:13-17
http://www.universalis.com/20140914/mass.htm
No one on this earth is
exempted from suffering and the crosses of life. Whether we are babies,
youth, adults or elderly; studying, working or retired, we have our share of
sufferings. Where do our crosses come from?
The first source of
suffering comes from our fragile humanity. As human beings, we suffer the weakness of
the human body and of the mind. Our suffering comes from the
inconvenience and humdrum drudgery of daily life. In themselves,
they need not cause us great pain, if we are able to accept them in stride and
take them as part of being human. Only those who seek to escape
from suffering will suffer more than the hassles themselves. This was the
case of the Israelites in the desert. They were short in tolerance,
always complaining about the situation they were in, and comparing with what
could have been. By fighting against the daily discomforts of life, we
make ourselves miserable, for instead of focusing on the joys, we focus on our
pain. Sadness is experienced when we see things out of perspective.
Joy comes to those who see everything positively.
The second source of
suffering is the consequence of our sins. Instead of being grateful for what they had
received, especially their freedom from the slavery of the Egyptians, the
Israelites grew discontented with their new found freedom. They valued
material comfort more than personal freedom. Hence, they grumbled against
God and Moses, accusing them of leading them into the desert to be
destroyed. Such a response showed the self-centeredness of the Israelites
and the utter lack of gratitude.
As a result, God
punished them by
sending “fiery serpents among the people; their bite brought death to many in
Israel. “ This must not be misunderstood as God taking revenge on
them. Rather, it symbolized that their sins and lack of contentment
ultimately destroyed them. People who are selfish and self-centered eventually
bring destruction upon themselves.
The third source of
suffering comes from the sins of others. Quite often, our sins not only harm us, but
also the innocent people around us. The sins of the people of Israel not
only affected those concerned, but the whole nation as well. This was
particularly true of the sins of their leaders, religious and political.
Because of the sins of parents, children suffer as well. Because of the
sins of church leaders, the members’ faith is shaken. Because of the sins of
society, we are all contaminated. Jesus’ death on the cross of course was
caused by our sins.
What is the antidote to
sin and suffering? The paradox is that the key lies in the suffering
itself. It is
strange that God chose the serpent that bit them as the instrument of
healing. He told Moses, “Make a fiery serpent and put it on a standard.
If anyone is bitten and looks at it, he shall live.” Why did God want
them to look at the serpent? So that they would be reminded of what their
selfishness and ingratitude had caused them, and thereby desist from repeating
their mistake. Indeed, the responsorial psalm says, “Do not forget the
works of the Lord! While He slew them they sought Him and inquired after God
again, remembering that God was their rock and the Most High God, their
redeemer. But He, being merciful, forgave their sin and destroyed them
not. Often He turned back his anger and let none of His wrath be roused.”
Of course we know that the
serpent mounted on the pole foreshadows the sacrificial death of Jesus on the
Cross. Jesus told Nicodemus, “No one has gone up to heaven except the
one who came down from heaven, the Son of Man who is in heaven; and the Son of
Man must be lifted up as Moses lifted up the serpent in the desert, so that
everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” Truly, the sacrifice
of Jesus on the cross has become the source of salvation for the whole world.
For the death of Jesus
is not just any suffering or death, but the suffering and death of God Himself
in His Son. St Paul made clear the identity of Jesus when he
wrote, “The state of Jesus Christ was divine, yet he did not cling to his
equality with God but emptied himself to assume the condition of a slave, and
became as men are; and being as all men are, he was humbler yet, even to
accepting death, death on a cross.” St John the evangelist brought out
the significance of Jesus’ death, which is nothing less than the expression of
God’s unconditional and total love for the world. He wrote, “Yes, God
loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who
believes in him may not be lost but may have eternal life. For God sent his Son
into the world not to condemn the world, but so that through him the world
might be saved.” Such is the extent of His love, that He would suffer the
humiliation of His Son, so that His love would be revealed to us all.
If we contemplate on the
love of God in Christ Jesus, especially in His passion on the cross, then
the realization of what our sins have done to God will move us to repent of our
sins and ingratitude towards His love. It is not just an intellectual
belief in the death of Christ, but a personal conviction of Jesus as the Son of
the Father, that would cause us to grieve for our sins, not simply because our
sins hurt us, but because our sins hurt the One who loves us so much, God
Himself. Hence, by reflecting on our sins in the light of God’s suffering
and mercy, we are changed. Unfortunately, many of us do not believe in
Jesus as the Son of the Father.
If we still live in sin
today in spite of our conversion to Christ in baptism, it is because, like the
Israelites, we have forgotten the works of the Lord! Today, as we
celebrate the Triumph of the Holy Cross, the Church is not just asking us to
contemplate on the love of Christ for us on the cross, but most of all, His
triumphant victory over sin and death. Yes, the Cross might
appear to be a failure, but for God, it is His instrument of victory.
As St Paul wrote, “But God raised him high and gave him the name which is above
all other names so that all beings in the heavens, on earth and in the
underworld, should bend the knee at the name of Jesus and that every tongue
should acclaim Jesus Christ as Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” By
His cross, He destroyed sin. By His death, He destroyed death.
So if we are suffering
today, be it on account of our own sins or the sins of others, or because we
have chosen to suffer with and forJesus in His Body the Church, let us be
confident that our sufferings, when carried out positively and vicariously, can
bring about our own redemption and that of the world. Like Jesus, by
emptying ourselves, we become one with the world. Just as Moses interceded for
the sins of his people, our innocent sufferings offered for the sins of the
world, will be the most powerful form of intercession for its conversion.
May we carry our sufferings and crosses cheerfully for our own conversion and
for others, so that His mercy and grace will fill us all!
WRITTEN BY THE MOST REV WILLIAM GOH
ARCHBISHOP OF SINGAPORE
© ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
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