20170221 IF YOU ASPIRE TO SERVE THE LORD, PREPARE YOURSELF FOR AN
ORDEAL
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Ecclesiasticus
2:1-11 ©
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My son, if you aspire
to serve the Lord,
prepare
yourself for an ordeal.
Be sincere of heart,
be steadfast,
and do
not be alarmed when disaster comes.
Cling to him and do
not leave him,
so that
you may be honoured at the end of your days.
Whatever happens to
you, accept it,
and in
the uncertainties of your humble state, be patient,
since gold is tested
in the fire,
and
chosen men in the furnace of humiliation.
Trust him and he will
uphold you,
follow a
straight path and hope in him.
You who fear the
Lord, wait for his mercy;
do not
turn aside in case you fall.
You who fear the
Lord, trust him,
and you
will not be baulked of your reward.
You who fear the Lord
hope for good things,
for
everlasting happiness and mercy.
Look at the
generations of old and see:
who ever
trusted in the Lord and was put to shame?
Or who ever feared
him steadfastly and was left forsaken?
Or who
ever called out to him, and was ignored?
For the Lord is
compassionate and merciful,
he
forgives sins, and saves in days of distress.
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm
36(37):3-4,18-19,27-28,39-40 ©
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Commit your life
to the Lord, trust him and he will act.
If you trust in the
Lord and do good,
then you
will live in the land and be secure.
If you find your
delight in the Lord,
he will
grant your heart’s desire.
Commit your life
to the Lord, trust him and he will act.
He protects the lives
of the upright,
their
heritage will last for ever.
They shall not be put
to shame in evil days,
in time
of famine their food shall not fail.
Commit your life
to the Lord, trust him and he will act.
Then turn away from
evil and do good
and you
shall have a home for ever;
for the Lord loves
justice
and will
never forsake his friends.
Commit your life
to the Lord, trust him and he will act.
The salvation of the
just comes from the Lord,
their
stronghold in time of distress.
The Lord helps them
and delivers them
and saves
them: for their refuge is in him.
Commit your life
to the Lord, trust him and he will act.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Jn14:23
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Alleluia, alleluia!
If anyone loves me he
will keep my word,
and my Father will
love him,
and we shall come to
him.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Ga6:14
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Alleluia, alleluia!
The only thing I can
boast about is the cross of our Lord,
through whom the
world is crucified to me, and I to the world.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Mark 9:30-37 ©
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Jesus and his
disciples made their way through Galilee; and he did not want anyone to know,
because he was instructing his disciples; he was telling them, ‘The Son of Man
will be delivered into the hands of men; they will put him to death; and three
days after he has been put to death he will rise again.’ But they did not
understand what he said and were afraid to ask him.
They
came to Capernaum, and when he was in the house he asked them, ‘What were you
arguing about on the road?’ They said nothing because they had been arguing
which of them was the greatest. So he sat down, called the Twelve to him and
said, ‘If anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and
servant of all.’ He then took a little child, set him in front of them, put his
arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who welcomes one of these little
children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who welcomes me welcomes not me
but the one who sent me.’
IF YOU
ASPIRE TO SERVE THE LORD, PREPARE YOURSELF FOR AN ORDEAL
SCRIPTURE
READINGS: [ Sir 2:1-11; Ps 37:3-4, 18-19, 27-28, 39-40; Mk 9:30-37]
“My
son, if you aspire to serve the Lord, prepare yourself for an ordeal.”
These words remind me of what Jesus said to the prospective disciples who
wanted to follow Jesus. To one, He said, “Foxes have holes, and birds of
the air have nests; but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Lk 9:58) To another, he
said, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their own dead.” (Lk 9:60) To the third, He
said, “No one who puts a hand to the plow and looks back is fit for the kingdom
of God.” (Lk 9:62)
And to the disciples who were squabbling for position, glory and power, He
said, “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that
I am about to drink?” (Mt 20:22)
Indeed, we have many who
are willing to become priests, religious, Church workers, ministry members,
volunteers in Church or charitable organizations but who are not ready for the
sacrifices and the sufferings ahead of them. As a result, many who enter
the service with great passion, enthusiasm and joy, leave the ministry with
much bitterness, disillusionment, anger and resentment. Some have
even lost their faith and left the Church all together. This explains why
the Church cannot move forward because we have many disgruntled servants of the
Church, clerical and lay. When we have wounded priests, religious and lay
workers, they often tend to act out of their hurts and thus compromise the
message of unconditional love and joy. When we find Church workers,
helpers and priests to be petty, harsh, hot-tempered, arrogant, reactive,
judgmental, defensive, argumentative and insensitive, it means that they need
much healing.
How, then, can we avoid
falling into disillusionment or despair in the face of challenges and
difficulties? Firstly, we must never forget that we are servants. “If
anyone wants to be first, he must make himself last of all and servant of
all.” As servants, we should not expect any reward or gratitude.
Jesus did say, “So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do,
should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.'” (Lk 17:10) All
the talents and resources given to us are from God to be used for
service. So we have no right to boast or even demand gratitude. We
are here to do what we can and leave the rest to God. If we have done our
part, let us leave success to God.
This was the mistake of the
apostles. They had the wrong idea for following and serving Jesus.
They were arguing who was the greatest. They wanted to be in
positions of power and glory with Jesus. This is why Pope Francis always
warns us about spiritual worldliness. Even in the spiritual world, the
temptations of the world can come under the guise of religious
service. Many use religion to get attention, power, honour and
recognition. We know how often politics use religion to obtain power, but
it is equally true that some use religion to attain political powers. So many
serve, albeit with an unconscious pursuit of some form of recognition and
appreciation.
Secondly, Sirach tells us,
“Be sincere of heart.” Sincerity of service is necessary if we want to
persevere in doing good works. This is why Jesus “took a little child,
set him in front of them, put his arms round him, and said to them, ‘Anyone who
welcomes one of these little children in my name, welcomes me; and anyone who
welcomes me welcomes not me but the one who sent me.’” Welcoming a little
child precisely means to seek innocence of heart. Welcoming a child is to
serve without the possibility of the child returning our favours. So
when we serve, our intentions must be pure, like a child who chooses to serve
out of love; not because of honour and recognition. We must serve
those who cannot repay us.
Thirdly, we must remain
“steadfast, and do not be alarmed when disaster comes”, as Sirach advises
us. Many begin well but they lack perseverance. They give up
easily when difficulties come along. Members resign when they face
difficulties with fellow members or with those in authority. Sometimes,
it is good for us to ask whether we are serving God or serving man. St
Paul reminds us, “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 3:23f) If we
truly believe that we are serving the Lord, how can we walk in and walk out as
and when we like? When things are not to our liking, we resign. If
the Lord calls us to take the cross and walk after Him, to resign just because
we are not happy means that we are not serving God but serving ourselves in the
first place. God is our master and employer; not the priest or the
chairman.
What we need to do is to
stay united with the Lord. Sirach tells us, “Cling to him and do not
leave him, so that you may be honoured at the end of your days. Whatever
happens to you, accept it, and in the uncertainties of your humble state, be
patient, since gold is tested in the fire, and chosen men in the furnace of
humiliation.” When we stay with the Lord and accept His will, we will be
able to face all suffering and humiliation, like the apostles who gave thanks
to God for allowing them to suffer for Him. “The apostles left the
Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace
for the Name.” (Acts 5:41)
Through suffering, we grow in grace and in faith. We must be submissive
to the will of God. Through obedience to His will, like Jesus in the Garden of
Gethsemane, God will show His power and see that we are victorious at the
end. Instead of taking things into our own hands, we must allow the
grace and power of God to work and change our enemies and bring us to victory.
Most of all, we must trust
in the Lord. This is what Sirach is asking of us. He said,
“Trust him and he will uphold you, follow a straight path and hope in
him. You who fear the Lord, wait for his mercy; do not turn aside in case
you fall. You who fear the Lord, trust him, you who will not be baulked
of your reward. You who fear the Lord hope for good things, for
everlasting happiness and mercy.” When we trust in the Lord, we
know that He will see us through. Success in the ministry is not in our
hands but totally the work of God. We should not be worried too much
about success but learn to trust Him. So long as we walk in His path and
follow Him, He will reward us and show us His mercy.
How can we be so sure that
the Lord is trustworthy and is faithful to His promises? Sirach urges us, “Look
at the generations of old and see: who ever trusted in the Lord and was put to
shame? Or who ever feared him steadfastly was left forsaken? Or who
ever called out to him, and was ignored? For the Lord is compassionate
and merciful, he forgives sins, and saves in days of distress.” Indeed,
we just have to look at our own lives and the history of the Church. In
spite of the many scandals that have rocked the Church, we still stand strong
after 2000 years. Nations have come and gone but the Church as an institution
remains because the Lord promised to be with us until the end of time. We
might be decimated at times, persecuted and discredited. But we will come
back and be renewed in zeal and in holiness.
So let
us commit our lives to the Lord and His work. This is what the psalmist
is exhorting us. “Commit your life to the Lord, trust him and he will
act. If you trust in the Lord and do good, then you will live in the land
and be secure. If you find your delight in the Lord, he will grant your heart’s
desire. Then turn away from evil and do good and you shall have a home
for ever; for the Lord loves justice and will never forsake his friends. The
salvation of the just comes from the Lord, their stronghold in time of
distress.” Let us do all we can according to our
abilities. We leave the rest to the Lord. Success belongs to
Him. As St Teresa of Calcutta says “Let us be faithful not
successful.”
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights
Reserved
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