20190516
SEIZING
THE OPPORTUNITY
16 MAY, 2019,
Thursday, 4th Week of Easter
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
White.
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First reading
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Acts 13:13-25 ©
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God has raised up one of David's
descendants, Jesus, as Saviour
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Paul and his friends went by sea from
Paphos to Perga in Pamphylia where John left them to go back to Jerusalem. The
others carried on from Perga till they reached Antioch in Pisidia. Here they
went to synagogue on the sabbath and took their seats. After the lessons from
the Law and the Prophets had been read, the presidents of the synagogue sent
them a message: ‘Brothers, if you would like to address some words of
encouragement to the congregation, please do so.’ Paul stood up, held up a hand
for silence and began to speak:
‘Men
of Israel, and fearers of God, listen! The God of our nation Israel chose our
ancestors, and made our people great when they were living as foreigners in
Egypt; then by divine power he led them out, and for about forty years took care
of them in the wilderness. When he had destroyed seven nations in Canaan, he
put them in possession of their land for about four hundred and fifty years.
After this he gave them judges, down to the prophet Samuel. Then they demanded
a king, and God gave them Saul son of Kish, a man of the tribe of Benjamin.
After forty years, he deposed him and made David their king, of whom he
approved in these words, “I have selected David son of Jesse, a man after my
own heart, who will carry out my whole purpose.” To keep his promise, God has
raised up for Israel one of David’s descendants, Jesus, as Saviour, whose
coming was heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the
whole people of Israel. Before John ended his career he said, “I am not the one
you imagine me to be; that one is coming after me and I am not fit to undo his
sandal.”’
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm
88(89):2-3,21,22,25,27 ©
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I will sing for ever of
your love, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I will sing for ever of your love, O Lord;
through all ages my mouth will
proclaim your truth.
Of this I am sure, that your love lasts
for ever,
that your truth is firmly
established as the heavens.
I will sing for ever of
your love, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
I have found David my servant
and with my holy oil anointed
him.
My hand shall always be with him
and my arm shall make him
strong.
I will sing for ever of
your love, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
My truth and my love shall be with him;
by my name his might shall be
exalted.
He will say to me: ‘You are my father,
my God, the rock who saves
me.’
I will sing for ever of
your love, O Lord.
or
Alleluia!
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Gospel Acclamation
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cf.Rv1:5
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Alleluia, alleluia!
You, O Christ, are the faithful witness,
the First-born from the dead,
you have loved us and have washed away our
sins with your blood.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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John 13:16-20 ©
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Whoever welcomes the one I send welcomes
me
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After he had washed the feet of his
disciples, Jesus said to them:
‘I tell you most solemnly,
no servant is greater than his master,
no messenger is greater than the man who
sent him.
‘Now that you know this, happiness will be
yours if you behave accordingly. I am not speaking about all of you: I know the
ones I have chosen; but what scripture says must be fulfilled: Someone
who shares my table rebels against me.
‘I tell you this now, before it happens,
so that when it does happen
you may believe that I am He.
I tell you most solemnly,
whoever welcomes the one I send welcomes
me,
and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one
who sent me.’
SEIZING THE
OPPORTUNITY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ ACTS 13:13-25; PS 89:2-3, 21, 22, 25, 27; JOHN 13:16 ]
The first reading recounts
the first missionary journey of Paul and Barnabas to proclaim the Good
News. They were sent by the Holy Spirit on a mission. How were they to proclaim the Good
News? In truth, they did not have any plans mapped out for them.
Like Jesus, they went as the Spirit led them. The Christian mission,
unlike business or political enterprises, is not reduced to human planning and
strategizing. Rather, it is led by the Holy Spirit. “So, being sent
out by the Holy Spirit, they went down to Seleucia; and from there they sailed
to Cyprus.” (Acts 13:4)
We might think that they should have held more meetings to prepare for the
trip, their strategy and plans in winning converts to the Lord. But this
was not their way. The way of the apostles was to listen intently to the
prompting of the Holy Spirit leading them in their mission as they always
believed that the mission was from the Holy Spirit and of the Lord. They
remained the Protagonists. They allowed the Holy Spirit to lead the way.
But it did not mean that
they left everything to the Holy Spirit. When the Lord gave them an
opening or an opportunity, they were quick to seize it. This is
the theme of today’s scripture lessons. Are we ready to seize the
opportunity to witness to the Lord? As the responsorial psalm says, “I
will sing forever of your love, O Lord; through all ages my mouth will proclaim
your truth. Of this I am sure, that your love lasts forever, that your truth
is firmly established as the heavens.” St Paul was always ready to
make use of the invitation given to him. Firstly, he responded to the
Holy Spirit’s prompting to be set apart for the mission of proclaiming Christ
to other places. We can be sure that this was not on his
mind. He was surely quite contented to help Barnabas give instructions to
the Church at Antioch. (cf Acts 11:26) In today’s reading, he
was at Antioch in Pisidia. “After the lessons from the Law and the
Prophets had been read, the presidents of the synagogue sent them a message:
‘Brothers, if you would like to address some words of encouragement to the
congregation, please do so.’ Paul stood up, held up a hand for silence and
began to speak.” He did not hesitate or lose that occasion for him to
announce the Good News.
He readily made use of
the opportunity to address the Jews. Again, Paul was very much in touch
with his audience. He was quick to adapt the message about Jesus in a way
that the Jews could understand and accept. He did not begin by proclaiming Christ as
the Saviour and the Lord. On the contrary, he began by acknowledging
their faith in the history of salvation, beginning from Israel’s
election. He led them through their common history of how God liberated
them from their slavery in Egypt and led them through the desert for forty
years, looking after them, providing for their needs. Then, He gave them
the land of Canaan by driving out their enemies. To provide unity and
stability, God gave them Judges and later on acceded to their demand for a
king. And it was to King David that God made a promise that he would be
the one to carry out His plan. Finally, to realize this promise, God has raised
up for Israel one of David’s descendants, Jesus, as Saviour, whose coming was
heralded by John when he proclaimed a baptism of repentance for the whole
people of Israel.”
This was a more
diplomatic and convincing way to demonstrate how Jesus is the Messiah foretold
by the prophets and in accordance with the plan of God. Such a presentation makes sense
because salvation is not an abstract divine intervention but a concrete gradual
unfolding of God’s plan in our lives. By showing the continuity of faith
and the final realization of God’s plan in Christ, it helped them to open their
mind to the possibility that what St Paul said was true. Indeed, we read
later on, when they “were going out, the people urged them to speak about these
things again the next Sabbath. When the meeting of the synagogue broke
up, many Jews and devout converts to Judaism followed Paul and Barnabas, who
spoke to them and urged them to continue in the grace of God.” (Rom 13:42f)
In the gospel, Jesus
took the same path as well, seizing whatever opportunities there were for Him
to fulfill the plan of God.
We are told that at the farewell meal just before the Passover feast, He used
that occasion to anticipate His passion, death and resurrection by celebrating
the memorial meal. Knowing that one of His apostles was to betray Him, He
found the chance to reach out to Judas by offering him a piece of bread as a
sign of friendship and washed his feet as well to teach him humble service and
surrender to God’s will. Indeed, whenever the Lord found the avenue to
proclaim the Father’s love, He would do it.
Whether it was Paul or
the Lord, they sought to give encouragement to those under their charge. Indeed, that was what the presidents
of the Synagogue said to them. “Brothers, if you would like to address some
words of encouragement to the congregation, please do so.” What our
people also need most today are words of encouragement in their lives.
This life can be rather trying because of the many demands that are made on us,
and the high expectations and quality of life that we are all striving
towards. This has taken its toil on our family relationships and our
lifestyle. There is so much competition and self-centeredness making this
world a hostile and divisive place to live in.
What people would like
to hear is that God is faithful to us. This
is what the responsorial psalm sought to do. “I will sing for ever of
your love, O Lord. I have found David my servant and with my holy oil
anointed him. My hand shall always be with him and my arm shall make him
strong. My truth and my love shall be with him; by my name his might
shall be exalted. He will say to me: ‘You are my father, my God, the rock
who saves me.'” This was what Paul showed as well in his message to
the Jews in Antioch; that Jesus precisely was the fulfillment of the promise of
God to King David and his people. He was the one destined and announced
by John the Baptist to be the Saviour and Messiah. Indeed, our God
is a faithful God.
However, God’s fidelity
to us is incarnated in time and in history. The grace of God does not destroy nature
but elevates nature to a higher level. So too when God’s grace entered
human history, God made use of individuals through their strengths and even
their weaknesses to fulfill His divine plan. Salvation is ongoing.
The process is not yet complete although it has been technically
accomplished already in Christ. God continues to make use of us to bring His
salvation to the whole world. Each one of us is called to sing the
praises of God as well.
We are called to
represent our Lord. Jesus
said, “I tell you most solemnly, whoever welcomes the one I send welcomes me,
and whoever welcomes me welcomes the one who sent me.” Just as the Father
sent the Son and we are sent out in the power of the Holy Spirit, we must
remain humble and cooperative in the service of the kingdom. We are
called to do His will and not ours. If each of us would do our part, as
our forefathers did in spite of their weaknesses, we too will usher in the
kingdom as well.
Each one of us must
seize whatever opportunities the Lord gives to us. There are many such occasions when
the Lord opens the door for us to reach out and to announce His name. It
could be through an act of kindness, an inspiring thought, a word of
encouragement, a breakup in relationship, a misfortune, a sickness or a
trial. In all these occasions, the Lord is giving us access to touch
people’s lives. Alas, we are not alert to the prompting of the Spirit.
The Lord warns us, “Now that you know this, happiness will be yours if you
behave accordingly. I am not speaking about all of you: I know the ones I have
chosen; but what scripture says must be fulfilled: Someone who shares my table
rebels against me.” We will be at peace within ourselves knowing
that we have done what is required of us. Unlike Judas, although he could
not derail the plan of God, he suffered guilt and shame. So happiness is
just at our doorstep. Like Paul and Barnabas, if we just focus on
proclaiming and sharing the Good News to people according to our circumstances,
we will find life great joy and fulfillment. Indeed, as the Lord said, “no
servant is greater than his master, no messenger is greater than the man who
sent him.” We too must follow the path of our Lord in service and love.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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