20191025
DESPAIR
IN DOING GOOD
25 OCTOBER,
2019, Friday, 29th Week, Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical Colour:
Green.
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First reading
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Romans 7:18-25 ©
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I know of nothing good living in me –
living, that is, in my unspiritual self – for though the will to do what
is good is in me, the performance is not, with the result that instead of doing
the good things I want to do, I carry out the sinful things I do not want. When
I act against my will, then, it is not my true self doing it, but sin which
lives in me.
In
fact, this seems to be the rule, that every single time I want to do good it is
something evil that comes to hand. In my inmost self I dearly love God’s Law,
but I can see that my body follows a different law that battles against the law
which my reason dictates. This is what makes me a prisoner of that law of sin
which lives inside my body.
What
a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body doomed to death?
Thanks
be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm
118(119):66,68,76-77,93-94 ©
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Lord, teach me your
statutes.
Teach me discernment and knowledge
for I trust in your commands.
You are good and your deeds are good;
teach me your statutes.
Lord, teach me your
statutes.
Let your love be ready to console me
by your promise to your
servant.
Let your love come and I shall live
for your law is my delight.
Lord, teach me your
statutes.
I will never forget your precepts
for with them you give me
life.
Save me, for I am yours
since I seek your precepts.
Lord, teach me your
statutes.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps94:8
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Harden not your hearts today,
but listen to the voice of the Lord.
Alleluia!
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Or:
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Mt11:25
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you, Father,
Lord of heaven and earth,
for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom
to mere children.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 12:54-59 ©
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Jesus said to the crowds: ‘When you see a
cloud looming up in the west you say at once that rain is coming, and so it
does. And when the wind is from the south you say it will be hot, and it is.
Hypocrites! You know how to interpret the face of the earth and the sky. How is
it you do not know how to interpret these times?
‘Why
not judge for yourselves what is right? For example: when you go to court with
your opponent, try to settle with him on the way, or he may drag you before the
judge and the judge hand you over to the bailiff and the bailiff have you
thrown into prison. I tell you, you will not get out till you have paid the
very last penny.’
DESPAIR IN DOING
GOOD
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Rom 7:18-25; Ps 119:66, 68, 76-77, 93-94; Lk 12:54-59 ]
There are different
kinds of sinners. The
first and most incorrigible sinners are those who know the right thing to do
but deliberately choose to do evil because of selfishness. They commit
the sin against the Holy Spirit because they freely choose to close themselves
to God, as in the case of the devil. But there are those who are ignorant
about what is right or wrong. They are deceived by the apparently logical
arguments presented by the world. They judge by appearances and seek
short-term benefits at the expense of truth and long term
consequences. For such sinners, the Lord would say, “Father,
forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.” (Lk 23:34)
But today’s scripture
readings are directed at those who have been converted to the Lord, as St Paul
was. Yet, the promise of freedom from sin, since we are made anew in
Christ through baptism, does not seem to be a reality. We still struggle against
sins. This battle fighting in us, as St Paul described it, is the reality
of who we are. “I know of nothing good living in me – living, that is, in
my unspiritual self – for though the will to do what is good is in me, the performance
is not, with the result that instead of doing the good things I want to do, I
carry out the sinful things I do not want. When I act against my will,
then, it is not my true self doing it, but sin which lives in me.”
Indeed, we get very frustrated in spite of our many attempts to fight against
sin and temptation. But more often than not, we give in to our human
weakness and the temptations of the Evil One.
The point is, why do we
keep on falling into sin? We know, as the gospel tells us, how to read
the signs of the time.
We know what is right and what is wrong. We know the truth of the Word of
God. With the psalmist, we repeatedly say, “I trust in your
commands. You are good and your deeds are good; teach me your
statutes. I will never forget your precepts for with them you give me
life. Save me, for I am yours since I seek your precepts.” Again
like St Paul, we also sincerely say, “In fact, this seems to be the rule, that
every single time I want to do good it is something evil that comes to
hand. In my inmost self I dearly love God’s Law, but I can see that my
body follows a different law that battles against the law which my reason
dictates.”
The truth is that
although our sins are forgiven by the grace of God through the death and resurrection
of His Son, our nature remains wounded because of sin. The reason why we keep sinning even though
we know it is wrong is because we are all of the law of sin which lives inside
our body. Baptism and forgiveness of sins does not take away our wounded
nature, which is susceptible to sin. Nevertheless, it gives us the grace
to fight against sin with greater strength, given to us by the Holy Spirit
through our union with Christ in prayer and in intimacy. It is the Spirit
of God that lives in us that will empower us to live the life of Christ and the
life of the Spirit.
So we must still
continue to struggle against sin.
The author of the letter to the Hebrews wrote, “Consider him who endured such
hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or
lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the
point of shedding your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation that
addresses you as children – ‘My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of
the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him; for the Lord
disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts.’
Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for
what child is there whom a parent does not discipline?'” (Heb 12:3-7) If God allows us to fight against
temptation, it is but to strengthen us in virtues and in holiness.
It also helps us to
learn to be humble and not become too proud of ourselves. When we think we are perfect like
the Pharisees, we become self-righteous, think too highly of ourselves, become
proud and arrogant, despising those who have fallen into sin just like those in
social media condemning offenders without mercy and compassion as if they
themselves are sinless. When we know that we are sinners, ignorant in
many ways and weak in the flesh, then we will be more empathetic with those who
fall into sin and also more forgiving. We will not condemn but try to
encourage those who fail from time to time. St Paul tells us, “Love is
patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or
rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or
resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the
truth.” (1 Cor 13:4-6)
At the same time, we
will rely more on the grace of God than on our human strength alone. St
Paul himself had to contend with his struggle against sin. He wrote, “Therefore, to keep me
from being too elated, a thorn was given me in the flesh, a messenger of Satan
to torment me, to keep me from being too elated. Three times I appealed to
the Lord about this, that it would leave me, but he said to me, ‘My grace
is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.’ So, I will boast
all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may dwell in
me. Therefore I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions,
and calamities for the sake of Christ; for whenever I am weak, then I am
strong.” (2 Cor 12:7-10)
Indeed, knowing how weak and inadequate we are, instead of relying on our human
ingenuities, we realize that we have to depend on God alone. With St
Paul, we say, “I can do all things through him who strengthens me.’ (Phil 4:13) Indeed, “What a wretched man
I am! Who will rescue me from this body doomed to death? Thanks be to God
through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
But what if we fail and
continue to fail? This is where the Lord gives us hope. He said, “Why not judge for
yourselves what is right? For example: when you go to court with
your opponent, try to settle with him on the way, or he may drag you before the
judge and the judge hand you over to the bailiff and the bailiff have you
thrown into prison.” Knowing that we have to pay the price for our
sins, what must we do? We can only turn to God’s mercy and
forgiveness. This is why the Church gives us the Sacrament of
Reconciliation so that whenever we sin against the Lord and our fellowmen, we
can turn to the Lord. He is ever ready to forgive us our sins and to
renew His love for us.
But it does not mean
that we can sin more. “What
then are we to say? Should we continue in sin in order that grace may abound?
By no means! How can we who died to sin go on living in it?” (Rom 6:1f) On the contrary, it will be
His love for us that will spur us to avoid sinning, not because of fear but
because of a greater love for Him. “Let your love be ready to console me
by your promise to your servant. Let your love come and I shall live for
your law is my delight.” When we know that God loves us even when we sin,
this realization will give us the impetus to fight against temptation because
we do not want to hurt God who loves us so much. In other words, instead
of allowing sin which lives in us, we overwrite our sinful nature with the
Spirit of God’s love dwelling in our hearts. When that happens, we will
have greater strength to resist the devil and his temptations.
So we need to be patient
with ourselves. We are works in progress. Even as we struggle against sin and
pick ourselves up again and again when we fall into sin, we must keep our eyes
focused on our ultimate calling as sons and daughters of God. We must not
forget our identity as God’s children so that we will live truly as His sons
and daughters, reflective of our heavenly Father. St Paul reminds us,
“Not that I have already obtained this or have already reached the
goal; but I press on to make it my own, because Christ Jesus has made me
his own. Beloved, I do not consider that I have made it my own;
but this one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to
what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the
heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.” (Phil 3:12-14)
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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