20191224
THE
LORD WILL BUILD US A HOUSE
24 December,
2019, Tuesday, 4th Week of Advent
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Violet.
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First reading
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2 Samuel 7:1-5,8-12,14,16 ©
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Your House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me
Once David had
settled into his house and the Lord had given him rest from all the enemies
surrounding him, the king said to the prophet Nathan, ‘Look, I am living in a
house of cedar while the ark of God dwells in a tent.’ Nathan said to the king,
‘Go and do all that is in your mind, for the Lord is with you.’
But
that very night the word of the Lord came to Nathan:
‘Go
and tell my servant David, “Thus the Lord speaks: Are you the man to build me a
house to dwell in? I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be
leader of my people Israel; I have been with you on all your expeditions; I have
cut off all your enemies before you. I will give you fame as great as the fame
of the greatest on earth. I will provide a place for my people Israel; I will
plant them there and they shall dwell in that place and never be disturbed
again; nor shall the wicked continue to oppress them as they did, in the days
when I appointed judges over my people Israel; I will give them rest from all
their enemies. The Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House.
And when your days are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I
will preserve the offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty
secure. I will be a father to him and he a son to me; if he does evil, I will
punish him with the rod such as men use, with strokes such as mankind gives. Your
House and your sovereignty will always stand secure before me and your throne
be established for ever.”’
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Responsorial
Psalm
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Psalm 88(89):2-5,27,29 ©
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I
will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
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.
‘I
have made a covenant with my chosen one;
I
have sworn to David my servant:
I
will establish your dynasty for ever
and
set up your throne through all ages.
I
will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
‘He
will say to me: “You are my father,
my
God, the rock who saves me.”
I
will keep my love for him always;
with
him my covenant shall last.’
I
will sing for ever of your love, O Lord.
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Gospel
Acclamation
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Morning
star, radiance of eternal light,
sun
of justice,
come
and enlighten those who live in darkness
and
in the shadow of death.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 1:67-79 ©
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'You, little child, shall be the prophet of the Most High'
John’s father
Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke this prophecy:
‘Blessed
be the Lord, the God of Israel
for
he has visited his people, he has come to their rescue
and
he has raised up for us a power for salvation
in
the House of his servant David,
even
as he proclaimed,
by
the mouth of his holy prophets from ancient times,
that
he would save us from our enemies
and
from the hands of all who hate us.
Thus
he shows mercy to our ancestors,
thus
he remembers his holy covenant
the
oath he swore
to
our father Abraham
that
he would grant us, free from fear,
to be
delivered from the hands of our enemies,
to
serve him in holiness and virtue
in
his presence, all our days.
And
you, little child,
you
shall be called Prophet of the Most High,
for
you will go before the Lord
to
prepare the way for him,
to
give his people knowledge of salvation
through
the forgiveness of their sins;
this
by the tender mercy of our God
who
from on high will bring the rising Sun to visit us,
to
give light to those who live
in
darkness and the shadow of death
and
to guide our feet
into
the way of peace.’
THE LORD WILL
BUILD US A HOUSE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ 2 Sam 7:1-5, 8-12, 14, 16; Luke 1:67-79 ]
In the first reading,
King David, partly out of guilt and out of gratitude, wanted to build a house
for the Lord as he was living in the palace. “Once David had settled into his house and the
Lord had given him rest from all the enemies surrounding him, the king said to
the prophet Nathan, ‘Look, I am living in a house of cedar while the ark of God
dwells in a tent.’ Nathan said to the king, ‘Go and do all that is in your
mind, for the Lord is with you.'” But we read that God told Nathan
to inform David that He would instead build the House for David. “The
Lord will make you great; the Lord will make you a House. And when your days
are ended and you are laid to rest with your ancestors, I will preserve the
offspring of your body after you and make his sovereignty secure. I will be a
father to him and he a son to me. Your House and your sovereignty will always
stand secure before me and your throne be established for ever.'”
This House refers first
and foremost to the Davidic Dynasty.
Jesus who would be born of the House of David through Joseph would be in the
line of the Davidic Kings. Indeed, in His earthly ministry, the people
welcomed the Lord into Jerusalem crying out, “Hosanna to the Son of David!
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest!”
(Mt 21:9) Jesus would be the King that
would restore the Kingdom of David. But this kingdom would not be of this
world. “My kingship is not of this world; if my kingship were of this
world, my servants would fight, that I might not be handed over to the Jews;
but my kingship is not from the world.” (Jn 18:36) For this reason, Christ’s
kingship would last forever. Indeed, when He was born, the angels
announced to the shepherds, “Be not afraid; for behold, I bring you good news
of a great joy which will come to all the people; for to you is born this
day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” (Lk 2:10f)
Secondly, this Son of
David is the Second Person of the Trinity, the Holy One of God. He was not just any other son but the Son
of the Most High. This was what the angel said to Mary, “The Holy Spirit
will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you;
therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God.”
(Lk 1:35) St John wrote, “And the Word
became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his
glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.” (Jn 1:14) St Paul wrote, “though he was
in the form of God, he did not count equality with God a thing to be
grasped, but emptied himself, taking the form of a servant, being
born in the likeness of men.” (Phil 2:6f)
Thirdly, this House
refers to the Temple of the Holy Spirit, the Temple of God. When the Son of God assumed our humanity,
He took on human flesh and became a man like us in all things except sin.
By assuming our humanity, we have become His body as well. Hence, Jesus
could say in the parable of the Last Judgment, “Truly, I say to you, as you did
it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me.” (Mt 25:40) Then when He appeared to Saul,
the Lord said, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? I am Jesus, whom you
are persecuting.” (Acts 9:4f) In the letter
of Hebrews, we read, “For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified have
all one origin. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brethren.” (Heb 2:11)
Indeed, in the Incarnation,
God has shown Himself to be faithful to His Covenant with the House of David. This is what the psalmist said, “I
have made a covenant with my chosen one; I have sworn to David my servant: I
will establish your dynasty for ever and set up your throne through all ages.
He will say to me: ‘You are my father, my God, the rock who saves me.’ I
will keep my love for him always; with him my covenant shall last.”
Indeed, Christ would be the one to restore Israel and deliver them from their
enemies.
Zechariah, under the
Holy Spirit, proclaimed when John the Baptist was born, “Blessed be the Lord, the God of
Israel, for he has visited his people, he has come to their rescue and he has
raised up for us a power for salvation in the House of his servant David, even
as he proclaimed, by the mouth of his holy prophets from ancient times, that he
would save us from our enemies and from the hands of all who hate us.
Thus he shows mercy to our ancestors, thus he remembers his holy covenant, the
oath he swore to our father Abraham that he would grant us, free from fear, to
be delivered from the hands of our enemies, to serve him in holiness and virtue
in his presence, all our days.”
All these were realized
with the birth of our Lord Jesus Christ. It is for this reason that we
anticipate with joy the coming of Christ. With His coming, He will establish an
everlasting Covenant through His passion, death and resurrection. Indeed,
He will bring peace to all mankind because His gospel calls for inclusivity of
all, saints and sinners, people from all ranks and status, rich and poor.
That was why, the Lord came to this earth, and He was born in a manger and was
announced to the shepherds. He was not born in the palace, nor was His
coming announced to the rich and educated but to the poor shepherds.
Aware of the joy of the
Good News of Christ’s birth given to us, we must hearken with joy to prepare
ourselves and our loved ones to welcome the Prince of Peace. This was what John the Baptist was
called to do. “And you, little child, you shall be called Prophet of the
Most High, for you will go before the Lord to prepare the way for him. To give
his people knowledge of salvation through the forgiveness of their sins; this
by the tender mercy of our God who from on high will bring the rising Sun to
visit us, to give light to those who live in darkness and the shadow of death,
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.” Our task is also to
announce the coming of Christ by offering forgiveness to those who have sinned
and given up hope on themselves. We are called to give light to
those who walk in darkness by enlightening them and giving them hope not just
for this world but in the life to come. When we take upon ourselves to be
the messenger of peace and hope, we are doing what John the Baptist did when he
prepared the people to receive the Messiah, the Prince of Peace.
On our part, we must
make ourselves more and more the House of God. Indeed, when King David wanted to build a
House for the Lord, God said, “Are you the man to build me a house to dwell in?
I took you from the pasture, from following the sheep, to be a leader of my
people Israel; I have been with you on all your expeditions; I have cut off all
your enemies before you.” The Lord who is all powerful does not need a
house made by human hands. More importantly, the Lord wants to build His
home in us. We must welcome Him into our hearts by living an honest and
righteous life. We must open our hearts to receive His Word, and allow
Him to dwell in us by His Spirit. Only then can we become the Temple of
His Holy Spirit. And like Mary who was able to bear Jesus in her womb
because she was receptive to the Holy Spirit, we, too, must allow the Holy
Spirit to overshadow us so that we can conceive and bear Jesus in our
hearts. In this way, wherever we go, we bring Jesus with us as well.
How can we do this if
not to imitate Zechariah?
He was in silence for nine months, contemplating on the miracle and wonders of
God. In his silence, he was brought closer to the Lord and understood the
mission of his son, John the Baptist. Only when John was born, did he break his
silence. At that moment, he recalled the angel’s words, “you will be
speechless and unable to talk until the day these things take place.” (Luke 1:20) And the first words that he
uttered were praises to God for His fidelity to the Covenant and His mercy. He
had experienced His mercy in the birth of John the Baptist. We, too, who have received
His mercy must also communicate the Good News of mercy and hope to those we
meet. But we can communicate effectively the Good News only when we have
first contemplated in silence like Zechariah on the marvels of God in our
lives. Let us therefore edify one another with our words of hope and
forgiveness. Let us be the light of humanity so that those in darkness
can find hope and life.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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