20200131
THE
MYSTERY OF SIN AND THE MYSTERY OF GRACE
31 January,
2020, Friday, 3rd Week of Ordinary Time
Readings at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: White.
These are the readings for the feria
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First reading
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2
Samuel 11:1-4,5-10,13-17 ©
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David and Bathsheba
At the turn of
the year, the time when kings go campaigning, David sent Joab and with him his
own guards and the whole of Israel. They massacred the Ammonites and laid siege
to Rabbah. David, however, remained in Jerusalem.
It
happened towards evening when David had risen from his couch and was strolling
on the palace roof, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was
very beautiful. David made inquiries about this woman and was told, ‘Why, that
is Bathsheba, Eliam’s daughter, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.’ Then David sent
messengers and had her brought. She came to him, and he slept with her. She
then went home again. The woman conceived and sent word to David; ‘I am with
child.’
Then
David sent Joab a message, ‘Send me Uriah the Hittite’, whereupon Joab sent
Uriah to David. When Uriah came into his presence, David asked after Joab and
the army and how the war was going. David then said to Uriah, ‘Go down to your
house and enjoy yourself.’ Uriah left the palace, and was followed by a present
from the king’s table. Uriah however slept by the palace door with his master’s
bodyguard and did not go down to his house.
This
was reported to David; ‘Uriah’ they said ‘did not go down to his house.’ The
next day David invited him to eat and drink in his presence and made him drunk.
In the evening Uriah went out and lay on his couch with his master’s bodyguard,
but he did not go down to his house.
Next
morning David wrote a letter to Joab and sent it by Uriah. In the letter he
wrote, ‘Station Uriah in the thick of the fight and then fall back behind him
so that he may be struck down and die.’ Joab, then besieging the town, posted
Uriah in a place where he knew there were fierce fighters. The men of the town
sallied out and engaged Joab; the army suffered casualties, including some of
David’s bodyguard; and Uriah the Hittite was killed too.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm
50(51):3-7,10-11 ©
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Have
mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.
Have
mercy on me, God, in your kindness.
In
your compassion blot out my offence.
O
wash me more and more from my guilt
and
cleanse me from my sin.
Have
mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.
My
offences truly I know them;
my
sin is always before me
Against
you, you alone, have I sinned;
what
is evil in your sight I have done.
Have
mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.
That
you may be justified when you give sentence
and
be without reproach when you judge,
O
see, in guilt I was born,
a
sinner was I conceived.
Have
mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.
Make
me hear rejoicing and gladness,
that
the bones you have crushed may thrill.
From
my sins turn away your face
and
blot out all my guilt.
Have
mercy on us, Lord, for we have sinned.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps118:27
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Alleluia,
alleluia!
Make
me grasp the way of your precepts,
and I
will muse on your wonders.
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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Mark
4:26-34 ©
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The kingdom of God is a
mustard seed growing into the biggest shrub of all
Jesus said to the
crowds: ‘This is what the kingdom of God is like. A man throws seed on the
land. Night and day, while he sleeps, when he is awake, the seed is sprouting
and growing; how, he does not know. Of its own accord the land produces first
the shoot, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. And when the crop is
ready, he loses no time: he starts to reap because the harvest has come.’
He
also said, ‘What can we say the kingdom of God is like? What parable can we
find for it? It is like a mustard seed which at the time of its sowing in the
soil is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet once it is sown it grows
into the biggest shrub of them all and puts out big branches so that the birds
of the air can shelter in its shade.’
Using
many parables like these, he spoke the word to them, so far as they were
capable of understanding it. He would not speak to them except in parables, but
he explained everything to his disciples when they were alone.
THE MYSTERY OF
SIN AND THE MYSTERY OF GRACE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [2 SM 11:1-10. 13-17; PS 51:3-7, 10-11; MK 4:26-34]
After reading so much
about the virtues of King David, his fidelity and devotion to God, his bravery in sacrificing himself for his
country, his magnanimity in forgiving Saul for seeking his life, his compassion
for his men, the scripture presents the weak side of David. In spite of
his inherent goodness, the man after the heart of God, yet, he was a sinner
like all of us. He was not impeccable and without faults of his
own. We read of his fall from grace when he committed one sin after
another, beginning with the sin of sloth, then adultery and finally
murder. Indeed, this is a good lesson for us all. No one is
exempted from temptation and sin no matter who we are. We can be bishop
or priest, but we are all sinners. We can fall into sin if we are not careful
and alert of the temptation of the Evil One. We must not be presumptuous
and over confident of ourselves.
How could he have sunk
so low after all that God had done for him and helped him in his battles?
The truth is, success and comfort often lead to complacency. David had been successful in all his
battles because God was with him. But with success, he became lazy.
He was taking his fortune for granted. He did not feel the need to go and
fight for his people anymore. He just delegated the hard work to his men
whilst he slumbered and idled away. The author remarked, “at the turn of
the year, the time when kings go campaigning, David sent Joab and with him his
own guards and the whole of Israel. They massacred the Ammonites and laid
siege to Rabah. David however remained in Jerusalem.”
Complacency is the
manifestation of the sin of sloth.
Again, this is so true for the world today. Why has the world fallen into
such a decadent stage? Simply because of affluence and the abuse of
science and technology. When man has enough to eat, he becomes idle and
takes his standard of living for granted. This is particularly true for
our younger generation. They had never gone through the days of poverty
and hence many do not know how to value hard work, simplicity, thriftiness and
proper stewardship of money. Even as grown-ups, working and having a job
of their own, many of their parents are still providing for them!
When we become
complacent and lazy, it leads to other sins. Idleness is the devil’s
workshop. So this was what happened to David. “It happened towards evening when David had
risen from his couch and was strolling on the palace roof, that he saw from the
roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful.” From seeing,
it led to conniving and adultery. As a consequence, Bathsheba became
pregnant. To cover up his sin of adultery, he had her husband return from
the battle front so that he could sleep with his wife. But Uriah was a
faithful solider to the king and refused to sleep with his wife whilst he was
on such a dangerous mission. As a last resort, David had him posted to
the most dangerous place in the battle, had the army abandon him so that he
would eventually be killed by the enemy. But the real enemy was David who
murdered him, one who was faithful to him in service.
Indeed, the tragedy of
life is that sin begins small but multiplies not just in number but in
gravity. Sin
never comes singly. One sin leads to another sin. David began with
the sin of sloth, which lead to adultery and then to murder. So too for
us all. No one becomes a great sinner overnight. It begins with a
neglect of a serious prayer life. Then we fall into sin. Instead of
repenting and going for confession, we delay and postpone. Once the devil
has a foothold in our heart, he will lead us to more sin. Our eyes are
blinded to the truth and to the selfishness of our hearts. So one sin
will lead to other sins. We begin to act selfishly and hurt people.
We are guilty and we throw tantrums and visit our anger and resentment on
others. This causes us to sin even more, creating division among our
loved ones, office colleagues, and friends. We become angry and
vindictive, leading even to murder.
This is what the Lord is
warning us in the gospel. Whether it is good or evil, it begins small but
it will grow to become really huge.
If we sow goodness then our little goodness will grow and bring others into
goodness as well. Indeed, “it is like a mustard seed which at the time of
its sowing in the soil is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet once it
is sown it grows into the biggest shrub of them all and puts out big branches
so that the birds of the air can shelter in its shade.” So we must never
underestimate the power of sin. Often, many of us don’t pay attention to
venial sins because we think they are insignificant. We overlook them and
continue to commit them without feeling sorry or contrite, or make efforts to
avoid falling into sin again. The truth is that small sins, when added
together or when they are repetitive, will only harden our heart and weaken our
will so much so that we will fall into bigger and more serious sins.
Indeed, when we do not pay attention to small things, we will have to bear with
greater disaster.
Hence, it is important
that we sow good seeds and virtues. Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like
a man who throws seed on the ground. “Night and day, while he sleeps,
while he is awake, the seed is sprouting and growing; how; he does not
know. Of its own accord the land produces first the shoot, then the ear,
then the full grain in the ear. And when the crop is ready, he loses no
time: he starts to reap because the harvest has come.” The question is,
what kind of harvest do we expect? It all depends on what kind of seed we
plant. St Paul warns us, “Do not be deceived; God is not mocked, for you
reap whatever you sow. If you sow to your own flesh, you will reap corruption
from the flesh; but if you sow to the Spirit, you will reap eternal life from
the Spirit. So let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap
at harvest time, if we do not give up.” (Gal 6:7-9) So if we sow the seeds of
evil, what can we expect but a harvest of evil!
Yet, God is always
merciful. He gives us the grace of repentance. Sin is tragic and destroys our happiness,
joy and meaning in life. Sin breaks relationships, trust and unity.
We do not need to condemn our past. The mystery of sin is often overcome
by the mystery of grace. As St Paul wrote, “where sin increased, grace
abounded all the more, so that, just as sin exercised dominion in death,
so grace might also exercise dominion through justification leading to eternal
life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” (Rom 5:21) Even when King David sinned,
God gave him the grace of repentance. God confronted him through the
prophet Nathan. When he was confronted with his sins, David repented
immediately.
The responsorial psalm
was written as an expression of his contrite heart. “Have mercy on me, God, in your
kindness. In your compassion blot out my offence. O wash me more and more from
my guilt and cleanse me from my sin. My offences truly I know them; my sin is
always before me. Against you, you alone, have I sinned; what is evil in your
sight I have done. That you may be justified when you give sentence and
be without reproach when you judge, O see, in guilt I was born, a sinner was I
conceived. Make me hear rejoicing and gladness, that the bones you have
crushed may thrill. From my sins turn away your face and blot out all my guilt.”
He accepted God’s judgement on him and his sins. He did not exonerate or
excuse himself but sincerely confessed his sins to the Lord. If only he
had done so earlier after sinning with Bathsheba, he would have been saved from
the greater evil of murder. Still, it was not too late. God
gave him the grace of repentance.
But through this sin of
his, God demonstrated the power of grace. Even though he committed the
sin of adultery with Bathsheba, God, through her, produced the future ancestor
of the Messiah, King Solomon. So the plan of God cannot be derailed. God is in
charge even when sin seems to have the upper hand. Good will triumph over
evil eventually. So let us continue to have hope that if we have lived a
sinful life, or our children have gone astray or the world seems to be at the
brink of self-destruction, we must trust in God’s grace and mercy. God
writes straight in crooked lines, He will know how to turn evil into good,
disgrace into grace. Like King David, we only have to repent and God will
give us a new lease of life. Like St Paul, we become channels of God’s
mercy for others.
Written
by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All
Rights Reserved
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