20210702 GOD’S PROVIDENTIAL WORKING IN DAILY LIFE
02 July, 2021, Friday, 13th Week, Ordinary Time
First reading |
Genesis 23:1-4,19,24:1-8,62-67 © |
'Choose a wife for my son Isaac'
The length of Sarah’s life was a hundred and twenty-seven years. She died at Kiriath-arba, or Hebron, in the land of Canaan, and Abraham went in to mourn and grieve for her.
Then leaving his dead, Abraham spoke to the sons of Heth: ‘I am a stranger and a settler among you,’ he said. ‘Let me own a burial-plot among you, so that I may take my dead wife and bury her.’
After this, Abraham buried his wife Sarah in the cave of the field of Machpelah opposite Mamre, in the country of Canaan.
By now Abraham was an old man well on in years, and the Lord had blessed him in every way. Abraham said to the eldest servant of his household, the steward of all his property, ‘Place your hand under my thigh, I would have you swear by the Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, that you will not choose a wife for my son from the daughters of the Canaanites among whom I live. Instead, go to my own land and my own kinsfolk to choose a wife for my son Isaac.’ The servant asked him, ‘What if the woman does not want to come with me to this country? Must I take your son back to the country from which you came?’ Abraham answered, ‘On no account take my son back there. The Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, took me from my father’s home, and from the land of my kinsfolk, and he swore to me that he would give this country to my descendants. He will now send his angel ahead of you, so that you may choose a wife for my son there. And if the woman does not want to come with you, you will be free from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.’
Isaac, who lived in the Negeb, had meanwhile come into the wilderness of the well of Lahai Roi. Now Isaac went walking in the fields as evening fell, and looking up saw camels approaching. And Rebekah looked up and saw Isaac. She jumped down from her camel, and asked the servant, ‘Who is that man walking through the fields to meet us?’ The servant replied, ‘That is my master’; then she took her veil and hid her face. The servant told Isaac the whole story, and Isaac led Rebekah into his tent and made her his wife; and he loved her. And so Isaac was consoled for the loss of his mother.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 105(106):1-5 © |
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good;
for his love endures for ever.
Who can tell the Lord’s mighty deeds?
Who can recount all his praise?
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!
They are happy who do what is right,
who at all times do what is just.
O Lord, remember me
out of the love you have for your people.
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!
Come to me, Lord, with your help
that I may see the joy of your chosen ones
and may rejoice in the gladness of your nation
and share the glory of your people.
O give thanks to the Lord for he is good.
or
Alleluia!
Gospel Acclamation | Ps24:4,5 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Teach me your paths, my God,
make me walk in your truth.
Alleluia!
Or: | Mt11:28 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Come to me, all you who labour and are overburdened,
and I will give you rest, says the Lord.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Matthew 9:9-13 © |
It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick
As Jesus was walking on, he saw a man named Matthew sitting by the customs house, and he said to him, ‘Follow me.’ And he got up and followed him.
While he was at dinner in the house it happened that a number of tax collectors and sinners came to sit at the table with Jesus and his disciples. When the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does your master eat with tax collectors and sinners?’ When he heard this he replied, ‘It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. Go and learn the meaning of the words: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners.’
GOD’S PROVIDENTIAL WORKING IN DAILY LIFE
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [GN 23:1-4, 19, 24:1-8, 62-67; PS 106:1-5; MT 9:9-13]
Very often, people have faith only when they see the powerful hand of God at work in spectacular events such as miracles of healing and His power over nature. This explains why people are often attracted to such events. But in truth, not all who see the miraculous events will come to faith. A case in point is Jesus’ opponents in the gospel. In spite of the miracles of healing and exorcism He performed, they became more resistant than ever, rather than finding faith in Him. It is often in the ordinary circumstances of life that God reveals His presence, His love and mercy. But we need eyes of faith and humility to be attentive to His presence in these ordinary events.
This was surely the case of Matthew and his fellow tax-collectors who gathered at a meal with Jesus. In the first place, God called Matthew where he was. He came to him when he was busy collecting taxes at the customs house. There was no vision of any sort, no mystical encounter. He simply said to Matthew, “‘Follow me!’ And he got up and followed him.” Matthew responded to God’s call through Jesus. He knew he was unworthy since he was a tax-collector. But at the word of our Lord, he obeyed. Such is the simplicity of many who do not know Christ as well. Sometimes, we try so hard trying to convert the unconverted in our churches where our preaching on conversion often fall on deaf ears, especially on those who are self-righteous like the Pharisees and the Scribes. But when the Word is preached to sinners, who recognize themselves as such, they respond more readily to the proclamation of the Good News of repentance and new life.
Indeed, conversion need not take place in a miracle but the ordinariness of life. In the case of the tax-collectors, it took place over a meal. That was what Jesus did. “While He was at dinner in the house it happened that a number of tax collectors and sinners came to sit at the table with Jesus and his disciples.” He did not treat them like out-casts or untouchables. He did not wait for them to approach Him. He came to them in their midst and ate and drank with them. He did not criticize or condemn them. So much so, “when the Pharisees saw this, they said to his disciples, ‘Why does your master eat with tax collectors and sinners?'” Jesus’ response was a slap on the face of the learned theologians, “It is not the healthy who need the doctor, but the sick. Go and learn the meaning of the words: What I want is mercy, not sacrifice. And indeed I did not come to call the virtuous, but sinners.” Jesus was quoting from Hosea and by telling them they did not know the scriptures well and thus must go and search, it implied that they had a shallow understanding of scriptures.
Indeed, people see the goodness of God more in ordinary events of life, simple gestures of kindness, acceptance and love, or even in very solemn liturgies and anointed worship services, rather than in great spectacular events. God of course could touch such people in these events as well, but more often than not, we encounter God’s love through the kind actions of others, their encouraging words and compassion. It is the kindness of people that touches us deeply and we remember for a long time. Miracles that we see, we tend to forget easily. Things that are sensational tend to be passing. But a personal act of kindness, mercy and compassion stays with us throughout our life and transforms us also to do the same to others.
That God works in and through our ordinary life is also demonstrated in the life of Abraham. After being called by God to go to Canaan, in faith, he went with his family. He uprooted himself from Haran where his family lived after moving there from the land of Ur. Although he left in faith, God had to wait for his faith to mature. He was not so trusting in God’s fulfillment of His promises. He lied to Pharaoh about Sarah as being his sister and to King Abimelech as well so that he could save his own life. He did not trust God totally.
Then again, instead of waiting for the opportune time for God to unfold His plans, he and Sarah took the matter of bearing an offspring into their own hands. They brought in Hagar to bear the child for Abraham. This created more problems for them as Hagar became arrogant and refused to submit to Sarah when she knew she was carrying the child of Abraham. Later on, when Isaac was born, Ishmael was jealous of the attention given to Isaac. He began to taunt him. It resulted in division and eventually separation of the two mothers and their children. From that day onwards, Abraham knew what it was to place his entire faith in God’s divine providence and to allow God to work gradually but surely. This was what the Lord taught us in the Parable of the Growing Seed. “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.” (Mk 4:26-29)
Today’s reading from Genesis shows how the promises of God were gradually fulfilled even though Abraham could only have a glimpse of it from afar. But he continued to cling to the promises of God which were fulfilled in a very small way. Sometime after the attempted sacrifice of Isaac, we read of the passing of Sarah. What is significant is that Sarah was buried in a plot of land purchased from the Hittites at an exorbitant price of four hundred shekels of silver, and before everyone to see and hear, so that there would not be a dispute about the title deed of Abraham to that land. So Sarah was buried in the field of Ephron in Machpelah, facing Mamre (that is, Hebron) in the land of Canaan. (Gen 23:1-20) In so doing, Abraham was laying his hands on the land of Canaan, not yet possessed by him entirely but in due course even though it was not within his time.
Then again, we see how God’s providence was at work in the marriage between Isaac and Rebekah. Abraham was worried that if Isaac left Canaan and went back to his family homeland, he might not return. On the other hand, he had to ensure that Isaac would find a wife from within his own family to preserve the purity of the family lineage. So he asked his servant who went in faith to look for a wife for Isaac. Abraham held on to his firm faith that God would fulfill His promise somehow. He said, “The Lord, God of heaven and God of earth, took me from the land of my kinsfolk, and he swore to me that he would give this country to my descendants. He will now send his angel ahead of you, so that you may choose a wife for my son there. And if the woman does not want to come with you, you will be free from this oath of mine. Only do not take my son back there.”
Again, we read in God’s providence, the chief servant met Rebekah at the well and observing her kindness in giving water to his fellow servant and to the camels to drink, he knew that she was the right person chosen for Isaac. So after meeting her family, he brought her back and Isaac who met her, immediately fell for her. He took her as his wife and most of all, the bible said, “he loved her!” Through Rebekah, two sons were born to Isaac, namely, Esau and Jacob. Notably, Abraham did not see his grandchildren. Still, he trusted in God that he would be the father of generations to come.
The author of Hebrews praised Abraham, summing up his faith in God’s divine providence in his life, saying, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to set out for a place that he was to receive as an inheritance; and he set out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he stayed for a time in the land he had been promised, as in a foreign land, living in tents. By faith he received power of procreation, even though he was too old–and Sarah herself was barren — because he considered him faithful who had promised. Therefore from one person, and this one as good as dead, descendants were born.’ All of these died in faith without having received the promises, but from a distance they saw and greeted them.” (Heb 11:8,9,11,13) Indeed, our life is in God’s hands. His plan will unfold gradually. St Paul says, “all things work together for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose.” (Rom 8:28) Let us walk by faith, not by sight! (2 Cor 5:7)
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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