20241030 ENTER THROUGH THE NARROW DOOR
First reading | Ephesians 6:1-9 |
Duties in domestic life
Children, be obedient to your parents in the Lord – that is your duty. The commandment that has a promise attached to it is: Honour your father and mother, and the promise is: and you will prosper and have a long life in the land. And parents, never drive your children to resentment but in bringing them up correct them and guide them as the Lord does.
Slaves, be obedient to the men who are called your masters in this world, with deep respect and sincere loyalty, as you are obedient to Christ: not only when you are under their eye, as if you had only to please men, but because you are slaves of Christ and wholeheartedly do the will of God. Work hard and willingly, but do it for the sake of the Lord and not for the sake of men. You can be sure that everyone, whether a slave or a free man, will be properly rewarded by the Lord for whatever work he has done well. And those of you who are employers, treat your slaves in the same spirit; do without threats, remembering that they and you have the same Master in heaven and he is not impressed by one person more than by another.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 144(145):10-14 |
The Lord is faithful in all his words.
All your creatures shall thank you, O Lord,
and your friends shall repeat their blessing.
They shall speak of the glory of your reign
and declare your might, O God,
to make known to men your mighty deeds
and the glorious splendour of your reign.
The Lord is faithful in all his words.
Yours is an everlasting kingdom;
your rule lasts from age to age.
The Lord is faithful in all his words.
The Lord is faithful in all his words
and loving in all his deeds.
The Lord supports all who fall
and raises all who are bowed down.
The Lord is faithful in all his words.
Gospel Acclamation | Jn14:6 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
Or: | cf.2Th2:14 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Through the Good News God called us
to share the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 13:22-30 |
The last shall be first and the first last
Through towns and villages Jesus went teaching, making his way to Jerusalem. Someone said to him, ‘Sir, will there be only a few saved?’ He said to them, ‘Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because, I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed.
‘Once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, “Lord, open to us” but he will answer, “I do not know where you come from.” Then you will find yourself saying, “We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets” but he will reply, “I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men!”
‘Then there will be weeping and grinding of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, from north and south, will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God.
‘Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.’
30 October 2024, Wednesday, 30th Week in Ordinary Time
ENTER THROUGH THE NARROW DOOR
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [EPHESIANS 6:1-9; LUKE 13:22-30]
All of us seek happiness in life. In this age of ours we want everything in an instant. We cannot wait. Many of us want to find the easy way to happiness. We want to take short-cuts. But if we are seeking true and lasting happiness, there are no short cuts. This was why the Lord said to someone who asked Him, “‘Sir, will there be only a few saved?’ He said to them, ‘Try your best to enter by the narrow door, because, I tell you, many will try to enter and will not succeed.'” Anything that is truly meaningful and life-giving requires much sacrifices and perseverance in arriving at it.
What is this narrow door? It is the door of our Lord. The Lord called Himself, the door. “Very truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. All who came before me are thieves and bandits; but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate. Whoever enters by me will be saved, and will come in and go out and find pasture. The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy. I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly.” (Jn 10:7-10) Indeed, the Lord said to Thomas, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you know me, you will know my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.” (Jn 14:6f)
The narrow door that the Lord took was always in obedience to the Father’s will. Whatever the Lord said or did, it was always done consciously in union with the Father. In fact, Jesus did nothing on His own. He said, “Very truly, I tell you, the Son can do nothing on his own, but only what he sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, the Son does likewise. The Father loves the Son and shows him all that he himself is doing; and he will show him greater works than these, so that you will be astonished. Indeed, just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, so also the Son gives life to whomever he wishes.” (Jn 5:19-21) It is for this reason that He could tell Philip, “Have I been with you all this time, Philip, and you still do not know me? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.” (Jn 14:9f)
It is within this context therefore that we need to ask ourselves, what kind of relationship do we have with the Lord? The Lord made it clear that just being identified with Him in name is not sufficient to enter the Kingdom of God. He said, “Once the master of the house has got up and locked the door, you may find yourself knocking on the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us’ but he will answer, “I do not know where you come from.” Then you will find yourself saying, ‘We once ate and drank in your company; you taught in our streets’ but he will reply, ‘I do not know where you come from. Away from me, all you wicked men!'” Clearly, many of us profess to be Christians. We might even attend church services, talks and formation, and we do “Catholic” things. But faith is more than just putting an outward appearance that we are Christians.
Rather, it is putting on the mind and the heart of Christ. It is to do everything in union with Christ. In fact, salvation is not dependent on how long we have been baptized but whether we take the gospel of our Lord seriously in our lives. Just being a member of the Church will not save us. Nominal Catholics cannot expect to enter the Kingdom of God. Indeed, this was the temptation of the Jews. They thought that just because they were circumcised and belonged to the Chosen People, they are saved. But the Lord warned them, “Then there will be weeping and grinding of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God, and yourselves turned outside. And men from east and west, from north and south, will come to take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. ‘Yes, there are those now last who will be first, and those now first who will be last.'” It would be the Gentiles who were the last to come into Chosen People of God through faith in Him would be saved.
Concretely, how do we put our faith into practice in family life and at work? The first reading from the letter to the Ephesians instructs us on what it means to put on Christ. In the first place, St Paul wrote, “Children, be obedient to your parents in the Lord – that is your duty. The first commandment that has a promise attached to it is: Honour your father and mother; and the promise is: and you will prosper and have a long life in the land.” Not only children but by extension, we all need to show respect to our superiors, elders, and those who have charge over us. The key to doing this is to do it “in the Lord.” In other words, we must recognize that those who have authority over us do so in the name of the Lord. They have been entrusted with the task of guiding us and helping us to walk the way of truth and love. By listening to their counsel and guidance, we will grow in maturity and in grace as Jesus did when, after being found in the Temple, He went back with His parents. “Then he went down with them and came to Nazareth, and was obedient to them. His mother treasured all these things in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and in years, and in divine and human favor.” (Lk 2:51f) Even though Jesus was the Son of God and He recognized God as His real Father, He was not arrogant or disobedient to His earthly parents. He was willing to submit to them instead of doing things His own way even if He was conscious that His place was to be in the Father’s house. “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Lk 2:49)
On the other hand, those in authority, parents, guardians and superiors must never forget to guide their subordinates in the Lord. St Paul said, “parents, never drive your children to resentment but in bringing them up correct them and guide them as the Lord does.” This means that the authority given to them is not to be exercised in a dictatorial manner, that is unreasonable, unfeeling, rigid and legalistic. On the contrary, we must guide them in the way the Lord guides us, with compassion, with gentleness, with love and mercy. Any correction must be done in a way that could truly help them to repent or be motivated to change, through enlightenment and encouragement; and most of all, inspiration. The motive is never to control, to shame, to restrict, but to help them to attain their full potentials in life.
Again, when it comes to work and authority, St Paul reminds us to render obedience to the Lord. “Slaves, be obedient to the men who are called your masters in this world, with deep respect and sincere loyalty, as you are obedient to Christ: not only when you are under their eye, as if you had only to please men, but because you are slaves of Christ and wholeheartedly do the will of God.” Indeed, we must never think that we are obeying men but the Lord who appoints them to be in charge over us. They would have to be accountable to the Lord as His shepherds in charge of His flock. In the case of the flock you are accountable insofar as you obey Him through His appointed shepherds. In the final analysis, we all, regardless whether we are superiors or servants, serve Christ and seek to do His holy will. This is why we must show respect, loyalty and obedience to those who are placed over us even when we disagree with them as they are God’s appointed shepherds.
Similarly, it is the same for those who are shepherds and have authority over others. They must also do so in Christ. “And those of you who are employers, treat your slaves in the same spirit; do without threats, remembering that they and you have the same Master in heaven and he is not impressed by one person more than by another.” We must always be conscious that we are not our own authority and master. We are all servants of the Lord. Therefore, whatever we do, we represent Him to others. We must not discourage those who seek to serve Him or despise their worth or their talents and the work they do. We must treat them with the same respect in Christ. In the eyes of God, we are all equal but different responsibilities in life. Truly, as St Paul wrote, “Work hard and willingly, but do it for the sake of the Lord and not for the sake of men. You can be sure that everyone, whether a slave of a free man, will be properly rewarded by the Lord for whatever work he has done well.”
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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