20241220 DO NOT PUT THE LORD TO THE TEST
First reading | Isaiah 7:10-14 |
The maiden is with child
The Lord spoke to Ahaz and said, ‘Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.’ ‘No,’ Ahaz answered ‘I will not put the Lord to the test.’
Then Isaiah said:
‘Listen now, House of David:
are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men
without trying the patience of my God, too?
The Lord himself, therefore,
will give you a sign.
It is this: the maiden is with child
and will soon give birth to a son
whom she will call Immanuel,
a name which means “God-is-with-us.”’
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 23(24):1-6 |
Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.
The Lord’s is the earth and its fullness,
the world and all its peoples.
It is he who set it on the seas;
on the waters he made it firm.
Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.
Who shall climb the mountain of the Lord?
Who shall stand in his holy place?
The man with clean hands and pure heart,
who desires not worthless things.
Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.
He shall receive blessings from the Lord
and reward from the God who saves him.
Such are the men who seek him,
seek the face of the God of Jacob.
Let the Lord enter! He is the king of glory.
Gospel Acclamation |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Emmanuel,
our king and lawgiver,
come and save us,
Lord our God.
Alleluia!
Or: |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Key of David, who open the gates of the eternal kingdom,
come to liberate from prison
the captive who lives in darkness.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 1:26-38 |
'I am the handmaid of the Lord'
The angel Gabriel was sent by God to a town in Galilee called Nazareth, to a virgin betrothed to a man named Joseph, of the House of David; and the virgin’s name was Mary. He went in and said to her, ‘Rejoice, so highly favoured! The Lord is with you.’ She was deeply disturbed by these words and asked herself what this greeting could mean, but the angel said to her, ‘Mary, do not be afraid; you have won God’s favour. Listen! You are to conceive and bear a son, and you must name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his ancestor David; he will rule over the House of Jacob for ever and his reign will have no end.’ Mary said to the angel, ‘But how can this come about, since I am a virgin?’ ‘The Holy Spirit will come upon you’ the angel answered ‘and the power of the Most High will cover you with its shadow. And so the child will be holy and will be called Son of God. Know this too: your kinswoman Elizabeth has, in her old age, herself conceived a son, and she whom people called barren is now in her sixth month, for nothing is impossible to God.’ ‘I am the handmaid of the Lord,’ said Mary ‘let what you have said be done to me.’ And the angel left her.
20 December 2024, Friday, 3rd Week in Advent
DO NOT PUT THE LORD TO THE TEST
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ISAIAH 7:10-14; LUKE 1:26-38]
We live in fear of the future. Like Adam and Eve, we want to have power over our lives and that of the situation. We leave nothing to chance because we want certainty. Hence, it is normal for human beings to ascertain the possibilities before they commit themselves. We want to protect our lives. This was the case of King Ahaz in today’s first reading. He was under threat from both Syria and the Northern Kingdom. The king of Israel, Pekah, and the king of Syria under Rezin wanted Judah to join them in opposing the Assyrians who were preparing to attack Syria and Palestine. But he refused. Instead, he turned to the Assyrians for protection. His appeal to Assyria met with stern opposition from the prophet Isaiah who saw beyond merely saving Judah from Israel and Syria. Whilst appealing to Assyria would save Judah from his troublesome neighbours, Assyria would eventually make Judah into a vassal state under her sovereignty.
Prophet Isaiah therefore appealed to King Ahaz to stand firm and not be cowed by fear of her enemies. The Lord through the prophet promised that neither Syria or Northern Israel would overwhelm his kingdom. Indeed, Assyria eventually captured and annexed Damascus, and in 722 B.C. Samaria and the Northern Kingdom too were annexed by the Assyrian army. This was because Isaiah could see the writing on the wall. Allowing Assyria to enter Judah would cause the religion of Israel to be corrupted by Babylonian worship. King Ahaz, instead of relying on the God of Israel, yielded to the prestige and power of the Assyrian empire. What was an apparent blessing, became a curse for Judah.
All this came about because King Ahaz was driven by fear. Instead of taking time to listen to the Lord and His prophet, he used his human reasoning and calculation to deal with the threat before him. But God was merciful and understood the reason for King Ahaz wanting to take the risk of inviting the Assyrians to be his protector. He thought that by standing with the strong, he would be saved, forgetting that his kingdom would come under the control of the Assyrians. In his simplicity and miscalculation, he would end up inviting his enemy into his kingdom. So God spoke to King Ahaz to ask for a sign. The Lord said, “Ask the Lord your God for a sign for yourself coming either from the depths of Sheol or from the heights above.” Indeed, God was generous enough to provide him a sign so that he would be confident that God was on his side.
But Ahaz trusted no one except himself. He did not trust God enough and excused himself by acting piously saying, “No, I will not put the Lord to the test.” It was not because King Ahaz was humble in not wanting to put God to the test. He was just being hypocritical because he knew what God wanted him to do. To spare him from embarrassing himself, he declined to ask the Lord for a sign. And the Lord exposed his hypocrisy by saying, “Listen now, House of David: are you not satisfied with trying the patience of men without trying the patience of my God, too? The Lord himself, therefore, will give you a sign. It is this: the maiden is with child and will soon give birth to a son whom she will call Emmanuel, a name which means “God-is-with-us”.
In contrast, we have Mary in today’s gospel. She was a young maiden betrothed to Joseph. The Lord surprised her by sending the Angel Gabriel to say to her saying, “The Lord is with you and has greatly blessed you!” She knew that such a greeting could not simply be an affirmation that she has been blessed by God. We are told that Mary “was deeply troubled by the angel’s message, and she wondered what his words meant.” In other words, Mary sensed that there was more than meets the eye. Indeed, when the Lord favours us, it is never for ourselves alone but for His people. God blesses us not just for our sake but that we might be His instruments of love and mercy to others. This is particularly true for those with much talents, wealth and influence in life. Those who use them only for themselves will ultimately destroy themselves.
However, this also speaks of Mary’s contemplative and discerning spirit, unlike that of King Ahaz who reacted from his human emotions and fear. Although she was troubled by the angel’s greeting, or instead of feeling elated at God’s favour on her, she sought to understand the Lord’s will for her. Mary was one who was always, as the gospel tells us, discerning and contemplating the ways God worked in her life. Once again, God, through the angel, assured her that she should not allow fear to cripple her, as He did with King Ahaz. The angel said to her, “Don’t be afraid, Mary; God has been gracious to you. You will become pregnant and give birth to a son, and you will name him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High God. The Lord God will make him a king, as his ancestor David was, and he will be king of the descendants of Jacob forever; his kingdom will never end!”
Instead of quickly seizing the great opportunity to be the mother of the Saviour, we see the discerning heart of Mary when she responded to the angel saying, “I am a virgin. How, then, can this be?” The angel answered, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and God’s power will rest upon you. For this reason, the holy child will be called the Son of God.” It was not so with Zechariah who doubted the angel’s message. Mary was receptive to God’s message but she was unsure how this would be unfolded since she was not yet living with Joseph. When told by the angel that it would be the Holy Spirit who would overshadow her, she said, “I am the Lord’s servant, may it happen to me as you have said.” Such was the act of faith of Mary who believed in the impossible. She never doubted that God could do the unimaginable, after all, as the angel said to her, “Remember your relative Elizabeth. It is said that she cannot have children, but she herself is now six months pregnant, even though she is very old. For there is nothing that God cannot do.”
Indeed, who would not be fearful and apprehensive of such an invitation from the Lord! Mary was a young girl but she was not carried away by her ambition to seek glory and honour. She knew the dangers and difficulties ahead of her in accepting to be the mother of the Saviour. For Mary, it was not a question of how it could be possible but whether she was willing to give herself to God and allowing God to work through her. She could have, like King Ahaz, calculated the risk of saying “Yes” to God. It would have meant having to explain to her relatives, and especially to Joseph, of her virginal conception that it was the work of the Holy Spirit. Who would believe her incredulous story? She would only have met with disbelief. And what about Joseph who trusted in her? Would he feel betrayed? And what would happen to her life in future? Who would look after her? Would she be ostracized or even be accused and condemned to death for committing the sin of adultery? How was she going to bring up the child alone?
But Mary in faith trusted that God would help her along. She remained calm and composed after saying “Yes” to the Lord. What about us? Do we take things in stride and allow God to work His ways in our lives? Once again, today, we are called to put our faith in God. Trusting God does not mean that we will not have to suffer along the way. It just means that God will not allow us to be overcome by the trials of life. He will ensure that His divine plan is unfolded accordingly. We will, on our part, walk by faith and not by sight. As we respond to God’s will in our lives, we will, like Mary, have to go through the inconveniences and challenges of life. Mary was threatened by the persecution of Herod. She had to endure being misunderstood with her Son. She had to bear the shame with our Lord when He went through the passion. But in all these events, she never complained or grumbled or was resentful of God or of His Son’s enemies. She accepted whatever came her way graciously. Perhaps the greatest miracle was not so much that Mary conceived Jesus in her womb, but that she conceived Jesus in her heart.
As we approach nearer to Christmas, let us too allow Jesus to be born in our hearts by saying ‘Yes’ to His word. Let us seek to do His holy will at all times. Even when we do not understand His ways, let us submit to His holy will. He will unfold the meaning of His plan for us. Let us trust Him enough to believe that His will is His wisdom so that we can find peace.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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