20250904 MISPLACED JOY
04 October 2025, Saturday, 26th Week in Ordinary Time
First reading |
Baruch 4:5-12,27-29 |
Take courage, my children, call on God
Take courage, my people,
constant reminder of Israel.
You were sold to the nations,
but not for extermination.
You provoked God;
and so were delivered to your enemies,
since you had angered your creator
by offering sacrifices to demons, not to God.
You had forgotten the eternal God who reared you.
You had also grieved Jerusalem who nursed you,
for when she saw the anger fall on you
from God, she said:
Listen, you neighbours of Zion:
God has sent me great sorrow.
I have seen my sons and daughters taken into captivity,
to which they have been sentenced by the Eternal.
I had reared them joyfully;
in tears, in sorrow, I watched them go away.
Do not, any of you, exult over me,
a widow, deserted by so many;
I suffer loneliness because of the sins of my own children,
who turned away from the Law of God.
Take courage, my children, call on God:
he who brought disaster on you will remember you.
As by your will you first strayed away from God,
so now turn back and search for him ten times as hard;
for as he brought down those disasters on you,
so will he rescue you and give you eternal joy.
Responsorial Psalm |
Psalm 68(69):33-37 |
The Lord listens to the needy.
The poor when they see it will be glad
and God-seeking hearts will revive;
for the Lord listens to the needy
and does not spurn his servants in their chains.
Let the heavens and the earth give him praise,
the sea and all its living creatures.
The Lord listens to the needy.
For God will bring help to Zion
and rebuild the cities of Judah
and men shall dwell there in possession.
The sons of his servants shall inherit it;
those who love his name shall dwell there.
The Lord listens to the needy.
Gospel Acclamation | Mt11:25 |
Alleluia, alleluia!
Blessed are you, Father,
Lord of heaven and earth,
for revealing the mysteries of the kingdom
to mere children.
Alleluia!
Gospel | Luke 10:17-24 |
Rejoice that your names are written in heaven
The seventy-two came back rejoicing. ‘Lord,’ they said ‘even the devils submit to us when we use your name.’ He said to them, ‘I watched Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Yes, I have given you power to tread underfoot serpents and scorpions and the whole strength of the enemy; nothing shall ever hurt you. Yet do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you; rejoice rather that your names are written in heaven.’
It was then that, filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, he said:
‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and of earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do. Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.’
Then turning to his disciples he spoke to them in private, ‘Happy the eyes that see what you see, for I tell you that many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see, and never saw it; to hear what you hear, and never heard it.’
MISPLACED JOY
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [Baruch 4:5-12, 27-29; Ps 69:33-37; Lk 10:17-24]
“The seventy-two came back rejoicing. ‘Lord,’ they said, ‘even the devils submit to us when we use your name!’” We can imagine how thrilled and excited they were when God gave them the power not only to heal the sick but also to cast out demons. As mere human beings, they could never have imagined that God would share such miraculous powers with them. It was simply amazing. Indeed, what the disciples experienced is similar to what those of us in ministry feel when we witness transformation through the work we do. It might be a project we organized, a talk or retreat we conducted, or, for those in healing and deliverance ministry, the liberation of people possessed by evil spirits. We have seen with our own eyes those sick in mind and body–abandoned by doctors–restored to health. We have seen the amazing power of God when the lame, the blind, or those with terminal illnesses were given a new lease on life.
However, the immediate reaction of our Lord was to temper their exuberance over such achievements. Jesus said to them, “I watched Satan fall like lightning from heaven. Yes, I have given you power to tread underfoot serpents and scorpions and the whole strength of the enemy; nothing shall ever hurt you. Yet do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you; rejoice rather that your names are written in heaven.” Indeed, when such things happen and lead us to focus on what we have done, it becomes misplaced joy. We rejoice because we have discovered a newfound power in ourselves to heal and to have authority even over evil spirits. This is the most frightening part of acquiring spiritual power–when we begin to dwell on what we possess, the focus shifts to ourselves.
The temptation to spiritual worldliness is what Pope Francis warned against. What is spiritual worldliness if not the transference of worldly pursuits into the religious realm? The world seeks power above all. It is the root sin of egoism and pride. People desire power to control others and the world so that they may feel great about themselves. That is why fame, popularity, status, influence, and money are so highly sought after–they allow people to control others and demand admiration. Similarly, priests, religious, and lay leaders can be tempted to seek spiritual power and authority in order to become the centre of attention. Although claiming to serve God, instead of drawing people to Him, they draw people to themselves through preaching, writing, counselling, ministering, and healing. It becomes about their own popularity. As a result, even within the Church, unhealthy competition arises among groups, members, priests, and religious, each trying to outdo the other for honour and glory. It ceases to be about building the Kingdom of God or spreading the Good News. It becomes about how good they are, what they have accomplished, and how great they appear.
The temptation to power is dangerous, not only because it leads to self-worship, but also because it opens the way to manipulating others. Some use authority and power to enrich themselves financially, exploiting people’s goodness and gratitude. Others even abuse their influence for personal gratification, including sexual exploitation. They forget that whatever they possess–skills, knowledge, power, money, resources, or spiritual gifts–are meant for the service of others, to build up the Body of Christ, and not for selfish gain. As St. Paul writes, “The gifts he gave were … to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until all of us come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to maturity, to the measure of the full stature of Christ.” (cf. 1 Cor 12:6f; 1 Cor 12:7)
Hence, instead of rejoicing in ourselves, we should rejoice in God. This was the Lord’s reminder to His disciples: “Do not rejoice that the spirits submit to you; rejoice rather that your names are written in heaven.” The true joy of being a Christian is not that we share in God’s power over evil spirits, but that He loves us and we belong to Him. Being God’s beloved, His friend, and His chosen one is of greater importance than what we can do or whatever glory the world can give. Confidence that our “names are written in heaven” in the Book of Life gives us the greatest comfort and joy, because all temporal things–power, honour, glory, wealth–will pass away. Being secure in the arms of our heavenly Father is a gift beyond all gifts. As Nehemiah told his people: “Do not be grieved, for the joy of the Lord is your strength.” (Neh 8:10)
We can rejoice in God only when we are humble. Only the humble recognize that all blessings and powers come from Him. The proud, like the devil, fall from grace because they attribute success and achievements to their own ingenuity and strength. Without humility, we fall into the same sins as the Israelites in the first reading. Because they ignored God and His prophets, they were exiled to Babylon. As the prophet declared: “You provoked God, and so were delivered to your enemies, since you had angered your creator by offering sacrifices to demons, not to God. You had forgotten the eternal God who reared you. You had also grieved Jerusalem who nursed you.”
To rejoice in God, we must be like children–humble and dependent on Him. “It was then that, filled with joy by the Holy Spirit, he said, ‘I bless you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for hiding these things from the learned and the clever and revealing them to mere children. Yes, Father, for that is what it pleased you to do.'” Only those who recognize their limitations and acknowledge God’s power can truly rejoice in Him. The proud, who rejoice in their own strength and knowledge, lack wisdom and understanding because of their arrogance.
In contrast, Jesus was the humble Son of God. He was totally dependent on His Father, always turning to Him for guidance, spending time in prayer and intimacy with Him. His heart was always with the Father and for the Father. He did everything not for Himself or His glory but out of love for His Father. In the Temple He asked, “Why were you searching for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Lk 2:49) He told the disciples, “My food is to do the will of him who sent me and to complete his work.” (Jn 4:34) To the Jews He said, “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 14:10) And again: “The Father loves me, because I lay down my life in order to take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.” (Jn 10:17f)
For us, however, the greatest joy should be knowing Christ as our Lord and Saviour. This is what the Lord told the disciples when He said, “Happy the eyes that see what you see! For I tell you, many prophets and kings wanted to see what you see and never saw it, to hear what you hear and never heard it.” Those who lived before Christ did not see the Son of God, the fulfilment of the promise made to King David. They only heard about God through the prophets; they had only the promise and the vision. But for us, Jesus is the Word made flesh, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. (Jn 14:6) He is the Son of God who reveals to us the love of our heavenly Father: “Everything has been entrusted to me by my Father; and no one knows who the Son is except the Father, and who the Father is except the Son, and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” We are therefore a privileged people, for we have seen Christ and His power at work in our lives. Let us rejoice in His mercy and kindness toward us. Instead of glorifying ourselves, we must bring His joy to others by doing good: “He it is who gave himself for us that he might redeem us from all iniquity and purify for himself a people of his own who are zealous for good deeds.” (Tit 2:14)
Best Practices for Using the Daily Scripture Reflections
- Encounter God through the spirit of prayer and the scripture by reflecting and praying the Word of God daily. The purpose is to bring you to prayer and to a deeper union with the Lord on the level of the heart.
- Daily reflections when archived will lead many to accumulate all the reflections of the week and pray in one sitting. This will compromise your capacity to enter deeply into the Word of God, as the tendency is to read for knowledge rather than a prayerful reading of the Word for the purpose of developing a personal and affective relationship with the Lord.
- It is more important to pray deeply, not read widely. The current reflections of the day would be more than sufficient for anyone who wants to pray deeply and be led into an intimacy with the Lord.
Note: You may share this reflection with someone. However, please note that reflections are not archived online nor will they be available via email request.
Written by His Eminence, Cardinal William SC Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Singapore © All Rights Reserved.
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