Homily For The Thirteenth Sunday In The Ordinary Time ( Yr. A) July 2, 2023.
“God did not tell us to follow Him because He needed our help, but because He knew that loving Him would make us whole. ” – St. Irenaeus of Lyons
Sunday Readings
My dearest friends in Christ,
I welcome you into God’s presence on this 13th Sunday. May the divine words of Christ enrich and transform our lives. The readings of today remind us of God’s expectations of us if we truly want to be His faithful disciples. Our call to discipleship means setting a new priority. A priority that places God first above every other person, thing, and activity: family, friends, business, work, possessions, everything.
Who Is A Disciple
A disciple of Christ is a student who learns from His teacher Christ and tries to imitate His lifestyle and live in obedience to His teachings. It is not enough to be called a disciple if our lifestyle contradicts that of our Master and if we are not obedient to His teachings.
The Demands For Faithful Discipleship
Today, our Master reminds us that for us to be His faithful disciples, we must first love Him above all including our families. Jesus says, “No one who prefers father or mother to Me is worthy of Me; no one who prefers son or daughter to Me is worthy of Me”. We find this same statement in the Gospel of Luke with even greater force: “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple” (Lk 14:26). These words do not imply a disintegration of family bonds or hatred for our family, because He insists on the observance of the fourth commandment which binds us to love father and mother (Mk 7:8-13; 10:17-19). He obeyed His parents (Lk 2:51).
There are times when we allow love for our families to deprive us of the time, and service we owe to God. There are times we pledge our loyalty to our husband, wife, children, or parents rather than to God. St. Perpetua of Carthage ignored her father’s plea to denounce her faith in Christ to escape death from the Roman Emperor, Septimus Severus. She accepted death by being served as a meal to wild beasts. She loved Christ more than her father. She is a perfect example for us.
Let Not Family Deter You From Serving God
There are people whose love and kindness are limited only to their families. They are not concerned about the welfare of their neighbors. When we allow family life to deprive us of the service we owe to God and His people then we are not faithful disciples. We often taunt laypersons who spend so much of their time in service to the Church without knowing we are taunting God whom they are serving. It isn’t that they don’t have other things to do, but that their service to God is their priority. You cannot be a true disciple of Christ if your obligation to God does not come first before your family. In Luke 9:57-62 Jesus addresses two men who wanted to follow Him but were first concerned with their families. One said, “I would love to come with you, but first I have to bury my father.” The other said, “First let me go back and say goodbye to my family.” There is nothing wrong with having a funeral for your father or going back to see your family, but behind these requests, Jesus sees the bad attitude of the heart. In both cases, they say, “Lord, first, let me do this.” Jesus says there can be no other first. “He must be our priority.”
This does not mean not tending to members of our families, but it means that we should always be ready and willing to give up family, land, and properties for God and to dispose of ourselves to be used by God for the good of others at any time or season. This requires self-denial which is the second requirement for discipleship. Jesus emphasized it when He says: “Anyone who does not take up his cross and follow in My footsteps is not worthy of Me”. In Mark’s Gospel Jesus says, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me!” (Mk 8:34). The cross is a symbol of shame, pain, suffering, and disgrace. My dearest, our call to discipleship entails a readiness to endure any form of humiliation, disgrace, affliction, or suffering. If you are the type that loves personal comforts and doesn’t entertain any form of discomfort, or who entertains suicidal thoughts when faced with afflictions or disappointments in life, then you aren’t ready yet to be a disciple of Christ. Christ paid the price of our sins through His sufferings on the cross; the disciple must be ready to complete what is lacking in that suffering. In Colossians 1:24 Pauls says: Now I rejoice in my sufferings for your sake, and in my flesh, I am filling up what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of his body, that is, the Church”. In a world where many desire a luxurious lifestyle and detest suffering, Jesus calls us to rethink our preferences and reprioritize our values.
Jesus never abandons those who follow Him. He identifies with His disciples in their missionary endeavors. Although a disciple might suffer and lose his life for Christ’s sake, Jesus promises a life that never ends. The paradox of the Gospel and Christian discipleship is that the last is first, the one who loses wins, the one who gives all keeps all, and the one who dies lives. The one who has the courage to lose life obtains it. This logic is quite different from the liberal and secular system that rules the world today, but it is the logic of eternal life.
Service To God Invloves Generosity To His Disciples
To show you how God values His faithful disciples, He attaches a special reward for any little act of generosity shown to His disciples. “And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones to drink because the little one is a disciple – amen, I say to you, he will surely not lose his reward.” God appreciates our little acts of generosity. The Shunammite woman in the first reading was promised a son which was a reward for her kindness. She was very thoughtful and sensitive to the needs of Elisha the prophet by offering him a room in her house. True acts of kindness involve sensitivity to the needs of those around us. God never fails to reward all those who from the generosity of their hearts, support missionaries, and missionary activities. A true disciple is both a missionary and beneficiary of God’s reward. Please keep supporting, especially those who have given up family and everything for the sake of God.
May we die to sin to live in Christ and offer to God a worthy service. May God give us the grace to be His true and faithful disciples.
I keep you and your family always in my prayers. ©Clem C. Aladi (2024)
