Liturgical Colour : White

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today as we listened to the words of the Scriptures, we are reminded of the mission entrusted to us by God, the mission to evangelise and proclaim the word of God in our respective communities, in our lives and to all those whom we encounter in life, that we may faithfully proclaim our Lord, His truth and love in our best ability, dedicating our time and effort to reach out to those who have not yet known or understood the salvation that God has presented before us. Each and every one of us share the same mission that God has entrusted to His Church, and as the members of the Church, we are charged with the works that God had made us sharers in.

In our first reading today, taken from the Acts of the Apostles, we are all presented with the works that St. Paul and St. Barnabas did among the people of God, and their missionary efforts and works, as they were entrusted by the Twelve Apostles and leaders of the Church with the mission of evangelisation, building up the Church communities all across the Mediterranean. The Twelve Apostles laid their hands on both St. Paul and St. Barnabas, praying over them and granting them the guidance of the Holy Spirit, entrusting to them the ministry of preaching and spreading the Good News to the people who have not yet heard of the Lord.

They were sent to continue the good works of the Lord, much as how the Lord Himself had been sent into this world and entrusted with the mission to reconcile the whole world and all mankind to their loving Father. In our Gospel passage today, we heard the Lord Himself speaking of this mission which He has embarked on, as He was sent by His Father to reveal the truth and love of God to everyone. God has given us His Son, that He will become our Saviour and lead us to the eternal life and true happiness that He has promised all those who believed in Him and placed their trust in Him.

The Lord Jesus reiterated again that He was sent into this world to call all the lost sheep of the Lord, all those who have sinned, which is all of us mankind, and have been separated from God, to bring us back to His loving embrace and to reunite us with Him by His infinite and enduring love. He has willingly embraced us all sinners, that by His compassion, mercy and love, all of us may find our way back to Him, and be saved from our fated destruction. For God’s love for each one of us surpasses even the anger He has for our sins and wickedness. But we cannot remain in that sin as if we remain in the state of sin, we will eventually be judged for those sins and be found wanting and unworthy.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as Christians all of us are called to follow in the footsteps of the Apostles and the other disciples of the Lord, like what St. Paul and St. Barnabas had done in the past, in doing their best and committing their whole lives glorifying the Lord and proclaiming His truth among the people of God. They showed many people the truth of the Lord and called on many to follow the Lord, and many became believers because of what they had done, the love and concern that they had shown to the people longing for the truth, the patience that they showed and the kindness they exhibited even against those who have rejected their message and persecuted them for their faith.

It is these faithful Apostles and disciples whom we ought to emulate in our own lives and actions. All of us are called to be God’s missionaries in every possible opportunity, to be the bearers and beacons of His light to the people of all the nations. And we should not think that missionaries are only limited to those who dedicated themselves as missionaries, in serving the people and in proclaiming the faith in far-off and distant lands. While there are indeed those who have been called and responded with the willingness to do such a vocation in life, but each and every Christians also share the same mission through the Church which I had mentioned earlier.

Each one of us as Christians share this same responsibility to be good role models for each other, so that we may inspire others around us, our own fellow brothers and sisters, to walk in the same path that we have walked and therefore become God’s followers as well. The Apostles, saints and martyrs had done that, and we therefore should commit ourselves to this same mission that God had given us. We ought to do our best, even in the smallest and simplest matters, to be exemplary in our words, actions and deeds so that others who see us and witness our works and actions may be touched by God through us, and may become believers as well.

May the Lord continue to guide us in our journey of faith, and may He empower each one of us to be committed disciples and followers, to be good Christians by our good and faithful lives. May more and more people and souls be called ever closer to God from now on, always and evermore, following in the leadership and guidance from our Good Shepherd. Amen.