Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, as we all listened to the words of the Sacred Scriptures, each and every one of us are presented with the reminders that all of us as Christians, as God’s holy and beloved people should always strive to do our best to follow the Lord ever more faithfully at all times, to do what is good, worthy, right and just in our every words, actions and deeds. As Christians, it is important that we should always embody our faith in our every moments in life, to proclaim the Lord to everyone whom we encounter and interact with, and to be truly good and worthy beacons of His light and Good News in all of our respective communities in today’s world. 

In our first reading today from the continuation of the discourse from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Ephesus, we heard the same message which St. Paul had told the faithful in yesterday’s passage, regarding Christian families and how everyone ought to play their part and roles, with great harmony and love, both for God and for everyone within their families. And today, we have the extension of this as the Apostle continued to tell the faithful that even in their own capacities, work and other areas outside their families and relatives, friends and circles, each and every one of them should still continue to obey God’s will and to do whatever He has taught them to do, to be truly loving and generous with one another.

It is a reminder for all of us that as Christians we are all called and challenged to live a truly devout and committed life at all times, to be good and just, righteous and virtuous in our every actions and interactions with others whom we encounter in our daily living, no matter what the circumstances or occasions are, and no matter what capacity we are in. All of us must always strive to be the faithful bearers of our Lord’s love and truth, His Good News and teachings, manifested and made concrete in our midst through our own good and faithful Christian lives. How can we treat our fellow men and women with contempt and disdain, when the Lord Himself has treated us well and showed us all His mercy and love, when we erred and fell away from His grace.

Then, in our Gospel passage today from the Gospel according to St. Luke, we heard from the Lord Jesus Himself about how difficult it would be for someone to enter into the Kingdom of God, because while the Lord has always been generous in showing us all His compassion, kindness and everything that He has done to allow us to come to Him, but in the end, it is up to us to cooperate with the Lord and to embrace His love, mercy and forgiveness. It is not the Lord Who has made it difficult for us to return to Him, as He has always been willing to embrace us, to forgive us from our faults and mistakes, and He has always loved us despite all these, but it is actually our own stubbornness, arrogance, our persistence to follow the path of sin which has separated us from the Lord and kept us away from His grace and love.

It is all of our love and attachments to worldly desires and pleasures, our inability to detach ourselves from all these ultimately futile pursuits, ambitions and allures of glory and worldly fame which became our undoing and these are the main reasons why the path has become so narrow for us in our path and journey towards the Lord and His salvation, which the Lord presented in His teachings as we heard from our Gospel passage today, on how many people may desire salvation in God, and yet, only few among them may actually be able to achieve this, as too many of us are so preoccupied by all those worldly desires and temptations, all the distractions and wicked things around us that we end up losing our focus and attention on the Lord and His salvation.

And as the Lord Himself mentioned to the people, that there would be many people who thought that they deserved salvation, by saying that they had known the Lord, or supposedly were close to Him, followed His ways and been pious in their practices and way of life, which was likely an indirect reference to the Pharisees and their actions, their sense of superiority against others around them, all of which made them to have this assumption that they deserved God’s grace and salvation more than others, but unfortunately, they were so preoccupied with following the details and tenets of the Law, the customs and rituals according to their interpretation and understanding, that they had forgotten the reason and purpose of those laws in the first place. They had been so busy in doing those things that they have in fact distanced themselves from the Lord and shut their hearts and minds against Him.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we have listened and discussed earlier on through these readings from the Sacred Scriptures, let us all therefore do our part so that we can continue to prioritise the Lord and all of His teachings and ways in our every moments in life, to be truly committed to a life that is focused not on our own selfish desires, ambitions, our pride, ego and greed, but rather on everything that God has shown and taught us through His Church and through the Scriptures He has passed down and revealed to us. Each and every one of us as Christians are called and reminded to be good examples and role models in our faith and how we live them, that through these, we may help more and more people to come ever closer to God and His grace, His salvation and eternal life. Let us all do our parts as members of the Body of Christ, the Church of God.

May the Lord, our ever loving, compassionate and merciful God continue to help and guide us in our respective lives, and help us so that in everything that we do and in all of our whole lives, our interactions with each other, we will continue to strive to be good and faithful Christians, not just in words or appearances only, but also in everything that we do, in our every interactions and cooperations with each other, in how we genuinely show God’s love, His truth and hope to everyone whom we encounter in our lives, in each and every moments and opportunities provided to us. May God continue to bless us all and strengthen us in our resolve and endeavours, our efforts to glorify Him at all times, by our faithful lives and examples, now and always. Amen.