Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, this Sunday as we all gather together to glorify the Lord and praise His Name, we remember how important and central the Word of God is to our lives and faith as Christians. That is because God’s Word as contained within the Sacred Scriptures, from both the Old and the New Testaments, and how they are interpreted through the Wisdom and Magisterium of the Church, together with the faith of the faithful people of God or the ‘Sensus Fidei’ all form together this important foundation of the Church and everything that we believe in as Christians, as the pillar of our belief and something that can truly anchor is amidst all the volatility and uncertainty in this world. That is why as Christians, all of us are always reminded to read regularly the Word of God in the Scriptures and truly understand the meaning and intentions of God’s Words for each one of us in their unique ways.

In our first reading this Sunday, we heard from the Book of the prophet Isaiah in which the prophecy passed down through Isaiah to the people of Israel had been presented to us, reminding us all of the fulfilment of the great salvation and liberation which God had planned and accomplished through none other than His own Beloved and Begotten Son, Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ, He Who is the Son of God and Son of Man both, and the Divine Word Incarnate. Yes, on this Sunday of the Word of God, it is indeed timely, apt and perfect that we hear about how the Word of God has been manifested to us, not just through the Scriptures, but in an even better and more tangible form, in Christ Himself, the Logos, the Word of God made flesh.

That is why, by the coming of God’s salvation manifested in the Incarnation of the Logos, the Word of God, we can see clearly how God’s Words are truly real and true, and not merely just empty words, all of His promises having been fulfilled and accomplished, all the promise that Light and Salvation would come to all the nations from the lands of Zebulun and Naphtali, which was a prophecy about where the Messiah or Saviour would be born, as Nazareth, the Lord’s hometown, was indeed located between those two lands. And through His coming into this world, dwelling in our midst, the Divine Logos has imparted on us not just His love and presence, but also His Light, the Light of Hope that dispelled the darkness surrounding us, giving us renewed hope and strength to come towards Him.

Then, from our second reading this Sunday, taken from the Epistle of St. Paul the Apostle to the Church and the faithful people of God in the city and region of Corinth, we heard of the exhortation of the Apostle to the people of God in Corinth regarding the serious matter of division which happened quite recently at that place. The context was that even during those earliest days of the Church and the early days of the community of the faithful in Corinth, there were already factionalism and divisions between the members of the Church community between those who supported the charismatic and famous preacher named Apollos, and those who supported St. Paul himself, and also other groups and divisions that existed back then in the community of God’s people.

That was why St. Paul told the faithful people of God in Corinth not to become divided and split among factional lines, between those who favoured a certain preacher or missionary, but rather to work together and stay firmly united as one people of God, as members of the one, united and indivisible Church of God, the One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church, all believing in the same God, the same Messiah and Saviour, Jesus Christ, the manifested and Incarnate Logos, the Word of God. And all Christian believers, those in Corinth and elsewhere, and all of us here living in this world today, we all share the same faith and the same mission and calling to proclaim the Lord and His Good News to all the nations, to everyone whom we encounter in our everyday lives, and we should be united in our purpose and efforts, and not be divided by any worldly divisions.

Lastly, from our Gospel passage this Sunday, from the Gospel according to St. Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, we heard of the Lord Jesus and His ministry among the people of God, and the clear reference from what we heard in our first reading today from the Book of the prophet Isaiah, the prophecy of the coming of God’s salvation from the land of Zebulun and Naphtali, and how the author, St. Matthew, who wrote his Gospel with the primary audience and target being the Jewish people living in Judea and Galilee, reassured them all that God’s promises and prophecies had been accomplished and perfectly fulfilled in that same person of Jesus Christ, the Saviour, Whom the Christian believers have believed as the One Whom God had sent into this world to save it.

And we heard also how the Lord began His work and ministry, and called to Himself several disciples and followers, the first of those whom He had chosen to be His Twelve Apostles. He began from the region of the Lake of Galilee, where He encountered the fishermen there, calling upon some among them to follow Him. There were two sets of brothers, Simon and Andrew, as well as James and John, whom He called and promised that they would no longer seek for the fishes of where they used to work at, but they would become the ‘fishers of men’, and that was indeed what they had been called to do, to help the Lord in His mission to gather all the lost and scattered children of God, becoming the fishers of men, in their ministry as Apostles and leaders of the Church.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, therefore as we have heard and reflected from these readings and passages of the Scriptures this Sunday, let us all ponder upon how we can better attune ourselves to the Word of God in our daily lives. In fact, honestly, how many of us even spent some quality time to read the Word of God and ponder on their importance, relevance and meaning to our lives? Unless we spend some time and effort to read the Word of God contained within the Scriptures and make the effort to understand them through the teachings of the Church and also the understanding of the faithful, the ‘Sensus Fidei’, and the context of our present day world as compared to what it was like during the time the Scriptures were written, how can we then grow ever stronger in our faith?

In fact, the reality is likely that part of the ongoing crisis in our faith across the world, particularly where many are leaving the faith stemmed from the lack of knowledge and understanding of the Word of God and what our Christian faith and God is truly about. But at the same time, on the other extreme, we must also realise that there are also those who sought to misuse the Word of God to their own selfish purposes and ambitions, and also those who misunderstand the true intention of God’s words and commandments, not unlike how the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law once behaved and acted, in how they interpreted the Word of God and His Law to their liking and preferences, without understanding at the heart of the Word of God of the immensity of God’s ever present love for each and every one of us.

That is why, brothers and sisters in Christ, we should always let our faith in God develop organically and genuinely at all times, growing ever stronger in our faith and understanding of God’s will, His love and compassion towards us, and that we should show the same love and kindness to everyone around us as well, especially more so for those whom we love and care for. Let us all therefore be genuine and faithful Christians at all times, not just merely in words but also in our every deeds and actions, that we may be true and faithful witnesses of the Divine Logos, the Word of God, made manifest even more in this world through us all. Lastly, this Sunday, as we are at the conclusion of this Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, let us also pray and work for the unity of all Christian believers, as well. Amen.