Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we heard the words of the Scriptures reminding us all on the matter of obedience to the Law and to the will of God. Jesus mentioned how the entirety of the Law has to be obeyed and followed if we truly belong to the Lord, and if we truly profess our faith in Him. And what is this Law that all of us should obey?

Is it all the rituals and details that we all ought to remember? Is it all the ordinances and rules that the Church had taught us and stipulated for us all to follow? Is it the things which we have heard and which we have been instructed by our teachers in faith and by our priests? Yes, indeed they are, but we also have to question ourselves, with this question, “Are we following the rules and the laws because we are told to do so? Or do we follow them because we understand the Law and its intention for us?

God had first given His Law to His people through Moses His servant while they were in the journey towards the Promised Land. But the people failed to understand the true meaning of the Law, and with the addition of how many people who refused or failed to comply with the observance of the Law. And this is shown by how many of the people of God who followed the Law blindly and without understanding, as shown by the actions of the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law.

Do you all remember or notice how Jesus mentioned that the Pharisees and the teachers of the Law are like the blind ones leading the blind? It is exactly this very fact which He had mentioned there. They were blind because they demanded blind obedience to the Law without understanding. They were strict and inflexible in how they taught to the people, in the manner of how the Law should be observed.

They focused on all the wrong things, by focusing on the minute details of the Law, on the externals in particular, but they completely forgot and ignored the true meaning of the Law itself. They were unable to comprehend the meaning of the Law because their hearts and minds had been hardened against the Lord, and in their stubbornness they have sinned and caused people to also sin against God.

Therefore, Jesus made it clear to the people through the revelation of truth which He brought to the people, by teaching them that the Law of God is truly Love, for God Himself is Love. The purpose of the Law is to bring mankind closer to God through love, by firstly loving God with all of their might and strength, and then to show the same kind and intensity of love to their fellow brethren, that is loving one another.

This is true obedience to the Law of God. The laws and rules which the Church had established and taught to us for obedience have been designed to help us to remain true and obedient in our Faith, so that we may hopefully grow in understanding and in our observance in the Laws of the Lord. Therefore, we too should obey them and follow them with understanding. If we are not sure, we can always ask and look for assistance.

Our faith is one of action, brothers and sisters in Christ. We cannot be passive or ignore the laws and rules which had been placed for us, for our own good. Let us therefore seek to be more active in our participation in our faith and devotion to the Lord, and let us all truly be obedient to the Lord our God, following His commandments, by showing love and care to both Him as well as to our fellow men. God bless us all. Amen.