Liturgical Colour : Green

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today all of us heard from the readings of the Sacred Scriptures, in which we heard of the story of how King David of Israel brought the Ark of God, the Ark of the Covenant from the House of Obed-Edom into Jerusalem, the city that he has conquered and chosen to be the new capital of the united Kingdom of Israel. David has obeyed the commandments and Law of the Lord, and he lived his life and his reign in doing what is righteous and just, worthy and appropriate for being a follower of God, and especially as the king appointed to rule over the people of God. Then we also heard of the words of the Lord Jesus telling all those who were listening to Him that all those who follow the way of the Lord, obeying His words and Law, are all His beloved brothers and sisters.

In our first reading today, we heard of the moment when King David brought the Ark of the Covenant into the city of Jerusalem, welcoming it with great celebrations and festivities, glorifying God with the king himself taking part in the celebrations, dancing before the Lord with passion and vigour. This was the glorious moment as not only that David had his kingdom secure and united, but he has also established a new and mighty capital city in Jerusalem, to be the centre of his kingdom, the kingdom of the people of God, the Israelites. God blessed David and made his reign secure, and David in turn brought the Ark of God to dwell once again among the people of God, in the city which he has established to be the centre of the kingdom, as a symbolic representation of how God is always amongst His beloved ones.

That is because ever since the Ark of the Covenant was crafted from the finest materials known to mankind during the time of the Exodus, it has always been at the centre of the community of the people of God, placed in the Holy Tent where the High Priest and Moses were to go in and commune with God, Who came down and settled among the Cherubim crafted atop the Ark of the Covenant itself. Within the Ark of the Covenant was the two tablets upon which were written the Ten Commandments that God gave to His people, as well as the manna, the heavenly bread with which God had fed His people, the Israelites, during their long sojourn in the desert, and lastly the staff of Aaron, with which God had led His people through Moses and Aaron, and performed many miracles and wonders.

Then, in our Gospel passage today, we heard about the Lord Jesus speaking to the people who were all gathered to listen to Him teaching and preaching to them, and it was in that occasion, that someone told Him that His relatives and family members were all looking for Him and waiting for Him. The Lord then told the people that everyone who obey the will of God and follow Him are His brothers and sisters, members of His family, His beloved ones. And this is related to what we have heard in our first reading today, of the Ark of God coming to dwell among His people in Jerusalem, because in Jesus Christ Himself, the Son of God and the Saviour Whom God has promised to all of His people, God Himself had become incarnate and manifested in the flesh, appearing before all of us and dwelling in our midst.

By coming down to dwell among us, the Lord has truly fulfilled His promises to us, and becoming Emmanuel – ‘God Who is with us’, and He is the New Covenant, the One Who established the new link between us and our Master and Creator, through His Presence in our midst, and most importantly through His Passion, His suffering, death and Resurrection from the dead. That is why, God Himself has dwelled in our midst, and when the Lord Jesus said to the people that all those who obey the will of God are His own brothers and sisters, it is a reference to the fact that because the Word of God has been incarnate in the flesh as the Son of Man in Jesus, thus, through His humanity, He has united all of us to Himself and to His heavenly Father, making all of us the sons and daughters of the Lord by adoption.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, through what we have heard in our Scripture readings today, we are clearly reminded that we are all God’s people, whom He loves most dearly, and how He desires to dwell in our midst, at all times. However, it is our disobedience and sins against Him, every moments and times when we refused to listen to Him that we ended up turning against God and rejecting His salvation, love and grace. If we continue to allow the temptations and ways of this world, the pleasures and the darkness present around us from continuing to mislead us down the wrong path, we will likely fall ever deeper into the darkness of sin, and hence into our downfall.

Let us all therefore remind ourselves to be ever more faithful to the Lord in all things, and to commit ourselves ever more wholeheartedly in each and every moments of our lives, so that by our every actions and commitment, our every words, deeds and interactions with one another, we will draw ever closer to God and to His grace. Let us all be like David, King of Israel, who has always done his best in trying to do the will of God, in following the Law and commandments of God, and in repenting and turning away from the path of sin whenever he fell into temptation and the allures of worldly glory and pleasures.

May all of us as Christians, as God’s beloved people, continue to be good role models in all of our lives, our every moments and actions, so that by our lives we may truly be the living examples and the shining beacons of God’s light, love and truth, illuminating this world darkened by sin and evil. May all of us continue to persist in our efforts and works, in doing what we can so that by our lives, God’s Name may truly be glorified, and many more souls may be saved by their return to the Lord. May God bless our every good efforts and works, now and always. Amen.