DAILY HOMILIES

When Jesus says we should carry his yoke, he speaks figuratively referring to those things we must do as his followers. Like a farmer ties a yoke on oxen in order to use them to work on the farm, Jesus wants us to carry His Yoke; be controlled by his teaching; to work in promoting God’s kingdom. Moreover, Jesus went further to add that this yoke is easy and the burden (sacrifices, pains, commitments) that come with carrying the yoke is very light.

The Prophet Isaiah asks in our first reading today, “can the ax exult itself over the one who uses it?” or “will the saw consider itself greater than the man who cuts with it?” Indeed, pride goes before a fall. We are nothing but mere instruments in the hands of God. Without humility, we cannot understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God.

Are you scared of terrorists hiding in every nook and cranny of our nation? Have you lost all confidence in our security architecture? There is a silent war going on in our land and like Ahaz, we are poorly equipped in terms of weapons and ammunition. While we defend ourselves, let us not forget that we serve a powerful God who knows how to fight for his children. Let us increase our prayers and repent from any sin that may become a hindrance to our prayer or attract God’s wrath.

Jesus calls us to put him first even if it means losing a relationship as close as that between a mother and daughter. To be a Christian is not easy. No wonder there are so many persons who claim to be Christian only by mouth but are not true to what they call themselves.

Whatever may have caused the priest and the Levite to pass this man by, Jesus did not tell us but Jesus only mentioned that they failed to help the man. When it comes to helping the needy, no excuse is valid. Think of this, that person you see in need of your help today may just be your last chance. He or she may have been sent your way to test you. Do not keep on till tomorrow what you can do today. One thing that tends to prevent us from helping others is bitterness. You may have been hurt in the past, perhaps in your attempt to be kind to others, they repaid your good with evil, and so on. Remember, that person may just be you and you too would expect someone to help you. As Moses tells us in our first reading, we don’t need somebody to go to heaven to bring down God’s commandments, they are right in our hearts. Listen to your heart. Follow your conscience. Help, don’t hinder. Go and do like the Samaritan.

Know that as a labourer, you have become very precious and valuable to God. Jesus says: “You are of more value than sparrows.” God will always be there for you. Even if you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, because you mean a lot to God, no evil shall overcome you.

Just as the prophet Hosea calls on the House of Israel to repent and return back to God, we too are called to accept the difficult task of going out to call people to repentance. It is not easy to tell a person his mouth is smelling, he may hate you for it or attack you, yet, that is precisely what the mission is all about. Preaching that does not “offend” people – cause them to search inwards and change their lives is not preaching.

Preaching begins on the pulpit but it is only complete when the minister reaches out to touch the sick, the dead, the lepers, and those possessed. That is why the laborer in God’s vineyard is called to go out to meet the people where they are, to visit their homes. Nonetheless, these visitations should never be limited only to the homes of the rich neither should the laborer complain when he is sent to an area where he has to attend to the needs of the poor. As Jesus puts it: “You received without pay, give without pay, take no gold, nor silver, nor copper. No bag, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor a staff.”

Never look down on yourself because the rich harvest of God’s vineyard neither requires already made Saints nor does it asks only for the talented, the outspoken, the educated, the influential or the technologically driven. So long as you are empowered, you too can labour for God.

Mankind’s problems are too many but then, by failing to do the little we can, we contribute to the problem. Jesus did not solve all the problems in the world but He did His best. He touched lives. He made good use of His power and authority. Matthew tells us Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching, proclaiming the good news, and curing every disease and sickness. You too can do something. However, know that if you decide to work for God, people will hate you, they will try to discourage you by spreading false tales about you. Imagine the Pharisees claiming that Jesus was casting out demons by the power of demons!

Today, our Psalmist encourages us to turn that faith towards God because He alone deserves the title: kind and full of compassion. Only God is kind because He alone owns everything in this world and He alone gives freely without demanding repayment. People may sympathize with us when we are down but only God is full of compassion – only God can understand what we are going through; only God can “passion with” us; only God can suffer with us.

Unlike this man who went home sorrowful, the seventy who had gone out to evangelize carrying no purse, no bag, no sandal came back bursting with joy and excitement. When they were going out, it was like an adventure to them, they must have asked themselves, “How am I going to survive? No purse, no bag, no sandals, no nothing! They must have concluded that Jesus was sending them out to commit suicide. But they obeyed. They followed the warnings. And they came back shocked that even the demons obeyed them. Their great power was in their ability to detach themselves.