DAILY HOMILIES

Jesus said: “I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.” Am I the kind of righteous person Jesus was referring to? Am I full of myself? Do I judge and condemn others knowing full well my own hypocrisy? Do I see myself as complete, perfect, holy, and immune from mistakes? How often do I take out time to examine my conscience? Am I willing am I to learn from other people’s mistakes or do I consider it more important to publicize these mistakes? Stop pointing fingers, start asking yourself: “If that were me, would I have done better?”

Jesus’ question to the Scribes and Pharisees is one that deserves some pondering. Jesus did not ask, “Why are you thinking I can’t forgive sins?” Instead, he asked: “Why do you think evil in your hearts?” Lack of Faith in God is itself a great evil we must tackle in our lives. To underestimate God or to belittle God’s power and authority is just as bad as any sin we can think of.

Today we celebrate the ultimate victory of the Apostles for their efforts to keep the faith despite their struggles. Herod arrested Peter intending to bring him to trial so as to publicly make fun of him but that very night he was set free by the Angel of God. Even if he would eventually die for the sake of the Gospel, this very incident is proof that when we suffer for the sake of righteousness, we are never alone.

if you still believe in the power of prayers, that is, if you still have faith in God, then this is time to increase your prayers. God has rescued his children from worse things than what we are facing today. It may seem as if God is sleeping but we know that He cannot sleep. Let us pray until something happens. Let us pray until Jesus gets up to say to the storms around us: “Be Still.” Let us pray like that woman who kept going back to the judge demanding justice until she got an answer. (Cf. Luke 18:1-8). Let our faith be large enough to swallow our fears.

Jesus lived his entire life on earth as a poor man. He was born in a manger and buried in a borrowed tomb. He was so hungry one time that He and His disciples had to go into a corn field to pluck heads of grain and eat even though it was a Sabbath. Jesus was often invited to dine in the homes of the rich but He never sought to enrich himself.

The purpose of our calling as Christians and especially as God’s ministers is to incarnate Christ in our world. As Elijah handed over to Elijah, even the strongest among us would need to be replaced someday. Let us encourage our young ones to respond positively to God’s call. How dark would our world be if there are no ministers or no authentic Christians anymore? However, the truth is that God will never force his calling on anyone. We must also avoid forcing our children into the seminary just for the sake of making a name for our family. It has to come from them. Anyone who has agreed to respond to God’s call must learn to trust God completely and no longer depend on material provisions. This is the symbolic meaning of Elisha’s decision to sacrifice the entire oxen he was working with. And finally, we all have been called to live by the spirit rather than gratifying the desires of the flesh. The minister who fails to practice bodily purity is nothing short of a scandal to the Christian faith preaching one Gospel on the pulpit but preaching something different by his actions.

Mary had a PURE heart. It is as a result of Mary’s outstanding sinlessness that we refer to her heart as IMMACULATE. It was this purity of heart that made God so fall in love with her as to choose her to be his mother. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gave us a secret; “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.” (Matthew 5:8). Only a heart so pure can contain God as Mary did. As we reflect on Mary’s Immaculate Heart, let us look at our own hearts. Is my heart like that of Mary? What efforts am I making to guard my heart against all defilements of evil?

The heart of Jesus is first sacred because it is the heart of God. It is also a typical shepherd’s heart, a heart so full of love and concern for the good of humanity who are His Sheep.

Names are not merely means of identification; names are spiritual. A person’s name can affect his or her life. Our Gospel passage today is a record of the naming ceremony of John the Baptist. The people were planning to call him Zechariah after his father or “Junior” because they felt he would re-live his father’s life. But Elizabeth and Zechariah knew that this child had a destiny different from that of his father so they both opted for “John” instead.

Avoid shallow Christianity. Be a doer of the word. Let it not be that the only reason you are a Christian faith is simply to receive miracles, breakthroughs and prosperity. If this the case, you will not be able to withstand the rains, floods and winds that would come your way. If you are simply an Amen-I-receive-it-Christian, you would soon fall away when trials and difficulties come.

Jesus wants us to be wise, to look before we leap, to realize that it is not everyone who addresses himself as a prophet that is there for our good. Some are agents of the devil sent to wreak havoc on gullible Christians. Jesus even said that on the last day many would come claiming to have worked miracles in His name but He would say: “I do not know where you come from; depart from me, all you workers of iniquity!” (Luke 13:27). Shine your eyes, there are workers of iniquity out there. Watch out for their fruits.

Do you firmly believe that with prayers, we can solve the problem of insecurity bedeviling our nation? If you do, then you are among the very few still following the narrow path of salvation that Jesus spoke about in today’s Gospel passage. Sure, it is not easy to be different in a world like ours. It is not easy to genuinely let your light shine in a world so full of darkness. As Jesus would say: “the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to salvation.” Don’t get tired of the difficulties you are facing in your walk with Jesus. It was never meant to be a smooth ride. Do not give up.