Readings: Jeremiah 28:1-17, Ps. 119:29,43,79-80,95,102, Matthew 14:13-21
“Listen, Hananiah, the Lord has not sent you, and you made these people trust in a lie. Therefore, thus says the Lord: I am going to send you off the face of the earth. Within this year, you will be dead.” (Jeremiah 28:15-16)
Our first reading today is quite dramatic. A prophet called Hananiah lied against God by announcing to the people something he did not hear from God. He also broke the wooden bars God had told Jeremiah to place on his neck. These wooden bars symbolised the imminent exile of the people, a punishment that could only be averted by their repentance from sin. Instead of addressing the problem (sin and its consequences), Hananiah, like modern-day prosperity preachers, was more concerned about making the people feel good.
- Hananiah is an example of what St. Paul spoke about in his second letter to Timothy: “The time is coming when people will not put up with sound doctrine, but having itching ears, they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their desires and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander away to myths.” (2 Timothy 4:3-4). There is nothing wrong with preaching sweet things to uplift people’s moods, especially in trying times such as the present situation in Nigeria. However, the problem is telling lies in God’s name. Why did Hananiah claim that God said such things to him? What stopped him from saying: “This is what I think” or “This is what I pray for.”
- Growing up, we were told, “Say the truth and shame the devil.” This saying has Biblical roots in John 8:44, where Jesus addressed the Pharisees: “You are from your father the devil, and you choose to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning and does not stand in the truth because there is no truth in him. He speaks according to his nature when he lies, for he is a liar and the father of lies.” (John 8:44). A child of God should never tell lies. Lies belong to the devil and his children.
- Telling lies is very bad. Telling lies in God’s name is even worse. This is because when you claim to have received a message from God, and it turns out that the message was false, you make God look like a liar. For this, Hananiah died that year. Many so-called men of God “prophesied” great and wonderful things about this country on New Year’s Day. How many of such prophecies happened? Either they did not hear well when God spoke, or they did not hear from God. It pains me that they still refuse to admit the truth when confronted about their fake prophecies.
- The problems with this country today are quite complex, but we cannot deny that our refusal to repent contributes to our woes. We cannot continue living in darkness as individuals and still hope to have a great nation. We appear to be a religious nation, but we are very far from God; we partake in religious rituals and ceremonies, but we behave like children of the devil. What if our collective suffering today is a consequence of our bad choices?
- In today’s Gospel passage, Jesus is saddened by the death of his friend and forerunner, John the Baptist. He retreats to a quiet place to mourn alone, but the crowd will not let him. When he saw them approaching, he pitied them; he forgot his distress and attended to them. The way to be happy is to make someone happy. Jesus was sad, but in his sadness, he didn’t send the crowd away. Why do we turn people away when we are sad? Why do we rush to tell people our problems without understanding what they are going through?
- Share your five loaves and two fish with others. Although it looks small in your eyes, it will be enough to feed a multitude and still have some leftovers. There is hunger in the land today. Beak your bread into two and give one part away; you will not lack. Stinginess will never multiply your bread.
Let us pray: Almighty, ever-living God, may truth never be lacking from my lips. We ask this through Our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God forever and ever. Amen.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. May God’s abundant blessings be upon us all. (Monday of week 18 in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: Jeremiah 28:1-17, Ps. 119:29,43,79-80,95,102, Matthew 14:13-21).
@Rev. Fr. Evaristus E. Abu