19th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Year C
In following Christ, we see the value
and meaning of the cross of Jesus, his sacrificial love for us. In
following Christ, he asks us to follow him and to do the same. Jesus
says: “If you wish to follow me, you must pick up your cross daily,
and follow me. Those who wish to save their lives will lose it, but
those who lose their life for my sake, and for the sake of the Gospel
will find it.”
God doesn't ask us to make the
sacrifices, to let go of certain things, unless God offers us
something better. In the long term, God offers eternal life, paradise, heaven. But also, God offers us a lot in this life: peace, meaning, purpose, value,
mission, joy, faith, hope, a sense of belonging, a life with God, the
Most Holy Trinity.
Recently, I was at St. Benedict, and celebrated a
marriage for some friends. Marriage is indeed a sacrifice, because
the couple will have to say no to everyone, so that they could say
yes to one another. They would have to let go of their former life as a single bachelor, so that they could embrace the new and better
life that God offers them. The husband was sharing in a love letter,
a promise that he makes to his wife. He said that whenever they go
out to eat, and if she is debating between what two dishes to order,
he would order the other dish, just so that she could have both
dishes. If she is debating between the chicken and the beef, and if
she orders the beef, he would order the chicken, so that she could
have two selections. But if he orders the fish, that wouldn't be
good, lol.
The Israelites, celebrated the Passover
every year, to remember what God has done for them. They remembered
that they were led by Moses to the Promised Land. But they had to
undergo the test, by being in the desert for 40 years. While in the
desert, they complained and grumbled against God. We can understand
their need of wanting to return to their comfortable life in Egypt,
and their preference for the familiar life in Egypt, because it was
far better than the desert. But they needed to trust God, and that
God wanted to offer them a better life, a Promised Land. But they
needed to let go of their former life, so that they could embraced
the new life that God offers.
God doesn't ask us to make sacrifices,
to let go of certain things, without offering us something even
better.
Similarly, in the letter to the
Hebrews, faith is defined as the realization of what is hoped for,
and evidence of the things that are not seen. Abraham was called to
have faith in God. But that faith was being tested, to go to the
land that he had never seen, and to offer up his only son, Isaac. Imagine how difficult it would be if you were in Abraham's shoes, and
the sacrifice that God asks of you. And by typology, we can see the
sacrifice that the Father makes, by offering his only beloved son,
Jesus, on the cross.
What kind of sacrifices is God asking
of you? What is the better offer that God has for you?
The Gospel today, gives us a sense of
urgency, to get our life in order. To let go of procrastination. So
that when the time comes, there won't be any regrets. “Maybe I'll
go to confession some other time. Maybe I'll develop a habit of
prayer some other time. Maybe I'll reconcile with that person some
other time. Maybe I'll start being generous later." If we keep
putting it off to later, it may be too late. We try to live your life
without any regrets. Like the servants waiting for the Master's
return from a wedding, not knowing the time or hour, but to always be
vigilant and be ready when it happens. The Gospel Acclamation: “Stay
awake and be ready, for you do not know what day your Lord will
come.” Let go of the life of procrastination so that we embrace
the life of vigilance, preparation and readiness.
God doesn't ask us to make sacrifices,
to let go of certain things without offering something much better.
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