HOMILY FOR 26TH SUNDAY IN THE ORDINARY TIME YEAR B
HOMILY FOR 26TH SUNDAY IN THE ORDINARY TIME YEAR B
HOMILY THEME: “WHOEVER IS NOT AGAINST US, IS FOR US!”
BY: Fr. Augustine Ikechukwu Opara
Num. 11: 25-29, Ps. 19, James 5: 1-6, Mark 9: 38-43, 45. 47-48
A radio show helped poor people. One day an elderly woman called in and prayed that Jesus would help her through a good person provide groceries for her because apart from being poor, she was also up in age that she could scarcely get some of those groceries herself. To mock this woman an atheist (someone who does not believe in God) called his secretary and sent her to get enough groceries that would last at least one month for the elderly woman but should tell the woman that the groceries came from the devil, and not from Jesus. When the secretary got to the elderly woman’s house, the woman was excited and had everything moved into her house. But the secretary as directed said you did not care to ask who sent you these groceries what if they are from the devil? The prayerful woman replied I don’t care even if it is from the devil because when God commands even the devil obeys. “Whoever is not against Us, is for Us!”
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The central message of the readings is that God can never be caged within the confines of human conditions and terms. Irrespective of our presuppositions, we must always leave the greatest space for God. We must always realize that our plans are myopic and based on the limited nature of our understanding. The truth of God’s omnipotence and the fact that God is a mystery and bigger than every human assumption, measure, and proposal must always be present in our minds. That is the only way to understand God and accept His will.
There are clearly sad divisions in our Church, the country, and the World. We have seen so many of these in the news and media recently. Can we work toward resolution, reconciliation, and unity? St. Paul tells us that this should not depend on power or material wealth but on the Spirit within, given to ALL for a reason. All have been given the same Spirit, but not all have received the same Gifts. Each has been given gifts for some specific reason. This variety of gifts, if used rightly, can move us towards unity even with this diversity.
Surely, this is a bit tricky and difficult. Does it mean that every spirit is true? Certainly not, especially, now that there are many false and self-made preachers, pastors, prophets, and wolves in sheep’s garments. However, there is no cause for alarm! All we need to do is to humbly and carefully, “discern every spirit” (I Jn 4:1). Christ’s standard of “by their fruits, you shall know them” (Mt 7:16) must be wisely followed for this discernment. Also, the universal rule that, “not all that glitters is gold” must be diligently observed.
Finally, my brothers and sisters, nothing (not even the devil), can stop whoever God truly anoints for his mission. The problem is that sometimes we want to decide for God and place Him under our terms and conditions. Never try to stop or discourage the works of God around you because they don’t fit how you think they should happen! Remember, “Whoever is not against Us, is for Us!”
Have a blessed week!
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