HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF 14TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME.
THEME: You received without charge: give without charge.
BY: Fr Deotacious Chikontwe SMA.
*READINGS OF THE DAY*
Gen 44:18-21,23-29,45:1-5
Psalm 104:16-21
Matthew 10:7-15
*LITURGICAL COLOUR*
GREEN
*INTRODUCTION*
Good morning dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate Thursday of week 14 in Ordinary Time, Year A.
*ABOUT OUR FIRST READING*
There is a very emotional scene in today’s first reading. Joseph learns from his brothers that his father Jacob, whom he had presumed to be dead, was in fact alive. When Joseph then revealed his true identity to his brothers, they were speechless when they discovered that the brother whom they had presumed dead, because they had thrown him into a pit, was alive and standing before them. Joseph’s brothers had good reason to think that he would now turn against them, as they had turned against him. However, Joseph realized that God had kept him alive for this very purpose, to preserve the lives of his brothers who were facing famine in Israel, ‘God sent me before you to preserve your lives’. Joseph recognized the purpose of God in all that had happened to him, including the terrifying experience of being left for dead by his brothers some years earlier.
*FROM OUR GOSPEL READING*
In the gospel reading, Jesus sends out the twelve on mission so that he can work through them for the benefit of others. They are to proclaim the same message Jesus proclaimed, ‘the kingdom of heaven is at hand’, and he empowered them to do the same life-giving work he had been doing. The Lord wants to work through all of our lives.
*CONCLUSION*
The Lord wants to work through all of our lives. Sometimes, as in the case of Joseph, it is only looking back that we can see how the Lord was present in our lives, how he was working through our lives, even in those moments when, at the time, we thought he had abandoned us because life was so difficult. The Lord is with us always, working for our good and the good of others, even in those times when he seems to be absent. As Paul says in his letter to the Romans, ‘all things work together for good for those who love God’.
Give thanks to the Lord for He is, For His Mercy endures forever.
Fr Deotacious Chikontwe SMA.
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