Bible
Study: Hosea 8, 4 to 13. Matthew 9, 32 to 38.
When you consider the level
of evil in our society and even all across the world, when you see how human
lives are being wasted massively by the suicide bombers in Baghdad, Bangladesh,
Saudi Arabia and across the world, when you consider the millions of children
whose lives are now reported to be in serious danger as a result of a war that has
lasted almost thirteen years, your heart cannot but bleed.
Imagine, that since you were
born, you do not know what it feels like to walk freely across the street, to
play under the sand and dance in the rain. Now you are thirteen years and you
have never been to school. These children do not even know the meaning of the
word “politics” yet they have become the ground that suffers as the proverbial
elephants fight.
When Jesus saw the massive ground
approaching him in today’s Gospel passage, his heart was moved with compassion.
He could see their plight, he understood their condition and he knew what they
wanted. To be compassionate means, according to the latin roots of the word, “to
suffer with.” God suffers when he sees his children suffering. He suffers with
us. He doesn’t just pity us, he shares in our suffering.
The situation of the crowd
in today’s Gospel passage is no different from the situation of the millions of
refugees who have been forced from their homes across the world or the
situation of over 4 million children who are paying the price for a war they know
nothing about. How? The solution to their problems back then and even today is the
Gospel of Jesus Christ; the Gospel of Love, the Gospel of truth; truth about
who God really is.
If only this Gospel is
preached today to those hearts that are running off to tie bombs around their bodies,
those hearts that can afford to drive a bus loaded with all kinds of
sophisticated bombs, those hearts that have been so brain-washed about God, the
world would have known peace. But the question is: where are the people to
preach this Gospel? Where are the labourers?
The cry of Jesus is not just
about the fact that the people were dejected and harassed, his cry was that
those to carry the message, the people that God needs to use are not available.
All through Scriptures, when God works, he does so through people. God needed a
Joseph, for instance to become Prime Minister. He needed a Moses to tell Pharaoh,
“Let my people go.” He needed a David to stand up to Goliath and so on. But today,
the harvest is rich but the labourers, just too few.
There is a difference
between workers on site and the labourers. If you go to any building site or
any farm, you will notice a lot of people, some are standing, some are playing,
some are supervising, some are just there to sell food but it is only the
labourers that are doing the work. That is how it is in God’s work. There are
so many persons today who call themselves ministers but the actual labourers
are very few.
In our first reading, Hosea describes
the all-too-common situation of people who claim to be labourers but are not. He
says, they have multiplied altars but at the same time, they have multiplied sinfulness.
He says, they love to sacrifice, but God no longer delights in them, their sins
he would punish, and they shall return to Egypt.
Aren’t you surprised that despite
the sporadic and exponential increase in the number of churches in our society within
the last 10 years, evil has also increased? Why? Because truth has vanished
from the lips of our preachers. We are no longer labourers, we have now become
land-lords, architects or even food vendors.
Pray, my brothers and
sisters. Pray. Pray that God may send more labourers. Pray. Pray that God would
not just call people but that he should show your own portion of the labour as
well.
Let us Pray:
Lord Jesus, you said we
should pray. I pray for all those victims I see on the news everyday who suffer
innocently because of the lies that others have been told. Use me as you used great
men and women of old that I may labour for this rich harvest. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy public holiday.
No comments:
Post a Comment