The danger of Dissatisfaction.

Homily for April 4, 2017.


Every sin is an act of rebellion and rebellion begins with dissatisfaction. To rebel is to challenge authority and demand for certain privileges or benefits which one feels deprived of.

When Adam and Eve were tempted, Satan said certain things to them that made them unsatisfied with God such that they started feeling God was keeping certain privileges away from them and that God was not allowing them enjoy their full potentials.

Look at the words of the serpent: “For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” “So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate; and she also gave some to her husband, and he ate.” Genesis 3, 5 to 6.

The dissatisfaction of Adam and Eve is the same dissatisfaction we often feel that leads us to rebel against God. This is the same dissatisfaction the people of Israel felt during their journey in the desert as captured by our first reading this morning:

“And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” Numbers 21:5. Imagine calling the manna God fed them with a worthless food?

Check out any country where you hear of rebels fighting the authority. Why are they fighting? They want more! They feel something precious is kept from them and they want to demand for it by all means.

For instance, when God says: “thou shall not commit adultery”, a commandment that demands chastity, we get to a certain age and we begin to regard purity as “worthless food,” we become dissatisfied.

We feel cheated, we feel God must be so unfair in restricting us and keeping away “pleasures of life” from us. This is why we rebel against God and indulge ourselves in unchaste acts.

We steal, we covert, we tell lies and so on just because we are never satisfied. Just as rebellion led to the death of many in Israel, sin destroys us. The fiery serpents God sent on the people represents what we incur on ourselves by being dissatisfied God and his commandments!

By accusing God of depriving us of certain things we think we should have, we question his love, we question his wisdom and even his ability to give us the best. And our dissatisfaction brings sorrow.

But then, that is not the end of the story. There is Good news. The people came to their senses and repented. They said to Moses: “We have sinned…!” When they realized their faults, they cried to God for mercy and he pitied them by asking Moses to make that bronze serpent to be a SIGN.

As powerful as the bronze serpent was, it remained only a sign. Years later, we would realize the power behind that sign when Jesus came in the flesh. As he said in the Gospel passage “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am he.” John 8:28.

In other words, Jesus was the power behind the curative effects of the bronze serpent. This is why we have crucifixes in our places of worship, in our cars, on our desks, on our walls at home, even on our necks. We put the cross everywhere to remind ourselves, to lift up Jesus and constantly look upon him throughout the day.

Each time you look at the cross of Jesus, don’t just stare. Look with faith, look up and receive healing. We have so many fiery serpents biting us on every side, serpents we have brought on ourselves because of our sinfulness. We must look at the cross for healing, we must keep looking for direction, for wisdom and for freedom from the spirit of dissatisfaction.

Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, teach me to trust you by finding inner satisfaction. Amen.

Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Tuesday of the 5th Week of Lent. Bible Study: Numbers 21:4-9 and John 8:21-30).

Fr. Abu.


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