Homily
for June 30, 2017
Propelled by faith, a Leper
boldly walked up to Jesus and said, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
Even though he was a leper,
his faith was stronger than his external condition. I will repeat this: Even
though he was a leper, his faith was stronger than his external condition. He
did not allow his circumstance determine the extent of his faith in God.
While the leper believed
that God was capable of doing anything, Abraham simply laughed when God told
him that his wife Sarai’s name would change and that the son he had promised
was going to come from her very womb. Abraham laughed because he felt that God
has already done his best with Ishmael and couldn’t do any better.
Like Abraham, we tend to
assume God is limited or that there are certain things he cannot do simply because
of the delay we face in receiving answers to our prayers.
When we examine the
statement of the Leper, we discover that contained therein is a powerful lesson
for us. This leper said: “LORD IF YOU WILL, YOU CAN…” In other words, if you
want to do it for me, you have the power to do it.
Willing a thing and doing it
are two different things. With God, all things are possible but if it is not
his will, it will not happen. God has power to do anything but such must be his
will first.
Recall, how Jesus prayed in
the Garden of Gethsemane during his agony? Was it the case that God could not send
legions of angels to deliver Jesus from the hands of Roman soldiers? Not at
all. But the will of God was for Jesus to die for us.
So, when we do not get
answers to our prayers, we should never assume God didn’t have the power to
grant our requests, we should just know that it was not in line with God’s
will.
Our unanswered prayers
should not lead us to doubt. Rather, it should make us more humble knowing that
God’s will is always superior to our own will. Yes, prayers may be delayed.
Abraham waited for 25 years before he carried his son Isaac in his hands. It wasn’t
the case that God could not answer him immediately, rather it was just God’s
will to wait for that long.
We pray that we may have the
unshakable faith of the Leper who believed God could heal him but still had the
humility to ask if that was God’s will.
Let us Pray: Lord Jesus, if
you will, save Nigeria from war, anarchy and religious oppression. Amen.
*Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Friday of the 12th Week in
Ordinary time. Bible Study: Genesis 17:1-22 and Matthew 8:1-4).*
Fr. Abu.
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