Homily for May 23, 2018.
“Instead
you ought to say, ‘If the Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or
that.’ As it is, you boast in your arrogance. All such boasting is evil.” James
4:15-16.
St. James in
today’s first reading warns us against the vice of boasting in our personal
efforts and plans. As St. James puts it, we tend to make plans for the future
as if we are in charge of our own lives when in fact, we do not even know what
tomorrow holds.
This calls
for humility on our part; the realization that we are not in charge of our own
lives but mere dependent creatures. Yes, we are dependent on God. Recall, Jesus
himself said we are branches while he is the vine and cut off from him, we can
do nothing. Tomorrow doesn’t belong to us neither does it belong to those who
make the best plans.
Hence, as
the Psalmist says: “unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labour
in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in
vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the
bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.” Psalm 127:1-2.
It is
indeed a mark of arrogance for us to beat our chest and boast as though we are
gods. The word “arrogance” for me is a combination of “ignorance” and “pride.”
When you do not know something but think you know it and you want to shut
everyone else down, you are just being arrogant.
As James
admonishes us, whenever you are making any plan at all, ensure you involve God
first and foremost. And bear in mind that no matter how solid your plans may
be, they amount to nothing without God’s support. So begin by saying: “If the
Lord wills, we shall live and we shall do this or that.” Always have the
humility to realize that the will of God and not your own will must prevail.
In today’s
Gospel passage, the disciples of Jesus reported how they found a man who was
not even a disciple of Jesus casting out demons using the name of Jesus. They
forbade him for “practising without a licence” but to their surprise, Jesus
condemned their actions. He said: “Do not forbid him…” in other words, “the
fact that he is not one of us does not mean he is our enemy.”
This
episode teaches us that there is SO MUCH POWER in the Name of Jesus that it
really doesn’t matter who is using the name; the name itself works. As St. Paul
would say: “God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is
above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven
and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11.
Indeed, if
we must boast at all, there is only one name we can fully rely upon; it is the
name of God. Only God deserves such high level of confidence and trust.
Truly, it
is not the person who uses the name but the name itself that matters. If a man
who did not belong to the Apostles could use the name just because of his
faith, why do I think I must first be ordained in other to call on that name
with faith?
Secondly,
we learn that the fact that a person works miracles in the name of Jesus does
not mean he belongs to GOD. We should not get carried away into worshipping
people simply because God is working through them. If at the time of Jesus,
someone could be operating his own church by the side without even an atom of
training, we should not be surprised today to see millions of churches here and
there. That miracles happen does not mean a person is holy or a saint or some
supernatural human being, it only means that God still answers prayers.
Let God
have the glory he truly deserves. Let us stop focusing attention on the person
being used by God. Nowadays, you hear people say things like “help me thank the
God of Pastor so, so and so” … “praise the God of Fr. so, so, so.” We treat men
and women of God like gods yet we show no respect to God himself. This is the
irony of our time.
Thirdly,
the reaction of Jesus tells us the mind of God regarding division among
Christians. Jesus would not let his disciples forbid the man because he didn’t
want them to tag this man as an enemy. We must learn to accept and love our
fellow Christians even if they do not belong to our church, even if they do not
accept our doctrines. Jesus was on the side of religious tolerance. We too
should be tolerant.
Let us
pray: Lord Jesus, teach me to humble myself always and love my brothers and
sisters regardless of church affinity.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith.
It is well with you. God bless you. (Wednesday of the 7th Week
in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: James 4:13-17 and
Mark 9:38-40).
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