Sunday 5th July 2020. Read Zechariah 9:9-10, Psalm 85, Romans 8:9-13 and Matthew 11:25-30.
“Come to
me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” (Matthew 11:28)
Our
Gospel passages in the last two Sundays were extracted from a message Jesus gave
while sending out his disciples in pairs to preach the Gospel in towns and
villages that He was later to visit. They were not to fear any human being but
only God who has the power to destroy both soul and body in hell. Also, they were
not to love anybody more than Jesus, not even their own mother or father or
children. It almost seemed like a suicide mission yet these disciples returned
with joy.
This
is where today’s Gospel passage takes off. Dear friends, are you currently faced
with a lot of trials? Is your heart burdened? Are you experiencing pain or loss
at this moment? Today’s message is for you.
Lesson
1: Know that God alone holds the Key to your Happiness.
As
Jesus puts it: “I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth that you have
hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to
infants.” What is this secret wisdom? In the words of St. Augustine: “You have
made us for yourself O God and our hearts are restless until they rest in you.”
In
sending out his disciples, Jesus told them, “Take no gold, nor silver, nor
copper in your belts, no bag for your journey, nor two tunics, nor sandals, nor
a staff.” (Matthew 10:9-10). In this way, Jesus wanted them not to put their
trust in riches or try to seek happiness from material things. Too often, we
assume that the more money (or riches we acquire), the happier we become. The disciples
must have felt this way but having followed Jesus’ instruction and returned
with joy, they discovered a great secret – that only in God can we find true
happiness.
Lesson
2: Put to Death all that is Sinful within you.
As
St. Paul says in today’s second reading: “we are debtors, not to the flesh… if
you live according to the flesh, you will die but if by the spirit, you put to
death the deeds of the body, you will live.” Truly, being worldly-minded,
living according to the flesh only brings about frustration. This is reflected
in the sadness of the rich young man who walked away from Jesus because he was
too attached to his wealth.
Jesus
referred to his disciples as infants because they displayed a childlike trust
and humility by obeying His instructions to the letter. When we fail to trust and
obey God, we become like the “wise and understanding” from whom secrets of the
kingdom are hidden. Of course, those who feel that they know more than God will
not follow his commands. Every sin is a rejection of God and an abuse of
freedom that God gave to us.
Lesson
3: Learn From Jesus – Forgive and Forget.
In
his joy, Jesus presents a special invitation to every one of us who may be
troubled, disturbed, harassed and dejected like sheep without a shepherd (Cf. Matthew
10:36). And what is this invitation? “Come to me, all who labour and are heavy
laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me. (Matthew
11:28-29) Coming to Jesus implies learning from Him. We cannot say we have
truly come to Jesus if we fail to learn from Him.
And
what do we learn from Jesus? Forgiveness (non-violence). To Peter who wanted to
fight for him on the night of His arrest, Jesus said: “Put your sword back into
its place; for all who take the sword will perish by the sword.” (Matthew
26:52). In other words, learning from Jesus is actually learning to forgive
others. Is it easy? No. Hence, Jesus refers to it as an easy yoke and a light
burden. Forgiving others may require you to swallow your pride and let go of
what has been taken from you but it remains the way to finding rest for your
soul.
Lesson
4: Learn From Jesus – Be Humble and Gentle.
In
a world where people would rather have their way by violence, Jesus wants us to
learn from his simplicity, gentleness and lowliness. As Jesus said: “Blessed
are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.” In our quest for happiness, we
often wrongly assume that we can be happy by lording it over others but Jesus
teaches us to do the opposite.
Our first reading today
states: “Behold your king comes to you; triumphant and victorious is he (yet),
humble and riding on an ass.” Humility is not a sign of weakness rather it is a
sign of courage and great inner strength.
Conclusion:
Leave it for God.
Stop
worrying over your problems. By worrying, we magnify our problems and God
appears lesser in our eyes. Be like Paul and Silas, sing instead. Sing the
praises of God as our Psalmist today exhorts: “I will extol you my God and
bless your name forever… the Lord is faithful in all his words… the Lord
supports all who are bowed down.”
Let
us pray: Lord Jesus, in my sadness and pain, support me O Lord. Amen.
Happy Sunday. Be Happy. Live
Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Fourteenth Sunday
in Ordinary Time. Year A. Bible Study: Zechariah 9:9-10, Psalm 85, Romans 8:9-13 and Matthew
11:25-30).
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