Homily Twenty-eight Sunday Year B Wisdom to choose correctly
Homily
Twenty-eight Sunday Year B
Reading
1: What is the spiritual wisdom that the author is talking about? It is a gift of
the Holy Spirit enabling one to perceive things as God does, namely as they
really are. He asked for wisdom so that he may make the right judgment and
choice. He wants to value what is truly good and lasting and ultimately
beneficial to him in his relationship with God.
When
we are limited to ourselves and to our human wisdom, our view is limited and
blurred by many circumstances, feelings, memories, experiences. These color our
perception. But to see with the insight of God a given situation as it is here
and now is to have the best information to make the right decision. Wisdom is a
gift of God that I must be open to and seek after. The Psalmist says that the
fear of or awe before God is the beginning of wisdom.
To
be able to see as God sees I must first approach God as he is with awe, praise,
glory and thanksgiving that is due him. This wisdom comes to the extent there
is a right relationship with God.
Reading
2: The wisdom of God is not hidden from us. It is revealed to us in the Word of
God. The Word of God is given to guide, reveal, nurture, correct and judge us.
Jesus said: “I will not judge you, but my word will.” Isaiah said that the Word
of God is like rain that comes down from the heavens. It will not return void.
It will do the will of him who sent it.”
How
do we listen and respond to the Word of God? We will have to give an account as
to our reception and response to the Ore who revealed his word to us. To
receive the Word of God we need to pray for the gift of wisdom and then act on
his Word accordingly.
Gospel:
What was the one thing lacking? Jesus here identifies it as a lack. In another
encounter when Martha confronted Jesus about her sister Mary not helping her in
the household chores, Jesus said that Mary had chosen the better part. What was
lacking by the young man and what was chosen by Mary? Jesus, as the Lord of one’s
life! This is the wisdom of the first reading: to see what is essential and
important from God’s perspective and to prudentially act on it.
Keeping
the commandments can be a mere external obligation or it can flow from a
relationship with God. The Israelites in the desert, though they were told the
commandments and entered into a covenant relationship with God, that relationship
was not internal but external.
The
young man was doing the right thing, keeping the commandments. But when
challenged by Jesus to root this doing with being in a conscious, committed
relationship with Jesus as a disciple, he couldn’t. There was a block, his
dependency on his possessions. He couldn’t totally depend upon Jesus. He failed to realized what was impossible to
him was possible through the grace of God. Matthew, the tax collector, made a
different choice.
The
question that the Gospel proposes to us is have we sought what is God’s plan
for us, what is the wisdom of God? Have we chosen the better part? Is Jesus really
the Lord of our lives? Are we following him totally or conveniently? Do we have
to totally abandon all or make Jesus the center of all?
When
Jesus is the center of my life, the other things do not have the same impact or
importance in my life. Whether they are there or not is not the important
question. Rather whether Jesus is truly the Lord of my life is at the heart of
the Gospel message. To be a disciple was not enough. That was the first step.
To fall in love with Jesus is; life itself is not as important. I step aside for
the other and in the process become more complete and fulfilled.
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