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.