ORDINARY 3rd SUNDAY A
1st Reading = Isaiah 8: 23-9: 3
Psalm = 27: 1, 4, 13-14
2nd Reading = 1 Corinthians 1: 10-13, 17
Gospel = Matthew 4: 12-23
PEARL: GOD GIVES
Opening Remarks - Song:
Crystal Lewis wrote and recorded a song titled “Beauty for Ashes” based on the promises of Isaiah 61: 3-4. It’s a song that describes God’s contradictory nature for our benefit. Some of the lyrics are: “When what you’ve done keeps you from moving on. When fear wants to make itself at home in your heart, know that forgiveness brings wholeness and healing. God knows your need; just believe what He said. I once was lost, but God has found me. Though I was bound, I’ve been set free. I’ve been made righteous in His sight. A display of His splendor all can see.” The chorus is sung intermittently between stanzas: “He gives Beauty for Ashes, Strength for Fear, Gladness for mourning, Peace for Despair.”
Preacher’s Note:
If you have the voice for this, you may consider singing these lines or playing a recording of portions of the song.
Today’s Scripture readings present God as a contrarian who reveals his contradictory nature with restorative action. When the present circumstances of life seem overwhelming, when obstacles and stumbling blocks threaten to rob you of appropriating God’s healing and restorative grace, God, who knows everything and sees the future, has already mapped out a corrective plan that will lead you to victory.
Promises:
The opening verses of today’s first reading from the Book of Isaiah describe a situation that was a constant companion to the Israelite people. Certain regions of the northern kingdom of Israel, specifically Zebulon and Naphtali, were conquered by their fierce Assyrian enemy and incorporated into their provincial system. This was land across the Jordan (river) north of Mount Carmel called “Galilee of the Nations.” The result of this takeover brought a time of anguish, devastation, and gloom for the chosen people of God. But God had not abandoned them. Amid these captivities and bondages, prophets of the Lord lamented Israel’s plight and continually called them to a life of holiness. Although names, times, and places may differ, the repetitious pattern of their unwillingness to conform to God’s ways and the resultant devastations are clearly laid out in the Old Testament scriptures.
Yet, our first reading today offers a contradiction with words of hope and a promise of restoration, coming first through the reign of King David who, as a man after God’s own heart, led the people in battle and defeated all their enemies. The ultimate liberation for Israel and eternal victory for the world would come through the Messianic line of David, Jesus of Nazareth. It is in these events of history that God shows His power, love, mercy, and care.
Harvest of Blessings:
The prophet continues by proclaiming a harvest; a time of respite and relief of burdens where darkness, gloom and doubt give way to light, gladness and clarity (Isaiah 9: 2b). Perhaps for us, with uncompleted tasks from the previous year and new projects in the developing stages, it may seem too early in the New Year to speak of harvest reaping. But I’m calling on all kindred optimists (aka: believers in the Lord’s uninterrupted presence and unbroken promises) to join me in taking something off the table. Let’s reap the joy of being children of God and gifted disciples called to share in His ministry of saving love. Resist the yoke of burdensome worry, deadly sin, and complacency. Instead, reap merrily, rejoice abundantly, sing a new song gladly, glorify and praise God expectantly, and walk in His light unashamedly. We can break free from the yoke of past failures, old grudges, negative thinking, and useless worry that leads to despair. Don’t linger in the land of gloom or defeat; live with God on the mountain of joy (Isaiah 1b, 2a), and He will provide when the tests or trials come.
Consider, in what ways can you be a contradiction of hope to someone who is experiencing despair?
Moments of Grace:
It is all too easy for us to get caught up in the negative emotions surrounding current events, as reported by various news sources and rehashed on social media. Yet, we do this at the risk of missing opportunities to reflect on where God wants us to be in our faith journey and in our missionary expression. Worry and fear about things that could or might happen cause us to miss the good things that are happening in the moment with God present in our lives. Instead, we should avail ourselves of God’s promises through His word, take time to pray, sit before the Blessed Sacrament, and expend energy and human emotion on meeting the needs of others. In this way, we will be appropriating God’s grace for the moments we need it.
Beatific Vision:
An encouraging image for application of this principle comes from Acts 7: 56 where Stephen, surrounded by his angry accusers with stones in hand, was given the grace of a beatific vision. “…filled with the Holy Spirit (Stephen) looked up to heaven and saw the glory of God and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.” In an instant, before Stephen was to be stoned to death, God provided this gift of grace Stephen needed to endure martyrdom.
Hopefully, our moments of turmoil do not lead to martyrdom, but in whatever difficulties we encounter, God’s grace is there for us when needed. We may worry and fret about things that might happen and wonder if we will be able to handle them if they do. But worrying about future things or coming events and despair about not being able to cope denies the fact that when we regularly and consistently walk in God’s ways – trust and rely on Him in prayer, worship and faith building through practice of the sacramental life, read and study the scriptures reflecting on their meaning for us and making corrections and adjustments along the way in our lives to comply with God’s commands, as Stephen and the early disciples did, God supplies grace to endure in our time of need.
Persistence:
In the spring of 2015, a priest friend, knowing he would be walking over 400 miles on the Camino de Santiago, began training for the challenge a year before his trip. His training, among other things, involved walking every day on a local trail for 9 to 15 miles, carrying a 40-pound backpack, as the backpack he would use on the Camino would typically weigh 25 to 30 pounds. That daily routine he maintained for one year prior to the Camino event prepared him for the grueling trip he was about to undertake. After returning home and successfully completing the mission, he admitted there were times he doubted his ability to complete the full 400-mile Camino
Walk.
Of course, there were options. Take one of the shorter trails that didn’t require as much walking or rent a car, and drive for a portion of the way. Either would have brought him to the same destination. But each time he felt he could not go another step, a stranger would come alongside to encourage him on, and somehow (he attributes this to God’s grace and provisions), his energy kicked in to continue walking.
When struggles, sin, or temptation try to bring us down, we prevail against giving in and giving up by relying on God’s grace, the Sacraments, and a prayer partner to help us through. A suggested prayer for this New Year would be, “Jesus, I trust in you.” In our moments of fear, worry, and doubt, pray this prayer, slowly meditating on one word at a time: “Jesus, I trust in You.” Jesus = our Lord, savior, redeemer, and closest friend. I = this is a personal commitment between you and the Lord. Trust = willingness to completely subordinate your will to God’s will. In = there is no other name in heaven and on earth that contains such power. You = Much more than hoping against hope or wishing on a star – this is the true and living God we rely on.
Deeper “Yes”
Today’s Psalmist poses a rhetorical question, which points attention to the Lord. “The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear?” When we are enlightened by God’s word of truth and live by it rather than chasing secularly constructed solutions to satisfy the deeper longings of our hearts, God provides strength to overcome in the most trying moments of our need. Salvation is God’s gift of grace for those who remain in the state of grace lived out from communion to communion as we worthily receive Jesus' body, soul, spirit, and divinity in His Eucharistic presence. If uncertain of your worthiness, set it right through the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
“The Lord is my life’s refuge; of whom should I be afraid?” Our life on earth is filled with temptations; even Jesus had them in His 40 days in the desert (Matthew 4: 1-11). But it is through these temptations and fighting against them armed with the Lord’s word and unmerited grace that we grow in faith.
“Nobody can know himself unless he has experienced temptations, nor can he be crowned if he has not been victorious, nor can he be victorious unless he has fought, nor can he fight if he has not enemies (sins that plague us) and temptations” - St. Augustine.
Fear and distress could result in separation from God unless our earnest desire to dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of our lives is stronger than the lure of sin. Reject the sway of sin leading to death, embrace life, and believe you shall see the bounty of the Lord in the land of the living. Stephen Covey, author of Seven Habits of Highly Successful People, said, “It is easy to say, 'No' if there is a deeper 'Yes' inside.”
Harmony:
Paul admonishes the Corinthians to use their words cautiously. The same tongue can slander and destroy or encourage and build up. The former breeds anger and division; the latter, peace and harmony. Which do you think our Lord would have us experience? His call for unity and harmony takes a contrarian approach to the rivalries in the Corinthian community. Only by putting division to death can the body of Christ experience the sweet harvest of oneness in the Spirit. Be an uncompromising peacemaker, healer, and unifier amid rancor, and rejoice as others follow your light.
When the body of Christ sows malice, it empties the meaning of the cross.
Follow Me:
Isaiah’s prophecy from our first reading comes to fulfillment in today’s Gospel. With John the Baptist in prison, Jesus assumes the role of a prophet to prepare the way for God’s saving light to dispel the darkness of sin. Instead of calling disciples to follow them, rabbis in Jesus’s day let an eager aspirant approach them and request a teacher-learner relationship. But Jesus takes the contrarian approach by inviting four fishermen to reap the harvest of soul salvation. They would eventually do what he did: teach, proclaim the good news of the kingdom, and cure disease and illness among the people.
Closing Remarks/Questions:
Deacon Bill Vrazel, Diocese of Biloxi, owned and operated a fine dining restaurant on the Mississippi Gulf Coast until August 29, 2005, when Hurricane Katrina devastated it. During the clean-up process, Deacon Bill recovered a 14” high statue of Jesus he had in his office. The statue was intact except for both hands from the elbow down, and both legs from the knee down were missing. As far as I know, the statue still hangs in the dining room at the Dedeaux Retreat Center, where the Diocese of Biloxi holds Cursillo weekends. Deacon Bill added a caption that reads, “I have no hands but yours, I have no feet but yours, Jesus.”
How eager are you to be Jesus’s hands and feet in answering the call that has proven effective? “The harvest is abundant, but the laborers are few” (Luke 10: 2a). Hesitation and excess baggage can stifle success. With the call, the Lord provides every good gift and blessing needed for the task. Our job description is to follow; our duties are to imitate, and our compensation package is abundant life.
As we continue with this Liturgy, we pray for the grace to be a sign of contradiction to the ways of the flesh by the way that we live our lives.
