Twenty-first Sunday in Ordinary Time
Lectionary: 122
Reading I
Joshua gathered together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem,
summoning their elders, their leaders,
their judges, and their officers.
When they stood in ranks before God,
Joshua addressed all the people:
“If it does not please you to serve the LORD,
decide today whom you will serve,
the gods your fathers served beyond the River
or the gods of the Amorites in whose country you are now dwelling.
As for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.”
But the people answered,
“Far be it from us to forsake the LORD
for the service of other gods.
For it was the LORD, our God,
who brought us and our fathers up out of the land of Egypt,
out of a state of slavery.
He performed those great miracles before our very eyes
and protected us along our entire journey
and among the peoples through whom we passed.
Therefore we also will serve the LORD, for he is our God.”
Responsorial Psalm
Ps 34:2-3, 16-17, 18-19, 20-21
R. (9a) Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
I will bless the LORD at all times;
his praise shall be ever in my mouth.
Let my soul glory in the LORD;
the lowly will hear me and be glad.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
The LORD has eyes for the just,
and ears for their cry.
The LORD confronts the evildoers,
to destroy remembrance of them from the earth.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
When the just cry out, the LORD hears them,
and from all their distress he rescues them.
The LORD is close to the brokenhearted;
and those who are crushed in spirit he saves.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Many are the troubles of the just one,
but out of them all the LORD delivers him;
he watches over all his bones;
not one of them shall be broken.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord.
For the husband is head of his wife
just as Christ is head of the church,
he himself the savior of the body.
As the church is subordinate to Christ,
so wives should be subordinate to their husbands in everything.
Husbands, love your wives,
even as Christ loved the church
and handed himself over for her to sanctify her,
cleansing her by the bath of water with the word,
that he might present to himself the church in splendor,
without spot or wrinkle or any such thing,
that she might be holy and without blemish.
So also husbands should love their wives as their own bodies.
He who loves his wife loves himself.
For no one hates his own flesh
but rather nourishes and cherishes it,
even as Christ does the church,
because we are members of his body.
For this reason a man shall leave his father and his
mother
and be joined to his wife,
and the two shall become one flesh.
This is a great mystery,
but I speak in reference to Christ and the church.
Alleluia
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Your words, Lord, are Spirit and life;
you have the words of everlasting life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
Many of Jesus’ disciples who were listening said,
“This saying is hard; who can accept it?”
Since Jesus knew that his disciples were murmuring about this,
he said to them, “Does this shock you?
What if you were to see the Son of Man ascending
to where he was before?
It is the spirit that gives life,
while the flesh is of no avail.
The words I have spoken to you are Spirit and life.
But there are some of you who do not believe.”
Jesus knew from the beginning the ones who would not believe
and the one who would betray him.
And he said,
“For this reason I have told you that no one can come to me
unless it is granted him by my Father.”
As a result of this,
many of his disciples returned to their former way of life
and no longer accompanied him.
Jesus then said to the Twelve, “Do you also want to leave?”
Simon Peter answered him, “Master, to whom shall we go?
You have the words of eternal life.
We have come to believe
and are convinced that you are the Holy One of God.”
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
Just as Joshua presented the Israelites with a choice regarding whom they were to serve, we have also been presented with the same choice. It can be viewed as a sort of challenge; a test regarding how important our relationship with God actually is. It is formulated in a way to make us think about the relationship and how we as Christians are to approach God in our daily lives. How much time do we spend thinking about Him? How much time do we spend in conversation with Him? How much importance is given to Him when we are making decisions? These questions should be asked daily and should make up what is known as an examination of conscious. Where we find ourselves lacking is where we can then concentrate a greater effort until these areas are strengthened. Constant maintenance is the key to a more fulfilling life and one that is guided by God and not by us. The Israelites answered in the affirmative when they were asked if they would follow God. Even though this was the case it was not long after the death of Joshua that they disobeyed Him and started to drift away. With that they suffered. We too must always be aware of the consequences if we too follow suite and drift away from God.
There is good in everyone. It is impossible not to be in possession of good because we were all created out of love by God. It is what we do with that good which will be the key indicator of how it will benefit us or not. All of us are in constant danger of it being buried under a pile of dirt and debris as a result of us choosing bad things instead of things that originated from God. Every day will be filled with choices which will impact our experiences and our relationship with Him. The more we choose God then the easier the choices will be to make with the positive results becoming more evident. Old habits that brought us bad results can be broken and replaced with good ones that will benefit us throughout our lives.
Putting God first means that we have surrendered our will back to Him. We are no longer in control. This action takes strength and courage yet provides almost immediate relief. These characteristics are hallmarks of being a Christian. They also go directly against the expectations of society. When we put God first we put ourselves last regarding not only Him but also the needs and wants of all of our brothers and sisters. Acting on earthly desires is replaced with a selflessness that enables us to be free from the control of the temptation. When all those within the community conduct themselves in such a way then there is harmony and joy. The Apostle Paul presents this in His letter today. Being subordinate to one another puts Jesus Christ above everyone and everything. With no ulterior motives there becomes a shared existence with Jesus as the predominant force. Those who struggle against this manner of living immediately become noticed and either their actions are corrected as a result or they slowly detach themselves from the community thus also from God. It is a voluntary action of dismissal that involves an independent choice revealed through actions. The consequences are self-created and must be corrected if one is to remain. At the center of this is always love and it is through love that the right choice are realized. There is no need to lord over one another or force any action.
In the Gospel Reading today Jesus just challenged His followers, revealing that in order to receive eternal life they would have to eat His flesh and drink His blood; a foreshadowing of the Eucharist. There were many who could not accept what He said and walked away. There were no miracles and no divine revelation that could bring them back. They were presented with a truth that they could not understand nor accept. In reaction to this they abandoned Him. This is a struggle that epitomizes the war between the flesh and the spirit. There are truths that are grounded in spirituality and go against everything that we have seen and heard in the physical world. God’s ways are not our ways. God’s thoughts are not our thoughts. When doubt creeps in it usually has its roots in the physical where, possibly unbeknownst to us at the time, we just might be trying to seize back our will. Who are we to deny something that is coming from God? The evidence of God is around us. He has been at work in our lives and we ourselves are the most powerful evidence of this yet we can so readily step forward to deny ourselves and the work He has done. Just like His followers before, no miracles or revelation will be enough to change our minds. We have seized our will back; attempting to be gods ourselves instead of His children.
Jesus presents us with a choice that we will always have. We can accept Him and journey towards the Father guided by The Love of God or we can deny Him and just walk away. The reality is there nothing forcing us to accept what He is offering. He really has nothing to prove and really doesn’t benefit depending on what choice we make. He is kind of in the ultimate position where the choice we make either benefits us completely or destroys us completely. What He is doing is making an offer to us: He has the truth and He wants to give it to us because He loves us completely. This truth is for us. To take it means that we have joined ourselves to Him and we have the ability to be completely transformed as a result. The only struggle present is the one we might encounter because there is always the allure of not putting Him first. I can safely say that most, if not all of us, have experienced a time in our lives where He wasn’t first. With that in mind, the choice really isn’t a struggle at all….Is it?
Deacon Tom
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