Fourth Sunday of Lent
Year C Readings
Lectionary: 33
Reading I
The LORD said to Joshua,
“Today I have removed the reproach of Egypt from you.”
While the Israelites were encamped at Gilgal on the plains of Jericho,
they celebrated the Passover
on the evening of the fourteenth of the month.
On the day after the Passover,
they ate of the produce of the land
in the form of unleavened cakes and parched grain.
On that same day after the Passover,
on which they ate of the produce of the land, the manna ceased.
No longer was there manna for the Israelites,
who that year ate of the yield of the land of Canaan.
Responsorial Psalm
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.
Glorify the LORD with me,
let us
together extol his name.
I sought the LORD, and he answered me
and
delivered me from all my fears.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Look to him that you may be radiant with joy,
and your
faces may not blush with shame.
When the poor one called out, the LORD heard,
and from all
his distress he saved him.
R. Taste and see the goodness of the Lord.
Reading II
Brothers and sisters:
Whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come.
And all this is from God,
who has reconciled us to himself through Christ
and given us the ministry of reconciliation,
namely, God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ,
not counting their trespasses against them
and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.
So we are ambassadors for Christ,
as if God were appealing through us.
We implore you on behalf of Christ,
be reconciled to God.
For our sake he made him to be sin who did not know sin,
so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Verse before the Gospel
I will get up and go to my Father and shall say to
him:
Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
Gospel
Tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to
listen to Jesus,
but the Pharisees and scribes began to complain, saying,
“This man welcomes sinners and eats with them.”
So to them Jesus addressed this parable:
“A man had two sons, and the younger son said to his father,
‘Father give me the share of your estate that should come to me.’
So the father divided the property between them.
After a few days, the younger son collected all his belongings
and set off to a distant country
where he squandered his inheritance on a life of dissipation.
When he had freely spent everything,
a severe famine struck that country,
and he found himself in dire need.
So he hired himself out to one of the local citizens
who sent him to his farm to tend the swine.
And he longed to eat his fill of the pods on which the swine fed,
but nobody gave him any.
Coming to his senses he thought,
‘How many of my father’s hired workers
have more than enough food to eat,
but here am I, dying from hunger.
I shall get up and go to my father and I shall say to him,
“Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you.
I no longer deserve to be called your son;
treat me as you would treat one of your hired workers.”’
So he got up and went back to his father.
While he was still a long way off,
his father caught sight of him, and was filled with compassion.
He ran to his son, embraced him and kissed him.
His son said to him,
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
But his father ordered his servants,
‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’
Then the celebration began.
Now the older son had been out in the field
and, on his way back, as he neared the house,
he heard the sound of music and dancing.
He called one of the servants and asked what this might mean.
The servant said to him,
‘Your brother has returned
and your father has slaughtered the fattened calf
because he has him back safe and sound.’
He became angry,
and when he refused to enter the house,
his father came out and pleaded with him.
He said to his father in reply,
‘Look, all these years I served you
and not once did I disobey your orders;
yet you never gave me even a young goat to feast on with my friends.
But when your son returns
who swallowed up your property with prostitutes,
for him you slaughter the fattened calf.’
He said to him,
‘My son, you are here with me always;
everything I have is yours.
But now we must celebrate and rejoice,
because your brother was dead and has come to life again;
he was lost and has been found.'"
MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,
We are all God’s children. So often that statement is used and said that there is a risk to take it for granted, not fully understanding what it means. We are created in His image and a part of Him dwells within us. Just as we are also the sons and daughters of our parents, a part of them being a part of us and binding us together, we are also bound with God. The difficulty that we can encounter is that this fact is not given the time or treated with the importance that it deserves. The acceptance of this has no weight in comparison to the expectations of society and the materialism of the world. In much the same way, those who brought us into this world and were responsible for giving us life, our parents, are easily taken for granted and minimized in comparison to other things. How many people do we know who speak of regret when one of their parent’s died, only realizing then that they wished to have a closer relationship with them? Do any of us have this feeling now? Time on this earth is limited, yet it is often taken from granted until an event such as death comes to pass. The good news is that there is always enough time when it comes to God, for He is not limited by it. He created it; thus, He is not bound by it. We too have this advantage, yet there is something to consider: If we are to experience true joy in this life, it must be through a path of redemption and transformation that includes a relationship with God that serves as both as a foundation and guide for us.
Life is progressive. Each day brings on new opportunities and experiences. Some would argue that one day can pass into another without any truly new things to see. This can be a danger to our spiritual health and state of mind. An illusion can be created that convinces us that everything is the same: we wake up, get our coffee, we might go to work, we come home, watch television., and go to bed. We can be so focused on the tasks at hand that we are at danger of missing the entire Dance of Creation around us and don’t realize that God is walking beside us on this journey of life and is trying to point out the wonderment of what is before us. So intent are we to accomplish things and garnish things in our lives that what really matters is passing away before us. Swept up in ourselves, we can focus too much on ourselves and our physical wants that what will truly benefit us is never really obtained. Even worse, we might already have it but, not realizing this, we become at risk of losing it.
The parable of the Lost Son brings these things into focus. The younger son demanded from his father his inheritance and then then left abruptly to squander what he obtained on the pleasures of the flesh. These things offered satisfaction and entertainment in the moment but, as with all things rooted in this world, quickly faded away. Even though they may have benefitted him momentarily, the moment passed. There are maybe some who read this that can relate, while there are many who may not. There are those of us who may work hard, provide for our families, and create a comfortable life for ourselves, much like the father did for his family. Yet, what type of satisfaction and long-term contentment does that bring? Society has trained us into a mindset that inspires us to work more so as to obtain more. There is no end to the encouragement to keep driving forward, offering pleasure and distraction in the moment to quell any feelings of listlessness. For each question of one’s status, an answer usually lies in a stimulating pleasure which serves as a distraction instead of a solution. The Book of Ecclesiastes says,
“What profit has man from all his labor, which he toils at under the sun?
One generation passes and another comes,
but the world forever stays.”
These words reveal a grim reality that the work that we produce with our hand based on a material end, regardless of what it is, is all bound for the same end that is finite in nature. The father, the elder son, and younger son all had something in common. They each chose a separate path, one involving pleasure and two involving hard work that produced at least some short-term results, yet they all converge into one reality: what is gained in the moment will not carry on forever into the future. What does continue into infinity is love. Starting with God’s love for us and our experience we can have with it, we can find true joy and true pleasure with the understanding that He is always with us. Even when we are not thinking about Him and are focusing on the wrong things at the wrong time, He is looking out over the horizon with expectation, waiting for our return and an opportunity to welcome us back home with a passionate embrace and a heart bursting with joy. Like a father holding a newborn child or a mother nursing her infant, He wants to care for us and provide us with our every need that will make us whole, healing us of our infirmities. Wherever we may find ourselves, He wants to make it better. There are no demands set upon us for this welcoming, only an open heart and a willingness to be nurtured by Him who created us. Ultimately, everything becomes better with Him instead of without Him. A greater truth is realized and an understanding of what is truly important results.
This serves as a lesson for everyone. Regardless of how we have lived our lives, there has been a point, is a point, or will be a point when we drift away from those whom we should love the most. This can occur by action or by an emotional absence. There can be a time of revelation though, when we realize where we are and what we were focusing on is wrong and detrimental to our well-being. It is then, at that moment, that we can make the adjustments necessary and return to the loving arms of God. The Apostle Paul says this most eloquently,
“Whoever is in Christ is a new creation:
the old things have passed away;
behold, new things have come.”
The past becomes the past, while a new life awaits when this realization occurs. We all have a new way of living available to us through, by, and in our Lord Jesus Christ. Everything becomes better through Him. An eternity of love, passion, and joy awaits us. It starts now with a realization: all things are better with God. We can then turn around and begin the journey home, realizing that there was no need to leave in the first place.
Deacon Tom
