Seventeenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 109

Reading 11 KGS 3:5, 7-12

The LORD appeared to Solomon in a dream at night.

God said, “Ask something of me and I will give it to you.”

Solomon answered:

“O LORD, my God, you have made me, your servant, king

to succeed my father David;

but I am a mere youth, not knowing at all how to act.

I serve you in the midst of the people whom you have chosen,

a people so vast that it cannot be numbered or counted.

Give your servant, therefore, an understanding heart

to judge your people and to distinguish right from wrong.

For who is able to govern this vast people of yours?”

The LORD was pleased that Solomon made this request.

So God said to him:

“Because you have asked for this—

not for a long life for yourself,

nor for riches,

nor for the life of your enemies,

but for understanding so that you may know what is right—

I do as you requested.

I give you a heart so wise and understanding

that there has never been anyone like you up to now,

and after you there will come no one to equal you.”

Responsorial PsalmPS 119:57, 72, 76-77, 127-128, 129-130

R. (97a) Lord, I love your commands.

I have said, O LORD, that my part

is to keep your words.

The law of your mouth is to me more precious

than thousands of gold and silver pieces.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

Let your kindness comfort me

according to your promise to your servants.

Let your compassion come to me that I may live,

for your law is my delight.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

For I love your command

more than gold, however fine.

For in all your precepts I go forward;

every false way I hate.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

Wonderful are your decrees;

therefore I observe them.

The revelation of your words sheds light,

giving understanding to the simple.

R. Lord, I love your commands.

Reading 2ROM 8:28-30

Brothers and sisters:

We know that all things work for good for those who love God,

who are called according to his purpose.

For those he foreknew he also predestined

to be conformed to the image of his Son,

so that he might be the firstborn

among many brothers and sisters.

And those he predestined he also called;

and those he called he also justified;

and those he justified he also glorified.

AlleluiaCF. MT 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;

for you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.

R. Alleluia, alleluia.

GospelMT 13:44-52 OR 13:44-46

Jesus said to his disciples:

“The kingdom of heaven is like a treasure buried in a field,

which a person finds and hides again,

and out of joy goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant

searching for fine pearls.

When he finds a pearl of great price,

he goes and sells all that he has and buys it.

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net thrown into the sea,

which collects fish of every kind.

When it is full they haul it ashore

and sit down to put what is good into buckets.

What is bad they throw away.

Thus it will be at the end of the age.

The angels will go out and separate the wicked from the righteous

and throw them into the fiery furnace,

where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth.

“Do you understand all these things?”

They answered, “Yes.”

And he replied,

“Then every scribe who has been instructed in the kingdom of heaven

is like the head of a household

who brings from his storeroom both the new and the old.”

 

 

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 

We should have great joy knowing that Jesus Christ is in our lives. Walking with Him and living our lives by His precepts ensures success in all things that we do. It also ensures a wonderful life full of revelation and boundless love. These successes are not successes in human terms nor are the revelations and love restrained by human definition. Instead it needs to be understood that what we are guaranteed from Jesus Christ are things of a spiritual nature which will free us from the bonds of an earthly experience and instead usher us into a mystical experience which is far beyond anything we can expect from the material world. As Christians we have the understanding that God created the heavens and the earth; all things visible and invisible. When we acknowledge this then the barrier between the physical and the spiritual is removed and these two worlds can be experienced together as it was God’s plan for it to be that way in the first place. Any barrier that has been present between us and our God were ones that have been erected by us and not by Him. There is always the opportunity to have them removed by asking God to remove them and welcoming Him into our hearts and our lives. He is always waiting for us to ask Him to do this. He always wants us to do this. He loves us that much. A relationship and a life with Jesus Christ is the first step towards opening ourselves to God and this new life which is promised.

 

Wisdom is a combination of knowledge, understanding, and experience. All these qualities taken together bring a person to a higher level of awareness of everything that is happening internally and externally. This does not only apply to the physical things but spirituality as well. Everything is deepened by and through wisdom. That is why there are so many books dedicated to wisdom in Sacred Scripture and why it is also mentioned frequently throughout. Jesus Christ being the Word made Flesh is the centerpiece of all wisdom for it flows directly from Him into all of God’s creation. Being in right relationship with Jesus makes us receivers of wisdom and benefactors of all that comes with it. When the Word became flesh and came into the world it became a defining moment for all of God’s creation because Jesus Christ the Son of God and the Holy Spirit were revealed fully in relationship to The Holy Trinity. That event became the culmination of everything that came before in the entire history of creation: Wisdom revealed in all of its glory. Welcoming Christ into our lives welcomes wisdom in its entirety and we then have the capability of expanding it and applying it to everything that we say and do. It also completes us as God’s children. Setting aside what we think we know and receiving these heavenly gifts can only make our lives better as a result. 

 

God appeared to Solomon in a dream and offered Him anything that He wanted. Solomon asked for the gift of wisdom above any earthly desires. He wanted to rule the Jewish People rightly and justly but worried that He was too young and naive to do so. Understanding his limitations in comparison to the limitlessness of God and His greatness enabled Solomon to become a receiver of the Gift of Wisdom. He was known throughout history for his great wisdom and was arguably the greatest king in the history of Israel. When we humble ourselves before God and are open to Him we can also become receivers of the same thing. Spiritual Gifts will flow from God to us as a result.  The Apostle Paul tells us that, “ All things work for good for those who love God.” He explains that when we focus on God and welcome Him into our lives then we become a vehicle of His pure goodness and love. Our actions are not ours anymore. We walk with God and that becomes a great benefit for us and those around us.

 

It is plainly obvious how small we are in comparison to God but God really doesn’t care nor should we. It should be comforting to us that God knows all of us intimately. He knows all of our darkest secrets and our greatest successes. He does not want to judge us but instead wants to heal us and offer a pathway to redemption. God’s greatness might, at times, scare us and cause us to doubt: How can there even be a God? How can God love me and know me? God is here and He is ready to give us the greatest gifts imaginable if only we are open to receive them. Imagine a small child in the arms of its father or mother. There is complete trust and complete joyfulness. The only thing the child wants to do is experience the moment and the comfort that is offered by its parent. In reality it is very easy for a child to relax and enjoy existing in the moment when that moment is complete love. That is how God wants us to approach Him all of the time: relaxed and in the moment to experience pure love.

 

Jesus Christ offers us the vision of what type of relationship we can have with Him and with God. It is perfection. It is something that arguably we have sought for our entire lives but were distracted through our own free will and the temptations of the world. Treating God as our Father and Jesus Christ as His son who is guiding us on this great journey of life opens up a whole new world of experience and wonderment that is beyond anything that we could ever comprehend. It is up to us how we treat it and how we allow the experience to influence our lives. We can easily dismiss what Jesus Christ is telling us or we can embrace it and cherish it like He wants us to do. The results will speak for themselves. With The Word of God and the teachings of Jesus Christ we are guaranteed a fruitful, beautiful life. With them we already know what that will lead to because we have experienced it already.

 

Deacon Tom

 

Sixteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time

Lectionary: 106

Reading 1

Wisdom 12:13, 16-19

There is no god besides you who have the care of all,
that you need show you have not unjustly condemned.
For your might is the source of justice;
your mastery over all things makes you lenient to all.
For you show your might when the perfection of your power is disbelieved;
and in those who know you, you rebuke temerity.
But though you are master of might, you judge with clemency,
and with much lenience you govern us;
for power, whenever you will, attends you.
And you taught your people, by these deeds,
that those who are just must be kind;
and you gave your children good ground for hope
that you would permit repentance for their sins.
 

Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 86:5-6, 9-10, 15-16

R. (5a) Lord, you are good and forgiving.
You, O LORD, are good and forgiving,
abounding in kindness to all who call upon you.
Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer
and attend to the sound of my pleading.
R. Lord, you are good and forgiving.
All the nations you have made shall come
and worship you, O LORD,
and glorify your name.
For you are great, and you do wondrous deeds;
you alone are God.
R. Lord, you are good and forgiving.
You, O LORD, are a God merciful and gracious,
slow to anger, abounding in kindness and fidelity.
Turn toward me, and have pity on me;
give your strength to your servant.
R. Lord, you are good and forgiving.
 

 

 

Reading 2

Romans 8:26-27

Brothers and sisters:
The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness;
for we do not know how to pray as we ought,
but the Spirit himself intercedes with inexpressible groanings. 
And the one who searches hearts
knows what is the intention of the Spirit,
because he intercedes for the holy ones
according to God's will.
 

 

Alleluia

Cf. Matthew 11:25

R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Blessed are you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth;
you have revealed to little ones the mysteries of the kingdom.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
 

 

Gospel

Matthew 13:24-43

Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:
"The kingdom of heaven may be likened
to a man who sowed good seed in his field. 
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. 
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. 
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
'Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? 
Where have the weeds come from?'
He answered, 'An enemy has done this.'
His slaves said to him,
'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
He replied, 'No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them. 
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
"First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

He proposed another parable to them. 
"The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed
that a person took and sowed in a field. 
It is the smallest of all the seeds,
yet when full-grown it is the largest of plants. 
It becomes a large bush,
and the 'birds of the sky come and dwell in its branches.'"

He spoke to them another parable. 
"The kingdom of heaven is like yeast
that a woman took and mixed with three measures of wheat flour
until the whole batch was leavened."

All these things Jesus spoke to the crowds in parables. 
He spoke to them only in parables,
to fulfill what had been said through the prophet:
I will open my mouth in parables,
I will announce what has lain hidden from the foundation
of the world.

Then, dismissing the crowds, he went into the house. 
His disciples approached him and said,
"Explain to us the parable of the weeds in the field." 
He said in reply, "He who sows good seed is the Son of Man,
the field is the world, the good seed the children of the kingdom. 
The weeds are the children of the evil one,
and the enemy who sows them is the devil.
The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels. 
Just as weeds are collected and burned up with fire,
so will it be at the end of the age. 
The Son of Man will send his angels,
and they will collect out of his kingdom
all who cause others to sin and all evildoers. 
They will throw them into the fiery furnace,
where there will be wailing and grinding of teeth. 
Then the righteous will shine like the sun 
in the kingdom of their Father. 
Whoever has ears ought to hear."
 

or

Matthew 13:24-30

Jesus proposed another parable to the crowds, saying:
"The kingdom of heaven may be likened to a man
who sowed good seed in his field. 
While everyone was asleep his enemy came
and sowed weeds all through the wheat, and then went off. 
When the crop grew and bore fruit, the weeds appeared as well. 
The slaves of the householder came to him and said,
'Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? 
Where have the weeds come from?'
He answered, 'An enemy has done this.'
His slaves said to him, 'Do you want us to go and pull them up?'
He replied, 'No, if you pull up the weeds
you might uproot the wheat along with them. 
Let them grow together until harvest;
then at harvest time I will say to the harvesters,
"First collect the weeds and tie them in bundles for burning;
but gather the wheat into my barn."'"

 

 

MY BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

 

We do not live in a perfect world. This is by no means the fault of God, but ours through Original Sin and free will. Turning away from God, we welcomed evil into this world. Created in God’s image, we continuously struggle with the temptation to be gods ourselves and to be masters of our own destiny. Even those who profess to be Christian or believe in some sort of higher power, are conflicted in their thoughts, self-justifying their focus on material things and the gaining of wealth, pointing out that these things can be considered gifts from God, even when the words of Jesus, “You cannot serve both God and mammon,” obviously say otherwise. Billions of people, living their lives while not even understanding where it came from or being thankful for being given that same precious gift. Chaos is defined as, “the inherent unpredictability in the behavior of a complex natural system.” The complex, natural system can be seen as God’s creation where there was complete predictability until we became its steward and then turned away from God.

 

God is perfect. What He created was perfect until we strayed and, since then, all His creation has paid the price. The good news is that there is nothing preventing us from repairing the damage that we have done, including within our own lives. Nothing that we say or do is permanent. We are not that powerful or important. Even more, we have an all-forgiving God that only asks for repentance and contrition. Psalm 51 says:

 

“My sacrifice, O God, is a broken spirit ;

a contrite and humble heart. O God you will not spurn.”

 

This is what God expects from us. The leveling of our pride, the surrendering of our free will, and the admission of our sins with an intent to go forth and sin no more.

 

Psalm 86 explains further,

 

“You, O LORD, are good and forgiving,

abounding in kindness to all who call upon you.

Hearken, O LORD, to my prayer

and attend to the sound of my pleading.”

 

We call and God responds. All the time. Our prayers are never ignored, and they are never left unanswered. We have a paraclete in the Holy Spirit to bring us wisdom, while we have an advocate in Jesus Christ. The way our God loves us and tends to our needs is unique and, at times, unbelievable to a point that we are more comfortable ignoring what God has to offer; choosing to continue our patterns of brokenness and rebellion up to the bitter end (which will be death in this life and the next).

 

The Apostle Paul tells us that the spirit of the Lord dwells within us and that it does for us that we cannot do for ourselves. This includes knowing what we truly want and need. Sometimes, we get in our own way and pursue things that are not in our best interest. These things are usually grounded in the physical and are the focus of one of our deeper, more carnal desires. God can see beyond these things and the Spirit has the capability to lift us out of our drudgery and back into the light; a new life transformed by the presence of God who loves us so much.

 

It must be remembered that there are forces working against us and God in this world. These are the weeds that Jesus refers to in His parable: people who serve this world and all its materialistic rewards. Living with us, these weeds represent all peoples who oppose us and God. We may live among them, but we never have to become like them. Though we might have interactions with them, we can remain separate and safe from them by keeping our focus on Jesus Christ and let the Spirit inside of us be our guide. Their presence should not be a surprise. All of us are aware of certain people in our lives that, sometimes through no fault of their own, are toxic for us and draw us further away from Jesus Christ instead of closer. This is where we must make a choice of what is better for us: a life with Jesus Christ and conducting ourselves rightly in relation to our relationship with Him, or a life with those who embrace things of the flesh, dragging themselves and anyone they join with to destruction.

 

Our faith and our relationship with Jesus Christ will guide us in the correct direction to avoid the pitfalls of this world, comfort us when we are sorrowful, and lift us up even higher when we are joyful. These positive actions will lead to other actions and will indeed help us grow. We become the mustard seed as we go forth building up the Kingdom of God here on this earth. There will be a point where some will be left behind. This will be because of their choices and ultimately a choice to embrace free will. We should choose against that and for an all-loving God who wants to participate with us in this this life of ours.

 

We gave everybody and everything a chance, what about God?

 

Deacon Tom