TOTAL COMMITMENT: NO HALF-MEASURE WITH GOD
Today’s readings invite and challenge us to become true Christian disciples of Christ with total commitment and no half-measure with God. You cannot be a Christian with certain preferences or conditions to follow God. If following Christ costs nothing then you are not a full or true disciple of his.
The readings challenge our sense of commitment to Christ and his gospel. There is no room for Half-hearted Christianity or Christians. With Christ, you instead give in all or you are out.
OUR THEME
Indeed, in the heavenly race, the cost of discipleship, perseverance and faithfulness to be a Winner, Champion or Overcomer required discipline, sacrifice and wisdom from the Spirit of God. These are the biblical themes of this Sunday’s readings.
We need to accept the challenge of Christian discipleship with heroic commitment and practice it not as a choice but as a fundamental decision. There is a simple fact here, without authentic commitment to Christ, his gospel and values. We cannot call ourselves Christians or followers of his.
FIRST READING: WISDOM 9:13-18
The first reading, taken from the Book of Wisdom Wis. 9:13-18, instructs us to ask for the gifts of wisdom, discernment and strength from the Holy Spirit so that we may do the will of God as His true disciples.
In other words, the Wisdom literature of today also invites us to allow the Wisdom of God, that is all-knowing beyond questioning, directing or counselling be our guide and direct us on our journey of life and faith.
A much-needed Wisdom to endure the crosses of life and to lead us to know and do the will of God.
SECOND READING: PHILEMON 9-10, 12-17
The second reading, taken from St. Paul’s letter to Philemon 9-10, 12-17, teaches us that detachment and renunciation are necessary for a true disciple of Christ.
As a responsible Apostle and zealous disciple of Christ, Paul had to renounce the service of his new helper, Onesimus and return him to his master, not as a slave but as a brother.
Hence, Paul intercedes for Onesimus before Philemon, asking him to receive him as a brother in Christ and no longer as a slave. This is one of the costs of following Christ, forgiving an erring person who may have deeply hurt us.
It is a reminder for us that it is the way of the fraternal love that we should have for each other. St. Paul assures us that with wisdom and discipline of life in Christ Jesus, human barriers can be overcome, the ice of un-forgiveness can be melted, and cultural and social barriers can be bridged. Philemon 1: 9-10, 12-17
THE GOSPEL: LUKE 14: 25-33
Today’s Gospel Luke 14:25–33 reminds us to count the cost of being a true disciple and follower of Christ because the cost is high. True Christian discipleship requires one to “renounce” ego or self, earthly possessions and human attachment.
In essence, Jesus invites his followers and us to set our priorities right, if we want to merit the Kingdom of God. It is a call that requires self-renunciation, persons, or things that might deviate us from the Person of Christ. It is a life of absolute and total commitment without counting the cost we have sacrificed for God, Christ, the Church or others.
FOLLOWING CHRIST HAS A COST AND SOME CONDITIONS:
1. We are called to a life of total renunciation of attachment to family and giving priority to God and His commandments.
2. The most fundamental challenge of today’s spiritual Christian life is breaking off from the excessive attachment to material possessions by leading a solitary life.
3. The willingness to carry the cross and follow Jesus, to sacrifice and die for Christ’s sake and the gospel. These are the hard consequences of discipleship which include daily sacrificial service done for others and even giving one’s life for them.
The cross of life and faith implies welcoming the pain and humiliation we suffer in professing our faith in public and in practising it in daily life, standing with Jesus, his ideas and ideals. Even when everybody that claims to be Christians stands against it.
4. Calculate the cost involved in following Jesus. Using the two parables of the tower-builder and the king defending his country. Jesus says: think long and hard about Christian discipleship before a decision is made to commit ourselves to Jesus in this full, life-long surrender.
A LIFE OF COMMITMENT TO CHRIST
Following Christ implies a deep life of conviction centred on the Holy Spirit. It is a life of all-in and no quitting mid-way. It is a life of discipline, perseverance and commitment to Christ and his gospels.
Therefore, we need to daily without giving up following Christ by the way of discipline. This is the cross of daily living and witnessing the Christian life.
(1) By daily recharging our spiritual batteries through prayer, i.e., by talking to God, and by listening to Him through our meditative reading and study of the Bible.
(2) By sharing in God’s life through frequent and active participation in the Eucharistic celebration.
(3) By practising the spirit of detachment and the renunciation of evil habits.
(4) By giving our time, talents and resources generously, for the Lord’s work in the Church universal, and especially in our parish community, relying on the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
(5) By loving all God’s children, especially the less fortunate ones, through humble, selfless acts of kindness, mercy, forgiveness, and service.
(6) By showing true commitment to the obligations and duties entrusted to us by our vocation in life and our profession, for example, by fidelity in marriage and priestly commitments. As well as a firm adherence to justice in our living and profession.
The challenge is can we say we are true followers of Christ in a deep sense of total commitment?
OUR PRAYER
Lord Jesus Christ, the church is supremely handicapped in the sense that there are so many distant followers of Jesus and so few real disciples who could sacrifice all including their lives for him. Yet, you call us to renounce family, friends, things, and even life to embrace the cross which leads to life. Help us to count the cost but not heed its burden as we labour to bear authentic witness to the gospel and the Christian life. Amen
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