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reflections and guide

Ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time - Year A

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First Reading: Deuteronomy 11:18,26-28,32

Background/Context

Deuteronomy is the fifth and final book of the Pentateuch or the Torah. It is a series of sermons of Moses to the Israelites before their entry to the Promised Land. In his discourses, Moses recalls the Israelites’ relationship with God and appeals to them to be faithful to God, giving instructions on how to live their lives as God’s people.

Meaning

Moses reminds the Israelites that by experience, upholding and cherishing the Law brought blessing; ignoring the law brought a curse. And truly, throughout Israel’s history, the blessing brought security and abundant harvests, while the curse brought calamity and occupation by foreign peoples. The critical choice was one of loyalty to God. We, too, must decide if we are to walk with God, following his Commandments, or against God, contrary to His Commandments. If we decide to walk with God, we must put His words into our hearts and souls for our actions will naturally reflect what is inside us.

How to Proclaim

Put yourself in the sandals of Moses, the spokesperson of God. Time and again, you have to constantly remind people how to conduct themselves, at times, to the point of exasperation. Proclamation should be done slowly, with a firm voice of command but not angrily. Make a clear distinction between the blessing and the course

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Responsorial Psalm: REST LORD, BE MY ROCK OF SAFETY!

This intensely personal psalm is a petition for help and deliverance. It is also a psalm of faith, confident in God’s kindness and mercy.

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Second Reading:Romans 3:21-25, 28

Background/Context of the Reading

For the Jews, salvation is their birthright, given by their covenant with God at Mt. Sinai. As long as they obeyed the law, salvation, in the form of fulfillment of God’s promise of blessings and deliverance, was theirs. Some Jews gave a different meaning to this covenant; they thought that strict observance of the law merited salvation! Paul is now saying that we are all sinners, but because of God’s goodness, he has offered salvation to every person as a free gift.

Message/Meaning of the Reading

Since we are sinners, we cannot save ourselves and nobody deserves to be saved. But God loves us so much that he wants everybody to be saved. Since He is also a just God who cannot tolerate sin, Jesus’ death on the cross became the payment for our sins, making it possible for man to be forgiven. Thus, forgiveness and divine life is a grace from God, given free to whoever has “faith in Christ Jesus”. But this faith is so much more than merely believing and accepting this gift. The Gospel today will shed more light on what faith involves.

How to Proclaim

While proclaiming this passage, you must deliver these three important concepts to the assembly:

1. The relation and difference of justice and righteousness of God's and manmade laws

2. The fact that we all have sinned and need to be saved and

3. That Jesus is the only one who can save us.

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Gospel: Matthew 6:24-34

Background/Context of the Reading

A few verses before today’s reading, Jesus warned his listeners about false prophets who draw attention to themselves with their pious practices. Some, in their strict observance of the Law, literally wear it on their arms and foreheads (devout Jews wear phylacteries - tiny containers containing parchments where the important passages of the law were written). The reading today is Jesus’ conclusion to His Sermon on the Mount, challenging His listeners not just to listen to His Word, but to act on it.

Message/Meaning of the Reading

Jesus says that even if we listen enthusiastically to God’s Word, invoke God as patron, or speak, or even work miracles in God’s name, if we do not do the will of the Father, we are not heaven-bound. But what is doing God’s will? It is certainly not appearing to be pious and charitable when in our hearts, we are full of pride and have little concern for our fellowmen. Doing the will of the Father is listening to God’s Word and living in accordance with Christ’s teachings, a loving response to God’s own love for us. Often, God has a specific calling or mission for us. Discerning God’s will for us comes through knowing Christ. The word “know” involves an intimate relationship. Christ must “know” us, and He wants us to “know” Him.

Jesus ends his Sermon with the parable of the house built on sand and the house built on the rock. Our world is unstable, full of attractive but dangerous teachings, false prophets and broken promises. Too often, and too late, people discover that they have built their house upon the sand. Following God’s will and his commandments written in our hearts and reflected in our speech and actions, is how we build our life on the Rock which is Christ Himself. If we have an intimate relationship with Christ as we follow God’s will, we are assured that the rains of temptations and trials will not overwhelm and drown us.

In the second reading, we were told that our salvation comes from faith in Christ. Good works are fruits of a faith taken seriously. And because of this faith, we should neither be uncertain nor complacent about our salvation. Let us pray that we be like St. Joan of Arc, who, when asked if she were in God’s grace, answered, “If I am not, may God put me there; and if I am, may God so keep me.”, knowing her limitations as a human being but showing total confidence in God’s love.

Reflections

Do I worry that I am not doing enough to get to heaven, why?

How do we fulfill the will of the Father in our lives?

 

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