Reading 1
Ez 28:1-10
The word of the LORD came to me: Son of man,
say to the prince of Tyre:
Thus says the Lord GOD:
Because you are haughty of heart,
you say, “A god am I!
I occupy a godly throne
in the heart of the sea!”—
And yet you are a man, and not a god,
however you may think yourself like a god.
Oh yes, you are wiser than Daniel,
there is no secret that is beyond you.
By your wisdom and your intelligence
you have made riches for yourself;
You have put gold and silver
into your treasuries.
By your great wisdom applied to your trading
you have heaped up your riches;
your heart has grown haughty from your riches–
therefore thus says the Lord GOD:
Because you have thought yourself
to have the mind of a god,
Therefore I will bring against you
foreigners, the most barbarous of nations.
They shall draw their swords
against your beauteous wisdom,
they shall run them through your splendid apparel.
They shall thrust you down to the pit, there to die
a bloodied corpse, in the heart of the sea.
Will you then say, “I am a god!”
when you face your murderers?
No, you are man, not a god,
handed over to those who will slay you.
You shall die the death of the uncircumcised
at the hands of foreigners,
for I have spoken, says the Lord GOD.
Gospel
Mt 19:23-30
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Amen, I say to you, it will be hard for one who is rich
to enter the Kingdom of heaven.
Again I say to you,
it is easier for a camel to pass through the eye of a needle
than for one who is rich to enter the Kingdom of God.”
When the disciples heard this, they were greatly astonished and said,
“Who then can be saved?”
Jesus looked at them and said,
“For men this is impossible,
but for God all things are possible.”
Then Peter said to him in reply,
“We have given up everything and followed you.
What will there be for us?”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you
that you who have followed me, in the new age,
when the Son of Man is seated on his throne of glory,
will yourselves sit on twelve thrones,
judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
And everyone who has given up houses or brothers or sisters
or father or mother or children or lands
for the sake of my name will receive a hundred times more,
and will inherit eternal life.
But many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.”
Meditation: Matthew 19:23-30
“Many who are first will be last, and the last will be first.” (Matthew 19:30)
A basic theological principle in Hebrew Scripture is that God always rewards virtue and punishes vice. As a corollary, people assumed that those who were wealthy must have earned that by living good lives, just as the poor, the sick, or the troubled must have reaped the consequences of having turned away from God.
No wonder the disciples were shocked when Jesus declared that a rich man will have a hard time entering the kingdom! He then made it even more vivid with the picture of a camel trying to squeeze through a needle’s eye. Some scholars think Jerusalem actually had a very narrow gate—the “eye of the needle”—through which a camel could pass only if his entire cargo were removed.
What cargo is impeding me from passing through the gates to which the Spirit is leading me? At first we may think about bad habits or material possessions that we anxiously safeguard. But more often than not, the offending cargo is more mental or spiritual in nature. I may be so accustomed to thinking of a certain person as my inferior that I fail to recognize the value of his new idea. I may be so bound to my orderly schedule that I have no time to respond to an unanticipated need—think, for instance, of the Pharisee and Levite hurrying past the victim on the Jericho road (Luke 10:29-32).
Every day the Holy Spirit gives us opportunities to taste the first fruits of God’s kingdom. We will see these opportunities as we unburden ourselves of the things we guard so jealously. He may invite us to pause and pray for a person who comes to mind. He may move us to help someone in need, whether by opening our wallets, our homes, or our hearts. Or he may prick our consciences about a harsh or judgmental attitude we have toward someone. It’s only as we are willing to lay down the “cargo” of our own agendas that we will find the grace to receive these invitations and say “yes” to him.
“Lord, give me the courage to put aside whatever is holding me back so that I can follow your way today. I want to pass through those gateways unencumbered, carrying only your love.”
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