FIRST READING
Amos 2:6-10, 13-16
Thus says the LORD:
For three crimes of Israel, and for four, I will not revoke my word; Because they sell the just man for silver, and the poor man for a pair of sandals. They trample the heads of the weak into the dust of the earth, and force the lowly out of the way. Son and father go to the same prostitute, profaning my holy name. Upon garments taken in pledge they recline beside any altar; And the wine of those who have been fined they drink in the house of their god.
Yet it was I who destroyed the Amorites before them, who were as tall as the cedars, and as strong as the oak trees. I destroyed their fruit above, and their roots beneath. It was I who brought you up from the land of Egypt, and who led you through the desert for forty years, to occupy the land of the Amorites.
Beware, I will crush you into the ground as a wagon crushes when laden with sheaves. Flight shall perish from the swift, and the strong man shall not retain his strength; The warrior shall not save his life, nor the bowman stand his ground; The swift of foot shall not escape, nor the horseman save his life. And the most stouthearted of warriors shall flee naked on that day, says the LORD.
RESPONSORIAL PSALM
Psalm 50:16bc-17, 18-19, 20-21, 22-23
R. (22a) Remember this, you who never think of God.
“Why do you recite my statutes, and profess my covenant with your mouth, Though you hate discipline and cast my words behind you?”
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
“When you see a thief, you keep pace with him, and with adulterers you throw in your lot. To your mouth you give free rein for evil, you harness your tongue to deceit.”
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
“You sit speaking against your brother; against your mother’s son you spread rumors. When you do these things, shall I be deaf to it? Or do you think that I am like yourself? I will correct you by drawing them up before your eyes.”
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
“Consider this, you who forget God, lest I rend you and there be no one to rescue you. He that offers praise as a sacrifice glorifies me; and to him that goes the right way I will show the salvation of God.”
R. Remember this, you who never think of God.
ALLELUIA
Psalm 95:8
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
If today you hear his voice, harden not your hearts.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
GOSPEL
Matthew 8:18-22
When Jesus saw a crowd around him, he gave orders to cross to the other shore. A scribe approached and said to him, “Teacher, I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus answered him, “Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head.” Another of his disciples said to him, “Lord, let me go first and bury my father.” But Jesus answered him, “Follow me, and let the dead bury their dead.”
REFLECTIONS:
Have you ever been drafted for a special service
assignment away from home? Duty to country, kin, or church may call some
of us to leave our familiar surroundings in order to serve elsewhere. When
the Lord Jesus announced that the coming of God's kingdom was imminent,
he urged his listeners to not only heed his teaching but to follow in his
footsteps as well. Jesus had a mission to accomplish and he wanted disciples
who would join with him in proclaiming the coming of God's kingdom.
One prospective follower, a scribe who was an expert in the law of God,
paid Jesus the highest compliment he knew. He called Jesus teacher. Jesus
advised this would-be follower: Before you follow me, think what you
are doing and count the cost. A disciple must be willing to part with
anything that might stand in the way of following Jesus as Teacher and
Master. Another would-be disciple responded by saying that he must first
bury his father, that is go back home and take care of his father until
he died. This disciple was not yet ready to count the cost of following
Jesus. Jesus appealed to the mans heart to choose for God's kingdom first
and to detach himself from anything that might keep him from following
Christ.
The Lord Jesus calls each of us personally to follow him as our Lord,
Teacher, and Master. He invites us into a personal relationship of love
and friendship, trust and commitment. The love of God frees us from
attachments to other things so we can give ourselves freely to God for
his glory and for his kingdom. It was love that compelled the Lord Jesus
to lay down his life for us. And he calls us in love to give our all for
him.
What can keep us from giving our all to God? Fear, self-concern, pre-occupation
and attachment to other things. Even spiritual things can get in the way
of having God alone as our Treasure if we put them first. Detachment is
a necessary step if we want to make the Lord our Treasure and Joy. It frees
us to give ourselves without reserve to the Lord and to his service. There
is nothing greater we can do with our lives than to place them at the service
of the Lord and Master of the universe. We cannot outgive God in generosity.
Jesus promises that those who are willing to part with what is most dear
to them for his sake will receive a hundred times as much and will inherit
eternal life (Matthew 19:29). Is there anything holding you back from
giving your all to the Lord?
"Take, O Lord, and receive my entire liberty, my memory, my understanding,
and my whole will. All that I am and all that I possess you have given
me. I surrender it all to you to be disposed of according to your will.
Give me only your love and your grace with these I will be rich enough
and will desire nothing more. (Prayer of Ignatius Loyola,
1491-1556)
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