(Is 1:10-17; Mt
10:34-11:1)
Our prophet for this Week is Isaiah.
We shall be meditating on his messages, and where possible, relate them to the
Gospel of the day. Isaiah prophesied during the days of Uzziah, Jotham, Ahaz
and Hezekiah, kings of Judah. His mission was marked by a series of crisis
caused by the military encroachment of Assyria. It is a lengthy prophetic
oracle, spanning through 66 chapters. Sit back, relax, as we journey with Isaiah
this week.
In today’s reading, Isaiah condemns
the sacrificial offerings presented before God. This is because the rulers of
Judah behaved like “the rulers of Sodom”, and the people behaved like “the people of
Gomorrah.” These were two cities known for their abominable acts. So, the
religious observances and sacrifices from such abominable hands cannot be
accepted. Instead, the prophet showed them the way to get their prayers
answered: “Wash yourselves; make yourselves clean; remove the evil of your
doings from before my eyes; cease to do evil, learn to do good; seek justice,
correct oppression; defend the fatherless, plead for the widow.”
In the Gospel, Jesus upsets the
minds of His audience by saying what no one expected to hear from Him: “Do not
think that I have come to bring peace on earth; I have not come to bring peace,
but a sword.” By using the first person pronoun, ‘I’, Jesus indicates the
authority that is contained within Him. And He continued to point to this
authority as we read along. What is this fire that Jesus is going to cast that
will bring division? It is love!
Ordinarily, love has an inherent
power to unite. But the lovers of Jesus must place Him above every other thing they
might love, including father, mother, brother, sister, etc. Thus, there will be
a friction between those who have not climbed the height of this love in Jesus
and those who are already there. To the extent that we choose and love Jesus,
there will be a sword of opposition.
We must take note that the love of
Jesus is at the centre of it all. He is the authority on which we stand. What
is worth giving up our lives for? Only Jesus qualifies for it! And He points to
Himself as the reason for our giving and receiving charity. “And whoever gives
to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple,
truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.”
Pause a while, imagine the
importance of Jesus in the life of the believer! In Him our sacrifice is
acceptable; our worship is true. So, when Isaiah says, ‘wash yourselves; make
yourselves clean’, it is in the precious Blood of Jesus that we are cleansed,
and made worthy before God. Let the fire of His love burn in our hearts; let the
love of Jesus consume our hearts, and lead us forward in all we do this week. Amen.
Fr Jude Chinwenwa Nwachukwu, C.Ss.R
Saints Peter & Paul Catholic
Church,
Tedi-Muwo, Lagos.
Monday July 13th, 2020.
