THE MERCY OF GOD IS INDISPENSABLE FOR THE MISSION
Isaiah 6:1-8; Matthew 10:24-33
In the liturgy of the word this morning, the first reading enunciates the call of the Prophet Isaiah. An experience that reveals on the one hand, that Holiness is the essence of God, and on the other hand, the unworthiness of the Prophet Isaiah. It says: “I saw the Lord of Hosts seated on a high throne...above him stood two seraphs...and they cried out to one another in this way, 'Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of Host, His glory fills the whole earth” (Isaiah 6:2-3). Beloved in Christ, the triple repetition of the term 'Holy', in the invocation of God, guarantees that God is all-holy. His essence is holiness. The holiness of God facilitated Isaiah to acknowledge his unworthiness and his sin-stained state of life. In an overwhelming judgement, Isaiah declared, “Woe is me! I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and I live among people of unclean lips; yet my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts” (Isa 6:5). Friends in Christ, a sincere act of contrition made before God, invites the mercy, clemency and forgiveness of God, which invariably guarantees the holistic purification of the sinner. God once again cleanses the sinner and clothes him/her in holiness. “Then the seraph touched my mouth with it and said: 'Now that this has touched your lips, your lips, your guilt has departed and your sin is blotted out" (Isa 6:6-7). After having experienced the ever-loving mercy of God, Isaiah responded responsibly in submission to the mission of God. “Then I heard the voice of the Lord saying: “whom shall I send, and who will go for us? And I said 'Here am I; send me” (Isa 6:8).
Brothers and sisters in Christ, the mercy of God is an essentiality for the vocation of an apostle. The forgiveness of God confirms the holy and gracious state of the apostles for the mission. Without the mercy of God, the sinful state of man cannot guarantee the human person as the bearer or minister of the Holy Gospel. This is why in the sacrifice of the mass the act of contrition forms an indispensable part of the beginning of the sacrifice.
The Gospel reading of today is still within the narrative of the sending out of the apostles. Jesus warns his apostles of the opposition and misrepresentations they will face. For if he the master and teacher was subjected to these unwelcoming circumstances, what about the disciples. (Mt 10:24-25) However, they should remain unwaveringly witnesses to the Gospel. Jesus, therefore mandates his apostles to proclaim in the open the truth of the kingdom of God. “what I say to you in the dark, tell in the light; and what you hear whispered proclaim from the housetops” (Mt 10:27).
Dearest friends in Christ, having received the abundant mercy of God upon us, let us remain witnesses to the truth of the Gospel come rain, come shine. Using every apt means available to drive home the value of the Gospel to the doorsteps of the hearts and minds of our brothers and sisters.
May the grace abide with us both now and forevermore. Amen
Fr Remi osj
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