Becoming another Christ-HOMILY FOR WEDNESDAY OF THE 22ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME 6TH SEPTEMBER 2023

Becoming another Christ-HOMILY FOR WEDNESDAY OF THE 22ND WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME 6TH SEPTEMBER 2023

Col.1:1-8; Ps.52; Luke 4:38-44

Becoming another Christ

Today’s gospel is so concise and comprehensive. Virtually every line carries important theme about the life of Jesus which cannot but be emulated by every true disciple of Jesus. We shall now look into some of them.

 _Jesus arose and left the synagogue and entered Simon’s house_ – here we see evangelization. The Christian life is not limited to worship alone. Haven encountered God in prayer, we necessarily have to spread the fruit of our encounter to others. Without evangelization, the Christian life is fruitless. At every Eucharistic celebration we are reminded of this all-important obligation when the priest says in these or similar words: Go forth, the Mass is ended.

 _And he stood over her and rebuked the fever_ – not just Peter’s mother-in-law but all the sick that were brought to him. Here Jesus demonstrated his power over sicknesses and diseases. If we do not know and believe this about Jesus then we cannot be his faithful disciples. We must trust God to be able to handle the challenges of life that confront us. A popular quote says: those who leave everything in God’s hands, will see God’s hands in everything.

 _But he rebukes them, and would not allow them to speak_ – here we encounter the Messianic Secrecy. Even as Jesus went about his Father’s business, he never wanted his identity to be revealed so that the people’s accolade and worship of him do not distract him from fulfilling his mission. Today, often times, we want to remind people of who we are so that they are induced into granting us certain privileges and respect. Titles/positions mean nothing, it is what’s inside that counts.

 _And when it was day, he departed and went into a lonely place_ – here we encounter the necessity of prayer. Leaving the synagogue, Jesus goes to evangelize but he will not fail to always make recourse to the Father. If we must remain God’s mouth piece (servant), we must ensure we create time to hear from him. A river that forgets its source will dry off.

 _I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other cities also_ – here we are warned to guide against the temptation of sticking to comfort zones. It can sometimes be difficult to embrace a new focus from God because we have come to be very comfortable with our present focus. We want to remain around those who have come to see us as “great” due to our work amongst them. Effective evangelization means that we must continue to seek virgin lands to cultivate. Do not rest on the good you do today; ask God to show you something more to do. This could be difficult but bear in mind that God is always with us.

The gospel acclamation is very clear on this. Wherever the poor and the captive exit, there the Goodnews is to be preached.