SERMON/HOMILY FOR THE SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT YEAR B 25TH FEBRUARY 2024

SERMON/HOMILY FOR THE SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT YEAR B 25TH FEBRUARY 2024

Gen.22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18; Ps.116; Rom.8:31b-34; Mark 9:2-34

“ _If God be for us, who can be against us?”_ (Rom.8:31b)

Repentance to the fullest!

In our reflection last Sunday, we realized that the devil is our enemy of spiritual progress, working hard to ensure that we do not embrace repentance in this season of lent. There are two ways the devil can go about this: by either discouraging us from repenting at all or preventing us from repenting to the full. The former happens to be the focus of the readings of today. The devil can watch us embark on the project of reconciling with God but still ensure that the reconciliation is never optimal. Repentance has a target, which is to love God with our whole minds, hearts, strength and everything we have. The goal of repentance is that God becomes the first in our lives for whom we are ready to let go of every other person or thing. The devil can allow you to repent but up to the point that God is the third or second most important person in your life; but not the first. If we are not careful, we may feel satisfied that God is highly placed in our lives without knowing that until God is the first, we have not repented enough.

Interestingly, our level of repentance will always be tested by the events of life. When minor events come testing if God is among the top 3 priorities of our lives, we will pass. But when THAT event comes that tests if God is the topmost priority of our lives, we will fail and our unrepentance will be glaring to our face. The goal of the devil is to mock us at such point because all the while we thought we had repented, we were making foolery of ourselves. The big question now is: to what extent am I ready to repent in this season of lent. Whatever is worth doing is worth doing well. If we are aiming to repent but not to the point where God becomes the topmost priority of our lives, we will soon come to discover that we did not really repent. The first and gospel readings of today, offer us some motivation.

In the first reading, the Lord who miraculously gave Isaac to Abraham after a series of encounters, tests and long years of waiting, now asked Abraham to sacrifice this Isaac to him. To sacrifice Isaac will not mean to dedicate him fully to God as Samuel was, but to kill him. If this happens, it would mean that God has taken back what he gave to Abraham; it will further mean that the joy of the Lord is not everlasting. In fact, it will change the whole concept and understanding that we have of God. Again, even if God wanted Isaac, why not take Isaac by himself? Asking that Isaac should die in the hands of Abraham was a way to slowly kill Abraham with the everlasting guilt of being responsible for the death of his only son. Let’s not even talk about what people would say about Abraham’s action. If it were in our time, people will easily conclude that Abraham used his son for ritual; little wonder he was very rich. They will blame/pity the wife for marrying a ritualist.

Coming to Abraham himself, we can imagine that though he was very rich, his wealth meant nothing to him without a son; in fact, he earlier lamented that a son of a slave will inherit his wealth. It therefore means that it was when Isaac came that he found meaning and fulfilment in all the wealth God blessed him with. Clearly, Abraham was grateful to God. Now, before the birth of Isaac, Abraham had already demonstrated strong faith in God; he left his father’s house for an unknown destination. On countless occasions he had hearkened to the voice to the Lord. There was no doubt that Abraham truly loved God. If so, why then did God still test him? If God needed more assurance of Abraham’s undiluted faith in him, why not test Abraham with any other thing other than the son of his old age? Was this test actually fair and necessary?

To sacrifice means to appease a higher being. Now, if Abraham is willing to sacrifice Isaac to God, it would mean that Abraham is ready to do ANYTHING for God. This will be a clear testimony that God is the topmost priority in Abraham’s life. The previous encounters God had with Abraham showed that God was a top priority; but by this very test, Abraham has proven that God is his topmost priority. If in love, God sent his only begotten son to die for us, it is not nonsensical for this same God to demand that we love him above every other person or thing. If our love of God has not gotten to this point, then our repentance has not reached the expected target.

In the gospel reading, Jesus took with him his three closest disciples to experience his transfiguration. While this was a manifestation of God’s glory, it was also a test for the disciples. What will they think about this manifested glory of God? Like Abraham, Peter passed the test when he said: “Lord, it is good for us to be here…” By this statement, Peter was saying being in the transfiguration experience was better than anything else. It became a topmost priority for him. From the point when he left everything to follow Jesus, he had demonstrated his utmost love for God; but by this statement, he was putting God first. Know this: God does not want to be present where he is not the first, because he has always and will always be the first.

Beloved, today many of us have proved and are proving our love for God in many ways: we are here in Church, we are giving our time, talent and treasure to the work of God; we take our prayer life seriously, etc. By all these we are showing that God is a priority in our lives. But there comes that one event that will test if God is our topmost priority. It could be sickness, childlessness, unexplainable misfortune, academic challenges, financial difficulties, spiritual challenges, etc. A practical example is the present economic challenge whereby the prices of goods and services increase hourly or daily. At such moments, we are forced to forget that we are Christians and seek help elsewhere; we are tempted to forget about what the bible says and manipulate the economic situation for our selfish benefit.

Some persons go to Church but cannot disassociate themselves from cultural practices that clearly negate the tenets of the Christian faith. But if we are able to hold firm and do not loose faith at such moments of our lives, we will be demonstrating that God is the topmost priority in our lives. See, it is true that you can always go for confession but then the ease with which we fall into sin shows the level of our repentance.

When like Abraham, we want to please God above all persons and things in our lives, we will surely be displeasing many persons and things. They will not be happy with us and would surely fight us. Do not afraid! In the second reading, St. Paul assures us that if God be for us, no one can be against us. There is no side effect in putting God first; this lent, let us repent to the level that God alone becomes enough.