SERMON/REFLECTION FOR MONDAY OF THE EIGHTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR II MAY 27 2024

SERMON/REFLECTION FOR MONDAY OF THE EIGHTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR II MAY 27, 2024

1Peter 1:3-9; Ps.111; Mark 10:17-27

Continuous growth towards perfection

There is no part of the Ten Commandments that directly ask that we give to the poor. So, it is easy to understand how the man who met Jesus in today’s gospel reading omitted that in his effort to live a good live. The fact that the man had lived by the commandments since his youth says something good about him. It means that he never depended on his possessions to guarantee him a happy and fulfilled life. Though he was rich, he gave God his due by keeping the commandments. So, when he asked Jesus: what must I do to inherit eternal life, he was not asking how much he needed to contribute so that Jesus will give him a sure ticket to heaven. Since this man lived so well, why then did he feel the need to ask Jesus such a question? Why was he not able to feel satisfied with the much he had been doing?

This goes to show to us that Christian perfection is attained in stages. It is like driving. When you are being tutored on how to drive, many lessons are given to you that you must bear in mind and appropriately apply when driving. But you will later realize that there are some other lessons that you were not taught while in driving school, but you learn them as you drive. This realization is a sure sign of growth.

We can liken this analogy to the experience of the man in today’s gospel. As a good student, who has been taught the tenets of the Torah, he remained faithful to keeping the commandments. He would never go against what he was taught. Where he was lacking however was that he remained on the level he was taught; he never discovered other pious acts by himself. He never did more than he was taught. Thus, he was really not growing in Christian perfection. It is this stagnation in Christian growth that propelled him to question Jesus.

When Jesus asked him to sell what he had and give to the poor, Jesus was inviting him to a higher level of perfection. But you see that this man was not ready to grow; for his countenance fell and he went away sorrowful. The disciples of Jesus were not judgmental about this man. They too understood that it is not easy to grow in perfection. But Jesus assured them that such growth is possible by the grace of God.

Beloved, have you felt the need to grow in Christian perfection? You may not be doing badly but you still need to grow. There is no room for stagnation in the Christian life. So, each day, we must continually ask ourselves: what more can I do. Like the rich man, we must present this question to the Good Teacher who alone can help us not only to know what more we must do but also give us the grace to do it.