The Path God Call Us On
In the readings this weekend, God’s message is difficult both for those who heard it when he spoke it to them, and for us today.
In the first reading, the prophet Jeremiah addresses God strongly. He complains that his calling as a preacher is too overwhelming and gets him into trouble – and yet he cannot help but speak God’s word to others. Jeremiah tells us, when he does not speak God’s message, it becomes like fire burning in his heart, so he must share it with others.
Jesus speaks many challenging words throughout the New Testament. In the Gospel reading, Jesus explains to his disciples how he will suffer death, be buried, and then rise again on the third day.
Peter is baffled by these predicted events. He cannot help but protest, God forbid, Lord! No such thing should ever happen to you. Peter’s reaction reveals his love for Jesus and his attachment to human understanding. But, Jesus explains in reply, you are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.
It is easy for us today to be attached to our finite understanding of things, but God has a bigger vision for the lives of those who love him. Jesus invites us to think as God does and live beyond our human understanding.
When speaking to his disciples, Jesus explains that those who wish to come after him must live in ways that are difficult: Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.
In today’s second reading in Romans, the Apostle Paul repeats this call, urging his readers to give of themselves fully – body, mind, and spirit – in worship of God.
Paul’s message to the Romans and the message of the Gospel focus on the idea of sacrifice and self-gift. We are called to give ourselves to God in love, and to give of ourselves in a way that resembles God’s love. God’s love for us, perfectly expressed in the person of Jesus, completely surpasses our human understanding. This love, referred to in the Greek as agape, is the self-sacrificial and self-giving love that Jesus and Paul speak of. Self-sacrificing love is challenging, but as the example of Jesus shows, it is a true gift to the world.
We may find that the path God calls us to surpasses our understanding. But as we are fed in the Eucharist, God will give us the grace to hear and answer his call and to offer ourselves in love, even if that call challenges us in ways we are not expecting.
Deacon Michael Braun