Sunday:       Twenty-ninth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Date:         October 18, 2015.
Year:         B
The readings: [Is. 53:4, 10-11; Heb. 4:14-16; Mk. 10:35-45]
The message:  Let us hold fast to our confession.
Prepared by:  Catholic Doors Ministry
Total words:  1199

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My brothers and sisters, through Jesus Christ, the true high priest, God's Throne has become the Throne of grace. So let us hold fast to our confession that Jesus Christ, our Lord, "being found in human form, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death - even death on the cross" [Phil. 3:7-8] so we may receive the mercy of God and be freely justified through the Sacred Blood.

So detestable are the sins of the world to the eyes and Divine Presence of God that they demanded nothing less than a perfect sacrifice to atone for them. "For our sake [the Heavenly Father] made [Jesus] to be sin, [He] who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God." [2 Cor. 5:21] Struck down and afflicted by God, Jesus bore our iniquities and carried our diseases, being made "the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world." [1 Jn. 2:2]

Yes my brothers and sisters, the horrible sufferings that were inflicted upon Jesus from the moment of His arrest until His death on the Holy Cross, He accepted them willingly for you, for me, for each and everyone of us, so that we may qualify to inherit the Kingdom of God.

On August 14, 1941, Saint Maximilian Kolbe died of starvation in the place of a young father so that he may live. We view this act of self-sacrifice as extremely beautiful Christian love. But what did the young father gain from it? He gained the normal life span of a human being on earth. What Jesus has done for each and everyone of us far surpasses what St. Maximilian has done for the young man. Through Jesus, we are not gaining the normal life span of a human being on earth, but eternal life in the Kingdom of God. Through the atoning Blood of Christ, the Heavenly Father will no longer remember our sins. [Is. 43:25; Ezek. 33:16]

If only sinners could perceive that "There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance." [Lk. 15:7]

My brothers and sisters in Christ, we sometimes ask ourselves, why does Jesus not answer prayers. We pray but we do not go to Church. We pray but we do not confess our sins. We pray but we do not receive the Living Bread in the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Not being in a state of grace, nor having the life of Christ in us, "We [should] know that God does not listen to sinners, but he does listen to one who worships him and obeys his will." [Jn. 9:31] Do we want our prayers answered? Do we want to be abundantly blessed by God? Then let us humbly submit ourselves to His Divine Will in servitude and obedience.

Christ who was truly God, was also truly Man, being born of the Virgin Mary. As a Man who never sinned, He endured the human nature and knows what we are enduring in this world, sympathizing with our weaknesses. As we are tempted, He also was tempted. [Mt. 4:1-11; Lk. 22:28]

Having overcome the world, He has been exalted before the heavenly Father to become our Mediator [1 Tim. 2:5] and our great high priest who intercedes before the heavenly Father on our behalf. Through Him, with Him and in Him, let us hold fast to our confession that He is our One and only true Lord. Let us turn to Him for Divine grace and mercy to overcome our human weaknesses.

During today's Gospel Reading, we heard how John and James upset the other disciples when they asked Jesus for the honour of sitting at the right and left side of His heavenly Throne. Teaching them to be spiritually minded, Jesus told the disciples, to become great, they be as servants; to be first, they must be a slave to all. Jesus Himself did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many. His example of perfect love is our example.

Allow me a few moments to tell you a short story of true love versus false love. A few years ago, in one of the major Western cities of Canada, there was an organization that collected clothing for the needy. The clothing was sold for pennies as a token of goodwill, such helping to pay a portion of the rent for the facility. The workers of this organization had the opportunity of experiencing the grace of God at work, seeing how hundreds and hundreds of christians supported the cause by generously donating clothing that helped those who lived on the street, the unwed mothers who needed baby clothing, the large families, the low- income families, etc... Many of the supporters, wishing to remain anonymous, left their bags of donated clothing at the door during the night. God only knows who these generous people were!

But, every now and then, someone would telephone and ask for a donation to be picked up. This required a volunteer to use his own time and pocket money to pay for the gas to pick up the goods. On one occasion, the bags of clothing were picked up only to discover that while they contained brand new men's shirts, the lady of the house had decided to cut off all the buttons, including the cotton around the thread that held the buttons. In other words, the shirts had become useless. And then there were those who had left their bags sitting in a damp corner of the basement or in their garages for months, the bags now being filled with bugs and moldy clothing.

In this kind of volunteer work as in many other worthwhile charities, it is easy to see who will be first and who will be last. It is easy to see who is serving others and who are serving themselves.

God did not write the rules for every circumstance. But He gave us a heart and He wrote His laws on it. He gave us faith so we can live by it and logic to ensure that our faith is sound. If we hardened our hearts, we cannot confess our faith. If we hardened our hearts, we cannot hear the Spirit of Christ whispering the laws of God within us. If we hardened our hearts, our logic becomes irrational. Our thoughts, our words and our actions become irrational.

This week, let us reflects upon our thoughts, our words and our actions. Are they confessing the Lord Jesus Christ in all things? Are we being thankful to the Lord Jesus for what He has done for us, giving up His life so we may inherit eternal life in the Kingdom of God? Are we servants and slaves to all so that at the end of our pilgrimage on earth, we will be worthy of being elevated in the Kingdom of God as a star that shines forever?

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The readings...

[The readings were taken from the New Revised Standard Version of the Bible (C) 1989 Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Church of Christ in the United States of America.]

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First Reading...

"It was the will of the Lord to crush him with pain. When you make his life an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring, and shall prolong his days; through him the will of the Lord shall prosper. Out of his anguish he shall see light; he shall find satisfaction through his knowledge. The righteous one, my servant, shall make many righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities." [Is. 53:4, 10-11]

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Second Reading...

"Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who in every respect has been tested as we are, yet without sin.

Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." [Heb. 4:14-6]

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Gospel Reading...

"James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came forward to Jesus and said to him, 'Teacher, we want you to do for us whatever we ask of you.' And Jesus said to them, 'What is it you want me to do for you?' And they said to him, 'Grant us to sit, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.'

But Jesus said to them, 'You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism that I am baptized with?' They replied, 'We are able.'

Then Jesus said to them. 'The cup that I drink you will drink; and with the baptism with which I am baptized, you will be baptized; but to sit at my right hand or at my left is not mine to grant, but it is for those for whom it has been prepared.'

When the ten heard this, they began to be angry with James and John.

So Jesus called them and said to them, 'You know that among the Gentiles those whom they recognize as their rulers lord it over them, and their great ones are tyrants over them. But it is not so among you; whoever wishes to become great among you must be your servant, and whoever wishes to be first among you must be slave of all. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.'" [Mk. 10:35-45]

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