Theme: God loves you

Wisdom12:13, 16-19 Romans8:26-27 Mathew13:24-43

Today is the 16th Sunday of the year A in ordinary time. We see the love of God resounding in all the readings of today. God continues to show to you and I the depth of his love for sinful humanity. In the first reading from the book of wisdom, it presents to us the nature of God that we serve. A God that has no favorite, a God that breaks boundaries, a God that goes beyond frontiers, a God of justice and a savior, a forgiving God, a patient God, a  God that continues to present opportunities for us to repent from our sins and come back to him. God continues to put at our disposal his graces that will transform and make us a new person.

In the second reading of this Sunday, our belief on the Triune God comes into play. It talks about the spirit helping us in our weakness; the spirit that helps us to intercede, the spirit that guides our actions, and the spirit that directs that all we do. This is the spirit of God and this action of the spirit is prompted because of his love. It is this same love that continues to drive the spirit to stand on the gap on our behalf at all times to ensure that we live out our lives as children of God. We always have at our disposal that which will make us true children of God.

The responsorial psalm of today talks about our good and forgiving God. A God that stands by us at all times and forgives us each time we come to him with a repentant heart. He forgives us without counting the cost. He is always patient with us; he never holds things against us because every soul is important to him. The scriptures tell us that “He desires life but not death” for us all, and as a result of that, he continues to present to us his graces that will bring forth newness of life for you and I at all times.

When you look at the gospel reading of today, from the first parable presented to us from the gospel of Matthew, talking about the wheat and the weeds we have a lot to learn. In these three parables Jesus highlights different things about the kingdom of God. One thing that resounds from these three parables presented to us by Jesus in the gospel of today is the fact that the kingdom of God is attainable and is a necessity and we have to work for it. When we bring it home, especially looking at the first parable of today about the good seed that was sown and at night the enemy came and planted the bad seed. The master was asked, “Do we cut off the weeds?” Jesus said “No, we have to wait until the time of the harvest so that no mistake is made in destroying any of the wheat thinking it is weed.

We have a lot to draw from this parable. Bringing it home to our lives as human persons, it goes to show us the depth of God’s love for every soul. He does not want to destroy any soul. As a result of that, he says, “We will wait: this shows the patience of God.” And in reality that is how patient he is with us. Sometimes you and I hear people asking. Why do good people die early, yet evil men and women live to old age?

I think the parable of wheat and the weeds has something to say about that. It is simply because of God’s love for you and me. He gives us ample opportunity to repent from our sins because he does not desire our death; he desires that we attain life, life eternal. And as a result of that, he continually presents to us ample opportunity to turn away from our sins and return back to him.

Dear friends in Christ the Lord is inviting you and I to make honest and sincere effort to practice love in our lives. It will bring forth newness of life to us and all those around us.

We pray that God may grant us the graces we need to cooperate with him always and everywhere as his true disciples. Peace be with you. Amen.

Homily for the 15th Sunday in the Ordinary Time of the Year A, by Fr. Jude Ifezime, C.S.Sp