Wednesday of the 7th week in ordinary time
James 4: 13-17 Mark 9: 38-40
Theme: God is all
In the 1st reading of today from the letter of St. James, he is admonishing us about the need for us to always put God first in everything that we do, because we are mere mortals and do not have power over what happens to us the next minute. This assertion reiterates what one of the founders of the Holy Ghost Congregation said. According to Fr. Francis Libermann, “God is all, man is nothing”. The mistake we make sometimes in our lives as humans is that we forget that our lives are in Gods hands and not in our hands. In whatever that happens to us, it is God that have the final say, so we must always be conscious of this fact. In view of this, St. James is admonishing us to always put God first in everything that we do, so that God will lead, and we follow. If we can practice this in our daily lives, we can never get it wrong, because God does not make mistakes, and he knows what is best for us. Remember, he knows your end from the beginning, unfortunately none of us have such power. We are all encouraged to always work with the will of God, since everything is dependent on him.
In the gospel reading of today from St. Mark, Jesus points out the fact that he who is not against him, is for him. What he was simply doing in todays gospel passage was to teach John the inclusive nature of our call to discipleship. We are all called as children of God to spread the good news of Christ, it is not limited to only the followers that we know. As many that are positively disposed to be used by God as a worthy instrument in the vineyard of the Lord, he will give the opportunity. Jesus is admonishing all of us as his followers today, the same way he admonished John, he who is not against us is for us, do not stop anyone from preaching the good news or doing the work of the kingdom of God. The assertion of Jesus is still very relevant in our own time, when some people feel some other persons are not qualified to be bearers of the good news, because of one reason or the other. We fail to understand the fact that the way of God is different from our human ways.
It is important to note that we are dealing with a God who does not give up on his children. He is the same God that gave so many saints we celebrate in the church today another chance at life. Saints like St. Augustine of Hippo, St. Paul and so many other saints. The sincerity of our heart matters a lot to God. May the Lord bless the words in our hearts, in the name of the father and of the son and of the holy spirit, Amen. Peace be with you.