Monday of Week 23 in Ordinary Time
Col 1:24-2:3
Lk 6:6-11
“I put it to you: is it against the law on the sabbath to do good, or to do evil; to save life, or to destroy it?”
Is there love in obedience? Why do we obey?
Sometimes we obey because we are at the mercy of others. Other times it is because we have no choice. There are other times we obey so that we can eventually get what we want, like a transaction. There are also times where we simply obey so that we don’t make life difficult for ourselves. Is this obedience?
The Gospel today speaks of how Jesus cured on the sabbath, and this resulted in many being enraged by his actions. Reading this from a third party’s perspective, we clearly see how the scribes and the Pharisees didn’t understand the true purpose and reason for the teachings and the law. How many times have we ourselves got caught up in the ‘standards’ we need to live out by or produce, that we end up failing to love?
Whether in church, at the workplace or in school, we are faced with the expectations to ‘perform’ up to ‘standards’, to obey the rules, policies, teachings so that actually ‘we can just get our way’…you think?
Others manipulate such that the purpose and meaning behind the teachings and the laws become merely words that many will seek to get around, or even to break them. These become more of a hindrance and burden, leading to redundancy. We feel constricted when we have to do things against our will.
Today, God wants to reveal to us, that He has a plan for all of us, the history of the church and how we came to be, is filled with “hidden treasures of wisdom and knowledge”. That even the trials and tribulations are to “fulfil the Word of God”, where manipulations become manifestations, where “God willed to made known the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ and the hope of his glory within you.”
Brothers and sisters, we are not first called to obey; we are first called to love. In loving, we understand who God is, we understand His teachings and it is then that we believe that this is how we should live our lives; not because God says so, but because we know this is how we should live. There is no obedience anymore, but purpose, meaning, commitment, conviction and that was clearly demonstrated in the life of Christ — where He knew His mission and what He had to accomplish.
(Today’s OXYGEN by Benjamin Mao)
Prayer: Dear Lord, may you pour out on us your wisdom and knowledge, that we will better discover the hidden treasures in our lives. To know that our faith is more than words, to know our faith is alive. Lord, help us to live up to the highest standard, which is to love. To love our neighbour as ourselves and to love you. We pray that you continue to lead us towards our mission and guide us when we are distracted. Let not my will but Yours be done. Amen.
Thanksgiving: Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
OXYGEN 
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