Monday of Week 15 in Ordinary Time
Isa 1:10-17
Mt 10:34-11:1
“…it is not peace I have come to bring, but a sword.”
When Jesus started his mission, many people thought that he, as the Messiah, would deliver them from the persecution of the Romans. They expected an army commanded by the Messiah, riding majestically on horseback into the Holy City to reclaim it. They expected to be free from their bondages and taxes. But the salvation that God had planned turned out to be so different from what people had expected. Instead of deliverance from Romans, it was deliverance from sin. It was hard for people to comprehend, having had one kind of expectation for hundreds of years. Furthermore, Jesus stunned the people by condemning the Pharisees publicly for their hypocrisy, lack of empathy and their burdensome traditions, instead of teaching and showing God’s fundamental principles of “justice, mercy, and faithfulness” (Matthew 1:36). This caused such an uproar amongst the religious of the day, and heated division that would result later in Jesus’ arrest.
The sword that Jesus mentioned in today’s reading is not the sword of war, but the sword of division. His teaching was considered ‘radical’ for the day; but, He did not come to do what was popular, but what was right. Indeed, He cautioned in the same line, that following His teachings would almost certainly guarantee division amongst families and friends. At the end of the day, we would have to make the choice of doing what is right by God or what is expected, or accepted by, people around us.
I would like to extend that understanding to include division within our own lives. Now, more than ever, our lives seem to be heavily influenced by social media. Influencers tell us how to live and how to behave, and there’s a ‘fear of missing out’ by having to post every single experience, meal, trip, and what-have-you. We are so busy taking videos and living life through our screens that we forget to live in the moment. We are moved to do and say the things that bring us ‘likes’ and views from people we don’t even know. We are so busy chasing the ‘popular belief’ that we are chasing God out of our lives. So, when it comes to choosing what God would have us do, it is likely not a popular way. No applause, no ‘likes’, no awards – just serving without seeking attention, helping without expectation of returns. The engagement is between God and us, including God who appears as those who are most in need – the poor, the downtrodden, those who can’t speak for themselves, those who are left behind. This too, is the cross that God wants us to pick up for ourselves. Leaving our old lives behind and choosing God is not an easy or natural thing to do, admittedly. It is so easy to say, but so hard to do, even we are surrounded by the things that comfort us and coddle us, including the ‘likes’ that give us a dopamine rush, the instant gratification that our minds crave.
God is not in that rush. God is in it for the long haul. The road is long and will be littered with barbs and rocks. Do we choose to stay divided within ourselves, or take the least popular route with him? Can we let go of the way we are living, to live the way that God wants us to live and serve? These are hard questions — but only in reflection and prayer with Him, can we find the answers.
(Today’s Oxygen by Annette Soo)
Prayer: Dear God, help us to shed our self-serving nature, lest we become like the Pharisees of old. Help us to see and serve those who are most in need, for You told us, “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.” It is in serving where we will meet You.
Thanksgiving: Lord, You have shown us the way we should live and serve, that we should love You with all our heart, soul, and mind, and that we should love our neighbour as ourselves. At the end of the day, love is the answer. Love is the way to serve. Thank you for showing us that.
OXYGEN 
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