14th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C
"The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few; so ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers for his harvest," said Jesus in today’s gospel reading from the gospel of Saint Luke 10:1-12, 17-20 or 10:1-9 to remind us that our call to discipleship is all about working and laboring for the Lord in His vineyard. Last week, we were reminded of our call to be disciples of Christ by following him, by accepting his teachings and the doctrines of the Church and by assisting in the spread of his gospel in the world. Last week also, it was pointed out to us that in order to become true disciples of Christ, we have to detach ourselves from the world and earthly possessions, be truly dedicated and committed to God and we have to learn how to sacrifice our time, energy and lives for the greater glory of God and for spread of the gospel of Christ in the world. Yes, we are all called to become true disciples of Christ and we are doing so today to the best of our abilities and strength. But the fact still remains as we all know, that being a disciple of Christ in our world today is not that easy. Jesus in today’s gospel reading points out and emphasizes the challenges of true discipleship. Of course it is difficult to be a true disciple of Christ because of the challenges we face daily but do not forget that it is not impossible to be a disciple of Christ because with God everything is possible! So what challenges do we face or encounter as disciples of Christ?
Firstly, we are challenged by the Sacrifices we have to make in following Christ, accepting his teachings, living out his gospel, and going out of our way to proclaim him to others in our world today.
Secondly, we are challenged to be disciples of Christ because we will be Rejected for being disciples of Christ and we will be Discriminated against most of the time for saying ‘yes’ to God and for preaching the gospel of Christ.
Lastly, we are challenged today to be disciples of Christ because we will be Persecuted, Criticized, Cajoled and Disrespected for being disciples of Christ especially be because of his teachings and the doctrines of the Church by those we are evangelizing and sometimes even by those we are proclaiming the gospel of Christ with.
My brothers and sisters, it is not easy to be a disciple of Christ or to labor for the Lord in his vineyard but do not forget why you are a disciple of Christ in the first place. You are a disciple of Christ as Jesus stated and pointed out in today’s gospel reading because you have been sent to proclaim his gospel to the world; because you have been given the power to ‘tread upon serpents’ and scorpions and to conquer the full force of the enemy Satan and nothing will harm you; and because your name has been written in heaven.
