5th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year B
"Brothers and sisters, If I preach the gospel, this is no reason for me to boast, for an obligation has been imposed on me, and woe to me if I do not preach it! ... I have made myself a slave to all so as to win over as many as possible. To the weak I became weak, to win over the weak. I have become all things to all, to save at least some. All this I do for the sake of the gospel, so that I too may have a share in it." These words of Saint Paul in his first letter to the Corinthians Cor 9:16-19, 22-23 are very important and powerful words to remind us of our call to discipleship. Jesus in the today’s gospel reading from the gospel of Saint Mark 1:29-39 re-echoes our call to discipleship and the need to go on preaching His gospel when He told His disciples, "Let us go on to the nearby villages that I may preach there also. For this purpose have I come." Do you preach the gospel of Christ? We as Catholic Christians have forgotten our duty of preaching the gospel of Christ in our world today. We have forgotten to be Christ to all, to the weak and the strong. We have forgotten that when we preach the gospel of Christ, we saves lives and bring others and ourselves closer to God. We have forgotten the recompense that awaits us for preaching the gospel of Christ in our world today and faithfully answering our call to discipleship. So why are we not preaching the gospel of Christ in our world today or why have we stopped preaching the gospel of Christ? There are many factors that have made it impossible for us to preach and proclaim the gospel of Christ in the world today. But the three major factors or reasons are as follows:
- Fear of what people will say when we preach the gospel or their negative reactions to us and the criticisms that will come our way for preaching the gospel of Christ.
- Our lack of knowledge of God and the teachings of the Catholic Church to preach to the world
- Insincerity in our lives as Christians.
Fear - what scares you the most in life, not making it to heaven to be with God after your life on earth or what people will say to you for living out and preaching the gospel or their negative reactions to you? Are you more worried about the criticisms of people towards you than your response to God on the judgment day or when you die?
Knowledge of God - as a Catholic Christian, what are you preaching to the world, your own gospel or the gospel of Christ? Do you even know what to preach to the world? Do you have enough knowledge on the Catholic faith, the gospel of Christ, the teachings and doctrines of the Church to go out and proclaim it to the world fearlessly and convincingly?
Insincerity - are you sincere and convinced about your faith and belief in God and the gospel of Christ that you can state like Saint Paul, ‘woe to me if I do not preach it? Do you really believe in the gospel of Christ you are called to preach? Are you convinced by the gospel of Christ you preach?
My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, with all the trials and persecution we are facing today as Catholic Christians, now is the time to stand up for our faith in God and go out to proclaim and preach the gospel of Christ. Let us not allow fear, criticism, lack of knowledge of God and insincerity stop us from answering our call to discipleship. Amen!
