REASON FOR OUR HOPE – 10th Sunday Ordinary Time, Year B
As Christians we have two sets of eyes and ears; our physical eyes and ears and our spiritual eyes and ears. Our physical eyes enable us to see the physical world. Our spiritual eyes enable us to see the unseen realities of God and eternal life. Our physical ears enable us to hear the sounds of nature and human life. Our spiritual ears enable us to hear the Lord in our life.
A lack of physical sight and sound limits the ability to take in reality. To be without any vital power is a handicap. If it is a great tragedy to be without the means to take in and perceive physical reality, it is a greater tragedy to lack the means to perceive the eternal reality of Christ and eternal life, that is to lack the eyes and ears of faith and hope. Without these a great part of reality is sealed off to the person. A woman who lost her son suddenly in an accident told me: “I would hate to think what would have happened to me if I had to face it not believing”. Without faith and hope there is no real way to make any sense out of suffering, and the meaning of human life.
All of us know we don’t always have 20/20 vision or hearing in our faith and hope. And we don’t always use the spiritual powers we have to see and hear the Lord in our lives. We know the need for continual growth in our life in Christ.
The presence and power of evil can blur our vision and restrict our hearing making the reality of God, Christ, and His presence to us and love for us less real and distant. The power of spiritual and moral evil is alive and well in the 20th century as it has been from the beginning and the time of the first fall of the human race recorded on the first pages of Scripture in Genesis. Humans begin to be afraid to see and hear the Lord. The devil had tricked the human race, and still works to do the same in every age of the human race. The struggle between good and evil goes on in the world and in the heart of every person.
The good news is that whatever forces work against the human race or any human person, there are means to overcome them eventually and certainly in eternity. Good is greater than evil. “With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption.” Our spiritual eyes and ears open to the Lord, and Christ’s achieved reconciliation and salvation of the world gives us great hope. “We do not lose heart because our inner being is renewed each day, even though our body is being destroyed at the same time…We do not fix our gaze on what is seen but on what is unseen. What is seen is transitory; what is not seen lasts forever.”
We know how important our physical vision and hearing powers are for the living of our human life. So too our spiritual vision and hearing, our powers of faith, hope and love are important if we are to live the life and victory of Christ in our life, and respond to His great love for us. We can see and hear and know the Lord and His will for us.
When Jesus’ mother and brothers came looking for Him and He was told they were outside, He told them some good news for all disciples who put their faith and love into life. “These are my mother and my brothers. Whoever does the will of God is brother…to Me.” Let’s fully use our spiritual seeing and hearing powers!
Comments