THEME: ENTER BY THE NARROW DOOR
READINGS: Isaiah 66:18-21/Hebrews 12:5-7,11-13/Luke 13:22-30
21st Sunday in Ordinary Time
INTRODUCTION
Salvation or entry into God’s Kingdom is a free gift from God (cf. first reading). Yet, we have to strive to enter by the narrow door (cf. gospel reading).
- SALVATION IS MEANT FOR ALL
According to the first reading, God will “gather all nations and tongues; and they shall come and shall see [His] glory” (Isaiah 66:18). That is, God’s salvation is meant for all peoples (cf. Luke 13:29).
- BE DOERS OF GOD’S WORD
Whereas salvation is a free gift of God, we cannot be mere passive hearers of His Word. Hence, in the gospel reading, our Lord Jesus cautions those who think that merely dinning with Him and hearing His Word is sufficient for admittance into the Kingdom: “you will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ But he will say, ‘I do not know where you come from; go away from me, all you evildoers!’” (Luke 13:26-27). So, beloved, let us be doers of God’s Word.
- EMBRACE GOD’S DISCIPLINE
To act on God’s Word entails accepting His discipline. Hence, in the second reading, we are reminded that God sometimes disciplines us, as a good father would do to his child. God’s discipline may be in the form of a trial He permits us to undergo (cf. Heb. 12:5-7).
- DISCIPLINING OURSELVES
Besides embracing the discipline of God, we have to discipline ourselves. This is vividly captured by Jesus’ admonition that we must “strive to enter [heaven] through the narrow door” (Luke 13:24). To be able to enter a narrow door, we may have to drop our luggage, or go through it sideways, or even squeeze our body through it.
4.1 Dropping our luggage: We have to drop the luggage of sin, including unforgiveness, the worship of other gods and mammon. Regarding the last instance, our Lord said: “it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Matt. 19:24). Beloved, let us drop any of these luggage if we are carrying it.
4.2 Walking sideways: We may not be carrying any luggage but our “spiritual obesity” (i.e. pride or self-righteousness) may hinder our entrance through the narrow door. In that case, let us try to go through the door sideways. To enter through narrow door sideways is to renounce pride or self-righteousness and be humble.
4.3 Squeezing through: Our problem may be neither the carrying of an obstructive luggage nor “spiritual obesity”. It may rather be the lack of a positive effort to squeeze through the narrow door. The positive effort means striving to lead a virtuous life (being prayerful, honest, charitable, etc.).
CONCLUSION
Finally, then, may God grant us endurance for trials, the courage to drop our obstructive luggage, the humility to deflate our “spiritual obesity”, and the spiritual passion to always act on His Word. Amen!
By Most Rev. John Kobina Louis
