Let us go out – after all we are all sent – to carry the good news of Jesus Christ to the world!.
A homily from the Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time based on readings from
Job 7:1–4, 6–7, Psalm 147, 1 Corinthians 9:16–19, 22–23, Mark 1:29–39
These readings are available at the USCCB website.
“Woe to me if I do not preach [the gospel]!”[1]
It is easy to look at our reading from St. Paul this morning and say that St. Paul had a calling, that St. Paul was called to preach the gospel, that St. Paul had to go forth and witness to Christ. St. Paul had to preach the gospel, that is true, but it is not just St. Paul. We are all called to bring the gospel to the world. Some, like St. Paul, to go out to people across a wide territory. Some are called to go out to a parish. Some are called to help in this mission. Some, like you and me, are called to carry the gospel into our daily lives and to carry it to the people around us to make everyday life more and more Christ-like.
Preach the Gospel: A Universal Calling
For those of you out there who are thinking that coming to church on Sunday is enough, I am afraid you’ll need to think again. This might be a surprise. It might not be a surprise. I know that I grew up in an age where “Father” handled the religious stuff”. If you look back to the early church, that wasn’t the case. The earliest picture we have of church was people gathering in homes for liturgy, feeding the poor among them, and praying for one another. What we read about the first and second century Church paints a picture of regular people caring for one another spiritual and materially. That, along with their willingness to suffer for the faith, is what set Christians apart and why the Church grew so much in the early days.
Our mission as the people of God has not changed since then. We are still called to proclaim the good news to our neighbors. We are called to make everything in the world function “according to the plan of God”.[2] That is not a small job, or an easy job, but it is one we can do with God’s help.
We are all called, each in our own way.
Our question today is, “How is God calling you?” All of us are called to give witness to Christ in our daily lives. Some are called in very particular ways.
How is God Calling You to Preach?
For some who may read this, it may well be true that the tugging you feel in your heart is a call to the priesthood. It is worth asking for the Lord’s guidance, and seriously listening for the answer, perhaps even spending time before Jesus in the tabernacle or at Adoration. The life of a priest isn’t easy and not everyone can do it, but it is rewarding.
Any time you do what our Lord is asking of you, the burden is light! We need a few good men to come forward.
Perhaps you are called be a religious sister or brother. We are blessed here in my local parish to have religious sisters in our community serving our school and our local colleges. The calling to religious life places prayer and the gospel at the very center of daily life. A religious sister or brother makes their entire life a gift to our Lord, and that in turn becomes a blessing to all of us as well. I don’t think I have ever seen a more joyful bunch than the religious who serve us so well.
Then there are deacons, folks like me who have a career in the world and in the church as well. Deacons proclaim the gospel and preach it. They, in a special way, take the faith to the world and bring the faithful closer to the church.
Closing
“Woe to me if I don’t preach [the gospel]”[3].
That applies to all of us! I get to stand here and remind you of that fact and then help you along the way. You must take the gospel into your day to day lives. You are the ones who take the gospel into the workplace – both to the board room and the oilfield. This morning, some are called to be priests. Some are called to religious life. Some are called to be deacons. All of us need to answer the call and bring the good news of Jesus Christ to the world.
Let us go out to carry the good news of Jesus Christ to the world! After all, the world really needs it!
“Let us go out – after all we are all sent – to carry the good news of Jesus Christ to the world!”
[1] 1 Cor 9:16
[2] Catholic Church, “Dogmatic Constitution on the Church: Lumen Gentium,” in Vatican II Documents (Vatican City: Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 2011). §31. “But the laity, by their very vocation, seek the kingdom of God by engaging in temporal affairs and by ordering them according to the plan of God.”
[3] 1 Cor 9:16