Homily for the 19th Sunday of Ordinary Time, August 10, 2025. The Gospel of St. Luke 12:32-48. Theme: Have No Fear Little Flock…
Jesus says a lot of important things in just a few words in this Sunday’s Gospel. We don’t have to go any further than the opening line that says, “Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.” This short little sentence from Jesus contains a treasure-trove of hopeful promises that can totally transform the quality of our lives if we just take them to heart and do our best to live them.
The first promise is that we never need to live in fear. You know, I think it’s very interesting that Scripture scholars have said that the hopeful message to “fear not” is found in the Bible 365 times. It’s as if God doesn’t want us to go through a single day of the year without hearing His words of comfort! The rejection of fear has always been connected with Jesus, from His birth when the angel told the shepherds to “fear not” (Luke 2:10) to His Resurrection when the holy women were advised to “not be afraid” (Matthew 28:5), So we see that Jesus’ message is rooted in peace, in the call to reject fear. And since God never asks the impossible of us, we can put our trust in Him and lay claim to this promise by the help of his grace.
The second promise is hidden in Jesus calling us his “little flock”. These words of ownership and endearment reveal the intimacy of His gentle and compassionate heart. Nothing was more precious to a shepherd than his flock. He watched over every sheep within it even to the point of defending them with his own life. He will walk with us as our Good Shepherd, seeing to the proper care and protection of each one of us. There are so many things these days that can invade and disturb peace of heart and mind. Worry, panic, anxiety and the like can become so paralyzing that it robs us of the inner serenity and interior joy that God wishes us to experience and possess. But if we learn to trust and grow in the love that our Divine Shepherd has for us, we can more confidently reject fear because, as the Scriptures tell us, “perfect love casts out all fear.” (1 John 4:18)
The third promise is that we can find shelter and comfort in the Kingdom of God. Jesus once said that “the kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) You see, a kingdom is where the King lives, and so through our reception of Christ in the Eucharist and by our abiding in God’s Word, Jesus the King lives within us. He assured us of this promise when He said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him.” (John 14:23) This awesome reality should help drive out all fear from our hearts because we carry within us the Creator and Lord of all the universe!
So, we have great reason to have hope! When we find ourselves giving in to worry and we feel the old grip of fear beginning to tighten its hold on us, we can reach out for help, hope and strength in the words of our compassionate Lord Jesus: “Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom.” (Luke 12:32)
Jesus reaches out to us to pull us up out of the
threatening waters of fear and worry!