23rd Sunday of Ordinary
Time, Sept. 8, 2019. Gospel of Luke
14:25-43. Theme: Informed Consent
(No Audio Version, only Written Format)
When someone has a serious medical condition that requires
intervention to restore health, remove pain or even save life, it is required that
they be properly and fully informed about what they will undergo. This enables
them to make a good solid decision as to if they wish to go forward with the
treatment. They are made aware of all the
basic details, of the potential suffering involved and the benefit to be gained.
That way a patient cannot say “I had no idea of what I was getting myself
into!”
Well today’s Gospel is very much the same in regards to our
spiritual health and life. It is like Jesus seeking our informed consent about
embracing Christianity, about what it means to keep our baptismal commitment to
live as his disciples. He is pointing
out to us very clearly the demanding and challenging conditions for following
him. And he is informing us that the benefit to be gained is the gift of
eternal life.
I do not think that any of us are in the dark as to the
conditions for discipleship that Jesus is laying down before us. Using
exaggerated language common for his day, he is informing us that we must give
our love and allegiance to him over that of our families, our possessions and
even our very lives. He is not saying that we are not to love ourselves, or our
families but that we are to love him more. Following Jesus with his cross means suffering
with him, bearing the potential pain of persecution, and sharing the ridicule
of rejection by those who prefer a materialistic self-centered life.
Jesus uses the example of the tower and the troops in
today’s Gospel to inform us that we need to honestly assess our readiness and
determination to follow him. A contractor should not set out to build a tower
unless he knows he has the funds to complete it. A government should not send
troops into a battle that it knows will be disastrous. In the same way, a
person should not say “yes” to following Jesus if he or she is not ready and
willing to take on the personal commitment and sacrifice required.
In laying out these conditions of discipleship Jesus is actually
reminding us that he is God. For no one
but God can ask for, deserve and expect such a drastic re-prioritization of our
lives. And it is only because he is indeed God that he can promise us with
certainty the gift of eternal life as a reward for having done so. So, having been fully informed we need to
each ask ourselves: are we still willing to proceed with living this way of
life called Christianity? Are we ready and willing to keep Jesus as the center
of our lives at any cost?
If our reply is yes, then we need to understand and embrace
what Jesus means by the word, disciple, which he uses and repeats quite often
in today’s gospel. “Disciple” literally means student, but it’s not exactly the
way we think of being a student today. For us 21st century Americans
a student is someone who attends school to accumulate information that will
enable him or her to lead a successful life. It is very self-focused,
self-oriented.
To be a disciple in the Christian sense of the word means
to be God-focused and neighbor-oriented.
A disciple is someone who commits to follow a Teacher, who memorizes the
Master’s lessons about God, life and relationships. The disciple observes his
Teacher’s actions, tries to integrate it into his own behavior. The disciple gives
the Master both respect and a place of honor in his life.
So, to be a Christian means to think and act like
Jesus. It means to enthrone him as Lord,
Master and King of our hearts and lives. It means that we take on a Jesus-way
of thinking, a Jesus-way of behaving, a Jesus-way of looking at God, life and
relationships. And then, after a lifetime of carrying the cross and renouncing
ourselves for the sake of love, we can receive the reward of everlasting life.
And that’s a benefit worth living and even dying for!
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