HOMILY FOR MONDAY OF THE SIXTEENTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME, YEAR II (JULY 20, 2020)
Micah 6:1-4, 6-8; Ps. 50; Matthew 12:38-42

Seek to be Saved not Entertained
Jesus was accustomed to working miracles for people during his earthly ministry. Some persons came to him specifically asking for healing either for themselves of for their love ones, and he obliged them. In the gospel reading of two days ago (cf.Matt.12:14-21), despite the fact that they sought to kill him, he still went about healing all the sick that were brought to him.

However, in today’s gospel reading, he did not find it funny when some Scribes and Pharisees asked for a sign (miracle). What made their request different from that of others such that it did not go down well with Jesus?

First, other persons who approached Jesus for miracles, had a need for which they sought Divine Intervention. Most times, they were suffering from one ailment or the other. But in the case of the Scribes and the Pharisees today, there was not particular need at hand. So, they were not actually seeking Divine intervention. They did not approach Jesus with the faith that He is God; they probably came to find a case against him.

Consequently, there request for a sign was not a request to grow in the faith but a request to be merely entertained. They were like requesting for the “Season 2” of an interesting movie they had earlier watched.

Beloved, we may not be too different from the Scribes and Pharisees today o! When our quest for the Lord is not accompanied with a desire to draw closer to him, we become as guilty as the Scribes and Pharisees. Even when we approach the Lord with a need/problem, if we do not desire to grow in holiness through the Divine encounter, then as soon as we get what we are seeking for, we will walk away.

Jesus called them an evil and adulterous generation. This goes to show that God is not ready to entertain anyone; but he is ever ready to save all. When you go down on your kneels to pray, sincerely ask yourself: “am I asking to be saved or to be merely entertained?” Every Christian prayer, irrespective of its content, is meant to strengthen the relationship between the Divine and the human. Whenever we try to separate prayer from this relational aspect, we become guilty of spiritual contraception. Spiritual contraception hinders spiritual life. God Bless You!

Fr. Evaristus Okeke