14^th SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

 

Readings: Isaiah 66: 10-14

                 Galatians 6:14-18

                 Luke 10: 1-12, 17-20

 

 

“The harvest is abundant but the laborers are few;

ask the master of the harvest to send out laborers.”

 

 

            Today, we proceed with the Lukan travel narrative, practically a continuation of last Sunday’s episode. Thus, we observe that after Jesus teaches about the meaning of discipleship (last Sunday’s gospel), he now appoints the seventy two and sends them ahead of him. But a closer look at the gospel invites us to its central theme which is the proclamation of the kingdom of God. Actually, therefore, the call to discipleship is relative to – and so be rightly understood in the context of – the announcement of the kingdom of God. Today’s theme gives us three realities that accompany such proclamation: one, the scarcity of disciples; two, the disciple’s right attitude towards positive and negative situations; three, the ultimate triumph of good over evil.

 

            1.         Any proclamation needs a proclaimer. This is true to the kingdom of God. But whereas the need is exceptionally bad, we know even from today’s experience of scarcity of proclaimers. If we compare the number of ordinations with the number of couples wedded every year, we discover a very sad and discouraging ratio. Perhaps the most humanly reason we often hear is that discipleship is just too difficult, and such difficulty consists precisely in the fact that the disciple’s life is unlike the ordinary and normal one at times, it even seems to run contrary to the normal demands of manhood. Thus, only a few take this road which is already less traveled by. This appears to be a valid observation, a valid reason. In fact, Christ himself hints it. That is why he admonishes: “Courage! I am sending you like lambs among wolves. Set off without purse or bag or sandals; and do not stop at your acquaintance’s homes.”

 

            But whereas this observation is true, he gospel suggests a much deeper reason for it. That is, discipleship is something God’s and not man’s. “The harvest is plenty but the workers are few. So, ask the master to send more workers to his harvest.” As we see, God is the owner not only of the workers but also of the harvest. This goes to say that God’s kingdom is just so great and immense that even the proclaimers are simply part of that kingdom just like the rest who may not be proclaimers by vocation but still are builders of the kingdom of God in and through many other ways. And since God is the owner of the workers, he alone can increase or decrease their number. Yet both the workers and the other builders of the kingdom can and must do one thing: “Ask the master!” meaning, pray! Most probably, the reason why we do not have enough disciples is that we do not pray enough. At times, instead of praying for workers, we fund it more easily to criticize them. With that we do destroy not only the workers but even the harvest itself!

            2.         Despite and because of this scarcity, the disciples are sent two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he himself was to go. As they sent, Jesus makes it so clear that they have to be right and firm with their attitudes and decisions over people and situations.

 

            a.         The disciples are messengers of peace. As the first Easter greeting of the risen Lord would be peace, so too must the disciples give their first blessings of peace. This peace manifests itself in brotherhood and charity. That is why the disciples become one with the people, act according to their ways and customs, and indeed, eating and drinking at their table. But together with the blessings of peace are the other concrete signs of the reign of God: healing the sick and casting out devils, among others. These signs that accompany their mission must not be denied and be found wanting to people who earnestly welcome the proclamation of God’s kingdom. For truly, to these humble people who seek the Lord with concrete hearts does belong the kingdom of God.

 

            b.         But to those who refuse to receive them and reject the good news they bring, the disciples are dispensers of woes. By their refusal and rejection, the people not only miss and waste this golden opportunity, but in fact maliciously desecrate God’s offer of love. In other words, it is sacrilegious. So, part of disciple’s responsibility as proclaimers is their sacred duty as defenders of the message. In cases like this, the true disciple does not only become a passive keeper of peace that has returned upon him. He must also show a definite act of counter-rejection by shaking off the dust from his feet in testimony against them. The disciple is not only a proclaimer of what is right. He is also a condemner of what is wrong. This is a matter of Justice!

 

3.         “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven…” The proclamation of the Kingdom of God must result to the ultimate triumph of good over evil. This is what Jesus himself foresees even at the beginning of the disciples’ mission. This reality must be so important that Jesus would not miss saying it. Sadly, this is more often overlooked even in today’s apostolate.

 

Working for God’s kingdom is too difficult, tiresome, unrewarding and sometimes self- destroying. This is the human face value felt by priests, religious, church people and those others engage in different works of and for the kingdom. They leave home and family for the sake of the kingdom. And sometimes, they leave without coming back. They simply perish while laboring in the harvest. But while they offer body and soul unreservedly, until now the cry for justice still echoes in the silence of their graves. This and other similar experiences make us wonder what we really are working for. Are we working for solid promises or simply deceived by false hopes?

 

Today's gospel poses as a great reminder that as nothing escapes from Divine Providence, good must certainly prevail over evil. Perhaps, by human standards God's justice is so slow. And surely it is. In fact, everything is just so slow for anyone who is in a hurry. This is makes the difference. Human as we are, we cannot help but behave like James and John who want to call fire from heaven right then and there. God's ways are not man's ways. And God has his own time, too. Perhaps, the dispensation of justice is not really that fast because the building of God's kingdom is not an overnight task either. Christianity has been working for it for the past two thousand years or so, but nothing so significant seems to happen since then. This world has not become a paradise-like. It even seems to have worsened. Yet, the final countdown is most decisive, and the gospel says it as a matter of surety: Satan must fall! This is the ultimate triumph of God's kingdom. This alone is already a consolation and a joy. But for those who labor for it, the cause of endless joy is not really this triumph but the kingdom itself: “Rejoice because your names are written in heaven.”