Mercy Encountered in The Eucharistic Sacrament

11-09-2016 TWENTY-FOURTH SUNDAY OF THE YEAR (C).

SCRIPTURAL READING:

Exo. 32:7-11.13-14
Ps 51:3-4.12-13.17.19 (R. 15:18)
1 Tim. 1:12-17; Accl. 2Cor. 5: 19
Gospel Lk 15:1-32.

Preamble:

Dear friends please repeat these words after me;
Thank you Jesus for your word today, for your word is true, living and active Stay with me Lord Jesus as I give you my mind; help me understand your word.
Stay with me Lord Jesus as I give you my ears; help me hear your voice.
Stay with me Lord Jesus as I give you my heart; help me welcome you.
Holy Spirit, rekindle in me the fire of your love. Amen.

THEME: THE EUCHARIST: OUR SOURCE AND SUMMIT
TOPIC: MERCY ENCOUNTERED IN THE EUCHARISTIC SACRAMENT

The one desire of God is the reconciliation of man to himself. This act of God is not a one-of pilgrimage but a constant desire, a longing to be one with man for there is no sin of man greater than the mercy of the Lord. We might often think and feel God would condemn us, men may despise, condemn and reject us but God’s hands are always wide open to receive man.

The gospel parable as well as the first reading draws our attention to this endless fact. Moses is seen as one who intercedes on behalf of the Israelites which gives us a foretaste of the role of the priest in every community as well as a foreshadowing of the action of Christ on the cross of Calvary to die for us in order to intercede endlessly for us and to win our salvation.

Beloved in Christ, there is never a time we come into the presence of the lord that the Lord sends us parking rather we are often greeted with the peace of the Lord pronounced from the mouth of the priest. Peace of the Lord to the troubled heart, confused man or woman, to the sinner-the message is peace.

We experience the beauty of this message of peace each time we come into the presence of the lord, we receive and experience the eagerness of God to be reconciled with us first at the confessional and again at the table of the Eucharist where God allows himself to be in forms of transubstantiated bread.

In the sacrament of the altar, the Lord meets us, men and women created in God’s image and likeness (Gen. 1:27); and becomes our companion along the way. In this sacrament, the lord truly becomes food for us, to satisfy our hunger for truth and freedom. Since only truth can make us free (John 8:32), Christ becomes for us the food of truth since truth is the inner most desire of man.

The Lord Jesus, the way, and the truth, and the life, speaks to our thirsting, pilgrim hearts, our hearts yearning for the source of life, our hearts longing for truth. Jesus Christ is the truth in person, drawing the world to himself. Jesus is the model of true human freedom: without him, freedom loses its focus, for without the knowledge of truth, freedom becomes meaningless. With him freedom finds itself.

In the Sacrament of the Eucharist, Jesus shows us in particular the truth about the love which is the very essence of God. It is this evangelical truth which challenges each of us and our whole being. For this reason, the church, which finds in the Eucharist the very centre of her life, is constantly concerned to proclaim to all always that God is love. Precisely because Christ has become for us the food of truth, the church turns to every man and woman, inviting them freely to accept God’s gift.

The psalmist in Psalm 130:3-4 cries “if you Oh Lord kept a record of our sins, who could escape being condemned. But you forgive us, so that we should stand in awe of you.” The interest and desire of the lord is that you be reconciled with him. That is why again the word of God tells us in Luke 15:7 “there is greater rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner than over ninety-nine respectable people who do not need to repent.”

The mercy of the Lord flows from his love and the love of the lord for us is the Eucharist, the food of the divine that we may partake of it and experience the beauty of this mercy as well as feel the love of the father. But how sad it is that we often give a cold shoulder to the Lord’s invitation and swim in the pool of sin. Sin beloved in Christ obstructs our joy, kills our peace, destabilizes us spiritually, confuses and confounds us as well as keep us in bondage and drain us of any life of God which ordinarily should lead us to bear fruit.

Above all else, sin makes you spiritually, emotionally and mentally drained, you run out of spiritual strength and you lose your spiritual inheritance. It enslaves you and humiliates you.
We can capture the life of the prodigal son into three categories; 1. The introduction of sin or the enticement to sin; 2. The joy of sin which leads to destruction of the life of God in man, 3. The struggle to leave sin and reconciliation again with the father.

The introduction to a life of sin or enticement to sin: sins begins its enticement with what you so much desire. The prodigal son desired to be free and to acquire money. He has not earned it but he wanted it, he was selfish and self-centered, rude and unkind. He said, “give me,” not “please” nor “may I have.” He was sensitive to the feelings of the father. The father could be hurt and the estate could suffer from the loss of money and goods; it mattered little to the prodigal son.

The prodigal son didn’t want a controlled or a tamed life style, he didn’t want to be monitored or told what to do, he wanted a free life, a wild life, to do things those who were advanced in age do of course this was the enticement to a sinful life.

The joy of sin which leads to destruction of the life of God in man: proverbs 29:1 says “a man who remains stiff-necked after many rebukes will suddenly be destroyed without remedy.” Proverbs 28:14 says “Blessed is the man who always fears the Lord, but he who hardens his heart falls into trouble.”

The gospel passage todays describes the prodigal son as one who rebelled and revolted against his father and journeyed to a distant country. Note the word “distant country”-sin takes you away from the presence of God into a that region where it can destroy you-it is called “spiritual isolation” and that is one weapon of the enemy to isolate you from your family, to isolate you from that place where you enjoy spiritual cover and protection into a region where you will only find yourself struggling to breathe and garner strength in order to destroy you.

It feeds on your passion and with that passion draws you away from where you ordinarily would gain strength. That is why the word of God tells us in Luke 8:14 “the seed that fell among thorns stands for those who hear, but as they go on their way they are choked by life’s worries, riches and pleasures, and they do not mature”

The prodigal son chose a country that was drastically different from his father’s, a country that was full of carousing and drunkenness, partying and immorality, selfishness and greed, sin and shame, death and hell. The prodigal son enjoyed his seeming new life by living a worldly and fleshly. The result was that it destroyed him systematically. Once you are isolated, you would begin to enjoy the seeming new kind of useless life and then begin to experience a “systemic decimation.”

The prodigal son haven been spiritually isolated, he began to experience systemic decimation in 5 major areas.
He suffered being destitute: he spent everything. He squandered and wasted and misused his money, his property, his talents, his purpose, his opportunities, his mind, his thoughts, his hands, his body, his soul. He misused all these in the lust of his flesh.

The point is this: the prodigal had nothing on earth to help him. He had wrapped his life up in the pleasure and security of the world; but now, when they were all gone, there was nothing left to help him. He stood bare, empty, alone and destitute.

His destitution came from the fact that he had cut himself off from God and so the result was that he had no security from God. He was completely void of the confidence and spiritual strength that God would look after him and help him recover. He had not looked to God nor trusted and honoured God with his life and goods. Therefore he was destitute of all spiritual help, left out in the world all alone, having spent everything.

He suffered natural disaster: a famine struck. Since the prodigal son was all alone without God, he faced and suffered great loss without God’s care and help. The famine refers to all the severe trials and disasters in life because of the very nature of the world. It may be storm, sickness, accident, death. Whatever it is, it is disastrous and causes great loss. To overcome such one must be close to God.

He suffered enslavement and humiliation: since he was far from God, a man also away from God dealt dealt with him. Sin cripples you and makes you a slave. You become fearful, dejected, afraid, and lack confidence.

He suffered hunger: the world’s garbage (wild living) will always leave a man empty and hungry. The world, its pleasures and wealth and styles, will please the body but leave the soul empty. The world cannot permanently satisfy, fill, nourish, provide, supply, please a man rather it will leave a man dissatisfied, unfulfilled, unnourished, empty, unsupplied, displeased.
He suffered the loss of friends: the so-called friends who surrounded him when he had plenty deserted him. He became friendless and forlorn.

The struggle to leave sin and reconciliation again with the father: one truth that will always endure is that Satan and his agents don’t have the final say over your life. There is a time for dryness and tears but there is a time of healing, fruitfulness and inner joy and peace. Scripture tells us the prodigal son came back to his senses. Jesus considers a person away from God to be mad, insane, living in an unreal world.

Repentance is the beginning of sanity and reality, the very basis for building a sound life. Repentance involves a decision making to turn back to God and it is a sign of sincerity and the beginning of forgiveness.

When he came to his senses;

(i.) he thought to himself about his father’s enormous provision, his hired servants, and the father’s food which was capable of feeding all. He remembered the sense of belonging, of being a family and of fellowshipping together among all the servants of God, the great provision of love and joy and peace, of purpose and meaning and significance. His father had it all and more to spare.

(2.) He thought upon his plight: I am starving to death both now and the future. He was starving now meaning he was empty, lonely, unhappy, humiliated, and destitute, without purpose, meaning, or significance, without family or friend. He was doomed to starve, to perish eternally.

3.) He thought about humbling himself which involves repenting and confessing.

The prodigal son haven done all this, the father accepted him even before he confessed and restored him to honour.

This restoration is in four fold:

The robe: the father restored him to a position of Sonship and honour. It symbolized being clothed with the righteousness of Christ.

Prayer: This month and in the remaining part of the year, the lord shall take away the clothe of slavery, the garment of shame and disgrace and clothe you with the robe of honour and righteousness in the name of Jesus.

The ring: restored him to a position of authority. The son was now to represent the father and his kingdom.
Prayer: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, your spiritual authority and power and vitality that has been taken away from you through sin, the lord shall visit you in a special way and restore you with the ring of honour and authority in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The sandals: immediately restored and elevated him above servanthood, which means he became a free man. The son was now fitted with sandals to carry the gospel of peace wherever he went. John 8:32 says “then you will know the truth and the truth will set you free.”
Prayer: In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, whatever has enslaved you spiritually, and kept you bondage for so long a time, as you are in the house of the lord today, I pronounce freedom upon you as the lord restores you, repositions you, and sets you free from every bondage in the name of Jesus. Amen.

The “celebration” pictures reconciliation, full acceptance, and the great joy of the occasion. The father fed and celebrated his son’s return. He was fully accepted into the family and there was great joy and rejoicing over the son’s return.
Prayer: today as we lift our hands in the presence of the Lord, every promotion, contracts, joy and celebration that has been denied you, from today those doors have been thrown open and you and your household shall walk into the hall of fame and be celebrated and shall dwell forever in the season of joy, men and women shall rejoice with you in the name of Jesus.

The father pronounced his son’s new life-he was dead and is alive again. The father pronounced he was lost and is found.
Prayer: Today as your priest, I pronounce life upon you, upon that dead business, upon that child, man and woman that is confused, I pronounce life upon you in the name of Jesus. That area of your life experiencing dryness may the Holy Spirit pour his dew upon thee in the name of Jesus. Amen.

From today you shall not be regarded as a confused or useless person but you shall continually experience joy and peace and clarity of vision and abundance of joy in your life in the name of Jesus. Amen.