Commentary
Sunday, 7/9/2017, Fourteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time
The Humble King
First Reading Commentary Zechariah 9:9-10
The Easter season ended in May with the celebration of Pentecost Sunday. Since then, we have celebrated Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi Sunday, the Sacred Heart of Jesus, and the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul. Today, we continue our Sunday liturgy in Ordinary Time with the fourteenth week. But today's first reading makes us stop and meditate once again on Holy Week, Easter and why Christ came to save us.
Today’s prophecy from Zechariah points directly at Palm Sunday, Matthew 21:4 and John 12:14. Here and throughout the book of Zechariah, there are also connections to Revelations 6:1-2.
When Jesus rode into Jerusalem, He portrayed Himself as The King of Kings who was not a mighty king of this world but rather, He was a humble man who; came riding on an ass. The King of Kings did not and does not wage war against other kings here on earth nor does He set out to conquer. Instead, He proclaims peace to all nations.
Even so, His bow makes all other bows banish and that is because His dominion is the Kingdom of Heaven. The King of Kings is the Messiah who came to save us from the evilness of this world so that we might be with Him in His Kingdom.
The prophecy that we hear today from Zechariah is so specific about the event of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday that there should be no doubt that Jesus is the Messiah. Other parts of Zechariah’s prophecy give such an accurate account of John’s vision in Revelations that there should be no doubt that the dominion of Christ is Heaven. Refer to Zechariah 1:8-9, 6:1-8. And yet, there are those, who do not believe.
In today’s gospel, Jesus gives praise to the Father for hiding things from the wise and learned but revealing those things to the little ones. I say more about this in the gospel commentary but here is the mystery: things are hidden from those who do not believe and revealed to those who do believe.
Zechariah tells us to give praise by saying, “Rejoice heartily, O daughter Zion, shout for joy, O daughter Jerusalem!” It’s all about knowing that the Messiah came so that we can be with Him in His Kingdom. It’s all about having faith in the peace that the Messiah brings and allowing that faith to fill our hearts with joy and gratitude as we give God His praise.
The Trinity within Us
Second Reading Commentary Romans 8:9, 11-13
Today’s reading from St. Paul’s letter to the Romans points to what was promised by God through Ezekiel. But there is a twist. Paul tells us that we cannot please God if we are in the flesh.
Paul tells us that we are in the Spirit and in order to please God, we must have the Spirit of Christ. This may sound like double talk but think about it. God made us in His image and through Baptism; the Spirit descends upon us and lives within us. The question is, do we take the Spirit and allow the Spirit to work within us and through us?
Paul is telling us that if we do not allow the Spirit to work within us and through us, we do not have the Spirit and if we do not have the Spirit, we do not belong to Christ and therefore, Christ is not in us.
We cannot have one without the other. We cannot have the Spirit without Christ and we cannot have Christ without the Spirit. Why? Because, even though they are two different persons of the Trinity, they are both the same One God.
This means that the Father must also be with us. Paul tells us that when He says, “If the Spirit of the one who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, the one who raised Christ from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also, through his Spirit dwelling in you.” This is a proclamation from Paul of the Trinity within us.
Notice that Paul uses the words “mortal bodies.” That is because when we are raised on the last day, we will be raised body and soul. As Christ fulfills His promise of making all things new, we will be given a new life.
But Paul’s spiritual direction is not limited to the body. In fact, Paul’s message is about rejecting the sinful ways of the body so that our spirits can live. Paul says, “…we are not debtors to the flesh…For if you live according to the flesh, you will die, but if by the Spirit…you will live.”
When we allow the physical pleasures of the body which lead us into sin govern our lives, we kill the spirit. Therefore, when the body dies, so does the spirit. But we are all sinners and many of us commit the same sin over and over again. So how do we attain the righteousness which allows the spirit to live?
We rely on our faith and repent. We admit to our sins and ask God for His forgiveness. That is why Jesus gave us the sacrament of Confession.
Be Childlike and Don’t Worry. Jesus Has Our Backs.
Gospel Commentary Matthew 11:25-30
Jesus exclaimed, “I give praise to you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, for although you have hidden these things from the wise and the learned you have revealed them to the childlike…No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son wishes to reveal him.”
I love how Jesus often uses so few words to say so much. The first thing to notice here is that Jesus gave praise to the Father. This is one of many times that Jesus prays to the Father although we do not always hear what Jesus says to the Father. This is one occasion where we do. The only thing I am going to say is that if Jesus, who is God the Son, gives praise to the Father; it might be a good idea for us to do the same and when Jesus gives praise to the Father, He also sets an example for us to honor our parents.
It is the truth that has been hidden from the wise and the learned. Once again, we have to take the dictionary and throw it out of the window. To understand what Jesus said, we need to know that the wise and the learned were the Pharisees and scribes and anyone else who would not listen. Jesus was making reference to all those who thought that they knew it all but rejected Him. So it is not that anything was really hidden from them—they refused to hear it.
The truth has been revealed to the childlike. The childlike are the people who listen to Jesus in the same way that a child listens to his or her parents. These people not only hear the truth, they also follow the ways of Jesus and obey His commandments just like children follow and obey their parents. These are the people who love and trust Jesus because they put their faith in Him the same way that little children trust their parents. These are the reasons why Jesus told us to be like children.
We cannot know everything there is to know about the Father or the Son because they are the First and Second persons of the Trinity. They are God and they created us. We cannot understand all of the mysteries of God with our human minds in this life here on earth. That brings us to the next thing that Jesus said. Jesus said that He would reveal the Father to whomever He wished. Simply put, those are the people who enter the Kingdom of Heaven and you can bet; that they will be the childlike.
Jesus said, “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest.” Sometimes, we may feel like we should not give God anymore troubles to worry about. Or maybe we may feel guilty for laying another problem in God’s hands. Some of us may not even think of giving our troubles to God. But in this gospel, Jesus is telling us to give Him our problems. In a sense, Jesus is saying, “It’s okay. That’s what I came for. I got this!”
Jesus said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart…For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.” Jesus is telling us that life will be a lot easier and a lot better if we follow Him. There is no labor and there is no burden in heaven but we have to follow Christ in order to get there.
Jesus is also telling us that if we take His yoke and follow Him, instead of being burdened by the law—the commandments, we will find the reward promised in the Beatitudes of eternal rest in Him. When we know this and accept it in our hearts, nothing in this life can stress us out because Jesus has our backs.
