Suy niệm Tin Mừng thứ Tư tuần thứ 30 Thường Niên

Suy niệm Tin Mừng thứ Tư tuần thứ 30 Thường Niên
Ngày nay, chúng ta không thể nói với người làm phải vâng tuân theo chủ nhân của họ. Chúng ta thấy chế độ nô lệ dưới mọi hình thức như là một tội ác và không thể chấp nhận được và chúng ta phải tìm mọi cách và tất cả mọi thứ trong khả năng của mình để bãi bỏ nó. Nhưng những người Ephêsô vẫn còn quan trọng hoá và cố vượt thời gian để
thực hiện.
Bất kể mọi tình huống chúng ta có thể tự thấy chính mình đang làm chứng cho ​​Chúa Giêsu trong cách sống của chúng ta. Việc chúng ta sống trong một môi trường ngột ngạt hay có một ông chủ bất công không quan trọng, chúng ta phải luôn biết hy vọng và là ngọn hải đăng chiếu ánh sáng. Bằng cách biểu lộ cách sông của Chúa Giêsu trong cuộc sống hàng ngày của chúng ta, chúng ta có thể gây ảnh hưởng sâu đậm đến những người khác. Và chưa chừng biết đâu, chúng ta thậm chí có thể làm cho những người áp bức chúng ta phải biến đổi! Đức tin không thể được coi như là sự đương nhiên. Thánh Luca nói với chúng ta rằng việc thường xuyên đến với Chúa Giêsu hoặc cứ đến nhà thờ chưa chắc đã bảo đảm được quyền làm con trong mắt Chúa.
Có nhiều người trong chúng ta đã tự mãn và chắc chắn rằng họ đã làm trọn bổn phận tinh thần, những những người ấy sẽ tự thấy mình ở dưới đáy cùng. Cũng có những người gặp phải những khó khăn và thất bại nhưng biết đứng lên tiếp tục cuộc hành trình trong đức tin; họ sẽ được nâng lên. Cho dù cửa nước Trời của Thiên Chúa thực sự là hẹp nhỏ, nhưng với tình yêu thương, lòng khiêm tốn, và sự phục vụ có thể giúp chúng ta vượt qua.
Nếu như tôn giáo mà chỉ nói mà không có hành động hay việc làm và nếu chúng ta thiếu yếu tố quan trọng đó thì việc nghe lời Thiên Chúa có nghĩa là làm theo lời của Chúa; Hai điều này không thể tách rời nhau được. Cách thức để sống theo Chúa mỗi ngày của chúng ta là chúng ta phải biết kiểm tra cách sống của chúng ta là hãy xem chúng ta đã có lắng nghe lời Chúa qua Phúc Âm như thế nào.
Lạy Chúa, xin giúp chúng con biết dùng cuộc sống của chúng con để phản ánh lời của Ngài.
 
Reflection Wednesday Week in Ordinary Time
Today, we would not tell slaves to obey their masters. We see slavery in any form as an intolerable evil and we would do everything in our power to abolish it. But Ephesians still has an important and timeless point to make. Regardless of the situation we find ourselves in we can witness to Jesus by our way of life. It doesn’t matter if we live in an oppressive environment or have an unjust boss we should always be a beacon of light and hope. By demonstrating the way of Jesus in our everyday life we can have a profound effect on others. Who knows, we might even convert our oppressors!
Faith cannot be taken for granted. Luke tells us that familiarity with Jesus or going to church in themselves are no guarantee of being right in the eyes of the Lord. There are many who are self-satisfied and sure that they have it made spiritually who will find themselves at the bottom. There are also those who struggle and fall but continue to walk in faith — they will be lifted up. The door of the kingdom of God is narrow indeed — only love, humility, and service can fit through.
All of the religious talk and activity in the world is of little use if we are lacking that important element. Hearing the word of God means doing the word of God; the two cannot be separated. The manner of our everyday life is the test of how well we have listened. Lord, may my life reflect Your word.
 
Wednesday of the Thirtieth Week in Ordinary Time
Someone asked him, “Lord, will only a few people be saved?” He answered them, “Strive to enter through the narrow gate, for many, I tell you, will attempt to enter but will not be strong enough.” Luke 13:27
We should definitely take our Lord’s words spoken above to heart. It’s easy to presume we will be saved. It’s easy to simply presume that God is kind and that we are good people at heart and, therefore, salvation is assured. But that’s not what Jesus says.
So who will be saved? When we get to Heaven, God willing, we may be surprised at who is saved and who is not. This is clearly one of the messages of today’s Gospel. Jesus even goes so far to say that some, when they die, will assume they are going to enter into Heaven but will hear our Lord say to them, “I do not know where you are from. Depart from me, all you evildoers!” Again, we should take these words to heart.
One of the most dangerous sins we can fall into is presumption. Presumption is deadly because it has a double effect upon us. First, the person caught in presumption is one who has committed mortal sin but has not repented of it. But the presumptuous person also remains incapable of repentance because they refuse to acknowledge their sin. Their conscience is not working. They have blinders on and expect God to wear those same blinders. But God sees all things and judges accordingly.
The “narrow gate” of which Jesus speaks is a simile used by Jesus to tell us that it is not easy to obtain Heaven. It requires a concerted effort on our part as well as the infinite mercy of God. But regarding our part, the attainment of Heaven is only possible if we intentionally seek out the will of God and respond generously to Him. First, that means we confess and turn away from our sins. But from there, it means that we make every effort to fulfill God’s will in our lives.
If this is hard to accept, simply remind yourself that this teaching came directly from Jesus Himself. He is absolutely clear and means what He says. If that fills you with a sort of holy fear, then that is a good thing. “Holy fear” is a gift by which we have a well-ordered conscience that is able to identify those things in our lives that have become immovable obstacles to eternal salvation. The same well-ordered conscience will lead us to that narrow gate which is the only path to eternal life.
Reflect, today, upon the fact that we must all take eternal salvation seriously. If you find that you have become lax in your spiritual life, then use this Gospel as a motivation to change. Do not allow yourself to be one of those knocking at the gates of Heaven, only to realize that our Lord does not know you. Do all you can to eradicate the sin of presumption from your life, and your reward will be truly great in Heaven.
My most merciful Lord, You and You alone can open the gates of Heaven to us, and You and You alone will do so only to those who have responded to Your holy will. Please open my eyes to any ways that I turn from You and remain lax in my spiritual journey. Give me the grace I need to see clearly and to respond to You with all my heart. Jesus, I trust in You.
 
Reflection Wednesday Week in Ordinary Time 2024
Opening Prayer: Lord God, show me the path that leads through the narrow gate! Guide each of my steps as I walk toward you. Strengthen me with your grace as I attempt to enter through the narrow gate.
Encountering the Word of God
1. Strive to Enter through the Narrow Gate: On his final journey to Jerusalem, Jesus entertained a question about how many people would be saved. He didn’t answer the question directly. Rather than focus on the number of those who will be saved, Jesus invited the person to work out their own salvation and strive to enter through the narrow gate of salvation. As Paul would later write to the Philippians: “Work out your salvation with fear and trembling” (Philippians 2:12). Our initial salvation is not based on our works (Ephesians 2:8-9). Our final salvation, however, depends on a lifetime of keeping the faith (2 Timothy 4:7-8), following the commandments (Matthew 19:17), persevering in good works (Romans 2:7), striving for holiness (Hebrews 12:14), praying in earnest (1 Thessalonians 5:17), and fighting against the forces of evil (Ephesians 6:11) and the selfish demands of the flesh, which drag us down (Romans 8:13; 1 Corinthians 9:24-27) (see Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 359).
2. Reclining at Table in the Kingdom of God: Jesus uses the image of reclining at table in the Kingdom of God as an image of the age of salvation. Jesus ties the ingathering of the twelve tribes of Israel to dining at the long-awaited banquet in the kingdom of God. The Israelite tribes, who were scattered among the Gentile nations in 722 B.C. by the Assyrians, as well as the Gentiles, among whom the tribes were scattered, will both be ingathered, not in the earthly Promised Land or earthly city of Jerusalem, but in the banquet of the heavenly kingdom. Those who reject Jesus’ proclamation of the kingdom will be cast out and excluded from the kingdom. We see the fulfillment of Jesus’ prophetic proclamation in the celebration of the Eucharist. Men and women from all nations and cultures are gathered daily and weekly to partake of Jesus’ flesh and to drink Jesus’ blood. In the Eucharist, we enjoy a foretaste of the banquet of heaven.
3. Paul’s Teaching on Household Relationships: In the concluding chapter of the Letter to the Ephesians, Paul deals with life in the household. He has just dealt with the relationship between a husband and wife and how they should be mutually subordinated to one another and love one another (Ephesians 5:21-33). He follows this by exhorting the children in the household to obey their parents and invokes the fourth commandment to honor one’s parents. He then exhorts parents to educate and rear their children “with the training (paideia) and instruction of the Lord.” Both children and parents have duties and responsibilities toward one another. Likewise, he exhorts slaves and masters. In Paul’s day, one-third of those who lived in the Roman Empire were slaves. People often became slaves because of debt they were unable to repay. In a countercultural way, Paul exhorts masters to treat the slaves who lived in their household in a considerate manner that Jesus would find acceptable. In short, while slaves are encouraged to serve willingly and honestly, masters are called to respect their servants and refrain from any harsh treatment (Ignatius Catholic Study Bible: New Testament, 353).
Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, you have welcomed me into your Father’s house. I belong to the household of God! What an awesome, unmerited grace! Walk with me along the path that leads to and through the narrow gate of salvation.