Daily Retreat 06/01/08
2008 Jun 1 SUN: NINTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME
Dt 11: 18. 26-28. 32/ Ps 30(31): 2-3. 3-4. 17. 25 (3b)/ Rom 3: 21-25. 28/ Mt 7: 21- 27
From today’s readings: “I set before you here, this day, a blessing and a curse: a blessing for obeying the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I enjoin on you today; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD, your God.... Lord, be my rock of safety.... Now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law.... Everyone who listens to these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.....”
A Simple Choice
The first part of the book of Deuteronomy presents a review of the salvation history of God’s chosen people after their Exodus from Egypt. The review is meant to inspire faith and confidence in God’s guiding presence in the past, present, and future. The review of history highlights how the saving actions of God contrast with the disaster that sin brings, so that, at the end of his sermon, Moses is able to remind the people that it all boils down to a choice between a blessing and a curse: “I set before you here, this day, a blessing and a curse: a blessing for obeying the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I enjoin on you today; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD, your God, but turn aside from the way I ordain for you today.” When put so bluntly, the choice seems crystal clear: Go for the blessing! Who would be foolish enough to choose a curse?
Yet, centuries after Moses, at the end of His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminded His listeners that they too had a crucial choice to make in their lives, for “everyone who listens to these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of Mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.” A blessing, or a curse; a house that stands the storms of time, or a house that is ruined. When put so bluntly, the choice seems crystal clear: Go for the blessing, go for the house that stands! Who would be foolish enough to choose a curse, that which leads to ruin?
Centuries after Moses, centuries after Jesus, the listeners and readers of this time and place are reminded that we too have a crucial choice to make in our lives, the blessing of choosing the Lord and His law of life, or the curse of rejecting the Lord and His law of life. The blessing of listening to the Lord’s words and acting on them, grounding our lives and hopes on the Lord Himself as our rock of safety; or, the curse of ignoring the Lord’s words and not putting His teaching into practice in our lives, settling instead on the sifting sands of times and trends that cannot withstand the buffets and blows of even everyday life, as so many have learned the hard way.
It’s not enough to nod and mumble, “I choose the blessing, I choose the rock solid foundation of Christ’s teaching.” For Jesus makes it clear that our choice is determined, not by our words, but by our actions. The foundation and construction of our lives is not a momentary choice based on a single decision of the past, good or bad - no, for the verdict of whether you or I have built on rock or sand is revealed by the tempests of time itself, for each day is a gracious reminder to us of why and how to choose the blessing instead of the curse.
Dt 11: 18. 26-28. 32/ Ps 30(31): 2-3. 3-4. 17. 25 (3b)/ Rom 3: 21-25. 28/ Mt 7: 21- 27
From today’s readings: “I set before you here, this day, a blessing and a curse: a blessing for obeying the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I enjoin on you today; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD, your God.... Lord, be my rock of safety.... Now the righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law.... Everyone who listens to these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock.....”
A Simple Choice
The first part of the book of Deuteronomy presents a review of the salvation history of God’s chosen people after their Exodus from Egypt. The review is meant to inspire faith and confidence in God’s guiding presence in the past, present, and future. The review of history highlights how the saving actions of God contrast with the disaster that sin brings, so that, at the end of his sermon, Moses is able to remind the people that it all boils down to a choice between a blessing and a curse: “I set before you here, this day, a blessing and a curse: a blessing for obeying the commandments of the LORD, your God, which I enjoin on you today; a curse if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD, your God, but turn aside from the way I ordain for you today.” When put so bluntly, the choice seems crystal clear: Go for the blessing! Who would be foolish enough to choose a curse?
Yet, centuries after Moses, at the end of His Sermon on the Mount, Jesus reminded His listeners that they too had a crucial choice to make in their lives, for “everyone who listens to these words of Mine and acts on them will be like a wise man who built his house on rock. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. But it did not collapse; it had been set solidly on rock. And everyone who listens to these words of Mine but does not act on them will be like a fool who built his house on sand. The rain fell, the floods came, and the winds blew and buffeted the house. And it collapsed and was completely ruined.” A blessing, or a curse; a house that stands the storms of time, or a house that is ruined. When put so bluntly, the choice seems crystal clear: Go for the blessing, go for the house that stands! Who would be foolish enough to choose a curse, that which leads to ruin?
Centuries after Moses, centuries after Jesus, the listeners and readers of this time and place are reminded that we too have a crucial choice to make in our lives, the blessing of choosing the Lord and His law of life, or the curse of rejecting the Lord and His law of life. The blessing of listening to the Lord’s words and acting on them, grounding our lives and hopes on the Lord Himself as our rock of safety; or, the curse of ignoring the Lord’s words and not putting His teaching into practice in our lives, settling instead on the sifting sands of times and trends that cannot withstand the buffets and blows of even everyday life, as so many have learned the hard way.
It’s not enough to nod and mumble, “I choose the blessing, I choose the rock solid foundation of Christ’s teaching.” For Jesus makes it clear that our choice is determined, not by our words, but by our actions. The foundation and construction of our lives is not a momentary choice based on a single decision of the past, good or bad - no, for the verdict of whether you or I have built on rock or sand is revealed by the tempests of time itself, for each day is a gracious reminder to us of why and how to choose the blessing instead of the curse.
posted by FrPitstick | 5/31/2008
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