Sunday Gospel Reflection, August 22, 2021: As for and my household, we will serve the Lord...

As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord…

How strong is your commitment?

   When, shortly before his death, Joshua gathers together all the tribes of Israel at Shechem, he wants them to make a commitment for the future. His own household is committed to the God of Israel: As for me and my household, we will serve the Lord, he tells them. The people of Israel have taken over the promised land and made it their own, but Joshua wants to know their plans moving forward. Their collective response is promising: we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God. The community is in agreement, united in their intention to remain committed to their relationship with the Lord who, as Psalm 34 says, consistently delivers the just one from all of his troubles.

   John’s Gospel reflects the status of his community, which was facing persecution at the time of his writing. Many followers contemplate abandoning their commitment to the faith, as Jesus himself witnesses among his own disciples in the Bread of Life discourse. This saying is hard; who can accept it? they ask. Jesus needs them to understand that the spirit gives life, and that he is offering them his words that are Spirit and life. But, rejecting Jesus’ proclamation that they must eat his flesh and drink his blood, many of his disciples returned to their former way of life and no longer accompanied him. The Twelve, however, remain committed to their relationship with the Lord. When Jesus asks them, Do you also want to leave? Peter responds, Master, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.

   In making that commitment, the disciples ultimately accept a life of service to others, as Paul describes in his Letter to the Ephesians: Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. We are all called by our baptism to be subordinate to Christ, first and foremost – the church itself is subordinate to Christ, Paul says; if we are one in his Body, we should see Christ in one another, and we should be Christ for one another. By dying for our sins, Christ accepted to be subordinate to mankind; his was a life of service to other, a commitment made from the moment of the Incarnation. We are called to no less: a commitment to our relationship with the Lord, lived out in loving service for all.

This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com