Sunday Gospel Reflection, September 3, 2023: Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself...

Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself…

Do we know what we are getting ourselves into when we follow Christ? 

    The prophet Jeremiah seems to have had certain expectations about what it would be like to be the mouthpiece of God, expectations that were not, in the end, fulfilled: You duped me, O Lord! Jeremiah cries out after a humiliating night in the stocks. Yet, although he believes he will speak in God’s name no more, Jeremiah cannot help himself: but then it becomes like fire burning in my heart, imprisoned in my bones. Jeremiah had no idea how difficult the road would be when he was called by the Lord; the role is more than he anticipated. But, like the psalmist in Psalm 63, Jeremiah still depends on the Lord; he is still drawn to the Lord: O God, you are my God whom I seek; for you my flesh pines and my soul thirsts. Nothing else sustains humankind; we can only depend on one being to give us life. The very fact that Jeremiah calls out to the Lord suggests that Jeremiah recognizes where his strength comes from. Ultimately, Jeremiah, like the psalmist, glorifies the Lord, blessing him while he lives. 

   Jesus’ disciples don’t seem to be ready for the truth Jesus shares with them in Matthew’s Gospel, namely, that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer greatly and be killed and on the third day be raised. Peter, in particular, responds badly: God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you, he says to Jesus. But salvation comes on God’s terms, not our own; we tend to define salvation too narrowly, thereby threatening it. Thus, we must, as Jesus tells the disciples, take up our cross, and follow him. Our cross is not always well-defined; we don’t always know what it will demand of us. Yet we must, as Paul tells the Romans, offer our bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God, discerning God’s will and subjecting ourselves to it, participating in the sacrifice of Christ on the cross, and thereby becoming a conduit of his grace, which requires ongoing transformation, the renewal of our minds. That is, we must remain open to God, and to God’s will, for, if not, there can be no transformation, no renewal of our minds. 

   In baptism, we take up our cross, though thereafter we might not always be pleased by the prospect. And yet, in fact, we sign on for whatever is necessary. Our cross will continue to be transformed with us, in an ongoing way, as we are transformed, daily. When we surrender to God’s will, as Jeremiah has, as Paul encourages the Romans to do, as Jesus insists he himself must do, it can be hard. The call we’ve accepted, the promises we’ve made, do not mean that all will go as we think it ought. If we have accepted the Lord, we will find ourselves in situations that are less than comfortable. Yet if we truly accept his will and follow, his name will burn in our hearts and in our bones until we call upon that name, and with exultant lips, praise God! 

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