Homily for the Thirtieth Sunday in Ordinary Time
(Oct 29, 2006)
Gospel Intro: In
those days towns were surrounded by a wall, with a few gates. The blind
and others with disabilities would sit outside the gate begging.
Just as today when dignitaries visit our large cities, they put
street people in jail or try to hide them, the people of
Jericho
were embarrassed to have Jesus see the blind beggar, and tried to make
him be quiet. Who is more blind: a society to whom the beggars are
invisible or the beggars?
Homily Intro: Jesus
asks the blind Bartimaeus the same question he asked James and John:
·
What do you want me
to do for you?
A) When James and
John ask for high places, Jesus does not grant their request, but called them to drink his cup and be
baptized into a baptism of sacrifice and servant-hood.
B)
But when the blind man said: Master, I want to see, Jesus grants
the request; And
he could see and followed Jesus on the way.
C) What’s the difference?
Jesus wants us to ask not for what we want, but for what we
really need.
While James and John had started with: Master we want you do whatever we
ask – whatever we want. Bartimaeus had simply been crying out: Son of
David have pity on me.
II}When we receive what we
really need, we will be able to follow Jesus.
A)
James and John did not get what they wanted, but what they
needed – they needed to drink from the cup of Jesus blood and be
baptized into the baptism of self-sacrifice and service of others – in
order for them to follow Jesus.
B)
For Bartimaeus to follow Jesus, practically he needed
physical vision to be able to follow Jesus up the road to Jerusalem and
be there for his passion, death and Resurrection, but more importantly
he needed to see in a deeper
sense—he needed faith in Jesus as his teacher and Lord.
Then he could follow him on the Way. “On
the Way” is the Gospel name for living as a Christian.
III) Jesus asks each of us
– Jesus asks you and asks me: What do you want me to do for you?
A) We might ask to for a
promotion or popularity; ask to pass an exam in biology; or ask for a
win for Ohio State; for good health or help to pay their bills; some may
pray for a girl friend to come back or for an irritating boss to go
away.
When I visit the sick, I sometimes say to the person: What do you
want the Lord to do for you? Some of the prayers that come forth inspire
me as people express their deepest needs.
As I contrast James and John with Bartimaeus, the more I am convinced we
are not to ask for what we want, but for what we really need to follow Jesus. That is
what is really important.
Story: Millie true
master was alcohol. It ran her life and was more important to her than
anything or anyone. The more Millie’s family protested her drinking
the more Millie drank. But after her oldest son begged her long enough,
she did go one night to a church service. She was not really comfortable
there, but she did feel reborn. But she still was not able to kick her
addiction to alcohol. For the next several months she read with the
bible in one hand and a beer in the other. But she was growing in
strength to face her alcohol problem.
One night after nine
months, the pastor asked her at a service: “What
would you have the Lord do for you child? Millie
was finally ready as she cried out: “To be free from alcohol!” She later explained, that night: “ I
was free… I was forgiven.”
She never had another drink and continued to grow as a Christian.
Concl: I think this
is a classic example of asking the Lord what you really need.
Being healed; being saved and then able to follow Jesus on the
Way of the Lord.
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