Homily For Friday Twelfth Week in Ordinary Time Year A, 30th June, 2023

Reading: Gen. 17:1.9-10.15-22; Ps.128; Matt. 8:1-4

Rev.  Fr. Emmanuel Emenike  Onyia

 

DO NOT GIVE UP IN YOUR DAILY STRUGGLES FOR GOD IS WILLING TO HELP YOU

 

The compassionate love of Jesus in solidarity with human suffering is evident in the scriptures and even in our daily lives.  Little wonder, we have great events in the scriptures that illustrates the compassionate concern of God in the struggles of humanity and wishes to set us free from the shackles of all our troubles.

 

This is evident in our readings today. In the first reading, we heard about God’s promise to bless Abraham and Sarah with a child even in their old age. For God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her Sarai, but Sarah. I will bless her and moreover give you a son by her.

 

Abraham bowed to the ground and laughed, thinking to himself, ‘Is a child to be born to a man one hundred years old, and will Sarah have a child at the age of ninety?’ But God replied, your wife Sarah shall bear you a son whom you are to name Isaac”. This shows that what seems impossible becomes possible when God is involved.

 

In a similar way in our Gospel passage today, we heard how a leper having listened to Jesus speaking on the mountain, came up and bowed low in front of him and said ‘Sir, if you want to, you can cure me.’ Jesus stretched out his hand, touched him and said, ‘Of course I want to! Be cured!’ And his leprosy was cured at once.

 

Here the touching of Jesus is very significant. No ordinary person would dare to touch a leper. We can think of the inner healing that must have resulted from the touch of Jesus, that moment of physical contact, which the leper had not experienced for a long time due to rejection. Touch is something we all need, but are so often lacking in our relationship with God and one another. But this cannot stop Jesus from reaching out to his children who call on him for healing and restoration.

 

Thus, the leper was despised, feared, shunned and rejected, but when he approached Jesus in humility, he became the object of divine attention. We too just like the leper, are in need of healing, including the healing that comes from the touch of Jesus, all we need is to approach Jesus in humility and we will become a person of divine attention.

 

More so, the story of this leper is a good example of how we sinners can and should appeal to Jesus for cleansing especially from our sins. We should come in faith knowing that God is always willing to cleanse every sinner who comes to Him.

 

So, let us sincerely turn to God once again with all of our hearts and with all of our strength, just like the leper who came to Jesus with faith, knowing that he could heal him and make him better. This is what all of us must have as well, a strong and genuine faith. Today may be my great opportunity to be restored and what is needed is to put my faith in action and say Lord if you will you can restore me.

 

Dear friends, I don’t know what type of leprocious problems you are passing through? Are you weigh down by sin or sickness? Are you feeling helpless and rejected?  Or do I know people who are helpless and need some help? Do I feel the need of Jesus’s help in some part of my life? Let us pause for a moment and imagine Jesus looking at us. How does he sees us? What are you saying to him and what is he saying to you.

 

Friends, Jesus wishes to set us free from sickness, troubles challenges and manipulations from the evil ones. He desires to be with us as we struggle everyday to overcome the challenges in our families, society and the world at large. Therefore, we should not be afraid to approach Jesus for healing and restoration, all we need is an active faith like the leper in our Gospel passage today.

 

LET US PRAY: Lord God, you know our inner most being and challenges we are facing today, come to our aid we pray and cleanse us from all our physical, emotional and spiritual leprosy. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. Peace be with you.