Homily For The 24th Sunday In Ordinary Time Year B.

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Isaiah 50:5-9; Psalm 116:1-6.8-9; James 2:14-18; Mark 8:27-35.

“WHO ARE YOU?”

By: Rev. Fr. Charles Onyeka Ezejide

·      It is not something new for us as Nigerians to see two people arguing or quarreling and throwing tantrums at each other and making statements like “Do you know who I am?”, “do you know who my father is?” “Do you know who my husband is?”. Statements like these set the tone for today’s reflection. 

·      On this 24th Sunday in Ordinary Time Year B, we are reminded that we live in a world where people are constantly seeking self-recognition and identity. The worst thing you can do to someone is not to acknowledge his/her rank or status in society or academic qualifications.

·      Today Jesus wants us to reflect on what our identity is. Who are we and what are we called to be? The question “Who are you?” is a personal. Who are you in the church and who are you at the office? Who are you in your family and who are you in the marketplace? If you are a different person at different times, then you need to rethink your life. 

·      In the Gospel reading (Mark 8:27-35), Jesus tries to do a self-evaluation by asking his disciples "Who do you say I am?" That was a courageous thing to do. He wanted to know if people truly understood his life and mission. And surprisingly his disciples shows us that closeness to Jesus does not necessarily mean intimacy with him. Some called him Elijah and others called him John the Baptist. It took the Spirit of God in Peter to confess that he was Christ.

·      There are a lot of lessons to learn from this encounter of Jesus with his disciples. We must constantly pause to examine ourselves daily, am I getting to where God wants me to be or am I drifting farther away from God? What matters is not how people identify us, what our titles, status, and accomplishments are, it is who we are in the sight of God.

·      Jesus asks us the question “But you, who do you say I am?” to invite us to move from a general impression of him to a close and personal perception of him. We must leave the crowd and come to know Jesus personally. To know him personally is to always hunger to do his will.

·      To know Jesus is also to be willing to share in his passion, carry our crosses, and follow him daily. Identifying who we are to Jesus is the first part. The next part is to participate in his life and mission. Is it not surprising that Peter who confessed to Jesus as the Christ which means savior, will immediately try to discourage him from that mission of becoming the Christ? That is what the devil does to us if we are not focused on God and our mission as Christians.

·      The Christian life is not an easy one. It is too demanding, it is too strict, but it is the way that leads to salvation and Jesus is prefigured in the first reading (Isaiah 50:5-9), as the wounded healer. He is the one whom Isaiah prophesied that he would be humiliated and wounded for our fault. And this, Jesus did for you and me without shame or bitterness. He offered himself up so that you and I may have life in abundance.

·      Jesus shows us classical faith in action. He not only invited us to carry our crosses and follow him, but he also went to the cross ahead of us in obedience to the will of the father. He died the death of a common criminal, that common criminals May be sanctified.

·      St. James in the second reading (James 2:14-18), challenges us to show our faith. Faith is not by proclamation but by a life of witnessing. Our faith in Christ Jesus must be practical and shown in concrete life experiences because faith without work is dead.

·      Today we must answer the question “Who am I?” We begin the journey of self-discovery and renewal to return to God and be ready to pay the price for being a Christian. To be Christian means to bear witness through faith in action.

·      When we discover who we are in Christ Jesus, we will become humbler yet because we are nothing without the grace of God, and doing the will of God will become our delight. And with that, we can “walk in the presence of the Lord in the Land of the Living” (Ps. 116:9).

·      May the good Lord bless his word in our hearts through Christ our Lord, Amen!

·      Happy Sunday!!!

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