Homily For The 2nd Sunday In Ordinary Time, Year A.
Isaiah 49:3.5-6; Psalm 39:2.4.7-10 R/ v.8.9;
1Corinthians 1:1-3; John 1:29-34
“THE NEW ISRAEL AND THE NEW MISSION!”
By: Rev. Fr. Charles Onyeka Ezejide.
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Today the church celebrates the Second
Sunday in Ordinary Time, Year A. In the context of today’s liturgy, the Lord calls
us to mission. He calls the New Israel and, by extension, a New Mission.
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Today, the Lord calls us to himself, to be
by him and imitate him so that through us and our way of life, and through our
living testimonies in the world, he might be glorified. We must remember that it
is only a life that is Holy that glorifies God. If we must glorify God, then we
are called to holiness of life.
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In the first reading (Isaiah 49:3.5-6),
God calls us the New Israel; he calls each of us by his name because “before we
were formed in the womb he knew us” (Isaiah 49:5). In calling us the “New
Israel”, he calls us to mission. And in that mission, he gives us the manifest
of the mission, which is to become the light of the nations, to become shining
examples so that through our way of life his salvation might reach the ends of
the earth.
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Also in the second reading (1Corinthians
1:1-3), we are called to become the new Paul, and in becoming the new Paul, we
must constantly call people to righteousness, to take their rightful place of
honour among the saints, to abandon the life of sin which does not pay and
embrace holiness which has an eternal reward.
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Our duty as Christians, as the New Israel
and the New Paul, is to bear the image of Christ in us, to be living witnesses
and a practical application of the word of God.
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Saint John the Baptist in the gospel
reading (John 1:29-34) was unique in his own right, having applied the word of
God in his own life right from his mother’s womb, “the moment your greetings
reached my ears, the child in my womb left for joy” (Luke 1: 41; 44). Having
internalised the word of God, he is now able to point out Jesus to the people
by word and by living examples.
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We, too, are called to announce the
presence of Christ in the world wherever we are. But to do this, we must first
of all internalise the word of God and let it bear fruit in our lives.
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Dearly beloved, learning can be difficult
when it is full of words without practice. So, it is difficult for people to
know about Christ just by listening to us, but the word of God is appreciated
more when it is lived and practised.
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We learn more by imitation and not by
listening; our world is full and saturated with eloquent preachers, wonderful
men of God, but few practical guides and shining examples.
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To be true missionaries of God in the
world, like John the Baptist, we must be humble about our mission, to know our
place and role in the mission. We must project God always and not ourselves or
our egos.
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The call to witnessing is key; it is not
an easy decision, but if we submit ourselves to the power of God, he will
transform us. He changed Saul to Paul, Peter from being a zealot to the head of
the Apostolic College, James and John from being fishermen to fishers of men.
If God did this in the past, he can do more with you in our time.
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We must make ourselves available to the promptings
of the Holy Spirit and let the word of God permeate and soak our hearts.
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God himself calls you and me to mission;
he does not look on our imperfections but perfects us for his mission. “He
calls the weak to shame the strong” (1 Cor. 1:27), he calls the “nobodies” to
make them “somebodies”. Just make yourself available for use by God by turning
away from sin and living in righteousness.
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He is calling you and me today to be his
witnesses in our families, schools, offices, business places and wherever we
find ourselves. We cannot say “NO” to God, we must respond with a “YES” and,
like the Psalmist say “Here I am Lord, I come to do your will” (Ps. 39:8.9).
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May God bless his word in our hearts
through Christ our Lord, Amen!
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Happy Sunday!!!
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