WORD 2day: Monday, 20th week in Ordinary time
August 17, 2020: Ezekiel 24: 15-23; Matthew 19: 16-22.
Knowing what is right is one thing, but the more important thing is to live by it. Ezekiel is presented a sign, to make the people realise how thoughtless they were growing about God. They were fulfilling their daily duties and keeping the so called "law" or the religious duties. But whether they were really in touch with the Lord, is the true concern.
The rich young man, who encounters Jesus in the Gospel, knew the laws and lived the laws, but missed the point as to why he was doing all that. He was keeping the law, because he was taught to. He performed all prayers, because he took them very seriously. He carried out all his duty because he knew those were the rights things to do. All these were fine - but he forgot why he was doing all these: to make God the centre of his life. At the end of it all he was lost. Maybe he felt, 'I have been doing so many things, but finally what have I achieved? I am still lacking something, something so substantial; some thing so crucial.'
The rich young man, who encounters Jesus in the Gospel, knew the laws and lived the laws, but missed the point as to why he was doing all that. He was keeping the law, because he was taught to. He performed all prayers, because he took them very seriously. He carried out all his duty because he knew those were the rights things to do. All these were fine - but he forgot why he was doing all these: to make God the centre of his life. At the end of it all he was lost. Maybe he felt, 'I have been doing so many things, but finally what have I achieved? I am still lacking something, something so substantial; some thing so crucial.'
With all the various things that we do we may know what is to be done at a given point of time: the rites and the rituals, the rules and the regulations, the laws and the demands therewith. But let us beware, it is completely another thing to realise why do all that we do! To make God the centre of our lives, the foundation and the meaning of our lives. That would mean 'selling everything', 'giving up' and 'loving everyone genuinely'; for in love is God revealed. Living with God means, living in love!