The gift of faith and what we do with it

WORD 2day: Friday, 28th Week in Ordinary time

October 20, 2023: Romans 4: 1-8; Luke 12: 1-7

Faith is a gift, a gratuitous gift from God! My part is to grow in it. The more I grow in it, the more I realise how undeserving I am of it.

Abraham was granted this gift and he grew tremendously worthy of it. Paul was granted this gift and he fought a brave fight to become worthy of it. Jesus accuses those who throw those pearls of faith to the swines of their ego and self centered thinking. If I have received this gift of faith, should I not be grateful for it and mindful enough to keep growing in it. Can I be boasting about it and mindlessly acting contrary to it? 

Jesus warns us about something that would not look apparently like an aberration of faith, but in fact leads us gradually away from what true faith is all about - 'the yeast' of the Pharisees, that Jesus mentions in the Gospel today. At times people think they are treasuring that faith, but actually trashing their faith by becoming self righteous and so judgmental about others. They grow so intolerable towards others that they think they possess the whole truth and no one can dare differ from them. 

Taking my faith to be a reason for my pride, judging everyone else who does not partake of it; calling names at people who have a faith different from mine merely because of the difference and treating them with despite; making faith a means to make my living instead of making it my life and journeying genuinely towards my eternal life...these are somethings that I need to be on the guard about! 

Faith is a gift given to me and I need to grow in it every day, every moment.