First reading Romans 13:8-10
Your only debt should be the debt of mutual love
Avoid getting into debt, except the debt of mutual love. If you love your fellow men you have carried out your obligations. All the commandments: You shall not commit adultery, you shall not kill, you shall not steal, you shall not covet, and so on, are summed up in this single command: You must love your neighbour as yourself. Love is the one thing that cannot hurt your neighbour; that is why it is the answer to every one of the commandments.
Responsorial Psalm 111(112):1-2,4-5,9
Happy the man who takes pity and lends.
or
Alleluia!
Happy the man who fears the Lord,
who takes delight in all his commands.
His sons will be powerful on earth;
the children of the upright are blessed.
He is a light in the darkness for the upright:
he is generous, merciful and just.
The good man takes pity and lends,
he conducts his affairs with honour.
Open-handed, he gives to the poor;
his justice stands firm for ever.
His head will be raised in glory.
Gospel Luke 14:25-33
Anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple
Great crowds accompanied Jesus on his way and he turned and spoke to them. ‘If any man comes to me without hating his father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, he cannot be my disciple. Anyone who does not carry his cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.
‘And indeed, which of you here, intending to build a tower, would not first sit down and work out the cost to see if he had enough to complete it? Otherwise, if he laid the foundation and then found himself unable to finish the work, the onlookers would all start making fun of him and saying, “Here is a man who started to build and was unable to finish.” Or again, what king marching to war against another king would not first sit down and consider whether with ten thousand men he could stand up to the other who advanced against him with twenty thousand? If not, then while the other king was still a long way off, he would send envoys to sue for peace. So in the same way, none of you can be my disciple unless he gives up all his possessions.’
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Love Jesus first and love others
“Anyone who comes to me without hating father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters, yes and his own life too, cannot be my disciple…”. These words of Jesus seem odd and harsh to us. However, it is not for us to take them literally. Jesus does not call us to hate but to love. The key message is that we are called to love Him above all other people, including our families. He has to be our first love. Our relationship with Him is the firm foundation on which our other relationships are built.
To follow Jesus is not easy. It requires us to choose to place Him above all others. Like the man who built a tower or the king who marched to war, we need to think and reflect and see if we are determined to follow Him and walk His path faithfully to the end. Our discipleship is not a half-hearted matter. Let us talk to Jesus today about what He wants from us and ask Him to give us the perseverance to follow Him wholeheartedly.
Reflective question:
Is Jesus my primary love?
Is Jesus my primary love?
Acknowledgment: Reflections are based on “Prayer for Living: The Word of God for Daily Prayer Year A” by Sr Sandra Seow FMVD.
