CYCLE II: HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 14TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME (1)

HOMILY: 31ST SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME ( YEAR A )

CYCLE II: HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE 14TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME

HOMILY THEME: YOU MUST GIVE WITHOUT PAY!

BY:Fr. Benedict Agbo

 

HOMILY: *Hos 11:1-9, Matt 10 :7 – 15.

The apostles were told to preach the Kingdom ministry which contains both healing and deliverance. But they were strictly warned to give without pay. The Kingdom ministry is preached free of charge. The preachers need no gold, tunics, sandals nor havasacks because the labourers deserve their wages. They bring peace to all who receive them and judgment only to those who reject them. The Deliverance /Prosperity ministry is business oriented ; full of false revelations, destroys peace in families, empoverishes us and sends us back to slavery. In the Acts of the Apostles, it was recorded that Simon the magician as soon as he saw Peter and John’s ministry thought it was the usual deliverance /prosperity business ministry and brought some money to receive the spiritual power that the apostles had. Peter had to rebuke and correct him immediately, Act 8 :14 – 25. Till today, what the Catholic Church calls ‘simony’ is the sin of buying or selling the sacraments or any grace coming from God.

The modern church with its craze for miracles and signs must be careful to distinguish the real ministry of the kingdom and the business /prosperity oriented deliverance ministries. Christ says ‘By their fruits you shall know them’, Matt 7 :21 – 24. The fruits are not the miraculous signs. It is true that miracles are part and parcel of Christian ministry but we need to understand that the ministry of the Apostles were foundational and needed a lot of miracles to attest to the veracity of the gospel. Now that the truth of Christ has been sufficiently established, asking for more miracles and signs from God would be a sign of lack of faith, Jn 6 :26 – 27.

Furthermore, the miracles which the disciples performed were not wonder miracles eg splitting the sea like Moses did or bringing down fire from heaven like Elijah did but benevolent miracles aimed at relieving the people from their pain and misery. They had to give freely and not charge anything for their work and wonders. Today, our occult dibias and so – called ‘men of God’ are charging money in order to solve people’s problems of lack of faith, lack of trust for their relations, etc. The more people flock to them the more they get poorer, sicker, in trouble and are finally enslaved and die in their sins. May we go for the kingdom ministry. And remember the sign : it must be without pay.

May God bless you today!

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