HOMILY OF THE 3RD TUESDAY IN EASTER — YEAR A
HOMILY OF THE 3RD TUESDAY IN EASTER — YEAR A
HOMILY THEME: TRUTH AND REBELLION
BY: Fr. Paul Karabari
Acts 7:51–8:1a; Psalm 31:3-4, 6-8, 17-21; John 6:30-35
“You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit.”
In the First Reading (Acts 7:51-8:1) the climax of Stephen’s inspired speech to the Sanhedrin, just before his cruel martyrdom, rehearsed the faithfulness of God towards His people while contrasting Israel’s rebellion against their God, causing him to conclude, ‘You stiff-necked people, uncircumcised in heart and ears, you always resist the Holy Spirit. As your fathers did, so do you.’
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We are all called to align ourselves with Jesus the truth. It is difficult to do this in a world wrapped in lies. The world runs on lies. Therefore, anyone who stands for truth may be isolated and unpopular. He may be labelled just as the Jews did to Stephen. The fear to carry such a badge makes many to run away from the mandate of Christ to be truthful.
The price for speaking the truth in the world is undoubtedly costly. Every society has a record of people like Stephen, those whose flesh had been battered, and breath cut off for daring to stand for the truth. They were forced to believe that they were in the wrong. Truth tellers are made victims by the people whose hearts are skewed to enjoy the opposite of realities. Amos 5:10 says: “They hate him who reproves in the gate, and they abhor him who speaks the truth.” It is the common lot of people who speak the truth to face persecution. If it doesn’t come, then it is either you are indifferent or still part of the lying world. But it has to come. In this part of the world, you will be forced to accept that the truth you proclaim is actually the lie and their lie the truth.
The Spirit’s work in the world is to convict the us of sin so that we might acknowledge and repent of our sins and trust in Christ as saviour. The shocking truth is that most of us still resist and keep on resisting the convicting work of the Spirit, despite His gentle and tender entreaties.
As Christians, we too can resist the Spirit’s work in our lives through pride, but also we can also quench and even grieve the indwelling Spirit of God. May our ears and hearts be spiritually circumcised day by day and may we pay heed to the gentle and tender promptings of the Spirit, for God resists the proud, but gives grace upon grace to the humble. GOD IS STILL ON THE THRONE. God bless you and your household always through Christ Our Lord Amen. Good morning.
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