HOMILY FOR THURSDAY OF THE TWENTY-NINTH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR A.

HOMILY THEME: FOR THE WAGES OF SIN IS DEATH.

BY: Fr. Evaristus Abu

HOMILY:
So what advantage did you then get from the things of which you now are ashamed? The end of those things is death. But now that you have been freed from sin and enslaved to God, the advantage you get is sanctification. The end is eternal life. Romans 6:21-22

No matter the glamour of sin, no matter the height of excitement or the magnanimity of pleasure it ushers into the body, its reward is always DEATH. So long as it is against what God has said, that action, thought, word or omission is always going to bring sad consequences in the end.

I once wrote a quotation: “You may build a whole palatial empire on lies but it is like building without a foundation. No sooner had you finished building would you watch everything collapse to the ground.” There is no justification whatsoever for sin.

When it comes to sin, I must remind myself constantly that I cannot eat my cake and still have it. I can never escape the consequences of my sins.

When St. Paul says the wages of sin is death, he does not mean we would drop down and die at every sin we commit. However, the fact remains that with each sin I commit, something very precious dies inside me; the death of my ability to resist that same sin, the death of my conscience and the death of my will to do right. The more I sin, the less my chances of living above sin and brings about my eternal damnation.

Jesus says in our Gospel passage this morning that he had not come to bring peace on earth but rather division. My simple interpretation of this passage is that as long as I stand for God, I must not make everybody my friend. I dare not force friendship with the whole world because not everyone will share my views or my passion for holiness.

I must select my friends and be sure they too are have a strong desire as much I do to get to heaven. Whether I like it or not, I must have “enemies” – people who cannot just come close to me because of my closeness to God.

This is the division that Jesus was talking about. It is a necessary division; a division that helps us prioritize God over and above family ties, religious affiliation and tribal sentiments.

If I really understand the gravity of sin, how it brings about death only, then I must be willing to let go of the whole world and even my close family members if that is what it would take to avoid sin.

Let us pray: Lord Jesus Christ, help me serve you over above anything else. Amen.

*Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. God bless you. (Thursday of the 29th Week in Ordinary Time. Bible Study: Romans 6:19-23 and Luke 12:49-53).*

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