HOMILY: Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
Matthew 5:17-37
12 February 2023
Fr. Ricky Cañet Montañez, AA
“Be the change you wish to see in the world.” That is according to Mahatma Gandhi. “The way to change other’s minds is through affection and not anger.” That is according to the Dalai Lama. Both of these men are considered among the wisest men who have ever lived. But there is One whose wisdom is far greater than these two. What is the answer? GOD! The wisdom of God is so vast and great. No creature can ever match the wisdom of God.
St. Paul tells us that God’s wisdom is not the same as man’s wisdom. It is rather mysterious. It cannot be discerned by us unless God does not reveal it to us. He uses the words “what eye has not seen, ear has not heard, or entered the human heart..” (1 Corinthians 2:9) to emphasize that we are not privy to the details and the entirety of the grand plan that God has predestined for us. Why is Teresa married while Marisol is still single until now? Why did I become a priest while my companions in the seminary did not continue on? Why did you study in UP instead of Ateneo? Why were you born with a disability? Why are your parents poor instead of being rich? We don’t know what God plans for each of us. Nevertheless, we are assured that in God’s infinite wisdom, His plan is for the good of all who love Him.
Sirach tells us two very important things. First, he reminds us that God’s wisdom is immense — “mighty in power and all-seeing”! (Sirach 15:18) God sees our hearts and knows all our actions. Nothing escapes the eyes of God even our most hidden and secret sins. Second, he reminds us that we are free to choose to trust in God’s wisdom or reject it. The choice is ours — fire or water, death or life, good or evil. (Sirach 15:17) God will never be on the side of evil. So, if we choose to sin and act unjustly, we are essentially saying we do not trust in the wisdom of God’s ways. It’s like telling God that we know better. But as said earlier, we are mere creatures who will never be able to match God’s wisdom.
In our gospel today, Jesus makes clear that He did not come to abolish the law but rather to fulfill it. Why does He not abolish the law? Because there is nothing wrong with the law that the Jews follow. Where do their laws come from in the first place? Is it not contained in God’s Ten Commandments? It was God, Himself, who spoke to Moses and relayed the Ten Commandments! We can be assured that those rules were borne of God’s wisdom, for the good of those who believe in Him. Now out of those 10 rules, the Jewish Law was expanded to 613!!! There are so many! All aspects of their life are covered in detail — food, clothing, rituals, purification, worship and so on. Where is the problem? It was the interpretation and strict adherence to the law mandated by their leaders that caused people to forget the spirit of the law. Recall that Jesus summarized the Ten Commandments into two (2) — Love of God and Love of neighbour! That is the spirit of the law!
Jesus respected the law, naturally, because its origin was God the Father. He even says “not the smallest letter or the smallest part of a letter will pass from the law until heaven and earth have passed away and all things have taken place” in accordance to God’s plan. (Matthew 5:18) But why does Jesus seem to expand the interpretation of the laws? It is because Jesus goes one step further and asks us to guard our thoughts and feelings as they translate into actions. He says anger is already tantamount to killing because when someone takes the life of another in anger, it is because he/she has already killed all love and compassion for that person in his/her heart. When a man looks lustfully at a woman who is not his wife, his heart becomes restless with desire for that woman. That’s when he starts thinking that… “Sana dalawa ang puso ko”. (How I wish I have two hearts!) That is already a betrayal of his marriage vow to love his wife wholeheartedly. Essentially, the law is good because it was based on God’s word. Jesus fulfills the law because He is the WORD made flesh!
Everywhere Jesus went He demonstrated to all, by His words and actions, the spirit of the law — how people should love God and how they were to love one another. When He goes to the extreme of saying, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off or if your eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away.” (Matthew 5:29) Jesus is cautioning humanity to be aware of what causes them to sin repeatedly. Jesus seems to be saying that it is very important that we use our freedom to choose obedience to the laws that God has ordained. If we sin and reject God, we lose heaven forever. So, at all costs, do whatever is necessary to live a life pleasing to God — a life of love.
In the readings of the past weeks, we hear of the Pharisees criticising Jesus for feeding His hungry disciples or healing the sick on the Sabbath. Jesus always stands up to them in an attempt to help them see that in their desire to strictly obey the law, they failed to uphold the spirit of mercy and compassion which the law is grounded on. Love. Pag-ibig. That is the be-all and end-all of God’s laws. Hence, the question we have to ask ourselves in everything we do should always be: “Is this a loving thing to do?” For Jesus there is no doubt or confusion about this. Nor should we doubt it.
Brothers and sisters, let us try to live according to God’s will and instructions. Remember that our choices in life reveal our level of confidence in God. As Christians, we must fully trust God and His plan for us, even if we don’t fully understand it. Today, we ask Jesus — the Word of Life, God’s Word made flesh — to help us live our lives as He did — filled with love, compassion and mercy. AMEN.
Sunday Gospel Reflections 