A Reflection for the 6th Sunday of Ordinary Time (Year C).
Jeremiah 17:5-8 – 1Corinthians 15:12, 16-20 – Luke 6:17, 20-26.
How blessed are those who trust in the Lord (1R v.7). Dear brothers and sisters, today’s readings draw our attention to the need to place our trust in God at all times. Those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, that cannot be moved, but abides forever (Ps 125:1). If you are someone who is going to have to engage in battle, it’s a very good idea to have yourself protected by strong walls to keep the enemy out. It’s also a very good idea to have your citadel built on high ground from which you can spot the enemy advancing. You then have the advantage over the enemy, and you can take appropriate action from your vantage point.
The Psalmist compares placing your complete trust in God to being protected within the stone-walled city of Jerusalem built on high ground. Psalm 48 expands on this: God’s holy mountain, beautiful in elevation, Mount Zion in the far North, the city of the great King. Within her citadels God has shown Himself a sure defence. For lo, the kings assembled, they advanced together. As soon as they saw it, they were astounded, they were in panic, they took to flight (vv.2-5). As a citizen within the citadel of the Church built on the rock of Peter, and by placing your complete trust in Almighty God, you obtain for yourself eternal security and insure yourself against whatever may be happening around you in earthly terms.
The Responsorial Psalm, which features Psalm 1 minus verse 5, expounds upon the happiness, blessedness, success and fruitfulness that come from trusting in God.
The 1st Reading doesn’t beat about the bush when comparing what happens to someone who places their trust in God with what happens to someone who doesn’t. The person who trusts and hopes in the Lord will thrive despite the summers and winters of life. That person will never experience spiritual drought and will remain fruitful no matter what the external conditions may be. The person who chooses to place their trust solely in himself or herself, or in their fellow man to deliver real security and real happiness is going to be disappointed. You only have to turn on the TV news to see how true this is. While people without God are tossed to and fro and made miserable by earthly forces, it is people with personal rootedness in God whore main strong and verdant.
You might be thinking that an obvious choice for today’s Gospel would be a section from The Sermon on The Mount (Mt 5). The Gospel today is actually taken from the Sermon on the Plain (Lk 6:20-49)! The two Sermons are probably two versions of the same event, as the accounts share so many similarities. These are expressed in different ways, but Jesus is without doubt the originator of the teachings.
In the Sermon on the Mount, St Matthew states that Jesus saw the crowd, went up the mountain and sat down to teach His disciples with authority from a height. In the Sermon on the Plain, St Luke states that Jesus came down with the Twelve and stopped at a piece of level ground where there was a large gathering of His disciples whom He addressed specifically.
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus delivered the Beatitudes formally as blanket statements , as was customary in Jewish authoritative teaching. In the Sermon on the Plain, Jesus delivered the Beatitudes initially as blanket statements, but thereafter personalised them, much as a counsellor or a rabbi would, for example: Happy are you who are poor / yours is the Kingdom of God. Happy are you who are hungry now/ you shall be satisfied.
The message to take to heart today is that it is God who moves close to us to win our trust. God always makes the first move towards us, rather than the other way around. It is possible for us to know God in the Person of Jesus Christ. Jesus is God as the limited human mind is able to perceive and understand Him. It is Jesus who tells us of the blessings and the joys that will be showered upon us when we dare to put our total trust in Him. It is Jesus who invites us to see with fresh eyes all the marvellous works He is accomplishing for His people, and to recognise how He laid down His life to overcome the misery of sin and death so that we may live in life eternal both now and after physical death. From the Mount of Heaven, He came into the world for our sake. He is Risen!
Jesus speaks to you in the depth of your heart, saying, “Blessed are you who put your trust in Me, both in good times and in bad, in sickness and in health, in poverty and riches, in joy and in sorrow, in hunger and plenty”. The Beatitudes can be yours IF you trust in God. When you place your trust in Him, His supernatural power is accessible to you. His extraordinary power renders impossibilities possible, and keeps you evergreen in God’s grace. When, however, you choose to move your trust elsewhere, you lose access to that power.
Whether things in your life are going well, or badly, or just bumping along the bottom, keep trusting Jesus. Hang onto Him. Say repeatedly “Jesus, I trust in you” and “I am blessed”. Amen. God bless you.