How to Enter Eternal Life?
15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
“Turn to the Lord in your need, and you will live.”Ps. 69
Many believers live like pagans-just surviving, guided by their desires and selfish disorder. We can ask ourselves: What good will that have done if I lose my soul? What good would it be to get everything I want, indulge in every pleasure, and have everything go my way, if I don’t reach eternal life? And the next question would be: How can I reach eternal life? This is the same question the rich young man asked Jesus. But the answer Jesus gave did not satisfy him—he went away sad because he failed to recognize in Jesus the treasure of eternal life. He preferred to keep trusting more in himself than in Jesus. This is the root of sadness and apathy: the lack of trust in God. In today’s Gospel, to that same question there is a direct answer, straight from the Word of God: LOVE AND YOU WILL LIVE.
How do we transcend this life? How can we be securely on the path to the Kingdom of God? Jesus is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. Only by letting Jesus be your guide, your Lord, and by learning to be like Mary and the saints-always seeking what pleases Him: LOVE — can we be on the right path. We must follow the example of the Good Samaritan, because that is how Jesus loves us and how He asks us to love. And He makes it possible for US.
To live in a Christian way is to live in a supernatural way-much more than merely surviving physically. It is to have a living soul by being in communion with the Living God. It is to know we are His children and to live always with reference to Him and in Him-not in reference to the worries and tasks of this passing world, but with perspective, so that the tree (the here and now) does not block our view of the forest (eternal life).
What is the difference between the life of an atheist or pagan and that of a Christian? The difference is total—it is an entirely different way of being, focused on different values and guided by radically different minds. The true Christian listens to Jesus and follows Him, is guided by Him and by His Spirit in all things. Each day is lived to please God and not oneself; the Christian lives for God and therefore loves always and everyone with true love, the fruit of the Spirit. In contrast, the pagan, who does not have God, makes himself into a god and seeks only his own interests.
The Christian cannot live like the atheists, merely surviving and enjoying life, because that is not Life. The Christian has divine life—he lets God be his King, Lord, and Good Shepherd, guiding his every step: his time, his possessions, his dedication, his interests— everything is surrendered to God’s will, because he wants to please Him in everything. And this is what fills the Christian with joy, love, peace, and the fruits of the Holy Spirit. This is living the Kingdom of God already here, having passed from death to life, from darkness to light.
Weekly Readings
Sunday: Dt 30:10-14/Ps 69:14, 17, 30-31, 33-34, 36, 37 (see 33)/Col 1:15-20/Lk 10:25-37
Monday: Ex 1:8-14, 22/Ps 124:1b-3, 4-6, 7-8/Mt 10:34-11:1
Tuesday: Ex 2:1-15a/Ps 69:3, 14, 30-31, 33-34/Mt 11:20-24
Wednesday: Ex 3:1-6, 9-12/Ps 103:1b-2, 3-4, 6-7/Mt 11:25-27
Thursday: Ex 3:13-20/Ps 105:1 and 5, 8-9, 24-25, 26-27/Mt 11:28-30
Friday: Ex 11:10-12:14/Ps 116:12-13, 15 and 16bc, 17-18/Mt 12:1-8
Saturday: Ex 12:37-42/Ps 136:1 and 23-24, 10-12, 13-15/Mt 12:14-21
Next Sunday: Gn 18:1-10a/Ps 15:2-3, 3-4, 5 (1a)/Col 1:24-28/Lk 10:38-42
Observances for the Week
Sunday: 15th Sunday in Ordinary Time
Monday: Memorial of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, Virgin
Tuesday: Memorial of Saint Bonaventure, Bishop and Doctor of the Church
Next Sunday: 16th Sunday in Ordinary Time
