13th Sunday in Ordinary Time
1 Kgs 19: 16b, 19-21; Gal 5: 1, 13-18; Lk 9: 51-62
Deacon Larry Brockman
A point of no return. That’s what Jesus is talking about.
We saw it demonstrated in our first reading about Elijah and Elisha. Elisha was chosen by the Lord to replace Elijah. He had a choice- to follow or not. But if he followed, he would pass beyond a point of no return. Because once we find God’s will for us, there is no going back and forth from our calling to our former way of life. God wants us to make a commitment and follow his will for us without reservation.
Each of us goes through an initial stage in life when life is all about us. It is natural and a consequence of our human nature. And during our lives, we go through transitions that lead us to a more and more mature state. First, we are infants, then toddlers, then children, then young adults. And at each stage in our development, we learn to move beyond the earlier stage and not look back. Each such stage in life transitions us to less preoccupation with ourselves, and more interaction with either the world around us or the people around us or both.
Then, most of us fall in love and marry someone special- someone that we accept just the way they are. We are willing to sacrifice ourselves at the expense of our loved one. We are in love with them.
And because we are made in the image and likeness of God, that love propagates itself in the children we bear which is like the Spirit of God that reaches out and extends beyond God to touch others.
And so, we transition to yet another stage- the parenting stage in which our love extends not just to our parents and spouse but now to children and eventually grandchildren. And as we transition, there is no looking back. We are on a continual progression of growth that moves us beyond. We cannot afford to look back; we need to move forward.
Well in parallel with these human growth stages, we also experience spiritual growth as well. Initially our experiences are limited to this world. But God touches each of us continually with His Spirit. We become more and more aware of the beauty that has been forged by our creator. And we consider the limits of worldly existence. All of us come to the conclusion that we will die some day. All of our ancestors have, and we are no different.
And so, we seek the ultimate purpose in life. Is there an author to life? What is my relationship with Him? Will I live beyond this life, and in what way? Many of us seek more and more knowledge about God. Hopefully, we progress beyond knowledge about God and begin to feel God’s presence in our lives.
As we develop that relationship with our creator, we are moved by His Spirit. And that Spirit moves us to seek and find God’s will for us. Most of us discover that we are already in the middle of God’s plan for us because we have been blessed with our spouse; with certain talents, with certain limitations, and with certain desires. These things are all well and good. But then, and at varying times in our lives, we sense that God has something special in mind for us. We are called by him for something out of the ordinary for us. We are called to put aside the goals that we have for ourselves, and endeavor to help others. For most of is, it is not a life changing call; for others it is.
But whenever we follow that call- to be there for a friend in need; to care for a sick loved one; to teach Sunday School; to volunteer in some capacity; to visit the sick or the interned; or to do something truly extraordinary as Mother Theresa was called to do, we cannot look back. We need to look forward and focus on God’s nudge lest we derail ourselves.
That’s what Elijah did; whereas the man in the Gospel is holding back just a little. We cannot hold back because life is full of points of no return.
The ultimate point of no return is our death in this world. For those who have not looked back; there will be a guaranteed place in the kingdom of God for them.