Surrendering
to
Discipleship
Questions for
Sunday March 1, 2009
Scripture
First
Psalm
Second
Gospel: Mark
1:12-15
First Reading Gn 22:1-2, 9a, 10-13, 15-18
A reading
from the Book of Genesis
The sacrifice of Abraham, our father in faith.
God put Abraham to the test.
He called to him, “Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he replied.
Then God said:
“Take your son Isaac, your only one, whom you love,
and go to the
There you shall offer him up as a holocaust
on a height
that I will point out to you.”
When they came to the place of which God had told him,
Abraham built an altar there and arranged the wood on it.
Then he reached out and took the knife to slaughter his son.
But the LORD’s messenger called to him from
heaven,
“Abraham, Abraham!”
“Here I am!” he answered.
“Do not lay your hand on the boy, ” said the
messenger.
“Do not do the least thing to him.
I know now how devoted you are to God,
since you did not withhold from me your own beloved son.”
As Abraham looked about,
he spied a ram caught by its horns in the thicket.
So he went and took the ram
and offered
it up as a holocaust in place of his son.
Again the LORD’s messenger called to Abraham
from heaven and said:
“I swear by myself, declares the LORD,
that because you acted as you did
in not withholding from me your beloved son,
I will bless you abundantly
and make your descendants as countless
as the stars of the sky and the sands of the seashore;
your descendants shall take possession
of the gates of their enemies,
and in your descendants all the nations of the earth
shall find blessing—
all this
because you obeyed my command.”
Responsorial
Psalm Ps 116:10, 15, 16-17, 18-19
(R.) I will walk before the Lord, in the land
of the living.
I believed, even when I said,
“I am greatly afflicted.”
Precious in the eyes of the LORD
is the death
of his faithful ones.
(R.) I will walk before the Lord, in the land
of the living.
O LORD, I am your servant;
I am your servant, the son of your handmaid;
you have loosed my bonds.
To you will I offer sacrifice of thanksgiving,
and I will
call upon the name of the LORD.
(R.) I will walk before the Lord, in the land
of the living.
My vows to the LORD I will pay
in the presence of all his people,
In the courts of the house of the LORD,
in your
midst, O
(R.) I will walk before the Lord, in the land
of the living.
Second
Reading Rom 8:31b-34
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
God did not
spare his own Son.
Brothers and sisters:
If God is for us, who can be against us?
He who did not spare his own Son
but handed him over for us all,
how will he
not also give us everything else along with him?
Who will bring a charge against God’s chosen ones?
It is God who acquits us, who will condemn?
Christ Jesus it is who died - or, rather, was raised -
who also is at the right hand of God,
who indeed
intercedes for us.
Gospel
Mk 9:2-10
A reading from the holy Gospel according to Mark
This is my
beloved Son.
Jesus took Peter, James, and John
and led them up a high mountain apart by themselves.
And he was transfigured before them,
and his clothes became dazzling white,
such as no fuller on earth could bleach them.
Then Elijah appeared to them along with Moses,
and they were conversing with Jesus.
Then Peter said to Jesus in reply,
“Rabbi, it is good that we are here!
Let us make three tents:
one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah.”
He hardly knew what to say, they were so terrified.
Then a cloud came, casting a shadow over them;
from the cloud came a voice,
“This is my beloved Son. Listen to him.”
Suddenly, looking around, they no longer saw anyone
but Jesus
alone with them.
As they were coming down from the mountain,
he charged them not to relate what they had seen to anyone,
except when the Son of Man had risen from the
dead.
So they kept the matter to themselves,
questioning
what rising from the dead meant.
Discipleship
Questions:
1. Please
read the Scripture readings for today and determine what central theme is being
presented in them.
2. There
is a sense in which we’re being encouraged to enter more intentionally upon the
Christian pilgrimage and to allow our sovereign Lord to reveal to us things
that need to be abandoned in our lives.
Reflect upon this and decide upon one thing in your life that needs to
be dealt with and jettisoned.
3. Please
read the following and discuss: It is what it is! If there is some unconfessed
sin in our lives it will out! Sooner or
later!!!!!
If there is one reality that I’m absolutely absolutely certain about it’s that fact – sin will manifest and the deeper it’s hidden the harder it is to unearth and get rid of!
Some of us have seen this sort of hidden sin poison a whole congregation and ultimately lead to its split!
Sin can be very obvious but also very very subtle and it just seems easier to “leave it be.” Just keep it hidden and an occasional dalliance in this hidden sin isn’t really going to hurt anyone as long as it’s not “out there” in the open. As long as it’s done in the shadows where no one can see it!
This really is about living with any sorts of secrets.
Now the key to all of this is our Lord who sees all things in secret and who wants us to become free from the seductive entanglements of our secret sins so it’s to Him that we must ultimately confess and set things right again. He will then guide us to restore our relationship with those around us but first we must set things right with Him.
He can handle our hypocrisies – others may not be able to but He – oh yes, He can.
This is where the great gift of the sacrament of confession and reconciliation is so precious – so infinitely restorative - both to relationships and to families and to communities.
4. Please
reflect upon the current global crisis and seek God’s wisdom on what He is
telling us in this crisis – could He be telling us that “it is what it
is.” We can’t duck reality!
5. Please
read the following and discuss: As we draw closer and closer to Him our
sins will become more and more obvious but His love will also become more and
more obvious. His love will draw us
through the valleys of sins revelation to the mount of
It’s His greater love which has and will always overcome the seductive titillating tug of our sins and our addictions!
It’s Easter that we walk towards over the next 40 days – it’s towards our precious Lord that we walk. O Lord, may You in the next 40 days reveal all of the sins that separate us from you and then give us the courage and strength to turn away from them and to walk unhindered towards You.
6. Please read the following and discuss: I think it would be helpful right now if you could think of one critical failing in your life that clearly spoils your relationship with others and certainly with God.
Think about it. By the way, if you can’t think about one thing then you will if you ask God to reveal them to you – it won’t be pretty!
Now let’s not justify it, rationalize it, equivocate about it, play the victim of it, or sentimentalize it or hide from it.
Let’s face it! Then let’s really invite our Lord to reveal the stark horror of it to us and pray that you will have the moral fortitude not to run and hide from this process!
Look at it – look at the full extent of its ugliness. Really mediate upon it!
But remember – never ever ever forget – the Cross – take it now and in your mind’s eye and lay it upon the shoulders of Jesus hanging on the Cross. Watch carefully – as you give it to Him His pain increases visibly . . . terribly. But watch – He isn’t trying to get off the Cross! He receives it! Look into His eyes, if you have the courage. You don’t see hatred or anger or even disdain – but what you see is love – infinite compassion and love! A love that will never ever say “stop – it is enough! I can’t take any more!” His love is infinite! He will go all of the way to the end for you!
And now as you apprehend His love for you – think – ponder – could this love cause you to let go of your sins and reject them?
The answer for millions and millions of men and women throughout the two millennial since Jesus’ advent into His world has been “O yes!”
He – His love – His Presence – can overwhelm the power of your sins and addictions! He really can!
You see His love is what makes the difference and our honest and authentic response to it!
You and I have
an opportunity this Lent to get rid of some stuff that has plagued us for too too long!