Our dependence on God

Today’s Sunday Gospel teaches us a lesson about faith, our trust and above all, our dependence in God. Too often, we live life because of the talents and gifts that we have … gifts that were actually given to each one of us from the Holy Spirit. But then life moves so fast … when life fails us, we often blame God for our misery and if life is good for us, we say that we made it our way and God had nothing to do with it! What God wants from each of us is our dependence on his love and this is the lesson that he teaches us. You can read it in Luke 12: 32-48.

[Jesus said to his disciples] 32 “Do not be afraid any longer, little flock, for your Father is pleased to give you the kingdom. 33 Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide moneybags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heave that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. 34 For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.

35 Grid your loins and light your lamps 36 and be like servants who await their master’s return from a wedding, ready to open immediately when he comes and knocks. 37 Blessed are those servants whom the master finds vigilant on his arrival. Amen I say to you, he will grid himself, have them recline at table, and proceed to wait on them.

38 and should he come in the second or third watch and find them prepared in this way, blessed are those servants. 39 Be sure of this; if the master of the house had known the hour when the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. 40 You also must be prepared, for at an hour you do not expect, the son of Man will come.

41 Then Peter said, “Lord, is this parable meant for us or for everyone? 42 And the lord replied, “Who, then, is the faithful and prudent steward whom the master will put in charge of his servants to distribute (the) food allowance at the proper time? 43 Blessed is that servant whom his master on arrival finds doing so. 44 Truly, I say to you, he will put him in charge of all his property.

45 But if that servant says to himself, ‘My master is delayed in coming, and beings to beat the menservants and the maidservants, to eat and drink and get drunk, 46 then that servant’s master will come on an unexpected day and at an unknown hour and will punish him severely and assign him a place with the unfaithful.

47 That servant show know his master’s will but did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; 48 and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly. Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more.

Our Lord Jesus teaches us the most basic thing about faith… that if we have found God (actually, it is God who found us first), the smartest and the most prudent thing to do is, “Sell your belongings and give alms. Provide moneybags for yourselves that do not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heave that no thief can reach nor moth destroy. 34 For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.”

St. Augustine once quipped, “Where your pleasure is, there is your treasure: where your treasure, there your heart; where your heart, there your happiness.” This is his answer to what Jesus said, “For where your treasure is, there also will your heart be.” So what do we treasure most in life? Our material things? A Rolex watch, a nice car, a nice home, jewelry or nice and expensive clothes or even our businesses?

What I mentioned are indubitably nice treasures to own, however as Jesus pointed to us, these are not inexhaustible treasures that “no thief can reach nor moth destroy” all you need to do is open your history books and find out where the top ten richest or the most powerful people or companies were 50-years ago and you will see that they’re all gone and their companies have been gobbled up by other companies. Even the nice Rolex or Bulgari watch in your hand will not stay with you forever. You will either bring that to your grave or your children will get them. In short, nothing is permanent in this world of crass materialism.

If you read your Bible, you will know that God is the Alpha and the Omega… he is the beginning and he is the end. He is timeless and majestic. But what’s so great with God is that amongst the billions of people on earth, with whom he has the power to destroy or exterminate, God chose to love us, right down to each and everyone of us. He chose to love me and you specifically… he can even count the hairs on your head! So let us love God with all our souls, our strength because loving him is merely returning his favor.

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