Read: Is 45:1, 4-6; Ps 96; Thes 1:1-5b; Mat 22:15-21
Have you ever considered yourself as a SAVIOUR before?
Has it ever crossed your mind that you hold the keys to the success story of another?
Has it ever dawned on you that you are the answer to another person’s prayer?
In our first reading, the Prophet Isaiah speaks of pagan King, Cyrus, as the Messiah of God. Cyrus is clothed with the Jewish title of MESSIAH, the Anointed One, who has come to save the people of Isreal.
What is interesting about this reading is that though Cyrus knew not God, God was using him to achieve his purpose. The military might that was bestowed on Cyrus was to be used to liberate Israel from Babylonian bondage.
Beloved, God has put us in places of power so that we can liberate others. God has put us in privilege places so that we can put in a single word on behalf of another person and have the course of their lives completely changed.
We must not do extraordinary things. We just have to be human bearing in mind that others too must live with the dignity with which God created them.
We mustn’t know the people we are helping. We must only see them as humans who are in need of our assistance.
Serve as a referee; write a letter of introduction or recommendation; direct someone to a place where there is job vacancy; make a call and link up someone and in fact, point someone in the right direction.
Be that unexpected saviour or angel that someone is praying for.
In our gospel reading, we see Jesus answering a question that would have spelt his doom. The only answer available to the question was either a YES or a NO.
Experience has proven that “Yes-No questions” are usually the most difficult to answer. You can easily incriminate yourself and this was the intention behind the question posed to Jesus.
Jesus, proves to us all that no question is bigger than God. He has a way of going round difficult situations. He gives an answer that puts his adversaries to shame.
Beloved, Jesus teaches us two things,
1. Be careful when people start giving you appellations or start heaping praises on you. They might have plans to cause your downfall. Sometimes, when these praises get into our heads, we tend to act rashly or stupidly. This might cause our downfall.
2. Each of us have a duty to God and to the state. This, we get from his answer.
We have services to render to God and we must do this dutifully and with reverence and dedication. We need to give good offerings and to pay out tithes.
We also have our duties to the state. We must pay your taxes, bills and offer constructive criticisms that will better the lot of society.
This is how every Christian must live. Working for God and also working for your country. The C. Y. O. greeting : FOR GOD AND GHANA, must continually ring in our ears.
Let’s ask ourselves whether we are giving to God what belongs to him and to society what belongs to society.
“Lord Jesus, help us to give what is due God to God. And may we also give what belongs to society to society.”
By Rev. Fr Donatus Pallu
