If we say “Yes!” to Jesus, He will say “Yes!” to us now and when He calls us home
Reflections on the readings for the Nineteenth Sunday in Ordinary Time (August 8, 2021): 1KGS 19:4-8; PS 34:2-3,4-5,6-7,8-9; EPH 4:30 – 5:2; JN 6:41-51
MISSIO offers “Mission In Scripture” to nurture a missionary heart, providing reflections on the missionary themes in the readings of Sundays, Feast Days and Holy Days.
The Son of the Father was the Word of God sharing Divine truth and authority with anyone willing to listen.
In the Old Testament reading today we hear another example of how God feeds His hungry people when an angel provides sustenance for the prophet Elijah. In the Gospel according to St. John, Jesus continues to communicate with His listeners about the Bread that He wants to share with them. But many of them cannot believe what He is telling them because they think they already know all about Him. “The Jews murmured about Jesus because He said, ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven,’ and they said, ‘Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph?’… Jesus answered, … ‘Stop murmuring among yourselves. No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draw him.… It is written in the prophets: They shall all be taught by God. Everyone who listens to My Father and learns from Him comes to Me’” (John 6:41-45). This sound of people murmuring is not a happy one. Jesus heard anger and arrogance in their voices and a refusal to listen to the truth that He offered them. Some could accept His word and some could not.
Christ wanted them to grasp that everything He tells them can transform their lives. He wanted them to begin by letting Him teach them – not as a preacher or even a prophet. They shall be taught by God. And that is exactly what He did. The Son of the Father was the Word of God sharing Divine truth and authority with anyone willing to listen. He was also the Bread of Life, giving them a taste of His own being. But they had to do something in return: they had to believe in Him. The everlasting life Jesus presented to them – and to each of us – was a choice. If we say “Yes!” to Him, He will say “Yes!” to us now and when He calls us home.
Suggested missionary action: Let us attend Mass and receive Holy Communion frequently, as well as participate in Eucharistic Adoration. We can also read and pray on the Gospels regularly so that we can embrace our Lord with our minds as well as with our bodies and souls.