The Lord of the World

29th Sunday in Ordinary Time 
22 October 2017

First reading

Isaiah 45:1,4-6

Thus says the Lord to his anointed, to Cyrus,
whom he has taken by his right hand
to subdue nations before him
and strip the loins of kings,
to force gateways before him
that their gates be closed no more:
‘It is for the sake of my servant Jacob,
of Israel my chosen one,
that I have called you by your name,
conferring a title though you do not know me.
I am the Lord, unrivalled;
there is no other God besides me.
Though you do not know me, I arm you
that men may know from the rising to the setting of the sun

that, apart from me, all is nothing.’

                

Second reading

1 Thessalonians 1:1-5

From Paul, Silvanus and Timothy, to the Church in Thessalonika which is in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ; wishing you grace and peace.
  We always mention you in our prayers and thank God for you all, and constantly remember before God our Father how you have shown your faith in action, worked for love and persevered through hope, in our Lord Jesus Christ.
  We know, brothers, that God loves you and that you have been chosen, because when we brought the Good News to you, it came to you not only as words, but as power and as the Holy Spirit and as utter conviction.

Gospel

Matthew 22:15-21

The Pharisees went away to work out between them how to trap Jesus in what he said. And they sent their disciples to him, together with the Herodians, to say, ‘Master, we know that you are an honest man and teach the way of God in an honest way, and that you are not afraid of anyone, because a man’s rank means nothing to you. Tell us your opinion, then. Is it permissible to pay taxes to Caesar or not?’ But Jesus was aware of their malice and replied, ‘You hypocrites! Why do you set this trap for me? Let me see the money you pay the tax with.’ They handed him a denarius, and he said, ‘Whose head is this? Whose name?’ ‘Caesar’s’ they replied. He then said to them, ‘Very well, give back to Caesar what belongs to Caesar – and to God what belongs to God.’

Reflection

by Ma. Rosalina S. Flores

Today’s gospel is the situation of the Filipinos now. As we face the problems on drugs, killing people become rampant. Is it just or not?

It seems that we are the Pharisees in the gospel who tried to entrap Jesus in speech, hoping Him to answer wrongly so that we will have the reason to condemn Him and go on with our sins. But like how Jesus intelligently answered the question about census tax, the sixth commandment of God that says “Thou shall not kill” remains unbreakable. As He reiterated the duty of paying to Caesar what is due to Caesar and give to the Lord what belongs to Him, let us be reminded of what is worldly and godly. It is God who gave our life, not the police nor the government leaders; therefore we should always cherish it and safeguard it from harm including the government orders that cause danger to it. We belong to the Father, not to anybody else.

On the other hand, to give what belongs to God is not only seen by obeying the Ten Commandments, but also by following the laws of our world. Throwing our garbage properly, obeying the traffic lights, paying the proper tax are only few ways of becoming good citizens which the Lord does not hinder us to do. In fact, He always encourages us to behave properly on earth and use our talents for everyone’s good. Where can you see someone who is more supportive than Jesus? He never asks us to choose between the world and Him. Instead, He guides us in our undertakings. Because He is the Lord of the world, everything we do here also belongs to Him. As we comply with the laws of our land, may we always keep in mind that our actions affect our Lord. Let’s give glory to God with every just and good deed we make.

Prayer

Oh my Jesus, You are the Lord of the world we live in. May our everyday actions here give delight and bring You glory now and forever. Amen.