18th Sunday in Ordinary Time C Reflections

18^th Sunday in Ordinary Time C

Si 1: 2. 2:21-23, Ps  89:3-6,12-14,17 Rv.1, Colossians 3:1-5, 9-11,

What does a man gain for all his toil?

There is only Christ: he is everything and he is in everything.

This hoard of yours whose will it be then?

Luke 12:13-21

¹³ A man in the crowd said to him, 'Master, tell my brother to give me a share of our inheritance.' ¹⁴ He said to him, 'My friend, who appointed me your judge, or the arbitrator of your claims?' ¹⁵ Then he said to them, 'Watch, and be on your guard against avarice of any kind, for life does not consist in possessions, even when someone has more than he needs.' ¹⁶ Then he told them a parable, 'There was once a rich man who, having had a good harvest from his land, ¹⁷ thought to himself, "What am I to do? I have not enough room to store my crops." ¹⁸ Then he said, "This is what I will do: I will pull down my barns and build bigger ones, and store all my grain and my goods in them, ¹⁹ and I will say to my soul: My soul, you have plenty of good things laid by for many years to come; take things easy, eat, drink, have a good time." ²⁰ But God said to him, "Fool! This very night the demand will be made for your soul; and this hoard of yours, whose will it be then?" ²¹ So it is when someone stores up treasure for himself instead of becoming rich in the sight of God.'

Live life to the full

It is said that when Alexander the Great was dying, he told his servants that they should leave his empty hands sticking out of the coffin –he was taking nothing with him. His hands were empty. The first reading gives us the same message: “a man who has laboured wisely, skilfully and successfully must leave what is his own to someone who has not toiled for it”.

What then can we build our lives on? Like the man in the Gospel and like Alexander death will rob us of everything and throw it all to someone else. Power and fame are even more illusory. We may enjoy them for a while but then they too slip through our fingers. People too are unreliable. A spouse may go off and leave us and if they are the centre of our lives then we fall to pieces. Even if they are most loving and faithful, one day there will be tears. One will have to die.

            Man’s life is tenuous at best. He can lose everything in the flash of a moment. Where then does security and peace of mind reside? Everyone wants to live life to the full. We only have one life and should make the most of it. The question is: how? You can go for money, as the rich man in today’s Gospel, power, influence, name and fame. But none of these will give you the satisfaction you long for. They are all centred on self. The paradox is that when we only see to ourselves we end up with nothing. Furthermore what we gain does not last.

Where is solid ground? On what can I build my life so that I have security till I die? Is there anything or anyone who can give me an abundant life and the courage to face the ultimate enemy death without fear? Jesus says there is. He is the rock of our life. If we build on him we will always be secure. He is the one who has conquered death and risen again to save us.

To have Jesus as an intimate friend is to enjoy security at all times and particularly at the moment of death. We will never be alone even when we have to depart from this world. “In the morning fill us with your love, we shall exult and rejoice all our days”  “I have come that you may have life and have it to the full”.

How are we to have Jesus as ‘the rock of our salvation’? We have the courage to approach him because he invites us to be his friend. Prayer is the way to respond and the way to come to know him. It is something we must do daily, allowing the Spirit to transform us. There is an invitation and the Helper is always ready. What is your response?

Father, on the sea of life may Jesus always be at my side.