We are signs of love and mercy

Homily for August 21, 2016 (21st Sunday in Ordinary Time, C)
Isaiah 66:18-21; Psalm 117; Hebrews 12:5-7, 11-13; Luke 13:22-30

Last year Marvel Studios released a movie entitled Ant Man, the story of a superhero who is able to shrink to the size of a small insect but with amazing strength and agility.  The protagonist, Scott Lang, is a struggling ex-con whose desperation and skills as a burglar are noticed by Hank Pym, a scientist and developer of the suit who wants to make sure that his technology is used to serve humanity and to enhance and not destroy life.

In light of what Jesus warns us about in today’s gospel passage, we might want to have an Ant Man suit handy.  Having just shared a couple of parables likening the kingdom of God to a mustard seed or a measure of yeast—things that expand over time—Jesus was confronted with a question about how many people will ultimately be saved.  As he often did, Jesus avoided a direct answer.  Instead he used yet another image, a narrow gate, to refocus people’s attention.  It was his way of saying, “Before you start worrying about whom and how many others will be saved take a look at yourself and your own life!”

Many of those who followed Jesus were excited when he spoke of the kingdom or the reign of God, for it evoked for them images of a restored Israel freed from Roman rule, led by a king worthy of the mantle of David, prosperous and religiously pure.  For them, this change in their fortunes would fulfill the words of hope announced by Isaiah and the other prophets centuries earlier.

Jesus knew those prophets and their writings very well.  Following their legacy, he urged reform and a return to God not just in word but also in action.  In addition, he reminded anyone who would listen that part of that prophetic vision included others who had formerly been excluded:  the people of “the nations” or the gentiles.  Living in the reign of God was not a matter birth but rather rebirth, not a sign of one’s own righteousness but rather God’s goodness and grace, not so much an inheritance but rather a choice.

What makes the gate narrow isn’t God’s pickiness.  Instead it’s a reflection and consequence of the gospel and the demands of discipleship.  Accepting the reign of God and living in the kingdom shape our worldview and relationships, as well as what we think, speak and do.  Looking at the world through the lens of the gospel is different than through Google Glass, Netflix, ESPN, the Wall Street Journal, or Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Discipleship demands that we be teachable, discerning and prepared to make difficult decisions.

It also requires a readiness for deferred gratification.  As the author of the Letter to the Hebrews observed, we rarely appreciate discipline when we’re experiencing it.  It’s only later, when our knees are weak and our hands are drooping, that we see that it’s just that we need.  Clothed in Christ, we not only pass through the narrow gate, we are signs of love and mercy for all. +