THE GOLDEN OPPORTUNITY TO REDEEM

HOMILY FOR THE 3RD SUNDAY OF LENT, YEAR C

REV. FR. Ezekoka Peter Onyekachi

The message of this Sunday revolves around the mercy and kindness of God for the oppressed and for the sinner who are constantly called to redemption and repentance. There are two personalities that stand out in the readings (First Reading: Exodus 3:1-8a, 13-15, Gospel: Luke 13:1-9): the person of Moses and the person of the gardener in the parable Jesus told. These men in their different ways, saw, understood and grabbed the golden opportunity of redemption.

1. Moses who was a shepherd tending the flock of his father-in-law, Jethro had the chance of witnessing a delightfully amazing scene of a bush that was burning without the fire consuming the bush. The sight of this was so overwhelming for Moses that he decided to “go over to look at the remarkable sight, and see why the bush was not burned.” He took the risk. And may we not forget that risk is the prize paid for great opportunities. That decision and move to get closer was the moment Moses disposed himself and grabbed the opportunity to become the redeemer of his fellow Israelites. He never knew he was going closer to receive his calling. He simply went to discover what it was that was going on at that mount Horeb. He would later discover that the burning fire was meant to attract him to the divine presence. It was meant to consecrate him for the mission of redemption and speaking truth to the powers of his time. Indeed, with this view, the burning of the bush can thus be linked to the fire of the theophany in Exodus 19:18 which became the event that consecrated the people to the Lord who descended upon Mount Sinai in fire. Hence, there is a close association of the Exodus and Sinai right from the start, and of the consecration of Moses and that of the people.

2. Divine signs and manifestations are symbols of God’s invitation of us. The burning bush was a divine sign which would mean the fire of great purification for the Israelites out from the hands of Pharaoh and the Egyptians. It was also an event which not only drew Moses closer to God, but also drew the Israelites closer to their promised land. When the Lord shows us a remarkable sign like he showed Moses, we need not stop at those signs. We must go beyond those signs; becoming ever ready and disposed to hear the Lord’s voice and act according to his dictates, and to discover what the Lord wants of us. Divine signs are for liberation and mission. Imagine those words of God to Moses after Moses had made the move: I have witnessed the affliction of my people…therefore I have come down to rescue them…and lead them out of that land into a good and spacious land…flowing with milk and honey. Thus, Moses was sent on a rescue mission. His person became the symbol of God’s liberation of the oppressed. This is how the person of the gardener became the symbol of God’s patience for the sinner. God requires human instruments for divine accomplishments. Therefore, we must never hesitate to become instruments of God. Our divine call may not come in the form of the consecration of Moses as in the burning bush. Our vigilance should be based on the discovery of opportunities to help and redeem others.

3. Today, our attendance and presence in the Church can be likened to the movement of Moses towards mount Horeb, the holy location of the burning bush. We go to church, the holy place where we worship just as Moses went closer to the holy mountain. While in the church, the Lord speaks to us with his Word and Sacrament dispensed through the person of the priest, and at the end gives us his mission of liberation to go out into the world to liberate others and lead souls back to God. So, the Holy Mass can be read through the optics of the encounter between God and Moses on Horeb. And we all like the Moses of our age are encouraged to recognize that where we worship remains a Holy place and ought to be treated as such. It has to be a place where the Christian receives the divine mandate to assist in the work of liberation and redemption. 

4. As already said, the person of the gardener in the Gospel portrays the same redemptive spirit and move of Moses. While that of Moses geared towards liberating the oppressed, that of the gardener gears towards patience with the sinner. Jesus had told some people a parable to illustrate the need to repent when we can. In that parable was a fig tree that failed to bear fruit when it should have. Save for the timely intervention of the gardener, the master would have had it cut down. This was an indication by Jesus that many of them should have been dead like those people they regarded unfortunate if not for the intervention of Him, the Christ. It then means that they were living out of grace, the grace of a second chance. And we could hear the gardener say: sir, leave it for one more year, and I will do my best to see it bear fruit; if not, you can then cut it down. That means more work for the gardener. Christ continues to work on us that we may repent, even to the point of sacrificing his life for our sake. Is this then not a pointer to how Christ today intervenes on our behalf and even works to see us repent? God requires repentance from us. He desires us to learn from history and not to repeat the mistakes of the past. This was the admonition of St. Paul in the Second Reading (2 Cor. 10:1-6, 10-12) to strive never to do evil, remaining steadfast in goodness and to allow the experiences of the past teach us.

5. Opportunity dances with those already on the dance floor. The gardener grabbed the opportunity to save the poor fig tree. It was then a great opportunity for the fig tree to repent and bear fruit in the next season. Today, the gardener is the person who pleads on our behalf even without our knowledge. We all need this gardener’s intervention, as we think in appreciation of all those who are like this gardener in our life journey. The first appreciation goes to Christ for always giving us another chance when we sin against God. Our other numerous appreciations must also go to our fellow humans who have saved us from shame and disappointments by helping us to become better individuals. These appreciations must then stir in us the desire to become gardeners for others, interceding for them, saving them and caring to see that they bear fruit. We must also pray for the grace to act like the master who allowed the gardener to go to work. We need that divine spirit that offers another chance to offenders. Giving others another chance is a sign of trust that the other is able to become better with time. When you encounter offenders, just give them one more chance. When your friend betrays you, just give him/her one more chance. When your marriage partner fails, just offer him/her one more chance. Remember, one more chance doesn’t ever get finished. However, do not grow tired of offering one more chance for God never stops giving us more chances to repent and come to him. May we live our lives in the line of this grace, and may God continue to perfect this grace in us. Amen. Goo bless you.