DAILY HOMILIES #abram

Do not be carried away with sayings such as: “A bird in hand is better than a thousand in the wind.” As long as God is ignored in that plan, the so-called “bird in hand” will become a bone in your throat later. Our people have a parable: “If one rushes to put food into their mouth, they could easily put the food in their nose.” Although it is true that “heaven helps those who help themselves”, if such “help” involves sin, we are no longer helping ourselves but setting ourselves up for regret.

Jesus said, “By their fruits, we shall know them.” This does not only apply to persons in religious circles. One does not need to write “engineer” on their forehead to be known as one; they only need to produce engineering works. What do we make of an “author” who has never written a single page? How do we say one is an accountant if they cannot handle financial records? You do not need to announce yourself to anyone; let your actions speak for themselves.

In the Gospel passage, we come across another type of call. This one comes from Jesus himself. It is a call to EXAMINATION OF CONSCIENCE. A call to constantly look inwards to take out the logs in our eyes before attempting to remove the specks in our neighbour’s eyes. Both calls require movement and sacrifice. While Abram had to let go of his father’s land, we are called to let go of our pride by examining our own lives rather than judging.

In the feeding of the five thousand, one obvious lesson we learn is that we serve a God who is interested in our physical as well as spiritual well-being. Jesus would not allow the crowds to go away hungry. He felt their plight and worked a miracle to feed them. This same feeling of love and concern is what inspired our Lord Jesus to sacrifice His flesh and blood for us on our behalf.

To hope in God is to believe He can bring life out of what is already dead. Our hope is never based on our visible circumstances; instead, it is built solely on what God can do. This hope operates through the eyes of faith. Like Abraham, you may consider your body as good as dead, but let your focus be on what God is capable of doing. Don’t be distracted by your situation; look at God instead.

A tree may appear very nice outside, but it is bad if it bears rotten fruits or fails to produce any fruits. It is easy to pretend. It is easy to deceive others. It is easy to be a wolf in sheep’s clothing, but then, no matter how much we pretend to be who we are not, our fruits will sell us out.

Even though the land of Sodom was a beauty to behold, the people who lived there had no fear of God. They were great and wicked sinners. Like many Christians today, Abram’s cousin, Lot, chose material prosperity over spiritual prosperity. This is what greed does to us. It makes us put the passing things of this world over and above God.

In the case of Abram, God wanted him to leave his Father’s house. In your case, God might want you to go through a particular sinful relationship or stop a bad habit. God might want you to take your prayer life more seriously. Whatever the content of your call will be, it will be so clear that you will know it is coming from God.

In John 6, Jesus told us: “I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever.” (John 6:51). In this same light, Jesus is saying to us today: “If anyone keeps my word, he will never see death.” (John 8:51).

Abram’s behaviour is worth commending. First, God called him alone but he choose to go with Lot. Lot became rich by his association with Abram but soon Lot’s wealth became so much that there was now a quarrel between his servants that those of Abram. Still, it was Abram who sued for peace. He asked Lot to choose first. Abram was willing to settle for less so long as Lot was happy. Abram was not greedy.

In the case of Abram, God wanted him to leave his Father’s house. In your case, it might be that God wants you to leave a particular sinful relationship or stop a bad habit. It might be that God wants you to take your prayer life more seriously and so on.