DAILY HOMILIES #St. Jerome

To the one who opted to follow Jesus on his own, Jesus warned him: “Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of man has nowhere to lay his head.” (Luke 9:58). Surely, there are so many good things we get to enjoy for being Christians, but our worship of God should not be predicated on these things. We are Christians not because of what we stand to gain from God but because we love God. As such, even when we don’t receive anything or when misfortunes come our way, we must remain faithful.

In all three synoptic Gospels, when Jesus was asked about the first commandment, He immediately added: “You shall love your neighbour as yourself. There is no other commandment greater than these.” (Mark 12:31, Cf. Matthew 22:36). In Luke’s Gospel, Jesus summed both commandments in one sentence: “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbour as yourself.” (Luke 10:27)

Whatever we seek from God will come to us so long as we make His Word a priority in our lives. The secret to your healing, your deliverance, and your breakthrough in life is to allow God’s word into your heart daily. Read God’s word, and use the word of God to pray. Speak God’s words over any situation you may be facing in life, and watch how great things will begin to happen.

This man, Luke, was a great writer and a trained physician. As St. Paul himself testifies in today’s first reading, Luke was right there with him in prison, looking after his physical health needs and assisting him in the mission. From the statement, “Luke alone is with me,” Luke must have also assisted with writing some of Paul’s letters.

Whether we like it or not, we will all experience rejection at some point in our lives, as long as we live in a world where freedom of choice exists. So rather than avoiding rejection at all costs and becoming people pleasers (which is worse), we need to prepare ourselves ahead of time for rejection and find ways to heal ourselves when it occurs.