Deciding to follow God is not always an easy decision. As humans we are familiar with things of the flesh so we often use our senses to decide which way is best for us. God, on the other hand, places spirituality first; allowing us to choose for ourselves which path leads us in the right direction for eternal life. Jesus never forced adherence, but instead invited, urged and appealed to people to believe in His teachings, healings and sacrifice as a sign of God’s truth for the people He created for everlasting life.
Two great biblical responses about choosing faith in God come today from the Book of Joshua and St. John’s Gospel.
In our first reading, Joshua, the successor of Moses, reminds the Israelites that God chose them as His people beginning with Abraham. His faith in God’s promises would provide them with everything they needed on earth, as well as in the afterlife. As time went on, people forgot the covenant God forged with Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph (the patriarchs), placing them into slavery in Egypt.
God selected Moses as their deliverer and after 40 years of wandering in the desert and much turmoil, they were brought to the Promised Land, to which due to his sin, Moses was not allowed to enter. As they are about to enter, Joshua, challenges them to make a decision to choose either Yahweh (the Hebrew name for God) or the gods of their ancestors, Egyptians or the surrounding countries. Their response of faith: “We will serve the Lord, our God, and obey His voice.”
In St. John’s Gospel, Jesus speaks the truth of what it will take to be a true follower of Him so they can inherit eternal life. The Jews thought Jesus was preaching cannibalism and many left Him rather than trust in His ways.
Jesus’ question to the Twelve, “Do you want to leave Me too”? brings the second great response of faith. St. Peter’s answer on behalf of the Apostles: “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We have come to believe; we are convinced that you are God’s holy one.”
Do we have that commitment of faith to answer in the same way looking into our lives? Will we serve the Lord, our God, and obey His voice? Do we truly believe in the Eucharistic explanation Jesus gives us in the sixth chapter of St. John’s Gospel to stay the course, to believe in everything He taught and did to realize there is no other god but the Blessed Trinity? If so, we can duplicate these two responses and live the life to which we are called to by our Baptism. If not, “to whom shall we go”?
Each of us periodically questions and doubts God. It is in our nature because the world around us calls us to take care of us first. Selflessness is a vocabulary word often used by God the Father and the Son, not because they are omnipotent and have unlimited power to do anything, but because They are the essence of love on which everything They offer is based.
Jesus didn’t come to earth to suffer, die on a cross for our sins because He knew it was only a 33-year gig in an eternity of time. He came in obedience to the will of His Father because everything God gives us relies on our free-will decision of what we think life should be based on our perspective. If that were not the case, God could have changed anything he wanted without involving us. There wouldn’t be a challenge or a question as above. And, there wouldn’t be a need for a response.
The initiation Sacraments of Baptism, Eucharist and Confirmation bring us to a fullness of the Lord in our life. In Baptism we promise to love God and all He has created either through our parents and godparents as a child or by ourselves. In Confirmation we commit to being active in our faith by doing those things which will strengthen our walk along with others. In Eucharist we are enriched each time we receive the sacred body of Christ so we can do the work for which we have been created: To Serve. All three of these Sacraments provide us with the utmost belief that God is the holy one and we are invited to join Him in a life of sanctity while on earth and in the afterlife.
Let us take this week to look deeply into our soul, heart and mind to strengthen the spirituality of our faith in God. By doing so, we will hopefully overcome times of doubt and know that God is there for us to choose a journey that will always bring us closer to Him and His promise of eternal life.
Reading 1: Joshua 24: 1-2a, 15-17, 18b
Reading 2: Ephesians 5: 21-32 or Ephesians 5: 2a, 25-32
Gospel: John 6: 60-69
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