Open to Any Kind of Ministries

Weekly Missionary Reflection
26th Ordinary Sunday, 29 September 2024
Num. 11:25-29; Ps. 19:8,10,12-13,14; Jas. 5:1-6; Mark 9:38-43,45,47-48

“For whoever is not against us is for us”
(Mark 9:40)

Today’s Gospel tells about the call to live in holiness, especially in avoiding sin which can be a stumbling block for ourselves and others. John told Jesus that he saw someone who did not follow them driving out demons in Jesus’ name, and John tried to stop the person. However, Jesus rebuked him, saying “Whoever is not against us is for us.”

Jesus’ message is short, but it has deep meaning. Jesus teaches us not to be exclusive or feel better than others in our ministry, let alone claim to be the best disciples. God works in many ways, and we are called to appreciate and accept those who serve sincerely, even though they may be different from us in some ways.

Jesus also gave a stern warning for making others sinful. Jesus said, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”  These words of Jesus remind us that our actions impact others, especially those who are weak or new to the faith. We must always be careful not to be a stumbling block or cause others to fall into sin.

In these verses, Jesus used a strong hyperbole: “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off… If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off… If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out.” These words of Jesus were not meant to be taken literally by cutting off our limbs, but to show how serious the sin is and the importance of taking radical steps to avoid it. Jesus emphasizes that it is better to lose something we consider important in this world than to lose eternal life. 

We are invited to guard our lives from those drifting us away from God. We are also invited to live in holiness, stay away from sin, and continue to improve ourselves. May we always strive to be faithful disciples of Christ, who are open to any possible mission works and do not feel that we are the most righteous in our service.

Our mission today: Read the Bible and be open to all forms of services in the Church.

(Ignasius Lede – Commission for Mission of The Bishop’s Conference of Indonesia)

DAILY DEDICATED PRAYER

Lord, our Father, I present my today prayer, thought, word, work, joy and sorrow in the unity with Your Son, Jesus Christ, who always presents Himself in the Eucharist for the salvation of the world. May the Holy Spirit animating Jesus, also be my guidance and strength today so that I am ready to be the witness of Your love.

Together with Mary, Mother of Jesus, and the Church, in particular, I present my prayer for our Pope and apostle prayer of the Indonesian Church this month:

Universal Church Intent: For the cry of the earth
We pray that each one of us will hear and take to heart the cry of the Earth and victims of natural disasters and climatic change and that all will undertake to personally care for the world in which we live.s

Indonesian Church Intent: Biblical Figures
We pray that Catholic children, teenagers, and youth can find the figures in the Scripture as their idols and models in living their daily lives.

Amen.