GOD CAN CALL ANYONE FOR HIS PURPOSE.
By Rev. Clement Appiah
If we were to judge by appearance, status, and position, many people who have made it in life would not have come out of their shells. However, what is the opposite is true because God can change anybody’s worse situation for the better. It is true that many people whose names resound in our world today started from humble beginnings. People’s attention were not on them because they probably were not the most brilliant, or the most eloquent, or the most beautiful or adjudged to come from the most influential families. Both the first reading and the gospel passage throw more light on that. God can change hopelessness into hopefulness.
The first reading from the Prophet Isaiah (9:1-4) belongs to the so-called Proto-Isaiah (Isaiah 1- 39) a pre-exilic text which follows the dark oracle in Isaiah 8, where Judah faces fear, invasion, and spiritual confusion. The passage is set against the backdrop of Assyrian oppression in the 8th century BCE, particularly affecting the northern regions of Israel- Zebulun and Naphtali- which were the first to fall to Assyria (Cf 2 Kings 15:26). This text presents the dramatic shift from judgment to hope, using vivid imagery to proclaim God’s future act of salvation.
The text mentions of darkness and light. It also mentions joy and the multiplication of nations. Darkness symbolizes oppression, exile, ignorance, and despair. A theological import of this is that God transforms: darkness into light; humiliation into glory and oppression into freedom.
That is why Jesus in the gospel of today begins his ministry in Galilee and not in Jerusalem. He begins with the humiliated and the poor. Before Jesus ever appeared in the northern Kingdom, the territory was mark off and relegated to the background because of historical antecedents. However, people began to look for what good thing Galilee had to offer. This is because Jesus has brought light and had begun to shine. That is how God works.
In the end, in order to exemplify the purpose of God, Jesus would not choose the most affluent to work in the Kingdom business, but those who were from Galilee. The gospel mentions of four (4) people, Peter, Andrew, James and John. They were mere fishermen; sometimes they went fishing naked and had been relegated to the background. They were hidden in the darkness and yet these are the people Jesus chose. The calling of the disciples took a dramatic turn. They responded to Jesus’ call immediately. They left everything and followed Jesus. Jesus brought them into the light.
They did the will of God through simple obedience. We need to also listen and act with such simple obedience. Just like them, we have been called but our selection and success depends on listening to him who has called us. This voice is not deceptive. It is clear and direct: Follow me. This points to the universal scope of salvation. The mention of Galilee of the nations anticipates God’s concern beyond Jerusalem. This means God proclaims a salvation which reaches the margins and the gentiles.
In our time therefore, sin casts darkness upon us and no one is able experience the Lord through us. St. Paul even tells us that he who sins remains in the dark. But like the disciples, we must leave everything and follow with the Lord. We must leave the sinful lives and follow the light of Christ. When the disciples did that, their lights shone and today we remember them.
The calling of the disciples means that Jesus is not interested in our sins or our past before he chooses us. He is rather interested in the fact that we can contribute to his saving purpose. His purpose for us, therefore, is to shine for everyone to behold. We are therefore expected to leave everything behind and follow Jesus. We cannot put our hands to the plough and still look back. Jesus us that we need to be focused on God and his purpose for us; that is, to work in this ministry. God has called all of us in one way or the other. He has given us everything for our survival in the ministry. Our message should be one: “REPENT, FOR THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN IS AT HAND” nothing more, nothing less. This therefore dawns on us to work in unity and with one purpose; to bring others to Christ.
That is why St. Paul in the Second reading admonishes the people of Corinth and by extension, all of us to avoid dissensions and remain united. At times, the temptation is so great for those of us who are in this ministry. We are mostly blinded by envy, jealousy and hatred, making us seek the downfall of our brothers in the same ministry. We must remember that this work is not ours; it is Jesus’ work. Why can’t we under formation live in peace? We form cliques and compete each other. We want to be recognized as the best in everything. Let us remember Jesus did not choose the best, but the normal, humble and the simple. We want to be very extravagant; moving with the times. Let us remember, Jesus chose the simple for his mission. We want to prophesy, heal, perform miracles and make a show of ourselves. Let us remember that Jesus did everything quietly “…and would not want others to know about it…”
At our various pastoral fields, we compete unnecessarily. We relegate the preaching of the Word and focus on pinning down our brothers by investigating their weaknesses. For Christ’s sake, we are men of God. We feel happy hearing others’ downfall; it means there is something wrong somewhere. That certainly causes division. Your brother is praised for having done something positive and you find a reason to pull him down because you probably know his weakness. That’s unchristian.
Doing the work of Jesus is NOT our right; it is only a privilege; it is by grace. Very soon many of us will enter the ministry and would work for our various dioceses. We shall occupy various portfolios and titles and the like. It is by grace and not by right. If you think about maltreating a seminarian, remember you were once a seminarian. If you think about maltreating and insulting a lay faithful, remember they fed and took care of you. God is capable of turning tables; he changes fates. May his light shine in our darkness as respond to his call and turn our lives to fit his purpose.
Let us remember that our pasts do not matter to Christ; it is what we make of our calling that matters. He can call anyone for his purpose.
God bless you.
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