Episode 113| We Are Not Worthy… Or Are We?

[00:00:05] Hello, my name is Sally Moriarty-Flask. Welcome to: From His Word to Our Hearts, my weekly Bible Study podcast. Together we will explore the readings to be proclaimed at the Catholic Mass on Sunday, June 28, 2026, the 13th Sunday in Ordinary Time. This week's episode is entitled: We Are Not Worthy… or Are We? [00:00:28] And our Gospel helps us understand that there are lots of things that can make us unworthy of Jesus. So, rather than focusing on what makes us unworthy, let's figure out what we need to do to be worthy of Jesus - every day! [00:00:45] As we journey through the readings this week, consider the following: We must understand - fully and completely - that loving Jesus and being his disciple always comes first, before anything and everything else. When we understand that, everything else in life falls into place. But the choice is always up to us! So, will we continue to put ourselves first and remain unworthy of Jesus? Or will we choose to follow Jesus and allow ourselves and everything we do to be transformed by his love? [00:01:36] Let's begin in prayer: In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. Heavenly Father, teach us what we need to do in this life to be worthy of your Son. Help us to know that following him, that being his disciples, and being filled by his love will make us better people in this life and earn for us an eternal reward in your heavenly kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen. [00:02:11] Now that we've opened our hearts in prayer, let's listen to what God is telling us in the Scriptures. Our Gospel this week is from Matthew 10: 37-42. [00:02:23] [Jesus said to his apostles:] ‘He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me; and he who does not take [up] his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it. He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me. He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward, and he who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward. And whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.’” [00:03:37] This passage comes just three verses after the end of last week's passage, and it is part of a collection of Jesus’ sayings that explain the conditions and cost of discipleship. These words were spoken to Jesus' original disciples… but that means they are spoken to us as well. In one of the three verses that the Lectionary omits before this passage begins, Jesus says: “do not think I have come to bring peace on earth” and yet that is often exactly what we do think. [00:04:20] If we read in John 14, Jesus says: “my peace I give to you, not as the world gives do I give it to you” and that quote gives us a hint of what Jesus means when he says in Matthew: “I did not come to bring peace on earth.” [00:04:44] The peace Jesus brings is not peace between one man or another, or between one country and another, as we so often think it is meant to be… it is actually peace between God and man. [00:05:03] Now, if we can find a way to accept that peace and allow it to fully penetrate our hearts and minds… if we allow it to inform all of our actions… then we will, most importantly, be at peace with God but we will also, by extension, be at peace with others. [00:05:30] Unfortunately, being human and subject to human weakness, we always resist, on some level, the peace that Jesus offers… that peace with God. We try to accept it; we just don't always succeed! [00:05:53] Which is why we still have things like hatred, crime, war, and injustice. [00:06:01] So, let's explore some of the conditions Jesus sets for discipleship… for being worthy of him… [00:06:11] “He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me; and he who loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me;” [00:06:24] That sounds crazy, doesn't it? How can Jesus be saying to us that we shouldn't love our family? But… that's not what he's saying! [00:06:36] He IS saying that we need to love HIM more… more than anyone or anything else… more than our parents, more than our children, more than our friends, even more than ourselves in order to be WORTHY of him! [00:06:59] The condition Jesus is posing is a total, radical attachment TO HIM… and he means that if we can't or don't make that commitment, then we are not worthy of him and not worthy to enter the kingdom of heaven. This condition means that we must love Jesus FIRST… because when we do, then something wonderful happens! [00:07:33] We learn to see Jesus in others… we will see him not just in our family and friends, but we will also see him in those we dislike, those with whom we disagree, we will see Jesus in everyone! [00:07:54] And when we love Jesus first, when we see him in everyone we encounter… then we will be filled with HIS love so that we can share that love with everyone. [00:08:11] That is the type of commitment, the type of love that makes us worthy of Jesus and worthy of the kingdom. “he who does not take [up] his cross and follow me is not worthy of me.” That is, interestingly enough, the first time carrying a cross is mentioned in Matthew's Gospel… and those words would have scandalized 1st century Jews. Being crucified was a horrible and shameful death, so voluntarily taking up one's cross would have been simply unthinkable! [00:08:55] Jesus introduces the theme of carrying one's own cross here in Matthew, but it will become a common theme for him… and he doesn't just mean putting up with an annoyance or a minor inconvenience. [00:09:14] Jesus isn't talking about catching a cold or getting a traffic ticket. Oh, sometimes it might mean being annoyed or uncomfortable… but often it is so much more than that. [00:09:29] Remember, Jesus is talking about a radical commitment to him and radical self-denial. The crosses we are given to carry may be physical or spiritual or both. But every disciple will be given some burden to bear, some cross to carry. [00:10:00] One person's burden may be to suffer an illness or an injury, while another's may be to care for and worry about the person who is suffering… not everyone bears the same burden, but the burden each of us carries weighs equally on all of us. So, in one sense, every disciple's cross has the same weight. [00:10:33] And we also have to recognize that the Cross Jesus WILL carry is heavier than any cross we will ever be asked to bear. The cross Jesus did carry encompassed every sin committed by every person and every cross carried by every disciple. Each cross that we are given to carry was carried by Jesus first. [00:11:08] We do not carry our crosses alone, Jesus always accompanies us. [00:11:17] “He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for my sake will find it.” [00:11:25] What Jesus means by that is that we cannot put ourselves and our own interests first. Because if we live solely for ourselves in this present age, then we will lose everything in the coming age… we will have no reward, there will be no place for us in the kingdom of heaven. [00:11:53] But if we do NOT put our own interests first, if we live for Christ… meaning, of course, those who do actually lose their lives in martyrdom, but also those who lose themselves (their ego, their arrogance, their pride) in disciplined self-denial for Jesus' sake, the type of martyrdom that Saint Jerome, in the 4th century, said is everywhere… then everyone who lives according to those demands - the demands of a faithful disciple - will find themselves in the kingdom of heaven in the age to come. [00:12:49] And Jesus doesn't mean that we should APPEAR downcast or gloomy, he doesn't mean we should be PERCEIVED as experiencing suffering… this isn't about appearances alone. The entire point of Jesus' message is to encourage authentic, heartfelt discipleship, not just outward compliance! [00:13:23] And that, by the way, is the last CONDITION Jesus lists for discipleship in this passage. Now he will turn his attention to the rewards of discipleship! [00:13:40] “He who receives you receives me, and he who receives me receives him who sent me.” Because we are created in the image and likeness of God, because we are animated by God's Spirit, because we are being conformed to become more like Christ, our thoughts, words, and actions should reflect Christ and - when they do - then anyone who receives us receives Christ who is within us. [00:14:22] After all, isn't that the ultimate goal of discipleship? To help others learn about Jesus and develop a real, personal relationship with him? [00:14:33] And - as Jesus will say at the Last Supper in John 14 – “I am in the Father and the Father is in me” so whoever receives an authentic disciple of Jesus also receives Jesus and, in turn, receives the Father who sent him. “He who receives a prophet because he is a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward.” [00:15:04] A prophet's work is to preach and teach, to share God's word with others, to impart the message entrusted to him on the audience God intended to hear it. [00:15:20] Therefore, the earthly reward of a prophet also often lies only in passing God's message on to others. Because unfortunately, all too often, prophets were mistreated, abused, and even killed… which says much about their earthly fate, but that earthly fate has no impact on the reward they receive in heaven. [00:15:50] However, this notion of receiving a prophet and a prophet's reward will lead us to a decidedly different outcome in our First Reading for this week, which we will hear shortly. “he who receives a righteous man because he is a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward.” [00:16:13] That reward, of course, is eternal life in the kingdom. All too often in our modern world, however, those who are righteous are rejected. [00:16:24] “And whoever gives to one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he shall not lose his reward.” [00:16:39] When Jesus says “little ones” he is referring to the Apostles, and by “even a cup of cold water” he means the minimum standard required for hospitality… he is saying that the Apostles will have to rely on the generosity of others to accomplish their mission… but that anyone who does extend such kindness, such hospitality, even if only minimally so, will be rewarded. Jesus’ words - here in this Gospel - are at the same time definite and ill-defined…. he lists a number of often misunderstood conditions that he says will make us unworthy of him, and then offers rewards that are - at best - nebulous and uncertain. [00:17:37] One thing that should come through with unmistakable clarity, however, is that we must love Jesus FIRST, we must always choose HIM first, we must first and foremost be his disciples. [00:18:01] But that choice is up to us. So, who will we put first in our lives? Ourselves and our own concerns, or Jesus? [00:18:18] Will we choose to be worthy of Jesus… or not? [00:18:25] That takes us to our First Reading, which is from 2 Kings 4: 8-11, 14-16a. “One day Eli’sha went to Shu’nem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So, whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. And she said to her husband, ‘Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who is continually passing our way. Let us make a small roof chamber with walls, and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.’ One day he came there, and turned into the chamber and rested there. And [Eli’sha asked], ‘What can be done for her?’ [His servant] Geha’zi answered, ‘[S]he has no son, and her husband is old.’ [Eli’sha] said, ‘Call her.’ And when [Geha’zi] had called her, she stood in the doorway. And [Eli’sha] said, ‘At this season, when the time comes round, you shall embrace a son.’” [00:19:47] The Second Book of Kings can be broken down into three parts… the first part (chapters 1 to 13) tells the story of the prophet Elisha, the successor of the prophet Elijah; the second part (chapters 14 to 17) describes the decline and fall of the Northern Kingdom of Israel to Assyria in the 8th century BC; and the third part (chapters 18 to 25) recounts the decline and fall of the Southern Kingdom of Judah to the Babylonians in the 6th century BC. [00:20:27] This chapter, of course, comes from part one, which describes the life and times of Elisha. Now, Elisha lived in the 9th century BC and served as an advisor to several kings in the Southern Kingdom of Judah, and he regularly traveled back and forth between Jerusalem (the capital city of Judah), and Mount Carmel (which was sort of a quasi-base of operations for Elisha), and a small village in the Northern Kingdom of Israel (where he was born and which he still called home). The village of Shunem was about 30 miles Northeast of Samaria, and so it made a convenient stopping point for Elisha during his many back-and-forth journeys to Jerusalem in a time when travel was dangerous, roads were often difficult to navigate, and there were few, if any, amenities along the way. [00:21:32] So, let's accompany Elisha and see what happens… [00:21:37] “One day Eli’sha went to Shu’nem, where a wealthy woman lived,” In biblical times, a woman's place in society was determined by her husband's place in society. So, we should assume - from these words - that this woman's husband was very well off. [00:21:58] However, some scripture scholars have suggested that the word” wealthy” should be interpreted in a broader sense… it should include money as a factor, certainly, but this couple would have also possessed a great deal of power, wisdom, and social influence. This wealthy woman… “urged [Eli’sha] to eat some food.” [00:22:27] Remember, hospitality was crucial in the ancient world. [00:22:33] “So whenever [Eli’sha] passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food.” Which suggests that Elisha felt he would always be welcome there… that he had an open invitation, so to speak, to stop and take his ease in Shunem whenever he was passing by. [00:22:53]” And [the woman] said to her husband, ‘Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who is continually passing our way.’” [00:23:05] Clearly, this woman recognized that Elisha was a prophet… and that's where we find our Gospel tie in: “he who receives a prophet, prophet receives a prophet's reward.” [00:23:19] “Let's make a small roof chamber with walls, and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.” [00:23:32] This couple established a designated space for Elisha to stay, study, and sleep, when necessary, in comfort and safety. Therefore, they received a prophet simply because he was a prophet. [00:23:52] “One day he came there, and he turned into the chamber and rested there.” Meaning that Elisha accepted the hospitality that was offered to him. [00:24:02] “And [Eli’sha asked], ‘What can be done for [this woman]? [00:24:07] In other words, how can I thank this woman for her generosity to me? What can I do that would show my gratitude? “[Eli’sha's servant] Geha’zi answered, ‘[S]he has no son, and her husband is old.’” [00:24:25] We don't understand how eminently practical Gehazi's observation is… this woman, whose husband is elderly, has no son - therefore, when her husband dies, she will have no one to care for her. His wealth would pass to another male relative, and she could be left destitute… her life, her future, her home would all be in jeopardy. That's not how we understand things in the modern world. But that's how things were in biblical times. [00:25:07] “[Eli’sha] said, ‘Call her.’ And when [Geha’zi] had called her, she stood in the doorway.” [00:25:15] It would be highly inappropriate for a Jewish woman to be found alone with a man who wasn't her husband… that's why she stood in the doorway to the room rather than entering. “And [Eli’sha] said, ‘At this season, when the time comes round, you shall embrace a son.’” Elisha is, essentially, promising this woman that in another year she will have a son. In a society where there was, as of yet, no belief in individual life after death - a child represented a woman's contribution to society… a child represented the future. That's why a childless woman was often shunned, considered outcast, and seen as having less value than a woman with children. [00:26:18] Again, this helps us understand the connection to our Gospel. The Shunammite woman welcomed Elisha without any thought of a possible reward, simply because he was a man of God. [00:26:36] She made room in her home… in her life… for God's prophet, therefore she made room for God! [00:26:48] As I mentioned earlier, prophets were often badly mistreated, rejected, abused, and even killed… this story highlights one of the standout examples of a prophet being well-treated, respected, and even pampered. [00:27:08] Remember, Jesus said in our Gospel: “He who receives a prophet BECAUSE HE IS A PROPHET shall receive a prophet's reward” and, with no hope of an afterlife, the promise of a child was the greatest reward that could be offered by Elisha to this kind and generous woman. [00:27:32] Later on - in chapter 4 - we will learn that the Shunammite woman, in fact, did conceive and bear a son… who unfortunately died. [00:27:45] But even that has a happy ending because the child was then brought back to life by Elisha. [00:27:55] This passage reminds us that we, too, are invited to make room for God in our lives. Because when we do that, every action we undertake, every person we encounter, every word we speak, can be transformed by the love of Christ into something generous, compassionate, and wonderful! [00:28:31] The choice is ours. [00:28:35] That takes us to our Responsorial Psalm, which is Psalm 89, and the refrain is: “I will sing of your mercies, O Lord, for ever.” The NAB translates that a bit differently. Instead of mercies, the NAB uses the word goodness, and this refrain is translated as: “Forever I will sing the goodness of the Lord” And here are the verses: [00:29:05] “I will sing of your mercies, O LORD, for ever; with my mouth I will proclaim your faithfulness to all generations. For your merciful love was established for ever, your faithfulness as firm as the heavens.” “Blessed are the people who know the festal shout, who walk, O LORD, in the light of your countenance, who exult in your name all day, and extol your righteousness.” “For you are the glory of their strength; by your favor our horn is exalted. For our shield belongs to the LORD, our king to the Holy One of Israel.” [00:29:52] This Psalm is a Royal Psalm celebrating God's everlasting faithfulness. As we know, God made a series of covenants with the house of Israel and - because his faithfulness always endures - his covenants also always endure. [00:30:16] Remember back on Trinity Sunday, I said that God's relationship with humanity was relies more on God's desire to be with us than it does on our faithfulness to God. [00:30:30] That is precisely what the Psalmist is expressing in this text! [00:30:37] Thankfully, we Can always rely on God… thankfully, he knows that our human nature is weak and doesn't turn his back on us because of it… and thankfully, God does not rely on our faithfulness to him. [00:31:01] All too often, we do put ourselves first rather than putting God first… and thankfully, as the Psalmist reminds us, when we make that mistake, go God's mercy is forever! [00:31:19] That takes us to our Second Reading, which is from Romans 6: 3-4, 9-11. “[Brothers and sisters:] Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him. For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. The death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” [00:32:36] This is the third of fourteen straight passages from Romans that we will hear in this part of Ordinary Time in cycle A. And this begins Paul's main teaching on Baptism, which extends throughout the entirety of chapter 6. [00:32:57] As we go through this passage, notice something unusual about Paul's writing. [00:33:05] Typically, when Paul communicates with a community of Christians that he himself founded, he writes to them from a position of authority. But here in Romans, Paul very clearly places himself on the same level as the Christians in Rome, he is really striving to make a connection with the members of that community… so he uses the words WE and US over and over again, placing himself not in a position of authority but in a position of unity. [00:33:49] Notice also, how often Paul points to Jesus - using the words HE, HIM, HIS, and CHRIST. This is a short passage, but Paul refers to Jesus THIRTEEN times in a mere six sentences! [00:34:10] So, let's listen to what Paul has to say about Jesus and Baptism and their connection to each other… [00:34:21] “[Brothers and sisters:] Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?” [00:34:35] Paul starts this passage by reminding the Romans that Baptism unites us to Christ - Crucified and Risen - so that, united with his Death, our sins are put to death AND united with his Rising, our souls are filled with life. [00:35:03] But the cross always comes first! [00:35:09] Jesus did not attain the glory of his Resurrection without first suffering the Agony of his Crucifixion… we cannot attain the glory of the kingdom without first being united to Christ's Death in Baptism. [00:35:31] “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death,” [00:35:37] Paul is saying that our being submerged in water during Baptism is an apt symbol for Christ's descent into Death and his Burial in the Tomb… that our emergence from those cleansing and renewing waters symbolizes a rising to new life in Christ just as surely as Christ rose from Death to his Transformed, Glorified life. “so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” [00:36:29] Paul means that Baptism is transformative… that it is literally life-changing! Through our union with Jesus in Baptism, we die to our old way of living and adopt the ways of Christ… and after our Baptism, we spend the rest of our lives learning what it means to die to sin, and to live for God! [00:37:03] “But if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.” [00:37:11] Only by journeying into Christ's Death - in the Sacrament of Baptism - can we conquer our fear of death and truly live in freedom. [00:37:30] That is a reality that we all must embrace! [00:37:36] But if we die with Christ in Baptism… if we embrace that reality, then we shall live with Christ in the kingdom. [00:37:50] “For we know that Christ being raised from the dead will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him.” [00:38:01] Jesus' Resurrection is an eternal triumph over sin and death… first for himself and then for all of mankind. Jesus is the firstborn from the dead, and he shares that inheritance with us. [00:38:23] “The death he died he died to sin, once for all, but the life he lives he lives to God.” [00:38:34] Jesus' new way of living, his Transformed and Glorified life in his Transformed and Glorified human Body is - now and forever - with his Father in the kingdom of heaven. And because he died once for all, that is the promise that awaits us as well. [00:39:04] “So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.” [00:39:16] Why, you may ask, is Paul so preoccupied with Christ's Death throughout this passage? It is precisely because Jesus’ Death brought about the defeat of human sin, once for all, and opened the gates of heaven for everyone. [00:39:44] So our Baptism, which Paul reminds us is a participation in Christ's Death, is meant to bring about an end to sin for every Christian. [00:40:01] However, to imagine that humanity - in our fallen state - could refrain from committing serious sin after Baptism is not only improbable, but truthfully, downright impossible. [00:40:22] In fact, in his First Letter, John wrote: “If we say, ‘We are without sin,’ we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us” and Jesus himself taught us to pray: “Forgive us our trespasses” so it has always been understood that sin is, unfortunately, a constant for humanity. [00:40:52] One thing we tend to forget, however, as modern Catholic Christians, is that - in the earliest centuries of Christianity, of the Church – formal, private Confession as we understand it today didn't exist… people were Baptized and, if they committed serious sin after their Baptism, they were required to do public penance - often for years - before they could be reconciled to the community… and, depending on where you lived, you may have only been permitted to perform such public penance once in your lifetime. [00:41:45] For that very reason., it was not unheard of for some people to delay their Baptism until they were on their deathbed… in order to avoid such prolonged AND public AND limited penance. [00:42:04] By the 7th century, however, private Confession - as we know it today - became commonplace throughout Europe. [00:42:15] Now, both Sacred Scripture and the Catechism of the Catholic Church affirm that “only God forgives sins” - but because sin not only damages our relationship with God but the effects of our sin also disrupts the unity within the Christian community, within the Church, the Sacrament of Reconciliation requires that we disclose our sins to the priest (who, acting as a representative of Christ and his Church, hears our confession and accepts our repentance) and then, through the priest's Sacramental Absolution, he bestows upon us the pardon and peace that comes only from God. [00:43:16] The Sacrament of Reconciliation re-establishes the unity between us and God AND the unity within the Christian community, because both had been disrupted by our individual sin. [00:43:38] Unfortunately, because of our fallen human nature we will continue to sin, that is a reality, therefore we must continue to be reconciled to God and to each other. Which means the Christian life isn't a one-and-done sort of thing… it means that after we are Baptized, our Christian lives become an ongoing process of penance, forgiveness, and reconciliation. [00:44:16] It means that we must continue to learn, to know, and to understand that Jesus must come first in our lives, because when he does, then everything else falls into its proper place. [00:44:44] Then we can love others more… through Jesus. We can be kinder and more charitable to everyone… through Jesus. Every action we undertake, every word we speak, every person we encounter, can be transformed… through Jesus into something generous, compassionate, and wonderful! [00:45:31] But the choice is ours… so will we continue to put ourselves first and remain unworthy of Jesus? Or will we choose to be transformed, to be better, and to do better, to be worthy… through Jesus? [00:46:03] If you would like to reach out to me with questions or comments, send me an email at [email protected] Thank you for spending this time with me and until next we meet, may God shower his blessings upon you like a soft and gentle rain, and may he hold you safe and secure in the palm of his hand. From His Word to Our Hearts is produced by SFS Audio Solutions. The content of the show was assembled by me, Sally Moriarty-Flask. Our music was composed by Jimmy Flask and is used with the permission of the composer. All rights reserved. Information regarding references used in preparing the exegesis for this podcast is available upon request. Thank you for listening and God bless.