“…You are an obstacle to me…” There is no guessing about what God considers faith “obstacles” in our minds toward God’s ways. The very next line in this Gospel lays it out as clear as can be: “You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.” Merriam Webster defines ob·sta·cle | \ ˈäb-sti-kəl as “something thatimpedes progress or achievement.”
In the Gospel today Jesus reveals the Father’s plan for His life and that Jesus’ disciples must follow the same pattern—that applies to you and me, all of us who claim to be His disciples. The Matthean Gospel has various parts to it today: Jesus describing God’s plan for His life and ours; Peter’s response and Jesus’ rebuke of that response; the message of knowing how God thinks, and the various understandings of Jesus’ teachings on denying ourselves.
Early on Peter, and we certainly can understand his thinking, does not want anything horrible, unjust or bad to happen to Jesus. Who would? But when he hears the Lord tell his followers that He must go to Jerusalem and that the powers-that-be will cause Him to suffer and to die—but—that He will be raised on the third day Peter offers his defense and protection of the Lord with this proclamation: “God forbid, Lord! No such thing shall ever happen to you.” Then follows the well-known response from Jesus: “Get behind me, Satan!"
In faith, Jesus is prepared and willing to do the Will of His Father. What a familiar message—a message of great faith, a message of Trust in the Father’s Will, and a message consistently proclaimed by the Son of God. But is that message consistent in our lives? Are we ever obstacles to the Will of God? I think this question is a very powerful one for us today in the midst of all the civil unrest nationally and globally.
How might you and I become ‘obstacles’ to faith and to God? Is it possible? Do we? How? For an answer let us look to the latter part of the today’s gospel. We know that the plan of God for Jesus is that He was “born to be killed.” It is the Father’s plan for our salvation. Peter’s concern about that Plan causes Peter to respond and basically deny the plan of God by saying “God forbid, Lord! No such think shall ever happen to you”…as long as I’m alive…we might add. So what role does denial of God, His thought process, His very essence play in our role of becoming an obstacle to faith and to God’s Will?
Scripture scholars* tell us that the Greek meaning of “deny” (aparneomai) as used in the gospel presents to us a powerful understanding of His gospel message. “To deny oneself can denote disown, or refuse to acknowledge, or reject oneself so that, for example, one can attend to others. It can also mean to disagree with, or rebut, or challenge one’s own views.”
Jesus continues with “Whoever wishes to come after me must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. What profit would there be for one to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? “To save” (Greek sozo) denotes natural concerns: i.e. to keep one’s body safe and whole, to preserve it from dangers and deprivations, to liberate it, to rescue it, or to heal it from disease. And “to lose” (Greek apolumi) one’s life can be translated as destroy, ruin or kill one’s life. So what does this mean for us and how we are to apply it to our lives in the modern world.
Scholars tell us that by “stringing them together” we can understand Jesus’ meaning as this: “Whoever focuses on keeping his life whole and healthy, on staying free to do as he pleases, on being safe, and on striving for personal satisfaction will in fact destroy, ruin, or kill his kingdom life. But the one who destroys, ruins, or kills his life for Jesus’ sake will find his kingdom life,” i.e., the meaningful existence on earth that God intends for him.”
So just how do I think as a human person in contrast to Godly thought? Are my thoughts selfish, only filled with personal satisfaction? Do I believe that to live well is to gain all for me, myself and I—or do I seek justice and equity for others? Am I a person who seeks to “attend” to the needs of others, or do I first and foremost care about my needs? Last week we heard of the consideration of Noblesse Oblige—how noble or blessed do I feel and how does that feeling of blessings overflow to others. Simply and locally put, here at St. Catherine of Siena Parish, have I been involved in some way with Pantry Partners, St. Elizabeth House, Feed the Hungry Manny’s Meals, or the Street Sandwich Ministry and Comitas; have I thought much about the Advent Giving Tree and Knights of Malta or Neighbors in Need, have I considered my role in the Lenten Mercy Project; in Faith Formation classes or Youth Ministry, in Music or the Prayer Chain ministry or any other way I might actually participate in God’s life on earth—attending to others’ needs—either big, small or somewhere in between?
Am I a conduit of God’s thinking or an obstacle—either actively or not; and who or what do I deny more consistently? Source: Elizabeth M. Nagel, SSL, SSD, United States Edition 2002 Year A, LTP