Sunday Reflection: 11th Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B

1^st Reading: Ezekiel 17:22-24

2^nd Reading: 2 Corinthians 5:6-10

Gospel: Mark 4:26-35

Reflection: We are now in 11^th Sunday in Ordinary Time, we just finished the Easter Season and the different Solemnities of the Lord during the Ordinary Time namely, Trinity Sunday, Corpus Christi Sunday, and the Solemnity of the Sacred Heart of Jesus last Friday. This Sunday, the readings invite us to reflect on the mystery of the Kingdom of God. Jesus gives two parables about the Kingdom, the Parable of the Growing Seed and the Parable of the Mustard Seed.

These parables teach us that the Kingdom of God is seemed to be insignificant in our lives. It is hidden in a way that it escapes our attention but continues to grow and enlivens us from the deepest parts of our lives. We do not notice it, but it shows itself to us by the fruits that it gives and the shade that it shares to give us rest from the sun’s heat. What is the purest in us, the most productive, and the most enduring in us comes from God. The Kingdom of God has its beginning in us when we were baptized, we became citizens of this Kingdom, what we are called to do is to live the ideals of the Kingdom. We must make the world we live in know that the Kingdom is at hand by the fruits that is produced in us by this life we live in Christ Jesus. We ought to become a place of rest for the weary and the restless, we become sources of reconciliation and peace in this world.

 St. Paul challenged the Corinthians to be always courageous as we live on this world, to continue living the faith and not just by what we see and know in human terms. We should aspire to please the Lord always in our daily dealing with people. By this we become heralds also of the Kingdom and our being citizens is realized.

The way of the Kingdom is manifested in our 1^st Reading from the Prophet Ezekiel. “God lifted high the lowly tree”, Ezekiel said. The way of the Kingdom of God is humility. Everything proceeds from the humble act of each citizen. Jesus showed us the way to an authentic relationship with God and neighbor by dying on the cross. The humiliation of the Cross is the way towards greatness and holiness. The humility of the God-made-man has brought salvation to us who lived in pride and in constant fear of our own sins. Therefore, the Lord gives us the parables that we have heard in our gospel this day, we start small, we grow through God’s grace and bear fruits because of these graces and fulfill our mission with God’s help.

Do want to fulfill your mission as a Christian?
Are you ready to humble yourself and be fruitful?
Are you courageous enough to walk the ways of the faith?