11 March 2020
Wednesday of the Second Week in Lent
By the grace of the Lord we fix our ears upon God’s Word sent to speak to us, and what do we hear today? “The Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Mt 20:28) Right after Jesus has finished telling his apostles about how He will suffer and die in Jerusalem, a couple of them come with the request to have seats of honor when he inaugurates His kingdom (they may be thinking that Jesus has come to take over from Herod and oust the Romans from Judea). These apostles realize that sacrifice is demanded in order to follow Jesus, but they misunderstand where Jesus is going, and what is the reward of following Him. They neither understand the Kingdom which Jesus is to inaugurate (the Kingdom which Jesus is), nor to what sincere honor should accrue (selfless service rather than selfish greed). What happens when the other apostles hear about the request for seats of honor? They are indignant, presumably because they think that they should get the seats of honor instead.
We quite naturally desire to be recognized. Recognition is part of the fulfillment that comes from being a member of the community for which God made us. Yet, as we heard at the beginning of Lent (Mt 6:1-18), those looking for public honor already have their reward (and still haven’t found the recognition for which they are more deeply searching). Rather, our heavenly Father sees in secret, in the depths, in what is done out of the love He has put in our heart rather than for the respect of those around us. Let us pray for the grace to hear Jesus today, to receive from Him the life He gives for us, and so give our lives, not for honor, but for Him.