Jesus always has a surprise coming for those who follow Him. In the Gospel today, they thought they had already grasped fully the person of Jesus by praising the womb that carried Him. But Jesus would always raise it to the highest level. Not that He disregarded the praise given to His mother who gave birth and nursed Him, but He wanted His disciple to realize that blessedness is not determined by blood or biological relationships. The mere connection or relation with God is not enough.
"Rather, Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and live it." This is not the first time we heard Jesus say who is blessed. In the Beatitudes He enumerated who are blessed. The common idea of being blessed is to have many things in this earth. For example riches, power, authority, relationships and other things that are important and treasured in this world. Unfortunate is one who does not or are wanting of those things. But here, the Lord Jesus corrects that idea. To be blessed for Him is to be a hearer and follower of the Word of God. This is further understood in the Beatitudes where those who are in prison, poor, meek, crying, rejected and other known "anawims" of society maybe blessed! The blessedness is not in one's status but in how it is lived. You maybe poor but if you are poor because of your faithfulness to God (not wanting to acquire riches by stealing, deceiving, or killing), you are blessed. In other words, if you are experiencing a challenging and hard situation as a result of your following God's Word, you are blessed. As Jesus said in the Gospel today, the blessedness is in the living of the Word that is heard. In the same way, even if you are rich, happy, free, and popular, you can blessed if you have attained those status as a result or while you are living your faith.
Therefore, we can not be comfortable of the sacraments we have received just because we have received them. Together with the reception of those sacraments are the graces that will help us be sanctified. Together with the gift of the sacrament are the tasks to live them. Thus, a baptized Christian must make his life always in accordance with the life exemplified by Jesus. A recipient of the forgiveness of God in the sacrament of reconciliation must try hard not to sin anymore and prove to God he is worthy of the forgiveness. A participant in the Eucharist must be aware of the presence of Christ in his life when he received the Lord in communion. The sacrament of marriage makes the couple as another witness to the love of Jesus to the Church and vice versa. Depending on the graces of the sacraments, the Christian is expected to live them and not just be contented with having received them and expect it to "magically" transform him.
Let us not just be Christians by name. Let us live up to our names. "Christian" means a follower of Christ. Following Christ can only happen if we have heard His Word, understood it, and live it. The parables of the sower and the house built on rock also teach this message. Because it is God's Word, then it must be Good, True, and Right. No matter how difficult it can be at times, our best move is still to follow it. And in doing so, we will be in the best of hands because it is the hand of God!
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