Both of the readings for mass today end in either fury or wrath. In the first reading from the book of Acts, the Apostles were brought before the Sanhedrin court and the high priest questioned them why they had disobeyed their orders to stop teaching in the name of Jesus? The Apostles’ answer infuriated the court so much that they wanted to put them to death. Then, the gospel reading today ends by saying that, “Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever disobeys the Son will not see life, but the wrath of God remains upon him.”
Peter and the Apostles had it right when they answered the high priest’s questions about why they had disobeyed their order to quit teaching in the name of Jesus. The Apostles answered them by saying, “We must obey God rather than men.”
The Apostles had it right. They understood their priorities very well and this is something we should also pay attention to. Both of the readings for mass today show us that it is better to incur the wrath of men, than to disobey Jesus Christ. This is worth repeating. It is better to incur the wrath of men, than to disobey Jesus Christ.
How many times have we kept our thoughts to ourselves, rather than speak up for what is right, to people that we know would oppose us? Sometimes it is easier to be silent, than to ruffle the feathers of those who do not agree with us. Going the easy route, is not the right thing to do though. We need to be willing to face other people’s anger, or disapproval of us, if we want to follow Jesus. Both of the readings for mass are very clear about this today.
The reason the Sanhedrin became so infuriated that they wanted to put the Apostles to death is because of the capital sin of pride. Pride can be hidden so deeply inside of us, we may not be consciously aware that we have too much pride, or if we are aware of these tendencies within us, it is easy to ignore them.
Jesus Christ was a higher authority, as God’s own son, than the highest officials in the Jewish community. If the chief priests and elders were to admit that Jesus Christ was the son of God, it would undermine their own authority. So they denied the Truth. They felt they were justified in killing Christ and made every attempt to squelch the fires of the Holy Spirit that began to take root in their community, after his death.
Have you ever noticed that once you deny the truth, or tell a lie, it snowballs? You have to keep denying the truth, or keep telling lies in order to cover up the very first lie. It is a matter of pride not to admit the truth, and that is what happened to the chief priests and elders in the Jewish community, when they confronted Peter and the Apostles in the courtroom. At all costs, the chief priests and elders continued to defend and protect their authority, their good name, their social position and prominent place in the community.
The truth had to be told though, whether they liked it or not. Saint Peter and the Apostles were not afraid of speaking the truth, for fear of offending those who held the highest positions of authority in the religious community, in their city. Saint Peter and the Apostles are truly great saints because of their courage and their love for Jesus Christ, above everything else in life. If we had but a fraction of the Apostle’s courage and love for Christ, the world we live in would be transformed.
The next time we need to speak up for Christ, for our Catholic beliefs, or the gospel values we live by, we should remember the Apostles’ courage, but we can also be encouraged by these words in today’s gospel:
“For the one whom God sent speaks the words of God. He does not ration his gift of the Spirit.”
We should speak from the heart and trust that the Holy Spirit will give us the right words. Catechists in the Catholic church are often taught that, it isn’t so much the words you say that students will remember. What they will remember the most, is what you felt about the words you said to them. People may in time forget your words, but they will never forget what you felt about the words you said to them.
We should not stifle the fire of the Holy Spirit, but allow ourselves to be His instrument, in love and in service to Jesus Christ.
Daily Mass Readings:
Acts 5: 27-33 / Psalm 34 / John 3: 31-36
