14th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B. By Tobe Eze

14th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B.

FIRST READING

Ezekiel 2:2-5

SECOND READING

2 Corinthians 12:7-10

GOSPEL

Mark 6:1-6

THEME: GOD IS BEYOND MAN’S THINKING.

A young man was admitted into the seminary school. His own kinsmen started writing petitions against him so that he will be expelled. As God made it he was not expelled. At his ordination, his own kinsmen refused to contribute money for his car and every other things necessary for ordination. What were their reasons? 1. How can the son of Okeke be Fada and our own sons are not. 2. Why should we buy him a car while our own sons have not even a wheel? 3. We know him, he is not qualified. 4. Even his father is too poor to sponsor him, he may have been stealing to survive there. And so many other rubbish reasons. Even after ordination, they failed to see him as a priest but whether they did or not, they know that a priest came out from his father’s house. He is a priest and no two ways about it. Continue Reading..............................

13th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B. By Tobe Eze

13th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B.

FIRST READING

Wisdom 1:13-15;2:23-24

SECOND READING

2 Corinthians 8:7.9.13-15

GOSPEL

Mark 5:21-43

THEME: HE DESTINED US NOT FOR RETRIBUTION.

God from the Old Testament, New Testament and till now does not allow those who trust in him to suffer damnation. He said through his prophet, As I live, I have no pleasure in the death of a wicked man rather let him turn from his evil ways and live (Ezekiel 18:23).

In the first reading, it is clearly stated that death is not from God. He destined us life from the beginning of creation. His plans for us is the plan of life and not death. How do we gain this life he has planned for us? Continue Reading............

12th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B. By Tobe Eze

12th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year B.

FIRST READING

Job 38:1.8-11

SECOND READING

2 Corinthians 5:14-17

GOSPEL

Mark 4:35-41

THEME: IT DEMANDS FAITH TO KNOW CHRIST.

If your faith is as big as the mustard seed, you will command the mountain to move and it will obey you (Luke 17:6). This is just an example of what faith can do to us if we have it. Jesus is God and God is a mystery, mystery is something that is beyond the understanding of human reasoning. So, to understand Jesus to a greater extent demands faith from us.

Our faith in Christ should not be a fearful faith for that will make us not to achieve what we suppose to achieve as those who believe in Christ.

A story about millipede and a bird (Nduru). Millipede is an animal that does not fear any man while working on the road. Even when one matches it, one is the one who will shout and run not millipede. That bird (Nduru) after watching this drama for a very long period, decided to ask millipede what is giving it that courage. Millipede told the bird that a Diviner (Dibia) prepared him a charm for that. They fixed a day for them to go to that Dibia for the bird to get its own charm. The millipede met the Dibia before that day they fixed to plan on what to do. That very day came and they went to the Dibia’s house. After preparing the charm, he told the bird terms and conditions involved. The first and the greatest was that it should not run no matter the situation. They went home. The bird was feeding on the ground, a man was coming and it decided not to fly away, when the man was reaching, a great fear came upon it and it flew away. Out of anger it went back to the Dibia to complain but he told the bird that it failed the first and greatest rule which is do not run no matter the situation. The bird told him that fear covered it and he told the bird. YOU MUST CONQUER FEAR BEFORE YOU GET WHAT YOU WANT. We must conquer fear before we build faith in Christ. Continue Reading...........................

SATURDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

SATURDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 43:1-7A

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 21:1-12

THEME: THE PLACE OF EXULTATION.

We often as human beings like the place or places of exultation(s). Where we shall be recognized. There are two ways to this. Is it worldly recognition or heavenly recognition? As we can see in many ways of our lives that we majorly do things because of others. We wear beautiful cloths and many other things because of others.

A lady bought new dresses to show off on Sunday. She appeared so beautiful on Sunday. During offertory, she waited for all to have gone so that all will notice her and her new dress. As she was moving from the back with her regalia, she missed a step and fell down at the middle of the church and that disgraced her and all she was putting on. Sometimes, this is what the devil does to us. He will make us to always think of worldly things and he will disgrace us at the middle of the whole show.

The Pharisees and Sadducees who were doing things for men to recognize them were missing God’s recognition for men’s recognition has taken upper hand. It is because of this human recognition that we do all sorts of evil like in the gospel. Because we want people to call us names we go into one evil thing or society to make name and firm. After that what next? People lord it over the people under them in other to make firm which God warned us about it (1Peter 5:3). We do the same this day. Girls sell their bodies, even women not only girls do the same in order to be updated or sexiest etc.

God’s recognition and place of exultation is the best and that is what he showed us today in the first reading through prophet Ezekiel. Let us work for that God’s place of honour and we will enjoy it forever. Thanks.

FRIDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

FRIDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 37:1-14

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 22:34-40

THEME: HOPE IN GOD, ALL HOPES ARE NOT LOST.

If the Lord had made the dry bones in the valley to regain life, we still have hope. If Jesus could silence both the Pharisees and Sadducees, we still have hope.

The only problem we have or we are having sometimes is that we always like God to do our wills in our own time not God’s will in his own time. Jesus has never forsaken anyone who trusted in him. If we really trust in him this day, he will raise our dry bones and silence our enemies. In that our worst situations, let us remember that with God everything is possible and we must bear in mind that the will of God is the first.

A woman had a sick child. The woman was always praying for the will of God to be done in her child’s life. One day the sickness was rising and getting worst. She continued praying for the will of God to take place. When she noticed that the child was dying she changed the prayer immediately. God if this is your will, let it not be done. The child latter died and the woman took it that God is disappointing. Latter she conceived again and gave birth to twins and that time she noticed that the will of God was right in the life of that dead child and God has visited her in the time of the Lord not her own time.

It is this our always seeking for our own wills that cause our losing of faith and hope in God. God is assuring us today that no matter our situations, he can still show us that he is the Lord our God who can raise and give life to dry bones and silence our enemies. Thanks.

THURSDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

THURSDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 36:23-28

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 22:1-14

THEME: THINGS ARE READY WHERE WE ARE INVITED, WHERE ARE WE?

God in the first reading tells us that he will make us his people and he will be our God. He will prepare a home for us where hearts of flesh will be not hearts of stone. Hearts that know mercy and compassion.

In the gospel, he has already prepared it for us but we are not forth coming. What is that that is taking us out of God’s banquet? School, family, work, business, friends, relations and every other things or persons or places? Any of them that is doing that should leave us alone before he burns us up. A question needs to be asked about the man without wedding garment. Was it his fault, for he was just called at the late hour? He was on his own not preparing for any wedding and they called him and they did not give him time to go and prepare. The truth here is that, this is how our death will be to us. When we are not ready to die. We can see what happened to the man that was not ready. We have to be ready at any time, any day, anywhere for we do not the year, month, week, day, hour, minute and second that banquet we will enjoy will come. No excuse. Thanks.

WEDNESDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

WEDNESDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 34:1-11

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 20:1-16A

THEME: WHAT IS OUR WORK?

Parents, community leaders, government rulers, church leaders, school leaders, doctors, nurses and every form of leadership. What is our work?

God in the first reading is not happy with us about the way we handle those he has given us to take care of. God is rebuking us today. We are now feeding on the sheep that we should be feeding. We have left the point, the focus, and our work and are now doing another thing.

Just like in the gospel, the labourers who left their works and started questioning the one who hired them about his generosity. We sacrifice our works on the altar of worthless things. Let us remain focus in our works that God has given us to do. He is not happy with us on the way we handle it and he is going to take them away from us and we know what that means. Let us make hare while the sun is still shining. Ka anyi were ehihie chuwa ewu oji tupu chi ejie. Let us go back to our duty post and do our works diligently and God will reward us according to his will not our own wills as he did in the gospel. Thanks.

TUESDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

TUESDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 28:1-10

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 19:23-30

THEME: THE DANDER OF RICHNESS.

Richness in money, wisdom, people, intellect, sin and so on can bring us downfall. Igbos say, okwa nwa nza rijuo afo, ochere chi kere ya aka mgba. When one is rich in any form, one will think that he/she is above the heaven. In his riches, man lacks wisdom (Psalm 49:13).

Responsorial Psalm says, I kill and I make alive. God is the one who gives us all these gifts except the richness of sin. If God has the power to give us all these gifts, don’t we think he has the power also to take them away from us? Why then do we brag with them? God told Ezekiel to go and tell the house Israel or to remind them that they are not gods, he has power to do whatever he wills to then even in that their richness. Their richness moved them away from God and it is same today with us.

In the gospel, Jesus talked again about the danger of richness. How hard it will be for the rich to enter heaven. If we allow our richness of any form to influence us, then it will be easier for Carmel to go through the eye of a needle than we going into heaven. In any way or any form that we are rich, let it not move us away from God. The danger of richness is that it makes us lose focus. Thanks.

MONDAY 20TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

MONDAY 20^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 24:15-24

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 19:16-22

THEME: THE PROBLEM OF PLEASURE.

It is never difficult to get or start a pleasurable act or something but the problem is how to stop it. The only problem of pleasure is how to stop it. Obughi ikunye enwe mmiri bu nsogbu kama inata ya iko. It is how to stop our actions that are not good is the problem and now how to start them. The Israelites since ages, God has been warning them, giving them all sorts of signs to leave their evil ways but it was and is a very difficult task for them. This is not the problem of only the Israelites of the old but the present Israelites which are us.

The rich man in the gospel could not take the teaching of Jesus because it touched his comfort zone. Richness in the Bible may not literarily mean wealth but richness in sin. Some of us who are wealthy are saints and some who are poor are devils and still the other way round. It is the richness in sin that God is talking about. Israelites grew in sin to the extent that God could not only talk to them but demonstrated it for them, also Jesus demonstrated the same for us and he is still demonstrating it for us to repent. That our pleasurable actions that do not give praise to God, we should work around the clock to stop it. We should work tooth and nail to leave them and heaven will be ours. It is difficult but not impossible. We should just make serious effort and God will help for he counts efforts and not result. Thanks.

SATURDAY 19TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B. By Tobe Eze

SATURDAY 19^TH WEEK IN ORDINARY TIME YEAR B.

1^ST READING: EZEKIEL 18:1-10. 13B. 30-32

GOSPEL: MATTHEW 19:13-15

THEME: YOU ARE ON YOUR OWN.

Njo nna n’ eso nwa is now only a human concept but not God. It is wrong for it may make the child to continue in the sins of the father if the child knows that sins of his father or even forefathers will follow him/her. Many sins mentioned in the first reading touched the whole of our being. They touched the sins of omission which we often forget. Sometimes, it is these sins of omission that we commit most and we do not count them as sins. The catholic greeting, Onye jisie ike, orue alaeze, ma onye gbakata kwuru, the answer from time immemorial has been, nke ogbara agba ala n’ iyi. Changing it to nwanne ya enyere ya aka contradicts the first reading of today. We should bear in mind that before God, we must answer for ourselves. No one will suffer for our sins except us. Onweghi onye ga enyere anyi aka to face our punishment or enjoyment which means we must continue to work for ourselves without ceasing. It is a personal game not a group thing. We will face it alone. The earlier we realize this the better for us.

In the gospel, Jesus said, the kingdom of God is for those who have childlike heart. Childlike heart is a heart that do not think of any sin at all talk more of looking for another who will suffer for the consequences on their behalf. They do only things that will please their elders and that we should emulate to do things that please our God. Clean heart and a pure spirit is what every child of God should have. We must have that on our individual basis not in common, before we get heaven. That father had does not mean children should relax, onye na way ya. That father has a good heart and son/daughter is evil will not save you. It is our personal and individual death. My Death by Martin Heidegger. Thanks.