Before you Malign

Today’s Gospel Text:  "A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master; 25 it is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Be-el'zebul, how much more will they malign those of his household.  26 "So have no fear of them; for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. 27 What I tell you in the dark, utter in the light; and what you hear whispered, proclaim upon the housetops. 28 And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul; rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. 29 Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground without your Father's will. 30 But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. 31 Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. 32 So every one who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven; 33 but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven. Matt 10:24-33

Reflection: They called him, the master Jesus Christ, a Beelzebub; which means Lord or Prince of the Devil or Demons. 

It was no ordinary maligning, inviting a a terrible consequence. 

You could malign a person either out of hate or some half baked knowledge about a person.  It could be on the basis of false information you have gathered about a person or it could be due to your own prejudice. 

Maligning a godly man, the anointed one of God. is a serious business, with wide ramifications.  When you malign an anointed man falsely, you are not only hitting out against the concerned person, but you are also inviting a curse upon yourself and the many. 

I am saying this not just from a spiritual point of view but also from a logical angle. 

By doing so, you close yourself from receiving the truth of life and the truth of the gospel that is able to save you. In the process of maligning, you are also encouraging others too to do the same and thus invite others too to participate in your sin.  This then is passed on from one generation to another.

In the bargain, the Gospel that is able to save us is rejected in our hearts and mind and in the hearts of the many who have allowed themselves to be deceived or hurt by believing your story against the anointed one; thus they too are prevented from walking in the truth of the Gospel of Christ.

The Equation: The greater the maligning the more severe the self inflicted judgment, on yourself, on others who have partook of it and on your children and generations to follow.

This is besides the judgment and wrath of God on those who persist in such sinful activity as maligning the  innocent anointed.

To come out of such habitual sins, one has to take a serious look at one’s limitation to know, apart from God's help.  This requires a training of the mind in the word of God so as to receive from his wisdom to understand and judge situations and people appropriately.  

Prayer: Grant me a discerning heart, that I may love your people with wisdom.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us

Judging

Today’s Gospel:  After this he went out, and saw a tax collector, named Levi, sitting at the tax office; and he said to him, "Follow me." 28 And he left everything, and rose and followed him. 29 And Levi made him a great feast in his house; and there was a large company of tax collectors and others sitting at table with them. 30 And the Pharisees and their scribes murmured against his disciples, saying, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" 31 And Jesus answered them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; 32 I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Luke 5:27-32

Reflection:  Once a sinner, always a sinner, this is the human norm. But God’s norm is different; “I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance." Luke 5:32 There is scope in God’s eyes to change and to be thus looked upon as righteous.

Similarly, once a person is caught or condemned, he is always so by human standards but God’s standards are different, in his heart there is room for us to change and return. 

Can we humans be like God and change our attitude towards people and become like God? Not completely; because, unlike God we cannot know the genuineness of a person’s heart and the inner motivations with which one has repented.

But this is not an excuse to behave like humans, in the sense communicated above; for we can and have been given the ability and the assistance of God’s Holy Spirit. More so, as Christians we need to genuinely respect a person and even to seek to know with discernment the real motivation and truth.

This requires the patient attitude of letting go of our pre-conceived prejudices and even immediate judgments or pre-judgments based on mere information rather than a thorough study of the individual or subject.

More so as Christians our Judgment for wrong judgments can be severe for not learning from our master’s example; how he was crucified as a sinner, blasphemer and wrongdoer without a proper investigation by anyone, especially those in authority. Hence better still; not to judge!(cfr. Mt. 7:1)

Prayer: Lord, may I count on your wisdom before arriving at a judgment about any individuals.

DD = Dedicated Discipleship:  Come grow in the Lord with us