Each and every one of us has got a certain role and purpose as a church. No matter how small, medium or big the role and purpose is, it is necessary and needed. Some of us may feel as if what we are doing in church may seem insignificant or nothing to shout about, but what we often forget is that everything that we do as a church has got a reason, a purpose. The church is the Body of Christ and we could look at the church in reference to the human body. The human body, as we know, has got different parts, and each part has got its own purpose and function. Hands are used for writing, lifting, holding and carrying. Feet are meant for walking. Our eyes are meant for seeing and our ears are meant for hearing. Each part cannot take over the function and role of the other, since each part has been designed specifically for a particular role and function.
The problem that some of us may be facing is when we allow pride, ego, and especially jealousy, to take control of us. When we allow jealousy to rear its ugly head, we become indifferent and blind to the importance and roles of others. We begin to think that whatever we do is the most important, or that we are the greatest, and that our role is indispensable. When others seem to be doing the same thing as we are doing, we begin to feel irritated, threatened and insecure, and we begin to find ways and means to put down or even destroy others so that only our skills and abilities are accepted and recognised. We allow Christ’s mission to be disrupted, when we allow competition to fester in the life of the church.
In the first reading and in the Gospel, we can clearly see how jealousy can cloud our minds, our eyes and our hearts, causing us to lose track of who we are and what is our role and purpose. In the first reading, some of the elders appointed by Moses and who had received the spirit from him felt threatened by others who had not gone through the same selection and yet somehow had received the spirit. What they failed to realise is that God freely gives His spirit to anyone He chooses. Nobody can claim to have a monopoly or control over God, or His Spirit, or Truth. God gives Himself to all. The disciples of Christ in the Gospel also had the same problem. They felt threatened by another man who was able to cast out devils and saw him as a competitor. However, Jesus saw him differently and recognised the gift of the Spirit in this man. This led Jesus to make an important observation: “…no one who works a miracle in my name is likely to speak evil of me. Anyone who is not against us is for us.”
So what does this all mean? It means that we must remember that we are all part of Christ’s Body, and each and every one of us are necessary and important. We must not see each other as competitors. Instead, we must encourage the gifts, talents and contributions of others, since all of us have one common mission, that is to build God’s Kingdom and not our own kingdom. After all, what and who are we trying to ultimately prove? Thus, if we have been jealous of others in the community, if we have been an obstacle to others, or if we have failed to give encouragement, then we must make effort to change, and not expect others to change to suit us. This is what Jesus was trying to tell us in the Gospel when he said: “if your hand, foot or eye should cause you to sin, cut it off.” Let us stop all this nonsense and ridiculous waste of time and energy in blaming others and start taking responsibility for our actions and for the problems we have brought to our church community. May we learn to focus more on doing God’s will and giving Him the glory, instead of trying to gain glory and gratification for ourselves.