Reading 1 1 Kgs 19:16b, 19-21
“You shall anoint Elisha, son of Shaphat of Abelmeholah,
as prophet to succeed you.”
Elijah set out and came upon Elisha, son of Shaphat,
as he was plowing with twelve yoke of oxen;
he was following the twelfth.
Elijah went over to him and threw his cloak over him.
Elisha left the oxen, ran after Elijah, and said,
“Please, let me kiss my father and mother goodbye,
and I will follow you.”
Elijah answered, “Go back!
Have I done anything to you?”
Elisha left him, and taking the yoke of oxen, slaughtered them;
he used the plowing equipment for fuel to boil their flesh,
and gave it to his people to eat.
Then Elisha left and followed Elijah as his attendant.
Responsorial Psalm Ps 16:1-2, 5, 7-8, 9-10, 11
Keep me, O God, for in you I take refuge;
I say to the LORD, "My Lord are you.
O LORD, my allotted portion and my cup,
you it is who hold fast my lot."
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
I bless the LORD who counsels me;
even in the night my heart exhorts me.
I set the LORD ever before me;
with him at my right hand I shall not be disturbed.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Therefore my heart is glad and my soul rejoices,
my body, too, abides in confidence
because you will not abandon my soul to the netherworld,
nor will you suffer your faithful one to undergo corruption.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
You will show me the path to life,
fullness of joys in your presence,
the delights at your right hand forever.
R. You are my inheritance, O Lord.
Reading 2 Gal 5:1, 13-18
Brothers and sisters:For freedom Christ set us free;
so stand firm and do not submit again to the yoke of slavery.
For you were called for freedom, brothers and sisters.
But do not use this freedom
as an opportunity for the flesh;
rather, serve one another through love.
For the whole law is fulfilled in one statement,
namely, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.
But if you go on biting and devouring one another,
beware that you are not consumed by one another.
I say, then: live by the Spirit
and you will certainly not gratify the desire of the flesh.
For the flesh has desires against the Spirit,
and the Spirit against the flesh;
these are opposed to each other,
so that you may not do what you want.
But if you are guided by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Alleluia 1 Sm 3:9; Jn 6:68c
R. Alleluia, alleluia.Speak, Lord, your servant is listening;
you have the words of everlasting life.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel Lk 9:51-62
he resolutely determined to journey to Jerusalem,
and he sent messengers ahead of him.
On the way they entered a Samaritan village
to prepare for his reception there,
but they would not welcome him
because the destination of his journey was Jerusalem.
When the disciples James and John saw this they asked,
"Lord, do you want us to call down fire from heaven
to consume them?"
Jesus turned and rebuked them, and they journeyed to another village.
As they were proceeding on their journey someone said to him,
"I will follow you wherever you go."
Jesus answered him,
"Foxes have dens and birds of the sky have nests,
but the Son of Man has nowhere to rest his head."
And to another he said, "Follow me."
But he replied, "Lord, let me go first and bury my father."
But he answered him, "Let the dead bury their dead.
But you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God."
And another said, "I will follow you, Lord,
but first let me say farewell to my family at home."
To him Jesus said, "No one who sets a hand to the plow
and looks to what was left behind is fit for the kingdom of God."
FIREPLACE?
"Would You not have us call down fire?" –Luke 9:54
James and John asked Jesus: " 'Lord, would You not have us call down fire from heaven to destroy them?' [Jesus] turned toward them only to reprimand them" (Lk 9:54-55). On another occasion, Jesus proclaimed: "I have come to light a fire on the earth. How I wish the blaze were ignited!" (Lk 12:49) Sometimes Jesus wants to call down fire; at other times, He doesn't.
Elijah was the world champion in calling down fire from heaven (see 1 Kgs 18:38; 2 Kgs 1:10, 12; Sir 48:3). However, on at least one occasion in Elijah's life, "the Lord was not in the fire" (1 Kgs 19:12). Why is the Lord in some fire and not in others?
The Lord is not usually in the fire of destruction but in the fire of discipleship. Elijah's astounding power to call down fire surrounded the greatest ministry of his life, the calling of Elisha to be his disciple (see 1 Kgs 19:16ff). After Jesus rebuked John and James for wanting to call down fire on the Samaritans, Jesus focused on the call to discipleship (Lk 9:57-62). This culminated in the first Christian Pentecost. "Tongues as of fire appeared, which parted and came to rest on" 120 disciples (Acts 2:3). This led to three thousand people being baptized into discipleship (Acts 2:41).
The Lord wants us to call down fireif we call forth disciples. "Light a fire on the earth" (Lk 12:49) to "make disciples of all the nations" (Mt 28:19).
| PRAYER: | Father, set our hearts on fire (Lk 24:32). |
| PROMISE: | "Remember that you have been called to live in freedom – but not a freedom that gives free rein to the flesh." –Gal 5:13 |
| PRAISE: | Praise You, risen Lord Jesus, for sending the Holy Spirit to light a fire upon the earth. We give You our hearts in worship. |
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