Reflection for February 24, Thursday of the Seventh Week in Ordinary Time: Mark 9:41-50

Gospel: Mark 9:41-50

Jesus said to his disciples: “Anyone who gives you a cup of water to drink because you belong to Christ, amen, I say to you, will surely not lose his reward. “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were put around his neck and he were thrown into the sea.  

If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed than with two hands to go into Gehenna, into the unquenchable fire. And if your foot causes you to sin, cut if off. It is better for you to enter into life crippled than with two feet to be thrown into Gehenna. And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out. Better for you to enter into the Kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna, where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.  

“Everyone will be salted with fire. Salt is good, but if salt becomes insipid, with what will you restore its flavor? Keep salt in yourselves and you will have peace with one another.” 

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Reflection:

What makes us sin? It’s the absence of Jesus in our lives and not taking seriously His teachings. What will make us avoid sin? It’s the presence of Jesus in our lives and it’s in carefully observing His teachings.  

In our gospel for today, Jesus gives us the grave punishment of sin. It involves maiming and cutting off of body parts. Of course these are just figures of speech but this conveys a message to all of us that there are many punishments for sin.   

If we will not repent for our sinfulness we have to pay for it, there’s no free ride as far as sin is concerned we have to pay for our sins somewhere along our journey. However, if we repent as soon as possible our punishment will forever be forgotten by God.  

But come to think of it, why do we sin and why are we not averse to sin? The answer is very simple, we love this world more than we love God thus there’s a void of the presence of God in our hearts.  

Yes, we know God and yes we go to church to worship Him. But it ends there; we leave Jesus in our church. We don’t bring Him home, we don’t   allow Jesus to have a permanent home in our hearts and we don’t live His teachings.  

Would you allow Jesus to have a permanent home in your heart? – Marino J. Dasmarinas