Luke 9:22-25

Luke 9:22-25

Jesus said to his disciples:

“The Son of Man must suffer greatly and be rejected

by the elders, the chief priests, and the scribes,

and be killed and on the third day be raised.”

Then he said to all,

“If anyone wishes to come after me, he must deny himself

and take up his cross daily and follow me.

For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it,

but whoever loses his life for my sake will save it.

What profit is there for one to gain the whole world

yet lose or forfeit himself?”

Opening Prayer: Lord God, I need to learn how to lose my life to save it. This is no easy task. The temptations are many and I know my weaknesses. Grant me the anointing of your Spirit and the power of your grace to resist the allure of evil this day.

Encountering the Word of God

1. The Imitation of Christ: In today’s Gospel, Jesus first speaks about himself and what will happen to him in Jerusalem. He did this at least three times on the way to Jerusalem. But after speaking about himself, he turns his attention to his disciples and how they must imitate his life. Imitation of Christ is good. And it is good to ask ourselves when confronted with choices, “What would Jesus do?” From the Gospel, we know that Jesus would opt for mercy, forgiveness, love, justice, kindness, patience, joy, piety, communion, unity, poverty, meekness, and peace. All of these Christ-like virtues are worthy of imitation. 

2. Sharing in Christ’s Life: Imitating Jesus’ life, however, is not enough. The Christian life is not about simply imitating or emulating the life of our teacher. Imitation of Christ needs to give way to identification with Christ and sharing in Christ’s life. In the beginning, Jesus invites men and women with the words, “follow me.” At the Last Supper, however, he invokes the image of a branch united to the vine. We have become members of the Body of Christ through the Sacrament of Baptism. His blood is coursing through our veins through the Sacrament of the Eucharist. His Spirit is living within us through the Sacrament of Confirmation. We are sons and daughters of the Father, we are brothers and sisters of the Son, and we are temples of the Spirit. Our everyday lives need to correspond to the gift we have received in Christ.

3. Christian Paradoxes: The Gospel today is an example of the paradox of the Christian life. We are familiar with these paradoxes in the Beatitudes. If we want to be happy, we need to be poor. If we want to be happy, we need to mourn. If we want to be happy, we need to suffer persecution for the sake of Jesus’ name. Today, we hear: If we seek to save our lives, we will lose them. But if we lose our lives, we will save them. There is a contrast here between earthly life and heavenly life. If we focus all our efforts on building up earthly treasure and happiness, we will not gain eternal life. However, if we are detached from this world and use things like earthly treasure wisely, then we will gain salvation and enjoy eternal life with God. By gaining the world, we lose ourselves. By renouncing the world, we gain the new heavens and the new earth.

Conversing with Christ: Lord Jesus, I will follow you as your disciple. As I contemplate your life, I see your humble service, your hidden prayer, and your innocent suffering. I promise to serve my brothers and sisters in need, to pray as you did to the Father, and to accept and offer the suffering that comes my way.

Living the Word of God: How am I called to lose my life? What is it that I am holding on to in my life that keeps me from a deeper relationship with God the Father? Do I have any attachments to sin that keep me from enjoying the fullness of the freedom of the children of God?