733 James I. Harrison Jr. Parkway East - Tuscaloosa, Alabama 35405

Browsing Father Michael Deering's Sunday Homilies

Palm / Passion Sunday!

Homily originally presented April 14, 2019

 

Palm / Passion Sunday!

 

Guys ... imagine you’re the best football player in the world, making more money than any other player.          That would be mighty outstanding ... wouldn’t it?

 

Ladies ... imagine you’re the loveliest model in the world, making more money than any other model.          That would be very wonderful ... wouldn’t it?

 

Now, imagine having all that fame and fortune ...

and then your 5 yr. old son gets cancer!

 

By itself ... fame and fortune seems pretty great ...

but compared to the wellness of your son ... it dwindles in importance.

 

Most Moms and Dads would be willing to trade all their wealth ...

if it would remedy their sick son.

 

That’s what love does

 

It enables us to see things in context ... moving us to adjust  our goals

placing the highest priority on the people we love ... on their wellness and life.

 

And you’ll get to see this played out most powerfully in the week ahead ... if you participate in the liturgies of Holy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Sunday.

 

It’s in The High Holy Days of this Holy Week that we recall ...

    how God the Father ... in His great love for His Children ... that’s all of us ...

offered up His wealth ... His Son Jesus ... so that we could reclaim life with Him.

 

Yes, God gave us everything when He gave us Jesus.

 

And, Jesus gave us everything when He gave up His life as a man.

 

St. Paul described this in our Second Reading from Philippians, saying:

 

Though he was in the form of God,

Jesus did not deem equality with God

something to be grasped at.

 

Rather, he emptied himself

And took the form of a slave,

being born in the likeness of men.

 

He was known to be of human estate,

and it was thus that he humbled himself,

obediently accepting even death,

death on a cross!

 

Jesus wasn’t created in the image and likeness of God as we were ...
Jesus
wasn’t created at all ... Jesus always was and always will be ...  He is God!

 

Yet, He chose to become a man ...

and in doing so He emptied himself of

all the benefits He had as God.

 

He submitted to human limitations.

He experienced hunger, thirst, tiredness and pain.

He relied on prayer to discern His Father’s will.

He was born into a poor, simple family, worked for a living and owned very little.

 

As God, Jesus had everything and He gave up everything ... and He did it ... for us!

 

He came from Heaven to Earth ... so that we could go from Earth to Heaven.

 

He was hated ... so that we would know love.

 

He was condemned ... so that we could be pardoned.

 

He was put to death ... so that we might have Eternal Life.

 

In every way He emptied Himself ... so that we could be filled.

 

Why did He do this?

 

For the same reason a wealthy Star Quarterback or wealthy Fashion Model

would spend everything they had ... to save their son.

 

The reason ... is Love.

 

Jesus loves us.

He loves us to death!

 

The final gesture of His human life was to open His arms to us in Love.

With the crucified image of Jesus before us,

    and the Passion narrative fresh in your mind ...

please take the next 3 minutes to reflect on

    how loved we are by God ...

that He gave His Wealth ... to save our Life.

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