LOVE AND SERVICE - SHARING THE KINGDOM OF GOD ON EARTH

-

13 Aug 2018 Tuesday
Sharing notes of key messages from Daily Gospel Reflections by the Most Rev Archbishop of Singapore William Goh

Gospel Reading Matthew 17:22–27

22 As they were gathering* in Galilee, Jesus said to them, “The Son of man is to be delivered into the hands of men, 23 and they will kill him, and he will be raised on the third day.” And they were greatly distressed.

24 When they came to Caperna-um, the collectors of the half-shekel tax went up to Peter and said, “Does not your teacher pay the tax?” 25 He said, “Yes.” And when he came home, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, “What do you think, Simon? From whom do kings of the earth take toll or tribute? From their sons or from others?” 26 And when he said, “From others,” Jesus said to him, “Then the sons are free. 27 However, not to give offense to them, go to the sea and cast a hook, and take the first fish that comes up, and when you open its mouth you will find a shekel; take that and give it to them for me and for yourself.”


The Archbishop's writing on this passage:

The Archbishop's writing on this passage:

In the gospel, Jesus came to restore the glory of the Kingdom of God.  He came as a humble and lowly King.   Hence, when Peter was asked whether his master paid the Temple tax as was required by all adult Jews for the maintenance of the Temple, he replied in the affirmative without knowing the answer.  Jesus took the occasion to enlighten Peter and the apostles on His identity.  The truth is that the kings did not pay taxes nor did he collect taxes from his own family.  The kingdom belonged to the king and so they did not have to pay anything.  Clearly, the sons were exempt.  That being the case, since God is the king of the earth, and Jesus being His son, He would have been exempted from paying the Temple tax as well.

However, how could Jesus affirm His identity without causing unnecessary tension with the authorities?  On the surface, it seemed to contradict the integrity of Jesus for willing to submit to an unjust law so as not to offend the temple tax collectors when He had no issue condemning the religious leaders for their hypocrisy.   Was Jesus contradicting Himself?  The truth is that although He was not required to pay the Temple Tax, yet, He recognized the tax as something positive for the upkeep of the Temple.  Not all recognized Him yet as the Son of God, the Son of the Kingdom, and so to set a good example He instructed Peter to pay the tax to avoid scandal.  Whilst we can fight for our rights, sometimes we should refrain from insisting on our rights as Jesus did, for the greater good of all.

Nevertheless, to reinforce His identity as the Son of God, Jesus instructed Peter to pay the temple tax by taking a shekel from a fish.  By so doing, Jesus was reaffirming His authority over creation, which included His power over the fishes, whether in the miraculous catch or in providing a shekel for them to pay the tax.  Would such instruction contradict Jesus’ policy of not performing a miracle for His own benefit?  In this case, it was not so much for Himself, but as Jesus said, it was for the sake of the people because in truth, He was not required to pay any taxes.  So the tax was paid indirectly by divine providence.

There is also an additional reason why Jesus asked Peter to find the shekel from the fish.  After the announcement that “the Son of Man is going to be handed over into the power of men, they will put him to death, and on the third day he will be raised to life again”, the evangelist noted, “a great sadness came over them.”  Jesus felt the need to strengthen the faith of Peter and the apostles, that no matter what happened, God would provide and see them through, even in the mundane things of life.  Jesus was asking Peter to trust Him again and to rely on the grace of God.  Peter once again went in faith and found the coin in the fish’s mouth.  God cares for each one of us and we need to believe in Him even when we go through the trials and crosses of life.  This small incident was to restore faith in Peter and the apostles who were worried over the imminent death of our Lord.

The Archbishop's reflection for our daily living

The kingdom of God is about humble and selfless love in service.  Only love and service can build the kingdom of God, unity among all peoples.  If the world is divided, it is because of greed, power and glory.   By His death on the cross, Jesus reveals to us that love is more powerful than hatred.  Indeed, God can bring good out of evil. ...

The cross is but the passage to the resurrection.  Without dying, there can be no resurrection.  By conquering death through His resurrection, Jesus shows us what life in the kingdom of God is like.  It is about joy in service, love and compassion for the poor and the suffering.   It was at His passion and resurrection that Jesus’ kingship was confirmed by Pilate and by His Father....

We too are called to radiate the glory of God.  By our lives, we are called to be the presence of God because we are created in His image and likeness.  Through our goodness we are called to be the light of the world.  (cf Phil 2:14f)  We must let the glory of God be revealed in our life.  We must guard ourselves from losing His glory by our sins....

“Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the sky, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever.”  (Dn 12:3)


 

Comments

Post a Comment