Our Generous and Joyful Father (Mt25:14-30) 33rd Sunday

Jesus reveals to us in the Gospel today that our Father in Heaven is both Generous and Joyful. Is that the image of God the Father that you have? We see our Father’s generosity when He gives each of His servants a number of talents based upon their ability. He does not have to give them anything. Notice how not only is He generous but also loving in that He knows His servants well enough that He gives each one what they can handle according to their ability. Our Father shares everything with us His servants, and He gives each one of us exactly what we need and exactly what we can handle. We see the Father’s joy when the servants have done well. He is proud of them, and He invites them to share in His joy. Our Father is proud of us when we do well, and He is eager to share His joy with us. Is this how you see Our Father? Jesus reveals all this and more because in Jesus we know God Is Love. In Jesus we see the great Love the Father has for each one of us in that He sent His only Son to be our Savior. Thus the Father has literally given all things to us in the gift of His Son. Through Jesus and the Salvation He won for us the Father invites us to share His Joy; that their Joy may be in us and our joy may be complete. Do you understand this? Is this the image of God the Father that you have? Do you see the Father’s Love? Do you understand that Jesus has brought us the fullness of Mercy and Salvation? He is not waiting to condemn you. He knows you so well that you do not have to be afraid. He will not let anything overcome you. Perhaps you are paying too much attention to the third servant and how the master treated him. The third servant was ruled by fear. All his decisions and actions were based on lies; lies that kept him afraid. Many of us live the same way. This servant did not see that the Master in love knew him so well that he only gave him what he could handle. In other words the Master in truth thought much more of the servant than he thought of himself. The servant only saw his fear and worry and low self esteem and believed the lies. The third servant could not see that he was loved, and so he rejected the Master’s gift. He gave it back. His fear does two things to him. It makes him wicked and lazy. This is what the Master calls him. When we believe the lies and live in fear we too become lazy and wicked. Our becoming wicked because we embrace any number of sins that comfort us and make us feel safe. We become lazy because the weight of our guilt and shame can never be lifted because we only believe the lies and are afraid of the Truth. We are afraid of God the Father. We are afraid of Jesus. We are afraid of their Love, the Holy Spirit. We reject their generous gift of life and of freedom. We are incapable of joy, and so we are thrown out into the darkness where there is weeping and grinding of teeth. Pay close attention though. This is not God’s desire. The Most Holy Trinity invites us to share their Joy. Today we can decide to live in the truth of God’s Love, or we can live in fear.