29th week in ordinary time, year 2, October23,2006

Ephesians 2:1-10. Psalm 100. Luke 12:13-21.

For me, the parable Jesus gives us is about seeking first the kingdom of God and all the rest will follow. Unfortunately, we often place our priorities first and the kingdom of God after them. We can plan for our own comfort symbolically represented by the man building his barns for the future and then hoping to party as often as he wants. You get the point. After reflecting on the parable and turning back to the first reading from Ephesians I saw Paul giving us the priorities that bring us to God. The passage speaks of our conversion from our selfishness and worldly pursuits for power and prestige; it also recalls the sins we now have turned from. We are to experience the gifts of our baptism which result in faith in the saving power of Jesus over anything that would take us away from the priorities of God. Paul goes on to say, "God is rich in mercy. Because of his great love for us he brought us back to life in Christ when we were dead in sin."

The passage is rich in love, hope, and faith. In fact, the passage is so clear, that it needs no interpreter. It speaks for itself and can be our prayer for this day. We just have to read it and accept it with its grace-filled content. I remember while reading the great Protestant theologian Karl Barth in his commentary on Romans 8. He informed the reader to just read the passage. It is self-explanatory. So is ours from Ephesians in today's first reading. Paul continues: "This is not our doing, it is God's gift; neither is it a reward for anything you have accomplished.Here is where I applied the parable to myself while reading Paul. We are not to build our own big barns for the future until we have prioritized all in the light of God's priorities for us as redeemed by Jesus. We are predestined for heaven, but we do need to listen and respond to the call of Jesus and Paul. Amen.