THE GOD OF EXCESS

THE GOD OF EXCESS

TWENTY SEVENTH SUNDAY IN ORDINARY TIME

Is.5:1-7/ Ps.80:9,12,13-14,15-16,19-20/ Phil.4:6-9/ Mt.21:33-43

Anything done in excess will harm us! That is why when we eat too much, we become sick. When we drink too much, we become sick. When we sleep too much, we become sick. And even when we miss someone too much, we experience love sick. Anything done in excess will harm us!

However, there is only one thing in this world that is constantly in excess - the love of God for you and me. And this love is beautifully depicted in our first reading today. "He spaded it, cleared it of stones, planted the choicest vines, and built a watchtower."  The wine grower did everything that he can do in order to produce good grapes at harvest time. This is also true in our Gospel today. "There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a hedge around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a tower." These readings therefore remind us of God's excessive love for us. And such love reached its fullness when he sent his only Son to journey with us in this world marked by hatred and indifference.

And so, this is our first challenge today - that we remember the excessive love of God in our lives. These are the moments when we passionately feel the working and presence of God in our lives. These are the moments when we are able to say, "He had me at my worst. And he had me at my best."

However, there is another excess mentioned in our readings today - humanity's infidelity! In our first reading today, the wine grower expected for a good produce yet the land yielded wild grapes. In our gospel, the tenants instead of reaping the fruits of the land, killed the servants of the landowner even his son. Both of these readings remind us of our never ending infidelity to God. And the reason for this infidelity is our sense of entitlement. We always believe that we are to claim as our own every produce that we have. And so, when we earn a lot of money, we end up becoming its slaves. When we gain a lot of appreciation from others, we end up all the while thinking that we are best. Simply said, when we receive God's excessive love, excessive blessings in our lives, we end up loving the gifts and not the Giver. We forget God. We change our loyalty. When we forget God, then we also forget our neighbor. We forget our duty to love and serve our neighbor.

The people in our first reading and the workers in our Gospel reacted indifferently and violently because they did not have real love. Pope Francis has this to say that “Love is recognizing God as the only Lord of life and at the same time, it is also welcoming others as true brothers and sisters, overcoming divisions, rivalries, misunderstandings and selfishness.”

And so this is our second challenge today - that we become generous dispensers of God's grace. God has been truly, madly, deeply, and excessively in love with us! May such reality push us to always remember Him and never forget our duty to also love and serve our neighbors!

A wise man once asked his student, “When can you say that the night has ended and morning has begun?” The student replied, “When you can hear the rooster crow.” But the wise man said, “No.” “When you can already see cars traveling down the road,” said the student. But the wise man answered negatively. With nothing to answer, the student asked the same question to the wise man. And the wise man said, “The night has ended and morning has begun when you can already see other people not just as ordinary human beings but as your brothers and sisters, your companions along the journey of life.”

God has prepared and taken good care of our vineyards! He has blessed them with a fertile soil and abundant harvest. May we learn to share the fruits of our vineyard so that others too may be satisfied and experience life at its abundance! And only when we learn to share with others God’s generosity in our lives can we truly say that the night has ended and morning has begun. Amen!