“Part of the Family of God” by Colleen O’Sullivan

 “Part of the Family of God” by Colleen O’Sullivan

Memorial of Saints Timothy and Titus, bishops

 

Willem Drost, Timothy and his Grandmother, 1648, Collection of the Earl of Ellesmere, Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons¹

Paul, an Apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God for the promise of life in Christ Jesus, to Timothy, my dear child: grace, mercy, and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord. I am grateful to God, whom I worship with a clear conscience as my ancestors did, as I remember you constantly in my prayers, night and day. I yearn to see you again, recalling your tears, so that I may be filled with joy, as I recall your sincere faith that first lived in your grandmother Lois and your mother Eunice and that I am confident lives also in you. (2 Timothy 1:1-5)

 

“For whoever does the will of God is my brother and sister and mother.” (Mark 3:35)

Piety

Lord, I do so want you to be part of your family. Open my eyes to see whether anything is holding me back and if so, help me to let go of whatever it is.

Study

Can you imagine what your parents would have said if you had told them you were leaving your biological family and joining the family of God? Most of us would probably still be recovering from the fireworks! But that’s what our readings today are about – leaving the old behind and embracing the new in Christ.

I read about a would-be groom who lived in a remote section of Australia, about 300 miles from the nearest town. This must have been pre-Zoom because he said he had to do his premarital counseling by mail. At one point, the counselor asked him and his fiancée to explain how they would deal with their families’ influences. His reply was short and, in effect, stated that his family lived more than 1,000 miles away and would never be a problem. I laughed. Our families and many other influences in our world reside in our heads and hearts and show up right when Jesus calls us sometimes. What about the day when his family’s values conflict with his wife’s? What about when all their marital compromises stand in the way of the call of the Lord?

Jesus warned many times in the Gospels that the day for choosing would present itself, maybe more than once. It’s not that we can’t love our families or enjoy the things of this life, but following Jesus comes first. It requires 100% commitment. The weight of all his wealth held back the rich young man. The love of power over others held back the Pharisees and scribes. Jesus even said his relatives, come in today’s Gospel to take their “crazy” family member back to their village, aren’t his family. Jesus’ brothers and sisters are the ones who do God’s will. The only way to be part of Jesus’ family is to put God and God’s Kingdom above every other thing in our lives. In this past Sunday’s Gospel, Jesus called James and John to follow him. I can picture Zebedee’s mouth hanging open as they jumped out of his boat and followed. He must have wondered, “How am I going to manage this fishing business all alone?” But when Jesus called, his boys left it all behind to follow Jesus.

Being adopted into this family of God is what happens in the sacrament of baptism. When the waters flow over or sprinkle us, we die to sin, and our baptism lifts us to new life with a new, forever family. The church gives us a new, baptismal name, and we become the newest members of the family of God.

It’s not always family or possessions that hold us back from being part of Jesus’ family. Sometimes it’s our fears or our feelings about ourselves. The first reading depicted Timothy as a person of great faith, who had learned about Jesus Christ at his grandmother’s knee. But he may have been lacking in self-confidence because Paul reminded him that he had given him the gift of the Spirit so that he could, with confidence, proclaim the Word. His misgivings were holding him back.

Action

When you have some quiet time today, consider what effect Jesus’ words had on you. It must have been shocking to the people who told him his family was waiting for him outside to hear Jesus say they’re not his real family. The people following him and listening to him speak were his true brothers and sisters.

What keeps you from being fully committed to the Lord? Whatever it is, offer it to the Lord in prayer and ask for help in being freed to follow.

Keep in mind that Jesus often uses extreme images to make his point. If you have a sick family member, of course, Jesus understands your caring for that person. But there are a lot of reasons we give for not being committed that have little validity. Fortunately, we will receive help from God if we ask.

Image credit: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Timothy-and-Lois.jpg

¹ According to Wikipedia, this painting was initially believed to have been Rembrandt’s work known either as Timothy with his Grandmother Lois or The Prophetess Anna Teaching a Child. In 1910, the provenance of this work was disputed. Since 1924, it has been accepted as a work of one of Rembrandt’s pupils, Willem Drost. The original belongs to the Hermitage Museum, and a copy hangs in the National Museum in Wroclaw, Poland.