Jeremiah 14: 17b-22,
Psalm79:8.9. 11.13,
Matthew 13:36-43 Full Readings
Our Last Reckoning
Today's Gospel presents Jesus explaining the parable of the sower who sowed and at night the enemy came and planted weeds. The sower allowed both the weeds and the wheat to grow together but at last he harvested his wheat and burnt all the weeds. Jesus says that that's how it will be at the end of the world, where we shall be judged according to our actions, if we did good we shall enter the kingdom of heaven and if we misbehaved and didn't repent we shall be sent into hell. That's why today it's worth reflecting on our last reckoning.
Imagine that the day Jesus is talking about is tomorrow, which side would you be? Deep in your heart you know the answer and it is obvious that nobody would like to go to hell. This day, Jesus says, will come as a thief, and so we need to be prepared each time so that when Jesus comes to take us, we shall be having a heavenly ticket. So then what should we do to avoid this eternal fire? Avoid evil and do good.
The image of a sower who sowed his wheat and the enemy came also and sowed weeds makes known to us the reality of evil in the world. Brethren, evil is real and according to the Gospel it is being sown every day by the devil which is always seeking to ruin souls and destroy the good seeds in the world.
At baptism, the goods seeds of the word of God were sown in us and the task of weeding them, watering them so that they bear fruit was given to us. However, the devil also approaches us daily with its glittering pleasures to sow the bad seeds so that the weeds may grow in our hearts too. If we allow it, we may lose the kingdom of God.
The choice remains in our hands, to choose evil or choose good, but in these choices we make, we must keep in mind our last reckoning, because Jesus will sit on His throne and give judgement according to the way we lived our lives. Those who accepted the word of God which was planted in them will go to heaven and those who accepted the pleasure of evil one will go to hell where there is grinding of teeth.
Knowing that evil is real will help us make better decisions. Jesus Himself says the weeds will not be uprooted but will be allowed to grow with the wheat. So it is with evil and the devil, it will always be with us and will flourish when we accept it but will lose value when we ignore it and focus on the good. What we have to be aware of is that the devil is always looking for us, who do good deeds and live lives worthy of the Kingdom. The gardener will tell you that the weeds also like the rich loamy soil and will flourish when left to grow, so is the devil, it likes us who try to avoid it so that when we fall to it we will be ashamed in front of everyone.
How do we come out when we have allowed weeds to grow in our hearts? Again it is our choice, if we want to do weeding in our hearts, the solution is to turn to Jesus and repent through the sacrament of reconciliation. This sacrament is what we can call weeding so that we will leave only good seeds to flourish in our hearts. God Himself is patient and allows both the good and evil people to live together as we see in the gospel, even gives all them rain, but His patience doesn't mean His judgement will never come, it will come at the end and if we have not lived lives worth of Him, we will be thrown to hell. His patience therefore is an invitation for us to change our way of living. That's why we need weeding through sacrament of reconciliation.
When we come back to God with a contrite heart as the Israelites in the first reading, God will forgive us and we will be allowed back to enter the kingdom of heaven but if we stay in our stubbornness of heart, then we are condemning ourselves.
Reflect today on your last reckoning. How would you want it to be? The way you want it to be is solely your choice and depends on how you live your life here on earth. The decision is yours and you also know the consequences. Pray for the Holy spirit to help you make good choices in living your life.
Let us pray
Lord, I know that the way I live my life today and the choices I make will affect my life after here. Send me your Spirit to be my guide so that I may live a life and make decisions worthy of your kingdom. Amen
Be blessed
May I keep in mind my last reckoning as I do things
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