The Power of Committed Discipleship

When the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph brought the child Jesus to the temple for the rites of purification, almost all the people who saw baby Jesus looked at Him without knowing that He was the long-awaited Messiah. Only the aged Simeon and the prophetess Anna recognized the infant for who He was. How come only these two recognized Christ? 

They were able to truly see the infant Messiah because they both were fully committed to God. We learn from Simeon and Anna five divinely inspired commitments that will help us also recognize Jesus in our lives and proclaim Him to others.  

Simeon was fully committed to God as His servant: “Now, Master, you may let your servant go in peace, according to your word.” He was not the master of his life; God was. His entire life was one of obedience to the word of God. Nothing in his life gave him peace until the word of God was fulfilled. He truly had a servant’s heart.

We too recognize the presence of Jesus when we submit to Him and His authority in all areas of our lives. We are blinded to the presence of God when we pretend to be the ultimate masters of our bodies, time, sexuality, resources, health, etc. Jesus Christ must truly be the master of all aspects of our lives, and we must humbly submit to His lordship if we are going to recognize His presence with us.

Simeon was also committed to living a life inspired by the Holy Spirit, one that was truly pleasing to God: “This man was righteous and devout, awaiting the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him.” While waiting for the advent of the Righteous One, Simeon ensured that his life was in accord with the holy will of God.

Inspired and sustained by the Holy Spirit, we too should strive for holiness of life. The more that we strive for holiness, depending utterly on God’s grace to do so, the more we sense His presence and action in our lives. We show this commitment to holiness by our relentless struggle to uproot sin and by our refusal to be mastered by selfishness. We cannot hope to sense God’s presence with us when we are giving in to the many sinful behaviors and choices that we see in our world today.

The prophetess Anna gave herself wholeheartedly to prayer and worship; “She never left the temple, but worshipped night and day with fasting and prayer.” Neither her old age nor the death of her husband prevented her from persistent and continuous prayer. She worshipped and prayed “night and day,” in good times and in bad, whether it was convenient and fruitful or not.

We too must deeply commit ourselves to our prayer lives. Pray whether we get what we are asking for or not. It is very sad to hear that some Catholics are still only attending online Masses. We settle for online Masses, but we are physically present at the malls and cinemas! How in the world can we ever sense Jesus’ Presence when we are so casual and careless in our prayer life?

Simeon and Anna longed for the Messiah and waited for His coming. Simeon did not get complacent with his righteousness as he “waited for the consolation of Israel.” Anna’s sufferings and pains did not diminish her longing and expectation. They both lived in that hopeful expectation of the Messiah’s appearance.

We too must be searching for Jesus in our daily lives as He commanded us, “Seek and you will find” (Mt. 7:7). We can search for Jesus in our daily prayer time with His word. Our search for Jesus should bring us to the frequent and fervent reception of the sacraments, especially the Eucharist and Reconciliation. We search for Him in other persons whom we meet, bearing in mind that “whatsoever we do to the least of them we do to Him” (Mt. 25:40). We search for Him in the daily events and circumstances of our lives. We cannot recognize His hidden Presence with us if we are not consciously and intentionally searching for Him.

Simeon and Anna spoke to others about Jesus immediately upon encountering Him. Simeon foretold the suffering of Jesus to the Blessed Virgin Mary, prophesying, “Behold, this child is destined for the fall and rise of many in Israel, and to be a sign that would be contradicted.” On her part, Anna “spoke about the child to all who were awaiting the redemption of Jerusalem” (Lk. 2:22-23).

Encountering and recognizing Jesus is not enough. We also must be ready to make Him known to others through our words, actions, and prayers. The more ready we are to make Him known to others, the more easily we recognize Him with us. We cannot recognize Jesus with us when we are more focused on promoting ourselves or worldly causes.

My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us remember how committed Jesus is to each one of us. He is so committed that He freely became one of us to free us from the devil and the power of death: “Since the children share in blood and flesh, Jesus likewise shared in them, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the Devil.” He is so committed to us that He is always ready to help us in our present struggles; “Because He himself was tested through what He suffered, He is able to help those who are being tested” (Heb. 2:14, 18). By virtue of the ongoing Incarnation, Jesus is forever committed to us, and He will never abandon or forsake us.

Jesus shows His perennial commitment to us in each Mass as He comes to us again in the hands of Mary and by the words of the priest. Let us begin today to be truly committed to Him so that we can recognize Him with us and proclaim Him to others.

Glory to Jesus!!! Honor to Mary!!!

Image from Wikimedia Commons