Gospel: Mark 4:21-25

 

The Word of God is the lamp which should be lit in the darkness of the night. If it remains hidden in the closed book of the bible, it is like a small lamp under the tub. When it is united to the life, in community, there it is placed on the table and it gives light. A Christian is a witness, a witness to Jesus Christ, the light of God. And he must place that light in the candlestick of his life.

 

Jesus asks the disciples to become aware of the preconceptions with which they listen to the teaching He offers. If the idea with which we look at Jesus is mistaken, everything which we think about Jesus will be subject to error. If the disciples think that the Messiah has to be a glorious king, they will understand nothing of what the Lord teaches and they will conclude that everything is mistaken. 

 

The Gospel passage proposed for the day’s liturgy also speaks of measure. This is the other approach typical of a Christian. It refers to magnanimity: another Christian trait is magnanimity, because he is the child of a magnanimous father, with a great spirit. So too when he says, “give and you shall be given”, the measure that Jesus speaks of is full, good, overflowing. Similarly, the Christian heart is magnanimous. It is open, always. It is not, therefore, a heart that withdraws into its own selfishness. Nor is it a heart that sets limits. When we enter into this light of Jesus, when we enter into Jesus’ friendship, when we let the Holy Spirit guide us, our heart becomes open, magnanimous, he gains Jesus. A Christian’s gain is in becoming a witness to Jesus.