by Mr. Francis D'Souza
This is the right topic for the first meeting after Easter Sunday which was on 11th April 2004.
The Lord went through excruciating pain and torture and in a moment of weakness could have backed out, but because of his great love for us and commitment to the Father, went through it all.
Hence, this is a good time for us to reciprocate and show how much we love Him by recommitting ourselves to Him. The Church every year at the Easter Vigil invites us to renew our Baptismal vows.
The Lord calls us to follow Him – “Come follow Me”. He is not looking for crowds drifting aimlessly in his track, but for individuals whose undying allegiance will spring from their having recognized that He wants those who are prepared to follow the path of self-renunciation which he trod before them.
To commit means to carry out our responsibilities at any cost, with determination. Eg. Jobs, Marriage, etc.
The terms of discipleship are stringent and timeless :
- Jesus wants the first place in our lives – Luke 14:26
- Jesus wants us to follow Him inspite of hardships (cross) – Luke 14:27
- Jesus wants us to love His followers also – John 13:35
- Jesus wants us to obey His word – John 8:31
- Jesus wants us to be fruitful – John 15:16
Our commitment should display the following:
Faithfulness – Matthew 25 well done, good and faithful servant.
Dedication – The soldier who lived on the border wanted to be in the good books of both the countries. So he wore the pant of ‘x’ country and shirt of ‘y’ country. He got shot in the pants by the ‘y’ country and shot in the shirt by the ‘x’ country.
Endurance: The 3 falls of Jesus never succeeded to deter Him from going to Calvary because He got up every time and endured. He himself said – He who endures to the end will be saved – Matthew 24:13. Patience and Perseverance can overcome mountains. Quitters don’t win & Winners don’t quit.
The main danger which can take a toll of commitment is routine i.e. doing the same thing over and over again.
Let us endeavour not to be like the children who did not get up to milk the cows after the initial excitement was over; rather let us be like the sportsmen who practise for hours together even though they are tired and even if there are no spectators because in sports Routine is Success.