Homily for 18th Sunday in Ordinary Time – Year A
18th Sunday in Ordinary Time –
Year A
Bring
What You Have; God Will Do the Rest
Isaiah 55:1–3 Romans 8:35, 37–39 Matthew 14:13–21
Dear brothers and sisters
in Christ Jesus!
Have you ever felt that
you are not enough? Not talented enough, not wealthy enough, not holy enough,
not strong enough?
Many people carry this
feeling every day. We compare ourselves with others and conclude that what we
have is too little to make any difference.
Today’s liturgy gives us
a different message. God does not ask us to be extraordinary; He asks us to
offer ourselves to Him completely. He simply asks us to place what we have in
His hands.
The miracle of the
feeding of the five thousand began, not with abundance, but with a small
offering. God does not measure our gifts by their size but by the love and
trust with which we offer them.
The three readings remind
us that God invites us to Himself, nourishes us with His love, and assures us
that nothing can separate us from Him.
God Invites Everyone (Isaiah
55:1 - 3)
The prophet Isaiah speaks
to people who had experienced loss, disappointment, and exile. They had lost
hope. Yet God invites them with extraordinary generosity: “Come, all you who are thirsty...
Come without paying and eat.”
God’s invitation is open
to everyone. His love is free. We cannot buy it or earn it. We only need to
come with open hearts.
Isaiah also asks a
challenging and strong question: “Why do you spend your money for what is not
bread, and your labor for what does not satisfy?”
This question is very
relevant today. Many people spend their lives running after wealth, success,
recognition, and pleasure, hoping these will bring happiness. Yet, after
achieving them, many still feel empty. The human heart has a hunger that only
God can satisfy.
God is inviting us today
to stop searching in the wrong places and come to Him, the source of lasting
joy and peace.
Because the deepest
hunger of the human heart is not for possessions but for God.
St. Augustine expressed
it beautifully in one of his books, “Our hearts are restless until they rest
in You.” Isaiah exactly reminds us that God alone satisfies.
Nothing Can Separate Us from Christ’s Love (Romans 8:35, 37–39)
St. Paul asks one of the
most beautiful questions in the Bible: “Who will separate us from the love
of Christ?”
He mentions hardship,
persecution, hunger, danger, and even death.
These are realities many
people experience even today. Families face financial struggles. Young people
battle anxiety and uncertainty. Many carry hidden wounds, loneliness, or
illness.
St. Paul knew these
experiences personally.
He had been imprisoned.
Beaten.
Rejected.
Shipwrecked.
Misunderstood.
St. Paul does not say that
Christians will never suffer. Instead, he assures us that suffering will never
separate us from Christ.
And he confidently
declares: “Nothing will be able to separate us from the love of God in
Christ Jesus.” Our circumstances may change, but God’s love never changes.
This is a message our
world desperately needs. Many people today lose hope because they think God’s
love depends on circumstances.
If my prayers were
answered, God loves me.
If I succeed, God loves
me.
If I fail, perhaps God
has abandoned me.
St. Paul says exactly the
opposite.
God loved us before we
succeeded. He loves us in our failures. He loves us in sickness. He loves us in
grief. He loves us when we cannot even feel His presence. Feelings change.
God’s love does not. That
is why Christians can face life’s storms with hope.
Bring What You Have (Matthew 14:13 - 21)
Today’s Gospel presents
one of Jesus' greatest miracles - the feeding of the five thousand. The Gospel
begins with sadness. Jesus has just heard that John the Baptist has been beheaded.
He seeks solitude and loneliness.
But thousands follow Him.
Instead of sending them
away, Jesus is moved with compassion. Compassion is always the beginning of
every miracle.
The disciples look at the
crowd and say, “We have only five loaves and two fish.” Notice the word only.
Human beings always focus
on what they lack.
Only five loaves.
Only
little money.
Only
little time.
Only
little talent.
Only
little strength.
Jesus never says, “That
is not enough”. Instead, He says, “Bring them here to me.” This changes
everything.
The miracle did not begin
when the bread multiplied. It began when someone was willing to surrender what
little they had.
That is how God works.
Moses
had only a staff.
David
had only a sling.
The widow of Zarephath
had only a handful of flour.
The boy had only
five loaves and two fish.
The widow in the
Temple had only two small coins.
The apostles had
only simple fishing boats.
Joseph,
a carpenter, had no wealth or influence.
Yet each became part of
God’s great plan.
The lesson is simple: God
does not ask how much we have. He asks whether we trust Him enough to offer it.
That is the heart of today’s Gospel.
The Eucharistic Connection
In today’s Gospel, Jesus takes
the bread, blesses it, breaks it, and gives it to the
people.
He does the same at every
Mass.
We come to Jesus with our
worries, our joys, and our needs.
Jesus feeds us with His
Body and Blood in the Holy Eucharist.
He gives us strength,
peace, and hope.
Just as Jesus fed the
hungry crowd, He
continues to feed us today through the Eucharist.
Let me share a story
A grandmother once gave
her grandson a simple pencil.
The boy laughed and said,
“Grandma, this is just an ordinary pencil.”
She replied, Look
closely.
A pencil teaches five
lessons.
First,
it can do great things only when someone holds it.
Second,
it must be sharpened, and sharpening is sometimes painful.
Third,
it can erase mistakes.
Fourth,
what matters most is
Finally,
every action leaves a mark.
She continued,
“So, it is with us. When
we place ourselves in God’s hands, He writes a beautiful story through our
lives. The difficulties we experience shape us.
His mercy forgives our
mistakes. Our character matters more than our appearance. And our acts of love
leave lasting marks on others.
Like the pencil, we may
seem ordinary, but in the hands of the Divine Artist, ordinary lives become
extraordinary.
St. Francis de Sales, known for his wisdom and gentle spirituality, said: “Be who you are and be that well, so that you may bring honor to the Master Craftsman whose handiwork you are.”
These words fit today’s
Gospel beautifully. God is not asking you to have someone else’s gifts. He is
asking you to use faithfully the gifts He has entrusted to you.
Yes friends, Jesus does
not ask for what we do not have. He asks us to offer what we have with faith. The
disciples offered five loaves and two fish, and Jesus worked a miracle.
Let us place our lives,
gifts, and struggles in His hands.
Bring what you have. God
will do the rest.
LIVE
JESU!
FR. D. VIMAL MSFS
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