Readings: Titus 2:1-8, 11-14; Psalm 37; Luke 17:7-11
How often at work or at school have we gone the extra mile, covered for someone while they ran an errand, or stayed late to finish an urgent task, and then not been thanked? How many times at home have we had dinner waiting on the table, or did the grocery shopping, and not been thanked? It hurts to not be recognized for doing a good deed, for we all know that when we trip up, it will be noticed, and we will hear about it, loud and clear.
We all enjoy a pat on the back for a job well done. The egos of the disciples of Jesus must have taken a big blow when Jesus told them the parable of the Master and the Servant. The Gospel must have stung: “Do you thank the slave for doing all that you were ordered to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, say, ‘We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done.”
What was Jesus really saying to his disciples and to us? Was the message that all we do for God does not require God to thank or reward us? That God is the Master and we are the Servants? Yes, certainly!
The parable makes it clear: God is not obligated to save us, no matter how many good deeds we do, how many times we forgive, how much we give to the church or to the poor. It is imperative we keep our focus: our relationship with God is one of service performed with devotion, gratitude and love, not the price of a ticket to earn admission into heaven.
We know that the very act of serving God gives our lives meaning and hope. We are bound to obedience out of our love and loyalty to God, in gratitude for sending his Son, who saved us by dying on the cross. It does not mean God owes us; what God gives us is a gift of grace. Salvation is a gift, not something we can earn on earth through our corporal acts of mercy.
We are so blessed that the Lord is a compassionate, loving and kind God. The Bible is full of promises that our rewards are great in heaven. With smiles on our faces and joy in our hearts, let’s continue to journey on and love and serve our God and Master; because that is what we Christians do.