“Denounce! Let us denounce him!” – “Perhaps he will be trapped; then we can prevail and take our vengeance on him.” These are words we hear in the reading of the prophet Jeremiah's report about his friends and close associates. They wanted the prophet destroyed. In the Gospel, we have also heard Jesus faced similar challenges from his own people. They wanted him dead. It is common for people who used to be close to you to change their attitude towards you especially when they feel their safety, their position, their interests, or their mode of operation is threatened.
Jeremiah was hounded because he challenged how society treated the poor, and Jesus was almost killed because he challenged the type of religion that was being practiced during his time. Society rarely values “prophets” it prefers to build monuments to them after their death than to listen to their message in time.
The Prophet's Price
This morning is one of those mornings where we are being reminded that if you are going to live out your prophetic call as a baptized disciple of Christ, if you are going to give witness to the truth, to do the Lord’s work – be prepared to be misunderstood, to be discredited, to be denounced, to be condemned, to be shunned, to be doubted, to be disbelieved, or for some people to take vengeance on you. It is the price one pays as a “prophet.”
Contemporary Martyrs
Here I am thinking about a Nigerian girl, Deborah Yakubu, at Teacher Training College who was stoned to death in northern Nigeria for simply attributing her good academic performance to help from Jesus Christ. I am thinking also of the Pakistani Christian woman, Asiya Naurin, who was framed and imprisoned under the anti-blasphemy laws. There is a heavy price for Christian witness in some parts of the world. What we know however is that light will in the end triumph over darkness, and truth will always win over lies. Do not be discouraged in your witness to God.
How Do We Respond?
Today is one of those days we can ask ourselves – In what ways can I witness more courageously to Christ? In what ways can I stand better for the truth even when it goes against popular opinion? Have I ever been a victim of any form of persecution? What truth was I trying to witness?
May we ask the Lord through His Holy Spirit to give us the gift of Fortitude so that we witness better to Christ who is the Way, the Truth, and the Light – no matter what the circumstances might be.
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