Reflections on 2 SM 7:4-17 / MarK 4:1-20
By Frank Savadera, SJ
The Book of Samuel stretches a long way from the time of
Hannah, the mother of Samuel; to the anointing of Saul, David killing Goliath,
Saul pursuing David because of his jealousy, David cutting off a part of Saul’s
cloak (habang umiihi si Saul sa kweba); David being anointed king and he enters
Jerusalem. We even have a depiction of dancing and
making offerings to the ark of the covenant.
And now ... sundan ang susunod na kabanata. What’s next?
How will the next chapters of the book unfold?
In Chapter 7 of 2 Samuel David was lying and resting in his palace and telling himself: `See now,
I dwell in a house of cedar, but the ark of God dwells in a tent.' He therefore set out to build a permanent
dwelling place for the Ark of the covenant.
Yahweh’s response to David ... in today’s reading is quite amusing. You know ... I’ve been going around in a
tent. Did I ever request for a house
built for me? You will not build me a
house. It is I who will build a house
for you. How will this story
continue to unfold. Ano ang susunod na
kabanata?
I think ... and specifically for us, we are asked
the same question: Ano ang susunod na
kabanata? What next? How will the next chapters of the book
unfold? For us, I think it is important
to note the Lord’s message to David: It
is not you who will build a house for me.
Instead, it is I who will build a house for you. And what house is this ... you may ask? It is not a physical house!
For our purposes ... let’s call it a HERITAGE or a
LEGACY. This is going to be a heritage
... a house and a legacy that will stand forever. I will make myself known as a father to your
offspring. I will correct them if they
make a mistake. MOST IMPORTANT: I WILL NOT WITHDRAW FROM YOUR HOUSE THE FAVOR
I WITHDREW from David. Your house and
your kingdom shall endure forever before me; your throne shall stand firm
forever.’”
As
we ask ourselves: Ano ang susunod na
kabanata? I think we can derive great
consolation from a God ... who BUILDS his house IN US (we know that this house
is not merely a building). He also makes
a promise of his CONTINUED FAVOR. This
makes the Psalms more meaningful: For
ever I will maintain my love for my servant.
How is the lord FORTIFYING
that house which He Himself had started to build?
It amazes me to note a small detail in the
Gospel. I don’t even know why it was
even mentioned. It may seem like an
insignificant thing. Before Jesus
recounts the story of the Sower of the seeds,
he sat on the boat by the sea and everyone gathered on land ... by the
sea. He taught them at length about the
parables. Lesson: We receive teachings, we hear the Lord and learn
from Jesus each time when we are between LAND and SEA. What do we mean? Simply:
I think God’s speaks strongly to us when we are between LAND and SEA ...
when we are discerning to SAIL to new and undiscovered lands or simply staying
put secure ON LAND. God speaks when we
are between LAND and SEA.
This makes the Gospel meaningful. What do we make out of the word that we
hear? God’s word may simply be eaten up by the
birds or wilted by the sun or choked by the rocks or thorns. HAVE WE HEARD THE WORD OF GOD? WHAT WILL THE WORD OF GOD BE FOR US? Will we ever even get to hear it? And ACCEPT it? Those who hear and accept the word of God
will bear fruit
thirty and sixty and a hundredfold.”
We pray for each other as we ask ourselves: WHAT’S NEXT?
ANO ANG SUSUNOD NA KABANATA? How
will the next chapters unfold? It is not
us who is building a house for God ... He constantly builds his house and
presence within our hearts.
God
speaks to us most strongly when we are between LAND and SEA ... that is, when
we are choosing between SAILING or simply staying put securely where we are.
Lastly,
there’s a CHALLENGE ... to ACCEPT the WORD of God ... as it comes ... and we
know if we accepted it so ... since we will forever be FRUITFUL.
