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Daily Gospel - Monday, August 18, 2025 - Matthew 19:16-22 - Catholic Bible
Aug 18, 2025
Welcome to our daily encounter with the Word of God! Today, we reflect on the readings taken from the Book of Judges (Judges 2:11-19) and the Gospel according to Matthew (Matthew 19:16-22). These passages invite us to reflect on faithfulness to God and the true path to eternal life. First Reading (Judges 2:11-19): After the death of Joshua, the people of Israel abandon the Lord and turn to other gods, breaking the Covenant. As a result, God allows them to suffer under oppression. Yet, in His great mercy, He raises judges to deliver them. Still, the people repeatedly fall back into unfaithfulness. This reading warns us of the dangers of drifting away from God. When we chase modern idols —such as wealth, power, or fleeting pleasures— we risk repeating Israel’s mistakes. But the Lord never stops calling us back, showing His mercy and inviting us to conversion. Gospel (Matthew 19:16-22): In the Gospel, a rich young man approaches Jesus and asks what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus reminds him of the commandments and then calls him to a deeper step: to sell his possessions, give to the poor, and follow Him. But the young man goes away sad, for he had many possessions. This passage teaches us that eternal life is more than rule-keeping: it requires detachment, generosity, and full surrender to Christ. Only Jesus can truly satisfy the human heart. Reflection and Call to Conversion Today’s readings remind us that fidelity to God and detachment from worldly things are the way to true freedom. Jesus calls us to trust in Him completely and to follow Him with an undivided heart. May these passages strengthen your faith and inspire your day! Share in the comments how you live out Jesus’ call in your daily life.
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[Music]
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Reading from the book of Judges. In
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those days, the Israelites did evil in
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the eyes of the Lord by serving
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Canaanite gods. They abandoned the Lord,
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the God of their ancestors, who had
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brought them out of Egypt and followed
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other gods of the peoples who lived
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around them and worshiped them,
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provoking the Lord to anger. They turned
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away from the Lord and served Bal and
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Ashareth. Therefore, the Lord's anger
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burned against Israel. And he gave them
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into the hands of plunderers who
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plundered them and sold them to their
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enemies who lived nearby. They were
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unable to resist their adversaries. In
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everything they set out to do, the hand
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of the Lord was against them, to their
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disaster, as he had promised and sworn
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to them. Their distress was extreme.
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Then the Lord sent judges to rescue them
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from the hands of the plunderers. But
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they would not listen to their judges
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and continued to prostitute themselves
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to other gods, worshiping them. They
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quickly turned away from the way their
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fathers had walked, who had obeyed the
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Lord's commandments. They did not do as
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they did. Whenever the Lord sent them
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judges, the Lord was with the judge and
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delivered them from the hand of their
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enemies as long as the judge lived. For
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the Lord was moved by the groaning of
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the afflicted. But when the judge died,
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they fell again and did worse than their
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fathers, following other gods, serving
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them and worshiping them. They did not
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desist from their wicked deeds or their
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stubborn ways. The word of the Lord. The
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word of the Lord. Thanks be to God.
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[Music]
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Proclamation of the gospel of Jesus
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Christ according to St. Matthew, glory
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to you, Lord. At that time, someone came
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to Jesus and said, "Teacher, what good
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thing must I do to inherit eternal
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life?" Jesus answered, "Why do you ask
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me about what is good? Only one is good?
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If you want to enter life, keep the
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commandments."
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The man asked, "Which commandments?"
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Jesus answered, "You shall not murder.
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You shall not commit adultery. You shall
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not steal. You shall not bear false
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witness. Honor your father and your
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mother and love your neighbor as
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yourself. The young man said to Jesus,
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"I have kept all these things. What do I
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still lack?" Jesus replied, "If you want
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to be perfect, go sell everything you
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have and give to the poor, and you will
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have treasure in heaven." Then come
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follow me." When the young man heard
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this, he went away sad because he was
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very rich. Word of salvation. Word of
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salvation. Glory to you, Lord.
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[Music]
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Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
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imagine watching a movie where the main
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character keeps repeating the same
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mistakes, falling into the same traps,
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making the same destructive decisions
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over and over again. You would shout at
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the screen, "No, don't do that again."
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But he can't hear you. He's trapped in a
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vicious cycle that seems impossible to
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break. This cinematic image isn't so far
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from the spiritual reality that
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scripture presents to us today. In the
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first reading, the book of Judges paints
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a bleak yet sadly familiar picture of
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human nature. The Israelites did evil in
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the sight of the Lord and served the
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bales.
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This is not an isolated incident, but
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the beginning of a pattern that will be
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repeated countless times throughout
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Israel's history. Listen to this
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devastating sequence. First, the people
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abandon the Lord. Then, God allows them
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to be oppressed by their enemies. Then,
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in their desperation, they cry out to
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the Lord. God in his infinite mercy
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raises up a judge to deliver them. The
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people rejoice serving the Lord during
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the judge's lifetime. But as soon as the
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judge dies, they return to their wicked
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ways, doing worse than their fathers.
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What a tragic and frustrating cycle.
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It's like watching a loved one
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repeatedly bang their head against the
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same wall, expecting different results.
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But before we judge the people of Israel
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harshly, we must ask ourselves, are we
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really so different? How many times in
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our own lives have we fallen into
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similar cycles? Have we sinned, felt
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remorse, vowed change, experienced a
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period of spiritual renewal, only to
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find ourselves once again tempted,
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making the same mistakes. Like the
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people of Israel, we often find our
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resolve fragile and our determination
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limited. The text tells us that they
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forsook the Lord, the God of their
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fathers, who had brought them out of the
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land of Egypt.
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This phrase is laden with tragic irony.
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They didn't just abandon any god, but
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they specifically abandoned the god who
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had delivered them from slavery, who had
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performed extraordinary miracles on
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their behalf, who had demonstrated his
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love in countless ways. This human
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tendency to forget God's past blessings
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is one of the most persistent and
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destructive characteristics of our
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fallen nature. When things are going
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well, we tend to become complacent,
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attributing our success to our own
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efforts. When we face challenges, we
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quickly turn to human solutions or false
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hopes rather than remembering God's
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faithfulness in the past. The bales the
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people of Israel served were gods of
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fertility and prosperity from
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neighboring nations. They promised
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material blessings and earthly success.
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It seemed pragmatic, even sensible, to
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worship the gods who were apparently
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blessing the surrounding nations. After
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all, why not diversify your spiritual
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options? And here we come to the heart
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of the question that also permeates our
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reading of the gospel. What modern bales
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compete for our devotion today? The god
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of professional success who promises
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fulfillment through material
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achievements? The god of consumerism who
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whispers that we will be happy if we
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just buy one more thing. the god of
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popularity who convinces us that our
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identity lies in what others think of
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us. In the gospel, we meet a young man
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who on the surface appears to be doing
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everything right. He approaches Jesus
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sincerely, calling him good teacher and
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asking about eternal life. When Jesus
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enumerates the commandments, the young
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man responds with apparent satisfaction.
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All these I have observed from my youth.
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What an impressive response. Here is
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someone who, unlike the people of Israel
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in Judges, seems to have faithfully
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followed God's precepts from a young
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age. He did not abandon the Lord, did
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not serve the Baales, did not fall into
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the destructive cycle of rebellion and
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repentance. He should be admired,
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celebrated, and held up as an example.
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But Jesus, with his penetrating gaze
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that sees beyond appearances, identifies
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the subtle ball. This young man
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struggles to abandon. If you want to be
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perfect, go sell everything you have and
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give to the poor and you will have
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treasure in heaven. Then come follow me.
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The text tells us that when the young
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man heard this, he went away sad for he
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had great possessions. What a dramatic
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moment. Here is someone who was so close
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to the kingdom, who had met all the
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external demands, but who at the moment
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of truth discovered that there was an
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idol in his heart that he was unwilling
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to abandon. This young man's money and
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possessions had become his personal
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ball. Not that he was necessarily greedy
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or obviously selfish. Perhaps he was a
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kind young man who used his wealth to
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help others. But when faced with the
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ultimate choice between his possessions
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and Christ, possessions won out. This
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story invites us to deep and
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uncomfortable reflection. If Jesus
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appeared today and pose the same
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specific challenge to us as he did to
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this young man, what would our response
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be? What modern-day ball in our lives
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would be so difficult to abandon that we
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would rather sadly walk away than
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surrender everything to Christ? For
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some, it might be literal money and
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material possessions. For others, it
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might be the need for control over our
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lives and circumstances. For some, it
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might be our reputation or social
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status. For others, it may be unhealthy
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relationships that we know are damaging
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us spiritually, but which we cling to
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out of fear of loneliness. What makes
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this story even more poignant is that
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Jesus didn't make this request to be
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cruel or arbitrary. The text in Mark
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tells us that Jesus looked at him with
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love before issuing this challenge.
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Jesus saw the potential in this young
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man, saw what he could become if he were
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willing to free himself from his
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spiritual bonds. Herein lies a profound
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truth. Sometimes what we think are our
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greatest blessings can become our
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greatest barriers to deeper intimacy
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with God. This young man's riches, which
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he likely saw as signs of God's blessing
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on his obedient life, became the
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obstacle that prevented him from
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following Christ fully. My dear brothers
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and sisters, both the reading of Judges
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and the encounter in the Gospel confront
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us with the same fundamental question.
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Whom or what do we truly serve? Israel's
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vicious cycle shows us what happens when
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we allow other gods to share the throne
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of our hearts. The rich young ruler
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shows us that even an outwardly pious
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life can hide subtle idols that prevent
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us from experiencing the fullness of
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life in Christ. The good news is that we
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are not condemned to endlessly repeat
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the destructive cycles of the past. God
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remains the same merciful God who raised
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up judges to save Israel. He remains the
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same Jesus who looked lovingly upon the
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rich young ruler, longing to free him
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from his bondage. But liberation
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requires a choice on our part. It
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requires that we honestly identify the
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modern-day bales in our lives, those
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subtle idols that compete for our total
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devotion to God. It requires that we be
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willing to sell everything in the
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spiritual sense, truly putting Christ
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first in every area of our lives. This
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doesn't necessarily mean we should give
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up all our material possessions.
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Although for some that may be exactly
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what God is asking, but it does mean we
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must be willing to hold everything with
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open hands, recognizing that everything
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we have belongs to God and should be
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used for his glory. It also means we
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must cultivate constant spiritual
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vigilance, regularly remembering God's
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past blessings and renewing our
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commitment to him. Just as Israel needed
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to be constantly reminded of their
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deliverance from Egypt, we need to be
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constantly reminded of our deliverance
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from sin and death through Christ. May
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we learn from Israel's mistakes and not
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fall into the same cycle of complacency
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and rebellion. May we learn from the
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rich young ruler and not allow our
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blessings to become barriers to a deeper
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intimacy with Christ. May the Holy
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Spirit give us wisdom to identify the
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idols in our lives, courage to abandon
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them, and strength to follow Christ with
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total dedication. May we respond to
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Jesus call not with sadness and
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reluctance but with joy and freedom
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knowing that in his presence is fullness
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of joy and at his right hand are
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pleasures forever more. And may the
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grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the love
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of God the Father, and the fellowship of
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the Holy Spirit be with you all today
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and always. Amen.
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[Music]
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St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in
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battle. Be our protection against the
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wickedness and snares of the devil. May
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God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do
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thou, O prince of the heavenly host by
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the power of God, cast into hell Satan
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and all the evil spirits who prowl
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throughout the world seeking the ruin of
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souls. Amen.
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[Music]
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[Music]