Jesus Never Promised Easy, He Promised His Spirit

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ,

In today’s Gospel, Jesus tells His disciples: “I am sending you like sheep in the midst of wolves.” Think about that for a second. Sheep among wolves?

He is being honest. Jesus never tells His disciples, “Follow Me, and everything will become easy.” He never promises that everyone will understand us, agree with us, or like us. In fact, He says the opposite. There will be opposition. There will be rejection. There will be moments when following Him will cost us something. And then Jesus says something beautiful: “Do not worry about how you are to speak or what you are to say… for it will not be you who speak but the Spirit of your Father speaking through you.”

Here is the theme of today’s Gospel: Jesus does not always remove the difficult situation, but He gives us His Spirit within it. Sometimes we pray, “Lord, take this problem away.” And that is a good prayer. But sometimes God’s answer is not to remove the problem. Sometimes His answer is, “I will be with you in it.” At our Baptism, we receive the Holy Spirit. At Confirmation, we are strengthened by the same Spirit who gave courage to the apostles. The Holy Spirit is not simply a nice religious idea. He is God dwelling within us.

But here is the question: Do we actually rely on Him? When someone challenges your faith, do you immediately become defensive, or do you quietly pray, “Holy Spirit, give me the right words”? When you face a difficult conversation, do you rehearse every possible answer with anxiety, or do you say, “Holy Spirit, guide me”? When you are afraid of what others might think because you choose to live according to the Gospel, do you remember that you are not standing alone? Jesus also tells us to be “wise as serpents and innocent as doves.” In other words, Christians are not called to be naïve. We should understand the world, think carefully, and use wisdom. But we must never allow the darkness around us to create darkness within us.

That may be one of the greatest challenges of Christian life: to face hostility without becoming hostile, to face hatred without learning to hate, and to face a difficult world without losing a pure heart.

Jesus sends us like sheep among wolves, yes. But He does not send us alone. The Shepherd goes with us. So perhaps today, instead of asking, “Lord, why is this so difficult?” we could ask a different question: “Holy Spirit, how do You want me to be faithful here?” Because courage does not mean we are never afraid. Christian courage means that even when we are afraid, we still trust that God is present, God is speaking, and God is enough.

Prayer: Holy Spirit, I often want an easy road, but You call me to a faithful one. When I am afraid, give me courage. When I do not know what to say, give me Your words. When I face opposition, keep my heart gentle and pure. Help me to be wise without becoming cynical, innocent without being naïve, and courageous without becoming proud. Remind me that wherever You send me, I never go alone. Amen.

– Homily by Rev Fr Patrick Agbeko