Reflection on Today's Readings, The Feast of St. Matthias, Year B, Friday 14th, 2021
Texts: Acts 1:15-17,20-26; Ps. 113:1-8; John 15:9-17
Today is the feast of St. Matthias. Today's first reading tells us how he was elected into the office of apostle. He was nominated and elected to replace judas Iscariot. The criteria proposed for the nomination shows that Matthias had been with Jesus Christ from the time of baptism of John till the resurrection of our Lord. Matthias must have been among the 72 disciples whom Jesus sent out ahead Himself to preach the kingdom of God and to heal the sick (Luke 10:1-22). The speech of Peter shows that personal knowledge of Jesus Christ is needed to be a witness to Christ.
The gospel reading tells us what to do to have personal knowledge of Jesus Christ. We have to keep His commandments to have personal knowledge of Him. He says, "If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father’s commandments and abide in his love." If we keep His we will abide in His love and He will abide in us. When we keep His commandments, we become His friends. He says, You are my friends if you do what I command you."
The first reading reminds us of the important role of prayer when making decisions. With prayer we ask for God's guidance and intervention. The disciples. It is said, "And they prayed and said, “Lord, who knows the hearts of all men, show which one of these two you have chosen to take the place in this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside, to go to his own place.”
It is clear in the reading that the disciples allowed the word of God to guide them. Peter says, "Brethren, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit spoke beforehand by the mouth of David, concerning Judas who was guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was numbered among us, and was allotted his share in this ministry. For it is written in the book of Psalms, ‘Let his habitation become desolate and let there be no one to live in it’; and ‘His office let another take.’" This reminds us that we are to rule our lives by the word of God.
O God, who assigned Saint Matthias a place in the college of Apostles, grant us, through his intercession, that rejoicing at how your love has been allotted to us, we may merit to be numbered among the elect. Amen.
(Colect)
Fr. Andrew Olowomuke
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