March 23, 2025

Third Sunday in Lent – Year C

A Calling, Response, and a Warning

Deacon Kevin O’Boyle

 
Good morning:
 
When we study bible figures like prophets or leaders, we often refer to their “call,” that is, that the time when God, or His messenger, first approached the person and presented God’s plan for them. In our readings today, we could recognize several aspects of being called. I’ll discuss them in a minute. When there is a call, there will be a response. It might be a flat “not me,” or “why me,” or “I don’t know how to do that,” or many other iterations of an initial rejection. The other end of this response would be Mary’s fiat—“be it done to me according to your word,” where she gave an unconditional “yes” to God’s message. In some way, God’s call is responded to. We’ll take a look at the calls and responses seen in our readings today, and we will see how God also provides a warning in each instance.
 
Turning to our first reading, we have the most easily identifiable call—the Call of Moses via the Burning Bush. Here is the story about how God called Moses, eventually to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. This is the story of the burning bush which attracted Moses because it was not consumed by the flames. God calls Moses Himself, through the bush, to go and tell the Israelites that He, God Himself, will come to be with them and rescue them and lead them to “a land flowing with milk and honey.” The only response or objection Moses seems to state at this point was wanting to discover the name of God, to which God responds, “I AM.” We know that the response of the Israelite people to whom this call eventually extends, will be one where they constantly question God and disobey His covenant. Yet God remains faithful, delivering them to the promised land despite their transgressions.
 
In our second reading from Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians, we have to assume the Call of God, through Paul to the people of Corinth. Through Paul’s ministry to them, the Corinthians were believers and followers of Christ. This letter has Paul warning his followers not to become complacent. Peoples before them also drank from a spiritual rock. But they faltered and were punished.
 
Finally in our Gospel reading today, we have Jesus offering a similar message. Using then current events, Jesus warns His followers that they too need to repent their sins. Their call came from Christ Himself—but those who answered and followed Jesus still had the occasion and tendency to sin and had to repent from their sins. Jesus warns of punishment if they do not repent.
 
The final paragraphs of the Gospel are the parable of the fig tree. Here the person planting a fig tree has returned for three years to find no fruit. The planter in the parable represents God the Father, who sent His Son to redeem the people. The 3 years refer to the 3 years of Public Ministry Jesus gave before His death and resurrection. Now, with His suffering, death, and resurrection, it is Christ’s hope that the fig tree will bear fruit—that is, they will repent and follow Him. The people had a call, they had yet to repent and respond to that call. And the parable, it its closing line gives them a warning—"if not you can cut it down.”
 
So, what does all this talk about Call, Response and Warning mean to us today? All of us have been called, through our Baptism, to follow Christ. We all must recognize that we are called to repent from our sins. This means we should frequent the Sacrament of Reconciliation. How we respond to our Call will impact directly how we spend eternity. Jesus warned us of final judgement. Our faith teaches us that in the end, we will face four things—Death, Judgement, Heaven (perhaps after a stay in Purgatory) or Hell. Our response to our call as Christians will determine how our final judgement will go. Have we repented? Have we visited confession? Do we try to amend our ways? And that is something to think about this week, especially as we approach Holy Week. God Bless.