A reading from the gospel of Matthew 12:14-21
14 The Pharisees went out and took counsel against Jesus to put him to death.
15 When Jesus realized this, he withdrew from that place. Many people followed him, and he cured them all,
16 but he warned them not to make him known.
17 This was to fulfill what had been spoken through Isaiah the prophet:
18 Behold, my servant whom I have chosen,
my beloved in whom I delight;
I shall place my Spirit upon him,
and he will proclaim justice to the Gentiles.
19 He will not contend or cry out,
nor will anyone hear his voice in the streets.
20 A bruised reed he will not break,
a smoldering wick he will not quench,
until he brings justice to victory.
21 And in his name the Gentiles will hope.
Reflection: Hope in Jesus who brings justice without violence.
The end of Jesus’ earthly life begins from here. His enemies plan to put Him to death but instead of confronting them head on, Jesus withdrew to a certain place and warned His followers not to reveal where He was. Despite the threat to His life, He continued with His mission of curing all the sick. This is in fulfillment of the prophecy of Isaiah 42:1-4.
There are five important points in this gospel passage to meditate upon:
1. Jesus never wanted to create trouble for others and for Himself. When He became aware of the plot to kill Him, He withdrew to an unknown place. This is not cowardice but rather a strategic move consistent with His teaching about peace and loving your enemies. Besides, “His hour has not yet come”. He has still a lot to do.
2. Jesus loves to be with ordinary people and they loved Him back. They kept on following Him wherever He goes.
3. He was never distracted in performing His mission. Despite all the threats and oppositions, He went on teaching and curing the sick.
4. He is the servant upon whom the Spirit dwells. He will proclaim justice without resorting to violence (crying out in the streets, bruised reed, smoldering fire). His power is not political and His method is not armed revolution.
5. The Good News is that in His name, we will have hope. In His name, we will have healing and we shall overcome injustices with the methods of love, truth, and service.
*****What does it mean to be a servant? We need not look any further than Jesus Himself. He was sent to earth with a specific mission and He fulfilled that mission – to inaugurate the Kingdom of God. It isn’t easy to do a certain job when you know many people will despise, persecute and even kill you but Jesus was unafraid. Despite the threat to His life, He did not give up. He has to be OBEDIENT to the One who sent Him. He is God but He became a servant to His Father and to the people.
*****
We read in verse 15 that He withdrew but from that place only. He went on to continue doing His job which includes healing the sick. His withdrawal was a strategic move because it wasn’t yet the right time for Him to undergo trial and crucifixion. He has a lot more to do including the proclamation of justice to all people.
*****
Some people easily abandon their fight for what is right as soon as they feel threaten by the powers that be. Others continue fighting by taking up arms. Verses 19 and 20 gives us the idea of non-violent resistance. Jesus shuns violence and He Had shown it during His passion and death. He never gave in and He did give up despite the threat to His life. This is another mark of a true servant – COURAGE.
*****
Jesus served the people who were marginalized by institutions of society. The poor, the sick and the uneducated were attracted to Him because in Him, they found HOPE that they cannot find elsewhere. Verse 20 says that Jesus will bring JUSTICE to victory. Even today, a lot of people continue to suffer due to policies that favor the status quo than real change for the good of all. We look up to Jesus as the ultimate model of servant leadership who will work for genuine justice without violence. We look up to Him for Hope in an otherwise hopeless world.
