Sharp as a Two-Edged Sword | Sunday Reflection | 28th Sunday in Ordinary Time

For the most delicate medical operations, surgeons do not use just any old scalpel. To get the sharpness and precision they need, they use surgical tools with diamond blades. Because of their unmatched hardness, diamonds can be honed to a razor thin sharpness. In the hands of a skilled surgeon, such a tool can cut with the exactness that the most difficult surgeries require.

Now, if you’re like me, just hearing about surgeries and razor-edged scalpels probably makes you feel a little queasy. Even if you know you need a surgery and you have the best doctor with the best diamond-sharp tools, you’re still going to be nervous. No one likes the idea of being cut into, even if it is for our own good.

Today we hear that the word of God is living and effective and sharper than a two-edged sword. Sharper than any worldly knife, it penetrates even into the deepest reaches of our souls. That word, like a surgeon’s scalpel, cuts into the secrets of our hearts and lays them open. This too may make us a little nervous. There are some aspects of our hearts and souls we would rather not have revealed. Cutting into them stings. We welcome Christ’s healing, but only to a point. When that word cuts too deep, it stings and we flee from the pain.

This is what happens to the rich young man in today’s gospel. The Lord’s invitation to him to sell what he has and give it to the poor strikes a nerve. Like a keen-eyed physician, the Lord Jesus can see what is blocking this eager man from taking the next step toward eternal life. The young man is attached to his wealth and is thereby weighed down in his otherwise open heart. Looking with love at the young man, Christ utters a word that cuts into this false love. This word of invitation wounds him and his face falls. He calls off Christ’s saving operation and walks away sad.

“For He wounds, but He binds up; He strikes, but His hands heal.” (Job 5:18) Christ does not speak His sharp-edged word to hurt us, though it certainly stings. Like a surgeon, He pierces into our inner depths to perform a saving operation. He cuts open our souls to slice away the sinful attachments that are slowly killing us. For the rich young man, that attachment was his wealth. He chose to live in that sickness rather than experience the pain of healing. For us, the attachment may be something different.

Nothing is sharper than the word of God. Only its fine edge can cut between soul and spirit and reach into the delicate joints and deep marrow of our desires and priorities. Only Christ can put us back together on this deepest level of our being. We all need to be cut by His word. The pain is real, but it is not permanent. God’s word, though at times hard and sharp, saves. Those who let His word cut deep into their hearts are healed and changed. They do not go away sad. Cut free from their burdens of sin, they go forward with Christ into joy.