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“Blessed are you when people hate you and when they exclude you and spurn your name as evil, on account of the Son of Man!” +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
One of my favorite episodes of that 1990’s sitcom Seinfeld! is the one entitled “Opposite Day.” It’s the episode where Jerry Seinfeld’s friend, George Costanza, is so fed up with the way his life is going that he decides one day that he is going to do the opposite of what his natural impulses tell him to do in any given situation. George tells Jerry and Elaine, “all of my decisions have been wrong, so, why not try doing the opposite?” George starts by ordering a different kind of meal than what he usually orders at the diner. Things then get interesting when Elaine points out to George that an attractive woman nearby has been looking at him. At first, George says, “So what? I’m unemployed and I live with my parents! Who would be interested in me?” Then he remembers that his own instincts have always been wrong. George decides again to do the opposite: he goes up to the women and introduces himself to her, says, “Hi, I’m George, I’m unemployed and I live with my parents!” And hilariously, the woman responds, “I’m Victoria. Hi!” Reading today’s lesson from St. Luke’s Gospel, Jesus tells us that the secret to living the good life is the opposite of what the world tells you is the good life. The world says that the good life is found in wealth, happiness, and success. Jesus tells us that the good life is found in knowing God, not in wealth, happiness or success. Today’s Gospel begins with Jesus continuing His public ministry. And as we observed last week, Jesus’ ministry is getting a lot of attention. People come from Judea, Jerusalem and from Tyre and Sidon to hear Jesus teach and be healed of their diseases. And Luke tells us that Jesus healed them all. Then Jesus begins to teach. It’s important to note that Luke tells us that Jesus came down from the mountain and “stood on a level place.” This is reminiscent of what we see in Exodus. In Exodus, Moses goes up Mt. Sinai to talk to God and then come down and talk to the people of Israel. This is what happens when God gives the Ten Commandments. He first gives them to Moses, who then goes back down to the foot of the mountain to share them with the people. But this morning, we see Jesus coming down from the mountain to speak to the people. He does not give them the Ten Commandments, but rather His own updated version called the Beatitudes. What is significant here is that the Ten Commandments were God’s rules for living a righteous life and thus living as a member of God’s covenant community, the people of Israel. The Beatitudes, on the other hand, are Jesus’ description of what the benefits of life in the Kingdom of God include. Principally, this means that those who are Jesus’ followers will be the beneficiaries of the “Great Reversal” that Jesus is bringing about in the world: the first are last, the last first, the proud are being brought low and the humble are being raised up. In this new world, the poor and the outcast are the ones who enjoy the special attention of the Lord and are given a special place in His heart. For the past few weeks, we in Adult Sunday School have been reading and discussing The Didache, an ancient Christian document that was written shortly after the completion of the New Testament. And what we find in The Didache is the contrast between two ways: The Way of Life and the Way of Death. This notion did not originate in The Didache. It comes to us from Jesus Himself and we hear it in His teaching in Luke’s Gospel. Jesus’ Beatitudes—blessed are you who are poor, blessed are you who hunger now, blessed are you who weep now, blessed are you who are hated and excluded and reviled. This is the Way of Life. St. Ambrose says that one who is poor is not greedy, one who weeps is not proud but submissive and tranquil. One who mourns is humble. One who endures persecution has gentleness. In other words, what Jesus is teaching us is that those things that we would rather avoid in this life, being poor, experiencing hunger, mourning, experiencing persecution, all these things can and will bring us closer to God and grow in us His life and love, if we will simply turn to Him for help in all these things. Conversely, the Way of Death is to think oneself rich, to be full of the things of this life, to laugh, and to be spoken well of by others. Why would this be so? It sounds so counterintuitive to us. But how often have we seen in our lives or in the lives of others that complacency that sets in when everything is going well—I’ve got lots of money, lots of friends, and everything seems to be going my way—that we forget about God? We forget about Him and we allow ourselves to think that our blessings are the result of our own hard work and smarts, and that we really don’t need God very much at all. It is a terrible temptation. Last year I had the privilege of listening to Fr. Jerry Kramer talk about the great spiritual awakening that is taking place in the Middle East, in places like Kurdistan and Iran, where the Church is growing by leaps and bounds. One thing that Fr. Kramer told us that really stuck with me was that the Christians there do not pray for an end to the fierce persecution that they experience every day, because if it did, it would mean that they would not experience the power and presence of God that they do now. They understand that as long as the persecution continues, that God’s power and presence will continue to be among them, to help transform the lives and win many souls to Christ. The big message that Jesus is trying to give us here is that the Prosperity Gospel preachers have it backwards. Becoming a follower of Jesus Christ is not the ticket to health and wealth. Indeed, becoming a Christian is the means to the Good Life, but health and wealth is not the Good Life. The Good Life is fundamentally to be found in union with God and His Son Jesus Christ and becoming more like Him. There is great joy and fulfillment to be found as we each seek to pursue God with all our hearts, souls, and minds. But it will lead to trouble. Conversely, if we seek a trouble-free life, such a desire will lead us away from God and it will not give us the fulfillment or joy that God promises. +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit
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“And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not be afraid, from now on you will be catching men.’” +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
One of the most significant things we can observe from today’s Gospel lesson is that Jesus is so much more than a miracle worker. Yes, He can turn water into wine, and He can cause fishermen to have a huge catch of fish even under poor conditions. What we can observe from today’s passage is that Jesus is very skilled in transforming lives. He knows people, and He knows how to grow them up and to turn them from ordinary people doing everyday things into extraordinary people doing extraordinary things. St. Luke’s account begins with Jesus engaging in His public ministry. It started with His teaching at the synagogue in Nazareth, and then Jesus went to other synagogues to preach. But Jesus’ teaching ministry is not limited to the synagogue. Jesus is also preaching in public places. Here we see that Jesus has drawn such a large crowd that people cannot see or hear Him. Thus, Jesus decides to get into a boat and go out onto the lake. This will help Him be both seen and heard. And Jesus chooses Simon’s boat to go out in. Now Luke introduces Simon to us here, but we know from St. John’s Gospel that Simon has already met Jesus, back when Andrew introduced his brother Simon to Jesus. When Jesus is finished speaking to the crowd, He turns to Simon and tells him to put out his nets for a catch. Simon, the experienced fisherman, tells Jesus that they had already done some fishing during the night, when fishing conditions are ideal, but caught nothing. Nevertheless, Simon follows Jesus’ command and puts out the nets for a catch. Simon’s transformation from fisherman into Jesus’ disciple has begun. Jesus begins the process by inviting Simon to do something that seems impossible in the natural—to try to fish in the middle of the day at a place where they had already been unsuccessful when fishing conditions were better. Simon’s faith and trust in Jesus is rewarded. A miracle happens! Simon and others caught so many fish that the nets were starting to break, and they had to call for help from the other boats to bring in the catch. Simon knows what is going on. Clearly, it is not because of his skill as a fisherman that they caught so many fish. He already knew that conditions were not good for fishing. Furthermore, he also remembered that they had caught nothing the night before when conditions were right. Simon knows that this is a miraculous catch, that God is present. And Simon realizes that Jesus is no mere man, but that He is God. Filled with this realization, Simon is moved to fall at Jesus’ feet, and exclaim to Him, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” At this moment, Simon is overwhelmed with thoughts of his own unworthiness. He knows that he is a sinner in the presence of the Son of God. This is a sign that Simon is ready to follow Jesus and be transformed. Jesus, knowing Simon’s heart and the hearts of the other men present: James and John, who were Simon’s fishing partners, invites them all to go deeper with Him. Jesus says to Simon, “Don’t be afraid, from now on you will be catching men.” With these words, Jesus is telling Simon (and James and John as well) that life that they have known it is over. Jesus is going to take them and transform them is something much more than they ever thought they could be. Here we see Jesus at work: First He teaches. And He invites others to participate in the work with Him. He does this by inviting Simon to take Him out on the lake in Simon’s boat. Jesus then follows up His teaching with a sign or a miracle—the big catch of fish. This is facilitated by Simon’s trust and faith in Jesus by simply obeying Jesus’ command to put out the nets for a catch. Simon’s obedience facilitated Jesus performing a miracle. And when Simon sees the miracle, he is cut to the heart. He knows that he is an unworthy sinner. There is no pretense or guile. No assertion of his own spiritual bona fides. Simon, as he is confronted with the reality of the presence of God, simply surrenders and acknowledges his own wretchedness. Now Jesus has Simon’s full attention. And Jesus says to Simon, in effect. Don’t worry about your sinfulness, Simon, because I am going to transform you into something wonderful. I am going to make you into my partner in building the Kingdom of God, and I am going to use you to bring others into relationship with Me. Where are you in your relationship with Jesus? If you’re here, it means you have at least been introduced to Him. Maybe He’s asked you to do something for Him, something straightforward, but not too difficult, like giving Him a ride on your boat so that He can speak to the crowd from the lake. He’s invited you in and you’re watching Him at work. But then Jesus asks you to do something that doesn’t seem to make any sense to you. It doesn’t sound like something that is possible for you to accomplish. How have you responded? If you did what He asked, what happened? A miracle? What was the impact on you? Simon had his first breakthrough with Jesus because he was willing to surrender and trust Him. And it was then Simon realized who Jesus was. This realization broke him, broke down all his pride and self-sufficiency. Now he is ready to be clay in the hands of the master potter. Now we know that while Simon has his first breakthrough here, we know that he will face more challenges ahead. But we also know that Jesus will not give up on him, that Jesus will always be praying for Simon, and working in his heart to grow him up into one of the heroes of the faith. For you and me, it comes down to two things: First, do we trust Jesus enough to do what He asks us to do? And second, when we come to the realization of our own sinfulness, does that knowledge cause us to despair or to go deeper with Jesus? One of the most encouraging things about this story is not simply that Jesus has the power to do the impossible, but that He wants to use people who are broken sinners to partner with Him in His work of building the Kingdom and bringing salvation to the lost. What Jesus did for Simon and James and John is what He wants to do for each of us. He wants to turn us into men and women who are “catchers of men.” Jesus wants to help us increase our faith, trust Him, and surrender ourselves to Him so that He can heal and deliver us from our sin and transform each of us into His instruments for the salvation of the world. +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit “And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord.” +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
Happy Feast Day everyone! Today we celebrate the Feast of the Presentation of Jesus in the Temple and of the Purification of St. Mary the Virgin. This day marks the fortieth day since Jesus’ birth. Traditionally, it was regarded as the official end of the Christmas season. This feast day was first observed by Christians in Jerusalem in the middle of the fourth century. In the sixth century, the Roman Emperor Justinian ordered that it be celebrated as a thanksgiving for the end of a plague, and since that time it has been observed by Christians in both the East and West. The Roman Catholic Church formally designated this day as a Feast of the Lord in 1960. The importance of this day is that it marks Jesus’ first entrance into the Temple, and it is a reminder to us of Mary’s role in God’s plan of salvation through Jesus Christ. It is significant in that Mary and Joseph were obedient to the Law of Moses which required that they present their first-born child in the Temple and offer sacrifice, and that Mary undergo the rites of purification for a woman who has given birth. Have you ever wondered why the Law of Moses required that the parents of their first-born son bring that child to the Temple and offer a sacrifice? What is this all about? The fundamental principle at work here is the understanding that every first-born son belongs to the Lord, animal and child alike. This harkens back to the Passover, when God spared the first-born sons of Israel when He sent the Angel of Death to slay the first-born sons of Egypt. Second, prior to the Exodus and the giving of the Law, there was the law of primogeniture, meaning that the first-born son serving as the family priest as well as having the right of inheritance. According to the Law of Moses, God designated an entire tribe to be priests, the tribe of Levi. Therefore, the first-born son must be “ransomed” from the demands of the priesthood. St. Luke tells us that while the Law called for the sacrifice of lamb for the occasion, a pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons could also be offered for the sacrifice if one had only modest means. Mary and Joseph were of modest means and could not offer a lamb, but as we know from the Gospels, the baby Jesus is Himself the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. This baby Jesus would become both King and Priest of the entire human race. Now Mary and Joseph are not unique in the Scriptures of offering their first-born to the Lord. All the way back in Genesis, we read that after Abraham and Sarah were blessed by a son in their old age, Abraham was asked by God to offer his first-born son Isaac to God. Then in 1 Samuel, we read about how Hannah prayed to God for a son, having been barren for many years. When God answered her prayers for a son, Hannah then dedicated her son Samuel to the service of the Lord, and he became one of the great prophets of the Old Testament. Then in the New Testament we read about Zechariah and Elizabeth. Zechariah was a priest, and he and his wife Elizabeth were too old to have a child. Yet, God tells Zechariah that his wife will have a son, who will be the great prophet John the Baptist. Amid all these great stories of God’s miraculous work, God asks for sacrifice. Abraham is asked to sacrifice his son Isaac on the altar. Hannah gives up her son to serve in the tabernacle. Zechariah and Elizabeth’s son John the Baptist goes out into the wilderness to proclaim Christ and then is beheaded in prison. And Mary’s son Jesus Himself goes to the Cross and though without sin, dies a painful and shameful death on behalf of a sinful human race. Mary and Joseph offer their sacrifice in the Temple to fulfill the Law’s requirements, but Mary’s sacrifice isn’t completed. Remember Simeon says to Mary, “Behold this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed (and a sword shall pierce through your own soul also), so that thoughts from many hearts may be revealed.” Simeon tells Mary that the Son of God’s work of salvation will be costly not just to Him, but to Mary, as she would see her son Jesus rejected and misunderstood, and then unjustly condemned and sent to the Cross to die. Today, we as followers of Jesus Christ no longer need to follow the Law of Moses under the Old Covenant. There is no longer any Temple. There are no more animal sacrifices. Yet the notion of sacrifice is not obsolete. On the contrary, as followers of Jesus Christ, we still believe in sacrifice. We believe in sacrifice because we wish to participate in Christ’s sacrifice for each of us. Each time we participate in the Eucharist, in the Sacrament of Christ’s Body and Blood we don’t simply remember (that is, have a memory picture in our mind) of what Christ’s accomplished for us on the Cross, but we remember (make present here and now) Christ’s sacrifice and we participate in in it with Him. As we pray together in the Eucharistic Prayer from the traditional rite: “And here we offer and present unto Thee, ourselves, our souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy, and living sacrifice unto Thee…” To be a Christian is to live one’s life as a living sacrifice to God. On this Feast of the Presentation, we honor Mary the Mother of God for her obedience and willingness to sacrifice for the sake of the Kingdom of God and the salvation of the human race. And we offer to God once again our own lives as the living sacrifice, so that He may use each of us for His honor and glory, for the building His Kingdom, and for the salvation of the world. +In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit |
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