"We constantly thank God because you accepted God's message, not as some human thinking, but for what it really is - a living power of God among you who believe it."
Thessalonians
I grew up during the time when television first came out. Very common during those early years of television programming were western shows and movies. Many Saturday afternoons I spend with my brothers and cousins watching Western Theatre. During these midday matinees on Saturday afternoon, eight or ten of us would be sitting around the living room watching these shows. And of course, these shows always had the good guys, the heroes, and the bad guys. As children, it was never difficult for us to pick out good guys. There was never any question who they were, and we would be all cheering for them, and certainly siding with them and wishing to emulate their qualities as they fought against injustices and rescuing those in distress. What made them the good guys to us children? Why were we attracted to them?
Mainly it was because they were interested in justice, particularly for the little guy: For the kid who didn't have a home, for the poor struggling rancher who was in danger of losing his property, for the old man or widow who couldn't defend him or herself. The heroes were there to defend them, protect them. They were more interested in others then in themselves, while the bad guys were only interested in what they could get for themselves. Children can pick up on these differences very easily. As adults, we seem to struggle more with seeing this as clearly.
When Jesus walked about Israel, he noticed the virtuous in places where one would not ordinarily expect to find them. From these unexpected places, we hear stories like the "Good Samaritan", the "Roman Centurion", the "Samaritan Woman at the Well", the "Woman of questionable reputation who visited Jesus at the home of Simon the Pharisee".
But Jesus also noticed the "lack of virtues" in places where one would normally expect to find them. Some of these places were the centers of leadership in churches and synagogues. The Scribes and the Pharisees were often described in the Gospels as the bad guys. Were they all like that? Probably not. But there was enough that it became noticeable to Jesus. What was it about the Scribes and the Pharisees that disturbed Jesus so much?
It was in their actions, and in the way they lived. They were so much more interested in themselves and how they appeared, then in others. Jesus called them hypocrites which means "actors". They looked good on the outside, but inside they were empty of the virtues that comes from God; compassion, love, care and concern for others. This can happen to any of us, even in church, particularly if we become more concerned with maintaining appearances or the status quo rather than serving the people in our communities.
Children are not drawn to emulate those who only want to maintain appearances, or who are only interested in themselves and what they want. They see through this very quickly. But they are drawn to the virtuous, those they see as heroes, fighting against injustices, reaching out to those in need. St. Paul addresses this in his letter to the Thessalonians:
"We constantly thank God because you accepted God's message, not as some human thinking, but for what it really is - a living power of God among you who believe it."
Showing posts with label prayer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label prayer. Show all posts
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Experiencing God - Do we understand 22
"Jesus said: It has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom, but to others, it has not been given. To those who have, more will be given, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear."
Chapter 13 of Matthew is full of Jesus' parables. We find there the parable of the sower, the parable of the weeds among the wheat, and several of the parables that give us insight into the Kingdom of God.
"The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, but when it is grown, it is the largest of all shrubs, and the birds of the air find comfort in it and nest in its branches."
When Jesus was asked by His disciples why He spoke in parables, He gave them a rather unusual answer: It has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom, but to others, it has not been given. To those who have, more will be given, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear."
Even the answer Jesus gives is somewhat of a parable. Do you know the secrets of the Kingdom? We know, we perceive, and we understand through faith. Without faith, Jesus' words fall on deaf ears. Many hear the words, but they do not understand them, or at least, they fail to act on what they hear.
We live in a world that largely does not listen and understand what Jesus is saying; so they follow other voices.
Lately on the news, we have heard a lot about the web site "backpage.com" that is under investigation in the United States and Canada. It is a site that advertises in the sex trade, particularly with under age children. This site makes millions of dollars per month on this type of advertising. I was listening to a woman who was being interviewed in this morning's news, a twenty-six year old who advertises on this site. She said that she wishes she had discovered the site years earlier because she can make in excess of $1,000 per week as a result of her advertising. This, she says is more than sufficient to pay for her education and living costs.
Do you think that this woman and the people who run this site understand Jesus' parables on the Kingdom of God? If they continue to be deaf to God's word, then even that which they have now will be taken away from them.
In another of the parables found in the gospel of Matthew, Jesus is saying: "The Kingdom of God is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone finds and hides. Then in joy, they go and sell all that they have and buy the field.
Is the Kingdom of God your treasure? Are you willing to sell off or let go of all the other things, which pale in comparison, in order to possess that treasure?
Where your treasure is, there also you will find your heart. If your treasure can only be found in the transient and temporary things of this life, like $1000 per week illegally earned to cover education and living costs, or $1,000,000 a month in illegal advertising fees, then even the little that you have will be lost. Our true treasure can only be found in God, and the life that God has prepared for us now, and to come.
"Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear."
Chapter 13 of Matthew is full of Jesus' parables. We find there the parable of the sower, the parable of the weeds among the wheat, and several of the parables that give us insight into the Kingdom of God.
"The Kingdom of God is like a mustard seed, the smallest of all seeds, but when it is grown, it is the largest of all shrubs, and the birds of the air find comfort in it and nest in its branches."
When Jesus was asked by His disciples why He spoke in parables, He gave them a rather unusual answer: It has been given to you to know the secrets of the Kingdom, but to others, it has not been given. To those who have, more will be given, but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. But blessed are your eyes, for they see; and your ears, for they hear."
Even the answer Jesus gives is somewhat of a parable. Do you know the secrets of the Kingdom? We know, we perceive, and we understand through faith. Without faith, Jesus' words fall on deaf ears. Many hear the words, but they do not understand them, or at least, they fail to act on what they hear.
We live in a world that largely does not listen and understand what Jesus is saying; so they follow other voices.
Lately on the news, we have heard a lot about the web site "backpage.com" that is under investigation in the United States and Canada. It is a site that advertises in the sex trade, particularly with under age children. This site makes millions of dollars per month on this type of advertising. I was listening to a woman who was being interviewed in this morning's news, a twenty-six year old who advertises on this site. She said that she wishes she had discovered the site years earlier because she can make in excess of $1,000 per week as a result of her advertising. This, she says is more than sufficient to pay for her education and living costs.
Do you think that this woman and the people who run this site understand Jesus' parables on the Kingdom of God? If they continue to be deaf to God's word, then even that which they have now will be taken away from them.
In another of the parables found in the gospel of Matthew, Jesus is saying: "The Kingdom of God is like a treasure hidden in a field, which someone finds and hides. Then in joy, they go and sell all that they have and buy the field.
Is the Kingdom of God your treasure? Are you willing to sell off or let go of all the other things, which pale in comparison, in order to possess that treasure?
Where your treasure is, there also you will find your heart. If your treasure can only be found in the transient and temporary things of this life, like $1000 per week illegally earned to cover education and living costs, or $1,000,000 a month in illegal advertising fees, then even the little that you have will be lost. Our true treasure can only be found in God, and the life that God has prepared for us now, and to come.
"Blessed are your eyes, for they see, and your ears, for they hear."
Wednesday, September 4, 2013
Experiencing God - Finding a lonely place 20
"When daylight came, Jesus left the house and made His way to a lonely place."
Gospel of Luke
A Jesuit by the name of George Maloney describes Jesus as the freest of all Persons. In the retreat book of his which I have used many times, Maloney poses a question: "How do you know you are free?" True freedom, he would say, is what Jesus possessed. It consists in freely determining to live your life as your Heavenly Father would wish us to do. It means in all the choices that we make, we act out of love to please God. And of course, this freedom only comes as we deeply and personally experience God's love for us through Christ. Do you experience Christ's love for you in that way?
In the gospel of Luke, we read of a whole list of successes that Jesus experienced in healing those who were ill. Simon's mother-in-law is healed of a high fever. And then many sick people begin to arrive at Simon's house suffering from a variety of ailments. And Jesus cured them. Despite all this amazing stuff that was going on, I still find the most revealing passage in this Gospel reading is that after all this, when daylight came, Jesus left the house and made His way to a lonely place. Why would that be?
Because we cannot possibly remain free, in fact we cannot do too much of anything of God's work, unless we take time to pray. And prayer for Jesus would not be for the purpose of trying to get God's will to conform to His, but to get His will to conform to God's. True freedom is our determination to live our lives as our Heavenly Father would wish us to.
As we look out at the world, we see much confusion, much suffering, lives turned upside down, people who seem lost, without any moral compass to follow, and most of it is a result of our insistence on doing things our own way, in absence of God's divine plan for us, in absence of even consulting God's loving presence which is all around us.
In the Gospel reading, when the crowds found Jesus, they came with the insistence that He continue on with all the activities of the day before. Jesus said no, I must go and proclaim the Good news of God's kingdom to others, because that is what I am sent to do. My will is to do the will of my Father, not chase after empty dreams.
The only way we can change the world, is to change ourselves. And when we change ourselves through prayer, discernment, and a desire to live in accordance with God's plan for us, then the world will change because we are part of the world.
St. Paul affirms this in his letter to the Colossians - "The Good News which has reached you, he says, is spreading all over the world and producing the same results as it has among you ever since the day when you heard about God's grace and understood what this really is."
As we recognize Christ's love for us, as we adjust our lives to live in accordance with God's plan, we begin to understand what this is all about. We become instruments of change for a world in much need of God's grace and light.
Gospel of Luke
A Jesuit by the name of George Maloney describes Jesus as the freest of all Persons. In the retreat book of his which I have used many times, Maloney poses a question: "How do you know you are free?" True freedom, he would say, is what Jesus possessed. It consists in freely determining to live your life as your Heavenly Father would wish us to do. It means in all the choices that we make, we act out of love to please God. And of course, this freedom only comes as we deeply and personally experience God's love for us through Christ. Do you experience Christ's love for you in that way?
In the gospel of Luke, we read of a whole list of successes that Jesus experienced in healing those who were ill. Simon's mother-in-law is healed of a high fever. And then many sick people begin to arrive at Simon's house suffering from a variety of ailments. And Jesus cured them. Despite all this amazing stuff that was going on, I still find the most revealing passage in this Gospel reading is that after all this, when daylight came, Jesus left the house and made His way to a lonely place. Why would that be?
Because we cannot possibly remain free, in fact we cannot do too much of anything of God's work, unless we take time to pray. And prayer for Jesus would not be for the purpose of trying to get God's will to conform to His, but to get His will to conform to God's. True freedom is our determination to live our lives as our Heavenly Father would wish us to.
As we look out at the world, we see much confusion, much suffering, lives turned upside down, people who seem lost, without any moral compass to follow, and most of it is a result of our insistence on doing things our own way, in absence of God's divine plan for us, in absence of even consulting God's loving presence which is all around us.
In the Gospel reading, when the crowds found Jesus, they came with the insistence that He continue on with all the activities of the day before. Jesus said no, I must go and proclaim the Good news of God's kingdom to others, because that is what I am sent to do. My will is to do the will of my Father, not chase after empty dreams.
The only way we can change the world, is to change ourselves. And when we change ourselves through prayer, discernment, and a desire to live in accordance with God's plan for us, then the world will change because we are part of the world.
St. Paul affirms this in his letter to the Colossians - "The Good News which has reached you, he says, is spreading all over the world and producing the same results as it has among you ever since the day when you heard about God's grace and understood what this really is."
As we recognize Christ's love for us, as we adjust our lives to live in accordance with God's plan, we begin to understand what this is all about. We become instruments of change for a world in much need of God's grace and light.
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