Be Transfigured Ministries

People do good things for three reasons. Some do good to avoid punishment. Others do good to earn rewards. The best reason to do good is because we love God. Doing good to get a response from God is contractual. Love is not a contract. When we are judged by God on Judgment Day, He wants to see our hearts so filled with love that we do good, not hoping God sees us, but simply because we love.

A Bible Study on St Paul's First Letter to the Corinthians, inspired by the Homilies of St John Chrysostom. This session was originally live stream Tuesday, March 5, 2024, in Tarpon Springs, Florida.

The Parable of the Prodigal Son teaches us that we are all called to return to God. He is waiting for us every time we walk away from the Church. Every time we walk out of Church we are faced with temptations of the world. The sooner we return to God and His Church, the better our chances to be welcomed home by God. Then, when others return who we have seen in a long while, we must fight the temptation to judge them. God welcomes them back just as He welcomes us back.

It is so easy to list the sins of everyone around us. The prayer of the Pharisee was focused on the sins of others rather than his own sins. It was the prayer of the Publican who understood his need for God’s mercy. Being preoccupied with following the rules of the Church for the sake of pride and ‘following all the rules’ is not going to be a blessing to us. In the Gospel of Luke 18.10-14, Christ uses the Parable of the Publican and the Pharisee to teach us to live the life of the Church without pride. The life of the Church is meant to transform our hearts, not meant for us to keep score with each other.

When Christ was asked which love was the most important, He answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets." If we want to live according to God’s greatest commandment we must learn to love how God wants us to love. We can’t love the way God wants on ‘day one’. It takes time to learn how to love.

When we want to be in Church, we plan in advance. When we want to see Christ, we also need to plan. Just like Zacchaeus planned in advance to see Christ, we need to clean our hearts, make plans for him, and be ready for Him. We do this by confessing our sins to the Church and restoring our broken relationships. There will be no room for Christ if our hearts are filled with bitterness and sin. Now is the time for us to plan to see Christ and welcome Him into our hearts.

When Christ healed ten lepers, including one foreigner, He taught us that His grace and healing is for everyone. God sent the ten to the priests, to the Temple, to show the priests they had been healed. They were sent to show that Christ was sent to heal everyone, not just the inner circle.

After His Baptism by John in the Jordan River, Christ proclaimed, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” We are called to repent, or to return to the beginning, before sin took over our life. We are called by Christ to return to a time when the Light of Christ filled our hearts and our life centered around Christ and His Church.

As we consider our annual New Year Resolutions this year remember the message of the Gospel. “John came baptizing in the wilderness and preaching a baptism of repentance for the remission of sins.” The first message of the Gospel according to Saint Mark is the message of repentance. This year, change the way you think about life. Make everything about your salvation.

For generations the Jews waited for their savior. We wait for Christmas each year with great anticipation. The celebration of Christmas is the celebration of our savior. He has come so that our pain and suffering is only temporary. Let’s celebrate the great joy and gift He has given us. No more waiting.