The Way

You might be asking what does “Living in the Present” have to do with a Gospel reading that mainly deals with the idea of a  “faithful” servant. As I contemplated the idea of being a faithful servant (or we can say, faithful Christian, faithful person), I asked myself the question, “What makes a Christian a faithful Christian?” Immediately, the Lord directed me to “living in the present.” That is, if a person desires to be a faithful Christian, he or she must live in the present. This means that a person is concentrated on what is happening at the moment. He or she is diligent in completing the task at hand. Future planning and contemplation are necessary but not to the detriment of the present task. Forward thinking is encouraged but not before the reality of the present is handled.

In the Gospel Reading today Christ speaks about “being ready.” Christ, in order to explain this idea of “being ready,” speaks in regard to being ready at all times. In order to do this, he makes an analogy to a homeowner and that if he had knowledge that a thief would break into his home, he would be ready to fight him off. The point is that we have to be spiritual ready at all times.

Often, we speak about “becoming ready” but I believe that it is high time that we “be ready.” As Christians we will face many types of struggles in this world. Are we ready to handle them? Or are we going to give up, or lose sight of our faith during those times?

In the Gospel Reading today it says that, “Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by the Satan, and was with the wild beasts, and the angels ministered to Him.” (Mark 1: 12-13)

In the last two sermons we focused heavily on the Holy Spirit and His work in our lives by way of the second baptism, and Him providing us with wisdom and grace. Now, we are still focusing on the Holy Spirit but now concentrating on Him “driving” us to the wilderness.

In the Gospel reading today we hear about the dedication of Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem by his parents Joseph and Mary. In the latter part of the Gospel reading, after the child Jesus is dedicated, it says the following, “So when they had performed all things according to the law of the Lord, they returned to Galilee, to their own city, Nazareth. And the Child grew and became strong in spirit, filled with wisdom; and the grace of God was upon Him.” (Luke 2:39-40) As Orthodox Christians, when we do all things that are according to the law, that is, take part in the Sacraments; with respect and diligence, then we are in some way, like Christ. That is, we dedicate ourselves to God by a genuine obedience to the Sacraments by our love for Christ. It is through the receiving, and partaking of the Sacraments, that we can be “filled with the fullness” of the Holy Spirit. Once that experience becomes a reality in our lives, we now are able to develop “wisdom.”

Philip was called by Jesus Christ to be his disciple. His response was positive; he was willing to follow Christ. But he wanted his friend Nathanael to join him in this newfound adventure as well. When Philip found Nathanael and told him that he had found the Messiah (the person the Jewish people had been waiting for) he was not so eager to follow Jesus. Instead, he said, “What good can come out of Nazareth?” There seems to be a great deal of speculation in Nathanael’s mind concerning Jesus. Further, he didn’t seem too intrigued with idea that the Messiah hailed from the area of Nazareth.

In the Gospel Reading today we hear about two fishermen, Peter and Andrew, who were fishing at the Sea of Galilee and how Jesus called them to follow him, that is become his disciples, by saying, “Follow me, I will make you fishers of men.” The meaning of this saying, “fishers of men” is known to the common believer. It basically means rather than catching fish, Christ will make them catch men and women into the kingdom of God, not with nets, but with the “spiritual net” of the Gospel, established by Jesus Christ.

Read more: https://stlukemission.org/sermons/follow-the-christ-within

In one of the Gospel Readings ascribed by the Church for today, in commemoration of the Baptism of Christ, we hear that Christ went into the river Jordan to be baptized by John the Baptist, who was considered by the early Church as the forerunner of Jesus Christ and given an honored position, second to St. Mary, the Mother of God.

Read more: https://stlukemission.org/sermons/words-of-affirmation

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2018 Feast of the Nativity - Rev. Fr. Gheevarghese John by St. Luke Orthodox Mission Church