Jesus in today’s Gospel from Luke (LK 12:13-21) tells of a farmer who at harvest had so much grain already stored and a big crop coming that he had to build bigger barns to hold all of his grain. He was so pleased with himself that he was going to be able to finally relax and enjoy himself. Jesus says he died and never had a chance to enjoy the fruits of his toil.

Several things come to mind on reading this passage. First, be sure you enjoy the day you have. Don’t always be looking to tomorrow or putting off enjoying the fruits of your labor.

Second, and I think the real reason Jesus shared the parable, we should all recognize what God has given for what it is, His. This could not be more evident to us who work in agriculture. We know the size of the harvest is one hundred percent controlled by the weather. Who controls that?

This world tells us to build wealth at all costs. Jesus reminds us in Luke’s Gospel “Take care to guard against all greed, for though one may be rich, one’s life does not consist of possessions.”

In the first reading from Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (EPH 2:1-10) he reminds us similarly. He says “But God, who is rich in mercy, because of the great love he had for us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, brought us to life with Christ (by grace you have been saved), raised us up with him, and seated us with him in the heavens in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the immeasurable riches of his grace in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.”

He says our lives are should be centered around our belief that God sacrificed His Son on our behalf. If we do, we have already been raised up and seated in God’s Kingdom. Furthermore if we do this correctly, we can look forward to even greater enlightenment when we are reunited with Him.

Paul follows this up by saying, just like Jesus’s parable of the farmer’s big harvest, that none of this is because of us, rather it is a gift from God. “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not from you; it is the gift of God; it is not from works, so no one may boast.”

Recognize the gifts He has given you. Enjoy it! Share it! Don’t squirrel it away in bigger bins. Remember you will not be taking it with you.

 

I was thinking last night, why did Jesus dislike the Pharisees so much. Based on my limited knowledge of the political situation of the time (I only know what I have read in the Bible) I have come to the conclusion that He recognized that the Pharisees were taking advantage of their position of leadership. They were making the lives of the people they were supposed to lead more difficult in order to make their own lives easier. This unfair behavior was so despised by Jesus that the Gospels tell often about Him speaking out against it.

Today’s Gospel from Luke (LK 12:1-7) Jesus says to the disciples “Beware of the leaven–that is, the hypocrisy–of the Pharisees.” The word that caught my eye was leaven. Google leaven and you read a reference to yeast used to make dough rise. Jesus is warning the disciples about trying to “rise”. Jesus was a proponent of servant leadership and expected his disciples to act accordingly.

Jesus goes on to talk about things in life that we think nobody will know about. He references those actions that we do behind closed doors so that nobody can see. Jesus reminds us, all of these things will be brought to light on or before the judgement day.

Jesus says “I tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body but after that can do no more. I shall show you whom to fear. Be afraid of the one who after killing has the power to cast into Gehenna; yes, I tell you, be afraid of that one.” This is the warning that says even your secret actions can lead you to hell.

So what are we to do to help us avoid sin? Paul’s letter to the Ephesians (EPH 1:11-14) helps us understand. He says “In Christ we were also chosen, destined in accord with the purpose of the One who accomplishes all things according to the intention of his will, so that we might exist for the praise of his glory, we who first hoped in Christ.”

This is a long hard sentence to get your mind around but after rereading it several times I see the most important items are “In Christ we were also chosen,” and “so that we might exist for the praise of his glory,”. We exist for to praise God for his glory. If we are sinning we are turning away from His glory. However, if you wholeheartedly wrap yourself in that glory sins are harder to commit.

Paul goes on to say “In him you also, who have heard the word of truth, the Gospel of your salvation, and have believed in him, were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit, which is the first installment of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s possession, to the praise of his glory.”

Here is another long hard sentence to digest. I see importance in the words “In him you also,” and “were sealed with the promised Holy Spirit,”. Paul is telling us we have the Holy Spirit with us all the time as a gift from God. We can call on the Holy Spirit in times of need and the Holy Spirit will give us strength and protection. The gift of the Holy Spirit is a piece of God’s Kingdom here on earth as stated by the Holy Spirit “is the first installment of our inheritance toward redemption as God’s possession,”.

 

I started to title this blog Now vs. Later. My initial thought was that you can have pleasures of this world now and not inherit the Kingdom of God or you can avoid pleasure in this life and reap your reward later. Then I realized that even though God directs you to avoid sin there is still pleasures to be had in this life. Chief among which is pleasing God by following his commands.

This commentary stems from the readings from Galatians (GAL 5:18-25) where Paul is telling the people to avoid sinful behavior in favor of promoting “the fruit of the Spirit”. Paul writes that the fruits are “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, generosity, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control.” I think I could claim to have a pretty good life if I possessed all of these.

In the Gospel from Luke (LK 11:42-46) Jesus is trying to teach the Pharisees and the scholars to pay less attention to being seen as “big-shots” and more attention to loving God by loving His people. He is asking them to take the role of servant leadership. In return they would not only reap the rewards in the Kingdom of God but also enjoy the appreciation of the people they serve.

This morning Paul tells the Galatians (GAL 5:1-6) that following the law and getting circumcised does not automatically make them closer to God. Paul tells them “For in Christ Jesus, neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything, but only faith working through love.”

Likewise in Luke’s Gospel (LK 11:37-41) Jesus has dinner with a Pharisee who is taken aback when Jesus does not do the accustomed washing before eating. Jesus tells the Pharisee “although you cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, inside you are filled with plunder and evil.”

These two stories tell us that God knows our heart. He will know if we do something that is supposed to be a tribute to Him but in our hearts we are not genuine. I think in both cases in today’s readings the “acts of tribute” were being done because “everyone else was doing it.”

Following the crowd can be dangerous. Use your heart as your guide. Usually if something feels right then it is right.

This morning Paul is pushing the Galatians (GAL 3:1-5). He is asking do they believe in the law or Jesus more. I don’t know all the background but it sounds like the Galatians are falling back into the way of life they had before they heard about Jesus and His crucifixion for our sins and His rising from the dead.

I believe this is something we all face after we have experienced Christ in our lives. I found a closeness to God probably ten years ago at a CRHP retreat. Spending a weekend considering who God is to me changed my life. I came away super charged feeling like the evil in the world could never take me down. As Paul said “Are you so stupid?” Well guess what the super charged feeling lasted about 24-36 hours after the weekend ended. Then every bad habit I had came calling.

Paul is reminding the Galatians and us that when the bad habits come calling it is up to us to NOT fall back into them.

Luke in today’s Gospel (LK 11:5-13) tells of Jesus teaching the apostles about what to do when the bad habits show up. He says “And I tell you, ask and you will receive; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks, receives; and the one who seeks, finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.” Jesus is telling us to ask for His help to overcome the temptation to take up our bad habits.

In the first part of the Gospel Jesus tells of the man who’s friend wakes him in the middle of the night for a few loaves of bread to feed a friend on a journey. His reaction is to say ‘Do not bother me; the door has already been locked and my children and I are already in bed. I cannot get up to give you anything.’

The man knocking for the loaves is Jesus and you are the guy laying in the bed of your bad habits. Jesus is saying get up and let Him in give Him your time, talent and treasure and He will distribute them to those in need. He also reminds us that if you do not get up He is going to keep knocking. “I tell you, if he does not get up to give him the loaves because of their friendship, he will get up to give him whatever he needs because of his persistence.”

I have found times when I wish I could go back to having Jesus as an acquaintance. This is what He was before CRHP. It was far easier to justify my sin when I did not know Him deeply. But that is my human side talking. My spiritual side says “Are you so stupid?” I only have to remember the true feeling of belonging that comes by being close to God to overturn these thoughts and figuratively get out of bed and get the loaves for Jesus.

Jesus is going to keep knocking. Do your best to get out of bed and meet Him at the door.

 

Both readings today are about guidance. Paul in his writing the Galatians (GAL 2:1-2, 7-14) is telling how he gave guidance to Cephas on how to become a better representative of Christ to the Jews.

In the Gospel from Luke (LK 11:1-4) the apostles are asking Jesus to teach them to pray. He gives them the foundation of the Lord’s Prayer as a result. Teaching is an important part of guidance.

I think this shows that everyone needs guidance in their lives. This is valid in both your everyday life as well as your spiritual live. Remember its okay to ask for help.

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It is funny today that both readings have the same two themes and pattern of delivery. They both tell the reader to first stay focused on God and His word. Then seek to do His will regardless of what the world thinks of your actions.

In the first reading from Galatians (GAL 1:6-12) Paul tells them to only listen to and follow the gospel from Jesus. He then says “Am I now currying favor with human beings or God? Or am I seeking to please people?” He is telling them that sometimes God asks us to do things that are unpopular based on society’s expectations.

In the Gospel Luke tells us the story of the Good Samaritan (LK 10:25-37). Jesus tells this story in response to being questioned by a scholar of the law regarding the most important of God’s commandments. When Jesus confirms the scholar’s answer to love God and your neighbor as being the most important the scholar follows up and asks Jesus “And who is my neighbor?”

Jesus tells the story of the Good Samaritan to make it clear who are our neighbors. The priest and the Levite pass by the man in trouble because they were afraid to “get involved.” I am sure part of their decision stemmed from the question of “what would people say?”

Then the one that does stop, the Samaritan, is the one who would not have been expected to stop. As I understand it, the people of Samaria and Israel did not get along in the time of Jesus. But the Samaritan stopped to care for the man anyway. I am sure when his friends and family found out about it they gave him trouble. But he treated the traveler as his neighbor anyway.

This tells me that if you follow the teachings of God you need to treat everyone as your neighbor.

Ever get to the point where someone has given you all the excuses as to why they can’t do something you have asked them to do? What do you do in that situation? Do you keep waiting and therefore put off meeting your goals? What if you are under a hard deadline to get your task completed? What if the thing you have asked the person to do is the right thing for them? Do any of these things make it more frustrating to get the excuses?

That’s where I think Jesus was today in Luke’s Gospel (LK 9:57-62). Jesus replied to the excuse makers by saying “Let the dead bury their dead. But you, go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.” He also said “No one who sets a hand to the plow and looks to what was left behind is fit for the Kingdom of God.”

Excuses can go on forever. Sometimes you just have to cut out the excuse makers and move forward.

My daughter taught me this prayer several years ago. We recite it together many nights.

Angel of God
My guardian dear
To Whom God’s love
Commits me here
Ever this day
Be at my side
To light and guard
To rule and guide. Amen

In today’s first reading we hear about Job (JB 1:6-22) and how God allowed Satan to test him. This story has some ironic twists in my opinion. For example while God is talking with Satan about Job He mentions how Job is serving Him well. He then goes on to allow Satan to test Job. You would think that because Job was serving God well that he would be protected.

However, that was not the case. Satan was allowed to turn Job’s life upside down. But it was Job’s reaction that is the example we should follow. Job says in the face of this adversity “Naked I came forth from my mother’s womb, and naked shall I go back again.
The LORD gave and the LORD has taken away; blessed be the name of the LORD!”

It took a great deal of courage for Job to react this way in the face of all that had gone wrong in his life. But what he said is right. We come into this world with nothing and we will go out with nothing. In the meantime, it is our calling to stay faithful and serve God to the best of our ability.

In the Gospel from Luke (LK 9:46-50) we hear about the disciples arguing about who was the greatest among them. I am sure the disciples were surprised when Jesus used a child to show them how people are to act in order to best serve God. Jesus uses the child because children are vulnerable, loyal and they are interested in serving to please.

This is how we are called to serve God. We are asked to be vulnerable to His directions. Loyal, like Job, when bad things happen. Most importantly and ready to serve when His call comes.