Trinity IX- Luke 15:11-32

 The traditional Gospel for the Ninth Sunday after Trinity is the famous passage from Luke 15 generally known as the Parable of the Prodigal Son. There are three central characters in the story: 1) the ungrateful and wasteful son who repents and returns home, 2) the merciful, gracious, and forgiving father who celebrates the prodigal's return, or 3) the legalistic and resentful older brother who is jealous and hurt. All three characters can provide food for thought. 

The most important one is the father, who represents almighty God, the heavenly Father. Everything belongs to him, and he has the right to dispose of it as he pleases. At the same time, this loving father wants to see his sons grow into mature and responsible men, and he allows the sons the freedom to make choices, even bad choices. He continues to love them and wait in hope for them to come to their senses, repent, and return. When they do, he makes his love clear.

Of course, the younger son who is prodigal or wasteful is the dramatic example. His mistakes are obvious. He rebels, leaves home, squanders his inheritance, and falls into a degraded life, envying swine. In such humiliation, he must humble himself even further by returning to the father in repentance, hoping for minimal consideration. Yet, as dramatic as his case is, the wasteful son is not the only sinner. The dutiful son also has problems. He lacks a true appreciation of the graciousness of his father. Outwardly, he has remained near his father, but through his wrong attitudes, he has become spiritually distant from the father, and he also needs to repent.

This familiar story needs to sink into our minds and hearts repeatedly. God is loving, gracious, and merciful. He gives us many things, and He gives us certain freedoms in our responses. Unfortunately, at various times and in different ways, we have all been ungrateful and fallen into sin. So whether our sinfulness has been expressed in dramatic ways or in quiet attitudes, we all need to repent and seek His gracious love.

Trinity VII- Romans 6:19-23

The Gospel for this Sunday is from Mark 8:1-9, an account of the miraculous feeding of the four thousand. Christ's miraculous feedings can always remind us of His power and of the human need for both physical and spiritual nourishment. This time, however, I decided to focus on the traditional Epistle from Romans 6:19-23.

This selection continues the theme of Christian freedom that was emphasized in last Sunday's Epistle. Through Baptism, we have been united with Jesus Christ. We have died and risen with Him. Although fallen human beings are mired in uncleanness and sin, through the work and grace of our Lord, we have been given new life. By grace, we can now become "servants to righteousness" (Romans 6:19). Sin remains as long as we are in this world, but it no longer has to reign in the lives of believers. As Romans 6:23 says, "For the wages of sin is death; but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord."   

Because of Christ, there is the hope of deliverance from slavery to sin. This deliverance, rooted in divine grace, begins in this world as we are united with Christ through repentance, baptismal grace, and faith. We are freed from the domination of sin and given the grace to bear the fruits of holiness. We remain weak and imperfect sinners in this world, but we can start to change and produce good fruit. This is a gift of God, and it points us toward another gift of God- eternal life through Christ. Eternal life is life lived in fellowship with God through the grace of His Son. Eternal life begins in this world with a faithful response to grace, and it reaches its fullness in the world to come.

Wednesday before Easter- Luke 22

This Wednesday in Holy Week has sometimes been called "Spy Wednesday" because tradition has remembered this day as the time when Judas Iscariot agreed with the chief priests to betray Jesus (Luke 22:2-6, 47-48; Matthew 26:1-5,14-25). A variety of human characters opposed Jesus- the Jewish authorities in Jerusalem, the Roman rulers, the fickle crowds, and Judas the traitor. Even the other close disciples made the situation worse. They did not really listen to or understand Jesus, and Simon Peter, the spokesman for the Twelve, would lose courage and faith, and he would publicly deny Jesus.

This sad state of affairs reflects the fallen human predicament. All are sinners who contribute to Christ's suffering and death. Yet, He still loves us, dies for us, and offers us His love, grace, and forgiveness. The key is our response to Christ. Judas will later be sorrowful, but he doesn't have faith in Jesus' mercy and forgiveness. Peter and the others will truly repent and trust in Christ's saving grace. As we meditate on the suffering and death of Jesus, may we also trust in the love, grace, and pardon that He offers each one of us!

Trinity XXII- Matthew 18:21-35- Forgiveness

The Gospel for the Twenty-Second Sunday after Trinity is from Matthew 18:21-35. This passage consists of two sections on forgiveness. In the first brief part (18:21-22), St. Peter wants to know the limits of his responsibility to forgive. According to one Jewish tradition, forgiving someone three times was sufficient. So when Peter suggests that forgiving seven times might be enough, he is being generous. Jesus, however, tells Peter that it should be "seventy times seven." Of course, keeping a mental count of 490 incidents would be impractical and unlikely. Thus, in other words, our Lord is telling Peter and us that we are not to keep count of how often we forgive. We should be gracious as God is gracious.

The second part of today's Gospel (St. Matthew 18:23-35) has been called the parable of the unjust or unmerciful servant. In this parable, a servant owes his king an enormous debt, a billionaire's debt. He and his family are about to be sold into slavery. The man begs for an extended payment plan, and the king writes off the whole debt. Rather than being humble, grateful, and kind, the servant goes out and ruthlessly tries to get every penny from a fellow servant who owes him a comparatively minuscule debt. When the king hears of this lack of mercy, he revokes his previous decision and punishes the unjust servant to the full extent of the law. Then our Lord adds the key conclusion in Matthew 18:35, "So likewise shall my heavenly Father do also to you, if ye from your hearts forgive not every man his brother their trespasses."

All the debts that we human beings owe each other are minuscule in comparison to what we owe our heavenly King. We can never repay God for what He has given us and forgiven us. Our trespasses are enormous offences against divine goodness, and we are completely dependent upon divine mercy. So we too must show mercy by forgiving others. As we pray repeatedly, "Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us."

Trinity IX- Luke 15:11-32- Divine Mercy

The traditional Gospel for this Sunday from St. Luke 15:11-32 is well known. In fact, it might be so well known that we overlook its depth of meaning. It has often been called the Parable of the Prodigal Son, and the prodigal or wasteful son is certainly important, but we should notice that there are three central characters in the story: 1) the ungrateful and wasteful son who repents and returns home, 2)  the legalistic and resentful older brother who is jealous and hurt, and 3) the merciful, gracious, and forgiving father who celebrates the prodigal's return and admonishes the older son.

Focusing on any of the three characters can provide much food for thought. All human beings share characteristics of the prodigal or wasteful son and of the older self-righteous and resentful son. Like both sons, we need changes in our thoughts and in our behavior. 

Nevertheless, the central character in the parable is the forgiving father. This father exemplifies the qualities of God the Father. He cares for both sons and wants what is best for them. He respects their freedom and allows them to develop in their individual ways. He gives them guidance and sustenance, and He is saddened when they misunderstand Him, make mistakes, and stray in their different ways. Nevertheless, His love endures and is ready to express itself anew if His children repent and return in humility. In His graciousness, He is ready to rejoice and have a feast when penitents return. We all have such a loving, gracious, and forgiving heavenly Father; so let us arise and go to Him in humility.

Easter, the Feast of the Resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ- Romans 6:9-11

 Alleluia! Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

Easter is the greatest of Christian celebrations, and discussing it sometimes strikes me as overwhelming in a good way. The resurrection of the crucified One is the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and His Resurrection relates to all the themes of Christian worship, doctrine, and living. In reading various Scripture and Prayer Book references this week, my attention was drawn to the Easter Anthem (pp. 162-163 in the 1928 BCP; p.118 in my 1662 BCP), In particular, I noticed the verses from Romans 6:9-11:

"Christ being raised from the dead dieth no more; * death hath no more dominion over him.

For in that he died, he died unto sin once: * but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God.

Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, * but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord."

These beautiful and sublime words have lasting significance. Jesus Christ has been raised and accomplished a definitive and unique victory over sin and death. As people who have been united with Christ in baptism and faith, we are also dead to sin and alive to God and His goodness. Despite the trials of earthly existence and our own failures, Christ has won a victory for us, a victory that He graciously offers to us again and again in Word and Sacrament. Let us give thanks and rejoice in the good news of our risen Lord! Alleluia!

Ash Wednesday, A Penitential Office

In the Western Church, Lent starts forty-six days before Easter on the day called Ash Wednesday. This day is a time when many go to a church for Holy Communion. This observance can be meaningful and should be practiced by many more people. As an Anglican, there is another element that I find especially useful, A Penitential Office found on pages 60-63 of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer (http://www.commonprayer.org/offices/penit_n.cfm). 

A Penitential Office is rooted in medieval liturgies and Cranmer's Commination found in English Books of Common Prayer from 1549 through 1662. The American version introduced in 1892 omits a strident opening denunciation of sins and begins with Psalm 51, a well-known hymn of repentance. The Kyrie, the Lord's Prayer, versicles, and penitential prayers follow. This relatively short office is a good summary of Lenten devotion. It emphasizes the seriousness of sin, the importance of repentance, and the comfort of divine mercy and forgiveness. Besides its value for public worship on Ash Wednesday, it is also appropriate for personal devotional use throughout Lent.

Trinity XI- Luke 18: 9-14; I Corinthians 15:1-11

Both the Epistle and the Gospel for the Eleventh Sunday after Trinity are especially rich passages. In I Corinthians 15:1-11, St. Paul speaks of two related topics, the core Christian message and his ministry as an Apostle. He affirms that he hands on the message that he received about Jesus Christ. This summary message is a sort of early Christian creed somewhat similar to the second article or section of the Apostles' and Nicene Creeds. Christ suffered and died for our sins, was buried, and rose from the dead to be seen by numerous faithful witnesses. And Paul's apostolic ministry proclaims this Christ-centered message through divine grace.

The Gospel from St. Luke 18:9-14 is the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector going to the Temple to pray. This parable is a warning against pride and self-righteousness and an encouragement to repentance and humble faith in divine mercy. We should pursue goodness and holiness, but even at our best, we are still sinners who must seek God's forgiveness, mercy, and grace.

Trinity III- Seeking the Lost

The Gospel for this Sunday is Luke 15:1-10 and contains two brief parables- the lost sheep and the lost coin. The context makes it clear that our Lord is talking about sinners lost to God. Some extreme approaches to this theme have left a bad aftertaste among both believers and non-believers. Because of this aftertaste, some sincere Christians hesitate to speak of people lost in sin. Yet, Scripture is not hesitant to speak of the lost and the condition of lostness. Indeed, all human beings have been lost, and apart from divine grace, remain lost. As the general confession in the Prayer Book Daily Office says, "we have erred and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep" (based on Isaiah 53:6 and 1 Peter 2:25). So all human beings participate in being lost and in needing to be found by Christ and His Church.

Seeking the lost has two important applications in our lives. First, each Christian should acknowledge that in differing ways and at different times we have all been lost and that we have tendencies to get lost repeatedly. As an old hymn says, we are "prone to wander," and we all depend upon divine mercy, grace, and persistence in seeking us out in the past and in each new day. God uses many means to seek us such as subtle promptings of the Spirit, life events, readings, or contacts with others, but chiefly He seeks us through Word and Sacrament. Thus, we should be aware that God is always seeking us, and we need to be open to being found by Him.

Secondly, as members of the Body of Christ, we are called to participate in the Lord's work of seeking and finding the lost. We are not to approach this calling with the wrong attitude. We are not to pretend to be some perfect paragons of virtue. Rather, we are to be humble. As sinners ourselves, we have benefited from the mercy and grace of God. We rejoice in divine mercy and grace, and we want to share that good news with others. We want each lost person to be found and to know the joy of returning to God. May each of us be found and do our small part to help others be found by God!