Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him

 

 Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him.  And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.  I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. 

 

 "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."

 

- John 17:1–8 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:  "Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector.  The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, 'God, I thank You that I am not like other men -- extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector.  I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.'  And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, 'God, be merciful to me a sinner!'  I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."   

 

  Jesus spoke these words, lifted up His eyes to heaven, and said:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  Jesus' prayer (verses 1-26) is often called the High Priestly Prayer.  This is because it contains the basic elements of prayer a priest will offer to God when a sacrifice is about to be made:  glorification (verses 3-5, 25), remembrance of God's works (verses 2, 6-8, 22-23), intercession on behalf of others (verses 9, 11, 15, 20, 21, 24), and a declaration of the offering itself (John 17:1, 5).  My study Bible explains that His words, the hour has come, signifies that Christ is Lord over time.  A hymn declares that Christ "voluntarily willed to ascend the Cross in the flesh."  To glorify refers to the redemption of all creation which will be accomplished through the Cross and Resurrection.  This, my study Bible says, was the purpose for which Christ was sent into the world.  In this redemption, the Father and the Son are glorified.  This is why the Cross, which is a sign of death, is glorified in the Church as "life-giving" and the "weapon of peace."

 

 "And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent."  My study Bible comments that the knowledge of the only true God is far more than intellectual understanding.  It is participation in God's divine life and in communion with Him.  So, therefore, eternal life is an ongoing, loving knowledge of God in Christ and in the Holy Spirit.  

 

"I have glorified You on the earth.  I have finished the work which You have given Me to do.  And now, O Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was."  My study Bible notes that Christ's work can never be separated from who He is.   This verse is a statement every believer can make at the end of life, no matter how long or short that life may be.  

 

  "I have manifested Your name to the men whom You have given Me out of the world.  They were Yours, You gave them to Me, and they have kept Your word.  Now they have known that all things which You have given Me are from You.  For I have given to them the words which You have given Me; and they have received them, and have known surely that I came forth from You; and they have believed that You sent Me."  The men whom You have given Me are Christ's apostles.  According to my study Bible, they are the ones through whom God's word comes to us.  This handing down of God's word to successive generations is called apostolic tradition.  It was prophesied by Isaiah that in the days of the Messiah, the knowledge of the Name of God would be revealed (Isaiah 52:6).  Your name:  In Old Testament times, the phrase "the Name" was reverently used as a substitute for God's actual name, "Yahweh," which was too sacred to pronounce.  The fuller revelation of the Name, my study Bible explains, was given to those who believe in Christ, for Christ manifested the Name not only by declaring the Father, but by being the very presence of God and sharing the Name with Him.  

 

Jesus begins His prayer this way:  "Father, the hour has come.  Glorify Your Son, that Your Son also may glorify You, as You have given Him authority over all flesh, that He should give eternal life to as many as You have given Him."  It seems quite remarkable that we should be given to understand -- through the words of this prayer, heard by the apostles, and passed on for our knowledge -- that God and God's Son are glorified by giving eternal life to all those whom the Father has given to the Son.  In other words, Christ's prayer reveals that God the Father and God the Son -- neither in need of further glory -- are glorified through giving to us the gift of eternal life.  Following in this sense, it would seem to indicate that glory for God is magnified through graciousness, through the granting of this unsurpassable gift of eternal life for God's creatures.  Those who are given to Christ are those who come in faith.  That is, those like St. Peter, who upon His confession that Jesus is the Christ, was told by Jesus, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven"  (see Matthew 16:16-18).  It seems to indicate that the grand plan of salvation is, in fact, the grand plan of creation in the first place.  For we fallible creatures are capable of becoming perfected through faith and by the grace of God.  If God's glory is indeed magnified and made manifest through the granting of such a gift of eternal life to we who were created as finite and imperfect, then we live in a world that is a creation of the one true God who above all is gracious and loving.  This is a God who makes all things possible, for whom the gift of eternal life is a goal for His finite creatures and seemingly has been all along.  To be gracious, and magnanimous, to give impossibly expansive and ineffable gifts such as the life we're offered is what it means for our glorious God to be further glorified.  Does it not follow that, if for God Himself it is glory to extend what is infinite to the finite, then for we finite creatures to emulate glory is simply to be gracious?  We become glorious not by collecting but by giving, if we are to be "like" our God.  The very concept of what it is to be gracious becomes, through Christ, a transfiguring understanding extended to kings and nobles of what it means to have glory.  Let us extend our own capacity for grace through the gifts of the infinite God for His finite creatures.  For God's purposes have a meaning and a fullness to attain, and that glory is apparently attained in us.

 

 

 

 

Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him

 

 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  

 

And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."

 

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus  made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  he said, "He is a prophet."

 

- John 9:1–17 

 

Last week, the lectionary gave us readings from chapter 6 of John's Gospel.  In Friday's reading, we read that Jesus taught, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.  Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him."   On Saturday, we read that therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, "This is a hard saying; who can understand it?"  When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, "Does this offend you?  What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend to where He was before?  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.  The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.  But there are some of you who do not believe."  For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.  And he said, "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it had been granted to him by My Father."  From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.  Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"  But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?"  He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.

 

Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  Today's reading consists of a healing which comprises the sixth sign (of seven) given in John's Gospel.  Of all the miracle stories in the Bible, my study Bible teaches, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth.  This man, it says, is symbolic of all humanity.  We all need illumination by Christ, who is the Light of the world.  Today the lectionary picks up in chapter 9 which follows the readings from chapter 8 the week before last.  (Last week the lectionary gave us John's chapter 6, centered on the second Passover given in John's gospel, and focused on Christ as the bread from heaven, featuring a eucharistic message preparing us for His sacrifice on the Cross, and the Communion which would follow in the Church.)  Chapter 8 focused on elements of Himself as light in Christ's preaching, and events at the Feast of Tabernacles, which began in chapter 7.  This setting is now the autumn of Christ's final year of His earthly life, and continues at the Feast of Tabernacles.

 

 And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  Our Savior rejects the assumption -- which my study Bible says was common in the ancient world -- that all troubles and maladies are necessarily the consequence of personal sin, or even the sins of one's parents (see Exodus 20:5; Deuteronomy 5:9; contrast Ezekiel 18:19-21).  Although suffering can be the direct result of personal sin, it notes, this is most certainly not always the case.  In this instance, this man's blindness provides the occasion for the works of God to be revealed.  It was not related directly to the man's personal sins.  

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work."  The work that people do consists of faith (John 6:29), good deeds (John 5:29), and repentance (John 12:40), my study Bible says.  The night which follows is a reference both to the time after a person dies and also to the age to come, when there will no longer be an opportunity to express faith.  On that day, my study Bible notes, citing the commentary of St. John Chrysostom, there will not be faith, but all will submit, either willingly or unwillingly. 

 

"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world." The unprecedented healing of a man born blind is  confirmation of Christ's claim that He is the light of the world.  At the Feast of Tabernacles, which is now in its final, eighth day, the great lamps were lit in the courtyard of the temple.  They towered over Jerusalem, and were so bright that they lit up the city.   Jesus made this same claim at John 8:12, declaring Himself to be the fulfillment and the divine object of all celebrations of light.  God the Father, in the Scriptures, is Himself light (John 1:4-9; 1 John 1:5), which is an attribute bestowed on followers (Matthew 5:14; Philippians 2:15).  

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  My study Bible cites St. Irenaeus, who sees in this mixture of clay and saliva a type of the creation of humanity from the earth (Genesis 2:7).  Christ's reveals His divinity here by restoring part of creation using the same material with which He created humanity in the beginning.  

And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."   My study Bible explains that the pool of Siloam was on the outskirts of Jerusalem, a considerable distance from the temple.  It notes that water was taken from this pool for the rites connected with the Feast of Tabernacles.  Siloam, translated, Sent, is symbolic of Christ, who is the One sent by the Father (John 5:36; 20:21).  As the healing of this blind man confirmed Jesus' claim to be the light of the world (see above), so also, His making use of this pool of Siloam confirms that He is the true purification of the temple and those who worship in it.  

They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus  made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  he said, "He is a prophet."   Earlier, in chapter 5 (John 5:10-16), the Pharisees had ignored the healing of the paralytic, and focused only on the perceived violation of the Sabbath.  So, here, also, many of them cannot see the glory of God through their own prejudices.  

As my study Bible noted (see above), this blind man is symbolic of all humanity -- we all need illumination by Christ, who is the Light of the world.  It further notes that this sixth sign of seven given in John's Gospel is an illustration of baptism, which is also called "holy illumination."  We might note how Baptism also corresponds to the use of this pool, named Siloam meaning "Sent."  So, in some sense, Christ "recreates" this man's eyes using His saliva and earth, and then the eyes of creation are washed in the waters called "Sent."  This mirrors our own "recreation," and "washing" in the waters of Holy Baptism, which do not simply cleanse but also give us a rebirth "from above" (the literal meaning of the words translated as "born again" in John 3:3).  Perhaps in this context it is highly important to take in Jesus' words regarding sin and this man born blind.  As my study Bible explained the ancient assumption that such an affliction from birth was caused by a sin of either the man himself or his parents, so Jesus dispels this notion, and gives us instead a joyful cause even for his affliction:  so "that the works of God should be revealed in him."  This is a marvel, somewhat akin to the Crucifixion, a means of death given as penalty to the worst of criminals, but used by God to instead destroy death for all of us, giving Resurrection and our capacity to participate as well in Christ's Resurrection.  This marvelous sense given to us of how God works is another sort of revelation of God's love, and stands on its head the notion of affliction merely as means of punishment for some transgression.  It also is mirrored in St. Paul's understanding of his own affliction, for which he earnestly prayed several times for relief.  St. Paul writes of the response to his prayer, "And He said to me, 'My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.' Therefore most gladly I will rather boast in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me" (2 Corinthians 12:9).  Suppose we each were to observe that our Baptism functions as a chance for God's grace to shine for us through our own afflictions in life?  Or that even God's love is present for us through all things?  We know through His life and especially through the Cross that Christ suffers with us, has chosen to be one of us in His life as incarnate Jesus.  But what if we were to understand from today's reading, and others like it (such as those we cite here) that our own occasions of suffering are meant to be occasions for inviting in the grace of God so that our own suffering is transfigured into something which has deeper meanings?  How many unfortunate circumstances may also turn into opportunities in which God's grace is sufficient for us?  If we know that God is love (1 John 4:8), that through Baptism and through our faithfulness we are adopted as God's children and "born again" in this sense, then what are the limits of healing our unfortunate and hurtful circumstances of life?  It is very important to consider that reliance upon God is much more than a simple formula for strength, but also found within a communion of love and healing, the creativity of the Creator (as expressed in the healing of the man blind from birth in today's reading), and that this is included in the Body of the Church and the communion of saints as well.  How many can testify to the power of God to heal a soul, release a burden, give renewed hope and life to those whose lives have been harmed by abuse and unfortunate choices, whether those choices are theirs or others?  Let us consider that grace works in God's way (see for example John 3:8; Isaiah 55:8-9) and not to our demands or expectations.  In fact, we might not really know what our own healing will look like. But nevertheless, we know God is always present, and grace belongs within our lives.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me.  

 

"If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings how will you believe My words?"

- John 5:30–47 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus answered the religious leaders who now seek to persecute Him for healing on the Sabbath, and also for declaring Himself equal with God.  Jesus said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, but what He sees the Father do; for whatever He does, the Son also does in like manner.  For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.  For as the Father raises the dead and gives life to them, even so the Son gives life to whom He will.  For the Father judges no one, but has committed all judgment to the Son, that all should honor the Son just as they honor the Father.  He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent Him.  Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.  Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live.  For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man.  Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear His voice and come forth -- those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation."

 

 "I can of Myself do nothing.  As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is righteous, because I do not seek My own will but the will of the Father who sent Me."  My study Bible comments here that the divine will is common to the three Persons of the Trinity; that is, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  This is because they all fully share the same divine nature.  When the Son is said to obey the Father, my study Bible tells us, this is a reference to Jesus' human will, which was assumed at His Incarnation.  He freely aligned His human will in every aspect with the divine will of the Father -- and so we are also called to do the same.

 

 "If I bear witness of Myself, My witness is not true.  There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true.  You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light.  But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me.  And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe.  You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life and these are they which testify of Me.  But you are not willing to come to Me that you may have life.  I do not receive honor from men.  But I know you, that you do not have the love of God in you.  I have come in My Father's name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.  How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the only God?  Do not think that I shall accuse you to the Father; there is one who accuses you -- in whom you trust.  For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.  But if you do not believe his writings how will you believe My words?"  My study Bible asks, how could Christ's witness ever be untrue?  It cannot (see John 8:14).  Rather, Jesus anticipates the argument of the religious leaders and speaks their thoughts (He does the same thing in Luke 4:23).  In Jewish tradition, a valid testimony requires two witnesses (Deuteronomy 17:6).  Here Jesus is offering four witnesses to confirm His identity as Messiah and Son of God:  God the Father ("There is another who bears witness of Me, and I know that the witness which He witnesses of Me is true. . . . And the Father Himself, who sent Me, has testified of Me.  You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His form.  But you do not have His word abiding in you, because whom He sent, Him you do not believe"). John the Baptist ("You have sent John, and he has borne witness to the truth.  Yet I do not receive testimony from man, but I say these things that you may be saved.  He was the burning and shining lamp, and you were willing for a time to rejoice in his light").  Christ's own works ("But I have a greater witness than John's; for the works which the Father has given Me to finish -- the very works that I do -- bear witness of Me, that the Father has sent Me").  Finally, the Old Testament Scriptures also testify of Him, through which Moses and others gave testimony (verses 39-47).  

Jesus provides four witnesses to His identity, double the required number of two.  It makes one wonder.  Suppose we had to provide witnesses to our own identity.  One of Christ's witnesses He chooses is the works that He does.  He says they testify to Him, to His identity.  Certainly elsewhere He has testified to the fact that everyone's works testify about them.  "Therefore by their fruits you shall know them," Jesus says in the Sermon on the Mount (see Matthew 7:15-20).  So, He's not the only one whose works testify to His identity.  What "fruits" do we produce with our lives and our efforts?  Moreover, Jesus speaks of His obedience to the Father, that His works come out of the things the Father has given Him to do.  Do we follow the works Christ would have us do?  Whom do we seek to serve in the things that we do in the world?  It seems like our hearts will to a great extent determine outcomes, or at least the fruits we produce, whether or not they seem "good" to others.  In the Sermon on the Mount, once again, Jesus speaks about where our heart is, and where our treasure is.  "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also" (Matthew 6:19-21).  What do we love; or rather, what is our first love?  What's our top priority, and what do we love the most?  Surely our works, the things we do, will be witness to that love in the heart.  In this particular saying of Jesus, it's often posited that He's speaking about helping those less fortunate, that when we do charitable acts, we have "treasure in heaven" rather than on earth.  But this, also, is testimony by our works, even if only God knows about it.  Thereby we also could say that our Father is witness to who we are.  If we thought more about life in this sense, that our efforts, our work, and the fruits of our own labor testify to who we are, then perhaps we would take more seriously how we spend our time, where we spend our energies, and the purposes to which we dedicate ourselves.  Note that this is not a moralistic argument or framework.  Rather, this question of witness to our labor and the fruits thereof is more of a question about what we love, and what we put first; that is, what it is to which we dedicate ourselves.  It becomes a question not of what others might think, or how the world would judge, but rather where our own loyalties lie --- for it is the things to which we are most loyal that will speak the loudest about ourselves and who we are in our hearts.  There are those who posit that where we place our attention is the place we devote our energies to.  Perhaps this suggests a devotion as well, and a need to chose wisely what we will focus on, what we try to help, to resolve, or even to wonder about.  Attention is perhaps most clearly denoted in prayer, a focus on the One we worship and our relatedness found there.  So, again, this is not so much a moralistic framework as it is a question of devotion, of attention, of care.  Where do we place our efforts and energies?  Jesus says, "No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon" (Matthew 6:24).  In another context, Bob Dylan paraphrases, "Gotta Serve Somebody."  Let us choose whom we serve carefully, for by our fruits we shall be known as well.   Who will be your witnesses?

 

 

 

 

 

 

The kingdom of God has come near to you

 

 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.  Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.  Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you.  And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages.  Do not go from house to house.  Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you.  And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'

 

"But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."

 

- Luke 10:1–16 

 

Yesterday we read that it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that Jesus steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?"  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.  Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

 

 After these things the Lord appointed seventy others also, and sent them two by two before His face into every city and place where He Himself was about to go.  Then He said to them, "The harvest truly is great, but the laborers are few; therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest."  Here my study Bible comments that we are to pray not only for the harvest of converts to Christ, but also for the laborers who will reach them.  

"Go your way; behold, I send you out as lambs among wolves.  Carry neither money bag, knapsack, nor sandals; and greet no one along the road.  But whatever house you enter, first say, 'Peace to this house.'  And if a son of peace is there, your peace will rest on it; if not, it will return to you."  Lambs, my study Bible notes, speak of the sacrificial life of the apostles and of all followers of Christ.  The wolves are those who seek to frighten and devour those who follow the Lord (John 15:18).  Note the humble behavior that Christ prescribes, and which is in keeping with the understanding of oneself as a lamb.  There is no ostentation in dress, wealth, or possessions, including no ostentatious greetings.  The offering of peace is a hallmark of what it is to be a lamb of Christ.  It's also important to understand Christ's guidance that this peace may not be received by all. 

"And remain in the same house, eating and drinking such things as they give, for the laborer is worthy of his wages.  Do not go from house to house.  Whatever city you enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you."  Here Christ commands these Seventy apostles twice to eat whatever is offered to them.  My study Bible says that this has a twofold significance.  First, the apostles must be content with whatever is offered -- and that is even if the food is little and simple.  Second, the gracious reception of others' hospitality takes priority over personal fasting or dietary disciplines.  These commands remained true for the religious who would follow in the Church, as it does today.  My study Bible cites St. Cassian the Desert Father, who noted that when he visited a monastery, the fast was always relaxed in order to honor him as a guest.  When he asked why, the monastic elder replied, "Fasting is always with me, but you I cannot always have with me.  Fasting is useful and necessary, but it depends on our choice, while the law of God demands charity.  Thus receiving Christ in you, I serve you with all diligence, and when I have taken leave of you, I resume the rule of fasting again."  In this way, my study Bible continues, the ascetics would obey Christ's command here and His command that we not "appear to men to be fasting" (Matthew 6:18).  See also Romans 14:2-6; 1 Corinthians 10:27; Hebrews 13:2.  Let us also remark that these practices are a continuation of Christ command for humble behavior.  

"And heal the sick there, and say to them, 'The kingdom of God has come near to you.'"  My study Bible notes that the gospel message is not simply that there is a Kingdom in the future, but that this kingdom of God has come near.

"But whatever city you enter, and they do not receive you, go out into its streets and say, 'The very dust of your city which clings to us we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near you.'  But I say to you that it will be more tolerable in that Day for Sodom than for that city.  Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago, sitting in sackcloth and ashes.  But it will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades.  He who hears you hears Me, he who rejects you rejects Me, and he who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me."  My study Bible comments that judgment is severe for those who reject Christ after experiencing His grace.  In contrast, it says, those who have never known Christ due to genuine ignorance are without sin in that regard (John 15:22-24), ad are instead judged by their God-given conscience (Romans 2:12-16).  

 

 My study Bible has a rather extensive and informative article on the Seventy who were appointed to go out as missionaries; that is, as apostles.  Although they are not as prominent as the Twelve, these Seventy carried out their missions with fervor and enthusiasm.  In the Tradition of the Church we know that they remained true to Christ and their calling, and fulfilled a vital role in the spread of the gospel.  Also, these were not random choices or accidental volunteers but they were true disciples and apostles, whose labors, my study Bible adds, carried the message of Christ throughout the Roman Empire and beyond.  There are various lists of the Seventy, but all are remembered in the calendar of the Church.  January 4th is the day they are all commemorated as a group, and there are records of them that were to be found from place to place, preserved in the centuries that followed.  This is especially true of the locations where they labored.  One of these Seventy was Barnabas.  He was a Jew of the tribe of Levi, born in Cyprus to wealthy parents.  He is said to have studied together with Saul of Tarsus (later St. Paul) under Galiliel.  He was originally named Joseph but called Barnabas (Son of Consolation) by the apostles (Acts 4:36), as he had a gift of comforting people's hearts.  When everyone else was afraid of Paul, Barnabas sought him out and brought him to the apostles, and Barnabas was first sent to Antioch with Paul by the apostles.  They separated over the issue of taking Mark, Barnabas' cousin, on a missionary journey, but later reconciled (Colossians 4:10).   This is just one story of the Seventy, and there are many more recorded in the Church history.  Others among them were Titus, whom Paul called his brother (2 Corinthians 12:18) and his son (Titus 1:4).  Originally from Crete, trained and educated in Greek philosophy, Titus began to reconsider his education after reading the prophet Isaiah.  He joined other venturing to Jerusalem to see for themselves, having heard of Jesus Christ.  Titus joined those who followed Him, and was baptized later by the apostle Paul, serving in his ministry to the Gentiles.  Eventually Paul sent him to Crete and made him a bishop.  Said to have been in Rome at the time of the beheading of St. Paul, in the Church it was told that he buried the body of Paul, his spiritual father, before returning home, where he was later martyred in Cyprus.  Many of the names of the Seventy are found throughout the New Testament Scriptures, such as Aristarchus (Acts 19:29; Colossians 4:10; Philemon 24); Sosthenese (Acts 18:17; 1 Corinthians 1:1); Tychicus (Acts 20:4; Ephesians 6:21; Colossians 4:7; 2 Timothy 4:12; Titus 3:12); Simeon (Matthew 13:55; Mark 6:3), nephew of St. Joseph the betrothed of the Virgin Mary; and Aristobulus (Romans 16:10), who preached in Britain and died there.  Many of these became bishops in the Church in various places of the Roman Empire, from East to West, North to South, and including Jerusalem.   Christ's sending out of the Seventy is yet another mark of the turning point that has come in His ministry.  As He has now twice warned the disciples of His coming betrayal and death, and even more importantly, He has now "steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem" (see yesterday's reading, above), so He also appoints this new group of Seventy to be sent out as missionaries, as apostles.  It shows us this paradoxical movement of the Kingdom, that even where it is being rejected, it is also sent out, and spreads, and the seeds of the gospel are to be planted everywhere.  This is a kind of movement always replicated, always expanding -- perhaps even in the sense that a relatively "new" frontier is here on the internet where the seeds of the gospel continue to be planted.  Note that Christ tells them that as they preach, they are to say, "The kingdom of God has come near to you."  In this we rest assured that the Kingdom is not merely to be found in one place or another, but is also truly within us and among us.  We are temples of God, as St. Paul says, and so the sending out of the Seventy, in addition to the Twelve, is a way of spreading the Kingdom out into the world and the Empire, beyond the borders and boundaries of what was already known in the birthplace of the Church.  So, even as Christ and the disciples are rejected, and as Christ heads steadfastly to Jerusalem and His Passion, the gospel expands, the Kingdom is taken to the ends of the known world.  This is a movement we should always imitate, always renewing, always necessary.   For the kingdom of God is with those who carry it into the world, wherever they are sent.

 

 

Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment

 

 Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  

Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."  

Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?" 

 

- John 7:14–36 

 

Yesterday we read that, after His eucharistic teachings on eating His Body and Blood (see John 6, or the blog posts immediately previous to this one), Jesus walked in Galilee; for He did not want to walk in Judea, because the Jews sought to kill Him.  Now the Jews' Feast of Tabernacles was at hand.  His brothers therefore said to Him, "Depart from here and go into Judea, that Your disciples also may see the works that You are doing.  For no one does anything in secret while he himself seeks to be known openly.  If You do these things, show Yourself to the world."  For even His brothers did not believe in Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "My time has not yet come, but your time is always ready.  The world cannot hate you, but it hates Me because I testify of it that its works are evil.  You go up to this feast, for My time has not yet fully come."  When He had said these things to them, He remained in Galilee.  But when His brothers had gone up, then He also went up to the feast, not openly, but as it were in secret.  Then the Jews sought Him at the feast, and said, "Where is He?"  And there was much complaining among the people concerning Him.  Some said, "He is good"; others said, "No, on the contrary, He deceives the people."  However, no one spoke openly of Him for fear of the Jews. 

 

  Now about the middle of the feast Jesus went up into the temple and taught.  And the Jews marveled, saying, "How does this Man know letters, having never studied?"  Jesus answered them and said, "My doctrine is not Mine, but His who sent Me.  If anyone wills to do His will, he shall know concerning the doctrine, whether it is from God or whether I speak on My own authority.  He who speaks from himself seeks his own glory; but He who seeks the glory of the One who sent Him is true, and no unrighteousness is in Him.  Did not Moses give you the law, yet none of you keeps the law?  Why do you seek to kill Me?"  The people answered and said, "You have a demon.  Who is seeking to kill You?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "I did one work, and you all marvel.  Moses therefore gave you circumcision (not that it is from Moses, but from the fathers), and you circumcise a man on the Sabbath.  If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."   We recall that Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles, during the final year of His earthly life.  This is an eight-day autumn harvest festival, commemorating the time Israel wandered in the wilderness of Sinai, living in tents (or tabernacles).  My study Bible comments on this passage that the simple desire to know and follow God's will is the key to understanding it.  Spiritual blindness, it says, comes from an unwillingness to know God or to recognize God's authority.   It cites St. John Chrysostom, who paraphrases Christ as saying,  "Rid yourselves of wickedness:  the anger, the envy, and the hatred which have arisen in your hearts, without provocation, against Me.  Then you will have no difficulty in realizing that My words are actually those of God.  As it is, these passions darken your understanding and distort sound judgment.  If you remove these passions, you will no longer be afflicted this way."  Jesus refers to making a man completely well on the Sabbath:  This refers to events in Jerusalem at a previous feast, the Old Testament Pentecost, known also as the Feast of Weeks (see this reading).  As we frequently note, in John's Gospel, here the phrase the Jews refers to the religious leadership, not the people.

 

 Now some of them from Jerusalem said, "Is this not He whom they seek to kill?  But look!  He speaks boldly, and they say nothing to Him.  Do the rulers know indeed that this is truly the Christ?  However, we know where this Man is from; but when the Christ comes, no one knows where He is from."  Then Jesus cried out, as He taught in the temple, saying, "You both know Me, and you know where I am from; and I have not come of Myself, but He who sent Me is true, whom you do not know.  But I know Him, for I am from Him, and He sent Me."  Therefore they sought to take Him; but no one laid a hand on Him, because His hour had not yet come.  And many of the people believed in Him, and said, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"   Some of the people from Jerusalem say, "We know where this Man is from."  My study Bible remarks that these crowds are mistaken, both in an earthly sense and also a divine sense.  Humanly speaking, they know Jesus as being from Nazareth in Galilee.  But they're not aware that He was actually born in Bethlehem (verse 42; see Luke 2:1-7).  Moreover, they can't understand that He's come from the Father in Heaven; He is eternally begotten before all ages, and thus His divine "origin" remains unknown to them also.  His hour refers to the time of His suffering and death.  Christ is the Lord over time, my study Bible says, which is an authority which is possessed by God alone.  He will go to the Cross of His own free will, and in His time, not according to the plots of human beings (see John 8:20; 10:39). 

The Pharisees heard the crowd murmuring these things concerning Him, and the Pharisees and the chief priests sent officers to take Him.  Then Jesus said to them, "I shall be with you a little while longer, and then I go to Him who sent Me.  You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come."   My study Bible says that Christ's statement here refers to His death, Resurrection, and Ascension into heaven. 

Then the Jews said among themselves, "Where does He intend to go that we shall not find Him?  Does He intend to go to the Dispersion among the Greeks and teach the Greeks?  What is this thing that He said, 'You will seek Me and not find Me, and where I am you cannot come'?"  The Dispersion is literally in Greek the Diaspora; that is, the Jewish communities outside of Israel.  To go among the Greeks means to go among the Gentiles; that is, the Greek speakers, as Greek was the international language of Christ's time.  But this is an unwitting prophesy.  It points to the time after Christ's Ascension, when His name will be preached among the Gentiles by the apostles; and the Gospels and Epistles and the Revelation of the New Testament will be written in the Greek language, for all the world.  

We can see the confusion in Jerusalem.  John's Gospel almost has the structure of an ancient play at this juncture, with the people acting as a chorus, voicing the varied opinions and responses to Jesus and His preaching and teaching.  Today's passage begins with the consternation and perplexity in the people, who can't understand where Christ gets His wisdom, having never studied.  Jesus begins, in today's passage, by reiterating His identity which is inseparable from the Father who sent Him, and He also claims His true authority comes only from the Father.  But then He speaks what He knows, that there are those who wish to kill Him, because He made a man well on the Sabbath.  The people respond that He has a demon.  Jesus says, "If a man receives circumcision on the Sabbath, so that the law of Moses should not be broken, are you angry with Me because I made a man completely well on the Sabbath?  Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."  When He asserts again that He has come from the Father, there are those who wish to kill Him -- but this time there are others of the crowd in Jerusalem who wonder if He could be the Messiah, who believe. They ask, "When the Christ comes, will He do more signs than these which this Man has done?"  Jesus adds yet more information about Himself, alluding to His Crucifixion, death, and Resurrection to come.  These all come as cryptic statements to the religious leaders, who can understand nothing about His words.  But their response becomes an inadvertent prophesy, that He will "go among the Greeks," among the Gentiles, as will the disciples bearing His word and gospel.  We have a picture, at this juncture of Christ's ministry, of a world that is stirring and being stirred by Him.  His truth is the sword that pierces through everything.  In St. Matthew's Gospel, Jesus says, "Do not think that I came to bring peace on earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword."  He goes on, quoting from the prophesy of Micah, "For I have come to 'set a man against his father, a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law'; and 'a man’s enemies will be those of his own household.'  He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me. He who finds his life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it." (See Matthew 10:34-39; Micah 7:6).  In today's reading, the public forms a backdrop, like the Greek chorus of the ancient plays, so that we get all of the voices being stirred up by Christ, and a sense of the confusion around His Person and His preaching.  For when the truth appears to us and makes its mark, perhaps we should take this scene to heart and bear a philosophical perspective in accordance with it:  that truth has an impact depending upon where it strikes, and the ground it hits upon.  Just like the parable of the Sower which tells us of the seeds that illustrate the word of Christ, we should not be surprised when there is division, and even confusion, but rather see it as a time to hold fast to what we know, and to take root in our faith.  Jesus will tell us repeatedly that, especially when He is gone and we await His return, we are to "watch and pray," and Saints Peter and Paul also repeat these thoughts in their Epistles (see Matthew 26:41; Mark 13:33; Mark 14:38; Luke 21:36; Ephesians 6:18; 1 Peter 4:7).   This is especially true in times of uncertainty and confusion, and remains so today.   Contrary to many modern assumptions about truth-telling and the impact of reason, or assertions that there's always one right answer, perhaps the Gospels give us the assurance that confusion -- amidst a chorus of voices -- is something we should expect as the product of a world which both needs, and rejects, the truth.  Perhaps we're rather taught the humility to expect that, as human beings, we don't always have all the answers.   In such times, we take root in our faith, in what we've been taught, to watch and pray, to seek God's will as He says in today's reading, and God's glory.   For we are commanded, "Do not judge according to appearance, but judge with righteous judgment."    In a world that always seems to be in a rush, let us take the time to find His way and His answers.  To watch and pray is sometimes the only way we can do that when things remain unclear, the best way to find righteous judgment.    For now let us watch the unfolding of the story of the Gospel.  

For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him

 

 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"  Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.  Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.  As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.  This is the bread which came down from heaven -- not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead.  He who eats this bread will live forever."  These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum. 

 

- John 6:52–59 

 

On Saturday, we read that the religious leaders in Capernaum then complained about Jesus, because He said, "I am the bread which came down from heaven."  And they said, "Is this not Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know?  How is it then that He says, 'I have come down from heaven'?"  Jesus therefore answered and said to them, "Do not murmur among yourselves.  No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day.  It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.'  Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me.  Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father.  Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life.  I am the bread of life.  Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead.  This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die.  I am the living bread which came down from heaven.  If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world."

 

 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, "How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?"  Then Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you.  Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.  For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed.  He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.  As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me.  This is the bread which came down from heaven -- not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead.  He who eats this bread will live forever."  These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.  Here, Jesus' words continue to convey the eucharistic understanding of the bread which came down from heaven.  The hearers of this Gospel, written near the end of the first century, would already be familiar with the Eucharist, and so understand the meaning.  My study Bible comments that Christ was crucified in the flesh and His blood was shed on the Cross, and on the third day He was raised in a glorified state.  It notes that we receive the grace of Christ's sacrificial offering by coming to Him in faith (verse 35) and by receiving Holy Communion in faith.  In Communion, in the tradition from the beginning of the Church, we truly eat His flesh and drink His blood, and this grants to the faithful eternal life (verse 54), with Christ abiding in us and us in Him (verse 56).  My study Bible quotes St. Hilary of Poitiers:  "There is no room left for any doubt about the reality of His flesh and blood, because we have both the witness of His words and our own faith.  Thus when we eat and drink these elements, we are in Christ and Christ is in us." 

 

 In the Orthodox Church, the presence of Christ's body and blood is considered to be in the Eucharist.  While there are varieties of understanding of this presence among many denominations of the Church, for most Christ is considered to be truly present in some sense, although the theological language varies.  As my study Bible notes, Christ's sacrificial offering -- a once and for all time sacrifice, partaken and shared among the faithful -- makes it possible for us, also, to be raised up in a glorified state as He was (Luke 24:51; Acts 1:1-9).  In the Orthodox Church, how this happens is a mystery; but we accept His word that He is present to us, and that we may partake of His sacrifice for us, thus making it possible, by faith, for us to be "in Christ and Christ in us."   This subject may be quite difficult for modern people to grasp, but we first must begin with the Incarnation itself to start with the presumption that the human and the divine can be united, that what we call or think of as purely material matter can be imbued with the presence of the divine, with what "comes down from heaven" and is truly spiritually present.   From the Incarnation, we derive this sense that makes it possible, for example, to understand the conferring of the Holy Spirit through the oil of chrismation at Holy Baptism.  The gifts and charisms taken on by saints in the Church become a part of the character of a person, yet they are gifts of the Spirit.  Christ has left us with a Mystical Supper, that we may partake of what He is, so that He lives in us, and we live in Him -- and are promised through faith that we may ultimately become a part of His everlasting life.  In St. Luke's Gospel, we read His teaching that "the kingdom of God is within you" (meaning both among and within us); see Luke 17:20-21. In the Eucharist, we are given more than a memorial, we are given a "living bread" that enables us to live the life with Him that He offers, with the quality of the eternal or "everlasting" that may dwell in us and prepare us, even helping us to grow into the fullness of that life with Him that He promises.  This is the living bread for the eternal day of the Lord, for the life in us He wants for us, for the kingdom of God dwelling within us.  Let us consider these mystical words, so seemingly out of place --as the response and consternation of His hearers among the religious leaders indicates.  But Christ's words have particular meanings, elevated and understood as He gives them to us, imbued with the divine reality that may also live in us, so that we might participate in the life of God's kingdom even in this world.  In Saturday's reading (above), Jesus spoke of how the Father draws us to Him, giving us faith, and helping us to grow in understanding ("It is written in the prophets, 'And they shall all be taught by God.'  Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me").  He will make His sacrifice so that we may dwell in Him and He in us; let us cherish this mystical gift with thanks, as the name Eucharist indicates (from εὐχαριστέω/eucharisteo, to give thanks).  In this article, Fr. Stephen Freeman describes the making of a sacrament as God taking up an ordinary action and making it a means of grace.   In today's reading, Jesus speaks of His gift of life, not as the world gives, but as only God can give to us. 

O righteous Father! The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me. And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them

 

 "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me.  And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."

 

- John 17:20-26 

 

Currently, we are reading through Christ's High Priestly Prayer, which He prayed at the Last Supper, after His Farewell Discourse to the disciples.  In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus prayed to the Father, "While I was with them in the world, I kept them in Your name.  Those whom You gave Me I have kept; and none of them is lost except the son of perdition, that the Scripture might be fulfilled.  But now I come to You, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have My joy fulfilled in themselves.  I have given them Your word; and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  I do not pray that You should take them out of the world, but that You should keep them from the evil one.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.  Sanctify them by Your truth.  Your word is truth.  As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.  And for their sakes I sanctify Myself, that they also may be sanctified by the truth."

 

  "I do not pray for these alone, but also for those who will believe in Me through their word; that they all may be one, as You, Father, are in Me, and I in You; that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me."  In this prayer, Jesus has prayed first for Himself (verses 1-5), and secondly for the apostles (verses 6-19).  Only then does His High Priestly Prayer turn to pray for those whom You have given Me.  That is, all who will come to believe in Him through the word of the apostles, as He says here.  My study Bible comments, regarding those who will believe, that the Church in every generation participates in the life and glory of the Trinity.  Christians enjoy two kinds of unity:  with God and with one another, the latter being rooted in the former. 

 

"And the glory which You gave Me I have given them, that they may be one just as We are one:  I in them, and You in Me; that they may be made perfect in one, and that the world may know that You have sent Me, and have loved them as You have loved Me.  Father, I desire that they also whom You gave Me may be with Me where I am, that they may behold My glory which You have given Me; for You loved Me before the foundation of the world.  O righteous Father!  The world has not known You, but I have known You; and these have known that You sent Me.  And I have declared to them Your name, and will declare it, that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  Note that this entire finish to Christ's High Priestly Prayer is rooted in love, and specifically the love of the Father and how that is the root of the communion of all.  From the love of the Father is the love between Christ and the Father, and that love in turn is extended to those who believe in His word (the apostles).  Through the apostles, this love becomes a part of the faithful to come, "that the love with which You loved Me may be in them, and I in them."  There is nothing left out of this communion in the name of God, in which is rooted love and glory through God's word and faith in that word.

 

 As noted above, if we look closely at today's closing lines from Christ's High Priestly Prayer, we see everything couched in a communion of love.  It is clear that the Source of love is God the Father.  But this should not be confused with a kind of simple hierarchy that we understand on worldly terms.  For this love is not something that is limited, but shared, and shared deeply within a communion.  That communion is not only between Father and Son.  But it clearly also includes the Holy Spirit -- and beyond that, the apostles who bear Christ's word within themselves through faith and discipleship, and extends out to all those who will believe through their word.  Effectively, we have an entire universe, a whole cosmos, filled with this communion of love.  For, not only is God -- the Creator and Source of all -- love, but God's word that is extended, that finds itself in faith, bears that love to us.  That word bears God's name and Person, and these also can come to dwell in us, and through us even in the world that does not believe.  This is why, during Christ's Farewell Discourse, just before this prayer, Jesus tells the disciples, "These things I have spoken to you, that in Me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation; but be of good cheer, I have overcome the world" (John 16:33).  So we have two things that we know.  The first is that God is love, and that Christ's word and the communion in His name, are couched and rooted in love, permeated in love.  The second is that the word we're given, the truth of God, even the glory of God, is going to be hated by some and rejected -- and in this, believers will also experience tribulation.  We have to remember that there are spiritual roots to all of these things, and that "we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places" (Ephesians 6:2).  But we take our peace and joy in this communion we can experience, in the word that gives us love and good guidance, and in which we can trust, even if there is tribulation.  As the faithful, we are called upon to know and to live these things, for we will surely experience them one way and another.  We know that Christ prays before going to the Cross, His sacrifice for all of us, for that love ("Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends" - John 15:13).  For each of us, how that works out depends upon our own places in this great net of love, the communion between God and the faithful (and, lest we forget, this includes the celestial powers loyal to God, as well as the communion of saints).  Let us go forward with confidence in that love, find His victory for ourselves, and be prepared for the kind of life to which we're called, in His name.

 

 

 

 

Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him

 

 Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him.  I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work.  As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  

 

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."

 

- John 9:1–17 

 

Over the course of last week, we were reading John's chapter 6.  On Saturday we read that, after Christ taught about His Body and Blood, many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, "This is a hard saying; who can understand it?"  When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, "Does this offend you?  What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before?  It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.  The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life.  But there are some of you who do not believe."  For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him.  And He said, "Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father."  From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.  Then Jesus said to the twelve, "Do you also want to go away?"  But Simon Peter answered Him, "Lord, to whom shall we go?  You have the words of eternal life.  Also we have come to believe and know that You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered them, "Did I not choose you, the twelve, and one of you is a devil?"  He spoke of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, for it was he who would betray Him, being one of the twelve.

 

  Now as Jesus passed by, He saw a man who was blind from birth.  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?"  Jesus answered, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  In today's reading, the lectionary once more skips forward, and the events pick up from where we left off before last week, taking place following this reading, which completed chapter 8.  We recall that Jesus is at the Feast of Tabernacles, an eight day autumn festival which commemorates the time Israel wandered seeking the Promised Land.  Many elements of that festival, including the lighting of the great torches at night (recalling the pillar of fire that led Israel by night), form the background to Christ's teaching.  These events take place in the final year of Christ's earthly life.  Here Jesus rejects the assumption, which was common in the ancient world, that all troubles and maladies are necessarily the consequence of personal sin, or even, as my study Bible notes, the sins of one's parents (see Exodus 20:5; Deuteronomy 5:9; contrast Ezekiel 18:19-21).  Although suffering can be the direct result of personal sin, my study Bible notes that this is certainly not always the case.  In this instance, Jesus teaches that this man's blindness provided the occasion for the works of God to be revealed, and was not directly related to the man's personal sins, nor those of his parents.

"I must work the works of Him who sent Me while it is day; the night is coming when no one can work."  My study Bible comments that the work people do consists of faith (John 6:29), good deeds (John 5:29), and repentance (John 12:40).  It notes that the night that comes is a reference both to the time after a person's death and to the age to come, when there is no longer an opportunity to express faith.  On that day, according to St. John Chrysostom, there will not be faith, but all will submit, whether willingly or unwillingly.

"As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world."  Jesus makes this statement in preparation for the sign which He is about to reveal, and also against the backdrop of the Feast, in which the illumination of the great torches (four 75-foot menorah oil lamps) would light up the city of Jerusalem at night.  To heal a man blind from birth was unprecedented, and it confirms Christ's claim here that He is the light of the world.  Note that He is repeating His words spoken earlier at the Feast (John 8:12).

When He had said these things, He spat on the ground and made clay with the saliva; and He anointed the eyes of the blind man with the clay.  My study Bible cites St. Irenaeus here, who sees in this mixture of clay and saliva a type of the creation of humanity from the earth (Genesis 2:7).  Jesus effectively reveals His divinity by restoring part of creation using the same material with which He created humanity in the beginning.  

And He said to him, "Go, wash in the pool of Siloam" (which is translated, Sent).  So he went and washed, and came back seeing.  My study Bible explains that the pool of Siloam was on the outskirts of Jerusalem, a considerable distance from the temple.  From this pool there was water taken for the rites which were connected with the Feast of Tabernacles, particularly a commemoration of the water flowing from the rock struck by Moses (Exodus 17:1-7), but also for a purification of the altar.   Siloam, translated, Sent, is a symbol of Christ, the One who was sent by the Father (John 5:36; 20:21).  My study Bible says that just as the healing of the blind man confirmed Christ's claim to be the light of the world (John 8:12), so also, His making use of the pool of Siloam confirms that He is the true purification of the temple and those who worship in it.  

Therefore the neighbors and those who previously had seen that he was blind said, "Is not this he who sat and begged?"  Some said, "This is he."  Others said, "He is like him."  He said, "I am he."  Therefore they said to him, "How were your eyes opened?"  He answered and said, "A Man called Jesus made clay and anointed my eyes and said to me, 'Go to the pool of Siloam and wash.'  So I went and washed, and I received sight."  Then they said to him, "Where is He?"  He said, "I do not know."  They brought him who formerly was blind to the Pharisees.  Now it was a Sabbath when Jesus made the clay and opened his eyes.  Then the Pharisees also asked him again how he had received his sight.  He said to them, "He put clay on my eyes, and I washed, and I see."  Therefore some of the Pharisees said, "This Man is not from God, because He does not keep the Sabbath."  Others said, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"  And there was a division among them.  They said to the blind man again, "What do you say about Him because He opened your eyes?"  He said, "He is a prophet."  My study Bible comments here that just as the Pharisees had ignored the healing of the paralytic and focused only on the perceived violation of the Sabbath (John 5:10-16), so here many of them cannot see the glory of God through their own prejudices.  Thus, the seemingly astonished response, "How can a man who is a sinner do such signs?"

 In many places in John's Gospel, the property of light is emphasized.  In Scripture, God the Father is described as light (John 1:4-9; 1 John 1:5), an attribute also bestowed on believers (Matthew 5:14; Philippians 2:15).  In this great sign given in today's reading, which is the sixth of seven signs in John's Gospel, Jesus opens the eyes of a man born blind.  That is, He gives "light" to the man's eyes, which were previously in darkness, thus fulfilling the promise that He is Son, couched in the words of the Creed, that He is "Light of Light and true God of true God."  My study Bible comments that of all the miracle stories in the Bible, this is the only one in which the person was blind from birth.  It adds that the blind man is symbolic of all humanity:  all need illumination by Christ, who is the Light of the world.  This sign, it adds, is an illustration of baptism, which is also called "holy illumination."  So, as Jesus manifests the quality of light, or we could say, Light-Giver, through the opening of the eyes of the blind man, if we look at the full text, we have an additional quality of His light or illumination that might be easy to miss, but is nevertheless extremely important.   When the disciples assume there must be some sinful reason why this man was afflicted with blindness since birth, Jesus tells them, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him."  This gives us a hidden reality of all of the works of Christ, and the effects of grace -- and thus the light of God.  When we ourselves may be afflicted or burdened with something that is hard to bear, or seemingly unfortunate, the light of Christ may reveal the possibility of a "good work" even through a difficult circumstance.  The care for an older parent, or a child who cannot care for themselves, might be an occasion for an illuminating work of God -- even revealing the power of prayer in a difficult situation.  To help another in need, or one afflicted by sudden trauma or accident, is an important charitable action often prompted by faith.  Very often in my own life, seemingly hard circumstances or problems that are impossible to solve by drawing on past experience or ideas from the past, become resolved through inspiration in prayer.  Frequently that means a different objective than resolving the problem by evading it or erasing it, but rather approaching it differently, or even learning to live with it and cope with it.  Such problems have the additional benefit of teaching us resilience and persistence.  Speaking just from personal experience, prayer and Christ's illuminating light have taught me to navigate sadly broken relationships, a workplace ordeal of shunning and harassment, and seeking ways forward in dealing with a loved one's end-of-life care and dementia before that.  It has been a path dotted with revelations that taught me what resources I had available, character traits I could develop, and patience in Christ that I did not think was possible for me.  This "illumination" has brought me through what were devastating circumstances for me, and into a good place.  He is the light of life indeed; the One who turned the Cross into an instrument of salvation can do the same with our bad circumstances, in so many ways we absolutely cannot predict.  So let us go forward and remember this light.  Let us give gratitude, for without being grateful, how will we ever realize what we have, and go on for more?  For we are each made for the works of God to be revealed in some sense or another, even -- and especially -- through our own prayers and those who pray with us.