If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him

 

 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.  Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father.  For which of those works do you stone Me?"  The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, Make Yourself God."  

 

Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?  If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?"

 

"If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."  Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand. 

 

And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed.  Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John  spoke about this Man were true."  And many believed in Him there.

 

- John 10:31–42 

 

In yesterday's reading, we were presented with the effects of Christ's presence at the Feast of Tabernacles during the last year of His earthly life.  He had preached widely, engaged in many disputes with the religious leaders, and performed the sixth of seven signs in St. John's Gospel; that is, He healed a man who was blind from birth.  The religious authorities continued to accuse Him and dispute with Him.  Therefore there was a division again among the ruling Council because of these sayings.  And many of them said, "He has a demon and is mad.  Why do you listen to Him?"  Others said, "These are not the words of one who has a demon.  Can a demon open the eyes of the blind?"  Now it was the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem, and it was winter.   And Jesus walked in the temple, in Solomon's porch.  Then the Jews surrounded Him and said to Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly."  Jesus answered them, "I told you, and you do not believe.  The works that I do in My Father's name, they bear witness of Me.  But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you.  My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me.  And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand.  My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father's hand.  I and My Father are One."

 

  Then the Jews took up stones again to stone Him.  Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father.  For which of those works do you stone Me?"  The Jews answered Him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone You, but for blasphemy, and because You, being a Man, Make Yourself God."    In yesterday's reading (see above), Jesus was answering a question posed to Him earlier.  They asked Him, "How long do You keep us in doubt?  If You are the Christ, tell us plainly" (John 10:24).  But Jesus' answer, "I and the Father are One," incensed them, and they took up stones again to stone Him.  Their previous accusations were over His healing on the Sabbath, but here they claim blasphemy.  Note how Jesus refers to the works that He does, for they testify of Him and of the Father who sent Him. 

 

 Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?  If He called them gods, to whom the word of God came (and the Scripture cannot be broken), do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?"  When Jesus asks, "Is it not written in your law, 'I said, "You are gods"'?" He is quoting from Psalm 82:6.  My study Bible comments that people who receive God's grace in faith will partake of His divine nature (2 Peter 1:4), and so therefore rightly be called gods.  It cites St. John Chrysostom, who paraphrases Christ's response this way:  "If those who have received this honor by grace are not guilty for calling themselves gods, how can He who has this by nature deserve to be rebuked?"

 

 "If I do not do the works of My Father, do not believe Me; but if I do, though you do not believe Me, believe the works, that you may know and believe that the Father is in Me, and I in Him."  Therefore they sought again to seize Him, but He escaped out of their hand.   Again, Jesus emphasizes His works (such as restoring the sight of the man blind from birth) as testimony to Himself and His identity.  They are the works of the Father; therefore they witness to Him as One who is not only sent by the Father, but One who can say, "The Father is in Me, and I in Him."  My study Bible comments here that, because Christ is going to His Passion voluntarily and according to His own will (John 10:17-18), His accusers cannot arrest Him until He is ready; this proper time is often referred to as His "hour" (John 7:30; 820; see Luke 4:28-30).  

 

And He went away again beyond the Jordan to the place where John was baptizing at first, and there He stayed.  Then many came to Him and said, "John performed no sign, but all the things that John spoke about this Man were true."  And many believed in Him there.  Here the Gospel affirms that there were believers in Judea (beyond the Jordan), who had been prepared by St. John the Baptist, another testimony to the Baptist's work and ministry.

 

 In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus warns His followers about false prophets to come.  He teaches, "Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves. You will know them by their fruits. Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?"  This idea, that we will know them by their fruits, is a concept that emphasizes works as a witness or testimony to the character of a person.  The things they produce reveal who or what they love, what motivates them.  That reference to the Sermon on the Mount is a negative reference to the testimony of works.  In today's reading, Jesus once again makes His own works a positive reference, or testimony to the relationship between Himself and the Father.  The signs He does, such as restoring the sight of the man who was born blind, testify to Christ's identity and loyalty to the Father, even to the understanding that they are One.  As such, we have in the Gospels these repeated assertions -- about ourselves as human beings, and in Jesus' testimony about Himself as incarnate God -- that what we do reveals who we are.  In this sense, our works are witness.  St. John's Gospel makes central to its structure the seven "signs" of Jesus' ministry.  So far as we have read in the Gospel, six of those signs have been performed, and the seventh will come in the next chapter.  The first six are as follows:  turning water to wine (John 2:1-11); healing the nobleman's son (John 4:46-54); healing the paralytic at the pool of Bethesda (John 5:1-15); feeding of five thousand men, and more women and children (John 6:5-14); walking on water (John 6:16-21); healing the man who was blind from birth (John 9:1-7).   Although Jesus speaks of works in today's reading (ἔργα/erga in Greek), St. John's Gospel uses the word translated as signs (from singular σημεῖον/simeion) for these major events of Christ's ministry.  In modern Greek, this ancient root has evolved to a slightly different spelling (σημαία/simaia), and it is used for "flag." But from this we understand that a "sign" is representative of something else.  It can also indicate a badge, for example.  Jesus' signs, His great works, reveal the presence of the kingdom of God, the way that a flag flying in a location indicates its country of origin and belonging.  When we, as faithful, wear a cross, that is also a kind of sign, a flag indicating to whose kingdom we say we belong.  Jesus makes this association with "works" when He teaches in the Sermon on the Mount, "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:16).  This is a way of indicating that the light, the grace, we receive from God who is Light, may be seen in our works, so that God is glorified.  If Jesus Himself claims that His works testify to His identity, we can imagine how important it is that our own works do the same.  In the depth of His love for the Father, Jesus' works testify to that love, the origin of what He does.  So our own depth of love for God may testify through what we do.  So also St. John the Baptist performed no sign, but his own "works" as a prophet of God led people to faith in Christ.  Let us consider, and learn from those who came before us.

 

My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it

 

 "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."

 

Then His mother and brothers came to  Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."  

Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"

 

- Luke 8:16–25 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.  And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  "A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries  of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that 'Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'  Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.   Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in a time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience."

 

  "No one, when he has lit a lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."  Jesus uses similar metaphors of light elsewhere in the Gospels to illustrate related concepts in His teaching (see Matthew 5:14-15, Mark 4:21-22, Luke 11:33-34).  Here, He is emphasizing internal illumination, and in particularly "how we hear."  That is, the importance of our perception and capacity for learning the spiritual concepts hidden in His parables (see the parable of the Sower, in yesterday's reading, above).  What we grasp as His disciples must be lived, nurtured, and cherished as our good treasure.

 

 Then His mother and brothers came to  Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."   My study Bible comments that it was not Christ's will to deny His mother and brothers.  Instead, St. John Chrysostom asserts that Jesus is correcting both the and His hearers "to the right idea concerning Himself," that the family of His Kingdom "is not by nature but by virtue."  Jesus' teaching here is emphasizing what we've just read of His preaching in the Sermon on the Plain (see Luke 6:12-49) and in His teaching of the parable of the Sower (see yesterday's reading, above).  He points to a spiritual family based on obedience to the will of God (see also Luke 11:27-28).

 

 Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"  My study Bible suggests that Christ deliberately permits the windstorm to arise while He's sleeping, in order to perfect the faith of the disciples and to rebuke their weaknesses.  In this way, they are being strengthen to be unshaken by the temptations of life that will come their way.  In this particular scenario, their faith is still mixed with unbelief.  They showed faith when they came to Him, but unbelief when they said, "We are perishing." Let us remember in this context that faith in Christ is rooted in trust.

 

 One part of today's reading in concerned with Jesus' mother and His brothers coming to see Him.  We can perhaps construe that at this juncture in His ministry He's beginning to attract very great crowds and a lot of publicity.  Since He has already had some run-ins with certain Pharisees (such as in this reading, for example, or this one from Monday), we can also assume that this publicity may be alarming or even unseemly to His family of rather humble stature in Nazareth.  (See this reading for the conflict which arose when He preached in His hometown, and the wrath He incurred there.) 

 In St. Mark's third chapter, the Gospel seems to write of an incident at this same period of Jesus' ministry, and also amid the clashes He begins to have with the religious authorities.  When such great crowds come to find Jesus and draw so much attention to Him, it disturbs and frightens His family enough so that they seek to "lay hold of Him, for they said, 'He is out of His mind'" (Mark 3:20-21).  The protective claim of mental illness rings true even today, for a family trying to draw a loved one out of the spotlight and away from the threat of possible action on the part of authorities.   It's intriguing to consider that Jesus' mother Mary is outside waiting to speak to Him together with His "brothers" (likely sons of St. Joseph by a previous marriage, or cousins or other extended family).  Since from the earliest origins of the Church Christ's mother Mary has been venerated for her love of her Son and her faith in Him, we can certainly assume Jesus' response is not at all meant to insult or demean her concerns (and she will stand by Him even at the Cross; see John 19:25-27).  Perhaps she's there because the rest of the family presses her to go and see Jesus and find out what He's doing.  But if we are tempted to think that He is turning her away, and contrasting her with His followers, we truly should think again.  For all the evidence that we have points to Mary the Theotokos ("God-bearer" in Greek) as one who fits this description of those whom Jesus describes as His spiritual family: "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."   It is St. Luke's Gospel, after all, that tells us that Mary responded with acceptance when told by Gabriel of the birth of Jesus; she said, "Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word" (see Luke 1:26-38).  She is the one who, in St. John's Gospel, told the servants at the wedding in Cana, "Whatever He says to you, do it," and so encouraged and helped to facilitate His first sign in that Gospel (John 2:1-12).  So, bearing these things in mind, we should consider that when Jesus responds to His mother and brothers in today's reading, He is in some sense assuring us all that Mary is in fact sister to the women we read about yesterday.  That is, to "Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance" (see yesterday's reading. above).  Or perhaps, as the mother of our Lord, it would be better to say that Mary the Theotokos is in this sense the mother of all of us.  For without her willing acceptance of her part in God's plan of salvation, none of us would be brothers and sisters in His Church.  In the view of the Church, and from its earliest years, Mary has been venerated as the greatest of Christian saints, and indeed, she is the model upon which we can all draw for Christ's description of His spiritual family, those who hear the word of God and do it.  When we read of all of these women, then, let us consider Christ's mother Mary together with them in the Church. For "those who hear the word of God and do it" include many whom we might call disparate and different, but all are together gathered in the Church, then and ever since.

 

 

 

Now the parable is this: The seed is the word of God

 

 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.  

And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  "A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that 

'Seeing they may not see,

And hearing they may not understand.'

"Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.

 

- Luke 8:1–15 

 

Yesterday we read that one of the Pharisees asked Jesus to eat with him.  And He went to the Pharisee's house, and sat down to eat.  And behold, a woman in the city who was a sinner, when she knew that Jesus sat at the table in the Pharisee's house, brought an alabaster flask of fragrant oil, and stood at His feet behind Him weeping; and she began to wash His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head; and she kissed His feet and anointed them with the fragrant oil.  Now when the Pharisee who had invited Him saw this, he spoke to himself, saying, "This Man, if He were a prophet, would know who and what manner of woman this is who is touching Him, for she is a sinner."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Simon, I have something to say to you."  So he said, "Teacher, say it."  "There was a certain creditor who had two debtors.  One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty.  And when they had nothing with which to repay, he freely forgave them both.  Tell Me, therefore, which of them will love him more?"    Simon answered and said, "I suppose the one whom he forgave more."  And He said to him, "You have rightly judged."  Then He turned to the woman and said to Simon, "Do you see this woman?  I entered your house; you gave Me no water for My feet, but she has washed My feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head.  You gave Me no kiss, but this woman has not ceased to kiss My feet since the time I came in.  You did not anoint My head with oil, but this woman has anointed My feet with fragrant oil.  Therefore I say to you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven, for she loved much.  But to whom little is forgiven the same loves little."  Then He said to her, "Your sins are forgiven."  And those who sat at the table with Him began to say to themselves, "Who is this who even forgives sins?"  Then He said to the woman, "Your faith has saved you.  Go in peace."

 

 Now it came to pass, afterward, that He went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.  My study Bible notes that these women were faithful to Christ to the end (Luke 23:49, 55), and were the first to receive and proclaim the news of Christ's Resurrection (Luke 24:1-10).  In the Scriptures, it continues, the number seven often symbolizes totality and completeness.  So this indicates that Mary called Magdalene had been thoroughly given over to darkness before her healing.

 

 And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  "A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  Here Jesus gives His first parable, to a great multitude which had gathered from every city.  In all the Synoptic Gospels, the parable of the Sower is the first told by Jesus (Matthew 13:1-23; Mark 4:1-20).  

Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that  'Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'  Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience.  My study Bible comments that as the sower in this parable, Christ fulfills the prophecy in Isaiah 55:10-13.  It says that while some might teach a person is permanently saved at the moment faith is professed -- a view never held by the historic Church -- the teaching of Jesus is clear that it is possible to believe for a while and then fall away.    Jesus tells the disciples, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that  'Seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'"  (See Isaiah 6:9.)  My study Bible explains that mysteries are not obscure intellectual concepts, but the presence of the Kingdom of God which cannot be defined.  It says that a person's unwillingness to understand Christ's parables is due to a rejection of His Kingdom.  St. John Chrysostom comments, "If the blindness were natural, it would have been proper for God to open their eyes; but because it was  a voluntary and self-chosen blindness, He does not overthrow their free will."  Doing so would have been not only to "no advantage for them, but an even greater condemnation."

 

 What stories do we know which tell us about our faith?  Jesus gives us stories in the form of parables.  These are memorable illustrations of the ways of the Kingdom, how the Kingdom works, and who Christ is.  As mentioned above, in all the Synoptic Gospels, Jesus begins His preaching in parables with the parable of the Sower, given in today's reading.  We also have Jesus' explanation for the parable.  Clearly, He is the Sower, and the seeds He sows are the gospel message.  Where will they fall?  If we think carefully about this parable (and about Jesus' words explaining it to His disciples), we'll come to see that we might fall anywhere on the spectrum of the ground He describes, at any time -- or at various periods of our lives.  Each of us knows seasons of the kinds of temptations and struggles Jesus describes.  First of all He describes the work of the adversary, the devil, reminding us that there are spiritual foes at work in the world, seeking to snatch away the word.  We all deal with temptations of various kinds; some we may harbor and nurture, others we do our best to refuse.  And then there are the times we may be choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life -- always with us and seemingly an integral part of our world.  Perhaps the demand for such is exacerbated and accelerated through modern technologies and means of communication, drowning out the word of God.  We need to seek out Christ's word, keeping it with us, energizing and enlivening it within ourselves to counter all of these effects.  But then there is the good ground, and one presumes that those who seek out that good word know that effect of the good ground within them and seek to nurture it.  Moreover we should note that, in Jesus' words, not only does this ask of us a noble and good heart, but we must also keep that word, and bear fruit with patience.  That "with patience" is important, for sometimes the fruits of our faith take time, and sometimes living the word takes patience with all the things in life that seek to get in the way.  Note that patience also implies that our effort is steady, over time.  As my study Bible noted, faith is not a one-time-only confession, but a life of lived effort.  Our path is for our lives, and for that we need the patience to understand the sustained nature of the faith Jesus speaks about.  But there is joy in the heart by living with this word, and the grace we're given helps and sustains.  My study Bible says that parables are word-pictures, given to us in images from daily life, meant to communicate the deep things of God.  It says that parables give us glimpses of Him whose thoughts are not our thoughts and whose ways are not our ways (Isaiah 55:8-9).  Note in today's parable how Christ the Sower sows the word of God in the earth.  We need spiritual eyes and ears to hear and understand, but His word is here and present, seemingly awaiting us.  When life seems to be filled with piled up urgencies and needs, news of the day, and all manner of distraction, let's remember that His word is always awaiting us, and the depth of our hearts.

The lamp of the body is the eye. Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light. But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness

 

 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"

And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light." 

 

- Luke 11:27-36 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus was casting out a demon, and it was mute.  So it was, when the demon had gone out, that the mute spoke; and the multitudes marveled.  But some of them said, "He casts out demons by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."   Others, testing Him, sought from Him a sign from heaven.  But He, knowing their thoughts, said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and a house divided against a house falls.  If Satan also is divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand?  Because you say I cast out demons by Beelzebub.  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they will be your judges.  But if I cast out demons with the finger of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are in peace.  But when a stronger than he comes upon him and overcomes him, he takes from him all his armor in which he trusted, and divides his spoils.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters.   When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it swept and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first."

 

 And it happened, as He spoke these things, that a certain woman from the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, "Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts which nursed You!"  But He said, "More than that, blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it!"  In the Eastern Orthodox Church, these verses are read on most feasts of the Virgin Mary.  Jesus corrects the woman from the crowd, my study Bible explains, not by denouncing His mother, but by emphasizing her faith.  People are blessed in God's eyes if, like Mary, they hear the word of God and keep it (Luke 1:38).  My study Bible further explains the translation,  in which the phrase "more than that" is from the Greek word μενοῦνγε/menounge.  This same word is translated, "Yes indeed" in Romans 10:18.   The correction by the use of this word is through amplification -- not by negation.

 

 And while the crowds were thickly gathered together, He began to say, "This is an evil generation.  It seeks a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah the prophet.  For as Jonah became a sign to the Ninevites, so also the Son of Man will be to this generation.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with men of this generation and condemn them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here."  My study Bible explains the sign of Jonah as first of all, the fact that the rebellious Ninevites were willing to repent at Jonah's preaching (see Jonah 3), and that Jonah coming out of the great fish (Jonah 2) prefigures Christ rising from the tomb (Matthew 12:40).  By contrast to the repentance of the Ninevites, the failure of the people to repent at something far greater -- Christ's preaching and Resurrection -- will result in their judgment.  For the reference to the Queen of the South, see 3 Kings 10:1-10.

"No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."  We have seen the teaching about the lamp that must be placed on a lampstand to give light everywhere, as it refers to the teachings of Christ lived out in the lives of His followers (Luke 8:16).  Here, Christ uses the same image for the illumination that comes from Himself to us, but it is an image of the mind illumined through His word and our discipline in following Him.  The mind (in Greek, the νοῦς/nous) is the spiritual eye of the soul, my study Bible explains, and thus it is the lamp of the body.  It illuminates the inner person and governs the will.  There is a deeper connection to the "eye" in the sense that we may speak of how we see as the way we view the world, the illumination (or darkening filter) through which we see everything.  

 

If we look more closely at this final paragraph, we see Jesus speaking distinctly about choices we make through which we will come to view the world.  These are choices that govern our outlook through which we will live our lives and see our places in the universe.  He says, "No one, when he has lit a lamp, puts it in a secret place or under a basket, but on a lampstand, that those who come in may see the light.  The lamp of the body is the eye."  He first makes clear that the lighting of this lamp, the eye of the mind, governs our entire outlook and even experience of life.  This is not something that partially illuminates or sheds light on small part of life, but rather determines a whole outlook.  In other words, the eye of the mind has the far reaching effect of governing our condition in life, the way in which we find ourselves situated to life and in the world.  "Therefore, when your eye is good, your whole body also is full of light.  But when your eye is bad, your body also is full of darkness.  Therefore take heed that the light which is in you is not darkness.  If then your whole body is full of light, having no part dark, the whole body will be full of light, as when the bright shining of a lamp gives you light."  If our "illumination" is good, then this will light up our whole lives, our whole way of being and experience in life, our souls.  But if it is dark, this darkness permeates also our experience and filter of life, how we see and view everything; it limits us to what is not light, distorting our view and understanding, limiting the reality we may perceive.  This is why discipleship is important; it is why we keep asking, seeking, and knocking (Luke 11:9).  The pursuit of this light, of this illumination, is therefore worth doing with passion, with all the strength we have, as a daily practice, and with the understanding that it is crucial to the full outlook of our lives, our well-being, the choices that we make, the opportunities that we find, because there are no barriers to this eye and its far-reaching consequences in us.  If we live with a darkened mind, then our whole world is darkened, our outlook darkened, our capacity to feel and to know is blunted, our perception of necessity dimmed.  By comparing the people who fail to repent -- that is, to turn toward that light and change their minds -- negatively to the Queen of the South or the Ninevites, Jesus is giving a stark warning about the powerful consequences that result from such a refusal of the lamp of illumination which He offers.  The Queen of the South brought the light of knowledge and wisdom to her people and we read about her to this day; the king of the Ninevites saved his people from a terrible blight due to his acknowledgement of a need for repentance.  He was willing to listen to the wisdom of God, as did the Queen of the South.  But the failure to heed a prophetic word of God will have equally powerful consequences, only in a negative form.  The choice for darkness limits us to a life in which failure to heed the wisdom of a worsening circumstance results in harsher or more blunted conditions, the inability to see spiritually what road we're on leads us to deeper mistakes and more profound consequences.  In Luke 6:39, Jesus uses this same illustration of light and darkness of the eye, only He takes it to the point of blindness:  "“Can the blind lead the blind? Will they not both fall into the ditch?"  As Jesus goes through the cities of Israel, He is now on His way to Jerusalem and to His Passion.  His disciples go before Him to herald the advent of the Kingdom come near (see this reading from last week).  This call still goes out to all of us, Christ's illumination and His command, "Follow Me," remain a call to discipleship and the light which will illumine the mind and shape our outlook and experience of life.  For the light still shines in the darkness for us, but the darkness will not comprehend it (John 1:5).

 

 

 

 

Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God

 

 Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.  And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.  Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."  But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"  

 

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.  For it is written:

 'He shall give His angels charge over you,'

and 

'In their hands they shall bear you up,

Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"

Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."  Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him. 

- Matthew 4:1-11 

 

In yesterday's reading, we read that Jesus came from Galilee to John the Baptist at the Jordan to be baptized by him.  And John tried to prevent Him, saying, "I need to be baptized by You, and are You coming to me?"  But Jesus answered and said to him, "Permit it to be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness."  Then he allowed Him. When He had been baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and alighting upon Him.  And suddenly a voice came from heaven, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."   

 

Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil. My study Bible says that to be tempted is to be tested in fundamental areas of faith.  As in Mark's Gospel (Mark 1:12), the Spirit leads, or rather "throws" (in the Greek) Jesus into the wilderness after His Baptism, to be tested by a struggle with the devil.  My study Bible comments that we who are baptized in Christ need not be defeated by temptations because we also are aided by the Holy Spirit.  The wilderness is a battleground, an image of the world, both the dwelling place of demons and a source of divine tranquility and victory.  

And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.  My study Bible comments on all of Jesus temptations that we're given a framework in which Jesus reverses Israel's falling to temptation in the wilderness.  Once again, we can't read the New Testament apart from the Old, for it is the story of salvation.  The Israelites were tested forty years in the wilderness, and proved disobedient and disloyal.  God humbled them by first letting them go hungry and then feeding them with manna to help them to learn to be dependent upon God (Deuteronomy 8:2-5).  Here, my study Bible continues, Jesus is tested with hunger for forty days, but in His response He does not sin.  All of Christ's answers to Satan are from Deuteronomy, and all call for loyalty to God.  Jesus fasted in order to overcome temptation, which gives us an example of our own power and limitations in the face of temptation.  It is essential that we note Christ's hunger of His flesh does not control Him.  Instead, He controls His flesh.  It is the same when we practice fasting in service to our faith.  Christ's fast of forty days is the foundation of the Church's historical forty-day Lenten fast (often essentially a vegan fast, or one in which we refrain from certain foods) before Holy Week, and also one before Christmas.  

 

Now when the tempter came to Him, he said, "If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread."  My study Bible points out that here the devil challenges Christ's relationship to the Father.  If You are the Son of God is a challenge that calls into question the Father's declaration at the Baptism of Christ (which we read in yesterday's reading, above), "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased."  The devil wants Jesus to act independently of God the Father, and to detach Himself from the will of the Father.  In His divine nature, my study Bible says, He shares one will with the Father and the Holy Spirit; He can do nothing of Himself (John 5:30), apart from the Father.  But in Christ's humanity, He possesses free will and at all times must make a choice to remain obedient to the divine will of the Father.  

 

 But He answered and said, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.'"   As Jesus rejects this first temptation, my study Bible says, so He rejects an earthly kingdom, and shows us not to pursue earthly comfort in the "food which perishes" (John 6:27).   As Adam disregarded the divine word in order to pursue the passions of the body (Genesis 3), the New Adam, who is Jesus Christ, conquers all temptation by the divine word instead, which gives human nature the power to conquer Satan.

 

Then the devil took Him up into the holy city, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down.  For it is written:  'He shall give His angels charge over you,' and  'In their hands they shall bear you up, / Lest you dash your foot against a stone.'"  The holy city is Jerusalem, and the temple is the splendid temple as reconstructed by Herod the Great, one of the seven architectural wonders of the world at that time.  My study Bible comments that seeing that Christ had defeated him already through the power of the Scriptures, Satan vainly tries to use Scriptures to put God's power of protection to the test.  (See also 2 Peter 1:19-21 regarding the use and interpretation of Scripture.) 

 

Jesus said to him, "It is written again, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God.'"  My study Bible comments here that trials and temptations come on their own; we should never intentionally expose ourselves to danger in order to test or to prove God's protection.  To do so is to tempt the LORD.  

Again, the devil took Him up on an exceedingly high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory.  And he said to Him, "All these things I will give You if You will fall down and worship me."  Then Jesus said to him, "Away with you, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  Here my study Bible comments that God's Kingdom is not one of earthly power and possessions.  In the devil's test, Jesus was being asked to choose worldly power over the Kingdom of God.  The devil is the "ruler of this world" (John 12:31), "the god of this age" (2 Corinthians 4:4), because the whole world is in his power (1 John 5:19).  But Jesus refuses the road of earthly glory, which would lead Him away from His suffering and death for the redemption of the world.

Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and ministered to Him.   It is well to remember that we also have angels who minister to us, although we face temptations, trials, and difficulties in the world ourselves.  

My study Bible comments on today's passage that the wilderness is a battleground, an image of the world, both the dwelling place of demons and a source of divine tranquility and victory, as noted above.  Why do we have this image of the wilderness?  It is, indeed, a picture of this world, under the influence of Satan and evil, a place where we are born into a heritage of the effects of sin that has come before we're born, and into the mindset of such a world which we inherit and from which we learn.  This is the condition of all of us.  But Christ comes into the world on a particular mission for salvation.  This mission has nothing to do with some heroic feat as pictured in a physical battle where sheer might or invented weapons defeats an enemy, and moral values might be assigned to one side or another depending upon one's perspective and point of view (or who is telling the story).  This wilderness is a battleground that is also mirrored within us, for it is connected to who we are, our own place in the story of salvation.  Just as with Jesus, this wilderness battleground also reflects the battleground within us, where we need to make choices regarding our own lives and our direction in this world -- where we deal with various temptations and yet are also ministered to by angels.  In other words this "wilderness" battleground is one that is also inside of us, our state as human beings, our place in the cosmos as creatures of God within God's creation.  As Jesus has free will as a human being (as pointed out by my study Bible above), so do we.  Often, of course, our ways of thinking and the patterns set in our minds are also things we have inherited from our environment and experiences in one way and another.  But this story does not deny that.  It does illustrate, however, that in our vulnerability to all kinds of influences, we also have another influence to which we can choose to turn in life.  We have Christ who has already gone before us, and through it all.  We have His example, and most powerfully we also have the Holy Spirit to help us.  So it does not really make a difference where we start in this process of recognition of where we are, what the world is about, and where God would call us to go forward within this salvation story.  What matters is that we understand the conditions, the powers and influences at work, and our place in this scheme or plan of Creation.  Because the truth is that we as human beings are most important in this plan.  God has elevated us to this place where we see Jesus go before us, in this temptation scenario and in His responses.  Jesus shows us the way, but does not "fix" things so we have no temptations whatsoever and so that evil is completely banished from our world.  Instead, Jesus has given us the spiritual weapons and tools to make our own battle and our own stand in this wilderness, even within ourselves in fighting the influences we must deal with in our lives.  Christ has weakened the power of the devil, and given us the Holy Spirit to help and to guide through all things.  So, when we are faced with difficult struggles and choices, with things that tempt us to rage, or to despair, or when we think things are so far above our heads and out of our control that we don't know which way to turn in what seems like an impossibly dark place, we have allies to get us through.  We have weapons in a battle for hearts and souls, even when we feel we are most alone and have no allies.  Because Christ has gone there before us, He is also here with us, right in the middle of this struggle and in the difficulties in our lives.  What we have to do is decide that faith is the one thing that will get us through a battle to a place where our lives are meaningful, toward a vision of light that holds for us love and truth, the wisdom of God who loves us -- and not those things that tempt but simply enslave or trick us into something we'd rather not serve at all.  We are bound to be imperfect.  We are bound to make mistakes.  But the purpose of our place in life is not to be perfect in a worldly sense; it is to struggle midst our imperfection and what we have to deal with.  This is not a worldly story, but a true one of love and of salvation; it is not a fantasy invented for a movie or cartoon network or for a posed selfie on social media designed to leave us with a particular impression.  This is real; it is a clear look at our condition, and it gives us a clear answer about how important it is that we take this seriously, and know our places in what is really a cosmic battle with deep significance.  We each have our place in it.  From the Gospels, we know that the ones Christ has selected to carry on this battle were anything but perfect in a worldly sense; they made mistakes, they came with strikes against them, they struggled to understand their faith and to follow Christ.  But it is love, in the end, that wages this battle, a love of Christ that drives us, and our response to knowing His love for us.  For the humility that serves God, forgoes temptation for short-term worldly glory or approval for faith, is the kind of love that is willing to make sacrifices for a greater good, a deeper truth, a better place of the heart, and for the meanings and purposes that truly glorify what it means to be a human being, even when seemingly no one else is around to applaud.  The devil challenges Jesus, "If You are the Son of God . . .."   But He knows who He is.  The question is whether or not we know that we, also, are children of God, and loyal to our own place in God's salvation plan, to the Savior who is the Word of God.

For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him

 

 "No one, when he has lit lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."

Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered  and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."

Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!" 

 

- Luke 8:16–25 

 

Yesterday we read that it came to pass that Jesus went through every city and village, preaching and bringing the glad tidings of the kingdom of God.  And the twelve were with Him, and certain women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities -- Mary called Magdalene, out of whom had come seven demons, and Joanna the wife of Chuza, Herod's steward, and Susanna, and many others who provided for Him from their substance.  And when a great multitude had gathered, and they had come to Him from every city, He spoke by a parable:  "A sower went out to sow his seed.  And as he sowed, some fell by the wayside; and it was trampled down, and the birds of the air devoured it.  Some fell on rock; and as soon as it sprang up, it withered away because it lacked moisture.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up with it and choked it.  But others fell on good ground, sprang up, and yielded a crop a hundredfold."  When He had said these things He cried, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  Then His disciples asked Him, saying, "What does this parable mean?"  And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest it is given in parables, that 'seeing they may not see, and hearing they may not understand.'  Now the parable is this:  The seed is the word of God.  Those by the wayside are the ones who hear; then the devil comes and takes away the word out of their hearts, lest they should believe and be saved.  But the ones on the rock are those who, when they hear, receive the word with joy; and these have no root, who believe for a while and in time of temptation fall away.  Now the ones that fell among thorns are those who, when they have heard, go out and are choked with cares, riches, and pleasures of life, and bring no fruit to maturity.  But the ones that fell on the good ground are those who, having heard the word with a noble and good heart, keep it and bear fruit with patience." 

 

  "No one, when he has lit lamp, covers it with a vessel or puts it under a bed, but sets it on a lampstand, that those who enter may see the light.  For nothing is secret that will not be revealed, nor anything hidden that will not be known and come to light.  Therefore take heed how you hear.  For whoever has, to him more will be given; and whoever does not have, even what he seems to have will be taken from him."  In the Sermon on the Mount, this teaching about the lampstand and the light comes shortly after the Beatitudes.  But here in Luke's Gospel it is juxtaposed shortly after the teaching of the first parable, the Sower.  And so it takes on a slightly different contrast, because Jesus adds, "Therefore take heed how you hear."  He has already spoken of those with ears to hear, who can use their capacity to perceive spiritual truths, who want and desire them, and to live this life of discipleship.  But here He goes a step further, and emphasizes our true desire for the mysteries of the Kingdom, and the living of those truths.  These things that are secret may be revealed and come to light.  Should we so desire to hear, we may also receive more.  For those who do not desire to hear, "even what he seems to have will be taken from him."

Then His mother and brothers came to Him, and could not approach Him because of the crowd.  And it was told Him by some, who said, "Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, desiring to see You."  But He answered  and said to them, "My mother and My brothers are these who hear the word of God and do it."  My study bible explains that it was not Christ's will to deny His mother and brothers.  Instead, we should understand this as correction for both them and His hearers -- that is, according to St. John Chrysostom, "to the right idea concerning Himself," that the family of His Kingdom "is not by nature but by virtue."  See also 11:27-28.

Now it happened, on a certain day, that He got into a boat with His disciples.  And He said to them, "Let us cross over to the other side of the lake."  And they launched out.  But as they sailed He fell asleep.  And a windstorm came down on the lake, and they were filling with water, and were in jeopardy.  And they came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Master, Master, we are perishing!"  Then He arose and rebuked the wind and the raging of the water.  And they ceased, and there was a calm.  But He said to them, "Where is your faith?"  And they were afraid, and marveled, saying to one another, "Who can this be?  For He commands even the winds and water, and they obey Him!"   Jesus directs that the disciples and he should cross over the Sea of Galilee.  My study bible suggests that He deliberately permits the windstorm to arise while He is sleeping, so that He may perfect the disciples' faith and rebuke their weaknesses.   In this way, they will eventually be unshaken by life's temptations.  Here their faith is still mixed with unbelief.  They showed faith when they came to Him, but unbelief when they said, "We are perishing."

The absolute faith that Christ teaches is the same one with which He enters into His own public ministry.  Without fail, he puts His trust in God the Father, and so in this scene in the boat, He also asks His disciples to do so as well -- and by extension He asks us for confidence in our faith, in that we put our trust in Him.  What does it mean to do this?  In the first place, that leads to some complicated conditions.  Do we always expect a particular outcome?  Is Christ's direction for us -- the way our lives are shaped via our faith -- always going to be what we expect or want?  This kind of faith that Jesus displays Himself, as well as the faith He asks for us, first of all requires us to be capable of putting certain things aside in order to really deepen and accept this faith.  That is the life of the Cross.  We might imagine many things that we would love to do, or to be, or to have.  But the life of faith is not about fulfilling our wishes and dreams, nor the fantasies that arise from popular imagination, sales marketing, and keeping up with the Joneses.  So often the grass that seems so much greener isn't at all -- and this is the way that our faith takes us:  away from looking for the greener grass and accepting instead the words of the heart in communion with God, where God rests and asks us to rest in God's love.  That place of trust and faith is at its deepest in us first an asking to let everything else go.  It isn't a sense in which we might need to give up everything on some permanent and lasting basis.  No, this place of faith is the place in the heart where we go and take rest and find communion -- and that moment of communion requires us to surrender and give up everything else for the fullness of that love.  It is from there that we take our respite and nourishment for the inner power of the soul and the confidence that faith gives.  For if a child goes to a parent with some ulterior motive in mind, something the child wants, then where is the fullness of the bond with the parent who can teach and offer something better that the child, in immaturity, can't know?  Do we expect our children to say, "If I don't get this, my parent doesn't love me"?  No, the fullness of love comes from a "no holds barred" kind of depth -- and this is more than a parent/child relationship.  This is Creator to creature, and no one can know what is better for us than Christ.   We don't know how the disciples felt about crossing the Sea of Galilee; all we know is that this is what Jesus asked them to do.  Faith comes in the confidence of trust in Him, and that asks us to be welcoming to God's direction for us.  In the story of His mother and brothers, Christ points to this fact of faith when He makes it clear that the bond between Himself and His followers is also something necessary and real, and something which might include His family, but in fact goes more deeply into the soul and one's identity.  There might be times when we need to suspend social or family "rules" to more clearly listen to the Lord, to give faith the first priority, and to open to the power of that place of love.  It is not a denial of our lives nor ingratitude nor revocation of personal ties.  But it is a cementing and accepting of the power of faith and communion, the connection to Christ that forms the Body of Christ in us and among us, the life of the Kingdom.   And then we come finally, to the first part of today's reading:  the teaching about the lampstand and how we hear.  Tell me how we open our ears to hear if we are not willing to suspend what already fills our minds and ears with notions of how we're supposed to live, in order to more fully listen to the word of God, the whispering of the wisdom of Christ in the heart?  How are we supposed to have ears to hear, if they are filled with the latest gossip, the demands of the time, the trend on Facebook?  We must put those things aside for the moment to pray, put them where they don't interfere with the suspension of time in the heart, the time we spend with God's light, in order to more fully receive.  It is only this way that we can have light to share -- and that we can also receive the "more" that will be given, so that what we have will not be taken away.  It is a question of suspending the loud voices and noises of the world so that we can truly hear, and the hush in the heart wherein God is with us and within us -- just as it is in forgiveness and letting go that we are free enough to find God's way for us through all things.

There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man

 Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem.  Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.  For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.  When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.  And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.  Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, "Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?"  He answered and said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:

'This people honors Me with their lips,
But their heart is far from Me.
And in vain they worship Me,
Teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'

"For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men -- the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do."  He said to them, "All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.  For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'If a man says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban" -- ' (that is, a gift to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down.  And many such things you do."

When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand:  There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!"  When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable.  So he said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also?  Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?"   And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man.  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.  All these evil things come from within and defile a man."

- Mark 7:1-23

Yesterday we read that when evening came, the boat in which the disciples were crossing the Sea of Galilee was in the middle of the sea; and Jesus was alone on the land, praying on the mountain.  Then He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them.  Now about the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by.  And when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and cried out; for they all saw Him and were troubled.  But immediately He talked with them and said to them, "Be of good cheer!  It is I; do not be afraid."  Then He went up into the boat to them, and the wind ceased.  And they were greatly amazed in themselves beyond measure, and marveled.  For they had not understood about the loaves, because their heart was hardened.  When they had crossed over, they came to the land of Gennesaret and anchored there.  And when they came out of the boat, immediately the people recognized Him, ran through that whole surrounding region, and began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was.  Wherever He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment.  And as many as touched Him were made well.

Then the Pharisees and some of the scribes came together to Him, having come from Jerusalem.  Now when they saw some of His disciples eat bread with defiled, that is, with unwashed hands, they found fault.  For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands in a special way, holding the tradition of the elders.  When they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash.  And there are many other things which they have received and hold, like the washing of cups, pitchers, copper vessels, and couches.  Then the Pharisees and scribes asked Him, "Why do Your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat bread with unwashed hands?"  He answered and said to them, "Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written:  'This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me.  And in vain they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.'  For laying aside the commandment of God, you hold the tradition of men -- the washing of pitchers and cups, and many other such things you do."  He said to them, "All too well you reject the commandment of God, that you may keep your tradition.  For Moses said, 'Honor your father and your mother'; and, 'He who curses father or mother, let him be put to death.'  But you say, 'If a man says to his father or mother, "Whatever profit you might have received from me is Corban" -- ' (that is, a gift to God), then you no longer let him do anything for his father or his mother, making the word of God of no effect through your tradition which you have handed down.  And many such things you do."  My study bible notes here that the issue is not the observation of Jewish customs or traditions; Jesus does not prohibit such (Matthew 5:17-19, 23:23).  At issue here is when human tradition is set contrary to the tradition of God.  The tradition of the elders is a body of interpretations of the Law, my study bible explains, which for the Pharisees and the scribes was as authoritative as the Law and frequently superseded it.  In accordance with this tradition, offerings (which were called Corban) could be promised to God so that property or earnings could still be used for oneself during one's lifetime, but not for anyone else, including parents.  These secondary traditions, my study bible notes, obscure the primary tradition of the Law, contained in God's commandments.  As will be the hallmark of Christ's response to the Pharisees and scribes, He criticizes them for their hypocrisy and therefore failure of true priorities.

When He had called all the multitude to Himself, He said to them, "Hear Me, everyone, and understand:  There is nothing that enters a man from outside which can defile him; but the things which come out of him, those are the things that defile a man.  If anyone has ears to hear, let him hear!"  When He had entered a house away from the crowd, His disciples asked Him concerning the parable.  So he said to them, "Are you thus without understanding also?  Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him, because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?"   And He said, "What comes out of a man, that defiles a man.  For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.  All these evil things come from within and defile a man."   Here my study bible explains that food cannot defile a person because it is created by God, and is therefore pure.  Evil things are not from God, and those are what defile a person. 

Jesus gets down to brass tacks, so to speak.  He levels the playing field with His criticisms that bare what is real and what is not, what counts, and what is extraneous criticism just for the sake of criticizing.  Again, we find ourselves in a place today where the world is faced with a pandemic, and all kinds of responses are possible.  With Jesus, we always see the emphasis on what is entirely real and valuable, what counts and what matters the most.  Moreover, His entirely helpful emphasis on what is truly defiling and what is not makes us focus.  What are we doing that is harmful?  Do we influence others in a bad way, or do we help?  Today, in the midst of fear of how we approach an epidemic of a virus, there is extreme emphasis on cleanliness, on our need to protect one another, on avoiding contracting disease through sanitary and other protective practices.  But when these things become more important than understanding the character of hope and love, we lose our way.  What is truly defiling and what is not?  Do we lose ourselves in the frenzy of the time, or do we focus on what is important for ourselves as persons?  We should not lose track of the things that are really meaningful at this time, the things that uplift, and the things that destroy.  Too much useless criticism, for the sake of criticizing, or merely for political or personal gain, only adds fuel to the fire. It adds to the stress of time, and tears down our capacity for hope.  There are those who might take advantage of such a time of uncertainty and its accompanying temptations, manipulating others for gain.  But if we pay attention to the priorities here given by Christ, we will stand in good stead throughout this period of time.  What really defiles us?  Jesus names evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.  All of these things may be temptations to weaknesses at this time.  And note especially the focus of Jesus, which reinforces our Lenten concerns:  the focus is not on what is going on outside of us, for that cannot make us spiritually impure or defiled.   Jesus' focus is on what comes from within and proceeds outward.  Are we watching our own speech, or how we contribute to the time?  Are we caring and concerned?  Are we taking advantage to vent and tear apart?  Are we uncaring and callous, do we treat those who love us with neglect?  What is really the fallout of such a time for us, and what does it teach us?    In this time of unprecedented attention to what might come to us from outside of ourselves, let us follow Jesus' words and pay extra attention to the things that come from inside of us.  Let us focus on what we can do from our own resources to positively affect our surroundings and the atmosphere of this time.  In the Gospels, the difficulties endured by the disciples, such as the windstorm in yesterday's reading (above), are seen as experiences which work to strengthen their faith, to build their character, and their reliance upon and dedication to Christ.  Let us consider this time as another such trial or temptation, and see what we can do to endure the test, to build strength through the struggle, and especially to refocus on building our faith and the ways that we handle things according to Christ's word.  In the end, that's all we have to combat invisible enemies -- no matter what they may be.  For that builds the character and an environment of resourcefulness, good cheer, endurance, creativity, and inner strength to do what we need to do now.  Let us build up and not deplete, let us find the best way forward, His way, right now.

Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil

 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil.  And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.  And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'" 

Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"

Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.

"For it is written:

'He shall give His angels charge over you,
To keep you,'

"and,

'In their hands they shall bear you up,
Lest you dash your foot  against a stone.'"

And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God."

Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.

- Luke 4:1-13

 Yesterday we read that as the people were in expectation, and all reasoned in their hearts about John the Baptist, whether he was the Christ or not, John answered, saying to all, "I indeed baptize you with water; but One mightier than I is coming, whose sandal strap I am not worthy to loose.  He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire.  His winnowing fan is in His hand, and he will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather the wheat into His barn; but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire."  And with many other exhortations he preached to the people.  But Herod the tetrarch, being rebuked by him concerning Herodias, his brother Philip's wife, and for all the evils which Herod had done, also added this, above all, that he shut John up in prison.  When all the people were baptized, it came to pass that Jesus also was baptized; and while He prayed, the heaven was opened.  And the Holy Spirit descended in bodily form like a dove upon Him, and a voice came from heaven which said, "You are My beloved Son; in You I am well pleased."

 Then Jesus, being filled with the Holy Spirit, returned from the Jordan and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, being tempted for forty days by the devil.  My study bible cites the dual symbolism of Jesus' exodus into the wilderness after His Baptism.  First, it fulfills the Old Testament type, in which Israel traveled in the wilderness for forty years after its own "baptism" in the Red Sea.  Second, it prefigures our own journey through the fallen world after baptism, as we struggle toward the kingdom of God.

And in those days He ate nothing, and afterward, when they had ended, He was hungry.  And the devil said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread."  But Jesus answered him, saying, "It is written, 'Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God.'"   Each time Jesus rebukes the devil, it's done with the truth and power of the Scripture.  My study bible says that this teaches the faithful to become immersed in Scripture, so that we may resist and drive away each temptation (see Psalm 119:11).  Note that the temptations of Christ begin with If you are the Son of God . . ..   The challenge to faith and to identity is within the relationship of Christ to God the Father, and this temptation explicitly calls into question the declaration of the voice of the Father at Christ's Baptism (see yesterday's reading, above).  My study bible writes that the devil wants Jesus to act independently and to detach Himself from the will of God the Father.  In His divine nature, Christ shares one will with the Father and the Holy Spirit; He can do nothing of Himself (John 5:30), separate from the Father.  But in His humanity, Jesus possesses free will and at all times He must choose to remain obedient to the divine will of the Father, sharing with us this human nature.  In His fast, Jesus is doing just that:  explicitly making choices in the face of temptation, giving us an example of our own power and limitation with our own struggles with temptation.   In rejecting this first temptation, Jesus rejects the pull of the worldly comforts of life (in the "food which perishes," John 6:27), in order to put first the kingdom of God in the way in which He must. 

Then the devil, taking Him up on a high mountain, showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  And the devil said to Him, "All this authority I will give You, and their glory; for this has been delivered to me, and I give it to whomever I wish.  Therefore, if You will worship before me, all will be Yours."  And Jesus answered and said to him, "Get behind Me, Satan!  For it is written, 'You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve.'"  We observe the power of the devil, who showed Him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time.  This is a temptation to a worldly kingdom and power, over the kingdom of God.  My study bible says that the devil is the "ruler of this world" (John 12:31), "the god of this age" (2 Corinthians 4:4), as the whole world is in his power (1 John 5:19).  It notes that Jesus refuses the road of earthly glory, which would lead Him away from His mission -- and His suffering and death which are for the redemption of the world.  Note the authority with which Christ speaks:  Get behind Me, Satan!

Then he brought Him to Jerusalem, set Him on the pinnacle of the temple, and said to Him, "If You are the Son of God, throw Yourself down from here.  For it is written:  'He shall give His angels charge over you, to keep you,' and, 'In their hands they shall bear you up, lest you dash your foot  against a stone.'"  And Jesus answered and said to him, "It has been said, 'You shall not tempt the LORD your God."  This is a temptation to God, to prove care and faithfulness.  My study bible says that trials and temptations come on their own; we shouldn't ever intentionally expose ourselves to danger in order to prove God's protection.  To do so is to tempt the LORD.  Note that Jesus does not bother to argue or reason with the devil, merely to assert the authoritative command not to tempt the Lord.   Satan here tries to use Scriptures (as do the Pharisees in John 7:52), but without himself understanding their truth or power.  My study bible says that knowing and quoting Scripture without true understanding is worthless at best, and ultimately condemnable.  Without a real understanding (particularly through the perspective of the collective experience and wisdom of the Holy Tradition of the Church and the Holy Spirit at work through it), the Scriptures are robbed of their authority (see also 2 Peter 1:19-21). 

 Now when the devil had ended every temptation, he departed from Him until an opportune time.  Temptation will repeatedly show itself throughout the ministry of Christ (see 22:40-46, 23:35; Matthew 6:21-23).

What is temptation really all about?  In the Psalm that is known as a chief prayer of repentance, the psalmist confesses to God, saying, "Against You, You only, have I sinned, and done this evil in Your sight—that You may be found just when You speak, and blameless when You judge" (Psalm 51:4).  Temptation is primarily an invitation to walk outside of the path of God, away from that narrow gate which Jesus describes in Matthew 7:13-14.  While we are assured of God's love, remembering God and keeping ourselves within that communion of faith is a difficult journey in a world that offers so many ways not to do so.  Temptation is just that:  the "oh-so-much-better" ideas, the shortcuts, the ones that seem to make so much more sense, that everybody else would seem to find pleasing, the million-and-one ways in which we forget about God and just take the route that seems to present itself in the way that is the most pleasing.  What Jesus emphasizes against temptation is not about worrying what everyone else will think, or how others will view Him, or even how He will impress anyone with His feats alone here in the wilderness.  He simply returns again and again to His relationship with God the Father.  And so it is with us:  primarily, temptation is all about asking us to forget about God.  Whatever form it comes in, we can be sure that it is designed to do that.  In John's Gospel, at the Last Supper, Jesus told the disciples that "the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service" (see this reading).  As the Gospels fully attest in the story of Christ and His own persecution, the notion of service to God can be used even as a way to draw us away from God.  How is this possible?  Jesus offers us a way within a communion, in a Kingdom, in a particular sense of how we understand what God wants of us.  This "straight and narrow" way involves the heart, the whole of us, a desire to know what God wants of us, and a willingness to go through difficulties should we be called there.  In the great paradox of our faith,  Christ has gone that extraordinarily difficult route as one of us, going to the Cross in His loyalty to God and His love for us.  In His Ascension, the Church through its tradition has understood that His humanity ascended with Him, glorifying human beings, making us capable of being like Him.  The adoration of the angels, found in so many testimonies of saints and theologians, hymnologists and faithful in the Spirit, teaches us something extraordinary:  that His wounds in sacrifice for love of God and of human beings made Him extraordinarily beautiful.  In the eyes of the Spirit and the holiness of our faith, then, the resistance to temptation that would draw us away from this love in itself constitutes an act of beauty, just as Jesus repeatedly refers His time of Crucifixion as that which "glorifies" (John 12:27-33).  In today's reading, Jesus offers us a way through temptation.  He repeatedly asserts the relationship between Himself and the Father.  He "remembers God."  As we walk through life we will find a thousand "good reasons" why we should forget about such a struggle, and the difficulties or sacrifices we may make to do the same.  But our beauty is within this love, our truth remains there, our identity secure in that place of love which knows us best.  Let us find the way to be like Him, and come to know this faith and path for ourselves and in our own lives, even if our temptations are nothing at all like His.  Let us remember that it is the Holy Spirit at work in Jesus' time in the wilderness, and seek to find this Helper for ourselves, and rely on His word in our hearts.  Our faith is not simply written in stone, but a living realization ongoing in our lives.