Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?

 

 At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"  Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me.  

"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.  Woe to the world because of offenses!  For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!  If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.  And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire." 

 

- Matthew 18:1-9 

 

Yesterday we read that while Jesus and the disciples were staying in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up."  And they were exceedingly sorrowful.  When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?"  He said, "Yes."  And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon?  From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?"   Peter said to Him, "From strangers."  Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free.  Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first.  And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."

 

  At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"  Then Jesus called a little child to Him, set him in the midst of them, and said, "Assuredly, I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven.  Therefore whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven.  Whoever receives one little child like this in My name receives Me."  My study Bible comments that this question, "Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?" is an indication of a selfish interest in worldly power.  Jesus points to a little child as the model of true discipleship, and in so doing emphasizes the virtues which are required for entrance into the kingdom of heaven.  These virtues are named by my study Bible as humility, dependence, lowliness, simplicity, obedience, and a willingness to love and be loved.  In Orthodox iconography, it says, St. Ignatius of Antioch is shown as this child.  In certain legends of saints, he is the boy who gave the loaves and fishes (John 6:9).  

"But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea."  Little ones, my study Bible says, include all who have childlike humility and simplicity, all who are poor in spirit.   

 

"Woe to the world because of offenses!  For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!  If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.  And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire."  See also Matthew 5:29.   Jesus is referring to a type of emergency operation, in which a diseased body part must be removed in order to save the body from spreading infection or disease.  He is using such as an illustration of decisive action to avoid sin, and how dangerous sin -- that which causes offenses -- is to the soul.  My study Bible adds that this also applies to harmful relationships which must be severed for the salvation of all parties (see Luke 14:26; 1 Corinthians 5:5).  

What are offenses, and what does Jesus mean by this?  Let us begin with the question asked by the disciples:  "Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven?"  My study Bible calls it a selfish interest in worldly power.  If we compare the kingdoms of the world (or even the states of today), we understand the pursuit of power -- and therefore position -- to be the primary aims of those involved, the "great ones" or "greatest" who rule.  But greatness for Jesus Christ has another definition, which has hopefully touched our world to some extent, and given us concepts of rule that involve more than simply conquering and exploiting.  Perhaps the disciples understand that the Kingdom to come will be like a worldly kingdom; perhaps they misunderstand what it means that Christ will be raised at the third day following His Passion.  This would coincide with the popular expectations of the Messiah.  But Jesus must make them understand what kind of Kingdom they must serve and how they must serve it.  Most importantly, He gives us the concept of greatness.  But in so doing, He begins, importantly, with what they must do and not do as those who wish to be great.  They must first be "converted and become as little children," for without this there is no entry into this kingdom of heaven!  "Therefore," Jesus says, "whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven."   This is an upside down image of the kind of worldly power the disciples know from the empires and kingdoms around them.  How can being humble as a little child make one the greatest?  Then Jesus leads them into an understanding of His version of leadership.  Jesus' first and highest priority is the little ones who in faith will come to them in His Church:  "But whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in Me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck, and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.  Woe to the world because of offenses!  For offenses must come, but woe to that man by whom the offense comes!"  Exploitation, false teaching, leading the little ones astray, offenses that cause them to be lost, will meet with the severest punishment.  Jesus proclaims woe to those who cause such offense.  This is an image of leadership in stark contrast to figures we can read about in the Gospels, like Herod Antipas or his father Herod the Great.  And then comes what is perhaps the most powerful teaching of all:  "If your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life lame or maimed, rather than having two hands or two feet, to be cast into the everlasting fire.  And if your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out and cast it from you.  It is better for you to enter into life with one eye, rather than having two eyes, to be cast into hell fire."  Jesus is using the image of a body part that needs amputation to illustrate the power of our habits which cause offense, harm, abuse to others; and in this case it is in the context of using power over those who are "little ones" in our world.  That is, those who come in humility and faith -- trust -- into the Church and under their care.  A hand or foot can strike one less powerful, either one can stray where it's not wanted, cross boundaries that shouldn't be crossed, reach out to take or steal what doesn't belong to it.  An eye can gaze with envy, with covetousness, with hatred and rage, with the desire to control or to exploit.  What Jesus is speaking about is the internal life of a person, and how essential it is that we know ourselves, our flaws, and be willing to take decisive action to cut from ourselves the habits and impulses that lead to the offenses He condemns.  And this then becomes the definition of leadership -- the capacity to sacrifice the things we might even hold dear, the habits of a lifetime that are  hard to break, and cast them from ourselves in order to make greatness meaningful in terms of serving God.  This in turn is discipleship.  That is, it is the discipline which He asks of His disciples, and in turn of us.  What we should note at this stage is that Jesus is ultimately most concerned with the "little ones" who will be in the care of these future apostles and bishops of the Church.  He is teaching them how greatness is connected to the qualities of God which are most highly associated with grace and mercy, the extension of care and compassion.  In terms of the ways that power -- especially state power -- worked in Jesus' time, this is a powerful antidote to its frequent and even normative abuses.  Caesar's "greatness" was concerned with how many he had conquered, even killed in battle.  Christ offers a different greatness, and one which would come to revolutionize the world, bringing institutions of care and compassion such as hospitals and charitable behavior into social life.  But for now, let us pay close attention to Christ's most powerful admonitions which come in the form of prophesying "woe" for those by whom abuses to the little ones in the Church come.  It is a word we need to pay attention to today, and His teaching about a willingness to sacrifice our own impulses to abusive or manipulative power remains equally necessary as it was then, a reminder about what makes us human beings of truly "great" stature.  In a highly consumerist-oriented society of the modern developed world, we might be easily misled to think that some sort of greatness is measured by how far we can indulge our own desires.  But this is not the greatness described by Jesus.  On the contrary, Christ's greatness depends upon our own discipline and is clearly measured by an internal yardstick of self-mastery in service to something much higher than ourselves.   True greatness in this Kingdom is not measured by our own yardstick but rather taken in the measure that Christ gives us.  Let us endeavor through our lives to take His measure for ourselves, and seek the greatness He gives us.  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches, "Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth" (Matthew 5:5).   But this word "meek" has taken on characteristics in modern language that mislead our understanding of Christ's greatness, for Jesus' meekness and gentleness is strength under control, in discipleship and obedience to God, and seeking God's way for ourselves.  Let us more fully seek to embody the kind of strength He gives us through faith.

 

 

 

And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you

 

 Now while they were staying in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up."  And they were exceedingly sorrowful.  

When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?"  He said, "Yes."  And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon?  From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?"   Peter said to Him, "From strangers."  Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free.  Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first.  And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."

 

- Matthew 17:22–27 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus, together with James, John, and Peter, had returned from the Mount of Transfiguration, they came to the multitude, and a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.  So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you?  How long shall I bear with you?  Bring him here to Me."  And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.  Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"  So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.  However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."

 

  Now while they were staying in Galilee, Jesus said to them, "The Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men, and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up."  And they were exceedingly sorrowful.  This is the second time that Jesus has predicted His death and Resurrection to the disciples.  (See this reading for the first, which immediately followed Peter's confession of faith that Jesus is Christ the Son.)  My study Bible says that Christ's repeated predictions of what is to come show that He is going to His Passion freely and is not being taken against His will.  

 

When they had come to Capernaum, those who received the temple tax came to Peter and said, "Does your Teacher not pay the temple tax?"  He said, "Yes."  And when he had come into the house, Jesus anticipated him, saying, "What do you think, Simon?  From whom do the kings of the earth take customs or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?"  Peter said to Him, "From strangers."  Jesus said to him, "Then the sons are free.  Nevertheless, lest we offend them, go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first.  And when you have opened its mouth, you will find a piece of money; take that and give it to them for Me and you."  My study Bible explains here that the temple tax was an annual head tax (meaning on individuals) for all male Jews over twelve years of age for the maintenance of the temple; only the priests were exempt from this tax.  See Numbers 3:43-51.  Since Jesus is the Son of God, it noes, He is both High Priest and "proprietor" of the temple, and is therefore exempt from the tax.  Nonetheless Jesus pays it anyway -- both to avoid unnecessary offense, and also to show that He has totally identified Himself with mankind.  

Several patristic commentaries on the passage regarding the temple tax comment on the coin as a symbol.  Roman coins bore the image of Caesar on them, together with an inscription naming Caesar as divine.  The tax itself is a kind of redemption, paid for individual salvation.  These commentaries note that Christ, having established to Peter that He is exempt from such a tax, does not take the coin from His own treasury of His ministry, nor from His own spending money.  Rather, we have this mysterious, seemingly "magical" story of the fish taken by the fisherman Peter.  In this miracle Christ tells Peter to go to the sea, cast in a hook, and take the fish that comes up first; in it he will find the money for the temple tax.  We look first at the specific direction here from Jesus; each detail makes us assured that this indeed is a powerful miracle which we must not overlook.  As Jesus has already shown that He is master over the sea (symbolic of the world) on two occasions when the disciples were struggling with storm and waves (see Matthew 8:23-27; 14:22-33), here He demonstrates the same again.  But in so doing, Peter takes from the sea an element of the world through the power of the Lord in order to "fulfill all righteousness" (Matthew 3:14-16).  We may also remember Christ's words to the fishermen Simon Peter and Andrew, "Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men" (Matthew 4:18-20).  Christ will work through His apostles to redeem human beings who will exchange a worldly image for the image of Christ, a true identity as a "son" or adopted child and heir of God.  Christ is the first, but there will be many more to follow (see 1 Corinthians 15:20-28).  Out of this world, the Lord will redeem human beings made in the image and likeness of God, through those who will become the fishers of men.  We remember also that the fish would become a symbol for Christology.  The ancient Greek word, which is the one used in the Gospels to mean fish, is ιχθυς (ixthys).  Used as an acronym, taking each letter as the beginning of a word, this came to stand for Ιησους Χριστος, θεου Υιος, Σωτηρ (Iesous Christos, Theou Yios, Sotir) meaning "Jesus Christ, Son of God, Savior."  In His Incarnation, and through His Passion which He predicts for the second time in today's reading, He brings us salvation, the true manifestation of what it is to be "redeemed."  In His Passion, He pays the price for all of us, as He pays the temple tax today for Peter.  All of it through the power of the Lord, which turns the things which belong to our world into the things that work for God (Romans 8:28), allowing us all to become "sons of God."

However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting

 

And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.  So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you?  How long shall I bear with you?  Bring him here to Me."  And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.  Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"  So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you.  However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."

 

 - Matthew 17:14-21 

 

On Saturday we read that, following Peter's confession of faith and Jesus' first warning to the disciples of His Passion to come, after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them.  His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.  And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.  Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.  Hear Him!"  And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.  But Jesus came and touched them and said, "Arise, and do not be afraid."  When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.  Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead."  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.  But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished.  Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands."  Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.   

And when they had come to the multitude, a man came to Him, kneeling down to Him and saying, "Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is an epileptic and suffers severely; for he often falls into the fire and often into the water.  So I brought him to Your disciples, but they could not cure him."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you?  How long shall I bear with you?  Bring him here to Me."  And Jesus rebuked the demon, and it came out of him; and the child was cured from that very hour.  Then the disciples came to Jesus privately and said, "Why could we not cast it out?"  So Jesus said to them, "Because of your unbelief; for assuredly, I say to you, if you have faith as a mustard seed, you will say to this mountain, 'Move from here to there,' and it will move; and nothing will be impossible for you."  My study Bible comments that sickness in Scripture is often connected to demonic activity.  As the father here is kneeling down before Christ, he shows humility.  However, he lacks faith.   Although the disciples also lacked faith, Christ rebukes the man for placing the blame on the disciples when it was his greater lack of faith that prevented the boy's healing.  Effectively, Jesus is defending His disciples in front of the crowds, but later rebukes them privately.  My study Bible says that this teaches us that we ought first to correct people in private (see Matthew 18:15-17).  According to St. John Chrysostom, this latter rebuke is actually directed to the nine disciples who could not cast out the demon, for Jesus and "the pillars" of faith (Peter, James, and John -- see Galatians 2:9) were not included in the rebuke, as they had been on the mountain with Christ. 

"However, this kind does not go out except by prayer and fasting."  This kind, my study Bible explains, refers to all powers of darkness, and not just those which cause a particular illness.  It notes that the banishment of demons requires faith, prayer, and fasting, as there is no healing and no victory in spiritual warfare without all three.  Beginning with the Didache, patristic commentary has taught that both the person in need of healing and the person who performs the healing must believe, pray, and fast. 

Today's reading opens us up to ask the question, "What is faith, and how does it work?"  Ultimately when we look at the root of the word in the Gospel for faith, we see it is the word that means essentially "trust" in Greek.  To trust in Christ is a powerful testament to faith, to trust in God involves the heart and the deepest parts of who we are.  Trust is also a powerful component of love.  For, if we have ever had the sad experience of a broken relationship, we might find that a betrayal of trust is perhaps the greatest breaker of such bonds of love.  Forgiveness may come to repair that bond when the process of repentance is accepted by both parties, and so trust can be re-established.  Faith, therefore, in this sense involves both trust and love, and includes the power of loyalty derived from both in terms of our own communion with God.  There are many ways in which trust may be broken, and thus our own sense of ourselves within God's communion or the Body of Christ may also be broken through betrayals made in bad faith.  But our depth of rootedness in our Creator goes beyond such earthly betrayals or seeming letdowns.  Faith in God does not simply depend upon the rest of the community of believers alone, but -- as Jesus indicates here -- our own initiative is indispensable to faith.  If that were not so, why would both prayer and fasting be indicated here as effective methods of increasing faith?  We often think of engaging in these historical practices of the Church in terms of responding to faith that is already present -- that is, we might think of following these practices because we have faith.  But what if we were to take Christ's words here as an effective and powerful prescription for increasing our faith?  Then we would perhaps have the right mindset He seeks, that He is encouraging His disciples to engage in these practices in order to maintain and increase good faith, for effective healing in the Church and all that might entail for us.  In the historical mind of the Church, these practices are kept and held, and while many people might feel they are practices only for the very devout or those dedicated monks and nuns in monasteries, it is here offered to us as ways to increase and develop deeper faith.  Aside from this, these practices encourage our discipline as followers of Christ, and moreover they help us to know that we are far more capable than we know in terms of deepening our communion with God.  For those who consider such disciplines extremely difficult, consider the varying degrees to which we might incorporate them more regularly in our lives and our schedules.  A prayer rule should not exceed our patience or our capacity for managing our time.  Fasting is typically practiced in stages during traditional periods like Lent, and may be lessened or expanded in strictness; that is, moving toward a vegan diet in general, but also can be understood as fasting from certain harmful practices it would be better to curb.  There are those who fast from social media, for example, or we may choose to fast from gossip.  In essence, we may come to see Christ's words as not simply for those like the disciples who have honorary positions in the Church, but for all believers who wish to draw more close to Christ, and to experience the greater benefits of faith in our lives, including a deepening sense of self-discipline under Christ's love.  In this way, we might find, in fact, a stronger and deeper sense of self that is given to us in return, strengthening us in our bond of love to Christ, and in which we in turn may take confidence in our lives.  Let us look ahead to that place of deepening faith by following Christ and putting into practice the things He guides us toward, thereby moving more deeply into the place He has for us in His embrace.

His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light

 

 Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; and He was transfigured before them.  His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.  And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.  Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.  Hear Him!"  And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.  But Jesus came and touched them and said, "Arise, and do not be afraid."  When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.  

 

Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead."  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.  But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished.  Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands."  Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist. 

 

- Matthew 17:1-13 

 

Yesterday we read that from that time (just after Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ), Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

 

Now after six days Jesus took Peter, James, and John his brother, led them up on a high mountain by themselves; . . ..  My study Bible says that a high mountain is often a place of divine revelation in Scripture (Matthew 5:1; Genesis 22:2; Exodus 19:3, 23; Isaiah 2:3; 2 Peter 1:18).  Significantly, we're told that the event which occurs in today's reading takes place after six days following Peter's confession of faith that Jesus is the Christ, and Christ's own confession to the disciples that His messiahship will be one of suffering and sacrifice, and His death on the Cross, followed by His Resurrection.  These "six days" is the period in between these events; thus the Transfiguration takes place on the eighth day -- a day signifying renewal of all things, the eternal day of the Lord.  

 

  . . . and He was transfigured before them.  The Transfiguration (Metamorphosis in the Greek) is a major feast day in Orthodox and other Churches, and is particularly central to the understanding of Orthodox theology. 
 

His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light.  And behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them, talking with Him.  Then Peter answered and said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if You wish, let us make here three tabernacles:  one for You, one for Moses, and one for Elijah."  My study Bible tells us that this is a theophany; that is, a manifestation of God.  It is an expression of the divinity of Christ through a display of His uncreated, divine energy. Here there are several elements which show that Christ is Messiah and God.  First, because God is light (1 John 1:5), the bright cloud, the shining of Jesus' face like the sun, and this stunning whiteness of His garment, all express that Jesus is God, my study Bible says.  In some icons the light is shown as something beyond white; that is, a blue-white, ineffable color that indicates spiritual origin.  The Transfiguration also is a foreshadowing of His future glory; as Messiah He will usher in the long-awaited Kingdom.  The presence of Moses and Elijah give us the communion of the saints (Hebrews 12:1).  Both are recognizable and talk with the Lord.  My study Bible notes that Moses represents the law and all who have died, while Elijah represents the prophets and -- as he did not experience death, all those who are alive in Christ.  The law and the prophets, the living and the dead, therefore, all bear witness to Jesus as Messiah, and fulfillment of the Old Testament.  My study Bible adds that the bright cloud (see the verses that follow) is a recollection of temple worship and the cloud that went in front of the Israelites in the wilderness, the visible sign of God being extraordinarily present.  So for Peter, the Feast of Tabernacles being the feast of the coming Kingdom, he asks to build booths as at that festival, which are symbols of God's dwelling among the just in the Kingdom. 

While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them; and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, saying, "This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.  Hear Him!"  And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their faces and were greatly afraid.  But Jesus came and touched them and said, "Arise, and do not be afraid."  When they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.     God the Father bears witness from heaven concerning the Son, and the divine glory that is Christ's by nature.  He is true God of true God, as the Creed states. Here is the manifestation of the Trinity, in the transfiguration of Jesus, the voice of the Father testifying to Christ's divine sonship, and also the Spirit present in the dazzling light surrounding Christ's person and overshadowing the whole mountain in the bright cloud.  

Now as they came down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man is risen from the dead."  And His disciples asked Him, saying, "Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Indeed, Elijah is coming first and will restore all things.  But I say to you that Elijah has come already, and they did not know him but did to him whatever they wished.  Likewise the Son of Man is also about to suffer at their hands."  Then the disciples understood that He spoke to them of John the Baptist.  My study Bible comments that because of the presence of Moses and Elijah in the Transfiguration and their experience of this event, the disciples can now understand Jesus' words that "Elijah has come already" as referring to John the Baptist.  It notes that their eyes have been opened to the fact that Malachi's prophecy (Malachi 4:5-6) refers to one coming "in the spirit and power of Elijah" (Luke 1:17) rather than Elijah himself.  

The Transfiguration figures highly in the theology of the human person, not simply as revelation of who Christ is.  Clearly for the disciples, this revelation of Christ's identity -- following so soon upon Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ, and Christ's own prophesy of His suffering and human death, followed by Resurrection -- works as an affirmation for these disciples. These three, Peter, John, and James, form the inner circle of the disciples, the ones closest to Jesus and the ones whose faith is the strongest.  But there is more to the Transfiguration and this important revelation of identity, and even of the Trinity.  For in the Transfiguration we behold the divine light of Christ, and we are to understand that it is this light that not only belongs to deity, but is shared with us through faith.  Through faith, and through grace, we also may become transfigured in our own lives.  So the Transfiguration, or Metamorphosis in Greek, becomes not only a promise of Christ's identity, but also a promise of who we may become through faith.  St. Athanasius is perhaps most well-known for a foundational pillar of Christian theology, which teaches that God became human so that human beings could become like God.  That is, through faith and grace, and through the light of Christ shared with us and within us, we become more Christ-like.  We are able to fulfill the promise that we are created in the image and likeness of God (Genesis 1:26).  We are meant to become transfigured ourselves through this light and grace, the energies and mercy of God, just as we see the disciples evolve through the Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles.  They grow in wisdom and in the character their own "works" reveal through time, especially after Pentecost.  St. Paul writes of the fruit of the Spirit, contrasting them with the works of the flesh (see Galatians 5:19-23).  Christ speaks of the light that we are given so that we may also shine it into the world, in the Sermon on the Mount.  He tells His disciples, "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven" (Matthew 5:14-16).  This light is given to us through our identity as children of God, and the Spirit is shared with us so that we may also reflect the light back into the world as we are able.  But all of this comes through faith, and as we grow in faith, so may that light also be strengthened, illumined, boosted, and reflected more deeply through us.  We can see this reflected in icons and the halos of the saints and angels which are familiar to us.  Light figures in images from the Old Testament, read through the understanding of the New, in which, for example, the Burning Bush witnessed by Moses (Exodus 3) is seen as an icon or type of the Virgin Mary, whose womb was "not consumed by the fire of divinity" although thereby Jesus was conceived.  All of these images of light correspond to what is divine, and yet human beings may also share in and bear this light into the world and through their lives.  So let us consider the Transfiguration and what it means for us.  If in our lives we have found some light, or Christ the true Light who shows us the way, saints whose light shines for us -- well, then, through the Transfiguration we know that this light, corresponding to divine fire, this illumination which is beyond the light of the world always has more to give us, more to show us, more ways in which we may be illumined and in turn illuminate what is around us by our own transfiguration in God's light.  For this is what we are meant for, the only way we are prepared to dwell in God's Kingdom, and live within that light that illumines and yet burns all that is not in accord with it, that cannot stand in the light.  For we are meant for this light.  In the Easter/Pascha service of the Orthodox Church, a candle is brought into the darkened church from the altar, and with the words "Come receive the light," that fire is distributed to all, for each one's candle to celebrate Resurrection.  Without the Transfiguration, we could not understand the fullness of this light that we do, nor the meanings we have received, and at the same time, all the promise in it for the mysteries we do not yet know but are promised.  In the Transfiguration, let us not forget, Christ gives us not only this brilliant divine light, but it is shared in the vision of the apostles, given to us in the communion of saints (Moses and Elijah), revealing to us the Holy Trinity, and establishing for us the Christ, the Messiah, the One whom we need and whose light we need to show us the way to the fullness of life, for "in Your light we see life" (Psalm 36:9).  John's Gospel tells us, "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men" (John 1:4).  The Transfiguration shows us this light for all.

 

For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?

 

 From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me.  For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.  For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works.  Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."

 

- Matthew 16:21-28 

 

Yesterday we read that when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ. 

 

  From that time Jesus began to show to His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised the third day.  Then Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, "Far be it from You, Lord; this shall not happen to You!"  But He turned and said to Peter, "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  My study Bible points out that after Peter's confession, Jesus here reveals the true nature of His messiahship:  the mystery of His Passion.  It explains that expectations were that the Messiah would live forever, so the notion that Christ would die was perplexing to Peter, and it would remain scandalous to the Jews even after the Resurrection (1 Corinthians 1:23).  Here Peter unwittingly speaks for Satan, for the devil did not want Christ to fulfill His mission and save humankind through suffering and death.  

Then Jesus said to His disciples, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me."  The cross was a most dreaded instrument of Roman punishment, but, as my study Bible puts it, it is also a symbol of suffering by Christians in imitation of Christ.  We therefore practice self-denial for the sake of the love of God and the gospel.  To accept this type of suffering is not punishment, and neither is it an end of itself.  It is rather a means to overcome the fallen world for the sake of the Kingdom, and to crucify the flesh with its passions and desires (Galatians 5:24).

"For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."  My study Bible calls it the central paradox of Christian living:  that in grasping for temporal things, we lose the eternal; but in sacrificing everything in this world, we gain eternal riches that are unimaginable (1 Corinthians 2:9).  

"For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?  For the Son of Man will come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and then He will reward each according to His works."  Christ's questions regarding the soul emphasize the total foolishness of accumulating worldly wealth or power for its own sake -- none of this can redeem a fallen soul, nor benefit a person in the life to come.  

"Assuredly, I say to you, there are some standing here who shall not taste death till they see the Son of Man coming in His kingdom."  My study Bible says this is a reference to those who would witness the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-9; in tomorrow's reading), as well as those in every generation who will experience the presence of God's Kingdom.

In today's reading there is a deep and repeated concern with exchange.  Christ asks, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul?  Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?"  Here Christ gives us a statement of exchange:  "For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it."  There is the attempt to save which results in loss of life; and the willingness to lose which results in finding.  But Jesus juxtaposes the things that make up this exchange in His first response to Peter's remark that He should avoid the Cross:  "Get behind Me, Satan!  You are an offense to Me, for you are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men."  There are the things of God and the things of men.  Moreover, Peter's remark has the tinge of Satan, who does not desire Christ's salvific sacrifice and mission.  So there is the question posed to us:  what do we exchange for this heavenly reality, this grace that comes and permeates life so that we, also, may be participating in the kingdom of heaven?  What is the exchange that redeems the soul, that gives it values and meaning so that we enter into a movement of deepening closeness to God, and one which can stand us in good stead at that time of Christ's reward of each according to his works?  Of course, we have the image of Christ on the Cross so strongly in our minds and consciousness; this was the ultimate sacrifice for us all, so that each of us may be redeemed into this Kingdom to be with Him.  But what are we asked to give and to exchange?  We participate with Him on the Cross also, as He indicates when He says that we each must take up our own cross.  If we think about it, there is practically nothing in this world which we know of that can be gained without sacrifice.  If your dream is of owning a home, then one must give one's time to work for that.  Even theft, while always a sin, requires some effort (and unrepented sin may result in the loss or sacrifice of one's soul, opening ourselves up to Christ's question -- what is worth that?).  But if we tell ourselves no sacrifice is necessary in life for any reason, then we fool ourselves entirely.  Even the lives of the indigent are filled with burdens of simply trying to survive.  In this context of understanding and accepting that sacrifice is simply a part of life on any level, let us revisit Christ's words and accept them as promising something much, much more infinitely valuable than anything we can know which is purely "worldly."  That is not to deny that all of creation is of God and is therefore good, but rather it is to say that without God, without the saving nature of grace, creation falls into a state of something without its intrinsic beauty and timeless value that is offered to us therein.  We won't see it, we won't find it for ourselves and our souls.  There's an interesting concept in the letters of St Paul.  In two places St. Paul advises his flock to "redeem the time."  This is another emphasis on exchange, and we'd do well to pay attention.  In the letter to the Colossians, St. Paul writes, "Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside, redeeming the time. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned with salt, that you may know how you ought to answer each one" (Colossians 4:5-6).  In his letter to the Ephesians, St. Paul says something similar:  "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil" (Ephesians 5:15-16).  A redemption is an exchange; to redeem is to gain something by some form of payment, but it has the added sense of repurchase, gaining value that was otherwise lost, salvation.  In these references to redeeming the time, St. Paul speaks of the great gift of our lives, our time which is given to us by God, with which we may redeem the world through our choices of exchange.  We may use our time to walk in wisdom, and thereby to continually give glory to God, effectively exchanging our worldly time for securing the things of God in the world, God's grace that may be at work in us even through the smallest things.  If the "days are evil," as St. Paul writes, then we may "walk circumspectly, not as fools but wise" and thereby redeem the time.  These small statements are mighty powerful in their allusion to the idea that we may redeem the substance of our lives and the lives of others through how we use our time, how we walk in the world.  They are compact illustrations of what it means to exchange a worldly set of purposes for God's purposes and make them effective even in redeeming the world, redeeming the time of our lives and even of others' lives whom we touch.  In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus teaches, "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 St. Paul's redemption of the time, a way to exchange the things of men for the things of God.  It is the way to live Christ's teaching to take up our own crosses, and sacrifice one for the other, redeeming the time of our lives which is inseparable from our place in the world and all that is in it.  On the passage I've cited from Ephesians, my study Bible comments, "The goal is not to abandon the world, but to keep oneself in Christ and salvage as much as possible from the evil world.  Christians renounce the fallenness of the world [my italics], not creation itself."  Let us follow Christ in sacrificing fallenness for the things of God, and redeem the time.  Let us consider carefully that sacrifice will be asked of us no matter what, by that which seeks to enslave and give death, and by the One who comes to make us free and give us life (John 8:31-36).  Which is your preference?

 

 

 

 

Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven

 

 When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.  And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.  And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ. 

 

- Matthew 16:13-20 

 

Yesterday we read that the Pharisees and Sadducees came to Christ, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.  He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red'; and in the morning, 'It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.'  Hypocrites!  You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.  A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah."  And He left them and departed.  Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.  Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have taken no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?  Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up?  Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up?  How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? -- but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."  Then they understood that He did not tell the to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.   

When Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He asked His disciples, saying, "Who do men say that I, the Son of Man, am?"  So they said, "Some say John the Baptist, some Elijah, and others Jeremiah or one of the prophets."  He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?"  Simon Peter answered and said, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God."  Jesus answered and said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."  My study Bible comments that Christ's question, "Who do you say that I am?" is the greatest question a person can ever face, because this is the question that defines Christianity.  Peter answers correctly, and his answer prevents the Christian faith from being seen as simply another philosophical system or a path of spirituality, because it names Jesus as the one and only Son of the living God.  This is a position, my study Bible explains, which excludes all compromise with other religious systems.  This understanding on the part of Peter cannot be achieved by human reason, but only by divine revelation through faith (1 Corinthians 12:3).  Christ means "Anointed One," and is equivalent to the Hebrew title "Messiah."  My study Bible also notes that Christ first draws out erroneous opinions about Himself.  This is done in order to identify these incorrect ideas, as a person is better prepared to avoid false teachings when they are clearly identified.

"And I also say to you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it."   Peter/rock is a play on the word for "rock" in both Aramaic and Greek (petros/petra), my study Bible teaches.  It says that this rock does not refer to Peter per se, but rather, in the words of St. John Chrysostom, "the faith of his confession."  The real Rock is Christ Himself (1 Corinthians 10:4), and the Church is built on the faithful confession of Christ.  The gates of Hades are the powers of death.  In the Old Testament, gates are suggestive of a fortified city (Genesis 22:17; 24:60; Isaiah 14:31).  In shattering its gates, Christ opens the stronghold of death to set free the souls of the righteous; this is the historical way the Church understands Christ's mission which even extends to Hades and to those therein.  So, also, my study Bible adds, the Church shall not be stopped in her proclamation of salvation.   Moreover, my study Bible adds that the term church is mentioned only twice in all the gospels, here and in Matthew 18:17.  This Church is the true Israel and the Body of Christ, and her citizenship is heavenly.  

"And I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven."  Then He commanded His disciples that they should tell no one that He was Jesus the Christ.  The expression keys of the kingdom, my study Bible says, refers to a special authority that will be given to both Peter and the other apostles after the Resurrection (see Matthew 18:18; John 20:23).  Peter was not a leader over the others, but rather among them.  This truth was confirmed at the Council of Jerusalem (Acts 15) where the apostles and presbyters met as equals, and where Peter advised but James presided.  Claims in later centuries, my study Bible asserts, should not be confused with the New Testament witness regarding Peter, nor should the role of Peter be diminished in these claims.  According to St. John Chrysostom, binding and loosing is a reference primarily to the authority "to absolve sins" (see also John 20:23).  It also includes all the teaching, sacramental, and administrative authority of the apostles.  This authority has been transmitted to the bishops of the Church, and continues today.

The concepts of the Church which arise in today's reading give the firm foundation of the Church as profoundly spiritual in nature.  That is, the Church is the Body of Christ, and as my study Bible puts it, her citizenship is heavenly.  As today's reading indicates, everything begins with the rock of faith, which is a  profound divine/human connection, dynamic in its energies, and producing what we understand of our faith and all that is connected to it.  It begins with Peter's confession that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.  In Christ's response to him is revealed to us this profound divine/human connection:  "Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but My Father who is in heaven."   Jesus affirms that this conclusion from Peter has not come through Peter's faculties alone, his capacity for reason and intellectual understanding, or any other resource that is Peter's alone.  Rather, we are given this extraordinary affirmation that the Father in heaven has in fact revealed the truth of Jesus' identity to Peter.  And this connection of faith is the rock upon which the Church is founded.  It is for this reason that we truly need to consider the spiritual nature of the foundation of the Church, all of its buildings, services, saints, our Book -- the Bible, and all our Scriptures.  All of it is the product of this profound spiritual entity, this divine/human reality of faith and the grace that it locks into the world.  If we think of the Church on these terms, we may come to see how central Christ's Incarnation itself is to the identity and meaning of the Church, for as the Body of Christ, the Church makes manifest Christ Himself as part of our world.  From there we come to see the Eucharist as so central to the Church as to be inseparable, for it is in the Eucharist where we find Him and His life that is given for us.  None of these things can be separate from our deep need to understand the Church as truly spiritual in nature, and not simply a collection of buildings or services or Scriptures or even a physical population of worshipers.  This spiritual reality is one that is dynamic and living, that must live and be revived through each new generation, giving life to the Church, meaning to the Scriptures, and generating faith in the world.  For each new generation will seek and find meaning in all of the aspects of the Church that have been produced through her history only through this living faith, this understanding of the spiritual foundations within which we must root ourselves and from which all else proceeds.  Just as the disciples will come to the fullness of their understanding of Christ and all of the Scriptures fulfilled in Him, His teachings, and His life, only after Pentecost, so we need to rely upon the grace of our spiritual foundation to rediscover those meanings and enlightening values in the saints, in our prayers, in our Scripture, and all else that the Church can offer.  Let us understand the incredible revelation given to Peter, wherein even God the Father indwells us and "speaks" to us, a more powerful foundation than any the world can give us.  Even the gates of Hades cannot prevail against it, and we are always in need of it, in each generation, for the true life of the world.

O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?

 

 Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.  He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red'; and in the morning, 'It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.'  Hypocrites!  You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times.  A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah."  And He left them and departed. 

Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.  Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have taken no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?  Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up?  Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up?  How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? -- but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."  Then they understood that He did not tell the to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees. 

 

- Matthew 16:1-12 

 

Yesterday we read that Jesus departed from the Gentile region of Tyre and Sidon, skirted the Sea of Galilee, and went up on the mountain and sat down there.  Then great multitudes came to Him, having with them the lame, blind, mute, maimed, and many others; and they laid them down at Jesus' feet, and He healed them.  So the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel. Now Jesus called His disciples to Himself and said, "I have compassion on the multitude, because they have now continued with Me three days and have nothing to eat.  And I do not want to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."  Then His disciples said to Him, "Where could we get enough bread in the wilderness to fill such a great multitude?"  Jesus said to them, "How many loaves do you have?"  And they said, "Seven, and a few little fish."  So He commanded the multitude to sit down on the ground.  And He took the seven loaves and the fish and gave thanks, broke them and gave them to His disciples; and the disciples gave to the multitude.  So they all ate and were filled, and they took up seven large baskets full of the fragments that were left.  Now those who ate were four thousand men, besides women and children.  And He sent away the multitude, got into the boat, and came to the region of Magdala.

 

Then the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and testing Him asked that He would show them a sign from heaven.  He answered and said to them, "When it is evening you say, 'It will be fair weather, for the sky is red'; and in the morning, 'It will be foul weather today, for the sky is red and threatening.'  Hypocrites!  You know how to discern the face of the sky, but you cannot discern the signs of the times."  A sign from heaven, my study Bible tells us, means a spectacular display of power.  It notes that the time of the Messiah among the Jews was expected to be accompanied by signs, but these hypocrites have not recognized the signs already being performed in their midst because their hearts were hardened, and they ignored the works happening all around them.  In yesterday's reading (above), we're told that "the multitude marveled when they saw the mute speaking, the maimed made whole, the lame walking, and the blind seeing; and they glorified the God of Israel."

A wicked and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign shall be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah."  And He left them and departed.  An adulterous generation is the term used by many prophets as they urged people -- especially the unfaithful leaders and false prophets of Israel's past -- to turn back to God.  Here Jesus uses it for His own generation, especially in these religious leaders.  My study Bible comments that Jesus refuses to prove Himself in a spectacular way.  A sign is never given to those whose motive is to test God.  See also Matthew 4:5-7, Christ being tempted by the devil to engage in a spectacular act to prove He is the Son of God.  The sign of the prophet Jonah is what my study Bible calls a veiled prediction of Christ's death and Resurrection, the three days in the tomb analogous to Jonah's time in the belly of the great fish (Matthew 12:40); this will be the ultimate sign that Jesus is the Christ. 

Now when His disciples had come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread.  Then Jesus said to them, "Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees."  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, "It is because we have taken no bread."  But Jesus, being aware of it, said to them, "O you of little faith, why do you reason among yourselves because you have brought no bread?  Do you not yet understand, or remember the five loaves of the five thousand and how many baskets you took up?  Nor the seven loaves of the four thousand and how many large baskets you took up?  How is it you do not understand that I did not speak to you concerning bread? -- but to beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and Sadducees."  Then they understood that He did not tell the to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and Sadducees.  My study Bible explains that the leaven of the Pharisees is their doctrine and their hypocrisy (Luke 12:1).  It says the reason the disciples are painfully slow to understand Jesus is that they have such little faith; they would not fully grasp Christ's teachings until Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit was given. 

Today's reading is interesting in that it gives us a picture of what it is not to grasp a concept that is seemingly obvious to all.  Even Christ expresses a sort of astonishment that the disciples don't understand what He is talking about.  Here the analogy of "leaven" (in the leaven of the Pharisees and the Sadducees) is their doctrine and their hypocritical way of living.  Jesus uses the word leaven in an important way -- and one not absent from the Bible as a whole -- to indicate something that can taint a whole culture, a whole people or group of people, a wrong perspective and wrong way of thinking, and one that is harmful and destructive or evil.  Why do they fail to understand what He is talking about?  He explains it Himself when He calls the disciples you of little faith.  It is the "little faith" that is at work here, preventing them from understanding Him and His words.  The result is a kind of quizzing by Christ that marks one of those rather humorous (in my way of thinking) episodes of the Bible, as He urges them to recall the miraculous multiplication of bread on two extraordinary occasions, so that they understand He was not chiding then for not taking bread!  Much of the language of the Bible is couched or veiled in similar metaphors, especially in the example of Christ's parables, so that without faith we are also not going to have understanding.  One wonders if it is the case that even our explanations, our writings (such as in this blog), our commonly available commentaries and preaching, also make up the slack, in some sense, for "little faith."  On the other hand, spiritual deafness and blindness is not limited to one generation, but we also may find that all around us, wherein if even the most exalted mysteries were laid bare or made plain, so many would not grasp their significance and reality anyway.  There's a well-known saying that "beauty is in the eye of the beholder."  In a sense, it conveys a similar meaning.  How can we see the beauty in what Christ is offering unless we first have faith that opens our eyes to it?  There is an important "subjective" component to our understanding that roots itself in us, and opens our eyes to Christ's teachings and gifts for us.  For Christ, that important component is faith, trust in Him.  This opens our hearts to the realities that God brings to us, but it has this unmistakable need for an interior component to be realized, that of faith.  We may wonder how does one create faith, then, through preaching or exhortation, if so much depends on the interior state of a person.  But that mysterious reality of faith begins so deeply within us and from a source we can't name that it eludes any sort of intellectual reasoning alone -- and so much depends upon grace, for we are not alone, even in what we consider this interior dialogue wherein we find our faith.  All of this is a mysterious and subtle process; so often we find our faith is happening despite our reasoning, intention, or even experience.  In some way, our hearts have to be open to these teachings, even if we are unaware of it.  There is a different way to perceive that modern life does not offer as part of its understanding of the mind, but the Church has always known.  It is in this fullness of who we are as created by God to be "like" our Creator that Christ invests His preaching, teaching, and the entirety of the Incarnation as a gift to us all.  In our wholeness let us find the truth of the beauty He offers us, and our spiritual eyes and ears to grasp and know.