live holy lives in serving Christ
Second
Sunday of Lent, February 20, 2005
Fr.
Louis Mahue
A few years ago there
was a fellow we've all heard about who had a tremendous faith in God. I'm sure
you've heard about him, but I doubt if any of you knew him. His name was Abram.
That was his youthful name. Later in life, his name was changed to Abraham. I
think he could be regarded as a holy man because God communicated with him and
he followed the Lord's bidding. In response to the Lord's bidding he took his
family and all of his possessions and left his home in Haran to go south
through the land of the Canaanites toward the Negeb desert. The Lord promised
to bless him, to make him the father of a great nation, and to make his name
great. Having that kind of a relationship with God, he certainly could be
considered a holy man. He followed God's bidding, and his name became great and
has lasted through the ages. There have been other holy men through the ages,
some of whom were Elijah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Solomon, and David. They feared
God and, as holy people, tried to do his bidding. Of course these were all
people from before Jesus time, but they were holy in their relationship with
God.
By the time of Jesus,
the human race was in bad shape in their relationship with God, and that was
the reason for God to send his Son into the world to give us a second chance
for salvation. Nicodemus was one of the Jewish leaders at that time. He wanted
to know more about Jesus' teachings. He came to Jesus at night because he was
afraid of criticism from the other authorities that were not readily accepting
Jesus. (Remember in John 1 it says that he came to his own, and his own knew
him not) But Nicodemus was sincere and Jesus spoke with him saying, "Very
truly, I tell you, no one can enter the kingdom of God without being born of
water and Spirit. What is born of the flesh is flesh, what is born of the
Spirit is spirit."
That is to say that
our human flesh is born from our parents, but our spiritual rebirth is from the
Holy Spirit. Some faiths call this being born again; some faiths refer to it as
a calling. No matter what it is called, it involves a significant change in an
individual's spirit and soul. It's a time when we recognize our frailty, our
sins, and our spiritual hopelessness - a time when we turn over our lives to
God through Jesus. As Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father except
through me," and, "No one can see the kingdom of God without being
born from above." Through the sacrifice of Jesus we can be saved and made
holy. You know, Jesus was without sin; yet he was willing to suffer and die for
us in obedience to the Father's wish so that we could obtain salvation. He was beaten
and humiliated and then judged in a kangaroo court. Jesus, our Lord, was then
almost whipped to death before his crucifixion. Many of you saw the movie.
Parts of it may have been embellished, but the fact remains that he was so severely
scourged that was not able to carry his cross without assistance. In dying for
us, Jesus willingly gave himself as a full and sufficient sacrifice for the
sins of the whole world, and we are part of that whole world, you, me, and our
neighbors. Don't look around to the people you know and see on the street to
think "he did this for you." Instead go home, look in the mirror, and
say "he did this for you." Then you can have cause to tremble and beg
for mercy because neither you, I, nor any of us is worthy of what Jesus did for
us. The Son of God died for each of us, so that we could be saved.
Through Jesus, God
provided a way for us, unworthy as we are, to obtain salvation. We can once
again become holy enough to obtain access to God. We can reach God through
Christ. In baptism we were marked as Christ's own, and at our confirmations we
professed our faith in Christ. When we receive communion, we receive the real
presence of Christ's body and blood. We take Christ into our bodies. He lives
within us, and we must show it, and we will show it in our lives. In showing
our holiness we can help others.
We can wash some feet,
so to speak, just as Jesus did. We must show kindness, mercy, and
thoughtfulness toward our fellow human beings. There are many things you can do
to help others. They need not be big things. Kind, thoughtful gestures are
definitely noticed. Women with children, handicapped people, and older folks
can often use help in loading their groceries and getting through doorways.
When they thank you, tell them that Jesus served others and that this is your
way of serving God. You are then witnessing for God in a private one on one
relationship.
Let me tell you of
some of my personal experiences. As you know, I spend a good deal of time
roaming around the hospitals. Perhaps a better term would be hobbling around
the hospitals. People are very considerate in holding the elevators, sometimes
holding doors for me, and a couple of times the transport people have even
given me wheel chair rides. But in the hospital I'm wearing my collar, which
I'm sure makes a difference especially at St Francis Hospital. There are,
however, times when I'm hobbling around town not wearing my collar and people
help me - taking my shopping cart back for me at the grocery store, or helping
with bags at the airport. These are kind gestures and they are noticed. All you
need do is keep your eyes open to see some one who can use a little help, give
the person a chance to thank you, and then tell them you're doing it as a
Christian or as a service to God. You have an appreciative listener and a
chance to witness for God on a one on one basis.
Through our
relationship to God, we are expected to live holy lives in serving Christ. It's
not the big things that always count the most. Little things are noticed and
effective on an individual level, but don't forget to witness that you are
doing it, as a Christian, in the name of Jesus. We are called to spread the
word of Christ to the people of the world.
In the name of the F,
S, & HS.