Homily March 327, 2022

 As preached by Sister Cecelia

Holy Wisdom Church

Isaiah 49:1-7, 1 Peter 2:21B-25, Luke 9:18-27

The last sentence in this morning’s gospel has puzzled many through the ages. “There are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the kingdom of God.” Surely Jesus was not mistaken, so what could it mean? One way of interpreting these words is this: “Before this generation passes away you will see signs that the kingdom of God is on the way.”  Like leaven in dough, something came into the world which began to change it. The disciples saw the kingdom of God changing them and changing others.

It seems like our consciousness is still changing, but we have a long way to go.  At the time of Christ, no one thought anything of the slavery of one human to another. But look at how many centuries it took for slavery to be abolished in our country. And it still exists in some places. One country warring to take over another country was not unusual then. Today, only a portion of the nations of this earth truly abhor the invasion of the Ukraine. Is the kingdom of God in our midst the cause of thinking that this takeover is not right?

 Is it love of God that causes our attitudes to change? For many, yes, it is. For some others, self-gain or self-protection seems to be the motivation, rather than love of God and neighbor. Our consciousness of what is right and what is wrong on a cultural level has changed. The whole gamut of the world’s standards must be changed to the standards of the kingdom of God. The questions are not “What can I get?” but “What can I give?” Not “What is the safe thing to do” but “What is the right thing to do?” As Christians, we need to realize we have been given life, not to keep it for ourselves but to spend it for others.

Jesus was asking his disciples what the crowds were saying about him: who he was. Then he turned to his disciples: “Who do YOU say I am?” What answer do we give?

 It is not enough to know what has been written or passed on about Jesus. A person can read everything ever written about Jesus—which is well and good—but to be truly Jesus’ disciple a person has to come to a personal discovery of who Jesus is.

The temptations Jesus endured in his 40 days in the desert help us realize that he was human, as we are. When we are tempted, we need to know what is right and what is wrong. We must know the difference between good and evil, and seek the good. Living with evil is not the same as sanctioning its presence or condoning its consequences. It means that we must struggle to avoid evil’s many faces when possible and to confront evil when it cannot be avoided. It means resisting evil’s dehumanizing effects when we find ourselves its victims. Evil is in control if we ignore its presence. We limit evil’s destructive power when we become aware of its presence. We must take responsibility for our actions if we do wrong, and trust God’s forgiveness.

Coping with pain and suffering requires courage to discern the good and evil that comes from daily living. We learn new life lessons. In order to be responsible and accountable to one another in an interdependent world, we must be able to respond to the situations we find ourselves in, both personally and communally. We need to resist oppression and injustice, abuse and violence, for what they can do to us. Pain, loneliness, loss, grief, and death can shatter our sense of safety and of self. We do not need to experience these fears in isolation from God or from one another. As we commemorate the feast of the Cross today, let us accept our crosses that are an integral part of our life. The Spirit of our Lord encourages us to hold fast to God’s words to us.

Fear not!

Glory be to Jesus Christ!