20th Sunday after Pentecost 23 October 2022 All for God
Be not drunk with wine (epistle). Many think the Church is restrictive and makes life harder than it needs to be. As teacher the Church explains the word of God to all who are prepared to listen.
The word of God brings life and joy to all who pay heed to it. This word sometimes restricts, and sometimes commands, but always is aimed at helping people to the greatest happiness – which is the knowledge of God, and being in right relationship with Him.
Sinners will try to avoid God, much as Adam did when he committed the first sin. He tried to hide in the bushes! We cannot escape Him As the psalm puts it (Ps 138 (139), 8): If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I make my bed in the depths, you are there. But we don’t need to escape.
God owns us body and soul, as He owns the whole of creation. Is this a scary thought? Not if He has only goodwill towards us.
It is not every day that God asks us something major. Most of the time it will be just ambling along, trying to get all our decisions right.
The next word we speak, the next thought we think, or action we do. Taken one at a time it is not so hard. If God asks it of us we know two things straight away – it is good for us, and it is achievable. God will never ask more than we can give.
Some things are with us all the time, like being married, or having a particular career. Other things might happen only once, like being caught in a flood or a fire. In all cases we are disciples of Christ, and we seek to bring Him to every situation.
Nothing is completely my own – my time, money, possessions, even my life – these are His, more than they are mine.
It is easy to say this while inside a church but the old ways creep back in! It takes about one lifetime to get this right, and that is what we are attempting.
The key is to see things in their true light - never forgetting the overall view, which is to get to Heaven.
Getting back to drinking wine, many things are good in themselves but become sinful if taken to excess. Wine, food, television, computer games, entertainment, sleep…
Some things are always wrong, others may be alright depending on other factors.
Our religion is not all hard grind; there are many joyful aspects to it as well. It is a matter of getting the right balance. Joy will have the last word, when all the dust has settled.
God can use people who let Him into their lives. This is how saints emerge; they are people who took God seriously enough to do what He wanted.
Whatever I do, whatever I refrain from doing - I give it to God to turn to good effect, happy to express gratitude that I am even allowed to exist.
Had we never sinned we would not have the distorted desires we have now. Obeying God would be as easy as breathing, so natural would it be.
We would then be wondering why anyone would ever disobey God.
Until that state is reached, God will give us the necessary understanding and willpower to eradicate harmful habits, and steer ourselves back into the right path.
We redeem the time because the days are evil (epistle); we claim time for what it was meant for, which is for us to worship God and seek to lead others to the same conclusion.
Many are still hiding from God, trying to avoid His eye; trying to navigate difficult waters by their own ingenuity, when they could be aboard the unsinkable ship, the Church. Unsinkable and unerring, till the final harbour is reached.
No comments:
Post a Comment