Father John began this Sunday’s sermon addressing the gospel reading from Matthew, noting that it is a continuation of last week’s parable addressing the Pharisee’s question: “by what authority are you doing this?”
The parable of the vineyard tenants similarly addresses the questions of who has the authority. In this case, it is pretty clear who owns the land, vineyard, press, well and watchtower. The Pharisees understood this as well. This parable is not about how we should treat people, it is about who Jesus is. Just as the tenants could not have expected to truly inherit the vineyard if they had killed the owner’s son, Jesus was reinforcing His relationship with God as our creator.
Fr. John then addressed the Exodus reading that covered the 10 commandments and noted the "missing" verses 5-6 and 10-11 provide us with some (uncomfortable) perspective on the nature of God. He is not tolerant of our worshiping anyone/anything but Him. God wants a different kind of relationship with us than anything else in His creation. Similarly, He wants us to totally dedicate the Sabbath to worshiping Him.
Finally, in Paul’s letter to the Philippians he addressed the nature of God’s expectation for our relationship with Him. Paul explained how he was a “great Jew,” studying and observing all the laws as well as anyone. But he said that the only thing that matters is his relationship with God.
Fr. John noted that the Gospel provides us with a clear view of what God hopes for us in terms of this relationship and that we can have glimpses of the Kingdom of Heaven by studying the ministry of Jesus:
- He healed the sick. In many ways we are all sick and in need of healing.
- Sinners are restored to God. In fact, Jesus often concludes healing by claiming that the person who was healed is also being forgiven.
- Jesus consistently praised God.
posted by m white
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