In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and
of the Holy Spirit, Amen. The prayer before the
gospel tells us that we are going to hear glad
tidings, good news. We need encouragement, and
we need good news, whether it's international,
national, local, or personal. This last week
has been... Pretty difficult. Many, many challenges.
I could simply repeat the sermons I've been giving
for the last five months because we're going
through the same thing. It so happens, however,
that the gospel we have today is the glad tidings
we need I don't pick these gospels. This is in
a list of readings that the church indicates
for us as part of a cycle. And this is the one
we get today. Let's discover the good news that's
there if you haven't already. Every gospel is
a wake -up call. It's a visit from the Lord.
Sometimes he has to kind of get us by our shoulders.
And say, pay attention. I'm with you. Sometimes
he has to rub our head and our back because we're
asleep on the bed spiritually. Maybe emotionally.
The way we feel. And he has to nudge us. Wake
up. Arise, sleeper. Salvation is at hand. Once
again, today, we meet a familiar character in
the gospel. You know this man, this rich young
man. Religious man. He's done well in life so
far. He's a good man. He came by his wealth honestly.
And he honestly seeks a word from our rabbi,
our savior, Jesus Christ. And he approaches him
reverently. And he respectfully asks him an important
question. Master, good master, what must I do
to inherit eternal life? And Jesus, knowing this
man and loving him, knows that the question is
out of place. It's the wrong question. And he
needs to challenge and kind of shake this man
a little bit. He doesn't answer them right away,
does he? He says, why do you call me good? Only
one is good, but God. Keep the commandments.
And in truth, if we all kept those commandments,
honor, forgive, don't covet, don't lie, don't
kill, all those commandments about one another,
what a stable society we would truly have. because
we would be respectful of one another. He says
he's done all those things. He's perfected them
from his youth. I imagine Christ's surprise.
Really? Okay, how about this hard one? The man's
question, what do I need to do to inherit eternal
life, is like this. Think for a minute. Let's
think for a minute about falling in love. Someone
here today is celebrating an anniversary. I think
it's Alexander and Elena. Maybe if they're not
here, they're watching, maybe they could think
back how when Alexander was introduced to Elena
and there was something there. He started to
learn who she was. What if he went up to her,
oh, I don't know, about day three or four thinking,
wow, I really like this woman. He went up to
her and says, what do I need to do so that you'll
marry me? Now, I think any woman would go, I
think you're on the wrong track here. How about
we get to know each other first? You see, what
this man, in his honest but superficial approach,
was all about himself. Let's leave behind our
superficial and shallow understanding of a relationship
with Jesus Christ. What can we get from him so
that we feel better? What are we saying? God
is with us. Understand, all ye nations. Because
God is with us in the child. God is with us in
Galilee healing the lepers, the blind, the deaf,
the dumb, the sinful. God is with us on the cross.
God is with us in the resurrection. God is with
us in the liturgy. God is with us. This is a
matter of love. We don't go up to Christ and
say, what do I need to do to get into heaven?
St. Macarius the Great said this, even worldly
persons associated with the glory of something
beautiful, something great, a worldly king, know
this. How much more true is this of those whom
the finger of the divine spirit has touched?
Divine love has wounded their hearts with the
longing for Christ, his true and heavenly king,
his beauty and his ineffable glory. His unfailing
graciousness and his incomprehensible majesty
have conspired to hold a person captive with
desire and longing. Our whole being should be
fixed upon him with love because God has that
kind of love for us. His whole attention because
he is immortal. and eternal, ineffable, beyond
understanding. Each one of you, his attention
is fixed with desire and longing and care for
each one, each one of us. God created us for
that kind of love. The man in the story, the
account, when he heard Jesus say, come follow
me, you'll have treasure in heaven. He trusted
his own treasure. He didn't believe the one who
can really deliver. Here on earth, says Elder
Thaddeus of Serbia, there is nothing that can
give us inner peace. For neither riches, nor
glory, nor honor, nor position, nor family, nor
neighbors. nor psychiatrists, nor drugs, nor
other activity can give us unshakable inner peace.
There is only one giver of life, peace, and joy,
the one who said as he ascended, behold, I've
been given power, all power in heaven and on
earth. His power is not like, I don't know, a
Marvel Comics character like Thanatos or somebody
like that. His power is the power of love and
humility. His power is the power over evil. His
power has conquered death. That's the one we
want to follow. There's a lesson today in this.
that we need to grab the moment in this afterfeast
of St. John the Baptist, the beheading of St.
John the Baptist. It's a two -day feast. We keep
it again today. We are still contemplating and
prayerfully meditating on that great man and
on his death and that stupid man Herod on his
birthday. Take note of Herod's weakness. Herod
liked to hear him speak. He liked to hear Jesus
speak. And he was sorry, but he didn't repent.
He didn't change. He couldn't let go of the sin,
no matter how much he liked to hear St. John.
And later in the Gospel, Jesus is brought to
Herod to judge him at the crucifixion. This is
the son of the Herod that tried to kill him when
he was an infant. And Herod wanted to hear Jesus
says the gospel and maybe wanted to see a miracle.
Jesus said, not a word. The Savior answered,
not a word. Let's act, dear brothers and sisters,
when the invitation is coming to us, whether
it be for prayer in the morning or in the evening
or at noon, whether it be to... set aside to
discover in ourselves what it is, like that young
man, is keeping us from really coming to Christ.
Let's act when we are invited to, knowing that
God is patiently waiting for us, but perhaps
he will be like he was to Herod. He will say
not a word. In the book of Revelation, there's
a passage that says, to the angel of the church
in Ephesus, I write, I know your deeds. your
labor, your perseverance. Without growing weary,
you have persevered and endured many things for
my sake. But I have this against you. You have
abandoned your first love. And this first love,
indeed, for us, is the Savior Christ. Notice,
he does not send the young man away with a condemnation.
He lets something stir in that man's heart. Perhaps,
You and I don't feel like divine love has wounded
our heart with longing for Christ, for his ineffable
glory, his graciousness, his majesty. Maybe we're
not captivated with desire. This is not our experience.
The Christian ideal has not been tried and found
wanting, inadequate, says a great writer. It
has been found difficult. and left untried. The
Lord does not call us to walk a frightening and
dark road during these difficult days. He says,
I've walked this road. I know every turn and
every dip of it. I know every hillside. You can
follow me. You can be safe. I'm the good shepherd
that walks in front of his sheep. meeting all
the dangers himself, so that the sheep may be
safe. To our Lord who cares for us, be glory
now and ever, to ages of ages. Amen.