WEBVTT 00:00:08.140 --> 00:00:18.379 Glory to Jesus Christ. I'm sorry we've had some 00:00:18.379 --> 00:00:24.660 technical network difficulties. Anytime high 00:00:24.660 --> 00:00:28.879 tech is involved, it's more unreliable than anything 00:00:28.879 --> 00:00:41.369 else. The Savior has a radical message. Message 00:00:41.369 --> 00:00:45.109 of God's love and care and providence and help. 00:00:46.850 --> 00:00:51.490 It's a hard saying for many of us who trust in 00:00:51.490 --> 00:00:56.950 many other things besides the Heavenly Father. 00:00:59.670 --> 00:01:02.869 It's a hard saying and one over time perhaps 00:01:02.869 --> 00:01:09.920 we can learn, we can become proficient and competent 00:01:09.920 --> 00:01:14.859 at following. The heart saint I'm talking about 00:01:14.859 --> 00:01:19.799 is the gospel you heard today. A monk once came 00:01:19.799 --> 00:01:25.140 to St. Basil of Caesarea and said, Father, give 00:01:25.140 --> 00:01:30.280 me a word. And St. Basil replied, Thou shalt 00:01:30.280 --> 00:01:33.840 love the Lord thy God with all thy heart. And 00:01:33.840 --> 00:01:37.799 the monk went away at once. Twenty years later, 00:01:37.840 --> 00:01:41.459 he came back and said, Father, I have struggled 00:01:41.459 --> 00:01:45.560 to keep your word. Now speak another word to 00:01:45.560 --> 00:01:50.340 me. And he said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor 00:01:50.340 --> 00:01:54.659 as thyself. And the monk returned in obedience 00:01:54.659 --> 00:01:58.040 to his cell to keep that also. Such is today's 00:01:58.040 --> 00:02:01.019 lesson. That perhaps it's going to take us twenty 00:02:01.019 --> 00:02:05.489 years of conscious, intentional struggle. to 00:02:05.489 --> 00:02:10.150 keep this word of Christ. Hearing about the words 00:02:10.150 --> 00:02:14.430 of Jesus today about anxiety, do not be anxious 00:02:14.430 --> 00:02:16.030 about what you're going to wear, what you're 00:02:16.030 --> 00:02:21.090 going to eat, what you're going to drink, this, 00:02:21.289 --> 00:02:25.629 that, or the other thing. Anxiety has a certain 00:02:25.629 --> 00:02:29.569 quality. We're talking about the anxiety that 00:02:29.569 --> 00:02:32.870 comes from pursuing something you can never completely 00:02:32.870 --> 00:02:36.889 have. to your satisfaction. And when we pursue 00:02:36.889 --> 00:02:40.849 that thing, it becomes for us our slave master. 00:02:41.509 --> 00:02:45.490 The Lord has another way for us. Here in the 00:02:45.490 --> 00:02:48.469 words about anxiety, we might laugh today. Do 00:02:48.469 --> 00:02:51.009 not be anxious about this other thing, especially 00:02:51.009 --> 00:02:55.530 now during this time of COVID -19. Social problems, 00:02:55.810 --> 00:02:59.349 economic problems, health problems, all resulting 00:02:59.349 --> 00:03:03.789 from the mess we're already in, probably. These 00:03:03.789 --> 00:03:07.469 things loom very large and scare us, and all 00:03:07.469 --> 00:03:11.590 the other things in our lives that concern us, 00:03:11.750 --> 00:03:15.449 our families, our children, the homes, what are 00:03:15.449 --> 00:03:20.689 we going to eat, our jobs, these all bubble up 00:03:20.689 --> 00:03:26.530 before us and present an invitation to live in 00:03:26.530 --> 00:03:32.180 a tornado of anxiety. It can be a terrible distraction 00:03:32.180 --> 00:03:36.840 and burden. The life of this world is like that. 00:03:38.120 --> 00:03:44.240 Sometimes better, sometimes worse. The Lord invites 00:03:44.240 --> 00:03:49.219 us to something else. Sometimes we have anxiety 00:03:49.219 --> 00:03:51.520 so much we can't actually see the real problems 00:03:51.520 --> 00:03:54.000 that we have that we should be anxious about 00:03:54.000 --> 00:03:57.379 to deal with. It's like someone once said, my 00:03:57.379 --> 00:04:00.849 life has been full of terrible misfortunes. most 00:04:00.849 --> 00:04:05.169 of which never happened. Christ's words today 00:04:05.169 --> 00:04:11.430 are the cure for us, but we are hesitant. We're 00:04:11.430 --> 00:04:21.009 hesitant. The Savior was speaking these words 00:04:21.009 --> 00:04:29.230 about life, about food, about what's our master. 00:04:31.850 --> 00:04:37.949 Created things or God? And speaking about not 00:04:37.949 --> 00:04:41.149 being anxious about the basic necessities of 00:04:41.149 --> 00:04:43.129 life. Was he speaking to the rich and powerful? 00:04:44.209 --> 00:04:49.470 It seems like that's who we direct this to. We 00:04:49.470 --> 00:04:51.430 wouldn't include ourselves in this conversation. 00:04:51.910 --> 00:04:54.389 It's like that other person should think about 00:04:54.389 --> 00:04:58.250 this. The people he was speaking to lived on 00:04:58.250 --> 00:05:02.819 the edge of starvation. The brink of sickness 00:05:02.819 --> 00:05:06.639 which would end their lives. Subsistent living. 00:05:07.399 --> 00:05:10.220 Some with no complete solid covering over their 00:05:10.220 --> 00:05:14.600 heads. Some with just one set of clothes. Food 00:05:14.600 --> 00:05:19.000 not easily available. The Palestinian Jewish 00:05:19.000 --> 00:05:23.639 peasants, crushed by the Roman occupiers. Not 00:05:23.639 --> 00:05:26.459 considered human by them, but considered property 00:05:26.459 --> 00:05:30.519 by them. With barely a roof over their head. 00:05:31.209 --> 00:05:35.389 No stores to shop in. No running waters. No light 00:05:35.389 --> 00:05:37.709 switches you can turn on at night when it gets 00:05:37.709 --> 00:05:41.310 dark. Some that were listening had nothing to 00:05:41.310 --> 00:05:47.550 eat that day. The Lord is not telling us not 00:05:47.550 --> 00:05:52.389 to eat, not to dress, not to live, not to be 00:05:52.389 --> 00:05:56.310 responsible. He's asking us, who is our master? 00:05:57.529 --> 00:06:04.589 If Christ then peace, then anxiety goes away, 00:06:04.689 --> 00:06:09.810 and the peace reigns in the heart. We're gifted, 00:06:10.009 --> 00:06:15.569 humans are, with vision. If I say to you, do 00:06:15.569 --> 00:06:18.389 you see what I mean? It's not about the eyes, 00:06:18.509 --> 00:06:25.230 is it? People have pets, and they try to train 00:06:25.230 --> 00:06:27.110 their pets, unless you have cats, and forget 00:06:27.110 --> 00:06:30.379 about that. They train their pets to follow, 00:06:30.480 --> 00:06:38.240 to sit, to repeat, if you have a parrot. Animals 00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:40.779 that are not trained are driven by their senses, 00:06:40.839 --> 00:06:44.639 what they see and smell, hear. And they go for 00:06:44.639 --> 00:06:47.899 that thing. If it's something that they can eat, 00:06:48.019 --> 00:06:51.199 they go for it. If it's a male in heat, he finds 00:06:51.199 --> 00:06:54.980 the female. Their senses give them information. 00:06:54.980 --> 00:06:57.860 They react according to their nature. If you 00:06:57.860 --> 00:07:00.540 put a treat on the floor, the dog will probably 00:07:00.540 --> 00:07:06.180 go for it. Humans are gifted with vision, not 00:07:06.180 --> 00:07:08.939 just to see what's in front of them and react. 00:07:10.139 --> 00:07:13.259 Not just eyesight, not just instinct, but understanding. 00:07:13.620 --> 00:07:17.660 The light of the body is the eye, says the Lord. 00:07:17.800 --> 00:07:20.279 If therefore the eye be single, you know what 00:07:20.279 --> 00:07:22.980 that means? Not like mine. I have trifocals. 00:07:23.620 --> 00:07:29.199 If your vision is clear. Not fragmented, not 00:07:29.199 --> 00:07:34.199 disjointed, not in threes. If your vision is 00:07:34.199 --> 00:07:37.740 clear, your whole body will be full of light. 00:07:37.779 --> 00:07:42.180 Your body, your eye, your heart. If we look at, 00:07:42.360 --> 00:07:46.199 follow, pursue, and desire that which is light 00:07:46.199 --> 00:07:51.500 and good, honest, true, godly, what's coming 00:07:51.500 --> 00:07:54.899 into our senses, not just our physical senses, 00:07:54.939 --> 00:07:58.370 but our spiritual senses, then we will be changed. 00:07:58.569 --> 00:08:03.750 We will be transformed. This is a hard saying. 00:08:06.990 --> 00:08:11.790 Because we don't trust Christ. Metropolitan Anthony 00:08:11.790 --> 00:08:16.170 Bloom says this, the gospel is a harsh document. 00:08:17.689 --> 00:08:21.250 It's an amazing thing to say. We usually think 00:08:21.250 --> 00:08:23.930 of the gospel as inviting and the good news. 00:08:24.149 --> 00:08:28.370 And that it is for those who are in need, for 00:08:28.370 --> 00:08:31.610 those who feel oppressed, to those who are sick, 00:08:31.750 --> 00:08:34.889 to those in sorrow, to those fearful of death, 00:08:35.169 --> 00:08:39.529 to those overcome by sin. And it is the best 00:08:39.529 --> 00:08:43.549 of news. But some of us, for some of us, the 00:08:43.549 --> 00:08:46.590 gospel is a harsh document. He says the gospel 00:08:46.590 --> 00:08:51.090 is ruthless and specific in what it says. The 00:08:51.090 --> 00:08:54.490 gospel is not meant to be reworded, watered down, 00:08:54.789 --> 00:08:58.360 brought to the level. of our understanding or 00:08:58.360 --> 00:09:01.620 our taste. The gospel is proclaiming something 00:09:01.620 --> 00:09:05.419 which is beyond us and which is there to stretch 00:09:05.419 --> 00:09:09.659 our mind, to widen our heart beyond the bearable 00:09:09.659 --> 00:09:14.340 at times, to recondition our life, to give us 00:09:14.340 --> 00:09:17.759 a worldview which is simply the world upside 00:09:17.759 --> 00:09:27.330 down, and this we are not keen to accept. Seek 00:09:27.330 --> 00:09:29.809 first the kingdom of God and all that you need 00:09:29.809 --> 00:09:32.950 will be given to you. How to do that? I'll give 00:09:32.950 --> 00:09:37.049 you two ways. There are many more. The kingdom 00:09:37.049 --> 00:09:42.190 of God is Christ. Not something or a philosophy 00:09:42.190 --> 00:09:50.169 or a story. You know when he is there and you 00:09:50.169 --> 00:09:53.389 know when he is not there. You know what he is 00:09:53.389 --> 00:09:55.970 like from the gospel. You know what he is not 00:09:55.970 --> 00:09:59.429 like. If you have a hard time discerning the 00:09:59.429 --> 00:10:03.950 presence of Jesus Christ in your life, then look 00:10:03.950 --> 00:10:09.070 around. First, everyone bears the image of Christ. 00:10:09.309 --> 00:10:11.909 We are created in the image and likeness of God. 00:10:12.610 --> 00:10:16.049 Each person is worthy of honor and respect. If 00:10:16.049 --> 00:10:19.009 you can't see Christ in your life, look at some 00:10:19.009 --> 00:10:23.480 other people. the homeless people under the Fifth 00:10:23.480 --> 00:10:29.019 Street Bridge. When a beautiful icon is covered 00:10:29.019 --> 00:10:36.259 with soot and wax and gunk and lipstick, we don't 00:10:36.259 --> 00:10:42.120 throw it away. It's cleansed. Those of us that 00:10:42.120 --> 00:10:44.519 have disfigured the image of God in ourselves 00:10:44.519 --> 00:10:47.360 can't see the image of God in other people because 00:10:47.360 --> 00:10:53.830 we only see what we are. See Christ in others 00:10:53.830 --> 00:10:57.529 and honor that and you will see Christ in your 00:10:57.529 --> 00:11:01.649 life. Secondly, to seek the kingdom of God and 00:11:01.649 --> 00:11:05.509 his righteousness, trust in what you heard today 00:11:05.509 --> 00:11:09.870 in the gospel. This source of information, Jesus 00:11:09.870 --> 00:11:13.149 Christ, doesn't give you fake news or alternate 00:11:13.149 --> 00:11:19.960 facts. He gives you the truth, the light. of 00:11:19.960 --> 00:11:22.379 the body is the eye. If therefore thine eye be 00:11:22.379 --> 00:11:24.799 single, thy whole body shall be full of light. 00:11:24.899 --> 00:11:27.659 This is faith. This is how we acquire faith. 00:11:28.480 --> 00:11:32.440 Saint Isaac the Syrian said this, We call faith 00:11:32.440 --> 00:11:37.179 that light which dawns in the soul by grace. 00:11:38.360 --> 00:11:42.320 It's a gift. And which by the testimony of the 00:11:42.320 --> 00:11:47.679 mind, the understanding, establishes the heart 00:11:47.679 --> 00:11:52.120 in freedom. from doubt and anxiety, through the 00:11:52.120 --> 00:11:55.200 full assurance of hope because of what God has 00:11:55.200 --> 00:11:59.220 done for us. This faith, he says, shows itself, 00:11:59.320 --> 00:12:02.500 demonstrates itself, not in our words and our 00:12:02.500 --> 00:12:07.559 arguments and in our external actions only, but 00:12:07.559 --> 00:12:11.000 with the spiritual eyes. It beholds the mystery, 00:12:11.179 --> 00:12:15.759 the mysteries concealed in the soul. and the 00:12:15.759 --> 00:12:18.399 secret and divine riches that are hidden away 00:12:18.399 --> 00:12:27.059 from the eyes of the world. Let your light, let 00:12:27.059 --> 00:12:31.179 your body have the light that can come in through 00:12:31.179 --> 00:12:35.720 the spiritual eye. If your eye is single, your 00:12:35.720 --> 00:12:39.519 whole body shall be full of light. This is knowledge. 00:12:39.559 --> 00:12:43.679 This is trust. This is faith in God. It's found 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:48.480 in the heart. Not just in the mind. So guard 00:12:48.480 --> 00:12:51.659 your hearts, guard your eyes, guard your understanding, 00:12:51.919 --> 00:12:54.940 and let your body be full of light. Amen.