WEBVTT 00:00:01.159 --> 00:00:03.640 In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 00:00:03.640 --> 00:00:11.539 of the Holy Spirit. Glory to Jesus Christ. Isn't 00:00:11.539 --> 00:00:16.500 it wonderful that today is Forgiveness Sunday? 00:00:18.839 --> 00:00:24.160 Some people approach Lent with trepidation. Going 00:00:24.160 --> 00:00:28.160 off on a journey, for example. Not sure exactly 00:00:28.160 --> 00:00:32.350 how the journey is going to go. If you're going 00:00:32.350 --> 00:00:36.530 to get through it, okay. But Lent is not that. 00:00:37.909 --> 00:00:42.990 Lent is a time of healing. Lent is a time when 00:00:42.990 --> 00:00:46.250 the hymns say we should set out with joy. Listen 00:00:46.250 --> 00:00:50.789 to what St. Basil the Great says. Don't make 00:00:50.789 --> 00:00:55.869 being healed gloomy. This is just what Jesus 00:00:55.869 --> 00:00:58.729 just said. When you fast, don't look gloomy. 00:01:00.269 --> 00:01:04.209 Why? Because what you're doing is entering into 00:01:04.209 --> 00:01:09.010 a whole new realm when you fast. Jesus says, 00:01:09.150 --> 00:01:12.189 don't spend a lot of time working for things 00:01:12.189 --> 00:01:15.230 that are just going to rust away and be of no 00:01:15.230 --> 00:01:19.489 use at all. Put your effort into something that's 00:01:19.489 --> 00:01:25.329 eternal. So, that's God. That's God. We should 00:01:25.329 --> 00:01:28.870 be joyful. So St. Basil says also, don't be made... 00:01:29.230 --> 00:01:32.189 Don't make being healed gloomy. It's outrageous, 00:01:32.590 --> 00:01:37.609 he says, that you don't rejoice over your soul 00:01:37.609 --> 00:01:42.750 being healed, but you mourn over changing food. 00:01:44.530 --> 00:01:49.409 It's a little bit of change in our diet. St. 00:01:49.590 --> 00:01:51.750 Basil says, you seem to be giving more concern 00:01:51.750 --> 00:01:55.489 to your stomach than your spirit. So we have 00:01:55.489 --> 00:02:00.939 trepidation. The Lord, in this gospel, lays out 00:02:00.939 --> 00:02:05.340 three things. So the church on this day, which 00:02:05.340 --> 00:02:13.500 is called by us, forgive this Sunday. The Lord 00:02:13.500 --> 00:02:16.479 lays out these three things. He says, forgive. 00:02:18.219 --> 00:02:20.979 Forgive. If you want to be forgiven, forgive. 00:02:23.020 --> 00:02:26.020 If you don't forgive, you can't be forgiven. 00:02:27.480 --> 00:02:30.479 It's not because God is some tyrant and he's 00:02:30.479 --> 00:02:33.479 put his foot down and he has some temper tantrum 00:02:33.479 --> 00:02:35.560 and says, you're not going to play with me, I'm 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:38.840 not going to do it. That's not what it is. It's 00:02:38.840 --> 00:02:42.099 because if we can't forgive, we are unable to 00:02:42.099 --> 00:02:45.080 receive. I'll say something more about that in 00:02:45.080 --> 00:02:47.860 a minute. The second thing he says is to fast. 00:02:48.080 --> 00:02:51.719 Jesus says, to fast. So our Lenten effort is 00:02:51.719 --> 00:02:54.159 going to start with forgiveness today. After 00:02:54.159 --> 00:02:56.900 the liturgy, we'll have lunch. We'll come back 00:02:56.900 --> 00:03:00.319 here, we'll have the vespers, and we'll ask forgiveness 00:03:00.319 --> 00:03:04.560 of one another. The third thing that the Lord 00:03:04.560 --> 00:03:07.180 says is, put your effort, and I made reference 00:03:07.180 --> 00:03:11.460 to this already, put your effort in things that 00:03:11.460 --> 00:03:20.180 matter. St. Paul, insistently, with urgency, 00:03:20.599 --> 00:03:26.150 he says to us today, this is high time. It's 00:03:26.150 --> 00:03:30.770 high time to awake out of sleep. Our salvation 00:03:30.770 --> 00:03:33.969 is nearer now than when we first believed. That's 00:03:33.969 --> 00:03:37.270 true. Every day we are closer to the coming of 00:03:37.270 --> 00:03:40.469 Christ in glory, to the resurrection. And that's 00:03:40.469 --> 00:03:44.569 for sure one day closer to our death. It's high 00:03:44.569 --> 00:03:48.729 time to awake out of sleep and to put our effort 00:03:48.729 --> 00:03:53.789 in things that matter. We waste. So much time. 00:03:53.909 --> 00:03:58.389 And time is a gift from God. St. Paul says the 00:03:58.389 --> 00:04:02.150 night is far spent. The day is at hand. Wake 00:04:02.150 --> 00:04:07.330 up. Let's walk properly in the day. Not in revelry 00:04:07.330 --> 00:04:09.930 and drunkenness and all this stuff. But put on 00:04:09.930 --> 00:04:16.230 the Lord Jesus Christ. Let me say two things 00:04:16.230 --> 00:04:20.329 about today. And I'll keep it short. It's a joyful 00:04:20.329 --> 00:04:23.800 day. Because we remember. When we heard those 00:04:23.800 --> 00:04:25.720 psalms at the beginning of liturgy, Bless the 00:04:25.720 --> 00:04:28.180 Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless 00:04:28.180 --> 00:04:31.800 his holy name. What he has done for us. This 00:04:31.800 --> 00:04:34.540 is a great song reminding us what God does for 00:04:34.540 --> 00:04:37.959 us. And the first thing he does is shown right 00:04:37.959 --> 00:04:41.879 there on that blessed cross. Father, forgive 00:04:41.879 --> 00:04:44.720 them for they know not what they do. Do you think 00:04:44.720 --> 00:04:48.199 he's just speaking to the Roman soldiers that 00:04:48.199 --> 00:04:51.939 put the nails in? Or to those authorities that 00:04:51.939 --> 00:04:55.199 arranged for the crucifixion? He's speaking to 00:04:55.199 --> 00:05:01.160 us. About us, rather. To the Father. We don't 00:05:01.160 --> 00:05:05.079 have a problem with God forgiving us. We come 00:05:05.079 --> 00:05:09.060 to the church. It doesn't matter what sin we 00:05:09.060 --> 00:05:12.540 might have. I have to say, though, I'm reminded 00:05:12.540 --> 00:05:17.540 somebody asked me once, what sin do I have to 00:05:17.540 --> 00:05:20.410 ask God to forgive me for? What have I done to 00:05:20.410 --> 00:05:23.730 him? He put me in this world which is a mess. 00:05:24.250 --> 00:05:28.970 There's sickness. There's anger. There's wars. 00:05:31.009 --> 00:05:33.529 What do I have to ask God for forgiveness for? 00:05:36.769 --> 00:05:41.009 For not being a human, that's what. For not being 00:05:41.009 --> 00:05:45.769 how God has created us to be. Which is like him. 00:05:47.370 --> 00:05:49.949 We come to the church, any sin can be forgiven. 00:05:50.970 --> 00:05:55.569 I can stand here in front of this altar, an unworthy 00:05:55.569 --> 00:05:59.990 priest, an unworthy person. What gives me, as 00:05:59.990 --> 00:06:02.149 one priest said in a sermon I heard some time 00:06:02.149 --> 00:06:06.610 ago, he said, St. John Chrysostom, St. Basil 00:06:06.610 --> 00:06:09.149 are wondering, why do they let this priest, Lawrence, 00:06:09.529 --> 00:06:12.490 stand in front of the altar at a divine liturgy? 00:06:12.509 --> 00:06:16.470 He has so many sins. But I can go to the Lord. 00:06:17.480 --> 00:06:23.420 and confess them and receive not just tearing 00:06:23.420 --> 00:06:26.879 up a piece of paper, but the cleansing of my 00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:32.060 heart, the grace of God to be put in there, to 00:06:32.060 --> 00:06:35.500 be forgiven, to be joined, to be united to him, 00:06:35.579 --> 00:06:39.319 to become a little bit like him. You can come 00:06:39.319 --> 00:06:43.279 to confession any time. God forgives. It doesn't 00:06:43.279 --> 00:06:48.439 matter what the sin was. But there's one, that's 00:06:48.439 --> 00:06:53.620 the church. Whatever sins you forgive on earth, 00:06:53.740 --> 00:06:56.300 they're forgiven in heaven. Whatever sins you 00:06:56.300 --> 00:06:59.000 retain on earth, they're retained in heaven. 00:06:59.879 --> 00:07:04.519 Jesus says to the apostles, this is the church. 00:07:05.019 --> 00:07:08.980 But if you want that forgiveness, there's one 00:07:08.980 --> 00:07:15.449 requirement. One only. And it has to do with 00:07:15.449 --> 00:07:22.230 love. And that is, you forgive those that have 00:07:22.230 --> 00:07:28.230 sinned against you. Many of you, I know, have 00:07:28.230 --> 00:07:32.550 experienced terrible betrayals. Your wounds are 00:07:32.550 --> 00:07:38.470 still bleeding from those sins against you. Not 00:07:38.470 --> 00:07:42.430 all of you, some of you. And it's very difficult 00:07:42.430 --> 00:07:46.220 to forgive. But forgiveness is not a psychological 00:07:46.220 --> 00:07:52.620 act. In the Bible, as far as I can find, Jesus 00:07:52.620 --> 00:07:56.839 never said anything about how we might feel about 00:07:56.839 --> 00:08:02.300 forgiveness. There's not a word in there. So 00:08:02.300 --> 00:08:07.000 forgiveness is an act, not a feeling that our 00:08:07.000 --> 00:08:09.800 enemy is going to be our friend and everything's 00:08:09.800 --> 00:08:13.069 going to be okay. Again, I direct your attention 00:08:13.069 --> 00:08:18.230 to the cross. That was a forgiveness that wasn't 00:08:18.230 --> 00:08:23.670 offhand. No problem and easy. We were bought 00:08:23.670 --> 00:08:28.730 with a price. So, we have the church, we come 00:08:28.730 --> 00:08:31.490 to be forgiven, and we have our relationships 00:08:31.490 --> 00:08:35.950 with one another, which are founded on love. 00:08:37.549 --> 00:08:41.539 That's why today is such a joyful day. Because 00:08:41.539 --> 00:08:45.500 it's the restoration of God's love in us. And 00:08:45.500 --> 00:08:52.460 our sharing that love with one another. Not in 00:08:52.460 --> 00:08:57.000 an emotional way. Might be. Not in a sentimental 00:08:57.000 --> 00:09:00.799 way. Not in a way that maybe even feels good. 00:09:01.019 --> 00:09:04.720 But in a godly way. Following the way of the 00:09:04.720 --> 00:09:08.220 cross. Which is our pathway now as we start Great 00:09:08.220 --> 00:09:12.210 Lent. making our way to Holy Friday and the day 00:09:12.210 --> 00:09:15.070 of resurrection. May God give you strength. As 00:09:15.070 --> 00:09:21.730 you fast, this is not something we do optionally. 00:09:23.230 --> 00:09:28.190 As you pray more, and you go to your room secretly, 00:09:28.409 --> 00:09:32.870 God will reward you openly. How? You'll be smiling. 00:09:34.250 --> 00:09:37.289 You'll be glad because the Lord will be with 00:09:37.289 --> 00:09:41.730 you. And finally, The effort you put into that. 00:09:44.110 --> 00:09:48.330 Brothers and sisters, if we don't remember that 00:09:48.330 --> 00:09:52.990 it's kind of getting late for us, then we're 00:09:52.990 --> 00:09:55.409 not going to do anything. But if we remember 00:09:55.409 --> 00:09:59.110 every year the Lord saying when we get to Lent, 00:09:59.110 --> 00:10:01.850 it's high time awake out of sleep, then the effort 00:10:01.850 --> 00:10:05.049 we put in is going to be for our salvation and 00:10:05.049 --> 00:10:09.230 God's glory. And then, no one's going to say 00:10:09.230 --> 00:10:12.809 to you, why should I ask God for forgiveness? 00:10:12.950 --> 00:10:16.169 Because you will be the sign of God's mercy and 00:10:16.169 --> 00:10:20.509 love on this earth. And show him that. That's 00:10:20.509 --> 00:10:26.129 beautiful. That's the truth of to be a temple 00:10:26.129 --> 00:10:29.649 of God, baptized and anointed with the Spirit. 00:10:29.789 --> 00:10:33.190 May God help us all as we struggle through these 00:10:33.190 --> 00:10:38.690 40, well, 50 days. God giving us strength to 00:10:38.690 --> 00:10:43.210 do it joyfully with faces bright and full of 00:10:43.210 --> 00:10:44.809 expectation. Amen.