WEBVTT 00:00:02.640 --> 00:00:06.980 Glory to Jesus Christ, in the name of the Father, 00:00:07.059 --> 00:00:10.699 and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 00:00:17.760 --> 00:00:21.300 With the storms that we've experienced lately, 00:00:21.539 --> 00:00:26.820 sometimes getting to where you want to go, not 00:00:26.820 --> 00:00:30.559 so much in Selma County as elsewhere, as I've 00:00:30.559 --> 00:00:32.960 seen on the news. Getting there can be a problem. 00:00:33.020 --> 00:00:35.659 There's many obstacles down trees, down power 00:00:35.659 --> 00:00:42.039 lines, high water. It makes it hard to get where 00:00:42.039 --> 00:00:47.320 you want to go with these obstacles. Today's 00:00:47.320 --> 00:00:52.939 lesson is really about obstacles. Since Christmas, 00:00:53.119 --> 00:00:57.560 we've been hearing and experiencing and praising 00:00:57.560 --> 00:01:02.000 God. the almighty, the immortal, the only good 00:01:02.000 --> 00:01:05.659 one, and how that he has brought us his kingdom. 00:01:06.519 --> 00:01:14.060 He comes as a child, gently, quietly, without 00:01:14.060 --> 00:01:17.099 fanfare. But for those who are pure of heart, 00:01:17.140 --> 00:01:20.239 like the shepherds, and those who are eager and 00:01:20.239 --> 00:01:25.480 interested and desire, like the magi, God sends. 00:01:25.900 --> 00:01:31.569 God sends help. And this kingdom we saw, we've 00:01:31.569 --> 00:01:36.790 celebrated. And then the Feast of Epiphany, Theophany. 00:01:37.730 --> 00:01:40.170 We see what that kingdom is. It's the kingdom 00:01:40.170 --> 00:01:42.670 of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit. 00:01:42.790 --> 00:01:46.549 And then we can enter into it, and we do by baptism 00:01:46.549 --> 00:01:49.370 and the gift of the Holy Spirit. We are joined 00:01:49.370 --> 00:01:52.730 to that kingdom, the everlasting kingdom, which 00:01:52.730 --> 00:01:54.969 shall never be overcome. It's the kingdom of 00:01:54.969 --> 00:01:58.849 peace, not a power of the world. but the power 00:01:58.849 --> 00:02:06.750 of God's love and mercy. Last week, Jesus went 00:02:06.750 --> 00:02:11.150 out on the road to preach after the baptism. 00:02:11.750 --> 00:02:14.710 And he wants to tell about this kingdom. He is 00:02:14.710 --> 00:02:18.310 the kingdom. To be united to him means you are 00:02:18.310 --> 00:02:21.389 in the kingdom. You have the kingdom, not in 00:02:21.389 --> 00:02:25.490 some geographical place, but in your heart. How 00:02:25.490 --> 00:02:27.849 it got there is by baptism and the gift of the 00:02:27.849 --> 00:02:32.270 Holy Spirit. So Jesus says, repent, change your 00:02:32.270 --> 00:02:35.150 direction. You're all going the wrong way. You're 00:02:35.150 --> 00:02:38.330 going off a cliff, the cliff of death, cliff 00:02:38.330 --> 00:02:42.650 of sin. This way, he says. Repent, turn your 00:02:42.650 --> 00:02:47.949 direction. Metanoite. The kingdom of heaven is 00:02:47.949 --> 00:02:54.439 at hand. It's here. So this week, and we... I 00:02:54.439 --> 00:02:58.139 do believe we are still feeling the reverberations 00:02:58.139 --> 00:03:01.120 of Christmas and we will all the way to the feast 00:03:01.120 --> 00:03:04.759 on February 2nd of the meeting of the Lord in 00:03:04.759 --> 00:03:09.379 the temple. But this week you hear a lesson from 00:03:09.379 --> 00:03:17.620 chapter 18 of Luke about the obstacle that's 00:03:17.620 --> 00:03:21.919 going to stop you. Forget the man for a moment. 00:03:23.050 --> 00:03:27.270 He's not with us anymore. He was sad. He went 00:03:27.270 --> 00:03:30.669 away. That doesn't mean he was condemned. We 00:03:30.669 --> 00:03:33.469 don't know what happened to him. I'm thinking 00:03:33.469 --> 00:03:35.710 he came back. That's what I'd like to think. 00:03:36.969 --> 00:03:40.129 Think of the obstacles that are in front of us. 00:03:40.210 --> 00:03:45.909 And this particular lesson is very pointed. First, 00:03:46.150 --> 00:03:53.800 it follows Jesus' words about children. and being 00:03:53.800 --> 00:03:56.520 like a child to enter into the kingdom of God 00:03:56.520 --> 00:03:58.219 please remember when you read the scriptures 00:03:58.219 --> 00:04:01.680 it's not just and when we hear it in church not 00:04:01.680 --> 00:04:04.199 just accounts random accounts Jesus was here 00:04:04.199 --> 00:04:06.819 and he happened to say these words he was over 00:04:06.819 --> 00:04:09.199 here and he happened to talk about this oh and 00:04:09.199 --> 00:04:11.180 then he went up in the mountain and he was transfigured 00:04:11.180 --> 00:04:14.659 just randomly no it's all part of a story it's 00:04:14.659 --> 00:04:22.310 a life just before 18 chapter 18, verse 18, which 00:04:22.310 --> 00:04:26.449 you heard the deacon read so beautifully. Infants 00:04:26.449 --> 00:04:30.389 were brought to Jesus that he might touch them 00:04:30.389 --> 00:04:33.110 and bless them. And the disciples at this point 00:04:33.110 --> 00:04:39.850 didn't quite get what was going on. And rebuked 00:04:39.850 --> 00:04:42.110 the parents, like, take these kids away. We're 00:04:42.110 --> 00:04:43.990 talking about spiritual things. This is important. 00:04:44.370 --> 00:04:47.449 These kids shouldn't be here. But Jesus says, 00:04:48.250 --> 00:04:51.870 Let the little children come to me. Do not forbid 00:04:51.870 --> 00:04:57.550 them. For of such is the kingdom of God. How? 00:04:58.889 --> 00:05:02.350 Truly, truly, I say to you, amen. Whoever does 00:05:02.350 --> 00:05:05.870 not receive the kingdom of God as a little child 00:05:05.870 --> 00:05:09.970 will by no means enter into it. Does this mean 00:05:09.970 --> 00:05:13.089 we are to be childish? And then what happens? 00:05:13.149 --> 00:05:17.100 Immediately, a certain ruler. runs up to him. 00:05:17.139 --> 00:05:23.860 Perhaps he heard this encounter. This man has 00:05:23.860 --> 00:05:27.620 a different approach. Jesus says, like a child. 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:32.139 That is, basically, ones who are helpless. They 00:05:32.139 --> 00:05:34.660 need to be fed. They need to be taught. They 00:05:34.660 --> 00:05:37.100 need to be taken care of. They need to be embraced 00:05:37.100 --> 00:05:42.560 and loved. That's how we are to be with God. 00:05:43.180 --> 00:05:47.779 Let him teach us. Let him embrace us. Let him 00:05:47.779 --> 00:05:51.540 feed us. This man comes up to Jesus. He has a 00:05:51.540 --> 00:05:53.339 different idea. I did all these commandments. 00:05:54.360 --> 00:05:59.420 Jesus mentions commandments 5, 6, 7, and 8. Just 00:05:59.420 --> 00:06:03.759 about treating other people. No, the man didn't 00:06:03.759 --> 00:06:07.279 murder anybody. That's good. He hasn't committed 00:06:07.279 --> 00:06:11.300 adultery. That's good. He didn't lie. And so 00:06:11.300 --> 00:06:16.790 forth. But he was rich. Jesus saw into his heart. 00:06:17.230 --> 00:06:22.610 He saw the obstacle that was looming up before 00:06:22.610 --> 00:06:26.149 him, the sickness in the man's soul, and Jesus 00:06:26.149 --> 00:06:30.730 in his love wanted to cure this man, to give 00:06:30.730 --> 00:06:37.310 him the remedy so he could be truly human. And 00:06:37.310 --> 00:06:39.629 Jesus, so the man says, well, what then shall 00:06:39.629 --> 00:06:42.170 I do? It's in my mind that the man came up to 00:06:42.170 --> 00:06:48.050 Jesus and says, What should I do to have, inherit 00:06:48.050 --> 00:06:50.870 eternal life, thinking, how can I use my money 00:06:50.870 --> 00:06:55.949 to further this spiritual thing that we're doing? 00:06:57.769 --> 00:07:00.790 Rich people think that way. I mean, so I've been 00:07:00.790 --> 00:07:05.490 told I'm not rich. Although, if you look at any 00:07:05.490 --> 00:07:11.779 statistics, we live at a far higher level. than 00:07:11.779 --> 00:07:14.660 anyone else that has ever lived in history. And 00:07:14.660 --> 00:07:18.639 most people on the planet live. We are rich in 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:23.199 many ways. You turn the light switch on, the 00:07:23.199 --> 00:07:26.839 lights go on. Water faucet, water comes out. 00:07:27.259 --> 00:07:30.779 You need something, you run to the store. We 00:07:30.779 --> 00:07:32.800 have credit cards, we have all kinds of things. 00:07:33.160 --> 00:07:36.279 Let's not think that this man's problem is not 00:07:36.279 --> 00:07:42.459 also ours. Money... And this story is about money. 00:07:44.000 --> 00:07:48.019 Jesus is very clear at the end. He was sorrowful 00:07:48.019 --> 00:07:51.180 when the man left. He loved him, St. Mark says. 00:07:51.500 --> 00:07:56.180 The man went away. Jesus says, how hard it is 00:07:56.180 --> 00:07:59.600 for a rich person to enter into the kingdom of 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:02.379 heaven. Not because money is evil. No, the love 00:08:02.379 --> 00:08:05.600 of money, says St. Paul, is evil. Money is neutral, 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:09.399 like anything else. It can be used as a blessing. 00:08:09.949 --> 00:08:12.250 It could be used for the glory of God. It could 00:08:12.250 --> 00:08:16.129 be used to care for your family. But this man 00:08:16.129 --> 00:08:23.449 trusted in his riches. And he went away sad. 00:08:24.529 --> 00:08:28.209 He thought that he could do something with that 00:08:28.209 --> 00:08:31.750 money to enter into the kingdom of heaven. The 00:08:31.750 --> 00:08:34.809 disciples say, who can be saved? Thinking, well, 00:08:34.830 --> 00:08:37.649 if you're rich, you must be blessed by God. Everything's 00:08:37.649 --> 00:08:42.879 going your way. Isn't that good? Jesus turns 00:08:42.879 --> 00:08:48.179 that on its head. Blessed are the poor, for they 00:08:48.179 --> 00:08:52.340 shall inherit the kingdom of heaven. In preparing 00:08:52.340 --> 00:08:54.620 for this sermon, I read an account from the Desert 00:08:54.620 --> 00:09:00.759 Fathers. A man named Serapion, he said, I gave 00:09:00.759 --> 00:09:04.019 away the book that says to give everything away. 00:09:05.620 --> 00:09:10.529 He gave his Bible away. That's a radical way 00:09:10.529 --> 00:09:13.389 of doing it. We're not asked to do that, but 00:09:13.389 --> 00:09:16.309 we are asked to consider what obstacles there 00:09:16.309 --> 00:09:19.929 are to our life as Christians to be perfect. 00:09:20.009 --> 00:09:24.370 How perfect? Completely, utterly devoted to the 00:09:24.370 --> 00:09:28.169 Lord. That is why we're here, to be his servants. 00:09:29.629 --> 00:09:32.610 Orthodoxy really does call us to be perfect, 00:09:32.649 --> 00:09:38.240 complete, and committed to Christ. To love. our 00:09:38.240 --> 00:09:41.159 enemies and to forgive them, these big picture 00:09:41.159 --> 00:09:45.539 things, to reject all those thoughts that are 00:09:45.539 --> 00:09:49.480 unholy and evil, something more close to us, 00:09:49.600 --> 00:09:55.259 to pray constantly from our heart, to fast, to 00:09:55.259 --> 00:09:59.240 deny ourself, to make it real by doing that, 00:09:59.440 --> 00:10:03.299 to confess our sins honestly, to look at ourselves 00:10:03.299 --> 00:10:10.500 honestly. To let God's light shine in us. That's 00:10:10.500 --> 00:10:15.320 why we do all of that. How could I possibly live 00:10:15.320 --> 00:10:21.320 the life to which Christ calls me? You may ask, 00:10:21.600 --> 00:10:25.899 how is it possible? If that's your question today, 00:10:26.139 --> 00:10:30.679 then focus on the final words. With man this 00:10:30.679 --> 00:10:35.419 is impossible, but with God all things are possible. 00:10:36.679 --> 00:10:40.639 The good news of the gospel is that no one is 00:10:40.639 --> 00:10:43.860 left out if they want to come. Even St. Paul 00:10:43.860 --> 00:10:46.460 says, and I mentioned this last night, he's the 00:10:46.460 --> 00:10:48.860 chief among sinners. He's an example because 00:10:48.860 --> 00:10:53.379 after what he did, even he can be saved by the 00:10:53.379 --> 00:10:59.120 love of God. So sin can't stop us. Money can't 00:10:59.120 --> 00:11:04.360 stop us unless we let it. That's within our power. 00:11:07.440 --> 00:11:10.679 None of us will enter the kingdom because we 00:11:10.679 --> 00:11:14.759 have checked off a list or somehow become perfect 00:11:14.759 --> 00:11:21.340 by our own moral power. All of us, we tremble 00:11:21.340 --> 00:11:24.840 when we hear the words, repent, for the kingdom 00:11:24.840 --> 00:11:28.460 of heaven is at hand. Come, all the blessed of 00:11:28.460 --> 00:11:33.299 the kingdom. Salvation is possible for this young 00:11:33.299 --> 00:11:37.320 ruler. He turned away. Find. brothers and sisters, 00:11:37.440 --> 00:11:41.299 the obstacle in your heart? The big picture thing 00:11:41.299 --> 00:11:45.759 or the small thing? Whether it's the spiritual 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:49.600 life you have a hard time embracing or the moral 00:11:49.600 --> 00:11:52.419 life that you say, no, the world is right upon 00:11:52.419 --> 00:11:57.100 these questions about morality and I won't go 00:11:57.100 --> 00:12:00.279 into the details, as if the world is more compassionate 00:12:00.279 --> 00:12:04.059 than God. Now think about what is the obstacle? 00:12:04.860 --> 00:12:08.179 And trust in God. He will give you the strength. 00:12:08.460 --> 00:12:11.139 And you will overcome. And you won't go away 00:12:11.139 --> 00:12:15.320 sad. But you will go away rejoicing in the kingdom. 00:12:15.879 --> 00:12:16.320 Amen.