WEBVTT 00:00:01.899 --> 00:00:04.139 In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and 00:00:04.139 --> 00:00:11.619 of the Holy Spirit. Amen. This past week, and 00:00:11.619 --> 00:00:14.039 therefore all week until the leave -taking yesterday, 00:00:14.419 --> 00:00:20.579 we celebrated the transfiguration of our Lord 00:00:20.579 --> 00:00:28.500 God and Savior, Jesus Christ. This occurs in 00:00:28.500 --> 00:00:31.460 the gospel just a few chapters after today's 00:00:31.460 --> 00:00:34.939 scripture, where in Matthew we hear, these are 00:00:34.939 --> 00:00:36.880 just a few excerpts, but we hear these words. 00:00:37.979 --> 00:00:43.079 Jesus took Peter, James, and John and was transfigured 00:00:43.079 --> 00:00:47.960 before them, his face shining like the sun, and 00:00:47.960 --> 00:00:53.820 his clothes became as white as the light. Moses 00:00:53.820 --> 00:00:58.100 and Elijah appeared. And a bright cloud overshadowed 00:00:58.100 --> 00:01:01.520 them, and suddenly a voice came out of the cloud, 00:01:01.740 --> 00:01:06.620 saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am 00:01:06.620 --> 00:01:15.680 well pleased. Hear him. And before that, and 00:01:15.680 --> 00:01:19.819 during his whole ministry, he healed the sick, 00:01:19.939 --> 00:01:23.819 the blind, the crippled. He cast out demons. 00:01:25.099 --> 00:01:28.900 He raised the dead and he commanded the seas 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:38.299 and the wind. All of this was certainly part 00:01:38.299 --> 00:01:41.340 of his preparation of mankind for his coming 00:01:41.340 --> 00:01:45.299 sacrifice. And this preparation was essential 00:01:45.299 --> 00:01:54.000 that he show him who he was so that when He went 00:01:54.000 --> 00:01:58.159 to his crucifixion and all the things that happened 00:01:58.159 --> 00:02:02.219 from that entering Jerusalem forward to this 00:02:02.219 --> 00:02:09.340 glorious day, even today. All of it, all of it 00:02:09.340 --> 00:02:13.719 was prepared by him showing us who he is while 00:02:13.719 --> 00:02:18.580 he walked amongst us. Today is another one of 00:02:18.580 --> 00:02:22.000 those occasions where Jesus shows us who he is. 00:02:22.680 --> 00:02:26.419 And Metropolitan Herotheos Vlachos has this to 00:02:26.419 --> 00:02:30.759 say about today's scripture. Christ, after the 00:02:30.759 --> 00:02:33.539 miracle of the five loaves, ascended the mountain, 00:02:33.800 --> 00:02:37.139 leaving the disciples in a storm -tossed boat. 00:02:37.439 --> 00:02:39.900 When he came to them walking on the sea, this 00:02:39.900 --> 00:02:44.719 was not some magic trick or human technique, 00:02:44.819 --> 00:02:51.370 but the very outcome of his God -manhood. And 00:02:51.370 --> 00:02:54.129 when their fear overtook them, he cried, take 00:02:54.129 --> 00:03:03.250 courage. It is I. Do not be afraid. With that 00:03:03.250 --> 00:03:06.189 word, he imparted divine energy that banished 00:03:06.189 --> 00:03:12.129 their terror and calmed both wind and waves. 00:03:13.469 --> 00:03:16.569 Now these words from the Metropolitan encourage 00:03:16.569 --> 00:03:22.060 us to take a deeper look. at this profound event 00:03:22.060 --> 00:03:27.520 where Jesus reveals himself as God. You see, 00:03:27.560 --> 00:03:33.340 constantly he was revealing himself. I've contemplated 00:03:33.340 --> 00:03:38.319 often how little he actually, or we have the 00:03:38.319 --> 00:03:44.060 recorded words of what he taught, but it's prolific 00:03:44.060 --> 00:03:52.740 with who he was and what he did. If ever there 00:03:52.740 --> 00:03:55.039 could have been someone who didn't give lip service, 00:03:55.240 --> 00:04:05.259 but walked his walk, it was our Lord. Jesus reveals 00:04:05.259 --> 00:04:11.620 himself to us through revelation. And every prophet 00:04:11.620 --> 00:04:15.020 that we honor, the apostles, the fathers, holy 00:04:15.020 --> 00:04:19.360 ones through the centuries, he shows them by 00:04:20.659 --> 00:04:25.079 revealing himself in their hearts. But here's 00:04:25.079 --> 00:04:29.939 an instance where he's coming forth in and as 00:04:29.939 --> 00:04:33.879 the kingdom of God to command all creation. A 00:04:33.879 --> 00:04:37.139 magnificent revelation, this scripture today 00:04:37.139 --> 00:04:40.339 of him walking on the waters, calming the fears 00:04:40.339 --> 00:04:46.259 and calming the sea. But we must be more than 00:04:46.259 --> 00:04:52.279 bystanders, standing in awe. Going, wow. Whoa. 00:04:53.759 --> 00:04:59.800 Can you believe it? How did it happen? We have 00:04:59.800 --> 00:05:05.360 to take it in in a different way. We must allow 00:05:05.360 --> 00:05:09.899 the fathers and the saints, through who God continues 00:05:09.899 --> 00:05:15.079 to reveal himself, help us to see the meaning 00:05:15.079 --> 00:05:22.879 for each of us personally. Yes, this was a cosmic 00:05:22.879 --> 00:05:25.360 event, these things like transfiguration and 00:05:25.360 --> 00:05:29.120 his command of all creation, his command over 00:05:29.120 --> 00:05:31.980 sickness and over the elements of the earth. 00:05:32.899 --> 00:05:36.139 But we need to find the ways to take it personally 00:05:36.139 --> 00:05:40.300 and to incorporate into who we are and what we 00:05:40.300 --> 00:05:47.040 will become. The life of the church points us 00:05:47.600 --> 00:05:51.639 To contemplate on how we participate in the scriptures 00:05:51.639 --> 00:05:55.600 that we read. The fathers gave us whole sermons 00:05:55.600 --> 00:05:59.639 on the elements of this particular passage. I 00:05:59.639 --> 00:06:03.319 did a look and I found 20 different commentaries 00:06:03.319 --> 00:06:06.639 on this scripture. Things are said about it like 00:06:06.639 --> 00:06:09.779 this. Like they emphasize how Christ's mastery 00:06:09.779 --> 00:06:14.259 over the elements reveals his dignity. Which 00:06:14.259 --> 00:06:17.860 we've been talking about. And his divinity. and 00:06:17.860 --> 00:06:25.540 his place in the Trinity. The Fathers talk about 00:06:25.540 --> 00:06:29.540 how the words, that single invitation by Christ, 00:06:29.660 --> 00:06:34.019 come, where he's encouraging Peter to leave the 00:06:34.019 --> 00:06:42.439 boat and walk to him, is the Gospel's call, where 00:06:42.439 --> 00:06:48.679 Christ is constantly saying to us, come. And 00:06:48.679 --> 00:06:51.980 so the sea mirrors the turmoil of our passions, 00:06:52.240 --> 00:06:57.439 the tumult of worldly cares, and of course the 00:06:57.439 --> 00:07:00.819 waves of temptation for which all of us know. 00:07:04.660 --> 00:07:08.540 Peter's sinking, they say, is more than just 00:07:08.540 --> 00:07:13.170 losing his nerve. It teaches us humility in the 00:07:13.170 --> 00:07:16.250 face of divine power. No matter how proudly we 00:07:16.250 --> 00:07:20.649 accomplish anything, no matter how firmly we 00:07:20.649 --> 00:07:26.149 stand on a great understanding or a mystery or 00:07:26.149 --> 00:07:32.730 an experience or a blessing or a grace, we, like 00:07:32.730 --> 00:07:38.709 Peter, sink from it. So in all humility, we must 00:07:38.709 --> 00:07:42.220 learn. who we are in relationship to God and 00:07:42.220 --> 00:07:45.579 where all of it comes from and what we must do 00:07:45.579 --> 00:07:52.060 to have any of those wonderful events and successes 00:07:52.060 --> 00:07:55.579 and blessings of our lives mean more than a passing 00:07:55.579 --> 00:08:04.620 comfort. We have to incorporate all of God's 00:08:04.620 --> 00:08:07.699 experience into who we are and make it real. 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:14.680 in all humility. The disciples' fear contrasts 00:08:14.680 --> 00:08:20.040 with Peter's boldness and his courage. It kind 00:08:20.040 --> 00:08:23.040 of demonstrates a core... Well, I forgot which 00:08:23.040 --> 00:08:28.480 father said this one, but trust me on it. It's 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:36.899 one of them. Their fear contrasts with the courageous 00:08:36.899 --> 00:08:40.529 step that... Peter took, showing that Christian 00:08:40.529 --> 00:08:45.870 maturity moves from worldly cares and distractions 00:08:45.870 --> 00:08:50.049 and anxieties and sometimes even terror. It moves 00:08:50.049 --> 00:08:56.110 from there to faith -filled action, which culminates 00:08:56.110 --> 00:08:59.110 in the confession that we hear in Scripture. 00:09:00.690 --> 00:09:06.360 Truly, you are the Son of God. And everything 00:09:06.360 --> 00:09:11.940 we experience is designed to bring that up out 00:09:11.940 --> 00:09:16.460 of our own heart, whether it's struggles or blessings 00:09:16.460 --> 00:09:23.919 or the combination of both. But given all of 00:09:23.919 --> 00:09:26.299 this analysis of what these things can mean, 00:09:26.620 --> 00:09:30.159 we've got to remember that we don't analyze our 00:09:30.159 --> 00:09:38.330 way to salvation. Not even using scripture. Yes, 00:09:38.409 --> 00:09:43.669 the head is the place that we can find our thoughts 00:09:43.669 --> 00:09:45.830 and contemplations, but it's through the heart 00:09:45.830 --> 00:09:50.009 that we are first called to the church, which 00:09:50.009 --> 00:09:54.149 is for us the ark of salvation. And this ark 00:09:54.149 --> 00:09:56.629 of salvation in some ways is like that little 00:09:56.629 --> 00:10:03.120 ship tossed on stormy seas. We are here. in the 00:10:03.120 --> 00:10:08.460 calm of the ship, amongst a world that is a stormy 00:10:08.460 --> 00:10:12.399 sea. We climb aboard this ship when we're baptized, 00:10:12.779 --> 00:10:18.500 and we remain in the ark, which is where he comes 00:10:18.500 --> 00:10:23.299 to us, here in the ark of salvation. Here we 00:10:23.299 --> 00:10:25.820 witness one another's struggle, like Peter and 00:10:25.820 --> 00:10:28.480 the other disciples, but we also strengthen one 00:10:28.480 --> 00:10:33.919 another. I'm just barely getting to know you. 00:10:33.960 --> 00:10:36.639 I just barely arrived. And I'm struggling pinning 00:10:36.639 --> 00:10:40.139 names to faces. And so please forgive me for 00:10:40.139 --> 00:10:44.000 that. But one of the things I am drinking in, 00:10:44.120 --> 00:10:47.299 even if I don't remember your name, is what a 00:10:47.299 --> 00:10:52.000 blessing each one of you are. As it's said in 00:10:52.000 --> 00:10:57.879 the epistle, you are the temple of God. You are 00:10:57.879 --> 00:11:05.720 the temple of God. Pulled from a stormy sea into 00:11:05.720 --> 00:11:14.340 this ark of salvation. The drama of this stormy 00:11:14.340 --> 00:11:16.799 sea set aside, nothing could prepare them for 00:11:16.799 --> 00:11:20.600 the resurrection. Who he is had to be shown, 00:11:20.820 --> 00:11:24.799 and the world had to witness it. He spoke these 00:11:24.799 --> 00:11:28.740 words to Thomas, who was stunned by the appearance 00:11:28.740 --> 00:11:36.360 of his Lord. These words, blessed are those who 00:11:36.360 --> 00:11:41.460 have not seen yet have believed. So you see, 00:11:41.519 --> 00:11:45.820 belief is everything. And today's gospel shows 00:11:45.820 --> 00:11:48.620 it. It certainly shows the difference between 00:11:48.620 --> 00:11:50.840 that moment of pure belief when he could walk 00:11:50.840 --> 00:11:55.940 on water and then after the doubts set in. For 00:11:55.940 --> 00:12:00.080 Peter and for all of us who would be saved, belief. 00:12:06.809 --> 00:12:09.169 Jesus' words, blessed are those who have not 00:12:09.169 --> 00:12:12.909 seen and yet believe, are not just for Thomas, 00:12:12.990 --> 00:12:17.529 but they're for you and me. Blessed are those, 00:12:18.470 --> 00:12:23.750 those. We're the those. Did you know that? Jesus 00:12:23.750 --> 00:12:25.990 was speaking directly to you when he said that. 00:12:28.350 --> 00:12:34.200 It isn't just a saying. I'll read it again. Blessed 00:12:34.200 --> 00:12:36.879 are those who have not seen yet have believed 00:12:36.879 --> 00:12:43.279 is not just a byline to that scene with Thomas. 00:12:44.759 --> 00:12:50.240 It's a promise to you and me. It's actually a 00:12:50.240 --> 00:12:55.519 command. Blessed are those who have not seen 00:12:55.519 --> 00:13:00.179 yet believe. It's an immutable reality. This 00:13:00.179 --> 00:13:05.620 reality this outpouring of his grace that comes 00:13:05.620 --> 00:13:08.960 through the church in his body is salvation itself. 00:13:11.000 --> 00:13:15.379 Take the verse John 20, 31, where he tells us 00:13:15.379 --> 00:13:19.519 that the gospel was written, quote, that you 00:13:19.519 --> 00:13:22.220 may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son 00:13:22.220 --> 00:13:27.360 of God, and that by believing you may have life 00:13:27.360 --> 00:13:33.870 in his name. Do we keep this thought front and 00:13:33.870 --> 00:13:37.110 center when we question faith and we wonder what 00:13:37.110 --> 00:13:40.350 we believe and we wonder what things mean when 00:13:40.350 --> 00:13:45.009 we're tossed around again? Do we keep front and 00:13:45.009 --> 00:13:50.909 center the words in 17 .3? This is eternal life, 00:13:51.090 --> 00:13:54.809 that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus 00:13:54.809 --> 00:13:59.450 Christ, whom you have sent, to believe and to 00:13:59.450 --> 00:14:02.779 know him. is a living reality passed down by 00:14:02.779 --> 00:14:06.399 the church through saints and fathers so that 00:14:06.399 --> 00:14:11.500 all may be saved. Our church, life itself, moves 00:14:11.500 --> 00:14:14.500 daily through these lives of saints. Every time 00:14:14.500 --> 00:14:17.399 we gather and all the days that we don't, every 00:14:17.399 --> 00:14:20.840 day you read your scripture and look for what 00:14:20.840 --> 00:14:23.419 the church is doing, it's there, whether you 00:14:23.419 --> 00:14:28.799 do it or not. Somewhere around the world there 00:14:28.799 --> 00:14:33.080 is this. web work of honoring all the saints 00:14:33.080 --> 00:14:40.220 that have lived through the centuries. One of 00:14:40.220 --> 00:14:44.100 them we commemorate today. We commemorate St. 00:14:44.139 --> 00:14:49.320 Lawrence. He lived the gospel and what did he 00:14:49.320 --> 00:14:52.580 do? He believed it to the point of being radiant 00:14:52.580 --> 00:14:55.820 with the Holy Spirit, being martyred in that 00:14:55.820 --> 00:14:59.259 radiance. He was so radiant the world could not 00:14:59.259 --> 00:15:05.100 stand it. And everything he said and did belied 00:15:05.100 --> 00:15:07.580 the fact that he, like scripture said today, 00:15:07.779 --> 00:15:13.080 knew that he was the temple of God. And nothing 00:15:13.080 --> 00:15:19.659 they could do mattered. Can we learn to live 00:15:19.659 --> 00:15:29.269 like that? Read more about him. I'm not going 00:15:29.269 --> 00:15:32.210 to recount his life. You can read a wonderful 00:15:32.210 --> 00:15:38.490 little short, some words about him. Read it again 00:15:38.490 --> 00:15:42.750 if you already read it in the bulletin. And I'm 00:15:42.750 --> 00:15:44.929 going to quote part of it because I was really 00:15:44.929 --> 00:15:48.450 struck by this. Someone who is radiant with the 00:15:48.450 --> 00:15:52.570 Holy Spirit is in fact radiating. Does that make 00:15:52.570 --> 00:15:54.470 sense? If you're radiant with the Holy Spirit, 00:15:54.590 --> 00:15:58.490 you are radiating. That's what the saints did, 00:15:58.649 --> 00:16:01.710 is they radiated to the point where they could 00:16:01.710 --> 00:16:10.830 not be ignored. They moved the world. That is, 00:16:10.830 --> 00:16:13.490 they do not function as a container or a closed 00:16:13.490 --> 00:16:17.769 vessel of sorts, rather as a conduit, an instrument. 00:16:18.429 --> 00:16:22.789 transformed by bearing it to others, by bearing 00:16:22.789 --> 00:16:31.169 to others the overflowing grace of God. Now that's 00:16:31.169 --> 00:16:33.429 the spiritual lifeblood of the faith and of the 00:16:33.429 --> 00:16:38.769 church and of this very parish. It makes us partakers 00:16:38.769 --> 00:16:43.230 of the same salvific life, witnessed firsthand, 00:16:43.330 --> 00:16:49.080 the ones who got to see it, by the apostles, 00:16:49.340 --> 00:16:53.879 by all the church through the centuries to those 00:16:53.879 --> 00:16:58.559 who have not seen yet believe. Don't simply read 00:16:58.559 --> 00:17:00.740 about it and wonder. Don't read these things. 00:17:00.799 --> 00:17:03.700 Don't hear this scripture and just wonder about 00:17:03.700 --> 00:17:09.220 it and let it drift away. So I'm going to do 00:17:09.220 --> 00:17:12.859 something today that I normally don't do. I'm 00:17:12.859 --> 00:17:14.599 going to give you three practical takeaways. 00:17:15.390 --> 00:17:17.170 I don't know if anybody does that in sermons, 00:17:17.230 --> 00:17:20.150 but what was the takeaway, of course, is the 00:17:20.150 --> 00:17:23.329 buzzword in business and everywhere else. I'm 00:17:23.329 --> 00:17:25.430 going to give you three practical takeaways from 00:17:25.430 --> 00:17:29.109 this. And what I'd like you to do on your own 00:17:29.109 --> 00:17:33.109 in the future is every time one of these blessed 00:17:33.109 --> 00:17:37.829 priests or deacons gives you a sermon, grab on 00:17:37.829 --> 00:17:43.630 to some takeaways. Because we must do what we 00:17:43.630 --> 00:17:48.269 stand in awe before. So here's three. When life's 00:17:48.269 --> 00:17:52.549 waves, temptations and everything else, overwhelm 00:17:52.549 --> 00:17:58.349 you, remember his presence. Go find an icon of 00:17:58.349 --> 00:18:03.450 him if you must. And remember that it is I, as 00:18:03.450 --> 00:18:06.529 he said on the sea. He comes to us in the times 00:18:06.529 --> 00:18:12.710 of tribulation. And remember him. A second takeaway, 00:18:12.930 --> 00:18:17.109 cultivate the Jesus prayer. Let Lord Jesus Christ, 00:18:17.150 --> 00:18:22.170 Son of God, have mercy on me. Why? You can't 00:18:22.170 --> 00:18:24.829 be saying that without keeping him in front of 00:18:24.829 --> 00:18:27.829 you. It helps you keep your gaze fixed on him. 00:18:29.250 --> 00:18:34.470 And treat these trials, these waves, the stormy 00:18:34.470 --> 00:18:37.769 sea, as an invitation to step out of your boat 00:18:37.769 --> 00:18:46.319 of comfort, your boat of self -reliance, of being, 00:18:46.359 --> 00:18:51.859 you know, self -deluded into thinking things 00:18:51.859 --> 00:18:56.000 are going okay. And if you just do this, you 00:18:56.000 --> 00:19:01.880 can put it behind you. Three things. When the 00:19:01.880 --> 00:19:05.099 waves overtake you, remember it as I. Cultivate 00:19:05.099 --> 00:19:07.299 the Jesus prayer to keep your gaze focused on 00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:10.900 them and treat trials as an opportunity to step 00:19:10.900 --> 00:19:16.069 away from your self -reliance. And rely on his 00:19:16.069 --> 00:19:19.069 healing energies. Now I'm sure that all of us 00:19:19.069 --> 00:19:21.990 here know that God continues to reveal himself. 00:19:22.130 --> 00:19:27.230 If we search for him. And make ourselves available. 00:19:28.789 --> 00:19:34.250 If we do that we partake in his promise. So that 00:19:34.250 --> 00:19:39.150 without seeing we believe. Glory to Jesus Christ.