|
|
|
PALM SUNDAY, April 1, 2007
"for we have no city that remains here, but we seek the City which is to come." Hebrews 13:14 St. Paul lived by this code, contrary to so many, who believe that their end will come. That is why in another instance he declared: "For me to live is Christ, and to die is gain!" (Philippians 1:21) Of course, times have changed since then, and will surely change in the future, but the fact is, that the truth of the Lord is present in every age and will be for all time unchanged. The Psalmist David about 10 centuries before Christ, in his 100 psalm, verse 5 states: "For the Lord is good; His mercy is everlasting; and His truth endures to all generations!" If St. Paul was a contemporary, would he have expressed all that he did? Most assuredly because as he wrote in the verse we quoted from his Epistle to the Hebrews, he would write the same today, simply because so many people live their lives as though it were permanent on this earth! But, the fact remains that all Christians must seek the City, which is to come. Today, Palm Sunday, we heard once again the manner with which the multitudes of Jerusalem received Him. They accorded him every honor, which they would give to the greatest of kings, even though He entered Jerusalem riding on a donkey. "Hosanna, Son of David, blessed is He who comes in the Name of the Lord" they shouted waving palm branches, and also placing there outer garments on the ground so the donkey, could walk over them. Great is King David, but even a greater King is, the new Prophet, as the multitudes envisioned Him. However, there was a difference from King David. The Lord's Kingdom was not of this world. They forgot the Lord's teachings and His many Miracles of the past three years, and caught up in the temporary enthusiasm, they imagine Him as the King, who came to free them from the Roman rule, and then, for all time to establish and spread the kingdom of Judah for eternity! So, by their action, the Israelites sought, as so many do today, the City which they assume will always be here, that is, the life on this planet. They were proclaiming the Lord as King, but a little later, when He declared, "my Kingdom is not of this world," the multitudes about faced, and with great wrath shouted: "crucify Him, crucify Him." The historical fact of the Lord's triumphant entry into Jerusalem is vividly portrayed in our mind, even though this triumph very quickly ended with unbelievable humiliation and finally death upon the Cross. How could the people forget the personification of kindness and truth, and not honor Him for His humility, His love, His compassion and His truth, Who reflected nothing but Glory and Majesty? He is truly the King for all Christians, and most assuredly our Hope. The Lord constitutes the hope, Whose Name is above all names. He is the King of Kings, and the Lord of Lords, Who hopefully will reign in all the "cities" of the world. I think it is somewhat difficult, to find a Bible verse to describe the purpose and mission of the Church, better than St. Paul's verse in Hebrews: "For we have no city that remains here, but we seek the City, which is to come!" The faith and the assurance, that, no matter how bad the conditions in this world, there is a better world in the future, I think constitutes one of the most positive contributions in the history of humankind. With undying faith, the Church raises the Banner of Her faith, in which are inscribed the words of St. Paul: "we seek the City, which is to come." If a Christian cannot find hope in the Bible, and the reality of the City, which is to come, rest assured he or she will find these nowhere. In order that we can raise the banner in our life, which is the hope of the "City, which is to come," we must basically believe that our intention is in complete consonance with the will of God. The Lord's intention is manifest, and is reflected in religion, but in all expressions of nature and the sciences of humans. The intent of God for humans, is to accept the moral and spiritual power, which is constantly offered to all. But, it depends on humans to apply their free will to make the choice to accept the great treasure, which God grants them. When a person builds his or her life on the Lord's commandments, --- when he or she builds with justice, with mercy, with freedom, with truth, with love and faith, rest assured it will be like the house that is securely constructed on stone. Conversely, if a person denies God's commandments, and the sublime spiritual values, rest assured that with the first storm his or her house shall fall, because it was built on sand, instead of stone. The will and intent of God is always good. He guarantees our citizenship to the City, which is to come, the Holy City, which St. John the Theologian envisioned it as the New Jerusalem. We do seek the City which is to come, but we must firstly apply the moral values, as taught by our Lord. We have to be conscious of our acts. Our forefathers used to say that all goodness comes as a result of purposeful labor. St. Paul, recognizing that we labor for the good, states: "No one is crowned, if he does not live by the 'rules. Without labor, without sacrifice, and also without trials, our character is not galvanized, in order to render us strong and resourceful. When our personal life, and our life together, here in our great Church Family, as true brothers and sisters, is in consonance with the will of the Lord, we can deeply sense the satisfaction, that we are walking on firm ground, and that we are worthy to raise the Banner of Christian hope. We also can affirm, that even small minorities can be the source of many blessings. Let us never forget that the Kingdom is like the leaven. And we know, that the "little leaven, leavens the whole loaf." (Galatians 5:9) 1 pray that the Lord will bless us with His bountiful spiritual gifts during this awesome Holy Week, and that this awesome week will be sealed with the indescribable Glory of the Resurrection of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen. + Fr. George Papadeas
|
|
SBack to home page
Send mail to
epantaz@yahoo.com with
questions or comments about this web site.
|