Friday, March 28, 2014

1st Passiontide 2008, Compassion of the Creator

First Passiontide
Luke 11: 14-35

Jesus was driving out a demon from a man who was mute. And it came to pass that as the demon left, the man who had been mute spoke, and the crowd was amazed. However, some of them said, “He drives out demons by Beelzebub, the prince of demons.” Others sought to test him by asking for a sign from heaven as proof of his spiritual power.

Jesus knew their thoughts and said to them, “Any kingdom divided against itself will be desolated, and house will fall against house. If Satan is divided against himself, how can his kingdom stand? And you claim that I drive out demons by Beelzebub? Now if I were to drive out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your followers do it? Therefore, they shall be your judges.
           
But if I drive out demons by the finger of God, it follows that the kingdom of God has already come to you.
           
When a strong man in full armor guards his palace, his possessions are safe. But when someone stronger attacks and overpowers him, the victor takes away the armor in which the man had trusted, and divides it up as spoils.

He who does not unite with my being is against me; and he who does not gather in inner composure with me [work for inner composure with me] scatters.

When an unclean spirit comes out of a man, it wanders through waterless places seeking a place to rest; and if it cannot find it, it says, ‘I will return to the dwelling out of which I have come.” When it returns to this dwelling it finds it cleaned and adorned. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more wicked than itself and enters and dwells in that man. And his final state is worse than the first.”

As he was saying this, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said, “Blessed is the mother who bore you and nursed you.”

But he said, “Truly blessed are those who hear the divine word in their hearts and tend it there.”

And as the crowds increased, Jesus began to speak. “The men of this generation
Nikolaus Knupfer
are strangers to their true being. They look for signs and outer proofs of the spirit, but none other will be given to them but the sign of Jonah. For just as once Jonah shared the experience of the spirit with the inhabitants of Nineveh, so will the Son of Man share the experience of the spirit with this present generation. The Queen of the South will rise in the time of great crisis and decision against the men of this present generation and judge them, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon. But know this: here is more than Solomon.

The inhabitants of Nineveh will rise up in the days of crisis and decision against the men of this present generation and will pronounce judgment over them. For they changed their ways after the proclamation of Jonah. But know this; here is more than Jonah.

No one lights a light and then puts it in a hidden place or under a vessel, but rather sets it on a lamp stand, so that all may see the light shining.

The light of your body is your eye. When your eye looks at the world clearly and impartially, the processes of your whole body will be inwardly filled with light. If however the eye’s desire sees the world separated from the spirit, darkness will pour itself into you.

Protect yourself that the light does not become darkness in you.


If your body is now filled with light, so that it no longer takes part in darkness, everything will be completely illuminated, so that, with lightning brightness, the light irradiates you completely from within.

1st Passiontide Sunday
February 24, 2008
Luke 11: 14-25


On a cloudy day, the shadows things cast are barely noticeable. But when the sun shines brightly, ironically the shadows gain more substance, and deepen toward black.
Although days are lengthening, and the welcome outer light is growing, inwardly we may be feeling more than usually tired and at the same time, restless. It is as though an exhausting battle is going on just below the level of our consciousness.
As today’s gospel reading indicates, there is indeed a battle going on, a battle for the possession of the human body and soul. The gospel speaks of demons who throttle the human creative capacity of speech; of demons who, when ousted, are apt to return with reinforcements.
The adversarial forces are busy, particularly at this time of the year,
Blake
trying to set up their own kingdom, independent of the kingdom of the heavens. And if they can gain possession of the magnificent and strategic castle of the human body, they acquire the potential to perform enormous evil.
Christ Himself warns us of the battle going on behind our conscious awareness. He warns us to maintain self-possession of body and soul, to remain at home within, centered in body and soul, so that the light of our spirit illuminates the whole. The great danger is that we let down our guard, through distraction or unconsciousness.
No wonder we are tired and restless. And as we enter Passiontide, we feel weak as well. For there is only so much we can do by ourselves. We need to invite Another into our abode, the One who will stand by us and fight alongside us, adding His strength to ours. When called upon, He will come.
As Isaac of Nineveh said,

Just as the strength of a flowing spring
is not hindered by a handful of earth,
so the compassion of the Creator is not daunted
by the wickedness of His creatures.[1]



[1] St. Isaac of Nineveh, († 700 A.D.) “The Measure of His Mercy,” in Love’s Immensity: Mystics on the Endless Life, Scott Cairns, p. 75.

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