4th St. Johnstide 2009, No Body But Yours

St. Johnstide
Matthew 11: 2-15

When John heard in prison about the deeds of Christ, he sent his disciples to ask him, “Are you the one who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”

Jesus replied, “Go back and report to John what you hear and see: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are awakened, and those who have become poor receive the message of salvation. Blessed are those who are not offended by my Being.”

When they had gone, Jesus began to speak about John. “Why did you go out into the desert? Did you want to see a reed swaying in the wind? Or was it something else you wanted to see? Did you want to see a man in splendid garments? Those in splendid garments are in the palaces of kings. Did you go to see a man who is initiated into he mysteries of the spirit, a prophet? Yes, I say to you—he is more than a prophet. He it is of whom it is written:

           

            Behold it well: I will send my angel before your face;

            He shall prepare the way of your working in the hearts of men

            So that your being may be revealed.

The truth I say to you: among all who are born of women, not one has risen up who is greater than John the Baptist; and yet the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. From the days of John the Baptist, and even more now, the kingdom of heaven will arise within human beings through the power of the will; those who exert themselves can freely grasp it. The deeds of the prophets and the content of the Law are words of the spirit that were valid [worked into the future] until the time of John. And if you want to accept it, he is Elijah who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.”

4^th St. Johnstide

July 19, 2009

Matthew 11: 2 – 15

In spring, fruit trees bloom in beauty. Through the kiss of sunlight, the wind, and the bees, they set fruit. Without the fruit, spring’s flowering beauty would be empty. It is the fruit that nurtures the sees of the next generation of life.

When John the Baptist asks Christ to confirm that He is the Messiah, Christ doesn’t say, ‘Yes, I am.’ He points to the fruits of His deeds: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are awakened, and the poor in spirit receive the message from the realm of the angels. (Matthew 11: 4 – 6) The beauty of Christ’s teachings and parables would be empty spring blossoms if they did not also develop into deeds. Christ teaches by example. He enacts what He says of every human being: by their fruits you shall know them (Matthew 7: 16 – 20); not what they say defines them, but what they do.

At Jesus’ birth the good news from the angels was that there will be peace on earth through those human beings in whom good will dwells. Christ came to strengthen, develop and consecrate human willing. Through His deeds in life, in death and in resurrection, He created a doorway in the human constitution so that He could enter into human willing. He lies as a seed in the innermost heart of every human being. Nurturing the Christ seed in our will life, we can become those in whom Christ’s good will dwells, those who spread healing and peace, those whose deeds reveal Christ fruit through the way we act and work in and for the world. For as someone said,

God has no body now on earth but yours

no hands but yours

no feet but yours.

Yours are the eyes through which he pours out,

compassion for the world, compassion in the world.[1]

www.thechristiancommunity.org

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[1] Teresa of Avila