4th Trinity August
Luke 9: 1-17
He called the twelve together and gave to them potent
authority and formative power, so that they could work against all demonic
mischief, and heal all sickness. And he
sent them out to heal and to proclaim the Kingdom of God, appearing now on
earth, the kingdom of human beings filled with God’s spirit.
And he said to them, “Take nothing with you on the way:
no staff for support, no bag for collecting, neither bread nor money, no change
of clothes. If you enter a house, remain there until you go further. And where
they do not accept you, leave their city and shake the dust from your feet as a
sign that they have refused community with you.”
They left and walked through the villages of the country,
announcing the joyful message of the new working of the kingdom of the angels
and healing everywhere.
Meanwhile Herod the Tetrarch heard of all that was
happening and he was very perplexed, for some said, “John is risen from the
dead,” and others said that Elijah had appeared, and yet others, “One of the
Prophets of old has risen again.” And Herod said, “John I have had beheaded;
who now is this, about whom I hear all these things?” And he wished to see him
himself.
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| Feeding 5000, Woloschina |
And the apostles returned and reported to Jesus
everything that they had accomplished. So he gathered them to himself and
retreated with them to a city called Bethsaida for special
instruction. But the people became aware of it and followed him. He welcomed
them and spoke to them of the Kingdom of God of the future, of the human
kingdom on earth filled with the divine spirit, and he healed all who had need
of it.
But the day began to decline. The twelve came up to him
and said, “Send the crowd away so that they can reach the villages and farms in
the vicinity and find food and lodging, for here we are in a deserted place.”
He however said to them, “From now on it falls to you; you give them to eat.”
They answered, “We have nothing but five loaves and two
fish. Or shall we go and buy food for all of them?“ There were about five thousand
people.
Then he said to the disciples, “Have them sit down in
groups of fifty”. And they did so, and all reclined.
Then he took the five loaves and the two fish and,
raising his soul to the spirit, gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to his
disciples to distribute to the people. And they ate, and all were satisfied.
And they took up the pieces that remained: twelve baskets full.
4th Trinity August
August 16, 2015
Luke 9: 1-17
If I have the right tool,
I can do amazing things. With a well-balanced mallet and a strong, sharp chisel
I can sculpt wood or even stone. But if the mallet is off-balance, if the
chisel is weak or dull, even the most talented of artists cannot use them.
We are to become the
instruments Christ uses to help build His kingdom of heaven on earth. He needs
us to be sharp, strong and balanced. Then His formative power can stream
through us. But as tools we may not yet be in the best shape for His work. He
therefore works on the tools themselves, to sharpen and balance us.
The story of the Feeding of the Five Thousand
prefigures our own age. The people are strengthened with the bread and the
fish, which contain the formative forces of the stars. In the Act of
Consecration we similarly take in bread and wine to sharpen our thinking and
strengthen our will. We take them in so that we become balanced tools in
Christ’s hands. We take them in so that He can work on building the kingdom of
heaven on earth, with us, through us.
