O LORD, we beseech thee to keep thy Church and household continually in thy true religion; that they who do lean only upon the hope of thy heavenly grace may evermore be defended by thy mighty power; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Epistle (Colossians iii. 12)
PUT on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, a heart of compassion, kindness, humbleness of mind, meekness, long-suffering; forbearing one another, and forgiving one another, if any man have a quarrel against any: even as Christ forgave you, so also do ye. And above all these things put on charity, which is the bond of perfectness. And let the peace of God rule in your hearts, to the which also ye are called in one body; and be ye thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom; teaching and admonishing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.The Gospel (St. Matthew xiii. 24)
THE kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his field: but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat, and went his way. But when the blade was sprung up, and brought forth fruit, then appeared the tares also. So the servants of the householder came and said unto him, Sir, didst not thou sow good seed in thy field? from whence then hath it tares? He said unto them, An enemy hath done this. The servants said unto him, Wilt thou then that we go and gather them up? But he said, Nay; lest while ye gather up the tares, ye root up also the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest: and in the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, Gather ye together first the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them: but gather the wheat into my barn.
Epiphany V - Message in a Minute
In today's epistle, Saint Paul teaches ways in which we can become more certain about our own place in the Lord's wheat field. We need to realize that in the church we are all part of the same body. We are members of the same organism. To do right by another member of the body is to do right by ourselves, because we are connected.
The most important matter is forgiveness. Jesus forgives you, you should forgive others -- no grudge-holding -- work it out, don't let it fester. Charity is what holds us together, and to have charity is to do whatever is best for the other person. Charity is not necessarily the same thing as being nice. Charity often takes the form of refusing to allow people to keep on with their own uncharitable and destructive behaviour.
Paul tells us, "Let the peace of God rule in your hearts." Whenever you have to make a judgment call, try to resolve it in favour of what will most promote peace as that is what Jesus would do. "Although in the visible Church the evil be ever mingled with the good," "yet do all in the name of the Lord Jesus," and "in the time of the harvest will say to the reapers, 'Gather ye together the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"
The most important matter is forgiveness. Jesus forgives you, you should forgive others -- no grudge-holding -- work it out, don't let it fester. Charity is what holds us together, and to have charity is to do whatever is best for the other person. Charity is not necessarily the same thing as being nice. Charity often takes the form of refusing to allow people to keep on with their own uncharitable and destructive behaviour.
Paul tells us, "Let the peace of God rule in your hearts." Whenever you have to make a judgment call, try to resolve it in favour of what will most promote peace as that is what Jesus would do. "Although in the visible Church the evil be ever mingled with the good," "yet do all in the name of the Lord Jesus," and "in the time of the harvest will say to the reapers, 'Gather ye together the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"
+++
