Neh. 8:2-6, 8-10; Ps. 19:8-10, 15; 1 Cor. 12:12-30; Lk. 1:1-4; 4:14-21

“You are Christ’s body and individually parts of it” through the power of the Spirit.  Which part have we been given so that “Today this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing”?  I have often felt and said that I am a “jack of all trades, master of none” and I suspect others have similar feelings.  St Augustine reminds us “we are restless until we rest in him” from whom we gain our identity in his body. 

We are called to “wear many hats” in our home, work and service to our community.  We have to administer our home, teach our children, nurse our family when they are sick, and may even work miracles to see our children graduate or go to college and that is just what is needed at home.  At work we are to be part of a bigger body with a mission of service and have to interpret the dynamics of human relationships to work together for a common purpose.  Is this the identity in Christ’s body?  Our identity is not what we do but who we are from the gift we receive.    

God’s desires are not of asking but offering us a gift.  It begins with the gift of himself to us at baptism.  But he comes with many other gifts through the power of the Spirit and it is designed to be “honored” that all the “parts (in the body of Christ) share its joy.” It is that gift that brings blessing to others in the body of Christ.  It creates our identity in Christ to be his body.  Do we recognize the gift in which “you are Christ’s body”?  It is not like a “hat” you put on and take off or a switch you turn on and off at will.  It is a transformational gift.

The transformational gift we live in our being and cannot be hidden but reveals itself in who we were created to be in the image of God.  It is a gift that reveals itself no matter what life choices we make because it represents our identity in Christ.  Until we honor this gift, we remain restless in search of the “other” means of happiness while the gift is the maiden in waiting for our response.  Once we begin to live the gift all the other parts of the body of Christ come together with meaning and purpose. 

How do we discern this gift coming from God?  “Your words Lord, are Spirit and life” says the responsorial psalm.  In baptism the Ephphatha prayer is said with the sign of the cross over the ears of the child and the mouth so that the ears may be opened to receive the word and the mouth to proclaim it.  The gift is revealed in the words of the Lord which we see Ezra reading from the “book of the law” and the reverence of the people answering “Amen, Amen!”  The people are prostrated in fear of the Lord but Ezra declares that it is a holy day “for rejoicing in the Lord must be your strength.”  The Lord comes in his word for our understanding and in his Spirit for guidance that our mind may be opened to the knowledge of God and our hearts be ready to respond to the will of God for our lives.  Ephphatha meaning “Be Opened” to the word and to the Spirit that we may discern rightly what God has prepared for us in becoming “you are Christ’s body”. 

Just as the body has many parts it remains one body with each part in service to the whole body.  The body is also made of millions of cells that generate for a time and pass away but the body remains until the day it passes until the day that it will rise again for all eternity but the soul does not pass something to be pondered.  We were created in the image of God to remain for ever in his one body.  Just as the angels are not all the same and have different gifts to serve the Lord, we have our gift that transcends time, is the joy of the Lord, and is our path to the kingdom of God.  Are we ready to claim it? 

The gift will place us in a position “God has designated in the church to be” of service as “apostles, prophets, teachers, work might deeds, bring healing, provide assistance, administer and receive a variety of tongues” to speak from the testimony of our language of faith, hope, and love of God.  Jesus instituted the church that we may all be one in his body to share the good news and build up the kingdom.  “Today (is our time) this Scripture passage is fulfilled in your hearing” to be anointed in the Spirit of the Lord for you are Christ’s body. 

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Is. 40:1-5, 9-11; Ps. 104:1b-4, 24-25, 27-30; Titus 2:11-14; 3:4-7; Lk. 3:15-16, 21-22

“Justified by his grace” is both present and not yet.  Justified by grace is present by the coming of Jesus and not yet for the unbaptized, the unrepentant sinner, the untrained soul in the ways of the Lord for not all have responded to receive this gift.  Even the baptized repented soul has its work to do in the vineyard of the Lord for salvation comes by God’s grace of mercy and our response by faith through works.  It is in the doing that grace abounds. If we say we believe, then the evidence is in the fruit we produce.  God’s love and mercy cannot save us without us as a precondition of our free will.  The power of the word is given to us to live out as a well-trained soul “filled with expectation”. 

Our expectation is to know God, love God and serve God “eager to do what is good”.  After the “cleansing” through baptism comes the justification by grace so that our expectation is to grow in the Lord guided by the Holy Spirit.  Is this our expectation to grow in the Lord or are we still seeking to live out our own expectation?  The Lord can unite our hopes and dreams with his call to serve him in all we do but it begins with turning our expectation over to him to do with us according to his will.  In this we will be confirmed, to know God is with us producing the good fruit of our labor as heirs to the kingdom. 

We “become heirs in hope of eternal life” something to be thankful, hopeful, and dedicated to the Lord’s “training (of) us to reject godless ways and worldly desires”.  We are thankful, Jesus has arrived, but we remain a work in progress awaiting our day of judgment.  In the endless argument among faithful Christians, we are not justified by faith “alone” nor by “any righteous deeds we had done but because of his mercy” we are invited to enter in the Lord’s vineyard and fulfill our call through works of love and mercy. 

Faith leads us to the waters of baptism and baptism opens the gate of heaven to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit that we may be confirmed that is strengthened to do the will of God in our participation of our salvation by living “temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age”.  The false edict “once saved always saved” is the devil’s temptation to fall into the prideful sin of making the greatest false assumption “our actions will not determine our judgment”.  It is foolish to believe baptism is our “get out of jail pass” and entry ticket to heaven regardless of our sins.  Called to sin no more is the ideal but humanity remains in a state of sin, and we must seek constant reconciliation. 

Salvation arrived in the birth of Jesus to be “justified by grace” and in his love we are now in the age of mercy to live by this same grace “eager to do what is good.”  We are a “hopeful” people, and our work of salvation remains our “hope for eternal life” as “heirs” who must put on the armor of our work and go forth to do what is good and avoid what is evil by the training we receive from the word of God, the body and blood of Jesus, and the guidance of the Holy Spirit.   “Hope” implies the reality of an expectation that has yet to come yet it comes to us daily in the Eucharist, in our acts of love and mercy leading us to that particular day, the final day even as judgment comes daily in the manner we choose to respond to the Lord’s call.  It is both here and not yet. 

“Justified by grace…he saved us through the bath of rebirth and renewal in the Holy Spirit”.  The Lord was faithful to his call for which he was born and in the baptism of the Lord he cleansed the water so we may join him by faith, water, and service.  Are we faithful to our call for the purpose we have received as “heirs” not to squander our inheritance on worldly desires but to multiply it by the same grace in which we were justified?  This “grace” is to love and be merciful in an unjust world.  We are given a light of truth to shine on the darkness around us.  It is a light that cannot be denied and a flame that is to be kept burning and not die from neglect. 

We are “justified by grace” when we go to confession as a repentant sinner called to be perfect but not yet.  Confession is our renewal of our baptismal promises as much as the forgiveness of our sins.  We are to daily rededicate ourselves to receive and to serve by grace the will of God in all we do for nothing is insignificant to the Lord, not our thoughts, not our feelings, or our actions.  We are not only “justified by grace” but being trained by grace to overcome what is evil and seek what is good.  This world is our “bootcamp” in which our struggles, suffering, and pain is to be offered up to the Lord so we may claim our victory in this life and celebrate in the eternal one to come.  This is our call to “live temperately, justly, and devoutly in this age.”  How is it going so far?  Are we there yet and keeping our priorities in order with the call to know, love, and serve God?  We are “justified by grace” to enter into the battlefield where the evil one prowls about seeking the ruin of souls. 

The battlefield is waged in the mind, heart and will of the believer to render the enemy powerless from any attack from the outside world.  That is why we must nourish our minds with the word of God, nourish our hearts with love of God and be trained in the will of God. In the baptism of the Lord, he established the channel of grace that we may receive him as our greatest defender over the powers of evil.  We are not alone we are never alone with Christ for us no one can defeat us. 

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Mic. 5:1-4a; Ps. 80:2-3, 15-16, 18-19; Heb. 10:5-10; Lk. 1:39-45

“Behold, I come to do your will…By this ‘will’, we have been consecrated through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”  When we unite our will to the “will” of Jesus Christ, by his offering for our sins we are redeemed.  Our blessed Mother Mary gave her fiat to do the will of God as the “handmaid of the Lord”.  She is “blessed” for coming to believe and accept what was spoken to her.  It is our turn now to respond to the will of God and be among the “blessed”.  We are reminded that the spirit is willing but the flesh is weak so we pray, “Lord, make us turn to you; let us see your face and we shall be saved.” 

We need God to work in us and with us to respond with faith “Behold, I come to do your will.”  `It is one thing to know and to choose what we are accepting and another to trust in faith and enter into the unknown will of the Father through the Son and in the Holy Spirit.  We want control of not only our life but our world and God gets a good laugh.  All creation is of God and from God including the dust we come from.  The root of our anxiety and restlessness is not recognizing the truth of our creation and existence under the will of God.   Devine providence is the understanding of God’s direction in our life while allowing our free will to choose to follow or reject his will. 

How often do we respond to the will of God in our daily life?  As often as we look for him in thought, prayer, and action we see the will of God working in our lives.  His ever presence is manifested to work for the greater good in our lives and we are to give praise without ceasing.  God is not for 911 calls only to rescue us in times of crisis, he is not our buddy to agree with us in all our justifications and he is not the executioner to condemn us for all our sins. 

A relationship with God is not based on crisis management.  Even when many may claim to have faith in God, it is not the relationship they seek but the safety valve they hope to have available when crisis happens.  Otherwise, God is the emergency lever waiting to be pulled but hoping it is never needed.  A relationship with God is active giving of self to him and receiving greater faith, hope, and love to bring peace and justice to our world.  We are to call out to God “I come to do your will!” 

 God does not call us “friends” by acceptance of our sins.  God calls us friends by coming into our humanity through Jesus Christ to raise us up to his divinity.  It is a call to perfection by shedding of our sins transformed into the spotless lamb through the body and blood of Jesus who we enter into communion with at Mass.  He calls us friends by his gift of himself and all the graces he desires to pour into us.  What we do with ourselves is our gift of ourself back to him.  This is a true relationship of love and friendship. 

God does not condemn us.  Our sins condemn us by our will and not his will.  God allows by our free will to determine our judgment.  He is there to strengthen us against our very weakness to sin.  The great sin of pride opens the gates to other sins when we desire to go on our own and do it “our way” not God’s way.  Judgment is a revelation of having gone our way.  God is love and love meets justice with mercy.  Today is the day of mercy before the day of justice comes calling. 

When was the last time we said, “Behold, I come to do your will Lord”?  We come to Mass and give thanks, we offer praise, and we celebrate our blessings but do we ever offer ourselves to God?  Mass is also to be an offering of ourselves to Jesus in union with his offering to the Father through the Holy Spirit.  More often people may complain of what they don’t “get” out of Mass than to declare what they give in Mass of themselves.  The sacrifice of the Mass is the one giving of Jesus to the Father and we have this opportunity to enter into his giving of himself by being open to do his will joining in this one sacrifice as we receive his body and blood in communion. 

We pray, “Thy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven”.  We are inviting Jesus into our lives to live in his kingdom present in the world by doing his will.  What is the will of the Father?  That all may be saved even as some are lost by rejection of his will.  We do his will when our service to God is to give witness of our faith as an act of evangelization.

When the crowds were asking John the Baptist, “What should we do?” in Luke 3:10 his response was of self correction, “share with the person who has none…stop collecting more than what is prescribed…do not practice extortion, do not falsely accuse anyone, and be satisfied with your wages.”  In other words, do the right thing, let your will not give into the temptation to take advantage of your situation, your power, your rights but allow them to be of service in doing good and avoiding evil.  What should we do?  Do the right thing in all the little things that you may stand in justice before God.  Let us begin with where we are and who we are before God and return to do his will. 

The “will” does not operate separate from the intellect and emotions but all work together to the fullness of our identify and our humanity as our soul.  Our soul raises us up to God’s divinity in cooperation with God’s will.  The soul is reflected through the will, intellect, and emotions, as the spiritual being within us.  Thus, the soul gives its fiat to God through affirmation of the mind, love of the heart, and willful response in its action as a confirmation to the will of God.  It is not about us it’s about him. What should we do?  We come to do the will of God by entering into relationship with the one God in the Trinity. 

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Zeph. 3:14-18a; Is. 12:2-6; Phil. 4:4-7; Lk. 3:10-18

“The Lord is near”, rejoice in the good news of the gospel on this Gaudete Sunday.  The Lord is nearer to us than we are to him for he dwells among us.  While we often look to the world in search of happiness, we remain restless until we come to him “in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving…Then the peace of God that surpasses all understanding will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”  Can it be that simple with God?  With God it is all about faith, the faith of a mustard seed, the faith that lets go and lets God, the faith that remains when everything else seems to be taken away “the Lord is near”. 

The Lord is near our Blessed Mother Mary so when we come to her, we come near to him.  Today is not only the day to rejoice in the Lord but also the feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe.  Appearing to Juan Diego, she made herself visible and left us her image in a “tilma” to venerate and bring about the conversion of Mexico by faith in the Lord.  We rejoice in her love for her people bringing us the good news that “the Lord is near” those who convert from the sins of their past and believe in the gospel.  We rejoice that we have a heavenly mother to unite us to the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit. 

The Lord is near St. Joseph as we complete the year of St. Joseph in the church and rejoice for the blessings of our family in building up a holy family.  St. Joseph is our sign of hope and perseverance in difficult times.  He listened and obeyed the Lord’s command serving as foster father to the child Jesus and guardian of the Holy family.  He stands to be with us in our family as a protector against the enemy of the institution of the family.  In times when the family is under attack as irrelevant to the education, health care, and morals of a child, St. Joseph reminds us that Jesus was obedient to his parents as a child and our rights to our children cannot be taken away. 

We shout for joy for the Lord is near those who suffer.  The Lord joins our suffering to his and extends the olive branch of hope for something greater to come from our suffering.  In the mystery of faith all things work for the glory of God and even in the dark night the soul takes comfort in a God who is near and shares our suffering.  We rejoice that even in suffering it has redemptive power to heal and to save. 

The Lord is near to those who fear not but believe in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  While the world grips on to fear, fear of a pandemic, fear of natural disasters, fear of the unknown we hold onto the truth and Jesus is the truth appearing to us in the miracle of life.   We come to him to adore God in the child born in a stable this Christmas.  We fear not but rejoice in the living God who is near us.  Though we walk in the dark cultural valley of death, death by abortion, death by choice, death by attachment to sin we fear no evil when we remain in the path of righteousness of God. 

The people asked, “What should we do?”  We are to do the right thing for peace and justice.  In our times the wrong thing being done continues to grow against life for the unborn, against safety on the streets of society, against consequences for crime, against the truth of religion.  The voice of righteousness is being silenced or “canceled” but we the people of God must not remain silent but respond as John the Baptist for the call to repentance. 

We are to be filled with expectation.  Just as faith is to believe, expectation is trusting in the Lord that he will complete the good work begun in us until the day we are called to rise up in his glory.  Expectation takes the mustard seed of faith and learns to live as if it is done according to God’s will for the God who is above all expectation will pour out his blessings upon those who call to him.  We call to him rejoicing, we call to him in thanksgiving, and we call to him with all our petitions to answer us and remain with us this Advent and all the years to come until the day of his final coming.  Believe as if he is standing before you and the world will be a better place because he is near and his coming already begun. 

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Bar. 5:1-9; Ps. 126:1-6; Phil. 1:4-6, 8-11; Lk. 3:1-6

“The peace of justice” is Jesus Christ.  We are to “prepare the way of the Lord, make straight his paths” called to evangelize his coming to “see the salvation of God.”  Because of our “partnership for the gospel” we are to live “the peace of justice”.  What is the “peace of justice”?  It is the good work the Lord has begun in us that we may be transformed into his peace and justice to others.  When we are just it is then that the peace of Christ is with us. 

It is not surprising that the Ten Commandments have more to say about what “thou shall not” do to avoid injustice than what we are to do to receive the peace of Christ.  This week the Supreme Count is addressing the issue of abortion law and both sides believe they stand for what is “just” and yet there can only be one just action that protects both the woman and the unborn.  The act of abortion is clearly recognized as ending the life of a child within the law and serves no justice to the child.  It also creates for the woman the scar both physical, emotional, and spiritual for a lifetime for seeking what appeared as an immediate solution to a crisis without recognizing that the solution itself would add to her long-term suffering for accepting the lies of the abortion proponents.  There is no lasting peace when we accept the injustice of abortion.  We prepare the way of the Lord when we stand for God’s justice and peace. 

One argument I heard from one of the Supreme Court Justice was that the issue of life pertained to religion.  Life is not an either or but a both and issue for religion speaks to the evil of killing while society lives by civil laws that protect life against murder in order to remain a society.  While some wish to create division by declaring this as a nation that separates “church from state”, humanity cannot exist as just without accepting the duality of faith and order in order to be at peace.  Just as we are a work in progress or in some cases a work that is growing in sin calling upon death, society is also a work in progress calling upon justice and peace or upon death and destruction. 

In the hands of God, we are a work in progress “until the Day of Christ Jesus” coming.  Advent is our preparation for his coming and good work builds on good work.  From the waters of baptism Jesus is our foundation coming in the timelessness of his ever presence and yet still to come in even greater glory building up his kingdom in his people, the good work of salvation.  “The peace of justice…has done great things for us; we are filled with joy not just for the work done in us but in anticipation of what is still to come. 

Many a saint look forward to their death as an opportunity to do even more in the kingdom of God for our salvation.  We are to remember them for their good work; pray for their intercession for even greater things in our world and in our lives and give thanks for the blessings we have received.  The Lord is ready to pour out his mercy, love, and gifts for those who search and seek will be filled with joy for the great things he has done and continues to do in us and for us.  We are all called to be saints and the work of sanctity is responding to his call for holiness in our works. Do all things with love!  Do all things with love and the peace of justice will give us “the fruit of righteousness” to go forth for the work of salvation. 

“The fruit of righteousness” comes with the gift of discernment what is good, just, and of value to our body, soul, and spirit.  The human flesh perceives that more is better and when we follow that deception, we become divided among ourself seeking to achieve more to satisfy our own self at the cost of others.  The fruit of discernment in the spirit recognizes we are filled with joy in the simplicity of life taking the good work the Lord is doing in us and giving the gift of ourselves, our love, our joy, our peace, our prayers in thanksgiving for the work he is doing in all of us.  It is in the simplicity of life that we are open to the greater work of the Lord in us. 

The Lord chose to bring salvation to the world one soul at a time and the harvest is full but the laborers are in decline left for others to do even less are responding to the call.  Without the peace of justice through Jesus Christ our hearts are restless seeking happiness and success from without.  If only we can achieve our goals, we will find happiness and peace is the misconception.  The error of this philosophy is that external goals are never a constant but an evolving process ever changing that cannot satisfy the thirst for something greater.  The peace of justice comes from within from who we become in the image of Christ. 

If today we enter into the justice of Jesus Christ, then we rest in his peace.  Jesus acted in justice with those he encountered and remained at peace for doing the will of the Father.  What is the justice of Jesus Christ?  It is the sermon on the mount to be “Blessed” in all our actions.  It is following the commandments in obedience to the law of the Lord.  It is to love God and neighbor as thyself.  It is hearing the voice of the Lord and responding by doing his will.  It is love for all and good will towards all. 

As we hear in the second reading the prayer for all is to “increase ever more…more in knowledge and every kind of perception, to discern what is of value…filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ”.  Christ is the way to grow in every kind of spiritual gift of justice to bring about his peace to the world.  We prepare the way of the Lord in our hearts and souls to see in the flesh the Lord’s salvation at work in us and through us. 

This is our Advent, to prepare the way of the Lord’s coming for even greater things in our life than before.  He comes to make all things new in us.  Let us receive him as the birth of a child born into us again for even greater things to come.  Advent is our anticipation of the work that is still to come in our unity to the Trinity, Blessed Mother Mary, the Church, all the saints and with each other when we offer “the peace of justice” to each other in all we do, say, and become.  Let us become more of the image of God and grow in call to holiness.  Let us become just in living the truth of God and less in following the relativity of the world.  Let us become the peace that comes from love of God and neighbor and less of the restlessness of our sinful nature.  Let us receive Christ this Advent to make all things new again. 

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