Deacon
Chris Domingue and I were sitting at dinner and discussing the gospel. He is
giving the homilies this weekend at Jesus the Good Shepherd Parish. His concern
was how to approach the Gospel: call no one father, call no one rabbi, and call
no one master.
I
wanted to describe my ideas, so I started; but, I never got there. I got
distracted. The
direction of my thoughts pulled away by a dinner of wonderful stuffed
cannelloni and wine prepared by the ACTS community for the deacons and their
wives.
So
when I got home, I texted him …. The Gospel is about relationships.
I hope he got it, the text. I got
it, the idea of relationship in Christian ministry.
If our relationship goes wrong, it is as the prophet Malachi
writes:
You have turned aside from the way,
and have caused many to falter by your instruction…
and have caused many to falter by your instruction…
That is what Jesus is warning his disciples about. Beware of
forsaking your relationship with God for your own vanity. Do not follow the way
of the scribes and the Pharisees. They preach but
they do not practice.
The
scribes and Pharisees seemed to have gotten distracted. Instead of discussing
the wonders and mystery of God, they were distracted in their vanity.
They
forgot why they were ministers of God. They were not about giving praise and
thanksgiving to God the most high; but they were about their own pride and
glory. They love places of honor at banquets and when they go out in public
they widen their phylacteries and lengthen their tassels. They
wanted titles for their self-grandeur instead of labels indicating they lived
for God.
My
brother went to a non-denominational church. Instead of the pastor teaching and
preaching the word of God, they watched videos. He said that during service,
they played the Eagle's song “Hotel California.”
That
song is a religious experience to some folks: but, one thing for sure is it
doesn’t praise God. Maybe, that Church should listen closely to Jesus warning
before it become like the scribes and Pharisees.
Being a
Christians is not self-serving and self-promoting. We are to promote and serve
Christ. The ministry of Christ is not proclaiming our self-importance, but the
importance of others. It is not to raise our standing among others for vainglory but to lift up others.
If you do not listen, if
you do not lay it to heart, If you do not to give glory to my name says the
Lord, You have turned aside from
the way, and have caused many to falter by your instruction (Malachi) ; for whoever exalts himself will be
humbled; but whoever humbles himself will be exalted."(Jesus)
That
is what Jesus warns his followers not to become exalted and forget that we are
to have a humble relationship with God through Christ. Don’t tie
up heavy burdens hard to carry and lay them on people's shoulders and not lift
a finger to help them.
Paul
tells us about true ministry. It’s not about the titles. It’s not
about vanity. It’s about a relationship; a relationship with God in
Christ that brings us to relationship with others.
Our ministry is given with affection
for you, given with determination to share with you not
only the gospel of God, but our very selves…. Working night and day in order not to burden any of you …we
proclaimed to you the gospel of God…. as it truly is, the word of God, which is now at work in you
who believe.
I know Deacon Chris gets this message.I can hear him singing, “In you, Lord, I have
found my peace.” He is a physician, a man of
great learning, who in Christ is always God’s humble and loving messenger. As
is all my brother deacons and their wives.
We should strive to be the same.
Yall be good, yall be holy and preach the Gospel by the way you
live and love. Amen.
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