Saint of the Week

St. John Chrysostom

OUR COMMANDMENT

1 John 2:7

Brethren, I write no new commandment to you, but an old commandment which you have had from the beginning. The old commandment is the word which you heard from the beginning.

Personal Challenge

Jesus did not come to force His followers to follow the Old Testament laws. Those laws were established to point to the Messiah, Jesus. Jesus fulfilled all these laws and did not issue a new commandment, but reiterated what the true essence of those laws meant. They were given to us to teach us to love, to love God and to love others. If we desire to be true followers of Christ then we must love as He did. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord have mercy!

FALLING DOWN ON OUR FACE

Ezekiel 1:27

Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the condition of the surrounding brightness.

This was the vision of the likeness of the Lord’s glory. I saw it, and I fell down on my face, and heard the voice of One speaking.

Personal Challenge

At times, I have found myself wondering if I am truly worshiping my Lord at the level that I should. In every account in the Old Testament where a person being called to be a prophet encounters God’s glory, they fall on their face in humility and submission. When Peter first recognizes who Jesus really is, he falls on his knees and begs Jesus to leave him for he is a sinful man. All too often we take Jesus for granted and refuse to fall upon our face to truly worship Him. He deserves our true worship, our willingness to submit everything to Him, our falling on our face before Him. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

DO YOU “KNOW HIM”?

1 John 2:4-6

He who says, “I know Him,” and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him. He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.

Personal Challenge

It is very easy for us to say that we know someone, when in reality all that is really happening is that we know something about them. This is so important in our relationship with Jesus. If I am not consistently doing His things, following His commandments to love and care for my neighbor, then I really do not “know Him”. It does not matter how many gold crosses I own or how much I go to church. If I am not walking as Jesus walked, then I do not “know Him”. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy?

MY REDEEMER

Lamentations 3:56-58 (3:52-54 LXX)

“You heard my voice;
Do not hide Your ears from my supplication.
You drew near at my call on the day I called upon You.
You said to me, ‘Do not fear.’
O Lord, You pleaded the case for my soul;
You redeemed my life.”

Encouraging Words

We are not alone. Our God is always with us. He hears our voice and listens to our supplications. He draws near to us when we call upon Him. He tells us not to fear. He pleads our case in the time of judgment. He redeems our life. Glory be to God!

CONFESSION AND CLEANSING

1 John 1:9

If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

Personal Challenge

It is such a blessing to know that our God is so willing to forgive us of our sins and to cleanse us from our unrighteousness. Verse 8 says, “If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” We need to be active in confessing those sins because that is admitting the truth about ourselves. We need to do our part to receive this blessing. So what about those actions that we commit that are clearly against God that we do not confess as sin. Things like being mean and nasty towards our neighbor, not supporting those in need, not loving the foreigner amongst us, and so many other actions that Jesus told us to do. Are these sins unforgiven? Does God in His mercy ignore them? Or is this part of what we will be held accountable for in the last judgment. The key message here is that we must be constantly running to Christ, confessing our sinful actions, and seeking His forgiveness. We need to keep our slate clear before Him. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

TAKE UP HIS YOKE

Lamentations 3:27-30 (3:24-27 LXX)

It is good for a man when he takes up
A yoke in his youth.
“He will sit alone and be silent,
Because he bears it on himself.
He will give his cheek to the one who strikes him,
And he will be filled with insults.
Yet the Lord shall not reject him forever.”

Personal Challenge

Jesus told us to take up our cross and to follow Him. Here in Lamentations we are told to take up a yoke and be obedient to God. Being a follower of Christ is not a walk in the park. It means being willing to follow Him, even to the cross, because that is what He did for us. We must be doing the things that He did, saying the things that He said, and avoiding the things that He avoided. Lord Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, the sinner!

Saint of the Week

St. Seraphim of Sarov

LIGHT VERSUS DARKNESS

1 John 1:5-7

This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.

Encouraging Words

Light is such a necessary component of life. Without it there is death. Even in the depths of the ocean, where light cannot penetrate, the creatures that are there, generate luminescence, or light. God is light. He is not just the source of light, He is light. He is the source of all life that thrives on His light. As followers of Christ we must choose to be His light in this dark world. If we choose to walk in darkness, support those who do the deeds of darkness in this world, and cheer on actions of darkness, then we lie about being His followers. Lord have mercy on those who proclaim Him as their Lord and yet relish in darkness. Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy! Lord, have mercy!

WAITING BUT SEEING

Lamentations 3:25-26 (3:22-23 LXX)

“The Lord is good to those who wait for Him,
To the soul who will seek Him, the Good One.
He will wait for and quietly expect
The salvation of the Lord.”

Personal Challenge

God is always with us. Sometimes our hearts and minds are so full of the world and the issues that it induces in our lives that we feel as if God has left us. It is not so. God has not left us. We have put up barriers that prevent us from seeing Him. This is where the waiting, the quiet expectation, and the seeking of Him in our soul, reveals Him to us. This process, cleanses us of those things that have built the barrier and tears it down. We will once again find the salvation of the Lord. Glory be to God!