Fr Dr Saji K Mathew

…since I am a virgin

December 1, 2020December 1, 2020 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew2 Comments

Mary said to the angel, How can this be, since I am a virgin (Luke 1:34)

Day one of the Advent Lent marks the beginning of a 25 days journey culminating in the Nativity of our Lord Jesus Christ. Mother Mary was the entry point of the saviour to this world. As such, reception of the Lord at this entry point draws great significance. God has made human beings with a free-will. It means human beings have the freedom of choice to make decisions that they deem right or wrong. Mother Mary as a human being was not an exception to this. She could outrightly reject the announcement of a pregnancy outside the wedlock. Apparently, Mother Mary did not do so but wholeheartedly submitted herself to the will of God to be accepted and conceived in her womb.

Though the spiritual discourse about faith is conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1), Mother Mary could not accept what angel Gabriel communicated to her about the spiritual conception, and hence sought further clarification. There is a prima facie double standard exhibited by angel Gabriel in a similar situation as we read in Luke 1: 20, when Zechariah the priest asked how will I know that this is so? (Luke 1:18). One may ask why Zechariah the priest was punished whereas Mother Mary was extended a patient hearing. The answer to this question could be found in angel Gabriel’s statement. He said, I am Gabriel. I stand in the presence of God (Luke 1:19). The expansion of this statement leads us to look into Zechariah’s position. He was the priest of God, and, like angel Gabriel, he also stood in the presence of God. Hence, Zechariah should have known that as a priest, he is a responsible receptor of God’s message and shall convey it to the people of God. It could then be genuinely asked, if the representative of God is unable to believe in God’s promises, how would he be able to carry and deliver the same to the people of God.

As Zechariah stood in the presence of God, he did not need a confirmation of God’s voice. As an honest and committed priest, Zechariah could have easily discerned the angel as his co or fellow being in the service of God. The doubt expressed by the priest of God unveils his inability to feel the presence of God as well as see his fellow beings who also stood in God’s presence.

The punishment awarded by angel Gabriel was an eye opener for Zechariah. He possibly learned for the first time in his life that priesthood is not just inherited but a profession called by name (Isaiah 43:1). The words and deeds of a priest need to be aligned to his spiritual discernment received as a grace when he stands in the presence of God. Jesus said Let your words be Yes, Yes or No, No; anything more than this comes from the evil one (Matthew 5:37). On the contrary, Zechariah is seen applying his rationalist mind and questioning his fellow servant in Lord, angel Gabriel. The overwhelming of one’s spirit by his/her mind could result in a random and thoughtless response than a spiritually guided one. Hence, Saint Paul exhorts the faithful en-masse to redirect their tongue to thanksgiving: Entirely out of place is obscene, silly, and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving (Ephesians 5:4). Zechariah could better make use of the situation to thank God when he received the most precious gift that he was actually seeking ever since his marriage with Elizabeth.

Mother Mary’s question, how can this be, since I am a virgin is not just an innocent question but a cautious response. Unlike Zechariah who had the privilege to stand in the presence of the Lord, Mother Mary was a layperson. However, her status in the lower hierarchy of ranks was not an excuse for abstaining from the discernment of the scripture, as evident from the below paragraph. Saint Paul later cautioned in Galatians 1:8 But even if we or an angel from heaven should proclaim to you a gospel contrary to what we proclaimed to you, let that one be accursed.

There is insufficient ground to blame Mother Mary for not outrightly accepting the message conveyed through angel Gabriel. Neither can she be blamed for asking a question in this case. The justification for the Mother’s question could be found in an incident that provoked God to anger- When people began to multiply on the face of the ground, and daughters were born to them, the sons of God saw that they were fair; and they took wives for themselves of all that they chose Genesis 6:1-2. Please note, the Hebrew tradition identifies the sons of God as angels (also see Job 1:6; 2:1 & 38:7).

If Mother Mary had suspected the intention of the angel or tried to confirm that the message was true indeed, it only confirms her familiarity with the scripture. Moreover, the Mother’s query could be accepted as something that could be emulated in a world struggling to distinguish between true and fake messages. In a world where the preference is for leadership over followership, there is increased competition among the corporate churches to attract followers in quantity over quality. The tactic used to multiply is unfortunately faked messages that feed itching ears (2 Timothy 4:3). As a result, the discourse has vastly shifted from a ‘witnessing’ church to a balance-sheet based church, thus nullifying the “Great Commission” – Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you (Matthew 28:19-20).

Mother Mary’s question to angel Gabriel represents the witnessing church needing confirmation- that the message is truly from God. Saint John exhorts, Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God…..(1 John 4:1). In line with the Genesis 6:1-2 tragedy, Saint Paul further cautions, even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light (2 Corinthians 11:14).

Unlike the way how angel Gabriel dealt with Zechariah, Mother Mary was treated with compassion. We read the detailed explanation of the angel, ….the Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you…(Luke 1;35). The true body of Christ (the church) should experience and witness the shadow of the Most High and the brooding of the Holy Spirit, both undoubtedly absent from a balance-sheet oriented church. Unlike the latter, a witnessing church will be devoid of marketing gimmicks, beats of heavy metals (music), las-vegas style lightings, and demonstration of human powers. Instead, there will only be a sound of sheer silence (1 Kings 19:12). In fact, Mount Horeb could be interpreted as a shadow or prototype of a true church. Prophet Elijah misunderstood the strong mountain splitting and rock shattering wind as the arrival of God (1 Kings 19:11), but was proved wrong. He was again wrong interpreting the earthquake and fire as the Lord’s arrival (1 Kings 19;11-12).

The arrival of Messiah was awaiting a heroic welcome from the people of God. The latter wanted their national and community pride kindled with an earth shattering entry mode of the Messiah as is stated in Isaiah 64: 1-2 O that you would tear open the heavens and come down, so that the mountains would quake at your presence- as when fire kindles brushwood and the fire causes water to boil- to make your name known to your adversaries, so that the nations might tremble at your presence!

To the disappointment of many, none of those things happened. Instead a trusted lieutenant was sent to an innocent virgin. Unlike a pompous summit or a red carpet visit to the hall of fame, the entire meeting took just a few minutes which silently marked the end of an age and the beginning of a new era for the world. Interesting and noteworthy is the brief exchange between the angel and Mother Mary that encompassed the greatest question ever asked (how can this be, since I am a virgin) and the answer to it which communicated the most powerful of all the words (Holy Spirit and Most High).

May God bless you. Amen.

Where have you laid him?

February 5, 2018February 5, 2018 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew3 Comments

Where have you laid him? (John 11:34)

Beyond the literal nature of the question, it has a much deeper meaning. As we read further, the deeper meaning slowly gets revealed. The response to Jesus’s question is ‘Lord come and see’, and ‘Jesus began to weep’.

In this instance, we see that instead of submitting the departed to Lord, people try to bring Jesus to the departed. This is not what is expected. The response to Jesus’ question should have been, Lord, kindly receive our beloved departed.

Jesus said earlier to Martha that those who believe in him, even though they die will live (vs.25). This statement is an eternal assurance to all who follow Jesus and depart from this world. For the living, the same statement is a guideline to how one should the departed.

There is a fundamental difference between the death of God’s children and others. In fact, those who reject God are put to death whereas His children are just given another name (Isaiah 65:15b). As we read in 1 Corinthians 15:51, ‘We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed’. These verses guide us to treat our departed as living, and are just transformed from earthly realm to a divine space. Moreover, God is not a God of the dead, but of the living (Mark 12:27). Jesus said, Because I live, you shall also live’ (John 14:19). This was prophesied by Job years ago when he stated ‘I know my redeemer lives’ (Job 19:25). Unfortunately, we often fail to understand these, and are often led by the ways of the gentiles.

Lazarus was very close to Lord Jesus as evident from verse 3. Therefore, there is no need to panic or worry about Lazarus’ state of life. However, there are three contradictory situations witnessed around this incident:

1. Even before Jesus was informed about the death of Lazarus, Jesus knew that, and disclosed it to the disciples, ‘Our friend Lazarus is asleep; but I am going there to wake him up (vs.11). However, the response from the disciples reflect spiritual immaturity and ignorance, ‘Lord if he sleeps he will get better’ (vs. 12). Unfortunately, even the disciples could not differentiate between natural sleep and sleeping in Christ. Hence, Jesus had to clarify in plain language that Lazarus is dead.

This brief conversation and concluding statement that Lazarus is dead is a message for the church that it should not ignore the departed as they are precious to Jesus. If the Church had to forget the dead, Jesus would have told the disciples not to worry anymore about Lazarus as he is dead. Instead, Jesus decides to travel to Bethany with His disciples, even though it was a risky affair (see vs. 15-16). The Psalmist says, ‘Precious in the sight of the Lord is the death of his faithful servants (Psalms 116:115).

2. We see another misunderstanding about the dead in the conversation between Martha and Jesus. Even after Jesus clearly telling Martha that her brother will rise again, her response is ‘post-dated’, ignoring the fact that Jesus was the resurrection and life (vs. 25). Whilst Martha responds to Jesus’ statement by acknowledging, ‘I know he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day’ (vs. 24), Jesus corrects her with a statement that reflects it (resurrection) is not a future event but it is NOW. Our beloved departed are not alive in this world, but are well alive and living in Christ. St. Paul explicitly states, ‘Brothers, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him’ (1 Thessalonians 4:13-14). The death of God’s children is termed First death’ in Bible (Revelations 20:6), and they will not be subjected to ‘Second death’ as it is meant for the unfaithful (also see Revelations 2:11). The Second death is destined to happen at the second coming of Jesus when the dead and alive will be judged according to their deeds (Revelations 20:12; also see 1 Thessalonians 4:16-17).

Often in our state of uncontrolled and mismanaged emotions, we go crazy and indulge in weird practices, as a demonstration of our love for our beloved departed. As a result, our focus is directed towards worldly glories, decorating the tomb, and making the burial service a show off. And, in the course of these, we forget handing over our beloved departed into the hands of Jesus, but just bury them off according to our ways, and grieve and weep without any hope . This is what Jesus witnessed at Bethany when he saw Martha, Mary and all others weeping, at which Jesus was moved in spirit and troubled (vs.33). Instead, as mentioned above, the family members are expected to be spiritually responsible in handing over the beloved departed into Lord’s hands.

3. The worst of spiritual ignorance is evident from the criticism of some of the people assembled there, ‘Could not he who opened the eyes of blind man have kept this man from dying’ (vs. 37).

It is often the case, that people lack farsightedness, and are often shackled with short term gains. The people gathered in Bethany could not distinguish between life in this world and life in Christ. Such nearsightedness only expect Jesus to help and support them with their worldly needs rather than eternal ones. St. Paul instructs the Colossians to set their minds on things above, and not on earthly things (Colossians 3:2). The minds and hearts of people are often connected to Jesus through worldly things. Instead we ought to have a direct connection. If we try to connect with Lord through our personal gains only, it is selfishness. On the contrary, if we ignore our selfish desires and motives and seek Lord with a pure heart, it is true faith, and we will be able to see the glory of God (vs. 40).

In the whole episode at Bethany, the disciples represent the Church, Martha and Mary represent the family of the departed, and the people gathered represent the congregation. And we see here, Jesus clearly instructing all the three regarding the faithful departed. There is no better evidence in the Bible to demonstrate the state of departed and their status when they are removed from this world. It is only a transformation and not destruction because Jesus has come to give life in abundance; and, in fact it is Satan who comes to destroy (John 10:10).

More importantly, the responsibility of the Church, family of departed and the wider congregation is to submit the faithful departed into the hands of Jesus Christ.

Let us submit our faithful departed into Lord’s hands. Amen.

Paulos I know, Apollos I know; But who is Jesus?

November 4, 2017 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew6 Comments

This blog is based on 1 Corinthians 3:4 where St Paul sadly comments on the worldly nature of the church in Corinth that he founded, quarreling in the name of human leaders creating a kind of cultic personalities out of God’s servants. And we see in this chapter, Paul struggling to put the church back on the foundation of Jesus Christ. Hence, the sarcastic question in the second part of the title.

Corinth was evangelized during the latter half of St. Paul’s second missionary journey. As usual, Paul first preached to the Jews in Corinth, but upon being rejected, turned to the Gentiles. Apollos was an Alexandrian Jew who was well versed in the scripture and testified Jesus Christ as the Messiah. However, he knew only the baptism of John the Baptist (Acts 18:25), of that of repentance (Acts 19:4). Apollos first came to know about the baptism of the Holy Spirit when Priscilla and Aquila instructed him (Acts 18:26). After supposedly receiving the baptism of Holy Spirit, he was further charged spiritually and went to Corinth to preach Jesus Christ (Acts 18:27).

Corinth had the double blessing of hearing about and knowing Jesus Christ, first from Paul, followed by Apollos. The division or rather fragmentation in the Church of Corinth reflects that the teaching and preaching of two spiritual giants (Paul and Apollos) yet had not made inroads into the spirit of the people of Corinth. This suggests that they received Jesus Christ only superficially, but still were unmoved in their heart and spirit.

A doubt arise as to what actually the Corinthians were hearing when Saints Paul and Apollos spoke to them. It could be assumed that the people of Corinth were more attracted to the personalities of Saints Paul and Apollos over the gospel and its essence, the salvation. They might have been impressed on St. Paul as a learned and rich man, as well as a former Jewish authority who had close connections with the hierarchy in Jerusalem (see Acts 22:3-5). Moreover, his wisdom and knowledge were up to a level of high intellect that the common mass often failed to understand (1 Peter 3:16). St. Apollos too was a learned man, well versed in the scripture, and more importantly eloquent (Acts 18:24). Being from Alexandria, historians are also of the view that he followed the Philo style of allegoric interpretation in his teachings. In short, the people of Corinth were more blessed to have two great personalities from the Christian world, when compared to other disciples who were mostly uneducated and ordinary men (Acts 4:13). But the primary and sole focus on the physical qualities proved miserable as the Corinthian church missed the key message that there is salvation in none but only in Jesus Christ (Acts 4:12). St. Paul himself did not consider any of his worldly qualifications as worthy but counted them as rubbish (Philippians 3:8 &11).

Poor believers of Corinth were in a situation as quoted by Jesus Christ, ‘……hearing they do not listen, nor do they understand’ (Matthew 13:13). The primary reason for this cognitive disability is due to the unwillingness to detach from the comfort zone of worldly glories. The word of God will only enter a person when s/he is separated from this worldly thoughts and deeds. As we read in Numbers 8:6, Moses was instructed by God to separate the Levites from the rest of the Israelites, so that they could serve Him. In order to hear God and serve Him, we need to detach from worldly things. Unfortunately, it appears that the believers of Corinth were not detached but continued in the worldly comfort even after becoming the followers of Christ, a trend that we see existing even today.

The two factors that St. Paul identified as the cause of division in the Church are jealousy and quarreling (1 Corinthians 3:3). Diagnosing jealousy, the root cause could be attributed to the absence of self-confidence and feeling of insecurity due to the lack of contentment. Jesus said, Do not let your heart be troubled (John 14:1); and ……….take courage, I have conquered the world (John 16:34). St. Paul said that God has not given us a spirit of cowardice but a spirit of power, love, and self-discipline (1Timothy 1:7). The absence of the discernment of gospel leaves us devoid of power, love, and self-discipline, leading to a sense of insecurity.

God has given us His power (Acts 1:8), but we do not recognize it nor do we try to exercise that power. God is love (1 John 4:16) and Jesus gave us a new commandment, to love one another (John 13:34). The uniqueness of God’s love is that it is patient, kind, not envious or arrogant or boastful or rude (1 Corinthians 13:4). These qualities only make us self-confident and secure, and not otherwise.

The Corinthian church boasted more on its human leaders than the true leader, Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 3:21). Thus, the eternal Lord, the author and perfecter of faith (Hebrew 12:2), Jesus Christ is sidelined or even forgotten in most instances. Jesus said you can do nothing without me (John 15:5). Yet, people boast and rely on human leaders hoping that flesh can feed and make them content. It is similar to what happened when the prophets of Baal prayed at the top of their voice O Baal answer us (1 Kings 18: 26) and Elijah taunting them Cry aloud…….he is either meditating, or he has wandered away, or he is on a journey, or perhaps he is asleep….. (1 Kings 18: 27). In the following verses, we read that Baal never answered. Any image made by or statuses attributed to human beings according to human designs and skills (Acts 17:29) is idol worship. And God said you shall have no other gods before me. You shall not make for yourself an idol (Exodus 20:3-4).

As a result of idolizing their human leaders, Paul and Apollos, there erupted quarrel among them. The focus of the people drifted away from Jesus Christ, to the question of who is more powerful, Paul or Apollos. As one group pitched for Paul another set claim on Appolos. It is to be noted here that the Galatians were also affected by a similar kind of distraction, and St Paul rebukes them saying I am astonished that you are so quickly deserting the one who called you in the grace of Christ (Galatians 1:6). In both the churches, the deception of Satan is evident that they had not completely thrown out the gospel but kept it as a pretext to win human arguments. St. Paul calls the Galatians ‘fools’ and asked them who has bewitched you? (Galatians 3:1).

Contentment is the key to success in Christian life. This is achieved when we have confidence in Christ which in turn provides us with a sense of security. St. Paul said, I can do all things through him who strengthens me (Philippians 4:13). The extreme sense of confidence is testified by St. Paul when he said, Who will separate us from the love of Christ? Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? (Romans 8:35); and he goes on to answer, For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38). St. John said, this is the confidence that we have in him…..(1 John 5:14). The Word of God tells us to be content (Hebrew 13:5), and say with confidence that the Lord is my helper, I will not be afraid (Hebrews 13:6).

Our confidence in Christ will help us to love each other rather than quarreling with our brethren. A human question comes, what shall we do when somebody tries to snatch what is genuinely ours? Well, the answer is, show to them who you are in Christ. Jesus said, Do not resist an evildoer…..if anyone wants to sue you and take your coat, give your cloak as well (Matthew 5:39-40). The assurance is blessed are you when people revile you and persecute you and utter all kinds of evil against you falsely (Matthew 5:11). Are these impractical and ornamental words? Not at all, because Jesus would not have said this if he himself could not practice it, as he himself was tested by what he suffered (Hebrews 2:18), and succeeded. Therefore, to weed out such evils of the flesh, jealousy, and quarreling is possible with the help of Christ, and Christ only (Acts 4:12).

In order to achieve this status, we need to transform ourselves from flesh to the spirit (Romans 12:2). In order to achieve this, one needs to submit his/her flesh/body as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God (Romans 12:1). By doing this, we are able to align our body and spirit so that both could glorify God (1 Corinthians 6:20). If we fail to achieve this alignment, we are then hypocrites, as our body does one thing which may be contrary to our spirit. We may pray, but our prayers may not be answered, we may be churchgoers, and physical followers, but as long as we are not aligned within ourselves, Jesus will say, I never knew you; go away from me, you evildoers (Matthew 7:23). The underlying reason for jealousy and quarreling among the people of Corinth was that they were still in flesh and were not completely transformed in Spirit. Our relationship with God is established only when we identify with Him. God is Spirit (John 4:24) and those who want to identify with Him must transform themselves into the status that God is. This is testified by St. Paul, and it is no longer I who live but it is Christ who lives in me (Galatians 2:20); because if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation (2 Corinthians 5:17).

In conclusion, it is none of the human leaders but God that matters (1 Corinthians 3:6). It is not by human might and power that the Church is sustained but by the Spirit of the Lord (Zechariah 4:6). We read in Psalms (118:8), it is better to take refuge in the Lord than to put confidence in mortals. David prayed, what are human beings that you are mindful of them, mortals that you care for them? (Psalms 8:4). Indeed we have no identity outside Christ, for we are what He has given us.

Therefore, let us testify:

I was a sinner but by His blood, my sins are cleansed off (1 John 1:7&9); I was deformed and my sins resulted in all kind of diseases in my body, but Jesus took all my infirmities and bore my diseases (Matthew 8:17). And, by His stripes, I am healed (Isaiah 53:4). Therefore, I do not want myself to be identified outside and above Christ because He is my identity. As St. Paul quoted Jeremiah 9:24 Let the one who boasts, boast in the Lord (1 Corinthians 1:31; 2 Corinthians 10:17).

Jesus was never jealous, how could I be?

Jesus never quarreled? How can I?

Jesus never boasted about Himself, but always glorified His Father, and gave thanks to Him. How could I then claim a worldly status for myself?

Amen.

The Great Lent: A Pilgrimage to Re-discovery.

February 26, 2017 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew6 Comments

Once again we are entering into the season of divine wash, a journey of forty days to get refreshed in the passion and eventual resurrection of Christ.

Great lent is core to the spiritual life of Christians, especially for the Orthodox believers. It is a combination of solitary march and collective procession looking forward to renewed salvation gracefully showered by Jesus Christ.

The Great lent helps us to renew our relationship with Jesus Christ by way of knowing Him better as well as committing ourselves to His kingdom with gratitude, for the reason that God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten son, Jesus Christ to us (John 3:16). God the Father unselfishly gave His most precious treasure, His son to us. Though we cannot pay it back in the same coin, there is a natural obligation, What shall I return to the Lord for all His bounty to me? (Psalms 116:12).

My soul yearns to know (Psalms 84:2) who this Father Son duo are……..and then I discovered that Jesus had showed me the way (John 14:6) by physically going through the journey of lent (Matthew 4:2).

Therefore, I need not waste my time trying to find a way or develop a tool or instrument to know the duo, as the third member (Holy Spirit) guides me to follow Jesus’s way (lent). I find this amazing trinitarian unity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) the driving force of my Lenten journey.

As was Jesus’ journey, walking on the earth for three and half years, Great lent is an advancement through the toughs and terrains of this world. Concomitantly, we are aided by the Holy Ghost (Matthew 4:1) and holy angels are close by waiting to see us triumphant (Matthew 4:11).

This blog is an attempt to caution the readers about the traps laid by Satan to sabotage our Lenten journey:

1. Richard Dawkins, renowned evolutionary biologist and author of many books is a hardcore atheist, as evident from many of his writings and related activities. He was once asked how should one respond to a person who believes in God. Dawkins’ answer was: ‘mock them” and “ridicule them”. Mocking and ridiculing are a couple of things one may have to encounter in the course of the Lenten journey. Jesus, during His passion was mocked and ridiculed by the Jews, Roman soldiers, and even the thief nailed besides Him (Matthew 27:31, 41; Luke 23:37).

Shaming by way of ridiculing and mocking would be the first of several steps Satan may adopt to dissociate the pilgrims of lent. Satan does not always need hardcore atheists like Dawkins to get this done. Neither does he need to burn midnight oil to find people to do this. It could be from our own family members, friends or wider society. Satan’s goal is not only to sabotage our lent, but he also uses this opportunity to de-civilise the faithful and may even go to the extent of de-humanize them. Jesus has already cautioned about this: They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed an hour is coming when those who kill you will think that by doing so they are offering worship to God (John 16:2).

Even if such extremes may not happen to most of us, still we are prone to mocks and ridicules, from our immediate circles as mentioned above. But this is a compulsory part of our Lenten journey in the same way as was it with Jesus Christ. Jesus being God still had to go through the hardcore temptations.

So what do we achieve passing through this tumultuous journey?

The benefits are bi-pronged. The first prong is all what we achieve in this life; and the second one is the ultimate reward waiting for us in heaven.

In terms of the immediate achievement, the hardships such as facing and undergoing mocks and ridicules would help us to shed the absolutes and prejudices. Absolutes and prejudices are evident in the words of Satan in his conversation with Eve in the Garden of Eden, You will not die; for God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God (Genesis 3:4-5). This absolute statement was an attempt to make Eve believe that Satan knows the inside out of God. On the contrary, for the faithful, knowledge about God is not absolute but an ongoing quest. The Bible says, No one has ever seen God (John 1:18; 1 John 4:12); Who has known the mind of the Lord (Isaiah 40:13: Romans 11:34; 1 Corinthians 2:16).

Same as absolutism, prejudice also is demonic as it distances one from the will of God. Saint Peter’s prejudice about gentiles (Acts 10:14) worked against evangelism for which he was called. Hence God dismantled it when he was taken to Caesarea as instructed by the Holy Spirit (Acts 10:19-20). And we read later in Acts 10 that the walls of prejudice was completely dismantled, representing a milestone in Saint Peter’s missionary journey.

Therefore, by withstanding and surviving the mocks and ridicules as well as many other temptations (this could be both physical and mental), Lenten pilgrimage enables to alternate the course of Christian life towards achieving better proximity with God.

2. By explaining about the potential hurdles, I have not tried to be an absolutist, or else I commit the same mistake against which I took a stand. This puts me in a situation whereby I am in a state of retreat during the lent season. As we know, a retreat is a temporary withdrawal to reflect, think through and re-strategize so as to advance better. This puts our Lenten journey into ‘silent mode’. Lent is a time to talk less, avoid all loose talks and restrain from similar things. Saint Paul instructed Ephesians, Entirely out of place is obscene, silly and vulgar talk; but instead, let there be thanksgiving (Ephesians 5:4).

John Keats (+1821), an English romantic poet, in one of his poems criticizes Sir Isaac Newton for destroying the beauty of rainbow by analyzing light with a prism, and splitting it into different colours. What this means to us is God and His works are to be experienced rather than to be put under the lens or dissected on the table. Evidence based approach to faith is insignificant in comparison to experience based faith. In fact faith is the conviction of things not seen (Hebrews 11:1). Saint Paul had not seen Jesus but just heard and experienced him, starting from the gates of Damascus (Acts 9:3-6). Saint John talks about things that were heard, seen and experienced (1 John 1:1) but never claimed that he knew Jesus well (though he was the dearest of all the disciples). We also read Jesus’ words to Saint Thomas, ……………blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe (John 20:29).

My intention is to focus on anti-absolutism and drum-beating. The tentacles of social media is so far reaching that it is not difficult at all to see anything and everything related to the divine uncovered and made explicit. Orthodox tradition insists life with Jesus as a divine mystery. This entails there are things, such as our partaking in the body and blood of Christ, that should be treated in confidence. Great lent is a journey to reach and receive the body of Christ which was broken and the blood of Christ that was shed on the cross, for our salvation. Therefore, given the tough terrain of lent that a faithful has to tread through, one should not wear the robes of a propagandist (of lent) during the Lenten period. Lent is not a show object nor should one attempt to exhibit as had Jesus cautioned in Matthew 6:16:18.

In the same way as a rainbow pleases our eyes, lent is a spiritual enjoyment. If I attempt to explain lent, I am probably forgetting my most important challenge, to defeat the temptations of Satan. Jesus could have continued with His ministry alongside the forty days fasting. But He did not. He placed Himself in solitude talking only to God the Father. So should we during the Lenten season. Psalms 46:10 tells us Be still, and know that I am God.

As a priest, I shall maintain utmost silence by endeavoring not to set the pulpit on unholy fire by bullying the innocent faithful and hammering them with unbearable guilt and remorse, and simultaneously claiming my lent as the best lent in comparison to the lent observed by my parish members. Rather, my silence should be my sermon, and a guiding spirit to all the faithful.

3. So what do we achieve by observing the Great Lent?

An Orthodox Lenten prayer goes somewhat like this, Oh Lord, if my wrongdoings are taken into consideration, I will not be able to stand anywhere near you. But I depend on and plead for your mercy.

Lent is a vehicle that takes us to God’s throne of grace to receive His mercy (Hebrews 4:16). The mercy that we receive is not because of our zero-defective works but due to God’s great love (Ephesians 2:4-5; Psalms 51:1-2; Psalms 103:8; Micah 7:18). As mentioned in the early lines of this blog, God so loved this world………, that He is gracious enough to cover us with His mercy.

Having said, God’s love cannot grow or flourish in malicious, contaminated and polluted environment. Unfortunately, this world is full of those things and hence filthy. But God has given us the Great lent to attempt cleaning our lives, which would then help clean our environment. Therefore, it could be said that lent is an act of systemic cleansing which is not confined to a few peripheral acts such as restraining from a set of food items but a holistic process.

Lent is central to our spiritual life. The Great lent helps us to make Jesus the joy of our life and our temporary difficulties (such as fasting and abstinence) a peripheral thing. As we read in 2 Corinthians 4:17-18, For this slight momentary affliction is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory beyond all measure, for we look not at what can be seen but at what cannot be seen; for what can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.

Therefore, Great lent is an attempt to make Jesus central to our lives. The temptations of Jesus demonstrates the preferential option of the centrality of faith over the centrality of worldly life. In fact Jesus’ first response to Satan builds the umbilical cord between the two, faith in God and worldly life, in the sense that life in this world is nutritiously fed by the faith in Jesus Christ.

Jesus never negated the significance of life in this world. If Jesus told Satan I am not worried about my life, it would have given devil an opportunity to claim the ownership of the lives of people. In fact, life is a gift of God. It was God in the Garden of Eden that breathed life into the nostrils of the first man, Adam (Genesis 2:7). It should therefore be assumed that Jesus was careful in His conversation with Satan during the temptation.

Lent is a training to equip us to fight back the nefarious designs of the devil, a forty days journey of perseverance, till our faith is entrenched in Jesus Christ, as a conviction rather than a leisure or an extracurricular thing.

Soon after Hitler visited Paris in 1940, Andre Boulloche, a courageous member of French Resistance wrote a letter to his father:

The country can only be saved by a complete moral resurrection, something that will require the works of men of all good will………I think I can contribute a great deal. And if more troubles lie ahead, isn’t my duty present?

As we get ourselves dirty toiling and moiling throughout the year, and moreover Satan has found an opportunity to deceptively benefit from our tiredness by visiting our weakened faculties of life, as the above quote says, it is time for us to stand up, against devil and defend not only our families but our church to pave way for a spiritual resurrection.

In short, the achievement from Great Lent is a renewed self, vibrant family and a Church that re-emerges to witness her spouse, Jesus Christ.

O Holy Lent, come in peace.

Amen.

Being shut-in under divine protection: an analysis of the dynamics of comfort versus discomfort.

December 26, 2016 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew5 Comments

The Lord shut him in (Genesis 7:16)

The background of this verse is detailed in Genesis 6 & 7. Accordingly, we get to know that Noah was shut in the ark ahead of the great flood.

As people began to multiply on the face of earth (Genesis 6:1) sin took a parallel course. As a result of the multiplication of sin, the contemporary generation of Noah deteriorated to such a wicked state that the place became a cradle and repository of sin and embodiment of a soul destructive life style. Though, this section of the Bible does not list the type of sins the gravest of them all, sexual perversion is identified. As we know, perversion is the corruption and distorting of something resulting in deviation from the fundamental goal. It could be inferred that the divine gift of procreation bestowed on human beings was demonised to such an extent that people were brazenly in pursuit of (sexual) perversions. Homosexuality, sexual abuses, sex with animals, combining alcohol and drugs with sex etc., are only a few examples of such perversions. Noah’s contemporary generation was depressingly one step ahead from even the current generation as we are still exploring alien life but during his time the relationship was well established (see Genesis 6:2).

Perversion is adultery at its core and is something intolerable to God – no matter whether it is our personal or spiritual life (though these cannot be separated). For instance, when the sons of Aaron the high priest, Nadab and Abihu, corrupted the ingredients to create unholy fire, they committed spiritual adultery and consequently were consumed by fire from the presence of the Lord (Leviticus 10:1-2).

In a situation where corruption, perversion and adultery are a way and part of life, the righteous are decimated. Noah was in such a situation but he swam against the worldly flow by remaining loyal to God (Genesis 6:9). It might not have been easy for Noah to survive in such a hostile world where perverted pleasures were a way and part of life. He might have undergone name-calling, bullying and other forms of abuses. However, one should be assured that Lord cannot tolerate the sufferings of his children as we read in Exodus 3:7: I have observed the misery of my people. Noah never was bowed down or run over by any of these adversities. Instead his ears were trained only to hear the Lord, and his walks as always directed by the Lord (see Psalms 119:105).

There are two times a righteous person is shut in by Lord, during the earthly life and life after death. When Lord shuts us in we are not simply locked from outside but fully covered by Him. In fact, Lord’s covering is for the entire creation, especially the human beings. But, it is for us human beings to decide whether we want to remain shut-in the divine covering or sneak out of it. Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden were covered by Lord. But when they walked out of that covering they were exposed (to evil). Psalms 91:4 says that God will cover us under his pinions and secure under His wings. God’s children are covered with the shadow of His hand (Isaiah 51:16).

There are two types of covering in our earthly life, visible and invisible:

Visible covering is for the spiritually weak and evolving persons. For instance, the people of God led by Moses from Egypt were not spiritually strong as we see that their faith was weak. Therefore, as a sign of His assurance, and to build confidence, God provided a visible covering, with pillars of cloud and fire throughout the days and nights of their journey through the wilderness. As the people were spiritually immature, it is said that Lord physically guided them by being in both the pillars (Exodus 13:21).

Jesus’s physical presence on earth and His physical leading of disciples could be understood as a visible covering. Jesus said, the wedding guests cannot fast when the bridegroom is present (Matthew 9:15; Luke 5:34; Mark 2:19). The physical presence of Jesus Christ warranted full protection to His disciples and ardent followers. In John 11:21 we read Martha grieving to Jesus, Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But Jesus explains to her the importance of having faith instead of merely seeking His physical presence (John 11:23-27). This statement points to the physical presence as a temporary guiding phenomenon and a helping hand so that one may be strong enough to walk in faith rather than being parasitic on physical presence (of God). In light of this, we may want to rethink on our over reliance on (often) stage managed miracles which has become ubiquitous (sorry no offence please).

Invisible covering is meant for those who do not need visible signs and miracles to believe, but lives by faith. Jesus said, a wicked and adulterous generation seeks for a sign (Matthew 12:39). Those who are spiritually- strong, mature, and entrenched in faith do not need physical signs as they experience the spiritual covering more than seeing with their naked eyes. For instance, when Elisha the prophet and his servant were surrounded by the army of King Aram at Dothan, he was unmoved (unlike his servant) as the prophet saw with his spiritual eyes the Lord’s covering which was invisible to the aid (2 Kings 6: 15-17). Whilst, the righteous (Elisha) saw the invisible covering, the less spiritually mature (attendant) could only see the covering (of horses and chariots of fire) after his eyes was opened following Elisha’s prayer. When Saint Thomas insisted that he will only believe after seeing Jesus physically, Lord appeared and encouraged the saint to practice faith without always depending on physical eyes (John 20:29).

The righteous does not need a visible sign but is covered invisibly by own faith. In fact the righteous live by faith (Habakkuk 2:4). The Psalter says, those who trust in the Lord are like Mount Zion, which cannot be moved (Psalms 125:1), for Lord covers them with favour (Psalms 5:12), and will never allow his faithful to see decay (Psalms 16:10).

Having said, the life of a righteous, as mentioned above, is not at all a cake walk on this earth (Psalms 34:19). In fact, Bible witnesses the lives of people who lived for God as miserable, especially in the New Testament. Jesus Himself was nailed within 3 years of His public ministry. The disciples had to endure sword, poverty, hunger, thirst, harassment, stoning and several other hostile situations culminating in brutal death (see 2 Corinthians 4:8-10). One might wonder where the cover was during these horrendous sufferings. In fact, it was the cover that enabled them to boldly undergo those sufferings. And, the cover worked as a protective shell of God’s grace, power and support within which the saints are shut so that they could develop and grow themselves fully, and ready for an eternal life with Lord in heaven. Saint Paul foresaw this with his spiritual eyes and prophesied For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands (2 Corinthians 5:1).

In the course of our preparation for a heavenly life being shut-in helps us to endure and persevere without fail and fall. Apparently, this contradicts the message of infamous prosperity gospel which demonises suffering and divinises material well being and worldly glory. True followers of Christ have a different message, of that of willingness and ever ready to sufferings, as they are shut in the love of Christ. Hence the bold statement, for I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord (Romans 8:38-39).

To be shut in may be felt as inconvenient and suffocating, especially for those who are framed in their worldly comfort zone. It is essential to realise the worth of being shut in as a process of disciplining ourselves in preparation for an eternal life. Hebrew 12:11 states No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it. Successful completion of the discipline process qualifies one to be received in the kingdom of God. Saint Paul said, I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge will award to me on that day- and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing (2 Timothy 4: 7-8). Jesus asked Saint John to write to the church in Sardis, if you conquer, you will be clothed like them in white robes, and I will not blot your name out of the book of life (Revelations 3:5).

The second shutting in occurs in our life after death. At the outset, souls of the faithful departed are sent to rest for a while. As evident in Bible, they are shut in again by Lord, now within the holy of holies, under the altar (Revelations 6:9): I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered for the word of God and for the testimony they had given. This implies that our departed souls have yet another stage of transition before the revelation of final glory, directly being with God. In response to the query of these souls, God ask them to wait for some more time until the numbers would be complete, and this period is termed as resting in white robes (Revelations 6:10). This shutting in could be discerned perhaps as yet another disciplinary process, this time the final preparation to be with Lord and worshiping Him day and night, non-stop (Revelations 4:8).

Yet another example could be found in the parable of rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). Here we see that Lazarus is placed by the side of Abraham whereas the rich man is outside and far away from the divine cover. The words of Lazarus are particularly interesting to this topic …between us and you a great chasm has been set in place…. (Luke 19:26), denoting that Lazarus is shut in and not allowed to go out of the covering, even if he wanted to help the rich man.

Being shut in and covered by Lord is in fact not arresting one’s freedom but a better way of being guided to live a spiritually systematic life. As mentioned above, when Adam and Eve walked out of God’s covering, they felt naked and exposed (Genesis 3:7) and had to seek for cover behind the trees. Divine covering is a covenant that we become a private property of God (Ezekiel 16:8). When Noah was shut in divine protection, though there was flood around and little contact with the outside world, still he and his family were safe. However, the moment he walked out of divine protection, was immediately came under demonic attack; and we see Noah exposed and lying naked in bed (Genesis 9:21). On the eve of the grand exodus, the Israelites were shut in their homes and sealed with the blood of lamb in order to be protected from the final plague (Genesis 12:7&13).

Reflecting upon, at the end of year 2016, God’s children may want to assess how much comfort and discomfort they have felt whilst being shut in divine grace. Depending on individual situations we may have been shut in various different ways, by means of being stopped from doing what we wanted to do; were restricted from achieving our worldly aims and objectives; sometimes or often not getting an answer to our prayers or wishes granted; and so on. From a worldly point of view, we may have undergone a lot of frustrations and disappointments. But, looking at the broader picture and the macro environment, we may want to thank God for protecting us from calamities, accidents, diseases and death, losses and debacles. This does not imply that we are better human beings but it is only the grace of God; and of course for a purpose. For all those who are disappointed and frustrated, including myself, let us remember the words of Saint Paul, For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all (2 Corinthians 4:17).

I have used two concepts in this blog, shut-in and covering. This is not to confuse the readers but to convey the message that being shut-in by God is not leaving us in darkness to starve and die. But, whilst we are shut-in, we are powerfully covered by God’s grace, the grace that saw Noah and his family float on the same water which created havoc and destroyed the entire creation. To conclude, being shut-in simultaneously places us under full cover of God.

Let praise be to the Holy Trinity. Jesus is coming soon.

I shall not sit nor bow my head, for my lord Jesus Christ is coming soon

June 3, 2016 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew2 Comments

‘…………………stand up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near’ (Luke 21:28).

The above exhortation is the conclusion of Jesus Christ’s prophecy regarding His second coming.
The aim of this blog is an attempt to put on track the way one should focus on Jesus’ second coming. There is no dearth of preaching, teachings, and writings available on the second coming of Christ. In the recent past, blood moon was the subject of analysis and discussion regarding Jesus’ second coming. Interestingly, even the dates were calculated and announced about His coming. That particular date has passed in the year 2015 but the ‘second coming’ has not happened.

The above verse said by Jesus starts with ‘when these things begin to take place….’ Christian world in general has attributed this time towards the ‘second coming’. However, if we travel back through the history of this world, it would not be difficult to see the signs in the sun, moon, and stars as well as on the earth. Therefore, these phenomena have had been happening ever since. The world has been in turbulence ever since Jesus left, and even in the immediate time after He left. Saint John warned ‘Children, it is the last hour……….so now many antichrists have come’ (1 John 2:12).

Saint Peter cautioned of scoffers indulging in selfish teachings 2 Peter 3:3-4. Therefore, it is necessary to rightly understand about Jesus’ second coming. This write up is a humble attempt to look beyond words for the actual goals of Jesus’ exhortation.

As Saint John cautions, antichrists started working on earth ever since Jesus descended to save the mankind. Satan who disguised as snake in the Garden of Eden to destroy the first Adam is now dressed as antichrist to whisk away the children of second Adam (Jesus Christ) (see 1 Corinthians 15:45; Romans 5:12-19). The intention of this antichrist is to steal, kill, and destroy (the children of God) (John 10:10). Therefore, it could be discerned that end time has always been there in the lives of mankind ever since Jesus cautioned of it. Moreover, the signs listed in Luke 21:25-26 are also visible and felt from time to time, even though the degree of turbulence is increasing as we approach Jesus’ arrival.

Speculation of time about Jesus’ second coming has only led to playing into the hands of Satan’s. Though many people became more spiritual (perhaps out of fear), it soon vanished as the D-day passed without anything happening and leaving no traces of Jesus’ coming. Apparently, it affected the faith of many leading to a state that they now ignore not only about the second coming but also their core faith in Jesus Christ. This was cautioned by Jesus Christ himself (Matthew 24:23-24), later forewarned by Saint Peter as ‘scoffers out with selfish teaching’.
It appears to be a human tendency to analyse the business of the source than utilising the resource. For example, when Saint Peter asked Jesus about the future of Saint John, Lord’s reply was ‘if it is my will……….what is that to you’ (John 21: 22) In other words, Jesus’ response to Peter was ‘it is none of your business’. Similarly, about His second coming, Jesus said, ‘but about that day and hour, no one knows………………nor the Son, but only the Father’ (Matthew 24:36: Mark 13:32). Therefore, it is not our business to know about Lord’s second coming. If it is something confined to Godhead, then who is so impatient about Jesus’ second coming. Using the gift of discernment (1 Corinthians 12:8) it won’t be difficult to know it is Satan, because he is scared of his own destruction at the second coming. Therefore, Satan is trying to use humans to speculate so that he could plan and execute his destructive activities accordingly. What is important us is, ‘He will come again as He went’ (Acts 1:11: John 14:3), which also ought to be the fabric of our faith.

Yes, I believe, Jesus will come again, and when He comes (no matter when) I will be revealed with Him in glory (Colossians 3:4). But, I do not want to speculate on the time of His arrival, for that day will come like a thief, which means unannounced (2 Peter 3:10; 1 Thessalonians 5:2; Matthew 24:42-44). Therefore, to be in ‘His glory’, we should do what we are expected to do, which constitutes the core of our life in Christ.
The title verse of this blog points to Jesus’ exhortation: ‘stand up’ and ‘raise your heads’ (Luke 21:28).

Stand up:
One needs confidence in self to stand up; and in Christian life, it is the demonstration of our strength achieved through full faith in Jesus Christ. As a toddler fights against the gravitational force and succeeds to stand and walk, children of God get liberated from demonic forces to stand up and well. As we read, the crippled woman who was bent over was freed from the bondage of Satan, and was able to stand straight (Luke 13:13, 16). To the man lying for thirty eight years by the side of Beth-zatha pool, Jesus said, ‘stand up, take your mat and walk’ (John 5:8). In another incident, Jesus forgave the sins (liberation for demonic force/s) of a paralytic man and asked him to stand up, take his bed and walk (Matthew 9:2&6; Mark 2:5&11). Yet another example is found in Acts 3:6 where Peter asked the crippled man to ‘stand up’, and walk. Saint Paul too asked a crippled man to ‘stand upright’ and was instantly delivered from his infirmity (Acts 14:10).

Jesus, in relation to His second coming exhorts to ‘stand up’. And, the above verses suggest standing up as a spiritual sign of liberation from sin, and its perpetrator Satan, as happened to the crippled and paralytic. Therefore, ‘standing up’ should be understood as an attempt to be free from the clutches and bondage of Satan. In other words, we are to strive for a pure life, free from sins. Saint Paul exhorted Thessalonians to keep the body, soul and spirit blameless at the second coming of Christ (1 Thessalonians 5:23). In order to achieve this purity, we must ‘stand’ against the wiles of the devil (Ephesians 6:11). Saint Paul lists the whole armour of God to fight against the evil forces in Ephesians 6:14-17: belt of truth fastened around the waist, breastplate of righteousness, gospel of peace to protect the feet, shield of faith to quench the flaming arrows of Satan, helmet of salvation, and word of God as sword.
Lord’s children are expected to ‘stand up’. However, Satan’s mission is to woo away by making us ‘sit down’ and waste time on insignificant matters such as speculations. Remember, Jesus never asked His followers to sit down and calculate the time of His arrival. Instead, Christ asked to be ever ready (Matthew 24:44; Luke 12:40); keep awake (Matthew 25:13); and be alert (Mark 13:32).

Being ready, alert and awake is an ongoing process of standing up unblemished in our lives. Moreover, we must stand up dressed in the whole armour of God, and produce the fruits of Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22), and keep ourselves free from the snare of the devil who tries to hold his victims captive so as to execute his mission (see 2 Timothy 2:26).

It is the power of Holy Spirit that enables us to stand up and stand firm; and Lord’s mercy bestows Holy Spirit in us. Therefore, we should pray and ask for the Holy Spirit (Luke 11:13). As tribulations are increasing in this world, it is necessary to accelerate our preparation for Jesus’ second coming. This could be achieved by seeking mercy for our brethren as well as for ourselves. It is unfortunate that we contradict Jesus’ ways and teachings when trials and tribulations increase in our lives. We wrongly think of fixing our problems before setting out to help others. Jesus Christ did not scare off the disciples by prophesying all the tribulations in store for the disciples and left to fate to fight their battle. After explaining all the forthcoming hardships that the disciples would face (John 16) Jesus is seen immediately praying to God the Father for His disciples (John 17). Following Jesus’ footsteps, instead of scaring people with speculations about the second coming, we should strengthen more and more of people to receive Jesus Christ in their lives.

Raise your heads:
Jesus also exhorts to raise our heads as preparation ahead of His second coming. Raising head is to receive the ‘king of glory’ as King David sings in Psalms 24:9. Our body, soul and spirit unify in a receptive mode when they are aligned in purity. This wholesome of our personality, filled with Holy Spirit will then groan for eternal redemption and adoption at Jesus’ second coming (see Romans 8:23). Speculation could be the result of an impatience of flesh in control by Satan as he knows about his fate at the second coming of Jesus Christ (see Matthew 8:29).
Raising heads symbolises the process of transformation which sets our life into spiritual mobility. Unlike this worldly mobility, which is a free run, spiritual mobility represents the revelation of the mystery of gospel through us (Ephesians 6:19). In other words, raising our heads enable us to act- to deliver the message of the gospel so that more and more of mankind is attracted towards the eternal glory of Christ. Jesus said, ‘look around you, and see how the fields are ripe for harvesting’ (John 4:35). There are still millions of people to whom the gospel has not yet reached reminding us that gospel field is not yet saturated; and it may never be as Jesus said, ‘you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes’ (Matthew 10:23).

Speculating on Jesus’ second coming should also be viewed as an attempt by Satan to sabotage gospel reaching the ends of the world. This is so because there are still regions in the world where the good news has either not been proclaimed or unable to be preached due to restrictions. Therefore, the time is not ripe; and premature arrival of Jesus Christ would only help demons to continue in this world using the bodies of those who have never heard about salvation. Thus Satan may be hoping for a survival as against Revelations 20:10– And the devil who had deceived them………………………will be tormented day and night forever and ever.

Therefore, we should not fall into the deceptive designs of Satan. Instead, those who have found salvation in Christ are ‘ambassadors in chain’ (Ephesians 6:20) who are obligated to preach the gospel (1 Corinthians 9:16). It is our duty to prepare our brethren for the second coming of Christ. Our primary responsibility is not to attempt interfering in divine business but to execute divine will; and Jesus said, ‘…..this is the will of Him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day’ (John 6:39).
Evangelisation is a gaining phenomenon as opposed to losing. It is life giving and leads to eternity which is gained through Jesus Christ, whereas speculation is a kind of gambling which leads to destruction, and hence devil inspired (John 10:10). Raising our heads for the harvesting of souls reap simultaneous rejoice for the sower and the reaper, as it leads to eternal life (John 4:36). Thus, the evangelist and the evangelised both gain eternal life through evangelisation. Therefore, it is an obvious requirement to declare with our mouth that Jesus is Lord (Romans 10:9) which apparently is the only way to live in Christ because if we as followers of Christ keep our mouth shut, the stones will take our place (Luke 19:40).

To conclude, Jesus Christ is not asking us to remain seated nor bow our heads down without hope, and in shame. Instead He is asking us to stand up and raise our heads, both of which demonstrate confidence in Him. Standing up in our earthly lives is a preparation for Jesus’ second coming, and all our attempts and successes are getting recorded in the ‘book of life’ (see Revelations 20:12). We must be on guard against the nefarious designs of Satan who will try to weigh our hearts down with dissipation, drunkenness and worldly worries (Luke 21:34). Raising our heads is an assurance that we are accepted by Christ, and our names are written in the book. On the contrary unable to lift our heads is surrendering as Midian had to before the sons of Israel (Judges 8:28).

Waiting for you O Lord Jesus Christ.

The power of Jonah’s sign

January 22, 2016 Fr Dr Saji K Mathew2 Comments

In the Biblical context, especially in the gospels, miracles are mostly termed as signs, for a miracle foreshadows the sign of divine intervention in the economy of masses. Jesus started his public ministry by turning water into wine, the first of his ‘signs……..’ (John 2:11). A sign could be viewed as a holistic process whereby the ripple effect of it electrifies not only the focal subject but all those in the vicinity. For example, when the crowd witnessed Jesus healing a paralytic, they were awestruck and glorified God (Matthew 9:8). In this case, we see the sign not only affected the paralytic but the community present at the scene. Almost every day, we get to see divine signs in various forms of blessings, through the lives of people around us, in our families, among our friends, neighbours and communities. We ought to reflect as to how, as true children God, do we respond to these signs. As a true follower of Christ, we should ideally be praising and glorifying God for the blessings showered on my neighbour, friends and so on; and thank Lord for showing yet another sign of divine presence to us. Over and above, such signs should help us to repent and transform towards God’s glory.

A sign could either be just a visual treat or an intensively transforming experience. Sign, as a mere visual treat, are materialistic and have little spiritual value. Such signs could be termed as mere magic and hence are demonic in nature. For example, the signs performed by the magicians at the court of Pharaoh to imitate the signs of Moses (Exodus 7-12). Moses was sent by God and the signs he performed were divine whereas the miracles performed by Pharaoh’s magicians were demon inspired. Visual treats are short-term and so are signs performed for visual treats. The magicians did succeed in imitating Moses but the signs performed by Moses had an overpowering effect on the former.

Divine signs, as we see in the Bible, are meant for the transformation of individual to either effect or further the faith of individuals. They are in no way meant for mere visual treat. For instance, in John 6:2 it is reported that a great multitude of people followed Jesus because they saw the signs He had performed, by healing the sick. Now, one may try to draw support for the stage performances as we see today, drawing this instance as an example. However, it needs to be understood that this performance of sign, of healing the sick, was not just a visual treat for those who witnessed it, rather an empathetic and intensive realisation of the members of the community. It should be discerned that the whole community felt the pain and suffering of the sick, and when Jesus walked into, the whole community embraced Him with a true and pure heart. As a result, whilst the sick were physically healed, the entire community got spiritually transformed. Remember what Jesus instructed His disciples, ‘if the house or the city does not receive you……….go out……..shake the dust off your feet’ (Matthew 10:14). We also read that Jesus could not do any miracles as Nazareth did not accept Him (Mark 6:5). In short, it could be stated that signs/miracles are meant for internalisation, a process by which the divine intervention is felt deep within the spirit of the people who witnesses them and gets spiritually transformed. This transformation is evident in the statement of Saint Paul when he said, ‘and it is not I who live, but it is Christ who lives in me’ (Galatians 2:20). This audacious statement by Saint Paul is the external sign of an internal reaction stirred up as a result of his realisation that Christ was crucified for his sins.

Performance of miracles to satisfy the mere visual needs of the audience has a dubious intention towards personal glory, popularity and of course material wealth. When Simon the sorcerer saw that the Spirit was bestowed through the laying on of the Apostle’s hands, he offered them money to buy this power (Acts 8:18), so that he could make more money out of it. Similarly, in Acts 16:16 we read that there was a girl who used to earn a great deal of fortune for her owners by fortune-telling. Even in this so-called ‘modern age’ it is not rare to see people, including believers of Christ, chasing for, and running from pillar to post seeking such visual treats. It appears lately that the spiritual world has sunken to a level where only performers of such visual treats can survive in the ecosystem of Christian spirituality.

The Pharisees and Sadducees approached Jesus asking to show them a sign from heaven. Jesus’ explicit exposure of them as an evil and adulterous generation (Matthew 16:4) draws parallel to the situation many of us are in today, full of evil deeds and adultery. And the sign for such a corrupt age is apparently the sign of Jonah- the one and only sign, as stated by Jesus.

There are two significance of the sign of Jonah.

Jesus said, ‘For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster, so for three days and three nights the Son of Man will be in the heart of the earth’ (Matthew 12:40).

Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the sea monster:

At the outset, Jonah was a prophet. A prophet is a chosen person of God who acts as His mouth (Deuteronomy 18:18), passing on the messages to the people. Easy said than done is to be the mouth of God, for being the mouth means the prophet is supposed to speak out whatever God wants to communicate. In other words, being the mouth means speaking out without thinking because it is not the prophet who is speaking but God using the prophet’s mouth. To analyse this phenomenon in a secular context could mean speech by a non-sensible person or by somebody who is out of mind. This is the reason why we see that almost all the Old Testament prophets were rejected by the people. Jesus also is seen blaming the Jews for denying and destroying the mouths of God in His statement, ‘Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to it….’ (Luke 13:34). The pain and agony of God is clearly articulated through the words of Jesus Christ here.

The making of a prophet is an intensive process involving a lot of planning and preparation. When people are in bondage or trouble God plans to send a prophet. For example, centuries before, God promised to send a prophet (Deuteronomy 18:18), a promise about messiah. A prophet needs to be prepared even before s/he is formed in the womb of his mother (Jeremiah 1:5). Prior to be formed in full as a prophet, the person needs to be further purified so as to see God and His throne (Isaiah 6:1). The mouth of the person is to be purified so as to become the mouth of God (Isaiah 6:6-7). Most importantly (and could be discerned as an oath), the prophet is expected to commit himself impartially to God (Isaiah 6:8).

Once this commitment is explicitly stated, as Isaiah did, the prophet is sent for combat mission as God sent Isaiah (Isaiah 6:9-10). I call this ‘combat’ for the simple reason that prophecy is one of the nine gifts of Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:10) and the Spirit of Lord always work against the evil spirit.

An ideal prophet will only speak and dare not to withhold the word of God. The most ideal of all the prophets that we see in the Bible is Jesus Himself, and He was fully confident that He spoke only what He heard from His Father (John 12:49). Moreover, being an ideal prophet Jesus did according to the will of His Father who sent Him, and not His own (John 6:38). This is the point where Jesus as the true prophet contradicted Jonah, as well as many Pharisees and Sadducees who supported false prophets.

Jonah the prophet was chosen by God for a very important mission. He was assigned to communicate the word of God to the people of Nineveh with an aim to deliver them from complete destruction- a full deliverance from the extreme demonic forces ruling the people and the city (Jonah 1:2). The prophecy against the Nineveh was meant to be a sign of the forthcoming wrath of God.

However, what we see in the book of Jonah is the deviation of a prophet who discarded the assignment and went on his own way. A prophet that rejects God’s call is in fact rejecting the will of God. Such prophets create unrest and imbalance in nature, and are threats to people’s lives, as we see in Jonah’s case (Jonah 1:4-5). Rebellion against God leads to darkness and misery (Psalms 107:10-11), ending up in a place where there is nobody to help. Jonah’s disobedience dragged him down to the stomach of the sea monster.

Jonah was a prophet of God who falsified himself by committing disobedience. Deuteronomy 18:20 says that a prophet who presumes to speak in the name of God that He has not commanded shall die; because they are false prophets who goes to the people in sheep’s clothing (Matthew 7:15). Such was the pathetic situation during the time of Jesus that the prophecy of Isaiah literally was fulfilled, ‘…these people draw near with their mouths………while their hearts are far from me’ (Isaiah 29:13). We further read in Jeremiah 23:26 ‘How long? Will the hearts of the prophets ever turn back- those who prophecy ‘lies’, and who prophecy the deceit of their own heart?’

To sum up, the prophetic ministry as we see during the time of Christ was a corrupted version, apparently by the custodians of faith, the Pharisees and Sadducees. This is the reason why Jesus responded negatively to their demand to perform a sign. In other words, Jesus’s reply is judgmental, that the hypocrites and false prophets will meet the fate of Jonah, or even worse, that they will be thrown deep down, an indication of hell which is termed as a ‘bottomless pit’ (Revelations 9:1), and the destiny of Satan (Revelations 20:2). In short, all those who collude with Satan to perform signs, and prophecy lies will be dealt with as is destined for Satan. In fact Jesus has cautioned that false prophets will come and perform great signs and omen (Matthew 24:24).

2. Jesus said that He will remain in the same way as Jonah remained underneath, three days and three nights.

When the people in the ship realised that Jonah was the reason of the turmoil, they threw Jonah into the sea (Jonah 1:15). Therefore, Jonah went down for his sin, as well as for the sake of the lives of the people in the ship. On the contrary, Jesus was sinless, and He went down for the sake of the sins of this world, from Adam to the end of generation until His second coming. 2 Corinthians 5:21 says that God made Jesus who was sinless to be sin for our sake. When Jonah went down he was forced to carry the sins of Nineveh with him because he did not enable the opportunity for them to repent. The prophet who was expected to facilitate repentance for the people of Nineveh acted as a stumbling block for them. Jesus blamed the scribes and Pharisees for locking the people out of the kingdom of heaven into which neither they enter nor allow others to enter (Matthew 23:13). Unfortunately, Jonah’s act was similar to the nature of the Scribes and Pharisees.

The religious and spiritual institution of Jews were so corrupted during the time of Jesus that the leaders and the followers were materially bound and commercially oriented. Signs and wonders were manipulated or artificially created for fame, personal glory and above all was money minting business. Jesus prophesied that this will happen again in the course of history (Matthew 24:24) which apparently we get to see at least in some cases around us. As a result of this selfish spirituality, people would less understand about the sacrificial nature of one person bearing the sins of others, let alone the entire humanity. But Jesus is determined to show them that this is possible, and moreover, is the best sign a prophet can perform. Thus, Jesus by going down underneath through death shows the entire humanity the sign of God’s love. Therefore, the death of Jesus could be termed as the ‘sign of all the signs’.

So what does the world need today? Mere performance of signs and wonders and stage shows for personal glory? Signs have become derivatives, in the sense that they are conducted for personal well-being and material prosperity. It is quite common to see people chasing signs for mere material benefits, and asking for more and more just for the sake of visual treats. However, Jesus said, I have no other sign to perform except my own death for your sins. This is what the disciples did- they portrayed Jesus Christ as crucified for the sins of mankind (Galatians 3:1). People during the time of the disciples were also after signs and wonders, but the disciples denied such demands as is evident in 1 Corinthians 1:22-23: ‘For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified…’.

As the prophecy of Jonah as a sign of the forthcoming wrath of God led Nineveh to repentance, the sign of the cross can lead to true repentance and real transformation of lives. May this Nineveh lent held us to see and experience the sign of the cross of our Lord and savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

To my fist love, I have a New Year gift for you….

January 2, 2016 Fr Dr Saji K MathewLeave a comment

‘Let us go out early to the vineyards……………There I will give you my love’ (Song of Songs 7:12).

This book of the Old Testament, Song of Songs is glorified as the ‘Song of all the songs’. It is also known as The Song of Solomon. Romantic in nature as one could discover reading through the chapters, interestingly, and ironically, it won’t be wrong to discern that it is also a lamentation of a lover who was apparently the greatest, wisest and richest of all the Kings living on earth, none other than King Solomon (2 Chronicles 9:22; 1 Kings 4:30).

As mentioned above, this poetic book is a lamentation (we may also discern it as self-realisation) of King Solomon, who is the anti-hero in this book. Though Solomon was great with his fame spread to all nations (1 Kings 4:31), he felt so bogged down being a failure to win the heart of a poor peasant girl, a Shulamite, and heroine of this poetry. He used his entire machinery to woo and win the heart and love of the Shulamite girl only to realise that ‘….if one offered for love all the wealth of one’s house, it would be utterly scorned’ (Songs 8:7). This is a lesson for many of us too who are in pursuit of the riches, glories, fame and name of this world which has nothing to do with our eternal life in heaven. In fact Jesus has cautioned us- ‘for what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life’ (Matthew 16:26). Though Solomon had at his feet all what he wanted including women, this seems to be his first true love as such, as he wrote ardently in Proverbs 5:18 about the love of one’s youth. This regret happen after his fall from God Almighty, when Solomon’s foreign wives dragged him off to idol worship (see 1 Kings 11).

It is perhaps very interesting to note that the hero of this real life story is not as loud as Solomon the anti-hero is. Apparently, there is no comparison either between the hero and anti-hero, for the latter is at the apex of ‘this worldly’ delights whereas the hero is just a shepherd (Songs 2:16; 6:2). The hero is not rich, nor handsome as Solomon is- no army, nor anything else to match Solomon’s fame and glory. Yet, and interestingly, he commands love that no wealth and power could conquer.

Songs of songs being incorporated as a book in the Bible points to its spiritual importance than looking at it as a carnal entertainment. Origen (184-254) was the first of the Church fathers who interpreted The Songs as a unique scripture in which the nuptial relationship between Christ as the bridegroom and Church as the bride is present. Accordingly, this book embeds a spiritual romance encompassing a love triangle with Jesus Christ, the shepherd boy as the hero; the Church, the Shulamite girl as the heroine, and Satan disguised as King Solomon as the villain.

Further zooming into the context, we get a better clarity that this is a struggle of the heroine to re-discover and live eternally with her first love, and her hero, the shepherd boy. More clearly, this book is a narration of the living experience of the bride, in terms of her memories of love, the beauty of the bridegroom, the distractions in her journey, her realisation of the fall and eventually going out in search of her lost bride groom, and her final discovery when she has a special gift to share with him on the dawn of New Year. I term this ‘New Year’ so as to link this with the beginning of 2016, and more importantly to highlight the fact that when we as the Church re-discover our Lord Jesus Christ, it is the beginning of a New Year for us. St Paul said, ‘so if anyone is in Christ, there is a new creation’ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

This blog is an attempt to analyse the journey of the bride in search of her true love, the bride groom. This write up aims to help reawaken and rejuvenate the Church, the bride of Jesus Christ. In order to achieve this objective, I have divided the journey of the bride into three parts:

First encounter and the budding of romance
Fall back and temporary distraction
Re-discovery of true love, and re-union with the first love

1. First encounter and the budding of romance

The first appearance of the hero as a vibrant young person happens at river Jordan when John the Baptist exclaimed ‘Look here is the lamb of God’ (John 1:36). His appearance was so dashing that Andrew, brother of Simon Peter and another disciple left everything and followed Jesus (John 1:40). The same glittering appearance is witnessed in Matthew 17:2 and Luke 9:29 when our Lord Jesus Christ was in his full glory; and the disciples did not want to leave Him or the place.

Isiah prophesied the beauty of the bridegroom- ‘How beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of the messenger……’ (Isaiah 52:7). (This prophesy of Isaiah was fulfilled by Jesus Christ through his sermon on the mountain, as detailed in Matthew 5-7). The bridegroom is so handsome that the Psalmist (27:4) just wants to behold His beauty.

The Shulamite girl when asked about the importance of her lover over all other lovers becomes so eloquent that she does not misses a single feature in her detailed description about him (Songs 5:10-16). By doing so, the bride is witnessing her Lord with gratitude, an opportunity well utilised; and an eye opener for every follower of Christ. This reminds me of the young Polish Priest, Father Stephan Kowalski, in Dominique Lapierre’s novel ‘City of Joy’. Stephan chose to live, starve and die with the slum dwellers of Kolkata. One day when he was praying in front of the picture of Jesus, a slum dweller came and asked who the person was on the frame. Stephan well made use of this opportunity to witness His beloved Lord, as did the Shulamite girl.

Psalms 116:12 says, ‘What shall I return to the Lord for all His bounty to me’. Hence witnessing our Lord ought to be with gratitude because Jesus utilised his charm, radiance, words and deeds not for self but for us. The feature wise description of her lover by the Shulamite girl exhibits not only her physical attraction towards the bridegroom but also weaves in her personal experience with each of those features. Let me explain this a bit further:

Songs 5: 10 –‘My beloved is all radiant and ruddy’- I have already mentioned about the radiance of Jesus Christ, as witnessed by Peter, James and John during transfiguration. On the mountain, it was not a mere performance by Jesus but was meant to help the core pillars of the Church to be firmly rooted in the Son of God. Moreover, this beauty was fully spent on his bride, the Church. Jesus did not care for scorching sun or for any adverse weather conditions but worked tirelessly for His bride, the Church. Hence in this verse, the beloved is termed ‘ruddy’ as well.

Songs 5:11- ‘His head is the finest gold’- This is an acknowledgement of the bride that her groom is ‘the best’. St Paul said, ‘For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the Church’ (Ephesians 5:23). Being termed as ‘the finest gold’ the bride expresses her gratitude for being well taken care of with the best, and nothing inferior.

Songs 5:12- ‘His eyes are like doves’- The power of the eyes of Jesus is seen in the Bible as being used to bring human beings to forsake everything else and follow Him. For instance, Jesus’ look helped to identify the weakness in an otherwise perfect man (Matthew 10:21); Jesus looked at the tax collector who was looked upon by the society with contempt, and asked him, ‘follow me’ (Mathew 9:9); Jesus’s piercing look at Peter immediately made him to repent and get transformed (Matthew 19:26).

Songs 5:13-‘His cheeks are like beds of spices yielding fragrance’- Jesus’ cheeks were given to us when He silently accepted slap on your face (John 18:22), not for His fault but to entrench us in His teaching ‘if someone slaps you on one cheek, turn to them the other also’ (Luke 6:29).

Songs 5:14-15 ‘His arms are rounded gold….His legs are alabaster columns….’- There are several instances to quote from the gospel where Jesus used His hands and legs. For instance, Mark 1:31; Mark 9:27 identifies the work of His hands; and (Matthew 14:25) mentions about His legs used to convince the disciples that He was there when waters were formed.

Songs 5:16- ‘His speech is most sweet’ (His lips are lilies, distilling liquid myrrh- vs. 13)- The gospel says that the people around Jesus were very much attracted to His words, as reported in Matthew 7:28; Matthew 22:33; Mark 11:18; Mark 12:37. Jesus credit this speaking style to His Father (John 12:49), further humbling the self. Every word Jesus spoke has later become fountains of spring and honey for His bride, the Church to live on.

Songs 5:14 also describes the beauty of the groom’s body. I left this part above, so as to highlight the extreme importance of it in a separate paragraph. If every other feature led to the budding and flowering of a holy romance, Jesus’ body and the blood that flew from His body is the final moment when the nuptial note is tied. By the body and blood of Jesus we are fully united with Him, into an eternal relationship. Thus we are one body in Christ (Romans 12:5), and also one in spirit with Him (1 Corinthians 6:17). This unique and perfect wedlock is unbreakable and hence the Shulamite bride says ‘I am my beloved’s and my beloved is mine’ (Songs 6:3). Similarly, the Church wedded to Christ is expected to commit to a holy and devout relationship.

The above analysis helps us to understand why witnessing ought to be with gratitude, for it is a lived experience of the bride with her groom. The witness by John the evangelist parallels the witness of the Shulamite girl in his statement, ‘we declare to you….what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we have looked at and touched with our hands…..’ (1 John 1:1).

2. Fall back and temporary distraction:

Being in this world, we are always prone to demonic distractions. Every moment of our marriage with Christ is a struggle as the anti-hero is hell-bent to break this holy relationship. Jesus knew of this, hence said, ‘you will face troubles but take courage for I have conquered the world’ (John 16:33). Every day, hundreds and thousands of marriages are in shambles in the absence of this empowering promise of the eternal bridegroom ’take courage, I have conquered the world.

The Shulamite girl, for once fell in the worldly glitters of King Solomon, a clever trap laid by Satan against a committed love. It is evident that the girl was not completely out of her past exposures when she served King David (1 Kings 1:4). This fall back contradicts the Church’s marriage with Christ, that if anyone is in Christ everything old has passed away (2 Corinthians 5:17).

The luxuries, and more badly the sexual spirit present in David’s court (remember David’s adultery with Bathsheba- 2 Samuel 11:4) seems to have entered into the Shulamite girl as she also fell for Solomon at one point which is portrayed as a (bad) dream in Songs 5:2f). But suddenly she is awakened in her spirit by the knock on the door, in the same way as the Lord calls each one of us (Revelations 3:20). However, it is sad to see that the groom walks away (Songs 5:6). What else could the man do when he discovers that his lover has another man in her room?

It is noteworthy to see here that the bride now leaves Solomon’s harem to chase her true love. However, there is one shortcoming here that she has not repented nor washed in her groom’s blood before setting after Him. As a result she gets beaten up and wounded (Songs 5:7). Jesus said, whoever wants to follow me must deny themselves and take up their cross…….. (Matthew 16:24). This self-emptying act is the washing away of sins and securing complete deliverance from evil spirits. Remember the incident when the sons of Sceva were beaten up and had to flee wounded and naked (Acts 19:14-16).

The Shulamite girl finds her groom only after she faint in love (Songs 5:8). Fainting in love could be discerned as a total commitment in love which is the pinnacle of perfection. This is when she is not afraid of openly witnessing her love as we read in the following verses of chapter 5. The Bible says, ‘there is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear’ (1 John 4:18). It is not uncommon to hear so many excuses in terms of witnessing Christ. It is sad to see people concerned about physical dangers and social exclusions if stepped into the area of evangelisation. The above verse further states that ‘whoever fears has not reached perfection in love’. Fainting in love is an extreme emotional condition as seen in God’s love stated in John 3:16- ‘For God so loved the world……..’ In this heightened state of love there is no ‘self’ but only love for others, and hence involves sacrifice.

It would be incomplete if the role of Satan in this fall is not exposed here. Though the Lord God spoke directly to King Solomon and blessed him with all comfort and glory, he fell into the trap of Satan by entering into unholy alliances with pagan woman (1 Kings 11:1-3), thereby defying God’s commandment. He could also be considered as a person who destroyed the institution of marriage and its holiness by having around 1000 wives. A person united in spirit with God is seen falling to an abysmal level by uniting himself with demonic spirits through the pagan women who were idol worshipers. There is no question of secularism here for Holy Spirit cannot unite with evil spirit under any circumstance.

Satan tried to destroy all the features of the bride groom, Jesus Christ which the Church gloriously boasts of, as did the Shulamite girl boasted in Songs 5:10-16. For example, a crown of thorn was placed on His head (John 19:2) to destroy the bride’s claim that His head is the finest gold. Similarly, his cheek was destroyed, and face distorted beyond recognition, with slaps and pulling off the beard (see Isaiah 50:6). Moreover, His hands and legs were pierced; His body punctured and crushed into pieces as we read about the torture culminating in crucification. The extreme violence committed on the bridegroom is Satan’s all out act of destruction so as to abduct the bride from her faith as she has proclaimed openly to the daughters of Jerusalem.

But, the groom is quiet, as He is confident that the bride will return to His fold one day. ‘He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He did not open His mouth….’ Isaiah 53:7). Even in this age, when Jesus’ bride, the Church which includes each one of us, falls away from Him, leading a non-committed, demon inspired, lazy, lascivious, and spiritually criminal life, remember, Jesus is waiting with utmost patience for us as did or even more than the father of the prodigal son waited for his return (see Luke 15:11-32). However, the power of the bridegroom’s silence is articulated using the mouth of his friends, ‘you have abandoned your first love’ (Revelations 2:4).

Re-discovery of true love, and re-union with the first love

3. In Songs 5:2 we see that though the bride temporarily fell into darkness, she was awakened by her inner spirit to realise her mistake. Now the bride is re-discovering the realities of eternal life as opposed to temporalities. In a similar situation we read how the prodigal son realises his lost glories of life at his father’s house (Luke 15:17). The Shulamite girl once again envisioned the eternal life with her true love, and decided to deny all worldly riches offered to her by King Solomon. Neither the palace, nor the fragrances, nor the number of servants, ornaments or garments could fancy her because her beloved was distinguished among ten thousand (Songs 5:10). Further, she is convinced, ‘I am my beloved’s and his desire is for me’ (Songs 7:10).

Hebrews 11:25 witnesses Moses’s sacrifice that ‘he refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, and chose rather to share ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin’. This happened when Moses grew up, and re-discovered that true love of Christ is greater wealth than the treasures and palatial pleasures of Egypt (Hebrews 11:26).

The rediscovery of true love in Christ, the bride groom makes Saint Paul categorically declare that ‘neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:38-39). Saint Paul rediscovered his true love and is now committed to be united with his true love. And, he is not shy or afraid to declare that ‘it is no longer I who live but Christ who lives in me’ (Galatians 2:20).

In accordance with his rediscovery of the self in Christ, Saint Paul realises that ‘woe to me if I do not proclaim the gospel’ (1 Corinthians 9:16). Therefore, it could be concluded that rediscovery of true love in Christ triggers us to resolve that in return to Lord’s bounty, ‘I will lift up the cup of salvation and call on the name of the Lord, I will pay my vows, in the presence of all his people’ (Psalms 112:13-14).

To work tirelessly in Lord’s vineyard is the true articulation of commitment to His love. This contradicts the characters in Jesus’ parable of the wicked tenants (Matthew 21:33-41). When the bride groom returns He will ask for the fruits of the labour, the number of souls saved through our witnessing of Him.

The arrival of the bridegroom is in fact a new dawn for his bride. There is no better happiness for her than to receive the bridegroom after a long wait. That in fact is the actual New Year for her.

The number of souls saved through our preaching, teaching and witnessing equates the number of fruits that we produce. And, these produces is the actual New Year gift that the bride has kept for her true love.

This is exactly what the clever Shulamite girl did for her beloved. When her beloved arrived, she said to him,

Come my beloved,

Let us go forth into the fields,

And lodge in the villages;

Let us go out early in the vineyards,

And see whether the vines have budded,

Whether the grape blossoms have opened

And the pomegranates are in bloom.

THERE I WILL GIVE YOU MY LOVE

(Songs 7:11-12).

Solomon had 1000 wives but in his old days he was left to grieve in the absence of true love, perhaps his first love.

From unbecoming to becoming: the transformative power and dynamics of the Word of God.

December 20, 2015December 20, 2015 Fr Dr Saji K MathewLeave a comment

The Word became flesh and lived among us (John 1:14)

The Word mentioned in the above verse is God Himself (John 1:1) that came down to earth and identified as the Father’s only Son (John 1:14).

The ‘becoming’ of flesh by God could be discerned as the greatest sacrifice by God for the sake of humanity; and this sacrifice is non-selfish, and out of sheer love. This kind of love is termed agape in Greek language.

We do have examples of agape- as witnessed from the lives of many saints and social reformers who have sacrificed their better living conditions for the sake of divine or social causes. However, these samples are only like one in a million if not billion, of the population. This means the process of ‘becoming’ for a self-less cause is fast facing extinction. On the contrary, ‘becoming’ for a selfish cause is booming, especially in the modern days, as we get to either hear, view or read from the stories of material achievers such as business, political and silver screen personalities. It may be quite appropriate to quote Psalms 53:2-3, where God is looking down from heaven for people who have selflessly ‘become’ (or are trying to ‘become’) His children but find none.

The above paragraph identifies a difference between self-less ‘becoming’ and selfish ‘becoming’. As stated above, the birth of Jesus Christ, the Son of God is without doubt, a selfless ‘becoming’, and an act out of unselfish love, as could be understood from the discussion below:

Irenaeus, the bishop of Lyons (130 – 202 AD) said that God became man so that men may become gods. Whilst Jesus is the only son of God (John 1:14, 18; 3:16; 1 John 4:9)¸ He is not selfish to safeguard that status but gave each and every one of us the freedom to be called sons and daughters of God (Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6). This is a very good example for many of us that struggle to safeguard the achievements including power and status. Termed ‘sustainability tactics’, in line with modern rhetoric, this exercise of not sharing or parting is a love only towards the self and a lack of God’s love within. I recommend the writings of Dr Geevarghese Mar Osthathios on this topic for a better understanding of the importance of sharing. Jesus’ act of divine sharing contradicts selfish acts of extreme individualistic pursuits by ignoring the co-beings. Whilst Jesus Christ wants every one of us to ‘become’ like Him, we human beings do not want others to ‘become’ like us, especially when we are well off than others.

Saint Paul wrote that Jesus did not regard His equality with God so as to keep his status firm (Philippians 2:6). Instead, the apostle states that Jesus emptied Himself by taking the form of a slave being born in human likeness (vs.7). This descending act of God is a lesson on ‘becoming’ for both Satan and the mankind. Human beings are often found reluctant to move out of their worldly comfort zone, especially after enjoying many worldly luxuries. In the spiritual realm of life, it is not uncommon to see people expressing their displeasure and intolerance towards lent, fasting and sometimes even prayers. Such people either craft questions about the relevance or need of these things, or come up with parallel systems appealing to those who do not want to leave their comfort zone. They may define lent and fasting as not necessary and prayer as too time consuming which could be otherwise utilised. Remember, Satan approached Eve in the same manner asking, do you really need to obey God by not eating the fruit of the tree; ‘believe me you will not die’ (Genesis 3: 4). Adam and Eve were misguided into the trap that they could still live comfortably in Eden without making the sacrifice of avoiding to eat from the tree marked by God. It is this same demonic force that work even today propagating against lent and fasting especially, with the intention to avoid mankind to ‘become’ what God wants, free from demonic hold. Jesus said ‘But this kind does not come out except by prayer and fasting (Matthew 17:21; Mark 9:29). Therefore we could discern that prayer, lent and fasting are mould to ‘become’ what God wants of us- a means for the flesh to ‘become’ divine in nature.

Jesus did not come into this world for holidaying. Instead, every moment of His life on earth was a sacrifice. Being the King of kings, He was born in a manger, being the Ruler of rulers, He accepted to live as a refugee in a foreign land (Egypt), He had no place to lay His head (Matthew 8:20; Luke 9:58) even when He could easily live in a palace of His choice. Jesus submitted Himself to be obedient to His earthly parents Luke 2:51) when He could easily ignore them. Most important of them all, Jesus lived every moment of His life on earth with sinners of various degrees, and finally laid His life for their (and our) salvation. Imagine if we have to share a room or live for a few days with people with contagious diseases. How many hours would we stay with them? This is how we should be evaluating (though God is beyond human evaluation) the sacrifice of Jesus which was a natural derivative of the love of God (see 1 John 4:10-11). Saint Paul rightly states that Jesus lowered Himself to the abysmal point of death (Philippians 2:8).

The above paragraph may portray a contrast to the charitable activities that we see around now a days. It is sad and sometimes sickening to see many modern charitable activities revolving around fame and popularity minus sacrifices. Charity is not a one off event to decorate the pages and frames of media, but an ongoing sacrifice derived from the ocean of God’s love. It is in fact a true ‘becoming’ in God’s image. Jesus exhorted to ‘live’ in His love (John 15:10), not to be a visitor of His love. Visit lasts for a few minutes, hours or days but living is perpetual. Charity is neither a replacement for lent, fasting and prayer. Instead it is an ongoing articulation and fulfilment of God’s love collected through them. Since the love of God is not momentary, charity also should not be short term but an ongoing process of ‘becoming’ like Him. Jesus said ‘just as I have loved you, you also should love one another’ (John 13:34), and it is apparent that Jesus’ love is reflected through His sacrifices for us.

Jesus’s sacrificial decision to descend from heaven is a blow to Satan’s mindset as well. Whilst Satan wanted to ascend and raise his throne above the stars and God, and ‘become’ like the Most High (Isaiah 14:13-14), Jesus decided to humble His equality with God (Philippians 2:6), and decided to ‘become’ flesh in order to win back the mankind for His Father. As a reward to His work, Jesus was exalted by God the Father above all names (Philippians 2:9) whereas Satan who out of his greed conspired for this position was thrown down to Sheol, to the depth of the pit (Isaiah 14:15). Jesus said, ‘all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted’ (Matthew 23:12; Luke 14:11). In other words we can say, all who humble themselves will ‘become’ like Jesus, and all who exalt themselves will identify with Satan.

Humility is an essential component of agape (unselfish love) which is a proprietary of God Almighty. In fact, God is Love (1 John 4:8 & 16). But Satan has no element of agape in him. Rather, Satan is a deceiver (Revelations 20:10) and a liar (John 8:44; Genesis 3:4-5). Hence, love, humility and sacrifice are not Satan’s essential nature, rather he is averse to all these. The love of God towards mankind is expressed in His humility to ‘become’ one like us in essence but at the same time without being touched by sin. Accordingly, he ‘became’ like any other human being, grew like us, ate and drank like us, walked like us, thought and felt like us, laughed and wept with human beings, incurred assault, oppression, pain, hunger, thirst and finally death (see Galatians 3:1).

Is it then possible for us to ignore to ‘become’ like our Lord Jesus Christ? Can we walk away from ‘becoming’ like Him, humble and full of divine love, and making sacrifices for our co-beings? After receiving Jesus into our lives can we now turn away from Him (Galatians 3:3)? If we neglect so great a salvation then we won’t escape God’s wrath (Hebrews 2:3). Let this nativity be an opportunity to do away with our flesh related malice such as anger, wrath, impurity, slander, abusive language, deception and so on, and cloth ourselves with the new self, by ‘becoming’ a true reflection of the image of Christ (Colossians 3:8-10).

It is good news for the entire creation that the Word has indeed become flesh. Let us become like Him as God became like us.

God-persons and Corporate Churches: And yet, when the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?

September 24, 2015September 24, 2015 Fr Dr Saji K MathewLeave a comment

The focus of this blog is on Jesus’ prophetic question whether He would be able to find faith when He returns (Luke 18: 8b). In other words, how easy or difficult is it to find (true) faith in the contemporary world overshadowed by pseudo god-persons and corporate churches rule.

God-man is actually a term used to characterise Jesus Christ. We can see this term used to describe the incarnation of God the logos (John 1:1&14) in the writings of Origen (3rd century). Sadly, this concept has lately been hijacked by ‘ordinary people making extraordinary claims’ (Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, second President of India) with the primary objective of profiteering. As a result, lately, there is a parallel claim for divinity, obviously prompted by Satan, to distract the innocent from true faith. Jesus said, ‘for false Christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to mislead, if possible, even the elect’ (Matthew 24:24). The Bible suggests that the distractors and deceivers have always been there since the beginning of the gospel. For instance Romans 16:18 states ‘for such people do not serve our Lord Christ, but their own appetites, and by smooth talk and flattery they deceive the heart of simple minded’. St Paul described such people as destined to destruction as their god is their stomach (Philippians 3:19).

The question ‘And yet when the son of Man come, will he find faith on earth’ could be read as a conclusion of the parable of the widow and the unjust judge (Luke 18:1-8). Jesus contrasts God’s quick justice to the unjust judge’s delayed justice. As the legal maxim goes ‘justice delayed is justice denied’. A person dealing with justice (judge) is in an extremely responsible position and hence is expected to be zero tolerant to injustice. It is the person’s institutional and societal role and obligation to impart justice with prudence. Unfortunately, in this case the judge describes the self as having ‘no fear of God and no respect for anyone’ (Luke 18:4) albeit, he decides to grant justice to the widow so as to avoid getting worn out (Luke 18:5).

On the contrary, our eternal judge, God almighty, is ever keen to impart justice to His chosen ones without any delay (Luke 18:7-8). Even then, He is not expecting faith to be found on the second coming. In other words, faith would become extinct by that time. Prior to exploring the possible reason behind this obsoleteness, it is important to understand what exactly faith means.

According to Hebrews 11:1, ‘faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen’. When we cry out to Jesus, we do it in the backdrop of faith as defined in the above verse. Prayer in faith is the perceived realisation of future in spirit. Jesus said, ‘whatever you ask for in prayer, believe that you have received it, and it will be yours (Mark 11:24). There are other similar verses on faith, said by Jesus Christ. (For instance, see Matthew 17:6 & 21:22). Besides, please be aware that faith is a gift of Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:9). Therefore, when we pray in faith we simultaneously believe in the fulfilment of a futuristic subject (of our prayer).

The spiritual visualisation of this futuristic dimension is well articulated in Hebrews 11:4-12:2 where the faith of so many of God’s children starting from Abel to many Israelites is listed. It is so spiritually inspiring to note Hebrews 11:39-40 where it states that despite such strong faith, they did not receive what was promised, ‘since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect’. It is indeed amazing to discern that their faith was not affected due to non-realisation of hope in their earthly life.

God is just (2 Thessalonians 1:6); He loves justice (Isaiah 61:8), and executes justice for the orphans and the widows (Deuteronomy 10:18). He continues to be the same and never changes, for according to Hebrews 13:8, ‘Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever’. But unfortunately, we human beings do change. Even after receiving answers to our prayers and getting justice executed, we often fall back. St Peter quotes Proverbs 26:11 in his epistle (2 Peter 2:22) to describe this fall as ‘a dog’s return to its vomit’.

This fall could be better discerned by understanding the way the enemy (Satan) works, as detailed in the parable of weeds among the wheat, in which the enemy sowed weeds among the wheat (Matthew 13:24). The enemy sowed weeds when the sower (of wheat) was not alert. In the same way, our faith gets corrupted due to the lack of being alert to Satan’s designs. Consequently, we now see around a diminished faith where weeds have outgrown wheat, or rather material visualisation has outgrown spiritual realisation, leading to the growth of a ‘wicked and adulterous generation seeking signs’ (Matthew 12:39). This has lately paved the opportunity for many pseudo-god-persons to sprout and burgeon. Having said, the commitment of many individual evangelists and missionaries cannot be negated either.

It has lately become a fashion to stage spirituality by way of ‘miracle performances’ as if they are the only way to make people believe in the power of God. This has further extended to the commercialisation of spirituality with advertisements and other publicity stunts using the social media. It has now boiled to a state that many or most people are unable to believe in Jesus and His power without seeing such demonstrations. ‘Seeing to believe’ is a commercial slogan rather than a spiritual one. Jesus said to St Thomas, ‘blessed are those who have not seen and yet have come to believe’ (John 20:29). Instant spirituality is less based on faith (in Jesus) and more on immediate material realisation, ‘today and now’. Such attitude prompts an ‘eat, drink and be merry’ (Luke 12:19) approach which is detrimental to spiritual life.

The poisonous mushrooming of pseudo-divine individual entities has eventually led to corporate churches confined to ‘five star or even seven star’ gatherings in ultra luxurious settings as opposed to Jesus’ call for ‘carrying the cross to follow Him’ (Mark 8:34) by entering through the narrow gate (Matthew 7:14). Apparently, as if imitating the corporate leviathan, the humble masses are forced to carry heavy loads and the so called god-persons not even moving their little finger (see Luke 11:46).

Our aim and focus must not be ‘this worldly’ but heavenly, rooted in a faith which is futuristic and realistic. In order to achieve what we aim, we need to follow the ‘pioneer and perfecter of faith’ (Hebrews 12:2), Jesus Christ. We are expected to follow Him by ‘denying all the ungodliness of the present age, and living sensibly, righteously and godly’ (Titus 2:12). In this way, we wait for the ‘appearance of the glory of our great God and Saviour, Jesus Christ’ (Titus 2:13). If we do so, then Jesus, in His second coming would be able to find faith somewhere in the corner of this world. Let us prepare ourselves not to disappoint Jesus at His second coming.

Lord please be kind and have mercy on us. Amen.

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