The Sunday Sermon Archive

Dear Friend,

We are all servants in this world. None of us are truly masters of anything. It is the blindness of sin and the vice of pride and vanity that suggests to us that we are lords over all that we possess. We are reminded that we came into this world with nothing and that we must leave this world with nothing. All that we have has been entrusted to our care for just a short time; and we will have to give an account of everything to God on Judgment Day.

We must ask ourselves, why did God entrust me personally with these things? What does He want me to do with them? All that we have (including our bodies and the very life within us) belongs to God and must be used to further His honor and glory.

God possesses everything, and so, He does not need us or anything that we can offer Him. He, nonetheless, demands that we love Him above all things — that we spend our lives here on earth in a manner that is befitting eternal happiness with Him in Heaven. Those that do not love God here on earth or have no desire to be with Him, will get what they desire, an eternity without Him — Hell.

God loves us and requires that we reciprocate this love in order to be rewarded with the eternal possession of Him. Our love is truly the only thing that we have to lay claim to. Of our own free will, we must choose Him above and before everything.

All the physical things that are placed in our possession (even our very lives and bodies) must be given an account for. How are we to offer these to God if they are already His, and if He has no need of them? It is through each other that we are to offer them to God. What we do to the least of the brethren we do to Him. In helping our neighbor in any way for the love of God, we are making an offering to God. God accepts our works and/or sacrifices for each other as done to Himself.

It is for this reason that God has created such great inequalities among us. It is demonic to force some kind of material equality where there is none. God has made man and woman. Each different from the other. To attempt to make a uni-sex human race is an affront to the Wisdom of God. God has made rich and poor. He has made some wise and others ignorant. Etc. The Holy Ghost distributes His gifts as He wills. There is truly no material or physical equality and this is good.

Men and women were made to complement one another. Each gives to the other what is lacking in the other, and receives from the other what is lacking in himself. The rich are to give material aid to the poor, and the poor are to pray and bless the rich. The wise are to look out for and guide and protect the ignorant. The ignorant should return their love and gratitude for all that is done for them. If it were not for inequalities we would never have the opportunity to make a sacrifice or offering that is acceptable to God.

Now is the acceptable time to take an account of all that God has put in our charge. We should remind ourselves that these things are not ours as lords and masters, but rather they are ours as stewards that must one day render an account of them. If we have been selfish with these gifts, refusing to give help or aid to one another, then we must make good use of the time that we have left and redeem ourselves through good works performed for each other. With true charity (love of God) let us give of what we have, even of our very self, for the spiritual and material advantage of each other.

If we have nothing in the way of material or monetary riches to share, we are always able to love, to bless, and pray for one another. We must always seek to bless, and not curse; to love and not hate. Then on Judgment Day we may be gathered on the right hand of Our Lord and hear Him welcome us into Heaven. What you have done for the least of these you have done to Me. In this manner we will not have to fear the rendering of an account of our stewardship. We will have wisely acted most prudently — redeeming the time we have been given.

email: father@friarsminor.org Franciscan Benefactor Seraph Subscription Vocations Have you remembered God?