Day 158: The Reality of Sin

Mark 9:1-13 Only Christ’s inner circle of Apostles-Peter, James, and John-were privileged to see his glory in the Transfiguration, which shows his fulfillment of the Law (Moses) and the prophets (Elijah). The voice of God the Father revealed that Christ is his beloved Son and commanded that his words be taken to heart. In a scene reminiscent of his baptism, the Transfiguration was a manifestation of the Blessed Trinity. (CCC 151, 459, 554-556)

Ch 9:1-2 The kingdom of God come with power: These words led some in the early Church to expect Christ’s return within their own lifetimes. The establishment of his kingdom is an ongoing process that will not be complete until Christ comes again. (CCC 552)

Ch 9:2 Just as Moses received the Law on Mt. Sinai, the Transfiguration took place on a high mountain. The envelopment of Christ in light points to the glory of the Resurrection. The Transfiguration gave special focus to the glory and beauty of Christ’s divinity and at the same time prepared the Apostles to accept the scandal of the Cross. (CCC 554, 555, 556)

Ch 9:7 In the Transfiguration, the Father confirmed that in his Son, Jesus Christ, we have the fullness of Revelation. (CCC 459)

Ch 9:9-10 The three disciples failed to understand the full meaning of what they had heard and witnessed, and they would remain confused until after the Resurrection. 

Rising from the dead: At death, the physical body and spiritual soul are separated; in the resurrection, the glorified body, now incorrupt, will be reunited with the soul for all eternity. (CCC 649, 997-999)

Ch 9:13 Elijah has come: The prophets foretold that Elijah would return (cf. Mal 3:1-2; 4:5) before the coming of the Messiah. Christ identified Elijah as John the Baptist, that is, the “spirit” of Elijah rested upon John, who proclaimed the coming of Christ. (CCC 2684)

Ch 9:14-29 Emphasizing the importance of faith and prayer, Christ chided the father (and, perhaps implicitly, his own disciples who would not cast out the spirit) for the lack of complete faith in him. Pointing out the conditional “if you can” in the father’s request, Christ assured them that everything is possible with faith. The faith needed to overcome the Devil and the evil of sin is expressed in prayer and penance. (CCC 2610)

Ch 9:24 I believe; help my unbelief: Faith is a gift from God that also requires our decision to correspond with this gift. The prayer of the father of the possessed boy should become OUR OWN PRAYER as we continually seek to perfect our faith in Christ. (CCC 162, 167)

Ch 9:30-32 Despite all the signs Christ had provided and the privileged instruction he had given, the disciples were still not reconciled with his imminent Passion and Death on the Cross. They would only come to understand completely with the infusion of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost. (CCC 474, 557)

Ch 9:33-50 Christ offered lessons on servant leadership, on collaboration in ministry, and on avoiding scandal. Scandal constitutes a sin that can be very grave if a person intentionally leads another into serious sin. (CCC 2284-2287)

Ch 9:35-37 Servant of all: Humility, purity of intention, and service-not lofty honors and worldly power-are the basis for what defines greatness for the followers of Christ.

One such child: The child here is an image not just of youth but of all who are weak and dependent on others. (CCC 1825)

*Ch 9:43, 45 Verses 44 and 46 (which are IDENTICAL to verse 48) are omitted by the best ancient authorities. “...where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.”

Ch 9:49-50 For every one will be salted with fire: Temptations and suffering are inevitable for those who follow Christ. By uniting our suffering to his Passion, we are purified and transformed to become more like him.

Ch 10:1-12 John the Baptist was put to death by Herod in large part because of his preaching on the subject of divorce and remarriage. The Pharisees may have hoped that Christ would say something similar that would infuriate Herod. Christ clarified that while Moses permitted divorce, God’s original plan for marriage involved one man and one woman united in an exclusive and indissoluble bond for life. (CCC 1612-1617)

Ch 10:4 A certificate of divorce: Because the people had such difficulty keeping the marriage covenant, Moses permitted divorce as a safeguard for women who would have been left alone without any financial or protective support. Christ restored marriage to its original state intended by God and elevated it to the level of the Sacrament of Matrimony, which bestows the grace to love with the charity of Christ and to bear the hardships peculiar to marriage and the raising of children. (CCC 1609-1611)

Ch 10:8-9 In marriage, God established that a man and woman “become one flesh” in a union of mutual and faithful self-giving. Between baptized persons, “a ratified and consummated marriage cannot be dissolved by any human power or for any reason other than death” (CIC 1141). (CCC 1625-1632, 1638-1643, 2364, 2382)

Ch 10:11-12 While divorce is permissible under the civil law of most countries, it cannot dissolve a validly contracted marriage. As taught by our Lord, a validly married person who obtains a civil divorce and then marries another person (without a canonical declaration of nullity) commits adultery. Regardless of the civil status of the marriage, the marriage remains valid in the eyes of God, and any additional marriages would be invalid. Those in valid marriages who attempt to remarry or enter a sexual relationship with another person commit a grave sin and must refrain from receiving the Eucharist. The Church looks with sympathy on those in difficult circumstances and invites them to conversion and the forgiveness of sin through the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. (CCC 1649-1651, 2380)

Ch 10:14 Let the children come to me: The Church has always taught the great importance of infant Baptism. This sentiment is also reflected in the practice of the Eastern Churches, who administer the three Sacraments of Initiation (Baptism, Confirmation, and the Eucharist) to infants, repeating the words “Let the children come to me” before the reception of Holy Communion. Regarding those children who die without baptism, the Church has NEVER made a definitive statement but FIRMLY PROCLAIMS the HOPE that they will be received into Heaven and so entrusts these innocent souls to the mercy of God as is shown in the Funeral Rite for such children. (CCC 1244, 1261)

Ch 10:17-31 Christ taught that a wholehearted spirit of poverty is necessary to be a true follower of him. While the man had kept the commandments, true perfection required him to detach himself from all his possessions in order to follow Christ wholeheartedly. His sadness reflected the consequences of being distant from Christ. While Christ commended him for keeping the commandments, he needed to give his entire self to reap the joy and peace flowing from Christ’s life. (CCC 2544, 2545-2546)

Ch 10:32-45 Christ turned toward Jerusalem prepared to accept the Death and Resurrection that he had foretold. He announced his Passion again to his disciples and reminded them that they, too, were called to follow in his footsteps. Christ taught that greatness in the Kingdom of God rests upon a spirit of service. (CCC 474, 557, 649, 994)

Ch 10:38-39 The chalice that I drink...you will be baptized: Just as Christ will suffer, his disciples will suffer for their faith in him. (CCC 536, 618, 1225)

Ch 10:43-45 The priestly office “is in the strict sense of the term a service” (Lumen Gentium 24). Although bishops and priests possess authority given to them by Christ, their authority is based on becoming a servant to everyone. This life of service is exemplified in every action of Christ. Deacons share in this mission in a special way and are configured to Christ in their servanthood; the Greek diakonos means “servant.” (CCC 608, 1548-1551, 1570)

Ch 10:46-52 This gospel passage is a marvelous instruction on prayer. Bartimaeus not only cried out to Christ with a strong faith but actively sought him by getting up and drawing nearer to him. He was persistent in his prayer, continuing to call for Jesus and acknowledging him as the Messiah even though others tried to silence him. With total confidence, he told Christ that he wanted to see. Not only did Bartimaeus begin to see, but he also received the ultimate gift of seeing the face of Christ. St. Bede saw in Bartimaeus an allegory of the Gentiles, who must recognize Christ, cast off their mantle of sin, and rise up to meet him. The cry of Bartimaeus echoes in a brief prayer, which expresses the same petition in faith: “Jesus Christ, Son of God, have mercy on me, a sinner!” These words may be used as an Act of Contrition in the Sacrament of Penance and Reconciliation. (CCC 528, 2616, 2667)

Psalm 29 This psalm effectively links the Temple, the created world, and the heavens as places where God’s presence is essentially perceived. He who has power over all creation desires every man and woman to dwell eternally with him in peace. We ought not feat the waters stirred by storms on the sea for that same water consecrates us to him in Baptism by which we grow in holiness through our life in Christ. (Cf. St. John Paul II, General Audience, June 13, 2001)

The Church prays the latter part of this psalm at Mass on the Feast of the Baptism of the Lord. 

Sons of God: A translation of bene Elohim (“O heavenly beings”). 

The Glory of his name: God’s name is sacred and should be used only in adoration and prayer and with great reverence. Any misuse of his name constitutes an offense against the Second Commandment.

Voice of the Lord: This refers to God’s historic theophanies and is symbolic of his power and sovereignty. The several examples that follow indicate his complete control and supremacy over all of creation. 

Enthroned over the flood: This psalm is similar to and may have been an adaptation of a pagan hymn to Baal, the god of rain and storms, that was popular in that day. This phrase is meant to indicate God’s complete superiority over the pagan gods. (CCC 2143)

(*The Didache Bible RSV-CE Ignatius Edition, 2006)

• So today, we get an “OH BROTHER!”

• There are so many things to highlight

• Mark is action packed

• Every seven verses it seems Mark is onto another story

• Sometimes it’s even after one verse and Mark is onto a different section

• And Jesus did the next thing here

• Mark Ch 9 shows us Jesus in the Transfiguration

• We will talk more about this in the Gospel of St. Matthew

• Matthew gives us more details

• Moses and Elijah represent the LAW and the PROPHETS, respectively

• They are the OLD COVENANT

• Jesus is conversing with them NOT JUST AS THEIR EQUAL

• But when God the Father’s voice speaks out over them, it is VERY CLEAR that Jesus is NOT MERELY the equal of Moses and Elijah

• Jesus TRANSCENDS Moses and Elijah

• Jesus is GREATER THAN Moses and Elijah

• Remember the Shekinah Glory Cloud?

• “This is my Beloved Son. Listen to Him.”

• This is such a powerful WITNESS

• Jesus is going to claim some things about himself that are massively DRAMATIC...that are massively...um…..hello? Fr. Mike?? 😉

• (Anyone else notice that Fr. Mike SQUIRRELS a lot and gets lost in his own train of thought and goes off on a tangent? It just happened here 😁)

• Remember in Mark Ch 8:38 what did Jesus say?

• “For whoever is ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man also be ashamed, when he comes in the glory of his Father with the holy angels.”

• Jesus is saying something about himself

• Jesus is NOT just another teacher

• Jesus is NOT just another Moses

• Jesus is NOT just another Elijah

• Jesus is coming to JUDGE THE WORLD

• Jesus is someone upon whom ALL OF HUMANITY IS JUDGED

• Jesus is making some MASSIVELY IMPORTANT CLAIMS about himself

• Now, the disciples ask which one of them is the “greatest”

• This comes IMMEDIATELY one verse after Jesus says in Mark 9:33, “The Son of Man will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him; and when he is killed, after three days, he will rise.”

• (Yeah Yeah Jesus, ok whatever. But which one of us is the greatest? 🤪)

• You can imagine Jesus thinking, “Are you KIDDING ME??”

• Maybe Jesus was thinking, “You are the people that I have just invested the last three years of my life to mentor and to disciple and to be my witnesses to the world.”

• But Jesus DOES NOT say that

• Jesus goes on to TEACH them

• “If any one would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

• Jesus goes on to talk about SCANDAL (no, not that ridiculously stupid tv show 😉heck, not even that 80s band that sang “Warrior” 🤪)

• In Mark 9:42 Jesus says, “Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a great millstone were hung round his neck and he were thrown into the sea.”

• In Moral Theology at Seminary, Fr. Mike’s professor, Dr, Thompson was talking about the RESPONSIBILITY of priests

• To give witness to the Lord with their TEACHING

• To give witness to the Lord with their LIVES

• “Gentlemen, if any of you want to teach something that is contrary to Jesus, contrary to the Church, I have one word for you: MILLSTONES”

• “If you are not willing to be as holy as you possibly can be with God’s grace, and give witness to Jesus and his holiness by your holy lives, I have one word for you: MILLSTONES”

• This was very very clear, getting CALLED HIGHER by this professor

• Perhaps there are some of us, even some priests who could take this lesson to heart? 🤔

• The responsibility teachers and priests have are not only to teach the truth ACCURATELY but to LIVE THE TRUTH with God’s Grace

• Jesus says, “If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off; it is better for you to enter life maimed than with two hands to go to hell.”

• Jesus talks more about the REALITY OF HELL than ANYONE ELSE IN THE BIBLE

• No one else even comes close

• We have to remember this whole project of Bible in a Year is to give ourselves a BIBLICAL WORLDVIEW

• Jesus teaches so POWERFULLY and so CLEARLY of the REALITY that it is POSSIBLE for us to CHOOSE HELL

• It is POSSIBLE for us to say, “I’d rather not have HEAVEN and I actually want ETERNITY WITHOUT GOD”🤯🤯🤯

• That is SO IMPORTANT

• WE CANNOT GET AWAY FROM THAT

• WE CANNOT RE-WORK WHAT JESUS SAYS 

• WE CANNOT SQUIRM OUT FROM UNDERNEATH THIS REALITY

• The REALITY is that Jesus, the God of Mercy, the Prince of Peace, TEACHES more about the REALITY that WE CAN CHOOSE HELL than any other single person in the Bible

• So if your hand causes to sin, cut it off

• If your foot causes you to sin, cut it off

• If your eye causes you to sin, pluck it out

• JESUS IS SPEAKING IN HYPERBOLE HERE

• Jesus is NOT telling us to ACTUALLY MAIM OURSELVES

• Jesus is saying, “Whatever it is that is causing you to sin, GET RID OF IT AND DO IT NOW.”

• If your laptop is causing you to sin, GET RID OF IT

• “BUT I NEED IT FOR WORK”

• “BUT I NEED IT TO WRITE THE BIBLE IN A YEAR STUDY GUIDE “😉

• If your smartphone is causing you to sin, GET RID OF IT

• The content on a laptop or smartphone trip people up REGULARLY

• If your smartphone is causing you to sin, get a dumbphone (or better yet, a ROTARY PHONE 🤣🤣)

• That seems extreme, doesn’t it?

• Jesus uses EXTREME language

• Jesus is telling us that it is FAR FAR better to have to LIMP through life without a SMARTPHONE, to LIMP through life without a LAPTOP, than it would be to LOSE HEAVEN because of OUR OWN SINS

• Yes, IT IS A HARD TEACHING

• GUESS WHAT?

• Jesus has a lot of HARD TEACHINGS both about RELATIONSHIPS and about WEALTH

• (I know this and I got rid of my ipad 😉)

• Mark Ch 10 some Pharisees asks Jesus if it’s lawful for a man to divorce his wife

• This question comes out of nowhere in Mark’s Gospel and in Matthew’s Gospel as well

• There is no immediate context for it

• Why were they asking Jesus about this?

• It was clear in the Old Testament that Moses permitted for a husband to offer his wife a bill of divorce

• Why are they asking about it?

• Jesus must have been teaching about the INDISSOLUBILITY OF MARRIAGE

• Jesus DOUBLES DOWN

• Jesus asks, “What did Moses command you?”

• The Pharisees replied, “Moses allowed a man to write a certificate of divorce, and to put her away.”

• But Jesus said to them, “For your hardness of heart he wrote you this commandment. But from the beginning of creation, ‘GOD MADE THEM MALE AND FEMALE.’”

• St. John Paul II begins his teaching Theology of the Body WITH THESE EXACT WORDS

• Jesus points back TO THE BEGINNING, and it was not like this

• Moses ALLOWED you to divorce because YOU ARE BROKEN

• Because YOU HAVE HARD HEARTS

• Yes, we are created GOOD, but we are BROKEN

• We lived in a world that is HOLY, but it is FALLEN

• So St. John Paul II did, was he wrote and asked “What were relationships  like in the beginning before the Fall?”

• We recognize that relationships were RADICALLY DIFFERENT in the beginning

• Jesus has come to RESTORE THAT

• As Christians, Jesus makes it INCREDIBLY CLEAR that there is NO ROOM for divorce and remarriage AT ALL

• He gives NO QUALIFICATION

• Mark 10:11 says, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.”

• THESE ARE HARD TEACHINGS

• They get summed up really clearly in the NEXT COUPLE OF TEACHINGS

• We have the RICH MAN who asks Jesus, “Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”

• Jesus says a puzzling thing, “Why do you call me good? No one is good but God alone.”

• Jesus is NOT saying, “Hey, dude, I’m not God. That’s not me.”

• Jesus is INVITING this man to REFLECT MORE DEEPLY on what he is ABOUT TO SAY

• But if you  make the connection, Jesus IS GOOD so Jesus IS GOD

• Remember, Jesus has been DEMONSTRATING ever since Mark Ch 2 that he TRULY IS THE LORD OF HEAVEN AND EARTH

• JESUS TRULY IS GOD HIMSELF

• So in just a second, he tells the man to go give away all his possessions to the poor and he will have treasure in heaven THEN COME FOLLOW ME

• COME FOLLOW ME

• YOUR SALVATION WILL BE DEPENDENT ON WHETHER OR NOT YOU FOLLOW ME

• Who can make a claim like that except for GOD ALONE?

• Honestly

• There is no TEACHER

• There is no RABBI

• There is no PRIEST

• There is no PROFESSOR

• There is no JEDI MASTER 😉

• There is NO ONE who can make the claim that your eternal salvation is based on whether or not you FOLLOW ME

• THAT IS WHY Jesus said to the rich man, “Why do you call me good? There is no one good but God alone.”

• He is telling the rich man to REFLECT MORE DEEPLY upon Jesus’ identity AS GOD

• So the teachings in Mark Ch 10 about divorce and wealth are HARD TEACHINGS

• “Children, how hard it is for those who trust in riches to enter the kingdom of God! It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God.”

• You may have heard of this place in Jerusalem called “THE NEEDLE” that was only big enough for an unburdened camel to crawl through on its knees

• So to get through that passage, EVERYTHING would have to be taken off the camel (be careful, they spit!! 🤪) and then proceed

• Ok so maybe, maybe not for this being true

• So think about this, the largest animal known to the people of the Middle East was the camel 

• Maybe they heard about elephants but they weren’t familiar with them

• So take the LARGEST animal, that spitting camel

• Take the SMALLEST aperture, the eye of the needle

• And try to shove that camel on through

• THAT IS IMPOSSIBLE

• Jesus can say this though

• WHY?

• BECAUSE OF WHO JESUS IS

• When it comes to the teaching on MALE AND FEMALE

• When it comes to the teaching on DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

• When It comes to the teaching on CHOOSE JESUS AND HEAVEN OR CHOOSE NO JESUS AND HELL

• When it comes to the teaching on WEALTH

• Jesus is HIGHLIGHTING SO POWERFULLY WHO HE REALLY IS

• JESUS IS WHO HE SAYS HE IS

• JESUS IS GOD HIMSELF

• To say YES to JESUS is to say YES to GOD

• To say NO to JESUS is to say NO to GOD

• There is so much DEPTH to all of these teachings

• Maybe they all of these teachings CHALLENGE US

• As we are listening to God’s Word, we all have a HISTORY

• Whether that is a history of GREAT NEED

• Whether that is a history of GREAT POVERTY

• Whether that is a history of GREAT WANT

• Whether that is a history of GREAT WEALTH

• We listen to these teachings and wonder, “OH MY GOSH. God, what do you want me to do?”

• Maybe our history is of a HAPPY MARRIAGE

• Maybe our history is of a DIVORCE

• Maybe our history is of a DIVORCE AND REMARRIAGE

• GOD, WHAT DO YOU WANT ME TO DO? HOW ARE YOU CALLING ME TO GET MY LIFE IN LINE WITH YOURS?

• So you need to understand that ALL of those INVITATIONS are CHALLENGES and can be INCREDIBLY OVERWHELMING

• AND YET…

• AND YET...😉

• God will NEVER call us to do ANYTHING that he doesn’t also provide us with the GRACE and the STRENGTH to ACTUALLY DO

• So if you find yourself feeling ACCUSED

• If you find yourself feeling SO NERVOUS

• If you find yourself feeling HELPLESS

• YOU ARE NOT DEAD IN THE WATER, THAT IS NOT TRUE

• The Lord brought you to THIS DAY because He has a Word to SPEAK TO YOU

• That WORD is not a just word of CONVICTION

• That WORD is a word of HOPE

• Regardless of whatever it is YOU are wrestling with

• Regardless of whether you hear these words and are INSPIRED

• Regardless of whether you hear these words and are AFRAID

• Regardless of whether you hear these words and are TERRIFIED

• Regardless of whether you hear these words and are ANNOYED

• Regardless of whether you hear these words and are ANGRY

• These words are WORDS FOR YOU

• God is CALLING YOU HIGHER

• WHEREVER IT IS

• WHATEVER YOUR STORY IS

• YOU ARE NOT DISQUALIFIED FROM GOD’S LOVE

• YOU AND I (AND FR. MIKE) ARE CALLED HIGHER

• WE ARE CALLED TO REPENT

• WE ARE CALLED TO TURN BACK TO THE LORD

• So ask, “Ok God, what do I need to cut out of my life?”

• “Ok God, where do I need to repent?”

• “Ok God, where do I need to go from here?”

GOD HAS NOT GIVEN UP ON YOU

LISTEN

BROTHERS AND SISTERS

GOD HAS NOT GIVEN UP ON YOU

IN THIS MOMENT, PLEASE, DO NOT GIVE UP ON HIM

• PRAY FOR EACH OTHER

• PRAY FOR FR. MIKE

Prayer by Fr. Mike: “Father in Heaven we give you praise. And we bless you and you bless us and you keep giving to us and so we give you praise. And we know that you are the one who is blessed. Lord God, in the Gospel, you often ask, ‘What is it that you wish for? What is it that you want?’ And if I don’t know what it is that I want, if I don’t know what it is that I wish for, if I don’t know what it is the deep desire of my heart, then I don’t know how to answer this question. And so, Lord God, before I can even ask what I wish for, I ask that you please give us all a spirit of clarity, a spirit of actually knowing what it is that our heart longs for, knowing what it is that we really truly desire. Because our hearts are clouded by misjudgment, our hearts are clouded by a number of contradictory desires. And so, Lord God, I don’t even know what my heart wants half the time. And so I ask that you please, before I can give you any answer of what it is that you want me to do for you, I need to know what it is. I need to receive a pure heart from you, a pure heart that can see, not just other people well, but also see what it is that is in the depth of my heart. God, I want to approach you always with clarity. I want to approach you always with confidence and with courage, and so I ask that you please, send into my heart and into the hearts of all those who are praying with me now, that spirit of clarity, of confidence, and of courage. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.”