12 August 2015 - live, but not unplugged

Since then no prophet has arisen in Israel like Moses,
whom the LORD knew face to face.
He had no equal in all the signs and wonders
the LORD sent him to perform in the land of Egypt

Moses is an amazing leader and the people come to rely on him a lot. Even when until dies"his eyes were undimmed and his vigor unabated."

"the Buddhist saint always has his eyes shut, while the Christian saint always has them very wide open. The Buddhist saint has a sleek and harmonious body, but his eyes are heavy and sealed with sleep. The mediaeval saint's body is wasted to its crazy bones, but his eyes are frightfully alive." - from Orthodoxy by GK Chesteron 

The children of Israel weep for thirty days and we shouldn't doubt their sincerity. Moses does so much for them. Through him God works miracles of deliverance. When the people mess up and commit sin Moses is the one to stand in the breach for them. The whole deliverance from Egypt is so huge that it doesn't seem like it can ever have an equal. The opposition of the Egyptians and the hard hearts of the children of Israel themselves seem insurmountable. Nevertheless, Moses perseveres and they arrived at the borders of the promised land.

Joshua is appointed to succeed Moses but even he isn't considered a prophet like Moses "whom the LORD knew face to face." Yet Moses promises that there is one to come who is indeed like him. "A prophet like me will the LORD, your God, raise up for you from among your own kindred; that is the one to whom you shall listen" (cf. Deu. 18:15). The wait is a little longer than that.

Jesus is the prophet who can finally live up to the legacy of Moses. He works  deeds of might and terrifying power as he heals the sick and casts out demons. He delivers us from slavery to sin and guides us from the desert of this world to life eternal in the kingdom of God. When Jesus leaves us, when the clouds take him from our sight, he does not leave a vacuum in his absence as Moses does. As great as Moses was, his ability to provide for the people stops with his death. But Jesus lives forever. Even from heaven he leads and guides his people in a way that is even more perfect and amazing than the way Moses guides the children of Israel from Egypt to the promised land. This is a treasure that we have right now. This is something worth celebrating!

For where two or three are gathered together in my name,
there am I in the midst of them.

That is why the Church Jesus founds has such authority. The Pharisees sit on the Chair of Moses and exercise authority in the name of one who had died and gone to his rest (cf. Mat. 23:2). But now the Popes sit on the Chair of Peter and make present the authority of the one who lives forever. 

That is why the members of the Church Jesus creates have access to such power. Unlike Moses, the power is not unplugged by the death of Jesus. His resurrection is the source from which this power flows and he continues to keep his Church plugged into that power through his Spirit as he himself reigns over us in heaven.

Again, amen, I say to you, if two of you agree on earth
about anything for which they are to pray,
it shall be granted to them by my heavenly Father.

This is why we can say, "Blessed be God who filled my soul with fire!" Do we experience this? Jesus is the prophet who is like Moses but somehow even better. Moses is limited by his humanity, by his sin, and by the fallen world in which he lives. None of these things can limit our risen LORD. Let's believe this, celebrate it, and ask for even more fire to fill us so we can live this truth.

Shout joyfully to God, all the earth;
sing praise to the glory of his name;
proclaim his glorious praise.
Say to God: “How tremendous are your deeds!”