6 September 2015 - be opened

My brothers and sisters, show no partiality
as you adhere to the faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ.

The ways in which we used to measure people don't have any meaning now. Riches seemed like success before. They seemed like something to be celebrated, rewarded, and imitated. But if we focus on such things we become "judges with evil designs". The riches of this world are insufficient when compared to the poverty of sin and sickness and death. Even material poverty can't be solved as with simple resources as long as greed remains. We can't just throw money at this problem. Are own resources are insufficient. So we must learn to let them be insufficient. We need to learn to be poor in Spirit. God chooses those "who are poor in the world to be rich in faith and heirs to the kingdom that he promised to those who love him". Let us become poor to the things of this world and rich in kingdom of God.

We seem to be dependent on riches. But the kingdom is not. Jesus himself becomes poor so that by his poverty we can become rich (cf. 2 Cor. 8:9). That is why Peter can say, "I have no silver and gold, but what I do have I give to you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, rise up and walk!" (cf. Act. 3:6) We don't realize this and so we are often frightened, concerned that we won't have enough of the resources of this world. To us, then, the prophet speaks.

Be strong, fear not!
Here is your God,
he comes with vindication;
with divine recompense
he comes to save you.

This is ultimately no human work. This is more than the mere clever allocation of this worlds goods and resources. This is a supernatural kingdom. This is the finger of God (cf. Lul. 11:20) at work in our world.

Then will the eyes of the blind be opened,
the ears of the deaf be cleared;
then will the lame leap like a stag,
then the tongue of the mute will sing.
Streams will burst forth in the desert,
and rivers in the steppe.

So let us welcome and embrace the power of the Kingdom. Let us redefine what wealth means to us, what it means to have enough. Maybe our own ears have been closed to this word. Maybe our tongues have been mute and unable to proclaim it. If we're still worried about the resources of this world we need to have our ears opened to the truth which Jesus proclaims.  To us our ears as well he says, "Be opened!" He opens our ears to have truth and frees our tongues to speak his words. If we are slow to believe in miracles, in the supernatural, or that the power of the kingdom is enough, Jesus says to us, "Be opened!" If we are shy and reluctant to proclaim the transformative power of this kingdom he says to us, "Be opened!" To him, let us respond:

“He has done all things well. 
He makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

He does all things well. "Praise the Lord, my soul!"