TOWARDS FATHER'S 

                        PERFECTION

  By Fr K Y Chacko

·         DO NOT TAKE REVENGE

·         LOVE YOUR ENEMIES

·         GROW TOWARDS PERFECTION  

While the Mount of Transfiguration reveals the hidden glory of Christ, the Sermon of the Mount reveals the character of God. To stretch it further, the Upper Room reveals the heart of God on which the Holy Eucharist is based, while the Book of Revelation unveils the full glory of Christ and the pattern of heavenly worship. When Christ revealed his full glory, the Beloved Disciple fell down nearly dead and Christ touches and restores him – the very disciple who was leaning on Christ’s chest in the Upper House! That demonstrates the difference between the heavenly realm and the earthly realm.

In the Sermon on the Mount, Christ teaches heavenly ethics, hard to understand for earthlings. When we pray, Thy kingdom come, the Lord expects us to practise heavenly ethics so that others are touched by God’s love welling in our hearts, that they are transformed by the forgiving, seeking and enduring love of God.

       

So at the pinnacle of the Sermon on the Mount comes a trilogy of commandments for his disciples to obey. They did obey and the disciples had access to God’s miraculous powers; and they were indeed led by the Spirit. But it is Greek and Latin to the worldly Christians who consider it downright foolish! To quote St Paul, The way of the cross is foolishness to those who perish.

If you love your soul, meditate on the following verses, asking God to lead you into his truth, and you will indeed hear the small still voice speaking to your heart.  

(St. Matthew 5: 38-42)

Ye have heard that it hath been said, An eye for an eye, and a tooth

for a tooth:

But I say unto you, That ye resist not evil: but whosoever shall

smite thee on thy right cheek, turn to him the other also.

And if any man will sue thee at the law, and take away thy coat, let

him have thy cloak also.

And whosoever shall compel thee to go a mile, go with him twain.

Give to him that asketh thee, and from him that would borrow of

thee turn not thou away. 

Taking revenge is a temporary solution, not a permanent or eternal solution. After revenge, the problem reappears in a complex way calling for more violence and bloodshed and calamity. History is full of vendetta and any serious student of history will understand the futility of revenge.

Revenge destroys the harmony of nature, on which depends the happiness and even survival of the human race. A nuclear mad world can destroy the last trace of human civilization from our planet.

Vengeance belongs to God, and by taking vengeance the created man is usurping the role of his Creator. In fact, man is playing God because of his pride, foolish pride. And in doing so, he is closing the door for God to act.

Revenge hinders worship, worshipping God in spirit and in truth. Real worship brings God’s blessing; and revenge forfeits God’s grace and blessing.   

Three illustrations in the Sermon on the Mount on three different situations set at rest any doubt we may have on how to react to injustice. Injustice is evil. No one has the right to slap you, whether on the right cheek or on the left; no one has the right to rob you of your coat, even legally; no one has the right to ask you to carry his luggage free even for a mile.

Do not return evil for evil, physically or psychologically. When treated unfairly, you have a golden opportunity to witness God’s love through goodness, by turning the other cheek, by offering him your shirt, too, and carrying the luggage of the Roman soldier two miles instead of one as demanded by him. (It was a common practice for Roman soldiers to take undue advantage of the natives).  

This is the benchmark for Christian living, and God knows how to reward his children at the right time. Giving generously has not reduced anyone to poverty. And those who are led by the Spirit are hedged in by the Spirit and the trials and tribulations, and the sorrows and pains that they pass through do not affect them since they live a blessed life transported (uplifted) by the Spirit. The life of St Mary is the best illustration.

(St. Matthew 5: 43-46)

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbor,

and hate thine enemy.

But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you,

do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which

despitefully use you, and persecute you;

That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for

he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth

rain on the just and on the unjust.

For if ye love them which love you, what reward have ye? do not

even the publicans the same?

And if ye salute your brethren only, what do ye more than others?

do not even the publicans so?

Love your enemies.

If you hate those who love you, it is satanic.

If you love those who love you, it is human.

If you love those who hate you, it is divine.  

Love of Jesus compels you to love those who hate you, thereby giving them an opportunity to experience the transforming love of God. In doing so, our life is filled with virtue; we become a man or woman full of grace. At the Second Coming, those whose life is full of virtue or grace will find themselves transported to the mid-heaven to meet Christ the Lord. Loving your enemies is a soul-lifting experience.  

(Matthew 5: 48)

Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is

perfect.

Growth towards Perfection is the quintessential message of the Sermon on the Mount. It’s nothing short of full transformation – being like Jesus who is the express image of the Father. In Christ dwells the fullness of God, and he who has seen Christ has seen the Father, and he who follows Christ is walking towards Perfection, the Perfection of the Father.  

Our mission in life is first to transform ourselves, and then help transform the world, so that His Kingdom come on earth.