October 16, 2015

“No one can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” Matthew 6:24

“I want to advise you to leave everything but I do not want to be presumptuous. If therefore you are unable to abandon everything which the world offers, you must so hold those things that are of this world that you may not be held by them in the world; that earthly interests may be possessed, not be the possessor, and that what you have should be under the control of your mind.” Gregory the Great (540 – 604) Homily 36, “For All The Saints”, volume II (p. 948)

It is one thing to say “I want to live in this world but not be affected by that world” — and then to go forward each day being successful with that request. We all, to some degree or another, are products of our environments and our unique places in the world. Gregory the Great goes on to say in his homily that it is not necessary to give up everything, as long as the things we use are not “Lords” over us and as long as we can leave them at any time in service to our true Lord. For example, I think it is true to say that there are some places we can live in this world where we do not need a car, like New York City, and other major cities in the world. But for those of us who live in rural parts of the country, having a car is a necessity. And when we go looking for a car, we have so many choices, new and old, brand after brand after brand. We could buy the most expensive and exquisite car on the lot, but it may lord over us in the financial committment and in our incessant concern for its upkeep and care. On the other hand, a nice used car with a few bumps and bruises which runs well even though it does not have the latest gadgets like the “in-car espresso machine” would serve us just as well.

Serving one master is time consuming enough, and should be time-consuming for all of us – time that is worthy of our full attention and utilization of our gifts for G*d.

Pastor Dave