Made In The Image Of God

We make lots of decisions every day and most of them do not have eternal consequences. Some do because every moment of our lives can bring us a step closer to God. In every moment of our lives when we decide what to do, we can choose Jesus.

In this sermon, Deacon Michael talks about the gift of choice. It is a gift we have because we are made in the image and likeness of God. Let’s try to fulfill our potential and make the most joy-filled choices, choices that will make us eternally happy.

Written by Laura Weston, wife of Deacon Michael

IF YOU LIKE, READ ALONG WHILE YOU ARE LISTENING:

Good morning.  I see you got somebody else out of bed this morning.  They're very good about getting people out of bed early in the morning.  Not always laughing, but, you know… just a remarkable day.

One of the things that really strikes me.  And as I told you, this is a preaching weekend, so I'm thinking about what I'm going to do.  Am I going to get in trouble for what I am going to say?  And how am I going to say it?  I always worry about that getting into trouble part.  That's one of the restraints that I have.  (He never gets into trouble.)

The reading today, the other readings that we have, are really remarkable in something that is really special.  And I talk about this sometimes.  It would be wonderful if, as an ordained deacon, I get a little card that says, "You are now ordained.  These are the things that you can do.  You see a little kid crying, you can go, pop, and he stops crying.  You see someone who is hurting, you go, pop, you're not hurting.  The light bulb is out, this one I really like, pop, the light bulb turns on."  And then the priest gets a longer list, and he gets to do all sorts of things.  And the bishop gets even a longer list, and he just goes, pop, pop, pop. And they’re doing magic all the time.  And then the Pope, you should see his list.  This goes on as two pages, all of the things. And he just, oomp, joomp.  Wouldn't that be wonderful, that we would have ordained ministers that by virtue of their ordination, that would be able to be like Harry Potter and do magic.

It doesn't work that way.  And the reason is, it's shown in these readings today, the reason that is so fundamental to our relationship with God and so fundamental to our relationship with Jesus Christ, is that for all the wonderful things that a priest can do in the sacraments: the consecration of the host; the forgiveness of sins; all of these wonderful things, there is one thing they can't do and that is the single thing that is the most important.  I cannot go, as an ordained minister, and all the way up to the Pope can't go, pop, belief.  "Believe and act in accordance with your faith."  Pop!

It doesn't work that way.  Jesus recognizes that we are made in the image of God.  And integral to being in the image of God is the ability, the free will, to make a decision.

God woke up one morning and said, "I'm going to create the universe."  We wake up in the morning and we go, "I'm going to get out of bed and go to be a 6:30 Crazy."  We go through our lives constantly making decisions that relate to our belief and to our striving towards being a disciple of Christ on the path of eternal salvation.  It isn't something someone else is going to do.  It is integral to who we are.

Jesus talks about it in this way, "If anyone comes to me without hating his mother and his father, wife and children, brothers and sisters, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple."  It means that we have to make the decision for ourselves.  No one came make the decision for us.  We can get a baby baptized, sure.  Cleanse him of original sin.  Baptism is absolutely wonderful.  But once they reach the age of reason, in the matters of faith, we can't do anything.

"I want you to believe, sweetheart. I want you to follow the teachings of Christ."  That's all we can do.  Because it comes down to us, how we act and how we approach the world.

Jeff works with computers.  Jeff has this ability when he is working with someone on a computer, doing programming work, he can sit there and go, "You know these people are really pretty obnoxious and they're not paying me what they are supposed to.  And I can just change the code a little bit and over the next five years on a regular basis it is going to drive them absolutely crazy because this function is not going to work properly and on a random basis.  That's called Microsoft, but that's another issue.

But each and every one of us in our own lives has to make the decision.  Jesus can bring us up to salvation.  He can do everything that He did.  He can shed his divinity and become a slave among men.  He can suffer His Passion and His Death on a cross and He can bring us right to that point, but ultimately it has to be us.  What we believe and how we act.

God can say, "Love thy neighbor."  Great.  Oh yeah, I love my neighbor, that's fine!  But if we don't take that belief and do something, we are nothing.  Without Christ leading us, we are nothing.  All we are is human.  All we are is someone who has made the decision on a personal level not to follow Christ.  That will be the defining characteristic.

So when we think about all these things, like the great consecration during Mass, which I always love, by the way; I just love his [the priest’s] hands going out.  Remember, ultimately it comes down to me.  Just as it comes down to every one of you on an individual basis. Me.  It is I who have to believe.  It is I who have to act.  It is I who am willing to place Jesus first and let everything else flow from it.  So not only do I end up not hating my father and mother through Christ, I recognize that in placing Christ first, that becomes all the more important.  It is not that I have to put up with people who I can't tolerate because of, "Love thy neighbor," it is that I recognize in their humanity the divinity of Christ.

It is through my decision as a child of God, made in God's image, to exercise my free will.  And this is what St. Paul is talking about.  This is what Jesus is talking about in the gospel reading.  This is what all of this is all about.

So you, Robert, Margene, you are the one that has to make the decision to follow Christ.  To go on the path of eternal life and once you make that decision, Jesus is going to be there constantly with you to make it so that you can spend all eternity with Him in Heaven.

November 7, 2018 3