Rekindle
Joshua is showing signs of a frustrated parent. If you are going to live in my house you will live by the rules of our household, now go clean up your room. Joshua has explained that the people who came out of Egypt, their parents, have all died because they did not follow God’s commands. You will die also if do not have a change of heart. So, if you are not going to follow God, then leave. But as for me and my household we will serve the Lord. Joshua is trying to rekindle their faith. Some will remain with him, many will leave.
Jesus’ words are becoming more forceful. Unless you eat my flesh and drink my blood you will not have life within you. What is this life Jesus is talking about? Earlier in John, Jesus was speaking with Nicodemus. Jesus was telling Nicodemus that he must be born of the spirit. Nicodemus is confused thinking he is to be born again. But not of the flesh. Through baptism he will be born of the spirit. This does not make our flesh evil or bad. Many people try to tell us things of the flesh are evil. The flesh is not evil, our sins are evil. And yes, our flesh is weak, but that does not make it evil. Being born of the Spirit now infuses our flesh with grace, to sanctify or make holy, who we are, in the flesh. Infusing our flesh with grace is how the church helps us to seek holiness through the sacraments. The Eucharist is the summit of this grace to infuse our bodies. Jesus is trying to rekindle our desire to seek the Holy Spirit. To allow the Holy Spirit to infuse our bodies with sanctifying grace. Some will remain with Him, many will leave.
Then we come to the reading from Ephesians. “Be subordinate to one another out of reverence for Christ. Wives should be subordinate to their husbands as to the Lord. For the husband is head of his wife just as Christ is head of the church, he himself the savior of the body.” Too many times we read the sentence that says, “wives should be subordinate” and we think that wives are then subordinate or inferior to their husbands. The Bible does not say that. It is not right to pick out one sentence and use your interpretation. You must use the entire paragraph to understand what St. Paul is saying. First it starts out with husbands, love your wives as Christ loves the Church. What does that mean? Husbands, you should we willing to lay down your life for wife just as Christ laid down His life for the Church. A wife knows her husband loves her when she sees him doing everything he can possibly do to make sure she will get to heaven. And the love continues to grow when the husband does all that he can do to make sure his children get to heaven. And it carries outward to those in his family, where he works and others in the community. Where does it start? When husband and wife receive the gift of altar, the Eucharist, and then we take this sanctifying gift out into the world to sanctify others.
Husbands, today, rekindle your marriage. Rekindle the sanctifying grace you once shared on your wedding day. Rekindle the love for your children, others in your family, those you work with, and your neighbors. Generously share with others what God has shared with you.
May the Lord bless you in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen