Bible
Study: Romans 8, 12 to 17. And Luke 13, 10 to 17.
The very
fact that we are capable of exercising control over our actions is the most
powerful asset that God has bestowed upon us and it is something we should be
proud about. Our ability to exercise this control is not a function of our
flesh but a function of something that no scientist has ever been able to see,
hold and touch; the spirit.
Left to itself,
the flesh is entirely animalistic in nature. This is why we should not be surprised
when certain persons even in the developed world begin to advocate for a return
to total animal life. You see people walking entirely naked on the streets and
doing things that only animals in the forest would do, even things lower than
animals. Come to think of it, that humans are becoming the only species in the
entire animal kingdom that practice homosexuality. One day, the goats, rabbits
and hyenas would gather the human race for a meeting and educate us on what
they expect of us as their elder brothers in the animal world.
Dear
friends, the choice is up to us, whether to live according to the impulses of
the flesh, or actually allow our spiritual selves exercise its needed control
over the animal in us. And as St. Paul says, “… if you live according to the flesh you
will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body you will
live.” Romans 8, 13.
One of the hallmarks of living according to the Spirit is RESPECT. Respect
for the human body as a whole; respect for the dignity of others; respect for
the fact that we are not only physical bodies but God-carriers; respect for the
fact that even when our physical bodies has become old as a result of age, we
are still worthwhile human beings.
Lack of the presence of the Spirit leads to disrespect of the body, man’s
inhumanity to man, disregard of the sacredness of the flesh whereby fellow
human beings are treated like mere objects of sexual satisfaction, slaves and
beasts of burden. This disrespect is seen when people are regarded as pieces of
rags because they do not have money or because they are sick or old. At times,
fellow human are treated even with less dignity than animals.
In our Gospel passage this morning, Jesus was teaching in the synagogue
on a Sabbath day and there was a woman who had a sickness that made it
impossible for her to stand straight and she had been suffering like this for
over eighteen years. Jesus was touched to see a fellow human being in such
deplorable condition so he decided to heal her. He did this out of respect for
the dignity of a human being but for the ruler of the synagogue, Jesus has done
the unthinkable by disregarding the Sabbath rule; a rule with states that no
work should ever be done on a Sabbath day.
Jesus then opened the eyes of his adversaries to see that if they could
untie a donkey on a Sabbath day without having committed a sin by so doing,
then untying a woman who had been held bound by satan for eighteen years couldn’t
possibly be a sin. And they were ashamed of themselves. They could now realize the
extent of their disrespect for a fellow human being.
We are more than mere flesh. If we allow our Spirit control our flesh,
we would treat our bodies with great respect. We would never expose our
nakedness by dressing to show and we would not encourage others to expose
theirs as well. Respect is more than just an honour we give our fellow humans,
it is a sign of spiritual maturity on our part and everybody regardless of age,
gender, health condition or social class deserves respect from us.
Let us Pray:
Lord
Jesus, teach us to live according to the Sprit that we may learn to respect our
bodies as sacred temples of your indwelling. Amen.
Good morning.
Be Happy. Live Positive. Have Faith. It is well with you. Happy new week.
No comments:
Post a Comment