Passages: Is. 56:1-57:20; Eph. 4:17-5:14; Lk. 16:1-31
Ընթերցուածքներ՝ Եսայ. ԾԶ 1- ԾԷ 20; Եփես. Դ 17- Ե 14; Ղկ. ԺԶ 1-31
In the Name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, Amen!
In a world with options and ever-growing trends, it’s often difficult to keep up to date, be in the know, and always stay relevant. Whether its fashion, music, celebrities, or technology, the world around us is constantly growing. This past summer at camp, the kids kept laughing and lifting up their hands in a dance, each time an instructor would say the numbers 6-7, because it had become popularized through the song “Doot Doot (6 7)”. What about parachute pants? Or mesh shirts? What does it mean if someone says, “Austin 3:16” or if begin a song with the words, “I wanna be the very best, like no one ever was…”? How many of us remember these trends Especially with social media, new trends spread fast and if you’re not on Tik Tok, or other social media, or if you don’t have a kid at home who is following along, you’ll get left behind. Yet, even as adults, we have our trends, things we pay attention to. The economy, war, the news, things happening at work, etc. If we don’t pay attention, if we don’t stay up to date, we will get left behind.
As Christian’s, we recognize that everything we have in life, our body, our wealth, our material possessions, technology, money, etc. are blessings given to us by God. They give us joy and provide for us means to make friends, build relationships, help those who perhaps are unable to have or who are struggling for whatever reason. It is for this reason in the Gospel today, we read, “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous mammon, so that when it fails, they may receive you into the eternal habitations.” The unrighteous mammon is the wealth, the material, what is trending today, that we are called to use to build relationships and lift one another up. However, these words come to us at the end of the Parable of the Dishonest Steward, who was abusing what he had, and his responsibilities. In other words, my dear brothers and sisters, we need to first recognize that we are all stewards, caretakers, not masters, of what God has given us.
Yet, the truth is for too many of us, the trend, the money, our bodies, our material possessions have become the purpose of our life. In an effort to become a master over these things, we’ve become a slave to them. We see our value, our importance in what we have, or how our portfolios and 401K performs, or how trendy we are, how many likes and follows we can collect, even at the expense of others. Yet, my dear brothers and sisters, these things are not our master’s, they are tools given to us by God for a purpose. In Psalm 86 we read, “Among the gods there is none like you, Lord; no deeds can compare with yours”. Kind of strange that Scripture is acknowledging that there are gods but just that they are not like the Lord. Isn’t there only one God? Yes, my dears. However, as Christ continues in today’s passage, “we cannot serve two masters” means we need to ask ourselves, who or even what have we made into gods for us? What gives us value, or defines our purpose? Sex, drugs and rock n roll, Tik Tok, our jobs and education, what car we drive, which community we live in, what language we speak, what color of skin we were born with, who we voted for, our citizenship or immigration statues, our money, our bodies, our brokenness, our hurt, our addictions and scars? Which one of these things give us true value and purpose? None of them!
It is the love of God our Heavenly Father, the true master, who provides for us tools with a purpose – to lift each other up, heal the world, bring light to the darkness. It is the love of God the Holy Spirit, who guides us with meaning and purpose as participants in His majesty. It is the love of God the Son Jesus Christ, who takes our pains and brokenness, the rejection and irrelevance that the world says about us, and gives us life. My dears, trends change, the world is changing, what is deemed important and valuable today will be discarded and worthless or unfashionable tomorrow. God is, was and always will be the same! His love for us, even if we are the greatest sinner, will always remain; we will never be discarded or rejected by God. When we recognize our part in His Will, when we recognize that we are stewards called to take care of this world, take care of each other, and ourselves with the blessings we have in this life, than more of true richness and life will be revealed to us. We will begin to truly understand and see who God is.
But we cannot serve God and mammon. We cannot stay trendy and Holy. Be Holy my dears. Focus on your Holy Scriptures more than reading the comments on social media. Recite the words of prayer with our hands and not just lift up our hands when we hear the numbers 6-7. Come to Church not because it is filled with trendy and Holy people, but because it is filled with Christ who calls all people to Him. Use your youth to be an example of faithfulness and wisdom. Use your age and experience to draw others to God’s love. Use what blessings God has given us to be good and faithful stewards of God in this world. And this world will be healed, and we will be healed and the grace and love of God will be seen by all who seek it, giving Him glory now and forever, Amen.
St. Gregory the Illuminator Armenian Church 