Transparent Honesty

~~~Seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time~~~

~~Leviticus 19:1-2, 17-18~~Psalm 103~~1 Corinthians 3:16-23~~Matthew 5:38-48~~

Be holy, for I, the LORD, your God, am holy.

This seems like an impossible directive to follow.
We are not asked to go out searching for the illusive holiness.
In fact this holiness is not something we find in isolation.
This holiness is found in how we radiate God to others.
God manifests his holiness through all of his actions...
through all of creation.
We are called to live our holiness, not on our knees,
but on our feet and with our hands.
Our holiness is made evident in how we view others.
Can we see all peoples with the eyes of God.

Bless the LORD, O my soul;
and all my being, bless his holy name.
Bless the LORD, O my soul,
and forget not all his benefits.

Holiness is being in a constant state of gratitude.
All that we have and all that we will have
comes from the abundance of God.
Having a relationship with God does come with its perks...
He showers us with his gifts of love and mercy.

Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know that you are the temple of God,
and that the Spirit of God dwells in you?

Worthy or not we cannot stop our God from
wanting to dwell within us.

Without this indwelling of the Spirit of God we would not exist.
When God dwells in us we become his hands and feet here on the earth.
It is with his hands that we clasp the hand of a loved one.
It is with his arms that we give the hug of hope.
It is with his voice that we speak words of forgiveness.

So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.

It is true, in the traditional understanding of perfection,
we can never be perfect while on this earth.
But this perfection we are desiring is about being aligned
with God in mind, body, and spirit.

Having our whole being in tune with him.
In perfection, in wholeness there is no place for duplicity.
There can be no trace of deceit.
There must be only transparent honesty as to who we are...
For we are dust and to dust we shall return.

Perhaps we do not stop to appreciate just how Blessed
we are to be considered as the dwelling place of the Lord.

For in him we live and breathe and move.
Without him we are nothing.
May the peace of the Lord envelope you.