I remember when I first moved to Florence how appreciative I was for landmarks. Like in any city I’ve lived in, finding my way around town has meant reading maps, looking at GPS and listening to directions. The thing about directions is that they almost never include the names of streets and they are always different depending on who you ask. For example, if I were to ask anyone here which was the best way from here to Darlington, I might get three of four different routes, all getting me to Darlington, but each slightly different. In fact some might cause me to get lost. That’s happened before, but that’s because I wasn’t following the directions I had been given. I thought I knew where I was and I thought I knew a better way, but I was wrong. One thing is for sure. If I want the best directions somewhere, I have to ask someone who knows how to get there, or even better, someone who lives there because they’ve driven it so many times, they know not only the names of the streets, but every bump and every obstacle along the way. It’s only when I follow the directions from someone so intimately aware of the way that I can be sure to get there without getting lost. I just love the days when I get directions from someone like that!
Well today is one of those days. Today the Church is pointing the way to heaven with big bright lights. And thank God we are here this morning to listen to God’s directions; because after all, if you want to get to Heaven, God gives the best directions. The first thing God tells us this morning is that Church is a bright search light that the entire world will use to find Heaven. “You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden.” (Matthew 5.14)
It’s His way of pointing out landmarks along our journey that help us find our way. In other words, in the darkness of the world, amid the sins of society, the Church stands as a reminder of God’s light and hope for all to see. “Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house.” (Matthew 5.15) It would be completely wasted if God blessed our Church and then covered it up so nobody could see. It wouldn’t help anyone find their way to God unless it was allowed to shine. God just doesn’t work that way.
God has placed His Church, the Orthodox Church, in our lives as a bright light, so we could be shown the way to heaven. Just think about how lucky we are for a moment. If we are having trouble with anything in our lives, we can simply turn to the Church and the Church will guide us back to Christ. Let’s look at a couple of examples….sort of looking at directions to Darlington.
Let’s say for a moment that we are struggling with being in Church, just a few pews across from someone with whom we had a bad business deal. Just seeing this other person in Church makes our blood boil because we “know” what that other person is like and we can’t believe their sitting in Church like nothing ever happened. We can turn to the Church and seek advice. The Church might say something like, “Have you forgiven that person for the bad deal?” because in our hearts we have never forgiven the person. Forgiveness is something at the very heart of our relationship with God and each other. When teaching us the Lord’s Prayer Jesus says, “If you do not forgive men their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.” (Matthew 6.15) Until we forgive others we cannot be forgiven. The Church can guide us to the path of forgiveness and therefore to God.
Or let’s say we are struggling with controlling our temper. We seem to always be upset at the world. Nobody EVER does ANYTHING right. The Church might ask, “Are you fasting?” What does fasting have to do with anger you might ask? Well, in this example what we are really struggling with is our own ego. WE are the ones with all the answers. Fasting can help with too. When we teach ourselves that we can’t always have what we want when we want it, we learn to control our ego, which is at the root of our anger many times. Again, it is the Church’s way of life that can help us because we can’t get to heaven OUR way. We have to follow HIS way.
There are so many issues for which we can turn to the Church for guidance and as Christ promises us, the bright light will always show the way to heaven. And that is for one simple reason. The Church is way a life, not just a system of beliefs. When Christ calls the Church the light of the world, He is not speaking only of the teachings of the Church but the very way of life.
Consider the idea of a lamp. Only when it is placed on a lampstand does it give any benefit to the house. Only when the Church’s teachings and way of life are put to use can we get the full benefit of them. And that’s the gift we have received today. Because we are here today and hearing our Lord’s wisdom and voice, we can be assured that we have the right directions to find God.
There are many people in the world that are trying to tell us how to live, but only one way leads to God and a life with Him in heaven. He says, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14.6) The question is, “where is He so we can be with Him?” He is right here, present on the Altar Table and He is blessing us this morning with the opportunity to become one with Him.
We cannot hide the fact that God is present among us today and every day in the Church because His Light shines brightly. People are taking notice of our Church. People are taking notice that something special is happening here. I’ve noticed a difference in just the past few weeks. People are coming because they are searching for Christ. And they will find Him here among us just like we did this morning. They struggle just like we struggle. He will help them just as He is helping us. You can’t put a basket over the Church, the light is too bright.
And don’t be shy about it. Don’t boast, but don’t be shy about it. Our Lord says, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5.16) See, it really is like asking for directions but instead of having to turn this way and that way, we only have to walk the Church’s way, God’s way, and we’ll get there every time.
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