Homily on the Sunday of the prodigal son
Luke 15:11-32.
In today’s Gospel our Lord and Saviour recounts for us the parable of the prodigal son. The most important thing to take from this parable is the great love that our lord and Saviour has for us – He is willing to forgive us our every sin should we come to Him and say in all humility, ‘Lord I am sorry for my sins please forgive me’. Indeed, the message that we ought to take from this parable is that the All-Holy Trinity will shower us with every blessing should we ask His help and forgiveness. Oftentimes, we tend to perceive the All-Holy Trinity as a terrible fearful judge and oftentimes, this leads to people rejecting the love and forgiveness that He offers. For what though? For it is clear that if we as people are willing to approach Him in all humility, like the son in today’s Gospel, then He will shower us with every gift and blessing that His love can provide!
The hardest thing in life can be to realise that the fruit of unrepentant sin is the very sense that our Lord and Saviour is absent from us. One thing I have learnt in my journey of faith as a Priest, is simply that when I feel this sense of isolation from the All-Holy Trinity, it is me that has placed myself away from the Lord. Indeed, this is exactly what the son feels in today’s Gospel when he is sitting in the pigsty – he realises that he has placed himself away from the love of his father! What this then means is that sometimes we knowingly or unknowingly create a barrier between us and the All-Holy Trinity. Remember, the All-Holy Trinity has given us freewill - if we say to Him Yes or no, He will comply with our wishes! This is why many in our Western culture act as if the All-Holy Trinity is the one that needs to make the first move into their hearts – however, He is always there wanting to help them grow and experience His love - yet, He will always respect their wishes! This is one of the glories of the Truth that we have in the All-Holy Trinity – unlike other sects and cults who do not fully comprehend the reality of the All-Holy Trinity, we know that the All-Holy Trinity does not compel us to love Him via any threats. Rather, we are called to love Him, but whether we say yes to Him is totally up to us – the ball is in our court. Indeed, whilst the threat of Hell is a real one, we should love the All-Holy Trinity not out of fear of damnation but out of a deep desire to enter into communion with Him! This is why the Hell fire and brimstone sects of Christianity are wrong – we are not supposed to love the All-Holy Trinity because we fear Hell! Rather, we are supposed to love the All-Holy Trinity because we see that He is the source of all good, and the source of our life, and as a result to love Him is to taste all that is good (Psalm 34:8)! Furthermore, before Christ’s throne we will face judgement - however, where we go will be decided on whether we chose to love the All-Holy Trinity or not! Again, where we end up will be a result of whether we said yes or no to the All-Holy Trinity – remember, the All-Holy Trinity has given us freewill and He will co-operate with us whatever our choice is!
Finally, this week let us pray that all people may come to the knowledge of the great love and forgiveness that the All-Holy Trinity offers to all! He wants all to come to Him, and this is why Christ came and instituted the Holy Mysteries (sacraments) of the Holy Orthodox Church, so that all may have the opportunity to come unto Him and really know what it is to live!
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