Holy Martyr Acindynus & others
Colossians 3:17-4:1; Luke 9:44-50
Read Colossians 3:17-4:1
Glory to Jesus Christ! Glory forever!
“And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.”
From time to time, when my wife asks me to redirect my attention to a task she needs completed, I jokingly say, “Sure, but it will cost you.” Jokingly, because I do not actually mean that, however, we can all think of instances in our life where our response to a request by another, whether we said it or just thought it, was “Sure, but what’s in it for me?”
St. Paul warns us against such behaviour at the beginning of today’s epistle, imploring us to make Jesus Christ the foundation of our relationship with others by seeing the Lord in the other and serving Him thus. Imagine a world where we serve each other as if serving the Lord rather than serving each other in a way that, in all honesty, serves ourself and our own selfish desires. When imagining this kind of world, John Chrysostom said the following:
“For if we act this way, there will be nothing polluted, nothing unclean, wherever Christ is called on. If you eat, if you drink, if you marry, if you travel, do all in the name of God, that is, calling him to help you: in everything first pray, then conduct your business.”