Seventh Sunday after Pentecost; Octoechos Tone 6.
The Holy Martyrs Proclus and Hilary.
Our Venerable Father Michael of Maleon.
Romans 15:1-7; Matthew 9:27-35.
Read Romans 15:1-7
It can be irritating to be held back by having to take others into consideration. The exercise of our freedom can feel essential to being ourselves. On the other hand, going along with the behavior of others that we have doubts about as they act so confidently can feel like an injuring compromise. Both situations can result in misunderstanding, creating conflict in relationships. How do we work out how to please our neighbor instead of ourselves and still be ourselves?
When Paul supports his assertion that “Christ did not please himself” with reference to Psalm 69:9, saying, “The reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me,” he means that Christ chose a path where he knew there was going to be misunderstanding. But then Paul reminds us that it was also written to apply to us because we are connected to Christ. The resulting connection to each other can be actualized in our relationships, but only if we open ourselves in hope to this scriptural encouragement and persevere in applying ourselves to it.
So, why would we choose to engage with others who misunderstand us? Why did Christ? The complete verse of Psalm 69:9 says, “Zeal for thy house has consumed me, and the reproaches of those who reproached you fell on me.” We remember the first part of this verse from Jesus’s clearing of the temple in John’s gospel. We also know from the Holy Spirit coming upon the church at Pentecost that we are, as Paul writes in Ephesians 2:21-22, “a holy temple in the Lord…for a dwelling place of God in the Spirit.” If we see taking others into consideration as sharing Christ’s zeal for building the living temple of God, we will be in a good place to begin finding our way with each other.