The Holy Martyrs Plato and Roman.
Nativity Fast.
1 Thessalonians 3:9-13; Luke 11:34-41.
Read Luke 11:34-41
Jesus cares about our interior state, the state of our souls. Many people are only concerned about external appearances. Jesus makes an example of the Pharisees who “cleanse the outside of the cup and the dish, but inside you are full of extortion and wickedness” (Lk. 11:39). Nobody wants to drink of out of a cup that’s clean on the outside but dirty on the inside! We not only need to clean our bodies, but we also need to cleanse our minds and our souls.
When Jesus performed His healing ministry, He often forgave sins before He healed the physical ailment. For example, remember when Jesus healed a paralytic (see Mk. 2:1-12). When the paralytic’s friends lowered him to Jesus through the roof, Jesus saw their faith and said to the paralytic, “Child, your sins are forgiven” (Mk. 2:5). Jesus, being God, has the authority to forgive sins committed against Him. Only after forgiving the paralytic’s sins did Jesus say: “Rise, take up your pallet and go home” (Mk. 2:11). When we see sickness and suffering, we are quick to ask God for healing and find some doctors to help us. However, do we remember to seek healing when our souls are sick? Do we rush to Confession and the Eucharist when we are in distress and need God’s healing touch? As we prepare ourselves to celebrate the Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord Jesus Christ, let us be mindful of our souls and seek to cleanse the inside of our “cup.”