June 27, 2024, Thursday
St. Cyril of Alexandria Read: 2 Kgs 24: 8-17 Mt 7: 21-29
“Anyone who hears my words but does not put them into practice is like the foolish man who built his house on sandy ground… It collapsed under all this and was completely ruined.” (Mt 7:26-27)
Jesus is not just one teacher among many. If we want the truth, He is the Teacher; there is no alternative. “Whoever puts faith in me believes not so much in me as in him who sent me… I have come to the world as its light, to keep anyone who believes in me from remaining in the dark.” (Jn 12:44-46)
There is no greater torture for the soul than to futilely seek God or to be filled with doubt and insecurity in our standing with God. It potentially leads to an existential crises.
In Jesus, there is no doubt, and the soul finds rest. His teaching is sure and strong. The doubting, the “gray nuances,” are our inventions. Our thinking, when done apart from Jesus, is clouded and unclear. Our whim and egotistical attitudes will only bring us to ruin and isolation. Many would have us believe we know nothing in Jesus, all is relative. Nothing could be further from the Truth. “No follower of mine shall ever walk in darkness; no, he shall possess the light of life.” (Jn 8:12)
If we want Jesus’ words and teachings to have any effect, we must be obedient. “Anyone who hears my words but does not put them into practice…”
Reflection and commentary
Psalm 25:4 “Your ways, O Lord, make known to me; teach me your paths.”
St. Cyril, d. 444; defended Mary as “THEOTOKOS” (God-bearer) at the Council of Ephesus (431) against the Nestorians; a spokesman for orthodoxy.
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