Made For Communion

The crucible of serious and vulnerable relationships are hard because this godly work is at the heart of turning my life back to Christ!

You weren’t made for brokenness and loneliness and isolation. You were made to be in communion. And that’s because you are created in God’s image.

That begs the question: How does God “know” Himself? What does it mean to be made in God's image?

God knows Himself as Persons in Communion.

In eternity past, before time, before creation, God was perfectly Himself without need or deprivation. He was complete within Himself. He was not motivated by necessity or any lack in His Person.

God needed nothing.

God is Community and Unity without change.

It's pretty heady stuff, I know. But if you are ever going to understand why God made you in His image, you need to know this! You were made for Communion and Unity.

Look at our lesson today in Mark 10:11-16:

The Lord said, “Whoever divorces his wife and marries another, commits adultery against her; and if she divorces her husband and marries another, she commits adultery.” And they were bringing children to him, that he might touch them; and the disciples rebuked them. But when Jesus saw it he was indignant, and said to them, “Let the children come to me, do not hinder them; for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly, I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands upon them.

Jesus makes some very plain statements about divorce and remarriage here. It seems cut and dried because it is cut and dried!

We were not made for divorce and broken marriages. We were made to be wise enough to choose wisely in marriage and then see the struggle of marriage as a life-long process meant to form the character of Christ within us!

But guess what? We still blow it, don’t we?

We still struggle with faithfulness and cross-bearing in our relationships. We hear horror stories of bad relationships that put lives in danger, and we use these worst-case scenarios to show just how bad things can be.

And you know what? We have to deal with the reality that marriages end. They do it all too often.

Why do you think 2nd marriages blessed in the Church are penitential and not the “crowning” glory of a 1st marriage?

We have to deal with reality, but we can never ignore the intended purpose of our Creator to make one man with one woman for one lifetime the standard we hold. This ideal is meant to teach us about our original purpose in our relationship with God. We are meant to be faithful to Him all our lives!

But then the scene abruptly shifts to focus on children. Some may ask, “Why the sudden change of subject?” But that would miss the point of the connection. The disciples are upset that these parents are bringing their children to Jesus for his blessing. They think they are protecting their Teacher, but Jesus reacts differently.

The Lord reinforces His wisdom about relationships by revealing that a child-like embrace of God makes all other relationships possible and healthy! Holding on to that simple devotion and trust allows me to risk the scary vulnerability of authentic relationships, whether a friendship or marriage. My childlikeness, preserved through a focused faithfulness to God regardless of the circumstances, strengthens my ability to be faithful to God and others for a lifetime.

Even in remembering our heroes of the Faith, we see this connected communion make a huge difference. St. Sebastian was a member of the Roman Senate and a fervent believer in Christ. His relationship so changed his life with Christ that many came to Faith because of his influence. Even though he was a Roman Senator, he knew the Empire still did not sanction the Christian religion. When a fresh persecution of the Church began towards the end of the 3rd century, St. Sebastian was arrested and tortured for his Faith. But St. Sebastian wasn’t by himself! Two brothers, St. Marcellinus and St. Mark, along with their father, St. Tranquillinus, and the husband and wife saints Nicostratus and Zoe, and Sts. Tiburtius, Claudius, Castulus, and Castor. All were tortured and martyred for their refusal to trade their faith in Christ for temporary relief.

Do you know how to maintain a serious and growing relationship today? It flows from exercising your will to choosing to love God first. The only way to foster and strengthen that ability is through the wise disciplines of the Faith, which must be lived daily. That’s why we must become Normal Orthodox Christians.

P.S. Since you were great in zeal for godly religion, you assembled an alliance of Martyrs, and in their midst, you shone like a flashing star. With the arrows that did pierce your much-suffering body, you slayed the enemy, O Great Martyr Sebastian; and you yourself did fly as from a bow into the Heavens, where Christ has received your soul.

Fr. Barnabas Powell is the parish priest at Sts. Raphael, Nicholas, and Irene Greek Orthodox Church in Cumming, GA. He is also the founder of Faith Encouraged Ministries and produces the Faith Encouraged Daily Devotional on Substack. Watch the Faith Encouraged YouTube Channel here - https://www.youtube.com/@FaithEncouragedTV

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