The Men of This Generation
What makes a person weak isn't their bad choices. We all make bad choices. No, the weakness comes when I refuse to accept responsibility or insist on blaming others!
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My very best friend in all the world died of a brain tumor several years ago. I know it's a weird way to begin a devotional, but I wanted you to see the end of the story so you will value it as much as I do.
You see, Rod was a conscientious objector during the Vietnam War, but he went and served anyway as a medical corpsman. He rarely spoke about his experiences there, but the few times he did, the stories stuck with me forever! Remind me to tell you sometime about “No sweat, GI!”
One of Rod’s favorite sayings he picked up during his time in the military was, “No life is a total waste. It can always serve as a bad example!”
Great, huh?
This has become a warning sign for me in my life. My choices, attitudes, actions, and reactions are never done in some kind of vacuum. They always affect others, even if it is the ripple effect through the universe of my own negativity. I am not an island unto myself, and my choices touch everyone around me to one degree or another.
Besides the outward consequences of my choices, these also invite me to practice the Normal Orthodox discipline of getting to know my own heart! More and more, I’m asking myself, “Why do I do this? Why do I think this way?” Getting serious about examining and allowing the Holy Spirit to expose my own foundational thinking and beliefs opens the door in my life to the Normal Orthodox focus on the work of repentance!
When you think about this, it becomes evident that the most irresponsible act a human can commit is the conscious or unconscious dismissal of responsibility.
No wonder Jesus says what He says in today’s Gospel Lesson. Look at Luke 7:31-35.
The Lord said, “To what then shall I compare the men of this generation, and what are they like? They are like children sitting in the market place and calling to one another, ‘We piped to you, and you did not dance; we wailed, and you did not weep.’ For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine; and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of man has come eating and drinking; and you say, ‘Behold, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ Yet wisdom is justified by all her children.”
Jesus points out to His generation that St. John the Forerunner came with serious ascetic practices and the people reacted with dismissal. The Lord came engaging people in their lives, and they accuse Him of being too loose with His life!
Condemned if you do and Condemned if you don’t!
How many times have we seen this in our own lives? I confess to you I see it all the time as a parish priest. But since this is such a common occurrence among humans, it is a lesson we cannot afford to ignore if we are going to grow up beyond this childish trap.
The Lord gives us insight into the path out of this with His words, “Wisdom is justified by all her children.” Here, the Lord invites us to confront the mature reality that we must all face if we are ever to escape our lives serving as bad examples!
He calls us to confront, accept, and embrace the mature realization that true wisdom produces a well-lived life, and the lack of true wisdom doesn’t! It’s as simple as that.
The weak character that either avoids responsibility or immediately blames others or outside circumstances for their struggles is a sure sign that this person will never grow beyond that point. The Normal Orthodox lifestyle that insists on FIRST assuming I need to repent invites me to the full benefits of the wisdom of the Faith. I must start with me if I’m ever going to be a wise person and a Normal Orthodox Christian.
St. Hierotheos was the Bishop of Athens, and it is reported he was on Mars Hill when St. Paul gave his famous sermon to the Greeks in Acts 17. St. Hierotheos was among the “wise” men of Athens who discussed and debated philosophy and how to live well. When he heard St. Paul, he abandoned the “wisdom of men” and embraced the wisdom of God in Christ. St. Hierotheos then instructed St. Dionysius, whom we learned about before, more perfectly about the Christian Faith. As usual, this transformed life of St. Hierotheos resulted in an example of wise living for all of us that we remember and celebrate today!
Today, your life is not a total waste! It can at least serve as a warning for others to avoid the mistakes you’ve made! Not very comforting, is it? But take heart! No matter where you are in your life, the Church through God’s inexhaustible grace and mercy, invites you to the only wise choice any of us humans can ever make in light of our own imperfections. We are invited to the life-giving path of repentance and the freedom of mercy and love! So, embrace the wisdom of humility and repentance and leave a brighter path for your children and all around you! By the way, Rod’s life is still shining a light on my own! Thanks, buddy! (He would reply “No sweat, GI!”)
P.S. As Athens' Hierarch, we acclaim you since through you we have received instruction in things awesome and ineffable, for you were a God-inspired writer of divine hymns. O Hierotheos all-blessed, pray to God, so that we may be redeemed from all calamities, that thus we may cry: Rejoice, O Father wise in things divine.
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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
