First reading: 2 Samuel 5:1-3
Psalm: Ps 122:1-5
Epistle: Colossians 1:12-20
Gospel: Luke 23:35-43

Let us give thanks to the Father,

who has made you fit to share

in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.

Traveling on an inheritance:

There is an interesting tie between inheritance and travel. If you and I inherited tons of money from a rich relative, we might spend some of that money traveling. We would go to see the sites we always wanted to see. We would experience those wonders, Old Faithful in Yellowstone, the Giant Redwoods in California, the Grand Canyon, the Pyramids, Eiffel Tower, Venice, the salt mines at Wieliczka, Poland, Rick’s Cafe in Casablanca.

It would be great to be rich and free, without worries, and only an itinerary as a guide.

We have an inheritance:

St. Paul is telling us that we have an inheritance. Today we are going to go traveling with it. We are going to learn, through travel, about the inheritance we share. Are your bags packed? Ready to go? Let’s go.

Motto:

Our Holy Polish National Catholic Church has a motto. Does anyone know what it is?

Yes, truth, work, and struggle. Seems like a downer doesn’t it. Truth — no fibbing, Work — no relaxing, Struggle — no enjoyment.

Look at this window: The cross. That’s absolute truth. St. Paul tells us that the cross is a stumbling block, a scandal to the Jew and folly — really and insult to good sense — to the Gentile (1 Corinthians 2:1-4). But for us it is everything because by its truth we are being saved. We become victorious in the truth of the cross — because death brought us life. Jesus came to tell the world the truth about God’s love. His love for us is found in the cross. By it we have obtained our inheritance.

Look at this window: Jesus as carpenter, helper to his foster father Joseph. Here He stands with a carpenter’s square. With it He will set things straight, measure out what is necessary. Jesus understands our work. He understands what we face in work, the tiredness, maybe boredom, frustrations, sweat. Jesus works at our side because he took up our humanity. He gets it. He understands us and measures out what we need to accomplish our work.

And here, look at this window: Jesus in the garden before He is arrested. That is struggle. Sweating blood and asking His Father: Let this cup pass from me. He struggled in facing the task to be completed. Finally in the struggle He accepted His Father’s will. Jesus gets struggle, perhaps more than any human being. In His struggling He is one with us in our struggles.

I’m going to skip this one for now.

Jesus helps:

Understanding us, Jesus did not leave us alone to face the world, to stare down evil on our own. He gave us the graces necessary to stare down every evil and every temptation with confidence. He gave us the grace we need to live in the reality spoken of in our motto — living lives of truth, work, and struggle.

Jesus gave us His mother, Mary. Look at how she cradles the child Jesus. That love is for us because we are in Jesus and Jesus is in us. Mary, and all the saints, pray for us. With her help and their help, with her care for us we are strengthened to proclaim the truth, work, and struggle for God’s kingdom.

Jesus gave us His Sacred Heart. We know what’s represented by that heart, Jesus’ incredible and overflowing love. From His heart flowed blood and water, to wash and purify us, to wash us so that we are acceptable to the Father. The Father sees us through the love and sacrifice of the Son. He sees the truth of the cross, and His Son’s work and struggle for us. Because of Jesus’ heart God welcomes us into the kingdom.

Jesus gave us the Holy Eucharist to nourish us. The bread of life doesn’t just make us physically strong, but intellectually, emotionally, and spiritually strong. It doesn’t just feed us for today, for if it did tomorrow we would be hungry. Rather it feeds us for eternity. Jesus promised that if we eat of it we would live forever. With this bread and cup we receive the grace necessary to do our work, to struggle, and to proclaim the truth that is the Kingdom of God.

Finally, Jesus shepherds us, and as an extra bonus gave us shepherds to remain and care for us, our bishops, successors to the apostles. Jesus works through them and us to find the lost, and bring them back. Jesus works through them and us to bind the wounds of the injured and heal them. Jesus asks them and asks us to lead all to green pastures, rich with all that we need. And, with the Holy Spirit, Jesus’ appointed shepherds hold us together as His flock. As one flock our work, our struggle, our proclamation of the truth is the power of God among us. In His Kingdom we stand together, proclaim together, work together, and struggle side-by-side.

Destination:

I skipped this window because this is our destination. This is what today is all about. Our travels have led us to our inheritance. This is it: Jesus coming on the clouds of heaven as king of heaven and earth. He’s not coming alone either, because the dead and the living will be caught up with Him. St. Paul tells us (1 Thessalonians 4:16-18):

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel’s call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first;
then we who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air; and so we shall always be with the Lord.
Therefore comfort one another with these words.

More than with:

Now some of you might think that we will just be with him, sort of like hanging with your friends, chillin’. My son Adam refers to relaxation as a chillax day, which I think means a day to chill out and relax. But it will be far more than that.

We will be rulers with Him:

My friends,

Our inheritance has two parts, the present and the future. These windows portray what we must do to keep our inheritance, as well as the aid we are given to get there. They also tell how our inheritance will be fulfilled in the Kingdom to come.

Our journey of truth, work, and struggle has an outcome. What is the last part of our motto? It is Victory.

We shall be victorious. That is our inheritance. We won’t be there just hanging with the Lord the King, but we will be caught up into Him. We will be as one with Him and will become like Him. Who we are right now will be perfected in Jesus’ kingdom, in the new heaven and the new earth. God’s truth that is already in us will be brought to perfection.

For now, we are on a journey, we are traveling and we are being transformed. We are changed in our proclaiming of the truth, in our work and struggle. We are transformed by the graces and aid Jesus has given us. We participate in God’s life, but not yet perfectly. As we put Jesus’ teaching into practice, and follow His gospel, we reach for the day of inheritance, the day of victory, where we will fully participate in the life of God. On that day we will be rich and free, without worry, no more struggle, no more work, only the victory of God’s truth in His kingdom. So, let us give thanks to the Father,
 who has made [us] fit to share 
in the inheritance of the holy ones in light.

Amen.