The opening words of the second reading taken from St. Peter's first letter are power packed. Unfortunately few remember them or fully grasp their meaning. Perhaps we don't see the trees for the forest! In a way these words, "Sanctify Christ as Lord in your heart," serve as a simple, unadorned sentence putting before us the challenge of a significant spiritual life. These same words can also serve as the voice we might hear if we had a spiritual GPS instrument to guide us on our journey to heaven. So, let's look at what St. Peter is encouraging us to incorporate into our live.First, Peter asks us to consider using our hearts: "Sanctify ... in your hearts." Yesterday I witnessed the marriage of a niece and her fiance. Throughout the ceremony and reception their faces beaned with genuine happiness. Their hearts spoke volumes through the expressions on their faces. As well the faces and words of their families and friends radiated the joys and hopes that filled their hearts. So, Peter suggests to us that we capture Christ our Lord in our hearts. Peter is aware of the outcomes when our hearts are taken over by someone, a vision or a mission. He is challenging us far beyond just knowing someone of something. Let your heart become smitten by the Christ gift that God the Father has given you.
As well, Peter encourages you to "sanctify Christ the Lord." Peter's heart was, as we know, captured by the Lord Jesus. This became so evident after Peter's several blunders during the days of Jesus' public ministry. It was, we might surmise, Peter's failure to recognize Jesus as the Messiah, as the Son of God, that eventually brought him through humiliations to recognize Jesus as his Lord. We might consider Peter's exhortation to his readers to be the result of his honest awareness of his own weakness in dealing with Jesus.
Today, as we draw closer to the celebration of Ascension and Pentecost, sanctify Christ as Lord in your heart. Pull to the side of the road on your spiritual journey and give your heart the opportunity to fully embrace what Jesus has taught during his lifetime among us. Let your heart have the opportunity to be smitten by the Christ whose love for you is beyond imagination. Remember what Jesus said, words taken from today's gospel reading (John 14:24): Whoever holds to my commandments and keeps them is the one who loves me; and whoever loves me will be loved by my Father, and I shall love him and reveal myself to him.
