23rd Week in Ordinary Time

You have had yourselves washed, . . . sanctified, . . . justified.

When St. Paul addresses the Corinthian believers in today’s first reading, he’s talking to all of them as a group. That’s why he says you have had yourselves—not yourself—washed and sanctified and justified. Paul wants them to understand that they had all been radically changed by the Lord Jesus. They have all been brought into the one family of God. So it matters how they treat one another. Behaviors like suing one another, cheating, or acting unjustly are not worthy of what Christ has done for them.

The same applies to us. You have been . . .

Washed. Through Baptism, you were cleansed and transformed. You received the grace to share in the divine life. Your prior way of life needs to stay in the past because you have been forgiven. When you look at fellow believers, you need to see them, too, as persons who have been infused with the divine life. They have received God’s grace. They are temples of his Holy Spirit. And if God shows them mercy, so should you.

Sanctified. When you were anointed with sacred oil at your Baptism, you were set apart. You bear the indelible mark of belonging to Christ. Not only were you decisively changed, but you and every other baptized person embarked on the lifelong process of sanctification, growing in grace and likeness to God. As you look at other believers, remember that they, too, have been set apart and deserve to be treated with deep respect and honor.

Justified. Baptism cleansed you from your sins and made you righteous in the eyes of God. In the same way your own sin was forgiven, so was the sin of your brothers and sisters in the Lord. Each one of us has received God’s boundless grace, an unmerited gift. And so your starting position as you relate to other Christians should be one of reverence for God’s grace at work in them.

What wonderful graces you have received from the Lord! And so have your brothers and sisters in Christ!

“Jesus, help me to see all believers as fellow members of your family!”

1 Corinthians 6:1-11
Psalm 149:1-6, 9
Luke 6:12-19