Sermon: Real men love Jesus

Love for Christ makes a person truly human. Without knowing Christ and loving him, we remain incomplete beings. This love for Christ is something that must be developed so that faith might also grow. The key to growing in both love and faith is humility. If we do not humble ourselves before God who humbled himself before us, then God will humble us by allowing us to suffer in order that this development of our love and faith might occur. We see this demonstrated in the two blind men in the gospel reading today. It was their suffering which had humbled them and thus increased their love and their faith; a faith so great that they believed with all their heart that Christ could heal their blindness instantaneously. And that is what he did, saying, "According to your faith be it done to you." The Gospel reading is from Matthew 9:27 At that time, as Jesus passed by, two blind men followed him, crying aloud, "Have mercy on us, Son of David." When he entered the house, the blind men came to him; and Jesus said to them, "Do you believe that I am able to do this?" They said to him, "Yes, Lord." Then he touched their eyes, saying, "According to your faith be it done to you." And their eyes were opened. And Jesus sternly charged them, "See that no one knows it." But they went away and spread his fame through all that district. As they were going away, behold, a dumb demoniac was brought to him. And when the demon had been cast out, the dumb man spoke; and the crowds marveled, saying, "Never was anything like this seen in Israel." But the Pharisees said, "He casts out demons by the prince of demons." And Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every disease and every infirmity among the people.