2002, 29th September
We have heard today the words of St Paul, that it is Christ who lives in me. What can that mean? Perhaps it relates to himself? Yes. But what happened to Paul was that he met Christ; and this meeting pervaded him to the very core of the spirit.
But this meeting was no longer just a memory. It became life itself in him; and all his life he was aware of the fact that Christ had met him and that everything was changed for him – not only because he had given his love to Him but because Christ had united Himself with him for ever, inseparably.
I once asked Father Georges Florovsky: how does baptism work in us? And his answer was: the grace of the Holy Spirit and the presence of Christ come into us as though a seed was deposited in the earth. To begin with, it's a small seed, and the fruits are small. But if we are careful, if we are attentive, if we do not destroy what God has given us, gradually it will grow and the seed will become a plant, a tree; it will flower in us. And then not we ourselves will be aware that Christ lives in us. Everyone will know that Christ is present in us, mysteriously but perceptibly.
Let us be attentive, not to destroy the gifts of God, and let us bless God for His mercy to us. Amen.