In today’s reading from the Gospel of Matthew, we have Jesus issuing a passionate call to repentance, using all the rhetorical hyperbole of the prophets, his truth and love are speaking to those on a self-destructive path. These verses are directly relevant to the lives of God’s people today. The lesson to be learned are quite simple: with great privilege comes great responsibility. Jesus has entrusted the Church with the fullness of Christian truth and grace. Christians of all confessions hold that salvation in Christ is ours for the taking and that Scripture is the living Word of God. Have we responded to these privileges with faith and zeal proportionate to their greatness? If we are honest with ourselves, we will surely find areas in our lives that are not fully surrendered to the lordship of Jesus. What triggers our response to honestly try and apply scripture lessons to our lives? Can we take the stories of Chorazin and Bethsaida as motivation to repent of whatever is hindering our pursuit of holiness? Or will we allow the drumbeat of procrastination to derail this opportunity once again? So much has been given, so it’s no surprise that much will be required.