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“I LIVE BY FAITH”
Galatians 2:20
There comes a time in our lives- perhaps, many times- when we question whether or not people have the right to be forgiven. When we hear about some of the violent and cruel acts of murder or abuse, we might have our doubts as to whether or not that crime can truly be pardoned. Closer to home, when someone sins against us, treats us unfairly, we might be very hesitant to forgive that individual, especially if this isn't the first time that he or she has treated us in that manner.
Other times, we are doubtful even of the forgiveness of our own sins. You see, being the sinners that we are, none of us is beyond committing those acts which we never thought ourselves capable of doing. In our thoughts, words, and deeds, we are guilty of things which we not only regret, but may even hate ourselves for having done.
That guilt is compounded by the fact that we are Christians; which means, we have a sense of morality and conscience which has been awakened by the Holy Spirit and which is much more sensitive than the conscience of the unbelieving world. We know what a sin is. And we also know the manner in which our heavenly Father has been so gracious and loving toward us. And so, when you put those two together—God’s kindness and our sinful choices—we sometimes wonder if we can ever be forgiven of the things that we have done wrong.
There are other people, however, who don't struggle with those kinds of thoughts. They are the types of individuals who may admit that they have their short-comings; but, all things consider, they're not bad people, especially when they compare themselves with the behavior of others.
They are keen at pointing out the mistakes of others, while at the same time they arrogantly believe that they are above reproach. Many of these people are religious people. Maybe they’re even high profile members of a church. But, on Sunday morning, when it comes time for the confession of sins, the words are spoken routinely, but without much heartfelt conviction. Certainly, they are not spoken with the kind of compassion and tears which flowed from the woman who anointed Jesus' feet.
The Pharisee in today's Gospel reading was a religious person. Outwardly, he was quite pious, reverent, even to the point of demonstrating great hospitality in inviting Jesus to come to his house for a banquet. But deep down, he was one of those individuals who spends a lot of time taking stock in how other people behave. He's always measuring, evaluating, and comparing. And often he looks at others and shakes his head in bewilderment, wondering how people can be so pitiful.
He, on the other hand, has risen above that kind of behavior. He has made something of himself. He has worked hard to earn respect in the eyes of those around him. And he would never be caught dead doing the kinds of disgusting things in which others so freely engage.
And in the same manner, his idea of forgiveness is one in which people must demonstrate that they are worthy of being forgiven. He sees a danger in being too benevolent. He wants to be sure that people don't take advantage of him nor of God. And, to that end, he will withhold his compassion and approval until such a time that that person who has sinned against him, either makes amends or comes crawling back on their knees begging forgiveness. And, even then, he is not likely to forget what has been done.
So, at what point do people have the right to be forgiven? When are they, when are we, truly worthy of forgiveness?
Today's Scripture readings present us with a pattern of forgiveness which seems, by all standards, to be a little too liberal, a little too generous. Here we have two characters, King David in the Old Testament reading, and the woman of ill-repute in the Gospel reading, who lived lives which were immoral, to say the least. King David, you will recall, committed adultery with the wife of Uriah. When it was discovered that she had become pregnant through this adulterous union, David arranged to have Uriah murdered, so that he would be free to take Bathsheba as his own wife and cover up the whole sordid affair. And the woman of ill repute in the Gospel reading—well, everyone in the town knew the kind of life she had led. It is clear that she was a prostitute who also defied social proprieties by letting her hair down publicly in the house of the Pharisee in order to wipe the feet of Jesus which she had just washed with her tears, an act which all by itself was considered to be worthy of stoning.
But in spite of their blatant disregard for morality and public scandal, they were both granted full and complete pardon for their acts without doing one single thing to show that they were worthy of receiving such great mercy.
It just doesn't seem right. The situations would seem to call for much harsher measures. Perhaps each should have spent a certain amount of time in public disgrace and humiliation before they were pardoned, so that they could demonstrate in a convincing way just how sorry they truly were. Or else, there should have been some kind of provisional guarantee solicited; that if they were caught doing anything wrong ever again, they would executed on the spot. Tell them, that there would be no second chances next time. Or perhaps they should have incurred some prison time for their crimes. Or, how about banishment from the community?
But none of that is demanded. Instead, they are simply told that they are forgiven without either of them having made any amends whatsoever. David did nothing to atone for the evil he had done. The sinful woman didn't have to resort to any kinds of acts of penance. Yes, she did anoint Jesus' feet with perfume and washed them with her tears. But that didn't earn forgiveness for her. On the contrary, Jesus announces that she had already been forgiven of all of our sins before she engaged in this act of compassion and thanksgiving. She was merely responding to the grace which had already been shown to her when, at some point, she heard the message of salvation brought by Jesus Christ and the promise of a new life; and she simply took hold of that promise and made it her own.
It was hers, not by proving that she had deserved it; not by earning that forgiveness; but rather, it was hers simply by faith! "Your faith has saved you," Jesus said. "Go in peace." Likewise with King David: "I have sinned against the Lord," David confesses. He simply acknowledges his guilt, nothing more. And Nathan declares, "The Lord has taken away your sin."
Can it really be all that simple? Can God's forgiveness toward us and toward one another be bestowed so freely, with no strings attached? The answer is an unequivocal 'yes.' God demands nothing of us. He has forgiven us completely. He gave His Son to die on the cross for us, even when we were not looking for such grace. And He provided all people of all time with the gift of salvation. And that gift is ours. All that is left for us is to believe it is so, because it is that simple. It is that true.
But doesn’t God run the risk that some will take advantage of that forgiveness; that they will use it as a license to do whatever they wish without fear of retribution? People, the real risk comes, not in God's free grace but in our rejection of such incomparable love. The mortal danger is found in the attitude of Simon the Pharisee in the Gospel reading who could not accept the fact that Christ could accept that sinful woman!
We cannot second-guess the generosity of God, either by our self-righteousness or by our insistence upon other people's worthiness. If God doesn’t forgive so freely and completely, then, as St. Paul said in our text, "Christ died for nothing!" Because Jesus came to us when none of us were looking for or even desiring salvation. And the price which He paid on the cross by His blood was paid in full.
No, Christ did not die for 'nothing.' His death counts for ‘everything’ because there is not one redeeming quality to be found in any of us that makes us worthy of God's acceptance. And by His death, Jesus put to death that worthless life of ours and bestowed His own glorious life upon us so that we look for our worthiness in Him and in Him alone. Salvation does not depend upon us. It depends only upon Him!
Can it really be that easy? Can it really be that simple? Yes, because the hard part was already done on the cross of Calvary. King David was granted full pardon of his sins. The sinful woman had her guilt canceled out as well. And they had done nothing to earn or deserve that pardon. God simply said, "Here it is." And they were happy to respond, "I'll take it!"
This is the simple faith by which God calls upon us to live our lives. To live by faith and in the Son of God, Who loved us and gave Himself for us. To carry the burden of our sins to Christ and, then, to depart in peace, freely and completely forgiven.
2 Samuel 11:26—12:10, 13–14
26When the wife of Uriah heard that Uriah her husband was dead, she lamented over her husband. 27And when the mourning was over, David sent and brought her to his house, and she became his wife and bore him a son. But the thing that David had done displeased the Lord. 12:1And the Lord sent Nathan to David. He came to him and said to him, “There were two men in a certain city, the one rich and the other poor. 2The rich man had very many flocks and herds, 3but the poor man had nothing but one little ewe lamb, which he had bought. And he brought it up, and it grew up with him and with his children. It used to eat of his morsel and drink from his cup and lie in his arms, and it was like a daughter to him. 4Now there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was unwilling to take one of his own flock or herd to prepare for the guest who had come to him, but he took the poor man’s lamb and prepared it for the man who had come to him.” 5Then David’s anger was greatly kindled against the man, and he said to Nathan, “As the Lord lives, the man who has done this deserves to die, 6and he shall restore the lamb fourfold, because he did this thing, and because he had no pity.” 7Nathan said to David, “You are the man! Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel, ‘I anointed you king over Israel, and I delivered you out of the hand of Saul. 8And I gave you your master’s house and your master’s wives into your arms and gave you the house of Israel and of Judah. And if this were too little, I would add to you as much more. 9Why have you despised the word of the Lord, to do what is evil in his sight? You have struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword and have taken his wife to be your wife and have killed him with the sword of the Ammonites. 10Now therefore the sword shall never depart from your house, because you have despised me and have taken the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your wife.’ . . .” 13David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die. 14Nevertheless, because by this deed you have utterly scorned the Lord, the child who is born to you shall die.”
Galatians 2:15–21; 3:10–14
15We ourselves are Jews by birth and not Gentile sinners; 16yet we know that a person is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ, so we also have believed in Christ Jesus, in order to be justified by faith in Christ and not by works of the law, because by works of the law no one will be justified. 17But if, in our endeavor to be justified in Christ, we too were found to be sinners, is Christ then a servant of sin? Certainly not! 18For if I rebuild what I tore down, I prove myself to be a transgressor. 19For through the law I died to the law, so that I might live to God. 20I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me. 21I do not nullify the grace of God, for if justification were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose. . . . 3:10For all who rely on works of the law are under a curse; for it is written, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” 11Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for “The righteous shall live by faith.” 12But the law is not of faith, rather “The one who does them shall live by them.” 13Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, “Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree”— 14so that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith.
Luke 7:36—8:3
36One of the Pharisees asked [Jesus] to eat with him, and he went into the Pharisee’s house and took his place at the table. 37And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, when she learned that he was reclining at table in the Pharisee’s house, brought an alabaster flask of ointment, 38and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. 39Now when the Pharisee who had invited him saw this, he said to himself, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” 40And Jesus answering said to him, “Simon, I have something to say to you.” And he answered, “Say it, Teacher.” 41“A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged rightly.” 44Then turning toward the woman he said to Simon, “Do you see this woman? I entered your house; you gave me no water for my feet, but she has wet my feet with her tears and wiped them with her hair. 45You gave me no kiss, but from the time I came in she has not ceased to kiss my feet. 46You did not anoint my head with oil, but she has anointed my feet with ointment. 47Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” 48And he said to her, “Your sins are forgiven.” 49Then those who were at table with him began to say among themselves, “Who is this, who even forgives sins?” 50And he said to the woman, “Your faith has saved you; go in peace.” 8:1Soon afterward he went on through cities and villages, proclaiming and bringing the good news of the kingdom of God. And the twelve were with him, 2and also some women who had been healed of evil spirits and infirmities: Mary, called Magdalene, from whom seven demons had gone out, 3and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, Herod’s household manager, and Susanna, and many others, who provided for them out of their means.
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