Year C Proper 26 31 October 2010
Habakkuk 1: 1-4; 2: 1-4 Psalm 119: 137-144 2 Thessalonians 1: 1-4, 11-12 Luke 19: 1-10
Our readings this week cause us to reflect on the law of God and how it compares and contrasts to the law of the land.
Have you ever been caught out on a technicality? The law of our land tells us that if a person breaks into our house and gets bitten by our dog, we will have to pay – especially if we have a sign up that says, “Beware of the dog”.
Even worse than that is to be convicted of a crime that you didn’t commit. St. Paul spent much time in prison over a mere technicality. There was the misunderstanding about him being flogged without a trial though he was a Roman citizen and then there followed various travels and appeals which were often delayed for no good reason except to keep the certain people happy.
St. Paul was put in prison for speaking out about the truth of Jesus Christ and the experience that he had. Does that really make any sense as far as true justice goes?
I heard of a story in Mackay recently where a P plate driver who had a car accident. The P plate driver was very clearly in the wrong but she was advised by her father not to apologise as that would automatically make her liable. Is that justice?
In an ancient time the prophet Habakkuk cries out to God about this same situation where the law of the land is perverted: Habakkuk 1:2-4 “2 How long, O LORD, must I call for help, but you do not listen? Or cry out to you, "Violence!" but you do not save? 3 Why do you make me look at injustice? Why do you tolerate wrong? Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and conflict abounds. 4 Therefore the law is paralyzed, and justice never prevails. The wicked hem in the righteous, so that justice is perverted.”
The people in Habakkuk’s time were suffering due to the injustices in the law of the land. Those with power were able to do what they wanted and those innocent but without power had to simply suffer in silence as there was no law to protect them. This could well be us. If we were to fully proclaim the Gospel it is possible that we could be put in jail for discrimination. After all, the Bible clearly calls certain things sin.... some of which are the same things which our society protects by law.
We are commissioned as Christians to go out and make disciples of all people and yet if we were to stand on a street corner and preach the truth about Jesus being the only way to heaven because we are all sinners and fall short of the glory of God, we’d be offending people and, once again, seen as discriminating.
We have a national holiday for Christmas and yet a teacher could possibly get into trouble for talking about how Jesus is more than just a Christmas story, he is an historical figure who so affected mankind that our dating of the years is based around his birth. Want to know when this historical figure was born? Approximately 2010 years ago! (Although when experts looked into it they decided it may have been about three years later).
Psalm 119: 137, 138 tells us about Gods law; “137 Righteous are you, O LORD, and your laws are right. 138 The statutes you have laid down are righteous; they are fully trustworthy.”
There have been plenty of people who think that God’s law is too hard, and that it, and not our society’s law is unjust. (Maybe even you and me!) God’s law says many things about what should and shouldn’t be and is certainly in contrast to today’s law of the land and yet the law of God can be summarized into two very simple commands: to love God with all your heart, mind and strength and to love your neighbour. Okay... I guess they are not really that simple, but how good is that? Do you think there’d be any place for injustices in God’s law? Do you think the innocent would be suffering under God’s law? No.
However the problem is in our being able to keep God’s law. We really can’t do it. We can see that it is good and maybe we could have a fair shot at loving God – but the neighbour loving bit really tests things – and we all fail. And therefore we fail the first commandment as well, seeing as we are the body of Christ.
St. Paul acknowledges that we live in a world where justice is not what it should be – and he would know due to his own experiences. He writes to the Thessalonians about persevering throughout persecutions and trials, but he commends them for their love, as it is our love that reflects that perfect law of God.
2 Thessalonians 1:3,4 “ 3We ought always to thank God for you, brothers, and rightly so, because your faith is growing more and more, and the love every one of you has for each other is increasing. 4Therefore, among God's churches we boast about your perseverance and faith in all the persecutions and trials you are enduring.”
So then we come to our Gospel story. A short man by the name of Zacchaeus makes his living upholding a perverted law where his job as a tax collector was seen by the Jewish people as selling out to the Romans and being paid handsomely for it. Also his position meant that he was able to take a little extra from the people and become rich from dishonest gain. He was a small man, but even smaller in the eyes of the Jewish people.
Zacchaeus is keen to see Jesus and so he climbs a tree. Jesus calls him down and honours him in front of the crowd by stating that he must eat at Zacchaeus’ house. Zacchaeus immediately responds to Jesus. Luke 19:8 “8But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, "Look, Lord! Here and now I give half of my possessions to the poor, and if I have cheated anybody out of anything, I will pay back four times the amount."
Jesus then declares that salvation has come to the house of Zacchaeus, but not before the Jewish people grumbled about Jesus eating with a sinner. However, Jesus didn’t eat with a sinner, but a “saved” Christian man.
Here is the Good News: The law of the Lord is perfect – but we can’t keep it. However there is a righteousness that is ours by simply putting our faith in Jesus. The first reading from Habakkuk tells us in Habakkuk 1: 4b, “but the righteous will live by his faith”. Zacchaeus put his faith in Jesus and salvation was his. The same goes for us. Salvation is ours not because we keep God’s law... though we must strive to do so because we know that His law is perfect and brings life.... but we have salvation only because of our faith in Jesus.
Though we live in a land where sometimes the guilty go free and the innocent are sentenced, we rejoice that ultimately we are living in a greater reality – that of God’s kingdom which is for all eternity. God will be just, yet in His mercy he justifies us through faith.
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