These readings remind me of a conversation I was having with a woman recently about something that she was doing. She asked me if something she was doing was wrong in the eyes of God and I confirmed that it was, and her response was, “well, if it is so wrong, why hasn’t God just killed me for it?”
To be killed by God for a sin was something that happened occasionally in the Old Testament, the “Sin of Onan” is one that comes to mind. But even in the Old Testament, God would sometimes give people time to repent.
We heard that from Ezekiel in our first reading, the prophet said, “When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die. But if he turns from the wickedness he has committed, and does what is right and just, he shall preserve his life; since he has turned away from all the sins that he has committed, he shall surely live, he shall not die.”
God is a merciful God, He always has been, even in the Old Testament, our Psalm even said “Remember that your compassion and your love are from of old. The sins of my youth and my frailties remember not; in your kindness remember me.” In God’s mercy He gives us time to change our youthful sinful ways.
This is especially clear in our Gospel with Jesus giving this little story to the chief priests and the elders about a Man with Two Sons. This was a very direct parable, the first son represented the tax collectors and prostitutes, the second son represented the very people He was talking to, the Jewish leaders.
The chief priests and elders analyze this little parable correctly, the first son that initially said no but it says “afterwards changed his mind and went” to work in the vineyard actually did the Father’s will. Note that word change, he “changed his mind” - change is difficult for us, but important for growth in the spiritual life.
Did the chief priests and the elders change their ways like the tax collectors and prostitutes did? It sure does not seem like it, but Jesus did give them a chance, He showed them the right way, whether they took it or not was on them.
The real question is do we change our ways? Jesus gives us time to change, do we?
Back to that woman’s question, “why hasn’t God just killed me for it?” Well, the reality is Jesus died for our sins instead of us. Jesus paid the ultimate price to give us more time to make the necessary changes, forgiving us as we go, but desiring our spiritual growth.
We shouldn’t take it lightly - it is so easy to go on living in our sinful ways, going to confession for the same things, but we need to make the changes necessary to grow in holiness and avoid eternal death.
The key to making a change is found in our Psalm. The last verse that we heard today said this, “Good and upright is the LORD; thus he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice, and teaches the humble his way.”
Humility. In order to change, we need humility. This is what the chief priests and the elders lacked, they were too proud to make a change in their own lives, rather they just looked for ways to put Jesus to death, that way they didn’t have to hear it anymore.
Are we humble enough to recognize we might be offending God by some of our actions? Are we humble enough to realize we might not know everything? Are we humble enough to recognize we might need to make a change in our ways?
God is merciful, but He is also just. He gives us time to grow in humility. He gives us time to learn His ways. Are we making good use of the time we have been given? We should pray for humility, and then pray that the Holy Spirit would help us to see how we can change and grow to better glorify God by our lives.