Today’s readings put before us the power of asking or making a plea. Emboldened by a strong sense of justice Abraham ‘draws near’ to God to intercede for the city of Sodom. Acting as a prophet he presents a compelling argument to strengthen his plea for the good people in Sodom. His persistence is reflected in the Gospel account where Jesus urges us to be resolute in praying for our spiritual needs.
Genesis 18:20-32 – This narrative describes Abraham presuming to plead with God to hold off destroying the city of Sodom for fear of punishing the good along with the evil citizens. Traditional Christian interpretation slams the people of Sodom for practising and tolerating homosexuality, but the text does not say that. It is more likely that social sin was the city’s cancer. So often in the Hebrew Bible punishment of the good along with the bad is attributed to turning from God in idolatry, rampant social injustice, where the rich and powerful cheat the poor and disadvantaged and establish a regime where injustice becomes normal. Prophets have continually spoken out against the society that suffers under the weight of these evils.
The character of this narrative that stands out is the bold pleading from Abraham as he puts forth the case that it is unjust on God’s part to destroy the good people with the bad. When he mentions this, Abraham knows he is on shaky ground appearing to teach the God of justice and righteousness about what is fair. However, in the end he bargains God down to sparing the city if ten good people are found there.
There is a demonstration here of the power of a plea when the petitioners have integrity and justice on their side and are not blinded by mere self-interest.
Psalm 138 – This psalm is unusual in its universal perspective. The poet acknowledges that the gods of other nations may exist but is firm in his commitment to the God of his ancestors. He does not doubt the justice of God or entertain the doubts expressed by the poet of Job that God might be unaware in overlooking certain facts and issues. The psalmist rejoices in the fact that God embraces all of creation and cares for the proud as well as the humble. The psalm concludes with an intercession for the welfare of all humanity.
Colossians 2:12-14 – The immediate context of this passage are Paul’s words to the Christian community in Colossae, a city in the central west of modern day Turkey, to stand firm in their faith in Christ and not to be taken in by other religious ideas or philosophies. He uses the metaphor of
Jewish male circumcision to write of a circumcision of the heart whereby all beliefs and traditions that are not in tune with Jesus Christ are cut away from a person’s approach to life.
Paul insists that we have to live up to our calling to be guided by the values of Christ
Paul is known for his insistence that the baptized Christian is a new creation and that the community of the baptized is the body of Christ from a spiritual point of view. He writes that the sacrifice of Christ on the cross has cancelled all the debts we had to pay but also insists that we have to live up to our calling to be guided by the values of Christ.
It’s worth remembering how early Christians stood out in Roman society on account of the love they bore for each other. Early Christian writer, Tertullian, commented, towards the end of the second century, that non-Christians noted how the Jesus people treated each other with care and respect. He quotes them as saying, ‘See how they love one another.’ We might interpret their reaction as, ‘How weird is that!’ But it only reminds us of the words of Jesus at the Last Supper that our love and consideration for each other would mark us as his disciples.
Luke 11:1-13 – This passage follows the Martha and Mary story we read last week. It is not only a guide to prayer as something that is important in our spiritual life but contains Jesus’ emphasis on the need to ask. In both its Hebrew and Aramaic forms the Lord’s Prayer is poetry and not only does this point to Jesus as a poet but it highlights the poetic nature of Hebrew when it is used to give expression to the sacred and the spiritual.
Forgiving is not so much granting a favour as just being prepared to let things go
Jesus is teaching us to speak to God simply and directly, to ask for present needs and forgiveness for our failure to live up to our calling. His prayer also ends in a contract where we ask to be forgiven in the measure that we forgive others. The Aramaic verb for forgive is shebaq and means ‘let go,’ ‘remit,’ ‘wipe the debt.’ In Luke’s Greek, aphíēmi also means to ‘let go,’ ‘give up,’ ‘release’ – all in the sense of forgiving. These verbs tell us that forgiving is not so much granting a favour as just being prepared to let things go with another human being, an equal. No further action needed and definitely no lingering negative feelings. Forgiving by letting things go does as much good to the forgiver as to the forgiven.
There is great value and creative connection in giving another human being a lift
An insight worth remembering: a common verb in the Hebrew Bible for ‘forgive’ is nasa, whose primary meaning is ‘lift,’ ‘carry,’ take’. It applies to forgiveness in the sense of lifting a burden. When we forgive, either ourselves or others, we take part in lifting the burden from the shoulders of another. There is great value and creative connection in giving another human being a lift. A smile, a simple greeting or gesture can bridge gaps and create or repair connection with a lift, with a ‘you raise me up.’
Today’s passage finishes with Jesus recommending that we not only ask, but that we search in the hope of finding and knock on the door of opportunity. The underlying tone of Jesus’ words is that we ask, search and knock for what is of genuine value, for what will enhance our growth to maturity as human beings. Of course, this involves our recognising quality in what we strive for.
I am reminded here of Oscar Wilde’s quip about those who cannot recognise a good thing when they see it, so that when opportunity knocks they complain about the noise. This lack of openness cannot appreciate that growth only happens with change and resistance to change prevents a person from reaching higher. Twentieth century American comedian Milton Berle went one step further than Oscar Wilde when he said, ‘If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door.’
Both quotes are echoing the intention of Jesus that we have to be proactive in the pursuit of our goals.Good things don’t come to us in wrapped packages. The seed of a goal might plant itself in our brain but its growth to maturity requires our effort and perseverance. After all, we are works in progress and improvement takes persistence.
~~~
Every day is a new opportunity to begin again. Every day is your birthday.
Dalai Lama
~~~
One-liners from Bob Hope
- No one party can fool all of the people all of the time; that’s why we have two parties.
- Virus is a Latin word used by doctors to mean, ‘your guess is as good as mine.’
- I like a President who tells jokes instead of appointing them.
- You know you’re getting old when the candles cost more than the cake.
by Laurie Woods