Sunday Lectionary: Doers of the Word
Twenty-Sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time: September 25th, 2011
The readings this week focus on God’s mercy and exhort us to humility and obedience in following God’s way. There isn’t much technical stuff to deal with in these passages. Instead, these readings are an opportunity for the group to share with one another their struggles in this area and to encourage one another.
“There are two ways, one of life and one of death; but a great difference between the two ways”
– The Didache, c. 65 AD
Reading I: Ezekiel 18:25-28
This section of Ezekiel comes from a longer section entitled “The soul who sins will die” where Ezekiel affirms personal responsibility for one’s own soul and the Prophet outlines all the things that Israel must not do . This long section concludes with the passage below. God affirms that He is indeed just and that, in sinning, it is Israel that is disrupting the right order of things. However, God also affirms that He takes no pleasure in the destruction of sinners. He continually holds out His offer to those who will repent, that he will forgive their sin and spare their life.
Thus says the LORD:
You say, “The LORD’s way is not fair!” Hear now, house of Israel: Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? 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, he 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.
Possible Questions:
- What is the complaint of the Israelites?
- What is the Lord’s response through Ezekiel?
- How is God’s mercy demonstrated in this passage?
- What is the main exhortation of this Reading?
Commentary:
“The LORD’s way is not fair!”
How childish does that sound? “Not fair!” The lack of fairness concerns the punishment of those who fall from grace and the forgiveness of those who repent of sin.
“house of Israel”
Another term for the Children of Israel.
“Is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair?”
It is sin that is the disruption and the distortion.
“When someone virtuous turns away from virtue to commit iniquity, and dies, it is because of the iniquity he committed that he must die”
It is only in God’s mercy that he stays his hand, giving us opportunity to repent and turn back to Him.
Throughout the Old Testament, ever since the Fall, sin is associated with death. The spiritual sense of this passage shows us how sin can strike a mortal blow to a souls.
“But if he turns from the wickedness he has committed, he 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”
In a passage that can sound rather negative, we must remember this final sentence. It is a promise of mercy to all who repent.
Responsorial Psalm: Psalm 25:4-5, 8-9, 10, 14.
The psalm continues with the themes of this week of God’s mercy and compassion and His desire for us to walk in His way.
R. (6a) Remember your mercies, O Lord.
Your ways, O LORD, make known to me;
teach me your paths,
guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are God my savior.
Remember that your compassion, O LORD,
and your love are from of old.
The sins of my youth and my frailties remember not;
in your kindness remember me,
because of your goodness, O LORD.
Good and upright is the LORD;
thus he shows sinners the way.
He guides the humble to justice,
and teaches the humble his way.
Possible Questions:
- What is the two main requests of the psalmist?
- In the final verse, what is the primary pre-condition for the Lord’s teaching?
Commentary:
“Remember your mercies, O Lord…Remember that your compassion, O LORD, and your love are from of old.“
This is a common phrase in the psalms – an appeal to God to recall His loving kindness and take pity on His people.
“Your ways, O LORD, make known to me; teach me your paths, guide me in your truth and teach me, for you are God my savior…”
This first verse is a request to the Lord to make known His will so that we will know how to follow Him.
“The sins of my youth and my frailties remember not; in your kindness remember me, because of your goodness, O LORD”
An appeal for forgiveness of past sins.
“Good and upright is the LORD; thus he shows sinners the way. He guides the humble to justice, and teaches the humble his way”
It is because of the Lord’s goodness that He has mercy on sinners who turn to Him. It is only a humble heart that can be taught which is why the sin of pride is so dangerous.
Reading II: Philippians 2:1-11
In this section of the letter to the Philippians Paul encourages that church to humility and mutual service. To illustrate this, he uses Christ as his example, quoting the words of an early Christian hymn, describing how Jesus took “the form of a slave” and “humbled himself”.
Brothers and sisters: If there is any encouragement in Christ, any solace in love, any participation in the Spirit, any compassion and mercy, complete my joy by being of the same mind, with the same love, united in heart, thinking one thing. Do nothing out of selfishness or out of vainglory; rather, humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but also for those of others.
Have in you the same attitude that is also in Christ Jesus, Who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God something to be grasped. Rather, he emptied himself, taking the form of a slave, coming in human likeness; and found human in appearance, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Because of this, God greatly exalted him and bestowed on him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, of those in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
- What is Paul’s exhortation in the first paragraph? What motivation does he give for this?
- What example does Paul use in the second paragraph to illustrate his point in the first paragraph?
Commentary:
I provide an extensive commentary of this passage here.
Gospel: Matthew 21:28-32
This parable is in response to an encounter with the chief priests and the elders in the Temple area, a week before the Passion. They came to Jesus and demanded to know the source of His authority.
Jesus said that he’d answer the question if they tell him whether John the Baptist’s baptism was from heaven or from men. They could not answer this question since, if they said “from heaven”, they knew Jesus would ask them why they didn’t believe John, but if they say “from men” they’d become unpopular with the people since they held John in great esteem and called him a prophet.
Following this discourse, Jesus did what He often did – told a parable. In this parable, the first son represents the sinners who repented at the preaching of John and followed the will of the Father, but the second group represent the chief priests and elders who ignored John’s message.
Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people:
“What is your opinion? A man had two sons. He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ He said in reply, ‘I will not, ‘ but afterwards changed his mind and went. The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir, ‘but did not go. Which of the two did his father’s will?”
They answered, “The first.”
Jesus said to them, “Amen, I say to you, tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you. When John came to you in the way of righteousness, you did not believe him; but tax collectors and prostitutes did. Yet even when you saw that, you did not later change your minds and believe him.”
Possible Questions:
- Whom do you think is represented by the father in this parable?
- Whom do you think is represented in the first son in this parable?
- Whom do you think is represented in the second son in this parable?
- What virtue is exhorted in this reading?
- Which son do you more closely relate to in this parable?
- Do you regard any particular group as inferior?
- What does your “yes” to God look like? If tomorrow Christianity was made illegal, would there be enough evidence to convict you?
- Who is that the “tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God” before? Why?
- What does this parable teach us about the Kingdom? How do we apply it to our lives?
Commentary:
“Jesus said to the chief priests and elders of the people”
It is important to understand to whom Jesus is speaking this parable, since later in the passage he’ll say that tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of them.
“A man had two sons”
The man here can represent John the Baptist, as well as Jesus and the Father.
“He came to the first and said, ‘Son, go out and work in the vineyard today.’ He said in reply, ‘I will not, ‘ but afterwards changed his mind and went. “
This represents those who, although initially resistant to the will of God eventually humble themselves, repent and do His will. As we saw last week, the vineyard is a biblical metaphor for God’s people.
“The man came to the other son and gave the same order. He said in reply, ‘Yes, sir, ‘but did not go”
This represents those who pay lip service to God’s will, but don’t actually do it. They talk the talk, but don’t walk the walk, lacking the “obedience of faith” (Romans 1:5).
“But when [John] saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming to where he was baptizing, he said to them: “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath? Produce fruit in keeping with repentance. And do not think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ I tell you that out of these stones God can raise up children for Abraham. The ax is already at the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire”
“…tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you”
…because they were not so prideful. They humbled themselves before God in response to John’s preaching. Prostitutes and Tax Collectors were the lowest of the low – collaborators with the Roman enemy and the sexually immoral, yet God had mercy on them when they humbled themselves and turned to Him
The Son That Said “No”