Have mercy on me, O God, in your goodness;
in the greatness of your compassion wipe out my offense.
Thoroughly wash me from my guilt
and of my sin cleanse me.
How does it feel to be wrong all the time? How do you find your way out?
Now, I’m sure that you don’t think you’re wrong all the time. I certainly don’t, but the real problem is that we are far too sure of our self determined righteousness.
The Jewish people were sure of their righteousness. After all, Moses went up the mountain to meet with the Lord, and had been gone for many days. Would anybody have blamed them for relying on themselves?
Where was the leader? Wasn’t he self proclaimed? What right did he have in making us wait?
We know, from the readings, that God certainly expected more from them. But how were they to know?
The fact is that God does expect more from us. He expects us to know —“ because it is so simple, any child can grasp it. God says, here is My word, My example, My Son, and My Church. The rules to live by.
God expects us to live by His teaching and expects excellence in our conduct. Our conduct toward our brothers and sisters, and toward creation.
St. Paul, writing to Timothy notes:
I am grateful to him who has strengthened me, Christ Jesus our Lord,
because he considered me trustworthy
The fact is, God does consider us trustworthy. In baptism we come into relationship with God, we are buried with Christ, literally buried in the water of baptism. We are made part of Christ’s body by our partaking of His body and blood —“ something that unites all of us —“ even the people we don’t like so much. We have the promise of eternal life, the pearl of great price, for which we should be willing to sacrifice all.
God gives us the strength we need, and like Paul we need to be circumspect about our righteousness.
Now remember that Paul, who was a Jewish Pharisee, considered himself righteous. He believed in his righteousness —“ a righteousness obtained through the observance of the Law.
Later, in writing to the Philippians he would say:
Indeed I count everything as loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For his sake I have suffered the loss of all things, and count them as refuse, in order that I may gain Christ
and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own, based on law, but that which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness from God that depends on faith
Today, Paul declares himself the greatest sinner of all —“ and proclaims the fact that he has been mercifully treated so as to be an example of fortitude to all Christians.
But for that reason I was mercifully treated,
so that in me, as the foremost,
Christ Jesus might display all his patience as an example
for those who would come to believe in him for everlasting life.
That, my friends, is the key.
Righteousness cannot come from one’s own actions, nor from the simple observance of laws, rules, and regulations. The other son, in the story of the Prodigal son, made that mistake.
Rather, righteousness can only come from faith in Christ Jesus, and from God’s surpassing generosity towards us.
Brothers and sisters,
We are to acknowledge and act upon that gift by acting in the manner God expects from us. We are to bring our life into accord with the gift we have been given. We are to live lives that are in tribute and testimony to the gift we receive —“ the precious gift of faith.
Yet, for all the glory of the gift, for all the power of faith, for the example of the myriad saints and martyrs, for Jesus’ real and human example, we fall and fail.
When we sin we must rely on the confidence God has given us through His self-revelation. He let us know that He is the shepherd who seeks out the lost sheep. He is the woman that lights a lamp and sweeps the house in search of the lost coin, He is the Prodigal Father who will open His arms to His repentant son, and even love the surly, stubborn son.
His arms are open to us when we return in sorrow and in repentance; when we decide to make amends.
‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and against you;
I no longer deserve to be called your son.’
Not only will His arms be open to us, but He Himself, and His entire household, that is, the Holy Church, will celebrate.
‘Quickly bring the finest robe and put it on him;
put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet.
Take the fattened calf and slaughter it.
Then let us celebrate with a feast,
because this son of mine was dead, and has come to life again;
he was lost, and has been found.’
Then the celebration began.
We are not wrong all the time, but when we are, when we sin, it is because our self righteousness gets in the way of the true righteousness that comes to us by faith in Jesus Christ.
The way out is by repentance, living a life in accord with the gifts we have received, and ultimately reliance on God’s great mercy.
Praise be God for the gift of faith, through which we are made righteous. Praise be God, for His everlasting font of mercy.
Amen.
