20171019
JUSTICE BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH
Readings
at Mass
Liturgical
Colour: Green.
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First reading
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Romans 3:21-30 ©
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God’s justice that was made known through the Law and the Prophets
has now been revealed outside the Law, since it is the same justice of God that
comes through faith to everyone, Jew and pagan alike, who believes in Jesus
Christ. Both Jew and pagan sinned and forfeited God’s glory, and both are
justified through the free gift of his grace by being redeemed in Christ Jesus
who was appointed by God to sacrifice his life so as to win reconciliation
through faith. In this way God makes his justice known; first, for the past,
when sins went unpunished because he held his hand, then, for the present age,
by showing positively that he is just, and that he justifies everyone who
believes in Jesus.
So what
becomes of our boasts? There is no room for them. What sort of law excludes
them? The sort of law that tells us what to do? On the contrary, it is the law
of faith, since, as we see it, a man is justified by faith and not by doing
something the Law tells him to do. Is God the God of Jews alone and not of the
pagans too? Of the pagans too, most certainly, since there is only one God.
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Responsorial Psalm
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Psalm 129(130):1-6 ©
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With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of
redemption.
Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord,
Lord, hear my voice!
O let your ears be attentive
to the voice of my pleading.
With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of
redemption.
If you, O Lord, should mark our guilt,
Lord, who would survive?
But with you is found forgiveness:
for this we revere you.
With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of
redemption.
My soul is waiting for the Lord.
I count on his word.
My soul is longing for the Lord
more than watchman for daybreak.
With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of
redemption.
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Gospel Acclamation
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Ps110:7,8
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Alleluia, alleluia!
Your precepts, O Lord, are all of them sure;
they stand firm for ever and ever.
Alleluia!
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Or
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Jn14:6
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Alleluia, alleluia!
I am the Way, the Truth and the Life, says the Lord;
No one can come to the Father except through me.
Alleluia!
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Gospel
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Luke 11:47-54 ©
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Jesus said: ‘Alas for you who build the tombs of the prophets, the
men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what your ancestors did
and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building.
‘And that is
why the Wisdom of God said, “I will send them prophets and apostles; some they
will slaughter and persecute, so that this generation will have to answer for
every prophet’s blood that has been shed since the foundation of the world,
from the blood of Abel to the blood of Zechariah, who was murdered between the
altar and the sanctuary.” Yes, I tell you, this generation will have to answer
for it all.
‘Alas for
you lawyers who have taken away the key of knowledge! You have not gone in
yourselves, and have prevented others going in who wanted to.’
When he left
the house, the scribes and the Pharisees began a furious attack on him and
tried to force answers from him on innumerable questions, setting traps to
catch him out in something he might say.
JUSTICE BY GRACE THROUGH FAITH
SCRIPTURE READINGS: [ Rom 3:21-30; Ps 130:1-6; Lk 11:47-54 ]
What is the
purpose of the Law? The original intention of the Law and the prophets
was to help the people to live the justice of God. The justice of God is
revealed through the Law. From the Law, we come to understand what is
right or wrong, true or false. The laws given by Moses were meant to help
the people to live a just and compassionate life in harmony with the rest of
the people by grounding their obedience first and foremost in God alone.
“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord; and you shall love the Lord your
God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your
might.” (Dt 6:4-7) And Jesus, citing from Leviticus, joins the
love of neighbor to the love of God, “You shall love your neighbor as
yourself.” (Lev 19:18) These are the two greatest commandments that
sum up the Law and the prophets. Indeed, the Ten Commandments could be
simply divided into two segments, the first three laws command us to love God
and the last seven laws command us to love our neighbours.
What was the
work of the Prophets? They were sent by God to remind the people to be faithful
to the laws given by Moses. God gave the people a set of laws so that
they could live as the Covenanted People of God. But the people,
including the leaders, political and religious, did not observe the laws.
They continually turned away from the Lord, worshipped idols and foreign gods,
adopted pagan culture and behavior and, most of all, engaged in immoral
activities like child sacrifice, prostitution and cheating. So the prophets
were messengers of God to call the people back to fidelity to the Law.
They warned the people of the consequences of their sins. Their message
was always on the love of God, His wrath against sins, the call to repentance
for salvation, and the punishment of God for those who chose to follow their
evil and wicked ways.
Yet, the
truth is that in spite of the Law and the Prophets, the people did not change
although they knew the justice, that is, the truth of God. They remained
unrepentant in spite of the prophecies of destruction by the prophets.
They were deaf to the message of the prophets. Instead of being moved to
repentance, they were enraged and angry at the apparent negative message of the
prophets. They wanted to have things their way, and if the prophets did
not support them, they were condemned and some were killed.
In other
words, knowledge of the truth through the Law and the prophets alone does not
mean that people will observe the Law. Indeed, knowledge of the Law only tells us what is good or
bad. It helps us to be aware of the truth of God. But man remains a
sinner and is powerless to overcome his sinful tendency and his folly. He
continues to sin again and again, and to go against the Law. St Paul
spoke about this inner conflict in us, “I can will what is right, but I
cannot do it. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is
what I do.” (Rom 7:18bf) This, according to the diagnosis of St Paul,
is because of sin dwelling in us. “Now if I do what I do not want,
it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.” (Rom 7:20)
Hence, St Paul
writes, “God’s justice that was made known through the Law and the
Prophets has now been revealed outside the Law.” Since the Law
and the Prophets, although good, could not change the hearts of man. God chose
to justify us through grace and not through the Law. This is to say that
God makes us worthy by forgiving us our sins and liberating us from the power
of sin through the mercy shown in Christ’s passion, death and
resurrection. “It is the same justice of God that comes through faith to
everyone, Jew and pagan alike, who believes in Jesus Christ. Both Jew and
pagan sinned and forfeited God’s glory, and both are justified through the free
gift of his grace by being redeemed in Christ Jesus who was appointed by God to
sacrifice his life so as to win reconciliation through faith. In this way
God makes his justice known; first, for the past, when sins went unpunished
because he held his hand, then, for the present age, by showing positively that
he is just, and that he justifies everyone who believes in Jesus.”
How is this
grace given to us? Through Christ’s death and resurrection. In His
death, we see the mercy and love of God in person. If anyone doubts the
love and mercy of God, he only needs to contemplate on the face of the
Crucified Christ. His death on the cross reveals to us the depth of God’s
mercy. We can no longer accuse God of not knowing our suffering, our
fears and our anxieties. Jesus emptied Himself to become not just a man
but a slave unto death. He suffered the injustices, the pain of an
innocent suffering, betrayal, rejection, humiliation, abandonment and the
darkness of sin and pain. No one can appreciate the pain and tragedy of
sin more than Jesus because He took upon our sins in His body and suffered the
punishment of sin even though he was sinless.
In His
resurrection, we see the power of God’s love triumph over death brought about
by sin. By rising from the dead, Jesus showed that sin and death is the
not the last word. Love is stronger than death. Once the fear of
death is conquered, then the sting of sin is removed for as St Paul says,
“Death is swallowed up in victory. ‘O death, where is thy victory? O
death, where is thy sting?’ The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is
the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus
Christ.” (1 Cor 15:55-57)
But more than
just conquering death through His resurrection, the Lord bestows upon us the
same Spirit that raised Him from the dead. We are now made His adopted
sons and daughters. “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are
sons of God. For you did not receive the spirit of slavery to fall back
into fear, but you have received the spirit of sonship.” (Rom 8:14f)
Indeed, it is the Spirit of God living in us that empowers us to live according
to the Spirit of Christ. “But you are not in the flesh, you are in the
Spirit, if the Spirit of God really dwells in you. Any one who does not have
the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, although
your bodies are dead because of sin, your spirits are alive because of
righteousness.” (Rom 8:9f) Hence, St Paul concludes, “There is therefore now no
condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of
life in Christ Jesus has set me free from the law of sin and death. For
God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do: sending his own
Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin,he condemned sin in the flesh,
in order that the just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us,
who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.” (Rom 8:1-5)
Unless, we
come to faith in Jesus, we will prevent ourselves from entering the Kingdom of
God and others who follow us. This was what the Lord said of the religious
leaders. He scolded them bluntly, “Alas for you who build the tombs of
the prophets, the men your ancestors killed! In this way you both witness what
your ancestors did and approve it; they did the killing, you do the building.
Alas for you lawyers who have taken away the key of knowledge! You have not
gone in yourselves, and have prevented others going in who wanted to.” In
truth, they could not observe the Law perfectly and they were hypocritical in
their behavior. Instead of welcoming the prophets of God as in John
the Baptist and our Lord, they killed them. Thus, by not entering through
Jesus, they also prevent others from going in.
Consequently,
what is required of us is to have faith in Jesus as the Christ, the Son of God. “So what becomes of
our boasts? There is no room for them. What sort of law excludes them?
The sort of law that tells us what to do? On the contrary, it is the law of
faith, since, as we see it, a man is justified by faith and not by doing
something the Law tells him to do.” We cannot overcome sin by our own
merits but through the merits Christ gained for us. His death and
resurrection won for us our victory over sin and death and brought about the
bestowal of the Holy Spirit, the power of God at work in us, helping us to
overcome sin and live the life of the Spirit.
Written by The Most Rev William Goh, Roman Catholic Archbishop of
Singapore © All Rights Reserved
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