The Unauthorized Homily

By Bill Dunn

A commentary on the Scripture readings from the Sunday Lectionary

(Scripture readings for Sunday, June 17th: 2 Samuel 12:7-10, 13; Galatians 2:16, 19-21; Luke 7:36-8:3)

FORGIVENESS IS AWESOME, BUT SIN STILL HURTS

This week’s readings all have the same theme: God’s forgiveness. In my mind the most incomprehensible aspect of God’s nature by far is His forgiveness.

Yes, sometimes I am awestruck by God’s sheer power. It is breath-taking to contemplate exactly what God is capable of doing, and the marvels of the universe that He created out of nothing. It’s pretty amazing to realize that before we were even born, God first had us in mind, and then He went and created us with all our billions of complex, interrelated biological systems. And at the moment we were conceived, He infused us with an immortal soul. Wow.

The power of God is one thing; but the forgiveness of God is by far more stunning. I have one simple question: Why? Why does God care about us so much that He is willing to forgive our sins? After all, the two most common traits of mankind throughout history have been selfishness and cruelty. When left to our own devices, most people quickly devolve into a bunch of insufferable, self-obsessed me-monkeys.

For proof, just look at the common behaviors at, say, a college campus. (I’m talking about the faculty. The students can be pretty self-centered, too.) Or look at the board room of a major corporation. Selfishness and cruelty abound. Or watch “Access Hollywood” for two minutes (if you can stomach it). Or look in the mirror. We all have these traits to one degree or another.

Despite all this, God still loves us and still offers us forgiveness. Amazing.

In the first reading this week, the prophet Nathan confronted King David. David recently had done a couple of things that surely would have landed him on “Access Hollywood,” if the show had existed back then. First, he committed adultery; then, in an attempt to cover it up, he committed murder.

When David humbly confessed his sins, Nathan said, “The Lord on his part has forgiven your sin: you shall not die.”

In the second reading, from his letter to the Galatians, St. Paul explained that we cannot earn God’s love. However, if we trust in God’s love through faith we will be justified. Galatians is one of the most liberating books in Scripture because it clearly tells us to stop trying to earn Brownie points with God by rushing around and doing a bunch of “religious stuff.” Instead, we just need to relax, accept God’s love and forgiveness, and then let that love guide us and inspire us. The religious stuff, the good deeds we ought to do, will take care of themselves.

Finally, in the gospel reading this week, Jesus was dining at the home of a prominent Pharisee named Simon. As they ate, a sinful women came right into the dining room, possibly right in the middle of their Buffalo wing appetizers, and went over to Jesus. The woman began to weep, and washed Jesus’ feet with her tears.

The other dinner guests were horrified, not only at the woman’s behavior, but mostly because Jesus allowed a well-known sinner to do such a thing. “If this man were a prophet,” Simon said to himself regarding Jesus, “he would know…that she is a sinner.”

Jesus, of course, quickly turned the tables on the self-righteous Pharisee. He pointed out that the sinful woman had treated Jesus much more graciously than had Simon. Jesus then said, “So I tell you, her many sins have been forgiven because she has shown great love.”

The main lesson this week is God’s love and forgiveness. No matter how badly we’ve sinned, no matter how selfish and cruel we’ve behaved, God still will forgive us. All we need to do is genuinely repent, ask for forgiveness, and let God’s love and mercy fill our hearts.

There is, however, a secondary lesson this week that we should not overlook. Although God most certainly forgives us of our sins, when we do sin, very often there are severe consequences. In the first reading God forgave David. But speaking through the prophet Nathan, God also said, “Now, therefore, the sword shall never depart from your house.”

David’s sins had earthly consequences, and in fact from that time on, his family was a mess. There were hatreds and betrayals and murders for many generations after David. The culmination came when the entire kingdom was torn in two, split into the Northern kingdom of Israel and the Southern kingdom of Judah. From the moment David committed those terrible sins, there was no peace in his life or in the lives of his descendents.

In our lives the same principle holds true. If we commit a sin, say, driving under the influence, God certainly will forgive us if we sincerely repent. But if we get arrested, we have to pay the price. And if, God forbid, we kill somebody while driving plastered, we have to pay a huge price (although not nearly as huge as the price paid by the innocent victim). By the way, even if we don’t get caught, there still is a steep price to pay, in the form of damaged relationships, poor work performance, financial problems, etc.

Just like King David, our sins can harm us and our descendents. Just think of the example I am using, the irresponsible use of alcohol. We all know families that have been devastated by booze. Not only can it wreck the drinker’s life, it can cause severe problems to his family for many generations. The same things can happen with other sins: adultery, dishonesty, theft, laziness, rooting for the Yankees, you name it.

It’s great to know that God will forgive us, no matter what terrible things we’ve done. But it certainly is best not to do those terrible things in the first place. Yes, we still can receive eternal life in Heaven, but sometimes the consequences of our sin can be Hell on earth, for us and our loved ones and all of society.

©2007