So Good It Hurts

The scriptures referred to are Jeremiah 20:7-13, Psalm 69: 7-18, Romans 6:1b-11 and Matthew 10:24-39.

The nation of Judah was fat and happy. The prophet Jeremiah was not. Called by God when he was quite young, Jeremiah was given the painful job of telling God's people that the judgment for their sins was inevitable. They were going to be conquered by the Babylonian empire and taken into exile, as the Assyrian empire had done to the northern kingdom of Israel nearly 150 years earlier. It was not only an unpopular message that Jeremiah was proclaiming; it was considered unpatriotic. More than that, it was seen as treason to say that God's favorite nation was going to be defeated by people who followed a different god and religion.

Jeremiah's ministry spanned the reigns of 5 kings, beginning in the middle of the reign of Josiah, Judah's last righteous king. But those who followed Josiah, including his sons, did evil. And the people imitated their leaders. They thought they were safe because they had the temple of the Lord in their midst. But they were just going through the motions in their worship. Their faith in God wasn't evident in how they acted towards their fellow human beings. Jeremiah says, “You must change the way you have been living and do what is right. You must treat one another fairly. Stop oppressing foreigners who live in your land, children who have lost their fathers, and women who have lost their husbands. Stop killing innocent people in this land. Stop paying allegiance to other gods. They will only bring you ruin. If you stop doing these things, I will allow you to continue to live in this land which I gave to your ancestors as a lasting possession. But just look at you! You are putting your confidence in a false belief that will not deliver you. You steal. You murder. You commit adultery. You lie when you swear on oath. You sacrifice to Baal. You pay allegiance to other gods whom you have not previously known. Then you come and stand in my presence in this temple I have claimed as my own and say, 'We are safe!' You think you are so safe that you go on doing all those hateful sins.” (Jeremiah 7:5-10, NET) If you disobey the commandment to love God, you will end up violating the commandment to love your neighbor, who was created in God's image. That's why Jesus connected the two. (Matthew 22:36-40; Luke 10:29-37)

The people of Judah, and especially the political and religious leaders, did not want to hear Jeremiah's criticism of them. Immediately preceding today's passage from Jeremiah, he has been beaten and put in the stocks by the priest Pashur. And when released, Jeremiah tells this false prophet of a priest that he and his wealthy friends will all be taken into exile in Babylon where they will die. Then we get to today's reading.

Jeremiah says that God has enticed him into his ministry. The Hebrew word could be translated “deceived.” He feels that way because he did not want to tell the people this message of doom and gloom. Nobody wants to hear that the way they choose to live will end up in violence and destruction. This message has cost him friends. It has made him a laughingstock. And yet he cannot be silent. He must tell the truth.

Jeremiah's only hope is in God. He will protect him. His enemies will not escape judgment and shame. Jeremiah knows who God really is. He may “test the righteous” to reveal what is in their hearts and minds but in the end he delivers “the life of the needy from the hands of evildoers.”

Our psalm echoes our passage from Jeremiah. One difference is that while the writer, possibly a king of Judah, is also harassed by enemies, he realizes that he has had a hand in his predicament. Just before our selection begins he says, “O God, you know about my foolishness, and my guilt is not hidden from you.” (Psalm 69:5) He knows he has screwed up. Possibly that is what gave his enemies their opportunity to attack him. He is also conscious of the fact that his foolishness and guilt may impact others who do not deserve it. “Do not let those who hope in you be put to shame because of me, O Lord God of hosts; do not let those who seek you be dishonored because of me, O God of Israel.” (Psalm 69:6-7) Even if we follow God, we must be honest with ourselves and with him. Our misdeeds can cause those who hope in and seek God to doubt and stumble.

So the mire that the psalmist is sinking into might be of his own making, at least in part. It has given an opening to “those who hate me without reason...my enemies without cause...” (Psalm 69:4) But all is not lost. He prays, “In your great mercy, O God, answer me with your unfailing help...Answer me, O Lord, for your love is kind; in your great compassion, turn to me.” The self-righteous think they deserve God's help. The truly righteous know that they don't. They are not perfect and so they put their hope in God's mercy, love and compassion. And, sure enough, God doesn't wait until we have achieved perfection before he responds to us. He is more interested in the direction in which we are moving. Even if we have only just turned from our sin and turned to him, he will respond. We see this when the criminal crucified next to Jesus said that while he and his fellow bandit were guilty, Jesus was innocent. Then he said, “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” And Jesus said to him, “I tell you the truth, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:39-43) This man could not do anything to undo the wrongs he had committed. But he repented and recognized Jesus as the Messiah and king, and Jesus responded with grace and mercy.

Of course, most of us will have the opportunity to change our life to match our confession that Jesus is our king. Preceding our passage from Romans, Paul has just said, “But where sin increased, grace increased all the more.” (Romans 5:20) And Paul anticipates that some troll will say, “Then sin must be a good thing, since it means God will be even more gracious to us in response.” So Paul asks rhetorically, “Should we continue in sin in order that grace may increase?” Now the next phrase in Greek is an interesting one, so much so that our professor in Greek exegesis class let us argue about how to translate it for an entire period. It uses a verb tense we don't have in English. It means something like, “May it turn out in the future to never have happened in the past!” In other words, it is a situation that should never ever have existed. So different translations render it “By no means!” “Of course not!” “Far from it!” “Certainly not!” and in the King James, “God forbid!” Some get closer to the Greek by translating it “May it never be!” I like the version that says, “That's unthinkable!” Today I would be tempted to quote the Princess Bride and say, “Inconceivable!” Back in the 1970's our class decided on the then-current phrase “No way!”

Why did Paul essentially state that it was conceptually impossible for a Christian to continue to sin in order to to experience an increase of God's grace? Because it would be like saying, “Well, now that my doctor is treating me for cancer, I can go back to smoking.” Or “Now that I have received a donor's heart as a transplant I can go back to all the bad habits that fatally damaged my old heart.” Why would you do that? Not only did Jesus die to save us, but when we are baptized, we undergo the death of our old life. And just as Jesus was resurrected, so we receive new life in him. It's like your old sinful identity was declared dead and you have been given a new life and a new identity. Having been pardoned, why would you do something so foolish and self-destructive as repeat the mistakes that got you into the mess in the first place? Why throw away your new life?

Of course, leaving those old habits is hard. And it will especially be hard when you get persecuted for changing your ways and telling others they can too. Following on from last week, our passage from Matthew continues the instructions Jesus is giving to the twelve before sending them out to teach, preach and heal. Like Jeremiah, he knows he has stirred up opposition; in his case, because he doesn't observe all the rituals his critics do and because he prioritizes people over what the Pharisees see as the proper procedures for doing things. They think people who need healing can suffer an extra 24 hours before being cured if it is the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:9-14) And that Jesus' disciples can go hungry rather than pick a few grains of wheat on the Sabbath. (Matthew 12:1-8) For them, it is not enough to wash one's hands before a meal; you must do it in the ritual manner they practice. (Mark 7:1-8) And don't even get started on the fact that Jesus eats and drinks with tax collectors and sinners! (Matthew 9:9-13) Finally, his opponents conclude that the only way a person such as Jesus could possibly perform his healings is with the help of the devil. The fact that they can see what is so obviously God's Spirit at work and yet characterize it as demonic shows that they will never open themselves to that same Holy Spirit and seek forgiveness for not seeing God active in Jesus. The result is that they have effectively rendered themselves unforgivable. (Matthew 12:24-32)

So these rigidly legalistic religious leaders are going to be a problem, as they were for Jeremiah. Jesus says not to fear them. Their secrets will come out. Besides, the worst they can do is threaten you physically. They cannot kill you spiritually. Jesus will acknowledge those who follow him before God. He is the one who ultimately has the final word on what happens to our souls and our bodies. And, by the way, we will be resurrected, body and soul, on the last day. Like Jeremiah and the psalmist, when under assault, we must put our trust in God's mercy, love and compassion.

The things Jesus says next trouble us if we take them at face value. He says, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to earth; I have not come to bring peace but a sword.” But wait! Didn't he just tell his disciples to let their peace come to the households who welcomed them? (Matthew 10:13) Didn't he say to his disciples before his arrest, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.” (John 14:27) Didn't he also say to Peter, when he was trying to save Jesus from arrest, “Put your sword back in its place! For all who take hold of the sword will die by the sword!”? (Matthew 26:52) How could he say he didn't come to bring peace?

Jesus is not talking about his intentions but about the effect he will have on a world that does not want peace. A lot of people, especially those with power, only want peace on their own terms, that is, the total submission of those who disagree with them. After all, Jesus was executed in order to keep the peace. Jesus' opponents said, “If we allow him to go on in this way, everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away our sanctuary and our nation.” (John 11:48) To which the high priest Caiaphas replied, “Don't you realize that it is more to your advantage to have one man die for the people than for the whole nation to perish?” (John 11:50) That same impulse drove men to assassinate proponents of peaceful change like Martin Luther King Jr. and Gandhi. Jeremiah condemned those who cried, “'Peace, peace,' when there is no peace.” (Jeremiah 6:14) Remember: the firearms maker of the Colt .45 army revolver gave it the nickname “the Peacemaker.” The only peace it offered was the peace of the grave.

Jesus then gives us a rough quote from Micah 7:6 about how his good news will even divide families and says “Whoever loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me, and whoever loves son or daughter more than me is not worthy of me.” Does Jesus want us to stop loving our families? No, he is not saying that we should love them less, only that we should love him more. We must not subordinate his justice, truth or mercy to anything or anyone else. After all, Ma Barker loved her boys more than she did the lives of those they killed. Some parents will send their children out of the country to keep them from facing justice for rape or murder. On the other hand, when men go to war, their wives and families wish they wouldn't. But they feel their love of their country comes first. Jesus is asking for us to give him the highest priority in our life.

Jesus then says, “...and whoever does not take up his cross and follow me is not worthy of me. Those who find their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.” In the military they say, “Thinking you won't die is what gets you killed.” There are those who think they will save their lives by surrendering to the will of those who do evil. Many who devoted themselves to Hitler were slaughtered under his orders when he cleaned house in the “Night of the Long Knives.” Evil leaders willingly sacrifice their followers to save themselves. But only Jesus sacrificed himself to save his followers. And, carrying our cross, we may also find ourselves facing evil and possibly death. Paul says, “But if we died with Christ, we believe we will also live with him.” Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me will live, even though he dies.” (John 11:25) In that loving promise, and in the one who made it and rose again, we put our hope.

True Kingship

The scriptures referred to are Romans 5:1-8 and Matthew 9:35-10:23.

You couldn't get a more succinct summary of Jesus' ministry than the first line of our reading from Matthew: “Jesus went about all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness.” In other words, he was a teacher, a preacher and a healer.

You may ask “What is the difference between teaching and preaching?” Teaching is primarily about imparting information, showing someone how to find more information and helping them understand and use that information. Preaching is about advocating for specific beliefs, certain moral behaviors, and/or a way of living based on those beliefs and behaviors. Jesus preached on all three. What connected his preaching, teaching and healing was the kingdom of God.

The English word “kingdom” doesn't really encompass all the meanings of the Greek word basileia. It can mean the territory a sovereign governs. The United Kingdom includes England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. But basileia can also mean a king's reign or rule. Charles the Third of Great Britain began his reign on September 8, 2022. He also is Head of the Commonwealth which comprises 56 nations. Though today that is largely symbolic, at one time the English monarch did rule an empire that encircled the globe. During their reign, and wherever they reigned, and over whomever they reigned, the monarch's will was carried out.

The kingdom of God that Jesus preached was not a physical piece of territory, though many who heard him thought of it that way. They thought that, as a descendant of David, he would reconquer Judea, Samaria and Galilee, kick the Romans out and rule as David did, a holy warrior-king. But Jesus did not teach that. He said, “The kingdom of God is within you.” (Luke 17:21) Or it could be better translated, “The kingdom of God is in the midst of you,” since the “you” in Greek is plural. The kingdom of God exists in the hearts, minds and lives of the community of those who trust and obey the God revealed in Jesus. It's what Paul called the body of Christ. That is where God reigns or rules and his will is done on earth as in heaven.

When Jesus teaches what the kingdom of God is like, he uses parables to illustrate how it affects people and how they respond to it. He says it is like the soil where a sower spreads his seeds. The kingdom can be snatched away or wither or get choked in the wrong soil. In the right soil it grows and multiplies. (Matthew 13:3-8, 18-23) As a community on earth, the fact is that the kingdom is like a field where weeds were sown by an enemy amid wheat, so both will grow together until the harvest when they will be separated. (Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43) Or a net which catches all kinds of fish, which are later sorted. (Matthew 13:47-50) The kingdom of God is like a small seed or a pinch of yeast, which then causes growth and abundance. (Matthew 13:31-33) It is a kingdom where God is gracious and generous to all who respond to him. (Matthew 20:1-16)

The kingdom of God is also evident in how those ruled by God act. It is a kingdom where mercy is shown to the merciful. (Matthew 18:23-34; cf. 5:7) It is a kingdom in which what you do is more important than what you say you'll do. (Matthew 21:28-32) It is a kingdom where everyone uses the gifts and talents God gave them, however large or small, to serve him. (Matthew 21:33-44) It is like a wedding banquet open to all who actually respond to God's invitation. (Matthew 22:2-14; cf. Luke 14:16-24) The kingdom is given to those who served Jesus by serving the hungry, the thirsty, the foreigner, the naked, the sick and the imprisoned. (Matthew 25:31-46)

So the kingdom of God is not located in a place but in a people. And it is not characterized by folks who lord their authority over others but by those who serve others, as Jesus came not to be served but to serve and even to give his life self-sacrificially. (Matthew 20:25-28) Because a king's reign reveals his character. Does he reign to benefit himself or his subjects?

And, sure enough, Jesus did not demonstrate his kingship by oppressing others but by freeing them from disease, death and the demons that bedeviled them. He didn't bring people into God's kingdom by threatening to harm them but by offering to heal them. He didn't persuade them by merely making them promises but by actually making them healthy and whole.

And he sent out his followers to do the same. They weren't to conquer people in his name but to cure people through the power of his name. He did not send them out as predators but as sheep into the midst of wolves. He wanted them to be thoughtful but not harmful. Because harm is what evil brings. Evil is deliberately destructive; good concentrates on being constructive. Evil intentionally makes things worse for some to benefit a few; good seeks to make things better for everyone. As his disciples, we are to be agents of healing and help. The world has quite enough people doing the opposite.

And his disciples were to do this relying only on God. They were supposed to travel light: no money, no luggage, no extra clothes or sandals, no staff that could be used as a weapon. They were to trust God for whatever they needed. They were to trust him to put trustworthy people in their path, who would put them up and feed them. If people rejected them, they were to simply move on and let God deal with them.

People who follow Jesus will meet opposition. Because proclaiming that God is the ultimate authority means the local or national rulers are not. Some of that opposition will even come from people who supposedly share the same religion as Jesus' followers because they do not actually recognize the God of love, justice and mercy revealed in Jesus. Even today we have people who identify as Christians who, upon hearing Christ's own words, consider them weak and woke. Others see him as too rigid and harsh about things that have become acceptable to modern society. All applaud him where he says something they like and ignore him where he says something they don't like. It's not called the good news because it's what we want to hear but because it's what we need to hear if we wish to become spiritually healthy.

Today we live in a world that is in many ways safer than it was in Jesus' day. Poverty rates around the world have gone down significantly over the last several decades. Death rates for major chronic and infectious diseases have plummeted, as well as deaths from disasters. Overdose deaths have also declined recently. And a lot of that progress is due to the fact that the values that Jesus preached have become accepted as the basic values of modern civilizations, as historian Tom Holland points out. We have charities and non-profits which, even if not Christian, help the hungry, the thirsty, the resident alien, the sick, the imprisoned and the oppressed. In many of the world's governments there are departments that help the poor and work to make society more just and fair.

And yet in every state of the U.S preventable deaths are rising, according to a study by the Brown University School of Public Health. We are talking about things like illnesses preventable by vaccines, treatable conditions like sepsis and appendicitis, and conditions that can be prevented by early detection and treatment like certain cancers, heart disease and tuberculosis. These are increasing and it's not because of lack of money spent. The U.S. spends more per capita on healthcare than any other high income nation. We are not getting the biggest bang for our buck because our healthcare system is largely for profit. What your doctor prescribes for you in terms of medication, surgery or treatments can be vetoed by your insurance company so that they can keep the money you pay them in premiums. That is, if you have insurance. Around 27 million Americans do not have health insurance. The vast majority of these are adults in working, low-income families.

All the other nations in the study use one of 5 different systems to cover their whole populations. Not all are provided by their governments, but in all of them, insurance companies are non-profit. And as we see in our gospel reading, when Jesus sent his disciples out to heal others, he did not want them to be in it for the money. (Matthew 10:8) Yet our healthcare system has gone as far as possible in the opposite direction. The majority of bankruptcies in this country—66.5%—are for medical debt. Does that make sense in a nation that considers itself Christian?

I think one of the problems is that people in this country have forgotten why these diseases and causes of death once went down: because once we shared the belief that we should help one another, including the poor, the sick and the stranger, something Jesus taught. Now we are much more concerned with trying to weed out everyone we feel does not deserve to be helped, in contradiction to what Jesus said. (Matthew 5:42) We have forgotten the fact that we are saved, not because we deserve it, but because of God's grace, his undeserved, unreserved goodness towards us. And we have forgotten that we are to extend that grace to others.

Jesus taught people the characteristics of God's kingdom, preached the good news that in him the kingdom had come near, and healed all who came to him as evidence of the reign of the God who is love. He commissioned his disciples, his students, to go and do the same. Are we spreading the reign of his kingdom in those ways or are we trying to seize the reins of power for ourselves? Are we motivated by selfish ambitions so that we do not care if others get harmed by what we do? Do we only care about ourselves and to hell with those we don't know or love? (Matthew 5:46-48) Or are we like Jesus, who, “when he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd”?

Jesus saw people suffering from disease and he did not stop to argue about if they were to blame or not. (John 9:1-7) Instead he was moved to heal them. Jesus saw a world of people suffering from sin and he did not condemn us to suffer the consequences of our destructive and self-destructive thoughts, words and actions. (John 3:17) Instead he gave his life to save us from spiritual sickness and eternal death. Looking at the world today, what would Jesus do? And if we are Christ's body on earth, and if he reigns in our hearts, minds and lives, what should we do?

A Faith Observed

The scriptures referred to are Hosea 5:15-6:6, Psalm 50:7-15, Romans 4:13-25 and Matthew 9:9-13. 18-26.

“You see but you do not observe. The distinction is clear.” It's one of the most famous quotations of Sherlock Holmes. Holmes pays close attention to things like the state of a person's hat or shoes to deduce less obvious things about people, like the state of their marriage or the clumsiness of their servant. One time Holmes watches Watson for a few minutes and tells him accurately what his friend's train of thought was. But Holmes cannot really read minds. Like all of us, he looks at external things and tries to work out what is going on inside the heads of others. He may be better at interpreting those clues than even a doctor like Watson but not always. He even tells Watson that if he ever gets over confident in his powers, to keep him humble Watson should whisper the word “Norbury” in his ear to remind him of a case where Holmes was completely wrong.

One of the problems with social media is that it is largely visual and people can mislead you on the real state of their lives by posting pictures of them having fun when they are actually depressed, or looking affectionate with their spouse when their relationship is in trouble, or seemingly living in luxury when they really aren't. Instagram influencers have been known to rent a fancy house for a weekend so they can take lots of pictures of them lounging at a pool, cooking in a dream kitchen or showing off an enormous and beautifully decorated living room or bedroom, to appear as if they are wealthy or are at an expensive resort. As any magician knows, it is very easy to fool the eyes.

But God is not fooled. He does not judge by appearance but looks at the heart of the person. (1 Samuel 16:7) As we see in our Old Testament readings, God is not impressed by empty acts of piety. In Hosea he says, “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” In Psalm 50, he says, “Do you think I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer to God a sacrifice of thanksgiving and make good your vows to the Most High.” And yet even today people think that all they have to do is speak certain words and do certain rituals, and they can get God on their side. This allows them to justify doing terrible things in God's name and feel that they are doing his will. Or that they can willfully sin one day and go through some act of penance or mumble some prayer the next day and God will forgive them...until the next time they deliberately do something they know they shouldn't.

In the book of Hosea the prophet uses the example of his own marriage to a prostitute to illustrate how the people of Israel have been unfaithful to God. They go through the motions but they are careless as to whether they are sacrificing to God or to Baal, the Canaanite god. (Hosea 2:13; 8:11) They ignore God's law. (Hosea 8:12) The prophet says, “Hear the word of the Lord, you Israelites! For the Lord has a covenant lawsuit against the people of Israel. For there is neither faithfulness nor loyalty in the land, nor do they acknowledge God. There is only cursing, lying, murder, stealing and adultery. They resort to violence and bloodshed.” (Hosea 4:1-2) As usual, ignoring the greatest commandment, to love God, leads to ignoring the second greatest, to love one's neighbor, who, after all, was created in God's image. (Matthew 22:36-40)

Rather than trusting in God and relying on him, the people were trusting in and relying on their godless rulers who made golden idols (Hosea 8:5-6; cf. 1 Kings 12:28-30), the advisers to the rulers who became drunk with wine and with power (Hosea 7:3-5), their military (Hosea 1:4-5) and alliances made through trade (Hosea 7:11). Spiritually, they trusted in false prophets and priests to guide them. (Hosea 4:4-10)

But as Hosea takes back his adulterous wife, God will take back his people if they truly repent and turn back to him and his ways. Hosea's final chapter says, “Return, O Israel, to the Lord your God, for your sin has been your downfall! Take words with you and return to the Lord. Say to him: 'Forgive all our sins and receive us graciously, that we may offer the fruit of our lips. Assyria cannot save us; we will not ride warhorses. We will never again say, “our gods” to what our own hands have made. For in you the fatherless find compassion.'” And God replies, 'I will heal their waywardness and love them freely, for my anger has turned away from them.'” (Hosea 14:1-4)

God is always willing to forgive us if we truly repent. Unlike what some think, God's desire is not for sinners to burn in hell but for sinners to turn to him. (Ezekiel 33:11) A doctor doesn't want the sick to die but to get better. But they can't do that if their patients don't change the unhealthy way they live and follow doctor's orders. And God can't save those who won't let him. God is love and love requires the consent of the beloved.

A word that pops up 6 times in Hosea and 248 times in the entire Old Testament is the Hebrew word khesed. It is variously translated as kindness, mercy, steadfast love, loyalty, faithfulness and goodness. It is what God pledges to show to his people and what he expects from them in return. (Hosea 2:19; 12:6) It is the word used in the last verse of our reading from Hosea: “For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings.” (Hosea 6:6) This steadfast love and knowledge of God are intimately connected. As it says in Jeremiah, “For my people are foolish. They do not know me. They are like children who have no sense. They have no understanding. They are skilled at doing evil. They do not know how to do good.” (Jeremiah 4:22) To know God is to know his goodness, his kindness, his mercy, his steadfast love and faithfulness and to reciprocate and mirror his nature, the way children imitate their parents.

Of course, children have to learn to trust their parents. Some human parents prove themselves to be untrustworthy and that can damage their kids' ability to trust others. If they have learned not to trust their parents or other authority figures, they will often have trouble trusting God. However, most people, if they have a bad experience with a doctor, will not give up on all doctors but seek out a good one. But all too often those who have a bad experience in a church or with church leaders will lose their faith in God. As Jesus said, “But if anyone causes one of these little ones who believe in me to stumble, it would be better for him to have a huge millstone hung around his neck and to be drowned in the depths of the sea.” (Matthew 18:6) That's why those who teach the gospel, and are seen as representatives of God, are held to a higher standard. (James 3:1) When they stumble, they can destroy the faith of others.

The foundation of any healthy relationship is trust. And I think “trust” is a better rendering of the Greek word pistis, which is translated “faith” in our passages from Romans and Matthew. The same is true of the Hebrew word aman in Genesis 15:6. When you use the word “trust” the question naturally arises “Trust in what or in whom?” And it is trust in God that is the channel through which we receive salvation. That is why God took Abraham's trust in him as righteousness. Because pistis means not only “faith” but “faithfulness.” It means not only trusting God to do his part but him being able to trust you to do yours. If you truly trust God, you will do as he says, in the same way that you do if you trust your doctor. As a nurse I have seen patients who put themselves in their doctor's care and then did things that went against their doctor's orders, like smoke when they were being treated for emphysema or drink when their doctor was treating them for cirrhosis of the liver. It looks like they didn't really believe their doctor. And you can't save someone who is working against you. Neither can God.

A healthy relationship with God begins with trust. Abraham trusted God and believed his promises. He believed God's promise to give him a son and heir, even though he and his wife were so old it seemed impossible. He believed God's promise to give him a multitude of descendants, though that did not happen in his lifetime. Abraham believed God's promise that through him all the families of earth would be blessed, though he didn't live to see that happen through his descendant Jesus Christ. (Genesis 12:3; John 8:56) Because he trusted God, God was able to work through him.

And it doesn't take an extraordinary amount of faith for God to work in and through you. A man who brought his son to Jesus to be healed says, “If you are able to do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” Then Jesus said to him, “If you are able? All things are possible for the one who trusts.” Immediately the father of the boy cried out, “I do trust; help my lack of trust.” But that small amount of trust in Christ was enough for Jesus to work with and heal his son. (Mark 9:14-27) And in today's gospel, we see that once again, Jesus was able to revive a dead girl because of her father's trust in Jesus' ability to do so. (Matthew 9:18) Similarly, while disappointed that Jesus didn't come sooner, Martha trusts him to raise her brother Lazarus from the dead. (John 11:21-27)

Paul tells us that 500 people saw Jesus after his resurrection. (1 Corinthians 15:3-6) I imagine that, in addition to his family, the disciples, and the seventy he sent out to announce the good news to the towns he was about to visit, the crowd was also made up of those who were healed by him and who responded by trusting and following him. And we are here today because the witness of their faith and their faithfulness convinced others to trust in Jesus and follow him.

Unlike God, we cannot see into the hearts of others and see what they are really like. However Sherlock Holmes, and Dr. Joseph Bell, the medical instructor upon whom Arthur Conan Doyle based his detective, could figure out what a person did for a living by observing their hands, coat sleeves, shirt cuffs, the knees of their pants and their shoes. And we can get clues to what people are like by how they live. Jesus said, “For from within, out of the human heart, come evil ideas, sexual immorality, theft, murders, adultery, greed, malice, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness.” (Mark 7:21-22) These actions are the symptoms of a spiritually sick human heart.

Fortunately, God wants to heal us, as it says in Hosea 6:1. As Jesus says in today's gospel, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick.” Then he quotes Hosea “I desire mercy, not sacrifice.” Finally, he identifies himself as the Great Physician, stating, “For I have not come to call the righteous but sinners.” That includes all of us, a fact that, ironically, the Pharisees did not see in themselves. As Paul said, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. But they are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.” (Romans 3:23-24)

There is hope for us because of what God has done for us through Jesus. Because of his great self-sacrificial love for us demonstrated by his death on the cross, we can trust him. And if we trust him, we will let him work on us and through us by his Spirit, who heals us. It can take time, like someone recovering from surgery and taking physical therapy in order to learn to walk again. Our goal is to learn to walk with God. It won't be easy. Jesus said, “If anyone wants to be my follower, they must deny themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow me.” (Luke 9:23) Remember, Jesus' cross wasn't the weight of his own everyday problems. He carried that cross for us. And our cross is the burden of helping others by doing good and spreading the good news. As Paul said, “Carry one another's burdens, and in this way you will fulfill the law of Christ.” (Galatians 6:2)

Appearances can be deceiving but what a person is will eventually and inevitably come out in how they think, speak and act. If we trust in the God who is revealed in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus, and give control of our life to his Holy Spirit, it will be reflected in our lives. But because we do not know the seriousness of the spiritual sickness each person is battling with, we cannot pass judgment on their salvation. (Matthew 7:1-5) But we can judge whether certain actions and words build up or tear down those who are trying to follow Jesus. (Romans 14:19; Ephesians 4:29; 1 Thessalonians 5:11) And we need to see that our words and actions are consistent with our professed trust in Jesus as our Savior and Lord. Because it doesn't take Sherlock Holmes to spot hypocrisy. And you can be sure that the world will judge us on what they observe in our lives. And what they see can attract them to trust and follow Jesus or repel them from him. So when you look at your life, ask yourself this: if being a Christian was made illegal, would there be enough evidence to convict you?