14 December 2021
Memorial of Saint John of the Cross, Priest and Doctor of the Church
Jesus has not yet given up on the chief priests and scribes; He truly does desire to reveal the deeper truth of Himself to them, but they so far have refused to open themselves to receive it. In yesterday’s Gospel they played it safe and did not answer Jesus’ question about whether the baptism of John was of human or divine origin; silence, to them, was the wise response. Today Jesus exposes their pride, pointing out their rejection of John the Baptist and those the very people they condemn as sinners—tax collectors and prostitutes—accepted John. They are like the son in the parable that says “Yes, sir” but does not go to labor in the field. The tax collectors and prostitutes are like the son who says, “I will not” but later does. Not realizing Jesus means to help them see their hypocrisy they express their opinion that the initially disobedient son ends up doing the Father’s will: inadvertently they end up proving Jesus’ point that those they reject are more obedient to God than even these great religious leaders. For though such sinners initially rejected God’s will in the Law, they later came to believe in Jesus through the preaching of John; they have come at last to do God’s will. The chief priests and the scribes, in rejecting John and thus Jesus, have said “Yes, sir” to God by doing the works of the Law for the Law’s sake, rather than for love of Him.
How easily we can judge the virtue of another’s soul, not realizing that perhaps they are further along or are perhaps simply struggling to follow God right away, but with prayer and encouragement might yet come to repentance and conversion. How often does each of us resolve to do something, anything, for the greater glory of God and yet fail to carry out that resolution? Often! But do not give up in frustration; God is patient, and Jesus will find a way to help us become obedient children of the Most High God.