Seeing is Not Always Believing
They – whoever “they” are – will tell you that “seeing is believing.”
Another version of the same principle is, “I’ll believe it when I see it.”
Perhaps the best-known variation of this expression comes from the
1996 movie “Jerry Maguire”, in which Cuba Gooding Junior says,
“Show me the money!”
Our reading today from Matthew’s account of the Gospel brings us to
Jesus in the temple courtyard, where He is challenged once again by
the chief priests and elders: “By what authority are you doing these
things?”
They were speaking of His driving out the crooked money-changers
and merchants in the Temple, healing the blind and people who could
not walk, and killing an unproductive tree.
Jesus wasn’t going to walk into their trap just yet – so He answered
their question with another question: Where did John (the Baptist) get
the authority to baptize from: heaven or from humans?
Of course, they couldn’t say “from heaven” because they didn’t heed
John’s warnings – and they could not admit to ignoring someone sent
by God. And they couldn’t say “from humans” because they would
offend John’s numerous faithful followers.
So they had to admit, “We don’t know.” And Jesus told them in so
many words, “And I’m not going to tell you.”
Who can blame Jesus? The religious elites had heard plenty about
His miracles and His remarkable teaching – so they could have
reasonably concluded that He was the Son of God – the long-awaited
Messiah. But their hearts were so hard that they could see Jesus right
in front of them – but not see that He was the One they had been
waiting for.
In our Hebrew Bible reading today, we hear how the people of Israel
were far from home – captives of a pagan emperor in Babylon. They
were searching for a ray of light, but all they could see was darkness
around them.
Then God sent the prophet Ezekiel to tell them to stop blaming their
ancestors for their predicament – they were suffering because of their
own sins. He could not have been more clear than his declaration:
“The soul who sins is the one who will die.”
But he was also clear in describing the righteous man: “who does what
is just and right. He does not eat at (pagan) mountain shrines or look
to the idols of the people of Israel.” He does not commit adultery with
his neighbor’s wife, he does not oppress anyone, he returns what
people give him as security when they pay off their loans, he does not
rob or steal, he gives food and clothing to the poor, he does not charge
excessive interest, he renders fair judgments, he obeys God’s
commands and laws,” and God says that man “will surely live.”
That obedience shows true faith and repentance – a transformed life -
not titles, outward appearance, or words that sound good but lack
sincerity.
Our culture tells us that seeing is believing, but spiritual reality is often
very different from appearances. How many people look righteous,
spout holy-sounding words, and hold positions of religious authority,
yet remain far from God's heart.
In our reading from Ezekiel, God tells the Israelites in exile that they
cannot blame past generations for their current suffering. They are
individually responsible for their own behavior and need to undergo a
genuine change of heart.
In our reading from Matthew, Jesus confronts the chief priests and
elders in the Temple after his entry into Jerusalem – and later chases
out the crooked merchants and money-changers in the Temple.
Their religious practice may have been in keeping with the Law –
but their hearts were not in it. They were going through the motions.
They showed no fruit of heartfelt obedience and repentance – and God
was not fooled by their public displays of piety. In order to keep up the
charade, they challenge Jesus, "By what authority are you doing these
things?"
That was a ridiculous question. They had seen His miracles and heard
His Scripture-based teaching, but they could not see who Jesus really
was because they were blinded by the need for self-preservation and
authority.
We see that clearly when Jesus responds with a question about the
validity of John the Baptist’s ministry, the leaders weigh their answer
based on what they public would think rather than truth ("If we say...
he will say..."). They wind up admitting that Jesus has them over a
proverbial barrel: “We don’t know,” they tell Him.
And Jesus responds, “So I’m not going to tell you where I get my
authority.” Then, He starts telling one of His best-know parables:
“The Man with Two Sons”. You all know how that one goes.
The landowner asks his first son to work in the family vineyard, but the
son tells him no. He later changes his mind and goes to work after all.
The father asked the second son to work in the vineyard, and he says,
“Sure, Dad!” but doesn’t show up for work.
Jesus’s question for the religious leaders sounds very simple:
“Which son did what his father wanted him to do?” Obviously, it was
the first one – the one whose actions were obedient, even if his words
were disobedient. The second son talked a good game, but did not
deliver.
The tax collectors and prostitutes – whose sins were well-known by the
public – nevertheless responded to Jesus’s call to repentance. The
religious elite made a great show of their piety, but they thought they
didn’t need to repent – they were already good in their own minds.
However, their hearts were far from God.
As was the case with the people of Israel in our reading from Ezekiel’s
prophecy. They were engaging in idolatry and adultery, oppressing the
poor and needy, robbing and cheating people. God declares that they
will be held accountable for their sins.
But their children will NOT be punished for the sins of their parents.
They will have an opportunity to live holy lives, blameless lives, and
enjoy God’s blessings.
The invitation in Ezekiel 18 is clear: “If a wicked man turns away from
the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he
will save his life.”
Unfortunately for the religious leadership of Jesus’s day, they looked
holy but refused to repent. On top of that, they were incensed by
Jesus’s embrace of sinners – which often led them to repent.
The Scribes and Pharisees and Sadducees are the older brother in the
parable. The younger brother is the schmuck (to use a good Yiddish
word) who realizes his foolishness and sin, repents, and comes back
home to his father – where he is welcomed with open arms.
The older brother – who is still going to inherit his father’s land and
livestock and money – pouts and says, “That’s not fair!” – which is also
schmuck-like behavior. But the father cannot help but celebrate the
return of the prodigal son.
The Scribes, Pharisees, and Sadducees had worked very hard to keep
the Law God gave to Moses – to the point of twisting it into a pretzel to
allow them to get around regulations they didn’t like. They were very
unhappy with Jesus’s suggestion that the Spirit of the Law was more
important than the Letter of the Law.
Essentially, it came down to a question about the human heart: do we
love God and love others, or do we love to do what we love to do and
will do anything to make ourselves feel better about our actions?
Seeing is not always believing. Both of our readings today call for us
to experience an internal transformation that moves us to outward
obedience. It tells us that the ultimate question we must ask ourselves
is, “Which son am I?” If we don’t like the answer, will we turn around
and head back home to our loving Heavenly Father?