Why Does God Choose Sinners to do His Works?
Look carefully at today’s readings, (5th Sunday of Ordinary Time Year C) especially the first and the Gospel. During Ordinary Time, these two readings always have a connection.
In the first reading from Isaiah, which we believe is from Isaiah himself, notice he acknowledges his sinfulness but an angel prepares him, nevertheless. The reason is that God is more powerful than our sinfulness. We see the same dynamic in the Gospel, immediately Peter begged Jesus to leave him because he was a sinful man. Jesus ignores his plea and continues to use him.
Need we be perfect?
Many years ago, a man spoke to me of his struggle with one of the phrases of the Bible in which we must be perfect as our heavenly father is perfect. Here we see two imperfect people acknowledged sinners whom God uses for his most powerful work: Isaiah one of the major prophets and Peter the first pope.
This is an important principle that many do not know of the faith. God uses sinners to do his work because only his son and Mary were sinless. Everyone else he used were sinners. Many will tell you that sinners go to Hell. All those in Heaven are sinners too. So, what is the issue with sin?
St. Paul also acknowledges his sinfulness and that he too is a sinner despite being God’s great Apostle.
The Council of Trent also says sinful and even evil people can do miracles in God’s name. So, the idea that God cuts off his relationship with those who sin is completely wrong.
We have to understand what the truth is here.
First, God does not call the perfect but the sinners. The next time you say that your sinfulness makes you unable to do the work God calls you to do, realize that this flies in the face of the Gospel. God will work through even the worst of all sinners. The obvious question then is why should we avoid sin? Think of sin as a form of ignorance. The most sinful person can do great work in their jobs, they can be great artists, construction workers, CEOs, janitors, etc. However, the great worker who seeks to draw closer to Christ by turning from sin, will also be great person who channels God’s love and mercy. This is the difference.
Sometime look at the biographies of our nation’s greatest inventors. We look at the marvels that we use because of their innovative skill but when we read their stories, we learn they were often quite nasty to people.
God can work through the worst of all sinners but the more we seek to draw closer to God, the more we see God in our midst.
I believe it was Thomas Merton who taught the perfection God asks of us is not to be perfect people in general but perfect models of love and mercy. It is the one who seeks to avoid sin and become a channel of God’s grace who will grow in his ability to be an agent of love and mercy. This is the difference. God can work miracles through the greatest of all sinners. However, the more one turns from sin, the more one will walk away from selfishness. The selfless become paragons of love and mercy. The sinful hero does not.
Our turning from sin while we seek to draw closer to Christ leads us to grow in our ability to love the most unlovable who seeks to know the mercy of God.
The great artist may not understand love and mercy
The great artist may not be able to lay down his life in the name of love and mercy. The great artist who seeks to draw closer to Christ will happily do this. That is the radical difference.
This is also the point of the sacraments, that help us in our desire to be transformed in Christ. They are tools the Lord gives us to grow in holiness. They lead us to be aware of our sin and to in the confessional ask the Lord to transform our sinfulness into holiness allowing us to change our way of being.
This is the radical difference.
This whole understanding is lost by those who teach we must avoid sin to get to Heaven. Therefore, you will hear them teach of sins that get you cast into Hell, sins that lead God to turn his back on you. There really is no such thing. Even the worst of all sinners can be an agent of God. However, our turning from sin makes us signs of mercy.
Love and mercy vs right and wrong
A local math professor who is one of the world’s renown atheists teaches that you do not have to believe in God to know right from wrong. That is true. I always say just because someone is an atheist does not mean that he is by default a murderer. However, it is the person who seeks to love God and neighbor who can show mercy to the worst of all people. The person who can live a life that transforms others through mirroring of God’s love and mercy. An atheist cannot do this because an atheist does not have the model to be able to do this.
There was a nationally televised debate with atheists and Christians. The atheists tried to disprove God and the Christians tried to prove his existence. The atheists stated that the Christians could not use the Bible. The one sticking point? The Christian concept of forgiveness. The atheists could not accept this.
We need to be people of prayer, as I always teach. We can stay close to the sacraments which I also teach but this is not so that we can receive communion or go to Heaven. It is so that we may show love and mercy as God shows it to us. God can lead anyone to do miracles. However, only when we seek to be like God himself can we mirror his love and mercy.
Fr. Robert J Carr is pastor of St. Anthony Parish in Allston, MA
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The newest edition of Fr Robert J Carr's latest book is now available. Christ in Our Humanity. You can find it here.