Do you recognize God at work in the world around you?
When, in the Book of the Prophet Isaiah, God calls upon Cyrus, the King of Persia, to return the people of Israel to their lands, the gesture is extraordinary: a foreign king is being called by name to achieve God’s ends, and so Cyrus sends the people back to Israel with the wherewithal to rebuild. Moreover, God is explicit about God’s own role in this project: it is I who arm you, though you know me not. When God works through Cyrus to benefit the people of Israel, God makes it very clear that the power lies with God: I am the Lord, there is no other. God wants the people to know that there is none besides God who merits the glory and honor referred to in Psalm 96. The people are to sing to the Lord a new song, one not sung before, from a place they haven’t been before, from a place of understanding and appreciation for all that God has done and continues to do, in holy attire, prepared, heart open, ready to do good. Psalm 96 calls for an intentional recognition of God at work in the world around us.
The Pharisees and Herodians, on the other hand, do not recognize God at work in the world around them, not even with Jesus standing right before their eyes. When, in Matthew’s Gospel, they test Jesus, asking, Is it lawful to pay the census tax to Caesar or not?, the Pharisees and Herodians are failing to recognize God’s hand in Jesus, failing to give God his due. Jesus’ reply goes to the heart of this: repay to Caesar what belongs to Caesar and to God what belongs to God. Remain focused on God, in other words, see what God is doing in the world right in front of you, keep God ever before you. God blesses us by being with us in good and in bad; we must be open to the revelation, open to God acting in ways we might not expect. We see in Paul’s First Letter to the Thessalonians that the early Christian community exists in union with Christ, and through Christ in God: Grace to you and peace, Paul says to them – may God dwell among you and bring you peace. The gospel came to them not in word alone, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit; the Thessalonians responded to God’s call in the affirmative, ever aware of God at work in the world around them. We are called to no less.
This post is based on Fr. Pat’s Scripture Class.
Image source: www.wordclouds.com
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