Active Righteousness

Jim:

Amos 5:6-15
Verse 11 is typical in its indictment of the unrighteous. “Therefore because you trample on the poor and take from them levies of grain, you have built houses of hewn stone, but you shall not live in them; you have planted pleasant vineyards, but you shall not drink their wine.” The judgment of God is sure and certain. Those who have denied basic dignity to others and have taken advantage of their plight will, in turn, find themselves overthrown and oppressed. Those who have put all their effort in caring for themselves and who have shown no regard for others will be punished.

Hebrews 12:1-14
Hebrews offers an alternative to the evil decried by Amos: “Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord” (verse 14). Righteousness is not simply the absence of evil. It is an active pursuit of that which is good and it requires one to seek it out and to engage in it. We are not simply to avoid what is bad, but to do what is good. We are not simply to keep from hurting the poor, but we are to seek them out and offer help and support. “Lord, when was it that we saw you…?” ask the sheep in Matthew 25? “Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me,” answers the King. Pursuing peace and holiness, then, is a believers calling.

Luke 18:9-14
One’s attitude before God is also important. The “punch line” to this familiar story in Luke really sums up all three readings for the day: “…for all who exalt themselves will be humbled, but all who humble themselves will be exalted.” The kingdom of God, then, is built “upside down” in human terms with the meek and lowly lifted up and the proud and arrogant brought low. It is a theme that Luke uses elsewhere, for example in Mary’s words in Luke 1:52, “(God) has brought down the powerful from their thrones, and lifted up the lowly….” To stand with God is to stand with the poor and oppressed and to work to meet their needs rather than taking advantage of their plight or even ignoring it and hoping it goes away.