5th Sunday after Pentecost 14.7.19 Charity
When David went into battle with Goliath he had only a
slingshot while Goliath had all the usual weapons. A bookmaker would have said
that Goliath was the favourite. But David was the winner.
When Christ came into the world He had no weapons; only a
message to give. The world was in the grip of the prince of darkness and for
the most part did not want His message.
They put Him to death trying to silence Him; but He rose
again and His message, His word, lives
on.
The world, with all its military power, could not kill the
Word of God.
Our Lord instructs us to love our enemies, to forgive those
who offend us. This makes us feel like we are walking into the lion’s den. I
might love them – we say - but they do not love me! They will kill me if I try
to get them to respond to Christ’s Gospel.
This at least is what we fear – that the message of love
will not work, and it might get us killed.
Then we remember how many times the result has been
different from this; that in fact the victory has been achieved, despite all
appearances.
The very existence of the Church after so much persecution
reminds us of the power of heavenly assistance.
Even if the messenger is killed, there is Resurrection. Evil
thinks it has won the day, but there is Our Lord again, even more alive than
before. There are the countless martyrs, resplendent after their brief ordeal.
This is not only a physical triumph, but a moral one as
well. It means that Good can absorb anything evil can throw at it, and still
prevail.
All the Davids of the world can overcome all the Goliaths,
simply by trusting in the word of God and the power that goes with that.
It means that we can return love for hate and still come out
on top.
In fact we must do this, because otherwise we will not have
access to the power of Christ.
We will overcome only if we do things His way.
If we fight fire with fire; if we curse those who curse us;
if we generally operate by worldly standards – it will not work; we will be as
miserable as anyone else.
The Church is meant to be the leaven in the bread; we have
to show the world a better way.
This is the way referred to in today’s epistle: being
merciful, modest, humble, not returning evil for evil, but blessing; refraining
the tongue, seeking after peace.
And in the Gospel, not only not killing physically but not
hating either, not even thinking about killing.
This is demanding, but it is the best way forward.
It is not weakness but strength to rise above the usual
currents; not just flowing downstream but going up instead, to where the power
comes from.
The saints show this in action. They could achieve so much
because they were linked with Christ, used His methods and followed His plan.
They risked their lives, and even lost their lives, for the
sake of the glory that lay beyond – the glory of Heaven, and the glory of earth
wherever Christ is obeyed.
It has to be done this way. The way of the Cross. And then
Resurrection. We look and feel like underdogs, and yet we come out on top, not
only surviving but winning.
We resist all temptations to be cynical about the power of
God to change things. Evil has been embedded for a long time, and it shows its
influence everywhere. Nevertheless, we see the much greater power of God
prevailing.
So far it has looked like we were living in a jungle. We
have to turn that jungle into a garden, well-ordered and peaceful.
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