There are so many different things that one can learn on a farm, that it’s not surprising that there is some generational wisdom that is often passed down from one generation to the next. There are many different points I could give on how dad instructed us to be successful on the farm, but one that I found particularly true was this: never judge by appearances. One of the foremost examples of this was my experience with some of our tractors. Now, the newer tractors that we’ve had- they look great! They are spiffy, they have their paint, and they have a more modern design. The older ones show that they’ve got some hours on them! They are missing paint, or it has at least faded substantially. There may be a few parts missing here and there, perhaps a few dents and dings. Yet, it isn’t really about appearances, because one thing has remained constant: the older tractors work. The newer tractors were often finicky, or they had expensive parts fail regularly, while the older ones just kept going.
Now, this isn’t a piece of wisdom just relegated to the farm, to be sure. We’ve probably all been told that countless times, especially when someone scores a goal who doesn’t look athletic at all, or perhaps that one soft-spoken child in the classroom raises his hand and blows everyone away with a profound insight. What is in all of this? Why is it that appearances are reliable? Is it something in our assessment- or is it that God isn’t asking us to assess things at all- and we are partaking in something we shouldn’t?
The first reading this morning comes from the book of Sirach. This book falls into a category of literature considered the “wisdom books” because it deals with right living, and the ways of prudence, and justice. Now, it also gives a very Christian context to all of this in laying out the way that God exists in relation to all of us. We are first instructed “The Lord is a God of justice, who knows no favorites.” Right off the bat, we are experiencing proof that God is not human. Often, in our lives, we struggle with knowing our favorites, just because that is part of our social fabric. Yet, God does not. Further, we are told that “He hears the cry of the oppressed.” He is not deaf to the wail of the orphan, nor the widow. The one who serves God is willingly heard.
The heart of this entire reading can likely be taken out of this line: “The prayer of the lowly pierces the clouds, it does not rest till it reaches its goal.” This is all very fascinating, because it almost seems to fly in the face of reason. One might be tempted to think that a different perspective would be more fitting. Yet, it is the prayer of the lowly one and the most destitute that gains God’s attention. It is not based on the wealth, or the fame, or anything that a person has, but it is based off of something so different. Yet, what is God looking for here? Why is He not seeing things the same way that we would?
When we move on to Saint Paul and his second letter to Timothy, we are given a familiar scene of Saint Paul that we have heard of before- that there is a sort of affliction at hand. Yet, while that may be the issue at hand, there is more to the story, to be sure. Yet, think about all of the other things we have heard Saint Paul speaking of in the last few weeks. He has spoken about prayer. He has spoken about faith. He has spoken about the need to persist in proclaiming the Gospel. What happens when all of these things reach their end? What happens when we finally conclude all of this work?
In the words of Paul, we should be able to await something glorious- the crown of righteousness. We should be able to say we have competed well, we have finished the race, and even kept the faith. Here is the thing that Paul remembers. He may have been poured out like a libation. He may have had every sort of affliction. He may be in a poor way right now. Yet, what keeps him balanced and in the proper view of things? The fact that the Lord has been his strength the entire time. It wasn’t just about what Paul was able to do- but rather, what God was able to do through Him.
Finally, we arrive at the Gospel, and hear a parable concerning two entirely different individuals. We are told- “Two people went up to the temple area to pray; one was a Pharisee and the other was a tax collector.” Already, there is a presumably very stark contrast between the two! Yet, what really gives us insight to the critical difference is not on the external, but the internal! We are first allowed to listen to the prayer of the Pharisee. It becomes very apparent quite quickly that He is very self-righteous. He is busy setting himself apart from all of the rest of humanity- that he isn’t struggling with big or public sins. He isn’t like them. Not even like this tax collector! He fasts, he tithes, it seems that he has it all together!
Yet, there is another side present in the tax collector. This man seems unpresuming. He is very simple. He prays very quietly to himself, and very humbly. What is his prayer? All of one sentence. “O God, be merciful to me a sinner.” That’s it. There is nothing very flashy about that at all! Very simple, and very plain! Yet, what does Jesus say about all of this? Who went home justified? The latter or the former? On face value, or on appearances, it seems that the former has it all together! He is closer to God than all the rest- and he is very interested in making sure that all of the rest of humanity knows just how good he is! Yet, that is not the one that is justified, is it? It is rather the unpresuming and very humble one!
Maybe God isn’t bent on appearances after all.
The reality of the Gospel presented to us this weekend, my brothers and sisters, shows us many important things that we should remember when it comes to our relationship with God: the core of it is that we cannot gain God’s mercy upon our own. If we are looking for mercy, by definition it is going to be something handed out to us very freely! It is not something we can call down from heaven ourselves. Rather it is a gift freely given, but it requires something more. That is where we need these essential things.
First, we need humility. We need to have the ability to look at things in an honest and fair way. Look again at the two men present in the temple that day. The first one had the ability to think about things in a way that was only serving to him. In fact, it seems questionable whether he was actually speaking to God- or simply speaking to himself. It really seems that he has no need of God, whereas the other person- the tax collector, completely relies upon God. He needs God in a very real way, and even the way that he talks to God manifests that!
Second, we need to have the gift of trust. If you go back to Saint Paul and the way that he encountered all of his difficulties and all of the different things going on in his life, he didn’t give up on God’s plan. He, in fact, pressed on even more eagerly to the goal. He may have been poured out like a libation, but in the end, he still trusted in God’s plan for salvation for his life. He worked, prayed, and preached even more diligently, so that, even in the midst of those difficult moments, he could still hope in the fact that he was competing well to gain the prize of salvation.
Finally, we need vulnerability. Often times in life, we want to appear that we have it all together. To keep things in a good appearance, even though in reality we may not be feeling all that great, or may not have things as together as it might appear. If we want to truly have life together, we need the ability to let the Lord in- just as that tax collector did. The tax collector wasn’t afraid to let God have access to his soul- and we know this because he doesn’t highlight how righteous he is, but he rather emphasizes how he wants to let God into those sinful areas instead. If we want true healing and to make true progress in our lives, it isn’t about making ourselves look like we are okay, but it is about allowing God into the places where it isn’t.
Tractors provide a great service on the farm- but they are more than just something we look at. Rather, it is what is at the core that counts. We cannot afford to judge by appearances like the Pharisee did that day, but we should look at the reality of where we are and where we want to be. Perhaps, if we live this way, we will find ourselves saying what Paul did: I have compete well; I have finished the race.”
