Love Beyond Human Understanding

Jesus said, “The last will be first and the first will be last.”

I think when Jesus told the disciples this parable, it probably completely blew their mind.  I’m sure they were thinking, "what is he talking about?  You don’t reward someone for being lazy.  You don’t reward someone for being irresponsible.  That’s not how the world works."  

And that was precisely Jesus’ point. That’s not how the world works, but God’s ways are not our ways.  God’s love for us is so great, so different from what we would ever expect, that it is something we can barely imagine and will never fully understand.  Based on what we expect from the world we live in, some might that say God’s love for us is illogical.  It doesn’t make sense that the God of the universe would care that much for each one of us. Exactly, from a worldly point of view it doesn’t make sense, but don’t we all believe that God can do anything, even love and forgive the worst of sinners?  And thank goodness he does, because if he didn’t, none of us would have a chance to reconcile ourselves with him after we have sinned and share in his life either now or in heaven one day.

This is one of the many times in the Gospels that Jesus gives us a “hard saying”, something counterintuitive to us, making it difficult for us to accept.  Personally, this has always been one of the hardest Scripture passages for me to wrap my head around, because it goes totally against everything I was taught growing up.  The last can’t be first?  The only way to be first is to out-work the other guy. To be first, you have to earn it.  Why should those who are not doing the right thing be rewarded?  It took me a long time to understand that God’s love and grace are not for sale, and you can’t earn it by being good enough or trying hard enough.  God loves the sinner just as much as he does the saint and his concern for them is great because he knows what they will be missing out on and the pain they will be experiencing if they freely choose to separate themselves from him.  

A similar passage is found in Luke 15:7 where Jesus said, “There will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance.”  Sounds a lot like, “The last will be first and the first will be last,” doesn’t it?

But how can this be?  How can there be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who have no need of repentance?  By saying this Jesus is not saying that 99% of people are righteous and only 1% sinners.  If that were the case, we would be living in a near perfect world.  Jesus is saying that God’s joy is greater over the one sinner who repents because it is the exact opposite of that, there are a lot of sinners in the world.

Think about it, except for Jesus, the Blessed Mother, and those who because of age or mental incapacity are not able to reason good from evil, every person who has ever lived, was a sinner.  We live in a world where sin is so abundant and the sinner who repents and returns to the Lord with childlike faith is so rare and God loves us so much, that heaven just explodes with joy when it happens.  And thanks be to God, because we are the sinners Jesus is talking about, and we may very well be one of those people who shows up late and in is great need of our Heavenly Father’s love and mercy.    

I’m sorry to say that looking back on my life there have been many times when presented with a hard-to-understand message from Jesus, I responded much like Peter did in Matthew 16:22.  Jesus had just told him something hard to accept, that he would soon suffer greatly and be killed.  Peter attempted to rebuke Jesus saying, “God forbid, Lord that you would die!”  Can you imagine Peter trying to rebuke Jesus?  Jesus turned to Peter and said, “Get behind me Satan, you are an obstacle to me.  You are thinking not as God does, but as human beings do.”

Brothers and sisters, if you’re like me and sometimes struggle to accept the meaning or intent of the teachings of Jesus had his Church, there is a solution.  We have to humble ourselves and surrender to the Lord allowing him to touch our heart and mind so that we grow closer to him.  We have to place our complete trust in him who would never lead us astray, so that when Jesus presents a concept on the faith to us that we struggle to accept, we trust instead of asserting that a scripture or a teaching of the Church is wrong.  Let us, through prayer, humility, discernment, and study, truly come to grow, understand, and then receive the meaning God is trying to give us.   

Let's remember St. Pius X.  He served as Pope from 1904 to 1914.  As Pope, Pius X took as his motto: “To restore all things in Christ.”  Even while Pope, he remained as he had been throughout his life, humble and simple.  He loved teaching children and showed much concern for the poor.  He introduced a universal catechism, reformed the curia, renewed seminary formation, revised the Code of Canon Law, revitalized the liturgy, encouraged Gregorian Chant, and emphasized the teachings of Saint Thomas Aquinas.  St. Pius X was a pastor at heart, not a diplomat or politician.  Without ambition, he never sought the to rise in the hierarchy of the Church, but accepted all things in Christ with humility and surrender.  St. Pius X loved children, and his long history of catechizing them led him to lower the age for First Holy Communion from twelve to seven, encouraging frequent reception of the Eucharist for them and all people.

Like St. Pius X may we humbly surrender ourselves to the Lord seeking to restore all things in Christ, starting with our family, community, and nation.  Let us persevere even when restoration in Christ seems hopeless.  Let us draw our hope not from the world but from the Lord who said, “The last will be first, and the first will be last.” Amen.