God extends His unconditional generosity to everyone, which can be a model for us
We all rely on God’s generosity, which isn’t based on the good or bad choices that we make, but on His unconditional choice to love us no matter what. We want God to be generous to us when we have sinned and want to be forgiven. We all want God to be generous to us when we are sick and want to be healed. We want God to be generous and not measure that generosity against our actions when we use His gifts. We want God to be generous over and over and over again because we know we are stuck in difficult habits, and we often find it hard to change.
Yet, when we see that same generosity extended to others, especially those who are different than us or who we deem as less important, we think something is unjust about them getting the same thing that we do or sometimes even better. This reaction unearths a belief that we earned God’s generosity and are entitled to it, while others are not. We are offended, as we hear about in the Gospel reading for the 25th Sunday in Ordinary Time, when those who come into the field late in the day and don’t work as hard as we do get the same or more generosity from God. We shout that it isn’t fair and struggle to live with the way God acts.
One of the last lines of the Gospel passage asks us a question. Are we envious because God is generous? This question calls for some deep soul-searching and some incredible honesty from each of us if the kingdom of God is ever to come about. If we continue to divide the human race into those who deserve God’s love and those who don’t, then we are damned to eternal separation. God is the only one who has claimed the right to judge human beings, yet we attempt to take that power away from God as much as we can and judge others.
It seems we would understand why it’s good that God is generous to everyone. If that were not true, and God judged people by what they deserve, we would all be lost. Also, we know what it feels like and what an incredible gift it is to be generously forgiven and showered with blessings, especially when we don’t deserve it. In so many ways, we feel, deep down, like we’re always going to get what we deserve from God, and it just never happens. Perhaps some of us believe that we deserve God’s unending love because we are such perfect people. Perhaps we compare ourselves to other people and judge ourselves to be better than they are and expect God to reward our goodness against their offenses as we see them.
These words in the Scriptures this weekend are so prophetic for our time. If we are ever to heal the brokenness that is present within our own minds and hearts, within our own families, and among churches, communities, cities and nations, we must begin to believe the promise that we are all God’s children. He loves us without end, and we are to treat each other in the very same way that He treats us.
The next time you pray the Lord’s Prayer, think about the words that we speak every time. “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” God gives us the example of that generosity. Are we jealous of how God acts, or can we use God’s choices as a model for our choices?
