I
can see the headlines now: “Vineyard Owner from Jezreel Put to
Death. Townspeople Relieved.”
And just think of all the people who would read this and say things
like, “It’s about time this country gets
tough on crime.” “Who was this nutcase,
Naboth, anyway?” “Who cares? At least he got what he deserved.” “People like him should be put away for
good.”
Here we have the justice system at work. The town’s officials find this man guilty,
give him the death sentence, and then execute him.
To be honest with you, I am not a supporter of
the death penalty, but I can certainly sympathize with family members of loved
ones who were the victims of a violent crime.
Many
of us might remember reading or hearing about a very tragic news story several
years ago about a nine year old girl in Florida who was abducted and then
killed. I’ll never forget the day I read
that story.
Tears came to my eyes as I read the graphic details of what this person
did to this little girl. And then I read
how she died while holding one of her stuffed animals. I wanted to scream. I wanted to cry out for God’s justice.
Someone here in our church said to me a while back, “I just don’t understand God sometimes.
Why would God allow a child or people who are unable to defend
themselves be harmed?”
When we read stories like this, we wonder why
the world is the way it is. And we
wonder if there will be any justice.
Our scripture reading from I Kings tells us the story of Naboth, an
owner of a vineyard who was convicted of a crime and put to death. Here’s a story of someone getting what they
deserved. Here’s a story of God’s
justice at work. Right?
Actually, no. This is a story of
an innocent man who was ordered to be put to death by someone who valued
someone’s land over that person’s life.
King Ahab, who lived next to Naboth, couldn’t help but notice how nice
it would be if he had this neighbor’s land for his own private vegetable
garden. So he tried to strike a deal
with his neighbor and Naboth declined.
Naboth wasn’t about to sell his ancestral property for any price.
Ahab goes home and isn’t himself.
He really wants that guy’s property.
So he mopes around the house and is obviously discouraged.
His wife, Jezebel asks him why he’s so down and after Ahab explains that
Naboth had refused to sell him his property, she proceeds to take matters in
her own hands.
She forges her husband’s name on some official letters and sends them
off to the leading people of the town, telling them to convict Naboth of some
trumped up charges, and to have him stoned to death for his crimes.
The local politicians, not wanting to disobey the King, follow orders
and do just as the King had directed them to do. They haul him into their assembly, tell him
that he’s been charged with a crime, and then they put him to death.
We’re left to wonder, “Will
Jezebel and King Ahab get away with this total disregard for justice? And what about the townspeople who will hear
about Naboth’s alleged crime? Will they ever find out the truth of what really
happened? Will Naboth be remembered as a
criminal who was justly punished for his crime?
And where is God in all of this?
Will God vindicate Naboth’s name and do something about Ahab and
Jezebel?”
This story of Naboth’s vineyard is a story that reminds us of the
reality of evil in our world, as if we need to be reminded of that
reality. But this is also a story to
help us think about the problem of evil as it relates to our faith.
I
was sitting in my 20th Century American History class and minding my
own business when my college professor surprised me by saying those dreadful
opening words, “Mr. McDowell.” “I understand you’re planning on becoming a
minister. What would you possibly say to
someone who is a Vietnam war veteran, who saw his buddies die in the line of
duty, and who also witnessed so much violence and destruction. What could you possibly say to that person
about faith and God?”
This
professor, who had lost one of his legs in Vietnam was waiting for my
answer. All I could think of was, “Well, actually, to be honest, I don’t know
what I would say to that person, Dr. Avillo.
But I would let this person know that God loves him and wants our world
to be a place where there will be no more wars and violence.”
I could tell that I didn’t totally satisfy
his curiosity, but I guess that wasn’t a bad answer for having been totally
caught off guard.
It’s now been 29 years since I was asked that question, and Dr. Avillo,
here’s what I would have said if I had been given a little more time to
prepare.
I
still would tell that person that God loves him and cares about our world. But here is what else I would share with him.
God cares about justice. It’s all
through the scriptures. From the Book of
Genesis to the Book of Revelation, we read about a loving and just God who
created the world and called it good.
But because of sin, God’s good creation is being torn apart.
And ever since, God has been on a mission to rescue his good creation
from sin and death. God made a covenant
with Abraham for Abraham to be blessed so that he and his family would in turn
be a blessing to the world. Through this
covenant, God would bring peace and justice to all of creation.
While God has always been faithful on his end of the covenant, we have
not been faithful. And by we, I also
mean God’s people in the Bible. We
continued to sin and to not trust God.
But amazingly, God did not give up on us.
And this is why God sent us Jesus – who was able to be our
representative of what it means to fully live out God’s covenant in being the
people God has intended us to be. Jesus,
the very embodiment of the God of Israel, fulfilled this covenant through his
life, death, and resurrection. Jesus did
for humanity what we could not do ourselves.
And even though evil and injustice are still very much part of our world
today, through Jesus Christ, we can become God’s new creation. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, we can
live out God’s desire for all of his creation to be renewed one day at a time.
And Dr. Avillo, what I’m about to share with you next, is what helps me
to not lose faith, especially during those days when the headlines lead me to
tears. I believe that there will be a
day when Jesus will return, and for those who have placed their faith in Him,
they will be made new again, to live in God’s new creation where there will be
no more suffering, tears, pain, injustice, wars, terrorism, hatred, jealousy,
heartache, abuse, kidnappings, kings stealing land, murder, sin, and death.
That’s what I would want to share with this Vietnam Veteran, Dr. Avillo.
I was recently reading the story about Victor
Jara, who was killed shortly after the 1973 military coup in Chili. Victor was an educator, a theatre director,
poet, folk singer-songwriter, and political activist.
They had taken him along with thousands of others as prisoners to the
Chili stadium which just a few years ago, was renamed after him. In the days after they were taken to the
stadium, many of the prisoners were tortured and killed.
Jara was repeatedly beaten and tortured; the bones in his hands were
broken as were the bones of his ribs.
Fellow political prisoners have testified that his captors mockingly
suggested that he play the guitar for them as he lay on the ground. Defiantly, he sang part of a song supporting
a different political party. After
further beatings he was finally killed and his body dumped on a road on the
outskirts of Santiago, his blood soaking into the ground.
The Psalmist says, “For you are
not a God who delights in wickedness; evil will not sojourn with you. The boastful will not stand before your eyes;
you hate all evildoers. You destroy
those who speak lies; the Lord abhors the bloodthirsty and deceitful.”
Fortunately, the story of Naboth’s death doesn’t end with him lying in
the street. Verse 17 is the turning point. We read, “Then
the word of the Lord came to Elijah the Tishbite, saying: Go down to meet King
Ahab of Israel, who rules in Samaria; he is now in the vineyard of Naboth,
where he has gone to take possession.
You shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: Have you killed, and also
taken possession?’ You shall say to him, ‘Thus says the Lord: In the place
where dogs licked up the blood of Naboth, dogs will also lick up your blood.’”
In the next chapter, we find that Ahab is
killed by a stray arrow.
And fortunately, the story of God’s desire
to rescue the world from sin and death doesn’t end with this story of revenge.
This story will eventually lead us to another story in which God will
send his only Son who will die on a cross for the sins of the world.
The blood of the Son of God will trickle down a wooden cross and find
its way to the ground. And that blood will cry out and God will hear yet again.
Only this time, God will defeat sin and death once and for all. God will raise Jesus on the third day and
God’s new creation will begin.
And God’s people will live with the hope and promise that one day…one
day, all of creation will be filled with God’s justice and peace.
I
can see the headlines now: “Sin and death have been defeated: God’s creation is rescued.”
What a great and glorious day that will be!
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