Jesus began to reproach the towns
where most of his mighty deeds had been done,
since they had not repented.
Much is expected of those to whom much is given (see Luke 12:48). Jesus was not about the business of providing entertainment by means of signs and wonders. Rather he was seeking faith in himself, and the conversion of life that must accompany such faith. Those places where Jesus ministered might have been considered privileged to receive the presence of the Son of God, and certainly they were privileged. But they were also especially on the hook in regard to their response. Other lands that had not seen Jesus, even though their sins may have been greater, were held to a lesser standard of judgment.
But I tell you, it will be more tolerable
for Tyre and Sidon on the day of judgment than for you.
Sometimes, mysteriously, by not revealing himself fully and immediately Jesus was leaving the door open for mercy. In the face of the mighty deeds of Jesus those who saw and received them were supposed to change, to repent, to sin no more, and to make of their very lives offerings of thanksgiving to God. But it was frighteningly possible to see such mighty deeds and be unmoved. Exposure to Jesus of this sort did not leave a neutral or unchanged situation behind. Rather, the only way to resist his self-revelation was by allowing one's heart to be hardened.
We may imagine that many of the times we have not received a sign or an answer in just the way we wanted that Jesus was showing mercy in advance, protecting us from an inevitable inadequate response. Such a 'no' from Jesus would not be definitive, but a marking of his providential timing, so that he could give it to us when it would bear the fruit he desired.
For if the mighty deeds done in your midst had been done in Sodom,
it would have remained until this day.
Jesus did not always hold back because he knew he would not receive the full response he desired. Even in places such as Chorazin and Bethsaida where the response was lacking he still made himself known. But even when he allowed the hardening of hearts of those who heard him, even this was somehow still a part of a plan leading to salvation. Even his reproaches were meant to kindle the response to his love that was initially lacking. It was as though he said, 'Look at the lengths my love has gone for you. Will you not respond?' We see this same sort of hidden wisdom described by Paul:
I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. And in this way all Israel will be saved (see Romans 11:25-26).
We must ask ourselves, what are the mighty deeds that have been done in our midst, and what has been our response? We have been drawn from the waters of baptism as Moses was once drawn from the waters. But it is not enough to presume that we are positioned well because of something we once witnessed or experienced in the distant past. We are called to a living faith that makes of our lives, moment to moment, a response of love to the love which Jesus first showed us. Each day that we go to mass and receive him we are in some sense making ourselves increasingly accountable. But it is he himself within us, and he alone, that can produce the response he desires, and make us fruitful with the fruits of the Spirit. Our part is not to struggle, not to resist, not to harden ourselves, not even in the face of his reproaches. Let us learn to recognize that all that Jesus does is ordered toward love and to our salvation.
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