For the third Sunday of Advent: “He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes”
“One sees clearly only with the heart; what is essential is invisible to the eye,” says Antoine de Saint-Exupéry in his novel The Little Prince. Unfortunately, people do not only look with the heart. Far too often a person’s own interests get in the way of a fair judgement. This is an appeal to take a close and careful look.
Isaiah, one of the great prophets in the Old Testament, predicted the future. He said that a special individual from the house of David would come on whom the Spirit of the Lord would rest, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the Lord. The prophet said of Him: “And He shall not judge by the sight of His eyes, nor decide by the hearing of His ears; but with righteousness He shall judge the poor” (Isaiah 11: 3–4).
These are strong words that are to be followed absolutely, words that do not only apply in the season of Advent or were valid at the time of their writing … These words describe Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. While preaching to the people, He Himself disclosed to His listeners that He was the one on whom the Spirit of the Lord rested.
Neither appearance nor hearsay
Fair-minded people need such characteristics. Self-interest and selfishness must not be allowed to play a role. If all decision-makers were to perform their tasks with the Spirit of God, there would be no war, no oppression, and no discrimination. Neither appearance nor hearsay should be allowed to interfere with a fair and objective judgement. In biblical thinking, even the sinner has value before God, because there is something good in everyone.
Without partiality
Here is a case in point. In his epistle in the New Testament, the Apostle James addresses a true and predictable story. “My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.” This is an appeal, a call, a Christian necessity! “For if,” the Apostle continues to describe his course of action, “there should come into your assembly a man with gold rings, in fine apparel, and there should also come in a poor man in filthy clothes, and you pay attention to the one wearing the fine clothes and say to him, ‘You sit here in a good place,’ and say to the poor man, ‘You stand there,’ or, ‘Sit here at my footstool,’ have you not shown partiality among yourselves, and become judges with evil thoughts?” So is it fair to judge people by their appearance? Or to pigeonhole people into rich and poor? Or to ignore the less privileged and disadvantaged? Or to punish the disabled by depriving them of love? No!
“Listen, my beloved brethren: Has God not chosen the poor of this world to be rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which He promised to those who love Him? But you have dishonoured the poor man. Do not the rich oppress you and drag you into the courts? Do they not blaspheme that noble name by which you are called?” This is an interesting angle especially in view of the fact that the rulers of the world are often among the richest people. “If you really fulfil the royal law according to Scripture, ‘You shall love your neighbour as yourself,’ you do well; but if you show partiality, you commit sin, and are convicted by the law as transgressors.”
Theoretically, everything is clear
Everything has already been written. Theoretically, everything is clear, but we are a far cry from actually practising it. As humans we have difficulty respecting those who are different—doing good to those who act contrary to what is generally accepted—and spending time with those who on account of their way of life make themselves no friends. But it does not have to be that way. Advent reminds us what really matters in life: to be honest, fair, and to have a heart for others.
The motto is: follow Jesus in everything!
Photo: eyetronic - Fotolia
