Wisdom is justified by all her children

 Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  When the men had come to Him, they said, "John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, 'Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?'"  And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard:  that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."

When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings' courts.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written:

'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face,
Who will prepare Your way before You.'

"For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."

And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.

And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:

'We played the flute for you,
And you did not dance;
We mourned to you,
And you did not weep.'

"For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!  But wisdom is justified by all her children."

- Luke 7:18-28, 29-30, 31-35

In yesterday's reading, Luke's Gospel gave us the stories of the centurion who wished his servant to be healed and the widow of Nain.  When Jesus concluded all His sayings in the hearing of the people, He entered Capernaum.  And a certain centurion's servant, who was dear to him, was sick and ready to die.  So when he heard about Jesus, he sent elders of the Jews to Him, pleading with Him to come and heal his servant.  And when they came to Jesus, they begged Him earnestly, saying that the one for whom He should do this was deserving, "for he loves our nation, and has built us a synagogue."  Then Jesus went with them.  And when He was already not far from the house, the centurion sent friends to Him, saying to Him, "Lord, do not trouble Yourself, for I am not worthy that You should enter under my roof.  Therefore I did not even think myself worthy to come to You.  But say the word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man placed under authority, having soldiers under me.  And I say to one, 'Go,' and he goes, and to another, 'Come,' and he comes, and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard these things, He marveled at him, and turned around and said to the crowd that followed Him, "I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!"  And those who were sent, returning to the house, found the servant well who had been sick.  Now it happened, the day after, that He went into a city called Nain; and many of His disciples went with Him, and a large crowd.  And when He came near the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother; and she was a widow.  And a large crowd from the city was with her.  When the Lord saw her, He had compassion on her and said to her, "Do not weep."  Then He came and touched the open coffin, and those who carried him stood still.  And He said, "Young man, I say to you, arise."  So he who was dead sat up and began to speak.  And He presented him to his mother.  Then fear came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, "A great prophet has risen up among us"; and, "God has visited His people."  And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region.

 Then the disciples of John reported to him concerning all these things.  And John, calling two of his disciples to him, sent them to Jesus, saying, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"   My study bible has a note:  "John had been imprisoned shortly after he baptized Jesus.  He probably has not heard Jesus teach, nor seen His many miracles.  John also anticipates that Jesus will judge at His first coming, whereas Jesus comes to save and heal.  John's question indicates either a desire to obtain secure knowledge or an intent to guide his own disciples to Jesus.  Christ answers the question indirectly by pointing to His miraculous messianic deeds."

And that very hour He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight.  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things you have seen and heard:  that the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised, the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."   Jesus gives John's disciples the words of Old Testament prophecy (such these verses from Isaiah), in effect, of which Christ is the fulfillment.  This is His answer to John.  The words "blessed is he who is not offended because of Me" become something powerful, a teaching about Judgment, about Christ as the stone upon which others may stumble.  They are also a promise to those who are "not offended because of Him."

When the messengers of John had departed, He began to speak to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed those who are gorgeously appareled and live in luxury are in kings' courts.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  This is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.'  For I say to you, among those born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."  My study bible tells us that "Christ recognizes John as the greatest prophet.  John belongs to the period of the Old Covenant, the Kingdom of God is inaugurated through Christ.  The New Covenant so far surpasses the old that the least in the kingdom is greater than John."  We remember John's great popularity, the widespread reverence for him as a holy man.  When Jesus asks, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?" He's referring to the fact that all were coming to be baptized by John.

And when all the people heard Him, even the tax collectors justified God, having been baptized with the baptism of John.  But the Pharisees and lawyers rejected the will of God for themselves, not having been baptized by him.   A note here reads:  "Luke makes a blunt observation:  anyone who rejected the baptism of John is out of step with the will of God.  Such a spurning by the Pharisees and the lawyers indicates a hardness of heart and no receptivity to the grace of the Kingdom of God.  It is a sobering thought that some today reject the baptism of Christ."  Here the note of judgment enters in again.  We make choices regarding the path we walk.  We always have the choice, the chance to repent and turn around again.  But we have also the choice to continue down the path of rejection.  Here the contrast from Luke is palpable:  the tax collectors are widely despised as sinners, working for the colonial authority, often taking unfairly from the people in addition to the oppressive taxes.  But it is the religious leadership that has instead rejected the will of God.  It remains a warning to us today about our own certainty, and the challenge of the Gospel that is always here, right in front of us.

And the Lord said, "To what then shall I liken the men of this generation, and what are they like?  They are like children sitting in the marketplace and calling to one another, saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned to you, and you did not weep.'  For John the Baptist came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and you say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!  But wisdom is justified by all her children."  My study bible tells us, "This verse describes an ancient game which children played in two groups;  here one group would not cooperate, neither dancing nor weeping.  Similarly, as was true of the Pharisees and scribes, unregenerate religious people will neither dance nor weep!  John the Baptist is to them a stern ascetic; Jesus, 'a glutton and a winebibber."

We see the great contrast, deliberately drawn, between Jesus and John the Baptist.  But Jesus goes far to tell us (and the people who are listening to Him in the Gospel story) that both He and John are in the same spirit, they both serve the will of God -- despite their different ministries and their different practices.  The game with the children is illustrative, however, of the response of the leadership.  It was an ancient game in which one group of children mimed either playing the flute for music (and the other group was supposed to dance), or mourning and the other group of children was to respond by pretending to weep.  Here the impossible criticism that can accept nothing is imaged by Christ:  they're like children commanding opposite things and complaining that neither Christ nor John the Baptist fulfilled their expectations, so both are rejected.  It's quite a typical thing for us to witness of a severely critical person whose real goal is simply to reject something or someone on any grounds, and Jesus gives us a superb illustration in a simple and common children's game of the time -- but a very highly effective one.  Perhaps we've all known people like this.  In this case, the stakes are high, the rejection in this behavior has a very high price, because Christ is talking about salvation and the will of God.  Let us note carefully that even the fulfillment of prophecy comes in unexpected forms; John, for example, who came neither eating bread nor drinking wine, and Christ who feasts with tax collectors.  Both are a part of God's plan for salvation, both unfold the Gospel, and yet they appear as opposites in some respects as to their practices, and both are rejected by the leadership because of the truths in the messages of John and Jesus that they don't want to hear.  But let us remember for ourselves that there will be those who reject no matter what; their motives may have nothing to do with truth.  As for each one of us, God may come in fulfillment and unfolding of this Gospel message in any number of ways.  Holiness is always infinitely creative; the Spirit will reach toward us in any way that He can, God is always calling to us with love.  It is up to us to have hearts open to the Gospel and its truth, no matter what the form, no matter what the circumstances are in which we find ourselves and that truth that is there for us.  Jesus' love is great enough for each of us in the Kingdom.  Wisdom has been justified by all her children!  In the Greek, this word for "all" (panton) indicates each one.