Episode 138: 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C
In today’s episode, we focus on three details significant for apologetics in the second reading and Gospel reading for this upcoming 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C. The detail from the second reading, which is taken from Colossians 1:15-20, relates to discussions surrounding Jesus’ divinity, especially conversations with Jehovah Witnesses. The other two details found in the Gospel reading, which is the parable of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10:15-27, relate to the relation between works of love and our justification/salvation.
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Hey everyone,
Welcome to The Sunday Catholic Word, a podcast where we reflect on the upcoming Sunday Mass readings and pick out the details that are relevant for explaining and defending our Catholic faith.
I’m Dr. Karlo Broussard, staff apologist and speaker for Catholic Answers, and the host for this podcast.
In today’s episode, we’re going to focus on three details significant for apologetics in the second reading and Gospel reading for this upcoming 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C. The detail from the second reading, which is taken from Colossians 1:15-20, relates to discussions surrounding Jesus’ divinity, especially conversations with Jehovah Witnesses. The other two details found in the Gospel reading, which is the parable of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10:15-27, relate to the relation between works of love and our justification/salvation.
Let’s start with the second reading, which, again, is taken from Colossians 1:15-20. Paul writes,
Christ Jesus is the image of the invisible God,
the firstborn of all creation.
For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth,
the visible and the invisible,
whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers;
all things were created through him and for him.
He is before all things,
and in him all things hold together.
He is the head of the body, the church.
He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead,
that in all things he himself might be preeminent.
For in him all the fullness was pleased to dwell,
and through him to reconcile all things for him,
making peace by the blood of his cross
through him, whether those on earth or those in heaven.
The detail that I want to highlight is Paul’s identification of Jesus as “the firstborn of all creation.” Jehovah Witnesses appeal to this phrase to argue that Jesus is not the Creator but rather the first and highest member of the created order of being. To be the “firstborn,” so it’s argued, implies he was the first among others. To be the firstborn “of creation” implies he was the first member among other created beings.
One problem with this objection is that it assumes that the phrase “firstborn of creation,” which in Greek is prototokos ktiseos, necessarily means there would have been other members of the same category. But this is not true.
Consider, for example, that the term “firstborn” itself initially was applied to the first Jewish male to open the womb of his mother, regardless of whether there were other siblings to follow. He would still be considered sacred to God (Exod. 13:1, 11-15) and due special rights (Deut. 21:15-17).
Overtime the term “firstborn” would be extended in its use and became a title of privilege. For example, in Psalm 89:20, 27 God tells us that he will make David his “firstborn.” But in the very next verse we’re told what God meant by “firstborn”: David will be “the highest of the kings of the earth.” So, “firstborn” here signifies David having a position of preeminence, not the first in some order—say, the order of kings, or the order of sons in a family (David was in fact the last son in his family—1 Sam. 16:10-11).
There are other examples of this use of “firstborn.” In Exodus 4:22 Israel is called God’s “firstborn.” Yet, we know that Israel was not chronologically the first nation. Ephraim is God’s “firstborn” in Jeremiah 31:9. Yet, Ephraim was not the first tribe chronologically speaking.
Moreover, the Greek ktiseos, which is translated “of creation,” is the genitive case. The objection assumes this genitive case is what scholars call the “partitive genitive,” which has the sense of being “part of a larger whole.” However, it can also be a “genitive of primacy,” which has the sense of “having supremacy over.”
So, although Paul’s use of “firstborn” could mean that Jesus is the first member among others in the category of creation, it doesn’t necessarily mean that. It could also mean that Jesus is preeminent over creation, like David was king “of” Israel in the sense that he was king over Israel.
The question now is, “Which sense does Paul intend?” Well, I argue that when we look at the context, we can conclude that Paul intends the “preeminent” sense and not the “first among others” sense.
The first clue is that this is a first-century hymn to Christ that Paul records, so scholars say. And Jimmy Akin points out in his book A Daily Defense (Day 243), “in the ancient world, hymns were sung to deities.” Since this is a hymn that was sung to Christ, it follows that the early Christians believed Jesus was in the class of “deity,” therefore divine.
A second clue for the “preeminence” interpretation is what Paul says in verse 16: “For in him were created all things in heaven and on earth, the visible and the invisible.” This is an allusion to Isaiah 44:24, where God says, “
[W]ho formed you from the womb:
“I am the LORD, who made all things,
who stretched out the heavens alone,
who spread out the earth—Who was with me?—
Paul is teaching us that Jesus is the Creator. And since God alone is the Creator, it follows that Paul believed Jesus was God.
Now, a Jehovah Witness will counter here, appealing to their translation, and say that Paul actually writes, “For in him were created all other things in heaven and earth, the visible and the invisible,” the implication being that Jesus is still one among other created things.
But the word “other” is not in the Greek text. The Greek word for “all things” is panta, which just means “all” or “every.” Allos, which is the Greek word for “other,” is simply not there.
So, the Jehovah Witnesses insert a word to change the meaning of the text to fit their preconceived theology rather than getting their theology from the text.
Paul goes on to emphasize Jesus as the Creator by writing, “He is before all things, and in him all things hold together.”
With these contextual details, it becomes clear what Paul meant by “firstborn of creation”: Jesus is over creation insofar as he is the Creator, i.e., God.
Okay, let’s now turn to the Gospel reading, which again, is taken from Luke 10:25-37. There are two parts to the Gospel reading that I want to highlight. So, I’ll read each part separately followed by commentary.
The first part is verses 25-28. Luke records,
There was a scholar of the law who stood up to test Jesus and said,
“Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”
Jesus said to him, “What is written in the law?
How do you read it?”
He said in reply,
“You shall love the Lord, your God,
with all your heart,
with all your being,
with all your strength,
and with all your mind,
and your neighbor as yourself.”
He replied to him, “You have answered correctly;
do this and you will live.”
I think the main apologetical point here is that eternal life is given in proportion to the love we have. Notice the scholar of the law asked, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” And Jesus answers, Love God and neighbor.
What this tells us is that love, together with faith, saves us.
Furthermore, given that love is something that proceeds from the heart, it follows that my interior righteousness/holiness serves as the ground for me being at peace with God, a peace that I can have eternally. This is significant because it contradicts the reformed view of forensic justification, the idea that the sole reason why we are at peace with God is God’s declaration that we are righteous on account of Jesus’ own righteousness.
Now, the next part of the Gospel reading, verses 25-37, is the parable of the Good Samaritan. Luke tells the story:
But because he wished to justify himself, he said to Jesus,
“And who is my neighbor?”
Jesus replied,
“A man fell victim to robbers
as he went down from Jerusalem to Jericho.
They stripped and beat him and went off leaving him half-dead.
A priest happened to be going down that road,
but when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
Likewise a Levite came to the place,
and when he saw him, he passed by on the opposite side.
But a Samaritan traveler who came upon him
was moved with compassion at the sight.
He approached the victim,
poured oil and wine over his wounds and bandaged them.
Then he lifted him up on his own animal,
took him to an inn, and cared for him.
The next day he took out two silver coins
and gave them to the innkeeper with the instruction,
‘Take care of him.
If you spend more than what I have given you,
I shall repay you on my way back.’
Which of these three, in your opinion,
was neighbor to the robbers’ victim?”
He answered, “The one who treated him with mercy.”
Jesus said to him, “Go and do likewise.”
What’s relevant for our purposes is that the Samaritan is the example that Christ gives as to what it looks like to love neighbor, a love that, remember, is rewarded with eternal life. This not only applies to my above comments about us being saved on account of our love, but it also further drives home the idea that the reason why we are at peace with God, or justified, is our interior state of love.
Notice Jesus contrasts the Samaritan’s act of love with the priest and the Levite not wanting to ritually defile themselves by touching what they thought was a dead corpse. Now, why did the priest and the Levite not want to ritually defile themselves? Ultimately, because they wanted to be in right relation with God. In other words, they viewed their justification as being on account of keeping the laws of Moses.
Given the contrasts that Jesus makes between the Samaritan’s act of love and what the priest and Levite sought for justification, we can conclude that love within our hearts, manifest through deeds, roots our being in a state of justice, or being justified. Again, this counts against the forensic justification model where we’re justified solely on account of God’s declaration that we’re justified.
Conclusion
Well, my friends, that’s all I have for this episode of the Sunday Catholic Word. The second reading and Gospel for this upcoming 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C do not sell us short for apologetical material:
- Paul definitely gives us stuff to think about when it comes to whether he believed that Jesus was God. And, as I’ve argued, he does in fact believe Jesus is the Creator and not the first among creatures.
- The Gospel provides us a few ways to show that we are not only saved/justified by our faith but also by the love within our hearts.
- And this in turn reveals that the root of justification is this interior state of holiness that our love for God brings about.
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You might also want to check out the other great podcasts in our Catholic Answers podcast network: Trent Horn’s The Counsel of Trent, Joe Heschmeyer’s Shameless Popery, and Jimmy Akin’s The Jimmy Akin podcast,” all of which can be found at catholic.com. And if you want to follow more of my own work, check out my website at karlobroussard.com
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I hope you have a blessed 15th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Year C. Until next time, God Bless.