Party Invitations

Eighteenth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 23 – Year A

October 12, 2014

Matthew 22:1-13

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’ But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’”

As the parent of two girls, one of the things I have become quite familiar with over the last few years are fairy tales and princesses. Anything pink and 'princessy' is almost guaranteed to be popular in our home. The girls will spend hours watching princess cartoons and t.v. shows. If we are walking through a store that has toys in it, it's almost a sure thing that we will have to make a detour down the toy aisle to look at the collection of dolls and accessories. I have watched several Disney princess movies so many times I know the songs and can sing along with them. Of course, that is nothing compared to the conversations I have heard coming from the backseat in the van regarding different princesses and their likes and dislikes, who has the best dresses, the fanciest crowns, who likes animals and who doesn't. Little girls like princesses.

But, I think people in general like fairy tales of different kinds. Look at the popularity throughout time of fairy tales and stories. We love to escape to Nevernever Land and fly through the air with Peter Pan. We listen with rapt attention each year to the story of the Nutcracker at Christmas. In the last few weeks at school, the first graders talked about Johnny Appleseed. Even more adult fairy tales are popular; just look at the lasting impact the importance of a book like Moby Dick, or the classic storys of Homer. Some of the most popular television shows directed at adults are based on fairy tales; Once Upon a Time has millions of people watching each week to see the interaction of characters from fairy tales in the “real world.”

In the United States, we don't have kings and queens that rule over us; and for many people the ideas we have about royalty and castles comes from the fairy tales we read and watch. I think for many of us, when we think of a princess – we think of someone like Cinderella or the Disney princess Sophia before we think of Princess Kate. The reality for pretty much every single one of us is that we will never meet a king or a queen, never dance with a prince or princess, and the only castle we will ever be in is on a tour of one if we are lucky enough to someday travel to Europe.

Fairy tales have the effect of often making us believe things that are far beyond the normal. The reality for royalty in the real world (though I'm sure beyond the experiences of our life) are likely nothing like the lives we imagine they have, or the ones we see created for us in fairy tales. Today, our text is a parable, which is pretty much the Bible's version of a fairy tale. And to make it seem even more like a fairy tale, our story is about a King and an incredible party he is throwing for his son. And, not just any party – a wedding party. The whole kingdom will rejoice and celebrate – their getting a princess!

I don't know about you, but if I was ever to invited to a party at a kings home, by the king himself, I would probably do whatever I needed to to be there. It would be like being invited to meet with your favorite celebrity or inspiration. We would carefully pick out what we would wear – and probably go shopping to find just the right outfit. We would worry and fret about what we would say, what we would do, how we would act. For days and weeks before, all we could think about would be the event. If you thought the planning and obsession with prom in high school was intense, this would be that to the nth degree. This could be the most incredible event you will ever experience. So, how do the people in our story respond to the invitation from the King?

The make excuses not to show up! It's the party of the year, perhaps the century – they were invited to it, and they make excuses for not showing up. When I was in high school we sang a song about this. We sang, “I cannot come to the banquet don't bother me now, I have married a wife, I have bought me a cow. I have fields and commitments that cost a pretty sum. Pray hold me excused I cannot come!”

This parable, unlike some, seems relatively simple to understand. Jesus is speaking to the Jewish religious folk. He is pointing a figure directly at them, and is making is clear that they play a role in the parable. They are the ones who were initially invited by the King, (who is God) and turned down the invitation. The Jewish community were the first to be invited; yet, they have not responded to the invitation. They have made excuses, they have gone off in other directions, seeking after their own wants and desires. So, God has extended the invitation to be part of the heavenly feast to those outside of the Jewish faith – the Gentiles community. This is the gospel of Matthew's explanation for the inclusion of those outside of the Jewish faith. We too, though not having received the initial invitation extended to Abraham and his descendants are invited to the party in the second wave of invitations. Up to here, it all makes sense. It's not that difficult to figure out.

But, those last few verses are difficult. A person is invited to the party, they show up, they are there, they are having a good time mingling with the other guests, eating and drinking at the feast. Then, they are seen to not be wearing the appropriate attire and are kicked out. How are we supposed to interpret this? Someone invited by God to the heavenly banquet, is a part of the party and then kicked out. There is no agreement among theologians about what this means, who the person is and what the robes represent. Some say the robe refers to righteous living, others to the resurrected body, or to post-baptismal garments. Still others say that it refers to being “clothed in Christ,” as described in Colossians 3. That was always the way I thought about this passage.

Yet, I think I've come to a different understanding over the last week. The problem I've always had with thinking about this passage and the expulsion of the poorly dressed guest is two-fold. First, he was a guest. He had been invited. The kings servants had gone out and invited everyone to the party. It wasn't like he was crashing the party as an uninvited guest. And second, at the core of my faith is the understanding that we are saved by grace through faith. We are invited, we believe the invitation and show up. To declare that the only way we can remain at the party, or attend the party is to change is to declare that we have a part to play that is of consequence. Salvation suddenly isn't an act of grace on God's part, it's something that we have power over, and I have a problem with that.

So, what to do. Obviously this parable is in the Bible, complete with the kicking out of the guest for a reason, and I firmly believe that the reason must be in agreement with the theological understanding of being saved by grace through faith. I returned to the passage, and took a close look. Then it hit me, the guest never said a word. The king comes up to him, addresses him as friend and asks, “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” And the man responds by being speechless. He doesn't say a word. And I think in there is the answer.

“How did you get in here dressed like that?” He could have said anything, “I was invited by a friend.” “I had nothing else to wear.” “I'm headed out to work in the yard right after.” “I was on my way to work when I got the invitation.” But, he doesn't say a thing. And in not saying a thing, he also doesn't give the answer that is correct. “How did you get in here dressed like that?” “I was invited.” He was invited, by the King. Being, staying at the party, at the heavenly feast, is about recognizing how it is you got there in the first place. I can't imagine that the other guests were all dressed appropriately, so this guest was singled out for a reason. Because, when he was asked how he got in, he had no answer to give. He didn't seem to know or be able to say that he was there at the invitation of the King. The validity of the invitation had nothing to do with the way the guest dressed, how he responded, how he acted at the feast, it's about recognizing where the invitation comes from.

If we all had to dress appropriately for the heavenly feast, put on our best outfits – whether external clothing or the cleanliness of our lives – we would all be dressed inappropriately. None of us can dress ourselves well enough to be in God's presence. What seems to matter to the King in the parable, to God, is that we recognize how it is that we are able to be present at the heavenly feast even though we are all truly unworthy to be there.

How is it that we are there? It's because of God, all because of God. God has reached out in love to us. God has extended the invitation to us to join in a heavenly feast in paradise with God. And we show up, we come in response to the invitation. When we hear the voice of God calling our name, inviting us to come, we come. We come in our best and in our worst. We are invited and come good and bad as the parable tells us. And how is that we are assured of our being able to be a part of the celebration for eternity? By declaring that we are there because of God, because of God's invitation. By not making excuses for our appearance, by not making excuses as to why we can't be there. But, by declaring that we are present, just as we are, because of the grace-filled invitation from God.

We have all been invited. We are all expected to be present at the party at the end of time to beat all other parties and celebrations. What God desires is that we know how it is that we are there. It's still all about what God has done. It's still about the host rather than the guest. It's still about being saved by grace through faith. May we all come to recognize and declare, “We are here completely and totally because of God and God's graceful invitation. And may we all look forward to the day when we will gather around the table of God, and take part in the heavenly feast for all eternity. Amen.

The Grace to Accept

Fourteenth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 19 – Year A

September 14, 2014

Romans 14:1-12

Welcome those who are weak in faith, but not for the purpose of quarrelling over opinions. Some believe in eating anything, while the weak eat only vegetables. Those who eat must not despise those who abstain, and those who abstain must not pass judgment on those who eat; for God has welcomed them. Who are you to pass judgment on servants of another? It is before their own lord that they stand or fall. And they will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

Some judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to be alike. Let all be fully convinced in their own minds. Those who observe the day, observe it in honor of the Lord. Also those who eat, eat in honor of the Lord, since they give thanks to God; while those who abstain, abstain in honor of the Lord and give thanks to God.

We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord's. For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. For it is written,

   "As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
       and every tongue shall give praise to God."

So then, each of us will be accountable to God.

Last week was voting week. Not everywhere but in many communities; Cedar Falls voted on a bond referendum for building new and refurbishing existing schools. When it comes to elections or votes of any kind, there are often deeply held beliefs and emotions that come into play. All of us have perspectives on just about every issue, and when we are given the chance to give voice to those positions we tend to, sometimes really vocally. The old saying advises us that it's best to avoid discussing religion or politics at family gatherings. Those positions are just so strongly held, that differences of opinion can easily turn into nasty fights that can last for years.

In Cedar Falls this last week there were lots of yard signs, some saying 'vote yes' and some saying 'vote no'. As I drove around town, I saw signs holding those positions across the street from one another, neighboring one another. People who regularly talked to each other over their fences, whose kids played with one another, proclaiming loudly a difference of opinion. I even saw a single yard, a single home, with both a 'vote yes' and a 'vote no' sign being displayed. I have no idea how that would work, I can't imagine there was a lot of peace and tranquility in that house leading up to the vote on Tuesday.

Differences of opinion on just about everything is part of life. We don't all like the same things, or believe the same things. Some of us like crunchy peanut butter, some like creamy, and some don't like peanut butter at all. Some people like pop, and some people don't. And those that do like pop all have their favorite. We all have our favorite food, our favorite beverage, our favorite sports teams, our favorite actors and actresses, our favorite manufacturers of vehicles and machinery. We all have our favorite colors, our preferred styles. We are all unique people who live our lives according to the things we like and don't like, the things that we find joy and meaning in, and the things we find largely meaningless.

Differences fill our world, and they also fill our churches. It would be great if we could all agree, if we could all recognize that there is only one way of doing things, one way of believing, one way of living, one way of thinking – and of course, that one way is our way! There are many issues that we wrestle with in our daily lives, issues that we wrestle with in society that are impacted by our faith, by the things we believe and the way we believe. In just the last few decades the church, and many of us in the church have been wrestling with abortion, evolution, homosexuality, creationism, ordination of women, universalism, the authority of scripture, understandings of communion and baptism (to name just a few).

Throughout the history of religion, including Christianity, there have been movements and individuals that sought to declare an answer to every issue under the sun. Do this, don't do this. This is the correct thinking or belief, and this one is a false teaching. For a while all of these movements and individuals had some success, it's freeing to be told what to think, what to believe. It takes the pressure off of us from having to reflect and come to a decision ourselves. “Just tell me what to believe,” is something that more than one pastor or teacher has heard. And it works great until someone starts to ask questions, until someone doesn't see things the same, and then things become difficult. What to do?

The Apostle Paul is writing to the church in Rome in our passage today, addressing an issue that seems to be causing some division among believers within the church. And the issue seems to be about food. Now, Paul has previously talked about food issues in his letter to the church in Galatia, but in that instance there seemed to be a division between Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians. Here, in Rome, there likely isn't that division. These are all likely Gentile Christians, who are arguing with one another over what they can eat. I can't imagine too many fights erupting at a church potluck about having some vegetarian dishes. But, then again, there has been some negativity in some churches when changes had to be made at communion to ensure that those people with gluten sensitivities can fully participate; and then there are the arguments that have erupted over wafers or loaves, wine or grape juice....

Paul is addressing an issue in a church where everyone agrees on the essentials: Jesus is Lord and Savior, it is in him that we find our righteousness. What to do when there is agreement in the core beliefs, but disagreement in how those beliefs are lived out? “And the answer Paul gives is to welcome one another (14:1) and to put up with each others failings (15:1). Actually, he tells the strong to behave this way toward the weak, but his words still resonate with both sides, for who on either side of any debate does not imagine themselves to be the strong and their opponents to be the people who just don't "get it" yet?”¹

We've all been there. We know that we are right, and that other people are wrong. If we can only find the right words, the right arguments, we will be able to convince them of their being wrong and our being right. So, we do everything we can to prove they are wrong. We take every opportunity to parade our position in front of them. We find every instance we can swing the conversation in some way that opens up the possibility of showing them how wrong they are. We've all done it. We are strong, they are weak, and we just need to show them how weak they are.

One of the things I find most fascinating in this passage is the way Paul speaks about strength and weakness. Now, in areas of physical power, strength is all about being able to move more, lift more, do more. But, in areas of faith, we tend to think about things a little differently. How often have we looked at a person and commented on their great faith because of the things they do or don't do? They pray before every meal, even in a crowded restaurant. They keep strict rules about what they can do and can't do. They know what is right and wrong, and live their lives to the letter accordingly. They are a person of great faith, because they trust that the laws and statutes God has provided are the key to life.

Paul, though, has a different perspective. Paul looks to the two groups: those who are essentially vegetarians and those who eat everything. And then, he declares that those who live by more rules, those who avoid meat for religious reasons, are the weaker! Talk about a surprise, the ones who follow the rules are weaker in faith than those that don't. How can this be?

Paul is clear in Romans that salvation comes through faith, not through works. The works we do are a living out of our faith – whether for good or for bad. Strength for Paul is about trusting in God's grace, rather than in our own imperfect ability to do everything correctly (we cannot trust in our own selves, or put any weight on our abilities). Paul is concerned that one group of people is placing their following of the law as an equal to the salvific grace that has been extended through Jesus the Christ. It comes down to where we put our trust, where we put our energy and faith – in God, or in how well we follow what we think is right or wrong. And from there, how we treat those whose faith lives are expressed differently than ours.

Even though Paul describes one group as strong and the other as weak, he avoids passing judgment – declaring one as more correct than the other, he doesn't urge the vegetarians to become meat eaters. The point of Paul isn't in the correctness of the position, but in the way we respond to people hold a different position. Two phrases are worth noting: “Who are you to pass judgment on servants of another?” (14:4) and “Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister?” (14:10). You all declare Jesus as Lord, you all come together to give praise and worship to the same God, why are you passing judgment on the things you eat, how it is you live out your lives of faith?

Paul cares a great deal about how those who follow Jesus the Christ conduct themselves, particularly within the fellowship of believers, within the church. But here, as elsewhere, he insists that God should be our focus, that God is the one who is the active player; judgment belongs to God, not to us (cf. 9:10). “God has welcomed them (14:3) … the Lord is able to make them stand (14:4) … Whether we live or whether we die we are the Lord’s (14:8) … So then, each of us will be accountable to God (14:12) … Let us therefore no longer pass judgment on one another” (14:13).

In the last few years, there has been a trend for three little words to appear on lots of church signs and in lots of church bulletins. Those three words? All are Welcome. It's a great phrase, a wonderful sentiment; but how is it being lived out most of the time? Are all truly welcome, or just those that are willing to go along with the way we in the church see things? Do we welcome them, and then ask them to change their beliefs and perspectives? Do we welcome them just to show them how wrong they are? The church should be a place of welcome, where unity is found not in particular practices of piety, but in the fact that we belong to the Lord (14:7-8). God has welcomed us, Paul says; we, too, should welcome those whose piety differs from our own (14:3).

God desires us to live joyful lives of faith. We are to live our lives according to the faith that we have. How each of us find joy is different, why should we expect to tell another person what brings them joy, what their faith tells them is acceptable? Can we not celebrate the faith that is strong enough that they claim it as the reason why they act the way they do? If God has welcomed them, given them faith to declare Jesus as Lord, should we not also welcome them even if we do not see things the same on other issues? In the end all of us are going to have to face God and make a defense for our lives. Would we rather be accused of being too loving and accepting of difference, or too judgmental and exclusive?

We are the Lord's, let us live accordingly. Amen.

1http://www.workingpreacher.org/preaching.aspx?commentary_id=1072

Scraps of Faith

Tenth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 15 – Year A

August 17, 2014

Matthew 15:10-28
Then he called the crowd to him and said to them, "Listen and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles." Then the disciples approached and said to him, "Do you know that the Pharisees took offense when they heard what you said?" He answered, "Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be uprooted. Let them alone; they are blind guides of the blind. And if one blind person guides another, both will fall into a pit." But Peter said to him, "Explain this parable to us." Then he said, "Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this is what defiles. For out of the heart come evil intentions, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person, but to eat with unwashed hands does not defile."
Jesus left that place and went away to the district of Tyre and Sidon. Just then a Canaanite woman from that region came out and started shouting, "Have mercy on me, Lord, Son of David; my daughter is tormented by a demon." But he did not answer her at all. And his disciples came and urged him, saying, "Send her away, for she keeps shouting after us." He answered, "I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, "Lord, help me." He answered, "It is not fair to take the children's food and throw it to the dogs." She said, "Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters' table." Then Jesus answered her, "Woman, great is your faith! Let it be done for you as you wish." And her daughter was healed instantly.

Over the last month and a bit, our house has been quite chaotic. Sure, some of it has been outside of our control. But, some of it was our choice. We have a new animal in our house. Thalie, a now nearly 4 month old boxer mix. She's a delight to have around most of the time; but, she has definitely not made our lives any easier. We've forgotten how much work it is to have a puppy, especially a hyperactive, crazy, shoe and food obsessed one. I've given up trying to count the number of shoes she's either destroyed, tried to destroy or been stopped just at the moment when she was stealing the shoe. I've lost several pair, so has Missy. Our girls have had a few destroyed as well. Puppies can be expensive!

And it's not just shoes she wants to eat. It's pretty much everything. I have never before seen a dog that is so single-mindedly focused on food. When she thinks there is food or anything that is remotely edible coming in her direction she's unstoppable. Try to drag her away from a food dish. On the moments when she has dashed out our door, or through the open gate of our fence, we have been able to bring her back simply by shaking her food bowl.

Growing up, our family didn't have a dog as a pet until I was in high school, and by then I was in boarding school, so I didn't see that dog often. It wasn't until Missy and I got married that I finally had a dog. It's been a new experience for me. I've learned a great deal over the last 10 years that Luther has been a part of our family. Much of my prior experience with dogs came from visiting friends who had dogs.

When I was in New Guinea, dogs were all around. You couldn't really avoid seeing them just about everywhere; but they weren't pets the way we think of pets. Dogs were pretty much scavengers that hung around humans so they could get the stuff the humans let them have, the stuff that fell on the floor, the waste that we as humans are so good at creating. I vividly remember dogs following groups of people around, waiting for them to drop something. I remember seeing dogs gathering just outside the circle of people eating their communal meals. I remember the brave dog here and there that would would make a wild dash into the circle to grab a hunk of meat that wasn't being watched closely enough. Dogs being chased away with sticks and stones, shouts and raised hands. That's the image I have in my mind as I come to this text where Jesus is talking about dogs and scraps and faith. Not the image of the family pet, but the roaming scavenger, more of a nuisance than anything else.

This is one of those texts that can make us squirm; not so much because of the message that the text brings, but the way in which it seems to portray Jesus. What are we supposed to do with that? How are we to treat the words and behavior of Jesus? So often when we look at this passage we have sought ways to interpret it so that Jesus doesn't really say what he says. He was testing the woman. He was testing the disciples. Why? Why not just accept the fact that in this moment, in this text, Jesus was a bit of a jerk and actually meant what he said?

One of the claims, one of the beliefs of traditional Christianity is that Jesus as the Son of God and son of Mary, was fully God and fully human. We tend to emphasize the part that says he was fully God, though. The fully human part is sort of scary, and we don't know what to do about it. The part that makes sure the party keeps going with new wine, the part that cries when his friend dies, the part that gets angry and throws tables around, cracks whips at people. That part makes us uneasy. In this moment, in this text, I think we see Jesus get caught with his god-pants down, and his human side on full display.

As a human, Jesus was well aware of who this Canaanite woman was. The Canaanites were the people who had lived in the Promised Land before the Israelites had crossed the river. They had lived among the Jewish people ever since, part of the population, but not really. A lot like the Native Americans here in the United States, they were here first, then we came and claimed the land as ours. We know they are there, but for many of us, we can live most of our lives choosing to ignore them. The Jewish folk knew what the scriptures said, they knew they were the chosen people, they knew God had promised them this land. So, they lived accordingly. The promise was theirs, no one elses – that meant this Canaanite woman was essentially worthless. To top it off, she was a woman, that made her worthlessness even more worthless in the eyes of the 1^st Century.

Jesus responded as any good Jewish man in the 1st Century would have responded: first, he ignored her. Then, when he could no longer ignore her, he reminded her of her place in society. And she responds by reminding Jesus of who he is. Back and forth they go, and Jesus comes to see that this woman, this Canaanite woman, this worthless person had worth, and was worth paying attention to, was worth blessing, was worth bestowing grace upon. Jewish culture and practice would have taught and said to avoid the Canaanite woman, to not waste your time with them (they are “dogs” after all). Yet, it is in the place where tradition said not to go that faith is found.

As human beings we tend to like things we know and recognize. If we are at a potluck, we tend to pick out the items we've had in the past, the things we can recognize. We tend to stay away from the things that look strange and different. Now, put a list of ingredients next to the pot, and as long as the ingredients aren't foreign, we will probably give it a try. But, what if you were at a potluck where nothing was labeled, and everything looked different? How many of us would go home hungry, unwilling to take a spoonful of that green stuff? Sticking our tongues out at the stuff covered in that sticky, thick white cream?

We tend to steer away from things that seem foreign, unclean, strange, different. We tend to react negatively to those that are not from our area. We hear an accent and we know that they are different. We look to the color of their skin, the types of clothes they are wearing and almost immediately know they are not from around here. There have been numerous times when I was in Europe that without my having once opened my mouth to say a thing, someone would ask me where I was from in the United States. They just knew I was different.

Differentness isn't bad. Each and every one of us is different from everyone one else. Different is good. But, differentness can cause us to act badly. This last week we watched the drama that unfolded in Ferguson, MO following the tragic shooting of a young man by the police. It brought to light the tremendous differences that still exist in many parts of our country. And those differences caused the crowds and police, the public and the news pundits to react in often different ways. A seemingly peaceful protest was responded to by 70 heavily armed officers in full riot gear; rubber bullets and tear gas responded to chants and signs. The crowds were predominantly African-American, the police- all white. Differences took sides, and stared each other down. Who was at fault? When we encounter differences, what do we usually do? We chose sides, and often the sides we end up choosing look a lot like us. Jesus did too, at first. It seemed like the right thing to do. It was the popular thing to do. It was the thing the disciples and those around him wanted him to do. Yet, when Jesus listened to the woman, when he stopped allowing the differences to be chasms, he found a deep and profound faith that recognized and declared him as Lord, Son of God, and Master. She wasn't a Jew, yet she received blessing. She was worthless, yet she was found to be of worth. She was supposed to have no faith, yet her faith was found to be great.

Most of us as Christians come from non-Jewish, Gentile stock. According to Scripture, the blessings we receive from God are the scraps that fall off the table. So, this text is good news for us. God is more concerned about our faith, than our family tree. But, this text is so much more than good news for us Gentiles, it's a lesson, a warning to all of us in the church about how we understand hospitality and faithfulness. How often have we been caught with our 'Christian pants' down? How often have we said or heard – or, sadly, implied – that someone like 'that' would not be comfortable worshiping here? “What church has not paid far more attention to 'washing hands' than to cleansing hearts? What Christian has not claimed religious tradition as an excuse to act in a way far from the heart of Christ?”¹

What would it mean for us as the church, for us as individual people of faith, to allow the words of the Canaanite woman to challenge us to go into the places where we assume there will be no faith, to reach out to the people that the world has cast aside as worthless? What would it mean for us to let go of traditions, about the things we've always done, and instead listen to the voices and cries of those that tradition and culture have labeled as “unclean” or “unwanted”? What would it mean if instead of seeing the “worthless dogs” scurrying around at the edges of our lives as scavengers who take from our pot, we were to see them as future members of our family, as fellow children of God seeking to be blessed?

This text is not easy. I'm not even totally sure that Jesus wasn't giving his disciples or the woman a test. But, Matthew includes this story in his Gospel for a reason. And no matter the basis for Jesus' sharp and harsh words, Matthew cites them to remind the church, to remind each and every one of us, that we should always rejoice that “God's love and promise for Israel is fulfilled in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Those of Gentile stock, adopted into this covenant tradition, need never forget this, and never tire in giving thanks that, in Jesus, God's covenant promises stretches out”² further than we can see and wider than we think: as far and wide as Jesus' arms reached out on the cross to embrace the whole of creation. How's your reach, how far have you stretched out your arms lately? Amen.

1p. 358, Feasting on the Word, Year A Volume 3 edited by Bartlett and Brown Taylor, WJK Press 2011

2p. 360, Feasting on the Word, Year A Volume 3 edited by Bartlett and Brown Taylor, WJK Press 2011

Holding On

Eighth Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 13 - Year A

August 3, 2014

Genesis 32:22-31

The same night he got up and took his two wives, his two maids, and his eleven children, and crossed the ford of the Jabbok. He took them and sent them across the stream, and likewise everything that he had. Jacob was left alone; and a man wrestled with him until daybreak. When the man saw that he did not prevail against Jacob, he struck him on the hip socket; and Jacob's hip was put out of joint as he wrestled with him. Then he said, "Let me go, for the day is breaking." But Jacob said, "I will not let you go, unless you bless me." So he said to him, "What is your name?" And he said, "Jacob." Then the man said, "You shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel, for you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed." Then Jacob asked him, "Please tell me your name." But he said, "Why is it that you ask my name?" And there he blessed him. So Jacob called the place Peniel, saying, "For I have seen God face to face, and yet my life is preserved." The sun rose upon him as he passed Penuel, limping because of his hip.

A Note: A week ago my daughter suffered a tragic accident and had several of her fingers severely damaged.  We have yet to know if she will be able to retain a reattached finger tip.When I was in Seminary, my preaching professor told us that we needed to be always aware of who our sermons were for. We needed to preach the sermons our congregations needed to hear; not the sermons we wanted to hear, or the sermons we wanted to preach. Today, I'm breaking that rule. Today, this one's for me.

For the last few summers one of the television shows that has returned every year is American Ninja Warrior. The show is basically a competition where the contestants compete against one another to finish an obstacle course that contains often ridiculous tests of strength, endurance, balance, and agility. The one thing that I have noticed is a shared trait among a great majority of the tests is the necessity to hold on. Sometimes it's holding on to a swinging rope. Sometimes it's holding on to hanging bars. Sometimes it's hanging on to the top corner of a wall. The slightest slip, the weakening of the grip, and you fall and are eliminated from the competition. It's sort of like the chin-up contests we had in elementary school where whoever hung on the longest wins.

I was pretty good at those hanging contests; of course, I was a skinny kid, nothing but skin and bones, so there wasn't that much to hold up. When I think back on my childhood, there were a fair amount of times when I had to hang on. Climbing the neighbor's tree, I had to hang on more times than I can remember as my feet slipped on a branch. When I was racing BMX in high school, I gripped the handles of the bike as a launched into the air; now in those situations, I wasn't always successful at holding on, and I've got some scars here and there as proof of my inability to do so.

Of course, holding on, grasping for a secure hold, isn't just a physical thing, it's also a part of other parts of our lives. In school, how often did we struggle to grasp a new idea, a new concept? I remember struggling to memorize lines for a play, I remember grasping for answers on tests. Struggling and grasping for things seems to be a part of our lives. Sometimes, it seems as if life itself can be a struggle.

Here in the United States, most of us don't have to struggle for our daily lives, but in other parts of the world that isn't the case. In the last week we have been hearing and reading the reports out of Israel and Palestine, how the people there are struggling to live as bombs and rockets explode around them. West Africa is currently being hit by the worst outbreak of Ebola in years, hundreds of people have died after contracting the disease. Around the world there are literally millions of people who struggle to survive each and every day. Struggling to find food and clean water. Struggling to find ways to provide for themselves and their families. Struggling each and every day in ways we might not even be able to imagine in the face of situations and events beyond their control.

When things happen that we do not understand, when things happen that are beyond our control, when things happen that are both tragic or joyous, we can often struggle. Why? Why did this wonderful thing happen to me when others are so much more needy? Why did this terrible thing happen to me? Why did dad die? Why cancer? Why injury? Why her? We struggle, we seek answers, we shout out our struggles to God in prayer, in promises, in pleas. Sometimes we may even struggle with God, wrestle with God.

I think all of us have wrestled with God at some point in our lives. Maybe we've wrestled about things that have happened; things that have not happened. Perhaps we've wrestled about a decision we are making; what is God asking us, provoking us, prompting us to do? I've wrestled with God about what is right, what is wrong. I've wrestled with God over understanding verses and passages in the Bible. I've wrestled with God about things I've done and not done. I've wrestled.

One of the things about our passage from Genesis that I like is that it's not really clear who started the wrestling match. Maybe it was God, maybe it was Jacob. Maybe our struggles with God started with God coming at us, challenging us on something. Maybe our struggles started with us coming at God, challenging God, challenging what has happened, what we think the Bible says, what we understand God's will to be. The thing is, it doesn't really matter where the struggle originated, what matters is that the struggle happens.

When we encounter a problem, a struggle, an obstacle of any kind, there are two options that we have: take it on, or not. When God and us engage in a struggle of any kind, we can either enter into the fray, get into the struggle, wrestle; or we can go in the other direction: run away, avoid, deny. If you look at the story we have, we find Jacob and God wrestling all night, there is no apparent victor. Neither one gives up, neither one overcomes the other; yet, in our text God declares, “you have striven with God and with humans, and have prevailed.” Some texts say 'won'. No winner that we can see, yet Jacob is seen as a victor of sorts. Why?

Because he didn't give up. He didn't walk away. Jacob wrestles with God in the dark of the night. We too wrestle with God in the dark times of our lives. We grasp and struggle, sometimes not even sure what it is we are holding on to. Yet, we struggle on and that is the key. And just as with Jacob who strove through the night into the bright light of a new day, we too when we struggle, when we hold on to God through our darkest moment will after the long dark night enter into a new and bright shining day.

Wrestling, struggling, holding on is the key. The thing about wrestling, the thing about struggling is that it's something you cannot do alone. Do your best, try to wrestle all by yourself. You can't. You either wrestle with yourself, or an opponent. You cannot wrestle alone. And in this life we are never alone. God is there. Sometimes walking beside us, sometimes carrying us, sometimes wrestling with us. God is always there holding on to us, from the day we take our first breath, from our 'borning cry' as the song says, until we breathe our very last. God is present, God is with us.

We are never alone. In the midst of our darkest moments. In those times when we struggle to understand, when we struggle to find peace, when we are unsure what or even if we believe, God is there. God is there holding on to us, asking us to hold on as well. Hold on for all we've got. Hold on and struggle. Hold on when we don't know if we've got the strength. Hold on when we don't know how long the night will be. Hold on when we feel we can go no longer, when we feel our hip, our legs go out beneath us. Hold on to God, because God is holding on to you. Hold on to God and you will come through the dark night and enter into a new day, a new beginning, and we will be able to claim with joy the name God has given to all of us: beloved child of God. Amen.

Of Weeds and Wheat

Sixth Sunday of Pentecost – Proper 11 – Year A

July 20, 2014

Matthew 13:24-30, 36-43

He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven may be compared to someone who sowed good seed in his field; but while everybody was asleep, an enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat, and then went away. So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared as well. And the slaves of the householder came and said to him, 'Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? Where, then, did these weeds come from?' He answered, 'An enemy has done this.' The slaves said to him, 'Then do you want us to go and gather them?' But he replied, 'No; for in gathering the weeds you would uproot the wheat along with them. Let both of them grow together until the harvest; and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, Collect the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.'"

Then he left the crowds and went into the house. And his disciples approached him, saying, "Explain to us the parable of the weeds of the field." He answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are angels. Just as the weeds are collected and burned up with fire, so will it be at the end of the age. The Son of Man will send his angels, and they will collect out of his kingdom all causes of sin and all evildoers, and they will throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. Let anyone with ears listen!"

Over the last few years, Melissa and I have been trying to downsize our stuff, or should I say our junk. Over the years, we have both accumulated a fair amount of stuff. When we were single, and when it was just the two of us it wasn't too bad. Now that there are four of us, and the kids seem to never stop growing and getting more stuff of their own, we are rapidly approaching the point where something needs to give. So, we have been giving. A load here and there to Goodwill or St. Vincent's, a dumpster load (or two) to the landfill, selling things here and there.

There's something that feels wonderful about cleaning things out, getting rid of things you don't need to keep around. All of us likely have shirts in our closets we haven't worn in the last few years, shoes that haven't seen the light of day in a long time, pants that we haven't been able to fit into since the last millennium. I know I have books on my shelf that I haven't glanced at in ages, and they just sit there year in and year out. We have a couple of end tables just sitting in our basement – one of these days we'll actually get around to selling them. I have stacks of sheet music from my days in college that I should probably sort through and then get rid of the stuff I'll never ever play.

I know when I clean a room, and am able to fill up a garbage bag with trash – papers, magazines, it feels amazing; like you actually accomplished something. You look at a room that's been picked up, and you feel good. There's nothing like a clean, picked up house that makes you just feel calm and at ease. There's something to be said for how a messy and cluttered home makes your whole demeanor and spirit a little messy and cluttered. An organized and cleaned up house can make even the worst chaotic day feel a little bit more controlled.

Cleaning up and disposing of things isn't just about houses and rooms though. It's also about other parts of our lives. Many of us have habits that we cling to that we would be better off disposing of. Sometimes it's doing things we know aren't good for us, sometimes it's not doing things we know are good for us. Do we really need that meal super-sized? How many smokes have you had today? When was the last time you went for a walk? What about having a nice salad for dinner tonight?

One of the things I have come to learn in life is that it's important who you surround yourself with. If you surround yourself with positive people, with people who are gracious and kind, people who challenge you to be better, you will likely be happier. But, when you surround yourself with people who are negative, with people who are overly negative, with people who don't inspire you, you aren't really going to get anywhere and the life you are living may not be all that fulfilling. Sometimes, it's necessary to do the painful thing and slowly move away from friends and associates that rub you the wrong way, that make you see life more negatively, that hold you back rather than challenging you to move forward. Sometimes, it seems like you have to clear out your friend list to make space for more positive things in your life.

All of us know the damage that can occur in an organization or group when there is a problem person present. You know who I mean, the person that is always complaining, the person who can find fault with everything and everyone, the person who you avoid sitting next to at meetings. This is the person about whom you honestly have to wonder what they are doing as part of the group most of the time. If they really hate it as much as they seem to, why don't they just leave? Maybe we've been in that situation, and done what was necessary to get them to change their behavior, or maybe we've even forced them out, fired them or made them quit.

Last week, our text was about the sowing of the gospel seed everywhere without regard to if we think the seed will grow or not. This week, our text seems to be about what can happen when you do that. You've been out sowing seeds everywhere, and growth is beginning to happen. New faces are showing up, lives are being impacted, everything seems to be going awesome. Then, something happens. In the midst of the wonderful grain that is sprouting, a weed appears. A growth appears that is deemed far from desirable, taking of the nutrients of the soil and water, stealing light. What to do?

This is the situation that Jesus is addressing. Well, it's probably more likely that this is the situation that Matthew is addressing. Most scholars and theologians think the writer of Matthew has put words into Jesus' mouth to speak to a growing situation in the early church. One of the realities of the early church was that it was full of disagreements (so, it's a lot like the church today!) People went back and forth arguing about how much of a role Judaism was to have, whether or not Jesus was God incarnate, was Jesus coming back tomorrow or was he already here. There were arguments about how people were supposed to live their lives – balancing the whole in the world but not of the world thing. And when there were disagreements, people often took sides. And in taking sides, they declared one side as being correct and the other side as being false. There was one perspective that was good wheat, and the other side a noxious weed, one planted by Jesus and the other obviously planted by the enemy. What to do? Obviously, you get rid the weeds! Except, that isn't what Jesus says.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could easily divide the world into good and evil, saints and sinners, wheat and weeds. But it's not that simple, the world isn't that simple, and neither are each of us. We are all a mix of saint and sinner, as Paul says striving to do what we know we should do, yet so often failing and doing what we know we shouldn't. Saved from sin, yet not saved from sinning. That's the reality that we all know and live. We know the difficulty that would come if we were asked to divide up the good and bad, wheat and weeds around us.

The reality is that it is difficult, if not impossible to truly judge another persons actions and motifs. We cannot know what is within their hearts. This parable is a word of caution to all of us that we should not be too quick to divide up the world into categories; into “us” and “them”. We should be aware of our tendency to gather together and label as “weeds” the “them” around us, assuming they are destined for being burned up and destroyed. Just as in the parable, we can far too easily label and gather up good wheat in our desire to clean up, to remove the weeds. And once you have removed, it can be very difficult to replant.

This is the reality that is found in many churches and worshiping communities. There are multitudes of people who have been chased from churches by well-meaning folk who have determined they are weeds that need to be removed. They speak of being burned by the church, not God, but the church. They speak of the hypocrisy and treatment they received by the “good Christian” folk, who probably felt they were doing God's will. Yet, in their actions they have turned a fellow child of God away, casting them out into the refuse pile, treating them as worthless and without purpose.

So what are we supposed to do? What are we to do when we encounter someone who we disagree with, someone who we are tempted to label as a “them” to our “us” in the church? First, seek not to judge, seek not to divide. And then come together with them in conversation. In the eighteenth chapter of Matthew we find some words of advice, “If another member of the church sins against you, go and point out the fault when the two of you are alone. If the member listens to you, you have regained that one. But if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses. If the member refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church; and if the offender refuses to listen even to the church, let such a one be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:15-17)

So, the thing we have to reflect on is how Jesus treated the gentile and the tax collector. Did he exclude them, did he run them out of town? Of course not, one of his disciples was a tax collector – Matthew wasn't it? One of the things that is missed in most English translations is the way in which Jesus speaks of the weeds and wheat growing together. Just about every single translation tells us to allow, to let, to permit the weeds and wheat to grow together, but the Greek word is aphete, a word that is usually translated as forgive. Forgive them to grow together.

A few centuries ago, in the late 1700's there was a plant feared for it's poison, for it's ability to kill those who ate it. The juicy red fruit was avoided at all cost, and in fact it was rumored that an attempt was made to kill George Washington by secretly including it in his food. Today that fruit has become a treasured part of our diet, something that almost everyone who has a garden has in their garden. What is this killer fruit? The tomato! What gave the tomato such a horrible reputation? Well, it was observed that when wealthy people ate it, they soon became sick and died. Why? Well, the acidity of the tomato was high enough to pull the lead out of the pewter plates that many people ate off. The wealthy were poisoned, they died of lead poisoning, and the tomato was blamed.

It took years for the reputation to disappear, for the worth and value of the tomato to be seen. The tomato didn't change, it was our perception of it, our treatment of it, the way we thought about it that changed. I think all of us can agree that a beautiful part of our diet would have been lost if our ancestors had simply cast it off as a worthless weed, if they had not found a way to forgive the reputation the tomato had.

The Bible tells us that God sends both sun and rain on the righteous and the unrighteous alike. If God shows such generosity of spirit, can we do any less? Can we find it within ourselves to let God be the gardener who is in control, and not try to make the decisions of the gardener our selves? There are without doubt times when cleaning house, removing the unnecessary, the garbage in our lives is beneficial. But, is doing that within the church the right thing to do, even if it might be beneficial to us, to the church? Is it God's desire that we pull out the weeds amongst us? Or is God's desire that we forgive, find ways to love them in? I'm pretty sure I know what the answer is. May God give us the ears to listen, and the depth of love necessary to respond. Amen.

Sowing Seeds

Fifth Sunday after Pentecost – Proper 10 – Year A

July 13, 2014

Matthew 13: 1-9, 18-23

That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat beside the lake. Such great crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat there, while the whole crowd stood on the beach. And he told them many things in parables, saying: "Listen! A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds fell on the path, and the birds came and ate them up. Other seeds fell on rocky ground, where they did not have much soil, and they sprang up quickly, since they had no depth of soil. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and since they had no root, they withered away. Other seeds fell among thorns, and the thorns grew up and choked them. Other seeds fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!

"Hear then the parable of the sower. When anyone hears the word of the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one comes and snatches away what is sown in the heart; this is what was sown on the path. As for what was sown on rocky ground, this is the one who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet such a person has no root, but endures only for a while, and when trouble or persecution arises on account of the word, that person immediately falls away. As for what was sown among thorns, this is the one who hears the word, but the cares of the world and the lure of wealth choke the word, and it yields nothing. But as for what was sown on good soil, this is the one who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and yields, in one case a hundredfold, in another sixty, and in another thirty."

One of the things we are doing in our family, that doesn't make our lives easier, but we hope is teaching our girls a lesson is recycling as much as we can. We collect all our plastic, our cardboard, our tin, and our glass together in a central location in our house. Now, in Cedar Falls, they don't have curbside pickup of recycling, so we have to load up all our stuff in the car and drive it to one of the local recycling drop-off points. Teaching our girls that it's important to take care of our world isn't just a political or cultural thing, at the core of why we do it is a theological understanding.

In the beginning, when Adam and Eve were still wandering around in the garden of Eden, they were given the responsibility of caring for the garden, for all creation. God didn't take away that calling when the garden was taken away. We are still called to care for all the things that God has created for us to live with and in. Without a doubt there are things we use from the world, we use the water, the wood, the oil and natural gas. But, we are called not just to use it, we are called to be stewards of it. Being a steward means we are to also care for it, and ensure that we are using all the things God has given to us in the best way possible; for ourselves and for the generations that will follow us here.

The concept that we are supposed to care for the things we have, that a great majority of the things we have will not last forever is important. It's a lesson that impacts many different parts of our lives. We tell our kids not to waste things. Not to waste the food on their plate; like at a buffet, you only take what you know you are going to eat. Even so, “In the United States, 31 percent—or 133 billion pounds—of the 430 billion pounds of the available food supply at the retail and consumer levels in 2010 went uneaten!”¹ I'm not sure how many people that could feed, but if you do the math that means that if we assume there are 8 billion people in the world that the United States could have provided an additional almost 7 pounds of food to every person on the planet, just from the food we waste.

We are careful about the things we do. For pretty much all of us, we know that there is a limit to the amount of money we can spend. We have to have budgets, and follow them. We have to be careful. As much as we might love our sweets, our pies and cakes, our candies, we know that there is a limit to how much we can eat. There is a price to be paid if we aren't careful with our diet – either in exercise, or in additional holes in our belts. We give our kids a treat, and tell them they need to be careful, because that's all they get; once it's gone they aren't getting any more for a long time.

Stewardship of our resources, conservation, caring for the things we have or receive is important. Understanding the necessity to plan for what we have is necessary. When you are going to cook something, you want to make sure you have enough of the ingredients. When you are going to build something, you want to make sure you have all the supplies; enough to finish the project. We know how much we need, how much we will likely have leftover. We've done all the work ahead of time. We've done all the preparation. If you are going to have a garden, you plan. You have to think about how big it's going to be, what you are going to grow. You have to purchase the right seeds and plants, you have to prepare the ground – make sure it will let things grow. Only after you have done all the prep work will you actually get to planting the seeds and plants; to have not prepared for it is to essentially waste the seeds and plants you have invested in. If you are going to do something, you want to do all you can to make sure it succeeds.

In recent years, one of the things that has become common in the church is the necessity to do a whole lot of groundwork and planning before embarking on a new venture. If you are starting a new mission outreach, a new church, a membership drive, it's not uncommon to spend hundreds if not thousands of dollars and hours doing research and planning. What is the demographic you want to reach? Where does that demographic live? What is the best way to reach them? How many other people have tried and failed? How has that demographic group grown or shrunk in previous years, and what is it expected to do in the coming years? What form of marketing will be most effective, have the desired result? Only after all those questions, and many more have been answered do you move forward with the plan. If you are going to invest all the time, money and energy into something, you want to make sure you are going to get the result you are looking for.

Which brings us to our text. I think most of the time when we think about this parable, we focus on the different types of ground. We look at the various ways in which the seed of the gospel is received or rejected. We then try to recognize those same groups of people around us. We may even think about how we can go out and do different things to change the ground, to impact those who would normally reject; do some preparation so that the gospel can more easily take root. There is a great deal to think about there. But, today, I want us to think about the sower and the seed that is being sown.

This is a parable, and in the parables of Jesus different characters and parts are normally understood to represent something much greater than itself. Sometimes, we are challenged to interpret the hidden meanings within the parable; and sometimes, as in this case, we are given a key to understanding it. The seed being sown is the gospel, the good news, the message of love and salvation and the growth that occurs is the response to the sharing of the gospel – it doesn't take root, it grows quickly then dies, it grows weakly, or it produces abundant growth. Now, the identity of the one sowing the gospel isn't identified – it could be God, it could be Jesus, it could be the disciples. I like to think that it represents each and every one of us in whom the seed has taken root and grown. This parable is about evangelism.

Evangelism in some circles has gotten a bad name. Let's face it, how excited are we when Jehovah's Witnesses, Mormons, or other well-meaning folks show up on our doorsteps? How do we respond to the people handing out tracts at the entrances to festivals or malls? Even though I love God, I love my faith, I get a little annoyed; and when I have the chance I tend to try and avoid an encounter. But, I often don't just avoid those who are trying to evangelize me, I also avoid sharing my faith with others, and often I'm not even aware of doing it. It goes back to those demographic studies and plans. We carefully do demographic and community studies, we seek out specific types of people, we craft our outreach to be attractive to a specific targeted audience. We do the same thing on a personal level, being (perhaps overly) cautious about who we talk to about our faith, who we reach out to, who we invite to our services. When we carefully choose who we evangelize, we are also carefully excluding others. We are choosing where and when we are going to be spreading the seed of the gospel.

How does that match up with the actions of the sower in our parable? How much prep work did they do? How much time did they spend doing demographic studies, thinking about who would be most likely to respond favorably to the message? Obviously, there is a huge difference. The sower sows, the gospel is spread with apparent disregard for the situations of those who are receiving it. There were no demographic studies made, there seemed to be no thoughts about the type of people they wanted to attract, there were no thoughts about how future members would be able to contribute to the financial or communal life of the group. There were no thoughts about if they would fit, if they would get along with others. The gospel was spread about freely and liberally, there was no conservation of the seed. So, why is there a difference?

I think it comes down to the way we think about our faith. That is to say, we think of faith as being ours, as a possession that we have, something we need to take care of and cultivate. Faith becomes a treasure that we have received. It becomes something we have placed a value on, something that we think we can hold onto, something tangible; and if it is tangible, it must have limits of some kind. Could it run out, do we need to conserve it, be good stewards of it? Do we need to be careful about who we share it with, in case we run out? Obviously not!

How contrary our actions often are to the reality we all know. The seed we have is precious, but it will not run out. We do not need to carefully measure out where we will sow it, we don't need to be worried about running out, having to get more, about wasting the seed. Waste is worrying about the results first and foremost, not trusting in the quality of the product that is being shared. If this parable is about the seed and sower, it declares that God does not predetermine who is worthy of receiving the good news, who is good soil. All soil is worthy, and so the seed is sown. What an image, God sees us all as good soil, (places of potential growth) regardless of how rocky or choked with weeds we may be.

God sees us as good soil, even though we may be choked with weeds, even though we all have places that are far more filled with rocks and stones than good earth. It is because God sees us this way that Jesus came to walk amongst us, and deliver us in the first place. It is because of this love God has for us that the seed is sown so widely. We all know that the love of God is limitless, that it will not run out. So too, the seed of hope that is shared with others. It is not our responsibility to determine who is worth sharing our faith with. It is not our job to determine who has or hasn't heard the gospel message. It is not our responsibility to determine the chances of someone's responding positively to the gospel message.

Our responsibility is two: to grow, and to sow. We are called to grow in faith, to grow the seed that has been planted within us. To nurture it with prayer, and scripture, to care for it by providing it with others to grow with, to give it moments when it is challenged to grow and respond. And, we are called to sow. We are called to share the gospel message with the world. This need not be terrifying. One of my favorite quotes is, “Share the good news with others at all times, and when necessary use words.” Sharing our faith is best done when we are in loving service to others, when we are modeling the love that we have experienced in acts of love for others.

That is our calling, that is our charge, that is our privilege and our joy. May we come to discover that joy more fully, may we know the unending love of God more deeply, and may we sow the seed with reckless abandon as a sign of that unending love. Amen.

1http://endhunger.org/food_waste.htm