Oct. 18, 2020 Pentecost 20

Matt. 22:15-22 (The Message)

“15 That's when the Pharisees plotted a way to trap him into saying something damaging. 16 They sent their disciples, with a few of Herod's followers mixed in, to ask, "Teacher, we know you have integrity, teach the way of God accurately, are indifferent to popular opinion, and don't pander to your students. 17 So tell us honestly: Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?" 18 Jesus knew they were up to no good. He said, "Why are you playing these games with me? Why are you trying to trap me? 19 Do you have a coin? Let me see it." They handed him a silver piece. 20 "This engraving - who does it look like? And whose name is on it?" 21 They said, "Caesar." "Then give Caesar what is his, and give God what is his." 22 The Pharisees were speechless. They went off shaking their heads.”

“A Loaded Question”

A loaded question is one that has more hidden then revealed.

A loaded question doesn’t deserve a straight answer.  

In fact it can’t be answered straight.

The issue at stake in this text is not simply the payment of taxes.  It is the issue of the plurality and priority of the claims on one’s life and substance.

The issue at the heart of the text is how much are we willing to struggle with our faith as “a power and passion in authority among the powers and passions of life”. (P.T. Forsyth)

How much are we willing to struggle with putting our faith into action in love.

The answer Jesus gave left them with the struggle to be responsible for their own answer.  And to determine where the hypocrisy was in their lives. (We all have it - hypocrisy - like it or not!)

Each of us have the responsibility to determine as best we can where the hypocrisy is in our lives and then work at being more genuine, more inclusive, more truly human. 

For if the image of Caesar is on the coin, then the counterpart to that which Jesus leaves unsaid, is that Gods image is on us!  All of life is to be lived in gratitude to God who created us and sustains us with His love.

“How do you know when the night is over and the day has dawned?”  an old rabbi asked his students.  “It is when you can look into the face of any man or woman and see there the face of your brother or sister.  Because, if you cannot do that , no matter how bright it is, you are still in the dark.”

Prayer thought for the week:  “Lord, open my eyes to see my brother or sister in all who pass my way.  Amen

Oct. 11, 2020 Pentecost 19

Matt. 22:1-14  (The Message)

8 "Then he told his servants, 'We have a wedding banquet all prepared but no guests. The ones I invited weren't up to it. 9 Go out into the busiest intersections in town and invite anyone you find to the banquet.' 10 The servants went out on the streets and rounded up everyone they laid eyes on, good and bad, regardless. And so the banquet was on - every place filled. 11 "When the king entered and looked over the scene, he spotted a man who wasn't properly dressed. 12 He said to him, 'Friend, how dare you come in here looking like that!' The man was speechless. 13 Then the king told his servants, 'Get him out of here - fast. Tie him up and ship him to hell. And make sure he doesn't get back in.' 14 "That's what I mean when I say, 'Many get invited; only a few make it.'"

We are shocked and surprised by the treatment of the one who came to the feast without a wedding garment. We do want to have our cake and eat it too.  As Dr Helmut Thielicke says, “We seat ourselves at the banquet table without a wedding garment when we allow our sins to be forgiven but still want to hang on to them.” 

When we have no intention of being changed by God’s grace!

“Christian satiation is worse then hungry heathenism.”  Dr. Helmet Thielicke

Indifference and complacency are both dangerous to faith.  They take the life out of it.  

God expects to see something    

different in our lives because

we have been to his banquet.

Prayer thoughts for the week:

“Lord, help me to live as one who is being changed by grace.

keep me from smug complacency which fails to be graceful towards others.

Let something different happen in and through me because I have been forgiven.”   

 

Oct 4, 2020 Pentecost 18

Matt. 21:33-46 (The Message)

 33 "Here's another story. Listen closely. There was once a man, a wealthy farmer, who planted a vineyard. He fenced it, dug a winepress, put up a watchtower, then turned it over to the farmhands and went off on a trip. 34 When it was time to harvest the grapes, he sent his servants back to collect his profits. 35 "The farmhands grabbed the first servant and beat him up. The next one they murdered. They threw stones at the third but he got away. 36 The owner tried again, sending more servants. They got the same treatment. 37 The owner was at the end of his rope. He decided to send his son. 'Surely,' he thought, 'they will respect my son.' 38 "But when the farmhands saw the son arrive, they rubbed their hands in greed. 'This is the heir! Let's kill him and have it all for ourselves.' 39 They grabbed him, threw him out, and killed him. 40 "Now, when the owner of the vineyard arrives home from his trip, what do you think he will do to the farmhands?" 41 "He'll kill them - a rotten bunch, and good riddance," they answered. "Then he'll assign the vineyard to farmhands who will hand over the profits when it's time." 42 Jesus said, "Right - and you can read it for yourselves in your Bibles: The stone the masons threw out is now the cornerstone. This is God's work; we rub our eyes, we can hardly believe it! 43 "This is the way it is with you. God's kingdom will be taken back from you and handed over to a people who will live out a kingdom life.

The Kingdom of God will always belong to someone, yet it is owned by no one.

We are tenants, not owners.  And the bottom line for a tenant is the crop produced.

Jesus is saying to the leaders of his day that “ the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and be given to a people who will produce the proper fruits” because:

They were adding to the burdens of the people rather then lifting their burdens.

They were more interested in being religious then in being merciful.

They were quick to cast the first stone as they judged others but could not

see the sins of their ways.

We who claim Jesus as Lord stand with the tenants.  We are to produce proper fruits.  If we don’t, we too will have it taken away from us.  This is not a threat.  This is part of Gods promise!  God expects much from us because God has done much for us.  We are blessed so we can be a blessing.

The fruit God is looking for in our lives is that we love one another as God loves us.

And that we “do justice, love kindness, and walk humbly”.

This is not sweet sentimentalism but strong compassion.

Compassion which dares to not “insist on its own way” when that means others have to suffer.

It means daring to act so that others will have it as good as we do.

It even means we vote with concern in our hearts for the welfare of all - not just a choice few!

Compassion is “That inner disposition 

to go with others where they hurt,

where they are weak, vulnerable, 

lonely, and  broken.”  Henri Nouwen

Prayer thought for the week:  “ Lord, help me to struggle to be compassionate when it is so easy to be judgmental.  Help me to “go with” others “where they are weak, vulnerable, lonely, broken”, not just in my thoughts and prayers but also in my words and deeds, that we might indeed be a country which has “liberty and justice” for all! 

Sept. 27, 2020 17h of Pentecost

Matthew 21:28-32 (The Message)

28 "Tell me what you think of this story: A man had two sons. He went up to the first and said, 'Son, go out for the day and work in the vineyard.' 29 "The son answered, 'I don't want to.' Later on he thought better of it and went. 30 "The father gave the same command to the second son. He answered, 'Sure, glad to.' But he never went. 31 "Which of the two sons did what the father asked?" They said, "The first." 32 John came to you showing you the right road. You turned up your noses at him, but the crooks and whores believed him. Even when you saw their changed lives, you didn't care enough to change and believe him.”

The answer to Jesus question, “Which of the two did what his Father wanted?” is obvious.  The one who said no and then went anyway.  It is not enough to just say yes to God.  Actions must follow words or the words are empty and useless.  “Not everyone who says ‘Lord, Lord’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those who do the will of my Father who is in heaven.”  Mt. 7:21

It is not only our sin which separates us from God.  Our religiosity - our pretending we are more holy then we are - our playing at our religion separates us  from God.  As Martin Luther once said “The curse of the godless person can sound more pleasant in God’s ears than the hallelujah of the pious.”

It is not wise to say yes too quickly, or to think that once we have said ‘yes’, there will never be a no again.  Never be a doubt or a question or a hesitation.  Those who seek to oppress people take away the right to say no.  This God will never do.

There are times when it is healthy to say ‘no’, even to God.  So we can say ‘yes’ and mean it.  It has been said that a mentally healthy person can say ‘yes’, ‘no’, and ‘yippee’.   Perhaps that is true of a healthy religious person too.  We have to be born anew again, and again, and again (change our minds) as we journey with God through life.  For “it takes a long time to make a soul.”  Alan Jones

Those who never change their minds,  

never change anything.”  

Winston Churchill

Prayer thought for the week: “Lord, be patient with me as I say no so I can say yes and even yippee.”

Sept. 20 2020 16th of Pentecost

Matthew 20:1-16 (The Message)

1 "God's kingdom is like an estate manager who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 They agreed on a wage of a dollar a day, and went to work. 3 "Later, about nine o'clock, the manager saw some other men hanging around the town square unemployed. 4 He told them to go to work in his vineyard and he would pay them a fair wage. 5 They went. 6 At five o'clock he went back and found still others standing around. He said, 'Why are you standing around all day doing nothing? 7 ' "They said, 'Because no one hired us.' "He told them to go to work in his vineyard. 8 "When the day's work was over, the owner of the vineyard instructed his foreman, 'Call the workers in and pay them their wages. Start with the last hired and go on to the first.' 9 "Those hired at five o'clock came up and were each given a dollar. 10 When those who were hired first saw that, they assumed they would get far more. But they got the same, each of them one dollar. 11 Taking the dollar, they groused angrily to the manager, 12 'These last workers put in only one easy hour, and you just made them equal to us, who slaved all day under a scorching sun.' 13 "He replied to the one speaking for the rest, 'Friend, I haven't been unfair. We agreed on the wage of a dollar, didn't we? 14 So take it and go. I decided to give to the one who came last the same as you. 15 Can't I do what I want with my own money? Are you going to get stingy because I am generous?' 16 "Here it is again, the Great Reversal: many of the first ending up last, and the last first."

We all like to think we are generous, and are eager to embrace generosity when or where ever it happens.  Yet we also quickly begrudge it when it doesn’t happen to us.

God’s generosity (grace) happens!  Sometimes to us and sometimes to others and we have no control over it.  God will be generous to whom God will be generous!

None of us deserve it; so it is always a gift.

Working long and hard in the Kingdom does not make us any more deserving of God’s grace then those who come in late and work little.  In fact, we are the fortunate ones, for we had the privilege of working long and hard in a task which brings joy and blessing. 

“God’s grace cannot be a random problem-solver doled out to the few and the virtuous—or it is hardly grace at all!”    Richard Rohr

Prayer thought for the week:  “Lord, thank you for giving me much to do for you,

which enriches my life with grace upon grace.  And keep me from thinking I deserve it!”

 Sept. 13, 2020 15h of Pentecost

Matthew 18: 21- 35  (The Message)

21 At that point Peter got up the nerve to ask, “Master, how many times do I forgive a brother or sister who hurts me? Seven?”

22 Jesus replied, “Seven! Hardly. Try seventy times seven.

23-25 “The kingdom of God is like a king who decided to square accounts with his servants. As he got under way, one servant was brought before him who had run up a debt of a hundred thousand dollars. He couldn’t pay up, so the king ordered the man, along with his wife, children, and goods, to be auctioned off at the slave market.

26-27 “The poor wretch threw himself at the king’s feet and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ Touched by his plea, the king let him off, erasing the debt.

28 “The servant was no sooner out of the room when he came upon one of his fellow servants who owed him ten dollars. He seized him by the throat and demanded, ‘Pay up. Now!’

29-31 “The poor wretch threw himself down and begged, ‘Give me a chance and I’ll pay it all back.’ But he wouldn’t do it. He had him arrested and put in jail until the debt was paid. When the other servants saw this going on, they were outraged and brought a detailed report to the king.

32-35 “The king summoned the man and said, ‘You evil servant! I forgave your entire debt when you begged me for mercy. Shouldn’t you be compelled to be merciful to your fellow servant who asked for mercy?’ The king was furious and put the screws to the man until he paid back his entire debt. And that’s exactly what my Father in heaven is going to do to each one of you who doesn’t forgive unconditionally anyone who asks for mercy.”

There are times when we have to withhold forgiveness or all we do is enable. 

 

Is it possible the servant was not gracious with his fellow servant because he was forgiven too much too soon and it didn’t work?    It didn’t work because he wasn’t ready for it.  He was still caught in his own selfish, self-centered, self-seeking attitude which prevented him from being gracious no matter how gracious others were to him.  It didn’t work because he was not ready to admit that he was powerless to do anything about his condition and needed the kings mercy, not just a little time to work things out.

We can cheapen the gift of forgiveness when we offer it too quickly or too easily or even too often.  Then it ends up making little if any difference in our lives.  We are called to want to forgive; we cannot always forgive as quickly or easily as we would like.

Forgiveness is not pretending everything is okay when it isn’t.  It is not letting someone walk over you again and again and again, doing nothing about it.  It is not allowing someone to be irresponsible over and over and over again, doing nothing to stop it.  That’s enabling in the language of today - co-dependency - which leads not to life and happiness but more dysfunction and unhappiness.  There are times we cannot forgive and there are times our forgiveness will make no difference, because it cannot connect in a real way with the life of the one we would like to forgive.  This is a bitter reality of forgiveness.

                                      

Yet we are to never give up on forgiveness;  always be ready to forgive when the time comes.  When actions “speak louder then words” and we dare take the risk of forgiveness again.

 

“Forgiveness is love’s toughest work, and love’s biggest risk.  

If you twist it into something it was never meant to be, 

it can make you a doormat or an insufferable manipulator.”  Lewis Smedes

Prayer thoughts for the week:

“Lord, help to forgive even when I don’t want to.”

“…keep me open to forgiveness even when the one I want to forgive doesn’t want my forgiveness.”

“…help me to never give up on forgiveness.”

Sept. 6, 2020 14th of Pentecost

 

 

Matthew 18: 15-18  (The Message)

15 "If a fellow believer hurts you, go and tell him - work it out between the two of you. If he listens, you've made a friend. 16 If he won't listen, take one or two others along so that the presence of witnesses will keep things honest, and try again. 17 If he still won't listen, tell the church. If he won't listen to the church, you'll have to start over from scratch, confront him with the need for repentance, and offer again God's forgiving love. 18 "Take this most seriously: A yes on earth is yes in heaven; a no on earth is no in heaven. What you say to one another is eternal. I mean this.

We are not to be piously judging and condemning; we are to be accountable to each other and not be indifferent about that which causes disharmony in our lives and relationships.  And we are to strive for forgiveness, not giving up until it can happen.

Forgiveness is not an option in God’s Kingdom.  It is a must!  And we are to keep at it until it happens.

I just visited with a friend who took this advice literally. He lives in a small town in Kansas and goes to a small church there.  A conflict with a neighbor, an older man, lead to some harsh words from his lips.  He was troubled about this and went to his Pastor to ask if he could have a moment in the church service to ask the older man for forgiveness.

The Pastor said yes and he did just that.  In front of the congregation, to the surprise of 

the old man and probably everyone else in the service, he asked him by name for forgiveness.  There were tears in the eyes of the old man as he hugged my friend and accepted his forgiveness.  About three weeks later the older man died suddenly of a heart attack.

With peace in his heart and soul!  What we say to one another can indeed be eternal!

"To err is human;  

to forgive is divine."         

 Alexander Pope,                                              

18th c. English poet                                    

Prayer thought for the week: “Lord help me to remember to seek forgiveness when I say hurtful words or do hurtful deeds.  Or when someone has done hurtful things to me.  It brings peace to our hearts and gives us a glimpse of the joy which is eternal.”