Monday, July 28, 2008

the first time in a long time

I preached yesterday morning at a small church about 5 minutes from my house, Ygnacio Valley Presbyterian Church. There were 40 people max there. Sweet older congregation and so encouraging!

It was the first time in 5 years that I had preached which definitely gave me cause for reflection. Five years ago Emme was a baby and I was at the front end of an emotional and spiritual transition that took so much grief, change, leaving and pain. Here I am... 70 units of graduate theological studies, a Presbyterian for goodness sake (hardly knew what one was 5 years ago!) and so close to getting my Masters of Divinity, I can almost reach out and touch the diploma.

The past 5 years have been dark, secret, hidden. For someone who has so many gifts in public ministry and leadership, it has been extremely difficult and full of questions like "am I fooling myself?" "who will ever trust me?" "am i just in this for my own ego?" God's work, as always, has not been blockbuster big but small and quiet reassurances just when I had almost lost all faith.

Preaching yesterday was both familiar and new. Yes, I've done it before but not when I was able to read the text in Greek! And thankfully... yes, truly thankful for this... I felt much less vested in my own advancement and performance. More excited to just be a part of this congregation, worshipping with them and encouraging them to live more fully in the kingdom of God.

So the sermon wasn't brilliant but it was a start. I especially loved finding the kingdom/political/national images in the OT that correlated with the parables in Matthew. Several people have asked about it, so here is my outline I preached from... thanks for reading... I just wish I could attach Audra reading the Scripture to it. She did such a great job at that!


Sermon - July 27, 2008, Mt. 13:31-33, 44-52

What is the kingdom of God or heaven like?

Believe it or not, this question was posed to Barack Obama in this week’s issue of Newsweek. He was asked what he thinks is the kingdom of God? His answer…

Why of all questions was this asked of Obama? Why not his view on who Jesus is? Or what he thinks about the “end times” ideas? Why the kingdom of God?

The editors of Newsweek understand that the kingdom of God is not just confined to religion. It is a political idea.

The idea of kingdom is dangerous because it usually means there is one agenda… the advantage of the king or the king’s interests. Kingdom usually means conquering all that is not in the kingdom and co-opting it for one’s own interests.

Understanding more about the book of Matthew highlights this potentially political message of Jesus

Most scholars assume that Matthew was writing to a Jewish audience in the period of time after the Temple had fallen. Since the temple has fallen, Judaism has lost its primary reference point and there were many voices vying to define what Judaism should be. Matthew is one of those voices. He is writing from a small minority population within Judaism making his case for Jesus and Jesus’ understanding of Judaism.

So we shouldn’t be surprised to find some echoes of the Hebrew Scriptures here and to assume that Matthew’s intended audience would recognize the allusions. And Jesus gives us a clue that we should expect that at the end of this section… “Therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old.” (v.52)

Let’s start with the OLD.
The images Jesus uses here echo images in Hebrew Scriptures. They represent home, promise, longing and judgment.
- Ezekiel and the tree – Ez. 17
- Sarah making bread from 3 measures of flour – Genesis 18
- Jeremiah and the field – Jer 32

But the application here is not to a kingdom on earth, not the hope of the physical kingdom of Israel… it is the kingdom of HEAVEN.

Matthew is the only one that uses this phrase… “the kingdom of heaven” instead of kingdom of God.

At first glance, this phrase can make the kingdom seem farther off, something to hope for in the far-off future reign of God.
But these parables are anything but other-worldly. Let’s start to look at them.


WHAT IS NEW

What is the kingdom of heaven like?

The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.”

The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened.”

“The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field.

“Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.

There are volumes to say about each of these but there are also some commonalities.

First, all of these things are found in places that you usually don’t find kingdom.
And they are found people that usually have nothing to do with kingdoms… a farmer, a housewife, a field laborer, a merchant


This is an affront to our assumed idea of kingdom and Jesus seems to be purposely drawing this contrast. The kingdom of heaven is not found in palaces and on battlefields. It is found in the common places doing common tasks, in the smallest of things.

FAITH – you have to know something to see the potential in these small places – that the mustard seed will grow and provide shade for the birds, that the leaven will help the bread to raise and be edible for your family/friends, that the treasure is worth more than the price of the field, that the pearl is worth all you have.

None of the results of these actions were their own. The farmer cannot MAKE the mustard seed grow, nor can the woman make the bread rise… faith in the process

What is our faith in? Sometimes I think that it is hard to see beyond our small worlds… what gives us any basis of faith?

It is the vision of God in Jesus come to earth, opening his arms and declaring that God loves the world and deeply desires to be reconciled. This is the ultimate basis of our faith… a God who LOVES and is constantly seeking reconciliation. When we see this, we begin to recognize the mustard seeds and pearls among us… the small out of the way that we are asked to invest.

Richard Rohr – “The opposite of faith is not doubt, it is fear.”

Second, even though each of these things is found, there is something to be DONE.
The mustard seed must be planted
The yeast must be mixed.
The treasure had to be hid so that the field could be bought at a lower price.
All other pearls must be sold to buy the one pearl of great value.

LOVE – action must be taken – this is our part. This is what makes the kingdom come alive. As Paul says… the greatest of these is love for without love.

Matthew says later it is the cup of cold water to a child, the visit to the prisoner…

Third, each of these parables contains an element of TIME. The kingdom doesn’t fully develop immediately
The mustard seed must grow
The bread must rise
The field had to be bought before the treasure could be claimed.
Likewise, the merchant had to sell everything first

HOPE –a vision of the kingdom of God… Israel called it shalom and we see it revealed in Jesus. As we will look at next week, part of this vision includes all being fed and cared for… Theologians talk about the “now and not yet-ness” of the kingdom. That it is both here and also ahead of us. That instead of moving from past to present to future, the future of God is actually pulling us forward.

Rom. 8:22 We know that the whole creation has been groaning in labor pains until now; 23 and not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly while we wait for adoption, the redemption of our bodies. 24 For in hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what is seen? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.

In this waiting… it is messy and sometimes hard to see., v. 47-50 = the messiness of the kingdom

WHAT IS the kingdom of heaven?

Jesus teaches it is not attached to a political ideology or nation… but has political implications – it affects systems and the lives of others.

When we begin to act in the seeing of faith, the action of love and the expectant waiting of hope, the kingdom of God begins to grow in our lives individually and spills out… the birds find places to nest, bread is fed to the hungry and treasure is opened and shared.

The kingdom begins to grow in us and out from us when we follow in the way of Jesus– in proclaiming release to the captives, welcoming the outcast and comforting the widow.

The kingdom of heaven is found in the smallest of things, planted with courageous faith in acts of love, living in hopeful expectation that the kingdom will grow and all will live fully reconciled to each other, to creation and to God.

1 comment:

Square Halo said...

Jenny: Your gifts of articulate speech and a questioning mind are so beautiful. You've come a long way from the little high school best friend of my daughter. I'm in awe of what God has done in both of you girls. To God be the Glory. (Dianne)