7 Pentecost/Year A - July 19, 2020
Psalm 139: 1-11, 22-23
Romans 8:12-25
Matthew 13:24-30,36-43
Jesus loved to use parables when talking with the crowds. It seemed to be Jesus’ preferred way to teach others about the kingdom of heaven. The thing about these parables, is they began with Jesus making comparison to perhaps something the listeners thought they were knowledgeable about and could easily relate to. But when Jesus, went deeper with trying to explain the parable to his disciples or smaller circles of followers…the explanation didn’t always yield a clearer understanding of what Jesus was saying…in fact most often…it led to more questions…it confused the people more…by turning upside down anything they thought they knew about God, or what it meant to be a follower of Jesus…in the way of love…Love of God, and love of our neighbors.
Last week, we listened to the parable of the sower…Today, we hear the parable of the weeds…and next week…we will listen to more parables from this chapter in the gospel of Matthew…
Keep that in mind…today’s readings give only a small glimpse into a much larger story of what the kingdom of heaven is like…
Today’s parable of the wheat and the weeds began in this way:
“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.”
Let’s pause here…and sit quietly for a moment with these first couple of sentences. Close your eyes, if you want….and imagine, if you will, along with me….what this opening scene of today’s gospel might look like…
I am sitting in a large field of wheat…one that expands across the horizon to a place far beyond our sight and hearing…I look around, and notice the good fruits of the labors of those who have toiled long days, to work with the good seed that was planted…. And as I notice the hearty wheat in the fields, I think about the people who worked tirelessly to sow the good seed, to help it grow and flourish, and produce enough to share with everyone…then I close my eyes…to rest…
When I wake up, I find myself, not only surrounded by wheat, but now there’s also weeds that have grown in this large field that expands across the horizon to a place beyond our sight and hearing…I look around at all the weeds…and think about how much wasted labor and work went into sowing these weeds…and I wonder…why would someone come while I was asleep, and sow weeds among the wheat? Who would do such a thing? This was a beautiful field of wheat….now its ruined…weeds have no place here! Now I am anxious and angry and all I want to do is find out who did this and make sure they never have the chance to do it again! These weeds don’t belong here, they are not good for anything, I grumble under my breath…
Open your eyes now…I’m sorry to say…this peaceful meditation took a turn down a different path…it started out with a “feel good” setting, a “moment of gratitude” setting, noticing the fruits of the labors to be shared with everyone….then it quickly changed, when I imagined waking up to see the weeds sown by the enemy, in the midst of MY beautiful field of wheat….
1st lesson here…it’s not my field, only…. it’s not my world, only…it’s God’s world…and it was created for everyone to enjoy its gifts and its’ beauty…and its freedoms….and everyone is called to be good stewards of all that has been entrusted to our care…the people, the land and all its’ creatures..
The 2nd lesson here: The minute I forget or decide it’s all about me, and no one else…that’s when I risk falling asleep, or grow weary in being mindful of the needs of others, or grow inpatient with my love and compassion for others…it’s in that exact moment, that the enemy, the devil steps in, in the midst of my weakest and most selfish thoughts…and tempts me to strike out at others with anger, judge others and seek to exclude others, from the kingdom of heaven…that is built upon a foundation of inclusion and welcome for all…that is built upon a foundation of a love for God, and for one another.
Every time we listen to the gospel, or the good news proclaimed in the “God’s kingdom of heaven may be compared to” messages that we hear in Jesus’ parables, we are given an opportunity to once again, repent of our selfishness, acknowledge our human weaknesses, and to listen again, to think again, to reflect again… and to turn our hearts upside down with Jesus, to consider what it means to truly Love God, and our neighbors…with our words, and in our actions…
This Friday, we heard the news of the deaths of 2 civil rights champions, The Rev C.T. Vivian, and Representative John R Lewis, who fought for decades for justice and peace and respect for the dignity of every human being. And they did it through the persistence and insistence of addressing violence and oppression by others with non-violence …a way of love considered to be so upside down to many…but so in line with the gospel of Jesus…
In an excerpt from one of the many articles written in the last couple of days, about John Lewis…I was inspired and encouraged by these words from an interview John Lewis did with a Washington Post writer, (David Von Drehle) several years ago..
Beginning of excerpt - David Von Drehle (Washington Post) July 18 2020
Over the years, in Washington and elsewhere, I’ll admit I studied that battered skull. Notebook in hand, I couldn’t look at Lewis without imagining the pain. When I finally had the chance, I asked him how he steeled himself for such suffering — “How do you prepare mentally and spiritually to be non-violent in response to what you know is going to be a violent attack?”
Lewis replied in the simple, gentle — always authoritative — tones that were his hallmark. His voice, as old and soft as anthracite, invited agreement, and made it impossible to disagree in good faith.
“You studied the way of peace. You studied the way of love,” he answered. “You studied the philosophy and the discipline of non-violence. We had been taught” — by The Rev James Lawson and The Rev Dr Martin Luther King, Jr and by each other in the school of non-violence — “never to hate or become bitter, never to lose the sense of hope. And in the process, you may get arrested a few times. You may and in Selma, I had a concussion on that bridge. I saw death: I thought I was going to die.
“But you keep going. You see something that is so necessary, so right. And I say to my colleagues sometimes, and to friends in my district, and to brothers and sisters in the movement, that you have to be hopeful, you have to be optimistic, be hopeful, keep going!
“Don’t get lost in a sea of despair.” end of excerpt
We still have a long way to go, in the work of ensuring justice and peace and equity and respect for the dignity of every human being.
We are all called now…in this season of life…to be hopeful…to keep going….to keep moving forward….to continue this important mission of advocating for justice and peace and equity and respect for the dignity of every human being.…to uphold and spread the gospel of love and non-violence that Jesus has taught us, and so many others, like John Lewis, and the Rev C.T. Vivian, have shown us throughout their lifetime…
We are never left alone to do this upside-down work of love….
The Lord is with us…and has searched us out and knows us;
The Lord knows our sitting down and our rising up;
The Lord discerns our thoughts from afar.
The Lord traces all of our journeys and our resting-places and is acquainted with all our ways.
(from psalm 139)
Let us pray:
Lord you dwell with the weeds and the wheat
you stand in the field as we judge fret and toil
help us to lay down our weapons of cruelty and harm
help us to trust that you are here in these days
and give us the peace to wait for your fullness.
Help us turn our hearts to you in this season. Amen.
(Bishop Carol Gallagher)
After sermon: The Hymnal 1982 - #302 Father, we thank thee who hast planted – Ali Hosford/soloist
Rev. Julie Platson, Rector
St Peter’s by the Sea Episcopal Church, Sitka, AK