8 Pentecost/Year A
July 26, 2020
Psalm 105:1-11, 45b; Romans 8:26-39; Matthew 13:31-33,44-52
Let’s begin with a moment of silence….as we get ready to listen and wonder along with the voices who will share their reflections and insights on what the kingdom of heaven is like…in Jesus’ parables today…
Be silent, be still, aware; for there in your own heart the Spirit is at prayer; Listen and learn, Open and find, Heart-wisdom, Christ.
~ posted on the Malling Abbey website. http://www.mallingabbey.org/index.htm
SILENCE
I love today’s gospel lesson you are about to hear…I love how the parables, have a way of drawing us into the wonder and mystery of what the kingdom of heaven, what the kingdom of God is all about…I love how the parables, through the help of the Holy Spirit in us, has the power to help us listen and learn, search for meaning and purpose, look for the marvels God has done….and is doing, still…I just love…that we can take the time today, to imagine together…what the kingdom of heaven is like…and to encourage one another to see that the kingdom of God….God himself, is right here in the midst of our everyday lives, and most especially to be reminded that there is nothing, in this world…pandemics, violence, death, oppression by others, nothing…that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
So, let’s begin…and listen with the “ears of our hearts” to what these parables are saying to us today…
GLENDA
Jesus put before the crowds another parable: “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.”
KIT
Many years ago, I gave a message on this gospel at the family service. It seemed right to use a visual aid, so I brought a bottle of mustard seeds and asked one of the children to give everyone a few seeds. Did you know mustard seeds on the floor are like little ball bearings?
I don’t remember what I said that day, but I do remember the children in the pews, some of them so small they would swing with the bell pull as they rang the bell. And I remember feeling a sense of hope and wonder at the potential in front of me. Those children are adults now, with degrees and careers, homes and businesses, some with children of their own.
When Jesus spoke of the kingdom of heaven, he didn’t describe halos and wings, or puffy clouds and choirs. No, he spoke of things of the earth – of hard work and planting, dirt and seeds, shrubs, and trees sheltering birds. Jesus described the kingdom of heaven as what we can see and hear and touch, right here and now. I realize the feeling of hope and wonder I felt all those years ago was the recognition of the kingdom of heaven as it really is - right here on earth, in the children who have now grown, who are spreading out their branches and nurturing children and all of Creation as they continue to build and renew the kingdom of heaven.
And I feel more hope and wonder when I see all the potential as the new ‘mustard seeds’ grow up, learning to love God’s creation and starting to spread their own branches as they find their ways to build and renew the kingdom of heaven. Right here. Right now.
GLENDA
(Jesus) told them another parable: “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.”
Kevin Keating/professional bread baker in NYC (read by Julie)
To me the key thing I find amazing is how yeast (in that time it would've been leaven/levain/sourdough starter) is just a collection of tiny microorganisms that through the work of reproduction and fermentation manage to cause the dough (in this case three measures of flour is the equivalent of over 50 pounds, which means a total dough weight of over 100 pounds!) …
This tiny collection of microorganisms, through the work of reproduction and fermentation, would manage to cause the dough to double, even triple in size AND, most importantly, they are responsible for transforming the flour into something that can nourish our bodies - without that process we can't easily digest flour nor absorb its nutrients into our bodies. So it's the work of these tiny single-celled organisms all working in tandem that all of the nutrition and flavor and aroma and pleasure (and relatedly, the cultures and communities built on top) of bread is made available to us.
(JULIE’s words – How amazing it is to think about all God’s people working in tandem so that the fullness of God’s love, joy and pleasure would be experienced by everyone..)
GLENDA
Jesus said, “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.”
KATHRYN
I walk around the path that meanders through my side yard as I ponder this parable of Jesus’ - about a treasure hidden in a field. A treasure so valued that it is worth giving up all else to obtain it. That is what the Kingdom of God is like, he tells the crowd.
My side yard, has many hidden treasures, like the little volunteer holly bush I found growing, hidden among the berry bushes.
If we think of the Kingdom of God as treasure, what do we do to obtain it? Do we, with joy, sell all we have like the man in the parable? Visions of St. Francis walking around buck naked come to mind. Oh, my! But God knows what is necessary for us to live in this world and looks on the heart not the outside of a person, right?
So, what is it for us to “sell all that we have”? Is the Kingdom even something to be obtained? Or is it more something to live in to? And not keep hidden but rather to cultivate? We all find the Kingdom of God in our own field when we seek it. And we find it far greater than we can imagine. Yes! It is worth putting first in our lives. No! It is not easy, don’t expect easy, but do expect joy and transformation.
GLENDA
Jesus said, “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.
NANCY JO
“Pearls are formed inside the shell of certain mollusks as a defense mechanism against a potentially threatening irritant.” (wikipedia)
How irritated are we with our fellow human beings with all the unrest and pandemic concerns?
Are we actively listening and learning to what troubles those different from us?
Are we the “merchant”, the one with all the capital and privilege?
Can the “pearls” represent our faithfulness and discipleship to love our God and love our neighbor?
Today, I am wearing several pearl necklaces and earrings.
Notice there are different colors - blue, pink, yellow and white.
This reminds me of our human race that we are all different colors, shapes and sizes from different parts of the world; strung together we become beautiful pearls.
GLENDA
Jesus said, “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind; when it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets but threw out the bad. So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
JULIE
The kingdom of heaven, is like a net that spans wider and deeper, than our human minds can comprehend… When God tosses his net of love out into the sea of people everywhere…this net of love, gathers in everyone together… every color, culture, shape, size, friends, enemies… into the embrace and arms of God’s love….It is in this place of love, and with God, that all have the potential to grow in love and compassion for one another…to recognize how our lives are interconnected and dependent upon one another, and to see that even in the midst of so many differences and divisions, and uncertainties, the love of God is in the midst of all our lives, and can transform hearts and minds in ways and at a time, not always known to us… but only to God. That’s all we need to know….we are not called to be the judge of who is in or who is out. In God’s kingdom. In God’s eyes…everyone is worthy…everyone is valued…everyone is loved.
GLENDA
Jesus said, “Have you understood all this?” They answered, “Yes.” And he said to them, “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.”
JULIE
I invite and encourage you this week….to set aside time daily…to pray…to seek a deeper understanding of God’s kingdom of love…and to contemplate more on what the kingdom of heaven might look like for you, and through the eyes and lives of others….call upon the Holy Spirit for guidance, to help you listen and learn, search for meaning and purpose, and to look for the marvels God has done….and is doing, still.
Hymn after the sermon (H) 635 - If Th but trust in God to guide thee Ali/solo
If thou but trust in God to guide thee, and hope in him through all thy ways,
he’ll give thee strength whate’er betide thee, and bear thee through the evil days.
Who trusts in God’s unchanging love builds on a rock that nought can move.
Sing, pray, and keep his ways unswerving; so do thine own part faithfully,
and trust his word, though undeserving; thou yet shalt find it true for thee;
God never yet forsook in need the soul that trusted him indeed.
Shared Gospel/Sermon today by:
The Rev Dn Glenda Quintana, The Rev Dn Kathryn Snelling, Kit Mellema
Nancy Jo Bleier, Kevin Keating, The Rev Julie Platson