Tag: Questions

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Sermon: Proper 25 RCL B – “Questions”

The poet Robert Frost is reported to have said, “A jury consists of twelve persons chosen to decide who has the better lawyer.” With that in mind, I’ll let you judge if these lawyers won their case.

Q: “Now, Mrs. Johnson, how was your first marriage terminated?”
A: “By death.”
Q: “And by whose death was it terminated?”

Q: “Have you ever thought of committing involuntary manslaughter?”

Q: “Any suggestions as to what prevented this from being a murder trial instead of an attempted murder trial?”
A: “The victim lived.”

Q: What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke up that morning?
A: He said, “Where am I, Cathy?”
Q: And why did that upset you?
A: My name is Susan.

Q: “Was it you or your younger brother who was killed in the war?”

Q: “Do you recall the time that you examined the body?”
A: “The autopsy started around 8:30 p.m..”
Q: “And Mr. Dennington was dead at the time?”
A: “No, he was sitting on the table wondering why I was doing an autopsy.”

When it comes to asking questions, preschoolers take the prize. They average 300-390 questions per day. By the time children are nine, that number drops to about 140. As adults, I suppose we think we know all the answers because we only ask 25-30 questions per day. 

Answers to some questions range from one word—yes/no—to entire volumes dedicated to a single answer. Other questions range from rhetorical to simple inquiries. For example, “Does Father John have a point?” Answer: Yes!

If you combine the texts of the New Testament, you’ll discover that Jesus asked a total of 307 questions. Today, he asked Bartimaeus, “What do you want me to do for you?” At other times, His questions become more difficult. “What are you looking for?” (John 1:38) “Why do you notice the splinter in your neighbor’s eye yet fail to see the wooden beam in your own eye?” (Matt 7:2) “Why are you terrified?” (Matt 8:26) “Why do you harbor evil thoughts?” (Matt 9:4) “Could you not watch for me one brief hour?” (Matt 26:40) “What are you thinking in your hearts?” (Luke 5:22) “What are you discussing as you walk along?” (Luke 24:17) Each of those is asked in a particular context, but even alone, in the context of our faith, they are good questions and not always so easy to answer.

On the other side, Jesus was asked 183 questions. Care to guess how many He answered? Three. You should think about that the next time someone seems to have all the answers.

Jesus asks us questions, and we ask Jesus questions, but I suspect that most of our questions fall in the category of requests for favors or healing. However, at the root of all we are asking, perhaps even subconsciously, is a more important question, and it is the same question we heard a few weeks ago in our Gospel reading—“Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life?” Even our craziest requests come back to this. “Jesus, will you help me pick the right numbers to win the lottery?” That sounds materialistic on the surface, but below the surface, it is a request for stability, fulfillment, the meeting of needs, and so on, all of which will be given on the last day—eternal life with God.

Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” Jesus also said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

So, we have a question that is being asked by believers and unbelievers,  “What must I do to inherit eternal life?” Fortunately, we have the answer: faith in the Son of God, Jesus. And we have a command: “Go and share this Good News. 

The Church has many secondary missions, but this going and proclaiming the Good News—that is, proclaiming the cross, the death and resurrection of Jesus, repentance, the forgiveness of sins, and eternal life, all of which can be summed up in those few words, “For God so loved the world”—this going and proclaiming the Good News far outweighs all the secondary missions/ministries combined, but… and there it is… we can preach by words all day long, yet, unless we also proclaim the Good News through those secondary missions/ministries, through our actions, then the message goes largely unheard.

You know the Scripture: “What good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.” (James 2:14-17)

Bottom line: we, the Church, must proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ by word and deed. We can all agree on this, but there is a catch. To those who receive what we are offering, there is no charge. There is no cost for the message we share, and we do not charge for the works we perform; however, for us—the Church—the act of proclaiming by word and deed is not free.

I have joked with you about the two ways I can make you most uncomfortable. The first is for me to be silent. Silence makes us crazy. It shouldn’t, but it does. The second way I can make you uncomfortable and perhaps even have you tune me out is to talk about money and giving. Over the course of the last ten years, I’ve spoken to you many times about the need for silence in our lives, but I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve talked to you about money and giving. You have always been so generous with your gifts and pledges to the Church, and we are a financially healthy church, so I’ve never seen the need. Today, you are still as generous as always, and we are still a financially healthy church. That hasn’t changed. However, the needs of the world around us have, and they are greater than ever, and every indication is that it will only get worse. And it is to this world that we must proclaim through word and deed.

Not everyone has the gifts to proclaim by word, and many times, those who can proclaim by their deeds and actions are out working to provide for their own needs and the needs of their families. However, the Church is uniquely positioned to do both, but not without your financial assistance. 

Our Presiding Bishop (for one more week), Michael Curry, is fond of saying we are the Episcopal Branch of the Jesus Movement. So, St. Matthew’s is the Episcopal Branch of the Jesus Movement in Enid, Oklahoma. Through our individual actions, we can do much, but through our collective actions, we have made and are making a considerable difference in our community. We feed people experiencing poverty, pay for student meals at the local schools, put books in the hands of children through our partnership with the Enid Public Library and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, help build soccer complexes and tennis facilities that provide healthy activities for the youth of our community, and so much more. In addition, this year, we’re hoping to add the 5% Mission Tithe back into the budget so that our reach and proclamation of the Good News of Jesus Christ can be even greater. I don’t get really excited about asking you to help us pay the electric bill, but the ability to fulfill so many opportunities, to help so many individuals and organizations, and to proclaim the Good News in creative ways gets me going. However… we need your giving to help do these things. 

Speaking through the Prophet Malachi, the Lord says, “Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.”

I am not preaching prosperity Gospel here; that is heresy, but the Lord says, “Test me on this. Bring your tithe into the church and watch what happens.” 

Yes. This is the beginning of our annual pledge drive. Yes. You are going to hear more about giving, pledging, and tithing. Yes. You can tune it all out, but… don’t. Giving our time, talents, and treasures is as much a spiritual discipline as praying and worshipping. So, I ask you to read through the information that will be provided over the next week, then, next week, prayerfully consider and make your 2025 pledge. Together, in our community and maybe even further, we will proclaim the Good News and answer the question, “What must I do to inherit eternal life?”

Let us pray: Gracious Father, the owner of all things, we pause in reverence, acknowledging that everything we possess ultimately belongs to you. We open our hearts to the profound reality that we are only temporary stewards of your eternal treasures. Help us to embrace the responsibility and privilege of managing your blessings with diligence and integrity. Amen.

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Sermon: Proper 10 RCL A – “Fate of the Seed”

Parable of the Sower by Pieter Brueghel the Elder

The Archbishop of Canterbury was making arrangements to visit the United States. Before his plane landed, one of his advisors recommended that the Archbishop be cautious with the scandal-mongering press. “Be discreet: be very discreet, but with a smile.” 

On arrival, he was hijacked by a bevy of pressmen clamoring for a story. 

One reporter asked, “What do you think of the nightclubs in New York?” Remembering to be discreet, with a smile, the Archbishop ironically responded, “Are there any nightclubs in New York?”  

Headlines next day: Archbishop’s first question on landing, “Are there any nightclubs in New York?”

Near the beginning of our Gospel reading, we read that Jesus “told them many things in parables.” Next Sunday and the following, our Gospel reading will begin, “Jesus put before the crowd another parable.” Three Sundays of parables. Why parables? Jesus answered that question, but we skipped over it.

If you look at your bulletin, you’ll notice that our Gospel for today was Matthew 13:1-9, 18-23. In verses 10-17, Jesus answered the question.

The disciples asked him, “Why do you speak to the people in parables?”

He replied, “Because the knowledge of the secrets of the kingdom of heaven has been given to you, but not to them. Whoever has will be given more, and they will have an abundance. Whoever does not have, even what they have will be taken from them. This is why I speak to them in parables:

“Though seeing, they do not see;
    though hearing, they do not hear or understand.”

Jesus goes on speaking in this same vein, referencing back to the Prophet Isaiah. His answer is almost as confusing as the parables. Jesus is saying that He speaks in parables because some will be receptive to His message, who will understand it, and who will live. At the same time, there will be many others who believe they already know what God is doing and have no need for this message that Jesus is bringing. The parable is a message of mercy and redemption to those who will hear and believe, but it is also a message of judgment on those who refuse Him.

When it comes to the parable we hear today—known as the Parable of the Sower—we benefit from Jesus’ private explanation to his disciples, but all the others who heard it that day did not. What would you have thought had you been one of the others?

You watch as Jesus walks through the crowd and gets into the boat, then after pushing out a way, he sits and faces you and the others. Then, without laying any groundwork, he speaks: “A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, the plants were scorched, and they withered because they had no root. Other seed fell among thorns, which grew up and choked the plants. Still other seed fell on good soil, where it produced a crop—a hundred, sixty or thirty times what was sown. Whoever has ears, let them hear.”

After He has given this short message, He rows back in and walks off with his disciples. All you have are those few words. Your mission, should you choose to accept it—without the explanation Jesus provided privately to His disciples—is to interpret what He has said. 

In putting myself in that position, my first thought was to try and understand why Jesus told that parable at that particular time. What prompted it?

From earlier in Matthew’s Gospel, we know that Jesus has already called his disciples and even sent them out to proclaim the message of the Kingdom of God, for “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” Also, John the Baptist was arrested and sent some followers to ask if Jesus was the Messiah. Shortly before our reading, Jesus demonstrated that he was the Lord of the Sabbath by healing the man, but the religious leaders call him Beelzebub—the devil. Jesus has been rejected by some of the people and has condemned those towns where there was such unbelief. Finally, last week, we heard him say, “No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal him.” (Matthew 11:27) All these things and today, he tells the Parable of the Sower. It began, “That same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the lake.  Such large crowds gathered around him that he got into a boat and sat in it, while all the people stood on the shore.”

What prompted Jesus to tell the parable? He went in the boat out on the lake and sat. The large crowd stood on the shore. Jesus watches them, and, like any large crowd, He sees the movement of the crowd. At times, the crowd almost appears as a single organism, flowing and moving. We’ve all witnessed the same thing at sporting events or concerts. The crowd shifts and sways, cheers and groans together. I can understand how Jesus may have looked at this crowd and saw their movement as that of a wheat field blowing in the wind. And, considering all that had taken place before—those who believed and followed, but also those who rejected him, who turned away when things became more difficult, who cursed Him… looking out on this wheat field of people and knowing their hearts, He began, “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed….”

So, back to our original question, you do not have the benefit of Jesus’ private explanation of this parable. All you have are the words he has spoken from the boat. What do you think it means? What would it have meant to you?

The key to our understanding is Jesus’ first statement, “A farmer went out to sow his seed.” A farmer does not walk out on a piece of land and start scattering seeds. No. First, the farmer must clear the land of all that is there: rocks, trees, bushes, and other debris. Then he must prepare the land to receive the seed, plow the field and turn the soil. Then, when it is the right season, he will go out and scatter the seed.

Jesus, through the parable, is telling the listeners that everything has been prepared and that the ground is now ready to receive the seed. The farmer then goes out and scatters the seed. He does so by hand. He tells the crowd where the seed landed, and not all of it landed in the prepared soil, but instead, it fell in unproductive areas: the road and among the rocks and thorns. That does not mean the farmer was careless; it’s just the nature of farming.

In hearing this, it is easy to focus on the farmer and the viability of the soil, but what Jesus is focusing on is the fate of the seed. The farmer has done all he can for the success of the seed. So, did the seed produce good fruit or not? 

“Are there any nightclubs in New York?” Regarding the parables Jesus told, the exact meaning is not always clear. They were intended that way (today’s parable being the exception when Jesus tells the disciples what it means.) So, the parables require a bit of work on our part. We must wrestle with them. They are also timeless because they force us to ask the same questions as those standing by the lake who initially heard this one had to ask themselves. Finally, what makes the parables absolutely brilliant is their ability to speak to everyone and to the individual, each person having to discern for themselves how they fit into this story of God.

Today, we can look at this parable corporately. What does it say about us as a church, the Body of Christ? Have we withered? Have we been snatched away? Have we been choked off by other concerns other than the Gospel? Or are we producing good fruit? These are questions that we should ask ourselves regularly, but they also apply to us as individuals. Is the seed of God’s Word producing good fruit in me? When Jesus looks out over that field of wheat that he has planted, how does He see me? 

The parable does not provide tidy little answers that can be framed and placed on the mantle. Instead, they provide us with questions about who we are in the workings of God. Today’s: God has sown the Word of His Kingdom within you—individually and collectively—how is that seed doing? How do you answer that question?

Within the Church, there are blessings for just about anything, including one for farmers for when the seeds they have sown are beginning to sprout. It seemed appropriate as a prayer. Let us pray: To Thee, O Lord, we cry and pray: bless this sprouting seed, strengthen it in the gentle movement of soft winds, refresh it with the dew of heaven, and let it grow to full maturity for the good of body and soul. Amen.

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