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Sunday July 18, 1999
~ Eighth Sunday after Pentecost
Lectionary Readings from the Common Lectionary
Sermon Text: Matthew 13: 24-30 & 36-43
Isaiah 44:6-8 * Romans
8:12-25 * Psalm 86:11-17
Sometimes it burns me! You know? Somebody does somebody wrong and they get away with it. One of those TV news magazines told the story of a sweepstakes scam artist who preyed on the elderly. An eighty two year old widow tearfully recounts the story of how this man repeatedly got her to send him her money for a prize that would solve her financial problems. The prize, of course never came. The crook is living a lavish life style out of the country, while hundreds of his victims struggle with poverty.
I had a twinge of that old, "If only I could get my hands on this man..." You know the feeling, don't you? It's the desire that arises in our heart for things to be made right and for wrong to be punished. Some people call it righteous indignation. Wouldn't it be great, for instance, if the scam artist fell off his yacht in the middle of the ocean and had to swim home? ["What an unkind thought," I think to myself hardly containing a chuckle at the picture.]
When we see or experience injustice and express thoughts of retribution or even retaliation, someone will likely quote that verse from Romans, "Vengeance is mine saith the Lord..." [Rom. 12:19]
Try telling that to Rocky Balboa.
Desire for Vengeance
One of the not so great, but financially successful movies of our time was Rocky IV. Remember the series? (May the Lord bless those of you who don't!) Rocky Balboa (Sylverster Stallone) returns to the boxing ring to face his greatest challenge ever. The line-up of bad guys is amazing. Rocky's opponent is the Russian heavyweight super-strength and steroid-powered boxer, Ivan Drago. Not only are the odds stacked against Rocky -- he is told the fight could kill him. Ivan is a really bad guy and a dirty fighter. Rocky is a really good guy who, it seems, is going to be beaten into "kingdom come."
It is almost too much to watch. Then -- finally -- and predictably -- Rocky finds that inner strength, lets out a cry and miraculously (on screen) beats the Russian. (Pounds him into submission - actually - as the fans and the theatre audience cheers.) So as to move the plot into the unbelievable, even the Russians in the stadium end up cheering for Rocky. Everyone, except for Ivan (the terrible) Drago is enjoying the sight of the crumpled Russian boxer.
Isn't it great when the good guys win and the right triumphs? Or do our feelings come too close to that fruit known as sweet revenge? We tread dangerously close to God's turf when we seek to bring about retribution.
We are not alone, however. Even those who were closest to Jesus wanted to see all opposition crushed. Listen to this episode from Luke:
When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face to go to Jerusalem. And he sent messengers ahead of him. On their way they entered a village of the Samaritans to make ready for him; but they did not receive him, because his face was set toward Jerusalem. When his disciples James and John saw it, they said, "Lord, do you want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them?" [Lk. 9:51-54]
Most of us probably cringe when we read the imprecatory Psalms which include words like, "O daughter Babylon, you devastator! Happy shall they be who pay you back what you have done to us! Happy shall they be who take your little ones and dash them against the rock! [Psalm 137:8-9] It is with some degree of regularity that biblical characters like Samson cry out to God for revenge, Samson called to the LORD and said, "Lord GOD, remember me and strengthen me only this once, O God, so that with this one act of revenge I may pay back the Philistines for my two eyes." [Judges 16:28]
But Jesus rebuked James and John. It is not that there should be no recompense for wrongdoing -- it is more that human vengeance is not equivalent to justice. The book of James puts it this way, "My dear brothers, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, for man's anger does not bring about the righteous life that God desires." [James 1:19-20]
Desire for Justice
In the parable, it is Jesus, himself who brings up the issue of dealing with the "bad guys." It is as though he anticipates the desire people have for vengeance. The servants in the story ask the Master if they should uproot the weeds. "No," the Master says, "In pulling up the weeds, you would also destroy the wheat. We will wait until harvest time and the reapers will separate the wheat and the weeds."
In other words, Jesus says, "Let it be." That is a hard saying sometimes. When I see a wrong committed, I want to see the person who perpetrated the wrong get their due. I am moved when I see a homeless family move into a home built by Habitat for Humanity. I am heartbroken when I see a poor family loose their home to foreclosure when a job was lost. I am crushed when an innocent child is lost to terminal illness -- incensed when a hardened criminal receives a life saving transplant while a father of three hovers near death waiting for a donor organ.
I would say that I have a hunger for justice -- for the right to be done. But, Jesus is quite clear here. It is not my job to separate the wheat and the weeds. My desire for justice is not nearly so pure as I would like to think it is. I don't know about you, but I must make a confession. If God were to put the responsibility for eliminating wrong and preserving right into my hands -- I would more than likely pull up some wheat along with the weeds.
Let me offer an example. I have struggled throughout my life with the issue of the death penalty. I have at times wished for its abolishment. At other times, I have supported it -- especially when a murderer of little girls mocks his victim's parents' grief. I have been tempted by the extremes of those who say things like, "I'd gladly throw the switch" -- to feeling a kind of horror when midnight of the final day comes for a death row inmate whose conviction is clouded by remaining questions.
I have more recently been inclined to support the death penalty. It is very clear that even speaking about this issue can create division. There is no middle ground here. You can't kind of execute someone. There is no such thing as a 50% death penalty. You either pull out the weed or you don't.
Is this issue of the death penalty an issue of justice? Or is it an issue of revenge?
I must tell you, however, that I have had a change of heart on this matter. Two words switched me from supporting, to opposing the death penalty.
Orlando Cruz.
Orlando Cruz is a young Hispanic man in the Chicago area who spent years on death row until DNA evidence unequivocally eliminated him as a possibility of being the murderer of a little girl. He is now a free man.
He is a lucky man. What of those who were not so lucky?
What I have come to is not so much a philosophical, or ethical opposition to the death penalty. (The jury is still out on the societal-ethical elements of the issue for me.) Rather I am disturbed by a terrible fear that if I were to be responsible for uprooting the weeds, I will show up before the Lord trying to explain why my human frailties -- my anger at injustice -- allowed me to destroy the wheat. My righteous indignation becomes simply indignation and my desire for justice has become unrighteous.
I recall a strong supporter of the death penalty being interviewed who was asked what he would have thought if Orlando Cruz had been executed. His response was, "In a war, a few innocent people are lost." It makes me wonder. What if Orlando was my brother, or father, or friend? Would I be so willing to loose him to the war? If a time comes when there can be a 100%, iron-clad, absolute guarantee that there would never be an execution of an innocent person, I might be persuaded to revisit this issue.
Desire for Righteousness
When Jesus gathers his followers to explain the meaning of the parable of the wheat and weeds, he gives them a major principle of faith.
Genuine faith surrenders the outcome of righteousness into the hands of God!
One of the desperate cries of God's people is the cry of the saints in the book of Revelation, "How long O lord?" Our temporal view sometimes leads us to the impression that the right will never really win out. At this point, Jesus' words in the explanation of the parable are important.
Count the number of times he uses the word will in four short verses. [It's six] There will be a time of accountability. Wrong will be made right. Evil will be destroyed. The right will be honored.
Genuine faith in God means trusting God for a righteous outcome in all things. It is the commitment of Job... "Though he slay me, yet will I trust him." [Job 13:15] No matter what things may appear to be, the fact is that God will right every wrong and bring justice to every circumstance. Even when I am distraught by that which is evil, I bow in worship to the One who promises that the right will prevail. The Psalmist says of God, "Your righteousness is an everlasting righteousness," [Ps. 119:142]
Though the way may sometimes seem long and the wrong may seem to prevail, the outcome is never in doubt. The righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father," Jesus said. Every victim will be a victor! All those who were wrongfully dispossessed will rightfully possess the kingdom!
In The Face of Wrong
Waiting is hard. Waiting for justice is even harder. Yet, it is here more than at any other place in our life of faith that we test the fiber of our faith.
Do you believe that God will finally make all things right? Are you able to give the issue of complete and final justice into the hands of the Lord? Or are you afraid that the evil will not have to pay for their evil doings when all is said and done?
There is no greater wrong in all of human history than the crucifixion of Jesus. Human wisdom can not begin to fathom why such a thing should be. Paul writes, "None of the rulers of this age understood this; for if they had, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory." [I Cor. 2:8]
If the cross had been the end of the story -- then Christian living would make no sense. We would of all people, as Paul said, be the most to be pitied. Wrong prevails and goodness is nonsense. If, on the other hand, the resurrection is true -- then Christian living is everything. Righteousness prevails and evil is defeated.
You will face the wrong over and over again in your living. There will be times when you will wish you could take things into your own hands. Events will occur that seriously tempt you to wish for vengeance. Nevertheless, there is no other circumstance that will give you greater opportunity to put your faith front and center.
"Though he slay me, yet will I trust him."
No matter what things may appear to be, I am convinced that God will make all things right!
This is one of the major foundation stones of our faith. Trusting God for the complete triumph of righteousness is the only real healing power for the wrong that breaks our hearts. It is affirming the healing and redeeming love of God. It is coming to understand that some of the strongest, most powerful words in history were Jesus' words from the cross, "Father forgive them for they know not what they do."
May God give us such a hunger for righteousness.
Discussion and Reflection on the Texts
Connections in the Texts
The essential thread for this week's texts is the question, "Where is our hope for redemption?" When will the right prevail, righteousness win out over wrong and God's people be vindicated? There is a sense of hunger for consummation of God's intention for this world. Each of the texts has a slightly different slant of this theme.
Jesus' parable of the wheat and weeds in Matthew raises the issue of whether the "good people" can eliminate the "bad people" and bring about a "good" world. Jesus teaches that it is God who will bring about the elimination of evil and then the "good" will shine. The short passage in Isaiah is an affirmation that God alone is God and there is no other. It is the Lord who has told the people of God what will take place in the future. "There is no other rock" -- that is hope for redemption. Romans takes the issue to creation as well as the inner life of the people of God. The Holy Spirit within us puts the sense of "groaning" for redemption -- for the right. Even creation awaits God's righteous outcome. The Psalmist offers a song of one who cries out for vindication and who, in spite of trial and tribulation cries out to and trusts in God for justice.
Matthew
The lectionary selection from Matthew makes more sense this week. Matthew 13 has a series of parables about the Kingdom of God which conclude with Jesus' doing a bit of private teaching with his disciples about the meaning of those parables. The parable of the wheat and the weeds and then Jesus' explanation to his disciples is a fitting pericope
It would be appropriate to say that in Matthew's 13th chapter, Jesus is teaching "Principles of the Kingdom". This particular reading addresses a question. "Is there anything "good" people (children of the kingdom) can do to eliminate the "bad" people (children of the evil one) so as to make a better world? Jesus' answer is clear. "No!" Separation of the "good guys" and "bad guys" is something only God can do. No one less than God has the perfect information and insight to accomplish this separation. Our full text sermon focuses on this theme and how we are to live faithfully in the face of injustice.
Observe that the clash of good and evil predates and postdates the lifetime of the wheat and the weeds. The seeds are sown by other forces and the harvest is accomplished by God. We live "in between." The raising of the question of ultimate justice by nature raises the issue of eschatology. As Jesus Christ is the Alpha, he is also the Omega.
Isaiah
"I am the First and I am the Last..." Here, the Alpha and Omega is clear. If you were to use this as your sermon text or include it's theme in your message, the text is best set in the wider, natural pericope in 44:1-8. There are several compelling images in these eight verses that connect with New Testament themes. "I will pour water... I will pour my Spirit..." (See John 4:14) God says to Israel, "I have formed you from the womb..." That is - God planted the seed which became the wheat - just a different image here.
Then, comes the affirmation. "There is no other God than me and that is given witness in the fact that I alone am able to tell you the end from the beginning." Thus, God's people are to be witnesses of the fact that "there is no other God!" Accordingly, there is no other source of true justice.
Romans
Even creation is groaning along with the children of God... groaning as a woman in labor pain... that's how strong the longing for redemption is in the hearts of those who trust in God! The cry for righteousness and hunger for justice is woven into the very fabric that runs through all of creation.. It is as though every ear, including the ear of the world around us, has this intense yearning to hear the voice of God once again -- "Indeed, it is very good!"
Paul points out that it the Holy Spirit within us that links us to and unites us with the heart of God -- namely a longing for the glory of God -- righteousness. There is a thread which runs through all of today's texts that has to do with the children of God. A possible message would identify the characteristics of God's children using Isaiah, Matthew and Romans.
As in Matthew we wait for the redemption. We can not bring it about in our own strength and we can not even loosen the shackles of our own bondage. It is as Isaiah said, "There is no other rock."
Psalm
It is God who by grace, love and faithfulness, who gives us strength to live in the face of injustice. Once again, the clash between good and evil is resolved in the strength of God.
Call To Worship (Based on Psalm 86)
Leader: Lord we come with open,
teachable hearts,
People: That you might guide our living.
Leader: We pray that you would give us clarity of spirit,
People: That we might revere your holy name.
Leader: We thank you, O Lord, from the depths of our being,
People: And we will glorify your name for ever and ever. Amen!
Prayer of Dedication (Also based on Psalm 86)
What a powerful impact your amazing love has on
our lives, Lord God.
You are patient, gracious, faithful to every promise you have ever made;
and above all things your love is everlasting. We pray that the gifts we
bring today will enable us to reach out with your life-changing love. Amen.
A Pastoral Prayer
Our hearts are open before you, O Lord.
There are no thoughts we can
harbor or fantasies we can hide from your presence. Wherever we go --
whether in thought or in deed -- you are already there.
And so, you know Lord God, there are times when
we really, honestly
wonder why wrong seems to win out over the right. Good people die
young and bad people seem to live to a ripe old age. At least, it seems
like that to us. Our hearts long to see things right in our world. There is
so much pain and anguish that doesn't seem right. We fear for
the safety
of our children and wonder when the next school will be subjected to the
horror of a senseless eruption of violence.
Yet -- you are everlastingly faithful and
loving! O great God of our souls,
give us the grand grace of Job to resist the advice of the world to "curse
you
and die!" We believe Lord -- help our unbelief. We
trust you Lord -- help us
when that trust is crushed by the crisis of our days. Help us when the evil of this
world threatens to undo our faith in you. Give us courage to
believe in your
ultimate triumph over the wrong. Infuse the hope of St. Paul into our hearts
that, "all things work together for good -- to those who love God..."
Make us
worthy of your patience with us and give us hearts that are able to rest in
your promise that every wrong will be made right -- every injustice will be
transformed by justice and that every child who has ever wrongfully been
deprived of life, will find fulfillment of its potential in your loving embrace.
When all is said and done, O God of our hearts, we surrender
to the love that
has won our lives from ruin. You are gracious beyond our merit, faithful
beyond
our infidelity and loving beyond our wandering hearts. Now come and bless us.
Bless us with growth in faithfulness, courage in witness, liberty in graciousness
and above all things -- the ability to give into your hands the judgment we would
dearly love to apply to other peoples lives!
Help us to love others as you love us.
Amen.