Process, Not Empire

Gospel: Matthew 13: 31-35

The kingdoms of the world exist to occupy space and dominate others.  They seek to acquire more and more land and subjugate more and more people.  Many see the kingdom of God in similar terms.  Church statistics are all about how many members there are - the number of baptisms and marriages.  They report on number of buildings, number of clergy and those in formation, and most importantly of all the financial portfolio of the parish, diocese, or global church.  

Yet, the images of today's Gospel suggest a very different image of the kingdom of God.  Here, Jesus says that the kingdom is small things that grow over time with cultivation and care.  The kingdom is a tiny mustard seed that, when planted, fed, and cared for, will become a large tree for the birds to inhabit.  The kingdom is like tiny yeast particles that when put in flour and kneaded over and over, leads to the rising of bread in the oven so that others might be nourished.  

The kingdom of God is not about occupying space and dominating others.  The kingdom of God is a process of nurturing tiny things into larger things so that others might find shelter and nourishment.  Church reports do not track such processes and outcomes very often.  What might Church be if these processes were our concern?  What might the world look like if this model of Jesus were our actual model of ministry?  

One Man's Trash...

Gospel: Matthew 13: 44-52

Consider the net being dragged across the sea.  It picks up all sorts of things in its wake, and when hauled into the boat a sorting must take place regarding what is of value and kept versus what is not of value and discarded.  If the net were a fisherman's, then the fish has value while the rest is trash.  If, however, the net belonged to a treasure hunter, the fish may be unimportant to them while the objects made by humans would be of great value.

But what of other things?  What of this old tire, or these plastic bottles?  Surely these are trash.  The tire may be recycled, or made into a tree swing or outdoor planter.  The plastic bottles can be recycled and made into new plastics.  Even the driftwood will be of use.  It will be dried and yes it will be burned.  Yet, its fire can be used to cook food and provide warmth on a cold night.  Those who are quick to condemn something as trash and of no worth are so often wrong in their judgment.

How often do we apply this label of trash to human beings.  Yet, Jesus went about eating at table with many considered trash in his day - tax collectors and prostitutes, Pharisees and scribes.  He healed a great many people who were literally treated like rubbish - lepers, cripples, slaves and women in need of healing.  Every person has intrinsic worth and value.  Every person was seen as a person by the Lord Jesus.  Those who claim to be his followers should regard no person as trash, and see all as loved of God. 

The Religion of Power

Gospel: Matthew 20: 20-28

Religion has often had a split personality.  Like most human beings we have a drive to the good and the true, while also having a dark side seeking power, influence, and wealth.  In today's Gospel we see in a microcosm what we now see in the macro in religion: the constant desire for position, influence,  and power.  Two men desire seats of influence, each claiming to be worthy of it, while ten other men are indignant and jealous of their jockeying for position and influence.  We see it everyday in religion.  

Apologists for religion will argue that this happens in every institution.  Why is religion being singled out for critique? Well, for one, Jesus here and in many other places provides a standard for religion to follow.  Religion is not about position, power, status, and wealth. It is about the works of mercy and reconciliation.  It is about healing, liberating, nourishing.  It is to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, shelter the homeless, care of the sick and imprisoned, welcome the stranger and alien.

Religion cannot offer the apologetic that it is better than everything else, and when its sins are revealed then argue that such sins exist everywhere.  Rather than apologetic, religion should apologize and then set about to its calling in the work of the Lord Jesus.  The world of apologetics is the world of status, power, influence, and ego.  The world of apology for sin is the world of the Lord Jesus, an encounter with mercy, and an invitation to be an instrument of mercy in the world.