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The Nineteenth Sunday of Ordinary Time; August 08, 2010
Park Avenue Presbyterian Church; Des Moines, Iowa
Texts: Isaiah 1: 10-20
Psalm 50: 1-8, 22-23
Hebrews 11: 1-3, 8-16
Luke 12: 32-40 *
“Dressed for a Post-Banquet Meal”
--} More than offering Jesus-followers just “good advice,” I believe today’s reading from Luke chapter 12 is pointing us toward new rules for the Kingdom of God. Think with me for a moment; …what if Jesus’ statements about fear, selling possessions, giving alms, and “purses that don’t wear out” are not advice, but are IN FACT the outline for life lived in/near the Kingdom of God? How might that challenge our present lifestyle?
I suspect all of us might consider ourselves “OK” when it comes to giving alms—if we can count our church pledge; but my guess is that most of us—myself included—are not so “safe” in our assumptions when it comes to “fear” or “selling possessions” or having “purses that don’t wear out.” And again, not just something for us to consider; our expectation of Jesus and the in-breaking Kingdom of God are supposed to change our reality so that you and I are clearly demonstrating the values of God’s Kingdom rather than our own assumptions about what life is supposed to be about. Too often, our measure becomes our various “things” or the level at which we participate—a big house, an expensive car, a gold-platinum-diamond, super-deluxe “I’m Mr. important” VIP credit card, and the like.
So in the middle of today’s gospel lesson, that seems pointed at how we handle our money and possessions Luke inserts another of Jesus’ parable-ish stories:
“Be dressed for action and have your lamps lit; be like those who are waiting for their master to return from the wedding banquet, so that they may open the door for him as soon as he comes and knocks. Blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; truly I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them. If he comes during the middle of the night, or near dawn, and finds them so, blessed are those slaves.”
With the point that we’ve been taught to take away is that we’re called to “be dressed for action with lamps lit”—because blessed are the slaves that the master finds awake in the middle of the night, expecting his return. We all want to be the “blessed slaves,”—right? And to that end, the application would be for believers—for US—to “watch” and “be ready for action” when Jesus—the master—returns. That is, to be caught “awake” and not “sleeping”—remember the hapless disciples in Gethsamane who fell asleep?
But this isn’t the easiest of stories. What Jesus says about the matter of the master and the slaves is that for the slaves the master finds alert—in the middle of the night—the master will fasten his belt, have [the slaves] sit down to eat, and [the master] will come and serve them a meal! Notice the middle of verse 37 where Jesus says, “I tell you.” In Luke, the Greek words, legō hymin, “I tell you,” are believed by scholars to be a kind formula used by Luke to indicate a story’s actual point. This happens because Luke takes a story and re-shapes it in the gospel narrative in a way that may be slightly different than its original context. In any event, the point Luke appears to be signaling for us—to be the main point of the story—is not the “sage advice” about “being ready,” but is instead the REALITY of the Kingdom life we’re invited to be ready about.
If we think about it for just long enough, the striking part of Jesus’ story and Luke’s telling is the preposterous reality that the master would come home—in the middle of the night—find the slaves awake and alert, and suddenly the MASTER is compelled to go into the kitchen, fix a meal, and serve it to the slaves! That never happens, does it? The Master serving the slaves? What a strange kingdom, right? So how surprising is it that Luke seems to be saying: “the Kingdom that it’s God’s good pleasure to give to believers, is this kind of crazy backwards realm where masters end up serving the slaves? Think about that for a moment. “Masters serving slaves,” like “the first shall be last and the last, first;” or “the one who dies with the most toys doesn’t win… EVER!”
- …So that maybe this isn’t just a story about “getting ready for the return of the Master,” but encouragement to prepare for a kingdom reality that turns the rules of our world upside down.
- …Could Jesus be saying to us, things like “fear,” or “possessions” or “almsgiving” might not ultimately be “what” they seem to us in this world?
- …Where we live based on the values we ascribe to things in this life, maybe the Kingdom Jesus brings near to us (FOR us), offers a different assessment—“how much do we really trust God?”
I believe there’s a high probability that Luke is showing us a different way of relating to the Kingdom of God in the world in which we live. Which means we shouldn’t be “afraid” like we often are, we might not want to put as much stock in our “possessions”—as we often do, and our “almsgiving” (not JUST a monthly or weekly pledge) ought to look like we have purses that simply cannot, will not, and do not ever wear out! Which isn’t exactly what our lives often look like; which—of course—is where we began a few moments ago. And it’s WHY, I think Jesus’ words can’t be “sage advice,” but instead, must be IN FACT the building blocks for a new kind of relationship to and with God’s kingdom that must fundamentally change us.
And while I believe the probabilities are high that Jesus has something important to teach us about not being afraid, about how we live with our possessions and how we give alms—that rightfully should make us nervous about our lifestyle—the question I have about this new relationship to and with the Kingdom of God is really about how we can learn to “be ready” for such an improbable turn of events: when the master suddenly returns home where the slaves are still awake and ready, and the master literally turns the tables by fastening his belt and serving the slaves at table! It doesn’t seem enough to simply suggest that this is an illusion to Jesus feeding us at the Lord’s Table—the Master who bids us “come,” to “taste and see that God is good.” But how does this reality IN FACT become the place where our lives are indeed turned around—so that we are not afraid, so that we don’t cling to possessions, where we give alms—so that our purse doesn’t wear out and our treasure is unfailingly protected?
So here’s what I think Luke is up to. The Kingdom of God is on its way. At the very least, Luke wants believers to know that Jesus has brought the Kingdom near. But it’s like a thief in the night. If we knew the Kingdom was coming, and I mean really coming—say tomorrow—we’d sell our possessions right now!, give a big bunch of alms, and wouldn’t be afraid, right! Well, Luke is saying, “exactly.” If we could count on God’s Kingdom coming tomorrow we’d all live differently, today. Well, friends, here’s our chance to “live like it,” because the Kingdom is on its way. In fact, Jesus says, “it is God’s good pleasure to give us the Kingdom (verse 32).” So relax, right? “NO,” says Luke—BE CHANGED! Because Jesus also says, “sell your possessions and give alms (verse 33).” The point being that “where your treasure is, your heart will be also.”
The best way to say it is that Jesus is asking us to invest in the life and ways of the Kingdom of God. For us to be tied to what is coming, more than what is. For us to have faith in what God is doing. For us to ultimately “take sides.” To divest ourselves in the things of this world, and invest ourselves in the Kingdom that is God’s good pleasure to give to us! Because the master is returning—at an unexpected hour. The master is returning, and when he does, he promises to set us at table to feed us.
Brothers and sisters: the Kingdom of God is breaking into our world as surely as it is God who is giving it to us in Jesus. It comes unexpectedly, yet we have to be ready for it. But to be ready for it, we have to be prepared for our hearts to inhabit it. Which means—doesn’t it—that our present lifestyle has to undergo some kind of transformation?—so that we can be dressed for the post-banquet meal the Master is serving.
“It is God’s good pleasure to give us the Kingdom. Sell your possessions, and give alms. Make purses for yourselves that do not wear out, an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near and no moth destroys. …Where blessed are those slaves whom the master finds alert when he comes; I tell you, he will fasten his belt and have them sit down to eat, and he will come and serve them.”
--+ Friends, God sent his son, the Christ, to bring near God’s kingdom and to give it to us. Just how much to we trust God—enough to do with less fear, fewer possessions, and more almsgiving? Enough that our lives can be changed by the things we no longer fear, or no longer have to possess, or no longer must hoard? Thanks be to God. AMEN.
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