The Work To Be Done (Luke 10:1-11; 17-20; Gal 6:2, 7-10)
Jesus says that the harvest is
plentiful, but the laborers are few, so ask the Lord of the harvest to send out
workers into his harvest. There is much work to do and few workers to do it.
But even as we ask the Lord to send out workers, maybe we should give some
thought to the work that needs to be done.
Answers will differ. Perhaps there was a
time in our lives when we could assume that all Christians of a particular
stripe would agree on the work to be done. If there was such a time, those days
are gone. One of the interesting things modern biblical scholarship has exposed
is how much diversity there was even in the early days of the Jesus movement.
What does Jesus sent out the the seventy
to do? For one thing, he sends them out to heal the sick. One of the primary
works of Jesus that the living Christ calls us to do are works of healing. Heal
the sick, says Jesus. The word that we often translate as “heal” or “make
whole” in the Gospels is the same word we translate as “save” in other
contexts. Salvation in the Gospels is a restoration to wholeness. It is about
healing. In the Gospels salvation is healing.
Fred Craddock tells about the time he
was acting dean at Phillips Seminary. It was a short stint, he says. One day a
woman stopped to see him. She wanted him to follow her to the parking lot and
to her car. He was a little nervous, but he did. Slumped in the back seat was
her brother. He had been a senior at the University of Oklahoma
He told her that he couldn’t do that. He
could pray for him, but he couldn’t heal him. He said that he did not have the
gift of healing. She got in the car, looked at Fred, and said “Then what in the
world do you do?” And she drove off. Dr. Craddock said that afternoon he went back
into his study, starred at his books, and tried to forget what she had said. Of
course, we know the kind of healing she was wanting, which, of course, could
not be given. But that question gave Dr. Craddock pause. “If you can’t heal,
then what in the world do you do?” she asked.
What do you make of all the healing
stories in the Gospels? We live in a different time and place. We have
different perspectives on healing. We have different understandings of the
causes of physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual sickness. We have
different understandings of the anti-human forces at work today that diminish
our lives, which destructive powers we need deliverance and healing from.
But healing is still the great need we
have as human beings and a society– on all levels – physical, mental,
emotional, and spiritual. We have made great strides in some areas of healing,
but still have a long way to go. I think most of us are more aware today of the
connections between physical, psychic, and spiritual sickness, which can be
very complex. And it is not just individuals who need healing. Our
relationships need healing; our communities need healing; whole societies need
healing. There are inseparable connections between works of healing and works
of justice, which works we are also called to do as disciples of Jesus. The two
kinds of works go hand-in-hand. When we work for justice, for what is right and
good and just and fair, we are engaging in works of communal or societal
healing.
Quite a few people had gathered at the
large house for the reception. I don’t know the occasion, but there was a punch
bowl, and some cake and peanuts and little mints and some sandwiches. You know
the standard fare. Everyone was standing around, having the kind of
conversations you have at such occasions. “I guess we’re going to get some rain
this week.” “Did you see the game last night?” That kind of stuff. And then
Brenda Williams walked into the room. And there was something about the room
that changed when she walked in. It wasn’t her beauty or her appearance or
anything like that. It had to do with who she was and what she was about.
She spent much of her time writing
letters, making calls, going to see important people in high places about the
way the law treats juvenile offenders. Seven days a week she worries the
authorities to death. Someone asked her, “You enjoy doing that?” “No, not
really,” was her reply. “You get paid for all that work. Do you have a position
or title? Are you on a pay roll?” “Oh, no,” she said. “You have children in
trouble with the law?” “No. My children are not in any trouble.” “Then why in
the world do you spend your time doing that. It’s no fun. You’re not getting
paid. None of your friends are doing it. Why are doing it?” Her answer, “Because
I have to.”
She feels compelled. She has a calling.
She has a commission. The Spirit of God inspires her and drives her into the
wilderness where she confronts the powers that be on matters of justice for
juvenile offenders. That kind of work is just as important as the works of
mercy and kindness we do when we walk with someone in their time of grief or
loss, or when we help in the soup kitchen or at the Simon House, or when we
give generously of our resources and time to minister to those in distress or
in personal or financial need.
Do you find it interesting that Jesus
tells the seventy he sends out to stay at one place and to proclaim to that
house that the kingdom of God is near. There is to be no shopping around for
the best room and board. Jesus says, “Go to whatever house welcomes you.” And
he tells them to eat whatever is set before them. Why is that? Remember that
Jesus himself sat at table with all sorts of people. The table meal in the life
and ministry of Jesus became an important, if not the most important symbol for
the kingdom of God. All were welcome. No distinctions were made. All were on
equal footing before God. The disciples are sent out to convey that same
message. There can be no hint of privilege. It may be Jewish food or Gentile
food set before them – it maybe a full course meal or trifles – it doesn’t make
any difference. The kingdom has come near to all. That’s why Jesus instructs
them to be servants of all, because the kingdom has come near to all. And that
was the message Jesus said to proclaim to whoever would welcome them into their
home and to their table. The kingdom of God is at hand. The kingdom of God has
come near.
When Jesus talks about the kingdom of
God, which was the central theme of his ministry, he is talking about God’s
will for the world, and that includes both healing and justice. Paul tells the
churches of Galatia to not be weary in doing what is right. He says that
whenever we have opportunity let us “work for the good of all.” The common good
is central to God’s kingdom and God’s will being done on earth as it is in
heaven.
As most of you know several years ago I
raised my voice along with many other voices, and we did what little we could
do to help get the Fairness ordinance passed here in Frankfort. The irony of
that is that while there were other Christians and clergy like myself (I wasn’t
alone by any means) advocating and speaking for that legislation, many more
Christians were opposed to it. Far more Christians opposed it than favored it. One
of the arguments that always baffled me, which was one of the most common arguments
advanced against it by Christians was, “You can’t legislate fairness.” Personally, I think
that argument was just a way for them to disguise their prejudice against the
LGBT Community. And when you think about it, it’s a silly argument. Of course
you can legislate fairness. We did it when we abolished the laws of segregation
on a national level. We legislated fairness. And while many still broke the
law, the law itself was helpful in bringing about change. Now, what you can’t
legislate is individual transformation or the healing of a person’s or group’s
racism or prejudice. Only the law of Christ can do that, which is the law of
love. Only the love of God working in a person or community can heal racism and
prejudice. But, yes indeed, we can legislate fairness, and we who are disciples
of Jesus should demand that our representatives enact legislation that promotes
fairness and justice. The healing of a society depends on it, and it’s a key
part of the process.
Author Nikos Kazantzakis was walking
along a dusty path in his native Crete. An elderly woman passed by, carrying a
basket of figs. She paused, picked out two figs, and presented them to
Kazantzakis. “Do you know me, old lady?” he asked. She looked at him puzzled
and said, “No, my boy. Do I have to know you to give you something? You are a
human being, aren’t you? So am I. Isn’t that enough?”
I wish to God it were enough. I’m sure
you have been reading and hearing about the deplorable conditions where asylum
seekers and migrants seeking safety from unsafe conditions are being held and
how they are being mistreated. It’s tragic. Instead of allowing them to stay
with relatives or friends or people or communities that would take them in
until their papers can be processed and they can get a hearing, they are being
imprisoned in overcrowded detention centers where conditions are inhumane and
deplorable. And now our nation’s leader is talking about more raids on the
undocumented gathering up even more people and placing them in those same
conditions, or separating families and sending them back to places where they
have not been in years and are unsafe. Isn’t it enough that they are human
beings? God’s daughters and sons. God’s children loved by God. O no, it’s not,
because there is no compassion, no concern at all. Just hate and prejudice and
fear. That’s what guides the immigration policies and practices of our nation’s
leaders today.
Paul says to the Galatian Christians, “So let us not grow weary in doing what is
right (that is, what fulfills the law of Christ, the law of love, the law of
love your neighbor as yourself), for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not
give up. So then, whenever we have an opportunity, let us work for the good of
all, and especially for those of the family of faith.” Generally, in that
culture those who constituted the family of faith were those who were the most
disadvantaged and vulnerable in society. Not all of course, but many. Certainly
the majority. When Paul writes to the Corinthians he tells them that not many
of high status or wealth or those in the high standing of society have accepted
the call to be part of the community of Christ. He tells them that God chooses
the “foolish” things, and “low” things, and the “weak” things of the world to
confound the wise and the strong and the rich. Paul doesn’t say “not any”
well-to-do people and powerful people are called, but he does say, “not many”
are called. And we know from story after story in the Gospels and from the
teachings of Jesus that Jesus had a special interest and regard for the poor
and vulnerable, as well as the outcasts and excluded in his society.
In the Hebrew scriptures three groups of
people are singled out as worthy of special consideration, compassion, and
care: strangers or aliens, that is, non-Jews, widows, and orphans. Scholars
point out that the legal mandates for caring for these were quite unique among
other known judicial systems in the Ancient Near East. Israel’s covenant with
God, Israel’s law required consistent and outspoken advocacy and care for the
weakest, least protected, and most disadvantaged in their society.
There is a story told about William
Booth, the founder of the Salvation army, who spent many years reaching out to
the poor and needy on the streets of London. Every Christmas, London churches
sent out representatives to the streets to invite the poor to their Christmas
celebrations. They would typically say, “All of you who are Anglicans, come
with us.” Or “All of you who are Catholics, come with us.” Or all of you who
are Methodists or Lutherans or whatever, come with us.” When all of that was
done, there would still be left a large crowd. William Booth would shout out,
“All of you who belong to no one, come with me!” Who do you think captured best
the spirit of Jesus?
Jesus told the disciples to announce the
kingdom of God has come near, when they sit down to table with all kinds of
folks and when they engage in works of healing. We need a new vision of the
kingdom of God. Actually, it’s an old vision we need. The vision that inspired
and compelled Jesus to welcome all and heal all is the vision we need today.
It’s a vision he died for on a Roman cross. The vision is captured beautifully
in a poem by Cynthia Kirk titled “Kin-dom without Walls.”
Imagine a place / Where mercy resides, /
Love forms each heart, /
Compassion lived out with grit and
determination. / A place where lavish signs / Mark each path barrier free.
Imagine a place / Where skin tones are
celebrated / Like the hues of tulips in springtime. / Where languages inspire /
With symphonies of diversity. / Where Respect schools us / In custom and
history / And every conversation / Begins with a bow of reverence.
Imagine a place where each person wears
glasses, / Clarity of vision for all. / Recognizing each one, everything / Made
in the image of God.
Imagine a place / Where carrots and
pasta / Doctor’s skills and medications
Are not chained behind barbed wire- / Food,
shelter, health care available for all.
Imagine a place where / Every key of
oppression / Was melted down to form public art / Huge fish, doves, lions and
lambs / On which children could play.
Imagine a place where / People no longer
kept watch / Through the front window / To determine whether the welcome mat / Would
remain on the porch.
Such is the work / The journey / They
destination / In the kin_dom of God.
O God, inspire us to imagine, to dream,
to pray, and to work for the kin_dom of God – where we all belong and we love
our neighbor as we love ourselves. Amen.
Comments
Post a Comment