Knowing Our Need – sermon on February 26, 2017
Matthew 6: 24-34 Jesus taught them, saying, “No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money. Therefore, I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothes? Look at the birds of the air; they do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not much more valuable than they? Can any one of you by worrying add a single hour to your life? And why do you worry about clothes? See how the flowers of the field grow. They do not labor or spin. Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was dressed like one of these. If that is how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and tomorrow is thrown into the fire, will he not much more clothe you – you of little faith? So do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first God’s kingdom and its justice, and all these things will be given to you as well. Therefore, do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Sermon: Knowing Our Need by Rev. Doreen Oughton
Some of you may think that my sermons go on too long, but I can’t hold a candle to Jesus’ sermon on the mount. We’ve been discussing passages from just one chapter of it for the past three weeks, and the sermon goes on for 2 more chapters. The previous sections were from chapter 5 of Matthew’s Gospel, and today we move into chapter 6 – but not with verse one. We skip over lots of stuff to get to today’s passage, including the teaching of the Lord’s prayer, and Jesus’ statement that “where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.” This sets us up for the opening lines today: You cannot serve God and money, or God and wealth. He goes on to say not to worry – not about clothes or food or drink.
To me, it is important to recall that this sermon is not being preached to a huge crowd – nothing like the 5000 plus who are served loaves and fishes later on in his ministry. No, it is a much smaller gathering. Perhaps a group like one gathered here today. He has called some of them to be his disciples, and others have heard him before, appreciate his message and want more. People are going specially to hear him. He is feeding his flock, that they might themselves become empowered to carry the good news.
It is important to me to recognize that so we understand that his message about not worrying is not some glib assurance that everything’s going to be alright. This is not a song – “don’t worry, be happy” – but encouragement – “don’t worry, be faithful.” The message is for those who are drawn to his gospel, those who indicate a willingness to have their lives transformed by him. Again, hopefully, like this group gathered here today.
It is not likely that any of these close followers were wealthy, even by the standards of those times. According to lectionary blogger John Petty, only about 5-10% of the people of ancient Israel had much wealth at all, and about 2-3% were the super-rich; aristocratic families with Greek or Roman backgrounds, those who received their property through military conquest – the plunders of war. Then there was a big drop-off to the next level – major tax collectors, and those with good positions for the wealthy landowners. They were agents of political oppression. Their equals were the priests and scribes of Jerusalem. While they didn’t have much in terms of personal assets, they lived in splendor and were agents of religious oppression. This group constituted another 4-5% of the total population. Everyone else was poor. The 75% who worked as artisans, merchants, farmers and fishermen barely made enough to survive, and they were paying about 50% of the income to taxes. The bottom 15% were beggars, cripples, prostitutes and criminals who lived off the land outside of the city.
This 90% didn’t think much of their economic superiors. They saw them as rapacious, greedy, crooked – people who lived high on the hog at other people’s expense. Definitely not serving God. These followers of Jesus consist mainly of this group of people barely getting by, though Jesus has caught the attention, and sometimes even respect, of some of the wealthier people.
In this passage, Jesus acknowledges that food and drink and clothing are necessary; and he is not saying that money is evil. He is saying that it is not a good master, and perhaps he is pointing out that one can “serve” money even if you are not wealthy. The separation from God is obvious in the wealthy who exploit and oppress others in their service to money, but maybe not so obvious in those who are preoccupied with their lack of money. But still, Jesus says, that separation is there. What is worry but a form of fear, and scripture is riddled with counsel to “fear not.”
Perhaps some of these followers are beginning to think about what it will mean to keep following him. What are they giving up, who are they leaving behind? “Sure, these ideas are all well and good in church, but you don’t really expect me to live them out in the world, right? I’d be taken advantage of. There won’t be enough for me and my family.” Jesus is assuring these followers that he understands their need. God understands their need. They will have enough. Jesus points to the evidence of God’s bounty all around them. There they are on that mountainside in the spring, bright flowers everywhere, birds singing, the sun warming them, the smell of the sea in the distance. God provides. God is eager to provide.
The problem with worry and fear is that they are barriers to love. They bring us down, and inward. They stir us to build walls and hoard. Fear increases our mistrust and suspicion of others. It cuts us off from others, isolates us. It increases our self concern and decreases our concern for others. All of these things are the antithesis of what it is like to live in the Beloved Community. When you are fearful, when you worry about money, or what it can buy, you cannot live in the kindom. You cannot serve God. You are being led away from God.
Jesus has these tentative followers. His message resonates with them. The good news of a merciful and loving God who longs for them to live in the kindom of abundance has a pull on them. But is it a strong enough pull to overcome their fears? Jesus knows they will not be served by giving in to the fear. He knows the way forward is to develop and strengthen and maintain their trust in God. That is the only way the transformation can happen. He wants them, and us, to focus more on our relationship with God than on the day to day tasks of sustaining our physical life. Again, he’s not saying to forgo those tasks, but don’t let them become more important than your relationships with God, with others, with yourself. In your worrying over scarcity, you may come to believe you must hurt others, take from others, or compromise your own values to get what you need.
St. Augustine of Hippo said, “Thou hast made us for thyself, O Lord, and our heart is restless until it finds its rest in thee.” I spoke a few weeks ago, during the snow storm, about how there may be something inside of us, planted by God, that makes us always strive for just a little bit more. I think of this as the restlessness of our hearts, seeking God. But when we get caught up in a mindset of scarcity, this restlessness gets misdirected so that we want a little bit more of worldly wealth; a little bit more than we need for a decent life. And it is not just about money – we may hold unrealistic views of what we need in terms of time or inspiration or rest or opportunity.
God provides. God is eager to provide. God knows our need even better than we do. Where can we look to see God’s abundance around us? Certainly in nature, as Jesus did. Where else? Can you look back on your life and see where God has carried you, or led you to something amazing? Can you look at other faithful people living their lives with joy and peace in their service of God? What steps can you take to build your relationship with God, to increase your trust? Maybe you’ll take a numbered bulletin and let God decide where you will get spiritual nurture on Sunday mornings. Maybe you’ll take on one more opportunity to give of your time or resources – with WF lunch, or the Souper Tuesday lunches. Or you’ll trust God with inspiring you to say something about Lent. Where can you loosen your grip a bit on your life? The transformation can’t happen unless you do. You have come here. You are seeking something. The good news has drawn you in. Don’t let worry slow you down, set you back. Fear not. One day at a time, let go a little more. Stay in the day, stay focused on the challenges right before you, and invite God to help you face them. May it be so.
