Generous, Pentecost 16, September 24, 2017

Sixteenth Sunday of Pentecost (Year A)

Sunday, September 24, 2017

If we can be generous with grace, with forgiveness, with seeking the best for others, and with welcoming all people into God’s community, we will find that we, almost automatically, begin to be generous with other things, including material wealth. And through our generosity, God’s generosity is manifest in our communities and our world.

– John van de Laar

Theme: Generous

Reflection: It’s not fair!

When our son was at home, my husband and I would face that complaint regularly. Even with just one child, our son thought he was getting the short end. Namely, he had two parents against him. Our household rules weren’t fair. As he got older, he realized life wasn’t fair, society wasn’t fair, and disasters and illnesses weren’t fair.

Children get the concept of fairness pretty early in life. Fair is equal size slices of birthday cake. Fair means if one child rode in the front seat last time, he has to ride in the back seat now. When they hit their teens, a paycheck is the fair reward of fruitful labor. And it’s not fair when four people drive over the speed limit, but you, the fifth car in the row, get a ticket. Right?

You might think God would be the ultimate fan of fair play: “There is no longer Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male and female. For you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28).

But fairness doesn’t carry through to God’s kingdom life. If God decided on a fairness doctrine, none of us would have a chance. Certainly not those of us who mess up regularly, sometimes before our feet hit the floor in the morning. Not the thief on the cross who repented in the final hours of his life, or the infant who dies never hearing, much less understanding, the gospel. Yet, I believe God welcomes us all. God’s grace has no limits. We can’t earn grace. If it came down to fairness, no one would qualify.

Grace is a gift. Pure gift. Not the “I should give you one, because it’s your birthday” gift. Not the “you gave me one, so I’m returning the favor” gift. The gift that says “I love you, I’m glad you’re alive, and I got this for you” kind of gift. No strings attached. God loves us and wants nothing to come between us. Ever. Grace is that kind of gift.

Jonah doesn’t enter the lectionary very often, which is a shame, since Jonah is my favorite Biblical appearance. He’s not just a good guy or a bad guy – he’s real with his feats and flaws. God calls him – he runs. He has a misadventure because of his fear and disobedience. He eventually does God’s work, amazingly well, and then he sulks because God extends those people grace. And he learns about God’s love and compassion.

Jonah didn’t get it. The Ninevites screwed up and deserved God’s wrath, so Jonah was furious. Sulking because God didn’t do what Jonah expected or what he felt they deserved. They received everything that Jonah believed he earned.

The laborers didn’t get it. When they saw the one-hour laborers getting a full-day’s pay, they expected a bonus. Some of them had worked 12 times as long! Where was the fairness in that? But God provided for their needs, and the needs of every laborer.

In today’s world, some would cry “Socialism! You keep that up and all the workers will be putting in one-hour shifts.”

Really? Is that how it works? When an employer, say Costco, treats its employees really well, do they underperform every other company? It appears not to be the case. And when people awaken to the unbelievable gift that is God’s mercy, do they become spiritual slackers? My observations disprove that, as well. When people wake up to the unexpected, undeserved gift that is grace, they become on fire to spread and be the gospel in this world.

Perhaps the formula is God’s people + God’s unconditional love = changed people. Not perfect people. God’s laborers in the kingdom.

A side note:  Jonah makes only two appearances in the three-year cycle of the Revised Common Lectionary, those readings covering the third and fourth chapters of this short book. I guess it could be worse. Eight books of the Bible never enter the lectionary. We never hear one word from 1 and 2 Chronicles, Ezra, Obadiah, Nahum, 2 and 3 John, or Jude.

(You always are welcome to respond with your thoughts and reflections in the comments section at the bottom of this post.) 

Faith App:  Live generously. Catch someone off guard with God’s economy of grace, far more than we need or deserve.

HYMN/SONG SUGGESTIONS

For the Fruit of All Creation, ELW 679

As We Gather at Your Table, ELW 522

There’s a Wideness in God’s Mercy, ELW 587/588

Praise My Soul the King of Heaven, ELW 864/865

Great God, Your Love Has Called Us, 358

Lord of Light, ELW 688

Glorious Things of Thee Are Spoken, ELW 647

Give Thanks (with a Grateful Heart), Henry Smith

Broken Things, Matthew West

If grace was a kingdom

I stopped at the gate

Thinking I don't deserve to pass through

After all the mistakes that I've made

Oh, but I heard a whisper

As Heaven bent down,

Said, "Child, don't you know that the first

will be last and the last get a crown?"

Now I'm just a beggar in the presence of a King

I wish I could bring so much more

But if it's true You use broken things

Then here I am Lord, I'm all Yours

Table of Grace, Phillips, Craig & Dean

To Live is Christ, Sidewalk Prophets

Your Grace Is Enough, Chris Tomlin

Build Your Kingdom Here, Rend Collective

10,000 Reasons (Bless the Lord), Matt Redman

LESSONS

Jonah 3:10 – 4:11 Jonah resents God’s grace toward the Ninevites.

Psalm 145:1-8 The Lord is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.

Philippians 1:21-30 Live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.

Matthew 20:1-16 The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who hired laborers for his vineyard. 

Summary:  Jonah didn't think the Ninevites deserved grace; and the early-morning workers grumbled about getting no more than those who worked one hour. But there are a lot of stingy people in the Bible like Jonah and the day laborers in the vineyard, and a lot of stingy Christians who want to limit God’s grace. How do we answer God’s “Are you envious because I am generous?”

OPENING LITANY based on Psalm 145:1-8

L:  I want to shout your name everywhere, God;

C:  I want all people to know how great you are!

L:  From now until my life ends, I will bless you,

C:  My heart full of praises and words of wonder.

L:  Grandfathers and fathers will tell their sons,

C:  Wise women will proclaim to every daughter –

L:  Everything you fashioned is glorious indeed;

C:  Breathe in and give thanks for God’s good gifts!

L:  Shout! Celebrate! God is generous beyond compare.

C:  Sing! Dance! Move to the message of amazing grace.

L:  Your welcome and mercy go on forever and ever,

C:  No one is as patient as you, God, and no one loves us more.

CONFESSION

L:  Today we confess our hearts need opening,

C:  Far enough that your love would fill us,

L:  Even farther, until love spills over to change us,

C:  Shapes us into people generous with love.

L:  We confess that we can be just like Jonah,

C:  Doing God’s work when we’re in control,

L:  Balking when the direction doesn’t suit us,

C:  Grumbling, not generous with your grace.

L:  We confess we’re like vineyard laborers,

C:  Proud that we arrived so early in the day,

L:  Resentful that God keeps sending new help,

C:  We don’t need their new energy and ideas.

(Silent reflection)

L:  In our confession, we pray together,

C:  Most Merciful God … we confess how we resist your abundance of grace. We want to make it a paycheck for work, a pension for seniority, or a merit system for goodness. Instead, you keep calling your people, and delight in being generous with forgiveness and love. Help us to let go of our control and learn to love all people with abandon.

P:  Here is Good News: If our God dealt grace according to our labor or goodness, we would all be lost. Instead, God who is gracious and merciful chooses to be generous, covering every beloved child with forgiveness. Cast off your chains of fairness and live into the abundance of God’s love.

In the name of…

C:  Amen

PRAYER OF THE DAY

L:  We pray together, 

C:  Generous God … we pray today to live our lives worthy of the gospel of Christ, casting off our belief that we deserve God’s grace more than others. Remind us, again and again, that the kingdom of heaven draws near when we allow God’s love to flow through us to others, until all people we reach are covered.  Amen.

COMMUNION BLESSING

L:  We pray together,

C:  We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the abundant mercy in this bread, the generous grace in this cup, the signs of your kingdom in this place.  Send us into this world, renewed by your love that overwhelms our control, ready to share it with everyone.  Amen.

SENDING

L:  Let go of the voice that says “It’s not fair.”

C:  Stop weighing what people do and deserve.

L:  God’s grace and mercy is abundant and free –

C:  Share it with abandon to everyone you meet.

L:  Go now, grace-full and generous, to love and to serve the Lord.

C: Thanks be to God!

First Reading Jonah 3:10 – 4:11 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: The prophet Jonah lived in the early part of the 8^th Century B.C. When God first called Jonah, he ran. The second time, he does what God asks him to do – warn the residents of Ninevah that God planned destroy their city because of their disobedience.

¹⁰ When God saw what they did, how they turned from their evil ways, God changed his mind about the calamity that he had said he would bring upon them; and he did not do it.

4 But this was very displeasing to Jonah, and he became angry. ² He prayed to the Lord and said, “O Lord! Is not this what I said while I was still in my own country? That is why I fled to Tarshish at the beginning; for I knew that you are a gracious God and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love, and ready to relent from punishing. ³ And now, O Lord, please take my life from me, for it is better for me to die than to live.” ⁴ And the Lord said, “Is it right for you to be angry?” ⁵ Then Jonah went out of the city and sat down east of the city, and made a booth for himself there. He sat under it in the shade, waiting to see what would become of the city.

⁶ The Lord God appointed a bush, and made it come up over Jonah, to give shade over his head, to save him from his discomfort; so Jonah was very happy about the bush. ⁷ But when dawn came up the next day, God appointed a worm that attacked the bush, so that it withered. ⁸ When the sun rose, God prepared a sultry east wind, and the sun beat down on the head of Jonah so that he was faint and asked that he might die. He said, “It is better for me to die than to live.”

⁹ But God said to Jonah, “Is it right for you to be angry about the bush?” And he said, “Yes, angry enough to die.” ¹⁰ Then the Lord said, “You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow; it came into being in a night and perished in a night. ¹¹ And should I not be concerned about Nineveh, that great city, in which there are more than a hundred and twenty thousand persons who do not know their right hand from their left, and also many animals?”

Second Reading Philippians 1:21-30 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: Paul sends a “keep the faith” message to the new church at Philippi, but it seems like Paul might have been writing the message as much for himself as the new Christians.

²¹ For to me, living is Christ and dying is gain. ²² If I am to live in the flesh, that means fruitful labor for me; and I do not know which I prefer. ²³ I am hard pressed between the two: my desire is to depart and be with Christ, for that is far better; ²⁴ but to remain in the flesh is more necessary for you. ²⁵ Since I am convinced of this, I know that I will remain and continue with all of you for your progress and joy in faith, ²⁶ so that I may share abundantly in your boasting in Christ Jesus when I come to you again.

²⁷ Only, live your life in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ, so that, whether I come and see you or am absent and hear about you, I will know that you are standing firm in one spirit, striving side by side with one mind for the faith of the gospel, ²⁸ and are in no way intimidated by your opponents. For them this is evidence of their destruction, but of your salvation. And this is God’s doing. ²⁹ For he has graciously granted you the privilege not only of believing in Christ, but of suffering for him as well— ³⁰ since you are having the same struggle that you saw I had and now hear that I still have.

Gospel Matthew 14:22-33 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: The Jewish leaders were watching Jesus more and more closely after his healings and teachings began causing a stir. So Jesus turned to parables as a way to express God’s unchanging love and mercy.

20 “For the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. ² After agreeing with the laborers for the usual daily wage, he sent them into his vineyard. ³ When he went out about nine o’clock, he saw others standing idle in the marketplace; ⁴ and he said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will pay you whatever is right.’ So they went. ⁵ When he went out again about noon and about three o’clock, he did the same. ⁶ And about five o’clock he went out and found others standing around; and he said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’ ⁷ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’ ⁸ When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the laborers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and then going to the first.’ ⁹ When those hired about five o’clock came, each of them received the usual daily wage. ¹⁰ Now when the first came, they thought they would receive more; but each of them also received the usual daily wage. ¹¹ And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, ¹² saying, ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’ ¹³ But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong; did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? ¹⁴ Take what belongs to you and go; I choose to give to this last the same as I give to you. ¹⁵ Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’¹⁶ So the last will be first, and the first will be last.”

Forgiven, Pentecost 15, September 17, 2017

15^th Sunday of Pentecost (Year A)

Sunday, September 17, 2017

“To forgive is to set a prisoner free and discover that the prisoner was you.”

 –  Lewis B. Smedes

“God created us for love, for union, for forgiveness and compassion and, yet, that has not been our storyline. That has not been our history.”

 – Richard Rohr

Theme: Forgiven

Reflection: The year was 1990. A year filled with far too much worry was coming to an end.

After spending the first four weeks of his life in an neonatal intensive care unit in Phoenix, some 100 miles from home, our son was freed of his apnea monitor and chest belt that had caused nothing but false alarms, mostly in the middle of the night.

But what we couldn’t discard was the bill that wasn’t covered by insurance. His neonatologist’s bill equaled a quarter of my annual salary. It would be years upon years before we could pay it off. That was, if we didn’t end up with additional bills from whatever medical issues lay ahead for our son. While our insurance had paid the hospital and most of the doctors, this was the first bill, and it covered most of our deductible.

Closing in on Thanksgiving, we were thankful. Our son was fine, the insurance had covered what would have been a six-figure hospital stay, and just this one bill remained. Both of us wondered how long we would have to work to pay it off, if we COULD pay it off. The joy of our first Christmas as a family was dampened by this crushing debt.

Then, an envelope arrived from the office that looked different from the neonatologist’s monthly bills. We opened it and wept with gratitude. “So that you can have a Merry Christmas, we have forgiven this debt.” The bill was marked “Paid in Full.”

Such a burden lifted. We have never forgotten that moment, when, without justification, this generous creditor freed us from a debt we couldn’t pay.

That story rushed back as I read today’s lessons. Paid in full. Joseph had every right to exact justice for the hurt his brothers had caused years earlier, but instead he cared for his family. David’s Psalm has the same premise: God could deal with us according to our sins, but instead, he forgives us, removes the sin  from us. Paul tells the church at Rome that it is not ours to judge anyone else, just to live to the glory of God.

The Gospel parallel to our story would be for us to receive that letter, and then make life miserable for someone who owed us five dollars.

We are debtors, drowning in our stuff. We are, as the confession says, “in bondage to sin and cannot free ourselves.” It is beyond us to restore ourselves into right relationship with God – God alone can bridge the divide. We haven’t done anything to deserve it, but in great love for us, God settles our account, before we can ask, marking it “paid in full.”

How then, can we have anything but compassion for the little wounds and scars caused by the friction of human relationship? Meditating on God’s infinite grace makes my little grudges and grievances ridiculously ungrateful and petty. Forgive me, Lord, once again.

(You always are welcome to respond with your thoughts and reflections in the comments section at the bottom of this post.) 

Faith App:  What person needs you to lose count of their past wrongs? Wipe out your tally sheet and settle your accounts. It will set both of you free.

HYMN/SONG SUGGESTIONS

Forgive Our Sins As We Forgive, ELW 605

When We Are Living, ELW 639

God, When Human Bonds Are Broken, ELW 603

Our Father, We Have Wandered, ELW 606

Goodness Is Stronger Than Evil, ELW 721

Go, My Children, with My Blessing, ELW 543

I Come With Joy, ELW 482

Forgiveness, Matthew West

Whole Heart, Brandon Heath

East is from the West, Casting Crowns

Chain Breaker, Zach Williams

LESSONS

Genesis 50:15-21 Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good

Psalm 103:(1-7) 8-13 As far as the east is from the west, so far he removes our transgressions from us.

Romans 14:1-12 Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister?

Matthew 18:21-35 How often should I forgive? As many as seven times? 

Summary:  Forgiveness is hard for mortals to understand, when paybacks come so much easier. But follow the lead of the one who can and does forgive all things. Keep letting it go.

OPENING LITANY based on Psalm 103:1-2, 8-13

L:  Bless the Lord, O my soul, bless God’s name;

C:  Every fiber of me knows the good God has done.

L:  Healing my weak and wounded parts,

C:  Removing my sin, until I feel alive and loved again.

L:  Compassionate is our Lord, and full of grace,

C:  Full of love when we are at our most unlovable.

L:  God thinks the best of us and doesn’t stay angry,

C:  Paybacks aren’t coming – that’s not how God works.

L:  Magnificent are the heavens, but not as great as God’s love.

C:  Distant are the horizons, but God removes our sins farther.

L:  No parent could love us with God’s tender mercy,

C: Trusting is the child who knows God’s steadfast love.

CONFESSION

L:  Why does it take a tragedy to bring us together,

C:  Or the deathbed wish of a parent to their kids?

L:  Why can’t we love without grudges or paybacks,

C:  Replacing fear with trust, anger with concern?

L:  Why do we despise what we don’t understand,

C:  Passing judgment on others we’ve never met?

L:  Why do we accuse harshly and point our fingers,

C:  Without any clue about the struggles they face?

L:  Why do we deny blessings to all God’s children:

C:  A roof over their heads, enough food to eat?

L:  Why do we hold one’s past sins against them,

C:  When we say we believe in a God who forgives?

(Silent reflection)

L:  In our confession, we pray together,

C:  Most Merciful God … we are so good at keeping track of other people’s words and actions that cause us pain, holding onto grudges and eager to settle our scores. Payback is a real attraction for us. We’ve wandered so far from your loving and reconciling ways, so forgetful about our past mistakes. Teach us how to let go, Lord, to forgive our brothers and sisters from the heart and love them as you love us.

P:  Hear this Good News: Merciful and gracious is our Lord, slow to become angry with us and overflowing with love. God does not deal with us according to our sins, instead we are forgiven and set free, released to release others.

In the name of…

C:  Amen

PRAYER OF THE DAY

L:  We pray together, 

C:  Compassionate God … we pray for you to teach us how to love – really love – until our love becomes more than a feeling, but an action more compelling than any power on earth:

•           Love that heals the broken places inside each other,

•           Love that understands what our neighbor’s words don’t say,

•           Love that works for justice for the weak and left behind.

•           Love that stops counting how many times it forgives.

Give us your grace to keep forgiving far longer than we think is wise, worthwhile or warranted, because forgiveness has no limits, and love never ends. Amen.

COMMUNION BLESSING

L:  We pray together,

C:  We give you thanks, most gracious God, for the mercy in this bread, the forgiveness in this cup.  Send us, freed from the captivity of our sin to be grateful enough to free others, not by fear, not by force, but by loving and forgiving them, over and over and over, just as you love us.  Amen.

SENDING

L:  Not seven times, but now 77 times?

C:  Jesus was teaching Peter new math.

L:  Just stop counting wrongs and forgive,

C:  Love your neighbor as God loves you.

L:  Go now, forgiven to the nth degree, to love and to serve the Lord.

C: Thanks be to God!

First Reading Genesis 50:15-21 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: After Joseph’s brothers sell him into slavery, twists of fate put him into a position of authority as a prince of Egypt. Joseph has returned to the palace after burying his father, Jacob, and now his brothers realize he has the power to pay them back for their earlier misdeeds.

¹⁵ Realizing that their father was dead, Joseph’s brothers said, “What if Joseph still bears a grudge against us and pays us back in full for all the wrong that we did to him?” ¹⁶ So they approached Joseph, saying, “Your father gave this instruction before he died, ¹⁷ ‘Say to Joseph: I beg you, forgive the crime of your brothers and the wrong they did in harming you.’ Now therefore please forgive the crime of the servants of the God of your father.” Joseph wept when they spoke to him. ¹⁸ Then his brothers also wept, fell down before him, and said, “We are here as your slaves.” ¹⁹ But Joseph said to them, “Do not be afraid! Am I in the place of God? ²⁰ Even though you intended to do harm to me, God intended it for good, in order to preserve a numerous people, as he is doing today. ²¹ So have no fear; I myself will provide for you and your little ones.” In this way he reassured them, speaking kindly to them.

Second Reading Romans 14:1-12 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: Conflicts have set in between Jews and Gentiles over law. Paul instructs the Roman Christians of means that eating sacrificed meat isn’t inherently wrong, nor is refusing to do so. It’s how you treat others.

14 Welcome those who are weak in faith, but not for the purpose of quarreling over opinions. ² Some believe in eating anything, while the weak eat only vegetables. ³ Those who eat must not despise those who abstain, and those who abstain must not pass judgment on those who eat; for God has welcomed them. ⁴ Who are you to pass judgment on servants of another? It is before their own lord that they stand or fall. And they will be upheld, for the Lord is able to make them stand.

⁵ Some judge one day to be better than another, while others judge all days to be alike. Let all be fully convinced in their own minds. ⁶ Those who observe the day, observe it in honor of the Lord. Also those who eat, eat in honor of the Lord, since they give thanks to God; while those who abstain, abstain in honor of the Lord and give thanks to God.

⁷ We do not live to ourselves, and we do not die to ourselves. ⁸ If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. ⁹ For to this end Christ died and lived again, so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.

¹⁰ Why do you pass judgment on your brother or sister? Or you, why do you despise your brother or sister? For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God. ¹¹ For it is written,

“As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
    and every tongue shall give praise to God.”

¹² So then, each of us will be accountable to God.

Gospel Matthew 18:21-35 (NRSV)

Setting the Scene: Today’s discussion immediately follows last week’s teaching about how to confront someone who has wronged a member of the church. Some translations say 77, some 70 x 7.

²¹ Then Peter came and said to him, “Lord, if another member of the church sins against me, how often should I forgive? As many as seven times?” ²² Jesus said to him, “Not seven times, but, I tell you, seventy-seven times.

²³ “For this reason the kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who wished to settle accounts with his slaves. ²⁴ When he began the reckoning, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him; ²⁵ and, as he could not pay, his lord ordered him to be sold, together with his wife and children and all his possessions, and payment to be made. ²⁶ So the slave fell on his knees before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you everything.’ ²⁷ And out of pity for him, the lord of that slave released him and forgave him the debt. ²⁸ But that same slave, as he went out, came upon one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii and seizing him by the throat, he said, ‘Pay what you owe.’ ²⁹ Then his fellow slave fell down and pleaded with him, ‘Have patience with me, and I will pay you.’ ³⁰ But he refused; then he went and threw him into prison until he would pay the debt. ³¹ When his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed, and they went and reported to their lord all that had taken place. ³² Then his lord summoned him and said to him, ‘You wicked slave! I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me. ³³ Should you not have had mercy on your fellow slave, as I had mercy on you?’ ³⁴ And in anger his lord handed him over to be tortured until he would pay his entire debt. ³⁵ So my heavenly Father will also do to every one of you, if you do not forgive your brother or sister from your heart.”