“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” Matthew 25:31-46 (NRSV)
Grace and peace to you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.
If you are a native Kentuckian, you may recognize this song. Maybe even if you aren’t a native Kentuckian. It was written on night in 1931 in Harlan County, KY. In 1931, the mine workers and the mine owners in this southeastern county in Kentucky were locked in a bitter and violent struggle called the Harlan County War. In an attempt to intimidate the family of Sam Reece, who was a union organizer for the mine workers’ union, the sheriff of the county and his men, who were hired by the mining company, entered their home in search of him. Now Mr. Reece had been warned ahead of time and had escaped, but his wife, Florence, and their children had remained. They were terrorized in their own home. That night, after the sheriff and his men left, Mrs. Reece tore a page off a calendar that hung in their kitchen and she wrote the lyrics for the song. Tradition has it that the tune is from an old Baptist hymn.
This song would go on to be used in nearly every major protest movement in our country. In the fight for workers’ rights. In the civil rights movement. In the women’s movement. In the fight for gay and lesbian rights. In the anti-war protests of Vietnam, Iraq and Afghanistan. Even in today’s Poor People’s Campaign, a campaign that seeks to renew the original campaign started by Martin Luther King, Jr..
This song is a song that challenges us. To make a decision about which side we will choose. Whether we will stand on the side of those with power. Or on the side of those with no power.
In the same way, our text today is a story of sides. And of choices. We are in the portion of Matthew that is called the Eschatological Discourse - a discussion about the end times. About Jesus’ second coming. In Matthew, this discourse between Jesus and disciples begins with one question asked by the disciples at the beginning of chapter 24. It is asked by them in response to a comment made by Jesus in the temple - that no stone in the temple would remain. That everything will be demolished. This makes the disciples wonder. So, later, they come to Jesus privately and ask the question: “Tell us, when will these things happen? What will be the sign of your coming and the end of the age?”
In response to this question, Jesus describes the signs in heaven and on earth that will precede the end. Then, Jesus goes on to stress that no one knows the day or the hour, not even him. And that, while the disciples wait, they should remain vigilant, ready for Christ’s return.
Jesus goes on, then, as he often does in Matthew, to illustrate his point through the use of parables. Four parables. Last week, we heard one of the four. The Parable of the Talents (The Parable of the Ten Bridesmaids). Today, we hear the last of the four. The Parable of the Sheep and the Goats.
The main character in our parable is that of a king. A monarch. One who will sit on his throne before all of the nations with all people gathered in front of him. And, then, just like a shepherd in ancient days, the king will separate the people. Setting them apart in two groups. The sheep on one side. And the goats on the other.
Notice that, in this parable, Jesus, as he often does, makes use of everyday things. In today’s lesson, it’s about shepherding practices. It would have been common knowledge in ancient times that a shepherd tending a herd of goats and sheep would separate the two at night. During the day, they would graze together. But, at night, they would be separated because sheep prefer to spend the night in the open air. And goats, well, they like the warmth of a shelter. Plus, goats could be trouble-makers at times. So, at night, the shepherd would separate them.
It would also be a common understanding that sheep were more valuable than goats. Not only did they provide food, they also provided wool, milk for cheese, and other products. They were also used more than any other animal for sacrifice in the temple.
So the king separates the nations like sheep and goat. The sheep to the right. The goats to the left. The King will turn to those on his right. (In ancient days, to be placed at the right hand of a king meant that you were in the king’s favor. One of the chosen ones. Set apart.) So, the king will turn and say to those on his right, “Come and receive the blessings you have inherited from my Father.” They have not been placed there because of their superior knowledge of scripture. Or their exceptional spiritual gifts. But, because they have shown mercy and compassion to the hungry. To the thirsty. To the stranger. The naked. The sick. The imprisoned. That in serving those on the edges of society - the marginalized - they have been unknowingly serving the king.
Those on the right. The righteous. Do you notice that they are completely unaware of what they have done? They have not been acting in a calculated way to earn the king’s favor. But, they have simply been doing what is natural for them. They have responded to God’s gift of grace by serving those in need. They will be gathered with the king and be given unending life.
And, then, there are those on the left. Those who are not in the king’s favor. Those with whom the king is displeased. Like those on the right, they, too, have been doing what is natural for them. They have been looking out for their own interests. They have not been bothered by the needs of others. They, too, like those on the right, are also surprised to learn that they have encountered the king. In the marginalized and the powerless. And, in their encounter with them - with the “least of these,” they have shown which side they are on. They are cast away from the king. Into the darkness. Into unending fire. Into eternal punishment. Just as the unfaithful servant, the foolish bridesmaids, and the unfaithful servant.
Sisters and brothers, this can be a difficult parable for us. This discourse on end times. On Jesus’ second coming. On the judgment of the world. It is not something we like to think about. Yet, this parable is a fitting conclusion for our learning about the ways of God’s kingdom. Because, if there is no final judgment in God’s kingdom, that means that God does not care about the injustice and the suffering in our world.
But, God does care. God cares about it so much that, beginning in the very next chapter, we will see how Jesus bore this injustice and brokenness and suffering in his own body. To triumph over it. To defeat evil and death. As a ransom for all nations. As a ransom for us. For me. And for you.
Yet, even as Christ is now raised from the dead, highly exalted, and seated far above rule and authority, Jesus is not apart from us. Jesus is not distant and aloof. Jesus meets us here. In the bread and the wine, in his body and blood. Jesus meets us here in our brokenness. And continues to transform us. So that we might go out into the world and meet Jesus in the faces of the broken and powerless. In the needs of our suffering world.
Today we are commemorating the 25th anniversary of the Rwandan genocide. It was a time when those in power in that country murdered over 10% of their population, simply because they were of a different ethnic group.
So, which side are you on? Are you on the side of the powerful? Or the powerless? Are you on the side of the transformed, those who seek to live lives of service to those who have no power in response to God’s radical gift of grace? Or on the side of those who aren’t, who live in the selfish ways of the world, in the ways of their own interest instead of the ways of God’s kingdom?
May God work in us to choose the side of the weak and the powerless. To live in the ways of God’s kingdom. Ways of forgiveness, generosity, and hospitality. Ways of vigilance and trustworthiness. And, particularly in the way of service. In God’s way of service. A way that is so desperately needed by our broken world. May God grant it. Amen.
Preached April 7, 2019, at Grace & Glory Lutheran Church, Goshen, KY.
Fifth Sunday in Lent
Readings: Matthew 25:31-46, Psalm 98:7-9
“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ Matthew 25:14-30 (NRSV)
You don’t know me. But, we have a lot in common. You are people of the Good News. So was I. You are people, this year, learning from Matthew’s gospel. When I was alive, I did, too. The difference between us was that I heard Matthew’s gospel from Matthew himself. I was a member of Matthew’s church and of the community that centered itself around Matthew’s teachings in the late first century, around year 80 of the Common Era, which we are all part of.
Ours was a time of complete chaos. In the year 70, Jerusalem was completely destroyed. And just as Jesus has predicted, the temple was also destroyed. You have to understand how hard that was on our faith and our ancestry. With the destruction of the temple, we lost the entire structure of our religion. It would almost be like if, in your country, all of your churches would be destroyed. But, that would only be part of it. Because the temple was everything to us. It was the place we went to make sacrifice. To receive forgiveness. And blessing. To hear the Torah read and interpreted. It was completely central to our faith.
By my time, many of the different sects in our faith had disappeared. The priests. The Essenes. And others. This left only two remaining groups, each one claiming to be the heir to our faith. And the ones to interpret our religious traditions. These two groups were the Pharisees and the Christians. I am a Christian.
Without the temple, the center of our religion shifted to synagogues, which are more like your churches. They were decentralized. Based in different communities and contexts. In our synagogue, we would hear Matthew tell stories about Jesus and Jesus’ teachings. None of these were written down until our time. Mark’s community wrote theirs first. Then, our community wrote what you’ve been reading. The good news of Matthew. As we heard these early stories about Jesus and Jesus’ teachings, Matthew would try to help us understand who we were in this battle of ideas and religious beliefs. He would emphasize that our beliefs were the ones that were consistent with what Jesus taught. Not the Pharisees’ traditions.
So, what does all of this have to do with the parable that you heard today? Well, the parable part of a teaching in chapters 24 and 25 of our gospel. Today, your scholars call this Matthew’s “Eschatological Discourse.” Eschatology is a fancy name for the study of the end times. For teachings about the parousia, which is a fancy Greek word that means Jesus’ second coming.
You see, we expected to see Jesus come again in our lifetime. Jesus’ coming to earth, as we understood it, was the beginning of God’s reign here on earth. It was the beginning. But not the end. So, the disciples wanted to know what the signs would be of his second coming. Jesus talked about the chaos that would happen, chaos that felt a lot like our own time. And that might feel like your’s, too. But, Jesus told them not to be fooled. That these things would not mark the end.
Then, Jesus told them what would mark the end. That the sun would become dark. The moon wouldn’t give off its light. The stars would fall from the sky and the planets and other heavenly bodies would be shaken. Then, his sign - the sign of the Human One - would appear in the sky. That would mark the end. That would be the time that the Chosen Ones would be gathered from the four corners of the earth.
So, Jesus told them that they had to be prepared. They had to keep watch. Because no one, not even Jesus, would know when this would happen. Only God would.
Matthew told us the disciples had a hard time understanding this. So, Jesus told them four parables. The first two - the parable of the Faithful and the Unfaithful Servants and the parable of the Ten Young Women - we’ll save for another time. Today, I want to help you understand the Parable of the Talents.
First of all, you need to understand the meaning of the word “talent.” You use it very differently than we did. For us, a talent was money. It was a coin that was equal to fifteen years’ wages. It was the largest sum of money in our world. You might compare it to a million dollars in your world.
So, in the parable, there is a wealthy landowner who goes on a long trip. This wasn’t unusual in our world. Many wealthy people traveled to distant places for long periods of time. So, while they were gone, they would entrust us to manage their affairs.
What is unusual with this story is how much the servants were entrusted with. The wealthy landowner took a big risk in giving out these large sums of money. Each of the servants was given an amount that was consistent with their abilities.
So, the first one was given 5 talents. Think 5 million dollars. He worked quickly and efficiently. Starting a business. You would say that he was an entrepreneur with a start up. He invested all 5 million dollars into it. It was huge risk.
The second one was given 2 talents. Like the first, he, too, created a start up. Investing his entire 2 million dollars into it. Another big risk-taker.
The third one was given 1 talent. In your terms, 1 million dollars. But, he was different that the first two. He acted in a way that was typical in our time. Because burying money was the safest way to protect it in our day. Plus, whoever buried the money was not considered liable for it. So, he acted properly. According the standards of our day.
Then, after a long time away, the wealthy owner returned to settle his accounts with his three servants. When he heard of the success of the first two, he called them “good” and “faithful.” The owner had taken a huge risk in trusting them with so much of his money. The two servants had taken huge risks. But the risks paid off for everyone. Because of this, the owner gave them more responsibility. He asked them to risk more.
Then, there is the third servant. Probably not very different from you and I. Following the accepted practices of his time. But, there is a problem. This servant has not taken any risks. He has played it safe. He is afraid of the owner. And, because of this, he has hidden the money. Buried it. When he returns the same amount of money to the owner, the owner is furious. He calls him “lazy,” which is a word that would be used for someone who lacks the desire to do any work. Someone who allows safety and convenience to keep them from moving from thought to action. So, the money given to this servant is taken away. It is given to the first servant, who now has $11 million. The owner sends the third servant away. To the same place as the evildoers, the improperly clothed guest from the parable you heard last week. Away from the owner’s presence.
Sisters and brothers, this story is about you and I. We are all waiting for Jesus’ second coming. But this story is not about the parousia. It’s not about Jesus’ second coming. It’s about how we are to live as we wait. We are all people of the “already” and the “not yet.” We all live in the tension of the time between Jesus’ first coming and his second. Between the in-breaking of God’s reign into our world and the fullness of time, when God alone will rule over this earth. When all evil will be destroyed.
This story is about how you and I are to live in this in-between time. As Jesus people. A Jesus who was rejected and crucified for us. Who was resurrected for us. Unlike the owner in the parable, Jesus promises to be with us. To walk beside us. Because, you see, God has taken a huge risk with us. God has poured out God’s grace on us in abundance. So, while we are waiting. While we are living in the tension of the already/not, we are to be trustworthy with that grace. Not to be people of comfort and complacency. But to be risk-takers like the first two servants. Risk-takers with God’s abundant grace.
“For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it.”
Are you ready to risk?
Preached March 31, 2019, at Grace & Glory Lutheran Church, Goshen, KY.
Fourth Sunday in Lent
Readings: Matthew 25:14-30, Psalm 43:3-4
