Grace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
On Monday night, in Lubbock, Texas, a 19-year-old Texas Tech student named Hollis Alvin James Reid Daniels, III was arrested by campus police because they found illegal substances and drug paraphernalia in his dorm room. While they were processing him at the police station this young man (who was not handcuffed) pulled out a gun and shot and killed the police officer who was with him. The gun was somehow missed when he was arrested. He fled the station which led to Texas Tech being locked down until he was recaptured later that night. He has been charged with Capital Murder of a Peace Officer and bail has been set at 5 million dollars. This was national news, some of you may have seen or heard it.
This young man, Hollis, is from Seguin, Texas. That city name might sound somewhat familiar to you because that is the town where I lived and served as youth minister prior to attending seminary. Hollis went by one of his middle names, Reid, and he was a member of my youth group. I’ve known him since he was 12-years-old.
It is heartbreaking and devastating to know that the sweet, goofy youth that I knew and who I watched grow into a caring, hardworking, young man, made such poor life choices, that this is now reality.
It was equally as heartbreaking to watch how corporate media painted the picture of Reid and his family; and how people on social media, who don’t know he or his parents, were quick to condemn and judge. Some of what people had to say was just cruel and ugly.
It made me realize how many times in the past, when events like this have occurred, I have been quick to condemn and judge and be cruel and ugly.
But the thing is, Reid, although a horrible sinner who made a devastating choice with hugely expansive and overarching consequences for many, many, many people, is still someone’s son. He is still a brother. He is still an uncle. He is still a friend to many. He is still the goofy, sweet, hardworking, caring person young man I knew. The paradox of his identities makes for a very fuzzy and blurred overall picture. And we in modern America, don’t like blurred lines. We want sharp definition. Black or white. No grey. Good or bad. Not both.
Which is why I think many modern Christian traditions are often drawn to this morning’s Gospel. They like what comes across as hierarchy and justice. They like the perceived judgement and condemnation.
In it, Jesus tells a parable. In the parable there is a king whose son is getting married. He invites all of his friends and colleagues to the wedding banquet. He does this as convention at the time dictated – first with a formal invitation that one would accept or decline (almost a save-the-date, if you will) and then reminds them with a personal summons the day of the event.
For some reason, the guests who formerly accepted, do not come. The King even tries enticing them with descriptions of slaughtered oxen and fatted calves. Because we all know people show up for barbeque!
This still doesn’t work. In fact, some of the invitees go away – one goes on a business trip, another to his farm, and the rest – well they just seize, mistreat, and kill the slaves delivering the message. Because that’s a rational and normal response to a wedding invitation!
The king is furious (obviously!) and destroys those who slighted him. He burns their city to ground. Then he tells some of his slaves – we’ve got to have guests, clearly those I just smote were not worthy – so go out and find me some people! The slaves go out into the streets and gather everyone they can find, both good and bad and fill the wedding hall.
When the king arrives he notices one guest who is not dressed appropriately. He is not wearing a wedding robe – the king asks how he got in??? When the guest does not answer – he has him bound and thrown out.
Upon first review, it seems pretty harsh, at least for those who offend the king. Often this is interpreted that those people who reject God and/or do bad things in the world are the ones who get destroyed or thrown out of the banquet. It fits into modern societies need for vengeance, justice, judgement, and absolutes.
The only problem, is that this, like all parables, is not meant to be taken literally. It’s allegory. Matthew had a strict Jewish piety and therefore minimalized the use of the word “God” and instead chooses “King” which was a common metaphor for God. The wedding was also a common metaphor for God and God’s relationship with Israel. This is meant to tell the tale of salvation history.
So, the king represents God. The original guests are the Kingdom of Israel, God’s chosen people. Whom God sent prophets and messengers to, informing them that the Messiah was coming. Yet many of them still rejected him and killed him when he arrived. The son who is getting married represents Jesus. The wedding is his act of salvation on behalf of the world. The guests who are gathered from the streets are Jews and Gentiles alike. Good people and bad people.
And the wedding clothes that they wear – is the cloak of love, grace, forgiveness, mercy and salvation that we receive when we are baptized into the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Sharon Ringe states that: “The final invitation that will fill the banquet hall is inclusive in the extreme. In that sense it mirrors other instances of Jesus’ table community that embodied the hospitality and inclusiveness of the divine project or empire he proclaimed. Questions of social status or observance of Torah regulations, or even ones ethical behavior are set aside in favor of the urgency of the host’s plan.”
Erick Thompson states that: “Our culture resonates deeply with Christopher Nolan’s Batman when he says, “it’s what we do that defines us.” For many of us our world creates jobs and family situations where our performance is deeply tied to our sense of worth. Many people in our culture want to be the best employees or best parents because that will dictate whether or not they are okay… For many people, we know that we are okay, that we are justified, because we have fought the good fight, done our duty, been a good person, etc. In the parable, the king responds by turning our systems on their head. By sending out his troops to destroy the people and their ‘city,’ the king is destroying our human notions that what we have done and built has value when it comes to the wedding banquet, the kingdom of heaven. Instead, the king invites everyone in the main streets: the good and the bad, the non-elite. No longer are we worried about the elite, the wealthy, or those who control society. Instead God is declaring [God’s] preference for the marginalized. This might be like hearing that one’s workplace is giving bonuses to everyone; even the bad employees, or even employees who have been fired… If we remember that God’s grace is what saves us, we won’t worry about how we are clothed, or who else God has decided to include in the Wedding Banquet. There is no room for piety or first-rate Christians in the kingdom of heaven. There is only room for those whom God has chosen.”
We are really good at creating hierarchy and structures of moral superiority. We are really good at passing judgments. At criticizing others. Of telling ourselves that our sin is lesser or that we are better people because – well – it’s not like we’ve killed anyone.
I know I have done my fair share of making assumptions and forming opinions based on media stories or perceptions. I’m sure we all have.
We want that role of first-rate Christian. We want to condemn and cast aside the Reid’s of the world. In this parable we are being told that we can condemn and cast aside all we want, but God will not do this. No sin is greater than another, and in baptism, we all receive an invitation to the wedding banquet. The good and the bad. God doesn’t care how great we are or how much we fail. There is plenty of room for everyone. God has chosen all of us. Me. You. The highly successful. The abysmal failures. The criminals. The socialites. The rejects. The scholars. The middle-of-the-roaders. Everyone has a place.
This is the comfort and security that I have clung to this week. Earthly consequences are appropriate and necessary for Reid, but that doesn’t negate God’s love for him. He will always have a place at the banquet table. He will always be clothed in Jesus’ grace, mercy, and forgiveness. We all will. Every last one of us. Thanks be to God this. Amen.
5 years ago – in the Spring of 2012 – I received a telephone call from one of my youth minister friends. She was a graduate student and part-time youth minister at a small congregation in my synod. Her congregation was located in a neighborhood that had once been affluent but was not any longer. She had done a lot of amazing ministry with the local neighborhood youth who as I’m sure you can imagine, did not fit the typical membership demographic of this small, traditional, German Lutheran Church. These youths had never experienced traditional liturgical worship. They had never engaged in the standard pew aerobics that we take as common and normal. (You know – stand, sit, kneel, repeat.) They didn’t know what was considered appropriate or not. My friend would often sit with them and help coach them through worship. This was going very well, until one Sunday she was asked to play guitar for worship.
then we really have to mean that! We can’t just say all who look, act, behave, and function like us are welcome. And when new people enter our community, part of what it means to welcome them, is to help guide them. And to incorporate in their what they bring to the table. Even for longtime Lutherans, entering a new community invokes some anxiety. No congregation does things the same… there’s always a learning curve to try to figure out how worship functions, how communion is served, where you go after worship is over, etc… This is exacerbated by about a million for non-Lutherans.
As Jesus is giving these instructions to the disciples it is highly likely that he was trying to give them guidance for how to proceed in the future when they are more active leaders. Not only with those whom they are helping to guide, but also amongst one another. We know that Peter, James, Paul, and many of the other early church leaders, did not always get along, and did NOT always follow Jesus’ Conflict Resolution Plan.
Basically, Jesus is saying – no passive-aggressive behavior, no triangulation, no “parking- lot” conversations, no gossip. Just forthright communication. It’s much easier to complain to others about our perceived offense than to address it with the offending party. Elizabeth Johnson stated that: “Jesus leaves no room for self-absorbed grudge-nursing. Restoring a broken relationship must begin with conversation between the parties concerned.”
Unfortunately for my friend – concern for other did not prevail. Shortly thereafter she decided to focus on her studies and I suspect the relationship with those youth diminished. Jesus knows this is a possibility and continues with saying that anything that is agreed upon by two on earth will be done for them by the Father in heaven. This is a promise. He finally ends with: “Where two or three are gathered in my name I AM there among you.” I AM – God. Jesus. The Trinity is among you. Present. Really present. Not just where two or three are gathered and getting along. Not where two or three are gathered and in complete agreement on doctrine, liturgy, and mission. Just, where two or three are gathered.
disciples and other followers of Jesus had defiled their food therefore defiling their inner selves by consuming said tainted food. Jesus’ response to this accusation – “well that’s just crazy talk!” “Listen – and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but it is what comes out of the mouth that defiles.” He’s then pressed to explain himself further, because the disciples are often dense, literal, and slow to pick-up on things, and most likely think when he says it’s what comes out of the mouth that defiles, that Jesus is speaking to some gross bodily function. So, he further explains – “Whatever goes into the mouth enters the stomach, and goes out into the sewer.” (Because – we haven’t had enough bodily function imagery already in this text. Lovely. Thanks Jesus!) He then goes on to say – what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and that’s what defiles. We can externally put up a great front. Amazing projections of ourselves. Look at me – I’m pious, I’m pure, I’m a dedicated servant. I’m a good person. It’s easy to fake the world into believing these things.
same story, she is identified as a Syro-Phoenician. During the time that Matthew was writing his Gospel, Canaanites were no longer a functioning independent civilization. The term “Canaanite” was basically just a dirty word, or ethnic slur, meaning Gentile. This word choice would have invoked a visceral emotional reaction similar to what we experience when we hear ethnic or racial slurs today. Only that audience would have most likely used, accepted, and agreed with said slur.
her away. Shut her up! So, in an attempt to do just this, he tells her he only came to save the house of Israel. She still will not be deterred… She was warned. She was given an explanation. Nevertheless she persisted. Jesus’ next argument is that it is not fair to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.
Good morning. I guess I really don’t have to introduce myself too much to you because I’m pretty sure my mother has been waxing poetic about me and my mad clergy skills for the past several months. If for some reason you somehow missed all of the hype and lead-up to my coming… I’m Ariel Williams, Cherie’s daughter. I’m a seminarian in my final stage of the candidacy process – and I’m a Lutheran. I was briefly Episcopalian for a few years in Texas, but it didn’t stick. As my priest at the time told me, Lutherans are Lutheran because of their theology. Episcopalians are Episcopalian because of their liturgy. You’re such a Lutheran, Ariel. I’ll never convert you.” So, thank you for inviting my Lutheran self here to worship with you all and for giving me this opportunity to share God’s Word. I am blessed and I’m honored.
straddles the line between Generation X and the Millennial Generation so I’ve never really felt like I fit one description or the other… I have characteristics of both. This past week several articles appeared in my facebook feed that addressed this and there is new claim that this is actually a Micro Generation, the Xennial Generation, which encompasses those like myself who straddle that line.
Next came Generation X which is also sometimes called the Baby Bust. This generation was born between 1965 and somewhere around 1977-1980 (the end time is not super clear). These are the “latch-key kids” who grew up street-smart but isolated, often with divorced or career-driven parents. They are known for being entrepreneurial and very individualistic. Government and big business mean little to them. They want to save the neighborhood, not the world. This is also the generation that is often associated with having a chip on their shoulder – they claim to be misunderstood, and are known for their rampant cynicism. This group was raised in the transitional phase of written based knowledge to digital knowledge – most remember being in school without computers but had them introduced in middle school or high school. This generation averages 7 career changes in their lifetime, unlike previous generations who had few if any. They were later to marry, often after cohabitation, and quick to divorce. Single parenthood rose significantly with this generation.
out to one another “We played flute for you, and you didn’t dance…. Well, we wailed and you didn’t morn.” Because at that point in time children often played wedding and funeral games. The metaphorical children who wanted to play wedding played the flute but the others didn’t engage… the metaphorical children who wanted to play funeral wailed, but the others didn’t engage. Because they all wanted to do things their way. They wanted to play by their rules. They wanted to be in charge… any of that sound familiar???
The problem with this lack of regard for one another is that we will never coexist with one another well if we don’t grow in our appreciation and acceptance for each another. To be the body of Christ in the world means that we are called to engage as a collective unit – a colony of bees if you will – all working toward the common goal of spreading the love, forgiveness, grace, and mercy of Jesus Christ. There is no one generation that knows how to do this better than another. To reach the world we must work together. One person alone cannot bring about the inbreaking of God’s kingdom. It takes ALL of us.
Jesus tells the disciples that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him. “Therefore – GO and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the father and the son and the holy spirit.
Graduation season is upon us… my Facebook feed is inundated with photos of friends, classmates, acquaintances, even a few complete strangers… all smiling in caps and gowns celebrating their accomplishment of completing one level of education or another. Preschoolers, Kindergartners, 5th graders exiting Elementary School, interestingly enough – no Middle School graduations have shown up for my viewing pleasure… apparently, that’s not a big thing. And of course – High School & College graduations are all over the place.
Jesus knows what all of his disciples will need in the future. He knows what is coming for future generations. He knows that several thousand years into the future communities of people will still struggle with issues of identity, fear, stigma, and isolation. Jesus knows that there will be a world full of people who present their “representatives” to the world around them giving off the image of having it all together, when they are really frightened and unsure underneath the disguise.
The chorus of the song is – “I would walk 500 miles and I would walk 500 more, just to be the man who walked 1000 miles to fall down at your door.” Although this chorus certainly gives a lot to think about as far as the emotions and dedication Jesus’ followers may or may not have had at this exact point. The imagery of walking for miles and miles in the song and the imagery of walking on the Road to Emmaus is NOT why this song makes me think of this morning’s text. You thought you knew where I was going with this didn’t you?
Robert Hoch wrote: “It was a seven-mile walk, a walk you would notice in your ankles and calves. But the real path they were walking was vastly longer and more difficult – it was the walk of hopes in shambles. It was the walk taken through the valley of disillusionment. It was a walk burdened with perhaps accusation or shame.”
In a moment of uncharacteristic restraint I did not say this, instead, my response was, “Dude, I’m a Lutheran.”
During my summer Clinical Pastoral Experience, also known as CPE, we were taught not to answer questions for people, but instead have them answer them for themselves. “What do you think?” “How does that make you feel?” Help others discover answers for themselves rather than just feed it to them.
The relationship shatters, and we have to pick up our portion of the broken pieces and try to put them together in some sort of new semblance of life that will never be quite as shiny or quite as pretty, or quite as perfect as it was before the fracture.
