For
Sunday, July 19, 2020, Genesis
28:10-19a, Psalm 139:1-11, 22-23; Romans 8:12-25, Matthew
13:24-30, 36-43
Lord,
you have searched me out and known me; you know my sitting down and my rising
up; you discern my thoughts from afar. You trace my journeys and my
resting-places and are acquainted with all my ways...Look well whether there be
any wickedness in me and lead me in the way that is everlasting. [Psalm
139:1-2, 23]
When
we cry, "Abba! Father!" is that very Spirit bearing witness with our
spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then...heirs of God and
joint heirs with Christ...But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it
with patience." [Romans
8:15b-17a, 25]
[Jesus]
answered, "The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man; the field is
the world, and the good seed are the children of the kingdom; the weeds are the
children of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil; the
harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels...The Son of Man
will send his angels, and they will collect...all causes of sin and all
evildoers, and...throw them into the furnace...Then the righteous will shine
like the sun in the kingdom of their Father. [Matthew
13:37-42a, 43a]
"Pogo" was a daily American newspaper comic strip by Walt
Kelly that ran from 1948 to 1975. Set in the Okefenokee Swamp in the deep
south, it used animal characters that portrayed human characteristics, and
often mixed comedy with social and political satire. On the second Earth Day,
in 1971, Pogo the possum is trudging through the swamp with his friend,
Porkypine. In this two panel rendering, the characters bemoan the state of the
swamp with the overwhelming amount of rubbish that has been dumped in it, and
Pogo utters a now iconic phrase that captures us all too well still today: We
have met the enemy, and he is us.
We are often, and in
many ways, our own worst enemies. Jacob is frequently a victim of his own
schemes (learned at his mother's knee) as he, in this case, has run away from
his understandably angry twin Esau, and will never see his mother again.
The verses of Psalm 139 in this reading
are the comforting ones that we use in Liturgy. See verses 18-21 for those days
when a harsh look at our sometimes unkindly selves and a cathartic venting feels
necessary!
Paul speaks to our inward groaning and
mortal struggles to avoid the deeds of the body as he exhorts
us to hope for what we do not see and wait for it with
patience.
But it is this parable of Jesus, often known as the wheat and the
tares [noxious weeds that
resemble the wheat sprouts], that offers us a
lesson in prudent personal agronomy. It takes an experienced farmer/gardener to
know the difference between seedlings that grow into the desired plants and
those that produce invasive, destructive weeds. The Master of this field wisely
leaves well enough alone, as at maturity, the reapers will have no difficulty in
distinguishing the wheat from the weeds, knowing which to save and which to burn.
While the Master of this story blames
an enemy for the deliberate seeding of tares in his field, we
can look to ourselves for the crop of noxious weeds we produce. One grows each time we
point a finger in hate, however self-righteous and correct we think we are. Another shoots up each time we judge and belittle those we believe to be the enemy of our
personal agenda (even if they are). The next grows tall every time we decide who is an undesirable and useless plant
growing where it isn't wanted. And half-an acre rises up especially when we believe we know who
God will - or should - burn. It is so easy to sow another seed of soul-destroying rubbish in
our own spiritual ground, reducing it to an unholy swamp.
The message is pretty clear, and
always difficult: it's not our job to reap the harvest and separate the weeds
from the wheat. We are called to be the good seeds, the children of the kingdom,
to be fruitful and nourish the fields of the Lord. In growing strong in Christ
together, we will crowd out temptation, resist and lessen the impact of the
noxious weeds in God's Creation. The true and fertile seeds of the Spirit are
ready to sprout. God is the true and only judge of the hearts of others.
Jesus came to save the fallen, not just the faithful. Let us not be the enemy. Only God is the One to un-tare the wheat.
LET US, GOD’S PEOPLE, PRAY
Leader: ~ Abba! God! You have traced our journeys from the womb and know well our hearts and thoughts. Keep us in the Spirit of Hope to labor with patience in Your fields, and away from the causes of sin.
O Lord of All
RESPONSE: You are in this place
~ Abba! God! Impel the hearts and souls of all who govern our World, our Country, and our Community to tear out the choking tendrils of deadly contagion, injustice, and greed to save the lives of all Your people. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O Lord of All
You are in this place
~ Abba! God! Relieve the pain and despair from those who suffer with illness, injury, or addiction, and sustain the strength of those who give support. We now join our hearts together to pray for those in need… add your own petitions
O Lord of All
You are in this place
~ Abba! God! We lift up and release those we love into Your joyous welcome, to shine like the sun in Your Eternal Kingdom. We pray especially for… add your own petitions
O Lord of All
You are in this place
~ Abba! God! We pause in this moment to offer You our other heartfelt thanksgivings, intercessions, petitions, and memorials… add your own petitions
O Lord of All
You are in this place
~ Abba! God! We commend to You, with gratitude, those who have committed their lives to us in Your service. Bless, inspire, and uphold them as they work with us in Your Creation to guide us always toward You. We pray especially for: add your own petitions
O Lord of All
You are in this place
The Celebrant adds: O God of Promise and Glory, sow in us a longing to take the wings of each morning to search and know our own hearts, to clear away the weeds of sin and doubt, and to prosper our spiritual ground as the Beth-El we each are called to be. We ask through Jesus, our Strength and our Redeemer, and the Holy Spirit, our Wisdom and Comfort, who together with You reign as One God, now and forever. Amen.
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