Therefore hear the parable of the sower

 "Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."

- Matthew 13:18-23

In Tuesday's reading, Jesus taught the crowds the parable of the Sower.  See He who has ears to hear, let him hear!   Yesterday, we read that the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"  He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.  For whosoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.  And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:  'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull.  Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.'  But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."

"Therefore hear the parable of the sower:  When anyone hears the word of the kingdom, and does not understand it, then the wicked one comes and snatches away what was sown in his heart.  This is he who received seed by the wayside.  But he who received the seed on stony places, this is he who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy; yet he has no root in himself, but endures only for a while.  For when tribulation or persecution arises because of the word, immediately he stumbles.  Now he who received seed among the thorns is he who hears the word, and the cares of this world and the deceitfulness of riches choke the word, and he becomes unfruitful.  But he who received seed on the good ground is he who hears the word and understands it, who indeed bears fruit and produces:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty."  Today's reading is fairly self-explanatory!  Indeed, it's Christ's explanation to His disciples of the parable of the Sower.  But I think if we look carefully, we might find (as I do, anyway) that each of these things Jesus describes are things we may deal with in our own lives.  Do we understand everything that is taught?  Clearly there is always mystery -- even for the disciples.  We may be tempted to receive the word with joy, only to be disappointed when life presents us with troubles.  Tribulation and persecution are difficulties for anyone.  The cares of the world, and "deceitfulness of riches" -- a sore temptation -- are long-term problems that are all too common all around us and in our lives.  But to receive seed on the good ground, to hear the word and understand it, and to bear fruit and produce is to endure and to grow in faith.  In a sense, Jesus seems to promise that all these things will be present, but the good soil of a good heart is one in which the seed can take root and grow.  Are we drawn in by His teachings and His word?  Do we want to listen more?  Do we want to grow in relationship to Him?  All of these things draw us forward.  In my opinion, there is none of us who will not be tempted by the things He names here.  But the key is endurance.  If we really are to understand, to put things together (as the Greek word here for understand literally implies), then through all things we seek Him.  A rootedness is an image that gives us an idea that as we grow outwardly, we also grow inwardly.  The roots of the plant must grow as deep (or deeper) than whatever the plant produces.  So it is with us.  How deep do the roots go?  The inner life gives strength to the outer.  Remember it is the rootedness of the seed that gives life to the whole plant, and nourishment to the fruit for good productivity.  How does His word take root in your heart -- to see you through tribulations and persecutions, when things don't go right, when the deceit of riches may disappoint and the cares of the world drag on in our daily lives?  There is a rootedness on which we depend, a kind of growth in the heart, upon which everything rests, especially our understanding of His word.  Prayer is a key to strengthening our internal roots, to shoring up that relationship, drawing upon His nurturing and strength.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Why do You speak to them in parables?

 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"  He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.  For whosoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand.  And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:

'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand,
And seeing you will see and not perceive;
For the hearts of this people have grown dull.
Their ears are hard of hearing,
And their eyes they have closed,
Lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears,
Lest they should understand with their hearts and turn,
So that I should heal them.'

But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."

- Matthew 13:10-17

In yesterday's reading, we read that on the same day He was spoke (in Monday's reading), Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea.  And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.  Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying:  "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.  Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.  But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

 And the disciples came and said to Him, "Why do You speak to them in parables?"  He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given."  My study bible explains that the mysteries of the kingdom are not just esoteric concepts or some body of religious truth that is only for the elite.  Additionally, an understanding of Jesus' parables isn't simply an intellectual exercise, either.  It says, "Even the disciples find His message hard to understand.  Jesus preached and taught the same message to all; but it is the 'babes,' the simple and innocent who are open to the gospel and have faith to receive this mystery, which is the reality of the Kingdom."

"For whosoever has, to him more will be given, and he will have abundance; but whoever does not have, even what he has will be taken away from him.  Therefore I speak to them in parables, because seeing they do not see, and hearing they do not hear, nor do they understand."  My study bible notes here:  "When one has zeal, he will be given more from God.  But if he does not use what he has, and fails to participate in the life of the Kingdom, God's gifts will be taken away.  This is a hard saying, but true."  I think it points again to our discussion in yesterday's reading, in which Jesus gave us the parable of the Sower.  Jesus wants those who will be pulled in through their own receptivity through what is in their hearts.  The one thing I believe we can liken this to is love, a heart calling to another heart.  This itself is mysterious, and it is connected through the workings of the Father.  This isn't perfect knowledge, it's the calling of love, the drawing in to relationship, communion, participation.

"And in them the prophecy of Isaiah is fulfilled, which says:  'Hearing you will hear and shall not understand, and seeing you will see and not perceive; for the hearts of this people have grown dull.  Their ears are hard of hearing, and their eyes they have closed, lest they should see with their eyes and hear with their ears, lest they should understand with their hearts and turn, so that I should heal them.'"  This quotation from Isaiah begs us to understand what it is to be healed.  To be truly healed is to be in right relationship to God, to be aware and alert, awake to the love and presence of God and participating with it.  It's an explanation for why He will not offer proofs on demand.  (See Saturday's reading, in which He was asked for a sign, and Monday's in which He spoke of a healed person who becomes seven times worse.)  He wants volunteers; love is not something one compels.

"But blessed are your eyes for they see, and your ears for they hear; for assuredly I say to you that many prophets and righteous men desired to see what you see, and did not see it, and to hear what you hear, and did not hear it."  The disciples follow Him because they have a sense of Him.  It's not that they understand Him perfectly -- far from it, the Gospels see to it that we understand that.  They don't even fully understand the parable.  (Jesus will explain its meaning in tomorrow's reading.)  What they understand is a kind of love and trust that compels them to follow Christ.  It is He who leads the way, and whatever it is they possess within themselves, it is that which leads them to follow and compels them forward.  Jesus does not come into the world with an army.  He doesn't come with extreme wealth.  He doesn't have glamour.  What He has is His Person, His authority which is an internal authority of identity and not the trappings of the world.  He has His Person.  It is in the truth of that Person that people find something compelling.  It is the spiritual desire in them that truly responds to the call of His voice in the heart.  The Incarnation is present before them, and these "simple" people, these "little ones" who are not in the power elite or the well-to-do or the most educated, for the most part, are those who are called to Him.  They have eyes to see and ears to hear.  There is a spiritual response deep in the mystery of what it means to be a human being, and it is this love and loyalty that compels them forward.  In this ministry, God is revealed as a lover of all, who does not compel (force) us to love Him, but acts with equal opportunity for all of us.  Our spirits cooperate with His Spirit, and Son and Father are also at work within us.   As Jesus indicates, from this seed grows more.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

 On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea.  And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.  Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying:  "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.  Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.  But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

- Matthew 13:1-9

In yesterday's reading, Jesus was continuing a dialogue from last week's lectionary readings.  The Pharisees have begun to plot against Him, after a confrontation over healing on the Sabbath.   Thursday's reading compared Jesus to Isaiah's Suffering Servant, in light of His response to avoid the Pharisees at that time, to continue His ministry:  Behold!  My Servant whom I have chosen,My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!  On Friday we read that Jesus performed another spectacular healing, and when people wondered if He were the "Son of David," the Pharisees accused Him of casting out demons by the ruler of demons.  Jesus warned of blasphemy against the Holy Spirit, teaching, "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."  In Saturday's reading, He continued, teaching, "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things."  He was then asked for a sign by some of the Pharisees and scribes.  In yesterday's reading, Jesus said,  "When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none.  Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.  So shall it also be with this wicked generation."  While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.  Then one said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You."  But He answered and said to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?"  And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother."

On the same day Jesus went out of the house and sat by the sea.  And great multitudes were gathered together to Him, so that He got into a boat and sat; and the whole multitude stood on the shore.  Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying:  "Behold, a sower went out to sow.  And as he sowed, some seed fell by the wayside; and the birds came and devoured them.  Some fell on stony places, where they did not have much earth; and they immediately sprang up because they had no depth of earth.  But when the sun was up they were scorched, and because they had no root they withered away.  And some fell among thorns, and the thorns sprang up and choked them.  But others fell on good ground and yielded a crop:  some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  My study bible tells us that in the Old Testament, metaphors of sowing and harvesting are common, part of the people's daily lives.  (See Ps. 126:5-6, Is. 55:10-13, Jer. 31:27-34, Hos. 2:21-23, and Joel 3:12-14.)  "In this parable," it notes, "Jesus is revealing Himself as the promised Messiah, the sower on earth."  In tomorrow's reading, He will reveal its meaning to His disciples.

In today's reading, we turn another corner in Jesus' ministry.  It's an important development, this power of telling in parables the truths of the Kingdom, and of His identity.  It's important that we view this story -- as so much of Scripture takes on important meanings within the context in which it's received -- in light of the recent readings and the developments in His ministry.  One thing that is new is the active hostility of the Pharisees (or at least a group of them) to Him.  They make accusations against Him, and demand a sign from Him, a proof of who He is.  But Jesus won't give proofs on demand, and through His ministry there are already many signs of the presence of God, the Spirit at work.  In a sense, Jesus takes the refusal to give proofs to those who accuse one step further by turning to preaching in parables.  The parable of the Sower, we note, is preached on the shore, indicating that there are many, many people in this crowd.  He's speaking, no doubt, to all kinds of people who've heard about Him and are there for all kinds of reasons.  And yet, He speaks even more "distantly," in some sense, to this crowd, as opposed to how He will speak directly to His disciples (in tomorrow's reading).  There's an important and essential reason for that, and it's linked to His refusal to give signs on demand to the authorities who envy Him, and the reason is simply love.  Love is the relationship between persons that is of the heart, and is entirely voluntary.  Jesus wants those "family members"  ("Who is My sister and who are My brothers?") who come on a voluntary basis, in response to the heart, to the openness to His voice.  In John's gospel, Jesus teaches, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me."  In light of this saying, Jesus' frequently repeated phrase (from Isaiah), "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!" takes on a powerful meaning.  And it's all about love.  Love is voluntary and is a relationship from heart to heart.  Jesus speaks what is truly His heart, and He wants those who are truly responsive.  He doesn't want to force proofs on those who may be "swept clean" only to have a seven-times-worse problem in the future (see the example in yesterday's reading).  Faith can't be forced, trust can't be forced, and love can't be forced.  Obedience may be the fruit of love, but love isn't the fruit of a forced obedience, and love comes first.  It's a battle for hearts and minds and souls that is taking place in the Gospel, and that battle can only be won if we understand the nature of love and the true power of God, and the gift of our free will which is a product of that love.  He only wants those who will come to Him through love, and compels no one to love Him.  So let's think about love.  Eyes of love see the beauty of the beloved, and the same is true for the hearer.  So -- he who has ears to hear, let him hear.

Who is My mother and who are My brothers?

 "When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none.  Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.  So shall it also be with this wicked generation."

While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.  Then one said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You."  But He answered and said to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?"  And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother."

- Matthew 12:43-50

In Friday's reading, Jesus taught, "Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."  On Saturday, He continued:  "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."  Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."

"When an unclean spirit goes out of a man, he goes through dry places, seeking rest, and finds none.  Then he says, 'I will return to my house from which I came.'  And when he comes, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order.  Then he goes and takes with him seven other spirits more wicked than himself, and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.  So shall it also be with this wicked generation."  My study bible says, "When, by the mercy of God, the Israelites were delivered out of Egypt, they did not repent of their impure ways, and unclean spirits again took up residence in them (Deut. 31:20, 32:15-18; Ps. 106:34-39).  The same happens here.  Unless there is full-hearted repentance and the Holy Spirit dwells in a person, the expelled demon will return with many others and reoccupy its abode."  In context, Jesus is talking to those who are demanding a sign from Him, a proof -- who fail to recognize all the signs already of His ministry, a sort of willful hard-heartedness that refuses to see.  As we have commented in the earlier readings just prior to this passage, the emphasis is on our own capacity for recognition of the Spirit and the work of the Spirit.  Here Jesus seems to emphasize the importance of our own effort and vigilance to know and love God.  In this context, even a healing, an exorcism, if you will, doesn't retain its effect unless the desire of the person is also present, active, enlivened and seeking a cooperative relationship with the Holy Spirit.  In Jesus' example, the problem, instead, grows worse.

While He was still talking to the multitudes, behold, His mother and brothers stood outside, seeking to speak with Him.  Then one said to Him, "Look, Your mother and Your brothers are standing outside, seeking to speak with You."  But He answered and said to the one who told Him, "Who is My mother and who are My brothers?"  And He stretched out His hand toward His disciples and said, "Here are My mother and My brothers!  For whoever does the will of My Father in heaven is My brother and sister and mother."   My study bible explains, "Jesus' relatives have not yet understood His identity and mission.  He points to a spiritual family based on obedience to the will of My Father.  In Jewish usage 'brother' may also signify a stepbrother or other relative.  Abram called his nephew Lot 'brother' (Gen. 14:14); Boaz spoke of his relative Elimelech as his 'brother' (Ruth 4:3); and Joab called Amasa, his first cousin (2 Sam. 17:25), 'brother' just before he killed him (2 Sam. 20:9)."  In many branches of the Church,  it's held that Jesus had relatives (perhaps extended family, perhaps children of Joseph by an earlier spouse), not blood brothers.  My study bible notes that at the Cross, Jesus commits His mother to the care of His disciple John, which would have been a crime against tradition had she had another child to care for her.  Here, Jesus isn't saying insulting or excluding His relatives.  Rather, He's continuing with the same theme on which He's already speaking.  He's extending His family to include all those who truly seek God, to know God, and in cooperative relationship to do God's will.

Jesus may seem to be making disparate statements here in addressing those who accuse Him of casting out demons by the ruler of the demons (see Friday's reading for the beginning of this speech).  First He speaks of the division of kingdoms and how illogical it is to accuse Him of casting out demons by the power of demons.  Then He alludes to His own power that they fail to recognize, at their peril, because the signs in His ministry mean the kingdom of God is present with them.  He tells them that "He who is not with Me is against Me" and warns against the blasphemy of the Holy Spirit.  He cautions people regarding what they say, that every word demands an account -- and the root of all action and all speech is what is in the heart.  (See Saturday's reading: "A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.")  Therefore He calls them "brood of vipers" who choose to love the malice they're creating and harboring.  As they demand a sign, He becomes more vehement, comparing those who fail to recognize what is already on offer in His ministry unfavorably to those foreigners who have been part of Jewish spiritual history.  These authorities in Scripture (the Pharisees who accuse Him) will be judged by those who did perceive the grace of God, having no culture and no spiritual history to draw upon as these Pharisees do, and He cites the "queen of the South" who recognized the wisdom of Solomon,  and the Ninevites who repented at the preaching of the prophet Jonah.  In today's reading, He compares these willfully malicious men (who seek to plot against Him) to someone healed of evil who fails to actively participate in his own healing, to practice vigilance and love of God -- and so winds up in a worse state than he started.  He's telling them that they're heading down a road of a kind of destruction, and if they don't turn around, where they will find themselves will be worse -- even if He should offer proofs, a sign, a kind of forced healing despite their refusal to recognize what He's doing, and the presence of the work of the Spirit.  But the reading takes us even further, into relationship, when Jesus emphasizes, on the other hand, those who are capable of responding to love with love.  Let's remember that the initial incident that began all this series of dialogue, a kind of turning point in Jesus' ministry, was a healing on the Sabbath.  These Pharisees viewed this as a direct challenge to their authority, and so began to plot against Him at that point.  In this sense, the question of the Pharisees ("Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?") and Jesus' pronouncement of the law in that reading, "Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath," is the challenge that somehow we all take up.  In that earlier reading, Jesus also challenged the authorities by saying, "But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless."  Everything that followed was an expansion of His response to these events, in the worsening relationship between Himself and the authorities who now actively seek to persecute Him.  The power of the Gift that is on offer demands of us to make these choices too.  What will we love?  What do we treasure in our hearts?  Are we capable of responding to the good, to that which asks us to expand beyond our cherished positions?  This challenge can happen any time, any place, anywhere.  But the key is not our perfection.  It is rather our willingness to have a receptive heart to God who is love, who is good, who desires mercy and not sacrifice.  The key is the relationship, in "His family" shaped by the presence of the Spirit, the work of the Kingdom and our capacity to participate in this reality.  It is about a willing heart that makes all the difference.  As so often surprisingly happens, it is what is in our hearts and minds that ties us back to the Father.

A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things

 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You."  But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.  The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."

- Matthew 12:33-42

Yesterday, we read that one was brought to Jesus who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.  Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."

 "Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or else make the tree bad and its fruit bad; for a tree is known by its fruit.  Brood of vipers!  How can you, being evil, speak good things?  For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  A good man out of the good treasure of his heart brings forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure brings forth evil things.  But I say to you that for every idle word men may speak, they will give account of it in the day of judgment.  For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."  As in yesterday's reading, when Jesus spoke of the blasphemy of the Spirit, so in today's reading, Jesus continues regarding such people.  My study bible points out that this is a pronunciation of severe judgment regarding such behavior:  "As the tree is revealed by its fruit, a human being is known by his works.  He will do according to the kind of person he is.  The blasphemers are a brood of vipers because of their evil works and malice.  Their heritage is of no value to them; they bear no fruit appropriate to a chosen people."  In this sense, they are a brood or children of vipers -- suggesting that we reap from what we choose to love, to place first in our lives.  A viper can also be a symbolic image of a demon, of evil.  My study bible also has extensive notes on the biblical use of "heart" here in Jesus' statement:  "The heart in Scripture refers to the center of consciousness, the seat of the intellect and the will, the source from which the whole of spiritual life proceeds.  When grace permeates the heart, it masters the body and guides all actions and thoughts.  When malice and evil capture the heart, a person becomes full of darkness and spiritual confusion."

Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, "Teacher, we want to see a sign from You." But He answered and said to them, "An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.  For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth."  My study bible points out that this demand also reflects the "evil in the heart" Jesus was just speaking about:  "After so many miracles, they now ask Jesus for such a sign?  But Jesus will not cater to their hard-heartedness.  His sign will be His Passion and Resurrection from the dead. . ."  In icons of the Eastern Church, Christ descends even to those in Sheol and lifts Adam and Eve with Him.

"The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here.  The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here."  Again, the theme rests on the blasphemy against the works of the Spirit done through Him.  It is hard-heartedness that fails to recognize this, a willful way of not seeing, a refusal of the grace in their midst.  My study bible points out that the words adulterous generation echo the analogy of the prophets for the infidelity of Israel:  see these passages found in Jeremiah and Hosea.  Jesus compares the present generation with those outsiders, who, while not blessed with the knowledge of the spiritual history of Israel, recognized God's presence -- or the work of the Spirit -- in the preaching of Jonah and the wisdom of Solomon.

Jesus constantly seems to emphasize the importance of spiritual eyes and ears, the capacity to discern in the heart the work of grace, of God.  How do we know what is good, and what is not?  It seems to me that one of the purposes of prayer, of cultivating a relationship with God, is so that we are able better to discern.  We may not all be entirely sensitive to the promptings of the Spirit, but the Gospels suggest to us emphatically that we are not only capable of recognizing the good around us, the work of God or grace in our lives, but that our very souls depend on it.  This responsibility isn't just one that will help us, or even simply make us better persons (although it will do both), it's a kind of key to the entrance of the Kingdom itself.  Our eternal lives depend upon it.  It's the way in which we come to be citizens in this Kingdom.  Jesus very carefully gives instances where it is foreigners, outsiders, who are the ones capable of discerning the work of God in their midst -- in the warnings of the prophets (such as Jonah, who incidentally also was from a town in Galilee near to Nazareth), and in the wisdom of Solomon which was a gift from God.  The Spirit was present and working in the prophecy of Jonah and the wisdom or discernment of Solomon, but these gifts -- like all grace -- needed to be received by others as well, and the people of Ninevah and the queen of Sheba (queen of the South) were capable of that themselves.  These examples give us pause, because they force us to ask ourselves about ourselves and to take these stories out of the past, out of a spiritual history, and to recognize that they are told so that we, too, understand our capabilities and our responsibility.  The situation is just as urgent and necessary now, in the midst of our extremely busy lives and with so many messages that proliferate our minds in a constant barrage of images.  How do you find that connection that tells you true?  Where is the central place of the heart that helps you to discern?  "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you," He taught in the Sermon on the Mount, earlier in Matthew's Gospel.  Let us follow Solomon, and Sheba, and Jonah and the people of Ninevah, and remember what is really worth asking for.  What we really treasure in our heart makes all the difference.

Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come

 Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad.  Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."

- Matthew 12:22-32

Yesterday, we read what happened after some Pharisees had begun to plot against Jesus.   When Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.  Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "Behold!  My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!  I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.  He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets. A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust."

  Then one was brought to Him who was demon-possessed, blind and mute; and He healed him, so that the blind and mute man both spoke and saw.  And all the multitudes were amazed and said, "Could this be the Son of David?"  Healing the blind and mute are signs of the Messiah, messianic acts.  The crowd understands this, and so begins to wonder if Jesus could be "the Son of David."

Now when the Pharisees heard it they said, "This fellow does not cast out demons except by Beelzebub, the ruler of the demons."  But Jesus knew their thoughts, and said to them:  "Every kingdom divided against itself is brought to desolation, and every city or house divided against itself will not stand.  If Satan casts out Satan, he is divided against himself.  How then will his kingdom stand?  And if I cast out demons by Beelzebub, by whom do your sons cast them out?  Therefore they shall be your judges.  But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, surely the kingdom of God has come upon you.  Or how can one enter a strong man's house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man?  And then he will plunder his house.  He who is not with Me is against Me, and he who does not gather with Me scatters abroad."  My study bible points out here that the Pharisees are filled with envy and pride. They find in this miracle a pretext to attack Jesus, accusing Him of having Beelzebub as the source of His power.  "Beelzebub/Ball," it notes, "was the prince perhaps of 'the dung heap' or 'the flies' -- a god worshiped by the Philistines (2 Kings 1:2-16), here he is called ruler of the demons.  Demons do not fight against themselves, but are cast out by God's power through the Holy Spirit, whose action signals the present reality of the Kingdom."

"Therefore I say to you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven men.  Anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven him, either in this age or in the age to come."  My study bible tells us, "Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is blasphemy against the divine activity of the Spirit - the accusation that Jesus healed the demoniac by demonic power rather than by the power of the Holy Spirit (see Mark 3:29-30).  Every sin against the Son of Man can be forgiven, because the Jews do not yet know much about Him.  But blasphemy against the Spirit, whose divine activity they know from the Old Testament, will not be forgiven.  This blasphemy is willful hardness of heart.  It attributes the saving action of the Spirit to Satan and refuses to accept God's forgiveness and mercy."

Once again, Jesus as Son of Man defers to God -- this time in the Person of God the Spirit.  It is the Spirit that will be the judge, that creates judgment, in the sense that those who blaspheme the work of the Spirit are judged.  This tells us something important and essential about the nature of God and the nature of the Spirit.  Not only do these people, as my study bible points out, fully understand the work of the Spirit as they are experts on Scripture already and the spiritual history of Israel, but it is clear from this passage that human beings are capable of receiving an understanding about this work.  The common people wonder, "Could this be the Son of David?"  They at least pay attention to the effects of this ministry, and begin to ask themselves what it means.  But the leadership, jealous for their places, are not doing this.  Instead they continue to merely advance their own authoritative places, and they simply feel a threat from Christ.  They claim to work for God themselves, but they fail to honor the work of God through Jesus' ministry.  It's an important reminder of another teaching of Jesus that "whoever is not against us is for us."   There is a kind of hidden theme within a theme here; even the demons work together.  Who are they therefore working for, who deny the Spirit's presence in this healing?  It comes down to a stark choice, here in today's reading.  The Pharisees are either going to open up their eyes and ears and really look and accept what is happening, or they are going to be fighting something much bigger than they understand.  Jesus compares the "Son of Man" to the Spirit, and even the Son of Man comes short of what it is these men are blaspheming.  As Jesus' ministry continues, the inevitable conflict occurs because of their rejection of the Kingdom that has come near, the work of the Spirit.  And this is what the conflict is all about.  It's not about the Son of Man, but about humility before God, deference to the work of God in the world, to the presence of the Spirit.  It's a mistake to see this conflict in terms of human beings, some believing one thing and others believing another.  That is the point of view of these men who cannot give up their authority to recognize God in their midst, even the actions of the Holy Spirit at work.  The real point of view here, if they should truly be healed by the presence of the Spirit, eyes and ears open, is to wake up to the spiritual work of God.  This is the God who lives, who is.  It is the work of the Spirit that is still moving among us, that is always present, that moves and works in our world, that comes when we call.  The important thing, if we really want to be healed, is to be aware of this spiritual reality and what it asks of us -- especially in how it asks us to grow and to stretch, to open our eyes and ears, and to quit taking the easy way out and defending what should not be defended.  I find that the process of growing in faith asks of me this kind of stretching and growth, to open up my eyes and ears, to heal what needs healing in humility before God.  When we lose that living connection, when we forget that the Spirit is present now to us, in a moment of prayer, then we lose the thread, the real meaning and power behind the Son of Man.  We've been given this tremendous gift.  Let us not refuse it.  Let us not refuse to acknowledge what's on offer because it takes us out of what we think we know. 

Behold! My Servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!

 But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.  Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:

"Behold!  My Servant whom I have chosen,
My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!
I will put My Spirit upon Him,
And He will declare justice to the Gentiles.
He will not quarrel nor cry out,
Nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.
A bruised reed He will not break,
And smoking flax He will not quench,
Till He sends forth justice to victory;
And in His name Gentiles will trust."

- Matthew 12:15-21

Yesterday, we read that Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath.  And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.  And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"  But He said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?  Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless?  Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple.  But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless.  For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."  Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue.  And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand.  And they asked Him, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" -- that they might accuse Him.  Then He said to them, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out?  Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep?  Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."  Then He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.

But when Jesus knew it, He withdrew from there.  And great multitudes followed Him, and He healed them all.  Yet He warned them not to make Him known, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "Behold!  My servant whom I have chosen, My Beloved in whom My soul is well pleased!  I will put My Spirit upon Him, and He will declare justice to the Gentiles.  He will not quarrel nor cry out, nor will anyone hear His voice in the streets.  A bruised reed He will not break, and smoking flax He will not quench, till He sends forth justice to victory; and in His name Gentiles will trust."   My study bible explains here that "Jesus' refusal to fully disclose His identity as Messiah is foreseen by Isaiah.  The reasons for secrecy include:  (1) the growing hostility of the Jewish leaders, (2) the people's misunderstanding of messiahship as political and earthly, and (3) Jesus' desire to evoke the response of faith -- He wants people to discover His identity for themselves.  The Servant of God ("My Servant whom I have chosen")  refers both to the Messiah and to all God's elect.  Jesus also fulfills another prophecy of Isaiah, that of the Suffering Servant (see Is. 52:13-53:12).  The mission to the Gentiles after Pentecost is also foreseen."  The passages Jesus quotes from in today's reading are Isaiah 42:1-4 and 49:3.

Jesus not only understand His own identity, but that identity is fulfilled and manifested in the ways in which He leads His mission.  He is prudent; He does what is necessary.  He deals wisely with the leadership and does not take up direct challenges until it is time to do so -- in the meantime He sends out His message, His gospel, to as many as He is required to do so.  I think my study bible's important note:  "He wants people to discover His identity for themselves" is something we have to pay attention to.  Because the concept of Messiah is fraught with so many expectations and understandings, and He is to be something quite different from what is expected (i.e. neither political nor earthly in terms of how He wields power), it's essential to get His message across properly.  His message is Himself, and He Himself reveals the Father ("Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father" - John 14:9).  His wisdom and prudence is precisely in the way in which He wages His campaign of ministry, so to speak -- how He chooses to go about spreading His gospel.  We are reminded, in the words from Isaiah, of Jesus' own teaching to His disciples as He sent them out on their first mission just recently in these Gospel readings:  they are to be "wise as serpents and gentle as doves."  So Jesus gives the example, and the words from Isaiah confirm this character of the Messiah, the Expected One, the Servant of God.  Jesus, as the words from Isaiah teach us, will accomplish His mission without fight, nor even the fanfare that accompanies a great conflagration or disturbance, but by practicing what He has taught His disciples to be like as they themselves were sent out.  He is not a lordly commander of an army, but one who is gentle and lowly in heart, who gives rest to the weary souls, and whose yoke is easy and His burden is light.  The campaign He wages isn't an earthly one of material power, but one that is fought for hearts and minds and souls, and that requires something quite different indeed.  Let us recall to ourselves His wisdom and His love, His trueness of purpose, and also how He teaches by example.  Everything will be accomplished in the way in which it must be, before His final confrontation, and in the surprising ways that are God's ways (of which Isaiah also speaks).  Let us remember His prudence, and all that was accomplished as indicated by Isaiah in today's quotation, when we have difficult challenges set before us.  Let us call upon His guidance in prayer so that we, too, may be like Him.  We may call on His power and strength and wisdom to be wise as serpents and gentle as doves -- and to speak with the voice the Spirit teaches when it is time for us to do so. 

I desire mercy and not sacrifice

 At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath.  And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.  And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"  But He said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?  Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless?  Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple.  But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless.  For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."

Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue.  And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand.  And they asked Him, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" -- that they might accuse Him.  Then He said to them, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out?  Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep?  Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."  Then He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.

- Matthew 12:1-14

Yesterday, Jesus finished His talk to the crowds regarding John the Baptist, who is in prison.  Two of John's disciples had come to Him, asking, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  For the earlier parts of Jesus' response, see From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force and Wisdom is justified by her children, In yesterday's reading, Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath.  And His disciples were hungry, and began to pluck heads of grain and to eat.  And when the Pharisees saw it, they said to Him, "Look, Your disciples are doing what is not lawful to do on the Sabbath!"  But He said to them, "Have you not read what David did when he was hungry, he and those who were with him:  how he entered the house of God and ate the showbread which was not lawful for him to eat, nor for those who were with him, but only for the priests?  Or have you not read in the law that on the Sabbath the priests in the temple profane the Sabbath, and are blameless?"  My study bible points out that the Pharisees are rigid in their legalism:  the plucking of a few ears in a neighbor's field is permitted by Law (Deut. 23:25), but they consider it 'reaping' and unlawful work on the Sabbath.  Perhaps it's very significant that Jesus has just finished teaching the crowds that the criticism of both He and John the Baptist is extreme and unwarranted (see Wisdom is justified by her children), because this is a type of accusation that is unnecessary in an appropriate application of the law.  As a response, Jesus points out Old Testament precedents of blameless violations of the Sabbath rule (Lev. 24:5-9; Num. 28:9-10; 1 Sam. 21:1-6).  My study bible says, "Jesus demonstrates the law is not absolute over human need or service to God.  The showbread suggests the Bread from heaven which is set upon holy tables of the house of God, the Church."

"Yet I say to you that in this place there is One greater than the temple.  But if you had known what this means, 'I desire mercy and not sacrifice,' you would not have condemned the guiltless.  For the Son of Man is Lord even of the Sabbath."  My study bible tells us, "Jesus is Lord even of the Sabbath, thus Lord of all days including the Lord's Day, and the Author of the Law itself.  He gives precedence to mercy rather than ritualistic observance."  The quotation is from Hosea.  Generally speaking, Jesus tells them that their priorities are wrong; their expertise is not applied correctly, and hence their judgment is false.

Now when He had departed from there, He went into their synagogue.  And behold, there was a man who had a withered hand.  And they asked Him, saying, "Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath?" -- that they might accuse Him.  Then He said to them, "What man is there among you who has one sheep, and if it falls into a pit on the Sabbath, will not lay hold of it and lift it out?  Of how much more value then is a man than a sheep?  Therefore it is lawful to do good on the Sabbath."  Then He said to the man, "Stretch out your hand."  And he stretched it out, and it was restored as whole as the other.  Then the Pharisees went out and plotted against Him, how they might destroy Him.  My study bible explains that rabbis permitted healing on the Sabbath only if a person's life was in danger.  But Jesus goes further.  The man with a withered hand isn't in critical condition, but Jesus is merciful and heals him in the synagogue.  To save an animal was permitted; again, Jesus compares priorities in the application of the law.  The Pharisees clearly feel He has violated their authority.  The man's hand is healed, so that presumably he can work, as well -- to do good is the kind of work that is lawful.

In yesterday's reading, we read Jesus' words, teaching us about Himself:  "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."  In today's reading, He illustrates these words with His mercy, His gentle character which is "lowly in heart."  Jesus illustrates love in action, because His emphasis is on the kind of judgment which has priorities which are correct:  God first, love first, mercy first.  What's of more importance -- a rigid application of the law, or one that has its priorities straight?  Is saving an animal more important than healing a man and restoring his hand?  Is feeding the hungry - lawfully - more important than a rigid application of the law of the Sabbath rest?  They fail to understand God and the purpose of God -- and no wonder, because this story implies that it is really their authority and position that they value more than anything else.  At the very least, Jesus' display of healing power should cause them to pause and think!  But they don't, they simply plot to rid themselves of Him and of His challenge to their authority.  That Jesus uses the title "Son of Man" for Himself seems to suggest something meaningful, in addition to its messianic significance, and that is the value that it gives human beings and human life.  While only the Messiah is Lord of the Sabbath, as Son of Man the title suggests the meaning we read in Mark's Gospel regarding this same scene:  "The Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath."  None of this is meant to suggest that there are not important reasons for practicing our faith in a certain way, for the guidelines regarding proper worship practices and behaviors.  But what it does absolutely suggest is an illustration of Jesus' "gentle" nature, in the way He described Himself in yesterday's reading.  This word for gentle (prais) means something important in the Greek:  it is a strength that is under control, one that is not used for a mere show of power.  His "lowliness of heart" is a disposition which doesn't emphasize His own position, but rather a dependence upon God.  Therefore, as Son of Man He is right there with us.  Despite His power on display here, He is one of us.  And so, quite thoroughly, today's story illustrates what He has taught about Himself in yesterday's reading, as powerful an I AM statement as we'll read ("I am gentle and lowly of heart").  Jesus' power is used to heal, and to make whole, and to practice mercy and good judgment, and this love is what illustrates for us what God is.  This love respects the God who teaches, "I desire mercy and not sacrifice, and the knowledge of God more than burnt offerings."  This God is not petty, but sees through all things with good judgment.  Let us seek to know God, and let this guide our behavior and our own understanding.  May I emphasize here Jesus' tremendous strength and power, a grace that is not merely sentimental in a weepy sort of a way over the suffering He sees, but rather a power and authority that is used with love and true judgment.  This sort of "gentle" is the model for a concept, an ideal, of what would be called a gentleman or gentlewoman.  Let us remember most of all that Jesus teaches us about God and God's nature of love, as a model of that love.  It is lawful to "do good" on the Sabbath.

Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light

 At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.  Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.  Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."

- Matthew 11:25-30

In yesterday's reading, Jesus continued His chastising of the crowds regarding John the Baptist.  This is after two of John's disciples came to Jesus, asking, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  He then answered, "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force."  In yesterday's reading, Jesus said, "But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned for you, and you did not lament.'For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, i will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

At that time Jesus answered and said, "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes."  My study bible points out that, in this prayer of Jesus, it is the Father alone who is the source of knowledge.  It tells us that the Father alone opens the hearts of men to receive knowledge, and that He "communicates in a hidden way to responsive hearts.  The paradox:  the veiled reality of the Kingdom which Jesus reveals is seen by babes, simple fishermen, and sinners, not the wise and prudent, the Pharisees, Sadducees and scribes."

"Even so, Father, for so it seemed good in Your sight.  All things have been delivered to Me by My Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father.  Nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and the one to whom the Son wills to reveal Him."  My study bible says here:  "Another clear statement about the deity of Christ, Son of the Father, who knows the Father and reveals Him.  The Son reveals only as much as we have the capacity to receive."

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.  Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.  For My yoke is easy and My burden is light."  My study bible explains:  "Jesus' yoke is submission to the Kingdom of God.   A yoke may be the symbol of hardship, burdens and responsibilities (1 Kings 12:1-11; Jer. 27:8-28:2; Sir. 40:1).  Although it may feel heavy due to our sins (Ps. 38:4), Christ's yoke is easy.  In Him the soul is refreshed and sees that the Lord is gracious (Ps. 34:9; Is. 55:2; Jer. 31:25).  A sign of Jesus' lordship is His meekness -- He is gentle and lowly.  King David emphasized that the Lord would teach His ways to the meek (Ps. 25:9).  Meekness is the mother of love, the foundation of discernment and the forerunner of all humility.  Jesus finds rest in the hearts of the meek, while the turbulent spirit is home to the devil."

Jesus chastises elsewhere the leadership in the temple regarding their hypocrisy,  "for they bind heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on men’s shoulders; but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers" (Matthew 23:4).  In this sense, we get a vivid understanding of His familiarity with the subject, and His objection to placing burdens on the faithful which are too hard to bear.  If we take the whole of this Gospel together, then, we get the contrast between Jesus' burden, and the burden imposed through certain legalistic (and hypocritical) practices.  In some sense, this is the core of our faith, because Christ's teaching here really has everything to do with love.  He does not teach His disciples that they will Lord it over others, but rather that they must be servants of all -- again, a teaching about love, and about "meekness."  In this context, the truth of the Father is revealed to babes, and hidden from the "wise and prudent."  What we receive from the Jesus who has just railed against the crowd for its attitude of criticism to both John the Baptist and Himself is the truth of the essence of the character of God, and that is love.  He's not looking for the hard-hearted to bear His truths into the world.  He's looking for those who are like Him, those who know they have need of Him, those who desire what He offers.  Revelation has been given to John the Baptist, who is now locked up in prison, a man of extreme asceticism, who lived only for God, who seized the Kingdom with a kind of violence akin to extraordinary passion.  Revelation has come to "babes," those lost, weary and scattered sheep who know that Christ offers what they desperately need.  It is these to whom He calls to take His yoke and to bear His burden in this passage, those to whom the Apostles have just been sent out on their first mission.  The true essence of Christ is His love, which we encounter in relation to Him, in prayer, a yoke that is easy and a burden that is light precisely because He is gentle and lowly in heart.  This is the quality of our encounter with love, the quality for which people take up their own crosses, face every danger, and find worthy so much sacrifice.  It is love that truly motivates when nothing else will, no material sense of power, no ruler who "lords it over" others, but rather the One who saves, who comes into the world to rescue us from such a worldly and oppressive notion of power.  Let us remember He will call us friends, and lay His life down for us.  But first let us remember His love most of all, in which we find His promise of rest for our souls. 

Wisdom is justified by her children

"But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:

'We played the flute for you,
And you did not dance;
We mourned for you,
And you did not lament.'

For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, i will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."

- Matthew 11:16-24

On Saturday, we read Jesus' speech to the multitude after two disciples of John the Baptist came to ask Him, on behalf of the imprisoned John, "Are you the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  For this is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.'  Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.  And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.  For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.  And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

"But to what shall I liken this generation?  It is like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling to their companions, and saying:  'We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; We mourned for you, and you did not lament.'  For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, 'He has a demon.'  The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, 'Look, a glutton and a winebibber, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!'  But wisdom is justified by her children."  Jesus scolds the crowds, in this continued speech from Saturday's reading.  My study bible explains that the quoted verses are a reference to an ancient game played by Jewish children.  The children would gather into two groups:  those pretending to play musical instruments or singing, and the other group which responded appropriately by dancing or mourning.  "But in the case of John the Baptist and Jesus, their contemporaries -- especially the Jewish leaders -- refuse to respond to either one.  They accuse John of being too ascetic and Jesus of being too liberal, a friend of . . . sinners."

Then He began to rebuke the cities in which most of His mighty works had been done, because they did not repent:  "Woe to you, Chorazin!  Woe to you, Bethsaida!  For if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes.  But I say to you, i will be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon in the day of judgment than for you.  And you, Capernaum, who are exalted to heaven, will be brought down to Hades; for if the mighty works which were done in you had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day.  But I say to you that it shall be more tolerable for the land of Sodom in the day of judgment than for you."  My study bible tells us:  "Severe judgment is pronounced on Galilean cities where Jesus preached and healed, but the people not respond.  This happened in Chorazin, Bethsaida and most especially Capernaum.  Sodom, the greatest offender, will receive some lenience in the day of judgment, because that city never saw Jesus' mighty works.  'To whom much is given . . . much will be required' (Luke 12:48)." 

 Jesus clearly lays out what is to lead in our lives, in their lives -- the lives of this crowd to whom He speaks.  It's God that leads, or more appropriately to the context, wisdom.  In yesterday's reading, He vehemently questioned the crowds before Him, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet."  What did they expect to find, in John whom they now criticize for his lifestyle?  They found a prophet, and more than a prophet.  John they criticize, now that he is in prison, for his rough life, a ministry in the wilderness, preaching repentance.  He's a man who lived only for God, forgoing everything else -- and among the criticism, apparently they now claim he has a demon!  Jesus isn't the type of ascetic that John the Baptist was, and Him they criticize in the opposite way:  He drinks and eats, He dines with tax collectors and sinners.  They call Him a glutton and a winebibber.  But wisdom is justified by all her children!  Whatever John was, his ministry was a product of wisdom, of grace.  Whatever Jesus' ministry, it is led by God, by wisdom.  The analogy to the children's game, in which one group was supposed to follow the promptings of the other, tells us Jesus' point of view of this crowd, whose expectations are inflated beyond what God is giving them, what grace is living amongst them in the shape of the ministries of Jesus and of John.  They are childish in their demands and their petty criticisms, not seeing what is truly before them, not understanding with the wisdom that is on offer to them.  And hence, this speech of Jesus to the crowds becomes extended into the cities where others like them dwell.  These are cities in which "mighty works" have been done, powerful acts of grace, signs of God's presence and leading and teaching.  His analogy here is so powerful, His criticism so strong, that He tells them that even Sodom will receive more mercy and understanding, because Sodom did not have the grace that these cities have received.  The leading of God, the revelation of grace, wisdom at work, is a kind of gift that calls us to a place of great responsibility for what is being offered.  It's not we who shape grace, who shape the revelation of wisdom, of holiness.  It is something beyond us, and greater than us, One that does not conform to our expectations, but calls us into a state of greater understanding, beyond our own boundaries and wisdom -- into an awareness we didn't have before.  To refuse that awareness is to refuse the gift of grace.  To refuse that wisdom is to spurn God.  Jesus doesn't spare these crowds from criticism, any more than apparently the criticism both He and John the Baptist suffer from the crowds.  But He does call them to the powerful force at work among them, the seriousness of what they spurn even as great acts of God are done in their cities, in order to emphasize the reality of this choice.  It is God who leads, who calls us out of our own boxes and corners and boundaries, who leads us into wisdom if we can stretch our minds around what is on offer to us.  How do you take that gift?  How can your faith embrace both John and Jesus, who come in such different and unique packages, who both call us to something beyond them, to a kingdom of heaven in which there are many mansions?  How does holiness manifest among us, and which of us can dictate to wisdom?

From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force

 As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  For this is he of whom it is written:

'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face,
Who will prepare Your way before You.'

"Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.  And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force.  For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.  And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"

- Matthew 11:7-15

In yesterday's reading,  we read that, when Jesus finished commanding His twelve disciples (regarding their first apostolic mission), He departed from there to teach and to preach in their cities.  And when John had heard in prison about the works of Christ, he sent two of his disciples and said to Him, "Are You the Coming One, or do we look for another?"  Jesus answered and said to them, "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see:  The blind see and the lame walk:  the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them.  And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me."

 As they departed, Jesus began to say to the multitudes concerning John:  "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?  A reed shaken by the wind?  But what did you go out to see?  A man clothed in soft garments?  Indeed, those who wear soft clothing are in kings' houses.  But what did you go out to see?  A prophet?  Yes, I say to you, and more than a prophet.  For this is he of whom it is written:  'Behold, I send My messenger before Your face, who will prepare Your way before You.'  Assuredly, I say to you, among those born of women there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist; but he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he."   My study bible explains that in terms of the law of the Old Testament, John is the greatest prophet.  But "the New Covenant inaugurated by Christ is of such incomparable value that everyone who shares in it is, as it were, greater than John.  For by grace through faith under the New Covenant we become children of God and  partakers of the Holy Spirit.  John is honored because (1) he was righteous, (2) he prepared the way for the first coming of the Lord, and (3) he baptized Christ."  I think that the language is interesting here, because rarely does Jesus speak more powerfully than this, in terms of His defense of the Baptist, as He demands to know from the crowds what they expected to see when they were flocking to John to be baptized.  It's almost as if He's shocking them into the realization of what a great figure this man is -- who ministered in the wilderness, clothed in animal skins, and is now locked in prison.  And yet, Jesus promises something much greater.

"And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force."  My study bible has some particular explanations for this verse:  "Suffers violence may mean that the Kingdom is under attack by opponents of John the Baptist and Jesus, or other violent men -- messianic pretenders trying to bring in the Kingdom by using military force against the Romans.  An ancient patristic interpretation is that the Kingdom itself breaks into this world 'violently' (10:34, a part of Thursday's reading).  For instance, through powerful miracles, alert and daring people take hold of it aggressively.  Whoever is a hearer and lover of the Word of God takes the Kingdom 'by force,' exerting all earnestness and desire to enter the reality of the Kingdom.  For this martyrs shed their blood, making their confession of faith, being 'made a spectacle to the world, both to angels and to men' (1 Cor. 4:9).  The Kingdom of Heaven belongs not to the sleeping or lazy.  Rather the violent take it by force."

"For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John.  And if you are willing to receive it, he is Elijah who is to come.  He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  My study bible tells us that the identification between John the Baptist and Elijah is quite explicit here.  It's not John who declares this, but Jesus is the One who assigns John this place in the history of salvation.  "John fulfilled the mission of Elijah (Luke 1:17, 76) and his destiny was similar to Elijah's.  Yet John is honored over Elijah, for Jesus in comparing the prophets said, 'There has not risen one greater than John'" (above, in verse 11).  By declaring John to be "Elijah who is to come" Jesus is also alluding or testifying to His own identity as Messiah, and even affirming His role as judge -- because the return of Elijah was a popular expectation before the coming of the Messiah.

Recent readings emphasize relationship:  the disciples sent out two by two, the teaching they are told to say, "The kingdom of heaven has come near."  Jesus has told them that where they go, He is also -- and that those who receive them receive Him.  They will stay in the homes where they are first welcomed, and their peace will rest on those who will receive it -- but not on those who don't.  The emphasis is on relationship.  And here, too, in today's reading, the emphasis is on relationship.  Because John is "Elijah who is to come" there is a powerful implication for this crowd of people, these multitudes, as to just who Jesus is.  He's come to declare a Kingdom breaking into the world, and John was Elijah returned, its Herald.  What are we to make of this?  The powerful and forceful language isn't that of Jesus as an image of meekness, but one of power.  When He rails to the crowds asking them, "What did you go out into the wilderness to see?" He's emphatically preaching the Word using great power.  He's just sent out the Twelve on their first mission, and part of their relatedness to Him is in this powerful Kingdom in which He is judge.  Here, the Baptist who is now locked up in prison, who lived his ministry in the wilderness, is hailed as the greatest of all men born to women, the greatest of the prophets, and Elijah returned.  Jesus speaks of power -- the spiritual power of the Kingdom.   "The kingdom of heaven come near" is right here, it's imminent, it's breaking into the world.  An act of great violence is happening here, but these crowds can't see it; they're being informed of it.  This sort of violence is not the negative violence we normally associate with material violence.  This violence is more akin to that of a kind of spiritual force and power, one that especially encourages us to wake up and to seize the day.  The moment is here.  "And from the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force." He's telling the crowds to wake up, and seize what is being offered to them, because only those who really and truly want it will enter.  Jesus has just sent out the Twelve Apostles on their first mission, and they are bringing the Kingdom near wherever they go.  But it is up to those to whom they are sent to minister whether or not they will receive them.  This is an illustration of our capability to act with power, to boldly enter into this kingdom, because it is brought near to us -- and we must respond to that gift.  We must joyfully seize the moment, and make the choice to enter in.  This is an emphatic and bold action as portrayed here in the words of Jesus; it's something for which He encourages us to use our power to take action, to assert what we really want, and to enter.  He's perhaps shocking the crowds out of their complacency, and teaching them that they must wake up, make choices, as others are already doing.  John was a forceful person who preached repentance in preparation for the Kingdom; but those who come after will be greater.  They are those who act on their desire for this Kingdom, who turn passion to God, and to the things of the Kingdom.  In the tradition of the monastic world, this phrase (the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force) is taken to imply spiritual struggle, a life of asceticism for the love of God, for the citizenship in that Kingdom.  It is echoed in St. Paul's words, when he teaches that he has "fought the good fight."  Faith requires our desire, our love for God, for Christ, our willingness also to fight that good fight, and to realize that life calls upon us to make choices all the time.  Jesus comes into the world and breaks His Kingdom into the world, startling all the establishment around Him.  But He calls on us to be like Him in our love for God, in our willingness to make those strong choices to live as He did, to seize this Kingdom by choosing to be a part of it, and to live the life He offers us.  That's not simple; it involves a struggle, a passion for God and God's way of life.  To choose love is often a difficult and even lonely struggle, one that does not call for complacency, and may take us right out of the rules the world sets down for us.  The good fight may ask us to make sacrifice, and to be courageous, to seize the moment that is right before us.  He calls us to be like Him, and to grab hold of this precious, priceless gift He offers.