Why do You speak to them in parables?

 

 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.  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.  For whoever 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 13:1–16 

 

We have presently been reading in the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5 - 7).  On Saturday, we read that Jesus taught, "Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it.  Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it.  Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.  You will know the by their fruits.  Do men gather grapes from thornbushes or figs from thistles?  Even so, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit.  A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a bad tree bear good fruit.  Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.  Therefore by their fruits you will know them.  Not everyone who says to Me, 'Lord, Lord,' shall enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father in heaven."  

 

 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.  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.    Today's lectionary reading jumps from chapter 7, in the midst of the Sermon on the Mount, to chapter 13, in which Jesus is now surrounded by great multitudes who come to hear Him.  Over the course of the next few days, the lectionary readings prepare us for Ascension Day, which is Thursday in the West and the Armenian Apostolic Church, and a week later for the Eastern Orthodox.  On Friday, the day following the celebration of Christ's Ascension, we will resume the lectionary sequence in chapter 7 once again.  Here we are to note by this stage of Christ's ministry, His fame has reached a point that He must preach from a boat while great multitudes are gathered on the shore.  These are not just disciples, as in the Sermon on the Mount, but likely also the curious and those who come because of His reputation for healing as well.  

 

 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 comments that, in the Old Testament, metaphors of sowing and harvesting are common (Psalm 126:5, Jeremiah 31:27-30; Hosea 2:21-23; Joel 3:12-14).  These were a part of daily life, experienced by all people.  Here, Christ reveals Himself as the promised Messiah, the sower in the earth, who had been foretold in Isaiah 55:10-13.  

 

 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 whoever 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."  My study Bible teaches that the mysteries of the kingdom are not simply obscure concepts or religious truths only for the elite, and  at the same time, neither is the understanding of Christ's parables merely an intellectual process.  Even the disciples find the message hard to understand.  While Jesus taught the same message to all, it notes, it is the simple and innocent who are open to its message.  

 

 "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."  Here Jesus quotes from Isaiah 6:9-10.  According to St. John Chrysostom, my study Bible notes, this prophecy of Isaiah doesn't mean that God causes spiritual blindness in people who would otherwise have been faithful.  This is a figure of speech which is common to Scripture, and reveals God as giving people up to their own devices (as in Romans 1:24-26).  What is meant by He has blinded, my study Bible explains, is that God has permitted their self-chosen blindness (compare Exodus 8:15, 32 with Exodus 10:20, 27).  They didn't become blind because God spoke through Isaiah, but rather Isaiah spoke because he foresaw their blindness.  

 

At this point in His ministry, Jesus begins speaking in parables.  His reasoning is clear:  He wants to reach those who truly desire to hear and to see the things of which He speaks, the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, and not merely astonishing "earthly" miracles and healings or things which might fall into the category of magic (in people's perception) or unusual power.   He's here to bring His gospel into the world, not simply to practice astonishing feats to gather the curious or those who will follow Him in fear or other motivations which distract from real discipleship and faith.  So the parables form a kind of opening to those who are drawn to Him from the heart.  That is, from hearts that have not grown dull.  When Jesus quotes Isaiah, and speaks about ears that are hard of hearing, and eyes they have closed, He's speaking of spiritual eyes and ears, the attention of the soul and the heart -- that is the real depth of a person. To understand with their hearts and turn, is to repent.  That is, to turn toward Christ, "so that I should heal them."  If we understand these words in the context in which Christ has spoken them, we understand that this is the way He chooses to frame salvation, and the whole of the institution of the Church, as a kind of hospital in which we receive real healing, with Christ as Physician.  In Matthew 9:11-13, Jesus directly refers to Himself as divine Physician.  He says to the complaining Pharisees, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means, 'I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.' For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners."  This call Jesus speaks of is the call to turn toward Him, to practice repentance in the sense that all repentance is a turning toward Christ, to God.  In this understanding, the whole of the Incarnation and its purpose is for healing, to help us to turn toward God, to become more like God, in whose image and likeness we are created, our true nature.  St. Athanasius of Alexandria writes, "God became man so that man might become god" (On the Incarnation, 54:3).  This was written just prior to the Council of Nicea which formed our earliest Christian Creed, and in which St. Athanasius played such a decisive part.  Because of Christ's Incarnation, we may become more like God, growing in our true nature even toward an eternal union with God, and in this sense, everlasting life (John 3:16).  And with St. Athanasius and his guiding light, we come toward Christ's Ascension, which will be celebrated on Thursday in Western Church (and the Armenian Apostolic Church) and the Eastern Churches the following Thursday.  For in Christ's Ascension, He takes His humanity into heaven, showing us that our own human nature is capable through grace of doing the same.  This process of grace in us is called theosis, or divinization, and it is what our true salvation is all about, how Christ our Physician heals us through a lifetime process in which we constantly turn to Him throughout our lives.  He is the Sower who sows the seeds of salvation for us in His gospel, and as He teaches in this chapter of parables, these grow and shape and produce fruit, and  transform everything, so that even the angels can dwell with us and we are prepared to dwell with Him.  For without these mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, such healing doesn't exist.

 

 

 

 

No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God

 

 Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?"  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."

 

- Luke 9:51-62 

 

On Saturday, we read that the next day after the Transfiguration, when Jesus, John, James, and Peter had come down from the mountain, a great multitude met Him.  Suddenly a man from the multitude cried out, saying, "Teacher, I implore You, look on my son, for he is my only child.  And behold, a spirit seizes him, and he suddenly cries out; it convulses him so that he foams at the mouth; and it departs from him with great difficulty, bruising him.  So I implored Your disciples to cast it out, but they could not."  Then Jesus answered and said, "O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you and bear with you?  Bring your son here."  And as he was still coming, the demon threw him down and convulsed him.  Then Jesus rebuked the unclean spirit, healed the child, and gave him back to his father.  And they were all amazed at the majesty of God.  But while everyone marveled at all the things which Jesus did, He said to His disciples, "Let these words sink down into your ears, for the Son of Man is about to be betrayed into the hands of men."  But they did not understand this saying, and it was hidden from them so that they did not perceive it; and they were afraid to ask Him about this saying. Then a dispute arose among them as to which of them would be greatest.  And Jesus, perceiving the thought of their heart, took a little child and set him by Him, and said to them, "Whoever receives this little child in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me receives Him who sent Me.  For he who is least among you all will be great."  Now John answered and said, "Master we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we forbade him because he does not follow with us."  But Jesus said to him, "Do not forbid him, for he who is not against us is on our side."

 

  Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face.  And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him.  But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem.  And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, "Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?"  But He turned and rebuked them, and said, "You do not know what manner of spirit you are of.  For the Son of Man did not come to destroy men's lives but to save them."  And they went to another village.  Now that Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem, He has steadfastly set His face to go toward His Passion.  From Galilee, He must pass through Samaria.  Let us understand that He is headed toward rejection by His own people, and so in a sense, this rejection by the Samaritans is a preparation for the disciples.  Clearly, as Jesus says, they must learn "what manner of spirit" they are of.  They will face an incredible amount of rejection, both in Jerusalem and in their missions and ministries afterward, in the Church.  But their mission will always be to follow their Master, who has come not to destroy men's lives, but to save them.  See John 3:17.  They must learn to move on, as did Jesus, to another village.  We know Jesus' instructions for encountering rejection among the Jews (Luke 9:4); here they are among the Samaritans.

Now it happened as they journeyed on the road, that someone said to Him, "Lord, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  Then He said to another, "Follow Me."  But he said, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  Jesus said to him, "Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God."  And another also said, "Lord, I will follow You, but let me first go and bid them farewell who are at my house."  But Jesus said to him, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God."  My study Bible comments on this passage that, as Jesus responds to those who would like to follow Him, He teaches that there is a cost to discipleship.  He reveals three of them.  First, the disciple relinquishes personal or earthly security; that is, if the Lord has nowhere to lay His head, then neither will the disciple.  Second, there is nothing, not even the honor due to parents, that can be an obstacle to serving the Lord.  Finally, a disciple cannot delay in accomplishing the good that Christ demands.

 

These notes on discipleship in our last passage sound very harsh at first reading.  Even Jesus' commands sound like they could be very harsh:  "Let the dead bury their own dead," speaking of one's father, and, "No one, having put his hand to the plow, and looking back, is fit for the kingdom of God," speaking of saying farewell to those at one's house.  But these are commands that reflect, first of all, the urgency of the time.  Jesus has "steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem."  It is the time for Him to act, His hour (John 12:27).  We must remember that God's timing is crucial to this picture.  We're told in Ecclesiastes, "To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven" (see Ecclesiastes 3).  This is the time for Christ's purpose, His hour of glory and glorification.  It is the time of the Cross.  But so it is in our own lives and with our own purposes set forth by God.  There are times when we're to act and to respond.  Everyone makes choices for how they are to serve God, and once that choice is made there is a hierarchy of necessities that one must face.  Do I go home now for a visit, or do I heed this call in my heart and during my prayer to act as it seems God is commanding me?  One cannot suggest that every single impulse is from God, but there are times when prayer and discernment, when speaking with pastors, and asking brothers and sisters in the Church to pray for oneself and one's choices, all add up to what seems like a powerful call, a decision to be made, even (and perhaps often) when we seem to have compelling reasons to delay, turn the other way, and put this off.  The story of Jonah is illustrative of this point.  Indeed, the first chapter of that story is all about Jonahs' disobedience, his refusal of the call from God (Jonah 1).  Similarly to Jonah, there are those of us who are aware we have put off a decision repeatedly put forward to us during prayer, and have experienced the bad outcome as another lesson from God, another pronouncement of Jesus' statement that we're not to look back once we've put our hand to the plow.  In terms of family obligations, it is often surprising how one will find that things work out, with family members much more obliging than we thought possible, or circumstances creating opportunities for us to know it was better that we responded to that call.  Oftentimes, it happens otherwise.  Our family obligation might disappoint ourselves and even those whom we sought to please, and God's call was the better priority in retrospect.  These are small examples from experience, but suffice to say that God calls us where love calls us.  We're not asked to treat family and loved ones poorly.  Nor are we asked sacrifices that will not in the long run benefit us and our lives overall -- especially in terms of values gained, character expanded, and the greatest love part of our internal experience.  While these words in today's Gospel reading sound harsh, in effect they are Christ's words of love, telling us about priorities and the values of the Kingdom.  There will be times -- and one may testify that this is so -- when it seems we are throwing away important relationships and norms in order to follow what seems like a fool's errand that is the product of our faith.  But those times have embedded within them a prescience we're not always in touch with, and that is truly where faith comes in, even how our faith grows.  God asks of us courage, even as Christ shows His courage.  Sometimes we are being asked for a greater humility than we knew.   Let us consider the help we have to make good decisions and find our way with faith.  Remember that the God we serve is love, whose kindness and mercy and grace is our guiding light.  For we, too, must know what manner of spirit we are of.  Ultimately our choices are about the values we wish to help to bear into the world, the greater love that might not make sense to the world, but which we nonetheless can know.

 

 

Then He spoke many things to them in parables, saying: "Behold, a sower went out to sow"

 

 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 had been contending with the scribes and Pharisees after the Pharisees claimed He cast out demons by the power of demons, and then demanded a sign as proof of His authority.  He  "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!"  In the Old Testament, my study Bible explains, metaphors of sowing and harvesting are common (Psalm 126:5; Jeremiah 31:27-30; Hosea 2:21-23; Joel 3:12-14), as this was part of daily life.  Here in this beginning of preaching in parables, Jesus reveals Himself as the promised Messiah, who is the sower in the earth, and had been foretold in Isaiah 55:10-13.

In recent readings, Jesus has castigated the religious leadership for their false hearts, saying, "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."  In the phrase, "Brood of vipers!" He echoed the words of John the Baptist, who used the same agricultural metaphors, telling them to "bear fruits worthy of repentance" and that "even now the ax is laid to the root of the trees. Therefore every tree which does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire."  (See Matthew 3:7-10.)  In today's reading, Jesus begins to speak to the multitudes in parables, offering to the crowds an image of the kingdom of God at work in the world, and specifically of what He is doing in His ministry.  He is sowing seeds for growth, seeds that will be planted within human beings and in the world.  In the following lectionary readings, Jesus will offer explanations to the disciples regarding His reason for teaching in parables, and the meaning of this parable in detail.  So I will leave such specific teachings for the words of Jesus Himself in our readings to come.  But for now, let us consider Christ's metaphor of trees, of fruit-bearing, of planting.  As we see from the preaching of John the Baptist and Christ's earlier words to the religious leaders, they come up over and over again as images to teach about spiritual fruit, and the dynamic nature of human beings, of soul and spirit, capable of growth and interaction with God through faith.  The condition of the heart comes front and center in the spiritual language of Jesus, and it is clearly a place of choice, of potential for good or bad, a place of dynamic dialogue and interaction with forces or elements of good or evil.  It is a place for growth in either direction.  In yesterday's reading, above, Jesus spoke about His mother and brothers as those who do the will "of My Father in heaven."  This also indicates the power of growth within a person, of potential identity through faith.  Each of these teachings prepare us for an understanding of Christ as the Sower who sows the seeds of the Kingdom through His ministry.  In today's parable, the One who will become the chief cornerstone speaks of Himself as the One who sows the seeds for this foundation, looking for good ground, good conditions for growth, and those who will yield a crop in this dynamic ongoing mission of the Kingdom.  The seeds continue to be planted.  We are not simply material beings, made up of static elements which never change.  We are dynamic beings whose very cells are constantly in action and energy; even our DNA markers and physical make up is not static.  We are created as body, soul, and spirit, with hearts (that is, the very center of all that we are) capable of interacting in dynamic fashion with the seeds planted by the Sower and the energies of grace at work on receptive ground.  We are beings meant for growth in one direction or another; we make choices, we interact with one another, and also with the divine gifts of God.  Over the course of this chapter Jesus will give us varied metaphors in parables about the Kingdom and its potentials for growth in us, what it is truly like.  Let us pay attention and learn about ourselves and our capabilities in His sight.

Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead

 And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, He gave a command to depart to the other side.  Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."  Then another of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."

Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.  And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves.  But He was asleep.  Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us!  We are perishing!"  But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?"  Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  So the men marveled, saying, "Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"

- Matthew 8:18-27

Yesterday we read that when Jesus had entered Capernaum, a centurion came to Him, pleading with Him, saying, "Lord, my servant is lying at home paralyzed, dreadfully tormented."  And Jesus said to him, "I will come and heal him."  The centurion answered and said, "Lord, I am not worthy that You should come under my roof.  But only speak a word, and my servant will be healed.  For I also am a man under authority, having soldiers under me.  And I say to this one, 'Go,' and he goes; and to another, 'Come,' and he comes; and to my servant, 'Do this,' and he does it."  When Jesus heard it, He marveled, and said to those who followed, "Assuredly, I say to you, I have not found such great faith, not even in Israel!  And I say to you that many will come from east and west, and sit down with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.  But the sons of the kingdom will be cast into outer darkness.  There will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.  Then Jesus said to the centurion, "Go your way; and as you have believed, so let it be done for you."  And his servant was healed that same hour.  Now when Jesus had come into Peter's house, He saw His wife's mother lying sick with a fever.  So He touched her hand, and the fever left her.  And she arose and served them."  When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed.  And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying:  "He Himself took our infirmities and bore our sicknesses."

And when Jesus saw great multitudes about Him, He gave a command to depart to the other side.  Then a certain scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go."  And Jesus said to him, "Foxes have holes and birds of the air have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lay His head."   My study bible comments here that since the term Son of Man refers to the Messiah (Daniel 7:13), it expresses both Christ's humanity and His divinity.  Here it is referring to Christ's human condition.  Elsewhere (25:31-33) Jesus uses the term to describe His divine authority.

Then another of His disciples said to Him, "Lord, let me first go and bury my father."  But Jesus said to him, "Follow Me, and let the dead bury their own dead."     As always, Jesus is not negating a commandment (to honor parents).  But He is teaching us to put the things of the Kingdom as our highest priority.  Those who ignore this priority, my study bible says, are spiritually dead.

Now when He got into a boat, His disciples followed Him.  And suddenly a great tempest arose on the sea, so that the boat was covered with the waves.  But He was asleep.  Then His disciples came to Him and awoke Him, saying, "Lord, save us!  We are perishing!"  But He said to them, "Why are you fearful, O you of little faith?"  Then He arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm.  So the men marveled, saying, "Who can this be, that even the winds and the sea obey Him?"  Immediately after the text uses the name "Son of Man" for Jesus, indicating that He is both human and divine, this event is given in which both His humanity and divinity are on display.  Christ's mastery over creation is another sign that He is the Messiah and is divine.  My study bible suggests that commands to the sea and waves can only be issued by God (Job 38:8-11; Psalms 66:5-6, 107:29).  But Jesus was asleep because He is a man, and as human being, He needs rest.  My study bible says that in His Incarnation, Jesus assumed all the natural actions of the flesh, which includes sleep.  This image of Jesus and His disciples in a boat is a traditional one used to illustrate the Church itself.  My study bible adds that God both permits storms and delivers us through them, so that we can see God's protection more clearly.  Jesus' rebuke of the storm, it says, also illustrates His capacity to calm the tempests in the human soul.

I am one who can testify to Christ's capacity to calm the tempests in the human soul, as my study bible puts it.  As one who has met with frequent tempests of the soul, I can say with a certain authority that this is indeed the truth.  It reminds me of the man blind from birth who was healed by Jesus in John's 9th chapter.  When the disciples asked, "Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?" (thinking that sin must be the direct cause of such misfortune), Jesus replied, "Neither this man nor his parents sinned, but that the works of God should be revealed in him" (John 9:1-3).  Just as one calamity might be grounds for the work of God, so the tempests in our own souls might also be grounds for Christ's work in us, to calm what needs calming and heal what needs healing.  This ties in nicely with the first part of today's reading, in which we are reminded that in all things and through all things, we may prioritize the Kingdom first, as my study bible comments.  It sets us free from the immediate storm, disaster, hardship, or sorrow -- and also offers up to us answers we might not get otherwise, giving us baby steps out of our problems.  If we are capable of putting aside our immediate fears or struggles, even for a moment, and focusing on Christ, setting ourselves to prayer, we might find a better way, an acceptance, and a plan for moving forward into the future.  Indeed, for some of us, disaster might just be the way to God's kingdom, for we would not have turned to Christ for answers otherwise.  Hence, the wisdom in my study bible's comments regarding the storms that Christ both permits and delivers us through.  In fact, if experience is anything to go by, there are a number of ways in which disasters and personal dilemmas may offer us a great way to go forward in life, particularly if we're mainly or primarily concerned with spiritual growth.  This may not be a recipe for worldly success, or the greatest social impressions that may be sought, but it is a way to deepen faith and to growth within the reality that Christ wants for us.  And this number of avenues forward and into new life is multiplied through all those facets developed through the Church and historical worship through time, such as praying with the saints, and the angels who help to guide us, the Scriptures of both Old and New Testaments, and our fellow faithful.  A crisis is a time for turning over life with its "shoulds" and "would-haves" and "could-have-beens" to an open place for inquiry, a freedom we didn't allow ourselves before, and an open mind and heart to God and God's direction that just wasn't possible without it.  I find that when we come up against a wall of the impossible, it is most likely that our direction needs changing, or our expectations need to be re-examined, and possibly our goals and desires re-evaluated in light of God's sight and influence.  That is the time we turn to prayer and find our way.  Often we come up against a wall not necessarily of our own making, but one that others might put before us in the form of social rejection.  There may be a line which we can't cross and remain within a particular social circle.  For the earliest Christian martyrs, that line meant death when responding by refusal to worship Caesar rather than Christ.  In a modern context, there are other ways in which people may stand in the way of proper priority in worship, often demanding that our freedom to choose Christ first be surrendered to priorities which don't recognize that essential choice.  Like the young man whom Christ tells to "let the dead bury their own dead," we also may find ourselves having to leave behind certain groups of people whom we think are indispensable, but we'll find ourselves called forward if we let prayer be our guide, and put Christ's Kingdom first.  These things aren't easy to do, and they are not simple.  Like Jesus Himself, we won't evade all of the storms of human life and what it means to be fully human.  But we will be led through them, and we will find our dependence grow upon God.  It is a question of putting our trust in this particular basket, giving Christ the keys to our souls and our choices, and setting ourselves free through God's truth (John 8:32).  This just might be the time of our greatest freedom, a realization that we can choose differently, and are not bound through the things we think must be done or observed.  It is time to give Christ the chance to show us the way forward, to let go and be guided by praying with the saints, to accept change that otherwise seems impossible.  Let us consider His way when no other ways seem to work.  It might just be time for a change in priorities, an unloosing of even the ties that bind.

He who has ears to hear, let him hear!

The Sower, by Vincent van Gogh.  Arles, June 1888.  Kröller-Müller Museum, Netherlands

 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 our recent readings, Jesus has been giving His response to the Pharisees who accused Him of casting out demons by the power of demons (beginning with Friday's reading).  Yesterday we read that Jesus taught:  "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 explains here that in the Old Testament, metaphors or sowing and harvesting are common (Psalm 126:5; Jeremiah 31:27-30; Hosea 2:21-23; Joel 3:12-14).  This is because these were part of daily life of the people in an agrarian society.  Here, in this first parable, Jesus reveals Himself as the promised Messiah, who is the sower in the earth, as foretold in Isaiah 55:10-13.

Over the course of our next couple of readings, Jesus will explain to His disciples the parable of the Sower, and also why He has begun to preach in parables.  But for today, we will ponder what we've just been given in the text.  Let's note that now great multitudes are gathered together to Him.  There are so many people that He now sits in a boat off the shore, while the people stand on the shore and listen.  At this point in His ministry, He is attracting a great deal of attention, and there are all kinds of people coming to listen.  Moreover, He is already being plotted against by the Pharisees, who have accused Him of working by the ruler of the demons to perform His great works, such as the casting out of demons, for which He is now known.  So there is this dual "track" regarding the reception of His ministry in Israel.  We also know that He has been generally rejected in various cities in which He has done great works (see this reading).  John the Baptist is in prison, and both Jesus and John have come in for criticism of their ministries -- for opposite reasons -- by the leadership.  But Jesus sees John as a holy man, the last of the great prophets, while He has directed John's disciples to tell John of the signs (prophesied as belonging to the time of the Messiah) that accompany His ministry.  The stage is set for Christ's beginning to speak in parables.  Parables are "word-pictures" in the description by study bible gives them.  They are most often given by Jesus as images of the Kingdom, ways in which the hearer may begin to grasp this working of the Kingdom among them.  In today's parable, the first parable Jesus begins with, the image of the Sower is given, and it is a clear image of Christ Himself, sowing His word.  This image was already suggested in Isaiah 55:10-13, as my study bible comments.  Do the crowds understand this, and put it together?  Do the religious leaders, the experts in the Scripture, understand what He is saying?  Can they accept it?  All of this is now left open to question, as the very act of teaching in parables gives us a sense that it is really up to the hearer to affirmatively receive the word He gives.  He is not going to force anyone to have faith in Him, nor even to understand Him.  He is sowing a word -- and whether or not there is fertile ground, or good conditions of the soil and the weather, He will not seek to control.  This implies a confidence in God the Father, a complete trust that Jesus has regarding His mission in the world.  It also gives us a deeply profound sense of respect for the will of human beings.  While it is not up to us to decide what grace does nor how God works in the world, there is a kind of door to our hearts that opens and closes.  We may be that fertile ground.  We may truly desire to hear the word, or ponder it within our hearts.  We may say -- at some depth of level within ourselves we can't even always grasp -- that we simply accept it, assent to it.  Jesus gives varying options in this parable regarding the conditions of the soil and the environment into which the seed falls; that is, He knows the dangers to His word.  This is once again an image of trust in God the Father.  Whatever happens in His ministry, Jesus allows and does not seek to control all of these conditions of the world, trusting that this is simply the way it has to go.  Who will accept?  Who will reject?  Where will the seed fall, and how will it fall?  Even the act of using a parable is a message to us that we also participate in this ministry with our own fertile or not-so-fertile ground.  Jesus' choice to use parables tell us that this mission of the Kingdom in the world is a drama, a story unfolding, in which we also participate -- even by the act of listening.  The parable calls on us to be interested, curious, to want more -- or not.  So much is left up to us.  How much do we want what He is offering?  Do we want to know what this is all about?  And what of all those difficult conditions that meet the seed:  the birds, the sun, and the thorns?  He can't be sure of the outcome, for in Luke's Gospel, He asks, "Nevertheless, when the Son of Man comes, will He really find faith on the earth?" (Luke 18:8).  Let us consider the risks to His word, and the trust in the Father asked of Christ.  We, in turn, are asked to live our lives by His example.  

Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these

 Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."  But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?"  And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."  Then He spoke a parable to them, saying:  "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.  And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?'  So he said, 'I will do this:  I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will tore all my crops and my goods.  And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."'  But God said to him, 'Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.  Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.  Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds?  And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest?  Consider the lilies, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?  And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.  For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things.  But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you."

- Luke 12:13-31

Yesterday we read that as Jesus warned of "woes" to them, the scribes and the Pharisees began to assail Him vehemently, and to cross-examine Him about many things, lying in wait for Him, and seeking to catch Him in something He might say, that they might accuse Him.  In the meantime, when an innumerable multitude of people had gathered together, so that they trampled one another, He began to say to His disciples first of all, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.  For there is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.  Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.  And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.  But I will show you whom you should fear:  Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!  Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins?  And not one of them is forgotten before God.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.  Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God.  But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.  And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven.  Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say.  For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say."

 Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."  But He said to him, "Man, who made Me a judge or an arbitrator over you?"  And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."  My study bible points out the incongruity between this question and the things that Christ has just been saying, speaking of dependency upon God, and fearless witness, living for the Gospel.  It also adds that it was a custom for respected rabbis to arbitrate personal disputes.  As we have already learned that Jesus is the "knower of hearts," we understand His warning to this man about covetousness.  Where is the focus of this person's heart?  We all must take it to heart that Jesus teaches us that "one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."  Such a standard -- judging by the abundance of things one possesses -- is true covetousness, a mistaken focus.

Then He spoke a parable to them, saying:  "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.  And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?'  So he said, 'I will do this:  I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will tore all my crops and my goods.  And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry."'  But God said to him, 'Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."   Jesus tells a parable which reveals to us a higher power at work in life than all of our plans and our worldly perspectives.  My study bible cites the teaching of St. Ambrose on this parable:  "The things which we cannot take with us are not ours.  Only virtue will be our companion when we die."  This passage invites us to consider what our worldly goods are for, and in whose service they are put.  Christ invites us to full dependency upon God, so this should apply to our considerations for our material lives and wealth as well -- the perspective we need on wealth is the one given us by our faith!

Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.  Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.  Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds?  And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest?  Consider the lilies, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?  And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.  For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things."  My study bible notes here that Christ is not referring here to thoughtful planning, but rather is warning against excessive anxiety.  Where is our focus?  A sense of dependency upon God is essential to developing the perspective on our material lives that are necessary to our well-being, and our personal balance.  It's not that these things don't matter, for as He says, "Your Father knows that you need these things."  Christ is calling us to understand the limits of anxiety and obsessive planning, toward a deeper understanding and reliance upon our relationship to God.  When Jesus says that all these things the nations of the world seek after, He's referring to pagans who worship idols, fully dependent upon earthly things.  Let us note that in these examples Jesus gives, each speaks to the love of God for each of us, even in our worldly lives and for the things that we need.

"But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you."  Here is our first priority, the focus that we need in order to put all else into the proper focus for our lives.  My study bible says that the kingdom of God is the central theme of Jesus' teaching.  It notes that, calling us to be free from anxiety about earthly things, Jesus directs us to look to heaven, secure in the faith that God will provide needed earthly blessings.

The basis for our worship services is an attunement to the reality of the kingdom of heaven.  This is not simply a kind of place that exists separately from this world.  Rather, it is a reality that intersects with our world, that is integral to our own identities, albeit one that is hidden and that we don't often perceive.  Jesus invites us into this perception, an active and knowing awareness that God is not just at work in our lives, but is closer than our heartbeat, ever-present with us, watching and knowing and caring.  Moreover, not only is God concerned with us, but Jesus calls us to be fully concerned with God.  Our awareness of the things of God, and the kind of living awareness of God's richness for us, must create a backdrop to life in which our priorities are all affected.  We must live for this Kingdom, the life that our communion with God calls us toward.  Our focus starts there, and this puts everything else into its proper order for us.  Will we lose an inheritance?   Do we have as much as others do?   Are our lives focused only upon how much we have?  These questions can be answered in the light of God's love, or in the absence of awareness of God's love -- and in either case, the answers will be different as black and white.  We are called to the life of the Kingdom, and this means allowing our faith to put into perspective that which we truly need, and that which we don't.  When it looks like we may lack something, faith teaches us about patience.  It teaches us about proper goals.  It teaches us about fulfillment of God's goals for us.  Perhaps there is something we need to let go -- a goal that is unsuitable or that leads us down the wrong path.  To take up one's cross daily means that God is calling us to transcendence, to a kind of perspective that is beyond what we already know and understand.  It is quite remarkable what can happen when we put our affairs in the hands of God, and approach life in a prayerful manner.  An abundance of wealth in life can seem to solve many problems, but it really doesn't work magically to resolve our basic struggles for meaning and purpose.  A focus on wealth, in fact, can create far more problems than it would seemingly resolve.  Jesus gives us images of care and wonder:  the ravens who are cared for by God -- a highly intelligent bird, known for its cleverness in nature; the lilies of the field, robed in splendor which Jesus calls more gorgeous than Solomon in all his glory.  And, as in the sayings He gave us in yesterday's reading (above), we are once again assured of our great value to our Creator.  The image of beauty Christ gives to us in comparing the lilies to Solomon's array gives us an important sense of the Kingdom:  it is beauty itself, and this is what it adds to our lives.  It doesn't matter what our circumstances are, it is participation in the joy and love and richness of the Kingdom that truly adds the dimension of beauty to us, and gives us insight and sensitivity to what beauty truly is.  Christ invites us to learn the virtues through faith, to give up our anxieties to God and put our trust where it belongs -- in the One who truly knows all of our needs.  In times that are uncertain and changing, can we do this?  It will take us to riches we couldn't find otherwise, to a resilience and release from anxiety we can't find elsewhere.

Then He spoke many things to them in parables

 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 and 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 continued His confrontation with the Pharisees (who accused Him of casting out demons by the power of demons, and then later asked Him for a sign of His identity as Christ):  "When an unclean spirit 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 and 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!"  Jesus begins speaking in parables, and at this point in Matthew's Gospel, we are given the parable that explains it all.  My study bible says that in the Old Testament, metaphors of sowing and harvesting are common (Psalm 126:5, Jeremiah 31:27-30, Hosea 2:21-23, Joel 3:12-14), as this was a part of daily life.  Here, Jesus reveals Himself as the promised Messiah, the sower in the earth, who had been foretold in Isaiah 55:10-13.

Chapter 13 gives us the beginning of Jesus' preaching in parables.  We can ask ourselves why He develops this style of preaching at this point.  Certain significant things have happened.  The confrontation with the Pharisees (see the past three readings) has cemented their decision to be rid of Him.  It's clear that their hostility to Him will simply continue.  His break with them is also clear, as His response is simply to support and defend His ministry, and to scathingly tell them that "an evil and adulterous generation asks for a sign."  His own forecast of their future response to Him is clear in yesterday's reading, above, when He speaks of the unclean spirit that goes out and finds seven others, more wicked than himself, to dwell where he was first.  Things will go from bad to worse.  This deepening crisis of division between Himself and the religious leadership is the backdrop to today's reading, in which great multitudes are gathered to hear Him.  This will be another thorn in the side of the leadership.  Jesus' popularity is like that of a modern day pop star.  He has to get into a boat to preach to the people on the shore.  He's looking for "a few good men," as the expression goes.   He says, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear!"  His preaching in parables is designed to engage those whose hearts respond, and wish to find more.  He's not going to spell it out, except to the disciples in private.  He's not there for debate or argument.  His words are the seeds that fall where they fall; it's up to us what kind of ground they fall on.  The parable indicates to us that not every word falls on good ground.  They tell us of Jesus' awareness that all will not simply come to faith.  Neither will He compel anyone to that faith.  At this point, before reading the explanations Jesus gives to the disciples, what do we think of this parable?  What do the birds who pluck the seeds represent to us?  What does "stony" and "shallow" ground constitute to you?  How does it feel to be scorched by the sun, in the brilliant light of day?  What are the thorns that choke life before it can take hold?  All these things tell us something -- and more than something.  Over the course of a life they may come to have more meaning. With experience they take on tones that reflect what we've been through or seen.  We learn the importance of depth of rootedness in a time of great challenge.  We learn what it means to nurture faith, and why that is important.  We cultivate something in life for a reason.  Jesus leaves it up to us to respond, to take responsibility for what we hear.  What is it that you hear today?

Sufficient for the day is its own trouble

 "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  So why do you worry about clothing?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For after all these things the Gentiles seek.  For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

- Matthew 6:25-34

We are now reading through the Sermon on the Mount.  For the earlier readings and commentary on this Sermon, see  The Beatitudes;  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven;  Whoever therefore breaks one of the least of these commandments, and teaches men so, shall be called least in the kingdom of heaven; but whoever does and teaches them, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven;  I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment;  Let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'; Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect; Do not be like the hypocrites and Our Father in heaven.  On Saturday, we read that Jesus taught, "Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust destroy and where thieves break in and steal, but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal.  For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.  The lamp of the body is the eye.  If therefore your eye is good, your whole body will be full of light.  But if your eye is bad, your whole body will be full of darkness.  If therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!  No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other.  You cannot serve God and mammon."

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?  Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?"  My study bible tells us here:  "Severe anxiety, not thoughtful planning and care, is what is warned against here.  Physical growth and length of life is dependent upon the providence of God more than upon food, drink, and clothing.  Persistent anxiety over the things of this world demonstrates internal insecurity and a weak or superficial faith."  It seems to me that Christ is calling us once again to put our "house" or rather our faith in order, and to focus on what is uppermost, the central things of our lives.  He is calling us to remember God, to focus first on the kingdom, and away from a purely material-minded perspective that omits or forget to trust in God first.  Worrying alone can't fix things!

"So why do you worry about clothing?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?"  Jesus gives us the example of God's love and care, and teaches us about God's love, reminding us that this is what we are to be mindful of in our lives.  He seems to suggest that a purely material perspective causes anxieties that do nothing to help us or even to achieve the things we want.  The antidote is to remember the love of God.

"Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?'  For after all these things the Gentiles seek."  My study bible tells us that "the pagan worship of the Gentiles did not deliver them from their earthly cares, because it was focused upon nonexistent gods, that is, idols."

"For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.  But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you."  My study bible teaches, "The kingdom of God is the central theme of the teaching of Jesus, and His righteousness is the subject of the Sermon on the Mount.  Calling us to be set free from anxiety about earthly things, Jesus directs us to look to heaven, to this greater 'country' which will be received at the Day of the Lord, secure in the faith that God will provide needed earthly blessings."  Let us note the focus of Jesus' teaching here:  we focus on the Kingdom first, and on God's righteousness that Jesus teaches, and "all these things shall be added to you."  He is teaching us about faith, and right-relatedness to the things of this world.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."  Again, we're cautioned against over-anxiety here.  We have to remember Jesus' teaching style; it is full of aphorisms and brilliant images for us to understand what He is driving at.  He's not necessarily saying we don't think at all about "tomorrow" -- but He's cautioning us about excessive anxiety and dwelling on things that turn them into a kind of idol.  We're better off focusing on the Kingdom, and putting everything else second to this, in the proper place.

It seems to me we live in a time that is deluged with anxieties and worries about tomorrow.  We're integrated into a modern age in which all kinds of media saturate us with images of what we are to be like, what we must look like, what we must have, what kind of house we need, what we must dwell in and how it must look, and what we must wear, eat, consume - in all sorts of senses of that word.  As we become more materially prosperous as a world, so anxiety sets in not only about the things we have but about what we think we must have because others have these things.  But Jesus calls us to something different, deeper, and a better perspective.  He's suggesting that such a focus only leads us to greater anxiety; indeed, I believe that in modern industrial societies the effects of modern life tend to be confirmed in the widespread pharmaceutical use of prescriptions for anti-anxiety and anti-depressant medications.  What Jesus calls for from us is a radical shift in our perspective on life:  put the Kingdom first.  Remember God's love first.  Let that understanding temper our ways of thinking about what we have, what we wear, what we eat.  Let the remembrance of God's love put those things into perspective for us.  Excessive anxiety isn't healthful nor is it helpful in changing our lives and gaining us a better quality of life.  All through the Sermon on the Mount, He's asked us to go deeper into ourselves, to examine our motivations, to watch our thoughts, to be aware of who we are on the inside.  For His kind of righteousness, this is what we need.  Here, He's telling us about excessive worry and anxiety.  And He's teaching us what we should do to counter that:  focus on the Kingdom, on the things that moth and rust can't ruin, that thieves can't steal from us.  Focus especially on God's love for us.  Look around at the incredible beauty of the world, the care and love and mercy in that beauty that we see all around ourselves.  He's telling us to give ourselves a break.  To focus on love and beauty is to focus on the mercy which gives us joy, which sets our perspectives in order.  Let us consider what we do with our time, how we focus, what drives us, and most of all, what softens and truly adds to our lives.  Let us focus on the real treasure.  Where does God's love come into the picture for you?  What does it teach you about where your worth lies?  We don't need to add to our troubles by this perspective that omits all these things.  Sufficient for the day is its own trouble.

But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you

 Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."  But He said to him, "Man, who made me a judge or an arbitrator over you?"  And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."  Then He spoke a parable to them, saying:  "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.  And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?'  So he said, 'I will do this:  I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.  And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry." '  But God said to him, 'Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."

Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.  Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.  Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds?  And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest?  Consider the lilies, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.    If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?  And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.  For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things.  But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you."

- Luke 12:13-31

In yesterday's reading, we first read that Jesus' ministry has reached a point at which He is now being challenged by the Pharisees and scribes, looking for something in which to catch Him, so that they may accuse Him.  In front of huge crowds, so great they trample on one another, Luke tells us, Jesus taught, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.  For these is nothing covered that will not be revealed, nor hidden that will not be known.  Therefore whatever you have spoken in the dark will be heard in the light, and what you have spoken in the ear in inner rooms will be proclaimed on the housetops.  And I say to you, My friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do.  But I will show you whom you should fear:  Fear Him who, after He has killed, has power to cast into hell; yes, I say to you, fear Him!  Are not five sparrows sold for two copper coins?  And not one of them is forgotten before God.  But the very hairs of your head are all numbered.  Do not fear therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows.  Also I say to you, whoever confesses Me before men, him the Son of Man also will confess before the angels of God.  But he who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.  And anyone who speaks a word against the Son of Man, it will be forgiven him; but to him who blasphemes against the Holy Spirit, it will not be forgiven.  Now when they bring you to the synagogues and magistrates and authorities, do not worry about how or what you should answer, or what you should say.  For the Holy Spirit will teach you in that very hour what you ought to say."

  Then one from the crowd said to Him, "Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me."  But He said to him, "Man, who made me a judge or an arbitrator over you?"  And He said to them, "Take heed and beware of covetousness, for one's life does not consist in the abundance of the things he possesses."  My study bible explains that "it was a tradition for respected rabbis to arbitrate personal disputes over property or money.  But Jesus refuses to play the role of judge regarding material things, and instead issues a stern warning about greed."   It's interesting here that Jesus refuses to be "judge" in a traditional and, if you will, worldly sense.  In the teachings in yesterday's reading, Jesus is quite clearly asserting Himself as Judge, but that is "judge" in a cosmic and spiritual sense, as His divine Person.  He's also begun to openly challenge the religious establishment.  So the context here emphasizes the difference between "judge" and Judge.  Jesus places His emphasis on the kingdom breaking through and the values of that kingdom in our lives.

Then He spoke a parable to them, saying:  "The ground of a certain rich man yielded plentifully.  And he thought within himself, saying, 'What shall I do, since I have no room to store my crops?'  So he said, 'I will do this:  I will pull down my barns and build greater, and there I will store all my crops and my goods.  And I will say to my soul, "Soul, you have many goods laid up for many years; take your ease; eat, drink, and be merry." '  But God said to him, 'Fool!  This night your soul will be required of you; then whose will those things be which you have provided?'  So is he who lays up treasure for himself, and is not rich toward God."  Again, I'll quote my study bible:  "The rich man is a fool, despite his material success, because he vainly puts all his trust in his possessions rather than in God.  To be rich toward God is to have a life of close communion with Him through faith and works."  Jesus' emphasis is on those who put all their faith in "worldly" or material life, and neglect to be rich toward God.  This isn't a criticism of reasonable concern for life and its necessities, but rather the blindness of a life lived without concern for the true wealth that gives value and meaning (including perspective) to everything else in our lives.

Then He said to His disciples, "Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat; nor about the body, what you will put on.  Life is more than food, and the body is more than clothing.  Consider the ravens, for they neither sow nor reap, which have neither storehouse nor barn; and God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds?  And which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  If you then are not able to do the least, why are you anxious for the rest?  Consider the lilies, how they grow:  they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.    If then God so clothes the grass, which today is in the field and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O you of little faith?  And do not seek what you should eat or what you should drink, nor have an anxious mind.  For all these things the nations of the world seek after, and your Father knows that you need these things.  But seek the kingdom of God, and all these things shall be added to you."   My study bible teaches:  "This is an exhortation against worry and anxiety, not against God-ordained planning and earnest work."  Jesus will frequently speak against worry and anxiety in the Gospels, and here we can see a parallel with yesterday's reading as well -- in which He taught that in the face of persecution and worldly courts His disciples are not to worry what they will say.  They are to place their faith in the Holy Spirit; they are in the process of true witnessing.  Here, there's a parallel emphasis on the necessities of life.  We're assured that God knows we have need of them.  But again, there's a parallel with the earlier story in Luke of Martha and Mary, and the one thing needed, the good portion.  And there is a promise here, that putting the things of the kingdom of God first will set things in order, in proper relation, and "these things" shall be added unto you.

I think it's important that we take Jesus' words seriously here.  What is it to seek that Kingdom first, and to put its values before everything so that we may be properly "related" to everything around us, including our material needs?  If you think about it, the world isn't only about our needs, but if we are privileged to live in a place where we have more than what we need for survival, then we also have choices to make about what to do with what we might be able to store up.  If we look at life and possessions that way, then we see that we may need a sort of plan for how we look at our wealth and what we do with it.  The values of the Kingdom become essential in this perspective, because they become a guidance for how we handle things in our lives.  Jesus addresses Himself to disciples who are going to work for this Kingdom, who may face terrible persecution because of it, be cast out of community and ostracized; they will put everything on the line.  And yet in this case, they are cautioned against worry and anxiety, to be rich toward God, and that the God who remembers every sparrow and numbers all the hairs on our heads is aware of what they need.  This is a powerful teaching of trust, above all else, a faith that is a trust (the essential meaning of the word we translate as "faith" from the Greek).    So let us remember, in all the choices we may make in our lives, what comes first? What sets things in right order for us when we make our decisions about what we pursue?  Jesus tells us that these things will be added unto us.  But can we take that great step of trust to begin?

Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing? Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more value than they? Which if you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature? So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field; how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith? Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble."

- Matthew 6:25-34

We have been reading the Sermon on the Mount. We began with The Beatitudes, in which Jesus taught the blessings of the disciple's life. Next He taught, You are the salt of the earth. You are the light of the world - the necessity of discipleship to the world. Then He taught His vision of the Law, "Do not think that I came to destroy the Law or the Prophets. I did not come to destroy but to fulfill." He then expanded His teaching on several statutes; the first against murder: "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not murder;'" then against adultery: "You have heard that it was said to those of old, 'You shall not commit adultery;'" and finally regarding vengeance: "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth.'" His expansion includes the inner life, not merely outward acts. Next He began to discuss spiritual practice (in almsgiving, prayer and fasting) - forbidding hypocrisy and again emphasizing the inner life, in "Do not be like the hypocrites." During the discussion of prayer, Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, teaching in Our Father in heaven. In yesterday's reading, He taught us about the separation between what rightly deserves our worship and what we place second in all ways. teaching that "where your treasure is, there your heart will be also." He taught us the importance of how we see, the lamp of the eye - and letting in the light. Otherwise, "if therefore the light that is in you is darkness, how great is that darkness!" Finally, there is the essential quality of discernment, making choices. He is completely in the tradition of the Old Testament, but now with an emphasis on the inner life, when He teaches: "No man can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or else he will be loyal to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon."

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?" Here, Jesus puts His emphasis on placing God and the life of the kingdom first, and puts it into specifics for us. What is the most important thing? What do we place first? Do we spend our time slavishly devoted to material priorities, or do they come second to Creator? This question, "Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?" is a hallmark of Jesus' teaching, an idea that will come again and again in the Gospels. My study bible points out that this is a teaching against severe anxiety, rather than thoughtful planning and care.

"Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not more value than they? Which if you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?" Jesus gives us firm examples of creatures of God and the worldly life. How do the birds survive without endless planning and concern with the future? They don't do the work to grow their food: scattering seed or harvesting and storing -- and yet, He says, your Father in heaven feeds them. Of how much more value are we, God's disciples and children by adoption? It is an emphasis on God our Father as provider. Do we have the power to think or worry ourselves into physical growth or longer lifespan? My study bible says, "Physical growth and length of life is dependent upon the providence of God more than upon food, drink and clothing."

"So why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field; how they grow: they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?" In some sense, this teaching also reflects an over-concern with appearances, as Jesus has already taught earlier in the Sermon. Here, a dwelling upon or anxiety about clothing or raiment is what He focuses on. Note again how He emphasizes that the wild lilies grow beautifully, even though they don't labor themselves nor spin thread for fabric. And yet, Jesus compares their splendid beauty to Solomon "in all his glory" -- and the wild lilies come out ahead. And for me there is a teaching here about not simply what we gain but how we are deserving: through discipleship we rely on the Father, we put that first, and remember that ultimately the Father is the one who clothes and feeds. It's not the work of our own effort or anxiety that makes us worthy. It is in this relationship in which we put our trust first. The power here is in the Father's love and care.

"Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added unto you." Here, the teaching comes full circle. Where is our emphasis? On what do we ultimately rely? The emphasis here is on our preoccupation, the things that may distract us in life. It's similar to Jesus' words to Martha and Mary, in which He says that Martha is worried and distracted about many things. This preoccupation belongs to a different way of life. (Let us remember the pagan worship that focused on fertility gods, the production of the earth, good fortune.) Here He gives us two important messages: first, our heavenly Father knows that we have need of all these things. It's not that we don't need them! His conclusion is therefore that we put first discipleship -- the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added unto us. It is a question of emphasis, what is in our hearts and minds, what do we put first. Again, as in all the teachings in the Sermon on the Mount, the emphasis is the fulfillment of what Jesus has called the greatest commandments.

"Therefore do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will worry about its own things. Sufficient for the day is its own trouble." Tomorrow has its own cares and worries and troubles. It doesn't do to focus in anxiety beyond today's troubles. This word for trouble, in the original Greek, is the same as the word for evil, or bad. It is tied to that which over-labors us, even to malice and spite and envy (see yesterday's reading). It seems to me there is an implication here that such overemphasis on worry and anxiety is a danger to our spiritual lives, one that can lead to temptations which are not healthy or good for our spiritual well-being.

"Sufficient to the day is the evil thereof" is the King James translation of the last verse, and it's a good translation. (While its language may be in some sense archaic to our ears now, the King James translation is still the most highly prized English translation among many biblical Greek scholars and translators.) This expression really seems to find all kinds of applications in my life! We have enough troubles for today -- and the word here seems to be that we can count on the fact that there will always be enough for today in our world. All kinds of adversarial things will always be there for us to contend with. So why add to our own troubles with extra things we pile on top of whatever today gives us? There will be enough for tomorrow that tomorrow brings with it! We live in an age of worry and anxiety. If we look around at our modern world, it seems that anxiety and depression are rampant. We have such an emphasis on image, what we look like, what image we project into the eyes of others -- and how the images around us feed our sense of what we really need, seeming to define who we really are. The emphasis here in Jesus' teaching is that placing God's kingdom and the righteousness He teaches first is an antidote to the upside down thinking that allows worldly things to define who we are, what we need, and where all our effort in life is focused. This is a recipe for overburdening ourselves with worry and anxiety, and for resulting depression. Moreover it will affect our own sense of what we are truly worth, our deservingness, and we easily lose sight therefore of God's great love and investment in us. Isn't it time to rethink all our emphasis, to consider what gives true worth and value to a human life -- and stature and honor and nobility? We are children by adoption, "for God so loved the world!" Look at the birds that are somehow lovingly provided for, and the tremendous beauty of the wild lilies. In God's eyes, how much more valuable are we? When we look at life backwards, we lose sight of this love and all that it does to teach us what we truly are, the kingdom and the righteousness we are capable of carrying into the world, as the salt of the earth, the light of the world. Mammon, as master, will take all of that away from us. It all depends on what we put first, where our real treasure is.