Something Old, Something New

Something Old, Something New

Pastor Mark Havel

Matthew 22:1-14

Once more Jesus spoke to them in parables, saying: “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a king who gave a wedding banquet for his son. He sent his slaves to call those who had been invited to the wedding banquet, but they would not come. Again he sent other slaves, saying, ‘Tell those who have been invited: Look, I have prepared my dinner, my oxen and my fat calves have been slaughtered, and everything is ready; come to the wedding banquet.’

But they made light of it and went away, one to his farm, another to his business, while the rest seized his slaves, mistreated them, and killed them. The king was enraged. He sent his troops, destroyed those murderers, and burned their city. Then he said to his slaves, ‘The wedding is ready, but those invited were not worthy. Go therefore into the main streets, and invite everyone you find to the wedding banquet.’ Those slaves went out into the streets and gathered all whom they found, both good and bad; so the wedding hall was filled with guests.

“But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing a wedding robe, and he said to him, ‘Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?’ And he was speechless. Then the king said to the attendants, ‘Bind him hand and foot, and throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ For many are called, but few are chosen.”

---

So, I spent a couple of days – a week or so ago – in Columbus, Ohio, at Trinity Lutheran Seminary, from whence I graduated 25 years ago, and I got to listen to some lectures from my favorite professor and theologian from those days, Mark Allan Powell. As expected, I learned a lot from him over the course of three lectures in two days’ time, and I look forward to sharing some of that with you very deliberately sometime down the road.

But, in addition to the specifics of what he shared, I came away feeling encouraged and emboldened to get a little creative with my scriptural interpretation, preaching, and teaching. Which is to say, I found myself wrestling with this parable in a new way that may or may not pass muster with smarter people than me – which is something my professor Mark Allan Powell has done his entire career as a theologian.

Let me be very clear, none of what I’m about to share is Mark Allan Powell material. I don’t want to get him in trouble. And I can’t imagine I’m the first person to interpret this passage the way I’m about to, but this is all me.

Because I wondered differently about Jesus’ parable today than I ever have before: about how harsh it sounds … about the weeping and gnashing of teeth … about the outer darkness … about how unfair it is that that poor guy would be invited to the party, accept the invitation at the very last minute and, just because he didn’t have the right robe to wear, got punished so brutally.

This is so hard for me – and maybe it is for you, too – because the context and characters of the parable have always been the following:

The king is God and the wedding banquet is the Kingdom of Heaven.

The first round of those invited to the party represent the good, faithful, Jews and Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day – those who rejected and questioned him, like the scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees and the like. They are the ones in the parable who ignore the invitation and go away – to their farm or to their business. And they’re the ones who mistreated and killed the ones who extended the invitation, in the first place.

The second round of invitees – the B-list, if you will – who got invited to the party late to fill the seats, eat the food, and make the king happy – those were the followers of Jesus, the peasants, his disciples, his family and friends; and by extension, they represent US – you and me – the outsiders to the Jewish elite; those not part of the traditional, historically ‘chosen ones’ of the house of Israel. They are – WE ARE – the ones who should be grateful to have received the invitation, even if only by way of the B-list. They are – WE ARE – the ones who should respond to such an invitation and feast with great joy, deep gratitude, and faithful discipleship.

And that sad sack who gets the boot – the guy who shows up without the proper attire – who didn’t get the memo about the dress code represents one of US, too – you or I – well-intended, but unprepared; called and invited, but not up to the challenge; not faithful enough; not invested enough; not good enough; and therefore, sadly, worthy of eternal punishment and hellfire; outer darkness, weeping, and gnashing of teeth.

This is a rough take, right? We aren’t used to seeing this side of Jesus … and I don’t like it, to be honest … the one where he preaches about and promises “the outer darkness” and the “weeping and gnashing of teeth.” It’s black and white and harsh. It’s utterly lacking in grace, mercy, and the love we long for – and which is usually easier to find in his preaching and teaching, to be honest.

But, again, that’s the more popular interpretation and understanding of this parable, as far as I know. And it’s very likely accurate and true to Jesus’ intentions in many ways. After all, it’s not the first or only time Jesus lays out some high expectations for his followers. Remember, or look up, the very popular Matthew 25 where we hear that parable about the sheep and the goats – just three chapters after this one – where some believers are “sheep,” blessed and chosen to sit at the right hand of God, while some are deemed “goats,” damned and doomed to the same eternal fire reserved for the devil and his angels.

Again, I don’t love that. And I don’t want to steal ALL of Jesus’ thunder, here. I think we’re meant to hear Jesus get serious from time to time; and feel convicted; and think hard about our invitation to follow his ways. But these are parables, too, remember. Nothing more, nothing less. And it’s okay to recognize that Jesus gets serious and hyperbolic when he wants our attention. So he goes hard with the outer darkness, the weeping, and the gnashing of teeth, from time to time – and often in Matthew’s Gospel.

But I wonder if there’s another way – an additional take on this parable of the wedding banquet, the late comers, and the sad sack who gets the boot.

What if most of it is as expected and as I’ve already explained?

The king is God. The wedding banquet is the Kingdom of Heaven

The first round of those invited to the party still represent the good, faithful, Jews and Jewish leaders of Jesus’ day – those who rejected and questioned him, like the scribes, Pharisees, Sadducees and the like, who wanted nothing to do with the party of grace he promised.

And what if the second round of invitees is still you and me – the B-listers who aren’t part of the Jewish inner circle of God’s chosen ones, but who are graciously welcomed in, fed, nourished, and showered with grace, nonetheless.

BUT, what if the sad sack who gets the boot … the one who shows up without the right clothes on … ISN’T one of us? What if that’s Jesus, the Son, himself, who the king questions, for all the guests in that packed wedding hall to see and to hear: “Friend, how did you get in here without a wedding robe?” “Are you telling me none of these people – not one of my other guests – cared enough to see that you were clothed, and welcomed, and had what you needed to enjoy the feast with the rest of them?”

And what if, just like Jesus, before Pilate at his crucifixion, this guy was speechless; uncomplaining; silent, like a sheep before its shearers – as the prophet predicted. And what if we’re supposed to see him, as Jesus, bound, and cast into the outer darkness of his crucifixion with all of its weeping, gnashing of teeth, whips, thorns, nails, and more?

And what if we’re supposed to look at ourselves and at each other, with cups overflowing, with full plates, full bellies, heads and hearts full of forgiveness and abundance none of us has earned, and wonder how we let that happen?

What if the message of this wedding banquet parable is much like that one about the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25: whenever you did it to one of the least of these – fed the hungry, healed the sick, visited the prisoner, clothed the naked – you did it to me? And whenever you DID NOT do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it for me, either.

And what if, to be called is one thing … to get the invitation, to show up to the party, to celebrate the grace and mercy and love that God offers us all – A listers and B listers, alike?

And what if to be chosen is something altogether more? What if that means to look around at who’s nearby; to be sure our neighbor and fellow wedding guests have clothes and food and healthcare and equal rights and fair pay and a safe place to sleep and aren’t deported on sight or executed on a livestream or bombed into oblivion?

And what if we are called to be convicted by the King’s question – “How did this happen?” – as we watch our Savior get the boot, take the heat, and die on the cross – for our sake – until we get it right?

Amen

A History of Grace

A History of Grace

Pastor Mark Havel

Matthew 20:1-16

[Jesus said,] “The kingdom of heaven is like a laborer who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with them for the usual daily wage, he sent them out into the vineyard. When he went out about nine o’clock, he found others standing idle in the marketplace and he said to them, ‘You also go into my vineyard and I will pay you what is right.’ So they went. When he went out about noon and again about 3 o’clock, he did the same. When he went out at 5 o’clock, he found others still standing around. He said to them, ‘Why are you standing here idle all day?’ They said to him, ‘Because no one has hired us.’ He said to them, ‘You also, go out and work in the vineyard.’

When evening came, the landowner said to his manager, ‘Call in the workers and give them their pay, beginning with the last and going to the first.’ When those who were hired at 5 o’clock came in, they received the usual daily wage. When those who were hired first came, they thought they would receive more, but instead they also received the usual daily wage. And when they received it, they grumbled against the landowner saying, ‘These last have worked only one hour and yet you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.’

The landowner said to one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong. Did you not agree with me for the usual daily wage? Take what belongs to you and go. I choose to give to the last the same as I give to you. Am I not allowed to do what I choose with what belongs to me? Or are you envious because I am generous?’ So, the last will be first and the first will be last.”

---

I’ve had the occasion to talk about Cross of Grace’s history a few different times in the last several weeks – particularly where our earliest days as a new, “mission” congregation are concerned. And it’s all been related to our latest expansion project and because of the 25th anniversary we’ve been celebrating over the course of this past year or so. I’ve talked about the building with our architects and contractors, of course. I’ve had a recent conversation with someone from our synod, who’s new to the ministry, about mission development and what it takes to start a new congregation. And I shared some of all of that with folks in our most recent CrossRoads class – as I always do – for people who want to learn more about where we come from, and about how and why we do what we do, as a family of faith.

So it all came to mind again when I started to consider this familiar parable about “the workers in the vineyard.”

The story goes, as many of you know, that I was called as a Pastor and Mission Developer, technically, to serve as an associate at Servants of Christ Lutheran Church, up in the Oaklandon/Geist neck of the woods, in Indianapolis, but that all of my work and ministry took place here in New Palestine. I like to tell about how a handful of faithful, committed, brave Lutheran-flavored Christians were assembled from a few area Lutheran congregations, like Servants of Christ, and St. James, in Greenfield, Gethsemane on the east side, and Bethany on the south side, all to serve as seeds for this fledgling idea of a new congregation.

And I like to tell about how Servants of Christ paid my salary and many of our General Fund expenses for the first three years of our life together. And about how Servants of Christ purchased the land we’re sitting on and then signed over the title to all 10.3 acres of it, free and clear, as a gift. And I like to explain that all of that spiritual capital and financial support were a big part of why we were able to build our first building … and add to it as soon and as often as we have … and continue to grow in ways far more important that square footage, in just these past 25 years.

See, for people who know anything about new church start-ups and mission developments in our denomination, what we’ve been able to do in a relatively short period of time at Cross of Grace – namely to build and grow and build and grow and give generously and thrive along the way – usually takes the average mission congregation much, much longer in this day and age.

Typically a pastor/developer shows up in a mission field like New Palestine and spends 6 months to a year just gathering people who might want to be part of a new congregation. Typically, they don’t start worshipping for another 9 months or so, until they’ve been together for meetings and for Bible studies and for other ways of getting to know each other, first. Typically, they have to spend all sorts of time and energy – and spiritual and financial resources – raising money and saving money; finding land and paying for it; or buying land back from the larger Church who owned it in the first place. Typically, all of that needs to be done – and can take years – long before they can even think about designing and building a first facility for worship, learning, and service.

And typically, the first building a mission congregation builds doesn’t look anything like what we were able to build – which was basically the space we’re sitting in that has sustained us and made room for us, these past 25 years – at least as far as worship is concerned. First facilities – per the expectations and demands of the larger church – are usually a lot smaller and can’t foster the kind of ministry – or welcome – that we’ve been blessed to share, thanks to the head-start and help we received from our friends at Servants of Christ.

And typically, because of all of that work and waiting, pastors and mission developers for new congregations don’t last as pastors of their congregations for more than 18 months after they move into their first building, or complete a major building project – let alone three. Honestly – and sadly – it’s just too much of a tiring, conflicted, stressful journey to bear.

Well, this morning’s parable had me thinking about all of this, because when I tell the story of Cross of Grace to others in the Church – especially when I tell it to other Pastors and Mission Developers who know something about all I just described – I get a little self-conscious and I used to even feel a bit guilty about the way we’ve come to be. Having come here straight out of seminary – green as green can be – I wondered if they looked at me like I was like one of those workers who showed up at 5 o’clock, worked for a shorter part of the day, and reaped the same reward my friends and colleagues had been dreaming about and working for since very early in the proverbial morning.

But to feel guilty or self-conscious about any of this is to deny the very profound experience of grace that has blessed my life – and ours together – from the very beginning.

See, the plan for starting new congregations where the larger Church is concerned is what it is and I understand why it has to be that way in many instances. The larger church wants congregations to establish themselves as viable. They want to see trends of financial income and commitments. The larger church needs to be paid back for the land and the resources they provide, so that they can provide those resources for others down the line. The larger church needs to see new, growing communities of Christian workers out there in the vineyard punching a clock and earning their keep and proving themselves. Even the Church, in instances like this, can’t act like God can act – as graciously as Jesus tells us God acts – in this morning’s parable.

And at the risk of tooting our own proverbial horn, I think it’s fair to say that we have been as faithful and as successful – if not more faithful and more successful in our ministry together – because we keep telling this story and working to honor the gracious abundance that has been shared with us over the years.

And, while the larger Church has all those good reasons and real needs for starting congregations the way they do, I can’t help but wonder if all those rules and regulations; all those hoops and hurtles; all those tiresome timelines and tedious ways do everything but foster generosity, gratitude and grace – which I happen to think are our greatest assets at Cross of Grace, and the reason we continue to do God’s work well and faithfully around here.

And I hope and pray our experience as a congregation impacts and translates into the way we live as individuals – and out there in the world – too.

Because if each of us takes a minute, I suspect we can all think of someone or some ways that we have been blessed with a gracious advantage in our lives. I suspect most of us can point to someone who helped us when we didn’t deserve it; gave us a leg-up, encouraged us, supported us, pushed us; loved us, just because. And, of course, by virtue of the circumstances of our birth – most of us as working or middle class white people in this country we call home – are graced with privilege so many others in the world can’t comprehend.

It’s why I have to think those laborers in the vineyard – the ones who showed up at 5 o’clock in the afternoon and received the full day’s wage – were so surprised and grateful that they came back to work for that landowner again. I’d like to think they showed up early the next morning, instead of hanging around in the marketplace all day. I’d like to think they worked hard for their boss, and that they probably brought along some friends to help, too; to experience this abundance I’m sure they could hardly believe themselves. And I’d like to think that landowner’s simple grace and surprising generosity fostered their own.

So much of that is why I work as hard as I do around here – because I’m still surprised and I remain grateful for what was and has first been given to us for the sake of this ministry we share.

It’s why I hope we are all inspired to give generously to what we’re up to around here – Building Funds, General Funds, and every other chance we have to share our resources with the world around us.

It’s why I hope we’re always looking for ways to get involved in this ministry, by serving on ministry teams, by studying Scripture, and by getting our hands dirty for the sake of the kingdom.

It’s why I hope, whether you’ve been here for 5 minutes or for 25 years, you’re compelled by the shear blessing of God’s grace that built and lives and moves and breathes in this place, and that you’re moved to celebrate and share that however you can manage.

Because – truth be told – the work of starting a church and being faithful and growing a congregation and celebrating 25 years of it all – isn’t any less work, if you’re doing it well, no matter how much help you’ve received along the way, or how recently you’ve arrived to the party. My hope is that, because the grace we’ve received from the beginning of our life together is so abundantly clear … and because of the grace that belongs to us all in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus … we’ll continue to be clear and diligent and faithful and generous, in returning the favor to as many people and in as many ways as we can – with no strings attached – as we go.

Amen