May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable before you, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.
Please be seated.
Good morning my friends. It is so good to be here.
In the Sundays since the Feast of All Saints, on November 1st, the Lectionary of the Church conforms what some have called the Season of the Reign of God.
The Gospel lessons for each Sunday in this month of November have alluded, one way or another, to the promise, the hope, and the imminence, the expectation, that the coming of the Reign of God requires from you and me and the Church.
And this is understandable, since the liturgical season we will commence next Sunday is that of the Advent of Christ, the four weeks of preparation for our yearly commemoration of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth, our savior and Lord.
Today, as we celebrate the feast of the Reign of Christ, as we praise and sing to Christ the King, the Gospel starkly reminds us what this kingdom, what this reign of Christ is all about.
And the Gospel parable told by Jesus, both by need and appearance, urges us to look for its roots in the Old Testament.
If we look then to our first reading -you may have already noticed the similarities between this text and Matthew’s gospel for today.
Ezekiel, one of the great prophets of Israel, is speaking to Israel from the midst of its Exile in Babylon. The core of the people of Israel has been taken away, for the benefit of the Babylonian Empire, to dwell in a strange land -exactly what Psalm 137 talks about.
And Ezekiel, even from the midst of national disruption and suffering, speaks the voice of God calling Israel to act justly, and specifically so among themselves, oppressed by the same tyrant as they are. Ezekiel prophesied that God will come as shepherd to gather Israel, but also that God will feed justice to these sheep, judging (with some harshness it seems) against those who have abused and diminished others.
In the words of Ezekiel, God promises justice to Israel, yes: she will be restored to her land and green pastures --but justice will also be restored to the children of Israel. Justice, not wrath.
In the Gospel, Jesus is telling a parable with a very similar theme to that of the text from Ezekiel.
There are a few differences -which can likely be accounted for by the time elapsed between the sayings of Ezekiel and the ministry of Jesus of Nazareth, under seven hundred years.
Jesus speaks of the Son of Man, with a very visual proclamation of his coming as a sort of great shepherd, to gather all the nations of the earth -to gather all people, from all languages, cultures, religions.
I think it is safe to assume that we all have some idea about what this great gathering of all times would look like. It should look bigger than Woodstock from up in the air, I am sure.
But, again, I think it is safe to assume that we all have given some thought to what this grand reckoning is about, and so the poetry we find in this parable of Jesus connects very well with our own cultural notions about ‘when the son of man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him’.
In the midst of all this grand language, Jesus turns to the far more amicable figure of the shepherd.
The image of the shepherd separating goat from sheep is very telling.
Sheep tend to be mild and gregarious, while goats can often turn out stubborn, if not aggressive and antisocial. Sheep follow the shepherd, and goats, the heard-goat. So, you really want to keep these apart.
The basis for the judgement of the Son of Man on either sheep or goat, as we are told, is not very religious, or at least not very religious in the most restrictive sense of the expression.
The one plain theological point being made here is that Jesus is to be found in the hungry, the thirsty, the prisoner.
But beyond that, the basis for the judgement that Jesus proclaims for this end of times are those of love put into action, works of compassion.
In other words, Jesus equals true discipleship -the true character of those who follow and emulate his holy example- to the care we give.
This is not to say that doctrine, and good doctrine, is not really important. Doctrine is important, and good doctrine is very important for the well-being of the church and the coherence of our mission.
But doctrine, however good, does not, and in fact is not meant to replace our works of mercy, our service to Jesus who meets us in the sick, the thirsty, the hungry, and the prisoner. If anything, the well-being of our doctrine hangs on the generosity and commitment of our love made service.
This is a sobering message for the church today, for you and me. But let us be clear: the message was just as challenging for the church where this gospel of Matthew was composed because it likely addressed some part of the inner life of that specific community which called for a discernment of what the kingdom of God was really about for them, in their own context.
So -through the lens of this parable, in our commitment to those in need, and in whom we are met by Christ, I want to ask, which things is the reign of God about, for our congregation of this church of the Ascension? Let me mention a few.
. The persistent support to the work of St Matthew’s House - I encourage you to ask from Ruth and Jack Faulks and others involved.
. The ABC program, providing breakfast, every week, to children in school, with a very dedicated team with Jean, Catherine, Will, and others.
. The Pastoral Care initiatives, with Ruth Roberts and Diane and others, keeping tabs of love and prayers on those who we do not see often, and visiting and supporting those who may need it.
. The support this congregation provides to the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, as it seeks to empower people in impoverished areas or countries and in need of material support for their development.
. The work in the Mission to the Seafarers, with Deacon Janice and (now, server!) Sue Hawthorne-Bates, where they are so dedicated to being family and home to sailors touching port in Hamilton.
. The Advent boxes initiative, which has been announced today, as a means for supporting the winter reserves of food and other supplies at St Matthew’s House.
. The Giving Tree initiative, which will be formally launched next Sunday, seeking to bring gifts of Christmas to a family in financial need.
These are all programs and initiatives made possible by the generosity of many and the commitment and passion of specific individuals in our community.
One could say that we as community keep getting involved in these projects supporting people in need with the same persistence with which we celebrate the sacraments of the Church. Because there is just as much of the core of who we are and what the church is about at stake.
Now, the parable of the sheep and goats ends somehow drastically: those who did not act compassionately “will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life”.
Yes, there is judgement for us who have not cared enough, or chosen not to care for Jesus who meets us in those people who suffer.
But let us also notice that this is a parable about the fullness of times, or the end of times, even though it is spoken to us today. Which means, the gulf between those who choose and those who choose not to care for Jesus in those who suffer is, if nothing else, surmountable. It can be crossed.
In fact, one could say that this separation between the sheep and goats of the parable is actually meant to be overcome. These trenches between those who care and those who do not care for Jesus made sacrament in the suffering, often double as opportunities for transformation, growth, and conversion into service.
A final observation. According to the imagery used in the parable, one could say that no matter what our judgement may come down to, we are never judged in solitude, as individuals.
In the parable, whether we end up on one or the other side of the great shepherd, it seems as if we will end up in a multitude. Or maybe a smaller crowd. Who knows, if sixty something on any given Sunday.
And my point here is that, whichever that crowd may turn out to be, we are called to continual transformation, in community, to growth and conversion after the example and love and compassion of Jesus the Christ, our King and Lord, whom we now await. In community, and here and now, bearing witness to that just as actualized love of Christ, his reign of love and compassion.
All of this somehow accounts for the collect we prayed earlier for this feast of the Reign of Christ:
Almighty and everlasting God, whose will it is to restore all things in your well-beloved Son, our Lord and King, grant that the peoples of the earth, now divided and enslaved by sin, may be freed and brought together under his gentle and loving rule; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.
Amen.
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