The Last Sunday of the Kingdom - Christ the King

Over the last few weeks we have had readings about the KINGDOM OF GOD – what it means, how to spot it, and who exactly benefits from it. We were led peacefully through the stories that told us about life in first century Palestine, and at the end we could see that the poor, the outcast, the marginalized and oppressed would be those who help us to build the KINGDOM OF GOD – by showing us the nature of the CREATOR and His love for us.

Unfortunately, today, it has all gone wrong – it is a bit like reading the first few chapters of a book, then skipping to the last chapter (has anybody done that before) only to find that the book has taken quite a turn. If you can imagine the scene – Jesus has just told some parables, and he finishes with the story of the shepherd. A shepherd who, at night, separates out the sheep from the goats – this is the apocalyptic bit, in the great tradition of the prophets – revelations of heaven – that the children of Israel had been trying to fathom for hundreds of years. The Old Testament reading from the prophet Ezekiel stops short again in our lectionary, the prophet says at verse 20 “Now I myself shall judge between the fat sheep and the lean….I shall judge between one sheep and another”.

The Jewish expansion on this text (The Midrash) imagines someone being questioned by God, asking them “What are your life’s works?” If the answer is “I fed the hungry and thirsty, I clothed the naked, I brought up the orphan and gave alms” then the reply is “This is the gate of the Lord, through which the righteous may enter”; come on in.

However, the NEW TESTAMENT offers a twist, as it always does. The twist is that JESUS the SON OF GOD is walking around bold as brass on earth. And His reply to his followers (wishing to please Him) is this….if you do something for the least of people, you do it as if you were doing it for me”.

We have pressed the fast forward button this week in the readings, we are right at the end of the disc – we can see the mystery unfolding in front of our eyes.

Jesus has made a statement – and he is watching the faces of His followers, to see who has any understanding. This is the last lap, and he is waiting for them to join the dots and see the great cosmic picture.

It’s like Rolf Harris drawing a picture – the great jumble lines and colours could be anything really, until Rolf takes a brush and puts a dot in the middle, and there is it – a kangaroo riding a scooter.

Jesus has joined up the past, present and future and with a quick conclusion He has shown the people there (and dare I say – those present today) that He is the Messiah, and at the end of time he will be sorting out the wheat from the chaff, the sheep from the goats, the good from the evil, the Godly from the Ungodly…we could go on all day – add your own phrase.

So faithful disciples, we have listened to the stories about the Kingdom of God, and we have asked ourselves the questions, but if we are not careful, we can ignore the most important question that is “how are we to learn from these stories”. This is the question that was in the forefront of the minds of the authors of the New Testament.

The unstoppable St. Paul prays for the new church at Ephesus that “The God of our Lord Jesus Christ may give you the spirit of wisdom and of unveiling in the knowledge of him, having eyes of your hearts enlightened, THAT YOU MAY KNOW WHAT IS THE HOPE TO WHICH HE HAS CALLED YOU”. This is certainly not a bad prayer at all – it hits the mark, dealing with the concerns of the new church – are they on the right path? Are they going in the right direction? Are they being faithful to the teachings of Christ?

In the Gospel, the disciples are losing their privileged position – they have been told that there will be more disciples – even some from the less respectable parts of society – criminals, tax collectors, and sinners of all sorts. They will be called to build the kingdom far and wide – and these people will embody the kingdom of GOD.

In a few weeks time we will be thinking of the little town of Bethlehem – the town Matthew refers to as insignificant. In this sense, all the poor and forgotten people are insignificant, like Bethlehem, yet from them, the LORD comes to us. That is why the text tells us that in serving the poor, we are serving the Christ of Our Faith. And in our solidarity with the poorest, we recognise the humble kingship of the Son of Man. There is NO OTHER WAY TO “inherit the Kingdom of Heaven”, that is the blessing of being face-to-face with God.

In a few weeks we will be remembering the child born in poverty, in a stable to a homeless refugee, and we will think of the journey he took to the cross. On this day, the Feast of Christ the King, we are called to ask ourselves the questions “what on earth does all that mean to me? Can we see what it is yet?”

SERMON - Kingdom 3

Jesus continues to tell parables about the kingdom of heaven – and today he continues with the parable of the talents. In the previous parables, he has told us that we need to be prepared for the Second Coming at all times. Christians have taken it to mean that diligence in carrying out one's responsibilities is essential for more important tasks in the future.
A master, before leaving on a journey, entrusts his slaves with his money, “each according to his ability” (v. 15). Two servants invest the money and earn more (vv. 16, 17); the third simply buries it (v. 18). When the master returns (v. 19), he praises the investors; they, he says, will be made responsible for “many things” (vv. 21, 23), and will “enter into the joy of your master”. But the third slave, admitting that he was afraid of his master’s wrath (v. 24), simply returns the original sum (v. 25). The master chastises him for his wickedness and laziness. This slave loses what he has been given (v. 28) and is condemned to “outer darkness” (v. 30). This would have caused a stir in Jesus’ day, for a rabbinic maxim commends burial of money as a way of protecting it. I suppose in the current financial climate, it is probably safer to bury money, so the parable could be confusing for us.
But this parable is about the kingdom of heaven, so what is it teaching us? “Weeping and gnashing of teeth” (v. 30) is a stock phrase for condemnation of the wicked at the Last Day. God both rewards generously and is a stern judge. He expects us to be good stewards of his gifts and we will be commended and rewarded for faithfully carrying out his mission.
There are some other interesting things about the parable Firstly, in Verse 15: The phrase “to each according to his ability” has led, in modern languages, to the use of the term talent for gift, aptitude and flair – so this really is the parable of the ‘skills’ if you like.
The second interesting thing is the phrase “After a long time”: Perhaps this is an indication that Christ’s second coming will not be within the lifetimes of those who knew Jesus during his earthly life. I have always wondered about this, because it was clear that the early church believed that Jesus would come again before they had all died.
The third thing I find rather important for us as Christians today is found in Verse 21: “trustworthy”: Here the meaning of the Greek word includes not only being honest, but also believing and risk-taking. There is the clear statement that we should use our God given talents to make the kingdom of God a reality, and not be put off by the way things are.
In the reading from Zephaniah , judgement is looming for the people of Jerusalem – They have said to themselves: “The Lord will do nothing, neither good nor bad.” They hold a belief in a god who is not involved or seemingly interested in life or creation - a sort of sleeping God.
So what are the readings saying to us? Well, it would be tempting to preach about money, but it isn’t as simple as that. The parable is about two attitudes: of those who pass on what they have received from God, and of those who keep for themselves what the Lord wanted to give them. In addition, the focus of the parable is in the criticism of the attitude of the servant who buried the money. Hiding things is not an option.
In the parable, the man going on a journey could well be Jesus ascending into heaven, and those left, entrusted with the riches are us.
We are given, according to our aptitudes, talents to help grow and nurture the faith – we are expected obtain growth and whether the conditions are good or bad, to keep plodding on – to bear witness to life. That’s what Paul means when he tells us to keep awake. The first two servants did just that, and their hard work produced fruit.
The third servant is, of course, in his own world. This might be a metaphor for those people who have faith, but choose to stop it from making any real difference in their lives. We know this is something that affects the greater proportion of people who say they are Christians.
It’s about making goodness grow in church communities, and in our lives – and stopping all those things which kill goodness – things like division, suspicion, idolatry and selfishness. We must make the best use of the brief space left to us (and our talents) before the Lord comes.
Hide not your talents, they for use were made. What's a sun-dial in the shade?
Benjamin Franklin (1706 - 1790)
Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best.
Henry Van Dyke
At the Assembly in School this week, the children sang one of their favourites – it’s called MAGIC PENNY – and it’s about sharing what we have been given…
Magic Penny
(Malvina Reynolds)

Love is something if you give it away
Give it away, give it away
Love is something if you give it away
You end up having more

It's just like a magic penny
Hold it tight & you won't have any
Lend it, spend it & you'll have so many
They'll roll all over the floor, for

It is undoubtedly the heart of the parable – and the children understand it, and so should we.
In the letter to the church at Thessalonica – Paul is dealing with this very issue. He is concerned that the “Children of Light” will be caught out – sleeping on the job - he advises his readers to “build up” each other, to support each other spiritually.
The parable of the talents is teaching us that the joy of faith, as well as our own joy, is best nurtured in an active Christian faith – based on grace, courage and concern for others, rather than on formality, self-protection and fear.
Let’s build each other up as a church, and invest the good news wisely in our hearts and the hearts of our neighbours.