Sermon for October 4, 2020 - The 18th Sunday after Pentecost - Proper 22A - The Rev'd Jeffrey W. Mello

Isaiah 5:1-7;  Philippians 3:4b-14; Matthew 21:33-46

Could you hear the longing in St. Paul’s letter to the church in Phillipi? Could you hear Paul’s desire that the current circumstances of his life might break open and reveal something more of the new life promised to him by Jesus?

Paul writes, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection”

He moves forward, despite his current challenges, “straining forward to what lies ahead.”

Why? “To press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.”

What a letter for our time.  What important words for us to hear as we live out our days hoping for something new, something more, working to let God break into the world, straining forward, pressing on.

For the gathered Philippians, these words of encouragement from a leader who is not able to be with them as they would like, or as he would like, these words are life-giving sustenance.  

They are meant to remind them that the current conditions of their lives are just that, the current conditions.  

Their story is far from over, and the goal to which they are working is nothing short than the prize of the heavenly call of God.  To know Christ and the power of his resurrection.

And so it is for us, beloved.  It is hard to imagine several more months of this COVID-19 pandemic.  It is exhausting to see how long the work of racial justice will take to complete.  We are increasingly stressed as we brace for the days leading up to our national election, and very likely for some time after that, with each day’s headlines bringing only more uncertainty.   

This is just about the worst possible timing to have to launch a Stewardship Appeal, or preach as Stewardship sermon.

Or is it?

One of the things I love about St. Paul’s, that I have always loved about St. Paul’s, is that we spend most of our time and energy focused on the “why” of being church, and less time on the “what” or the “how.”

Mission and ministry, the “what” and the “how,” flow from our commitment to follow Christ and become the disciples we are called to be, doing God’s work in the world, the “why”.

One of the gifts that I pray comes out of this time of COVID-19 and the many, many, many ways we have had to adapt, and prune, and prioritize in the church is that congregations all over the world emerge clearer on their why, and more intentional on choosing the “how” and “what” as they re-emerge, and regather.

It has the potential to be a stunning, yet life-giving taste of the death and resurrection Jesus showed us, and for which St Paul longs in his letter to an early church.

What gives me hope about the church in general, and St. Paul’s in particular, is that the “why” of who we are has been laid bare, without much to distract from it.

What has kept us going, urged us on, sustained us in our straining forward to what lies head is our “why.”  Because we are one body in Christ, that’s why.  Because we are connected in community, and we are connected in Christ.  That’s why.

This core truth of who we are and why we are has sustained us in this time like a steady heartbeat, pumping life-blood through this body of Christ we call St. Paul’s.

Why else would new ministries be sprouting and growing in a time when things are shutting down and cutting back?  

The heartbeat of God pumps and urges us to respond to the social injustices of our day, the heart of God beats and empowers us to reach out to care for one another in new and creative ways.  The heart of God shows us that we can still feed the hungry, we can still be the hands and hearts, the feet and the voices of God.

And so our work has been, these last few months, watching our commitment to follow Jesus push up through the cracks of shutdowns and quarantines and wrap itself around us through the daily news cycles.

In a conference with clergy from all over the country, we were talking about what this time in the church might mean for the future.

I thought about the fire at St. Paul’s in 1976.  It will be 45 years since that fateful night this coming January.

Of course, I wasn’t here then. Only a few of us were.  But what I know about that time from the stories you have told me, is that St. Paul’s emerged stronger and clearer about what really mattered, and what being church really meant because you had the way church had always looked taken away from you.

As I read St. Paul’s letter to the Phillipians, I am encouraged.  I am reminded that the essence of who we are, the “why” of being church and the why of being this church is getting aired out, opened up, exposed to the sun in a way that will sustain us for whatever God needs us for next.

The parable of the landowner from Matthew is really a parable about stewardship.  It is really a question for our time.  What do you want to do with all that God has given you?  How do you want to spend your time?  What relationships do you want to cultivate, and which ones need to be let go?  How do you want to spend your money?

Jesus tells his disciples that our ultimate goal ought to be producing the fruits of the Kingdom of God.  That is about producing more love, making more justice, knowing more peace, casting more hope, spreading more joy.

It is inspiring to me that, in a time when our buildings are not as available to us like they once were, the heart of God has led us to produce the fruits of the kingdom in the vineyards of our lives, not just the vineyard at 15 St. Paul’s St.

We don’t know what the financial picture of St. Paul’s will look like in 2021.  We know that some of you have lost your jobs, had to take time off to teach children from home, or you run businesses that are suffering.  And we know you will support the work and mission of St. Paul’s as best you can.

We also know that some of us have the capacity to shoulder a larger part of the financial needs of the parish, and we have a responsibility to do just that.

We know that fundraising and space rental incomes have all but evaporated, and will need to be offset by our collective financial pledges.

And we know that St. Paul’s isn’t doing less of anything, and we are doing much more of a whole lot.

I hope that you will respond to this year’s Appeal as generously as you are possibly able.

I hope that you are inspired by our community’s faithfulness in continuing to respond to God’s call in this time in which we are living.

And I hope that you take some encouragement, both from St. Paul’s words to the church, but also the signs all around us that we continue to be one body; connected in community and connected in christ.

And because that is true, we have everything we need to press on toward the goal for the prize of the heavenly call of God in Christ Jesus.

AMEN.

1 While all direct and indirect quotes are always cited, there are sources I read regularly in preparation for sermon writing.  Chances are thoughts have been spurred by these sources and so I list the usual suspects here:  David Lose, In the Meantime, The New Interpreters Bible, Sacra Pagina

© 2020 The Reverend Jeffrey W. Mello