| The Foundation of Lady Katherine Leveson at Temple Balsall | ||
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St
Mary's Church
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No one can serve two masters Matthew 6. 24 - 34 Sermon preached on Sunday 30th January 2005 by The Bible functions in the church primarily to nurture and shape the lives of faithful individuals in the community. It presents God, whose character is revealed in Jesus and who is depicted over a long history of engagements with chosen people. In specific ways the Bible clarifies what life under the reign of God looks like. More often than not, the Bible does this not by prescribing rules, but by prodding our imaginations, by posing questions about life without giving direct answers, by forcing us to take stock, by moulding intuitions and sensitivities. Nowhere is this more evident than in our Gospel. It confronts us with a series of choices, serving God or pursuing wealth; trusting God or fretting over life's necessities; seeking God's rule or worrying about tomorrow. Parishioners with children to educate and retirement to anticipate are prone to laugh and dismiss these words as something relevant only to the uncomplicated life of the first century, but far too utopian to serve as practical wisdom for life in a technological world. "Don't worry, be happy" is a counsel of irresponsibility. But before this text is shelved too quickly, let it work its magic and do its prodding, jostling, questioning and moulding of our sensitivities. Who can measure the ways it can and might address the stressed out parishioner at his or her wits end, or the disillusioned member desperately searching for a new way to value life. There is a sharp contrast drawn between living according to God's reign and living as the gentiles lived. The text offers no compromises between the two, no easy accommodation, and therein lies its power to probe. There's no escape or no way to get off the hook. For example, it is either the service of God or the service of wealth. Our instinct is to argue and hunt for a middle way, to assure ourselves that we can in fact live with divided loyalties, that our pursuit of wealth can really be a good thing if we spend our money in the right way. The text exposes our contradictions - it does not solve for us the problem of educating children and planning for retirement. It does not give us specific rules to determine how much we can earn and still be a servant of God, it simply leaves us with a choice: God or wealth. Next take the counsel not to worry about the necessities of life. The pursuit of God's way means breaking with the world and fretting about food and clothing, freedom from the paralysing worry that cramps human relationships. Cushioned and praying for the advent of God's reign entails trust in God for the gifts which sustain life. The text relentlessly pushes a choice. Finally, the passage at heart issues a profound call to a light-hearted service of God, characterised by a reckless trust in the divine provision. The text resists being turned into a burden to be borne by those who find its choices difficult and into a guilt- promoting device for those prone to fret too much. Instead it invites us to a whole-hearted, joyful pursuit of God's coming reign. This is a God who feeds the birds and clothes the fields, who knows that you need all these things and who promises to provide them. The text offers gift after gift of divine care to make our discipleship care-free. For your reflections and prayers:
The Reverend Dr James Woodward |
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