Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
16
"But to what will I compare this generation? It is like children sitting
in the marketplaces and calling to one another, 17"We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we
wailed, and you did not mourn.' 18 For John came neither eating nor drinking, and they say, "He
has a demon'; 19 the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and
they say, "Look, a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and
sinners!' Yet wisdom is vindicated by her deeds." 25 At that time Jesus said, "I thank you,
Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the
wise and the intelligent and have revealed them to infants; 26 yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. 27 All things have been handed over to me by my
Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father
except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. 28 "Come to me, all you that are weary and are
carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. 29Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me; for I am gentle and humble
in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is
light."
"I thank you, Father, Lord of
heaven and earth, because you have hidden these things from the wise and the
intelligent and have revealed them to infants…
·
What would life be like without
surprises? It’d surely be simple to plan things, especially if we knew the
outcome ahead of time. Crop planting, investing, studying, taking a trip would
all be so routine. I wonder if it would be boring.
·
We all know that there are pleasant
surprises and… other types of surprises. That’s life as it is and it’s
unavoidable for the most part.
·
Our story of salvation as it’s found
in the Scripture is a rather surprising one. The people in the Hebrew
Scripture, the Old Testament, are not often the sort of people we’d expect God
to choose as his hand or voice in the world. Abraham and Sarah were quite old
according to the story. Jacob was a trickster. John the Baptizer either fasted
or dined on locusts and wild honey and was thought to be possessed by a demon.
Jesus ate and drank and was called a glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax
collectors and sinners! The list goes on… even in Church history.
Luther drank beer often and got very angry with a number of people often.
Francis of Assisi was a deserter from the army.
·
If God acted as we might expect God
to act, we’d look to the rich and powerful of the world to lead us to the
Kingdom of Heaven. Sad to say, such a thing would lead us to disappointment as
often as not.
·
So where do we look? We might best
look to the unexpected place and people, to the burdened and the weary, to the “infants”
to whom Jesus’ Father has revealed these things.
·
We say “infants” when Matthew uses a
word that can mean an infant child or an unlearned or simple-minded person. In
any event, this is a surprise, I’d say. This is not what we’d expect.
Theologians with advanced degrees can tell us a lot about the Scripture and
about God’s revelation, but the person next door or down the block might tell us
what to do with all that and how to be a disciple of Christ. And a good
theologian would listen to them.
·
When Jesus spoke of “this generation”
and how they were like children arguing in the marketplace, he is saying that
the powerful call the tune for others to dance to and they become angry when
this doesn’t happen. When things don’t fit into their preconceived notions
–such as what a prophet should look like and say or what the Messiah would be
like – they react badly. ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not
dance; we wailed, and you did not mourn.' They
would decide who was holy or worthy or blessed, all things that are God’s to
detemine.
·
The sinners Jesus befriended, the
weary, the burdened, the troubled, even the so-called ‘infants’ know they don’t
have the final say. They are not so powerful as to believe that. It is God they
will have to depend on. That is what Jesus is telling his disciples in this
passage and what he is telling us today.
·
His yoke is easy and his burden is
light. What’s more, his yoke is surprising. Disciples might be yoked together,
but they are yoked with Jesus as well, all pulling together for the Kingdom of
God.
·
We may feel unworthy, unholy, and
unblessed, and those things are best left to God to determine. We may feel left
out but we are all called to be in the same yoke with Jesus.
(These aren't my words, but something I ran across in preparing this sermon...)
·
The next time you feel like God can't
use you, just remember . . .
NOAH- was a drunk.
ABRAHAM- was too old.
ISAAC- was a daydreamer.
JACOB- was a liar.
LEAH- was considered ugly.
JOSEPH- was abused.
MOSES- had a stuttering problem.
GIDEON- was afraid.
SAMSON- had long hair and was a
womanizer!
RAHAB- was a prostitute!
JEREMIAH and TIMOTHY - were too young.
DAVID- was an adulterer and a murderer.
ELIJAH- was suicidal.
JONAH- ran from God.
NAOMI- was a widow.
JOB- went bankrupt.
JOHN- the Baptist ate bugs.
PETER- denied Christ.
THE DISCIPLES- fell asleep while praying.
MARTHA- worried about everything.
MARY MAGDALENE- has been given an
undeserved reputation.
THE SAMARITAN WOMAN- was divorced ...
more than once!
ZACCHEUS- was too small.
PAUL- was too religious.
TIMOTHY- had an ulcer ... AND
LAZARUS - WAS DEAD!
NOW, what is YOUR EXCUSE?
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