Pentecost 16, yr b,2024

 

“A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches,
   and favour is better than silver or gold.
The rich and the poor have this in common:
   the Lord is the maker of them all.
Whoever sows injustice will reap calamity,
   and the rod of anger will fail.
Those who are generous are blessed,
   for they share their bread with the poor.
Do not rob the poor because they are poor,
   or crush the afflicted at the gate;
for the Lord pleads their cause
   and despoils of life those who despoil them.”

 

“Love the Lord your God, with all your heart, soul, mind and strength…this is the first and great commandment.  The second is like it, love your neighbour as your self.”

 

To Sin, is to put a barrier between yourself and God.  To break those relationships that are as fundamental to our righteousness and salvation as the Trinity is to God.

 

“what good is it, my brothers and sisters, if someone claims to have faith but does not have works? …if a brother or sister is naked and lacks daily food and one of you says to them, “Go in peace; keep warm and eat your fill,” and yet you do not supply their bodily needs, what is the good of that?”

 

 

 

 

A parable

There once was a family that lived in a world that filled them with fear.  Surrounding this family were voices and stories that spoke of how dangerous the world was.  They could hear outside their windows the wail of sirens and crashing of cars.  They read in the paper and saw on the news, horrific tales of home invasions and vandalism.  They heard the statistics that crime, homelessness and hunger were on the rise.  That those outside were desperate and dangerous.   So, they bought locks for their doors and bars for their windows and they felt secure.

Later they heard tales told of school shootings in a nearby place and that their own children’s schools were having lock down drills along side fire drills.   They recalled warnings of white vans and child abductions, they feared for their children and decided to keep them home.

While driving to work the family saw panhandlers and thought those must be the people they had heard of on the news and rolled up their car windows.  They saw dirty and disheveled people on the curbs yelling at one another and decided to find another route to work.

The world around them seemed dangerous and only getting worse, so the family decided to work and school from home. They made their home secure against the others.   Pulled down the blinds and turned up the TV so as not to hear or see the sirens in the streets.  The family worked together to teach each other what was important and how to keep safe, and years passed.  The family were content with each other and as the children grew they knew they were safe, that their home was secure and that the others could not get in.

What they had forgotten while they made their house secure from those without, was that they had unwittingly locked themselves within.   The family only taught each other what they already knew, there was no chance for growth.  The locks and the blinds that kept the dangers out of their home, also blocked out the warmth of the sun, the sounds of the birds and the smell of the flowers.  As the family grew older, they were content with each other because they knew no one else, but as one member died then another, the last family member was left alone.

 

Across the way another family lived.  They lived in that same world of fear and of danger.  They could hear outside their windows the wail of sirens and crashing of cars.  They too, read in the paper and saw on the news horrific tales of home invasions and vandalism.  They heard the statistics that crime, homelessness and hunger was on the rise.  That those outside their doors were desperate and dangerous.   So, they locked their doors carefully behind them when they went outside and they hoped for the best.

Later they heard tales told of school shootings in a nearby place and that their own children’s schools were having lock down drills along side fire drills.   They recalled warnings of white vans and child abductions, and they feared for their children.

So, they taught their children to be aware and alert and to help wherever they could and seek help whenever they needed it.   While driving to work the family saw panhandlers and thought those must be the people they heard of on the news, so they began to donate to food hampers and volunteer at soup kitchens.

They saw dirty and disheveled people on the curbs yelling at one another and wondered why they were so angry.  So, they visited a shelter and listened to the stories of those who lived on the streets.

The world around this family was dangerous and only getting worse, so the family decided to encourage others to help out and got to know their neighbours, relationships grew.

The family made their home a place of learning and hospitality.   They opened the blinds and talked to their neighbours.  The family worked together to teach each other what was important and how to keep their neighbourhood safe, for family and stranger and the years passed.  Slowly more and more people chose to take a risk and step outside their doors and the world of us and them, became a community.

Except one house.  One house on the block stayed locked up and silent.  No one had seen or heard from them in years…deliveries came and went, and the yard became over grown.  That family wasn’t friendly, people said.  They were strange and should be avoided.

But this was a community was now willing to take a risk, so one day someone knocked on the door with a smile and with hope. They mowed the families lawn and left a kind letter in the mail box.

The next day…as the people walked by the blinds twitch aside for the first time in years and a little light shone in the darkness.

 

Let those who have ears hear.