July 13, 2008
St. James Episcopal Church
Proper 10
Matthew 13:1 - 9, 18 - 23
A Kudzu-Kind of Kingdom
May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts always be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, our Strength and our Redeemer. Amen
I want you to use your imagination this morning. Let me take you back in history 2000 years, to the country of Palestine, present-day Israel. You are sitting around a campfire near the Sea of Galilee with Jesus and his disciples. They have lived together, traveled together, preached and healed together, for over two years. On this particular evening they have had a simple meal of perch and bread.
There is a lull in the conversation and then I can imagine the disciple Thomas speaking: "Master, you and the boys know that I tend to be a tad pessimistic, but I'm afraid that all of us must face some facts. Increasingly, we are being locked out of the synagogues. The most powerful religious leaders in the country are against you. Recently we heard rumors that King Herod was going to have you killed. Judas tells me that we have seen a decline in contributions that may be related to all the controversy about you. While it is true that lots of people still come to hear you, most of them are either seeking a miraculous cure or are simply curious. They don't show any commitment. After more than two years of hard work all over this country, what do we have to show for it? This meager band of folks. I don't want to be an alarmist but we aren't exactly a booming success."
Have you ever felt similar discouragement in living the Christian life? Of course, you have. At times we wonder if our prayers get above the ceiling, much less all the way to heaven. We wonder sometimes if the church makes any real difference in the community, or if our faith is anything more than wishful thinking.
A herd of buffalo was grazing on the range where the deer and the antelope play. When suddenly, a cowboy comes riding up, jumped off his horse, got right up in the face of a buffalo and said, “You are the sorriest excuse for a buffalo I ever saw. Your eyes are bloodshot, your fur is dirty and matted, and you stink.” with that he jumped back on his horse and rode away. The buffalo turned to his neighbor and said, “You know, I think I just heard a discouraging word.”
Matthew tells us that when Jesus sensed that their morale was down, he launched into a series of three parables. This triplet of parables was an encouragement by Jesus to his disciples, promising them that God will bring forth results far exceeding their discouraged expectations.
The Revised Lectionary splits this triplet up over several Sundays but they were intended to be heard together so I invite you to look at the triplet with me beginning with this morning’s parable of the Sower.
Unlike most of the parables reported by Matthew, this one is not introduced by saying: “The Kingdom of God is like ...,” but it is related to the coming of the Kingdom nonetheless. The question is how and with what intention.
These parables tell us that the Kingdom of God has something in common with Kudzu, the unofficial state flower of Mississippi. In fact, some folks credit kudzu with preventing the whole state of Mississippi from being washed down the river. For the sake of anyone that hasn’t lived in the south, let me explain that Kudzu is a leafy vine that you often see growing up telephone poles or covering entire little valleys.
Nothing can grow like kudzu. It is the only plant whose growth is measured in miles per hour. You remember the story of Jack and the Beanstalk? That was no beanstalk; it was a kudzu stem. The best way to plant kudzu is to throw it over your shoulder and run. It's important to plant kudzu at the right time. Always do it at night. Because if you do it in broad daylight, your neighbors will take you to court.
We Christians are part of a Kudzu-Kind of Kingdom. When Christians are faithful, God blesses his kingdom with prodigious growth and transforming influence.
So let’s look First at the Parable of the Sower.
This is one of the few parables of Jesus which he interpreted. It tells about a farmer scattering seed. The seed represents the word of God. Some seed falls in a pathway and is eaten by birds; that represents the hearts which receive the gospel but the devil comes quickly and snatches it away. Some seed falls on rocky ground; therefore, its roots don't go deep enough to sustain growth. This represents the hearts which receive the gospel gladly but when persecution or trouble comes, they drop out. Other seed falls among thorns and is choked out. This represents those persons who receive the gospel gladly, but later the cares of this world and the lure of wealth choke out the gospel.
But then, said Jesus, some seed falls on good soil and has spectacular growth, producing thirty-fold, sixty-fold, and even one hundred-fold. The parable is both discouraging and encouraging. It says that 75 percent of the people who hear the gospel will not become long-term Christians. That's discouraging. But the 25 percent who do become committed believers are so amazingly productive that the entire world can be changed through them.
Now Look with Me to Parable Number Two, in Verses 31 and 32 of Matthew 13. This is the Parable of the Mustard Seed.
Jesus said that the kingdom of God is like a mustard seed sown by a farmer. Though it is one of the smallest of seeds, it produces the largest of shrubs. In fact, birds come from all over to make nests in its branches and to feast on its little black seeds. The kingdom of God when first planted here or there looks tiny and vulnerable; but it grows like kudzu.
Some years ago in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ministerial association decided not to support a city-wide revival.
This was because the invited evangelist, in the opinion of the pastors, was lacking in sophistication. But a Presbyterian Sunday School teacher ignored the ministerial association and encouraged his students to attend. In response, the lanky son of a dairy farmer attended the revival. There he surrendered his heart to Christ. The whole world has heard the name of that farmer's son - Billy Graham. No one recalls the name of the Sunday school teacher who invited him, no one except God. That's the way it is in the kingdom of God. Tiny, inauspicious beginnings are blessed with glorious results.
Now, Let's Look to the Third Parable Found in Verse 33. This Is the Parable of Yeast or Leaven.
Leaven was a little piece of dough kept over from a previous baking of bread. Of course, since it was not refrigerated, it gradually fermented. Thus, yeast or leaven was produced for the next baking of bread. Only a tiny amount of fermented dough was necessary for baking forty or fifty pounds of bread. Perhaps your Jewish friends have introduced you to unleavened bread. They eat it on several of their feast days. It is utterly tasteless and the more you chew it, the bigger it gets. But you can take the very same ingredients and add a tiny bit of yeast or leaven and out comes a Bob Evans biscuit. What a huge difference is made by a tiny bit of yeast.
Jesus used this example to make a powerful point. Just as that tiny amount of leaven can transform fifty pounds of bread, a few committed Christians can revolutionize society. Back in the 1960s Martin Luther King led a momentous march between Selma and Montgomery, Alabama. On a bridge they confronted Sheriff Clark and hundreds of hostile police. Clark shouted, "Turn back." And King responded, "We've come too far to turn back now." Clark warned, "If you don't turn back, we're going to bash in your heads." An undaunted King responded, "If you hit me, I will love you. If you kick me, I will love you. If you kill me, the last words from my mouth will be 'I love you."'
Clark's forces charged with their clubs and police dogs. It appeared that the marchers were beaten and routed.
But television carried those images across the world. Soon the verdict was clear: through those marchers, the civil rights movement had won the hearts of America. When a Christian stands firm for faith and principle, God delivers results.
Let me tell you about Jack Eckerd, the founder of the Eckerd drugstore chain. When he became a committed Christian, his perspective changed. Walking through one of his stores one day, he saw with new eyes the magazine racks full of glossy copies of Playboy and Penthouse. Though retired from active management, he called his president and urged him to clean out the magazines. Management protested; the sales accounted for substantial profits. But Jack Eckerd persisted and prevailed. All sex-exploiting magazines were pulled from all 1700 drugstores. Since then Jack Eckerd has been on a quiet campaign to get other retail stores to do the same.
Isn't it strange how the kingdom works? One committed Christian can become God's leaven to change society. Everybody knows that Memphis is a racially polarized city. The leaders of St. Michaels Episcopal Church and the leaders of Mississippi Boulevard Christian Church decided to do something about that. These two large churches, one black and one white, planned an early-morning service in the Pyramid on Easter, 1997. It featured joint choirs and symphony. This great Easter service was a gift to the city of Memphis, in the name of and to the glory of the risen Lord Jesus. Can one worship service affect an entire city? Remember the parables of the yeast and the mustard seed. The message from the Lord through all three of these parables is this: Christians, Never give up. Never despair. Never think small.
The Kingdom of God is like kudzu. It often has humble beginnings, but then prodigious growth, and a transforming influence. St. Paul knew all this and declared, "So, let us not grow weary in doing what is right, for we will reap at harvest time, if we do not give up." (Galatians 6:9)
Let me close with a story from the life of Dr. Bill Hinson, a former pastor of the largest united Methodist church in the world – First Church, in Houston, Texas.
When Bill was a college student, he was invited to preach one Sunday at a rural church in South Georgia. It was a hot September Sunday. Throughout his sermon, he was distracted by a barefoot boy on the front row who kept swinging his feet. Even before the sermon was over, Bill thought to himself, “This sermon is a loser.” After the benediction, that same 10-year-old boy named Donnie came up and introduced himself and invited Bill to have lunch with his family. Bill thought to himself, “He owes me at least that after messing up my sermon.”
They had a delightful lunch. Then Bill drove back to school. A few weeks later he went to his mailbox and found a fat envelope which jingled when he moved it. It was from Donnie, and contained 57 cents in change. The note said this: "Dear Brother Bill, I'm sending you my egg money to help you go to school to learn to be a better preacher." Bill remembered where Donnie's father worked. He called him and expressed thanks but said, "I can't take Donnie's money. I'll send it right back to him." "Oh no," said his father. "Don't do that. Donnie is taking better care of his chickens than he ever has before, and he is sending you every penny of his profit and he is going to continue doing it until you get out of school." The weeks turned into months and the months into years. Donnie did not stop until Bill graduated. Donnie is now fully grown and a very successful businessman. Occasionally he still comes to see Bill Hinson, in his private plane, to check on his investment. Bill Hinson adds this: "There were times back in school when I took that letter full of change and went back to my room and fell on my knees and prayed, 'Dear God, There's a little kid out there giving his all for me. Oh help me to be worthy of that gift." Isn't that how the Kingdom of God works? The pastor of the largest united Methodist Church in the world got his early boost from something as small as a 10-year-old's egg money.
Never give up. Never despair. Never think small. The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.
Amen
