Read Matthew 22-24
A few weeks ago, we read John 2, where
Jesus changed water into wine. Today, we
read of another wedding feast that sounds like a scene from Game of Thrones. Good lord, the King goes nuclear sending
troops out to destroy everyone just because they didn’t come to his party. Eek!!
You are now wondering, why am I reading this during
Lent?!? Not only that, then some poor
chap didn’t get the memo on what to wear to the wedding feast and he gets
tossed out on his ear. Is this really
the Word of God?!? Is this really good
news?? Take me back to Jesus doing the
electric slide on the dance floor and changing water into wine of week one,
please!!
Yet, part of the power in this passage,
is that in Matthew there is something at stake in life. We can’t just live our life on cruise
control. We cannot just sleepwalk our
way through our days oblivious to the hurt and harm. Your life matters. Your actions and words matter. How you treat others matters. And, in your humanness, you won’t always get
it right. I will, like the poor chap who
wore white after Labor Day to this wedding feast, won’t get it right
always. I am human size. We live in the tension between being saved
from brokenness and sent forth in blessedness.
We live the tension that we saved continually, day-after-day, through
God’s love and grace and sent forth by God’s love to be beloved in the
world. This is where Jesus lands with
the greatest commandment in 22:34-40: love God because you are loved by
God. Be love because Beloved is your
first, last, and middle name. I invite
you today to not just read the words of the call/invitation to be intentionally/prayerfully
embody love in the world. Let these
words have flesh, breath, and bone in your life today. How will you love God with your full
self? Maybe this is through prayer or
walking in creation listening to birds or sitting quietly. Note, this is less about production or
performance and more about being in God’s presence. Prayer is the truth that we are beings
(without constant movement). Next, how
might you love your neighbor? This is
where your prayers can have feet and hands and words. You may take your neighbor some soup or
cookies or just show up to listen and hold a hand. This could be for your literal neighbor or
the person whose name is before and after you in the church directory. You can also expand the embrace of neighbor
to people in our community, country, and around the world. Finally, how do you love yourself? How do you stop listening to that inner
critic who loves to do color commentary on all your bumbles and stumbles? How do you resist the tyranny of urgency (you
must do something right now!!) as well as resist the tyranny of perfectionism
(you must get it right the first time).
This will lead us back to the love of God that never lets us go.
In chapter 23, we sense the heat of
intensity around Jesus preaching and teaching turned up. If Jesus began his Sermon on the Mount in
chapter 5 with blessings, he now flips the script to shine a light on the
possible pitfalls of life. Please don’t
read these words as if Jesus is wagging his finger at you, read these words in
a whisper, like a beloved friend trying to offer you compassion and love. Remember for Matthew something is at stake
here ~ that something is your life which Jesus wants to bear fruit of love and
live the greatest commandment. Amen.
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