Michaelmas I (Trinity 20) — Matthew 22.1–14 Grace to you and Peace, from God the Father and the Lord Jesus. And Jesus answered and spoke to them again by parables and said: “The kingdom of heaven is like a certain king who arranged a marriage for his son, and sent out his servants to call those who were invited to the wedding; and they were not willing to come. This is your word heavenly Father, sanctify us by your truth. Your word is truth. Amen. Fellow Redeemed: God, in His grace, creates in us clean hearts, and renews His right spirit within us. He does not cast you away from His presence, and He does not take His Holy Spirit from you. He daily and richly restores to you the joy of His salvation and upholds you with His free Spirit. He presents you with the free proclamation of His Word, which is filled with His Spirit. He makes available to you His Grace for your forgiveness, life, and salvation. He humbled Himself to be born as one of us, and He suffered and died instead of us, paying the eternal price of our sin—of your sin, to give you freely His own eternal life, love, and grace. But how do you react to this cascade of kindness, love, and grace? Isn’t it true that we are described only too well in today’s readings as those who walk in a way that is not good according to their own thoughts? Isn’t it true that we are too often too casual with the sacred things given us by our Lord and God, and are unwise in our disregard for His gifts? In fact, aren’t we very much like the guests invited to a feast who made light of it and went their own ways? Yes, the readings today describe us only too well. We too often excuse the smallness of our numbers by pointing to the unbelief of the lost and dying around us; and it is true that we live in a community which exists for the most part without religion. But what have you been doing with the Gifts entrusted to you? Have you been mindlessly casual with the forgiveness, life, and salvation of God, living among these lost and dying as though it didn’t matter, as though you yourself are also lost and dying? If so, what is your excuse? Though many departed, deserting Jesus, He asked the Twelve if they were going to leave too. Peter answered ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the Word of eternal life.’ You know our Lord has entrusted this precious Word of eternal life to us — but we also know and must take to heart and acknowledge that we have been unfaithful with it, treating this priceless thing as though it were unworthy of our undivided attention and careful devotion. You have the great gift, the Invitation of the King to the Wedding Feast, which is the ongoing celebration of our Lord and His Bride the Church, and yet we have crumpled it and soiled it in our inattention, and have not held it in honor and shared this prize with those who are suffering under the weight of their sin. Who of us cannot be rightly accused with the man found at the Wedding Feast who appeared without the garment given the guests, having rejected that gracious gift? The wedding garment is the garment of grace which is the righteousness of Jesus Himself which has been put on you in Holy Baptism, and in which you live and may stand at the Last Day before the Judgment Throne of the Living God unafraid, for the holiness, innocence, and blessedness of Jesus has covered you and presents you acceptable and dearly beloved in the sight of the Father. But what do we do, but to assert ourselves, claiming by our behavior that our self-made priorities are better than what is important to God. All of this is true, and it is a damning truth in which each of us doubtless deserves the fate of the fellow in the parable; to be cast into the outer darkness where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth. For the sad fact is, you’ve lived like the lost and dying, and it would not be unjust at all of our Lord to let you die as you have lived. But our Lord is merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abiding in steadfast love. Jesus tells the parable of the wedding feast for a purpose, and your Lord inspired Isaiah and Paul to write as they did for a reason. It is to wake you up, and recall you and reclaim you to that wisdom which comes from above, to see what a great and precious thing we have, each of us, in the Grace of Jesus which alone rescues us from our own death in sin and brings us instead with Him into eternal life. See what a wondrous Gift this is, and rejoice in it! It is not yet too late. You have the grace of God, now live in it. In the language of the parable, you have the wedding garment,— the righteousness of Jesus before God, so claim it, and live as one who is free and alive. Live as the loved person you are, and let that love of God show through your choices and behavior in loving one another and in loving those around us who are yet laboring in sin and death. You have the grace of Jesus, and you still have a little time before your earthly life is over, so think about how you behave, as Paul writes “See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise.” take advantage of the opportunities to live and love and be gracious with each other. Spend your time as a gracious and loving and forgiving person, so that even the lost and dying may see the hope that is in you and be caused through the Good News of Jesus now shining through your behavior to tell them about this great hope. In other words— redeem the time. The days are evil, but you can live in joy and grace and that makes such a difference that eyes too long blinded by the darkness of sin may be made to see the Light of Christ in you. Live as the forgiven, redeemed child of God you are in the grace of Jesus. Your sin is forgiven, it is taken far from you. You are free in Christ, live as free. Live as the graced person Jesus has made you. Live as the child of the living God, and in so living, let the world marvel at such grace as God has given mankind. Let the world marvel, and let them be rescued from eternal sorrow and death by the grace of Jesus shining through you. The peace of God which passes understanding keep your heart and mind through Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.
Posted on: Mon, 07 Oct 2013 00:17:05 +0000