Sunday Sermon - The Rev. David Griswold (July 26, 2026)

[00:00:00] Speaker A: The Holy Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ according to Matthew. [00:00:04] Speaker B: Glory to you, Lord Jesus. [00:00:07] Speaker A: Another parable Jesus put before them. The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that took someone and sowed in his field. It is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown, it is the greatest of shrubs, becomes a tree, so that the birds, the air, can make nests in its branches. He told them another parable. The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened. The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which as someone finds and hides, then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field again. The kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls. On finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it again. The kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and caught fish of every kind. When it was full, they drew it ashore, sat down, and put the good into baskets. But throughout the bad, so it will be at the end of the age, the angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous and throw them into the furnace of fire, where there will be gnashing and weeping and gnashing of teeth. Have you understood all of this? They answered, yes. And he said to them, therefore every scribe who has been trained for the kingdom of heaven is like the master of a household, who brings out his treasures, who brings out his treasure and what is new and what is old? The Gospel of the Lord. [00:02:09] Speaker B: Praise to you, Lord Christ. [00:02:27] Speaker A: Hallelujah. [00:02:33] Speaker B: Children ages 3 to 10 are welcome now to go with Joshua for the story. To the honor and glory of God. Amen. Many travelers to the Holy Land visit a historic church in East Jerusalem called the Church of All nations at the Mount of Olives near the Garden of Gethsemane. A sign posted outside warns no explanations in the church. This unusual warning warning is intended to keep talkative tour guides quiet, so a prayerful silence can be observed inside. What if other churches did this? What if Saint Columbus posted a sign at the corner of 42nd and Albemarle stipulating no explanations in the church? It would certainly attract attention. Some might greet such a policy with relief drawn to worship that includes an element of mystery and doesn't impose a single overarching interpretation of the faith story. Others might be disappointed, Finding much about Christianity to be perplexing, some do seek explanations to gain clarity and foster growth. We all encounter language and stories in church that prompt us to ask, what does this mean? Wherever we might come down on the question of explanations in church, Jesus renders them only sparingly, and he has none to offer his disciples in the reading we just heard. For the past three Sundays in Matthew's Gospel, Jesus has been teaching about the kingdom of heaven, telling parables, small metaphorical stories to stimulate reflection. Using common everyday images in unexpected ways, Jesus stretches our understanding of the world and of God. His first and foremost agenda item at the start of his ministry is to tell the Turn your lives around, for the kingdom of heaven has come near. This promise of a new kingdom is the core message for the team Jesus is sending. Among the beleaguered people of 1st century Palestine, a new religious, economic and social order is at hand. His apprentices ask Jesus why he uses parables to teach about the kingdom. He says that people can only grasp the truth through stories. But you, the disciples, have been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven. These are high expectations for them and by extension, for the church. We who follow Jesus into beleaguered 21st century America. What do we know about the secrets of the kingdom of Heaven? Indeed, what does the word heaven evoke for us? It can mean God's dwelling place, of course, and the realm where our dear departed ones reside. But heaven in the sense of the afterlife is not what Jesus has in mind here. Heaven can mean a condition, an experience of pleasure or inspiration that lifts us out of the ordinary, a glorious sight in nature, or a transportingly eloquent piece of art, poetry or music. Diane and Anne and our gifted singers and musicians have given us many glimpses of heaven in this sense. But this too is not what Jesus has in mind today. Heaven can also mean God's vision of peace for a divided world. Last month, before attention shifted to the World cup, the lead story in sports was the New York Knicks competing for the NBA championship. As groups of Knicks fans from diverse communities came together to celebrate their common bond, a popular quote circulated from Lutheran Bishop Katrina Foster. She said, kingdom of heaven is like a Knicks watch party. Jesus would surely nod with appreciation. Yet even this doesn't quite capture the kingdom of heaven he proclaims. Now. Kingdom is an antiquated word, but for Jesus listeners, it is a reality. A strong man installed by an occupying empire exerts crushing power over their lives. Religious leaders are not offering a vision of the faith that sustains them in anxious times. Jesus announcement of an alternative realm governed by a just and loving God is bold, risky, subversive speech this kingdom of heaven is not as distant as the stratosphere, not as subjective as one glimpse of nature's beauty, and not as temporary as a festive gathering of friends. It's the realization of an alternative and countercultural way of being. Standing with feet planted firmly in the world while gazing at its beauty and brokenness through the eyes of God. This kingdom releases and radiates the insistent, unconditional love of God as shown to us in Jesus. Its renewing, liberating, boundary crossing spirit can stir in barely noticeable ways and yet gradually bend hearts, even governing systems, towards the purposes of God. Unfortunately, Jesus is not handing out a set of operating instructions for how to make the kingdom known. He seems to be counting on his disciples to pay attention to what they see, hear and feel as they travel with him. He offers parables to spark their imaginations about the kingdom's hidden potential and its surprising range of influence. When Jesus tells stories about a sower whose seeds fall on good and rocky soil, and about a farmer whose wheat crop is invaded by weeds, he offers explanations to help his listeners find meaning. But today he offers a flurry of new images for the Kingdom of Heaven. A tiny mustard seed that grows into a spacious tree. A woman who mixes yeast into a large measure of flower, a finder of hidden treasure who sells everything to buy the field. A merchant who gives up all he has to buy a pearl of great value, a momentous catch of good and bad fish that angels will eventually come to sort. For these parables, spoken not to the crowds but to the disciples, Jesus offers no explanations. He's told them they already know the secrets of the Kingdom of Heaven. And after this string of unexplained stories, he asks his friends, have you understood all this? I wish the Bible could give us their facial expressions or tones of voice. Is Jesus being playful? Does he really expect them to fully comprehend? Are they hesitant to admit how inscrutable his descriptions of the kingdom are? Or do they really get it? Maybe they're learning that when it comes to revealing the nearness of the Kingdom of Heaven, experience is more important than comprehension. Jesus has faith that this team is fully equipped to minister in his name without further explanations. He suggests this in the closing parable. Every scribe who has been trained for the Kingdom of Heaven is like the master of a household who brings out of his treasure what is new and what is old. Here in this curious verse, I imagine the disciples know Jesus is talking about them. He seems to be saying, you've got this. You have a store of treasure, wisdom from our ancestors in the faith, new learnings from me, and inspiration from the life changing ministry we're doing together. The kingdom of heaven doesn't announce itself for that. Jesus would say to them, I'm relying on you, you who know the gifts it promises, ready to witness to the grace it will unleash among God's struggling people. Go manifest this good news. Jesus is also saying this to us. We are a community trained for the kingdom of heaven, with hearts attuned to the life God created us for, not the life the world has conditioned us to accept. Our household is full of treasures, old and new tools for ministry at our disposal. Being constantly celebrated and replenished, we stand on the three legged stool of the Episcopal Church's commitment to scripture, tradition and reason, the keys to a grounded yet probing forward looking faith. We share long cherished lessons and imagine new possibilities. We witness to the kingdom's nearness with enlivening stories of life and ministry. Dan Kreps added to those treasures today. Starting with mustard seed sized conversations. People of this community see a gap between the way the world is and the way God calls us to reimagine it. Hospitable trees like the Water Ministry, Saint Columbus Appalachia Project and Refugee Response begin to grow and to touch people in ways we can't imagine. We see this also in steps to promote anti racism, to advocate for affordable housing in our new ministry of solidarity with vulnerable immigrants, and in countless other ways in the many circles that draw us together. The ways in which you live and talk about your faith journeys makes the kingdom nearer for me and for many. Sharing joys and discoveries along with doubts and setbacks is all part of our kingdom. Training you reveal time and again that to live in relationship with God and one another makes a difference in your life that is like a pearl of incalculable value. Our past rector Ledley, upon retiring last year, praised this community as one that in practically every season launches a new group to bring people together for mutual support or to address injustice. Ledley called us little subversive pockets of gospel light defying the gloom. That's what Jesus knows His disciples will be in the world. Scribes trained for the kingdom of heaven who need no further explanations about how to do it. As we follow in Jesus steps and theirs, we don't need to call ours a church on a mission to explain God's love. We need only to go forth and live it. Amen.