What Does the Lord Require

February 1, 2026 Micah 6:1-8 What does the Lord Require 4th Sunday after Epiphany Year A Prelude Greeting Call to Worship (Inspired by Psalm 15) One: Giving thanks to God, we’re eager to act out our faith. Many: We want to do what is right, and speak what is true. One: Today we choose to walk blamelessly and do what is right. Many: This day we will do no evil to our friends; One: this day we will not slander any person. Many: This day we join in all who want to abide in God. ALL: We stand by our confession of faith, even when that’s hard to do. Opening Prayer Oh God, Our Creator, Redeemer, Sustainer- How do we thank you? How do we show our gratitude? Do you want signs and sacrifices? Do you want gold and cattle? Can we turn over our children to you? Would that repay our debt, make everything right? Tell us, what do you require in return for all your goodness? Oh God, Our teacher, example, companion— You have shown us what is good, and call us to remember that what you require is not repayment of debt or settling the score, but obedience. Show us, God, When to do justice, how to love kindness, and where to walk, humbly, with you. Amen. Written by Dana Cassell, a former BVS volunteer. Posted on the Church of the Brethren website, https://www.brethren.org/. Re-posted on the re:Worship blog at https://re-worship.blogspot.com/2014/01/prayer-micah-6-6-8.html. Song What does the Lord Require UMH 441 Sermon for all Ages Children’s Sermon: “What Does God Want From Us?” (Bring a small backpack and a few stones or heavy objects.) Good morning, friends! I have something with me today. Do you know what this is? (Hold up backpack.) Yes—a backpack! What kinds of things do you put in a backpack? (Let kids answer: books, snacks, toys, water.) Backpacks are meant to carry things that help us, right? Now, imagine if every time you walked somewhere, you put a rock in your backpack. (Put one stone in.) And then another rock. (Add another.) And another. Now, imagine if every time you walked somewhere, you put a rock in your backpack. (Put one stone in.) And then another rock. (Add another.) And another. (Add another.) How would that feel after a while? Heavy? Hard to carry? Sometimes people think following God is like carrying a backpack full of heavy rocks—like we have to do so manythings to make God happy. In our Bible story today, the people were wondering, “What does God want us to do?” They thought God wanted big things—lots of gifts, lots of rules, lots of hard work. But God said something very simple. God said, “I don’t want heavy backpacks.” God wants three things. Let’s count them together—hold up three fingers. 1️⃣ Do what is fair That means being fair and standing up for others. 2️⃣ Be kind Not just once—but loving kindness every day. 3️⃣ Walk with God Like walking with a friend, talking and listening to God. That’s it. No heavy rocks. No giant backpack. Just fairness, kindness, and walking with God. So here’s the question for you this week: • How can you be kind at school? • How can you be fair with your friends? • How can you remember that God walks with you everywhere you go? Let’s say this together: “God doesn’t want heavy backpacks—God wants kind hearts.” Let’s pray. (Prayer) Dear God, Thank you for loving us. Help us to be fair, help us to be kind, and help us to walk with you every day. Amen. (ChaptGPT 5.2) Responsive Reading Psalm 15 UMH 747 New Member Ceremony It was in the latter part of the eighth century BC that Micah prophesied. He was a young contemporary of Isaiah, Hosea and Amos. He and Isaiah brought God's message to the people of Judah in the South while Hosea and Amos took it north to Israel. It was a period of turmoil and change. Assyria was fast becoming a world power to challenge the hegemony of Egypt. There was one battle after another with the little nations used only as pawns in the wider struggle. Israel and Judah were constantly threatened by one power or another. It was a difficult time. Like Amos, Micah was a product of the countryside...a farmer...and like farmers throughout the centuries, he had a certain mistrust of city slickers. In his case, he had good reason: it was the city slickers who were fleecing the folks of the countryside that Micah knew as friends and neighbors; it was city slicker judges who took bribes to render unfair judgments; city slicker priests who were immoral and corrupt; city slicker prophets who would prophesy anything you might want in exchange for a few shekels. No wonder Micah thought of the cities as cesspools of sin. To be sure, he had plenty to complain about concerning the nation's religious habits. It was bad enough that the prophets and priests were not living up to expectations, but the reason they were not was that the people did not want them to. The only preaching they wanted to hear was "God's in his heaven and all's right with the world." Micah even joked about it: "If a liar and deceiver comes and says `I will prophesy for you plenty of wine and beer,' he would be just the preacher for this people."(1) They did not want to be embarrassed by anyone who would have called them to account for their behavior. It was time for them to hear a word from the Lord. So Micah came to them with a message that was not only valid for his own age, but for every age to come. Scripture Micah 6:1-8 Sermon What does the Lord Require Every since there has been television shows, I think we have been fascinated with court scenes. We want to watch the evidence presented, we want to be a part of the drama, we want to judge for ourselves if the person is innocent or not. As a child, I would watch television with my grandma. She looked forward to watching Perry Mason every time it came on. And more recently there was Judge Judy, who’s motto is Justice with an attitude. I think my favorite court show most recently was the Steve Harvey show – where family and friends could present a case against one another and Steve would determine how to resolve the issue. I enjoyed this show, because Steve Harvey would get involved in the issue, and it was a matter of money – a lot of times he would donate his own money to make things right. Not only was there justice, but there was mercy. Well actually, our fascination with court scenes goes all the way back to the bible. The bible is full of court drama. We love the drama until we are the person who is accused.’ Micah 6 is the story of when God sues us all for forgetting about our relationship. We think that life is all about us and what we have done for ourselves. We have forgotten about how God cares for us every day. God asks the jury the question – What have I done that people have forgotten all about me. Then he calls the mountains, the trees and all of nature as witnesses – they are consistent, they praise God every day, they have never strayed and then they point to us – who are inconsistent, if faithful at all. We realize that we cant fight the charges. And even though we have a lawyer always on call – Jesus. There is no need to call- we know that we are guilty as charged. This time is it not God who asks the question – it is us – what must we do to make things right. What do you want from us. God calmly comes to the front of the courtroom again – Do Justice, give kindness, and walk humbly with God. Be just, and not just fair. Not to worry about giving people what they deserve – which is fairness – but to make sure that conditions are fair, so that everyperson has the same chance. When we see that people don’t have a fair chance at life – change the conditions. Be kind, not just nice. Nice is when we are polite, nice is when we follow social protocal. Nice is how we treat people on the surface. Kindness is making sure that people are heard, and going out of our way to take care of them. Someone said that kindness always cost us something. Our society is no different. We think of ourselves as kind people: we are gentle with animals; we do not permit the mistreatment of prisoners of war; we give billions to charity...but the same indictments could be laid at our doorstep as those for ancient Israel. We think of our judicial system as fair, but we know it is much more "fair" with those who have money and power. There are laws on the books to protect people from the shady business practices that can bankrupt good families, but thousands lose millions every year because there are so many loopholes in the laws. Yes, we give money for the relief of suffering, but we give out of our abundance - what we do not really need - with the result that what is given is not nearly enough. In short, we are a kind nation...whenever it is convenient. Safe to say, Micah would object. A student told about a famous lecturer who came to the college he attended who spoke about feeding the people of India. He listed several good reasons for doing so - more people would be employed, friendlier relations with other countries would be established. In addition, we would continue to be in the good graces of the Indian people and of the government. During the informal discussion which followed, the oldest and most revered professor at the college asked, "But, Doctor, don't you think maybe we ought to feed them just because they're hungry?" That is the question that joins justice and kindness.(6) Justice and loving-kindness...critical to the living of lives that are pleasing to God. But one can be just without being religious. One can be kind without any religious inclination. That is why Micah says REAL religion requires one thing more: a humble walk with God. And finally we are told to walk humbly with God. “In his book, Faith That Endures, Ronald Boyd-MacMillan tells the story of a number of conversations he has had with Wang Mingdao, one of China's most famous church pastors of the last century. The first time he met this famous—and persecuted—Chinese pastor, they had the following interchange: ‘Young man, how do you walk with God?’ I listed off a set of disciplines such as Bible study and prayer, to which he mischievously retorted, ‘Wrong answer. To walk with God, you must go at walking pace.’ The words of Wang Mingdao touched me to the core. How can I talk about the Christian life as walking with God when I so often live it at a sprint? Of course, we ‘run with perseverance the race marked out for us,’ but we may fail to run with ‘our eyes [fixed] on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith’ (Heb 12:1-2). Jesus is inviting me to walk with him. Too often, I find myself running for him. There's a difference! On another visit, Boyd-MacMillan asked Wang Mingdao about his twenty-year imprisonment for proclaiming Jesus in China. That cell became a place of unchosen unhurried time for Mingdao. There was nothing to do but to be in God's presence, which he discovered was actually everything. Boyd-MacMillan summarizes what he learned from Wang Mingdao: One of the keys to the faith of the suffering church: God does things slowly. He works with the heart. We are too quick. We have so much to do—so much in fact we never really commune with God as he intended when he created Eden, the perfect fellowship garden. For Wang Mingdao, persecution, or the cell in which he found himself, was the place where he returned to ‘walking pace,’ slowing down, stilling himself enough to commune properly with God.” Source: Ronald Boyd-MacMillan, Faith That Endures (Revell, 2006), p. 307; Allan Fadling, An Unhurried Life (IVP, 2013), pp. 13-14. Don’t get so caught up in life that you cant hear the voice of God speaking, that you cant take the time to speak to God before you speak to others, to make some time in each day to listen to God. So often, people think that "walking humbly" with God means doing a lot of things that appear to be religious, like preaching or becoming a missionary or teaching a Sunday school class. There is nothing wrong with any of these activities. However, "walking humbly with God" simply means living our lives so others can see something of God in us. "Walking humbly with God" simply means living in quiet fellowship with God. "Walking humbly with God" simply means that you seize those opportunities to do the things that God would be doing. There’s a story told about a man who went on a long hike. Before he started, he packed his backpack carefully—food, water, a jacket. But as he walked, every time he reached a crossroads, he picked up a stone and added it to his bag—just in case. One stone for safety. One stone for control. One stone for fear of making the wrong choice. At first, the stones didn’t feel heavy. But mile after mile, the pack grew heavier. Finally, exhausted, he sat down and said, “Why is this so hard?” A fellow hiker stopped and said, “You’re carrying more than you need.” The man replied, “But what if I need these later?” The other hiker said, “You can’t walk far if you insist on carrying everything.” So he began taking the stones out—one by one. And suddenly, the walk became possible again. That’s what the people are doing in Micah. They are piling stones into their spiritual backpacks: • More sacrifice. • More performance. • More religious weight. Not because God asked for it— but because they think faith must be heavy to be faithful. God doesn’t meet us in the courtroom with justice, he meets us with mercy and with grace. I am not suing you to punish you, but to give you an opportunity to think to repent. Everything that we do in life is a response to God’s grace. What would Jesus have us to do in this day- Do justice, act Kind and to walk humbly with our God. Let us pray…… Song Be Thou My Vision UMH 451 Prayer (Do not Print) Let us pray. Holy God, what a world you have made! Everywhere we look, we see evidence of your grace, we give thanks for friends and family, hearth and home, talents and treasures. What blessings you bestow upon us. Yet, amid the blessings, we see the hurt and pain of our world. We can’t turn away, for so many are hurting, so we turn to you. God of blessings, hear our prayer. We pray for the church, for this church, the pastor(s), leaders, and congregation, and the church universal, all those who hear and believe in a great diversity of voices the whole world round. Open our hearts and whisper words of your truth within us. Open our ears so we can hear even those truths that bewilder and challenge us. Strengthen our spirits to hear your call to stand up for justice and break open visions of the kindom among us here and now. God of blessings, hear our prayer. We pray for those who are suffering. Comfort those who mourn, who have lost the ones they love, who have been forced to give up on the future they hoped would be, who grieve frayed relationships. Clothe them with your love and fill them with your hope. Set your healing hand upon those whose bodies ache, whose minds cannot find peace, who are awaiting hard diagnoses. Wrap them in your strong arms and fill them with your shalom. God of blessings, hear our prayer. We pray for those who are hungry, in body and spirit. For those whose tables are bare, whose stomachs growl, and whose bodies hunger for warmth, give shelter. Lead them to places of plenty. Teach those who have much to share without fear until all are fed and nourished. For those who hunger for justice, send your spirit. Give us a holy imagination to dream about what could be and the courage to make this world more like you want it to be for us. God of blessings, hear our prayer. We pray for peace, in our homes, in our communities, in our country, and in our world. Wrest the weapons of war out of our hands and silence the words that cut and destroy. Fill our leaders with wisdom and mercy. Give them eyes to see each person in their care as you see them, beloved children of God. Make us peacemakers and community builders in every place we go. Fill us with grace and wonder that we might see the beauty of diversity and seek unity instead of uniformity. God of blessings, hear our prayer. Holy God, you are the giver of blessings. Give us eyes to see you at work among us. Move our hands and feet to be a blessing in our community. Open our hearts and mouths to hear your word and speak your truth so all can know of your love. This we ask in the name of Jesus Christ, who taught us to pray boldly, saying, “Our Father…” (Presbyterian Outlook, Rae Watson) Lord’s Prayer Stewardship Moment (Just print the prayer of Thanksgiving) When someone asks, “How are you?” many of us respond with a simple, “I’m doing well,” or “Good.” But others respond with, “I’m blessed.” Have you heard that? Or said it? In Matthew’s Gospel, the first part of Matthew 5 is known as “the Beatitudes.” Jesus is teaching his followers about what comes from the blessings enumerated in verses 3-12. When someone claims, “I’m blessed,” it’s a declaration and a confirmation of the ways God provides, even for those who are poor, in mourning, or hungering and thirsting for righteousness. When someone says, “I’m blessed,” the recognition holds that even amid persecution or ridicule for following Jesus, there is reason for JOY. Here’s the truth: When we recognize we’re blessed by God, our natural response is to pass along a blessing to others. One way to do that is to share from our financial resources, eagerly supporting the work of this congregation and our outreach ministries. Remember! (Highlight one of your ministries that benefits from strong giving by the congregation.) Each time you give to support this __________, we pass along a blessing for others to receive. Let’s share our gifts, demonstrating our gratitude! Prayer of Thanksgiving Generous God, thank you for the ways you pour out your blessings on each of us, and on your whole creation. Thank you for this opportunity for us to pour out a portion of what we’ve received. Help us find ways to multiply these gifts, that together we might demonstrate your love made visible. AMEN (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Communion Invitation to Communion The earliest followers of Jesus experienced this master teacher in a variety of settings: on a hillside, in a boat, walking the dusty roads of Galilee. No wonder they continued to follow him! We, however, do not have the blessing of walking side by side with Jesus. We don’t see him coming in after a night of prayer, or sitting down for a meal with Mary, Martha and Lazarus. What we DO have is this table – and the remembrance of Jesus sharing a last supper with his followers. We can bring to mind what it is to see Jesus take bread, and pour out a cup of wine before offering these simple elements to all who were at that table. HERE, now, at this table, we do remember. Here, NOW, at this table, we claim Jesus as Savior, and share these symbols of his love with all who will come join the feast. Here, now, at THIS table, we learn once more how Jesus continues to teach in tiny chapels and huge cathedrals. We recognize how Jesus continues to remind us in this sanctuary of the blessings we receive even in the midst of persecution, even when being a peacemaker calls us into danger. So come to this table, all who are weary and heavy-laden, for here you will find strength, here you will find a blessing to carry with you. (Disciples of Christ Center for Faith and Giving) Announcements Closing Prayer for YouTube Friends, we cannot stay here. There is work to be done out there. Go, be the church in the world. Love boldly. Speak bravely. Build the kindom here and now. May the love of God, the grace of Jesus Christ, and the communion of the Holy Spirit uplift and uphold you now and forever. Amen. (Presbyterian Outlook, Rae Watson) Community Time Joys and Concerns Benediction The Good, as we depart this place but not Your Presence, help us to remember that your goodness is running after us. As it gains on us, may we run on and share it with others up ahead. Amen. (United Church of Christ, Tena T Nock) Additional Illustrations Do justice. Love kindness. A humble walk with God. Sounds very much like the answer to WWJD - What would Jesus do? In fact, it is in Jesus that we see what justice and loving-kindness look like in a walk with God. WWJD. Jesus is still looking for followers. Not admirers, followers. So the correct question for you and me is WWJHMD? What would Jesus have ME do? How is this for a summary? Enter Micah: "He has told you, O mortal, what is good; and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God." No, Micah's nation was not what it should have been in regard to chesed. How could one say that offenders were treated kindly when the judges had been bribed to render unfair verdicts? What kindness was displayed when shady deals deprived people of their houses and land? What kindness was evident when the people who were suffering the most - the poor - were systematically ignored?

Life isnt Fair

Mathew 20:1-16 September 24, 2017 Year A Life isn’t fair It isn't Fair Matthew 20:1-16 Exegetical Aim: To illustrate the fact that life may not always seem fair, but we should not let that make us bitter towards others, but happy for others who do well. Props: Some kind of candy to give the children that they can eat in the sanctuary and that will keep them occupied; e.g., m&m’s. Children will be called down according to hair color or gender. You will have to decide which works best with your congregation. Lesson: I want the children to remain in their seats because we are going to do things differently. I want to ask all the children with blond hair to come down and sit on my right. The rest stay in your seats. Once the blond children have gathered hand out the candy to them. Go ahead and unwrap your candy and eat it. As they begin eating call down the other children. Now, I would like the other children to come down and sit on my left. You will not be giving the other children any candy. Sit down with the children and wait 30 seconds before speaking. The silence is crucial. You want to make everyone a bit uncomfortable to underscore what is happening. I have a question to ask. Is this fair? (response) Why? (response) You know, it was my candy. Don’t I have the right to do with it, as I please? (response) If I want to give it to them, why is that unfair to you? (response) Have you ever thought that your mom or your dad did something that was unfair? Maybe they gave your sister something and you didn’t get anything? (response) What did they do? (response) It may seem to you at times that your mom and dad are unfair . . . because they gave your brother a bicycle . . . or because they bought an ice cream cone for your sister after she made that “A” in math. It may seem to you at times that your teacher is unfair because she gives special treatment to one of the other kids and not to you. It may even seem to you at times that God is unfair because he made her a blond, or made him with big muscles, or made her tall and thin, or made him good looking. But we shouldn’t think that way. When your mom and dad do something special for your brother or sister next time try and be happy about it. You know something...you will actually have a good time watching someone else be happy. Enjoy it when someone else gets a present or does well and tell them that you are glad for them. Let’s Pray: Father help us not to complain when others do well. Deep in our hearts, we know that you care for us as much as you care for them. Amen. ChristianGlobe, , by Brett Blair Matthew 20:1-16Common English Bible (CEB) Workers in the vineyard 20 “The kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard. 2 After he agreed with the workers to pay them a denarion,[a] he sent them into his vineyard. 3 “Then he went out around nine in the morning and saw others standing around the marketplace doing nothing. 4 He said to them, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I’ll pay you whatever is right.’ 5 And they went. “Again around noon and then at three in the afternoon, he did the same thing. 6 Around five in the afternoon he went and found others standing around, and he said to them, ‘Why are you just standing around here doing nothing all day long?’ 7 “‘Because nobody has hired us,’ they replied. “He responded, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’ 8 “When evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his manager, ‘Call the workers and give them their wages, beginning with the last ones hired and moving on finally to the first.’ 9 When those who were hired at five in the afternoon came, each one received a denarion.10 Now when those hired first came, they thought they would receive more. But each of them also received a denarion. 11 When they received it, they grumbled against the landowner, 12 ‘These who were hired last worked one hour, and they received the same pay as we did even though we had to work the whole day in the hot sun.’ 13 “But he replied to one of them, ‘Friend, I did you no wrong. Didn’t I agree to pay you a denarion? 14 Take what belongs to you and go. I want to give to this one who was hired last the same as I give to you. 15 Don’t I have the right to do what I want with what belongs to me? Or are you resentful because I’m generous?’ 16 So those who are last will be first. And those who are first will be last.” Footnotes: a. Matthew 20:2 A denarion was a typical day’s wage. Common English Bible (CEB) Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible Life Just Isn’t Fair Have you ever noticed how sometimes life just isn’t fair? It’s one of the hard realities we learn early on. No one has to wait for adolescence or old age to find it out. You can learn it in nursery school. Sometimes life just isn’t fair. Little brothers and sisters seem to get such special privileges. The things my little brother and sister got away with! There were times when I really felt like the prodigal son story was some kind of Jungian archetype for familial systems down through the centuries. Well, I didn’t exactly put it that way when I was 15, but that’s how I felt. It’s the way older employees feel when young hot shots come into the workplace and the older ones get shoved out into unemployment lines. It’s the way veteran athletes feel when rookies get drafted with multi-million dollar contracts while the veterans have been slugging it out at smaller salaries all these years. Some coaches even treat these rookies differently from the rest, giving them special privileges the way we sometimes do with our children or our employees or our students. Of course there was one coach who never did that. Once in commenting on Vince Lombardi’s fairness, one of the Green Bay Packers noted that Lombardi treated every player the same. "He treats us all like dogs," said the player. Some coaches are fair, but many are not in their treatment of players, just as parents are not with children, employers with employees and teachers with students. Sometimes that’s just the way life is, which is in part the point of the parable of the laborers in the vineyard. William J. Carl, III, Church People Beware!, CSS Publishing Company. A Cod Liver Oil Parable In her memorable sermon on Matthew 20, Barbara Brown Taylor says that this parable is a little like the cod liver oil that mothers used to give their kids to cure what ailed them: you know it's good for you, you trust the one who is giving it to you, but that doesn't make it very easy to swallow even so! Most of us are born into this world with a huge sense of infantile entitlement followed by, at a very early age already, a seemingly intuitive sense of fairness and unfairness. It's like Charlie Brown's little sister, Sally, in the classic "Charlie Brown Christmas Special." You may recall that at one point Sally is writing a letter to Santa Claus and in the process generates an enormous list of toys she wants. Then at the conclusion of her North Pole-bound missive she writes, "But if that is too much to carry, just send cash." When Charlie Brown sees this and despairs over his own sister's greed, Sally indignantly responds, "All I want is my fair share. All I want is what I have coming to me." Scott Hoezee, Great Laughter The question is, what is it that we really deserve. We have to come to church, and read to the bible to be reminded that our understanding of what is fair and God’s version are different. Both the Hebrew bible and the new testament are full of stories of what God is like. Our story for today starts out by saying the Kingdom of Heaven is like….. If you were to summarize all of the stories of the bible, they are teaching us that God has several basic personality traits: God is always loving, just, faithful, everlasting, self sufficient, omnipotent, in control, holy, merciful, wise, and unchanging. In other words God will always be God no matter what. The question for many of us is how does an unchanging God adjust to an uncertain life. Why is it that God never goes out of style, when our lives are continually moving and changing. The short answer would be that our ways are not God’s ways. There is no way that we as humans can every be able to understand and explain God. Stepping on Toes Let's face it: some folks come to churchon Sunday morningwith the expectation that, sooner or later, if they pay close attention, the preacher is going to step on their toes. It's unavoidable; it's inevitable; it just can't be helped. In fact, it's something some folks look forward to, in a masochistic sort of way. I heard a friend of mine say from the pulpit one Sunday, "Well, folks, I've been here about 5 years now. And if I haven't stepped on your toes yet, be patient - I'll get around to you sooner or later." The Gospel of Matthew is a lot like that. I have little doubt that the writer of Matthew was a perfectionist, a real stickler for rules and regulations. Actions have consequences for Matthew, and if you play you'd better be prepared to pay. That's why you go to church - to be reminded of the rules, right? Do what Jesus would do, read your Bible every day, pray for your enemies, take your vitamins, say a little prayer for good luck before you leave for work each day, keep your nose clean, and you'll be alright. Grace? Yes, of course there is grace, and God's grace is truly amazing; but if you step out of line, God's going to get you, grace or no grace! I wonder if Matthew was a hall monitor when he was in school. Isn't it curious how grace doesn't feel so gracious when we have to share it with someone else - especially if it's someone we don't think is deserving of equality with us? Isn't it curious how the more amazing God's grace becomes, the more we grumble about it? Writer Robert Capon says that, if the world could have been saved by bookkeeping and settling accounts, God would have sent Moses, not Jesus. The law was okay, as far as it went. But about all that a thousand years of the Law proved was that, in the words of Paul, "No one is righteous, no not even one" (Romans 3:10). Johnny Dean, Exasperating Grace, Sermons.com The good news for us is that God is always God. God always maintains God’s integrity. God never changes God’s personality. God is just in all situations. God is a jealous God, God judges us when we do wrong. But somewhere in between justice and wrath – there is mercy. No matter how hard we try – we are righteous some days, and some days not so much. God judges us, but God also has mercy on our circumstances. We can be grateful that in between justice and wrath is a beautiful place called grace. And God sent Jesus into the world to invite us all to that place. This is a story in Matthew 20 is a story of God’s grace at work. I don’t see it so much here in this area, but when I was in Cicero, there was a shopping mall where the parking lot served as a gathering place. This was the place to come in order to catch the bus travelling to Mexico. But there was also a corner that would be particularly filled every morning. This was the place where day laborers would gather to be picked for work everyday. A temporary agency would come every morning and pick the men up in a bus and take them to work. The agency must have come more than once, because it was not unusual to come to the strip mall at 3 in the afternoon and people would still be hanging out waiting. Now most of us have been trained to get where we are going we must be the first in line. We would get there early and expect to be rewarded for our hard work. But obviously those who are out there in the afternoon are still desparate for work. Embrace the Sense of Community There’s a play by Timothy Thompson based on this parable in which he depicts two brothers vying for work. John is strong and capable; Philip is just as willing but has lost a hand in an accident. When the landowner comes, John is taken in the first wave of workers, and as he labors in the field he looks up the lane for some sign of Philip. Other workers are brought to the field, but Philip is not among them. John is grateful to have the work, but feels empty knowing that Philip is just as needful as he. Finally, the last group of workers arrive, and Philip is among them. John is relieved to know that Philip will get to work at least one hour. But, as the drama unfolds, and those who came last get paid a full days’ wages, John rejoices, knowing that Philip – his brother – will have the money necessary to feed his family. When it comes his turn to stand before the landowner and receive his pay, instead of complaining as the others, John throws out his hand and says with tears in his eyes, “Thank you, my lord, for what you’ve done for us today!” God’s justice arises out of a sense of community in which we see the “eleventh hour” workers as our brothers and sisters whose needs are every bit as important as our own. Philip W. McLarty, The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard Life is not always fair. But neither is God. Our definition of fair is all of us being equal, when in reality none of us are equal. We are each unique with unique situations. God is not concerned about fairness, God is concerned about justice. In order for us to have the same opportunities, sometimes God has to understand. One of my personal pet peeves, is when people say that they are blessed. For centuries, we have equated being blessed with having all that we need. If we are comfortable in life, that must mean that we are doing something right and God is in favor with who we are and what we are doing. So if we are blessed when good things happen to us, what about the people who have been affected by the hurricanes, what about the people of Mexico dealing with 3 earthquakes within a month? Does God not love them? Are they not blessed? They are children of God and God loves them the same. As a matter of fact, God may determine that they need more than we do – and God may be even more present with them in their time of deep need. And yet God is graceful, merciful, just and loving to us all at the same time. Being equal in God’s eyes does not mean that we are all treated the same. We are all in need of God’s grace. I want to play a little game with you. It is called getting into heaven. 100 Points! A man dies and goes to heaven. Of course, St. Peter meets him at the Pearly Gates. St. Peter says, "Here's how it works. You need 100 points to make it into heaven. You tell me all the good things you've done, and I give you a certain number of points for each item, depending on how good it was. When you reach 100 points, you get in." Okay, " the man says, "I was married to the same women for 50 years and never cheated on her, even in my heart." That's wonderful," says St. Peter, "that's worth three points." Three points?" He says. "Well, I attended church all my life and supported its ministry with my tithe and service." Terrific!" say's St. Peter. "That's certainly worth a point." "One point? Well I started a soup kitchen in my city and worked in a shelter for homeless veterans." Fantastic, that's good for two more points," he says. "Two points!" The man cries. "At this rate the only way to get into heaven is by the grace of God!" St. Peter smiled. "There's your 100 points! Come on in!" Where would you be without God’s grace in your life? Additional illustrations….. The Rules of a Family The parable of the vineyard workers (Matt. 20) offends our sense of fairness. Why should everyone get equal pay for unequal work? Back in Ontario when the apples ripened, Mom would sit all seven of us down, Dad included, with pans and paring knives until the mountain of fruit was reduced to neat rows of filled canning jars. She never bothered keeping track of how many we did, though the younger ones undoubtedly proved more of a nuisance than a help: cut fingers, squabbles over who got which pan, apple core fights. But when the job was done, the reward for everyone was the same: the largest chocolate-dipped cone money could buy. A stickler might argue it wasn't quite fair since the older ones actually peeled apples. But I can't remember anyone complaining about it. A family understands it operates under a different set of norms than a courtroom. In fact, when the store ran out of ice cream and my younger brother had to make do with a Popsicle, we felt sorry for him despite his lack of productivity (he'd eaten all the apples he'd peeled that day--both of them). God wants all his children to enjoy the complete fullness of eternal life. No true child of God wants it any other way. Robert De Moor Traditional race and Generosity Dr. William Power, a professor at Southern Methodist University, describes an experience he had in Sunday school when he was a boy. His teacher was trying to explain to him and his rowdy friends the meaning of grace, but wasn’t getting very far. She tried definitions and abstractions, to no avail. Finally, she realized something the boys had known from the start. She was not connecting. She was not getting through to them. They didn't have the foggiest notion what she was talking about. So she took a deep breath and tried again: "Look boys, grace is the break you get when you don't deserve it. That's the simple explanation. But you won't really understand it till you experience it." James W. Moore, Some Things Are Too Good Not to Be True, Dimensions, 1994, p. 95. Fairness This parable goes against the business mentality that dominates our lives. We have always been taught: You get out of something directly in proportion to that which you put in it. Yet, that is not what happened in Jesus’ story. In our way of thinking, the laborers who came to the field late got something for nothing. This parable challenges us not to look upon the Kingdom of God, or the church, as a business community. Yet, that is difficult for us to do, because that is our point of reference. What do you think would happen if a person joined the church this morning and immediately after receiving the vows of profession of faith I suggested to the congregation that he or she be nominated as the next chairperson of the Administrative Board. What do you think the reaction would be? Well, I think I know what the reaction would be. The laity would protest as loudly as Simon Peter is protesting to Jesus. You see, we live in a world of tenure and seniority and it goes against our grain when we hear Jesus say: The first shall be last and the last shall be first. God's grace is not based upon what is fair, but rather what helps. God’s Time I was seven years old when my family immigrated to the United States, but I remember the exact moment I knew I had become a true American. It wasn’t the day I received my citizenship; it was the day I thought to myself: We gotta do something about all these foreigners coming into this country! Yeah, I think I was about twelve years old then. Recently, I watched Martin Scorsese’s latest film called “Gangs of New York,” a fascinating story about immigrant gangs at war with one another in the mid 1800s. In one scene, “Nativist” gangsters of Anglo-Saxon and Irish stock are at the docks, greeting the new immigrants with flying garbage and verbal abuse. Imagine that – American-born Irish showering utter contempt upon Irish-born Irish. There is something about human nature that equates longevity and tenure with a sense of rightful claim. In how many churches do the longest running members, those who “put in their time,” feel the greatest claim on the identity and mission of their congregation, regardless of the issue of faithfulness, vision or maturity? I believe this passage in Matthew 20 gives us a corrective to that view. Should those who put in their time from 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM be rewarded differently than the ones who worked only an hour? This parable is ultimately about the difference between our time and God’s time, what the Greeks called chronos and kairos. The modern business world tells us that “time is money,” but this phrase seemed just as current to the setting in Palestine some 2,000 years ago. Jin S. Kim, The Last Shall Be First Rewards After serving as a missionary for forty years in Africa, Henry C. Morrison became sick and had to return to America. As the great ocean liner docked in New York Harbor there was a great crowd gathered to welcome home another passenger on that boat. Morrison watched as President Teddy Roosevelt received a grand welcome home party after his African Safari. Resentment seized Henry Morrsion and he turned to God in anger, "I have come back home after all this time and service to the church and there is no one, not even one person here to welcome me home." Then a still small voice came to Morrison and said, "You're not home yet." Brett Blair, www.Sermons.com God’s Grace One time a Sunday school superintendent was registering two new sisters in Sunday School. When she asked them how old they were one replied, “We’re both seven. My birthday is April 8th and my sister’s is April 20th.” That superintendent replied, "That’s impossible girls." The other sister then spoke up and said, "No it’s true, one of us is adopted." "Oh," the superintendent said, "Which one?" The two sisters looked at each other and one said, "We asked Dad that question a while ago, but he just looked at us and said that he loved us both equally, so much so that he couldn’t remember which one of us was adopted." (from God’s Little Lessons on Life for Women, Honor Books) That is a wonderful analogy of the love of God. God loves us all, equally. We are loved, not because we have earned God’s love or deserve it, but because of God’s grace. Keith Wagner, Me, First! The Job God Would Take One time there was a man named Horville Sash. Horville had very humble job in the basement of the largest corporation in the world. He worked there as a gofer who did a lot to help other people become successful in their jobs. But Horville always wondered and thought about the floor just above him. One day, Horville saw a bug scurrying across the floor. That may not seem like a lot, but remember, Horville worked in the basement. He started to raise his foot to squash the helpless bug. "Spare me." The little bug begged. Horville couldn’t believe that a bug was talking to him. But he spared the little bug. As a reward, this marvelous little creature gave Horville a wish. "I wish to be promoted to the second floor," said Horville. "Granted," said the little one. Horville’s boss told him that very day, and so he marched to the second floor like MacArthur and Patton rolled into one. But it started again. Horville heard footsteps on the ceiling. There was a higher level, more power, higher wages. The next day, Horville rose to the third floor, but he was never satisfied, and so up he went one floor at a time, higher and higher and higher until he reached the 96th floor. He was sitting by the indoor pool on that floor, when he spotted a stairwell leading upward. "Is there yet another floor above me?" He wondered. He ran up the stairs, but only to find that it led to the roof. He started to head back down when he noticed a small boy near the edge of the building with his eyes closed. "What are you doing?" Horville asked. "Why I’m praying," said the little boy. "To whom?" Asked Horville again. Pointing a finger to the sky, the little boy answered, "I’m praying to God. Horville was overcome by the idea that there might be a floor above him. He couldn’t see it. He only saw clouds in the sky. He couldn’t hear any shuffling of feet up there." But this God must be above him. So he summoned the little bug and said, "Make me God. Make me the highest I can be. Put me in the kind of position that only God would accept." It was granted. And the very next day, Horville began work as a gofer in the basement helping others to be successful in their jobs. (from William J. Adams, Deacon Sil) Keith Wagner, Me, First!, adapting William J. Adams A Strange, New Arithmetic In Frederick Borsch's book, Many Things in Parables, he writes: "When my wife became pregnant, I found that I had an inordinate desire to have a son. I feel apologetic about that now. It seems rather sexist ... But I had two sisters and no brothers as I was growing up ... I wanted to have a brother ... But when you want something that much, you figure it probably will not happen. But it did! Benjamin was born, and all my parental heart went out to him with more love than I knew I had inside me ... So much so was this true that, when two years later my wife was pregnant again, I discovered that I had a very worrisome problem. When the second child was born and as it grew, how was I going to hide from it the fact that I could never love it as much as the first? ... I must have thought that love was like a pie. The more people that came to share it, the smaller the slices had to be. Then, as though to make matters worse, we had twins! But most will have guessed what then happened. It was like a miracle to me. Suddenly I loved Matthew and Stuart with the same love with which I loved Benjamin, without taking any love from him. This was a strange new arithmetic. The pie seemed to have become larger. This is what the loving of a parent is like - to love in this reckless and even-handed way." Richard J. Fairchild, The Sun to Shine and The Rain to Fall Jealousy: Sadness in the Heart of God There is a Jewish parable that both parallels and illumines Jesus' story, and it has helped to clarify my understanding greatly. This one is about a "farmer who lived in Poland. For generations before him, his family had been very poor. One night he was awakened by an angel of the Lord, who said: "You have found favor in the eyes of your Maker. He wants to do for you what he did for your ancestor Abraham. He wants to bless you. Therefore, make any three requests that you will of God, and he will be pleased to give them to you. There is only one condition: your neighbor will get a double portion of everything that is bequeathed to you." The farmer was startled by this revelation and woke up his wife to tell her all about it. She suggested that they put the whole thing to a test. So they prayed. "Oh, blessed God, if we could just have a herd of a thousand cattle, that would enable us to break out of the poverty in which we have lived for generations. That would be wonderful." No sooner had they said these words than they heard the sound of animal noises outside. Lo and behold, all around the house were a thousand magnificent animals! During the next two days, the farmer's feet hardly touched the ground. He divided his time between praising God for such great generosity and beginning to make practical provisions for his newly acquired affluence. On the third afternoon, he was up on a hill behind his house trying to decide where to build a new barn when he looked across at his neighbor's field, and there standing on the green hillside were two thousand magnificent cattle. For the first time since the angel of the Lord had appeared, the joy within him evaporated and a scowl of envy took its place. He went home that evening in a foul mood, refused to eat supper, and went to bed in an absolute rage. He could not fall asleep because every time he closed his eyes, all he could see were his neighbor's two thousand cattle. Deep in the night, however, he remembered that the angel had said he could make three wishes. With that, he shifted his focus away from his neighbor and back to his own situation, and the old joy quickly returned. Digging deep into his own heart to find out what else he really wanted, he began to realize that in addition to some kind of material security, he always wanted descendants to carry his name into the future. So he prayed a second time: "Gracious God, if it please thee, give me a child that I may have descendants." With that, he and his wife made love, and because of his experience with the cattle, he was not too surprised shortly thereafter to learn that she was expecting. The next months were passed in unbroken joy. The farmer was busy assimilating his newly acquired affluence and looking forward to the great grace of becoming a parent. On the night his first child was born, he was absolutely overjoyed. The next day was the Sabbath. He went to the synagogue, and at the time of the prayers of the people, he stood up and shared with the gathered community his great good fortune: now at last a child had been born into their home. He had hardly sat down, however, when his neighbor got up and said, "God has indeed been gracious to our little community. I had twin sons born last night. Thanks be to God." On hearing that, the farmer went home in an utterly different mood than the one in which he came. Instead of being joyful once again he was filled with the canker of jealousy. This time, however, his envy did not abate. Late that evening, he made his third request of God: "Please, gouge out my right eye." No sooner had he said these words than the angel who had initiated the whole process appeared again and asked, "Why, son of Abraham, have you turned to such vengeful desirings?" With pent-up rage, the farmer replied, "I cannot stand to see my neighbor prosper. I'll gladly sacrifice half of my vision for the satisfaction of knowing that he will never be able to look on what he has." Those words were followed by a long silence, and as the farmer looked, he saw tears forming in the eyes of the angel. "Why, O son of Abraham, have you turned an occasion for blessing into a time of hurting? Your third request will not be granted, not because the Lord lacks integrity, but because God is full of mercy. However, know this, O foolish one, you have brought sadness not only to yourself, but to the very heart of God." John Claypool, Stories Jesus Still Tells p. 28, 29 Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day My mother was a teacher who loved to read to her class. One of her favorites was Judith Viorst's book, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. Alexander awakens in the morning and says: I went to sleep with gum in my mouth and now there's gum in my hair and when I got out of bed this morning I tripped on the skateboard and by mistake I dropped my sweater in the sink while the water was running and I could tell it was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. After a bad day at school and an even worse time with the dentist, Alexander continues his book of lamentations: Lima beans for dinner and I hate limas. There was kissing on TV and I hate kissing. My bath was too hot. I got soap in my eyes. . . I bit my tongue. The cat wants to sleep with Anthony, not with me. It has been a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. I think I'll move to Australia. Do you ever have days like this? Days when nothing seems to go right, days when life appears to be unfair? David Beckett, That’s Not Fair Set Expectations A story is told of the lady who had a stranger appear at her door and simply handed her a $100 bill. She was dumbfounded! Then the same thing happened the next day….and the next…and the next. For thirty straight days this stranger gave her $100 without explanation. On the 31st day the lady was waiting at the door when she saw the man coming down the street. But then he passed her house and walked up to her neighbor’s house, and gave her a $100 bill! The first lady was indignant and yelled at the guy, "Hey, where’s my $100 bill?" It’s easy to think that when life is going our way that somehow we deserve it. We come to expect it. We even plan for it. This parable is not so much about the injustice of workers getting paid the same for different amounts of work. It is about God and God’s mercy and grace. Sometimes it appears that some people are receiving more of God’s grace than others. But as Christians we live, not in a world of justice, but of grace. David Beckett, That’s Not Fair! The Right Spirit This story is told of Yogi Berra. The New York Yankees were at their peak and were negotiating contracts for the next year. A group of reporters interviewed players as they emerged from the owner’s office, and one of them asked Yogi Berra about the terms of his contract. In his characteristically, plain-spoken style, he said, “I’m gonna get to play baseball again next year for the Yankees, and would you believe it, they’re gonna pay me besides!” That’s the spirit of gainful employment, doing what you love to do and do well and getting paid for it besides. If the workers who’d worked all day had this attitude about their work, they wouldn’t have resented those who only got to work one hour. When you’re in the right vocation and you’ve got the right spirit, then the longer you work, the better. God’s justice arises out of a gracious invitation to use your innate gifts and abilities to the glory of God and to the benefit of others. In the long run, money or recognition or praise has little to do with it. Philip W. McLarty, The Parable of the Workers in the Vineyard