Exposed - 9/27/20
Call to worship:
L: Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord!
P: Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord!
L: And the Lord shall lift you up!
P: And the Lord shall lift you up!
L: Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord!
P: Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord!
L: And the Lord shall lift you up!
P: And the Lord shall lift you up!
Opening Hymn: God of Grace and God of Glory #577
Opening Prayer:
Send your Spirit, faithful God! And instill in us the mind of Christ! Bind us together in joy and affection as we come, that we may leave looking not only to our own welfare, but also to the welfare of others. Amen.
Epistle Reading: Philippians 2: 1-13
If
then there is any encouragement in Christ, any consolation from love,
any sharing in the Spirit, any compassion and sympathy, 2 make my joy complete: be of the same mind, having the same love, being in full accord and of one mind. 3 Do nothing from selfish ambition or conceit, but in humility regard others as better than yourselves. 4 Let each of you look not to your own interests, but to the interests of others. 5 Let the same mind be in you that was in Christ Jesus,
6 who, though he was in the form of God,
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
did not regard equality with God
as something to be exploited,
7 but emptied himself,
taking the form of a slave,
being born in human likeness.
And being found in human form,
8 he humbled himself
and became obedient to the point of death—
even death on a cross.
9 Therefore God also highly exalted him
and gave him the name
that is above every name,
10 so that at the name of Jesus
every knee should bend,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
11 and every tongue should confess
that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
12 Therefore, my beloved, just as you have always obeyed me, not only in my presence, but much more now in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who is at work in you, enabling you both to will and to work for his good pleasure.
Hymn: Sing Praise to God who Reigns Above #126
1. Sing praise to God who reigns above, the God of all creation,
the God of power, the God of love, the God of our salvation.
With healing balm my soul is filled and every faithless murmur stilled:
To God all praise and glory.
1. Sing praise to God who reigns above, the God of all creation,
the God of power, the God of love, the God of our salvation.
With healing balm my soul is filled and every faithless murmur stilled:
To God all praise and glory.
2. The Lord is never far away, but through all grief distressing,
an ever present help and stay, our peace and joy and blessing.
As with a mother's tender hand, God gently leads the chosen band:
To God all praise and glory.
3. Thus, all my toilsome way along, I sing aloud thy praises,
that earth may hear the grateful song my voice unwearied raises.
Be joyful in the Lord, my heart, both soul and body bear your part:
To God all praise and glory.
4. Let all who name Christ's holy name give God all praise and glory;
let all who own his power proclaim aloud the wondrous story!
Cast each false idol from its throne, for Christ is Lord, and Christ alone:
To God all praise and glory.
Prayer of Dedication:
Pathmaker of the universe, your way is straight, your way is narrow! It is the way
of the just, the road that begins at the home of compassion and arrives at the
threshold of mercy. You did not learn right and wrong sitting on a parent’s knee or
listening to a teacher or memorizing commandments. You are what is good; you
ever have been and forever shall be. Even though we will leave this place, God will
never leave us. Thanks be to God! Amen.
Gospel Reading: Matthew 21: 23-32
23 When he
entered the temple, the chief priests and the elders of the people came
to him as he was teaching, and said, “By what authority are you doing
these things, and who gave you this authority?” 24 Jesus
said to them, “I will also ask you one question; if you tell me the
answer, then I will also tell you by what authority I do these things. 25 Did
the baptism of John come from heaven, or was it of human origin?” And
they argued with one another, “If we say, ‘From heaven,’ he will say to
us, ‘Why then did you not believe him?’ 26 But if we say, ‘Of human origin,’ we are afraid of the crowd; for all regard John as a prophet.” 27 So
they answered Jesus, “We do not know.” And he said to them, “Neither
will I tell you by what authority I am doing these things.
28 “What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. 30 The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
28 “What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, ‘Son, go and work in the vineyard today.’ 29 He answered, ‘I will not’; but later he changed his mind and went. 30 The father went to the second and said the same; and he answered, ‘I go, sir’; but he did not go. 31 Which of the two did the will of his father?” They said, “The first.” Jesus said to them, “Truly I tell you, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are going into the kingdom of God ahead of you. 32 For John came to you in the way of righteousness and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes believed him; and even after you saw it, you did not change your minds and believe him.
Sermon Title: Exposed!!! (video link)
Years ago, the Boston Globe, which carried a daily column designed to answer
readers' queries, listed the top ten unanswerable questions. Here's one just one of
them: "I am nine years of age and have a cat that eats regularly and needs to go
on a diet. He also eats mice when he is out. How many calories are in a mouse?"
There is no way to answer this question because there are too many variables in it.
What kind of mouse? How big or small is the mouse?
Honestly, I think it sounds like all of those word problems they used to give us in math class when I was in school – if train A is traveling west bound at 65 mph from Denver to San Francisco and train B is headed east with a load of coal, what color are the fences in Oklahoma?
And if unanswerable questions aren’t miry enough, there are those who instead of just providing an answer for a question, ask another question on top of the one that has been posed. That is what Jesus does with the chief priests and elders. And in doing so, he more than shames them into their rightful place. They ask Jesus who gave him the authority to speak so knowledgeably and so eloquently. But Jesus knew that they were not asking because they wanted to know. They were trying to trap him into saying something that would get him in trouble with the people. So instead of simply answering their question, Jesus told them that if they could answer his question, he would answer theirs. The synagogue leaders knew that no matter which side of the fence they landed on with his question, they would make someone mad, so they answered with, “We don’t know,” in order to protect themselves. They had been exposed and they were frightened. Jesus knew that if they couldn’t, or rather wouldn’t answer his question, they surely would not accept the answer he had for their question of his authority. A bit of a catch 22, if you will.
What Jesus did do, however, is to tell them a parable. This story explained how a man who had two sons, asked each of them to go into the vineyard and work. The first said that he wouldn’t but ended up going out to work later anyway. The second son said that he would, but never showed up to work. And Jesus asked the leaders which son had done the will of their father. They answered that the first son had because even though he said no, he did end up going out to the vineyard as his father requested.
Honestly, I think it sounds like all of those word problems they used to give us in math class when I was in school – if train A is traveling west bound at 65 mph from Denver to San Francisco and train B is headed east with a load of coal, what color are the fences in Oklahoma?
And if unanswerable questions aren’t miry enough, there are those who instead of just providing an answer for a question, ask another question on top of the one that has been posed. That is what Jesus does with the chief priests and elders. And in doing so, he more than shames them into their rightful place. They ask Jesus who gave him the authority to speak so knowledgeably and so eloquently. But Jesus knew that they were not asking because they wanted to know. They were trying to trap him into saying something that would get him in trouble with the people. So instead of simply answering their question, Jesus told them that if they could answer his question, he would answer theirs. The synagogue leaders knew that no matter which side of the fence they landed on with his question, they would make someone mad, so they answered with, “We don’t know,” in order to protect themselves. They had been exposed and they were frightened. Jesus knew that if they couldn’t, or rather wouldn’t answer his question, they surely would not accept the answer he had for their question of his authority. A bit of a catch 22, if you will.
What Jesus did do, however, is to tell them a parable. This story explained how a man who had two sons, asked each of them to go into the vineyard and work. The first said that he wouldn’t but ended up going out to work later anyway. The second son said that he would, but never showed up to work. And Jesus asked the leaders which son had done the will of their father. They answered that the first son had because even though he said no, he did end up going out to the vineyard as his father requested.
This is where Jesus really gets them right between the eyes. He tells them that it
will be the tax collectors and the prostitutes that get into heaven before the
prominent Jewish leaders of the day. Because while they may have said no to
God in the beginning, they eventually did come around and understand that one
needs the saving grace of Jesus working with God in order to get to heaven.
And even though the chief priests and elders supposedly know this, they are far
more interested in looking holy to their friends and colleagues than they are in being
holy in the sight of God. So Jesus is attacking them with this parable to expose the
greed and injustice. Actions, not just empty words, are crucial at this juncture in
Jesus’ ministry.
And actions are just as crucial today in our ministry. They allow others to see what
we believe instead of just hearing about it. Of course, this leaves us exposed and
vulnerable, but if we are truly doing the work of God through his Son Jesus Christ
as we make our way through this thing called life on earth, then people won’t just
see us, but they will see the reflection of God in our actions.
The leaders answered the question posed by Jesus correctly, however, when they
did, they exposed themselves as not having done what they are supposed to do
because they had not done God’s will as manifested through Christ Jesus. And
because they did not do this, they missed out on an opportunity to change their
minds (repent) and ask for forgiveness. Unfortunately, they saw nothing wrong with
their own actions and instead endeavored to condemn Jesus for his.
There are many times in our lives where we will be asked to express what our
beliefs are. I encourage you to be bold in your belief so that you don’t have to fear
being exposed.
Amen. Where God places a . (period) let no man put a ? (question mark).
Closing Hymn: When Love is Found #643
1 When love is found and hope comes home,
sing and be glad that two are one.
When love explodes and fills the sky,
praise God, and share our Maker's joy.
sing and be glad that two are one.
When love explodes and fills the sky,
praise God, and share our Maker's joy.
2 When love has flowered in trust and care,
build both each day, that love may dare
to reach beyond home's warmth and light,
to serve and strive for truth and right.
3 When love is tried as loved ones change,
hold still to hope though all seems strange,
till ease returns and love grows wise
through listening ears and opened eyes.
4 When love is torn and trust betrayed,
pray strength to love till torments fade,
till lovers keep no score of wrong,
but hear through pain love's Easter song.
5 Praise God for love, praise God for life,
in age or youth, in husband, wife.
Lift up your hearts, let love be fed
through death and life in broken bread.