| September 2, 2007 - 14th Sunday
after Pentecost First
Reading: Proverbs 25:6-7 Gospel: Luke 14:1, 7-14 Sermon by Pastor Katherine Douglass Grace and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord Jesus Christ, Amen. We have talked so much about the life of discipleship this summer - about how we are to live as followers of Christ. And in our gospel this morning we get a glimpse of the place towards which Christ's disciples are moving - we get a glimpse of the kingdom of heaven. Where are we going, as disciples of Christ, we ask? Certainly, we are going to the cross - we are walking the path that leads to humiliation in the eyes of the world. Because walking as Christ's disciples is not the same as walking in the ways of the world. And the world has little patience with people who follow one who was dead and now is alive again. The world has little patience with people who live life in self-giving love instead of self-interest. So, if we are followers of the crucified one, Jesus Christ, we will surely follow him to the cross. But we are also following him to the kingdom of God, which, because of Christ and his resurrection, has already begun among us. This mysterious kingdom toward which we are headed is a little bit already here, but we are waiting for its fullness - for its coming in power when Christ returns, at the resurrection of the righteous. And today, Christ gives us a hint of what the kingdom of God will be like, by talking about how it can already be seen in the way of life of his disciples. When Christ talks of the kingdom of God, he often talks about a feast, a wedding banquet. In Christ's words, the kingdom of God is like a joyous occasion, with celebration and food. But Christ describes the kingdom of God as being somewhat different than the usual wedding feast or banquet. Not because of the food that is to be served, but because of who the host is - and who the guests are and how they act. The wedding feast in the kingdom of God is different because of who is invited, and because, unlike most big banquets that the world would think of, the guests are not trying to out-do each other to show off how important they are. Now - think about the last wedding reception that you went to. Maybe it was the wedding of a family member - maybe it was your own wedding, or the wedding of a friend or neighbor. Think first about where people sat, and how where they sat said a lot about how important they were, either in the family or in the life of the bride and groom. If it was a really big wedding banquet, there was probably a head table, with the bride and the groom in the center. On either side of the bride and groom were - who - the best man and the maid of honor. At lots of weddings, the groomsmen and bridesmaids also sit at the front table, and at some, the parents and grandparents sit at the front table, or at another table - but one that's up front, visible, one that says - these are important, honored guests. And at lots of weddings, who is sitting at each of the guest tables is important too, and says something about each guest's importance. Who is sitting with whom - who is the bride's boss sitting with, who is the groom's client sitting with? Where are the neighbors and the friends of the parents? When we humans get together for a celebration, we can't help but set up a little pecking order, a little hierarchy - that says who's important and who's chopped liver. Who needs to be treated with respect and who can sit back by the kitchen door, or right next to the dj's speakers? And we, as the guests, always have an idea about how important we think we are - about where we should be seated, about how we should be honored. Just think, if it was the bride's grandmother who was seated back by the kitchen door, with all the servers coming and going, and the dishes clattering and the door opening and closing. She might think - I'm more important than this - I deserve a better place at this banquet. Well, the world's banquets may be shows of status and importance, but the wedding feast in the kingdom of God turns the world’s idea of status and importance upside down. Jesus warns us not to imagine that we are to have the seats of honor at the wedding feast - not to assume that we should have the best seats at the table - to do that would be a kind of arrogance, a kind of pride - to think that, because of who we are or how we've lived, we deserve honor in God's kingdom. But, Jesus tells us that humility - being humble, not claiming any importance, is the way to be a guest at God's wedding feast. After all, we are invited to that feast not because of who we are or what we've done, but because Christ has graciously extended his invitation to us through his grace, given to us in our baptism. We are to be Christ’s guest at the table in the kingdom of God, And we are to respond to the grace of his invitation humbly, with gratitude and thanksgiving. Taking God's grace for granted, thinking that we somehow deserve to be invited to this glorious gathering in God's kingdom, those are not the attitude of a humble guest. A humble guest is amazed to find him or herself at the banquet at all and certainly doesn't expect to be seated at the head table. And if, for some reason, the humble guest is invited to sit up at a place of honor, what an incredible thrill, and a real honor, more important than any honor we could imagine for ourselves. At the wedding feast in the kingdom of God, Jesus says, all who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted. It's another way of saying that the first will be last and the last will be first. Accepting God's gracious invitation with humility and gratitude - that's the way disciples are to approach this banquet. So what then about the people who are invited to the wedding feast? If we look back at our wedding reception that's in our minds, we can imagine all the people who our bride and groom have on the guest list: family, of course - you know Aunt Mabel would be really mad if she wasn't invited. And friends - how can you get married without your friends being there - and especially those friends who invited you to their wedding and people from work - after all, they're important in your life, and it's always nice to entertain your boss. And so on and so on - but all people with some connection to the bride and groom. and - here's something else that's important - all those people are expected to bring a gift - to repay in some way the invitation, and celebrate the occasion - the guests are not expected to come empty-handed, are they. Now can you imagine at our imaginary wedding reception, the bride and groom inviting the homeless shelter to bring a van full of the people who are spending the night there? Can you imagine the bride and groom calling the local nursing home and inviting as many residents as they can to come to their reception? Can you imagine the bride and groom inviting only those people who can't afford gifts - who have nothing to give - and those people who will never be able to invite them to their reception, or even to a decent meal? That is the wedding banquet that Christ has in mind - that's the kind of wedding banquet that reflects the banquet in the kingdom of God - where God invites the poor, the crippled, the lame and the blind - those who cannot possibly repay his hospitality; those who have nothing to offer but themselves. When God gives a banquet, the lowliest are invited with special invitations. And for us, as disciples, this topsy-turvy banquet shows us how we are to offer invitations to this glorious banquet that Christ has prepared - that is, it shows us how we are to invite people into the fellowship of the church, which is a foretaste of the feast to come. We are to invite those that the world looks down on - the poor and the sick. We are to invite those who don't bring impressive credentials, who aren’t important in the way the world thinks of importance. We are to invite the people around us to the banquet that is Christ's body and blood, simply because it is the banquet of life, the banquet of grace, the banquet of hope. And those who need an invitation are the poor and the crippled, the lame and the blind - those who are in need of healing and those in need of forgiveness. That's the glory of God's gracious wedding feast - that it is for those who hunger and thirst, those who long to be included, and those who need forgiveness of their sin. It's for people like you and me - and all the people the world forgot to ask to its banquet. They are welcome at Christ's table
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
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