Bearing the Fruits of the Kingdom

Bearing the Fruits of the Kingdom
Matthew 21:33-46

Today, we will continue to explore the theme on the Kingdom of God. This concept can be too abstract and amorphous for us to appreciate just what is we are proclaiming. What do these fruits of the kingdom look like, what do they taste like? In Isaiah, the vineyard was a common metaphor for people of Israel. How are we as the Church of Jesus Christ living as the harvest of God’s good fruit?
If we are labourers in God’s vineyard, how do we distinguish the good fruit from the bad? We don’t want to pluck the grapes too soon, nor do we want to leave them on too long to waste away on the vine. There is a timing only God knows and we keep vigil, looking for the time and place to proclaim God’s Kingdom among us. There is a time when we need to raise our voice for the voiceless. We take a stand even when it is neither popular nor convenient. We carry our cross, knowing this is the path set for us all.
Our ancestors have walked this path of uncertainty before us. We too can feel like the tenants, our landlord has left us alone to fend for ourselves, God seems far away and our prayers go unanswered. After awhile we can forget just who it is we labour for and our egos get in the way. The church becomes more of a social club with our private fiefdoms. We need to have courage and patience as we tend the harvest and wait with pregnant hope. We don’t pluck or weed without God’s grace to guide us. Wait on the Lord, God will give us the words at the right time.
Have you ever heard someone say, “May you live in interesting times.” The headlines of late have made us very anxious. Will I lose my retirement in this mess? What will happen to our endowment, what does this mean for our church’s future? This is the pressing issue of the day. What happens to us when we get stuck in survival mode? This gloomy cloud set in around us at the end of our last Session meeting.
Our leaders in Washington have passed the bill that some call a bailout and others call a relief plan. No matter how you look at, we are facing very trying times! Between the cost of War and this Wall Street buyout, we are facing a mouth dropping and eye bulging debt. For too long the American way has been to live beyond our means. We need to remember how Jesus sent out the first disciples to live. They were more focused on living out the Kingdom of the God than getting in over their heads. How is this day opportunity for us to reclaim the simplicity and right livelihood that our ancestors have modelled for us?
As the church, we face a common criticism of being hypocrites. We don’t practice what we preach. We say one thing but under the cover night we whistle another tune. I love the bumper sticker that reads, “I’m Not Perfect, only Forgiven.” God is loving and gracious, but at some point our repentance, (turning the other way) needs to take hold. How are we bearing the good fruit of the Kingdom?
Many of our brothers and sisters in other countries find it hard to swallow the impact of this financial crisis. Many see America as very hypocritical. We told others to be careful of this and we withheld the purse strings until we saw some assurances. Now the world sees just how far we live beyond our means. Why should we bail out these three piece suits seated around the conference tables on Wall Street. People are entitled to be outraged and dismayed. It’s good for us to awake from our apathy and complacency.
I can’t help but imagine what Jesus would say to them if he was in lower Manhattan or in the halls of Congress. Who were the bigwigs of Jesus day, who made decisions that impacted others? People who do not seem to face any accountability. What did Jesus say to the temple and religious authorities running the show in Jerusalem?
In our gospel lesson, Jesus warns the powers that be that they must repent from their ways and produce good fruit. Just the night before Jesus had cleared the temple saying, “My father’s house will be called a house prayer, but you are making it a den of thieves.” The poor peasants coming into Jerusalem for the Passover feast are being exploited by profiteers who are in cahoots with the powers that be. They price gouged these pilgrims for the animal sacrifices they need in order to participate in the Temple festivities.
When I think of our brothers and sisters facing sub-prime foreclosures and those with ruined credit who are struggling to find a place to rent, I see a parallel with these poor peasants. They were just trying to be faithful to the expectations set for them. They have come to participate in the Passover festival hoping that God will once again liberate his children from poverty and oppression. People seeking the American dream have been duped by loan officers who never should have processed these loans. We have moved on beyond just pay day lending and loan sharks. There are wolves among us who prey on the sheep. Our Good Shepherd will clear the fold. The vineyard will be freed of greed and exploitation.
God has blessed this country as truly a land of milk and honey. We have access to an incredible array of resources, both material and intellectual. We know the saying, “to whom much is given much is required.” There is fruit from this harvest that belongs to God. Some of us have been tenants who have forgotten where this abundance comes from. The FBI is investing fraud allegations with these Wall Street Firms. More locally, Todd Petters is in custody facing charges for his own scheme. This is a hard cold reality that we are prone to being blinded by greed. We grow arrogant and think we are beyond recourse. Some of us think we are immune to accountability, we have made ourselves indispensable.
Jesus reminds us that we are called to bear the good fruit of the Kingdom. If we do not, God may turn the vineyard over to people who are willing to plant and harvest the God’s fruit. We are all children of God bearing the image of God in us. Regardless of the longitude or latitude of where we were born, we know in our bones this hunger for love, justice and compassion.
We need to expand our understanding of God’s mission. The vineyard is much more comprehensive than many people realize. As I mentioned last week, salvation is more than just our personal relationship with Jesus. We are forgiven, blessed and nourished. We are then sent out to extend this love and grace to others. Jesus does not send us out merely to thump our bibles and add convert notches to our belts. The numbers belong to God, it is not our harvest we merely tend the branches.
Jesus sends us out to work for the healing and liberation of our brothers and sisters living in the bondages of our time. When we extend love and forgiveness to others, we are planting seeds for the harvest. When we embrace the stranger struggling for their daily bread, the warmth of God’s light nourishes the branches. When we care for the widows and orphans surviving the diseases of poverty (TB, Malaria and HIV/AIDS) we bear the fruit of God’s vineyard.
Every day we need to ask ourselves, who are our brothers and sisters among us who gather around the pools of shiloam for healing and wholeness? We’ve respond to this question by opening our doors for a 12 step group. Every church can learn from our brothers and sisters in recovery what a grace spirituality is like. These folks are producing fruit for the kingdom.
Today we celebrate World Communion Sunday. Presbyterians started this traditions years ago. As the building storm of Nazism loomed on the horizon, our brothers and sisters gathered from the North and South and East and West to partake of the bread and wine our Lord sets for us. Today we still receive this foretaste of Christ’s great banquet. Here is where we enjoy the fruits of God’s Kingdom.
Today, we also collect the Peacemaking offering. Can you feel synergy? Years ago, our ancestors instituted this special communion service to remember how the global church was working together to bear the fruits of God’s harvest: peace, healing and reconciliation. AHP has directly benefited from this offering in the past to support our summer program. Numerous peacemaking delegations are funded through this offering. Due to the work of the Presbyterian AIDS Network, it is suggested that our 25 % for local ministries be directed to an HIV/AIDS related ministry.
As we pass the plate we remember that this harvest belongs to God. We are tenants in the field. We attend the branches that lead us back to Jesus, the true vine. These branches extend to every corner of the world. May we be known as harvesters of the fruit growing in God’s vineyard. No more hunger, no more thirst. Broken hearts are healed ; bodies are free of disease. Our children laugh and prosper. Our elders live with dignity and independence.
This is our time. We are the people we have been waiting for. Regardless of your party affiliation, I urge you to be engaged in the civic process. As Presbyterians, we embrace our call to be: "Reformed and always being Reformed according to the Word of God." The world needs to hear from us. What do these fruits of the harvest look and taste like? Noone has a monopoly on God’s mission. God’s vineyard is bigger than us all and we each have a row assigned for us. Let us kneel down and continue the nitty gritty work .