What Would You Be Called? (July 9, 2023) Mt. 11.16-19, 25-30
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Sometimes there is a hard time hearing a word from the Lord. There can be a cacophony of noise that surrounds us and makes it difficult to hear what God is saying to us. This week was one of those weeks. There was much going on and it was hard to hear. I was looking at the passage several times and wondering why the lectionary put this reading in two groups. It seemed awkward and hard to work with for the sermon. It was, in a word, annoying. But as I continued to read the passages, I began to see how they seamlessly fit together and how they would work to make a word from the Lord.
Jesus was finishing his mission discourse when a word came from John asking if he was the one for whom they had been looking for or were they to look for another. Jesus answered that John should look at the deeds of power that were done and the good news that was brought to the people by Jesus. That would give him, hopefully, the answer for which he yearned to hear.
Jesus continues by asking the crowds just what they were looking for when they went out to listen to John. He says several things but ends with a prophet. That is what they went to see. One who brought a message about the coming judgement in the kingdom of God. But Jesus says that this one is the greatest of those born, but the least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than John. One wonders what the crowd must have thought about all these words.
Jesus then goes into what I like to call parable mode. He tells of children in the marketplace calling to one another to play. Some suggest playing wedding, but the others don’t dance. So, they suggest that they play funeral, but the others will not mourn. It seems that the ones who are called to play will not play no matter what is offered to them.
Then Jesus turns a sarcastic tone. Have you ever thought of Jesus as sarcastic? Stick with me and you may understand from where I am coming.
The sarcasm comes in the words he uses to describe both John and him: “For John came, neither eating nor drinking, and people say, “He is possessed”; the Son of Man came, eating and drinking, and they say, “Look at him! A glutton and a drinker, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners!”[1]Jesus is saying that John came bringing a message of judgement and calling for repentance. He came as a dour and somber messenger who wanted the people to listen and to turn from the ways that they were living. He was the one calling for them to mourn. But the people did not like what they were hearing. So, they said that he was possessed by a demon (or that he was out of his mind which was what demon possession would look like). One commentator says: John’s prophecy was a call to change our lifestyle and to work for justice and mercy in order to avoid the judgment of God that was surely coming in this new age.[2]He came looking wild eyed and calling for the people to do more than what they wanted or expected and therefore he was known as possessed.
Jesus, on the other hand, came bringing joy and a new message. This message is one that is based on love, mercy and forgiveness. It is a message that tells us no matter how far we have gone, we are never too far from God. Jesus was one who celebrated life going to banquets and eating with those who invited him to dinner. And for his message he was called a “glutton and a drinker, a friend of tax-collectors and sinners.”[3]To be called a drunkard and glutton was a very serious charge. In Deuteronomy parents of a wayward son would call him these names and he would be stoned to death. A serious charge indeed.
But the sarcastic side of Jesus shows in his statement about John and himself. He is saying that the people got a prophet in John, and he was too much for them. Then they got Jesus, and he was just the opposite, he was too lenient and loved too much. Jesus is throwing up his hands and saying the equivalent of: “What will it take to please you people? You got one and then the other and you still are not happy. You still will not play nice.” N.T. Wright says this about what is going on: The answer, of course, then as now, is that people don’t like the challenge, either of someone who points them to a different sort of life entirely, or of someone who shows that God’s love is breaking into the world in a new way, like a fresh breeze blowing through a garden and shaking old blossom off the trees.[4]
But wisdom will show what the outcome is to be. Donald Hagner says that: “The point is that wisdom does what is right and will finally be vindicated by her deeds. In the present context, applied to Jesus the saying means that the deeds of Jesus—including the very ones criticized by the opponents—will ultimately vindicate him.”[5]Wisdom will show out that Jesus was right and that those who listen to him are in the kingdom.
After a brief discussion of what will happen to cities that have had the message brought to them, Jesus turns to a prayer.
He thanks the Father for hiding things from the learned and the “wise.” Those who think that they know what God is like because they have studied the Torah, the rabbis and the Talmud are the ones who are being spoken of here. Let say first that there is nothing wrong with intelligence and being learned. It is what we do and how we move forward. It is how we use that knowledge and learning that is important. If we become arrogant and believe that we have all the answers because we have the learning, then that is a problem. But the other side of the coin is one that says, “My ignorance is just as good as your knowledge.” This can be arrogance on another level. Jesus is not saying that learning is bad. He is saying how that learning is used is what is the problem.
The learned and the wise are using what learning they have to oppress those with whom they “teach”. Jesus is thanking the Father that the infants are the ones to whom the wisdom of the kingdom has been given. These are not literal infants but the ones who are, in the words of the REB, simple. Those who are open to learning something new and unexpected. Those who know that they do not know everything and look for someone to show them the wisdom and knowledge of God. They do not look to know about God, but rather they want to know God personally. And Jesus gives thanks that he knows the Father and that those whom he has chosen are ones who know the Father because they know Jesus who chose them.
Finally, Jesus states one of the most comforting words in Scripture. He says: “Come to me, all you who labor and are burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am meek and humble of heart; and you will find rest for yourselves. For my yoke is easy, and my burden light.”[6]This good news for those listening. They are looking for someone who can help them with their burdens. But a yoke image might give them pause. A yoke was what one put on oxen when going out to plow the fields. How was a yoke to give rest from burdens? Craig Keener says this about the yoke: “They (those listening) will find Jesus’ yoke light because he is a Master who will care for them (Mt 11:29). Jesus’ yoke is not lighter because he demands less (5:20), but because he bears more of the load with us (23:4).”[7]The rest Jesus gives is not a kick your feet up and take it easy. No, it is a rest knowing that we do not have to bear the burden alone. It is rest for the soul that carries burdens that sometimes weigh us down more than any physical burden could ever do.
Wayne Watson, a contemporary Christian singer, said in a song that “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words can wound my heart.” How true. We all hate it when we or someone we love are called names or have words thrown at us. Jesus must have felt the same way when called a drunkard and glutton. He had feelings and knew what they were saying about him. But he still came offering grace and mercy, compassion and life more abundant. When we look at ourselves are we like Jesus or like those who called him the names? What would we be called if someone were to look at our lives? Would they say that we did not fit the bill of someone who was supposed to be religious? Would they say that we welcome those people and therefore cannot be who we claim to be? Would you be called a drunkard and glutton or even be called possessed? What would you, what would I be called? Would those around us see someone who we reflect, or would they see the ones who were “wise” and intelligent? Here’s the thing: Nibs Stroupe says that God wants our passion not our perfection. So, if those watching us call us something that they might have called Jesus, then I believe that we are doing something right. The Gospel offends with its outrageous grace. It is time to be called some names. What will we be called? Amen.
[1] The Revised English Bible. Cambridge; New York; Melbourne; Madrid; Cape Town; Singapore; São Paulo; Delhi; Dubai; Tokyo: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Print.
[2] Connections: A Lectionary Commentary for Preaching and Worship (p. 328). Presbyterian Publishing Corporation. Kindle Edition.
[3] The Revised English Bible. Cambridge; New York; Melbourne; Madrid; Cape Town; Singapore; São Paulo; Delhi; Dubai; Tokyo: Cambridge University Press, 1996. Print.
[4] Wright, Tom. Matthew for Everyone, Part 1: Chapters 1-15. London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004. Print.
[5] Hagner, Donald A. Matthew 1–13. Vol. 33A. Dallas: Word, Incorporated, 1993. Print. Word Biblical Commentary.
[6] New American Bible. Revised Edition. Washington, DC: The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, 2011. Print.
[7] Keener, Craig S. Matthew. Vol. 1. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1997. Print. The IVP New Testament Commentary Series.