End times, confusing times, difficult times. This has been a difficult year in ways we have never seen before with a global pandemic, and schools, families, businesses and church having to do things very differently. We are not the first Christians who have had to live in difficult times. It was difficult 2000 years ago for the Jewish Christians that Matthew was writing to. If Jesus is the Messiah, how come our Jewish brothers and sisters don’t get it? Why hasn’t Jesus returned yet? It was difficult for Luther and his family with outbreaks of plague in their hometown, death threats from the Pope, and the uncertainty of whether his rediscovered teaching would be allowed to grow. It is difficult for Christians in the US, trying to work out why such a split amongst Christians and why so much tension in their country.
At this time of the church year, as we look at Jesus’ parables while we find there is always a hard edge (someone not being ready, and being excluded) but in crisis times, we always remember that we live by faith, and not be sight. God’s final word to each one of us is always ‘Yes,’ in Christ. God’s final word is always wonderful inclusion, not exclusion. Yes, there will be an ending of this world, and it will finally be a good ending – a new heaven and a new earth, and God living among us, no more pain, no more tears.
I believe we are all called to trust that God does have good plans. We are called to trust that we are always in God’s love, even when it doesn’t feel like that. We are called to trust that when God shuts a door in our face, that God is not mean or stingy or having a go at us. There may be lessons to learn, things to recognise, acknowledge and repent of because they aren’t right. That doesn’t make God a meany. God may simply be pushing us into something better and deeper for us, calling us into the richness of God’s kingdom, where there is more than enough to go around. I believe God is always a God of life.
Some see the 3rd slave in our parable, the one who refuses to do anything, as the Jesus figure – the one who refuses to buy into the economic system that I am only worthwhile if I am earning, and earning big. That is possible.
What resonates for me is something different. It’s the abundance and the trust of the master. In the waiting for Christ to visibly return, and the uncertainty, this parable is about an absent boss who is incredibly trusting. The amounts of money are huge – 5 bags of gold – millions and millions of dollars. No micro-managing, no constant check lists of conditions that must be fulfilled, no bullying or abuse. Here, use this until I get back. Crazy behaviour. But isn’t that how God works with us: he entrusts us with life, with breath, with more than enough to go around. There are good people who love us and value us. We have skills, abilities, competencies, maybe we actually do manage budgets with millions of dollars. As God’s people we are entrusted with the message that there are God’s commandments, but rigidly keeping them isn’t the way into God’s heart, we are already there. Christ on the cross is the great sign of that. We don’t get it right, and then we are forgiven. We share in God’s holiness, by being brought in by Christ, we participate in spite of our sins and faults. We do the painful journey of learning and growing because of our sins and faults. Maybe that is the deepest generosity of God – nothing is wasted, the bad as well as the good. The greatest growing often happens through our sins and faults.
Which brings us to number 3 person. I’m reading this as a faithless response, and a refusal to learn. When something challenging or bad happens, our instinctive reactions are flight – run away; fight – hit back, protect ourselves; or freeze. There are times when all of those might be absolutely right, faithful and godly. Run away – from abusive or manipulative situations. Leave for the sake of your own sanity, wellbeing, or because you have been drained, and you need to recover. Fight – take a stand, resist, name something as wrong. This is not about getting back or getting even. It’s about what is right, in spite of the cost. Freeze – not forever. It’s about being in a difficult situation and working what to do that is right for you and is true to who you are and who Jesus is in your life. So, fight, flight freeze. All can be faithful responses in Jesus.
We love being the hero or rescuer – I jumped in and helped, I got this sorted. We often see ourselves as a victim. This happened to me at work or in a relationship. None of us willingly say, “I was the villain here. I did the wrong thing and this is how it affected me, and this was the hurt it did to others. In spite of our weekly confession of sins we usually have to be dragged kicking and screaming to actually own the villain sides of us. We are so quick to see the specks in others’ eyes, not the huge lump that distorts our seeing.
What is the wrong thing that the 3rd servant did, with his bag of gold? Nothing. As in, nothing positive. He refused to do anything with it because he didn’t trust the boss. He played the victim role, and pushed the boss into the villain role, and it didn’t work. Martin Luther said that we get the sort of God we believe in. Meaning, if we see God as nasty; constantly concerned with us keeping commandments perfectly with everything being right and as totally separate to us – then that dominates how we experience God in our life. If we trust God’s word, that in Christ God is there for us, even when we get it wrong, or experience shame or humiliation, then our heart space starts to expand, and we see and experience that in more and more of life. That is why we need to keep hearing the full message of grace.
You get the sort of God you believe in. That makes sense of the bag of gold being taken away given to one of the others. If we believe that God is good, that he is with us in all things, that there is enough to go around, then our life gets better, and we are able to give of ourselves without being constantly exhausted; we are able to rest, with a good conscience, and we are able to lean into the not so nice stuff about ourselves and discover God’s help there as well. We handle difficult or even impossible things with trust and grace. We do the fight, flight or freeze faithfully.
Confusing times, being faithful, God of abundance who trusts you.
Your God homework this week. ‘Enter into my joy,’ said the master. Can you trust that Jesus enjoys you, and wants to be with you? Do something together – walk the dog, homework, sitting in your garden, walking on the beach, reading your book, sitting on your balcony. 15 minutes. Allow Jesus to enjoy being with you.
