Homily “Lost And Found”

Homily                        “Lost And Found”                Reverend Edgar Welty

            I studied Russian in high school.  I was in my second year when I heard about a sailor from a Soviet spy trawler.  You may remember those boats filled with electronic listening equipment which used to sit off our coasts.  The sailor had taken ill and was taken to the U. S. Naval Hospital at San Diego.  I turned up and I asked him in Russian what he was doing off our coast.  He insisted, he was just fishing, “Ya Ribicon! Ya Ribicon!”

At sixteen, I was so naïve.  For some reason, I thought I was going to find out some juicy secret.  The sailor thought I was sent from the KGB or CIA and my lousy Russian was a ruse.  He didn't know what was going on.  He was playing a Russian form of, “I know nothing”.  But we both knew, he was doing more than fishing.

            We know today’s gospel lesson is partly about fishing but we also know there is a lot more going on.  For “The Kingdom of God” is compared to a large fish catch but to many other things as well.  These include, a tiny seed growing into a large shrub, yeast in flour, a treasure found in a field and a fabulous pearl.  What is all this?

            Just as the precise description of a designed object sometimes requires several pages of drawings and documentation, some concepts require many comparisons to pin them down.  “The Kingdom of God is one such idea.  The parables from today’s Gospel describe our dependence on God’s natural creation, on forces we do not understand, our need to endure, and to our need to work with God with knowledge, wisdom and skill.

            The parable by which Jesus taught our dependence on God’s creative power as seen in nature is that of the mustard seed.  One could argue that the ratio of growth of an acorn to an oak may be even greater than mustard seed to a fully-grown plant.  But Jesus knew his pupils.  They would know only second hand of the growth of oaks or cedars.  A mustard seed they all probably had had in their peasant hands.  In a few seasons, this seed one can barely see would grow to a ten to fifteen foot plant.  Among the hymns we sung last week were contemporary celebrations of God’s in nature power.  “Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee” named: “Field and forest, vale and mountain, flowery meadow, flashing sea.  Chanting bird and flowing fountain call us to rejoice in thee”.  And: “Sun, moon and stars in their courses above, join with all nature in manifold witness to thy great faithfulness, mercy, and love.”  The mustard tree of today’s gospel likewise shelters God’s creatures.  We heard, “The birds of the air come and make nests in branches.  From other scripture, we know these birds can refer to care to the “Nations”.

            In today’s world we understand that yeast is a microorganism, which multiplies, and in the process releases gas to cause bread to rise.  But to people at the time of Jesus, leavening was a great mystery.  In the story a little bit of yeast is mixed with one hundred and ten of pounds of flour.  The woman had to work hard kneading bread for a one hundred fifty full sized meals.  She did so in faith even when she did not know how it worked.  Through today’s microscopes we can observe what happens with yeast.  Yet there will always be many things we don’t understand.   But we are called to work for God’s Kingdom in those areas as well.

            The process of preparing so many loaves with a little yeast would‘ve been a test of endurance for the woman in the parable.  She would have to blend a little leavened dough with enough fresh dough for a few loaves Then she would have to wait for this batter to rise.  With this dough a dozen loaves could be leavened.  Step by laborious step leavened dough would be produced for all one hundred and fifty loaves.

Jews then and now get all yeast out of the house at Passover.  Any Jewish woman preparing for a feast shortly after this time would face the problem of how to leaven lots of bread with a little borrowed yeast.  Jesus used a familiar example of endurance.  Thus is commended: The faith to work hard over an extended process.

St. Paul in today’s lesson from Romans gives us the key to endurance, endurance even in the face of persecution.  He argues, “If God is on our side, who is against us?”  Paul so speaks of the creator or Father.  Then he assures of help from Jesus our Savior.  “It is Christ who is at God’s right hand, who indeed pleads our cause.  …  What then can separate us from the love of Christ?  Can affliction or hardship?  Can persecution, or hunger, or nakedness, or peril, or the sword?  …  For I am convinced that there is nothing in death or life, in the realm of spirits or super human powers, nor rulers, in the world as it is or the world as it shall be, in the forces of the universe, in heights or depths-nothing in all creation that can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.  Likewise “The Spirit comes to the aid of our weakness.  We do not even know what is right to pray for, but through our inarticulate groans the Spirit - is pleading for us.”  God in three persons stands firm.

Today we sang other expressions of trust allowing us to endure.  Marin Luther’s great hymn, “A Mighty Fortress Is Our God” says in part, “Let this world’s tyrant rage; in battle we’ll engage!  His might is doomed to fail; God’s judgment must prevail!  One little word subdues him.  God’s Word forever shall abide.  No thanks to foes, who fear it.  For God himself fights by our side with weapons of the Spirit.”  And we shall raise our voices to celebrate, “Amazing grace, how sweet the sound, that saved a wretch like me!  I once was lost, but now am found; was blind but now I see.”  All of this is appropriate because what we do on Sunday is recharge for the week.  Daily work for God’s Kingdom takes endurance.  As we worship, we are equipped to serve.

But service takes discernment and our God-given wits.  The Parable of the Pearl deals with a merchant who knows pearls.  He has the discernment to recognize the great prize.  Our lesson from Old Testament shows King Solomon had the good sense to ask for, “An understanding mind to govern your people, able to discern between good and evil.”  Surely if we have discernment We will say along with the today’s psalmist of God, “Your decrees are wonderful; therefore I obey them with all my heart.  When your word goes forth it gives light: it gives understanding to the simple.  I open my mouth and pant; I long for your commandments. 

The parable of treasure hidden in a field shows courageous faith even when things are not certain.  For most people there were no banks.  Jerusalem’s temple was used as a treasury but only by Judah’s King and priests.  Thus: It was a well-known practice in ancient times to bury treasure in the fields in times of trouble.

And the times of Jesus were times of trouble.  Bandits controlled whole sections of Palestine.  These areas could be tens of square miles in extent.  Some bandits kept control in these areas for decades, even during Roman occupation.  Also you may recall: How the third servant buried money in the “Parable of the Talents”.

But if one discovered treasure in a field could one buy the field and have legal title to it?  It was a well-known legal debate in Roman law whether one had to tell the owner of a field about any treasure found before one could buy the property.  Also the question was asked if someone could claim to be the hider of the money.

What ever the answers to these questions might be, it is clear that prevalent in the lesson of both the parable of the pearl and the hidden treasure is the realization that God’s Kingdom is worth all that we have or all that we are.  This should not surprise us for the first commandment taught to us by Jesus is “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.”

But what about our fish story?  Like the Russian boat at the beginning of this message, fishermen of Jesus’ time trawled the water.  Two vessels towed a net a third of a mile long.  One edge was attached to floats.  The net extended twelve feet into the water.  The other edge of the net was weighted down.  When the boats came to shore, fishermen would sort out which fish were usable and throw out the others away.  This would happen at the very spot where Jesus was pronouncing these parables.  Therefore the theme of judgment is in the background of all of them.  If this is so, then we should ask ourselves how could we assure ourselves we are part of the catch that deserves to be kept?  We are to devote our whole selves, in faith , to advance God’s Kingdom.

Today’s parables teach us that many things are involved in preparing for God’s judgment.  The parables from today’s Gospel describe our dependence on God’s mercy, the divine creative power, on forces we do not understand, our need to endure and work with God both with our intelligence and skills.

May we, who are created in the divine image, relying on grace, seek to reflect the glory of our Father in heaven.  May we discern and seek to follow the way of the way of Christ God’s Son,  May we endure the “Many dangers, toils and snares”, of our earthly journey through the power of the Holy Spirit.              Amen