A Word of Thanks (Matthew 25)

 Lately I’ve been talking a lot, almost non-stop, about how awesome Bixby Knolls Christian Church is, how much love is here, and how much potential there is for this church’s future ministry. I’ve been doing this for two reasons. 

One: it is absolutely, 100% true. BKCC has everything it needs to grow, to evolve, to transform, and continue sharing God’s love. 

It may not be easy; it may require some radical changes, as we’ve talked about in the New Beginnings conversations; but God’s blessings are upon this congregation, and the future is bright. That is all 100% true. 

But the other reason I’ve been talking about how good and positive everything is, is that then I don’t have to talk about how much I’m going to miss this place, and how much I’m going to miss each of you. The beginning of a new chapter always means the end of the previous chapter, and no matter how good and promising that new chapter is, a part of us always wishes we could go back and relive that chapter we’ve just finished. 

This fall I’ve been studying the raising of Lazarus. I’ve learned that some have speculated that, when Jesus called Lazarus out of the tomb, that Lazarus was reluctant to emerge. 

We have no way of knowing what it was like, for Lazarus, to be dead for four days. But if he was at rest, at peace, and totally transitioned to whatever life after death is, I guess it might be that he would have resisted the pull back to life.

For readers of scripture, this is seen as Jesus’ greatest miracle; yet Lazarus may not have seen it that way, at least not at first.

I’ve also wondered what it’s like for a newborn baby, to emerge from the womb into a cold, harsh world.

Many years ago, I met a young child, about 3 or 4 years old at the time, who insisted she remembered what it was like in her mommy’s tummy, before she was born. She told her mom this, and her mom said, “What was it like?” And the girl said, “It was warm, and it was safe.”

None of us would trade the gift of life for anything, but I could see how one would long for a life before birth, that was warm and safe.

Graduating from high school is another example. It is a happy, joyous day, filled with celebration, because it meant the completion of one stage of our lives, and the transition to the next stage of our lives. Yet a part of us still longs to go back, to stay in the past, and enjoy the familiarity of what we might now consider to be the good ol’ days. 

In fact, I still remember being that age, and not wanting to grow up, into an adult, because the adult world was unfamiliar to me, but being a child—that was familiar. It was comfortable. 

But God is always calling us into an unfamiliar future, because it is there that the potential for greater things exists.

Several times this fall, we’ve talked about the Exodus. And we’ve seen that the Israelites were tempted to return to Egypt where they were in slavery, because slavery was comfortable and familiar. It was strange, but who wouldn’t want to leave slavery and journey to freedom?

So if Lazarus was reluctant to leave the familiarity of the tomb, and if the Israelites were reluctant to leave the familiarity of slavery, then it should not be surprising that we are reluctant to move into a future that, though it may be filled with hope and promise, is also a future that is new and unfamiliar. 

But as sad as I am about this chapter of our lives coming to an end, I believe that God has something even better in store, for you and for me, that something new is being born, that we are graduating to the next stage of our lives.

What else is there to say? Well, the only real thing I have left to say is thank you. In this season of Thanksgiving, I cannot overlook what a blessing this church has been to me and my family.

One thing I do when I teach is let my students know that, if they were not in the world, they would be missed. It’s not always possible to do that as a substitute teacher, but I try my best. I tell the students, “I’m glad you’re here,” even if they come into class late.

Here, I’ve said it many times to you: I am blessed by your presence. If you were not here, you would be missed. Your presence is a blessing to those around you, but especially to me. This church is a better place because you are a part of it. This world is a better place because you are a part of it. And my life is better, because you’ve been a part of it.

And I am thankful.

And everything we have experienced together, and all that God has done for us and through us, is paving the way, or laying the foundation, for what comes next. God will take what we’ve experienced, and build on it something new, something wonderful.

As I look back on the past 15 ½ years here at Bixby Knolls Christian Church, I see that a lot has changed. And yet, there is, at the same time, much that has stayed the same. 

When I started putting this sermon together, I didn’t really know what God was calling me to say. So I went back and read some past sermons I’ve preached which were based on the same lectionary scripture we heard this morning.

I read a sermon that I preached twelve years ago, back in 2011, when I hadn’t really been here very long yet. And I was surprised at how, what I said then, is so fitting and appropriate for us today.

And so, for my last sermon at Bixby Knolls Christian Church, I’m going to read to you part of one of my earliest sermons at Bixby Knolls Christian Church…

Bixby Knolls Christian Church has been a part of this community for over 65 years. [Almost 78 years now!] God has called us to be a movement for wholeness in our community and in our world, seeking justice, loving kindness, and walking humbly with God. The saints of our own congregation’s past have given to us an inheritance of many talents: this building, this ministry, our life together.

When I talk to people who don’t currently attend church, I often find that the type of church they wish they could find is exactly the type of church we are. They’re looking for a church that reaches out beyond its walls; a church that is doing good things for the community, rather than simply judging people; a church where it’s okay to ask deep questions, where you don’t have to check your brain in at the door or agree to a lengthy doctrinal statement.

In short, a church that follows Jesus by serving the poor, bringing healing and wholeness to those whose lives are broken, and working to build a world of peace and justice.

This is what we do. This is who we are. And the reason it is what we do and who we are is that we ourselves have experienced the transforming power of God’s spirit in our lives. We’ve experienced healing. We’ve felt the prayers that have been said on our behalf. We’ve been accepted at the Lord’s Table just as we are, with all our strengths as well as our imperfections.

What a wonderful gift we have received in the ministry of this congregation!

Do we dare hide it from the world? Do we dare dig a hole in the ground and bury it?

Of course not.

Our congregation is a treasure worth more than any number of talents. The generosity that you all have shown toward maintaining this ministry signifies that you are aware of just how precious this congregation is, and how life-transforming this congregation is for you and can be in the lives of our neighbors.

So let’s take our talents and invest them. Let’s renew our commitment to the ministry we share. Let’s celebrate the many ways we serve our community, the ways we bring wholeness to our community, and let’s constantly look for new opportunities to serve and to share and to invite our neighbors to experience God’s transformation.

So, that was part of a sermon I preached back in 2011. A lot has changed since then, and a lot hasn’t; and a lot will change in the years to come. 

But what is true then is true now and will always be true in all the years to come: that the God we worship and serve–the God in whose name we share love and show hospitality and work for justice–is a God who is ever-present, in every circumstance, and who will continue loving each and every person, and who will continue working through us all so that we are constantly being renewed by the Spirit and transformed by hope.

Oil for the Lamp (Matthew 25:1-13)

 Oil for the Lamp

Matthew 25:1-13

This is a hard scripture passage for me.

The surface-level interpretation here is that you need to be prepared, you need to be ready. That, I can accept. I was a boy scout, after all. Our motto was, “Be prepared!” This is a good lesson.

But when the foolish, unprepared bridesmaids asked the wise, prepared bridesmaids for some oil, the wise, prepared bridesmaids said to them: “NO!”

That doesn’t seem very compassionate… or Christ-like…That I have a problem with…

A few years ago, I was on a hiking trip with some friends from various Disciples churches. We were up in the Sierras, near Tioga Pass. 

We hiked for several miles to a beautiful lake. The shoreline was covered with colorful wildflowers. 

A few of my companions did some fishing, while I explored.

A short while later, one of my companions gave a little yell. She had gotten a fish hook stuck in her skin. 

She had no trouble getting the fish hook out. The hook was small, and the wound was minor. But she needed a bandaid, and maybe some neosporin.

Fortunately I had my first aid kit, and I willingly, happily offered her some neosporin and a band-aid. 

And she made a comment about how, of course Danny would remember his first aid kit, since he’s an Eagle scout. And she offered me her gratitude and thanks.

And then we went on with our day. It wasn’t a big deal.

I couldn’t imagine saying to her, “No! There might not be enough for me and for you. You should have brought your own.”

And this is not to brag, because I am certain that anyone on that trip would have done the same for me, and that any of you would have done the same for me, if I were the one in need of a band-aid and a little neosporin.

It’s just simple kindness. It’s an easy act of compassion that really requires very little of us. Why wouldn’t we share?

The issue of the oil and the lamps isn’t exactly the same, but it’s close enough that I can’t help but think of those so-called wise bridesmaids, and their refusal to share their oil. What is up with that? How is that a parable that shows us what the kingdom of God is like?

I mean, let’s compare it to some other parables of the kingdom of God.

The kingdom of God is like a sheep that got lost, and the shepherd said, “Well, I got 99 wise sheep who know how to not get lost, I can’t be bothered to go look for that foolish lost sheep…”

Or, The kingdom of God is like a traveler who was attacked and beaten by robbers. A priest came by, and a holy man came by, and they passed by on the other side. And then a Samaritan came by, and said, “Why was this guy so foolish as to travel out here by himself? And if I, a Samaritan, were to stop and help him, a Jew, that would make me the foolish one; after all, it could all be a trap…”

But that’s not how those stories go, is it?

In fact, Christ calls us to risk being seen as fools, to risk being seen as fools for choosing compassion and justice over wealth and power. In the upside-down kingdom of Christ, “foolish” is more often a compliment than it is a disparagement. 

In the kingdom of God, we help one another, we share, even when doing so goes against our own self-interest, and even when others may think of us as foolish.

We know that this is not the way it is in the world. 

People accumulate wealth, more than they need, while others are in need. Our economic system rewards those with wealth, because the system sees them as wise, while the poor are penalized and made to work even harder for less pay, and pay a greater share of the tax burden. 

Their poverty is seen as being the result of their own foolish decisions, yet the truth is that, for most, it is the result of an economic system that puts them at a disadvantage. But even if it was their own foolishness that led them to be poor, wouldn’t those who are rich still have an obligation to help them, at least according to the rules of the kingdom of God?

So I confess that I don’t really understand how it is that not sharing is how this parable demonstrates life in God’s kingdom.

The end of this parable says it is about the need to keep awake, and be ready. Well, everything else I’ve learned from Jesus has taught me to keep awake, but it has taught me to keep awake so that I can see the plight of those who suffer from unjust economic systems, and to be ready, because the opportunity to provide help, to share, to show compassion, can arise at any given moment.

That’s what I need to be ready for.

And if I do share what I have with you—a little oil, a bandaid, or whatever—I do so because I know that ultimately, all that I have doesn’t come from me; it comes from God. The reason I have what I have is so that I can serve God by serving others, using what I have to help build God’s kingdom and share God’s love.

As a little aside, I consider every dollar I have to be a representation of my life energy. After all, our life-energy is what we exchange for the money we receive. If you earn 15 dollars an hour, fifteen dollars represents one hour of your life-energy. If you earn 50 dollars an hour, then 50 dollars represents one hour of your life energy.

So every decision about how to spend your money is really a decision about how to spend your life-energy. And where does your life energy come from? It comes from God. 

Your life, your energy, your strength, your ability to work; it comes from God.

Everything you have, comes from God.

And if you have more oil for your lamp, you need to remember that your oil comes from God. God is, ultimately, the source of every good thing you have.

So, since it all comes from God, you should use it in a way that is pleasing to God and in accordance with God’s will and God’s desires.

And so I think God would want those bridesmaids to share their oil!

[Maybe I’m still missing the metaphor… 

And more than one thing can be true at the same time. It is true that the foolish bridesmaids should have been ready, with oil for their lamps, if acquiring oil was within their means…and it is true that the wise bridesmaids should have shared their oil. Both things can be true. 

It’s also true that this parable is a metaphor. It isn’t really about oil at all. It’s about how we need to be ready for Christ’s return, Christ’s appearance, in our world and in our lives. 

But what we need to be ready for, I think, is that, at any moment, we have the opportunity to make Christ’s kingdom a present reality, by showing love, by working for justice, and, yes, by sharing what we have.

To expand the metaphor a bit further, when Bixby Knolls Christian Church called me to be your pastor over 15 years ago, you all gave me the time and the commission to go out and find that oil, then report back to you on Sunday mornings what I’ve found: to let you know where the oil is.

It’s not my oil. But you have made it possible for me to go out and search for it, and to share with you what I’ve found.

And you have also shared with me the oil you have found. You have been generous and gracious in sharing your oil.

 I heard a quote once that evangelism is simply one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread. (I tried to find the source of that quote, but discovered at least three different attributions, so I don’t know which one is right…)

But whether it’s bread, or oil, or the good news that God loves each and every person, with no exceptions, no conditions, that’s really what it is: Sharing what we’ve found with one another.

I’m sorry if I ever made it about me. What this church is about is not me. The essence of what makes Bixby Knolls Christian Church such a special place was present before I arrived, and it has grown over the years because of each person who is a part of this congregation: each person who is a recent addition to this congregation and each person who has remained a part of this congregation through the years.

And if the future ministry of this church fails because I’m now being called somewhere else, then that means I have failed in my job here. 

If the congregation’s ministry is dependent on one person, even if that person is the pastor, then the pastor has failed to equip the congregation for the task of ministry, which is, according to Paul, what the pastor is supposed to do.

It’s not because my faith is stronger that I’m the one up here preaching. It’s not that I have any kind of special access to God. I wouldn’t even say it’s because I know the Bible better, because some of you who have been going to church your whole lives and going to Sunday School and Bible study your whole lives are probably more familiar with some parts of the Bible than I am.

The oil we have lights our path. Sometimes we run out of oil. Maybe it is our fault. Maybe it’s because we weren’t prepared.

Or, maybe it’s just that the path we’ve had to walk is darker than others’ paths, so that we need more oil to see; or maybe we just weren’t able to acquire that much oil to begin with.

But if everyone shares their oil, then all can see where they’re going. If everyone sticks close, everyone can even use the same lamp to light their way.

So, for us, a better metaphor for the kingdom of God is an image of us sharing our light, and helping each other through the darkness.

Imagine a World With More Compassion (Matthew 25)

 While my mom was growing up, and even for many of her adult years, she wasn’t able to express who she was, or live out her true identity. The person she knew herself to be was not accepted by society, so she kept who she was hidden. 

It wasn’t until late adulthood that she felt free to start living her true, authentic self, but even then, she remained guarded and cautious when it came to expressing herself. Sometimes, she even found it hard to openly communicate with people she loved.

Sometimes this was frustrating to me and my sisters. “Have you heard from mom lately?” “No. You?” “No. I left her a phone message but she hasn’t returned it.”

Yet, somehow, we knew her thoughts were with us. We knew she loved us. We knew she was proud of us.

And when she died, I found a journal that she kept when I was in preschool, in which she wrote about her amazement at me, her first-born; how I was growing, how I was already learning to be independent, even at that young age, and how difficult it was for her, my mother, to see me grow, to see me already becoming less dependent on her as I became able to do more and more things by myself. It’s what she wanted, to teach me and my sisters how to be independent, to be self-sufficient, yet how hard that was for her, to realize that, in some ways, we would need her less and less.

After she died, some of her closest friends spoke to me and my sisters. They knew how mom was; they knew she struggled to communicate. So they felt compelled to reassure us what we already knew: that mom did indeed love us, and that she was proud of us; and proud of her grandchildren as well, that she took great joy in telling her friends what Ethan and Tristan and their cousins were up to.

And throughout my life, I learned that moms, like everyone else, have their own issues and their own struggles. In fact, maybe moms have even more issues and struggles, because so much of their lives is focused on their children, and putting their families first.

It’s heroic, really, what moms do. And single moms - I am so in awe of the love and the effort put forth by so many single moms.

And some of what our mothers struggle with, we don’t know. At least, not while we are children. And maybe some of it, we’ll never know. They keep those burdens to themselves, as they help us grow and mature.

And yeah, some moms have a hard time with that. There are always exceptions. Some moms find the personal struggles they face to be overwhelming. Some just aren’t able to do it. And all moms make mistakes.

But the love and the compassion most moms have for their children is the greatest of all loves.

In the Hebrew Bible, the word for compassion is rechemet, and it actually refers to the type of love a mother has for her children. It comes from the word rechem, which literally means, “womb.” So, compassion (in the Bible) is the type of love that a mother has for a child who emerged from her own womb.

It is the type of love that always wants to make sure you are well-fed, and never hungry.

It’s the type of love that will tell you to go to bed when you’re tired.

It’s the type of love that takes care of you when you are sick.

It’s the type of love that longs to visit you and see you and check up on you no matter where you are - even if you are thrown in prison for something you did or didn’t do.

It’s the type of love that pushes you to be independent and self-sufficient, even though that pushes you farther away from her, because then you are able to provide for yourself, and never be out on the street without a roof over your head, even when your mother is no longer around.

It is the most amazing and wonderful kind of love.

Imagine how the world can be if there was more of that kind of love. Imagine how transformed the world would be, how different it would be, how infinitely better it would be, if we could learn to share that kind of love, that kind of compassion, not just between mothers and their children, but between all the people of the world?

Imagine a world with more compassion.

That’s the invitation that our General Minister and President, Terri Hord Owens, has extended to us: to use our imaginations, and dream of a world with more compassion, and also a world with more community, a world with more hope, a world with more justice, a world with more beauty, and a world with more resurrection.

So that’s what we’re going to do for the next six weeks: we’re going to imagine a world with more. We’re going to join with other Disciples congregations in imagining a world with more, although different congregations will be imagining in different ways and at different times. But together, we will imagine more compassion, more community, more hope, more justice, more beauty, and more resurrection; and we will ponder how different the world can be when we do.

In her 2022 State of the Church address Rev. Hord Owens shared, “God's imagination is so limitless that we are called to continually move the stake. We can't think of anything beyond what God can accomplish…. If we don't believe that God can do exceedingly and abundantly as Ephesians tells us, all that we can ask or think, we might as well hang it up right now…”

God’s love is limitless, God’s compassion is limitless, and we are all capable of showing this kind of love and compassion in our lives. We are all called to show this kind of compassion. The kind that feeds the hungry, gives water to the thirsty, welcomes the stranger, clothes the naked, takes care of the sick, and visits those in prison.

We’re all capable of showing this kind of compassion, and we’re all called to show this kind of compassion.

Unfortunately, there seems to be a lack of this kind of compassion in our world today. The poor are not being taken care of. The hungry are not getting fed. The thirsty are not being given something to drink. Strangers are finding no welcome. The sick are being denied the care they need. 

Yet showing this kind of compassion is what Jesus commands us to do. Showing this kind of compassion, not just to our own children, but to our neighbor, is what Jesus commands us to do. Showing this kind of compassion, even to our enemies, is what Jesus commands us to do.

And those who most need this kind of compassion shown to them are the least of these.

Yet we have politicians who continually deny the least of these any sort of care or compassion. And some might say, “well, it’s not the government’s job, it's the job of individuals and churches.” 

But look again at the scripture: “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.”

The judgment here is upon the nations. The judgment is favorable for those nations which care for the poor, show compassion for the poor; but the judgment is not favorable for those nations which neglect the poor, which do not care for the poor or show compassion for the poor.

And our leaders in government have neglected the poor. They have passed tax cuts for the wealthy, and raised taxes on the poor. They have made it harder in many places for poor people and people of color to vote. They have made it so that too many poor people can’t afford the health care they need. They refuse to act on climate change, and climate change brings greater suffering to those already living on the margins. 

And as William Barber frequently points out, they won’t even allow poverty or the poor to be a topic brought up during debates for office. Neither the democrats nor the republicans are willing to talk about the growing number of people living in poverty in America.

Yet, 700 people die from poverty in the country each day. That’s 250,000 people a year, dying from poverty and causes related to poverty.

The rates at which poor people died from COVID far outpaced the rates at which wealthy people died.

Most of the COVID relief money sent out by our government went to corporations, not to those who need it the most.

The possible overturning of Roe v. Wade will disproportionately affect poor women, and make their life infinitely harder, especially since they can’t afford health care and get little or no parental leave.

All this has led NPR this week to talk increasingly about how we live in a country of minority rule. Because voting rights are being stripped away, and because of gerrymandering, and because of how we elect our president, a minority of people who have a disproportionate amount of power and wealth are making policies that the majority of people - including most of those living in poverty - don’t want.

And those billionaires have doubled and tripled their wealth in recent years - and paid very little taxes on that wealth. And corporations - grocery store corporations and online shopping corporations and energy corporations - are making record profits, yet at the same time say they have to raise prices because of inflation. 

But they’re not raising prices because of inflation. They’re already making record profits! And they’re not raising prices because of the wages they pay - very few pay a living wage. They’re raising prices because of greed.

And the suffering of the poor increases.

And yet, even though their wealth is skyrocketing, and their profits are skyrocketing, and they’re raising their prices…, they refuse to increase the minimum wage, or allow our government to increase the minimum wage. 

It’s sick. It’s immoral. And goes against everything taught by Jesus. And it goes against everything taught by the prophets. And it goes against everything taught in the books of Moses. 

Because from beginning to end, the Bible is full of verses about how we are to treat the poor and the least of these. Over 2,000 verses in scripture talk about how we are to treat the poor. It’s the most talked about topic in scripture. 

It’s not the most preached-about topic; but it should be. Because it is the most talked about topic in scripture.

We ignore these verses at our peril. Because when we ignore them, judgment is upon us. 

But imagine…

Imagine a world with more compassion…

Imagine a world with more caring…

The thing is: we can do this! We can create a society in which the poor are lifted up; a society in which the least of these are cared for; a society where compassion flows in abundance. 

It’s not that hard to do!

But we have to have the will. 

We have to have the desire.

We have to align our hearts with the heart of Christ, and do what he taught us and commanded us to do.

Imagine…

You know how we at Bixby Knolls Christian Church help Christian Outreach in Action feed the hungry? Imagine more of that.

You know how we welcome people who have been made to feel unwelcome simply because of who they are - people like my mom? Imagine more of that.

You know how we provide a home for the International Karate Federation of Long Beach, and Jewel Box Children’s Theater Company - two organizations working to improve the lives of children, and making their programs accessible to all children from all income levels? Imagine more of that.

You know how Meals on Wheels, which operates out of our church building, works to make sure that no one, and especially no senior, and no veteran, goes hungry? Imagine more of that.

And you know how our Disciples Week of Compassion ministry participates in relief work locally and around the world, helping those affected by disaster? Imagine more of that.

And you know how another of our church’s ministries - the National Benevolent Association - provides programs and social services to those who need them? Imagine more of that.

And you know how the Poor People’s Campaign, led by William Barber and Liz Theoharis, is working to bring the issues of poverty and justice to the attention of politicians so they can ignore it no longer? Imagine more of that.

One of the best things we can do as Christians is to imagine…. To imagine a world with more compassion.

And then we can pray, and ask God to show us ways we can be more compassionate.

And then we can act. We can act with compassion - especially for the least of these.

And then the Son of Man will say to us: “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me…. Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.”