"The Wisdom of God"
Sermon Presented July 6, 2008
Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30
When my nephew Noah was married in 2001, there was a grand reception following the ceremony. My great-nephew Connor from California was three-years-old at the time, and he was hot to dance. He found a little girl about his size and the two of them got out on the dance floor exhibiting no inhibitions. Much to their delight, they were the center of attention. In contrast to Connor's joyous experience with dance at Noah's wedding, he can also feel intense grief. The following year, Connor attended my mother's funeral. There the grief of the moment engulfed him and he was immersed in the occasion. Neither situation was a game for him, but an opportunity to express his feelings appropriately. This child showed wisdom by exhibiting emotions that fit the context.
Jesus compares his generation to children playing pretend games in the marketplace. Some want to play wedding, and when the others don't join in, they suggest playing funeral. They want to play, but the others sulk! That's the way Jesus says it is with the people! No matter what you do, some people will find fault! Hear this teaching from Matthew 11:16-19, 25-30.
Last week's sermon text ended with the promise of rewards for people who welcome those who come in the name of Jesus. This week's text begins with a passage describing those who are less welcoming. This generation - Jesus' generation - complains continuously, refusing to play the game. When John the Baptist came, they wrote him off because he raged like a mad man and required too much from his audience. Now that Jesus is present and ready to dance, these same people condemn him because he's partying and associating with the wrong people. They aren't satisfied with either! Neither is what people expect from the Messiah or the forerunner of the Messiah. Jesus says that wisdom is a mirror to see the workings of God, and wisdom lies in the openness of children.
We respond positively - and negatively to different types of people. As a child, I responded positively to the John the Baptist type because that was all I knew growing up in a Southern Baptist church. Now I respond to the love of Jesus and fewer rules! If there weren't different ways to proclaim the gospel of Jesus and to worship, we wouldn't have so many Christian denominations. People come to Jesus in different ways, but whether we respond to an austere John the Baptist type or a celebrating Jesus type, we need to come as children.
Our generation - as Jesus' generation - is quick to condemn. In the political arena candidates and office-holders are picked apart on minor issues - like whether or not they wear a flag pin, and we fail to make them accountable on the major issues. Most people refuse to get involved in the electoral process. If we want to have responsible government, we need to do more than complain. We need to enter the process to help improve our government.
Condemnation also runs rampant in churches and denominations. We are quick to complain and slow to offer support. Many abandon our most important responsibilities and instead complain about those who are involved. I'm not saying that there is nothing to complain about in politics or in the church, but unless we are part of the process, we need to stop complaining. Unless we get out on the dance floor and participate in grieving the state of our nation or our denomination, we have no right to complain. The wise person gets involved and becomes part of the solution. The wise person listens with discernment to those who present spiritual and political insights.
We misinterpret the text if we assume that Jesus is taking an anti-intellectual stance. In Matthew, the argument is against those who have knowledge but misapply it - like the Pharisees and Roman rulers. This is a failing of both the intelligent and the simple, and it is a failure of character rather than a failure of intellect. There is no virtue in ignorance. (Holly Hearon, New Proclamation Year 2008, p. 30) Some people are very intelligent and yet miss the real thing because they are unable receive wisdom that counters their preconceived notions, and others with a low intelligence quotient are wise.
Children are those who are open to what they hear and see. Because they don't have a stake in the argument or a position to protect, they are free to ask questions and seek insight. The response to our witness as followers of Jesus will depend on what people actually hear and see in us.
We are given the freedom to enter into the game of life or remain on the outside. We have the freedom to participate or to criticize. We have the freedom to pursue wisdom or to remain ignorant. As God's purpose for our life is revealed, Jesus can help us to fulfill that purpose.
We need wisdom to transcend the poor values and critical attitudes of our culture. Sometimes wisdom alone doesn't get it! We also need the strength to do what is right. I found I'm not as strong as I would like to be!
Last Monday, I took Sage, my four-year-old granddaughter, to Kohl's to exchange some shoes I had purchased for her. When we arrived, she saw a box with a picture of Hannah Montana on it, and the shopping expedition went downhill from there! It didn't matter whether she liked the shoes; it was the power of advertising that sold her. Much to my dismay, I bought them. Parents and grandparents need to teach children about the misplaced values of our generation. I failed miserably!
Sometimes the final two verses of our text are misinterpreted. The burden that Jesus describes can be either the burden of Pharisaic laws or of Roman rule. Jesus offers relief from both through his perfectly fitted yoke that has nothing to do with control and everything to do with lightening the load. In contrast to the emperor of Rome and the synagogue leaders, Jesus is humble and gentle and does not impose burdensome requirements. The path of God that Jesus describes is the way that leads to rest. When we rest in Jesus, we can enjoy life because we aren't weighted down.
However, we do become burdened with yokes of our own making. We buy into the culture, and assume financial burdens that aren't right for us. We pay the consequences for our ever-expanding luxury. We doom our own success as followers of Jesus when we set the wrong priorities. Jesus offers a yoke that is perfectly fitted to us, so that there is no rubbing, no blisters, or no need to buckle under its weight. It is so perfectly fitted that it is a help and not a hindrance.
When we are yoked to Jesus, we are free to dance with joy when that is appropriate and mourn when we need to grieve. Jesus says that we can rest in him and learn from him because he will lift the burden of the law. Our burden is easy and light, but it's a burden none-the-less.
Jesus issues an invitation to step into a new way of life that offers revelation and wisdom - gifts that are often hidden from the intelligent and accomplished. We know this gospel. We believe it! But we are caught between the world and Jesus - both offering to yoke us. Jesus is calling us to throw off the yoke of the world with all of its acquisitiveness and settle into his custom-made yoke. We need God's wisdom that transcends the wisdom of the world to help us make the right choices.
Jesus tells his followers: "You are like children who are never satisfied. However, you can receive spiritual insights that are hidden from those who think they know everything. If you are open to newness as a child is open, you can receive God's wisdom. I will reveal God's insights to those who are open to receive them.
"So come to me - all of you who are carrying burdens that are too heavy to manage - and I will help you carry them. My yoke fits perfectly. I will teach you with gentleness and humility how to rest as I lighten your load." Wow! These words offer assurance! I can wear this yoke!
07/06/2008
