A Sermon by Pastor Tom Lacey . . .

DID YOU LISTEN?

Matthew 13:1-9, Preached at Congregational Church of Boca Raton, October 4, 2009

A fellow who had a little too much to drink is driving home from the city one night, and of course, his car is weaving all over the road. A cop pulls him over. "So," says the cop to the driver, “where have ya been?" "Why, I've been to the pub of course," slurs the drunk. "Well," says the cop, "it looks like you've had quite a few to drink this evening." "I did all right," the drunk says with a smile. "Did you know," says the cop, standing straight and folding his arms across his chest, "that a few intersections back, your wife fell out of your car?" "Oh, thank heavens," sighs the drunk. "For a minute there, I thought I'd gone deaf."

Ever get frustrated because people simply don't hear what you have to say? Consider the case of this poor dentist: The Iowa Board of Dental Examiners charged dentist Vincent P. Grettinger with misconduct after he locked a patient in a room and forced her to watch a film on proper dental care. How many people would we wish to lock in a room and read to them over and over again verses like "I choose you" or "For God so loved you ...." Or how about, "Clean up your room;" "I didn't mean it that way;" "You really still are the most beautiful woman in the world to me." If they/we would just listen, then we would know and believe and do what's right.

I have always really enjoyed the image Matthew presents to us in this Jesus story. I like the setting—a really large group of people gathered to hear our Lord speak. I like the picture of him stepping into a small fishing boat sitting just off the beach, so the folks can hear him, sitting down, relaxed and at peace with teaching the kingdom of Heaven. And of course I like the story, the parable he tells. I like the  beginning. It is beautiful and simple, beautifully simple: “A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed….” That’s so easy to see and almost feel. The hand, dipping into a bag of seed, the sower scatters in wide arcing tosses, walking slowly back and forth across the field, covering the tilled soil with tiny seeds. Of course some of it would go too far and land on rocky ground; other seed would settle on a hardened path not used for planting; and still others would end up underneath and in the middle of other vegetation that proved too difficult to pull out or purposefully remained there to provide a border between one family’s field and another’s. And then finally there are the seeds that land on the good soil. They produce. These grow. These give life.

I also love this story because the people listening would have easily grasped, would have been completely in tune to the words and the image they painted, at least as far as the image. And then Jesus stops, which is why I also stopped the reading. You see, the people didn’t get to hear the “explanation” to his story, verses 10 through 23. Out there, in the boat and the people on the shore, Jesus finishes the story by proclaiming loudly, “Let anyone with ears listen!” And then he goes on to a different story.

So all they, all we hear was a description of a farmer tossing seed out onto a field, being a little messy about it, some seeds not working out, and some seeds producing and multiplying. “Let anyone with ears listen!”

Did you listen? A middle-aged man once confided to a friend, "I find it extremely difficult to talk with my father, and it saddens me because I want to get closer to him." "I didn't realize it was so hard for you to be together," the friend said. "We don't argue or anything," he said. "We just care about such different things. When he starts to talk about golf, I want to scream. I have no interest in golf whatsoever. Of course," he added "I would never tell him that." "Then it's simple," the insightful friend. "You don't need to have any interest in golf. What you're interested in is your father. Just listen to him and not to the golf." Eknath Easwaran

Many moral theories begin with the assumption that people would be good if they knew what the right thing was to do; moral theory is meant to help them by identifying what those right acts are. Just read the Bible, know your scripture, and you know what God wants you to do. Read the Bible and you hear God. Other moral theories seem to assume that their role is to convince people why they should act morally; if their arguments are convincing, rational people will be persuaded by those arguments and act accordingly. This is a so-called scientific or rational actor approach.

Jesus seemed to begin from a different assumption, namely, that there are actual barriers to being good, and without addressing those barriers, the effect of moral exhortation, didactic instruction, or arguments will be nil. One of the most difficult of these barriers, and a particular concern for Jesus, was self-righteousness. Luke 18:9 says: "Here is another parable that (Jesus) told. It was aimed at those who were sure of their own goodness and looked down on everyone else." The story of the Samaritan woman accused of adultery, and Jesus' famous challenge "That one of you who is without sin shall cast the first stone" (John 7:53-8:11) clearly speaks to the same problem. Smugness and moral superiority are moral barriers because they foster a sense of complacency, and because they inhibit the ability to empathize with and forgive others. These are those who can no longer hear; they are deaf to their own faults, complicity, sin and need for forgiveness. For Jesus, it’s not what you know about the rule for others that matters; rather, it’s what you know or don’t know about yourself that is the key to listening to God and following his word. That word comes to you, dwells in you. The call is yours to answer or not.

Sue Bates is a missionary in Romania working with street kids and orphans. She wrote about a worker who takes clothing and medicine to the streets every few months but doesn't really get too involved. He was trying to witness to a 12-year-old boy who lived underground, but was getting nowhere. The boy was sniffing "aurolac," the cheap inhalant of the streets and not paying attention. So, he asked the boy, "Why, why oh why, can't you believe in a God of love?" The boy thought for a second and then asked the missionary, "Why do the rats scream at night?" The worker said "See, I tried to talk to him about God and it was like talking to a wall ... he wasn't even listening and started talking about rats. Those street kids are hopeless." Yet, it was really the missionary who wasn't listening. He had a nice car, a full belly, nice clothes, a comfortable bed, a family, money to spend, etc. The street kid had almost nothing: a filthy "bed" in a stinking hell-hole underground that had roaches, lice, fleas, and rats that screamed at night. The boy's unheard message. "You asked why I can't believe in a God of love? Tell me why rats scream at night, and then I'll know that you can hear me and care for me."

The Kingdom of God was the main emphasis of Jesus' ministry. But defining precisely what the Kingdom was is a bit more difficult. Indeed, even Jesus himself was often elusive about it. He did not speak in absolutes; he spoke in parables. Most everything about Jesus was unusual. His teaching didn’t conform to traditional thought; his methods were radical; his redemption plan unfathomable; his followers primarily the unaccepted; his disciples mostly unpolished. Sometimes God’s plan seems odd and difficult to accept. But the truth is God has sown seeds in us and tried to make them grow. We are the ones who have to want the growth. Clearly at times we hold to a differing agenda. Other things, other desires are just too important and get in the way. Some of our concerns have been a part of our lives for so long, it's like the seeds fell on hard-packed earth, on worn down paths that refuse to give even a moment's thought to God and God's concerns. The word is immediately snatched up. For others, God is a fantastic idea, or perhaps a comforting thought, a new way of living--for the moment, to get through a crisis, to try something different, to meet new people. And then the novelty wears off, the tough time comes to an end, another experiment catches the imagination, and those new people don't satisfy either. The rocky, unsteady, hilly character of some lives puts an end to the promise of God's word. It doesn't really matter the reason why God's word is rejected. All that matters is that it is. All that's important is whether or not we respond in thankful dedication to the holy word lovingly, hopefully, graciously sown in our hearts. God never abandons us; the Lord never leaves us; the word like a bulb in winter waits for the soil to warm, sun to shine, and nourishing rain to fall. 

Respond to God's word. Believe in Jesus. Live according to the Lord's way. Seek the blessings of heaven by loving neighbor; forgiving the offender; and caring for the unfortunate. Battle against desires that turn you against God's will, that hurt family, and draw you away from your potential.

His name was Sir James Simpson. He was a Scottish doctor in the nineteenth century who was also a courageous scientific pioneer. In those days he had to use himself to experiment on. He was in pursuit of an anesthesia, and it was his discovery of chloroform, which saved millions of people untold suffering, that made him famous. Shortly before his death Sir James was asked what he thought his greatest discovery had been. This man had been knighted by Queen Victoria after she had given birth to Leopold under chloroform, been elected President of the Edinburgh Royal College of Physicians, and had been said by many to be the greatest physician of his time. In his research he had made many important discoveries. However, when asked, without a moment's hesitation he answered, "My greatest discovery in this life has been that Jesus Christ is my Lord and Saviour." Despite all of his great achievements, Sir James recognized that nothing he could achieve could outshine what God had done for him.

It's not easy for us to see ourselves merely as soil, earth, dirt. We want to be made more of. But don't be fooled. "A sower went out to sow. And as he sowed, some seeds ... fell on good soil and brought forth grain, some a hundred-fold, some sixty, some thirty. Let anyone with ears listen!" Listen to the good news. Hear God's word. Let the Lord grow your life into his image and grace.

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