Sermon Manuscript061806
Sermon Manuscript – 6/18/2006 Robert Hutcherson, Jr.
Sermon: “Harvest of Hope”
TEXT
Mark 4:26-34
I have long been impressed with how Pastor takes our very real fears and leads us to see our possibilities. She leads us from despair to hope. Her faith in God, the Christian cause and Quinn’s part in the kingdom allow those who will to capture a new vision of who we are.
Are we finished or in Biblical terms perfect/complete? Heavens no! Are we meeting everyone’s needs? Certainly not! Some have left us for other gatherings of believers. Both they and we have been less than we could have been. May we become a church that can bless people who go elsewhere because our community does not help them be the best Christian they can be.
Are there reasons for concern about Quinn’s future? Of course! We still need more resources--people, money, vision and commitment--to be what God calls us to be.
Are there reasons for hope about Quinn’s part in the kingdom? Indeed! Let’s look to today’s text to see the word of the Lord for us.
Jesus and his disciples were having a tough time. The honeymoon with Judaism was over. Opposition of all kinds was rising, even among the disciples. The people were listening, but not hearing the message. So, the response was discouraging. Jesus kept teaching about the kingdom of God, but all the disciples could see was a small group of followers. Where was this kingdom?
Today’s text from the gospel of Mark addresses both the opposition’s criticism and the disciples’ fears. The fourth chapter of Mark has three parables, two of which are part of today’s reading. Jesus taught in parables because they invited one’s hearing and involvement in the parable before one realized the parable might be about the listener and his/her needed change. Parables, as any great art form, have depth, mystery and creativity, which captivate our heart and soul. They are alive and pregnant with understanding of Gods purposes for us and all creation.
The first of the two parables, usually called The Seed Growing Secretly, is the sole parable found only in Mark. Scholars debate whether its focus is on the seed, the growth process, the farmer or the harvest. The Greek word translated produces of itself in vs. 28 gives us the English word automatically.
The second parable, The Mustard Seed, is found in all three of the synoptic gospels and in the Gospel of Thomas. As one of Jesus most famous and beloved parables, we often steal its meaning for whatever pep talk we want to give someone. By the way, the mustard seed is not the smallest, although one of the smallest, and Mark is more accurate than Matthew or Luke in saying it becomes the greatest shrub rather than a tree. It does grow into a shrub of 8-10 feet in height. The point is the mysterious growth from the smallest of beginnings to an awesome outcome.
What do these parables from an agricultural setting say to Jesus opposition, to the disciples and to us here at Quinn?
Harvest of Hope
They proclaim hope--to the opposition’s sneering, to the disciples’ discouragement, and to our despair. They proclaim hope on so many levels that they invite their hearers to harvest hope in amazing depth. They proclaim hope from theological, political, discipleship and personal levels.
Theological Hope
On a theological level they proclaim God is at work and will see things through to Gods purposeful conclusion. The inherent makeup of the seed and the earth will bring full maturity to the grain. We do not understand God’s ways, but they will not be ultimately thwarted, regardless of opposition and misunderstanding. God’s kingdom will thrive. Jesus personifies and initiates Gods kingdom. Nothing will stop it, not even tiny and humble beginnings. God’s kingdom goes forward regardless of whether we Christians betray our Lord, even in spite of our sin. Neither external nor internal opposition to Gods kingdom will overcome the power of God. May we be so confident in God.
Political Hope
No human political kingdom, era, dynasty, empire of superpower will win out over Gods kingdom despite long periods of evils triumph. The sickle of vs. 29 refers to Joel 3:13 where God promises defeat of Israel’s enemies. The shrub/tree of vs. 32 refers to Ezekiel 17:22-24 where God promises the defeat of Babylon and Egypt. In Jesus day the Roman Empire was the political giant. Today we are. In between many political powers have come and gone--the Soviet Union, the Third Reich, the British Empire, the Byzantine Empire, etc. God’s kingdom will eventually overcome them all. All will seek comfort under the limbs of Gods shrub/tree and will recognize Gods sovereignty. When imprisoned in a concentration camp during WWII for trying to hide Jews the Christian author Corrie ten Boom was asked: Where is your God now? She replied: There is no pit so deep that God is not deeper still. May we be of such courage and conviction.
Discipleship Hope
The farmer in the first parable sows the seed and takes his sickle to harvest when the grain is ripe. Jesus teaches the disciples and us that we have work to do as God directs us for the Kingdom. We will not understand the mystery of God’s ways. We will be tempted to two extremes--to do nothing or to do everything. To do nothing because God is at work. To do everything because we do not see God at work. Churches which either demand nothing or demand everything seem to be flourishing at the moment. One writer described those who like churches that demand nothing, providing entertainment and spectacle, as attracting people who want we could call a “Jacuzzi Jesus”. They want an experience that will leave them relaxed, warm and bubbly, at the same time feeling fit and trim, like they have gotten in shape. They want to be soothed, not stirred, reshaped or transformed. Please no disruption or challenge.
Churches that demand everything leave nothing for its members to worry about. People attracted to such communities prove the idea that humans want security more than freedom. It is so easy to let someone else give the answers to all of life’s dilemmas. People just function on auto pilot. The potential for sin, cult activity and unhealthy religion is obvious. Idealism and commitment lead in these groups to a de facto death of the image of God. Jonestown and Waco are modern extreme examples. Churches need, as far as preaching has been described, to comfort the afflicted and to afflict the comfortable. We all might be better disciples then.
As disciples we need to do our part in Gods kingdom even though we may not fully understand how it all comes together. May we plant seeds and be ready to harvest.
Personal Hope
To the daily joys and sorrows of our lives the message is clear. Be confident and trusting of the inherent makeup of Gods creation to produce kingdom results. Be obedient to Gods demands by actively participating in life with a faith consistent with the kingdom.
Please realize that we have much to despair over. By nothing I say today do I wish to diminish the pain or sorrow that each of us experience in life, individually or corporately. Some of us have suffered the loss of job, security and, even, identity from downsizing or economic failures. Some of us have experienced the grief of divorce, ill health or death. On Fathers Day we are aware we have more parenting helps than ever, but find less time to spend with our children. We live in a metropolitan area where suburbanites flee from both the racial makeup and the economic problems of the city. In our society the rich get richer while the poor get poorer. In our world the ethnic, economic and political differences lead to starvation, death and destruction. Yes, we have much that we could despair over.
Please realize that we also have much from which to gain hope. We experience the birth of children in our church family, even this month. As a father nothing is more awing or hope giving than the miracle of birth, followed perhaps by the mystery of human development. As a church we come close to a long anticipated milestone as we celebrate our 135th anniversary. Our study of The Doctrine and Discipline of The African Methodist Episcopal Church depicts our involvement in God’s kingdom and challenges us to be invested even more. Johnson & Johnson’s has a commercial that portrays fathers in a nurturing role, showing many Hallmark moments--a refreshing shift in the depiction of our responsibilities. Many serve heroically the needs of people suffering from floods in the South, war in Europe and Africa, hunger and inadequate shelter worldwide. Yes, we have much from which to gain hope.
We are blessed.
May God, today’s scripture, the life and history of our church and our personal experience invigorate each of us with hope. May we be planters of seeds of hope. May we persevere to the harvest of hope.
Even as we move to embrace that hope…we should be mindful of the One who offers us that hope. He longs to comfort you. He longs to bring you into the full measure of your destiny. Will you believe inn Him today? Will you accept Him as your hope today? Will you come?