LIVING CONFIDENTLY GROUNDED IN CHRIST
Philippians 2:1-13; Matthew 21:33-46
19th Sunday after Pentecost, October 8, 2023
Pastor Ritva H Williams
This morning’s gospel reading picks up right where last Sunday’s ended. Jesus is teaching in the temple, the chief priests and elders challenge Jesus to explain “by what authority” he is doing “these things.” Jesus counters with a question about John the Baptist, the chief priests refuse to answer. Jesus launches into a parable about a parent with two children. In response to the parent’s instruction to go work in the vineyard, one says “yes, I’ll go right away” but doesn’t. The other says, “no way, got better things to do” but later changes their mind and goes. Jesus’ point is that proof of faith is in what we do, not in what we say.
Jesus follows up with this morning’s parable, describing a common scenario in the ancient world. An oikodespotes (literally household-despot, translated as landowner, but more Don Corleone in the epic film The Godfather) buys up farms that are being sold for unpaid debts. He consolidates the small farms into one big estate, fences it in, plants a vineyard, builds a wine press and a watchtower, leases it out to tenant farmers, then leaves the country. The tenant-farmers who once owned the land are now forced to work as sharecroppers. You can imagine how they feel about that. When the absentee landowner sends slaves to take the harvested grapes, the tenants beat, stone and kill them. Rinse and repeat until the landowner sends his son. The tenants kill him too.
Jesus pauses, looks around and asks, “Now when the Kyrios — the Lord — of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?”
They answer, “ He will put those wretches to a miserable death, and lease the vineyard to other tenants who will give him the produce at the harvest time.” Jesus’ audience can only imagine one outcome — a total bloodbath. That was, after all, the reality they experienced under the rule of imperial Rome and its accomplices.
But Jesus was looking for a different answer. How do we know this? Because Jesus asks another question: “Have you never read the scriptures?”
What did the crowd miss? The parable is about an oikodespotes whose land grab results in ever escalating conflict and violence. Jesus asks how the Kyrios — the Lord — of the vineyard will respond. The crowd describes how absentee landlords of the day typically behave. But is the oikodespotes and the Kyrios one and the same? Jesus asks, “Have you never read the scriptures?”
Psalm 24:1, “The earth is the Lord’s and all that is in it, the world and all those who live in it.”
Joshua 1:9, "Have I not commanded you? "Be strong and courageous. Do not be frightened, and do not be dismayed, for the Lord your God is with you wherever you go.”
Isaiah 43:2, Thus says the Lord, Do not fear … When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you shall not be burned, and the flame shall not consume you.
These and many other Bible verses make it clear that God is not an absentee landowner, but a constant and persistent Spirit always present in the lives of God’s people, always accompanying us, always comforting, encouraging, and empowering us in the midst of life’s troubles.
Jesus quotes Psalm 118:22, The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord’s doing, and it is amazing in our eyes. This verse is a metaphor for how God deals with rejected people — giving them new life and new purpose. This is good news! Kyrios/Lord of the Vineyard does not bring violence and revenge, but resurrection — new life for all who have been rejected, overlooked, exploited, and oppressed. Alongside good news, Jesus offers a word of warning and a consequence. As stewards of God’s creation and kingdom, we are called to produce the fruits of God’s kingdom here and now. We are part of God’s kingdom already now, and have work to do. Failure to do so will result in God’s kingdom being given to people who do produce those fruits here and now. Again Jesus emphasizes the point that the faithful person is the one who actually does God’s will.
Our first reading from Paul’s letter to the Philippians can help us understand what God’s will is and how we might do it. Paul’s advice is built around the Greek verb phroneo which means to understand, to be wise or prudent especially about practical matters. Here’s my own translation of Paul’s opening verses:
If in Christ, there is any encouragement, any loving comfort, any spiritual communion, any compassion and mercies, make my joy complete: understand one another, love one another, be soul-friends. Understand each other, not with rivalry or arrogant boasting, but humbly as more valuable than yourselves. Pay attention not only to your own interests, but also to the concerns of others. Understand your selves as Christ understands themself …
Paul is advocating for relationships between human beings that are grounded a deep relationship with Christ. The love, encouragement, comfort, spiritual communion, compassion, mercy and joy that we find in Christ should shape how we relate with one another. Twice Paul urges us to understand one another deeply and humbly as more valuable than yourself. Humility does not come easily, especially in cultures that focus on achievement. All too often the privileged few have used verses like this to put “others” in their place. But that is not at all what Paul is advocating. True humility is expressed by treating all people with respect and dignity, fairness and equity, affirming their strengths, talents and gifts. True humility is demonstrated by giving of our time, energy and resources to serve those who are more vulnerable, those whose needs are greater than our own. Developing the virtue of humility is especially important for persons born into positions of privilege.
That’s the point of the Christ-hymn in verses 6-11 — the most privileged being of all time and all worlds refused to see equality with God as an opportunity to exploit, choosing instead to empty themself of divinity to become fully human in every way in order to lift up the least, the last, and the lost. Paul urges us to follow Christ’s example here and now — not to earn salvation which we can never do — but as a way of living gratefully and confidently grounded in the love of Christ, who walks with us from birth through the waters of baptism, along all of life’s paths, through our graves and home again.
Beloved is Where We Begin (Jan Richardson)
If you would enter the wilderness, do not begin without a blessing.
Do not leave without hearing who you are: Beloved,
named by the One who has traveled this path before you.
Do not go with letting it echo in your ears,
and if you find it hard to let it into your heart, do not despair.
That is what this journey is for.
I cannot promise this blessing will free you
from danger, from fear, from hunger or thirst,
from the scorching of the sun or the fall of the night.
But I can tell you that on this path there will be help.
I can tell you that on this way there will be rest.
I can tell you that you will know strange graces
that come to our aid only on a road such as this,
that fly to meet us wearing comfort and strength,
that come alongside us for no other cause
than to lean themselves toward our ear
and with their curious insistence whisper our name:
Beloved. Beloved. Beloved.
