Which Child Do I Want To Be?

Sermon-Proper 21A/ Pentecost +15
September 25, 2011
The Cloud of Unknowing, "O God, our great companion, lead us ever more deeply into the mystery of your life and ours, that we may be faithful interpreters of that Life to each other, through our Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
“My God of peace, of joy and delight,
I offer you all my tears, all my ignorance.
My God of peace, of joy and delight,
I offer you all my fears and fractured promises.
You, my God, know all this, all this;
How poor I am, how small I am;
You, my God, know all this, all this.
Yet what I have, my God, I give to you.”
[Paul Verlaine 1844-1896]
Voltaire quipped that we ought to judge a person by his questions rather than his answers.
In seminary there was a guy who began his senior sermon with the thought the Jesus said we should all become more like prostitutes and corrupt officials-then he quoted a series of examples of Jesus praising them and criticizing the religious leaders. We all looked at the faculty at the time to see if they were getting nervous.
Jesus asks the question, who sent John-and who sent me? Is it popular approval or a divine mission. The religious authorities are afraid to answer. I don’t think the issue is authority here-I think the question is about us. How do we respond, how do we act in the face of truth?
We want to believe that we would be brave and courageous in the face of truth-that we would embrace it, run towards it, desire it. I want to think that if I see truth I would act nobly and walk towards it-but I can think of dozens of times in my life when I have heard truth-and shrunk back-sometimes in fear, sometimes out of self-interest-you name it. The temple leaders try to trap Jesus by asking where he gets the right to act as he does-but that’s really not the issue. They’re scared. They’re threatened. They don’t like him, and they don’t like people following him. Karl Jacobson writes: “The disciples asked him [Jesus] questions; who is the greatest among us (18:1), what good deed do we have to do to receive eternal life (19:16), for a sign concerning Jesus' coming at the end of the age (24:3). … Peter would ask another; "How often must I forgive?" (18:21), "We left everything for you, what do we get?"(19:27). These questions are all revealing. With the exception of [the Gospel of] John and perhaps (ironically) Pilate, the questions are all self-serving. Those who ask Jesus questions want to trap him, or impress him, or get something from him. And to every pointed question Jesus offers an equally pointed answer, which reveals truth about the Kingdom, the King, and the Kingdom's subjects.”
And, as Jesus often does, to answer a difficult question, he tells a story, a parable.
I have spent much time the last six months with my mother in Texas, who is very ill. In a normal week here in Belleville I am a husband, a friend and a priest. In my granddaughters recent move here, I added “Papa John”. But the toughest role of all for me is going to Texas and becoming a son-again , and this week a brother. I love my mother, but I have always struggled with being a “good son”. So when I went to Texas this week, I looked at the gospel and thought, as I frequently do, “Did God write this one just for me?” “A man had two sons…”. I don’t have any statistics to back this up, but it feels like Jesus uses family in more of his parables than any other. We all know what it is to be family, we all understand stories about being a child, a sibling, a parent. In this morning’s gospel, Jesus asks the temple leaders who is the good child-the one who says he will obey-but doesn’t? Or the one who says he won’t, but does? Jesus, of course, is trying to get these leaders to see the distinction between what they say-and what they do. On one side are these priests and elders who profess their love of God daily in the temple-vs John the Baptist, and notorious sinners like the prostitutes and tax collectors, who are not acceptable-but show their faith by coming to Jesus.
Karl Jacobson again: “For every individual who hears this parable the comparison helps them (forces them) to ask the question, Which am I? Am I the son who presents himself as obedient while running around raising havoc, or am I the daughter who to all appearances is the "black sheep" but in the end does what is needed? Which am I? Which are you?”
That’s how Jacobson ends his commentary, “Which am I” in terms of my faith-the one who gives lip service, says the right words, begrudgingly answers-or the one who embraces truth, comes to Jesus, has the courage to turn around and live faithfully. I know which one I want to be. But there are days….
Hearing stories helps me. I can put myself in the place of the characters and see which one not only is me now, but which character do I hope to be. Do I want to be the one who recites the Creed, says the prayers, confesses my sins on Sundays, only to be someone else throughout the week? Or do I want to be the child of God who actually acts lovingly, faithfully, hopefully Monday through Saturday? Which am I? Which do I want to be?
We all know the answer we want to give, we all know which child we wish to be, the challenge is actually saying AND doing.
At one point this week, my mother got very upset and I asked, “mom, what’s the matter?” And she answered, “I’m supposed to give you some wonderful last words, some great advice for you to remember before I go -and I don’t know what to say!” I couldn’t help from laughing. I told her, “mom, you have given me a lot of words and advice-but even better than all that, you have given me 60 years of love-that’s what I will always remember.”
When Jesus tells this story of a man with two sons, he is asking those who seek to follow God-which do you want to give-lipservice or lifeservice? Which child do we want to be? Which am I, who do I want to be? The one who says the magic words at the end of my life? Or the one whose message is my whole life? Which child do I want to be? Amen.