Use Them Or Lose Them
Psalm 19 (C) -- "The heavens are telling the glory of God."
Invitation to the Celebration
In the Name of the Living God, good morning. How are you doing? Even more importantly, how are you being? We often judge our own and other people's Christianity on what we, and they, do or don't do. God judges us mostly on our being, which, of course, leads to our doing, as we will discover in today's Gospel lesson. Who we are in our relationship to God leads us directly into our behavior. We may try to kid ourselves, as did the wicked tenants; but we will never fool God. God invites us to find out what that means - now!
P: I remind you that this day is beautiful and sacred, because God is alive!
M: But we see little beauty and sacredness outside of these cozy walls!
P: I remind you that God is beauty .. God is love. That which is ugly we have made.
M: Does God love us amidst our ugliness? Even amidst our lives that betray God and each other?
P: Look again at the cross .. it says that God loves us as we are .. do you understand that?
M: We understand. We understand that we are important creations of a concerned God! Now, we express our thanks to God for such awesome confidence in us! LEAD ON!
Choral Call to Worship
* Hymn of Praise "Praise to the Lord, the Almighty." # 10
* INVOCATION AND LORD'S PRAYER Grant us integrity, O Lord, and the wisdom to order our values in everyday living, that we may lead abundant lives as Jesus wished for us, yet be faithful to him as we accept those hardships and sufferings that refine us as we are faithful to his call.
Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And, forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. And, lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power and the glory, forever. AMEN.
Gloria Patri
SCRIPTURE READING Exodus 20:1-4+7-9+12-20
20:1 Then God spoke all these words: 20:2 I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery; 20:3 you shall have no other gods before me. 20:4 You shall not make for yourself an idol, whether in the form of anything that is in heaven above, or that is on the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
20:7 You shall not make wrongful use of the name of the LORD your God, for the LORD will not acquit anyone who misuses his name. 20:8 Remember the sabbath day, and keep it holy. 20:9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work.
20:12 Honor your father and your mother, so that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you. 20:13 You shall not murder. 20:14 You shall not commit adultery. 20:15 You shall not steal. 20:16 You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. 20:17 You shall not covet your neighbor's house; you shall not covet your neighbor's wife, or male or female slave, or ox, or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor. 20:18 When all the people witnessed the thunder and lightning, the sound of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking, they were afraid and trembled and stood at a distance, 20:19 and said to Moses, "You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, or we will die." 20:20 Moses said to the people, "Do not be afraid; for God has come only to test you and to put the fear of him upon you so that you do not sin."
READER
Response Text...Psalm 19
19:1 The heavens are telling the glory of God; and the firmament proclaims his handiwork.
19:2 Day to day pours forth speech, and night to night declares knowledge.
19:3 There is no speech, nor are there words; their voice is not heard;
19:4 yet their voice goes out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world. In the heavens he has set a tent for the sun,
19:5 which comes out like a bridegroom from his wedding canopy, and like a strong man runs its course with joy.
19:6 Its rising is from the end of the heavens, and its circuit to the end of them; and nothing is hid from its heat.
19:7 The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the decrees of the LORD are sure, making wise the simple;
19:8 the precepts of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart; the commandment of the LORD is clear, enlightening the eyes;
19:9 the fear of the LORD is pure, enduring forever; the ordinances of the LORD are true and righteous altogether.
19:10 More to be desired are they than gold, even much fine gold; sweeter also than honey, and drippings of the honeycomb.
19:11 Moreover by them is your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.
19:12 But who can detect their errors? Clear me from hidden faults.
19:13 Keep back your servant also from the insolent; do not let them have dominion over me. Then I shall be blameless, and innocent of great transgression.
19:14 Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable to you, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.
OFFERING We Are Accountable "The Holy Spirit makes generosity a matter of the heart, not of the pocket, though the Holy Spirit never excludes the pocket."
* DOXOLOGY
* PRAYER OF DEDICATION We have received the greatest gift in the world. Thank you. Grant that our response in thanks may exceed our speaking about thanks, for the sake of your world. AMEN.
CHILDREN'S STORY TIME Tell the story of the text using a contemporary setting for children and young people.
CHORAL ANTHEM
PRAYER Holy and Loving God, thank You for inviting us to worship, for leading us in worship, and for directing our lives following worship. Sometimes we hide the joy of our faith under a bundle of excuses; yet we know that all the excuses in the world will not stop Your pursuit of us. Keep reminding us of the cross and resurrection, that life is beautiful, and that You have given us time in order to celebrate the gift of life. Keep us from getting so involved in the crude pettiness and ugliness of life that we miss the big picture -- that You are in control .. (conclude with your own praises) It's so easy for us to criticize the crowd, the wicked tenants, and decide that we are the "good ones." All of us need forgiveness, over and over, for our thoughts, our words, our feelings, our behavior.
Introduction to Newness in Christ God's love never changes. Against all who oppose or ignore God, God exposes love in wrath, a word we seldom hear in the church. In that same love, God took on judgment and death in Jesus the Christ, to bring us liberation and new life. I declare to you who mean business with God, that in the name of the Christ, you are forgiven.
M: God, we thank you for your promise. We believe you, and we receive your gift. And now, we are better equipped to seek forgiveness, and to offer forgiveness, each day, each hour.
* PREPARATIONAL HYMN "Lord, I Want to Be a Christian in My Heart" (stanzas 1, 2, 3).
"What is your usual reason for reading the Bible - comfort for yourself, or simply passages which you can use against those who disagree with you?"
SCRIPTURE TEXT Matthew 21:33-46
21:33 "Listen to another parable. There was a landowner who planted a vineyard, put a fence around it, dug a wine press in it, and built a watchtower. Then he leased it to tenants and went to another country. 21:34 When the harvest time had come, he sent his slaves to the tenants to collect his produce. 21:35 But the tenants seized his slaves and beat one, killed another, and stoned another. 21:36 Again he sent other slaves, more than the first; and they treated them in the same way. 21:37 Finally he sent his son to them, saying, 'They will respect my son.' 21:38 But when the tenants saw the son, they said to themselves, 'This is the heir; come, let us kill him and get his inheritance." 21:39 So they seized him, threw him out of the vineyard, and killed him. 21:40 Now when the owner of the vineyard comes, what will he do to those tenants?" 21:41 They said to him, "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." 21:42 Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the scriptures: 'The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone; this was the Lord's doing, and it is amazing in our eyes'? 21:43 Therefore I tell you, the kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a people that produces the fruits of the kingdom. 21:44 The one who falls on this stone will be broken to pieces; and it will crush anyone on whom it falls." 21:45 When the chief priests and the Pharisees heard his parables, they realized that he was speaking about them. 21:46 They wanted to arrest him, but they feared the crowds, because they regarded him as a prophet.
Jesus here reminds us that we are tenants of this world, not its owners. We have obligations to return part of what it provides, and to respect its resources. Also, we are to respect the demands of the One who does own the earth, to honor him, to obey the orders delivered to us. He warns the Pharisees that those who cast out the owner's son must expect drastic consequences. They themselves predict this before realizing that they themselves are the villains in the story. He concludes by quoting from the 118th Psalm: "The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief cornerstone .." The vineyards along with equipment, wine press, and so forth, are the earth. And Jesus, "the cornerstone," is the owner's son.
33“Now listen to this story. A certain landowner planted a vineyard, built a wall around it, dug a pit for pressing out the grape juice, and built a lookout tower. Then he leased the vineyard to tenant farmers and moved to another country. 34At the time of the grape harvest he sent his servants to collect his share of the crop. 35But the farmers grabbed his servants, beat one, killed one, and stoned another. 36So the landowner sent a larger group of his servants to collect for him, but the results were the same.
37“Finally, the owner sent his son, thinking, ‘surely they will respect my son.’
38“But when the farmers saw his son coming, they said to one another, ‘Here comes the heir to this estate. Come on, let’s kill him and get the estate for ourselves!’ 39So they grabbed him, took him out of the vineyard, and murdered him.
40“When the owner of the vineyard returns,” Jesus asked, “what do you think he will do to those farmers?”
41The religious leaders replied, “He will put the wicked men to a horrible death and lease the vineyard to others who will give him his share of the crop after each harvest.”
42Then Jesus asked them, “Didn’t you ever read this in the Scriptures?
‘The stone rejected by the builders
has now become the cornerstone.
This is the Lord’s doing,
and it is marvelous to see.’
43What I mean is that the Kingdom of God will be taken away from you and given to a nation that will produce the proper fruit. 44Anyone who stumbles over that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush anyone on whom it falls.”
45When the leading priests and Pharisees heard Jesus, they realized he was pointing at them—that they were the farmers in his story. 46They wanted to arrest him, but they were afraid to try because the crowds considered Jesus to be a prophet.
This may sound like bad news: In light of the passage, deal with the idea expressed in Bob Dylan's "God's On Our Side." It is so easy to see the wickedness of others and the purity of ourselves. God will have none of that! If we had been present on Jesus' death day, we would have reacted no differently from the crowd. When we choose to disobey, to live off-center, to justify our behavior, we are no different from the crowd or the wicked tenants.
SERMON Use Them Or Lose Them
"Use it or lose it." We have all heard this expression, said it ourselves, and applied it more than once. The words tell us that it is necessary to use rightly and completely the gifts given us by God. We are challenged to use God's gifts for the betterment of all and for our own growth in the Spirit. If we fail to use properly and completely or if we abuse the gifts of God, they will be taken away.
In Greek mythology we remember the story of Icarus and Daedelus. The gods gave the father and son the ability to fly. It was a special gift that set them apart from all other humans. But Icarus abused the gift, thinking that with his special ability he could be like the gods and fly to the sun. As he rose high in the sky his wings began to melt; the great gift was lost. There are many examples of how the gifts of God have been left dormant or abused with adverse results for all. Position in society and the power and authority that come with it are often abused. Throughout history there have been many examples of leaders who have been vested with power and authority, have used it to abuse people, and in the end have lost the gift entrusted to them. Many of the kings in Israel rejected the warnings of the prophets, abused the people, and turned away from God. Their fate was death, punishment of future generations, and ultimately exile of the Hebrew people to Babylon. In our own twentieth century we recall all too well the terror inflicted upon the world by dictators such as Adolf Hitler and Benito Mussolini. Their abuse of power led to their ultimate demise. In our own country the Watergate scandal demonstrated the abuse of executive privilege. The shock of a nation that its leader might be a criminal was magnified when Richard Nixon resigned, the only President to leave office as a result of alleged wrongdoing.
In our own lives we can think of examples of how we have failed to use properly or completely or possibly have abused God's gifts. Most of us have studied languages but few of us today can use what we learned in high school or college Spanish, French, or German class. The gift of reading or speaking another tongue must be exercised or it will be lost. If we have the ability to shoot a sub-par round on the golf course, but refuse to practice this skill, then the next time we "hit the links" the results will not be what we want or expect. As the expression goes, use it or lose it.
Jesus describes the failure of the Hebrew people to use God's gifts and to recognize his presence as Messiah and Lord in today's Gospel. In parable form, the Lord says that God set up a vineyard and placed tenants in charge. The vineyard was God's gift to the people, the land promised to the patriarchs - Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It was a special vineyard that was planted in order to have every possibility for success. It was protected by a hedge and a tower and possessed a vat. With all that the vineyard possessed and its ability to bear good fruit, the vineyard only produced bad tenants. The tenants did not use the gifts properly. Even when God's messengers were sent to give direction and obtain a share of the produce, the Hebrew leaders would not listen. The prophets were mistreated; their message ignored. Now, when the Son is present, the story is the same; the gifts are not used. Jesus even predicts his own death as the ultimate abuse of God's gifts.
Today's Gospel challenges us to use the gifts of God wisely. Jesus tells the chief priests and the elders that the great gift, the inheritance of God, will be taken away and given to another people. Jesus is the rejected stone which becomes the cornerstone. For hundreds of years the Jews had waited for the Messiah, but his presence was not recognized in Jesus. The evangelist Matthew tells us at the end of today's Gospel that the people believed Jesus to be a prophet, but the leaders who were given the great gifts did not. Although the Hebrew people were chosen by God to be a nation uniquely God's own, the gift of the Son will pass to the Gentiles. Because the Hebrews failed to recognize God's greatest gift, we became inheritors of the promise and now possess the presence of God in our lives. // How do we use the gifts of God? God has given us in the United States a free society and a human community which has every possibility to sustain and promote our growth. We have been given the talent and opportunity to assist others in need, especially those who reach out to us. God has given us an environment of great beauty, especially in this present fall season, and we are asked to be its stewards as caretakers of God's gifts. We are challenged as well to be conscious of the social evils which exist all around us and to make every effort within our power and talent to fight against them. Are we using the gifts of our society and community wisely? Is God satisfied with our efforts? // God has given us the church to be a source of strength and a place where we can go to weather the agonies and celebrate the ecstasies of life. Have we used the gifts which our Christian community provides properly? Have we made a good effort to participate and to be present in service and ministry to those who seek our assistance? Do we take the time necessary to be with God? Is conversation with God a top priority with us? In our busy lives, is there time and space for God to work within us? Do we put our faith into practice in our everyday lives, especially in relationships with others? Can people tell from their observation of us that we are Christians by the love we show for one another? In short, have we used the gifts of the Church and our faith to make the world a better place for people today and those who will follow us?
God has given us life as the greatest of all gifts. God created us wonderfully and uniquely and gave us all sorts of gifts and talents. Are we using these gifts of God to their full potential? Do we exercise the talent we have to help others or simply to satisfy ourselves? Since life is God's great gift, we must ask if we are taking care of ourselves. Do we make a good attempt to strike a balance between work, sleep, and recreation, or are we abusing ourselves through excessive work, insufficient sleep, or improper use of alcohol, drugs, and other chemicals? Are we, in other words, using the gift of our life for the good of God and God's people, or are we selfish with God's great gift? // God's gifts are given to us to be used, not abused. The abuse of power, privilege, and prestige generally leads to ruin. Icarus and Daedulus abused their gift and lost all. National dictators and even an American President lost face and position because they abused the privilege of leadership. The Jews' failure to recognize the Son gave the Gentiles the promise of God's inheritance.
Let us examine our world, church, and lives and see how well we are using the gifts of God. Let us use properly and completely the gifts we have been given. Let us do our best to preserve our society and environment, minister in our church, and use our personal talents and skills for the glory of God. Let us use what God has provided to build the kingdom of God in our world.
Jesus has warned his listeners that the earth as symbolized by the vineyard is the possession of God. Those who reside and work there, we ourselves, are tenants. We have stewardship responsibilities to respect what we find there, and to return a portion of it to the owner, to God. This brings to mind the troubling issue of our own use of the earth's natural resources. Put here by God, we are to use them, but also we must respect them and restore what we use. Our forests, our wildlife, our fuel resources, the food we are able to grow from rich ground, all of this is a temporary loan from God, if you will. But many people forget this, think we own what we find around us. / Elsewhere, Jesus tells of the man who had such a large store of grain that he had larger barns built in order to keep it all. There were hungry people about, poor people who had little. He could easily have shared his wealth and still possessed more than enough for himself. But he wanted it all. Shortly after, he died. We will too. Nothing in our possession, including our homes and lands, can be ours on any more than a temporary basis. Collectively, we can destroy ourselves, or more reprehensible, destroy our grandchildren, by irresponsible use of the earth's riches. The owner has sent his son, speaking the very words of our text, to tell us of our responsibilities. We are to live in harmony, sharing. Compared to most major cities, we have hardly any crime, virtually no poverty. It would be easy to protect all that, blind ourselves to the tortured lives of so many other people. We may not do this if we think to follow Christ. We are to recognize that all of this belongs to God and we are custodians for a time. We have an obligation to do what we can to see that others have happy lives also. Giving a share to God is done by giving a share to others of God's children.
We are to be careful in the use of the earth's resources. We ebb and flow in worrying about energy crises and other wasteful uses of resources. We love to quarrel about the issue, preservationists versus developers and investors. This doesn't mean we are not to use what we have. Those people operating the vineyard were welcome to enjoy its benefits, had they been willing to return a just portion to the owner. But it does mean we are to realize that after we're gone, that "vineyard" will still remain, available then to other occupants. We are its stewards.
The owner of the vineyard (God) was patient. He did not immediately punish the scoundrel occupants. He gave them another chance. But there was a stopping point beyond which he was not willing to go. That point was the rejection of his son. We are to acknowledge the true owner of the land and return a portion to him as well. Tragically, our country suffers from the fact that somewhere around half of America's population is never exposed to the word of God. Sunday is a day to read the paper, work in the yard, go to the park or the lake. So the saving word is not being heard, and the consequence of this is unhappy, empty lives. There is hope, though, in the Church, the custodian of the saving word. I refer to all churches which base their teachings on the Bible. In them, collectively, lies our corporate hope. In them also lies the hope for each of us as we contemplate that which lies beyond our residence in this vineyard. But there is more than one way to reject the son. One very effective way is to ignore him.
* INVITATIONAL HYMN Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee # 13
In trying to reach us with his love, God finally sent his own Son. Jesus’ perfect life, his words of truth, and his sacrifice of love are meant to cause us to listen to him and to follow him as Lord. If we ignore God’s gracious gift of his Son, we reject God himself.
Jesus refers to himself as “the stone rejected by the builders.” Although Jesus was rejected by many of his people, he will become the cornerstone of his new building, the church
Jesus used this metaphor to show that one stone can affect people in different ways, depending on how they relate to it. Ideally they will build on it; many, however, will trip over it. And at the Last Judgment God’s enemies will be crushed by it. In the end, Christ, the “building block,” will become the “crushing stone.” He offers mercy and forgiveness now and promises judgment later. We should choose him now!
* BENEDICTION Who's in the Kingdom of God? Only those who produce the fruits of the Kingdom. And Jesus warns us, "Many who think that they are first may well be last; and the last may actually come in first." Instead of our deciding about others, I invite us, in the Spirit of God, to evaluate ourselves.
ORGAN POSTLUDE