“Gentlemen, at this very moment tonight, where do you stand on the financial recovery plan?” That was the first question asked the other evening by Jim Lehrer as he began the first of the Presidential Candidate’s debates in Oxford, Mississippi. Given the events of the past week, it was a good question. The people look to their leaders for answers. This has been true throughout history.
Some 3,500 years ago another question was asked. “Why did you bring us out of Egypt, to kill us and our children and livestock with thirst?” That is the question on the lips of the Israelites in our first lesson for this morning as they encamped in the wilderness after being led out of Egypt by Moses. It is a pretty basic question really. There is no water. Why have we been led to a place that has no water? It is interesting that the question is never actually answered. At least not the “Why” part of the question. Instead Moses takes his staff and follows God’s instructions to bring forth water from a rock and the people stop questioning. This reveals another truth known throughout history. The people have short memories and as long as their needs are being met they will support the leader who brings them safety and security in the moment, regardless of what the long range cost may be. We like simple answers. Thirsty? Find water. Hungry? Find food. Witnessing the collapse of your country’s economic system? Well, obviously the answer to many of the economic, military, political and environmental questions that confront our nation and the world today cannot be answered with one word or for that matter with one simple plan or legislative act. Today, water from a rock in the wilderness is not the answer but the source of more questions. What is the level of arsenic and other metals in the water? What bacteria and other organic elements are present? What non-organic contaminants are present? We live in a world where the answer to every question quickly becomes another question.
Which makes our Gospel lesson today very modern sounding. Jesus is asked a question about authority which he answers with another question. As I read these questions I first thought of the litany of silly questions that fill the internet. You know the ones: “How far east can you go before you are heading west?” or “If pro and Con are opposites does that mean the opposite of Progress is Congress?” There are questions that are clearly asked with no interest in an answer. We all know that in the candidate debates and certainly in the press interviews, there is a constant game being played between those asking questions and those answering. Many of the questions are asked not in search of an answer but in search of a misstatement or blooper. The leaders of Jesus’ day wanted to know by what authority he was doing the things he did. Jesus was healing the sick and feeding the hungry and the leaders wanted to know who should get the credit. Where did the power to heal and feed come from? The politics of power stands firmly behind the question just as over the last few days each political party has attempted to portray themselves as the source of the true answer to our economic problems. Jesus knew what was going on just as most of us do.
Do you remember when you were in school and there was always this one kid, sometimes a boy and sometimes a girl, who raised their hand to answer every question. They raised their hand even when they didn’t know the answer usually to ask another question that would take the teacher off subject. The leaders knew that Jesus was doing some rather amazing things so they tried to shift the focus by asking him by what authority he did what he did. Such a question is a bit like expecting the drowning man to demand to know first who threw him the life line before he will accept it. Does it really matter who provides the food to the starving child? The politics of power says absolutely.
Jesus said, let’s try a different question. What do you think? A man had two sons; he went to the first and said, “Son, go and work in the vineyard today.” And the son answered, “I will not”; but later he changed his mind and went to the vineyard. Meanwhile, the father went to the second son and said the same and this son answered, “I go, sir”; only he did not go. Now which of the two did the will of the father? The first, of course, because actions speak louder than words. And that, Jesus says, is the answer to the question. Not just the last question but also the first one, the one about authority.
The point is not to know the answer but to do, or better yet, be the answer. In the wilderness wanderings of the Israelites, Moses became the leader because he could provide the answer to the problems the people experienced. Taking a staff and striking a rock to bring forth water provided a real life answer to the question of why follow this leader. Moses claimed to be able to speak to God and for God. Moses claimed that God cared for the people and had a purpose for their wanderings. Moses provided a living witness to God’s power moving in, through and around those who believed and trusted in him.
In the Sunday adult forum we have been looking at the authority that the Bible has for us as people of faith. One of the key teachings that we have come to recognize is that the Word of God that has authority in our lives is not a rigid answer book. It is not like a dictionary or some handy reference book where you can select a word or topic and look it up to find the answer to every question. In fact, we affirm what is set forth in the first verses of the Gospel of John, that Jesus is the word of God incarnate. That is to say, Jesus is the word made real in human form but not just as past event. Jesus is the word of God living among us still. And that means that if the word is alive in our midst, it means that it is still growing and changing. Questions change because the world changes. Since 1900 more than 90,000 new words have been added to the English language to accommodate all the changes and new discoveries that have entered the world. That means that nearly 1 in 4 English words is less than 100 years old. A changing vocabulary for a changing world. And a changing world places changing demands on our faith.
Notice Jesus did not ask, which son was the father’s favorite. He asked simply, which fulfilled the task the father had needed fulfilled. When a disaster strikes, like hurricane Ike or the famine in Darfur, the question is never asked, which church should respond to this need. Our Lutheran Disaster Relief operations are some of the most efficient in the world in large part because we work so closely with other church bodies and relief organizations, many of which you see advertising on television and in the press. We have come to learn that each relief organization has those things that it does best. Providing immediate shelter, safe child care for parents attempting to clean up, clothing and household items for those who lost everything, post traumatic counseling,each church provides answers to different questions of recovery. And no answer is complete by itself.
Anyone who comes from a family with more than one child knows that one of the challenges to being a parent and one of the “games” you play if you are one of the children is “Who’s the favorite today?” Our three sons still comment periodically on which of them is clearly the favorite or least favored just to get a rise out of us. As a parent I strive to keep a balance. The important thing, though, is that in the end, whether favored or not, the three boys are still my sons. All three. In the story Jesus told, one son ultimately did what was needed to be done for that day. He did, in that moment, his father’s will. But there is always tomorrow. There is a temptation to make this story an end unto itself. The work was done in the vineyard for that day but what about the next time? There is always a next time. Especially when it comes to crops and harvest. God does not come to us but once in one form. The Word of God shifts and moves in and through and around us. The grace of God welcomes new believers every day. The grace of God invites new people to the vineyard. The word of God is not one command to be fulfilled. God did not say love your neighbor, once, anymore then a parent can say I loved my child once and that is enough. Love is not an instant. Love is life-long. Just so, God’s grace is not a single moment or event. The word became flesh and dwelt among us. The Spirit lives and moves in and around us. Faith is never perfected. The commandments are never fully obeyed but so also forgiveness is never ending. A living faith is a curious thing. God’s word remains open and welcoming to all.
The religious leaders of Jesus day were surprised by those Jesus named as welcome. We have an advantage. We know the final answer to the question. We have seen it with our own eyes. Actions speak louder than words. Our Gospel lesson for today begins with a question of authority and we know the answer. It is offered up in the words of the ancient hymn that is part of our second lesson for today. It is a hymn about Jesus, who humbled himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross.
And it is that action of entering the earthly vineyard that made it clear by what authority he spoke and acted. For as the ancient hymn continues; therefore God also highly exalted him and gave him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.
To that there is no question. Amen
Amen