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Listen "Sermon | Matthew 13:47-50 | IT'S LIKE THIS... - 5. "A Fishing Net""
Episode Synopsis
Sermon | Matthew 13L47-50 | IT'S LIKE THIS... - 5. "A Fishing Net" given by Rev. Joseph Sanford
God does have the final word and that word will bring liberation and justice.
So…we don’t have to try and play that game ourselves.
We can let go of thinking we have all the knowledge of good and evil to the point where we try to play God over other people.
BUT…There’s another side to this parable.
We start with ourselves…and trust God will sort out those beyond us.
Jesus has been calling on people who have ears to hear to actually hear through these parables:
1. The Reign of God is everywhere—on all kinds of “soil”
2. The Reign of God is intermingled with unjust ways of thinking and living like weeds among the wheat.
3. The Reign of God is slowly taking over like a mustard “tree” or yeast in dough—it will take over the whole thing and bring impact and effect.
4. The Reign of God is one among many treasures in the world…but no treasure compares to this treasure. The right response is to let go of everything else we thought was valuable in order to acquire it.
WE must re-think and repent…
WE must turn away from the little games we are playing so we can open our eyes to the bigger reality at work…
WE must trust that the mysterious Reign of God looks different than we expect and, at times, seems invisible and unnoticeable…
WE must remember that time will help bring it into effect…
WE must accept that simply understanding and seeing the Reign of God is not the whole point…
WE must ACT…
WE must LIVE…
WE must RESPOND…holding nothing back
There is a major point of today’s passage highlighted out by those who have gone before us:
“Understanding without action is sterile
Action without understanding is exhausting and useless”
(also can be dangerous and harmful)
We must UNDERSTAND and ACT
We must re-think or RE-ORIENT what God and our faith in God is all about…
And THEN we must respond how we live our lives.
We must open our eyes and hearts to the bigger reality of God’s ultimate Reign and justice which will have the final word…
SO THAT…we aren’t playing our own mini-games based on being right and nurturing our pride, comfort, and privilege and working against the bigger calling upon our lives.
Every now and again we must look up at the scoreboard and see that victory is already won in Jesus Christ…
Our job is not to win, but to UNDERSTAND and SEE that new reality with our hearts and minds…
…NOT to stand with pride about how right we are or how wrong others are—because that’s that game of judgment we are not qualified to play.
RATHER…we are to UNDERSTAND and SEE the reality of the Reign of God both here, now, and everywhere forevermore so that we can ACT by aligning our lives with the hope that comes from our trust in that reality.
When we trust in the Reign of God, we are given an unshakable hope…
And when we have an unshakeable hope, we are then able to live in to unquenchable love for God and neighbor.
We are able to give of ourselves for the good of others BECAUSE we know THAT will truly help us find the Life for which we have all been longing.
So…Re-think and continue to re-think…
Shift…and continue shifting…
Re-orient and repent…
because our faith is a lifelong journey of learning how to live into the salvation given us.
We walk on towards perfection alongside one another in this beautiful and open community of faith.
Let us throw the doors wide open and let all be gathered in…
Let us be nothing but encouraging for all people to experience the Reign of God at work in this body…
We’ll help people recognize God’s grace through the Holy Spirit already at work
in their lives…
Make no mistake, through our following and cooperation with the Holy Spirit, all will be sorted out.
God does have the final word and that word will bring liberation and justice.
So…we don’t have to try and play that game ourselves.
We can let go of thinking we have all the knowledge of good and evil to the point where we try to play God over other people.
BUT…There’s another side to this parable.
We start with ourselves…and trust God will sort out those beyond us.
Jesus has been calling on people who have ears to hear to actually hear through these parables:
1. The Reign of God is everywhere—on all kinds of “soil”
2. The Reign of God is intermingled with unjust ways of thinking and living like weeds among the wheat.
3. The Reign of God is slowly taking over like a mustard “tree” or yeast in dough—it will take over the whole thing and bring impact and effect.
4. The Reign of God is one among many treasures in the world…but no treasure compares to this treasure. The right response is to let go of everything else we thought was valuable in order to acquire it.
WE must re-think and repent…
WE must turn away from the little games we are playing so we can open our eyes to the bigger reality at work…
WE must trust that the mysterious Reign of God looks different than we expect and, at times, seems invisible and unnoticeable…
WE must remember that time will help bring it into effect…
WE must accept that simply understanding and seeing the Reign of God is not the whole point…
WE must ACT…
WE must LIVE…
WE must RESPOND…holding nothing back
There is a major point of today’s passage highlighted out by those who have gone before us:
“Understanding without action is sterile
Action without understanding is exhausting and useless”
(also can be dangerous and harmful)
We must UNDERSTAND and ACT
We must re-think or RE-ORIENT what God and our faith in God is all about…
And THEN we must respond how we live our lives.
We must open our eyes and hearts to the bigger reality of God’s ultimate Reign and justice which will have the final word…
SO THAT…we aren’t playing our own mini-games based on being right and nurturing our pride, comfort, and privilege and working against the bigger calling upon our lives.
Every now and again we must look up at the scoreboard and see that victory is already won in Jesus Christ…
Our job is not to win, but to UNDERSTAND and SEE that new reality with our hearts and minds…
…NOT to stand with pride about how right we are or how wrong others are—because that’s that game of judgment we are not qualified to play.
RATHER…we are to UNDERSTAND and SEE the reality of the Reign of God both here, now, and everywhere forevermore so that we can ACT by aligning our lives with the hope that comes from our trust in that reality.
When we trust in the Reign of God, we are given an unshakable hope…
And when we have an unshakeable hope, we are then able to live in to unquenchable love for God and neighbor.
We are able to give of ourselves for the good of others BECAUSE we know THAT will truly help us find the Life for which we have all been longing.
So…Re-think and continue to re-think…
Shift…and continue shifting…
Re-orient and repent…
because our faith is a lifelong journey of learning how to live into the salvation given us.
We walk on towards perfection alongside one another in this beautiful and open community of faith.
Let us throw the doors wide open and let all be gathered in…
Let us be nothing but encouraging for all people to experience the Reign of God at work in this body…
We’ll help people recognize God’s grace through the Holy Spirit already at work
in their lives…
Make no mistake, through our following and cooperation with the Holy Spirit, all will be sorted out.
In God we trust