Pentecost 18

May my words and my thoughts be acceptable to you, O Lord, my refuge and my redeemer. (Psalm 19:14)

SEASON: Pentecost 18
PROPER: 22C
PLACE: St. John's Parish, Kingsville
DATE: October 4, 1998

TEXT: Luke 17:5-10 - The Apostles said to the Lord, "Increase our faith." The Parable of the Dutiful Slave

ISSUE: The disciples request that Jesus will help them to increase their faith, their loyalty. Jesus did demand of them a close association beyond family. Simple loyalty is translated into their being like servants who do their duty. In the face of so much distraction in our world claiming our loyalty to Christ and being dutiful servants has a profound effect on allowing the Gospel of Christ to flow through us.
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Jesus' ministry was devoted to the renewal of Israel. His ministry challenged the old rules and the class distinctions, and all the things that often in the name of religion prevented a person's genuine relationship with the God of love and compassion. Jesus attempted to renew the access to God,a nd for his people to feel the availability of God in their lives so that through God's strength they could live themselves to their fullness. In the first part of Luke's chapter 17, Jesus recgonizes that there are things that get in the way of people's relationships with God. But, it would be better for a person to have a millstone tied around his neck and thrown into the sea than for a man to cause a person, or child of God, to fall into sin or alienation from God. There is also the command to be forgiving of those who repent in order that people may feel renewed in their relationship with God.
Now, to these teachings of Jesus the disciples want to know how they are to increase their faith, in terms of being facilitators of bringing people to God, or at the least not causing people to fall from grace. They are asking how are they to be truly good disciples. And what is required of them is their faith. A better translation of faith in this context is loyalty, or even reliability. They are called upon to be loyal to the ministry of Jesus. That loyalty has been a matter of even giving up family to be reliable followers of the Lord.
Loyalty and reliabilty are seens as simple and basic to the mission of Jesus. It's as simple as a mustard seed. It doesn't seem very profound, but a a community of loyal, reliable folk, has within them the mighty power of God to do profound things. Just as a mulberry tree is a deeply rooted plant that with faithfulness and loyalty could be uprooted and planted in the sea, which incidentally is not to be taken literally, a reliable community of faith can be a significant and profound channel through which God may work.
Jesus also uses, which was his usual custom and way of teaching, a parable about a dutiful slave. Reliability, loyalty, faithfulness is like a dutiful slave. In Jesus' time, slaves were quite common. Even poor families often had a slave. This was common imagery for the disciples of this time. Poor people and there were so many who could not afford to feed all of their children or various family members would give them up as slaves to other families. These slaves or servants were not treated badly, and it was not like the slave trades of which we are familiar in this country. These slaves or servants were saved from starvation or a life of miserie. While we may still not approve, it was the way things were in Jesus time. Jesus uses this situation as his illustration.
When the slave came home from working in the field and caring for the sheep, his master did not tell him to sit down and relax. The expectation is that the slave will continue his duties and prepare the master's dinner. It is a matter of complete devotion to the master without expectation for a reward. The passage concludes: "We are worthless slaves; we have done only what we ought to have done!" Incidentally, the word "worthless" is another bad translation. Slaves are in no sense worthless; they are, in fact, quite valuable. It really means "owed nothing," or "without need," or "not due anything." Jesus saw himself as a servant of the Lord God, who was not worthless, but who as a child of God was "without need." But the point is that the servant is dutiful, reliable, faithful, loyal, and has all he needs as a servant of God. Being the servants the disciples of Christ is not a matter of entitlement but a way of being. Jesus as servant of God made no claims but gave himself, emptied himself, even unto death.
The disciples want to know how to increase their faith. It is as simple as the tiny mustard seed, there must be a community of loyal folk. They must see themselves as devoted reliable, faithful servants with Christ without expecatation or entitlements. and together the power of God shall prevail in the world. According to the scriptures, Jesus' simple faithful reliability calmed storms, cast out demons, and healed the sick and raised the dead. Our loyalty to God is like a riverbed through which God's love and grace flows into his world.
For many of us today, being faithful, reliable, and loyal does not come easy. We do expect rewards. It is difficult for us to follow Jesus Christ in terms of loving our enemies, not being judgemental, blessing our persecutors, washing one another's feet, forgiving endlessly, giving to whoever asks. The ways of Jesus Christ are indeed challenging to our demands for things to be decent and in order, and to g et our just rewards.
It is also difficult for us to be faithful, when we see a world that offends us and our sensibilities. We settle on problem in our lives and something else occurs that challenges us. One nation struggles to find peace, while another faces famine and starvation of its people. We discover some grand cure for a disease, and then we face a rash of murders in our city and county streets. We have developed one of the most just systems of government, and yet we are faced with sleezy political scandal. Even in the church we hear of significant projects and accomplishments of young people and then of a dreadful law suit against a clergyman. In our own personal lives we are faced constantly with all kinds of ups and downs: good health and serious sickness, a good marriage then divorce, good children and then drug problems, a good job and then layoff. The stock market is up and then it's down. Our world and our lives are constantly challenged. Our best efforts can burn out, or we can throw up our hands in utter despair. The reading for Habbakkuk today (1:1-13l 2:1-4) tells of a dreadful time in the history of Judah. It was marked with violence and injustice, and the threat of being conquered by a powerful pagan, godless nation. It was tempting to feel abandoned by God. But Habakkuk's message is to remain faithful. For the disciples who feared, the message is to be loyal, reliable, faithful as God's people in the midst of difficulty and things they could not always understand. "The righteous live by their faith."
Our faith and reliability are gifts granted to us by God. Through being people who are prayerful in terms of seeking God's presence in our lives we keep in touch, woithin the reach of the Spirit of God. It is through Scriptures and the stories of great hope, the parables, the sayings of Jesus and the early church we remain linked with God's way. With the regular receiving of the Sacrament of the Eucharist, we stay in community of believers and are a visible supportive community that feeds on the Spirit of God. These are the things that keep us loyal, faithful, reliable, and sustained in being the people of God, the servants of God, and the fellow servants with Christ. These are the things that keep us from burning out and falling away from the marvelous grace of God's compassionate love and hopefulness. It is in coming to know who we are as servants of God and living out out our faithfulness and reliability that God's grace and will works through us. The community of faith allows hope and healing to prevail. Forgiveness prevails. God's miraculous presence and justice continues to come forth. It is not in our doing any great works, nor is that even expected. Increased faith is our continuing loyalty and reliable availability to allow God to work in us and through us.