Fourth Pentecost, Proper 6, 2005:

A very wealthy man had been invited back to his home church to give his testimony prior to the kickoff of a major capital funds drive. 

He began by saying, “As you know, I’m a multi-millionaire and I attribute it all to the rich blessings of God in my life.  I can still remember the turning point in my life.  I was twelve-years old and had just earned my first dollar from mowing the neighbor’s yard.  I came here to a Wednesday evening meeting that night to hear the speaker, who was a missionary from Africa.  He talked about his work and the desperate needs of the people there.  A “love offering” was taken and I had only that one dollar in my pocket.  I had to either give the whole dollar or nothing at all.  So at that moment I decided to give my whole dollar to God’s work in the mission field.  I believe that God blessed that decision, and that’s why I am a rich man today.”

As he finished it was clear that everyone was moved by the man’s story.  But, as he took his seat, a little old lady sitting in the same pew leaned over and said, “Wonderful story!  I dare you to do it again!”

The harvest remains plentiful, but too many laborers think of themselves as self-made people who own everything they have and that they get to decide to whom and for what purpose they will give their money.  Far too many people have bought into that deception and are embezzling from God’s work in the world and far too many clergy are afraid to say so.  I’m not.  We cannot take what Jesus the Christ said about God and mammon and turn it around to suit ourselves.  If any of this applies to you, I would rather not have the problem compounded by not pointing it out to you.  If you are withholding your offering or have cut it because of something I have done or not done, or because of something the Vestry, diocese, or General Convention has done or not done, I would just as soon you go ahead and transfer to another denomination.  You go with our prayers.  We need to get on with the work God has given us to do.  We are to tithe, we cannot base our giving on how we “feel” at the moment, it really does all belong to God, and we are loved enough to have been given the responsibility to exercise stewardship over many things.  And there will be an accounting for that.

Now, let’s move on to talk about the harvest, about evangelism, and about how to do it.  In the Gospel for today Jesus is said to have gone about all the cities and villages, teaching in the synagogues and proclaiming the good news of the kingdom, and curing every disease and every sickness.  He saw great crowds of people and had compassion on them because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  The clear understanding here is that sheep without the protection of a shepherd were doomed to death and destruction.

Then, Jesus turned to his disciples and said, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore ask the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”  The twelve learners are summoned; the definition of disciple being best defined by the word learner, and these twelve are equipped with the same power as the teacher.  They were to have the same degree of compassion as the teacher, they were to minister to whatever the human need might be, and they were to announce the kingdom.  The twelve learners are named, so that we might know who they are and how few in number they were.  Just twelve began the process of turning the world upside down.  If they paid attention to the instruction and did what the teacher asked them to do, it would be enough.

Notice the singleness of purpose in the instructions.  Why would Jesus the Christ place such limitations on the twelve?  Well, this was their first experience with sharing the message.  Pinpointing their efforts to Galilee only, in the beginning, would insure some success.  Later, the mission field would be expanded to something called the “whole world.”  Getting their feet wet, meeting with some success, experiencing some rejection, and learning to depend on each other would stand them in good stead when the whole world became the object of the message they were given to proclaim.

It’s is not that the gentiles are outside the loving embrace of God, nor are the Samaritans about whom Jesus told stories to indicate they were closer to God’s intention than those who should have been.  It is just that in this teaching the “lost sheep” are the ones to whom the message must be proclaimed.  This would be like the first parish, except the learners were told not to expect payment for what they did.  They were to proclaim the good news that the Kingdom of heaven had come near.  They were to cure the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons.  Don’t worry about your needs; they will be met.  Gold, silver, copper, bags, tunics, sandals, and staff are to be left behind.  The message to the learners was clear; this is important stuff.  Don’t get distracted along the way.  Keep the message as the central focus.  Base everything on compassion.  Remember that you are among the sheep that are in need of a shepherd.

So what about us, as we are now well into the third millennium since the teaching was first given?  Do we still interpret this teaching as our mandate for mission?  Do we see this as providing the foundations of our calling?  I submit that we must in order to take our Christian faith as seriously as it is meant to be taken.  In the compassion of Jesus the Christ for the multitudes we are to see our call to be people of compassion.  In the power of prayer to the Lord of the harvest we are to see our call to be people of prayer.  In the commissioning of the disciples to minister with Christ’s authority we are to see the source of any authority we will ever have in the world.  It will not be brought in by conservative or liberal political systems.  It will not be advanced in the world by using a fundamentalist interpretation that belittles and berates others who may believe differently that we and surely not from trying to kill them.  It will not be ushered in by accumulating as much of the world’s wealth as we can.  It just might be made a little clearer when we remember that the one in whose name we do all that we do secured true greatness for us by his service unto death and that we demonstrate that true greatness by humble service to others.

No doubt, we will be blessed as we give for the work of God in Christ in the world.  Every time we do so, don’t be surprised if Jesus, or a little old lady, leans down and says, “I dare you to do it again!”  Amen.