Christ the King (Reign of Christ) Sunday (A)—Ezekiel 34:11–16, 20-24; Matthew 25:31–46

Early 6th-century mosaic from Ravenna, 

the Church of Appolinare Nuovo

Ezekiel 34:11–16, 20–24

The Once and Future Comeuppance of the Butters

 

The word I like the best within this text is "butted;"

I like how God's not happy with the sheep who strutted,

Who pushed and shoved their way around like some big wheel,

And turned the lives of others into an ordeal;

They make me think of big shots now, pontificating,

Who, on high horses, set about eliminating

The things that help all people in their daily living,

While claiming they know best, but to themselves they're giving!

Dear God, we need a David, shepherding the people,

Instead of those who would our commonwealth enfeeble;

You've kicked their butts in our most recent big election—

Now may kind words and acts enjoy a resurrection.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

(The last two lines have been changed from what was published in Lectionary Poems: Surprising Grace for Pulpit and Pew:

O, kick their butts in any upcoming elections,

That words and acts for all might see a resurrection.)

 

For thus says the Lord God: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord God. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice. Therefore, thus says the Lord God to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep. I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the Lord, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the Lord, have spoken.

 +  +  +

Matthew 25:31–46

Surprise!

The Gospel is about surprise!

Forget the habit to surmise

Just how you might reap some reward,

Or fear that you might be ignored

By God, say, when you're at the end,

And wonder if you might ascend,

Or descend, so to speak. You'll find

God's system of reward is blind

To whether you had made the grade!

No matter what, you'll be dismayed,

Since God's less likely to be bribed,

And more inclined to be described

As Christ, who so inspires your love

That, focused less on God above,

You'll worry not, nor will you gloat,

To be a hero, or a goat,

But simply offer all your care

To needy angels unawares.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, ‘Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me.’ Then the righteous will answer him, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that we saw you sick or in prison and visited you?’ And the king will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me.’ Then he will say to those at his left hand, ‘You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ Then they also will answer, ‘Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you?’ Then he will answer them, ‘Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”

Thirty-Third Sunday in Ordinary Time/Twenty-Fourth after Pentecost (A)—Judges 4:1­–7 [8–24]; Matthew 25:14–30

Judges 4:1–7 [8–24]

Deborah sends Barak into battle 

(From the Psalter of St. Louis, 13th century, 

Bibliothèque nationale de France)

 

Wonderwomen 

 

I think that not too many know

This ancient, Wonderwomen tale,

Where, Barak asks a prophetess

To go with him before he sails

To battle a strong enemy,

As guarantee he would not fail.

 

Or does he ask to humor her,

A woman who'd command a male?

Or could it be he's worried that

His aspirations she'd assail,

And like some prequel of Uriah,

He'd be the one to be impaled?

 

At any rate, she says she'll go,

Though goes with him to no avail, 

That is, no glory will he earn;

Another woman will derail

The plans of Sisera, who burns

To conquer Israel, yet fails.

 

Soon Sisera will be no more,

His gory end makes us inhale;

But though, to us, the ethics of

Jael seem dubious and frail,

God's purposes for those oppressed

Will, by God's chosen means, prevail.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

(Note: It's a shame the lectionary designers stop at verse 7, which in my view pretty much misses the point of the story. Go at least through verse 9. But consider going even further in Sunday worship, which in this case means telling the rest of the story, which includes Jael, as long as we realize it's meant to make us smile at how God will do in a cruel oppressor by whatever means will do the trick.)

 

The Israelites again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord , after Ehud died. So the Lord sold them into the hand of King Jabin of Canaan, who reigned in Hazor; the commander of his army was Sisera, who lived in Harosheth-ha-goiim. Then the Israelites cried out to the Lord for help; for he had nine hundred chariots of iron, and had oppressed the Israelites cruelly twenty years.

 

At that time Deborah, a prophetess, wife of Lappidoth, was judging Israel. She used to sit under the palm of Deborah between Ramah and Bethel in the hill country of Ephraim; and the Israelites came up to her for judgment. She sent and summoned Barak son of Abinoam from Kedesh in Naphtali, and said to him, “The Lord, the God of Israel, commands you, ‘Go, take position at Mount Tabor, bringing ten thousand from the tribe of Naphtali and the tribe of Zebulun. I will draw out Sisera, the general of Jabin’s army, to meet you by the Wadi Kishon with his chariots and his troops; and I will give him into your hand.’” [Barak said to her, “If you will go with me, I will go; but if you will not go with me, I will not go.” And she said, “I will surely go with you; nevertheless, the road on which you are going will not lead to your glory, for the Lord will sell Sisera into the hand of a woman.” Then Deborah got up and went with Barak to Kedesh.

 

Barak summoned Zebulun and Naphtali to Kedesh; and ten thousand warriors went up behind him; and Deborah went up with him. Now Heber the Kenite had separated from the other Kenites, that is, the descendants of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses, and had encamped as far away as Elon-bezaanannim, which is near Kedesh. When Sisera was told that Barak son of Abinoam had gone up to Mount Tabor, Sisera called out all his chariots, nine hundred chariots of iron, and all the troops who were with him, from Harosheth-ha-goiim to the Wadi Kishon. Then Deborah said to Barak, “Up! For this is the day on which the Lord has given Sisera into your hand. The Lord is indeed going out before you.” So Barak went down from Mount Tabor with ten thousand warriors following him. And the Lord threw Sisera and all his chariots and all his army into a panic before Barak; Sisera got down from his chariot and fled away on foot, while Barak pursued the chariots and the army to Harosheth-ha-goiim. All the army of Sisera fell by the sword; no one was left.

 

Now Sisera had fled away on foot to the tent of Jael wife of Heber the Kenite; for there was peace between King Jabin of Hazor and the clan of Heber the Kenite. Jael came out to meet Sisera, and said to him, “Turn aside, my lord, turn aside to me; have no fear.” So he turned aside to her into the tent, and she covered him with a rug. Then he said to her, “Please give me a little water to drink; for I am thirsty.” So she opened a skin of milk and gave him a drink and covered him. He said to her, “Stand at the entrance of the tent, and if anybody comes and asks you, ‘Is anyone here?’ say, ‘No.’” But Jael wife of Heber took a tent peg, and took a hammer in her hand, and went softly to him and drove the peg into his temple, until it went down into the ground—he was lying fast asleep from weariness—and he died. Then, as Barak came in pursuit of Sisera, Jael went out to meet him, and said to him, “Come, and I will show you the man whom you are seeking.” So he went into her tent; and there was Sisera lying dead, with the tent peg in his temple. So on that day God subdued King Jabin of Canaan before the Israelites. Then the hand of the Israelites bore harder and harder on King Jabin of Canaan, until they destroyed King Jabin of Canaan.]

 

+  +  +

 

Matthew 25:14–30 

Annette Gandy Fortt: Parable of the Talents

http://diglib.library.vanderbilt.edu/act-imagelink.pl?RC=56021

 

Treasure This

 

Beware that you don't use this text

To be the means whereby the next

Year's budget you might "make" converges

With what it seems the story urges.

 

One talent being far too much

For common laborers to touch,

It speaks, instead, of what is gained

When nothing you did, you attained.

 

Those overwhelmed by all they have,

Who know that all they are, God gave,

In joy, astounded by their treasure,

Know greatest gifts cannot be measured.

 

But those who try to make it last,

In worry they'll lose all amassed,

Have entered now into the hell

Which only trust in grace dispels.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

“For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away. As for this worthless slave, throw him into the outer darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’

Thirty-Second Sunday in Ordinary Time/Twenty-Third after Pentecost (A)—Joshua 24:1–3a, 14–25; Matthew 25:1–13

 Joshua 24:1–3a, 14–25 

Raphael: Joshua Addressing the Israeites at Shechem (ca. 1516-18)

sketch for fresco in Loggia of Raphael in the Vatican, Teylers Museum, Haarlem

 

Not the Good Old Days

 

Once to every one and nation

Comes the moment to decide;

Sometimes hymns, though out of favor,

Tell a truth from which we hide.

 

Glibly, we imagine back in 

"Bible times," "their" faith was strong;

Surely God spoke clearly, therefore

Many for the past now long.

 

Joshua didn't see it that way:

"Our ancestors got it wrong!

Gods were served beyond the river,

Now's the time for a new song!"

 

New occasions teach new duties,

Time makes ancient good uncouth,

Faith means always new decisions,

Chosen grace is each day's truth.

 

Scott L. Barton

(The first two lines of the first and last stanzas come from the 1845 poem by James R. Lowell that he wrote as a protest against the U. S.'s war with Mexico, and which was put to Thomas J. Williams' tune EBENEZER.)

 

Then Joshua gathered all the tribes of Israel to Shechem, and summoned the elders, the heads, the judges, and the officers of Israel; and they presented themselves before God. And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel: Long ago your ancestors—Terah and his sons Abraham and Nahor—lived beyond the Euphrates and served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River and led him through all the land of Canaan and made his offspring many. I gave him Isaac; “Now therefore revere the Lord, and serve him in sincerity and in faithfulness; put away the gods that your ancestors served beyond the River and in Egypt, and serve the Lord.

 

Now if you are unwilling to serve the Lord, choose this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served in the region beyond the River or the gods of the Amorites in whose land you are living; but as for me and my household, we will serve the Lord.” Then the people answered, “Far be it from us that we should forsake the Lord to serve other gods; for it is the Lord our God who brought us and our ancestors up from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, and who did those great signs in our sight. He protected us along all the way that we went, and among all the peoples through whom we passed; and the Lord drove out before us all the peoples, the Amorites who lived in the land. Therefore we also will serve the Lord, for he is our God.” But Joshua said to the people, “You cannot serve the Lord, for he is a holy God. He is a jealous God; he will not forgive your transgressions or your sins. If you forsake the Lord and serve foreign gods, then he will turn and do you harm, and consume you, after having done you good.” And the people said to Joshua, “No, we will serve the Lord!” Then Joshua said to the people, “You are witnesses against yourselves that you have chosen the Lord, to serve him.” And they said, “We are witnesses.” He said, “Then put away the foreign gods that are among you, and incline your hearts to the Lord, the God of Israel.” The people said to Joshua, “The Lord our God we will serve, and him we will obey.” So Joshua made a covenant with the people that day, and made statutes and ordinances for them at Shechem.

 

+ + +

 

Matthew 25:1-13 

JESUS MAFA: The Ten Young Women

 

On Time God

 

"Don’t you hate it when that happens?"

Jesus says about that wedding

Where some bridesmaids missed the party

That they thought they'd be attending.

 

No one here is being callous,

It was simply customary;

Bridesmaids who could join inside were

Those who'd planned, and had not tarried.

 

Grace does not appear on schedule,

Like an entry on your smart phone;

Opportunities to love are

Tests of faith, and even backbone.

 

"He's an on time God," the song goes,

"Might not come just when you want him,

"He'll be there right on time," which means,

Not being ready, will not stop him.

 

Don't miss the love that's put before you,

For it will come, and not ignore you.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like this. Ten bridesmaids took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom. Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. When the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them; but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps. As the bridegroom was delayed, all of them became drowsy and slept. But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look! Here is the bridegroom! Come out to meet him.’ Then all those bridesmaids got up and trimmed their lamps. The foolish said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, for our lamps are going out.’ But the wise replied, ‘No! there will not be enough for you and for us; you had better go to the dealers and buy some for yourselves.’ And while they went to buy it, the bridegroom came, and those who were ready went with him into the wedding banquet; and the door was shut. Later the other bridesmaids came also, saying, ‘Lord, lord, open to us.’ But he replied, ‘Truly I tell you, I do not know you.’ Keep awake therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour.

Thirty-First Sunday in Ordinary Time/Twenty-Second after Pentecost (A)—Joshua 3:7–17; Matthew 23:1–12

Joshua 3:7–17 

Frans Francken II (1581–1642): The Israelites Crossing the River Jordan

Photo by the author at Johnson Museum of Art, Cornell University 

I wonder why Francken seems to have the water on the left of the people as they crossed, since presumably the story has them crossing from east to west, which would put the Dead Sea to the south—and thus, "the heap" of water stopped from flowing south on their right. 

 

A Nation Where All Are Saved

 

The text progresses, as it must;

not Moses, out alone, or just

this Joshua, either, at this river,

this new, dividing sea the Giver

parts; but now, instead of one,

it looks like twelve ensure undone

the chaos that would interfere

with what the LORD would engineer.

They venture out into the deep,

which is no more, but just a heap

on their right hand, while on their left,

no waters stand; and they are blessed

to be a nation now, where all are saved—

Let us, just like those Jordan priests, behave.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

The Lord said to Joshua, “This day I will begin to exalt you in the sight of all Israel, so that they may know that I will be with you as I was with Moses. You are the one who shall command the priests who bear the ark of the covenant, ‘When you come to the edge of the waters of the Jordan, you shall stand still in the Jordan.’” Joshua then said to the Israelites, “Draw near and hear the words of the Lord your God.” Joshua said, “By this you shall know that among you is the living God who without fail will drive out from before you the Canaanites, Hittites, Hivites, Perizzites, Girgashites, Amorites, and Jebusites: the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth is going to pass before you into the Jordan. So now select twelve men from the tribes of Israel, one from each tribe. When the soles of the feet of the priests who bear the ark of the Lord, the Lord of all the earth, rest in the waters of the Jordan, the waters of the Jordan flowing from above shall be cut off; they shall stand in a single heap.”

 

When the people set out from their tents to cross over the Jordan, the priests bearing the ark of the covenant were in front of the people. Now the Jordan overflows all its banks throughout the time of harvest. So when those who bore the ark had come to the Jordan, and the feet of the priests bearing the ark were dipped in the edge of the water, the waters flowing from above stood still, rising up in a single heap far off at Adam, the city that is beside Zarethan, while those flowing toward the sea of the Arabah, the Dead Sea, were wholly cut off. Then the people crossed over opposite Jericho. While all Israel were crossing over on dry ground, the priests who bore the ark of the covenant of the Lord stood on dry ground in the middle of the Jordan, until the entire nation finished crossing over the Jordan.

 

+  +  +

 

Matthew 23:1–12

 

"Teacher," "Rabbi" and the Like

 

We Presbyterians now name

Our ministers for tasks reclaimed:

We're "teaching elders," for our role

That all may learn, in mind and soul,

God's grace. And Catholics still refer

To priests as "Father," which confers

A status that implies their love

To those below from God above.

Thus, Jesus' words now give me pause

In hope that he laid down no laws

Prohibiting what we are called!

But rather, pray he's still appalled

By any flouting ordination

As meaning character inflation.

 

Scott L. Barton

 

Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples, “The scribes and the Pharisees sit on Moses’ seat; therefore, do whatever they teach you and follow it; but do not do as they do, for they do not practice what they teach. They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them. They do all their deeds to be seen by others; for they make their phylacteries broad and their fringes long. They love to have the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues, and to be greeted with respect in the marketplaces, and to have people call them rabbi. But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all students. And call no one your father on earth, for you have one Father—the one in heaven. Nor are you to be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Messiah. The greatest among you will be your servant. All who exalt themselves will be humbled, and all who humble themselves will be exalted.

Bonus Poem: What My Grandson Was Looking At

 

I want to know

what my grandson 

was looking at,

as he lay on his back, 

after awakening

from a too-short nap

for a four-month old.

 

I walked in quietly

and squatted down,

and he was on his back,

looking up—

to my mind, at least,

at just the ceiling—

but every once in a while

cracking a big smile.

 

Now, I know that

he smiles in response to

someone else’s smiling.

(I also know that he 

had already passed gas.)

So who was up there,

whom my adult vision 

simply could not see?

 

I’m pretty sure 

that this babe,

uncluttered by the possible,

saw, when visited, 

perhaps my mother

or my wife’s mother—

his great grandmothers,

or my father

or my wife’s father—

his great grandfathers,

or his paternal grandmother, 

or his great uncle,

or any number of other people 

who might have loved him, 

some of whom also loved me,

cracking their own smiles.

 

Go ahead,

tell me I’m delusional.

But I was there. 

I’ll fight to the death

to tell you I’m right. 

 

Scott L. Barton