A Word About Duty Luke 17:5-10

Transcription

1 A Word About Duty Luke 17:5-10 Rev. Michael D. Halley October 2, 2016 Suffolk Christian Church Suffolk, Virginia Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost World Communion Sunday ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A son at college was trying to apply pressure for more money from his father. In a letter home, he wrote: I can t understand why you call yourself a loving father when you haven t sent me a check for three weeks. What kind of love do you call that? The father wrote back, That s unremitting love! 1 We can smile at this story. Many of us have even been there. But I don t think any of us would define love this way, as unremitting. Usually don t we think of love in completely opposite terms, such as total giving? Some would even call it unconditional love. We certainly think of God s love that way, don t we? That s certainly the way Jesus revealed God... a God who gives and gives and gives until He gives everything, even His life, out of His love for us. That s the reason the word of Jesus in our text today is a shocking one. Jesus concluded this parable by saying, So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty. This is one of Jesus least familiar sayings, and it s also one of his most confusing and one of his toughest. One preacher was so frustrated with this

2 Page -2- parable of Jesus that he ended up writing Luke a letter which became a sermon. Here is part of what he wrote: Dear Luke, You re a terrific writer, and through the years I ve become more appreciative of your Gospel (along with your second volume, The Acts of the Apostles). There s a wonderfully human touch to your writing, even in the midst of the mysterious... I like your Gospel, Luke; but I m having some real difficulty with your little parable about the farmer and his slave. It s not exactly a heart-warming story, nor is it a mountain-peak experience of Bible reading. How could you write something like that?! Look again at how you end it: When you have done all that is commanded you say, We are unworthy servants; we have only done what was our duty. Now doesn t that sound like a real downer! 2 This parable Jesus tells is a word about duty. Part of our difficulty with this story is because of the slave system in Jesus day. Also, I am sure none of us is very impressed by the ungrateful and calloused master who never says Thank you to this hard-working servant. His servant had been plowing all day in the field, literally slaving away. At sundown, we can imagine his aching back and the rest of his body numb with weariness. He comes in from the field but has even more to do. There is nothing in this story that suggests the master acknowledges what his servant has done. And yet another duty is laid upon him: He must now prepare his master s supper and wait until his master has eaten before he can sit and rest his weary body and have a few bites of whatever food is left. And so, against this backdrop of harsh treatment, Jesus speaks to us: So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty. No wonder we

3 Page -3- bristle at such words! For many people, duty is not a pleasant word. It is all too common that we hear What is the least I can do to get by? rather than How can I best serve others? And, by the way, I looked up the definition of duty and it is this: something that you must do because it is morally right or because the law requires it 3. Unfortunately, we are seeing the creation of a culture where moral standards and spiritual ideals have been undermined by negligence, cheating, corruption, lying, stealing, and immoral acts. And these are excused on the ground that everybody is doing it and that the end justifies the means. But here is Jesus, once more standing counter culture, telling us in this harshly worded parable that there is an oughtness to life. Oughtness means that there are demands that are placed upon us which allow no letting up in discipline. So duty is not a dirty four-letter word. It s a word whose meaning needs to be recovered. We would be saved a lot of emotional energy if we could keep a right perspective on the fact that we all have duties: duties as citizens, and duties as members of our congregation. And fulfilling those duties doesn t mean that we are going to receive any kind of special consideration. But there is one more thing we can say about this parable: It is a call to have faith in the grace of God. A seminary student was invited to preach one Sunday, and she was given one of the most difficult parables of Jesus, the one about the farmer who recruited workers and paid all of them the same thing at the end of the day.

4 Page -4- This is told in Matthew chapter 20. You may recall that some had worked eight hours, some four hours, and some only an hour or two. But at the end of the day, the workers who worked only one hour get as much pay as those who had worked long and hard all day long. The way this seminary student interpreted the passage is that God s love and grace is offered to us without regard to worthiness or unworthiness. The vineyard owner chose to meet the needs of the last workers just as he met the needs of the workers who worked all day. Therefore, all the workers were able to feed their families at the end of the day. No one was mistreated. And so it is with God. It is not our merits, or what we do that forms the basis of God s love for us. When a person works an eight-hour day and receives a fair day s pay for his time, that is a wage. When a person competes with an opponent and receives a trophy for his performance, that is a prize. When a person receives appropriate recognition for his long service or high achievements, that is an award. But when a person is not capable of earning a wage, can win no prize, and deserves no award -- yet receives such a gift anyway -- that is a good picture of God s unmerited favor. This is what we mean when we talk about the grace of God. 4 My dear friends, when we place ourselves completely into the merciful hands of God, we find ourselves saved and held up by his great unmerited love. Today we celebrate World Communion Sunday in concert with our Christian sisters and brothers all over the globe. This is a time when we proclaim and celebrate our unity in Christ. Come to this table, not because you must but because you may; come not because you are strong, but because you are weak. Come, not because any goodness of your own gives you a right to come, but because you need mercy and help. Come, because you love the Lord a little and would like to love him

5 Page -5- more. Come, because he loved you and gave himself for you. Come and meet the risen Christ, for we are his Body. 5 Let us pray. Almighty God, our heavenly Father, send the power of your Holy Spirit upon us, that we may experience anew the suffering, death and resurrection of your Son, Jesus Christ. May Your Spirit help us to know, in the breaking of this bread and the drinking of this cup, the presence of Christ, who gave His body and blood for all. May we receive in spirit and in truth the body of your dear Son and the merits of his shed blood. Being washed and made clean through his precious blood, may your Spirit make us one with Christ, one with each other, and one in service with our sisters and brothers around the world. Amen. We remember on the night when Jesus and the disciples had their last meal together, Jesus took the bread, gave thanks, and gave it to the disciples, saying This is my body, which is given for you. Take and eat it, and as often as you do, remember me. In the symbol of the broken bread, we participate in the life of Christ and dedicate ourselves to being his disciples. In the same way he took the cup, and after giving thanks he passed it to the disciples, saying: Drink this, all of you. This cup is the new covenant, poured out for you and for many. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me. In the symbol of the cup, we participate in the new life Christ brings.

6 Page -6- ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Almighty God, we thank you for this bread, and for all you provide to sustain us. Above all, merciful Father, we thank you for Christ your Son, given for the life of the world. Amen The body of Christ, bread from heaven. Almighty God, we thank you for this fruit of the vine, and for every good gift that gives us joy. We thank you above all for Christ our Lord, by whose blood you have bought us and bound us to be your people in an everlasting covenant. Amen The blood of Christ, shed for you. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Let us pray. We give thanks, loving God, that you have refreshed us at your table. Strengthen our faith; increase our love for one another. As we have been fed by the seed that became grain, and then became bread, may we go out into the world to plant seeds of justice, transformation, and hope. In the name of Christ we pray, Amen. 6 Amen +==+==+==+==+==+==+ I wish to express my appreciation to the Rev. Dr. Maxie D. Dunham, for his insights and commentary on this parable, found at Dr. Dunham is a

7 Page -7- United Methodist minister and President Emeritus of Asbury Theological Seminary in Wilmore, Kentucky. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ All Scripture references are from New International Version, NIV, copyright 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc., unless otherwise indicated. +==+==+==+==+==+==+ Sunday Sermons from Suffolk Christian Church are intended for the private devotional use of members and friends of the church. Please do not print or publish. Thank you. Suggestions for sermon topics are always welcome! 1. From John W. McKelvey, Mixed Motives, Pulpit Digest, January-February 1981, p Terence E. Johnson, By Grace, Master Sermons, Vol. 9 & 10, October, 1978, p From G.W. Knight, Clip-Art Features for Church Newsletters, p. 53, found at Grace, God s, 5. From 6. This communion liturgy was adapted from A Brief Communion Service, written by the Rev. Dr. Jeanyne B. Slettom, found at Dr. Slettom is co-pastor of Brea Congregational United Church of Christ in Brea, California.