Readings - Is 55:10-11; Ps 65:10, 11, 12-13, 14; Rom 8:18-23:Rom 8:18-23
Praise Be to Jesus Christ, for ever and ever. Amen
When my children were babies and my grandchildren were small they loved to run around naked. They would get out of the bathtub and you would have to chase them down to put clothes on them. The truth was the loved to be naked.
Here is another - Our first parents, Adam & Eve walked in the garden with God. They were naked. The serpent tempted them, do you want to know the truth of what it is to be like God, then eat of what is forbidden. They did, the truth they realized was nakedness, so they hid from God.
From those two little hints, maybe you guess that I want to talk about Truth. Or even more exact The Naked Truth.
Truth walks into town and Truth is naked. All the people ran from the naked truth and closed themselves to the truth. Truth became troubled.
Then one day, someone approached him and offered to be his friend.
Truth asks his new friend, why is everyone running from me.
His new friends say, because you are naked. But, my friend if you come with me I will be able to help you. My name is Story. I am a tailor. Come with me, I will clothe you so you are no longer naked.
Truth’s new friend Story, made Truth many fine suits of clothes, among them were myth, poetry, and parable. Because of these fine suits, people opened themselves to Truth.
That is why I like to tells stories. That is why Jesus uses parables. So that people would be open to the truth. Today, Jesus shares the parable of the sower. However, reflect on the truths of that parable in a slightly different way.
Most of the time, we focus on where the seed is sown – the hard path, the rocky grown, the shallow soil, the patch of thorns or the fertile ground. A lot of times the focus is which one am I.
That is one of humanity’s sins, focusing on our selves instead of God. God is the sower. Focus on the sower. Focus on that truth.
One truth is that God loves each and every one of us. God loves us so much He sows seeds with abundance. Seeds of his grace. Seeds of his mercy. Seeds in the Word of God.
The sower gives each the seeds of his grace and mercy. God loves each of us as if there were only one of us. God loves us and sees in us fertile ground.
A second truth of this parable is God’s mercy. God, who is rich in mercy, shows this truth to those who go astray. The seeds of God’s mercy falls on the hard path, rocky ground, the shallow soil, and even it the thorn patch. He gives mercy to those in poor soil the same as he gives mercy to those on fertile ground.
The truth of God’s mercy is like the rain and snow, which comes down to water the earth. If we open our hearts to God’s grace and mercy, it makes good, fertile, and fruitful soil.
Sadly, we are too much like our first parents. We want our own truth.
The evil one comes and steals away what is sown in the heart with trials, tribulation, or persecution of the world. With thorns of worldly anxiety and false narratives the devil convinces many to run and hide from God. Those worldly truths choke the grace, mercy, and word of God from our hearts.
And even now all creation is groaning in labor pains. Pain from those in the world who want to be God and make their own truths. This makes poor soil that rejects the sowers seeds.
At his trial, Jesus said to Pontius Pilate – “For this I was born, and for this I have come into the world, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice.'
Pilate said to him, 'What is truth?'
There is a 3rd truth, found in the very first words of today’s Gospel. It tells the truth of Jesus. Jesus does not give up on us.
He got up and leaves the house, goes to the sea (the place where he promise to make his disciples fishers of men), and large crowds were there.
Scripture does not give specifics about the house. Maybe it was a disciple’s house or a friend’s house. However, the truth is Jesus left the Father’s house to come to this world. This world represented by the sea. In biblical scripture, the sea represents the chaos and turmoil of creation. The large crowds reveal that Jesus came for everyone.
Jesus does not give them the naked truth. He preaches the truth by this parable because he wanted them to come to the truth. I speak to them in parables, because they look but do not see and hear but do not listen or understand.
Pray that we all are rich and fertile soil for the seed God sows in our heart through the Word of God. For creation awaits with eager expectation the revelation of the children of God. Many longed to see what you see and to hear what you hear.
Be good, be holy, and preach the truth of the gospel in the story and parable of how we live our life and love one another.
Praise Be to Jesus Christ, for ever and ever. Amen
No comments:
Post a Comment