"The Urgency of Grace" - Sermon for the Third Sunday in Lent

The Urgency of Grace
Lent 3 – Narrative Lectionary 1
March 24, 2019
Grace, Mankato, MN
Matthew 22.1-14

Jesus doesn’t do systematic theology. Systematic theology is just what it sounds like, an intentional presentation of the key elements of theology, propositions about creation, God, sin, Jesus, the church, justification, sanctification, heaven, hell, etc. But Jesus doesn’t do systematic theology, and neither does Matthew. Instead, Jesus—and Matthew—give us a vision of what a life with God and each other looks like. That’s important as we read the third of five kingdom parables we will encounter this Lent. Two weeks ago we heard the first parable of “The Unforgiving Servant,” which expanded our notion of God’s abundant forgiveness and mercy. Last week we encountered the second parable of the “Laborers in the Vineyard that showed forth God’s over-the-top grace. Unfortunately, today’s parable enters the territory of “hard stuff I wish Jesus hadn’t said” and makes us squirm a bit.

As we hear the parable of the wedding banquet, we are tempted to hold our own mini beauty pageant. We want to grade people we know on whether they are in or out of the kingdom of heaven. We seem to be pretty sure that Hitler is out and the Jewish people he killed are in along with Mother Theresa and other saints we can name. Yet, even if our evaluation seems dispassionate, where we are even guessing or wondering out loud, we need to remember that neither Jesus nor Matthew are doing systematic theology. The Bible itself is not that tidy. This parable is not a fully formed doctrine of salvation and judgment; it’s Matthew’s Jesus addressing an issue and expanding our thinking as he does so.

But, even as allegorical as this parable is, it is still a parable. A parable is not a puzzle to be solved but a mystery to be entered. A parable is not something for us to open up as much as it is designed to open us up to the ways of the kingdom. Long-time observers of this text think that Matthew uses this parable to help us grapple with two really tough questions. First: why is it that there are some people who ignore God’s radical invitation of grace and love through Jesus Christ? Second: why is it that there are some people who do accept the invitation yet don’t act like it?

But neither Jesus nor Matthew does systematic theology. Rather, they tell parables that expand our thinking about the nature of the kingdom of heaven. I don’t think they want us to sit around and figure out who’s in and who’s out or judge each other. I think they want us to understand that there is a sense of urgency to God’s gracious invitation. Jesus wants us to know we are not only saved from something, but we are saved for something. We’ve seen that Matthew’s Jesus has a strong ethical bent; it matters what we do and what we do flows from who we are.

One of Grace’s proposed core values is Integrity. Integrity means showing congruence between what you say you value and what you actually do. We realize that the value of integrity is an aspirational value, meaning that we know we often fall short of who we’d like to be and do. In Lutheran theological language, we are both “saints and sinners.” Now, we can either see this value as a hammer of judgment to shame us for falling short or we can see the value of Integrity as a reminder that we need to continually ask if we are living out God’s mission for us.

I think we all want to know that we are loved by God unconditionally, no matter what we do. But I also think we all want to live lives that have meaning and purpose, that make a difference in the world. God has done some amazing things in, with, and through Grace and God wants to continue doing these things. Jesus doesn’t do systematic theology and I’m glad, because Jesus calls us to a life worth living. God’s grace has urgency to it that we cannot ignore. You are God’s called and chosen ones, my sisters and brothers. I look forward to seeing what the means for us in the time ahead. Amen.