Today in the Spirit: Proper 12A
This week the church will have us finish overhearing the remaining parables in Jesus’ third major teaching discourse in the Gospel of Matthew. The themes of growth, value, and abundance in the revelation of the kingdom of God continue to be front and center in our Lord’s teaching.
The Gospel reading from Matthew 13:31-33,44-50 covers the five short parables of Jesus at the end of the discourse–the mustard seed, the yeast, the hidden treasure, the pearl of great price, and the net. A common feature in all of them is the element of surprise, implied or stated, for characters and hearers alike: “Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field” (44). More in my comments below.
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The assigned Old Testament reading from 1 Kings 3:3-14 is the narrative of King Solomon’s prayer for wisdom and YHWH’s gracious response: “‘Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days’” (12-13).
In conjunction with the OT reading in which Solomon prays wisely, the selection of Psalm 119:121-136 has us as worshipers speaking out a model prayer of our own for spiritual wisdom: “I am your servant; O grant me understanding, that I may know your testimonies” (125).
Continuing in sequence through the middle of Romans, the assigned New Testament reading from Romans 8:26-34 contains Paul’s encouraging teaching about prayer from the Holy Spirit making up for our “weakness” (26). With God’s help, then, we are encouraged to believe with the apostle that God’s good intentions for us will be fulfilled: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (28).
The appointed collect prepares our hearts to hear all of these passages in scripture with a petition to God to “pour down upon us the abundance of [his] mercy,” despite both our unworthiness and inability to ask.
The Collect
Almighty and everlasting God, you are always more ready to hear than we to pray, and to give more than we either desire or deserve: Pour down upon us the abundance of your mercy, forgiving us those things of which our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things for which we are not worthy to ask, except through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ our Savior; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
I Give You Also What You Have Not Asked (1 Kings 3:3-14)
3 Solomon loved the Lord, walking in the statutes of David his father, only he sacrificed and made offerings at the high places. 4 And the king went to Gibeon to sacrifice there, for that was the great high place. Solomon used to offer a thousand burnt offerings on that altar. 5 At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, “Ask what I shall give you.” 6 And Solomon said, “You have shown great and steadfast love to your servant David my father, because he walked before you in faithfulness, in righteousness, and in uprightness of heart toward you. And you have kept for him this great and steadfast love and have given him a son to sit on his throne this day. 7 And now, O Lord my God, you have made your servant king in place of David my father, although I am but a little child. I do not know how to go out or come in. 8 And your servant is in the midst of your people whom you have chosen, a great people, too many to be numbered or counted for multitude. 9 Give your servant therefore an understanding mind to govern your people, that I may discern between good and evil, for who is able to govern this your great people?” 10 It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this. 11 And God said to him, “Because you have asked this, and have not asked for yourself long life or riches or the life of your enemies, but have asked for yourself understanding to discern what is right, 12 behold, I now do according to your word. Behold, I give you a wise and discerning mind, so that none like you has been before you and none like you shall arise after you. 13 I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days. 14 And if you will walk in my ways, keeping my statutes and my commandments, as your father David walked, then I will lengthen your days.”
1 Kings 3:3-14
What Solomon says and does in this passage is described in detail; as for YHWH, his activity must be drawn out by the reader (or hearer) from a few brief descriptions in the narrative and implications to be discerned from the dialogue. Here are a few important details about God’s movements in this narrative: 1) Despite Solomon’s tendency to worship unlawfully in his own fashion, YHWH presents himself to the king: “At Gibeon the Lord appeared to Solomon in a dream by night, and God said, ‘Ask what I shall give you’ (5); 2) YHWH is delighted by Solomon’s prayer: “It pleased the Lord that Solomon had asked this” (10); and 3) The LORD provides abundantly “more,” recalling the language of our collect, than Solomon “desires or deserves:” “I give you also what you have not asked, both riches and honor, so that no other king shall compare with you, all your days” (On this last point, be sure to make the connection with the theme of abundance in the kingdom of God from the Gospel parables).
As is often the case in our meditation on biblical narrative, the most rewarding devotional nuggets arise from asking not what the people are up to, but what God is up to in the passage. We must not separate ourselves from the Lord’s treatment of Solomon as if he were something special and we are not. The young king is a man of God but still flawed. His virtue before God has nothing to do with the status to which he has risen in Israel but with his recognition of God’s “great and steadfast love” (6) in choosing Israel and his family line. As our God shows up, listens, and responds generously to Solomon, he does so with each of us, despite our weaknesses (see Rom. 8:26 in our NT reading). Indeed, he draws closer to us in our weakness, not overlooking but cleansing us of our faults by the blood of Christ, to hear our humble prayers made in his name. God is in truth the initiator and finisher of our prayers.
Bishop Andrew Williams writes eloquently on this point: “Because Jesus dwells within us, our very inclination to pray comes from Him alone. In other words, our willingness to pray is an answer to Jesus’ own prayer for us. In His prayer for you, you are literally being pulled into God, and this is the place from which Jesus prays for you and through you. Of this great revelation and truth, Peter would write, “…we participate in the divine nature…” (2 Pet. 1:4).
Today, Holy Spirit, you who intercede for us and bring us close to the heart of the Father, draw out of us the words in prayer to unlock the abundance of your love which remains with me through Jesus Christ.
My Eyes (Psalm 119:121-136)
121 I have done that which is lawful and right; *
Psalm 119:121-136, New Coverdale Psalter (BCP 2019)
O give me not over to my oppressors.
122 Be surety for your servant’s good; *
O let not the arrogant oppress me.
123 My eyes have wasted away with looking for your salvation, *
and for the word of your righteousness.
124 O deal with your servant according to your loving mercy, *
and teach me your statutes.
125 I am your servant; O grant me understanding, *
that I may know your testimonies.
126 It is time for you, O Lord, to act, *
for they have broken your law.
127 For I love your commandments above all things, *
more than gold and precious stones.
128 Therefore I hold all your commandments to be right, *
and all false ways I utterly abhor.
129 Your testimonies are wonderful; *
therefore does my soul keep them.
130 When your word goes forth it gives light *
and understanding to the simple.
131 I opened my mouth, and drew in my breath, *
for my delight was in your commandments.
132 O look upon me, and be merciful unto me, *
as you always do for those who love your Name.
133 Order my steps according to your word, *
and so shall no wickedness have dominion over me.
134 O deliver me from those who deal wrongfully, *
and so shall I keep your commandments.
135 Show the light of your countenance upon your servant, *
and teach me your statutes.
136 My eyes gush out water *
because of those who do not keep your law.
Zeal for the LORD is a common theme throughout Psalm 119, but other than the acrostic (organization by letters) layout of the psalm by section, there appears to be little intentional design within the sections themselves. So we do best to read this psalm as a stream of consciousness and see what comes out.
In these two sections (Hebrew letters Ayin and Pe), and elsewhere in the psalm, notice the multiple references to the man’s “eyes” and what he is “looking” at: “My eyes have wasted away looking for your salvation” (123); and “My eyes gush out water because of those who do not keep your law” (136). There is also a metaphorical reference to God’s eyes: “O look upon me, and be merciful unto me, as you always do for those who love your Name’ (132). The eye is a common figure in Hebrew poetry (even for Jesus, Mt. 6:22ff), drawing attention to the poet’s focus in life relative to the reader’s.
As a measure of our own zeal toward God, taking note of the psalmist’s eyes in our worship, we are compelled to ask about the state of our “eyes.” What is holding your attention? Are you spending anything like the same energy as this man contemplating the mercy of God toward you and others, and his yearning to give guidance to all who long for direction? And what is causing you to cry these days? Are you ever moved to tears by the plight of the poor or angered by the actions of wrongdoers (I will confess I am not)? The truth is, we can afford to become complacent, and most often, we do. We say to ourselves that patience is godly, and we need to leave things in God’s hands, but is that as far as our eyes can see?
We, of course, have an advantage the psalmist does not have: the revelation of Jesus Christ with the clearest “sight” any human can have of the Father God and people in the world. He is living in us, gradually improving our eyesight. With that truth in mind, the author of Hebrews writes, “…let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God” (Heb. 12:1-2).
Today, Holy Spirit, let us fix our eyes on the Father and the Son revealed in scripture and in our hearts. With the psalmist, help us to see better, like the psalmist, and increase our zeal to share the good news.
Interceding (Romans 8:26-34)
26 Likewise the Spirit helps us in our weakness. For we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words. 27 And he who searches hearts knows what is the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God. 28 And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose. 29 For those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. 30 And those whom he predestined he also called, and those whom he called he also justified, and those whom he justified he also glorified. 31 What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? 32 He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things? 33 Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies. 34 Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died—more than that, who was raised—who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us.
Romans 8:26-34
Pay attention to the references to “interceding” in this passage. In the first part of this passage, Paul writes that the Holy Spirit “intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words” (26) and that “the Spirit intercedes for the saints according to the will of God” (27). At the end, he boldly declares also that “Christ Jesus…indeed is interceding for us.” “Intercede” in all three cases comes from the same Greek word entynchanō, meaning “petition” or “appeal. Now, yes, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are both God and co-equal persons of the Trinity, but are we to understand that Paul is using the Son and the Spirit interchangeably here as if their ministry of intercession for the saints is the same? Not exactly. The text tells us that the Spirit’s intercession comes from within us, where he resides in believers, with the life of God given to us by faith through grace. Jesus is interceding for us from the throne of heaven “at the right hand of God.” We are delving into mystery here, but it is probably not too much of a reach to differentiate the intercession of the Spirit from within, assisting us in our weakness to help us pray, and that of Jesus praying independently for us out of the breadth and depth of infinite authority.
Devotionally, in this distinction, we find assurance that the prayer ministry of the Spirit and the Son together covers the widest possible ground for our benefit. We are assisted internally and intimately through the Spirit and brought under the dominion of God over us by the Son seated on the throne. In context, it is fair to conclude that it is this broad covering of divine interceding that leads Paul to confess that verse many of us have memorized: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (28).
Today, in the Spirit, hearing Paul’s words in our worship, we are filled with gratitude for the “interceding” through me by the Spirit and for me by the Son at the throne of the Father’s glory.
Larger Than (Matthew 13:31-33, 44-50)
31 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like a grain of mustard seed that a man took and sowed in his field. 32 It is the smallest of all seeds, but when it has grown it is larger than all the garden plants and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches.” 33 He told them another parable. “The kingdom of heaven is like leaven that a woman took and hid in three measures of flour, till it was all leavened.” 44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which a man found and covered up. Then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, 46 who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it.47 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a net that was thrown into the sea and gathered fish of every kind. 48 When it was full, men drew it ashore and sat down and sorted the good into containers but threw away the bad. 49 So it will be at the end of the age. The angels will come out and separate the evil from the righteous 50 and throw them into the fiery furnace. In that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Matthew 13:31-33, 44-50
Our Gospel reading this week covers five short parables of Jesus in Matthew 13. Three of the parables–the mustard seed, the leaven and the net–are about kingdom growth. The other two–the treasure and the pearl–are about kingdom value. All of them are worded by our Lord’s inspired storytelling to stimulate human surprise: A tiny seed that becomes a tree? A little yeast spread through all the dough? Such treasure in a field? And so on. In receiving them as a group in our worship, we find that “the kingdom of heaven” is, from the human perspective, astoundingly large and overwhelmingly precious.
Devotionally, there is something to gain by centering our thoughts on this element of surprise. Jesus implies: Just as it is surprising to see what can come out of a seed or yeast, we should be amazed to see what will result from one man (namely himself) coming humbly into the world like any other. Now, the kingdom of God is mostly invisible, but there is evidence of an astounding increase that we can observe, such as the growth of the church in the world and the influence of Christian thinking in societies of people over time. Look at what has happened since the One God introduced himself to one man, Abraham, in ancient Mesopotamia! And isn’t it amazing what has taken place since Jesus of Nazareth was left to die “shamefully” on a cross in old Jerusalem? Though there is still much work to do, the gospel of Christ has changed the lives of people in most nations. See how big and how precious!
There is a warning implied here: we must not judge the effectiveness of the coming kingdom of God only on the basis of what we have experienced. No one person can possibly perceive everything about the kingdom, and no one sees everything. We can easily become discouraged when we see little else than what is in front of us. We say, “Is this all there is?” We read these parables and, in our surprise, say No. Across generations, around the globe, and even in the heavenly places, the work of God is unimaginably vast and meaningful.
Today, in the Spirit who helps you grasp the meaning of these parables of our Lord, assert yourself with renewed energy in your smaller kingdom affairs, knowing you play a part in something far greater.
Today in the Spirit
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