Today

 St. Mary’s Episcopal Church, Dorchester The Rev. Nancy E. Gossling

I’m grateful to be with you this morning and to your rector for his invitation to preach and preside at Eucharist today. I’ve known Edwin in a variety of capacities throughout our diocese beginning when I first moved to Massachusetts and became involved with the Life Together community. Life Together is a leadership development fellowship, training the next generation of prayerful and prophetic leaders in the contemplative, communal, and prophetic arts for the church and for the world.

I must confess to you that I am particularly fond of the minor prophets. Hosea was a prophet in his hometown in the northern kingdom of Israel. He accused his people of their unfaithfulness in their religious and political life. In their anxious search for prosperity, for kings and allies who would save them from the dangers that threatened their national existence, the Israelites forged various foreign alliances and resorted to a culture of violence and social upheaval. They did not trust in their Lord. (HCSB intro)

Hosea used the metaphors of whoredom and adultery, portraying the Lord as the aggrieved husband of a faithless wife. Living in a country of virtual anarchy, the Israelites saw four of their kings assassinated within the 14 years of their country’s defeat by the Assyrians (current day Iran). Imagine Hosea in Ukraine. Imagine Hosea in Sri Lanka or Myanmar. Imagine Hosea in many of the countries in our Global South. Imagine Hosea in our own country, perhaps even in your hometown.

To be honest, at times like these, I have hoped for God’s judgment to rain down like fire upon the earth. When I see the injustices in our world, the wars that rage on, the power grabs that benefit only a few people, and the never ending dramas in our courtrooms and politics, it makes me wonder about justice. And so like a child having a temper tantrum, I cry out,  “But that’s not fair!” 

Like the man in today’s gospel, I ask Jesus to be the judge and arbitrator of our material and human resources. Secretly, I want God to publicly shame those people who are guilty of greed. ”Take care!” Jesus told them and us. “Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; for one's life does not consist in the abundance of possessions.” And then I remember Hosea.

Hosea felt called by God to speak not only about the judgment of God but also of God’s mercy. Hosea had married a prostitute named Gomer, who bore three children; none of whom were presumed to be his, and then she left him, perhaps to return to her life of prostitution. Hosea didn’t wallow in the self-pity of victimhood, nor did he succumb to the temptation of domestic violence. Hosea went after Gomer. Not to stalk her, or kill her, or shame her, but rather Hosea brought her back into his life to forgive her and love her. 

Hosea claimed that God is a god of divine compassion, forgiveness, and unrelenting mercy. God will never let us go, despite our infidelity; for our God is eternally faithful to God’s covenant, even to the point of death upon the cross. At the heart of Hosea’s preaching is a gospel message of redeeming love. No matter what we do or what we have done, God will never forsake us nor abandon us. In the end, God will restore us. 

As one of God’s beloved children, from all tribes, languages, people, and nations, Hosea proclaimed that God will take us into God’s arms, heal us, and hold us with cords of human kindness. God is like a loving parent who will lift us up to God’s cheeks and then feed us with the bread of life and the sippy cup of our salvation.

Like the Israelites, in times of social, political, and economic instability, we may disavow our trust in the Lord. The pandemic of COVID, the challenges of inflation, gun violence, and the shortages of certain essentials like baby formula have raised our anxiety levels to new heights. We may find ourselves stockpiling more than we need, and hoarding material goods for a future rainy day. We may think, incorrectly, that if we just have enough of this or that, then we can eventually kick back, relax, and make merry. Hoarding makes everyone poorer; giving makes everyone richer.

God calls the man in today’s gospel a fool; for who knows what tomorrow will bring? We may plan a long awaited trip and have a medical emergency in a foreign country. We may be walking home from work or the playground one night, minding our own business, when someone opens fire with a gun. A nagging cough becomes a lung cancer diagnosis and we enter into a health care system where the harvest is plentiful but the laborers are few.

When you reach a certain age, imagine scarcity rather than abundance, when you are overcome by fear and anxiety, the end times become more real. Truth be told, for whatever reason it is, you’re suddenly aware of the fragility of life, the short span of history, and that the arc of justice is long indeed. Fools are we who deny that we’re all on the same journey to a common destination.

What if God said to us today, like God said to that rich man in today’s parable, `You fool! Tonight your life is being demanded of you. And the things you have prepared, whose will they be?'  Who will get my stuff? I wonder. And will that stuff be a burden or a blessing? What legacy will I leave behind me? Is it one of faith or fear?

In a song entitled “What If” Matthew West wrote, “I've heard 'em say before -  to live just like you're dying. What if today's the only day I got? I don't wanna waste it if it's my last shot.” I think this is what Jesus was saying to the people gathered around him. Material things will not save your soul nor your life, but God will. So be rich towards God and you will have treasures in heaven.

Jesus spoke words of comfort to the crowd in the following verses of Luke’s gospel. “Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. Consider the ravens and the lilies. If God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will God clothe you—you of little faith!”

“And do not keep striving for what you are to eat and what you are to drink, and do not keep worrying. For it is the nations of the world that strive after all these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, strive first for the kingdom of God, and these things will be given to you as well.” (Luke 12:28-34)  

“The story has been told of a man who came to church late one Sunday morning. Slipping into the back pew, he asked the usher, ‘Is the sermon done?’ And she replied, ‘No, the sermon was preached; it is yet to be done!’“ (Word Live, Scripture Union, Author: Tanya Ferdinandusz) 

Yes, God’s judgment of our behavior becomes clearer in times like these. We see what we have done and left undone. We see where our priorities lie, and who and what we hold dear. Today, do what you need to do. Say what you need to say. Store up riches in heaven, and have no regrets, no worries, no ‘what ifs.’ Trust in the justice and mercy of God, who has promised that the family inheritance will be ours in the end. 

As today’s psalmist once said, “Let us give thanks to the Lord for God’s mercy. For God satisfies the thirsty and fills the hungry with good things. Whoever is wise will ponder these things.” Amen.

Hosea 11:1-11

Psalm 107:1-9, 43

Luke 12:13-21