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July 31, 2011 Seventh Sunday of Pentecost
I took the kids to the Coos County fair yesterday. I wanted them to experience some of the same joys I had as child, eating greasy fair food, going on rides, winning stuffed animals, and getting dirty, sticky feet. I didn’t realize how expensive of a trip it was going to be: $3.50 for a caramel apple, $2.00 for a bag of cotton candy, $2.00 for some ice with a few pumps of concentrated sugar water in it. $23 for 25 ride tickets. And I won’t even tell you how much I spent to win 3 stuffed animals. In today’s dollars, I probably spent enough to feed 5000 families in Jesus’ time. However, the smiles on my children’s faces were priceless. I had never seen so much joy out of them than when we all went on the tilt-a-whirl. Then of course we come to church on Sunday and get a text like this that shocks us back to reality. It is God’s desire that all hungry people are fed. And God enlists us to do the feeding. The prophet Isaiah writes in chapter 58: “Is not
this the fast that I choose: to loose the bonds of injustice, to undo the
thongs of the yoke, to let the oppressed go free, and to break every yoke?
Is it not to share your bread with the hungry, and bring the homeless poor into your house; when you see the naked to cover them, and not to hide your face from your own kin?” It is God’s will to set the oppressed free and to feed the hungry. In our Gospel, Jesus had just learned about the death of his friend, John the Baptist. So in Jesus’ style, he withdrew to a deserted place, by himself, to regroup. The crowds heard this and followed Jesus on foot. When the crowds arrived Jesus didn’t send them away because he was having a moment. Instead he had compassion for them and cured the sick. The Greek here literally means he felt their pain in his bowels. This recalls a text in Ezekiel about the difference between true and false shepherds: False shepherd’s fed themselves, but not their sheep. Read Ezekiel 34 about the good shepherds. The miracle of the feeding of 5000 started with compassion for people in need. To the disciples credit, they came to Jesus and suggested it was getting late and the people needed something to eat. Jesus said,
“Don’t send them away, you give them something to eat.”
Since I heard Shane Claiborne speak at our synod assembly… he really emphasized this verse. Jesus is telling his disciples to feed them. Throughout the miracle, Jesus enlists the help of his followers to carry out the miracle. Then they started discounting… speaking in terms of scarcity. We only have… 5 loaves and two fish. I get caught in this trap often. I think if I can’t give a significant amount, I give nothing. Last week we had a bulletin insert about the Horn of Africa having it’s worst drought in 60 years. 10 million people are at risk. Many are leaving their homes in search of food, water, and shelter. 100% of your gift goes to help disaster survivors with immediate and long-term needs. If you are like me, I passed over it. I felt like the little I could give wouldn’t make a difference. I discounted my gifts. The disciple’s gifts alone weren’t enough to feed everyone. But when given to the good shepherd, a miracle happened. Like in holy communion, Jesus took the bread, blessed it and broke it. All were fed with 12 baskets left over. This could be a lot or a little left over. I tend to think that after feeding 5000 families 12 baskets isn’t a lot. I think the point is all were filled with a little to spare. God gives just enough for the day. Do we trust God to provide enough for the day? Do we trust God with our gifts? This lesson changes my mind about giving. Instead of giving nothing at all, we are called… or dare I say commanded by Jesus himself to give something, even if we aren’t proud of it or don’t believe it can make a difference. He can give the increase… or our generosity can inspire others. Today people are sharing their gifts of music and drama in church. I am sure many of you have musical, drama, or art gifts to share but didn’t today. God doesn’t care if we perform perfectly. God is pleased when we give something to the best of our ability. We all fall short in listening to Jesus call to give them something to eat. Thank God for the cross and forgiveness. However, we
still must heed the call to do something instead of nothing… perhaps a
miracle could take place as a result.
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