Sermon 09/28/08 (Matthew 21:23-32)

“Practicing, Not Preaching”
Matthew 21:23-32
Rev. Désirée H. Gold
St. Mark’s United Church of Christ, Baltimore, MD
Sunday, 28 September, 2008
Twenty-sixth Sunday in Ordinary Time
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 It drives me crazy when certain people talk about family values. Don’t get me wrong. I believe strongly in the importance of family values, of course. But that’s just it. There are groups of people in this country who use “family values” as a catch phrase to mean that they are against abortion and gay marriage....but that’s as far as “family values” goes for them. They preach “family values” when it comes to those two hot-button issues but do not spend nearly as much time or energy or money on providing support for struggling new mothers or victims of domestic violence, nor do they seem to care much about helping married couples who are going through a rough patch -- divorce is okay, as long as it is between a man and a woman. They scream “family values” and present themselves as better Christians and human beings than anyone else on the planet, but their actions say something else entirely.

These are like the second son in this morning’s gospel. They say one thing but do another. The second son in Jesus’ parable made a promise to help his father, but he did not act on his promise. These particular “family values” folks complain that the American family is falling apart, but they do not actually do much about it.

I don’t really understand how the minds of these folks work. I don’t know if “family values” really does mean only “anti-abortion” and “marriage between a man and a woman” to them, or if they start out with a broader view of “the American family” than that but then get stuck on those two issues. There are certainly other people who preach “family values” but mean something beyond abortion and gay marriage. While I may not agree with all of their beliefs I can at least respect them. I have a difficult time respecting people who use a catch-phrase only as a weapon against people, tearing down but doing little to build up in return.

Then there are the “first sons” in our world -- the ones who initially present themselves as the ornery teenager who won’t do what they’re told...but then go on to do the right thing.

For the past several weeks we have been lifting my friend Richard up in prayer. Richard, you may recall, is in prison in Texas and was recently denied parole. I grieve his parole denial because he is a good example of the first son from our parable.

Richard and I have been writing to each other for more than six years now, and he has been in prison that entire time. In fact, he was in prison for several years before we began corresponding. He will be the first to tell you that he had a very troubled youth. He was involved with the wrong crowd and he did some things of which he is not at all proud. He was convicted of a serious crime, and he readily admits now that he committed that crime.

If Richard had a vineyard owner for a father, he would probably have laughed in his dad’s face when asked to help with the work. I believe that now, however, Richard would jump at the chance to help a family member or anyone else. He would run into that vineyard before being asked and would do as much as he could. Many years have passed since Richard was a juvenile delinquent growing up on the streets of Los Angeles, and in the years that I have known him he has shown me nothing but a good heart. He has been a good friend to me, writing kind words when I going through a difficult time and sharing laughs. My only problem with him is that he is a fan of the Los Angeles Lakers.

Richard is not just a good friend to me. A couple of years ago he was asked to serve as a peer educator to other inmates, teaching them about HIV/AIDS prevention. He underwent training in preparation for this and has taught classes for several years. He does not have HIV or AIDS and he was not previously an expert on the subject, but his status as a fellow inmate makes it a lot more likely that his students will listen to him than if an outsider were to teach the class.

Richard has become a devout Christian while in prison, and our conversations about faith are among my favorite aspects of our friendship. A couple of years ago he began working full time for the prison chaplain’s office. He is also involved with several outside ministries that both provide him with spiritual support and give him opportunities to serve.

Which of these examples is the better one? The Christian who preaches “family values” but does not practice them...or the “bad” kid who did everything wrong but has spent most of his time behind bars trying to reconstruct his life and help others? Which of these examples is the better one? The one who preaches vehemently but doesn’t practice? Or the one who failed his family and society but is making up for it?

We all know people who say they are going to do one thing but do another. It drives me crazy when people do this -- be they politicians or personal friends. However, I am ashamed to say that I, too, have made promises that I have not kept. We know people who portray themselves as one thing when they are really another. There are probably areas in which I am guilty of this too.

Then there are the “first sons” -- the people we figure are good for nothing...until they do something marvelous and outshine us as Christians and as human beings.

Who would you rather be? Of course, the goal is to be a “third son” -- one who says that he will do the right thing and immediately does it. One who presents himself as a humble but kind Christian and actually comes across that way in the way he lives. I know a few people like this -- the Mother Teresas and Gandhis of the world -- but the truth is that most of us are pretty fallible. We are either in the process of making mistakes or recovering from the mistakes that we have made. We are the tax collectors and sinners that Jesus held close to his heart. We are the ones that are in need of redemption. We may not have committed crimes that could send us to prison and we may not be preaching something that we have no intention of practicing. Still, we are in need of grace. That grace is available to us -- yes, even if we are spending years in prison -- if we are willing to swallow our pride, repent, and begin acting like the human beings God has called us to be.

I beseech you, then, to search your souls and find the broken spots. They can be mended. You can go back and do some of those things you promised to do but never did. Even in cases where you cannot go back, you can begin to make up for your past wrongdoing by doing good things right now.

Whatever you do, seek God’s grace...but know that it precedes you. Jesus embraced sinners before you committed your first sin, and Christ will embrace you.

Now let us pray.