The Final Exam (By Steve Orr)

Does this ring a bell? Or, perhaps you still have bad dreams like this? All through the academic period, the instructor lectures on many, many topics. Then, the day comes for the final exam and . . . Wait. What's all this? You sit in absolute shock as you read question after question on topics you only vaguely recall. If at all. Your beleaguered brain cries out, "How can this be?!"

You took notes. You underlined and highlighted. You studied. You even joined a study group. Other people know stuff, right?!

There was so much material. Books-full. Months worth. Lecture after lecture. But, of course, exams only cover a small portion of the possible material. You spent so much time on stuff that, in the end, didn't help you on the Final Exam.

Oh! If only there had been some way to peek inside that teacher's head and find out what HE thought was most important. This day would be different. You would have invested your time on the stuff that counted. You would have spent absolute loads of time on that stuff. You would have made sure you would pass the final exam.

But here you are, at the end, and you know---you know---you're going to flunk this exam.

The good news? Most of us have finished our formal education and we don't have to worry about final exams. At least not this kind. More good news: the final Final Exam is still in the future for us. And, I managed to get a peek at it. I was surprised at what wasn't on it.

From Matthew‬ ‭25‬:‭31-46‬ (The Message)

“When he finally arrives, blazing in beauty and all his angels with him, the Son of Man will take his place on his glorious throne. Then all the nations will be arranged before him and he will sort the people out, much as a shepherd sorts out sheep and goats, putting sheep to his right and goats to his left.

“Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Enter, you who are blessed by my Father! Take what’s coming to you in this kingdom. It’s been ready for you since the world’s foundation. And here’s why: I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.’

“Then those ‘sheep’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry and feed you, thirsty and give you a drink? And when did we ever see you sick or in prison and come to you?’ Then the King will say, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me—you did it to me.’

“Then he will turn to the ‘goats,’ the ones on his left, and say, ‘Get out, worthless goats! You’re good for nothing but the fires of hell. And why? Because— I was hungry and you gave me no meal, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was homeless and you gave me no bed, I was shivering and you gave me no clothes, Sick and in prison, and you never visited.’

“Then those ‘goats’ are going to say, ‘Master, what are you talking about? When did we ever see you hungry or thirsty or homeless or shivering or sick or in prison and didn’t help?’ “He will answer them, ‘I’m telling the solemn truth: Whenever you failed to do one of these things to someone who was being overlooked or ignored, that was me—you failed to do it to me.’ “Then those ‘goats’ will be herded to their eternal doom, but the ‘sheep’ to their eternal reward.” (‭Matthew‬ ‭25‬:‭31-46‬ MSG)

Let's see now, is that all? Food for the hungry; drinkable water for the thirsty, shelter for the homeless, clothing for those who need it, remembering and visiting those who are ill and those who are in prison. It seems like there should be a LOT of other stuff (choose your news story . . . each one is important to someone).

But, who am I to argue with the Teacher?

3rd part - Sabotage and Mustard Seeds

(a not very brief Lectionary reflection by Steve Orr ... in parts)

In the previous installments, I told you about sabotage and the labor situation in 1920, and then promised I would relate it to mustard seeds.  To do that, I started writing about faith; specifically, "as much faith" as a mustard seed, and the guilt we experience because we don't seem to be able to perform to the standards (moving mountains with such a small amount of faith).

If we're being honest with ourselves, I think we can all agree that we tend to put "mustard seed faith" on the "No Can Do" list.  Let's face it.  It sounds so surreal!  Who goes around moving mountains?  And on top of that strangeness, why did Jesus use such an obscure metaphor?  Yes, it IS small, but there are smaller things around.  Jesus once used a mote (speck of dust) to suggest how picky we can be when searching out the sin in OTHER people's lives.  A mote is a lot smaller than a mustard seed.  Of course, if you are already feeling guilty about having too little faith, the mote thing doesn't help.  Why not use a pebble?  They were quite common in Jesus' time and have remained so.  We would all recognize a pebble.  In fact, if SIZE was all that mattered, Jesus could have chosen any number of small items which have endured right up until today: grain of salt, grain of wheat, speck of dirt, particle of sand, drop of rain.  

I don't think anyone would accuse Jesus of being haphazard.  It's really no stretch to believe he intentionally selected the mustard seed as the metaphor for effective faith.  So what is it about mustard seeds?  I think you see where this is going.  It CAN'T be just a matter of size.  There must be something about the mustard seed, itself; some inherent quality other than its size.  Knowing more about them may help clear all this up.  

First, Jesus himself tells us (Mark 4:31-32) a mustard seed "is the smallest seed you plant in the ground.  Yet when planted it grows and becomes the largest of all garden plants, with such big branches that the birds of the air can perch in its shade."  That is how Jesus illustrated the Kingdom of God.  And it can serve as a way we can view faith.  When it is very small, we are to plant it; to initially shield it from the harsher elements by placing it in a nurturing environment, an environment designed to facilitate its growth.

The other side of this illustration is that the properly nurtured faith can grow into a very strong faith.  Like the resulting mustard PLANT, it will not only grow larger than anything else in the garden of our lives, it can become SO large that others can find shelter, protection, and rest there.  This is God at work in a most mighty way.

One more thing you may not know about a mustard seed is its inherent strength.  And in this way, we are VERY like the little tyke.

But, what does any of this have to do with sabotage and the 1920 labor scene?  Be here next time for the wrap-up where we tie it all together.

In the meantime, if you are in Waco Friday morning, join our little band at Cafe Cappuccino (8:00 a.m., downtown on 6th Street, near the Courthouse) for breakfast and a great time kicking around this week's Lectionary passages.

READINGS FOR THE COMING WEEK
Proper 13 (18) (July 31, 2011)
Genesis 32:22-31 and Psalm 17:1-7, 15  
Isaiah 55:1-5 and Psalm 145:8-9, 14-21  
Romans 9:1-5
Matthew 14:13-21