November 19, 2023 – Pentecost +24A

[Jesus said to the disciples:] “For it is as if a man, going on a journey, summoned his slaves and entrusted his property to them; to one he gave five talents, to another two, to another one, to each according to his ability. Then he went away. The one who had received the five talents went off at once and traded with them, and made five more talents. In the same way, the one who had the two talents made two more talents. But the one who had received the one talent went off and dug a hole in the ground and hid his master’s money. After a long time the master of those slaves came and settled accounts with them. Then the one who had received the five talents came forward, bringing five more talents, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me five talents; see, I have made five more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ And the one with the two talents also came forward, saying, ‘Master, you handed over to me two talents; see, I have made two more talents.’ His master said to him, ‘Well done, good and trustworthy slave; you have been trustworthy in a few things, I will put you in charge of many things; enter into the joy of your master.’ Then the one who had received the one talent also came forward, saying, ‘Master, I knew that you were a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid, and I went and hid your talent in the ground. Here you have what is yours.’ But his master replied, ‘You wicked and lazy slave! You knew, did you, that I reap where I did not sow, and gather where I did not scatter? Then you ought to have invested my money with the bankers, and on my return I would have received what was my own with interest. So take the talent from him, and give it to the one with the ten talents. For to all those who have, more will be given, and they will have an abundance; but from those who have nothing, even what they have will be taken away.’ ” Matthew 25:14-30

I once read where a scholar by the name of Clarence Jordan compared the parables of Jesus with a Trojan Horse. It looks harmless on the outside, but once you let it into your life, into your mind and look closer at it, then BAM, it’s got you. For example, let’s look at the parable of the Good Samaritan. It is a seemingly easy, and understandable parable – a man is left for dead after being attacked; two travelers pass by and walk on the other side of the road rendering no assistance. But a Samaritan comes along and binds his wounds, drops him off at a local Inn, and pays for additional care. Jesus asks the lawyer listening to the story who acted like a neighbor, to which the lawyer answers “The one who showed him mercy.”  Well, that sounds easy enough, until you dig a little deeper – until you understand that the two men who walked on the other side of the road were men of the Temple, and they did not render assistance because of their religion. Isn’t that backwards – shouldn’t our faith, our love of G-d and neighbor compel us to help anyone in need. And then, we learn that the Samaritan is actually an enemy of the Israelites – actually hated because they were believed to be of the wrong religion. So the two who didn’t help were, for a more contemporary analogy, two Lutheran Pastor’s late for church, while the one who acted like a neighbor was a Mormon elder. You see, like a Trojan Horse, it sneaks into your life, your thoughts and then BAM, it gets you.

So what about our text this morning? Let’s take a look. A man, a rich man with many slaves is going on a journey. He asks his slaves to watch the fort while he is gone. And, by the way, he wants them to watch his money as well. To one slave he gives five talents, to another two talents, and the last one talent.  hile he is gone, the slaves get busy. One trades up with the talent and makes five more talents. The second also trades up and doubles the money, while the last slave buries the money in the ground and that is that. When the owner comes back, he asks for an accounting of his money.  The first reports that he has doubled his money, to which the owner says, “well done, good and trustworthy slave.” The second does the same and gets the same affirmation. Finally, the last slave has a tendency to be really honest, and so says: “I knew you were a harsh man, so I was afraid and buried your money. Here is what you gave me.” and he gives back the one Talent. With that the last slave loses his only talent, is called wicked and lazy, and is thrown into the outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

Well, this Trojan Horse seems simple enough. If we are not using our G-d given talents we are cheating G-d of the gifts that we are given. Yes, that is a reasonable accounting of what is happening here, but that might be too simple. That just doesn’t hit us like a true Trojan Horse should – so what is going on? Maybe this text is about the fact that we are all lost, confused, even dumfounded, or at least a little afraid when asked to share with others, to evangelize to our friends and neighbors and relatives, or to do anything within the church, or to do anything to stretch our faith beyond what we already know. I know that many of us hesitate, maybe even want to sink our heads in the ground when asked to do something new or even something at all in responding to this priceless treasure that we all have – the gift that goes beyond measure – salvation that comes through the incredible gift that is the Gospel – the Good News of Jesus Christ. Maybe, brothers and sisters, maybe we need to consider that when we admit to each other that we are clueless about a lot of things that relate to what we call “church” – what to do, how to do it, when to do it – even if WE ARE the one’s to do it, then the true meaning of this text hits us. Maybe when we take the time to consider it, pray for guidance, take seriously the immeasurable price of the reality of what Jesus has done for us all, it is precisely at that moment of consideration that the Holy Spirit hits us – BAM — it is then, when we truly and honestly open ourselves to the working of the Spirit that the master, Jesus Christ looks at us and says “Well done, good and faithful servant.”  Think about that for a while…

Pastor Dave

November 18, 2023 – Does the Bible Say…?

“Does the Bible say King David did not always make Kingly decisions?”

“It happened, late one afternoon, when David rose from his couch and was walking about on the roof of the king’s house, that he saw from the roof a woman bathing; the woman was very beautiful. David sent someone to inquire about the woman. It was reported, “This is Bathsheba daughter of Eliam, the wife of Uriah the Hittite.” So David sent messengers to get her, and she came to him, and he lay with her. (Now she was purifying herself after her period.) Then she returned to her house. The woman conceived; and she sent and told David, “I am pregnant.” So David sent word to Joab, “Send me Uriah the Hittite.” And Joab sent Uriah to David. When Uriah came to him, David asked how Joab and the people fared, and how the war was going. Then David said to Uriah, “Go down to your house, and wash your feet.” Uriah went out of the king’s house, and there followed him a present from the king. But Uriah slept at the entrance of the king’s house with all the servants of his lord, and did not go down to his house. When they told David, “Uriah did not go down to his house,” David said to Uriah, “You have just come from a journey. Why did you not go down to your house?” Uriah said to David, “The ark and Israel and Judah remain in booths; and my lord Joab and the servants of my lord are camping in the open field; shall I then go to my house, to eat and to drink, and to lie with my wife? As you live, and as your soul lives, I will not do such a thing.” Then David said to Uriah, “Remain here today also, and tomorrow I will send you back.” So Uriah remained in Jerusalem that day. On the next day, David invited him to eat and drink in his presence and made him drunk; and in the evening he went out to lie on his couch with the servants of his lord, but he did not go down to his house.” 2 Samuel 11:2-13

King David reigned over Israel for almost forty years. They would later refer to his time as king as “Israel’s Golden Age”. In many ways, David was seen as a model king. He would go on to unite the divided kingdoms of Israel and Judah. He would bring the Ark of the Covenant back to the City of David. He allegedly assembled and wrote many of the Psalms. These are just a few of the accomplishes of King David. And yet being King or Queen, or even President does not always bring out the best in people.

In other words, David had his flaws. He struggled with his power as king, often wanting things he did not need. He would go on to amass a lot of power, and many wives. And in the end, it is his lusting for one woman which would lead to his eventual unraveling. Despite David knowing that Bathsheba was married, he sent for her and slept with her.

David was nervous that his sin of adultery would now be found out. The King called for Uriah to come home so that could spend a night with his wife, Bathsheba and cover up the sin that Bathsheba was pregnant with David’s child. However, Uriah refused to sleep with his wife while his fellow men were off fighting. David was filled with anger that his plan did not work. When Uriah went back to war, King David sent a note to the army commander with instructions to have Uriah put at the frontline and to withdraw so that he would die. Bathsheba mourned her husband’s death and was then brought to King David to be his wife.

The prophet Nathan visited King David and told him of the Lord’s disapproval and displeasure with David. Even though David repented of his sin, Nathan told David that the son Bathsheba was expecting would die. And the Lord tells David that “Now, therefore, the sword will never depart from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of Uriah the Hittite to be your own.’ “This is what the LORD says: ‘Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you. I will do this thing in broad daylight before all Israel.’ ” Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.” Nathan replied, “The LORD has taken away your sin. You are not going to die. But because by doing this you have shown utter contempt for the LORD, the son born to you will die.” 2 Samuel 12:10-14

The story of David and Bathsheba reminds us of how even great men who are called by G-d are still humans and struggle with sin. So no, David did not always make Kingly decisions.

Pastor Dave