Collect for Monday in the Third Week of Lent
Look upon the heart-felt desires of your humble servants, Almighty God, and stretch forth the right hand of your majesty to be our defense against all our enemies; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
A Lesson in Abundance (Matthew 13:1-52)
Jesus is the kind of teacher who asks his students to discover the point of the lesson for themselves—and that is the best kind of teaching there is. Despite Jesus’ attempts at explaining the parables, the disciples don’t seem to get it. They have not yet learned to see for themselves what Jesus is saying.
So what is Jesus saying, in these parables? Each one of them is rich in meaning and symbolism. But, taken all together, what is especially powerful about these parables is that each of them point to God’s abundance. The seeds that fall on good soil bring forth an astonishingly large harvest “some a hundredfold, some sixty, some thirty” (Matt. 13:8). Considering that a harvest of four to tenfold was considered normal[1] that is an amazing yield! The wheat in the field comes up, despite being planted with weeds. The mustard seed grows into a great plant, despite its tiny size. The yeast, mixed with three measures of flour, would make enough bread to feed about 100-150 people.[2] There is definitely a theme of God’s abundance in these parables.
And perhaps this is what makes Jesus’ lesson so difficult for the disciples, and for us, to see for ourselves. As Jesus says, “Many prophets and righteous people longed to see what you see, but did not see it, and to hear what you hear, but did not hear it” (Matt. 13:17). It is difficult to see that we are recipients of God’s abundant love, generosity, and grace, even when we claim that we want to see it. Maybe we do this because we find it hard to believe that we actually do receive, and deserve, blessing. And yet, even if God’s gifts do sometimes fall on thin or thorny soil, or if we occasionally plant weeds among the riches given to us, we still receive abundance from God. More than that, God’s abundant gifts to us are always present, even if we don’t immediately recognize them for what they are. The trick is learning to see these gifts for ourselves. Only then can we can truly appreciate them. So perhaps our project for Lent is this: to try to see more clearly the gifts that God has already given us.
The Rev. Anna Doherty
Rector
St. Aidan’s Episcopal Church, Hartford, WI
1 comment:
The weeds and thorns do make it difficult in noticing gifts from god. But now when I reflect back on those difficult times, I look for the blessings in disguise. Little by little light is shed on the darkness, and it makes it easier to let go of any frustration or resentment I might have felt.
Marcy
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