St. Matthew 11:12-19
Wisdom is justified by her children. But then there is
the other side. The world does not see wisdom, nor does it seek
wisdom. Solomon says in Proverbs, "how much better to get wisdom than
gold! And to get understanding is to be chosen rather than silver."
Yet the world seeks gold and silver. But wisdom is justified by her
children.
Her children know what wisdom looks like. Her children know what
wisdom smells like and sounds like. Wisdom is found in the most
unlikely places, amongst most unlikely people. This wisdom is not
often found in the courts of kings and rulers. It is not often found
among the wealthy. It is not found among power mongers. The reason
for this is quite simple. Wisdom, and I am talking godly wisdom, is
the complete opposite of the world's philosophy.
The world believes in taking an eye for an eye. The world is going
to be untrusting and unloving. But godly wisdom is different. The
world is going to hold you to every jot and tittle of the law. If you
screw up once, then you are to suffer the consequences. The world
believes that your failures are a result of your own inadequacies. On
the contrary, your successes are due to your own strengths and
instinctive abilities. As a result, there is no pity from the world
for your own failures.
This methodology of thought bleeds from the Pharisees, Sadducees, and
Scribes throughout the gospels. This way of thinking and living gives
occasion for Jesus to say, "from the days of John the Baptist until
now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by
force." This is one of those "hard sayings" that is difficult to
decipher.
St. Luke says it a bit differently: "The Law and the Prophets were
until John. Since that time the kingdom of God has been preached, and
everyone is pressing into it"(St. Luke 16:16). What does it mean for
the kingdom of heaven to suffer violence? What does it mean when St.
Luke says that everyone is pressing into the kingdom of God?
As the gospel elaborates today, wisdom is justified by her children.
Another way of rendering the word for "righteous" is to say that
wisdom is tested and proved by her children. In other words, to use
St. Luke's words, "the kingdom of heaven is preached and everyone is
pressing into it," we are learning that ironically it is the kingdom
of heaven that is pressing into people when the gospel is preached.
To think about it differently, we could say that when the kingdom of
heaven is preached, no one is the same, again. Once the preaching of
the kingdom, which is none other than the preaching of Jesus Christ,
comes to people, they walk away and are changed, either for good or
bad. If the gospel comes to people, and they walk away rejecting it,
then they have just stepped deeper and deeper into God's condemnation.
If a person hears the gospel and goes to the baptismal font believing
and rejoicing, then that person is changed for the better, having been
saved. The gospel lection for today focuses on the fact that the
Pharisees are being confronted by the kingdom of God and they become
more agitated. In fact, we see this very thing as the gospels
progress. As time transpires and Jesus nears His arrest, we can see
the Jewish teachers of the Law growing more and more impatient and
intolerant of the preaching of the gospel.
Jesus even says to them, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear."
"Hearing" in Greek is closely connected with obeying. This type of
hearing is not passive but very active. But, on the contrary, Jesus
points out in the gospel lection that the generation of Jews in His
day were like those who would err on both sides. Jesus even cites the
example that John the Baptist came neither eating nor drinking, but
they said he had a demon. Jesus came eating and drinking and they
called him and drunk and gluttonous.
No matter what they were doing and teaching, the Jews would find some
way to complain and find fault, but for those who heard wisdom and saw
it would declare that this was indeed true. The same is true for us
today. As I said, wisdom is found in the most unsuspecting of places,
among the most unsuspecting of people. Wisdom is the gospel and God
plants that wisdom wherever He sees fit. God plants that gospel where
it is needed most.
When He sows that seed, people are never to be the same again. The
psalmist speaks of this very thing when he says, "The Lord builds up
Jerusalem; He gathers together the outcasts of Israel. He heals the
brokenhearted and binds up their wounds"(Psalm 147:3). This is an
important verse for the church. As I said at the start, the world
says that only the strong survive. The strong deserve it, and the
weak get what's coming to them.
But the psalmist points out that the Lord gathers the outcasts of
Israel. Who are the outcasts of Israel? It is they who reject the
worldly ways, but find a better way in the gospel. The outcasts of
Israel are they who yearn for the proclamation of forgiveness and
mercy as a free gift from Jesus Christ. We are those outcasts of
Israel who need to be consoled with the gospel. We are the ones who
continually need to be told that we have pardon and peace from our
sins.
You are those who have been pressed into the kingdom of heaven
through preaching and you have entered the kingdom through Holy
Baptism. You have found a new way and a new road. Having tasted it,
you yearn for more of it. It is not enough to have tasted wisdom only
once. But once the children have "tested" wisdom and found it to be
different from the world, then the children desire to have more of it.
Hence Christ's words at the end, "Wisdom is justified by her
children." They keep it, they want more of it, and they bathe
themselves in it. What is it? But the very gospel itself. It has
become your life, and you have become a part of it. This wisdom
speaks of your inheritance and that it comes from God Himself. Rather
than playing the world's way, God sees not your failings, sins, and
spiritual blemishes, but He sees the holiness and love that has been
poured into you through the pressing of the kingdom of heaven into you
and changing you forever. Amen.
--
Rev. Chad Kendall
www.frchadius.blogspot.com
Trinity Lutheran Church
Lowell, Indiana
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