First Presbyterian Church
Rev. Sam Pendergrast
December 9, 2007
Matthew 3:1-12
“Show Me the… Fruit”
Last Sunday afternoon I made visits to several of the older members of the church who were not able to worship with us and so had not been able to participate in the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper. I took communion with me and we shared Scripture, conversation and the simple gifts of bread and the cup as we sat in their homes. Home communion is a simple and profound way to include in the fellowship of the church those who are not able physically to gather around the Lord's Table with us.
I have an observation to share with you about communion. I hope you will bear with me as I digress for a moment. In churches that offer the Lord's Supper every week it's no big deal if you miss. You can go the next Sunday. Unless you simply are unable to come to worship at all, you soon have another opportunity. Even in most Presbyterian churches, where the practice has come to be to celebrate the Lord's Supper on the first Sunday of each month, you don't usually go very long without communion. But in this church, where you are so sparing, so stingy with the sacrament, a person can practically starve to death if they miss. It could be six months between opportunities to come to the Lord's Table. My diagnosis is that you have put yourselves on a starvation diet and are depriving yourselves of spiritual nourishment in coming so infrequently to the Table. There is spiritual power in regular participation in the sacraments.
I enjoy these visits for communion in the homes of church members because they are a chance for an unhurried time to listen to Scripture, to one another and to the wisdom God has placed in our hearts. Usually on these occasions I read the lesson I had used for preaching. I think of that as another way of extending the circle of our worship to those who can't make it to the service. As I began to read the lesson I felt a little uneasy. You remember it – Jesus spoke about the end: “No one knows... only the Father.... Keep awake, for you don't know the day or the hour.” What made me uneasy was the little voice in my head, tempting me to stop and to read something more comforting. “What if they don't like this?” said the voice. “What if they don't want to think about the end? It's coming awfully close for them. They probably think about their own mortality enough as it is. You sound like some kind of old-time revival preacher. Read the 23rd Psalm instead.” Sometimes little voices are wise. Sometimes they are a temptation to avoid something true but difficult. I kept reading.
You may also remember that in the sermon I spoke about the benefits of waiting. Without my prompting, one of your older and wiser fellow church members had this to say about waiting and watching. She remarked that when she was first married, she and her husband didn't have much, and that they got along with what they did have, waiting until they could afford to buy one or two new things at a time as they had the money and could afford the purchase. “Young people don't want to wait for anything these days,” she said. “They want everything right now.” How will they learn anything different unless they have a chance to learn from the wisdom of their elders and unless their elders set them an example? One reason I enjoy these visits from home communion is because I believe I have something to learn from the voices and the experiences of fellow Christians who've been around longer than I have. Sometimes it is something as simple as their observation of how hard it is to sit and wait for the end to come. They know their life on earth is nearing its conclusion and they often struggle to find a sense of purpose and meaning in what little they seem to have left. That is what another of your friends shared as she reflected on how hard it is to wait for the end of her life. These home visits give me a chance to listen to what is most real to our oldest and wisest church members, to listen as they express the joys and sorrows that shape their lives. It gives them a chance to speak their own truth as I pray for the grace to listen well. It's a chance for us both to pay attention to the little voices in our heads, and to heed to ones that invite us to speak the truth and to ignore the ones that tempt us to hide from pain.
John the Baptist – were you wondering when I was going to get around to John? John does not seem to have had any trouble with little voices in his head. He said what was true, whether it was difficult or not, whether it might be offensive or not, whether or not people wanted to hear it. He let it all hang out. He didn't worry about the delicate sensibilities of those who came to listen. He was more concerned about their spiritual well-being, their readiness for the coming of the Kingdom and the One for whom he was preparing the way.
Matthew tells us that everyone in the Judean countryside and all of
John had special concern for the religious leaders of the day – a special place in his heart, and it was not a warm place. Our text mentions that when John saw the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for baptism he was particularly harsh. He refers to them as snakes slithering to safety as a brush fire races across a field. I've never seen it happen, but they tell me that if a farmer burns off a field, you can stand and watch the snakes try to escape. Remember, fire in scripture is usually God's fire. This is not hell-fire the snakes are fleeing; it's God's fire of judgment. “You think a little water on your snake skins is going to make a difference? You think a little washing will change you? You think this is just for show? Show me your fruit! Show me you've changed! Show me a life that doesn't hide behind the status and privilege of your position. Show me a broken heart and a contrite spirit. Show me that you really know how much you need God's forgiveness and how little your own self-righteousness gets you! Show me your fruit!” John was red hot. John was smoking.
You know who the Pharisees and Sadducees were. The Pharisees were the keepers and teachers of the Law of Moses. They were the theologians, the preachers, the religious experts, the Presbytery staff, the Committee on Ministry. The Sadducees were a conservative and affluent group associated with the governing council of
He wasn't about to let them hide behind the veneer of civilization, manners and comfort that they thought protected them. John was an equal opportunity revivalist. We hear in him a preview of Paul's words in Romans: “All have sinned and fall short....” In other words, nobody doesn't need to repent. Nobody is so good that they don't need to fall on their face before Almighty God and ask for grace. John isn't going to let us think that manners and dignified behavior mean that we have avoided being sinners and that we don't need to repent.
I receive a daily email from Sojourners Magazine with a scripture verse and a quotation. The quote from a few days ago was right on target with John's call to bear fruit that shows your repentance.
We all readily agree that God forgives sin, that Jesus brought salvation from sin, but we have a very hard time seeing ourselves as those who need forgiveness and salvation. We watch the evening news or read the newspaper and decide that we really are not so bad after all; the things we may have done—may have done!—are not anything compared to what other people are doing.... We will never have an accurate picture of ourselves and our fallen human condition until we understand that there is no sin we are incapable of committing.... [But] God has come to bring the people the knowledge of salvation by the forgiveness of their sins. We are forgiven as soon as we grasp the fact that we need forgiveness. – Mary Anna Vidakovich
I don’t know who she is, but her words remind me of what Mother Teresa said in reference to her own sense of sinfulness: “In me there is a Hitler.” That doesn't mean she's done what he did, but that in her heart is the same sinfulness that can provoke a lie or an unkindness, that can spread destructive gossip, or that can lead to murder. The need to repent and bear fruit is quite democratic. God calls us to live in ways that show that we know our need for daily grace. God calls us to demonstrate by changed lives that we are turning our lives around and facing in a new direction.
William Willimon tells a story of going to the funeral of a relative of one of the members of a church where he was serving. The service was held in a small Independent Baptist church in
Apparently the preacher got really worked up and started to shout, “It's too late for Sam. He might have wanted to do something different with his life, but it's too late for him now. He doesn't get another chance. But it ain't too late for you. People drop dead every day. Why wait? Today is the day. Repent! Make your life count for something. Give your life to Jesus! You never know what tomorrow will hold. Repent!”
After the funeral in the car going home, Willimon says that he turned to his wife and said, “That was terrible. I would never do that to a grieving family. That had to be about the most manipulative, tacky funeral sermon I ever heard.”
His wife responded as only wives can, “You're right, honey. Of course, the worst part about it is that what he said was true.”
John is not going to listen to any of our excuses about how righteous, dignified, well-respected or well-mannered we are. He doesn't want us to show him the money. He wants us to show him our fruit. So what about it? What kind of fruit are you bearing? What kind of fruit is this church bearing? And if you take stock and if you conclude that the crop is not as plentiful as it might be, what will you do? How will you connect yourself to sources of spiritual power and renewal so that you will stay connected to the Vine and receive the nourishment you need to bear good fruit? There are no easy answers. There is only patient work and waiting, daily repentance and seeking the source of our life by abiding in Christ. Like the ripening of fruit, it does not happen overnight. The apple sits in the sun, stays connected to the branch and little by little it ripens. With patience and faithfulness we can bear good fruit. I hope you will stay connected to God through daily spiritual practice and to one another as you engage in discernment about the spiritual nourishment of this congregation. Listen to John. Remember that he has your health and spiritual well-being in mind. And, show him your fruit.