Lame Excuses - Rev. David Pileggi

In this short story Jesus illustrates the rule of heaven and highlights God’s compassion for those who are being destroyed by sin and Satan. But if we hear his voice, we are warned of the consequences of hardening our heart.

The Pharisees seek to test Jesus with a trick question, and in a brilliant response Jesus exposes their insincerity and reminds us why his teaching will be observed to the end of the age.

As we reach the end of the Feast of Sukkot, often associated with the return of Jesus, our readings in Isaiah 5, Psalm 80, and Matthew 21 use the vineyard as an image of God’s kingdom and His people. Isaiah reveals that God sought justice and righteousness but found injustice, while Psalm 80 asks why the vineyard has been destroyed, echoing the warnings Israel failed to heed. In Matthew 21, Jesus confronts the spiritual leaders who wanted the vineyard for themselves rather than producing its fruit. God desires more than outward religious righteousness; He calls us to listen to Him, allow Him to transform our hearts, and seek Him in one another, becoming a unified people shaped by the beauty of His ways.

As Christians, we often look to the biblical feasts to discover whether Jesus has fulfilled it, or we’re still waiting. But the Festivals of the Lord (especially Succot) have much more to teach us and this guidance is especially important for us today in our age of overwhelming anxiety and fear.

It is appropriate that in today’s readings, Jesus’ parable of the Workers in the Vineyard falls on the eve of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. This story raises some questions about God’s generosity and how it can lead to disappointment and resentment, embittering our relationship with God and others. Understanding this parable in its Jewish context can help us better understand how God is at work in our lives today.

Jesus is urgent. Repent, for the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand! But we tend to think that because we’re not bank robbers or adulterers we’re OK. But today, as we approach the holiday of The Feast of Trumpets, let the blast of the shofar wake us up to Jesus’ urgent call.

Often in Christian teaching we focus on how to get to heaven – and until then, how we can dwell in ‘heavenly places.' But the overwhelming biblical focus is that God wants to come down! Jesus teaches us practical ways that we can live in His presence now.

When Moses was 40 years old he had all of the right criteria to be used as God's instrument for deliverance. He was articulate, well educated, and zealous. However, God's timing is not our timing. By the time Moses was commissioned, he was emptied of almost everything he once was. God will indeed deliver His people out of bondage. Nonetheless, He shares His glory with no man.

In our lectionary today, we read about two midwives who refused to obey the Pharaoh’s death decree. How did they know to fear the living God more than a powerful tyrant who could bring them death? They are role models for us today and can teach us important lessons about being disciples of the Prince of Life in a culture of death.

Genesis 45 sees Joseph reveal himself to his brothers, declare his good fortune in Egypt, and promise to care for them during the following 5 years of famine. Psalm 67, sung daily between Pesach and Shavuot, prompts all the nations to praise the God of Israel for making the land yield its produce. This principle—of God blessing many people through His saving work among Israel—is invoked when Jesus meets the Canaanite mother in Matthew 15. Her claim that, “Even the dogs eat the crumbs from their masters’ table,” does not insist on her (limited) rights to table scraps; rather, it insists that God’s mercy is not a limited resource. In His house, there is plenty of bread to go around.