Dana and I spent last week in Kentucky taking care of some family business. One of the sayings about Kentucky is that it has "fast horses, smooth bourbon, and beautiful women." I can vouch for beautiful women, after all Dana, my wife, is from Kentucky. Not sure about the bourbon, but I do know that my neighbor always asks for us to pick some up whenever we are going to Kentucky. And, yes, there are lots of fast horses . . . especially where we were in the land of horse farms. There were thoroughbreds frolicking in the fields for miles and miles.
Kentuckians love their horses and even more so they love their horse racing. Just down the road from where we were staying in Versailles is Keeneland one of two important racetracks in the horse business. The other is Churchill Downs in Louisville. Painted on the side of the building next to where we were stayong were the silks--those fancy shirts--the uniforms of the jockeys from the area horse farms. They take their horse racing serious in Kentucky . . . and it is big business. Only the successful make it and stick around.
The role of the jockey is to guide the horse around the track and win the race. Now if you have ever seen a thoroughbred horse race you know that there is a whole lot going on during the race. The jockeys maneuver, push, bump, and do whatever they can to make sure their horse gets to the front to win. They call this "jockeying". In the horse racing business only the best survive and thrive . . . the rest, well they eat dust.
Jockeying may be the way that it works in horse racing and life, but it sure isn't the way that it works in the heavenly scheme. In our scripture reading this morning--though Jesus doesn't call it this, he is dealing with people "jockeying for heaven". Having been invited to a dinner party, Jesus is watching as the people arrive and start sitting down. It seems that the people all gravitate to the important places--"the places of honor". Being in a place of honor would show others how important you were and where you were in the pecking order of power. And who could blame them. Everyone wants to be seen and acknowledged as important. But Jesus warns that this could be the cause of some embarrassment because the host might not think like the people. Who they think are important might not be who the host thinks are important. Jesus tells the people to be careful because jockeying could come back and bite you in the rear end!
Now understand this. The host of the dinner does not want to lose status within the community; thus the host invites all the important and powerful people to come to the dinner. The more important, the better for the host. It is sort of like name dropping, but the guest list would show everyone how important and powerful the host was by who was sitting around the table. The host was jockeying. So were the guests . . . the better the seat, the better the status in the eyes of the host and those gathering. Not only was the host jockeying, so we're the guests.
Isn't that what takes place in the world we live in? Isn't everyone jockeying for something--power, prestige, status, even a place in heaven? Think about it. All of us have dropped a name before in conversation to impress others. We have joined clubs and organizations--not so much because we believed in them, but because it would put us in the network and get our name recognized. We have taken people out to fancy restaurants to impress them. The clothes we wear, the cars we drive, the people we hang out with, and even the churches we attend . . . can be considered jockeying.
One of my favorite singers was John Prine. During the height of the Viet Nam War, he jumped on the bandwagon like a lot of Americans and wrote a song protesting the United States' involvement in the war. It was about a man who went to the bank to open a savings account and was given two flag decals for his car. He went out immediately and slapped them on the windshield of his car. Then he got some free ones at the bookstore . . . slapped them on the windshield. Then he got a few more out of Reader's Digest . . . onto the windshield! Soon he got into a car accident because he couldn't see out of the windshield because there were so many flag decals. Up at the pearly gates Saint Peter denied him entrance into heaven. Saint Peter told him: "Your flag decals won't get you into heaven anymore!"
All that jockeying and the guy couldn't get into heaven no matter how many flag decals he had on the windshield . . . no matter how many important and powerful people had been invited to the party . . . and, no matter where one sat. It wasn't going to get anyone into heaven. Jockeying ain't going get anyone into heaven . . . bottom line as far as Jesus was concerned.
Remember . . . you can't buy your way into heaven. It is pure grace, and it is yours and mine for the taking when we give our lives to Jesus. All we have to do is to live our lives as Jesus lived his life. To follow in his footsteps. Which brings us to the second part of the message he delivers there at that dinner. Serve one another . . . serve those in need . . . be compassionate . . . be loving . . . be full of grace. Be like Jesus. Think of God. Think of others. In the end . . . well, you and I will be blessed.
You and I have received the gift of heaven and we should rejoice. We should celebrate . . . throw a great big party. Not because we are important. Not because we have made it. No, we should throw a party because it feels so good to know God's love and desire for each and every one of us . . . because it feels good to be wanted . . . and, because we want everyone else to feel what we feel. It is theirs if they want it. We just need to invite them . . . all regardless of who they are, where they stand in society, the powerful or powerless – all are invited. This is no horse race. There is no need for jockeying. God doesn't care about any of that. What God cares about is whether or not we are going to live a life of love . . . love of the Holy, love of others. That is what matters to God.
Invite everyone to the party!
It is through the grace of God that we journey through this life. Because of that we should do nothing less with our lives. That is what matters to God. As always, Jesus showed us the way. Amen.
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