I think that we should be honest with ourselves when it comes to faith . . . God frustrates us! God doesn’t always make sense to us and yet God asks it of us anyways. Take for example the two stories Jesus shares in our reading this morning—the “lost sheep and coin”.
In the first story a shepherd looks over his herd of a hundred sheep and notices that one is missing. Immediately the sheepherder drops everything and begins looking for the lost sheep . . . or as Jesus tells it: “he leave[s] the ninety-nine in the open country and go[es] after the lost sheep until he finds it.” This is probably not the best practice when it comes to herding as he is leaving the ninety-nine open to predators, sheep rustlers, and other wandering sheep. Not only that, but he loses productivity time with the sheep that he will either have to make up or take as a loss. In an economic sense this is not the smartest move on the part of the shepherd.
Whatever the case, Jesus implies that this is what should be done and then once it is reconciled—once the sheep is found—there will be cause for great celebration.
The woman with the lost silver coin also seems to put forth a whole lot of effort for what seems to be a minimal loss. Noticing that she has lost one of her ten silver coins the woman proceeds to tear apart her home. As they say, she leaves no stone unturned in her search for that lost coin until she finds it. And, like the shepherd, once she finds it she wants to throw a big celebration . . . a celebration that would surely eat into the ten coins.
Again, the actions of the woman seem extravagant. Seem to be more effort than it is worth. Yet, Jesus implies again that this is what should be done.
What prompts these two stories is the fact that Jesus is standing around talking to a bunch of people who are on the outside of the established religious community . . . tax collectors and sinners! This does not make those in power and control happy. They get angry. They mumble. They grumble. They make a ruckus at the behavior and actions of Jesus. It is kind of difficult for Jesus not to hear the Pharisees and teachers of the law complaining. In The Message version of the Bible, it states: “Their grumbling triggered this story.” The result? The stories of the lost sheep and coin are told.
Okay, we get it. The Pharisees and the teachers of the law see what Jesus is doing as a waste of time. As far as they were concerned tax collectors and sinners weren’t worth the time and effort. Jesus was wasting his time, energy, and whatever resources he was putting into his efforts. Basically, Jesus is adding fuel to the fire of their animosity towards him. To them it made no sense no matter how they chose to look at it. It was beneath them. In their minds it would be better for Jesus to focus on what he can accomplished within the established structure than to waste his time with those they had given up on long ago . . . to cut their losses and move on. After all, this was more economical and made more sense.
They were frustrated.
But, if we are honest with ourselves, we aren’t much different than these Pharisees and teachers of the law when it comes to the demands of God on us. In all honesty we have all grumbled when it came to the expectations of God in our relationship with the Holy and others. At moments in our lives, we have felt that God was ridiculous in what God wanted from us . . . and we grumbled.
Now grumbling when it comes to faith does not make us “bad” people in the eyes of God. No, far from it. It is just a part of who God created us to be. Or, to put it simply . . . it proves that we are human. Whether we like it or not, there are going to be moments in our journeys of life and faith that we grumble at God.
And . . . that is good! It is good because it signals the potential for growth in our faith and in our relationship with God and others. In our grumbling we are acknowledging our uncomfortableness. Our uncomfortableness marks a conflict of struggle between what we live and what God expects. It is in that grumbling and struggle that we either grow or we remain staunch in what we believe.
Again, consider the situation of our reading this morning. Jesus is hanging out with those who are tax collectors and sinners. These are the people on the outside of the established religion of their time. These are the ones who are deemed worthless and unsavable . . . a waste of time by those who hold the power and control the so-called faith of the establishment. As far as they were concerned Jesus was being silly and wasteful.
Yet, Jesus insisted that these were the ones who needed it the most. Jesus says, in both stories’ conclusions: “I tell you that in the same way there will be more rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who do not need to repent.” And “In the same way, I tell you, there is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.” Remember, Jesus did not come to save the saints but the sinners!
The grace of God is extraordinary. More importantly it is extravagant. It goes beyond our understanding. Yet, God calls on us to embrace it and live it just as Jesus did. In the end all of us . . . all of God’s children . . . are trying their best to get home. God’s focus is not upon those who have already received the “road map”, been given the directions, accepted the grace, but upon those who are lost and looking for a way home. It is to these that Jesus placed himself and his ministry. And it was to these that Jesus was spending his time when the grumbling began among the faithful. It is in these that God revels in joy.
God wants the family restored. Thus, like Jesus, we are called upon to do that which is seen as ridiculous . . . seen as extravagant . . . as a waste or time, energy, and resources. We are called upon not to service those who have already found the way home, but to those who have been labeled as being outside of the realm of the faithful. Those who stand on the outside looking in for whatever reason. We are called into relationship with the “least of these”.
And that is what makes it so confusing . . . so tough . . . so frustrating . . . that sets us to grumbling. It just doesn’t make sense, but when did God ever make sense? Thankfully, as demonstrated by Jesus, God is a patient divinity who gracefully waits as we struggle through the difficulties and frustrations of figuring out how to maneuver through this journey of life and faith. God waits. God waits through the mumbling. Waits through the confusion. Waits for us . . . and, when the waiting is all said and done, God rejoices. Throws a party . . . and not just any party, but a party that is extravagantly joyful and invites us all to participate. Such is the Kingdom of God . . . we don’t quite understand it, but we are glad it is there.
In the meantime, if we are honest, we grumble. As my mother used to say, “This, too, shall pass.” Praise God for that! Amen!
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