Rev. Jeffrey T. Howard
Pittsgrove Presbyterian Church
Sermon Matthew 13:31-33, 44-46 "The Kingdom of Heaven is like …"
July 26, 2020
This week I am finishing up my first year with you as your interim pastor. This past year we have faced many obstacles. March 13 was the last meeting I had with the Session here at the church. They decided at that meeting to close the church and remain closed until the threat of the coronavirus had passed. That was over four months ago. Since then everything we had done has been over Zoom or email. Session meets tomorrow night and I pray that we can open the church safely with safe-distancing worship.
There was so much I had hoped to do with this church this past year, but the virus stopped us. The coronavirus looks like a stumbling block to building up the Kingdom of God. But is it? Could the virus actually be a valuable pearl or a small seed sent by God to build His kingdom? Possibly! Let’s pray.
Lord Jesus, we ask that you transform Pittsgrove Presbyterian Church into God’s kingdom. Lead us in the ways you would have us do ministry here in this neighborhood. Prepare us to minister to the needs of the people in this community. And bring us the great joy of participating in your work in our world. We pray this in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Matthew 13:31-33 31 He put before them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed that someone took and sowed in his field; 32 it is the smallest of all the seeds, but when it has grown it is the greatest of shrubs and becomes a tree, so that the birds of the air come and make nests in its branches." 33 He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like yeast that a woman took and mixed in with three measures of flour until all of it was leavened."
Matthew 13:44-46 44 "The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field, which someone found and hid; then in his joy he goes and sells all that he has and buys that field. 45 "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls; 46 on finding one pearl of great value, he went and sold all that he had and bought it.
The Kingdom of God, or as Matthew calls it, the Kingdom of Heaven, was the central message of Jesus’ teachings. Jesus taught about the Kingdom of Heaven using parables where he compared the unknown Kingdom of Heaven to something that was already known. So Jesus said that the Kingdom of Heaven is like a tiny little seed that grows up into a big bush. Or the Kingdom of Heaven is like the invisible gas leavening bread dough. Or the Kingdom of Heaven is like a treasure you have found and in great joy. You sacrifice everything you have to get that one precious pearl.
God started building the kingdom of heaven at creation, and the work continued with the blessing of Abraham and Sarah and the command to them and their descendants to be a blessing to all families in the world. God’s kingdom work continued through Isaac and Rebecca and their son Jacob.
Last week we heard about Jacob’s encounter with God. God promised to extend the blessing of Abraham and Sarah and Isaac and Rebecca. Today we pick up the story with Jacob on his way to his uncle's house in Genesis 29.
Now, Jacob’s mind must have been swirling around as he walked silently and all alone to Haran. In his dream, God had told him many things that he had to think through. It was hard for him to imagine what God had in store. How could this lone man, whose family hated him and who had the reputation of being a schemer and cheater, become the seed for a family of God’s people that would cover the world like dust to its four corners? Jacob must have considered himself so small when compared to all that God had in store. Maybe, like his descendant 2000 years later, Jesus, he thought about himself as a mustard seed so small and yet, somehow, would grow into a bush so large that it would be a blessing even to the birds flying in the heavens.
But even to Jacob, God’s ways were mysterious. Whatever God was doing or about to do with Jacob it was certainly hidden far from Jacob’s thoughts. God was working behind the scenes orchestrating Jacob’s life for a greater purpose. But Jacob had no idea what God was doing. Maybe, like Jesus, his descendant 2000 years later, Jacob thought of God like yeast working in a ball of dough, hidden, invisible but still working to produce the final leavening.
Like Jacob, we too are part of God’s plan for the Kingdom of Heaven. We are all characters in a play directed by God. We can only discern the board outlines of God’s overall plan, but we know that we are in some way a part of that plan and though us God will accomplish far more than we could ever dream. We are but the tiny mustard seeds that God will use to grow the kingdom. Although we can see some of the things that God is doing among us, most of what God is doing is hidden from our view. But God’s work is bubbling up in the dough of this world and his accomplishments will one day rise into the magnificent loaf of the Kingdom of God on earth.
When Jacob arrived at Haran his heart was filled with the feeling of pure joy when his eyes first perceived a pearl, a treasure, the beautiful Rachel. Jacob would do anything to have Rachel as his wife. And when he found out that she was his cousin, Uncle Laban’s daughter, Jacob leaped with joy over his good fortunes. Jacob thought that God had given him just what he needed. He and the beautiful Rachel would produce the descendants promised to his grandparents. So Jacob agreed to work hard, very hard, for seven years to gain the beautiful Rachel’s hand in marriage.
When we realize that we are part of God’s work of building up the Kingdom of Heaven we too rejoice. It is truly joyful to be used by God in this glorious work. Just ask any Trustee about the great joy they have experienced in maintaining our buildings. Ask anyone on the Finance Committee about the great joy they have experienced by carefully watching over the financial resources of the church. Ask anyone on the Christian Education Committee about the great joy they have experienced when teaching the Bible to the children in this church. Ask anyone on the Mission Committee about the great joy they have supporting the Disciples Pantry, Ranch Hope, Freedom Books, or Cornerstone Women’s Resource Center. Whenever we realize that what we are doing is part of God’s bigger plan we rejoice with praise and thanksgiving.
But Jacob should have seen it coming. A schemer and a cheater is the last to realize that someone has launched a scheme to cheat him out of what was rightfully his. Jacob didn’t know until it was too late that Uncle Laban had no intention of letting Rachel be married until his older daughter Leah had found a husband.
Poor Leah, the NRSV translation of the Bible calls her eyes “lovely”. This was a very generous translation. In reality, Leah suffered by comparison with her younger, prettier sister, Rachel, in just about every way.
So when Laban substituted Leah for Rachel on Jacob’s wedding night Jacob was understandably very upset. Yet he knew that this too was somehow in God’s plan. So Jacob gave Leah her week of a joyous wedding feast and gave her father another seven years to get the other sister, the beautiful Rachel.
Once Jacob was married to both sisters he began to realize the pearl, the great treasure, he had found. He noticed that the beautiful Rachel was dishonest and a thief, worshiped pagan gods and had real trouble getting pregnant. But Leah was a good wife and bore him ten sons.
This made Leah very happy and Rachel, the pretty one, very sad. So God blessed Rachel with two sons of her own, but her happiness was cut short when she was giving birth to the younger son. She died and was buried alone alongside the road.
The pearl that Jacob had found was none other than Leah, who cared for his family making God’s promise of numerous descendants possible. Jacob and Leah spent their lives together and were buried together in the tomb of Abraham and Sarah and of Isaac and Rebecca. In Leah, Jacob had found a pearl of great value.
Blessings from God come in unusual packages. We may think that God is blessing us with a pretty Rachel, but in the Kingdom of Heaven, God’s blessing often comes to us as a faithful Leah.
Several years ago, I pastored a small urban church in Los Angeles. I got together with people from other churches to discuss the issues of homelessness in our community. There were many people, in North East LA, living on the streets. They lived in cars, vans, trucks, and recreational vehicles. Rents for apartments in Los Angeles were way too high for many people. So many people had to live on the streets. Most had some form of limited government assistance. Some had jobs. But many were hungry and desperate to find a meal. The Seventh Day Adventist church had dinner on Thursday nights. St. Dominic’s Catholic Church had dinner for 150 people every Friday.
My church decided to start a new worship service on Sunday evenings. We combined this with a fellowship meal. Suddenly dozens of very poor people started coming into this sanctuary to hear some good news and then join us for dinner. We became a church for the poorest people in our community.
We found our Leahs and they turned out to be pearls whose great value in the Kingdom of Heaven brought us great joy. Those who have very little are the seeds God had sown to grow into the Kingdom of Heaven.
So I urge you to look for the pearls that God has hidden in your community. Look for the small seeds that God has planted to build his kingdom right here in this part of New Jersey. Maybe these pearls are picking up food at Disciple’s Pantry. Maybe there are small seeds of the Kingdom of God at Ranch Hope. Maybe there is yeast leavening this church as I speak. What is certain is that God is using this church as he is building the kingdom.
So look for the pearls in our community. Find the pearls, like Leah, who may not have looks but are faithful and will help us to build up this church and the Kingdom of Heaven right here. Pray that your Pastor Nominating committee will find a faithful Leah, who may not be the best preacher in the denomination, but will lead this church into a faithful future. Let’s pray.
Lord Jesus, help us to meet the needs of our brothers and sisters in our neighborhood. Give us the resources to proclaim the good news and demonstrate your kingdom to this community. Bless us as we minister to the poor in your name. And use our efforts as the seed which will grow your kingdom in this church. We pray this in your strong name. Amen.
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