Sermon for August 28, 2022 – 12th Sunday after Pentecost

Quid pro quo…

Quid pro quo. Something for something. This timeless adage of reciprocity is the backbone of our social and economic lives. We offer something of ourselves and expect to receive something in return. We encounter it daily, without fail. We experience it from childhood on the playground and in the lunchroom and are expected to participate in it as adults. Whether it is at work where the stress to perform pushes us beyond our limits or in our families where every day can be a negotiation, we are constantly engaged in transactional relationships…offering ourselves with the expectation of something in return.

Right now, for me, I see this every day at home in a small but vivid way, living with a five-year-old. Everything is a negation; from how much dinner he has to eat to how much time he gets on his tablet. Even getting him to clean up his toys, just so he can play with other toys, requires expert negotiation skills to avoid a total nuclear meltdown. Just about any request is often met with an, “I’m too tired”. Which is then followed by tears and wailing. Now I could use my position of power and authority as his parent to offer absolutes and get what I want. Clean up your room or I get rid of your toys. Eat all of you dinner or you don’t get a sweet for dessert. Or, I could enter into the situation with humility, at his level to understand that moment from his perspective. And of course, all of this wears on me emotionally and spiritually, as I wonder am I doing the right thing? Am I doing this parenting thing right? It is hard to feel that I am only as useful to my son, in practical terms, insomuch as I am able to give him what he wants. While this is a typical life with a five-year-old, it is a reflection of the world around us.

The problem with quid pro quo is that it is not as fairly matched as we would like to believe. It is not usually a flat exchange or even a fair transaction. And yet, it seems our world is set up to expect an equal swap in negotiating relationships. In this system, our self-worth is measured by what we have to offer to others. 

In this transactional world the essential question is not only if I do this for you, what are you going to do for me, but also what have you done for me lately?

And often if we don't have something to offer we are deemed worthless, ignored, cast aside.

This is the system that Jesus is observing when he arrives at a dinner party and watches the guests take their seats. He is paying attention to this transactional quid pro quo system at work. But in typical Jesus fashion he offers a different view of the world where the honor and value of a person is not what they provide for others, but instead a world in which we view each person as God views them; as worthy, valuable, and precious. Jesus is asking us to imagine a world in which we give without expectation of return.

Our gospel story is more than just a lesson in proper table manners. It calls out our tendency toward transactional faith. We expect God to move about in our economies that are dependent on proof of worth and jobs well done. We assume God will choose to maintain a relationship with us based on how much we pray or any other quantifiable activity. But Jesus is calling us to something else. He is telling us that God’s measure of membership in the Kingdom has everything to do with how God sees us and not how we see ourselves.

Jesus’ challenge to those gathered at the dinner party is to be more aware of those who we are inclined to look away from, and to follow him rather than those who tout common prejudices as virtues. Jesus says we are to invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, and the blind knowing full well that they can never repay what is given. This is another way of describing the grace we receive from God. Instead of ability, or money, or any other system defining us we are defined purely by the gift of life and the gift of reconciliation with God and one another by Jesus Christ.

Jesus is challenging us to reorient our view from the fulfillment of our own ambitions to the needs of others; from furthering our own position and honor to using our influence and resources to alleviate others’ suffering. Are we really willing to give someone else our place at the table? What does that look like here at All Saints?

What does that look like for you and me, for us? If we look back in reflection, we can see that serving others is part of the fabric of this parish. By hosting Agape Table, All Saints and its members provided the space for a much-needed ministry that provided food to the hungry. It was not an evangelical ministry. It did not seek to convert the guests and turn them into new members who would contribute financially. We simply offered our space, and they offered food.

This thread continued through the West Broadway Commons. Facing a very serious and potentially life altering decision about the parish hall, this congregation could have looked inwardly to rebuilding that space for its own use. However, instead of purely serving ourselves, this congregation demolished that space. Through a process of deep prayerful discernment, this congregation discovered God’s call to help address the housing insecurity issues in the city by turning the parish hall into a housing tower, with an emphasis on affordable housing. While it would be nice if some come to check us out once and awhile, I do not expect them to become members.

Time and again All Saints has offered parts of its space — parts of itself, to help further the mission of God. And we continue each and everyday in our partnership with st. benedict’s table. Our shared ministry and shared stewardship of this sacred space is just a continuation of a trend that has long been a part of our DNA. While we continue in our relationship with st. ben’s, we are in different seasons with our other missional projects. Agape Table out grew our space and is looking for the right spot to call home that will help them further their reach and their ministry. West Broadway is up and running, and we will explore different ways to engage with the tenants to build community. So, now we are facing a new horizon. We have a blank slate to craft the next chapter of our life together. What is God calling us to now?

Our actions are important, but Jesus is emphasizing that our intentions matter as well.  Do our actions flow from a place of self-promoting ambition or from a place of love rooted in the depths of our hearts?  Are we expecting a quid pro quo from God, securing our salvation with false humility?

It is a long hard struggle to be good.  It is a struggle to be better than we are now.  It is a joy to be better than we were.  It is a struggle to live this out.

According to our gospel, the point of life is not to be better and proud, it is to be humble and to try. If we live then we struggle. We both fail and succeed in order to fail better next time. So today, I invite you to take a firmer grip on your calling as a follower of Jesus. I invite you to take those good and bad cards we have all been dealt: the mess that we or others make of our lives; and be stronger.  And we must be humble enough to give God, rather than ourselves, the glory. For it is in humbly serving others, without expectation of a return, that we will grow more deeply into our God.

Amen.