by Fr. Bill Garrison
Please note that the following sermon text was provided prior to the audio recording. The two versions may differ substantially.
Mark 4:26-34
Jesus said, “The kingdom of God is as if someone would scatter seed on the ground, and would sleep and rise night and day, and the seed would sprout and grow, he does not know how. The earth produces of itself, first the stalk, then the head, then the full grain in the head. But when the grain is ripe, at once he goes in with his sickle, because the harvest has come.”
He also said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable will we use for it? It is like a mustard seed, which, when sown upon the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth; yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes the greatest of all shrubs, and puts forth large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”
With many such parables he spoke the word to them, as they were able to hear it; he did not speak to them except in parables, but he explained everything in private to his disciples.
The gospel today leads us to think about the impact God and the Holy Spirit have on the world around us. Things happen, that we know are happening, that we aren’t able to see. In that vein, before we get down to a serious discussion, here is a little story I ran across this week about a couple of magicians.
Two very famous and competing Las Vegas magicians walked into a bakery together. The first named Tom palmed three donuts with one hand and put them in his pocket without anyone noticing. He said, “Do you see how masterful I am Joe, I make donuts disappear at will!”
Joe responded, “Not bad, not bad at all.”
Joe then went to the Bakery owner and asked him if he wanted to see a magic trick. The curious owner answered, “Of course, you two are the best!”
Joe proceeded to ask him for a doughnut, and then ate it. He asked him for another one, and then ate it as well. He then asks him for a third one, which the owner reluctantly gave up.
“So where is the magic trick? I gave you 3 donuts already!”, said the owner.
Joe responded, “Go check Tom’s pocket.”
Have you ever gone to see someone, maybe even for the first time, and know before you knock on the door that the house is empty and no one is home? Isn’t that odd? The house is unremarkable. The features around the house are what you would expect. But you know the people inside have left. There is a real difference in an empty home, but it is one we feel more than can describe.
On the other hand, sometimes we can be approaching the door and are faced with the exact same outward appearance yet we know the occupants are home. When we knock, we knock with confidence. If they don’t answer immediately, we will continue to knock because we know they are there. On the other hand, on the door of the house we instinctively know to be empty we sometimes don’t even want to knock at all.
Today we are talking about the Kingdom of God and it’s something like this experience of approaching a home. One has life inside and the other does not. The life of the occupants, inside or gone, is what makes the difference in our perception. We are aware of life or no life being present on some instinctual level that is just a bit beyond our intellectual reach.
In the gospel we heard two parables today. The first is one of my favorites.
We find a farmer sowing seed on the ground. Nights and days pass by. The next thing you know plants begin to emerge from the ground. There comes a little rain and the sun beats down and the plants get bigger and before you know it the crop is ready to harvest.
Yet though we know the ingredients, we don’t know how it all happened. We know it took seed and we know it took sun and earth and water, but we don’t know how it all came together to produce a plant that, in time, yielded a harvest. What was that invisible something that made it all work, that made it live?
Jesus said that he came to tell us about that invisible life force and to attempt to point it out and explain it to us. He said that this is the Kingdom of God at work. That within the Kingdom of God exists an invisible something that, when added to the mix of other ingredients, produces life and growth.
Have you ever laid on your back and looked up and gazed at the stars? If you grew up here you might not have as the lights of the city can drown out the light of the stars. But, having said that, perhaps you have found a way to look up at the sky at night. There is an odd thing that happens when we do. There are stars on the edges of our vision we can see, but can’t see when we look directly at them. It’s the oddest thing. It seems like a good metaphor for what we are talking about. If you haven’t experienced it give it a try.
Ever since I have been a small child I have felt at home in places of worship. There is an atmosphere in most of them I can feel. Some call it a “well prayed in space.” I can sense it. I like it, but I can’t see it. I always feel at home in these places.
I think for most of us nature has a wonderful appeal. The mountains are beautiful. The beach and ocean are stupendous. The desert has its own atmosphere and the quiet becomes incredibly loud. The plains and fields in the middle of America are breathtaking. I think what we are truly experiencing in these places, why we love to visit them so much, is that these special places amplify our awareness of God, and I guess specifically the Kingdom of God.
So, I want to leave you with this. God is everywhere. God is just beyond our vision, to be seen out of the corners of our eyes. God shows up in the beauty of the world, in the growth of living things, and in the atmosphere we breath. We are invited this week to be especially aware, to look around, and to see God in the beauty, in the growth, and once in a while we might even see God directly, but out of the corner of our eyes.