September 28, 2008                                                   Action

 

Ezekiel 18:1-4. 25-32

Matthew 21:23-32

 

            Back when I was studying inventors in school, I remember learning that Robert Fulton invented the steamboat. His invention had a huge impact on trade in this country because, previously, roads were so bad they were almost useless, and it was extremely difficult to ship goods upstream. With the steamboat, commerce could flow both ways on the nation’s waterways.

 

            However, if you look in the record of the U.S. patent office, you will find that the idea of the steamboat was first patented by William Longstreet of Augusta, Georgia, in 1788, a year before Fulton weighed in on the issue.

 

            You commonly hear that people laughed at Fulton’s invention, but that was truer of Longstreet than it was of Fulton. Longstreet once wrote to a government official, “I make no doubt but you have often heard of my steamboat, and as often heard it laughed at, but in this I have only shared the fate of other inventors, for it has uniformly been the custom of every country to ridicule the greatest inventions.”

           

            How does someone with a great idea change popular opinion? How does the public come to accept that an inventor knows what he is doing?

 

            In this case, the answer seems to be that while Longstreet spent a lot of time trying to convince investors that this would all work, and that he knew what he was doing, Fulton and his friends built a steamboat of his own design and began operating it. It’s hard to argue that a steamboat is impossible when you are standing on one that’s carrying you upstream. Fulton became the steamboat authority not because of what he said could be done, but because of what he did.  

 

            In today’s Gospel, Jesus finds his authority challenged by the experts in the temple. They’re not buying what he’s selling. In flipping through his resume, they don’t see any solid credentials or experience. Who is he to act as though he is a great teacher, and a great leader of the people? What makes this lowly born and poorly educated carpenter think he knows the mind and the will of God?

 

            “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave you this authority?” they ask. They have a vested interest in the question. They are, after all, the recognized experts on religion, and what Jesus is teaching and doing is a lot different than what they are teaching. The way to win their debate with him is to assert their authority. By virtue of their position and their great learning, they have the authority to tell others what to do. Jesus doesn’t.

 

            Jesus knows their minds are made up; there’s no answer he can give that they won’t shoot down. So the first thing he does is dismantle their trap. He forces them to confess that authority is a subjective thing; it is not always easy to discern the will of God, even for experts.

 

            Then he tells them a very brief parable.

 

            It’s an easy test. One that even the youngest kids pass with flying colors. It may be the simplest concept in the entire Bible: it’s actions that count, not words.

 

            You want to know where authority comes from? It comes from results. You don’t get real authority just by claiming it or by arguing your point.

 

            Let me try something here. “My broker is E.F. Hutton, and E.F. Hutton says—“

 

            Some of you may remember that old ad campaign. When someone says those words, even in a private conversation, everyone in the room leans in to listen to what E.F. Hutton has to say. The company’s slogan was: “When E. F. Hutton speaks, people listen.”

           

            In the Gospel reading for today, Jesus observes that speech will only get you so far. You don’t get authority by claiming it. You don’t get it by what you say. You get authority because of what you do.

 

            There is a mistaken notion that Christianity is all about faith, about believing what has been said about it. But in reality, that’s more true of other religions. What makes Christianity a uniquely insightful and formative religion that reveals the truth about God is that it bases its authority not on what is said, but on what is done. 

 

            The chief priests and elders in this story take the standard religious line. Listen to what we tell you. We’ve got it figured out. God has told us what to do. Our job as privileged leaders is to interpret that message for you, so that you know what to do. When we speak, your job is to listen and obey.

 

            What they don’t understand is that very early in their own Hebrew tradition, God revealed that he derives his authority not by what he says, but by what he does. The Old Testament is the story of God’s action and the effect that action has on every person’s life.

 

 

            When God gives a commandment in the Old Testament, it does not come in the form of, “Listen to what I say because I am the authority.” Virtually every commandment is prefaced by, “I am the God who brought you out of bondage. The God who set you free. Remember what I have done and because of that, recognize that I know what is good for you.”

            Action. That’s how you know you can trust me, says God. That’s the proof that I know what I’m talking about when I point the way to a fulfilling life.

 

            The motto of the Bible is not, “When God speaks, people listen.” It is, “When God acts, people listen.”

 

            We see this clearly demonstrated in the books of the prophets. There were many prophets in Old Testaments times. Hundreds of people claiming to be speaking the truth in their warnings and their promises. All claiming the authority to speak for God. Many of these prophets contradicted other prophets. How can you tell who really speaks with authority; who speaks for God?

 

            The prophetic books of the Old Testament provide the same clear and simple answer: you will know the true prophet not by what he says, but by what happens. It’s hard to judge a prophet by listening to his words. But when a prophet warns that current behavior is eroding the whole fabric of society, and that society goes into decline and collapses, you know that he speaks the truth. You can be assured he has the authority from God.

            When a prophet promises that the grace of God will shine forth and save the people, and it does, you can be assured that the prophet is speaking on God’s authority. Or, as the common expression goes, the proof is in the pudding.

 

            God continues to demonstrate authority not in words but in action in the person of Jesus.

 

            I once heard a prominent Christian evangelist debating an atheist. The evangelist was trying to persuade his opponent by being nice and finding common ground for agreement, and he said, “Well, at the very least you have to recognize that Jesus said some really great things.”

            The atheist responded, “So what? A lot of people say really great things. I’ve just said a lot of really great things and no one’s building a religion around me.”

 

            The atheist was right in his response. Yeah, a lot of people say really great things. But where do they get their authority? Just because they claim to be smarter or holier?

 

 

            We do not follow Jesus because he said a lot of really great things. We follow Jesus because of what he did. Because he healed, he sacrificed, he showed compassion, he saved, he died, he rose again. When God acts, people listen.

 

            Jesus makes that very point in this reading. In the spiritual world, there are a lot of people who can talk a good game. They claim to have the right answers. They claim to speak for God.

 

            How do you know who’s telling the truth? Blind faith? Not according to the Bible. It’s not what people say that gives them authority. It’s what they do. Listen to the two sons in this parable. Number one son gives the wrong answer; number two son gives the right answer. If we rate them strictly on what they say, number two son is the model citizen.

            But at the end of the day, which of them did what the Father asked? Son number 1. The father wasn’t interested in speeches, or claims, or promises. He wanted to get something done.

 

            We say in our world that talk is cheap. When all is said and done, there’s usually a lot more said than done. You can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk.

 

            I admit I am always a little bewildered by sports talk radio and fan forums. Man, the passion with which people argue for their team. The absolute assurance that their team is superior, the bold and confident predictions that they will come out ahead. The many reasons why their team is superior.

 

            I just don’t get it. There’s a very easy way to tell which team is better. It’s called a game. One team wins, one team loses. The matter is settled. That’s why they play the game.

 

            All that sports fan blather has absolutely no effect on reality. You can brag on your team and spout a thousand reasons why your team is better. In the end, the only thing that matters is what happens on the field.

 

            Every day, all of the world’s problems are solved in bars, in beauty salons, over backyard fences, or over lunch. Millions of experts can tell you exactly what is wrong with the government, with our city, with the schools, with life in general.

            All that big talk has nothing to do with reality. Who are the people who are actually doing something about the problems we face? Those are the people worth listening to.

 

 

            I’ve sat in on a number of employment interviews in my life and to be honest, I’ve come to question their value. There are people who are great at interviews. Interviewing for a job or a call is what they do best in life. That may or may not have anything to do with how well they can actually perform the job.

            There are many people who can talk a good game. People who claim expertise and experience. The question that really matters is, what have you done with the opportunities you’ve been given?

 

            In the religious world, there are many of us who talk a good game. To the point where the stereotype of active Christians has become that we are people who like to talk. We like to tell people what to do, how to behave.

            That news article in the paper recently referred to me a couple of times as a preacher. I really don’t like being called that because it reinforces that false stereotype. That all we do is talk, lecture, scold, moralize, pontificate, and tell others what to do.

 

            If all I do is preach, as Paul says, I am just a noisy gong or a clanging cymbol. I prefer to be called a pastor because a pastor’s job is to do something, to do the work of the kingdom of heaven. That’s where he or she gets the authority to preach.

 

            The same is true for all of us. We get our authority as Christians not by what we say or what we claim to believe. As with the man in the vineyard, none of that means anything by itself. Talk is cheap. It means something only if we actually do it. And it is not we who do it, but rather God working through us.

 

            The Gospel reading for today reminds us that Christian message claims its authority not from what we preach or claim or say we believe, but by what God does through us. If the Christian message of God’s saving grace for the world can actually change lives, if it can save lost souls, if it can make a difference in someone’s future, if it can promote peace and justice in the world then we have something to say to the world, and it will sit up and take notice. Only then will we have the authority to preach.

 

            When God acts, people listen.

 

            If all we do is talk in Jesus’ name, nothing gets done.

            When we act in Jesus’ name, people listen.