Choices - The Sower
Life is full of choices, we choose where we want to go, when we want to go, what we would like to eat, when we would like to eat - Choices are all around. British prime minister Herbert Asquith once spent a weekend at the estate of the Rothschild family. One day, as Asquith was being waited on at teatime by the butler, the following conversation ensued:
"Tea, coffee, or a peach from off the wall, sir?"
"Tea, please," answered Asquith.
"China, India, or Ceylon, sir?" asked the butler.
"China, please."
"Lemon, milk, or cream, sir?"
"Milk, please," replied Asquith.
"Jersey, Hereford, or Shorthorn, sir?" asked the butler.
There are times when choices can just go too far – how often have you walked into a shop and seen too many things that you would like to buy or how often have you sat in a restaurant looking at a menu packed with things you want to eat !
In our readings today we have heard about choices, and not just about choices but about the implications of those choices. In the reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans (8:1-11) Paul makes it clear that there is freedom in a relationship with Jesus – we have been set free from sin – as long as we choose to have that relationship.
And in the gospel reading (Matt 13:1-9, 18-23) in the famous parable of the sower, Jesus offers people a choice as well – and it is a choice of what sort of relationship we choose to build with God.
There is the sort of relationship like the seeds on the path – no depth, no growth. There is the sort of relationship like the seed thrown in rocky ground – the initial burst of excitement and growth, destroyed by any sort of problem or maybe the seed thrown amongst the thorns representing a faith that has just become tangled up with other things – perhaps with the temptations and distractions that surround us in our lives.
Or, of course, there is the seed thrown on good soil, the sort of seed that took time to develop and grow, but grew strong when it did – and that is like faith… Faith is a journey that takes work – we have to choose to work at a relationship with God, just as we work at any relationship – there will be good and easy times, but we also need the strength to get through the harder times…
Following God is a commitment, and commitments can sometimes be tough.
Someone once said that:-
At the close of life, the question will not be, "How much have you gained?" but "How much have you given?"
Not "How much have you won?" but "How much have you done?"
Not "How much have you saved?" but "How much have you sacrificed?"
It will be "How much have you loved and served," not "How much were you honoured?"
This is what following Jesus is all about, it is about sacrifice, it is about giving everything up for Him. It is about accepting that life as a Christian is hard, but like anything that is hard the end goal is the best in sight. The end goal of being with God for all eternity...
And when we begin to view choice like that – the choice of committing our lives to someone who has already committed so much for us, then the choice really appears more like an invitation – an invitation to something special, something irresistible, something too good to miss !
Now, as many of you know I like sport and I have noticed certain things about sport which can equate well with our Christian lives.
Firstly, sport encourages a sacrifice. A good sportsperson will work hard to get to the end goal of winning. They have a prize in sight and they aim for it, with all of themselves. Like sportspeople, following Jesus, being a disciple, involves sacrifice. It involves all of us. Jesus did not want a large number of “little bit” disciples who had a “little bit” of prayer, a “little bit” of commitment, a “little bit” of dedication, a “little bit” of love. He wants all of us, someone once said, that ‘if Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all.’
We need to be ‘Jesus’ in the World today…. We can talk about the needs of the world, we can pray for a better way in the World, but we need to do more than that. We need to be in the World, showing the way of Jesus. We need to be prepared and ready to do what Jesus would do. We need to stand up against what is wrong, and to seek to make a change. In our lives we need to sacrifice all that stops us from getting closer to God and to put Him first.
Secondly, sport when it is abused is heart breaking to lots of people involved. It’s not just the winning and the losing, but the disappointment of players or teams letting us down sometimes – some of you may remember the betting scandal with the Pakistan cricket team. That scandal has made people insecure, unaware of what is real sport, and what is made up for money. People are hurt, and disillusioned, they don’t know where to turn.
And faith can also bring heartbreak, because being passionate about something often does – and there will be times when people of faith fail, times when we get things wrong and times when others seem to get things so wrong – but unlike in sport where there is often no answer other than to pick things up and start again, in our lives of faith we really can not just pretend it didn’t happen and start, but actually really start again afresh…
And thirdly, the sacrifice of a sports person makes the game worth watching. How often do we see someone do well in something and we wish for it to work out well for them. Quite a number of years ago now, the whole country almost, or at least so it felt, were willing Eddie the Eagle (a man who tried against all the odds to win) to do well- he did not, but people still admired his commitment.
And again with faith people will watch sacrifice – they will recognise people going beyond the ordinary for something or someone and they will notice why – we do things not for our own glory or reward, but to bring glory and praise to God – and when we do it, when we show commitment and passion, people will notice and they will listen…
All around us, day by day, there are choices to be made – some will be simple, some will be difficult… some choices we make will have very little bearing on our overall lives or the lives of anyone else, others will be crucial to us and to other people. There is none more important than the way we choose to live our lives of faith – or not…
Jesus chose the way of revolution – a self sacrificing, complete devotion for people everywhere – a love which would never be broken – and that’s what he asks us to do when he asks us to carry his cross… and to choose life with him…
May God give us his grace and strength to help us live for him, secure in the knowledge that we are always in his care… AMEN
"Tea, coffee, or a peach from off the wall, sir?"
"Tea, please," answered Asquith.
"China, India, or Ceylon, sir?" asked the butler.
"China, please."
"Lemon, milk, or cream, sir?"
"Milk, please," replied Asquith.
"Jersey, Hereford, or Shorthorn, sir?" asked the butler.
There are times when choices can just go too far – how often have you walked into a shop and seen too many things that you would like to buy or how often have you sat in a restaurant looking at a menu packed with things you want to eat !
In our readings today we have heard about choices, and not just about choices but about the implications of those choices. In the reading from Paul’s letter to the Romans (8:1-11) Paul makes it clear that there is freedom in a relationship with Jesus – we have been set free from sin – as long as we choose to have that relationship.
And in the gospel reading (Matt 13:1-9, 18-23) in the famous parable of the sower, Jesus offers people a choice as well – and it is a choice of what sort of relationship we choose to build with God.
There is the sort of relationship like the seeds on the path – no depth, no growth. There is the sort of relationship like the seed thrown in rocky ground – the initial burst of excitement and growth, destroyed by any sort of problem or maybe the seed thrown amongst the thorns representing a faith that has just become tangled up with other things – perhaps with the temptations and distractions that surround us in our lives.
Or, of course, there is the seed thrown on good soil, the sort of seed that took time to develop and grow, but grew strong when it did – and that is like faith… Faith is a journey that takes work – we have to choose to work at a relationship with God, just as we work at any relationship – there will be good and easy times, but we also need the strength to get through the harder times…
Following God is a commitment, and commitments can sometimes be tough.
Someone once said that:-
At the close of life, the question will not be, "How much have you gained?" but "How much have you given?"
Not "How much have you won?" but "How much have you done?"
Not "How much have you saved?" but "How much have you sacrificed?"
It will be "How much have you loved and served," not "How much were you honoured?"
This is what following Jesus is all about, it is about sacrifice, it is about giving everything up for Him. It is about accepting that life as a Christian is hard, but like anything that is hard the end goal is the best in sight. The end goal of being with God for all eternity...
And when we begin to view choice like that – the choice of committing our lives to someone who has already committed so much for us, then the choice really appears more like an invitation – an invitation to something special, something irresistible, something too good to miss !
Now, as many of you know I like sport and I have noticed certain things about sport which can equate well with our Christian lives.
Firstly, sport encourages a sacrifice. A good sportsperson will work hard to get to the end goal of winning. They have a prize in sight and they aim for it, with all of themselves. Like sportspeople, following Jesus, being a disciple, involves sacrifice. It involves all of us. Jesus did not want a large number of “little bit” disciples who had a “little bit” of prayer, a “little bit” of commitment, a “little bit” of dedication, a “little bit” of love. He wants all of us, someone once said, that ‘if Jesus is not Lord of all, He is not Lord at all.’
We need to be ‘Jesus’ in the World today…. We can talk about the needs of the world, we can pray for a better way in the World, but we need to do more than that. We need to be in the World, showing the way of Jesus. We need to be prepared and ready to do what Jesus would do. We need to stand up against what is wrong, and to seek to make a change. In our lives we need to sacrifice all that stops us from getting closer to God and to put Him first.
Secondly, sport when it is abused is heart breaking to lots of people involved. It’s not just the winning and the losing, but the disappointment of players or teams letting us down sometimes – some of you may remember the betting scandal with the Pakistan cricket team. That scandal has made people insecure, unaware of what is real sport, and what is made up for money. People are hurt, and disillusioned, they don’t know where to turn.
And faith can also bring heartbreak, because being passionate about something often does – and there will be times when people of faith fail, times when we get things wrong and times when others seem to get things so wrong – but unlike in sport where there is often no answer other than to pick things up and start again, in our lives of faith we really can not just pretend it didn’t happen and start, but actually really start again afresh…
And thirdly, the sacrifice of a sports person makes the game worth watching. How often do we see someone do well in something and we wish for it to work out well for them. Quite a number of years ago now, the whole country almost, or at least so it felt, were willing Eddie the Eagle (a man who tried against all the odds to win) to do well- he did not, but people still admired his commitment.
And again with faith people will watch sacrifice – they will recognise people going beyond the ordinary for something or someone and they will notice why – we do things not for our own glory or reward, but to bring glory and praise to God – and when we do it, when we show commitment and passion, people will notice and they will listen…
All around us, day by day, there are choices to be made – some will be simple, some will be difficult… some choices we make will have very little bearing on our overall lives or the lives of anyone else, others will be crucial to us and to other people. There is none more important than the way we choose to live our lives of faith – or not…
Jesus chose the way of revolution – a self sacrificing, complete devotion for people everywhere – a love which would never be broken – and that’s what he asks us to do when he asks us to carry his cross… and to choose life with him…
May God give us his grace and strength to help us live for him, secure in the knowledge that we are always in his care… AMEN
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