St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
November 26, 2023
Year A, Proper 29: The Last Sunday after Pentecost – Christ the King
Ezekiel 34:11-16, 20-24
Psalm 100
Ephesians 1:15-23
Matthew 25:31-46
The King Who Serves and Begs
I doubt that any of us who were here on Monday afternoon will ever forget Sandy Martin’s funeral.
This church was just packed with people – we could not have squeezed anyone else into this place – and the overflow seating in the Parish Hall was, well, overflowing.
That extraordinary turnout was an appropriate tribute to such a good man, someone whose life was devoted to family, friends, and community.
And the touching and often funny remembrances by family and friends honored Sandy, and the beautiful music by Wanda and the choir helped to comfort us in our sorrow.
The gospel lesson we chose was the one we almost always use at funerals.
The setting is the Last Supper as Jesus tries to reassure his friends that death is not the end for him, not the end for their friendship, not the end of their love.
Jesus tells the disciples that he is going on ahead to prepare a place for them – and that they know the way to that place of reunion.
I always love that out of all the disciples it’s only our friend the Apostle Thomas who is brave enough – honest enough - to admit, “Lord, we do not know the way to the place where you are going.”
And then Thomas asks, “How can we know the way?”
And Jesus responds, “I am the way, the truth, and the life.”
I doubt that cleared things up much for Thomas and the others.
But later, after the first Easter, after they knew that Jesus had in fact defeated death, the disciples must have reflected back to the Last Supper, recalling and better understanding the lessons Jesus had taught them.
Jesus had blessed the bread and wine, promising to be with them – to be with us – each time we gather around the table and remember him.
Jesus had shocked them by getting up from the table and washing their dirty and smelly feet – teaching them that this is what it looks like to follow him – that this is loving service – and commanding us to follow his example.
The way of Jesus is the way of love and sacrifice.
Christ is a King who serves.
Today we arrive at the last Sunday of the Church Year, the Last Sunday after Pentecost, the last Sunday of the little Pre-Advent season that we’ve been reflecting on during the last few weeks.
Today is the Feast of Christ the King.
During our Pre-Advent we’ve been reminded of the Last Day, the Day of Judgment.
We’ve been nudged to get going because we don’t have all the time in the world, and we certainly don’t want to be like the bridesmaids who failed to plan ahead and ran out of oil for their lamps.
And we certainly don’t want to be like the slave who was given one talent and buried it out of an abundance of caution and fear.
During our Pre-Advent we’ve been reminded that we will be judged and held accountable for how we have lived our lives, how we have shared our zillion blessings.
And that theme crescendos in today’s lesson from the Gospel of Matthew, where Jesus teaches that the people in need – the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the sick, and the imprisoned – they are Jesus himself.
The people in line early on a Saturday morning at the Community Crisis Center – the people who show up at Paul’s Place looking for a good meal and a fresh start – the children at Owings Mills Elementary School who don’t have their own bed or a kitchen table – they are in fact Christ the King himself.
At the Last Supper, Jesus dropped to his knees and washed the feet of his friends, doing the lowly, stinky work of a servant, teaching us that this is what love looks like.
Christ is the King who serves.
And today Jesus teaches us that he can be found in and among the people desperately looking for help.
Christ is the King who begs.
I’m not sure which image is more unsettling or more challenging.
For me, one of the highlights of the week is always our Wednesday service of Holy Communion and Anointing.
After the service, most of us stick around for Bible Study when we look at the upcoming Gospel lesson.
Because of Thanksgiving, last week our numbers were down a little but, as usual, we had a conversation that was thoughtful, lively, and challenging.
We talked about Jesus’ hard message of giving to people in need.
We wondered how to do that so we still had enough to sustain ourselves.
How can we give while also keeping ourselves safe in a world that is full of dangers?
I didn’t have any easy answers to those questions or concerns.
But, I did say that it’s not our place to decide who is deserving and undeserving of help – and that, at the very least, we should strive to really see the person who is asking for help – to see them as a person beloved by God – to see Christ present in and through them.
Big words, right?
Much easier to say than actually do.
So, my plan for after the Wednesday service was to make a few phone calls, catch up on a little paperwork, maybe try to straighten up my messy desk, and then head home early for a jump on Thanksgiving.
My office, as most of you know, gives me a good view of people making their way up to the office door.
And, on Wednesday afternoon as I was talking on the phone, I saw someone I didn’t recognize come along and ring the bell.
A minute or two later, our Parish Administrator Jane came to my door but saw that I was on the phone.
When I ended my conversation a couple of minutes later, Jane reappeared and said that the man I had seen coming up the walk was hoping to speak with me, looking for some help.
Jane said, he seems really nice and I hope you will help him.
So, I ushered the man into my office and we sat down across from each other.
I introduced myself and asked for his name.
He said, “Thomas,” which both made me smile… and also made me suspicious.
You’ve come to a church named for St. Thomas on a street named St. Thomas to talk to a priest named Thomas and your name is Thomas?
Hmm.
I asked what was going on and he told me his troubles – he had been laid off from his accounting job and he and his wife were having trouble providing for his two young children.
They had fallen behind on some bills, most especially their BGE bill.
Was it possible for us to offer him some help?
I confess that I asked him if he happened to have his BGE bill with him. No doubt anticipating that request, he did and handed it to me.
And, sure enough, there was a rather large amount past due.
And, of course, the name on the bill was “Thomas.”
Long ago, a different Thomas thought that he did not know the way.
But he knew.
Jesus had taught him, just like Jesus teaches us, that the way is to follow his example, washing as many feet as we can - offering loving service.
And Jesus also teaches us that when we offer loving service, we’re not just helping the man behind on his bills, we’re offering loving service to Jesus himself.
The end of one year and the start of another are reminders that we do not have all the time in the world.
So, as we prepare to begin again, may we remember that:
Christ is the King who serves and Christ is the King who begs.
Amen.
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