(Ephesians 3: 1-12)
The other day I was trying to explain homelessness in the context of apples to a person who was interested in the tiny home project being established on our church property. You see, it’s easy and convenient to lump all homeless people into one group. It’s easier to categorize, stereotype, and marginalize them so you can rationalize why they are the way they are and can’t be helped. In response to my Facebook post on the tiny home village someone I don’t know posted one of those GIFs that was a play on the movie Field of Dreams saying: “If you build it, they will come.” I think what he was implying was that if we build a tiny home village complete with toilets and showers homeless people will flock to Port Hadlock from Seattle and, God forbid, Portland! So, in a couple of conversations and post responses I tried to explain that the different kinds of homelessness is much like the different kinds of apples. You have Fuji apples, Golden Delicious, MacIntosh, Honey Crisp, Cortland, Winesap, Arkansas Black, Northern Spy, Winter Banana, Crab Apples and so on. It’s amazing how many different kinds of apples there are, but they all have one thing in common: they’re apples. And that, I tried to explain, is the way it is with homelessness. Many people, for a variety of reasons, associate homelessness with the crisis they see in Seattle, Portland or any other big city. The homeless are dirty, lazy, crazy, addicted, and extremely dangerous. We don’t want their kind around here. And yes, there are some that may fit into that category and nobody wants to see them move into their neighborhood, not in their backyard. As I tried to explain, we have some who come by the church for assistance who are living outdoors in tents or under tarps. We also have some that are couch surfing or staying with friends. We have some who are living in vehicles, some in camper-trailers with either no utilities or maybe electricity if they’re lucky. Some have told me that the septic system for the trailer they’re living in has failed and the conditions are unsanitary, and they fear for their health. And others describe the property they are renting as close to uninhabitable for one reason or another. One of the responses I got was that these folks really weren’t homeless as their tent, their vehicle, their leaky camper trailer was their home. The homeless are like the different kinds of apples, different in many ways but still homeless and still apples as far as God sees them, created in His image and grafted to the tree of his chosen people. They’re the same kind of different as us.
And grafting those Gentile apples to the same tree as a part of God’s plan for his creation is the message of this morning’s scripture reading. The Apostle Paul wrote this letter to the church in Ephesus while he was under house arrest in Rome for preaching about Christ to anyone who would listen. The religious leaders in Jerusalem, who felt threatened by Christ’s teachings and didn’t believe he was the Messiah, pressured the Romans to arrest Paul and bring him to trial for treason and causing rebellion among the Jewish people. The people were beginning to ask questions. The Jewish authorities felt betrayed by Paul and that he had turned against them. Paul had been one of the rising stars among the Pharisees and had a promising future as a leader in the Jewish religious hierarchy. This created a credibility issue for them as one of their brightest and best had gone over to the other side so-to-speak. I mean, you can imagine the Pharisees being questioned not only about Paul’s conversion but also his zeal for Jesus Christ as the Messiah. He had fallen out of favor with the power structure and they were doing all they could to silence him and maintain their status quo.
Paul starts out by referencing the fact that he is in custody, “a prisoner for Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles.” He says: For surely you have already heard of the commission of God’s grace that was given me for you, and how the mystery was made known to me by revelation. Paul says he was given a commission, which is defined as an instruction, a command or duty to perform some sort of important task. In the New International Version of the New Testament this commission is written as the “administration of God’s grace” meaning the special stewardship, trust, or commitment that Paul had been given. He has been assigned the special work of preaching the Good News to the Gentiles. His charge was to bring the news to the Gentiles which, I think Paul may have thought odd, as he knew the Law of Moses inside and out and could have argued effectively and convincingly to his Jewish brother and sisters why Jesus was the Christ, the Messiah. But God saw how he could be even more effective in bringing the Good News to the Gentiles. A knowledgeable Jewish religious authority preaching a gospel of how the God of the Jews is a God for all people, even them.
Paul writes of the great mystery that was made known to him by a revelation which too has enabled him to explain it where it could easily be understood by all who want to receive it. He says: In former generations this mystery was not made known to humankind, as it has now been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit: that is, the Gentiles have become fellow heirs, members of the same body, and sharers in the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. Paul no longer sees the Gentiles as outsiders, they are brothers and sisters in Christ, and so he will give his very life to make sure the whole family of God knows they too are welcome in God’s household. Different apples grafted onto the same tree. Paul continues by saying; Of this gospel I have become a servant according to the gift of God’s grace that was given to me by the working of his power. Paul makes it clear that grace is an active concept. Not only does God’s grace bring forgiveness, but it also has other purposes. Paul received his grace from God and put it into action by preaching the gospel, by taking the responsibility of making known God’s long-hidden plan, which has now been revealed. Whereas we’ve taken our grace and put it into action through our many mission efforts as we reach out to the different apples in our own mission field orchard right here in the Tri-Area and beyond. The mystery that Paul has revealed is that through Jesus Christ and with the guidance of the Holy Spirit, God’s people will be unified in a way that will restore wholeness to a broken creation. Sin will be defeated.
Paul then continues saying; Although I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given to me to bring the Gentiles the news of the boundless riches of Christ, and to make everyone see what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things; so that through the church the wisdom of God in its rich variety might now be made known to the rulers and authorities in heavenly places. When Paul refers to himself as “the very least of all the saints,” he is not just being humble. He’s referring to his fall, his persecution of Christ and Followers of the Way when in his former life as a Pharisee, he traveled the countryside looking for believers who had fled the persecution in Jerusalem, returning them for punishment which included death by stoning. As remorseful as Paul is for what he sees as unforgiveable behavior against the God he served, he knows that he has been redeemed by the blood of Christ, God’s grace. An epiphany; not different, the same. Paul’s transformed life of servitude to Christ and the least of all God’s people demonstrates the power of God, a power to which Gentiles, different apples like you and me, now have access to him through Jesus Christ.
We are not apostles and probably not even close to being evangelists, but God will give us ample opportunities to tell others about Christ. And with those opportunities, God will provide the ability, the courage and power we need through the guidance of the Holy Spirit to make it happen. So make yourself available to God as his servant whenever an opportunity presents itself. And, as you focus on the other person and his or her needs, God will communicate your caring attitude. Your words and actions will be natural, loving, and compelling as you work to gather in and recognize that these Gentile apples all belong to the same tree. They’re the same kind of different as you and me.
Please pray with me.
Gracious and merciful God, how we praise you for your magnificent works and infinite wisdom. You have created us, all of us, in your image, including us in your plan to mend your broken creation. Keep us mindful that while we all may be different from one another that we are all the same to you in your love for us. Move us to see past those things that we think make us different from one another and to see others as you see them, as your children and a brother or sister of your son Jesus Christ. In Jesus’ name, we pray, Amen.