Empty Shelves 2.0

Matthew 19:16-22

Then someone came to him and said, “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?” And he said to him, “Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one who is good. If you wish to enter into life, keep the commandments.” He said to him, “Which ones?” And Jesus said, “You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal; You shall not bear false witness; Honor your father and mother; also, You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” The young man said to him, “I have kept all these; what do I still lack?” Jesus said to him, “If you wish to be perfect, go, sell your possessions, and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven; then come, follow me.” When the young man heard this word, he went away grieving, for he had many possessions.

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This week I've found myself in sort of a haze with everything that's going on in the world. The ocean currents that sustain our lives are at risk of shutting down; there's the devastating earthquake that hit Haiti, the threat to women and innocent civilians in Afghanistan, and the flight of refugees from countries hit hard by drug cartels and corrupt governments. The world is facing many crises, all while here in the U.S.A., we are racing to privatize space travel and argue about science that other countries dream they could only possess. Stating I find myself in a haze is putting it mildly. However, it drew me back to this passage from the Gospel of Matthew that we read together that very first Sunday we worshipped virtually and challenged me, us, to ask if we truly learned anything this past year. 

Empty Shelves… 

If you joined our first virtual service on March 13th, 2020, you might recall this picture I showed taken by my friend Michael Fargan of empty store shelves. People were hoarding everything they could get their hands on paper towels, toilet paper, water, frozen food, bread, milk; you name it! Stores across the country were bare. It seemed like almost all of us were driven by a mad impulse to buy, buy, hideaway, and buy some more. Of course, this vicious cycle only highlighted the gap between our neighbors.  As things slowed down and as we all seemed to "get the hang" of living a pandemic lifestyle, pastors and other spiritual leaders wondered if this time of quiet might be the medicine we need to soothe our war-bent hearts. 

And it did, for a while, until there were people who began to think that they were entitled to certain freedoms, freedoms that placed themselves in a higher position of power and authority. It didn't matter what was good for the general welfare, if it was their way or the highway, even if it meant that lives were the cost of doing business. I'm sure that these are issues that the rich young man who came to see Jesus wrestled with as they contemplated eternal life. They might not have been putting people to death, but the thought of sacrificing anything they owned or the idea of giving up any personal liberties to protect their neighbor was too much to bear. So it seems we, too, are at this pivotal moment of asking whether we can muster the strength to sacrifice once again if needed for the sake of others and for the future of generations to come. 

The Young Man’s Question… 

While the young man's question might appear innocent at first, it's inherently flawed. The young man comes to Jesus asking what good deed must be done to merit eternal life. That's the thing, though, Jesus doesn't expect one thing; Jesus expects many things. Most importantly, Jesus values the person who allows themselves to be transformed by the life-giving love of God. 

When I think of the young man's question, I can't help but think of it in terms of something I call "Yard Sign Activism" or "Yard Sign Christianity." Sure, you can put up a sign that says you advocate for the environment, the poor, the marginalized, or put up a sign that says you support an upcoming marathon, but planting a yard sign isn't transformative. It's a one-and-done kind of thing you can do and forget about it until a neighbor brings it back or you notice the wind took it away. Jesus isn't looking for us to do one thing and forget about the rest of the gospel; Jesus is looking to us to say, "Yes! I want to be transformed, I want my life to be different, I want my life to reflect the healing hands of God, the peacemaking hands of God, the compassionate hands of God!" And friends, that takes more effort than planting a yard sign and calling it a day. 

It's a matter of perspective. We might have a lot yet still find our shelves are empty of the virtues that God cherishes. On the other hand, we might have little in terms of material goods yet find that our shelves are overflowing with generosity, patience, and love. How have you used this time to nurture your heart? Have you used it to contemplate the ways you might be a life-giver? Or has this time been one of trying to find shortcuts or an easy fix so that short-term inconveniences don't have to be addressed. Any coach or therapist, or teacher, or pastor, will offer a reminder that hard work is always required. And that hard work often demands a sacrifice of either our time, resources, comfort, convenience, or anything else we might hold onto and refuse to give up. 

A Different Ending… 

What's most intriguing about this passage is the way it ends. It tells us that the rich young man went away sad because he had many possessions. The young man went away sad, but we don't have to. We don't have to go away downtrodden. Instead, we might look around and see the crises that surround us, and instead of pulling up the sludge of greed and malice, we might find grace and charity. Grace and charity that takes us through the rigorous work of following in Christ's footsteps to a place where our transformation occurs. And the shelves of things we were lacking might not seem so empty after all, and in fact, we might have more than enough to share. 

I don't expect us to solve the problems at hand overnight, though I will still always pray for a miracle. But, what I do hope and what I believe Jesus expects from us is that we choose the pathway of sacrificial love. That in the giving of ourselves, we open ourselves and others to see the places and people in our world who are hurting, and then instead of sticking up a yard sign, roll up their sleeves or offer a needed tool or a kind word as we pull together in building one another up. And then, maybe then, we won't go away sad or fearful or angry, but hopeful, hopeful because we learned how to change and  know our hearts have changed by divine love. Amen.