Skip to main content

A Worthless Sparrow [Matthew 10:24-39] (pub 6.22.26)

 "Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? 
Yet not one of them will fall to the ground
 apart from your Father. 
And even the hairs of your head are all counted. 
So do not be afraid; 
you are of more value than many sparrows."

Consider the tiny Sparrow!

Sparrows live in grasslands, forests, and cities.

They reproduce quickly, raising up to five groups of chicks each season.

Aggressive competitors, they nest early and remain for life in colonies of about forty.

A male Sparrow’s black breast patch signals rank, giving higher-status males better feeding, territory, mates, and scarce food access.

In Jesus’ day there were abundant sparrows which were caught, sold for a penny each, used for food by the poor, sold as food, or as temple sacrifices.

So, buying two for a penny meant one was worthless.

Yet in Jesus’ day, these tiny, common, cheap, birds were cared for by God.

But as Jesus points out, not one falls to the ground without God’s care.

Consider Jesus’ mission for the disciples.

Jesus’ disciples were to Go into all nations; Make disciples of all; Baptize in Jesus’ name; Teach new disciples to obey Jesus’ commandments.

When encountering resistance, Jesus reminds them, as God’s eye is on the sparrow, so God’s eye is on you.

It works like this.

Clarence Jordan founded the racially integrated Koinonia Farm in Americus, Georgia in 1942.

Being racially integrated, it met with severe resistance, with attempts made to drive them out using bullets, bombs, intimidation, and boycott.

In God’s time when all of this ended, a housing initiative began; Habitat for Humanity.

With the tiniest farmland under God’s eye came Habitat for Humanity.

God’s eye as on the sparrow, so in your life journey, God’s eye in on you.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Grantchester's Warning

"But know this: if the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, the owner would not have let his house be broken into. You also must be ready, for the Son of Man is coming at an hour you do not expect.” (from Luke 12:32-40 ) I regularly watch Grantchester; a murder mystery set in 1950s England. The main characters are a local detective and an Anglican priest who, as a team, solve mysteries set in the town. Two aspects of Grantchester impress me. First, the simplicity of the 1950’s police communications done by a landline phone and not cell phone. Second, the simplicity of daily life with little television and fewer possessions allowing the characters to focus on their vocation of detective and priest. This simplicity is more than a nostalgic return to the “good old days”. Instead, it’s a Shaker type of simplicity where austerity allows freedom from distractions to focus on worship and community. Today’s distraction-filled world has seemingly countless activ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Ruler of All Earthly Kings

Grace to you and peace from him who is and who was and who is to come and from the seven spirits who are before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. (from Rev. 1:4-8 ) About 17 years ago I wrote a letter to the people in the United Church of Underhill. The purpose of the letter was to explain I was retiring at the end of the Conference Year. I felt the time had come for me personally to move on and for the church to grow with a new pastor. I secured a moving company while the church formed a search committee as we both prepared for the inevitable. This is the nature of the book of Revelation, as recorded in 1:4: “John, to the seven churches in the province of Asia.” This is Revelation’s context: it was written for the benefit of particular people at a particular time for their particular situation. John’s letter narrates a drama about God’s imminent invasion of the “kingdom of this world” ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Every Christian's Journey

"When he was at the table with them,  he took bread, blessed and broke it,  and gave it to them. Then their eyes were opened,  and they recognized him." Luke 24:31,32a To me there there all kinds of road trips. They all have similarities such as destinations and travel experiences. Years ago Elaine and I took a camping trip out West. We drove Utah's Route 12 between Capitol Reef and Bryce Canyon National Parks. This part of the road trip meant enjoying God's beautiful creation. One of the experiences we still laugh about was the constant daily lunch menu of PB&J sandwiches. Luke's major theme is traveling the Way. In the gospel, Jesus travel TO Jerusalem. In Luke's Acts, the disciples travel FROM Jerusalem proclaiming the Word Empowered by the Spirit. On the Emmaus road trip from Jerusalem, two disciples, probably Cleopas and his wife, experience a stranger's presence. The stranger reveals himself as Jesus by explaining what was said about him in the ...
Post a Comment
Read more