Good morning, riverside. I'm grateful and strengthened, strengthened by the presence of
my family, grateful to have you here. Won't you take a moment and
pray with me? May the words of my mouth and the meditation of all
of our hearts be pleasing and acceptable in your sight, O Lord, I'll
strength and redeemer. Amen, I'll. Scripture Lesson, taken from the eleventh
chapter of Matthew's Gospel, closes with the very familiar words that are in an
invitation to the weary, to the burdened and oppressed. They are the familiar
comforting words we often hear at a homegoing service or a funeral, a memorial,
oftentimes of benediction, a reminder of Jesus's comforting presence and desire to share
in our burdens. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened,
and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn
from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will
find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden light.
I find it interesting the version by in Eugene Peterson's Message Bible, Are
you tired, worn out, burned out on religion. Come to me,
Get away with me, and you'll recover your life. I'll show you how
to take a real rest. Walk with me and work with me. Watch
how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won't lay
anything heavy or ill fitting on you. Keep company with me, and you'll
learn to live freely and lightly. Says the word. What a beautiful and
loving invitation, particularly when we're in the midst of challenges and struggles. However,
before we can fully appreciate this invitation, we may wish to place these
words in the fuller context of this chapter as a whole, which begins with
providing us with an understanding of what is going on in a very important relationship,
a relationship that most of us are familiar with. In the opening passage,
a theme has developed around relationships. We find that the people of Israel
are not accepting of Jesus their messiah. What is most shocking is that John
the Baptist, hearing from his prison cell about the deeds of Christ, is
expressing some doubt, some uncertainty concerning Jesus's ministry, Jesus's identity. John the
Baptist, John the waymaker, the one who came to prepare the way for
the Lord, the one who testifies to Jesus's superior power, stating, I
baptize you with water for repentance. But one who is more powerful than I
is coming after me. I am not worthy to carry his sandals. He
will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. John the Baptist is now
in prison for speaking out in the face of empire to declare Jesus as Messiah,
the holy One who would come to take away the sins of the world.
That same John, now in prison for his convictions about Jesus the Messiah,
is now questioning Jesus's identity. This is interesting. So even the most
devout, the most loyal, has questions and is expressing doubt. He wants
to know if Jesus is the one the Messiah, or if there is another
that they are to wait for. Jesus hasn't met John's expectations. Perhaps he's
disappointed. The text may serve as a reminder to us all that even the
most devout follower is prone to disappointment. It is safe to say even the
saved, the sanctified, the Holy ghost filled can come to a place of
question and doubt in their relationship with God. Is this the Christ, the
Messiah, the long awaited savior who takes away the sins of the world.
Are you the one, Jesus? Or should we wait for another? I
imagine that there are many of us. When we pick up the newspaper or
listen to the news to hear the horrors of the day, one can't help
but ask where is God? And if there is a God, why does
God allow such things? Does God hear the cries, the prayers, the
petitions. The number of children living in poverty in the wealthiest country is tragic,
and here in New York, almost thirty percent of our children live in
poverty. The number of people feeling isolated and lonely without the support of family,
friends, or good neighbors has reached epidemic levels. Social isolation and loneliness
have become widespread problems here in the United States, which only increases mental and
physical health risk. Many languishing and long term care facilities without the loving or
carrying presence of friends and family. The number of people sleeping in public spaces,
on our steps and in our doorways across the country is yet another crisis.
How do we make sense of beautiful buildings sitting vacant or partially occupied after
the pandemic fostered remote work while there is a swelling number of unsheltered people in
our city and country as a whole. We have a humanitarian crisis that has
led to tens of thousands of people crossing over the border in search of a
better life. But there is a conspicuous absence of at a national strategy to
help address this crisis. Jesus says, I come that you may have life,
and you may have it more abundantly. Yet nearly one point five million
New Yorkers now experience food insecurity. One has to wonder if abundance is reserved
for just a few. There are more liquor stores, smoke shops, and
overpriced, poorly stock bodegas than health and wellness programs right here in Harlem.
If we are in genuine relationship with God, I would suspect that there are
any number of days when one might be doubtful, frustrated, and even angry.
This happens in real relationships. We get upset when our hopes and expectations,
our understand our expectations our understanding is not aligned with what we experience.
We believe in an all powerful obnisition of nipotent God who takes away the sins
of the world. Yes, a loving God who has given us free choice,
but can also change the hearts and minds of each of us. A
familiar refrain in the Black Church would be, won't he do it? As
a testament to God's good work? Yet we witness the work of our Supreme
Court recognizing there is no person or persons, justice or court that is a
match for God. So, Lord, how did you allow the Supreme the
Court to roll back Row versus Way, affirmative action block and student debt relief
and allowing a website allowing a website designer to refuse to make same sex wedding
websites. I hear the echoes of the late Congressmen Reverend Adam Clayton Powell Junior,
saying, is this the land of the free and the home of the
brave? Lord? Are you the God who never leaves us or forsakes us,
the God who grants clarity and understanding? I don't understand. The playing
field has not been leveled, so everything affects Black, brown and lower resource
communities disproportionately, there are higher maternal mortality rates among Black American women, and
according to the CDC, more than eighty percent of them are preventable. Fewer
quality resources and services, and communities that are already suffering from scarcity, a
lack of affordable housing, a lack of access to quality food, a lack
of opportunity, higher levels of violence, particularly gun violence, and many children
find it easier to get guns and their parents will ever realize. Friends.
Let the first portion of this chapter serve as a reminder that even people with
strong faith can struggle with questions of doubt, especially when we have such high
expectations. There's no question prison has to affect one's physical, emotional, and
spiritual functioning. I imagine for John he was surrounded by other prisoners under harsh
conditions. This changes one's behavior, perhaps mindset. You may not know who
you can trust, and it may alter relationships. And if we allow circumstances
to define the way we see God, we risk becoming a prisoner. Two
prisoners of perspective. When we choose to adjust our perspectives, we tend to
be able to see God's goodness even in the most challenging of circumstances. These
moments feel like the gracious and divine movement of the Holy Spirit. I see
hope, I see hope and feel God's rhythms of grace moving through circumstances of
life. As we tuned into the election of results last week to learn you
Saith Salaam was one of the Central Park five wrongfully accused and sentenced to prison.
Now twenty three years later, has won the seat on the New York
City Council. It was a reminder that we can find strength in knowing all
the challenging and difficult experiences in this life are temporary. Trouble don't last always.
Even the darker nights where there is weeping through the night, joy returns
to greet us in the morning. When all is finished and we have endured
all things with faith in Jesus Christ, we have the promise that God shall
wipe away the tears from our eyes, that we can rest from our burdens.
In our text, friends, Jesus says, you can exchange heavy burdens.
You can exchange heavy burdens of expectations and your anger and prejudice and rejection
of others, and take on the lord's yoke. Jesus promises what he knows
will result as true rest for weary souls. Friends, don't be discouraged.
There is hope. I see hope. I see hope in Harvard's thirtieth President,
Claudette Gay, who knew months ago that the Supreme Court would would render
a decision on students of fair admissions versus President and fellows of Harvard College.
President Gay, a brilliant analytical political scientists and Harvard's first black chief administrator,
spoke directly to the Harvard community and all who care about moving forward with the
mission of education in the face of continuing racial discrimination, where she stated,
we will comply with the Court's decision, but it does not change our values.
It does not change their values. We continue to believe deeply that a
thriving, diverse, intellectual community is essential to shaping the next generation of leaders.
So long as we have leaders like her, Let the Supreme Court do
what the Supreme Court does. I see, I see hope right here.
Each time we can open our doors to those who are struggling to have their
basic needs met, their basic physical, emotional, and mental or spiritual needs.
I feel a sense of hope, and I feel God's grace when we
meet read and served newly arriving asylum seekers visiting our food pantry and clothing distribution.
Each month, Julio and maid A graciously flow with the ever increasing demands
of people visiting social services, and by God's grace, we can meet them
in the need. We've moved, we've turned no one away, Thanks be
to God to discover that we are at a cross roads, perhaps broken down
and tired of living life on the merry go round as the Populace song rise
up by Audredago's we can rise up to Jesus's invitation to go down a different
road. We're invited to let go of one way living or a more abundant
life, one way of living for a more abundant life, the same Jesus
whose ministry was to meet people right where they were in their brokenness, hurt,
pain, rejection, and look lovingly and tenderly in a way no other
can. We are invited to let go and discover still a more excellent way.
There is for each one of us a great invitation we have received in
this reading of today's text. Perhaps someone is at a crossroads, frustrated,
angry, losing hope for a better tomorrow. Perhaps this is the time to
accept this invitation. Come with all your burdens, Jesus says, all your
frustrations, your disappointments, all your anger, all the righteous indignation to receive
and experience the unforced rhythms of grace. May it be so, God bless you,