This is God’s Doing!

Indignation. It often gets the best of me, and seems to be a major driver in international history. When I know that I’m right, it becomes RIGHTEOUS indignation. However, when it’s YOU, I easily dismiss it as your incomplete knowledge. Indignation can keep me awake during the wee hours, and clouds my disposition. Indignation grows in me much more than it’s source is worth, and preoccupies my sense of “fairness”. This weekend’s readings involve folks whose indignation spoils their sense of compassion…and God’s rehabilitation processes.

We look first at Jonah: whether or not he was an actual person, this is a crackin–good story! You probably remember about the Big Fish that God sent to give Jonah a second shot; and about how he really did go to Ninevah to proclaim God’s displeasure. To his great amazement, the citizenry from the King on down DID re-think their brokenness! This disgusted Jonah, who wanted a nuclear air-strike to fix ’em. Pouting, he built a shelter to watch–and God sent a nice vine/bush to give him shade. But the next day, God also sent a cut-worm; the bush/vine shriveled, and again Jonah was indignant. “Then the Lord said, ‘You are concerned about the bush, for which you did not labor and which you did not grow….And should I not be concerned about Ninevah, that great city?'” (4:10-11)

St. Paul’s Letter to the believers at Philippi is an encouragement to cling to the Christian teaching and ethic in the face of other competing (and pleasurable?) world-views. He encourages them to stand side by side for the faith–which seems like good advice to any congregation, then and now. He is concerned that they “are in no way intimidated by [your] opponents….And this is God’s doing.” (1:28) Indignation may seem like fun…until we get ulcers and depression. What IS God doing?

Now look! This parable of Jesus is patently un-American, goes against all of our system of reward and hard work! It’s found in Matthew’s account, 20:1-16. You know, about the vintner whose crop came in all at once, and he had to go back to the labor exchange all through the day to recruit more and more day-workers. He agreed with the first crew for a denarius–a day’s wage–but at the end of the day, he gave EVERYBODY the same!! “No fair! We worked harder & longer; we should get a bonus!” Indignation, again. “Qwitcherbellyakin'” , they were told. “I’ll run my shop as I please!” Kinda deflates our illusions about Bigger Mansions in a heaven where even kings cast their own crowns before the throne of the one true King. Equality? This is God’s doing.

We’ve been reading for several weeks now about building the Faith-Community. Certainly indignation is one of the major demons which destroys trust and compassion. I can be like Jonah and sulk; or I can build a bridge and get over it. Not everything is “fair”, we tell our kids. Yet this, too, is God’s doing: will it work in our churches??

God Bless Us, Every One Horace Brown King