June 15, 2024 – Fourth Sunday after Pentecost

“We walk by faith and not by sight.” (2 Cor 5:6)

While we live in the real world that is fraught with danger and filled with wonder, there is a movement beneath the surface that reveals a deeper – spiritual – dimension. Faith is a matter of perception and trust taking us beyond the obvious. It’s a matter of vision, of opening our perception to see the infinity of things and the sacredness in the present moment. When we view with the eyes of faith, we see more than meets the eye; we’re opened to deeper levels of reality. We begin to see the world from God’s perspective and not just our own.

Today’s readings tell us that God looks beyond our external appearances to see our heart. God goes beyond the superficial to see beauty – hidden inside rocks and inside small seeds. Five fish can feed a multitude. A persecutor can be the leading voice for global faith. There is always more to be found in every person and situation – and in every congregation. No single moment tells the whole story; no single moment is the finality; there is always the possibility of more. There is ALWAYS more than meets the eye.

The passage from 1 Samuel describes the anointing of David as king. Sent to Bethlehem to seek a successor to Saul, with whom God has lost confidence, Samuel initially identifies the obvious candidates, based on age, skill, and stature. He sees superficially, identifying age, brawn, and experience as necessary for leadership. But God tells him that leadership is not a matter of external appearance or previous achievement, and invites him to look more deeply at Jesse’s children until he finds an unlikely successor, the young – and scrawny by comparison – shepherd David.

The message is to pay attention to what lies beneath the surfaces of life and to look beyond the obvious and discover God in the unexpected, humble, and non-assuming realities of life. Divine revelation doesn’t always conform to our expectations or cultural norms; God is profoundly radical, revealing vision in unlikely situations and persons.  As Mary Oliver says, “Pay attention. Be astonished. Tell about it.”  What divine message is hidden in the humble?  When we see NO way, what way will emerge when we train our senses to see more deeply?

Psalm 20 speaks of God’s sustaining and protecting presence in a time of trouble. Call upon God – God will provide the resources you need to flourish. With threats all around, God is faithful and will deliver us. We need God’s loving care to find wholeness and victory amid the challenges of life. We are not self-sufficient but need power and wisdom greater than our own. Times of trouble remind us that apart from God’s grace, we are lost. God’s graceful support encourages creative action. Responding to God’s call and confident in God’s grace, we can boldly act to change the world. The most difficult times – times we wish never happened – may become the catalysts for growth if we look beneath the surface to discern God’s movement within events God has not chosen or willed. Despite outward appearances, including God’s apparent absence, our companioning and compassionate God is subtly at work in all things, inviting us forward lovingly.

The words from 2 Corinthians invite us to a deeper perception of life. We walk by faith, our sharing in God’s perception of the world, and not by sight, limited by the world’s judgments. God wants us to be imaginative and creative. Sight limits us to one-dimensional realism and imprisons us in the past. Faith opens us to a deeper dimension of life, and to graceful levels of reality that allow us to dream and embody our dreams to change the world.  When we call on God, answers come.  We can only pray that God is at work in this desperate national time, when people have lost their reason and Christians lead the parade of hate mongering. How can we be Christian in such a time without tearing the fabric of relationships?

We are challenged to go beyond appearances and to see the divine presence in unlikely places, including our companions at church and ourselves. We are invited to see the movements of God’s grace – the power of God’s salvation – in our own lives and in the people of around us, seeing them and us from a divine rather than human point of view. Just as the humiliation of the cross is the source of our salvation, our own mortality and fallibility reveal a greater treasure than we can imagine. Being in Christ opens us to unimaginable possibilities. In Christ, we are a new creation, and liberated from the past we can do great things as God’s companions in healing the world. What would it be like to do a “new thing” for God and the world?

The parables from Mark describe the surprising growth of God’s realm. Small is not only beautiful; it can also be powerful and life-transforming. The smallest of seeds can become a great plant giving shelter to birds. The broadcast of seeds, falling everywhere, is the precursor to a great harvest. It’s important for us to remember that small is beautiful and that God can do great things from small seeds.

Growth may even occur when it is least expected and against all odds.  Where might we scatter seeds of hope and hospitality?  Where might we bring great changes from small beginnings?  Pay attention to where you can be a voice for God and a healing presence.  Be astonished at the holy ground upon which you stand. And tell about it by words or deeds and let the light of God shine in you one moment at a time.

Today’s readings inspire us to see the divine energy and insight present in unexpected places. We look beyond the obvious to discover God moving in unlikely persons and situations. In all things God works for good and though the seeds of God’s realm often appear to be precarious and unimportant – infinitesimal – a great harvest and great possibilities are on the horizon for those who see from a God’s eye view, the eyes of faith, and bring forth great things from small beginnings.