Sermon by Rev Sydney Maitland for Sunday 10 August 2025.
Sodom and Gomorrah afire by Jacob de Wet II, 1680 (Source)
• First Reading: Isaiah 1: 1, 10-20 (Wash and make yourselves clean – do right, seek justice, defend the oppressed)
• Second Reading: Hebrews 11: 1-3, 8-16 (Faith in action)
• Gospel: Luke 12: 32-40 (Watchfulness)
It is a very long time since I last visited a funfair. Yet the memories are very vivid: so many attractions – the rides, spectacles, novelties, never mind the candy floss booths.
And just what does this have to do with today’s readings? Well, think of all the things that we can put our trust in, where we invest ourselves, our futures and identities. Our hopes and expectations.
For some it is politics, for others science; then there is sport, art, culture, business or perhaps it is our money the health service or our national identity.
In a global economy and society there are just so many different interests and attractions: all competing for attention and power.
So there is much to entertain and distract us.
And then you see there are the things of God. His law and His love, His justice and His mercy. His peace and yet His judgment. And they are all there for us to acknowledge if only we can find the time and inclination.
Oh yes, we will want to do the right thing – that is, what is right in our own eyes, but in the sight of God? That is another matter.
And so in Isaiah, the lesson starts by comparing Israel with Sodom and Gomorrah. It goes on to expand this premise: the formality and emptiness of their worship which fronts their greed and rapaciousness.
Their neglect of their own kin – the old, poor, widowed and orphaned, and their use of the law to impose themselves on those least able to defend themselves.
It all sounds very modern and up to date – when we have made the law in such confusing complex terms, with confusing definitions and procedures and limited forms of redress. Even those that are available are also complex, costly and drawn-out.
But in spite of all this, Isaiah also offers a promise. Nobody is beyond forgiveness and blessing. Nobody is denied the opportunity to stop, turn around and think again.
Hence the promise: Though your sins are scarlet, they shall be white as snow; thought crimson, they shall be like wool. If you are willing and obedient, you will eat the good things of the Lord.
Even in this extremity God is still there and longing to bless His people if only they would turn around and face Him in full sincerity and commitment of heart.
Here indeed is a promise which they could rely upon – if only they would.
Looking at the gospel, Jesus also speaks of the things that people could rely upon. First of all, it was the call not to be afraid and this is a call and a word of encouragement that the Lord has placed before us: Fear not, little flock.
But then it is about the orientation and direction of our lives and faith. Give to the poor. Buy purses that do not wear out. Look at your priorities, for where your treasure is, there your heart is also.
This is all about our priorities and where we really place our trust. Just what is our starting point? And where does the Lord figure in all of this?
For Jesus also makes a solemn promise. He really is coming back but nobody knows just when. We are given pointers to when this may be near but the instruction is to be ready and waiting at all times.
It is certainly not to despise those who do want to be ready. It is not to be superior to those with a simple but firm faith. It definitely is to honour all those others who love the Lord.
But the letter to the Hebrews puts it into a longer context. Faith is having a confidence in the kingdom of God that we hope for even if we do not see or feel it.
It is partly there in our experience of worship and fellowship. But it is also rooted and grounded in the purposes and provisions of God, and in our readiness to see this as the first thing in our lives.
In this letter, it starts with the very creation of the universe, the visible formed from what was not visible. It is there in the faith of Abraham and Sarah who were given world changing promises but sill died many generations before they came to be.
And yet it was not the works of Abraham that made him right with God – it was his personal faith, his faithfulness to and even fear of God which became the foundation of the Old and New Testaments.
For us also, it is still a matter of holding to the things of God before all else. These define our attitude to each other, to our lives and money and relationships.
It means holding to Him when things seem uncertain, confused and even dark.
It means continuing before Him as He leads us deeper into His purposes for us.
It means that He is the filter through which we can see our institutions and relationships most clearly. For He is still telling us: ‘Fear not, little flock.’
