’Tis the Gift to be Simple
During the period of Lent, there was a series of services held here, where the theme was, “Jesus the Teacher”.  The various clergy, who were involved, read from the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Matthew 10, Matthew 13, and Matthew 18.  We didn’t quite get to Matthew 24-25.  I will reference those chapters today.
In any case, Matthew’s gospel is known for its emphasis on Jesus as teacher.  So, right in chapter 4 of the gospel, we hear that Jesus taught in their synagogues.  And, then, right at the very end of the gospel, we hear Jesus—the risen Jesus—tell his disciples, “Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you, and, lo, I am with you always until the end of the age.”  So, as well as having five distinct sections of the gospel where much of Jesus’ teaching is collected, there are these other references to teaching throughout the gospel.
We may know that the conclusion of the Sermon on the Mount was greeted with astonishment on the part of the crowd.  They were astonished at his words, because he taught with authority, and not as the scribes, not as their usual teachers did.
In fact, throughout Matthew’s gospel, and, in particular, in relation to the reading from Matthew 11, there is a contrast with the approach of the scribes and Pharisees—in this case, the usual teachers from the law.  So, you have heard the latter part of Matthew 11,  “Come to me, all you that are weary and are carrying heavy burdens, and I will give you rest.”   But, in Matthew 23, we hear Jesus’ words in reference to the scribes and Pharisees,
“They tie up heavy burdens, hard to bear, and lay them on the shoulders of others; but they themselves are unwilling to lift a finger to move them.”
There is a contrast, then, between Jesus’ teaching and his approach, and that of the scribes and Pharisees, as the gospel portrays the matter.
Also, this matter of the yoke.  The image of the yoke appears in part of the—shall we say—Catholic canon; it is I think a canon observed also by the Anglican Church, which includes the book of Sirach or Ecclesiasticus.   In the book of Sirach, there is mention of Wisdom.  Here are some of these words in reference to Wisdom from Sirach:
Put your neck under her yoke [“her” meaning  referring to Wisdom]; and  let your souls receive instruction; it is to be found close by.
Jesus’ words, then, “Take my yoke upon you”—there is a sense, then, that he is referring to Wisdom, and the wisdom that he has to offer.
Well, what is this Wisdom?  What is this wisdom that he has to offer?  Well, I would say, it is not purely information; it is not merely a series of commands—you shall do this, and not do that.  This wisdom that Jesus teaches references our relationship with God, and calls on a fundamental orientation of our lives to God, through service of neighbour.
Once Jesus was asked, “What is the greatest commandment?”  Now, some people could see that as a trick question on the part of the person asking it.  In some circles, at the time, it was believed that all commands were of equal value; and how could you single one out?  Well, Jesus did single one out—“Love the Lord your God with all your heart... and love your neighbor as yourself.”  So he replied with two commandments.  Also, in the context of the Sermon on the Mount, he said, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.  This is the law and the prophets.”  So, instead of focussing on externals or relatively trivial items, Jesus focussed on what was fundamental, what was basic, and called for people’s response to that.
And, as people respond to the Wisdom he has to offer, goodness can be part of our lives, from the inside out.  Now, Jesus speaks, in the Sermon on the Mount, about wolves in sheep’s clothing.  But a wolf dressed up as a sheep is still a wolf, obviously.  The important thing is that we receive this wisdom from God, that has come to us in Christ, and be changed inside out, so that we take part in the goodness that is his to share with us.
Also, there is a sense, within Jesus’ words in Matthew, chapter 11, where he thanks God that God has hidden these things from the wise and intelligent, and revealed them to infants—there is the sense that God, when he calls for our faith, calls us to put aside our sense of being smart, intelligent, clever—and respond humbly to the wisdom God has to offer in Christ.  And I think that this song that we sang at the first part of this service, says something about this:
’Tis the gift to be simple, ’tis the gift to be free;
’tis the gift to come down where you ought to be...
The faith that God calls us to in Christ is a faith of “coming down where we ought to be”, not relying so much on our own cleverness or intelligence.
So Jesus’ teaching, first of all, is teaching which is non-superficial; it does not have to do with merely superficial realities, or trivial realities.  It addresses our very personhood, our heart.  It calls for our response.  It calls for us to bypass—at least to some degree—the sense that we are smart, too smart, for this gospel of God’s love to us.
God’s Wisdom, reflected in Jesus’ teaching, calls for faith, the response of whole lives, of our whole heart.  “Come to me, all you who hare weary and carrying heavy burdens... I will give you rest.”  That is the consequence of responding in faith to God’s offer of wisdom in Christ—rest.  Rather than putting up facades, we are changed from the inside out.
Now, another part of this teaching and this Wisdom that God has to offer to us in Christ, is that it be taken up daily.  It’s not merely a beginning-sort of enthusiasm, where we find some spiritual contact with God, a spiritual rebirth.  It’s an ongoing response to God, day by day, which enables us, when crises come, to respond to them positively, and not to be thrown off course, not to be tricked by imposters, not to be disturbed by disquieting circumstances, not to abandon the love that God wishes for us to express to our neighbour, but to “hang in there”, and to find that we are part of the gospel’s message to the world, including others, involving others, reaching out to others.
Jesus, in the Sermon on the Mount, mentions those people who hear his words but do not do them, who do not put them into practice, who do not make them their guide day by day.  They are like people who build their house on a foundation of sand; and, when a flood comes, a storm comes, the end is destruction.  We have Jesus’ teaching, his way, his commands, to follow, whereby we are prepared for circumstances which come our way.
Jesus’ teaching, then, addresses the whole person, our heart, in fundamental realities.  It is a teaching that is taken up day by day, like a yoke, to which we submit ourselves.  But, by such discipline, because it is an easy yoke, a yoke of prayer and discipleship—an easy yoke, relatively speaking—by such means, we, in fact, find rest as well, ourselves.  A rest which has to do with carrying out the commands of Jesus, and knowing that God is with us day by day.
Now, one last aspect of this teaching that God has to communicate to us through the wisdom that he has shared with us in Christ—not only is it a fundamental sort of proclamation that addresses our very being; not only is it a day-by-day reality.  It’s expressed also in terms of service of neighbour—forgiveness of neighbour.
Matthew’s gospel is particularly emphatic in its depiction of Jesus’ will on this matter.  And so he says, “If you forgive your neighbour, your heavenly Father will forgive you.  If you do not forgive your neighbour, your heavenly Father will not forgive you.”  “Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.”  He also describes, in the depiction of the final judgement, those people who have fed the hungry, given drink to the thirsty, who have clothed the naked and welcomed the stranger, who have visited the sick and those in prison.  He says, “Those are the ones who are the children of the heavenly Father.”
Now, why is this the case?  Why is he so emphatic on this?  Well, Jesus himself comes to us, comes to us who are the weary and heavy-laden.  And, if we are to follow his own way, we will come to the weary and heavy-laden with mercy and with forgiveness.
By such means, we find rest ourselves, associated with forgiving others.  But we also bring rest and comfort to others.
I gave, as the title of this sermon, “’Tis the gift to be simple”.  I hope that this is relatively simple, in the sense that—to repeat again—Jesus addresses our heart, he calls for faith, fundamentally speaking; it is a day-to-day yoke that we submit ourselves to, which enables us to weather the storm, so to speak.  But it is expressed as we communicate the very compassion and forgiveness, which is God’s own to us, made known in Jesus Christ our Lord.
Jesus is our Teacher—not just giving us information, but calling us to a way of life.  And it’s a way of life to be taken very seriously.  If we do not heed this teaching, we are under God’s judgement.  But, if we do heed this teaching, we find the rest now, which is being obedient to that teaching, and the rest also which is God’s will for those who are his children.