Genesis 15: 1–12, 17–18; Psalm 27; Philippians 3: 17 –
4: 1; Luke 13: 31–35
The is the homily prepared for presentation at St. John’s,
Huntingdon, Episcopal Diocese of Central Pennsylvania, on Sunday, March 17,
2019 by Fr. Gene Tucker.
“INHERITANCE AND LEGACY”
(Homily texts: Genesis 15: 1–12, 17-18 & Luke 13: 31–35)
At
first reading, our Old Testament lesson and our Gospel reading don’t have much
– if anything – in common with one another.
So
this preacher has taken upon himself the task of trying to link the two (for I
think they do share something in common with one another).
Here’s
the link: Inheritance and legacy.
Let’s
explore the possibilities together.
In our
Genesis reading, we observe Abram’s conversation with God. Abram is engaging in
a lament before the Lord, saying, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I
continue childless, and the heir of my household is Eliezer of Damascus.” He
continues saying, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my
household will be my heir.” (Genesis 15: 2–3, English Standard Version)
Abram’s
concern is for the future, for those who will inherit what he owns, and about
living into the future. (It’s worth noting, at this point in human history and
development, that the understanding of living eternally was understood to be in
terms of having children, grandchildren and so forth, those who would carry
forth one’s name and history. One continued to live on into the future by
virtue of having heirs who were related by blood. The understanding that we
Christians understand in terms of our own spirits living eternally with God
hadn’t come upon the scene yet.)
And,
of course, we know the rest of the story: God assures Abram that he will indeed
have children, grandchildren, and so forth. In fact, God tells Abram that his
descendants will be “as numerous as the stars in the heavens.” (Genesis 15: 5b)
In due time, all of what God assured Abram would come to be, indeed came to be.
Now
we must move forward into history quite a few years, perhaps as much as 2,000
years or so. In today’s Gospel text, we encounter Jesus, lamenting over the
conditions He will encounter as He comes to the Holy City of Jerusalem. “O
Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the city that kills the prophets and stones those who are
sent to it! How often would I have gathered your children together as a hen
gathers her brood under her wings, but you were not willing….” (Luke 13: 34)
Jesus
is referring to His legacy, and it strikes me that His comment about the hen
and her brood is a reference to legacy and inheritance. In much the same way as
Abram lamented about those who would follow him, so, too, does Jesus lament
over those who would follow Him.
If we
back up a little in the Lukan text, we see something else at work: Jesus says,
“Tell that fox (King Herod) Behold, I cast out demons and perform cures today
and tomorrow, and the third day I finish my course. Nevertheless, I must go on
my way today and tomorrow and the day following, for it cannot be that a
prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.” (Luke 13: 32–33)
To
those who heard Jesus’ remark, it must not have made much sense at the time.
Jesus’
remark makes sense in retrospect, however, for His references to the third day
and to the death of a prophet[1] in
Jerusalem fit the description of Jesus’ course as we see it in the events of
Holy Week, Good Friday and Easter. The connection is further strengthened by
His comment that Jerusalem will not see Him until they say, “Blessed is he who
comes in the name of the Lord.” (Luke 31: 35, derived from Psalm 118: 26.)
The
events of Palm Sunday, Good Friday and Easter, seen from a purely human
point-of-view, don’t offer much hope for any legacy (other than being a martyr
for a good cause), and virtually no hope of an inheritance in terms of those
who will be children or followers who will perpetuate the martyr’s name.
But
from a divine point-of-view, as God acts to bring Jesus up from the grave on
Easter Sunday morning, legacy and inheritance come into full view.
Jesus’
rising to new life again points to God’s acting to perpetuate Jesus’ name, not
only as a memory, but as an enduring and real presence
among His family, His children, those who have come to faith in Christ.
You
and I, dear friends, are Jesus’ legacy. We are Jesus’ children. We are those
who now number a multitude so great that it is like the stars in the heavens.
Once
we come to God in faith through Christ, we are infused with a new DNA, a godly
identity that marks us as Christ’s own forever.
Thanks
be to God!
AMEN.
[1] It’s worth noting that Luke portrays Jesus as
being a prophet. For examples, see Luke 4: 24, 7: 16 and 24: 19.
