"Harvest: Trees & Fruit" from "Season of Creation," sermon September 23, 2018
Community UMC, Quincy
“Season of Creation –
Harvest: Trees & Fruit”
Rev. Andrew Davis
September 23, 2018
Psalm 1
One of the many wonders about living here in
Quincy is that we live among many trees.
How many varieties of trees can you name that are around us? <Pause for answers>
Of
course, this is the time of year that I love the most, as we see the brilliant
shades of gold, red, and orange beginning to appear on the tress around us. During my first Fall in Washington, DC and
when I began my time as director of music at Hope Presbyterian Church, I had
never seen brilliant colors like I did back East that first Fall, which made
the 45-minute to hour-long drive to Mitchellville more beautiful, especially
once I learned some of the back roads and how to bypass the DC Beltway. Being from Sacramento, I’m used to summer
lingering well into October and even warm Novembers, so it was a treat having a
real Fall, complete with the brilliant colors and cooler temps, especially
since the humidity broke in mid-September.
As I was exploring my new neighborhood around the WTS campus that would
be home for the next four years, the colors in the Spring Valley neighborhood,
along with the rolling hills of Maryland and Virginia was a feast for the eyes
each Fall and Spring. During my last
Fall in DC, we experienced an unseasonably warm Fall and the Fall colors
weren’t as brilliant considering it wasn’t as rainy that summer as they had
been in the past. Yet one Friday sabbath
day, I decided to go to the Tidal Basin where the cherry trees are at and it
was a feast for the eyes seeing the cherry trees in shades of red and orange
and hardly any tourists around either, as many of the tourists flock to see the
cherry trees in their full glory each Spring, which is a sight to behold too.
It
seems like the trees planted by the water looked more brilliant that Fall, which
I even see up here along the creeks and along the lakeshores when the dog-days
of summer roll around. Like we talked
about last week when we look at the sky, then as we talked about looking at the
mountains a couple weeks ago, when I look up at Claremont Ridge behind us, I
love how the trees cover the mountains and are under the sky of God’s great
dwelling-place, rising above us in majestic fashion. And even within the trees themselves is an
ecosystem, home to many insects, birds, spiders, and other living organisms. And trees are varied, ranging from the
majestic redwoods and ponderosa pines, to aspens and dogwoods, all the way to
fruit and nut trees.
In Genesis 1: 27-31, God
creates humankind in God’s image and gives humans the trees, particularly the
fruit trees to provide food, which also provides food for every living creature
too from the fruits and from the various plants. If we think more about trees throughout
scripture, the scriptures are filled with many images of trees. In a new book that’s set to be released this
coming April, BlessedEarth cofounder, Dr. J. Matthew Sleeth’s Reforesting Faith “addresses the
importance of trees in the Bible.”[i] In a little preview of his
book, here are some quotes about the importance of trees in the Bible:
“With the exception of God and people, the Bible mentions trees more than
any other living thing.”
“If I had to pick one subject other than Jesus to corroborate the
inspired origin of the Bible, I’d pick trees. Why? Because while the Bible was
written by many people over numerous centuries, the consistent use of trees
throughout points us to one author.”
“I’ve come to understand that one of the most important reasons God chose
trees is that at every stage of their lives, trees give.”
“One of the reasons I believe God blazed a tree by every important
character and event in scripture is because of trees’ nearly universal
presence. There are trees virtually every place that humans live on the
planet.”
“You, me, earthworms, ants, bees, tigers, sloths, and aphids: we all run
on trees.”
“By definition, planting a tree is the only thing that you can do in your
backyard that can make the whole world better.”
“Most of us spend far more time sitting in the glow of a screen then the
shade of a tree.”[ii]
In
Psalm 1 that we just heard Ron read for us, we get a mention of trees and how
trees and faith are similar. In this
case, it is how those who live lives that are holy are compared to trees and
those who choose a path of wickedness shrivel up and blow away like chaff, away
from the source of life. In periods of
drought, we have seen trees that are shriveled up and dried out, yet when we
drive by a life-giving water source, such as the river or creek, the trees seem
to look a bit more lively and healthier.
In the psalm, the wicked are compared the trees that shrivel up, with
shallow roots that are not able to withstand the heat or drought, more like as
this one song goes, ‘dust in the wind.’ It’s not exactly one of those
feel-good, warm and fuzzy feelings, but is a guide that when we live lives that
are holy, or righteous in God’s eyes, we will be more like trees with strong
root systems underneath, making them strong enough to withstand the winds that
come up, or other forces of nature, well maybe save the woodsman’s saw or
chainsaw.
Living a life that is holy is
what Methodism’s founder John Wesley calls sanctification, which is what we as
Methodists strive for in our path towards salvation (or our soteriology). In one of the books on United Methodist
Doctrine in my office bookcase, Bishop Scott Jones explains sanctification as a
way of growth, much like a tree that has been planted by the water and
nourished. As Bishop Jones explains,
sanctification ought to
be understood in conjunction with the creation of humanity in the image of
God…[furthermore] images of growth are also used. In sanctification, one grows to be more like
Christ. As one becomes more like Christ,
the power of sin gradually decreases.
More and more, the Spirit shapes the believer’s faith, hope, and
love. The Christian life is one of
growing in grace toward perfection in love, until one attains the mind which
was in Christ Jesus.[iii]
When
we move towards sanctification, we are growing our roots deeper, as our faith
increases, so can our roots become stronger.
Of course, as John showed the kids during the children’s sermon by
drawing on his experience as a state parks manager and forest ranger, all trees
and plants begin as a seed and our faith too has its seeds, just as the oak
trees grew out of the acorn. Yet for
seeds to become a tree over time, those seeds need nourishment and water in
order for the tree to grow. When we
thing about faith is like a growing tree or ‘tree planted by the water’ in the
psalm, we need the community of faith to support and nurture each other, encouraging
each other, and watching over each other in love.
Even as we watch over each
other in love, we have a responsibility to watch over all of God’s creation,
including the different plants, trees, and natural world, as “part of our
sanctification, then, is being a good steward of all that God has entrusted
into our care as well as nurturing and advocating for the resources of God’s
creation to benefit our neighbors.”[iv] It’s all in how the path
God wants for us is that of LIFE, except not just life, but ABUNDANT
LIFE!! I believe that God wants us to
become like trees that are planted by the water, the trees of the field who
will clap their hands for joy, trees with deep roots, along with the trees that
bear much fruit as we grow into the likeness and come to have the mind of
Christ.
Like the quotes from Dr. J.
Matthew Sleeth’s new book, maybe we need to spend a little more time among the
trees than with our electronics, or compare our faith to a tree, seeing our
faith grow bigger over time just like trees do from one small seed.[v] When we spend time among
the trees around us, whether on a hike, or even venturing into our yards, we
are spending time with God. As I shared
a couple weeks ago, I finally got out of my house on my day off and spent some
sabbath time on the Mill Creek Trail along Bucks Lake, out of phone service and
away from the TV or computer. When I’m
in the midst of a forest or a grove of trees such as being among the cherry
trees in DC or a grove of oak trees along a bike trail in Sacramento, I feel
like I’m on sacred ground, one of those thin places between God and the
world. Whenever I’m out in nature, on
the trail, in the trees, or near water, I get this feeling that I can have what
one of my seminary professors, Dr. Paul Cho explains as
[an honest
presentation] of all the parts of our human soul before God. [Such a presentation] requires us to give
heartfelt thanks and praise, joining the heavens, the earth, and even the sea.
It also requires us to cry aloud from upon the ash heaps in complaint, in
sorrow, in anger, in protest to God.[vi]
It’s
in those thin places where we can praise and where we can lament, as we need
space for both, just like in worship, as there’s a time to clap for joy and a
time for reverence and silence. We
praise God for the trees, for the fruit of the trees that produce fruit, and
for this great creation that God has given us. As we reflect on how our faith
can grow like trees, we have each other to nourish and tend the seeds that were
planted, whether they were planted long ago or recently. At the same time, we can be happy in
receiving the instruction of God, although we do have the choice of following
the path of wickedness, which may not be the path of life and carries its own
consequences. Nevertheless, when we
think about the trees, fruit, abundant harvest, and life, let us imagine going
“back to the beginning in the Garden of Eden, [as it] points us to the end with
a new heaven and earth. [We are reminded]
yet again what the Bible is all about – life and our journey towards
righteousness [or living a life that is pleasing to God].”[vii]
As
we begin a new week, spend some time among the trees. Think about your own journey of faith and
when the seeds of faith were planted.
How has your faith been nourished and grown along the way? What has been pruned or withered? And, what seeds of faith are you planting in
someone else, encouraging them along, and helping them to grow deep roots?
In the name of the Father, Son, and Holy
Spirit, let the church say, AMEN!!
[i]
2018. Gbod-Assets.S3.Amazonaws.Com. Accessed
September 20 2018. https://gbod-assets.s3.amazonaws.com/legacy/kintera-files/worship/Sept18_Season-of-Creation-Series.pdf.
[ii]
Ibid.
[iii]
Scott J. Jones, United Methodist
Doctrine: The Extreme Center (Nashville: Abingdon Pres, 2002), 197.
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