"Tony Malonely“

 

Readings: Psalm 7:1-9, Jeremiah 8:18:9:1,  1 Timothy 2:1-7, Luke 16:1-13
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, NY, September 18, 2022

Tony Malonely enjoyed the high life. Classy suits. Expensive wines. Fine cigars. As associate manager of a mid-size commercial trading outlet he was doing well. In fact, he had just got back from a trip to Vegas. And the best thing about it was that it hadn’t cost him a dime. With his talent for creative accounting and his abilty to be more than a little economic with the truth the company had covered the bill for the whole trip, and as everybody knows “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas.” But not always.

There he was. Sitting in his air-conditioned office, leaning back in the leather office chair with his feet up on the oak desktop when the telephone rang. It was the boss’s line. He leant over and pressed the button for speakerphone. A distorted voice that was indicative of anger barked out “My office. Now!”

Tony quickly made his way to the only office that was bigger and brassier than his own. One of the two enormous doors was already half open and Tina the secretary, who as usual had one hand raised drying her nail polish, waved him straight past her desk… without the usual inane smile on her face. “Shut the door Tony” boomed the boss “We need to talk.”

Tony made his way across the expanse of office to the desk and sat down. The boss threw some photographs across the desk to him. “Explain these” he said.  Tony looked in horror. There he was at a blackjack table. There he was coming out of a show that certainly wasn’t family entertainment. And that was him dissapearing into a limo with the redhead.

The boss snarled sarcastically and sneered… “So… how was the convention in Ohio, Mr Malonely?” “I… ermm.. that is..” For once Tony Malonely had ran out of baloney. “Tony” said the Boss, “Do you want to know something?” ‘Sure boss’ said Tony gulping hard. “You’re fired.  You got a couple of hours to clear out your desk… and Tony? Don’t ever ask any one even remotely associatted with this company for a reference!”

Tony realized it was useless to plead his case. He made his way back across the thick carpet, out of the door, past Tina (who was still drying her nails, smiling inanely, and didn’t even look up), back to his own office, back to his own desk, shut the door, leant back in his chair and his mind started to process. What should he do now? Stay calm. Think it through. What are the options?

He could try a different company or start over at something else. No… he was to old. And who’s going to take me on after this! He could get out there and beg for forgiveness and hope that mindless compassion might sprinkle good fortune down upon him. That wasn’t going to work. What he needed were some friends! And he only had two hours to find them.

“Now wait a minute”. He pulled up the main accounting window on the computer screen and began to analyze who owed the company the most money right now. In the current economic climate there were a number of creditors that were really having a hard time meeting their payments. And the boss wasn’t one to let such things go.

“There” he said. “The Olive Oil contract.” Payment was well overdue on a shipment of a hundred barrels of olive oil.  And he knew the company well enough to know they couldn’t pay. He calls them up. ‘Hey, Joe… it’s Tony… over at Traders… yeah that’s why I’m calling… you owe us for a hundred barrels… right. What if I said that if you can get it by the end of the week we’ll let you pay for fifty and we’ll call it quits! You like that! Hey anytime. Just trying to do the right thing. You have a good one too, my friend!”

He looked again at the screen. What about the wheat shipment? Gives them a call. “Mr Kellog… yeah that’s right Tony Malonely… yeah I know you are having trouble paying… that’s why I’m calling… look…you owe for a hundred… how about I charge you for eighty and we forget about the other twenty? Yeah? You like that. That’s me… Tony Malonely, anything to help an old friend.” And so the calls continued. One by one he called every debtor and gave them the sort of breaks that they only dreamed of!  

Meanwhile back in the Bosses office, in the last hour he had received a number of unexpected calls. The first, from Joe, manager of the the Olive Oil company had taken him by surprise. Joe had been gushing with thankfulness. “Thank you so much… for giving us this break. We’re never going to work through anybody else. Customer loyalty, man you just redefined it! That Tony Malonely… good guy you got there!”

Of course, the Boss couldn’t lose face by telling Joe at the Olive Oil company that he didn’t know what he was talking about. And so, the hour went on… call after call, promising loyalty and praising Tony!

After the twentieth call the Boss couldn’t help reflecting that, despicable, dishonest, total crook though he may be, Tony Malonely was one shrewd dude who didn’t know the meaning of the word loser! Always ready to find a new angle, always on the look out for a way to turn somebodies’ misfortune to his  personal advantage, you had to hand it to him, Tony Malonely was the man!

And I’m hoping you noticed that Tony Malonely was very similar to the man that Jesus told a story about in our reading from the Gospel of Luke today. After telling the story, Jesus added that if the Tony’s of this world were able to look after their self-interested lives by their own street-smart ways, then shouldn’t the people of God be able to harness their creative energies, not for doing wrong, but for doing good? I love the way that Eugene Petersens ‘The Message Bible’, transliterates verses 8 and 9 of Luke 16.

 "Now here's a surprise: The master praised the crooked manager! And why? Because he knew how to look after himself. Streetwise people are smarter in this regard than law-abiding citizens. They are on constant alert, looking for angles, surviving by their wits. I want you to be smart in the same way—but for what is right—using every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival, to concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior."

There are some phrases in there that could really revolutionize the way we live our lives both as individuals and as churches. “Use every adversity to stimulate you to creative survival”. That’s deep! That’s what God did through the cross of Jesus Christ. There cannot be a more adverse set of conditions than a death by crucifixion. Yet it was followed by the miracle of resurrection.

In our lives we reach those dead ends where we feel like its ‘Game Over’. We just want to roll over and die. But Jesus in our story from Luke is saying that there’s people out there in the world who have a better attitude to survival than those of us who are seeking to follow Him! That we could benefit from some street-smart, surviving by our wits alone, rock bottom experiences.

Again, from ‘The Message’; “Concentrate your attention on the bare essentials, so you'll live, really live, and not complacently just get by on good behavior." I fear that as churches and good decent people we play that game of ‘trying just to get by on good behavior’ day after day, year after year, rather than truly exercising our hearts and minds in the risky business of faith without a safety net.

‘Concentrating our attention on the bare essentials’ means redefining what is necessary and what we could let go.  That doesn’t mean that we have to let everything non-essential go, just that we come to understand the difference between what is important and vital and life giving, and the rest of the stuff that we fill our lives with.

How do we do that? We begin with the small things. Everything begins with the little actions, the consistent practices, the everyday virtues. A crook begins his crooked ways one crooked act at a time. Likewise with faith. A faithful person is one who is consistently faithful!  It starts with the small things. Fred Craddok in his ‘Interpretation’ commentary on Luke writes,

“Most if us will not this week christen a ship, write a book, end a war, appoint a cabinet, dine with a queen, convert a nation or be burned at the stake. More likely this week will present no more than a chance to give a cup of water, write a note, visit a nursing home, vote for a county commissioner, teach a Sunday School class, share a meal, tell a child a story, go to choir practice, or feed the neighbors cat. Luke 16:10 ‘Whoever is faithful in a very little is faithful also in much’.”

We also need to be clear about who and what we are being faithful to. The closing line of our passage couldn’t put it much clearer. “No slave can serve two masters; for a slave will either hate the one and love the other, or be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and wealth.” (Luke 16:13)

We are either building a Kingdom on this earth, (a Kingdom which will be ultimately be taken away from us) or we are building our lives with the Kingdom of God in mind.  ‘Wealth’ it has been said, “Is a great servant, but a terrible master”.  It is not about how much we have, but what we do with what have, that defines who we are serving!

There are many Tony Malonely’s in this world who are quite clear on whom they are serving. They are out for number one and will do everything they can to keep it that way. But there are lessons we can learn, even from them. If they can give their all for aims that ultimately will leave them lonely, how much more should we be committed to values that can change our world for the better. And it is the little things that make the big difference in the long run.

Let us pray that we can go into this next week committed to doing what we can with what we have in order to bring glory to God. When the problems come, as they may, let us not wallow in them but be as street smart as Tony Malonley and use the ‘situation of adversity to stimulate us towards creative survival’.

Above all let us seek to be servants of God, faithful stewards of the Kingdom who seek to solve the problems of our world by not becoming one of them. May we be people of God with the ability to harness their creative energies to doing the right thing! And to God’s name the glory. Amen.

The Reverend  Adrian J. Pratt B.D.

"Be Still and Know" (Communion)

Readings: Psalm 37:1-8, Ecclesiastes 3:1-8, Mark 9: 2-8, John 8:2-11
Preached at Bridgehampton Presbyterian Church, August 7, 2022

Ecclesiastes 3:7
"There is a time for silence and a time for talk"

There are times when saying nothing can communicate a lot more than using words. Words are not always the best vehicle to express things. As part of our communion service, we have time for silence and reflection. We should make the most of such times as, sadly, with the pace of modern life, such moments are all too few.

As we come to the table I would like to reflect on some times, recorded in Scripture, when words were inappropriate.

Casting the first stone.
JOHN 8:2-11

The account of the woman caught in adultery. The teachers of the law and Pharisees bring  a woman to Jesus saying that because of her behavior the law demanded she should be stoned to death. They are talking at Him, rather than to Him. He bends over and starts writing something in the sand. Then He straightens up and challenges them, "O.K. Whichever one of you has committed no sin may throw the first stone at her". He bends down and starts writing in the sand again.

Slowly people put down their stones and quietly walk away. Jesus looks around. Everybody's gone. He asks the woman, "Is there no one left to condemn you?"

"No" she replies.

"Well, then, I don't condemn you either, go on your way and sin no more!"

If we were in the crowd, clamoring for justice, would we have qualified to throw the first stone? Who amongst us could say they have committed no sin?

The silence is a telling moment. It reminds us that not one of us is good enough to come into God's presence. It reminds us that we are all sinners in need of the grace and mercy of God. The passage also talks of the forgiveness of Jesus towards unworthy people. "I do not condemn you, now go, but sin no more"

In the silent moments around our communion celebration there is time to think about the sort of people we have become, to examine ourselves, put ourselves to the test, and realize we are not all we could or all we should be.

As we reflect on the symbols, they speak of the forgiveness of Jesus who was crucified for our sakes, the bread… His broken body, the wine… His poured-out life. We come to the table, not professing our innocence but because we need the renewing touch of God upon our lives.

On Trial
Mark 14 & 15

My second passages are found in Marks gospel, where Jesus is put on trial, firstly in Mark 14, before the Council, secondly, in Mark 15, before Pilate. During these trials Jesus is being lied against and accused of all manner of conflicting things. Jesus enemies are desperately trying to cook up evidence to have Him condemned. But every single accusation they throw at Him is met with a response of silence.

Before the council we read, "Jesus kept quiet and would not say a word" (Mark 14:61)

Before Pilate, "Pilate questioned Him again, "Aren't you going to answer. Listen to all their accusations." Again, Jesus refused to say a word and Pilate was amazed." (Mark 15:14-15)

For Jesus to have protested His innocence would have been a waste of breath. That's how much hatred and animosity there was towards Him at that point in time. Whatever He said would be twisted and used against Him. Yet even to Pilate, His innocence was crystal clear. Pilate, according to Mark 15:10 "Knew very well that the chief priests had handed Jesus over to him because of their jealousy". By not speaking Jesus said more than words could ever express.

The love of God is put on trial by every generation. People dismiss Jesus as irrelevant, the gospel as outdated, the church as a lost cause. We can shout out against God, we can rebel against God’s  will, if we so desire. But through the silence our empty words will echo unceasingly and rebound upon us.

In the simple act of breaking bread and sharing wine, though nothing is spoken, a great deal is said. We share communion in the setting of a world which still has little room for the Son of God. We need not offer words in His defense. By celebrating His life around a communion table, we say a lot more than words could ever express. 'For as often you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim His death until He comes.'

Peter... Be quiet!
Mark 9: 2-8

Our third passage concerns the Mount of Transfiguration, that time Jesus went up a mountain with Peter, James, and John, and on the mountain top, Jesus is transfigured before their eyes, and they witness Him talking with Elijah and Moses in the midst of a cloud.

That was some scary stuff! The disciples were totally awed by what they saw happening before them. They should have kept their mouths shut. But Peter started to ramble. “Wow, Lord, this is gggrreatt! Is it good to be here or what? I've got it, I've got it, Let's put up three big tents, one for  Moses, one for Elijah, one for Jesus, and people can come up here,, and... and.."

"Peter - Be quiet". He was scared. He wanted to capture the moment for all time for everyone. He didn't really understand the significance of the event before their eyes, that it was something to prepare them for the days that lay ahead when Jesus would be crucified and rise again. Words weren't called for. It was a time for silence, not for talk. Talk was simply inappropriate.

I often think of communion in the same way. It doesn't matter how carefully you explain it, how you describe it, what you make of it. It is something that can't be framed by words. It is not something we can capture or crystallize. It's an ongoing holy mystery.

It's a place over the years where people’s hearts have been melted like wax before a flame, sin confronted, lives renewed and changed as they have taken bread and wine in the faith that here was a meeting place with God. Words may speak to the mind but communion speaks to the heart.

Silence can be a noisy thing. Ever heard the expressions, "a deafening silence" or a "roaring silence"? Silence can make us aware of conflicts within ourselves and recall thoughts that trouble rather than comfort.

"Be still and know that I am God"
is translated in some bibles as
"Stop fighting and know that I am God".

When we have fighting's within, we need the touch of God's Holy Spirit to sort us out. As we be still before God, may we know God is God, our Father, Our Creator. As we take the elements of bread and wine, may we know the assurance that Jesus is our Savior and know His love as a present reality able to touch the depths of our lives.

 Friends… Be still. Be still. Be still.

The wisdom of Ecclesiastes is right on target.
"There is a time for silence , a time for talk".
As we come to the Lord's table it is time to;
'Be still and know that God is God'.

 The Reverend Adrian J. Pratt  B.D.