Sermon for Pentecost 16: "Steward of the Soul"

+ Sixteenth Sunday after Pentecost (Proper 21C) – September 29^th, 2019 +

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

Series C: Amos 6:1-7; 1 Timothy 3:1-13; Luke 16:19-31

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

These past Sundays we have heard how Jesus our Good Shepherd is the Steward of the Lost and Steward of the Heart, and how we are Stewards Under Our Good Shepherd.

Today’s Gospel reveals Jesus as the Steward of the Soul. Once again, Jesus tells us a story. 

There were two men. One had it all; the other had nothing. One feasted sumptuously every day; the other could only hope for scraps and crumbs from the first. One wore clothes fit for a king; the other’s skin was so covered with sores that dogs licked them. They could not have been more different in life, but Jesus brings them together to show life in his kingdom goes.

Lazarus is poor. Pitiable. He had nothing. He was hungry. Unable to provide for himself. The best he could do was beg at the gate of a rich man. It’s hard to imagine a more miserable life; it had to have been hell on earth. But Lazarus had one thing going for him – he had the righteousness of faith. He was a child of Abraham in the truest sense; he believed in God and it was accounted to him as righteousness. 

Jesus tells us when The poor man died and was carried by the angels to Abraham's side. This is an Old Testament way of saying Lazarus was in the resting place of God’s promised people, awaiting the fulfillment of the promised Savior and the resurrection of the dead. At long last, Lazarus was comforted.

The rich man, however, experienced something far different. His earthly wealth afforded him everything he wanted. A gated home, sumptuous food, and precious clothes – spared no expense. He’d had it so good that when people thought where to leave a poor and weak man to eke out his days off the crumbs from a rich man, they chose his house.  It’s hard to imagine a more comfortable life than what the rich man enjoyed. And yet, he lacked one thing. He was a Jew – Abraham called him, ‘child’ – but only on the outside. He did not have the righteousness of faith; he did not believe God. The rich man died, was buried, and was tormented in hell.

Now, Jesus could have stopped the story there. Surely the parable would’ve grabbed the attention of the Pharisees listening to him and ridiculing him. Remember, Luke tells us they loved earthly riches and weren’t known for showing mercy toward people like Lazarus. The point is clear: Jesus is the Steward of the Soul. He judges the souls of these men righteously, and that is both a stern warning against unbelief and withholding mercy, and a strong encouragement to faith and charity. But Jesus had more to say.

The rich man lifted up his eyes and saw Lazarus with Abraham, and cried out, “Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus to dip the end of his finger in water and cool my tongue, for I am in anguish in this flame.”

Did you catch that? The rich man knew Lazarus’ name. But Luke never mentions the rich man’s name. Not even once. A not-so-subtle jab at money-loving, prideful Pharisees. For all his wealth and possessions in life, the rich man is forgotten in eternity. Nameless. Lazarus’ name, on the other hand, is written in the book of life. 

Jesus’ story went on. Abraham replied to the rich man: And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been fixed, in order that those who would pass from here to you may not be able, and none may cross from there to us.’ Request denied. It was impossible. Everyone was in their proper place in death – ‘Child, remember that you in your lifetime received your good things, and Lazarus in like manner bad things; but now he is comforted here, and you are in anguish.

But the rich man, not accustomed to rejection, had a further request, I beg you, father, to send him to my father's house— for I have five brothers—so that he may warn them, lest they also come into this place of torment.’

This time Abraham dismissed his question. They have Moses and the Prophets; let them hear them.’

‘No, father Abraham,’ he went on, ‘but if someone from the dead should journey to them, they will repent.’But Abraham responded, “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”

The rich man was used to having things his way. And he thought the kingdom of God worked the same way. Not so, says Jesus. “If they do not hear Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be convinced if someone should rise from the dead.’”

And here’s the heart of Jesus’ message to the Pharisees and to us. You have God’s Word. Believe it or don’t believe it; but there’s no other word.  

Now, the point of all this isn’t to say, “Well, obviously it’s better to have nothing than everything in life.” But in the Kingdom of God, material wealth or poverty isn’t the deciding factor in judgment. Jesus’ warning is against ignoring His Word. Although these two men could not have been more different, both were Jews. Bothreceived the same richness from God in Moses and the prophets, but only one of them treasured it; only one repented; only one believed.

Everything we have is gift from Jesus our Good Shepherd. He’s the Steward of our Souls. When we consider all we do with everything the Lord has entrusted to us, nothing is more important than the stewardship of God’s Word in his church. Whatever else happens in our lives, nothing is more important than hearing his Word and receiving the gifts he gives through that Word, water, body and blood. Our highest callings as Christians is to treasure and believe that Word for the sake of our salvation, and to assure its proclamation. That’s why God has given us the time, skills, and earthly treasures we have. Those gifts exist, we exist, to receive God’s gracious gifts and proclaim God’s Word.

The Word made flesh in Jesus. Whose ministry was to rescue us and all mankind from sin, death, and the devil. To die and rise again for you. To rescue the lost, rescue our hearts, and rescue our souls. All this he did for you. Jesus did everything to rescue us from the end of the rich man, and to bring us with Lazarus into his arms forever. 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Special thanks to Pastor Jonathan Bakker of Zion Lutheran, Mt. Pleasant, MI for use of his stewardship sermon theme.

Sermon for Pentecost 15: "Steward of the Heart"

                                                                                                                                         

+ 15^thSunday after Pentecost (Proper 20C) – September 22, 2019 +

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

Series C: Amos 8:4-7; 1 Timothy 2; Luke 16:1-15

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Last week we began a three-weak stewardship emphasis, focusing on Jesus the Good Shepherd, and how we’re Stewards Under Our Good Shepherd. In the parables of the Lost Sheep and the Lost Coin Jesus reveals himself as the steward of the Lost. In today’s parable of the Dishonest Manager Jesus reveals that he’s also the Steward of the Heart.

“There was a rich man who had a manager, and charges were brought to him that this man was wasting his possessions. And he called him and said to him, ‘What is this that I hear about you? Turn in the account of your management, for you can no longer be manager.’

The manager’s job was to look after the master’s daily business affairs. Everything belonged to the master. The steward was simply the caretaker charged with being responsible for everything the master gave him to do.

Problem was, this manager irresponsible. He was caught wasting his master’s possessions. He was an unfaithful steward. It’s no wonder, then, that when accusations started flying around and getting back to his master’s ears that he was squandering his master’s possessions, he would be called out for his misdeeds, and his authority as steward would be revoked.

And yet, here’s where the parable takes a rather unexpected turn. We’d expect that once the master found out, he sends his guards to accompany the man with stern instructions: “Pack up your personal things. Turn in the books. Leave the key. And get out. You’re fired!”

But that’s not what happens at all. The steward thought to himself: ‘What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.

So what does he decide to do instead? He decided then and there that he would squander even MORE of his master’s possessions!  That way, when he was removed from his management, others would receive him into their homes. Quickly, the steward summoned his master’s debtors one by one. ‘How much do you owe my master?’ ‘A hundred measuresof oil.’ ‘Take your bill, and sit down quickly and write fifty.’ Then to another, ‘And how much do you owe?’ ‘A hundred measures of wheat.’ ‘Take your bill, and write eighty.’ 

By some estimates , this would’ve been  the equivalent of two years’ worth of manual labor for each debtor. Now, I’m no accountant, but that’s a lot goods worth a lot of money. Money now lost thanks to the steward. 

Again, Jesus’ parable takes another unexpected twist. We’d expect the master to be further incensed with his ex-manager’s actions on his way out the door. But instead of calling the police or pressing charges, the master commends the steward for acting prudently.The sons of this generation are more prudent in their own generation than the sons of light.  

What’s even more unexpected is that Jesus essentially echoes the rich master from the parable in commending the prudent actions of the dishonest steward. ‘I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when that unrighteous wealth fails, they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.’  

Once again, you’re probably thinking, “How is an unfaithful, dishonest steward supposed to be a good example of being a faithful steward under our Good Shepherd? 

Remember, Jesus’ parables don’t always make sense in the worldly way of things. Jesus’ parables are meant to focus our eyes, ears, hearts, and minds on the Kingdom of God. So don’t fret. Jesus isn’t teaching us how to do a bad job at something to make life easier for ourselves. This parable, reveals Jesus as the true steward of our hearts, the one who rescues us from sin, death, and the devil. 

So, how do we see Jesus as the steward of the heart in this parable? Consider some contextual clues. The steward appears to have been a long-time employee. The debtors were likely tenants who farmed the rich man’s land. So their rent was paid in wheat and oil instead of gold or silver. 

Most – maybe all – of their dealings with the rich man would have been through his steward. And because the steward had the authority of the rich man, any business deal made with him was made with the rich man. That’s what it meant to be a steward – to speak for and conduct business on behalf of the rich man. And so – unless they were the ones who brought the accusation of mismanagement against the steward – they wouldn’t have thought anything was out of the ordinary when they were summoned to meet regarding their debts.  Indeed, they would have assumed the steward was acting in good faith on the instructions of his master when he told them to reduce their debts. Sure, they would’ve thought well of the steward for bringing such good news, and that would bode well for him in the future, but the one they would thank and praise for his generosity and mercy was the master!  

And then there’s the master himself. He could’ve had his dishonest steward arrested and imprisoned, but he didn’t. The master was merciful to the steward. And it was this, the mercy of the rich master, that the steward counted on, trusted in, and even believed in, when he came up with the solution to his problem.

So the shrewdness, or prudence, of the steward wasn’t that he built up goodwill for himself with his master’s business partners, but that he counted on the mercy of his master to protect him in spite of his audacious behavior. And the crazy thing is, it worked! Left with the choice of flip-flopping on his steward’s debt reduction plan, and upsetting his long-time business partners; or leaving the steward’s accounting adjustments in place, he chose to commend the steward. He chose to have mercy.

It’s a remarkable, albeit difficult parable. “So what?” We ask. “What does it mean for our life as stewards under our Good Shepherd?” After all, God appoints us as stewards of every earthly thing he gives us. He calls us to care for ourselves, our families, our church, our neighbors, and others. And because all we have is gift from God, we return a portion of that in thanksgiving and joy. But what’s this parable have to do with that?

Are we, as stewards, supposed to look for opportunities to squander what God has put into our care and keeping? By no means. Jesus’ words at the end clearly explain this. Luke reminds us that the Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. And Jesus said to them: “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

And there’s the crux of the parable: God knows the heart. God knows us inside and out. No thought, word, or deed is hidden from him. There’s no way for us to make friends for ourselves with unrighteous wealth without God being the wiser. The sons of this world think themselves prudent by trying to look after themselves in this life, but there’s more to our existence than this life.

So what’s left? Repentance and faith. Don’t try to justify yourself before men, and certainly not before God. It’s impossible. Like that dishonest steward, our only hope is the mercy of our Lord. Whose mercy is promised and delivered to you in Jesus. Whose mercy is poured out for you today in his body and blood. And whose mercy is seen in our mercy to others.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Special thanks to Pastor Jonathan Bakker for the stewardship theme and sermon notes for this year's stewardship emphasis. 

In Memoriam: Internment Sermon for Phyllis Hunsberger

+ In Memoriam – Phyllis Hunsberger +

September 19, 2019

In the name of + Jesus. Amen.

When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James, and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint him. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And they were saying to one another, “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?”  And looking up, they saw that the stone had been rolled back—it was very large. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them, “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; he is not here. See the place where they laid him. But go, tell his disciples and Peter that he is going before you to Galilee. There you will see him, just as he told you.”

This, dear brothers and sisters in Christ, is our comfort today, and all days. Jesus was crucified. Died. Buried. For Phyllis, and for you. 

Jesus defeated death by dying for Phyllis and for you. Jesus overcame sin by becoming our sin.

Jesus rose from the dead on the third day for Phyllis and for you. 

Jesus walked out of the grave for Phyllis and for you. 

Death no longer has dominion over Jesus. And now in Jesus, death no longer has dominion, death no longer holds a claim over us either. Yes, today we commit the body of our dear sister, Phyllis to her resting place. But this is not the end. God is not done with Phyllis, nor is he done with us either. 

As St. Paul reminds us…

Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed,in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality.When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written:

“Death is swallowed up in victory.”
“O death, where is your victory?    O death, where is your sting?”

The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is our comfort in life, and in death, as it was for Phyllis. Death is not the end. Death does not get the last say. Jesus does. This is why we confess, “I believe in the resurrection of the body, and the life + everlasting.” We live in this hope. We are baptized into this hope, even as we are baptized into Jesus’ death and resurrection. And we die in this hope, knowing that one day, Phyllis will walk out of this grave as surely as Jesus walked out the tomb that first Easter Sunday. One day, we too will walk out of our graves, as certainly as Jesus walked out of the grave for us. One day, our waiting, our hoping, our weeping, and our longing will be over. And we’ll walk out of our graves. All because Jesus walked out of the grave for Phyllis, and for you. 

In the name of + Jesus. Amen.

Sermon for Pentecost 14: "Steward of the Lost"

+ 14^thSunday after Pentecost – September 15, 2019 +

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

Series C (Proper 19C): Ezekiel 34:11-24; 1 Timothy 1:5-17; Luke 15:1-10

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost,” Jesus says later on in Luke 19. Here in Luke 15 Jesus tells us a two parables of things lost and found: a lost sheep; a lost coin. 

This is Jesus’ mission. Finding. Rescuing. Searching. Seeking. Saving the lost, wherever they might be, and whomever they might be. Seeking and saving you, me, and all people in his death and resurrection.

Scripture uses many metaphors, words filled with living and active imagery, to describe Jesus. He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Jesus is the Lion of the tribe of Judah who crushes the prowling wolf. Today’s Gospel reading gives us a yet another picture of Jesus’ seeking, saving, and finding love. The poet, Francis Thompson,  called Jesus the great hound of heaven who is relentless in his love toward us. He chases us poor miserable sinners until we’re exhausted and weary in our own sin. In the poem, when the hound of heaven catches the narrator he is greeted, not with fangs and fury, but with a gentle caress. An embrace. 

Or as our Lord proclaims to us through the prophet Ezekiel:

I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, and the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them in justice.

Today, and for the next two weeks, we’ll be looking at the Gospel readings from the perspective of stewardship. An emphasis focused on Christ our Lord as our Good Shepherd, and we as Stewards Under Our Good Shepherd. For he is the Chief Steward, the steward of the lost. Lost sheep. Lost coins. Lost, hurting, wounded, broken people. 

So Jesus told them this parable: “What man of you, having a hundred sheep, if he has lost one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open country, and go after the one that is lost, until he finds it? And when he has found it, he lays it on his shoulders, rejoicing. And when he comes home, he calls together his friends and his neighbors, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found my sheep that was lost.’

Jesus’ first parable of the lost sheep is a comforting one, and for good reason. He’s our good shepherd. He lays his life down for the sheep. For you. We’re the people of his pasture and the sheep of his hands. 

All of this is a reminder that Jesus’ parable isn’t really about good farming or ranching techniques. It’s about the kingdom of God, the good and gracious reign of God that comes to us in Jesus. Think about it. Most ranchers would consider 99/100 a pretty good percentage. “One lost sheep? No problem. You’ve got 99 good ones. Count your losses and head to the market.” But not the Good Shepherd. He seeks and saves the lost.

Jesus’ second parable of the lost coin doesn’t get the same attention as the parable of the lost sheep, but it’s just as dramatic. And again, it’s all about the kingdom and gracious reign of God in Jesus, not necessarily good financial practices. 

what woman, having ten silver coins, if she loses one coin, does not light a lamp and sweep the house and seek diligently until she finds it? And when she has found it, she calls together her friends and neighbors, saying, ‘Rejoice with me, for I have found the coin that I had lost.’

By now you’re probably wondering. Why did pastor pick this Gospel reading for a stewardship emphasis? What do lost sheep and coins have to do with stewardship? Wouldn’t last week’s Gospel reading about counting the cost have been better?

Jesus gives us the answer in his own words: At the end of both parables he says, ‘Just so, I tell you, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous persons who need no repentance.’  And, ‘Just so, I tell you, there is joy before the angels of God over one sinner who repents.’

Jesus’ parables have a great deal to do with God’s stewardship of us. His care for us. His seeking and saving the lost. To the Pharisees who heard these parables, Jesus preached repentance. They were a rebuke against their pride and unbelief and rejection of Jesus. “This man receives sinners and eats with them!” They decried.Jesus’ parables call us to repentance too. To repent of our pride, our sinful selfishness of thought, word, and deed. To repent of thinking we’re not the greatest sinner.

And yet to the tax collectors and sinners, Jesus’ words are a proclamation of forgiveness. Of his seeking and saving them, the lost ones. Jesus is the Good Shepherd who leaves the 99 to rescue you, throw you on his crucified and risen shoulders, and carry you home. He is the one who searches us lost coins out because we are precious to him. He is the great hound of heaven who sniffs us out and embraces us in his relentless, merciful love. 

Jesus’ parables teach us what is truly valuable in God’s kingdom, and how God approaches his own stewardship.  This, in turn, has a lot to say about our lives of Christian stewardship. It’s good to think about our stewardship of our time, talents, and treasures, about proportional giving, and giving to God first, and then giving joyfully.  We do so because Scripture teaches us that everything was given by him in the first place, and it will always be his possession – we are simply given to manage all that he has placed into our hands as his stewards.  Jesus’ parables reveal that he is the true Steward of the Lost, and puts everything we do where it belongs – beneath everything he has done for us.

Remember Jesus’ mission: to seek and to save the lost. To seek and to save you. Christian stewardship, then, is simply supporting this mission in our vocation, where God calls us. We are stewards because Christ himself is our chief steward; the steward of the lost.

God put more than a tenth of his treasure on the line when he paid the price for human sin; not with gold or silver, but with his holy precious blood, and his innocent suffering and death, He found and saved you. 

God forsook more than 99% of his Son on the cross to make true peace with man by the forgiveness of our sins.  He gave everything.  Jesus gave all that he is and all that he had on the cross for your redemption.  He died and rose from the dead to give you peace with his Father.  He did it to fulfill his Father’s command to everlasting life. 

Jesus came to seek and to save you. Today he comes still, to rescue, redeem, heal, feed, and save you in his holy body and his holy blood which finds you and forgives you.

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Special thanks to Pastor Jonathan Bakker for use of this stewardship theme.

Sermon for Pentecost 13: "The Cross of Discipleship"

+ 13th Sunday after Pentecost – September 8, 2019 +

Beautiful Savior Lutheran, Milton

Series C: Deuteronomy 30:15-20; Philemon 1; Luke 14:25-35

  

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

In his famous book “The Cost of Discipleship”, Lutheran pastor Dietrich Bonhoeffer famously wrote:

“When Christ calls a man, he bids him come and die”.

It’s true of Jesus’ disciples. All but one of the apostles died a martyr’s death. The cross and discipleship always go together. It’s true for us as well. From the moment we’re baptized we’re marked by the cross of Jesus. In Jesus we daily die to sin and rise to new life in his death and resurrection. The cross and discipleship always go together. It’s true for us and the disciples because it’s true of Jesus first and foremost. 

Ever since Luke 9:51, Jesus has set his face to Jerusalem. The cross was his endgame. 

To understand today’s Gospel reading, Jesus’ cross must remain before our eyes and ears.

Jesus was heading to Jerusalem to die. Though the crowds didn’t quite get that memo yet. They wanted a miracle. A show. Like paparazzi, they were looking for celebrity Jesus. Popular Jesus. Fun Jesus. The kind of Jesus we all want. Burger King Jesus who says, “Have it your way”. Healing? You’ve got it! Endless bread and fish? No problem! 180 gallons of wine for a wedding party? Just fill those jugs with water and pass ‘em around. Now there’s a Jesus worth following!

Jesus turns to the crowd. “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” 

These are tough words. Matthew’s Gospel says it this way. “Whoever loves father or mother more than me.” But Luke uses the Old Testament language of hate, which is not an emotional feeling towards someone, but an attitude or action. And how in turn, our actions and attitudes relate to our lives in as Jesus’ disciples.

Still, Jesus’ words are hard words. Hate? I thought Jesus was all about love. What’s with this “hating father, mother, wife, children, brothers, sisters?” That doesn’t sound like the gentle, focus on the family Jesus I know. Hate your own life? I thought we were supposed to love our lives. Take care of number one. 

“Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple.” 

Jesus is teaching his disciples, the crowds who followed him, and us his baptized people, an important, but nonetheless hard lesson. Crosses kill. They’re instruments of suffering and death. To take up your cross is to take up your death. You can’t follow Jesus without a cross. His way is the way of the cross and the empty tomb. 

Death, then resurrection. That’s the pattern for Jesus, and for his disciples then and today. Suddenly, this business of being a disciple doesn’t sound like so much fun anymore, does it? It sounds dangerous, deadly even. Remember, Jesus set his face to Jerusalem. Jesus has His cross front and center in His gaze. That’s where we need to be looking too.

Like a good rabbi, Jesus follows up his teaching with two short stories, parables, about the cost of being his disciple.  

For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it?  Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ 

Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand?  And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. 

Count the cost. What will it cost you to follow Jesus? Not just our money, fame, or reputation. Our life. Everything. To follow Jesus on His road to Jerusalem to die and rise is literally going to cost us everything we hold dear. Can we afford it? Are we willing to pay that price? Are we willing to pay the cost of discipleship?

Truth be told, if we calculated the cost of following Jesus, none of us would. If that great crowd that was following Jesus around like a rock star took stock as to where He was going and what He was about to do, they would have turned on their heels and headed for the hills. 

This is why God doesn’t leave our salvation – or our Christian life as his disciples – up to a choice we make. Instead, he pays the cost of discipleship for us by sending Jesus to the cross. 

Think of OT Israel; they belonged to the Lord. He was their God, they were His people. They didn’t choose Him; He chose them. And being His chosen people, the only “choice” they had was not to be His chosen people. Just as Adam and Eve could not choose life. They were alive. They could only choose death, which they did. 

This is why Jesus calls coming to faith a “rebirth”. A new birth from above. That’s how God chooses you. Holy Baptism is your washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. Did your parents ask if you wanted to be born? No. Same way for Jesus’ disciples. 

The cost is simply too great for us. And yet, Jesus bears the cost of discipleship for you. That’s the good news hidden in today’s Gospel. Jesus bears the cost. He lays down His life to save the world. He becomes the world’s Sin. He dies our Death. Jesus counted the cost of rescuing you from your Sin and Death. And it was worth every drop of His holy, precious blood to save you. He gave up everything – His honor, glory, dominion, power, His entire life – and for the joy of your salvation, He set His face to Jerusalem to die. He took up His cross to save you.

He didn’t ask you to choose Him. He chose you. He baptized you. He called you by His Spirit. He loved you and chose you before the foundations of the world. You were dead; God made you alive in Christ. You were dead; God rebirthed you by water and Spirit. You were captive to Sin and Death; God made you free in Christ. Even if you came to faith as an adult and sought out Baptism, you still didn’t choose Him. He chose you. He laid His cross on you, not to kill you, but to bring you to life.

That’s not cheap grace. That’s free grace. Costly for Jesus. Free for you. So, we follow Jesus not because we’ve counted the cost and determined we’re able, but because we’ve counted the cost and found that we’re unable. To us, his disciples, Jesus says, my cross, my resurrection, my grace is sufficient for you. 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

Sermon for Pentecost 12: "Opposite Day"

+ 12^thSunday after Pentecost – September 1, 2019 +

Beautiful Savior Lutheran, Milton

Series C: Proverbs 25”2-10;

Hebrews 13:1-7; Luke 14:1-14

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 At first glance, hearing today’s Gospel reading feels a bit like staring at an IKEA instruction booklet. Like St. Luke tossed a bunch of random parts of Jesus’ teaching into Luke 14. 

Jesus heals a man on the Sabbath Day. Jesus tells a parable about a wedding feast. Jesus teaches the host of the dinner party (and all who hear) that humility, not exaltation, is the way of the Messiah, and his followers. How do all these pieces fit together?

Remember the setting. It’s the Sabbath Day. There’s a meal; table fellowship is going on. The host is a ruler of the Pharisees, who’re watching Jesus carefully. Now, the very fact that Jesus accepted the invitation tells us something about God. He’s impartial. So is Jesus. He eats with sinners and tax collectors, and the Pharisees. This is the entire story of redemption. In Jesus, God came to a world entirely opposed to him. He came to seek and save the lost, and to save his enemies.

So, like a master craftsman, St. Luke takes these seemingly unrelated events (Jesus’ healing, parables, and table etiquette in the kingdom of God) and dovetails them into one finished piece. Everything hinges on these words of Jesus:

 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

 This is the key to the whole chapter. To Luke’s Gospel. To Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection. In Jesus, we who exalt ourselves are humbled, so that by his humiliation on the cross, we are exalted. 

This theme of humility is a constant for Jesus. He was born of humble virgin in a manger in Bethlehem. Mary sings that in Jesus, “God has brought down the mighty from their thrones, and exalted those of humble estate.” And Simeon declares, “this child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel.”

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

 Jesus’ words are both stinging, crushing Law. And comforting, restoring Gospel. To the man healed, and to us, Jesus’ words bring good news. Jesus humbled himself on the Sabbath. Like that man we were lost, sick, poor, ashamed, and dead. Jesus rescues. Heals. Feeds. Enlivens. And justifies you. 

To the Pharisees, however, Jesus’ words are straight up, 200 proof Law. Jesus’ words condemn them, for they have exalted themselves. Always concerned about their keeping of their self-made Sabbath Laws: 613 dos and don’ts. 32 kinds of work you could not do on the Sabbath. Always looking out for their social and spiritual standing before God and man. Always self-justifying.

It’s easy to point our fingers at the Pharisees. But the truth is, there’s a little Pharisee in each of us as well. Our sinful flesh is always looking for the place of honor. Always thinking more highly of ourselves than we ought to. Always looking at our stuff, our status, and our spirituality as a measure of confidence before God, and if we’re honest, before others too. This is the opposite of humility. This is pride. This is idolatry.

No wonder the Pharisees were so upset with Jesus. Jesus’ words were the opposite of everything the Pharisees found important. These words completely dethrone our false idols too.

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

In Jesus, we who exalt ourselves are humbled, so that by his humiliation on the cross, we are exalted. Jesus sends us His Law to humble us, and his Gospel to exalt us. And in both cases, he’s the one doing the humbling, and doing the exalting.

Jesus saves us, not by our keeping of the Law, but by keeping the Law perfectly in our place. Not by our social (political, economic, or any) status, but by the name and identity given you in the Name of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in your Baptism. Not by our exaltation, nor even by our humility, but by him who was humbled even to death on the cross to exalt you in his life, death, resurrection, and ascension. In the kingdom of Jesus crucified, the weak are strong. The sick are healed. The poor, lame, and beggars are invited to the wedding feast. And the humble are exalted.

This is why Jesus heals the man on the Sabbath. Not because he kept the Sabbath Law perfectly, but because he was sick and in need of the Great Physician. This is why Jesus tells the parable of the wedding banquet. Not to give us lessons on table etiquette (though there’s good wisdom there), but to teach us that the kingdom of God is found in Jesus’ crucified and risen for you. This is why Jesus tells the host at this Sabbath Day dinner to invite the poor, the sick, the lame, and the blind…because they cannot repay you.

 On the one hand, Jesus is teaching us what our lives in Him are like. We ask for nothing for ourselves but simply acknowledge that before God we are only sinners and deserve nothing but the wrath of God. That we are all beggars. Therefore, as Hebrews instructs us, let brotherly love continue. To be hospitable. Remember the prisoner, the sick, the widowed, the suffering, the least, lonely, last, and lost ones – for God in Christ has found, rescued, redeemed, healed, and saved you.

 And yet, there’s a deeper meaning in Jesus’ words. These words are about our Lord Jesus Christ himself who took the low seat of the cross and grave for you. Who throws a feast of forgiveness in his body and blood knowing full well that we cannot repay him.  

…Who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.

 That’s what happens here every Sunday. We enter the doors in the back of the church as poor, miserable sinners. We confess our sins of thought, word, and deed, that we are by nature sinful and unclean. And Christ forgives us and says to us, “Friend, come up to a higher place. There is a place reserved for you at my table.”

 In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.