Sermon for the Twelfth Sunday after Pentecost

LISTEN

Jesu Juva

“A Room Full of People with Dropsy”

Text: Luke 14:1-14

 

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Hey, how are you? How’s it going? If someone asks you that question, you know better than to actually start telling them! They’re just being polite. They don’t really expect an answer, and probably don’t really want an answer. Fine, or good, is the conventional response. And if you go on with more than that, things get uncomfortable pretty quick.

Same with: Can I do anything for you? You’re supposed to say, No, that’s alright. But if you say, Well, yes! Would you do this and this and this? you’ll probably get quite the surprised look on their face! Followed by: um . . . oh look at the time! I wish I could! They were just being polite. They didn’t want to. They didn’t really expect to. They didn’t think you’d actually ask!

And if you gave a dinner in Jesus’ day, you’d leave the door open so that anybody could come in, but it was really for show. You didn’t really want them to come in! So those in need . . . you weren’t shutting them out, but you didn’t invite them either. Maybe they could get a scrap or two at the end. But if any of them were fool enough to actually come in, it might go something like this: the conversation would come to a stop, everyone would stare at them and make them feel conspicuous, uncomfortable, and out of place, and they’d quickly leave, learning their place.

Except if you invite Jesus to your dinner.

We’re not told if this man with dropsy had come into the house or not - but it seems like he did. For he was before Jesus, in front of Him - maybe standing, maybe humbly bowing or kneeling. And it was silent. It was silent because after Jesus asked His question, Luke tells us they remained silent. The conversation had stopped. They were staring at him. You know, the What are you doing here? stare! So, looking at them looking at him, and in the midst of this deafening, uncomfortable silence, Jesus asks: What about this chap, boys? Shall I heal him? And the man with dropsy is probably thinking: Oh, don’t ask them, Jesus! Is it lawful to heal on the Sabbath, or not?

They don’t answer, not only because they didn’t want to answer - they just wanted this man to go away. But because they couldn’t answer. If they said no, it would reveal them as hypocritical frauds without compassion. But if they said yes, they would be advocating breaking the Sabbath - at least, their understanding of it. (Which wasn’t the right understanding at all!) So they remained silent. Unable to answer. Afraid to answer. And a little peeved at both this man and Jesus for putting the shoe on the other foot! For putting them in such an uncomfortable and awkward position.

I wish Luke would have told us Jesus’ reaction here! Did He shake His head at those smart people who couldn’t answer Him? How long did He make them squirm? Did He turn and smile at the man with dropsy? Well, that’s all beside the point, I suppose. We’re told what we need to know: Jesus took him and healed him and sent him on his way.

Seems like the silence continued . . . or maybe they began to murmur a bit. When Jesus says, basically: Y’all would have done the same thing! For which of you, having a son or an ox that has fallen into a well on a Sabbath day, will not immediately pull him out? They probably had. They would do it for themselves, to benefit themselves, but not for others. And you know what Jesus saw at that moment? Not just a room full of Pharisees and “important” people - but a room full of people with dropsy.

You were probably wondering what dropsy was. Well, I don’t know if we know for sure, but from the word itself, in the Greek, the prefix seems to be from the word water and so have something to do with water; so something that would cause a disfiguring swelling and puffiness, maybe even to the point of being quite grotesque-looking. . . . And as Jesus looked around that room, that’s what He saw: spiritual dropsy. People puffed up and full of themselves; people swelled up with pride in their own virtue and goodness. And to God, that’s more grotesque-looking than any physical dropsy, or any other physical disease.

And let’s be honest . . . that’s what God sees here too, isn’t it? People who compare ourselves with others and usually come out on the better side. People who look down on others for the very same sins we do ourselves. People who take pride in our church attendance, our giving, the good we do, and who conveniently ignore or excuse all the times we don’t. People who are quick to bemoan society’s ills but slow to admit our own. People who are quick to ask: Are you really sorry? without examining our own repentance. People quick to seek the approval of others while starving those looking for it from us. And on and on . . . How often are our eyes like those carnival mirrors: one mirror making the sins of others look bigger, while the other making our own sins look smaller?

A room full of people with dropsy. You know why that’s good news? Because when Jesus holds a banquet and opens the door, He really wants all people to come in! The least, the lowest, the most disfigured and disgusting, the vile, the criminal, the abuser, the adulterer, the thief, the idolater, the slanderer, the coveter, the murderer, the liar, those who rebel against their father and mother, those so filled and puffed up with pride that one more thing will make us burst! And if I missed you in that list, raise your hand and let me know and I’ll add you! ‘Cuz that’s us! Maybe respectable in the eyes of the world, good even. But to God, a room full of people with sinful, spiritual dropsy.

C’mon on in, He says. And let me heal you. On this Sabbath. Right now. I forgive you all your sins. For I died for them all on My cross. All of them. None excepted. So that forgiveness I gave you in your baptism and promised I would continue, I do. I forgive you. You are mine. And you don’t have to sneak in or sit in that seat in the back - come up to the altar, come up to My Table, come up to the very front. Not in shame, but because I want you here! I want all to see not how much your sin but how much I love you! And that I do so much that I give you here, I feed you with My Body and Blood. The same Body and Blood that was born for you, and died on the cross for you, and rose from the dead for you, and ascended into heaven for you, because I want that for you. That when you die, you too will rise and ascend and enter the door of My heavenly banquet, which will have no end. I don’t care who you are. I care who you will be. Who I make you. My child, and an heir of heaven.

That’s pretty awesome, don’t you think, fellow dropsy-folks? 

Which is why Jesus told the parable He did. It wasn’t to teach them what to do - they already knew that, and Jesus told them again right after the parable. It was to reveal to them what Jesus had come to do - and was doing right before their eyes! They all thought they had the highest seats, that these were rightfully theirs. But who did Jesus single out? Who did Jesus gift? Who did Jesus raise up to the highest place? The man with dropsy. The man who according to their convention shouldn’t have even been there! Who should have known better. But Jesus wanted him there. Was thrilled that he was there. And honored him, served him, healed him, loved him.

And Jesus wanted to do so for all the others as well. As I said, Jesus’ open door really is open! And the Sabbath . . . it’s not only a day on which it was, in fact, lawful to heal - but that day which from the beginning God set aside for healing! The Sabbath is a day for us to rest so that we can be served by God. Not that God doesn’t serve and do for us all the other days, He does! But the Sabbath is especially for us to hear the Word of God, His Word of forgiveness, His Word of healing, His Word of life, and be healed and raised and loved. It is for us to enter the door of His house, sit at His Table, eat at His banquet, and be honored by Him. And if you’re full of sin, grotesque, unworthy, and rejected by the respectable . . . He especially wants you here. And not just here, but all the way up, next to Him.

That’s pretty awesome, don’t you think? 

Because usually, those seats, we think, well they’re reserved for Abraham, Moses, David, Peter, Paul, maybe Athanasius, Luther, people like that. But are they? Remember when James and John asked for those seats of honor, the ones on His right and on His left? Jesus said, well, not so fast. And last week we heard once again about the first being last and the last being first, just as Jesus said today that everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted. Things aren’t always as we expect in the kingdom of God. God just doesn’t think like us or do like us. And what a relief that is, right? ‘Cuz our thinking and doing just makes a mess of things. Thank God He knows better than that.

But if God doesn’t think or do things like us, the opposite can, and is what Jesus is working in you. That you begin to think and do as Him. That when you give a dinner or a banquet, it’s not just for your friends or relatives or those who will pay you back. Not only for the good people and those who will be of some advantage to you. Now, to a certain extent, I think Jesus means that literally; for us to take care of the poor. To have true mercy and compassion on others, and not just feigned open doors. But even more is it to be true of our churches. That all those in our world disfigured by sin, we welcome them here. That there be no really bad sinners and not-so-bad sinners here. But that we all, with one voice, standing side-by-side, confess our utter sinfulness, our complete unworthiness, and God’s unfathomable and limitless love and forgiveness. And confess that’s why we’re here. Not because we’re good, but because that’s what this day is for. It was lawful to heal on the Sabbath. It is Gospel as Jesus comes to us today with His healing forgiveness.

So if you’re a sinner, and a really bad one? Thank God you’re here! Welcome. Repent and be healed. And if you’re not, or don’t think you are? Well, we’re glad you’re here as well. But you might want to take another look at your life . . . hold yourself up to the same standards you hold others up to . . . and if that’s not enough, take a good, hard look in the mirror of God’s standards, and realize how diseased you are, too. And then don’t slink away in shame, but know that Jesus wants you here, and loves you here, and has forgiveness for you here.

So if Jesus were here today, He might say: What about this one, Christians? How ‘bout the seat of honor for this one? And what else can we say but Yes! Amen!

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

 

Sermon for the Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost

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Jesu Juva

“A Door Only ONE Can Fit Through”

Text: Luke 13:22-30

 

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Lord, will those who are saved be few?

This was one of those questions the rabbis in Jesus’ day liked to argue about. They had many such questions that occupied their time - this was just one of them. And they liked to ask Jesus. Get His opinion. Get Him on their side of the argument. But as you know, Jesus didn’t play that game. He always disarmed them. He would turn the question around. He would give them an answer they didn’t expect and leave them perplexed. His was a new way of thinking for them; a new way of looking at the Scriptures.

Jesus does that here. He doesn’t answer the question, but changes it from few to you: the question is not whether few will be saved, but will you be saved? 

There were times, though, when it was a few. In the days of Noah, it was eight. In Elijah’s day, there were 7,000 who did not bend the kneel to Baal. That’s a bit better, but not great, considering that Israel was some 600,000 strong when they came out of Egypt. How about in our day and age? Old timers will remember when churches were often full and catechism classes large. Great cathedrals in Europe once filled with people now have but a handful each Sunday. Here in America there are some so-called megachurches, but these seem to rise and fall, wax and wane with the charisma of their leader. For the past few decades the LCMS has been shrinking, as have most denominations. People declare themselves “spiritual but not religious” and cut themselves off from the church - what about them? Are they in or out?

If you were a Jew in Jesus’ day, you might answer this question by tracing your ancestry back to Abraham. And as a child of Abraham, you were a child of the promise given to Him. And as a child of the promise, of course you were in! You were one of God’s chosen people!  But others in Jesus’ day might counter that argument by pointing to Moses and his day, when the people often rebelled against God. There was the incident with the Golden Calf, the constant grumbling and complaining, the false gods that kept popping up like weeds. So just being a child of Abraham wasn’t enough, they would say. You’ve got to keep the Law of Moses - and those who did that were few. So what say you, Jesus? Many or few? Abraham or Moses? Where do you come down? 

And we haven’t even mentioned the Samaritans, or the Gentiles, those not descended from Abraham, the uncircumcised. Of course, the Jews thought, they’re not going to be saved! Right?

Well here’s the thing: the promise given to Abraham . . . was of Jesus. All the Law of Moses was so that the people would put their faith in Jesus. Jesus was the fulfillment of the promise given to Abraham. He was the Seed, the descendant of Abraham through whom all the nations of the earth would be blessed. And Jesus was the one all the priests and sacrifices of the Mosaic Law pointed to. He was the fulfillment of them all. They were the shadows, the indications of the one who was coming. Jesus was the real deal. 

So what the Jews were arguing about was standing right among them and in front of them! Should they have known that? Should they have known that from the Old Testament? Well, let’s see . . . 

Born of a virgin. Check.

He will called a Nazarene. Check.

He will open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf. Check.

He will proclaim good news to the poor. Check.

The Jews, they knew there was something about Jesus. That’s why they kept asking Him questions and wanting Him to weigh in on questions like the one today. But to put their faith in Him? That was a big ask.

As it is for many today. Many today who would concede there’s something about Jesus . . . that’s He’s a prophet, or a good man, or a role model, or even a Messiah of some sort. But to put their faith in Him? Well . . . Follow the truth of His Word? Ehhh . . . 

And it’s not just others . . . don’t we do this, too? How often do you put your faith in yourself and your abilities? This is one of my favorites: I know I shouldn’t do this, BUT . . . and then I do it anyway! And how often do we rail against a sin only to engage in it ourselves? They’re so full of themselves we so proudly say! And how many preachers have fallen from their positions because they were caught in the sins they were preaching against? And don’t think the guy standing here, your pastor, is any different! I’m just as bad a sinner - maybe worse - than the rest of you. This alb, this stole, doesn’t make me holier than thou.

So Jesus’ answer really is pretty on target, isn’t it? It’s not a question of many or few, but a question of you. The Jews in Jesus’ day could say to Him that they ate and drank with Him and listened to His teaching. But according to Jesus, that’s not enough. Just as it’s not enough to be descended from Abraham or keep the Law of Moses. That door they’re trying to measure and get the dimensions of and see how many can fit through it - guess what? It’s too narrow for them. And it’s too narrow for you. There’s only one who can fit through that door. And notice: I didn’t say one at a time! I said just one. Jesus. The only way through that door is in Him.

That’s bad news for your pride; good news for your despair.

Bad news if you want to do it yourself; good news when you know you can’t.

Bad news if you want to think yourself good; good news if you know you aren’t and repent.

So those Samaritans, those Gentiles, those uncircumcised, those the Jews thought last and no way they’re going to get through, be saved . . . And those Jews who could trace their decent from Abraham and those who thought they kept all the Law and so of course would get through, be first, in fact, to be saved . . . Hmmm. They just might be surprised . . . And who might surprise us today? Who’s first? Who’s last? Many or few?

But Jesus would have us think differently.

So instead of that kind of thinking, at the beginning of every service we say: I am a poor, miserable sinner. We consider our unworthiness. And you say that whether you think you did good this week or not, because it’s true whether you know it or not. We don’t worry about first or last, many or few - we fix our eyes on Jesus, and He puts us in Himself. I forgive you not many, not few, but ALL your sins. 

And did you ever notice that in baptism, we baptize children like they are adults and adults like they are children? And we don’t use more water for really bad sinners and less for those who aren’t so bad. Same words, same water, same baptism, because what matters is not you, but what Jesus is doing there - putting you in Himself. 

And at the Table here, for the Supper, we stand side-by-side - no matter who you are, where you’re from, what you’ve done, if you had a good week or a bad week, are happy or sad - and all receive the same Body and Blood of Jesus. Jesus putting you in Himself as He puts himself in you.

And thus in Jesus, where He goes, you go. He died on the cross and you die with Him there. He rose from the dead and you will rise with Him. He ascended into heaven and you will ascend with Him. And as Jesus died for every sin of every person who ever lived, that door is open for all, even you. And Jesus is willing and able and wants to take every person through it with Himself. He is the only one who can get through, but all can get through in Him. First, last, big, little, Jew, Gentile, Samaritan, whoever. People will come from east and west, and from north and south, and recline at table in the kingdom of God. And in Jesus, you will, too.

And if you’re worried about whether you are in Jesus or not, if you’re going to get through that door or not, don’t look at yourself, how well you’re doing, or your sincerity, or anything in you - ‘cause you’ll never find certainty there! That mirror only shows you failure, hypocrisy, and shortcomings, and so despair. Instead, fix your eyes on Jesus, on the cross for you. Fix your ears on Jesus, His words for you. For what He did for you and says to you is truth and certainty. Cling to that, to Him. And then don’t despair, but rejoice! In Him who has such mercy and love and forgiveness for sinners like you and me. His mercy, love, and forgiveness that puts you in Himself, and takes you through the narrow door with Himself.

And when you leave this place . . . remember that I said just a moment ago that where Jesus goes, you go? That’s not just true of heaven and eternal life, but also of earth and our life here and now. Jesus came and lived with sinners, and so do you. Sinners where you work, in your school, in your neighborhoods - sinners everywhere! - even in your homes! And that mercy and love and forgiveness for sinners Jesus has for you and me? We get to show that, too, to the sinners we live with. Not because they deserve it, because they don’t. Just as we don’t. That’s what makes it a gift. From Jesus to you and from you to others. And just maybe some will want to know what got into you! And you can tell them. Not what, but who. 

So many or few? We’ll leave that up to Jesus. That’s above our pay grade! He knows better than we and always does better than we do. Instead, we’ll repent and find our life in Him. That is what striving to enter through the narrow door is. And it is a striving! Striving against ourselves, striving against our sin and sinful urges, striving against our I know better thinking, and instead, repent of ourselves, die to ourselves, and rise and find our life in Jesus. It’s not easy. But then, when that last day comes, whether for you personally or for the world, every eye will open and see Jesus. And those in Him now will be in Him with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and all the prophets in the kingdom of God forever. That’s why He came. That’s what He came to do. And that’s His promise and pledge - not to many or few - but to you. 

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

 

Sermons for the Ninth and Tenth Sundays after Pentecost

Pastor Douthwaite is on vacation for two Sundays. Chaplain Glen Wurdeman is filling in as our guest pastor. So no sermons to post here for two weeks. You are invited to go to our YouTube channel and view the services and sermons there.