Sermon for the Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost

LISTEN

Jesu Juva

“Follow Jesus to Eternal Life”

Text: Mark 10:17-22

 

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

For the past few weeks, the news has been filled with three main stories: the election, the war in the Middle East, and Hurricanes Helene and Milton. Three stories that seem radically different from each other, but which have this in common: The concern about what is life going to be like for me now? How is this election going to affect inflation, crime, or speech? Is the war in the Middle East going to stabilize or erupt into World War 3? And how long will it take to get the people in the South back on their feet after the flooding and devastation of these hurricanes? Real life. Real problems. And not small ones.

And you have real life problems, too. Problems at home, problems at work, problems with your health or the health of a loved one; worries, frustrations, difficulties; too much to do and too little time, and no relief in sight. And these are not small problems either. 

So the reading we heard today, of a man coming up to Jesus and asking, Good Teacher, what must I do to inherit eternal life? seems a bit, well, not irrelevant, but maybe impractical, not on the list of most people’s immediate concerns. There’s a phrase about that that’s been coined recently, luxury beliefs, or luxury concerns, meaning, you can believe that or you can be concerned about that because you don’t have real problems to deal with; because your life is pretty good. But the rest of us . . . living paycheck to paycheck, hoping we and our children don’t have to go to war, wondering where our food and water will come from . . . we don’t have that luxury. We have to worry about this. Now.

So this man in the Holy Gospel today . . . he’s not worried about inflation; though crime, maybe. They may not like Roman rule, but at least there’s peace. And all the necessities of life he has; no worries there. He’s comfortable. And more than comfortable. He’s rich. He had great possessions, great wealth. He has the luxury, the freedom, one might say, unlike many people, of being concerned and asking about eternal life.

So how Jesus answers him is really important. Not only for him, but also for us and for people in our world today who are focused on real life issues; who might think a story like this irrelevant or impractical. So after asking the man why he called Jesus good (which the man doesn’t answer), Jesus says: You know the commandments. Do them. To which the man answers: I have! All these I have kept from my youth.

Now, at this point, it might be helpful to imagine the scene. It probably wasn’t just Jesus and this man with no one else around. Everywhere Jesus went, there were crowds of people around Him - broken people, hurting people, sick people, confused people. So when this man tells Jesus that he has kept all the Commandments from his youth, that there is nothing more he could possibly do . . . I imagine Jesus just looking around for a moment, at all the other people, and thinking: Then why are there people here who need your help? Because the Commandments aren’t just things we don’t do, or things we do for God or for ourselves; they are things we do for these people, for others. We help and support our neighbor in every physical need. We help hurting marriages and encourage sexual purity. We give to those in need. We tell the truth, even when it’s hard. We honor the authorities over us and speak well of them. The Commandments are never past tense, are never done. There is never nothing more we could do. 

So Jesus, after (I imagine) pausing and looking at all the people in need around Him, then looked at the man and, we are told, loved him. So, Jesus told him, Go, sell all that you have and give to the poor - give to all these people following Me around and in need; right now, help Me take care of them - and - don’t worry! - you will [still] have treasure  - in heaven; and come, follow me. And you know how the story ends . . . for now at least. He couldn’t do it. He left. Sad.

Now, three things Jesus told him there . . . and which of the three, do you think, is the greatest? (1.) Selling all he had, his great wealth? (2.) Giving to the poor? Or (3.) following Jesus? Which of the three would actually answer his question and give him eternal life? 

It is the third; following Jesus. This man’s great wealth that was preventing him from following Jesus, so that had to go. It was a false god for him. But just being poor doesn’t get you eternal life. Giving to the poor, taking care of others, is good, and what the Commandments are all about. And God doesn’t make us wealthy just to be wealthy, but to be a blessing to others. But that, too, doesn’t get you eternal life. All the goodness in the world can’t make up for or atone for your sins. But following Jesus does. 

But here’s the question, and an important one: follow Him where? Just all around Galilee, Judea, Samaria? No. Follow Him to where He came to go: to the cross. Because that’s how you inherit eternal life. By seeing and believing that Jesus gained eternal life for you there. By believing and confessing that there is nothing you can do to earn that yourself, but that you are, in fact, the problem. And by confessing that, repenting of yourself, and receiving the forgiveness of your sins Jesus won for you on the cross - that is how you inherit eternal life. There is no other way. But instead of that, this man, for now at least, goes the other way.

But here’s the thing: this all goes together. It’s not that real life and eternal life are two different things, and that you have to be concerned with one or the other. They go together. For if you are concerned about real life, here and now life, you realize how fragile life is, how broken life is, and that we need more life than just this. That causes us to look to Jesus, whose death and resurrection, gives us more, gets us farther. For in Him, we get through the grave not just to eternal life, but more life. More life already here and now. And having that life, given you by Jesus, brings you back to real life, with its fragileness and brokenness, to help others in need in this life. And to know that if the things of this life are taken away from you, even if this life itself is taken away from you - your life in Christ is a life that will not and cannot end. 

So to follow Jesus to the cross is not just the way to inherit eternal life (to answer this man’s question), but also the way to live life now. It puts our lives now into the big picture. That it’s not just about me. That there is more to life than just what I have or don’t have. That who’s in the White House may be important, but not the end of the world. That wars come and go - not to belittle them - but that the war that matters most has already been won, by Jesus, on the cross. And that if we have that, that enables us to live life now in freedom, and not bound up and held down by worry, frustration, and fear. We’ll have those things; we’ll always have those things in this world and life! But we also have the one who overcame them all, and gives that victory to us.

Which brings us full circle; back to this man’s question: What must I do to inherit eternal life? Keep the Commandments, Jesus said. And when you don’t, when you realize you can’t, get rid of what’s getting in your way; repent of it, what’s preventing you. For the man in the story today it was his wealth. For you, it might be something else, something wrong, something off, something that has captured your heart. Repent of it, and follow Jesus to where He has come for you; where He has put His cross and benefits for you: here. Come to the Font, come to the Altar, come to His Absolution, come to the Word, and receive Jesus and His life and salvation.

And then with this life, this life that is eternal, go back out to life in this world and keep the Commandments. Not because you have to, but because you can. Because the life Jesus has given you enables you to now help and serve others. And keep receiving the gifts you need for the life you need, gifts and life that never run out. 

So really, being concerned with eternal life isn’t a luxury belief or a luxury concern or irrelevant or impractical at all - but is, rather, the foundation for living life now. For knowing that you have eternal life, that Jesus has taken care of that for you, that the life you are now living will continue through death to life again . . . that frees you to live a new life now. So that whether war breaks out or not, whether your party is in the White House or controls Congress or not, whether the next natural disaster - or a personal disaster - strikes you, you have a foundation to stand on. Life may still be hard! Probably will be. But however life is for you now - and it may be different tomorrow! - while life changes, your Saviour does not. And when there’s nothing else you can count on, you can count on Him. 

Some ancient Christian sources tell us that this man in the story today, this rich man who went away sad, eventually came back to Jesus. And while I don’t think they say whether he did the first two things Jesus told him to do, sell all his possessions and give to the poor, he did do the third and most important thing, that his riches, at first, prevented him from doing - he followed Jesus. And not just followed Jesus, but served as an early Christian missionary. And not just served as an early Christian missionary, but wrote one of our Gospels - this Gospel, in fact. That his name is Mark. That’s not from the Bible, so I don’t know if it’s 100%, but I like to think it is. That there’s hope for you and me and anyone with stuff in our lives that prevents us, or holds us back, from following Jesus. There’s still time. For the Word of God to work. For the Word to change my heart. For me to live the life Jesus has for me. To be a blessing to others. Be not so self-focused. And to live confidently, even with all sorts of problems and difficulties. To know that no matter what happens, my life in Christ is eternal. And I am free. Free to live. Free to love. Free to repent. Free to forgive. That’s life changing! And it’s what having eternal life is all about. Not that we don’t care about this life, but what enables us to live this life now. In joy and peace. Jesus has taken care of the eternal, so we can live now. So let’s do just that.

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

The Congregation at Prayer

For the Week of Pentecost 21 (October 14-19, 2024)

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

Speak the Apostles’ Creed. 

Verse: Hebrews 4:16 – ”Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Hymn of the Week:  Lutheran Service Book #645 “Built on the Rock”

Hymns for Sunday: 909, 645, 620, 555, 822

Readings for the Week: [The readings for Thursday-Saturday are the Scriptures for this coming Sunday.]

Monday: Psalm 119:9–16

How does the Word of God guard our hearts and minds? How does the Word purify us? How does this also lead us to joy in all of God’s Word?

Tuesday: John 4:46-54

What did the official ask Jesus to do? What did Jesus do? Do you think it was hard for this official to believe Jesus’ word?

Wednesday: Luke 10:1–9

Commemoration of St. Luke. What did Jesus tell the disciples not to take with them? Why? What did they take with them? Why is this all they (and we) need?

Thursday: Ecclesiastes 5:10–20

Is wealth evil? Is wealth dangerous? What should be our attitude towards wealth? How can we get such an attitude?

Friday: Hebrews 4:1–16

What rest does God have for us? How do we enter than rest?

Saturday: Mark 10:23–31

Why is it so difficult to enter the kingdom of God? What promises does Jesus give to help us?

The Catechism - Confession: Which [sins we should confess?] Consider your place in life according to the Ten Commandments: Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or worker? Have you been disobedient, unfaithful, or lazy? Have you been hot-tempered, rude, or quarrelsome? Have you hurt someone by your words or deeds? Have you stolen, been negligent, wasted anything, or done any harm?

Collect for the Week: O God, Your divine wisdom sets in order all things in heaven and on earth. Put away from us all things hurtful and give us those things that are beneficial for us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord. Amen

The Prayers:  Please pray for . . .

+ yourself and for all in need (remembering especially those on our prayer list).

+ God’s blessing, wisdom, and strength for our congregation’s Building Committee.

+ the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Liberia, for God’s wisdom, blessing, guidance, and provision.

+ God’s blessing, guidance, and provision for our Synod’s Soldiers of the Cross program.

Conclude with the Lord’s Prayer and Luther’s Morning or Evening Prayer from the Catechism.

Now joyfully go about your day (or to bed) in good cheer, child of God!

Collect for the Week © 2018 Concordia Publishing House.

Lutheran Service Book Hymn License: 110019268

Sermon for the Twentieth Sunday after Pentecost

LISTEN

Jesu Juva

“Thinking Like Children of God”

Text: Mark 10:2-16; Genesis 2:18-25; Hebrews 2:1-18

 

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

I’m going to start at the end. With the children in the Holy Gospel we heard today. The children who were being brought to Jesus. Whose parents the disciples were rebuking, to chase the children away. 

Why would they do that?

Well, children sometimes cry and fuss. Children get grumpy when they’re tired and hungry. Children get fidgety and curious and do things adults wouldn’t do. They crawl between people’s legs, they awkwardly point things out, they want to be lifted up so they can see, they ask lots of questions. Things aren’t nice and neat and tidy when children are around. So maybe the disciples didn’t want anything distracting from Jesus’ teaching. Maybe they thought Jesus too important for children. Maybe the disciples were tired and hungry and grumpy themselves! 

But Jesus wouldn’t have it. He was indignant, we heard. Which might be too soft a word for it. He was angry. Angry at His disciples. He loved the children! As loud or disruptive as they might have been. The children are exactly who He wanted there! Children who make husbands and wives into fathers and mothers. For to such belongs the kingdom of God. And the King has a special place in His heart for children.

For like Jesus, children see things differently. They have a different perspective on the world than adults. They’re closer to the ground; to creation. They see things we adults miss. To a child, so much is new. New sights, new smells, new sounds. To a child, there is so much to discover. What does a worm taste like? Mud puddles are made for stomping through. There’s what is, and there’s what could be. Hopes and dreams are alive and well.

For adults, though, it’s a little different, I think. There’s reality. There’s what is, and often, not what could be, like for a child . . . but what was; the good ol’ days. There are regrets, dreams not followed, hopes unfulfilled. Or to use the words of the Holy Gospel we heard today, there is the time when the marriage was fresh and new, and now, when it is a bit more mundane, if not challenging. When the love doesn’t quite burn so hot. And maybe even to the point of wondering and asking the question: Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife?

I could answer that question directly, but I think better would be to follow the path Jesus took, and instead to ask: How did we get to this point? In how we think? In how we see things? When did we stop being children, and thinking and seeing like children, and become adults? Which seems good . . . but is it? Is it, if (as Jesus said): whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.

Now I said just a bit ago, that Jesus sees things differently, just as children see things differently. So when asked this question about divorce, Jesus doesn’t point to Moses and stop there, He goes back farther than that. All the way back to the beginning of creation. Which is not just looking back to what once was, to the good ol’ days. It is looking back in order to look forward. It is looking at what once was to see what will be again. 

For that’s what Jesus came to do. Jesus looks at our world - at His creation - and sees not what could be, but what will be again. Jesus has come to make all things new. New husbands and wives. New families. New children. A new creation. To take us who maybe have grown up and away from our heavenly Father a bit and asserted our independence and tried to do things ourselves, and make us children again. Children of God. Children who look to our Father for every good. Children filled with wonder, who see what is, and what will be again. Children who are not wishfully optimistic, but firmly believing. That is, children of faith. Faith in the words and promises of God.

And those are words and promises that will not let you down. All other words and promises in our world seem 50-50 at best. Maybe even less than that these days. Promises are made to be broken, after all, and no where is that perhaps more evident than with marriage vows. Is it lawful for a man to divorce his wife? People don’t even ask that question anymore. They just assume it. And lawful? Maybe. Moses allowed it. But that doesn’t make it good.

Good is what Jesus sees. So good is what Jesus does. For good is what Jesus is. And therefore good is what creation will be again, when Jesus is done with it. Adam did not divorce Eve when she listened to satan, but sin did divide what God had joined together. And had God not stepped in, who knows where that marriage would have ended up? But God did step in. A good God could do no less. And the devastation caused in that first marriage by sin was healed by the words and promises of God. 

And that is our hope today as well. Not just for marriage, but for all the other brokenness in our world today as well. For ultimately, where God stepped in to help was not at the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, where sin broke apart the first husband and wife, but at the tree of the cross, where that sin - and all others! - were borne by Jesus and overcome with His death and resurrection. For the cross is where Jesus is faithful to His marriage vow, laying down His life for His Bride, the Church. We may be unfaithful to Him, but He remains ever faithful to us. That what sin separates, Jesus brings back together with His forgiveness. Not looking back to what once was, but looking forward to what will be again. 

And to what now is. For already the forgiveness that makes us whole is here. The food we need - not to grow up and away from God, but to grow into Jesus - is here. And with all our sins and all our failures and all our regrets and all our unfaithfulness we come here, after another devastating week, month, or years, with our eyes focused on what was - and Jesus focuses us on what now is, and what will be. To see as He sees and to know as He knows. That no matter what we have done, there is hope. For by faith we are children of God, and the brokenness we now inflict on others and endure from others is swallowed up by the cross. 

That is what we heard in the reading from Hebrews today. That Jesus has come to destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the power of division, dividing us from each other and dividing us from the source of our life. Jesus has come to destroy the destroyer. For Jesus didn’t become an angel to save angels, but a man to save men, that we might be sons of God in Him. And because He did and because He was tempted, He is able to help us as we are being tempted. Tempted to see and think and dwell on what was instead of what can be or will be again. Tempted to be hopeless instead of hopeful. Tempted to rely on the Law instead of the Gospel. Jesus withstood the assaults and temptations of the evil one by clinging to the words and promises of God alone, and so now helps us the same.

And children are again, I think, a good example of that. When Mom or Dad makes a promise, children remember that and call them on it! A day or two, or weeks or months, or even years later, but you promised! is repeated, and what was promised, is expected. We adults can learn a thing or two from that, and to even more call on our heavenly Father like that! For unlike our promises, His promises never fail. 

And with our eyes focused again not on what was but what can be and will be, forgiveness will be the means to that future. Forgiveness for hurting and broken marriages and families. Forgiveness for hurting and broken friendships. Forgiveness for hurting and broken churches. Not that forgiveness is a magic wand that suddenly makes everything better. It may not. Forgiveness can be rejected, and the assaults of sin rage on - in us, to us, and in our world. 

But when we don’t forgive, we are being like the disciples, chasing away the children. We don’t want that person here with us. But to forgive them is to welcome them. And yes, the people we forgive might be acting like children! They might be grumpy and angry, interrupting and disrupting what we want, with lives that aren’t nice and neat and tidy. But isn’t that why they need forgiveness! It’s why we need forgiveness! And it’s why Jesus came. For us. For His children. For what we can and will be again, with His love and forgiveness. And thus welcomed by Jesus, we can welcome others the same. And as He forgave, so can we. Not looking back at what was, but forward, in hope, to what will be. Holding fast to our Bridegroom, who is holding fast to us. And yes, His word and promises are that powerful!

A couple of years ago I pointed this out, but I think it’s worth mentioning again today. Notice how what we do here in church is exactly what we do for our children. Children get dirty and need washing, so we bathe them. And we who are filthy with sin are bathed by Jesus in the water of Baptism and washed again and again with His Absolution. We teach our children by reading to them. And we are taught here by being read to, and not just any words, but the truth above all truth, the very Word of God. And when our children get hungry we feed them - and not just any food, but good food, nutritious food, healthy food. And here we, too, are fed with the good food of our Saviour’s Body and Blood. And all these things we never outgrow, for gathered here we are - and always will be - children of God.

And as we heard today, Jesus loves children! And He wants you here! Crying, hurt, grumpy, angry, bitter, confused, unsure, afraid, disappointed, frustrated . . . however you are! For the King and His kingdom are here for you. And he took them in his arms and blessed them, laying his hands on them.

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

Meditation - Montreal MIssion Forum

The Gift of Reconciliation (2 Corinthians 5:16-21)

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.

New things are so nice, aren't they? Laurie and I just decided it was time to get a new car to replace our old van. It still worked. It worked well in some ways. But more and more little things were breaking and starting not to work. And bigger repairs were on the horizon. So while a new car wasn’t cheap, it sure is nice. 

I try to imagine, like Luther once did, what a brand new creation must have been like! Man and woman, plants and animals, without sin and death. Everything working perfectly and living together in peace. It sure would be nice. No war in the Middle East or in Ukraine. No divorce, broken homes, or suicides. No mean tweets, nasty emails, scams, spams, or threats. It sure would be nice.

But all this old brokenness is the result of another one: our brokenness with God. We can try to make our world a better place, and many have tried. But the old brokenness keeps coming back. My new car is going to get old and break. Old enemies may live at peace for a while, but hard-boiled hostilities come roaring back. Repairs help for a while, but we need something more. Patching up the old only works for so long. Treating the symptoms isn’t enough. We need a cure. We need a cure for the brokenness from which all other brokenness comes. We need to be reconciled to God. 

All religions know this and try to do this. Do something to get on God’s good side. Even the atheist knows something is wrong, but not how to fix it. And we need something to fix us, too. The struggle inside between the mind and the body, what I am and what I should be, what I want to do and do do. I can blame you, and often do! But that doesn’t fix me. We need something else. 

The Corinthians needed it, too. Our struggles within and without are not new and unique to our day and age, though we think we are so much different and advanced, both in our knowledge and in our problems. Not so much. So Paul tells them (and us!) the good news: the root of our problems, our brokenness with God, has been overcome by Christ Jesus. What we could not do, God Himself came and did. In the flesh and blood of Jesus. When we try to bury our problems and strife, sooner or later they pop back up, like weeds you can’t get rid of. But when Jesus buried our sins, they didn’t pop back up - He did! Without them. The one who had no sin and was made sin, and crucified, dead, and buried with our sin, rose from the dead perfect and new. As new as it was in the beginning. And will one day be again.

But it is also a newness that we can begin to live already here and now. For not just did Christ Jesus rise new, so did all who are baptized into his death and resurrection. That’s why Paul said, Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. Anyone, which includes everyone! This gift of reconciliation is for all people: Jew or Greek, slave or free, male or female. Canadian, American, or immigrant. Rich or poor. Even French-speaking or not! A cure for all, that reconciled to God, we can begin to live reconciled with one another. Not just treating the symptoms, but giving the cure.

Which is what happens here. That’s why this is “the Good News place.” This is the message heard here that is heard no place else. That here is the newness we need. That here is the forgiveness of our sins, not just the burying of them. That here we die and rise with Jesus to a new life. That here is the food that nourishes and sustains us. And it is for you - no matter who “you” are. If you hear this word, it is for you. For anyone, which means everyone.

One day, we will see that newness. But even now, we can live it. Regarding no one according to the flesh. But seeing them as Jesus does, as those He died for and has life for. Never giving up - as tempting as that sometimes may be! - but imploring all people to receive this gift of reconciliation. Holding it out to them. And when those who care implore us, to be humble enough to repent ourselves. To die and rise with Christ again to newness of life.

Imagine a world like that! Always new, never old. Always whole, never broken. Always at peace, never at war. One day! Come, Lord Jesus.