Tag: sermon

Escape from Escaping

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(1 Peter 5:6-11)

Two people are sprinting as fast as they can in very different scenarios. One is in a movie on your television screen, desperately trying to escape through the woods from the bad guy. The other is in the final heat of an Olympic sprint, running for gold. Both are fast. Both are focused. But they finish very differently. The character in the movie stumbles and falls, while the Olympic sprinter stretches across the finish line to claim her medal. Why did one runner fall and the other didn’t (aside from being a very predictable occurrence in a movie.)? Not only was their purpose for running vastly different, but so was their focus. While both focused, they were focused entirely on different THINGS: the movie character was running from something while the sprinter was running to something. 

In a sense, that distinction captures the glaring issue with every escape we’ve looked at over the course of this series: each escape finds us running from something. So just like the predictable stumble in a movie when a character is trying to outrun, to escape from someone else, so when we choose to escape from something, we inevitably end up stumbling and tripping up, too. Maybe for a short time. Maybe for a lifetime. Maybe somewhere in-between. But when we seek out escapes as a means of avoidance, to get away from some trouble, challenge, sin, or something undesirable in our lives, we WILL stumble and fall. That’s because such an approach is focused on what we’re trying to escape from.

Consider the example of a visit to the doctor. A health concern led you to schedule an appointment so you visited the doctor. He informed you he’d be getting in touch with you later in the week after some results come back. Worried about what he found, you choose to ignore his voicemail or email a couple of days later because you don’t want to hear the bad news. But, if instead of running from the problem by trying to avoid it, you heard the messages and went back to the doctor, he’d tell you that what you have is easily treatable with a simple prescription and in a matter of weeks, you’ll be as good as new. How much worse did you make the matter by trying to run from it instead of to the doctor who could help you?

It isn’t about what we’re running from, but who we’re running to. And when we run to the Lord, we have finally found a healthy escape, we will finally find real rest. Throughout this series in our worship we have used the same Verse of the Day each Sunday: “Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls” (Mt. 11:28-29). Jesus’ invitation in these verses is not to find rest in running away from the world, but rather in coming to him. So this whole theme of escape has really served to underscore the need not just to try to escape or get away from the stress and strain of life in our world today, but to escape to the one source that can provide the real rest that renews and refreshes – found only in Jesus Christ. 

But we aren’t very good at it, are we? Oh, we’re good at putting up posters or even quoting Bible verses, sure. But we have a little work to do when it comes to applying them. Check that – we have a lot of work to do when it comes to applying them. Let me prove it. What do you visualize when you hear Jesus’ invitation to come to him when you are weary and burdened? Is it just a nice-sounding, comforting verse or… do you actually take him up at his invitation? And if you answer “yes” to that, how do you go about it? What does it mean to you to bring your weary, burdened self to Jesus? Does it mean you allow his promise of peace to lift you up when your anxieties anchor you down? Does it mean you take to heart his guarantee that you are good enough even when the voice in your own head tells you otherwise? Does it mean that his forgiveness frees you from the grip of guilt? If these are foreign concepts to you when entertaining Jesus’ invitation to bring your weary, burdened self to Jesus, then let us seek the guidance of Peter’s words this morning from our Second Reading. 

To get to the point where escaping has less to do with what we’re running from and everything to do with who we’re running to, let’s start with verse 6. “Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time” (v.6). Isn’t the writer of these verses the ideal candidate to talk to us about humbling ourselves? Peter excelled at humility… not! Think of Peter walking on water… only to start sinking. Think of Peter putting the Lord in his place to stop all the talk of death and dying… only to have Jesus rebuke his satanic sentiments. Think of Peter claiming he’d never bail on Jesus, even if everyone else would… only to deny him three times. If anyone should know from experience how important it is to humble one’s self before God, it would be Peter, who repeatedly learned lesson after lesson of what happens when one doesn’t humble self before God! 

But don’t end up in the ditch on the other side of the road because your idea of humility is to simply avoid thinking too highly of yourself. In other words, let’s also be clear that humility is not the same thing as self-deprecation. In fact, arrogance and self-deprecation both have the same root cause: self. Negative self-talk and holding a low opinion of yourself are no closer to humility than is being egotistical and conceited – both are miles away from humility, because each one is overly focused on self, which is exactly the opposite of humility. So if God is to lift us up in due time, we must first humble ourselves, and if we are to generate true humility, then we need to die to self, to quit clinging to the best or worst version of self and humbly draw our eyes to God’s mighty hand. Then, and only then, when we quit getting stuck on ourselves, we may be ready for the next part.

“Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you” (v.7). You may have noticed it, but just to make sure, let’s be clear on how Peter did not complete that phrase. He didn’t encourage us to cast all our anxiety on gaming/music/scrolling/Netflix/books/exercise/etc., but rather to cast our anxiety on him – the Lord God. Do you see that as precisely what we’re doing when we turn to any of those things as an escape? We’re changing Peter’s words and hoping our actions will serve as an acceptable substitute. We’re re-writing Scripture so that it reads, “Cast all your anxiety on sports. Cast all your anxiety on gaming. Cast all your anxiety on scrolling. Cast all your anxiety on music. Cast all your anxiety on Netflix.” Why? Why would we think any of those or anything else would serve as sufficient substitutes for how the Holy Spirit had Peter record it: “Cast all your anxiety on HIM…”? It isn’t as if those other escapes are wrong or sinful, but when they become our go-to for escape, then we’re merely running away from something and not to the proper source: God. 

As if we need a little more incentive, Peter reminds us what the Lord offers that those others cannot: “because he cares for you.” None of those other escapes care for you. Netflix doesn’t care for you. Gaming doesn’t care for you. Music doesn’t care for you. Sports don’t care for you. There is One who positively, perfectly, permanently, cares for you, and he is the Lord your God. The proof? No matter how many times you have turned to other escapes instead of turning to him, he still welcomes you back. And he always will.

The scars that you see on his hands as he opens them and extends his inviting arms to welcome you are the proof. The very body and blood with which he feeds you in the sacrament are the proof that he cares for you. The Word of God that endures and still stands even as it feels like our entire world at times is crumbling apart all around is – that Word is proof that he cares for you. The brother or sister in Christ who greets you, who checks in on you, who offers to meet your needs, who comforts you, who prays for you, who worships with you – these are all proof that he cares for you. So let us run – do not step slowly – but sprint to him to not lay down just a small little concern or two at his feet, as if that is all he could possibly handle from us! No, cast it, throw it, hurl it, pile it all – ALL your anxiety on him. He can handle it. Run to him, not just from your worries. 

Doing so also then allows us to take a different view of suffering, which Peter addresses in our closing verses. Living in a culture that increasingly turns away from God has left a vacuum, and one of its byproducts is our inability to handle suffering. Helicopter and lawnmower parents try to protect their kids from it at all costs, rather than train them to cope with it in a healthy way. Teenagers and young adults have such thin skin that virtually anything that isn’t a word of praise is deemed offensive of bullying. Adults resort to cancel culture to squash anything that might cause physical or emotional suffering or simply seek to escape it through unhealthy coping mechanisms or self-medication. Our society cannot handle suffering. Yet Peter took what today could only be perceived as a radical view of suffering, and he encourages us to do the same. He reminds us, “…you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast” (v.9-10).

When we are free from being enslaved by escape and finally run to the Lord, we then see how even suffering serves us. The one running from something sees hardship or obstacles as reason enough to give up, to drop down and let the bad guy catch up. He has lost hope. But the one running to something, to the finish line, to the victory, welcomes the suffering and the obstacles as something to be overcome, something to make the ending that much sweeter. And friends, we have God’s Word that the end will be so much sweeter. So do not give up. Do not call it quits. Instead, escape to the One who cares for you, and he will not let you down.

Escape from Chasing Status and Success

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(Daniel 6:1-23)

There are two ways to get ahead. One, you set yourself apart from the rest of the pack in striving for excellence. You stand out. You go above and beyond. Whether you have natural ability or work hard, you distinguish yourself and others take note. The other way to get ahead? You focus your energy on getting rid of the kind of people I just described. You tear down everyone else ahead of you in the pecking order. If a person doesn’t have what it takes to be on top, that person may choose to expend all energy negatively on bringing others down. If successful, once everyone else is out of the picture, that person then fills in the void – again, not by skill or ability or hard work, mind you – but by default. 

It’s quite clear which approach Daniel’s co-workers took. They simply could not match his exceptional administrative abilities. He was a head above the rest. “Now Daniel so distinguished himself among the administrators and the satraps by his exceptional qualities that the king planned to set him over the whole kingdom” (v.3). For some reason, his coworkers took issue with Daniel. Perhaps his promotion meant their roles would change. Perhaps they were jealous of his recognition. Perhaps they were irked that a foreigner would be given such status. Whatever the reason, we know that they resented Daniel. Rather than trying to improve themselves and outwork or out-hustle him, they just wanted him out. “At this, the administrators and the satraps tried to find grounds for charges against Daniel in his conduct of government affairs, but they were unable to do so. They could find no corruption in him, because he was trustworthy and neither corrupt nor negligent” (v.4). 

You know when it’s really hard to say something bad about someone? When there’s nothing bad to say about someone. No matter how hard they tried, this group of envious administrators couldn’t drum up any bad press on Daniel. In addition to doing exceptional work, he was also a man of character and integrity, so they weren’t able to dig up any dirt on him. Today anyone with an ax to grind simply scours through the past decade of tweets and social media posts, and eventually they’ll find something that will offend someone, but Daniel’s reputation was pristine. These other government officials gunning for him only hit one dead end after another.    

Before we proceed further, let’s go beyond the actions and consider the attitudes behind them. What is it that drives people to choose the course of action that Daniel’s co-workers did? Surely as top officials in the kingdom, they would have enjoyed an above-average lifestyle and had it pretty good. They weren’t barely scraping by. Their roles were still quite exclusive and undoubtedly included both great responsibility and recognition along with it. So why wasn’t that enough? 

Because it never is when chasing status and success. That was exactly the point of one of the popular songs from the movie The Greatest Showman, entitled “Never Enough.” That was the song sung by the beautiful world-renowned singer who was on tour with and being promoted by the main character in the movie. The singer belted out the same refrain, again and again, lamenting that no amount of fame or fortune would ever be enough. And if fame and fortune, if status and success are what someone is chasing, then it’s true: it will never be enough. 

We all crave it, to some extent. We want to matter. We want to be recognized, to be liked. After our very basic needs are met, like food, safety, and security, right there in Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is our need to be liked, our need for significance. But where is the fine line between feeling secure with my status and being unsatisfied? And, related, is it wrong to want to be successful, to strive for more, to be ambitious and driven? Or is it the lot of the Christian to simply remain reserved, to maintain one’s lot in life and be happy with where one is at, to settle?

What is the answer? Well, the answer is found in determining exactly what it is you’re looking for. But here’s the problem: if your pursuit of status or success is tied to your identity, then you’ve got a long road ahead of you. The good news is that you won’t be traveling that road alone – there are countless others in pursuit of the very same thing: an achievement-based identity. The bad news? You’ll never arrive at your destination, because there isn’t one. If you are looking to others for status and significance, well, you can board that train, but here’s the thing: that train only makes pick-ups, never drop-offs. That’s because there is no destination. It’s always “just a little further.” If my value is tied to views – the view or opinion others have of me, it will never be good enough. Today is filled with likes but tomorrow I get unfollowed. These people praise me, but that one, whose approval I really crave, doesn’t give me the time of day. One moment I’m delighted by all the compliments, the next I’m deflated by all the cut-downs. Eventually, like a hamster spinning relentlessly in his wheel, you’ll end up collapsing of exhaustion – and not just physical, but even more dangerous, spiritual exhaustion. 

Let’s return now to Daniel and take note of something else about him that stood out – for it wasn’t just his governing ability that was exceptional; it was also his relationship with God that stood out. “Finally these men said, “We will never find any basis for charges against this man Daniel unless it has something to do with the law of his God” (v.5). Stop right there for a moment. Consider how evident, how obvious Daniel’s faith must have been for his opponents to take such note of it. It wasn’t just his raw talent and ability that stood out. It wasn’t even just his character and integrity. His faith stood out – and in a foreign land, mind you, where it surely would have been much easier on him to just go along to get along, to try to fit in and avoid ruffling any feathers by either embracing the local religious customs or at least keeping his own religions under wraps. But he apparently did the opposite, so much so that everyone knew how devout he was when it came to his faith. 

Do others know that about us when it comes to our faith – that we are devout? Or do they just know that we want to debate? Do they know what we’re for as Christians, or only everything that we’re vehemently against? Do others know from experience that Christians are all about love, compassion, patience, gentleness, forgiveness, etc., or do they just hear us talk about such things while rarely seeing them put into practice? If/when others know that I am a Christian, is it only when I feel compelled to point out my opposition/distaste regarding some grievous sin captured in the headlines or a questionable lifestyle of an acquaintance? And if my Christian faith only comes into play when I am insistent on making a stand against this evil, wicked world, let’s ask – who has ever been won over by that approach? I don’t know about you, but these attitudes and descriptions don’t seem to fit the impression I get from Daniel and his expression of faith. 

He didn’t use his faith in God as a club to beat down the Babylonians and all their pagan practices, yet his opponents were still well aware of how important his faith was to him. He didn’t verbalize or vocalize what a godless country he lived in and make it a point to protest all the things that violated his faith. And perhaps the greatest expression of it was in what Daniel did when the new law was put into effect: “Now when Daniel learned that the decree had been published, he went home to his upstairs room where the windows opened toward Jerusalem. Three times a day he got down on his knees and prayed, giving thanks to his God, just as he had done before” (v.10). All he did was go home and pray. He didn’t try to shock or offend. He didn’t express outrage that his rights were violated. He didn’t play the victim. He didn’t complain that society – especially through this latest offensive demand! – was pushing back on his faith and he just wasn’t going to stand for it or take it anymore.

Here’s the sad thing about where we’re at today: while rather rudimentary, Daniel’s behavior is really quite radical. What if that was the radical approach we took instead of bemoaning everything wrong in the world today? What if we just… focused on Jesus and developing our relationship with him, on growing in our faith? What if we did something so simple as… got excited to be able to wake up every Sunday morning and enjoy the freedom of gathering together with my church family for worship? What if I found tremendous peace of mind in not only knowing that I can, but actually taking advantage of the privilege of prayer, talking to God routinely throughout the day instead of listening to the talking heads on this channel or that one? What if I looked for reasons to attend rather than excuses to avoid the numerous Bible study opportunities offered each week? If we did all these things, let me ask you, do you think you’d be better off or worse off than letting the world have so much space in your head right now? 

That’s really what today is about. Kick-Off Christian Education Sunday is the opportunity to take stock in where I stand right now in my walk with God. Are the choices I am making, are the priorities I am setting, are the ways I am spending my time – are these serving the purpose of bringing me closer to Jesus, or am I unknowingly, inadvertently letting my life allow me to drift apart from him? 

This Wednesday our school kicks off another year. Aside from allowing Jesus’ grace and forgiveness to decorate your home, having your children enrolled in our school is one of the best – if not the best – blessings you can give your child. And no, that’s not me tooting our horn about what a great school ours is – although it is! Rather, that’s the confidence I have in what Jesus is able to do in the hearts of the little children we allow to sit at his feet day in and day out. Because here is the greatest takeaway we pray for any student impacted by our school: that it becomes so deeply ingrained in them that they are worth far more in Jesus’ eyes than any value that can be attached to them by anyone else in this world. To know that in Jesus they have a status that no social media account will ever achieve, that not all the praise of men will ever bring about. They are cherished and loved in Jesus.

And so are you. So are we all. “See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!” (1 Jn. 3:1). I know, I know – it’s not the easiest thing in the world to believe, is it? After all, if it’s so hard for us to consistently achieve acceptance and validation and significance merely from other people, how on earth could we ever possibly hope to have it from a holy God??? How could he feel this way about me when so often he’s barely a blip on my radar, when I’m much more like one of the conspiring co-workers than I am like Daniel?  How could he feel this way about me when my Christian faith has served more as a platform for a shouting match with the world than it has a calling to care for the world and confess Jesus to it? How could he feel this way about me when I know that he can see right into my heart where I cannot hide even the slightest single sin from him and my hypocrisy is exposed? 

Listen, for this is how: “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us” (1 Jn. 3:16). Jesus gave his life for us. That’s how we know how God feels about us. Compare that to the praise and validation you might receive from people. Facebook gives you a “like”; Jesus gave you his life. Instagram gives you followers; Jesus gives you forgiveness. A manager gives you a raise; Jesus gives you his Resurrection. A friend pays you a compliment; Jesus makes you complete. There is no comparison between the shallow status the world offers and the permanent promise of love and acceptance the Father offers because of Jesus. 

And, just like the law of the Medes and Persians, it cannot be repealed. Because God’s love for you is not based on your performance one way or the other, but on Jesus’ perfection and sacrifice, God will not change his mind about how he feels about you. He has loved you, he does love you, and he always will love you. Let us stop chasing worldly status and success as an escape, and instead focus more on clinging to the status that is already ours through Jesus Christ: dearly loved children of God – for that is what we are!

Escape from Consumerism

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(1 Timothy 6:6-12, 17-19)

How much did you spend last month? How about last week? Yesterday? Some of us could probably provide an exact number, right down to the penny. Others have a pretty good general idea. Still others are clueless. This morning’s escape certainly includes managing money and spending, but it’s not limited to just that. If we’re going to see the value of this morning’s focus as we look at 1 Timothy, we have to be clear on what the real issue is. If we don’t pinpoint that, any one of us might end up concluding today’s message addresses an escape that really isn’t much of a problem for me. So as we continue looking at escapes to which turn for the real rest that only Jesus can provide, we want to be as clear as possible. Last week’s escape, chemical dependency, was rather straightforward. We talked about our relationship with drugs and alcohol and dug more into that topic in our small group discussion later in the week.

But how do we nail down today’s escape, which we’ve labeled as “consumerism?” Are we talking about our penchant for purchasing, our desire to shop and spend money? Or is this a greed issue that drives us to pursue more money and wealth? Or, do we need to take about an unhealthy obsession like hoarding and holding on to stuff unnecessarily? If we narrowed today’s topic down to any one of those categories or a number of others, then many of us would tune out, concluding that “I don’t care about getting rich,” or “I don’t even like shopping.” 

So let’s summarize today’s theme and Paul’s words to Timothy in this way: our relationship with stuff.  Every one of us has a relationship with stuff – the stuff we are inclined to throw out as being worthless, the stuff we hold on to that we can’t let go of, or the stuff we seek out when shopping – but we all have a relationship with stuff. And today we want to guard against becoming possessed by our possessions, against treating stuff as an escape, or looking to it for something it can never provide. 

An indifferent or disinterested attitude toward the potentially destructive grip stuff can have on us simply ignores numerous warnings from Scripture. There’s a reason Jesus talked about money and possessions as much as he did. There’s a reason Paul is talking about money in a very candid manner with young pastor Timothy in the verses from 1 Timothy. And there’s a reason we need to talk about it today, too. Because we need to be reminded that the real problem with stuff isn’t actually the stuff at all: it’s rather how easily our hearts gravitate toward it. It’s how easily and subtly we put Jesus’ words from the Gospel to the test, as if we’re going to prove him wrong and show him that we actually can serve both God and money, that we can have it both ways (cf. Mt. 6:24). But no one has ever proved God wrong in that department, and you surely won’t be the first. So rather than pursuing that fruitless task, let us instead deal with the real problem and address our hearts. 

Make no mistake, our relationship with stuff is an issue of the heart, a spiritual issue. Admittedly, however, we may struggle to see it as such. Why? Because of the way that stuff can make us feel, because of the rush we get when we purchase something. One author who’s consulted with Fortune 100 companies on the shopping habits of consumers contends that people don’t buy something because it’s necessary or even useful, but because of how it makes them feel. Some estimates suggest a 50% increase in online shopping during the pandemic. While certainly a good amount of that online shopping was because of limitations and restrictions to in-store shopping, there’s more to it. When so much of our lives were out of our control – online shopping provided a means by which we could still maintain some control. And it doesn’t matter who you are – male, female, young, or old – we all have different shopping patterns and have all experienced the same dopamine rush of “adding to cart” and “proceed[ing] to checkout” online or handing the cashier our CC or debit card after everything is rung up at the store. So the physical dopamine rush we experience when spending has a way of concealing whether or not a spiritual issue is the real concern. And the relationship we can have in general with certain material things – whether those items evoke fond memories of people or experiences – can cloud what can sometimes be an unhealthy attachment to things. 

There is another feeling that drives us when it comes to clinging on to too much stuff or not buying enough stuff: a sense of loss. Our perception of stuff is that if we let go of it, then we experience loss. And, if we don’t buy something or fail to purchase it in time, we experience that same sense of loss by missing out.

That fear of loss is what makes Pauls’ words stand out. Do you catch the irony in Paul’s words in verse 6? “But godliness with contentment is great gain” (v.6). When it comes to stuff, particularly when we shop, we fear we’re losing out if we don’t get a great deal or get the newest, the latest, the greatest. When it comes to saving things, we fear we’ll lose something by pitching it or donating it or giving it away. But Paul says there is a way to experience not loss, but great gain without buying a thing! He calls godliness combined with contentment “gain.” How does one get more or gain something without spending a penny? What does that look like? We have to start somewhere, and often this first step can be the most difficult.

If you’ve ever taken a CPR class or been instructed in basic care, you know that when a person is bleeding, whether it’s a scrape, a laceration, or puncture wound, or some other injury that causes bleeding, the first step is always the same: stop the bleeding. But when it comes to overcoming consumerism as an unhealthy escape, long-term success can be a struggle because we never bother to stop the bleeding. We may establish some new habits – using a budget, actually planning our offerings, or looking for ways to be more generous – but we do these things while at the same time continuing to spend and sinking ourselves more deeply into debt. That’s like slicing your finger while cutting up something in the kitchen and deciding that going for a run will help. Yes, going on a run is good exercise, but it’s not going to do anything for your finger! So establishing good habits without stopping the shopping – without stopping the bleeding – won’t result in the great gain of godliness with contentment. And it isn’t just shopping; if I can’t sort through the possessions I’ve accumulated over time and let go of them bit by bit, I haven’t stopped the bleeding.

How do we decide how if this is a problem for us, or how challenging it may be for us to stop the bleeding and stop purchasing everything in sight? How do we determine if it’s really a spiritual problem that I have in hanging on to too much? We figure out what is behind these desires. What is driving them? To provide us with some more internal insight, let’s revisit the four questions posed last Sunday, the questions we want to keep coming back to as we seek to rein in our unhealthy escapes. #1 – Can I go without it? #2 – Is this a topic I can discuss with a fellow Christian? #3 – Am I avoiding a long-term solution in favor of short-term satisfaction? #4 – Am I looking to creation for something that can only be provided by the Creator? These questions help us expose if we have an unhealthy relationship with stuff.

We can also take the “if only” test. How would you complete this statement? “If only I had ___________, then I would be happy.” Now, whatever you’d fill that blank in with, I want you to imagine having it. Or, simply look back to the last time you did acquire that “if only” object. From that point on, consciously track how long it took or takes until the next “if only” pops up in your head. Because that’s the thing: another “if only” will always pop up. “If only” is a lie. “If only” is phony. Don’t fall for the phony “if only” when it comes to thinking stuff will ever satisfy!

Now then, once we stop the bleeding, whether that means cutting up our credit cards, disabling Amazon from all of our electronic devices, or simply sorting through things we’ve been hanging on to for too long, then we seek to replace that unhealthy escape with a healthy one. Paul provides us with a healthy escape in verse 12: “Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.” Doesn’t it feel pretty foolish when you find yourself looking for your sunglasses, only to have someone point out they’re on your head, or to frantically looking everywhere for your car keys – the ones in either your hand, your pocket, or your purse? It feels downright foolish to be desperately searching for something that you already have! 

So it is with eternal life. Why search, spend, shop for stuff that will never ever add up in worth to what you already have in Jesus: eternal life? Take hold of it. Embrace what is yours. Find real rest in what you already have, not in the pursuit of more stuff. How often over the course of a month, a week, or even a day, do you stop to ponder the reality of the gift of eternal life that right belongs to you in Christ? How often are you washed over with the always-refreshing newness of knowing your salvation is secure? There’s no sale you have to seek out, no great deal to stumble upon, no financing needed – not a penny from you; just the faith to receive what God offers free of charge. Put your wallets away. Keep your purses at home. Your life has already been purchased, your forgiveness paid for, and your eternity earned for you by Jesus – the same Jesus who has washed away your every greedy desire to find in consumerism what can only be found in Christ: true contentment. Take hold of the eternal rest that is yours right this very moment, and begin to experience what it feels like to have contentment wash over you.

Paul restates this healthy escape in another way in verse 17: “Command those who are rich in this present world not to be arrogant nor to put their hope in wealth, which is so uncertain, but to put their hope in God, who richly provides us with everything for our enjoyment.” Put your hope in God. Wealth comes and goes, as does the enjoyment of it, but hope that is placed in God never disappoints. 

And we show that our hope is in him as we seek to live out his guidance in verse 11: “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness” (v.11). Do you notice something about these pursuits? They cannot be bought. They cannot be purchased. But they can be pursued. And doing so is great gain, for the more of these we have, the more contentment becomes a natural byproduct of these qualities. And the more content we become, the less we need to turn to stuff as an escape; for contentment leads us to realize that we already have in Jesus what no possession or purchase can ever provide: real rest.

Escape from Chemical Dependency

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(Proverbs 23:29-35)

There is no vaccination that can protect you from tough times. We are not, nor will we ever be, immune to stress. We may have different triggers that set us off, different topics that test us, but trouble trails us from the day of our birth until our last day on earth. Our series for the next several weeks will challenge us to evaluate how we cope with trouble, how we handle hardship, where we are inclined to turn to help us deal with it. Where do we go when feel compelled to escape? Where do we turn when we are tired and need rest?

There are many healthy ways to cope or escape. Socializing with friends. Working out at the gym. Volunteering in the community. But the past 18 months have contributed to the problem by limiting the number of healthy ways we have countered rising stress levels. Socializing with friends to take our minds off the headlines has been limited. Closed gyms have limited physical activity to release stress naturally. In the process of not having our normal outlets to beat stress and decompress, many have turned to alternatives to cope. 

But, rather than finding a healthy alternative by which to cope, some are much worse off now than they were before. That’s because unhealthy escape is a double whammy – not only does it NOT deal with or address the underlying problem; it actually ends up adding another problem to the mix. Imagine if you saw a drowning person struggling to keep their head above the water. If you could, you’d throw them a life preserver to cling to and rescue them. But turning to an unhealthy escape is like tossing a drowning person a rope with a cement block tied to it. Not only will it do nothing to help them; it will actually do more harm than good. It made a bad situation much worse! So it is when we turn to unhealthy coping mechanisms for escape or for rest that can truly only be found in one place: Jesus.

Let’s talk for a moment about how not to approach this series. Let me discourage you from ignoring it because you don’t think any of it will apply to you. Being too quick to jump to that conclusion may itself be a warning sign that a particular coping mechanism is a blindspot for you that you don’t even see. Also, this series is not being offered to puff up your pride because you may not have a particular weakness that someone else does. Nor is this series intended to equip you to become better at judging others, whether inside or outside the church. Instead, listen for two. Listen for yourself, being open to the possibility that you may have some unhealthy escapes in your life right now that need attention. But also listen for others who definitely do. Listen so that you better understand the struggles others are facing, and so that you are better equipped not to judge, but to jump in and help however you can.

To serve as a bit of a self-assessment throughout this series, here are four questions we’ll keep revisiting to guide us in possibly exposing some areas of concern we might want to address. 

#1 – Can I go without it? This is a better question to ask than just asking yourself if your use of something is excessive. This is because quantity and amounts are subjective and every one of us is proficient at justifying just about any amount for any reason. But the real question should be can I do without it? Can I go without? 

#2 – Is this a topic I can comfortably discuss with a fellow Christian? Am I able to share my struggle? If not, what does that say about the gravity of the situation? If it is something I am comfortable discussing, that may be the best evidence that this isn’t a problem area, or if it is, that you’re already in the process of seeking additional help to work through it. But if you can’t comfortably discuss it with a fellow Christian, why not? Is your inability to do so an indicator that you’re hiding a problem? 

#3 – Am I avoiding a long-term solution in favor of short-term satisfaction? Would you stick with the same mechanic if you had to keep taking your car back to him after every time he worked on your car? If he was doing a good job of fixing the problem, you wouldn’t need to keep going back to him, right? So if whatever you turn to for escape is actually helping you overcome a problem, should you need to return to it more frequently or less? If I keep returning to it because the same problem persists, how effective is it in the long term? Have you become so attached to its short-term satisfaction that it has led you to stop caring about a long-term solution?

#4 – Am I looking to creation for something that can only be provided by the Creator? It might be a person. It might be a substance. It might be a place or an experience. Whatever it is, if I am placing on it the responsibility or the expectation of freeing me from my burdens and providing me with lasting fulfillment and satisfaction, I will be disappointed. The sooner we understand that about anything – about everything – the sooner we’re ready to look to Jesus for what only he can provide: real rest. We’ll revisit these four questions again this morning as we consider our first escape: chemical dependency. 

To anyone who has ever had too much to drink, whether intentionally or not, the imagery provided in the verses from Proverbs this morning is rather obvious. The author is clearly describing what it’s like to be intoxicated, to be drunk. Does it surprise you to find such an accurate description in the Bible – to find such vivid imagery of a sin? It kind of catches one off guard, doesn’t it? We’re typically a little more comfortable simply naming the sin and forbidding it than we are going into detail about what it’s like. It’s one thing to read through an account in the Bible in which a sin takes place, and another to poetically paint the sin in such detail!

Moreover, the path by which we arrived at this candid description was itself a bit of an unexpected turn, wasn’t it? We’re drawn in by the first several questions and are quick to mentally shoot our hands up in the air: “I have woe. I have sorrow. I have strife. I have complaints.” We are sucked in by the completely relatable issues being raised, so that wherever the author is going, we’re listening. 

Then the road begins to turn slightly: “Who has needless bruises? Who has bloodshot eyes?” (v.29b). “OK, I guess… are we talking about someone being beaten up now? Not getting enough sleep because of the degree of suffering? I’m still paying attention, but now I’m a little confused. Go on.”

“Those who linger over wine, who go to sample bowls of mixed wine” (v.30). And now we get it. The point being drawn out is that abusing alcohol brings about all of those things for which I had my hand up. It is the source of those woes, sorrows, strifes, complaints, and yes, the needless bruises and bloodshot eyes. The irony, of course, is that what wouldn’t shock us would be for someone experiencing woes, sorrows, strifes, or complaints to turn to a drink or two… or three or more as an escape. But the proverb isn’t condoning cocktails as a means of coping, but instead concludes that they are the cause of woe, sorrow, strife, or complaints. In other words, turning to alcohol as an escape from problems will itself only foment problems. What we turn to as a solution only compounds the problem. 

We could at this point highlight all the destructive consequences that can result from chemical dependence, whether by drink or by drug. You already know how lives can so easily be ruined by such things. We could point to all those bad things and wrap up this message – and each successive message in this series – with a similar theme of “See – don’t do these bad things because they’ll mess up your life.” For some that would be enough. 

But God is never as interested in your actions as he is in your attitude. And that’s the underlying issue. When we talk about chemical dependency and turning to drugs or drinking for escape, for rest, the heart is the real issue. So rather than wasting your time with that little back and forth dialogue in your head that goes something like this: “I don’t have a problem. I just like to relax once in a while with a drink or two. Just a little something to take the edge off of a stressful day. Just a little me time. I’m no alcoholic,” let’s evaluate our relationship with drinking or prescription/recreational/illegal drugs as a heart issue.

Let’s steer clear of extremes, pretending that the solution is found in simply prohibiting such things because of the damage they could cause. They aren’t inherently sinful (unless we’re talking about taking illegal substances, or if we’re underage, or if we’re disobeying parental rules) and can be enjoyed in moderation. So rather than resorting to the easy method of making everything black and white and pretending more rules will accomplish what only the gospel already has, let’s evaluate the relationship we have with such substances. After all, a person can still have an unhealthy relationship with certain substances without being an addict or alcoholic. How do we determine that? We look at our hearts. 

Since I can’t see your heart and you can’t see mine, we have to personally wrestle with the questions I raised earlier to help provide us with an honest assessment of where we’re at.#1 – Ask if you can go without it. #2 – Is this a topic I can comfortably discuss with a fellow Christian? #3 – Am I avoiding a long-term solution in favor of short-term satisfaction? #4 – Am I looking to creation for something that can only be provided by the Creator? 

Now all these questions can do is make real for us the possibility of a problem. What they don’t do, however, is address the solution. We often presume that a sterner preaching of the law is the solution to solving chemical dependency. It’s not. A better understanding of the gospel is. I’m free. I have in Christ what no chemical can cure or solve. Chemicals may temporarily numb my pain, but Jesus nullified my sin. I have a Savior who promised a permanent long-term solution that also offers short-term satisfaction.

“Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). Paul didn’t say, “Hey Christian, you need to or should crucify your flesh,” but that your flesh has already been crucified by virtue of Jesus’ crucifixion. Just as surely as he was nailed to the cross, so were your sins, and your sinful passions and desires along with them. There’s nothing for you to do other than to realize who you already are in Christ. And that isn’t an addict. It isn’t an alcoholic. It is a forgiven child of God. 

That current status is not something you have to achieve. Your flesh has already been crucified with Christ, which means you have real power to put off that old passion and desire. If it’s been nailed to the cross, then it doesn’t own you or control you. You are free to say no, free to embrace your forgiveness, free to stop falling for the lies of chemical escape that always elude you. You have in Jesus real rest, real escape from real problems. And more of Christ, not chemicals, will fill you with real rest. So heed Paul’s advice to the Ephesians: “Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit” (Ephesians. 5:18). There is no vaccination that can protect you from tough times. But there is salvation that can provide rest from them. Real rest. Escape that is eternal. Literally! 

Don’t Lose Sight of the Source of your Strength

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(Judges 13-16)

Like me, I doubt many of you can remember what it was like to not be able to walk or ride a bike. When we grow or learn a new skill, it’s easy for us to forget what it was like before we knew how to carry it out. We can also then forget or overlook those who helped us learn or acquire that skill or ability.

As we wrap up our series on Samson, that’s one of the things we want to take into consideration. But we want to remember not just those in general who have helped us get to where we are today, but that ultimately it is always the Lord who provides us with what is needed to accomplish or achieve anything through us (and oftentimes in spite of us!).

We see that in Samson. But as we close out our series on Judges, let’s take moment to recap the takeaways from each of the judges God raised up. Amidst the recurring pattern of Israel spiraling into wickedness and being handed over to her enemies as a result, the cry to the Lord for deliverance – no matter how disingenuous or short-lived it was each time – was answered by God in unique ways. Through Deborah and Barak, God reminded us that his promises don’t need to be propped up – they stand on their own because he has made them. Through Gideon the Lord showed that he can do a lot with a little. In the shameful example of Abimelech we saw what happened when God was not a part of the plan. Using Jephthah, God led us to reflect on the ultimate turnaround story, that he can bring rescue through a reject. Where does Samson fit in with all of this? He reminds us not to lose sight of the source of our strength. 

It’s really phenomenal when you think about it – how easily we swing from insecurity to overconfidence. Gideon displayed it. Remember how many times timid and insecure Gideon asked for a sign from the Lord to reassure him? Then, when all was said and done, insecure Gideon became too-secure-in-self Gideon and allowed an idol to become a snare. He wrestled with insecurity, but after the Lord worked out a divinely decisive victory against the Midianites, Gideon suddenly found himself looking in the mirror instead of to the Lord. 

We’ve been there. It starts out as a source of insecurity or weakness. Then, as we give attention to it, as we work on it, as we develop it or overcome it, it actually becomes a strength. At one point the sheer thought of speaking in front of even a few people was mortifying, but you’d never know it when you listen to the polished public speaker give a TED talk. The athlete who couldn’t even make the cut for the high school team ends up as one of the most successful to ever compete in the sport. He was a college dropout who went on to start up his own company and earn millions. We’ve heard all kinds of such stories – they are a dime a dozen. And if even on some smaller scale, we’ve likely experienced something similar that resulted in success later on.

The problem, though, is that in the midst of all of our hard work and our commitment and our success, we quickly gloss over the fact that it was God who granted it all, that He was and is the source of our strength and that only with his blessing could we have achieved any of it! It’s not unlike the mom or dad hiking up a mountain trail with their small child strapped in on their back. They make it up to the top, where the child excitedly announces, “I did it!” Mom or dad did all of the work, but you wouldn’t know it by listening to the child’s self-proclaimed achievement. 

The apostle Paul points out the absurdity of such a claim when he asks the rhetorical question in 1 Corinthians 4, verse 7, “What do you have that you did not receive? And if you did receive it, why do you boast as though you did not?” All that we are, all that we have, all that we achieve, is from God! Yet, like the little child carried to the top of the mountain, we are so quick to celebrate what “we” just did!

And it isn’t just a matter of spiritual amnesia, of forgetting to give glory to God by acknowledging him and thanking him for our growth, but it also leads us to look differently at others whose present situation might be exactly where our past situation was. How quickly we forget that we were once there and how impatient we become when they don’t exhibit the same strength that we now have! We don’t say it out loud, but we think to ourselves, “Well, it’s been a while since I’ve seen them at church, and it’s not because I’m the one who hasn’t been here every Sunday…” We might even express shock or surprise that someone else struggles with a particular sin that hasn’t troubled us for some time. We feel pretty good about our marriage as we look at others struggling to keep it together, forgetting that we’ve had more than our share of challenges, too. A weakness turns to a strength, and we arrogantly credit ourselves with the turnaround, rather than remembering that God is the one who worked it. We flex our own muscle instead of pointing to our Savior’s strength. 

Samson had gotten used to it. The Lord had endowed him with the strength of a superhero, and he had gotten used to it. It was his identity. He was the strong man, feared by the Philistines. So easily had he forgotten the source of his strength – the Lord. And so easily did he stumble when faced with his weakness: women. Twice, a combination of his attraction to the opposite sex and his self-confidence instead of his God-confidence resulted in Samson letting his guard down. The first time it led him to leak the answer to a riddle that eventually found its way to his enemies. The second time was a much costlier mistake – resulting in his hair being cut and being taken captive and having his eyes gouged out by his enemies. Had Samson more readily remembered the Lord and not been so quick to rest on his own laurels, perhaps he would have been more guarded in each case and not ended up being taken advantage of. 

But here’s the remarkable thing about God – he used Samson anyway! In both instances, it was the Philistines who ended up on the receiving end of the Lord’s wrath through Samson. At this point in the book of Judges, it shouldn’t surprise us at all that God still manages to carry out his work of deliverance through flawed individuals – it’s what we’ve seen again and again from him. So then, even when the individual fails to give glory to God, or at least is slow to do so, God doesn’t necessarily give him the pink slip and call on his HR team to hire someone else more worthy. God even uses those who forget to give him the credit to accomplish what he desires.

He still does today. God has used and will continue to use the secular world to serve his sanctified purposes. While the secular world won’t acknowledge God’s strength, that doesn’t keep God from using it to bless his people. He can do it through governments, through institutions and organizations, through relationships, through resources, etc. – all to serve his people and his kingdom. Through the world he shows his strength, even though the world doesn’t acknowledge him.

And through the Church, too, he shows his strength… or should we say in spite of the Church? The pastor refers to his church, as if he’s the one who built it. Church members refer to pastor so-and-so’s church, as if to overlook that God placed that pastor into that ministry. Christian leaders point to what they’ve achieved by this ministry plan or taking that approach, neglecting to credit God with the one doing all the work and blessing it with success.

The Lord is the source of our strength, and you know where he shows it best? In his Word and sacraments, where he pronounces forgiveness to Samson-like sinners who miserably fail again and again when leaning on their own strength. When our puffed-up pride is exposed and blown apart like a straw house, Jesus is there to pick up the pieces again and again with the mighty strength of salvation and forgiveness. It’s not in his polished six-pack abs – but in absolution – where God displays his muscle. Grace – not gold medals – is how God shows greatness. Forgiveness – not flexing – is how God demonstrates his strength. 

Samson was set apart by God from birth, but he failed to grow much at all in his faith by seeing the Lord as the source of his strength. He lost sight of the source of his strength. It wasn’t until the day of his death that he recognized it and in repentance humbly asked the Lord to grant him the strength for one final strike against the Philistines. God granted his request, and as the columns collapsed under Samson’s God-given brute strength, he ended up killing more Philistines by his own death than he did altogether during his life. 

Don’t make the same mistake. Don’t wait until your dying day to tap into the tools God gives you to maximize his strength. They’re at your disposal right now, every Sunday in worship, every day in the Word, every other week in the Sacrament. Let him strengthen you. Let God show you what he can do through his Church when we rely not on our own sham strength, but on the strength of our Savior and his salvation. We may not remember what it was like to not be able to walk or ride a bike, but let’s never forget that the Lord is – and always will be – the source of our strength.

Rescued by a Reject

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(Judges 11:1-14, 27-40)

Would you have done it? Would you have answered the call when they came pleading for you to come to their rescue? Or would you have stewed and ruminated on their words of rejection for so long that you couldn’t bring yourself to do it? Remember, these were the ones who coldly cast you out, rejecting you with the words, “You are not going to get any inheritance in our family, because you are the son of another woman” (Judges 11:2). It wasn’t your fault that dad had slept with a prostitute and you were the result, but it didn’t matter; they had rejected you. But now they were requesting you, begging you, needing you to come to their aid when under attack from the Ammonites. “Come, be our commander, so we can fight the Ammonites” (v.6). Would you have done it?

By now we’re used to some unique details and stories surrounding the judges the Lord has raised up for his people. Jephthah is no exception. What stands out most are two things: 1) he was rejected, only to later be requested for a rescue mission from the very folks who rejected him, and 2) he made – and carried out – a vow that not only tugs at our hearts, but also leaves us scratching our heads. Yet there is also something Jephthah has in common with the previous judges God raised up to rescue his people, which stands out because of its general absence among God’s people: Jephthah’s relationship with the Lord. Before even accepting the invitation to lead the battle against the Ammonites, he acknowledged that any victory would be because the Lord gave it (v.9). He then made it a point to show his dedication to the Lord in official capacity at Mizpah (v.11). In his message to the king of the Ammonites, he had recalled the background of how the Lord had led and directed his people to the land where they presently were (vs. 15-26). Finally, the vow he made to make a burnt offering to the Lord, although it ended tragically, was a type of sacrifice that Israelites would offer up to show their commitment and dedication to the Lord, which was sadly such a rare sight during these times of Israel’s history. 

As the account unfolds and we see how Jephthah responds to the pleas for deliverance, it gives us opportunity to consider our own actions in the face of rejection. We’ve all experienced it to some degree. It may have been the sting of being the last pick on the playground, where no one actually chose you, but they were stuck with you. It may have been a relationship in which you were rejected in favor of someone else. Your input was rejected for an upcoming project at work, and so you weren’t part of that team. You never felt – and maybe still don’t! – like you were good enough for one or both of your parents. 

But then something changed, either in their situation or yours, that resulted in a second opportunity. Now the ones who were so quick to dismiss you are the same ones who need you. The temptation is there, isn’t it – it would feel so good to get them back, to leave them high and dry and get even by turning the tables and telling them to go take a long walk off a short pier. “If I wasn’t good enough then, don’t come groveling to me now – go find someone else.” We relish the idea of seeing them get their just desserts.

We don’t, however, see that in Jephthah. Yes, he does initially remind them that they had turned him away in the past, but that was as much to convict them as it was to puff himself up. He didn’t let his own pride stand in the way of serving the greater good, and more importantly, his great God, by coming to the rescue of his people. He went and he seized the opportunity to show the Israelites what is possible when the spotlight is rightly restored on the only One who deserves it – the Lord.

Shame on us for the times we’ve let bitterness or pride keep us from serving someone else. How embarrassing that as God’s representatives, we have let resentment or the desire to get back at others get in the way of the greater good. We are so quick to accept God’s grace and forgiveness, his willingness to serve us no matter how many times we have rejected him by our sinful choices. But when we have opportunity to model the same spirit toward others, the stubborn, scorned sinner shows through instead of the grateful child of God who has been washed and forgiven and set apart for such acts of love and service!

And though the parallel is not explicitly drawn in Scripture, it is virtually impossible to consider Jephthah’s rejection and then rescue without seeing at least some reflection of Jesus’ rejection and rescue. We note how many times he gave his disciples the heads up that the Son of Man would be rejected, then suffer and die. But that very rejection was a part of the process of our redemption, our rescue. We, too, were rescued by a reject. Jesus was chosen by his Father to carry out our salvation, but the world rejected him. Nonetheless, in the way that only the divine hand of God can, he worked rescue through that rejection. He did that for you and for me, to forgive the ones who had rejected him, who have rejected others, and who have let pride rob us of loving service to others in the name of getting even or letting others get what we think they deserve. For such despicable thoughts and attitudes, Jesus was rejected. From such despicable thoughts and attitudes, we have been rescued. Not being held back by our own pride, we are now free to serve as Jephthah did, with the strength the Lord provides. 

Jephthah was not a hothead. He attempted to work through Israel’s situation with the Ammonites using diplomacy. The in-between verses that were cut out of today’s reading are the extended version of the message he had sent to the king of Ammon, attempting to very diplomatically address the concern he had over who possessed which land. When the king of Ammon made it clear that his mind was made up and there was no room for diplomacy, Jephthah led the Israelites to war. Those details, compared to the accounts provided in the instances of previous judges, are relatively short and sweet. “Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into his hands. He devastated twenty towns from Aroer to the vicinity of Minnith, as far as Abel Keramim. Thus Israel subdued Ammon” (vs.32-33).

Much more detail is provided regarding the troubling issue of Jephthah’s vow that preceded his success on the battlefield. “And Jephthah made a vow to the Lord: “If you give the Ammonites into my hands, whatever comes out of the door of my house to meet me when I return in triumph from the Ammonites will be the Lord’s, and I will sacrifice it as a burnt offering” (vs.30-31). While we can appreciate Jephthah’s commitment to the Lord, making such a vow – not knowing what he was promising – wasn’t his finest moment. We may have though nothing of it if an animal had greeted him, but it was no animal; instead, Jephthah’s daughter happened to be the one who came out the door to greet him at his triumphant return. 

There are two plausible possibilities that have been put forth to explain how Jephthah’s vow was carried out: 1) he sacrificed her as a burnt offering, which is the simplest and most straight-forward understanding of the text, and certainly the more troubling one, or 2) he dedicated his daughter to the Lord as a life-long virgin. There are far too many points and counterpoints in support of each view than can be discussed in a single sermon, many of them holding significant merit. While we would wish to hold up Jephthah in highest esteem, making preferable any plausible explanation that would allow us to avoid an ugly reality of a man of God sacrificing his own daughter to fulfill his vow, we don’t need Jephthah to have a pristine record before God – even if he is listed among the heroes of faith in Hebrews chapter 11. Why? Because God doesn’t need spotless individuals to pass a sanctification background check in order to use them for his purposes; God has always used flawed men to carry out his purposes. This ensures that no judge, but rather God himself, always remains the hero of the story. God is so determined to rescue, to deliver, that not even a flawed individual is going to keep him from carrying out his work. 

And though Scripture doesn’t explicitly direct us to make this comparison, how can a story about a father sacrificing his only child not direct our thoughts to THE Father sacrificing his own child to fulfill another vow, a promise of salvation and forgiveness for all people? There is a place for digging more deeply into this particular matter of Jephthah’s vow, but may it never overshadow or distract us from the promise fulfilled by the Lord when he gave up his own Son. Amidst the uncertainty of a vow in this account is the certainty of our salvation. We have a Savior who didn’t bear a grudge or resent those who rejected him. Instead, he rescued us.

As you consider this truth, do you have any lingering grudges or resentments against those who have rejected you? Is there any bitterness to which you are clinging? Compare your bitterness toward someone else with how Jesus has chosen to treat you. Let go of your bitterness, resentment, and grudges. Lavish on others the same love and forgiveness that your Savior has lavished on you. Amen.

God Calls Me to Glorify Him

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(Colossians 3:15-17)

Three letters, SDG, not to be confused with the San Diego Gas & Electric company (SDGE), can sometimes be found at the close of a Christian book or essay. Many a paper at pastor conferences has closed with those very letters. The Lutheran composers Bach and Handel included the letters in many of their musical compositions. What do they stand for? They are three Latin words – Soli Deo Gloria – which mean, “to God alone be the glory.” It is a reminder that whatever worthwhile or significant contribution a person might make, God, who gave everyone their ability, skill, and talent to do anything excellent at all, is the one who deserves the glory. 

As we consider that element of our vocation, our calling, to glorify God, it might be helpful to first define what it means to give glory to someone or something. We sing of it in our songs and hymns, we come across it again and again in the Bible, so what do we mean when we speak of giving glory to or glorifying God? Is it one of those churchy terms that naturally flows from our lips without really processing in our heads and hearts what it actually means? What then does it mean to glorify God?

Actually, before we step into the “what” or even “how,” we may better be served addressing the “why.” Why glorify God? If we don’t know why it makes a difference to give glory to God, then the what or the how don’t really matter, do they? The what without the why ends up being that unused kitchen gadget that you had to have at the time, but which ends up at the back of the gadget drawer or tucked away in the back of a cupboard somewhere because you don’t remember why you ever got it. Knowing what or how it looks like to glorify God will only help us if knowing why moves and compels us to actually do so.

First things first, let’s be clear on this: God is already glorious. Glory already belongs to God. It is his, entirely independent of anything we might do. God doesn’t need us to give him glory. The psalmist pointed to creation itself as an indicator of his glory. “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims his handiwork” (Psalm 19:1). Moreover, Jesus, the heart and soul of everything God had promised, by virtue of the victory he came to bring all people, is rightly called “a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and the glory of your people Israel” (Luke 2:32). So glory already belongs to God. It is his as a result of his jaw-dropping creation and his unconditional salvation. In that regard we cannot bestow glory to God anymore than we can give the sun light or heat, for the sun is the source of those things and they emanate from it. In the same way, God’s glory emanates from him. Therefore, when we speak of glorifying him, this isn’t talk of giving something to God that he somehow lacks.

Why then do we glorify him? Why do we speak of giving him glory if it’s already his? The Bible reveals no fewer than three reasons why. First, when we glorify God we are simply acknowledging and highlighting the glory that is already his. We’re giving it the attention it deserves, giving him the attention he deserves. In giving glory to God, we are saying God is the GOAT (Greatest Of All Time). I recently saw a close-up of the glitter on Simone Biles’ gymnastics uniform. There is a subtle – or not so subtle once you realize it’s there – picture of a goat on it. Why? Because she is considered the GOAT of gymnastics, the greatest of all time. While there will always be debate over who is the goat in their respective fields when it comes to celebrities and superstars, there is no debate when God is brought into the discussion. We glorify him because we acknowledge that God is the GOAT. There never was, nor will there be anyone or anything greater. He is truly the greatest of all time. 

One who understood this and reflected it beautifully was John the Baptist. In speaking of Jesus, John the Baptist reflected: “He must increase, but I must decrease” (John 3:30). Less of us to make room for more of God. We’ve all seen the decal on the back of cars that reflects this attitude, He > i. In humility we recognize that God is worthy of all attention, commendation, praise, and anything else of worth we might offer up to him. We glorify God because he alone is worthy of it. God is the GOAT.  

In doing so, we also benefit. A second reason we glorify God becomes rather obvious when reflecting on the frequency of a certain attitude in the words from Colossians. Each verse in its own way reveals the same attitude, one of gratitude. The phrases “be thankful,” “with gratitude in your hearts,” and “giving thanks” go hand-in-hand with glorifying God. Which one comes first, the glorifying or the gratitude? It doesn’t matter – they feed off of each other! As we glorify God, it fills us with gratitude, and the more we’re filled with gratitude, the more we want to glorify God. It becomes a spiritually healthy cycle that just keeps feeding itself. Glory leads to gratitude, and gratitude leads to glory. God is magnified, and we are filled with gratitude. 

Now I don’t know where you might struggle emotionally. It might be worry that weighs on you. Perhaps anxiety rather easily overwhelms you. Maybe anger or short bursts of rage have plagued you. But you know what can help with all of them? Gratitude. It’s not very easy to worry, to be anxious, or to be angry when I am filled with gratitude. In fact, it’s extremely difficult, if not impossible, for those emotions to coexist with gratitude! Why else do we glorify God? Because when we remember that God is the GOAT, we also benefit, for glorifying him fills us with gratitude. 

The third reason we glorify God is for the benefit of others. Through faith our eyes have been opened to see God’s glory in so many ways. But Paul reminds us elsewhere that that isn’t the case for everyone. Sin blurs God’s glory so that it is not naturally seen. “The god of this age has blinded the minds of unbelievers, so that they cannot see the light of the gospel that displays the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4). If you’ve been hiking or outside enjoying nature and caught sight of something spectacular off in the distance or using binoculars, it’s frustrating when you try to help someone else see it, but they can’t spot it. We point here and give directions there as to where they should be looking, but no matter what, they just can’t see it. We want so badly for them to see what we’re looking at, but the moment passes and they miss out. 

God doesn’t want that to be the case when it comes to the unbeliever seeing his glory. So what is his solution? You are. Listen to how Peter echoed the words of Jesus from our Gospel (cf. Mt. 5:13ff) this morning. Peter wrote, “Live such good lives among the pagans that, though they accuse you of doing wrong, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day he visits us” (1 Peter 2:12). What does it mean for them to “see your good deeds and glorify God”? It means that they were brought to faith – through you! Not that God somehow did an end-around and avoided his Word in the process, but rather through you, God wants to draw others to his glory, always revealed through the Word, so they, too, might know him as their Savior! That’s why Jesus sends us to be salt and light, so that others might bring him glory by believing in him. 

We may not always like playing the numbers game. We sometimes downplay the tracking of numbers, of attendance, of metrics, and surely we do have to be careful when it comes to an unhealthy focus on numbers. But you know what? God is a numbers guy. God is very interested in numbers! You know how many people he wants to be in heaven with him to spend eternity with him when he returns on the Last Day? More. Always more. It’s safe to say that if Jesus hasn’t returned yet, God is waiting for more to be added. That means he’s waiting for you to glorify him with your good deeds that are so attractive to the unbelieving world that they are drawn to him and to his Word, and are added to his kingdom. 

There’s your why. We glorify God because God is the GOAT, because it fills us with gratitude, and because it turns unbelievers into believers. Now let’s put some gas in the tank. What fuels us to give glory to God? It’s the peace that he first gives to us. Gratitude isn’t the only theme that runs through the verses from Colossians this morning; so is peace. Paul wrote, “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him” (Colossians 3:15-17). Where does the gratitude that goes hand-in-hand with glorifying God come from? It comes from the peace that we have in Jesus. 

Do you have that peace? I mean, really, does peace mark your days? Are they characterized by peace, or… something else? Busyness? Inadequacy? Guilt? Restlessness? You do know that Jesus came to set you free from all of that, right? So if you don’t have it, why don’t you have it? Paul hits on what might be one thing to address if you’re lacking peace: “let the message of Christ dwell in you richly.” Richly. Richly. Richly. When we allow the Word to be an afterthought or an “I’ll get to it later” in our lives, we’re only robbing ourselves of the peace we already have in Jesus! He’s already done it all. You are forgiven. You are at peace with God. Your sin doesn’t count against you. And, the icing on the cake is that he’s already perfectly glorified his Father (cf. John 17) in your place! The work has been done. Live in the joy that Jesus has already earned for you. There is no fear for the child of God; just peace. When we live in that peace, glorifying God pours naturally out of it. 

So now to the practical matter of carrying out our calling, of giving glory to God – how do we do this? What qualifies as giving glory to God? After all, giving glory to God is a pretty big deal, right, so we must be talking about stuff on a pretty grand scale! Rightly giving glory to God surely involves overseas mission trips and generous charitable gifts and serving faithfully for years on church boards and committees – these are the things that truly glorify God, right? Sure they do. 

But so do these: the every day, the mundane, the routine, the often-overlooked, the seemingly small and unnoticed words and actions that we carry out every single day. These, too, are the things by which we can glorify God! It’s not the scale of the service that determines whether or not God is glorified in what we do, but rather the spirit of faith by which we do it. Simply put, virtually anything we do can be a way to glorify God, which is what Paul was emphasizing when he wrote “whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus” (v.17). When I consider that it is God who gave me the life and breath and health and ability to do anything and everything, all of it can glorify him. Then go and take out the trash to God’s glory. Wash the dishes to God’s glory. Lend your neighbor a hand to God’s glory. Change a diaper to God’s glory. Work hard at your job and help your coworker who is behind on a deadline to God’s glory. Attend church to God’s glory. Post on Facebook to God’s glory. Go on a date to God’s glory. When these and everything else we do are carried out because the peace we have in Jesus fills us up with such gratitude, then we are carrying out God’s calling to glorify him. And we joyfully do that because God is the GOAT, because it raises our own gratitude, and because God uses it to make believers out of unbelievers. So go out and live an SDG life – Soli Deo Gloria; “to God alone be the glory.”

God Calls Me to Bear My Cross

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(Luke 9:21-26)

If you want to tune out for a bit, this might be the sermon to do so, because Jesus isn’t speaking these words to everyone. How do we know that? Because he’s only addressing “whoever wants to be [his] disciple” (v.23). That’s not everyone. That’s rather obvious when it comes to unbelievers. But it isn’t just unbelievers; it’s a whole lot of people inside the church that aren’t really interested in being disciples either. They may be quick to identify as Christians, but the blunt truth is, there’s no shortage of Christians who have little interest in being disciples.

Does being a Christian automatically make one a disciple? Consider two individuals enrolling at SDSU in the fall. One of them attends all the classes, completes the homework, studies hard, and eventually graduates. The other is there to party, making zero academic effort. Which one is the student? In that they are both technically enrolled and pay tuition, each would be considered a student. But an honest evaluation would conclude that only one of them is in reality a student. So also, Scripture lays out criteria that apply to disciples of Jesus: they hold to his teaching (Jn. 8:31), they love one another (Jn. 13:35), they bear fruit (Jn. 15:8), and they make other disciples (Mt. 28:19), to name a few. To that list, Jesus adds yet another challenge: “Whoever wants to be my disciple must deny themselves and take up their cross daily and follow me” (v.23). There you have it. Jesus’ disciples are called to bear our cross. Doing so involves a three-step checklist: deny self, bear crosses, and Follow Jesus. 

Do you know why this is such a struggle for us? We want to jump right to the cross-bearing part, which is tough enough as it is… but made even tougher if we don’t address the bigger obstacle in the way before we even get to the cross-bearing part: ourselves. Imagine if every time you opened your eyes, no matter what you were trying to look at or which direction you were looking, all you saw directly in front of you was a mirror, reflecting yourself back to you. While there isn’t literally a mirror right in front of you 24/7, that really is the problem each one of us has – it’s completely natural for us to see ourselves before we see anyone or anything else.

Trace that reality all the way back to Eden. Adam and Eve believed Satan’s lie that God was trying to hide their true reflection, that he didn’t want them to see how god-like they really were, convincing them that they’d see what they actually looked like if they just ate the fruit. The reality was, they had a perfect view – the wonderful image of a gracious, caring, loving God who designed an amazing world for them! But they traded it in to be able to replace that image with a picture of themselves.

They got it, but it wasn’t what they had hoped. The mirror with their reflection was completely cracked. It has been ever since, and sin’s curse has carried with it the desire to see only self and nothing else. So what does it mean to deny self? It means shattering the mirror so we can see beyond the reflection of self, so we can put up a fight against our selfish, self-absorbed worldview.

Then we’re ready to pick up a cross, right? We might think so, but we’re not done just yet denying self. There are two other obstacles that we often need to address. We need to slow down and put down. We think the more efficiently/faster we get things done, the sooner we’ll have time for God… but that only speeds up the treadmill; it doesn’t actually ever free us from it. We end up running ourselves ragged because we never slow down. 

And we need to put down. When we finally arrive at the cross we are to take up, we won’t be able to pick it up if we insist on having our hands full with the other things we are carrying! What do you insist on hanging on to that won’t free your hands to pick up your cross? To what are you so attached that it’s worth disqualifying you as a disciple, and possibly even resulting in a forfeit of eternal life? Jesus gave a very blunt warning and then followed it up with a very pointed question. “For whoever wants to save their life will lose it, but whoever loses their life for me will save it. What good is it for someone to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit their very self?” (v.24-25). Hang on to your loves in this life, whatever they may be, and you run the risk of losing out on eternal life. Put those things down.

Then, assuming we have slowed down and put down enough stuff to finally free up our hands so we can take up our cross, we’re ready to bear it, right? Just one problem: crosses aren’t pleasant! We want to avoid them! We don’t naturally gravitate toward them or ask the Lord for them, and when we see them in our lives, often our first reaction in prayer to the Lord is to ask him to remove them, to get rid of them. They get in the way of our best life now, of the life we’ve been trying to design for ourselves. Crosses, by definition, are not convenient! 

So why do we ever bother bearing any cross at all??? Because bearing crosses bears blessings. It wouldn’t seem like it, but each time you lift up that cross, to carry it, what you find on the other side are the blessings that God had hidden beneath it. Paul mentions many of those blessings in his letters, reminding us that suffering produces perseverance, character, and hope (Romans 5), patient endurance, and comfort (2 Corinthians). We also know that in cases of suffering that the world cannot solve or explain, we are compelled to lean more and more on the Lord, to anchor our trust in him, which ultimately brings us into a closer relationship with him. And each of these blessings from cross-bearing ready us for the next cross to bear, which may be even slightly larger than the previous cross. That’s less daunting… when we realize that blessings are hidden beneath that cross – the larger the cross, the more blessings are hidden beneath it. 

Take that imagery literally. Picture a small cross, one the size of an earring or a necklace. We naturally want to avoid it because remember, bearing a cross will involve hardship and trial; it will in include some measure of suffering. But eventually, when you pick up that small cross, you see the blessings that were hidden underneath it, blessings that would have remained hidden had you never picked up the cross to carry it. Then you come across a little bit bigger cross, one the size of your hand. You immediately remember the difficulty that resulted the last time you picked up the smaller cross. But then you also remember the blessings hidden beneath it. So you pick up this cross, too, and sure enough, beneath the larger cross are hidden even more blessings. And so it goes throughout life – God allows one cross after another to come into your life, sometimes bigger than the previous. Our natural inclination is to avoid the cross, to leave it where it is. But each time we have picked up that cross, an abundance of rich blessings were hidden beneath it, blessings we could not have experienced without the trial or hardship that preceded them. So it is – we bear our cross, and God blesses our cross-bearing. 

We’ve denied, we’re picking up the cross. Now we follow Jesus. “There’s more?!? Weren’t the first two enough?!? What about when Jesus goes a direction I’d rather not, when he veers this way and I’d rather go that way?” Recently I met someone for coffee. It was a place I hadn’t been to yet, so I did what we all do and punched in the address to my navigational app and off we went. It worked just like it was supposed to… until I arrived at the address and there was no coffee place. It wasn’t hidden or tucked away somewhere that I couldn’t see; it was just gone, not at the destination I had punched in. A little looking around online revealed that it had recently moved – very close by, thankfully – but at a different address altogether.

Isn’t that often how our lives work? We punch in where we want to go or where we think we need to go and then we arrive and there’s nothing there, or at least not what we expected. Our own navigation system just isn’t trustworthy, is it? But you know what will never steer us wrong? Following Jesus.

Now following Jesus doesn’t mean that he will provide little signs along the way throughout our lives on every little decision we make. Following him doesn’t mean waiting for him to reveal which menu choice he wants you to make when you go out for breakfast. Neither does it mean he’ll reveal to you whether you should date this person or accept that job. But following him does mean that we look to God’s Word for guidance in our decision making. It does mean that we follow his guidance toward paths that help us avoid sin rather than paths that bring us closer to it. Following Jesus does mean that our relationship with the Bible ought to better resemble our relationship with our phone than it does our relationship with the unused treadmill or exercise bike sitting in the garage. 

And I know it seems like a tall order to follow in the footsteps of perfect Jesus! It IS a tall order! It is impossible. But think of it the way a small child follows in dad’s footsteps after piles of freshly fallen snow. He’d never be able to get through on his own without getting stuck in the snow. But what an easier time is made of it when he simply traces dad’s footsteps ahead of him, each step having packed down the snow in a clear path that makes it much easier to follow. That child will go his own direction at his own risk, but he can’t fail when he follows in his father’s footsteps.

Why is that the case when it comes to following in Jesus’ footsteps? Because we know that the value of following him is not in making it possible for us to perfectly keep in step with him; no, the value is in seeing where those footsteps led: to the cross. Ah, and we have come back to it again, haven’t we? The cross. But this time not to bear it ourselves, but rather in faith to gaze on the One who bore it willingly for us. For if we do not follow his steps to his cross daily in our lives, we will struggle mightily to ever see the point in bearing our own crosses. But to see his cross is to see the price Jesus paid to forgive self-absorbed, imperfect disciples, who prefer to go their own way and avoid any cross placed before them. To follow Jesus to his cross is to see that my forgiveness means freedom for cross-bearing!

Before calling his disciples to pick up their cross and follow him, Jesus reminded them that he had to be rejected, had to suffer, had to be put to death, and had to rise from the dead. All this had to happen so that we could call ourselves his disciples, bought and paid for with his own blood. All this had to happen so that we can now bear our crosses and follow him.

Is any of this easy? Will any one of us ever attain the status of perfect cross-bearers this side of heaven? Never. So God addressed that problem by sending the perfect cross-bearer. Literally. Jesus bore the cross for those who couldn’t as well as those who wouldn’t – he bore it for everyone. He bore his cross so that we can bear ours. We do so because cross-bearing brings blessings. THAT is our calling.

God Calls Me to Use My Unique Gifts

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(1 Corinthians 12:12-27)

Body image is a big deal. Advertisements and social media give a great deal of attention to body image, sometimes for better, sometimes for worse. How you look and how others see you are frequently on your radar. We compare and frame a picture in our minds of what we’d like to look like and how we’d like others to see us. While we may blow it off to others or pretend it’s no big deal, the way our body looks matters to us. 

So make sure you pay attention to the healthiest body image you’ll ever have for the rest of your life. It’s found in the last verse of our lesson from 1 Corinthians today: “Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it” (v.27). Together you – along with all Christians – make up the body of Christ. Each of you is a part of it! Now imagine if someone complimented you on your body and said you had a body that reminded them of so-and-so. That would be quite a compliment. Yet, so long as you’re being compared to someone else, that other person is still the standard, right? But what if you were the standard? What if others were complimented because of how much they look like you? Notice Paul isn’t comparing you to something or someone greater; rather, he is paying you the greatest compliment – you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. How could we ever question our own worth or value if we are the body of Christ? And that, friends, is what we are. 

And don’t doubt it, because Paul lays out the certainty by which we can know we are the body of Christ. Back in verse 13 he stated, “For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body… and we were all given the one Spirit to drink.” Whether by itself or attached to the water of baptism, the Word proclaimed, heard, and believed is always what brings a person into the body of Christ. There was no application, no criteria that had to be met to qualify to be accepted. The Holy Spirit opened our eyes to see the seriousness of our sin, the solution in our Savior, and the certainty of our salvation. So the Holy Spirit has connected you to the body of Christ, his church, made up of all believers everywhere.

As believers, we have made a commitment to stay connected. The Holy Spirit connected you to the body of Christ, he calls you the body of Christ, and he is the one who will keep you connected to the body of Christ. So if he’s the one doing all the work, to what are you really committing? Why are you bothering to promise anything if the Holy Spirit is responsible for keeping you connected?

Because you know how he does his work. You’ve learned that God the Holy Spirit uses his Word and Sacrament to feed and fortify our faith. So taking ownership of your faith and making the commitment to God and to a congregation and church body means that you will not rob the Holy Spirit of his ability to keep you in the faith. It is a very unpopular commitment in our world today: you will go to church, read and study the Bible, gather together with others to do so, pray, give offerings, serve, and for the rest of your life stay connected to Jesus by staying connected to his body, the Church, of which you are an important part. 

Another way to say it: be a consumer. We typically understand that term to refer to someone who buys or purchases goods or services. Such a person is a consumer. But it simply refers to anyone who is going to consume or use something. As a Christian, you are committing to being a consumer in church. You will gather around the Word to hear the Word and to use the Word. Be a consumer, a consumer of grace.

I cannot stress to you the importance of continuing to be a consumer of grace continually for the rest of your life. Grace is what makes us who we are, and if we neglect to be filled up with it, we not only run the risk of drifting apart from God, but we cut ourselves off from the spiritual blessings that cannot be found anywhere else in the world. Grace is like the gas that fuels a car and keeps it running, or like the battery that powers your phone to keep it functioning. Without gas or a battery, there is nothing to make us go. So be consumers of grace.

And be careful of what can happen when you aren’t. Do you know what are two of the most common – but also very avoidable – impediments to growth (both for Christians individually and for congregations collectively)? They are both connected to being a consumer of grace. The first one is probably pretty easy to identify: it’s a failure to faithfully keep the promise that we make at confirmation to continue to be a consumer of grace. We gradually drift away from attending church, we couldn’t even locate a Bible in our homes if our life depended on it, and so we fail to fill up on grace. We are no longer consumers. We forget that the very grace that brought us to faith is the same grace that keeps us in faith. Eventually this can result in our falling away from Christ and his body.

The second is maybe not so easy to identify, but can also stymy Christian and congregational growth: it’s only being a consumer. That happens when a person takes the limited view that belonging to a church means little more than showing up on Sunday morning. When that is the extent of a person’s connection to a congregation, it can skew expectations to take a rather selfish turn. Over time the expectation can become that the church only exists to meet my needs, to cater to my preferences, to serve me as I prefer to be served. Oh, you will see such a person regularly enough at church on a Sunday morning, but what is missing is an understanding of the rest of what Paul covers in our verses this morning from 1 Corinthians: when you are connected to the body of Christ, you aren’t called just to be a consumer, but also a contributor. God has made you a part of his body so that your unique gifts could be used in service to the rest of the body of Christ. So as you commit to remaining connected to the body of Christ, his church, don’t just be consumers, be contributors.   

You know what’s really cool? You don’t have to wait. There isn’t some process where you have to wait for approval or reach a certain age when you suddenly can become contributors. You’re already a part of the body of Christ right now. You already have gifts right now. You can use them to contribute to and build up the body of Christ right now. Notice the different body parts Paul mentions: the foot, hands, eyes, ears, and nose. What is his point? It isn’t to make a case for one body part being more important than another, but rather to observe how each part has a role, each part is important, and each part serves the body as a whole. “But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body” (v.18-20). It’s a fruitless discussion to debate which parts of the body of Christ are most important, because God’s answer to such silliness is simply, “You are.” “She is.” “He is.” “They are.” You are all important. You all matter. If you are a part of the body of Christ, then you have a role to play, a contribution to make. 

What might that look like? My encouragement to you would be to spend less time contemplating and more time contributing; less time second-guessing and more time serving. Contributing has far less to do with finding your perfect niche in the congregation, and much more to do with a willing heart that seeks to do what serves the body best. So rather than asking, “Where do I fit in best?”, ask “Where can I serve now? What is needed today? What opportunities are there” 

Young and old alike have a place to serve in the body of Christ. The longer I’ve been a part of the body, the more I have come to realize what a significant part young people actually play. See, something happens as we grow up and become adults: the world wears on us and we can become more cynical, more sour, more grumpy. Do you know what one of the best solutions to that is? Seeing young people in action. Seeing them contribute. Why do our faces light up during the Children’s Christmas service, or when the school children sing on a Sunday, or when they play chimes, or as they’re putting on a play? That’s not just because they’re cute kids, but because they give hope to adults. They provide optimism for the future, and not just because they’ll make a difference “someday,” but because they’re making a difference right now. Young people are a reminder in a difficult and sometimes very dark world, that God and his Word are very much alive and active, and they are the proof. We see young people serving, we see their gifts being used to build up the body of Christ, and they inspire us and give us hope. So let everyone contribute, and keep on contributing, because we all are encouraged by everyone’s contributions, served by them, and blessed by them. 

In Christ, your body image will always look good. So stay connected to the body of Christ, be a consumer of grace, and contribute with full confidence that you are a valued part of the body, and Jesus will use you to bless the rest of his body. THAT is your calling.

God Calls Me to Love and Serve My Neighbor

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(Luke 10:25-37)

It’s a modern re-telling of the story Jesus told, but without the happy ending. About ten years ago now, Hugo, a young homeless man from Guatemala, was stabbed on the streets of Queens, NY.  He had intervened to help a woman escape from an angry man and was stabbed in the process. After stumbling for a bit, Hugo fell to the ground bleeding. Tragic as that was, the account which was all caught on camera, gets more troubling when it reveals what happened over the next hour. One individual came upon Hugo, bent down on the sidewalk to shake him, and even moved him enough to see the pool of blood beneath him. He then walked away. Another two men saw him, talked about him for a bit, and even took a picture of him. Then they walked away, too. One passerby after another walked past, glanced his way, and kept right on walking. Hugo laid their dying for an hour before anyone called the police, at which point it was too late. Experts and psychologists have attempted to offer rational explanations for why no one helped a stabbed man, but they all seem to fall short, leaving us with the ugly reality of how easily mankind is inclined to avoid his vocation, his calling, to love and serve his neighbor. 

It’s interesting, isn’t it, that this is the type of story Jesus told to convict an expert in the law that his take on God’s call to love God and neighbor missed the mark. This story from Jesus, perhaps as much as any others he tells, makes us uneasy. We’d feel a lot better if Jesus had told a story about a cheating husband or a murderer or a liar or any number of other bad things that bad people do, because it’s easier for us to pretend we don’t belong lumped together with those kinds of people. But this one leaves us uncomfortable. This one doesn’t really leave us any easy loopholes by which to escape. It’s pretty clear when Jesus illustrates what it looks like to love and serve my neighbor, that I have neglected my neighbor often. 

And it’s not that we disagree that it’s important to help others. I don’t know too many people – believer or not – who would disagree that we ought to love and serve our neighbor. Most would agree that we’d all be better off as a society following this approach. So if so many people agree about it, then why isn’t it happening? The reason is profoundly simple, and I want to challenge you not just to hear it – don’t just listen for the reason – but take the lead in addressing the problem. You want to know what the problem is? We all agree that our vocation, our calling, is to love and serve our neighbor. In fact, we’re so much in agreement with the statement, that we spend most of our time monitoring how well everyone is doing it.

That’s the problem. How do we address it? Do it yourself, rather than living as if your life is a permanent stakeout, observing the lives of others while overlooking the neighbor you could be loving and serving right next to you. The world doesn’t need more arm-chair quarterback Christians, making it their business to assess how well the world is neighboring; the world needs more Christians – the world needs you – to step up your game in carrying out your calling to love and serve your neighbor. 

Admittedly, there is a HUGE obstacle that gets in the way of our serving our neighbor. The challenge with this obstacle is that we carry it with us everywhere we go: it’s our heart. Proverbs 20:9 asks, “Who can say, ‘I have kept my heart pure; I am clean and without sin?’”  Since the Fall, our hearts have been hijacked by the prince of this world, and even though we belong to God by faith, our hearts still betray us and commit treason, serving the prince of this world instead of the Prince of Peace. Frankly, it shouldn’t surprise us when we struggle to love and serve our neighbor if our hearts, the very source of that love, are sour. Here are three ways that sour hearts stain loving service to our neighbor.

One: we prequalify those we are willing to help. When it comes to credit cards, no one likes to have to take the extra step of prequalifying. Credit card companies know this. It’s why you get all the junk mail for new credit cards that advertise that you’ve been prequalified for their latest, greatest card. Yet we prequalify those who need our help all the time. We have certain standards or expectations or opinions on those we’re willing to help. If we decide someone is taking advantage of unemployment, shame on them – they’ll get no help from me. The homeless drifter I am convinced is probably just going to use anything he gets to support his addiction will get nothing from me. The single mom who had children outside of marriage made that choice and now has to accept the consequences – don’t look to me for help. We prequalify all the time. We determine whose need is worth our time, when the better way is to see any neighbor in need, and take advantage of the time God has given us to meet that need.

A second way our sour hearts stain loving service to our neighbor: the motivation behind our service. What is prompting me to serve my neighbor? Is it genuine love for my neighbor, to meet her need at that specific time and place? Or, is it love for self, to feel better about doing something nice for someone? Or, is it a greater concern of other people’s opinion of me – that others take note of my kind actions? Is it a matter of quickly addressing what is perceived as merely an inconvenience for me? How often is my motivation so pure that it is nothing but genuine loving compassion for my neighbor that prompts me to love and serve him? Not very often.

This has a direct impact on the third way our sour hearts stain loving service to our neighbor: the extent to which we help. This deals with the wrestling match between helping to actually meet someone else’s need or to meet my need to feel good about helping someone. I’ll help meet someone’s needs… to the extent that it’s convenient for me. When that is the case, I am less concerned about whether or not what I offered actually helped the person, and more concerned with feeling good about having done anything at all. But real sacrifice, when it puts me out, when it takes more time than I have, when I have to return to square up the bill like the Samaritan? That is rare.

Then, in addition to these three heart issues, we Christians also have an escape clause that acts as a catch-all to get out of meeting my neighbor’s needs: we justify our neglect of others’ needs by reminding ourselves that Jesus is more concerned about people’s salvation and souls than he is their temporary needs. But why do we pit one against the other when Jesus clearly calls us to care about both? Did Jesus ever take anyone to task for feeding the hungry, telling them, “Stop that – they need spiritual food more than physical food. Don’t waste their time with silly things like hunger”? Or on the flip side, did he ever take anyone to task for talking about sin and grace and faith and forgiveness, saying, “Stop that – they don’t need all that religious talk; what they need is a hot meal”? No, Jesus says to do both, so why do we pit one against the other instead of looking for the countless opportunities he gives us to do both? 

Don’t be so shocked by any of the above – it’s all just a reflection of how corrupt our hearts are in a fallen world – so much for “people are basically good!” Yes, we’re pretty good at making sure our exteriors are nice and polished… as long as you don’t dig beneath the surface! No, don’t be shocked by the ugliness of what’s in here; be shocked by something else – that Jesus came to love and serve hearts like that! 

Wouldn’t it be something if the Samaritan did something else? Wouldn’t it be something if he tracked down the Levite and the priest and offered them some random act of kindness? How would we feel about the Samaritan if he reached out and helped those schmucks? It might make us bristle a bit. We’d cringe.

Until we connect the dots and realize that is our situation. Jesus was much more than a Good Samaritan; he is a perfect Savior. He didn’t just come for the left-for-dead on the side of the road; he came for those who heartlessly passed by the left-for-dead on the side of the road. He came to save sour hearts and souls. He came for you and me. Jesus is the solution David begged for in Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a pure heart, O God.”  Through Jesus, he did! No more sour hearts; our hearts are pure! Take up the invitation extended in Hebrews, “let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience…” (10:22)!

Friends, if that doesn’t change your heart, I am at a loss as to what possibly can. If the reality of the absolute best – Jesus – giving himself for you at your absolute worst doesn’t soothe your sour heart and cause it to start beating with an unyielding and relentless desire to pour yourself into loving service for others, then I am out of ideas. That’s all I have. I can’t drum up some inspirational, moving story that can ever pull at your heart strings like holy Jesus giving himself for heartless us. Rather than desert or ignore us, he mercifully rescued us. And we weren’t even his neighbor; we were his enemies! 

But not anymore! Now we are his friends. For eternity. Forever. What do friends do? They love and serve each other. Jesus continues to love and serve us with his Word and Sacrament to provide us with peace and forgiveness and gush over us with grace. How do we love and serve him? By loving and serving our neighbor. By loving and serving his other friends, the other souls precious and dear to him, the other souls for whom he died, the other souls with whom he longs to spend eternity. And no, you don’t need to wait until someone is left-for-dead to love and serve him; just look for someone who has a need – any need at all – and lovingly meet it as you’re able. THAT is your calling.