Praise Be To God That We Are Not The Final Authority

Text: Matthew 21:23-27 

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord  Jesus Christ.  Amen.

In times gone by we have come to witness that the relationship between mankind and various authorities has not necessarily been a pleasant arrangement.  A brief glance at history will show us various groups of people rejecting unrighteous and even righteous authorities. Indeed, throughout history people have rejected military authorities, government authorities, social authorities, financial authorities, and even religious authorities.  There tends to be friction between those who are subjugated and those who are in authoritative positions.  In other words, humanity is not very good at submitting to authority or being under control.

Why is this so?

It is so because the one who is in authority typically has power and control, whereas the subjugated ones do not.  This power and control can either be military power, ethical power, financial power, religious power, and so forth.  Indeed, power and control are connected to authority; therefore, if someone has authority they have the right and possibly the means to exert power over someone underneath them. 

As a result of this, those who are under authority, and its power, will often question those in authority.  Otherwise stated, if one doesn’t agree with the way power and control are being exerted over them, they will most times, more often than not, go after a person’s authority.  If authority can be eroded, power and control will wear down as well.  

Since the questioning and erosion of authority is nothing new, it is no surprise to us that Jesus’ authority was questioned as well.  As we heard in today’s Gospel reading, the elders and chief priests said to Jesus, “By what authority are you doing these things and who gave you this authority?”  Now, the reason why Jesus was questioned was not merely because He was teaching in the temple, for it was very common for many people came to the temple to teach.  Rather, His authority was questioned because He exerted great power and control; power and control that certainly threatened the religious establishment of the day.  You see, one only needs to look in our Gospel to the verses that come before, that is, what Jesus did right before His authority was challenged by the elders and the chief priests.  Let me explain.

The day before Jesus’ authority was challenged He made a whip out of some cords and began to drive everyone and everything from the temple.  Yes, Jesus came to the temple and drove out the cattle and the sheep, along with all the marketers.  He scattered the coins and overturned the tables, and ordered those who sold the doves to “get these out of here!  How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!”  There is no doubt about it that Jesus’ power was displayed with His mighty zeal uprooting the market from the temple.  In a word, the power and control of Jesus came upon the temple and it came into Jerusalem on that Palm Sunday.  Jesus essentially triggered the conflict over authority when His powerful teaching and actions rubbed against the established power.

It is no wonder why Jesus’ authority was questioned.  The religious leaders knew about the overturned temple, they knew about Jesus’ miracles, and they knew about His powerful teaching.  So, they demanded proof of His authority, not to simply learn, but with the hope that they might snag Him in an error, so that they could somehow shred His authority.  If they could strip Jesus of His authority, they would then be able to dismiss, remove, and push Jesus’ power and control off to the side and remain in power themselves.  What are at stake are power, status, and control between Jesus and the religious leaders. 

As much as we don’t like admitting it, you and I are just like the religious leaders.  We really are.  In fact our whole culture is just like the religious leaders.  The reason why?  We do not enjoy the authority of another over top of us.  It grates at our independent spirit.  It offends our own ideas, agendas, and self-worth. 

We see this denial of authority most prevalent in the way that God’s Word has been and is trampled upon.  Why is the authority of God’s Word trampled upon by secular culture and even some church denominations?  Well, if the scriptures are not the Word of God, but merely contain the Word of God, then certain portions of the scripture are not authoritative, which means that they cannot exert control and power over specific areas of our lives. 

Permit me to give just one of the many examples where this is the case.  The scriptures assert that our bodies are not our own to do with as we wish.  Rather, our bodies are shrines of the Spirit, are bought with a price, and agents through which God is glorified.  This means that through and within marriage, the Lord binds a man and a woman together sexually speaking.  Yes, a man’s body does not belong to him and a woman’s body does not belong to her according to God’s Word, but rather they belong to each other within the holy institution of marriage.[1]  Because you and I, as well as our culture, do not like this power and control over top of us, especially sexually speaking, what results is that the authority of God’s Word is minimized on this subject.  Minimizing the authoritative Word on this subject strips marriage of its holy institutional status; it crumbles the power of marriage, which then allows it to be redefined, which then results in premarital sex, homosexuality, cohabitation, and so forth being the accepted norms of the day.

My friends, this is just one example among many.  Tragically this happens in so many ways inside and outside the church.  The authority of the Lord’s Word is dismissed or diminished, so that its power and control can be eliminated or eased, so that we can be in control and exert our own power and authority. 

With power and authority in our own hands we are, “like the Old Testament Israelites, [who] often took it upon themselves to judge what's right or wrong, just or unjust, regardless of what God had already said on the matter.  [Indeed my friends,] look no further than arguments surrounding [you and me today]. . .  homosexuality, abortion, or speaking out against false gods and false, unionistic/syncretistic worship.  In every instance, those who speak what God has already spoken—by His authority—are decried as bigots, hate-mongers, and intolerant”[2] for God’s powerful Word wars against the opinions and crafty teachings of the children of man.

Put bluntly, being under Christ’s authority and the authority of the Word means that we are not in control and that we are not in power.  Indeed, none of you here, me included, appreciate being submissive to the Lord.  We do not like being put in our place, but rather enjoy being in the driver’s seat where we get to call the shots and be in control. We want control, power, and authority over our lives, over our little empires, over our tongues, over our words, over our bodies, over our relationship, over our finances, over our agendas, over our ideas, and even over the churches that we attend. 

When power and control are in our authority, we convince ourselves that everything is correct; however, when our control and power are threatened, like the chief priests and elders, we too attempt to stay in control.  Whether we realize it or not, when our authority is threatened we discredit and undercut every authority that could potential unseat us from our thrones.   

In fact, it would please our old Adam, that is, our sinful flesh, if God were simply dead, so that there would be no authority above mankind; resulting in mankind being supposedly liberated by  not being accountable to another power.

Tragically, my friends this idea of wanting authority is very enticing for each and every one of us.  There is just one problem with this way of thinking.  If we could actually seize all authority in heaven and earth, do we even have the ability to exercise ultimate power and control?  Otherwise stated, if we invade the Lord’s realm of power, control, and authority—which is exactly what happened with Adam and Eve—do we even have that ability to do the things that matter most; things such as: forgive sins, create a clean conscience, conquer death, resurrect our dead bodies, and bring about a new creation?  We certainly do not, for we did not die and rise from the grave, rather Jesus did. 

Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy on you and me. 

Blessed Saints, praise be to God that we are not the final authority, that life is not dependent on our power and our control!  Even if we could possess final authority, power, and control why would we even want it?  Frankly, I don’t want anything left in my own hands, except that which the Lord gives as gift to me.   

In light of everything that we have heard thus far, scripture does testify to us though that there is ultimate power, control, and authority.  It testifies that these things are not found with us, but with someone else.  Yes, all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus.[3]  Furthermore, Jesus has been given authority to forgive sins.[4]  Truly, all authority has been given to Christ to grant eternal life, as well as to destroy all evil rule and all evil authority.  This authority, power, and control are given to Him—for your sake.  Indeed, “Jesus had divine authority over all creation, even over those who questioned His authority.  Nevertheless, just days after this incident took place [in today’s Gospel reading], He would submit to human authority, even to the very people who questioned His authority, that He might be crucified for the sins of the world!”[5]

Yes, the one who had all power and authority submits Himself willingly to the control of mankind.  No fussing.  No complaining.  No fighting.  No rebelling.  No revolting.  The powerful and authoritative Christ descends lowly on His own accord: stripping Himself and taking the form of a slave.  Being found in human form He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death—even death on a cross.[6]       

“Ultimately Jesus’ divine authority would be revealed once again, in his glorious resurrection from the dead.  Jesus’ victory over sin and death throws open the doors of the kingdom of God to believers repenting of even the greatest sins . . . [Jesus] by word, by bread and wine and by water, rules every aspect of your life, with grace, mercy and forgiveness.”[7]

Yes, since Jesus has all authority and power over you, His authority and power hold you, keep you, and preserve you in the one true faith until the last day where every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. 

Amen.

---

[1] Bruce W. Winter, After Paul Left Corinth: The Influence of Secular Ethics and Social Change (Eerdmans Publishing, 2001), 215-232.

[2] Jason Zirbel. “Authority Vs. Power.” 25 September 2001. http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=2410 (26 Sept 2014). [Note: Tenses in the quote were adjusted to reflect the paragraph context]

[3] Matthew 28:18.

[4] Mark 2:10.

[5] Alan Taylor. “Authority” 28 September 2014 http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3897 (26 September 2014).

[6] Philippians 2:6-ff

[7] Alan Taylor. “Authority”

Scandalous, Unlimited, And Uncontrollable Grace - For You

Text: Matthew 20:1-16

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Today’s parable in our Gospel reading is very scandalous.  Yes, today’s parable isn’t ‘fair’ or even ‘just’ according to our way of thinking.  It is rather outrageous to commonsensical reasoning.  It will most likely cause you to fidget and grumble; it may even incite a bit of rage within you.    

With that stated, you have already heard the parable read in today’s Gospel reading, but let me give a brief recap of the parable.

There is a landowner who went into the marketplace to hire people to work in his vineyard.  From the marketplace, he hired some workers in the early morning hours.  Later he hired some more workers around 9:00 AM.  In fact he continued to hire workers throughout the day; some around noon, some around 3:00 PM, and some around 5:00 PM.  This resulted in several of the individuals working a full-days’ work, whereas others worked only a half day, and others only an hour or two.  Up to this point, there is certainly no scandal in the story.

At the end of the day though, the workers who put in a full-days’ work were compensated for a full-days’ work.  Yes, they put in lengthy hours and received a fair payment for their work.  They were obviously not treated unfairly or short changed.  The landowner did not swindle them, abuse them, or take advantage of them.  The landowner said that he would pay them the typical daily wage and they were compensated that daily rate.  So what is the problem? 

The problem occurs at the end of the day when the unthinkable happens.  Those who were hired last, yes those who only worked an hour or so, were paid first, that is, before everyone else.  To make it even more offensive, those that showed up last and only worked an hour or so were given a full-days’ pay. 

Does this not offend you?  It certainly offends me.  Who do these freeloaders think they are?  Do they think that they can just sit around as lazy bums and then be compensated the same rate as those who put in the real hard work, those that have actually ‘earned’ their pay?  Can we tolerate these lazy jerks and their cheap grace?  Speaking of cheap grace, who does the landowner think he is, paying workers who do not even work a full-day?  Everyone knows that a business cannot be run this way.  If a business owner pays people who do not work, everyone knows that the business’s equity will be drained.  This kind of careless cost accounting will surely land the business in Chapter 7 Bankruptcy.  All of this is downright scandalous, unjust, and appalling, is it not?

The workers in the parable certainly felt this way as well.  They grumbled and complained in low tones at the end of the day, when everyone was compensated.  However, what were they grumbling about precisely?  As we take a closer look at today’s Gospel reading, we notice that the main reason for the grumbling, complaining, and muttering was not necessarily on the amount of pay that was given.  Rather the reason why those who worked all day long grumbled, was because the landowner made everyone equal by lavishing the same generous gift upon everyone, regardless of the amount of work that was done.  Listen to the grumblers, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.”  Yes, here is the scandal, those who worked one hour were given a full-days’ pay; those who worked eight hours were given a full-days’ pay; and those who worked ten-plus hours were given a full-days’ pay.  Everyone was generously and fairly compensated the exact same rate; everyone was equally gifted and no one was shortchanged by the landowner.  Otherwise stated, everyone was treated the same, regardless of the amount of work done.  There were no comparisons made, no ranking or classification of workers, and no compensation scales.[1]  This resulted in “no room for self-promotion, no occasion for competition, no basis on which one . . . [could] say to another, . . . ‘I am more important than you are.’”[2]   

My friends, this story offends us and we grumble with those who worked a full-days’ wage, because we believe that the more a person does, the more they should be compensated and rewarded.    Yes, even our Midwestern ideals teach us that hard work should be rewarded greater than idle work.  In a word, longer work should be rewarded more substantially than shorter work.  If one cannot be rewarded with greater compensation for greater work, then we at least want there to be some sort of differentiation between workers. Maybe one worker should be labeled ‘senior executive’ and the other work labeled as ‘meager minion.’  Yes, we want—no we demand—that compensation and job status be dependent on the amount of work that we do or do not do.  This is the way that it works in the work force and the way that it works in the vocations in the world.

While compensation and different levels of status are certainly prevalent in our capitalistic economic system today, and sometimes very beneficial to productivity, it could not be further from the way things are in God’s economy.  You see, “God isn’t like you.  He doesn’t think like the way you think.  His ways are not your ways.  And He doesn’t owe you, or anyone, anything.”[3]  You see, the workers who worked all day, grumbled because they saw themselves as entitled to more and within a separate class of individuals.  And what set them apart from the idle workers?  They saw themselves as entitled. 

We too, my friends, are prone to this very sin in regard to the kingdom of heaven, when we begin to think that the Lord somehow owes us a special status and owes us grace for what we have done and what we have not done.  We too sin when we think that we can somehow manage, manipulate, control, and domesticate the Lord’s grace, as if His grace must respond to who we are and what we do. 

Contrary to what our sinful nature may think, the Lord’s grace cannot be confined, controlled, and dispensed on the basis of our agendas, our ethnic heritages, our church backgrounds, our spirituals resumes, the length of time that we have been in the church, our roles in the church, our accomplishments, our community status, and so forth.  Put frankly, the Lord’s grace is not dispensed in the way a can of soda is dispensed, that is, when loose change is inserted and buttons pressed on a vending machine so that a soda is bestowed of our choosing.  We cannot purchase grace with our change and cannot press the Lord’s buttons.  That is (to say), the Lord is not so easily manipulated by us naming and cataloging our good works in order to present them in exchange for His grace.  The reason why this is so?  Like the Great Lion, Aslan, in C.S. Lewis’ book, “The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe,” the Lord won’t be tied down and won’t be pressed for He is not a tame lion. 

Therefore, if grace cannot be bought off and if we are not entitled to it, one might wonder if it is even for us.  Dear friends, before we go down this dark road, may it be clear to us that this parable is not about what mankind thinks is ‘fair’ or ‘just.’  It is not about how we can control grace or earn it.  It isn’t about how we can self-promote ourselves in the kingdom of heaven in order to warrant special handouts.  It frankly isn’t about us at all and all of our doings.  Rather this parable is about the gracious landowner and how the landowner’s generosity consequently infuriates.  It is a parable about the Lord’s rich, abounding, mighty, and powerful disposition towards those who do not deserve it.  It is about grace that does not depend on works and what people think they deserve, but grace that is lavished out upon the unworthy—for Christ’s sake.  In short, “the Lord rewards those who don’t deserve it.  He loves those who hate and abuse Him.  He gives gifts to those who steal from Him.  He is generous, merciful, and good despite” the thoughts, words, and deeds of mankind.[4] 

The thing about this parable is that it will always remain scandalous and unfair as long as we see ourselves as the entitled ones, for that is the default position of the old Adam, our sinful flesh.  But with that stated, what exactly do we think that we are entitled to?  Fleshing this out a bit more, what is ours to take?  What have we earned?  Soberly answered, no matter how polished our good works, no matter how clean our resumes, and no matter how many hours of devotion we have put in—even if it is a full-day of work—we must never forget that all we can earn by our own reason and strength is complete and total damnation.  That is our paycheck.  That is our wage.  The only thing that we can offer the Lord is our sin; sin though that does not yield life but wages death.

Do not despair though, for like the jobless people in the market place, you have been called and placed into God’s vineyard as a worker, some of you early in the morning, others of you later in the day and others in the evening.  Regardless of the time though, you have been graciously called.  You have been placed into the kingdom of heaven, because you are loved and He is gracious.  Most certainly you are welcomed into the kingdom, but this does not come without a cost.  What is the cost though?  The cost is the expensive and shed blood of Jesus Christ—blood shed for you.  Yes indeed, in this vineyard, this kingdom, Christ’s church, you have learned and will continue to learn that the defining characteristic of the Lord is unearned and undeserved grace—for you.  As a disciple within this gracious kingdom of heaven, you will work in serving your neighbor and you will walk in the vocations that the Lord has placed you within, as the Holy Spirit leads and sanctifies you daily.  Yes, these good works and vocations are given from the Lord’s hand for you to simply walk in.  Indeed, being called into the vineyard you will continually receive undeserved and unearned grace and mercy that has been gifted to you for Christ’s sake.  It is all pure gift!

Baptized Saints, in the days to come when you and I find ourselves caught up in the mindset of entitlement or find ourselves believing that we can earn grace, be assured that the Lord and His grace will not bend to your or my demands, but rather will exceed “the desires of our selfish hearts.”[5]  Case and point: as you stand shoulder to shoulder with your brothers and sisters at this altar, you all will all stand with different lengths and different lists of sins, yet you and your brothers and sisters will all receive the same body and blood of Jesus Christ for the complete forgiveness of all your sins.  Indeed, in the days to come when you slip into comparing yourself with others, your baptism remains steadfast and true reminding you that you and your brothers and sisters were all baptized into the same name, “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,” from the same baptismal font, into the same death and resurrection. 

Given the good news that we have heard thus far, it can be faithfully and confidently asserted that in Christ’s church no one can tame, limit, or legislate the Lord and His grace.  The Lion of Judah will not be tamed.  The flowing grace from Mt Calvary cannot be dammed up. The cup overflows for you today and for you tomorrow and the days to come.  As the workers received a full-days’ wage for only an hour of work, it is the same for you.  In fact it is better for you, for you “are no longer mere workers being overpaid.  By grace we are now members of the family, co-owners of the kingdom, [and] the bride of the Son.  We remain with Him.”[6]

Blessed Saints, “May God in His mercy keep this ever new to and for us that our hearts would not grow cold or take His grace for granted.  May He keep us ever mindful of the cost of His love in the death of the Son and the fulfillment of His love in the resurrection as He provides once again in His risen body and blood.”[7]

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  Amen.

---

[1] Jeffrey A. Gibbs, Matthew 11:2-20:34: Concordia Commentary  (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2010), 990.

[2] Ibid, 991.

[3] David H. Petersen, Thy Kingdom Come: Lent and Easter Sermons (Fort Wayne, IN: Emmanuel Press, 2012), 2.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid, 4.

[6] Ibid.

[7] Ibid.

Forgiveness: Rescued And Released From An Unfathomable Crushing Debt

Text:  Matthew 18:21-35

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

So how many times are you to forgive someone that sins against you?  You know what I am talking about.  How many times are you to “release someone else from the retribution and retaliation that, according to normal human relationships and even God’s Law, they very well may deserve to receive?”[1]  Yes, how many times are you to forgive loved ones when they hurt you?  How many times do you erase a person’s record of sin against you? How many times are you to free people of their bondage of remorse, shame, and dejection?  What is the secret number?  Three times?  How about seven times?  How about seventy times?  What about 490 times?  Just what is the numerical standard for this?  Is there a mathematical formula in calculating this?  Could there possibly be a spread sheet and situation calculator that will determine this for us? 

In today’s Gospel reading, “Peter tried to set what he regarded as a generous limit to the practice of forgiveness.”[2]  He questioned Jesus if forgiving a brother seven times was enough, for seven times is indeed generous.  In response to this, Jesus shares with Peter that a Christian is to forgive seventy times seven.  Yes, Jesus clarifies that “unlimited forgiveness is characteristic of the Christian Gospel.”[3]

It is rather striking to hear this from Jesus.  Jesus does not affirm Peter’s submission of seven times and he doesn’t even provide some sort of forgiveness formula for dealing with being sinned against.  Rather, He intensifies Peter’s generous number of ‘seven’ by saying that a Christian shall forgive seventy time seven.  That is, Jesus is not setting a limit but showing that there is simply no quantitative number that one can ascribe to the practice of forgiveness.  Yes, forgiveness is unlimited; it is not a numbers game.  Forgiveness has nothing to do about keeping score. 

Now, if it is true—and it is—that there is simply no limit to the amount of times that we should forgive a brother or sister that sins against us, we are then faced with a pretty profound dilemma.  You see, “relationships between sinful people are often marred by sinful words and actions, some recurring over and over again. In every marriage, in every family, in every friendship, Christians will be faced with the situation in which forgiveness is requested of them—again. We too may wonder with Peter whether our forgiveness toward others has limits. [Furthermore,] our own [sinful] nature leads us to want to limit forgiveness, [as well].”[4]

That is just typical of our sinful nature is it not?  The old Adam, that is our sinful nature, will tend to limit forgiveness to others, while Jesus on the other hand says that it is limitless.  The reason why this is true is that our sinful flesh is all about justice and keeping score of other people’s wrongs towards us, but rarely wants justice for ourselves.  That is the way that it is with the old Adam.  We want to be let off the hook, but rarely apply that same standard to others.  We don’t want to pay our debts, but expect others to pay theirs.  We want free handouts but expect others to dig themselves out of their own graves.     

Dear friends who have you withheld forgiveness from?  Who is in need of your forgiveness?  Has the old Adam had his way with you?

Keep in mind that forgiveness is not merely attempting to forget the wounds, sin, and pain that have been done to you as if they never happened, though this is a possibility.  Furthermore, forgiveness is also not a dismissal of someone’s sin towards you, as if this sin was not a series offense.  Forgiveness is also not turning a blind eye towards someone; it is not giving someone the silent treatment like some immature schoolgirl.[5]  Forgiveness is also not getting someone out of trouble with the law scot free, as they say.  Finally, forgiveness is not something that the sinful nature can do or wants to do.   Forgiveness is none of these things.  Rather, forgiveness is an action that is done by you through the leading of the Holy Spirit by the Gospel.  It is releasing someone from your vengeance, your plans of revenge, and your retaliation agendas. 

Frankly, even though it is tremendously important for others to be forgiven by you, this granting of forgiveness is just as important for you as it is for them.  You see, according to John Kleinig, when “Satan gets another Christian to sin against us in deed or word . . . Satan gets us to brood over it, like a stuck track or a video loop, repeatedly and obsessively in our minds, with every greater emphasis on the gravity and injustice of it. As we process the offense and its effect on us, Satan gradually distorts our remembrance and our assessment of it. He uses this offense to encourage us to bring our mental accusations against the offender in the court of our minds. There he presides over the proceedings as we hold a secret trial in which we both prosecute and pass judgment on the wrongdoer.”[6] 

“The more we brood on the offense, the angrier we get against the offender. We remember all the other offenses that we have ever suffered from that person and all the other people that have ever hurt us. And that fuels our anger and our desire for justice. We maintain that we are in the right; we are justified in our judgment of them. We hold the moral high ground against them. Then, before we know it, anger leads to bitterness and resentment. This, in turn, leads to outrage, hatred, and lust for revenge. And so we end up stewing in our own poison.”[7] 

“When we begin to hate those whom we should love [and forgive], Satan has us where he wants us. Once hatred sets in, he can slowly and patiently dislodge us from the Church and from Christ.”[8]  My friends, this “Hatred is spiritual suicide. It marks the end of eternal life, the new life we have in Christ. Anger is seductive because it makes us feel justified in hating those who have hurt us. We are right and they are wrong. We are right in hating them and taking revenge on them because they are our enemies.  The revenge that we take is subtle and hidden. We don’t usually attack them physically or verbally, but emotionally and spiritually. We write them off and give them the cold shoulder. We reject them in our hearts, dissociate ourselves from them, and treat them as if they were dead to us.  Sadly, by cutting ourselves off from our brothers and sisters in Christ, we cut ourselves off from Christ as well. The upshot of that is withdrawal from the family of God and increasing isolation in the darkness of hatred. That is a kind of spiritual suicide, for hatred opens up a secret place for Satan in our hearts.”[9]

Baptized saints, this lack of forgiveness wreaks havoc in the lives of Christians, churches, and communities.  It is destructive.  It is the wishes of Satan and the results of our sinful nature. 

Indeed, today’s Gospel reading causes us to ask the question, “Who have you and I withheld forgiveness from?  Who has been tried in the courts of our mind?  Who has been damned by us resulting in our withholding of forgiveness?” 

While these questions are indeed right and true and good for us to ask, what we have uncovered today is that first and foremost it is you and me who are in need of forgiveness.  The reason why this is so?  Are not our debt, sin, and failures greater than all of these insignificant, stupid, and trivial things that have been done to us by our brothers and sisters?  Thus, who are we to withhold forgiveness from those who Christ died for?  But what of serious offenses of sin; what about those sins that were committed against us that are too dark and too painful to mention in the light of day?  Whatever has been done to you or not been done to you, you do not have the right to reign down eternal damnation, hell, and vengeance upon these individuals so as to separate them from the Lord, for you are not the Creator.  You who have ears repent. 

You who have ears though, listen to another word.  Consider the beginning of today’s parable in our Gospel reading.  Yes, in today’s Gospel reading we hear that you and I have been “rescued and released from an unfathomable, crushing debt that, by legal right, would otherwise have condemned”[10] us to a lifetime in hell.  Yes, your sin of withholding forgiveness is forgiven by the one who does not withhold forgiveness from you—Christ forgives you.  Yes, your sin of putting people on trial in your mind is forgiven by the one who was tried and condemned guilty on your behalf—Christ forgives you.  Yes, your sin of limiting forgiveness from others is forgiven by the unlimited forgiveness of Christ-crucified—for you.  King Jesus cancels all of our whopping debt of sin-a liability that you and I could not possibly recompense and He does this for you and me because He is rich in love and abounding in grace.  He forgives you and me and considers it well worthwhile.

By the way though, as forgiven people, you can and will forgive.  Indeed, “only forgiven people can really forgive.”[11] This is so, because the Holy Spirit through this Gospel will lead you and me to forgiveness while granting grace and peace to our sometimes confused emotions.  Indeed, as forgiven people we pray that the Father would set us free from harboring grudges and withholding forgiveness, for Christ sake.  As this happens, we rejoice in the forgiveness received by us and given to others.  As we fail, we rejoice for the forgiveness given by the Lord and received by us. 

Baptized saints, because of the Father’s merciful nature, you and your neighbors have been forgiven an insurmountable debt of sin, ransomed by the death of Christ.  This is true today, is true for the next seven days, and will be true until He comes again—for you.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  Amen.

---

[1]  Jeffrey A. Gibbs, Matthew 11:2-20:34: Concordia Commentary (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2010), 940.

[2] Francis C. Rossow, Gospel Handles: Finding New Connections in Biblical Texts (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2001), 67.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Balge, R. D., & Ehlke, R. C. (1989). Sermon Studies on the Gospels (ILCW Series A) (p. 306). Milwaukee, WI: Northwestern Publishing House.

[5] Pastor Jason Zirbel, “Forgiveness: Limited or Limitless?” (11 September 2011) http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=2381(13 September 2014).

[6] John W. Kleinig, Grace Upon Grace (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2008), 234-236.

[7] Ibid.

[8] Ibid.

                 [9] Ibid.

[10] Jeffrey A. Gibbs, Matthew 11:2-20:34: Concordia Commentary, 938.

[11] Francis C. Rossow, Gospel Handles: Finding New Connections in Biblical Texts, 68.

The Gift Of Helplessness

Text:  Matthew 18:1-20

Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

In today’s current culture we tend to idealize childhood as this happy age of innocence.  We see childhood as a carefree time; we elevate children and certainly embrace them by devoting tremendous amounts of energy to them and their extracurricular activities.

Indeed, vacations are taken for the children, toys are bought for them, and families tend to organize their entire schedules around them, especially when they begin playing sports. 

Many individuals, given the chance, would love to leave their current pressures of everyday life and return to childhood where they could sleep in, play all day, eat food, and be unconditionally embraced by a parent. 

In the time of Jesus this was not necessarily the case though.  The children of Jesus’ day were often treated with scorn.  In other words, the children of the first-century were considered of no importance because they were physically weak compared to adults, thus not allowing them to contribute to the agricultural demands of the day.  Furthermore, these children were susceptible to sickness, and often took up a lot of the mother’s time and attention, especially in their early years.  In a word, children were weak, foolish, helpless, and dependent.  If they were not taken care of, they would die. 

Now, it isn’t that these children weren’t loved and cherished in the first-century.  Rather, they simply did not have an elevated status resulting in family schedules revolving around them. They were simply a part of the family with a low status; they were a bunch of little ankle-biters that were often times along for the ride.  They were not great, but inferior to adults because they demanded support. 

What this means is that children were never held up as an example to an adult.  Adults were never told during the first-century that they should be like a child.  No, it was the other way around.  The adults were the role models to the children.  Children needed to grow up; they needed to become hardworking self-sustaining adults. 

It makes sense now just how scandalous it was for Jesus to place a child before the disciples as a role model. 

Who is the greatest?  Here, look, this child in your midst is the greatest.  In fact, unless you change and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven!

This teaching must have shocked the disciples.  The reason why, Jesus uses a child – someone who was helpless, dependent, and needy – to teach the disciples, and us, that the kingdom of heaven is for those who are spiritually destitute. 

It makes even more sense when we see that after talking about children, Jesus introduces a parable about sheep.  You see, both sheep and children are essentially dependent creatures.  Sheep, like children, are helpless and foolish animals.  “Sheep need constant care, watching, and protection.  By themselves they are an easy prey.  All is well with them only when they stay close together within the shepherd’s care.  They can’t get along alone.”[1]

What Jesus is essentially doing in our Gospel reading from today is showing us that we need to become like little children.  We need to be changed. 

While most everything that we do in life with children is to equip them to grow up and become independent, it is not true spiritually.  Spiritually it is the exact opposite.  In other words, “In our human lives, growing up involves the gradual shift from dependence to independence.  But the reverse is true for us spiritually.”[2]

What this means is that the Holy Spirit through the Word of God needs to break through and wound you and me.  The Holy Spirit through the Word needs to come to you and me, and strip us of all our attempts at being self-sufficient and then ascribe everything to the blood of Christ.[3]  Yes, the Holy Spirit through the Word needs to tear you down, strike you down, and kill you.  You and I need to be reduced to a helpless, dependent, and needy child.  This, my friends, is very good.

But why is this good?  This is good, because it is what we properly call repentance.  When the Holy Spirit brings you from independence to dependence: that is in fact repentance.  When the Holy Spirit brings you from a position of strength to a position of weakness: that is repentance.  When He brings you from self-sufficiency to helplessness: that is repentance.  When He brings you from self-righteousness to the realization of your sin: that is repentance.  But why is this good?  “By repenting we admit our spiritual bankruptcy and turn to God as beggars to ask for His mercy and grace.”[4]  Yes, in this gift of repentance we are brought to the reality of our sin and are made to be receivers.  Indeed, being gifted repentance is to be brought to the point we realize that we can do nothing about our sinful condition. 

Being brought to repentance and being like a child actually brings about tremendous freedom too.  As we are brought to the end of ourselves, we quickly come to learn that we must look outside of ourselves in order to survive.  Yes, when we are changed into children and sheep, we look outside of ourselves and begin to learn that we don’t need to worry about being helpless.  We don’t need to worry about trying to look good and impress everyone.  We begin to learn that we don’t have to call attention to ourselves and that we don’t have to continuously work at building up our esteem and reputation.  Why?  Because through the Gospel we hear that we have a Father who cares for us and that we are sheep who have a good shepherd.  In helplessness and in repentance we are directed away from ourselves to the only source of our hope, Jesus Christ and His good gifts—for us.

I am reminded of a story in a book by Brennan Manning.  He talks about his neighbor, little John Dyer, who was three years old.  He shares, one night, little John Dyer “knocked on our door flanked by his parents.  I looked down and said, ‘Hi John.  I am delighted to see you.’  He looked neither to the right nor the left.  His face was set like flint.  He narrowed his eyes with the apocalyptic glint of an aimed gun. ‘Where are the cookies?’ He demanded…”  Brennan goes on to say about this, “A child doesn’t have to struggle to get himself in a good position for having a relationship with God; he doesn’t have to craft ingenious ways of explaining his position to Jesus; he doesn’t have to create a pretty face for himself; he doesn’t have to achieve any state of spiritual feeling or intellectual understanding.  All he has to do is happily [receive] the cookies; the gift of the kingdom.”[5]

My friends, “those who insist that they are not helpless sinners will never enter the kingdom of heaven.  On the other hand, those who are helpless, dependent sinners are the greatest in the kingdom of heaven”[6] for they are gifted not cookies, but the forgiveness of sins purchased and won for them.   

You, who are helpless, are made into receivers of a God who spoils you with His forgiveness; who spoils you with His love and care; who spoils you with every spiritual blessing in Christ Jesus; and spoils you with a heavenly meal. 

Keep in mind though that being brought to repentance is not a onetime event.  “Our repentance is not just an initial act or an occasional event in our journey with Christ; it is a daily event, a lifelong process.  Our whole life as Christians is a process of conversion from ourselves to God, a dying to self that is complete only when we die.”[7]  Yes, as Martin Luther once stated, the entire life of believer is one of repentance.[8]  Indeed, "we move [daily] away from pride in ourselves and our own achievements to a gradual awareness of our spiritual failure and Christ's work in us as we entrust ourselves to Him. We move away the conviction that we are self-sufficient to the repeated experience of spiritual bankruptcy. We move on from delusions of our spiritual importance to a growing sense of our utter insignificance and the glory of God. We move on from delight in our own power to the painful recognition of our spiritual weakness. We are brought from our self-righteousness to the increasing consciousness that we are sinful."[9]  We are continually brought to helplessness, where we are God’s children, His sheep. 

Like repentance, daily we also receive God’s answer to our sin, the Gospel.  In other words, we don’t just receive the Gospel when were saved or baptized and that is it.  No, our whole life as disciples of Jesus, as sheep of Jesus, and as children of God is one where we receive grace upon grace.  In other words, we don’t have to spiritually grow up to be dependent autonomous individuals, we don’t have to obtain some superficial pious level or status, we don’t have to bargain, and we don’t have to work to achieve grace.  It is freely given to you and me—as gift.  Yes, no climbing, no huffing and puffing, and no fear, for it has pleased your Father to ‘give’ you the kingdom.[10]  Take comfort you childlike repentant beggars and dependent sheep who are broken, crushed, destroyed, crippled, wrecked, collapsed, and torn down, for the Lord does not despise you.  Rather, He meets you and lavishes upon you His grace.  Indeed, He gave grace to Maverick in baptism this morning and gave this marvelous forgiveness to you at yours.  He gives you the kingdom in His Word and also in His Supper. 

Take comfort my dear saints for forgiveness and everlasting life has been paid for by the blood of Jesus.  It has been finished.  Forgiveness and righteousness has come to and for you; you can gobble it up like a little child, for it belongs to you.  It is indeed great to be a child of God.  

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.  Amen.

---

[1] Norman Nagel.  Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel: From Valparaiso to St. Louis (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2004), 167.

[2] John Kleinig, Grace Upon Grace: Spirituality for Today (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House,  2008), 32-35.

[3] Martin Luther, Luther's works, vol. 12: Selected Psalms eds. J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald & H. T. Lehmann (Saint Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1999), 225.

[4] John Kleinig, Grace Upon Grace: Spirituality for Today, 32-35.

[5] Brennan Manning.  The Ragamuffin Gospel (Sisters, OR: Multnomah, 2005), 53.

[6] James Batchelor.  “Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost Sermon At Good Sheppherd Lutheran Church of Hoopeston, IL” http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=2374 (20 August 2014).

[7] John Kleinig, Grace Upon Grace: Spirituality for Today, 32-35.

[8] See the First Thesis of the 95 Theses.

[9] John Kleinig, Grace Upon Grace: Spirituality for Today, 32-35.

[10] See Luke 12:32.