He Takes A Needle And A Camel; Watch What Happens Next

Text: Mark 10:23-31

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.

I have a challenge for us today.  My challenge is for us to consider the task of putting a large camel through the eye of a needle.

Yes, let us imagine that we have a 2,200 lb. six foot camel in our midst, a large harry and spitting camel with two humps on its back.  Then imagine that we have been given a simple needle.  Not a large needle, but a simple crafting needle that is thin with a sharp point for sewing and a small open hole on the end.  Our mission – if we choose to accept it – is to get the camel to pass through the eye of a needle, the small hole where the thread goes. 

Now that we have accepted this task, one way for us to accomplish this challenge would be to thread a chin hair of the camel through the eye of the needle and then pull on that chin hair as hard as we can.  If we pull hard enough, we may just be able to get the rest of the camel to go through the eye of the needle as well.  He may just pop through.

If this does not work, there is always Plan B.  Plan B is a bit messier, for it involves greasing the camel down.  Maybe a little WD-40, Vaseline, and motor oil will do the trick.  After the camel is greased down, if we hold the needle steady while pushing the greasy camel, we might with enough force be able to push the camel through the eye of the needle. 

If Plan B does not work, we can then move on to Plan C.  We could shave the camel down and then pass each camel hair through the eye of the needle, one by one.  Then we would have to dismantle the camel piece by piece and force each piece through the eye of the needle.  The challenge though would be to put the camel back together on the other side.  We would have to put the hooves, legs, body, tail, neck, and head back together.  Then we would have to glue every hair back on the camel. 

All this said, I hope you are arriving at the same conclusion that I have arrived at, and that is, it would take a miracle to put a camel through the eye of a needle.  Even talking about strategies of getting the camel through the eye of a needle shows the foolishness of such a task.  Otherwise stated, it is impossible to put a camel through the eye of a needle and it is also impossible for you and me to pass into eternal life by the power of our own works and by the influence of our wealth.  In fact, it is easier to make a camel go through the eye of a needle than for you and me to make it to heaven on our own strength.

Dear friends, the Kingdom of God – Heaven - is not for sale.  It cannot be earned and it cannot be manipulated.  Just as we cannot force ourselves through the eye of a needle, we cannot force ourselves through the Kingdom’s door.  This is what Jesus is attempting to tell us in Mark’s Gospel reading from this morning. 

You see, during the first-century the people of Israel looked at wealthy people as honest hard working citizens.  Wealthy people were considered blessed by God and they were assumed to be honest and noble.  If anyone was fit for the Kingdom of God, it was those who had wealth.  They were the model citizens; they stood at the front of the line.  Thus, when Jesus says that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter heaven, the probability of entering the Kingdom of God went way down - down to 0%.  The disciples actually exclaimed, “Then who can be saved?”

We are also reminded of this same kind of talk from Jesus in Matthew’s gospel, the seventh chapter, where Jesus said the following,

“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few."

Like the small and narrow eye of a needle, Jesus says that the way to eternal life is through the narrow gate, not the wide gate. 

With that stated, many Christians will unfortunately hear sermons on the wide versus narrow gate from their pastors, where the pastor will “define 'entering by the wide gate' as following the ways of the 'world' - that is, going to worldly movies, reading dirty magazines and frequenting bars. Conversely [the pastor will say that] 'entering by the narrow gate' means going to church, reading the Bible, memorizing Scripture, getting perfect Sunday school attendance pins, visiting people in nursing homes, and giving money. The narrow and wide gates are reduced to lists of things we are supposed to do or not do.”[1]  Bad things are the way of the wide gate and good things are the way of the straight and narrow. However, this is not what Jesus was getting at.  In other words, the wide gate is the gate of religious performance and self-effort that leads to toil and weariness and hell; whereas, the narrow gate is the gate for those who are tired, worn out, beggarly, and beating their breast saying, ‘God have mercy on me the sinner.’  The narrow gate is only fit for those who drop their works and religious performance baggage and come through empty handed depending upon the grace of God. On the other side of the narrow gate is heavenly rest. Indeed, if we try to go through the narrow gate with our perfect attendance pins, and Bible quiz trophies, or any of our own righteousness, we simply won't fit like we won’t fit through the eye of a needle. Jesus is the narrow gate. 

Dear friends, all of this said, it is not bad to be rich, it is not bad to possess material possessions, and it is not bad to use resources in your vocations to serve your neighbor.  But rather, the point of Jesus’ message with the illustrations of the narrow gate and the eye of the needle is that no one is able to enter the Kingdom of God with their own resources.  “When Jesus said that the most respected members of the culture could not earn their way into God’s Kingdom, He was saying that none of us rich or poor can earn a place in God’s Kingdom.  All of us are as likely to enter God’s Kingdom as a camel is likely to pass through the eye of a needle.”[2]

Then who can be saved, you might ask?  Who can obtain eternal life?  Who can merit the Kingdom of God?  No one!  Not you and not me.  Indeed, “it is impossible—for all people—no matter how old or young, wise or foolish, rich or poor, free or slave, law-abiding or illegal…it doesn’t matter.  For every child born of Adam it is impossible to enter into the kingdom of God if your merit and worthiness is to be factored into the decision.”[3] 

. . .

Oh, but here the good news of the Gospel!  “With God, your merciful and gracious heavenly Father, nothing is impossible.  No one is too far gone or beyond hope for the unconditional and unfailing grace, mercy, peace, and love of their heavenly Father.”[4]

Dear Baptized Saints, the Kingdom of God is not a private country club for the self-righteous or for those who possess super-Christian powers.  Your spiritual resume, your resources, your actions, your piety, and your works cannot put you through the eye of a needle into the Kingdom of Heaven.  These things do not put you through the narrow gate. 

But rather, the Kingdom of Heaven is for sinners only.  It is for blood-bought-baptized-sinners such as you and me.  It is for fisherman, tax collectors, and reprobates, such as the disciples. 

And yes, you and I as sinners are pulled through the eye of the needle into the Kingdom.  By Christ’s shed blood we are taken from the wide gate of destruction and placed through the narrow gate of life.  The impossible is possible with the Lord.

You see, through your baptisms you are undone.  Through your baptism you are joined to Jesus’ death and then joined to His resurrection.  Yes, you are taken from death through the eye of a needle to life by the Lord’s work to and for you.  You are taken from the wide gate that is a black hole of death, and joined to Christ who is the narrow gate of life.   It is the Lord that takes us from the kingdom of darkness and puts us into the Kingdom of Power and Glory.  God puts you and me to death in Christ as we are undone in our baptisms and brought back to life in Christ’s resurrection.

We cannot put a camel through the eye of a needle, but the Lord can surely forgive a sinner and usher a sinner like you and me into the Kingdom of God. 

He does all the work to and for you; rest and receive.  He made it possible for you to receive the Kingdom of God and for the Kingdom of God to receive you. 

Do not fear; the Kingdom belongs to you. 

Do not be distraught, you are in Christ. 

Do not be shocked, you are forgiven. 

Indeed, your salvation is a miracle; it is a gift; it is an inheritance.  All for you, nothing held back. 

Today in conclusion we have learned two things.  It is impossible to put a camel through the eye of a needle, but it is completely possible and an actual reality that you have been put into the Kingdom of God, for Christ died and was resurrected - for you.

 

In the name of Jesus,  Amen

---

[1] David Johnson and Jeff Van Vonderen, The Subtle Power of Spiritual Abuse: Recognizing & Escaping Spiritual Manipulation and False Spiritual Authority Within the Church (Bloomington, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 1991), page number unavailable.

[2] James T. Batchelor, “Twenty-first Sunday after Pentecost,” LCMS Sermons, http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=4328 (accessed October 16, 2015).

[3] Jason Zirbel, “Unquestionable Christian Richness,” LCMS Sermons, http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=4327 (accessed October 16, 2015).

[4] Ibid.

What Must I Do To Be Saved?

Text:  Mark 10:17-22

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.

What must you do to inherit eternal life? 

This is a profound question to ponder.  It is a question that comes from the Gospel of Mark, where a rich young ruler wanted to acquire, win, and obtain life after death. 

So, what must one do to acquire, win, and obtain eternal life?  What must you do to acquire, win, and obtain eternal life?

When the average person on the street is asked this question, the top responses are that one obtains eternal life through being a good person, living a good life, and having upright morals.  Indeed, according to a large segment of Americans, if one lives by God’s rules, behaves like Jesus, treats others well, and esteems the golden rule, then eternal life is within one’s reach.[1]

Now, as we look back to our Gospel reading from this morning, it seems that Jesus agrees with a large segment of Americans as well.  He actually responds to the rich young ruler’s question by saying this,

“You know the commandments: you shall not murder; you shall not commit adultery; you shall not steal; you shall not bear false witness; you shall not defraud; Honor your father and mother.” 

Indeed, it seems that Jesus is telling the rich young ruler to follow the straight and narrow path in order to get eternal life.  It sounds like Jesus is telling him to give it his all and to fulfill the Ten Commandments in order to acquire eternal life. 

Is Jesus actually telling this guy to ‘work’ his way to eternal life, to climb the ladder towards heaven, to exert moral actions?  Contrary to what you might think, Jesus actually is.    

You see, the rich young ruler did not ask Jesus ‘where’ eternal life was found and he did not ask Jesus ‘how’ eternal life is accomplished, but rather He asks the question, “What must ‘I do’ for eternal life.”  In other words, the rich young ruler wants to ‘do’ his own salvation.  He wants a check list.  He wants to flex his own spiritual muscles.  He wants to pull himself up by his bootstraps.  He wants to earn eternal life by doing.   Furthermore, it appears that the rich young ruler thinks he has dotted all the i’s and crossed all the t’s and just wants a bit of affirmation from Jesus, to make sure that he is doing it right and well enough.    

Keep in mind though, before we get too ahead of ourselves, in asking this question, the rich young ruler is guaranteeing to get himself into trouble.  Furthermore, when we ask this question, it also guarantees to make our lives miserable as well.  Yes, far too many Christians ask this question and far too many pastors teach Christians to ask the question, “What must ‘I do’ to obtain eternal life.’”  The reason why it is guaranteed to make your life miserable in one way or another is that you and I will either become self-deceived to the point that we convince ourselves that we are actually pulling it off, or you and I will become disheartened, overwhelmed, depressed, and fearful knowing that we cannot get the job done.  To put this another way, if we think that we are able to acquire eternal life by our own doings, we not only are deceiving ourselves, but we will also become boorish arrogant snotty pharisaical persons, who think that we are better than everyone else.  On the other hand, if we realize that we cannot accomplish eternal life by our own doings, we end up going down the path of spiritual suicide leading to secularism or atheism.    

This is the way that it was with the rich young ruler.  He asks Jesus what he must do and then Jesus lays a list of dos and don’t upon him.  The rich young man – convinced that he is an upright and morally good person – arrogantly and foolishly responds that he has been doing the Ten Commandments since his youth.  To this Jesus then piles more things to do upon him.  He looks into the rich young ruler’s heart and sees that what the man loves more than God is his possessions.  Therefore, he tells the man to go and sell all that he has and follow him.

Now, Jesus is not trying to show him that he needed to learn to love others and not wealth before he could finally please God for eternal life and He is not telling the man to go and sell everything to the poor so that the man might earn eternal life before God.  But rather, Jesus is laying His finger on the chief sin in the man’s heart, the love of earthly possession.  Jesus is exposing the man’s self-righteousness and his false religion of foolishly trying to obtain eternal life by his own doing – by his own works.

Dear friends, when you live by your own perceived abilities to please God and try to obtain eternal life through your keeping of the law, the demands of the law will never relinquish.  If you think you are doing a pretty good job, there is always more to do; the Law will always demand more from you.  That is the seduction that is so easy to get ensnared into. 

Indeed, asking the question, “What must I do to acquire eternal life,” and then attempting to actually do something to acquire eternal life, is actually seductive. “This is the seduction of all false religions.  False religions teach that good works will eventually lead a person to salvation.  They all try to answer the question, ‘What must I do to inherit eternal life?’ Many of these religious systems espouse lives of great moral behavior to answer this question, but they all fail to answer the next question.  ‘What should I do when I fail to lead a righteous life?’  What does a Jew do when he fails to keep the laws of Moses?  What does a Muslim do when he fails to observe the Five Pillars of Islam?  What does the member of the secret society do when he can't maintain that purity of life and conduct so essentially necessary for gaining admission into the celestial lodge above?  These religions that are so eager to give us control over our own destiny all fail to mention what happens when we fail to produce the good works of salvation.”[2]

And so, Jesus having compassion for this rich young ruler crushes and causes his false religious system to fall apart by saying,

“One thing you lack; go, sell what you own and give the money to the poor and you will have treasures in heaven; then come, follow me.” 

With these words, Jesus reveals the rich young ruler’s heart; with these words Jesus shows that beneath the shiny reputation, underneath the clean demeanor, under the classy reputation, and in the smooth talk, is a poor miserable sinner clinging to his earthly possession.  He reveals the man’s false religious system.  He shows that the man’s god is money.  He strips away his self-righteousness.  He causes him to fall apart and to hit rock bottom. 

Jesus told this rich young man, not what he wanted to hear, but what he needed to hear.  Jesus broke this man down, humbled him, and made him disheartened. 

Believe it or not, the Lord loves you the same way that He loved this man.  This man needed to hear about his hopelessness; he needed to be brought to see his depraved and wicked heart.  The rich young ruler needed to understand that he was not self-sufficient, but needed a Savior.  The same is with you and me. 

Truly, “Jesus loves us the same way.  He sends the Holy Spirit to convict us of our sin.  The Holy Spirit comes to us through the Word of God and shines the searing light of the law into our hearts.  He shows our true nature to us.  He takes us to the depths of pure terror as He shows us the future we have earned for ourselves.  He shows us the true hopelessness of our good works.”[3]

In other words, the Holy Spirit through the Word shows us that if we think that we are obtaining salvation by our own doing, we are not working towards heaven, but are digging ourselves to hell.  The reason being, good works are for our neighbor, not for us to use as a bargaining chip before God.  God does not need our good works, but our neighbor does.  We do not do and cannot do good works to be a Christian, but we do good works because we already are.  Furthermore, we must keep in mind that because of sin, salvation is unaccomplishable for sinners.  We cannot climb high enough, work hard enough, bleed long enough, surrender enough, and suffer adequately to achieve perfection or erase sins.  Because of this, eternal life is something that cannot be merited… but… it is something that is inherited. 

Dear friends, you cannot merit eternal life, but take comfort right now, eternal life is inherited.  With merit, you earn; with an inheritance you receive. 

Frankly put, the Lord is gracious to you and me when we are repented.  That is to say, when the Lord through the Law crushes us, He is actually stripping us of thinking that we can merit salvation, so that He can gift us salvation. 

Think about that!  When our hands are full of our own spiritual accomplishments and our own works, they cannot receive the gift that was accomplished at Mt. Calvary.  Thus, the Lord in His goodness, stripped the rich young ruler of his spiritual endeavors so that he might be giveable.  And He does the same to us. 

You and I cannot produce holiness and eternal life for ourselves; we must receive it entirely from God.  To self-fabricate holiness or to attempt to merit salvation is actually abhorrent to God.  But praise be to God that He kills us through the Law, that He levels us, that He gifts us repentance rendering us as sinners.  Furthermore, praise be to God that the Gospel is for sinners only!   Praise God that He does not keep this salvation - this gift of eternal life - to Himself.  Instead, He comes to us on our earthly journey so that He may gift us forgiveness, life, and salvation. 

What does this mean?  It means that your Christian faith does not depend on your performance or meriting, but upon receiving from the Lord.  And yes, the Lord gives Himself to you.  

As beggars you and I have access to the Father’s presence and His grace.  It is an inheritance that the Holy Spirit delivers to you from this altar, from your baptisms, and from the Holy Word.  As inheritors we do not ask, “What must I do,” but we confess, “Look at what I’ve been given; look at what Jesus did for me; while I was an enemy of God, Christ died for me; He claimed me!” 

Indeed, you have received, receive, and will receive grace upon grace—the Lord’s inheritance for you. 

Forgiveness, life, and salvation are yours.  Truly, they are yours right now.  The Lord hasn’t held back.  You, who have ears, hear this.  The Lord is for you.  His forgiveness, life, and salvation are for you.  It is yours.  It is all gift, an inheritance for you now and for eternity. 

 

In the name of Jesus,  Amen

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[1] Pew Research Center, “Many Americans Say Other Faiths Can Lead to Eternal Life,”  http://www.pewforum.org/2008/12/18/many-americans-say-other-faiths-can-lead-to-eternal-life/#2 (accessed October 10, 2015).

[2] James T. Batchelor, “Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost,” LCMS Sermons, http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=1455 (Accessed October 10, 2015).

[3] Ibid.

Stop Shaking the Piggy Bank, You Are Not A Flower or a Bird

Text: Matthew 6:23-34

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.

You either live by the pattern and rhythm of faith or you serve money and material possessions with the pattern and rhythm of worry.  In other words, dear friends, there are two ways of living that are outlined in our reading from the Gospel of Matthew: the way of worry and the way of faith.

The way of worry or we could say the rhythm of worry, always checks one’s wallet and it is always going to look at the check register.  Worry will cause you to look at that ATM balance two or three times to see if there is enough money.  Worry will shake the piggy bank, it will count money on the balance sheet, and it will grab ahold of stocks and bonds with clinching white knuckles.  This worry is always agonizing that the financial portfolio is never making enough to live securely.  This worry, panics when the stock market goes down and greedily wants more when the market goes up.  The life consumed with worry never has enough money or resources for a person to make it and it never has enough to share with others.  This worry will lead a person to compare themselves with others and will cause them try to keep up with the Joneses.  

Worry like this is not something innocent and harmless that we do to pass the time though.  It is not a virtue.  But rather, this worry actually doubts that God will do for us what He has promised to do, that is to say, take care of us by giving us our daily bread.  Indeed, worry doubts that that the Lord will give us everything that we need for the support of our lives. 

You see, frankly stated, worrying is calling God a liar and that is a sin against Him, His goodness, and His mercy. 

In fact, when we worry, we are essentially committing the sin of idolatry.  We end up treating our worries as though they are some kind of god.  We think that by worrying about our problems somehow we will feel more at peace and find a refuge in our time of need.  Our anxieties are the prayers we offer to the god of worry.

And make no mistake, those fretful prayers are heard.  There is a god named Worry, but his other name is Satan.  The devil knows that if he can keep us praying to him—if he can keep us preoccupied and filled with doubt, worrying about God’s promise to provide for us—well then he can keep us from looking to our Heavenly Father for our salvation and eternal life as well. 

www.lectionarypainting.com

And isn’t that what worry really does?  If we are constantly concerned about what we will eat or drink or wear, that means we are constantly doubting that God will give us all that we need to sustain our life in this world as He has promised.

Ultimately, if that worrisome doubting is left unchecked, the devil continues to make it grow until we decide to give up on God and take matters into our own hands. 

The devil even gives us pious sounding words to justify why we’ve turned our backs on the Heavenly Father.  Words like “God only helps those who help themselves.”

Even so, these little statements capture the spirit of worry.  In the end we give up on God and decide to help ourselves, taking things into our own hands, and getting the job done no matter what the consequences or sin.  But that’s only a symptom, the disease of worry is even worse.

You see, if we doubt God for the good things in this life it is only because we doubt Him for the true and eternal blessings He has given us by faith in His Son. 

Consider this, if we doubt that God will take care of our temporary daily needs as we pray for them in the Lord’s Prayer, and as He has taught us and promised us, then how can we trust Him for the infinite forgiveness of our sins and the Life Eternal?  We can’t.  Indeed, this is life in the deceptive rhythm and ensnaring way of worry. 

. . .

Dear friends, it does not have to be this way; actually it really is not this way.  The Lord does not sow worry and anxiety into your hearts, but sows faith by the Gospel. 

Consider this, in our Gospel reading Jesus points to the birds of the air.  They freely flow through the air, sing songs of glory, and eat what is given to them.    The flowers too!  The flowers and the lilies of the field are scattered and display a majestic radiance.  They are here today, gone tomorrow.  They sprout up and clothe the grass.  They are taken care of by the Lord and live without worry and without fear.

And you—are you not of more value than birds and flowers?  Yes you are!  How do we know this to be true?  The Heavenly Father considers you of great worth.  You are like a lost treasure that is dug up out of the ground.  You are like a lost coin that is searched for.  You are like a lost sheep that is sought.  The Heavenly Father thought you were worth more than the birds and the flowers altogether.  The value He placed upon you is shown in the Father’s sending of the Son—for you.  It is shown in your baptism, when the Lord placed His very name upon you taking you from darkness to life.  Indeed, you are of value to the Heavenly Father, which is precisely why Jesus was sent in the flesh to forgive you and me of our silly worries and to rescue us from our never-ending anxiety.   Christ came because you are cherished; He came to be your Lord; He came to grant you not fear, but faith. 

Dear friends, you have been baked together as one loaf in Christ.  Faith is a like a marriage ring that cements you to Christ so that there is complete unity.  Thus, being cemented to Christ by faith—by your baptisms—means that what is Christ’s is yours. 

This faith you are given is a gift worked by the Holy Spirit through the Word and Sacraments.  This faith it unbends you; it kills the old Adam.  It places you in its ways, in its rhythm of looking outward and receiving God’s good gifts. 

Furthermore, this gift of faith does not look to the piggy bank to see how much is in it or not in it, leading to worry. Faith will not lead to worry, but rest in the goodness of the giving Lord. 

The Lord comes; anxieties and worry are enveloped. 

The Lord comes and gives you faith and trust in the Father. 

The Lord comes and you are freed to love your neighbor and see how the bird and lilies live in the joy of a giving Lord.    

With that stated, there will be days when the lilies get whacked down by the lawn mower and the birds are swallowed as cat food.  In other words, we all have those days where life is upside down, crazy, and out of control.  However, do not fear when those dark days come to you, for they will.  Yes, do not fear and do not worry, the Lord is with you.  He will never leave you nor forsake you.  The darkness may or may not be removed, the lilies may or may not grow back, and the bird may or may not be coughed up by the cat, but you shall not worry for the Lord is with you in the valleys that are overshadowed by sin and death.  His grace, His mercy, and His peace are with you—with you today, tomorrow, and the next.  Do not worry.

Today, He again shows you and gives to you His goodness—His body and blood—so that your faith may be strengthened and that you may know that the greatest gift of forgiveness of sins is with you and for you, when fear and worry spring forth. 

 

In the name of Jesus,  Amen.

This sermon is indebted to Rev. Joshua Reimche of Our Savior’s Lutheran Church in Bottineau, ND. (Trinity 15 Sermon, September 13, 2015). 

Your Exalted Ego No Longer Lives, For You Have Been Crucified With The Humble Christ

Text: James 4:7-5:6

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.

What do we mean when we refer to a person’s ‘ego?’  Yes, the word ‘ego’: E-G-O – Ego.  The word ‘ego’ properly defined is a person’s sense of self-esteem or self-importance.  An ego is made up of what a person thinks and feels about himself or herself.  An ego is what distinguishes a person from others. 

Now, when a person defines himself or herself as separate from the outside world and then considers himself or herself as the center of the universe, they are considered to have a large ego.  For example, a big ego says, “I am better than you.”  An overly inflated ego compels one to be self-sufficient and it drives a person to make plans for ‘self.’  The magnified ego causes a person to fight for precious self, drives competition, and also leads to the destruction of others.  Technically, the word Ego in the language of Greek is, “I.”

In thinking about big egos—egomaniacs that is—it is easy for us to think of people like: Simon Cowell of American Idol, Donald Trump, Oprah, Barrack Obama, Kim Kardashian, Madonna, Paris Hilton, LeBron James, and so forth.  Just mentioning these names causes all of us to roll our eyes, for these celebrities and athletes definitely flaunt egocentric attitudes.  I’m sure we could add many more to this list.  However, though, to be totally fair each and every one of us is no different.  We also have an ego, even though it might be a bit tamer.  Some of us have larger egos than others, whereas others of us have quieter egos than other.  The reason why we all have an ego is that our egos are fueled by our sinful nature that continually bends ourselves inward.  That is right; our sinful nature calls out to us to live for ourselves, to do what we want, when we want to, and for whatever reason we want.  It cries out to us that we are super, special, and fantastic; that we are unlike everyone else, that the world, the region, the city, the work place, the school, the church, and the family should revolve around us. 

Now, it is to no surprise to us that when we read our verses from the epistle of James that it rubs against our egos.  The Epistle of James is tough on us that way.  It runs completely the opposite direction of where our inflated and self-centered egos point us.  More specifically, in James chapter 4 verse 7, we hear James calling you and me to submit ourselves to God.  You see, verse 7 sets the tone for this entire portion of scripture.  James is calling each and every one of us to voluntarily place ourselves under the authority of God.  James is calling us to place ourselves under the leadership, direction, and will of God’s Word. 

To submit is to be put in subjection to God.  To submit is to be in the control of God and to yield to God’s Law.  But doesn’t this go completely against our ego?  Seriously, doesn’t this mean that we are to give up our ego entirely? 

You see, what James is calling for is that you and I give up ourselves completely, totally and without hesitation or condition.  To submit to God means to deny yourself, to deny your ego, to deny ‘me, myself, and I.’  It means to take your will, desires, thoughts, words and actions, gifts, and abilities—your entire being—and place all of it at the disposal of Almighty God. 

Not only is James calling us to submit to God, he is also calling Christians, like you and me, to come near to God.  He is not demanding a partial coming near, but one that is complete and final.  He is calling that you and I to approach God in humility, acknowledging our total unworthiness, and helplessness. 

There are some implications to this submission though.  By placing ourselves underneath the authority and rule of God, this also means that you and I are to be a servant of all!  In submission to God we are to live in humility, humility that demands that we place ourselves in service to those around us.  In humility we are to serve our friends, fellow employees at work, our family, and stranger with all that we have.  This is especially true in how we speak of others.  We are called to put the best construction on others for when we speak evil of another person we are showing a lack of love and a lack of humility. 

So, my friends, with all of this said, how are you doing with this?  How are you doing at submitting to God, walking in humility, and denying yourself?  Are you 50% there? Maybe you are 60% there?  Also, how has your consistency been?  Keep in mind that James calls for complete submission.  He is not watering this submission idea down.  That is not how James rolls.  There is no room for mediocrity with James’ Epistle.  So how are you doing? 

The Epistle of James is definitely hard for us to swallow.  It sobers us up; it awakens us from our spiritual slumbering.  James sets forth some 51 commands for us to follow, eleven of which are in our text today.  James is calling us to submission, he is calling us to turn from evil, and he is calling us to humility, and service towards our neighbor.  For you and me we can agree that this is good; this is God’s will for you and me as Christians.  In other words, what James lays forth is good, there is no doubt about it that this is God’s perfect and holy will for you and me.  So, how is this going for you?  How are you doing at fulfilling this?  How are you doing at submitting?  How are you doing at being humble and serving others? 

It is pretty evident that anytime that God’s will is laid before us that we can agree with it and recognize that it is good.  We may also glean some great insights of what living the Christian life looks like, things that we have not understood before.  Furthermore, I would highly doubt that anyone here today would not agree with the idea of submitting to God and the idea of speaking honorably about our neighbor.  As a church we are blessed with the fact that we can with great unity confess that God’s will is right, good, and true.  The problem that still remains though is that in our congregation—that is in you and me—we desire to do what is good and true, but when the rubber meets the road we simply do not do what is right.  It is as if we end up doing the exact opposite of what is right.

My friends, the point of fact is this, our egos—our sinful natures—stand in direct opposition to submitting to God.  Our egos and our desire to be self-sufficient cannot stand the idea of being underneath someone else.  If you doubt this just try the following.  Next time you are in a group of people, announce to them that you are the most important person in the group and that you demand that they all follow your will and your desires.  Watch what happens!  You see, it is no different with God.  According to our sinful natures we want to be the master and commander not of our own ship but of our own lives.  We do not want to let go of the steering wheel.  We insist and demand that we are capable of being self-sufficient before God.  We fight being submissive to others and we fight to have people submissive to our will.  We do not want to be controlled but want to control others.

This is not a problem unique to just us.  God’s people of every generation have been unfaithful to God’s will.  Simply look to the Old Testament and we see thousands of illustrations of people’s ego and the resistance of following God’s will. 

Keep in mind though, that James is not calling us to turn to grab ahold of our bootstraps and our egos to do more works to be forgiven, but instead He calls us to return to the Lord in repentance.  I have said this before and I will say it again, our sinful nature does not need to be reformed.  The goal in the Christian life is not to get the sinful nature—our self-centered egos—to behave better or to be more submissive. The goal in the Christian life is not to get our ego to be more humble or to submit to God.   Our ego, that is our sinful nature, will not submit and cannot submit to God.  Our sinful nature does not believe the Gospel and will not.  Trying to get our ego to be humble and submit to God is like trying to put a square peg in a round hole.  It isn’t possible. 

Therefore, what needs to happen to us is that first and foremost we need forgiveness for not submitting to God.  Furthermore, we need our sinful nature along with all of its sin to be crucified.  Our ego needs to be put to death. 

. . .

My dear family of Zion Lutheran, hear the Gospel.  You and I who rebel and fail to submit to God have been forgiven by the Christ, who submitted perfectly to the Father’s will on your behalf.  You are forgiven completely, totally, and entirely by the Savior who submitted Himself to the penalty of your sin.  You are forgiven completely, totally, and entirely by the Savior that submitted Himself to death on a cross—your death.  You are forgiven by the Savior that submitted to the Father’s love for you. 

Blessed Baptized Saints, it is true!  You have been crucified with Christ.  It is no longer you—your ego—that lives, but it is Christ who lives in you.  And this life that you now live in the flesh, you live by faith in the Son of God, who loved you and gave Himself for you. 

Daily you and I are crucified in Christ. Our ego along with its desires of self-sufficiency, pride, self-importance and competition are daily put to death, as we are repented and gifted faith by the Holy Spirit through the Word. 

My friends, in the Gospel, we have confidence not based on our own performance on how well we submit, but we have confidence in the Savior that submitted for us. 

Because Jesus humbly went to the cross, we are humbled out of our pride. 

Because Jesus loved us on the cross, we are loved out of our apathy.

Because Jesus died, we are taken from death to life. 

Because Jesus was glad to die for you; you are esteemed out of our need to prove yourself.

Jesus, being completely obedient to the Father, has done everything for your salvation—you need not want, worry, or fear. 

May our prayer together as God’s beloved and redeemed be this: Lord God thank you for forgiving me.  Thank you Jesus for being obedient for me.  Thank you for submitting yourself to my sin, being made sin for me.  Please continually crucify my ego, causing me by your good grace to submit to you in all things. Continually crucify my ego so that I may serve my neighbor.  Create in me a clean heart and renew a right spirit within me! 

In the name of Jesus, who submitted Himself to the cross, Amen.