Sermon for Trinity 11

The Sixth Commandment

You shall not commit adultery.

What does this mean?

We should fear and love God so that we lead a sexually pure and decent life in what we say and do, and husband and wife love and honor each other.

In Genesis chapter 4, Adam and Eve obeyed God. In Chapter 3 they had disobeyed God. They had disregarded his command and ate the fruit of the tree in the center of the garden. But now they, with repentance and faith, obeyed God.  The Lord God had said, “Be fruitful and multiply.” They obeyed him. “Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain . . . And again, she bore his brother Abel” (Genesis 4:1). “Adam knew his wife.” That is a pure and decent way of saying it. They followed the 6^th Commandment, even though it hadn’t been written down yet in any Bible or on any stone tablets. God’s law is inscribed on the hearts of all men and women. Adam and Eve understood clearly that the commandment of God against adultery is a command for husband and wife to love and honor each other. So in knowing each other, loving and honoring each other and having children together they obeyed God. They obeyed him because of his law.

They also obeyed him because of his gospel. God had made a promise that they had heard and believed. God promised them a descendant of theirs, a seed that would grow from their family, would save them -- that the serpent, that old evil foe, would bruise his heal. But the Savior would crush the serpent’s head.

It's impossible for us now to imagine what it must have been like for Adam and Eve. All the rest of their life they were living with this memory, struggling with the reality, that they had paradise and they lost it because they sinned. They went through their days longing for redemption, for salvation, for a new life. And in faith and hope they held on to that promise of the Seed of their marriage and family, the descendant who would come to crush the serpent’s head and all his works and all his ways. So they had babies. And it seems as though Eve like many other pious faithful mothers coming after her for generations, would wonder and hope, is this child to be born the one promised? It took thousands of years of waiting, but then Jesus Christ was born of Mary. And there was glory to God on high and on earth peace, goodwill toward men. 

As we sing in the hymn, “Built of the Rock the Church shall stand, Longing for rest everlasting,” so Adam and Eve and all Old Testament believers were longing for a Savior, “Could this be the Promised One?” They would ask. And that is not a bad way for faithful people to live—longing for the Lord and the life everlasting. We kinda do that too, we believe that Christ will come on the last day. And we are ready for that to be any day, because we will greet him with rejoicing. So every day we could ask ourselves, “Is today the day?”

Longing for the Lord’s salvation, Adam and Eve had babies with the promise in mind that one of their children, grandchildren, great grand children or somewhere down the line, the Savior would be born. In the meantime, they lived together as faithful husband and wife, as devout parents to their children, trying to raise them up as best they could.

As Cain and Abel grew up, they learned the things the children must learn, how to walk, how to talk, how to tend the crops, how to care for the livestock – and significantly how to worship the Lord. When both boys brought offerings to the Lord, it is evident that their parents had taught them about the Lord. There were no preachers around that time. Adam and Eve were the preachers. There were no Sunday school teachers. Adam and Eve taught their children the lessons. This family would sit down to pray, to learn their lessons about God, to serve God with their offerings, the first fruits of their labors.  

I know, it’s hard to think of them as a nice, sweet family, because we just heard again how things turned out. Cain killed Abel, the first murder, actually the first human death. But God didn’t blame their upbringing, or their dysfunctional home life. He doesn’t say, Adam, Eve, what have you done. The responsibility is all Cain’s, “Where is your brother, Abel?” It was Cain’s sin. God had just warned him about it. “Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? . . .  Sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it.”

What a shame! Such a nice family. And see how those kids turned out. Adam was heartbroken. Eve was heartbroken.

Christians are heartbroken when their loved ones don’t keep the commandments, like this sixth one for example. Adultery is a selfish, inconsiderate act that hurts everyone involved. Divorce hurts. It hurts every relative and it hurts all society. It breaks Christian parents’ hearts when their kids don’t keep the 3^rd commandment and stop going to church. We suffer the most from those sinners who are closest to us.

And as I listen to people talk about the heart-breaking situations in their families, I hear a great deal of shame. I suppose it’s shameful because we have this assumption that good Christian homes should consistently produce good Christian people who always make the best choices and live-long and prosper. When things go bad, it’s a shame. Is it that you are longing for forgiveness for the bad decisions and bad actions someone else is making? Know and believe that the blood of Jesus Christ has removed your sins and covered your shame.

So What’s the use? Why even remember the 6^th commandment. How can we honor marriage and the family when our own lives are so marred by sin and death. Are our families any better than those of the unbelieving world around us?

No, we cannot brag about the goodness and righteousness in our homes and in our families. But we can boast in the Lord who has done good things, and continues to give good blessings.

We must continue to speak to each other and to speak out to the world about the will of God expressed in the 6^th Commandment. He wants husbands and wives to love and honor each other. He warns about the sins of adultery and sexual perversion that have devasting consequences. We can never give up on the ideal of marriage and family – especially because it shows us the love of Christ.

When we know what a good, honorable, love-filled home is, we learn a priceless lesson on the love of Christ. Ephesians 5 --  Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,  that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish.

Adam, created in the image of God, was to love like God loves. He was given Eve to love and adore. As Adam loved Eve he was teaching a lesson to her and to his sons about Christ’s love and salvation. We’re not going to give up on the truth of marriage and the pure and decent love and honor of one man and one woman. Despite the heartbreaks and shame, we’re not going to give up, because Christ who loves us His church, will not give up on us.

Amen.

 

 

Sermon for Trinity 10

\Romans 10:4 -- For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.

Every man, woman, boy and girl should know the 10 Commandments. God wants you to know the 10 Commandments. They show you what God wants you to do. That’s the law: God’s statement of what you are to do and not to do. It’s also good to know, as it says in the Epistle reading today that Christ is the end of the Law. That’s good to know. It should be a relief to know.

It’s good to know what’s the end, what’s the point we’re getting at. So as we have been going through the commandments and their meanings, we need to bring up the question, “what’s the end?”

Or perhaps, as we go through these you might be saying, “when will it end?” That’s how the law of God can strike a sinner, making you ask, “Aah! Where will it end?”

Take the 5^th Commandment for example, “You shall not murder.” Those of you who have never killed anyone, may have the quick thought of “No problem.” “I’m clean on that one. Tick, check the box. I’ve finished here.” But oh no, that’s not the end. Jesus says, “Whoever hates his brother is a murderer.” The fifth commandment does not merely condemn the outward act of murder, and end there. It gets at what’s in the heart: anger, resentment, contempt, jealousy, rivalry, impatience, all these vile thoughts and feelings that are basically saying, “I wish that so- and-so would just drop dead.” Likewise with all the other commandments, they don’t end with your outward acts and the outward appearance you can put on to make yourself look right. The commandments keep going until you are guilty of sin.

In this letter to the Romans, Paul reaches out to members of the church in Rome pointing out the difference between those who were pursuing righteousness on the basis of their works, versus those who have attained righteousness by faith. It was specifically the Jews who were relying on their works, their outward zeal for God to make themselves righteous. Because they were so good at following all sorts of rituals and gestures of outward righteousness, they assumed that they accomplished the law, even the end of the law. Verse 3 says, “For, being ignorant of the righteousness that comes from God, and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit to God’s righteousness.”

Human nature tries to find its own righteousness. But God’s righteousness is Christ. He is the end of the law for all who believe. God gives you the end. It is the person, Jesus Christ. God doesn’t want anyone to die. So He gives Jesus Christ, the Resurrection and the Life. He is the opposite of the murderer. He lays down his life so you can live. He died so you don’t have to die eternally. He takes your away your guilt for not following the law. He gives you his righteousness. When is this all going to end? When Jesus says to you, I forgive you all your sins.

Actually that’s the end God had in mind all along. That’s the intended end point. From our perspective we hear, “Christ is the end of the law”, and we say, “Finally! Our struggle is ended because Jesus died for us. Our sin is atoned for. Our regrets are washed away. Our guilt is removed. We can stand righteous before God.” From God’s perspective, that was the end all along. The end of the law, the goal, the intention of telling you things like, “Do not murder” is Christ, that you believe in Him and find your righteousness not in yourself but in him. That was the end God had in mind all along.

You can see this with the first murder that ever happened. Cain killed his brother Abel, because of jealousy and out of spite. And God came to Cain and said, ““Where is Abel your brother?” (Genesis 4) That was a hard law question; it brought out the guilt. And the Lord said, “What have you done?”

God’s law says, “Do not murder.” The point to all humanity is clear. Don’t go around killing each other. Respect life. Respect God. He is the One who gives life and controls life and death. You don’t. You don’t get to decide who gets to live and who should die. Don’t despise the life God gives to the other guy. And the other guy should hear that too – for your good and your safety. You want the other guy to hear God commanding him not to murder you. That’s the point of the 5^th Commandment.

But God’s end point for the 5^th Commandment and all the commandments is that a guy like Cain, or any sinner would see their sin, and be sorry for it. God’s end point is that no one can find their own righteousness, but instead, believe in the righteousness of Christ.

That’s the end, that’s the goal.

Look to the end. Keep your eye on the goal, which is Christ. Like running a race, focus on the finish. Don’t have your head down looking inward at yourself. That’s what those are doing who think they can have righteousness themselves, by their own work. If your looking inward, looking to your own self and your own power you will stumble. The Bible says, “Christ is a stumbling block, a rock of offense” (Romans 9:33). If you are not running to Him, you’ll stumble on him. What a shame that’ll be. But then the Bible says, “whoever believes in him will not be put to shame.”

The only hope for the world and any sinner in it, is Christ. Those who do not have him as their end, stumble on him. He is in their way because they are running after something else. And eventually they stumble over him, and their end is destruction and shame. Even in his own temple Christ found those who were not focused on him and his righteousness. Jesus Christ visited the temple in old Jerusalem, and he found people chasing after other things. He warned them of the destruction that was coming. He said it was because “you did not know the time of your visitation.”

Friends, know the time of your visitation. God comes to you. He visits you and speaks to you. Each week, in church, every day in your heart, he says to you, “Follow my commandments. Repent of your sins. Believe in me. Believe in my Christ. Don’t have your own ends in mind. But know Christ. He is your end point. Your focus and your goal.” Amen.

Sermon for Trinity 8

 

THE THIRD COMMANDMENT

Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.

 

What does this mean?

We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.

 

Jesus said, “Beware of false prophets” (Matthew 7:15). He warns his little flock, telling them to expect that there will be “wolves in sheep’s clothing”.

You know what that’s like. You’re hearing the voices of false prophets all the time, spewing forth ideas about religion, or ethics--what’s right and wrong, ideas about the philosophy of life; ideas that clearly go against the Word of God.

Some of these false prophets know exactly what they are doing: they are intentionally subverting the Lord and His good ways.

But many of the proponents of false ideas do so because they have been deceived, led astray. Unwittingly, carelessly, they pass on the ideas of false prophets who have gone before them which appeal to their sinful minds--deceived to think they are doing good, even as they live and work against the Lord and His Word.

Jesus indicates what it will be like on Judgement Day. Many will say to Jesus, when he comes to judge the living and the dead, “Lord, Lord, we have been prophesying in your name. We cast out demons in your name. We did great things for you.”

And Jesus responds to those poor misguided souls, “I never knew you. Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness” (Matthew 7:23).

That’s what they will hear. In this life they were happy to follow and spread ideas of religion and the philosophy of life that were against the Lord and His Word. The were happy to come up with ideas out of their own imagination. But come Judgement Day they will hear, “Depart from me.” And then there is only hell. Hell was created for the devil and any angels or archangels or men or women who depart from the Lord.

Hell is not a pleasant thing to talk about. It’s not a comfortable easy thing to think about. But we must. Remember what the Holy Spirit said in the Old Testament reading from Jeremiah about those who say to those who despise the Word of the Lord, “‘It shall be well with you’; and to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you’” (Jeremiah 23:17).

It is better to warn of hell, than to deny it or ignore it. There will be disaster for those who follow their own ideas of religion and the philosophy of life.

And they have no excuse, for God himself gives true religion and the true meaning of life in the preaching of His Word for you.

We are pleased to confess this each time we remember the Third Commandment. God has not left us to our own devices, our own imagination, our own hearts and minds to figure all things out. He gives us the preaching of his Word to hold sacred and gladly hear and learn.

Over the years, Lutherans have observed the ways people try to know God and His ways – how they’ve tried to build a relationship with God, even make deals with God. Already back in the 1500s, Martin Luther and his co-reformers pointed out how so many turned to human experts like popes, and priests and scholars who could mediate the way to know God and his ways. You can’t rely on human experts, even if they are powerful, captivating personalities, if they prophesy contrary to the Word of God. All humans have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.

Lutherans observed that many tried to find within themselves the ideas of religion and the way of life. Some rely on their own reason and intellect, supposing themselves to be smart enough to figure things out. Others rely on their own hearts, their emotions—what feels right, that becomes the deciding factor. But human reason and emotion are full of sin and incapable of grasping God. Imagination is a Fawlty guide. Emotions are shaky ground on which to base your life and faith.

So in 1530 our Lutheran forefathers confessed before the world and the Roman Catholic Emperor at that time, these words: “God cannot be dealt with, he cannot be apprehended, except through the Word.” (The Apology of the Augsburg Confession, Article IV, “Concerning Justification”.)

That’s why God wants you to know and keep the Third Commandment. “Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy.” Never despise or neglect God’s Word and its preaching. But hold it sacred. Gladly hear it. Gladly learn it. And by it, as through means, apprehend God.

That commandment is for you, who gladly hear and learn the Word. That commandment is for me, that I diligently work to preach it to you and those not here. Pray for this please.

The Holy Spirit says in the Jeremiah passage for today, “Is not my word like fire and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” (23:29)

The word of God is power. Power is the ability to do work, to accomplish great things. The Powerful Word of God does things. So, Let it be so. Hear it. Believe it. Let it guide you, shape you, comfort you.

Jesus says a good tree is recognized by its fruit. Your Lord Jesus is recognized by his good fruit – His word. His word of Law that tells you what to do for your own good and tells you when you have done wrong, to admit it and do right. And his word of Gospel, which is His word from the cross, where in his dying breath He says to his Father in heaven, “Forgive them.” And to the believer with him there, he doesn’t say, “Depart from me, you workers of lawlessness”. He says, “Today you will be with me in paradise.” Amen.

From the Association of Confessing Evangelical Lutheran Congregations (ACELC.net) -- Ten Theses on God's Arrangement of the Sexes

God created us male and female. In his image he created us. Lately we have all been hearing the ungodly words of those who wish to distort the truth about who we are and what it means to be male and female. In every age, the Christian Church must confess God's truth and respond to the lies of the world and the old evil foe, Satan, which deny and attack God's truth. This statement from ACELC.net is faithful to the Bible and the Lutheran Confessions of our faith. Studying it will serve us well to review what God says about the two sexes he wonderfully made. We encourage you to read (pdf) or listen to (YouTube) this statement of Christian confession.

Ten Theses on God’s Arrangement of the Sexes

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