​10th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 15)                                   LSB #’s 908, 655, 578:1-3, 585
Text – Jeremiah 23:29
 
Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, & like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?
 
LITTLE ROCKS OUT OF BIG ROCKS
 
 
It was a standard joke onboard the submarine.  Being involved in top secret projects, if you messed up really bad, you’d get court-martialed & sent to brig at Fort Leavenworth.  It’s the only maximum security prison for the entire US Military.  And the joke always ended with these words, “You’ll be making little rocks out of big rocks for the rest of your life.” 
Picture in your mind a sledge hammer & a lot of really monotonous pain & suffering caused by turning granite boulders into pea stone gravel.    That’s the picture the Lord gave to Jeremiah while describing the effects of His Word: “Is not my word like fire, & like a hammer which shatters a rock?”  (Jeremiah 23:29 NASB) 
We prefer the text, “Thy word is a lamp to my feet & a light to my path,” (Psalm 119:105 NASB) but not a fire & a hammer.   Life is painful enough without God thundering upon you with the almighty power of His Word.   You can relate to that feeling can’t you?   When you’re guilty God works relentlessly, through His Word, like a hammer pounds relentlessly on the rock. 
That the sinful nature in you takes a beating is what it feels like within your heart as your sins weigh heavily upon you.  The Gospel of John describes the big picture view when it says of the Word, & of Christ, “God’s light came into the world, but people loved the darkness more than the light – for their actions were evil.”  (John 3:19b NLT) 
Because your actions, & because my actions, are evil – you & I feel the heat of Yahweh’s fire, & we feel the pounding of God’s hammer.   Our sinful hearts are like the big rocks of Ft. Leavenworth & our Lord is shattering them into little rocks with the power of the Law.   In Proverbs 18 we hear, “Before his downfall a man’s heart is proud, but humility comes before honor.”  (18:12 ESV)   And 1 Peter 5 tells us, “Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time He may exalt you, casting all your anxieties on Him, because He cares for you.”  (5:6-7 ESV)   
When anxiety strips away peace of mind we often strike out at others, casting our anxiety upon them, hoping that our display of power will make things right again in our world.   The Word of God tells us something entirely different – when you are anxious cast your anxieties on God.  Human displays of power are not the answer to anxiety, but humility is. 
Last Sunday, the Gospel reading instructed us in one way of casting our anxieties on Yahweh.  It gave an antidote to feeling anxious – “Sell your possessions & give to the needy.”  (Luke 12:33a ESV)   Selling your possessions forces you to trust in something else.  Our Creator wants you to trust in Him, & through that trust you cast your anxieties on Him. 
The prophet Jeremiah was called by God at a time after the ten northern tribes of Israel had already been destroyed by the Assyrians 150 years earlier.   Babylon had since conquered most of Judah – taking into exile the king, leaders, & many of the people.  Babylon was returning for a 2nd siege of Jerusalem & the threat of its complete destruction was not fake news. 
Nevertheless, a number of false prophets arose to reassure the people with their own wishful thinking, “‘It shall be well with you;’ & to everyone who stubbornly follows his own heart, they say, ‘No disaster shall come upon you.’”  (Jeremiah 23:17 ESV) 
Think of all the people in our day, in Christian churches, who are stubbornly following their own hearts.  They violate God’s commands & His blessings.  Then they celebrate how enlightened they are.  They proclaim how pleased God is with their new understanding of marriage & sexuality.  They preach that our fears & Yahweh’s coming judgment are fake news. 
Instead of condemning the way the Judeans despised God’s Word, or the way they
followed their own desires, the false prophets gave words of assurance, & even lies, so as not to offend the people.  No longer was repentance over sin the goal of preaching.   Through Jeremiah, the Lord condemns the false prophets because they joined in the sins of the people, the very sins against which they should have been warning them. 
Aren’t we tempted to do the same, to go with the flow, to live & let live?  What kind of love do we demonstrate for our neighbor if we just surrender them to damnation?  The heavenly Father’s love for us is such that He sacrificed His own Son on the cross, because He would not simply surrender us to the darkness.       What price are you willing to pay? 
In heaven, we’ll realize that it costs us nothing.  As a child of God, you already have everything, including the new creation to come, & everlasting life with it.  None of this inheritance can be taken away from you.  The reading from Hebrews 11 gives a long list of things that God accomplished through His people as they loved their neighbors:
“…conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.  Women received back their dead by resurrection.  Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.  Others suffered mocking & flogging, & even chains & imprisonment.  They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword.  They went about in skins of sheep & goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated…”  (11:33-37 ESV) 
 
The ending of that list is rather intimidating, but we could also see it as an application of the sermon text, “Is not my word like fire, declares the Lord, & like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?”  In the case of unbelievers that Word shatters the rock in punishment.  In the case of believers that same Word shatters the rock in discipline & in sanctification. 
You either trust that God loves you & is able to use the suffering in this life to shape you into the image of His Son, or you do not.  As believers, you & I daily struggle with the unbelief that still exists in our hearts.  We need the fire & the hammer of God’s Word to bring us to repentance & to humility.  Think, for a moment, of one of the trials you’re enduring right now.  PAUSE    It might be a struggle with a particular relationship.   PAUSE    It could be a battle with illness.   PAUSE   Whatever it is, try looking at it as if God, who loves you, is at work in your life to shape you into whom you will be in heaven. 
Hebrews 12 has some very instructive words, “…My child, don’t make light of the Lord’s discipline, & don’t give up when He corrects you.  For the Lord disciplines those He loves, & He chastises each one He accepts as His child.”  (12:5-6) 
“…But God’s discipline is always good for us, so that we might share in His holiness.  No discipline is enjoyable while it is happening – it’s painful!  But afterward there will be a peaceful harvest of righteousness for those who are trained in this way.”  (12:10-11) 
It’s easy for the unbelief in each of us to scoff at our trials & sufferings.  It’s natural for the unbelief in each of us to look at our trials & sufferings as the work of an unjust God.   That is Satan’s temptation.  That is how the Devil labels even God’s blessings.  It is why Jesus called Satan the father of lies. 
Our Father in heaven, with His wisdom & power, uses the trials & struggles of our lives, no matter how mild or severe they be, to bring forth the peaceful harvest of righteousness.   And when you get to heaven you will have no regrets.   For now, in this life, look to the cross.  That’s how much Yahweh loves you! 
Is the sinful nature in you taking a beating?  Are there times when your mind is literally filled with anxiety?   Are there sleepless nights when all you can do is toss & turn   & turn & toss, with no rest at all to show for it by morning?   
In the OT, the Lord Himself tells us that His Word is like fire, & like a hammer that shatters the rock.  In the Gospel reading, Jesus said, “I came to cast fire on the earth, & would that it were already kindled!”  (Luke 12:49 ESV)   Those are frightening words, quite unlike the Jesus often portrayed in our world where He accepts even those unwilling to acknowledge their own sinfulness.  Though our Lord longs for the day when division will cease, He will not settle for a “dreamy” peace that comes from distorting or silencing His Word. 
The goal of God’s Word, especially as a fire or a hammer, is to expose sin – the disease that is killing us.  Once our sins are diagnosed & exposed, the goal of Jesus is not to humiliate or embarrass us, but to bring us to repentance.  Repentance is returning to Jesus in humility.  It’s the very thing the false prophets of Jeremiah’s day, & of ours, avoid at all costs.
In Jeremiah, the condemnation of the false prophets & priests is quite strong.  In a society that values tolerance above all things, it is very uncomfortable language.  So it’s good to remember – we have a God who is with us, who cares for us, who pays attention to us.  In love, His anger burns against those who would lead us astray & speak falsehoods about Him. 
The LORD desires to be with us & He will show His wrath toward those involved in severing this relationship!  His desire to be with us has been a theme from the days in the Garden of Eden when He walked & talked with His people.  Even with the separation that took place at the Fall into sin, God continues His desire to be in the midst of His people.  
From theophany to vision, from tabernacle to temple, the LORD God lays out the things which need to be done so He & man can dwell together.  What an incredible reality – God loves us so much He desires to be with us!  That’s why He invites us to commune with Him at the Lord’s Supper.  As He removes our sins, our fellowship with the Creator is restored.  Amen. 
 
 
Lord, keep us steadfast in Your Word; curb those who by deceit or sword would rest the kingdom from Your Son & bring to naught all He has done.   Lord Jesus Christ, Your power make known, for You are Lord of lords alone; defend Your holy Church that we may sing Your praise eternally.  Amen.  LSB 655:1-2.  

​9th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 14)                                                   LSB #’s 545, 492, 668
Text – Luke 12:33
 
Sell your possessions, & give to the needy.  Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches & no moth destroys.
 
SELLING YOUR POSSESSIONS
 
 
A little boy, on a wintry day, was walking with his father on an icy sidewalk.  It wasn’t long before the boy slipped & fell.    Raising himself from the sidewalk, he said, “Daddy, I think I’d better hold on to your hand.”   When they came to another slippery spot, the boy’s feet again went out from under him.  His grip on his father’s hand was too weak, & he fell once more.  
Getting up, this time he said, “Daddy, I think you had better hold my hand.”  Then, if they came to an icy stretch, his father’s strong hand could hold tightly to him & his son would be safe.    As you walk your way through life, are you trying to hold onto the hand of God, or are you allowing Him to hold on to your hand? 
One way of discovering the answer   is given by Jesus in the Gospel reading from Luke.  He says, “…do not be anxious about your life…”  (Luke 12:22 ESV)    With the mass shootings in Texas & Ohio, the trade war with China, the gyrating stock market, the weekly violence & killing, in cities like Chicago & Baltimore, there are plenty of reasons to be anxious. 
On daily display in the news media we see how callous, crass & cruel people in our nation have become.  The Left is screaming that it’s the fault of the Right, & the Right is forcefully making the case that it’s the fault of the Left.  The disdain & disrespect on both sides, for the other side, is obvious.   And to gain votes, politicians are striving to stir up anxiety. 
Yet, Jesus speaks to us saying, “…do not be anxious about your life…”     And going beyond all the chaos of our lives, as a solution He goes so far as to say, “Sell your possessions, & give to the needy.”   Do you have problems with worry or anxiety in your life, then sell your possessions & give to the needy.   Sounds kind of radical doesn’t it?  Many preachers try to ease the shock of Jesus’ words by explaining away the hard edge of the Law.    What if we take His words at face value, & try to understand why they bother us so?   If we figure that out, maybe we’ll discover why, in spite of our heavenly Father’s love, we still don’t trust Him in all things. 
The Gospel reading for last Sunday concerned the rich man who had so many possessions he could not store all of them.  Rather than using the excess to help others in need, he plans to build larger barns so he can keep it all for himself.   Jesus calls that rich man a fool, explaining that he won’t be enjoying any of those possessions   because that very night he will die. 
The story   sets the stage for today’s reading.  In contrast to the rich man,   Jesus tells the disciples to consider the ravens.  (Luke 12:24)   They have no barns at all, but are scavengers who daily need to look for food.  This distinction between the rich man & the ravens is important because it helps you & me to understand the connection between trust & worry. 
The rich man trusted only in himself.  He idolized his ability to collect so many earthly goods.  Some people are in awe of rich men & all the treasures in their possession.  Yet, there are two kinds of treasure.  One grows old & rots   while the other lasts forever.   The rich man trusted in the kind of treasure that grew old & rotted. 
Though he didn’t seem worried about growing old & rotting in the grave, he should’ve been.  When we put our trust in our own abilities, we are choosing not to put our trust in God.  For many people this misplaced trust causes worry, anxiety, sleepless nights, panic, & even physical discomfort.  That’s why Jesus said, “O you of little faith.”  (Luke 12:28)  
When we fail to trust in God, we end up trusting in things that should cause us to worry.  That’s the point Jesus is making with the rich man.   He man should’ve been very worried because he trusted in himself, but the ravens – they trust in their creator & thus do not worry.  To address our anxiety we need to assess what we trust in.  When we trust in things that grow old & rot there’s plenty to worry about.  We end up being anxious about what we will eat & what we will wear.    But when we trust in God for our daily bread there is no need to worry:
“Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, & yet God feeds them.  Of how much more value are you than the birds.”  (Luke 12:24)     When placing our trust in God there’s no need to worry because He never grows old & does not rot.  We trust in God who provides for our earthly needs & also for our spiritual needs. 
Possessions cloud our eyesight, whether from a lack of them, or from an abundance of them.  They blind us to the fact that it is God who is always taking care of us.  Selling our possessions does not earn us life, but it flows from already having been given life.   If you live in the Gospel, selling your possessions is what you do, in order to help the needy. 
We can test how well you’re doing by asking, “When dealing with stress where do you turn?  To what do you cling?”  When hearing the words, “Sell your possessions, & give to the needy” you may feel accusations burning in your mind.   So be it.  It is helpful, now & then, to feel the weight of our sin.  This helps us to appreciate the Gospel instead of taking it for granted. 
For eternity we already possess all the wealth we need.  It is stored up in heaven for us by Christ Jesus.  Our faith is in Him, not in our faith.   It’s like the little boy learning to trust in the strong hand of his father holding on to him, rather than the weak hand of the boy holding on to his father.  Faith is not a matter of how firmly we hold on to God & His promises.  
Faith is all about the fact that God makes & always keeps His strong promises to you & to me.   God provides purses that will not wear out, treasure that will not be exhausted.  Look to the cross.  Do you see Jesus hanging naked, hungry & thirsty?  He hung there so that we have the best treasure of all, forgiveness of sins & a clean heart.  No matter how many barns the rich man had, no matter how much he trusted in himself to maintain the level of his wealth, it does not compare to the treasure we have in the life, suffering, death, & resurrection of Jesus Christ.  We are ravens living every day trusting in God to provide.  And He does!  Fear not!   Do not worry!  Be not anxious!  
Selling our possessions is putting “trust in God” into action.   It’s walking the walk instead of simply talking the talk.  It is a purposeful choice to not trust in our own abilities.  It is, instead, a choice to trust in God who sacrificed His Son.  Jesus chose to die so we could live.  He offers us the treasure of everlasting life that does not grow old & does not rot. 
By directing us to sell our possessions, Jesus is simply calling us to allow His strong hand to hold us up in this life that is full of slips & falls.  By turning to our possessions for comfort, instead of God, at best we are trying to hold on to our Savior’s hand.  Because of our weak grip there will be many occasions when we fall. 
By clinging to our possessions for comfort, instead of God, at worst, we’re not walking anywhere near Him through the dangerous & icy path of life. 
After pointing to the birds, & then to the lilies, Jesus comes to His main point in verses 30-34.  The reason for not worrying is twofold: He knows our need, & He gives the kingdom.  The Father knows our needs because He knows everything.  This is a comforting thought, but only if He is gracious.  
Indeed, if the Father knows our need & does not give, then He’s no better than the evil fathers mentioned in Luke 11:11-13.  But Yahweh is gracious.  It is His pleasure (v. 32) to give the Kingdom to His disciples.  That is the promise we proclaim from this text.  
The Kingdom is the reign of God in Christ which has no end, & it is characterized by forgiveness & mercy for those who are in need.  By selling our possessions & giving to the needy we are only doing what our Father in heaven does.  We are only reflecting the true nature of His kingdom.  Being able to sell our possessions & give to the needy is God’s gift to us.  That is the nature of true life.  Coveting, hording & being greedy is a sign of death.  Choosing to sell our possessions to give to the needy is a way of battling against the sinful nature in us. 
In this way our hearts will be where God’s heart is – with those who need Him & His gracious reign.  The goal of this sermon, then, is twofold.  First, it’s to strengthen your trust in God’s promise to give you the Kingdom.  Second, it’s to loosen your grip on your possessions so you can participate in the giving mission of your Father & His Son. 
“Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on.  For life is more than food, & the body more than clothing.”  Amen.  (Luke 12:22-23 ESV) 
 
 
 
Since Christ returned to claim His throne,  great gifts for me obtaining,  my heart will rest in Him alone, no other rest remaining;  for where my treasure went before,  there all my thoughts will ever soar  to still their deepest yearning.         O grant, dear Lord,  this grace to me,  recalling Your ascension,  that I may serve You faithfully  in thanks for my redemption;  & then, when all my days will cease,  let me depart in joy & peace  in answer to my pleading.  Amen.  LSB 492:2-3.   

​11th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 13)                                                 LSB #’s 615, 746, 643
Text – Ecclesiastes 2:22-23
 
What does a man get for all the toil & anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?  All his days his work is pain & grief; even at night his mind does not rest.  This too is meaningless.
 
A MIND AT REST
 
 
Do any of you struggle with those nights where you’re trying to get to sleep, but you just can’t get your mind to slow down long enough?      Maybe you had a big argument that day.  Maybe there’d been some bad news concerning your family   or bad results from the latest medical tests.   Maybe you’d just seen one of those horror movies that brings on nightmares. 
In times like those we learn to appreciate a mind at rest.  Peace of mind is sought after the world over,   & people have tried everything under the sun in looking for it.   He tried the proverbial   wine, women & song,   but nothing satisfied King Solomon for long. 
God said that Solomon was the wisest man who would ever live, & though wisdom is better than foolishness,   death still erases any lasting significance   that human wisdom might have.   The king even tried finding peace in the work that he did,   & here’s what he discovered:
“I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me.  And who knows whether he’ll be a wise man or a fool?”  (Ecclesiastes 2:18-19a)     History records that the son who followed Solomon as king was indeed a fool. 
“What does a man get for all the toil & anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?   All his days his work is pain & grief;   even at night his mind does not rest.     This too is meaningless.”  (Ecclesiastes 2:22-23)     Utterly meaningless!   Everything is meaningless.  The book of Ecclesiastes isn’t exactly the life of the party   is it? 
In the gospel lesson we read of a man who has found the answers to peace & happiness.  This rich man realized that he only needed to build bigger barns   in which to store all of his wealth.  Then he would have plenty of good things laid up for many years.    Finally     he could eat,   drink   & be merry.    What a life!     No more worries!      His mind   was at rest!!    But he forgot one thing,   didn’t he?     Do you know what that is?        Oh, yeah!   God!!!    But God said to him, “You fool!       This very night   your life    will be demanded from you.”         
So much   for eat, drink & be merry.       And this is how it’ll be with anyone   who stores up things for himself,   but is not rich toward God.   (Luke 12:21)        If right now   God said that you were going to die this night,    how would you handle that news?        Would your mind be at rest?    PAUSE
The Gospel lesson stresses how foolish it is to set your mind on earthly things at the expense   of the spiritual or heavenly things.    Even hard work & success are no guarantee   of having a mind at rest.   And in the reading from Ecclesiastes the bottom line is this,    you work hard   & then you die.      Like a dog chasing its tail,     everything    is meaningless.    PAUSE
Without the eyes of faith,   that’s what you see.      That’s the world King Solomon lived in.   That’s the world Jesus lived in.   That is the world   you & I live in.     It’s a screwed up, sinful, unfair & hopeless world.    It is a world where you are afraid of showing your faith by standing out as different;   by standing out   as someone who believes in right & wrong. 
You’d rather be just like everyone else, & so you either run the rat race of getting ahead in life,   or you surrender & give up.   I’ve been in both places.    I’ve wished that I were dead because life was not worth  being alive for,      and  I’ve worked six days a week,   ten to twelve hours a day  just because I was getting paid  good money for doing it. 
You work hard, & then you die.  Or you don’t work at all – & then you die.    Can you give me a good reason why your mind can be at rest?         If your best friend,    your son or daughter, comes to you ready to end their life, would you be able to give them hope?   Could you give them a reason to live?       If they come to you having lost their family & friends because they’ve spent all their time & energy chasing after a career, could you   show them a better way?  Are you able to look   through the eyes of faith   & see a world where your mind can truly   be at rest?   PAUSE
Years ago I spent time   at a class on the book of Revelation,   & I received an answer to a question that someone asked me not too long before.   The question was, “Why does Revelation use such bizarre & sometimes frightening imagery to tell its story?   The professor had a good explanation, & here’s an illustration.   Think about the meaning of the following poem: 
If the midnight sky & the stars were mine
From the rolling sea to the mountains high
If I owned the world    & if I could choose
I would give it all away   only to be with you. 
 
That entire verse, all four lines of it, could be summarized in only three words, “I love you.”  But the poetry, the figurative language of the verse,   it grabs your emotions.     It reaches down inside of you & doesn’t   so easily let go.      Yet how many times have you heard the three simple words, “I love you,”   & let them slip   right   on   by?   PAUSE
The book of Revelation was written in such picturesque language   in order to grab your heart & sink deeply into it.   Your God does not want you to forget the message He is sending.  He loves you!  The midnight sky & the stars, the rolling sea & the mountains high, they are all His.    He does own the world,   & His Son did give it all away   only   to be with you. 
The central message of Holy Scripture   is that Jesus Christ became man, in order to be with us & to conquer sin, death & the devil for us.   He’s done all of that,   & the book of Revelation declares & celebrates His victory.     But practically no one understands, because they’ve been listening to all kinds of false prophets.   
For most people, the book of Revelation is more like a nightmare preventing their
mind from being at rest.    So as I sat through the class on Revelation,   I kept thinking of how   just four days after I became a pastor in North Dakota,   Selma Harmel passed away.    I kept thinking of that   because the book of Revelation was one of her favorite.   Her Bible had several passages in it marked & highlighted   because she found peace of mind & rest in its message. 
What was it that she had learned, & how did she come to the understanding that those verses of Revelation   would put her mind at rest?     I wish now that I’d been able to talk to her & ask those questions.  But even without being able to speak to Selma,   we ourselves can still find comfort in the words of Scripture. 
One of the glorious sections of Revelation tells us about the Ascension of Christ   into heaven, & our 2nd reading today, from Colossians chapter 3, says this, “…seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”   Christ isn’t there as part of some kind of POW camp.    Jesus is the Victor,   not the prisoner. 
And it’s that news which brings rest   to my mind.  The victory has already been won for us.  We don’t need to be striving anxiously to keep ahead of the battle.   And we also don’t need to surrender out of fear or a lack of hope.   Jesus said, “Come unto Me    all you who are weary & heavy laden,   & I will give you rest.”  (Matthew 11:28) 
But when struggles come into our lives, where do we usually turn?  Is it to Jesus?    If the diagnosis is heart damage,   if you’re no longer able to earn a living from the factory or the farm,   if your children never bother   to check in on you,     if divorce has become reality,    have you turned to Jesus for rest   from the weary path of life?  
Jesus has already done the hard part.    He’s already been crucified.    He won’t waste His suffering by refusing to help you now,   & if He was willing to be crucified for you, how can you believe that you are worthless?      God spent the life   of His own Son   in order that He
might give you rest;   rest from all of your worries & from all of your troubles.   
King Solomon may have been the wisest man the world has ever known,   but life is not meaningless as he wrote.   Neither does life find its sole purpose in self-indulgence as the rich fool of the gospel lesson believed.   Through baptism, you’ve already been raised from death to life,   & looking through the eyes of faith, God enables you to see that new reality. 
There’ll still be trials & suffering, as God is transforming us into the likeness of Jesus Christ.  And our sinful nature doesn’t like change so it is constantly putting off that transformation.    Attending church & Bible study frequently   requires us to fight a war within ourselves.  Daily devotion times & even prayer   are easily put off   & forgotten. 
Those are battles we’ll have to fight every day of our lives.  Yet, we don’t fight them alone, & Jesus Christ has already guaranteed the ultimate victory; the ultimate rest.     We do have hope already in this life   & not just the next.   Our lives are worth living   because God’s Spirit is able to use us   in bringing hope & rest to people we encounter every day. 
God’s Spirit also brings hope & rest to each of us as we set our hearts on things above.  Many days that rest is hidden to our earthly eyes because our life now is hidden in Christ.   Yet, on the final day of time, when Jesus reveals Himself in all His glory, we will appear with Him, also in glory. 
May God enable us to take our eyes off of the earthly things until that day.  Amen.
 
 
Through Jesus blood & merit, I am at peace with God.  What, then, can daunt my spirit, however dark my road?  My courage shall not fail me, for God is on my side; though hell itself assail me, its rage I may deride.  Amen.  LSB 746:1. 
11th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 13)                                                 LSB #’s 615, 746, 643
Text – Ecclesiastes 2:22-23
 
What does a man get for all the toil & anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?  All his days his work is pain & grief; even at night his mind does not rest.  This too is meaningless.
 
A MIND AT REST
 
 
Do any of you struggle with those nights where you’re trying to get to sleep, but you just can’t get your mind to slow down long enough?      Maybe you had a big argument that day.  Maybe there’d been some bad news concerning your family   or bad results from the latest medical tests.   Maybe you’d just seen one of those horror movies that brings on nightmares. 
In times like those we learn to appreciate a mind at rest.  Peace of mind is sought after the world over,   & people have tried everything under the sun in looking for it.   He tried the proverbial   wine, women & song,   but nothing satisfied King Solomon for long. 
God said that Solomon was the wisest man who would ever live, & though wisdom is better than foolishness,   death still erases any lasting significance   that human wisdom might have.   The king even tried finding peace in the work that he did,   & here’s what he discovered:
“I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me.  And who knows whether he’ll be a wise man or a fool?”  (Ecclesiastes 2:18-19a)     History records that the son who followed Solomon as king was indeed a fool. 
“What does a man get for all the toil & anxious striving with which he labors under the sun?   All his days his work is pain & grief;   even at night his mind does not rest.     This too is meaningless.”  (Ecclesiastes 2:22-23)     Utterly meaningless!   Everything is meaningless.  The book of Ecclesiastes isn’t exactly the life of the party   is it? 
In the gospel lesson we read of a man who has found the answers to peace & happiness.  This rich man realized that he only needed to build bigger barns   in which to store all of his wealth.  Then he would have plenty of good things laid up for many years.    Finally     he could eat,   drink   & be merry.    What a life!     No more worries!      His mind   was at rest!!    But he forgot one thing,   didn’t he?     Do you know what that is?        Oh, yeah!   God!!!    But God said to him, “You fool!       This very night   your life    will be demanded from you.”         
So much   for eat, drink & be merry.       And this is how it’ll be with anyone   who stores up things for himself,   but is not rich toward God.   (Luke 12:21)        If right now   God said that you were going to die this night,    how would you handle that news?        Would your mind be at rest?    PAUSE
The Gospel lesson stresses how foolish it is to set your mind on earthly things at the expense   of the spiritual or heavenly things.    Even hard work & success are no guarantee   of having a mind at rest.   And in the reading from Ecclesiastes the bottom line is this,    you work hard   & then you die.      Like a dog chasing its tail,     everything    is meaningless.    PAUSE
Without the eyes of faith,   that’s what you see.      That’s the world King Solomon lived in.   That’s the world Jesus lived in.   That is the world   you & I live in.     It’s a screwed up, sinful, unfair & hopeless world.    It is a world where you are afraid of showing your faith by standing out as different;   by standing out   as someone who believes in right & wrong. 
You’d rather be just like everyone else, & so you either run the rat race of getting ahead in life,   or you surrender & give up.   I’ve been in both places.    I’ve wished that I were dead because life was not worth  being alive for,      and  I’ve worked six days a week,   ten to twelve hours a day  just because I was getting paid  good money for doing it. 
You work hard, & then you die.  Or you don’t work at all – & then you die.    Can you give me a good reason why your mind can be at rest?         If your best friend,    your son or daughter, comes to you ready to end their life, would you be able to give them hope?   Could you give them a reason to live?       If they come to you having lost their family & friends because they’ve spent all their time & energy chasing after a career, could you   show them a better way?  Are you able to look   through the eyes of faith   & see a world where your mind can truly   be at rest?   PAUSE
Years ago I spent time   at a class on the book of Revelation,   & I received an answer to a question that someone asked me not too long before.   The question was, “Why does Revelation use such bizarre & sometimes frightening imagery to tell its story?   The professor had a good explanation, & here’s an illustration.   Think about the meaning of the following poem: 
If the midnight sky & the stars were mine
From the rolling sea to the mountains high
If I owned the world    & if I could choose
I would give it all away   only to be with you. 
 
That entire verse, all four lines of it, could be summarized in only three words, “I love you.”  But the poetry, the figurative language of the verse,   it grabs your emotions.     It reaches down inside of you & doesn’t   so easily let go.      Yet how many times have you heard the three simple words, “I love you,”   & let them slip   right   on   by?   PAUSE
The book of Revelation was written in such picturesque language   in order to grab your heart & sink deeply into it.   Your God does not want you to forget the message He is sending.  He loves you!  The midnight sky & the stars, the rolling sea & the mountains high, they are all His.    He does own the world,   & His Son did give it all away   only   to be with you. 
The central message of Holy Scripture   is that Jesus Christ became man, in order to be with us & to conquer sin, death & the devil for us.   He’s done all of that,   & the book of Revelation declares & celebrates His victory.     But practically no one understands, because they’ve been listening to all kinds of false prophets.   
For most people, the book of Revelation is more like a nightmare preventing their
mind from being at rest.    So as I sat through the class on Revelation,   I kept thinking of how   just four days after I became a pastor in North Dakota,   Selma Harmel passed away.    I kept thinking of that   because the book of Revelation was one of her favorite.   Her Bible had several passages in it marked & highlighted   because she found peace of mind & rest in its message. 
What was it that she had learned, & how did she come to the understanding that those verses of Revelation   would put her mind at rest?     I wish now that I’d been able to talk to her & ask those questions.  But even without being able to speak to Selma,   we ourselves can still find comfort in the words of Scripture. 
One of the glorious sections of Revelation tells us about the Ascension of Christ   into heaven, & our 2nd reading today, from Colossians chapter 3, says this, “…seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.”   Christ isn’t there as part of some kind of POW camp.    Jesus is the Victor,   not the prisoner. 
And it’s that news which brings rest   to my mind.  The victory has already been won for us.  We don’t need to be striving anxiously to keep ahead of the battle.   And we also don’t need to surrender out of fear or a lack of hope.   Jesus said, “Come unto Me    all you who are weary & heavy laden,   & I will give you rest.”  (Matthew 11:28) 
But when struggles come into our lives, where do we usually turn?  Is it to Jesus?    If the diagnosis is heart damage,   if you’re no longer able to earn a living from the factory or the farm,   if your children never bother   to check in on you,     if divorce has become reality,    have you turned to Jesus for rest   from the weary path of life?  
Jesus has already done the hard part.    He’s already been crucified.    He won’t waste His suffering by refusing to help you now,   & if He was willing to be crucified for you, how can you believe that you are worthless?      God spent the life   of His own Son   in order that He
might give you rest;   rest from all of your worries & from all of your troubles.   
King Solomon may have been the wisest man the world has ever known,   but life is not meaningless as he wrote.   Neither does life find its sole purpose in self-indulgence as the rich fool of the gospel lesson believed.   Through baptism, you’ve already been raised from death to life,   & looking through the eyes of faith, God enables you to see that new reality. 
There’ll still be trials & suffering, as God is transforming us into the likeness of Jesus Christ.  And our sinful nature doesn’t like change so it is constantly putting off that transformation.    Attending church & Bible study frequently   requires us to fight a war within ourselves.  Daily devotion times & even prayer   are easily put off   & forgotten. 
Those are battles we’ll have to fight every day of our lives.  Yet, we don’t fight them alone, & Jesus Christ has already guaranteed the ultimate victory; the ultimate rest.     We do have hope already in this life   & not just the next.   Our lives are worth living   because God’s Spirit is able to use us   in bringing hope & rest to people we encounter every day. 
God’s Spirit also brings hope & rest to each of us as we set our hearts on things above.  Many days that rest is hidden to our earthly eyes because our life now is hidden in Christ.   Yet, on the final day of time, when Jesus reveals Himself in all His glory, we will appear with Him, also in glory. 
May God enable us to take our eyes off of the earthly things until that day.  Amen.
 
 
Through Jesus blood & merit, I am at peace with God.  What, then, can daunt my spirit, however dark my road?  My courage shall not fail me, for God is on my side; though hell itself assail me, its rage I may deride.  Amen.  LSB 746:1. 

​5th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 10)                                                   LSB #’s 852, 696, 894
Text – Luke 10:28
 
And [Jesus] said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, & you will live.”
 
WHAT DOES IT MEAN TO LIVE?
 
 
It seems like a simple question to answer – until you sit down to write a sermon about it.  Ultimately, “What Does It Mean To Live?” revolves around how you answer the question, “What is life?”  The Pro Life vs. Pro Choice debate revolves around answers to that question.  Is there life at conception or not until birth? 
In the last six months there has been a flurry of states passing bills that are either Pro Life or Pro Choice & one of the huge issues of contention is, “When does life begin?”  But ultimately that boils down to the earlier question, “What is life?”   If you can figure that one out, another question arises, “Where does life come from?” 
How you answer will be based upon the world view that you hold.   The Evolution vs. Creation debate is all about that answer, “Does life come by random chance, or does it come from God?”  What, or Whom, is responsible for life?  All those thoughts & ideas are going on behind the scenes when Jesus replies to the lawyer, “…do this, & you will live.” 
Lawyers are good at asking complicated questions in order to trap the witness on the stand.  And that’s what is happening in the Gospel reading, “Behold, a lawyer stood up to put [Jesus] to the test…”  In the customs of the day standing up was an outward show of respect, yet behind that façade the lawyer was showing disrespect by publicly putting Jesus to the test. 
Jesus is ready & He asks a question that is very appropriate for a lawyer: “What is written in the Law?”  You’re a lawyer!  You tell me!   The lawyer thought he was testing Jesus, but the Son of God turned it right back on the lawyer.  The law he cited is very clear, so God’s Son tells him, “…do this & you will live.”   It’s that simple.   The lawyer felt uncomfortable with Jesus’ answer.  Apparently, it made him feel guilty, because St. Luke wrote that the lawyer desired to justify himself, so he asked Jesus another question, “And who is my neighbor?”   You see, Jesus was skillfully maneuvering the lawyer & the lawyer’s guilt was closing in on him.  It’s like Jesus had him walking the plank, & the lawyer could feel it begin to sag under the weight of his sin. 
I’m pretty sure all of us have been there, where the lawyer is, feeling the guilt of our sins closing in upon us.  In that feeling of desperation, maybe you’ve said words like these, “He did it first!”  or “But everyone else is doing it!”   It’s the feeling that you need to justify yourself in any way possible.    Do you know what that is?   
It’s feeling the wages of sin suffocating the life out of you.   It’s the feeling of death – a feeling that’s totally the opposite of life.   Death is the feeling that the possibilities are narrowing around you.  Life on the other hand is the feeling that the possibilities around you are endless.  Jesus tells the parable of the Good Samaritan to illustrate life with endless possibilities. 
Let’s go back to the beginning of the Gospel reading.  Luke says the lawyer is testing Jesus, but the Lord doesn’t take offense & write the man off by calling him a loser.  Jesus leaves open the possibility that the lawyer really is wondering what he must do to inherit eternal life.  From the standpoint of faith it’s the wrong question, so Jesus deals patiently with the man. 
You should already know there is nothing you or I can do to inherit eternal life.   It’s a gift that our heavenly Father gives to us out of love, not out of obligation or as payment.  Even if the lawyer is not a believer, he might still actually be concerned about what happens after his death.  If that’s true, he clearly has a wrong understanding about how people end up in heaven. 
Rather than saying, “You loser!  You’ve got it all wrong.” Jesus comes at the possible concern of the lawyer, about where he’ll end up after death, from a different direction.   Jesus tells a parable to describe what it looks like when someone already has eternal life.   The lawyer correctly recognizes that it’s the one who showed mercy.  Then, because the lawyer doesn’t yet feel the need for a Savior, Jesus preaches the law to the lawyer, “You go, & do likewise.” 
The lawyer’s pride & self-righteousness needs to be killed, to be put to death,  before he can find joy in the Savior who Himself will do what needs to be done  so that the lawyer may inherit eternal life.  If we do have faith in Jesus as Savior then we have life.  The Gospel reading gives the answer to the sermon title, “What does it mean to live?” 
The answer is to have mercy, to love your neighbor as yourself.  If you are doing that, then you are alive.  Jesus tells the parable to illustrate what it is to have eternal life.  It is to love God & to love your neighbor as yourself.  Jesus knows we cannot begin to do that unless He 1st loves us, which He has done through His life, suffering, death & resurrection. 
God looked at us in our sin & helplessness, & He refused to walk on by.  He paid a price – a steep price – to restore us to life.  That is why we love our neighbor – because we have been in the ditch as well.  In a very real sense, we are still there.  As Paul wrote in the reading from Colossians, we love our neighbor “…because of the hope laid up for [us] in heaven.” 
Those who follow Jesus have been delivered from the domain of darkness & transferred to the kingdom of His beloved Son… the forgiveness of sins.  Here’s a modern day story that relates the same kind of message as the parable of the Good Samaritan.  A pastor’s wife wrote it after she accompanied him on a home visit to an elderly widower. 
There is a hole where his wife should be.  If he had not put words to it, I might not have noticed anyone missing from his living room that day.  But once he says it, it’s impossible to miss.  “I wish you could have known her,” he says with a quiet smile.  On the coffee table, by the bread & wine, sits a vintage portrait, taken when she was 14, & a sample of her poetry. 
Silent photographs from their younger, fuller life together rest on the shelves next to his
prescriptions.  How he loved her!  And how he loves her still!  He is in his 90’s, & he is not done loving her.  How does someone keep a heart open for so long in this broken place?  I look at my dear husband as he prays with this old saint, & I try to imagine going on with a husband-shaped hole in my life.  How does someone withstand such a loss, such a gaping hole, & keep on living? 
She is gone, & he is here.  Yet her absence does not oppress him.  There is no bitterness in his remembrances.  “I don’t want her back here with me,” he says.  “I miss her.  She made my life richer in so many ways from the day I met her.  But I don’t want her back.  She’s with the Lord now, & she’s happy.” 
With these simple words, the hole becomes a window.  She is where he wants her to be: with the Lord.  He keeps on loving her because he has always loved her, but he knows she is with her Savior, at rest in peace & joy, & he loves her too much to wish that away from her.  So he loves her from a distance.  And he waits. 
Surely their marriage was imperfect.  Surely they had seasons of selfish score-keeping & trial, when their flailing sinful natures struck & wounded each other.  But now I see the quiet peace of a Christ-formed love, a with its eyes on eternity, its hands open & its steadfast trust in the Giver of all good things.
We gather around the body & blood of Christ, & he bows his gray head low.  We, too, are with the Lord.  The window widens as we hear the words of Christ, more familiar to this man than even his wife’s hand or the sound of her voice. 
With angels & archangels & all the company of heaven, we take & eat, & the distance between husband & wife shrinks for one holy moment.  The Spirit who calls & enlightens also strengthens those whom He has gathered.  “The body & blood of our Lord Jesus Christ strengthen & preserve you in body & soul to life everlasting.”    Light & life pour through the
open window, a foretaste of the feast to come.  We depart in peace.[1] 
That is another way of describing what it means to live in Christ.  Amen. 
 
 
 
O God, my faithful God, true fountain ever flowing, without whom nothing is, all perfect gifts bestowing:  Give me a healthy frame, & may I have within a conscience free from blame, a soul unstained by sin.       Grant me the strength to do  with ready heart & willing  whatever You command,  my calling here fulfilling;  that I do what I should  while trusting You to bless  the outcome for my good,  for You must give success.  Amen.  LSB 696:1-2.


[1] Cook, Emily, An Open Window, The Lutheran Witness, May 2019, p. 28.  

​4th Sunday after Pentecost – C (Proper 9)                                      LSB #707, LW #260, LSB #895
Text – Luke 10:1-2
 
After this the Lord appointed 72 others & sent them on ahead of Him, two by two, into every town & place where He himself was about to go.  And He said to them, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.  Therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest.”
 
WHERE JESUS WAS ABOUT TO GO
 
 
Last Sunday’s gospel lesson hammered home the point   of the sacrifices Jesus may expect of us in order to be about the work of proclaiming God’s kingdom.  Even burial of the dead   is not to interfere with our work of evangelism.    Today’s gospel reading follows that & its main emphasis is the urgency of proclaiming the message   that God’s Kingdom is near. 
This text is often used in the recruitment of students   for the work of teaching & preaching.  The St. Louis seminary once sent materials to encourage just that.  But that angle makes for a rather small audience in a congregation like this.  So I’m working a different angle in order to broaden my target.      Have you ever thought of yourself as a target? 
In North Dakota, driving from Rugby to Willow City in late summer, you pass by fields of canola, sunflowers, hay, corn & flax; acre after acre of crops    ready to be harvested.  The sunflowers stand tall while the canola & flax sway gently in the breeze.   Hay bales are scattered across mile after mile.    Harvest time approaches   & much work needs to be done. 
The time will be short before the bitter winds & harsh cold of winter arrive.    There’ll be much work to do & when the harvest is ready the workers are needed,   because there isn’t a lot of time in which to get the work done. 
When the harvest is ready, the crop is at great risk.  Its value is easily lost or destroyed by variables like the weather, the market, the operating condition of the machinery.      Farmers are anxious when the crops are ripe for harvest.   They long to bring it in before it spoils or gets damaged.  Likewise, that should be our attitude as workers in God’s kingdom.   We should be anxious to bring in the harvest of souls before they are lost or damaged.     We should consider where we would be if no one had taken time to introduce us to Jesus Christ. 
Look around this nation.  Drive from farm to city, affluent suburb to blighted urban area, changing small town to changing city neighborhood,   & you will see a harvest that is ready.  Not a harvest of grain, but one of real people with real lives touched by joy & by sorrow. 
Even closer to home, there are the people you pass along the street,   the employees you work alongside,   your neighbors,   the people you see in the grocery store.  How many are living without the peace & eternal life God so freely offers through His Son?   The harvest is ripe, & many are ready to be brought into the kingdom of God. 
It’s one thing to be talking about field crops.  It is another   to be talking about souls.    It’s one thing to be talking about a renewable resource, which can be planted again next year.    It’s another   to be talking about those who will suffer the tortures of hell apart from Jesus Christ.   The harvest of souls is plentiful, & the Son of God is about to go there. 
However, as in today’s gospel where He sent the 72 workers out where Jesus Himself was about to go,   your Savior has also sent you   where He is about to go.     Maybe you did not volunteered.    You may not be aware   that you have already been sent.     Yet,   by virtue of your baptism, Christ has called you   to be His own. 
As one of God’s children, your actions have already been a witness,   whether a good one or a bad one.  Neighbors have already noticed the type of life you live.      Co-workers have been evaluating the integrity with which you conduct business.    And by comparing your words   with your actions   children have been aware of any hypocrisy you’ve displayed. 
Have you been preparing the way, into hearts & lives, for the Savior who follows you? 
What kind of positive witness have you been concerning the nearness of God’s Kingdom?    Our society is in dire need of the healing Jesus offers.  A recent book titled, Culture Shift, details just how far the prevailing beliefs of this country are from those revealed in God’s Word. 
For many people, God is simply ignored.  Time & attention are devoted to work, fun & other busyness.  A few minutes here or there may be allotted to church-type activities,   but most of the time Jesus is seen as irrelevant, & He’s pushed aside in the pressures of daily life.  
Others will have nothing to do with the Bible’s stand against abortion or homosexuality.  The truth of God’s Word is replaced   with the desire to pick & choose what’s right, depending upon how a person feels.  Right & wrong have become entirely relative while more & more, people refuse to see themselves as having done wrong, as being sinners by nature   before God. 
With that, they’re increasingly reluctant to consider the fact that they need a Savior.  Yet, that’s no excuse for us to shy away   from taking the message of Jesus Christ to these people. 
When you enter a town & are welcomed, tell them, “‘…The kingdom of God has come near to you.’  But whenever you enter a town & they do not receive you, go into its streets & say, ‘Even the dust of your town that clings to our feet we wipe off against you.  Nevertheless know this, that the kingdom of God has come near.’”  (Luke 10:9-11 ESV) 
In either case, we are to tell them that the kingdom of God is near.  That’s why the harvest is so urgent.  It’s not simply that the crop is ready, but that God has knelt down to His people, in the persons of His Son & His Holy Spirit.   And the stakes are very high     because those who reject Him will be lost for all of eternity.   There will be   no 2nd chances. 
Christ has sent you & me to bring the message that the OT reading from Isaiah   is now being fulfilled: “As a mother comforts her child, so will I comfort you.  …When you see this, your heart will rejoice & you will flourish like grass; the hand of the Lord will be made known to His servants,   but His fury   will be shown to His foes.”   (66:13-14 NIV)  God’s kingdom is near & His judgment along with it. 
To those who’ve been harvested – brought into the family of God, there’ll be peace, & to those who’ve been suffering there’ll be comfort.  But for those who reject God’s forgiveness, their future will be a living death.   They’ll bear our Lord’s never ending fury & wrath because they refused to be comforted by Him.
With the ascension of Christ into heaven, the end times began & the harvest is even now in progress.  Each of us has been sent to prepare the way before the Lord.  We already are where Jesus is about to go, & the harvest is plentiful. 
Now, the last angle we’ll look at is the target I spoke of at the beginning of my sermon.     Do you remember?     That’s you!  If you have thought about being a target, it’s likely to be something you’ve shied away from.  It certainly doesn’t sound pleasant, & so far the sermon has mostly been about what God expects of you. 
However, there’s another side to being one of God’s targets.     It’s not the kind of thing you should shy away from,   & your sinful nature is at the root of that fear.  The sinful nature within us wants nothing to do with being the target of, or accepting, God’s love. 
Accepting His love implies that you have a need for it.  It implies a weakness on your part.    It implies that something is missing & you do not measure up.    Accepting Jesus’ love makes you dependent upon Him, & being dependent upon anything   is the great American sin.  
So not only does the harvest of souls include your neighbors & co-workers,    it also includes you.  Maybe you’ll think, “But pastor, I’m already a member of this church.  I’m already a Christian.”  And you may well be,   yet as disciples of Christ, though we are to speak & to act in His very name, He also wishes to speak to & act in our lives.   Are you ready to be
harvested?   Are you willing to become dependent upon God’s love for you?    Are you allowing Him into every day of your life, & not just 1 of 7 or even less?   Each morning as you awaken you can leave open the door of your heart to Jesus – enjoying the peace & comfort He brings.    Or    you can bar that door shut. 
There’s a well-known painting where Jesus is knocking on the door of your heart, waiting for you to allow Him into the day-to-day routine of your life.    That picture comes from the book of Revelation, & the door He’s knocking on   is the heart of someone who’s already a Christian. 
He wants to talk with you, to share in your joys & your sorrows.   He wants to be there with you when you rise in the morning & when you lie down in the evening.    He wants to be with you in the heat of the day   & in the darkness of the night.     He wants to heal the wounds you have endured, & renew your hope along with giving you His peace. 
The world we live in is a dog eat dog world, but God’s children don’t have to get through it on toughness & personal will power alone.  Unlike the world, Jesus forgives when we fail.  He brings healing, peace, wholeness, forgiveness & salvation, if you will only believe it.  Messiah is not simply a god who lives apart from us.     Our Lord   is alive within. 
The times & the harvest are urgent for you as well.  You could be living in the eternal peace of God’s kingdom rather than the temporary & fleeting peace of this world.    In the very preaching & teaching of those sent by Christ, the kingdom of God has become a present reality, & the kingdom of Satan is defeated  where that preaching & teaching occurs. 
The 72 disciples returned with joy   reporting that even the demons were subject to them in Christ’s name.  But Jesus responded by refocusing their attention on the result He desires for everyone in the harvest, “Rejoice not that the spirits are subject to you,   but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.”  (Luke 10:20)   That   is how God’s Kingdom is near even now, today in the year 2019.    His kingdom is near in the forgiveness & the love that He offers to every one of us.    Yes,   even your heart is a place where Jesus is about to go.    Will you let Him in?    Amen. 
 
 
Lord of the living harvest that whitens on the plain, where angels soon shall gather    their sheaves of golden grain.   Accept these hands to labor   these hearts to trust & love, & with them ever hasten Your kingdom from above.  Amen.  LW 260:1.