The Hour of Condemnation
Luke 20:9–20 // Isaiah 43:16–21 // Philippians 3:4b–14 Fourth in a series of five, “The Hour Has Come” Grace, mercy, and peace to you from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Our sermon text for today is this parable of judgment, this parable of condemnation that Jesus tells in Luke chapter 20, “Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.” The scribes and the chief priests sought to lay hands on him at that very hour, for they perceived that he had told this parable against them...” Dear Friends in Christ, We see these critical hours, these crucial teachings of Jesus in our sermon series, and in the hour today, we find Jesus condemning the scribes and Pharisees, and we see in that very hour they are looking for a way to kill Jesus, and to that end, Jesus tells a story. To frame our conversation, I want to tell a story too. I can remember when I was in 5thgrade. I took piano lessons from 3rdthrough 8thgrade. Looking back, I should have loved them, but at the time I didn’t necessarily like to practice 30 minutes, every day. There was one week when I had been avoiding my piano lessons, and they started to build up, from 30 to 60 to 90 minutes. My brother John, on the other hand, had kept up with it. And so, when my mom went to a meeting one evening, she told us both to practice our piano, John did, but I didn’t. He tried to get me to do it, but I still didn’t. And then my mom came home. Can you guess what she did when she found out? Condemnation and Salvation fall in the same (stroke). What was salvation for John was judgment for me. What was vindication for John was condemnation for me. In either case, my mom’s action didn’t change; the relationship to her did. So it is in our parable for today. The parable that Jesus tells to the Pharisees, a parable of judgment. It’s an easy parable to understand. The renters are the scribes and Pharisees. The servants are the prophets that went before Jesus. The son is Jesus himself. But when does it become a parable of judgment, a parable of condemnation? It becomes such when the Pharisees reject it. Both judgment and salvation fall in the same stroke. What if the scribes and Pharisees would have repented of their ways? Then God who is faithful and just would have forgiven them and cleansed them from all unrighteousness. But in either case, God’s action doesn’t change; the relationship to him does. And Jesus looks directly at them and says, “The stone the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.” Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces. If it falls on anyone, it will crush him.” The one who crushes is the (cornerstone). What in this world today is being crushed by our cornerstone? It is the sin in this world. It’s the idea that church doesn’t matter, that it’s just an old-fashioned bygone. It crushes the idea that Christians are called to obey the letter of the law. We’re not. We are required to obey something far, far more than that -- the law of love, the law that fulfills all of our neighbors’ needs before they know them, the law so high and far above what our legislature would put in the books that it does all it would require and more. There is no law against love. And by love, I mean laying down your life for your neighbor. The cornerstone crushes the idea that there’s too much to do, too many things on our plate to slowdown and be served the most precious thing ever by the master of the universe. It crushes us when we have the tendency that so many of us have to be unkind for no particular reason at all, to be unloving because we didn’t feel loved by that person, to avoid telling the truth because it’s going to be hard, to avoid caring for and pursuing someone whom we’ve hurt because we’re scared of what they might say. And it all comes back to the first commandment. You shall have no other gods. We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things. The cornerstone crushes anything that is set up in our lives above God. He breaks to pieces every evil design of the devil, of the sinful world, of our very own nature. But he was (crushed) for our iniquities. That’s Isaiah 53 language. “He was crushed for our iniquities, he was pierced for our transgressions, and upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” He’s crushed for our sake. He takes our punishment. All of the wrath of God, all of the judgment of God, all of the brokenness of sin is poured out onto Jesus – our sins, the sins of the Scribes, the sins of the Pharisees, the sins of the whole world are given to him, and in exchange, he gives us his righteousness. Three questions in closing today, as we consider this parable. In view of Jesus’s words today, what do you need to count as loss? That’s the saying of St. Paul that’s paired with our Gospel reading. What do you need to count as loss against the surpassing greatness of what you’ve been given? I count it as rubbish. Who do you need to look at and love? I think of Jesus looking at these Scribes and Pharisees, he looks directly at them, and he gives them what they need from him. But so I ask, who do you need to look at and love? Who needs you to do what they need, not what they deserve, not necessarily what they want? Where and when do you need to repent? Where and when do you need to hear the voice of Jesus, to fall on your knees, and to ask for forgiveness? The kingdom of heaven is like a large church in a small town full of folks that love their Lord, but oh-so-often, they find their hearts wandering during the prayers, oh-so-often they find their ears wandering during the sermon, so so often they need their savior to look them directly in the eyes. It is their prayer on their best days that their savior would be chasing after them, would be feeding them everything they need to eat, and would be holding them close. Amen and amen.
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The Shadow of Fear
Matthew 14:22-31 We’ve been working our way through our sermon series, The Shadow of the Cross, seeing the different shadows that fall on us in this life, and today, we consider the shadow of fear. So, my first question is, What is fear? Id didn’t know, so I looked it up. Fear is an emotional response to danger, pain, or threats. What are you afraid of? Sometimes, maybe half the time, we are afraid of something that isn’t real. When I was young, I was afraid of bees. In a field covered with clover... with bees all around. I’m not allergic. Bees aren’t mean. They mostly just leave you alone, but I was scared and called for my mom. But I wasn’t afraid of something real. When Jesus tells you not to be afraid, sometimes he tells you not to be afraid of things you shouldn’t be afraid of anyways. That’s the first thing that happens in our text for today. Jesus comes out on the lake and the disciples get the wrong impression. They are scared, but they are scared for the wrong reasons. They are afraid but they are afraid of something that isn’t real. What does Jesus do? He shatters the illusion. He says, I will show you what is real and what isn’t. What you think is out there isn’t. It is I. What are you afraid of? Sometimes, maybe half the time, we are afraid of something that we should be afraid of. I’m 2 for 2 on boys getting carted up to Children’s in the cities the day after they were born. Amos and aphasia, where the skin didn’t form right. And my fears were real. It could reach deeper. It could need surgery. Afraid that it would reach down into his brain. That’s the second thing that happens in our text for today. Jesus comes to the boat and dispels their fear that he’s a ghost, and then Peter, in a move that is questionable at best – but that’s the subject of another sermon – he comes out to Jesus on the water. But. Then he saw the wind. He realized that this is the kind of wind that could capsize the boat. Then he felt the waves. And I could believe that trying to stand on a wave would be hard, especially if you started imagining that this wave could carry you off into the middle of the sea to drown. The point is that he was afraid of something he should be afraid of. But do you see what Jesus does? He grasps Peter. As soon as Peter cries out, Jesus reaches out. As soon as the gravity of the very real and legitimately dangerous situation becomes evident, Jesus steps in. He doesn’t say (like he said above) that your fears are an illusion. He does say, Your fears are big, but I am bigger. Your fears are legitimate, but I have defeated enemies far bigger than you could understand. Where does courage come from? Look what Peter does. He cries out. He prays. Courage comes from resting first in the knowledge that Jesus has defeated enemies in our life far, far bigger and badder than wind and waves, far far bigger. Courage comes from crying out to him in prayer and resting where he promises to give strength. Courage comes from focusing on what Christ has done for us. So, where do you need courage today? Amen and amen. |
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October 2022
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