“The Death Which Brings Life” - Genesis 3

Sermon “The Death Which Brings Life” - Genesis 3 audio link http://dl.dropbox.com/u/23575548/120116Genesis3.mp3

May the Word of the Lord dwell in us richly, in the name of the Father, of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Here we are in the season of Epiphany, the second Sunday. It's still the season for the realization of the person and work of Jesus. We saw the baptism of the Lord last week, realizing that he was the one who would walk ahead of us wherever we go, even through the waters of death. And we keep recognizing Jesus' work this week in our readings.

In 1 Samuel we read about how God is the God who calls people. He comes to find us where we are, asleep, ignorant, maybe even hiding. He interrupts us with his call, with his purposes, with his intentional voice. And he can do so even in a dark world like the one in which Samuel lived. He still calls people to himself today, to life in repentance and faith. He still calls people to service, both in our many more routine seeming vocations and sometimes into more special vocations, such as pastors and teachers or other churchly workers. Our Lord is the one who can come and call his people, appointing them to the service that his kingdom needs. How do we like being on call, 24/7/365, for God's purposes? I'll guarantee you that there are some occasions when it isn't the most pleasing idea that comes to our minds.

In our reading from 1 Corinthians we see that our Lord has made us for obedience. He has made us members of Christ. He has separated us from evil in order to give us good works. He shows himself to be the Lord of our lives, of our bodies, the one who has purchased us and who can govern us for his own purposes. We are to live as holy people, only for him, not for ourselves. And we realize that it is through Jesus Christ's work on the cross that we have been purchased for this purpose. How do we like being enslaved? Even to good works? We know they are good and right, but deep down we confess there are things about our own self-centered sinful attitudes and behaviors that we like.

In our reading of the Gospel we see that Jesus is the Lord who walks with us, who knows our inmost thoughts, who knows where we came from and where we are going. Again, maybe this is a comfort to us but maybe not. I remember a time when I was young and full of vinegar. The world was level, and I could go to accomplish anything I wanted to. I had plans, and those plans were good plans. I was the king of my own destiny. Know what happened? Jesus came and walked me along a different path. He knows me. He knows what I can and can't do. And he's shown me quite a few things that I can't do. I don't think he's done with that job yet. But over and over again he shows me what he can do, and it's always better than the things I thought I could do but found I couldn't. Jesus knows what we need. He knows where we are going. He knows what he wants to do with us. And the longer we live, the more we find out, bit by bit, that his plan is good.

Yes, in today's readings, we have seen our Lord. We've seen him shine his light on us. He's exercised his authority and knowledge. He's shown us right and wrong. He's shown us his sinlessness and we have ended up confronted with our sin, our selfishness, our weakness, our lack of understanding, our inability. Are you comfortable with that? I mean, entirely comfortable with that? Do you really like it when our Lord points out your mortality, your corruption, your utter failure to live a perfectly holy life in his sight? I know I'm not. When God's light of perfection starts shining on me I start to feel like a cockroach. Ever see what they do when the lights turn on? They scatter. They run and hide. They see their weakness and they take off. And when God's perfect light shines on our lives we often do the same. We see our sin, our failure. And when we see that we want to hide. We want to blame someone else for our failings. We want to do whatever we can to escape. Do we know better? Of course we do. But we don't do better.

Enter Genesis chapter 3. In our Bible reading challenge, if you have kept up, this week you've wrapped up Matthew's Gospel and moved on to Genesis, about five chapters a day, five days a week. We're taking in the word of God. And I want you to know, week after week, that God's Word is unified. This is a time of realization. It's Epiphany. And what do the people realize in Genesis chapter 3? They realize sin. But God isn't satisfied stopping there. If it had been me, I know what I would have done. The man and woman are decreed to die in the day they eat of the tree. They eat of the tree. Game over. Sin realized, death realized, no fuss, no muss, too bad it was such a short run.

Aren't you thankful that I'm not God? He's very different than we are. What do the people do? Yes, they sin. Yes, they were tempted. But they sin. The woman eats, she gives to the man who was with her in the temptation and who did nothing about it. The man eats, they realize their guilt, they try to hide, they try to blame one another, they try to blame Satan, they try to blame God. And none of it works. Let's see how it plays out.

In their sin, who comes to find them? Do they go running to God asking for his forgiveness? No, not at all. They are busy hiding. But starting in Genesis 3:8 God comes to them. He calls out to the man, making the man answer, even though God knew where he was all along. Just like God calls Samuel, just like God calls Nathanael, just like God calls us, he calls out to Adam. He can't hide. God seeks him out. Do we feel like hiding in our sin? I have news for you. All those sins that you brought in with you today? I don't know what they are, at least not many of them. But our Lord knows what they are. And when you confessed sins in thought, word and deed, omission and commission? Our Lord knows exactly what they are, in every detail. You may not be comfortable with that. But do you know what? When our Lord called me to serve you as a pastor, he called me to come and forgive you in the stead and by the command of Jesus. He appointed his servants to pass out forgiveness. How much of that sin did I forgive? Some of it? The sin that I thought you repented of well enough? The sin that I thought you wouldn't do any more? No, not at all. Our Lord seeks us out. He uncovers our sin, and he forgives it all, not part, but every bit of our sin. God is the one who seeks us out. Why do we try to hide our sin from our Lord? Please, may the Lord grant that we will realize in this time of Epiphany that he already died for our sin. We don't need to hide it. We can repent freely, confess our sin, and receive his forgiveness, full and free. We serve the Lord who comes to seek and to save sinners. He is the one who seeks us out.

Now what is the fix for the sin? It isn't hiding, we established that. How about passing blame? After all, I might be able to get off if I'm not as bad a sinner as, for instance, maybe you! How many times have we heard children do this one? They aren't as sophisticated as adults. But they do the same thing. Back to Genesis chapter 3. If you're following along, start looking around verse 11, where I start paraphrasing. “Adam! You're naked? Well, the fact is, I knew that. I'm the one who made you that way. But who told you that?”

“Well, I don't like to say things about the gifts you give me. But, Lord, it's that woman what you give me. She done give me the fruit. Now I don't know why you'd want to give me someone like that, but it sure wasn't my fault.”

So now we see that the man has blamed the woman and he has blamed the God who gave him the woman. He has avoided the blame for himself. He does confess to eating the fruit. But it really wasn't his fault.

Do we do this? “Why did you hit your brother?” “He made me mad.” “Why did you abandon your husband for another man?” “He just wasn't the kind of husband the Lord should have given me.” “Why do you drink so much?” “They ruined my self-worth so now I have no choice but to get back at them.” We try to pass the blame around. But when our Lord looks at us, do we really have any excuses? No, hiding didn't work, passing blame didn't work.

It looks like we're down to death. Are we back to the way it would work if I were God? Sin, death, game over? Not precisely. Look what kind of death we see here in Genesis chapter 3. There's a promise of defeat to the serpent, the tempter. There are consequences for sin – cursing, pain, suffering, hard labor which isn't fruitful. No doubt there are consequences. The world has been suffering those consequences ever since. But then, in verse 21, what does God do? He brings death. And to whom does he bring death? God himself covers Adam and Eve with animal skins. And there's not one of us who knows how to get an animal to give up its skin without death. Our Lord has brought death into the world, himself, by his own hand, on his own terms, to cover up the sin and shame of our first parents. He who gave life to the people in the first place has taken another life on their behalf. He has given them life again at his own expense, through the sacrifice he makes.

In this time of realization, may we also realize that the God who knows us, who knows the very depth of our sin and shame, is the very same God who calls us to himself, who appoints us for good, not for evil, who walks along with us, guarding our paths, and who himself covers our sin and shame. May we realize that it is through Jesus' death that we have life. May we realize what it is to be clothed in Christ, the one who died for us. May we see that in his bloody sacrifice he has redeemed us from the curse of sin. And it is only through that death that we have life.

When the light of God shines on us through His word, as he convicts us of sin, as he shows us his righteousness, may we also see that he is the perfect sacrifice who has died in our place. He is the one who has the death that brings us life, just as he was in the garden when our first ancestors condemned themselves. Jesus' forgiving love is right here, right now, for you and for me, because he has given his life for ours. He is the one who will work in us and through us, nurturing us in his loving forgiveness.

Now may the grace of our Lord and savior be with you all, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.