Sermon for 3/10/12 "Clear for Action"

Sermon “Clear for Action” (Exodus 20, John 2, 1 Cor. 1, Acts 1-10)

Lord, let us hear your word and respond with a whole heart, growing in grace and the knowledge of You, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, Amen.

Today we heard God's commands, his holy commands. There we have the first principles of the Christian faith. I recall when my older daughter was in third grade one of the songs her class sang at a school program was about the ten commandments. The teacher wanted to be sure that her students would learn God's commands so they could live a life in accordance with God's high calling. We were blessed to have a Christian school where God's word was taken seriously and where the teachers would encourage students in the faith. And this is a great blessing. I don't think it's a secret to anyone here that I'm wholeheartedly committed to Christian schooling, and am a supporter of home schooling. This is one way parents can work to nurture their children, showing them how all of life is centered on God's word, and how the Lord has created and sustains all things by his gracious command. So we teach our children God's commands. The perfect ten! God's commandments which will never pass away reveal some of his character to us. They tell us how to live an upright life in our society. As Lutherans we may well be familiar with the terms “curb” “guide” and “mirror.” The Law of God hinders evil. It's a curb. It shows us what is pleasing to God. It's a guide. And it shows us our sin, as we look at ourselves in light of the Word. It's a mirror. So we uphold God's commands. We teach them to our catechism class. Our adult class ran into them earlier this year as well, as I've been encouraging people who are not in confirmation class to consider a portion of the catechism each week, just like the confirmands. If we all nourish ourselves on God's Word and wise Christian teaching together we will find that we are able to encourage one another in the faith. So we hear the commandments. We strive to do the commandments. Like Mrs. Jones taught her third grade class, and may still be teaching them today, as far as I know, God's commands are good. They will not pass away.

Yet I need to ask you a question. Is that all there is to life? Is that all there is to the Christian faith? Keep God's commands? Where's the love of God in all this? Of course we could argue, and argue well, that God's love is shown as he uses his commands to guard us from evil and to show us what is pleasing to him. But then there's that annoying fact of the mirror. You know how the mirror works, right? I wonder how many of you have ever walked into a dance studio? You really find out what a mirror does there, because usually at least three walls of the rehearsal space are covered with mirrors. I know what the mirror does for me. They say a mirror puts ten pounds onto you. I'd like to think then that having a dozen mirrors makes me look a hundred and twenty pounds overweight and that I'm really skinny. Afraid that's not so. But you know it and I know it. The mirror shows our flaws. It points out to us what others might miss. And we tend to be more concerned about ourselves than others are. Married men all know this feeling. Our wives ask us if their hair is all right. Then they want to know if we looked carefully enough. The fact is, most of you aren't nearly as conscious of my hair, face, or clothes as I am when I look in a mirror. And I'm not as aware of your appearance as you are when you check yourself in the mirror. God's Law acts as a mirror, and it shows us our flaws. If God's law is all there is to life, we are in deep deep trouble. He turns on the light of his word and shows up all our faults, at least all that we can stand to see. This is why people come to me and look ashamed, telling me about sin before I ask. God's word shows our sin. And if we end there, we are condemned. We are hopeless. We realize that we are sinners. And we confess – thought, word, deed, commission, omission – it's all there. We're condemned.

Ah, God's perfect law. When we have a sermon title like “Clear for Action” we probably think the sermon will be about casting out sin, getting it out of the way, clearing the decks so we can do righteous works. But now we've spent about half the sermon (I know you're watching your watches, some of you decided not to have breakfast before church) talking about God's Law but not seeing how it prepares us to live a victorious life. That's actually exactly the problem I had with the third grade class and their song about God's perfect ten commandments. What were they prepared to do? Go and live according to God's commandments? How? Either they would be end up lowering their view of the commands so as to convince themselves they were obeying them or they would be driven by despair to see that they could never live a life pleasing to God.

So how are we going to clear the decks for action? We've got this burden of sin. It's weighing us down. If we can't get rid of it we're bound to capsize. We saw in our Gospel reading that the solution our Lord provided was that of sacrifice. He gives offerings which can carry our sin, releasing us. And as you read in the Bible this week, wrapping up the book of Numbers, release from sin is a messy process. It's full of death, the death of many animals on your behalf, again and again. So the people of Israel were engaged in this life of offering, of sacrifice, with the priest taking an animal and killing it before God on behalf of the sinner who needed release from sin. Out of kindness people had begun selling sacrificial animals at the temple. After all, some people had to come a long distance. Would their animals be acceptable when they arrived? So it is a good thing for people to be able to exchange money for an acceptable animal. Money travels pretty well. Yet once again, God's law, the law of sacrifice, did its work as a mirror. What did the people who sold sacrificial animals do? They agreed with the banking industry to accept only certain types of money, which would often have to come from the bank branch which they set up in front of the temple. They also agreed with the priests that the priests would accept only certain sacrificial animals, those sold in the temple courts. So a famer could count on the livestock he raised being rejected. Instead, he would have to exchange it for money where he lived, take the money, possibly exchange it and pay an ATM fee, buy an offering at the temple, and then make his sacrifice. The result? An expensive offering which may have been a substandard animal, and a profit for the money changer and the person who sold animals for sacrifice. Sin once again weighs us down. We need to be cleared of this. Thanks be to God, Jesus comes into the courts and condemns the selfishness of those people. They aren't enabling worshipers to come before God. They are hindering them.

All our works, all our attempts at obedience – are they evil? No, not really, but the sin in our lives makes our attempts, even our most faithful attempts corrupt. We are not able to save ourselves by any of our obedience. We need something different. We need the renewal of the Holy Spirit. We need a sacrifice substituted for us. We need Christ crucified for sinners. We need just what Paul was talking about in our reading from 1 Corinthians 1. We need just what we read about in the Bible reading challenge as we read the beginning of the book of Acts. Because what we saw there, in Acts 1:8, was that God promised he would recreate his disciples. He said they would receive power when the Holy Spirit came upon them, and they would be his witnesses.

So now is the time I tell you to clear the decks for action. Sweep out your sin and shame by the power of the Holy Spirit. Go and be witnesses! But there's still something missing. Leaving you like that would be, well, wrong. It would leave you with a command to keep those commandments. You can't make the Holy Spirit clean you. You can't make yourself be a witness. And what's more, when Jesus tells his disciples they will be witnesses, he is not making a command. So when the pastor of the independent church I used to belong to told us to obey this verse by going, he was wrong. So was the Assembly of God pastor. So was the pastor of the Evangelical Free church. So was the Southern Baptist pastor. So was the Presbyterian pastor. I hate to say it, but so was the Lutheran pastor. In Acts 1:8 there are no verbs which make commands. The verbs are descriptive. In grammar we call them “indicative” verbs. They indicate something that is happening. They are not “imperative,” verbs, which make commands. Those have a different form. Here's what Jesus is saying. He is saying to his disciples that they will be people who have the power of the Holy Spirit and that they will be people who can be described as witnesses. That's who they are. It isn't what he commands them to do.

In Acts 1:8, Jesus takes the burden off of the disciples. He says they are going to live their lives, and because of his work in them, their lives will be lives that testify to him. What happens? They receive the power of the Holy Spirit. They live out their Christian life, talking about what comes naturally to those who have been changed by God – they talk about God's wonderful works, about what the Lord says in the Scripture. They live lives together, doing good. And their lives are testimonies to the Lord. As Paul said in 1 Corinthians 1, he determined to know nothing but Christ crucified when he went to Corinth. This was a different message. It was the message of a life recreated by Jesus' love.

Does this mean we ignore God's commands? No, we've still got that curb and guide. It delights our Lord when we take his commands seriously. But salvation is not, and has never been, by the works of the Law. It has always been by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, who gave himself for us. He is the one who recreates us. He is the one who fills us with the Holy Spirit. He is the one who makes us his witnesses. And he is the one who goes on through the book of Acts to do all those mighty deeds, turning the world upside down, brringing people to himself in faith. He uses his witnesses, people just like you and me. But he is the one who does it all.

Stand with me, if you can, in prayer. Lord, you have created a people for yourself. You have made witnesses in this community, and you have made them right here. Grant that we may walk as your faithful witnesses in our community, rejoicing in your word, seeing, knowing, and showing that it is by your grace that we are saved from all our sin and shame. Grant us repentance and faith, in the Name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 6 Day 1 Exodus 37-40

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 37-40. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

We read about the final construction of some of the furnishings of the tabernacle and of the tabernacle itself, as well as the priestly garments. While we could talk about all the symbolism in the various features of the furnishings and garments, and that could be fruitful, what strikes me is what happens afterward. Aaron and his sons are washed, dressed, and anointed. See that they don't prepare themselves, just as they did not choose themselves. How does our Lord prepare people for ministry? He is the one who chooses us, calls us, and provides people in our lives who train us and set us aside for God's service. There's some symbolism to the pastor being dressed in special liturgical garments, and having someone put the robe, stole, and other garments upon him. We don't always do this, but it would be full of symbolic meaning if we did. Enabling God's people to receive the grace of God through word and sacrament is not something we take upon ourselves. It is something placed upon us.

See God's response to the faithful work of the servants of Israel. He so fills the tabernacle with his glory that even Moses, who has approached him on the mountain, cannot enter the tabernacle. God's presence is with his people wherever they need to go.

Exodus is done. Next stop? Luke's Gospel!

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 5 Day 5 Exodus 32-36

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 32-36. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

Notice as we read today how there's a strong tension between the holiness of God and the sinfulness of man. The people flee from God's covenant. They are afraid to hear directly from God. And the Lord says that he cannot come among his people lest he should destroy them in their sin. In chapter 34, though God proclaims his character, that he is steadfast, loving, faithful. He does not abandon his people though they abandon him. God establishes his covenant with his people, promising to bring them into the land of promise. What do the people agree to? Only that they will strive to live a holy life so they do not depart from the blessing that God has given them. We then see the central features of the covenant life in the reception of the Sabbath, a day of rest, symbolic of resting from our sin and its consequences, then the construction of the tabernacle, a place where God is among his people, bringing them peace and rest.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 5 Day 4 Exodus 27-31

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 27-31. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

Exodus 27 - God cares about the location where the people of Israel will receive their forgiveness. He is concerned about every detail.

Exodus 28 - See the symbolism in the many special garments which the priests wear. First we observe that these are garments which would not be worn when the priest was not engaged in his priestly duties. We also see that the garments are not owned by the priest, but that the garment and the ceremonial authority which goes with it would be imposed upon the priest. Garments worn for special purposes are very important in Scripture. How do the clothes a pastor wears when performing his pastoral office serve symbolically?

Exodus 29-30 - God cares for the way priests are ordained. Even though the children of Aaron are to be priests, they are still set aside in a special way. See that the sacrifices for sin are great and precious, greater than any person could afford, repeated again and again. Our sin brings condemnation. The price is greater than we can pay.

Exodus 31 - God appoints people with skill and ability to do his work. He then increases their skill. But notice he then immediately points out that there is a right pattern of work and rest. May the Lord bless us with increase in our ability to serve him as well as a right balance of work and rest.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 5 Day 3 Exodus 22-26

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 22-26. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

Exodus 22-24 - See how God continues to give commands for a just and gentle society, certainly very gentle in terms of the neighboring societies. Yet in a just society there are penalties. Notice that the greatest penalties are related to denying others of life or engaging in activities that pervert the image of God as revealed to the people. The ultimate cause of shame is denial of God's gracious revelation of his own person. As God's people receive the covenant of the law and affirm that they will keep it, sacrifices are made, consecrating the decision. As God has bound himself to his word to be the God of Israel, the people are binding themselves with their promise to obey their Lord.

Exodus 25-26 God gives a design for the tabernacle to serve as the center of the life of worship for Israel. Notice the precious materials to be used, which the people are commanded to supply gladly. Reflect on the use of costly furnishings in places of worship. What messages may they give to people who come to participate in worship? What message can be given by use of cost-cutting measures?

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 5 Day 2 Exodus 17-21

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 17-21. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

Exodus 17 - God gives the people of Israel water to drink, not a small amount of water for that many people. He also gives the Israelites victory over the Amalekites. See how God uses physical means to accomplish his will. Sometimes the means which God uses don't seem to make sense to us. But they are his means nonetheless.

Exodus 18 - The pattern implemented by Moses at the suggestion of Jethro is one which we find to this day in Church, business, and politics. The leader has trained and respected assistants who are leaders in their own right. These people bear some of the burdens of leadership but always report to their leader. There is a place in the Church for training up elders from within the body, people who are biblically qualified for the tasks presented to elders in Scripture, who will engage in the work of the ministry as they are able.

Exodus 19-21 - See how God's presence is fearful? We do not dare approach the living God on our own terms. Yet he comes to us in ways that we can approach, through servants like Moses, who bring his words of mercy. The commandments - notice they are not numbered in the Bible - show God's desire for our good, but at the same time serve to condemn us, as we realize we cannot keep them before our Lord. He goes on in chapter 21 to give various social commands which show his desire that we show mercy and kindness to one another. There are many safeguards against being killed in a civil situation, representing a remarkable change from the customs recorded in other Ancient Near Eastern civilizations.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 5 Day 1 Exodus 12-16

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 12-16. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

Exodus 12-13 - After 430 years in captivity in Egypt God delivers his people at the Passover. Look at Passover through the lens of communion, with Jesus the lamb of God slain to redeem his people from death. This time is a testimony to all generations, as we tell the story of our rede;mption to explain what we enact together in communion.

Exodus 14-15 - God delivers his people by having them pass safely through the Red Sea. Their pursuers are destroyed. The people stop and reflect on this event, singing the praises of God. This is another event that Christians can view as particularly significant, calling to mind the deliverance from the waters of death which we experience in baptism. As he did with Noah, God sets aside his chosen people by bringing them safely through a watery grave.

Exodus 16 - God gives his people manna, bread which they did not know before, to eat in the wilderness. Notice how each day he gives them what they need for that day. They cannot gather more and put it aside for later. Yet on the sixth day of the week God has them gather twice as much. That day and only that day it will keep until the next day. Our Lord gives us our daily bread. We gather according to his abundance, knowing that it all comes from him. While we can put aside some of what we earn for future times, we realize that our dependence is always on God, not on our own foresight.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 4 Day 5 Exodus 5:22-11:10

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 5:22-11:10. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

We often get caught up in the idea of the hardening of hearts. I observe that one of the places where we see hardened hearts in today's reading is in the people of Israel. They are not predisposed to believe Moses or to be delivered from their slavery. Even though they want to have a better life they don't seem ready to follow Moses as a deliverer or to strike out into the wilderness. So God works on the people of Egypt and the people of Israel to leave no option other than departure. By the signs he performs he finally leaves no question that he is the one calling his people to leave the land.

Notice all the hardening of hearts in Pharaoh. At first we have his heart being hardened. Then we see him hardening his heart. Finally we see God hardening his heart. What is the result of our hardness toward sin? Ultimately (Romans 1) God gives us over to our sinful attitudes. Our hearts are left to be the way the are by our fallen nature. This is a terrible judgment indeed. Yet even in this hardened condition, notice Pharaoh's confession of sin and apparent repentance. He repents, but he has no resolve left to live in the forgiveness which God grants him. He returns immediately to wallow in his unrepentance.

By the beginning of chapter 11 everyone in Egypt has had adequate warning that God, the living and true God, is operating and making demands upon their nation. Yet they refuse to listen as individuals also.

May the Lord have mercy upon us.

Bible Reading Challenge - Week 4 Day 4 Exodus 1:1-5:21

Our reading challenge for the day is Exodus 1:1-5:21. I'll hit a few highlights. You make comments too and fill in the gaps. What strikes you as specially significant?

We fast-forward through almost five hundred years' time in Exodus chapter 1. God's work in his people seems to take a long time. But during that time he has built the family of Jacob into a mighty nation.

See how the Lord prepares the path for Moses' life and work. He prepares us in ways we do not know for the tasks we are to do.

The calling of Moses at the burning bush is not a calling we should expect to have repeated in our lives. It is Moses' call. How do we perceive our Lord appointing us to our vocations? How is God's promise to Moses that he has heard the sufferings of his people and will deliver them an encouragement to us when we endure sufferings?

In Exodus 5 we see the Israelites forced to make bricks without the required supplies. How does our Lord build our character when we are faced with difficult circumstances?