“No Favorites” Isa. 56.1, 6–8 Pent. 12A, Aug. ‘23

 

1.                Please pray with me. May the words of my mouth and the meditation of our hearts be pleasing in Your sight, O Lord, our Rock, and our Redeemer. Amen. The message from God’s Word on this 12^th Sunday after Pentecost is taken from Isaiah 56:1, 6-8, it’s entitled, “No Favorites,” dear brothers and sisters in Christ.

2.                In the summer of 2009, news around the state of Minnesota was focused on one thing: an enemy of the state was considering a move that would bring him into what had been for him in the past a very hostile situation. That enemy was Brett Favre, former quarterback of the Green Bay Packers. The man who had led the Minnesota Vikings’ greatest rival was poised to sign on to play for the Vikings. It seemed impossible, almost sacrilegious, that he could exchange his green and gold for the purple and white. Many Minnesotans were upset, threatening to give up their season tickets and burn their Vikings memorabilia in their front yards. He was a stranger from their greatest rival. How could they trust him? How could they welcome him?

3.                In more serious matters, we may have trouble welcoming strangers—welcoming strangers into God’s kingdom. But in our text today, God equips us to do just that by reminding us that, Our God Is a God for All People, He Does Not Play Favorites.

4.                Strangers were not welcome in Isaiah’s day either, especially in the temple and the festival gatherings. The people of Judah and Jerusalem took pride in being God’s chosen people. They were descendants of their fathers Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. They were heirs to the land God had promised Abraham, the land Joshua conquered and David secured. They took a specific exclusion against welcoming Moabites and Ammonites at festivals and seem to have expanded it to ban everyone else. The only way for a foreigner to be welcomed was to become an Israelite first, through circumcision and obedience to the ceremonial law.

5.                While we may not be willing to admit it, strangers often may not feel welcome in our congregations. No one wants our church to be unfriendly, and most people would probably say we are a very friendly congregation. After all, people stick around to visit with one another long after the service is over. This is true; we are very welcoming to our friends in the church, especially when we have so much in common.

6.                But what about those who are not like us, who are on the outside looking in? How would they view our church? So often we are seen as being an exclusive club, not because of something we do or say, but because of what we don’t do and don’t say. Do we make every effort to welcome visitors, to speak to the “foreigners” in our church? Or do they see us being friendly to our friends, leaving them feeling ignored and rejected, not just by our church, but, so it appears, by God?

7.                Our Old Testament Reading for today from Isaiah 56 clearly shows that our God is God for all people. The foreigners did not simply wander in; the Lord brought them into his temple. In Isaiah 56:7 the Lord God says, “these I will bring to my holy mountain,
and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices
will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” The temple was more than a building; it was the place where the Lord poured out his grace and forgiveness to his chosen people through their sacrifices and offerings. This forgiveness and grace would not be limited to a few, but would be opened up to all people, even those formerly not part of his chosen people.

8.                The response of the “foreigners” would be very noticeable. They would respond by faith, trusting in the Lord’s promises to them, and “join themselves to the Lord.” Isaiah 56:6 says, “And the foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, everyone who keeps the Sabbath and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant.” They would respond by faith, obeying the Lord’s command and being his servants. The Lord would be a God for all people. Fast-forward about 700 years—and 2,700 years—and we see this prophecy being fulfilled.

9.                In our Gospel lesson from Matthew 15, Jesus grants the request of a “foreigner,” a Canaanite woman who trusted in him. In John’s Gospel, we read about Jesus saying that whoever believes in the Son would not perish (Jn 3:16), but have eternal life. Not just those from his chosen people, but “whoever.” Later in John’s Gospel, Jesus states that he has other sheep who are not of this fold (Jn 10:16). There were others who were outside of being recognized as his people, those he would yet bring to himself.

10.             Through Jesus, the Lord is Lord for all people. God brings us to his house to receive the forgiveness won for us by Christ on the cross. God gives us joy in knowing that Jesus has done it all, and we are his forgiven sons and daughters. God brings others into his house to receive the same forgiveness and grace won by Christ on the cross; it’s not just for us to be his new chosen people, but for all he calls.

11.             It is God working through his Word and his people to bring people to his house, and he calls us to welcome them! He uses each of us to be his instrument to invite and encourage those around us who are not part of his new chosen people, the Church, to join us in learning about our Savior. He exhorts us to remember that we were once on the outside looking in—until he claimed us as his own, creating that trust in his promises that we have. He encourages us to be welcoming of others as they hear more about Jesus as well.

12.             For those in Minnesota and elsewhere who call themselves Vikings fans, the 2009 season ended much better than they expected, due in large part to the “stranger” they brought in to lead the team. They finished with a 12-4 record and fell just short in the playoffs to the eventual Super Bowl champions. Brett Favre, the one-time stranger, quickly became a fan favorite of the purple and white.

13.             Likewise, through Jesus, God did the unexpected in our lives. He rescued us, strangers because of our sins, from eternal death caused by those very sins. He made us his own. Our God is not a God for those who think they are good enough or are trying hard. Our God is a God who loves even the worst sinners in his Son, Jesus. Our God is a God for all people, He plays no favorites. Amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, until life everlasting. Amen.

 

 

“God’s Great Big True Story” 2 Peter 1.16–21, Pent 11A, Aug. ‘23

 

 

1.                Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Heavenly Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. The message from God’s Word as we conclude our summer sermon series on, “Defending the Christian Faith,” is taken from 2 Peter 1:16-21, it’s entitled, “God’s Great Big True Story,” dear brothers and sisters in Christ.

2.                The Bible tells a big, overarching, universally true story. It applies to everyone. Many don’t like that claim. They doubt that any big story could possibly be true. They might suspect that any such overarching story will turn out to be nothing more than a megaphone for the storytellers to engage others in listening to their tune. This kind of thinking, often called postmodern, claims that it refutes all universal claims. It rejects absolutes. In other words, postmodernism undercuts itself. But, it has made people particularly aware of stories. The Bible tells particular stories, but the entire Bible also amounts to God’s great big story. This story is good for us, and for others. We can tell them how they can be fit in.

3.                Think of stories the way writers like Shakespeare used to tell them: in five-act plays. In a Shakespearean play, Act I introduced the setting, the characters, and a basic conflict. Act II included a rising action, in which the conflict became more intense for the characters. Act III featured the climax, the drama’s high point. Everything either led up to or followed from this climax. Act IV was sometimes called the falling action, as things fell into place. Act V brought the play to its conclusion.

4.                Now think of the Bible’s big story, as a five-act play. Act I begins the story with creation. God made the world where humankind could live. As the crown of creation, he made Adam and Eve. But, tempted by Satan, they disobeyed God in unbelief. This plunged the world into sin, and the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). These are the characters, and this is the conflict. Adam, the son of God (Lk 3:38), rebelled against his Creator. But God predicted that he would not be dethroned from his creation. He promised that the Seed of the woman would come. Jesus the Messiah, the Offspring of Eve would do what only God can do: overthrow the works of the devil.

5.                Act II includes the rest of the Old Testament, from Genesis chapter 4 on. At length, God made for himself a people, Israel. But Israel proved to be a wayward son, constantly turning away from the Lord. God kept raising up leaders for Israel, but these leaders all showed themselves to be sinners. If God’s people were to be saved, he would have to do the saving. But God wanted to save through human beings. The Old Testament cried out for God himself to become man and save.

6.                The climactic Act III begins with the virgin birth of Jesus, who is Immanuel, God with us. He is God’s Son from all eternity. At both Jesus’ Baptism and his transfiguration, God the Father says, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Mt 3:17; 17:5). Jesus does the will of God perfectly, then answers for the sin of the world. For all that, his Father exalts him and gives him the name above every name. By Christ’s command, repentance and forgiveness of sins is preached in his name to all nations. Through this proclamation, God gives salvation as a pure gift. The early church goes out from Jerusalem with this saving Good News to the ends of the earth. Act IV consists of our lives today.

7.                In the concluding act, Act V, Christ will return on the clouds to raise all the dead and judge everyone who ever lived. This will be a great day for those who received Christ’s forgiveness in faith, and a terrible day for everyone else. The unbelievers will face eternal torment in hell where there is only weeping and gnashing of teeth, but the believers will be ushered into an unending victory celebration for the Lamb who once was slain. The words that end so many children’s stories have no better application than for those who are in Christ: they really will live happily ever after. The Bible tells a grand story.

8.                We appreciate what a grand story God has given us when we see how the Lord fits the stories of our lives into it. Remember I said that Act IV of the Christian story amounts to our present life. You’ll not find this act as such in the Bible. Suppose that today, somewhere in England, someone discovers an unknown play by Shakespeare, but not the entire play. Act IV is missing. Could such a play be staged? Act IV would have to be filled in. The question becomes: Could Act IV be written? With Acts I through III available, a writer would know the setting, the characters, the basic conflict, and the climax. Act V tells how the play is to end. Yes, a close reading of Acts I through III and V would enable a writer to fill in Act IV. With the new Act IV, the play would be complete.

9.                Our situation as Christians resembles this. Scripture gives us Acts I through III and V of our story. What we are “filling in,” is Act IV. The script—really, the Scripture—includes no details here. It doesn’t specify which pair of socks we should wear or what we should eat for lunch tomorrow. Nor does it tell us what line of work to pursue. But, it does tell us who God is and who we are as his creatures. From the Bible, we know the problem of sin and death that affects all people. The Apostle Peter tells us that we were, “ransomed from the futile ways inherited from [our] forefathers . . . with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot” (1 Pet 1:18–19). Scripture also reveals the final act, the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. So, the Christian life amounts to people claimed by God in Baptism now improvising Act IV based on a close reading of God’s big story in his Word.

10.             We also see what a grand story God has given us when we recognize the troubles that come with rejecting it. Imagine a different situation with a newly discovered play of Shakespeare. What if someone found only Act IV of this play? Acts I through III and V are all missing. Could this play be staged? It would prove almost impossible to write the other acts if all you had was Act IV. You would have only limited familiarity with the characters. You would know neither the plot up to that point nor the climax. Without Act V, you would not know how everything is supposed to end. You might invite people to come and see a performance consisting solely of Act IV. Even then, though, the actors would have difficulty playing their parts. You might work it into a play, but it wouldn’t be Shakespeare’s play.

11.             The secularist and the postmodernist face this dilemma. They are trying to play out Act IV without Acts I through III and V. In fact, they insist that there is nothing to this play other than this single act. For a while, it seemed that such an Act IV could still make sense as a stand-alone story. From the 18^th century through much of the 20^th century, there was an attempt to maintain a universal story while seriously denying a universal Storyteller. But, now people have been recognizing that without a Storyteller, there can be no sensible story. Without a Storyteller, we can’t even be sure how to play our own parts. Without God giving the world a story, postmodernism has now been recognizing, the world doesn’t really have any big, overarching story.

12.             Secularists and postmodernists become defensive if anyone suggests that there is more to the play than Act IV. At best, they think it a lie to claim that there is any big, overarching story. At worst, they fear that those who make any such claim are trying to explain the world in order to benefit themselves. They think it’s all a power game. So, postmodernists try to take shelter from abuse of power by insisting that no big, overarching story exists—that there is nothing but basically people trying to play out their own versions of Act IV.

13.             Postmodernists reject that there is an absolute story. Postmodernism finds no basis for universal human rights or human dignity, or universal moral laws. So, the rebellion against our Creator continues. But the Creator of all will also judge all. No one evades his judgment. We appreciate what a grand story God has given us when we come to recognize all the troubles that come with rejecting it.

14.             But, why reject the story that God gives? What story could be better? The Biblical Story, Centering in Christ, Is Gracious and True. The biblical story isn’t self-serving. On the contrary, it proclaims self-sacrificing love, embodied in Jesus Christ. The Christian story features a King, and it includes a Suffering Servant, in one and the same Jesus Christ. This King goes to the cross. He’s the conquering Lion, but he’s also none other than the Lamb who once was slain to bear away the sin of the world. The Good News is that the Author of life and the Author of our story loves you the way he loves Christ himself. The Father is well pleased with his crucified and risen Son. As a result, he is well pleased with you. Anyone who is in Christ by God-given faith receives this forgiving love of God.

15.             This gracious story is the greatest story that could be. We could not make up something this good. The Apostle Peter says, “For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty. For when he received honor and glory from God the Father, and the voice was borne to him by the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased,” we ourselves heard this very voice borne from heaven, for we were with him on the holy mountain. And we have the prophetic word more fully confirmed, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Pet 1:16–21)

16.             This whole grand story is God’s own revelation. Because the biblical story, centering in Christ, is God’s own true Word, it has God’s power. It creates saving faith in the human heart. It has done so for you, and it can do so for others. A pastor stood on a doorstep, talking with a woman. Noticing a can of cherries in her hand, he asked what they were, where they came from, and where they were going. “They’re cherries,” she told him with impatience. “I got them at the grocery, and I’m going to put them into a pie.” The pastor asked, “Do you know, as surely, the same things about yourself: who you are, where you came from, and where you are going?” Hearing these words, the woman decided to let the pie wait. She wanted to talk after all. That pastor kept the door open.

17.             It’s like the little girl we met way back when we started this series—the little girl who wanted to apologize enough to keep the door open. By now, we realize, that we never have to apologize for our Christian faith in the sense of being sorry. The whole story of Christ, from first act to last, is too good for that! But it’s so good that we do want to open doors so that others will hear it. That’s what we mean by Christian apologetics: apologia, “always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do[ing] it with gentleness and respect” (1 Pet 3:15). That’s where our series began. God’s great big story gives you the answers concerning who you are, where you came from, and where you are going—all on account of Christ. This story is gracious and true. Those who are in Christ will live happily ever after. Amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, until life everlasting. Amen.