Grace, Mercy, and
Peace be unto you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ
Amen.
“Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in your name, and we tried to stop him, because he was
not following us.”
In the name of Jesus
Perhaps you all remember the popular Christmas song It’s the most wonderful time of the year…. Only 39/38 days left. You might be thinking to yourself, Pastor,
you need a new calendar Christmas is three months away, let’s not rush
things. I know. It’s the OTHER most wonderful time of the year. Election time! Oh man, I don’t know about you but the ads,
the promises, the guarantees, the slandering, the constant coverage is getting
to me. Time, on its own, moves way to
fast, but I wish that the next 39/38 days, or at least the voting, would just be
done with. Each candidate has the perfect plan.
They will right the ship, everyone will have a job, a house, and by the
end of four years, we all will be living the American dream. How do you know who to trust? How do you know who is the right candidate? How do you know that the person behind the
ads, the promises, the guarantees are going to fulfill their words? It’s
the most wonderful time of the year….
Only 39/38 more days and it is over….maybe.
The disciples had a bit of a dilemma on their hands. There was always only One man in their eyes.
There was always only one who could do heal the sick, give sight to the blind, speak
with heavenly eloquence, cast out demons.
They thought that they were in a special place because they were the
sidekicks of this man. All of the sudden
another man started going around doing the some of the same thing, casting out
demons to be exact, and his name was not Jesus of Nazareth. Red flags, buzzers, signs, were all going
off. They thought only their master
could do these things. Now his mystique, his ability to captivate,
the place of the disciples among him was at risk. He was going to rise up and be like
Jesus. And if this man could do it,
surely more people like him would come, and soon Jesus and the disciples
wouldn’t be so special.
It seems like the logical thing to do. Tell Jesus that one
is out doing the same things, who is not following them. They openly admit, we tried to stop him. Think
about it, is that what you would do? If
nothing else, shouldn’t Jesus have been told and informed of the
competition?
We are duly warned of the signs of the coming age and the
end times. As our Lord drew closer to
the Jerusalem and the coming sacrifice, Jesus began to say to them, “See that no one leads you astray. Many will
come in my name, saying, ‘I am
he!’ and they will lead many astray. Like when we reach an election year, whether it
is for president or governor, we find ourselves guessing, second guessing not
really the policies, but the motives behind the candidates. We weed our way through the information
before us and try to find our way to the “truth”.
Sadly, there are
times we must apply this to religion as well.
Everyone claims to hold the key.
Everyone claims to worship the one true God, or at least convince us
that we all worship the same God. Often
we wish we could have the power to tell those following these supposed prophets
that they are being lead down dark paths.
So many look attractive on the outside yet on the inside are only filled
with things to kill eternally.
Maybe we as
Lutherans can be faulted for thinking that we are the only way to heaven. That you must learn Martin Luther’s Small
Catechism inside and out, you must be able to quote the Book of Concord, maybe
even recite a few hymns, then you will be ushered in through the pearly
gates. Is it true? Are we the true religion? Are we the only ones who will be standing at
the throne of our Father singing his praise?
Jesus said to the disciples, “Do not stop him, for no one who does a mighty
work in my name will be able soon afterward to speak evil of me. For the
one who is not against us is for us. God works in mysterious ways. He works through a variety of ways. He uses people, situations, to cause His
children to recall His goodness. He uses
them to call to those not his children and bring them into the fold.
Isaiah speaks so eloquently of the
goodness of our God “Seek the Lord while he may be found; call
upon him while he is near; let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his
thoughts; let him return to the Lord, that he
may have compassion on him, and to our God, for he will
abundantly pardon. For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither
are your ways my ways, declares the Lord. For
as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my
ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your
thoughts. “For
as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do
not return there but water the earth, making it bring
forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to
the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my
mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and
shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.
God’s word is
perfect, those who bear it are not. No
messenger of God, other than his Son, has been or ever will be perfect. But thanks be to God that it is his Son that
perfects us. His Son cleanses us. His Son, with the Holy Spirit, grants us the
ability to point others to the Cross.
That’s what it is about. That’s
what it is all about. God created the
heavens and the earth, so that his Son could be sent into it and be
killed. God sent his prophets to the
people of the Bible, so that through their rejection, His Son’s rejection might
be foreshadowed. God sent John the
Baptist, to fulfill the prophecies concerning His Son.
There the true
miracle lies. God uses many to fulfill
His Word, he uses many to spread his Word.
As we look at the many explanations of the Word of God, the many explanations
of the very essence of God, we have to place our trust in that which does not
make sense to us. We have to trust in
that which does not make sense. The Son
of God came down from heaven, lived a perfect life, and died on the cross for
sinners. Thanks be to God it does not
make sense. If He only did things which
made sense, we would be lost for all eternity.
We CAN NOT make
God something which our sinful human minds can understand, which so many want
to do. Who is going to be the one to tell God he
can’t use someone for the furthering of his kingdom. Jeremiah told God he was too young. Jonah told God he was not right for the
job. In fact every messenger of God has
used one excuse or another.
We CAN NOT tell
God who he can and cannot use as his messengers. Who are we to tell God anything other than
that we are poor miserable sinners in need of his forgiveness? What method could we use to decide who is
right, who is real and who is a false prophet, one coming to lead many astray? Trust in God.
Trust him to cause his Word to prosper.
Trust him knowing that he cause the right people to bear his Word
faithfully, and that those who are out to deceive will receive their
reward.
This really is
the most wonderful time, not just because Christmas is only 3 months away, not
just because it is election time and we get to fulfill our God given right to
elect officials, but because we are living in a time where we can freely study
and proclaim God’s Holy Word. Isaiah’s
words are still true For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not
return there but water the earth, making it bring forth
and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the
eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth;
it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish
that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing
for which I sent it. What a blessing and comfort that is.
God be with you
and causes you to fear and love him so that you do not despise preaching and
his Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.
No comments:
Post a Comment