Sermon in Minneapolis 14.09.2008

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, let us begin our services with opening prayer and thanksgiving.

Holy and righteous God, our dear Heavenly Father, again this morning we thank you for this opportunity that we can gather around your holy and unperishing word. We ask for your service blessings. Reveal unto us the reason for our righteousness, the reason for our salvation, which is alone through your Son, Jesus Christ. We ask that you would be with us again this morning and feed our hungry, undying souls. Lead us and guide us on this narrow way of life, and comfort and console us with your gospel message. All of this we ask in the name of your dear Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.

Today is the 18th Sunday after Pentecost, and the Old Testament text for today is from Amos chapter 5, verses 21 through 24. And we will hear these words: "I hate, I despise your feast days, and I will not smell in your solemn assemblies. Though you offer me burnt offerings and your meat offerings, I will not accept them. Neither will I regard the peace offerings of your fat feasts. Take thou away from me the noise of thy songs, for I will not hear the melody of thy vials. But let judgment run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream." Amen.

Amos was the first of the so-called literary prophets, those prophets who had something written down. And he lived and was a contemporary of Hosea in the north and prophet Isaiah in the south. He lived during the time of King Jeroboam II, who was at that time ruling in the northern kingdom.

At the same time, King Uzziah was reigning or was on the throne in the southern kingdom. Amos himself was not a, what we could call a professional prophet, a trained prophet, even though he was given prophetical gifts.

He was a farmer who took care of the olive or the Sycamore trees. He was born and raised in the south in the village called At Tekoah near Jerusalem, but he was called by God to go and work and prophesy to the northern kingdom.

The northern kingdom at that time was living a great time of prosperity. And there were many, we could say, things that Prophet Amos was asked to address. Those that were, we could say, rich who lived in their palaces had oppression upon the poor and they trampled upon the needy. There was also corruption in the area of morality and there was also corruption in the area of the rich. There was also corruption in the area of religious life.

Just before us, in the verses before us, the Prophet Amos talks about the day of the Lord. And this term has come to be called the day of the Lord. And I think that one of these texts or these verses preceding the red text this morning is a text which is assigned near the end of the church year calendar, near the time of Judgment Sunday.

And so the Prophet here says, the Prophet is addressing many of the things that needed to be addressed there among the people in that land at that time. And it was perhaps 20 years before the northern kingdom would be conquered and its people would be brought into exile, never to return.

And so we could say that it was literally so that the end for this nation was looming and it was near. But what would this end be like for them? He is prophesying and saying that it would not be for them a day of joy, but it is rather a day of tragedy. The day of the Lord is darkness rather than light.

And he is as if saying that one is, for them, one is going as if from a frying pan into the fire. As if a man did flee from a lion, they escaped the lion, but lo, they met a bear. And they went home and as they reached the security of their home, the shelter at home, and leaned his hand on the wall, and lo, behold, there at home was a serpent that bit him.

So in many ways, this prophecy of Amos is not a very comforting one for the people at that time and in that land.

In our text today, he is talking about many of the religious rituals of that time. For example, he is talking about many of the feasts that were ordained to be celebrated in the books of Moses: the Feast of Pentecost, the Feast of the Tabernacles, and the Feast of the Passover, which were the three major feasts. And in addition, there were smaller celebrations as well.

And in the books of Moses, it talks about the many offerings that would be offered. For example, the burnt offerings that were put upon the altar, the many grain offerings that were also given and offered, as well as the fellowship and peace offerings.

And there in their assemblies, and especially during the times of these feasts, these special celebrations, when they gathered together, as we gather together and have gathered together this morning, we begin our service with a song. And it is accompanied by an organ.

Likewise, they also joined together in a song of praise and thanksgiving. And it was often accompanied by harps and other kinds of musical instruments.

And there at these many feasts and celebrations, they wished to remember and acknowledge how God had one time, one day, delivered them from the bondage of Egypt, had led them through the forty years in the wilderness, and had now brought them into the Promised Land, the Land of Canaan.

And there God had richly dedicated them and taken care of them. And of course they continued to offer these many kinds of sacrifices. And of course these sacrifices were a picture pointing to that perfect sacrifice that would one day be offered on the middle cross of Golgotha.

And the other types of offerings, the grain offerings for example, symbolize the thanksgiving that they wished to offer unto God for much of His guidance and protection on their way and on their journey.

And of course with their songs of praise and thanksgiving, also wishing to give honor and glory and praise God, the Heavenly Father, for His care and protection.

So why then is the prophet Amos speaking and addressing the people in such a way in the text that was set aside for today? For them this had become a set-aside, a set ritual.

Just because they, we could say, just because someone attends services and says God's peace on their lips, this doesn't necessarily mean and guarantee that a person is a believer in the heart.

We remember that one of the angels of Asia Minor was asked to, heard these words and was asked to write them down about, was it angel, the angel of the church of Sardis, that you have a name, that you are living, but actually you are dead.

And so these people, many of the people at that time, even though they were practicing their religion in an outward sense, in a pious way, at the same time many of them were living a life of immorality, a life that was not pleasing unto God, the Heavenly Father.

And it is for this reason that the angel of the church of Asia Minor had to address, or John had to address that one angel of the church of Asia Minor, that even though you have a name that you would be living, actually you are dead.

And oh that it would not be so for any of us, any of us here today in the audience, that we would have that name written in the Lamb's Book of Life in Heaven, today and every day of our life.

And that we would be endeavoring to travel, keeping faith and a good conscience, and living and following the instructions of God's holy word.

Today's Gospel text tells of a discussion that Jesus is having with some Pharisees. And it is recorded for us in the second chapter of St. Mark.

And the discussion begins when Jesus was dining and having fellowship with sinners and the publicans. And the Pharisees were watching and observing when Jesus went into their houses, had fellowship with them and dined with them. And they took issue with this.

For I am sure according to some of the laws of the Old Testament this was forbidden.

And when the scribes and the Pharisees saw him eat with the publicans, a publican was a tax collector sitting at the booth, the toll booth, and collecting taxes from the people as they entered into the city.

They were prescribed to gather a certain amount. And they would perhaps double that amount but pocket the excess for themselves. And therefore in that society they were considered to be great sinners in the group of sinners.

And the Pharisees who were observing Jesus would by no means have any kind of contact with such people. But lo and behold, Jesus goes into their homes, has fellowship with them, and he dines with them.

And they said unto Jesus' disciples, how is it that he eats and he drinks with the publicans and the sinners?

Jesus, I'm sure, overheard the question. And when he heard it, he said unto them, the Pharisees, "They that are whole, they that are healthy, have no need for a physician. Who in general goes to see the doctor when they are healthy and not ill? Unless that they are healthy. Unless that they well child check, which is many times necessary. But typically they that are healthy have no need of a physician."

And these physicians, these Pharisees were healthy in themselves and had no need for the great physician, Christ Jesus himself.

But they that are sick, have the need of a physician in the natural sense. And likewise, they who feel themselves unworthy to be sinners and sick in many ways, as the Old Testament prophet said, from head to heel, we have the need, not only once, but daily and momentarily, of the great physician, of his grace, and of his forgiveness of sins.

So Jesus says, that I came, not to call the righteous, but the sinners unto repentance.

And then in conclusion, in the same parallel portion in Matthew, he says that I want mercy and not sacrifice.

In many ways, and at many times, people would offer these sacrifices only as an outward way to appease God, the Heavenly Father. But here Jesus was saying that he wants mercy.

What is mercy? If we would think of God, our Heavenly Father, of the great, of us, every human being, what would we deserve? We would deserve nothing on our own part, except for the condemnation and the fires of hell.

But God is a merciful Father, and he would not wish that anyone would perish, and he would wish to show mercy, and he would not wish that no one would need to suffer condemnation and hell.

And in a way, the word grace is just opposite to this. And we have, we are by faith, able to own gain and merit, something that we have not deserved.

And what have we, sinners, we as sinners, not merited and deserve? And that is the glory of heaven.

But by and through grace, the merits of Christ Jesus, through faith, we are able to own and possess the right of a child of God.

And one day, faith will be turned to sight when we can lay down the cross and one day be translated from this life, to the glory of heaven. One day.

And so, Jesus, in a way, is breaking boundaries. Boundaries that the Pharisees were considered there and established.

Today's epistle text is from Colossians chapter 2. And Paul writes to the Colossians, in this way, "Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or what you eat, or in drink, what you drink, or in respect to any holiday, or of the new moon, or of the Sabbath."

And as he is saying, many of these things were clearly prescribed in the Old Testament, but they were a shadow of things to come. And now we are living the time of the New Covenant, the time of the New Testament.

So here, in the Gospel text for today, Jesus is visiting with the Pharisees.

It is interesting, I came across a document just recently where one believing Christian brother described in detail what is a Pharisee.

When we think of the word Pharisee, it is someone who is not actually being oneself, but pretends. It is perhaps someone who is selfish, a person who thinks good and highly of oneself, and has perhaps false piety, and is what we often would say, a hypocrite.

But this word Pharisee in the original meaning, in the original sense, meant someone who separated themselves. They were ones who wished to desist from things that were improper. They wished to live a life unto God, and follow His will, and study His Holy Scriptures.

And from this group of Pharisees actually came the group of people called the scribes, who dedicated their life to reading and studying, and actually recopying the Holy Scriptures.

And this is what they did, day in and day out, from morning till night.

But as time went on, then these Pharisees, they began to establish and create what Jesus several times in His Gospels calls, the traditions of elders.

And in today's Epistle text, the Apostle Paul to the Colossians, actually talks about this as well, when he says about a person we could call the Pharisee, who would say, "Touch not, taste not, and handle not."

So, if we would read the Holy Scriptures, and imagine a picture of a Pharisee in our minds, it is a person who is dressed in a very beautiful way, which is very nice, and nothing wrong with that.

And on their garments, they had their fringes, and tassels, and their phylacteries, which were little containers that they had on their forehead and on their wrists, which contained various Scriptures of the Bible.

But Jesus spoke about the Pharisees at several different times. And He said that many times, what they do, they do in order to be noticed by other people.

And then, Matthew 23, when He is speaking about the Pharisees, He said they go around, and they wish to prevent people from entering into the Kingdom of God, and they do not enter themselves.

So, in a way, they wish to live a life of seeking honor and glory for themselves.

But not only that, but they often laid, we could say, burdens upon the people as well.

Jesus says, "For they bind heavy burdens that are grievous to be borne, and they lay burdens on the shoulders of men, but they themselves will not move them with one of their fingers."

In today's Gospel text, again in Colossians, Paul says in this way, "Which are all to perish with the using, after the commandments and the doctrines of men, which things have indeed an appearance of wisdom in worship and humility in neglecting the body and not in any honor to the satisfying of the flesh."

So when Amos is speaking and addressing the people, one of his concerns was this, that those that were wealthy were having oppression upon the needy and trampling the poor.

One famous speech that was kept by an individual in this country in 1963 at the Lincoln Memorial on August 28th, he quoted the last verse, verse 24, from our text from Amos, which actually in a way is a good explanation for this portion.

There from the Lincoln Memorial, when speaking that those in Mississippi have nothing to vote for and those of his people in New York, they have nothing to vote for and those in Mississippi cannot vote, he said, "But let judgment run down as waters and righteousness as a mighty sea."

And the people of the world are not going to be able to see the glory of Jesus in the light of the holy stream.

Wasn't this part of the meaning of Jesus' story of the Good Samaritan?

When the lawyer, who was actually a Pharisee, asked Jesus, "What should I do to be saved?"

And Jesus said, "What are the commandments?"

And the Pharisee answered and replied, "That, serve me and I will serve you."

And he said, "I will serve you and I will serve you. Serve God with all your heart and serve your neighbor just, or love your neighbor just as yourself."

The Pharisee asked Jesus, "Who is my neighbor?"

Then Jesus tells the story of a man who left from Jerusalem going down toward the city of Jericho and on the way he falls into the hands of robbers and he says, "I am the one who has been beaten and left half dead."

A priest comes by, sees his fellow comrade in need, but kept on walking. He did not love his neighbor as himself.

A Levite, the assistant to the priest, comes next, sees that person in need and kept on walking. He did not love his neighbor as himself.

Third came the Samaritan. A Samaritan who was an arch enemy to the Jews, saw not his fellow countrymen, but he saw his enemy who was in need, knelt down, bound up his wounds after pouring wine in them and put them on his donkey, carried him into the inn, gave money to the innkeeper and said, "When I return, if you have used this money in our need of more, I will repay it on tomorrow."

So here the prophet is saying, "But let judgment be on the Lord."

The prophet said, "I will not be a sinner in the kingdom of God, but I will be a sinner in the kingdom of God."

The prophet said, "But let judgment run down as waters and righteousness as a mighty stream" for those who are oppressing and trampling upon others, not having concern for their fellow friends and citizens in this life.

But here also in the text, the gospel text for the church, for today, Jesus mentions several different items. First of all, he talks about fasting.

And typically there was maybe one or two fast days, days of fasting prescribed throughout the year.

But we remember when Jesus tells about those two people praying in the synagogue. The Pharisee said that he would not be a sinner if he had not been a sinner in the kingdom of God.

So we remember that the cross he fasts not only once a year, but at least once a week. This had become a merit for him.

But then Jesus goes on to tell two other little parables that a new patch is not put on an old garment.

In the natural sense, if we have a garment that has been washed several times and has been shrunk, and you take a new patch made out of cotton, for example, that has never been pre-shrunk, sew it over the hole that is in that old garment, put it in the wash, isn't it so that that new cotton patch will shrink?

And as it shrinks, it will perhaps tear loose from that old garment.

That old garment is referring to the Old Testament, the Old Covenant way of life.

And as the prophet Jeremiah speaks in this way in chapter 31, referring to this, this same thing he says, "Behold, the days will come, says the Lord, that I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

It is not according to the covenant that I made with the fathers, with Moses, on the day that I took them by the hand out of the land of Egypt.

And this covenant, the covenant of the law, they broke.

But, this shall be the covenant, the new covenant, which is a covenant of forgiveness of sins, which is by and through the merits of Christ Jesus.

This is the new covenant that I will make with the house of Israel.

After those days, said the Lord, I will put my law, the new law, which is the Holy Spirit, God's Holy Spirit in their inner parts, in their heart, and I will write it in their hearts.

And I will be their people, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

So what then is the essence or the core of this new covenant? Here he says in the next verse, "For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more."

And so, likewise, a very similar picture and illustration is the following example that Jesus used.

They didn't have thermos bottles back in those days, so when they traveled through the wilderness in the Sierra Desert, for example, they would make vessels out of animal skins, often, perhaps, the skin of an animal's stomach.

And it was very soft, and it was very pliable, and it was very flexible.

And they would pour water into that vessel, which would be their container.

And often the drink of that time would be wine.

For many times the water was undrinkable in many parts of the land and in their country.

But if that vessel was allowed to dry out, if there was no water contained in that vessel, it would become hard, rigid, and brittle.

And then when new wine would be put into that old vessel, you know, wine begins to, grape juice begins to ferment, and as it ferments, then it expands, and it would then break.

Break that vessel.

And the new wine would then drain out and fall to the ground.

And so that is a similar picture, a parallel picture to what we just described of the old garment and a new patch being put on the old garment.

And so then the third example in today's gospel text, Jesus is talking about the Sabbath day.

And of course, the Sabbath day is the day of rest.

The day when we want to assemble and gather around the hearing of God's holy word.

And it is a day when we can literally rest from our daily chores and activities.

And then tomorrow, Monday, begins a new day, and we will return back to our everyday chores, school, work, and other activities.

Being, we could say, rejuvenated and uplifted by the word of God and the assembly around God's holy word.

So as Jesus says himself, that the Sabbath is made for man, and man has not been made for the Sabbath.

There was a document called the Mishnah written by the Pharisees.

And they came up with many different categories of things that were written by the Pharisees.

And they came up with many different categories of things that were not only very positive, but they were also very positive.

For example, we saw many unique life choices that we have been working on.

For example, there was a topic called one was little, and there are many different scenarios currently happening.

Children did not have a job. They had not globe rush. Could not light the candle for light at the beginning after the new day of Sabbath.

So Jesus wishes to say that, for example, if a donkey or an animal of a farmer would fall into a pit or into a well on the Sabbath day, even though it is the Sabbath day, wouldn't that farmer, out of need and necessity, go and save the life of that creature, of that animal, which is his own?

And then he says, how much more value is a human being than a donkey?

And so Jesus says, how much more value is a human being than a donkey?

And so Jesus says, how much more value is a human It has been paid for me.

But when we think of Christian liberty, the theme of today, as Paul writes to the Galatians, this liberty does not give one liberty or the license to do sin.

No, not at all.

But it teaches us that we wish to travel, keeping faith and a good conscience.

We wish to avoid sin.

And when sin does attach, when we stumble and it makes the journey slow, we have that permission.

We have that freedom.

We can go to the throne of grace where we can hear the good speaking voice of the blood of Jesus.

Son and daughter, be of good cheer. Your sins are forgiven unto you.

And those shackles of sin, those burdens which are burdening and weighing upon the conscience through the power of the gospel are then broken open, are released.

And again, we can travel forward as free children of God toward our homeland on the narrow way of life.

The church father, Augustine, once said, "In big matters, which he called essential, let there be unity. In small matters, let there be freedom or liberty. But in all matters, let there be love."

Isn't it so that we wish to? Amen.

But we can to keep the brotherly love among fellow brothers and sisters in the fellowship of God's kingdom here on this earth.

So, brothers and sisters, the debt of sin has been paid. The ransom has been offered.

And that ransom was not paid with gold or silver.

But when Jesus offered his own life, the precious atonement blood, he shed it completely on the middle cross of Golgotha.

That today we would, through his merits, be able to, by faith, alone by grace, be able to be an heir of heaven, joint heir with Christ and a joint heir of heaven.

So, let us be happy and free this morning. Amen.

So we can be called by faith a child of God and be assured, have this assurance, that our names are written in that Lamb's book of life in heaven.

And the Holy Spirit will lead us and guide us on this narrow way of life.

And one day we will, through the power of the gospel, be led from this land of trials and tribulations to that land of glory, where there is no danger.

Where there is no danger of falling into sin.

But we can be with Christ and his own from everlasting to everlasting.

In Jesus' name, Amen.

The Lord bless us and keep us.

The Lord make his face to shine upon us and be gracious unto us.

The Lord lift up his countenance upon us and give us peace.

In the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen. Amen.