Monday, August 15, 2022

August 13-15, 2022 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 12:49-53 (EHV) “WHEN HAVING FAITH ISN’T FUN…”

 

PROPER 15

August 13-15, 2022

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 12:49-53 (EHV)

 

“WHEN HAVING FAITH ISN’T FUN…”

1.     Keep your eyes on Jesus.

2.     Keep your eyes on the prize.

 

Luke 12:49-53 (EHV) “I came to throw fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already ignited. 50But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is finished! 51Do you think that I came to bring peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52Yes, from now on there will be five divided in one household: three against two, and two against three. 53They will be divided: father against son, and son against father; mother against daughter, and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.”

 

          So, there are these things called uncomfortable or inconvenient truths. Such things are factually true but then in some way you wish you didn’t know it, or it makes your life difficult. Like what glue used to be made of, or what goes into a hot dog. Jesus presents us with one of those today.  “Do you think that I came to bring peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division. 52Yes, from now on there will be five divided in one household: three against two, and two against three. 53They will be divided: father against son, and son against father; mother against daughter, and daughter against mother; mother-in-law against her daughter-in-law, and daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law.” The very presence of Jesus in our hearts and lives will cause divisions, even with the people closest to us!

          You already know this and have experienced it, and it is nothing new, but it’s getting to be more and more. When our nation was at least culturally Christian it usually only showed up when a family member married someone who was not a church goer and so the family had that Sunday morning division. At least back then people watched their mouths at work and on TV. At least back then people talked about going to church even if they didn’t. Now things have changed quite a bit. We are not a culturally Christian nation, and we are heading down the road of being a culturally anti-Christian nation. I found out recently that some of our brothers and sisters who live in Portland, Oregon, are leaving for a church service that starts at 10 at 7 in the morning. You want to know why? So their neighbors don’t see them going to church. “That’s weird,” you say. Well you don’t live in a city whose anti-Christian sentiment  is so strong that the homes and vehicles of Christians are getting vandalized and graffitied and where it is not uncommon to have to clean the human  excrement off the church door handles before service.

          Division. In your family too. Have you started to be a little bit more careful about how you talk about moral issues that deal with sex. marriage, gender identity and abortion? Are you noticing how people you know who have grown up knowing the truth that only Jesus sets them free, that only the Bible is absolutely authoritative, that there are absolute rights and wrongs, suddenly don’t think their faith or their church life that connects them to Jesus is all that important or they blatantly question what God clearly reveals is right and wrong? Have you had it happen that your Facebook friends whom you assumed would certainly take Jesus’ side in any online discussion are taking the anti-Jesus side so that maybe they unfriend you or you feel like unfriending them or just dumping Facebook totally? (I would not discourage you from that. Doing so has brought a lot of peace to a lot of people’s lives.) It seems that those who have living faith in Jesus and are living their faith in Jesus are the odd ones out. When you get the opposition in your family there is hurt, pain and confusion. When you get it at work or in social circles there can be first some anger and then some questioning as the Devil works on your heart to get you to give up your faith. You start wishing the hymn went “Sit down, shut for Jesus, your life will be easier” as you realize you are living at a time when having faith isn’t always fun.

          So, shall we spend our time today throwing ourselves a little pity party? Woe is us! Shall we rush to have our names enrolled on the list of martyrs? Nonsense. When the blessing of faith and living your faith is no fun, keep your eyes on Jesus. “I came to throw fire on the earth, and how I wish it were already ignited. 50But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is finished!” Life was not always easy for Jesus. As He speaks these words he has his eyes set on Jerusalem. He has spent the last three years proving beyond all doubt that He is the Messiah God promised and world needs. He did the miracles to prove it. As Matthew points out in his Gospel Jesus fulfilled every Old Testament prophecy. He faithfully proclaimed God’s words and will and offered salvation freely to all who believe in Him. He knows the fire is coming, the refining fire when it will be clear to these Jewish people He is the Messiah and family members will need to choose. Stick with your society which will be your own family members and with what they feel is right or stick with Jesus. It’s time for Jesus to complete His work as Messiah. He calls it a Baptism to undergo. It will be no fun. He will feel the hurt of betrayal and denial. He will not defend Himself when He is arrested, falsely accused, spit on and tortured. He will submit to the will of His Father and become the world’s one and only sinner so the full wrath of God will be on Him when He is forsaken. And why does He do this? For you! For me. Sinners. To spare us what we have earned for ourselves. Does he throw Himself a pity party? Shy away? Whine and complain? No. “Let’s get this started. I want it finished.  Let’s save these souls no matter what the cost!”

          And Satan wants us to turn our backs on Him? No way. That’s why when the Apostles got their backs ripped open with a flog by the Sanhedrin they left rejoicing because they had been counted worthy to suffer for Jesus who suffered so much more for them. And that’s why when we have these times that having faith is no fun we need to rejoice to. It’s simply a sign that we are faithful to Jesus who was faithful to us first. And let’s understand what is really going on here. Satan is trying to get us to give up our faith. He can not snatch it away from us. God has forbidden him that power. Only we can give it up. So if he can get us to compromise Bible teaching, if he can get us to accept the lie that what the Bible says is not necessarily true anymore he can set us down the path of unbelief. All the moral issues that cause division, all the friction you feel with family members and friends really stems from that root cause, unbelief. It is rejection of Jesus. It’s what Satan wants in you because and it’s what condemns to Hell.

          So when having faith isn’t so much fun also keep your eyes on the prize. You don’t want to give up that faith. “Do you think that I came to bring peace on the earth? No, I tell you, but rather division.” Hey, wait a minute. I thought when Jesus was born the angels sang, “Peace on earth, good will toward mankind?” They did. But the peace they were singing of was not peace between people, but peace between God and people. They looked ahead to when Jesus would remove the divider of sin. Ever since Adam and Eve plunged this world into ruin and imperfection is has never been God’s plan to leave us stuck here in shame and pain and hurt. He has perfection in store for us. Call it heaven. Call it paradise. Call it amazing. Jesus did not come to bring peace on earth but between God and his people so we can one day live in the glory of heaven. That’s the prize! Keep your eyes there. It will keep your chin up for those times when being blessed with faith is not fun.

          The hymn doesn’t say, “Sit down, shut up for Jesus.” It’s “Stand up, stand up. Our last hymn is not going to urge us to surrender the good fight but to fight the good fight. Our opening hymn did not tell the church to kneel down and wave the surrender flag but to arise and put our armor on. We are not alone. Jesus is with us The Spirit is with us. The Father will never leave us or forsake us and as one dear Christian sister once put it, “One person plus Jesus always makes the majority.” And we have more than one person. We have each other. That’s why it is so important to gather regularly so we can encourage one another. That’s also why we give extra thanks today that our Lord has provided us with more called workers to serve us, be served by us, serve with us, serve Jesus. Pastor Langebartels, Mrs. Hackmann, Mrs. Mork you have been given a unique privilege and honor to serve God’s people at St. Jacobi. I hope you don’t take that lightly. I know you will have lots of fun. These are great people. But not perfect people. So sometimes serving won’t be fun. Wah, wah! Get over it. Join the called workers of the past who rejoiced if they got to suffer for Jesus. Join the rest of us in keeping your eyes on Jesus and your eyes on the prize. For one day, because of Jesus, all we’re going to have is FUN! Amen.

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