October 19-21, 2013 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Ruth 1:1-19A WE KNOW THAT IN ALL THINGS GOD WORKS FOR THE GOOD!

PENTECOST  21

October 19-21, 2013

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Ruth 1:1-19A

WE KNOW THAT IN ALL THINGS GOD WORKS FOR THE GOOD!

1. He Sustains Our Faith in Times of Trial.

2. He Uses These Trials for Eternal Good.

If you are familiar with the Bible book Ruth you probably know it contains a great love story. It’s four easy reading chapters if you’ve never read it before and your heart will be warmed by the love of Boaz and Ruth. What many people forget is that the love story begins with tragedy, the tragedy of death, multiple deaths. “In the days when the judges ruled, there was a famine in the land, and a man from Bethlehem in Judah, together with his wife and two sons, went to live for a while in the country of Moab. ²The man's name was Elimelech, his wife's name Naomi, and the names of his two sons were Mahlon and Kilion. They were Ephrathites from Bethlehem, Judah. And they went to Moab and lived there. ³Now Elimelech, Naomi's husband, died, and she was left with her two sons. ⁴They married Moabite women, one named Orpah and the other Ruth. After they had lived there about ten years, ⁵both Mahlon and Kilion also died, and Naomi was left without her two sons and her husband.”

Ruth’s story begins with tragedy. First we find this takes place in the time of the Judges. That’s not a great point in history for God’s people. Tragically they kept forsaking God and turning to idols. God used tragedies to bring them back. This time we hear it’s a famine. It got so bad that Elimelech and Naomi with their sons Mahlon and Kilion left their house, their land, their extended family, their friends and neighbors, they left everything and moved to the foreign country of Moab. That had to hurt. While there Naomi’s husband died. That hurt. At least she had her sons. They married. I’m sure Naomi’s heart looked forward to having grandchildren to give her joy. They never came. After ten years Naomi’s boys both died. That had to hurt even more.

Can you just try to imagine how Naomi felt? Actually we know how she felt. When she came back her homeland this is what she said. "Don't call me Naomi, " she told them. "Call me Mara, because the Almighty has made my life very bitter. 21 I went away full, but the LORD has brought me back empty. Why call me Naomi? The LORD has afflicted me; the Almighty has brought misfortune upon me."   Here is a woman who was having a hard time seeing a loving God. Her heart was hurting. She spoke words she would look back and regret. Brothers and sisters, remember that when you are with a brother or sister who is hurting. They may say some things that come out of their hurt that they will regret later. They may get angry with God. They may get angry with you. You may get angry with God when you have times of trial. This word of God is here to help you. Let Naomi’s experience here prepare you so that you don’t turn on God when you face tragedy.

And you will face tragedy. We all do. Many of the hardest ones are like what Naomi faced. Death. The death of aged parents or spouses we expect but it still hurts. When people die at an age we don’t expect them to those deaths get even harder and hurt more. Stillborn children. Miscarriages. They all hurt. How about the death of a relationship? Whether that is a marriage that has failed or a friendship, it hurts. You wonder why. Teens hurt when they break up and get so frustrated with their parents who act like it’s no big deal. Actually teen and parent are both right. It’s a tragedy for the teen. But parent know it will pass! Accidents. Natural disasters. Job loss. Chronic illness. Tragedies and times of trial are a part of living in a sin messed world.

So is the God who sustains you. The Lord sustains faith in times of trial. Naomi’s faith was sustained. It might not have sounded like it when she first returned home but as we’ll find out, that’s not the end of the story. When you are going through times of trial too, it may seem overwhelming, like you just can’t handle it or go on. But unbeknownst to you God is right there with you protecting your faith, keeping you going. He never leaves you or forsakes you in times of trial. He sticks with you no matter what. He does that because He has a plan.

That’s the second thing we need to remember in times of trial. God will use it for eternal good. To allow pain and suffering for no good reason when you could stop it is spiteful and mean. God is not spiteful and mean. He is love. Let’s see how God worked in love for the good of Naomi and Ruth…and many more!

“ ⁶When she heard in Moab that the LORD had come to the aid of his people by providing food for them, Naomi and her daughters-in-law prepared to return home from there. ⁷With her two daughters-in-law she left the place where she had been living and set out on the road that would take them back to the land of Judah. ⁸Then Naomi said to her two daughters-in-law, "Go back, each of you, to your mother's home. May the LORD show kindness to you, as you have shown to your dead and to me. ⁹ May the LORD grant that each of you will find rest in the home of another husband." Then she kissed them and they wept aloud ¹⁰and said to her, "We will go back with you to your people." ¹¹But Naomi said, "Return home, my daughters. Why  would you come with me? Am I going to have any more sons, who could become your husbands? ¹²Return home, my daughters; I am too old to have another husband. Even if I thought there was still hope for me--even if I had a husband tonight and then gave birth to sons-- ¹³would you wait until they grew up? Would you remain unmarried for them? No, my daughters. It is more bitter for me than for you, because the LORD's hand has gone out against me!" ¹⁴At this they wept again. Then Orpah kissed her mother-in-law good-by, but Ruth clung to her.” Naomi did here what many people do in times of trial and when they are hurting. She pushed people away. She tried to push Orpah and Ruth away and even thought it was the loving thing to do. Orpah agreed.

But not Ruth.“¹⁵"Look," said Naomi, "your sister-in-law is going back to her people and her gods. Go back with her." ¹⁶But Ruth replied, "Don't urge me to leave you or to turn back from you. Where you go I will go, and where you stay I will stay. Your people will be my people and your God my God. ¹⁷Where you die I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD deal with me, be it ever so severely, if anything but death separates you and me." ¹⁸When Naomi realized that Ruth was determined to go with her, she stopped urging her.” Something had happened here, something wonderful with Ruth. This Moabite woman had grown up worshipping an awful idol name Chemosh. “Worship” of him required the  Moabite people to make human sacrifices. But now Ruth knows and uses the saving name of God, the LORD! He has become her God. So Ruth stayed with Naomi. And then?

 And then. “¹⁹So the two women went on until they came to Bethlehem.” Ah, there we see it. With just one word God makes everything  clear. Bethlehem. That’s what God was doing the whole time! Bethlehem. That’s the birthplace of Jesus. God was working for the good the whole time. He used the tragedy of a famine to move Naomi and family to Moab. He used the deaths to get Naomi to move back. He used the whole situation to bring Ruth into the family of faith so she would be saved and the rest of the story is that Ruth meets Boaz. They fall in love. They get married and have kids. Naomi gets a true and faithful daughter in Ruth and grandchildren to bounce on her knee. But that’s not the end of it. That first grandchild, Obed, is the great, great, great, great, (you get the idea) grandpa  of Jesus the Savior. You see the true God does not require His people to make human sacrifices to Him. No when sacrifice was needed to pay for sin God sent His one and only Son. He had to be God and man at the same time and at the right time. This is just one glimpse of the plan.  In all things God was working for the good the whole time.

So we see that the Biblical account of Ruth is a great love story. There is the love between Naomi and Ruth and the love between Boaz and Ruth you can read about at home. But most importantly it shows the love God has for His people. Hold on to the God of love in time of trial. He knows what you are going through. He knows the hurt of tragedies. He knows that in time of tragedy the Devil is right there trying to lead us to despair, to be angry with God. So in love God provides what we need. He shows us in Ruth how He always works for the good. He takes no pleasure in our hurting hearts and He only lets times of trial last for as long as is necessary. Nothing in your life or my life is happening willy nilly or out of God’s control. As one of the sisters mentioned in Bible Class the other day. Nothing takes God by surprise. He sustains our faith in times of trial and uses each and every one of them for eternal good. What shall we say in response to this? Say it with me. WE KNOW THAT IN ALL THINGS GOD WORKS FOR THE GOOD.  Say it again when you’re hurting because it is most certainly true. Amen.

Mission Festival Devotion October 13, 2013

WELS CHRISTIANS

          Have you ever heard someone say, “They’re so heavenly minded they are no earthly good?” That’s not a compliment. It’s a dig that Christians and churches can sometimes receive. It means that the person or church cares only about a person’s eternal well being that they care nothing for the earthly well being. It’s worth thinking about. Can that even be true? I suppose if a person withdrew from society so that they never rubbed shoulders with another person and simply thought about God and read the Bible every day that it might look that way. But really can that be true? Can a Christian or church be so heavenly minded they are of no earthly good? No way! If you are heavenly minded you have in mind and take most seriously the things of God, what He says. It’s actually true that the more heavenly minded you are the more earthly good you do.

God makes that clear to us in Ephesians 2:8-10. This is a such a key passage of Scripture we should probably all have it memorized. Let’s start that process by saying it together.

…So Heavenly minded, we do earthly Good.

Ephesians 2:8-10 (NIV 1984) “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith--and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-- ⁹not by works, so that no one can boast. ¹⁰For we are God's workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

WELS Christians are equipped to be  so heavenly minded we do earthly good. Do you see how that’s true. We know we are saved by grace, solely because God loves us. We know salvation comes only through trusting in the works of Jesus Christ, not our own. That’s heavenly minded. Out of love and thankfulness we want to do the good works God prepared in advance for us to do. Let’s look at an example of WELS Christians doing earthly good helped by the work and planning of WELS Christian Aid and Relief.

Video

When we are heavenly minded we do earthly good. We love our neighbor as ourselves. We respond to earthly needs. And that leads to our second point. When we are earthly minded, striving to care for earthly needs we need to remember, the mission Jesus gave us, to be His witnesses. We remember the truth. Those who died without faith in Jesus Christ die eternally. As Jesus said, “What does it profit a man to gain the whole world and lose his own soul?” As we do earthly good then we remember to keep our eyes on heaven. The Apostle Paul encouraged that thinking in his letter to the Colossians.

…So earthly minded, we do heavenly Good.

Colossians 4:2-6 (NIV 1984) “Devote yourselves to prayer, being watchful and thankful. ³And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ⁴Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. ⁵Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. ⁶Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.”

First the heavenly minded Paul encouraged the heavenly minded activity of prayer. Then he encouraged earthly actions that are heavenly mind. Be wise in your actions. Let conversations be seasoned with the salt of the Gospel message. Let’s watch now a great example of that in action again spurred on by the activity of WELS Christian Aid and Relief.

Watch video

Brothers and sisters, this is what we are. WELS Christians. We are so heavenly minded we do earthly good and while doing earthly good we remember to stay heavenly minded. May the Lord of our Church bless all our efforts so more and more are added each day to the number of those being saved.

Amen.

September 29, 2013, Pentecost 19, sermon by Pastor Paul G. Eckert
Sermon text - Luke 1619-31

    In Genesis chapter12 we are told, “The LORD had said to
Abram, ‘Leave your country, your people and your father’s
household and go to the land I will show you.’”
    Abraham listened and left the territory we today know as Iraq and
Iran, traveled to another territory much in the news, to Syria.  Finally
he reached Canaan, known today as Israel.  While there, because of a
famine, he went to Egypt for a short while.  But then he returned to
Canaan where the only land he ever actually owned was a burial plot.
    Canaan, however, was not his final destination.  In our text we find
him in Heaven, his real home.  There a man named Lazarus sat at his
side.  And all of this started with Abraham listening to God’s Word.
    I personally am not interested in going to Iraq or Iran or Syria or
Israel or Egypt.  But I am sure that all of us gathered here do want to
go to Heaven.  So, with regard to Heaven, let’s ask ourselves: To get
to Heaven, do we listen to God as Abraham did?
ARE WE LISTENING?
I    THE CERTAINTY OF DEATH.  (19-22)
    1. Life has many differences. (19-21)
There was a rich man who was dressed in purple and fine linen
and lived in luxury every day.  At his gate was laid a beggar
named Lazarus, covered with sores and longing to eat what fell
from the rich man’s table. Even the dogs came and licked his
sores.
        a) There were two men: one rich; the other poor and unhealthy.
        b) While neither situation is right or wrong in itself, we heard in
our epistle reading that one could be more dangerous than the other (1
Tim. 6:9-10): “People who want to get rich fall into temptation and
a trap and into many foolish and harmful desires that plunge men
into ruin and destruction.  For the love of money is a root of all
kinds of evil.  Some people, eager for money, have wandered from
the faith and pierced themselves with many griefs.”
    2. What is common to all is death.  (22)
The time came when the beggar died and the angels carried him
to Abraham’s side.  The rich man also died and was buried. 
        a) Health and wealth might help extend earthly life a bit.
        b) But neither can stop death, the great equalizer, from coming.
    3. And life after death also is common to all.
        a) Some might like to think death is the end and then
nothingness; or they might get a second chance, like in reincarnation
        b) But in our text three people, while in differing circumstances
on earth, after death still were Abraham, Lazarus, and another man.
        c) In the same way we will not cease to exist.  We’ll be who we
are.  But, there will be a difference as to location and circumstances.
II    THE FINALITY OF JUDGMENT.  (23-24,26)
    1. There is either Heaven or hell.  (23)
In hell, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham
far away, with Lazarus by his side. 
        a) This would be denied by those who say there is no life after
death.  Or some would change this, like the Roman Catholic church
saying there is a third place,  a purgatory, where you have to suffer, be
purged to a greater or lesser degree, before reaching Heaven.
        b) But God throughout Scripture speaks of only two places:
either with Him or apart from Him; either Heaven or hell.
    2. How terrible the judgment of hell is. (24)
So he called to him, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send
Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
because I am in agony in this fire.”
        a) People may speak of some situations being hell on earth.
        b) But that which endures for a time on earth cannot be
compared with the picture Jesus gives us here of eternal misery in hell. 
    3. And this judgment at death is final.  (26)
“And besides all this, between us and you a great chasm has been
fixed, so that those who want to go from here to you cannot, nor
can anyone cross over from there to us.”
        a) In our legal system a criminal might be given a life sentence in
prison.  But often it isn’t for life.  Many prisoners get out sooner.
        b) But once in hell, there will be no getting out, sooner or later.
        c) And what about being home in Heaven?  Scripture says, “We
will be with the Lord forever.”  (1 Thessalonians 4:17)
III  THE MEANS OF DELIVERANCE.  (27-31)
    1. We are not saved by our outward circumstances. 
        a) The poorness and sickness of Lazarus are not what got him to
Heaven, but are given here as a contrast to heavenly joy.
        b) To reach Heaven, deliverance comes from outside of us.
    2. It is God’s message that is the means of deliverance.  (27-29)
[The rich man] answered, “Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus
to my father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them,
so that they will not also come to this place of torment.”  Abraham
replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to
them.”
        a) Moses and the prophets proclaimed God’s way of deliverance
from the beginning.  As the answer to Adam and Eve’s sin, the
offspring of a virgin woman was proclaimed, as was His birthplace in
Bethlehem.  Because of Him Isaiah said, “Though your sins are like
scarlet, they shall be as white as snow.”  In chapter 53 he gives a
description that makes you feel you are at the cross where Jesus died.
        b) This, not someone back from the dead, the brothers should
listen to, as Lazarus obviously had and the rich man had not.
    3. This, God’s Gospel message, is the only means.  (30-31)
“No, father Abraham,” he said, “but if someone from the dead
goes to them, they will repent.”  He said to him, “If they do not
listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even
if someone rises from the dead.”
        a) The Bible, the preaching of sin and grace, Jesus as God’s
promised Savior from sin - can that become so routine that we don’t
hear it, that we need a gimmick, something sensational? 
        b) Please don’t expect someone back from the dead in this pulpit.
        c) Whether it is Pastor Spaude, Waldschmidt, or Eckert, listen to
the message, to God’s Word which proclaims deliverance and promises
Heaven because God loved us so much that He gave His Son for us.
IV  THE IMPORTANCE OF NOW.  (25,27-29)
    1. Don’t place the wrong priorities on now.  (25)
But Abraham replied, “Son, remember that in your lifetime you
received your good things, while Lazarus received bad things, but
now he is comforted here and you are in agony.” 
        a) Do our priorities take us from Jesus and His Word as our true
treasure and make earthly wealth or pleasure our first concern?  We
can check that by something as simple as church attendance.  Do we
come just to show up, and then not put our hearts and thoughts into
hearing God’s Word and worshiping Him?
         b) What did it profit the rich man who put other things first, and
what will it  profit us if we lose eternal joy?
    2. See its importance for others.  (27-29)
He answered, “Then I beg you, father, send Lazarus to my
father’s house, for I have five brothers. Let him warn them, so
that they will not also come to this place of torment.”  Abraham
replied, “They have Moses and the Prophets; let them listen to
them.”
        a) Others need to hear of the Savior.  That also is why we come
to church.  It is not only to grow in our faith, but also to share the
Gospel with others, to bring our offerings so others can do that for us.
        b) Now, personally or through others by our financial support, is
the time to share with relatives and friends and others what Moses and
the prophets foretold and what Christ fulfilled for our salvation.
    3. And let’s never forget ourselves.  (24)
So he called to him, “Father Abraham, have pity on me and send
Lazarus to dip the tip of his finger in water and cool my tongue,
because I am in agony in this fire.”
        a) We want others in Heaven and not facing hell.
        b) And surely we want the same for ourselves, for our families.
        c) Instead of needing to cool our tongues, let us now use our
tongues, our voices, to praise our God.  And let us now, as we heard
in the epistle reading earlier, “pursue righteousness, godliness, faith,
love, endurance and gentleness.  Fight the good fight of the faith.
Take hold of the eternal life to which [we] were called.” 

    Abraham traveled in a part of the world that has been much in the
news.  He ended up in Heaven because of his Savior God.
    We now are traveling in this world.  We know that after this life
there is either Heaven or hell.  God’s Word tells us how to travel in
this life, and in Christ Jesus proclaims His salvation so that we reach
Heaven as our eternal home of glory. 
ARE WE LISTENING?

PENTECOST 17 September 21-23, 2013 Pastor Timothy J. Spaude Text: Luke 16:1-9 “LEARN MONEY MANAGEMENT FROM A DISHONEST UNBELIEVER?”

PENTECOST 17

September 21-23, 2013

Pastor Timothy J. Spaude

Text: Luke 16:1-9

“LEARN MONEY MANAGEMENT FROM A DISHONEST UNBELIEVER?”

1.     Yes! Learn urgency.

2.     Yes! Learn to invest long term.

Luke 16:1-9 (NIV 1984) “Jesus told his disciples: "There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.' 3 "The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg-- 4 I know what I'll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.' 5 "So he called in each one of his master's debtors. He asked the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' 6 " 'Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,' he replied. "The manager told him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.' 7 "Then he asked the second, 'And how much do you owe?' " 'A thousand bushels of wheat,' he replied. "He told him, 'Take your bill and make it eight hundred.' 8 "The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly. For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. 9 I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.”

          So who do you turn to for money advice? Some of you will remember a memorable series of commercials from a financial company that ended with the phrase, “When EF Hutton talks, people listen.” Well, he’s not talking anymore. Today if you ask about money matters many people will point you to Dave Ramsey, Clark Howard, maybe Suzie Orman. How about a dishonest swindling unbeliever? Would you turn to him for money advice? “Yes, you should,” says the Lord Jesus Christ. He’s the one who used the dishonest swindling unbeliever as an example in what’s known as the Parable of the Shrewd Manager.

          A little background can help us. Our text comes from a section of Luke’s Gospel that has an interesting flow to it. If you want to look at the preceding chapters you can but I would summarize it this way. Privilege, cost, lost. First privilege. Jesus pointed out how the right to be a child of God, a believer, a member of His kingdom, someone who gets to enjoy the glory of heaven, is a privilege. It cannot be earned. It is not deserved. It comes as an invitation of grace from God Himself. Cost. Jesus next went on to explain that following Him, believing in Him means changes. Believers simply cannot live the same way and think the same way and value the same things as unbelievers. That’s the cost of following Christ. Lost. Then Jesus went on to tell a series of parables, two of which you heard about last week, that highlight the great joy the Lord and the angels have when sinners repent, when unbelievers become believers. Now Jesus didn’t tell these parable to teach Himself of the angels, but us, so we would value what He values. Right after that comes the parable that teaches us to do something about what Jesus values.

It’s known as the Parable of the Shrewd Manager. “Jesus told his disciples: "There was a rich man whose manager was accused of wasting his possessions. 2 So he called him in and asked him, 'What is this I hear about you? Give an account of your management, because you cannot be manager any longer.' 3 "The manager said to himself, 'What shall I do now? My master is taking away my job. I'm not strong enough to dig, and I'm ashamed to beg-- 4 I know what I'll do so that, when I lose my job here, people will welcome me into their houses.'  This manager doesn’t sound shrewd at all. He’s a schnook. He sounds incompetent. He’s a waster. He’s a wimp. He’s proud with nothing to back it up. What can we learn from him?

          Urgency! Did you notice how when it became clear he was going to have to be accountable to his master he immediately set about doing something about it? That’s what Jesus wants us to have, urgency. He wants us to realize that time is running out for each one of us, time on earth that is. Sometimes we call that our time of grace. In one sense our life is our time to experience God’s grace and be brought to faith in Jesus as Savior. In another sense having been brought to faith our time on earth is the time to live as recipients of grace. We do that when we strive to obey God’s commands because we want to. We do that when we do what’s in God’s power to extend grace to other people. Our timed allotted to do that is limited. Are we urgent about it? Recently I saw part of an episode of a show many of you have watched for a while. It’s called “Minute to Win it.” That’s urgency. Clock ticking down. The contestants have a single minded focus on the task before them. Do you believe that people who die without faith in Jesus Christ die eternally? Actually it doesn’t matter if you believe that or not. It’s true. God says, “Whoever does not believe shall be condemned.” At last check 1.8 people die every second, that’s 108 a minute, 156,000 a day. No wonder Jesus wants us to be urgent!

          What does that have to do with money managing? The parable goes on. "So he called in each one of his master's debtors. He asked the first, 'How much do you owe my master?' 6 " 'Eight hundred gallons of olive oil,' he replied. "The manager told him, 'Take your bill, sit down quickly, and make it four hundred.' 7 "Then he asked the second, 'And how much do you owe?' " 'A thousand bushels of wheat,' he replied. "He told him, 'Take your bill and make it eight hundred.' 8 "The master commended the dishonest manager because he had acted shrewdly.” OK, so the guy cooks the books, loses money for his master and gets commended. What gives here? What was good? It wasn’t being dishonest with the debts. It was being shrewd, wise about his future. The manager didn’t have  money of his own. He was using his masters. Then with the master’s money that was in his control the manager made friends for himself. He created good will so that when his time with his master ended he would have friends who would take care of him. He was thinking long term.

          Now Jesus brings the point home for us. “For the people of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the people of the light. Ooh, that hurts a little bit. Jesus is saying that the worldly unbelievers are better at being worldly unbelievers than believers are at living as believers. I don’t like to hear that. I know you don’t either. What should we do differently? “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” What we can learn from the dishonest swindling unbeliever is to invest long term. He took someone else’s money and used it to gain friends for the future. We can do the same. There is part of our sinful nature that does not like to hear God or anyone else talk about how we should use our money. Whether it’s a stock broker, financial planner, insurance agent, store salesman, (pastor?) we have this sneaking suspicion that they don’t really have our best interest in mind at all. They just want to separate us from our hard earned money. That’s not always true. It’s certainly not true of Jesus. He’s trying to help us use His money wisely. Yes, it’s His money. Just like the shrewd manager in Jesus’ parable we don’t really own anything. It’s all the Lord’s. He gives us each a certain amount and in His wisdom He lets us it how we want. We are to spend it on things we need for earthly life like food, shelter, clothing, medical needs and paying taxes. Here Jesus urges us to be shrewd and invest long term. Houses get destroyed by flood and fire. Cars, clothes, shoes wear out. None of them will last when the Lord returns and destroys this present world. But people will. They do last! Use money on earth to gain heavenly friends. How? You can’t buy anyone’s way into heaven. You can’t believe for them. You can tell them the Gospel message. You can financially support those who go in your place, like the early Christians did with Peter and Paul and Barnabas. The result is friends in heaven. Think of what it will be like when people come up to you and me and say “Thank you for telling me about Jesus!” Members of St. Jacobi you do that as you tell children about Jesus in our school, in our high schools, through our Synod mission work. Nathaniel congregation did that as they disbanded giving us a gift to make friends for heaven. MLC is building the Early Childhood Center so that more and more we have opportunities to gain heavenly friends.

          You know it as well as I. There are more things you can do with money than there is money to do things. You have to make choices. You have to prioritize. This isn’t really a dishonest swindling unbeliever that we are learning from. It’s Jesus. And when Jesus speaks, His people listen. “I tell you, use worldly wealth to gain friends for yourselves, so that when it is gone, you will be welcomed into eternal dwellings.” Amen.

September 7/8/9, 2013
Pentecost 16 sermon by Pastor Paul G. Eckert
Text - 2 Samuel 11:26-12:10, 13-15
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    I’m going to tell you about a man named Achan who got into some
real trouble.  He was with the Israelites when they entered the
promised land and captured Jericho.  But there he did some plundering
or stealing that God had forbidden.  Later he went with other soldiers
to capture another city that should have been a push-over.  But instead
Israel was defeated.  What Achan had done was the reason.
    When God gave the opportunity to confess, Achan kept quiet.  He
did not step forward and honestly say, “I am the one, the one who is
guilty.”  So the search kept narrowing down until Achan was identified
as the guilty sinner.  The consequences were terrible for him and his
family.  If they would have had a Father’s Day then, they would not
have felt at all like honoring him as a good father.
    Would you want to have something terrible happen to you and your
family if there is some sin you have covered up and finally God steps in
with judgment - if not sooner, then certainly on your last day?
    Achan would not acknowledge his sin and honestly say, “I am the
one who is guilty.”  Are we ready to say, “I am the one”?  With that
statement - “I AM THE ONE” - let’s move on from Achan to a well
known Old Testament person, King David, and then also to ourselves.
“I AM THE ONE!”
I    IT IS EASY TO SEE SIN IN OTHERS.  (12:1-6,9)
    1. King David heard a story. (9, 1-4)
        a) Like all people, David was a sinner, including a glaring sin in
his past referred to in these words in our text: “You struck down
Uriah the Hittite with the sword and took his wife to be your own.
You killed him with the sword of the Ammonites.” 
        b) Lust, adultery, murder - but David had no conscience about
this. So God sent a prophet to tell a story, a parable.
The LORD sent Nathan to David. When he came to him, he said,
“There were two men in a certain town, one rich and the other
poor.  The rich man had a very large number of sheep and cattle,
but the poor man had nothing except one little ewe lamb he had
bought. He raised it, and it grew up with him and his children. It
shared his food, drank from his cup and even slept in his arms.  It
was like a daughter to him.  Now a traveler came to the rich man,
but the rich man refrained from taking one of his own sheep or
cattle to prepare a meal for the traveler who had come to him.
Instead, he took the ewe lamb that belonged to the poor man and
prepared it for the one who had come to him.”
    2. David easily could see sin in others. (5-6)
David burned with anger against the man and said to Nathan,
“As surely as the LORD lives, the man who did this deserves to
die!  He must pay for that lamb four times over, because he did
such a thing and had no pity.”
        a) Here David very correctly saw the wrong being done.
        b) The problem is that he saw sin in others, but not in himself.
    3. How about us?       
        a) Sin is all around us, even though newspapers don’t refer to it
as sin.  Its presence, the terrible things it does - there is no problem at
all in seeing that.  But do we fail to see sin in ourselves?
        b) Let’s face the fact that it is easy to see sin in others but not in
ourselves, like thinking a sermon applies to others but not to me.
    4. And what about condemning sin?
        a) We can’t fault King David for saying something was wrong. 
        b) And we certainly aren’t saying that we should not point out sin
and wrong and condemn what is sin and wrong.
        c) But the point is that it is easy to condemn sin in others and,
like David, not recognize - as has been said - that when we point a
finger at others there are three fingers pointing at ourselves.
II    WE NEED TO SEE IT IN OURSELVES.  (12:7a:11:26-27)
    1. The fact of sin being involved was clear.  (26-27)
When Uriah’s wife heard that her husband was dead, she
mourned for him.  After the time of mourning was over, David
had her brought to his house, and she became his wife and bore
him a son. But the thing David had done displeased the LORD.
        a) Lusting and adultery happened.
        b) And then murder, when David deliberately put the husband
into a battle line that guaranteed the husband would be killed.   
    2. Now David was accused. (7a)
Then Nathan said to David, “You are the man!”
        a) I am sure some people knew - but who would accuse the king?
        b) God would.  God knows all.  And He will accuse.
    3. What accusations could God bring against us?
        a) Let’s say we fault our children for cheating, but we cheat on
an expense account or on our income tax forms; - we get upset about
disobedience in our children, yet they see us disobey traffic and other
laws; - we tell our children to respect father and mother, but then they
don’t see father and mother treating each other with respect.
        b) The point here is not that cheating and so on should be
overlooked, but that we need to look at ourselves also.
    4. Listen to what Jesus said about this subject.
        a) In John 8 Jesus spoke to some people who were ready to stone
to death a woman caught in sin.  He said, “If any one of you is
without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her.”
        b) Or listen to these words of Jesus in Matthew 7: “Why do you
look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no
attention to the plank in your own eye?”
        c) Here Jesus did not approve of sin.  But His point is that we,
like David, need to look at ourselves and see our own condemning sin.
III  THIS CALLS FOR REPENTANT HEARTS.  (12:13a,10,14-15)
    1. David penitently acknowledged his sin. (13a)
Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
        a) Do you notice that this was not just recognizing he had made a
bad mistake, or being sorry he got caught and didn’t get away with it?
        b) No, he recognized that what he had done was sin, that little
word the world doesn’t use.  He had sinned against the Lord! 
    2. There would be consequences to his sin. (9-10,14-15)
“Why did you despise the word of the LORD by doing what is evil
in his eyes?  You struck down Uriah the Hittite with the sword
and took his wife to be your own.  You killed him with the sword
of the Ammonites.  Now, therefore, the sword will never depart
from your house, because you despised me and took the wife of
Uriah the Hittite to be your own.”
        a) David’s confession could not undo what was done to people.
“But because by doing this you have made the enemies of the
LORD show utter contempt, the son born to you will die.”  After
Nathan had gone home, the LORD struck the child that Uriah’s
wife had borne to David, and he became ill.
        b) Do you see here how sin can often involve, hurt the innocent?
    3. So there may be consequences for us.
        a) Uriah stayed dead; violence would continue; a son would die.  
        b) Young people and all of us, recognize that our stupid and
unthinking and sinful actions can bring consequences that will continue
for us and for others - like the party you go to and the things you do
there that you should not, and too late you realize that some results,
like Uriah being dead, or innocent parents hurt, can’t be changed.
    4. But let our repentance be sincere. (13a)
        a) Start out by recognizing that what God calls sin is sin.
        b) Then with David say, “I have sinned against the LORD.” 
        c) Do that truly recognizing, as God’s Word says, that the wages
of sin is death - not just physical, but an eternal separation from God.
IV  THEN PRAISE GOD FOR HIS FORGIVENESS.  (12:7a,13)
    1. David was forgiven. (13)
Then David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the LORD.”
Nathan replied, “The LORD has taken away your sin.  You are
not going to die.”
        a) David showed his true penitence in these words he wrote in
Psalm 51: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing
love; according to your great compassion blot out my
transgressions.  Wash away all  my iniquity and cleanse me from
my sin.  For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always
before me.”
        b) Not because of David’s doing, but because of the Lord’s doing
- His mercy, His love, His compassion - David could then go on to
pray (as we shall sing after this sermon), “Create in me a clean heart,
O God. - Cast me not away from your presence, and take not your
Holy Spirit from me. -  Restore to me the joy of your salvation.”
    2. Yes, God brought good out of bad.
        a) David was not killed, as he deserved, but was forgiven, his sins
not held against Him.  The joy of salvation - what marvelous grace!
        b) And while David’s child died here - and that consequence we
leave in God’s wisdom, God had promised and planned another child
who was to come from David’s line, a descendant of David.  The
people referred to Him as the Son of David, remember?  This Son,
God’s own Son, would die too, not from His sickness, but because of
our sickness of sin.  Jesus took that, all of it, on Himself on the cross,
and with His innocence atoned for us the guilty.
    3. God still promises us His goodness.  (7a,13b)
        a) Yes, earthly consequences may come for breaking a law, like a
fine having to be paid. - “You are the man!”
        b) But where there is true repentance before God for sin, there is
no eternal consequence or “fine” or penalty.  Because of Jesus’ atoning
death for our sins we hear Him on the cross saying, “Father, forgive
them.”  What wonderful goodness!  We too, because of our Savior,
can hear what David heard: “The LORD has taken away your sin.”  
     4. Praise God for the joy of our salvation!
        a) I am sure that many fathers today will hear expressions of
thanks.  That’s good - and not just on Father’s Day.
        b) But don’t forget our Father in heaven.  For Him let every day
be a Father’s Day, a day to say thanks for the forgiveness of our sins of
which we have so many, sins which cannot condemn us anymore
because Jesus is our Savior.
        c) May the Holy Spirit by Word and Sacrament strengthen us
firmly in such saving and rejoicing faith.

    Let’s sum up now by going back to our sermon theme.  Who easily
sees sins in others?  “I AM THE ONE.”   Who needs to see sin in
himself or herself?  “I AM THE ONE.”    Who needs to have a
repentant heart?  “I AM THE ONE.”  And who should praise God
for His forgiveness?  “I AM THE ONE.”  Let’s all - out loud or to
ourselves - say that together right now: “I AM THE ONE.”  Amen.