Bethlehem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, OR
Fifth Sunday in Lent + April 7, 2019
Text: Genesis 22:1-14
Genesis 22:2: “[God] said, ‘Take your son, your only son Isaac, whom you love, and go to the land of Moriah, and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I shall tell you.’”
We should be horrified at this
1) Because of what is being asked, and
2) Who is asking.
This is disgusting! An outrage! And for God to ask for it?! But over against the wrenching feelings in his gut that told him this was wrong, Abraham obeyed because of Who was asking.
- We also are told to believe God and trust what He says because of Who is speaking, even if it seems outrageous to our ears.
- In the world, when we are told that immoral things are acceptable and even good.
- We are flooded with examples of same-sex relationships that are supposed to validate them from Doc McStuffins[1] (a show for preschoolers which featured a “two mom” family in 2017) to Star Trek Discovery, which glorifies an intimate relationship between two men.
- Lawmakers harden their hearts against God and lead astray the ignorant by legalizing and encouraging murder under the guise of healthcare and destruction of gender distinctions and family structure under the banner of civil rights.
- We are told to believe and embrace some disgusting things, things contrary to nature, which even a healthy conscience says are wrong. But who is telling us this? Should we obey people, or God?
- Lest we become proud of how we haven’t been fooled
by the world, we in our lives have made excuses for why it’s not so bad when we
sin.
- The Lord condemns gossip, but we think He doesn’t mind our gossip, like when we get together and badmouth people who aren’t there to speak for themselves. After all, we have their best interests at heart because we’re “good Christian” people. But no matter how good our intentions are, we are going about it a sinful way, and we need to repent.
- There’s a lot in this world to be angry about—about what we hear on the news, corruption, the way people treat each other, and how people have treated us. But the Lord says in Psalm 4:4, “Be angry and do not sin.” When we feel anger over these things, we may be getting angry over genuinely bad things, but in our sin we go beyond our place. We plot ways to make them see their error, ways that we can get an advantage over them. But really what we need to do is get down on our knees and confess our pride and let God be right. God will have His righteous anger, and act in the way that He knows is best.
- But most of all in believing God over our
understanding, we are to believe the Word of God that’s spoke in Confession and
Absolution
- Matthew 18:18-20: “Truly, I say to you, whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven. Again I say to you, if two of you agree on earth about anything they ask, it will be done for them by my Father in heaven. For where two or three are gathered in my name, there am I among them.”” – The Lord says an incredible thing here. The keys are given to the Church, to be shared between each other. And when we share that forgiveness, it isn’t just a human act—“whatever you loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven”—that forgiveness is valid before God.
- John 20:22-23: “The Lord Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.” – The keys of the Kingdom are exercised publicly.
- Reason would say, “Why should I believe that this word of forgiveness has any power beyond the person speaking it?” “Who is the pastor to forgive sins?” But faith answers, Amen even when our reason says we don’t deserve it, or others don’t deserve it. We believe this because of Who has spoken this Word.
- A faith that lives by God’s Word is called
complete.
- James later says, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? 22 You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; 23 and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.’” Abraham’s faith was completed by this work, as a matter of proof that his faith was living and active.
- Abraham’s faith was completed by his works. How is our faith completed? What sort of works does the absolution result in? If we are absolved and immediately go out and condemn another, how have we taken grace to heart? If we are absolved of our wretched thoughts, words, and deeds, and go out and freely do it again, are we actually letting the Holy Spirit sanctify us? If our Christianity is only good on Sunday morning, but doesn’t change the rest of how we raise our families or live as citizens, are we really being salt and light as the Lord calls us?
- Abraham is an example for us, the man of faith. The point is that faith in God and His Word
changes who we are—how we think, how we speak, how we act.
- Biblical examples of this: Abraham went from being a pagan to a forefather of faith. Peter started as a timid fisherman but God made him into a bold apostle. Paul went from being a zealous enemy to a humble and powerful witness.
- God works these changes in your life as well, according to His own plan. These are the fruits of faith. It isn’t going to be the same for everyone, because God has specific callings and situations for each of us.
[1] https://www.huffpost.com/entry/doc-mcstuffins-two-mom-family_n_59888da3e4b0ca8b1d49d483