Sermon for 8/13/23: Tenth Sunday After Trinity

 Usually the sermon audio is a better representation of the finished product of the sermon than the video. This week, however, I was losing my voice during the Bethel service, when the audio is usually recorded. My apologies for the lacking vocal power this week.

CLICK HERE for the sermon audio.

CLICK HERE for the sermon video.

Blush and Believe

Jeremiah 8:4-12

 

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

 

Why do you blush? People usually blush because they are put on the spot or embarrassed. The blood rushes to your face because a truth has been told about you that makes you uncomfortable. But the people of Israel had become so accustomed to the blasphemies of the day that they were no longer able to be embarrassed. They had no shame for their false dealings, their covetous hearts, or their sacrilegious deeds. Even when a prophet like Jeremiah would call them to account, nothing could make them blush.

Is that not an accurate description of our society and culture today? You see and hear the dishonesty and even the immorality people are willing to peddle, and you have to ask if they know how to blush. Aren’t they at all embarrassed? Or does the media idol to which our culture kneels take away all shame?

And what about us: are we as bothered as we used to be by the positive rendering of immorality that is portrayed everywhere? When our children are brazenly exposed to drag queens; when abortion is celebrated as freedom instead of murder; when various churches cravenly follow society’s lead rather than Holy Scripture; does it shock us anymore? Do we blush when we are confronted by our own sin, or do we blame someone else? Do we lash out at those who call us to account? If we are not on guard, this godless attitude can gain the upper hand in our hearts. As Jeremiah prophesies: “No man repented of his wickedness, saying, ‘What have I done?’...From the prophet even to the priest, everyone deals falsely.”

But let us also be on guard against the opposite error. When we see the corrupt and degenerate state of our culture, we can be tempted to stake our hope in our own moral efforts. Do you put your confidence in a belief that you haven’t succumbed to the ways of the world, that you have turned your life around? Are you confident that you are more spiritual than others? We can be tempted to think that our works and righteousness will keep us close to God and win His favor. Acting self-righteous like a Pharisee is just as bad, and perhaps even worse, than society’s mindless corruption. When you think about it, those who are self-righteous can’t blush either, because they feel they have nothing to be ashamed of. Religious conviction and spiritual passion are not enough. Too often, zeal and passion are nothing more than mis-focused attention on ourselves rather than on Christ and His death on the cross for us. Godly zeal is to be directed toward the life-giving Gospel and not only to the deadly requirements of the Law.

Think about what Paul said in our Epistle: “Christ is the end of the Law for righteousness to everyone who believes.” Did you hear that? Christ is the completion, the absolute end of the Law. That doesn’t mean you are free to disobey the commandments, but it does mean that the entire Law is meant to point us to Jesus, to show us our need for Him to save us. All of the moral demands of the Law, of which we have fallen so far short, have been satisfied for us by Jesus. All of those regulations pertaining to the Sabbath and the sacrifices have found their fulfillment in Christ, the perfect sacrifice, who was offered up for our sins and raised again to give us life and Sabbath rest. Righteousness before God does not come through our efforts, but through Christ alone; not by works, but by faith in Jesus, the righteous One.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, think of the Gospel reading and ask yourself this: Do I recognize the time of my visitation? It comes to you this very moment. This is the hour in which Christ Himself is coming to you in the words of the saving Gospel now sounding in your ears. Blush and believe! Don’t assume that you will have forever to repent. “Behold, now is the acceptable time; now is the day of salvation.” Believe in what the Lord has done to redeem you from your sin. Take refuge in Him and His words. Rreceive His righteousness.

Baptized into Christ, you have become a member of His body. You have no reason to blush any longer, for you are safe from divine judgment, protected by the One who took the judgment for you. These are the things that make for your peace: Word and water, body and blood, offered to you for the forgiveness of your sins, for your peace, for your rest. Call upon God. Cast your burden on the Lord, and He will sustain you. In the name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

The peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus always. Amen.