God's Word at Work

THE NARROW DOOR
Luke 13:22-30

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text for this mornings meditation is recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke, chapter 13, verses 22 through 30, particularly these words, “Someone asked Jesus, ‘Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?’ He said to them, ‘Make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many will try to enter and will not be able to. Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ But he will answer, ‘I don’t know you.’” This is our text.

In the name of our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Dear Christian friends. What is the purpose of the Church? Why does the church even exist? There are several answers to that question. One important purpose of the church is nurture. We gather for worship and for Bible study so that together, through Word and Sacrament, the Holy Spirit can build us up in our Christian faith. The church exists so that we can strengthen Christian faith and love within the family of God through word and Sacrament. Our Christian fellowship and our Christian service play an important part in that nurture.

But there is also another very important purpose for the existence of God’s church — and it would be easy to argue that this is the MOST IMPORTANT TASK or PURPOSE of the church — and that is to proclaim the Gospel so that unbelievers are brought to faith in Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. This was what our Lord commanded of his Disciples in the great commission, “Go ye therefore and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you.” “GO making disciples—- by BAPTIZING them – and by TEACHING them.!!” Those were the commands that Christ left with his disciples and with his church.

Our Gospel lesson today deals with the question of Evangelism. One of the people with Jesus asks him, “Lord, are only a few people going to be saved?” We are not told why the question was asked. Did that person wonder why there were not more people following Jesus? Was there a question about why so few people recognized him as God’s Son, and the promised Messiah? Were they thinking about this trip to Jerusalem, and thinking that now, at long last, Jesus would gather together his mighty army of followers, to overthrow Rome? The question basically says, “Jesus, there are only a few of us who believe in you — will there be more, or is this all there is?”

Jesus did not answer the question directly — instead he gave a command to the questioner: “You make every effort to enter through the narrow door, because many will try to enter and will not be able to.” Jesus tells his hearers that first of all they need to make sure that they themselves will be among those who are saved by entering through the narrow door. Jesus made it very clear throughout his earthly ministry, that he himself was that narrow door. Jesus told them, “the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.” Jesus was not conducting classes in theory — but was dealing with the only way people could be saved. “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” Jesus never taught a general salvation where all people were saved. Nor did he teach a limited salvation which would be restricted to only a select group, race, or nationality. But he consistently called upon all people to enter the kingdom of heaven through Himself. He is the narrow door — and there is no other door to heaven.

In our text, Jesus emphasizes this point. He said, “Once the owner of the house gets up and closes the door, you will stand outside knocking and pleading, ‘Sir, open the door for us.’ But he will answer I don’t know you.’ Then you will say, ‘We ate and drank with you, and you taught in our streets.’ But He will reply, ‘I don’t know you or where you come from. Away from me, all you evildoer’s!” Jesus makes it clear that no one is received into God’s kingdom based on something they did. No one is saved by just listening to Jesus teach in the streets. No one is saved by eating and drinking a dinner with Jesus. No casual acquaintances are accepted. Entering the narrow door takes a faith-filled commitment to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.

I sometimes wonder, on that last day just how many people will say to Jesus, “We were in church every Christmas and every Easter, wasn’t that enough?” “We went to church when there wasn’t something else to do. Wasn’t that enough?” We were never unfaithful to our spouse, we never beat our kids, and we were certainly much better than Old John Doe the drunk, who lived down the street. Wasn’t that enough?” And Jesus will reply, “Even if you had perfect church attendance — even if you gave everything you had for the poor — even if you were the best person in your whole town — WITHOUT FAITH — without entering by the narrow door — IT IS NOT ENOUGH!! Why?? “For by grace have you been saved through faith, it is a gift of God not of works, lest any man should boast.”
And our last point from this text is that there is a certain urgency — not only for those who will follow Jesus, but for the whole world. Jesus talks about the closing of the door — and once closed, it will not be reopened. There is a time limit to this world and there is a time limit on the invitation to salvation in Jesus Christ.

And when that door is closed, there will be some surprises in store. Jesus said in the text. “People will come from east and west and north and south, and will take their places at the feast in the kingdom of God. Indeed there are those who are last who will be first, and there are those who are presently first, who will be last.” God sees what you and I cannot see — the heart of humankind. God judges on the basis of faith found in those individual hearts. And that will produce some surprises on that last day. Some of those that we have judged by our human standards to be outstanding citizens and “First” in the kingdom of God — will be last — because God knows the heart. And then the opposite is true as well. Some of those that we have judged rather harshly by human standards, will be first in the kingdom of God — again, because God knows the heart.

That is why Zion Lutheran puts such an emphasis on Christian Education – through our early Childhood Center, through our Sunday School, through our Bible studies offered regularly and at different days and times of the week, through different service groups within the church who serve the church and others: Always proclaiming Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. We must proclaim the message, we must get the Word out, because there is a time limit to this world.

Throughout our text for today, the focus keeps coming back to Christ. There is one door, and one door only, into the Kingdom of God. That door is very narrow, because it allows no one to enter carrying his own baggage of personal goodness and merit. Each person entering that door must be doing so as a result of a close, personal relationship with the savior, a faith created by God the Holy Spirit, a faith created, nourished, and strengthened through the means of Grace, through Word and Sacrament — A casual acquaintance with Jesus is not enough. The response is urgent and cannot be postponed. No one knows when the door will be closed, but when it is closed, it will not be reopened – there is no second chance. And those who will be saved will come from all nations around the world.

So what does today’s text say about Evangelism. First of all, make sure of your own faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. After all, if you do not believe it yourself, you can not share it with others! And then, cut to the heart of the message — Jesus Christ is Lord!! Jesus is the Narrow door. There is salvation in no other. But in Jesus Christ, there is joy eternal. That is our faith. That is our message. That is our hope for eternal life. To God alone be the glory, now and always. Amen.

May the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.

DO NOT BE AFRAID

Luke 12:22-34

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text for this mornings meditation is recorded in the Gospel of St. Luke, chapter 12, verses 22 through 34, particularly these words: “Jesus said, ‘Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body what you will put on. Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom. For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”This is our text.

In the name of our blessed Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, dear Christian friends. Think back for a moment to the last time you were given a gift by a small child. Maybe it was a flower that your son or daughter picked out of the yard. Maybe it was a fishing lure that your child picked out just especially for dad or grandpa. Maybe it was a hand drawn picture which the child painted themselves and now wanted you to have. The gift itself is not important. The cost of that gift is not important. What was important and what had value that money cannot buy, was the smile, and the pride, and the joy that were written all over that child’s face as the gift was given. There is nothing expected in return. There are no thoughts about wither or not it is good enough. There are no thoughts about what that gift might cost. The ONLY thought that goes through that child’s mind is, “This is mine — and I want to give it to you — because I love you. It is a gift given with great joy and pleasure.

Every time I read that verse of today’s text, I think of children and their giving of gifts. Jesus said, ‘Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.’”It pleases God — to give us the kingdom. NOT because we have earned it — because we haven’t. NOT because we are great people who deserve the honor, because we don’t. NOT because it is an inexpensive gift, because it is a pearl without price for which God gave his only begotten Son. BUT it is a gift, given purely out of grace and love, “Your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”God has on his face the smile, the joy, the love — of a child giving a gift to someone very special — and that someone special, is you!

The gift is ours by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ. So how does this gift of God effect our lives? First of all our text tells us to focus on Spiritual things. Jesus said, “Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Instead seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.As God’s people we need to seek God’s riches through Word and Sacrament. We all know Jesus’ parable about the rich fool, who has so rich and had so many earthly goods that he could say to himself, “Eat, drink, and be merry.”But God said, “This night your soul will be required of you, then whose will all this be?”And Jesus concluded his parable by saying that we should be “Rich toward God” or as our text for today says, “Provide yourselves with moneybags that do not grow old, with a treasure in the heavens that does not fail, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.”Regular worship, regular Bible reading, and regular use of the sacraments, are all ways that the Holy Spirit uses to build up our faith in Jesus Christ, so that we experience first hand the forgiveness and the love which our God has pleasure in giving to his people. There is no greater treasure in all the earth than a right relationship with God by grace, through faith in Jesus Christ.

Secondly, knowing that the kingdom is ours will help us greatly in setting priorities for our lives. Jesus said in the text, “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”

That which we value the most, usually takes up our time, our talents, our efforts, our devotion, and our resources!

A prominent theologian of the 1940′s said that religion is, “The one thing which is most important in our lives” (depth dimension). If the most important thing in life was work, to him work was that man’s religion. If money was the most important thing in a person’s life, then money was that man’s religion.

What is the most important thing in your life? God has made you his very own. God has given you the kingdom. IS GOD FIRST IN YOUR LIFE? Do people“see your good works and glorify your father who is in heaven.”Or do they see other priorities in your life? Remember Jesus’ words in our text. “Where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”What are your priorities? Our text said, “Seek FIRST, the kingdom of God.”

But what about the anxieties and the fears of our every day life? Do we worry over “what we shall eat, or what we shall drink, or what we shall wear?” Because of our sinful human nature, sometimes we fall short of full trust in God’s providence and care for us. Sometimes we lose sight of how God takes care of the ravens and the lilies. But God’s promise to us is sure – “If God so cloths the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you.”As sinful people, we all too often doubt that promise — As sinful people, we all too often worry and fret over things over which we have no control — As sinful people we trust our own abilities to solve the problems of life, rather than putting things into God’s hands and trusting his providence and provision. AND for that we ask his forgiveness.

The Promises of God are sure! “He that believes and is baptized shall be saved.”And “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and you will be saved.”And today’s text, “Do not be afraid, little flock for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”

In the life of the Christian there is anticipation, and expectation, as we joyfully watch for the coming of our Lord and the fulfillment of all his promises to us.

Jesus said in our text, “Fear not, little flock!”Fear is built on concern or anxiety about the future. Because God has given us the kingdom through His Son Jesus Christ, our future is secure. Our confidence, our faith, and our courage are rooted in Christ, in His promises, in His presence, and in His power. In Christ we have nothing to fear. “Fear not little flock, for it is the Father’s good pleasure to give you the Kingdom.” To God be the glory! Amen.

May the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting. Amen.