St. Matthew 6:24-34
15th Sunday after Trinity – 9/24/2017
Rev. Bradley A. Drew
“You cannot serve God and mammon.”
In Jesus’ Name,
Dearly Beloved:
Smile when you hear Jesus saying:
“You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Look up.
Smile.
Breathe a sigh of relief:
In fact, right after saying, “You cannot serve God and mammon,” Jesus says:
“Therefore, do not worry.”
Breathe a huge sigh of relief, today—BECAUSE:
“You cannot serve God and mammon.”
Far from adding to any poor sinner’s despair today, Jesus is taking despair away, here, with a promise:
What is needed, what is necessary for our heavenly Father’s plans and works to be fulfilled, for us to be who, where, what, when, why and whatever else God has in store for us and for His purposes—God’s is worksw
got that. All of that. For you and for me.
Because God has sent us His Son:
“O you of little faith.”
No need to worry or fret about today or tomorrow.
God’s got it.
Got it all.
Because God’s got you, now.
That’s the promise of the cross, that’s the promise and guarantee from God Himself that is yours, now—becauseof Jesus’ sacrifice for you on the cross.
“Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?”
Of course, you are.
Says Who? Says Jesus.
Says what? Says His sacrifice on the cross for you and me.
“Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin;and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven,will Henot much moreclotheyou, O you of little faith?”
Of course, He will.
Says Who? Says Jesus.
Says what? Says His sacrifice, His death, for and me, on the cross.
“Therefore do not worry, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’For after all these things the Gentiles seek. For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things.”
Who knows?
Your heavenly Father.
That’s Who.
Over and over Jesus calls God, “Your heavenly Father.”
And if Jesus is calling God your heavenly Father…..guess what?
You get to do that, too.
No questions asked. Not when every question has already been answered for you and me by Jesus’ death for us on the cross.
Trouble is,we’re just like His disciples in Matthew 6: OF LITTLE FAITH.
Who here is convinced, as he should be, that God’s love, God’s mercy, God’s grace and goodness govern and rule every day, every moment,everycircumstancewe find ourselves in?
No.
We think fate does.
Or luck.
Or evil.
Or the devil.
Or other people.
Or all my sins.
Just not God, our heavenly Father.
That’s why all the worry, all this trouble for me, right now.
And all Jesus can say to THAT is:
“O you, of little faith.”
But Jesus says that as—as our Savior—NOT as our Condemner.
He knows:
“Sufficient for the day,” He says, “is its OWN trouble.”
Jesus gently chides us for our little faithbecause He is going to the cross to save us little faith-ers.
THAT IS salvation for you and me—for all of us. Because by His death for us on the cross:
God declares us, now, calls us, holy in His sight—believers, actually.
What grace.
What mercy!
Our heavenly Father.
Because of Jesus’ sacrifice for us on the cross:
You and I are no longer in our sins—in all, or in any, of our sin.
Not now.
Not anymore.
Holy in God’s sight.
The reason He watches over us like children, ruling and governing alldays, all people, all circumstances, all wheres, whens, whys and everything else in between ACCORDING TO HIS PLAN, HIS PURPOSES.
And we know, the crosspromises—
His plans and purposes for us no longer include His judgment, His condemnation, Hispointing out all our sin and treating us accordingly.
No.
His grace, His kindness, His goodness and mercy follow us all the days of our lives, now—ruling, governing, watching over everything.
You want to be healthy?
Me, too.
But, you know what?
Maybe that’s not in the cards for you or me today, or tomorrow.
Does that make God any less our heavenly Father?
No, it does not.
It does not—promises the cross on which Jesus suffered and died for you and me—for us little faith-ers.
Whether healthy or sick, 102 or passing from this life in our prime, you and I are always in the palm of God’s hands now, the object of His Fatherly care and mercy—despite all our sin.
Our sin belongs to Jesus, now, not to us.
The cross promises that—every single day.
Come what may—it’s from God’s hand. The hand of our heavenly Father.
And because of the cross—thathand bears us no ill, now.
Come what may—because it’s from His hand—it’s mammon, for us. Our mammon. What our heavenly Father has decided to gift us with, today.
“Okay, Heavenly Father. Gift received—from You. Point me to the cross every day in my baptism, to the cross that is preached from your Word, that is promised, fed to us, at Your Supper. And let us all hear You gently chiding us, still: ‘Do not worry. I got this. Because I got you.”
Want to be rich?
Rich enough you don’t have anymore cares in this word?
Like that could every happen.
Maybe today, maybe tomorrow, God decides it’s time for us to join Lazarus at the Rich Man’s gate. And being rich just isn’t in the cards, anymore.
Does that make God any less our heavenly Father?
No, it does not.
It does not promises the cross which wipes out all the proof, all the evidence of our little faith with every sin it wipes off the record for us.
And that’s a lot of proof, a lot evidence and sin being wiped out every day.
The cross knows that.
Jesus knows that.
My Baptism knows that.
The Holy Supper knows that.
And it is why Jesuscan promise you, over and over:
God is your heavenly Father.
Your heavenly Father in sickness and in health.
Your heavenly Father in riches or in poverty.
Your heavenly Father in sunny and in stormy days.
As much your Father when hurricanes hit to the west and the east—as when they hit head on.
Your heavenly Father no matter what you think, or fear, the evidence, or lack thereof, suggests.
Your heavenly Father:
Because God has joined you to Himself once and forever by giving you His Son:
His Son on the cross.
His Son in your baptism.
His Son in His Word.
His Son at the Holy Supper.
So when you hear Jesus saying:
“You cannot serve God and mammon—”
Smile.
Breathe a sigh of relief.
God’s got this, whatever it is.
Because God’s got you, now.
And when you find it just too hard to believe, impossible that God is still your heavenly Father….
Understand, Jesus knew those days would come.
It’s not only why He went to the cross for you and me, it’s why, on His way there—He spoke these words to us today, and had them recorded in Matthew’s gospel—
“O you of little faith.”
He’s comforting us.
He’s saving us—like He always does.
For when Jesus says, “O you of little faith,” He IS telling you and me:
Our Jesus is too little.
“Think again!” He says.
“For not only am I going to the cross forall of you, taking every last sin there as My own, every last ounce and trace of your little faith as Mine to be judged and condemned for, not you……
I will be there now, every day, in your Baptism with My cross.
Every day in My Word and at My Supper with God’s love and forgiveness.
Meaning:
Whether the sun is shining or it’s raining outside…..
Whether it’s all joy or all sorrow right now….
God still is your heavenly Father, because of Me.
“O you of little faith.”
“Do not worry.”
“Do not be afraid.”
In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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