DYNASTY: Building a Lasting Faith

SERMON FOR NOVEMBER 2, 2008

DYNASTY: Building a Lasting Faith

SERMON THEME: Faith Rests

SERMON TEXT: Romans 3: 21-28

But now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement, I through faith in his blood. He did this to demonstrate his justice, because in his forbearance he had left the sins committed beforehand unpunished—he did it to demonstrate his justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

Where, then is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.

Dear Friends in Christ,

About ten years ago, my brother won a free fishing trip to Canada. He couldn’t afford it, so he offered it to my Dad. And my Dad looked it over and he could not afford it either. So he mentioned it to me, and I looked over the material, read the fine print, and discovered that this free Canadian fishing trip was actually out of my price range too. And here’s how: You see, it was a package deal for two people. The winner, the first person got to go for free, but the second person had to pay $800 for his or her share.

Free is rare! There is always a catch. To get something for free, I mean, to have something worth anything for free, there are strings attached. It is truly rare to get something for free. And yet God tells us that the most expensive things of all, the most valuable things of all - things for which we could never pay, are in fact free: grace, forgiveness, life with God, peace comfort and hope. This is the central message of the Christian church, that faith rests on God’s free grace. It’s always been the central message of the church. It’s a message that was obscured for centuries by the very church that was supposed to proclaim it. It’s a message that was restored to the church and to the world through the Lutheran Reformation nearly 500 years ago.

Do we ever really stop and think about how much we need what the gospel gives us? Do we stop for a moment and think about how much we need what Baptism gives us? Think about this! Jesus has taken away your sins. We didn’t go up to him and say, ‘Hey, we need help down here! No, we did not! We could not! We would not do that! He came down to us, undeservedly, lived a perfect life, died an innocent death, rose from the dead, took our sins away. Do we think about how blessed we are, that we are no longer slaves to sin? We are no longer enemies of God,but are in fact God’s children, by his free grace.

That is amazing, considering what Paul says here in Verse 23, ‘All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.’ You don’t need to go to Seminary for four years after college to explain that. I don’t need to explain that to you. All have sinned and all have missed the mark of God’s perfection. All people everywhere, of every time and that includes you and me. And to say that we’ve fallen short of God’s glory, fallen short of God’s expectations, doesn’t mean that we just missed, “Oh! So close, overtime, you know, one yard short.” This is not horseshoes! This is not darts on a dart board! We’re not even close. To say that we fall short of God’s glory, of God’s expectations, doesn’t mean we’re going to get an, ‘Atta’ boy!’or, ‘Way to go, girl! You did your best! I appreciate that!’ No!!

God’s law summarized in the Ten Commandments stands in the way of our making it to heaven, of our getting right with God. Well, we’ll just move the law! We can’t do that. There’s nothing wrong with the law. God’s commandments are holy and perfect and divine and righteous and good. We can’t keep them. God’s law shows us just where and when and how, and how often we fall short. It acts as a mirror to show us very clearly, very unmistakably that we fall short, that everyone does. And we don’t just pull out those Ten Commandments and pick and choose which ones we’re going to break, although each of us is partial to certain ones. Pet sins we call them. We’re equal opportunity, aren‘t we? We break them all. We trash them all, again and again, over and over, racking up this debt that we can never pay. Racking up a debt for which we are to suffer forever, yes, the Bible says forever in hell.

That’s where Martin Luther was going. Martin Luther was in the church. He was a monk in the church. He was a leader in the church, albeit, at a low level. But he was headed to hell, because the church told him at that time, that he could save himself. In fact, young Doctor Luther, you must save yourself. You must do more than just believe. Jesus is great, but it’s not enough. You need faith plus works. You need Jesus plus penance, Jesus plus pilgrimages to the HolyCity.

You know how there is this huge credit crisis in our economy. We’re told that no one can get a loan. I know that’s hyperbole, that’s exaggeration. And so the government has thrown huge amounts of cash at this, to steady things. Do you know that there is a spiritual credit crisis across humanity that makes this trillion dollars that our government is spending, seem like mere pennies? We’ve got no credit with God, spiritually speaking, we have none. Our credit score is zero!I’m at least a fourth generation Wisconsin Synod Lutheran. I’m a pastor, my Dad’s a pastor, and I’ve got a brother who is a pastor. Guess how much credit I’ve got with God, because of that? I have zero! We have no credit. ‘All our righteous acts,’ Isaiah says, ‘are like filthy rags.’

But by God’s free grace, Luther discovered that man-made bailouts fail. Works, indulgences, deals with God. No! All man-made bailouts and efforts fail, but there is one divine bailout that is foolproof, that actually delivers what God says it will---grace and forgiveness through his Son, Jesus.

Paul speaks of that here, ‘All are justified freely by his grace, through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented him as a sacrifice of atonement through faith in his blood.’ Christ’s sacrifice for sins on the cross paid the price for sin, and his resurrection is like the receipt. It’s eternal proof of eternal life, and it’s meant for all people. ‘All have sinned and fall short. All are justified freely by God’s grace.’ That means that sin is paid for, for all people, even those who don’t believe it’s true. Even for those who reject it, forgiveness is there, but for the faith, to receive it. And it’s all God’s doing.

And you talk about that credit crisis. How about this for credit? You get credit for a perfect life. You have not lived the perfect last hour, but God gives you credit for a perfect life through faith, crediting you with Christ’s righteousness, through faith. And it’s all God’s doing, all of it. Faith rests on God’s free grace. What tells us that? God’s Word! And in that little sentence you’ve got the three solas of the Lutheran Reformation, the three “alones.” We are saved by faith alone, by scripture alone, by grace alone.

So Paul continues, and he says, ‘Where, then, is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from observing the law.’ There’s no boasting. Faith is God’s gift. Faith is the gift that God gives, working through the Holy Spirit, working through the Sacraments, through the Word of God. For many of you that happened at Baptism. God brought you to faith, forgave your sins, marked you as his own, and brought you into the family of God. That was done for you. It was a gift. Listen later in the Lord’s Supper, as you come forward. You present yourself, but you hear Jesus say, “Take and eat. This is my body, given for you.” I have done this. You’re receiving this through faith. It’s my gift to you. My body given for you, my blood shed for you.

Reformation is not a celebration of dull doctrine and even duller history. It is not a celebration, or a call to dead orthodoxy, or to live in the past. It is a celebration of life with God, right now. It is a celebration of salvation. This is living history, yours and mine, as we walk this earth from womb to tomb, to eternal glory. And there is nothing more important in this life. There is nothing more important in this life than to know God’s free grace, and to believe it, and to share it.

And every one of you here, including the preacher, we’re going to nod and say, ‘Well yeah! Of course, that’s true. We know that’s true, nothing more important than God’s word, God’s grace, forgiveness, how to get to heaven---that free ticket with the cross. We know that.’ Do we live like we know? Be honest! You don’t have to shout out the answers, but right now, what is foremost on your mind? What are you concerned about more? Are you concerned about how long the sermon is taking? Furtive glances at the watch. Or, whether or not your neighbors know Christ? Are you concerned more with confessing sin and receiving forgiveness, or getting home in time for the game? So let’s hurry things up! What’s on your mind more? What’s for Bible study, or what’s for dinner?

Do you think that Satan knows that the Word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword? We know that! That’s what God’s Word says. Do you think Satan knows that? Of course, he does, and so he works very hard to keep us separated from the Word. And even when we hear it, to get us to the point where we’re not hearing, he works very hard to keep pastors from being faithful. They get frustrated, they get tired. He works very hard at having people in the pews not pay attention. If he hasn’t succeeded in keeping you away from here, in the first place, he gets us to think that we know enough, that we don’t need to know more.

Let’s fight that! Let’s stand firm in the faith. Let’s stand firm in the Word, because our faith rests not on my works, or the way I set up my life, or any deals I’ve made with God. Faith rests on God’s free grace. Let’s fight that! Be in the Word. Stay free from sin and Satan’s slavery and let’s not be one of these people. I am a Lutheran! I was born a Lutheran! I was baptized and confirmed a Lutheran! I was married in a Lutheran church! I’ll be buried in the Lutheran church! I know what I am! I’m a Lutheran! I don’t need this church stuff as much as the preacher’s preaching it. I don’t need the Word! I’ll let you know if I change my mind, I’ll let you know, because I’m a Lutheran.

To say the faith rests on God’s free grace, does not mean that faith takes a break, a holiday, a vacation. Your faith has found rest in security on Christ and his Word. But may our faith continue to remain active, in staying in the Word, in being there, growing, so that we take more seriously than most, the principles of the Lutheran Reformation. There are many. There were 95 theses. Now to share a few of those principles with you.

• We need to take a good look at the idols, in our hearts. Idols? Not American Idol. Idols, false gods, things that distract, detract, sidetrack, derail our devotion to the God so devoted to us. We need to take a good look at those in our lives, and get rid of them. Not here, and look longingly, but to aggressively get rid of them, to walk away, to flee, to run away, whatever it takes to get rid of them. That is taking your faith more seriously than most.
• Then there is WWLD. What would Luther do? Let’s take a page out of the Lutheran Reformation.You can take the page right out of the catechism, and get a whole lot more serious, you and I, about drowning every day the old Adam, the sinful nature that lives in our hearts, with sorrow and repentance every day. Does anybody do that, anymore? Do you do that? Sorrow, confession, repentance, here, forgiveness, or is that just kind of a Sunday thing? Oh, Communion? Yeah! Gotta confess my sins?
• May we pray, not my will, but your will be done.
• May we also celebrate Baptism, the way it’s meant to be celebrated. When we are privileged to witness a Baptism today, to realize, Wow! What God has done for little Minnie today! God has brought her into his family by his free grace. And that reminds me of my Baptism, which I don’t remember, because I was as young as that, maybe even younger. But that’s what God did for me, God’s grace. My faith rests on God’s free grace.
• Let’s remember that, and let’s celebrate the Lord’s Supper the way it’s meant to be celebrated, after thoroughly and prayerfully preparing ourselves for this most magnificent meal.
• And may I offer one more principle? It sounds so simple. Read the Bible! If you don’t like to read, listen to the Bible. Read devotional books based on the Bible, read it, study it, meditate on it, every day.

I remember early in my ministry, I once said in a sermon, I think on Reformation Day, that you should be in your Bible at least three or four times a week. I think I confused that with exercise three or four times a week. And I’m so ashamed that I said it that way, but you know what I was doing? I was coming from where the object of the absolute truth is. Your soul is at stake here, your eternity hangs in the balance, and I was going away from the Word, and going to where people are at. Because, you know, it’s hard to read the Bible every day. I know! I’m a preacher. I read it every day, and I’ll tell you, a lot of it is for study. A lot of it is not for really personal meditation. But I need to do it for personal meditation every day. No excuses! None! I don’t have enough time, pathetic excuse. I don’t have enough time to prepare my soul for the defense against Satan, and the world, and my sinful nature attacking me constantly, like a virus runs loose in a computer. Oh! Yeah! It’s running loose, but I’ll get to it later. Not an excuse! I know enough. I went through confirmation.That’s not enough. It’s not an excuse! Read your Bible! Be in the Word! That’s what grows faith! That’s what keeps us strong!

I have a brother-in-law who used to deliver frozen pizzas to grocery stores in Wisconsin. And one year we went back for a visit, and he gave us a whole stack of coupons for free Jack’s Pizza. And so we went to the grocery store, and this was great. I mean, we actually got that for free. And the check-out girl, teenager, was very jealous, almost angry, ‘Wish I had a brother-in-law like that, to give me free pizzas!’ You know we get so excited about free pizzas or free t-shirts at the ballgame. I paid forty bucks to get in here, but I gotta’ have that free tee shirt. I’ve gotta’ jump over people and grab that. We get more excited about a free Thirstbuster, than we do about God’s free forgiveness, a gift that we couldn’t pay for. Let’s fight that! In the spirit of the Lutheran Reformation, we recipients of God’s free grace, who have received it in such abundance. May we freely share it with others! It is free! It is full! It is forever! It’s for all! Amen.

Pastor Stephen Luchterhand

Phoenix, Arizona