Isaiah 56:1, 6–8

Other Lessons: Psalm 67; Romans 11:1–2a, 13–15, 28–32; Matthew 15:21–28

Universal grace, that is, the teaching that God’s grace and mercy and all his promises of eternal life and salvation and forgiveness of sin are for all people, young and old, male and female, big sinner and small sinner, this universal nature of God’s gifts seems so obvious to us that we take it for granted, and sometimes we think little of what that really means for us. This chapter in Isaiah serves as an encouragement to the downtrodden, especially those who were the “foreigners”, the gentiles and all those who think they are excluded from God’s grace. But this chapter also serves as a reminder and warning against false pride in one’s own heritage.

In the Old Testament times, this passage would have astonished the first hearers and readers. Back in chapter 55 which we heard a few weeks ago, God calls people to come and buy food and drink without money. He then proclaims in that same chapter that what he promises will come true because his word will not return to him empty just like the rain water that comes down to water the earth to give life to all the earth without returning empty. Normally the people would think that this great word and promise from God is only for the Israelites, those who have been circumcised according to the law of Moses. But when they flip the page and read chapter 56, they would be surprised to hear that this promise of free food and drink is for the foreigners as well, with no circumcision mentioned at all.

Even in the New Testament times this would still bewilder the Jews who by that time had strict laws against gentiles. The Jews are not supposed to eat with gentiles, they are to have as little interaction with them as possible lest they themselves become defiled, and gentiles were not allowed to enter the temple grounds at all, UNLESS the gentile person renounces his identity and become a Jew by first being circumcised and follow all the laws of Moses (meaning no pork for the rest of your life!!!).

But why would they have such attitude toward the outsiders?It’s because the Israelites thought that they were such great people, that they were so good that God had to choose them to be his people. They thought that they were better than all the other people in the world. It is as if they were the only possible choice for God.

All this is from pride and boasting in the self, which God repeatedly denounces. Several times God tells them that he chose them not because of anything in themselves but it is by the mercy of God. In fact they were one of the most stiff necked people, but God chose them anyway to have mercy on them all. This was to bring them to humbleness and repentance, but instead they became more and more boastful.

With pride it led to contempt and disdain for others. There is a spiritual elitism that looks down on other people. That’s why they would not associate themselves with the gentiles. And when they separate themselves as much as possible from them, it finally led to apathy and indifference for others. They no longer cared about the salvation of the world. So long as they themselves are the chosen people of God, it didn’t matter if the rest of the world would burn in the fires of hell.

But what about us today? What about our church Trinity Lutheran in Toronto? Certainly when we look around us we see many different ethnic groups. We are probably one of the most diverse congregations in LCC. For that I am very thankful to God that he has brought all of us, from all different parts of the world into this one place, with one heart, one mind, and one voice to praise God and to received his gifts. Yet, is there also room for improvement? Certainly racism is non-existent in this congregation, but racism isn’t the only thing that separates people. Being a foreigner is not only being of different ethnicity. A foreigner (in a wider sense) is anyone who is different from us, anyone who may act or behave or look or think differently from us. How do we treat those who ae different? Does the word of God inform and teach and guide our own way of dealing with other people who are different?

This is not something we would like to admit, but to an outsider (usually non-Lutheran), we are actually not the most “welcoming” or “friendly” congregation. It’s very easy to put up a “self-defense” mentality and behavior when we meet people who are not “part” of us. And this usually is not because of what we say or do, but rather what we do not say or do. Ultimately we need to ask if we are doing our best, doing everything we can to welcome people who walk past those doors, both the people we know and those we don’t. When we see someone do we give a warm welcome or do we just stare and ignore? When we see someone fumbling with the hymnal, do we go and help? And after the service do you introduce yourself and invite them for coffee in the basement? Have we not become like those Israelites who end up being indifferent to the foreigners and failed to bring them into the faith?I know I have failed on many occasions and so I need to repent of that. And if you know you have not done all you can to be more welcoming, then you also need to repent. Individually and as a congregation, we all need to repent of our failures, of our lack of love, our indifference to the “foreigners”.

Indeed we can repent, we can be sure of that there is forgiveness, that God still receives us because here Isaiah reminds us that it is God himself who invites all people, it is God himself who brings people to his temple, to gather them, to join them to himself (v6-7). But this prophecy was not fulfilled in Isaiah’s time, nor was it fulfilled when the Jews returned from their Babylonian exile. But it could only become true when the true temple was destroyed and rebuilt in three days, the Christ who came to die and rose again in 3 days. Even in our Gospel reading we see this happening as he receives the Canaanite woman who should have no part in Jesus’ ministry, according to the Jews of his day. But the love and compassion of Jesus for our sickness of sins know no bounds and are for all peoples. As he himself says, when he is lifted up, he will draw all people to himself (Jn12:32). And likewise he calls his cross the sign of Jonah, who was an OT prophet called to preach repentance to the city of Nineveh, which were the hated enemies of Israel. The cross of Jesus, his death, his bleeding, his suffering is for all people, the rich, the poor, the sick, the healthy, the young, the old, those who look or act or think differently from us. God the father through his son Jesus the Christ invites all people to him. He invites you to be with him too, to receive the forgiveness of sins and eternal life for free (as we heard back in ch55). He says it is yours, when you believe these words, they are yours.

But if you read verse 1 or verse 6 in this chapter, it seems to say that those who do good will be saved, or in other words, salvation is something that we earn or merit by what we do. A careful reading of the first verse and the overall context of Isaiah and the whole bible will show you that good works are the result of having believed the promises. Because you have believed and have received the great gifts of Christ’s death and resurrection, his life, therefore you will not live as a pagan anymore. For the people of Isaiah’s time, even though the Jesus has not come yet for another 5-600 years, the promise is so sure for them that it is as though it has already been done, so that they live in that promise, living in faith which produces justice and righteousness. And how much more for us when Jesus has indeed come to be the temple for all people? And not only in the abstract so-called “spiritual” sense, but has truly come into our hearts so that our prayers need not go through Jerusalem, but through him. Are we then not also to live a life of prayer and faith which produces justice and righteousness?

This is what the power of the free forgiveness of sins at work in us. It truly humbles ourselves because it shows us how undeserving we are. And in this universal grace it shows us that we are all alike before God, and we have been called to be a light to bring others to this new life. So again we must ask ourselves, “am I doing all I can to welcome a stranger into our church?” We ask not in fear of condemnation and accusation, but in the joy and hope that we may bring others to know and share together the gifts of God offered here.

Imagine having a party at your home, and your friend says he will bring another friend over. How then would you interact with this new person who will be in your home? This is your church. A little smile, a handshake, a simple word of “welcome” is already very good. And pay attention when you see a visitor, if there’s a bit of time before service starts, try to introduce yourself and try to see if it is the first time for that person to be in a Lutheran church, then perhaps you may offer to help with the order of service. And then at the end of the service, if you didn’t get a chance yet, then go talk to the visitors and invite them for coffee and invite them back again. Certainly there is no “thus says the LP” to do all these things, but being in Christ, living in repentance and faith, understanding universal grace, we are to consider our gifts and share it with the world. And so here in the house of prayer, we not only pray that the whole world would come to know Christ and his cross, but locally, here in this congregation, we pray for ourselves that we may be little “christs”, as Luther would say, to bring people into God’s grace.