7th Sunday after Pentecost (June 29, 2008)
“Much to Do About Jesus”
Matthew 10:34-42
INI
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.
Everyone has an opinion about Jesus…many are good…others not so good. As Lutheran Christians, we believe that Jesus is God the Father’s clear expression of his love for each of us. It’s summarized in that verse we all know and love: “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” Jesus is God’s love for us. His death shows to what extent God loves us…he loves us so much he puts his own Son to death for our sins. But a lot of the world doesn’t understand that love. In fact, many people will argue with the assertion that God loves the world he created. There are those who can’t see God’s love when they look at nations being obliterated by earthquakes and cyclones. They don’t believe in a God of love because of soldiers dying on Iraq’s battlefield. They assume God is totally distant from them because of loved ones suffering from cancer or going through the hurt and pain of divorce.
Jesus reminds us today in the Holy Gospel from Matthew 10 that he is much more available than people realize. In fact, he is just about everywhere. He is not distant from the death and destruction of this world. He is not complacent and willing to just sit by while mankind struggles with things like war and violence and disaster. He is right there. More specifically, he says, “Whoever receives you (the disciples) receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.” Whenever and wherever people receive the message of the apostles, they receive Jesus himself…and also his and our Heavenly Father. And since the last 2000 years have seen the apostles and those who followed them spread the message of the apostles, you can be quite certain that Jesus is all over the place! He’s in the big cities of the East Coast and he’s in the flooding river valleys of Iowa. He’s in the run-down villages of India and the tribal clans of remote Africa. Jesus is wherever the words of the apostles are found. Jesus is right here with us today.
That’s a very important reality for you and me! On the one hand, for those who are seeking God and want his presence in their midst, it is very, very good news! He is very, very present in the Word and in the Sacraments where the Word is joined to earthly elements. He is very much here. He is here in his Son Jesus Christ. “Whoever receives you, receives me, and whoever receives me receives him who sent me.” But on the other hand, for those who are neglecting the message of the apostles…neglecting God’s Word…they may be doing so without realizing that at the very same time, they are neglecting Jesus himself! It is for this very reason that Jesus tells the apostles he’s sending out, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” This is illustrated brilliantly on the cover of your bulletin this morning, where a picture of Jesus shows a sword coming out of his mouth.
The idea that Jesus’ words are a sword is one found elsewhere in the Bible. In Hebrews 4, the author depicts the Word of God as a “two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” And in Revelation 1, St. John actually sees Jesus himself with what he describes as “from his mouth a sharp two-edged sword.” Obviously a two-edged sword has a decided advantage over a single-edged sword. It can cut no matter what way you slice it. God’s Word is the same way…it can either condemn us with the Law that shows us our sins, or it can heal us with the Gospel that heals us from our sins. What you and I see from the Holy Gospel today is that Jesus is present, more present than any of us realize. That’s a good thing…and yet it’s also something you and I should regard with a bit of caution.
Wherever the message of the apostle is received, Jesus is received. His Word comes not only with peace for sinners, but also as a sword. It divides…it’s here again this week. Last week in our Gospel we heard, “Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and put them to death.” This week, Jesus has the same sort of them for us: “I have come to set a man against his father, and a daughter against her mother, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law. And a person’s enemies will be those of his own household.” The Word of God has the power to divide. You and I should expect it! Wherever sinful people are gathered around the Word of God, expect it to pierce them! Expect it to divide them! Should it be any wonder that a congregation can struggle and be divided on issues like closed communion…or in some churches it’s the style of worship…in other churches it’s the way the money is spent. People of God, what have you expected? Of course there’s strife and frustration in the Church because sinful people chafe at the Word of God that is a sword. If there’s a congregation in the world that never has any problems…they either don’t have the Word of God, or they don’t have any sinners in the congregation.
Jesus’ words deal in black and white realities…not shades of grey. That black and white is all over his message to us today. His words are a sword…they cut and divide. He tells us that if we are worthy of him, we will carry a cross. He tells us that when we receive the message of his apostles, he is with us and his Father is with us. He tells us that if you and I receive the word of the apostles, we will receive an eternal reward. Yes, on the one hand, those black and white realities are hard to deal with. They are a sword stroke that cuts us and points to us the ways you and I have failed our Lord and the ways we have failed to be the people he has called us to be. But then the sword blade comes back the other way and cuts down the sinner in us to reveal us as God’s redeemed holy people…not because of the good we’ve done, but because the Word of the apostles, given to them by Jesus, speaks to us the forgiveness of sins in the blood of Christ our Lord.
Our hymn this morning that we sang before the sermon reminds us of the harsh realities of war. “The Son of God goes forth to war, a kingly crown to gain. His blood red banner streams afar; who follows in His train? Who best can drink His cup of woe, triumphant over pain, who patient bears his cross below—he follows in His train.” The black and white reality is that a war requires a weapon…and Christ’s Word is that very weapon. Despite the varied views that exist among us today regarding the war, most people acknowledge that there are times when war is necessary. When the safety of people is endangered, or wickedness is running rampant, the sword becomes a necessity. Because the sin within us and within all people is so vile and opposed to everything that God is by nature and that he stands for, the sword must us down. But the Lord Jesus is triumphant in his war against sin.
The Word that cuts us is also the Word that gives us peace. Maybe that sounds like it contradicts what the text said. After all, Jesus said, “Do not think that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I have not come to bring peace, but a sword.” What Jesus tells us is that his Word is not peace for all. To those who reject the Word of his apostles, there is no peace. To those who refuse to carry the cross of the Christian life, there is no peace. To those who are more concerned about earthly relationships than with the Word of God, there is no peace. But when the sword cuts us down with the Law of condemnation, there is a Gospel of peace. We are forgiven sons and daughters of God. When we are pitted against one another and looking for healing for our hurts, the Gospel of Jesus Christ brings us peace.
So much of the world knows that there is a lot of fuss about Jesus…and it makes so little sense to so many people. They want a God of peace and they don’t see peace. Perhaps they assume the peace in their own lives and neglect the sword. For you and me, Jesus is here and present with his people. He’s here and present because the Word he gave his apostles is present. That Word is the same Word that both cuts us as a sword and also gives us peace. As God’s people who encounter that Word, may God always grant that the Word would do what Christ has promised…cut you when you need to be cut…heal you when you need to be healed…and bring you Christ whenever that Word is present. And of course, may you rejoice that our God who is faithful to keep his promises will reward you on the last day at our Lord Jesus’ return in glory. Amen.
The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
