Brothers and sisters, greetings in the name of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Many people are making plans about what to do once the weather turns cooler. I encourage you to make worship attendance part of your schedule, that you may hear God’s Word and receive the gifts of forgiveness He administers through the service.
During the Sunday October 1 worship, we will be following a slightly modified version of the liturgy of Divine Service Setting One beginning on page 151 in the LSB hymnal. Hymns chosen for the day are #900 Jesus, Name of Wondrous Love; #947 All Glory Be To God on High; #683 Jesus, Thy Boundless Love to Me; #627 Jesus Christ, Our Blessed Savior; and #687 Thine Forever God of Love.
Scripture lessons we will be reading are Psalm 25:1-10; Ezekiel 18:1-4, 25-32; Philippians 2:1-18; and Matthew 21:23-27.
Psalm 25 reads like a prayer of King David. You might consider the first ten verses of Psalm 25 as a model for your own prayers. David opens up to God—“I lift up my soul.” David expresses his trust in God. Praying is a responsive act of trust, believing God is alive, is listening, and is able and willing to help us in our needs. We often pray for the moment, asking to God change our circumstances. That is okay to ask. But what we often need instead is that we be changed. Note that David in this prayer is asking that his direction be changed, that God would keep him from shame, including shame due to the abuse or ridicule of enemies. This might remind you that Jesus endured the shame of the cross to protect you from the abuse of the devil and the shame of your sin. He did that by taking the guilt of your sin from you, and putting it on Jesus.
David continues his prayer by asking God to teach him and lead him in His paths so that he might know His truth. What is truth? Well, one truth is that we are sinners; our words and actions frequently deny God’s truth. But it also true that God’s forgives. Since Jesus is the source and reason for our forgiveness, it is necessary that we know Him and the redemptive work He has completed. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. St. Paul also wrote about knowing God’s truth when he prayed for Christians (Philippians 1:9-10) “It is my prayer that your love may abound more and more, with knowledge and all discernment, that you may approve what is excellent and so be pure and blameless for the day of Christ…” Let us pray that God would lead us and all people to the truth of Jesus, the way of rescue from sin, and the way to eternal life.
In verse 6, David asks God to remember. Notice he is not saying ‘remember the good I’ve done’, but instead ‘Lord, when you look at me remember your mercy and steadfast love.’ In prayer, David acknowledges his only hope for the future is God being merciful. David has nothing good to offer God, only his sin. Humbly, David is asking, ‘When you look at my past, don’t give me what my sin deserves.’ Rather, “according to Your steadfast love remember me.” Thinking about his sin and thinking about God, David follows up with a confession in verses 7-10. God is good and He will lead us in the way that is right, if we will listen to Him and follow His way.
The Old Testament lesson, Ezekiel 18:1-4 and 25-32, begins with a proverbial saying that was apparently being repeated by the Jews exiled in Babylon, “the fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge”, (also quoted by the prophet Jeremiah 31:29). The proverb was a complaint, the people suggesting their troubles were the result of their parents’ (or previous generations’) sins. The people went so far as to blaming God for their circumstances, saying He was treating them unfairly. They were not acknowledging that they were at fault. They were not acknowledging the seriousness of their offense. God uses Ezekiel to call each person to account. We are responsible for our sin, no one else. We each deserve our own punishment. God also calls all people to repentance, to turn from their rebellious self-centered ways and instead return to following Him. Those who don’t repent, will die. Those who repent, God graciously receives, and they will live. God wants you and everyone to repent and live.
The Epistle lesson is a continuation of a read through St. Paul’s letter to the Philippians (in the Macedonian region of northern Greece). Reading between the lines, the Philippians had problems many congregations and individuals have—division, competition, arrogance, complaining, prone to sinful behavior. In Chapter 2, Paul says stop such behavior, have one mind, look to others’ interests before your own, don’t grumble, live a blameless life. The words don’t sound much different from the instruction the world could also give. But there is a difference in Paul’s instruction. This difference is pointed out in verses 5-13. In those verses Paul describes the work of Jesus, who gave up His glory in heaven, set aside use of most of His divine powers, to become a servant to us, even willing to be executed as a criminal in order that we might be viewed differently by God. Baptized into Jesus, you are now the residence of the Holy Spirit. As Christians, our motivation and ability is different from the world. Jesus is our Lord. We are His redeemed people. Any good we do flows from Jesus. As Paul puts it in verse 13, ‘it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure.’ So we work out our salvation with trembling, aware that we are sinners, but trusting God for His mercy, mercy best shown in the sacrifice of Jesus for the atonement of our sin.
In the gospel lesson from Matthew 21:23-27, Jesus was teaching in the Jerusalem temple a few days before He was arrested and crucified. The Jewish leaders challenge Jesus, questioning His authority. It is not clear what their motivation was in asking about His authority. They may have been merely trying to clarify. More likely they were looking to assert their authority. Considering their increasing opposition during the rest of the week, the questioning may have been a trap, intending to trick Jesus into saying something they could use to bring charges against Him. They considered themselves to be His judge. They refuse to submit to Jesus. And as a result, they miss out on the salvation and grace Jesus was opening up to them. Jesus recognizes their duplicity, and deflects their questioning back against them. He asks for their opinion about the authority of John the Baptizer. The leaders stumbled for an answer. If they say John was from God, people would ask why then didn’t you listen to him. If the leaders answer that John was a fraud, then the people would turn against the leaders, for the people considered him to be a messenger from God. Their refusal to answer Jesus’ question exposes their stubbornness. Jesus goes on to tell several parables illustrating the danger of the Jewish leaders’ attitude, refusing to repent and to follow Jesus. The message is clear—repentant sinners who turn to Jesus will be saved on the Day of Final Judgment. Those who reject Jesus and stubbornly do not submit to Him will be destroyed.
COLLECT: Almighty God, You exalted Your Son to the place of all honor and authority. Enlighten our minds by Your Holy Spirit that, confessing Jesus as Lord, we may be led into all truth and serve you with holy living; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.
Please let me know if you have any prayer requests or questions about Sunday’s Scripture lessons. The Lord be with you. Pastor Boster
