November 15, 2020                                                                                   Text:  Matthew 25:14-30

Dear Friends in Christ,

            There are many ways to divide people.  We always hear there are two types of people in the world.  There are those who sleep late and those who get up early.  There are those who are patient at four way stops and those that aren’t.  There are those who enjoy conflict and those that want to get along.  There are those who cheer for the Cubs and those who back the Cardinals.  There are those who prefer air conditioning over a hot shower.  I still don’t get that one!

            Jesus has His own two types of people this morning in our parable.  We have two types of servants – those are that are faithful and those that are not.  It’s Stewardship Sunday and it is a simple question . . .

“WHAT WILL YOU DO WITH YOUR TALENT?”

            This portion of Scripture finds Jesus teaching about the end and He is doing it immediately before His Passion narrative.  Let’s briefly review the parable.  Three servants entrusted with five, two, and one talent.  Gifts received and now what will they do.  The five talent servant steps to the plate and makes five more.  The two talent servant takes his and makes two more.  The one talent servant who has also been gifted takes his and buries it.  Please note that the master was gone for a “long time.” There was time excuse for the behavior of the servants.  The master had been more than fair.  He insisted upon accountability but he showered the faithful with more blessings.

            What do we tend to do with this parable?  Many times we see ourselves in the servants.  Maybe you are sitting upright in the pew or your chair at home and thinking, “Yea, that’s me, the five talent servant.”  Or maybe you don’t want to be quite so bold so you think, “I used my talents pretty well, I am the two talent servant.”  Are there any who think, “Wow, have I wasted my life and talent.  I buried it a long time ago.”

            We will return to those thoughts, but let’s take a different angle. How about Jesus as the good and faithful servant?  All right, good job preacher.  Jesus was obedient to the Father.  Jesus was kind to the outcast and sinner.  Jesus is the faithful servant who fulfilled all of God’s promises.  He fulfilled the prophets of old and He fulfilled His resurrection promise.

            In that resurrection Jesus showed not only His servanthood, but that He was also Master.  He reigns over all things, including death.  His resurrection confirmed all of His promises and we still await the final one, His return on the Last Day. 

            The Master is faithful to us.  He is forgiving and merciful to those who trust Him.  He promises eternal joy to each of us.  He gathers us together to receive His gifts.  God makes us His good and faithful servants.

            We too are waiting for the Master to return.  What are we doing with our talents?  If we take God’s gifts and “bury them in the ground”, we act as if we’ve never been given them at all.  Kretzmann wrote, “There are few excuses so poor and so miserable in sound as those by which professing Christians attempt to evade work in the church.”

            The end of our story has yet been written.  We have been entrusted with the Master’s property.  This is already God’s act of grace that we as His servants are given property to use.  We have been brought into his service through our Baptism. We have received His Word and mission.  Whether 5, 2, or 1 the greatest gift we have been given is faith.

            We are being sent by the master to be “good and faithful” in our vocations.  We are being sent by the master to be “good and faithful” in our use of talents.  We are being sent by the master to be “good and faithful” in our use of financial resources.  His promise still stands as we, with the help of the Holy Spirit, fulfill our Christian commitments.  In faithfulness to the end we will “enter into the joy of your master.” 

            One more thing to take with you today.  The two faithful servants in the parable could have been helpful to the unfaithful servant by encouraging and supporting him.  We don’t see that they did any of that.  I invite you to be light for those in the darkness.  I encourage you to be an encourager to your fellow servants.  Let your faithfulness flow to another in your words and deeds.  They are watching more than you know.

            We have seen the two types of people – the faithful and the unfaithful. The master, the servant, the One intertwined throughout the whole parable is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Jesus is good to us and faithful to His promises.

            The master is coming back soon.  Come quickly, good and faithful Master.  Your servants are ready.

                                    Amen.     

November 8, 2020                                                                            Text:  Amos 5:18-24

Dear Friends in Christ,

            Do you ever think about who set the standards?  Who set the standard for the type of fuel our vehicles would need?  Who decided how much weight a wall could bear so that buildings don’t crash down?  Who set the standard for furnaces, air conditioners, refrigerators and that airplane you want to ride in?  I thought about all this because tomorrow I go for a colonoscopy.  Who came up with the common procedure to get ready and then perform this medical deed?  The last time I had this done, anesthesia was administered for the 20-30 minutes the procedure took.  I’ve always wondered who allowed themselves to be knocked out with this type of medicine the first time so that all the rest of us had a standard?  I picture this at the pharmaceutical company:  “Jones hop on the table and we will give you a dose.  Hope to see you when you wake up.”

            Aren’t you glad we don’t set the standards?  For the things I have mentioned we don’t.  But aren’t their times we have our self-conceived standards and people better fall in line?  Or we tell God what His standard should be?  It’s the Old Testament from Amos and we wonder . . .

“WHAT IS THE STANDARD?”

            Israel has a problem in our text.  They were smug in their estimation that they were achieving a great standard of godliness.  They looked forward to the Day of the Lord.  It would be a good thing because they were pleasing to God and their standard of living proved it. 

            However, Israel’s standards were self-made and they were failing miserably to achieve God’s standard.  His standard is perfect obedience to His holy Law.  They were going to experience judgment and not the blessings they expected. 

            They thought their worship was pleasing to God, but Amos tells them that their heart is not in it.  They lacked justice and humility and no matter how orthodox the ritual or how fine the music was, the worship was a hypocritical sham.  Corrupt worship would lead to corrupt living.

            Are we in tune with God’s standard for these New Testament times?  Jesus established our worship.  He comes with abundant blessings of life and forgiveness and salvation.  The standard was set in Baptism, in Absolution, in His Word, in Holy Communion. 

            Too many times we think we can worship apart from these means of grace.  Why can’t I commune with God on the golf course or lake?  I can receive His forgiveness while shopping or on vacation.  The Word is always available, so what if my mind is on how quick we can get out of here today.  I’ve been baptized, doesn’t that seal my faith for a number of years?  Shouldn’t I get a medal or some sort of recognition for my steadfastness in worship?

            The Divine Service is not something to check off your list.  God has established this eternal blessing so that your faith can grow.  Right worship leads to right living.  “Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream.”  God’s people produce justice like the flow of a river.  Animals and plants need water to survive.  We need the gift of worship so that our faith grows and is strengthened.  The standard for us is Jesus.

            Jesus is the exact reversal of everything Amos uses to warn you concerning the Day of the Lord.  Repent of less than honest worship.  Repent of trying to set your own standards.  Repent of the corrupt living that comes from corrupt worship.  Repent and rejoice.

            Rejoice that on the cross, God’s justice poured out His wrath on Jesus.  Justice was served and every sin was punished.  God’s justice rolled over Christ so that His righteousness flows to you.  You have been baptized into the death of Jesus.  You have been baptized into the resurrection of Jesus.  The waters flow down to you from Jesus and roll down from you to serve your neighbor.  A new man daily emerges to live before God in righteousness and purity forever.

            The next time you drive your car or go to the top of a tall building or have surgery or fly in a plane thank God for the standards that are set.  They are meant to protect you.  The Lord puts us in the shelter of His wings and protects us from sin, death, and the power of the devil.  Evil cannot overcome the Standard our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

                                    Amen.