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The Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany

by steve Posted on February 5, 2012
Epiphany 5 [ 21:59 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is the sermon for the Fifth Sunday after the Epiphany. The sermon text is: 1 Corinthians 9:16-23. The sermon theme is: Share The Gospel Here is the Written Sermon.

Job and His Counselors
Job and His Counselors
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Share The Gospel


There is no salvation outside of the church.1 This is a truth I learned in college and at the seminary long ago. And to drive the point home the professor I had told this story: The angels were talking to the Lord right after they drove Adam and Eve out of the garden. The angels said to the Lord “Adam and Eve are going to have children who are unbelievers. And their children are going to be unbelievers. Soon, there will be a whole world of unbelievers. O Lord, what is your plan to save these unbelievers?” The Lord told them “I will send people to share my promise of salvation with them.” The angels looked at each other with clear uneasiness and hesitation in their faces. Finally, one of them spoke up: “Lord, do you really think that’s wise? I mean, these humans haven’t been doing so well so far. What is your plan B?” With clear and deliberate words the Lord told the angel, “there is no plan B.”


There is no salvation outside the church. The Lord uses people to save people. He uses frail, faltering, feeble humans to accomplish this amazing work of bringing souls to him and saving them. That is the one simple thought that Paul is speaking about in these words this morning in 1 Corinthians 9. Paul simply states that he shares the gospel. And that is his simple invitation to you this morning: Share The Gospel. He writes to the church at Corinth: “Yet when I preach the gospel, I cannot boast, for I am compelled to preach. Woe to me if I do not preach the gospel! If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me.” (1 Corinthians 9:16–17 NIV)


These words that Paul speaks here are very important. But they are also very easy to misunderstand. Paul here says that whenever he preaches he has no boast because necessity drives him to preach. You see in these words Paul is applying a principle he has spoken about elsewhere. If we ask the question “why do Christians do good works?”, what is the answer? In Paul’s letter to the Ephesians Paul writes: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— not by works, so that no one can boast. For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do” (Ephesians 2:8–10 NIV)


Notice the word that Paul uses here. He says that God saves us by grace—his undeserved love. And he saves us by grace alone. It is not mingled and mixed with our own efforts and our own works. For if we were able to partner together with God and help Jesus out we would have room for boasting. But notice what Paul says here. He says these clear words “so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:9 NIV)


There is no room for boasting. Christians do not do good works to help save themselves. They do not do good works to get something from God. And since it’s true in a general way, then it’s also true in the very specific way of sharing the saving message about Jesus. Here in 1 Corinthians 9 Paul says that he has no boast.2


Paul did not share the gospel to get into heaven or to get closer to heaven. And neither do you. And if we travel down this road of thinking that we need share the gospel in order to get into heaven it will lead us into two very dangerous places:


  1. Pride: If God gives us an occasion and opportunity to speak to those around him about Jesus and we do; and if that person hears and believes, it is every so tempting to give into pride and to give into boasting—as if God needed me in order to save this other person. God might use you. But God does not need you.


  2. Despair: What if we go out and share Jesus with those around us and they don’t believe? As a Christian pastor I have done this many, many times. I have spoken to people about Jesus and from every outward appearance it had no impact and impression. If the work of conversion is not in the Holy Spirit’s hands, but instead is in your hands, that is a world of darkness and despair.



And so, my brothers and sisters, note well what Paul says here. We do not share Jesus and his saving gospel in order to get salvation. Well then, why then do we share the gospel? We share the gospel because we have salvation. Paul tells us: “If I preach voluntarily, I have a reward; if not voluntarily, I am simply discharging the trust committed to me” (1 Corinthians 9:17 NIV)


If we were to share the gospel in order to get a reward and a boast, there is a word for that. We call it a mercenary. But we are not hired guns. No, instead we are slaves. For that is the words that Paul uses here. Paul says “I am simply discharging the trust committed to me” (1 Corinthians 9:17 NIV) The word that Paul uses here for ‘trust’ is the word for the work that a slave does.3 In God’s kingdom we are not mercenaries who choose Jesus for a boast and a reward. No we are slaves. In Luke 17 Jesus speaks about our role as slaves: ““Suppose one of you had a servant plowing or looking after the sheep. Would he say to the servant when he comes in from the field, ‘Come along now and sit down to eat’? Would he not rather say, ‘Prepare my supper, get yourself ready and wait on me while I eat and drink; after that you may eat and drink’? Would he thank the servant because he did what he was told to do? So you also, when you have done everything you were told to do, should say, ‘We are unworthy servants; we have only done our duty.’” (Luke 17:7–10 NIV)


Do you get the point that Jesus is making? We do not share the gospel in order to earn salvation. We share the gospel because we already have salvation. Jesus has both won forgiveness and given forgiveness to you. All of your sins are forgiven. Every little, stabbing, piercing sin is forgiven—even those sins we commit where we share the gospel for the wrong reasons.


No, Jesus forgives all your sins. But he does much more. He moves you to share his saving gospel freely and spontaneously. No longer do we share the gospel because we have to. No, instead we share his word because we want to. We used to share the gospel out of prideful boasting and despairing guilt. Now we share it out of joy and thanks to a God and Savior who freely forgave all our sins.


So Paul invites you to share the gospel. He invites you to share what you know about this Savior, Jesus who has taken away your sins. So share the gospel not in order to be saved, but out of pure thankfulness because you have been saved. That is what Paul teaches and preaches in the first paragraph of these words. But what follows is just as important. Paul says: “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings.” (1 Corinthians 9:22–23 NIV)


Yes, the Holy Spirit moves us to share the gospel spontaneously. But notice that the opposite is also true. The Holy Spirit also moves us to share God’s word with thought, with care, with deliberation. Whenever Paul was preaching to people he made every effort to ask the question “what do these people need? What are areas I can be like them, for them?”


So, when Paul was sharing the gospel with Jewish people who had grown up with these laws and traditions all their lives, he became like a Jew for them, so that he wouldn’t offend them. So also, when he was speaking to people who did not grow up with a bible he started them out with spiritual milk and then moved to meat.


Paul shared the gospel with such care, such forethought, such concern for others. And so, let me ask you, what would that sort of concern look like today? Years ago, there was a pastor who was giving advice to young men at our Seminary. He was sitting front of a room of Packers fans. And he said: “guys, when you get your calls to your congregations, don’t put on your Packer green and beat them over the head with Packer stories from the pulpit. If you get called to Colorado, you are a Broncos fan. If you go to Pittsburgh, you’re a Steelers fan. There are enough barriers to the gospel as it is. You don’t need to add any by your own stupidity.”


His words are good, aren’t they? My brothers and sisters, in the ways that you can—in the ways that don’t go against what God’s word says, bend, yield, give in. In our first lesson this morning we read from the book of Job. Job’s friends were at their best when they were sitting with him in the dirt not saying any words at all. They were at their worst when they got up to preach down to Job.


And so, my brothers and sisters, share the gospel. Share the gospel freely and spontaneously because your are saved. And share the gospel selflessly and deliberately for the same reason—your sins, all your sins are forgiven in Christ and by Christ. Amen.


1 extra Ecclesiam nulla salus

2 οὐκ ἔστιν μοι καύχημα

3 οἰκονομίαν

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Ash Wednesday

by steve Posted on March 9, 2011
Ash Wednesday [ 21:38 ] Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

This is the sermon for Ash Wednesday. The sermon text is: Judges 2:4-5. The sermon text is: What Is This You Have Done? Here is the Written Sermon.

The Angel of the Lord appears to Gideon
The Angel of the Lord appears to Gideon

What Is This You Have Done?


What Is This You Have Done? The first time we hear these words in scripture, they are not words of victory. They are words of defeat. Satan promised Eve that she would be like God. She believed Satan and became like him. After speaking to Adam, the Lord came to eve and said “What is this you have done?”1


This evening we find these same words, don’t we? And like the words the Lord spoke to Eve, the words here in Judges, chapter two are just as much words of despair. They are just as much words of defeat. What was happening in these words? In the book of Judges Joshua has finished leading the people out of desert and into the promised land. As the Israelites began to subdue the Canaanites, they trusted in the Lord and followed him. And when they trusted, they won. But when they did not trust, they abandoned their Lord.


And so, in these words The Angel of the Lord appears. We read: “The angel of the Lord went up from Gilgal to Bokim and said, “I brought you up out of Egypt and led you into the land that I swore to give to your forefathers. I said, ‘I will never break my covenant with you, and you shall not make a covenant with the people of this land, but you shall break down their altars.’ Yet you have disobeyed me. Why have you done this?” (Judges 2:1–2 NIV)


Why does The angel of the Lord come to them? He shows himself to them for one reason. He came to present evidence—evidence against them. If you listened closely, there were three accusations of sin:


  1. A reminder of grace: In these words we see that The Angel of the Lord is the Lord. He brought them up out of Egypt where they were slaves. He brought them into this land. He made and oath. And he kept it. Sometimes the most stinging condemnation the Lord shows to sinners is not their sin, but his grace. He showers his grace—his undeserved love on them. They do not remember. They do not offer thanks. They do not care.


  2. Their sin of commission: The Lord commanded them not to make treaties with the Canaanites. He commanded them not to partner together with them. And what was their response? When it was difficult for them to conquer the land; when they were scared, did they turn to their caring Lord above. No. Instead they leaned on their own understanding.


  3. A sin of omission: The Lord commanded them to tear down the pagan, false altars. And they loved the Lord so little that they let the godless altars and idols remain. They let the idols remain. And they let the false worshippers remain too. The Lord commanded them. But they chose to ignore his commands.



At the end of all this evidence, what does the Angel of the Lord Say? “What is this you have done?”2 It is a question that pours out pain instead of producing an answer. What could they say to this accusation? Our Lord above asks us the same question this evening: What is this you have done? For there have been many, many times our Lord asked us not to make treaties with the world, but we bent. We gave in. We compromised in the very areas God told us no compromise was possible. We see this so clearly in our own sins of commission and sins of omission.


Just look at what our Lord commands us to avoid. Avoid unwholesome thoughts. Avoid unwholesome speech. Avoid unwholesome actions. But all of us have run to think, speak and do the very sins that our Lord has spoken against.


Those are our sins of commission. What about our sins of omission? What about the times we should have done what what was right, but instead we forgot. Instead of worshipping, praying and thanking our Lord, we did not. Instead of helping our neighbor to protect his body and soul, we forgot. The Angel of the Lord met them face to face and asked: What is this you have done? And with the same pain and tragedy in his voice he asks the same question: What is this you have done?


The Angel of the Lord showed them the evidence. The he went on to show them the consequence: “Now therefore I tell you that I will not drive them out before you; they will be [thorns] in your sides and their gods will be a snare to you.”” (Judges 2:3 NIV)


There were three consequences to their actions:


  1. He would not drive the Canaanites out: They refused to fight against the Canaanites. They refused to trust. So, what they so desperately wanted, the Lord gave them.


  2. They would be constantly be at their sides: The rest of the book of Judges shows this. The Canaanites who were around them very quickly placed themselves over them. The Canaanites made them into slaves—just as they were slaves in Egypt.


  3. Their gods would be snares: Since they refused to get rid of the godless idols, they see their sons and daughters enslaved to godless idols and destructive passions.



You see, there are consequences to sins, aren’t there? If the Angel of the Lord came down here tonight and said that he was closing down this church, who of us could blame him? We have made partnerships with the world and abandoned our relationship with the Lord. How often is it that this church spreads more gossip than gospel? How often is it that we find more joy reading a book rather than reading the book, the bible? How often is it that we yearn for the sermon to finish and pray that the football game or movie not end? How often is it that we spend far more time complaining than we do praying? How often is it that we don’t struggle to pay our cable bill, but a joyous, generous offering to our Lord—that is a difficult task indeed!?


What is this you have done? That is the question we ask tonight. How does the Lord deal with these rebellious Hebrews in Israel? He shows them the evidence. He shows them the consequence. Then, he moves them to repentance. In our closing verses, we read: “When the angel of the Lord had spoken these things to all the Israelites, the people wept aloud, and they called that place Bokim. There they offered sacrifices to the Lord.” (Judges 2:4–5 NIV)


The Angel of the Lord gives them repentance? How so? in verse for, we hear how they all cry out to their Lord above. They all cry out with one voice. They all cry out with real tears. Then what happens? They offer sacrifices. And the Lord accepts them! He receives their worship not because of their tears and not because of their unity in grief. He receives their worship because of his grace, his undeserved love.


And what is so wonderful to see is that Jesus doesn’t just appear to them that day. He appears to Gideon. He appears to Samson’s parents. He appears many times to show them that he is not some unknowing, uncaring God. No, Jesus came to them to show them just the opposite. He was there to forgive their sin. He was there to see their tears. He was there to hear their cries. He was there to bear their burdens–even if their burdens were really their own consequences to their own sins.


And at the end of all of this they could very well ask the same question of their Lord that he asked of them. They could ask “what is this you have done?” How could a holy God who hates sin and sinners be so gracious to people who have broken oaths and loved rebellion? And their question could very well be our own. What is this you have done, O Angel of God? What is this you have done, my Savior, my Jesus? The ashes we smear on our foreheads aren’t nearly as messy as my sin. The ashes we smear aren’t nearly as dark and hideous as the thoughts that fill my mind and the emotions that flow from my heart. What is this you have done, my Jesus? You have laid down your life for me. And again and again you come to me to show me my sin and lift my eyes up to you. So the tears I cry are no longer tears of pain. Instead they are tears of joy.


And so, my brothers and sisters in Christ, tonight, as you come forward to have ashes put on your heads, see the grace you have so often forgotten. See the commands your Lord has given to you, but you chose to rebel against. Se the commands Jesus gave to you, but you forgot. See them all as dirty, dark ashes are smeared on your heads. See them all and ask that one, amazing question: what is this you have done, my Savior? For you take away the blame I deserve and you bear the burdens I have earned. Amen.


1 ‏מַה־זֹּאת עָשִׂית (Judges 2:2 ESV)

2 ‏מַה־זֹּאת עֲשִׂיתֶם (Judges 2:2 ESV)

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