Sermon for Pentecost 9, July 30, 2023
Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of
God and of Jesus our Lord. His divine
power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through the
knowledge of Him who called us by His own glory and excellence. Amen.
1 Timothy 6:17-21 17Instruct those
who are rich in this
present age not to be arrogant or to put their hope in the uncertainty of
riches, but rather in God, who richly supplies us with all things for our
enjoyment. 18Instruct
them to do good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to
share. 19In this way they are
storing up for themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so
that they may take hold of that which is truly life. 20O
Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to you, turning away from godless, empty
talk and the contradictions of what is falsely called “knowledge.” 21By professing it, some have
veered away from the faith. Grace be with you.
Amen. (EHV)
Keep faith in Jesus
your greatest treasure.
Dear fellow redeemed,
When
writing a sermon, one thing a pastor has to ask himself is what sin is being
addressed in this text? Here, in this
short admonition to Timothy, Paul warns against several possible sins: greed,
selfishness, arrogance and pride, and as with all sins, a lack of faith in the
one true God. The instruction for us
this morning is to Keep faith in Jesus your greatest treasure.
In order to make this statement, we must first
examine what should be our greatest treasure.
Of all the things this world offers, what can possibly compare to the
great benefit that is ours through faith in Christ Jesus? Faith in Christ, granted to us by the power
of the Holy Spirit, through the gospel in Word and Sacrament, offers and gives
to us the forgiveness of all sins, reconciliation with God, and the certainty
of life everlasting in heaven. What
could possibly be greater than this gift of peace with God through faith in
Christ Jesus? All earthly things will
pass away, but our home in heaven is forever.
Paul wrote, “Instruct those who are rich.” I separate out these words precisely to gauge
our reaction. In our present-day
politics, I keep hearing that government should make the rich pay their fair
share. Do you imagine that Paul is
demanding that we force rich people to do something above what the ordinary
Christian should do? Or is it possible
that Paul is explaining that Christians should naturally consider themselves
rich? When we keep our focus on our
greatest treasure, we are very likely to realize that everything we possess is
a gift of God above and beyond what we deserve.
Now, Paul had been trained as a Pharisee, and
he had been one of the best at that.
That means he understood well the mindset of that class of people. Here he writes, “Instruct those who are
rich in this present age not to be arrogant or to put their hope in the
uncertainty of riches, but rather in God, who richly supplies us with all
things for our enjoyment.” The
Pharisees famously assumed that God showed His satisfaction with a person by
blessing them with riches here on earth—the greater the wealth, the better the
person was assumed to be. Indeed, to be
a Pharisee demanded fairly substantial wealth in order to live up to the show.
Now, most of us wouldn’t pretend to be
Pharisees. Yet, this idea that God
blesses best those who please Him can lead to a self-satisfaction that works
against our faith. We might begin to
think that we deserve what we get more than others less fortunate. Sometimes, it may be that we have worked
harder for our wealth, but that is far from always the case. Before they entered the Promised Land, Moses
warned the Israelites, “You might say in your heart, ‘My ability and the
power of my hand have earned this wealth for me.’ But then you are to remember that the Lord
your God is the one who gives you the ability to produce wealth, to confirm his
covenant that he promised to your fathers with an oath, as he does to this
day.” (Deuteronomy 8:17-18) Thus, we
are to reminded that God gives us many things to preserve and enhance our lives
on earth, yet we must remember the needs of less fortunate neighbors and help
them as we are able, for God also gives trials and hardships so that His people
have opportunities to do good works.
The command continues, “Instruct them to do
good, to be rich in good works, to be generous and willing to share. In this way they are storing up for
themselves the treasure of a good foundation for the future, so that they may
take hold of that which is truly life.”
As faithful Christians, we understand that our good works never earn us
forgiveness nor salvation. Those are
already ours by God’s grace. Apart from
anything we do, and solely because of what Christ has done for us, God forgives
all our sins and grants to those who trust in His Son the blessing of eternal
life in heaven.
At the same time, God leaves His people on
earth for a certain time to be His hands of kindness and blessing to those
around us, believer and unbeliever alike.
Jesus instructed His followers, “I tell you, make friends for
yourselves with unrighteous mammon, so that when it runs out, they will welcome
you into the eternal dwellings. The
person who is faithful with very little is also faithful with much.” (Luke
16:9-10) The world doesn’t understand
the eternal blessings that are ours through faith in Jesus. One of the ways that people of the world may
be attracted to the Christian faith is through the kindness we show to others,
friend and enemy alike.
When Jesus described Judgment Day, He spoke of
sheep who did many good things for Him and goats who claimed to do good things
on their own. Jesus’ description shows
that God has wiped the record clean of sin for all who trust in Jesus, while He
remembers those good deeds we did in the world through our faith in Jesus. Conversely, those who do not believe in Jesus
as Lord and Savior are remembered only as defiant haters of God, and His people,
who have done nothing to help in the world.
Therefore, we can go confidently about our daily activities knowing that
God is watching over us to help us in all things and to catch us doing His will
in sharing kindness with those around us.
We become tools of His grace and goodness, and He doesn’t forget those
who walk in His ways.
Paul then personally addresses Timothy with the
most important instruction: “O Timothy, guard what has been entrusted to
you, turning away from godless, empty talk and the contradictions of what is
falsely called “knowledge.” By
professing it, some have veered away from the faith.” There are many religions and churches in the
world that teach the need to do nice things for other people. The golden rule is imbedded in people through
the natural law written in hearts, so it is not surprising that it is stressed
even among those who have no time or love for Jesus.
There is a small industry in our country that
promotes so-called mission trips to distant places to do good deeds. Certainly, there is nothing wrong with the
premise. However, our mission in the
world must, first of all, be concerned with sharing the message of God’s grace
through faith in Jesus. Repairing homes,
clearing debris and garbage, and all the other good things done by so many are
meaningless if Jesus’ name isn’t proclaimed in its truth and purity.
Sometimes, people have said, “Charity begins at
home.” I am never quite sure how to
react to that statement, but it is true that good deeds can be done near or far
away. They can be done personally or
through helping others carry out the good works we aim to do. Still, the greatest and most important work
for Christians is to share the Good News that Jesus lived and died to take away
the sins of the world. That Jesus is our
one and only Savior—a Savior we serve not out of fear of missing out but out of
gratitude for all He has done to make us acceptable to His Father in heaven.
On the other hand, sometimes “Charity begins at
home,” can be merely an excuse to avoid helping those we don’t know personally,
or those we might find less appealing to our personal feelings. As always, love for others doesn’t limit
itself to skin color, nationality, personality, location, or familiarity. Jesus showed His great love for us while we
were still His enemies. St. Paul wrote
to the Roman congregation, “For if, while we were enemies, we were
reconciled to God by the death of his Son, it is even more certain that, since
we have been reconciled, we will be saved by his life. And not only is this so, but we also go on
rejoicing confidently in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now
received this reconciliation.” (Romans 5:10-11)
Paul closed this letter of encouragement and
instruction by saying, “Grace be with you.
Amen.” This is more than a
simple wish. Walking with Jesus by
faith, God’s grace is with us. We bestow
God’s grace on others by our deeds, our attitudes, our kindness to strangers,
and our helpfulness to friends. There
will be many times when the world seems against us. On the other hand, many of us have been richly
blessed by God is so many ways, whether materially or by the talents,
personalities, and faith He has bestowed upon us individually.
As we go about our days trusting in Jesus as
our Savior, we can be confident that our God has put each of us in a certain
place and time for the benefit of our neighbors, friends, and family, and that
He gives us the tools and riches needed to carry out the work He created us to
do. We can be bold in serving and
confident that our God will provide for our needs and for the good of those we
serve. More than that, we can know that
our Lord will never forget the good works we do through faith in Jesus.
“Grace be with you” also means that the love of God will never depart from
those of us who trust in His Son, Jesus.
As long as the Lord allows us to remain in this troubled, broken world
with all its crime, hatred, cruelty, and death, we will have God dwelling in
us, preserving, protecting, and providing for us. And in the end, we will live forever in
heaven, because Jesus has removed all our shortcomings, weaknesses, and sins as
far as east is from the west. Jesus paid
the full price to set us free from the control of the devil and our own sinful
natures. Jesus has won for us holiness, justification—the
declaration of innocence before the Almighty Judge, reconciliation with God
Almighty, and the sure hope of life everlasting with our Lord and Savior in the
mansions of heaven, not because we have deserved such marvelous things, but
because God loved us and gave His Son to be our Redeemer, Savior, and Friend.
Dear friends, go in peace today and every
day. Walk in the joy of forgiveness of
all sin granted to you through faith in Jesus, and in the sure confidence of
knowing that God is blessing you eternally for Jesus’ sake. Keep faith in Jesus your greatest treasure. Amen.
Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be,
forevermore. Amen.
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