Consequences
Commentary
Somewhere someone tells the story of a Sunday School teacher of years gone by who wanted to teach her children about sin, forgiveness and consequences. She gave each child a beautiful and highly polished piece of wood with the instructions to take it home and whenever they did some act or spoke some word that they felt was hurtful and bad, they were to drive a nail in the board. Weeks rolled by and finally came the Sunday when the boards were to be brought back for examination. Of course, all of them had a generous supply of nails and they could talk about the things that brought them about. Now, said the teacher, let's talk of forgiveness. When she was through, each child was to take a hammer and pull the nails out one by one. Then the lesson was clear. God did forgive, but the consequences could be seen in the nail holes that marred the board.
There are many who imagine that when they repent that forgiveness means that God will step in and make all things right and they will escape the consequences. Experience demonstrates that such a conclusion is not warranted.
We do suffer consequences, self-chosen and self-generated. No doubt God grieves when he watches what we do to ourselves. He is there in both love and judgment seeking to turn us around before we make a mess of things.
There is always a "therefore" implied in the faith we share.
When we sin there is a "therefore." Be sure your sin will find you out.
When we repent there is a "therefore." My grace is sufficient.
When we seek to be disciples, there is a "therefore." Go, witness, do, share, serve, give, sacrifice, and so forth.
OUTLINE I
Standing Against the Opposition
Psalm 94:12-22
Introduction: One has only to read the text for today's selection to become aware of the kind of dilemma that faces many persons. It sometimes seems that no matter what one does or how much one tries, things do not turn out well. I think especially of Psalm 73 at this point. The same theme is set out in Psalm 42:1-5. We need to understand two things.
Life is generally the same for all of us. There are those who would like to imagine that some are more favored than others for some special reason or other. I sometimes am convinced that there are those who are members of my church who suppose that because I am a minister I have a special "in" with God. Things are not going to go badly for me. Surely they can expect that their minister will always have good health and success. Some of them are dismayed when some illness or difficulty comes to me or my family and want to imagine that there must be something they do not know.
2. One does live with an awareness that, while God does not control our lives from moment to moment and day to day, he is nevertheless involved, seeking to use what does come to us in life to influence us toward the good, gratitude, maturity, and whatever is in our best interest. Was it not Paul who declared in Romans 8:28, "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him ..." That does not mean that God handles the faithful as special cases, nor that he is there pulling strings and causing circumstances, but that he is there for all of us, offering the end of what is not worthy and new beginnings for those who listen.
Conclusion: Give your people hope. Not that kind of naive hope that seems disassociated from reality, but that kind of hope that can face the daily world with that sense of confidence which makes life whole and glad.
OUTLINE II
The Watchman's Call
Ezekiel 33:1-11
Introduction: Do your homework on Ezekiel and then listen to what he has to say. What a terrible responsibility to have the very fate of the nation placed in your hands and to rest on your faithfulness. Surely there were other voices whispering in the ears of the people of God in Babylon. It must have been tempting to hear of the greatness of Marduk or to find comfort in the declarations of the great Babylonian Epic, Eneuma Elish. Easy answers to their pain and dilemma must have been close at hand. Surely there were many of them who did join the processions of Marduk and abandoned the covenant with Yahweh, who seemed to them to be impotent against the great forces alive in their world.
What is one to make of all this sermonically? Some options are:
1. Trace the connection between the prophets and current day ministry and see if there is relevant connection. Are we watchers too? Is this limited only to ministers or do all of those in the body of Christ have this responsibility to one another? What then do verses 1-9 have to say to us?
2. Take a look at 1-11. There must have been those among the exiles who had despaired of both God and themselves. If this is judgment, then it seems they are undone. But listen to the good news in verse 11. God has no pleasure in the death of even the wicked (see Romans 5:8). There is an invitation to turn, to change, to respond to the grace that is present. Surely Luther was right when he said that wrath has only the other face of grace. God's judgment is meant to turn us around and let us see that God cares for us enough to make personal sacrifice on our behalf.
Conclusion: Too many of us cower not only under the onslaught of life but in the presence of God. Surely ours is a God who invites us into his presence and reminds us that we do not need to be afraid. This is the God who judges and wishes that he did not need to do so. Check out Genesis 6:6 and Romans 1:24, 28.
OUTLINE III
First Things First
Luke 14:25-33
Introduction: Most of us probably wish that this part of the Scriptures had never been written. It makes discipleship seem a burden rather than a joy. How can we be expected to give up everything?
Let us consider some alternative applications.
1. Remember that these words were first spoken to the people of Jesus' day. We do not know exactly what form they took, but I think we can agree that there was no compromising on the part of Jesus. If what he was about was to be taken seriously, then it demanded all one had to offer. Jesus needed no disciples with reluctant commitment.
2. Remember that Luke is writing this down for his own church. After all, why put it down at all if it did not relate to his own day? There were those in the church who were weary of well doing, tired of waiting for what they envisioned as the Kingdom and ready to throw in the towel. In the book of Hebrews, which seems to me to have been written at the same time, there is a strong statement at just this point in 6:1-6. Luke's church was having its problems with half-heartedness and backsliding. Check out Revelation 3:14ff for a word about luke-warmness. And see Luke 9:62.
3. Now, remember that these words still bear a message for our own day. Once we have seen their context, we can see that they have to do with our own commitment. Whether we are lay or clergy, all of us know that because of our self-interest we fall far short of the ideal expressed here. It stands in judgment over against us and holds the ideal before us. I suggest a re-reading of Bonhoeffer's Cost of Discipleship as preparation for such a sermon.
Conclusion: There is no cheap grace. Only costly grace. A good poem or closing hymn for this sermon would be "When I survey the wondrous cross" by Isaac Watts.
There are many who imagine that when they repent that forgiveness means that God will step in and make all things right and they will escape the consequences. Experience demonstrates that such a conclusion is not warranted.
We do suffer consequences, self-chosen and self-generated. No doubt God grieves when he watches what we do to ourselves. He is there in both love and judgment seeking to turn us around before we make a mess of things.
There is always a "therefore" implied in the faith we share.
When we sin there is a "therefore." Be sure your sin will find you out.
When we repent there is a "therefore." My grace is sufficient.
When we seek to be disciples, there is a "therefore." Go, witness, do, share, serve, give, sacrifice, and so forth.
OUTLINE I
Standing Against the Opposition
Psalm 94:12-22
Introduction: One has only to read the text for today's selection to become aware of the kind of dilemma that faces many persons. It sometimes seems that no matter what one does or how much one tries, things do not turn out well. I think especially of Psalm 73 at this point. The same theme is set out in Psalm 42:1-5. We need to understand two things.
Life is generally the same for all of us. There are those who would like to imagine that some are more favored than others for some special reason or other. I sometimes am convinced that there are those who are members of my church who suppose that because I am a minister I have a special "in" with God. Things are not going to go badly for me. Surely they can expect that their minister will always have good health and success. Some of them are dismayed when some illness or difficulty comes to me or my family and want to imagine that there must be something they do not know.
2. One does live with an awareness that, while God does not control our lives from moment to moment and day to day, he is nevertheless involved, seeking to use what does come to us in life to influence us toward the good, gratitude, maturity, and whatever is in our best interest. Was it not Paul who declared in Romans 8:28, "We know that in everything God works for good with those who love him ..." That does not mean that God handles the faithful as special cases, nor that he is there pulling strings and causing circumstances, but that he is there for all of us, offering the end of what is not worthy and new beginnings for those who listen.
Conclusion: Give your people hope. Not that kind of naive hope that seems disassociated from reality, but that kind of hope that can face the daily world with that sense of confidence which makes life whole and glad.
OUTLINE II
The Watchman's Call
Ezekiel 33:1-11
Introduction: Do your homework on Ezekiel and then listen to what he has to say. What a terrible responsibility to have the very fate of the nation placed in your hands and to rest on your faithfulness. Surely there were other voices whispering in the ears of the people of God in Babylon. It must have been tempting to hear of the greatness of Marduk or to find comfort in the declarations of the great Babylonian Epic, Eneuma Elish. Easy answers to their pain and dilemma must have been close at hand. Surely there were many of them who did join the processions of Marduk and abandoned the covenant with Yahweh, who seemed to them to be impotent against the great forces alive in their world.
What is one to make of all this sermonically? Some options are:
1. Trace the connection between the prophets and current day ministry and see if there is relevant connection. Are we watchers too? Is this limited only to ministers or do all of those in the body of Christ have this responsibility to one another? What then do verses 1-9 have to say to us?
2. Take a look at 1-11. There must have been those among the exiles who had despaired of both God and themselves. If this is judgment, then it seems they are undone. But listen to the good news in verse 11. God has no pleasure in the death of even the wicked (see Romans 5:8). There is an invitation to turn, to change, to respond to the grace that is present. Surely Luther was right when he said that wrath has only the other face of grace. God's judgment is meant to turn us around and let us see that God cares for us enough to make personal sacrifice on our behalf.
Conclusion: Too many of us cower not only under the onslaught of life but in the presence of God. Surely ours is a God who invites us into his presence and reminds us that we do not need to be afraid. This is the God who judges and wishes that he did not need to do so. Check out Genesis 6:6 and Romans 1:24, 28.
OUTLINE III
First Things First
Luke 14:25-33
Introduction: Most of us probably wish that this part of the Scriptures had never been written. It makes discipleship seem a burden rather than a joy. How can we be expected to give up everything?
Let us consider some alternative applications.
1. Remember that these words were first spoken to the people of Jesus' day. We do not know exactly what form they took, but I think we can agree that there was no compromising on the part of Jesus. If what he was about was to be taken seriously, then it demanded all one had to offer. Jesus needed no disciples with reluctant commitment.
2. Remember that Luke is writing this down for his own church. After all, why put it down at all if it did not relate to his own day? There were those in the church who were weary of well doing, tired of waiting for what they envisioned as the Kingdom and ready to throw in the towel. In the book of Hebrews, which seems to me to have been written at the same time, there is a strong statement at just this point in 6:1-6. Luke's church was having its problems with half-heartedness and backsliding. Check out Revelation 3:14ff for a word about luke-warmness. And see Luke 9:62.
3. Now, remember that these words still bear a message for our own day. Once we have seen their context, we can see that they have to do with our own commitment. Whether we are lay or clergy, all of us know that because of our self-interest we fall far short of the ideal expressed here. It stands in judgment over against us and holds the ideal before us. I suggest a re-reading of Bonhoeffer's Cost of Discipleship as preparation for such a sermon.
Conclusion: There is no cheap grace. Only costly grace. A good poem or closing hymn for this sermon would be "When I survey the wondrous cross" by Isaac Watts.
