The Twenty-first Sunday After Pentecost - Proper 24
October 21, 2012 - Pastor Adam Moline
Grace, mercy and
peace to you from God our Father through our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
Our text today is the Gospel lesson, especially these words, “How
difficult it will be for those who have wealth to enter the kingdom of
God!” Thus far our text.
Dear friends in
Christ, We live in the United States of America, the wealthiest nation on earth
by far. The United States wealth is $4
Trillion dollars greater than the next wealthiest nation. That should make you tremble in your shoes
just a little bit, when Jesus says the words of our text today. “How difficult it is for those who have
wealth to enter the kingdom of God,” Jesus says. “Easier for a camel to go through the eye of
a needle, then for a rich person to enter the kingdom of God.”
Jesus can’t be
talking about me, can he? Jesus can’t
mean us here in the United States. I
can’t be in the “wealthy” category, I can barely pay my bills, I can barely
make ends meet. I am worth millions less
than even the poorest presidential candidate, or big business executive. Why should it be so hard for me to get into
heaven? Why should it be difficult, when
I have just enough to take care of myself?
Jesus must be talking about the super wealthy, and not me!
Wrong. Jesus is
talking about you, and every other person who thinks, “That’s mine, I earned
it, it belongs to me, and the only way you’ll take it from me is by prying it
from my cold, dead, fingers!” It doesn’t
matter if you’re the wealthiest person in town, or the poorest. If you love your things, if you love your stuff
more than you love God, it’s going to be difficult for you to enter the Kingdom
of God.
That’s the first
commandment, isn’t it? You shall have no
other God’s. What does this mean? We should fear, love and trust in God above all
things. That’s the law of God, with
those who break it punishable by eternal death and hell. The problem is, not a one of us, no not any
single person here, has kept that rule.
We’ve broken it, time and time again.
In fact, we’ve even turned the whole thing on its head. We’ve feared, loved, and trusted in all
things above God.
Come on Pastor,
why should I share that food that I’ve worked so hard to earn through my labor,
with someone who is hungry? Why should I
take up my time to help my neighbor, when they can just do themselves? Why should I give my clothes to someone in
need, when there are shelters, and clothing banks for things like that?
It gets even more
personal than that, doesn’t it? I am
just as guilty as you when it comes to possessions. That’s a family heirloom, so no, you can’t borrow
it or look at it. Why should I put money
in the offering plate before I get my own bills paid for? Why should I care if the church down the road
stays open, or if our own church has Sunday School teachers? Live, and let live, take care of yourself,
and that’s enough.
How hard it is for
those who have wealth, how hard it is for sinners like you and me, for people
who trust in their things to enter the Kingdom of God. Imagine if Jesus acted the same way that you
and I do in regards to his possessions – possessions of life, righteousness and
holiness. Imagine if Jesus treated the
forgiveness he earned for you the same way we treated our weekly offering. “No, let me take care of myself first, then
worry about you sinners.”
But he
doesn’t. Jesus doesn’t skimp in his
gifts to you. He earned every bit of
your forgiveness by his death, by his blood, by his suffering. He gave up his life to purchase your freedom
from sin and death. He purchased and won
you, not with gold or silver, but with his holy precious blood, innocent
suffering and death, that you might be his own possession and live with him in
his kingdom.
And having won
your forgiveness, Jesus now gives you his possessions freely, and
generously. Today, Jesus gives you
generously and graciously his own body and blood to you today, so that you may
be forgiven of your sins of greed and covetousness. He gives you his Word, so that your faith in
him may ever grow in trust in Christ alone.
And through that word, you are connected to the cross and resurrection
where you are given eternal life, forgiveness of sins, and salvation.
Where we are
selfish with our possessions, Christ gives freely of his. Where we covet the things our neighbors have,
Christ only cares about us. Where we
because of our sin cannot enter heaven based on our own merits or works, Christ
has given all the work necessary for us to get the eternal gifts of
heaven. There is not one gift that God
gave to Jesus that he has not shared with you.
And so now, you
baptized Children of God, now your sin is dead. You no longer look sinful, instead you look
like Christ – for you are robed in his righteousness through baptism. Instead of being sinful greedy people, we now
look like Christ sharing all our possessions, sharing all our wealth, giving to
our neighbor in need and who hungers.
It’s not to earn heaven, heaven’s already been given in Jesus. It’s because in the forgiveness Christ gives
you, you now look like a Christian, you share like a Christian, you love like a
Christian. And that means that even if
you give all you have a way to care for your neighbor, you still have the best
wealth of all – heaven. Eternity. Peace.
Truly, I say to
you, there is no one who has left house or brothers or sisters or mother
or father or children or lands, for my sake and for the gospel, 30 who
will not receive a hundredfold now in this time, houses and brothers and
sisters and mothers and children and lands, with persecutions, and
in the age to come eternal life.
In Christ, you have more blessings than you can even imagine. Amen.
