Do not act distinguished in the face of the king, and in the place of
great men, do not stand; for it is better that one say to you, "Come up
here!", than you be humbled in the face of a prince, which your eyes
have seen. Do not go forth to contend hastily, otherwise what will you
do afterward, when your neighbor disgraces you? Contend your contention
with your neighbor, yet a secret of another, do not disclose. Otherwise,
the one who hears will despise you, and your rumor not turn away.
Oranges of gold in baskets of silver–a word spoken on its circumstances.
And earring of gold and an ornament of refined gold–a preacher of wisdom
to an ear that listens. As coolness of snow in the day of harvest–a
faithful/true messenger to those who sent him; and the soul of his
masters he refreshes. Clouds and wind and rain that is not–a man who
boasts in a gift of falsehood.
Today's epistle encourages us to *walk* in a manner worthy of those who
are called to be Christians. Jesus, in today's Gospel reminds us to be
careful where we choose to *sit*. Wise Solomon teaches us to be careful
where we *stand*. So whether we are walking, standing or sitting, we had
better be "on our toes" figuratively speaking. For where we choose to be
and attempt to "fit in" matters. We need to know first "Who we are" so
that we will know "Where to be" and "How to act"...
So...just "Who are you?" Well, you know who you aren't. You're not the
King. You aren't even the Prince. You probably aren't anybody very great
or noble either. You are nobody special that many people would consider
you very important. Oh, I know that you like to think that you are a
significant someone at times, but truth be told, you are just one of 7
billion who currently reside on planet earth.
But your God didn't choose to let you remain a nobody. Out of your
obscurity your heavenly King sent to you the crowned Prince of heaven to
live the perfect life on earth that you've failed to do. He became a
perfect sacrifice for your sin on the +, giving His life as the ransom
price for a lowly earthling like you. All so that, you would hear His
gospel call saying to you, "Come on up here!" to live with Him
forevermore in the paradise of heaven! Humble no more, you are now
exalted for eternity!
So now you know who you are, a resident of the kingdom of heaven! But
now you need to know just where you are to be? Oh, I know you want to be
where the popular people go, at times. The bars, the gambling
establishments, the stadiums & auditoriums which attract crowds are
enticing. And it's ok to go to one of these places on occasion. But if
restaurants, sporting events, campgrounds, school activities, and the
like are taking up a bulk of your time, perhaps you're in the wrong
places too much.
God's Spirit calls you to "Come up here" where He promises to be each
Sunday & holiday, in His house called the Church. He gathers you around
His word proclaimed, so that your listening ear may hear God's wisdom
preached. Your pastor is pledged to be a faithful & true messenger of
that Word. He is no hireling who brags about false hope that your
itching ears may want to hear. He brings you God's refreshing word of
grace, that descends like rain & snow from heaven to comfort your soul.
You know who you are–a resident of heaven. You know where you are to
be–in church where God's words are proclaimed. But how are we to act?
Well, you know that you shouldn't act pridefully, although you often do.
"I'm a really good person" you like to think. But think again. Are you
never contentious? Do you never argue with people or try to embarrass
them by spreading rumors? You've never revealed someone's secret, or
ever thought to look down your nose at those "beneath you"?
Truth be told, we often act in ways that attempt to put others down so
that we seem superior. But that's nothing but sin, which is *our*
disgrace before God. According to God's Law, when we show disdain or
scorn for another person, we fail to love them as we do ourselves, and
become law-breakers, worthy of being sent down to the lowest place of
all. When we act that way, we aren't acting as those called to be in
God's divine presence on Sunday, or in heaven for eternity.
So what does God do with us? Well, He "could" send you down to that
lowest of places where you deserve to be. But He doesn't. He humbles you
once again, instead. He sends you His Law to convict you of your sin.
Then He gives you the right words to say in confession. First you
confess your sinfulness to God so that you will agree with God that you
don't deserve heaven. Then you confess once more, this time in the words
of the Creed, that Jesus was crucified, suffered, died and was buried
for you! Then your Savior feeds you with His body & blood for your
forgiveness! He has exalted you! Amen.
John C. Drosendahl
[email protected]
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