"Stay Vigilantly Alert in These Evil Days"
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our
Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. [Amen.]
"Awake, O sleeper, rise from death,
And Christ shall give you light;
So learn His love, its length and breadth,
Its fullness, depth, and height.
"For us Christ lived, for us He died,
And conquered in the strife;
Awake, arise, go forth in faith,
And Christ shall give you life."
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
697:1 & 4)
Epistle Reading.................................... Ephesians 5:6-21 (esp.
6, 15-16)
6Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the
wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. 15Look carefully then how
you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16making the best use of the time,
because the days are evil.
Prologue: In the devotion for September 18 composed by Rudolph F. Norden in
Each Day with Jesus he wrote, "What can you do if, for various reasons, you
are confined or are taken away from your regular activities? Held in
protective custody at a castle known as the Wartburg, Martin Luther began
his translation of the New Testament Bible. The bird man at Alcatraz
studied bird life and used this knowledge to good advantage. While in a
Philadelphia prison for his failure to pay his debts, Charles Goodyear began
making experiments in rubber.
"The apostle Paul was also active in prison. There he carried on his
work for Christ by writing epistles to mission congregations and
evangelizing the prison guards. He set us a good example of redeeming the
time, of making the most of every opportunity. (Rudolph F. Norden in Each
Day with Jesus: Daily Devotions through the Year. Copyright © 1994
Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 270.)
Of course, one of the most beneficial things we can do-in fact,
must do!-is .
"Stay Vigilantly Alert in These Evil Days."
That was Saint Paul's Spirit-inspired, wise, and strong advice to
the Ephesian Christians then and you today. He knew from personal
experience the daily challenges to sin with which Satan, the world around
you, and your sinful flesh bombard you.
In view of such, in the verses leading up to today's text, Saint
Paul first of all issued "prohibitions and warnings against what is
improper", namely and especially, "sexual immorality or impurity among God's
people." In fact, he went so far as to tell them (and you) "not only to
avoid doing evil, but . avoid even the appearance of doing evil." In
addition, he told them (and you) "not to debase God's gift of sexuality by
making it the subject of humor and coarse jokes" as so frequently happens in
so many contemporary television shows and movies.
He informed them (and you) that "in a manner of speaking, the
inordinate desire for sexual gratification could be called 'greed'" and,
therefore, "what should be called God's good gift to man has in fact become
his god" leading to idolatry and "sins against the First Commandment as well
as the Sixth." Thus, he warned them (and you) against "All kinds of
defenses [that] are made for promiscuous sex, for living together outside of
marriage, and for alternate lifestyles" (Armin J. Panning in People's Bible
Commentary: Galatians/Ephesians. Copyright © 1997 Concordia Publishing
House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 195f.) that transgress God's holy will for His
redeemed and sanctified children.
So, out of sincere fatherly concern for the spiritual health,
welfare, and stability of the Christians in Ephesus then as well as you, the
Christians in Perryville and Perry County today, he admonished them and you
to .
I. Live Each and Every Day As Children of Light By Replacing
Devil-Deeds With God's Will. (7-18a)
7Therefore do not associate with them; 8for at one time you were darkness,
but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9(for the
fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10and try
to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11Take no part in the unfruitful
works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12For it is shameful even to
speak of the things that they do in secret. 13But when anything is exposed
by the light, it becomes visible, 14for anything that becomes visible is
light. Therefore it says,
"Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you."
17Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery . .
Your Baptism is all about God having rescued you out of the devil's
darkness of sin and death by connecting you with Christ's atoning death and
victorious resurrection back to life. In your Baptism the Holy Spirit
ushered you into the light and life of Jesus Christ and gave you the new
identity of "little Christ" . Christian. Because of such, Jesus'
instruction in His Sermon on the Mount then applies to you today as well,
namely, "You are the light of the world. . let your light shine before
others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father
who is in heaven." (Matt 5:14a,16 ESV)
You see, "By being converted or regenerated, the former Gentiles
had not only been . filled with the light of the Gospel, but they had
themselves become a light in the Lord . . They could now not only walk
worthy of the light, but they were able to serve as a light for others, lead
others into the way of sanctification." (Paul E. Kretzmann in Popular
Commentary of the Bible: The New Testament, Volume II. Copyright © Unknown
Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 284.) And that applies to
all of you present-day baptized-into-Jesus saints as well!
Regarding that, Saint Paul told the Christians in Rome that "you
yourself are . a light to those who are in darkness, an instructor of the
foolish, a teacher of children, having in the law the embodiment of
knowledge and truth . ." (Rom 2:19-20 ESV) And he told the Thessalonian
believers, "For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are
not of the night or of the darkness. So then . let us keep awake and be
sober. For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation
through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake
or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build
one another up, just as you are doing." (1 Thess 5:5-6, 9-11 ESV) What he
wrote to them then God intends for you today as well!
In the context of The Lord's Prayer, Jesus taught us to pray, "And
lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." (Matt 6:13 ESV) The
Reverend Doctor Martin Luther explained those petitions by saying, "We
pray . that God would guard and keep us so that the devil, the world, and
our sinful nature may not deceive us or mislead us into false belief,
despair, and other great shame and vice. Although we are attacked by these
things, we pray that we may finally overcome them and win the victory."
Also, "We pray . that our Father in heaven would rescue us from every evil
of body and soul, possessions and reputation, and finally, when our last
hour comes, give us a blessed end, and graciously take us from this valley
of sorrow to Himself in heaven."
That is, "We ask our Father in heaven to give us strength to
resist and overcome temptations" and "to rescue us from the devil and all
evil which has come into the world because of sin." Indeed, "We want our
Father in heaven to keep us faithful to Him and when we die to take us from
this sorrowful world to Himself in heaven." (Luther's Small Catechism with
Explanation. Copyright © 1986/2008 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis,
MO. Pages 21f.; 195-199.)
He accomplished that very blessing for you through the atoning
suffering and death of His Son, your Savior, Jesus Christ, coupled with His
majestic resurrection from the dead in victory over sin, Satan, and death
itself. He now communicates the blessings of forgiveness of sins,
salvation, and eternal life to you through the reading and hearing of His
Holy Word, the declaration of Holy Absolution, the ongoing review of and
reflection on Holy Baptism, and the proper partaking of Holy Communion, all
of which He gives you in the course of the divine services. God's mercy and
grace that Jesus gained for you and freely gives you in those means of grace
are not merely words without substance and benefit but reliable divine words
of strength, comfort, and absolute certainty. His self-denying
self-sacrificial love for you has liberated you to .
II. Live Spirit-Filled Lives By Thanking God and Submitting to Each
Other. (18b-21)
18b. but be filled with the Spirit, 19addressing one another in psalms and
hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with all
your heart, 20giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21submitting to one another out of
reverence for Christ.
In the conclusion to his explanation of the First Article of The
Apostles' Creed Dr. Luther stated, ". it is my duty to thank and praise,
serve and obey Him." (Ibid. Pages 16 & 109.) God's Holy Law is His outline
for you to live a holy love in relationship with Him and all people. It
does so by seeking to prevent you from thinking, saying, and doing thoughts,
words, and actions that sin against God and others as well as reflecting
back to you the stark reality of your sinful thoughts, words, and actions
that rebel against God. However, it now takes on new meaning and
application. In response to God's full love for you that He demonstrated by
Jesus having "redeemed [you], a lost and condemned person, purchased and won
[you] from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with
gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent
suffering and death" (Ibid. Pages 16 & 119.) you now seek to obey His Holy
Law as a statement of gratitude to Him for such.
In the Lutheran Hour Ministries Daily Devotion for July 7, 2008,
entitled "Submitting" the author stated, "In spite of our personal
preferences, we Christians know we have a duty-a duty to submit to each
other out of reverence for the Savior. That is the way we live as family
members; it is the way we act as citizens in our communities and countries.
"In doing so, we are only reflecting in a very small way the way the
Savior lived. As God's Son, He could have demanded respect, authority,
worship. Instead, Jesus humbled Himself and became obedient-obedient in His
life, His suffering, and death. Because He submitted to His Father's plan
of salvation, we who believe are washed of our sins and promised life
eternal." (LHM Daily Devotions Ref: LHM0009830A-0018222#; 1997-2008 Lutheran
Hour Ministries. All rights reserved. Lutheran Hour Ministries, St. Louis,
MO.)
Following our Savior's example, we now submit to one another when
we place the wellbeing and desires of spouse, parent, child, sibling, or
anyone else ahead of our own wellbeing and desires. That's what makes for
healthy permanent relationships, especially marriages. You see, "What is
being asked in this table of duties [that follows today's Epistle Reading],
as it is often called, is something that only the Christian, moved by the
Holy Spirit can do. Only the Christian knows the proper thing to do, and
only the Christian is truly motivated to do it." (Armin J. Panning. Page
202.)
In other words, "The love toward God and Christ which rules in the
hearts of believers naturally finds its expression in a life of service
toward their neighbor. The interests of the other are considered on the
same level as one's own . all out of reverence for Christ, who did not come
to be ministered unto, but to minister." (Paul E. Kretzmann. Page 286.)
Hey, it's all about Spirit-guided living the Second Table of The
Ten Commandments . Commandments 4-10, that Jesus summarized when He said,
"Love your neighbor as yourself." (Matt 22:39 ESV) After all, when you
"love [y]our neighbor as [y]ourselves and show this love by keeping the
commandments of the Second Table" (Luther's Small Catechism with
Explanation. Page 73) you are thereby loving God Himself, who Himself loved
you so much that He gave Himself up for you through the atoning sacrifice of
Jesus Christ. Ultimately, then, "Christ was [your] substitute. He took
[your] place under God's judgment against sin. By paying the penalty of
[your] guilt, Christ atoned, or made satisfaction, for [your] sins
([something we call] vicarious atonement)." (Ibid. Page 136.)
Martin Luther said it this way, "If faith is correct, then one
will in turn act toward his neighbor as he believes that God has acted and
does act toward him, that is, out of pure grace. He will forgive him, bear
with and be patient with him, lift him out of his misery, give him his own
possessions, let him enjoy all he has, deny him nothing at all, put down his
body, life, property, and honor for him in the same way that God has done
for him." (From sermon for St. John's Day, Dec. 27, Church Postils, 1522.
Forthcoming from CPH in a new edition of the Church Postil. The sermon is
on the Epistle lesson appointed for the day. Ecclesiasticus 5:1-7.)
In conclusion, therefore, remember the devotion that began this
sermon? Its completion states, "People say, 'Here we are, confined in
hospitals or other institutions-some of us sick, some weakened by advancing
age, some in situations where there is no access to resources. What can we
do to redeem the time?'
"Whatever our circumstances, we can all pray, for ourselves and for
others .; do some up-beat, creative, positive thinking-like the psalmist,
who meditated on God's Word and wonderful works .; write letters-if not long
epistles, then shorter notes that express our appreciation for the good
others have done .; have friendly chats with people who feel down and out .;
do someone a favor or lend a helping hand .; develop our skills and
talents .; [and/or] read.
". Christ's love to us prompts us to make the most of our time."
(Rudolph F. Norden. Page 270.) In other words, remain mindful of what we
begged in today's Collect, "grant us to know Your Son, Jesus, to be the way,
the truth, and the life, that we may steadfastly follow His steps in the way
that leads to life eternal."
In so doing, .
"Stay Vigilantly Alert in These Evil Days."
Today's Introit antiphon summed it up very nicely, "The fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good
understanding." (Ps 110:10 ESV) You may have noticed that today's Old
Testament Reading contained that same instruction, "[Wisdom] says, ... Leave
your simple ways, and live, and walk in the way of insight.' The fear of
the Lord is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is
insight." (Prov 9:4b-6, 10 ESV) And, today's Gradual coupled that
instruction with a reassuring promise, "Fear the Lord, you his saints, for
those who fear him lack nothing! Many are the afflictions of the righteous,
but the Lord delivers him out of them all." (Ps 34:9, 19 ESV)
So, continue to strive by the Holy Spirit's power to .
I. Live Each and Every Day As Children of Light By Replacing
Devil-Deeds With God's Will. (7-18a)
At the same time, also strive by the same Holy Spirit's power to .
II. Live Spirit-Filled Lives By Thanking God and Submitting to Each
Other. (18b-21)
Do so always resting on the words of Jesus and Saint Peter in
today's Gospel Reading, "'The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and
life.' Simon Peter answered him, '. You have the words of eternal life,
and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of
God.'" (St John 6:63b, 68-69 ESV)
God grant it all for the sake of Jesus Christ, His humble Son, our
holy Savior. [Amen.]
In the name of the Father and of the X Son and of the Holy Spirit.
[Amen.]
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