“Another Divine Paradox—
Some Last Will Be First and Some First Will Be Last”
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.]
“A multitude comes from the east and the west
To sit at the feast of salvation
With Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the blest,
Obeying the Lord’s invitation.
Have mercy upon us, O Jesus.
“O God, let us hear when our Shepherd shall call
In accents persuasive and tender,
That while there is time we make haste, one and all,
And find Him, our mighty defender.
Have mercy upon us, O Jesus.”
(Lutheran Service Book, © 2006 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
510:1-2)
Holy
Gospel............................................................................
St. Luke 13:22-30 (esp. 30)
“And behold, some are last who will be first, and some are first who will be
last.”
Prologue: Let me be the first to wish you a [happy
eight-months-after or four-months-before Christmas Eve] [merry
eight-months-after or four-months-before Christmas]! I’m a bit miffed, in
fact, even irritated that Christmas items are already on display in some
stores even though we’re still in the summer months. That seems
paradoxical—absurd, contradictory, even illogical—to me. We’ve barely begun
the new school year and, furthermore, I dare say that people who own and use
campers are far from mothballing them for the winter. While we who enjoy
and eagerly anticipate the cold and snow continue to languish in the hot
humid summer weather, nevertheless, we realize that those winter conditions
would be absolutely absurd during this summer month of August.
You’ve heard Pastor Marks and me frequently talk about paradoxes
in our sermons. You’ve heard them especially in recent Gospel Readings as
Jesus taught things like the basis for Pastor Marks’ sermon last weekend,
“Do you think that I have come to give peace on earth? No, I tell you, but
rather division.” (St Luke 12:51 ESV) That seems to be simply
contradictory. At other times He said things that sounded illogical, like
“the meek … shall inherit the earth” (St. Matt 5:5); “The greatest among you
shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever
humbles himself will be exalted.” (St Matt 23:11-12 ESV); and “… whatever
you have said in the dark shall be heard in the light, and what you have
whispered in private rooms shall be proclaimed on the housetops.” (St Luke
12:3 ESV)
Then we come to the last verse of today’s Gospel Reading that
serves as the focus for my sermon in which there’s …
“Another Divine Paradox—
Some Last Will Be First and Some First Will Be Last.”
Perhaps a little background will help us understand. You see,
Jesus was travelling “on towards Jerusalem without haste, and with many
pauses for teaching in both large and small villages.” (The Rev. Canon Leon
Morris in The Gospel According to St. Luke: An Introduction and Commentary.
Copyright © 1974 Inter-Varsity Press, London. Page 225.) That is, “This
journey to Jerusalem is hardly in a straight line; it is rather a spiritual
pilgrimage interrupted by much teaching and several miracles.” (Victor H.
Prange in People’s Bible Commentary: Luke. Copyright © 1992 Concordia
Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Pages 160f.) As Pastor Marks said in his
sermon last weekend, Jesus was headed to His intense suffering and
crucifixion death on Calvary’s cross as the atoning sacrifice for the sins
of all people of all time.
But somewhere along the way, when confronted by an inquiring mind
who wanted to know, …
I. Jesus Corrected a Wrong Question with a Right Answer. (22-24)
22[Jesus] went on his way through towns and villages, teaching and
journeying toward Jerusalem. 23And someone said to him, “Lord, will those
who are saved be few?” And he said to them, 24“Strive to enter through the
narrow door. For many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will not be
able.”
A major function of educating people from early childhood to
senior adulthood is correction. While that’s certainly beneficial, many, …
well, … most of us don’t like to be corrected. In fact, correction often
offends, angers, irritates, frustrates, and agitates especially people who
in their own limited minds think that their own understanding or perception
of something is absolutely right. Efforts to correct mistaken
understandings or perceptions are often met with a temper-tainted reaction
that’s abusive, obtrusive, rude, harsh, and hurtful.
Anyone who spent any time in sports officiating as I did for some
25 years experienced that very thing more times than I can count on my
fingers and toes. Parents, teachers, principals, pastors, congregational
leaders, employers, coaches, and God Himself (among untold many others)
encounter that on an ongoing basis. Interestingly, God gave divine counsel
about this very matter through the pen of the author of Proverbs, “He who
corrects a scoffer gets shame for himself, And he who rebukes a wicked man
only harms himself. Do not correct a scoffer, lest he hate you; Rebuke a
wise man, and he will love you. Give instruction to a wise man, and he will
be still wiser; Teach a just man, and he will increase in learning.” (Prov
9:7-9 NKJV)
Here’s the plain problem at play here. That question that the
curious anonymous person asked Jesus reflected the “confused religious state
of the day” (The Rev. Canon Leon Morris. Page 225.) It was much like what’s
running rampant in contemporary American culture and society that’s filled
with sinful desires, words, and deeds that not only are being thought, said,
and done all around us, but are also being excused and encouraged.
The author of the Lutheran Hour Ministries Daily Devotion for
April 23, 2010, stated it this way: “For the Christian, living in this world
means grappling with negative enticements on every front. We are under
bombardment by subtle and overt suggestions, a constant blitz of electronic
messages, and a host of other influences that can easily sideline us from
living the devoted and disciplined life our Savior calls us to as His
followers.
“Even a blind man would know much of what passes for popular
entertainment these days is loaded with questionable moral content,
promoting lifestyles where anything goes and, often, everything does. It’s
not easy sidestepping these influences when they are so pervasive throughout
our society. On the other hand, it’s not impossible either.” (LHM Daily
Devotions Ref: LHM0014686A-0018222#. 1997-2009 Lutheran Hour Ministries,
St. Louis, MO. All rights reserved.)
In addition, the author of the Lutheran Hour Daily Devotion for
October 7, 2011, wrote: “Maybe you’ve noticed that there are many and varied
lifestyles being promoted nowadays.
“Indeed, anyone who has taken even a quick glance at these lifestyles
will quickly see they are being expected to accept and embrace these
changes, moral principles and spiritual values. You do not have to be a
certified genius to realize that all these lifestyles and all of the changes
do not have the blessing of Scripture.
“In the past months I have frequently heard an expression which seems
to be becoming quite popular. The expression says, ‘That which is
prohibited is flavorful.’ I suppose the saying isn’t a new one. After all,
Adam and Eve found the forbidden fruit. Along with being good for food and
pleasant to the eye, it also held out the promise of great wisdom.
“Well, Adam and Eve found out that not everything turned out as good as
it had been advertised.
“I am afraid there are many people who are tasting modern-day forbidden
fruits, who will come to the same conclusion.” (LHM Daily Devotions Ref:
LHM0018709A-0018222#. 1997-2009 Lutheran Hour Ministries, St. Louis, MO.
All rights reserved.)
At the same time, many misguided messages are being spewed over
the airwaves and in so-called Christian churches that confuse, contradict,
and compromise the basic truth of Holy Scripture that Saint Paul captured
when he wrote, “For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is
not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no
one may boast.” (Eph 2:8-9 ESV) Saint Peter further emphasized that
essential message when he declared, “This Jesus is the stone that was
rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone. And there
is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given
among men by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:11-12 ESV) Jesus Himself made
that message absolutely clear when He said, “I am the way, and the truth,
and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (St John 14:6
ESV)
The wonderful reassuring message is that “God our Savior … desires
all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Tim
2:3-4 ESV) That glorious Gospel truth is that “the Son of Man came to seek
and to save the lost.” (St Luke 19:10 ESV) That liberating and cleansing
truth is that “the blood of Jesus, [God’s] Son, purifies us from all sin.”
(1 John 1:7 NIV)
That truth that rises above all truths is that Immanuel, the holy
Lamb of God, lived the perfect life that we’re unable to live … for us;
suffered the penalty of our guilt, even death on Calvary’s cursed cross …
for us; and rose from the dead in a dominant display of power over sin,
Satan, and death itself … for us. The blessed benefits of what He
accomplished are forgiveness of our sins, salvation, and eternal life, all
of which God gives us certain and comforting assurance in our Baptism, the
reading and hearing of His Holy Word, the declaration of Absolution, and the
proper partaking of the Lord’s Supper.
Now, because of what Messiah did, there is the blessed assurance
that …
II. People From Everywhere Will Populate Heaven. (25-29)
25“When once the master of the house has risen and shut the door, and you
begin to stand outside and to knock at the door, saying, ‘Lord, open to us,’
then he will answer you, ‘I do not know where you come from.’ 26Then you
will begin to say, ‘We ate and drank in your presence, and you taught in our
streets.’ 27But he will say, ‘I tell you, I do not know where you come
from. Depart from me, all you workers of evil!’ 28In that place there will
be weeping and gnashing of teeth, when you see Abraham and Isaac and Jacob
and all the prophets in the kingdom of God but you yourselves cast out.
29And people will come from east and west, and from north and south, and
recline at table in the kingdom of God.”
The apostle John said it this way when he described the revelation
God gave him, “After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no
one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and
languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white
robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice,
‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!’”
(Rev 7:9-10 ESV)
The sorrowfully sad surprise will be that “many of Jesus’
contemporaries will find themselves on the outside looking in. They will
see that other people from all over the world will be sitting in their
places at the banquet of salvation.” (Victor H. Prange. Page 162.) That
is, “there will be many surprises in the final membership of the kingdom.
[People] will come from the four corners of the earth, which means that the
Gentiles will be well represented (cf. Is. 45:6; 49:12). This will surprise
those Jews [and all other self-righteous persons] who think they have a
mortgage on the kingdom.” Furthermore, it emphasizes that “God’s ways are
not men’s ways.” (The Rev. Canon Leon Morris. Pages 226f.) What the Old
Testament prophet Isaiah foretold, namely, that “multitudes of Gentiles will
enter the heavenly home … was the very opposite of what the Jews expected.”
(William F. Arndt in Concordia Classic Commentary Series: Luke. Copyright ©
1956 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO. Page 333.)
In conclusion, therefore, “Jesus does not really answer the
question that he was asked. Rather, he is saying to all who will listen,
‘Just be sure that you are going to be saved.’” (Victor H. Prange. Page
162.) And, that’s where we arrive at the place we started, namely, …
“Another Divine Paradox—
Some Last Will Be First and Some First Will Be Last.”
In summary, there are four important lessons for us to learn from
this confrontation. 1. “For long centuries God had prepared the stage where
the fulfillment of His promises would take place.” 2. “People [can] only
enter that kingdom through the narrow door of repentance.” 3. “God [is]
being patient, but His patience is not unending.” And, 4. “Though rejected
and belittled by the world about it, God’s kingdom of grace, His church, has
grown great … by the hidden power lodged in the tiny seed of the Gospel,
which works like yeast, unperceived and unremarked, causing God’s kingdom to
come.” (Frank Starr in Light for the Way: New Testament—Book 3 [Luke, Acts,
and Epistles]. Copyright © 1987 Concordia Publishing House, St. Louis, MO.
Page 22.)
So, as today’s Introit said, let’s “Praise the Lord! Praise the
Lord, all nations! Extol him, all peoples! For great is his steadfast love
toward us, and the faithfulness of the Lord endures forever. Praise the
Lord!” (Ps 117 ESV) Let’s do so ever begging God with the words of today’s
Collect to “Guide us by Your Word and Spirit, and lead us now and always
into the feast of Your Son, Jesus Christ.” Let’s do so, knowing and
celebrating that …
I. Jesus Corrected a Wrong Question with a Right Answer. (22-24) As we
exercise agonizing whole-hearted action to “work out [our] own salvation
with fear and trembling, [knowing full well that] it is God who works in
[us], both to will and to work for his good pleasure” (Phil 2:12-13 ESV),
let’s follow the counsel of and receive support from today’s Gradual, “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)
In so doing, let’s be glad that …
II. People From Everywhere Will Populate Heaven. (25-29) Let’s rejoice
bearing in mind Yahweh’s testimony to such in today’s Old Testament Reading,
“For I know their works and their thoughts, and the time is coming to gather
all nations and tongues. And they shall come and shall see my glory, and I
will set a sign among them. And from them I will send survivors to the
nations, to Tarshish, Pul, and Lud, who draw the bow, to Tubal and Javan, to
the coastlands afar off, that have not heard my fame or seen my glory. And
they shall declare my glory among the nations. And they shall bring all
your brothers from all the nations as an offering to the Lord, on horses and
in chariots and in litters and on mules and on dromedaries, to my holy
mountain Jerusalem, says the Lord, just as the Israelites bring their grain
offering in a clean vessel to the house of the Lord.” (Is 66:18-20 ESV)
Finally, as we continue our temporal journey to that glorious
eternal reunion with Jesus and all the saints in heaven, let’s follow the
direction of today’s Epistle Reading to “Strive for peace with everyone, and
for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no
one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no ‘root of bitterness’ springs
up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled.” (Heb 12:14-15 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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