Thirteenth Sunday after Trinity
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
KJV Galatians 3:15 Brethren, I speak after the manner of men; Though it be but a man's covenant, yet if it be confirmed, no man disannulleth, or addeth thereto. 16 Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ. 17 And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before of God in Christ, the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect. 18 For if the inheritance be of the law, it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise. 19 Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. 20 Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one. 21 Is the law then against the promises of God? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law. 22 But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ might be given to them that believe.
KJV Luke 10:23 And he turned him unto his disciples, and said privately, Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: 24 For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them. 25 And, behold, a certain lawyer stood up, and tempted him, saying, Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? 26 He said unto him, What is written in the law? how readest thou? 27 And he answering said, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy strength, and with all thy mind; and thy neighbour as thyself. 28 And he said unto him, Thou hast answered right: this do, and thou shalt live. 29 But he, willing to justify himself, said unto Jesus, And who is my neighbour? 30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. 32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. 33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, 34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee. 36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves? 37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.
TLH Hymns
209 - Who is this who comes from Edom
331 - Yes, as I Live, Jehovah Saith
503 - Rise Crowned with Light, Imperial Salem Rise
479 - Zion rise, Zion rise
The Parable of the Means of Grace
This Gospel selection starts with some verses we should not ignore.
Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: 24 For I tell you, that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.
Jesus is the turning point in history. For centuries people longed for the Savior of the world. Any glance at world religion shows how people were lost and confused, walking in darkness. Some of the more savage expressions of religion are beyond comprehension.
We are just as blessed as the people in Jesus’ audience because we hear those Words of Christ. We have a more certain knowledge of Him because centuries of faithful believers have confessed the truth of the Gospel. We should never lose the sense of that blessing whenever we hear a single phrase from the Scriptures.
I wonder sometimes if people think of the blessings in the Votum – the peace that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. That is a real prayer from the New Testament. And the blessings of the benediction – a three-fold blessing from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit:
The Lord bless you and keep you.
The Lord make His face to shine upon you.
The Lord lift up His countenance and give you peace.
God the Holy Spirit is at work whenever the Word of God is spoken, read, or remembered. That divine work is either in converting or hardening, in enlightening or in making dark. God does the positive work while men do the negative. When they make fun of the Atonement of Christ, they harden themselves against it until they are so blind that nothing can penetrate their hardness of heart. Nowhere is that more obvious than among the professional theologians and world religion professors who know everything and believe nothing.
Jesus taught the Word of God to people, leaving no middle ground. There was no moderate, middle position. People believed and followed Him or they hated His message of righteousness from God rather than from works.
A lawyer asked how he might inherit eternal life. Jesus asked him about the Law, which the lawyer repeated in summary form. Love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and your neighbor as yourself.
Jesus’ answer is one of those shocks that make people think. “Do this and you will live.”
Is Jesus advocating salvation by the Law? Just the opposite is true. His reply is an example of irony. No one can possibly fulfill the Law, either the First Table (Love God with all your heart) or the Second Table (Love your neighbor as yourself). If man could keep the Law completely, he would inherit eternal life, but he cannot.
The lawyer did not pause to think he was incapable of fulfilling the First Table. Instead he skipped to the Second Table and asked, “Who is my neighbor?” With a proper definition, he could plan on fulfilling that command as well.
Jesus’ definition of neighbor is not what activist liberals want people to think. Instead, the Parable of the Good Samaritan is an allegory of the Gospel mission of Jesus. We have a portrait of the sinner, the Savior coming to him with the Law and Gospel, and the Means of Grace generously provided.
First we have to dispense with the mainline version, which is studiously wrong in all parts, an obnoxious example of salvation by works. Notable is the Princeton experiment where seminarians were invited to preach on this parable. I believe it was to be taped. Then, as planned, they were told they were late and forced to rush across the campus for their little talk. On the way was planted a derelict. Most if not all the students rushed pass the derelict to give their sermon on the Good Samaritan. Get it? They did not live what they were preaching! At this point the congregation is supposed to hang its collective head in shame, knowing they too would rush past. And they file out slowly, feeling nothing but guilt. If only they could save the world.
Yet another apostate version of this parable is the declaration that the Church is not to take care of the man beaten and lying on the side of the road, but to make the road to Jericho safe. Political activism. Any atheist could believe in that.
The parable concerns a man, who represents all of us, beaten and robbed, left half-dead on the highway. This shows us the condition of the sinner who is dead to Christ. He is impoverished, weak, dying, and soon to be lost entirely without the help he needs. A priest comes by and passed him on the other side of the road, consciously avoiding him. A Levite does the same. Both examples show us that ritual worship and ritual works could do nothing to aid him.
For years the Roman Catholic Church raved about Mother Theresa as a modern day saint, rushing her into sainthood with unholy haste. Her personal letters show that she did not experience the Gospel she was supposed to represent. Few people realize that she was more of a Universalist, treating all religions as the same. Many times people become involved in ritual forms and works that promise redemption but offer nothing at all.
The Samaritan, who is Jesus, had compassion on the half-dead man when He saw him. The designation Samaritan is significant because Samaritans were hated by the Jews and rejected by them. This can be seen both in the historical sense but also in a representative way. What does Jesus owe the world beyond Judaism? Nothing. He is the outsider to us, yet He comes to us. As Luther said in another sermon, the actual message of the Gospel is so fantastic that no human being could make it up. God alone can reveal such mysteries to us.
The man does not reach out to the Samaritan. The Samaritan comes to him. The man is too weak to do anything, so the Samaritan helps him and brings him back to life. So this parable eliminates “making a decision for Christ.” It eliminates the two-way covenant language favored by the Reformed. For instance, it is common for them to say, “God has done all this for you. What are going to do to complete the transaction.” The man in the parable does not complete the transaction. He does not cooperate. He receives and trusts, implicitly.
The first actions of the Samaritan are to pour wine and oil into the wounds of the beaten man. As Luther related, the wine represents the sharpness of the Law, the oil the healing of the Gospel.
Those who complain about the many Means of Grace seem to have missed the end of this parable:
and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him. 35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
There are several additional actions –
1. Setting the man on his beast.
2. Bringing him to the inn.
3. Paying him money.
4. Giving him over to the care of the host.
5. Promising to give even more for the man’s care.
All these actions are God’s actions, just like:
a. Holy Baptism.
b. Holy Communion.
c. Absolution.
d. Preaching and teaching the Word.
e. Mutual consolation of the brethren.
God’s abundance of grace could be described in other ways as well, providing ministers and teachers, preserving the Word, sending missionaries throughout the world.
The Parable of the Good Samaritan is not a parable about salvation by works, but a story to show us God’s active care for us. We love and trust God because of His actions to take care of us in this life and more importantly in the life to come.
The relationship between the Gospel and good works is also spelled out in this parable.
At the end, Jesus asked the lawyer, “Which one was the neighbor.” The lawyer said, “The one who showed mercy.” Jesus answered, “Go and do likewise.” That is to say – Be like the Samaritan. Think about your neighbor’s needs and actively provide for him, before he even asks. Even if you and your neighbor are oil and water, Jew and Samaritan, show compassion.
Thus God spreads His blessings, first giving us the Gospel through many instruments or means, then blessing us with the fruits of the Spirit.
