The Eleventh Sunday after Trinity, 2020
Pastor Gregory L. Jackson
The Confession of Sins
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Absolution
The Introit p. 16
The Gloria Patri
The Kyrie p. 17
The Gloria in Excelsis
The Salutation and Collect p. 19
The Epistle and Gradual
The Gospel
Glory be to Thee, O Lord!
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Praise be to Thee, O Christ!
The Nicene Creed p. 22
Saint versus Sanctimony (Virtue Signaling)
The Preface p. 24
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 514 God Moves in a Mysterious Way
The Sanctus p. 26
The Lord's Prayer p. 27
The Words of Institution
The Agnus Dei p. 28
The Nunc Dimittis p. 29
The Benediction p. 31
The Hymn # 514 God Moves in a Mysterious Way
In Our Prayers
- In cancer therapy - Mary Howell, Randy Anderson, Christina Jackson.
- Diagnosis - Pastor Jim Shrader, Kermit Way.
- Hunger relief - Bethany Mission, Philippines. They have lockdowns, too.
- Mourning - Carl Roper's wife Lynda and family.
- Twin storms moving in the Gulf and the South this week.
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| Norma A. Boeckler |
KJV 1 Corinthians 15:1 Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and wherein ye stand; 2 By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 3 For I delivered unto you first of all that which I also received, how that Christ died for our sins according to the scriptures; 4 And that he was buried, and that he rose again the third day according to the scriptures: 5 And that he was seen of Cephas, then of the twelve: 6 After that, he was seen of above five hundred brethren at once; of whom the greater part remain unto this present, but some are fallen asleep. 7 After that, he was seen of James; then of all the apostles. 8 And last of all he was seen of me also, as of one born out of due time. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, that am not meet to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am: and his grace which was bestowed upon me was not in vain; but I laboured more abundantly than they all: yet not I, but the grace of God which was with me.
KJV Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
Eleventh Sunday After Trinity
Lord God, heavenly Father, we beseech Thee so to guide and direct us by Thy Holy Spirit, that we may not forget our sins and be filled with pride, but continue in daily repentance and renewal, seeking our comfort only in the blessed knowledge that Thou wilt be merciful unto us, forgive us our sins, and grant us eternal life; through Thy beloved Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with Thee and the Holy Ghost, one true God, world without end. Amen.
Background for the Gospel Sermon - Luke 18, Pharisee and Tax Collector
Luther explained this parable in terms of the tree comparison. There are only good trees and evil trees, from the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7:15ff. This comparison takes us from the wordy and complicated lectures of man (topics - Law and Gospel, Good Works) keeps the two trees before our eyes. We have a Mimosa tree (trees) in our back yard. That one is the evil tree, which should only be pruned with a chain saw. The Mimosa is showy but only produces more Mimosa trees, which quickly grow to take over their surroundings. In contrast are the slow growing and valuable oak trees. They are the good trees that only produce good fruit, feeding many birds and legions of squirrels, providing shade and eventually attractive lumber. A religion of works alone is like the Mimosa, showy but only producing evil fruit, like the 8 foot Mimosa taking over from the valuable Chaste Tree ($10 an ounce for the oil). As Jesus teaches, and Luther always demonstrates, good works are the natural fruit of faith in Him.
Saint versus Sanctimony
KJV Luke 18:9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
This parable clearly shows why there was so much antagonism toward Jesus. He attacked the basis for their sense of holiness by teaching the righteousness of faith in Him. He supported His claims by demonstrating His divine power over all of Creation. One either trusts in Him or in his own righteousness. Faith shows love for others, but self-righteousness is expressed in loathing for others.
Although this is framed in the language of the time, the parable is fitting for all ages, because we have the same two figures today, the outwardly holy Pharisee who despises others and the humble tax-collector who has faith and the works that grow from faith in Him.
Stanley Hauerwas, my ethics professor and doctoral advisor, liked to say this in class as a quip, "Lutherans are not good about sanctification." The term sanctification is used for works in the Christian life, and is the subject of Romans 6, good works following Justification by faith in Romans 3 - 5. His Methodist upbringing and Catholic leanings were both reasons for emphasizing such topics as world peace. I waited for him to say his quip the second time in class. When Hauerwas said it again, "Lutherans are not good about sanctification," I added, "Or sanctimony." That stopped him and he had to agree in a muffled tone.
Sanctimony (holier-than-thou) is a great word for describing the acts of self-praise based on the good works (or lack of sinful works) that the individual exhibits.
This sanctimony (holier-than-thou attitude) is forcefully represented in the Woke, as they identify themselves. They also insist on all activism being linked together -
- Civil rights are alphabet rights.
- There is no limit to the number of genders.
- Fossil fuels must go, and nuclear plants are even worse.
- Socialism is the only good government.
- Those who disagree must be fired, excluded, and punished for their lack of tolerance.
- The excluded are seldom forgiven, even if they apologize in abject humility.
There is always a type of faith, but is a faith convenient for the Woke Commandments.
Two men -
Jesus as the Lord of Creation teaches in contrasts. There are two alternatives, not 17. The explanations are not subordinated until we hardly know how to distinguish one from the to the other. Faith in Him does not make the Ten Commandments obsolete but known as an expression of God's love: God commands what is good for us.
This is largely forgotten, especially by those who call themselves conservative, orthodox, or confessional - thanks to the influence of Calvinism and other isms. The Word is not what we want it to be, a platform for our own thoughts. It is the unique and only revelation of God's will and must be treated with the utmost respect and reverence.
11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
This sermon of self-praise has a bit of humor in it. Thanking God for being so virtuous - by his own efforts - makes us smile. Some people never have any alcohol - and tell us. Some always wear their useless paper masks - and tell us. Others never eat meat or milk products - the Adventists have made that mandatory. We attended a Missouri worship service where the ELS leaders asked me not to publish the fact that they worshiped with the impure.
This is definitely Pharisaical righteousness - and also found in any religious expression that lacks the true righteousness of faith in the Savior. But it is also a portrait of the Old Adam, the sinful self within us. Therefore Jesus gives us an example of the true saint in the tax collector.
The word "saint" has been abused to match up with the Pharisee, by declaring some people saints and giving them a special kind of holiness. In the New Testament, the saints are the believers. The term in the Old Testament is "the righteous," those who believed in the coming Messiah.
At Notre Dame the members of various religious orders had stories about their own saints. One Christian Brother said, "Our founders are described as if they walked six feet above the ground, never sinning in any way." He considered everything in the Bible as symbolic and not actually occurring, including the Virgin Birth and the Resurrection.
Some religious practices, whether Christian in name only - or pagan - include public and private acts of self-torture, as if inflicting pain would purify oneself. That is at the heart of earning forgiveness by "virtuous acts."
13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
5. He speaks of the publican as though he must have previously heard a word from God that touched his heart so that he believed it and thus became pious, as St. Paul says, Romans 10:17: “So faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” When the Word falls into the heart, then man becomes pure and good. But the Evangelist does not indicate that he now first heard the Gospel here, but that he heard it somewhere, it matters not where. For he says: “God be merciful to me a sinner.” This knowledge is above the powers of reason. And yet it must previously have been known to him that God is merciful, gracious and friendly to all those who confess their sins, who call upon him and long for grace. As he heard that God is gracious by virtue of his very nature, to all those who humble themselves and seek comfort in him. But to preach thus is always the pure Gospel.
It is important to notice how Luther sees the entire Bible as a unified Truth, which it is. Those who pit one author against another author are really opposed to the true Author - the Holy Spirit. As I have been writing, the abandonment of the traditional text of the Bible, which began in the 1880s (in earnest), is fully at work today throughout the Western world.
The tax collector is a symbol of all that Israel loathed at the time. He forcibly collected taxes to support the Roman Empire's occupation and government, a constant reminder that they were once independent with a great king. Everyone gave the tax collector the stink eye and shunned him with great energy. The Pharisee was thankful that he was not like this tax collector.
This is also the portrait of anyone with faith in Christ. That causes instant dislike and derogatory jokes from unbelievers. Probably the worst are those within the visible church yet not believing, only gaining some credibility or business from the association.
So the tax collector is humble rather than proud. Knowledge of God fills us with awe in His Creation and with thanksgiving for His Beloved Son. Because this transcends our earthly knowledge, many do not accept the complete revelation but only take from what they like. There are many fatal traps for them, skandalon is the New Testament term but it means the trigger of the trap, not embarrassment for being on the cover of a British tabloid. Creation can be the trigger, or miracles, or a type of miracle that does not appeal to the person, or Paul's instructions. Several Notre Dame doctoral students in theology wanted to be priests - female priests.
The proper way to address God is in humility. Lacking humility shows a lack of knowledge in the Word. God has all power and change changes matters in an instant.
Isaiah 66 Thus saith the Lord, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?
2 For all those things hath mine hand made, and all those things have been, saith the Lord: but to this man will I look, even to him that is poor and of a contrite spirit, and trembleth at my word.
So the world of Pharisaical Christians will always seek to crush the faithful, and they even do that when not trying, so great is their confidence in their holiness.
Faith and humility go together. Faith sees the vast gulf between God's power and holiness, our weakness and sinfulness. God's remedy was not to make us work ourselves up to Him, but to bring His Son down to us. The Gospels teach us in dozens of ways about God's mercy and forgiveness. It is not just taught in words but exemplified in the sacrifice of Jesus for our sins. That is the great skandalon/stumbling block for the moderns. They have to re-interpret that so they can mention the cross and not mean what it teaches. Rauschenbusch and other rationalists made it "Jesus expressing his solidarity with the poor."
Faith opens our eyes to what was done for us without our merit. Faith receives Jesus - it is the entrance to God's grace. Those who belittle faith have no faith at all, because they would trust the clear revelation as it is spelled out in apostolic letters. First, all the living witnesses were teaching the resurrection of Christ and His teaching. The letters explained how this applied to congregations. As the witnesses died the Gospels themselves were added, so the ministry of Christ was preserved in writing. This all came about quickly, in the same time that many of us have been adults.
The more we see in faith, the more we realize how precious the Treasure of the Gospel is. God has given us eternals - eternal truth and eternal life. Unbelief denies one and edits the other (I have been so good). Faith sees the eternal truths as overshadowing all of man's wisdom (truth) and all of man's accomplishments (eternal life). God is so powerful that he can take the work of a few men and women and accomplish His will when millions of men and women can hardly keep the juggernaut going down the street.
When I read the latest gardening breakthroughs (fungus, beneficial insects rather than toxins), I wanted to shout at the author's "Can't you see God's Creation in this? It was all laid out and working while you were poisoning the world with toxins instead!" Instead, I wrote about Creation Gardening. Nothing is more humbling than a garden - it grows miracles and devours plans.
PFC said, "There is no yard like this." Actually the woods and open places are full of similar displays. We just don't see how God works them until they are gathered together and viewed at close range. So the parables work too on our understanding of the Christian life.
