june 18 2023
June 18th 2023
Old Testament: Exodus 19:2-8, 20:8
Psalm: Psalm 100
Epistle: Romans 5:6-15
Gospel: Matthew 9:35-10:8 (9-15)
Sermon Text: Matthew 10:5-15
Sermon Title: “Sent to Preach”
Grace to you and peace, from God the Father and our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
“Proclaim as you go, saying, The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”. (Matthew 10:7b) “If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust of your feet when you leave that town; it will be more bearable on the day of judgment for Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town”. (Matthew 10:14-15) “Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy”. (Exodus 20:8)
At our recent Central Illinois District pastor’s conference, one of the two main speakers presented on the topic of “The Useful Application of Scripture for Preaching”. In studying the (historical) sermons of Luther himself, Walther and several other Lutheran “fathers”, he found five categories of using the Scriptures that they used in their preaching. Interestingly, it follows very closely what the Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy; “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be equipped for every good work”. (2nd Timothy 3:16-17) We will deal with those five categories in a moment.
Now, the Third Commandment deals with what our attitude should be towards preaching and teaching the Word of God. We are to be attentive listeners, mediating on His Word and “being careful to do all that is written in it”. (Joshua 1:8b) “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy”. (Exodus 20:8) What does this mean? We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it”. (S. C. Third Commandment, explanation) What does it mean to “despise preaching and His Word”? It means to regard it as useless of worthless; as having no value.
For Jesus said, “Whoever is of God, hears the Word of God” (John 8:47a) and “the one who hears you hears Me and the one who rejects you rejects Me”. (Luke 10:16a) Luther wrote in the Large Catechism, “You must be concerned not only with hearing the Word, but also about learning and retaining it, do not regard it as an optional or unimportant matter”. (L C, Third Commandment, par. 98)
So, Jesus sent out His disciples saying, “Proclaim as you go, the Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”. (Matthew 10:7) There were to proclaim His Word to whoever would receive it, “but anyone who would not receive you or listen to your words (which is the Word of God He had given them to proclaim), shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town”. (Matthew 10:14)
By the way, this might be a good place to answer a question that came up about last week’s sermon, specifically the comment that we should hear the rightly preached Word, even if spoken by evil/unbelieving people. Keep in mind that when Jesus sent out the twelve to preach the Word and to heal; “Judas Iscariot, who betrayed Jesus” (Matthew 10:4b) was included in that group. Judas is described elsewhere in Scripture as “a thief and having charge of the moneybag, he used to help himself to what was put in it”. (John 12:6b) Yet, there is nothing in God’s Word that indicates his preaching was ineffective. We also have Jesus’ word about the Scribes and Pharisees, “practice and observe whatever they tell you, but not what they do, for they preach but do not practice”. (Matthew 23:3)
So, the rest of the sermon this morning has to do with what we are to listen for when hearing a sermon. The first category of applying Scripture in preaching is instruction of what the Bible actually teaches; in other words, of right doctrine. This is what you/we did in confirmation class and learning the catechism, but it is not limited to that. Our learning of what Holy Scripture teaches is not to stop at Confirmation, for confirmation is not the Christian equivalent of graduation. Learning from God’s Holy Word is to be ongoing for the rest of our lives. Therefore, doctrine is not just for Confirmation or Bible class, sermons are to be “doctrinal”.
“A preacher must have confidence that what he is speaking is not his own word, but the Word of the Lord”. (Luther) Luther also wrote, “let our responsibility be merely to speak in accordance with the Word; let it be God’s responsibility to grant the success and increase. Knowing that it is God alone “who grants the growth” (1st Corinthians 3:6b) we are commanded to proclaim, even if it seems that no one is listening or even if they are openly rejecting it. The Apostle Paul exhorts preachers to “give instruction in sound doctrine and also to rebuke those who contradict it”. (Titus 1:9)
The second category of applying Scripture in preaching is reproof or rebuke of false doctrines. As the Apostle Paul declared, “If anyone is preaching to you a Gospel contrary to the one you received, let him be accursed”. (Galatians 1:9) “Watch out for those who cause divisions and create obstacles contrary to the doctrine you have been taught; avoid them”. (Romans 16:17b)
Scripture warns, “in latter times some will depart from the faith, by devoting themselves to deceitful spirits and teachings of demons”; (1st Timothy 4:1) “turning away from listening to the truth and wandering off into myths”. (2nd Timothy 4:3) So, Paul also instructs Titus, “as for a person that stirs up division, after warning them once and then twice, have nothing more to do with them; knowing that such a person is warped and sinful; he is self-condemned”. (Titus 3:10-11)
Any such false teaching about Christ, should not be tolerated in the church. Luther wrote, “God wants pastors to open our mouths vigorously, to denounce what must be denounced … (without regard) for our own danger, inconvenience … or other people’s malice and contempt … we should not despair, even though it seems to us that we are getting nowhere”.
The third category of applying Scripture in preaching is correction, which is a rebuke of sinful living/lifestyles. The epistles in the New Testament are full of such rebukes; warning against countless sins which bring great harm to our neighbors and ourselves. The Apostle Paul warns, ““Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the Kingdom of God? Do not be deceived, neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor swindlers, will inherit the Kingdom of God”. (1st Corinthians 6:9-10)
Notice how Paul lumps all of these various sins together as equally dangerous to our souls. “Look carefully how you walk, not as unwise, but as wise”. (Ephesians 5:15) Of course, Jesus also reproves and corrects both the religious leaders and His disciples in many places in the Gospels, for example, telling Peter, “Get behind Me Satan”, when he contradicted Jesus’ teaching about going to the cross; and pronouncing woes upon the scribes and Pharisees, calling them out for “appearing outwardly righteous to others, but within being full of hypocrisy and lawlessness”. (Matthew 23:28) “Scripture teaches most clearly that these evil works destroy faith”. (Pieper, Vol. III, page 23)
The fourth category of applying Scripture in preaching is training in righteousness. This is an exhortation/admonition to the believer in Christ to holy living, sanctification and good works. As Paul wrote to the Roman churches, “I appeal to you … by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God … Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that you may discern what is the will of God”. (Romans 12:1-2)
And Jesus’ words, “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments”. (John 14:15) Therefore our Confessions “reject and condemn (those who) construct for themselves a dead faith or imaginary faith, which exists without repentance and good works. As if true faith and the evil intention to remain in sin could exist in a single heart at the same time. That is impossible”! (Solid Declaration, Article IV, par. 15)
The last two categories are what we often call the “Third Use of the Law” in our Confessions. So, we believe, teach, and confess that even those with true faith in Christ Jesus, who have been “freed and liberated from the curse of the law; should daily exercise themselves in the law of the Lord … it is necessary to hold this constantly before the believer’s eyes and continue to urge it upon them with due diligence”. (S D, VI, par. 4) “As often as believers stumble, they are reproved by God’s Holy Spirit from the law, and by the same Spirit, they are restored again and comforted with the proclamation of the Holy Gospel”. (S.D., VI, par. 13-14)
This is how our Lutheran forefathers preached from God’s Holy Word; just as the Holy Apostles and prophets used the Word; to instruct, reprove, correct and train their hearers in holy living and so it should not surprise or offend any believer in Christ when they hear such preaching today; for every Christian still needs to hear law of God. Scripture declares, “do not despise the Lord’s discipline, or be weary of His reproof, for the Lord disciplines the one He loves”. (Proverbs 3:11-12a)
We all need the preaching of the law because our “old Adam” or sinful nature “must be coerced into obedience to Christ with instruction … threatening of the law … and often with punishment”. (Solid Declaration, VI, par. 24) As the Psalmist declared, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn Your Word”. (Psalm 119:71) Of this Word of God, Luther wrote, “you cannot read too much Scripture, what you read, you cannot read too carefully; and what you read carefully, you cannot understand too well; and what you understand, you cannot teach too well; and what you teach well, you cannot live too well”.
Of course, we must always keep in mind that while good works are necessary for the Christian life, we are not saved by them “for by grace you are saved, through faith” (Ephesians 2:8) and that ultimately, the strength to do these good works and fight against and abstain from sin is provided solely by the Gospel; which is the final category of applying Scripture in preaching. “The law cannot save us, it can only prepare us for the Gospel”. (CFW Walther, Law and Gospel, page 7)
The Gospel is the announcement of the forgiveness of sins; the good news that we are freed from the guilt, punishment, and power of sin and have the promise of eternal life by Jesus’ sacrificial death on the cross and bodily resurrection; “for Jesus was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification”. (Romans 4:25)
The good news is that the very righteousness that God demands, He also freely gives, which we receive through faith whenever we gather around the Word and Sacrament. This what the Small Catechism means when it says “I believe … that I cannot believe … but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel”. (3rd Article explanation) “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ”. (Romans 10:17)
Now, CFW Walther in his “Distinction Between Law and Gospel”, taught that “every sermon must contain both Law and Gospel … carefree and willful sinners (must hear) the thundering of the law and contrite sinners (must hear) the sweet voice of the Savior’s grace”. (page 33) So, in listening to a sermon, you should normally hear both of these presented.
The Small Catechism summarizes the distinction between Law and Gospel with these three points;
The Law teaches what we are to do and not do; the Gospel teaches what God has done and still does for our salvation.
The Law shows us our sin and the wrath of God; the Gospel shows us our Savior and the grace of God.
The Law must be proclaimed to all people, but especially to impenitent sinners; the Gospel must be proclaimed to sinners who are troubled because of their sins.
Walther wrote, “whatever of either doctrine (Law and Gospel) that is contained in the Scriptures is the Word of the living God Himself. Both (Law and Gospel) are equally necessary. Without the Law, the Gospel is not understood and without the Gospel, the Law benefits us nothing. When a person ceases to use either of these two doctrines, he is no longer a true Christian”. (CFW Walther, Law and Gospel, Thesis 1, pages 7-8)
Again, notice the warning that Jesus gives at the end of the Gospel reading today regarding our response to hearing the Word of God. He said, “If anyone will not receive you or listen to your words, shake off the dust from your feet when you leave that house or town. Truly I say to you, it will be more bearableon the day of judgment for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah than for that town (or house)”. (Matthew 10:14-15) Unless they are brought to repentance, nothing but judgment remains for those who reject the Gospel of Christ’s atoning death and bodily resurrection for the forgiveness of sins, for the writer of Hebrews declares, “how shall we escape (judgment) if we neglect so great a salvation”. (Hebrews 2:3a)
Thanks be to God for His law which shows us our sin, and for the Gospel, which shows us our Savior. Thanks be to God for the forgiveness of sins and His free gift of salvation in Christ Jesus our Lord, to all who trust in Him alone. For this, “we rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have received reconciliation” (Romans 5:11) and peace with God and we gladly “Remember the Sabbath Day” (Exodus 20:8) and receive His gifts in Word and Sacrament. Amen.
The peace of God …