Sermon 2023.09.10
Rev. Wesley Menke
Sometimes it is hard to go to sleep at night, and sometimes it is also hard to wake up in the morning. I remember not so long ago waking up on a particular day that I had a lot to do and I had some difficult things to do. I groaned and felt weighed down. I prayed to God to help me. I prayed for the strength to get up and I prayed that some of this burden would be lifted. After I asked all these things of God in prayer I paused for a moment to listen to what God had to say. To hear a word of God to give me comfort and ease my troubled mind and this what I heard:
“Mortal, get yourself out of bed! Use the two feet I gave you to stand up and go to the kitchen. Use the two arms I gave you to make yourself a cup of coffee. Make one for your wife too. Then use the brain I gave you to deal with your problems. This is your portion, and this is your lot. Nobody but you has got to do it!”
So that’s what I did. And here I am, and not lying in bed.
In today’s Gospel Jesus says that if someone sins against you; you have to be the one to fix it. Nobody will do it for you. Go to the one and confront them.
Ezekiel 33:11 says that the Lord gets no pleasure in the death of the wicked.
We might be tempted to want to see our enemies suffer or even to die, but this is not the will of God. The verse says, “But that the wicked turn from their ways and live.”
So how do you get an evil person to turn from their ways? Alone you cannot. That is why the first step is to confront someone one on one. If they admit their fault then great. They are sensible, and they really are not wicked. But if they do not, then you take a witness. If that doesn’t go anywhere then you bring it before church. The point is that some wicked people will only do the right thing if they are shown and convinced that they are outnumbered by a well organized fellowship of people. That is why wicked people make it their business to divide and conquer; to sow dissension. If they can get mostly decent people to mistrust and turn on one another then they are enabled to keep doing their misdeeds.
It is for this reason that we are not as divided as we think we are. The supposed division that exists in our country is fake. It’s fiction and the purpose of it is to keep us from finding common ground and holding the wicked accountable.
We have to find common ground.
We have to find shared goals.
We have to talk to one another about important issues.
There is this terribly influential theologian by the name of Reinhold Niebuhr. He was the darling of the political elites in the early to mid 20th century in the United States; and his influence still looms large. He often said that people as individuals or small groups were good, but large groups of people were not to be trusted. Noam Chomsky points out that elites loved this because it gave permission to divide the public, keep them in the dark, and let supposedly more virtuous and intelligent men run things.
When we look at the current situation where many people today do not trust the government and want to dismantle it, there are very good reasons why they feel this way. The only way to truly improve the situation is for the people to get organized, to get together, to talk about issues that matter, and to find common ground.
When Jesus instructed Peter that he would have to go confront the person who sinned against him, to go back if needed multiple times, and to never stop respecting and loving the person, he did this because it is supremely important that we stick together.
Psalm 119:37 says, “Turn my eyes from looking at vanities; give me life in your ways.”
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to live a good and decent life: to have food, shelter, water, air, good clothing, efficient transportation, and healthcare. There’s enough for everyone. The trick of the wicked is to get people to chase after vanities, stuff that doesn’t matter. That keeps fellowship weak and divided. When each individual tries to outdo the other; we all do worse. If we want a decent crack at survival, then we have to open up our eyes to see that this fake competition to outsmart or outwork the other guy is only meant to keep us all down. We need to compete less and cooperate more.
Romans 13:8 says, “Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”
It is lonely at the top. Should you succeed at being the most successful, the most comfortable, the most “blessed,” all that awaits you is loneliness. We must love one another. We must love all, that is the only way to fulfill God’s law. That is the only path to righteousness.
Romans 13:11 says now is the time to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers.
What does this mean? It means that salvation isn’t something just for after we die. It is something that could be now. It is a safe, decent world. What if our children lived in a better world than we lived in? What if things actually got better instead of worse? What if St. Paul is right? What if a better world is possible and is even closer than we think?
Restoration to our most dear friends and relationships.
Old rivalries laid to rest.
Peaceful relationships fouring once again.
Matthew 18:20 says that whenever two or three are gathered in my name I am there among them. What an extraordinary thing! The actual living and breathing Jesus is among us right now and everytime you gather with anyone in Jesus’ name. Not just in your heart, but in all of you. Amen.
Leave a Reply