Today, we once again hear Christ speak to us, saying,
“The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘I fast twice a week;
I give tithes of all that I get.’”
Our only sure hope and comfort is Scripture alone. It is
God’s holy and complete Word to us; not how we want to hear it, but how Jesus
wants to tell it. The Lord gave the Word; spoke this Word so that those who
hear would also read, mark, learn and inwardly digest for their eternal comfort
and return to that same Word, knowing that they will find the same Lord.
Thus, when a teacher of the Church, the Pharisee, preaches
this prayer in our hearing, and everyone else's at the Temple , we need to take note, for Jesus tells
us that,
“The scribes and the
Pharisees sit on Moses' seat, 3 so do and observe
whatever they tell you, but not the works they do. For they preach,
but do not practice. 4 They tie up heavy burdens,
hard to bear, and lay them on people's shoulders, but they themselves are
not willing to move them with their finger.” (Mt.23)
In the Pharisee’s prayer we hear good things. Actually we hear
great things; godly things; things that God has commanded of His believing
people. You can not throw away this prayer just yet.
First the Pharisee thanks God and our second Commandment
from God tells us to give Him thanks at all times. Secondly, the Pharisee
teaches us the promises of God; that because of God’s mercy and kindness, you
are not like other men, for God has set you apart.
If you are a decent citizen you are not an extortioner, not
unjust, and not an adulterer. Decent folk just don’t act this way. You have
never cheated anyone out of their welfare. You have never wronged anyone that
didn’t wrong you and you have not gotten divorced or caused another to divorce.
You are not like other men, by the grace of God. You fast
twice a week and you give your tithe. You put in your good work at the church
and by rights and that is good enough. Maybe you miss a Sunday or 2 or 3, but
you volunteer and give your dues. That should be good enough for this place.
In fact, God is just waiting to bestow eternal life on the
one who works the most justice, champions the most worthy lost causes, and
follows God’s commands perfectly. And when you compare yourself to some of
these other slobs around you, you are at least in the top 10 and have a good
shot at being a good enough Christian.
By this public prayer, this Pharisee is teaching you how to
live before God. Do this; don’t do that. And this is familiar and seems
reasonable, after all this is how our parents raised us; do right, don’t do
wrong, do your best and God will do the rest.
Hopefully, many of you have begun your fasting, because
Jesus says our Father rewards those who fast in secret (Mt. 6).
Hopefully, many have begun and continue to tithe. Lord knows
this Church could use the extra income and there is blessing that comes with
tithing. The Lord says, “Bring the full
tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And
thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will
not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing
until there is no more need.” (Mal.3:10)
Repent! Where is your tithe in the budget? Where is your
fasting? More importantly, where is the blessing God promised me, that one time
I did tithe and fast? In disregarding the teaching of the Pharisee, you have
become twice a son of satan as he is, because you have despised God’s Word.
This is the danger and the importance of preaching in the
Church. Not only are we to hear of the true disparity between how God wants us
to be and how we really are, but without hearing the Word of God, out loud,
faith is not produced.
The Preaching Office is the Office that produces faith and
faith comes by hearing. Gabriel spoke, St. Mary believed and Jesus was
conceived. Jesus spoke to St. Paul
and he was converted from violent oppressor to pastor and Apostle.
Whenever the Lord preaches, things happen. Jesus preached
creation into existence. Jesus preached righteousness into Abraham. Jesus
preached the Law to Moses. Jesus has always spoken and He continues to speak. Should
He ever stop speaking, you would cease to exist.
What it means to be sustained by God is that you are
constantly and wonderfully preached about so that your body and soul remain and
live.
Dear Christians, the preaching of Jesus does not end with
the Pharisee. It does not even end with the tax collector being justified
before the Lord. His preaching tells of the one Who has received God’s blessing
and kept all the Commandments perfectly. Christ’s Preaching points to the
cross, ends at the cross, and points back to the cross.
Jesus, in preaching all of creation into being, gave us a
picture of how powerful the Gospel, the Word, is to save. In the sermon
justifying Abraham, Jesus taught that it is by faith that we are saved, not by
works. In sermonizing St. Mary, Jesus taught that the Lamb of God will preach
and take away the sin of the world as both God and man, on the cross.
Preaching is nothing but cross-talk; talking about Christ on
the cross. Any one who calls himself a preacher better have Christ Crucified as
the object and actor in his sermons or he is teaching and preaching falsely. To
preach means to give the Gospel to hard-hearted Pharisees and completely
depraved tax collectors, that they might find rest from their labors and
struggles.
Unfortunately for the Pharisee, he is sure that he does not
need the cross. He thanks God, not for mercy from above, but for His kingly
generosity on earth. He offers not Christ on the cross, but his own works to
prove that heaven and all blessings are his by rights. He fasts and tithes, but
does not hold the Word of God as sacred and neglects to gladly hear and learn
of his Messiah. (Rom.
2:15)
Which is exactly what the tax collector asks for. The tax
collector hears his teacher’s prayer and understands how far short his life
truly falls, from what his God demands of him. He also hears and understands
that no amount of “living right” will get him up to the standards of his
teacher, much less God.
It is there, then, that the preaching of Christ awakens a
need inside of you for atonement. You hear and understand that you need your
deeds buried so far in the earth that they never see the light of day again.
You hear and understand that the miserable condition of your heart is so dire,
that eternal death seems to be the only way out and you can barely lift your
eyes towards the heavenly altar.
This is where the sinner is justified: where his works and
life ends and Christ work and life begin. The Gospel of God is the power of
salvation to all who believe. The Gospel is that Christ has covered all your
works, in His blood. The Gospel is that Christ has atoned for your inability
and your sin. The Gospel is that you are a baptized child of paradise.
You know this because it has just been preached to you and
you did not know it before hand or you had forgotten. The Law is easy to apply
to ourselves: how can I make my faith better, how can I get right with God, how
can I make God give me blessings instead of all this hardship?
Whereas, the Gospel is foreign and therefore less pleasing
to the hard worker. It does not sit well with the wage-earner, the moralist, or
the golden boys. For in it, all has been accomplished. There is nothing for you
to do or earn.
Your faith is as full and complete as it ever will be. The
greatest power in all the universe is the Word of God; spoken at creation, made
flesh on Christmas, suffering and dying on Good Friday, rising again on Easter,
and today, in this Green season of the Church, offering Himself, the True Word
of God, Body and Blood, to your lips and to your tongue for the forgiveness of
sins.
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