✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠
The Word of the Lord Endures Forever
Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum
Jeremiah 9,23-24 1018
Septuageima 020
Charlemagne, Emperor, ✠ 814
28. Januar 2018
1. О Faithful Savior, Thou Humble Son of God, we ask for Your Divine assistance as we move closer to the season of Lent, so that we take time to meditate upon Your ministry to this fallen world. Amen. (Starck 75)
2. Thus says the Lord: »Let not the wise man boast in his wisdom, let not the mighty man boast in his might, let not the rich man boast in his riches, but let him who boasts boast in this, that he understands and knows Me, that I am the Lord who practices steadfast love, justice and righteousness in the earth. For in these things I delight, declares the Lord.«
3. There are two types of boasting: human boasting in our own abilities, and Divine boasting in God and His attributes. The Prophet Jeremiah exhorts us to not boast in our wisdom, power or wealth. These may seem like talents that we have achieved all on our own through diligent study and hard work, but ultimately they are gifts given to us by God that we have cultivated under His Providence and guidance. God told Job: »I frustrate the craftiness of the wise, save the needy from the hand of the mighty and give hope to the poor who are oppressed by the rich« (Job 5,12-16). On the other hand, Jeremiah exhorts us to boast in the Lord and to rejoice in His loving-kindness, justice and righteousness. Elihu once counseled Job: »Behold, God is mighty and does not despise anyone; He is mighty in strength of understanding. He does not withdraw His eyes from the righteous. He delivers the afflicted. God is exalted in His power and He is great« (Job 36,5.7.15.22.26).
4. God is generous; the last will be first, and the first will be last (Matthew 20,15-16). The Prophet Jeremiah exhorts us to boast in God’s generosity, for He delights in His generosity. When Jesus proclaimed that the last would be first and the first last He was making a theological statement, not a political one. Jesus arrived on this earth to bring us the loving-kindness, justice and righteousness of His Heavenly Father. God the Father delights in these attributes.
5. Here we see the great disconnect that we have with God. There is a wide gulf between God and sinful men and women. Our warped sense of reality believes that loving-kindness is for those who are good, justice is for those who deserve it and righteousness is for those who have earned it. Surely the laborers hired at the first hour deserve God’s loving-kindness, justice and righteousness more than those guys who only got hired at the end of the day and merely put in an hour’s worth of hard work. At the very least the first laborers deserve a large bonus for all their dedication to offset the equal wage paid to the ones who showed up last, right? Jesus tells us all received an equal payment in the lord’s loving-kindness because they hadn’t earned it but received it as a gift generosity.
6. God’s gracious generosity is undeserved; no one deserves it nor can we earn or merit it. If we demand that we have God’s generosity, then we are boasting in our merit. Such sinful pride merits God’s wrath, judgment and punishment. The Bible is full of examples of God humbling those boasting in their pride. Those who built the Tower of Babel did so to make a name for themselves, but God dispersed them from there over the face of all the Earth (Genesis 11,4.8). Joseph’s brothers prided themselves on selling him to the Ishmaelites/Midianites to put an end to his youthful boasting that they would all acknowledge him as their lord, but years later God’s saw to it that these elder brothers indeed bowed before Joseph who had been appointed the Governor of Egypt (Genesis 37,28; 41,40; 42,6). James and John prided themselves or asking for the seats of honor at Jesus’ right and left hands (Mark 10,37), but Jesus told them: »You know that those who are considered rulers of the Gentiles lord it over them, and their great ones exercise authority over them. But it shall not be so among you. But whoever would be great among you must be your servant, and whoever would be first among you must be slave of all. For even the Son of Man arrived not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for all« (Mark 10,42-45).
7. Jesus proclaims God’s gracious generosity with these words of mercy: »The Son of Man arrived to serve and to give His life as a ransom for all people« (Mark 10,45). Jesus exemplifies loving-kindness, justice and righteousness. He willingly and freely gave Himself up to be the Lamb of God to take away the sin of the world (John 3,16). God the Father’s wrath and justice upon sin was poured out upon Jesus and in doing so He spared us the Divine punishment earned by sinners. Thus Jesus transacted the Blessed Exchange: He took our sins and in return He gave us His righteousness. Jesus shows us the depth of God’s love for us, the determination to bring justice to those oppressed by their sins and that He alone made satisfaction for our sins by making us holy through His blood.
8. Jesus declares us righteous because He gives us His very own righteousness. Where Jesus is, there is His righteousness. Where His righteousness is, there is everlasting salvation. Where salvation is, there is the forgiveness of sin, and not just one or two gross sins, but the forgiveness of every single sin, no matter how serious or petty it may be. And not just our individual sins, but even our very sinful nature is covered by Jesus’ righteousness. Where there is righteousness there is grace, yes, free, undeserved grace that is ours because our Triune God is merciful.
9. Christ shows that God’s grace is free, yet costly. God shows us His loving-kindness, justice and righteousness in the Christ Jesus who was crucified and resurrected for us and our justification. God the Father boasts in His loving-kindness, justice and righteousness; He boasts in Christ Jesus, and so also do we boast in Him. Christ’s grace is undeserved, and in this marvelous truth we rejoice, for Christ’s grace is ours. Believe it, boast in it and revel in it, for we are forgiven and we are saved by the merit of Jesus alone. He makes the last first and the first last, for all who believe upon Him for righteousness have that very justification in full abundance and in full equality into life in Paradise. Amen.
10. Let us pray. O Christ, we present our pleas before You because of Your great mercy; hear our petitions and graciously answer them so that we may remain steadfast on You when the tribulations of this world would drive us from You. Amen.
To God alone be the Glory
Soli Deo Gloria
✠
All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.
All quotations from the Book of Concord are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using Die Bekenntnisschriften der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche, 12. Edition © 1998 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.
Starck, Johann Friedrich. Starck’s Prayer Book. Copyright © 2009 Concordia Publishing House.
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