Genesis 28,10-19a. 14th Sunday after Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

Genesis 28,10-19a 4413

14. Sonntag nach Trinitatis  059     

Joshua

Aegidius, Abbot, appr. † 715 

Aegidius, monk † 1203          

1. September 2013

1. Almighty and Everlasting God, give unto us the increase of faith, hope and charity; and, that we may obtain that which Thou dost promise, make us to love that which Thou dost command. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer, 14. Sunday after Trinity). Amen.

2. Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. And he came to a certain place and stayed there that night, because the sun had set. Taking one of the stones of the place, he put it under his head and lay down in that place to sleep. And he dreamed, and behold, there was a ladder set up on the earth, and the top of it reached to heaven. And behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on it! And behold, Yahweh stood above it and said: „I am Yahweh, the God of Abraham your father and the God of Isaac. The land on which you lie I will give to you and to your offspring. Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you will spread abroad to the west and to the east and to the north and to the south, and in you and your offspring all the families of the earth will be blessed. Behold, I am with you and will keep you wherever you go, and will bring you back to this land. For I will not leave you until I have done what I have promised you.“ Then Jacob awoke from his sleep and said: „Surely Yahweh is in this place, and I did not know it.“ And he was afraid and said: „How awesome is this place! This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven.“ So early in the morning Jacob took the stone that he had put under his head and set it up for a pillar and poured oil on the top of it. He called the name of that place Bethel (which means, „house of God“), but the name of the city was originally Luz (which means, „almond tree“). 

3. Jacob was a dead man. He had lied to and shamed his father, Isaac. He had swindled his older brother Esau out of his rightful inheritance. Jacob had become the outcast of the family. He now fled for his very life, because Esau was looking to mete out vengeance upon his deceitful younger twin. Mother Rebecca was sending Jacob to her brother; Uncle Laban would protect Jacob from the wrath of Esau. 

4. Considering Jacob’s exploits thus far, you really can’t wreck your life any worse than Jacob had already done. Yahweh had promised to bless Jacob and give him his father’s inheritance. Jacob now had that inheritance, and once Isaac died Jacob would inherit everything. But the way Jacob went about securing this blessing and inheritance had torn the family apart. He drove a wedge between Isaac and his wife Rebecca, for Isaac favored Esau but Rebecca favored Jacob. He soured his relationship with his father, and he completely betrayed his brother’s trust. Yet the Messianic lineage goes through Jacob from Abraham and Isaac. From Jacob it passed to Judah, the fourth of twelve sons, then later onto David, the youngest of Jesse’s eight boys. Finally it culminates in Joseph and Mary, both of whom descend from from different sons of David. With Jesus the blessing and inheritance made to Jacob is now fulfilled. 

5. On his way to Uncle Laban, Jacob stops to sleep. He has a dream, and through this dream Yahweh reassures Jacob of His promise and blessing. Jacob will have many descendants, and the land will belong to his descendants. Yahweh will be his Providence and Protection. A similar promise is made to the lepers in today’s Gospel lection. Those men were outcasts from society because they had a contagious and serious skin disease. Jesus entered their midst, healed them and restored them to the fold of the Jacobean promise. 

6. Both Jacob and the Samaritan realize God had been in their midst, and they straightaway worship God. Jacob built a pillar, poured oil upon it and set up a worship site to pinpoint where God had made His presence known. The Samaritan returned to Jesus, prostrated himself at His feet and worshipped Him as God. In both men we see their faith in Yahweh. 

7. The story of Jacob is your story. Jacob had done some despicable things in his life, and he would sin greatly the remainder of his life, but he knew God and where God had located Himself. He worshipped this God of his father and grandfather. Faith is never inactive. The Apostle Paul says that the true and rightful descendants of Abraham are the men and women who have faith in the same God that Abraham worships and thereby such descendants receive the blessing God had given to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. [1] You and all Christians are the true heirs of Abraham, for you worship the same God that Abraham, Isaac and Jacob worshipped. Jesus traces His human genealogy back through Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, for Jesus is the son God had promised to give to these patriarchs. Like Jacob, you know where God is and where He presents Himself. Jesus isn’t found haphazardly in nature, but in His Church. Jesus is where His Word and Sacraments are preached and administered. Thus Luther wrote in his Small Catechism: „You shall sanctify the holy-day. What is this?–Answer. We should fear and love God so that we may not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred, and gladly hear and learn it“ [2] (Luther). In Luther’s explanation of the 3. Commandment, the „it“ is the very Word of God. You hear this Word of God in Church, and this Word is the very Jesus Himself, and the bread and wine you receive in the Holy Supper are the very body and blood of Jesus Himself. We worship Jesus where He is found, and Jesus is found in His Church. Faith sees this and receives God’s gifts. 

8. Our lections from Genesis 28 and Luke 17 are texts that show a worship event. Jacob was rushing to get to his Uncle Laban, but after His encounter with Yahweh he set aside time to worship Yahweh. The ten lepers all left for Jerusalem, per Jesus’ command, to show themselves to the priests and be declared healthy and clean. One of these lepers, a Samaritan, upon seeing he had been healed, turned back and returned to Jesus where he praised and worshipped Jesus. Our Lord had sent these lepers to the priests in Jerusalem, but the Samaritan realized that he had been in the presence of a greater priest, yes, the Heavenly High Priest and God’s own Christ. Jesus then declares to him a greater healing, a healing of the spiritual sinful condition, saying: »your faith has saved you.« 

9. To say „faith saves you“ is to simply say „Christ Jesus saves you, and faith believes this and receives it as one’s own.“  As the Holy Scriptures have shown us, faith yields forth worship. Scripture has also revealed that although Jesus has saved everyone, many refuse to return to His presence and worship Him. Only a remnant returns to give praise and glory to God, and you are that faithful remnant who never fail to find Jesus where He is present and weekly give Him worship and praise. To you, Jesus says: »your faith has saved you.« Christ has saved you, and you have believed this gospel message. You trust in Christ and His promise. You return often to give thanks to Christ and to worship Him. You understand what Luther teaches in his Catechism: you hold sacred the preaching of God’s Word, and you gladly hear and learn His Word. Not only His Word, but also His body and blood in the Sacrament of the Altar. Jesus says: »Eat and drink this holy meal in remembrance of Me« (1. Corinthians 11,24-25). The Apostle Paul proclaims: »For as often as you eat this bread and drink from the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He returns« (1. Corinthians 11,26). Today you once again proclaim Jesus’ death, resurrection and His return on the last day. In all this Jesus is well pleased with you and your faith. The Holy Spirit has created and nurtured your faith through the years and you have not squelched His work in your life. He has blessed you each week with His Word and Sacraments. He has given you gifts upon gifts over the years as His blessings have been spoken to you in the Benediction. You may once again leave this Divine Service in peace, knowing that in Christ you have salvation and full remission of your sins.  Amen. 

10. Let us pray. O Most High, whose Divine attributes are steadfast love and faithfulness, to name but only two, exhort those who are not here this holy day to return unto Your holy place, this church, so that they may rightly and faithfully worship You as Savior and Lord.  Amen. 

Christ crucified and risen for you 

✠

All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27. Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.  

Book of Common Prayer, The. Copyright © 1990 Oxford University Press.

ELKB. Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. www.bayern-evangelisch.de/www/index.php. Copyright © 2013 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. 

Luther, Martin. Small Catechism. Die Bekenntnisschriften der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche, 12. Edition © 1998 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht

VELKD. Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. www.velkd.de. Copyright © 2013 Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. 

¹ For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise. (Galatians 3,26.29).

² Du sollst den Feiertag heiligen. Was ist das? — Antwort. Wir sollen Gott fürchten und lieben, daß wir die Predigt und sein Wort nicht verachten, sondern dasselbe heilig halten, gerne hören und lernen (Luther).