"Rejoice! Your Name is Written in Heaven!" (Luke 10:17-20)

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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

“And Jesus said to [the Seventy-Two], ‘I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven’” (Luke 10:18).

 

One of the greatest lies Satan has succeeded in having people believe is that he is a mythical figure depicted in Scripture and not a real being. If you don’t think Satan exists, he can work under the radar much more effectively.

 

We are caught in the crosshairs of a spiritual war. But the good news is that we have divine protection. In this spiritual war, Satan stands as our adversary in the heavenly court prosecuting humanity. Also in that courtroom is Michael, who is pleading Christ’s sacrifice for the sin of the world against the deceiver of the world. The victory is Christ’s, the slaughtered Lamb of God, who in His death is also the conquering Lion of Judah.

 

Those 72 disciples who returned with joy over their power to subdue demons in the name of Jesus did not understand when Christ said, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven” (Luke 10:18). They didn’t understand, because they were unaware of the spiritual war being waged in heaven on their behalf. They thought their joy was built on their own ability to control the demons. But they would soon realize that their true joy would come from knowing that their names are written in heaven. Jesus’ earthly ministry would open their eyes to this spiritual war whose victory is only won through the blood of the Lamb and through speaking of their faith to others.

 

Revelation 12 – as we heard in our epistle lesson – tells of this spiritual war in heaven. Michael the archangel leads God’s angelic armies in battle against the armies of Satan and his demons who threaten to destroy God’s chosen child, the Messiah. The conflict is over the fate of man. But the assault of Satan and his demons is doomed to failure, for St. John reveals: “He was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven” (Revelation 12:8).

 

So, how were Satan and his demons defeated? How can Jesus say, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven?” The reason for Satan’s defeat and his fall from heaven is the slaughter of the Lamb. Satan, the accuser, is defeated. He can no longer accuse us, for Christ, by His perfect life and atoning death, took away the guilt of the world, removing all grounds for accusation against humankind. The floodgates of mercy are now open. God’s grace and forgiveness pour forth in abundance because the Lamb has been slain. His blood has been shed for all. The voice of the accuser is forever silenced for those who are wrapped in Christ’s righteousness.

 

Even though Satan’s power over us is defeated, he still continues to battle in minor skirmishes. He’s willing to take a few down with him, even if he can’t take down all of us. He still tempts us to disregard God’s Word. He attacks us with unbelief and indifference. But we have the promise that God will deliver us from every temptation by the evil one. For Jesus says, “Nothing shall hurt you”(Luke 10:19).

 

You see, Jesus promises His people divine protection from evil while they are engaged in spiritual warfare. Yet, we will still encounter hostile rejection and even persecution while living in this fallen world, but we will be at peace with God.

 

But there is something else to take notice of Jesus words: “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.” You see, in the Greek, this captures the continuous action. So, Jesus is continually watching Satan fall like lightning from heaven. This is how Jesus was summing up the effects of the mission of the 72. For in their preaching and in their healing, in their activity of proclaiming Christ and His Gospel, there was victory over Satan and his demons, because even the 72 recognized that “the demons are subject to us in your name!” (Luke 10:17).

 

You see, the disciples needed to remember the words of Jesus as He sent them out into the harvest as lambs in the midst of wolves. Their success could have puffed them up to further seek visible achievements. As they were out among the wolves, Satan could have used their success to attack them and thwart true ministry.

 

Instead, they preached to the fallen world with the words of Jesus: “The kingdom of God has come near to you” (Luke 10:9). In the very preaching of the disciples, the kingdom of God has already become a present reality and the kingdom of Satan is firmly defeated. The very presence of Christ in their proclamation to redeem a lost and dying world declares that Christ’s kingdom has triumphed, His cross has absorbed the world’s sin. And they should not fear, for even though Satan will assault them for their proclamation, Jesus guarantees that nothing will hurt them.

This is also our proclamation! For in the preaching of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, the kingdom of God draws near! So, as we gather together in Christ’s presence, it is through the proclamation of His Word, the cleansing at the Baptismal Font, the feeding upon His body and blood under the bread and wine at the Lord’s Supper that Christ declares to the people of God that His victory is our victory, the accuser will accuse no more, since all sins are forgiven through Christ, our Lord!

 

Like the disciples then, we, too, should not be focused on success in telling our neighbors about the sure and certain hope we have in Christ. Yes, we continue to spread the Gospel, but we shouldn’t be focused on worldly types of success, such as numbers. Since Satan will use that as a way to attack. What really matters, as Christ says, is “that your names are written in heaven” (Luke 10:20). Their focus, as well as our focus, must be on the heavenly gift of grace that theirs and our names are written in God’s Book of Life, beside the names of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. 

 

Today, we witnessed God write three more names in His Book of Life. There, through the water and the Word, at that Baptismal Font, God added Brooke, Evilyn, and Amelia to His Book of Life. And Brooke today will not only be baptized, but she will also soon confirm her faith in her Lord Jesus Christ! So, today is a major blow to Satan as we see him falling further like lightning as he is renounced, as well as his works and his ways.

 

Every day that Satan is thwarted is a glorious day! Always remember that through Holy Baptism, your names are written in heaven, and you are continually preserved in that status through the testimony of Jesus’ Word and through His heavenly feast! Jesus defeated the power of the devil! His kingdom has come and is right here and right now! By grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, you have a promised place in heaven, thereby gaining what Satan had forfeited by his rebellion. So, “rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them!” (Revelation 12:12). 

 

Now, Satan, hear this proclamation: I am baptized into Christ!

Drop your ugly accusation, I am not so soon enticed.

Now that to the font I’ve traveled, All your might has come unraveled,

And, against your tyranny, God, my Lord, unites with me! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

 keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

"Friendship with the World" (James 3:13-4:10)

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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

“You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).

 

What a fine way to begin a sermon! Do I have your attention? Today, we conclude our Epistle series on James as he – as inspired by the Holy Spirit – continues addressing our conduct in the church.

 

Today’s epistle text can be seen multiple ways. It can be seen as proverbs with its various gems, reminiscent of Solomon’s Book of Proverbs, or it can be understood as stern law preaching. Either way, the Holy Spirit inspires James to guide his readers in what it truly means to be Christians in a profoundly un-Christian world. Today, James calls on us to live in this world, but not be of this world.

 

The expression “You adulterous people!” likely caught your attention and likely for the wrong reason. Is James indicating that these people he is writing to are breaking the Sixth Commandment: “You shall not commit adultery”? Are his original hearers not living sexually pure and decent lives? Well, what is the context?

 

No! James is not accusing them of having adulterous sexual relationships. But he is still accusing them of adultery. But instead of sexual adultery, he is accusing them of spiritual adultery, that is, giving love and attention first to something other than the one true God. 

 

You see, for God, He pictures Israel as His bride and He as Israel’s husband. For God, for Israel to disobey Him is like breaking the marriage vow. It means that all sin is against love. It means that our relationship with God is not like that distant relationship of a king and a subject or a master and a slave or a boss and an employee, but our relationship with God is like the intimate relationship of husband and wife. It means that when we sin, we break God’s heart, just as the heart of one partner in marriage may be broken by the desertion of the other.

 

Jesus says in Matthew 6: “No one can serve two masters” (Matthew 6:24). We can use the world or be used by it. We can live in the world by loving God and serving our neighbor. Or we can be used by the world as it controls and dictates our life and in doing so, we become an enemy of God.

 

The triune God speaks of Himself as a jealous God. He says:

§  “You shall have no other gods before Me” … “for I the Lord your God am a jealous God” (Exodus 20:3, 5). 

§  “For you shall worship no other god, for the Lord, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God” (Exodus 34:14).

 

In the Old Testament times, God often lamented the way faithless Israel despised His love and chased after the Canaanite gods Baal and Asherah. Now, James’ readers were probably no longer tempted by Baal worship, but Satan still arranged that there would be plenty of new idols to take Baal’s place. So, just as the Old Testament prophets accused Israel of infidelity, James indicts the church of the “New Israel” as unfaithful to the Lord who redeemed her to be His bride.

 

In the Old Testament, God redeemed Israel through the exodus to be His wife, and although her promiscuity would lead to the exile as a kind of divorce, God would marry her anew. The Prophet Isaiah expresses this marriage relationship: “For the Lord has called you like a wife deserted and grieved in spirit, like a wife of youth when she is cast off, says your God. For a brief moment I deserted you, but with great compassion I will gather you” (Isaiah 54:6-7). Jeremiah the prophet also told of the Lord’s remembrance of their exodus nuptials: “I remember the devotion of your youth, your love as a bride, how you followed Me in the wilderness, in a land not sown” (Jeremiah 2:2). Every Old Testament prophet considered Israel’s rebellion against God to be adultery.

 

Then we come to the New Testament era as Christ, the Bridegroom, purified His Church to be His virgin bride as He suffered and died for His bride. Christ cleansed His bride, the Church, through the washing of water with the Word. And this wedding will take place upon His return.

 

Although the Church is betrothed to Christ, our status as a pure virgin is in danger through the seduction of the serpent known as Satan and the seduction of the fallen world. Satan tempts us to disregard God’s Word. And as evil as Satan is, James is more concerned with the fallen world, which also is under Satan’s control. 

Again: “You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).

 

Now, this friendship with the world doesn’t mean that Christians cannot be friends with unbelievers. What “friendship with the world” really means is conforming to the fallen world. It means having misplaced trust.

 

Martin Luther speaks of the human heart as an “idol factory” that is ready to trust the newest god on the block. That newest idol could be money and possessions, so you feel secure. It could be your children or grandchildren. It could be your cat or dog. It could be sports. It could be an athlete, politician, or celebrity figure. Now, all those things are not evil in themselves, but how often do those things become an idol – a false god? An idol becomes an idol when those things become more important than God Himself.

 

Another way of looking at “friendship with the world” is living your life for the Facebook likes and shared posts. Or you live your life following the winds and ways of this fallen world. “Friendship with the world” is a life devoted to wealth and selfish ambition that has no room for God. “Worldliness” has no love for your neighbor. “Worldliness” is wisdom that is “earthly, unspiritual, demonic” (James 3:15). 

 

The fallen world and its prince Satan are at war to wound and kill Christ’s bride, the Church. The fallen world wants mass casualties. The fallen world desires that the Church prostitute herself to the world through acts of false doctrine, including redefining marriage, redefining humanity, and saying all roads lead to heaven.

 

Satan and his fallen world are coming after us and our sinful nature often just eats it up. There is a war going on inside us. So, what are we to do? James gives us seven healthy, humble attitudes to replace the poisonous, sinful attitudes of selfishness and pride:

§  First, “submit yourselves therefore to God” by fearing, loving, and trusting in God above all things. We do that by acknowledging Him as first in your life and subordinating your will to His.

§  Second, “resist the devil.” Armed with God’s Word, you are stronger than Satan and he will flee from you.

§  Third, “draw near to God.” Through the miracle of God’s grace, a repentant sinner is neverturned away. 

§  Fourth, “cleanse your hands.” Faith in Christ gives Christians clean hands.

§  Fifth, “purify your hearts” by being single-mindedly devoted to God as our faith influences our day-to-day life.

§  Sixth, “be wretched and mourn and weep.” Repentance affects the whole person, so grieving, mourning and wailing are appropriate for people who have previously found joy in sinning.

§  Seventh, “humble yourselves before the Lord.” There can be no spiritual health and soundness in a person until he acknowledges sinful failures and asks God for mercy instead of demanding wages.

 

But no matter what, God refuses to lose us to this war going on within us. He refuses to lose you! Remember, our God is a jealous God. But He’s not like a jealous boyfriend or girlfriend, who may be someone to get away from. God is not abusive. He is not controlling. But He is jealous. But for Him, to be jealous is to say that He wants you all to Himself, and He wants no one else to have you – no false god or false idol, no false doctrine, no false hope, or even the devil himself to have you.

 

Jealousy, in most cases, means that the jealous person does harm to another, because keeping you is all for my benefit. But God’s jealousy is a protective jealousy. A guardian jealousy. An exclusive on loving you with a perfect love, with no exception to treating you kindly. And that’s for your benefit. This is why James, talking about God’s merciful and holy jealousy, puts it in terms of grace: “But He gives more grace … God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble” (James 4:6). We, humbled by our sins, are seen by our God who wants us only for Himself, and He, without hesitation, gives us more grace, so as to strengthen the relationship.

 

Our evil foes – Satan, the fallen world, and our own sinful nature – will certainly continue to accuse us before God, but God’s jealousy for us triumphs. Christ’s forgiveness is crucial. Each day our forgiving Lord calls us to go to those against whom we’ve sinned and to seek to be reconciled, and the devil’s chaos gives way to God’s order. Forgiveness is God’s wonderful way of neutralizing the devil’s accusatory protests against us and having him flee from you and me. 

 

Our jealous God is greater than any sin you have committed. Jesus is proof of that! His cross is His payment for your well-deserved punishment. His empty tomb is your guarantee of eternal life. Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

 keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

"Taming the Tongue" (James 3:1-12)

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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

When I was young, I would often hear: “Sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you.” But is that true? Is it really true that “words will never hurt you”? That is not what we heard in today’s Epistle from James 3! The Holy Spirit inspired St. James to write: “The tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (James 3:6).

 

Yes, “sticks and stones” indeed break bones, but words often cause more damage than any stick and any stone. Today, through the Holy Spirit, James calls on us to consider our own life experience and to acknowledge the fiery power of our words, so that our sin-infected tongues would be tamed to be gladly directed to a higher purpose: to glorify God and speak well of our neighbor.

 

As I said last week, through the Epistle of James, the Lord is imparting His wisdom to Christians in a world that is profoundly un-Christian. Today’s epistle is timeless as it is practical for Christians in every age.

 

You see, our tongues, though the least and weakest part of us, have big effects. Like the tail that wags the dog, the tongue drives our lives. So, James gives some examples of little things that have big effects: 

§  The bits in horses’ mouths. That little piece of steel in a horse’s mouth, when managed properly, can control a two-thousand-pound animal.

§  The rudder on a ship. That little shaped plank, mostly invisible beneath the waterline, enables a captain to control the course of an immense ship filled with cargo, crew, and passengers.

§  A spark in a forest. Under control, a spark can make a small fire to warm cold travelers and cook their food. Out of control, a spark can cause an inferno that can reduce thousands of acres of mighty trees to blackened, smoking stumps.

 

Likewise, our angry, hurtful words, once spoken, can take on a life of their own and continue to wreak havoc. A word cannot be unsaid. So even if you may have said your words in jest, your hearer may not have taken your words as innocent banter. So, what we say to each other could have negative consequences. Like a spark in a dry forest, a single syllable of spite or jest can quickly ignite a chain reaction of offense and anger, pain and guilt, rumor and slander, hostility, deception and shame.

 

Simple lies are everywhere. They mask our selfishness. They cover our sins. They corrode our relationships. We lie to other people and even lie to ourselves. 

 

But the evil tongue is not just limited to lies – as we often turn the truth, a self-serving version of the truth – into a weapon by clipping and snipping words out of context. If you are paying any attention to political ads these days, you will see a crash course in turning the truth into a weapon, an untamed fire. Then those who do such things attempt to explain away the damage they have caused by saying, “It’s just the truth!” as they take the truth out of context.

 

Bearing false witness, as Martin Luther says in his Large Catechism’s explanation of the Eighth Commandment – “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor” – is nothing else than a work of the tongue. Luther says, Christians are not supposed to speak evil about other people, by telling lies about our neighbor, betraying him, slandering him, or hurting his reputation, even if what Christians say is true. The only exceptions to that rule are those who are commanded in their God-given vocations as judges, as parents, as called pastors to judge sin and sinners, so that evil does not go unpunished.

 

But this Eighth Commandment also enjoins to it good works, which show our fruits of faith. To this, Luther says, “Let no one do any harm to his neighbor with the tongue, whether friend or foe. Do not speak evil of him, no matter whether it is true or false, unless it is done by commandment or for his reformation. Let everyone use his tongue and make it serve for the best of everyone else, to cover up his neighbor’s sins and infirmities, excuse them, conceal and garnish them with his own reputation. The chief reason for this should be the one that Christ declares in the Gospel, where He includes all commandments about our neighbor, ‘whatever you wish that others would do to you, do also to them.’”[1]

 

So, Christians show their fruits of faith by defending their neighbor, speaking well of him, and explaining everything in the kindest way.

 

The problem is that the right use of words is so often difficult and so rare that the abuse and perversion of our speech is so pervasive that Luther concludes that there is nothing around us or in us that can do greater good or greater harm in spiritual and in temporal matters than the tongue, even if it is the least and weakest part of a person.

 

In today’s world, this evil and poisonous work of the tongue can be done even if we don’t utter a word. Nowadays, we can destroy reputations through the strike of a key on your keyboard, on your smart phone, or on your tablet. In fact, today’s technology seems to give us a license to fling nasty words out into the world that we would be ashamed and embarrassed to say aloud to your neighbor’s face.

 

Every single day, we are invited to libel our neighbor by spreading lies and filth through social media posts or by simply clicking “like” or “share.” And once our digital words are out there, they don’t go away. Those blog posts, emails, text messages, Facebook posts, X-posts, and TikToks all serve as powerful amplifiers of our flaming poisonous tongues. Or is it rather our flaming poisonous hearts?

 

In reality, our tongues are not the real root of the problem. To be sure, our words are vicious, but they are only a vicious contagious symptom. You see, this disease that effects our tongues comes from the heart. For Jesus says in Mark 7, “For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person” (Mark 7:21-23).

 

From the same tongue, beginning from the heart, come blessing and cursing. From mine and your tongue come blessing and cursing.

 

But Jesus has restored our tongues and our hearts to His great good by enduring the fire of God’s wrath against our sins – including those sins of the tongue – in our place. Jesus undoes the chaotic damage arising from sin, death, and the power of the devil. He has undone the damage by fulfilling the Law perfectly, despite suffering the scorn and abuse of the tongues of evil men, while perfectly relying on the word and promise of our Heavenly Father. You see, Christ’s death upon the cross has effectively extinguished the fiery danger of God’s judgment into hell for all who use their tongues to confess His Name.

 

Jesus has undone the damage by preaching the healing, life-giving, divine Word that sets all things right where all has gone so terribly wrong. Such preaching – for our forgiveness, life, and salvation – continues today through those whom God has called to serve in the pastoral office.

 

Therefore, with the help of the Holy Spirit, we tame our tongues as we bite back lies, sarcasm, ridicule, gossip, evil suggestions, and praise for evil deeds as our true faith leads us to build up our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, to build up our neighbor, as we speak the truth, compliment, forgive, and comfort. True faith also leads us to know when our tongue must be silent.

 

Again, talk is never cheap. Words do wound. Words can build up as well as destroy a person’s confidence and his good reputation. Words can create and destroy relationships. But words can also serve as a means to rescue your neighbor from hell.

 

You see, God’s Word saves! A sermon, a Bible study or studying the catechism may all appear and sound boring and ineffectual. But it’s God’s power through His Word that saves people. The triune God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – uses His Word and Sacraments to create and sustain saving faith.

 

Through His Word, we learn how to exercise self-control, so that we don’t speak with forked tongues, praising God and also cursing one another, while driving our neighbors away from the Savior. With the Holy Spirit’s help, He changes our hearts and our minds, so that we train and use our tongues as instruments that accomplish much good, like bits in the mouths of horses and rudders in ships. 

 

He trains our tongues to bless those who persecute us, so that in spite of our sins we would live in continual repentance, absolution, and reconciliation toward one another. He trains our tongues to bless Him in the purity, truth, and righteousness that have been poured out upon us, to His eternal praise and glory!

 

May the Lord’s Means of Grace – His Word and Sacraments – continually change our hearts and tame our tongues as we walk as children of God in glorifying Him in speaking well of our neighbor! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, 
keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

 

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

---

[1] Luther, Martin, The Large Catechism, paragraph 285-286.

Sermon for Pentecost 16: "All or Nothing" (James 2:1-10, 14-18)

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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

“My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory” (James 2:1).

 

If partiality is your “pet sin” – a sin you rationalize in keeping – today’s Epistle may not be what you wanted to hear. If you’re not sure if partiality is your pet sin, this has been a recurring sin for God’s people from time immemorial. 

 

A few weeks ago, we heard about this sin. Seven hundred years before the incarnation of Christ, “The Lord said: ‘Because this people draw near with their mouth and honor Me with their lips, while their hearts are far from Me’” (Isaiah 29:13). This sin of partiality remained a problem during Christ’s first coming. For He also said, “Well did Isaiah prophecy of you hypocrites, as it is written, ‘This people honors Me with their lips, but their heart is far from Me; in vain do they worship Me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men” (Mark 7:6-8).

 

So, what exactly is this sin of partiality? Partiality is favoritism. Typically, it’s never a smart idea to play favorites. Because whenever we play favorites, we are creating competition. You see, playing favorites based on outward appearances is the way of the fallen world. Now, the character and will of God starkly excludes partiality. God is one who condemns such action among people. This lack of partiality of Jesus was known by the Pharisees, even when they were plotting against Him. For they said to Jesus: “Teacher, we know that you are true and teach the way of God truthfully, and you do not care about anyone’s opinion, for you are not swayed by appearances” (Matthew 22:16).

 

Even if the Pharisees were plotting against Jesus, their summation was true. For Christ never said, “It’s true that you are a sinner, but you are a little sinner compared to that other guy who is a murderer. That murderer is a really bad sinner. I don’t care about small sins.” You see, before God, all sins are damnable. So, if you are guilty of one part, you are guilty of it all. But at the same time, all are also justified freely by God’s grace.

 

The problem is that we are not like God. However, we are to grow up into Him by being made holy through His Word and Sacraments. So, how do we see this sin of partiality in our lives? Well, do you ever feel “split”? Do you ever find yourself trying to rationalize your personal views when they come in conflict with Biblical teachings? Do your Christian convictions only apply to a small part of your life? Sadly, for many Christians, Biblical convictions are rapidly shrinking.

 

What I am about to say may offend you, and if it does, repent and ask Jesus for forgiveness for your sin of partiality. And as it always goes, God’s Law afflicts the comfortable while also God’s forgiveness comforts the afflicted.

 

So, some examples of this sin of partiality are the following:

§  “I know Jesus taught forgiveness, but what if …”

§  “I know abortion is murder, but what about when…”

§  “I know marriage is a union of one man and one woman, but what about…”

§  “I know my Christian convictions should inform my vote, but what if…”

 

Partiality is when a Christian strips the Bible of the things they don’t like, and all that remains is a butchered book of what once was the Bible. Partiality is the Gospel, according to you. Partiality inevitably leads to a religion you’ve invented yourself. 

 

Jesus gave everything of Himself to us, so why do we struggle in remaining loyal to Him? Like God’s people of Isaiah’s time and in the time of Jesus’ ministry, too many Christians only honor God with their lips, but their hearts are far from Him! Our modern world tears us apart as we are taught to separate our lives into independent sectors: education is education, politics is politics, science is science, and on, and on, and on. Our secular society – this fallen world – claims so much as “political,” but most often, it’s not, it’s spiritual. Remember, we are caught in a cosmic battle that we cannot see between good and evil, between God and Satan.

 

We are coerced into becoming partial Christians. And Jesus does not want only a part of us. Jesus doesn’t want split personalities. He doesn’t want us to be a Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. He wants all of us! In Luke 14, Jesus speaks of this saying, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple. … So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be My disciple” (Luke 14:26-27, 33).

 

As poor, miserable sinners, we have become partial people. For good or bad, we care how people look, dress, and speak. We even tend to divide people by age and skin pigmentation. Inspired by the Holy Spirit, James teaches us that any partiality has no place in God’s kingdom. Included in this sin of partiality are racism, quotas, and DEI: “Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.” 

 

The fallen world convinces us that quotas and DEI are good, but they actually promote the division of people, and as Christians, we should have no part of this. Again, the Holy Spirit inspires James to say, “My brothers, show no partiality as you hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory” (James 2:1).

 

To this sin of partiality, James reminds us of the Second Table of God’s Law: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself” (James 2:8). And if we remember and live by the Ten Commandments, we are doing well. But if we revert into following the world, by showing partiality to our sinful nature, we are committing sin and are convicted by the Law as transgressors (James 2:9).

 

However, this sin of partiality doesn’t just stop here. You see, what is really going on with this sin, like all sins, is a faith issue. James writes, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith but does not have works? Can that faith save him?” (James 2:14). That is a good question. This brings us right back to partiality. Here, we have faith put at odds with works.

 

As I said last week, Satan and his demons certainly believe in Jesus. So, simply saying that you believe in Jesus will not save you. Simply having the knowledge of Jesus does not save. This is what James is speaking about. He is discussing a false understanding of faith. A “faith” that is just mere knowledge – or just a claim – that “faith” has no effect on the person who has it. Faith is no passing matter. I hope this is not your faith! You see, faith itself cannot be seen. Faith is only known by its presence through proper confession and natural works. 

 

So, if a person declares that he has “faith,” but his “works” do not belong to such a faith, that person has no such true faith. So, if a person says, “I am a devout Christian,” and even attends weekly church services, but lives as heathen the rest of the week, is that faith able to save him? Well, what does Jesus say? He says: “You will recognize them by their fruits. … A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits” (Matthew 7:16, 18-20).

So, the absence of good works that flow from faith in Christ show that this “faith” is not genuine. This person has a false faith. He has the same faith as that of a demon, who certainly believes in Jesus, but will not cling to Jesus and follow Him.

 

So, without the inescapable evidence – the good works that inevitably emerge and accompany a genuine faith that grasps the Gospel of Christ alone for forgiveness, life, and salvation – then what good is that kind of “faith”? Faith with no evidence is a false, and dead faith. So, never let anyone offer you the comforting lie that such a false and dead faith counts for anything. In fact, in the end, such a dead, good-works-absent “faith” will be of no benefit to you.

 

You see, such a dead “faith” is simply not compatible with our new identity in Christ, which was bestowed on you at the Baptismal font, where, by divine grace, you became a child of God, and a brother or sister of the Lord Jesus Christ. You see, a dead, inactive faith disavows the unity of Christ’s living body. Such a false and dead faith cannot stand up to the judgment of God, because once the Law is broken at one point, it is broken in all points.

 

So, how do we, as poor, miserable sinners, protect ourselves from the sin of partiality? How do we become a whole Christian? 

 

Well, we can only become whole through Christ who nourishes us with His Word. As He nourishes us with His holy Word and His blessed Sacraments, we become more like Him as He changes our hearts and our minds. For He is the Vine, and we are the branches and “whoever abides in [Christ] and [He] in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from [Christ we] can do nothing” (John 15:5).

 

It is only through Christ’s nourishment that our faith produces fruits of good works. Through Christ’s Means of Grace, your faith becomes living and active as we actually show our faith through our hearts, mouths, and hands and all in concert. As we grow in faith, we better follow Christ as our pattern of God’s grace and love and mercy to others. Just as Christ showed no partiality, we become like Him in showing no partiality. We look at every human being, even unbelievers, as fellow people who have been purchased by Jesus through His blood shed on the cross. Being forgiven, and with God’s help, we live our lives whole as we cling to Jesus and serve our neighbor in repentance and true faith. So, let us show no partiality as we hold the faith in our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory. Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  + SOLI DEO GLORIA +