The 1^st Sunday After Epiphany

SERMON

TEXT: Deuteronomy 6:1-9

Now this is the commandment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the LORD your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you, you and your son and your grand-son, all the days of your life, and that your days may be prolonged. Therefore, here, O Israel, and be careful to observe it, that it may be well with you, and that you may multiply greatly as the LORD God of your fathers has promised you—"a land flowing with milk and honey." Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength. And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the door posts of your house and on your gates.

In Christ Jesus, the Lamb of God and the Lord of our lives, dear fellow redeemed:

Moses spoke the words of our text to the children of Israel just prior to their entrance into the Promised Land. Israel was about to embark on a new and historic phase of its national history. They were God’s Old Testament chosen people. They had been entrusted with the promise of the Savior on behalf of all people. They were separated unto God to live to His glory and to experi-ence His distinct blessing. Moses recognized that Israel’s future success and security was dependent upon their ongoing relationship with their Savior God. Should they sever that relation-ship through disobedience and unbelief, they would not fulfill their God-given purpose, nor would they experience God’s blessings. Consequently, Moses reminded them of the importance of that relationship. Unfortunately, the vast majority of Israel failed to heed Moses’ advice with the result that the vast majority of God’s Old Testament people lost their faith and suffered God’s divine judg-ment. They began to trust in themselves rather than entrusting themselves to God. They lost sight of the promise of the Savior and felt they could save themselves. The results were devastating!

My dear friends, as we embark on our journey not into a Promised Land, but into a new and promising century, I would like to remind us all how important our relationship with God is for our future success and security. We who believe in Jesus are God’s chosen New Testament people. We, even as God’s Old Testament believers, have a special calling from God, for we are to take His precious gospel of Christ and share it with everyone (cf. Mark 16:15). Yet just as many of God’s Old Testament people failed to entrust themselves to God and fulfill their calling, so it is possible for us today to lose our relationship with God with devastating effects. St. Peter writes concerning us and our calling, “You are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of the darkness into His marvelous light” (1 Peter 2:9). Let us keep this thought in mind as we consider the fact that OUR FUTURE SUCCESS AND SECURITY ARE TIED TO THE LORD OUR GOD!

I.

Consequently, let us fear the LORD our God! Moses writes, “Now this is the command-ment, and these are the statutes and judgments which the LORD your God has commanded to teach you, that you may observe them in the land which you are crossing over to possess, that you may fear the LORD your God, to keep all His statutes and His commandments which I command you.” The concept of “fear” in Scripture as is applies to the attitude of believers towards God is an interesting and vital one. Luther recognized its importance in Scripture and so included it in his explanation to the 1^st Commandment, "We should, fear, love, and trust in God above all things." It has two distinct meanings in reference to the child of God, both of which are important for us.

First of all, “fear” can have its simple meaning of "terror" or "dread." This particular “fear” applies to our sinful flesh, which at times moves us to ignore God and at other times tempts us to despise God to our own peril. This type of “fear” brings us face to face with God’s wrath and judgment and should scare us into avoiding sin at all costs. In so doing, it fulfills what we often call the second use of God’s law as a curb to our sinful flesh. The Psalmist speaks of this type of “fear” when he writes in Psalm 119:120, “My flesh trembles for fear of You, and I am afraid of Your judgments.” This is the type of “fear” about which Luther writes in the Conclusion to the Ten Commandments, "God threatens to punish all who do not obey these commandments. Therefore, we should fear His anger and not do anything against what He commands."

Secondly, “fear” has the meaning of "awe" or "respect." This type of “fear” applies to our new man—our faith, which, moved by the gospel, desires to give all glory to God and never wants to do anything contrary to God’s will. The Psalmist writes, “Let all the earth fear the LORD; let all the inhabitants of the world stand in awe of Him” (33:8). Solomon writes in the book of Proverbs, “The fear of the LORD is to hate evil” (8:13). This is the true and godly “fear” that we should all desire. It is the “fear” that only the Spirit can develop as a fruit of our faith.

Truly we need to “fear” the LORD our God, and yet it is just such an attitude that is sorely lacking within Christianity today. God wrote through Isaiah, “On this one will I look; on him who is poor and of a contrite spirit, and who trembles at My word” (66:2). As we enter the 21^st Century, most Christians it would appear have little regard to God’s Word, claiming it is filled with errors, or is outdated, or can be ignored whenever their personal desires would be denied. My dear friends, such attitudes will lead to destruction, for OUR FUTURE SUCCESS AND SECURITY ARE TIED TO THE LORD OUR GOD! Let us, therefore, fear the LORD our God!

II.

Secondly, let us love the LORD our God! Our text says, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one! You shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” Above all, our Savior God desires our love! Moses begins this section by reciting what became the Old Testament call to worship, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!” This call to worship explains why we should “love” our God, for it identifies our God’s true nature and establishes His unique position. He is the “LORD”—the one and only true God, the personal God of our salvation. St. Paul captured the meaning of the name “LORD” for each of us when he wrote to the Roman Christians, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him. For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life” (5:8-10).

My dear friends, let me happily remind you that we are not our own for we have been “bought at a price”—the price being the precious blood of God’s own dear Son. Consequently, St. Paul tells us we are to “glorify God” in our bodies and in our spirits, “which are God’s” (1 Corinthians 6:19-20). The greatest danger I see for any of us here today, it is that we forget those simple facts. God does not exist to bring us personal happiness as we define it in our ego-centric age! He did not create us and redeem us so that we can wander around on this earth fulfilling our own selfish desires. Our purpose is to glorify His name by fulfilling our calling as His children in this wicked and temporary world! We are to “love” Him with “all” our hearts, souls, and strength. That means that we seek to fulfill His will in our lives and refrain from dictating to Him our wills. Luther captured the meaning of such a loving attitude, when in His explanation to the 2^nd Article he wrote, "He did this (referring to our redemption) that I should be His very own, live under Him in His kingdom, and serve Him in eternal righteousness, innocence, and joy!" Notice how Luther ties our future success, security, and joy to the love and service of our Savior God.

Truly we need to “love” the LORD our God, for when we do our lives will be blessed. David writes in Psalm 37:4, “Delight yourself also in the LORD, and He shall give you the desires of your heart.” What do you desire deep within your soul? Delight yourself in the will and the ways of God and you may rest assured that God will give you the godly desires of your heart! My dear friends, without a doubt OUR FUTURE SUCCESS AND SECURITY IS TIED TO THE LORD OUR GOD! Let us, therefore, love the LORD our God!

III.

Finally, let us teach our children the Word of the LORD our God! The purpose God had in mind for His Old Testament people extended well beyond the generation of individuals Moses addressed. In fact, that purpose was not fulfilled until Jesus arrived in Bethlehem’s manger and died on Calvary’s cross 1,400 years later. Even so the purpose God has in mind for us, His New Testament people, has extended beyond the individuals Jesus addressed when He told His first disciples to “make disciples of all nations, baptizing them…(and) teaching them” (Matthew 28:19-20). We have now entered the 21^st Century, and our purpose as defined by our Savior is just as important now as it was in the 1^st Century. Until the end of time we are to share the gospel. To ensure that purpose we must teach our children God’s Word. Moses emphasizes that in two different places in our text. He, first of all, commanded the Israelites, their sons, and their grandsons to “keep all His statutes and His commandments” that their “days may be prolonged” and that “it may be well” with them. He then went on to say, secondly, “You shall teach them (God’s Words) diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

Clearly, Christian education is a priority issue in the eyes of our God. If our future success and security and that of our children are to be assured, it is imperative that we bring them up in God’s Word. It would be easy at this point simply to suggest that because we at Immanuel have taken the time and gone to the expense of operating a Christian school for the entire history of our congregation, that we have fulfilled this command of God. However, to do so would mean we have failed to see God’s point. First of all, I would urge all of us parents and grandparents to note that God places the responsibility for the Christian education of our children in our hands. God could have placed that responsibility in the hands of the priests and Levites—the trained professionals of the day, but He did not. The responsibility for Christian education of our children is not laid on the staff of our Christian Day School or Sunday School. They may and do help us, but the responsibility remains ours. Secondly, the primary place for Christian education is clearly the home. It is not the church, nor is it the school, but the home!

It is in these two areas that I fear many of us may be failing. Pastor Eichstadt teaches our children God’s powerful truths in confirmation. Our teachers do the same, but are we parents and grandparents by our daily words and examples affirming or denying these truths. The future suc-cess and security of God’s people of any age lies in the dedicated instruction of future generations in God’s Word. Such instruction takes time and commitment. Let us repent of past failures! Let us recommit ourselves by God’s grace to the daily instruction of our families in God’s Word, thus making our relationship with Him a living reality in our lives. My dear friends, let us not forget that OUR FUTURE SUCCESS AND SECURITY ARE TIED TO THE LORD OUR GOD! Amen.

—Pastor Paul D. Nolting