Lent 3

 

In the Name of Christ the Crucified +

    The human heart is a self-justification factory. When it boils down to it, we excel at crafting every sort of wild and stupid rationale for doing whatever harebrained thing we want to do. I remember growing up where I'd do something stupid, and my mom would yell at me, “What were you thinking?” “Well, it seemed like a good idea at the time.” But there's the problem – it seemed good inside my head, but it wasn't. It was foolish. I could spin up all sorts of reasons why it was perfectly fine to do whatever – but it wasn't. We all know this pattern, this game. In the moment, when you want to do something, the reasons start coming forth – and no matter how outright dumb they would sound to anyone else, our hearts and minds are tempted to believe the lies they spin out. And while this is the story, the pattern of silly high school hi-jinks, it's actually the story of all sin, how things quite serious, quite damaging, quite deadly can ensnare us and drive us down dark and dangerous and even damning paths. This delusion, this denial, this scourge of self-justification is what Christ Jesus attacks in our Gospel lesson today.

    Now [Jesus] was casting out a demon that was mute. When the demon had gone out, the mute man spoke, and the people marveled. But some of them said, “He casts out demons by Beelzebul, the prince of demons.” while others, to test Him, kept seeking a sign from heaven. To set the stage for today's lesson, we see Jesus casting out a demon. It's easy-peasy, lemon squeezy for Jesus. We've gone over this three weeks in a row now – Satan and his minions cannot hold a candle to Jesus; Jesus wipes the floor with them. But what of our hearts, what of our minds? Well, here we see some examples of rather foolish rationalization. Some people don't want to praise Jesus at all, so when they see a mute man speak, they have to come up with some reason to dismiss Him. And their reason is dumb – it's laughably bad. Others, having just seen a miracle, say, “But we need a sign from heaven.” Both of these are just utterly dumb. But before we see Jesus pick their self-justification apart, ponder this for a moment. They believe it. Yes, these excuses are utterly foolish – anyone else looking on and hearing it knows these gripes are utterly stupid... but they believe it. More than just believe it – they are trapped in it.

    This is the thing with our sinful delusions, with the self-justifications that we spin up. We get trapped in them. We can't see how stupid or vile they are from the inside. We've all known people who have been stuck in some of the most sad and hideous states, where they cannot free their mind, their hearts, their actions from whatever. We talk in terms of addiction today, but it's beyond that – it's temptations that keep coming back, it's a grudge that won't go away, it's things that set you off, it's resentment or jealousy that keeps popping up. And this is something every single one of us knows and deals with, not just in our neighbor, but in ourselves. We all have our own buttons that can be pushed, and then it's Katie bar the door, we're off on a roller coaster ride of folly and anger and animosity, and when we're on that ride there's nothing we can do to get off. And what Satan and the world and your sinful flesh will do is keeping pushing you to get on that ride for more and more reasons, and make that twisted track longer and longer to where you are just buckled down tight on a never ending ride of immorality and impurity and covetousness, as Paul would put it.

    So, Jesus sees these people with their foolish backbiting against Him, and the thing is, Jesus knows their thoughts. Jesus knows that they are trapped in those thoughts, that they can't see how foolish they are. Only the law of God, showing forth the mirror of their sinful thoughts, can smack them out of it. Every kingdom divided against itself is laid waste, and a divided household falls. And if Satan is also divided against himself, how will his kingdom stand? Come on now, quit treating Satan like he is stupid. The old serpent is more crafty than you, stop downplaying him. Moreover – You say that I cast out demons by Beelzebul. And if I cast out demons by Beelzebul, by whom do your sons cast them out? Therefore they will be your judges. While you might be mad at Me – look around, see what others are doing in My name, listen to them. But if it is by the finger of God that I cast out demons, then the kingdom of God has come upon you. And as for a sign from heaven – God has come, His kingdom is here – His finger is touching the world, stirring the pot, making things happen clearly and obviously. The kingdom of God, His rule, His power is here, at work. Denials cannot change that fact.

    So, Jesus first cuts across their delusions. He spells out their folly to pull them out of their denial – and then Jesus explains what is really happening. When a strong man, fully armed, guards his own palace, his goods are safe; but when one stronger than [him] attacks him and overcomes him, he takes away his armor in which he trusted and divides his spoil. Yes, Satan is powerful – much stronger than you. Satan loves to keep you in bondage as his prize, his possession. But Jesus is far stronger than Satan, and Jesus comes tearing into Satan's Kingdom, and the finger of God flicks the old serpent down, and Jesus comes and rips apart Satan's power and fear and terror, and Jesus rescues you. And this is what Jesus is doing – all throughout the Gospels Jesus is destroying the power of Satan – even to Good Friday and Easter where Jesus rips apart the power of death itself. This is what Jesus is doing even today, in His Church, to you. Christ's Word comes and shows you your sin, but not only that – Jesus forgives you. Jesus gives you life. He baptizes you, declaring that you are His, not Satan's. He continually forgives your sins, teaches you wisdom, shows you truth, strengthens and preserves you in all good things by the power of His Word. This is the Kingdom of God at work, thanks be to God!

    And one might think that would be the end of the sermon – but it's not. Because this text goes on. And we all know why it goes on. Yes, you are forgiven. This is true. But you are still in this world, so this week, you're going to be tempted. This week, you're going to be nudged and pushed and even shoved back into self-justification and delusion. While Jesus triumphs over sin and Satan – sin and Satan still hound us, and there is a vast temptation, a vast problem that can arise. Our sinful heart, our foolish mind want to shift our confidence, our faith from being on Christ and His Victory onto something else. Listen to how Jesus describes this. When the unclean spirit has gone out of a person, it passes through waterless places seeking rest, and finding none it says, “I will return to my house from which I came.” So a person is clean, forgiven, rescued from sin – but sin is still around. Satan is still around. And Satan doesn't give up easily. Temptation, evil, wickedness returns. And what can happen? And when it comes, it finds the house swept and put in order. Then it goes and brings seven other spirits more evil than itself and they enter and dwell there. And the last state of the person is worse than the first. And when temptation comes, the guard is down. The house is clean but empty. Nothing else is there, nothing good is there – so let's move right back in. If we trust in ourselves, our own power, our own reason, our own strength, our own growth – we are just leaving the door wide open to Satan and to wickedness. My strength, my growth, my intelligence – me, me, me – do you hear the pride there? You know, pride goeth before the fall? That's what plays out – if we try to go it alone we are empty and vain and wide open to temptation – and if we are left to our own devices we will fall into wickedness like that.

    So what's the solution? As He said these things, a woman in the crowd raised her voice and said to Him, “Blessed is the womb that bore You, and the breasts at which You nursed!” This is humorous – Jesus is talking, He's giving this image, this story – and while He is talking, this gal pipes up and wants to start focusing on the Virgin Mary. No, no, no – we don't run to Mary to keep us safe – listen to Jesus! But He said, “Blessed rather are those who hear the Word of God and keep it!” Jesus doesn't want you empty. He would fill you. He would have you be His own temple, filled with Himself, filled with the Word, filled with not an unclean spirit but the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of life – so that when temptation comes calling, as it will, it doesn't find you empty and alone, but rather it runs into Immanuel – God with us. And this happens by the Word, the proclamation of the Gospel. This is the Holy Spirit calling you by the Gospel, by enlightening you with His gifts, sanctifying you and keeping you in the faith. The Spirit is at work in you in your Baptism, reminding you who you are in Christ, that you belong to Him. The Spirit is at work in your through the Word, bringing again to your mind not only Christ's instructions so that you recognize and avoid folly, but also the forgiveness that rescues you from whatever sin does pop up again. The Spirit prays for you and in you and with you, opening your lips in prayer or bringing forth prayers in you that are too deep for words. The Spirit brings you to the Altar, where Christ Jesus Himself comes to you and gives you Himself so that He and He alone would rule your heart. Yes, Jesus wins! Yes, the Kingdom of God has indeed come. And it comes to you here, in the Church, in the Service, in the proclamation of God's Word. And you always need this, you always need to hear the Word – otherwise you'll hear more and more and be focused more and more upon the deadly, foolish words of the world, the devil, and your own sinful flesh, and they will try to cut you off from Christ Jesus.

    Dr. A.L. Berry was the president of the LCMS back in the late 90s, and his little catch phrase was, “Get in the Word, Missouri” It's about the only political catch phrase I think I've ever liked. Because it is true, and it is good, and it hits the nail on the head. There is a battle that Jesus fights even this day – a fight against your own sinful flesh and its desires to be trapped in sin – and Jesus fights that battle by His Word. So Christ Jesus will come to you in His Word – His Word here in His Church, His Word spoken to you by friends and family that He sends into you life for your good. And in Christ's Word the finger of God comes upon you for forgiveness, life, and salvation. In the Name of Christ the Crucified +