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Soll Selections Pentecost 10
1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1 July 28, 2013
Dear Friends in Christ,
Back in the late 1800’s there was a French journalist and author, Jean-Baptist Karr, who
was know for his sarcastic wit. And as he would comment on things happening in French
society, things that were supposed to be new and cutting edge, he would often respond with
what is now a familiar saying, “The more things change, the more they stay the same.” And
even though this was said to insult and demean the new idea or the new way of doing this, it
is a saying with a great deal of validity and truthfulness. In much the same way that God
speaks through Solomon that, “There is nothing new under the sun,” we can understand
that no matter how things may change, the essence of things really never changes. It pretty
much remains the same.
Support for this can be seen in the news of this week. The city of Gary and Washington
D.C. were in the news because they are trying to deal with the problem of graffiti. And
though we may think this is a more modern problem archeologists found that Ancient
Rome also had problems with young people vandalizing public buildings with all kinds of
graffiti. Even things that were not present in the ancient world, like cars and airplanes,
may be different but they are really just a faster and more efficient way of doing what
people did before, namely getting from one place to another for work or for play or for a
better life.
And this whole idea of things being different but the same doesn’t apply just to the secular
world. Even in regard to our spiritual lives and the word of God, we can see that there is a
lot of truth to the proverb of Solomon that there is nothing new under the sun or the idea
that the more things change the more they stay the same. For right now those proverbs are
being fulfilled in our Synod. This week our Synod convention is meeting to decide on a new
Bible translation to be used in all of our publications and textbooks. And though you could
say that this is a modern problem to have to deal with different translations of the Bible in
languages other that what God wrote them, it is not. Hundreds of years before Christ was
born, the Jewish people were deciding on Greek and Aramaic translations of the Bible to
use instead of the original Hebrew. It is more evidence for the idea that no matter how
much things change, they really just stay the same.
But as we turn our thoughts to our text for this morning, the time when the Jewish people
were being converted to Christianity and the freedom from the law that comes from the
Gospel, you might be able to make a real case for a time when things really did change. For
the time immediately after the death and resurrection of Christ, the time of the New
Testament Church, things were really changing. The Old Testament ceremonial laws were
no longer in place. Christ had fulfilled them all and the Temple curtain was torn in two.
This meant that there was no longer any need for ceremonial washings or avoiding unclean
foods or restrictions on travel or work on the Sabbath. The difference between the life of an
Old Testament Jew and the life of a New Testament Christian might seem as dramatic as
the differences between our lifestyles and the lifestyles of the Amish or someone who lives
under a third world dictator.
Yet even with all those differences, all those changes that came about when Christ fulfilled
the law of God and won for all mankind freedom to be saved by the Gospel, it was really
just more of the same. It was really no different for the Old Testament Jews and the New
Testament Christians because both of them were saved by the same message, the message
of God’s love and God’s grace. For even though the Old Testament believers were
commanded by God to observe all kinds of rites and rituals and to obey all kinds of laws
and restrictions, none of their sacrifices or ceremonial washings or even circumcision could
ever move them even one step closer to heaven. Nothing they did was good enough to pay
for even one of their sins. None of their works ever wiped out even one of their
transgressions.
No, the Old Testament believers were saved the very same way that we are saved. They
were saved by trusting in God for their salvation. As they trusted God and carried out the
commands of God and the ceremonial and civil laws of God, they were merely giving God
thanks for the forgiveness that was to be fulfilled in Christ. They were giving glory to God
in every sacrifice and every meal and every day that they dressed as the law commanded.
They followed the example of the law and gave glory to God.
Since nothing really changes, we can see how the lives of those ancient believers are really
no different than ours. Though they lived under strict laws and commands and were
ordered by God to make regular sacrifices, we can see that what we are asked to do is
different, but really the same. Nothing has really changed. We are still asked to live as God
commands, whether in the shadow of the law or the light of the Gospel.
Our theme is one that says, “LIVE AS GOD COMMANDS.” First of all, God commands
all who love Him to I. DO ALL TO GLORY OF GOD, and secondly to II. DO ALL FOR
THE GOOD OF OTHERS.
Now as we focus in our text for this morning, the message that Paul is giving is one that has
some history and background. He is dealing with the believers in Corinth who are a
mixture of Old Testament Jews who have been converted to Christianity, and Gentiles who
were new to the faith. And since it seems that the congregation was fairly evenly split
between Jews and Greeks, they had an ongoing dispute as to how believers should live to
show their love and thanks to God.
For the Jewish Christians, it was purely a matter of history. For over a thousand years the
Jews had been steeped in strict adherence to the laws of God. It was not just a matter of
what they did, it was who they were. They were the people who did not eat certain
“unclean” foods. They were the people who went to the Temple in Jerusalem 3 times a
year. They were the people who fasted on Yom Kippur. They were the people who
circumcised their sons on the eighth day. They were the people who received and cared for
the word of God.
Clearly such an important resume carried a lot of weight and a lot of importance. Even
today the Jews demand their own land because they are the Chosen People. It is hard not to
be at least a little envious and star-struck over those whom God has set apart to be His very
own. Yet such a claim is also there for the Gentile believers. Those Greeks who had just
learned of Jesus had every right to the same salvation as the Jews. They had the right to it
because in the same way God called the Jews, He also called the Gentiles. He called them to
the salvation that was won by Christ alone, a salvation that is by Grace and not by works.
And as Paul made this clear he had to remind both Jews and Greeks that even though the
laws were gone and things had changed, they were still the same. Those who believed in the
free gift of God’s salvation were to give to God a life of thanks. And just as God had
commanded the Old Testament believers how to do this in every aspect of their lives, well,
the more things change the more they stay the same. God wanted the New Testament
believers to also make every aspect of their lives as a thank offering to God.
And just in case you missed where this is going, Paul is speaking to us as well as to the Jews
and Greeks that lived 2000 years ago. For even though things are different now than they
were then, it is still the same. God still wants us, “whether we eat or drink, whatever we do,
to do all to the glory of God.” And when God says all, He means all. He means that from
the moment we wake up until the time we fall asleep at night that these hours should be
spent in glory to Him. The breakfast that we eat should be eaten with thanks to God for
putting it before us. Our morning commute should not be done in dread and apathy but as
an opportunity to reflect on God’s gift of skills and abilities that let us take care of
ourselves and our families. And the jobs that take up most of our days are not jobs for us
or for our employer or for the consumers who buy the things we make, but we are in every
job working for God who placed us there and gave us the time and abilities to do that
work. Even the time that we have at the end of the day is time that we can use to give glory
to God who has given us so many blessings.
But of all the time that God has given to us to show our love and thanks, of all the talents
that we have to respond to God’s gift of salvation and of all the dollars that are ours to give
to Him who gave us His Son, they are best used right now during our worship services. For
the time that we spend gathering together in one heart and one voice is our best time to
thank God. For our worship services are not the times we come to get, but they are the
times we come to give. For every aspect of this worship service lets us give to God the glory
and praise that is due Him. It is the opportunity to thank Him for the gift of salvation that
comes to people like us, people who have sinned and deserve only wrath but are given the
gift of life eternal.
But even as we think of these various ways that we show our love to God, we want to
remember that God’s commands are not just that we do what pleases Him, but that we also
do what pleases our neighbor. And though it is right and fitting to go into all kinds of lists
and examples of how we as Christians can do things that help the people around us, what
the people God has placed in our lives really need is Salvation. Those sinners that we invite
into our homes or talk with over the back fence or work with on a daily basis need to hear
the words of salvation. They need to hear the message of eternal life that Christ won for us
on the cross. They need the Gospel every bit as much as we do.
That is why Paul says, “Do not cause anyone to stumble, whether Jews, Greeks or the
church of God—even as I try to please everybody in every way. For I am not seeking my
own good but the good of many, so that they may be saved.” For you see, what God wants
us to do is not just show our thanks to Him in all we do, but He wants us to tell others of
the reason for our hope and joy. It is a command of God to us in the New Testament that is
much the same as sacrifices and dietary restrictions were in the Old Testament. It is one of
those things that stays the same no matter how much everything else might change. It is the
message to spread the good news of God’s gift of salvation by grace through faith.
But if you are one of those people who is a little hesitant or even a little afraid of sharing
the Gospel, afraid of what people might say, hesitant of how they might react, telling others
about Christ is not that hard. It is merely the practice of letting them know that you have
what they really need. You have what will really make them happy. And even if you can’t
go into great detail on doctrinal issues or explain complex passages of Scripture, all of us
can say “Come and see.” All of us can invite people to church or Bible class. All of our
children have friends who would benefit from VBS and Sunday School. All of us know
someone who needs the assurance of the Salvation that comes only from God.
For what we really need to remember is that even though things will change in the world
around us and in our daily lives, some things will never change. It will never change that
we are saved by the death of Christ and nothing else. It will never change that God wants
us to show our thanks to Him in all we do. It will never change that God has chosen us to
be the ambassadors of the Gospel. And it will never change that God wants us to live as He
commands. Amen.
In His Service,
Pastor Joseph R. Schlawin
Our Shepherd Ev. Lutheran Church
1515 W. 93rd Ave
Crown Point, IN 46307
219-663-5853