Live By The Spirit
24 “No one can serve two masters, since either he will hate one and love the other, or he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.
25 “Therefore I tell you: Don’t worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; or about your body, what you will wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothing? 26 Consider the birds of the sky: They don’t sow or reap or gather into barns, yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth more than they? 27 Can any of you add one moment to his life span by worrying? 28 And why do you worry about clothes? Observe how the wildflowers of the field grow: They don’t labor or spin thread. 29 Yet I tell you that not even Solomon in all his splendor was adorned like one of these. 30 If that’s how God clothes the grass of the field, which is here today and thrown into the furnace tomorrow, won’t he do much more for you—you of little faith? 31 So don’t worry, saying, ‘What will we eat?’ or ‘What will we drink?’ or ‘What will we wear?’ 32 For the Gentiles eagerly seek all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33 But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be provided for you. 34 Therefore don’t worry about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own.
Matthew 6:24-34
Jesus tells us in our text that, “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”
No, you can’t. You cannot serve God and anything else…
No, not even you…not your needs, your wants, or your bodies…that demand so much…
Yet, that is what always gets in the way of serving God and nieghbor. Yes, our sinful flesh.
Saint Paul complains about his own flesh, himself, in his letter to the Romans. He says, and you can almost hear the strain and pain in his voice.
19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I keep on doing. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells within me. 21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God, in my inner being, 23 but I see in my members another law waging war against the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
When I say the body…when the Bible talks about our bodies in this way, it means the sinful flesh. Our physical bodies are not evil—creation is good…very good, says God Himself.
No, we don’t do what the pagan religions do—make the spiritual opposed, in conflict, or better somehow than the physical—as if all things material were evil. No. That is a false dichotomy, as they say. Don’t pit them against each other. God made our bodies to be holy, just as much as our minds and spirits. And sin corrupts and kills more than just our walking and talking flesh and blood. Sin is in body, mind and soul. We, wholly and completely are sinners and all of us, if not saved by Christ, will be thrown in to hell, as Jesus says.
Yes, even those who are destined for hell will have their bodies resurrected, so that all of them—body and soul will end up there.
So, in Biblical terms, this flesh that Paul is talking about means that which is still sinful in us, which includes our minds, hearts, souls and bodies.
You know what I mean. Our flesh says to sleep in—on Sunday or even on Monday, when we have to go to work. It is weak and tired—all from sinning. Our flesh tells us guys to watch those girls walking by. Our hearts are weak and thoughtless for our sisters whom we sin against. It is different for you ladies, but your sin in the end is the same.
Our flesh tells us to drink and eat too much. Our flesh tells us to horde our money and ignore those in need. Our minds cannot see or understand all things so they are troubled and untrusting, thinking we must then set things up our own way as God won’t give us all the answers.
It just tells us to please ourselves and only worry about little old me…all the time. So we do….
Ladies…do I hear that concern about what you are going to wear? Not a thing, even with a closet full—so you won’t go? Me and the boys, well, it is mostly, hey, what’s for dinner…right? Stereotypes? Maybe, but if the shoe fits…
…Yes, that shoe might fit—it does fit in the sense that we all sin in these ways…girls and boys…
…but we are not supposed to. So, stop! Stop chasing what the world—what unbelievers chase. Stop worrying. Just stop…
Ya, right, just like St. Paul was so good doing that, right? If St. Paul can’t, then how will I ever?
Same way as Paul did. Same way as we all do…as all Christians do.
How?
St. Paul tells us: “Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord!”
It is through Jesus, Himself, that we overcome. Faith in His name. We get His name, to walk in, by our baptisms. Yes, branded by Word and Water, with His name forever. In…yes, now you are in Him, and He is in you…and in Him (as through Him) you live and move and have your being.
It is not for you to live…according to the world or your sinful flesh…
because Jesus, “died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for him who for their sake died and was raised…”
…as you “have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer [you] who live, but Christ who lives in [you]. And the life [that you and] I now live in the flesh [we] live by faith in the Son of God, who loved [both you and] me and gave himself for [us].”
And this is really true. No really…really true. Don’t you know that your heavenly Father knows that you need all—all of that—all that we do need and even want?
Yes, so we are then just wasting our time doing all that—all that sinning. Even concern and worries—yes that is sin, because it is mistrust. Mistrust of the one who loves you more than you know or can imagine—yes, you are mistrusting then, someone who laid His life down to save you.
Instead, we are rather… to be about our Father’s business… seeking His kingdom. Serving Him and neighbor. Putting Him, and them, first in all that you are and do.
How is that done? By being with Him—and a real neighbor to them out there. He is wherever His kingdom is…which is even with us wherever we are—even when with those in the world. As we are a royal priesthood—a kingdom of priests, His own children. A kingdom is a place with a king and people in it. We just don’t see this fully yet.
But to find Him clearly and in a sure way—to find Him there for you, He is found in Word and Sacrament. Only will you find a savior there—only there…when you need to see Him most.
Word and Sacrament. That is the only place in this, His creation, that He will be found with mercy and grace and forgiveness…in THE way that we all need Him—need to see Him. That is where He is for us.
If He is found out there—in nature…in the world…or even in our flesh, guts, heads, hearts… if met there—if it is truly Him, and not something else…some immitation of Him, then it will be Him…but only the God of judgment. All the floods, earthquakes, wars, hurricanes, diseases, in our history, are a result of sin and His judgement of it.
Don’t look for Him there, then. We don’t want to be there when He is found in this way, UNLESS we are covered by Jesus first—yet He is not there, found there… doing the covering, or the forgiving. That is God when He meets out justice for uncovered sin… for unrepentant and unbelieving hearts that refuse Him where He is found in Grace and Mercy for them.
If we are “caught” there…in the middle of a disaster…believing and convered by Jesus…He knows—it is no accident, it is just our time. It is no real biggy then, as we know where we are going, and it really then is just a flesh wound…mended forever on the way up and out. Just time to go home. Time for supper.
BUT these things and places, where He reveals His hatred of sin, are reserved for those who want God only their way and according to how they think God should be for them. Those who do not want Him in the way He has come to us in Grace and Mercy, will only get Him as judge.
So don’t go there. We don’t need to. He is here. Don’t listen to those who say Jesus the saviour is elsewhere. HE IS NOT!
Rather, where He is…in the kingdom of Grace and Mercy…is found in Word and Sacrament. The very means of His grace, the forgiveness of sin—all your sin, is found here…and life and salvation, fellowship with God Himself, and with each other, the church…
…all found only in Word and Sacrament…and in these we are brought together to be with Him, our savior.
You want power over sin? Become Biblical. Come to His table as often as you can. Having the mind of Christ is absorbing as much of the Bible as you can in a lifetime. Having the body of Christ is eat and drinking Him as often as He is offering. Staying clean of sin is to remain under the fountain of life—daily remaining in your baptism—daily dying to sin and rising to a new life in Holiness.
Yes, by this you are seeking “first the kingdom of God and his righteousness…[and] all these things will be added unto you.”
You will eat and have clothes and all that is needed for this life. That is His promise. That promise is sealed and signed in blood. The blood of the one who came and paid for your life and all that is needed…to live here and now…until He says to come home—then it is to have life forever in Jesus name.
Amen.
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