St. Luke 17:1-10 Dearly beloved,
“Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come!” St. Luke leads us to reflect on the successes and failures of those before us who have faced temptations. Esau was tempted to sell his birth right to his brother, Jacob, a thing he regretted. What was the selling price? Red stew that Jacob had been cooking. The Israelites were tempted in the wilderness several times. The circumstances were such that they either hungered, thirsted, or despaired of Moses’ absence. In each case, the people of Israel despised God or feared and fell into temptation. They demanded to have what they could see and taste and turned their backs on God. King David was tempted by the beautiful woman, Bathsheba. David fell, causing more sins to come to pass. The New Testament gives us examples of temptation, as well. We have St. Peter, who in a fit of zeal, rebukes Jesus for speaking of the glory of His cross. We hear of St. Peter defending his faith in Jesus and refusing to believe that he would ever deny Jesus. Then there is the account of the traitor, Judas, who was tempted by a small bag of money. Judas betrayed Jesus and despaired of himself. So with wise words Jesus reminds the church, “temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come.” It is often thought that it would be nice in the church to talk only about the good things of the church. Talking about temptation and sin is ugly business, precisely because each of us has sin. Temptations have come to us and we have succumbed. This whole discussion leads each of us to think of our ugly sins. You have stared temptation right in the face and have knowingly given in to temptation. This reality is one of the major reasons people leave the church. They see their sin and cannot reconcile their presence in the church with their sins. It all happens rather quietly. There is another dimension to temptation that Christians must beware of and that is the temptation to lead others into sin. The Christian may know very well that he or she will not commit a specific sin, but he or she may flirt with it. Maybe it deals with material goods, maybe it is to catch the eye of someone of the opposite sex. These things may seem harmless to the Christian, just a little child’s play, one may think, but it may lead someone else into sin. Jesus is telling the church to beware of this. King David is a prime example of what can happen. Innocent bystanders become affected. David sees a beautiful woman bathing, and he covets her. He sins with his eyes. Then, David summons her to his palace and commits adultery. Not only has David sinned, but he has led Bathsheba, whom he adores, to sin. Finding that she is pregnant, David calls her husband, Uriah the Hittite, from the battlefield, hoping that he will spend the night with his wife, Bathsheba. Then, David thinks, Uriah will think the child is his. But when this plan fails, David concludes that he must send Uriah to the front of the battle where it is the fiercest to have him killed by the enemy, which does indeed come to pass. Now, Uriah has become the victim a couple times over. Sin begets sin. It is the way of the church to foster repentance, and so Jesus concludes his warning by saying “Pay attention to yourselves! If your brother sins, rebuke him, and if he repents, forgive him...” This is the way the church on earth breathes. Temptations will come, but what is needed is a repentant heart. A heart that is repentant is a heart that seeks salvation outside of himself. A sinner who repents knows just how difficult the struggle is. The person who refuses to look at his sins or acknowledge them, is lost and looks to himself for holiness. As I said, no one likes to look at one’s sins. They are messy and ugly. This is why the church has pastors and preachers. In the Old Testament, God’s people were given prophets. David’s prophet was Nathan. Nathan was a blessing to King David. The name “Nathan” means, “blessing, gift.” Nathan came to David and was able to get David to confess his sins and repent. David confesses his sin by saying, “I have sinned against the Lord.” Nathan then gives holy absolution: “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die.” David was restored. Though his sins were great, and what a mess he had created, David was forgiven by God in heaven. God used the prophet, Nathan, to bring holy absolution. The same was true with the apostles in the New Testament. They preached Christ, repentance and forgiveness, and those who heard and believed repented of their sins. The pattern that we find in Nathan and the apostles is set by Jesus Himself. Jesus came “not to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him”(St. John 3:17). This gift is held out for all of you, as well. Jesus came to pay for your sins. Jesus took on flesh and knows what it feels like to be tempted, but He, being God, withstood the temptations of Satan. So, Jesus is our victor. Jesus is our redeemer. We look to Jesus, the author and finisher of our faith, to look upon us with mercy and to pardon our sins--therefore we confess. It is true, though, that we look at all of this and we feel unworthy. Indeed, we should. We are in good company with those who felt the same way. In St. Luke’s gospel, the disciples follow up Jesus’ words by saying, “Lord, increase our faith.” Anyone who sincerely looks at the sin and grace struggle of the Christian will no doubt feel the weight of the struggle. The sincere, contemplative Christian will walk away saying, “I wish I were stronger. I wish I had more faith in the Lord and His promises to care for me in this world.” But our Lord is faithful still. Jesus is ever faithful. He knows what you go through. Satan had tempted Jesus in the desert, just as Satan had tempted, Israel, Esau, and King David, tempting with earthly enticements. But our Lord withstood the temptations. Jesus is the holy and righteous One. Jesus will cover you and protect you. Jesus has put the pastor in your midst to listen to your confession, to pronounce the “blessed” words of holy absolution, and to declare you righteous and holy before God. Jesus takes the weight of your sin and places it upon His shoulders on the cross. He, in turn, gives you His light baggage of holiness and righteousness. This is the gift that is eternal. The glory of the cross is truly glorious, and the church beholds it as it spends its life reflecting on the love and compassion of the eternal and enfleshed word who blesses eternally and gladly with the forgiveness of your sins and eternal life. Amen. -- Rev. Chad Kendall Trinity Lutheran Church Lowell, Indiana www.trinitylowell.org
