+In Nomine Iesu+
Pentecost 20 St Luke 17:11-19 10 October 2010 Every Sunday it plays itself out. Every Sunday the story of the healing of ten lepers plays itself out in the Church. Not a healing of physical leprosy, perhaps but certainly the healing of the leprosy of the soul. The healing the removal of sin that disfigures the soul. <> The Church no matter where she is located always seems to occupy the edges. Galilee and Samaria were certainly on the edge far removed from the center of things in Jerusalem. For some, a mile is too far removed. For others, distance never comes to mind. The faithful will travel long distances to gather around God and His gifts. Others cant bring themselves to walk across the street. Amazing how big a deal distance can sometimes become. We look round ourselves and wonder. Where are all the others? Have not ten been healed? Where are the other nine? <> Yet, here we are, crying out. Our help is in the name of the Lord. All lepers always have cried out to God for mercy. It is the right thing to do. Its proper. God expects no less. Jesus, Himself, lives on the edges of human existence. He has no home nowhere to lay His head. He associates with tax collectors, and prostitutes, and Samaritans. His travels take Him where no self-respecting rabbi or teacher would ever consider going. You might wonder what the disciples thought of all this at the time. <> Yet, here Jesus is again on the outer edges of human life. He deals with folks who are even further removed from the main stream. He meets with lepers, of all people. Poor wretches. They were cut off from family, friends, work, society even worship. They were quite literally the walking dead. Any news of even the slightest, most remote possibility of hope always got their attention. They didnt deny or try to hide their condition their helplessness. If anything was going to change for them, then the help had to come from the outside. And so, they cried out. Jesus, Master, have mercy on us. <> Now, lets bring the story forward to today. We see our transgressions our sins all the time. Daily. As the psalmist declares, My sin is always before me. We know we see that we have sinned against others. And weve been sinned against, too. But that really isnt the half of it. The psalmist puts matters in perspective once again. Against You, You only, have I sinned, O Lord. Every sin is a denial of who we are. A denial of our creatureliness. Our sins deny our place is Gods design. Always we want things reversed. We want to be God. We arent satisfied being simply one of those whom God has created. <> Every sin is a sin against the first commandment. Our sins depict not only our condition, but also our attitudes. No one is going to tell me how to speak, or what to listen to, or what to do. I know whats best for me. Im my own boss. In our mind we always know best, and were very willing to let others know that even if they dont happen to ask. <> Like the lepers in our text, we didnt ask for our condition. Yet we have it all the same. Dont think of sins simply as individual acts, strung together during life like beads on a string. Rather, think of sin as a power. Sin is an all-embracing reality that infects leaches its way into every aspect of life. Creation itself rebels because of us. Our friends are affected by our sins. Indeed, the closest family relationships are not immune. Against this diabolic power we have no free will. Our power is limited to turning away. Turning away from God and away from each other in an all-consuming love for ourselves that draws us deeper and deeper into ourselves. <> Heres the point. Were on a collision course. The holiness of God and the power of our sin cannot peacefully co-exist. We are never on the winning side when Gods holiness and our sinfulness come into contact. Even the architecture of our churches gives evidence to this. The narthex that part of the church in the back, closest to the outside that narthex functions as a buffer zone, if you will. A buffer zone between the dominating world of sin and death on the outside, and Gods righteousness and holiness on the inside. There we make the transition from one reality to another. Whenever Gods holiness comes near to us, our own sinful condition becomes exposed. So what do we do? The only thing we can do. We cry out. Our help is in the name of the Lord. <> The confession that is part of our liturgy is there to give shape and form to our confession of sin and its effect week after week. If there were no ordered confession we would all become blathering, babbling idiots before the Lords holiness. Instead, by these words of confession we admit in an ordered way our profound sinfulness in the presence of the Lord. But even more important is the release from sin that comes in response to our confession. I forgive you all your sins in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. The judgment has been rendered. You are forgiven. Cleansed. God has said so. Now you no longer face the wrath of God. Rather, the grace of Father, Son and Holy Spirit wraps itself round you. Release. Forgiveness. Cleansing. All are yours. And all come from and through the mercy of God. <> Go and show yourselves to the priests, Jesus says to the lepers. And as they went they were all cleansed made whole. All ten. Leprosy isnt just a physical ailment. Its also a spiritual condition. The word cleansed is a liturgical term. It means pure, holy, undefiled, clean. No longer is there exile from family, or friends or worship. Once there was death. The death of sin. Now by the power of Christ there is life. Life is restored. Now there is access back into the true humanity for which we were created. <> Seeing what had happened but evenly more importantly, by whom the cleansing had happened only one returned to Jesus. Jesus knows that all ten were healed. They all benefited. The rain falls on the good as well as on the evil, remember? The sun rises and sets upon all. Gods goodness is given despite an individuals evil or ungrateful response. But may such ungratefulness never mark you! <> How easy it is to concentrate on the two or three things that dont go right. Rarely do we think about the millions of things that are right day after day. The result? Grousing, murmuring, grumbling about the few things that didnt go our way. For instance, we complain about those who arent here on Sunday morning. What about the nine? we say. Jesus will see to them. Maybe our prayers should be directed for them. And in the meantime we can rejoice in the one those who are here those who have come to give thanks to God for His mercy. <> One leper after crying out for mercy and having been cleansed returned to praise God and give thanks. Think of your actions this morning. You, too, have cried out to God. You did so with these words: Lord have mercy, Christ have mercy, Lord have mercy. And now, like the lone leper, you have sung a Hymn of Praise, giving thanks for your cleansing. The Gloria in Excelsis (its on pages 7, 8 and 9) that hymn that begins, Glory be to God on high: And on earth, peace, good will toward men, that hymn gives thanks to our heavenly Father for His mercy. <> You see, we sing in recognition of Gods acting for us. Jesus has come to us, where we live, on the edge of human existence. Our sin, our sickness, our ailments all are taken by Jesus into Himself. He touches our sinful, dead bodies and makes them whole complete. We are bathed in His death and resurrection. As a result we die to sin and will arise with Him in a glorious body. His word of forgiveness cleanses our conscience. We come to Jesus, and there find rest and peace. Christ has taken away the sin of the world. Are you in the world? Then your sin, too, has been taken away. And the Holy Spirit now continually calls, enlightens, sanctifies and keeps you in the Faith. <> Its no wonder what the responses are around the Word as it is spoken to us. We cry out, Thanks be to God. We dont always realize all the truth the first time we hear it or even all the time. But moment-by-moment the wonder of Gods love for, and mercy toward us breaks in upon our hearts and minds. It is for you that Jesus has come. You! And the person next to you! And the one two pews over! Disfigured by the leprosy of sin, Jesus has come to heal you. Through Him you have access to and are ushered into the presence of your Heavenly Father. There you join the heavenly family. There, with angels, and archangels, and all the company of heaven you are where God means for you to be. You are home. Thanks be to God! Amen +Soli Deo Gloria+ ___________________________________________________________________ 'CAT 41 Sermons & Devotions' consists of works that are, unless otherwise noted, the copyrighted property of the various authors; posting of such gives members of this list implied consent for redistribution _with_attribution_ unless otherwise specified by the author (as long as no charge is made for the work and it is not made part of a compilation), as well as for quoting or use in a congregational setting _with_or_without_attribution_. Note: This list's default reply is to the *poster*, NOT the list. Do *not* reply to the list with your comments, but to the poster. Subscribe? Send ANY note to: sermons...@cat41.org Unsubscribe? 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