First Lutheran Church of Little Rock

• Sermon for 08.22.21
• Text: Mark 7:1-13

• Theme: “Be holy”
• Sermon for 08.22.21 (Pentecost 13)
Text: Mark 7:1-13
Theme: Be holy

• In the Name of the Father…Amen.
• The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.
• Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:
• Lord, cleanse us each day from our sins of thought, word, and deed.
• We thank You that Jesus was made a fragrant, sacrificial offering for us.
• Amen.
• Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord and
Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
• Introduction
• Think of one of the first traditions you can remember that you and your
family took part in.
• One of the first traditions my family and I enjoyed was when Mom made her
homemade Christmas cookies.
• There were at a half dozen kinds she would make:
• Ice Box (her mom’s recipe)
• Honey with almond (her mother in-law’s recipe)
• Butter (with sprinkles)
• M and M (my personal favorite)
• Chocolate chip (my second favorite)
• Sugar with a Hershey kiss in the middle.

• When Mom was diagnosed with cervical cancer in 2004 and died a couple of
months later, there was now a “new normal”: Christmas would never be the
same for Dad and the rest of our family.
• What happened to my family was the loss of what we considered “tradition.”
• And there was no way we could go back to the way things were.
• Mom was gone!
• The way in which she made those treats was gone with her!

• The Pharisees and scribes had no problem living in the past with their
traditions.
• In fact, they wanted to stay there!
• Then here comes this Jesus with a message, a message of holiness.

• The reason for the message verses 1-5
• Jesus and the disciples were not holding to “tradition”
• A “tradition” that included the following:
• Washing one’s hands.
• Washing of cups and pots.
• Washing of copper vessels and dining couches.
• Now is it wrong to want to be clean, whether it is you or the things you
are using?
• No, of course not!
• This “cleaning” was not a matter of hygiene for the Pharisees, but it was
a matter of tradition.

• The Pharisees and scribes expected and in fact demanded that Jesus and
the disciples follow their ritual traditions.
• Why?
• Because of tradition!
• Because of their desire to keep tradition.
• In order to be seen as perfect on the outside and receive the praise of
men.
• Jesus in turn brings them a stern rebuke.
• II. The rebuke in the message verses 6-13
• The prophecy verses 6-7
• What the Pharisees say with their mouths does not match what is in their
hearts.
• Jesus quotes Isaiah 29:13 for all to hear:
The Lord says, “These people worship me with their mouths and honor me with
their lips. But their hearts are far from me, and their worship of me is
based on rules made by humans.
• Jesus calls this out for what it is:
• Hypocrisy!
• Wearing a mask (not showing one’s true identity)
• Giving lip service
• Hearts filled with disobedience

B. The parental example verses 8-13
• The Pharisees twist God’s Law to suit their own desires.
• Those in power do have certain privileges!
• Rules for thee but not for me.
• Practicing what you preach is not necessary.
• Human tradition is much more important than what God says in His Word.
• Jesus gives a perfect picture of the hypocrisy of the Pharisees:
• Giving a special offering to God (corban: a consecrated present) in order
to make one look good before men.
• Giving this gift to God was more important than helping one’s parents,
whether they were elderly or not.
• Break the 4th Commandment or look good before men? Choices!

• Their piety is no piety at all!
• It is an attempt at serving self and no more than a sham.
• Guess what? This “piety” does not please God!
C. What are people to do instead?
• Trust Christ!
• We are declared holy before God when we trust in Christ for salvation.
• Love God, love one another without counting the cost!
• We love and are holy because God is holy and He is love.
• Confess who God is and what He has done through your words and actions!
• Holy faith ought to lead to holy living.
• III. Points of application
• Do not worship the Lord for the wrong reasons:
• In order to enhance your reputation before men at the expense of your
character before God.
• Demanding to follow certain traditions and that others do the same but
your heart is far from the Lord.
• Emphasizing that we are “good people” since we follow these traditions
and look down on others who do not follow them.
• Traditions are not as important as God’s Word!
• Shame on us for saying that traditions must be followed before we listen
to God and His Word!
• Never use God as an excuse to neglect our responsibilities.
• Helping others in need, whether church members or not, inside and/or
outside the church honors the Lord.

• Conclusion
• Jesus criticizes the Pharisees for being overly concerned with man-made
observances while failing to fulfill God’s Commandments.
• Such hypocrisy still abounds, as most people worry more about human
opinions than what God thinks.
• Given our own failures in this regard, it is a good thing that the Lord
not only commands in His Word, but also graciously forgives and promises
goodness.
• Jesus is dealing with questions of Law when He criticizes placing
man-made traditions above God’s Commandments.
• God’s Law and Gospel dare never be subordinated to human teachings and
rules.
• Jesus came to fulfill every aspect of the Law, that He might be our
perfect Savior. Amen.
• Let us pray:
• Lord Jesus Christ, keep us faithful to Your Word, which is a lamp to our
feet and a light to our path (Ps 119: 105). Amen.

• 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of
God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

• The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

• In the Name of the Father…Amen.

Sermon for 081521

“The Word and Wisdom of God”

Pentecost 12 (Proper 15), August 15, 2021
*Text:* John 6:51–69
*Theme: *The Word and Wisdom of God

1. *In the Name of the Father…Amen.*

*B. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.*

*C. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:*

Open our eyes, Lord,

we want to see Jesus,

to reach out and touch him,

and say that we love him.

Open our ears, Lord,

and help us to listen.

Open our eyes, Lord,

we want to see Jesus. Amen.

*D. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. *

*Introduction*

1. *Where can true wisdom and the way of life be found?*
1. Only by faith in Christ Jesus our Lord and Savior.
2. What we have here in John 6 is an invitation from Jesus through
His Church:
1. To repent and believe in what Jesus says.
2. To come and partake of the Sacrament of the Altar, the very
body and blood of Jesus our Lord.

* I. No one is offended by wisdom and life in the abstract.*

A. *Everyone signs on with wisdom in Proverbs 9 as a better idea than
folly:*

• *Wisdom has built her house. She has carved out her seven pillars.
(3) She has sent out her servant girls. She calls from the highest
places in the city, (6) Stop being gullible and live. Start traveling
the road to understanding (verses 1, 3, 6) *

B. Who wouldn’t be for that! Just fill in the blanks as to what you
think “wisdom” entails:

• good judge of human character,

• political savvy,

• clever in the world of business.

• Whatever. It’s a good concept.

C. Most people will even buy an abstract “fear of the Lord” (cf
Proverbs 9:10) if it leads to abstract wisdom.

A. Our cultural religion generally still likes to say, “We’re a God-fearing
people.”

*B. Everyone wants life in general.*

1. The crowds in John 6 certainly wanted to live, which is why they were
glad to have all the free barley loaves Jesus would give them.

2. Many a celebrant will respond to “Happy birthday!” with:

1. “Well, it’s better than the alternative.”
2. We all want to live.

*II. But when wisdom and life are concrete—that is a person!—then people
take offense.*

A. *“Wisdom” in Proverbs 9—and elsewhere in the Book of Proverbs—has
been seen by many as a reference to the eternal Son of God.*

1. After all, he alone has “knowledge of the Holy One” (Proverbs 9:10).

1. He’s the one who teaches the “fear of the Lord.”
1. This fear is not to be in terror, but to honor God’s divine
authority.
2. The Son is the author and giver of life (Jn 1:4), who gives his
Word of Spirit and life (6:63).
3. The Son lives in, with, and from the Father eternally (v 57; also
John 1:1, 2, 14), in love for his Father and for the whole
creation (verse
51).
4. But now you’ll get plenty of argument about wis­dom; lots of folks
will claim to be wise with­out crediting God or his eternal Son.

*B. And now get down to real flesh and blood—Jesus as the life!*

1. “I am the living bread that came down from heaven,” Jesus says. “If
anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will
give for the life of the world is my flesh” (verse 51).

2. “This a hard saying!” the crowd responds, and many of them take
offense! Many “turned back and no longer walked with” Jesus (verses 60, 66).

3. *Illustration:* Lot and his wife fleeing Sodom and Gomorrah. She
“turned back” in apostasy and died, turned into a pillar of salt (Genesis
19:23–29).

4. That is what happens if God’s Word is rejected and refused; if other
words and the world’s wisdom are heeded (Ephesians 5:6; Psalm 34:16).

a. Do not harden your heart in this way!

b. Do not grumble against God’s Word!

1. Hold it sacred, gladly hear and learn it (Small Catechism, Third
Commandment)!

5. If that’s offensive, how about this for wisdom and life: the cross (1
Corinthians 1:18)!

a. The crowds knew that for Jesus to give his flesh to eat, he would
have to die—and a bloody death at that. Gross! Unacceptable!

b. The cross is often seen as bad PR today. Not just because it’s an
ugly downer, but because it shows we’re in need of dramatic saving! As in,
*really* sinful! That’s unacceptable!

*III. Yet you know this wisdom and the life, Christ Jesus.*

A. Peter got this one right: “You have the words of eternal life” (Jn
6:68). Jesus is God’s wise plan for our life, *the* life of the whole world.

1. He lives in, with, and from the living Father (v 57).

2. He has come down from heaven to you, to give his flesh for you, to
shed his blood for you.

a. The cross *is* a scandal, but it is not the way of
death as it often seems and feels (Ps 34:19).

b. The cross seems like folly, but it is the way of *the*
life and the true wisdom of God.

3. Jesus died to give his flesh and blood *to you* as meat and drink
indeed, that you may live and abide in and with him forever (Jn 6:55–57).

4. *Illustration:* “Christ alone our souls will feed; He is our meat and
drink indeed; Faith lives upon no other! Alleluia!” (*LSB* 458:7).

*B. You, too, have faith to know the life in Christ, the “many days,”
that you so much desire (Ps 34:12).*

1. By his Word that he preaches to you (Prov 9:7–10), which is Spirit,
truth, and life (Jn 6:63).

2. By your Baptism into his cross and resurrection.

3. By his Supper, feeding you on his flesh and blood so you abide in him
and he in you (v 56).

*C. Here, too, in Christ Jesus, you have the wisdom that you also
desire.*

1. He has built his house, the Holy Christian Church on earth (Prov
9:1a).

2. He has hewn out his seven pillars, the manifold gifts of the Holy
Spirit (Prov 9:1b; 1 Cor 12:4–10).

3. He has prepared his food for you by the slaughter of himself (Prov
9:2a).

4. He has mixed his wine with the blood and water from his riven side
(Prov 9:2b, 5; Jn 19:34; see 6:54–58).

5. He has prepared his table for you (Prov 9:2c).

*IV. Continue to walk, therefore, in the wisdom and life of Christ
Jesus.*

*A. Be on guard against temptations and not deceived by empty words that
might cause you, like so many in the crowd, to turn away and no longer walk
with Jesus (Prov 9:6–8; Eph 5:6).*

1. Be on guard because it is possible for a disciple of Christ to
stumble and fall.

2. Be on guard of turning away from him and leaving, to follow him no
longer even to the point of death.

*B. Rather, continue to walk in the wisdom of Christ, which is the way
of life and light and love (Prov 9:6; Eph 5:8).*

1. Live and walk in faith toward God.

2. Live in fervent love for your neighbor, especially your brothers and
sisters in Christ.

3. This is true wisdom, misunderstood by the simple (Prov 9:4).

*C. Walking in Christ’s wisdom and life sacrifices for and submits to
your neighbor (Ephesians 5:21).*

1. Speak words that are good and right and true, making the best use of
the time (Eph 5:9, 16).

2. “Addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Eph
5:19), letting the melody of the Spirit ring forth in your heart in a song
of peace in Christ to your neighbor.

3. This is how you live as a Christian. It is difficult because it is
the way of the cross in which you walk as one who is wise (Eph 5:15).

*D. Walking in the wisdom and life of Christ means calling out from the
highest place in town as Wisdom once called you, by his Father, inviting
you into his house and to his table (Prov 9:3; Jn 6:65).*

1. “Come, eat my flesh, which is true food.”

2. “Drink my blood, which is true drink” (cf v 55).

*Conclusion*

1. *You do not wish to go away, do you? *Here is eternal life in the
Word made flesh. Forsake your folly. Be not unwise, but wise. Do not take
offense at this, but continue to walk in the way of understanding, in the
way of true wisdom and real life in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Eat, drink, and
live by the wisdom of God in Christ. In the name of the Father and of the
Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

B. Behold, O sleeper, awake, arise, for the light of Christ shines upon
you. Here, upon the eastern shore of his Church, shines forth the light of
his resurrection. Do you see it? Leave your simple ways and live. Lift up
your hearts and heads and hands, for he who is the light and the life, who
bestows the Spirit from the Father, brings the glistening golden kernel of
his body risen from the dead. This is the bread that came down from heaven.
Here is his peace. The word of his life. “Whoever feeds on this bread will
live forever” (Jn 6:58).

C. Let us pray:

*696 O God, My Faithful God*

1 O God, my faithful God,
True fountain ever flowing,
Without whom nothing is,
All perfect gifts bestowing:
Give me a healthy frame,
And may I have within
A conscience free from blame,
A soul unstained by sin.

3 Keep me from saying words
That later need recalling;
Guard me lest idle speech
May from my lips be falling;
But when within my place
I must and ought to speak,
Then to my words give grace
Lest I offend the weak.

*D. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of
God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.*

*E. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds in Christ Jesus. Amen. *

* F. In the Name of the Father…Amen.*

Pentecost 11 (Proper 14),

August 8, 2021

Text: John 6:35–51

Theme: Take Jesus at His Word

Other Lessons: Psalm 34:1–8; 1 Kings 19:1–8; Ephesians 4:17–5:2

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.

1. The Gospel lesson serves as our sermon text for this morning.

1. Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, let us pray:

We bless you, O God, as You give seed and harvest. You are the Provider
of our daily bread. And we bless each other that the beauty of Your world
and Your Word that created it might be expressed though our lives and be a
blessing to others now and always. Amen.

1. Grace, mercy, and peace be yours from God the Father through our Lord
and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

Introduction

1. Jesus Christ is the “Door” not the door knob.
1. Jesus Christ is the “Bread of Life” not the bread basket.
2. Jesus Christ is the “Light of the world” not the light switch.
3. Jesus Christ is the “Way” not the signpost.
4. Jesus Christ is the “Truth” not just the messenger.
5. Jesus Christ is the “Good Shepherd” not the hireling.
6. Jesus Christ is the “Resurrection and the Life” not the
7. undertaker…
8. When Jesus Gives Us the Bread of Life, He Gives Us Himself.

1. What is the common theme in all those sentences?
1. We are to take Jesus at His Word.

1. The life Jesus’ bread gives is so much better than just more life.

1. “Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me
shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst’ ” (verse
35).
1. Jesus, and Jesus alone, is the source of true and genuine life:
1. “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone
eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread
that I will give
for the life of the world is my flesh” (verse 51).
1. This is “cross” talk.
1. Jesus gave nothing less than his life, on a cross, for
the life of the world.
2. And this is “faith” talk.
1. To “eat the bread of life” is an act of faith.
2. It’s believing in Jesus.
1. “This is the will of my Father,” says Jesus, “that everyone
who looks on the Son and believes in him should have
eternal life, and I
will raise him up on the last day” (verse 40).
3. When Jesus was about to raise Lazarus from the dead, he told
his sisters, Martha and Mary:
1. “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in
me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who
lives and believes
in me shall never die” (John 11:25–26).

1. I think most of us would agree that homemade bread is so much better
than store-bought bread
1. Life with “the bread of life” is so much better than life
without Jesus.
2. It’s not just a matter of quantity.
3. It’s not just that it’s eternal.
4. It’s also a matter of quality.
5. It’s not just more of the “same old, same old” that we may be
experiencing or going through now.
6. It’s not just more of what’s corrupted by sin.
7. It’s not just more of what’s broken and heartbreaking.
8. It’s not just more death and what’s threatened by death.
9. This is something new.
10. It’s different.
11. Jesus has put himself into it.
12. He loves us!
13. God His heavenly Father loves us!
14. God forgives us!
15. God’s got us!

1. Life with Jesus is far more than life that is here today and gone
tomorrow.
1. Life with Jesus is far more than what we can touch and taste.
2. Far more than what we have.
3. Far more than what makes us feel good or bad.
4. Far more than the working out of our hopes and dreams—or not.
5. The people in our text to whom Jesus was speaking still had the
taste of the barley loaves and fish in their mouths, the
barley loaves and
fish with which Jesus had miraculously fed them.
6. They were remembering the manna with which God fed their
ancestors in the wilderness.
7. What they were not remembering was that their ancestors ate the
manna and died.
8. Life is far more than bread and butter.
9. Life is more than our experiences in this world.

1. God does provide for our physical and material needs.
1. Jesus taught us to pray,
1. “Give us this day our daily bread.”
2. And Martin Luther reminds us in his explanation of the Lord’s
Prayer that “daily bread” is everything we need for this life.
3. But Jesus came to give us so much more.
4. He came as the source of eternal life, that we have life with
God that is forgiven and forever.
5. Jesus fed the crowd with bread as God fed his people Israel in
the wilderness with manna.
6. Jesus did this as a sign, to make a point; the same point God
made for his Old Testament people in the wilderness:
1. “He humbled you and let you hunger and fed you with manna,
which you did not know, nor did your fathers know, that he
might make you
know that man does not live by bread alone, but man lives by
every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord” (Deuteronomy
8:3).

1. The life Jesus as the bread of life gives is life in Jesus himself,
closeness to and intimacy with God.

1. Jesus is that Word.
1. He is:
1. “the living bread that came down from heaven” (John 6:51).
2. Today’s Psalm invites us to:
1. “taste and see that the Lord is good!” (Psalm 34:8).
3. In Jesus, we are able to know and experience God.
4. Fullness of life.
5. Closeness to and intimacy with God that is otherwise
impossible.
6. Our brokenness, sin, guilt, and shame corrupt our relationship
with God.
7. Death breaks it forever.
8. Jesus went to a cross for us.
9. He suffered and died for us.
10. He rose from the dead.
11. He lives.
12. He forgives.
13. He restores our relationship with God.
14. Now and forever.

1. “This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of
all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day” (verse 39).
1. “That I should lose nothing!”
2. In speaking of himself as the Good Shepherd, Jesus said:
1. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow
me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish,
and no one will
snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27–28).
3. We can’t be any more secure than that.
4. And yet:
1. “the Jews grumbled about” Jesus (John 6:41).
1. Their “grumbling” recalls the constant, stiff-necked, faithless
“grumbling” of the people of Israel against God in the wilderness.
2. And it recalls the attitude of Jesus’ hometown people in the
synagogue at Nazareth when they rejected him.
3. Do we grumble?
5. Grumbling is essentially refusing to believe in Jesus:
1. wanting something different than what he gives or, worse yet
, wanting someone different than what he is—and, thereby
losing out on the
life he does give.

1. Taste and see that the Lord is good.
1. Jesus is the bread of life.
2. He feeds us in the Word.
3. When we are forgiven in His Words of Absolution, Jesus takes
away all that stands against us, all that stands between us
and God, all
that separates us from God.
4. Jesus feeds us in the Sacrament.
5. When we gather around his Table, we receive nothing less than
himself.
6. In the bread of his Supper, we receive nothing less than his
body broken for us.
7. In the wine, we receive nothing less than his blood shed for
us, for the forgiveness of sins.

1. Paul reminds us of this life in his Letter to the Ephesians: when he
says:
1. “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with
which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses,
made us alive together
with Christ . . . and raised us up with him” (Ephesians 2:4–6,
emphasis added).

1. Recalling our Baptism, he goes on to say:
1. “Put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of
life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and . . . be
renewed in the
spirit of your minds, and . . . put on the new self, created after
the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness. . . . Be
imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as
Christ loved us
and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to
God” (Ephesians 4:22–24; 5:1–2, emphasis added).

Conclusion

1. Unlike the perishable manna God gave to Israel through Moses, Jesus
comes down from heaven as the true bread to give life to all who
believe in
Him.
1. Contrary to popular notions, no one “chooses” to believe in
Christ; the initiative belongs entirely to God through His
Word (verse 44;
cf 14: 6).
2. Those united by faith to Christ will be raised up on the Last
Day to enjoy eternal communion with the Father.

1. “A fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
1. Not unlike fragrant, homemade bread, prepared and baked in
love, served and shared in love, with a lot of the baker
herself put into
it.
2. Jesus is the “bread of life.”
3. He feeds us, nourishes and sustains us in life eternal . . . by
giving himself for life that is in himself. Amen.

1. Let us pray:
– O Lord God, heavenly Father, draw us ever closer to You through
Your Word and Sacraments. Amen.

1. 2 Corinthians 13:14 The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love
of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.

1. The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

1. In the Name of the Father…Amen.