Lent Midweek 0509– “God’s Truth vs. Satan’s Lies.”  Luke 22:24-30

 

Grace to you and peace from God, our Father, and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.  The text for our sermon meditation is taken from the Gospel account of St. Luke, the 22^nd Chapter:

 

      “Also a dispute arose among them as to which of them was considered to be greatest.  Jesus said to them, "The kings of the Gentiles lord it over them; and those who exercise authority over them call themselves Benefactors.  But you are not to be like that. Instead, the greatest among you should be like the youngest, and the one who rules like the one who serves.  For who is greater, the one who is at the table or the one who serves? Is it not the one who is at the table? But I am among you as one who serves.  You are those who have stood by me in my trials.  And I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

 

So far the reading.

 

Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ:

 

      The story goes this way.  At a pastor’s conference, the retired pastors were swapping “war stories” about their ministries.  One of the retired men told about the time he noticed a group of boys sitting in a circle with a puppy in the middle.  They weren’t doing anything to the dog, just watching it.  He decided to check it out.

     

      Going over to the group of boys, the pastor asked them what they were doing.  One of the boys answered, “We ain’t doing nothing to the dog; we’re just tellin’ lies.  The one of us that tells the biggest one gets to keep him.”

 

      The pastor told the other men that he felt it was his duty to teach the boys that truth is always better.  He said he told the boys that when he was young, he would never tell a lie.  The boys looked at each other and one youngster said, “Fellas, we lose, give him the dog.”

 

      True or not the story illustrates the point of tonight’s Lenten meditation.  God’s Truth: We are to pray Thy Kingdom Come.  Satan’s Lie: We are to say My Kingdom come.

 

      When we consider the theme for this evening, it all boils down to glory.  Either God gives us glory, or we get glory for ourselves.  Either we pray for God to give us His kingdom, or we seek to build our own kingdom.  That is what we learn from the disputing disciples and the circle of liars.

 

      If you look closely at the underlying issue, it is all about who is the greatest.  It is like everyone trying to be Mohammed Ali and claiming, “I am the greatest!”  I want you to come into my kingdom.  The kingdom I have built with my own strength and founded upon my own understanding of what is worthy of honor and praise.  All of these self fashioned kingdoms we build soon are revealed to be nothing more than fantasies, figments of our imagination, or unfounded dreams of grandeur that crumble like dust and the wind soon blows away.

 

      Look at the disciples.  They have just celebrated the high point of the Passover Meal.  They have recounted the Exodus and the coming of God’s Kingdom to Israel through the deliverance of Moses.  Such a meal was a reminder and remembrance that God’s Kingdom is built not with human hands or according to human will, but by the Lord of all creation according to his plan and desire.  The Lord of creation sets the boundaries for His kingdom.  The Lord of creation lays the foundation for His kingdom.  The Lord of creation builds his kingdom on that foundation.  The Lord of creation places his people in that kingdom.

 

      Even after hearing these things, the disciples fail to understand anything about the Kingdom of God.  The argument that arises has everything to do with their place in this kingdom of God.  The disciples are grasping for this kingdom with hands that are covered with the works of self importance.  The disciples are dressing themselves in the clothing of self-righteous importance.  The disciples’ minds are filled with sitting on the very throne of God.  Servitude and humble obedience do not find any countenance in this dispute between the disciples.

 

      This is not the first time this dispute arose between the disciples.  A few days earlier, the mother of James and John approached Jesus following a similar attitude and desire.  She plainly asked Jesus to place her sons at his left hand and right hand when he entered into his kingdom.  She sought the place of honor for her two sons.  James and John did not dispute this request with their mother, but with the rest of the disciples who were indignant that such a request should be made.  Perhaps the other disciples were upset with not being the first to ask for the places of honor.  Regardless they built their dreams on smoke and dust.

 

      The disciples are not alone in this way of thinking.  Today we still seek the seats of glory in the kingdoms of our hearts and minds.  Look at the economic kingdoms we build for ourselves.  How have your investments or retirement accounts faired lately.  Look at how desperately we seek to keep our kingdoms and abandon the true kingdom of God’s grace and mercy.  There is the thought that if we are doing well, then the Lord’s favor is upon us.  He is prospering us and blessing us with financial growth and material blessing. 

 

      In reality, we must consider such kingdoms as false kingdoms.  Kingdoms built upon a lie.  Much like the kingdoms built by Bernie Madoff, Markus Schrenker and a host of other financial magicians who used sleight of hand to appear successful and worthy of managing and investing other people’s money.  These men built paper kingdoms which fell under the weight of close financial scrutiny.  Again, kingdoms made of smoke and dust.

 

      Jesus tells his disciples no less as he tries to lead them out of the grasp of Satan’s lies to solid foundation of God’s truth about His eternal kingdom.  This kingdom comes to God’s servants.  This kingdom is a bestowed gift of grace and mercy.  This kingdom cannot be bought, begged, borrowed or stolen.  Jesus teaches this to errant disciples saying:

 

      “I confer on you a kingdom, just as my Father conferred one on me, so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.”

 

       Shortly, the disciples will see the very nature of this kingdom conferred on Jesus by his father.  It is a kingdom that is built upon servant-hood and humble obedience.  This servant-hood and humble obedience is epitomized in the life of Jesus.  He is the greater one who serves.  He is the ruler who became the slave.  He is the creator who became the creature.  He is the sinless one who became sin.  He is the ever-living one who became subject to death.  He is the judge who suffered judgment.  He is the righteous one who suffered unrighteousness. Jesus does all this to establish his eternal kingdom.

 

      The disciples witness this in the arrest, conviction, crucifixion, suffering and death of their servant king Jesus.  This is the kingdom which Jesus confers upon his people: earthly shame but eternal glory; worldly disgrace but heavenly honor; material struggles but divine joys: temporal death but eternal life; obligatory restitution but free forgiveness.  Such things reveal the kingdom bestowed upon us in Jesus Christ.  We cannot take it for ourselves, for it is given to us.  This much we pray in the Second Petition of the Lord’s Prayer when we say Thy Kingdom Come.

 

      Dr Luther teaches the meaning of these words so clearly when he says:

 

      “The kingdom of God comes indeed with out our prayer; but we pray in this petition it may come among us also.  The kingdom of God comes when our heavenly father gives us his holy spirit so that by his grace we believe his holy word and lead Godly lives here in time and there in eternity.”

 

      The Father conferred this kingdom on His only begotten Son from eternity.  Before the world was formed, before there was any sin, the Father determined that the son would suffer and die to atone for sin and redeem sinners from death and the kingdom of Satan.  In time, this kingdom was established in the life, death and resurrection of the Son of God.  In time, this same kingdom was given to us when God poured out His spirit upon us in Holy Baptism. 

 

      In that holy washing with water through the Word, the Holy Spirit was given to us to cleanse us of our self-centered thinking and desires and open our eyes of faith to see the rich grace in God’s kingdom.  Such grace moves us to live contrary to the ways of the world but in conformity to the will of God.  We no longer seek to glorify ourselves, but seek to give glory to our Redeemer, Jesus Christ.  As we sang earlier:

 

Then, for all that wrought my pardon,    For Thy sorrows deep and sore,

For Thine anguish in the Garden,    I will thank Thee evermore,

Thank Thee for Thy groaning, sighing, For Thy bleeding and Thy dying,

For that last triumphant cry,    And shall praise Thee, Lord, on high.

 

      In the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Amen.