Do you know when you will die? Do you know when the Lord will return? Are you ready to meet the Lord? These, I believe, are the most important questions in the world. When our last day on this earth is here, when we die or when the Lord returns, when we stand before the Lord, He is not going to be concerned about our social status, our financial status, our political status, nor any other status we might think is important. When we stand before the Lord, His concern will be what is in our heart. His concern will be our sins, our forgiveness, and our eternal well being. Thus, God’s words of warning to His people, to the children of Israel, to us who are His people, who are the new Israel by faith in Jesus, are words to beware of His righteousness.
Before we get to our text, let us take a moment to look at the other lessons. In the Gospel lesson we have that interesting account of the shrewd manager. The manager has been accused of wasting the owners possessions. His solution is to count on the mercy of the owner. He “fixes” the books with the renters making it look like the owner is being generous to the renters. When the owner finds out, he can either look bad by undoing the generosity of the manager, or he can allow the generosity to stand looking even more merciful and generous in the eyes of the renters. The manager is commended, not because of his dishonesty, but because of his understanding that his solution had to come from outside himself, from the mercy of the owner. Our Gospel lesson so well reminds us of what is important in this world, not the things of this world, not what is from inside of us, but what is given to us from outside ourselves, the mercy of our merciful Lord.
In the Epistle lesson, we have Paul’s encouragement to pray for our governing officials and we have Paul’s words concerning the order of creation and the proper roles of men and women especially in public divine service. In both instances, Paul’s encouragement reminds us of God’s mercy toward us. We see God’s mercy in governing us through those in office and we see God’s mercy in His giving us appropriate roles so that we have order and peace in our lives.
In our text for this morning, the Old Testament lesson, we have God’s concern especially for those that have been taken advantage of, especially the poor and the needy. Amos is warning the children of Israel concerning their idolatrous worship, their greed, and their callous mistreatment of their own brothers. If they persist in their evil ways and if they persist in their despising God’s grace, certainly the Lord will punish them. Amos’ warning is to us today. If we persist in our half-hearted, lukewarm worship of the Lord, allowing other “priorities” to get in the way of our being in divine service and Bible class, if we persist in focusing our attention on this world and amassing the things of this world instead of focusing our attention on the Lord and the things of the world to come, if we continue in our mistreatment of one another, especially our own Christian brothers and sisters and fellow congregational members, if we persist on doing it our way and despising God’s grace, certainly we can expect nothing more or less than the same treatment and punishment the Lord imposed on the Children of Israel.
God’s specific warning and desire in our text is that we do not take advantage of those in need by overcharging nor by false balances, measures or weights. God’s concern was not simply for the poor and needy, for their protection from schemers and scammers, but also for the proper use of His gift of the Sabbath. One commentator explained that the tradesmen of Amos’ day had no affection for the Lord’s gift of the Sabbath. The holy day was a reluctant duty for them, a day of begrudged obligation, not a time of holy celebration. The tradesmen so focused their life and attention on this world and the things of this world, amassing great wealth, that they actually despised the Sabbath.
Not too many years ago we had what were called “blue laws.” These “blue laws” made it illegal to sell certain items on a Sunday. Today, all but a few stores are open and selling just about anything and everything on a Sunday, as well as on most holidays. Perhaps God’s warning to Israel is His warning to us today as well. Is our society and culture much different if we too despise the Lord’s gift of the Sabbath because our focus and attention is so much on this world and amassing seeming wealth in this world, rather than rejoicing in the Lord’s gift of the Sabbath, in His spiritual blessings and in making regular and diligent use of His means of grace?
God’s warning to Israel and to us is that He does not forget our misdeeds. The day of judgement is fast approaching. Our own day of judgement will be when the Lord returns or when we pass on, when we die and go to Him. On our day of judgement, the Lord will remember our deeds and our misdeeds. Now, more than ever, it is especially important that we take stock in our own lives. Are our lives focused on this world or on the world to come? Are we ready to meet the Lord?
So, what does this mean? or how do we apply this text to our own lives? Our text and our lessons for this morning remind us that God gives all we need especially physical blessings. As Luther so eloquently said it in the explanation to the first article of the Apostles’ Creed, “God has made me and all creatures; [that] He has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them. He also gives me clothing and shoes, food and drink, house and home, wife and children, land, animals, and all I have. He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life.” As I have asked the confirmands so I ask you, can you name one thing that you have that did not in one way or another first come from God? To help answer that question, think about what you were born with and what you will take with you when you die? We may say that it is our room, it is our house, it is our car, but it is all the Lord’s and He is the one who provides for all that we need.
God gives us all that we need and even more. I believe we are so wealthy here in America, that God has even provided us with many if not most of our wants as well. And certainly as the Lord provides for us, we are to care for the poor and needy and in so doing, God is taking care of their needs as well. And please notice I keep speaking of needs not wants. Our needs are clothing, shelter and food. Our wants are everything else and certainly today, too often we confuse our wants with our needs as we have talked about before.
God gives us all that we need and even more and as we are truly expected by God to share from our blessings, we have God’s warning that we are not to take advantage of the poor and needy. God does not expect for us to give out of our poverty, but out of our abundance and to do so generously, joyfully and in faith that as He has provided in the past, so He will continue to provide in the future.
God provides for all our physical needs and blessing and He also gives us all our most important needs, especially spiritual blessings. Again, Luther so well reminds us in the explanation of the second article of the Apostles’ Creed, “[Jesus] has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death.” As our lessons for this morning so well remind us, it all comes from outside of us, from God.
God gives faith, forgiveness and life especially through Holy Baptism and God’s Word. Again, Luther so well reminds us in the explanation of the third article of the Apostles’ Creed, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason our strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith. In the same way He calls, gathers, enlightens and sanctifies the whole Christian church on earth, and keeps it with Jesus Christ in the one true faith. In this Christian Church He daily and richly forgives all my sins and the sins of all believers. On the Last Day He will raise me and all the dead, and give eternal life to me and all believers in Christ.” We do not look inside ourselves for the answer to life’s questions, but we look outside ourselves. When we look inside ourselves we find only sin and death. When we look outside ourselves, to the cross of Christ, we find life and salvation.
The greatest gift God gives is forgiveness of sins and we rejoice that especially on Sunday mornings, through confession and absolution, we hear the greatest words of grace and comfort that our sins are forgiven, because with forgiveness is life and salvation.
God gives life, at conception. God gives faith, through Holy Baptism and His Word. God gives forgiveness of sins through confession and absolution. God gives forgiveness of sins and strengthening of faith through His Word and His Holy Supper. God is gracious and merciful. God comes to us from outside of us. God comes to us through the means He has given to come to us, His means of grace. God gives and we are given to.
And we rejoice because God also stirs in us a response of faith. God stirs in us to live lives of faith, to live as priests in the priesthood of all believers. God gives us gifts, talents and abilities. God gives us a job or career. God gives us the vocations we have and through which we live offering our lives as living sacrifices for Him.
In summary, the Lord through Amos warns Israel and us today concerning taking advantage of the poor and needy, failing to take care of our own spiritual welfare, and His judgement on those who transgress. Amos reminds us that God cares for the poor and needy through those who He provides with the means to care, namely us, and He will not hold him guiltless who takes advantage. Our sin is that we fail to care for the poor and needy, we fail to give justice to the poor and needy, and especially that we fail to take God’s warnings seriously. Thanks be to God that even when we fail, He supplies for all our needs, physical and spiritual, He gives us faith, forgiveness and life and the opportunity to share with others, and He stirs in us to respond to His salvation through our lives of faith and vocation. So, we are reminded once again to look outside ourselves. We are reminded that God gives and provides for the care of all people, both physical and spiritual blessings, and He works in us our response of faith to care for one another in a just and fair way, so that our very lives declare, to God be the glory, for Jesus’ sake. Amen.
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