Third Sunday of Easter

Richard Davenport April 23, 2023 - Third Sunday of Easter 1 Peter 1:17-25 Last week, we heard a bit of Luther's explanation of the Second Article of the Apostles' Creed, where he talks about the work of Christ. Christ didn't buy me out of slavery with money. He paid with his own blood, his own life. It's a testament to just how much God loves us and what he was willing to endure to save us from ourselves. In St. Peter's letter this morning, we hear those same words. Peter tells us exactly how it is we come to be saved. It isn't because we earned it. It isn't because we paid off the debt. It is because someone else paid the debt for us, and the only acceptable payment was death. That doesn't stop us from trying to pay off that debt. It doesn't stop us from looking for ways to keep on God's good side. But, as he says, they are futile. We are running the same rat race our parents did, and their parents before them, and their parents before them, and so on and so on. Luther understood how important this point was. Everything he writes about and everything he was involved in circles back around to this point. I can't pay for my own sins. I have nothing to offer God that will satisfy the debt. The only way I get anything but an eternity of loneliness, self-loathing, and isolation under the wrathful gaze of God is if someone takes the burden off of me. The only person who can do that is someone who is completely innocent, guiltless of any transgression, and who, for some reason, decides to pay that debt for me. In some respects, it's like some of the other terrible diseases that afflict us, breast cancer or multiple sclerosis are both ones that often run in families. If you have certain genes, the chances are higher that you'll eventually develop the disease. When you have those increased risk factors, doctors will often recommend regular testing to catch it early so that treatment can begin right away. I find that's often how salvation is described. God is the doctor who takes a look at us and says, "Huh, you've definitely got sin. It's a good thing we caught it in time. It's lethal. We'll get you on the right treatment plan and you'll be fine." There are a lot of Christians who think about it in this way. Going to church, repenting of my sins, participating in the sacraments, reading my Bible, saying my prayers, being active in mission and charity works, all of this is part of the treatment plan. It's the plan God uses to get rid of my sin and keep me in remission. Certainly, those are all good things. All of those things are things we should be doing. God works through them to help protect us from the dangers and temptations of this world. By reading my Bible, by being active in church, by helping my neighbor and all of that, I'll be better defended against Satan's influences. God is at work to make you a better person. This is all good stuff and, just like the treatment plan for one of these kinds of terrible diseases, it may be uncomfortable. It may not be much fun. There may be times I question it, but it will all be worth it in the end. I'll be better off for having followed through. It's that sort of notion that comes out whenever we think about what God is all about, or whenever we discuss God with other people. God is the doctor. He sees what's wrong with me. He sees all of the problems and knows how to fix them. He prescribes the right medicine to keep me safe. When I have problems, I go to God and ask for help. It's like seeing the doctor when you're sick. You know you're sick, you can see the effects in your life. You see the symptoms all around you. You see how your relationship with your kids is in shambles, how your callous attitude toward them as they were growing up now means they want nothing to do with you and won't return your phone calls. You see how miserable your boss and your coworkers make you and how you're getting to the point where you think the best option is to just end it all because you don't see any other way out. You see how your spouse is taken from you much too early and now you aren't sure how to move on alone. The evidence is there. You're sick. You need help. So you go to God for that help. You pray. You go to church. You read your Bible and wait as patiently as you know how for his response. Of course, God isn't just a doctor. He's the best doctor. He actually cares for all of us. He pays close attention to everything we tell him. He comforts and consoles us through our troubles. He gives us what we need. God is a fixer. He fixes things. That's what he does. You got a problem? God will fix it. He'll take care of whatever illness you've got. Broken relationships? He's got a plan for that. Misery and depression? He's got medicine for that too. Loneliness? He knows how to take care of that as well. That sounds pretty great. I mean, I may have to wait a bit before my problems get taken care of, and I won't always know exactly how they'll be solved, but I know they will be handled. I may need some patience. I may need some wisdom to see God in action. But, I can manage that. I trust my doctor. I can trust God. I know he'll do what needs to be done. I know he'll do what's best for me at all times. After all, I'm sick. I have this sin disease and it's going to kill me if I don't get help. Jesus will take care of it all, I'm sure. This approach to God turns him into a doctor, or maybe a handyman. I call him up when I've got some specific problem and he comes and sorts the problem out for me. Granted, he does it for free, which is nice. He takes care of problems I can't manage on my own, which is also nice. Sometimes he doesn't deal with the problems right away and sometimes they don't get dealt with in this life at all, which isn't great. At least I don't have to deal with them forever though. If God isn't a doctor or a handyman, then sometimes he's a therapist. He sits there and lets me vent. He gives me the chance to sort things out and get back to my work. He helps me deal with my relationship issues. Or perhaps he's more of a life coach. He looks at the big picture and offers some advice and suggestions about how to get myself back on track so I can sort out those issues that maybe I'm a little too close to. He can help me succeed where I've just been making a mess of things. A little prayer, a little Bible study, a little time in church on Sunday and God's on the job. I know, I know, he still works on his own time frame, but I can rest assured he's looking into the problem. I may have to call him up from time to time to make sure he hasn't forgotten about me, to make sure I'm still in the queue, but I'm sure he'll get there. He won't let me down. St. Peter doesn't quite talk that way. Rather, he's description of God is a little weightier. Christ, who was before time, before creation, the God who is above all things, came into this world. He came, not to fix the various problems we have, sorting out our inconveniences, our struggles, and so forth. He came specifically to die. He came to die for you. You might have a friend who's handy with tools and who will help you fix your car or do a little renovation on your house just because you asked nicely. You might be like us and have a medical professional or two in the family who you can call up when you have questions. When you have a good relationship with folks, you can often count on them to help out in a pinch. Our relationship with God is anything but good. We routinely insult him and his gifts. We daily ignore him and shut him down. We steal from him and decide we don't want to be around him. God doesn't really have any reason to help us at all. Nor do we have the right to expect anything from him. Why should he fix any problem you might have? God is not a fixer. He's not a handyman. He's not a therapist. He isn't any of those things. He is the creator of the universe. He is the omnipotent ruler of all things. He's the one who saw a problem so deep, so diseased, so destructive, that his options were to throw the whole of creation out, or to root the problem out at the core and repair it in such a way that it won't break again. That problem is you. The illnesses you have are bad, yes. The relationship issues you have are, I'm sure, making you miserable. Your loneliness, your family problems, and all of the other issues you have are bad and need dealing with, but they aren't the root of the problem. The problem is how you are constantly fighting against the Creator. As I said, God isn't a handyman. He isn't the guy you call up when things have come crashing down so he can come in, assess the damage, and set about fixing it all back up. He's the one who realized the problem back before the world was even made. Who saw the problem long before it started, who knew he'd have to enter into his own creation, become subject to all of its rules and laws, including death. He knew you'd be in trouble. He knew you'd fight against him. He knew you'd argue with him and treat him as a common helper, someone whose only job is to help you when you decide you want his help. It didn't matter. He wanted to save you anyway. He gave his own blood, his own life to save you anyway. His plan to save you didn't start when you called him up. It started before he even spoke the words, "Let there be light." That's how deep his love for you goes. He saw you all the way back then. He saw your need all the way back then. He planned to save you from the very beginning. Can you call on God for help in any time of trouble? Yes, absolutely. But don't treat him as someone who is just there to fix your various problems. He doesn't get paid for his efforts. You don't have anything to offer him, even if you wanted to. He does it because he loves you. He forgives you. He rescues you. He saves you, all because he loves you. The Creator of the whole universe saw your plight and came here to save...you..., to die for you. Since we are in the season of Easter, we reflect on how God's plan for you didn't end with your death, but with your life. Christ offers his precious blood to save you, all so that you wouldn't die, but live. He reaches out his nail-scarred hands to you because he means everything he says. He does love you and he wants you to be with him for eternity. We rejoice that he is making the plan a reality. Your sins are forgiven. Your debt is paid for. Your life is assured. God truly has done it and he has done it for you.