The text this morning is from the Gospel of Matthew, the 10th chapter:
These twelve Jesus sent out, instructing them, “…Brother will deliver brother over to death, and the father his child, and children will rise against parents and have them put to death, and you will be hated by all for my name’s sake. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. When they persecute you in one town, flee to the next, for truly, I say to you, you will not have gone through all the towns of Israel before the Son of Man comes. “A disciple is not above his teacher, nor a servant above his master. It is enough for the disciple to be like his teacher, and the servant like his master. If they have called the master of the house Beelzebul, how much more will they malign those of his household. “So have no fear of them, for nothing is covered that will not be revealed, or hidden that will not be known. What I tell you in the dark, say in the light, and what you hear whispered, proclaim on the housetops. And do not fear those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather fear him who can destroy both soul and body in hell. Are not two sparrows sold for a penny? And not one of them will fall to the ground apart from your Father. But even the hairs of your head are all numbered. Fear not, therefore; you are of more value than many sparrows. So everyone who acknowledges me before men, I also will acknowledge before my Father who is in heaven, but whoever denies me before men, I also will deny before my Father who is in heaven.”Thus far the text.
My dear friends in Christ,
I don’t know what it’s like to be black in America. Some of you here do, some of you don’t. I don’t know what it’s like to be a person of color in America. I believe that we should all have the same opportunities, regardless of color, but I know that’s not always possible.
I don’t know what it’s like to feel like you may have to watch your back at any moment for discrimination. I don’t know what it’s like, even, to wonder if your child is going to come back to you safe or if you’re going to a coroner’s call in the middle of the night. I don’t know.
What I do know is that we have had a very tumultuous few years as pertains to race relations in the US. I don’t know what it is about this country, but race relations, politically, have never been okay. Other countries, even other countries where the abomination slavery was had for a long time and then abolished, don’t seem to have quite the same problems we do. There are organizations that won’t let you in if you’re not white. There are groups that try to intimidate anyone who isn’t black. The police and justice systems seem systemically skewed against minorities. Young, urban kids take to the streets to spread their gangland territories and destroy communities.
Obviously, these are generalizations. There are good police men and women. There are wonderful, positive kids who come from the worst parts of the city. Men and women, white and black, work together to restore relationships and build up communities. But, we all know that these issues exist. Between that God-awful video of Philando Castille being released in which we see a scared police officer shoot a man to death who apparently was both trying to do good according to the law, but still may not have been heeding the officer’s directions, and the acquittal of Dominique Heaggan-Brown, the Milwaukee police officer who shot an unarmed man last year, and pretty much anything else that happens when you turn on your television today, race relations seem to be at all time low.
When these things happen, people rightly get upset. We should call for justice, as has been done. Where this goes wrong is when people riot or people destroy. When that happens, hatred and animosity brews. But that’s not the way it is for us, or at least it’s not the way it should be for us as Christians, as brothers and sisters of Christ and each other. We have a higher calling, friends. And I know you know this. Perhaps I’m preaching to the choir, but it has to be said: there is no room for the sin of racism in the Church or in the world. Every person, from the moment of conception, when the sperm meets the egg, until their death is valuable for they are all made in the image of God.
More than that, each and every person, from conception to death, from Ted Bundy to Mother Theresa, is loved by God and has had the Lord of Creation, Jesus Christ Himself, die for them. We cannot be racist. We cannot allow that sin in our lives. It is a sin, and it is a sin that must be repented of. It must be. I believe that each of us struggles with this sin to one extent or another. We have a certain proclivity to protect that which seems most like us.
But, what is necessary is that we see that every person, no matter the skin color is just like us. They are a beloved creation of God, each purposed for bearing the image of Christ. We must look beyond the tribalism that reigns in the hearts of sinful man, and value each other based upon the revelation of the Word of God.
Our Small Catechism says it well, that we should fear and love God so that we do not hurt or harm our neighbor in his body, and I might add his soul, his strength, his emotions, and that we help and support him in every need. But we don’t always do that. When we want to see that others are different from us, when we judge people according to some physical characteristic, we must all repent and be forgiven.
Remember that you won’t find forgiveness in the streets. You won’t find it in protests or calls for justice. You will only find forgiveness in the Church. Forgiveness doesn’t exist outside of the protection of the Church; it is only through the proclamation of the Word of God for you, that Christ died for you, the unGodly, to bear your punishment for sin, that you might have life eternal in His name.
This changes how we see the world, then. As brothers and sisters in Christ, we see that there is no value of one person over another. Paul writes it in Galatians, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” If he were writing today, he might say, “There is neither American nor European, black nor white, male nor female, for in Christ, all are one body and must love each other accordingly.” We see each other as people with whom we will spend eternity, not just people to use or abuse for the present time. And we love one another. We love one another trying with the same love that God has for you.
That’s what Jesus is working at in today’s text. He’s not talking about the idea that certain groups will hate certain other groups, He isn’t saying that because you’re white, black people will hate you, or because you’re black, white people will. Jesus is talking about people hating His followers, no matter what skin color they may have.
We get so used to the idea that certain groups oppose each other, we’re so used to the idea that racial tensions exist all around us that this is a strange notion to us. Why would people be hated for the sake of Christ? I mean, ultimately, look around you: the Church is being persecuted more today than at any other time in history. In fact, in the last decade, there have been over 900,000 people martyred for the Christian faith. That’s nearly 100,000 per year. That’s one Christian killed every six minutes for their faith.
But why do people kill Christians? Why do people persecute us who love each other and try to serve every person according to their need? It’s because we don’t play ball with the world. We don’t join sides in the tribalism that leads to racism. We don’t accept the homosexual or transgender agendas because they stand in opposition to the word of God. We don’t offer our sacrifices to Caesar for only Jesus is Lord. We are in the world, but not of it. Because of that, the world will hate us. And that may mean that your children or your parents, or your siblings may hate you, too.
That’s not easy. Thank God, I don’t know what this is like. My family are all in the Christian tradition, they’re all Lutherans. But some of you may know all too well what it’s like to suffer in this way. That doesn’t mean you don’t stop praying for your family, or trying to serve them. But, they may hate you anyway. Yet, for the one who clings to Christ, cleaves to Christ for His redemption, even if that means enduring the scorn and hate from your family, that person will be saved.
The hatred that comes from people who hate God, even the hatred that comes from people who hate you for not joining their agenda (which really is just them hating God, too), will continue. It will endure. Amidst that hatred, however, we continue to preach the Word of God, you must continue to reach out to people, to share with them the Good News which is found only in Jesus Christ.
I think of Stephen, the first martyr, who was stoned for his proclamation of Jesus as the Savior of mankind. He did not cease to preach and teach Jesus, even up to the very moment of his death. In fact, he even prayed for his murderers, “Lord, do not hold this sin against them,” echoing the words of Jesus, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.” So, too, should we be, that as the Master calls us by His Word, as He calls us to faith in Jesus Christ, so then must we servants go and do what Jesus commands: we make disciples of all nations, black, white, yellow, red, by baptizing them and teaching them to obey all that He commanded.
And why? Why do we do this? Because we want to be like Jesus. We follow Him, we want to be like Him. We do the things He says to do, we do the things that He did. He preached to the lost sheep of Israel. He said that He had sheep that were not of that fold and that it would be necessary to go to them and preach to them who had not yet heard. We walk in meekness and humility. We seek reconciliation and not separation. We live at peace with one another, help each other, serve our neighbors, because all of that is what Jesus would have us do.
This is not to earn our salvation. This is an outgrowth of our salvation. Jesus has won for you salvation by His glorious death upon the cursed tree. Jesus has given to you the free gift of faith, by which you receive the grace of God unto life everlasting. For all of your sins, Jesus has died to redeem you, to rescue you. And this is not of yourself, but a gift of God, so that no one can boast in his own works. You didn’t earn salvation; God loved you so much that He sent His Son to die for you, in your place.
Having been forgiven, having been washed clean, having heard the Word of God, having been fed by the body and blood of Christ for the strengthening of faith, go out and do and be good to your neighbor. Why does the Lord strengthen you? Have you thought about that? Certainly, we could all imagine that if we’re in the hospital, suffering from some horrific disease, we would want to pray and learn to give thanks to God in every situation.
But, why else? Because to live as a Christian, to live in love and service to your neighbor, to stand in the Word of God, means that the world will hate you and Christ is strengthening you in His righteousness so that you may stand under the onslaught of the world to receive the gift of everlasting life. That’s how God cares for you; that even if the world should strike you dead, He will resurrect you from your grave and give you eternal life in His name.
You see the difference? We Christians avoid sin, and when we sin, we repent so that we would be forgiven. We don’t encourage sin. We don’t condone sin. We don’t give in to the pain and heartache that is going to be caused by the world. We don’t follow along with the world on whatever their next quest of tolerance is. We stand with Christ and preach His Word.
This way, if a police officer who just might be a racist kills you, you don’t need to fear. A sinner doing sinful things is to be expected. In Christ, you have been redeemed. The worst thing that could happen to you is that you die in this life, and open your eyes to eternal life with Christ. I’m not saying that someone killing another person isn’t horrific, but that for the Christian, we can approach that situation if it comes for us with the peace that passes all understanding. Whether a mob comes at you for your skin color, an Islamic terrorist blows up your café, or you fall victim in racial profiling, don’t fear the people who can kill the body; they are under the direction of Satanic forces, giving in to their own sin. Fear God, the one who can destroy the body and soul in hell.
Fear God and give glory to His name. He has redeemed you; look upon His work with fear and wonder that He should save you, save us. Love Him for this, out of the faith that has been given to you in your Baptism. And then, strengthened in Word and Sacrament, go out and serve your neighbor. Elect men and women who will serve their neighbors. Elect men and women who defend just laws and work to undo the unjust laws that have been enacted in this land. Pray for the officer who shot Mr. Castille, pray for the officer’s family. Pray for the Castille family. Pray for every victim and every victim’s family. Pray for ever accused abuser and their families. Pray for your city. Be an ambassador of reconciliation.
And when you fail in following Christ, when you find yourself giving in to the sin of racism, the sin of adultery, the sin of theft, of lying, of hatred in your hearts for another person for whom Christ died, come back to Church. Let the angels rejoice over you as you repent, as you are forgiven, as you are strengthened by God. Return to this place, for here you will always hear of the goodness of Christ towards you that you might be saved. And here, God willing, you will always desire then to go out and serve your neighbor in righteousness that they might be saved, too, and that you would spend the eternity won for them with them in Christ.
Remember that if the world hates you, it hated Christ first. But the Christian does not hate anyone. All are loved by God and we show that love to everyone, whether we think they deserve it or not. The world will know that we are Christians by our love, for each other, and for every single person we encounter. Yet, you will suffer for His name as a Christian, but there is nothing they can do to you to take away the free gift of God’s love toward you. As you are forgiven from the cross, so also will you be resurrected from the dead, in Christ. In Jesus’ name, amen.
Now may the peace of God which passes all human understanding guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord! Amen.
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