Sermon -- Chapel at Huron Valley Lutheran High School (October 14, 2019)

This was the basis for a chapel devotion at Huron Valley Lutheran High School in Westland, Michigan.

PSALM 37:25

LOOK AT HIS POWER OVER HUNGER:

I Have Never Seen His Children Begging Bread.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The Psalm from which our verse is taken addresses the frustrations Christian often have in being faithful servants of Jesus.  We want to find joy in keeping God's Commandments.  We want to believe that a life which is lived according to those Commandments will not only be blessed, but will also look and feel blessed.  You might even remember the words in Luther's Small Catechism: “He promises grace and ever blessing to all who keep these Commandments.  Therefore we should love and trust in him and gladly obey what he commands.” (Conclusion to the Commandments)  But our frustration is this: It often does not look or feel like it is true.  In fact, it looks like the wicked prosper.  They do what they want and they get away with it.  Because of that, we have a hard time trusting in our Lord, and we wonder what is the value of keeping his Commandments. 
     King David wrote this Psalm, and he recognized what you do.  He urges you, “Be still before the LORD and wait patiently for him; fret not yourself over the one who prospers in his way, over the man who carries out evil devices!” (Psalm 37:7)  In other words, don't be deceived when you see the wicked prosper and seem to get away with everything.  And don't be discouraged if it seems like faithfully holding to God's Commandments results in you just scraping by.  Do not assume that the wicked are happy.  And if God decides that you will just scrape by through life, do not assume that this is bad. 
     Our Lord Jesus Christ has not taught us to pray for riches or for fame.  The world runs after these things, thinking that life is measured by how much you own or by how well you're known.  This is why people lie, steal, cheat, boast, and manipulate.  And some are quite successful in doing this.  But King David would remind you: “Mark the blameless and behold the upright, for there is a future for the man of peace.  But transgressors shall be altogether destroyed; the future of the wicked shall be cut off.” (Psalm 37:37-38)  Even if the wicked prosper for decades, they do not get away with it.  They will perish.  And even if you should barely get through this life, knowing only debt and stress and hardship, your future is an everlasting glory and heavenly riches without end. 
     Even now, you are children of the Most High God.  That does not come because of fame or fortune.  It comes because God has revealed to you that his favor rests upon you thanks to the blood of Jesus Christ.  You and I owed God perfect obedience, and we daily come up short.  But Jesus Christ has canceled your debts.  He has dropped all the charges against you.  More than that, he fills you with what is lacking.  He does not merely say you're okay; he has made you blameless in the sight of his Father.  He daily and fully forgives all your sins.  He daily and freely assures you that you are beloved children of God.  He does not put off his blessings until Judgment Day.  Today he calls you his saints.  He sets you apart for his forgiveness and mercy, for serving him and others, and for blessings—both bestowed by him upon you and then given by you to others.  Today he extends his love upon you.  Even if the world does not know who you are, God does.  And even if the world tells you that you have little value for them, God assures you that you were worth the holy, precious blood of Jesus Christ.
     Now, if this is how God has worked all things to grant you the resurrection of your body to eternal life, will he not also supply your body now with what you need to live?  King David saw it was true.  Even though prosperity was found among those who lie, cheat, and steal, even though prosperity eluded God's people, the righteous were not forgotten or forsaken.  King David testified, “I have been young, and now am old, yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken or his children begging for bread.” (Psalm 37:25)  
     This promise is a general truth.  It does not suggest that Christians are immune to famines or shortages.  If the nation should suffer, so will we.  But famines are the exception, not the rule.  The rule is that God does grant daily bread, even to all the wicked.  Every year, our Lord supplies grain and goods, fruits and fields to feed the world.  He gives you each day your daily bread—both in abundance and variety.   And the rule that God works in you is to crave what is good from God's hand. 
     There is no need to envy the wicked who will perish.  You do not need to crave fame, fortune, or even worry about being well-fed.  Food may sustain you for a day (or for teenagers, a few hours), but the word of the Lord endures forever.  That eternal word sustains you through life with peace, comfort, and encouragement.  It even delivers you through death to the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.  So, if we have clothing and food, we can be content.  And since we have Jesus' word and sacrament, we can rejoice.  For by these, we are saved.  By these, we live forever.  By these, we are declared righteous by Jesus, and the righteous are never forsaken.

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