Sermon -- 13th Sunday after Pentecost (September 4, 2022)

JEREMIAH 23:23-32

A FAITHFUL WORD ALONE MAINTAINS A FAITHFUL CHURCH.

In the name + of Jesus.

     It was a hard time to serve as the Lord’s prophet in the days of Jeremiah.  The political scene was tense.  Threats from Assyrian forces had faded, but Babylon had arisen as a much stronger, more violent empire.  They had already exiled some of the upper crust from Jerusalem, and they were poised to do more damage. 

     The religious scene was confusing.  Jeremiah was called by the Lord to preach repentance and destruction for Jerusalem.  But Jeremiah was not the only preacher in Jerusalem.  There were others, assuring the people that they had nothing to fear.  God had delivered his people in the past; surely, he would do it again.  They preached peace and prosperity.  There was no call for repentance, no appeal for the people to change.  After all, they were God’s chosen. 

     Which message do you think was more popular?

     There is nothing new under the sun.  Preachers have always delivered messages in God’s name.  However, they oftentimes present conflicting messages.  One preaches repentance; another tells you that God loves sinners as they are and does not seek any change in them.  One teaches that Jesus did and said exactly what the Bible tells you he did and said; another says those are legends invented decades after Jesus died.  Culture can influence the message.  Churches fear losing members, so messages are tailored to accommodate worldly ideas.  They hope that this will keep people coming.  Some pastors even claim that God speaks to them directly and provides new revelation.  The claim, of course, is that you need to rally to these pastors if you want to know what God says.

     To top it all off, many Christians say, “We all worship the same God and have the same Bible.  It doesn’t matter.  It’s all the same.”  But how can it all be the same if the messages are saying opposite things?  Either Jesus died and rose, or he did not.  Either Jesus said what the Bible teaches, or he did not.  Either repentance means a change, or it does not.  Either the Bible tells us all we need to know, or God needs to keep adding new thoughts.  These are not the same thing.  We dare not be so careless about how we listen to the word of God.  It truly does matter, and our Lord thinks so, too. 

     This is what the Lord says, “I have heard what the prophets have said who prophesy lies in my name, saying, ‘I have dreamed, I have dreamed!’  How long shall there be lies in the heart of the prophets who prophesy lies, and who prophesy the deceit of their own heart” (Jeremiah 23:25-26)?  Please note what the Lord observed: God said they told their lies “in my name.”  These preachers claimed that they spoke for God.  Well, Jeremiah made the same claim.  Whom to believe?  This kind of confusion still occurs in the church today.  Who has the word of the Lord?  Whom do we believe?  How we listen matters because it has eternal implications.

     In the case of Jeremiah, he did not show up out of the blue and begin preaching an unheard-of-message.  Granted, Jeremiah’s call and ministry were for those people at that time.  It was contemporary, but it was not new.  God’s people had a reliable standard to turn to in order to discern if Jeremiah was preaching the word of the Lord or not.  The Lord had spoken face to face with Moses.  Moses wrote down all these words in the first five books of the Bible.  If anyone’s message stood opposed to Moses, then he was a false prophet no matter how reasonable, how sentimental, or how attractive his message was.  Even if the message was backed up by miracles, if it was not consistent with God’s revealed word, it was a lying message.  A faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.

     So, what had Moses said?  The long, disturbing, and graphic answer is in Deuteronomy 28.  In part, the Lord had forewarned through Moses: “Because you did not serve the Lord your God with joyfulness and gladness of heart…, therefore you shall serve your enemies whom the Lord will send against you, in hunger and thirst, in nakedness, and lacking everything.  ...The Lord will bring a nation against you from far away, from the end of the earth, swooping down like the eagle, a nation whose language you do not understand, a hard-faced nation who shall not respect the old or show mercy to the young” (Deuteronomy 28:47-50).  What Moses had foretold, Jeremiah reiterated.  The Lord would not endure their rebellion.  He does not withhold his punishment forever.  But since the Lord does not delight in afflicting people with destruction and misery, he sent Jeremiah to call them to repent so that he could have mercy upon them.  Jeremiah proclaimed God’s truth, because a faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.  They would find no mercy in any other source. 

     As we considered before, the confusion which results from conflicting messages has not gone away.  How can you know who has God’s word and who does not?  Whom to believe?  Wouldn’t it be nice if God did come to you personally to tell you exactly what he wants you to know?  Here is the mystery: He does!  He has given you the Bible so that you can be sure of God’s truth, God’s plan for your salvation, and God’s purpose for your life.  In fact, he put it in print so that it would not be misrepresented, misquoted, or misapplied.  A faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.

     Be careful, then, how you listen to God’s word.  Join in the prayer of the Church which seeks faithfulness to God’s word: “Blessed Lord, you have given us your Holy Scriptures for our learning.  May we so hear them, read, learn, and take them to heart, that being strengthened and comforted by your holy word, we may cling to the blessed hope of everlasting life…” (Collect for the Word, Christian Worship, page 25).  By giving careful attention to God’s word, we cling to the salvation Jesus has won for us.  By devotion to the truth, we avoid being deceived by lies.  A faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.

     Why does it matter?  For this reason: An unfaithful message leads you away from Jesus and his salvation.  Just because a message is attractive does not make it true.  All temptations are attractive, but none of them aid faith.  Therefore, flee to the Scriptures to be sure of God’s true word.  Preachers may err.  Denominations may become unfaithful.  Vague messages leave the door open to error.  These things may tug at you emotionally, but salvation does not come from anywhere except Jesus Christ.  And Jesus comes to you only through the word of God.  A faithful word alone will maintain a faithful church.

     This is what the Lord says: “Behold, I am against the prophets, declares the Lord, who use their tongues and declare, ‘This is what the Lord declares.’  Behold, I am against those who prophesy lying dreams, declares the Lord, and who tell them and lead my people astray by their lies and their recklessness, when I did not send them or charge them” (Jeremiah 23:31-32).  Consider what damage can be done by such deceptive messages.  If God’s word is cast into doubt, then it is up to you to determine what is true.  Some people find that liberating because they get to be the judge over God.  That, however, will end very badly.  The Lord does not relinquish his authority to anyone.  His truth is not subject to a vote.  His judgment will be undisputed on the Last Day. 

     If God’s word is in doubt, then we will never be sure of God’s mercy or confident of salvation.  If God’s judgment of certain sins changes with the times, how do you know whether you should repent of them or enjoy them?  If God still gives new revelation to preachers, how do you know whether or not God will change his word in the future?  And if God would change his word later, how do you know that you can believe in it now?  If the words and works of Jesus were inventions of his disciples, can we really be certain that he paid for the sins of the world?  Do you see how your salvation is cast into doubt by unfaithful and unclear messages?  Do you understand why God is so enraged by false prophets and false doctrine?  He defends and preserves his word because that word alone saves you.  A faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.

     God makes these things clear: All are sinners who are marked for death.  We cannot fix our sinfulness, and we cannot escape death.  Therefore, the Lord has acted to deliver us.  God became a man to receive what all people deserve.  Jesus took up our sins.  He absorbed our curse.  He died as one guilty on behalf of all.  Jesus also lived as a man to deliver what all people need for eternal life.  He lived the holy, obedient life and was perfectly faithful to God’s commands.  By being baptized into Jesus’ name, you received that holy status.  Therefore, you have eternal life.  By trusting in his word, you also live now—renouncing your sins and striving for a godly life as the Lord directs in his word. 

     You don’t have to question whether these things are true.  They are not someone’s dreams or opinions.  This message was recorded by prophets and apostles who were guided by the Holy Spirit as they wrote each word.  Therefore, you possess the very words of God.  This faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.  By his word, the Lord assures you of a salvation that is not up for debate.  He declares a truth that stands into eternity.  He guides you in the path of righteousness that will not mislead you. 

     In Jeremiah’s day, many people preferred to swallow a sweet lie than a bitter truth.  Since they were so willing to be deceived, God issued a harsh sentence: “Let the prophet who has a dream tell the dream…  What has straw in common with wheat?  declares the LORD.” (Jeremiah 23:28).  Those who reject the Bread of Life will be fed chaff.  God hands stubborn hearts over to the lies they crave. 

     But God also issues this command: “Let the prophet … who has my word speak my word faithfully” (Jeremiah 23:28).  A faithful word alone maintains a faithful church.  It is right for you to hold your pastor accountable to his office and to demand faithfulness to the word.  It is right for you to yearn for faithfulness to God’s word for your own consolation, confidence, and salvation.  If you feel that you are not fully equipped to discern God’s truth from deceptive arguments, then you need to make it a priority to attend Bible classes, to ask your questions, and to seek the answers from the sacred Scriptures.  And if you feel you are fully equipped to discern God’s truth from error, then come to Bible class anyway; for, the devil never stops trying to deceive you.  There are many conflicting messages, but there is only one truth.  Cling to it, and your faithful Savior will keep you faithful both now and forever.

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