"Whom Do You Serve?" Matthew 6:24-34
September 17, 2023
Rev. Nathan J. Rusert
The Fifteenth Sunday After Trinity 17-September-2023 Sermon Text: Matthew 6:24-34 by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert Sermon Theme: “Whom Are You Serving?”I. Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve! (Vs.24) II. Fear Your Father, Not Your Worries!(vs.25-26). III. Love Your Savior, Not Your Self!(vs. 27-30) IV. Trust the Gospel, Not Your Gut! (Vs.31-34)
Episode Notes
The Fifteenth Sunday After Trinity 17-September-2023
Sermon Text: Matthew 6:24-34 by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert
Sermon Theme: “Whom Are You Serving?”I. Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve! (Vs.24) II. Fear Your Father, Not Your Worries!(vs.25-26). III. Love Your Savior, Not Your Self!(vs. 27-30) IV. Trust the Gospel, Not Your Gut! (Vs.31-34)
I.N.R.I. A poet once imagined two birds having a conversation about mankind. She wrote a poem called, ““The Robin and the Sparrow" it reads: “Said the robin to the sparrow, “I should really like to know,
Why these anxious human beings Rush about and worry so.”
Said the sparrow to the robin, “Friend I think that it must be,
That they have no Heavenly Father, Such as cares for you and me.” ― Elizabeth Cheney
This poet was reflecting on Jesus’ Words to His followers in the Sermon on the Mount that we have heard this morning.
The birds of the air and wild flowers of the field call us to repent and look only to the hand of our gracious loving Creator for our daily bread. He is our God and our Father in Jesus. Do you fear, love, and trust in Him above all things? Or have the weedy cares and pleasures of this brief life choked out the life giving Seed of His Word the Holy Spirit planted in the soil of your heart? Or have rocky trials driven you away from baptismal grace so the quickly sprouting plant of faith withered? Repent and return to your Heavenly Father. His Kingdom has come. He draws near to you His only Begotten Son - The Word made flesh and blood to bring life to this world dying because of sin sown by Satan.
Therefore this morning - followers of Jesus - Listen! Humble yourself before Christ’s Word and honestly answer the question: “Whom Are You Serving?” I. Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve! (Vs.24) II. Fear Your Father, Not Your Worries!(vs.25-26). III. Love Your Savior, Not Your Self!(vs. 27-30) IV. Trust the Gospel, Not Your Gut! (Vs.31-34)
I. It was a land flowing with milk and honey just as the Lord God had promised through Moses. Now it was a wasteland. No rain had fallen for the last two years. Drought caused even springs to dry up and famine gripped the nation crossing borders into surrounding territories. The government of the land, King Ahaz and Queen Jezebel, was certain that the climate change was the fault of not sacrificing enough to nature. Their Satanic pagan religion turned them away from God’s written Word to trust in their feelings, their own wisdom, and strength. Satan still seeks to steal God’s Word away from Jesus’ followers whispering, “Has God indeed said”...”Don’t trust His Word written by Moses, the Prophets, the evangelists, and the apostles....trust your feelings they will save you....trust your wisdom....you know more than those ancients....trust your own self-chosen path to save your skin.” Satan lies - “God doesn’t care - He isn’t giving you all that you deserve - you can’t be happy until you have just a little more...money...property...power...stuff.”
The Truth speaks: (Mt 6:24) You cannot serve the Creator and the stuff He has created as your God. A god is whatever you look to for all good, where you run to in time of trouble. Putting it another way - a god is that in which you find your identity, security, and meaning in life. If you faith and trust is in the God who reveals Himself in His written Word - then you have the true living God. If you trust and believe in things that moths eat, rust destroys, and thieves break in and steal - then you have an idol - a false god - a lie that cannot save.
Near the end of his life Joshua, the leader of Israel after Moses, stood up calling for the nation to choose. Remember his words? Joshua 24:14-15 "Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! (15) And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." Jesus - the greater Joshua -the Conqueror of sin, death, and Satan Who has led you into the promised land of His Church -asks you the same question this morning whom will you serve?
II. A starving widow gathered two sticks to make a morsel of bread for her son to eat, then they would die. It was only a handful of flour and a spatter of oil. The Lord had chosen this starving widow to provide for His Church dwindled seemingly down to one - the prophet Elijah. In humble loving service she is willing to draw this stranger water from the well, but when he asks for bread - she has almost none. Elijah speaks the Father’s Word of promise - her meager supplies will not dwindle - the Lord will care for her all the days of famine as she cares for His prophet. He does!
The Father’s only begotten Son preaches: (Mt. 6:25-26) Worry is the worship we give to false gods that cannot save. Human life is more than eating and drinking. The sanctity of the human body is more than the clothes that we put on. Our life is a gift from our heavenly Father. He created us in our mother’s wombs. He fed us through our mother’s breasts, clothed and housed us through our father’s vocation. Our bodies and souls, our eyes, ears, all our bodily parts, our reason, and all our senses are His creations and gifts to us. It isn’t your own body to do with it as you please. It is the Father’s fearful and wonderful creation.
Repent of worry. Stop trying to rule the world. Trust in your heavenly Father. Walk outside and look at the birds. They daily rise with a song of thanksgiving to their Creator. Trusting their heavenly Father they fix they eyes upon His gracious hand to give them their food in due season. Going about their vocation the Father provides for His creatures. Then they return to their nest at night, sing a song of thanksgiving and sleep in peace. If your heavenly Father feeds the little birds - will He not supply you richly and daily all you need for your body and life?
Fear your Father - Hallow His Name - receive your daily bread from Him with thanksgiving - He will sustain you - with meager provisions. Do not fear your worries - instead carry out your callings as husband, wife, father, mother, parent, child, civil government, citizen, hearer, preacher, worker, boss - in His Name to His glory as you care for one another in love. Tempted with worry, learn from Jesus to cry out loud, ‘Our Father, who art in heaven...” Pray without ceasing. Cast all your worries on your Heavenly Father for He worries for you!
III. God the Holy Spirit calls us through the pen of St. Paul to live by the Holy Spirit hearing Christ’s Word and put our faith into action in our daily walk of life. Conceit, provoking one another, envy exposes our self-idolatry. From Adam’s fall we try to cover our sin with our self-chosen camouflage clothing. We dress up pretending to be who we are not - perfect people without sin - people who are self- sufficient and can save themselves by their own clothing of doing good. It is a lie - that crashes down when the doctor walks into the room to tell us that our illness is terminal - our spouse leaves us - our children are arrested - death claims our closest loved ones.
Listen to the only Source and Fountain of Life: (Mt.6:27) Can worry make a short person taller? Can your anxiety add a single hour to your life span? Never! Physicians warn us that worry and anxiety only shortens life especially as people try to self medicate with drugs and alcohol.
Adam’s fig leaf clothing only fooled himself that he wasn’t a sinner. It didn’t fool His Creator and Loving Shepherd- who came seeking to save him from Satan’s lies, sin, and death. Listen to His Voice calling to you, ‘Where are you?” “What have you done?” (Mt.6:28-30) We clothe ourselves because sin entered this once perfect world. Clothing protects our bodies from the elements and our own shame and guilt. Serving self clothing often serves our own pride. We become conceited wearing top fashions, or we envy those who can afford them.
Repent! Not even King Solomon with all his gold and riches - had clothing as lovely as the lilies of the field. They bloom one day, die the next and are cast into the oven as fuel. Repent of self love - love Christ Jesus above all things. He didn’t leave our father Adam to shiver in fig leaves. The Good Shepherd sacrificed His lambs and clothed Adam and his wife. He promised that one day He the Good Shepherd would lay down His innocent life for all us who like sheep have gone astray. He did on Calvary’s cross. Once and for all the Lamb of God took away the sins of the world - mine and yours. He rose again to clothe us with His new life - baptized into Him - you are clothed with His perfect life - His Home is yours - His life swallows up your death forever. Love Him! He clothes you....even us of “little faith.”
IV. The Law of the Sower remains. Don’t lie to yourself - what you sow - you reap. You cannot plant thistle seeds and hope to harvest tomatoes. You cannot sow to your sinful flesh and expect anything but corruption. Listen to Jesus breathing forth the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, in the Gospel! (Mt. 6:31-33) Worry is the opposite of trust. Our world turns us inside to trust our gut. The idolatry of our belly, trusting our feelings, our own wisdom, our own strength leads only to destruction - here in time and eternally in hell.
God the Holy Spirit calls us to seek first the kingdom of God. Where is it found? Where King Jesus is present in His flesh and blood through His Word and Sacraments you will find the Kingdom. Where Jesus’ Word isn’t purely taught and His Sacraments are not rightly administered you may find a mob - but it isn’t God’s Kingdom the Holy Christian Church.
Repent. Fear God your Father - He feeds the birds - He cares for you! Love Jesus your Redeemer from all sins, from death, and the power of Satan - your Baptismal Clothing of Life Eternal. Trust God the Holy Spirit bringing you to believe in Jesus Christ your Lord through the Good News of the Holy Bible spoken, poured, and fed you in His Church.
Trust in the Triune God alone! (Mt. 6:34)Begin each day clothing yourself with the words of your baptism sealed with the holy cross. Confess the Faith - You have a Father who creates and cares for you, a Redeemer who is with you , the Holy Spirit who makes you holy through daily and richly forgiving you all your sins in His Church. Pray - “Our Father’...Commend all you have into the Father’s gracious hands.. Then Go about your work joyfully singing a hymn...just like the birds of the air. At night do the same...then go to sleep at once in peace. Dr. Luther once looked a the little bird outside of his study window. He wrote, “That little bird covers its head with its wings and will sleep there so still and fearless though over it are the infinite starry spaces and the great blue depths of immensity. Yet it fears not; it is at home. The God that made it, too, is there.’ Amen.
Sermon Text: Matthew 6:24-34 by Rev. Nathan J. Rusert
Sermon Theme: “Whom Are You Serving?”I. Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve! (Vs.24) II. Fear Your Father, Not Your Worries!(vs.25-26). III. Love Your Savior, Not Your Self!(vs. 27-30) IV. Trust the Gospel, Not Your Gut! (Vs.31-34)
I.N.R.I. A poet once imagined two birds having a conversation about mankind. She wrote a poem called, ““The Robin and the Sparrow" it reads: “Said the robin to the sparrow, “I should really like to know,
Why these anxious human beings Rush about and worry so.”
Said the sparrow to the robin, “Friend I think that it must be,
That they have no Heavenly Father, Such as cares for you and me.” ― Elizabeth Cheney
This poet was reflecting on Jesus’ Words to His followers in the Sermon on the Mount that we have heard this morning.
The birds of the air and wild flowers of the field call us to repent and look only to the hand of our gracious loving Creator for our daily bread. He is our God and our Father in Jesus. Do you fear, love, and trust in Him above all things? Or have the weedy cares and pleasures of this brief life choked out the life giving Seed of His Word the Holy Spirit planted in the soil of your heart? Or have rocky trials driven you away from baptismal grace so the quickly sprouting plant of faith withered? Repent and return to your Heavenly Father. His Kingdom has come. He draws near to you His only Begotten Son - The Word made flesh and blood to bring life to this world dying because of sin sown by Satan.
Therefore this morning - followers of Jesus - Listen! Humble yourself before Christ’s Word and honestly answer the question: “Whom Are You Serving?” I. Choose This Day Whom You Will Serve! (Vs.24) II. Fear Your Father, Not Your Worries!(vs.25-26). III. Love Your Savior, Not Your Self!(vs. 27-30) IV. Trust the Gospel, Not Your Gut! (Vs.31-34)
I. It was a land flowing with milk and honey just as the Lord God had promised through Moses. Now it was a wasteland. No rain had fallen for the last two years. Drought caused even springs to dry up and famine gripped the nation crossing borders into surrounding territories. The government of the land, King Ahaz and Queen Jezebel, was certain that the climate change was the fault of not sacrificing enough to nature. Their Satanic pagan religion turned them away from God’s written Word to trust in their feelings, their own wisdom, and strength. Satan still seeks to steal God’s Word away from Jesus’ followers whispering, “Has God indeed said”...”Don’t trust His Word written by Moses, the Prophets, the evangelists, and the apostles....trust your feelings they will save you....trust your wisdom....you know more than those ancients....trust your own self-chosen path to save your skin.” Satan lies - “God doesn’t care - He isn’t giving you all that you deserve - you can’t be happy until you have just a little more...money...property...power...stuff.”
The Truth speaks: (Mt 6:24) You cannot serve the Creator and the stuff He has created as your God. A god is whatever you look to for all good, where you run to in time of trouble. Putting it another way - a god is that in which you find your identity, security, and meaning in life. If you faith and trust is in the God who reveals Himself in His written Word - then you have the true living God. If you trust and believe in things that moths eat, rust destroys, and thieves break in and steal - then you have an idol - a false god - a lie that cannot save.
Near the end of his life Joshua, the leader of Israel after Moses, stood up calling for the nation to choose. Remember his words? Joshua 24:14-15 "Now therefore, fear the LORD, serve Him in sincerity and in truth, and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the River and in Egypt. Serve the LORD! (15) And if it seems evil to you to serve the LORD, choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the River, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you dwell. But as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD." Jesus - the greater Joshua -the Conqueror of sin, death, and Satan Who has led you into the promised land of His Church -asks you the same question this morning whom will you serve?
II. A starving widow gathered two sticks to make a morsel of bread for her son to eat, then they would die. It was only a handful of flour and a spatter of oil. The Lord had chosen this starving widow to provide for His Church dwindled seemingly down to one - the prophet Elijah. In humble loving service she is willing to draw this stranger water from the well, but when he asks for bread - she has almost none. Elijah speaks the Father’s Word of promise - her meager supplies will not dwindle - the Lord will care for her all the days of famine as she cares for His prophet. He does!
The Father’s only begotten Son preaches: (Mt. 6:25-26) Worry is the worship we give to false gods that cannot save. Human life is more than eating and drinking. The sanctity of the human body is more than the clothes that we put on. Our life is a gift from our heavenly Father. He created us in our mother’s wombs. He fed us through our mother’s breasts, clothed and housed us through our father’s vocation. Our bodies and souls, our eyes, ears, all our bodily parts, our reason, and all our senses are His creations and gifts to us. It isn’t your own body to do with it as you please. It is the Father’s fearful and wonderful creation.
Repent of worry. Stop trying to rule the world. Trust in your heavenly Father. Walk outside and look at the birds. They daily rise with a song of thanksgiving to their Creator. Trusting their heavenly Father they fix they eyes upon His gracious hand to give them their food in due season. Going about their vocation the Father provides for His creatures. Then they return to their nest at night, sing a song of thanksgiving and sleep in peace. If your heavenly Father feeds the little birds - will He not supply you richly and daily all you need for your body and life?
Fear your Father - Hallow His Name - receive your daily bread from Him with thanksgiving - He will sustain you - with meager provisions. Do not fear your worries - instead carry out your callings as husband, wife, father, mother, parent, child, civil government, citizen, hearer, preacher, worker, boss - in His Name to His glory as you care for one another in love. Tempted with worry, learn from Jesus to cry out loud, ‘Our Father, who art in heaven...” Pray without ceasing. Cast all your worries on your Heavenly Father for He worries for you!
III. God the Holy Spirit calls us through the pen of St. Paul to live by the Holy Spirit hearing Christ’s Word and put our faith into action in our daily walk of life. Conceit, provoking one another, envy exposes our self-idolatry. From Adam’s fall we try to cover our sin with our self-chosen camouflage clothing. We dress up pretending to be who we are not - perfect people without sin - people who are self- sufficient and can save themselves by their own clothing of doing good. It is a lie - that crashes down when the doctor walks into the room to tell us that our illness is terminal - our spouse leaves us - our children are arrested - death claims our closest loved ones.
Listen to the only Source and Fountain of Life: (Mt.6:27) Can worry make a short person taller? Can your anxiety add a single hour to your life span? Never! Physicians warn us that worry and anxiety only shortens life especially as people try to self medicate with drugs and alcohol.
Adam’s fig leaf clothing only fooled himself that he wasn’t a sinner. It didn’t fool His Creator and Loving Shepherd- who came seeking to save him from Satan’s lies, sin, and death. Listen to His Voice calling to you, ‘Where are you?” “What have you done?” (Mt.6:28-30) We clothe ourselves because sin entered this once perfect world. Clothing protects our bodies from the elements and our own shame and guilt. Serving self clothing often serves our own pride. We become conceited wearing top fashions, or we envy those who can afford them.
Repent! Not even King Solomon with all his gold and riches - had clothing as lovely as the lilies of the field. They bloom one day, die the next and are cast into the oven as fuel. Repent of self love - love Christ Jesus above all things. He didn’t leave our father Adam to shiver in fig leaves. The Good Shepherd sacrificed His lambs and clothed Adam and his wife. He promised that one day He the Good Shepherd would lay down His innocent life for all us who like sheep have gone astray. He did on Calvary’s cross. Once and for all the Lamb of God took away the sins of the world - mine and yours. He rose again to clothe us with His new life - baptized into Him - you are clothed with His perfect life - His Home is yours - His life swallows up your death forever. Love Him! He clothes you....even us of “little faith.”
IV. The Law of the Sower remains. Don’t lie to yourself - what you sow - you reap. You cannot plant thistle seeds and hope to harvest tomatoes. You cannot sow to your sinful flesh and expect anything but corruption. Listen to Jesus breathing forth the Holy Spirit, the Lord and Giver of Life, in the Gospel! (Mt. 6:31-33) Worry is the opposite of trust. Our world turns us inside to trust our gut. The idolatry of our belly, trusting our feelings, our own wisdom, our own strength leads only to destruction - here in time and eternally in hell.
God the Holy Spirit calls us to seek first the kingdom of God. Where is it found? Where King Jesus is present in His flesh and blood through His Word and Sacraments you will find the Kingdom. Where Jesus’ Word isn’t purely taught and His Sacraments are not rightly administered you may find a mob - but it isn’t God’s Kingdom the Holy Christian Church.
Repent. Fear God your Father - He feeds the birds - He cares for you! Love Jesus your Redeemer from all sins, from death, and the power of Satan - your Baptismal Clothing of Life Eternal. Trust God the Holy Spirit bringing you to believe in Jesus Christ your Lord through the Good News of the Holy Bible spoken, poured, and fed you in His Church.
Trust in the Triune God alone! (Mt. 6:34)Begin each day clothing yourself with the words of your baptism sealed with the holy cross. Confess the Faith - You have a Father who creates and cares for you, a Redeemer who is with you , the Holy Spirit who makes you holy through daily and richly forgiving you all your sins in His Church. Pray - “Our Father’...Commend all you have into the Father’s gracious hands.. Then Go about your work joyfully singing a hymn...just like the birds of the air. At night do the same...then go to sleep at once in peace. Dr. Luther once looked a the little bird outside of his study window. He wrote, “That little bird covers its head with its wings and will sleep there so still and fearless though over it are the infinite starry spaces and the great blue depths of immensity. Yet it fears not; it is at home. The God that made it, too, is there.’ Amen.
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