The First Sunday after Trinity
Luke 16:19-31
The Trinity season begins in earnest today with the parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man.
This is a familiar Gospel, today, that draws the lines between falling in love with earthly glory and heavenly glory. The Rich Man depicts many people of the world who see glory in what you wear, what you consume, who you keep company with, while Lazarus depicts those who, on the surface, appear poor and lowly, who bear the weight of many crosses of this life.
As the parable illustrates, both men die, and we learn that earthly glory has an end, while heavenly glory begins for those who have faith in Christ Jesus.
At life’s end, the Rich Man is taken to Hades, meaning hell, when he dies.
Lazarus, the poor man who bore many crosses in life, being poor in health and wealth, was brought into God’s eternal presence.
Which one do you wish to be?
It’s also interesting to note that while Lazarus could be seen and heard asking for mercy throughout his earthly life, the Rich Man didn’t raise his voice for mercy until the reality of eternal damnation began.
Now, none of us imagine being the Rich Man, nor do any of us picture sitting at the city limits of Tomah begging for help. However, as my family just returned from vacation, we traveled many miles across this country and saw quite the divide and chasm in life, between those who see themselves as rich and those who see themselves as poor.
Sure, in some cases, these scenes occur on a street corner where one person begs for help, while another drives by in a Tesla or Mercedes. It might also be seen as homes in different neighborhoods with shingles falling off the roof and graffiti on the front, whereas other neighborhoods feature well-maintained lawns and inviting walkways.
It’s fascinating to see how significant the divide can be within a single community or even an entire country. In a way, these divides often keep the wealthy unaware of the struggles that surround and threaten them, while those in need continually strive for the perceived riches of their neighbors across the railroad tracks, maybe even the ones behind the wheel of a Tesla or a Mercedes.
To be clear, there is nothing wrong with having earthly wealth, just as there is nothing wrong with lacking wealth.
A key question to ask today is this: where do you place your faith and trust in this life, no matter your status, wealth, or place in this life?
Do you place your trust in status and the world around you? Or do you place your trust in Jesus Christ?
If you place your trust in the things of this world, you might gain temporary glory today, but it is fleeting.
If you trust in Jesus, it’s eternal.
However, the gift of God’s love, forgiveness, and eternal life does come with a cost; it involves crosses, disappointments, and misfortune. It’s through these ways that God uses a refiner’s fire to test man’s faith. (1 Peter 1:7)
Not fun, huh?
But it can be necessary to cultivate a life of prayer and reliance on your Father in heaven and the only Son He sent to redeem you.
Now, in the life of Good Shepherd, today, we have some children receiving Bibles to grow in the knowledge and wisdom of God, and to receive faith through the words of Jesus.
But we are also celebrating the graduation of one of the congregation’s sons as he prepares to go off to college.
These children receiving Bibles today will still need a parent to guide them in reading the Scriptures and support them through challenges, and for this, God has given these young children parents to point them to Jesus.
In another sense, if any of you were like me when I graduated from high school, I left for college believing that I not only knew everything but also no longer needed help in life. Looking back, I realize I was very impressionable, and college became one of the most challenging times of my life. Why? Because I thought I had it all—that I had achieved something simply by earning a diploma, through the completion of Confirmation, by leaving my home and my church.
However, these are just some of the most dangerous days in a person’s life. Because while the pursuit of knowledge is worthwhile, the new freedoms that come in adulthood bring many dangers and risk achieving worldly glory at the expense of heavenly and eternal glory.
And this is where the opening hymn for today, “Let Us Ever Walk With Jesus,” can teach and guide not only the young Christian heading to college but also those receiving their Bibles today, along with all of us, on how we should live this life.
The first stanza highlights how you are to walk with Jesus by following His perfect example. Now, you won’t be able to do this; the devil, the world, the flesh, and the people around you, in and out of classes, will attempt to lure you away from Jesus and His peace through their teachings, the extracurriculars, or just the culture you find yourself dwelling within.
The second stanza is completely countercultural as it calls you to suffer with Jesus, to suffer like Lazarus. No, you don’t want this, none of us do, but suffering will occur for all of us, whether it’s brought upon us by our own hands through the decisions we make, the people we begin to follow, or through the rejection of those surrounding us. Just as Jesus told His disciples suffering would come, St. Peter relays His message to you, “Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed.” (1 Peter 4:12-13)
The third stanza begins, “Let us gladly die with Jesus.” It is a call for Christians to return to their Baptisms; one can never truly leave their Baptism if they want to be a Christian. Each of you must stay in your Baptism every day, returning to it and drowning the Old Adam, the sin and death of the flesh to receive forgiveness. This forgiveness is highlighted in the fourth and final stanza as we sang, “Let us also live with Jesus.”
When one is connected to the word of Jesus, the Sacrament of the Altar, and the forgiveness of sins, they are united with His resurrection and become members of His body, the Church. As St. Paul emphasizes in his letter to the Colossians, “Where Christ is, so you will also be.” (Colossians 1:18)
But honestly, sometimes we have to leave our homes to realize all of this: that the gap and chasm between friend and foe, safety and danger, life and death is wide.
As the children receive their Bibles today, let us pray that they would continue to grown in their faith, no matter the struggles and challenges that present themselves in the years to come.
As sons of the congregation go off to college, let us pray that they might go to church and hold fast to the Word of God that has been spoken into their ears and given to them in their Baptisms.
And as we leave this sanctuary today, let us pray for the faith essential on our journey, that we may never stray far from the eternal home Christ Jesus has secured for us on the cross, for eternal glory depends on Him. +INJ+
Rev. Noah J. Rogness
Pastor, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church
Tomah, WI
Good Shepherd Lutheran Church Website: www.goodsheptomah.org
The Shepherd’s Voice Podcast: https://goodsheptomah.podbean.com/
