Church Sermon - October 31, 2004

Pastor Bernt P. Tweit

Old Testament Lesson; Jeremiah 31:31-34
Gospel Lesson; John 8:31-36
Sermon Text; Romans 3:19-28

Today is Reformation Day. Today is the day that we remember what Martin Luther did, 487 years ago. On this day, he went to a community bulletin board, and there posted a notice. The bulletin board was the castle church door in Wittenberg, Germany. The notice he placed there were 95 theses. A thesis is a statement. In those 95 statements, Martin Luther was pointing out the abuses that were taking place in the church at that time.

Imagine yourself, standing up and telling your friends, or standing up and telling your classmates, that what they all like to do is wrong. Now, imagine standing up and telling your friends or your classmates that what they are doing is wrong, when they think that what they are doing is not only right, but also God pleasing, and necessary for salvation. That is really what Martin Luther did. He stood up and told people that what they were doing was wrong.

Now, Martin Luther did not post those 95 theses on the castle church door in Wittenberg, Germany because he wanted to be a hero. Martin Luther posted those 95 theses because he was angry about the sale of indulgences. They were pieces of paper that said your sins are forgiven. He was also angry because the forgiveness of sins that God gives, was being cheapened.

I. We Have a Problem

In our text for today, Paul talks about the problem that we have. Martin Luther, in his day, stood up and talked about the problem that the people in his day had. Today, we are reminded of that same problem that we have. Before us this morning, we see what it is that God requires of us.

God requires us to be perfectly holy.

= You add up those two things and God promises to give eternal life.

In the Old Testament, God said,

"Be holy because I, the LORD your God, am holy."

In the New Testament, Jesus said,

"Be perfect therefore, as your Father in Heaven is perfect."

This is what God requires of us. But, that is not what God sees in us.

God sees that we have not been perfectly holy.

= You add those up and you see the eternal death that we deserve.

Scripture says,

"The wages of sin is death." Our scripture reading, for today says, All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God." We sin in everything that we do. Not only do we sin in everything that we do, we also sin in everything that we think, and we say. Jesus once said, (in talking about the commandments), "You have heard, do not murder. But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be in danger of the fires of hell."

There may be times when we think, "I haven’t broken the Fifth Commandment. I have not physically killed anybody." But yet, Jesus says that if we are angry or have hatred toward someone, we are sinning and breaking the Fifth Commandment.

Jesus says, "You have heard, do not commit adultery. But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully, has already committed adultery with her in his heart."

We may think that we have not committed the Sixth Commandment, because we have not physically committed adultery with anybody. But here, Jesus says that when we look at someone else lustfully, we have broken the Sixth Commandment in our thoughts.

Not only do we sin in everything that we think, say, and do, but the Bible also reminds us that sin is something that is born inside of us. It has been handed down to us from our parents, going all the way back to our first parents, Adam and Eve.

"Sin came into the world through one man (talking about Adam)

and death through sin and this way death has come to

all men, because all have sinned."

We have a problem. Our problem is that we are not perfectly holy. We sin in everything that we think, say, and do and that leads to eternal death. That is our problem.

II. Solutions to Our Problem

This morning I want to share with you two solutions that we have to the problem of our sin. One of those solutions is a manmade solution, and the other solution is a God given solution.

To the problem that we have with our sin, not living a perfect life, sinning in everything that we do, the manmade solution says, "I am going to try harder. I am going to try harder to live a perfectly holy life. I am going to try harder to live a life without sin."

Someone once came to Jesus thinking that he had fulfilled that manmade solution to the problem we have with our sin. It was a young man who came to Jesus and asked, "What good thing must I do to get to eternal life?"

We see from that question, "What good thing must I do (I will try harder) to get eternal life?"

Jesus said, "Why do you ask me about what is good? There is only one thing that is good (Jesus was talking about Himself. He is the only good thing.). If you want eternal life, obey the commandments."

So Jesus was saying, "If you think that you can provide the solution for the problem of your sins, obey the Commandments."

So he asked, "Which are these?"

Jesus said, "Do not murder (that is the Fifth Commandment). Do not commit adultery (that is the Sixth Commandment). Do not steal (that is the Seventh Commandment). Do not give false testimony (that is the Eighth Commandment). Honor your father and mother (that is the Fourth Commandment). Love your neighbor as yourself (that is a summary of commandments four through ten)."

The man said, "I have kept all of these." "I have kept God’s Law. I have tried hard. I live perfectly, without sin."

Then Jesus said, "If you want to be perfect, go and sell your possessions and give them to the poor and you will have treasures in Heaven. Then come and follow me."

Scripture says that the man went away sad, because he had great wealth.

Later, talking to His disciples, Jesus said,

"With man this is impossible,

but with God

all things are possible."

With man this is impossible, but with God all things are possible.

The solution that man thought that he had was going to get him to Heaven, but that manmade solution always falls short. Which gets us into our text for this morning. We see the problem that we have because of our sin, and the solutions that are here presented. Paul says, "Now we know that whatever the Law says, it says to those under the Law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God. Therefore no one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law; rather, through the Law we become conscious of sin."

So, this manmade solution that is presented cannot save. No one will be declared righteous in His sight by observing the Law. So this manmade solution always fails, because we cannot be perfect and we cannot live a holy life. This means that this manmade solution falls.

However, what the Law does do is make us conscious of our sin. The Law can’t save us, but it points us to something that can save us. It takes us away from the manmade solution and brings us to the God given solution that we have, to the problem of our sin.

The God given solution that we have, to the problem of our sin, is our Savior, Jesus.

Knowing that, we review a Bible passage that was probably the very first one that we ever learned, John 3:16. It helps to remind us of the problem that we have, because of our sin, and the solution that God has given to us.

For God so loved the world

that He gave His one and only Son.

Whoever believes in Him,

should not die (because of the problem of our sin)

but have everlasting life and salvation.

Scripture says,

"God made Him

who had no sin (talking about Jesus to be sin for us)

so that in Him

we might receive the righteousness of Christ."

That is the solution that stands every time - the solution of eternal life in Heaven, through Jesus.

III. How Do We Receive This Solution?

How does this solution, of eternal life in Heaven, through Jesus, come to us? Now remember, it can’t come to us through the Law. But, eternal life in Heaven can only come to us through the Gospel, for God says,

Eternal life in Heaven can only come through faith in Jesus as our Savior.

Faith is not something that we do. Faith is something that the Holy Spirit plants inside of our hearts.

This gets us back into our scripture reading for today, as we look at verse 21, which is talking about the solution of eternal life in Heaven, through Jesus.

"But now a righteousness from God, apart from the Law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus. God presented Him as a sacrifice of atonement, through faith in His blood."

That should remind us of the day in the Old Testament, the Day of Atonement, when the High Priest would go into the Holy of Holies and there sprinkle the blood of bulls and goats on the Mercy Seat, to appease God. That was a picture pointing forward to the blood that Jesus would shed for us, to bring eternal life in Heaven to us.

"He did this to demonstrate His justice, because in His forbearance, He had left the sins committed beforehand, unpunished - He did it to demonstrate His justice at the present time, so as to be just and the one who justifies those who have faith in Jesus.

"Where then is boasting? It is excluded. On what principle? On that of observing the Law? No, but on that of faith. For we maintain that a man is justified by faith, apart from observing the Law."

The problem that we have is our sin. That was the problem in Paul’s day. That was the problem in Martin Luther’s day. And that is the problem that we continue to struggle with today. The problem is that we cannot live a perfectly holy life. The problem is that we sin in everything we think, say, and do. And, that leads to eternal death.

We cannot boast, because of salvation through the Law. We can only boast of salvation through the Gospel. That means God now sees us, through faith in Jesus as our Savior, as if we were perfectly holy, as if we do not sin. That means God grants to us, that free gift, (not something that we purchase, but a free gift) of everlasting life and salvation. "By grace you have been saved through faith, and this not of yourselves, it is a gift of God not by works, so that no one can boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

Amen.

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