Sermon
Text: Deuteronomy 30:15-20
Title: Choose Life!
I. Oddly enough – given the choice we
choose death.
II. With the power of the Holy Spirit we can actually
choose life.
THROUGH THE CROSS OF
CHRIST WE ARE FORGIVEN OUR CHOICE OF DEATH AND ABLE TO CHOOSE LIFE!
In
the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Grace,
mercy, and peace from God our Father, and from our LORD and Savior Jesus
Christ. Amen.
The
sermon text for this Sunday, is taken from…
I call heaven and
earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death,
blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may
live, 20 loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice and holding fast to him,
for he is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the
Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”
Dear
Brothers and Sisters in Christ,
I.
It
seems that whatever era you grow up in – especially your high school years –
those are the years that most influence you. Whether it’s your favorite style
of car – the way you dress – or the music you listen to – often times it is
based off of the time you spent in high school.
I
grew up in the 70s and 80s, but it was the time between 1982 and 1986 – my high
school years – that most influenced me. My hair is a little long right now but
usually it’s spikey. I still own a pink oxford button down collared shirt – and
wear it. One of my favorite cars is an old boxy 1984 BMW. And I still listen to
groups like Duran Duran, The Fixx, and Peter Gabriel.
There
was a group called Wham! around that time and in a video that most from back
then would remember they wore white t-shirts with huge, black letters on them
that simply stated “Choose Life!”
The
designer – Katharine Hamnett – decided on this slogan because she was trying to
reach the youth of the world in regards to drugs and suicide. These were both
big button issues in the 80s and some of you may remember – as I do – watching
lots of videos in high school regarding these very subjects.
The
point she’s making is an ancient one – Choose Life! When given the opportunity
to choose between a life of drug addiction or a life without it – Choose Life!
When faced with the choice between ending your life or living it – Choose Life!
In
our text today the LORD says something very similar – it may even be where the
t-shirt fashion designer received her inspiration – the LORD says to His people
– Choose Life!
In
order to get a full and rich understanding of what’s going on we need a bit of
fleshing out here first. Remember, the Children of Israel were slaves in Egypt.
By GOD’S timing, Moses led them out of slavery. Then they all watched as the
LORD destroyed the Egyptians who were in hot pursuit to bring them back. The LORD
guided them, led them and saved them. And what is the LORD’s thanks for this?
The moment Moses leaves them alone to go and talk to the LORD they make an idol
and worship a golden calf. Their punishment? Wandering in the wilderness for
forty years.
And
now we find ourselves in the text today standing shoulder to shoulder with the Israelites
on the doorstep to the Promised Land. This rich, fertile country has been
promised to them for centuries – and now after forty years of wandering they
are about to enter.
Moses
is about to die and be buried by the LORD, and Joshua is about to become their
leader and take them into the Promised Land. And the LORD speaks directly to
His Children in our text today…
“See, I have set
before you today life and good, death and evil. 16 If you obey the commandments
of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by
walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his
rules, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you
in the land that you are entering to take possession of it. 17 But if your
heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other
gods and serve them, 18 I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish.
You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter
and possess.
The
LORD gives them a choice – choose life or chose death.
Were
this a movie most of us would be screaming at the screen, “Life stupid – choose
life!” It seems the obvious answer. It isn’t the path taken.
And
then we have the rest of Israelite history laid out before us in the Old and
New Testaments showing choice, after painstaking choice of death over life.
And
before we are too harsh and to overly critical of our Brothers and Sisters of
the Old and New Testaments – we must cast a long and probing gaze in the mirror
of our lives – the mirror of the Law – to see we are no different. Given the
choice – we choose death.
But
you say Pastor Smith, when did we do such things – when did we choose death
over life? When you decide to take the LORD’S name in vain, not come to church,
worship at the altars of wealth and greed and covetousness you choose death.
When
you decide to defy authority, kill with your words, lust after the opposite
sex, take what isn’t yours, lie and cheat your neighbors, and even when you
looked the other way when given the opportunity to help your neighbor you
choose death.
The
sad part? Just like the Israelites of our text today – we too know better. We stinking,
filthy, wretched Children of the Heavenly Father KNOW BETTER!!! And we still
walk hand and hand with the devil – and choose death.
II.
And
were we left to ourselves trying to make the right choice – and failing
miserably and eternally – death would be all that we have for a future.
Thanks
be to GOD He loves you enough to not leave you in such dire straits. He loves
you enough to send His one and only Son – Jesus Christ – into the world to live
your perfect life for you, to die your sinner’s death for you. And because
Jesus was able to do so in your place – you now have what He has. Namely? Resurrection
and Life.
And
in that life, death and resurrection of our Savior – in the Baptism we have
received – in the Body and Blood of Jesus Christ – we have His forgiveness
earned on His Cross – all for us!!! We are remade, reclaimed, restored and
redeemed. To be sure we stumble along the way – but through the power of the
Holy Spirit – given to us in Baptism and strengthened in us through the Word
and through Holy Communion – we can, and do answer the LORD with our choice. The LORD says to the Israelites in our text –
and to all humanity down through the ages this…
Therefore choose
life, that you and your offspring may live…
And
with that gift of the Holy Spirit we can look our Heavenly Father in the eyes
and boldly say, “I Choose Life.” Amen.
The
Peace of the LORD – which surpasses all understanding – will guard your hearts
and minds in Christ Jesus the Light of the world. Amen.
+ Soli Deo Gloria +
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