v.5 And he [the Lord God] brought him [Abram] outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring [seed - singular] be."
Dear friends in Christ, what a wonderful day this is—a celebratory day—for today we rejoice that Martin Hill is officially being installed as our summer vicar at our parish (and that one of our own, Leif Spilde, has reached another milestone in his life, with his graduation from High School). Congratulations! We are overjoyed to be able to participate in this blessed occasion. Today is a day of feasting and partying and thanking God for His many and rich blessings given to you—and to us all. Today is also a day of promises. Promises that you will make and that will be made to you. This is a day of promises fulfilled. Mostly, of course, this is the day in which we are grateful for the promises given and fulfilled to us by our loving God in Christ Jesus.
Let us examine one such promise in our Old Testament reading for today. The situation was this: Abram and his wife, Sarai, were both well beyond child bearing years. Indeed, at this time Abram had lost hope of ever having a child, and so had made a servant of his house his heir. God had called Abram out from his pagan beliefs in the land of Ur years before with a promise that He would make Abram a powerful and blessed man. To be sure, Abram had amassed great wealth by the gracious hand of the Lord, yet still he and Sarai continued childless. You can hear the frustration in Abram's voice as he talks with the Lord, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir." I.e. "You haven't kept your promise, Lord! It doesn't matter that you say you are my shield or that I shall have a great reward. As long as I am childless, it means the biggest promise goes unfulfilled."
Beloved, we too have trouble believing in the Lord's promises at times, don't we? We struggle when we hear of God's promises of perfect health, and joy, and peace, and yet experience trial and suffering and death this side of heaven. It may even seem to us, as we hold the hand of a beloved friend or family member as they die, that God's promises are empty and false, like so many promises made to us by our fellow human beings.
For, let's be honest, we are not great at keeping our promises either. We can make all sorts of grandiose promises, but then we forget or something perceived to be more important comes along, and those promises that we made—that we had every intention of keeping—are broken. Martin, you will no doubt fail to keep your promises to this congregation over the summer—as we, no doubt, will fail to keep our promises to you, at times. We certainly don't intend to, but this is the result of our sinful flesh that clings to us until the Last Day. We struggle to love our brother whom we have seen, so we may love our Lord whom we have not seen, as our epistle puts it.
So…beloved, what are we to do? First, we must recognize that the One true God does not make false promises. The Word that He speaks, He keeps—always—every time—without fail. Maybe not in the time or manner which we would like or expect, but He always keeps His Word. In response to Abram's questions about the promise of an heir of his own flesh, the Lord God takes Abram outside and shows him the brilliant night time sky, filled with stars. "Count them, Abram—count them, if you are able. Such will your seed (singular) be." How? God doesn't explain how. He just says it will be, because He said so. And herein, moved by the Holy Spirit, Abram believes the Lord, and it is counted to him as righteousness.
Beloved, what joy! What fantastic news. Despite all evidences to the contrary, Abram (whose name ironically means "exalted father", but who was no father) nevertheless believed the Word and promise of God, and the Lord counted this simple trust and faith as righteousness, granting him everlasting blessedness and peace. In time, years later, in fact, Abram would be given the son of the promise, Isaac, through Sarai his wife. Abram's name would be changed to Abraham (meaning "father of many nations") and through that one child, Isaac, the Lord would make Abraham into a mighty nation through whom the whole world would be blessed in the One seed, first promised to Adam and Eve, and on down to Abram and so forth—the Lord Jesus Christ—the Messiah—the Saviour of the world—who with His own flesh and blood would keep every promise of God and pay for our broken promises on the cross, along with every sin.
And to those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ—who trust this living Word of God—the Lord counts our faith as righteousness and gives us life everlasting through the full and free forgiveness of all our sins. For by faith, the righteousness of Christ Jesus is credited and applied to you and me. There is nothing we can do, other than to hold fast to the Word and promise of God, trust that He will fulfill His Word, even as He has always done so.
Which is why we do not despair, though life be hard and tragic, even in suffering and death—for we know that we have the promise of One who is greater than all our sin—greater than death and hell itself—indeed He who has conquered sin and death with His own suffering, death, and resurrection, even Jesus Christ our Lord. He it is who promises to wash you clean with His own blood in the waters of Holy Baptism. He it is who promises to feed His life-giving body and blood through simple bread and wine. He it is who promises to remove all stain and guilt of sin, clear your conscience through His holy absolution proclaimed to you this day.
Such grandiose promises. How can we trust them? How do we know they are true? By the pledge of His own death and resurrection on the cross. He promised that though He would die—though His enemies would destroy the temple of His body, yet three days later He would rebuild it—He would rise again, as St. John says. This He did. Proving that He is God and His promises are trustworthy and true. So much so, that you and I and countless Christians before us (and perhaps many countless Christians to come after us) have literally placed our eternal life in His hands, trusting in His promises, which seem to go unkept, but through which all people may be saved.
For the same Lord who spoke and created the heavens and the earth has spoken His Good news to you and filled your hearts with faith in Christ Jesus so that you believe and trust in the Lord, and He counts it to you as righteousness. This pure love of God for us in Christ, that created life through the seemingly dead bodies of Abram and Sarai, is the same love that produces eternal life in your hearts through the hearing of this Word. A life that changes you and moves you to love your neighbor freely and fully—confident in the ultimate love of God for you in Christ Jesus.
For you and I are among the multitude that Abram could not count that fair evening. You and I are among the countless people who have been moved by the Holy Spirit working through Word and Sacrament to create faith and life in our hearts—counting it to us as righteousness. We are the church—the seed of Abram—those who simply trust in the promises of God fulfilled in Jesus. For Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, has made you an heir with Him of all the Father's goodness and blessings in heavenly glory. Though you suffer now—though you struggle—though you are hurt by broken promises—yet God in Christ has made you whole—washing you clean of all sin and giving you forgiveness and life through the One Seed who gave His life for you on the cross. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.
v.5 And he [the Lord God] brought him [Abram] outside and said, "Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring [seed - singular] be."
Dear friends in Christ, what a wonderful day this is—a celebratory day—for today we rejoice that Martin Hill is officially being installed as our summer vicar at our parish (and that one of our own, Leif Spilde, has reached another milestone in his life, with his graduation from High School). Congratulations! We are overjoyed to be able to participate in this blessed occasion. Today is a day of feasting and partying and thanking God for His many and rich blessings given to you—and to us all. Today is also a day of promises. Promises that you will make and that will be made to you. This is a day of promises fulfilled. Mostly, of course, this is the day in which we are grateful for the promises given and fulfilled to us by our loving God in Christ Jesus.
Let us examine one such promise in our Old Testament reading for today. The situation was this: Abram and his wife, Sarai, were both well beyond child bearing years. Indeed, at this time Abram had lost hope of ever having a child, and so had made a servant of his house his heir. God had called Abram out from his pagan beliefs in the land of Ur years before with a promise that He would make Abram a powerful and blessed man. To be sure, Abram had amassed great wealth by the gracious hand of the Lord, yet still he and Sarai continued childless. You can hear the frustration in Abram's voice as he talks with the Lord, "Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir." I.e. "You haven't kept your promise, Lord! It doesn't matter that you say you are my shield or that I shall have a great reward. As long as I am childless, it means the biggest promise goes unfulfilled."
Beloved, we too have trouble believing in the Lord's promises at times, don't we? We struggle when we hear of God's promises of perfect health, and joy, and peace, and yet experience trial and suffering and death this side of heaven. It may even seem to us, as we hold the hand of a beloved friend or family member as they die, that God's promises are empty and false, like so many promises made to us by our fellow human beings.
For, let's be honest, we are not great at keeping our promises either. We can make all sorts of grandiose promises, but then we forget or something perceived to be more important comes along, and those promises that we made—that we had every intention of keeping—are broken. Martin, you will no doubt fail to keep your promises to this congregation over the summer—as we, no doubt, will fail to keep our promises to you, at times. We certainly don't intend to, but this is the result of our sinful flesh that clings to us until the Last Day. We struggle to love our brother whom we have seen, so we may love our Lord whom we have not seen, as our epistle puts it.
So…beloved, what are we to do? First, we must recognize that the One true God does not make false promises. The Word that He speaks, He keeps—always—every time—without fail. Maybe not in the time or manner which we would like or expect, but He always keeps His Word. In response to Abram's questions about the promise of an heir of his own flesh, the Lord God takes Abram outside and shows him the brilliant night time sky, filled with stars. "Count them, Abram—count them, if you are able. Such will your seed (singular) be." How? God doesn't explain how. He just says it will be, because He said so. And herein, moved by the Holy Spirit, Abram believes the Lord, and it is counted to him as righteousness.
Beloved, what joy! What fantastic news. Despite all evidences to the contrary, Abram (whose name ironically means "exalted father", but who was no father) nevertheless believed the Word and promise of God, and the Lord counted this simple trust and faith as righteousness, granting him everlasting blessedness and peace. In time, years later, in fact, Abram would be given the son of the promise, Isaac, through Sarai his wife. Abram's name would be changed to Abraham (meaning "father of many nations") and through that one child, Isaac, the Lord would make Abraham into a mighty nation through whom the whole world would be blessed in the One seed, first promised to Adam and Eve, and on down to Abram and so forth—the Lord Jesus Christ—the Messiah—the Saviour of the world—who with His own flesh and blood would keep every promise of God and pay for our broken promises on the cross, along with every sin.
And to those who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ—who trust this living Word of God—the Lord counts our faith as righteousness and gives us life everlasting through the full and free forgiveness of all our sins. For by faith, the righteousness of Christ Jesus is credited and applied to you and me. There is nothing we can do, other than to hold fast to the Word and promise of God, trust that He will fulfill His Word, even as He has always done so.
Which is why we do not despair, though life be hard and tragic, even in suffering and death—for we know that we have the promise of One who is greater than all our sin—greater than death and hell itself—indeed He who has conquered sin and death with His own suffering, death, and resurrection, even Jesus Christ our Lord. He it is who promises to wash you clean with His own blood in the waters of Holy Baptism. He it is who promises to feed His life-giving body and blood through simple bread and wine. He it is who promises to remove all stain and guilt of sin, clear your conscience through His holy absolution proclaimed to you this day.
Such grandiose promises. How can we trust them? How do we know they are true? By the pledge of His own death and resurrection on the cross. He promised that though He would die—though His enemies would destroy the temple of His body, yet three days later He would rebuild it—He would rise again, as St. John says. This He did. Proving that He is God and His promises are trustworthy and true. So much so, that you and I and countless Christians before us (and perhaps many countless Christians to come after us) have literally placed our eternal life in His hands, trusting in His promises, which seem to go unkept, but through which all people may be saved.
For the same Lord who spoke and created the heavens and the earth has spoken His Good news to you and filled your hearts with faith in Christ Jesus so that you believe and trust in the Lord, and He counts it to you as righteousness. This pure love of God for us in Christ, that created life through the seemingly dead bodies of Abram and Sarai, is the same love that produces eternal life in your hearts through the hearing of this Word. A life that changes you and moves you to love your neighbor freely and fully—confident in the ultimate love of God for you in Christ Jesus.
For you and I are among the multitude that Abram could not count that fair evening. You and I are among the countless people who have been moved by the Holy Spirit working through Word and Sacrament to create faith and life in our hearts—counting it to us as righteousness. We are the church—the seed of Abram—those who simply trust in the promises of God fulfilled in Jesus. For Christ, the only-begotten Son of God, has made you an heir with Him of all the Father's goodness and blessings in heavenly glory. Though you suffer now—though you struggle—though you are hurt by broken promises—yet God in Christ has made you whole—washing you clean of all sin and giving you forgiveness and life through the One Seed who gave His life for you on the cross. Thanks be to God in Christ Jesus. Amen.