Rally/Christian Education Sunday & Installation of Pr. Christopher Martin
Pentecost 15 C Matthew 7:24-27
“Building a Foundation”
9/9/07 Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church, Audubon, Iowa
Text: “Anyone who hears and obeys these teachings of mine is like a wise person who built a house on solid rock. Rain poured down, rivers flooded, and winds beat against that house. But it did not fall, because it was built on solid rock. Anyone who hears my teachings and doesn’t obey them is like a foolish person who built a house on sand. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded ,and the winds blew and beat against that house. Finally, it went with a crash.”
Today is a big day for us here at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church. In a few moments, the Executive Committee of our congregation will be officially installing me into office as your Pastor, following which, we will mark the beginning of another year of Christian Education here at Our Saviour’s by installing our Sunday School teachers, and presenting our third grade students with their Bibles. This coming week also marks the beginning of our 7th & 8th Grade confirmation classes for the year. While installing a new pastor, and beginning Sunday School for the new year may seem to be a bit out of the ordinary to celebrate in the same service, (in fact, I can’t remember ever hearing of that happening before) we’re going to discover, that it’s actually quite fitting to celebrate both this morning in our service.
As you may have already noticed, one main theme that connects our three scripture readings for today is the importance of the Word of God. On a day where we begin a year of Sunday School and confirmation instruction with the young people of our congregation, it is vitally important that we reflect on this great responsibility we have as a family of faith here at Our Saviour’s. And that’s why, although most churches usually refer to today by its traditional name, Sunday School Rally Day, I tend to prefer to call this day “Christian Education Sunday”, because that title really puts the emphasis on the Christian education programs of our congregation, not just for the Sunday School children, but for all ages, such as our confirmation programs, our various adult Bible studies that meet on a weekly or monthly basis, and out other activities like our women’s circles, prayer groups, quilting, work camp, LYO, and so on. So, what is Christian Education all about? That is a question that our readings for this morning address.
Jesus in our Gospel reading for this morning tells us what is sometimes referred to as the Parable of Two Builders. In this parable, He compares the Word of God to the foundation of a house. As most of us know, when you’re building a house, the foundation is perhaps the most important part of the house. If you have a solid foundation, your house is going to withstand the assaults of the changing seasons for many years. But, if your foundation isn’t solid, or if you choose to build on sinking sand, or damp ground that can’t support the size of a building you’re planning to build there, eventually, the foundation is going to start to crack and crumble, and when that happens, eventually your house isn’t going to be standing anymore. In our readings for today, we learn that it’s the same way with the Church, and it’s the same way with our faith.
The foundation we build our church upon very much determines the spiritual state of our congregation. Our readings warn us of the danger of building our churches on something other than the Word of God. I mentioned this a bit in my sermon last Sunday, and we also discussed this a bit during our Men’s Bible Study this past Thursday evening. There are a LOT of pastors, tele-evangelists, writers, teachers, and churches that are no longer having the Scriptures as the foundation of their preaching and teaching. We’re told by some that heaven is yours, IF you do well enough in this life; that God will bless you with good health, material wealth, you name it, IF you please him, or IF you put enough money in the offering plate each week or participate in certain activities in the church. Some of these folks might even try to back up their teaching with Bible verses, claming what they teach is Biblical. Their “churches” resemble auditoriums or theaters that lack any symbolism or decoration to identify them as places of Christian worship out of fear that a visitor might be offended at the sight of the cross. While they may not outright say it, they are teaching things like “The Bible is just man’s word about God written a couple of thousand years ago, so it’s outdated and we’re free to do with it as we please”, or “it doesn’t matter what you believe, as long as you believe it sincerely enough, then you’ll get to heaven.” The last statement implies that Jesus is just a way to heaven, not the way, the truth and the life, as He himself states. What’s worse, is that the world looks at these preachers, these churches, these so called ministries, and points them and tells us if we want to be successful, that’s what we are to look like! And sometimes, they may have thousands attending their churches, watching their TV programs or buying their books and DVD’s. But, the key question to ask is, what is their foundation?
I hope it’s pretty clear to you that their foundation is not built on the words and teachings of Jesus Christ. Did you hear what Jesus had to say about those who build their foundation on anything else? “Anyone who hears my teachings and doesn’t obey them is like a foolish person who built a house on sand. The rain poured down, the rivers flooded, and the winds blew and beat against that house. Finally, it went with a crash.” As we are reminded in the great hymn “My Hope is Built on Nothing Less”, (which had I finished my sermon earlier in the week before the bulletin was printed, I would have asked to have sung this morning), as Christians centered in gospel of Jesus Christ, “My hope is built on nothing less than Jesus blood and righteousness, no merit of my own I claim, but wholly lean of Jesus’ name. On Christ the solid rock I stand, all other ground is sinking sand.” (LBW #294) Any church, any pastor, any teacher, anyone who believes, teaches, or confesses anything other than we are saved solely by Jesus’ death and resurrection does NOT have a firm foundation and is to be avoided.
Building and defending this foundation is of vital importance to us here at Our Saviour’s, and it begins with me as your Pastor. In a few moments, our Executive Committee, on behalf of the entire congregation, will be asking me to promise that all of my teaching, preaching, every aspect of my ministry, will be in agreement with the Scriptures. As your Pastor, God holds me accountable for the spiritual well being of this congregation, and if I permit false teaching in this congregation that leads someone astray from the truth of the Gospel, God’s going to hold me responsible. You will be looking to me to provide your guidance, and it is my hope and prayer that as long as I am your Pastor, we will continue to base everything we do on the foundation of the Scriptures, rather than run after the latest fad, or trend that the world tells us we need to follow to survive.
But, I’m not the only one who will be charged with this responsibility this morning. Today, we begin another year of Sunday School. Those of you who have volunteered your time and talent this year will be asked to come forward, and promise before your fellow members here at Our Saviour’s and before God that you will accept the responsibility of teaching the Word of God to the children of this congregation, and that your teaching will be in agreement with that Word, which always points them to their savior, Jesus Christ. As a congregation, I would encourage you to pray for our Sunday School teachers, Confirmation Guides, and our Education Committee, as we seek to ensure that from a young age, we provide that solid foundation for our children to base their faith on. That’s why I was delighted to hear, and why I will be honored, to present to our third grade students their Bibles this morning. In doing so, we are placing in their hands that very foundation, which will tell them of their savior.
Parents, building that solid foundation doesn’t just happen with Sunday School, VBS, or Confirmation classes. It also takes place in the home. In our Old Testament reading from Deuteronomy, we hear God tell us “Teach them to your children. Talk about them all the time whether you’re at home, or walking along the road, or going to bed at night, or getting up in the morning.” If you’re looking for help with getting started with teaching your children to pray in the morning or at night, come talk with me. Or, look to the Small Catechism, where Martin Luther gives us patterns of a few minutes of scripture reading and prayer to take place when we rise and when we go to bed. Christian Education not only happens within the walls of Our Saviour’s, but it also takes place in the home.
Today, it’s easy to talk about Christian Education, and think of our children, but it’s also a good time to remember that Christian Education doesn’t end at Confirmation. Some of you have already heard me say, and our 7th & 8th graders will hear this a few times this year that “confirmation is not graduation from church”. That’s why we have Bible study groups here at the church. Stick around after church each Sunday while your children or grandchildren are in Sunday School, and take part in a Bible class. I’m planning to begin teaching a couple of different Bible classes this year at different times during the week. I’m happy that a few of you have come into my office already this past week, and asked me “Pastor, will you be teaching a Bible class this year? I’d really like that if you would.” That tells me that there are many of you who want to build their foundation on the solid rock that is Jesus Christ. It’s my prayer that more of you will have that desire to be in the Word.
Our Epistle reading encourages us, as Paul encourages a young Pastor Timothy, to “keep on being faithful to what you were taught and to what you believed” and reminds us that “Everything in the Scriptures is God’s Word. All of it is useful for teaching and helping people and for correcting them and showing them how to live.” It’s what we are to be about here at Our Saviour’s Lutheran Church. If we deviate from that in any way, shape, or form, our solid foundation will quickly turn to sinking sand. While it may be extremely tempting to chase after the world for success or to grow in numbers, we are encouraged this morning to keep our focus not on the things of this world that always change, but on the one thing that never changes. God’s Word. For nearly 100 years, this congregation has been faithfully proclaiming Jesus Christ crucified for the sins of the world. That’s why I like the statement the congregation adopted while Pastor Kukkonen was here “ Knowing Jesus, Growing in Jesus, Sharing Jesus”, which appears on the top of our church’s letterhead. All of these three things take place when we have our foundation built on the Word. It is through the Word that we learn of who we are, poor, miserable sinners who are destined to eternity in hell, unable to pay the penalty of our sins, and it is also where we learn of our Savior from that sin, Jesus Christ. The Bible tells us of how much God loved us, that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Jesus took the sins of the entire world, yours and mine, to that cross, and left them in the tomb on Easter, so that we can have life with Him forever. The Word not only helps us know Jesus, but it helps us to grow in our understanding and appreciation of what Jesus did for us, and how we can live lives that show others that love, peace, and joy that can only be found in Christ. Once we know Jesus, and grow in Jesus, we are empowered to share Jesus with the world, be it our next door neighbors, friends, relatives, or the random stranger you meet during the week.
As you can see, today is a day where the importance of the Word of God is stressed, as I am installed as your Pastor, and as we begin another year of Christian Education for all ages in this congregation. Indeed, there was no better Sunday to celebrate both of these great events in the history of Our Saviour’s than today, as we were reminded of what our foundation needs to be as we go forward. It is my hope and prayer that God will indeed bless our efforts to place into people’s lives the living, active Word of God, so that we can bring the great message of the Gospel to the world. Let us not shy away from that Word, or try to change it as other churches, yes even Lutheran churches, have done or attempted to do, but embrace it, and proclaim it in all that we do. May God grant that for Jesus sake. Amen.
