October 8, 2023
Rev. Mary Erickson
Hope Lutheran Church
Stewardship Sermon – Week Two
Isaiah 6:1-8; Luke 4:16-21
Fearless Service
Friends, may grace and peace be yours in abundance in the knowledge of God and Christ Jesus our Lord.
One of my professors in seminary was Dr. Gerhard Forde. He was a Luther scholar. You could always count on him to tie everything back to our freedom in Christ. Christ has set us free from sin and death through his own death and resurrection. He has done everything – EVERYTHING – necessary for our salvation. So there is nothing – NOTHING – that you have to do beyond what Christ has already done. You don’t have to measure up to some standard. You don’t have to be perfect. You don’t have to accomplish X, Y, or Z.
After he had reminded us of this foundational truth, he paused dramatically. And then he asked, “So, now that you don’t have to do anything, what are you going to do?”
Indeed, what are we going to do?
In the second week of our fall stewardship emphasis, we pause to consider this question. We could rephrase it:
• What are we to do with our days?
• How are we called into action?
• How can we live out our faith?
We’ve been given bodies and brains. We can use these gifts to glorify our heavenly creator. We can advance the goals of God’s reign. The list of possibilities is endless:
• We can use our tongues for proclamation.
• We can employ our hands to heal and comfort.
• We can use our eyes to see where our neighbor has a need.
• We can utilize our brains to solve problems.
• We can apply our muscles and strength to shape and create.
In our Bible readings today, we meet two individuals who had a mission. Both Isaiah and Jesus sensed that they had a calling for their lives. Through their words and actions, they were called and sent into service.
The prophet Isaiah received a vision. He found himself standing in God’s heavenly throne room. It was an awesome, terrifying sight. Fantastic heavenly creatures stood before him. God sat on a lofty throne. Whenever the heavenly beings spoke, the entire space shook like an earthquake.
Isaiah realized he was way out of his league. Here he was: a limited and fallible human being in the midst of the most high God. He was overcome by dread. “Woe is me!” he cried. He felt so low, so inadequate.
Isaiah is describing a very human sensation. Have you ever been in a situation when you felt small and inadequate? Have you ever felt like you were in way over your head? It’s a dreadful feeling and probably universal to every human being.
Fear is always nearby. We suffer from a lot of anxiety. And here is where Martin Luther’s ringing refrain about the freedom of a Christian releases us from anxiety’s grip. Our true identity is rooted in Christ. In Christ, we’ve been born anew. Christ looks at us and declares: My beloved. My chosen one. This is who we truly are – not as the world critically judges us, but who our Lord declares us to be.
In our reading from Luke, the camera zooms in on Jesus in his hometown synagogue. The son of Nazareth returns home just as his fame is beginning to swell. All eyes turn to him as he enters the synagogue. As a sign of honor, he’s asked to read from the scriptures. Jesus is handed the scroll of the prophet Isaiah. He turns the scroll to chapter 61 and reads the passage about the promised Messiah:
“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to bring good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovery of sight to the blind, to let the oppressed go free, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.”
When he’s finished reading, he rolls up the scroll and hands it back to the attendant. There’s a pause. All eyes are fixed on Jesus, waiting to hear what he’ll say about the text. “Today,” he says, “This scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.”
They didn’t have microphones then, but if they did, this would have been the moment for a microphone drop. Boom!
Jesus announced his mission. This is what he came to accomplish. He is the servant-messiah. He has come with a message of freedom and healing. He came to release an oppressed humanity. Through him and his actions, the new era of the Lord’s favor will dawn upon humanity.
His mission, his fearless service, will lead him to a rendezvous with his cross and grave. And through his selfless serving he fulfilled all that he proclaimed on that day in Nazareth. All of scripture has been fulfilled through what he accomplished. We’ve been set free, formed into Christ’s new creation.
Back, now, to Isaiah in God’s throne room. Isaiah was filled with fear and dread. One of the angels took a pair of tongs and picked up a live coal from the altar. This live coal he then touched to Isaiah’s lips. In that moment, Isaiah was made clean and whole.
Heaven’s altar. Altars were for making a sacrifice. The offering was placed upon the altar, and there it was burned. And what would be the offering on heaven’s altar? It can only be one thing: the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This is why the live coal had the power to cleanse Isaiah. It was the power of Christ himself to make all things new.
It's only then, after the coal has touched his lips, that Isaiah can hear the question, “Whom shall I send? Who will go for us?”
That glowing ember of grace transformed Isaiah. This is the same man whose knees crumbled underneath him from the dread of his own inadequacies and shortcomings. But now he declares, “Here! Here I am! Send me!” Isaiah is freed into fearless service.
From dread to fearless service – this is the freedom we have in Christ. This divine freedom releases us into a life of service. It encourages us to understand our daily “occupations” as our mission, our calling of service to the world. Mission isn’t limited to people in holy professions. It’s a gift, an opportunity, for all of us. When the world has a need, we all can say, “Here am I, send me!” We serve our neighbor, and in serving our neighbor and the greater good, we fulfill the intentions of God.
This freedom liberates us to be part of God’s delivery system of goodness on earth. We are God’s hands and feet. Through our actions, we facilitate and form God’s good intentions for humanity and the world into reality.
There is deep joy in this. And serving brings about its own blessings.
• Number one, purpose. When we reframe our actions in terms of service and calling, we gain a sense of purpose. It adds deeper meaning to what we do.
• Secondly, vitality and longevity. People who serve live longer. Service gives us a reason to get up in the morning, it keeps us moving and mentally aware.
• And thirdly, when we have a shared mission with others, we gain community and a sense of belonging. Serving with others strengthens the sense that we’re part of something bigger than just ourselves. In serving, we find that we’re not quite as alone as we might have supposed.
The words Jesus quoted from Isaiah are also appropriate for each one of us: the Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me … and he has sent me.”
Through Christ, we are liberated into fearless service.
