Sermon Index
July 31, 2022
I will start with the conclusion. The meaning of life is to live as a Christian.
In todayfs Gospel reading, Luke 12:16, Jesus told a parable, saying,
gThe land of a rich man produced plentifully, 17 and he thought to himself, eWhat shall I do, for I have nowhere to store my crops?f 18 And he said, eI will do this: I will tear down my barns and build larger ones, and there I will store all my grain and my goods. 19 And I will say to my soul, Soul, you have ample goods laid up for many years; relax, eat, drink, be merry.f 20 But God said to him, eFool! This night your soul is required of you, and the things you have prepared, whose will they be?f 21 So is the one who lays up treasure for himself and is not rich toward God.h
The words that jump out to me are in verse 20, gBut God said to him, eFool! This night your soul is required of you.h On January 12, 2022, I had a heart attack. I passed out in the emergency room and recovered 9 hours later in the ICU, after open heart by-pass surgery. Honestly, the first thoughts that came to my mind were, gOh, I am alive. I guess God still has a purpose for me that he let me live.h Since then, I have wondered what God wants me to do. And maybe the best advice is from Ecclesiastes 2:24. gThere is nothing better for a person than that he should eat and drink and find enjoyment in his toil. This also, I saw, is from the hand of God.h
The nurse told me that I must be careful of what I eat, not too much sugar, salt, or fats. But what I can eat, I enjoy, especially because my wife is a good cook. And I was glad when the doctor said I could drink coffee. The Ecclesiastes Preacher said to enjoy my toil which is from the hand of God. My gtoilh is the work of being the pastor of Okinawa Lutheran Church. Yes, there are some big frustrations in this church, but my biggest joy is when I am teaching Bible classes and when preaching the Word of God. So, I feel that the purpose of my life for now, is to continue my work here as Pastor at Okinawa Lutheran Church and to love and cherish my wife. And in doing so, I can truly grelax, eat, drink, and be merry.h I am merry because I am a Christian. I can relax because I know my treasure of salvation is in heaven.
Saint Paul says that what the earthly world sees as a merry life, is not what God wants. In todayfs second Bible reading, Colossians 3:1?11, the Apostle writes and tells us that as Baptized Christians we have a new way of thinking, a new way of life. He also tells us what the new life is not like.
g1 If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. 2 Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. 3 For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. 4 When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory. 5 Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. 6 On account of these the wrath of God is coming. 7 In these you too once walked, when you were living in them. 8 But now you must put them all away: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and obscene talk from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices 10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. 11 Here there is not Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, free; but Christ is all, and in all.h
Christ died to forgive those sins. He arose to give us new life and therefore a new lifestyle. Verse 10 says we ghave put on the new self.h It is like putting on new clothes or a uniform, signifying a new life in gthe image of our creator.h To live in the image of God, like Adam and Eve before the Fall, can only be done through the forgiveness of Christ and the gift of the Holy Spirit. It is faith and trust in Jesus for everything in life.
The Ecclesiastes Preacher described the life when we do not put our treasures with the Lord. He said, gvanity of vanities! All is vanity.h All is empty, worthless, meaningless, a complete waste. Sometimes I wonder if I have wasted my life. I wonder if there is meaning to life. This feeling leads some people to despair and suicide and violence. But when the Holy Spirit gave me the gift of faith, he also gave me the gift of stubbornness and optimism. Therefore, I have survived in my work, I have not given up. I know that in Jesus Christ, it is not all vanity, that life is valuable. It is a treasure. It is so valuable that Christ died and rose again for me, that I might die in baptism and live for Him.
And so, my conclusion is that the meaning of life is to live as a Christian.
Amen.
Michael Nearhood, Pastor
Okinawa Lutheran Church