Believing The Living Word
Sermon
PREVIEWS OF COMING ATTRACTIONS
Sermons for Advent, Christmas and Epiphany
There are few things in life which you can count on, but you can count on these two: the Word of God goes forth, and the Word of God does not return empty.
The rain falls to the earth and gives life to flowers, plants and trees before it returns to God who sent it. Water means life. The Word of God is like that water. In the Word and the water we have the possibility of new life beginning. Not every plant grows; not every human being is connected by the Word. But the life is there for the taking.
Perhaps you have some friend or relative for whom you have prayed for a long time. At times it seems like a hopeless cause. You pray and pray for years and nothing seems to change. The object of your affection, a son, a daughter, a wife or husband, a father or mother, just won't give in and believe in God. Instead, stunted and turned in on self, these loved ones go on living as materialists or practical atheists. They live as secular people, as if there is no God. Your heart is broken. You witness, talk and pray, seemingly to no avail. Here in today's Word there is hope, "My Word goes forth ... it shall not return to me empty."
The Word Goes Forth
The Word of God in the Old Testament means a spoken utterance about God. The concept of the Word comes from the Hebrew word dabar. The term "the Word of the Lord" occurs 400 times in the Old Testament and means any communication from God to man. It generally means the word of a prophet who speaks for God. Here in Isaiah 55 we hear that as the Word of the Lord is promulgated or proclaimed, it is like rain or snow. It goes forth and prospers, bringing new life. Some believe - not all, but some. Those who believe have eternal life as a blessing.
The Word of God in the New Testament is the translation of one of two Greek nouns, logos and rhema, which both come from verb roots which mean "to say." The Word is what God says. Logos is used 300 times; rhema, 70 times. Perhaps the most familiar passage about the Word is the opening passage of the Gospel of John.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; al/things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. (John bore witness to him, and cried, "This was he of whom Isaid, 'He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.' ") And from his fullness have we all received grace upon grace.
- John 1:1-16, RSV
In other words, in the New Testament the primary affirmation is that the Word goes forth in the person of Jesus Christ. In Jesus the Word of God is given flesh. We who believe in Jesus, the incarnate Word, are given new life, eternal life, receiving "grace upon grace." In Jesus, the Word is seen, heard and believed. In Jesus, the Word, we are blessed.
The Word also goes forth in the written form of the Bible. The early Christians were told not to leave the Word of God (Acts 6:2), which means that they were urged to read the Scriptures regularly. They were also urged to handle the written Word without deceit (2 Corinthians 4:2). The written Word is like a helmet of salvation (Ephesians 6:17). The written Word protects the brain and makes our thoughts whole.
The third form of the Word in the New Testament is the preached Word, the proclamation of the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. In Acts 13:44 we hear about the preaching of the gospel,"... Almost the whole city was gathered together to hear the Word of God." The gospel message was preached in Antioch by Paul and Barnabas (Also see Luke 5:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:8 and 2 Thessalonians 3:1). In other words, the Word goes forth in the form of preaching the Gospel of Christ. Preaching in the New Testament is more than just the preaching of apostles and pastors in the context of worship services. In the New Testament, preaching is the witness and sharing of all the people of God.
Paul advises his young protege, Timothy, that until Christ returns: "Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort without great patience and instruction (2 Timothy 4:2)." Why preach? Because God uses preaching to bring people to faith.
This Word Does Not Return Empty
The specific context for the Old Testament promise in Isaiah 55 is the Word spoken through the prophets of God. When the prophets spoke the Word of God, some people believed. In the New Testament we have the same assurance of the Word reaching peoples' hearts in the person of Jesus Christ, the Scriptures and the preaching of the gospel. Not all believe, but the Word goes forth and always some believe and live.
Jesus Christ gives us unmerited grace upon grace. Some people resist that freely given grace for years, and then one day the barrier is broken. Jesus gets through. All the witnessing and example of Christians which seem to have been in vain, one day bear fruit. The Word Jesus Christ scores a victory over sin, death and the demonic forces which try to combine to keep people from God. The Word wins out over great odds.
For example, recently the Word got through to a man named Harry. After 76 years of life turned in on self, Harry finally said, "Yes" to Jesus Christ. Luther said we are curved in on the self (en curvitas en se) until we are turned to Christ. When Christ wins us over, our center changes from self to God. The Word, like water, brings nourishment and life.
Romano Guardini, a Roman Catholic bishop, puts it this way: "Until we make the transposition to Christ we will fight, found and form this or that ... without affecting the constantly flowing sands of time for more than an instant." The Word, when appropriated, changes all that. For Harry this transposition happened recently in baptism.
The Word does not return empty. Bible verses by the hundreds had been read to Harry, all with no apparent effect. I read many passages from Scripture to him when he was taken down with a stroke about a year and a half before he was baptized. The words seemed like so much water off a duck's back. But the Word of God as it was shared was like so many seeds planted in Harry's life. On Wednesday, June 14, 1989, Harry was baptized. The plant, watered all these years, finally bloomed.
The Bible passages had been resisted. The Word seemed ineffective, but was actually working quietly and powerfully in Harry's heart. Charles Spurgeon was once asked how he would defend the Bible. "Defend it?" he asked. "Would you defend a lion? The Scripture does not need to be defended. Just set it free. It will defend itself." That happened to Harry. Words of Scripture graced his baptism. The Word, as Scripture, was set free to defend itself and create a new life. The preached Word was also effective in Harry's life.
The preached Word is not just the Sunday sermons by pastors but the witnessing to Christ by many people in many ways. Occasionally sermons were heard, but in Harry's case he just yawned. Witnessing to Christ seemed to bear no fruit. Many Christians witnessed to Harry and prayed for him, including his wife who was a devout Christian and his grandchildren who talked to him about God. None of it seemed to help. But God has made a promise, "My Word shall not return to me empty." The witness of hundreds of people came to fruition on June 14, 1989. Christ was confessed as Lord and Savior. Harry was baptized.
We sometimes wondered whether all the effort was in vain. In Harry's life the Word did not seem to bring life. Who would have guessed that the Word would bring forth life the very weekend that I preached on this text? This sermon on Isaiah 55:10-13 was outlined about six months before it was preached. On the morning of June 14, a sermon manuscript on this text was begun. In relationship to Harry, the Word seemed untrue that morning. As I wrote the sermon on this text I thought, "If the Word does not return empty after visiting the earth, then why is Harry still outside the church? Will he ever find new life in Christ?" That was the morning of June 14, 1989. On the evening of June 14, I received a phone call from Chicago saying: "We have some good news for you," Harry said. "Today I was baptized."
It is very good for me to share this good news with you. It is good to write it down. It is good to include it in this chapter about the Word not returning empty. When Harry was baptized, it was an answer to hundreds and hundreds of prayers for more than 33 years. As I have preached and lectured around the country, I always ask the groups of people to pray for Harry. "Wing your prayers toward Chicago, Illinois," I requested. "We don't know what prayer is, only that it is. We don't know how prayer works, only that it works. Pray for Harry's conversion and baptism before he dies," I said. "I love him. I want him to find peace through Jesus Christ before he dies."
Water came down from heaven. Some of it fell into Lake Michigan and became a part of the watering system of Chicago. Some of it was put into a bowl and used for Harry's baptism on June 14. It thus became holy water, sacramental water. That water has now returned to the heavens from which it came, having touched a human being in a sacramental way.
Harry was 75 years old when he almost died of a stroke in 1988. At this writing, he is still bedridden. But things are different now. Harry is baptized. He belongs to God. He is getting prepared for the final chapter of his life. He is prepared to meet his Maker. The living Word has gotten through and returns to heaven having done its job - preparing someone for eternity.
The Word of God is alive and working. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth. "Grace upon grace" was experienced in the water of baptism. I am a very happy man. I am a happy son. Harry is my father.
The rain falls to the earth and gives life to flowers, plants and trees before it returns to God who sent it. Water means life. The Word of God is like that water. In the Word and the water we have the possibility of new life beginning. Not every plant grows; not every human being is connected by the Word. But the life is there for the taking.
Perhaps you have some friend or relative for whom you have prayed for a long time. At times it seems like a hopeless cause. You pray and pray for years and nothing seems to change. The object of your affection, a son, a daughter, a wife or husband, a father or mother, just won't give in and believe in God. Instead, stunted and turned in on self, these loved ones go on living as materialists or practical atheists. They live as secular people, as if there is no God. Your heart is broken. You witness, talk and pray, seemingly to no avail. Here in today's Word there is hope, "My Word goes forth ... it shall not return to me empty."
The Word Goes Forth
The Word of God in the Old Testament means a spoken utterance about God. The concept of the Word comes from the Hebrew word dabar. The term "the Word of the Lord" occurs 400 times in the Old Testament and means any communication from God to man. It generally means the word of a prophet who speaks for God. Here in Isaiah 55 we hear that as the Word of the Lord is promulgated or proclaimed, it is like rain or snow. It goes forth and prospers, bringing new life. Some believe - not all, but some. Those who believe have eternal life as a blessing.
The Word of God in the New Testament is the translation of one of two Greek nouns, logos and rhema, which both come from verb roots which mean "to say." The Word is what God says. Logos is used 300 times; rhema, 70 times. Perhaps the most familiar passage about the Word is the opening passage of the Gospel of John.
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; al/things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it ... And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father. (John bore witness to him, and cried, "This was he of whom Isaid, 'He who comes after me ranks before me, for he was before me.' ") And from his fullness have we all received grace upon grace.
- John 1:1-16, RSV
In other words, in the New Testament the primary affirmation is that the Word goes forth in the person of Jesus Christ. In Jesus the Word of God is given flesh. We who believe in Jesus, the incarnate Word, are given new life, eternal life, receiving "grace upon grace." In Jesus, the Word is seen, heard and believed. In Jesus, the Word, we are blessed.
The Word also goes forth in the written form of the Bible. The early Christians were told not to leave the Word of God (Acts 6:2), which means that they were urged to read the Scriptures regularly. They were also urged to handle the written Word without deceit (2 Corinthians 4:2). The written Word is like a helmet of salvation (Ephesians 6:17). The written Word protects the brain and makes our thoughts whole.
The third form of the Word in the New Testament is the preached Word, the proclamation of the gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ. In Acts 13:44 we hear about the preaching of the gospel,"... Almost the whole city was gathered together to hear the Word of God." The gospel message was preached in Antioch by Paul and Barnabas (Also see Luke 5:1; 1 Thessalonians 1:8 and 2 Thessalonians 3:1). In other words, the Word goes forth in the form of preaching the Gospel of Christ. Preaching in the New Testament is more than just the preaching of apostles and pastors in the context of worship services. In the New Testament, preaching is the witness and sharing of all the people of God.
Paul advises his young protege, Timothy, that until Christ returns: "Preach the Word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort without great patience and instruction (2 Timothy 4:2)." Why preach? Because God uses preaching to bring people to faith.
This Word Does Not Return Empty
The specific context for the Old Testament promise in Isaiah 55 is the Word spoken through the prophets of God. When the prophets spoke the Word of God, some people believed. In the New Testament we have the same assurance of the Word reaching peoples' hearts in the person of Jesus Christ, the Scriptures and the preaching of the gospel. Not all believe, but the Word goes forth and always some believe and live.
Jesus Christ gives us unmerited grace upon grace. Some people resist that freely given grace for years, and then one day the barrier is broken. Jesus gets through. All the witnessing and example of Christians which seem to have been in vain, one day bear fruit. The Word Jesus Christ scores a victory over sin, death and the demonic forces which try to combine to keep people from God. The Word wins out over great odds.
For example, recently the Word got through to a man named Harry. After 76 years of life turned in on self, Harry finally said, "Yes" to Jesus Christ. Luther said we are curved in on the self (en curvitas en se) until we are turned to Christ. When Christ wins us over, our center changes from self to God. The Word, like water, brings nourishment and life.
Romano Guardini, a Roman Catholic bishop, puts it this way: "Until we make the transposition to Christ we will fight, found and form this or that ... without affecting the constantly flowing sands of time for more than an instant." The Word, when appropriated, changes all that. For Harry this transposition happened recently in baptism.
The Word does not return empty. Bible verses by the hundreds had been read to Harry, all with no apparent effect. I read many passages from Scripture to him when he was taken down with a stroke about a year and a half before he was baptized. The words seemed like so much water off a duck's back. But the Word of God as it was shared was like so many seeds planted in Harry's life. On Wednesday, June 14, 1989, Harry was baptized. The plant, watered all these years, finally bloomed.
The Bible passages had been resisted. The Word seemed ineffective, but was actually working quietly and powerfully in Harry's heart. Charles Spurgeon was once asked how he would defend the Bible. "Defend it?" he asked. "Would you defend a lion? The Scripture does not need to be defended. Just set it free. It will defend itself." That happened to Harry. Words of Scripture graced his baptism. The Word, as Scripture, was set free to defend itself and create a new life. The preached Word was also effective in Harry's life.
The preached Word is not just the Sunday sermons by pastors but the witnessing to Christ by many people in many ways. Occasionally sermons were heard, but in Harry's case he just yawned. Witnessing to Christ seemed to bear no fruit. Many Christians witnessed to Harry and prayed for him, including his wife who was a devout Christian and his grandchildren who talked to him about God. None of it seemed to help. But God has made a promise, "My Word shall not return to me empty." The witness of hundreds of people came to fruition on June 14, 1989. Christ was confessed as Lord and Savior. Harry was baptized.
We sometimes wondered whether all the effort was in vain. In Harry's life the Word did not seem to bring life. Who would have guessed that the Word would bring forth life the very weekend that I preached on this text? This sermon on Isaiah 55:10-13 was outlined about six months before it was preached. On the morning of June 14, a sermon manuscript on this text was begun. In relationship to Harry, the Word seemed untrue that morning. As I wrote the sermon on this text I thought, "If the Word does not return empty after visiting the earth, then why is Harry still outside the church? Will he ever find new life in Christ?" That was the morning of June 14, 1989. On the evening of June 14, I received a phone call from Chicago saying: "We have some good news for you," Harry said. "Today I was baptized."
It is very good for me to share this good news with you. It is good to write it down. It is good to include it in this chapter about the Word not returning empty. When Harry was baptized, it was an answer to hundreds and hundreds of prayers for more than 33 years. As I have preached and lectured around the country, I always ask the groups of people to pray for Harry. "Wing your prayers toward Chicago, Illinois," I requested. "We don't know what prayer is, only that it is. We don't know how prayer works, only that it works. Pray for Harry's conversion and baptism before he dies," I said. "I love him. I want him to find peace through Jesus Christ before he dies."
Water came down from heaven. Some of it fell into Lake Michigan and became a part of the watering system of Chicago. Some of it was put into a bowl and used for Harry's baptism on June 14. It thus became holy water, sacramental water. That water has now returned to the heavens from which it came, having touched a human being in a sacramental way.
Harry was 75 years old when he almost died of a stroke in 1988. At this writing, he is still bedridden. But things are different now. Harry is baptized. He belongs to God. He is getting prepared for the final chapter of his life. He is prepared to meet his Maker. The living Word has gotten through and returns to heaven having done its job - preparing someone for eternity.
The Word of God is alive and working. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us full of grace and truth. "Grace upon grace" was experienced in the water of baptism. I am a very happy man. I am a happy son. Harry is my father.
