Tell Them: The Kingdom of God Is Here :: Luke 10:1-9
Say to them, ‘The kingdom of God has come (and continues to come) near to you’ (v 9).
[Introduction]
When Saint Paul and Saint Barnabus went to Jerusalem to meet with Saint James the brother of Jesus, Saint Peter, and Saint John the son of Zebedee in Acts 15, they laid before these pillars of the Church of God the Gospel they had preached during their first missionary journey to the world (Acts 13:1-14:28). They reported how the One True Gospel ... the proclamation of the liberating death and resurrection of Christ ... was bringing the Gentiles ... that’s you ... salvation by grace through faith in Jesus apart from the works of the Law. They reported that all of us enter the Kingdom of God by baptism, not circumcision ... by faith, not by works. They reported how the amazing Gospel that God, who knows the heart, is being poured out by the Holy Spirit without distinction, cleansing hearts by faith (Acts 15:8-9) ... They reported that we are saved on account of the blood of Jesus alone (Acts 15:11) ... saved in the waters of baptism alone. They reported that your saving faith is nurtured and strengthened in the Sacrament of the Altar, which God delivers to his people (Acts 2:42).
4. Among those who heard and received this Gospel was a man named Titus.
Titus was an uncircumcised Gentile when he heard the preaching of Paul for the first time. And he became a living example that pagans who are baptized into the death and resurrection of Jesus can receive the same freedom from the sickness of sin that plagues us all. Titus was so overcome by the Good News of Jesus that he himself became a Saint ... that is, one who follows Jesus all the days of his life ... one who is set apart for service by God in the church ... one who becomes devoted every day to the apostles’ teaching, to communion, to the breaking of bread, and to the prayers ... just like the Church did on the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:42), and continued to do throughout the book of Acts.
We don’t know exactly when Saint Titus began walking the Way with Saint Paul ... his name never appears in the book of Acts. But it was probably during Paul’s first missionary journey in Acts 13 and 14. And as Second Corinthians indicates, Titus became a frequent companion of Paul and undoubtedly heard his words in our first reading today from Acts 20, words often spoken during the ordination of men into pastoral ministry: Take heed to yourself and all the flock in which the Holy Spirit has placed you as overseers, to shepherd the church of God, which he obtained through his own blood (Acts 20:28).
Those words most certainly guided Titus as a pastor all the days of his life after he landed in Crete, a place Paul, in his letter to Titus, said was filled with liars, evil beasts, and lazy gluttons ... people who professed to know God but who refused to allow God to draw near to them and to serve them every day (Titus 1:12-16). As Paul writes in 2 Corinthians, Titus became a model of faithfulness. This is one reason we commemorate him today.
3. [We need more men to proclaim that the kingdom comes and continues to come.]
Brothers and sisters in Christ, we need more pastors ... more men like Titus who would rather be a door keeper in the house of our God than to dwell in the tents of the wicked (Ps 84:10). We need more servants for our church and more teachers for our schools ... not only the church at large, but this church in Appleton City. We need more men to step up and proclaim how the True Lamb of God takes away the sin of the world ... how our sinless Lord sacrificed himself on the mountain of God ... how our Lord offered himself as the sacrifice to end all sacrifices on the altar of the cross and then rose from the dead and ascended into heaven with the promise to draw near and continue to draw to you and me in his Divine Service every Lord’s Day and the other festivals (Ap XXIV).
Being an overseer, that is, a pastor of the flock that Jesus obtained with his own blood, is perhaps the most difficult calling in the church. As the disciples learned right before our Gospel reading, discipleship may require martyrdom. It may require dealing with people who argue about being the greatest Christian (Lk 9:46-48). It may require being rejected by the people in Samaria (Lk 9:51-56), and even stoned and beaten and imprisoned for the faith, because if the world hates Jesus ... and it does ... it will hate you, too. The word of the cross is foolishness to the world (1 Cor 1:18). The word of the cross and empty tomb reminds men that when you vow to follow Jesus, you might not have a place to lay your head (Lk 9:57-62).
But when you hear the Gospel, it actually changes you.
Is it any wonder why the seventy-two men Jesus appointed ... to go forth two by two ... as lambs in the midst of wolves (vv 1, 3) ... did so willingly?
On account of this Gospel we are all called to proclaim, we learn that there is no need to worry about your future. Those seventy-two men went forth eagerly with no purse, no bag, no sandals. Whenever [they entered] a house, they said, ‘Peace to this house!’ ... which is the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins. Without the forgiveness of sins, there is no peace ... first between you and God, and then between you and your neighbor. They quickly learned, as Jesus promised, that If a son of peace is there, your peace will rest upon him. But if not, it will return to you ... meaning, you will still have peace. Then abide in that house, eating and drinking whatever is before them, for the worker is worthy of his wages (vv 3-7).
2. [Catechism]
It’s easy to forget this truth when we put ourselves first.
So please now open your service book to Page 324 and join me in confessing our faithful doctrine on this matter. As the Head of the Household should teach it to his family in a simple way from the Lord’s Prayer ... What is the Second Petition? ... What does this mean?
1. [The call to follow Jesus who comes near and continues to come near is life changing.]
Why do so many people think that becoming a Christian means just showing up for an hour on Sundays? ... Why do so many people despise preaching and God’s Word ... professing to know God but denying him by their works (Titus 1:16) ... skipping Bible study and private devotions? ... Why do so many people worry about what they will eat or drink, what they will wear, or how they will pay the bills (Lk 10:4)? ... Why are so many people more interested in bottom lines instead of sound doctrine (Titus 2:1)? ... Why are so many people wrapped up in foolish controversies, genealogies, dissensions, and quarrels about the law (3:9)?
Instead, repent in the name of Jesus, remembering that ... The Kingdom of God has come and continues to come near to you. It comes through the epiphany of the Gospel proclaimed by Peter, John, James, Paul, Titus ... and all the saints. It comes through the means that proclaim the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus. It comes through Word and Sacraments, which do the same. It comes through the Divine Service. It comes, and continues to come so that the forgiveness of sins is not simply a concept but a state of being. It comes so that you will live the eternal life now. It comes because the church of God has been redeemed by the blood of Jesus. This is what Paul taught Titus to proclaim.
The cross and the empty tomb proclaim this truth, the epiphany of God’s peace ... through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom God poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our savior, so that having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life (3:5-7). The church of God shares this epiphany of peace by returning to baptism daily and receiving the Lord’s Supper, which is not simply a meal with a slender piece of bread and a sip of wine, but the true body and blood of Jesus given in communion with God specifically for the forgiveness of your sins.
Listen to the words of the liturgy God gave you to speak again. You pray for mercy, and God gives it to you. ... Why? ... Because he hears the prayers of the saints. You pray for clean hearts, and he makes you his saints, washed, set apart for service in God’s kingdom. You pray for forgiveness, and he announces it to you. You pray for daily bread, and he responds with the call to the Lord’s Supper. Now recall from your liturgy how the entire church of God ... all the saints who have gone before us ... your parents, your grandparents ... all of those who are with the Lord ... actually join you in this marriage feast of the Lamb that has no end.
YES, THE KINGDOM OF GOD HAS COME AND CONTINUES TO COME NEAR TO YOU THROUGH THE EPIPHANY OF JESUS
[Conclusion]
So ... whatever happened to Saint Titus, for whom we commemorate this day?
He served the church in Crete, a tiny island south of Greece, for forty-some years ... reminding his flock to be subject to rulers, to authorities, to be be obedient, to be prepared for every good work, to slander no one, to be peaceable, considerate, and showing gentleness toward all people (Titus 3:1-2).
We who listen to the Gospel should aspire to do the same ... because as Paul also reminds you ... in his letter to Titus: The grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people, training us to renounce ungodliness, in order that we may renounce ungodliness and worldly lusts, [living] in self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave himself on behalf of us in order to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession, who are zealous for good works (Titus 2:11-14).
... in Jesus’ name. Amen.