Deuteronomy 32:39 *
In the name of the One who is the Resurrection and the Life, dear friends:
Have you ever been in a work environment with more than one boss? Maybe it was a summer job. Maybe it’s the job you have right now. When you get to work your supervisor tells you what you to do. But not long after that someone else comes along and tells you to do your job differently or to do something else entirely.
If you have ever found yourself in a situation like that, how did it make you feel? Confused? Irritated? Frustrated? Did you want to quit, or did you just want to scream? Without an established chain of command, without clearly defined roles and responsibilities, productivity inevitably suffers.
And so do the employees. They don’t know what to do. They don’t know who they answer to. And they can’t be sure if they are doing the right thing because they don’t know what the right thing is.
I wonder if Christians sometimes feel the same way about life issues. This topic confronts us with all kinds of questions: When does life begin? When does life end? What are the moral ramifications of embryonic stem cell research? What is the difference between sustaining life and prolonging death?
These are important questions, but before we come up with any answers we need to consider what I will call the ultimate question: Who is in charge? Who should decide if something is good or bad, right or wrong? Is it the President’s job to issue executive decrees? Is it the responsibility of the Congress to pass legislation? Or should we leave it up to scientists and ethicists to come up with the answers?
With all of the different ideas that are out there, with so many opposing voices talking at the same time, it is easy to feel confused and overwhelmed. That is why it is good for us to observe a Life Sunday. That is why it is good for us to go back to the source of all life. And so for a few minutes this morning we will listen to what God has to say about this all-important question. When it comes to life issues…
WHO IS REALLY IN CHARGE?
I. The world claims that it is
in charge
II. I
sometimes like to think that I am in charge
III. The
Lord assures us that He is in charge
While abortion remains a controversial topic in our country, other life related issues have become increasingly prominent in recent years. And because of things like the passing of physician assisted suicide legislation in Oregon and the media’s intense coverage of the Terry Schiavo case in Florida last year more and more attention is being paid to “end of life” issues.
Human beings possess an inherent will to live. We want to live, and if threatened we will fight to stay alive. But what if something changes? What happens when that will to live becomes a desire to die? Should a person be forced to remain alive? There are some who would say “NO,” and they are part of the growing “right to die” movement.
In order to understand why some people are willing to expend huge amounts of time and energy and money fighting for the right to die, we need to understand why someone would want to die in the first place. Here are some answers given by real people (taken from a number of “right to die” websites):
One man believed that this decision should be made on the basis of quality of life. He said: “A person should be free to choose to die when life ceases to be worth living.” Another man admitted that his desire to die was based primarily on financial considerations. The final response (this one from a woman) summarizes the most popular argument used in favor of the right to die: It’s pretty simple, really. I want my physician to help me terminate my life so that I can finally be free of the pain.”
As different as these answers are, they all have one thing in common, control. The world wants you to believe that you are in control. You should decide when life is (or isn’t) worth living. You should decide how to spend your money. You should be able to decide when enough is enough. After all it’s your life, isn’t it? Therefore, it only makes sense that you should have the final say.
But what does God say? He says: “You shall not murder.” He says that human beings do not have the right to take life, even if that life is your own. It doesn’t matter how depleted your resources are or how many pills you have to take or what you perceive your quality of life to be. God is the creator of life, and he has reserved for himself the right to end life. And any attempt to usurp God’s divine authority is wrong.
Even if the Supreme Court declares that it is constitutional, it doesn’t stand up in God’s courtroom. Even if it becomes the law of the land, it doesn’t measure up against the law of God. “Right to die” advocates call it “death with dignity,” but God has a different name for it, sin. And sin has consequences... deadly consequences…eternal consequences.
It’s no surprise that the Lord and the world are at opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to end of life issues, but it isn’t just the world, is it? You and I live in this sinful world, and we are naïve if we think that we are not influenced by it. And there is at least a part of us that can sympathize with the people I quoted earlier.
Can it be so wrong for a man to want to leave his children an inheritance? That sounds more like a selfless act than a selfish act. And how can we deny someone who just wants to be free from pain, the kind of pain that you and I may never experience? When the medication doesn’t seem to be working and depression sets in and you can’t even remember what “normal” feels like anymore, why can’t we allow the doctor to prescribe something that will allow the suffering person to drift off into a permanent sleep?
It isn’t just the world. It’s me too. There are times when I think that I should be in charge. There are even times when I convince myself that I am in charge. I decide that what God ordains is NOT always good. I question his wisdom. I doubt his love. I reject his will and deserve his wrath.
It is only by the grace of God that I don’t get what I deserve. It is pure, unadulterated mercy that keeps God from saying: “Fine. If that’s really the way you want it, go ahead. Do whatever you want. But I want you to know that from now on you are on your own.”
Instead of allowing us to destroy ourselves our gracious God comes to us and says: “My foolish little lambs, even though you have wandered away from me many times before, I will take you back again. You might think that you know better than me, but I want you to remember that I knew you before you were born. I knit you in your mother’s womb. And as long as you live on this earth, you have my promise that I will never give you more than you can bear.”
When God reminds us that he is the one in charge, he isn’t putting us in our place or taking away something that rightfully belongs to us. Instead he is doing something for us that we could never do for ourselves. And as a result it is a great comfort to know that God is in control.
When Moses wrote the words of our text, he was addressing
the nation of
Those words don’t exactly sound like they are coming from a loving, caring God (actually they sound kind of harsh), but in the broader context the Lord is assuring his people that he will be there to help them and defend them against their enemies. And the promises God made to his people back then he repeats to his people today.
When the aches and pains become more than just aches and pains, remember that God is in control. When the doctors seem to have more questions than answers, remember that God is in control. The next time you visit a loved one in the hospital or the nursing home, remember that God is in control. No matter what the situation is, you can be sure that the Lord will meet your needs because he has already met your greatest need.
It really wouldn’t be Life Sunday without talking about the only perfect life ever lived. We would have no reason to celebrate God’s gift of life if God’s Son had not given up his own life. But we do because he did. Because Jesus died on the cross we have peace with God. Because Jesus died in our place we have hope for the future.
Because Jesus has taken care of our greatest problem (the problem of sin) we know that he will help us cope with all of life’s lesser problems. And what makes the Christian outlook on life so different, what makes the Christian perspective on life issues so unique, is that we know the day is coming when there will be no more problems.
The theme of this sermon was written in the form of a question: When it comes to life issues, who is really in charge? For Christians, the answer is clear. We believe that God is in control, and we rely on God’s Word to direct us in everything we do.
There is one more question I would like you to consider this morning. It is a question that I have been asked by a number of people after we observed Life Sundays in previous years. Motivated by the love of God and moved by the Spirit of God, members come up to me and ask: “Pastor, what can I do? What can I do to help? What can I do to defend and support and promote life and pro-life causes.” Here are a couple suggestions…
Pray. Pray that women who are considering abortion will choose a different path. Pray that the mothers (and fathers) who can’t get rid of the guilt that lingers from past abortions will find forgiveness in the open arms of Jesus. Pray for the counselors and other volunteers who staff our pregnancy counseling centers. Pray for the people who are faced with difficult end-of-life decisions.
Give. Take home an empty baby bottle today and bring it back full so that Lutherans For Life can maintain and expand its ministries. Give an hour or two of your time every month to support the work of our local counseling centers.
Witness. Even if you don’t speak like angels, even if you can’t preach like Paul, you can still be a powerful pro-life witness. Maybe it will be in a casual conversation. Maybe it will be in the way you handle adversity. Maybe it will be in the way you cope with tragedy.
Fellow Christians, treasure God’s gift of life. Fellow Christian witnesses, spread God’s word of life. Amen.