Preparing for Worship - October 13, 2024

The Scriptures this week give warnings from the Lord about the dangers of falling away from faith in Him and His rescuing work for His people. There are also words of hope from the Lord, in listening to Him and trusting His work in enabling us to stay in faith.

The Psalm is Psalm 90:12-17. This is a Psalm of Moses, written after God’s people had been rescued from slavery in Egypt. Moses reminds them of how short their lives are on this earth, in comparison with the everlasting Lord, and how many struggles they will have in this sinful world. As our reading begins, Moses calls upon his people to “number their days, that they may get a heart of wisdom” from the Lord. They need the Lord’s pity and mercy and steadfast love and will be able to see His glorious power and work on their behalf. He is able also to establish our work in ways that are pleasing to Him and give us joy and gladness in His grace.

Unfortunately, God’s own people often sinned and rebelled against Him. The Old Testament lesson, from Amos 5:6-7, 10-15, is an example of this from the time of the Northern Kingdom of Israel. Many of the people hated hearing the truth and acted unjustly toward others, especially the poor and the needy. They built stone houses and planted vineyards, often profiting off the abuse of others. Their sins were great, in this evil time. Amos called upon the people to “seek the Lord and live,” but also prophesied that many of them would never enjoy their homes and vineyards, because they would be carried away into captivity (by the Assyrians) because of their sinful unbelief. There is a promise, though, that the Lord might spare and be gracious to a “remnant” of God’s people, who remained in faith by His grace. That is what happened when Jesus came from that remnant of surviving, faithful Jews and did His saving, forgiving work for all people.

The Epistle lesson continues readings from the Letter to the Hebrews in Hebrews 3:12-19. Here, too, come warnings of evil hearts that could lead people to fall away from the living God in unbelief. The example here is from God’s Old Testament people and their rebellion against God at the time of Moses. (You could read about this in Numbers 14:1ff, for example.) In Hebrews 3:15-19, the author quotes from Psalm 95:7ff, showing that almost all of those who came out of Egypt died in the wilderness in sin and rebellion and unbelief. He calls God’s people who share in Christ to hold on to our original confidence in Him. Sin is so deceitful, and our hearts can become hardened over time against the Lord. So, the author says, we need to keep on exhorting and encouraging each other through the use of God’s Word and Sacraments, through which the Holy Spirit works and keeps us in faith. That’s why we have worship and the Divine Service together and read and study our Scriptures, etc. It is not, as some say, “once in faith, you can never fall away.” We continually need our Lord and His Word and grace to keep us in faith.

The Gospel lesson is from Mark 10:17-22. A Jewish man runs up to Jesus and calls him a good teacher and asks what he must do to inherit eternal life. Jesus points him to the reality that only God is good, and one must depend on Him alone. (Jesus Himself was sinless, but as a true man, he always depended upon His heavenly Father’s guidance and direction and help.) Jesus then reminds the man of many of the Ten Commandments, which should have helped him realize his own sinfulness. Instead, the man thinks he has kept all these commandments from youth, which Jews were often taught should and could be done. Jesus challenges the man, who was rich, at his greatest point of weakness, and asks him to sell what he had and give it to the poor. Even more important, Jesus calls the man simply to come and follow Him, Jesus, in faith, for He was the promised Savior, whose perfect life and payment for the sins of the world on the cross could save him. The man is shocked and gloomy and goes away sorrowful. He was breaking the First Commandment, above all, trusting himself and his own goodness and his great wealth, rather than Jesus, Lord and Savior. (This is said so simply in many places and in Mark 16:16, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Be sure to pay attention to next week’s reading from Mark, also, which speaks to all of us and our need for Jesus our Savior, too. He alone can save us by His grace through the continuing gift of faith in Him.)