For Series C of the three year lectionary, the readings for this 11th Sunday after Pentecost are Genesis 15:1-6; Hebrews 11:1-16 and Luke 12:22-40. The passage to preach about is Genesis 15:6, “And he believed in the Lord, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”
Part of the problem for the natural man is to understand the Bible because of the lack of analogies that fit. For example, whoever heard of three persons but one essence or body and blood being in, with and under the forms of bread and wine? In fact, the very essence of the Christian faith has no analogy or comparable experience in the world to use as a comparison. And what is that essence? That by trusting a promise, one’s status is changed eternally.
I don’t receive a birthday card with money from my mother when expected. So I phone her and she informs me that she sent the gift but sent it to another address of a home I own. Now I believe her but I still don’t have the money. So I go to the house and find the letter in the mailbox with a check inside but I still don’t have the money. So I go to the bank and only after cashing the check do I have the money. That means that even though I trusted the word of my mother, it didn’t make any difference until I went and got the check, etc.
How different is the Christian faith from any other religion. No other religion provides sure salvation because of believing a promise. And exactly what is the promise? It is the promise that not at my conversion, not at my baptism, not at my inviting Christ into my heart but rather at the cross of Christ my sins were entirely forgiven and God pronounced an absolution upon sinful me–even though I was not even born!
For you see, the trust or faith that saves is a confidence that what God has said about my sins actually took place before I came to faith! It occurred on a wind-swept hill called Calvary outside of Jerusalem by the garbage dump. The fact that Jesus was forsaken by His Father–another mystery beyond full comprehension–means that I will never be forsaken. The objective reality of my sin being forgiven and therefore not being held accountable for the punishment of that sin, took place at the cross and was made certain by the resurrection.
We therefore do not say to unbelievers, “If you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ your sins WILL BE forgiven.” No, instead, we proclaim that “Your sins HAVE BEEN forgiven. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.” The difference is the difference between living under the Law assuming that what I do, think, say or believe is the foundation for my salvation and living under the Gospel concluding that what Jesus did for me is the reason for my salvation. We are saved the same way as was Abraham who believed the unbelievable by the power of the Holy Spirit at which occasion God declared him righteous in His sight!
Name:Tom Baker