Chronic Fatigue Sin Drone

3^rd Sunday of Lent (February 24, 2008)

Rev. Steven D. Spencer – Pastor Messiah Lutheran Church, Salem, OR

Matthew 11:25-30

At that time Jesus declared, "I thank you, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that you have hidden these things from the wise and understanding and revealed them to little children; yes, Father, for such was your gracious will. All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him. Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light."

Jesus says in Matthew 11:25: "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.” This is the Word of the Lord.

It’s been nice to have a few days off, even if due to illness. But it’s good to be back. However, the unfortunate part about coming back is that there’s always time off payback to deal with. Payback is the unfortunate truth that, while you’re gone, the world keeps on going—making requests, leaving messages—and the work keeps piling up. Therefore, upon return, it’s not a matter of easing back into the job; instead, it’s a matter of digging out of the hole, catching up and then keep on going. There’s always more to get done, and there’s never enough time to do it.

These are the laws that exist in daily living. For one thing, nothing comes from nothing, so you’ve got to keep working hard. This applies to the couple working on their relationship, the parents training children, the student working on the term paper, the athlete in training and the employee who wants the promotion. You’re going to have to keep working hard for things to work out.

For another, mistakes are going to cost you, so work on avoiding them where possible and minimizing them when they occur. One bad test can ruin your grade for the semester, while one poor comment can set a relationship back by months. A misread can cost the game or a position on the team, and the failure to return a phone call can cost a client and get you in trouble with the boss. Yep. Mistakes are going to happen, and they’re going to cost. You’ve got to be thinking a few steps ahead and working at damage control.

Here’s another law of daily living: you have choices for help, but not all of them are good. You can get a tutor for help in school, but the tutor may not know the material either. A coach or a financial advisor can be a real solution, or only deepen the problem further. A builder can get the work done better and faster than you can, or leave you with a real mess and a big bill. A physician’s treatment may be just the trick, but a misdiagnosis can be a real problem. There are a lot of answers out there, but a lot of them are wrong. There are choices for help, but not all of them are helpful. That’s why you’ve got to pick and choose carefully.

Yet another goes like this: no matter how hard you try, success isn’t guaranteed. There are only so many slots on the team roster, so much room in the magazine, and there will always be higher SAT scores and a limited number of scholarships. You may be well-qualified for the new job opening—along with the other sixty applicants. The doctor may decline to do the surgery. The board may turn down your proposal, no matter how good it is.

Furthermore, accomplishing simple tasks will often be a difficult thing. If you don’t agree, you haven’t had to make and insurance claim or deal with health coverage in the recent past.

And furthermore, there’s always more to do. You put one thing to bed, and the next challenge is coming over the hill. There is always, always, always more to do.

 That’s a pretty good summary: nothing comes from nothing, so you’ve got to work hard. Mistakes are going to cost you. Choose your help wisely, because not all of it is helpful. Success isn’t guaranteed. Simple tasks will be difficult. There’s always more to do. That’s how life works. This is why a vacation, or a break, is helpful: the constant demands of life can drive you nuts and make you feel like you’re sprinting on ice.

This brings me to the conclusion that it sure was nice to be a kid. It was really nice to be a little kid, just learning to toddle along. There were no huge demands. There were no great responsibilities. There were no serious deadlines. Your job, as a little kid, was just to be you. It was to let parents put clothes on you, give you food, take you places, and worry about everything for you. Mistakes meant a brief punishment, then back to your life of being provided for. I tell you: when we were less than two years old, we had it made with no worries whatsoever everything given to us.

Which brings us back to our Lord’s words: "I thank You, Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from the wise and prudent and have revealed them to babes.” Jesus makes this faithful confession after a sermon to the multitudes who have been carefully catechized by the Pharisees and their own sinful natures. They’ve been trained to believe that salvation comes by daily works. Since nothing comes from nothing, you’ve got to work hard to get to heaven, and every mistake is going to cost you dearly. Work hard and sweat the details. Success isn’t guaranteed, because you may not be righteous like the Pharisees. Remember, too, that there’s always more to do. The job of salvation isn’t ever done, so keep working hard. That’s why the Pharisees continually berate the people with demands. That’s why they instruct the people on how to walk, what to eat, even how much makes for a proper tithe of herbs. For the shakers, movers and haves, the system seems to work: there are successful people who seem to be keeping the rules, and this is supposed to motivate everyone else to try. Some will try to be self-righteous. A lot more will give up and stop trying, because there’s only so much room at the top.

So much religion is run this way, even in Christianity: the Gospel is pictured as one more pursuit of excellence. If you’re wise enough and prudent enough and dedicated enough, then you can develop a solid faith and a mature relationship with Jesus. It all depends on how much you’re willing to put into it. It only makes sense—but it’s wrong. This is why Jesus declares that salvation has been revealed to babes, babes of whatever age. The babes, the young children, are the ones who treat religion like a little kid: they are believers who are there to be given to. They are there to be fed with forgiveness. They’re there to be clothed in righteousness. They’re there to be taken places, namely the kingdom of heaven. They’re quite happy, like a little child, to say to the Savior, “You’ve done all the work, and I’m happy to receive the benefits.”

That doesn’t work in the rat race of daily life, but that’s the Gospel. You and I have eternal life because Jesus has done all the work by His life and death and resurrection. He’s lived the perfect life for you. He’s died on the cross for your sins. He’s risen from the dead in order to raise you up and give you everlasting life. He’s even ascended into heaven to prepare the way for your ascent into heaven. He doesn’t say, “Work hard, and if you do well enough I’ll save you.” No, instead He declares this: "Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. "Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. "For My yoke is easy and My burden is light"(Matthew 11:28-30).

“Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” “Come to Me,” says Jesus, but He doesn’t mean “If you work hard enough to make your way to Me, I’ll reward you.” No, think instead think of the parent who scoops up a little child while at the same time saying, “You come here!”, and you have a better idea of the Savior. He has rest for all those who are weary and heavy laden, and that would be you. There are two types of people in this world: those who are weary and heavy laden with sin and weakness and know it, and those who are weary and heavy laden with sin and weakness and don’t know it. The former understand that the salvation isn’t about the rules of daily living; if it is, they’ll never get the work done. Thus, they’re happy to be rested by the Savior. The latter don’t think that the burden is heavy, so they see no need for the Savior. Instead, they’ll seek out salvation by their own rules. And they’ll never make it.

“Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” Note carefully again the words of Jesus. Not “take My yoke upon you and pull with Me,” but “take My yoke upon you and learn from Me.” Hear His Word that He has paid the price for your sins. Hear His Word that He gives you grace and faith and salvation and all good things. He does not come like the ox-driver, whip in hand and demanding a good performance before He rewards you. No, He is gentle and lowly and humble in heart, so much so that He gently rode into Jerusalem, suffered most lowly, and humbly went to the cross in your place. Because He’s suffered God’s wrath for you, you have rest for your souls with God forever. His yoke is easy and His burden is light, because the price for your salvation is already paid.

The rat race of daily living is enough of a rat race for you and me. Rather than seeking to make salvation work the same way, you and I ought to rightly say, “In everything I do in daily life, there is always more to do and I can never get it done, especially not perfectly. This accuses me. It shows me my limitations and failings, and it teaches me that if salvation works the same way, then I am utterly lost. Therefore, rather than seek to earn my way to heaven, I will simply confess my sins and give thanks that Jesus has earned my way to heaven for me. Rather than seek to wisely and prudently earn my salvation, I will instead be a child who rejoices to be taken care of, to be given to.”

Now, be careful. There is no greater joy than being a babe in the arms of the Savior, who delights to give you all good things. But your sinful nature will twist this up and say, “Did you hear that sermon? The pastor said that you don’t have to do anything, so go ahead and do whatever you want. The pastor said that being a Christian isn’t about how hard you work to build a strong relationship with God, so forget that stuff like reading the Bible and receiving the Sacraments.” Old Adam is highly skilled at hearing only what he wants, so do not be deceived. A little child delights to be given to. A little child delights to be fed and clothed and taken places. If the child refuses to eat, he grows weak and sick. If the child goes and hides so his parents can’t find him, then he can’t be fed or clothed or taken places. The Christian who does not often hear God’s Word and receive His Supper is not boldly demonstrating that he is saved by grace; he’s being a child who runs away and doesn’t want to be fed. Do not be such a child. Instead, rejoice that the Lord visits you time and time again, giving you forgiveness, clothing you in righteousness, promising the kingdom of heaven.

Life is a rat race, a struggle. You get out of it what you put into it if you’re lucky; and sooner or later, you can’t put enough into it to sustain. That’s how life works in this sinful fallen world. But that isn’t how salvation works with your sinless Savior. The Lord Jesus declares that He gives it to you freely as a parent gives to a little child. May your struggles and setbacks in life serve to give you this joy: that while you must labor wearily and bear heavy loads in this life, it is not so for eternal life. For when sin drones in your life and fatigue fills your days the Savior bids you, “Come unto Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.” That rest and salvation are yours, because you are forgiven for all of your sins in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen