Sermon: Wittenberg Academy – Oct 6

6 October 2020

Text: Deut 5:22-6:9

In the name of + Jesus.  Amen.

Dr. Luther explains the First Commandment: “You shall have no other gods.”  “What does this mean?  We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.”  In a way, Moses is here explaining Dr. Luther’s explanation: “We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.”  What does this mean?  “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.  And these words that I command you shall be on your heart.  You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.”

So is this what we see in ourselves, dear Christian friends?  Is the Word of God the number one thing that occupies our minds?  Or are other things more important?  Do we teach this to our children in all that we say and do?  Do we teach our children to pray, or is it more important for them to brush their teeth and do their homework?  Is the Bible more important than math and science?  Do we speak of the Lord and His Gospel at the table, or do other topics of conversation dominate? 

When we run errands, do we listen to the Word of God?  While we take our children here and there, or run to the store, are we being molded by Scripture?  Or by the world?  When we lie down and when we rise, do we pray?  Are our homes decorated with the promises of God, or our favorite sports teams or political signage?  When we converse with our peers, is our conversation the same as the unbelievers?  Are we watching the same movies and shows, are we listening to the same music, is our mind focused on the cross, or are we more comfortable with the enemies of the cross?

Of course, we can teach our children both the Bible and math and science.  We can enjoy secular music and the rich hymnody of the Church.  We can talk politics or sports or current events with friends and still have room for the Gospel.  If we believe Moses – and Luther – not to mention our Lord Himself in the very first commandment, we need to repent of breaking God’s Law in fearing, loving, and trusting in other gods before the Lord God, our Creator, Redeemer, and Sanctifier, who is three, and who is one.  To keep the first commandment is to reorient our minds – which is to say, to repent – and when we repent, we believe the Gospel.  And when we believe the Gospel, our hearts are changed and we yearn to speak of the Word with our children, our friends, and our colleagues, and to reflect upon the Gospel in our own thoughts and meditations. 

“Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord, is one.”

Amen.

In the name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.