The Lutheran Hour
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"Itching Ears"
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Text: 2 Timothy 4:3-5
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Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! That great truth is the foundation of faith for all who believe in the Christ as their Savior. In a world which has always preferred to substitute its partial truths and untruths for the story of God’s grace, the resurrection still stands. May all who hear these words put their trust in the ever-living Redeemer, God’s Son, the Savior. Grant this, Lord, to us all. Amen.
“He who hesitates is lost.” That sounds good. But so does, “Fools rush in where angels fear to tread.” Amazingly, these two bits of wisdom pretty much cancel each other out. Expressions can be like that. We all know the best things in life are free, but a penny saved is a penny earned. Anyone who is in love knows that absence makes the heart grow fonder; at least until when you’re out of sight, you’re also out of mind. You get the drift of what I’m saying. Such bits of homespun wisdom also don’t hold water and are frequently contradictory.
If you think about them, many of our common expressions don’t always make sense. For example, here’s one that almost all of us heard when we were growing up: sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me. I can remember back to grade school and the long ago days when girls still had cooties and before we boys concluded our female classmates had certain redeeming qualities. At any rate, it was one of the boys’ favorite pastimes to pick on these young ladies by calling them names. Being of a sensitive nature, the girls often took offense. I can recall one female classmate, a girl whose acting ability could outdistance any Oscar winner. When she was called a name, she immediately started crying and reported the offenders to the teacher. Then, when the instructor gave us boys what for, she slowly maneuvered to a protected spot BEHIND the teacher and gave us a big, smug smile. She was not crying any longer. It had all been an act.
Sticks and stones. Those who know such things say almost all of us, as we’re growing up, experience “watershed moments.” A watershed moment is an event which is of such intensity and importance to us that we never can forget it. I can believe that. Over the years I have visited with 70, 80, and 90-year-old grandparents who can still vividly recall the childhood day when mom inadvertently said, “I wish I had never had you,” They remember the day dad implied they were stupid. Actually, he didn’t imply it, he said it. “You’re stupid.” From that moment on they thought of themselves that way.
Those moments were recalled with almost crystal-like clarity. From a nursing home or living room these seniors can describe every detail of that day. They can tell you how old they were, what they were wearing, what the weather was like. Sticks and stones can break my bones, but names… If I had the time to visit with every person listening to this message, I’m pretty positive you could tell of such an incident. I can’t guess what your “watershed moments” were, but you know. And you also know “names can sometimes hurt us.”
In his great confessional work, “The Large Catechism”, Martin Luther addressed name calling and trash talking. Writing about the 8th Commandment, that particular law of God which says we are supposed to speak good, and not evil, of each other, Luther said this…”(in something which ought to concern) us all, this commandment forbids all sins of the tongue whereby we may injure… our neighbor. For to bear false witness is nothing else than a work of the tongue. Now, God would prohibit whatever might be done with the tongue against a fellow-man. It makes no difference if those things be said by false preachers with their doctrine and blasphemy or false judges and witnesses (who come up with a wrong) verdict or if it be spoken outside of court by (everyone’s) lying and evil-speaking.
“For it is a common evil plague that every one prefers hearing evil over hearing good of his neighbor; even though we ourselves are so bad that we cannot endure any one saying anything bad about us. Truly, every one of us would much prefer all the world speak of us in terms of gold, but we cannot bear that the best is spoken about others.”
Luther leaves little doubt: he believes names can hurt us. In that opinion he’s not alone. April, Brandon, Cassie, Jared, Corrine, Kristina, Ryan, and Julian agree that words can wound. And who are April, Brandon, Cassie, Jared, Corrine, Kristina, Ryan, and Julian, and why should their opinions count? Lutheran Hour listeners, these eight young people really, truly do count. They count because each of these having been the victim of cruel jokes and jibes received from their classmates, having been the target of taunts, jeers, and massive mockery, decided they couldn’t take any more and they all committed suicide. Their graves, their still mourning families tell us that words can hurt, that words can kill.
Truly, words can hurt just as bad as sticks and stones. Verbal sticks and stones can leave marks, deep and hurtful scars on hearts and minds, wounds just as deep and damaging as any left by missiles which are thrown by hand. No, we don’t like people to say bad things about us. We don’t like it, even if the bad things being said about us are true. Which is why we urge people to curb their tongues and minimize the damage they do to the fragile egos of others.
Still, and I need to say it now, this Lutheran Hour message is not about the bad things people say about us… it’s about the terrible blasphemes they say about God.
Truly, if we get hurt by the cruel things said about us, how do you think our perfect God feels when He is made victim by the ruthless words of His ungrateful and sinful creation? How do you think the Lord reacts when the people He has made, the people He daily keeps and preserves, the people He sent His Son to save; how does He feel when they laugh at Him, scoff at Him, doubt Him, and deny His most obvious good intentions toward them? Think about that for a moment, won’t you? Judging and criticizing God is just about the oldest sin in humanity’s history. Before Eve ate the forbidden fruit, she listened to Satan as He told her God was treating her and Adam unfairly, unkindly, unjustly. The devil knew he had her wrapped around his fiery, little red finger when he held forth and slyly suggested: “You know, Eve, God’s really not the good Guy you seem to think He is. From what I’ve seen, He’s keeping you from eating of that tree just so you’ll have to keep doing His gardening. For what it’s worth, I’m pretty sure God is trying to keep all the really good stuff for Himself.” With those words the seeds of sin had been planted and it wasn’t long before Eve forgot about the weedless, wonderful garden God had given her for a home and she ate of the forbidden fruit. The day sin entered the world; it came in holding the hand of humanity’s verbal criticism of the Maker.
Skip your eyes over Scripture and you will quickly find that while other sins seem to rise and fall in popularity, throwing insults at the Lord has never gone out of style. The builders of Babel begin their work with a verbal challenge to God’s authority. Abraham’s wife, Sarah, laughed at the Lord when He promised to send a child. The Children of Israel complained, criticized, and condemned their Divine Deliverer throughout their wilderness wanderings. Although these people of Scripture gladly nagged and nitpicked at God’s graces, it is our century and our generation which has taken humankind’s disapproval and disparagement of the Lord and raised it to the status of art form. While other times and other places have taken their shots against God, they have done so with some degree of hesitation. It is our age which has developed a sort of gleeful, glad spirit in the denigration and denial of God’s great grace and His holy handiwork.
Now, nobody should be surprised by this. 3,000 years ago, King David’s choir director wrote, “The fool has said in his heart there is no God. They are corrupt, they do abominable deeds, there is none who does good.” (Psalm 14:1) Even back then they had folks who tried to write God out of the equation of their lives. Still, most people in David’s day still accepted some form of deity, some type of divine hand. True, these folks may have been worshipping a wrong god, a false god, a god of fertility, or some skirt-chasing, capricious Olympian, but the majority of people back then weren’t ready to challenge some super-powerful being.
But today it’s different. Today it has become fashionable, chic, trendy, stylish for average folk, common folk to say there is no God. They do not say it with a halting hesitation; they say it with a smirk, a smile, a boast. Colleges founded by Christians for the purpose of educating Christian men and women, no longer feel shackled by what they have concluded are old time “myths” contained in the Bible. Countries which were founded by Christians and whose work ethic, stability, legal system, and sense of fair play comes from the Holy Bible now make it a point to keep a great distance from anything which smacks of Christianity or favoritism toward anything religious.
“We’ve got here on our own” seems to be the proud motto of the godless crowds. One author after another becomes a best seller by taking the refutation of the Triune God and the rejection of His Son to new and stranger places. Eagerly the masses await the next installment in the denunciation of God. Enthusiastically they parrot the most recent, far-out challenge of the Lord which has, somehow, almost miraculously been accepted as fact. Boldly the historical revisionists sit down and place their doubts and denials, their speculations and conjectures, their refutations and repudiations of Scripture and put them into the hearts, minds, and mouths of the Pilgrims, the signers of the Constitution, past Presidents, and great generals.
And if this were not bad enough, the ranks of the parade are swelling with the addition of men and women who are supposed to be men and women of faith. If some textbook-writing historians are guilty of revisionism, they’re small potatoes when they’re compared to those spokesmen of the Savior Who are continuously bending, folding, spindling, and mutilating God’s Word. Ask them, “Did this event in Holy Scripture really happen?” and they will, if they’re being honest about their position, reply: “I don’t know.” Ask them about creation, the flood, the exodus, the periods of the Judges and Kings, ask them if these things happened and they will quietly admit, “Probably not.”
More importantly, talk to them about Jesus. After these lost leaders have divested the Christ of many of His miracles; after they have stripped Him of most of His teachings; after they have made Him into a social worker rather than a Savior; after they have made Him into a nice Guy rather than God’s great gift of grace; after they have turned Jesus into a giant warehouse Foreman Whose job is to fulfill our requests for stuff; after they have managed to dilute the Gospel until the Water of Life has become a bland and tasteless concoction, after all these things are done, then the faithful realize we are living in a time of prophecy. Even as David’s hymnist had spoken about the foolish man who says there is no God; so the Apostle Paul spoke about a future generation when he wrote: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”
Listening to the wandering words of these souls hurts the Lord. Even as Judas’ kiss of betrayal hurt the Savior, the words and actions of these individuals hurt the Lord. The things they say hurt the Redeemer because these people have access to the Word of God and should know they are saying things which God never said; they are promoting doctrines which are nowhere found between the Bible’s covers. They hurt Jesus because they should know truth from falsehood. These words hurt their Savior because He has hoped they would make a stand for His sacrifice and His wonderful resurrection. They hurt Jesus because these religious leaders are taking people away from Jesus rather than bringing them closer to Him. Sticks and stones may break my bones, but the words of these folks always hurt.
Now at this point in my message, you may be thinking I’m full of sour grapes. You may be saying to yourself, “Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. He’s being pretty judgmental. I think his looking down on others means he’s jealous.” Now if that is even close to what you’re thinking, I must apologize to you and anyone else I’ve offended. I don’t feel I am better than anyone else. And if my words have carried anything which even smacks of personal superiority, please believe me when I say that has not been my intention.
I say that because I have been called to proclaim Christ not judge others. I share the Savior because I, like you, like everybody, need the forgiveness of sins only a Savior can offer. It is an honor telling this lost and dying world that in Jesus Christ they have been given a Savior. Born in Bethlehem according to prophecy, Jesus Christ, the sinless Son of God, lived His life as the ransom Price to rescue us from our arch-enemies: sin, death, and devil. For 33 years Jesus resisted the devil’s temptations and for more than three decades He lived His life without breaking a single commandment. No other man in the world’s painful history can lay an honest claim to having done such a thing. But there’s more. Jesus also carried our sins. He carried our individual sins, our special sins, our private sins, our accusing sins and He took those sins and had them nailed to the cross. On Calvary’s tree Jesus paid the price for our transgressions and on Resurrection Sunday, He gave proof that His sacrifice had been accepted and no longer would death be final for those who had been brought to Him in faith.
That is the message of salvation. It is a great message, an eternity-changing message for all who believe. Is it news? In that form, without alteration, adjustment, amendment, or adaptation, it is the best news you and I can ever hear. That’s what the Christmas angels said Jesus would be: good news of great joy for all people. Jesus is good news and He is the only news which can rescue our souls from hell. Which is why the Lord doesn’t want His message changed. Which is why He told the Apostle Paul to write: “But even though we, or an angel from heaven, preach any other gospel unto you other than that which we have preached unto you, let him be accursed.” (Galatians 1:8)
You see, the Lord knew what was coming and He wanted to warn us to be prepared. Because He knew, He told the apostle to give that warning and a bit of encouragement to those who were going to be born into such a time as ours. The Lord wanted us to know that no matter what else happened, no matter what strange things we would hear and see, God’s faithful were to stay faithful to Scripture and put their trust in the unchangeable Christ Who gave His perfect life so all who believe on Him might be forgiven and saved.
Sticks and stones may break my bones. Before me I have a photograph of some graffiti taken from ancient Rome. Almost 1900 years old it shows a man standing before a cross. On the cross is an individual, Jesus. Only the unbelieving artist put a donkey’s head on the crucified Christ. The caption on the drawing reads, “Alexamenos worships his God.” Now I don’t know what has happened to the anonymous painter, the man who criticized the Christ. But I pray, with all my heart I pray, that Alexamenos continued to worship the Christ Who was crucified and rose from the dead. I pray the same for you. In an age where Christ is condemned, censured, and mocked, I pray that you will be faithful until death so the living Savior may give you the crown of life. To that end, please, call us at The Lutheran Hour. Amen.
LUTHERAN HOUR MAILBOX (Questions & Answers) for October 17, 2010
Title: Dealing with DoubtsAnnouncer: Now, Pastor Ken Klaus responds to questions from listeners. I’m Mark Eischer.
Klaus: Hi, Mark.
Announcer: Our listener writes, “I’ve been a Christian since the age of 12 and have a good understanding of Evangelical Christian doctrine.”
Klaus: That’s a good start.
Announcer: He continues, “I now have serious doubt concerning faith in general. In most cases, people only believe what they were raised to believe. I most likely am a Christian because I was born into a Christian family, but if I had been born in the Middle East, I would most likely be a Muslim, and so forth. ”
Klaus: I think our listener, pretty much, accurately describes the way things are for just about everybody in the world.
Announcer: I’m kind of surprised to hear you say that.
Klaus: There’s more. Even though that’s the way things are for most people, that’s not the way things should be for any of us.
Announcer: You mean people shouldn’t consider themselves to be Christian just because they had Christian parents?
Klaus: Yeah, exactly. The Lord has given us intelligence, He expects us to use our minds to examine the issues to see which faith is right and which faiths are wrong.
Announcer: But don’t parents exert a lot of influence in such matters?
Klaus: Oh, they do. And when it comes to Christianity, I’m glad. Christian parents bring their children to the waters of baptism, bring them to church to hear God’s Word, tell their children about God’s love for them in Christ. But, the truth is, we should be getting our information from the Lord as to what is true and not rely on only what we hear from parents, pastors, priests. People are fallible. They make mistakes. Only God is perfect and His Word true. What does He say? What does He tell us in His Word?
Announcer: OK. Now, our listener would disagree with that. He wonders how we can be certain that what the Bible tells us is really what happened. How can you be certain?
Klaus: I think the forces of heaven and hell are engaged in a great struggle for this person’s soul.
Announcer: I would agree. Do you have any practical advice or sage wisdom for him?
Klaus: I don’t know about that, but I would say this: the devil seems to be attacking in an area where an old-time Christian would feel it the most.
Announcer: By attacking the truth of the Bible. In other words, “Did God really say…?”
Klaus: Yes, and where have we heard the devil ask that question before? So the question is this: Is the Bible the inspired word of God or is it–as modern fiction-writers and nay-sayers want us to believe–only a bunch of stories made up by superstitious people from a pre-scientific age?
Announcer: Well, if it is God’s Word, a person can believe it. But, if it’s just the stuff of novels, you might as well go off looking for a real religion.
Klaus: So, how do we know the Bible is true?
Announcer: I would assume that one answer is NOT “because it says it’s true.”
Klaus: No, if it’s lying about other things, it’s certainly going to have no problem lying about its truthfulness.
Announcer: OK, so, what makes the Bible so special?
Klaus: There’s a number of proofs, but we’re going to zero in on two – two which go hand-in-hand.
Announcer: What are they?
Klaus: History and prophecy. The other so-called “holy books” of the world’s great religions, they don’t have this history and prophecy, those two things going for them. They may have one, they may have the other, but they don’t have both.
Announcer: And, please explain that.
Klaus: We believe the Bible is true, because over a period of about 1,600 years, God inspired various writers to share His thoughts and record what He has done in history. Those prophets also made predictions about the promised Messiah. They tell us things about what He would do, what He would say, how He would be born, how He would live, how He would die. Most importantly, that He would rise from the dead.
Now, either that’s all a bunch of baloney, or it’s true. There’s no other option. The world thinks Jesus’ story is hooey. I, and many other Christians, believe it is true, because, in the Person of Jesus of Nazareth, those prophecies were all fulfilled.
I encourage our listener to check it out. Don’t listen to me. Check it out. Can any other religion say the same? If not, join with us and believe the Bible is telling the truth.
Announcer: Thank you, Pastor Klaus. This has been a presentation of Lutheran Hour Ministries.
Music selection for this program:
“A Mighty Fortress” arranged by John Leavitt. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC
“Baptized into Your Name Most Holy” arr. Henry Gerike. Used by permission.
“Praeludium in G” by Nikolaus Bruhns. From Martinikerk Groningen by Wim van Beek (© 1990 Sound-Products Holland)
“The Savior Calls, Let Every Ear” arr. Chris Loemker. Concordia Publishing House/SESAC