Evening Prayer Homily for October 12, 2020 "Learning Wisdom and Theology"

 2022-10-12 Evening Prayer Homily 

Psalm 111       Deuteronomy 11:1-25      Matthew 12:1-21

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

Psalm 111 concludes with the words “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding.”  The honest questions that follow might be: How do we learn that fear? How do we learn the wisdom that follows from a proper fear of the LORD? 

Like almost all education practices, it begins at home.  At home, we read the Bible devotionally, study as we are able, and we recite prayers and the catechism.  Then, we move beyond the family and home experience into the congregational setting.  We join with others of like mind to sing hymns, listen to the Scriptures read and expounded upon publicly. Here, in the congregation, the Word works upon us orally, as well as through the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and the Lord’s Supper. 

Every Divine Service and every Prayer Office brings miracles that are often taken for granted by the faithful simply because we see it so often. I think of the miracle of encountering God and his gifts such as the mystery of God’s Word, confessing the faith of the church, and praying for the giving and the reception of forgiveness.  

The roots of our faith practices are in the instructions that God spoke to Moses and that Moses spoke to the people.  Moses then wrote the 613 commands down for our edification from one generation to another.  He writes down God’s Word at the beginning of the desert wanderings and in Deuteronomy, we have the same Word of God 40 years later as they about to enter the Promised Land. 

We cannot be Christians apart from a community of faith.  For within the Christian community we receive God’s Word of Law and Gospel.  We learn why we should fear God. And, that the fear is not paralyzing terror, but fear that is characterized by careful and deliberate respect. This is the respect that comes within a relationship.  Covenant is the biblical word.  God binds himself to us. He requests that we return God’s love for us by living out his Will in our lives. So, the Word becomes the baseline of our behavior.  How do we know if we have sinned?  We look to the 10 commandments. That is the rule by which our thoughts, attitudes, and actions are judged as sinful or God pleasing.  In the midst of the congregation we learn how to repent, how to ask for forgiveness, and how to receive the gift of forgiveness. In the congregation, we learn how to pray and to praise God. 

In the broad scope of Lutherans, Catechism, Bible reading, and church going, continue to be important elements of Christian formation.  But, I think it wise to hear God’s Word on this.  Instead of being satisfied with fitting God into a busy schedule, God expects us to be intimately familiar with His Word.  In the first reading we heard Moses speaking for God: 

18 “You shall therefore lay up these words of mine in your heart and in your soul, and you shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 19 You shall teach them to your children, talking of them when you are sitting in your house, and when you are walking by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 20 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates, (Deuteronomy 11:18-20)

The Jewish interpretation of this passage includes the wearing of Tefillin, the pair of black leather boxes that contain Hebrew parchment scrolls. These are worn by a male over the age of Bar Mitzvah, age 13, when praying between sunrise and sunset. 

The Lutheran Christian interpretation is that the Word be memorized and read and reflected upon regularly, if not daily.  For Lutherans this involves the Small Catechism and the memorization of the Ten Commandments, Apostles Creed, and Lord’s Prayer as well as the questions and answers surrounding these and the Sacraments. Memorization allows us to bring to mind at any time what God’s Word says.  It serves to guide us in our thoughts and behavior.  

We hear loud and clear, God’s expectation that parents are responsible for their children’s spiritual well being. We are instructed to teach these things to the children under our care. We teach them at home and while we are away.   

As I reflected on God’s Word in Deuteronomy, I was grateful for all the parents who took catechism and church attendance so seriously.  I am grateful for the catechetical process at work here at Emmaus. The Psalmist says “The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding.” We want to continue in obedience to God’s expectations for all of us so that we may grow ever more into the Good News God has for us. 

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