2022-12-19 Vespers - Commemoration of Adam and Eve

 2022-12-19 Vespers - Commemoration of Adam and Eve - Isaiah 40:1-17 & Revelation 7:1-17

As we commemorate the first man and woman today, we recognize that Adam and Eve were endowed with great gifts from God. Adam is created in the image of God. And from Adam came Eve. Adam is given dominion over all the earth. A tremendous responsibility of stewardship is entrusted to him.  When they succumbed to the temptation to be like God, and fell into sin, their sin impacts us all to this day.  When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God’s command, they inaugurated a cycle of life and death that we have no choice but to participate in.  

Creation is constantly changing. There is nothing steady.  The seasons come and go.  The sleep and inactivity of winter leads into the new birth of spring which is followed by a summer of growth which is then followed by a time of harvest and a slow dying as all of creation returns to its winter death waiting for the new life to return.  

For human beings, the Ecclesiastes poem describes our experience, “For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. There is a time to be born and a time to die” While any sane person would agree with what Ecclesiastes says here, we also are not content to leave it at that. Ever since Adam and Eve’s decision to want more than what was available to them, humans have wanted to create things that are permanent, that stand out, that say for ages to come, “We were here and we did this! Behold!” 

Christians feel this impulse too. And, we even get caught up in trying to create something truly permanent.  And, for the best of intentions. So we work to preserve memories, family lines, family property and buildings. We work with others to build things such as programs, art, literature, buildings, monuments of granite and steel, armies, civilizations. Yet, we have Holy Scripture to tell us that everything that rises and flourishes eventually changes and falls. Nothing is truly  permanent. Isaiah describes the transitory nature of our world most beautifully, “All flesh is grass, and all its beauty is like the flower of the field.  The grass withers, the flower fades when the breath of the Lord blows on it; surely the people are grass.” 

If we want permanence, we must look outside our humanity and beyond our creation. Isaiah takes us there in the next verse: “The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God will stand forever.” 

The Word of our God stands forever because the Word is outside of human construction.  God is outside of our temporal limitations and our fallenness.  And, God’s Word remains pertinent regardless of the age.  In every age, our sin needs redemption.  In every age, our fear of our limitation needs the salve of God’s grace.  In every age, our capitulation to the ideology and idolatry of present concerns needs salvation.  God’s Word speaks to us no matter the age or the issues. God’s Law will never go out of style.  It will ring true in every time and place.  

Here are a few examples for our own day and country: You shall have no other gods. There are always other gods out there that want to take all of our attention, time, and strength of life. Nothing but the LORD should ever direct any Christian’s life. 

The third commandment tells us to remember the Sabbath day and keep it holy. In a 24/7 world, even Christians need to be told: Stop, get off the treadmill, rest, and worship the one true God. 

The fourth commandment tells us to honor our father and mother. In a self-centered world we need to be told to Honor parents, family, and other authorities. They are all essential to our well-being.  

The fifth commandment says do not kill. Respect and preserve life from the womb to the elderly. 

In a society that relishes inflammatory speech, the eighth commandment speaks to those with ears to hear: Speak kindly and respectfully of others especially when you disagree with them.  

Because our prevailing culture seems to exist in order to promote consumption we need the 9th and 10th commandments: Stop coveting. Because the truth of your humanity is that when you get whatever it is, it really won’t make you happy.  You will just want more or something or someone else.

When we hear the Law speak to us, then we return to the source of our salvation: the good news that the word made flesh dies upon the cross for us. The Spirit works through the Law to move us to confess our sins; change our direction; and go to the cross for forgiveness. Through Christ Jesus, we receive forgiveness from our heavenly Father.  Our only hope for true forgiveness and a good future lies in the Cross of Christ. 

One of the things that Jesus taught the Apostles during his resurrection appearances is to understand that he is the eternal Word.   Jesus taught them how to read the Old Testament and see him there. He taught them to see that Isaiah is not only talking about Scripture, but he is also prophesying about the coming Christ.  Jesus is the Word of our God that stands forever. As the Apostle John attests, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”  

In six days time, we will gather before the Lord’s Altar to celebrate again how the Word of God came into our midst.  He entered our fallenness and impermanence to assure those with faith in Him and His cross a place of permanence in heaven. Through His incarnation and cross, our Lord Jesus redeems us from the everlasting ramifications of Adam and Eve’s disobedience. 

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