Confirmation Sunday – May 22, 2011

Dear confirmands,

I’m going to ask you one of the silliest questions I have ever asked one of my confirmation classes. Are you ready? Here it is: Do you ever make excuses? Of course you do. In fact, over the past three years that I have had you in either Catechism or Confirmation, I’ve heard any number of them. But to spare you embarrassment, we won’t share any of them this morning.

But here is one, not one of yours, that I will share. Someone once said, “God, it’s like this: I could attend church more faithfully if your day came at some other time. But Sunday’s come at the end of a hard week, and I’m all tired out. Not only that, but it’s the day following Saturday night, and Saturday night is one time when I feel like I can enjoy myself. Often, it is after midnight when I get home and almost impossible to get up on Sunday morning. Not only that, but you must realize that Sunday’s are days to relax and be lazy, sleep in, get my school work done, attend to some business, or do some stuff around the house. So you see, I’d like to go to church, and know that I should; but it’s just on the wrong day.”

Such an excuse would be comical if it weren’t so sad! Yet, I believe it strikes close to home in all of us – yes, even you my dear confirmands. That’s why we turn to the section of Holy Scripture today that reminds us that when it comes to the Lord and His Word, don’t make excuses. We read from Luke 14:

Luke 14:15-24 - ¹⁵ When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” ¹⁶ Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. ¹⁷ At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ ¹⁸ “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ ¹⁹ “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ ²⁰ “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ ²¹ “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ ²² “ ‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ ²³ “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full. ²⁴ I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’ ”

The words of this text are what are known as a parable. Each of the kids up here could tell you that that means Jesus used an earthly story in order to get across a heavenly meaning. And it isn’t too difficult to pick up on that meaning. The owner of the house who prepared the banquet is God; the servant is Jesus; and the banquet itself are the blessings of the gospel message – forgiveness, faith, justification, righteousness, peace, joy in this life, and eternal glory in heaven. When it comes to the Lord and his Word – don’t make excuses.

Yet, what do we see. One after the other those who were invited to the banquet make excuses. And while each excuse differs in its own right, all say the same basic thing: “We have other things that are more important to do right now!” One man was pre-occupied with the cares of this world. Another was obsessed with earthly riches. Still another was caught up in the pleasures of this life. Each one just couldn’t, or didn’t want to, find time to come to the feast.

Now, of course, there is nothing wrong in itself about buying land, owning oxen or getting married. They are good and noble things in this life; blessings from the hand of our gracious Father in heaven. But when these good things become an excuse for neglecting one’s salvation, they become bad things. When the affairs of the body take first place over the affairs of the soul, it becomes the greatest wrong. Jesus states that very clearly when he says, “Not one of those men…will get a taste of my banquet.” Even though not one of them said I will never go to the banquet, or I hate banquets, their excuses and refusal forfeited the blessings. What has a person won if he gains the whole world yet loses his own soul.

So now, my dear friends, we take this parable and apply it to you. You see, as you sit in that pew this morning you are Christian’s who have been invited to feast on the blessings of the gospel. It all started when, as a cute little baby, your parents brought you to the cleansing waters of baptism. Yet, even though you were cute on the outside, on the inside you were dirty, rotten and ugly. You had inherited a corrupt nature that was 100% sinful. You were separated from God. But through the Gospel connected to that water, God made you a new person. There he washed your sins away and wrapped you in the perfect robe of Jesus. You have been feasting on the gospel ever since. Through Christian Education, Sunday school and Confirmation instruction you fed on the truth that Jesus’ death and resurrection gave your baptism its power. There you tasted again and again the wonderful news that Jesus stopped at nothing to win your salvation. There you feasted on the news that Jesus makes you perfect by giving you his perfect life. There you were satisfied over and over as you heard that you are innocent because Jesus paid for your sins. There you learned how true it is that although you are the chief of sinners, Christ died for you!

But now you sit in these pews; you are done with the Christian Day School, done with Sunday school, done with Confirmation. High school and college await. Some will be away from the watchful eye of mom and dad. Life as you know it will change. Things will get busier. Temptations will only get stronger. But God still expects you to come feast on the gospel message. The question is, will you, or will you make excuses?

I want you to think hard before you answer that question. I’m not asking you whether you will remember who Jesus is. I’m asking whether you will make excuses for not spending time in the Word. Believe me, those temptations will come! Your schedule will get so busy that you will be left trying to decide: have a little free time to myself - or personal devotion. You will come home late on Saturday night and want to sleep in on Sunday morning. Will personal pleasure take first place? You will start dating and want to spend every waking minute with your significant other. Will you choose the pleasures of this life over the joys of the life to come? Friends will try to persuade you that God’s Word can wait. Will you put off till tomorrow what needs to be done today? You will want spending money and money to buy a car. Will your love for the things of this world crowd out your love for God’s Word?

Spare me the rolling eyes that tell me that you’ve got it all under control. Spare me the unconcerned look that says you think you know it all. Spare me the bored face as if to say, what’s the big deal? It isn’t going to be easy; it is a big deal; because if you make excuses, you will just become another statistic. You will be just another confirmation student who has come to this railing, made their promises, and walked away never to be in the Word again. It is a big deal because a person doesn’t have to hate Jesus to make excuses. A person doesn’t have to hate Jesus to fall away from him in unbelief. And if that happens, then the Word of our Lord will be well directed at you. “Not one of you will get a taste of my banquet.” Gone then is the forgiveness sins; gone then is a right standing with God; gone then is the promise of eternal glory in heaven.

You see, you can’t afford to make excuses because the Gospel of Jesus is your very life source. We are spiritual beggars; but in the Word God fills us with his heavenly riches. We are sinners full of guilt, who have struggles, frustrations, unrest and fears - but his Word offers relief from all of these things. Every week we suffer trials and temptations; Satan seeks to deceive and destroy us; false teachings and teachers try to seduce us; but the Word is the armor to defend us and destroy them. We are sinners and we can’t fix that. We face judgment, and can’t avoid it. We are dying, and we can’t stop it. Our only hope to be delivered from our wretched condition is the finished work of redemption that is ours because Jesus died for you on the cross and arose from the dead. Nothing more needs to be done for the salvation of your soul.

In this gospel, Christ delivers pardon for our sins. Yes, even for the times we make excuses. Through the gospel, faith remains alive. Yes, to help us keep from making excuses. In the gospel, God gives his greatest blessings. And when, dear friends, when don’t we need these? When don’t we want these? Every day, in the Word, God serves us – for our benefit, for our comfort, for our salvation. So please, don’t make excuses!

You know, it is truly a pleasure to preach confirmation sermons. First of all, as I preach to you, I get to talk directly to the people in church today who have been making excuses and failed to live up to their confirmation promises. Through God’s Word I get to call them to personally examine themselves and ask, are you in danger of missing out on the banquet? If so, repent of your sin, return to the gospel for the food of forgiveness, and change. Second of all, I get to talk to your parents. I get to ask them how well they have set an example for you, their children. Have you made excuses? If so, repent of your sin, return to the gospel for the food of forgiveness, and change. Remember, they still need you to be their parents who set an example for them in personal and public use of the word. Finally, I get to speak to you, children who are near and dear to my heart. I get to encourage you to remain faithful to the Word. I get to promise you, that when you do, you have nothing to worry about. Will you be tempted to make excuses? Absolutely! Will you stumble and fall? Unfortunately yes! But in the Gospel you will be able to hear again and again Jesus say to you, “I love you. You are forgiven. Take heart, I have paid for your sins on the cross.” And right there, in that pleasant pardon for the times we have stood with the sinners; right there, in the open arms of your Father inviting you to receive the unconditional forgiveness won for you by Jesus, is all the power and motivation needed to not make excuses. Amen.