“No One Will Be Put to Shame”
March 6, 2022
Dear brothers and sisters, grace and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, Amen.
Many years ago, one of my former church family members at the congregation I served in Northern California, who is now with the Lord, would frequently tell a story about something that happened to her on September 12, 2001, the day after the events of 9-11. She was working in her front yard that day, and a group of door-to-door missionaries from a certain organization were going around the neighborhood, came up to her, and asked if she was aware of what had happened the day before. Her response was simple: “Yes, the devil’s been very busy, hasn’t he?” Which effectively ended the conversation, because she did have a good point: it did seem like the devil had been very busy, with the mayhem and destruction that had taken place on 9-11.
And nowadays, it’s not hard to imagine that the devil still continues to be busy. At least the past two weeks have demonstrated that, unfortunately, at times evil continues to rear its head. We hear stories, and see pictures, of the destruction caused by constant bombardment of homes and cities in Ukraine, as Russia continues to step up its invasion. We hear of innocent people being killed, especially in bombing attacks. We hear of refugees having to flee their homes; in many cases, we hear of the shock many refugees express at the fact that, in many cases only the day before, they were going about their normal lives, living as they had always done, and then all of a sudden having to pack up and flee across the border to a different country. We also hear of, and experience the effects of, the war taking place even over here in our own country, as gas prices continue to soar, causing the prices of everything else continue to soar, as it has been doing all along because of the effects of the pandemic. So, in all honesty, it’s not hard for us to say the devil has been very busy lately.
This has always seemed to be the case as well. This is certainly not the first time many of us have lived through an economic crisis. This is also certainly not the first time many of us have lived through a war, or the effects of a war. 9-11, which was mentioned earlier, forced us to face the reality of terrorism, especially religious terrorism, and how bad it could get even here in this country. We have also faced many situations that have shown us that we still have to live with evil: we have had crimes committed against us. We have either had to suffer abuse, or have had a close friend or family member suffer abuse. We have had to deal with conflict, whether in our families, or in our communities. We have to deal with bullying in our schools. We have to deal with the pain of dysfunctional and broken relationships. We have had to suffer disasters, which have caused destruction to our properties, or even our physical well-beings We wonder whether there is any help or relief in sight, any end to our suffering, or the sufferings of our friends and family members. We watch the news and wonder whether there is going to be an end to the war going on in Ukraine and Russia. We hear of ongoing hatred between people, for different reasons, and the violence and murder caused by such hatred. We keep having to experience bullying in different ways, and wonder if there is anything we can do to stop it completely. We hear and experience all the other ways that people attempt to hurt and destroy each other. It’s easy for us to think the devil is busy, and evil is going to win. Evil continues to be a reality we have to live with.
And yet, today we hear some good news: even though the devil’s always busy, and even though there are times he seems to be busier than others, he is ultimately defeated. The purpose of Lent is for us to remember that even though evil continues to be a reality, there is an even greater reality: Jesus has already defeated the devil and the power of evil. The reason He came to die on the cross and rise again was to defeat the devil. The devil continues to try to ruin people’s lives, but everything he tries will ultimately be defeated: he cannot win. God has always been more powerful than the devil and evil, and He still continues to This is something God has always been doing: as we hear about in today’s First Reading from Deuteronomy, we hear about how God wanted His people, and how He wants us, to remember that He delivered from slavery and suffering, and brought them to where they needed to be. He is even still doing the same thing for us today: He is delivering us from our suffering, and bringing us to where we need to be. And as we hear about in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus was even able to defeat the devil by using the Word of God against him. Even though the devil himself tried to quote the Bible to tempt Jesus, Jesus was able to see through his lies, and tell the truth to defeat the devil.
We always have to remember that the devil is a liar: everything he says is a lie. Whatever he claims is always going to be reality is a lie. If we’re being told that there is no hope for this world, that there will never be an end to whatever war and conflict happens to be taking place, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told that we’re going to be stuck in whatever difficult or sad situation we’re in permanently, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told that we’re on our own, there is no help, not even from God, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told that whatever evil we’re having to suffer is coming from God, especially as a punishment, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told that whatever evil is taking place in the world is caused by God, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told, especially using Bible verses, that we deserve whatever bad thing is happening to us because of who we are, or something we’ve done, that is a lie from the devil. If we’re being told that we deserve whatever abuse we get because of something we’ve done or haven’t done, that is a lie from the devil. Even though the devil may still be real, everything he says is not real.
So what is real? Simple: Jesus is real. Even though the devil may be busy, Jesus is even busier. We may think that Jesus is simply sitting back watching everything unfold, letting the devil do what he wants to do, but that itself is a lie. Wherever the devil is trying to stir up trouble, Jesus is right there fighting against him and frustrating his plans. Wherever war is taking place, Jesus is working to bring peace and an end to the war. Wherever people are suffering at the hands of other people, Jesus is fighting on their side and rescuing them from those who are hurting them. Wherever people are suffering from a lack of any kind of need, Jesus is working on providing them with what they need. Wherever people are having to suffer from the effects of having given into temptation, and have wrecked or destroyed their lives in the process, Jesus is working on forgiving them, having them forgive themselves, and restoring their lives to where He wants them to be. Wherever people are suffering from the effects of abuse, Jesus is working on rescuing them and healing them in body and mind, and letting them know they didn’t deserve the abuse they had to suffer. Wherever people are suffering in broken relationships, Jesus is working on rescuing them and healing them from what they have had to suffer. Wherever people are fighting with each other over differences in religion, politics, or other opinion, Jesus is working to bring peace, an end to conflict, and restore relationships and friendships. Wherever people have had to deal with the destruction of disaster, whether natural or human-made, Jesus is working to restore what has been lost. Just as even in Old Testament times, God, through Jesus, is working hard to deliver us from our suffering. He is working hard to deliver us from slavery to feeling like we are trapped in the suffering of the world and the suffering we, or other people, inflict on us. Jesus is even fighting for us right here, right now. And what can we do? Trust Him and let Him fight for us. Even though there are things we may be having to fight right now, we are not alone: Jesus is fighting for us, and He can fight even better than we can. Whatever battle we’re having to fight, we can let go, stop trying to fight, stop trying to figure out how we’re going to win, and let Jesus fight and win our battle for us. He already did so by His death and resurrection – He already defeated the devil and the powers of evil. Jesus’ victory is already guaranteed, because the devil has already lost.
And the devil knows he’s already lost. The devil knows whatever he’s making us suffer isn’t going to last forever, and Jesus is ultimately going to win. The devil knows that those who are attacking us and trying to hurt us in any way are ultimately going to be defeated, and we’re going to win, because Jesus is going to win. So, the unfortunate reality is, he’s going to try harder than ever to bring us down. He’s going to try to step up his attacks. He’s going to try to escalate the war in Eastern Europe. He’s going to try to cause abuse and dysfunction in families and relationships to become even worse. He’s going to try to stir up even more conflict and hatred between people. He’s going to try to cause children and adults to bully each other even more. He’s going to try to cause even more trouble among us by causing the effects of the war and the pandemic to escalate. He’s going to try to make it look like he’s going to win. He’s ultimately going to try to put us to shame, and make us regret trusting Jesus to fight and win for us.
But he won’t succeed. And here’s why: in today’s Second Reading, in Romans 10:11, we have a solid promise from God’s Word: “Anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame.” Another way to understand this is to say that anyone who trusts in Jesus will never regret it. Anyone who trusts in Jesus will never be embarrassed. Anyone who trusts in Jesus will never be disappointed or let down. Even though there have been a lot of people in our lives who have let us down, Jesus will never let us down. Even though there have been people who have promised to be there for us in times of trouble or conflict, but have ended up running away and leaving us, Jesus will never leave us alone. Even though the devil may try to convince us that trusting in Jesus is stupid, embarrassing, and will ultimately disappoint us, Jesus Himself begs to differ. Jesus has never, and will not, let anyone who trusts in Him be disappointed in any way. If anything, Jesus will shame the devil, and will shame those who try to convince us of the devil’s lies. Jesus will embarrass those who try to embarrass us for trusting that Jesus is going to fight and win for us. Jesus will call out the lies of the devil, just like He did before. Jesus will never give us any reason to regret trusting Him to fight and win for us. Jesus will never treat us the way other people have treated us: He will never disappoint us, He will keep His word, He will keep His promises, He will do everything He has said He will do. He will deliver and rescue us, He will forgive us, He will heal us, He will restore us. He will defeat the devil, and the devil has already lost.
So even though it may seem like the devil is busy, Jesus will put an end to him and all his works. Jesus will deliver us – He has already won. And no one who trusts Him to fight and win will ever be let down or disappointed. The devil has already been defeated; his lies have already been defeated. No one who trusts in Jesus will ever regret it – so let us trust Jesus to fight and win, because He has already fought and won for us, and He will win!
Now may the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.
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