First sermon.*)
So that we may also give our dear Lord God His glory, we will hear Him preach what He wants to say to us. May God have mercy on us, so that we may believe and have what He says to us.
Matth. 22, 34-46.
But when the Pharisees heard that he had shut the Sadducees' mouths, they gathered together. And one of them, a scribe, tempted him, saying, Master, which is the chief commandment of the law? And Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love thy Lord God with all thy heart.
*) Held in the house, 1532.'
With all your heart, soul and mind. This is the noblest and greatest commandment. But the other is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. In these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. When the Pharisees were together, Jesus asked them, "What do you think of Christ? What son is he? They said: David's. And he said unto them: How then doth David in the spirit call him a Lord, saying, The Lord hath said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, till I make thine enemies thy footstool? Now if David calls him a Lord, how is he his son? And no man could answer him a word, neither could any man from that day forth inquire of him.
In this gospel, hear your love, that our dear Lord Christ sets before us two pieces which we are to hear, learn and keep. The first is that the Lord answers the question of the scribe, saying: "The noblest and greatest commandment is to love God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind; but the other is like it, to love your neighbor as yourself. There he has summed up all that can be preached, taught and comprehended of good works, among Jews and Gentiles. The summa is that one should love God and one's neighbor. From this well everything should spring and flow into it. Whoever asks how he may serve God, has here his knowledge that God Himself says: "Thus I am served, if you love Me, your God, with all your heart, etc. and your neighbor as yourself.
This teaching will be judged very severely on the last day. For what has happened in the papacy is well known to everyone. Whoever wanted to serve God did not remember the Ten Commandments; but this one became a monk, the other ran to Rome, to St. Jacob, the third called on this and that saint, served him with fasting, celebrations etc. In those days, all this was called service; and one did not know how to interpret it differently, because service would be to go on pilgrimage, to run to a monastery, to toil with fasting, vigils, singing etc. But to serve means to do what you are commanded. Therefore it must follow: Whoever wants to serve God rightly must do what God tells him to do, not what seems good to him. But what does God command us to do, so that we may serve Him? Here it is: If you want to serve God and do what He asks of you, you must not go far and run for it, nor give much money for it. Love God and your neighbor. But how could God bring His service closer to you, and well
give you a filer? As if he wanted to say: If you want to serve me, do not look far, I will give you plenty, only listen to me and do it. Love me and your neighbor. For thou shalt know, when thou lovest thy neighbor, and doest all good to him, that thou hast done me a delicious service, and I will take it for that thou hast loved me, and done me good. This is a strange doctrine, that what is done to one's neighbor should be a service to God and to God Himself.
003 This doctrine, I say, shall make a strange noise at the last day. For in that day the righteous shall answer and say, "Lord, when saw we thee hungry, and fed thee? or thirsty, and gave thee drink?" etc. But Christ will answer and say, "Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." Likewise also the wicked shall say, "Lord, when saw we thee hungry, or thirsty, or a sojourner, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not serve thee?" To them also Christ will answer, saying, "Verily I say unto you, inasmuch as ye have not done it unto one of the least of these, ye have not done it unto me." If you give a poor Christian a shirt, a skirt, a penny, or even a cold drink of water, and help your neighbor out of his need, you have done this to Christ, and no one should make any distinction.
(4) But is this not the wretched devil, that we let this pass us by, and do not consider that we could so easily serve our Lord God Himself, and yet we do not do it? We think that if Christ were to come to our door now, or if we knew where to find him, we would run to him and bring him all that we have-
We often wish and say. We often wish and say: If I had been in Bethlehem when the infant Jesus was born, I would have taken him up, cradled him and served him. But what need of such thoughts? We hear here that the other commandment is equal to the first. It must follow that our Lord God will gladly accept it and regard it as if it had happened to Him what we do to our neighbor.
5 Yes, you say, our Lord God is in heaven and does not need my service at all? There is no harm in that; he is also on earth in this world. Therefore, if you see a Christian in distress, know that Christ is in distress and in need of your help. As he himself says, he will mourn over us at the last day, because we have made him suffer hunger and thirst.
(6) But it is a pity that we have this teaching so clearly, and we throw it to the winds as if God were not there, when we could so abundantly serve Him all the days and hours. Such disobedience cannot be excused by saying that we did not know: We would not have known. For here it is said: "The other is equal to the first." Therefore the judgment on the last day will be like this: Have you not heard that he who loves his neighbor loves God? Now if you had served your neighbor, you would have served me, and I would have paid you abundantly; but for your sake I would have died and perished. We should beware of such judgment, for eternal damnation will follow.
In the papacy it was a very mean thing that old horsemen, warriors, lawyers and similar people, who let themselves think that they had been in a damned state, said: They had served the world until now, they now wanted to start serving God; for this reason, many of them ran into the monasteries and became monks and hermits. But it was a devilish seduction. Does this mean to serve God, to crawl into a corner, to advise and help no one? What need has our Lord God of the service that you do in a corner? He who wants to serve God should not hide in a corner, but remain among the people, and serve them with whatever he can, and be sure that he is serving God with it;
for he commanded it, saying, "The other is equal to the first."
(8) It was the same with the Jews: they did all kinds of evil to their neighbor and thought that if they only slaughtered many cows and calves, they would have done well. But what does our Lord God say in the 50th Psalm v. 8-10: "Because of your sacrifice I do not punish you. Your burnt offerings are always before me. I will not take bullocks from thy house, nor goats from thy stalls: for all the beasts of the forest are mine, and the cattle that go by thousands upon the mountains." So he says in other places, "He has no need of their gold, their temple, or anything else; but if you will serve me rightly, I will send you down to your neighbor. Thou hast wife, child, servants, neighbors, princes, lords, and all manner of estates; there thou shalt find enough to do, there serve me. If your child does not want to be obedient and pious, quickly pick up rods and strike with confidence. If the servants do not do right, punish them or show them the door. If your neighbor is poor, afflicted, sick, help, serve, comfort him; be willing and obedient to your prince, and you have done it for me.
(9) That such things will not enter our hearts is to be pitied. For what we have sinned and done wrong against God, he will not impute to us, but will forgive; only if we serve our neighbor and do him good, God will take it that we have done him wrong; he will repay us abundantly for it. Again, if we do not serve our neighbor, he will take it that we did not do it to him. If we cheat and deceive our neighbor, we have done it to him, and he will avenge us honestly.
(10) Now you can see what the world is like with its nature and how it deals with our Lord God. Peasants, citizens and everyone else do nothing else, except to strike our Lord God in the mouth, to fight and to trample him underfoot without hesitation, since everyone is only concerned with how he can become rich and increase his wealth; his neighbor may die or perish in the process. If they could believe what they were doing to their neighbor, that they were doing it to God in heaven, they would be ashamed of their neighbor.
2408 L. 6.81-86. on the eighteenth Sunday after Trinity. W. ^in, 2011-2017.2053. 2409
They are terrified by wickedness and unfaithfulness. But they do not think that it is our Lord God whom they strike in the face, hate, envy, persecute and trample underfoot; and on the last day they will say: They did not know. But they will be answered: You would have known if you had wanted to know; for it is sufficiently prescribed and preached to you what you do to your neighbor, that you do it to me.
(11) Therefore, it is a clear and bright doctrine (may God grant us His grace, so that we do not run over it as the world runs over it) that God takes care of all good and evil that we do to our neighbor, just as if it were done to Him. Now, if each one saw his neighbor as being served by God when he serves him, the whole world would be full of God's service. A servant in the stable, a maid in the kitchen, a boy in school, they would be true servants of God and servants of God, if they did with diligence what their father and mother, masters and wives in the house, told them to do. So every house would be full of worship, yes, every house would be a true church, in which nothing but pure worship would be practiced. But the contradiction happens in the world; false preachers and evil tyrants do great harm to our Lord God in His church. Peasants and citizens, when they deceive their neighbor, deceive our Lord God; young journeymen, when they disobey their parents, disciplinarians and authorities, to whom do they do this but to our Lord God? They take his service from him and give it to the devil; and so henceforth, all the world is full of devil's service, there is no God's service. Everything serves the devil, because they do not respect the neighbor's love at all. Everywhere there are false, unfaithful, deceitful people, who overcharge their neighbor, presume, translate, steal, take, rob, so that the whole world is not only full of devil's service, but also full of devils. But where one does good and serves one's neighbor, this is called serving our Lord God, and every man's house and chamber is a church, where all God's service takes place, where one helps to discipline and honor. How shall our Lord God do better?
How should he bring his worship closer to us, but to build out of our houses and chambers vain golden churches, adorned with vain emeralds and pearls?
(12) Therefore let it be learned here that he who does good to his neighbor and serves him for the best, either of his own free will, as one man to another, or of his own duty and obedience, as children to their parents, servants to their masters and wives, subjects to their authorities: let him serve not only his neighbor, but God in heaven; for he himself says that he will accept such service as if it had been done to himself; as Christ says here, "The other is equal to the first. Whoever does not want to be moved by this, so that he could establish a kingdom of heaven here on earth, and make a house of God or church out of his own house or state, let him always go to the devil. For where there is worship, there is heaven. Now if I serve my neighbor, I am already in heaven, for I serve God. So we make for ourselves a paradise and heaven here on earth when we are obedient to God and serve our neighbor. But if we disobey God and do not serve our neighbor, we make hell on earth for ourselves, for we serve the devil, who belongs in hell. And it does not matter if one does not yet see or feel this; it will become clear in time that one will see and feel it.
(13) This is the first teaching of today's Gospel; may God grant that we take it to heart, that each one should regard his neighbor as loving and serving him, so that he may be loved and served by God. But what does loving one's neighbor mean? To do him all good. For love, where it is righteous, is not only in thought and word, but in deed. Where love has embraced a heart, it also teaches and drives the body to stand up, sing, speak of what it loves, and even care for it more than for itself. Therefore, to love one's neighbor is to do the work that follows: to teach, instruct, admonish, help, counsel, and do all that one can and is able to do that is useful to one's neighbor in body and soul, in good and honor. The-
Love is not in outward appearance, but, as St. John says, in deed and in truth.
The other teaching in this gospel, when the Lord asks the Pharisees again which son Christ is, belongs to that life. The first teaching is about the neighbor, that we should do the service we are supposed to do to God to our neighbor, and always practice love towards him. For this purpose God has given us mouth, tongue, eyes, ears, hands, feet, money, goods, reason and everything, so that we can do this and in this life keep ourselves in the service of our neighbor. But if this life wants to have an end, one must also live there. To this end we must know that Christ is the Son of David. And not only this, but also why David in the Spirit called his Son Christ a Lord, and such a Lord, who sitteth at the right hand of God, until he hath laid all his enemies at the footstool of his feet.
15 Now David was the greatest man on earth, because of the divine, glorious promise that he was in such a great covenant with God; and yet this same great man and king falls down, humbles himself and confesses that his son Christ is his Lord. If then Christ is David's Lord, it follows that he is a greater Lord than the highest and greatest king on earth, since there can be no higher or greater king in this world than David was. Therefore our Lord Christ wants to say this much with this question: You Pharisees and Jews do not know what and who Christ is; you consider him to be a mere man, and only the son of David. But you should know that he is not only man and David's son, but also true God and David's Lord; and such a Lord, who sits at the right hand of God, and to whom God lays all his enemies at the footstool of his feet.
(16) This is another doctrine, not of our neighbor, but of Christ; not of this life, but where we shall abide when this life is ended. In this life we are to keep ourselves so that we love God and our neighbor. But if we are to die and be laid in the grave, it shall not be said, I have loved God and my neighbor; but it shall be said, I believe in Jesus Christ, and I love my neighbor.
Our Lord, who is Lord over that life, and is able and willing to save all who believe in his name. This temporal, earthly life we have not attained through Christ; but God gave this temporal, earthly life to the whole world long before Christ came, saying that one should love him and one's neighbor. Afterwards he also gave his Son Christ to the world, so that through him and in him we might also have eternal life. We do not believe in Christ because of this present, temporal life; for for the same life Christ did not die: but we believe in Christ for eternal life. And for this cause also he died, that he might bring us out of this life into that life.
(17) Therefore we must understand these two doctrines, and so distinguish them, saying, Moses and the law belong to this life. But to that life we must have the Lord, who is called Christ, the Son of David, who sits at the right hand of God, and at whose feet all his enemies must lie. By the law and by our works we cannot attain 'that life. For our works are not enough to pay for sin and to subdue our enemies. God's Son had to come from heaven, become man, and pay for sin with His death and blood, sit at God's right hand, and trample the enemies under His feet. Moses teaches us how to keep ourselves in this life, but for that life we have here the treasure, which is called Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who is the Lord of eternal life.
(18) This temporal, perishable life in this world we have through God, who is, as we confess in the first article of our Christian faith, Almighty Creator of heaven and earth. But we have eternal, imperishable life through the passion and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, who sat down at the right hand of God, as we confess in the other article of our Christian faith. These two pieces are necessary for us to know. The doctrine of the first and greatest commandment, how we are to love God and our neighbor, we must have for this life; but the doctrine and knowledge of who Christ is we must have.
to that life, so that we may know where to stay when this life comes to an end; that is, when this life wants to end, that we may say: I believe that Jesus Christ is Lord over that life; he deals with me secretly and secretly by his word, power and Spirit, so that I also may enter into it. Thus one lives holy here in this world, if one serves God with the right worship, according to the highest commandment; and in addition has eternal life through Christ, according to the gospel.
(19) There must truly be a great wrath of God hanging over the man who does not turn to such excellent teaching, and it must be a terrible plague that the same man should not be moved by these words. For what can be taught that is higher and better than these two things? First, how a man should make for himself a paradise and kingdom of heaven here on earth, so that he may serve God by sleeping, waking, walking, standing, eating and drinking. For, as has been said, whatever one does for his neighbor, he does for the service and good pleasure of our Lord God Himself. Should we not be happy about such teaching, which brings us to the vain service of God? Such things are not fictitious nor false, but are constantly spoken by Him who cannot lie. Secondly, how a man who is about to die should comfort himself against death, namely, when he has Christ, is baptized, has absolution and the holy sacrament, eternal life must follow.
(20) But because these words have unfortunately become so common among everyone that almost no one respects them anymore, we should sincerely pray to God that he does not let us fall as well, so that we get such coarse and hardened hearts, as unfortunately all the world has now. Peasants, burghers, and nobles are not worthy to have some juice and taste from these words, and they also go by, do not see, do not hear, but are like darkened people who walk by, just as if these words did not concern them. This is a sure sign that they are rejected and rejected by God. That they would think for once: I will build a church for God and make a paradise for myself, and I will also go to heaven.
I want to serve my neighbor, so I have served God. After that I will have my Lord Jesus Christ for that life; in him will I believe, who is Lord of eternal life. But this they do not do, but go their way as blind and hardened men.
21 Therefore we should pray diligently that we may keep this teaching. They are such high and sweet words that they are beyond all measure. And let every man keep himself in fear and humility, and let these words come to his heart. For if anyone is not moved by these words, it is an evil sign; it is a sign that the devil has possessed his heart. And yet all the world is now so hardened, and especially the most learned and intelligent, that they let our Lord God speak so kindly, and yet love the devil more than God.
Our Lord God offers Himself most kindly to us, comforts us, gives us everything we need for the necessities of life and limb, and asks nothing of us in return except that we love Him; He also promises us eternal life in His Son Christ Jesus. Nevertheless, no one may serve him. But the devil, who puts us through all heartache, who plagues us daily with war, pestilence, expensive time and all kinds of plagues, everyone serves him with joy for eternal death. Where one is to give a penny out of God's command and in honor of Christ, one makes oneself so heavy that box, bag, hand and everything is tightly closed. But where one is to give a hundred guilders for the service of the devil, hand, bag, box and everything is open. This is the world, the beautiful, tender, noble herb, and yet sees before his eyes: that the devil rewards his servants and assistants so badly, namely, with all kinds of plagues here temporally and with the infernal fire there eternally; and again, that God rewards his servants well and abundantly, here temporally gives paradise and all good things, and there eternally gives eternal life in Christ our Lord; but nothing turns on this. Let us thank our dear Lord God for this teaching from the bottom of our hearts, and call upon Him with earnestness and ask that He may graciously keep us in it, that we may remain in it forever, amen.