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THE SIXTEENTH SUNDAY AFTER PENTECOST September 28, 2025 Pastor Tom Steers Christ the Saviour Lutheran Church, Toronto OPENING HYMN: 905 “Come, Thou Almighty King” The Invocation Page 184 Confession and Absolution (left-hand column) Page 184-185 Introit Psalm 119:73-75, 77; antiphon v. 76 Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant. Your hands have made and fashioned me; give me understanding that I may learn your commandments. Those who fear you shall see me and rejoice, because I have hoped in your word. I know, O LORD, that your rules are righteous, and that in faithfulness you have afflicted me. Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant. Let your mercy come to me, that I may live; for your law is my delight. Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now and will be forever. Amen. Let your steadfast love comfort me according to your promise to your servant. Collect Prayer: O God, You are the strength of all who trust in You, and without Your aid we can do no good thing. Grant us the help of Your grace that we may please You in both will and deed; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen. Our Bible Readings Old Testament – Amos 6:1-7 Psalm 146 Epistle Reading – 1st Timothy 6:6-19 Gospel Reading – Luke 16:19-31 THE APOSTLES’ CREED Page 192 HYMN OF THE DAY: 655 “Lord, Keep Us Steadfast in Your Word” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8ViZi7M5p4&list=RDS8ViZi7M5p4&start_radio=1 The Sermon – Brothers & sisters, peace, grace and mercy be to you through God our Father and our Lord & Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen. The last words that Martin Luther wrote before he died may have well been inspired by our Gospel account of the rich man and Lazarus. Luther wrote, "We are all beggars. This is true." At times in our lives, every one of us feels like the poor Lazarus. Vulnerable, in need, perhaps alone, we watch the world go on around us, a world that parties and feasts, and often ignores those going through difficulties. And though each of us before God is, like Lazarus, poor and helpless, we haven’t had to settle for mere crumbs fallen to the floor off of God’s table. Instead, we’ve been invited and seated at the table of the Lord and His feast in the Church. One day Christians will finally be carried to Heaven to be with God, the source of all true riches. God feeds us here, now, with His Word, and His Body & Blood in the Lord’s Supper. This is a message from today’s Gospel lesson. It’s the Good News. Yet there’s also a warning in these verses from Luke that Jesus is giving. It’s not the caution that a casual reading of Scripture might leave us with, but an important warning none-the-less. First, let’s go back to this account of Lazarus. And I call it that because Jesus doesn’t use the word ‘parable’ to describe it, but He does include a name, Lazarus, and that’s unique. This is the only time in any of Jesus’ parables where Christ uses a name, so it may have been an actual individual. The name Lazarus in Hebrew means, “God is my help.” And that was certainly true with this poor man. God ultimately helped him, when no one else would. Lazarus is the child of God whose help is in the name of the Lord. The rich man is heartless and wicked. He knowingly withholds his food and his shelter from the poor man outside his door. We could take away the lesson that being a child of God is no guarantee of ease or success in life. And that would be true, but that’s not the point of the account. Neither is the wickedness of the rich man the real message. So, let’s go back to the text. How do we know that the rich man consciously withheld food and assistance from Lazarus? Because the rich man recognizes Lazarus as he lies comforted by Abraham. He’s been aware of Lazarus, and had consciously withheld what Lazarus needed. So, our scene is set: the good but poverty-stricken, versus the rich and uncaring. Where could we find a clearer contrast? Sadly, in this world, in many countries, and even in our own. Should we care about those less fortunate than us? Yes. Should we respond to such situations? When we can. But is that the point Jesus is making? No. We can draw these lessons out of the account, but so can the un-believer. God calls us to be compassionate, but compassion can be shown at times even by atheists. And compassion, on its own, doesn’t save us. The heart of this Bible account lies deeper. Lazarus dies, and we’re told that he’s carried away by angels to be comforted. Then, the Rich Man also dies, and his fate is coldly reported simply as, "being buried.” Immediately, the rich man finds himself in torment in Hell. Part of the torment for the rich man is knowing that not everyone is suffering as he is. The rich man sees Lazarus in the company of Abraham at a great distance. He apparently understands something of the justice of the situation, and pleads only for a small mercy – a drop of water to cool his tongue. He’s then informed by Abraham, of the nature of the situation. He’s reminded of how when circumstances were reversed during life, Lazarus received no such mercy from Him. And besides, things are so arranged that even if he wanted to, Lazarus couldn’t provide the requested relief. Are we supposed to be frightened by the threat of condemnation depicted here? Yes, but it’s still not the purpose of the narrative. Everyone hearing these words from Jesus understood the justice of the situation. And as they were listening, they probably all nodded in agreement with Christ. But they already knew that evil will suffer in judgment. They knew God called them to be compassionate. Then the rich man asks for Lazarus to be sent to his brothers, to warn them, and spare them the misery of his condition. Abraham reminds him that they have Moses and the Prophets. They have the Scriptures, the Word of God to warn and instruct them! Then the rich man makes his point, that the Scriptures didn't work with him! The Word of God had failed in his case. He reasoned that Holy Scripture and the Church might not work, but if someone came calling from beyond the grave, that kind of sign would shake them to their core and wake them up! I would guess everyone listening to Jesus that day would have been in agreement with the rich man in the story at this point. We might be tempted to agree too. The Word of God just doesn’t seem to get through to some people. They either won’t go to Church to hear it preached and taught correctly, or if they do, they don’t take it seriously. The feeling for some appears to be that God’s Word is always there, and it will wait until they’re ready to believe it. So here is where this account of Lazarus by Jesus is really going. Jesus drops the whole message on His listeners that day, and today, when He says: 'If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, neither will they be persuaded if someone rises from the dead.' Christ is saying that if the powerful and holy Word of God won’t reach some people, neither will a corpse rising out of the ground persuade them. Our Saviour is being very blunt in saying if His Word doesn’t move someone, nothing will. It is God's Word, or nothing at all that will work! Now, I imagine there were a lot of people listening that day who disagreed with Jesus. And I would guess that some of them thought Jesus was wrong, and that a person rising from the grave would move people to sit up, take notice, and start believing. And that’s ironic. Because Jesus gave the world the ultimate proof of what He said by dying and then rising from the grave. And some of the very people who were listening that day, like some of the Pharisees Luke tells us were there, may have witnessed His death. The Pharisees knew from many credible witnesses, even one of their own, Nicodemus, that Christ rose from the grave, and yet they would not believe in Him. In 1st Corinthians Chapter 15, the Apostle Paul gives a list of people to whom the risen Jesus appeared. These witnesses to the resurrected Christ included the twelve disciples, James the brother of Jesus, and a group of more than 500 people at the same time. Some of the Pharisees and Scribes even tried to silence the witnesses to the resurrection. They paid the Roman guards at the empty tomb to lie about it. Jesus has risen from the grave, but not all people will believe. Christ has risen, but people still sin, boldly, and abuse one another. They’ve heard about sin, hell, and damnation, but many just shrug it off. So, if the Word of God can’t move them to believe at some point in the life, nothing can, and nothing will. Your sins have been forgiven because Jesus died in your place, on the cross. He rose from His grave to prove that sin, death and hell have been conquered, and taken out of your future. It was His resurrection that mattered for the whole world. And as a believer you will rise from death one day by the power of Jesus, and live with Him forever. Should we live a life of compassion? Yes. Should we attempt to live a Holy Christian life. We should try, that’s the command and will of God. But will these things save us? No. As sinful human beings, we can’t live a perfect life. Jesus, our Saviour, did that for us, and paid for our sins at Calvary. Today’s Gospel account by Christ teaches us to listen to the Word of God, and take it to heart. And when we do, we have the comfort that one day, despite the pain and hardships of this life, we will be held by God, and have peace, and all we need from Him. This account of Jesus is meant to assure you that saving faith comes from one place. The Bible makes clear in Romans 10:17 that faith comes by hearing the Word of God, or not at all. That you are born again by a Word that is living, powerful, and imperishable. And so, as believers, whatever your status in the eyes of the world – no matter your size, or success as measured by earthly standards -- you will be carried by angels to paradise. Until that time, Christians will be nurtured by the true Church, where God’s Word is taught correctly, the Sacrament of Baptism cleanses us of sin and rescues us from eternal death, and where we are fed at the table of our Lord and given the very Body and Blood of Christ. May the peace that passes all human understanding comfort you, keep Your hearts and minds in Jesus Christ. Amen. PRAYERS OF THE CHURCH SERVICE OF THE SACRAMENT Page 194 THE LORD’S PRAYER Page 196 THE WORDS OF OUR LORD Page 197 POST-COMMUNION COLLECT (right-hand column) Page 201 SALUTATION and BENEDICAMUS Page 201-202 CLOSING HYMN: 601 “All Who Believe and Are Baptized”