Second Sunday in Lent 3/4/12

Second Sunday in Lent 3/4/12 Text: Mark 8:27-38 Title: God’s Plan or Your Plan? While there is a lot to preach on in our gospel reading for today my sermon is based on the words of Jesus, as they are written in verse 33 where Jesus is saying to his beloved disciple Peter, the same Peter that he told earlier, "You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it." He now says, “Get behind me, Satan!” I can’t even imagine how Peter must have felt when Jesus said that to him in front of the disciples. It had to be terrible; at the very least embarrassing. What would make Jesus call Peter his beloved disciple Satan? Jesus gives us the answer in his next sentence. “For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” You see Peter, the rest of disciples, and the crowds were not really listening to Jesus when he said, “that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.” They had their own plan for Jesus. The suffering and rejection by the religious leaders, while probably puzzling, might even be expected, but Jesus dying was not in their plan. How could a dead Jesus overthrow the Romans and restore Israel to its glory? He couldn’t die. It was that simple and so Peter, as our reading tells us took Jesus aside to straighten him out; you know get him back on the right plan. The problem is that Peter’s, the disciples, the crowds, or for that matter our plan is not Jesus’ plan. Their plan and our plan is for Jesus to be there when we need him to heal, protect, or make sure what we want done happens. Jesus’ plan on the other hand is to save the lives of his human creation so that they can be, as he created them live forever in a perfect relationship with God, each other, and God’s creation. That is his plan and he willingly died for that plan. All his plan requires of us is to believe in his plan so that we are saved from the wrath of God. For, as he tells us in our reading this morning those who are ashamed of being his; that is those who reject God’s forgiveness on account of Jesus’ saving act, Jesus will be ashamed of. In other words he will reject those who don’t believe, when he comes back in his glory on that day when the world as we know it will come to an end. That is Jesus’ plan, the perfect plan that he designed just for his fallen creation. In his plan he does everything. He takes God’s wrath that should fall on us. He gives us faith, so that we receive God’s forgiveness. He keeps us in the faith by his Word and Sacraments. He protects us from those who would spiritually harm us. And last, but not least, he is preparing a place for us, so we can be with him forever. That is God’s plan; the perfect plan. Since it is God’s perfect plan why is that we struggle so much with accepting his plan? We struggle with his perfect plan because it doesn’t work with what we consider to be the perfect plan. For our plan has us living lives, as we want to live them yet being forgiven and loved by God. Our plan makes God into a loving grandfather type of God who surely will not punish us, as long as we try hard enough. Our plan is that God will bless us with material things if we do our part to please God. Our plan says that the Triune God is not the only way to forgiveness; it is just our way, for how could God punish those who have never heard about him or understand him in a different way. That is our plan for God and we stake our lives on it. We stake our lives on it because deep down we put more trust in our plan than we do in God’s plan, for after all the Bible was written a long time ago and things are just so different today. To prove our point we will quite often take his words out of context or even put a different meaning to them, so we can say that God’s plan is aligned with our plan. Using God to make sure our plans work out is common today, particularly in what are called the prosperity churches that while they might teach that Jesus is your Savior have turned his teachings from saving us from death to saving us from being poor and having problems in life. They teach that if you only believe enough, give enough, worship enough God will make sure your plan of prosperity works out. If that plan does not work out then you go to plan B. And if that plan does not work, well you are not living your life right. Get yourself right with God and then you will be blessed. That is what is taught and that is what is believed by those who believe that their plan is God’s plan. The problem is that when we rely on our plan for security and peace no matter how well it is thought out or followed the plan will always end in death, for neither plan A nor plan B is God’s plan. God’s plan is what is what I call plan C; the crucifixion of Jesus, for in his death he gives us life. I say that because after three day Jesus rises from the dead proving that he is more than death. He dies and lives forever, thus giving us life. Now that is a plan. Jesus told Peter his plan, but Peter did not like it. Peter did not trust that it would work or that it actually made sense. Peter thinks his plan is much better. But Jesus, risen again promises Peter, lose your life for the sake of the gospel, and for the sake of Jesus, that is, lose your plan for life and follow God’s plan for life. His plan works, for it is his plan and not ours. He does it all. Jesus dies, taking the wrath of God instead of letting God pour out his wrath on you. Jesus is raised from the grave and ascends to heaven, so you are assured of your resurrection and eternal life. God gives you faith so that you can believe and be saved. Our plan as well thought out as it might be; no matter what promises it makes will always place demands on us that in the end we cannot meet. God’s plan on the other hand through the saving act of Jesus replaces the demands and empty promises our plans make. That is not to say we are not to make plans, for we have to otherwise we have no direction in our lives. We just, while carrying out our plans need to carry Jesus’ plan of life with us. We carry it; that is we trust Jesus plan, for his plan in the end is what makes the day a good day, no matter how many things go wrong and, as we know things do go wrong in a day. And because we now know the plan of Jesus is the right plan we trust in that plan over our plan, so that when the plans of other people fail to make them good, or make everything go right in their relationship, or fail to keep them healthy, or safe in their home, or give them that dream job we offer them Jesus’ plan, the perfect plan for our lives and their lives. Amen