The Seventh Sunday after Pentecost
July 23, 2017
Exodus 19:2-8a
You Are God’s Treasured Possession!
After they set out from Rephidim, they entered the Desert of Sinai, and Israel camped there in the desert in front of the mountain. Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, “This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: ‘You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself. Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.’ These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites.” So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the LORD had commanded him to speak. The people all responded together, “We will do everything the LORD has said.” So Moses brought their answer back to the LORD. (NIV1984)
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,
It probably won’t surprise you to hear that Isaac has accumulated quite a few possessions over the course of the last six (and ½!) years. Some people say it’s because he has trained me on how to order things from amazon.com. Personally, I think it’s because he has his grandma wrapped around his little finger. Either way, the result is the same: over the course of the last six (and ½!) years Isaac has accumulated quite a few possessions! And, as some of you have already experienced, there are times when Isaac will show you one of his possessions and make this statement, “This is very special to me.” Why it is special to him is immaterial. As far as he is concerned it is “very special” to him, it is one of his “treasured possessions”!
Do you have anything that is “very special” to you, my friends? Do you have anything that you would consider to be a “treasured possession”? I think all of us have something that fits into that category. It doesn’t have to be something so expensive that it’s insured. It doesn’t have to be something that’s been handed down for generations in your family. It doesn’t even have to be something that other people would automatically recognize as being a “treasured possession.” It could be something your spouse gave to you— back when you were first dating. It could be one of those plaster handprints that your child or your grandchild made in school. The important thing is that it is “very special” to you! The important thing is that you consider it to be your “treasured possession”!
It’s certainly not difficult to see where I am going with this, is it! Here in our text we are reminded that the Lord our God, the Almighty Creator of heaven and earth, considers us, His children, to be “very special” to Him! With that truth in mind let’s rejoice as we study this portion of Scripture under the theme: You Are God’s Treasured Possession! There are two things we want to see today. First, let’s see how someone becomes God’s Treasured Possession. Then let’s see what God expects of us, His Treasured Possessions.
How did the children of Israel become God’s Treasured Possession? It was 100% the result of what God had done for them! And what had God graciously done for them? Look at what we are told in the opening portion of our text, “Then Moses went up to God, and the LORD called to him from the mountain and said, ‘This is what you are to say to the house of Jacob and what you are to tell the people of Israel: “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”’”
Not only had the Lord God just rescued His children from the land of slavery and death, but the Lord God was about to do something for His children that would change their lives forever— literally! The Lord was about to enter into a special covenant relationship with them! As we will see in just a moment, a key part of that covenant relationship would center on God’s children being faithful to Him by obeying His covenant. But, before the Lord explains to His children what He expects from them, He reminds His children of what He has already done for them! What God had already done for His children is summed up in the words, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.”
Since this was the beginning of their third month of freedom from slavery in Egypt, God’s children knew exactly what the Lord had done for them: They watched as the Lord God Almighty used a series of ten powerful plagues to bring the mighty nation of Egypt to her knees thereby setting God’s people free. He rescued them from a revenge-filled Egyptian army by parting the waters of the Red Sea so that God’s people could cross on dry ground and then He used those same two walls of water to destroy the Egyptian army. He led His children with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night. He gave them water from rocks and provided them with quail and manna. When the Amalekites suddenly attacked them, God had Moses go to the top of a hill and raise his hands to heaven. As long as Moses’ hands were raised— even when they had to be held up by Aaron and Hur— God’s people were victorious over their enemies. While it may have seemed as though the fledgling Nation of Israel was like a young bird learning how to fly on her own, the Lord their God was always right there— ready to rescue them, like an eagle which swoops down to carry their eaglet on their wings.
Once Moses had reminded God’s children of all the wonderful things the Lord had graciously done for them, then Moses was told to reveal to God’s children exactly what their Lord expected from them. The Lord says, “Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all the nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.”
What God expected from His children was clear and concise. God expected that when His children looked at all of the wonderful amazing things He had so freely done for them that they would respond to His grace in loving thankful obedience. God expected His people to hear and obey His voice. God expected His people to let His holy revealed Word guide and direct their sanctified lives. God expected His people to guard and protect the covenant He was about to establish with them. God expected His people to openly demonstrate that they were indeed His very own special people by keeping the laws He was about to give to them, the laws that were designed to keep God’s people, God’s Treasured Possession, separate and distinct from the unbelieving nations around them.
Why? Why did God need to make it so very clear that He expected His people to listen to His voice and obey the Laws that He was giving to them? Because God knew! God knew that His children were inclined to wander away from Him so His laws were designed to keep them close to Him. God knew that He had an eternally important mission for His people to carry out here on this earth. They were to be an entire “nation of priests,” people who would not only demonstrate to everyone around them what it meant to love and serve, worship and obey the one and only true God, but they would also be people who proclaimed to everyone around them that the Lord, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob promised to send a Savior, the Messiah into this world. Faithfulness to the Lord and obedience to His covenant would result in the Children of Israel being God’s “treasured possession.”
Now look at the closing verses of our text. We are told, “So Moses went back and summoned the elders of the people and set before them all the words the LORD had commanded him to speak. The people all responded together, ‘We will do everything the LORD has said.’”
In love and in thankfulness for everything the Lord had done for them, God’s people promised that they would be faithful to the Lord and to the covenant He was establishing with them. Sadly, we know that not all of God’s people always kept this promise. In fact, we know that not long after making this promise God’s people rebelled against the Lord by having Aaron make a golden calf which they then bowed down to and worshiped. We know that when God’s people got to the border of the Promised Land they didn’t trust that God would or could keep His promise to them and give them this land that was overflowing with milk and honey. We know that as a result of their rebellion, as a result of their unfaithfulness, God’s people wandered in the wilderness for forty years. We know that as the Old Testament era unfolded God’s people were unfaithful to Him and to His covenant over and over again. And we know that even when the Lord fulfilled His ultimate promise— the promise to send the Savior into this world— many of God’s people rejected Him and ultimately executed Him on the cross of Calvary’s hill. But we also know that even in the midst of all that unfaithfulness, the Lord was faithful, wasn’t He! The apostle Paul summarizes some of the unparalleled blessings the Lord bestowed upon His people, His Treasured Possession, when he says in Romans 9:4 & 5, “Theirs is the adoption as sons; theirs the divine glory, the covenants, the receiving of the law, the temple worship and the promises. Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of Christ, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.”
As we fast-forward some 3,500 years, as the setting changes from God’s people camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai to us, God’s people living here in northern California, we would do well to ask ourselves, “How do these ancient words apply to us?” Even more importantly, “How do these ancient words apply to me?” The answer to that question begins in 1 Peter 2:9. Through His servant Peter God says to us, God says to you, “But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.”
While Peter (who was very familiar with the words of our sermon text for today) did not actually use the term “treasured possession” he definitely painted the very same picture and emphasized the very same truth when speaking to us, God’s New Testament children. You, my friends, are God’s Treasured Possession! Since you are God’s Treasured Possession let’s ask the same two questions we used when we looked at God’s people camped at the foot of Mt. Sinai.
First, how did you become God’s Treasured Possession? Was it because you were so “good” and so “nice” and so “helpful”? Was it because God saw something in you that He didn’t see in Joe or Sally? Was it because God heard that you “decided” to “accept” Him as your personal Lord and Savior? Not at all! Just as with God’s people of old, you became God’s Treasured Possession as a result of what God did for you! And what did God do for you? He set you free from your slavery to sin! He rescued you from the “sting of death” (See 1 Corinthians 15:50-57). He died to pay the penalty for your sins! (Pointing to the cross) He adopted you to be His own dearly beloved child! (Pointing to the Baptismal font) Yes, my friends, every time you see this cross and every time you see this Baptismal font you are reminded of the fact that purely because of what God has done for you, purely because of His power and His grace you are God’s Treasured Possession!
Think about what this means for you and for your everyday life! Think of the comfort, the strength and the security you have because you are God’s Treasured Possession! When you are injured or ill that does not change the fact that you are God’s Treasured Possession. When you are sad or confused that does not negate the reality that you are God’s Treasured Possession. When you are rejected or ridiculed because of your trust in Him (Pointing to the cross) you are still God’s Treasured Possession. When you are feeling alone or unwanted the God of heaven comes to you in His holy Word and His holy Sacrament to guarantee to you that you are His Treasured Possession. When you are dying, you can rest your head on Jesus and hear Him assure you that you are God’s Treasured Possession. When you are content and joyful and happy, knowing that you are God’s Treasured Possession only adds to your happiness and to your joy and to your contentment!
Second, what does the Lord your God now expect from you? Just as with God’s people of old God expects you to show your love and your thankfulness to Him by being faithful to Him, by obeying His Word and by living up to what He called you to be: “a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God.” And how can you do that? It’s quite simple: “Declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light”! As God’s Treasured Possession we will strive to live a sanctified Christian life. As God’s Treasured Possession we will strive to share our dear Lord and Savior with as many people as we possibly can. As God’s Treasured Possession we will love the Lord our God with all our heart and with all our soul and with all our mind. As God’s Treasured Possession we will strive to love our neighbor as ourselves. (See Matthew 22:34-40)
Just as Isaac has certain things that he considers to be “very special” to him, so also we all have something that we consider to be a “treasured possession.” My prayer this morning is that whenever someone shows us something that is “very special” to them and every time we see something that we consider to be a “treasured possession,” that we will rejoice in knowing that purely by grace through faith in Jesus and what Jesus has done for us (Pointing to the cross) we are God’s “treasured possession”!
To God be the glory!
Amen
