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Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen. You may be seated.
Whenever we do think of repentance, we tend to associate it always with when we have been caught doing wrong. And that is a very true thing. Having come out of a tragedy or a difficult experience, it drives us to our knees to repent. But, if our daily life is to be one of daily repentance, then we also need to repent when we have been blessed or strengthened by God. It’s counterintuitive, and I realize that. The Scriptures are very clear. It’s very biblical and very godly that repentance should be at all times in our life, not only when we are at a low point, but when we are at our high point. God doesn’t just desire us to return to Him when things are going poorly. He also wishes us to return to Him when things go well. He desires us to return daily and always, not just when we perceive the need, as if only the need arises when there is something negative.
Now, it’s easy to repent when God has driven us to our knees. There is no other place to go. But isn’t it interesting when things do go according to our plans and our desires and our ambitions and aspirations? Do we repent at that time as well? Because then that raises the question, why is there a need to repent? Why do we need to repent if it’s only for that poor time in your life? If God says daily we are to return to Him and always we are to return to Him, St. Paul made a very astute comment in his epistle reading when he said, we appeal to you not to receive the grace of God in vain. None of us receive the grace of God when we have been struck down and crushed in vain, but do we receive it in vain when things go well in our life? Because we don’t necessarily repent and thank God for the gifts—undeserved gifts.
It was our Lord who said very clearly in the Gospel reading, “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume, where thieves break in and destroy.” That’s the whole key: laying up treasures in heaven. Repenting also when times are well is laying up treasures in heaven. It puts perspective on things, doesn’t it? Now, I don’t nearly have the number of gray hairs that many of you do, but I have noticed in visiting those who have a preponderance of gray hairs, they have a perspective on this life that only comes from decades—decades of getting it to them through the Word—to realize that the ambitions, goals, dreams, aspirations, and achievements in this world matter nothing to God. All the while, when they are given to you by God, a repentance is as much and as vital to you to return to the Lord at that time as when you and I come with our head bowed in shame and guilt.
For otherwise, God is nothing more than a sugar daddy giving us what we need when we need it. And the rest of the time, He can be set aside on the sidelines while we play the game. I have to tell you, I have to repent because of that. How often I did not repent when things have been going well, whether in my marriage or my family, whether within the church or the school. You didn’t either. We’re just as guilty, all of us, for only looking at repentance as a time of Lent and Ash Wednesday, as if that’s the only time. When God is saying, return to me at all times, whether your mouth is full of goodness or whether you are starving, whether you are lifted up and exalted or whether you’ve been humbled.
Because whenever things go badly and not according to plan, before God finally gets us to return to Him, we do a lot of blaming, don’t we? And we can spend our lives blaming everybody else. But it’s a sad way to die. And a very empty way to die. And it doesn’t solve the problem. Because the problem still is within our bosom. That’s the need to return to God daily. Joel said it so beautifully. The reason that we can return to Him daily at the best of days and at the worst of times is because God is gracious. Always gracious. Never vindictive or vengeful. God is merciful. He doesn’t sit with his hands across his chest to lecture you. He is slow to anger. He doesn’t fly off the handle. Heaven knows we have enough passion within us. He’s abounding in kindness and steadfast love.
Kindness. Heaven knows we don’t spread that around among us in the parish family and in our own families. Kindness. Kindness. He is easily moved to forgive. We don’t have to cajole Him, try to charm Him into our worth or value to be forgiven. He freely gives it. And finally, He will not allow you to lose hope. When Joel talked about God giving you wine offerings and grain offerings, he is speaking in terms of God providing you with what you need. At the best of times or at the worst of times, providing what you need to continue to serve other people and to serve God with this love and forgiveness.
When Joel said, let us call a solemn assembly as a parish family and repent, that’s what we’ve done tonight. It’s been called by God. He’s calling us to repent from those with the preponderance of gray hairs to those nursing at the breast. That we may repent whether we come here tonight with everything going so swimmingly that we can hardly stand it, or when things are so bitter and struggling that we can hardly taste it and stomach it. Repentance is never in vain at the best of times or the worst. He will always forgive. He will always restore you. And He will always enable you to continue.
Our Lord is jealous for one thing within you. And it’s your heart. He is jealous for your heart. He wants your heart to be fixed upon His gifts. Like a dog looks at its master or mistress and never moves its eyes, waiting for the master or mistress to tell it what to do, or to just wait and bask in the master’s presence. That’s all your God wants. He wants your heart. For where your treasure is, your heart will be also.
That’s why He said, for our sake He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us. For what purpose? That you and I might become the righteousness of God. Lifted up and exalted. That is why Paul said it a different way than what Joel said. Paul said, be reconciled to God not only when you feel it, but also when you don’t. That’s laying up for yourselves treasures in heaven, for you are looking to the Master to give you all things at all times, because He does give and He does take away. As you and I know so well, He always promises to forgive. He always promises to restore, and He always promises to enable you to continue. Lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where moth and rust cannot consume and where thieves cannot break in and steal.
In the name of Jesus, Amen. The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and your minds on Christ Jesus to life everlasting. Amen.
