Sunday, July 13th 2025
Fifth Sunday after Pentecost, Series C (Proper 10C)
Text: Leviticus 18:1–5; 19:9–18
Sermon Audio
As we gather… One insurance commercial promises that they are there, like a good neighbor. The lawyer who stood up to test Jesus asked, “Who is my neighbor?” Our reading from Leviticus helps spell out what it means to be a good neighbor. Leaving extra for those in need, not stealing, not lying, paying your workers fairly, not pursuing unjust lawsuits, not hating, and not bearing grudges all fall in this list of dos and don’ts. Certainly we can follow these to help show love to those around us. Moreover, we see that Jesus was our good neighbor who showed love to us in our time of need. He kept the commandments for us, and He also forgave us for the times that we have failed to do so. In Christ alone do we see what a good neighbor is, and by the power of the Holy Spirit, we can “go and do likewise.”
Growing up, 3:30 p.m. was an important time in my life. That’s not when my school got out, that’s when the Catholic school bus would drop off students on my street, and I would come running out of my door to say hello to my neighborhood friends who lived in the houses across the street from me. They’d still be in their school uniforms before I was inviting them to come over to my house to build Legos or play video games.
After all these years, I still keep in touch with one of those boys who is now a man like me. We’ll connect on the Internet every other week or so to play video games and catch up on life, even though we live in different parts of the state.
But as we went over to each other’s houses, we noticed that there were differences in the way the households worked. One family had dinner a bit later. Another family had two parents working, so we’d often play with my friend’s babysitter when we came to his house.
All of us may have wondered from time to time how life would be different if we lived in a different household. Maybe we liked the mom who wasn’t as much of a neat freak as ours was. Maybe we liked that a friend had dinner a bit later so there’s more time for playing after school. Maybe the neighbor could watch more television than we could at home.
When the Lord rescued His people from slavery in Egypt, He claimed them as His own, marking His name on them as the people He had redeemed. Just as parents would be careful to set up house rules for the benefit of their children, the Lord was careful to establish some house rules on how His people were to live. THE LORD PLACES HIS NAME ON US SO THAT WE CAN EXPERIENCE GRACE IN HIS HOUSEHOLD.
First, I. We sometimes envy other households. As mentioned, sometimes we wished life was different growing up. The Lord warns His people in our text from Leviticus: “You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes.”
Those people worshipped other gods. They lived different lifestyles. Elsewhere, the Lord said, ““For you are a people holy to the LORD your God. The LORD your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.” They were to live different lives and not live like the nations around them.
The King James Version translates 1 Peter 2:5 “But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people;” As Christians, sometimes we feel like a peculiar people.
As a child, I had the blessing of having many of my friends either be ones I met at my Lutheran school, or being neighborhood kids who went to a Catholic school. Even if we weren’t perfect, we shared Christian values. I didn’t feel so peculiar.
But nowadays, our children and grandchildren don’t have that same benefit. We live in a culture that can be antithetical to the Christian house rules, and it can be tempting to go along to get along.
Think about how hard it was when you first moved out of the house to keep the values your parents taught you. Freshman year of college becomes an eye opening experience for many of us. Like an Outback Steakhouse, the motto of a residence hall might as well be, no rules, just right. If any of us have served in the Armed Forces, perhaps we had a similar experience when we were deployed.
The culture around us teaches a different way of living. Sleep with whomever you want, but shame on you if you litter. Whatever you do on the Internet, that’s fine, just don’t talk to me about religion on Facebook. Do what it takes to get ahead, buy as much fun stuff as you can afford, and if there’s something left for charity, then throw in a penny or two. Having a healthy bottom line means paying workers as little as possible. If you’re angry, feel free to do what you want to get revenge because, after all, revenge feels good.
It can be tempting to live like the nations around us. And just like it was tempting to wish we lived in a different household, perhaps we can sometimes wish we lived in a different household of faith, or didn’t live in one at all.
II. The Lord placing His name on us means we live by His house rules. The Lord said to Moses, “You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the LORD your God. You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them: I am the LORD.” Seems like a tall order, doesn’t it?
In this selection from Leviticus chapters 18 and 19, I count the phrase “I am the Lord” eight times. If you zoom out to the whole book of Leviticus, He says it 49 times. Did the people forget who He was? By no means! In saying this again and again, the Lord is setting down His house rules. He was telling His people ways that they were to live and not to live.
What does it mean to be an Eichers? Growing up, it was a household of love and kindness. It was a household of working hard and finishing projects. It was a household of generosity and an abundance of leftovers at family meals. Now, there weren’t a list of family rules in a book or posted on the wall, but you knew when you were doing something that wasn’t fitting for being an Eichers.
I don’t remember this, but growing up, our fridge was immediately to the right of our basement staircase. I thought it would be great fun to take some raw eggs from the fridge and throw them down the basement staircase. That was certainly against our house rules.
Looking at Leviticus 19, we see ways in which the Lord tells His people to treat each other. Leave some leftovers for those who can’t afford food. Don’t steal or swear falsely so you can deal honestly with each other. Don’t mistreat your workers. Don’t abuse justice and show partiality. Don’t hate others and take vengeance.
In the same way as Christians, we are being called to leave some leftovers. More than that, the Lord wishes that we set aside the first tenth of our income for the work of the Church, and if there’s leftovers over and above that, you can help others in need, also. We are called not to steal or lie, but rather, deal honestly with each other. We are to care for our workers and be good employees ourselves. When we get angry, we are not to take vengeance but leave it to the Lord.
This is a tall order, but it is through these house rules that we can be a peculiar people, showing love to those around us, and witnessing the kindness of Christ that He has so lavishly shown us.
We have the Lord’s name placed upon us in Baptism, and that is a great blessing to be part of this household of faith. III. Living in this household, we experience grace.
One day my daughter asked me, “Dad, did grandpa forgive you after you threw those eggs down the staircase?” “Of course grandpa forgave me!” My hope is that our households growing up were places where we had forgiveness and grace in the face of sin and failure.
Of course it didn’t make it okay that I threw eggs down the staircase. It didn’t clean the raw eggs off the steps. It didn’t mean I avoided punishment for such an act. Nonetheless, my dad still loves me, and he forgave me.
Regardless of your experience growing up in your family, the Church is a household of forgiveness and grace. We are a household of forgiveness and grace precisely because Christ suffered for our sins and lived a perfect life on our behalf.
He was the one who taught us the prayer, “Our Father who art in Heaven,” and in that same prayer, we ask for the forgiveness of sins and we receive it.
Our Father is always willing to welcome us back into the household when we sin precisely because when He see us, He sees His perfect Son. I am the Lord is a promise, not a threat, and because He has placed His name on us in Baptism, we are part of this peculiar household where wrongs are forgotten, and sinners are welcomed.
I am the Lord also means that He welcomes us to a family table, the Lord’s Supper, wherein we receive the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. As we gather here around the Word, we also get a chance to hear from our Father who richly and daily forgives us in Jesus. Life in the household of God is not always easy, but it is always a blessing and it is better than anything else we could have imagined.