"A Full Reformation" Sermon: Exodus 22:21-27

“A Full Reformation”
[Exodus 22:21-27]
October 26, 2008 Second Reformed Church

This church, Second Reformed Church, is part of the denomination, the Reformed Church in America. We hold to the Dutch Reformed Standards: the Belgic Confession, the Heidelberg Catechism, and the Canons of Dort. And today, by the way, is Reformation Sunday. This is the day we remember that Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis to the door of the Wittenberg Church on October 31, 1517 – the “start” of the Reformation.

Reformed. Reformation. What do we mean? It’s not as difficult to explain as it sometimes seems: re-form. Ours is a tradition that constantly seeks to re-form itself according to the Scripture Alone. Martin Luther said he didn’t care what the popes and councils said, because they could be wrong, we have to go back to the Bible – most of which is understandable – comprehensible – by most people. Being Reformed means that what we believe and do is based on going back to the Bible, understanding what God has said to believe and do – because the Bible is God-breathed – it is the inerrant, infallible, Word of God. Our answer to anything being brought before us ought to be, “Well, what has God said about this in His Word?”

Sometimes Reformed churches have gotten a bad reputation as being all about believing the right thing, having unreadable documents that explain things that no one understands. But that’s not what being Reformed is about. Being Reformed is about knowing what God has said is true in His Word – yes – but it is also about living those things out – doing those things God has said to do. The Puritans of the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries – who were Reformed – taught what they called “experimental faith.” That is, it is not enough to believe all the right things, those things we believe must be “experimented on” – they must be lived out.

Understand, it is of utmost importance that we return to the Scripture and ask if what we are being taught is true. Luke commends the Bereans as he records, “The brothers immediately sent Paul and Silas away by night to Berea, and when they arrived they went into the Jewish synagogue. Now these Jews were more noble than those in Thessalonica; they received the word with all eagerness, examining the Scriptures daily to see if these things were so” (Acts 17:10-11, ESV). The Bereans listened to the preaching of Paul and Silas, but they didn’t just leave it at that and think, “Well, it’s Paul and Silas, they must be right.” No, they opened their Bibles and checked to make sure that what Paul and Silas said was what God said. We must do likewise.

But it is also of utmost importance that we live out those things we learn from the Scripture. As James writes, “What good is it, my brothers, if someone says he has faith, but does not have works? Can that faith save him? If a brother or sister is poorly clothed and lacking in daily food, and one of you says to them, ‘Go in peace, be warmed and filled,’ without giving them the things needed for the body, what good is that? So also faith by itself, if it does not have good works, is dead” (James 2:14-17).

Being Reformed, then, is about have right credenda and right agenda – right belief and right action. We are to “love the Lord [our] God with all [our] heart and with all [our] soul and with all [our] strength and with all [our] mind, and our neighbor as ourself” (Luke 10:27b, ESV). We begin with a right understand of Who God is and who our neighbor is and what it means to love them and, then, we actually love them – we do something beyond mere understanding and belief.

In our text, we see four of the laws that were given to the nation of Israel while they were wandering in the wilderness after God had freed them from Egypt. Now, Reformed or not, we in the twenty-first century are not ancient Israel, and the ceremonial and civil aspects of the law that God gave to ancient Israel do not apply to us. However, the moral law and all the moral aspects of the law, apply to all people throughout time and space.

So, on this Reformation Sunday, let us look at a few “experimental” ways we are to live out the Reformed faith among our fellow humans:

First, “You shall not wrong a sojourner or oppose him, for you were sojourners in the land of Egypt.”

God told Israel that she was not to wrong a visitor in Israel; she was to do good to the visitor in Israel, because she had been a visitor – a stranger – in the land of Egypt. She was to deal honestly with anyone who came into Israel, to care for them, to show them the God of Israel, to help them, provide for their needs, do whatever they could to help the stranger and then send them on to where they were going. She was not to cheat them or harm them or do anything that would diminish them.

If people from another country visit, or from another state, or just not from around here, we should be on our best behavior. We should show them what a Christian looks like. We ought to do those things which lead them to want to know about our God and Savior. We ought to be as helpful to the stranger – the visitor – as we can, because our Salvation is in Jesus Alone. Well, how does that make sense?

Paul wrote, “And [Jesus] came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near. For through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus himself being the cornerstone, in whom the whole structure, being joined together, grows into a holy temple in the Lord. In him you also are being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:17-22, ESV).

In other words, we were all once strangers to Salvation in Jesus, but He saved us and made us His Own, part of His Holy Temple, so we, likewise, ought to receive everyone else in Jesus’ Name and for His Sake. Anyone and everyone who comes into God’s House looking for Him is welcome – no matter who they are, no matter what their past is, no matter what they look like, no matter where they come from.

If someone comes into this sanctuary that you don’t know, greet them. If someone new moves in next door or into your building, greet them, invite them to worship. Be friendly towards all those you come in contact with. And, if someone has a real need that you can meet, especially within the church, do so. As Paul wrote, “So then, as we have the opportunity, let us do good to everyone, and especially to those who are of the household of faith” (Galatians 6:10, ESV).

On the other hand, each of us must be honest. Whenever and wherever we are the stranger, we are not to take advantage of the hospitality and love of others. We do wrong to take when we don’t need. Otherwise, that is stealing and abusing others. Likewise, we must not assume that others should do for us or that others can do for us. We are to care for ourselves to the extent that we can, then, we may look to others for help. Our country and our churches are plagued with people who take when they do not need.

If you have believed in Jesus Alone for your Salvation, part of what it means to be Reformed, part of what it means to be a Christian, is to do whatever good we can for others, and to refrain from doing harm.

Second, “You shall not mistreat any widow or fatherless child. If you do mistreat them, and they cry out to me, I will surely hear their cry, and my wrath will burn, and I will kill you with the sword, and your wives shall become widows and your children fatherless.”

Within the covenant community of Israel, and now within the covenant community of the Church, we are to do whatever we can to make sure the needs of the “weak” are met. The widow and the orphan tend to have additional needs and need help, so the Church is to step up and help. James wrote, “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God and the father is this: to visit the orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world” (James 1:27, ESV).

Now, does that mean that widows and orphans should just kick back on the welfare list and live off begging from the Church? Of course not All people, including widows and orphans are to work for their sustenance, as much as they are able, and if there are any family members at all, they are to assist their relatives in meeting true needs. After this, then the Church is to come in and do whatever she is able.

There are people who are not able to work for one reason or another – some are physically or mentally incapacitated. But if you have a need and you can work, you must work. And there are those who have relatives who refuse their duty and will not help. But if you have relatives, you must appeal to them for help with your real needs.

Then, the Church is to address the needs of her widows and orphans that are not being met and find ways to fill them. And we do well to note that, although we are generally to do all we can for all people, we are to first use our blessings and gifts to address the needs of those in the Church.

So, if you are a Christian this morning, part of being Reformed, part of having received Salvation in Jesus Alone, is being available to address the needs to those, especially within the Church, who are unable to fill their needs on their own, by whatever means you are able. This especially refers to the widows and orphans in our churches.

And notice the seriousness with which God treats this: He says that if we harm the stranger, if we do not do good to the stranger, to the widow, to the orphan, to those truly in need, unable to find help elsewhere – if we are able to help and we refuse – God says, “I will kill you with the sword.”

Third, “If you lend money to any of my people with you who is poor, you shall not be like a moneylender to him, and you shall not exact interest from him.”

If someone was a member of the nation of Israel, and he had fallen on hard times, this law meant that he would be able to borrow money, at no interest, until a set time. Why? It’s part of the same principle we have just discussed – doing whatever we can to help others in need. Of course, if someone doesn’t truly need a loan, he shouldn’t apply for it or accept it.

This law is not a way to get out of debt free. It is not a way to avoid your responsibility. It is not a way to force others to clean up your mistakes. And it does not mean that it is always wrong to charge interest – Israel rightly charged interest on loans to Gentiles. Jesus said that it was right to put money in the bank to earn interest.

The problem being addressed here is two-fold: first, it is saying that usury is wrong; it is wrong to charge exorbitant amounts of interest. The word that is translated “exact interest” can be literally translated, “you shall not be a man-eater.” And secondly, if a person is honestly poor and in need, it is more kind and loving to loan a brother or sister money at no interest. But pay your loans back on time and with thanks

If Carlos was suddenly in trouble with the wine business and came to me for a loan, truly in need, with no other way to survive except to ask me for a loan, it would be right for me to give him a loan of what I could afford to loan him. It would be right for it to be a straight loan with a due date, which he would pay back in full on that date. It would be a sin for me to charge him 40% interest. It would be a sin for him to take my money when he had a million dollars in the bank. (It is a sin for banks to make loans to people who cannot repay them. It is a sin for people to take a loan when they know they cannot repay it.)

But, if you are a Christian this morning, if you believe that your Salvation in Jesus is worth more to you thank your bank account and your stock, and your love your brothers and sisters in Christ, consider an example: If a sister in the church comes to you and explains to you that she lost her job six months ago, and she has gone through her savings, and she has diligently been applying for a job, but nothing has panned out, and she has a car payment coming due, which she cannot afford to pay, and she has been living frugally, not charging up anything and everything she wants at every whim, and you have plenty of money in the bank, and your spouse is in agreement with you, it would be right and appropriate and godly to loan that sister the money she needs, and she ought to repay the full amount – at no interest – at whatever point you agree to have it repaid. Does that make sense?

The point is to do whatever we are able to do to help others in need – lovingly, responsibly, honestly. And each person must only claim a real need, as Paul wrote, “Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need” (Ephesians 4:28, ESV), and “...aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may live properly before outsiders and be dependant on no one” (I Thessalonians 4:11-12, ESV), and “For even while we were with you, we would give you this command: If anyone is not willing to work, let him not eat. For we hear that some among you walk in idleness, not busy at work, but busybodies. Now such persons we command and encourage in the Lord Jesus Christ to do their work quietly and to earn their own living” (II Thessalonians 3:10-12, ESV).

Fourth, “If you ever take your neighbor’s cloak in pledge, you shall return it to him before the sun goes down, for that is his only covering, and it is his cloak for his body; in what else shall he sleep? And if he cries to me, I will hear him, for I am compassionate.”

Ancient Israel did not have centrally heated homes and many people lived out of doors, at least for part of the year. This law takes that into account: there may be times when a deal is made even though a person does not have the full or correct item in trade. In such a case, something else might be taken in pledge until such time as the proper trade could be made. Here, the law is about taking the nighttime cloak, what we might think of as the bedding, in pledge. And the law is saying that it is alright to take someone’s bedding in pledge, but, out of mercy for the person, it is to be returned in the evening, and then taken back the next morning, so the person is able to sleep safely and warmly.

How might we show that love and concern in making a deal? Well, let’s say someone with masonry skills was in financial trouble, and you didn’t have any extra money, but you happened to have a great deal of food. You might make the trade of food for masonry work on your property and to make sure that the person didn’t slack off on the job, or leave, you might take their cell phone in pledge. But, when the day was done, you would give the cell phone back, so he could get his messages and call who he needs to. You would not keep his cell phone for days on end without allowing him to check his messages, because that would put him in worse shape than when he first came to you.

Here, the agreement is a serious one – a real one – but it is not abusive to the person who is needy. Again, it is about being loving and doing what we can to help each other and not abuse each other, especially in our need.

These are but a few examples. There are many more in the Scripture. What we need to understand today, on this Reformation Sunday, is that we are right in believing that our Salvation is all of God, through Jesus Alone. We are justified by faith alone, not by our works – that was one of the major Reformation understandings. However, that faith, that belief, that Salvation in Jesus Alone, ought to lead us to be a different kind of people – a people who live to love God and our neighbor. And by loving our neighbor, we mean that we do not harm others, if there is any way around it, and we do everything we can to make everyone’s life better, especially those within the Church. We are to understand that God has gifted us and blessed us – not just for ourselves – but so we can help others in their true need.

Let us learn and believe what is True and Right – everything God has said in His Word. And then let us live those things out – let it be a full reformation within us – that we believe rightly and act rightly. And may it all be to the glory of God.

Let us pray:
Almighty God, we thank You for giving understanding to Martin Luther and the other major figures of the Reformation. We thank You for the understanding that Salvation is all of You and nothing of us. We thank You that You chose to save us and have done so by Your Mighty Right Hand through Jesus our Lord. We ask that you would lead us now in good works, always looking for ways to show Who You are and the Salvation that comes only through Your Son, as we meet others where they are, in response and for the sake of what You have done for us. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.