The Right Tool for the Job

The Rev. Joseph Winston

February 21, 2010

Grace and peace are gifts for you from God, the Father of our Lord Jesus
Christ.1
There is a world of difference between a good mechanic and one who is not.
Someone who really knows how to repair something will have a toolbox for the
task at hand. Take a look at their tools. A reputable car mechanic’s toolbox is full
of specialized tools to fix your automobile. It always was not this way. At one
time in the past, you could get away with a flat-bladed screwdriver, pliers, and a
crescent wrench. With these three items, you could fix just about any minor prob-
lem you might find on not only a car but also a truck and tractor. That is no longer
the case. Today, you would not take your automobile to a repair shop with such a
limited set of tools. In addition to that old-fashioned flat-bladed screwdriver, you
need full set of Phillips and Torx screwdrivers to work on the trim. Pliers and cres-
cent wrenches find limited use today. In their place you will find socket sets with
1
Romans 1:7, 1 Corinthians 1:3, 2 Corinthians 1:2, Galatians 1:3, Ephesians 1:2, Philippians
1:2, 2 Thessalonians 1:2, Philemon 1:3.

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both extensions and swivels, open ended along with box-ended wrenches, and the
occasional offset or “dog-legged” wrench. Tune-ups on current models need more
tools than a dwell meter and a timing light. A computer is required today. It com-
municates with all the other hardware and software systems on modern cars and
reports any problems that it might find.
A good mechanic also has the skill to use these tools. They select the correct
tool for the job. They would not use a flat-bladed screwdriver as a chisel, a Phillips
screwdriver as a punch, or a crescent wrench as a hammer. These incorrect uses
might damage the tools and it is completely possible that an accident might occur
because of the misuse.
The technical definition of a tool is a device that accomplishes a task when held
by a person in their hands. Screwdrivers, wrenches, and hammers all fall within
this meaning. However, this description of a tool is far too limiting. Knowledge
of plants and weather patterns give the farmer an advantage over others that lack
this information. In this case, knowledge works just like a tool. Food of all types,
influence over others, and security can also make things happen. When this occurs,
you can consider these three items as tools. For example, grass provides very little
nutritional value for humans. On the other hand, cattle do well when they graze in
a pasture. We know that our bodies can digest the protein found in meat. Feeding
cattle and then slaughtering them for our use combines these two ideas in a way
that solves the problem of hunger that faces humans. Similar examples can be
found that show the usefulness of power and safety.
Humanity has understood the concept of using the proper tool for the job for

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generations. Here are three well-known illustrations. Number one. Without fail,
fire burns. An abuse of this tool can leave scars that last a lifetime. Number two.
It always is a bad idea to grab the wrong end of a knife. Try a stunt like that and
you will hurt yourself. Number three. You know that not everything is a hammer.
Sometimes, a shoe is just a shoe.
I am sure you have heard, if not yelled it yourself, “Do not run with the scis-
sors! If you fall, you might poke out your eyes.” This nicely summarizes the limits
of tools. They can be used and almost as easily, they can be abused.
The devil is certainly aware of what you can do with tools. He takes what is
found in the Old Testament, twists it around, and sees how Jesus handles it. You
can hear this fact in his name. The word translated as devil in our text is actually
two different Greek words put together. In the original text, devil is diabolos (δι-
άβολος). The prefix dia (διά) means “through” and the suffix bolos comes from the
verb “to throw” (βάλλω). The devil is the one who throws things around, causing
both confusion and chaos.
In today’s Gospel lesson, Jesus sees through all the potential misuses of the
tools that the devil gives Him. Normally, there is nothing intrinsically wrong with
bread nor is there any reason most of the time not to eat a loaf of bread when
someone offers it to you. The problem caused by the devil suggesting that Jesus
turn the stones into bread is one of priority. The unspoken question behind this
temptation is: “Is it more important to trust the one whose role in life is making
uncertainty or do we have faith in the One whose Word is true?” Jesus quickly
sees how the devil mixed up human wants with God’s Word.

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 Currently, the Church at large faces this same confusion. We are spending large
sums of money on things that make us comfortable while ignoring the church’s
commission to go into the world and share the Name that saves. One retired LCA
bishop told me a few years ago that when he entered the ministry more than forty
years the LCA had five million dollars for new church starts. Right now, it is
practically impossible to reach out to others since we have almost no capital for
our mission starts.
The story only gets worse. Yesterday, the Bishop of our synod announced deep
cuts. Jessica Noonan, formally in the Synod’s office for Youth and Family, along
with Reyna Pereira, who was the Bishop’s assistant, are leaving. Additionally, we
will not fill the vacant position of “Director of Disaster Recovery and Prepared-
ness.” All these reductions hurt in one way or another our ability to share the
Gospel with the world. Without Jessica there will be one less person organizing
events for youth. This means fewer chances for the young people to hear how
much Jesus loves them. Someone must pick up the day-to-day activities required
in any office. Reyna used to assist the bishop. The bishop now has less time to
equip the churches of this synod to go and tell others about Jesus. The Church
always steps in during disasters and provides assistance to those in need. This
is another way to confess that Jesus is Lord. This work will be harder without a
person organizing the Church’s efforts.
We also suffer from the same problem that lack of priority brings. All around
us, about every other person you meet, are people who do not know that God
raised Jesus from the dead. Despite this fact, we do nothing to invite these people

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to come and to learn about Jesus. There must be a reason for this. Perhaps, we are
more concerned with people that make up this congregation instead of following
the command of Jesus to go and make disciples.
In the second test found in today’s Gospel lesson, the one whose job is to
introduce uncertainty tosses out an offer that seems too good to be true. If Jesus
worships the devil, then the devil promises to give Jesus given power over this
world. Once again, the Jesus grasps the problem and sorts everything out. Because
God is the One that has always controlled everything, it is God’s right, not the
devil’s, to give out glory and honor.
You can find the love of power right here in the Church. We do not follow
Christ’s lead in the correct use of this tool. This problem has been with us for
a long time. On all Saints Eve on October 31, 1517, Martin Luther posted the
Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences, what we normally call The
Ninety-five Theses, on the door of the castle church at Wittenberg. As the title says,
the primary focus of this work was on the use of indulgences, which are when the
pope grants relief from punishment in purgatory for all sins that have not yet been
forgiven. Luther attacked the use of selling indulgences by asking questions like,
why does the pope not free the souls from purgatory out of love since the pope
obviously has power over purgatory, but instead the pope demands payment from
the people to build St. Peter’s Basilica?2 Luther also wanted to know why, the
pope, one of the richest people in the world, did not use his own money to build
2
Justo L. González, A History of Christian Thought From the Protestant Reformation to the
Twentieth Century, Volume III, (Abingdon Press, 1987), p. 36.

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the Basilica in Rome rather than taking money from the poorer believers.3
We abuse power here also. God gives us this beautiful building we worship
in. That is not all God has done for you. Do not forget that God baptized you
and placed you right here in this specific situation. With these invaluable assets at
our disposal, we have everything we need to serve our neighbors. A quick look
around proves otherwise. By not sharing the Word of God to those who live in our
community, we condemn people just as quickly as all those who wanted to sell
access to God’s forgiveness that is freely available to everyone.
In the third test, the devil once again quotes from the Old Testament. This time
it is from the ninety-first psalm. The images of God protecting His followers from
all harm have been a favorite of Jews and Christians for thousands of years. Yet,
Jesus flat out rejects the promised protection and tells the devil that you should
not test God.
For years, parents have followed the lead of Jesus and have repeatedly warned
their children not to do stupid things like jumping off the roof or playing in the
street. The understanding expressed by parents seems to say that God will not
protect you from yourself. At face value, this idea is very troubling. For if God
does not save us from what we do, then who will? A second, yet equally disturbing
answer, is that if Jesus threw Himself down to the ground the devil would then save
Jesus from sure and certain death in some spectacular fashion. Following this way
of thinking to its logical conclusion means that Jesus declines since the show does
not become Him. Then what do we do with the amazing resurrection on Easter
3
González, A History of Christian Thought, p. 36.

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morning and the phenomenal way that Jesus appears to many people after His
death?
The real answer to this question absolutely terrifies us. That is why we are
afraid to say it.
The first part of the response is that God is not here for God’s own good. Jesus
came to the earth to deliver the Good News at any cost. Right away, you see this
happening in Luke. The Son of God enters this world as a defenseless baby. This
same trend continues. Immediately after today’s lesson, Jesus preaches the Gospel
in His hometown synagogue. The response to His message was underwhelming.
Or should I say overwhelming? The people in His own village, most likely His
own relatives, tried to kill Him. The same story is repeated many times over. They
finally do bring Jesus to trial and kill Him on the cross. That is the cost God was
willing to bear.
The second half of the answer is we know what the price is for following Jesus
and we do not want to pay it. Jesus told you that you must deny yourself (Luke
9:23). That means to be a Christian, you have to give up your claim on God’s
protection.
That is exactly what Jesus did. He gave up every right and privilege that He
held as God so that He could save you. He paid that cost for you. Because of His
sacrifice, you live.
It is difficult to imagine even a single day of your life where you do not use a
tool. Parents realize this fact and they try to teach their children the right way to
use this important gift that God gives us.

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 It is very tempting to end this sermon by saying, “If you just go out and do
everything that God requires of you, then the fortunes of this church will turn
around.” I cannot tell you that. No one can make that promise except God. All
that I can say is this. God has called you to this place and given you these tools.
“The peace of God, which passeth all understanding, keep your hearts and
minds through Christ Jesus.”4

References

González, Justo L., A History of Christian Thought From the Protestant Reforma-
tion to the Twentieth Century, Volume III, (Abingdon Press, 1987).

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Philippians 4:7.