Tag Archives: Epiphany

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Seventh Sunday after Epiphany–“Christ is the Foundation” (1 Cor. 3:10-23)

A-23 Epiphany 7 (Mt 5.38-48)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon this morning is the Epistle, which was read earlier.

Suppose that you’re building a house. The blueprints are done and the building is ready to begin. The next step is to find the builder. You have your own builder lineup, showcasing several builders. They each show you their best work. And now you have a decision to make: who do you select to build your house? The various builders have different skills and different abilities. Do you want Bob Vila building your house or do you want a person who has yet to build a house? You want the master builder! You want nothing less than the best to build your house.

Paul had founded the congregation at Corinth on his second missionary journey. He had laid the foundation for the congregation as an expert, a skilled master builder. Yet he does not claim special praise for his work, but gives all glory to God. For it was only by the grace God had given him that he was able to do anything at all. The factions in Corinth were forgetting about the grace of God and were boasting about the gifts and abilities of their leaders instead.

Apollos had followed Paul in Corinth and had continued to build on the foundation Paul had laid. But to others, who were using wrong building materials and false methods, Paul issued the warning, “Let each one take care how he builds upon it.”

The only way to build the church is to proclaim God’s pure and unadulterated Word, the Law in all its severity and the Gospel in all of its sweetness. Appeals to pride and an emphasis on man’s gifts and abilities do not strengthen the church, but weaken it. Paul’s warning is very much in place today. In our modern world with its emphasis on salesmanship and slick gimmickry, there is always the temptation to misplace the emphasis in our ministry. There is always the temptation to tell people what they want to hear instead of what they need to hear.

What is it that the people need to hear? We go back to what Paul said just a chapter before: “For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.” Paul gave the people what they needed to hear, not what they wanted to hear. We want to hear how we’re a good person. But we need to hear “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” We want to hear that we are born without sin and that sin is something which we can control. We need to hear “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” We want to hear how everyone will go to heaven, but we need to hear that “the wages of sin is death.”

The emphasis that Paul has spent the last three chapters on is Jesus Christ and this doesn’t change in our text for today. He says, “For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.”

Ask yourself this question: What is the basis of your foundation? Is the basis of your foundation Jesus Christ or is the basis of your foundation something else? For many, the foundation is Jesus Christ. But unfortunately for many, their foundation is something other than Jesus Christ. Their foundation is built upon themselves; built upon something of the world; built upon something that will ultimately fail. Jesus is the only foundation on which the church can be built. He is the cornerstone on which the church centers and lines up. His work of redemption is the heart of our proclamation. As the Bible reminds us, “And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.” And as Jesus tells us, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

But throughout the ages men have tried to lay other foundations. They have tried to establish other ways to the Father. But those who have placed their hope in false gods, ancient or modern, will find their foundation to be sinking sand on judgment day. Those within the visible church who have tried to add human achievements or worth to that foundation will find that they have nothing left on which to stand when they appear before the judgment seat of God.

Our Lord spoke about foundations in Matthew 7 when He spoke the parable of building your house on the rock. There he showed what happened to those who built their house on the rock and when the rains fell, the floods came and the winds blew, the house remained. He countered that with the foolish man who built his house on the sand. When the rains fell, the floods came and the winds blew, the house fell. When asking the good Lutheran question, “What does this mean?,” this parable reinforces the message which Paul writes to the Corinthians: any foundation other than Christ will ultimately spell disaster.

There are many things and many people in which we could build our foundation upon. We could spend an eternity making a list of them, but at the end of the day, or rather, the end of our earthly life, they too will fail or pass away, leaving us with nothing. But when Jesus Christ is your foundation, there is nothing to fear, nothing to worry about, for Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow.

The promise which God made to Joshua, “I will never leave you nor forsake you” is the same promise that is made to us. The foundation of Jesus Christ is unmovable and unshakeable. The promises of Jesus Christ will never leave a person disappointed, because how can a person be disappointed by the forgiveness of sin won for them by Jesus Christ?

The final words which Paul speaks to the Corinthians are words which we all would be wise to hear and remember: “and you are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” Going back to the beginning of this letter to the Corinthians, Paul speaks against the factions which the Corinthian church has set up. By their factionalism the Corinthians were robbing themselves of God’s gifts. By attaching themselves to one leader or another they were missing out on what the other leaders had to offer. God had sent different men to Corinth for the building up of the saints there. But the various groups in the congregation were making themselves poor by claiming to be the followers of one or another instead of enjoying all of them as God’s gifts. The gifts which the various men brought to the Corinthian church was Christ, for it is Christ alone who is able to save. For the Church then, the Church today, and the Church tomorrow, the foundation must be Christ, for it is Christ alone which gives to us what we need the most – the forgiveness of our sins. In Jesus name, amen. Now the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

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Sixth Sunday after the Epiphany

A-22 Epiphany 6 (Mt 5.21-37)

O Lord, graciously hear the prayers of Your people that we who justly suffer the consequence of our sin may be mercifully delivered by Your goodness to the glory of Your name; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Readings

Deuteronomy 30:15-20
1 Corinthians 3:1-9
Matthew 5:21-37

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Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany

A-20 Epiphany 4 (Mt 5.1-12)

Almighty God, You know we live in the midst of so many dangers that in our frailty we cannot stand upright. Grant strength and protection to support us in all dangers and carry us through all temptations; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Readings

Micah 6:1-8
1 Corinthians 1:18-31
Matthew 5:1-12

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Third Sunday after Epiphany – “Divisions” (1 Cor. 1:10-18)

A-19 Epiphany 3 (Mt 4.12-23)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon this morning is the Epistle, which was read earlier.

Imagine this scene: you’re sitting in a room full of people. One person is talking and everyone else is listening. After the speaker is done, there is applause. There is a sense of unity of the words just spoken. One thing that is missing is dissension. Everyone is in complete agreement of what was just spoken. Can you imagine this taking place? Do you know where this took place? Actually, this is fictional. This never took happened. The place where this happened is not a real place, but it should be. The place where this should take place is the Church. Unfortunately, this is not true.

Listen to Paul’s admonition to the Church at Corinth: “I appeal to you, brothers, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that all of you agree and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be united in the same mind and the same judgment.” Paul spoke these words when he should not have needed to. Of all the places for there to be divisions, the Church is not one of them. Unfortunately for Paul though, almost all of the churches that Paul either visited or wrote to had divisions. Some had false teachings. Some had the teachings of Christ, but added or subtracted to them. Some had teachings that were Jesus plus something else. All this and more Paul had to deal with. It was doubtful that in a single church that Paul visited was there a church without some sort of division.

Paul’s concern to the Church at Corinth was one of love for the people. Paul had visited Corinth on several occasions, at least 3 times on his missionary journeys. This was one of his churches to which he was the pastor of. He founded the church in the midst of Corinth’s reputation: sexual immorality, religious diversity and corruption. Paul shows a concerned, loving approach to divisive errors. There was a division over who they should follow. Christian unity depends on faithfulness to Christ, not chasing one’s own agendas or ideas. Unfortunately, not all of the Church at the time of Paul focused on the teachings of Christ and what He did through His life, death, and resurrection; namely, living to die, in order to give to us forgiveness of sins. There were those, as Paul said, who followed Paul, Apollos, Cephas and Christ. The problem that the Corinthians faced was that they were following others rather than Christ and accepting teachings other than Christ’s teachings. By creating factions in the names of these men and in the name of Christ Himself they were actually undermining the work of Christ’s church.

Paul’s overarching concern was the division happening over following other’s teachings. It was something so divisive that it could split the Church at Corinth, and if left unchecked, it could split the entire Christian Church. So what choice did Paul have other than to address the issue at hand?

We all know the saying, “A house divided against itself cannot stand.” That same saying applies to the Church as well. The message which Paul is giving to the Corinthians is one of unity, not of division. Under the heading of religion these people think there is room for doctrinal variety, as if the Lord allows two diverse understandings to be true at the same time! That may apply to the philosophy and human ethics of some, but not so with our Lord. He is a God of order. There is only one way that is God’s way. There is only one doctrine and that is what is found in the Word of God. We can try to make our own doctrine. We can try to make the Word of God say what we want it to say, but in the end it remains the Word of God. The Word of God doesn’t change. It has been the same Word of God for 2000 years and will continue to remain the Word of God long after us.

It’s understandable why Paul was taking such a vested interest in the goings of the Church at Corinth. Paul was the pastor of the Corinthians. They were still relatively young as far as the Church went. In their early days of formation, now they are coming apart at the seams. The people were not getting along with each other. They were dividing into competing groups, based on which apostle led them to faith and that determined who they would follow. There is unity in Christ; there was only disunity and division.

Paul could see that the future of that congregation, set within the turbulent environment of bustling Corinth, was threatened. Paul was not just offering some sound advice, but was calling upon the authority of Christ Himself to set things right. It was immaterial who baptized them; the overriding truth was that they had come into a new kingdom of love and grace, and this determined that they should live in peace and harmony with each other in the name of Jesus Christ.

When we look at the history of the Christian Church from Paul to present day, nothing has changed all that much. There are many and various Christian denominations. These are largely based on doctrinal issues, though not always. When one takes a hard look at the doctrinal issues, they all go back to the teaching of Christ and the teaching that is found in the Holy Scriptures. What is the sole source of doctrine in the Church? It is the Bible and the Bible alone. God’s Word is the pure fountain and source of God’s truth.

Whenever the Church deviates from the Bible, then that is when the Church will have trouble. The Church at Corinth began to face troubles because they began to deviate from the teaching of Christ. Paul sought to bring them back to what the Church is founded upon: Christ and the Gospel.

Why is it so important that you and all God’s people throughout time continually hear one and the same message from Jesus Christ? Only from Jesus Christ do we receive forgiveness of our sins, accomplished for us by His death on the cross and His triumphant resurrection from the dead. No other teaching can give to us what Christ has given. In the case of Corinth, the teachings of Paul, Apollos, or Cephas could prove to be devastating should those teachings be different than the teachings of Christ. The young Corinthian congregation could have been torn apart by conflicting teachings of doctrine that may or may not have been centered on Christ and His teachings. Unfortunately, that same concern is very much present today. How a church body interprets Scripture; how a church body views Christ; how a church body views teachings of man in relation to the teachings of Christ – all of this can lead to the devastating destruction of the Church of Christ.

The question for Paul and the question for all of us is this: “Is Christ divided?” Paul set out to make sure that the answer to that question was no. So it is today. We as the Church seek out to answer Paul’s question, that no, Christ is not divided; for Christ is still the head of the Church and His teaching still reigns as the only rule and norm of the Christian faith. The Church continues “to preach the gospel, and not with words of eloquent wisdom, lest the cross of Christ be emptied of its power.” Whenever Christ is not proclaimed, whenever Christ is diminished, then Christ means nothing. But when the Word is God is proclaimed and upheld, then it is the power to save.

For those who are resting securely in Christ’s forgiveness, given to us through His life, death and resurrection, given to us at our baptism, given to us through Word and Sacrament, Christ cannot be divided because it is Christ and Christ alone who saves. In the name of Jesus, amen. Now the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

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A Christmas hymn–“Of the Father’s Love Begotten”

This afternoon, I played this hymn, “Christians to the Paschal Victim” and “We Praise You and Acknowledge You” on repeat for at least a good 45 minutes. Yes, two out of three hymns are out of season. But I don’t care, they’re good hymns.

I know we’re in the season of Epiphany, but I love the hymn, “Of the Father’s Love Begotten.” The text is great, the tune is great. Below are the words of the hymn as they appear in our latest hymnal, Lutheran Service Book.

1 Of the Father’s love begotten
Ere the worlds began to be,
He is Alpha and Omega,
He the source, the ending He,
Of the things that are, that have been,
And that future years shall see
Evermore and evermore.

2 Oh, that birth forever blessed,
When the virgin full of grace,
By the Holy Ghost conceiving,
Bore the Savior of our race,
And the babe, the world’s Redeemer,
First revealed His sacred face
Evermore and evermore.

3 This is He whom seers in old time
Chanted of with one accord,
Whom the voices of the prophets
Promised in their faithful word.
Now He shines, the long-expected;
Let creation praise its Lord
Evermore and evermore.

4 O ye heights of heav’n adore Him;
Angel hosts, His praises sing,
Pow’rs, dominions, bow before Him
And extol our God and King.
Let no tongue on earth be silent,
Ev’ry voice in concert ring
Evermore and evermore.

5 Christ, to Thee, with God the Father,
And, O Holy Ghost, to Thee
Hymn and chant and high thanksgiving
And unending praises be,
Honor, glory, and dominion,
And eternal victory
Evermore and evermore.

Amen.

To hear an excellent hymn study of this, click here.

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Second Sunday after the Epiphany

Almighty and everlasting God, who governs all things in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us Your peace through all our days; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Readings

Isaiah 49:1-7
1 Corinthians 1:1-9
John 1:29-42a

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Baptism of Our Lord: Matthew 3:13-17

A-17 Epiphany 1 (Mt 3.13-17)

The seasons are changing. I don’t mean the weather seasons. Unfortunately, we’re still in the season of winter and knowing Wyoming, probably will be until May. When I say that the seasons are changing, I’m talking about the seasons of the Church Year. We have left the season of Christmas and have entered the season of Epiphany. Epiphany, as we all know, means “revealing.”

In the Old Testament, God chose one people, the children of Israel, to receive His covenant. The Gentiles, the non-Israelites, could not enter the inner courts of the temple to worship God because they were outsiders. Yet from the very beginning, God had said Abraham would be a blessing to all nations, not just to Israel: “In you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” This is the message of Epiphany. When the Magi, who were Gentiles, came to worship Jesus, they showed that now all people have access to God because Jesus is the new temple: He is God in the flesh.

Today, on the first Sunday after the Epiphany, the Church celebrates the Baptism of Our Lord. Approximately thirty years have passed since Jesus last appeared in Matthew’s gospel. He was but a toddler then. With little fanfare Jesus suddenly bursts upon the scene in this text. He is grown to manhood and seeks a baptism from John in order to “fulfill all righteousness.” This is a great epiphany.

In reading the account of the baptism of Jesus, one must ask the question, Why? Why would Jesus be baptized if He is the Son of God who is sinless? Is there a reason why Jesus needs to be baptized?

Jesus arrives at the very place where the people have been confessing that from which He has come to save them: “their sins.” As they confessed their sins, the people were being baptized by John in response to John’s message: “Repent!” Now Jesus has come to the same place, to John, “to be baptized by him.” Does Jesus need to repent? Does Jesus need to be converted from unbelief to faith? John knows that the answer to these questions must be “No!”

How is it that the perfect God-man begins His public ministry by standing in line with sinners in order to be baptized?  This is the predicament that presents itself to John as this perfect, holy creator of all things now stands as a man in the Jordan.  How can John baptize this perfect Son of God into repentance for the forgiveness of sins?  John hesitated because he didn’t understand why the holy, sinless Son of God needed baptism.  Furthermore, even if this holy, sinless one needed baptism, he himself was certainly not worthy to do it.  He said, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” With these words John confesses that he, John, is the sinner.  He is the one who needs forgiveness.  He is the one who needs the baptism into repentance for the forgiveness of sins. Now, if John calls himself a sinner, then what chance do we have?

But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”  If Jesus were to explain himself, He might say it this way, “In order that poor sinners might come to righteousness and receive salvation, you must now baptize me.  I have become a sinner for the sake of sinners and must fulfill the things that God requires of sinners.  In this way, sinners may become righteous through me.”

Here Jesus begins the work of salvation by taking the place of sinners.  Here Jesus takes John’s place – your place – my place.  Here Jesus takes up the sin of the world and offers us the gift of His holiness.  He becomes the greatest sinner of all; not with His own sin, but with our sin.  Here He takes up our burden for us.  As John performed the simple act of pouring water on Jesus, God poured on Him the iniquity of us all.

St. Paul expanded on this in today’s Epistle: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.”  Here Paul tells us that our baptism joins us to Christ and His baptism.  Our sin becomes His and His perfection becomes ours.  His innocent suffering and death are credited to our account.  The eternal life and salvation that He earned are already ours.  We will rise from death to live in eternal joy just as He rose from the dead and lives and reigns to all eternity.  Through His Son, Jesus, God has done everything needed to secure our salvation for us.

Jesus does just what His name means, “the Lord saves.” When talking about the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, Luther asks this question: What benefits does Baptism give? The answer: “It works forgiveness of sins, rescues from death and the devil, and gives eternal salvation to all who believe this, as the words and promises of God declare.” This is the work done for us through Jesus Christ, the Lamb who takes away the sin of the world.

Immediately following Jesus’ baptism, we see the Trinity present. What is the purpose of the Holy Spirit descending upon Jesus? The Holy Spirit manifests Himself as a dove descending upon the Son. As the symbol of peace, it is a reminder to us that, being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. When the voice of God from heaven speaks, He says something very simple, yet very profound: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased.” The Son has been obedient to the Father’s will.  Here the Father acknowledges that the Son is indeed living a life of perfection and fulfilling the promises given through the prophets.  The Father tells us that Jesus is the cause and target of His good pleasure.  He tells us that Jesus is His beloved Son.  Since Jesus stands in our place, the Father’s pleasure with His Son is also His pleasure with you and me.  Because the Father is pleased with His Son, Jesus, He is pleased with us. We are now the Lord’s beloved child because of the work of Christ. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.