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 comes from the Gospel which was read earlier.

It may seem odd that a biblical parable with so obvious a life goal, “You go and do likewise” should be triggered by a salvation concern, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life.”  However peculiar the combination and irrespective of the sincerity and orthodoxy of the lawyer’s justification question, that concern is most relevant to the achievement of Jesus’ sanctification goal.  We learn today that only He who justified and saved us eternally, Jesus, the ultimate Good Samaritan of the Gospel, empowers us to be compassionate like the good Samaritan of the parable.
 

Isn’t that the question we ask ourselves today, “What shall I do to inherit eternal life?”  The answer is simple, isn’t it: just be good.  But ask yourself this question: Are you a good person?  You might think that you are.  You’re in church today instead of sleeping.  You’re giving money to church today instead of giving it to your favorite store in the mall.  However, you are not good and neither am I.

There was only one time that we were good.  At the time of creation, when God made man, He declared us to be good.  All of that changed once Adam and Eve ate from the Tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil.  When that happened, our status went from good to evil.  From that moment on, we became something which we had never been before: sinners.

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 comes from the Gospel which was read earlier.

Hear again the words of the prophet, Isaiah. “Behold, I will extend peace to her like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream…. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you; you shall be comforted in Jerusalem. You shall see, and your heart shall rejoice; your bones shall flourish like the grass; and the hand of the LORD shall be known to his servants…”

Any Jew who, during the time of Jesus, would have heard these words would have thought that good was in store for them. Maybe good was in store for them. However, bad could have been in store also.

All of us experience ups and downs, hills and valleys, joys and frustrations in our day-to-day lives. Now put on top of that our discipleship for Christ. If we were having a bad day before, now imagine that day AND trying to be a disciple of Jesus. In today’s Gospel reading, our Lord Jesus not only realistically recognizes this state of affairs, but, above all, encourages us with the good news that joy will have the last word in our discipleship. Jesus assures us today that the hardships and joys of discipleship for Christ climax in the ultimate joy: our names written in heaven.

Hardships follow us wherever we go, whatever we do. There is no way to avoid them. We lose our job. We have more bills than we do income to pay them. Our home or vehicle needs major repair and upkeep. These are just examples of some of the hardships which we face in our personal lives. We are also likely to experience hardships in our discipleship for Christ as well.

Jesus describes some of these hardships in the verses of last week’s Gospel. Like Jesus, we may have nowhere to lay our head. A perfect example of that is my wife’s uncle. He’s an LCMS pastor and was a missionary to Venezuela where he served there for almost 20 years. During that time, he and his wife did much in the churches there. He brought Christ to a people who had heard little or nothing about Christ or had a skewed idea of who Christ is. About 6 years ago, he and his family had to leave Venezuela due to a recall of missionaries. He found himself, a disciple of Christ, now with nowhere to lay his head. God has since called him and his family to be missionaries to the people of Panama, to continue to be disciples of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Following on the heels of last week’s Gospel reading, Jesus sent disciples ahead of Him to various places which He would be visiting. Jesus speaks words to those He sent out which are disheartening to those who hear it: “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few.” Here is a problem. The Gospel message needs to be spread, but where are the people to do it? Christ’s sending of the seventy-two was two-fold: first, to make ready the way of our Lord to the various places where they were sent. The second was to look for those who would spread the Gospel. Surely, somewhere in the various places where the seventy-two went, they would find at least one person to become a disciple of Jesus, that is, to share the good news of who Jesus is and what it is that He has come here to do. Our text doesn’t say if they found any to become disciples, but we get a glimpse of the world in which they were sent out into: “lambs in the midst of wolves.”

We find ourselves today “lambs in the midst of wolves.” By nature the unbelievers to whom they will go are enemies who want to destroy them, yes, like savage animals who want to devour them. The people of this world do not love Christ or His Gospel. Many consider the message of the cross of Christ to be “foolishness” and “a stumbling-block.” For Jesus’ sake His messengers can expect to be hated by unbelievers. But Jesus, who does the sending, promises to be with them always.

There is a great need for the Gospel of Jesus Christ in our world, yet we find a world that doesn’t want to hear about Jesus or worse yet, doesn’t need to hear about Jesus. We may find those who say that they already know about Jesus. But if you ask them who Jesus is, they might tell you that they are a sinner and what sin they do commit is ok, because they know that Jesus has forgiven them. In short, they treat Jesus as their license to sin. Jesus is not our license to sin. To use that logic, it would be okay if I were to go out and kill someone because, even though it’s a sin, I know that Jesus has forgiven me of that sin. On the contrary, Jesus is our license to forgive. Jesus did indeed forgive us all of our sins. However, that does not give us free reign to commit sins when we know they are very much a sin.

As disciples of Christ, there will be times where our witness of the Gospel will be rejected. It happened to Jesus, it happened to the disciples, and it will happen to us as well. That is something to be expected. However, that should never dissuade you from preaching the Gospel. Imagine if Jesus would have given up the first time the people attempted to stone Him. Imagine if the disciples would have given up the first time they were threatened with persecution for their beliefs. Jesus tells His disciples that when they are rejected, they are to wipe the dust off of their feet, that is, to write them off. But, they are to also declare to them that “the kingdom of God has come near.” The Gospel has been spread to them, whether they want to accept it or not.

Just as there will be times of hardships, there will also be times of joys in our discipleship for Christ.

Each time that a child or adult is brought to the font of Holy Baptism as will happen/has happened this morning is a time for rejoicing. It is a joy and a privilege to experience the acceptance of our Gospel witness, not as someone who has decided to follow Jesus, but one who has been called by the Holy Spirit to faith in our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

What a joy it is to be able to preach the good news of the kingdom of God! This good news of the kingdom of God is what it’s all about. It’s not about the fancy homes or cars. It’s not about how much money you grossed last year. It’s about the kingdom of God, what it is that God has done for you through Christ Jesus. When we preach the good news of God or tell others of Christ, we stand in the place of Christ. We can actually be regarded as His representatives.

It is the same as when the president of the United States sends out an ambassador, that person represents the President of our country wherever he or she goes. When the ambassadors of Christ are heard, Christ Himself is heard, and when they are despised and slighted, Jesus Christ and God the Father are despised and slighted. That is the message which Luke records in our text: “The one who hears you hears me, and the one who rejects you rejects me, and the one who rejects me rejects him who sent me.”

For the seventy-two who went out, it wasn’t all cheery times on the road. There were towns where they entered where they were rejected. For us, it won’t always be cheery times when we tell others about Jesus Christ. But our joy is not in whether or not we were successful in spreading the Gospel. Our joy lies in the fact that our names are written in heaven. We are saved because of what Christ has done for us. Because of His life, death, and resurrection, we have been called to be His own. God has called us by name to be His own at our baptism. In Holy Baptism, we received Christ’s name. Because of what Christ has done for us and to us, our names have been written in the book of eternal life. 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 until life everlasting, amen.

Pentecost 6C, 2007

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for our sermon today is from the Epistle, which was read earlier.

Have you ever tried to imagine what it would be like to live in a world without the many problems that affect us everyday? We find it difficult, if not, impossible, to even begin to imagine such a condition. We have lived on this earth, with all of its greed, selfishness, strife, war, poverty, and discrimination for so long, it is beyond realism to think of life without them.

This kind of utopian existence is exactly what is indicated in Scripture as it tells about creation and life on earth before the Fall into sin. Imagine a wholesome innocence in the relationship between a man and a woman. Imagine employers and employees without dispute and in agreement. Try to imagine the relationship of man and wild animals without fear and struggle. What would it be like to have ideal weather without destructive storms, earthquakes and the like? Above all, we find it impossible to image a relationship between God and man that has no barriers, no rebellion, but in its place, a continuous, natural, loving relationship in a genuine fellowship where all is shared and nothing is hidden. This open, unhindered relationship between God and man is the one we know the least about in this world of today.

That’s where Paul begins our text for today. “Now before faith came, we were held captive under the law, imprisoned until the coming faith would be revealed.” This relationship between God and man which once existed in a paradise, is no more. It was fun while it lasted. Try as we might, that relationship can not be repaired. Because of that fact, we lived under the Law, imprisoned. The Law which we had was the Law of God. The Law provided for us. The Law provided for us a way to restore the relationship which once existed between God and man, the relationship which we know little about. The Law promised us a Savior, a Substitute who would die in our place. The Law has promised us Christ.

We are now, as St. Paul writes, “all sons of God, through faith [in Christ Jesus].” Not only are we all sons of God, we “are all one in Christ Jesus.” But as we all know, that isn’t necessarily true.

Tomorrow we remember a day in the Reformation which defines more than anything what Lutherans are: the presentation of the Augsburg Confession. The Augsburg Confession is the document that first officially laid out what Lutherans believe, what it means to be Lutheran. The Augsburg Confession was not about breaking away from the Catholic Church or breaking up the Church at all. Instead, it was meant to show that we are all under Christ. In the preface to the Confession, the Lutherans wrote this:

“We…are prepared to discuss…all possible ways and means by which we may come together…. In this way, dissensions may be put away without offensive conflict. This can be done honorably, with God’s help, so that we may be brought back to agreement and concord. As your edict shows, we are all under one Christ.”

The Lutherans boldly and clearly stated what they believed so that there could be a basis for real agreement around the truth. They didn’t want to split the Church; they wanted to unite it – unite it in the one truth of God’s Word, unite it in the one Christ.

Obviously, if you look around, you’ll know that we are not all one in Christ. The Christian Church is very fragmented; we can see that in all the denominations around the world. But St. Paul tells us that all Christians are indeed one in Christ Jesus. “For in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is neither male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” How can that be, that with so many denominations, we are all one in Christ Jesus?

We need to understand who it was that Paul was talking to. Paul’s audience consisted of two groups of people. The one was the predominantly Gentile Christians in this province of Galatia. They had heard, received, believed and continued to live in the Gospel Jesus had revealed to Paul and which Paul had shared with them. This is the message of justification by faith in Christ Jesus alone. The other group was the Judaizers, Jewish Christians who were teaching that even the Christian must follow certain Jewish customs in order to be a real Christian. One was very much a follower of the Law while one was very much the follower of the Gospel. Because of their differences, they were not of one mind.

Even our guts tell us that we’re not one. Have you noticed that before? Doesn’t something inside tell you you aren’t even all one with yourself? Are you always of one mind – in your own mind? Are you always undivided in your devotion to the Lord? Don’t you sometimes do things you know you shouldn’t, things you really don’t want to do? Don’t you struggle with temptation? Your conscience says “No” but your body says “Yes.” What does it mean to say we’re all one in Christ Jesus when we’re not even one with ourselves?

The reason for our internal conflict is sin. Inside every Christian is a war going on: a war between believer and unbeliever. We’re sinner and saint at the same time. The good we want to do, we don’t do. The bad we don’t want to do, that’s what we do. As long as we’re sinful and as long as we’re Christians, the struggle won’t go away.

Because of Christ, our sins have been forgiven. Are sins were forgiven us at our baptism. That is what Paul makes abundantly clear. “For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.” He is here speaking to people who have been baptized already—baptized not into Moses or themselves or the law or an organization. They were baptized in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, baptized into the Christian faith with Christ as its center, baptized with water and the word by the Holy Spirit in their spirit. Paul reminds them of this one baptism but also further describes one of its blessings. When we are baptized, we are clothed with Christ; we wear him; we have been covered with him; we put on Christ like a garment of salvation and sonship.

When we make our first appearance into the world, we are naked. We are in the flesh. We wear the clothing Adam has passed down to us: sin and death. It is an old man that is thoroughly corrupt, a slave of the devil and manifested in ignorance, blindness, contempt and even a hatred of God. It is woven into a covering of evil thoughts, words and works.

But in baptism we get a new set of clothes as we put on Christ. This can be understood in two ways: according to the Law and according to the Gospel. According to the Law we put on Christ through imitating his example. We imitate Jesus’ patience, gentleness, love, moderation, self-control and all other of his noble virtues. However good this imitation may be, it still does not change our original “underwear” of sin, death and the devil’s power over us.

To put on Christ according to the Gospel is not a matter of imitation but of a new birth and a new creation. This does not happen by a change of clothing or appearance or behavior. It happens by the rebirth and renewal that takes place at our baptism. This is the gracious clothing to which Paul refers—noted best by the double reference to Christ.

This past week during our Vacation Bible School, the children heard the story of Philip and the Ethiopian man. The Ethiopian man desired to be baptized. When Philip baptized him, he rejoiced greatly. I asked the children what it means to be baptized. It means that Christ comes to us and says that we now belong to Him. Christ will be with us forever. Christ will provide for us all the days of our lives. If that isn’t good enough, Christ sweetens the deal: He tells us that He is going to prepare a place for us, that where He is, we may be also.

We can never be one with sin, and we’re all sinful. God has seen to it that all Christians are also separated from sin. By sinning, we made ourselves one with sin. But God has seen to it that it didn’t stay that way. He’s driven a wedge between us and evil, the wedge of the cross. And the deeper that wedge of the cross penetrates, the further we are pushed from sin.

In our baptism, the break was made clean. In Baptism, we died to sin. By Jesus’ cross, given to us personally in Holy Baptism, we are forgiven of all 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.

Pentecost 4C

Text: Luke 7:11-17

Note: This sermon was preached at my home congregation, St. Paul’s Lutheran, Indianapolis, IN, on the occasion of the baptism of my niece, Breanna Noel Dickson.

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 Gospel which was read earlier.

Two large processions are slowly moving toward each other. The one was the parade of life as Jesus walked into the city. The Master, who taught both by His marvelous, life-giving words and by His amazing, life-sustaining deeds, led a large throng along the way. His disciples walked with Him, for that is what disciples do. He was also accompanied by a great crowd of people. At the gate of the city there was joy, life, and excitement in this royal procession for Jesus had, just the day before, healed a centurion’s servant. Prior to that a leper had been cleansed at Jesus’ Word. A paralytic rose up and walked, having been both healed and forgiven by the Son of God. Jesus had demonstrated the power and authority of His own divine nature when He cast out demons on one occasion and helped bring in a full net of fish on another. The other procession, the parade of death, has at its head the coffin of a “dead person,” the only son of his widowed mother, who followed with a crowd of fellow townspeople.

An important event was about to take place. Two processions met at the gate of the town. In those days the towns were often surrounded by a wall, and people had to go in and out through a large gate. Was it by accident that the two processions happened to meet at this place and at this time? Jesus knew that this meeting would take place just this way.

Don’t you wish that would happen to you when you are on the way to the cemetery to bury your loved one? Where is Christ then, when you so desperately need Him? Why doesn’t He do as He did here, suddenly appear, halt the funeral procession, command the funeral director to open the hearse and bring your loved one’s coffin forth so that He might speak the reviving words: “I say to you, arise.”

At that moment, the boy was called from death to life. At that moment, the boy had new life in the name of Christ. We too, have been called from death to life, just as my niece was earlier this morning by the waters of Holy Baptism. We who were spiritually dead have been called to new life in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, when the water, combined with the Word of God touched our forehead.

Shortly after creation, Adam and Eve sinned, and in turn, we sinned. We became children of Satan, eternally separated from God. It could be very easy to stop the story right there and say, “Woe is me.” But the story doesn’t end there. What Jesus tells the weeping woman He tells us as well: “Do not weep.”

We remain children of Satan until we are called by the waters of Holy Baptism to become children of God. We are strengthened as children of God by His Word and His Sacraments. The Holy Spirit has called us by the Gospel, enlightened us with His gifts and sanctified and kept us in the true faith.

Jesus’ words, “Do not weep” seem to be strange to whoever hears them, for there was no more appropriate time for weeping than at the time of death. Jesus’ words imply that there is no cause for grieving, for the young man will yet live. These are strange words to our ears, as well. It is only natural that we mourn the loss of a loved one when they pass away. Now, Jesus is telling the woman not to mourn. But the reason why she should not mourn is because Jesus is going to raise her son.

At that moment, the funeral procession stopped and Jesus touched the coffin “and the dead man sat up and began to speak.” The joy of all this is that what happened here is not a single isolated event but the glad pledge and promise of things to come. St. Paul writes, “But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” Remember that famous self-designation of Jesus, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Notice, He does not call Himself the “resurrector,” but the “resurrection.” In Him, in His Easter conquest of the coffin and triumph over the tomb, the resurrection of all men has already begun. And what God begins, God finishes.

The people are so amazed by what Jesus has just done that “fear seized them all, and they glorified God.” The miracle of Christ had the effect upon these people that they were filled with awe and reverence. They cried out that “God has visited his people!” Indeed, God has visited His people through His Son, our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He visited His people when He came in the form of a baby. He visited His people when He grew up, only to die for you and for me. He visited His people when He rose again and joined our Father in heaven to prepare a place for you.

The visit was redemptive. He comes to bear the burden of a cross to the little lonely hill of Golgotha; there to die that God might blot our offenses from His sign and mind forever. Christ visits Calvary and God does not visit us for our sins. For three days, He visits a garden grave and then bursts the bonds of death by His Easter rising. And now we are but temporary visitors in the prison of the tomb. For His is coming for a final visit, to free and liberate us from our shut and sealed coffins, to give us new and immortal bodies and to take us to God’s presence and a new world where all sorrow and sighing will have departed forever.

It is no wonder that fear – proper, Godly fear, came upon all, and they glorified God, saying, “A great prophet has risen up among us”; and, “God has visited His people.” And this report about Him went throughout all Judea and all the surrounding region. The Parade of Death stopped that day. For there was absolutely no more reason for it to continue. The son is risen; risen indeed. Death was defeated and stopped dead in its tracks. “O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?”

Christ’s death and resurrection opened the kingdom of heaven to all believers. It opened the kingdom for the widow’s son who was dead. It opened the kingdom for Adam and Eve and it opened the kingdom for you and I.

On the Last Day, the Lord’s Word will touch this coffin known as Earth and the dead in Christ will rise with body and soul then re-united. Hear that Word of the Lord: “I say to you arise.” For the Lord God Almighty, the One Who created you in the first place, will, on the great and wonderful Day of the Resurrection, raise up the bodies of all and reunite them with their souls. There is no reason for us to weep, because our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, has given to us forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. In Jesus’ name, amen.

Now the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith until life everlasting. Amen.

Pentecost 2C 2007

Text: Acts 2:1-21

Come, Holy Spirit

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the Day of Pentecost is the Epistle, which was read earlier.

Today is the Day of Pentecost, a Jewish festival day celebrating the gifts of God. I might surprise many if I said that Pentecost was equally important to the Christian Church as both Christmas and Easter! Yes, we know that the birth of Christ was essential to our salvation, because if Jesus had not been born, He would not have been able to rescue us. Easter is also crucial in God’s plan to save us because our Lord, through a cross, purchased our salvation by Jesus’ shed blood payment for sin. Since Jesus is risen, we know His payment for sin was accepted. Easter Sunday provides all believers eternal life.

But Pentecost stands with Christmas and Easter as equally important. Why? Because, beginning with Pentecost, the Holy Spirit fills believers and spreads the Gospel! By the Spirit’s power, all are made aware of the Gospel’s saving power, and all can be drawn by the Spirit’s action to Christian faith and service.

The Old Testament Feast of Pentecost was one of the three annual harvest celebrations of the ancient Israelites, along with the presentation of the first grain sheaf and the Feast of Ingathering, or Tabernacles, during the grape harvest in the fall. Grain in Israel is harvested in the spring, and on Pentecost the Israelites were expected to bring to the Lord the “firstfruits of the wheat harvest.” Pentecost was also one of the three great festivals for which every Israelite was to assemble in Jerusalem.

Pentecost and the other spring festivals for the life of Jesus is noteworthy. On a day when Israelites were looking for a Passover lamb, Jesus rode into Jerusalem. On the day when the Israelites were concerned about slaughtering and eating their Passover lambs, Jesus hung on the cross as our “Passover lamb.” On the day when the Israelites brought the first sheaf of the grain harvest, the Sunday after Passover, Jesus arose from the dead as “the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep.” And on the day when the Israelites brought the firstfruits of their grain harvest to the Lord, the Day of Pentecost, the first ingathering of souls into the church took place.

Early in our text, we are told that when the Christians were together, “suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.”

Three unusual phenomena accompanied the outpouring of the Holy Spirit—the sound of a violent wind, what appeared to be tongues of fire, and the ability to speak in different languages. What an exciting time that must have been to those present – to the listeners. So much so that the Holy Spirit really got into them and made them speak in all kinds of languages. But what a frightening time it must have been as well. To hear a sound like wind, but to have no wind blowing. To see what appeared to be tongues of fire appear on people. Finally, to hear people speak your own native language when just moments before, everyone spoke the same language. Truly for something like this to happen, it must be the work of the Holy Spirit.

The Third Person of the Trinity, the Holy Spirit, provides for us the same as He did at the first Pentecost: the power for Christian faith, life, and growth. Here, at the first Pentecost, the Holy Spirit gets the Good News out! In the Spirit’s power, the message of Jesus Christ is presented clearly and effectively for the salvation of the whole world.

The Holy Spirit’s miracle gets everyone’s attention. The crowds hear the sound of a blowing, violent wind. At that moment, the disciples are filled with the Holy Spirit. Awe-stricken, they stand in amazement. When others heard the sound, they gathered around where the people were, trying to figure out what was going on. Some responded with surprise. Some were “bewildered, amazed and astonished.” Even the devout Jews, for the most part, listened to the message. People started asking themselves who these people were and how can these Galileans know these languages. More importantly: what were the disciples declaring? What is it that they were saying?

Instead of listening to the words which the disciples were proclaiming, it was easy to dismiss what they were saying as mere gibberish. The disciples really weren’t speaking in tongues and saying anything of merit: instead, they were drunken on new wine. Unable to comprehend the supernatural events which were taking place, they conjecture a natural explanation of the events. But it isn’t gibberish that the disciples are speaking. It isn’t drunkenness or any other natural explanation: it is indeed a miracle and Peter explains the miracle: a miracle of the Holy Spirit.

Peter explains that drunkenness is not the explanation for the disciples’ behavior. “Men of Judea and all who dwell in Jerusalem, let this be known to you, and give ear to my words.”This isn’t the same Peter who was a coward, a denier, betrayer. Now, he is a powerful preacher with eloquence and confidence. There was no way that they could be drunk: it was only 9am. This was the time for morning prayers and sacrifice. No Jew was allowed to eat or drink before this time. When they did eat and drink this early in the morning, wine would not have been on the menu. In the morning, they would have eaten bread. Jews drank wine only with the meat, at the evening meal. The crowds are witnessing the fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy, the Spirit being poured out.

The Holy Spirit’s amazing miracle is that languages are not a barrier to this day’s Gospel proclamation. All hear “the mighty works of God” in their own tongue. But here lies the problem: these men shouldn’t have known all these languages because they’re all from Galilee. While they’re from Galilee, that makes no difference. The Holy Spirit makes sure the Word of God will be effective. How long with the Holy Spirit do His Work? Until the end of time, until the Lord’s Day.

The message which the Holy Spirit delivered that day has been and continues to be delivered today: the message of salvation that Christ has come! The message which was proclaimed in every tongue is one which we all understand: all who call on the name of the Lord will be saved!

The Holy Spirit draws hearts to faith. For one to call upon the Lord’s name is to call Him to our aid. It is through faith given to us by the Holy Spirit that we recognize that He alone can rescue us from all that assails us. The message of Joel can be reduced to one simple statement: that salvation is available to everyone. With the Holy Spirit’s work, God now stands in immediate relationship with His people. A new world was presented to those devout Jews in Jerusalem, just as a new world is presented to all who have been called by the Holy Spirit in faith. Christians were confessing and continue to confess what they have seen and heard: the clear message that in Jesus Christ, all answers have been supplied for life today and eternal life as well.

The good news is that the power of God and the Word of God will triumph over all opposition. God will not, then or now, permit the message of His Son to be lost: the message that the Lord has provided life and salvation for us all in His Son, Jesus Christ, amen.

Now the peace which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Pentecost 2007

Text: Revelation 22:1-6 (7-11) 12-20

“I am coming soon”

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for our sermon this morning comes from the Epistle which was read earlier.

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” These are familiar words to us all. At the conclusion of every day, we hear these words: “And God saw that it was good.” Adam and Eve came into the scene and all was good until the serpent came into the picture. Once the interaction between Adam and Eve and the serpent took place, all was no longer good. We jump ahead to the birth of Christ. Christ was born, grew in stature of a man, died, rose again, and ascended into heaven for one reason: because you and I are sinners.

Just a few days ago, we remembered Christ’s ascension into heaven. It is there that he sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty. From thence he will come to judge the living and the dead. In our text for today, we see what is to come following the resurrection and ascension of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ: the second coming.

In the beginning of our text for today, John sees another depiction of the new heaven and earth, this time reminiscent of the Garden of Eden. We see the river of the water of life and the tree of life. “The tree of life” first appeared early on in Genesis. Among the many trees God created, He made in the middle of the Garden of Eden “the tree of life” and “the tree of knowledge of good and evil.” Adam and Eve rejected God’s command not to eat of the tree. They turned away from His face—the act of disobedience. They feared His presence because they feared His wrath. They were lied to by Satan, and were tricked into thinking that they could be independent of God. They believed they didn’t need Him or His Word. They embraced the lie and the death that came with it. Because Adam and Eve ate of the tree of knowledge in disobedience to God’s command, they were driven from the garden. Because they sinned, we too have sinned. Their sin became our sin. The psalmist David knew of his sinful nature and from where it came from: “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin did my mother conceive me.” This “tree of life” which John sees standing before him is what would come to save all of mankind: Jesus Christ.

John, while in exile on the island of Patmos, received the revelation from Jesus Christ which said not once, not twice, but three times that “I am coming soon.” We have all seen the first coming of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. He came to us as a baby, weak and frail. He grew up to be a man with a mission. His mission was not His own, but His Fathers: to save all of mankind from eternal death. Through His coming, death has been defeated, once and for all. Through His life, death and resurrection, we have received forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.

Here we stand; the Sunday after the Ascension, seven Sundays after Easter. Announcements of triumph have been sounding all over the place. The Gospel’s content has never been clearer than in this text which insists that Jesus is the “Alpha and Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” There it is before you, that powerful message that forms the very spine of life: God in Christ affirming again that He will be our God from the beginning to the end of it all.

From the beginning, He has been our God. He was our God in the Garden of Eden, giving to us all that we needed to survive. He was our God when Adam and Eve were barred from the Garden because of their disobedience. When they were barred, we didn’t see an angry God. On the contrary, we saw a God who gave us the first words of Gospel truth: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspringand ^her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”He was our God when He sent His only-begotten Son to live and die for us. He was our God at our baptism, when we were made His children. He will continue to be our God, even to our last days and beyond, when He calls us to our heavenly home. John records for us, “They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads.”We have the promise of God Himself that He will be our God and we will indeed be His people.

Here it was where and when Jesus shed His holy, precious blood, so that men, women, children and infants might “have washed their robes and made them white ^in the blood of the Lamb.”Indeed, “blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates.”Christ is the Fruit of the Tree of Life and whoever eats His flesh and drinks His Blood will live forever.

God draws us in the flesh of Jesus Christ through His body and blood. He draws us through His Word, which calls and enlightens us. We are united in the flesh of Christ. We are gathered in one place: in Christ. God sustains us with the one river of the waters of life and the one tree of life.

We are gathered to share in His blessings. We receive the waters from the river: the waters of Holy Baptism, just as young Trey did this morning. Jesus Christ has invited Trey, us, and all sinners to quench our spiritual thirst: “And let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price.”

We receive the healing fruit from the tree: the Lord’s Supper, which you will partake of in just a few moments. Here, around His Word and His Sacraments, we are gathered in the true worship of God — “one Lord, one faith, one baptism.”

There it stands at the Bible’s opening verses, the picture of a loving God, tenderly authoring life bringing about man’s genesis; the God who makes covenant promises. In today’s text, the curtain rings down on the Bible’s witness and the message at the end is the same as at the beginning: God announcing that He is with us at the beginning and at the end and with each intervening step!

Jesus gives to us unity in His promises. His Baptism, death, resurrection, and ascension are ours as well. We are baptized into His name. We die in His name, as Christians. We are promised the resurrection on the last day, where we will be raised in all holiness and righteousness, where we will be with God and the Lamb forever. We will see Him face-to-face on the Last Day and in eternal life. We will again possess the image of God, lost when Adam and Eve disobeyed God in the Garden of Eden, restored when Christ died for your sins and mine, when He took our place and elevated us to full sonship, made holy by His blood.

While waiting in expectation for the second coming of Christ, we invite, proclaim and pray. We invite others to share in Christ and the waters of life. We proclaim Christ’s Word faithfully. The Lord of life, the root and offspring of Davis says “Come. Come you who are thirsty, accept the water of life, a free gift to all who desire it.” We pray, “Come, Lord Jesus! Come, Lord Jesus, and bring us to the new Eden, around the tree of life, forever more together.” In Jesus’ name, amen.

Now the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Easter 7C: May 20, 2007 – “I am coming soon”

Text: John 10:22-30

The Good Shepherd

Grace,
mercy, and peace to you from God, our Father, and from our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ, amen. The text for this
morning comes from the Gospel and other selected verses from Matthew 10.

One sure
sign of spring at Concordia Theological Seminary and Concordia St. Louis is the Vicarage
Assignment/Deaconess Internship and Candidate Placement services held each
April. This past week, several gentlemen
who started “seminary bootcamp” known as Summer Greek with me were placed into
the office of holy ministry. A former
vicar here, Michael Groves, was placed into the office of holy ministry from Concordia St.
Louis. Men, such as these, have been
called to be pastors and teachers. They
have been called to be shepherds from He who is the Good Shepherd.

This
office, to which some are called, is a difficult and challenging office to
serve in. Yes, it has its many joys and
rewards, but there are times where it becomes difficult and challenging to say
the least. Even our Lord and Savior,
Jesus Christ, the Good Shepherd, faced difficult times and challenges in His
ministry to His flock. John records for
us today in our text one such occurrence.

The entire
10^th chapter of John revolves around Jesus and His discourses to
others about who He is: the Good Shepherd. He tells those gathered around very plainly that “I am the good shepherd. The
good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.… I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the
Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep.” These words were meant for the people to be
words of comfort and of assurance, knowing that Christ is indeed the Savior,
the One promised of old. Instead of the
crowd acknowledging Christ’s words, they were split: some of the Jewish leaders
said that He was possessed by a demon and insane, while others believed in
Jesus because of the miracles which He had performed.

Two months
later, we find Jesus at the Feast of Dedication in Jerusalem. Two months earlier, Jesus had told them that He was the good shepherd,
that He was the Son of God. Now they
want proof of who Jesus is: “How long
will you keep us in suspense? If you are
the Christ, tell us plainly.” What
more proof do the people need? Haven’t
they heard the message which He has preached? Haven’t they seen the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies
regarding the coming Savior? Haven’t
they seen the miracles which He has performed? Surely someone present had to have eaten some of the fish and bread when
Jesus fed the 5000 people. Food kept
coming from what seemed like nowhere, and there was no stopping it, not until
everyone had eaten their fill.

The answer
which Jesus gave was not the answer they had wanted to hear. What they wanted to hear was a simple “yes”
or “no.” They didn’t want any
complicated answer. They didn’t want to try
to read between what Jesus was saying for an answer. “Are you or aren’t you? Just say “yes” or “no.”

Jesus saw
through their words and actions and He understood clearly the intent of their
question. He answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe.” Therein lies the tragedy of unbelief. “I told
you, and you do not believe.” Jesus
had already clearly spoken the good news of God’s grace. From the beginning He had revealed the
goodness of the Father. His preaching
and His teaching had announced simply but forcibly that the Father loves what
He created. In contrast to those who
said that one had to do something to win the affection of God, Jesus came
proclaiming a message, the Gospel, the Word, that God loves the world in spite
of its sin.

Strangely,
it was religious people who did not want to believe this. They did not want to believe this message,
not because they did not want to be saved. They did not want to believe it because they thought they had to do
something to be saved. Unbelief does not
grow out of the unwillingness to be saved. Unbelief is the notion that God is not good. Sometimes it is the sinners who do not
believe that God can forgive. In this
instance, they people who thought they were righteous did not believe that God
was so good as to accept them without their merit. Or we could say they thought they could be so
good that God would have to accept
them.

The latter
half of His answer was more pointed, so pointed that the Jewish leaders wanted
to stone Jesus. “The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, but you
do not believe because you are not part of my flock.” “The Jews” show, by not believing in Jesus,
by not recognizing who He is in spite of the miracles which show His Father’s
authorization of Him, that they do not belong to His flock. When Jesus had spoken to them previously
about Himself as the “Good Shepherd,” they had become very angry.

What more
startling of a statement can Jesus make than this: that if you believe in Him,
you are of His flock. If you don’t
believe in Him, then you are not of His flock. If you want to be of Christ’s flock, then you must believe. And for the Jewish leaders, there was a
significant number who did not believe. For
those who did believe, they had the assurance that they were indeed members of
Jesus’ flock. That meant that they would
have eternal life and they will never perish, as Jesus says.

If you know
anything at all about sheep, they are dumb animals and will literally lead
themselves off a cliff or separate themselves from the flock, wander away and
die if no one is there to shepherd them. Jesus tells us that He is the good shepherd. “The
good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep.” That is exactly what our Good Shepherd did
for us, Jesus Christ laid down His life of perfection so that He could become
sin and death, so that you and I might have a life of holiness by His body and
blood, given and shed for the forgiveness of sins.

The sheep
of Jesus’ flock hear the voice of Jesus. He knows us and we follow Him. Sheep “listen to” the voice of their shepherd. They not only hear this voice outwardly. They listen obediently. The shepherd also “knows” his own sheep. He knows, recognizes as his own, and
understands their ways. This meaning is
conveyed by the word used here by Jesus. The sheep therefore “follow” their shepherd. They do so obediently.

A traveler relates that one day he came to a
well at the time when the shepherds watered their flocks. Many different flocks came there at the same
time. The sheep of the various flocks
mingled, and no attempt was made to keep them separated. The traveler thought that the shepherds would
have a tedious and difficult job separating them. But when the time came, each shepherd went
his way calling his sheep, and every sheep followed its shepherd. Every sheep of Christ knows and follows His
voice.

Passing
from the picture to the application Jesus adds, “I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will
snatch them out of my hand.” This
free gift of “eternal life” is assured. In no way shall the sheep of Jesus “perish.” No one has the power to snatch the believers
out of His protecting hand. Only by
rejecting His hand of salvation will they go astray.

We are all
chosen to be sheep of Jesus’ flock. That
was what God had wanted. Unfortunately,
some of these sheep have wandered away. For the sheep who remain, we know that by listening to the voice of the
Good Shepherd, all will be well. The
Good Shepherd knows His sheep and will continue to watch over us. He will keep us away from the cliffs and will
bring us back into the rest of the flock when we go astray. We as sheep follow the shepherd. God provides to us shepherds of congregations
to watch over and lead and guide, just as He did this past week when He called
223 men to be undershepherds of the Good Shepherd of the Church. We rest, knowing that we are safe in the
shepherd’s care, both in the Church on earth, and in the Church in heaven, for
we have the Good Shepherd, who laid down His life, so we may have eternal life,
amen.

Now the
peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds
through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Easter 4C