Tag Archives: sermon

Posted on

Lent 4C–“Prodigal” (Luke15:1-3, 11-32)

C-37 Lent 4 (Lu 15.11-32)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Children can be such a blessing and they can equally be a curse. They can bring such joy to a parent’s heart and they can also bring such sorrow as well. This has been the case from the beginning of creation. Adam and Eve brought great joy to their Father and then they also brought great sorrow following the fall into sin. Cain and Abel brought joy to Adam and Eve but that joy quickly turned into sorrow following Abel’s murder. The theme continues throughout the Scriptures and that is the basis of Jesus’ parable to the tax collectors, sinners, Pharisees, and scribes.

As Jesus begins the parable, one might imagine that at one time, there was a good relationship between the father and his two sons, or at least we hope. But the younger son has something important to say to his father: “Father, give me the share of property that is coming to me.” Allow me to translate for you what this son said. “I wish you were dead so I can get my death benefits from you.” What a crude and outrageous request that the son makes. Jesus does not give us an idea of how old the father is, but whether he is young or old is irrelevant. The son doesn’t care about his father; he just wants the inheritance. I don’t know about the rest of you but if I were to make that request of my father, I would have been knocked into next week. That is not a request that a child makes of his father and hopes to walk away from it. But instead of knocking the son into next week, the father grants the son’s request and divides his property between the two sons. Shortly after that, the younger son leaves.

This son must be feeling really good about himself. He stood up to his father, told him in no uncertain terms that he wished that he were dead in order to receive his inheritance. The father gives it to him, no questions asked, and now here he is with the world at his fingertips. Everything must be going right for this young man! Everything is going well until the son starts to sow his wild oats. At that moment, he went from having the world in the palm of his hand to eating the slop of pigs.

Have you realized who the young son in the parable is yet? It is a person that you are very familiar with, for the young son is you! You are the one who is greedy, seeking what you can from your Father and squandering it. Our heavenly Father has given to us richly. Martin Luther writes in his explanation to the First Article of the Creed: “He richly and daily provides me with all that I need to support this body and life.” He has created us, He has given to us life, He provides for all of our needs and we cannot keep one simple rule: “And the LORD God commanded the man, saying, “You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.”” Instead of abiding by the Father’s command, we squandered all that we had in the Garden of Eden and were forever cast out of it.

As we return to the parable, we see the son living in utter poverty, with nothing to eat but the slop he is feeding the pigs. He realizes that he has done wrong by his father and sets out to return home in hopes that his father would make him like one of his hired hands. He says, “I will arise and go to my father, and I will say to him, “Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you.””

Did you hear what the young son said? What is the basis of the speech he is planning to give to his father? It’s the same thing you said a few moments ago: we are sinners that are in need of forgiveness. This is the son’s confession of sins. He knows that he has sinned. He knows that he has broken the Fourth Commandment. He knows that the only thing for him to do is to go and confess his sins and ask for forgiveness from his father.

Isn’t that what we did at the beginning of the service? Didn’t we acknowledge our sin to our heavenly Father? Didn’t we confess how we have failed to keep His commandments and statutes and instead turn to our sinful ways? There is only one thing for us to do: confess our sins, return to our Father, the fountain and source of all goodness, the one who is able to forgive us for all that we have done wrong, all that we have done contrary to His divine Word. We no longer can live off of the slop of sin, for it is keeping us from our Father in heaven. We return to Him in prayer, asking for our sins to be forgiven because we are indeed sinners in need of salvation.

For the young man, as he is on his journey to his father’s home and is still a great distance out, his father saw him and ran to him. What the father does is out of character in many ways. In those days, a man of his stature would not have run because he was considered an elder, a man of certain esteem. Running in such a way would have been embarrassing. Secondly, why would he run after his son who more or less told him he wanted him dead and embrace him? It doesn’t make sense what the father did. But it does make sense because this was the father’s son. Even after all that the son has done in his wasteful life, at the end of the day, this is his son. He doesn’t chastise him for squandering all that he gave him. He doesn’t give him the “I told you so” speech. No, he gives to him the royal treatment: jewelry, clothing, food and drink, a great party – the works.

For you and I, our heavenly Father does nothing short of that for us. He gives to us the “best robe” as we are robed in Christ’s righteousness. You and I receive from God the gift of His name in our Baptism, marking us as those who have been redeemed by Christ. We are given that sonship that the young son had given up before his journey. We receive the fattened calf that was killed for the party, but we don’t receive it in the form of a calf. We receive it in the form of the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. This Lamb of God was slaughtered for us upon Calvary, His blood washing over us to forgive us all of our sins in His sacrifice for us. The words that the father uses in the parable are descriptive of us as well: “For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.” That’s us. Dead in our trespasses of sin, but made alive in the waters of Baptism. The image of God lost upon us in the Fall, but found and restored again by Christ’s death and resurrection.

Wouldn’t it be nice if that is how the parable ends, how our life ends? Unfortunately, there is more to both stories. In the parable, there is still the older brother, the one who did right by his father all these years, never disobeying, always being the “good son.” He reminds his father of the years of dutiful service he has rendered. But his virtue was not rewarded with even a young goat for celebration. Here Jesus is drawing a portrait of the Pharisees and experts in the law. They were proud of the dutiful way in which they observed all of God’s commands. They felt fully justified in criticizing Jesus for His fellowship with sinners and tax collectors. They were not about to join in joyfully celebrating the repentance of a sinner.

Isn’t that us? Aren’t we always making it all about us and what we’ve done rather than what God has done for us in Christ Jesus? Fortunately for us, it is the Father who has the last word in all of this. He is the one who never turns His back on the children who turn their backs on Him. He is the Father who comes running to us after we have run away from Him. There is always hope for the prodigal son and so there is hope for us as well. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Lent 3C–“Repent” (Luke 13:1-9)

C-35 Lent 3 (Lu 13.1-9)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Of all of the parables that our Lord spoke, this probably ranks up as probably one of the least favorites. One of Jesus’ big words in our text for today is “repent.” Whether that means “face up to your sins and confess them” or “turn around and reorient your life,” it doesn’t have much of an appeal to us, does it? To make matters worse, there’s the story of a barren fig tree which faces the option of producing fruit or getting chopped down – which again, when applied to us, is less than inviting. So on the surface, at least, it adds up to a rather gloomy word, and it’s nobody’s favorite.

As Luke begins this portion of his letter, there is a group that comes to Jesus and does what they do best: complain. There are those in the crowd that complain to Jesus about some Galileans who were murdered by Pilate, suggesting that they were aware of how God does indeed punish sinners. Jesus proceeds to ask some questions to them that makes them think before they answer, questions that should make us think before we answer.

Jesus asks them, “Do you think that these Galileans were worse sinners than all the other Galileans, because they suffered in this way? No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish.”

What a nasty thing our Lord says! He uses that word which should not be spoken: repent. It’s a word that no one wants to hear, especially being spoken to them. Brutal murders, shocking accidents, death in whatever form – all are sermons of God’s Law: the soul that sins will die. Death is one way God calls people to repentance, lest they perish eternally. Some falsely conclude that if nothing really bad happens to them in life, it is a sign that they have been living good lives. Jesus is teaching that not only certain very wicked people need to repent but repentance is necessary for everyone.

What a shocking statement for Jesus to make, that everyone needs to repent or perish. Who does He think He is to make such a bold, sweeping statement like that, the Son of God? Oh wait, that’s exactly who He is. He knows exactly what will happen to the unrepentant sinner and that is why He is here. He comes to urge the people to repent of their sins. He comes as the means of their repentance. He comes as the one who will give His life for the lives of the repentant. He comes and will be our Judge on the last day.

To reinforce His message, he tells a parable of the fig tree. Looking at Jesus’ parable, it’s straight talk. It’s not pleasant. It’s not comforting, and it’s nobody’s favorite. But there it is, straight and to the point. The terms are established by God, not us. Our excusing and rationalizing, our complaining and postponing, our good intentions and sincerity of purpose all evaporate into the air and the voice that speaks inquires about the fruits of our lives.

If you are uncomfortable with that, then that is the way it should be. God is very patient, not willing that any should perish but that all would come to repentance. However, the delay in judgment should not cause people to put off repentance. The time will finally come when the unfruitful tree is cut down. The opportunity for repentance does finally come to an end.

God is patiently calling us to repent. We return to Jesus’ parable about the fig tree. It wouldn’t bear any figs! Year after year it grew, but bore no fruit. The owner wanted to cut it down. But the vinedresser said, “Give me a chance with it. I’ll take care of it, there’s still a chance. If it doesn’t produce fruit for you next year, then cut it down.”

That fig tree is you. There’s so much good fruit that we could be producing, but we aren’t. God isn’t through with us yet. Jesus comes in as our friend, our Savior. He gives His life for us on the cross. He comes to us in His Word. He supplies our needs, comforts our fears, and dries our tears. He washes us clean in Baptism. He feeds us with heavenly food in the Lord’s Supper. He does all this, waiting for us to produce that fruit that He can use.

As patient and long suffering as God is, there is a deadline for our repentance. The writer to the Hebrews says, “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment.” The tree in the parable has a year to bear fruit. In a similar way, those who refuse to repent in this life will be removed from the Kingdom of God in the next.

So what shall we do about it? How can we capitalize on the offer God makes? What response can we make? Jesus gives us the answer: repent. We do nothing more and nothing less than that. There’s nothing new to Jesus’ answer; and yet as old and as basic as it is we tend to forget it and act otherwise.

That is the central theme during the season of Lent. We sing just before we hear the Holy Gospel: “Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love.” That return of which we sing is nothing short of repenting. How are we to repent? Why do we need to repent? Have we really done that bad that we need to repent? If we take stock of ourselves I think we’ll often find that we’ve been careless at some point or other in our lives—that we’ve lived as if God doesn’t matter, or allowed a cynical attitude to develop, or conformed to the mood and mindset of the age in which we live. In short, instead of living our lives according to God’s commandments and His ways, we live our lives in the way which makes us happy, regardless if it’s contrary to the Word of God.

How do we live then? The standard is too high, and we don’t even measure up to the “not good enough” of which Paul and Ezekiel speak of in our other readings for today. But God is on your side and wants you to flourish! The answer is and has always been and will always be Jesus. Jesus goes to the cross in order to buy you back and to restore you to your rightful place as God’s heir. He gives His life in order that your life will not be taken. He dies so that you will never die that final death.

Maybe the word “repent” isn’t so bad of a word at all. Maybe the parable of the barren fig tree isn’t so bad either, for it reminds us that life is to be lived on God’s terms, it also reminds us that life and can be good and full and productive. Once again, Jesus gives to us the words that are most needed – words that remind us what our heavenly Father desires of us and the gift of forgiveness that comes through repentance. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Lent 2–“To Jerusalem” (Luke 13:31-35

C-33 Lent 2 (Lu 13.31-35)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Things are beginning to heat up for Jesus. Pressure is starting to be applied to Him. Even the Pharisees are coming to warn Jesus about what is going to happen. They tell Him, “Get away from here, for Herod wants to kill you.” This doesn’t sound like the Pharisees that we know. They have tried to pick a fight with Jesus at every opportunity but now, they warn Him, looking out for His interests. These Pharisees sound so helpful, almost even nice. Are they different from the Pharisees who have been opposing Jesus every step of the way? More than likely, they are up to their old tricks, trying to deceive Jesus into abandoning His journey to Jerusalem. If Jesus turns and runs, He’ll surely lose credibility with His following. But perhaps the Pharisees are perceptive: they realize that any man who wants to be a leader of the Jews must establish Himself in Jerusalem. Any ploy that could keep Him away from there would surely foil His plans. These are not Pharisees who have turned over a new leaf; they have already rejected Jesus and His purpose. As far as they are concerned, nothing has changed.

While the Pharisees here are likely not concerned with what will happen to Jesus, very real threats of death do indeed face Jesus in Jerusalem. Opposition to Jesus has been building for a long time. His preaching and teaching has been less than well received by the ruling Jews of the day. He was labeled a heretic because He claimed that He was the Son of God, the promised Messiah. Death was coming quickly for Jesus and instead of turning away from it, Jesus marched headfirst into Jerusalem to face His death.

Just a few weeks ago we heard how at the Mount of Transfiguration Jesus, Moses, and Elijah discussed His impending death. Now, what they had discussed on the mountain seems to be getting closer to reality. For the Pharisees, nothing could be better than this. They know that Jesus is going to be killed, one way or another. The Scribes and Pharisees have been plotting this for quite some time. Jesus knows very well what will happen when He makes it to Jerusalem. There won’t be a parade. There won’t be a warm reception for Him. He knows that when He gets there, He will meet His death. But there will be more than that. He knows that when He enters Jerusalem, you will have life.

Death for Jesus means life for you, the believer. He willingly goes to Jerusalem, to fulfill the Father’s will in order that you would have life. Our Lord’s journey becomes the journey of every Christian, for He leads us from death to life. That is what the scribes and Pharisees did not understand or did not care about. They were more concerned about putting a heretic to death instead of what His death would accomplish. The death of Jesus would restore creation to its rightful place as the beloved of God. Jesus is not afraid to go to Jerusalem, but why would He? He goes because of you, regardless of the rejection that He has faced up until now and the rejection that He will face there.

Thus, as He goes to the cross, no one can keep Him away from Jerusalem-not Herod and all of his soldiers or the Pharisees with all of their plans. This is the Son of God going about His Father’s will, and He will not be diverted from the journey. He is going to Jerusalem. And because He is going to Jerusalem, Herod and the Pharisees will work out the details for His death. If He isn’t going to go away, they will make Him go away.

But bear this in mind: They don’t make Him go away. The Lord is still in charge. He does not die on that cross because of Herod’s strength or the plottings of the Pharisees. Nor is He scourged and crucified because of the power of the Romans. He goes to that cross only because He goes willingly, because this is God’s plan for your salvation. This is the all-powerful Son of God, and He will not be denied your redemption.

This is your comfort and hope: Your Savior is not a weak man who is overpowered by evil men who seek to put Him to death. No matter the hatred of His enemies, He goes to Jerusalem. No matter the plots and plans of man, nothing keeps Him from suffering the full judgment for your sin. Nothing could deter the Son of God from that mission of salvation. No one, not Satan and his seductive attempts to buy Christ from His mission; not even Christ’s own disciples could dissuade Him from going to the cross with the hopes of Him staying with them forever; not even His enemies who threatened Him with suffering and even death; nothing in this world could side-track Him from that for which He came into the world. He came to be a ransom for many. He came to die that we might live. He came as Redeemer and ushered in the full meaning of God’s eternal love.

And so we say again: Jesus goes to the cross and dies only because He wills to. He did it willingly. He submitted to the suffering and the nails and the death because He willed to do so for you, in accordance with the Father’s will.

Fortunately, God loved us even while we hated Him. Jesus is God’s Son sent to rescue us. The events of today’s Gospel happened while Jesus was on His way to complete that rescue. He was taking His farewell tour of Israel before He went to Jerusalem to offer Himself up as a sacrifice for us. That is the reason He said, “It cannot be that a prophet should perish away from Jerusalem.” That is also the reason He had no fear of Herod. He knew that His death would take place in Jerusalem, not in Galilee.

Jesus’ heart for His people will send Him to Jerusalem, for her and for us. Once more, on Palm Sunday, Jesus would come to Jerusalem and be acclaimed by words of praise, but He will still be rejected and crucified. This is precisely why He would come. This had been Jerusalem’s purpose throughout her favored history: this would be where the Son would God would give His life for the Church. Jerusalem will be saved and so will you, as will all those who repent and are gathered into Christ. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Lent 1–“Tempted” (Luke 4:1-13)

C-31 Lent 1 (Lu 4.1-11)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Temptation is something that has been present in creation since near the beginning of time. Adam and Eve were the first to fall prey to temptation and from then on, it’s been downhill into temptation ever since. The apostle Peter writes, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” He is always ready to pounce and tempt people into all kinds of sin. Fortunately, this ferocious lion has done battle with another lion, the Lion of Judah, and he could not overcome Him. As we see in our Gospel reading for today, at the very beginning of Christ’s ministry, the devil attacked Jesus, but our Lord defeated him by resisting all of his temptations, and He did this in order to save us.

The scene that Luke lays out for us today follows immediately after Christ’s baptism and brings Christ face to face with Satan, the very enemy whom He has come to destroy. As was said, temptation faces everyone, including Jesus Christ. He is no different than any other person throughout history. Everyone faces temptation at some point in their life and it was no different for Jesus. The temptation of Jesus was continuous over the period of forty days, but Luke gives us but three examples of the many ways in which Satan attacked Christ. We have no way of knowing just how Jesus was continually tempted. To tempt merely means to put to the test, here with an evil intent, that is, to cause someone to sin. Satan knew very well that Jesus had come to crush his power and if he could succeed just once in getting Jesus to give into temptation and sin, then he would win the victory. This was no sham or pretend temptation that Jesus faced. According to His human nature, Jesus was tempted in every way, just as we are, yet He remained sinless.

It would have been very easy for Jesus to give into the temptations of Satan, just like it is easy for us to give in to temptations. Jesus trampled the devil’s real temptation with Scripture. Christ, who has taught us to pray, “Lead us not into temptation,” had Himself been led by the Spirit to go where temptation was. He knew its strength and danger. His own temptation, all three of His temptations, stretching over a period of 40 days, were wholly concerned with the choice between right and wrong, between higher and lower means of carrying out the mission on which His heavenly Father had sent Him.

Can we doubt the seriousness of those forty days of decisive conflict? On the outcome hung the whole issue of His mission on earth and every hope of salvation of mankind.

Our Lord was setting out upon the mission of His heavenly Father. His mission was to bring all mankind into the kingdom of God, free from Satan. For that mission, He possessed gifts and powers that were brought to light in fullness at His baptism by John the Baptist when the voice declared from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”

The temptations which Jesus faced were great temptations indeed. They were meant for our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ to give up His divinity, to renounce who He is and to worship Satan. Christ knew what was at stake: us. We were at stake. Our salvation was at risk. Had Jesus given in, there would be no salvation for us. When God looks at us, He would continue to see our utter filth by sin. That is not what God sees because Christ refused to give in to Satan’s temptations for the sake of the Father’s will: that all men be brought to Him so that we might be saved.

Look beside you in this wilderness. There is Jesus. He too is alone. He too is starving. He too is miserable. He too is also stalked and hunted by Satan seeking whom he may devour. This is Jesus on His way to dying too. Why is Jesus here? He has never sinned. His body is pure and holy, so why is He in this barren place – hungry, tempted, suffering like this? You know the answer, don’t you? It’s because you are here.

Jesus cannot stay in heaven’s peace and glory while you are here suffering. If you lose all things, He loses all things. If you starve and sweat and squirm, He too must starve and sweat and squirm. If you suffer condemnation, He suffers condemnation. If you are to die, He must die too. He loves you too much to leave you here in sin’s desert, this fallen world, all at Satan’s tempting disposal. That is why Jesus faced the temptations that He did. That is why He lays down His life on Calvary’s cross, because you are at stake in everything.

The temptations that Jesus faces are temptations that you and I face daily. In looking at all of these temptations that Jesus faces, they all share one thing in common: the testing of God. All of these temptations go back to the very first temptation: “Did God really say…” The devil bends the power of words to his will. He lies. He even bends Holy Scripture in order to mislead. Today’s Gospel shows the devil lifting the words of Scripture out of context. He blasphemes against the very Word of God and omits a small word here and another small word there until the remaining words conform to his lie. In this way, he hopes to mislead and corrupt.

Fortunately for us, our Lord knows Scripture even better than Satan does. While Satan is a master of twisting the Scriptures, Jesus is the master of fulfilling them. He comes to fulfill all that is written of Him in the Law and the Prophets. He goes toe to toe with Satan and using the Word of God to defeat each and every temptation of Satan.

So often in our own lives are we tested, to put the promise of God to a test to see if it is true or not. Do we put our trust in the things of this world or do we put our trust in the Word of God? Do we go the easy way or do we go the hard way of suffering as God has said? The temptations of our Lord are the temptations of all mankind. The temptations of our Lord are the temptations of His Church. The temptations of our Lord are repeated in the temptations that come to you in your daily vocation.

When we are attacked and accused, we trust in Christ, who saved us by His perfect obedience, suffering, and death. When the devil tempts us to sin, we trust in Christ and His Word of truth. When the Law accuses us of sin, we trust in Christ and His perfect obedience. When death demands our life, we trust in Christ and His innocent suffering and death.

Our Savior knows what it is to be tempted. He willingly faced temptation by our enemy, the prowling lion, and He did it for our salvation. He won the battle, and His victory belongs to all who trust in Him. In the name of Jesus, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Transfiguration of Our Lord–“Mountains” (Luke 9:28-36)

C-29 Transfiguration (Lu 9.28-36)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

Mountains. Have you ever noticed the number of times mountains appear in the Scriptures? At a quick glance in a concordance, the words mountain or mountains appears 335 times. Let’s take a look at some of the highlights that take place on a mountain. Moses received the 10 Commandments on a mountain. Jesus, on several occasions, took His disciples and taught from a mountain. The people would come to a mountain to see or hear Jesus. And today, Jesus is once again on a mountain, this time with three of His disciples to pray. The experience that the three disciples had was a changing experience. The lesson: “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”

Verses before our text for today, Jesus told His disciples what was to come: “The Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” Hearing news like that would be quite unsettling to say the least. Imagine if a loved one were to share that type of news with us. What would our reaction be to such news? News like this would be hard to comprehend. When Jesus went up to the mountain, He took these three disciples with Him, maybe for that very reason, to help further explain what He had previously said.

While there on the mountain, something extraordinary happened: “And as he was praying, the appearance of his face was altered, and his clothing became dazzling white.” That must have been a sight to behold. They had walked from their last place, up on a hill in the dust and dirt. They were probably dust-covered, sweaty, and just all around dirty, much like we are. In our present state, we are covered in sin and death and all that keeps us from God. We can’t make ourselves clean, we can’t remove our sin, regardless of how hard we try.

The only way to remove all that hinders us from God is to be a part of Christ. This is what God desperately wants of creation, for it to be connected to Him. That is the whole point of Jesus. The only way for you to be connected to God is by Jesus, not by you. That is why God the Father’s words are so important in our text: “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!”

So it is that as we start today’s reading from the account of Luke, we learn that Jesus led a very confused and bewildered Peter, John, and James up on the mountain to pray. Peter, John, and James did what they usually do when they are alone with Jesus while He prayed: they went to sleep. What they saw when they woke up blew them away. Jesus was shining like the sun. Not only was Jesus lighting up the mountaintop, but He was also having a conversation with Moses and Elijah. This conversation was pretty amazing for the simple fact that Moses and Elijah had been dead for centuries. We have an account of Moses’ death and burial in today’s Old Testament lesson.

But as it stood, here was God’s Word present, from start to finish. You had Moses, the representation of the old covenant and the promise of salvation, God’s ever-present Law. There also stood Elijah, one of the great prophets, taken to heaven. Moses and Elijah together equaled what Christ is: the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. The topic at hand: Christ’s upcoming exodus, for you, for me, and for all of creation. His exodus, His death, marked not a defeat as Satan had hoped, but instead was a triumph, one that would set all of creation free from sin and death.

When Jesus took Peter, James and John with Him, they were unsure of what they were seeing and hearing. Maybe it was because they were still sleepy. Maybe it was because they were not meant to understand just yet. Regardless, there they were on the mountain, with the Law and the Prophets and the Gospel.

When they finally awoke from their slumber and saw what was going on around them, it must have been remarkable. A simple visit to a mountain to pray had turned into a visit between Moses, Elijah, and Jesus. Maybe Peter, James, and John happened to be in the right place at the right time. That would explain why Peter exclaimed that it was good for them to be there. And in the event they were going to be there for a while, Peter suggested putting up shelters for them. It was very likely that Peter wanted this moment in time to continue indefinitely, especially after hearing of Jesus’ impending death. It was far better to stay there on the mountain than to leave and face Jesus’ prediction of His death.

Just as Peter declared to Jesus that it was good for them to be there, so it is good for us to be here today. We come today to where God has said He will be found. We come together so that we may hear the words of Moses, Elijah, and Jesus; the Law, the Prophets, and the Gospel. We come here today to receive from the Lord’s bounty forgiveness of sins that have been won for us by Jesus Christ on the cross. We come here today to receive the very body and blood of Jesus. We do not come merely because God commands it but we come because He invites us. He invites us to come before Him, to confess our sins and to hear that word of absolution pronounced upon us. We come because Jesus Himself invites us to His Table, feeding us with the bread of life.

A moment like the Transfiguration would not be complete without God Himself being present. He comes with His almighty voice, speaking to the disciples: “This is my Son, my Chosen One; listen to him!” Hearing the voice of God was usually reserved for those of great stature, such as Moses, Abraham, David and other prominent leaders of the Old Testament. Yet God saw fit to come to Peter, James, and John to tell them to cast aside any fears, any doubts that they may have, both today and in the future.

Just as He did at the Baptism of Jesus, God the Father addresses mankind. This man Jesus is the beloved and chosen Son of God. At that point, God establishes for mankind who they should listen to; not the things of this world, but to the Son of God. How easy it is for us to give in and listen to what the world says because it’s what our itching ears want to hear. We don’t always focus our attention on the things of God, the promised salvation that comes through His Son, the love shown by Christ for the Father, a love willing to be put to death so that creation would once again belong to the Father. But the words that Jesus speaks to us are the words that we need to hear. Today, we boldly say, “Master, it is good that we are here.” In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Epiphany 3–“Shocked” (Luke 4:16-30)

C-22 Epiphany 3 (Lu 4.14-21)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

In today’s world, we hear plenty of bad news. We hear of war and devastation. We hear about acts of violence and murders. We hear of how loved ones have died due to sickness and disease. Needless to say, our souls are wearied by the world and by our own sinful nature. Surely there must be somewhere we can go to hear good news! My friends, you have come to that place today.

We gather in God’s house to hear good news from Jesus. The word “gospel” comes from the Greek word which means “good news.” That is precisely why we are here today, to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. That is what Jesus says today. As He reads the words of Isaiah the prophet, Jesus says, “The Spirit of The Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.” My friends, you are the poor. The good news that Jesus comes bringing is the declaration that you have been forgiven all of your sins on account of He and His actions. He declares that you have eternal life in Him because of His life, death, and resurrection. He declares that this is done for you. What good news this is that our Lord brings!

There were those who thought positive of Jesus and what He had said and done up to this point. Luke records, “And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.” Truly this was amazing that all the people were in favor of Jesus’ words that He had just quoted. These were words of good news, speaking of God’s pardon that lifted the people up. It is a message for the spiritually poor, the captives of sin, the spiritually blind and those oppressed by guilt and shame. This was just what the people needed to hear and they did not disagree with the Lord’s words. After Jesus finished reading and sat down on the platform to give His sermon or explanation, there was a hushed silence of expectancy. Then Jesus shocks the world with the good news that He is the Messiah!

Jesus shocks the people of Nazareth when He fulfills the Scriptures. Luke records only the beginning, which in itself is the core and sum of the whole sermon. His words were shocking: “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” This hometown boy returns to church as a guest, and He claims that Isaiah’s prophecy of the coming Messiah is now come true – in the person of Jesus. Jesus not only brings good news to the people, He is the Good News of God for every sinner! It’s just a shame that you and I don’t want to hear it.

Just as quickly as the people were enamored by Jesus, they turn against Him. Luke records, “When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.” The people of Nazareth reject the good news that Jesus is the Messiah and with that, everything that comes along with it. The expected response might be for the all to throw up their hands and rejoice in the hometown hero. You can almost see them wringing their hands and licking their chops with greedy anticipation. “Here is the answer to all our problems! Can you believe that this is Joseph’s boy? We really hit the lottery with this one!” Instead, the initial reaction was split. They marveled at the way or manner He spoke of God’s love for them. But then doubt is quickly planted: “Is not this Joseph’s son?” You can almost hear them contradict themselves earlier. Surely Joseph’s son cannot be the Messiah. Eventually, doubt turns into rejection.

Isn’t that just like us? One minute we are in love with Jesus and what He comes bringing and then the next, we’re ready to throw Him out of town and off the cliff. This was the problem with the hometown crowd. This is why Jesus spoke such brutal, attention-getting Law. They were stubborn in their spiritual deafness and blindness. They heard the words of Christ, but they didn’t hear the Word of God. They didn’t listen. That is us to a tee. We hear God’s Word, but we do not listen to it. We hear God’s pronouncement of forgiveness upon us on account of Jesus Christ, but we do listen to the fact that the forgiveness is by Jesus alone. We want to find that forgiveness in anything but Jesus. But there is no forgiveness in anything or anyone but Jesus.

So what does the hometown boy do? Does He leave the people with their desires or something else? He dies. He dies for the people who want to kill Him. The people get what they wanted: Jesus dies. The people should be happy. Everything worked out the way they had wanted it. And you know what? Everything did work out the way it was supposed to. Jesus died. He died for creation. He died to fulfill the Father’s will. And He was successful. He died but did not stay dead. He rose victoriously to again fulfill the Father’s will.

Even after everything that Jesus has done for creation, what is today’s response to the shocking Good News of Jesus Christ? Some reject the Good News to their own damnation. They deny who Jesus is and what He has done. They deny that Jesus is the Messiah, the One who is promised of long ago to bring about salvation for creation. But then you have the other side of the coin as well. God the Holy Spirit creates faith in your heart through the Word of the Good News of Jesus Christ for you. By faith you see Jesus’ mission completed – from Bethlehem to Calvary, from resurrection to ascension for you. By faith you see that all of Scripture points to Jesus for you.

Jesus truly is the fulfillment of God’s promises. He is the Anointed One, the Christ, the Messiah. All this He gives to us through the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith. God has promised all these things to us and today they are fulfilled in our hearing. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Epiphany 3–“Shocked” (Luke 4:16-30)

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

In today’s world, we hear plenty of bad news. We hear of war and devastation. We hear about acts of violence and murders. We hear of how loved ones have died due to sickness and disease. Needless to say, our souls are wearied by the world and by our own sinful nature. Surely there must be somewhere we can go to hear good news! My friends, you have come to that place today.

We gather in God’s house to hear good news from Jesus. The word “gospel” comes from the Greek word which means “good news.” That is precisely why we are here today, to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. That is what Jesus says today. As He reads the words of Isaiah the prophet, Jesus says, “The Spirit of The Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to proclaim good news to the poor.” My friends, you are the poor. The good news that Jesus comes bringing is the declaration that you have been forgiven all of your sins on account of He and His actions. He declares that you have eternal life in Him because of His life, death, and resurrection. He declares that this is done for you. What good news this is that our Lord brings!

There were those who thought positive of Jesus and what He had said and done up to this point. Luke records, “And all spoke well of him and marveled at the gracious words that were coming from his mouth.” Truly this was amazing that all the people were in favor of Jesus’ words that He had just quoted. These were words of good news, speaking of God’s pardon that lifted the people up. It is a message for the spiritually poor, the captives of sin, the spiritually blind and those oppressed by guilt and shame. This was just what the people needed to hear and they did not disagree with the Lord’s words. After Jesus finished reading and sat down on the platform to give His sermon or explanation, there was a hushed silence of expectancy. Then Jesus shocks the world with the good news that He is the Messiah!

Jesus shocks the people of Nazareth when He fulfills the Scriptures. Luke records only the beginning, which in itself is the core and sum of the whole sermon. His words were shocking: “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” This hometown boy returns to church as a guest, and He claims that Isaiah’s prophecy of the coming Messiah is now come true – in the person of Jesus. Jesus not only brings good news to the people, He is the Good News of God for every sinner! It’s just a shame that you and I don’t want to hear it.

Just as quickly as the people were enamored by Jesus, they turn against Him. Luke records, “When they heard these things, all in the synagogue were filled with wrath. And they rose up and drove him out of the town and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that they could throw him down the cliff.” The people of Nazareth reject the good news that Jesus is the Messiah and with that, everything that comes along with it. The expected response might be for the all to throw up their hands and rejoice in the hometown hero. You can almost see them wringing their hands and licking their chops with greedy anticipation. “Here is the answer to all our problems! Can you believe that this is Joseph’s boy? We really hit the lottery with this one!” Instead, the initial reaction was split. They marveled at the way or manner He spoke of God’s love for them. But then doubt is quickly planted: “Is not this Joseph’s son?” You can almost hear them contradict themselves earlier. Surely Joseph’s son cannot be the Messiah. Eventually, doubt turns into rejection.

Isn’t that just like us? One minute we are in love with Jesus and what He comes bringing and then the next, we’re ready to throw Him out of town and off the cliff. This was the problem with the hometown crowd. This is why Jesus spoke such brutal, attention-getting Law. They were stubborn in their spiritual deafness and blindness. They heard the words of Christ, but they didn’t hear the Word of God. They didn’t listen. That is us to a tee. We hear God’s Word, but we do not listen to it. We hear God’s pronouncement of forgiveness upon us on account of Jesus Christ, but we do listen to the fact that the forgiveness is by Jesus alone. We want to find that forgiveness in anything but Jesus. But there is no forgiveness in anything or anyone but Jesus.

So what does the hometown boy do? Does He leave the people with their desires or something else? He dies. He dies for the people who want to kill Him. The people get what they wanted: Jesus dies. The people should be happy. Everything worked out the way they had wanted it. And you know what? Everything did work out the way it was supposed to. Jesus died. He died for creation. He died to fulfill the Father’s will. And He was successful. He died but did not stay dead. He rose victoriously to again fulfill the Father’s will.

Even after everything that Jesus has done for creation, what is today’s response to the shocking Good News of Jesus Christ? Some reject the Good News to their own damnation. They deny who Jesus is and what He has done. They deny that Jesus is the Messiah, the One who is promised of long ago to bring about salvation for creation. But then you have the other side of the coin as well. God the Holy Spirit creates faith in your heart through the Word of the Good News of Jesus Christ for you. By faith you see Jesus’ mission completed – from Bethlehem to Calvary, from resurrection to ascension for you. By faith you see that all of Scripture points to Jesus for you.

Jesus truly is the fulfillment of God’s promises. He is the Anointed One, the Christ, the Messiah. All this He gives to us through the Holy Spirit’s gift of faith. God has promised all these things to us and today they are fulfilled in our hearing. In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Epiphany 2 – “Delight” (Isaiah 62:1-5)

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

Think about people you have known who have come through great tragedies in life with the ability to maintain a spirit of hope. That ability or disposition is most certainly a gift from God. It is truly a gift when people are able to recover from grief and despair, when they are able to turn from the pain and suffering of a past event to discover healing in new community life and wellsprings of hope for the future.

As Isaiah writes this portion of his letter, God’s people had suffered great tragedy. But this speaks beyond the people of Isaiah’s day; this speaks of the Church, God’s believers. What wonderful good news this is for the Church, knowing that God has not forsaken His people! This inseparably associates Christ’s righteousness and salvation, granted to us in His means of grace through Holy Baptism, where we are made God’s children.

Look again at the words of Isaiah: “For Zion’s sake I will not keep silent, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be quiet, until her righteousness goes forth as brightness, and her salvation as a burning torch.” In the Lord’s plan for a perfect world, there would never be a situation like this. God had created the heavens and the earth and all that inhabits them to be perfect. He created man and woman to be perfect. Creation was deemed to be “good” in God’s eyes, while man was deemed to be “very good.” As God saw things, this was perfection. Perfection did not last long and as a result, this world fell into sin. And with creation’s fall into sin, so did creation suffer. That suffering that creation experiences trickles down to the Church as well.

As much as we would like it, the Church is not immune to suffering. Even our Lord Himself is called the Suffering Servant. The Church suffers greatly for the sake of Christ and His teachings. The Church suffers for what is right according to God’s Word. The Church suffers as a result of who she is.

For the sake of creation, God sent His Son to earth with the single task of saving creation. God became fully man and lived the perfect life that we could not. That meant that Jesus never sinned. That meant that Jesus never failed to do the Father’s will. That meant that Jesus did what was required of you and me and of all creation so that we are forgiven of the damning guilt of our sin.

The picture that Isaiah paints is one of good times and bad. Leading up to our text for today, Israel had seen better days. But we know that God is faithful and just and because He promised to Adam and Eve a Savior, Israel held out hope for that Savior. Way back at the time of Abraham, He called them to be His own. He brought them out of Egypt. He compared Himself as their bridegroom and called His people Zion, called them His bride. He promised always to be faithful, to provide for them and to keep them safe. But they were not faithful to Him. Time and time again, they turned to other gods. Time and time again, they ran to idols that promised some sort of forbidden pleasure. The Lord pursued them, called them back, repeated His faithfulness and love to them again and again, but they would not have Him. They wanted another instead.

As we look back, we tend to shake our heads and say, “Israel, you should have known better. You should have done what God asked and there wouldn’t be any problems.” As I said earlier, Isaiah is not only describing Israel, but his description is that of the Church. God has called us to be His bride. God has promised to the Church to be faithful and to provide for her safety. But we as God’s people have not been faithful to Him. We have turned to other gods, running to idols and all that we think will give to us the same things that God Himself promises.

All of this sounds tragic for the Church, and it is. But as we know, God does not allow the Church to wallow in its sin forever. Listen again to the words of Isaiah: “You shall no more be termed Forsaken, and your land shall no more be termed Desolate, but you shall be called My Delight Is in Her….” God has a plan to redeem creation. He becomes flesh and takes their place. He takes their sins upon Himself, their guilt and their shame. He bears all their sins to the cross. At the cross, God the Father says to Christ, “I see that you bear the sin, the guilt and the shame. I see on You every last sin that I despise. And because I condemn sin and sinners, I condemn You.”

This is the Gospel, as Paul declares in 2 Corinthians 5, “For our sake [God] made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” What wonderful news this is for the Church as a whole and for each individual Christian! God did not leave us to our sinful nature but on account of Christ’s atoning salvation were we restored to full honor and glory. For you, the Lord does not keep silent. He will not be quiet as you waste away. Though you feel the bitterness of sin and shame, He declares that He has already borne your sin to the cross. Before God, your sin is gone. Before God, you are righteous for the sake of Jesus.

Jesus’ life, suffering, death, and resurrection have verified once and for all that we are perfectly right with God; holy and just as if we had never sinned. As the vow before the wedding altar states once and for all time a commitment we can always trust, God has taken the vow. We are the Bride of Christ, never forsaken, never desolate and lonely, but married to Him. We are the Lord’s delight.

For your sake, the Lord is not silent. He continues to declare His delight in you, His joy over you. That is why you hear His Word, even when you can’t stand yourself, because there the Lord proclaims His faithfulness, His redemption, His love for you. That is why you run to His Supper for forgiveness, because there is your Bridegroom, present to save. The time will come when sorrow and sighing will flee away—on the Last Day, at the marriage feast of the Lamb. Until then, the Lord is not silent. He will not be quiet. He says, “I delight in you, for I have redeemed you. I rejoice over you, because you are righteous and holy in My sight: because you are forgiven for all of your sins.” In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Baptism of Our Lord–“Baptized” (Luke 3:15-22)

C-20 Epiphany 1 (Lu 3.15-22)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Gospel, which was read earlier.

As we turn to our Gospel reading for today, we meet John the Baptist again. As Luke records, “the people were in expectation, and all were questioning in their hearts concerning John, whether he might be the Christ….” It must have been a good feeling that John the Baptist had for the people to think of him so highly that they would see him as the Christ. Someone other than John might have let this go to their head, maybe play along with the thoughts of the people. However, John would have none of this. His ministry was to prepare the way for the Coming One, One who would be infinitely more powerful than he was, One who would baptize with the Holy Spirit, One who would ultimately be the judge of the living and the dead. John did not feel himself worthy of any of this, not even to untie the sandal strings of this Coming One.

Instead of being the Christ, John was merely the final Old Testament prophet preparing the way for the Messiah, the Christ. His work was to make the final preparations pointing the world’s attention to Jesus of Nazareth as the Christ, the ultimate and perfect solution to all the sinful acts of Adam and Eve, their descendants, and all the way down to you and me. But people, asking their own questions and inventing their own answers, had their own ideas of what the Christ should be like. They needed the correction that John’s preaching provided.

John responds to the people, “‘He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire. His winnowing fork is in his hand, to clear his threshing floor and to gather the wheat into his barn, but the chaff he will burn with unquenchable fire.’ So with many other exhortations he preached good news to the people.” The correction John’s preaching provided came in his famous exhortations to repent of all one’s sin and thus also to receive God’s forgiveness.

Ultimately, that is our problem: sin and forgiveness. If you sin, you need to be forgiven. But if you do not sin, then you do not need to be forgiven. It must be good if you are the person who does not need to be forgiven because you have not sinned. What a good feeling that person must have knowing that they are so righteous before God and not like the lowly sinner. Sadly, there are many who think that way, both Christian and non-Christian alike. But we confess with St. John: “If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us.”

John came to preach a message of repentance, a message that the Church needed to confess then and one which the Church needs to confess today. The Church is full of sinners. That fact has never changed. John recognized that fact and that was the message that he was preaching and he didn’t hold back any when it came to that preaching. Jesus will come and separate the wheat from the chaff, the sheep from the goats. He will separate those who are true believers from those that are not. The Christian receives eternal life while the non-Christian receives eternal damnation. That is the work of the Messiah and that is what Christ comes on the scene to do. All of that begins today.

John the Baptist has done a good job up to now of preparing the people to receive Christ and today marks that day when Christ begins His ministry. Jesus is baptized. Luke doesn’t record much of the details but Matthew’s Gospel tells us that Jesus came to John in order to be baptized. John was leery of baptizing Jesus but does so at Jesus’ request. Following the Baptism of Jesus, the entire Trinity presents itself. Luke records, “Now when all the people were baptized, and when Jesus also had been baptized and was praying, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form, like a dove; and a voice came from heaven, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.””

God the Father and God the Holy Spirit acknowledged the sacrifice Jesus made as He took our sin onto Himself and clothed us in His righteousness. Christ’s mission to open heaven is the will and work of the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit puts in a rare appearance in physical form, like that of a dove. The Father declares His pleasure with the Son. While Jesus is the member of the Trinity who became flesh and died on the cross, we see in this reading that all three members of the Trinity are actively involved in opening the way to heaven.

This is not an everyday event. Heaven, where God dwells, opened its door to earth, because there, on earth at the Jordan River, Christ the Son of God stood. Did the bodily form of the Spirit leave Christ immediately? We do not know. Scripture is silent on that. For all we know, there was a dove, the Holy Spirit, perched upon the shoulder of Christ throughout His ministry. But more likely, the form of the dove disappeared soon after the Baptism. Yet, although the bodily form of the dove disappeared, the Spirit remained. He did not depart from Christ; not then, not ever. The Spirit remained on Him so that Christ could baptize His own Church with the same Spirit.

Therefore, Christ’s Baptism was not for Him – it was for you. He received the Spirit so that He could give it to you. The very same Dove descended on you when the waters of Baptism touched you. And so the same Father’s voice was for you. He tells you that you are His child. Everything that is His now belongs to you: forgiveness, life, and salvation.

Here at His baptism, Jesus took our place under the burden of our sin. As our substitute, He carried out God’s plan perfectly. The mission that Jesus began at His baptism was successful. He opened the way to heaven. He offers to join us to Himself through baptism. The Holy Spirit gives us the faith that receives that offer. God the Father adopts us into His family by that faith. When the time comes for us to leave this world, the heavens will open, the angels will carry us home and we will hear the Father say, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.” In Jesus’ name, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.

Posted on

Epiphany of Our Lord–“Mysteries” (Ephesians 3:1-12)

C-19 Epiphany (Mt 2.1-12)Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, amen. The text for the sermon is the Epistle, which was read earlier.

Who doesn’t love a good mystery? I remember when I was in middle school taking our state standardized tests, all I wanted to do was finish the tests so I could pull out another Hardy Boys Mystery from the library. I was so caught up in the middle of everything, wondering what was going to happen on the next page and how everything would play out. The mystery brought excitement and wonder, and being a young teenager, I never walked away disappointed.

But what about mysteries today? Do they still intrigue us? Do they captivate us in a way that only a mystery can? Do we even want to involve ourselves with mysteries? If you are St. Paul, then you are all about mystery, namely the mystery of God.

As Paul writes his letter to the Ephesian church, he speaks of many things. First, he makes mention that he is a prisoner. Not only was Paul an actual prisoner in jail, he was “a prisoner for Christ Jesus on behalf of [the] Gentiles.” Notice what Paul says there. He is a prisoner on their behalf. Paul wasn’t preaching and teaching for his own benefit; he was preaching and teaching for the benefit of his audience, in this case, the Ephesians. This was a church that was in full need of God’s grace and mercy and Paul sought to bring that saving grace and mercy to them, just as he was in full need of God’s saving grace and mercy.

In order to do so, he was given insight into the mystery of Christ. Just what does Paul mean here regarding the mystery of Christ? He is not speaking of something that is mysterious in the sense of being vague, murky, or hard to understand, but rather, something that needs to be explained. After it has been explained, it’s perfectly clear, but one would never have stumbled onto it without some outside help. Paul indicates that he received such help from God by revelation. Paul says rather clearly what the mystery is: “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel.” It means that they are included in God’s saving grace and mercy!

What a wonderful thing for a person to hear, that they have been included in God’s saving grace and mercy. What relief that fact should bring to a person, knowing that God has forgiven you all of your sins on account of Jesus Christ. That is the message that Paul was bringing to the Ephesians and that is the message that Paul brings to you today.

Today we celebrate the Epiphany of Our Lord; we celebrate His being revealed to the Gentiles, that they would become God’s children by grace. We also celebrate His being revealed to us, that we would become God’s children by grace.

According to Matthew’s Gospel, God chose to reveal Jesus to the wise men via a star to follow, leading them to the Child. For St. Paul, he was intent on making sure that the churches to whom he visited or wrote to knew of “the unsearchable riches of Christ.” St. Paul understood well that salvation in Christ means wealth beyond compare or comprehension. No one can put a dollar sign on the riches that come to us in the Gospel. The riches are also unsearchable in that no human mind could ever have contrived God’s gracious plan of salvation. No one and nothing in all of God’s creation could reveal to us the eternal treasure of unconditional forgiveness of sins. Only the Creator of all things could reveal this wealth to us.

It is Paul’s privilege and passion to make plain to everyone that the sins of the world are taken away in Christ. Unlike the sweepstakes offer which tells us we may have already won, he announces that we have already won through the Savior.

For the Church today, God reveals Jesus to us in His means of grace: His Word and His Sacraments. This is where He promised that He would be found. However, for many, that’s not where they want to find Jesus. They want to find Jesus on the lake, in prosperity preaching, the promise of being good and receiving God’s good grace. That is why the Word of God is so important.

We cannot live as the people of God unless He has been revealed, that is, preached to us. Without His Word and Sacraments, not only would our Lord remain unrevealed to us, but His gifts of forgiveness, life, and salvation also would not have been given to us. Without faith in Christ, we would forever be unable to comprehend this mystery. Even with faith in Him, we are still unable to comprehend the mystery of the Incarnation. We finite creatures cannot comprehend an infinite God becoming true Man, coming hidden in a finite form. We are unable to understand how a virgin can conceive and bear a Son. We cannot begin to fathom how one who was crucified and dead can come back to life.

There is more to Epiphany than a lovely story though of wise men, of a great Old Testament prophecy fulfilled and of an energetic appeal of Paul to the Ephesians. Epiphany is not just to be remembered in the past tense. Epiphany is a present now.

Epiphany is now, even as Christ is now. He continues to come to His Church, to feed her with His precious Word and His saving body and blood. He continues to come to save and forgive His people. He continues to bring people to the cross as their Savior from sin. This is the message that St. Paul came preaching and this is the same message that is preached to the Church today. This is what the Church needs to hear; this is what you need to hear.

Now that the mystery has fully been revealed, we see that the whole message of Scripture was always about Jesus. Everything of the Old Testament pointed to Christ. The New Testament is all about the saving work of Christ. Paul, as a called apostle of Jesus Christ, was tasked with bringing this message of salvation to both Jew and Gentile alike. The salvation that God had promised Adam and Eve of so long ago was not meant solely for them, nor was it meant solely for the Jew. God intended this salvation to be for all peoples, regardless of who they are. This salvation that God grants on account of Jesus has been credited to you.

While we may not know all the ins and outs of this mystery, one thing of this mystery is clear: on account of Jesus Christ and His saving work, we have the forgiveness of our sins, case closed. In the name of Jesus, amen. Now the peace of God that passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds through faith in Christ Jesus, amen.