Trinity 9 Sermon

 

Trinity 9 – Luke 16 – August 16^th and 17^th, 2025

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

One of my pastor friends has taken recently to lamenting that we Christians of today have lost all sense of imagination when it comes to the Scriptures. We've lost our childlike sense of wonder and delight at the stories, and so often we just reduce the Scriptures to pithy bits of advice or bland truth statements instead of recognizing it as the Greatest Story Ever Told. And as such, some parts of that story, indeed, some of the stories therein become incredibly hard for us to understand. And there is no finer example of this than our Gospel today – the dreaded tale of the Unrighteous Steward – the Dishonest Manager.

So what is this tale? If you will allow me to retell it – So the big rich boss gets told that his manager is wasting stuff. And the big rich boss says, “I've heard all the rumors about you and your shady deals. That's it, you aren't working here anymore, go collect your books and records, bring them back to me, and then get gone.” The manager is being fired. And this manager, pondering his fate, has a moment of clarity. And the manager said to himself, “What shall I do, since my master is taking the management away from me? I am not strong enough to dig, and I am ashamed to beg.” In other words, this manager takes a completely honest look at his situation. He is up the Creek apparently without a paddle. His prospects don't look good.

But this, then, is the moment of an Epiphany. If he is going to be fired for being a cheat and a fraud, well, might as well be one. “I have decided what to do, so that when I am removed from management, people may receive me into their houses.” And then, just before he turns in the books, he starts cutting deals. He starts giving everyone and their brother a discount. Discounts make people happy. And if they're happy with me – they'll help me out later. I've washed your back to the tunes of millions of dollars, got a spare room I can crash in for a bit? And sure, it's a bit sleazy, it's a bit cutthroat, but it's effective.

And then the verse that causes all sorts of consternation and conniption fits today – The master commended the dishonest manager for his shrewdness.” What? Jesus, are You feeling alright? How can You speak of commending this wickedness! But then it gets worse. Jesus says, “For the sons of this world are more shrewd in dealing with their own generation than the sons of light.” Wait, what? Are You daring to insinuate that I'm lacking in comparison to this thief, this villain? Jesus, how dare you? And then Jesus comes in with the kicker - “And I tell you, make friends for yourselves by means of unrighteous wealth, so that when it fails they may receive you into the eternal dwellings.” No, Jesus, you were supposed to destroy the wicked, not join them. Pearls are clutched, people faint, the pulling out of hair commences.

No, no, no, everyone. Relax. Relax and enjoy the story. Jesus here tells a style of story that was popular in the ancient world that everyone would get, and it's a style that we have even today in our movies. It's a con job story. A heist. A battle of wits. Think of a good con movie – my mom loved the Sting – of course, that might have had something to do with Paul Newman and Robert Redford, but it's a great film where the powerful mob boss is defeated not by brawn or muscle, but by smarts. By being “shrewd”. Or maybe you like a good bank heist film – like Oceans 11 or the Italian Job. The main characters aren't paragons of virtue, but there's wonder and delight and admiration for how they pull it off. They loved those kinds of stories in the ancient world – you had the Trojan Horse, you all sorts of stories in mythology. You get them in the Old Testament. Moses' mom was required by law to throw her baby boy into the Nile... and she did – she just happened to put her cute baby boy in a basket first and put him in the Nile right where Pharaoh's daughter would see him. Eh, eh? Pretty sharp, right? We have always loved stories where someone pulls of a brilliant strategy. As a wise TV character would often say, “I love it when a plan comes together.”

Because that's what this story is – it's a tale in praise of “shrewdness” - of using your mind. Of paying attention. Of making your priority your priority. And in the story, what do we see with this manager? Well, he had his mind on his money and his money on his mind – and he did whatever he could to see that he had a safe landing – that his temporary home for the morrow was secured. And we all understand that. If you're a farmer, you've got to have your mind on the farm. If someone is managing your investments or retirement, they've got to be focused on the market. Teachers heading back to school need to be focused on lesson plans and their students, and those students need to be getting ready to hit the books. Focus. Be wise, be shrewd, be prudent.

But then there's the comment that Jesus makes. We hear the tale of shrewdness, we see this focus on what is important in the world... but then Jesus bemoans the fact that the folks in the world are more shrewd in their dealings than we sons of light are. Alright, O child of God, how's your focus, your attention, your wisdom when it comes to dealing with heavenly, spiritual things?

You see, Jesus doesn't just tell today's story out of nowhere. It's actually the fourth story in a row He's told. Luke 15 begins – Now the tax collectors and sinners were all drawing near to hear [Jesus]. And the Pharisees and the Scribes grumbled, saying, “This man receives sinners and eats with them.” And so Jesus starts on a story telling spree – the story of the Lost Sheep, and then the Lost Coin, and then the Prodigal Son, where the loving Father welcomes back his younger son and tries to pull back in the pouty older son. So, tell me, Child of God, what's your business? What's your interest? What should your focus be upon as a Christian? How you are better than the sinners? Nope. How you should stand away from the church angry and upset because you don't like that someone else gets forgiven? Nope. We want sinners eating with Jesus, because Christian, your business, your treasure, your wealth is Christ and Him Crucified for the forgiveness of sins.

Dare I even say, Christ and His forgiveness is “unrighteous” wealth. At least as far as you are concerned – you didn't earn God's forgiveness. You didn't earn God's love. No, Jesus simply came to you and said, “Wow, that's a lot of sin there in your account there, Bub. Lots of debt to God – but here, I'm going to take My own precious blood, and I'll just write zero – I'll write paid in full. Oh, and by the by, just to let you know, the eternal mansions of heaven and the life of the world to come – they are coming along great, your room is ready. Well, good doing business with you, have a great day.” And this gift, this forgiveness, it isn't just for us, it is the blood Jesus has shed for every man, woman, and child on the planet. And the kicker – we're authorized by Jesus to simply go and forgive people in Jesus' name. We get to take that same wild forgiveness of Jesus, and we get to forgive people and get to see them for all eternity in the eternal dwellings – friends forever. How wild is that?

But so often we ignore it. So often we forget it. We sons of light tend to be not very shrewd with the gifts of God, with the means of grace. The worldly have their mind on their money... but man, seems like we so often have a hard time keeping our mind on our Gracious God. Oh, why does this text come up in the middle of summer when so often we're busy and have better things to do than to go to Church? Or why does it always seem to come up when I'm dealing with my own doubts and fears about how I've been handling this or that – or why does it always come up when I'm annoyed at someone and I don't even want to talk about forgiveness? Well, because, as usual, Jesus is right. We sons of light tend not to be shrewd regarding the gifts of God. We tend to get pulled away by other masters – we often want to serve “mammon” - stuff, things of this world. Or our pride, our dignity. Ah, how quickly we turn our daily bread that God gives us into an idol, into an excuse to ignore God. How quickly we will disdain the neighbor we are to love instead of serving him, How often the Cross and the forgiveness won there is far from our thoughts, for either ourselves or for our neighbor. This is why our debt lists to God get so big – or at least they would except for one, wonderful, glorious thing.

No one is more shrewd than Jesus. Jesus always keeps His eye on the ball. Jesus wants to win your salvation, and He never wavers from that, never gets distracted from that. When Satan tempts Him in the wilderness – no dice, Satan. I've got My mind on My people and My people on My mind. And Jesus lays a wondrous trap for the Devil. See, by right of our sin, we were consigned to death, to Satan's kingdom. The wages of sin is death. C.S. Lewis explains this nicely in the Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe – all traitors belong to the White Witch. So, how to free the sinners from death? Well, Jesus dangles Himself in front of Satan. Jesus has no sin – Satan and death have no claim on Jesus, death has no dominion over Him. And then, in the great confidence move ever (that's what “con” means – it's sort for confidence) Jesus goes to the Cross and cries out, “Father, into Your hands I commit My Spirit.” Jesus dangles His own life in front of Satan, and Satan bites – strikes Jesus' heel... and Jesus dies; but in so doing death has overstepped its bounds and is shattered. You don't belong to death anymore. That penalty has been taken up by Another, Christ Jesus your Brother. Forgiveness has been enacted – and Jesus rises, because Life itself has won the day, and every last man and woman ever to have existed will rise again come the last day because Jesus has destroyed death. Sorry Satan, you've been hoisted on your own petard. Your kingdom's through.

And Jesus is still shrewd, still mindful. He knows that Satan still rants and raves, and that Satan wants you distracted from Jesus, to run away from Christ, to have your faith shaken and shattered. Jesus still has His mind upon you – and He comes to you again and again in His Gospel, He pours His Spirit upon you by that Gospel, to forgive you and refresh you and refocus you. Jesus gives Himself to you again and again, take and eat, take and drink. Why? Because Jesus knows you need it – Jesus knows that in various ways all of us in here are hot messes – He knows it better than we ourselves do. And so He forgives you and strengthens you again and again, because no one can hold a candle to Jesus when it comes to shrewdness, to being mindful and focused. And Jesus is focused upon your salvation, and no one gets in His way of seeing you forgiven, redeemed, and bound for eternal life. Jesus is faithful, and He is devoted to your salvation. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

Septuagesima

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +

Alright, so we've come to those strangely named Sundays before lent – the “gesima” Sundays – today is Septuagesima – which is Latin for 70. We've got 10 weeks, 70 days, until Easter. We have three weekends before Ash Wednesday. And while the start of Epiphany focuses us upon the truth that Jesus is both God and Man come to save us, these three weeks before Lent will now address some things about God's salvation that we might not like all that much. There are going to be things addressed here that are really great and wonderful new when we think about it, but they are things that our sinful flesh does not like. And for today, we get the parable of the workers in the Vineyard.

The kingdom of heaven is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard. After agreeing with them for a denarius a day, he sent them into his vineyard. Now, let's understand the set up of this parable. With this simple set up, Jesus shows us that the Kingdom of Heaven is a straightforward place. God is not duplicitous or full of double talk; He isn't playing the angles. The master of this house has a big old vineyard, and he goes to hire day laborers for the day. And so he goes out early, let's be about the task, let's get it done. And he finds workers, and he hires them for a Denarius a day. That is a straightforward, proper wage. It's good, it's solid. He doesn't show up early and try to lowball people and sucker in the desperate. The terms are clear and fair and right.

Likewise the Kingdom of Heaven. God sets out things clearly in Scripture. The Law of God is pretty simple and clear. Love God and love your neighbor. Do unto others as you'd have done to you. The 10 commandments. It's straightforward – there's not going to be some footnote or lawyery fine print designed to trip you up. And likewise, the Gospel is straightforward as well. For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us, we are saved by grace through faith apart from works so that no one may boast. Jesus loves me this I know straightforward. Now, it's good, and it's all profound, and we can all ponder the depths of the law and the wonders of the Gospel all our lives – but God is open and honest. What He has declared is what you get.

And going out about the third hour he saw others standing in the marketplace, and to them he said, “You go into the vineyard too, and whatever is right I will give you.” So they went. Going out again about the sixth hour and the ninth hour, he did the same. And here we see something odd about the master of this house. He keeps swinging by the marketplace hiring more workers. And this would have struck the people in Jesus' day as odd. Why? Well, you know the old phrase – the early bird catches the worm – and the worm's already been caught. This master already hired the good, diligent eager workers. Why does he need to hire more, especially Johnny come latelies? Why does he want to hire the people who were too slow, too uninterested to get on out there at time? And why is he hiring people for just a half day? Or at the ninth hour – just three hours of work?

This again teaches us something about God. When God calls people into His Church, it is not a pragmatic business decision on God's part. It is not a contest. It is not based upon how much work He can suck out of people. Rather, people at all ages of life get called into the Church, into God's kingdom. Some early, baptized as infants and raised in the church. Some later on, some in middle age – and some, some even pretty much close to their death bed. And about the eleventh hour he went out and found others standing. And He said to them, “Why do you stand here idle all day?” They said to him, “Because no one has hired us.” He said to them, “You go into the vineyard, too.” Alright, now this is getting ridiculous. It is. Imagine you were a boss, you're running a Wendy's – are you going to hire a new guy to cover the last 30 minutes of an 8 hour shift? Any farmers here going to hire a guy during harvest to drive a grain truck for 1 hour and then be done for the day? This is daft.

And the fact is, looking at Christ's kingdom from the outside, God seems pretty daft considering who He calls into His kingdom. He'll bring into His church people who aren't the greatest, who might be old and past their prime, who just don't seem to be the best fit for engaging, productive enterprise. And this reminds us and teaches us that God does not call us into the Church because of what He can get from us. Rather, out of love, out of mercy, out of a desire to just do right by people – whatever is right I will give you – God calls people into His church.

Think of this parable in terms of the day laborers. None of these people have jobs, none of them have security. And in those days, if a man does not work, let him not eat. No job, no money for food on the table, and there's not really a well established social safety net. And so this master keeps walking through the marketplace and has pity on these people, over and over, at all times. Likewise, this is what drives God to call you into the Church – not what He can get out of you, but rather His love, His mercy, what He can give you. In this messed up sinful world, we are so often cut adrift with no hope, no security. We desperately throw our trust at the flimsiest of things. You all have seem the idols people cling to, more and more as the days go by. There's a reason so much of conversation in society has gotten harsh and terse – we aren't just disagreeing on ideas, we are threatening people's idols – political idols, social idols, financial idols. God sees all this, and He hates it – because that's not what He created us to be. He didn't create us to be all wandering around the marketplace hopelessly – He made us to be in His garden, to enjoy it and tend it. So out of His love, He keeps calling people into His Church – He has even called you, today, into His Church to rest and be refreshed.

However, a word of warning. In God's house, in this place, God's straightforward Word is what rules the day. And there will be times your sinful flesh will fight against even the simple things you've known and learned. And when the evening came, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, “Call the Laborers and pay them their wages, beginning with the last, up to the first.” And when those hired about the 11^th hour came, each of them received a denarius. Now, when those hired first came, they thought that they would receive more, but each of them also received a denarius. It's the end of the day, and the master's ludicrous generosity shines forth. Everyone gets a denarius, the full day's wage. Everyone is treated well. Everyone, even the ones who came only at the end, will be able to go home and eat well and rest securely. And frankly, that's how the Church operates. As the Pastor, it's my job and privilege to dispense the gifts of God – and guess what? You all get the same thing. You all get Jesus' forgiveness. You all get life and salvation. I suppose the specifics of what gets forgiven are different, but it's the same forgiveness. I never have to pause service and say, “Alright, this bit of Gospel is only for those who were born here.” No, we all get Jesus, the whole Jesus, the all your sins have been forgiven by Christ the crucified, go now depart in peace Jesus.

And there's the rub. And on receiving it, they grumbled at the master of the house, saying, “These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day.” These workers are accurate in their observation, they did work longer, and the other people did get the same amount. And? So what? You got precisely what the master said you would, why are you complaining? And again, if you will allow me to translate the master's reply - But in reply he said to one of them, “Hey pal, I've not done anything to you. Didn't you agree on a denarius with me? Take your stuff and get out of here. I want to give to these last as I gave to you. Don't I get to do what I want with my own stuff? Or are you seeing things as evil because I am good?” While the workers hired early have valid observations, they forget some rather important things. First – the master did exactly as he said he would as regards them. If they aren't happy with that, it's their own fault. Secondly, it's the master's money; he can do with it what he wants. He's the one in charge – if he wants to give someone else a bonus or a great big old tip, he can.

There's the rub for us sinful men. We are sinful, we see things through evil eyes, and that means we can recoil at the goodness, the generosity of God. That's the warning for us. God is full of mercy – and we neither get to work extra hard to get more of his mercy or extra blessings from Him, nor do we have a leg to stand on if we want to complain about the mercy and blessings He gives to someone else. Sorry, God's in charge, not you. And actually, that's good for you, good for all of us. God is good, and He doesn't see things through the cruel, harsh, wicked eyes that we use. Jesus never side eyes you and grouse about you – instead He goes to the Cross and dies for you, crying out, “Father, forgive them, they know not what they do!” Father, they are stuck with wicked eyes, cleanse them and forgive them for My sake! We all get alike the good gifts that Jesus gives, the blessings of Body and Soul that He gives out as He knows is good.

And if and when that annoys you on occasion, it is my task and duty as Pastor to say – tough. Get over it. It's nice that you've been a member here all your life, but I don't have an extra secret book of the bible just for you. Yeah, someone else might have gotten some earthly blessing you haven't, but that's on God, He's in charge – if you really want to go tell God how He should do His job, well, good luck with that. If you're really grumbly the best I can do for you is I can give you an extra, off the cuff sermon – the same one I give myself when I catch myself grumbling about the stupid things my sinful flesh likes to grumble about.

And when all that is done, when our spleens have been vented and we come back to our senses, pause. Consider. God Almighty has called you into His Kingdom, and on account of Christ Jesus, He gives you the eternal denarius, the whole holy kit and kabboddle. Forgiveness of all of your sin. Life now, even in the midst of so many dangers, and life everlasting. Indeed, you will not enter eternal life as a mere day laborer, but as a child of God, a brother or sister of Christ, one who doesn't leave the vineyard and go home, but one who stays in the house forever, for in My father's house there are many mansions. You're baptized. Really, it's all good. God's got it in the bag for you – and remember this whenever your sinful flesh wants to complain. Whatever is right, Jesus indeed gives to you. Amen. In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit +

Epiphany 4 Sermon

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +

Yes indeed, Christ Jesus is True God and True Man, come into this world to fulfill all righteousness, to fill righteousness up to the brim, to have it overflowing even, on to all of us, washing us clean from our sins and winning us everlasting life, and we see Jesus do this boldly today by... taking a nap? I mean, that is how our lesson starts – Jesus gets into the boat, and then He takes a nap. Now, it doesn't end there, there's more to go on, and we will address that, but this is where we will start today. Jesus takes a nap.

Once again we are in Matthew 8, just like we were last week. Jesus had been preaching on the mountain, and when He comes down, Jesus heals people left and right. Not just the leper and the Centurion's servant, but bunches of people. And there's more and more to do, but Jesus says that We should go to the other side of the lake just to get away from the crowds, and when the disciples get into the boat, Jesus takes a nap. Remember, that while Jesus is indeed true God, He is also indeed True Man. He is a human being, and in this time of His humiliation and suffering prior to His resurrection, He gets tired. You all understand this. You all have had plenty of times where you've worked and worked and then just got plum tuckered out. This is the hardship and burden we face as people in this fallen world. We are to love God and to love our neighbor. Now, loving our neighbor, serving each other, had always been part of the plan. God had placed Adam in the garden to work, to care for it. Eve was to be a helpmeet for Adam, to work with him. But sin made our work... different. Difficult. Adam is to tend to creation – well, that was an easier job before the fall. After the fall the world shakes itself apart, the impact of sin and death echoing all over the place. And it made Adam's job harder, it made Eve's job harder – and it makes all of our jobs harder too. And it made Jesus have to work harder as well. Think on all of Jesus' miracles – those are all correcting or fixing things that would never have been broken if it weren't for sin.

But that's what Jesus did, He was fulfilling righteousness, making things right again. And that's what you as a Christian know that you are called to do, to make things right in your own vocations. If a spouse, be a good spouse. If a parent, be a good parent. If a child, be a good kid. Be a good worker or student or be a good neighbor. And when sin and trouble get unleashed, clean up the mess. Forgive people and help mitigate the consequences. And you know what all that is? It's tiring. It's hard work, and it wears and it grinds upon us. And we need rest. Want the proof – see, right there, in that boat, a sleeping Jesus, worn out from work. You know, your work won't save you, just getting one more thing done won't fix everything – there are times it's good to get your rest, to tend to yourself. (Now, there's also a point where you need to get off your lazy backside, but that's not the point of this text or sermon. However, I don't want to hear about any of you kids ignoring your parents when they tell you to do your chores - “but I'm napping like Jesus” - not the point. Got it? Alright.)

However, there often is a reason why we feel like we can't take our rest, because we will be thrown behind schedule, and there's more work to do. That's part of this lesson today too. In fact, that's the setting for the main point today. And behold, there arose a great storm on the sea, so that the boat was being swamped by the waves; but He was asleep. So while Jesus and the disciples are on the boat heading to the other side, a storm whips up. A great storm. A few things on sailing in the ancient world. Generally boats sailed in sight of land, because if a storm whipped up, you wanted to get to land and shelter quickly. The disciples, however, are crossing the lake and trying to avoid a crowd – if you sail too close to land, they'll just follow you. So the implication is that the disciples are farther from shore than normally would be comfortable. And then there's the Sea of Galilee. It's an inland lake, and just because of that storms can whip up on it quickly – winds hitting the cold air over water, and boom, sudden storms. This geological reality is the reason why Lake Michigan and Lake Superior can be really dangerous to sail on, especially in winter. You all have heard Gordon Lightfoot's Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald. The weather changes suddenly and things get dangerous. Well, that's where the disciples find themselves.

And they went and woke Him, saying, “Save us, Lord, we are perishing.” Now, remember that many of the disciples are seasoned sailors. Me, I don't overly like boats, I'd get nervous in a 2 foot wave. Not so the disciples, they know what's easy enough to handle, and they know when it's bad. And, it's bad. And this is a place where sometimes we make our translations too proper, to stuffy. In the Greek they just say three words – Lord, save! Dying! This is not a well crafted plea of rhetorical elegance – this is panicked. This is the disciples seeing doom and destruction coming at them quickly. And it's all understandable – I'm sure we've all had those moments of panic that are reasonable and understandable. Again, these things happen in a sinful world, where not only is our work much harder but the dangers we face also are magnified and ramped up.

So, what will happen? Well, we see a tired Jesus. And I want you to hear this rightly. Sometimes we think of this story like in some majestic painting, Jesus standing in a pose of power and authority, His arm boldly against the wind, pushing a calm onto it. No. No, that's not what is described here. If you will allow, let me translate verse 26. And Jesus said to them, “Why are you cowards, little-faithers?” Then rousing He shouted down the wind and the seas, and there was a great calm. The word there that gets translated as “arose” - that I put as rouse, it's the word that describes pushing through the grog of waking up. It's not waking up bright eyed and bushy-tailed and ready to go, it's lifting your head to see what time it is. The best comparison for this is mom or dad taking a nap, and the kids misbehave and one comes up complaining, and dad mutters, “little brats,” and then he shouts, “Stop messing with your sister's dolls” or whatever... and then goes back to sleep. Jesus hasn't even lifted up His head when He, addresses the disciples in a loving yet dismissive way, and then Jesus barks at the weather to be quiet... and it was quiet. The calm day. Because that language describing how that great calm appeared, it's the same phrasing that gets used in Genesis at creation – and there was light. And there was a great calm.

Hence the utter amazement of the disciples – And the men marveled, saying, “What sort of man is this, that even winds and sea obey Him?” Again, if you were a sailor, you didn't necessarily like great calms either. They meant you were stuck, or you had to row if you could. And they are looking at Jesus, who is probably right back asleep – and what sort of man is this? Well, He's God almighty. He is the Creative Word of God. He called the seas and the winds into being, so of course they will listen when He speaks, and they will do what He says, because He has authority over all creation. And for a while, the disciples' job was much easier. There was no wind to fight, nothing hard to do with the sailing, why don't you take a break and rest a bit too, disciples?

When we speak about what Jesus does, about fixing things – we often talk about forgiveness and resurrection, but sometimes we underestimate the importance of Jesus bringing about a new heaven and a new earth. We are so used to living in a fallen, messed up world, with all its dangers and disorderliness that we don't understand just how wrong it is for creation to be this way. St. Paul says, “For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now.” Because of sin the world is messed up. Wind and sea get all out of whack. Weather goes nuts. Nature itself tries to kill us because everything goes out of place. But there will come a day when it's not going to be that way – and not because we adopt some political policy or anything like that. We don't get to control the planet nearly as much as we think we do – but it will come about when Jesus brings it about and renews all of creation come the last day. This is why we have phrases like, “the life of the world to come” - because in a very visceral way, we can't even wrap our heads around what life will be like when we are raised from the dead and living in Christ's Kingdom and don't have to fight and strive to stay alive all the time. When creation will be our willing servant and we will gladly and easily tend it and care for it as it yields its abundance.

Jesus comes to fix it. To make all things right again – to make you and me right again, to make creation right again. And He does so. And on the one hand, as regards His humanity, this is incredibly hard. Jesus does suffer. Jesus gets worn out. Jesus is literally worn out to death upon the Cross. Jesus knows and understands the toils and hardships you face. And yet, on the other hand, as regards His divinity, well, the Word of God gets things done and nothing can get in His Way. And this is the beauty, the wonder of the Incarnation, of God becoming Man, God entering into His fallen creation fully to save and redeem us, to restore and recreate us. And we get to see bits of this blossom out now – even now Christ Jesus works in you and through you to do good, real, true, good in this world, good in the face of all the sin and wickedness there is. But my friends, there is more to come, because Jesus does it all, fulfills it all, works on making everything righteous. And we marvel as we see this play out in the Gospel, and we shall delight in it always when we see it face to face. Come quickly, Lord Jesus! Amen.

Epiphany 3 sermon

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +

    Let's get the context of where we are as our Gospel lesson starts. Our text begins with, “When Jesus came down the mountain...” What mountain? Well, this is referring to the mountain upon which Jesus preaches the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew Chapters 5 through 7. It's the great section of teaching, of explaining both commandments and mercy. And we get several weeks during the Church Year where our Gospel lesson is from the Sermon on the Mount: Ash Wednesday about fasting is from there, and then there's “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the Scribes and Pharisees you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven – do not be angry with your brother.” And then there's “Beware of False prophets” and then “Consider the lilies of the field,” and then the Beatitudes on All Saints' Day. That's 5 lessons every year on the Sermon on the Mount. And there's other passages that are familiar with – you are the salt of the earth, let your light shine before men, love your enemies, the Lord's Prayer, Judge not, lest ye be judged. Do unto others. Build your house on the Rock. Do you get what a section of powerhouse teaching Jesus has just finished?

    And Jesus comes down the mountain, and what happens? “And behold, a leper came up and knelt before Him, saying, 'Lord, if You will, You can make me clean.'” So there's really two things to note here. The first is that this whole situation would be very... uncomfortable according to the Old Testament Law. If you were a leper, you were not supposed to be in crowds. You certainly weren't supposed to come up to people and get in their way – this is not according to the health laws laid down by Moses. Lepers are to be off and away from everyone. And let's face it – if you listen to the sermon on the mount, you know that Jesus isn't one to water down the Law. No, Jesus pumps up the law. Don't kill – I say don't hate. Don't commit adultery – I say don't even lust. So on the one hand it might be expected that Jesus would simply come down hard on this rule-breaker, this endangerer of the people who dares to break his isolation and quarantine.

    But on the other hand, listen again to what this leprous man says. “Lord, if YOU will, You can make me clean.” This is a statement full of faith. It's not even couched in terms of what the leper wants, it's a simple statement of fact – You, Jesus, You are Lord God Almighty, and if Your will is that I be clean, You have the power to make that happen. If Your will isn't that, well, Your will will be done. If I remain unclean because You will it, so be it. If You chose to lambaste me and turn me into a warning for everyone else, so be it. If You chose to walk on by, so be it. Your will will be done.

    Now remember, Jesus comes to fulfill all righteousness. He comes to make things right. Yes, the Law does deal with moral standards, and our moral standards for ourselves are to be high and strict. However, not everything in the law of Moses was about morality. Some of it was practicality. Lepers were not banished because they were evil, but to prevent the spread of a disease. So, how can Jesus do things in the most right way – what makes things be the best? Well, He shows us. And Jesus stretched out His hand and touched Him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately his leprosy was cleansed. And Jesus said, “See that you say nothing to anyone, but go, show yourself to the priest and offer the gift that Moses commanded, for a proof for them.” Jesus deals with levels of righteousness here. First things first – Jesus cleanses the leper. The right thing, the best thing would be for you to be healthy. There you go. But there's also some other things to fix up, loose ends to tie up. Now, you're going to be quiet, because let's not cause a panic or a riot or mass confusion in this crowd – that wouldn't be right. And you're going to go and get yourself incorporated back into society properly – go see the priests, they officially declared people fit for society if their leprosy cleared up. Dot the “I”s, cross the “T”s – let's get everything in order.

    Of course, the neat, wondrous thing is how Matthew describes the healing – because this isn't just a healing, this is foreshadowing, this is a pattern that Jesus is going to follow. Jesus “stretched out His hand and touched him.” Now, one of the rules of the old testament was that you don't touch lepers, it makes you unclean. Well, Jesus came to take up our uncleanliness, to take up our sin, so Jesus touches the guy. And what is Jesus going to do with all our sin, all our uncleanliness – He's going to go to the Cross – He's going to stretch out His hands on the Cross - that was a euphemism for being crucified in that day. He goes there to pay for our sin so that we would be cleansed from them. Because that is how Jesus fulfills all righteousness – by cleansing us and taking up the punishment for our sin in Himself.

    And when I say “our” I mean “our” in the broadest possible terms. Jesus comes not just to take up the sins of the so called good people, or just the people from the right family, or what have you. Why yes, Pastor, Jesus takes up the sins of the whole world, we know that. Well, there's practical implications to that. And we see that as the lesson continues. When he entered Capernaum, a centurion came forward to Him, appealing to Him, “Lord, my servant is lying paralyzed at home, suffering in great agony.” Now, pause a second. What are you seeing? The Romans were the vile occupiers of Israel, and there is a Centurion, a big boss man, probably the top Roman in the area. This Jesus is even for him? For this man who owns Jewish “servants” - no, it's who owns a Jewish child slave. Are you even for this person, Jesus?

    Yep. Jesus says, “I will come and heal him.” Now, this would be scandalous. You don't enter the house of a gentile, and you certainly don't kowtow to the roman boss – there are just things you don't do. But Jesus wishes to heal, to make things right, and then the Centurion pipes up again. Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word and my servant will be healed. For I too am a man under authority, with soldiers under me, and I say to one, “Go,” and he goes, and to another, “Come,” and he comes, and to my servant, “Do this,” and he does it. Jesus, what You offer would cause offense, so allow me with great respect to point out two things. First, I'm not worthy to have You enter my house – it wouldn't be right. Let's not rile up people. Second, You don't need to actually come to heal my slave-boy, because You have authority. Authority works by the word – with my centurion authority, I speak and those under my authority listen and do. I know Your authority. Speak, and it will be done.

    And Jesus is tickled pink, He is absolutely chuffed – this Centurion hits the nail on the head concerning faith better than anyone else so far in Israel. And yes, Jesus has come for even the Gentiles – many will come from east and west and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven – this Centurion will be worthy of being in My Father's House for all eternity. And then the healing comes – you want your marching orders Centurion, then Jesus will give them - “Go, let it be done for you as you have believed.” And the servant was healed at that very moment. Go, march on – but go knowing that when I call, when I call you forth from your grave, you will rise, Centurion, and when I call you to the eternal feast, you will come with joy, Centurion, for you have faith, and you know that you are under My gracious authority – and everything is right again.

    So then, here we see what Jesus comes to do, here we get another picture of what Jesus fulfilling righteousness looks like, what it means. Jesus will cleanse, and Jesus will exercise His authority for your good. The whole point, the whole purpose of everything Jesus does is to go to the Cross to cleanse you and rise from the dead to re-establish His authority over you. Sin meant that Adam and Eve had to be driven from the garden, that we all would die – that's just the reality. By going to the Cross Jesus takes up that sin, pulls it off of us, and He Himself takes up the punishment even of death. By His death the barriers keeping us from relationship with God and eternal life with God are cast down. But, if we were still left on our own – we'd just mess up again and again. You all get the point, you all know ways in which you mess up over and over – and the people around you probably know a few more about you that you don't recognize in yourself. We don't need to go over that right now, but suffice it to say that if left to our own devices, we'd be lost. So Jesus rises from the dead to re-establish His authority over all of mankind – this is what Paul speaks of when he says that Jesus is the New Adam – the new head of humanity. We will not simply follow old Adam along the paths of sin – no, you will follow Christ. He will speak His word and you will hear, listen, and do it. And this happens by faith now, you receive this by faith now. He says, “I forgive you,” and you are forgiven. But we get the struggle, the constant push and pull of sin – but that will go away when you die, and when Christ Jesus says to you, “Rise” and you rise at the last day, and the you will be like Christ, fully under His authority, only listening to Him, no longer seeing to the temptations of Satan, no longer bothered by sin dwelling in your flesh. The good order, the right order, where we simply listen to Jesus and receive Good from Him with nothing getting in the way – that's what Jesus establishes for you with His death and resurrection, and what He will bring about in you through your death and resurrection.

    So until then, by the working of the Spirit we listen to Jesus' Word, and He cleanses us and instructs us – even until we are raised from the dead and never need cleansing again, and never need to be taught or trained again to delight in His Word. He has come to win you salvation, and He shall come again to see that you have His salvation, that you enjoy it for all eternity at table with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and this Leper and this Centurion and all the company of heaven at the feast without end. Come quickly, Lord Jesus! In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World!

Epiphany 2 Sermon

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +
Jesus has come to fulfill all righteousness – that was what He declared to John that he would do. And this week we get to hear Jesus's first miracle, His first “sign” as John puts it. "This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory." The miracle in today's text is a sign - it is meant to reveal who this righteousness fulfilling Jesus is. It shows forth, it manifests His glory. That is what it does. But the miracle, it's so simple and quiet. It doesn't at first glance look to be very glorious, and a wedding party doesn't seem to have much to do with righteousness – but no, Jesus knows precisely what He is doing. Jesus will reveal His righteous glory here – listen.

"On the third day there was a wedding at Cana in Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there. Jesus also was invited to the wedding with His disciples." Here's the very first thing to note. This isn't the place where we would expect there to be a show of glory. Cana? Okay, it's a town, but it's a backwater town off in the mountains. It's not Rome, it's not Jerusalem - it's not the big leagues, it's minor league. It's not big time, it's just some piddling wedding off in the boonies. And even there, Jesus is just a guest, a cousin of the groom, probably. Jesus isn't the center of attention, he's not even in the wedding party! How is this going to be glorious? And there's the first problem. We all too often associate "glory" with fame. We associate glory with being the center of attention. And this is what all too often we sinful folks want - we want attention, we want a bigger and bigger stage where everyone will see me and laud me. When I was little and playing wiffle ball in the front yard, I didn't day dream about hitting a weak blooper at Single A Peoria, I was going to hit a towering grand slam in the bottom of the 9th with two outs to win the Cubs the World Series. That's what we think of when we think of Glory. In fact, we will even call people who draw attention to themselves "glory hounds". But this seeking of attention is not what the Scriptures speak of when they speak of Glory.

In fact, Jesus does the opposite. "When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, 'They have no wine.' And Jesus said to her, 'Woman, what does this have to do with me? My hour has not yet come.' His mother said to the servants, 'Do whatever He tells you.'" Before we look at the idea of glory here - a note about "Woman". This isn't like some guy today saying, "Woman, go make me a sandwich". In the ancient world, that was a term of respect - more like "Ma'am". So Jesus isn't being rude to His mom here - in fact, He's being very polite. But note the situation. There's Mary. And she knows who her Son is. She's been waiting thirty years for this whole Messiah thing to take the stage - and she wants it now. Let's get this show on the road Jesus – oh look, they are out of wine. And Jesus' response - what does this, this lack of wine, have to do with Me? My hour, my time has not yet come. Note this about Christ's glory - He's not seeking it - rather it will come when it is time. Christ is not about seeking fame and fortune and personal glory. That's not His focus, this isn't a selfish thing. I'm not here at this wedding to get famous, Mom. My life isn't about everyone saying, "Wow, look at how cool Jesus is, He's so awesome." That's not the glory I seek. Moreover - Christ will be glorified when the time comes. It will come when the Father glorifies the Son. John 17 begins with Jesus, just before He begins His passion, praying, "Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you." When Christ Jesus talks about glory, it isn't about fame. It is His humility. It is Him suffering and dying. You want to see Christ's glory, you want to see the Son lifted up - it's not going to be on the shoulders of the team after he leads the game winning drive - it's going to be on the Cross. There's the glory - the Cross. That Jesus will forever be known as Christ the Crucified. That He will be forever the Lamb who was slain.

When we think of glory, we think of it as something self-serving. Of drawing attention to ourselves. Of making our life better. That's just sin, that's the impact of sinfulness and selfishness upon us. Jesus turns that on its head. His glory comes in serving, in seeking and saving the lost. It comes when He draws attention not to Himself, but to the Father - for God so loved the world that He gave His Son. Behold Christ on the Cross – this is to redeem you, this is to show you the love that the Father has for you, this is to give you eternal life. Do you want the evidence, the proof that Jesus is the Messiah? Here it is - He's not seeking after His own fame, His own glory - He simply wants to restore you to life and salvation so that God the Father might be praised eternally. Now, will Christ receive praise for this - sure - but that's not the point, the goal. The point is always the Father and you. The point is Jesus being righteous and fulfilling all righteousness for you, for your good. Jesus truly fulfills the Law – He loves God and He loves His neighbor, who cares what people think or see.

But Jesus is full of love for His neighbor, and running out of wine at your wedding reception would be a lousy thing. In fact, it would be wrong. It wouldn't be right to have that celebration turn flat, so Jesus does decide to act, to make things right. But again, note how He acts. He doesn't stride into the middle of the reception hall and say, "Hey guys, I heard you were out of wine - well, BLAMMO!" It wouldn't be right to draw attention away from the bride and groom like that. So instead, very quietly we hear this: "Now there were six stone water jars there for the Jewish rites of purification, each holding twenty or thirty gallons. Jesus said to the servants, “Fill the jars with water.” And they filled them up to the brim. And he said to them, “Now draw some out and take it to the master of the feast.” So they took it." See how quiet this is. Nothing spectacular. Just simple water to wine, in the back, where only the servants see. And did you note the vessels? Jesus doesn't walk up to the empty wine barrels and with a loud voice say, "BE FILLED!" Nope. Purification vessels. I'm not really here to make wine - I'm here to fully and completely purify you guys – it's fulfilling righteousness time. But go on, be about your business, and let the master of the feast taste the wine, so he can be about his business. There's no seeking of fame, just showing love and care and being done with it.

And the master tastes it, and the water has become wine, and he's confused, because: “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now.” This again is backwards. The master of the feast had one main job - to keep everyone having a good time without letting them get sloppy drunk. So what did you do - the first glass of wine would be "good" - that is high quality and also strong - so that everyone starts to feel good... and then you bring out cheaper, watered down wine, and keep things under control that way. But this is good wine. Strong, tasty, high quality, uncut. The kind of stuff you wouldn’t normally serve at the end of the party because that could lead to things getting well out of hand. We aren’t used to good wine this late in the game - why didn't you bring this one out first!

The wine, the food, everything was good at first. At Creation we have the Father seeing that it was good. If Adam got around to making some wine before the fall - guess what, it would have been good too. And Adam would have enjoyed it well and properly and rightously. But then the fall. And then things get worse. And we had to have a master of the feast to keep things from falling to a drunken brawl, because after the fall we could find ways to mess anything up. Even parties. We'd start fights there, at a celebration, at a happy time - in parts of my family fighting is almost a Christmas tradition. And parties with no master to keep things in line - they'd get sloppy, things would just get messy. And now Christ comes, and He makes wine... and what is it? GOOD wine. Why? Because He is God, and He has come to make all things good again, to restore creation, but more than that! He comes to fulfill all rightousness – to take sin away from mankind to where we can have all things good again and not abuse them. When we get to the feasts of eternal life, the wine there will be Good, but it won't be a problem for any of us because we won't be abusing God's good gifts to us, ever. And there is Christ Jesus, in the back, quietly doing what He does, being who He is, True God and True Man who restores creation and loves God and neighbor - and this little foretaste of the life of the world to come is in this master's cup, and the master doesn't know how to handle it.

So then, this is how Christ manifests His glory. At Cana, we see a glimpse of who He is, we see a glimpse of true glory, rather than the false, fleeting things we hope for. We are sinful men, we fall short of the glory of God - but there is Christ Jesus, the image of the invisible Father - and He goes quietly about His business. He will restore creation, He will win forgiveness for you with His death upon the Cross, He will rise from the dead to destroy death. He will make things right. And He will do this for you, in a simple quiet way that the world will hardly notice. He will take water, not from a purification rite vessel, but from a font, and with that Water and His Word He will wash away your sins, tying you to Himself. He will bring you to His feast, His Supper, to give you His own Body and Blood for the forgiveness of your sins. He will give you life and salvation and forgiveness so that you might be with Him forever. This is the glory He craves, to restore you to whom God had created you to be - His companion, His friend, one who would dwell with Him in His presence for all eternity. And this is what Christ Jesus will do, and nothing will stop Him, for He is determined to show you perfect and complete love and forgive you all of your sins and raise you again on the last day. This is how He manifests His glory, and His disciples believed in Him. In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World+ Amen.

Baptism of Jesus Sermon

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +

    There are some passages, some parts of Scripture which are just utterly profound, that speak to the truth of God's love, God's care, God's plan of salvation with such depth that they still surprise you anew when you see them again. And our Gospel lesson is one of those passages, especially what Jesus tells John. This Gospel passage is monumental. It is earth shaking. In fact, one could make an argument that it is this passage where the Old Testament ends and the New Testament really, in truth, begins. It's the place where our salvation, how God would accomplish it in Christ Jesus, was shown forth.

    Consider how the passage starts. John the Baptist is out at the River Jordan doing his John thing. He is baptizing people for repentance, preparing them for the coming of the Messiah. And we cannot understand how profound what John was doing would have been for the people of Israel. For over 400 years there had been no prophet, no preacher like John. John is like the prophets of old returned, he is the essence of the Old Testament dropped right in the middle of Israel. The boldness of Elijah, the strangeness of Ezekiel, the way with words of Isaiah – it's all condensed into John. And what is the message of John – repent, repent you sinners, turn away from your wickedness because you know you've been doing sinful things, and you've been letting yourself off easy as you dive on into the foulest of sin. Repent, wash, get ready – for the Messiah is coming. His kingdom is coming. You don't want to be all grungey and gross when the King arrives – you want to be well dressed and on your best behavior. Repent, the Messiah is coming. We've got to get ready, we've got to clean up our acts and keep our noses clean – He is almost here!

    And this is a good message, and a solid message. Over and over, throughout the Old Testament, you see the children of Israel fall into great shame and vice when they forget the Lord. They get caught up in sins and vices that aren't all that different from the disdain and anger and lust and greed that are peddled all around America today – and prophets would warn them to repent before disaster came. Sometimes, for a time, Israel listened to the prophets and things got better. Sometimes, they didn't, and things went catastrophically bad for them. But throughout that proclamation of “repent or face the consequences,” there was also a thread pointing to the coming of the Messiah who would finally, fully fix things, who would fully take care of evil. And the general assumption tended to be that if there was punishment in the Old Testament, well, when the Messiah showed up, let's just say I wouldn't want to be in messy shoes when that happened. It was sort of thought that it would be the great “you wait until your dad gets home” event. It would be “we better have our rooms cleaned before mom sees them or there will be literal hell to pay”.

    And so John preaches repentance – the Messiah is coming, the garage door is opening and He'll walk inside the house any moment and woe be unto you if you haven't cleaned up your room – clean, clean now! This makes perfect sense, especially considering how things generally worked in the Old Testament. But, my friends, we are reaching the change, the twist, the turn – we are hitting the point of the start of the New Testament. Yes, Jesus was born on Christmas, but even then you still have such a strong focus on doing things the Old Testament way. Still the Sacrifices, still Mary presenting Him in the temple with 2 turtle doves. It's still Old Testamenty in approach... until our lesson when we hear this: Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him. The Messiah finally comes, to... to be baptized? The Messiah, God Himself, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God, comes to... be baptized? Jesus comes to where the sinners are, and instead of smiting or shaking a fist... He stands with them. Oh, are we dealing with sin here? Well, as the Messiah I have to be here where sin is – and as I have become man, I'll go right where the sinful men that I've come to save are.

    This seemingly made no sense. This is backwards. John understandably says, “I need to be baptized by You, and do You come to me?” You've got the order wrong, Jesus. You are the top of the top; we should be kowtowing to You! If you go to the palace you don't find the King down with the scullery maids getting dish-pan hands from scrubbing pots. What are You doing down here in the baptismal washing pits with us – we need to clean up our act and get ready for You! And then Jesus says something utterly earth shattering, and we don't notice it because it's so quiet. But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now....” This is wondrous, this is gorgeous. The word that gets translated here as “let it be” is a forgiveness word – it's let it be, let it go, overlook it – you know the “let the little children come to Me” - quit being all worried, because I'm here and it's all good in Me. It's the same word for “forgive” in the Lord's Prayer. Let it be about forgiveness from now on. I'm not showing up here to scourge the wicked, John – I'm not here as the grand drill sargeant who is going to whip you all into shape. Why? Because that just can't happen.

    Again, consider the Old Testament. Even with all the preaching and teaching and warning... people kept on sinning. People kept messing up. Even the washing of the flood didn't suffice to clean the planet of sin. No, something else would have to be done – and here, right here, this is the moment, from this point now, right here – we're New Testament. It's going to be forgiveness time, and how? Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus reveals what He is going to do. You see, for us sinful human beings, dealing with sin is a neverending thing. We always will be fighting against sin in our life, we will always have something to repent of. Our lives are ones of daily repentance. There's never going to be a service where you or I don't have things we ought to confess – that's the beauty of having confession of our sins over and over in the service – at the start, in our prayers, saying, “Lord, have mercy!” Sin is pervasive in our lives, and we're always stuck cleaning up messes. Sin is a pit that we can't dig our way out of because we are sinners.

    So the Messiah comes – Jesus arrives. And John's expecting a bit of tounge lashing and finger wagging because even with all that John has done, sin is still around. And Jesus say, “No – that's not how we are going to handle this situation”. As the great Lenten hymn puts it – Not all the blood of beasts on Jewish altars slain could give the guilty conscience peace or wash away the stain. So Jesus enacts the great exchange. Jesus decides to fulfill all righteousness.

    See, sin isn't just doing bad stuff – it's a lack, it's an absence of righteousness, of goodness. Because of our sinful nature, we cannot obtain or maintain or live in a fully righteous way. I hate to break it to you, but you're going to sin this week. You're going to at times be a jerk, be lazy, be rude, be a lout. That's the reality of our fallen life; sin and death has ripped a part of who we ought to have been out of us, and we can't fix that of ourselves, and even cleaning up afterwards and apologizing doesn't fix us. To be a sinner is to lack, is to not be able to do or fulfill righteousness. So, Jesus comes to do it for you. As you and I can't, Jesus decides to do all things for you and me. And this fulfilling is two fold. As Jesus joins us in the waters of Baptism, He is pledging that He Himself would be the One to be held accountable for sin. All the sins of the world that are washed away from us are washed onto Christ Jesus. Jesus becomes the sin-bearer – He takes up your sin, your wickedness, and He carries them to the Cross and He takes up your punishment in full with His Suffering and Death. This is why Paul will say that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus – of course not, because He took it all up.

    But there's more. There's still that lack of righteousness, that hole ripped out of us because of sin, because of death. So Jesus comes to fill that hole, to fulfill all righteousness, to do what we were supposed to do for us. Jesus shows love fully. Jesus serves His neighbor fully. Jesus is righteous – and He gives His righteousness to you. He fills you with it. This is why Paul will say, “It's not longer I who live but Christ who lives in me.” Christ Jesus gives Himself to you and lives in you and through you. And at the moment, we're still sinful, still dealing with death – we're like leaky pails but Jesus keeps pouring more and more of His righteousness, His forgiveness into us, in His Word, in your Baptism, in His Supper – over and over forgiveness and righteousness to you – even until you die and are raised from the dead and then suddenly, you aren't leaky anymore, you aren't broken or sinful or dying any more, you are raised completely whole, completely filled, completely clean – once again made into the wondrous creation Christ Jesus intended you to be.

    Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness. It's the shift, it's the turn. From this point forth in the Gospels, and indeed in this season of Epiphany and in the season of Lent we are going to get lessons centering on Jesus fulfilling all righteousness – showing that He really is the Messiah, God Himself come to fix sin, to make things right, to defeat sin and death. Jesus takes up His ministry here, His task, His duty of seeing to your salvation. And it's going to work – And when Jesus was baptized, immediately He went up from the water, and behold the heavens were opened to Him, and He saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove and coming to rest on Him; and behold, a voice from heaven said, “This is My Beloved Son, with Whom I am well pleased.” Once again, God was well pleased with man – something that hadn't been since before the fall. Jesus is doing it, He is fulfilling all righteousness – and it's what He's doing here in His Church to you, as He gives you His own Spirit and declares that you are forgiven and that God is well pleased with you because of Jesus, because He joined Himself to you in Baptism. It's the wonder of the ages – and it really gets laid out and shown and started right here as Jesus is baptized so as to be your Savior. It's a wondrous thing, and we will delight in it for all eternity. Amen. In the Name of Christ Jesus, the Light of the World +

Christmas 1 Sermon

 

In the Name of Christ Jesus, our Newborn King +
    Finally the time for purification had come. For 40 days, since Jesus was born, Mary had to stay at home. That was the Law. For the first 40 days after childbirth, women didn’t go out in public – probably a good and safe practice for health, but think of it this way. Mary’s been cooped up. And now she finally gets to get out, she brings Jesus to the Temple in Jerusalem to make the appropriate offering for Him - of course Mary does since Jesus came to fulfill the law. But all of a sudden, old Simeon runs up, and he grabs little Jesus out of Mary's arms and starts singing – singing a song that we ourselves sing after Communion to this very day. Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace. Lord, I can die a happy man! Of course, think about what the past year has been like for Mary – Gabriel showing up both to you and to you husband – you had an angel tell your husband, “Yes, marry her.” How’s that for a confidence builder? And then there’s the birth, and even the Shepherds showing up and praising God. It’s been a non-stop whirlwind of praise and joy.

    And then this old codger Simeon hands you back your son, and then he blesses you, but then he says something quite strange. “Behold, this Child is appointed for the fall and rising of many in Israel, and for a sign that is opposed…” Think about the shock of hearing that. It’s been joy to the world, happy holidays, have a holly jolly Christma… wait what? Talk about throwing cold water on the parade. This Child is going to cause chaos because of who He is, Mary – and people are going to hate Him. The wicked of the world will rally and fight against Him. And it’s true. Think about Jesus’ crucifixion – you have Herod and Pilate and the Priests all conspiring together – that was something unheard of. The priests hated anyone who was gentile, and Herod and Pilate hated each other until the events of Good Friday – they only became friends afterwards. Christ Jesus ends up being one of if not the most hated person in all of history. Do you doubt me? His very name is a curse, a vulgarity. Even 2000 years later people get killed for following Him – ask the Christians in Muslim countries what it means to follow Christ. He is a sign that is opposed.

Again, we’re not used to thinking this way, especially not at Christmastime – and I’m guessing poor Mary wasn’t either. Which is why Simeon especially notes that this will impact her – “And a sword will pierce through your own soul also….” Yes, Mary – this hatred that your Son will bear, it will hit home for you as well. It’s going to stab you. How’s that for a change of pace – it’s been joy, joy, joy, oh how great it is that you are the Mother of Christ… then wham. A sword is going to pierce your soul too, Mary. The time is going to come when He won’t be the eager Messiah that you want Him to be. The time is going to come when you will just be embarrassed by Him, when you and His siblings will beg Him to come in from preaching and teaching because He’s embarrassing you – and He will shrug you off. My Mother and My brothers are calling for Me – Who are My Mother and my brothers? These here who hear My teaching are My mother and My brothers. Gut punch. But even that will be topped, Mary. One Friday it will come to a head as this little child, your Son, hangs on a cross. Woman, behold your Son. A sword will pierce through your own soul also.

Why all the pain, why all the angst? “So that thoughts from many hearts will be revealed.” Christ Jesus comes, and He comes Holy and righteous and perfect and good. And we, we are not. We are sinful, fallen men. When people saw Christ, this was something else that they remembered too. And the question was how do you respond to this – when you see God Himself in flesh showing love perfectly, how do you react? And we know what our sinful flesh wants to do. The sinful flesh wants to tear down and destroy anything good that anyone else has. The sinful flesh feels greed and jealousy and hatred and anger. You know that feeling in your gut when you see someone else who has something better than you? That feeling when the other guy gets the job or has the car and you want to beat him? When you see the other gal who has the looks, the whatever, and you want to get all catty? Nothing gets ratings on the news shows like a good celebrity scandal – we love the rich and famous being taken down a peg. Now imagine what your sinful flesh would want to do when it sees not merely someone better than you, but Someone who is truly GOOD. Anyone who looked at Christ while thinking well and highly of himself, as the old sinful flesh is wont to do, would hate Him, and that hate would boil up to the surface – it’s why He even gets killed. And we see this pattern throughout the Bible. Joseph’s brothers throw him in pit and sell him into slavery. King Saul repeatedly tries to kill David, who is his most loyal and faithful servant. The Pharisees, who prized their own holiness, stone Stephen to death. It’s that same old sinful song and dance with Christ, but even more so – because He isn’t merely better than us; Christ Jesus is truly GOOD.

So why any singing, then, Simeon? So why is there any rejoicing? Here is the nuance, and it comes out from Anna, a very old widow lady. Had her husband 7 years, so probably until she was around 20 – and then was widowed for over 6 decades. There’s a woman who knows suffering, knows that this world isn’t all its cracked up to be. And she lived in the temple, fasting and praying, and when Christ comes, she gives thanks to God. And note what she does. Anna speaks “of Him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Israel.” And there’s the key. There’s the difference. For the folks who were waiting for redemption, for those who knew their own lack, who didn’t think that they were the best of the best, who knew that they were poor lowly sinners in a sinful world, for these folks this Christ Jesus brings joy and gladness, because He brings redemption. God had given Anna the gift of faith, and so she saw her need for a Savior, and then she saw Him, and it was good.

By faith, you too have been made to see your own lack. Do you see your sin, do you know it, do you understand that you are a poor, miserable sinner? Then the coming of this Child will be a cause for you to sing, for He comes bringing your salvation. He comes to be righteous for you, He comes to bear your own sin, your own weakness, your own frailty. He comes to die, He comes to rise, all so that you would inherit Eternal Life, so that you would spend eternity not in this fallen place, but in a New Heavens and a New Earth, so that you would have Eden restored. Life in this world is often cold and harsh – but by faith we don’t deny this, we don’t pretend it isn’t this way. Instead, we confess our sin, great as it is, and we look to Christ Jesus who is greater than our sin, Jesus Who triumphs over it. We do not focus on this world, but we look to Christ who has overcome this world – we look forward to the life of the world to come.

Listen again to Simeon’s song, the song we too will sing in just a few moments after we have held in our own hands the very Body of Christ, given for us. “Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, according to Thy Word.” Lord, I can die, I can die in peace. Death – where is thy sting, O Death? Where is thy victory, O grave? This Christ Child has risen from the tomb, and so even if I die – I will live. Sod off, death! Bite me, grave – you couldn’t keep Christ swallowed down, nor shall you keep me. “For my eyes have seen Thy salvation, which Thou hast prepared in the presence of all people.” God’s salvation is here – and it’s not something hidden, it’s not a secret. I don’t have to spend 25 years teaching you how to operate the hidden divine decoder ring. No, right here, God become Man, who for us men and our salvation. Here He is, here is salvation. And you have made me to see it, God – you have given me the gift of faith, and thus these sinful, dead eyes have seen with joy their Savior, the Lord of Life. There is salvation, there is forgiveness, there is rescue – and there it is – in Christ Jesus, open, proclaimed to all people. Yes, all people, for He is “A Light to lighten the Gentiles and the Glory of Thy people Israel.” Even the Gentiles, even stubborn headed Germans, even spoiled Americans millennia later will see this Child and know Him to be their God and Savior; the Holy Spirit will call folks from all nations. And yes, this is the Glory of Israel – not that we Jews were more holy, not that some how not eating pork makes one morally superior (ugh, how’s that for the false pride of the sinful flesh), but that rather look, there is God come as Man, born from the people whom He told He would come. And thus there is salvation for all, thus there is forgiveness and redemption and love. And by faith, dear friends, you see it.

By faith, God has called you here. By faith, you have been made to confess your sins, called to struggle against them and to strive to beat them down even daily by faith. By faith you have been brought here to this Temple, where Christ Jesus comes to you today, bringing You forgiveness and life. Yes, He comes to you this day – He comes proclaimed in His Word – Christ Jesus lives, and you are forgiven. He comes in His Supper – taste and know your forgiveness, drink and know your salvation. Yes, this world is scary, yes, being a Christian means seeing your own sin and that is a terrifying and rough thing; but behold Your Savior, Christ Jesus, who has redeemed you, purchased and won you from all your sins, and who lives so that you would live with Him both now and forever. In the Name of Christ Jesus, our Newborn King +

Christmas Day Sermon

 

Christmas Day, 2024 – Exodus and John 1

In the Name of Christ Jesus, our New Born King +

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Indeed, in the beginning when God created the heavens and the earth, He did so through that Word. It was the Word that declared, “Let there be light” and there was light. And it was the Word that spoke and separated the light from the dark, the evening from the day. It was the Word that brought forth all of creation. And in the beginning, not only was the Word with God, but the Word would come to be with His Creation. The Word would come and walk in the garden in the cool of the day to be with His Adam, with His Eve. The Word was Life, the Life and the Light of men.

Then, one day, the fateful day, the Word of God came to be with His Adam and Eve in the cool of the day, but He found not day, but darkness. The Fall had come, darkness forgot its place and spilled out in that garden, death creeping in, the Serpent sneering. Yet, The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome It. Satan, the old evil foe, sought in rage and jealousy to undo the Word's creation, to jumble into chaos all that the Word had separated, to pull assunder all that the Word had brought together. And the Word of God stepped into that Garden and called out to Adam, but Adam hid like a stranger, like he didn't know Him. He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, yet the world did not know Him. He came to His own, and His own people did not receive Him. Because of Sin, Adam hid from the Word.

So, how to fix this? How to make it so that the Word would be safely with His people, how to rescue them from darkness and death? How to be Emmanuel - God with Us – once again? Sinful man couldn't bear His presence. Death was already racking ruin upon His creation. The garden would not hold until sin was dealt with. So the Word declared that He would deal with Satan, that the Serpent's head would be crushed at the cost of the Word's own bruised heel.

Adam and Eve left the garden, and sin and darkness grew. Children wandered. Wickedness increased. The Word was by in large ignored. A flood cleansed creation, but it was not enough. Even then sinful man used speech to plot only wickedness against God, and so the Word confused their speech. Still wickedness grew. How, how to be God with man again? The Word came to Abraham, called Him friend – in you Abraham and in your Seed, Me Myself, will all the world be blessed. And Abraham believed the Lord – and the Lord would visit His friend Abraham, but it was only sporadically, only occasionally. And He would come to Jacob, but again, only on occasion, because Jacob could not bear it. And then there would be the time in Egypt, and His people would be surrounded by foreign idols, and the Word would be all but forgotten until the Word came to Moses, and then the Exodus. How, how to be God with us again?

The children of Israel passed through the Red Sea to Sinai, and there the Word spoke with Moses, gave Him a plan. In the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, the tabernacle was erected.... Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and the glory of the Lord filled the tabernacle. Here, in this place, in this tent, in this tabernacle, the Word would be with His people. He would lead them, and they would follow. Wherever they went, He would be with them. But still the problem of sin remained. He would be among them, in their midst, but they couldn't really come and be with the Word. Only the priests at certain times, only Moses, only with sacrifice and fear. And eventually the tabernacle becomes the Temple, right there in Jerusalem, for in the fullness of time that is where the Word would come, where His heel would be bruised. And generations passed, and the Word is routinely ignored, forgotten, His temple profaned.

Until Christmas. Then, then dear friends, the mystery of the ages. Then – The Word became flesh and dwelt – tented, tabernacled – among us, and we have seen His glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. The Word would be with His people by becoming one of the people, by becoming Man Himself. No more would He dwell simply in a tent, in a building, behind a thick curtain separated from all but the high priest – No, the Word became flesh, was made man, for us and for our salvation, so that we would be able to see His glory, my own eyes and not another, my heart faints within me. This is the mystery, the wonder of the Incarnation – that God Himself would become man – that the way He would get around the separation that sin caused was by His coming to us as One of us. That He Himself would be the true tabernacle, the true temple. The better tabernacle, the better temple. And to be with us, to remove the stain of sin and the pall of death, He would do what only He could, what He had promised He would long ago. The true temple would be torn down on the Cross as the serpent sank his fangs into His heels, Satan's nails into His wrists, the Devil's spear into His side. But with His death, the Life of men would crush the serpent, would soak up and expend the wrath of God that our sin deserved, that He would make atonement so that forgiven and declared righteous on account of Christ we all would be able to stand again in the presence of God, and so we shall for all eternity.

We don't understand, my friends, how good we have it in these days of the New Testament. We don't understand the wonder of these last days in the fullness of time. We know how the mystery of the ages plays out. We participate in the mystery – the Word of God became flesh and dwelt among us – indeed, He comes to us today, He dwells with us and we are forgiven and given life and salvation- even here, even now, even in this world still wracked by sin and darkness and death – no, the Light shines in the darkness, and He comes and He shines upon you this day. But to all who did receive Him, who believed in His name, He gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. You are united to Christ in the mystery of Holy Baptism, and His life is your life. You received Him at the font as you were born again not by your will but born again by God, claimed by Him as own in His name.

And the Word gathers us together in His Name, in the Triune Name. And being brought together, the Word comes to you today in His Scriptures, in His preaching that you hear. And the highest mystery, the Word joins together His Body and Blood along with bread and wine so that He may join Himself to you for the forgiveness of your sins, for the strengthening of both your faith and your love, for you to have life and salvation. All this, so astonishing that even the angels broke forth in songs of surprise and praise at His birth. All this beyond what the prophets and patriarchs had beheld. And all for you, every time the Word calls you to this His house – and not only one house, one tabernacle, one temple in Jerusalem, but no, in countless hundreds of thousands of them – wherever two or three are gathered in His Name, and lo He is with you always even unto the end of the age, for He is Emmanuel, God with us.

And then the even fuller mystery to come, when He comes again and we see Him face to face, when all the saints of all times and of all places are gathered together around the throne, not only with lifted up hearts (we lift them up unto the Lord) but with resurrected bodies, flesh and blood, like our brother Jesus - Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when He appears we shall be like Him, because we shall see him as He is. The gifts, the wonders from that first Christmas continue to come, to be unwrapped and revealed. The feasts continue now, the celebrations ring out now, but shall even more so. Therefore, a hearty merry Christmas to you all, even until we reach the eternal Christmas without out end. Come quickly, Lord Jesus – In the Name of Christ Jesus, our Newborn King!