Seventh Sunday of Easter

Seventh Sunday of Easter (C)

May 29, 2022

Text: John 17:20-26

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            Jesus prays for His Church.  Jesus prays for you.  In this morning’s Gospel, we hear our Lord’s High Priestly Prayer for us.  Priests pray for their people, and so Jesus prays for His Christians.  He prays for His Apostles.  And He prays for us who will believe in Him through their Word (John 17:20).  And what is it that He prays for us?  He prays that we would all be one, with the very unity that flows from the Persons in the Godhead.  And this not only for our sakes, but so that the world would believe that the Father sent Jesus (v. 21).  He prays that we would be enveloped within the unity of Father and Son (vv. 21-23), their love, their life.  And He prays that the result of all of this would be that we are with Him, with Jesus, where He is, that we may see His glory (v. 24).  That is, that we would be with Him in heaven, basking in His presence, worshiping before His throne, and that we would share with Him in the New Creation, now by faith, and then visibly when the risen Lord Jesus raises us from the dead.

            Jesus prays for the unity of His Christians.  But we know that sin brings disunity rather than unity.  This is the great scandal of denominations within Christendom.  Now, Satan would have us believe that it is insistence on pure doctrine that divides the Church.  There is a slogan peddled by purveyors of bumper-sticker theology and other teachers of false doctrine: “Doctrine divides, love unites.”  Even some among our own fellowship advance this thinking.  And it is seductive, because we all want to be loving, and the divisions in the Church rightly grieve us.  But think for a minute about what this means.  True doctrine is the teaching of God in the Bible.  The word doctrine simply means teaching.  So when you use a slogan like “doctrine divides, love unites,” you are actually saying that God’s teaching in the Bible divides, and Christians shouldn’t teach it, and, in fact, it is unloving for Christians to teach what God teaches in the Bible.  Well, no wonder the Church is such a mess! 

            This is demonic deception.  Don’t buy it for a minute, and if you’ve ever thought it or said it, repent.  Beloved, true doctrine doesn’t divide.  True doctrine unites.  False doctrine divides.  False doctrine is the reason there are so many denominations.  When Jesus prays that we would all be one, He is not praying that our unity would result from denying His Word.  That is absurd!  He is praying that we would be united precisely in His Word.  He prays this for His Apostles and “for those who will believe in me through their word” (v. 20; ESV; emphasis added), and that is the Apostolic Scriptures!  The loving thing to do is to call those who believe and teach things that contradict Jesus’ Word back to Jesus’ Word, back to true doctrine.  And, of course, it is a false teaching to assert that doctrine and love are mutually exclusive.  Not only is purity of doctrine loving, it is an article of pure doctrine that we should love one another in deed and in truth, as the Lord Himself bids us in the writing of His Apostle, St. John (1 John 3:18), and as the Lord Himself prays for us in this prayer.  In fact, He says that His Word, His doctrine, is what enables us to love one another with the very love of God: “I made known to them your name,” that is, I have revealed You, Father, to them, in preaching Your Word, “and I will continue to make it known,” with the result “that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them” (John 17:26).

            Of course, it is true, division is also caused by the sin of lovelessness, and your pure doctrine does you no good (and, in fact, your doctrine is not pure) if you do not love your neighbor.  The Second Table of the Law, the Ten Commandments, is all about loving your neighbor as yourself.  That is, honoring father and mother and earthly authorities, not murdering, not committing adultery, not stealing, not slandering, not coveting, but rather promoting your neighbor’s life and welfare, treating his or her (and your) body and sexuality as sacred, helping your neighbor to improve and protect his possessions and income, promoting his reputation, and rejoicing in his prosperity.  Loving your neighbor is not feeling all warm and fuzzy about him, although that’s great.  It is acting toward Him as the Lord commands you.  When you don’t love your neighbor in this way (and you don’t, so, repent), this lovelessness divides you.  It has divided the one holy Christian and apostolic Church into denominations.  And this lovelessness especially rears its ugly head within Christian congregations.  So we must root it out, whenever it appears, with mutual confession and absolution, reconciliation with God and one another, under the pure and true teaching of Jesus Christ… His doctrine. 

            This is why the Father sent the Son.  Jesus is the Great Apostle.  That is the Greek word in our text, “that the world may believe that you have sent,” ἀπέστειλας, “me” (v. 21).  This is a reference to His earthly ministry, His suffering and death for our sins, and His resurrection from the dead.  That is, His redeeming and justifying work.  The Father sent Him, apostled Him, for this purpose.  To bring forgiveness for, and to save us from, all that divides us in doctrine and life, which is to say, our sin. 

            In our sin, we have believed and taught what is untrue, and this has divided us, not only from one another, but from the one true God.  So Jesus comes as Truth incarnate (“I am the way, and the truth, and the life” [John 14:6; emphasis added]), to impart Truth and bring us into the Truth that is Jesus Christ, to save us from the Liar and his lies, and restore us to God and to one another. 

            In our sin, we have not loved God with our whole hearts, and we have not loved our neighbors as ourselves, and this divides us from God and from one another.  So Jesus comes as Love incarnate (“God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” [Rom. 5:8]), to impart divine Love and bring us into the Love that is Jesus Christ, to save us from the hateful Murderer and his murderings (to hate is to murder [1 John 3:15]), and restore us to the God of life and love, and seal our fellowship and life together with one another.  Jesus’ redeeming work has practical results here and now.  It brings us to repentance for the sin that divides us, and it unites us in the love and unity that flows from the loving Communion of the Holy Trinity, by means of His Word, His teaching, His doctrine.

            What does it look like to dwell together as those redeemed by Jesus Christ, who is Truth and Love incarnate… to live as one, as Jesus prays for us?  Let’s just think in terms of this congregation.  Well, it certainly means to speak truthfully and faithfully of our Lord and His Word.  That is, pure doctrine is love, and by it, God unites us.  And it means to correct one another when we speak untruthfully or unfaithfully about our Lord and His Word, or live in a way that contradicts it, even if it means correcting your pastor.  And sometimes it even means Church discipline, which is the loving thing to do, just as love for your children requires you to discipline them.  It means that we speak as one.  That we confess as one.  So that the world may believe that the Father sent the Son.  It means that we are one Body (the Body of Christ), in one Spirit, united in one hope (that we may be with Jesus where He is, and live with Him eternally), “one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Eph. 4:4-6).  Practically speaking, it means coming to Church, where our communion is put into action in Word and prayer and Supper (“And they devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, to the breaking of bread and the prayers” [Acts 2:42])..  It means supporting the Gospel with our offerings and our prayers.  It means praying for one another (and I encourage you to pray for one another intentionally, habitually, and by name, as I pray for you).  It means giving of ourselves and our possessions when one of us has a need.  It means forgiving one another, as God has forgiven us.  It means rejoicing with those who rejoice, weeping with those who weep, getting together for mutual conversation and consolation, covering our neighbor’s weaknesses and sins, speaking… and thinking!... well of one another, being kind to one another, living peaceably with one another, not griping and backbiting, not insisting on our own way, but deferring in humility to one another, outdoing one another in showing honor.  And the like.  It means repenting where we fail, confessing to God and to our neighbor.  And it means living joyfully and confidently in the forgiveness of sins that we have in Jesus, in His Truth, and in His Love.

            This unity is manifested here and now in a very particular way.  Here, as we are gathered together in the very presence of Jesus Christ, our crucified and risen Lord, the Father has already brought us to be with our Savior where He is.  He has already answered the prayer!  And Jesus here gives us the glory that the Father has given to Him, the glory of being named sons of God, and this is what unifies us.  St. Paul says that when we behold the glory of the Lord Jesus, as we do in His Word, we “are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another.  For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit” (2 Cor. 3:18).  That is (and think about this!), the Holy Spirit is doing something miraculous as you sit here in the presence of Jesus, hearing His Truth and receiving His Love.  He is restoring you to the image of God, the image that was lost in the fall.  All that has marred God’s image in you, your false beliefs, your sins of lovelessness, He is taking away.  And one degree after another, He is fashioning you into the very image of the Lord Jesus Christ.  This is what we call sanctification, and this too, is the gift of God by grace.  It is a hidden reality in this life, at the same time saint and sinner that you are, but there it is.  So Jesus’ prayer is answered.  We are united in Him.  We are one in Him.  And this is expressed by the Church’s “Amen” to the preaching of His Doctrine.  And by our coming together here in love and union, to eat and drink His true body and blood, thus proclaiming the Lord’s death until He comes. 

            Doctrine and Love unite, for it is the Lord who gives them for this very purpose.  And here is an article of doctrine, the confession of which defines what it means to be a Christian… United in Christ, let us speak it once again: Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.                         

Eve of the Ascension of Our Lord

Eve of the Ascension of Our Lord (C)

May 25, 2022

Text: Acts 1:1-11; Eph. 1:15-23; Luke 24:44-53

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            You may be disposed to think that presidents and potentates rule the world.  If so, that is a very discouraging thought.  But this is why we are such political animals.  We hang all our hopes and blame all our problems on the man in office at the particular moment, and believe that the next election is the most important in our lifetime.  Because if we elect the right person, our nation and the world will be saved.  But if we elect the wrong person, our nation and the world will be destroyed.  Christians should not think this way, and we must repent.  The Bible tells us in no uncertain terms, “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation” (Ps. 146:3; ESV).  Now, I am not saying that politics and elections are inconsequential.  We should hold informed political opinions (informed, by the way, by our Christian faith and the biblical worldview), and we should participate in civil society and the political process, and above all, we should pray.  But we should never, ever, hang our hopes on any particular political institution or politician coming to power.  That is idolatry.  Repent.  Nor should we ever despair as though any particular political institution, politician, or worldly power can unseat God.  That, too, is idolatry.  Repent.  Now, it shouldn’t surprise us that sinners in power are empowered to sin.  Even “good” rulers fall far short of the glory of God, and participate in wicked things.  We should pray for them.  If it is difficult for a rich man to be saved, how much more a rich man in power?  But the good news of Ascension Day is that the risen Lord Jesus Christ has taken up His throne at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.  That is, Jesus reigns.  And in spite of all appearances, He rules all things for the good of His people, and for our salvation.

            Now, this can be difficult to believe, considering the tsunami of historical evidence, or even just the first five minutes of the evening news, never mind the horrendous events of the past couple weeks in Texas and in Buffalo.  The evidence before our eyes points not only to incompetent or malevolent human powers ruling the world, but the malevolent one himself, Satan.  Which is just what he wants us to believe.  After all, he claims for himself (and think about the audacity of this) that he can give Jesus all the kingdoms of the earth and their glory, if Jesus would only fall down and worship him (Matt. 4:8-9).  Satan does appear to be in charge here, doesn’t he?  St. Paul even calls him “the prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2), which is to say, we’re in his atmosphere here in the world.  He calls the demons “the rulers… the authorities… the cosmic powers over this present darkness… the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).  And Jesus calls Satan, simply, “the ruler of this world” (John 14:30).  So there is a sense in which Satan has his authority here and now, in this age, and in this fallen creation.  And to add to our anxiety, since His ascension, the Lord Jesus has been removed from our sight (Acts 1:9).

            But again, here is the good news of Ascension Day, and it is news that, for us, must be heard and believed, not seen (not yet!).  Jesus Christ, who was crucified for the sins of the whole world, is now risen from the dead.  He lives.  And He reigns.  He is vindicated.  He has defeated the devil and his kingdom.  And now God has exalted Him to His own right hand.  “The LORD says to my Lord: ‘Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool” (Ps. 110:1).  Jesus reigns, or, as the simplest and earliest form of the Christian Creed confesses, “Jesus is Lord” (Rom. 10:9; 1 Cor. 12:3).  If Jesus is Lord, as every Roman knows, Caesar is not.  That is why the Romans killed Christians.  And if Jesus is Lord, Satan is not.  The head of the serpent is crushed, which is why he hates Christians and afflicts us.

            Jesus is the King.  He is Lord of all.  We owe presidents and potentates honor and obedience under the Fourth Commandment, so long as they do not require us to sin.  But let us live under no illusions.  Their time is short.  Jesus is the hidden Ruler over all creation, and all men, including presidents and potentates, whether they know or acknowledge Him or not.  He is the King over school shooters and terrorists who will, one day, meet Him face to face.  And He is the King even over the devil, who, in spite of himself, must submit to God’s purposes. 

            And beloved, He is also the Ruler of His Church, His little flock on earth, which He is bringing to Himself in heaven.  No matter what she suffers here (and, in fact, through her suffering), He is doing His work in her and through her.  St. Luke tells us that his first volume, the Gospel According to St. Luke, is a record of “all that Jesus began to do and teach, until the day when he was taken up” (Acts 1:1-2), until His Ascension.  And the implication of that little word “began,” is that Jesus continues to do and teach through His Apostles and His Church, as Luke records in his second volume, Acts.  Now is the time of grace, in which Jesus is working through His Church to bring more citizens into His Kingdom by the preaching of the Gospel.  That is why He leaves us here, now, in this world of sin and misery, instead of immediately translating us to heaven the moment we are baptized.  So that we may preach and confess.  That is why the Lord Himself is hidden.  He is not gone, as you know.  He is gone from our sight, but not from our presence, and His hands are still raised over us in blessing, as Luke points out in our Gospel (Luke 24:50-51).  So He is still our Emmanuel, God with us, in a very real way.  But now, as St. Paul points out, He is present with His Church as the Head is with His Body.  The Church is His Body, and “the fulness of him who fills all in all” (Eph. 2:23).  The Word and Sacraments are the hidden presence of Christ in His Church, and the Church is the hidden presence of Christ in the world. 

            But the Day is coming when all that is hidden will be revealed.  Jesus Christ will come again visibly in the same way the disciples saw Him go (Acts 1:11), on the cloud of His presence (Rev. 14:14-15).  The trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised (1 Cor. 15:52; 1 Thess. 4:16).  The powers of the heavens will be shaken (Luke 21:26).  And every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him (Rev. 1:7).  Then at the Name of Jesus, every knee will bow, in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth… even Caesar’s and that of every earthly power… even school shooters and terrorists… even Satan and the demons… and every tongue, including theirs, will confess, what?...  That Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Phil. 2:10-11).  Every tongue will confess the Creed, and for some, that will be hell.  But for us who have loved His appearing, that will be the Day of our greatest joy.

            You may be depressed about the state of things in this world.  You may feel it in your gut every time you open a newspaper or fill your gas tank.  And frankly, you should feel it.  You should grieve.  You should feel compassion for the victims of senseless violence and war and natural disaster, for the victims of oppression and persecution, and for the littlest victims of the hedonism and self-idolatry of the sexual revolution.  You should mourn our sin.  These feelings should move you to repent of your participation in the sins of the world, and to pray for all who are suffering, and for all who are deceived.  But you must not lose heart.  Every time you feel that sadness and grief, you must remember the truth as Jesus has revealed it to you by His Word and Spirit.  Let that feeling move you to hear that truth preached, and to confess it daily with your own mouth.  Things are not as they appear.  Christ has died.  Christ is risen.  Christ will come again.  And in the meantime, He rules over all things at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.  So, come what may, there is no room for despair.  Only faith and absolute confidence in Jesus Christ, who is the Lord, who has redeemed us, and who will deliver us. 

            Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.             

Sixth Sunday of Easter

Sixth Sunday of Easter (C)

            May 22, 2022

Text: John 16:23-33

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            And it is because Christ is risen that we can ask the Father anything in the risen Lord’s Name, and the Father will give it to us.  That is an amazing promise.  Do you believe it?  Have you tried it?  There is a flourishing industry of so-called “pastors” and “preachers” who specialize in “name-it, claim-it” theology.  If you really believe in Jesus, they say, you can simply name what it is that you want, and God will give it to you.  But that is not a Christian teaching.  Surely that is not what the Lord means in our Gospel this morning.  If we are to rightly understand what it is our Lord here says to us, we must know what it means to pray in Jesus’ Name.  For it is whatever we ask the Father in Jesus’ Name, that He will give to us (John 16:23).  It is in His Name that we are to ask, Jesus says, “and you will receive,” and for this purpose: “that your joy may be full” (v. 24; ESV). 

            Lutherans often think of praying in Jesus’ Name as simply adding the words onto the end of the prayer as some sort of magical formula.  “In Jesus’ Name we pray,” “for Jesus’ sake,” “through Jesus Christ, our Lord.”  Now, this is a good way to conclude our prayers, because it reminds us that we can only approach our Father’s throne and present our petitions before Him… in fact, we can only call Him Father… on account of Christ and His sin-atoning work on our behalf, His death, His resurrection, and our incorporation into Him by virtue of our Baptism.  This is why it is the historic practice of the Church to conclude our prayers in this way.  So also, these words mark our prayers as distinctly Christian, over against generic prayers to a generic god, such as are offered in American civil religion (when we sing “God Bless America,” which god, specifically, are we asking to bless us?  That’s the point, we don’t know!) or in the lodges (which are nonspecific on the surface, but end up calling their god by a mishmash of the one true God and pagan deities, which is why you should not belong to a lodge), and over against prayers offered to the false gods of other religions.  This is all very important.  But we must not think of these words as “the magic words” that move God to hear and answer our prayers, whether we think of them in the way we tell children to “say the magic word: Please,” or more sinister, as some sort of superstitious incantation that would bend the Father to our will.  That is evil.  But we do so easily fall into this misunderstanding.

            Now, when I was a kid, I was reading the Bible one day (which is a good thing to do), and I ran across this passage in our text, and, being influenced as I was at such a tender age by so much general Protestantism, and couple of Pentecostal friends, I decided to give it a shot.  (Now, this does fall under the categories of spiritual immaturity and testing the Lord your God.  In other words, this is sin, and I’m sharing this as an example of what not to do.)  The words of Jesus are clear and plain.  Ask the Father in My Name.  He will do it.  Alright, “Father, please make the locked door of my house fly open, in Jesus’ Name.  Amen.”  Well… I mean, I gave Him some time to consider my request.  Needless to say, it didn’t happen.  By the grace of the Holy Spirit, it didn’t lead to a crisis of faith in my case.  Instead, I rightly began to suspect there may be a problem in my method of biblical interpretation.  But for so many, this kind of thing leads precisely to a crisis of faith, which is why the "name-it, claim-it” teaching is so dangerous.  I decided to try it one more time a little later at the pool.  “Father, please make me to walk on the water like Peter.  In Jesus’ Name.  Amen.”  And I stepped out in faith.  Come to think of it, maybe it worked that time, because like Peter, I was baptized by full immersion on that occasion.  Now, I was eleven or twelve, and I repent.  Seriously.  I repent of putting the Lord my God to the test.  It’s funny now, and we should laugh at ourselves.  But there are some serious issues here.  When we pray to the Father for something in Jesus’ Name, and it doesn’t happen, what does that mean?  What about the Lord’s words in our text?  Was Jesus mistaken?  Did He lie?  Or is the problem that I’m not Christian enough?  Maybe I don’t believe enough.  Maybe I’m not really included in Jesus’ Promise.  Maybe I’m too sinful for the Father to hear me.  Or love me.  Maybe God has rejected me.  Let me tell you, there will be hell to pay for preachers who introduce such doubts into Christian consciences. 

            Beloved, the reason you don’t always receive exactly what you pray for is that God answers your prayer by giving you something even better.  So the problem is not that there is some deficiency in God’s Promise or His love for you.  Nor is the problem that you don’t have enough faith.  The problem is your eyes are blinded to the blessing He has poured out in response to your prayer.  God knew I didn’t need a trivial miracle with the door or at the pool.  I needed a greater miracle, which is repentance.  Faith, not sight.  And so, God be praised, that is what I received.

            Now, to pray in Jesus’ Name is not simply to add on the words at the end of the prayer.  We pray the Lord’s Prayer in Jesus’ Name without ever saying those words, and, in fact, I think Jesus is speaking about the Lord’s Prayer above all in our text, because His point is, now that He has redeemed us, we can go directly to the Father as our Father.  For the Father Himself loves you, Jesus tells us (v. 27).  And so we pray to Him as dear children ask their dear Father.

            To pray in Jesus’ Name is to pray through faith in Jesus Christ, which is to say, as one forgiven of all sin by the blood and death of Jesus, baptized into Christ, bodied and blooded with Christ, and therefore risen and alive in the risen Christ, covered by His righteousness.  We approach the Father as our Father in and through Jesus, His only-begotten Son, as the one who came from the Father… that is, became flesh, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary… came into the world… that is, dwelt among us, teaching and demonstrating by miraculous signs His ministry of release and restoration… left the world… that is, died on the cross for our sins, and rose again from the dead for our justification… and went to the Father… that is, ascended into heaven, where He is seated at the Father’s right hand, ever making intercession for us and ruling all things for our good and for our salvation.  The writer to the Hebrews says that we enter the Father’s presence through the new and living way that is Jesus’ flesh, our hearts sprinkled clean and our bodies washed with pure water, which is to say, as the Baptized (Heb. 10:19-22).  That is what it means to pray in Jesus’ Name. 

            To pray in Jesus’ Name is to pray according to His will, which is to say, according to all that He has revealed to us in His Holy Word.  The things He has promised us in Holy Scripture, such as the forgiveness of sins, eternal life, His Spirit, His help in times of trouble, consolation, sanctification, faith, hope, love, and the like, we should pray for unconditionally, because we know He wills to give us these things, and loves to pour them out upon us.  Other things that are not promised to us in Scripture we should pray with the condition that it be according to His will.  Even as our Lord Jesus prayed that His Father would take the cup of suffering from Him, “nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done” (Luke 22:42).  So we should pray that the Father’s will be done.  After all, His will is good for us, and we don’t want our Father to give us harmful things, but only things that are for our good, and for our salvation, and for the good and salvation of others. 

            And, of course, along these lines, we should never pray in Jesus’ Name for ungodly things, sinful things, things that hinder God’s blessing and salvation.  After all, we are praying in Jesus’ Name.  Therefore, we should only pray for things that are consistent with what we know of Jesus.  On the most basic level, to pray in Jesus’ Name means the same thing as it means to do anything in anybody’s name.  If I designate someone to speak to someone else in my name, they’d very well better say only what I sent them to say.  If I designate someone to make critical care decisions for me in the hospital (end of life stuff), or to be the executor of my will, they’d better do so according to my will as I have revealed it in writing and speaking.  So it is with Jesus, when we do and say things, including our prayers, in Jesus’ Name.  Whatever we can ask the Father as Jesus’ representative, that, the Father will assuredly give us.

            Now, this is hard for us.  So the Lord gives us His Spirit.  The Spirit of the Lord helps us in our weakness, to pray in this way, for we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit Himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words (Rom. 8:26).  He prays within us, and He sanctifies our prayers as He brings them before our Father.  So when we pray for a new car in Jesus’ Name, the real prayer is that the Father would get us where we need to be, when we need to be there, according to His will, and He most assuredly grants that, whether on new wheels of our own or by a ride from a friend.  And the Spirit leads us to pray for more serious things, like the Christian life and salvation of our children, like the welfare and salvation of our neighbor, like the prospering of the Church’s preaching, like the peace of Christ in our home, in our congregation, in our nation, and in the world.  We can and should pray for mundane needs in Jesus’ Name.  And we can and should pray for grand needs in Jesus’ Name.  We should not treat God as some sort of divine vending machine where we punch in our order, plug in the correct change of “in Jesus’ Name,” and out pops another tasty treat.  We should treat God as He reveals Himself to be… Our Father who loves us, who has redeemed us in Christ to be His own children, and who wills to give us His very Kingdom.  The Spirit helps us to pray for that.

            And in this way, as God answers that prayer in the Name of Jesus, the prayer for His Kingdom, our joy is full.  Because it is joy in Christ, and in the things of God.  Sometimes we pray for things, and God’s answer seems to be no.  The truth of the matter is, rather, that God’s yes is always better than our request.  That is, God, who always hears our prayers, answers by giving us, not simply what we want in the way that we want it, but what is good and right and gives us salvation.  Sometimes we have to wait for the delivery of His gift.  For example, when we pray for healing, we can be absolutely certain that He will heal us, but we may have to wait for perfect healing on the Day of Resurrection.  Sometimes He gives us what we pray for in the shadow of cross and suffering, such as our daily bread in times of inflation and supply shortages.  Sometimes He gives us what we pray in a hidden way, as when we pray that His will be done on earth as it is in heaven, when to all appearances, the opposite of His will is being done on earth.  And sometimes He gives us exactly what we pray for as we pray it, such as when we ask Him to forgive us our trespasses and that His Name be holy.  In any case, we pray for these things in Jesus’ Name, in and through Jesus Christ, God’s Son, our Savior.  And we know that He will give us precisely what we need, in the way we need it, and at just the right time.  So, ask.  And you will receive.  And your joy will be full.  Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  And that, finally, is God’s answer to all our prayers.  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.       

             

Fifth Sunday of Easter

Fifth Sunday of Easter (C)

The Holy Marriage of James Barrett and Lindsey Morey

May 15, 2022

Text: John 16:12-22

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            Perhaps you were a little surprised this Sunday morning to find yourself at a wedding.  At Church.  During the regular Divine Service.  It is true, it’s not the way most people do it.  But it is an option.  And, in fact, it is an especially appropriate option that I would encourage couples to at least consider.  In fact, though I loved our wedding all those years ago, and cherish the memory of it, Sarah and I have both said that if we had it to do all over again, we would consider doing this very thing.  And why?  Well, for one, it’s cheaper!  So there is that.  But that’s not really the reason.  It is because our whole life as Christians flows from, and is lived under the shadow of, the font, the pulpit, and the altar.  Which is to say, in Christ, by virtue of His gifts, which He lavishes upon us here, in His Church, in Word and Sacrament.  This is why nominal, or even non-Christians instinctually want a Church wedding.  But even then, the common conception is that the wedding is all about the couple, and particularly the bride, and so we do the wedding on Saturday, or some other day, so the Church service doesn’t get in the way.  See, we have it all backwards.  Actually, for the Christian, the wedding is not all about the bride or the couple.  It is all about Christ for the couple, and for His holy Bride, the Church, of which the Christian couple now becomes a living icon.  And so, while having a wedding on Saturday, or any other day, is not wrong, and may be preferable for other reasons, there really is no more appropriate time for a wedding than right here and now in the Sunday morning Divine Service, where Christ gives Himself to His Church. 

            Now, in addition to all I’ve just said, James and Lindsey are getting married here this morning for some very specific reasons, and I told them I’d make these reasons clear to you, because this is a novel concept to so many, and because we don’t want you to walk away with the wrong impressions.  The wedding this morning serves as James’ and Lindsey’s legal ceremony, but also the ceremony they want to share with their Church family.  Next month they are gathering in Montana for the grand affair they will mark each year as their anniversary.  And, unfortunately, I'll be at District Convention that week, so I can’t do it.  And though Pastor Larry Comer has graciously agreed to be with them to perform that ceremony, our dear friends at Christ the King in Coeur d’Alene have decided not to perform legal ceremonies for reasons that are probably very wise in our current cultural climate.  But all of that is to say, we were left with the question, what do we do for the legal marriage?  Find a justice of the peace?  City Hall?  A sea going vessel and a willing captain?  Nah, I’ll do it.  And why not here, now?  Because that not only solves our legal question, it also gives me, as a pastor, the opportunity to ask the congregation to consider, to reflect: Why not here, now, in the midst of the things of Christ, and in the presence of Christ’s dear Bride, His Body, His Holy People?

            Here is where Jesus does what He promises in our Holy Gospel, for Christian couples, and for all of us whom He has gathered together here by faith in His Name.  He pours out His Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, who guides us into all the truth, and delivers to us the things that the Father has bestowed on us through Jesus.  Can you think of anything more important for a married couple, never mind everyone else gathered here today, than the Holy Spirit with all His gifts?  It is the Spirit who blows in on the preaching of Jesus’ Word, who hovers over the waters of the font, who enlivens you with the body and blood of Jesus.  It is the Spirit who is calling you by the Gospel, enlightening you with His gifts, sanctifying, and keeping you in the one true faith of Jesus Christ, along with all the members of Christ’s holy Bride, the Church.  It is the Spirit who daily and richly forgives all your sins, and those of all believers, by virtue of Christ's sin-atoning death and justifying resurrection.  And so He raises you to new life now, by faith in Christ, and on the Last Day, when He will raise you and all the dead, bodily, and give eternal life to you and all believers in Christ.  This is most certainly true.  You receive these gifts, here and now, and who wouldn’t want to receive them at your wedding, as your holy marriage is sanctified (that is, consecrated, set apart, made holy for God) by the Word of God and by prayer (1 Tim. 4:5)?

            And so, here is wisdom for you, James and Lindsey, and for all married couples (and, of course, this applies to all of you who are not currently married as well, but this is extraordinarily important as it is applied to marriage): Go to Church.  Bring your bride to Church.  Bring your groom to Church.  Build your marriage on the things of Jesus you receive here at Church, which is really to say, Christ builds your marriage here, by His Spirit, by His Word, and by His Sacraments.  Bring your children, if God so blesses you, here to Church.  To Holy Baptism.  To Sunday School.  To Catechism Class.  The Divine Service, which is for them… it is not just for adults.  Bring them here, and bring each other here, every week, as often as possible, together.  Make it a habit.  Make it a routine.  It really is no burden.  It is all gift.  The old cliché is, “The family that prays together, stays together.”  That may be.  But better, though not as trite or memorable, “The family that receives all that Christ here gives, as He pours out the Spirit of His Father in the Means of Grace, stays together.”  And yes, one such gift is prayer.  But so also, forgiveness of sins, eternal life and salvation, faith, hope, love, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (perhaps you’ve heard that list somewhere, the fruits of the Spirit, Gal. 5:22-23, all of which are vital for a healthy marriage… you receive them as gifts here), courage and strength for daily living, perseverance under the cross and suffering, the mutual conversation and consolation of your brothers and sisters in the Communion of Saints, holy wisdom, the resurrection of the body, the New Creation, the very Kingdom of God… and this isn’t even close to a complete list.  So, go to Church.  It is that simple.  Go. To. Church.  Got it?  Not simply because it is a duty (although it is, the Third Commandment), but because this is where the party is.  This is where the Lord is, for you.  This is where the wedding presents are unwrapped, for the blessed couple, and for the Bride for whom our Lord Jesus has given Himself up in love into the death of the cross, to sanctify her for Himself, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the Word, to present her to Himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, holy, and without blemish (Eph. 5:25-27). 

            What you need most for your marriage, and for your life whether you are married or not, is Jesus Christ and His Spirit here in the House and Family of our Father.  There are many things in this sinful world that hurt, and even break, marriages, and Christians are not immune from these things.  But in every case, these malicious things are things that first of all break our connection with Christ and the gifts that flow from Christ… whether it be adultery, or cruelty, or abuse, or false notions of what love is or isn’t, or whatever it may be.  It is all sin.  It is all a breaking off of the life-giving connection to Christ.  So what is the answer in every case?  Repent.  Which is to say, come back to Christ.  Go to Church.  To be forgiven.  And to receive the Spirit, the wisdom, and the fortitude to repair whatever is breaking the relationship with Christ and your spouse.  The only One who can repair a broken marriage is Christ, our ever-faithful Bridegroom.  He can, and He will, do just that.  It is He who gives marriage in the first place.  And He will strengthen your marriage.  And He will repair your marriage whenever it is broken or hurting.  And He will make your marriage ever new by His unending grace.  Be in Him.  Abide in Him.  Live in Him.  Your life as a Christian, and your life together, flows from the font, the pulpit, and the altar.  It is the water and blood of Jesus’ redeeming wounds.  It is Jesus’ resurrection life. 

            A wedding this morning for Church?  Why not?!  Every Divine Service is a little celebration of the marriage feast of the Lamb and His Bride, the Church.  And today, flowing from that, the holy marriage of James and Lindsey, united in Christ.

            Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.           

Fourth Sunday of Easter

 

Fourth Sunday of Easter (C)

Good Shepherd Sunday

May 8, 2022

Text: John 10:22-30

Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!

            “My sheep hear my voice” (John 10:27; ESV).  That is the one thing needful, the critical characteristic of a sheep of Jesus Christ.  We listen for Him.  We hear what He says.  We follow Him.  He knows each one of us.  He calls us by Name.  We come to Him, and go where He leads.  Which is always to what is good, right, and salutary.  Green pastures.  Quiet waters.  Restoration for the soul.  Righteousness.  We can trust Him, even though He leads us through the valley of the shadow of death, because He is with us, guiding us with His rod and staff.  And He leads us through that valley and out the other side, to life, and to feasting, and to a cup that overflows (Ps. 23).

            Those who are not of Jesus’ flock listen to other voices.  They are shepherded by others, who lead them to places other than righteousness and life.  In truth, these other shepherds lead their unsuspecting sheep into the valley of the shadow of death, only to abandon them there, in the clutches of the powers of hell. 

            These voices tempt us to listen, as well.  Because they sound so good.  They appeal to our reason and to our passions.  They appeal to our vanity and to our compulsion for self-justification, self-righteousness.  They make us feel virtuous.  All the while, we are unaware they are leading us to slaughter.  We must stop our ears to these voices.

            We must not listen to the devil and his lies.  He’s a tricky one, that serpent.  He seduces us into reaching for the forbidden fruit.  “See, it is beautiful, it is good for food, it will make you wise.  You can be your own god.  You can chart your own course.  You can create and define your own identity.  Even if that isn’t how God made you.  What does He know, anyhow?  He’s just jealous.  He wants to keep you down, enslave you to His will.  You can’t take His Word so seriously, so literally.”  And, of course, once you have fallen, there is the accuser, now to condemn you and drive you to despair.  “Oh, you cannot be saved now.  Not after what you’ve done.  God is merciful and longsuffering, to be sure, but there is always a limit.  And you have passed it.  Jesus didn’t die for that.  It’s hopeless.  You may as well resign yourself to an eternity with me.” 

            Lies.  That’s what these are.  The murderous devil speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar, and the father of lies (John 8:44).  Repent of ever listening to him.  Your true Shepherd is calling you.  “Adam, where are you?”  Come out of your hiding.  Shed your fig leaves.  Confess your sins.  And be clothed with the skin God provides, which is the bloody atonement and righteousness of Jesus Christ.

            We must not listen to the world in all of its delusional madness.  The world proclaims that, for all practical purposes, “God does not exist.  Oh, there may be such a thing as deity, whether he, she, they, or it, or whatever may be the preferred pronoun.  These things are fluid, after all.  If there is a god… we’ll say he for the sake of old-fashioned convenience… he doesn’t have time for us.  Or interest.  He may swoop in in times of real crisis to save the day, or drop a miracle.  But then again, considering all the evil and suffering in the world, if he cares, he isn’t competent, or if he’s competent, he must not care.  Maybe he’s even capricious.  Maybe he inflicts suffering upon us just for kicks.  In any case, we can never know.  There is no way to know the truth.  As a matter of fact, truth is whatever you want it to be, and feel it to be, for you, just as truth is whatever I want it to be, and feel it to be, for me.  So what does it matter?  Do what makes you happy.  Follow your heart.  You are your own infallible guide.” 

            It sounds a lot like the devil, doesn’t it?  Because he is the father of lies, and liars speak what their father teaches them.  They are deceived!  And anyway, they don’t really mean it.  You are free, in the world’s estimation, to believe and do whatever you want, unless it transgresses the world’s prevailing and ever-changing opinion at the moment.  If you transgress that, if you don’t signal the right virtues at the right time, and unconditionally assent to the world’s dogma, you’ll be cancelled.  And there is no forgiveness.  Not with the world.  When you’re done, you’re done. 

            Repent of ever listening to the world.  Repent of bending your ear away from God and His Word, to the voices of the media and your preferred politicians, the voices of worldly power and celebrity, the voices of popular culture and wokeness.  Hear the voice of Jesus.  “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me.  I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand” (John 10:27-28). 

            And we must not listen to our own, inner voice… the voice of our fallen and sinful flesh.  This is the voice that believes the lies of the devil and of the world, because they make sense, and they tickle the selfish fancy.  These shepherds, we think, will give us what we want, when we want it.  They will urge on us the works of the flesh.  They will scratch the itch.  They will spice the chili.  They will captivate our covetous, greedy, and lustful hearts.  And all the while, they will make us feel good, righteous, justified, and fulfilled. 

            Repent of that.  Repent of following your heart.  Believe what Jesus says of your heart, that from it proceed evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander (Matt. 15:19).  When you follow your heart, you are bent in on yourself, gazing at your own navel, and listening to the base gurgling of your own gut.  Hear, now, the Lord Jesus Christ, who bids you drown old Adam once again in the baptismal waters, and arise, stand up straight before the face of your Father in heaven.  Lift up your head.  Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus.  He has given you ears.  Hear Him.  Hear His Word of life.  And believe it.  And keep it.  His is the only voice that will never lie to you. 

            Our Holy Gospel this morning takes place in Jerusalem at the Feast of Dedication, which is to say, Hanukkah.  This extra-biblical (that is, outside of the Bible) feast commemorates the cleansing and re-dedication of the Jewish Temple during the Maccabean revolt, after Antiochus IV Epiphanes had desecrated it by offering swine on the altar and dedicating it to his god, Zeus.

            Jesus is the fulfillment of Hanukkah.  He comes into His Temple, which has been defiled, not by the Gentiles in this case, but by the idolatrous and deadly teaching of the unfaithful shepherds of Israel, who have fattened themselves and scattered the sheep (Ez. 34).  He comes, and He cleanses His Temple by His voice.  By His speaking.  By His Word.  That is, He teaches His disciples.  He calls His sheep away from the robbers and wolves (the false teachers), to Himself as their true Shepherd and High Priest.  And they hear His voice, and they know Him. 

            And then he offers the true Sacrifice of cleansing and consecration.  And He is Himself that Sacrifice.  For He is not only the Priest.  He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (John 1:29).  By His blood, offered up on the altar of the cross, He atones for all our sin, and cleanses us from all unrighteousness.  And then He reconstitutes the Temple.  He is Himself the Temple, the dwelling place of God with man… “the Word became flesh and [tabernacled] among us” (John 1:14); “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19).  This is what He does about evil and suffering in the world.  He comes into it and bears it, along with all sin and uncleanness.  And by His Sacrifice He now cleanses us to be the Temple of the living God… “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Cor. 3:16); “For we are the temple of the living God; as God has said, ‘I will make my dwelling among them and walk among them, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people’” (2 Cor. 6:16).  He cleanses us to be His own, and to offer up our own bodies as living sacrifices, holy and acceptable to God, which is our spiritual worship (Rom. 12:1).  In this is true fulfillment.  In this is real life.  It is wisdom.  It is righteousness.  This is what is good, and true, and beautiful. 

            Christ, our Good Shepherd, delivers this by His voice, by His holy Word.  We must listen to Him, and not to the voices of other would-be shepherds.  He tells us plainly that He is the Christ, our Savior, God’s Messiah.  He reveals to us the Father, who Himself loves us and keeps us.  He does the works of the Father, His signs, His miracles of healing and release.  Even among us, His Baptism, and His Supper.  For any Good Shepherd must bathe and feed His sheep, and bind up their wounds. 

            The voices of the false shepherds lead only to death.  But the voice of this Shepherd leads to eternal life… “they will never perish,” He says.  And no one, and nothing, can snatch us out of His hands.  Not the devil.  Not the world.  Not our own sin and guilt.  As long as we hear His Word, and so abide in Him, we are safe.  For He is ever vigilant.  He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep (Ps. 121:4). 

            The voice of Jesus Christ, our Good Shepherd, is the one thing needful.  Hearing Him, we belong to Him.  We follow Him.  We are with Him.  And He provides for all our needs of body and soul. 

            And in hearing Him, we hear the voice of our Father.  For He is the Word of our Father, and it is as He says to the Jews in our Gospel: “I and the Father are one” (John 10:30).

            Alleluia!  Christ is risen!  He is risen, indeed!  Alleluia!  In the Name of the Father, and of the Son X, and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.