Septuagesima

(Audio)

Matthew 20:1-16; 1 Corinthians 9:24 – 10:5; Exodus 17:1-7

 

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

Outside those doors is a world ruled by man’s wisdom and reason, knowledge and intellect. In that world men are in competition with one-another, much less for survival than for the amassing of power and wealth, material possessions, and for the admiration, envy, and fear of other men. Outside those doors men use political philosophies, business and marketing strategies, coercion, threats, and even force to gain one-upmanship over one-another, to advance the self, and to squash all competition or opposition. That’s what lies outside those doors from whence you came this day. But, when you come through those doors into this place, you must leave all those things behind, check them at the door. For, such philosophies, strategies, and means have no place within the walls of God’s house, and they must find no voice amongst God’s children. And we must not attempt to use them to grow, to maintain, or to defend the Church of Christ, for they are of, and they belong to, the world outside those doors, and, though the Church of Christ is within that world, She must never be, or become, or desire to be, part of that world.

Indeed, in His parable today, Jesus is not describing what lies outside those doors, but He is describing what is inside those doors, the kingdom of heaven, a reality of which our humble assembly in this place is but a dim reflection. It is a parable about a Master who hires laborers to work in His vineyard and who, at the end of the day, pays them exactly what He had promised each of them regardless of how long they had worked or what they believed that they earned, deserved, or merited. To be sure, if Jesus’ parable were enacted as a socio-political philosophy today, neither the capitalist nor the socialist, nor even the libertarian outside those doors would agree or be pleased, for the first principle in Jesus’ parable is grace, which, by definition, cannot be earned, deserved, or merited. For, you must remember, this is a parable about the kingdom of heaven, and not a parable about the crumbling, rotting, selfish, and wicked kingdoms of men.

And, notice this, there is no “go and do likewise” teaching from Jesus here. For, the kingdom of heaven is a kingdom of grace – period. In the end, you are either in the kingdom of God’s grace, or you are outside of it; you are either on this side of those doors, or you are on the outside. Those on the outside of the kingdom of God’s grace will be there by their own choice alone, for the Spirit of the Lord will continue calling laborers to work in the Lord’s vineyard even unto the eleventh hour of this world, and those who enter last will receive the fullness of God’s grace in Jesus Christ even as the first. The only question that is asked of those who enter the kingdom at the eleventh hour is “Why have you been standing here idle all day?” Do not begrudge the Lord His generosity.

Indeed, there is more for you to check at the door when you enter this place than merely your socio-political philosophies and your worldly wisdom and fleshly desires, for you must check every sense of merit, worthiness, and deserving as well. For, you come into the kingdom of heaven much in the way that you came into this worldly kingdom – naked, helpless, and with nothing to offer. Worse than that, you come as damaged goods, broken, selfish and self-centered, envious, greedy, and filled with every corruption. That’s the way you come into the kingdom; but that’s not the way you leave. For, there is not one in the kingdom of heaven that does not receive a 100% share of the Lord’s grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness for the sake of Jesus Christ. And, there is not one in the kingdom of heaven who is not made to be holy, innocent, and righteous in the atoning incarnation, life, suffering, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ our Lord.

Outside those doors, many men are concerned only about preserving, keeping, and defending what they believe they have rightly earned, deserved, or merited, while, many other men are concerned only about providing for those who are either unable or unwilling to earn, deserve, or merit much of anything at all. As the former may be tempted to self-concern and selfishness, so the latter may be tempted to take, by coercion or by force, from those who have to distribute it to those who have not. But, that is outside those doors. For, inside those doors, in the kingdom of heaven, no one earns, deserves, or merits anything at all, and yet all receive equally and fully of God’s rich grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness for Jesus’ sake. Again, there is no “Go and do likewise” teaching here, but, nevertheless, you are sent back out through those doors into the world, but not of the world. And, you go out into the world differently, as a child of God, as a recipient of God’s boundless grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness, to show and to share to those in the world that they might come through those doors and enter the vineyard kingdom of heaven as well. No, you will not be perfect in your efforts outside those doors; you will pick up some of the old habits, and thoughts, and sinful ways of the flesh. But, when you return, you will leave those things at the door once again and return to the kingdom of heaven in repentance and humility, where you will find that, though you strayed, the kingdom was never far from you, and that you will be restored and renewed in God’s grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness once again for the sake of Jesus Christ your Lord.

For, while the way into this place may be through those doors, the way into the kingdom of heaven is not through those doors, or the doors of any building, but the way into the kingdom of heaven is through the font. For, the font is the womb of the Church, the place where the children of God are conceived and born through water and the Word. And, from the pulpit and the lectern the children of God are nourished and strengthened in faith by the faith creating and sustaining Word of God. And from the altar the children of God are served the finest of meats and the choicest of wines to eat and to drink, that Christ may dwell in you and you in Him. For, as St. Peter has written, “our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea, and all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea, and all ate the same spiritual food, and all drank the same spiritual drink. For they drank from the spiritual Rock that followed them, and the Rock was Christ.”

And so it is, dear Christian, that you live your life in two kingdoms – the kingdom of this world outside those doors, and the kingdom of heaven inside those doors. And, as much as the world out there must not influence, change, or affect life in the Church of Christ, so likewise, it is not the mission or the purpose of the Church to conquer and to rule in the world. Rather, you are to be like leaven in the world, you are to be like salt in the world, and you are to be like light in that world of sin, darkness, and death. That is to say that you are to take the grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness that you have received from God in Jesus in His kingdom of grace and you are to live it, to speak it, and to do it in the world, in your vocations, to your neighbors, as God has freely lived, spoken, and done to you in Jesus Christ.

And, as citizens of the kingdom of heaven, you must not seek to use the government or politics or force to establish the kingdom of heaven on earth, for grace does not force itself on anyone, but it is freely given and it must be freely received. Likewise, Jesus nowhere teaches that the children of God should utilize government, politics, or force to take what belongs to one and give to another. Instead your Lord teaches, “Give, as it has been given to you” and “Render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s, and unto God what is God’s.” You search the Scriptures in vain for a socio-political philosophy, for Church growth strategies and marketing techniques, for such things are of the kingdom of the world outside those doors, while Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world. But, you are the Lord’s laborers in His vineyard, and, notice, there is no description of the kind of work that you do or even of the limits of your work shift, for, the conditions of your hire are a relationship of faith and trust in the good will of your Lord and Master, and the work that you do is to live your life outside those doors in faith and trust in Him and in loving service to your neighbor. Put not your trust in princes, they are but mortal, but put your trust in Jesus Christ, the Lord of heaven and earth. He offers His grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness to all, to the last as to the first. Let us not begrudge His generosity but share it in life, word, and deed to the glory of God the Father, in His most Holy Son, in the love of His Holy Spirit.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany (Epiphany 4)

(Audio)

Matthew 8:23-27; Romans 8:18-23; Jonah 1:1-17

 

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

Why do bad things happen to good people? You might be surprised to learn that God’s Word does provide an answer to that question, but you’re probably not going to like it. The answer to the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people,” God’s answer to that question, is that there are no good people. Remember the words of St. Paul to the Church at Rome: “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and “there is none that is righteous, not even one.” And remember Jesus’ own words to a rich young man who called him good teacher; Jesus answered him, “Why do you call me good? No one is good except God alone.” Therefore, instead of asking the question, “Why do bad things happen to good people,” perhaps you should be asking, “Why don’t bad things happen to me continually?” Truly, you shouldn’t wonder why a terrible thing has happened to this person or to that person, but rather why you, who are just as deserving as they, have, by the grace of God, been spared. That’s the true mystery of it all, the mystery of God’s grace in Jesus Christ.

The so-called “Problem of Evil” isn’t really a problem at all when you take God’s Word and your sin seriously. In the beginning there was God, period. God created all things that exist, including humankind, and it was good; in fact, it was very good. There was no evil in God’s very good creation. There was only God, who is good, and the good creation he created. However, God gave us a free will, that is, a will that was free to reject him and his goodness and choose something else, something other – evil. So, why is there evil in the world? It’s not because God created evil, but it is because his free creatures, man and woman, chose to reject God, to rebel against his goodness; it is because God’s free creatures chose evil over good. Because of mankind’s free choice of evil over God’s Word and goodness death entered the world. This was mankind’s choice and doing, not God’s. While it may be incorrect, and certainly unhelpful and unkind, to suggest that any person’s suffering is the direct result of his or her sin, it is not incorrect to say that suffering and death in general are the result of sin in the world, sin and death that came into the world, not by God’s choice, but by man’s. And so, the storms of life often encompass us and threaten to destroy us. But we need not fear, for God is still good, and he is still God, and that means that he is in control. Though he did not create the evil that afflicts us nor introduce it into his good creation, he is still LORD of all, and he will restore all things, in his way and in his time, to order, goodness, and perfection once again.

The LORD commanded Jonah to go to wicked Nineveh and preach his Word, his Law and Gospel, that they might turn in repentance and find salvation in him. But Jonah didn’t want to go. More importantly, Jonah didn’t want to go, not because he feared the Ninevites or that God’s Word would be ineffective, but quite the contrary, Jonah fully believed that the LORD’s word was powerful to turn the Ninevites in repentance so that they could be saved. Jonah didn’t want that to happen; he felt that this was too good for those wicked people, and that they shouldn’t have the opportunity to receive forgiveness. So, Jonah made a choice; he chose to reject God and his goodness and to run away and hide from God. He charted a freighter and sailed off for Tarshish, hidden and fast asleep in its hold. The LORD permitted a ferocious storm to come upon the ship. The wind roared and the waves buffeted the ship striking terror into the hearts of the sailors that they would be overcome and perish. Now, storms and gales, trials and tribulations, come and go upon us all. They are not of God, who is good and the rule and measure of all that is good, but they are under his control, and he permits or prevents them from befalling us according to his good and gracious will.

Jonah knew this fully well. When the sailors awakened him in their terror, Jonah confessed that this was God’s doing, and that it was because of his sinful rebellion that he permitted the storm to afflict them. He told them to throw him overboard and that the storm would cease. Whereas before the storm Jonah refused to obey the LORD and preach his Word to the Ninevites that they might repent and be saved, now Jonah was willing to die that the pagan sailors might be saved. And so, they threw Jonah into the sea, and the storm was stilled, and many of the sailors believed in the LORD who made the sea and the wind and is their master. But then the LORD did something more; he sent a great fish to swallow Jonah. Jonah spent three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish where he prayed fervently to the LORD that he might save him. Though his sin was his own and he justly deserved death and eternal torment, the LORD heard and answered Jonah’s prayer and, demonstrating his power and authority once again, this time over the beasts of the earth, the LORD caused the great fish to vomit Jonah out on dry land. And the LORD commanded Jonah a second to time to go and preach repentance to the Ninevites. This time Jonah obeyed. He preached repentance to the Ninevites, and the Holy Spirit worked contrition in their hearts, and they cried out to God and were spared his impending judgment. Truly, the LORD works all things together for good, even the rebellious and evil things that we and other men do, for the good of those who are called according to his purpose.

So often it seems that God’s ways are not our ways. What we count as foolishness may we come to see as wisdom by his Holy Spirit through his Word. For, it appeared foolishness that the people of Nineveh should be forgiven. And it appeared foolishness that the LORD would use a wicked, rebellious man to bring this Word to wicked people. And it appeared even greater foolishness still that this man should be thrown overboard and swallowed by a great fish in order to make this happen. Thus, when the scribes and Pharisees demanded a sign from Jesus in order for them to believe him, Jesus answered them saying, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.”

Indeed, Jesus had performed many great and miraculous signs, and still they did not believe him. Heaven was opened, God the Father spoke, and his Holy Spirit descended upon Jesus at his baptism in the Jordan. He changed water into wine at a wedding in Cana. He healed men of leprosy and disease and of paralysis and even raised several from death to life by the power of his life-giving and creative Word. Jesus had demonstrated his authority and control over the forces of nature on land, and then he demonstrated the same over the forces of nature at sea. As in the story of Jonah, Jesus was at sea with his disciples when a terrible storm came upon them and the disciples were terrified that they would perish. All the while Jesus was sleeping. Shaking him awake in their terror, they said to him, “Save us, Lord; we are perishing.” Jesus arose and rebuked the winds and the sea, and there was a great calm. Then he rebuked his disciples saying, “Why are you afraid, O you of little faith?”

Why are you afraid, O you of little faith? Does your life seem to be out of control? Are there forces and powers at play that affect you that are indifferent to your suffering or need? Does it sometimes feel as if the Lord is sleeping, is powerless to help, or doesn’t care? Repent. Perhaps the LORD is causing your idols to be stripped away, those persons and things in which you have knowingly or unknowingly placed your fear, love, and trust over, above, or in place of him. Repent. It is good that they be tossed overboard and buried in the depths of the sea. When you are tempted to cower in fear, hopelessness, and despair at what is befalling you and the world, and when you are tempted to flee from the presence of the LORD and his will, remember that he is awake and active, upholding heaven and earth and the laws of nature and all things for you, his beloved.

God permits storms and trials to come upon you, but he also rescues you in them so that you may see clearly his protection. Jesus’ kingdom, his Church, is strengthened and grows by sorrow and trial as by these the LORD calls you to turn your attention away from yourself and back towards him. The LORD uses storms and trials to perfect your faith and to strengthen your weak and little faith. Your Lord is present with you always, even if unseen or seemingly inactive and asleep. He is in this place, this boat, this ship, this ark, his Church, commanding the natural elements of Word and Water, Bread and Wine to serve you, to absolve you, to strengthen you, to equip you and to send you. Do not be afraid. Your LORD, Your God, is present to save you.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Third Sunday after the Epiphany (Epiphany 3)

(Audio)

Matthew 8:1-13; Romans 12:16-21; 2 Kings 5:1-15a

 

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

“Lord, if you will you can make me clean.” That is faith speaking. The Jewish leper confessed his faith in Jesus, first, that Jesus had the power to make him clean; second, that, if Jesus willed him to be clean, he would be clean indeed. Yet, as great as that confession of faith was, there may have been a twinge of doubt – “if you are willing.” The leper believed in Jesus’ power to heal, but he seemed uncertain of Jesus’ will. True faith trusts in the goodness of the LORD’s will come what may, come healing or not. The LORD is good, Jesus is good, and His will for man is always good. Holy Spirit, increase our faith and gives us eyes to see the goodness of the LORD in all things, in weakness, suffering, and death, as well as in healing, joy, and life that cannot die.

Then there is the centurion, a Gentile, who petitioned Jesus, not for himself, but for his servant who was paralyzed. Jesus offered to come to his home at once and heal him, but the centurion confessed, “Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” The Roman commander of one hundred soldiers confessed his own unworthiness. This great man whom many admired, and whom everyone feared, considered himself to be nothing but a poor miserable sinner. Now, I suspect that some of you don’t much appreciate those words we confess concerning ourselves each time we gather here in Divine Service. The Old Adam hates to confess his sinfulness and unworthiness; he’d prefer to blame someone else, even God. That is precisely why we say those words each week, “I – A – POOR – MISERABLE – SINNER,” because that is the truth, that is what I am, and that is what you are, do not deceive yourself. If we don’t want to believe it, at least keep on saying it that, in time, the Holy Spirit working through those words might cause you to believe it.

“Lord, I am not worthy to have you come under my roof, but only say the word, and my servant will be healed.” That is faith speaking. The faith of Abram who believed the LORD when He promised him an heir from his own flesh through whom all the nations of the earth would be blessed – Abram believed the LORD, Abram believed the Word of the LORD, and the LORD counted his faith, his trust, to him as righteousness. The faith of Mary who believed the LORD when His Messenger Gabriel announced that she would conceive and bear the Son of God – Lord, may it be to me as you have said, according to Your Word. Mary believed the Word of the LORD, she trusted the LORD and the Word He had spoken to her. The faith of Abram, the faith of Mary, and the faith of the Roman centurion – that is what faith (trust) looks like, sounds like, and does. Jesus praised the centurion for his faith saying, “Truly, with no one in Israel – not even the Jewish leper – have I found such faith.” And He continued saying, “I tell you, many will come from east and west [Gentiles] and recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob [Jews] in the kingdom of heaven, while the sons of the kingdom [Jews in name only] will be thrown into the outer darkness.” Jesus said to the centurion, “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.” And his servant was healed at that very moment.

“What God ordains is always good.” Whether the LORD grants physical healing or permits us to endure suffering, it is good: It is good for you. It is good for your family. It is good for others you may not even now when they observe your faith, your trust, in word and deed. “What God ordains is always good: His will is just and holy. As He directs my life for me, I follow meek and lowly. My God indeed in every need knows well how He will shield me; to Him, then, I will yield me.” “What God ordains is always good: He never will deceive me; He leads me in His righteous way, and never will He leave me. I take content what He has sent; His hand that sends me sadness will turn my tears to gladness.” “What God ordains is always good: His loving thought attends me; No poison can be in the cup that my physician sends me. My God is true; Each morning new I trust His grace unending, My life to Him commending.” That is faith. That is the faith of Abram, of Mary, and of the centurion, and of many other heroes of the faith. That is what faith (trust) looks like, sounds like, and does. That is the faith the Holy Spirit alone can create in you, sustain, and bring to fruitfulness unto life everlasting.

In our reading from the Old Testament, it was the faith of a young Israelite girl who had been carted away to Syria to serve as a slave to a high-ranking Syrian commander that was on display. Despite the fact that the LORD had permitted her to be carted away and enslaved, the girl trusted the goodness of the LORD and showed love for her Syrian captor who was afflicted with leprosy. She encouraged him to seek the Word of the LORD in Samaria from the Prophet Elisha. Having nothing to lose, Naaman traveled to Samaria to seek this healing. However, Naaman did not have faith. He went seeking to purchase his healing with gold and silver and costly fabrics. Moreover, he went to the King of Israel, not to the Prophet, because he expected such healing to come from someone of great power, wealth, and authority. This is a temptation we often fall to as well, expecting, demanding, that the LORD answer our prayers in the way we think best, forgetting, or worse, denying, that what God ordains is always good. The king of Israel was terrified because he could not heal leprosy and he thought the king of Syria was trying to entrap him. But, Elisha the Prophet sent word to the king to send Naaman to him, so Naaman went, once again with his horses and chariots and wealth, to purchase healing. This time Naaman was angered that the Prophet himself did not come out to see him but sent his servant with instructions to wash seven times in the Jordan. Naaman was incensed and protested that the waters of Syria were preferable to the filthy waters of the Jordan, so he turned away in a rage. But his servants said to him, “It is a great word the prophet has spoken to you; will you not do it? Has he actually said to you, ‘Wash, and be clean?’” Essentially, they said to him, “What do you have to lose?” Then Naaman went down and washed, and he emerged from the waters cleansed, his skin like that of a newborn baby. This story is not an attestation of Naaman’s faith – Naaman did not have faith – but, rather, it is an attestation to the goodness of the LORD and His will and the power of His Word for those who believe, for those who trust in Him come what may.

Faith is trust, plain and simple. Faith is the confession that, though I am but a poor, miserable sinner, the LORD is good and His will for me is always and only good. At the very least you can come to Him as one having nothing to lose. But, you are invited, you are called, to come to Him with so much more than that – true trust and love and hope founded in, trusting in, and clinging to the goodness of the LORD, come what may. Has He not said to you that you will be healed? It matters not the way, means, or time; all that matters is the promise He has made and sealed in His Son Jesus Christ which can never be broken. “Go; let it be done for you as you have believed.”

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Second Sunday after the Epiphany (Epiphany 2)

(Audio)

John 2:1-11; Ephesians 5:22-33; Amos 9:11-15

 

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

There is no human institution that is more ancient or more universal than marriage. Every culture of every time and every place has instituted, promoted, and protected marriage in some way or another. In ancient and medieval times, marriages were seen as contracts between families and were often arranged in order to procure and to secure land and wealth, and to maintain ruling dynasties. In addition to these purposes, marriages were entered into with the intention of procreation to produce offspring and heirs. Indeed, our modern conception of marriage, which holds that love and equality are the key factors, is extremely new and innovative, and has shallow roots in human history. Arguably, the first marriage, instituted by the LORD Himself in Eden, was not a union of love or equality, or even of sexual attraction, but marriage, as the LORD instituted it, is a union of completion and fulfillment – the union of man, – for “it is not good that the man should be alone.”

But, why? Why is it “not good that the man should be alone?” Well, that’s a good question – a question that is not answered directly, but implicitly and by example throughout the rest of the Holy Scripture. For, when we consider how marriage is portrayed in the Scriptures we see that it is bound up in selflessness and sacrifice and redemption. For example, consider these famous marriages in the Holy Scriptures: Adam and Eve, Abraham and Sarah, Jacob and Rachel, Boaz and Ruth, the Bridegroom and Bride from the Song of Solomon, and Joseph and Mary. Now, of course these marriages were not perfect, indeed they were riddled with problems of various kinds. Thus, these Biblical marriages do not serve as models of perfection that preach the Law to us, “Be like this!” but, rather, they are realistic examples, Gospel examples, of sinful people, …well, sinning, and repenting, and being forgiven and restored.

Let’s take Adam and Eve as our chief example. They had it all: Peace, love, and excellent real estate. They were the first marriage, created by God, brought together by God, and blessed by God. Obviously, they are the supreme model for marriage. And yet, they sinned, and in their sin they plunged all of God’s creation, including all their children and all their children’s children, into sin and death. Of course, the model for marriage was not what came after the fall, but what God instituted before the fall. First and foremost, God created Adam and Eve in unity with one another. Husband and wife were united in heart, mind, spirit, and will. Adam wanted only that which was good for Eve and glorifying to God, and Eve wanted the same for Adam. They were truly united as “one flesh” in every way imaginable. The LORD instituted their marriage union so that they might reflect Him – His selfless, sacrificial love which gives life, reproduce with Him – in the procreation of children to be raised in the selfless, and sacrificial image of God, and to reign with Him over all that He had made – in selfless, sacrificial stewardship of God’s creation.

And, that is precisely why Satan attacked Adam and Eve in the way that he did. Satan attacked their marriage in attacking their unity of heart, mind, spirit, and will. His seemingly innocuous question, “Did God really say?” was meant to create disunity. It created a divide between God’s will and word and another will and word, any other will and word. Before the question, Adam and Eve were in unity with God’s will and word, and with each other. But, after the question, they were divided and defeated in heart, mind, spirit, and will, even before actively sinning by eating the forbidden fruit. And, the poisonous fruit of their sin was born quickly: They hid from God because they were afraid of His holiness and righteousness. They were ashamed of their nakedness, for they no longer saw each other as “one flesh,” but as individuals to control, manipulate, and to possess. And they blamed each other, and they blamed God, for their own sinful failings. And, to seal their fate and their separation from both God and from each other, they became self-righteous, seeking and finding their justification and purpose in themselves alone. Truly, nothing can be more separate, divided, and isolated than self-righteousness and selfishness. No longer did they reflect the LORD who is in essence selfless and self-sacrificing. No longer could they reproduce Godly fruit, the fruit of selfless love and sacrificial service. And, no longer could they reign over all creation as God created them and blessed them to do, for all creation became to them, now, means to control, manipulate, and to possess to their own selfish ends.

We live in a cynical age, and I know that my speaking this way about the sanctity of marriage, even within this Christian congregation, has some of you wagging your heads in disagreement, disillusionment, disgust, and unbelief that anything so broken, so messed up, and so filled with disappointment, conflict, hurt, and mental, emotional, and spiritual pain as marriage could possibly be the key to knowing God, His will, and His purpose for our lives and our relationship with Him. Indeed, that’s precisely how Satan wants you to think. Moreover, that’s why the institution of marriage is under attack today. For, marriage has always been under attack, even from the beginning when God created man and woman in His image and blessed them and joined them in a selfless and sacrificial one-flesh union.

And thus, Jesus’ first recorded miracle in the Scriptures occurs at a wedding. This is not by chance, mind you. St. John’s Gospel is arranged like a catechism. His purpose in writing it is “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.” Marriage is the chief and key revelation that God has given us that we may know Him and trust in Him, and conform to, and reflect Him in the world, reproducing His love in others, and reign with Him in and over His creation.

With only a cursory reading, it might appear that John included this miracle of Jesus only so that His power might be revealed. While, that is certainly a part of John’s purpose, and His account certainly accomplishes that purpose, that is only to scratch the surface of John’s telling of the events of the Wedding at Cana. This story is a revelation of Jesus’ re-creation, or creation anew, of His Father’s creation that had fallen into sin and death. It is not a coincidence that this wedding occurred on the “third day.” Third day language in the Scriptures is fraught with weight and meaning in connection with Jesus’ resurrection on the Third Day. This is new creation language, and the story cannot be rightly understood without seeing it through the interpretive lens of Jesus’ bodily resurrection. Moreover, it may be reckoned from John’s numbering of days that the third day was in fact the Sabbath Day, the day of rest. This may be part of the explanation of Jesus’ initial protest to Mary’s request that He do something about the wine problem at the feast. Jesus’ reply, “My hour has not yet come,” once again, necessarily, connects this story with the hour of Jesus’ passion and death upon the cross.

The time for Jesus’ fulfillment of God’s Law, Word, and will in His death upon the cross has not yet come. Nonetheless, that hour will come, and when it does, Jesus will be raised from death on the Third Day and He will usher in a new creation. This is symbolized in the six stone jars of water used for purification rites. The six jars represent the six days of the former creation, ruined by sin and death, thus, requiring purification. However, in the new creation, sin and death have been defeated, atoned for, and removed. There is no longer need for purification, for the Father’s Law, Word, and will have been fulfilled in Jesus’ holy and innocent life, obedience, suffering, and death. In His first miracle, or His first sign, as John refers to it, Jesus demonstrated that He has come to “make all things new.” He will fulfill the Law, Word, and will of His Father and release all creation from the curse of sin. Thus, the story of the Wedding at Cana is much less about marriage and weddings, or even about powerful miracles and signs, than it is simply and plainly about Jesus and His work of atonement and re-creation. It is truly the first sign of who He is and what He came to do. As John puts it, “This, the first of His signs, Jesus did at Cana in Galilee, and manifested His glory. And His disciples believed in Him.” And so do we.

Thus, when the Lord returns on the Last Day, there will be a wedding in heaven. For, just as Adam’s Bride was brought forth out of his riven side, so will Jesus’ Bride, the Church, brought forth out of His riven side in the water of Holy Baptism and His holy, precious blood in Holy Communion, be presented before Him as a Bride adorned before Her Bridegroom. Truly, marriage is the preeminent revelation the LORD has provided us to the kind of relationship He desires to have with you. He is not a God who is far off, but a God who is so very near to you that He became flesh and blood, that He might marry you and have a one-flesh union with you that, together, you might reflect His glory, reproduce His selfless and sacrificial love, and reign with Him over heaven and earth forevermore. This is what was instituted by God in marriage from the beginning, and this is what is at stake when we seek to reduce marriage to mere equality, love, or sex.

When it comes to marriage in this world, which is passing away, the church has been forced to render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s. That’s ok, we do not have a mandate to change the world by force, but rather by influence. Indeed, the model for Christians is salt, leaven, and light. By being Christian, by following the example of our Lord Jesus in showing love, grace, mercy, and forgiveness to others, in and through our callings, our vocations, we will change the world, not by force, but by influence. However, we can only do that if we do not permit ourselves to become conformed to the world. Truly, we have no hope of influencing marriage for the better in this life and world if we do not understand and hold to what our LORD instituted marriage to be in the first place. Therefore, husbands and wives are to love and to serve each other as they love and serve the Lord. And, those who remain single, you are to love and to serve others as you love and serve the Lord. And if you are blessed with the gift of children, then your primary Christian duty is to raise your children up to love and serve others even as they love and serve the Lord. For, the LORD instituted marriage that you might know Him and the kind of relationship He desires to have with you, a relationship of grace, mercy, compassion, and forgiveness borne out of selflessness and sacrifice, which are truly love.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Epiphany of Our Lord (observed)

(Audio)

Matthew 2:1-12; Ephesians 3:1-12; Isaiah 60:1-6

 

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

If you think about it, Christmas was really about the gift of a savior and a king for the Jews. He was born to Jewish parents in fulfillment of prophecies made to the Jewish people. He was born to be their king, of David’s house and lineage, in the king’s hometown of Bethlehem. Jewish shepherds were the first to hear the proclamation of His birth. Yes, Christmas was really about the gift of a savior and a king for the Jews. However, Epiphany is about the gift of a savior for the Gentiles, for you and for me. 

The truth is, of course, that Jesus is God’s gift of a savior and a king for everyone, for all the world. For, while the Jews were chosen to be the first to receive the gift, the gift was never intended for them alone, but that God’s gift would shine forth from them as a light of hope and salvation for all the world. That is precisely what was prophesied by Isaiah: “Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the people; but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon you. And nations, Gentiles, shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.”

The LORD’s covenant promise to Abram was that, through an heir from his own flesh, all the nations of the world would be blessed. That covenant was fulfilled, in part, in the birth of Isaac, and then Jacob, and then Judah, and then David, and then Joseph and Mary, and then finally and fully, in their son Jesus, who is rightly the son of David and the Son of God. Thus, the covenant promise made to Abram, the father of the Jewish people, was a son through whom the Gentiles, all the nations of the world, would be blessed. Though Jesus was promised and given first to the Jews, He is God’s gift of forgiveness, life, and salvation for all people of all times and all places.

For, the Jews, as well as the Gentiles, were once a people who walked in the darkness of sin and death. Upon them, the Light of Christ shone forth. The LORD intended that even the promise of that Light, before its fulfillment in Christ, would shine through His people, providing a guiding light for the Gentile nations to the hope of Israel. And there were times in which the Light shone brightly through them, and the Gentiles were attracted to the God and hope of Israel. But there were other times when the Light could not shine forth because the people had strayed into self-righteousness and idolatry. The same is true for God’s Christian people, the Church, today.

By the time of Jesus’ birth, precious few in Israel, a remnant, were waiting and watching for the coming of the LORD’s salvation. Still, there were those who were faithful, who studied and kept the LORD’s Word and Promise dear to them. And there were others, far away in Gentile nations, who also had heard the LORD’s Word and Promise through various ways and means whom the LORD had alerted to the wondrous work He was about to do. To those afar, the LORD provided a special light, a star, to guide them to the Christ child. These Gentile Magi were lead by the LORD’s light to the Light of the world, Jesus Christ, in Bethlehem. Far they journeyed from the East following both the light of God’s Word and the light of the star God provided as a sign, seeking the one who was born King of the Jews.

Why a star? The LORD knew that the Magi watched the stars and read them as signs to mark the seasons and natural occurrences. Therefore, He gave them an unusual star, one that would capture their notice and attention, and through its light guided them to the Light of the world, Jesus. However, the Magi also had the light of God’s Word, and that Word told them the Jewish King they looked for would be for all people. And so, they set out West, to Jerusalem, to the city of the King of the Jews, with gifts fit for a king: gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

Both Jews and Gentiles are saved in the same way, through faith in Jesus Christ, the Light of the world. St. Paul wrote to the Galatians – words we heard on New Year’s in connection with Jesus’ circumcision and name – “In Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. And if you are Christ's, then you are Abraham's offspring, heirs according to promise.” The Light of God shines on all the same, uniting all as one in Christ who will not refuse and remain in darkness. Those weary and burdened by their sin and guilt are drawn to the Light for comfort and peace, but the wicked flee from the Light and try to hide themselves in the darkness because their deeds are evil.

Such a man was King Herod. When the Magi came to him looking for the King of the Jews, Herod deceived them, telling them to go and find the child and then report back to him that he might come and pay homage. Herod was filled with fear and hatred and jealousy for his throne. He was one who willfully turned away from the light of God’s Word and tried to hide himself in the darkness because his deeds were evil. Herod had the Word of the LORD. His scribes rightly shared with him the prophecy of the Christ, but he willfully rejected it. He chose darkness and evil, and he even used the Word of the LORD in an attempt to murder the LORD’s Christ.

But the LORD sent the star before the Magi and guided them to the place where the Christ Child lay. There, before their Lord, did they bow down and worship Him. And they presented Him with their gifts of gold confessing His royalty, incense confessing His deity, and myrrh confessing His priestly sacrifice. They were filled with joy at this fulfillment of prophecy, which was for all people. Then the LORD warned them in a dream of Herod’s nefarious plans, and they returned home to their own country by another way. Imagine the news they brought back to their countrymen: “Behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths and lying in a manger” – just as was told the Jewish shepherds by the angel.

Truly, St. Paul ties it all together in his Epistle to the Ephesians saying, “This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs, members of the same body, and partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel. […] To me, though I am the very least of all the saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to bring to light for everyone what is the plan of the mystery hidden for ages in God who created all things.”

Thus, while it may be that Christmas was really about the gift of a savior and a king for the Jews, and Epiphany is about the gift of a savior for the Gentiles, nonetheless, we see that Jesus was God’s plan for the salvation of the whole world from the very beginning. Indeed, before there were Jews or Gentiles, there was God in the beginning, and His Word which was with God, and which was God. All things were made through the Word of God. And, to our First Parents was God’s first Gospel Word spoken: “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.” This was God’s promise to our First Parents, before there was Jew or Gentile, and this is God’s promise fulfilled in Jesus, the Word made flesh.

Jesus has come to bring Light and Life to you this day. In Him, there is no Jew or Gentile, male or female, for all are one body, flesh of His flesh, and bone of His bones, of which He is our Bridegroom, our head, and our Lord. Let us never hide His Light, but let it shine through us in all we do and say that others might know and glorify our Lord and God. Come, let us worship Him. The highest worship we can give is to receive His gifts.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Eve of the Feast of the Circumcision and Name of Jesus (New Year's Eve)

(Audio)

Luke 2:21; Galatians 3:23-29; Numbers 6:22-27

 

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

Perhaps on this day, more than any other day of the year, the expectations of the church are seen to be in sharp contrast with those of the world. Perhaps you will find that even your own expectations are frustrated when you begin to realize that the Word of God proclaimed to the Church this evening is not about resolutions, new beginnings, and hope for the new year to come, nor even about the events, challenges, and triumphs of the year that is past. For this day the Gospel demands that our sermon and ceremony be about circumcision and the Name of Jesus, and we are going to observe this.

Circumcision is not only an affront to our expectations of a New Year’s Eve celebration, but also an affront to our sense of what’s appropriate for polite conversation - The very word likely makes some of you squirm a bit and avert your eyes. And perhaps, even more so, circumcision is an affront to our reason: Why would God require such a foolish, ridiculous thing as circumcision? Could He find no other part of the body to use except this one? This sign of the covenant God made with Abraham, the cutting off of the foreskin of all males, was the cause of much humiliation and shame suffered by the Israelites. Moreover, what good is brought by injuring the body? It does not make the soul any better.

But all of God’s commands and works are exactly this way; in our eyes they appear as most foolish, humiliating, and useless, in order that proud reason, which considers itself clever and wise, may be disgraced and blinded, give up its arrogance and subject itself to God. Therefore, God was not concerned about circumcision, but about the humbling of proud nature and reason.

Our corrupted reason, along with our fallen nature, if it will even confess its sin and brokenness, believes that it can remedy the situation on its own and by its own terms; that is to say, it believes that by works it can make things right. But this corruption which afflicts mankind cannot be cured or healed, it must be cut off and destroyed. So, God commanded the sign of His covenant to be written in the flesh of the very part of the body from which all human life proceeds. Circumcision was a sign in a man’s flesh that was a reminder that all children born of man bear in their nature the original corruption of their First Father Adam, and that this corruption cannot be reformed or healed, but must be cut off and destroyed. Thus, we see that God, with no pretense of subtlety, gets right, shall we say, at the point: all children that are born of man’s seed are conceived and born in sin that leads to death. Sin is a terminal disease that cannot be cured, healed, or reformed; it must be circumcised, cut off, and destroyed.

Our deficiency does not lie in our works but in our nature. Our person, nature, and entire existence are corrupted through Adam’s fall. Therefore, not a single work can be good in us, until our nature and personal being are changed and renewed. The tree is not good; therefore, the fruits are evil. Thus, by circumcision, God very early taught everyone that no one could become righteous through works or through the law and that all works and efforts to become righteous or to be saved are in vain, as long as the nature and person are not renewed.

It seems to us then foolishness that Jesus, who alone was conceived apart from the seed of a man, but by the Holy Spirit, and was therefore alone without the original corruption of sin, but was holy and righteous, should submit to the covenant sign of circumcision. Why would the sinless one bear the cutting of His flesh intended to show that a man’s sin must be cut off and destroyed and his forgiveness given by God’s grace alone?

St. Paul writes in Galatians chapter four, “[Christ] was put under the law so that he might redeem them who were under the law.” The Law of God is perfect and holy, and it places upon all men the demand of perfect obedience, a demand for perfection that no man can obey – we are damned before we are even born! We are conceived and born in sin, and the wages of sin is, without exception, death.

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman [not of man’s corrupted seed], born under the law [just like us], to redeem those who were under the Law.” When Christ was circumcised, He began to fulfill the perfect and holy Law of God, not for Himself, but for us. Christ was, and is, for us, the Second Adam, who did not sin so that all that are born of His seed are born, not in the corruption of sin, but in holiness and righteousness as sons of God.

And finally, in death, He who knew no sin or wrong was Himself violently wronged, and man’s redemption was made complete. For when death overcame him and slew him, without however having any claim or cause against him, and he willingly and innocently permitted himself to be slain, death became indebted to him, having done him wrong and having sinned against him […], so that Christ has an honest claim against it. The wrong which death perpetrated against him, is so great that death is unable to pay or to atone for it. And so, death must be under Christ and in his power forever. […] He was not obligated to it, and so it is rightfully subject to him, and he has become its master, has vanquished it and given it to us as a present, so that it must come to an end and no longer have any say over those who believe in Christ.

In this same way, on the eighth day of His infant life, Christ submitted to the Law of circumcision and His holy flesh was cut, His innocent blood was shed; but in so doing, Christ was wronged and became master of this Law – it is finished. And He presents this fulfilled Law to us now as a gift – we call it Holy Baptism; a washing of water and Word that gives to us all that belongs to Jesus, whose name, also celebrated this day, means “God’s Salvation.” There is no longer a Law or command to circumcise; that Law has been fulfilled and mastered by Jesus Christ. Now there is instead a gift, the gift of Holy Baptism. It is a baptism into Jesus’ death and resurrection, a grafting into the True Vine, and a promise – a betrothal – from the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, to His beloved, His Bride, the Second Eve, the Church. We are heading for a wedding; and the feast we celebrate tonight, and every Lord’s Day, is but a foretaste of the feast to come.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The First Sunday after Christmas (Christmas 1)

(Audio)

Luke 2:22-40; Galatians 4:1-7; Isaiah 11:1-5

 

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

The temptation is always to be just a little too content with yourself, your life, and your world. A little too comfortable; a little too complacent; a little too rooted in this life and world which is passing away. That is idolatry, and idolatry is your chief sin. That is why the Scriptures are continually warning you to lay up your treasure in heaven, not on earth, and to remember that you are but a stranger here, and that heaven is your true home. Are you longing to return home? Or are you content and at peace where you are, like a pig in its wallow? If so, know that you are not alone, but do not take comfort in that fact.

The story of Jesus has a wonderful, unexpected way of helping us to avoid such temptation. The narratives of Jesus’ lowly birth, his humble upbringing, his unusual ministry, and his tragic rejection and murder show us that things are not as they should be. Nothing goes the way we would expect or hope for. Our Creator does not act in the ways in which we his creatures would expect or hope for. And we know that he is good and right, and that we are the ones who are sinful and wrong.

The events of Jesus’ birth are so mundane, even scandalous, that no one witnessing them would give them a thought. A government ordered census for the purpose of taxation causes an unwed couple from a backwater town in Galilee to journey to Bethlehem in the last days of the young woman’s pregnancy. When they arrive, the guest room is full, so the young mother is brought into the family room where she gives birth to her firstborn son and lays him in a manger filled with fresh hay. No one in Bethlehem was aware that anything of importance had taken place except for Joseph and Mary and some shepherds keeping watch over their flocks by night who received the Good News from a multitude of angels who simply couldn’t keep quiet over their astonishment at what God had just done!

But that’s how it is with Jesus, and that’s how it is with our God, Creator, Lord, and heavenly Father. His ways are not our ways; His foolishness is wiser than our wisdom. Isaiah prophesied of Jesus: “His appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind,” “like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him.” “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.”

And so, forty days after his humble birth, Jesus’ family did what every Hebrew family did, they made the journey to Jerusalem, to the temple, to do what the Law required, to make the appointed sacrifices for the purification of a mother of a son, and to redeem Jesus, Mary’s firstborn son. Though he was sinless, holy, and righteous, Emmanuel, God with us, the infant Jesus submitted to the Law on our behalf, as one of us, for us and in our place, just as he submitted to gestation in the womb of a woman, natural birth, circumcision, weaning, diapers, and all the weakness, helplessness, and utter dependence of human infancy. They made the sacrifice of the poor, two turtledoves; nothing to see here, move along.

Indeed, in the busy temple court, no one noticed this family at all unless it was granted them to notice by the Lord. Simeon noticed. The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not die before he beheld the Lord’s Christ, the Messiah. And so, by the Holy Spirit, Simeon was in the temple that day and, by the Spirit, he recognized the Holy Family and the Messiah Jesus. He went to them and took up the child in his arms praising God and saying, “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.” You know those words well, for you sing them each and every time you receive the Messiah’s body and blood into yourself at this altar, for you too have beheld the Lord’s salvation, even communed with him, and may now depart in peace.

By the Holy Spirit, Simeon could see in this lowly child what no one else could see. Simeon prophesied that this child would be the cause of the fall and rising of many in Israel, that he would be spoken against and opposed, and that his mother would be affected. For, all the world would be affected. In this lowly, holy child God was visiting his people; no one and no thing will remain unchanged. “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

There was another who noticed Jesus that day in the temple, an aged woman named Anna who had dedicated the bulk of her life to fasting and prayer in the temple, waiting for the arrival of the promised Messiah. When she beheld the holy family and the infant Jesus, “she began to give thanks to God and to speak of him to all who were waiting for the redemption of Jerusalem.” Undoubtedly, both Anna and Simeon were thought to be fanatics, kooks, or otherwise. Why all this fuss about a lowly family from backwater Galilee? But things are often not as they appear, particularly when we consider our holy and righteous God and the complete and utter darkness of our sin and death.

Israel was a stump, a great olive tree that had been cut down flush with the earth, and worse, burned out with fire, lifeless and dead. Nothing, absolutely nothing, could be hoped to bring it to life again. That was the state of Israel at the time of Jesus’ birth. They had been under Roman subjugation for about sixty years at the time and only a faithful remnant was hopefully anticipating a savior, and most of them had the wrong idea of what a savior would look like or do. Among this remnant were faithful Hebrew men and women the likes of Joseph and Mary, Zechariah and Elizabeth, Simeon and Anna, the men Jesus later called to be his Apostles, and others. But no one was expecting how God would act, what that would look like, or when exactly it might happen. This is summed up well in the Christmas Eve antiphon, “When all was still and it was midnight, God’s almighty Word descended from the royal throne.” That is to say, when no one was expecting it, and in a way that no one could have imagined, God acted; indeed, that is when God always acts. A shoot came forth from the burned out lifeless dead stump of Jesse; a branch from his root began to bear fruit. Surprise! Merry Christmas!

The temptation is always to be just a little too content with yourself, your life, and your world. A little too comfortable; a little too complacent; a little too rooted in this life and world which is passing away. The Christmas story, the story of Jesus can serve to wake you up and break you out of such complacency and help you to see with your ears and hearken to the word of the Lord regardless of what your eyes behold, and your reason seeks to dismiss, distort, and reject. Your salvation is not in a temple or church made by human hands. Nor is it in your works and obedience under the Law. Nor is it in your sacrifices or prayers or even in your faith in and of itself. But your salvation is in the temple built not by human hands, nor by the will or participation of a man. It is not located upon a throne in a palace, in a mighty army, or in riches, power, or prestige. But your salvation is located in the Son of God and the Son of David born of the flesh of the Virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit of God – something unthinkable, unbelievable, impossible, scandalous, foolish to fallen human reason, wisdom, values, virtues, and expectations, but the wisdom and the power and the glory of God, nonetheless.

“But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, "Abba! Father!" So you are no longer a slave, but a son, and if a son, then an heir through God.” Grant that we may ever be alive in Him who made Himself to be like us.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas Day

(Audio)

John 1:1-18; Titus 3:4-7; Exodus 40:17-21, 34-38

 

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

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” There it is. That is the basis of your redemption. Without the incarnation of the Word of God, there could be no salvation for you. Because of your sin, and because of your parents’, and their parents’, and your First Parents’ sin – which is all your sin – you fell from God’s grace. No, that’s putting it too lightly. Rather, you rebelled against God’s grace. You threw it off of you like a damp blanket. You left yourself naked in your sin and rebellion before God’s holy and righteous face, and you couldn’t hide, though you tried. But He could see right through your feeble façade. God was right, and you were wrong. And, because you were wrong, there was no way possible for you to make yourself right with Him once again. God must be reconciled, and you couldn’t do anything to make that happen. Therefore, He did what was necessary to reconcile you to Himself. “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” The incarnation was the basis of your redemption, but its fulfillment was yet to come.

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” That wasn’t the first time, though it was the final, the last, and the eternal time. For, the LORD had always dwelt among His people in various ways. Of course, in the Garden, before the Fall of our First Parents, God dwelt with them, walking and talking with them, in the cool of the evening. But, after the Fall, man could no longer abide in God’s holy presence, lest he be destroyed in the face of His holiness and righteousness. Therefore, it was in mercy that the LORD banished the man and the woman from the Garden that they might not eat again from the Tree of Life and live in eternal separation from God and His presence. However, before He sent them packing, the LORD sacrificed an innocent beast and shed its innocent blood that He might clothe Adam and Eve’s nakedness and cover their sin until time was full and He would send His only-begotten Son into the flesh to be the sacrificial Lamb of God’s offering that would take away the sin of the world.

The shedding of innocent blood and the covering with skin, with flesh, is a key Old Testament type of the Incarnation of the Son of God, the Word made flesh and dwelling among us. The innocent blood and the fleshly covering are typological symbols of what would be necessary to reconcile God in His relationship with humanity. Innocent blood, blood that is not corrupted and tainted with the stain of sin, must be shed and must cover, atone for, and wash away the sin of men. Innocent flesh, holy and righteous flesh, must cover sinful men, and incorporate them into the New Man, the Second Adam, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, with whom the LORD God is fully pleased.

And so, God instructed Moses to erect a tabernacle made of wooden poles and animal skins, a tent of fleshy skins in which God would dwell among His people. Within the tabernacle, Moses placed the Ark of the Covenant containing the testimony of the LORD, the Ten Commandments, Aaron’s budding staff, and a pot of manna. The Ark was covered with the Mercy Seat, flanked by fiery Seraphim, upon which the atoning blood was sprinkled. In this way, the Glory of God dwelt among His people.

Within the tabernacle, the Priests performed animal and grain sacrifices before the LORD on behalf of the people. And, while it is true that these sacrifices never took away or forgave sin, they did indeed permit God to overlook the peoples’ sins for a time, for He had attached His Word of promise to them that He would overlook their sins and spare them. Centuries later, the tabernacle was replaced by Solomon’s temple and, later still, Herod’s temple. The LORD would be present among His people in the temple just as He was in the tabernacle, and the sacrifices would continue just as before. However, neither the tabernacle, nor the temple, nor the sacrifices were an end in themselves, but they were shadows and types of a fulfillment yet to come – the Temple made without human hands, and the sacrificial Lamb of God that would take away the sins of the world.

“The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.” The phrase “made His dwelling” is only one word in the original Greek, eskēnōsen. It is the exact same word that is used in the Greek translation of the Old Testament for the tabernacle. Literally, it means “pitched a tent.” Therefore, we could read John 1:14 this way, “The Word became flesh and pitched His tent among us.” The word implies an intimate dwelling together with man, a living together in a domestic sort of way, making a home together and having a family together. Yes, that is what is connoted in the words “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”

In the Incarnation of the Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, God has incorporated humanity into Himself. As the ancient Church has put it, “God became man that man might become God.” We are not God in and of ourselves, but we have been incorporated into God through Holy Baptism and faith in the Word made flesh Jesus Christ. Undoubtedly the very best symbol the LORD has given us to understand the kind of God He is and the kind of relationship He desires to have with us is marriage. “It is not good that the man should be alone.” When the LORD made Adam, He had no intention of leaving him alone. Eve, His wife, was not an afterthought, but was God’s divine plan from the beginning. The LORD joined Adam and Eve in marriage – the LORD’s creation, not man’s, or the state’s, or the court’s. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”

No, Eve was not an afterthought, and neither was marriage and family an afterthought. Indeed, one cannot fully understand the meaning of the Incarnation apart from these symbols, these types, and foreshadowing the LORD has provided. For, from the beginning, God’s plan was to receive you into Himself. Now, many have speculated, even Martin Luther, how the LORD would have accomplished this if our First Parent’s had not plunged humanity and the world into sin and death. While it is speculation, Luther believed that the LORD still would have found a way for humanity to become one flesh with God. Perhaps, Luther thought, they might have fallen asleep, as in a bed of roses, and awoken to a new and fuller life? Regardless, the point is this: Your God and LORD desires to dwell with you, to make His home with you, to marry you, and, yes, to have a family with you! That is why the predominant theme throughout the Holy Scriptures depicting your relationship with God is marriage.

The incarnation of the Son of God, the Word of God made flesh, is the beginning of the redemption of your flesh, even as the death and resurrection of Jesus is the redemption of both your body and soul. God has redeemed the Bride by sending His Son, the Bridegroom, into your flesh to suffer and die and be raised to new life with the promise that your flesh and blood bodies will be raised to unending life as well. However, you have already begun to live that new life, life that will never die. Yes, your bodies are still under the curse and will surely die – you feel that and know that each and every day of your life as you grow older and weaker. However, your bodies will be raised new and holy and will be wed with your new spirit born of water and the Word in Holy Baptism. Therefore, the incarnation of the Son of God has meaning for you now.

And so it is that Christmas is every bit as much about your redemption and salvation as is Easter. “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us,” and that has changed everything, already, now! In the Incarnation of the Son of God, the Word made flesh, God has begun to remake you in His image once again, the image and likeness of His Son Jesus Christ. Though this work will not be complete in you until the resurrection of your body, you are already changed, and you will continue to be changed until then. Once you were in darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord. Therefore, put away the works of darkness and walk as children of the Light. Emmanuel, God with us, is with you, always. He has pitched a tent in your midst that He might make a family with you and bear within you the fruit of the family, love: Love for God, and love for your fellow man.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Nativity of Our Lord - Christmas Eve

(Audio)

Luke 2:1-20; Titus 2:11-14; Isaiah 9:2-7

 

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

When the Archangel Gabriel appeared to Mary, the Evangelist tells us that she was greatly troubled and tried to discern what sort of greeting this might be. Truly, Mary’s response to an angelic greeting was not unique. In fact, St. Luke, alone records no less than three angelic appearances in the first two chapters of his Gospel, beginning with the appearance of Gabriel to Zechariah, the soon to be father of John the Baptist. Zechariah was serving as priest in the temple at the hour of incense when Gabriel came to him in a vision. Luke tells us that he was troubled when he saw him, and that fear fell upon him. Later, after Jesus was born in Bethlehem, an angel of the Lord appeared to some shepherds out in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. Luke tells us, in the old King James translation, that they were sore afraid.

Outside of the infancy narratives, even in the Old Testament, whenever an angel from heaven visited God’s people, they were filled with fear. Perhaps the most well known instance is that of the prophet Isaiah who, when he beheld, in a vision, the angels of God surrounding His throne, famously confessed, “Woe is me! I am undone! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell amongst a people of unclean lips, for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts.” In this, Isaiah’s confession, we hear the reason that God’s people are so very afraid in the presence of God’s holy angels – it is because of their unclean lips, the guilt of their sin which makes them and all men unholy. Isaiah was right, of course; he should have been undone. He should have died.

But that’s not what happened. Instead, an angel of heaven flew to him, having in his hands tongs holding a live coal taken from the altar of sacrifice. The angel touched the burning coal to Isaiah’s lips and said to him, “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” Our sin separates us from God. His holiness can only consume and destroy sin, guilt, and unholiness. Such things have no place in God’s holy presence. But besides being perfectly holy and just, the very standard and definition of these, He is also the standard and the measure of goodness, love, mercy, and grace. Therefore, instead of destroying unholy man, He did what was necessary to justify him, to make him to be right and clean and holy in His presence. God forgave and atoned for Isaiah’s sin and guilt and made him clean. And the fact that the purifying coal came from the altar of sacrifice demonstrates that His forgiveness comes at a cost – holy and innocent sacrificial blood, blood shed for those who are unholy.

The first words from the angels’ lips are always “Do not fear.” The justification? “You have found favor with God.” In other words, there is no need for you to be afraid, not because you are sinless and holy, but because God has chosen to look at you that way, because God has sacrificed Himself to make that possible. You have found favor with God. It almost sounds as though you tripped over it, or that it fell into your lap. Do not think that it was your work, or your will, your choice, or your decision; you weren’t even looking for God, let alone for His favor. But He has found you, and He has decided and chosen to have favor upon you freely, apart from your will, decision, or choice, because of the goodness, the mercy, and the love that He is.

Fear. That’s something I think we all share, particularly at this time of the year, with a new year just around the corner. We are afraid for our children. We are afraid for others we love. We are afraid for ourselves, for our security, and for our way of life. Often it seems that we are surrounded by fear and uncertainty, horror and tragedy, everywhere we turn, every moment of our lives. If you’re near retirement age, you’re likely wondering if anyone will look after you and care for you when you are no longer able to care for yourself. You’re likely wondering how you will pay for all the things you will need as you get older and have little or no income. If you’re parents of young children, you’re likely wondering if your children will be safe when they go to school, will they learn what they need to be successful adults, what kind of America will your children live in, what kind of world will it be? There are a lot of things to cause you to be fearful. And there are a whole lot of people, organizations, and institutions, not to mention the media and the government, that seemingly want you to be afraid, and that are all too eager to use your fear to control you and make you buy and believe whatever it is that they’re selling, pushing, or advocating.

“Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.” There is no need to be afraid. God has heard your cries in the darkness of sin and death and He has responded. “When all was still and it was midnight,” in the darkest hour of your night of helplessness and fear, God’s “almighty Word […] descended from the royal throne.” When you least expected it, when you were certain your situation was hopeless and there was nothing that you or anyone could do – you were right, by the way – that was when God acted, that’s when God acts, that’s when you can see that God has been acting all along. All that’s been threatened is your idols, those things, those people, those emotions that you have put your fear, your love, and your trust in instead of God. God will permit them to be knocked down, undone, taken away, or destroyed, or He will simply do it Himself, so that you will see that your fear, love, and trust in them is misplaced.

Fear not. God is in control. And, He is not unsympathetic to your fears, your worries, your concerns, and your anxiety, for He shares your flesh and blood and He has suffered through many of the same fearsome happenings as you. He was born in conditions of want and need, exposed to the elements with no defense. He was the would-be victim of murderous Herod as he slaughtered the innocent babes of Bethlehem in his fear-driven insanity to hold onto his power and throne. He was ridiculed and mocked by the intellectuals of His day, and He was hunted by the government as an insurrectionist, and by the Church as a blasphemer. But, He permitted Himself to be taken captive, and He willingly submitted to mocking, spitting, and blows, and, ultimately, to the cruel and tearing whips, thorns, and nails of hatred and evil, even death on the cross, to sanctify all suffering and to defeat the power of sin and take away the sting of death – that you need not fear any longer.

God is in control, and He works all things – even the bad things, even the evil things – He works all things for the good of those who love Him, through Jesus Christ. Jesus came to absolve you of all your fear: Fear for today; fear for tomorrow; fear of death; fear of God. He says to you “Do not be afraid. I know your fears. I know your worries. I know your anxieties. I have faced them all, and yet I remained faithful, trusting in the Word of my Father. I have faced and suffered even death, your greatest enemy, for you, in your place, and I have destroyed its power and sting; death cannot hold you; already you are its victor through me. Because of this, my Father is your Father. Because of His love for me He loves you as His own dear son or daughter.”

Already at His birth the choirs of heavenly angels broke forth in song, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased!” Tonight, we join them singing, “Glory to the newborn King; Peace on earth and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!” Jesus Christ is born! No more shall we be afraid!

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.