The Sixth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity 6)

(Audio)

Matthew 5:17-26; Romans 6:1-11; Exodus 20:1-17

 

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

What is a Christian to do when the culture seems to be at odds with Biblical faith? Generally, there are three possible courses of action: Separate, regenerate, or accommodate.

Separatist Christians are easy enough to identify; they are those individuals, sects, and denominations that try very hard to not engage in the parts of culture and society they deem to contradict Biblical teaching. I am not referring to those who merely abstain from physical pleasures and entertainments (drinking, television and theater, gambling, etc.), but, rather, those who isolate and remove themselves altogether from the secular culture and society. While groups like the Amish and some conservative Mennonites have established separate, parallel societies, even more mainstream Christian groups and denominations have created their own Christian “Yellow Pages” of businesses and services that they might, as much as possible, interact, do business with, and support only other like-minded people.

Quite the opposite in approach, other Christians believe that it is their Biblically mandated purpose to actively regenerate our fallen, broken, and sinful culture and society. Perhaps, in the United States, Christians of this stripe are most represented by the Christian Religious Right and by mainstream conservative Protestant Evangelicalism. Such groups actively work in and through the secular government to create and pass laws that they believe are in accord with Biblical doctrine, morality, and ethics. Most likely, they would say that the United States is fundamentally and intentionally a Christian nation, while the most zealous might desire a theocracy (a nation ruled by God’s Law).

The third approach, accommodation, is the chief approach of mainstream liberal Protestant Christians and church bodies. Such Christians appeal chiefly to the Gospel of Jesus Christ with little or no regard for God’s Law. Jesus is understood as having fulfilled and thereby having abolished the Law so that all things are good and permissible when they are done in love, or at least not to the direct harm of another – even things that were previously forbidden by the Law of God. God’s Word, as recorded in the Bible, is understood to be the work of fallible men with particular limited understandings and knowledge about science, the world, and human development and who were often culturally, racially, and sexually biased. Therefore, the Bible is to be interpreted critically in light of thought and opinion today in order to find meaning and application today.

Now, it is my intention to demonstrate to you, from God’s Word, and particularly from the Scriptures appointed for this day, that all three of these courses of action, beliefs, and approaches to our culture and society are incorrect and are misinterpretations of God’s Word and will for Christians in the world, but not of the world.

Today’s lessons speak most directly against the third and last approach I discussed – accommodation. Once again, this approach is typically justified by an appeal to Christ’s own teaching in the Gospel about loving your neighbor, even your enemies, and doing good to all. These are indeed Jesus’ teachings, and all Christians are to strive to do this with the grace and help of God by the Holy Spirit. However, proponents of accommodation seemingly overlook many of Jesus’ other teachings, or they explain them away by an incorrect interpretation of Jesus’ Words such as we have in today’s Gospel lesson where Jesus says: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.”

Proponents of Christian accommodation of the culture seemingly believe that Jesus did away with all that Law-talk of the Old Testament. But, clearly He did no such thing. For, Jesus Himself says that He did not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it, and that not a letter of it has passed away. What does this mean? This means that the Law of God is no longer a fearsome thing to those who believe and are baptized into Christ Jesus, because He has fulfilled all its rigorous and unwavering demands, perfectly, for all humanity. Yet, the keyword here is fulfilled, not abolished. The Law is still there, but it’s not a threat any longer, that is, to those who will repent and believe that they are saved by God’s grace, through faith in Christ Jesus, who alone has fulfilled the Law’s demands. For, when something is fulfilled, it is not abolished, it does not disappear or go away, but it is still present and active, but satisfied.

In fact, not only does Jesus not abolish the Law, but He actually expands it, saying: “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder.’ […] But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment.” And, likewise, Jesus teaches: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart.” Jesus even taught that, “unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Wham! Now, the scribes and the Pharisees get a bad rap for their hypocrisy and misunderstanding and unbelief of the Gospel, and justifiably so, but, don’t kid yourself, they were righteous in the eyes of men, and they kept the Law of God better than anyone, better than you! They prayed more than you pray. They worshipped more than you worship. They gave tithes of their income more than, and more faithfully than you do. They were the best of the best when it came to faithful Jewish practice, and everybody knew it. Therefore, if Jesus says that you must be more righteous than even them, what hope is there for you?

Thanks be to God, in Christ, there is every hope for you, for, in Christ, your righteousness does indeed exceed that of the scribes and Pharisees. And, that is precisely Jesus’ point. That is what it means that Jesus has not abolished, but has fulfilled the Law and the prophets, for you. You are free! You are free from the impossible burden of having to fulfill the Law of God perfectly as it demands – a task that neither you, nor any Christian, nor even the scribes and the Pharisees in all their righteousness could ever do! Jesus has done it for you, and He has set you free, not from the Law, which is still in force, but from the burden of having to do it in order to be righteous before God. But, the Law has not passed away, and you have been freed, not from the Law, but you have been freed to do the Law in love for God and for your neighbor in and through Jesus Christ.

That is why a Christian cannot simply accommodate the culture in which he lives. Jesus did not abolish the Law of God, nor did He override it with the Gospel, and neither did He lower the bar on the Law of God, but, rather, He fulfilled it for you. Jesus has freed you from the fear and curse of the Law that you may do it freely, and boldly, in love. What this means is that, as you strive to do God’s Law faithfully, knowing fully that you will at times fail and at all times fall short of the perfection it demands, you may do it, nonetheless, without fear of judgment and condemnation, for Christ has perfectly fulfilled it for you, and even your weakest good works, God the Father looks upon as holy and righteous through His holy and righteous Son.

You see, you, as God’s child of His own creation, you were made for good works. This is why the first approach I named earlier, separation, is incorrect. God’s people are not to separate and isolate themselves from the world, society, and culture, but they are to remain distinct within it and for the benefit of it – that is to say, we are to live in the world while remaining not of the world. You do this through your God-given vocations, callings, in which you serve your brother and neighbor and glorify God.

Similarly, under the same dictum, “in the world but not of the world,” the second approach I named, regeneration, is also incorrect, for you do not, and cannot, regenerate anyone, or anything, but the Holy Spirit alone regenerates where and when He pleases through the proclaimed Word of God and the Blessed Sacraments. Moreover, Jesus’ kingdom is not of this world, therefore, though He will work to provide for and to protect His people through vocations in government and bureaucracies, He will do this even through unbelievers and despite any godless or wicked intent or purpose they may have.

Therefore, the answer to the question, “What is a Christian to do when the culture seems to be at odds with Biblical faith?” is, negatively stated, none of the former mentioned approaches – not separation, not regeneration, and not accommodation. But, rather, positively stated, what you are to do is love, by living in the love and life-giving freedom of the Law of God fulfilled by and in Jesus Christ. While, being free in Christ may be different than the kind of freedom the flesh, our world, and culture values and desires, it is, nonetheless, the greatest and the only true freedom. It is not a freedom that permits you, or anyone, to do whatever you want, even in contradiction to God’s Law; nor is it a freedom that comes from all things being permissible. Rather, the freedom you have in Christ is the freedom to live a new life, a baptized life of daily dying to sin and living to God in Christ Jesus. For, when you know that the Law no longer judges and condemns you, then you are freed to no longer judge and condemn others, but, rather, to show them the love, mercy, and forgiveness you have received, whether they receive it or reject it.

However, as St. Paul writes, you are not freed to keep on sinning as if the Law of God was no longer in effect – that is the way of the old man who has died. The way of the new man is to do the works of the Law without fear of judgment and condemnation, but in the spirit of love to the glory of God in Christ Jesus. For, the truest and only freedom is to be a slave of Christ. Thus, St. Paul writes, "For freedom Christ has set you free." "Therefore, stand fast in your freedom. Only do not use your freedom as an opportunity for the flesh, to pursue its sinful lusts and desires. But live by the Spirit, in Christ, in fervent faith toward God the Father, and in fervent love for one another."

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, your Christian vocation is not to separate from, to regenerate, or to accommodate to this world and  culture, but you are to be the hands, heart, ear, and voice of Christ in this world, but not of this world. As St. Paul wrote, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind.” For, the Law of God has not passed away, but it has been fulfilled. Therefore, you are free to obey the Law and to do the Law in love, without fear – in love for your brother and for your neighbor, to the glory of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity (Trinity 5)

(Audio)

Luke 5:1-11; 1 Peter 3:8-15; 1 Kings 19:11-21

 

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

There is nothing particularly attractive or exciting about Christianity when you get down to its nuts and bolts. After all, as Americans, we extol freedom – and, by freedom we mean the freedom to do whatever we want, whenever we want, so long as it doesn’t hurt or harm or interfere with someone else’s freedom, for the most part. However, Christianity actually inhibits that kind of freedom. There are explicit things that Christians are commanded to not do. Christianity goes against the grain of our permissive culture and even our own flesh.

Moreover, the doctrines and beliefs of Christianity are, well, quite simply, absurd to human reason. We worship a God whom we confess to be one, but also three. And, for a God who is supposedly all-powerful and good, He sure doesn’t seem to do much to prevent evil and suffering in the world. And, where is He anyway? Why doesn’t He make Himself visible and demonstrate His power for all to see? Then we’d believe in Him, right? Of course, Christianity teaches that He did make Himself visible once. But, consider the circumstances: He was born of a virgin mother who had never had sexual relations with a man. Yeah, right. He spent His time hanging around the low-life and the riff-raff of society – prostitutes, tax collectors, the poor, and the diseased. He kept talking about a kingdom that He was ushering in. Oh, they crowned Him king alright; they put a purple robe on Him, beat Him, crowned Him with thorns, then stripped Him naked and nailed Him to a cross for all to see. Pathetic. Unattractive. Foolish.

And, the same goes for so-called Christians themselves. They preach about meekness and humility, being charitable and forgiving, and loving their enemies, but look at how so many of them live. They chase after wealth and possessions, power and prestige just like everyone else, except they are hypocrites about it, play-acting like they’re so noble and pious and it’s everyone else that is selfish, self-serving, ambitious, and cut-throat. What’s worse, though, is how they are so quick to judge and condemn others when they lie, cheat, and steal to get what they want, when their marriages end in divorce at the same rate as non-Christians, when they give in to their passions, desires, and lusts for drug and drink, food, sex, power, money, and whatever else. Then, they are so quick to judge what’s right and wrong, good and evil, and to make rules and laws that limit or take away the freedoms of others, all the while crying that their own precious religious freedoms are being threatened and attacked. Pathetic. Unattractive. Foolish.

Satan knows this about you, and he uses it as a lure and as a weapon to get you to take his bait and to choose to listen to a voice and a word other than God’s. That’s what he did to Eve in the garden: “Did God really say?” “Hmmm? Now that you ask the question, I know what God said, but somehow, now it just doesn’t sound right.” That’s what he tried to do to Jesus in the desert: “Go ahead! Throw yourself down from the temple spire. God’s angels will catch your fall.” “Yeah, well, you kind of left out that part about walking in God’s ways and not putting Him to the test.” The question, the doubt, exposing the absurdity – that’s the lure. When you choose to listen to a voice and a word other than God’s – And, I ask you, whose voice and word would that then be? – you take Satan’s bait, hook, line, and sinker, and you choose to act upon your will – which means that you are not acting upon God’s will – and you break the First Commandment: You worship a false god before or in place of the true God; you worship yourself, and by worshipping yourself you worship Satan.

Alright, so maybe that sounds a bit dramatic. I just want you to think about the seriousness of those sins that you like to think of as “little,” “minor,” or “white.” While the only un-forgivable sin is unbelief – the outright rejection and refusal of the Holy Spirit’s work in you – there are no little, minor, or white sins. Sin is sin, period, and a single sin of thought, word, or deed merits you eternal death and damnation. This is why St. Paul says, “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and, quoting the Psalmist, “There is none righteous, not one.” Indeed, the purpose of God’s good and holy Law is to show you just that – that you are a sinner, curved in upon yourself, whose every thought, word, and deed before God’s grace is corrupted by evil, unholy, and unclean. The Law is meant to break you, to crush you, to kill you so that you stop trying to justify yourself, stop trying to make God’s ways fit according to your ways, stop trying to force His wisdom to submit to your fallen and corrupt wisdom. For, only then can you receive the Gospel – the Good News God loves you anyway and that He forgives you and restores you to holiness, not because of anything good, or evil, that you do, but because of the perfect and holy good that He has done for you in His Son’s selfless, sacrificial suffering and death upon the cross.

I know. Your flesh, your reason, your wisdom, and the so-called reason and wisdom of the world cries out, “Foul! It can’t be that easy! It doesn’t make any sense! That’s ridiculous! That’s absurd! That’s not fair! That’s not how justice works!” Indeed, thanks be to God! All that thinking and offense, all that scandal – that’s the way of your fallen sinful flesh which, at once, hates the Law of God, but also seeks to justify itself according to the Law. That’s why the flesh seeks out any other gospel but the Gospel of Jesus Christ – not that there is any other gospel. That’s why most of the denominations of Christianity other than confessional, orthodox Lutheran doctrine, work in just a little bit (or a lotta bit!) of your own work, your own choice, your own merit, your own decision, and your cooperation with God in your justification and salvation. But these are the teachings of demons, says St. Paul. They are the lies, deceptions, and temptations of Satan to lead you back into the bondage of sin and the Law and to keep you in chains there forever.

By nature, man is a theologian of glory, because Satan is a theologian of glory. “But, I thought glory was a good thing? What’s a theologian of glory, and why is that a bad thing?” Good question! A theologian of glory refuses to accept things and believe things the way there truly are, the way God has ordained them to be. To use Luther’s words to Erasmus in the Heidelberg Disputation, “A theologian of glory calls evil good and good evil.” Thus, a theologian of glory looks at the Trinity, which is good, and calls it preposterous, ridiculous, foolishness. Likewise, a theologian of glory hears God’s command to not eat of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and says that God’s command is unfair, unjust, even evil. And, worst of all, a theologian of glory looks at God’s plan of salvation in Jesus Christ crucified and dead upon the cross and exclaims, “Pathetic. Unattractive. Foolishness.”

All of you, according to your fallen and sinful flesh are, by nature, theologians of glory. In contrast, God calls you to be theologians of the cross who do not call evil good and good evil, but who call a thing what it is. The fall into sin was rebellion, apostasy, and real and damning sin. Jesus’ crucifixion and death was Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and Satan, and the glory of God. The kingdom of God is not powerful and glorious according to the wisdom, reason, and reckoning of the theologian of glory, but to the theologian of the cross it is a glorious kingdom and reign of grace, mercy, and forgiveness in Jesus Christ.

The theology of the cross does not come easily to us theologians of glory. Indeed, when Jesus began His ministry and called His first disciples, they were theologians of glory too. They vied for positions of honor, power, and glory in Jesus’ kingdom and they asked when Jesus was going to restore glory to Israel. Yet, even His disciples were not honorable and glorious in the eyes of their contemporaries, but they were fishermen, a tax collector, a zealot, and others of common, ordinary, and even low estate. Still, the Lord worked through them and with them to establish His kingdom and reign of grace and mercy and to establish His Church, which remains to this day and will remain until the day of His return. They often stumbled over Jesus’ ways, trying to send away the children, the women, and others in need who were drawn to Jesus. They refused to believe Jesus when He taught them about His Passion and resurrection. They all abandoned Him when He was arrested and crucified. And, when He died and was buried, they were despondent and without hope, believing that they had made a great mistake in following Him. They were theologians of glory, calling good evil and evil good. But, at Pentecost, Jesus made them to be fishers of men and theologians of the cross when He poured out His Holy Spirit upon them and His Church.

There isn’t much that is attractive or exciting about you, O Christian, or this little outpost of Christ’s Church in Waverly, IA to which you belong and worship. However, you have been given a new mind, new reason, new eyes, ears, mouth, and soul to know the kingdom of God for what it is, the power of the God for the salvation of all who believe. Your fallen reason and wisdom, the world’s ungodly theology of glory, looks at Christ’s Church and cries, “Pathetic. Unattractive. Foolish.” But you, O theologian of the cross, call a thing what it is, God’s kingdom of grace, mercy, love, and forgiveness breaking in and spreading throughout this world, reclaiming it for God in Christ Jesus.

Do not be afraid or dismayed. The Lord is with you. He will never leave you or forsake you. Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary

(Audio)

Luke 1:39-56; Romans 12:9-16; Isaiah 11:1-5

 

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

Often the blind have better vision than those who can see. Often the deaf comprehend more than those who hear. For, the foolishness of God is wiser than man’s wisdom. And, His ways are not our ways; His thoughts are not our thoughts. Indeed, we live in a time when only that which we perceive is believed to exist. What supreme arrogance, even foolishness, to think that this enormous and, apparently, expanding universe must operate according to the limitations of our five senses and our reasoning. For, what are they in comparison to the impenetrable depths of our galaxy, let alone what lies beyond? And, what are they in comparison to that of which they are made of, let alone the one who made them, upon who’s speaking the foundations of the universe were made and all things came to be and are yet sustained?

When God speaks His powerful, creative and life-giving Word, stars and planets find their course, mountains and oceans take their place, plants and trees begin to grow and to bear fruit, hearts and lungs begin to circulate life-giving blood and air, eyes and ears begin to see and to hear His handiwork, and minds begin to know their Creator through His creation, even through their very own selves, and they are attuned to His voice and to His Word, even if they try not to hear. For, the Word of God has gone out into the world and it will not return to Him void, but it will accomplish the purpose for which it was sent.

And so, when God’s life-giving and creative Word was spoken by an angelic messenger into the ear of a young virgin maiden, chosen by God by His unique grace, mercy, and wisdom alone, that Word accomplished what it said, and Mary conceived the child Jesus, the Son of God, the same way that she, and Abram, and all the faithful, had conceived their faith long ago – by hearing. Though she did not understand the how and the why, Mary believed the Word of the Lord and she said “Behold, I am the servant of the Lord; let it be to me according to your word.” Henceforth, all would call her blessed because she “believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” And, to this day, Mary, the mother of our Lord Jesus, is rightly remembered and venerated, not because of her unique holiness or her important works, but because of the unique grace and mercy the Lord showered upon her and because of the unique faith He created in her, faith that simply received, clung to, and even conceived the Lord’s life-giving and creative Word. To this day, Mary remains for us a premiere example of the childlike faith Jesus calls us all of us to, faith which He says enters into the kingdom of God.

The Church calls Mary Theotokos, which means, the “Mother of God”, for the child she conceived, carried, and bore was not only a man, though He was truly a man, but He was the Son of God – perfect God and perfect Man. Her womb had become the ark and temple of God, yet greater, for abiding therein was much more than the glory of God, but the glory of God as a man, fully alive. God had visited His people to redeem them. This, Mary’s aunt Elizabeth, herself six months pregnant with a son who would be called John the Baptist, acknowledged and confessed by the Holy Spirit upon Mary’s greeting saying, “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the fruit of your womb! For behold, when the sound of your greeting came to my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what was spoken to her from the Lord.” She couldn’t help herself. The Word of God had located Himself in the womb of Mary, and in His presence, and at His command, faith is created, life is given, the sea roars, the rivers clap their hands, and the hills sing for joy together before the LORD.

Dear Christians, receive the clear and constant teaching of the Holy Scriptures that life and faith come from God’s life-giving, creative Word. We are the passive recipients of His gifts even as our eyes receive light, our noses receive aromas, our hands receive sensations, our tongues receive tastes, and our ears receive sounds. So are we the recipients of God’s gift of faith and knowledge of Him, even as we are the recipients of His gracious gift of life itself. The Word of the Lord alone has the power to open deaf ears to hear and blind eyes to see, to release the mute tongue to speak and to sing praises, to release from the bondage of sin and guilt, and to raise the dead to new and eternal life. When the LORD speaks, people listen – even the mountains, the oceans, and the stars listen – unless you willfully stop your ears. Yet, even then, you cannot silence the Law of God that is written upon your heart and neither can you refrain from observing God’s handiwork in creation and His sustaining providence for all, even those who reject Him.

John the Baptist could not help but leap for joy in his mother’s womb, for the Word of God, even God Himself, had entered His presence. Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and confessed God’s presence in Mary, and she confessed the blessedness Mary had received in humble faith. And Mary confessed that she was the humble recipient of God’s gracious visitation, a servant and a magnifying glass for the glory of the LORD. She confessed the external and objective workings of God to bring righteousness and justice to His sin-wrecked people and creation as He had continually promised to Abraham and to his offspring forever.

As Jesus taught in the Beatitudes, there is blessedness in being poor in spirit, meek, and humble. There is blessedness in hunger and in thirst for righteousness. There is blessedness in showing mercy and in making peace, even in the face of persecution. These qualities are means of blessing, not because they are meritorious works, but because they restore a right relationship between yourself and the Lord. He is your God, who desires above all else that you receive His good gifts. And, the less that you have of the qualities and distractions that the world and the flesh value, the more your God and Lord can, and will, shower upon you His grace, mercy, and love.

What we celebrate on this The Feast of the Visitation of the Blessed Virgin Mary is not Mary’s greatness or holiness, or even her strong and humble faith which, nevertheless, is a great example for us, but what we celebrate is the LORD’s gracious visitation of His people to redeem them from their sins and to restore us to communion and life with Him. This Mary believed and received in humble faith. This Elizabeth acknowledged and confessed upon Mary’s greeting. And this caused John the Baptist to leap for joy and to be filled with the Holy Spirit, that he might proclaim the coming of the one whose sandals he was not worthy to untie – the shoot from the stump of Jesse, upon whom the Spirit of the LORD rests and remains – the Messiah, our Lord, our Savior, and our Redeemer Jesus Christ.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.