Quinquagesima

(Audio)

Luke 18:31-43; 1 Corinthians 13:1-13; 1 Samuel 16:1-13

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

“See, we are going up to Jerusalem.” When Jesus said “See” to His disciples, I like to think that He was calling them to see something that was right before them that they weren’t seeing; that is, Jesus was calling His disciples to see differently, to see with the eyes of faith. They were going up to Jerusalem where Jesus would be delivered over to the Romans who would mock Him, treat Him shamefully, and spit upon Him; they would flog Him and scourge Him before they crucified Him; He would die and be buried, and on the third day He would rise. Though all the Prophets had written about this, they didn’t understand what He was saying, they simply couldn’t see it, and, in truth, the meaning of Jesus’ words were being hidden from them.

In contrast to Jesus’ disciples, who could otherwise see perfectly well, there was a blind man begging along the road to Jericho. Mark tells us that the man’s name was Bartimaeus, which means “son of honor.” This “son of honor” was reduced to the humiliating act of begging for his livelihood because of his blindness. Nevertheless, blind Bartimaeus could see things that the seeing disciples and the crowds could not see; Bartimaeus could see with the eyes of faith. Hearing a commotion, Bartimaeus inquired what was happening. Someone from the crowd told him simply what his eyes could see, that Jesus from Nazareth was passing by. While that was certainly true, Jesus of Nazareth was simply His name and the town in which He lived. Any seeing person could say the same. Most likely this information was delivered with a taint of derision as well so that he might have said, “The carpenter’s son from backwater Nazareth is passing through. Nothing to see here; move along.” Upon hearing this news, however, blind Bartimaeus saw something the disciples and crowds did not see. Bartimaeus saw and confessed that Jesus was the promised Messiah, the Son of David, bringing mercy, forgiveness, healing, and life. He cried out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”

Now, understand, in both the Gospels of Luke and Mark, this event occurs after the Transfiguration of Our Lord where Jesus’ glory was revealed, along with Moses and Elijah, in the presence of no less than Peter, James, and John! And yet, blind Bartimaeus is rebuked and told to shut up. Though Bartimaeus was blind, though he couldn’t see, still he heard the word of the Prophets, the Word of the LORD concerning the Messiah, and he believed and knew that this Jesus from Nazareth was fulfilling prophecy, that He was merciful, willing, and able to heal. Therefore, he refused to be silenced and he cried out again, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me.” Jesus stopped dead in His tracks. He commanded that the man be brought before Him. Jesus asked Bartimaeus directly, “What do you want me to do for you.” Bartimaeus answered, “Lord, let me recover my sight.” “Jesus said to him, ‘Recover your sight; your faith has made you well.’ And immediately he recovered his sight.”

“Your faith has made you well.” Now, don’t make the mistake that is too easy to make. Don’t think that faith is a work that you do that makes Jesus respond with healing, praise, blessing, or anything at all. Faith is not a work that you do, but faith is the work of the Holy Spirit through the Word of the Lord (the Holy Scriptures) and through the Blessed Sacraments alone. “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the Word of Christ” – period. Blind Bartimaeus had faith. How was it that Bartimaeus had faith? Through hearing the Word of Christ. The disciples and the crowd had heard that same Word – and they had witnessed that Word being fulfilled; they had seen that Word in action – and yet they did not see what blind Bartimaeus could see; they did not believe what blind Bartimaeus believed. Jesus granted Bartimaeus his sight because he could already see with the eyes of faith; his physical sight was a blessing, a fruit, of the true gift of grace he possessed – faith. Though he was physically blind, Bartimaeus did not let his suffering keep him from believing. Indeed, his faith provided him all that he needed to live and persevere, even through his suffering and tribulation.

As He set His face to go to Jerusalem where He would suffer and die, Jesus called His disciples to see with the eyes of faith. Soon, they would see Jesus betrayed into the hands of sinful men by one of their own. Soon, they would see Jesus tried and convicted by both Jews and Gentiles, and betrayed again by Peter, even though Jesus had told him beforehand, and Peter swore that he would die for Him rather than betray Him. Soon, they would see Jesus mocked and ridiculed and spit upon, flogged and scourged, crucified, dead, and buried. Jesus was calling His disciples to see with the eyes of faith, trusting in the Word spoken by the Prophets, trusting in His Word, “and on the third day He will rise,” so that they would persevere through Jesus’ Passion, and so that they would persevere through their own suffering and tribulation as they take up their crosses and follow Him. But, at this stage, “they understood none of these things,” they did not believe, and “this saying was hidden from them.”

Similarly, the LORD called Samuel to see with the eyes of faith, to trust in His Word despite what he saw with his eyes. The LORD sent Samuel to the home of Jesse in Bethlehem to anoint one of his sons as king, the successor of Saul. However, Samuel was afraid of Saul, fearful that Saul would kill him. Nevertheless, Samuel trusted in the LORD and went as the LORD commanded him. Jesse presented his eldest, strongest, most kingly sons before Samuel, but the LORD had not chosen any of them. Finally, Jesse presented his young son David, whom he had never even considered because to the eyes he was young, soft, and unimpressive. But the LORD had chosen David to succeed Saul, despite what the eyes of men had seen, for the LORD looks upon the heart of a man and not the outward appearance.

Isaiah prophesied of Jesus, “He had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. His appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind. He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not.” Human eyes despised and rejected Jesus, considered Him to be nothing but an unimpressive man, but the eyes of faith beheld the LORD’s Messiah, our Savior, and trusted in Him.

Dearly beloved, we too are about to go with Jesus up to Jerusalem as we begin our Lenten pilgrimage with Him. The LORD calls you once again to see differently, to see with the eyes of Spirit-given faith. Such seeing will not only help you to worship your Lord rightly and to receive His gifts, but such seeing will also help you and encourage you that you should persevere through the trials and tribulations and sufferings that you and those you love suffer as you make your pilgrimage through this life into life that cannot die. The LORD calls you to see that He is with you, just as He has promised, in His Word proclaimed, and in His Word made visible, touchable, and testable – Holy Baptism, Confession and Absolution, and in the Holy Supper of His body and blood. In these ways your LORD is with you and cares for you as you make your pilgrim way that you may not fail but reach your heavenly goal. And, as He blesses you, He also makes you a blessing, that through you more and more might see and believe and reach their heavenly goal with you. To God alone be all glory and praise.

In the + Name of Jesus.

Sexagesima

(Audio)

Luke 8:4-15; 2 Corinthians 11:19 – 12:9; Isaiah 55:10-13

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

You must notice the nonchalant, almost cavalier way your Lord speaks about preaching? He presents to you a sower who went out to sow his seed. And, as your Lord tells the story, the sower sowed his seed indiscriminately, the vast majority of it falling amongst rocks, thorns, and thistles, and a quarter of the seed even falling upon the hard, beat down path where it is trampled underfoot and is eaten by the birds. Further, as Jesus told this parable to the crowds who followed Him, He cried out, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” He might as well have said, “Understand this, if you are able” or “Let the wise be wise, and the foolish foolish.”

Jesus’ point, of course, is that, while soil must be of a certain quality to produce fruit, so too men’s hearts must be of a certain quality in order to produce the fruit of love in good works in service of their neighbor. It is not enough that the seed merely make contact with soil, for, unless the seed can penetrate the soil, grow a strong root, and receive proper nourishment, light, and water it cannot, and it will not, produce fruit. Likewise, though all men have ears, and most hear sounds quite well, still most do not hear the Word of God and receive it as seed in good soil. Indeed, even men who are physically deaf and unable to hear are, nevertheless, able to hear the Word of God and receive it in faith and hold it fast in an honest and good heart, bearing fruit with patience.

But, this is precisely what Isaiah prophesied concerning the Word of God saying, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.” As the rain and the snow fall upon the entirety of the earth indiscriminately, and not only upon the rich, tilled, and weeded soil of the fields, so does the Word of God go out into the world.

And, what is the result of this preaching? What is the result of such indiscriminate sowing of God’s Word? Is it not that the soil of men’s hearts is exposed for what it truly is, stony soil, thorn and thistle infested soil, rock-hard soil that cannot even receive the seed of the Word? For, you must understand that the failure to produce fruit does not rest with the seed, but with the soil. The seed of the Word of God is life-giving, creative, and powerful; it will accomplish that for which it was sent. But, what about the soil? What about the condition of men’s hearts? If the soil of the heart is good – that is, if it has been broken, de-stoned, and weeded through repentance and contrition over sins, then it will receive the seed of the Word of God and the seed will begin to do its work, producing fruit. But, if the soil of the heart is hard and impenetrable, filled through with stones, and infested with thorns and thistles, will not the good seed of God’s Word expose the soil of the heart for what it is? This is why Jesus says “He who has ears to hear, let him hear.” God’s Word is either received in repentance and humility or it is rejected in unbelief. If it is received, that is due to God’s grace and the creative power of His Word. If it is rejected, then man’s heart remains what it already and truly is, hard and dead. We all have ears, but not all hear the Word of God. Faith comes by hearing, but hearing comes by the Word of God. He who has ears to hear, let him hear.

For, surely you aware that there is no such thing as pre-tilled soil, but all soil is either hard, stony, or infested with weeds, thorns, and thistles. In order to sow seeds, with the hope of producing fruit, soil must be worked and broken, it must be tilled, de-stoned, and weeded. And, soil doesn’t till, de-stone, and weed itself, does it? But, the good seed of God’s Word has the power to break the hardened heart, to pluck out the stones, and to pull the weeds with the preaching of the Law that you might turn in repentance. And, when faith is created, it is nurtured and nourished, pruned and cultivated over time, by trial and tribulation, that it may grow and bear fruit in patience.

In another parable, that of the wheat and the tares, Jesus told His disciples that it was an enemy who had sown the tares in with the wheat. Indeed, from the moment the seed of God’s Word is sown in the hearts of men, the devil begins his attack. Satan snatches the Word away from hard hearts. The riches and pleasures of this life choke off faith. Shallow and emotional belief withers in time of temptation and trouble.

But, take heart, for Christ has borne this attack for you. Christ’s cross was planted in the hard and rocky soil of Golgotha. A crown of thorns was placed upon His head. Satan and His demons hellishly hounded and devoured Him. Yet, through His dying and rising again, He destroyed these enemies of yours. Jesus is Himself the Seed which fell to the ground and died in order that it might sprout forth to new life and produce much grain. He is the vine and you are His branches; baptized into Him, you remain in Him and He remains you, that you will bear much fruit.

And Jesus is the seed of the woman Eve, planted in the virgin soil of Mary’s womb. When the Word of God became flesh and made His dwelling amongst us, He took your flesh, through death, into life, crushing the serpent’s head, and rising again, the first fruits of those who die in Him, a hundredfold.

The Word of God is good seed. It is always efficacious. Whether it be preached to hardened, stony, or thorn infested hearts, or even good soil, it matters not, for the Word of God will not return to Him void, but it will accomplish that for which it was sent. It alone has the power to bring something out of nothing. It alone has the power to create and sustain faith. And it alone has the power to till hardened, stony, and thorn infested hearts and cause them to bear fruit, a harvest a hundredfold.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Septuagesima

(Audio)

Matthew 20:1-6; 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.

The kingdom of heaven is not a noun, but it is a verb. When we hear or read the word kingdom in an English translation of the Scriptures, we typically think of a place or a thing, however, the word used here is not a place or a thing, but it is an action. Indeed, a more accurate translation of the kingdom of heaven would be the reigning of heaven. Thus, when Jesus begins His parables saying, “The kingdom of heaven is like…,” you should hear Him saying “The reigning of heaven is like [thus and thus]….” In today’s parable of the Workers in the Vineyard, the reigning of heaven “is like a master of a house who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard” – the entirety of the parable is meant to communicate something about what the reigning of heaven is like.

The very first thing that you should take away from Jesus’ kingdom parable is that He is the actor in it; Jesus is the one reigning in and through His kingdom. Jesus begins the parable with a master hiring workers for his vineyard. Without the master there is no vineyard and no work. Moreover, those hired were not hired because they applied, or because they had certain skills or talents, but they were hired because the master went out and hired them. Though Jesus says that the master agreed with the laborers for the typical daily wage of a denarius, this is simply His master story-telling in action, for He concludes His parable with the master giving the same to all, not because of their labor or merits, but because of his grace saying, “I choose to give to this last worker as I give to you.” It is clear that Jesus Himself is the master in this parable, even as He is the sower of the seed in the two agriculturally themed parables which precede it in Matthew chapter 13: The Parable of the Sower and the Parable of the Weeds. Jesus is the sower and His Word the life and faith creating and bestowing seed; we are the more or less receptive soil. Jesus is the master “who went out early in the morning to hire laborers for his vineyard.” We are those standing around idle and passive, unable to earn or merit anything but death. Thus, the reigning of heaven is undeserved, unmerited grace, completely and entirely the work of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who has called us out of sinful idleness to fruitful service in His kingdom.

Indeed, this is how Luther understands and confesses the Second Petition of The Lord’s Prayer, “Thy kingdom come.” God’s kingdom comes,” Luther confesses, “when our heavenly Father gives us His Holy Spirit, so that by His grace we believe His holy Word and lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity.” God’s kingdom, God’s reigning, comes to us – not the other way around; we do not come to it – and we receive God’s kingdom, God’s reigning, by bearing His fruits, when we “lead godly lives here in time and there in eternity.” There were no workers in the master’s vineyard prior to the master’s call, just as there was no fruitful soil until the sower sowed his seed. We all stand in sinful idleness, which is death, having no ability whatsoever to become fruitful or alive. We are Lazarus, dead in the tomb four days so that we stinketh. Were it not for the Word of the LORD calling us, and the Holy Spirit delivered through that Word creating faith in our hearts, we would remain the hard packed soil of the path, we would remain Lazarus’ stinking, rotting, decaying corpse decomposing in the tombs of our own making, the true wages we have earned, merited, and deserved for our works, the best of which, apart from grace, are no better than filthy rags. Oh how we value and idolize and worship the false god of equality, while there is truly only one thing that we are equal in: All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God; and the wages of our sin is always, and only, death.

Equality with those hired first in the day is what the workers hired last in the day received – they each received a denarius regardless of how long they worked. Cleverly, however, the master had the workers hired last paid first, and then those hired earlier in the day. Those hired last do not complain, but they receive their wage and go contentedly on their way, while those hired first “began to grumble at the master of the house, saying ‘These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat’.” Here our Lord gets directly at the root of what causes us so much misery and suffering in our lives and in our world: Greed, jealousy, entitlement, which bear the fruits of resentment, hatred, and lack mercy, charity, and, worst of all, love. And, all of that is but the sin-sick and diseased-unto-death fruit of idolatry, a failure to fear, love, and trust in God above all things. All of this is endemic of your false delusion that you have anything that you can offer to God, anything of value that is truly yours of which you may boast or earn or merit or place your trust in.

What did Lazarus have to contribute to his resurrection? What did the soil have to contribute to its fruitfulness? What did unemployed, idle workers have that would earn them a denarius, let alone much less or anything at all? What did the heavens and earth contribute to their creation? Nothing! God creates ex nihilo, that is, out of nothing. Likewise the Holy Spirit creates faith in men’s hearts when and where He pleases through the goodly seed of the Word of God, which the Sower sows here and there equally, without discrimination, and causes to be fruitful when, and where He pleases. The vineyard is the Lord’s. The seed is the Lord’s. The fruit is the Lord’s. But, the good news is that you get to bear it, and that the Lord will credit you for it – which is something considerably different than insisting that you have earned it and merited it. That is to steal from God, an absurd and blasphemous notion, but one that you are tempted to do daily and often do willingly or unwillingly in sinful rebellion or ignorance.

Truly we are equal in the eyes of the LORD, but not because of our works or merit, or even because of our faith. Equally, we are hopeless sinners. Equally, we are forgiven in the blood of Jesus, who chooses to give to the last the same as the first. Do you begrudge the LORD His generosity? Is the LORD not allowed to do what He chooses with what belongs to Him? First or last – what concern is this of yours? It is the LORD who is the First and the Last, the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End – and, frankly, everything in between. Take what belongs to you – not what you have earned, merited, and deserved, but what the LORD has freely and graciously given you at the cost of His Son – and go in His peace bearing His fruits, chief of which is love and its fruits: mercy, compassion, charity, kindness, forgiveness.

The kingdom of heaven is a kingdom of grace. The reigning of heaven is a reigning of grace. The workers thought that they were earning their wages, but in the end all received the same, without works or merit, by grace. The only thing that you earn or merit for your works is death: “The wages of sin is death.” Thanks be to God that He doesn’t give you what you deserve! Instead, the LORD gives the first and the last, all whom He calls to faith and fruitfulness in Jesus Christ, eternal life in His kingdom. Being in the LORD’s kingdom means bearing the LORD’s fruits in good times and in bad, in times of prosperity and in times of dearth, in times of joy and in times of sorrow. Think about it – Jesus is the vine and you are His branches. Branches only produce fruit because they remain connected to the vine; the life of the vine flows through them and makes the branches fruitful. The fruit you bear – your good works, love, mercy, etc. – are the LORD’s fruit, not your own, no more than you would say that the grapes are the fruit of the branch. No, grapes are universally called the fruit of the vine. Moreover, vines often have to endure and persevere through drought and flood, through disease and blight. If the vine suffers these things and endures, so do the vine’s branches. Nevertheless, the life of the vine continues to sustain and preserve the branches and make them fruitful.

“These last worked only one hour, and you have made them equal to us who have borne the burden of the day and the scorching heat.” So what. What is that between Me and you, thus saith the LORD? Let such thoughts be far from your hearts and minds and mouths. When you do think and speak them, repent. As we prayed in today’s Collect, we justly deserve the consequences of our sins, but we pray that we might be mercifully delivered by the LORD’s goodness to the glory of His Name. We are all runners in the same race and, if we finish, if we die in the grace of the LORD, we all receive the same prize, eternal life with our Holy Triune God in heaven. What an absurd and scandalous grace we enjoy and bask in! That is why it is all the more absurd and scandalous that you should judge others as less worthy than yourself, that you look down your nose at them and their misdeeds and consider yourself superior – you hypocrite! Rather, in this race, if you see your brother stumble, help him to get up and finish the race. You will not forfeit first prize. There is no first prize, or last prize, but there is only the perfect and holy life of Jesus for all who finish the race. Oh, the temptations to quit midway are enormous and relentless, but the LORD has provided this hospital, this Church for you to bind up your wounds when you are injured and sick, pouring on holy wine and oil and water in forgiveness, to strengthen your faith, and to equip you with His gifts that you may persevere, more than that, that you may help others to persevere. Indeed, we’re all in this together, for we, like those who have gone before us, are under the same cloud of the LORD’s glory, have passed through the same sea of Holy Baptism, eat the same spiritual food and drink the same spiritual drink. Yet, as the LORD was not pleased with most of them, even so the LORD will not be pleased by those who fail to produce His fruits, leading “godly lives here in time and there in eternity.”

The kingdom of heaven is a kingdom of grace. The reigning of heaven is a reigning of grace. Come, eat and drink deeply of the fruit of the True Vine Jesus Christ, our Spiritual Rock who is with us, and be renewed in His grace, cleansed from your sins, strengthened in your faith, and equipped and sent to be fruitful with His fruits. Let His life flow through you and make you fruitful, for He is your life, there is none other, and bear His fruits of love, mercy, grace, charity, compassion, and forgiveness and so enliven others to the glory of His Name.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord

(Audio)

Matthew 17:1-9; 2 Peter 1:16-21; Exodus 34:29-35

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

A biblical vision is not a dream per se. That is, a vision is not something that you have, but it is something that is given to you, by God, for you to see and to experience. Moreover, what is given to you to see and to experience is not something new, but it is something that was there all along with you, but you could not see it, either because of God’s will, because of your own sinful weakness and unbelief, or both.

Matthew’s account of the Transfiguration of Our Lord occurs six days after Peter’s confession of Jesus, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.” That was a great confession that Peter made, and Jesus praised it stating that it had been revealed to Peter by God. Jesus was, and had been, the Christ, the Son of the Living God, all along, though Peter and the disciples, and the crowds, had not been able to see or to experience that truth. Throughout this Epiphany season we have heard how Jesus began to manifest and to show forth outwardly who He was and what He had come to do in miracles and signs and teaching: Impressing the rabbis in the temple with His teaching; the events of His Holy Baptism; His first miracle, changing water into wine; the healing of Jewish leper and a Gentile centurion’s servant; and more. However, Peter was the first of Jesus’ disciples to put this all together and to see and confess that Jesus is the promised Messiah and Christ of God, even the very Son of God, and this confession came not from his own flesh and blood and reason, but this truth was revealed to Peter by God the Father. It was true all along, but Peter and the disciples could not see it or experience it, until God revealed this truth to them.

In the days following Peter’s confession, Jesus began to teach His disciples that He “must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised.” Then Peter, who had made the great confession concerning Jesus, “took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you’.” But, just as his great confession was revealed by God, so Peter’s rebuke had a different inspiration. Jesus said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Then Jesus began to teach of the suffering His disciples must face as well saying, “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it.”

This is what transpired in the six days between Peter’s great confession and Jesus’ Transfiguration. Blessed by God to see and to confess Jesus as the Christ and the Son of God, Peter, nonetheless, refused to believe and accept that Jesus’ mission was to suffer and die for the sins of men, and be raised from death. Not only did Peter refuse to believe and accept this truth, but he actively sought to prevent Jesus from carrying it through. Understanding this helps us understand what Peter had in mind on the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter was understandably impressed by the glory he was blessed to see as Jesus was transfigured on the mountaintop. We even have a name for such a feeling of elation and joy – A mountaintop experience. And, like ourselves when we experience such elation and joy, Peter wanted to preserve it. “Lord, it is good that we are here. If you wish, I will make three tents here, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” The word tent doesn’t capture the fullness of the what Peter had in mind. The word he used was the very same word that was used for the Tabernacle in the Old Testament. Peter wanted to stay up there on the mountaintop in glory. He wanted to enshrine that glorious moment and preserve it forever, just as he had embraced the glorious confession that Jesus was the Christ, the Son of the Living God, but refused to believe and accept that Jesus had come to suffer and die for the sins of Adam and his children.

Once again Peter was rebuked, this time by the LORD Himself speaking from the cloud, “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.” The LORD effectively cut Peter off in the middle of his misguided glory-loving elation, effectively saying, “Shut up! Listen to Jesus!” At the voice of God, Peter, James, and John all fell down as though dead, the proper and inevitable response of sinners in the presence of the glory of the LORD. Then, Jesus touched them and said to them, “Rise, and have no fear.” It was an absolution. Jesus blessed them and forgave them. “And when they lifted up their eyes, they saw no one but Jesus only.”

Remember, at the beginning of this homily I stated that a biblical vision is not the same as dreams we have when sleeping, but a vision is a special sight that we are given by grace to see something that has been there all along but hidden, under a veil, or that we were simply unable to see because of God’s will or our own sinful weakness and unbelief, or both. I truly believe that Moses and Elijah were still there, indeed angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven, for wherever Jesus is, there is paradise, there is heaven, but once again, the disciples were unable to see it, but they saw only Jesus. The blessing of Jesus’ transfiguration is that we are invited to see with the eyes of faith the glory of God in the person of Jesus, in whom all the fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily. The disciples were permitted this glimpse of Jesus’ glory that their faith might be strengthened and that they might persevere through the dark days and events that were soon to follow, Jesus’ arrest, mocking, scourging, crucifixion, death, and burial, in the hope of the promise, on the third day He will rise.

It is no coincidence that The Feast of the Transfiguration of Our Lord is positioned here, at the end of Epiphanytide, just before we enter into Lent and the remembrance of our Lord’s Passion. The Church would prepare us to face the suffering, humiliation, and death of Jesus, and to take up our own cross and follow Him in His way, by reminding us, but revealing to us, that He is with us all along the way, indeed, that all of the glory of heaven – saints, angels, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – are with us even now, even in our darkest moments as well as the joyous ones, even as we face death, that we should be encouraged, our faith strengthened, that we should persevere in hope, contentment, peace, and even joy.

Throughout our pilgrimage we are tempted to doubt and despair when we face difficulty, trial, tribulation, sickness, and death. However, our Lord has promised that we are not alone, that He is with us, indeed, that He will never leave us until all is fulfilled. Surely, His Spirit is with us wherever we are and wherever we go, just as He has promised, but His glorious presence is in His Church where we all gather together as one in His Word and Gifts in worship of our God who is with us. Our God is with us just as He has promised in His Word proclaimed, in the waters of Holy Baptism, in His absolution bestowed anew, and in His body and blood received by all who believe and trust in Him for forgiveness, life, and salvation. For those blessed with Spirit-given eyes that truly see and ears that truly hear, heaven has come down to earth, Jesus is present, with angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven. This is the Mount of Transfiguration. This is the Gate of Heaven. It is good, Lord, to be here. Yet, as we leave this Mount, Christ accompanies us on the plain.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Christian Funeral for Romane Lavern Krueger

(Audio)

John 14:1-6; 1 John 3:1-2; Lamentations 3:22-33

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

Romane Lavern Krueger was born on June 21, 1934. He was baptized on July 15. He was confirmed on Palm Sunday of 1948. And, he was married to Helen Landsverk on January 18, 1953. So reads Romane’s obituary.

I love that! That tells me something about Romane: Romane’s life was marked by the LORD’s grace and by his own Spirit created and sustained faith. Romane’s life was marked by the LORD at its very beginning in Holy Baptism, was nourished, protected, and sustained throughout his life through the regular hearing of the LORD’s Word and reception of the blessed Sacrament, was blessed with love and joy in his union and sixty-seven years marriage to Helen, and now, at this very moment Romane’s life is marked with the promise and blessing of the resurrection of his body and reunification with his immortal soul unto life that cannot die. That’s the way it’s supposed to go, friends: A life begun, lived and sustained, and finished under the LORD’s grace, mercy, love, and compassion. The LORD was Romane’s portion, and his hope was in the LORD.

But, if you knew Romane, you didn’t need an obituary to tell you that, did you? Indeed, John confessed that, if you lived under Romane’s roof, going to church was not an option, it was expected. You didn’t ask if you were going to go to church. Moreover, Romane lived his faith; perhaps it would be better to say that Romane’s faith lived him. Romane was polite and respectful. He never spoke of anyone negatively, and he would gently correct those who did. In this respect Romane loved his neighbor, his fellow man, and treated him as our Lord would treat them, as a fellow child of God redeemed in the blood of Jesus. It’s really the Golden Rule, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” and also the Eighth Commandment, “Do not bear false witness against your neighbor,” which commands us to speak kindly of others and to always put the best construction on their words and deeds.

Romane was a good sportsman too. He was never condescending, but always found something good to say about everyone. That is, unless the Cubs are losing early in the game. Then Romane became the great Baseball Forecaster: “That’s it. The game’s over. Cub’s just lost.” It was only the first inning. Maybe that’s not unique to Romane, but that’s just being a Cub’s fan. Romane enjoyed sport of all kinds, particularly baseball (Cubs), football (Hawkeyes), and basketball (Hawkeyes). Romane showed his kindness and politeness whenever I’d visit to bring him communion. Knowing that I am a Yankees fan, he never said a bad word about the Yankees and, in fact, always found something good to say, even though he was a fan of the Cubs and anyone who was playing against the Yankees. Romane loved cribbage too, and he was a crack shot at pool. John recalled a time when he played pool with Dad. John racked and never got a chance to shoot as Romane ran the table multiple times in a row! Romane loved to play pool with John Behne, Duane Bahlmann, and Dick Dreesman, and others. Romane also enjoyed nature: Camping with the Behne’s and the Noel’s, fishing at Balsam Lake in Wisconsin, winters in New Braunfels, Texas. Suffice it to say, the LORD blessed Romane with the rich and wonderful gifts of family and friends, which Romane enjoyed and gave thanks for throughout his lifetime.

Undoubtedly Romane would count the greatest of his many blessings to be his bride and lifelong companion Helen. Romane loved to buy yellow roses for Helen, for the “Yellow Rose of Texas,” something they enjoyed together for so many of those years. One Christmas Helen did not get a yellow rose but a box of chocolate covered cherries instead. As Helen received the box with a hint of disappointment, Romane couldn’t manage to hide a little knowing smirk. There was a yellow rose inside the box of chocolates. Romane and Helen were blessed to celebrate sixty-seven years of marriage just a week before the LORD called him home.

As active, full, and rich as Romane had lived his life, one could easily imagine how he might have become depressed and despondent the past four years as he largely became confined to a recliner due to excruciating back pain, the result of osteoporosis. He was down, at times, to be sure; such is only natural, and human. And yet, Romane’s faith and good nature continued to ring through. He maintained that content and peaceable demeanor and hopeful disposition that, I believe, only people of faith can truly muster. The reading from Lamentations rings true once again: “‘The LORD is my portion,’ says my soul, ‘therefore I will hope in him.’” “For the Lord will not cast off forever, but though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not afflict from his heart or grieve the children of men.” “The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.”

Romane was God’s child. In Holy Baptism, the LORD named and claimed Romane as His own child, as His very own son, and He made wonderful, gracious promises to Romane, promises that can never be broken: I will never leave you or forsake you. Nothing can separate you from my love. I am with you always, even to the end of the age. However, Romane didn’t become God’s child Saturday morning, but Romane became God’s child on July 15, 1934 when he was baptized, when God washed him clean in the blood of the Lamb, God’s own Son, Jesus Christ. “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” “Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.” In his life, Romane was God’s child now. Therefore, Romane’s heart was not troubled as he faced death, for he knew that he had a home, in a mansion!, in heaven prepared and waiting for him. “Let not your hearts be troubled,” Jesus said, “Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many rooms.” “I go to prepare a place for you, and I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.” Thank you, Jesus.

And, there’s a place for you there too, through faith in Jesus Christ, your savior and redeemer. You, too, are God’s children nowthrough Holy Baptism and through Holy Spirit created and sustained faith. And, what you will be has not yet appeared. You will be raised from death, glorified, reunited in body and soul that cannot die. For, the promise we have in Jesus is not a promise merely of spiritual life in heaven, but it is a promise of real, human, flesh and blood life in body and soul, just as God intended in the beginning, forever and ever in His presence. We will see Romane again, just as you knew him in life, but glorified, without pain, suffering, weakness, and without death. Our Lord Jesus has put it this way, “So you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from 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. I had a different hymn programmed for today, but as this homily came together it became obvious and fitting that we should sing “What God Ordains Is Always Good.” Let me refresh your memory of what we sang a few minutes ago: “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 Epiphany (Epiphany 2)

(Audio)

John 2:1-11; Romans 12:6-16; Exodus 33:12-23

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

Our Lord manifests His glory in the humble, ordinary, and mundane things of our humble, ordinary, and mundane lives and world: Water, bread, wine, and preachers; the marriage of a man and a woman and the consequent home and family they share together; the birth of a child and her consequent care and nurture. Truly, those who seek the LORD in power and great glory will not find Him, for He is not there, but the LORD is where He has promised to be, in the things, places, and people He promises to be present in, no matter how humble, ordinary, and mundane they may be.

And so, wise men from the east were led by a star to the Christ child. They found Him, not in the royal city of Jerusalem, or even in David’s city of Bethlehem, but in lowly Nazareth in the humble home of a humble carpenter. He was not a great man of stature, wealth, and power but a lowly helpless infant who needed to be fed and clothed and changed by His humble, ordinary, mother and father.

As a boy, Jesus did what young Hebrew boys do, He attended synagogue and temple with His parents, studied and learned the Word of the LORD, and learned His father’s trade and assisted him. The rabbis in the temple marveled at His wisdom and learning at such a young age, for He was just a humble, ordinary boy from a humble, ordinary village, the son of humble, ordinary parents. Similarly, Jesus was baptized in the same murky waters that hundreds, maybe thousands, of humble, ordinary, men, women, and children – sinners all – were baptized in. They emerged cleansed from their sins, whereas Jesus took their sins upon Himself. John cried out, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” But the crowds only saw Jesus, the carpenter’s son from backwater Nazareth.

Today we hear about Jesus attending a wedding. Think about that for a moment. How many weddings have you attended in your lifetime? No doubt, several. Hundreds, maybe thousands, of couples get married, and, sadly, divorced, every day. Few things could be more common, ordinary, and mundane than a wedding. Nevertheless, the Evangelist thought it important to include this story in his Gospel. It was a humble, ordinary wedding in a humble, ordinary village, Cana in Galilee, not far from Jesus’ hometown of Nazareth and Capernaum, the home base of His Galilean ministry. And, this wedding had an extremely humble, ordinary, and mundane problem – they had run out of wine.

Now, a little cultural background is helpful to understand why this was such a problem. First century Jewish weddings were weeklong affairs to which the whole village was invited in addition to the extensive family members of the bride and the groom. To run out of wine so early in the celebration would be a grave social embarrassment to the young couple and their families, and even the community. In this story about Jesus we see that Jesus cares, we see that God cares, about things as common, ordinary, humble, mundane, and human as weddings and the common, ordinary, humble, mundane human problems we face every day. The crux of this story, however, is not really the social problem or the miracle of turning water into wine, but it is that Jesus manifested His glory and His disciples believed in Him.

Yes, the end result of Jesus’ first recorded sign or miracle is that the twelve disciples believed in Him. Although there were likely hundreds of people present at the wedding, only the twelve, some servants, and His mother Mary knew what had occurred. Indeed, this helps us to understand the strange dialogue between Jesus and His mother when she informed Him that they had run out of wine. Jesus answered her saying that His hour had not yet come. The hour is Jesus’ time and God’s time, and Jesus’ and God’s timeline. Just as the Lord manifests His glory in humble and ordinary ways, so the Lord does so according to His time and timeline. Truly, faith in Jesus, faith in God, is to believe and trust in Him, in His goodness and providence, to act when He knows it to be right, good, and the best time. The faithful wait on the Lord and trust in His Word. Often, we have to wait as the disease worsens, as death approaches, as we wonder how we’re going to be able to pay our bills or when our wayward children might return home or their faith might be rekindled.

And so, Jesus answers His mother’s prayer. Jesus intervenes and helps the desperate situation. But, He does so in a way that draws little attention to Himself, but the attention of a select few. He instructed the servants to fill the six stone jars set aside for purification rites with water to the very brim. Those jars represented the Law of God which exposes man’s sinful uncleanness. The participants in the wedding were all sinners. They had to ceremonially wash themselves before they could participate in the feast. Jesus transformed the purifying waters necessary for the cleansing of sinners into the very best wine of celebration and joy. The servants believed they drew water from the jars, but when the master of the feast tasted it he found it to be the finest of wines. He gave the credit and the glory, not to Jesus, but to the bridegroom, exclaiming, “Everyone serves the good wine first, and when people have drunk freely, then the poor wine. But you have kept the good wine until now!” In His time, and in His way, Jesus manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

What about everyone else? Well, they enjoyed the wedding feast, and they enjoyed the very good wine, without taking notice of the Lord’s presence and actions. And, we are often no better than them. We only look to the Lord in things that seem impressive to us or in times of desperate need. We often do not think of Him in the common, ordinary, humble, and mundane day to day routines of our lives: Preparing meals, doing household chores, changing diapers, going to work or school, etc. And yet, Jesus is there with you in those common, ordinary, humble, and mundane things just as He was present at that all-too common and ordinary wedding. I encourage you to look for Him in your lives, to invite Him into your day to day common, ordinary, humble, and mundane lives. The common table prayer is just such a prayer: “Come, Lord Jesus, be our guest.” I know that I have often thought to myself, “Why would Jesus want to be a guest here, at this common, ordinary, humble, and mundane table?” I’ve even thought to myself, “Do I really want Him to be here, as we squabble and fuss with trivial things and even quarrel and bicker at times?” Lord, help us to want Jesus to be with us. Holy Spirit, cause us to believe that He wants to and is with us, just as He has promised. And, help us to be patient and to trust that the Lord will do what He knows best in the time that He knows to be best.

Our Lord Jesus is present with us now, just as He has promised, in the common, ordinary, humble, and mundane people, building, and materials of the Church. We don’t look like much to the world, or even to each other, and yet Jesus is here in His Word proclaimed, in the water of Holy Baptism, in the forgiveness of sins, in the bread and wine of His Supper, and in the hearts, words, and deeds of you His people, His brothers and sisters, His Bride. Truly, this is a foretaste of the wedding feast we will celebrate with Him in heaven forever after. And, the Spirit and the Bride continually pray, “Come, Lord Jesus. Come quickly! Come!”

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Baptism of Our Lord

(Audio)

Matthew 3:13-17; 1 Corinthians 1:26-31; Isaiah 42:1-7

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

Our God, who created all things in the beginning, who sustains all things even now, also works through the stuff of His creation to redeem and re-create it anew. And so, the LORD dwelt with men in gardens, on mountaintops, in tents and temples, and promised plots of land and, but ultimately, in the flesh and blood body of a human man, and in the common bread and wine and water of the Sacraments. One need only consider how many times a very specific river, in a very specific geographical location, factors in the LORD’s salvific interactions with His people.

Joshua, the Greek rendering of the name Jesus, lead the children of Israel across the Jordan into the Promised Land, leaving their past slavery to sin and idolatrous wandering behind. At the LORD’s command the priests of Israel entered the waters of the Jordan carrying the Ark of the Covenant and the waters parted providing them safe passage on dry ground. Joshua completed what Moses was meant to do, and yet Joshua’s crossing the Jordan did not see its fulfillment until Jesus, the Son of God, foreshadowed in the Ark of the Covenant, the New Joshua and New Moses, Himself, was baptized in the Jordan and opened the Promised Land of heaven to all who are baptized into Him.

Later, the prophet Elijah transferred his prophetic ministry to Elisha at the Jordan, casting his cloak upon him, foreshadowing John the Baptist consenting to baptize Jesus in the very same river in order to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus proclaimed that John was the promised Elijah who prepared the way for His coming as the Prophet promised to Moses and the children of Israel from their own midst in whose mouth God would place His very own Word. However, Jesus does not merely speak the Word of the LORD, but Jesus is the very Word of the LORD in human flesh as our brother and redeemer.

There is even a connection with Noah and the Flood that involves the Jordan River, albeit in a less direct way. As Jesus stood in the waters of the Jordan, heaven was opened to Him, the voice of His Father spoke, and the Spirit descended upon Him as a dove. So was Noah the man in the water, floating in the ark. He was there because God opened the heavens to rain down the flood. The signal that the waters had receded and that the earth was dry once again was a dove that returned to Noah with a freshly plucked olive leaf in its beak. In the very same is a connection to Adam: Jesus is the New Adam leading mankind and animal kind into the New Eden where God dwells at peace with His creation once again. Suffice it to say, Jesus’ baptism is the story of creation retold.

In Holy Baptism, you were made a New Creation and were graced with access to God the Father once again. You went into the water a condemned sinner to drown and die in the flood of God’s wrath against sin, but you came up out of the water a new man, woman, or child, an adopted son or daughter of God in Jesus Christ, a true heir with Him of all that belongs to the Father: righteousness, holiness, heaven and earth, life that can never die. As the Father said of His Son on the day of His baptism, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased,” so He has said of you in your baptism. The heavenly dove, the Holy Spirit, alighted upon you and remains with you, the Spirit of wisdom, counsel, knowledge, and the fear of the LORD.

In the baptism of Jesus at the Jordan are Adam, Noah, Moses, Joshua, Elijah, and Elisha, and also you. In baptism you are Adam, a true son of God having unhindered access to Him in the paradise of heaven. In baptism you are Noah, kept safe in the Ark of the Church until the flood waters of God’s wrath against sin have receded, and the heavenly dove, the Holy Spirit, bespeaks to you peace with God through Jesus Christ. In baptism you are preceded by the New Moses through the raging sea on dry land, and your Joshua, your Jesus, leads you into the Promised Land of peace with God. Jesus’ baptism was necessary for your salvation, necessary to fulfill all righteousness. Therefore, the New Elijah, John the Baptist, consented to baptize Jesus, and he himself decreased that Jesus should increase.

Your baptism was pure gift, pure grace, no strings attached. Baptism is not a work of man, nor a decision or choice that you make, but it is the LORD’s design and the LORD’s gift foreshadowed throughout the Old Testament and fulfilled in Jesus. Through baptism you drowned and died in the wrathful waters, but you were raised to new life that cannot die. Though sin still clings to you, you need not be baptized again but, as our Lord Jesus has taught, you need only have your feet washed and you are clean. That is to say, you return to your baptismal purity and wash your robes clean in the blood of the Lamb when you repent, confess your sins, and are absolved, when you hear and believe and trust in the Gospel, and when you eat and drink Jesus’ body and blood for the forgiveness of your sins. All these the LORD graciously provides you in the safety and grace of His Ark, the Holy Christian Church.

“Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.”

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. 

The truth is, of course, is 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 within them 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 were 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.