Homily for The Eighth Sunday after Trinity ( Trinity 8)

(Audio)

Matthew 7:15-23; Romans 8:12-17; Jeremiah 23:16-29

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

Listen carefully; I have an important truth to share with you today: It is not ok to say that it is ok to do what the LORD has said it is not ok to do. Now, that seems like an easy enough principle to understand, doesn’t it? Apparently, unfortunately, it isn’t. Similarly, it is not ok to say that it is not ok to do what the LORD has not said it is not ok to do. You see, that’s the other side of the same coin. So, do you get it? Let me summarize: No one should permit, encourage, and bless what God has forbidden and has not blessed, and, likewise, no one should forbid, discourage, or condemn what God has not forbidden or condemned. Therefore, whoever claims to speak for God had better only say what God has said, without adding to it, and without taking away from it. That is what it means to be a prophet, a mouthpiece for God through whom He speaks, called and sent by God to proclaim His Word to men.

And yet, the LORD has said that there will be false prophets who speak “visions of their own minds, not from the mouth of the LORD.” Such false prophets continually say to people who despise the Word of the LORD, “It shall be well with you” and “no disaster shall come upon you,” or, in other words, “Go ahead, keep on doing what you’re doing. God said not to? Oh, that’s a misinterpretation. Go ahead, it’s ok. God loves you.” Go ahead and curse like a sailor. Go ahead and download music and movies without paying for them. Go ahead and have sex outside of marriage. Go ahead and cheat on your taxes. Go ahead and terminate that pregnancy. Go ahead and bless that same-sex marriage. God didn’t mean what those bigoted, hate-mongering, fear-peddling preachers say He meant. God loves you and He just wants you to be happy. The LORD says that such false prophets “heal the wound of my people lightly, saying ‘Peace, peace,’ when there is no peace.” They are those false prophets who “call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter.” “I did not send the prophets, yet they ran,” says the LORD; “I did not speak to them, yet they prophesied. But if they had stood in my council, then they would have proclaimed my Words to my people, and they would have turned from their evil way, and from the evil of their deeds.”

And it is an unfortunate reality that there will always false prophets, for they will always have an audience to hear them, men who want to have preached to them only what they want to hear. As the Prophet Isaiah said, “The time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths.”

Therefore it is imperative for a Christian to be able to discern a true prophet from a false prophet, the true preaching and teaching of the Word of God from the lies, distortions, and myths devised by men. But, how is this to be done? How can you tell a true prophet, true teaching, from a false prophet and lies? Your Lord Jesus teaches you that you will recognize them by their fruits.

By their fruits? What does it mean that you will be able to distinguish a true prophet from a false prophet by their fruits? What kind of fruit does a prophet bear? Jesus expands the analogy saying, “Are grapes gathered from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit.” That is to say, if you’re eating tasty and nourishing apples, it’s because they came from a good apple tree. One simply cannot get good fruit from a bad tree. Now, the fruit of a prophet is what he preaches. If it is the pure Word of God, it is good fruit, good to eat because it nourishes your faith and strengthens you on the way to eternity. If, however, God’s Word is perverted, corrupted, or watered down with human opinion, it is poor fruit. Instead of promoting spiritual health, it gradually introduces the poison of false doctrine into your spiritual diet until you are no longer able to judge what is true and what isn’t.

But Jesus also teaches you that a false prophet will often try to deceive you by appearing to be good and true. Though they are truly ravenous wolves, they will come to you in sheep’s clothing. This is to say, additionally, that you cannot discern a true prophet from a false prophet by their outward appearance. Indeed, there are many who claim to prophesy in the Name of the Lord who appear to be true on the outside, but inwardly are diseased and full of uncleanness leading to death. To your eye they may appear to be charismatic and attractive, successful, having great wealth and large congregations, or they may appear to be humble and poor and full of compassion for those in need. But, you cannot discern a true prophet from a false prophet by what your eyes see, but you must discern them by their fruits.

Again, the fruit of a prophet is what he preaches. Does he preach God’s Word purely, without adding to it or taking away from it, even when it makes you uncomfortable, even when it convicts you, even when it convicts himself? Or, does he pervert, corrupt, or water down God’s Word with human opinion, preaching to the itching ears of men? His appearance is not important. What does he preach? What is his fruit? Is it good to eat, nourishing and strengthening your faith? Or is it bad, poisoning you with false doctrine?

Let us consider how it was in the beginning. In Eden there were two trees, the Tree of Life, and the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. By appearance, the fruit of both trees was good and attractive. However, God’s Word proscribed that the fruit of the Tree of Life would give life and that the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil would bring death. There was a false prophet in the garden who came to our First Parents in a disguise to deceive them. He told them lies, twisting God’s Word about the forbidden fruit, saying that it would not bring death but rather knowledge and god-like wisdom and enlightenment. Listening to the words of the false prophet, and judging by appearances that the fruit was good, Adam and Eve both ate the poisonous fruit and sin and death entered the world.

Ever since the Fall, there have been true prophets and false prophets. The true prophets were not perfect, but they were sinful men just like you and me, but they proclaimed and taught the Word of the Lord in its truth and purity, both its condemning Law and its comforting Gospel, always pointing to the great and true Prophet to come, the Messiah, whom God would send to destroy the power of death. The false prophets employed the tactics of the great False Prophet, lies and deceptions, and they watered down and corrupted the Word of the Lord with human opinions. They obscured the Gospel proclamation of God’s salvation in the Messiah, Jesus, and taught men salvation by works or to be comfortable in their sin and that there was no need for salvation at all.

In the fullness of time, God sent forth His Son, the True Prophet, Jesus, to destroy the power of death that came from the poisonous fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil and to restore to us access to the fruit of the Tree of Life. He took your poison, sin, and death into Himself, He drank from the cup of God’s wrath down to its bitter dregs until it was finished and there was nothing left, and then He died upon the cursed tree of the cross. There is nothing attractive in the outward appearance of either the great Prophet Jesus or the good fruit that He brings. As the Prophet Isaiah said, “He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him. 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.”

Yet He is the true Prophet of God. And, blessed are those who are not offended by Him. His Name is Truth and His tree is the Tree of Life. From it He brings you good fruit that leads to eternal life. Whoever eats of His fruit will live forever. Whoever tastes of His hand will taste and see that the Lord is good. He is the righteousness of the sinner and the justifier of the guilty. He is the Man of Mercy to those who are afraid. He is the lover of souls to those who think themselves hated by God. He brings the medicine of immortality and bears the fruit of eternal life. And those who hear Him receive Him gladly and are welcomed by Him into the kingdom of heaven.

And so, it is true, you will know a true prophet by his fruits. That is to say, what fruit does he proclaim to you? What fruit does he direct you to? What fruit does he serve to you to feed you? The true prophet will proclaim, direct, and serve to you the good fruit of the Tree of Life, Jesus, for the forgiveness of your sins and for life that never ends. The true prophet will only and always point you to Jesus and His fruits and He will feed you with His pure Word and His holy body and precious blood, the fruits of death on the cursed tree of the cross, become for you now the Tree of Life with every good.

He is not one who is far off. He is at hand. And by His wounds you are healed. By His suffering you find peace with God. All who look to Him are heard and all who call upon His Name are saved from death and hell. Come and eat from the Tree of Life. Eat the good fruit of the true Prophet and be saved.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Homily for The Seventh Sunday after Trinity (Trinity 7)

(Audio)

Mark 8:1-9; Romans 6:19-23; Genesis 2:7-17

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

In times of need, and in times of plenty, your Lord provides you all things good, beneficial, and needful to your body and soul. As you walk through the valleys of your life, always in the shadow of death, your Good Shepherd leads and guides you to His font of living water and to His life-giving banquet, even in the presence of your enemies – sin, death, and Satan. Before His Incarnation, He provided the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden, holy manna in the wilderness, and water from the rock which St. Paul tells us was the Christ, Jesus. After His Incarnation, in two distinct and unique events, Jesus fed five thousand, and then four thousand men with a small amount of bread and fish. In each event, basketfuls of leftovers were collected after the masses had eaten their fill and were satisfied. Then, on the night in which He was betrayed, in fulfillment of the Passover, Jesus fed His disciples with bread and wine, in, with, and under which were His life-giving body and blood for the forgiveness of sins and the strengthening of faith by the power of His performative and creative Word. And, your Lord has left you His meal of sustenance in your times of need, and His feast and banquet of joy in times of plenty, that you would be provided all things good, beneficial, and needful to your body and soul until the day He returns and you will, once again, eat from the tree of life in the presence of God in a day upon which the sun will never set.

Today’s Gospel lesson is the account of one of these miraculous feedings, the lesser celebrated, the Feeding of the Four Thousand, recorded in St. Mark’s Gospel, chapter eight. Likely, some of you were not aware that there was a feeding of the four thousand, but you know only of the feeding of the five thousand. And, likely, some of you have been instructed, or believe, that these two accounts are but two tellings of the same event. But, this is not the case.

In the first place, St. Mark’s Gospel contains both accounts – both the feeding of the five thousand in chapter six, and the feeding of the four thousand in chapter eight. In the second place, the details of each feeding are different and unique. In the feeding of the five thousand, the crowds were not far from towns and villages where they could easily purchase food to eat. Nevertheless, Jesus instructed His disciples to feed the crowds in the desolate place where they were. St. Mark tells you that the people sat down in green grass in groups, as at tables at a banquet. There is no sense of urgency or desperation in the feeding of the five thousand as there is in the feeding of the four thousand. However, in that second miraculous feeding, the crowds had been following Jesus for three days, presumably with little food or drink, and many of the people had come from far away. They could not simply be released to purchase food in nearby towns and villages, for the people were weak and would faint on the way. Again, Jesus instructed the four thousand to sit down, not on green grass, but on the ground in that desolate place. There is no mention of the four thousand being seated in groups, as in a banquet. In contrast, in the feeding of the five thousand, the Lord had compassion on the people because they were like sheep without a shepherd, but, in the feeding of the four thousand, the Lord had compassion on the people because they had nothing to eat.

No, these two accounts of miraculous feedings are not one and the same, rather, they are to be contrasted and compared, their similarities and their differences, that the Lord’s constant presence and providence may be revealed. In those times in your life when you seem to have all that you need, when it is easy to believe that you are the master of your life and the provider of your own sustenance, then the Lord continues to provide you all that you need for your body and life. Though you may take His providence for granted and fail to return thanks, your Lord invites you to His feast and banquet of the finest of wines and the choicest of meats. And, in those times in your life when you are in need and want and you do not know how you will overcome the challenges, deadlines, and debts that lie before you, and you are tempted to despair and hopelessness, your Lord provides you a meal of sustenance to carry you through the lean times, for He has compassion for you and He will not let you perish. And so, this continuing miraculous meal of the Lord’s body and blood is at every serving a banquet and feast for some and a meal of sustenance and survival for others. Thus, Jesus says to you, eat and drink of it often, for, in times of plenty and in times of need, at all times, His flesh and blood is what you need for your body and soul.

But there is also a connection to creation in these miraculous feedings. In both the accounts of the feeding of the five thousand and the feeding of the four thousand, Jesus had placed both His disciples and the crowds in a situation where the very best of their efforts were not enough. In the feeding of the five thousand, though the villages and towns were not far off, Jesus insisted that His disciples feed the crowd in the desolate place where they were. Considering only their own meager offerings of bread and fish, the disciples despaired of their ability to obey Jesus’ command and feed the crowds. Similarly, in the feeding of the four thousand, Jesus had led His disciples and the crowds three days into the wilderness and there had arisen a crisis situation where they were hungry and there was no food to be found. In both cases, the only hope for the disciples and the crowds was the miraculous providence of Jesus. However, in both cases, also, Jesus performed the miracle through the ordinary work of His disciples. He did not wave His hands in the air or utter grand poetic incantations, but Jesus took the bread, gave thanks, broke them, and gave them to His disciples to set before the people. And then He blessed the fish also and had the disciples set them before the people. And, in the distribution, they all ate and were satisfied. And they took up the broken pieces that were left over – twelve basketfuls in the feeding of the five thousand, and seven basketfuls in the feeding of the four thousand.

So, what is the connection with creation? Well, first and foremost, your Lord Jesus created and provided what was necessary for the life and sustenance of His people by the creative and life-giving power of His Word. What was, and is, impossible for man, is possible for God who created and still sustains man and all things by the power of His Word. But, second, the numbers in the accounts of the feedings are meaningful – the number of the days, the loaves, the fish, the leftovers, and the crowds. In general, the numbers of the loaves of bread and the fish fall short of an important Christological number, eight. It is the number seven that is prominent in the feeding accounts – there are five loaves and two fish in the feeding of the five thousand, and there are seven loaves and a few small fish in the feeding of the four thousand. While the number seven is an important biblical symbol indicating fullness and completion – as God created all things in six days and rested on the seventh, proclaiming it a Sabbath day of rest – after the fall into sin, the number seven is no longer sufficient, but it must be fulfilled and superseded. That brings us to the number eight, a number singularly connected with the resurrection of Jesus Christ – who was crucified, died, and was buried, and, on the third day (or, the eighth day) rose again from the dead. The significance of Jesus’ resurrection on Sunday, the third day after His death on Friday, or the eighth day when taking into consideration the entire seven-day week before it, is that Jesus fulfilled God’s Law and command on behalf of fallen, sin-wrecked man and the former creation, and He died, He fulfilled the Sabbath by resting in the tomb, and He rose again, in the flesh, at the dawn of a new day, the first day of a new creation, a day on which the sun will never set.

Jesus had intentionally led His disciples and the crowds to end of their own providence, to the point where they realized their dependence and turned to Him for help. In both feedings, Jesus worked through and with the bread and fish and the hands of His disciples to provide for His people. He fulfilled all things, and there were abundant leftovers – twelve basketfuls in the feeding of the five thousand, and seven basketfuls in the feeding of the four thousand – for, with Jesus, there is always more – more forgiveness, more sustenance, and eternal life and salvation for anyone and everyone who will not reject Him and His gifts.

For you, to make that three-day journey in this wilderness life is to leave you depleted, empty, faint, and dead – still in your tomb. Your seven loaves – your work, your toil, and your sweat – earn you only death. But, Jesus has taken your death into himself and, in exchange, He has given you His life. For, He is the Bread of Life, come down from heaven, as both sustaining manna in your wilderness life, and as a rich banquet feast of abundance and plenty, giving eternal life in heaven. In Jesus Christ, you have been fulfilled. Therefore, in Jesus Christ, may you also find satisfaction from want or need in your life, but also abundance from which to share and give to others.

In that regard, we are blessed today to celebrate with the Church God’s Saint Mary Magdalene. Jesus had cast from Mary seven demons – a number, perhaps once again, representing the fullness of sinful corruption. In humble repentance, thankfulness, and love, Mary later, at the house of Simon the Pharisee, kissed Jesus’ feet and anointed them with costly ointment. The Fathers of the Church, St. Basil, St. Chrysostom, and St. Theophylact, explain Mary’s actions in this way: From her tears, the Lord Jesus notices a humble heart, troubled by sins committed. From her kiss, He notices her faith and trust. From the anointing, He notices the intention of her heart, that from now on she will use everything that is precious to her for the glory of Christ. Moreover, He praises the thankfulness of her heart that she showed through many signs of love; He says, “Her many sins are forgiven, on account of which she has loved much.”

May you so cling to Jesus in faith and trust and love and so receive His comfort, strength, and forgiveness to complete your journey through the valley of your life, surrounded by the shadow of death. For, you are not alone – you are never alone – but the Lord, your Good Shepherd is with you, guiding you, providing for you. And He has passed through this valley before you and for you and has emerged victorious over death in new and eternal life. He knows the way. He is the Way. He is the Truth. He is the Life – even the Life of the world. And He is present here, now, in this meal of sustenance for you who are famished and fainting from the travails of life in this sin-wrecked world, even as He is present in this banquet feast of plenty and joy for you whose needs are fulfilled at this present time. He is for you, He is for all, that you may be satisfied and full, with an abundance of love, mercy, grace, and forgiveness to spare, to the glory of God the Father, in His holy Son Jesus Christ, through His most Holy Spirit.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Homily for 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.

The fundamental error that you make concerning the Law of God is that you believe that God gave you His Law so that you would know what you must do to fulfill its demands. However, God’s Law does not state what you must do if you are to fulfill its demands. Instead it states what you must be if you are to be able to stand in the presence of God. For, the Law of God states what is right and good, and the good is always a part of the being of God. Thus, the Law of God, the Ten Commandments, do not tell you what you must do, but they tell you what you must be. Moreover, the Law of God, the Ten Commandments, tell you who God is and what He is like, and, therefore, they tell you what you must be, and what you will be, to live in Him – You must be holy, as He is holy.

Your God and LORD commands you to be holy, just as He is holy. And, this is the great curse of the Law, for you cannot make yourself to be holy through your obedience to the Law. You cannot work or earn your way into holiness, for holiness is a state, or a condition, of sinlessness and righteousness and goodness – in other words, to be holy is to be like God, for God alone is holy. And still, He commands you to be holy, just as He is holy.

Jesus’ teaching about the Law of God today follows directly after His teaching of the Beatitudes in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew, chapter 5. Jesus said to His disciples, “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, no an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” It is popular to think that Jesus came to give you a new law, a law that is somehow, easier for you to do. After all, you think, “God surely would not command me to do something that I couldn’t do.” But, you are wrong. He has done precisely that. And, that is the point. Jesus taught that God’s Law of perfect goodness, righteousness, and holiness, not only will not pass away, but Jesus has made it even harder for you to fulfill than the Law and the Prophets originally appeared to teach!

Jesus said, “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” Yes, you think that so long as you have not wrung anyone’s neck you have kept God’s commandment and Law. But, Jesus says that if you have been angry with someone, if you have insulted someone, you have broken the commandment. Moreover, Luther explains in the Catechism that, not only hurting or harming your neighbor in his body, but failing to help him and befriend him in his bodily needs is a transgression of God’s commandment and Law. And then, but a few verses later, 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.” And, after that, He continues to remake and remodel the well-known commandments of God’s Law. Do you see, then, how Jesus expands, broadens, and adds to the commandments? He would crush your sinful, rebellious, self-righteousness and pride that you might turn to Him for forgiveness. For, He will not lighten the Law and the Commandments of God for you. He will not make them easier for you to do. But, He will fulfill them for you that you may be good, righteous, and holy in Him – that you may live in Him forever.

And you thought the Pharisees were bad, right? You have heard it said, again and again, that the Pharisees were bad guys. The Pharisees were bad because they were the teachers, the shepherds, the pastors of the children of Israel, and they did not preach the Gospel, the “Good News” of forgiveness in the Messiah, but instead they burdened the people with severe preaching of the Law. You have heard it said that the Pharisees loved the Law of God, but I say to you that the Pharisees hated the Law of God. They did not keep it themselves, and they did not teach the children of Israel to keep God’s Law and commandments either. Instead, they changed God’s Law; they softened it and rounded off its sharp edges, to make it more do-able. That’s what you thought Jesus came to do, right? WRONG! God’s Law can not, and will not, pass away. It is always in force, for it is good and holy, and it is part of God Himself. Again, you must remember, the purpose of the Law is not to teach you what you must do so that you can fulfill it, but the purpose of the Law is to teach you what you must be to stand in God’s presence – that you must be good, righteous, and holy, as God Himself is holy. And, that is to say that you must receive His righteousness and holiness as a gift – a gift that He has given in the Messiah, Jesus.

The Pharisees did not love God’s Law and commandments, but they hated them and they feared them. They did not teach them rightly to the children of Israel. Instead, they changed God’s Law; they softened it and rounded off its sharp edges, to make it more do-able. And then, they added to the Law laws, commandments, and rules of their own, cunningly designed to make them look and feel good. The Pharisees could fulfill the law of their own design. Everyone looked to them as the most good, righteous, and holy men on the planet! As for the people, well, they either became puffed up and full of self-righteous pride, believing that they too kept God’s Law well and good, or, if they were honest with themselves, they fell into hopeless despair, knowing that they did not keep the law and commandments set forth by the Pharisees, but hearing not Gospel forgiveness from their lips either. Do you see how the Law of God impacts sinful men? The Law of God is perfectly good, righteous, and holy, and it is eternal and unchanging – “not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” Thus, Jesus was not teaching His disciples, and He is not teaching you, that you must do better at fulfilling God’s Law and commandments, but, instead, He is teaching you that you must believe and trust in Him, that He has fulfilled God’s Law and commandments for you by His good, righteous, and holy death upon the cross. It was upon that cross, in His last breath, that He proclaimed “tetelestai,” “It is accomplished,” “It is finished.”

Jesus has fulfilled God’s Law and commandments for you. Believe and trust in Him, and you have the goodness, righteousness, and the holiness that is necessary to stand in the presence of God without fear. That is the Gospel truth, plain and simple. However, you must not conclude from this Gospel truth that you need not obey God’s Law and commands any longer, for, as Jesus teaches, they have not passed away, but they have been fulfilled. Do not then get the idea that you can do whatever your sinful flesh pleases, simply asking for forgiveness after the fact, and believe that you will enter God’s kingdom. In theological jargon, that is called antinomianism – it literally means “against the law”. Dietrich Bonheoffer called it “billige gnade,” or, “cheap grace”. And, this is what St. Paul warns against in our Epistle today saying, “What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound? By no means! How can we who died to sin still live in it?”

We Lutherans are sometimes criticized for being antinomian, for cheapening God’s grace, and often justifiably so. We have a rich doctrine of grace, centered in Christ, which glorifies God. But, let us not take that grace for granted and forget how costly it comes to us, for the price is the death of God’s own Son, Jesus Christ, on your behalf. And so, God’s grace must have its way with you, raising you from the death of sin to new life in Jesus Christ. The Law has been fulfilled so that you are free to love your neighbor and to love God with Jesus’ love poured out for you. You must not attempt to relax God’s Law, as Jesus says, and as the Pharisees did, but you are called to a righteousness that exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees – that is, an alien righteousness, a righteousness that comes extra nos, from outside of you, Christ’s righteousness, given to you as a free gift of God’s grace. You must, as St. Paul says, “consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus.”

That life began in Holy Baptism, when you were buried with Jesus in His death, and were raised with Jesus to new life that can never die again. Thus, consider your obedience under God’s Law and commandments in this life to be preparation for the life that never ends. C. S. Lewis once wrote, “In the perfect and eternal world the Law will vanish. But the results of having lived faithfully under it will not.” But, perhaps St. Paul said it better still, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” Blessed be the Father of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ who has done all things well and has made all things new, in the most Holy Spirit. Amen.

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.

The Feast of The Nativity of St. John the Baptist

(Audio)

Luke 1:57-80; Acts 13:13-26; Isaiah 40:1-5

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

How difficult it is to comfort the comfortable. John the Baptist came preaching salvation. How odd that must have sounded in the ears of first century Jews and Gentiles who had grown comfortable in their benevolent slavery under their Roman occupiers. They had grown content and comfortable with their captivity, and they had grown content and comfortable in their sins and idolatries. How odd the Baptist’s preaching of salvation must have sounded to them. “Salvation from who?” they must have wondered. “Salvation from what?” they must have asked.

John was sent at a time when prophecies were thought to be dead. No one had heard from a prophet for several hundred years. Entire generations of Jews and Gentiles had been born, had lived, and had died neither hearing or believing in prophecy. Those few, but a remnant, who held the old faith, were surely thought to be out of touch, ignorant, unenlightened fools. While they prayed their prayers and made their sacrifices and tried the best they could to live according to God’s Word and will, their neighbors, even their brothers and sisters, at best, ignored them and considered them quaint and ignorant, and at worst, mocked and ridiculed and persecuted them. Additionally, the religious leadership of the Jews, the Pharisees and the Sadducees, interpreted God’s Word in a strict, legalistic manner that made it burdensome and oppressive, that served only to crush weak faith or to harden proud hearts. They did not teach repentance unto forgiveness, for they believed that a person could be right with the Lord by performing works according to the Law.

How would John’s preaching be received today? I believe that it would be, and that, in fact, it is, received in much the same way as it was in first century Israel. The message of salvation is largely rejected. How difficult it is to comfort the comfortable. The message of salvation is an objective message. In order for there to be sin and repentance, there must be an objective reality, truth, or law that is universal and absolute. Today, men reject both truth and absolutes – absolutely, I might add. And, in order for there to be absolution, there must be someone who has the holiness and the authority to decree, judge, and execute justice accordingly. Today, men reject holiness, righteousness, and universal authority, decree, judgment, and justice. For, today, as in John’s day, men reject God, but they supplant Him with a myriad of gods, goddesses, and idols, particularly, the god that is oneself.

How difficult it is to comfort the comfortable. You are to believe that you live in the most advanced culture and society ever to grace the face of the planet. Indeed, our technology is so advanced that families can be scattered all over the globe and still communicate in real time, even with video and audio. Of course, technology has also served to foster the scattering of families all over the globe. And, our medical science and technology is so advanced that people are living much longer and healthier lives. Of course, our medical science and technology is so advanced that 1.21 million babies are aborted each year in the United States (that’s 3,322 per day), and medical care has become so expensive, due to corruption and greed in the medical, pharmaceutical, and insurance industries, as well as in the government, that the families of elderly persons are increasingly forced to assign a monetary value to their loved one’s life in comparison to the cost of their care. And, what remarkable, astounding freedoms we enjoy in our country and throughout the world! You are free to do almost anything you want, so long as it does not directly impinge upon someone else’s freedom, that is, again, unless you happen to have not been born yet, or you are elderly or incapacitated in some way and someone else has reckoned your life less valuable than the cost of your care. But, beyond that, you can do anything, because nothing is immoral, except saying that someone’s behavior is immoral; nothing is wrong, except saying that someone’s actions are wrong; nothing is sinful, except naming a behavior to be sinful. Indeed, all things are to be tolerated, except perceived intolerance. And, because there is no God, all things and all people are gods. And, because all things and all people are gods, there is no god.

Now, if you are comfortable with all this, then you must surely think John the Baptist’s preaching, indeed, you must surely think my preaching, to be quaint, ignorant, and utter foolishness. Perhaps you even think it to be judgmental, bigoted, hate speech. How difficult it is to comfort the comfortable, indeed.

Nevertheless, John the Baptist was sent to comfort God’s people by preaching repentance unto the forgiveness of sins. John proclaimed that man’s warfare with God was ended, and that all man’s iniquities and sins were pardoned and forgiven by our God and LORD in the one who was to come, the one whose sandals John was not worthy to untie, God’s Son, the Messiah, Jesus Christ. John came preaching in the wilderness of this world to people who had convinced themselves that this life and world, with its sin, suffering, and death, poverty, crime, corruption, and war, is paradise and the fulfillment of what it means to be human and alive. John came to proclaim the truth to a people who no longer believed in truth, but had come to believe the lies of the great liar and deceiver, Satan. Though they considered him mad and a fool, his wisdom and his authority were not in his person, his birthright, or in his material worth, but his wisdom and his authority were in his proclamation of God’s Word before priests and kings, before the poor and the widowed, before Jews and Gentiles, before prostitutes, lepers, tax collectors, and all the unclean. To all the world John proclaimed a baptism of repentance unto the forgiveness of sins – the greatest comfort imaginable, the greatest comfort there is.

The world was, and the world is still, perplexed by John and his message. He was prophesied to proclaim comfort, but his message was one of convicting Law unto repentance. Because men have believed the lies of the Liar, they do not know the comfort that comes from repentance and absolution. But, there is comfort in looking outside of yourself. For, the world’s peace and comfort is no peace and comfort at all; it is always fleeting and never satisfying or sufficient to clear your conscience of the stain of guilt. John proclaims true comfort and true peace proceeding from a conscience that has been washed clean of the stain of guilt and sin with the innocent shed blood of Jesus Christ. Jesus’ blood comes from outside of you, but it is for you, and for the forgiveness of your sins.

Your LORD knew that you were too enmeshed in the lies of the Liar to receive and believe in the gift of His Son, so he sent John to go before Him to prepare the way for His coming. John did this by preaching repentance and by baptizing, symbolizing a rebirth and turning away from the ways of the flesh and the world to the ways of the LORD. John was sent “to give knowledge of salvation to his people in the forgiveness of their sins” that they might receive “the sunrise from on high,” Jesus, who was soon to “visit [them] from on high to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, and to guide their feet into the way of peace.”

In fact, John’s appearance was the result of a long series of strange interventions by God, as the Swedish Lutheran theologian Bo Giertz has observed, “Against all odds, Zechariah and Elizabeth have a son. Against every custom, Elizabeth wanted to name him John. To everyone’s surprise, the mute Zechariah writes the same name on a tablet they give him. Contrary to what is normal, the preacher’s son goes out into the dessert, and when they least expect it, he emerges with the message for Israel that the great day is at hand. God has taken care of His people and now He’s sending the Messiah. The kingdom of God is at hand.” And, all this has happened “because of the tender mercy of our God. All of the abundant wealth and beauty we see in nature and life at its best is nothing, and at last would be just a temporary ray of sunshine over those who ‘sit in darkness and in the shadow of death’, if God hadn’t in His mercy let ‘the sunrise … visit us from on high’ and given us knowledge of redemption so our sins can be forgiven.”

How difficult it is to comfort the comfortable. Thanks be to God, in His tender mercy, He has sought to make you uncomfortable. He has sought to make you uncomfortable with your sin and idolatry. He has sought to make you uncomfortable with injustice and immorality in your community, nation, and world. He has sought to make you uncomfortable with the notion that this life is all that there is – birth, life, and death – and that you are own god, and that pleasing your self is the only good. Your God and LORD so loves you that He will not allow you to remain in darkness and the shadow of death. And so, He has shown the pure, bright, and holy light of His Son upon you so that no one should perish, but that all may repent, receive, and believe, and, believing, have life in His Name.

Jesus said that “among those born of women there has arisen no one greater than John the Baptist. Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he.” That one is Jesus Himself, “who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the Name that is above every name, so that at the Name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

John understood his role as the forerunner, sent to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus. He confessed Jesus’ holiness and divinity by, initially, refusing to baptize Him, but he relented upon Jesus’ insistence that it was fitting for them to “fulfill all righteousness.” John also confessed Jesus to be the Messiah of God by saying “He who comes after me ranks before me, because he was before me.” And, lastly, John humbled himself before his disciples saying, “He must increase; I must decrease.” And so, we celebrate God’s sending of the forerunner of Jesus to prepare His way, St. John the Baptist, on this festival day and every Lord’s Day singing “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world.” For, He is present amongst you with His Word of Holy Absolution, true comfort and peace, and with His holy body and precious blood to commune with you that you have life in Him and give life to others to the glory of His Holy Name.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Homily for The Second Sunday after Trinity (Trinity 2)

(Audio)

Luke 14:15-24; 1 John 3:13-18; Proverbs 9:1-10

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

Lady Wisdom has built Her house. It is a palatial dwelling, even a temple, having seven pillars. For, indeed, Lady Wisdom is none other than the glorious presence of God dwelling amongst men, first in the Garden, later in the Tabernacle and in the Temple, and lastly and consummately, in the person of God’s Son, Jesus Christ. Likewise, the seven pillars are the Holy Spirit of God in His seven-fold gifts – wisdom, understanding, counsel, fortitude, knowledge, holiness, and the fear of the Lord – through which He calls, enlightens, sanctifies, and keeps in the true faith those who do not reject Him.

Wisdom has slaughtered Her beasts; She has mixed Her wine; She has also set Her table. And, now, “She has sent out Her young women to call from the highest places in the town, ‘Whoever is simple, let him turn in here!’ To him who lacks sense She says, ‘Come, eat of my bread and drink of the wine I have mixed. Leave your simple ways and live, and walk in the way of insight’.” That is to say, “The feast is prepared. Come to the Lord’s Table.” For, everything is accomplished for you. It is finished. There is nothing to do but to come and to receive what Wisdom has prepared for you.

The invitation is offered to all. Let us not get hung up on the order or the ranking of the invitees – first to the A List, then to the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame, and then to the highways and the hedges, indeed, to all the world. In the end, there is no one who does not receive the Lord’s gracious invitation to His banquet. All are invited, unconditionally. The only way to miss out on the feast is to reject the Lord’s gracious invitation.

Sadly, many do just that; many reject the Lord’s gracious invitation. Concerns for this world and life cause them to make excuses. But, there is no excuse, for this is the Lord’s banquet, and He is the King of kings and Lord of lords; He is God, the Creator of all that is. You would not reject a personal invitation from your boss, let alone the President of the United States, but will you reject the invitation of the Lord and giver of your life? Nevertheless, you are free to do as you please. The ability to reject Him is God’s gift to you. If you will not come, that’s a real shame, for a place is reserved just for you, and at a premium, the shed blood of God’s Son. The invitation is extended to all. It’s as simple as that. But, those who reject the Lord’s gracious invitation will not taste of the banquet He has prepared for them. It’s as simple as that.

Yet, the Lord’s banquet hall will be filled. It will be filled by all those who do not reject the Lord’s gracious invitation, but who receive it in faith and who come and eat. They are the poor and the crippled, the blind and the lame – literally, but also metaphorically – for, they are all those who are not so proud so as to reject an invitation, and they are those who have not so many fleshly and worldly distractions in their lives to get in between them and their Lord. Indeed, when Jesus taught that it is difficult for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven, He was not passing judgment upon wealth and riches, or even upon those who possess them, but He was acknowledging how easy it is for those who have much to become slaves to their possessions, thus making them idols by permitting them to get in between themselves and the Lord. By definition, the poor, including those poor of body, mind, and spirit, have much less in the way of fleshly and worldly possessions to get between themselves and the Lord, and so it is easier for them to receive and to believe than it is for those more deeply enmeshed in worldly trappings.

Indeed, the poor, the crippled, the blind, and the lame are, in many ways, like children, whom Jesus repeatedly holds up as an example of faith. They are simple – not in the sense of being stupid or foolish – but they are simple in worldly ways, and they are open to instruction and learning, as they are not yet set in their ways. These simple ones are invited to receive insight, even wisdom and life. Jesus taught that “whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will not enter it”. It is not that those who are wise in worldly ways cannot enter the kingdom of God, but rather it is that they will not, for they make excuses, they refuse, or they consider God and His kingdom to be foolishness. They have not the fear of the Lord, which is to say that they are not in awe of God and they do not offer Him worship, they have no personal confidence in God or knowledge of His character, and their sense of morality is not rooted in obedience to His Law. The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom because it is a return to a simple and childlike faith that is open and receptive to the Word of the Lord, His ways, and His Truth.

But, the Lord’s Wisdom stands in opposition to the wisdom of the flesh and the world. Thus, those who receive the invitation and do not reject it have passed out of death into life. Therefore, they are hated by the world. You must not be surprised by the world’s hatred of you, for so the world hated Jesus, your Teacher, who came before you. Likewise, He is your model, your guide, and your example that you may love others, even those who hate you, as Jesus loved all and died for all, that all might be forgiven and live. Scoffers will come. Show them love. They may turn in repentance, or they may hate you and persecute you – it matters not – for you have died to the flesh and to the world and you live to God, therefore you must love your brother and your neighbor as God so loved this world of sinners, sin, and death in His Son Jesus Christ. You children of Wisdom, called out of death to glorious and eternal life, give life to your brother and to your neighbor by loving him in deed and truth as God so loved you in Jesus.

For, the invitations are out, to the highways and the hedges, even to the ends of the earth, and the Lord is well past simply asking people to come, He’s now compelling them to come, so that only those who reject His gracious invitation will miss out on the banquet. Therefore, you who have received His gifts must share them, in love, with all, that they too will receive the Lord’s gracious invitation and live. And, to equip you for this mission of love, and to keep you in and to strengthen your faith, the Lord has provided you a foretaste of His heavenly banquet in this feast of the body and blood of His Son Jesus. The feast is prepared. Come to the Lord’s table.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Homily for the Holy Marriage of Dilshan Perera and Carolynn Baker

Matthew 19:4-6; Ephesians 5:1-2, 22-33; Genesis 2:7, 18-24


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

There is something special and sacred about marriage. Marriage is the oldest institution known to humankind. It was instituted by God Himself in the Garden of Eden as He joined the man that He had created from the earth, Adam, to the woman He had created from Adam’s flesh, Eve, and the two became one flesh.
Individually, they were each created in the image of God, having the capacity to love another selflessly and sacrificially. But, that image became clearer still as they then could give to each other and receive from each other that selfless and sacrificial love, and thus know more fully the kind of love that their Creator and God had for them. Their union was so very close, so very intimate, that it made them to be as one flesh. Eve was Adam’s body, and Adam was Eve’s head, bone of bone, flesh of flesh, both having the love and the life of God within them.

God made them to be creators like Him, or, more precisely, pro-creators with Him. They had the ability and the potentiality within them to bear fruit and to bring forth new life. But, this could only happen with love – true selfless and sacrificial love. For, the man must truly die to himself and his selfishness and selfish ways and live for his wife, for her welfare, for her life, and for her salvation. And, likewise, the woman must truly die to herself and her selfishness and selfish ways and live for her husband, for his welfare, for his life, and for his salvation. This manner of sacrificial selflessness happens spiritually. It happens emotionally. And, yes, it happens physically in the sexual union of husband and wife.

In truth we are not so unlike the varied trees of the garden. For, we too bear the seed of our own kind within us. And, when that seed is rightly fertilized, we have the potentiality of producing fruit according to our own kind – children, likewise pro-created in the image of God. The man’s seed, alone, cannot produce this fruit. The woman’s seed, alone, cannot produce this fruit. But, when the seed is brought together, each seed dies to what it was before, and new fruit, new life is brought forth. Indeed, this was the image that Jesus used to describe His selfless and sacrificial death saying, “Unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.” Because the Son of God selflessly and sacrificially gave Himself up for His Bride, the Church, She lives and She bears much fruit in many sons and daughters of faith to the glory of God. Moreover, God so selflessly and sacrificially loved the world that He gave His Son into death, that whoever believes in Him will not perish, but will have everlasting life.

Today, God’s sacred institution of marriage is under attack. Truly, it has always been under attack, often even amongst those who claim to hold it sacred. Divorce is the absolute opposite of the love of God that you are called to image in your marriage. This Jesus taught saying, “What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” And, likewise, men can play with words all that they want, but they can never change what marriage is or redefine it. For, marriage is, as God instituted it to be, the lifelong union of a man and woman. And, only in this arrangement and order is the image of God made manifest in the potential for pro-creation in accordance with God’s providence and blessing.

Shan and Carrie, always remember the sacred vows that you make to each other this day before God and these witnesses, and also the blessing that you have asked from God upon your union. He will bless it, richly and abundantly, in accordance with His good and holy will. But, as the institution of marriage suffers attack today, likewise will your own union be subject to many trials, temptations, and tribulations. There will be economic struggles when you will differ about how and when to spend money, and how and where to attain money. There will be philosophical struggles about the roles of men and women, husbands and wives, fathers and mothers. There will be disagreements about time and time management. And there may even be temptations from those outside of your marriage that threaten to get in between you two or sever your union. Again, you have asked God’s blessing upon your union. He will bless it, richly and abundantly, in accordance with His good and holy will. But you must remember the third partner in your marriage, Jesus Christ. And, you must not simply remember Him, but you must make Him to be the center of your marriage, the glue that holds your marriage together, the glory of your marriage. For, He is your love. He is your life. He is the forgiveness you have received from God, and He is the forgiveness with which you forgive each other. He is the grace that you give. He is the mercy that you show. He is the compassion that you have. He is the sacrifice that you make. Remember Him, give thanks to Him, and praise Him in the morning when you rise up, and in the evening when you lie down, at mealtimes, and as you contemplate important decisions. Shan, give thanks to Him for Carrie. Carrie, give thanks to Him for Shan. And, He will bless you, and keep you, and make of you a rich blessing to each other, to your family, and to countless others who witness in your one flesh union the selfless, sacrificial love and image of God.

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

Homily for The First Sunday after Trinity (Trinity 1)

(Audio)

Luke 16:19-31; 1 John 4:16-21; Genesis 15:1-6

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

It’s easy to stand back and to condemn the rich man. That is, it’s easy to condemn the rich man until you are brought to see that the rich man is you. For, your heavenly Father has clothed you in the royal robe of His Son, so that you are a king or a queen with Him over all things, and He has given you to feast sumptuously of His holiness and righteousness in communion with Him, so that all that properly belongs to Him, belongs to you as well. For, through baptism and faith in Christ Jesus, you lack nothing, but all is yours. You are the richest of the rich, by grace, through faith in Christ Jesus.

Why, then, is it often so very difficult for you to give, to serve, and to sacrifice to, and for, the sake of, others? Contrary to what you might think and what others may tell you, selfishness, stinginess, and greed are much less the result of weak faith, or a lack of faith, than they are the result of a lack of love.

St. Paul has taught you in his great treatise on love in First Corinthians, chapter 13, that love is even greater than faith, hope, and a whole multitude of other great and holy works. Likewise, you must not forget that it is love, and not faith, that is said to be the fulfilling of the Law of God. Thus, St. John reminds you in today’s epistle that God, Himself, is love and, that to love others is to love God and to abide in God and God in you. Indeed, St. John instructs you, “If anyone says, ‘I love God’, and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” It is true that it is faith that saves. But, St. James is also correct in teaching that faith without works is dead. You can have faith in God and yet not love Him. To be sure, the devil has amazing faith in God, yet he does not love Him, but he hates Him, and he hates you whom God loves.

And so, it is not that the rich man in Jesus’ story was a faithless man, for he was not, but he was an heir of Abraham. Indeed, Abraham even addressed him as “Child”. No doubt, he paid his tithe and gave offerings of his abundance. He was likely even charitable towards, and in the sight of, those who could return to him honor and praise. And yet, he had not love, at least not love in the selfless and sacrificial manner of God. Day after day he passed by the poor beggar Lazarus who was intentionally laid at his gate each day to collect alms and offerings of food. He would not even throw him the crumbs and scraps leftover from his daily feasts, which even his dogs enjoyed. And so, the rich man, richly blessed by God in overflowing abundance with all things needful to the body and life, did not even have a thought towards helping the poor man laid at his gate in any way.

The name Lazarus means “one whom God helps”. One way in which God helped the poor, widows, and orphans was by commanding His faithful to tithe. Farmers of crops, fruit, and livestock were commanded to give ten percent of their harvest to the treasury, out of which the poor, widows, and orphans were cared for and the priests, who had no land or means of providing food, clothing, and shelter for themselves, were provided for. The tithe was ten percent of a family’s increase, gain, or profit. However, also commanded were offerings, which were above and beyond the tithe, and were typically given out of a surplus. Ultimately, the purpose of tithes and of offerings was two-fold: To provide for the poor, widows, orphans, and the priests, and to remind the children of Israel that all things belong to God, and that they were stewards and managers of God’s providence.

Understanding Biblical stewardship can help you to see how it is that failure to love your neighbor and brother is failure to love God. The truth be told, as Martin Luther confessed in his last written words, “We are [all] beggars: this is true.” We are all beggars, like Lazarus, who need, and who receive, help from God. In truth, the rich man was as much a beggar as Lazarus; he was as much in need of God’s daily providence for the things that sustained his body and life, as well as the spiritual things that delivered, sanctified, and kept his eternal life, as was Lazarus, and as are you. Only a man who truly believed that all that he had earned, deserved, and merited by his own works, energies, and efforts, justified him before God, could then justify himself to pass by or refuse a brother or a neighbor who has come to him for help. But, such self righteousness is a delusion and a deception of the enemy. It damages and destroys your love for your brother and your neighbor, because it damages and destroys your love for God.

St. John teaches you, “God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” Faith is absolutely necessary for salvation, for it clings to God’s gift of love in Jesus Christ and therein receives His forgiveness, life, and salvation. But, as St. James teaches, faith without works of love, is dead. Indeed, love, true love, the love that God is, is not an emotion, a feeling, or a sentiment, but it is a work, a selfless work of giving and sacrificing. It is because God is love that He is a creator and a giver of life. It is because God is love that there is something instead of nothing – and, what a marvelous and wonderful something it is! It is because God is love that there is forgiveness, life and salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. For, God so loved the world in this way, He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but will have eternal life.

Thus, there is no moralism in Jesus’ story of the rich man and Lazarus other than the one command to love: Love God, and love your neighbor. Love others as you have been loved. And, this is much less a command than it is the result of communion with God in Jesus Christ. Through baptism and faith in Jesus you abide in Him and He in you – you abide in His love and His love abides in you. And so, you love your brother and neighbor with God’s love. You give to your brother and neighbor of God’s gifts. And you forgive your brother and neighbor with God’s forgiveness in, through, and in communion with, Jesus Christ. This was, is, and has always been the consistent message of Moses and the Prophets. Yet it is rejected by many, even though Jesus Christ has risen from the dead.

What keeps you from doing the right thing? What keeps you from loving your brother and neighbor with selfless, unconditional love. Is it not fear? Fear of losing? Fear of being taken advantage of? Fear of being swindled? Fear of judgment from your peers who might think you a fool? St. John teaches you saying, “There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love.” Because God has given you all things in Christ Jesus, there is nothing for you to fear, but all is yours. But, before you can appreciate that, and trust that, and cling to Christ in faith, you have to confess that you have nothing to lose, that all that you have truly belongs to God, and that you, on your own, are a beggar, and the recipient of God’s love, grace, and mercy poured out in Jesus. There is no fear in love, because the one who loves knows that he has nothing to lose. And, as fear has to do with punishment, there is no fear in love, for in God’s love there is no punishment because of His love for you in Jesus.

Thus, “By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment,” confidence that is the fruit of faith in Jesus Christ. In Christ, you may stand boldly before the Lord without fear. In Christ, you may stand boldly before the assaults of the evil one without fear. And, in Christ, you may boldly, recklessly, and selflessly love your brother and your neighbor without fear – without fear of losing; without fear of being taken advantage of; without fear of being swindled – to the glory of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Now, your Lord and God invites you, His kings and queens and sons and daughters, robed in the royal righteousness of His Son, to come and to feast sumptuously on the choicest of meats and the finest of wines, in the feast of His Love in the precious body and holy blood of His Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

The Feast of the Holy Trinity

(Audio)

John 3:1-17; Romans 11:33-36; Isaiah 6:1-7

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

The Holy Trinity is the greatest mystery of the Christian faith. And yet, belief in the Holy Trinity is necessary to salvation. Indeed, one cannot be a Christian and deny the Holy Trinity. For, to deny the Holy Trinity is to deny that, along with the Father, the Son and the Spirit are also, and at the same time, God. Thus, to deny the Holy Trinity is to deny that Jesus is God’s Son, and that He is true God and true man, and, thus, to deny the Holy Trinity is to deny that Jesus Christ is the Savior and Redeemer of all mankind.

And, to say that the Holy Trinity is a mystery, is to say only that it cannot be fully explained or understood, least of all by human reason. Nonetheless, it should not be thus assumed that the Holy Trinity cannot be, or that it is not, but only that it is beyond human reason, perception, knowledge, and understanding, although these do approach and understand the Holy Trinity in part. For, it is the nature of a mystery, not to shut you out, but rather, to invite you in, deeper, ever deeper, so that, as you begin to understand, to comprehend, and to believe, then another layer of the onion is revealed for you to ponder, to meditate upon, and to worship.

Whoever desires to be saved must, above all, hold the catholic faith. Whoever does not keep it whole and undefiled will without doubt perish eternally. And the catholic faith is this, that we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the substance. It is necessary to confess the Holy Trinity, and what is necessary to confess has been revealed by the Holy Trinity. That is to say, you may only say of the Holy Trinity what God has said affirmatively in His Word, and you can only say negatively that which contradicts what God has said affirmatively. For, the Holy Trinity is a mystery and an article of faith. It cannot be comprehended by the human mind, for it is before the human mind and the source and creator of humanity. And yet, your Holy Triune God reveals Himself to you in creation, in spirit, and in Word.

You must receive what God reveals in faith. Thus Jesus taught Nicodemus “unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God” and “unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God”. The gift of faith comes in the manner of the gift of life: It is received, not earned. It is given, not apprehended. It is revealed, not reasoned. The Holy Spirit of God calls, gathers, sanctifies, and keeps in faith those He chooses, where and when He pleases. Thus, you are the recipient of His gracious workings, just as you are the recipient of the cooling breeze of the wind, and as you are the recipient of life itself. Jesus asked Nicodemus, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things?” and He taught Him saying, “we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony.” According to his fleshly wisdom and understanding, Nicodemus could see, with his own two eyes, and reason with his fleshly mind, that Jesus was a great Rabbi and teacher blessed by God. But his human flesh, wisdom, and reason could not comprehend that God was not only with Jesus, but that Jesus was God in human flesh, sent by the Father, and that upon Him the Holy Spirit had descended and remains and abides.

Nicodemus was a learned and pious man of faith, yet, he struggled to believe what he could not confirm with human observation and reason. So, like Thomas, like Peter, and like all the Apostles, and like you, he was limited by what he could know and by what he could see, and he demanded, implicitly if not explicitly, a sign or a demonstration of Jesus that would conform to human reason, wisdom, and expectations. But Jesus did not chide Nicodemus, as He did not chide Thomas, Peter, or you, but He invited Nicodemus to stop trying to earn, take, and apprehend, but, instead, to receive the testimony of the Holy Triune God in Word and Spirit and Truth. For, faith and belief in the Holy Trinity is a gift of God’s grace, just as is forgiveness of sins for Jesus’ sake. Isaiah received the gift of absolution when the seraphim touched his lips with a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. Nicodemus received this gift when he was born again of water and spirit in Holy Baptism. In the same way you too have received this gift. And, in Jesus Christ, the whole world has been given the gift of God’s love for forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.

In today’s Collect we acknowledged the gift of grace that God has given to us in revealing Himself in Trinity; we prayed, “Almighty and everlasting God, You have given us grace to acknowledge the glory of the eternal Trinity by the confession of a true faith and to worship the Unity in the power of the Divine Majesty.” And, we also prayed that the Lord would “keep us steadfast in this faith and defend us from all adversities” that we might keep the catholic faith whole and undefiled. For, you are daily buffeted and assaulted by godless doctrines and secular humanism which makes no allowance for what human reason cannot comprehend.

But your Holy Triune God has given you yet another gift of His grace and love. He has raised up for you on the cross His only-begotten Son that all who look to Him will not perish but will have eternal life. Where human reason and wisdom see and comprehend only a dead man upon a pole, just as the Israelites in the wilderness saw only a bronze serpent, you behold God Himself in death, and you receive His life. And, because of Jesus’ death, what human reason and wisdom see in baptism as a mere washing with water, you see and confess as a lavish washing away of sins and the bestowal of faith and eternal life. And, in what human reason and wisdom sees and comprehends merely as a morsel of bread and a sip of wine, you see and confess as Holy Communion with Jesus Christ, the Son of God, God in human flesh, flesh of His flesh and bone of His bones for the forgiveness of sins, the strengthening of your faith, and for your life today, tomorrow, and forevermore, world without end.

For, the God who is before all things, who made all things, who sustains all things, and who fills all things, the Holy Triune God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – is present to bless you with His life and His love and His forgiveness. Blessed be the Holy Trinity and the undivided Unity. Let us give glory to Him because He has shown His mercy to us.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.

Memorial Day Benediction 2012

Once again I was honored to deliver the benediction at the Pawling Memorial Day Parade and Commemoration Ceremony.

Our Father, before whom we, of many nations, ethnicities, cultures, and traditions, are together, one and all, your children and the family of man, we regret that our sinful rebellion has caused war and schism, violence and destruction resulting in the suffering and death of countless of our brothers and sisters, each one your child and a precious soul. Forgive us, Lord, our rebellion, for Jesus’ sake, and turn us in repentance, that we might forgive as we have been forgiven, give as we have been given to, and bless as we have richly and abundantly been the recipients of your blessing. May your peace, established with man through your Son, affect peace amongst us, your children, that your Name be glorified in our love for each other, to the ends of the earth.

Nevertheless, you have established governments and you have given them authority to reward those who do good and to punish those who do evil. And, under that sword you have raised up men and women who have served our nation to protect and to defend Her from those who would destroy Her, and countless of these have laid down their lives in sacrificial death that we may live in freedom and peace.

We give thanks to you for these martyrs who loved freedom, who loved us, more than they loved their own lives. We thank you for the example of selfless, sacrificial love they remain for us, a love best exemplified in your own selfless, sacrificial love for all the world in your Son. Bless us with your Spirit and make of us brothers and sisters and neighbors worthy of their blood and their love by empowering us to lay down our selfishness for the sake of our brothers and sisters and neighbors in need, regardless of their nationality, ethnicity, culture, or tradition.

And, especially on this day, our Father, in which we remember those who have sacrificed themselves for us, we do not forgot those who even now suffer their loss, and those who have selflessly placed themselves in the gap for us at this present time. Protect these under the shadow of your wing and comfort them in their separation. Bless them with your Spirit and let them know our love and thanksgiving for them. In accordance with your good and gracious will, see them safely home and provide for the needs of their families while they are away.

Lord, bless us and keep us. Lord, make your face to shine upon us and be gracious to us. Lord, lift up your countenance upon us, and give us your peace.

In the + Name of Jesus. Amen.