Monday, October 27, 2008

The Twenty-third Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series Reformation Sunday(Observed) - 10/26/08

The Church Season of Trinity
The Twenty-third Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series
Reformation Sunday(Observed)
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (October 26, 2008)


“IMAGE IS EVERYTHING”
Readings:

Proverbs 8:11-22
Psalm 111
Philippians 3:17-21
Matthew 22:15-22

Sermon Form Deductive

+INI+


Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen


The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 22nd chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verses:


Matthew 22:15-21 (NIV)
15 Then the Pharisees went out and laid plans to trap him (Jesus) in His words. 16 They sent their disciples to him along with the Herodians. “Teacher,” they said, “we know you are a man of integrity and that you teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. You aren’t swayed by men, because you pay no attention to who they are. 17 Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?” 18 But Jesus, knowing their evil intent, said, “You hypocrites, why are you trying to trap me? 19 Show me the coin used for paying the tax.” They brought him a denarius, 20 and He (Jesus) asked them, “Whose portrait is this? And whose inscription?” 21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then he said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”


In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit


The Pharisees, who were the keepers of the law were still hanging around and they just didn’t get it. The Pharisees who were the specks of leaven in the crowd were trying to ruin the whole crowd. Oh, they had listened to all the parables, all the words, and all the teachings of this man called Christ. But, they didn’t hear or understand the words of the parables, nor did they care to try to understand. All they knew is that this man who stood before them, this man Christ was trouble and he had to go. They’d probably gone into back rooms and gathered together in secret to form the plot to fabricate the perfect trap. And they had the problem all thought through. They had it all figured out. They had read the law, both law of their church and the law of their government. Up until now they’d been standing in public, but they were scheming in the background. But, now...now the time was right. It was time to come out into the open. So they surfaced from behind the scenes and from behind their closed doors. And they were so sure of themselves that when they did choose to speak in public it was with a certain smugness. It was as if they were saying, “if you pay no attention to who people are, that means you believe:”

“THE RIGHT IMAGE MEANS NOTHING!”


They’d probably rehearsed the question and knew that there was a good way to ask, a way in which there could be only two answers. Just like the old, old trick, “Heads I win, tails you lose.” So they continued, “Tell us then, what is your opinion? Is it right to pay taxes to Caesar or not?”(v. 17) The point was, they needed a question for which either of the two answers would lead to the same conclusion. But, Jesus turned the trap around and asked them, “Whose portrait, (whose image) is this? And whose inscription?” 21 “Caesar’s,” they replied. Then He (Jesus) said to them, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.”(v. 20, 21) This was not the answer, this group expected.

As we today also celebrate the 491st anniversary of the Protestant Reformation we know that many years after this crowd slyly posed questions to Jesus Christ, a man named Martin Luther would later stand before a similar crowd who was puffed up by their smugness. A group led by the all powerful King Charles Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire who, along with his powerful political machine, expected Luther to melt in the face of their powerful questions. Martin Luther was shown copies of his writings and he was asked if the books were his, and whether he stood by their contents. The contents of these writings pointed not to the greatness of Martin Luther, but rather they all point to the unimaginable overflowing grace of God. That man is not justified by what he does, and that nothing that man can do can earn him salvation, for Luther had read and understood the scriptures which state, “8 For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast.”(Eph 2:8-9) So, Martin Luther confirmed that he was the author of those writings but asked for a recess for a day to gather his thoughts. When Luther returned before these mighty politicians the next day Luther stated, "Unless I shall be convinced by the testimonies of the Scriptures or by clear reason ... I neither can nor will make any retraction, since it is neither safe nor honorable to act against conscience." He also famously is said to have added: "Hier stehe ich. Ich kann nicht anders. Gott helfe mir. Amen." ("Here I stand. I can do no other. God help me. Amen.").

Luther was just a man who in the face of extreme political pressure stopped and took a day to think about the question and when he answered he did not worry about his personal image, he stood by the Word of God. The Word of God, Jesus Christ was faced with a question under extreme political pressure and His immediate answer showed that He was and always will be image of God. Christ and Luther were faced with evil men who tried to construct their our own images of what is right and what is wrong.

Today we can still look to God and see that He provides the right image which clarifies how God works in the kingdoms of this world. Our labor together is prompted from God’s love, not from the love of ourselves or our possessions. We also understand that while God uses the kingdoms of this world to provide a structure for our earthly lives, the leaders and kingdoms of this world do not give us our salvation for our eternal lives.

The right image of God does give us our eternal salvation. The right image of God, is one that we are well familiar with, and it is the image of God’s Son Jesus Christ. The right image is the realization that Jesus is the incarnate Son of God, who came from heaven to earth to make right all that man has made wrong. The right image is Jesus Christ, bloodied, beaten, and nailed to a cross, bearing all our sins, and thereby making us appear spotless and without sin before God our Father. The right image is the Holy Spirit descending upon Christ in His baptism, and the Holy Spirit descending upon us in our baptism, which is, “not just plain water, but it is the water included in God’s command and combined with God’s Word.”(SC)

In our Gospel lesson the Pharisees and the Herodians laid a trap for Jesus, which had only two answers known to these evil men. Jesus stood before them and revealed to them that their plans were transparent. Their trickery and deceit revealed the false images of their false gods defined by earthly power and authority. Jesus calmly pointed to the image on the coin which they handed to Him and told them to, “render unto Caesar that which is Caesar’s and to God that which is God’s.” And not only did He say the words, He did what He said. Jesus the man submitted to the ruling of Caiaphas the high priest, and He submitted to Pontius Pilate, and Herod too. But more importantly Jesus the Christ submitted to God by stating, “Not my will be done, but yours,” and in so doing Jesus rendered unto God that which is God for He gave unto God....Himself.

So, is it true that image is everything? It is true. It is true that one day we will all stand before Christ. And by His authority alone, He restores image of all who would believe and be baptized. Jesus gives us the image of God. Jesus gave to God that which is God’s, and because He alone has restored your image, He will receive you unto God because He has restored your eternal image to that which God created. Amen.

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

+SDG+

Monday, October 20, 2008

The Twenty-second Sunday after Trinity - 10/19/08

The Church Season of Trinity

The Twenty-second Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series

Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (October 19, 2008)

“Forgiveness of sins”

Readings:

Psalm 116:12-19

Micah 6:6-8

Philippians 1:3-11

Matthew 18:21-35

Sermon Form Deductive

+INI+

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father

and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen


The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 18th chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verse:


Matthew 18:21-35

21 Then Peter came to Jesus and asked, “Lord, how many times shall I forgive my brother when he sins against me? Up to seven times?” 22 Jesus answered, “I tell you, not seven times, but seventy-seven times. 23 “Therefore, the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his servants. 24 As he began the settlement, a man who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him. 25 Since he was not able to pay, the master ordered that he and his wife and his children and all that he had be sold to repay the debt. 26 “The servant fell on his knees before him. ‘Be patient with me,’ he begged, ‘and I will pay back everything.’ 27 The servant’s master took pity on him, canceled the debt and let him go. 28 “But when that servant went out, he found one of his fellow servants who owed him a hundred denarii. He grabbed him and began to choke him. ‘Pay back what you owe me!’ he demanded. 29 “His fellow servant fell to his knees and begged him, ‘Be patient with me, and I will pay you back.’ 30 “But he refused. Instead, he went off and had the man thrown into prison until he could pay the debt. 31 When the other servants saw what had happened, they were greatly distressed and went and told their master everything that had happened. 32 “Then the master called the servant in. ‘You wicked servant,’ he said, ‘I canceled all that debt of yours because you begged me to. 33 Shouldn’t you have had mercy on your fellow servant just as I had on you?’ 34 In anger his master turned him over to the jailers to be tortured, until he should pay back all he owed. 35 “This is how my heavenly Father will treat each of you unless you forgive your brother from your heart.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit


In our Gospel lesson today Peter asked Jesus, "How often should I forgive my brother who sins against me?" And the answer Jesus' gives really says this, "There should be no limit to your forgiveness." There should be no limit to your forgiveness. That is a hard one, because we do not want to offer limitless forgiveness for those who have done us wrong in some way. We’d rather store up those memories of wrongful words and actions so that we can pull them out for use in a future argument, in a future meeting, and all the better if we can pull out those memories when the other guy isn’t looking or listening. Forgive 70 x 7 times, get real Jesus, how can I forgive someone who said all those bad things about me? How can I forgive all those bad things they did to me and my family?


This last week I heard a pastor tell a story about forgiveness from someone he had wronged in his high school days. He admitted he was part of group that picked on another student at their high school because this person was physically and mentally challenged. Then many year passed, the young bully, went to college, then to Seminary, then out to serve a church as a newly ordained and installed pastor. Yet as he grew in years he never forgot how he had mistreated this other student. But it seemed that there was no going back, no way to find this person and apologize. He confessed to another pastor what he had done and he received God’s forgiveness. And as he had dutifully learned, and you have too, from the Catechism we believe that, “when the called ministers of Christ deal with us by His divine command, in particular when they exclude openly unrepentant sinners from the Christian congregation and absolve those who repent of their sins and want to do better, this is just as valid and certain, even in heaven, as if Christ our dear Lord dealt with us Himself.”(SC) He knew those words by heart, he knew that God’s forgiveness out forgives anything that we can do, yet he still felt convicted that he could not apologize to that person. Well as it often turns out, we find that God does have a sense of humor, for this young man, after more than a few years, was called to be the Senior Pastor at a very large church. During the call process he went to visit that church, with his chest puffed out, and his ego over-inflated, and he arrived as scheduled to meet a few people from the church. But he had hardly gotten out of his car and started walking up to the church when he saw that there was a person there in front of the church. And as he approached from a distance he got an eerie feeling, because he recognized from the way this man moved due to his handicap, that this was the man whom he and others had bullied so many years before. And at that moment he questioned whether or not he had been forgiven by God, because he had never apologized to that man in person. That man was now the janitor of this huge church, and he was dutifully cleaning the entrance. But when that handicapped janitor saw that man coming toward him he had only one reaction. And, quite frankly it was not the reaction that you might think he would have toward a person who had disparaged him so much, so many years before. He turned and laid down his cleaning tools, he opened his arms and gave that pastor a heartwarming hug, and said, “Pastor I am so glad you are here.” He had long ago not only forgiven the man who would indeed be his pastor, he allowed himself to forget the past too.


In this world the saying, “forgive and forget” is often overused and even more seldom meant. We can sometimes muster the strength to forgive someone, but seldom are we able to totally forget what happened.


When King David committed adultery with Bathsheba, the prophet Nathan pointed out David sin. David repented and was forgiven as he exclaimed: "Have mercy upon me, Oh God!"(Ps. 51:1) And after St. Paul called himself the chief of sinners he said, "for that very reason I was shown mercy so that in me, the worst of sinners, Christ Jesus might display his unlimited patience as an example for those who would believe on Him and receive eternal life.”(1 Tim. 1:16) Until the end of the world St. Paul will serve as a model for all sinners who cannot save themselves by their own works but on whom Christ Jesus has had mercy.


We do very often say, “I'll forgive but I won't forget." That is very, very dangerous. Because that will eventually cause us to either wonder or ask ourselves, “When God forgives us for Jesus' sake, does He forget?” Does God forget? Well, always remember that Gods forgiveness is complete and has no memory of past transgressions. For you will recall in Jeremiah that God says: "I will forgive their iniquity and their sin I will remember no more." (Jer. 31:34) And in the Psalms David prays: "Do not remember the sins of my youth." (Ps. 25:7) When God forgives, He always forgets. Even though you may have confessed your sins and remember what you have done, no matter what they are, God forgives you and the He forgets.


The Triune God is a God of mercy. Over and over we hear in the Old Testament, "Oh give thanks to the Lord for He is good because His mercy endures forever."(Ps. 118:1) Our God is a merciful and He has given us Jesus Christ. And Christ’s mercy is endless, it overcomes any and all of our sins. In Adam all have sinned and everyone falls short of the glory of God.


As sinful humans, there is always the danger of being merciless toward our neighbor. If and when we refuse to forgive our neighbors one of two things happen...Either we will become offensive to our fellow-Christians as our Gospel lesson reminds us or we bring the just judgment of God down upon ourselves. When we refuse to forgive our neighbors, all our debts come back again and we become liable.


We all have many sins to confess. Whether it be a person that we wronged so many years ago or whether it is the times we refused to forgive our neighbor. We are as Christians compelled by God’s grace to repent and pray, “Lord, have mercy on us!” And we do receive God’s forgiveness as we pray, “Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us.” And God’s forgiveness was not too much for Him to bear for, “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that we might die to sins and live for righteousness; by His wounds you have been healed.”(1 Peter 2:24)


Christ bore our sins with Him on the cross, and there He not only forgives you all your sins, but He also forgets your sin too. And one day when you leave this world you will have no worry of things you have done in the past, for God has forgiven you. And He in His forgiveness will welcome you into His kingdom for 7 x 70 years, and that, in biblical terms is a blessed eternity. Amen.


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

+SDG+

Monday, October 13, 2008

The Twenty-first Sunday after Trinity - 10/12/08

The Church Season of Trinity
The Twenty-first Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series
LWML Sunday
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (October 12, 2008)

“Miraculous Signs”

Readings:
Psalm 8
Genesis 1:1 – 2:3
Ephesians 6:10-17
John 4:46-54


Sermon Form Deductive

+INI+

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 4th chapter of St. John, especially the following verse:

John 4:46-54
46 Once more he visited Cana in Galilee, where he had turned the water into wine. And there was a certain royal official whose son lay sick at Capernaum. 47 When this man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee from Judea, he went to him and begged him to come and heal his son, who was close to death. 48 “Unless you people see miraculous signs and wonders,” Jesus told him, “you will never believe.” 49 The royal official said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” 50 Jesus replied, “You may go. Your son will live.” The man took Jesus at his word and departed. 51 While he was still on the way, his servants met him with the news that his boy was living. 52 When he inquired as to the time when his son got better, they said to him, “The fever left him yesterday at the seventh hour.” 53 Then the father realized that this was the exact time at which Jesus had said to him, “Your son will live.” So he and all his household believed. 54 This was the second miraculous sign that Jesus performed, having come from Judea to Galilee.


In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

Jesus had traveled many steps, He had spoken to many people, He had comforted and healed many. And now Jesus once more visits Cana in Galilee. Cana was the site of His first miracle This is where He had attended a wedding and changed the water into wine. He had come along way. And upon His return to Cana a man heard that Jesus had arrived in Galilee and so this royal official sought speak to Jesus. The official’s son was sick and he must have known that Jesus had healed and helped many people. In a manner of speaking the royal official would travel a long way too. Because this royal official would become a true believer in Jesus because of what Jesus would say to him and the crowd. When this official came to Jesus, Jesus severely criticized his attitude. But the next day when he arrived at his own house we are told that he believed the Word of Jesus. He was changed from merely seeking signs to faith in Jesus' Word. Time after time we see that the miracles of Jesus Christ always did one of two things: Either they helped people to believe that Jesus was the Messiah or it hardened them in their unbelief.

It is very true that Jesus’ miracle pointed to the salvation which He won. And God in Christ Jesus graciously gives us the faith to see these miracles and believe in Him. But we also know that from all of Christ’s gifts we are called to share the miracle of Jesus Christ with those who are around us. It is very important to share the Gospel with all who are around us. If you have listened to me speak or heard my prayers, I strive to first point to Christ and then to reinforce the importance of ongoing giving and sharing here in our church, here in our town of Midland, here in Michigan, here in the United States, and throughout the whole world. Today you will notice that we are celebrating LWML Sunday. LWML stands for Lutheran Women’s Missionary League. The group was founded for the purpose of “serving the Lord with gladness” by supporting Gospel outreach from local churches to the farthest corners of the earth. This certainly follows a biblical model as we hear Christ say, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” (Mk 16:15) and in His words known as the Great Commission, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.”(Mt. 28:19) Untold numbers of people have been given the gift of faith in Jesus Christ through the work of the Holy Spirit who guides the mission work supported by the tiny little mite boxes distributed by the women of the LWML. I’m sure that most of you know what a mite box is, but just in case you don’t this is what it looks like. From the spare change that is placed in these boxes and then returned to the LWML, many people have benefited from their numerous acts of charity.

Moments ago I mentioned the model for giving, here in this place, city, state, country and world. The LWML meets this model in every way. Our own LWML Ladies Guild has been working on quilts which will be given away. The Michigan LWML has given $25,000 dollars to our two seminaries, over $15,000 to the Food and Clothing Co-op at the Fort Wayne Seminary. And as a personal note, with a family of five at the Seminary living on one income that generosity by the LWML is certainly one which my family and I appreciated very much. In your bulletins you will find a tri-fold handout which show how this outreach is spread throughout this country and world by giving generously to Lutheran World Relief. So you can see the support to fellow Christians and those in need both locally, nationally and internationally and next year they have set forth a mission grant goal in Michigan of $230,000 dollars and $1.7 million nationally. All these efforts are the result of the miracles of Christ and these miracles are being shared with others. And even more important is that these efforts point not to this group, rather they point to the incarnate Word Jesus Christ and His work of salvation.

It has been written that, "Although the Lord performed miracles and signs to make Himself known and to lead people to faith in Him, the underlying purpose was to focus their attention on the Word rather than on the signs which served merely to attest the truth of His testimony. Faith must rest on the Word of God."(Martin Luther)

In our Gospel lesson a man pleaded with Christ and Jesus told him, “You may go. Your son will live.”(v. 50) This Word of Jesus was not only a prophecy. It had the power to heal the sick boy. And this Word took the nobleman's worries away. But although Christ’s Word always had authority, people did not always believe Him. When Jesus cleansed the Temple the Jews asked Him: "What sign do you perform to prove that You have the right to do this?" He said: "Destroy this Temple and in three days I will raise it up."(Jn. 2:14-17) They thought He was speaking about the physical Temple in Jerusalem. But He was speaking about His own body, His death and resurrection. Later in scripture (John 2:22) we are told, "When therefore He (Jesus) was raised from the dead His disciples remembered that He had said this and so they believed the Scriptures and this Word which Jesus had spoken." Here we are told Jesus spoke of a sign which led His disciples to His Word.

Scripture also tells us: "Jews seek signs and Greeks seek wisdom but we preach Christ crucified, an offense to the Jews and foolishness to the Greeks but for those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God." (1 Cor. 1:22) Even to this very day the Jews say: "Prove that Jesus is true God." They want only signs. And we know that the Greeks, who were the great Philosophers said and still say: "Give us human wisdom, philosophy."

But what is it which we as Christians preach? We preach Christ crucified for the sins of all men because that is what the Word of God says.


It is in these very times that we should not look to the works of our hands, rather we look to the hands of Jesus Christ which bear the marks of the nails driven there to hold Him on the cross. Christ indeed accomplished the greatest work of any man, because came to us and He allowed Himself to be hung upon that cross for us. And His work goes on, even here today. For in the Holy Supper of our Lord, Christ offers His true body and blood for the forgiveness of sins for all who would believe in Him. He wants us to believe that He is the Christ, the Son of God, Who came into the world to die for our sins and to prepare heaven for us. The royal official in our lesson said, “Sir, come down before my child dies.” and Jesus replied, “You may go. Your son will live.”

And even greater still than this one miracle, Jesus came down from heaven to offer us eternal salvation. He has come to us because the things of this world offer no signs of eternal comfort to us before we die. But, for you and all who would believe in Him, Jesus says, “You may go. YOU will live.” And that is miraculous sign which points you to your heavenly home. Amen.

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


Friday, October 10, 2008

Funeral Sermon for Ardis Johnson - 10/10/08

The Church Season of Trinity
Trinity 21
Funeral Service for Ardis Virginia Johnson
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI October 10, 2007

Readings:
1 John 5:1-4
Luke 2:25-32


“A DEFINING MOMENT”

+INI+

Friends and family of Ardis, especially J.R., Karen and John, Brenda and Bob and all the grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Our Savior Jesus Christ has destroyed death and brought life and immortality to light through the Gospel. Let us remember with thanksgiving what God has done through His servant Ardis Virginia Johnson who was given life by her creator and was born on April 22nd, 1922, the child of Floyd Crosby and Minnie Arndt Crosby. She received the gift of Holy Baptism and became a child of God, and later publicly confessed her faith and was confirmed at St. John Lutheran Church of Midland. She received the precious gift of the Lord’s life giving body and blood. On April 25, 1941, she received the gift of a companion J.R. her beloved husband and they were married for over 67 years. Ardis and J.R. were blessed with the gift children, Karen who married John, and Brenda who married Bob, and there are 3 grandchildren, and 6 great-grandchildren. On October 8, 2008, God blessed Ardis with a holy death and took her home to rest in the arms of Jesus to await the resurrection of the Lord. Blessed are they who die in the Lord, from this time forth and evermore.

The text for today’s message is from the Gospel lesson of St. Luke the second Chapter wherein it is recorded that a gentleman named Simeon was “waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Ghost was upon him.”(Lk 2:25) Or maybe this scripture is better heard in our modern terms as, this man Simeon was, “waiting for the comfort of Israel and the Holy Ghost, the comforter was upon him.” And the Holy Ghost God’s comforter, told Simeon that comfort would be delivered in the form of the Lord’s Christ. And Simeon would see in person, before his death, the Christ-Man who would offer comfort to the world. This would not only be a defining moment for the people of Israel, but it would be a defining moment for Simeon too. And so the Holy Ghost led Simeon to the temple to wait for a defining moment when, according to the Law, the Lord’s Christ would be brought to the temple. And so Simeon being a just and devout man did as he was told, he went to the temple and he waited.

Scripture does not tell us how long Simeon waited at the temple after the Holy Ghost spoke to him. We do not know if Simeon sat there at the temple for a day, or for many days. Whether it was hot or cold, sunny or rainy, whether he spent day and night waiting or whether he went to the temple once a day or once a week, or whether he was in sickness or in health.. Quite frankly we don’t know much at all about Simeon, whether he was young or old, or what he did for a living, and we do not know how long it was after he saw Christ that he died. All that we do know is that Simeon was, “just and devout” and that he was “waiting for the Lord’s Christ” and that moment would be a defining moment for the people of Israel and truthfully all the people of the world too.

It would be tempting for those who were with Ardis in her last few days on this earth, to look at those days as defining moments for her, but that is not how she should be remembered. For in her last days it seemed that Ardis was led upon an arduous struggling journey, but in this time she waited in faith to see the Lord’s Christ, her Lord Jesus Christ. And while she waited, she was comforted by the loving care of her husband J.R. And J.R. was not alone, for there were many family members and friends who were with her in that time too. And along with these people there were many other people who cared for her too, devoted doctors, nurses, healthcare and hospice workers, all of whom sought to provide her with care and comfort as she waited for her Lord. But truthfully that final week tells only part of the story about Ardis Johnson.

She was a devoted wife who loved J.R. very much. She was a devoted mother, who I heard speak very often and very proudly about her daughters and their families and about her grandchildren and great-grandchildren too. She spoke about vacation trips with J.R., and about working at Dow High School. And I think the epitome of her human patience was borne out by her long-suffering love for the Detroit Tigers. She waited for them to win a game and she waited for them to somehow get better pitching next year. And while her hope for the Tigers was not fulfilled, her waiting for the Lord was indeed fulfilled.

For Mary and Joseph did bring the Lord’s Christ, the Christ child to the Temple to meet all the requirements and customs of the Law. And all the requirements of the Law, every single one of them, were met by only one person, and that is Jesus Christ. St. Paul tells us that the Law was a, “dividing wall of hostility”(Eph 2:14) it was a wall that separated man from God. But the God-man Jesus Christ, “Destroyed the barrier”(Eph 2:14) by “abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations.”(Eph 2:15) And while all this talk of requirements of the Law may sound strange, this kind of talk was not at all strange to that man Simeon. Because he and all the Old Testament Prophets and Patriarchs knew of the burden that was placed upon them. So they looked forward to the time when the Messiah would come to free them from their bondage. And so it not surprising that when Christ was presented in the Temple that Simeon looked at that tiny infant, and in faith took up the Christ child in his arms and sang. Simeon rejoiced over that very moment singing, “Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word: For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel.”(v. 28-32) That moment, for Simeon, was a defining moment. It was not how Simeon lived, or what he did, or how he died, rather it was that the Lord’s Christ had come into the world.

And it should not be surprising to us here today to know that Christ’s life in this world, was a defining moment for us too. For we too look at Christ in faith knowing that He gives us the promise of eternal life. And that promise was sealed as Christ’s arms were raised up and nailed to the cross. For there on the cross Christ declared, “It is finished.” His work was accomplished. There the promise was sealed that, “whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life.”(John 3:16) And that was the defining moment for the world, that was the defining moment for Ardis and that was the defining moment for us too.

And that defining moment, that promise, is bestowed upon us in Holy Baptism, wherein the water is combined with God’s Word so that we are, “justified by His grace.” We are not justified by what we have done, by how we lived, or even by how we die. Rather it is “by His grace,” God’s grace, so that “we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”(Titus 3:7)

Ardis had that hope, because Ardis had received that faith, and Ardis had received God’s grace. For God in Christ Jesus freely took Ardis up in His arms, His nail scarred arms, and God blessed her and made her His own. And that, was a defining moment for Ardis. And so now God has let Ardis, “depart in peace, according to His Word.” And His Word, is the Incarnate Word, Jesus Christ. Ardis now sees with her own eyes God’s salvation and that is a blessed defining moment which will last for all eternity.

Blessed are they who die in the Lord Jesus Christ from this time forth and forevermore. Amen.

+SDG+

Monday, October 6, 2008

The Twentieth Sunday after Trinity - 10/05/08

The Church Season of Trinity

The Twentieth Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series

Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (October 05, 2008)


“the Banquet Feast”

Readings:


Psalm 27:1-9

Isaiah 55:1-9

Ephesians 5:15-21

Matthew 22:1-14


Sermon Form Deductive

+INI+


Grace, mercy and peace be to you from the Father

and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 22nd chapter of St. Matthew, especially the following verse:

Matthew 22:1-14

22 Jesus spoke to them again in parables, saying: 2 “The kingdom of heaven is like a king who prepared a wedding banquet for his son. 3 He sent his servants to those who had been invited to the banquet to tell them to come, but they refused to come. 4 “Then he sent some more servants and said, ‘Tell those who have been invited that I have prepared my dinner: My oxen and fattened cattle have been butchered, and everything is ready. Come to the wedding banquet.’ 5 “But they paid no attention and went off—one to his field, another to his business. 6 The rest seized his servants, mistreated them and killed them. 7 The king was enraged. He sent his army and destroyed those murderers and burned their city. 8 “Then he said to his servants, ‘The wedding banquet is ready, but those I invited did not deserve to come. 9 Go to the street corners and invite to the banquet anyone you find.’ 10 So the servants went out into the streets and gathered all the people they could find, both good and bad, and the wedding hall was filled with guests. 11 “But when the king came in to see the guests, he noticed a man there who was not wearing wedding clothes. 12 ‘Friend,’ he asked, ‘how did you get in here without wedding clothes?’ The man was speechless. 13 “Then the king told the attendants, ‘Tie him hand and foot, and throw him outside, into the darkness, where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.’ 14 “For many are invited, but few are chosen.”

In the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit

The king in the Gospel parable prepared a great feast for the wedding of his son. With the dinner prepared the servants were sent out to notify the guests that the dinner was ready. If this parable was about a Jewish wedding feast in Jesus’ time, this would have been a big deal. These kind of parties lasted for many days sometimes for seven days. And while various places in this country may argue over what is meant by dinner...for an example ask a few people if dinner served at noontime or at around six p.m. and if you ask enough people you’ll get different answers, like breakfast, dinner, and supper or breakfast, lunch, and dinner. But in Jesus’ time the word for dinner used in this parable occurred from anytime between 9:00 in the morning to around noon, but most certainly the first meal of the day. And if it was the first meal of the day you can see how early the preparations had begun. You can’t just cook a herd of oxen or fattened cattle on a single skillet. No, much more goes into the process to prepare this kind of feast, a lot more than opening the freezer and frying up a few steaks on the grill. And incredibly the invited guests who had not even lifted a finger to receive such a fine meal, ignored the announcement that the banquet was ready, and they ignored their king, they refused to come.


We all recall that when Noah was 500 hundred years old, “12 God saw how corrupt the earth had become, for all the people on earth had corrupted their ways. 13 So God said to Noah, “I am going to put an end to all people, for the earth is filled with violence because of them. I am surely going to destroy both them and the earth.”(Gen. 6:12-13) And following this discussion Noah did as God commanded him and he began to build an ark. Noah worked on that ark for 100 years. We can only imagine all the people whom he must have warned in that time, that the earth was going to come to an end. That God had spoken to Noah. And Noah was speaking to them to tell them what was going to happen, yet the die was cast. The people had heard the invitation, but they did not listen. On the 10th day of the second month the doors of the ark were closed, and on the 17th day of that same month, “the floodgates of the heavens were opened. 12 And rain fell on the earth forty days and forty nights.”(Gen. 7:11-12) And all that had been moving and living about Noah for 600 hundred years came to an end, except those whom God chose, all who had turned away perished, for we are told that, “Every living thing that moved on the earth perished—birds, livestock, wild animals, all the creatures that swarm over the earth, and all mankind. 22 Everything on dry land that had the breath of life in its nostrils died. 23 Every living thing on the face of the earth was wiped out; men and animals and the creatures that move along the ground and the birds of the air were wiped from the earth. Only Noah was left, and those with him in the ark.


In the 600 years before the flood Noah lived a righteous life in and amongst a wicked people. In this parable today the King set out the finest quality meal and in great abundance for the wedding banquet. The people in Noah’s lifetime, and the people in the parable were the same. Both groups heard the invitation but refused to listen.


In the same way today God calls sinners to enjoy all the blessing of His grace, He offers them His forgiveness. And God’s forgiveness in turn brings forth peace of heart and peace of conscience no matter what the past anyone’s past may be. And God’s peace, which passes all understanding brings, comfort and joy. God’s peace brings strength for every task and trial, eagerness and strength to worship and serve God, and His son our savior, Jesus Christ. And even more comforting God in Jesus Christ offers the sure hope of eternal life in heaven.


Whether the parable today is found in the people who watched from the outside of the ark, or whether it be the Jews and the crowd who saw themselves revealed in Jesus’ parable. Or whether it be the times in our own lives when sickness, depression, illness, loss of friends or family the result is always the same. For in all time, God has left nothing undone to make sure that the all would hear His invitation. He sent Moses and the Prophets, Noah, Abraham and all the patriarchs, and the world heard but did not listen. So God sent Jesus Christ to this earth to live and walk amongst God’s people. And they heard Him too and still did not listen, for He was crucified. Yet even in the crucifixion Christ’s message was still proclaimed, but not heard by all and not believed by all.


But, the offer does not end there for after Jesus had risen from the dead and ascended into heaven many witnessed His presence and His continued work on this earth. And because of Christ’s work the heavenly banquet is already prepared, the invitations have been sent out. You need do nothing to earn His favor, no work of your hand, or word from your lips. Jesus has completed all that is necessary and He draws you to Himself, He draws you to the heavenly banquet feast. God has freely placed your faith in you and so we place that faith that trust in Him.


And for all who believe and are baptized we need no longer worry about God’s wrath. For God promised to no longer flood the earth with His wrath, rather He sent the flood of His wrath upon His own Son Jesus Christ in our place. No matter how much you have sinned. No matter how mean spirited you have been. No matter how sick you are, no matter how great your despair for the well being of those whom you love...God tells us for all who, “confess their sins, He who is faithful and just will forgive our sins, and cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”(1 John 1:8)


For we too have endured the flood in the water combined with God’s word of our baptism and our sins have been forgiven. We take part of a heavenly wedding feast here on this earth prepared by our King as we eat and drink the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ. He invites you to come to this meal and join with Him and all who are part of this feast. But even greater still He invites you to come join in the heavenly feast which He has prepared for you. All the work is done, yet the invitations still go out. Jesus will not be kept from sending forth His loving, caring invitations to you, and so many others. And, if in your weakness you see a failing body, or if you see something you have done, and you question whether you are worthy of the invitation to Christ’s heavenly banquet feast let me assure you of this. There is nothing you can do to make yourself worthy, but at the same time you can be certain that you are worthy. Look not to yourself in times of stress, pain, and distraction, rather recall that you are a baptized child of God. And there your invitation was made certain, there by God’s grace He looks at you and sees you not for what you are, rather He looks at you and sees full forgiveness of sins as won by Jesus Christ. And so your invitation has been signed, sealed, and delivered, no RSVP required. So in all things be calmed and comforted in the knowledge that Jesus Christ has prepared you through the forgiveness of your sins and so He has prepared and called you to participate in the eternal banquet feast. Amen.


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


+SDG+