Monday, June 29, 2009

Third Sunday after Trinity - June 28, 2009

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Third Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 28, 2009)

“The Love of the Father”

Readings:
Psalm 103 verses 1 - 13
Micah 7:18-20
1 Peter 5:6-11
Luke 15:11-32

Sermon Form Deductive
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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 15th chapter of St. Luke, especially the following verse:

Luke 15:31-32 (NIV)
“ ‘My son,’ the father said, ‘you are always with me, and everything I have is yours. 32 But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.’ ”


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

There is a saying that goes something like this, “Their belly is full, but they’re still hungry.” This saying means that there are different kinds of hunger. Meaning, you can be full of food, yet still be hungry for the greater things in life. Maybe that’s more easy for us to understand, for in fact we are hungry for the people, places, and things of this world that would make our lives much, much better than they are now. In the Parable of the Lost Son we not only hear of that hunger for things, but we also hear of a man who was driven so low that he would hunger for the food of pigs. Quite an adventure for this young man, from the love of his father, to the love of his father’s money. From the short lived happiness of from found wealth and wild living, to be faced with famine in all aspects of his most basic human needs. None of what happened for that young man was the way he thought it would play out. In fact, he might even think that he didn’t get what he deserved with every move he made and if he thought that he would be right. And actually, if you really think about it, both sons in this parable are two faced. So why isn’t the title of this parable more appropriately “The four faces of the two sons?” Yes the parable is about those sons, but it is even more about,

“THE LOVE OF THE FATHER”

This parable is compelling. When we hear it we are often asked which brother in this parable would we be? Would you be the brother who took the money and squandered it? Or would you be the brother who stayed home? Careful how you answer for the older brother who was quick to throw stones in his inherited glass house. We do know that certainly not many of us would be like that father. Giving away his estate knowing that it was going to be frittered away on wine, women, and song. And then the sheer audacity of that father to welcome home the wayward son. Most parents would be inclined to point to the door and say get back out there your on your own now.

But the parable begins with the younger brother who knew of his fathers love, yet longed for a life that his father couldn’t give him. He didn’t want what he had. He wanted everything that was outside of what his family had. In fact this younger son longed for a life of sin and he has enough audacity to ask for his father for his share of the inheritance. But even stranger still, the father gave it to him. And to further compound the situation scripture tells us that the father divided the estate equally between the two sons. So really, the older brother had his inheritance too. Both sons received their inheritance long before their father’s death. Meaning they not only received early, but they also received it long before there was any obligation for that transfer of wealth.

So maybe a better question might be, “Why didn’t older brother speak up sooner?” Why didn’t he honor his father and wait for the inheritance to come with the passing of time? Why didn’t he acknowledge that his father would love him so much that he would give everything away for his sons? So, actually it is the older brother who puts on his second face before the younger. For the older brother says nothing, he just takes his portion, and does so without comment. So, in reality the older brother’s sin is by default, by silence and it is greater than it appears. For as the older brother he would have received a double portion from the father. The fact that the elder son agreed indicates that he too alienated himself from his father. He may not have said it as bluntly as his little brother, but his agreement shows that he was thinking along the same lines.

No matter how obtuse this parable may sound it is indeed an accurate picture of a father dealing with his children out of his for them. For this is how God the Father deals with His children. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus said, (Mt. 5:45) "He makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust." Martin Luther built on that thought in the explanation to the fourth petition of the Lord's Prayer, "God certainly gives daily bread to everyone without our prayers, even to all evil people …" In His grace, God provides the inheritance of creation, our needs of body and soul, to all people. Even the most wicked person on this earth still has their food, clothing, shelter, and is offered the knowledge of the truth. The world sees this as insanity. Our sinful nature wants our daily bread now. We want that thing that would make us happier, make us equal to the person next door, that would give us everything that is out there, at the expense of everything God has promised us.

And so in the parable the next humiliation is the father's action to take the younger son back into the family. A man of wealth and prestige never runs anywhere, but this father did. He ran to meet his wayward son as he came home. This was an act of humiliation by the father. This father runs to his son, falling on his neck with kisses, replacing his rags with royal robes, placing the ring of authority on his hand, and inviting the community to a welcome home party.

Furthermore, the father saw the son returning from a distance. This father was always actively looking for his son. The father was able to run to his son and overwhelm him with grace before the son could get one word of repentance out of his mouth. Jesus' description of the father's actions is a portrait of complete and total grace, of unconditional love. The father's actions would overwhelm the son in the parable, but would also totally surprise those who were listening to the parable.

The prophet Isaiah wrote, "We have all become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous deeds are like a polluted garment. We all fade like a leaf, and our iniquities, like the wind, take us away."(Is 64:6) Never the less, like the father of the parable, God humiliates Himself to bring us back into His family. He washes us in baptism and covers us with the righteousness that Jesus Christ earned with His death on the cross. He humbles Himself in order to announce that we are His beloved children. He invites us to celebrate with Him the holy meal of the Lord's Table that strengthens our starving faith. We become heirs once again to a new covenant of grace that supersedes the covenant of the law.

The final humiliation of the father happens in His gracious reaction to the elder son's anger. The father actually pleads with the older son to attend the party. The elder son actually responds by loudly accusing the father of treating him unfairly. He insults his father by arguing with him in public and by not addressing him as father. The elder son even refuses to acknowledge his brother instead calling him, "Your Son." Furthermore, he refused to celebrate with his father and brother.

In the face of this furious attack the father graciously and affectionately replied with a repetition of the invitation. But the older son is still indignant that his father would invite an admitted adulterer and philanderer back home. Yet the father loved both sons. And he welcomed both of sons to the feast. The father is the absolute picture of unbelievable love and grace.

Jesus never tells us what happened to the older son. But the Pharisees and the scribes who were listening to Jesus would recognize themselves in the story. Just as we too recognize ourselves in the story. When Jesus told the parable the end of the story had not yet happened. But the end of the story did come. God was willing to humiliate Himself in love for them. God still invites them to the feast. Did they rejoice over the dead who are alive again - the lost who are found? Did they see that the celebration was also for them? Did they see the Father’s love for them?

Repent, for we have all strayed. We have taken the things of this world and left our thoughts of the father behind. Yet in the face of all that we have done, we still have a loving God who willingly suffered humiliation for us. When we would want to squander the Father’s love, He gives us more. In fact He gives us it all, He gives us His Son. And His love draws us to Himself. He comes to us, He opens His arms, and the Father welcomes us home forever and ever. Amen.

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

Monday, June 22, 2009

Second Sunday after Trinity - 06-21-09

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Second Sunday after Trinity, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 21, 2009)

“The Feast in the Kingdom of God”

Readings:
Psalm 34 verses 12 - 22
Proverbs 9:1-10
Ephesians 2:13-22
Luke 14:15-24

Sermon Form Deductive
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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 14th chapter of St. Luke, especially the following verse:

Luke 14:15-24 (NIV)
15 When one of those at the table with him heard this, he said to Jesus, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” 16 Jesus replied: “A certain man was preparing a great banquet and invited many guests. 17 At the time of the banquet he sent his servant to tell those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 “But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said, ‘I have just bought a field, and I must go and see it. Please excuse me.’ 19 “Another said, ‘I have just bought five yoke of oxen, and I’m on my way to try them out. Please excuse me.’ 20 “Still another said, ‘I just got married, so I can’t come.’ 21 “The servant came back and reported this to his master. Then the owner of the house became angry and ordered his servant, ‘Go out quickly into the streets and alleys of the town and bring in the poor, the crippled, the blind and the lame.’ 22 “‘Sir,’ the servant said, ‘what you ordered has been done, but there is still room.’ 23 “Then the master told his servant, ‘Go out to the roads and country lanes and make them come in, so that my house will be full. 24 I tell you, not one of those men who were invited will get a taste of my banquet.’”

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

The Gospel lesson in Luke today is one for which there are many repetitions and variations throughout scripture. Jesus was teaching of salvation, and His explaining so more views, more lessons, and more repetition all help to give the hearers the best opportunity to hear and understand. In this lesson Christ is speaking to one person, yet all who “overhear” Christ’s reply will hear the lesson too. That is the way Jesus intended it to be, today you will overhear the same lesson too. And the setting for this lesson is the house of Pharisee. You’ll probably remember this Pharisee who was questioning Jesus with regard to the what could and couldn’t be done on the Sabbath. It was a back and forth discussion about “places of honor”(Luke 14:8) around a table, and inviting those people to the party who “can’t pay you back”(Luke 14:14) And so hearing all this discussion a man steps up to Jesus and says, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the....
“Feast in the Kingdom”

Now the man making this statement was probably thinking that it would be big honor to be invited to this great feast. After all, think about who would be there, probably everyone important. Evidently Jesus' host customarily invited only his relatives, neighbors and wealthy friends to dinner. They were the people who would return the invitation with another invitation. But, true children of God do more than that. Jesus told His host that he should also invite the poor, the maimed and the blind. These are people who would not be able to repay their host. Remember Jesus said, "You will be blessed because they cannot repay you. And what's more you will be repaid when the just rise from the dead."(v. 14) God rewards the deeds of His children.

This week we had invited guests in our church. These were guests who did not pay the church, neither is it expected that they ever will. Yet for all those who participated and helped in our Vacation Bible School. They know that we hosted many who had not heard the Word of God. Yes we did in fact have feasts of food, but more than that we learned about Jesus. We said prayers before our meals, prayers in church, and we talked about Jesus, Christ, God’s Son, Savior. And quite frankly for quite a few of these children, this week they were taught how to pray. Fold your hands, bow your heads, close your eyes... And by the end of the week they knew their memory verses, they went home with a big bag of crafts and goodies. But more than all that, we heard from parents and grandparents that these children went home with a song in their hearts. And for a few they couldn’t get them to stop singing those songs. And most importantly of all these children heard about Jesus Christ. They learned about baptism, they learned about their savior who cared for them very much.

And so it may be asked, what’s in it for us? Well some of the children were back from last year, some we may see now and again, some may never come back. But that is not the point. More than hotdogs and pizza’s were served at this simple and lowly banquet feast, in fact the main course was learning about Jesus Christ. These children are not high rollers, we didn’t make networking connections that will help us to gain something we need. Just the opposite. We invited children to hear of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit was at work here, causing these children to hear about Jesus. And their parents heard about Jesus too. The Word has been planted in their ears, and it is always up to the Holy Spirit to work faith in those who hear God’s Word. From a financial point of view, from a time invested point of view, the investment may not seem worth the effort. But remember, inviting these children is important. Even in the parable of the sower God chose to plant seeds in soil that may not have had a good return. That is not our choice, to decide who we should share the Gospel of Christ, rather it is a reflection of our faith that we should share the Word of God with whomever we meet, at every opportunity we are offered. We are not given to pick and choose which banquet we are going to attend based upon who is going to be there. Regardless of their station in life or their age. we are called to proclaim the Gospel. And for all who helped, whether hear physically, whether time donated, ore even if these children were included in prayers all those deeds do not save them, but indeed God does reward them.

Jesus once said, “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure—pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” (Luke 6:38)

The point of this is, that the master in Jesus’ parable invited only influential people he knew, yet all his invitations met with excuses. One said he bought a field and had to go look at it. He bought a field without looking at it? Another bought five yoke of oxen and had to try them out. He bought all that livestock without looking at them? Another said he just gotten married and couldn’t come to the dinner. A newlywed couple turning down a free meal? And what of all these people and all their excuses? Well in fact as it turns out, they were lame ones.

But the parable was not really about a dinner, it was about a heavenly banquet feast. God sends out His messengers, that would be you and me, again and again into all places seeking all kinds of people, no matter how poor or how useless they may appear, whether they are young or old, whether they are healthy or lame.

And Jesus also warns us in this text to repent. We are told that God is very angry with people who give Him empty excuses like the sinful men of this world who very foolishly often reject God's invitations to the dinner feast of the Gospel. But even then God urgently keeps on inviting them. If these people continue to reject God’s Word they will not taste the dinner either in this life nor in the life to come.

In the hearing of God’s Word people are brought to faith. In the gift of faith and by God grace He shows His desire to have His house full. In sending His Son Jesus Christ to die for our sins on the cross he pens our heavenly banquet invitation with Christ’s own body and blood. In the water combined with His Word in our baptism with are assured that we will have a seat at that feast. In Holy communion we eat Christ’s body and drink His blood which is the Holy Supper of our Lord, and indeed is a foretaste of the feast to come. By human hands, we prepared a small banquet feast for a dozen young children in the here and now. Yes they went home with a song in their hears. But even greater still they went home with the knowledge of Jesus, Christ, God’s, Son, Savior. And with that knowledge the Holy Spirit guides them to a greater heavenly banquet feast. Imagine the Heavenly feast which Christ has prepared for them and for you. For all are blessed beyond measure and Jesus says to all, “Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God.” Amen.

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

Monday, June 15, 2009

First Sunday after Trinity - 06-14-09

No Sermon for yesterday, 6/14/09. I was away...

Monday, June 8, 2009

The Holy Trinity - 6-7-09

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Holy Trinity, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 7, 2009)

“The Holy Trinity”

Readings:
Psalm 29
Isaiah 6:1-7
Romans 11:33-36
John 3:1-17

Sermon Form Deductive
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Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God the Father
and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Amen

The text for today is as recorded in the Gospel Lesson from the 3rd chapter of St. John, especially the following verse:

John 3:1-17 (NIV)
1 Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a member of the Jewish ruling council. 2 He came to Jesus at night and said, “Rabbi, we know you are a teacher who has come from God. For no one could perform the miraculous signs you are doing if God were not with him.” 3 In reply Jesus declared, “I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again.” 4 “How can a man be born when he is old?” Nicodemus asked. “Surely he cannot enter a second time into his mother’s womb to be born!” 5 Jesus answered, “I tell you the truth, no one can enter the kingdom of God unless he is born of water and the Spirit. 6 Flesh gives birth to flesh, but the Spirit gives birth to spirit. [Jesus said] 7 You should not be surprised at my saying, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” 9 “How can this be?” Nicodemus asked. 10 “You are Israel’s teacher,” said Jesus, “and do you not understand these things? 11 I tell you the truth, we speak of what we know, and we testify to what we have seen, but still you people do not accept our testimony. 12 I have spoken to you of earthly things and you do not believe; how then will you believe if I speak of heavenly things? 13 No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven—the Son of Man. 14 Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, 15 that everyone who believes in him may have eternal life. 16 “For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

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

You’ve been there before. You’ve been talking with someone about something that was absolutely clear. Your explanation was flawless. Your logic impeccable, very detailed, well thought out and right to the point. In fact, you were quite proud that you could explain something so clearly that anyone would know exactly what you’re talking about. Maybe succinct is the best term, you could think of, short, precise, no wasted words. And then you finish your sentence and the person, looks at you with kind of a sheepish look, amazed at your words, but a little too embarrassed to come right out and say, “What in the world were you just talking about?” So being polite you ask a simple question. A probing question meant to get them back on track with your words and thoughts. So, you say it in another way, but the result is the same, they’re lost, and they don’t understand neither your words nor your meaning.

Welcome to the world of Nicodemus. Because when Jesus said to him, “8 The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.”(v. 8) So Nicodemus asked, “How can this be?”(v. 9) Nicodemus, didn’t understand. What Jesus had said was outside of the box for Nicodemus, totally beyond his realm of thinking. What he did know was, that Jesus was a teacher. And he said that Jesus was from God, because there was proof. Or at least he enough proof that something beyond the realm of man had been achieved by this man Jesus Christ. So Nicodemus said Jesus was from God, because he had concrete evidence, something which he saw, something which he had heard. So if you think about it, Nicodemus would fit in well with us. He could have well been born 2000 years later, somewhere in the United States, probably in Missouri, in the “Show me” state. He could see that Jesus was from God, but somehow couldn’t understand how he needed to be born of the Spirit, and so neither could he grasp the idea of,

The Holy Trinity

We too are a lot like Nicodemus, having a hard time understanding the necessity of rebirth in the Spirit. Having a hard time understanding the reality of the Triune God, the Holy Trinity. Nicodemus knew of God, and he knew of Jesus, but that third part about being born in the Spirit put him over the edge. But that was okay, whether he knew it or not, he was being moved by the Holy Spirit. Jesus did not embarrass Nicodemus, Jesus taught him using something that he and anyone else could grasp with their minds. The example Jesus used was something everyone takes for granted, the wind. Jesus said, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going.”(v. 8)

Everyone can relate to that. We can hear the sound that the air makes as it rushes through the trees, or how it may make our flags snap, how it fills the sails in a sailboat, how it takes away our hats, and ruins our umbrellas. All of examples may not span all of history, but you get the idea, there are things that we can’t see that still exist. Things which can’t be grasped by reaching out and grabbing them, but they are there just the same.

So Jesus takes time to bring Nicodemus and us along to encourage him in the faith. Jesus tells of all the main central Christian truths: The Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit); the necessity of rebirth through baptism; that Jesus is true God and true man in one person; that the crucifixion of Jesus which saves all men; that the new life of the believer compared with the dead life of the unbeliever; that faith saves, unbelief damns; and that Jesus is the Light of the world.

Most of you hear those things explaining who God is and you know them because you’ve heard them all before and they’re nothing new to you. But many people in our world lack any knowledge of the Triune God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Though we try to explain the Trinity with analogies from mathematics, or forms of water, truly it is very simple as someone said long ago, “We were enemies of God, yet He sent Christ, His most precious possession, for the sake of such enemies. We had gone astray and were unaware of our great affliction, and even less in search of help; but God came to our aid without our desiring it. We had fled from Him, but He has called us back. This must, indeed be great love. His beloved Son came into the world, suffered death for our sins, gave His Father perfect obedience, was lifted onto the wooden cross [like the brass serpent [Numbers 21], and thereby obtained the forgiveness of sins, the grace of God, righteousness, and eternal bliss. And thus the lost treasure has been restored (2:19).”(Johann Gerhard)

Whether you understand what you’ve heard or not, God the Father loved you so much that when He created you that, “He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”(Jn 3:16) That is the true love of the one God.

Whether you understand what you’ve heard or not, God’s one and only Son, Jesus Christ was stripped, beaten, and crucified so that your sins would be forgiven. His love cuts so deep that His blood continues to be poured out, and His body continues to be given to us on this altar, even on this very day. That is the true love of the one God.

Whether you understand what you’ve heard or not, the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. And the Holy Spirit, made you His own in the water and Words of your baptism. He continues to, “call (you) by the Gospel, enlighten (you) with His gifts, sanctify and keep (you) in the true faith.”(SC) That is the true love of God.

All of this is the epitome of the very simple concept of the Trinity, or the complete devotion, for you, from God in three persons. God knows of all your pain, your suffering, weaknesses, and yes even all your sins. He hears your prayers. He hears your confessions, He gives you forgiveness. He gives eternal life for all who have been reborn in the waters of Holy Baptism. He shows His love in giving His Son to die on the cross. So even if God’s love for you is so incredibly great, that it is hard for you to understand, know that His love is genuine. For the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit one God bring you His love. Jesus said, “So it is with everyone born of the Spirit,” and so it is for you. Amen

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

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Pentecost Tuesday - 6-2-09 - Circuit Winkel

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Tuesday of Pentecost, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 2, 2009)

“The Gate”

Readings:
Psalm 85
Is. 32:14-20
Acts 8:14-17
John 10:1-10

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’s message will be from the Gospel lesson, from the Gospel of St. John, the 10th chapter, especially the following verses:

John 10:1-10 (NIV)
1 “I tell you the truth, the man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. 2 The man who enters by the gate is the shepherd of his sheep. 3 The watchman opens the gate for him, and the sheep listen to his voice. He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes on ahead of them, and his sheep follow him because they know his voice. 5 But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger’s voice.” 6 Jesus used this figure of speech, but they did not understand what he was telling them. 7 Therefore Jesus said again, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep. 8 All who ever came before me were thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. [Jesus said]9 I am the gate; whoever enters through me will be saved. He will come in and go out, and find pasture. 10 The thief comes only to steal and kill and destroy; I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

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

We all know that, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,”(1 Tim 3:16) We especially hear that point in the Gospel lesson for Pentecost Tuesday, in the words from Jesus Christ. And today as we gather together in the fellowship of the brethren and of the breaking of the bread, we especially hear that message pointed to the under-shepherds and their flocks. The image of Jesus Christ as the Good Shepherd is probably the most deeply engrained image that people have of Christ. That is, for the people who have been to Church and Sunday school from their youth, that picture of Jesus Christ smiling with the small lamb across His shoulders that’s the one they would remember the most. Jesus Christ the Good Shepherd.

But today outside of this small gathering few would know who a good shepherd is or what a good shepherd does. But you do. You know full well, the Good shepherd was the one who cared for His sheep. That type of imagery connects with all that you have read and all that you have been taught. The shepherd is the one who built the sheepfold or the pen. And that pen was made up of a high stone wall to keep out wild animals and other intruders. You know that there was one only one way into the pen. One gate. The shepherd had to open the one gate. Oh, several shepherds may have used the same sheepfold or pen. And in the morning those shepherds would call their sheep and they would follow their shepherd. You know these things, they’re common knowledge, you’ve heard them all before.

But, today, for most people, unless they’ve lived on a farm, all this would probably be strange sounding information. Shepherds and walls, sheep and gates, and even knowing, hearing, and following the voice of a master, let alone following anyone. There is just so very little knowledge in the world of these things. It would seem that the people of this world haven’t heard these things, and so that means they can’t get the analogy, they don’t understand them. So how in the world can they relate to this person unknown to them, this man Jesus Christ? It would seem these words relate to worn out imagery, from a unknown or worn out lesson, for worn the down people of this world, about someone way back when a long time ago, in a far, far away place.

For many of the people of this world have not heard of the voice of any Shepherd. Rather they’ve been taught from their youth to hear the voice of their inner self. That would be the one where their heart leads them. Work harder, do better, and all these worldly things will be given to you. You don’t necessarily have to listen to a leader, just hear your own inner voice. There was a song that said, “You can get it if you really want it.” Or maybe you would know it better if Shakespeare defined it for you, “Why then the world’s mine oyster, Which I with sword will open.” I can get it, I will open it.

But let’s get real, nobody has heard of any of those sayings either. And those walls around those sheep pens? Well those don’t connect either. But, walls are okay if that’s what you’re into. In fact, everything is okay, if that is what you do, building walls, well then that’s is okay with me. In fact, if you want to build a big stone wall around that church yours, I’ll help you build it as long as it doesn’t hurt me. I’ll listen to you as long as you don’t offend me, but if you do offend me, then I’ll be out of there and I’ll find my own path again.

So then, what is it a shepherd of this world is compelled to do except to build a new and better sheep pen. Would it be one built with stones that reflect a global initiative, or a global perspective? How about one with many gates? One gate those who are only old, one for the young, one for the tall, one that is short, one that is round, and one for only those who would be square. Many ways, for many people. Yeah, that’s the ticket, an indefinite amount ways in so that no one is left out.

And that is where the undershepherd is drawn to failure. Quite frankly it is all right there in the lesson, in fact right there in the grammar of the Gospel lesson. Whether you know sheep or shepherds, the definite or indefinite articles tells it all. “The man who does not enter the sheep pen by the gate… is a thief and a robber.”(v. 1) Jesus Christ is the gate, and there is none other. Whether we say it in terms of sheep and shepherds, the salvation which Jesus Christ won is the Gospel, by which the Holy Spirit calls a sinner to faith. In contrast, Jesus Christ describes false shepherds, false teachers as those who would deny the person, the Word and work of Jesus Christ. These false shepherds actually know neither Jesus nor their sheep. They come to serve only themselves. They steal away, kill and destroy the Gospel. These shepherds are inclined to walk on eggshells so they do not offend anyone. They do not offend by proclaiming the Law. They do not offend by proclaiming that there is only, ”one Lord, one faith, and one baptism”(Eph 4:5)

But the things of this world have always caused us to sway. Yet Jesus Christ forgives us and reminds us that He, “Is the only door.” For He says, “Through Me if anyone enters he will be saved and will go in and out and will find pasture." True shepherds preach only Christ and Him crucified. True shepherds are servants, not masters. They simply want to teach and preach Christ, the Way, the Truth, the Life. They point to Christ, who offers and gives all mankind salvation, whether they are sinner or saint, whether young or old, whether they are sheep or shepherd. He gives them salvation, which is freedom from sin, death and the devil. Jesus Christ is the great Good Shepherd. He gives the sheep eternal life (v. 28) and so these sheep will never perish. The Father and the Son gives them that promise by sending forth the Holy Spirit to work faith. Faith in the knowledge that Christ is crucified and has won for them the forgiveness of their sins. Forgiveness sealed in baptism, renewed and refreshed in the sacrament of Holy Communion.

Those words and pictures of sheep and shepherds may not a first blush, seem to resonate with this world. But the words and things of this world are not the gate to eternal life. Jesus is the gate, and he overcame the world, so that all “may have [eternal] life, and have it to the full.”(v. 10) Amen.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
+SDG+

Monday, June 1, 2009

Whitsunday - The Feast of Pentecost - 5-31-09

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Day of Pentecost, One Year Series
The Confirmation of Jared Arthur Owen
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (May 31, 2009)

“I will pour out My Spirit”

Readings:
Psalm 143
Genesis 1:1-9
Acts 2:1-21
John 14:23-31

Sermon Form Deductive

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Grace, Mercy, and Peace be to you from the Father,
and the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The text for today’s message will be from the 2nd lesson, the Book of Acts, the 2nd chapter, especially the following verses:

[St. Peter said,] “this is what was spoken by the prophet Joel: 17 “‘In the last days, God says, I will pour out my Spirit on all people. Your sons and daughters will prophesy, your young men will see visions, your old men will dream dreams. 18 Even on my servants, both men and women, I will pour out my Spirit in those days, and they will prophesy. 19 I will show wonders in the heaven above and signs on the earth below, blood and fire and billows of smoke. 20 The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and glorious day of the Lord. 21 And everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’(Acts 2:16-21)

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

Jared Owen

God’s richest blessings to you on this your confirmation day! This is an exciting day, isn’t it I’m certainly excited for you and there are many people here today that are excited for you and love you very much. All the hymns we sing today in this service may not be familiar but they all speak to the focus of this day and even more than that, the importance of Christ in your life. This is an important day, whether you realize it yet or not, one of the most important days of your life. As your Pastor, Jared I am very proud of you, as your brother in Christ, I pray it’s a day you’ll always remember.

You follow in a long line of my confirmands. Well, maybe that line is not so long but this year I am again proud to say that you are to be congratulated that you arrive here today at the very top, graduating first in your confirmation class.

Many of you will remember that last year I started a tradition to help you and all future confirmands remember their confirmation day. And that tradition is this, I have written a sermon that is especially for you. The congregation, will overhear most of this sermon, but there are parts that I have written especially for you personally, as a pastor to a beloved confirmand. I will deliver most of the sermon out loud. But there are other parts from the pastor to you specifically, those parts I will not read aloud, I will give those parts to you in a separate letter. Sometime later this afternoon when you get around to reading through this sermon yourself, you’ll get to read those other parts for yourself.

I pray that from time to time you’ll take this sermon out and read it again. I want you to know and recall what you have done in preparation for this day and what you’re doing this morning, reflects a wonderful relationship which did not start today, yet it is for your entire life.

Hear then Jared, what our Bible text expresses for you today,

In the Book of Acts St. Peter repeated words spoken by the prophet Joel. And in those words Joel talked about the last days when God would pour out His “Spirit on all people.”(v. 17) And when we hear words like “last days” everyone wants to think about some spectacular crashing end of the world that will happen far off in the distant future. And maybe that’s what the people who first heard Joel thought too. Especially after years had passed they became complacent, and tired of waiting. It’s very hard to wait especially when what we are waiting for the means which will end everything in this world, that has been bothering us, hurting us, causing us pain, or depression. We just want all that to come to an end. But, really the focus of those words from Acts are not to be feared, they are not words from something unexpected to come. Yet thoughts of the end of all time still trouble us all. On the Day of Pentecost the disciples were very fearful. Yet the Holy Spirit was poured out on them and would remind them of all that Jesus said. So, before your mind draws you to the end, the Holy Spirit brings you to faith, and therefore draws you to the beginning.

That's why we have Pentecost. But Pentecost is not over. Yes, the Holy Spirit came and reminded the Apostles of what Jesus said. But the Holy Spirit comes to us too. He breathed faith into you Jared when you were baptized, and by faith you believed in God. The Holy Spirit worked through your parents because they brought you to your baptismal waters. And I could probably go back quite a few generations and a multitude of your family for whom the Holy Spirit has worked faith, many of those people are with you here today.

So the Holy Spirit continues His work to this very day. He breathes faith to His people by working through lowly people like us to bring people to faith. If you think about it, and I know you think about a lot of things...the Holy Spirit breathed faith in you when you were baptized.

But if I ask you now if you stopped breathing that day, you would say, “Of course not.” Nor would you ever say, that I breathed on that day but I don’t need to breathe anymore. Nor would you say I was thirsty, I but now I don’t thirst anymore. And knowing you Jared, you’re probably thinking what you said last week before I ask you a question. You said, “I know where you’re going with this Pastor.” But, I’ll finish my thought anyway. On your baptismal day you were marked as one redeemed by Christ the crucified, today you will eat the true body of Christ and drink His true blood which will renew and strengthen your faith. And though our eyes can not see it, nor our tongues taste the difference, we believe that Christ comes to us in Communion, because...He said IS and that is what He meant, this IS His true body, this IS His true blood. Eat and Drink this Holy Supper of our Lord as often as you can Jared, it is here that you are given a foretaste of heaven, indeed it is heaven on earth. The Apostles heard Christ say it and they believed, the Holy Spirit tells us now and we believe it too.

For we have all have witnessed what was written by the Apostles, that the Holy Spirit was sent on the Day of Pentecost to give us faith. The Holy Spirit points us to our salvation which was won by Jesus Christ. Our faith is strengthened by the Holy Spirit who reminds us that Christ came into this world and He did not fear death, for He went even to the cross suffering an unimaginable death so that we might live. And as you also know because of this free gift of God through His Son, Jesus Christ, we are also called to share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with all those who we meet. Rejoice in your salvation already won and tell the Good news of Jesus Christ.

Today, Jared is your confirmation. Today is not a beginning, nor is it an end to your learning of God’s Word. Today and every Sunday is Easter. Today and every Sunday is Pentecost. Today and everyday the Holy Spirit reminds us of Christ’s words. Indeed, the Holy Spirit brings us Christ’s words which were your confirmation verse, "For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.”(John 3:16) The Holy Spirit does not give just for a time, as the world gives. The Holy Spirit proclaims Christ and for you Jared and all who believe in Him, He gives the promise of eternal life. Amen.

The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God
and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.

+SDG+