Holy Trinity Sunday - June 19, 2011

The Church Season of Easter
Holy Trinity Sunday – Father’s Day
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 19, 2011)
One Year Series

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

+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 3rd chapter of St. John, especially the following verses.

John 3: 14-17
14And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15that whoever believes in him may have eternal life. 16"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.

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

Today is Father’s Day, how appropriate for it is also to be Trinity Sunday.  This is the last great celebration of the church year before we enter what is known as “common time”  It is true, we all have father’s some better than others, some really wonderful, some not so hot, but we all had a father whether he was who we wanted him to be or if we even knew him at all.

For my part, I had a great Dad, I miss him.  He was a great man, he was not perfect, but in my eyes he was great.  And though he was short, yes even shorter than me, He was an athlete, a runner a 10.1 in the hundred yard dash in high school, a golden gloves boxer, a walk-on for college football and basketball at the University of Cincinnati, a Phd and school superintendent for over 40 years.  He taught me to play ball, to play tennis, ping pong, chess, and he gave me a love of wanting to win.  My dad was so competitive that he never let us win at anything, if you won, you won because you beat him.  I was the only child to beat him at chess and ping-pong and when I won those games he promptly throttled me every time we ever played after that.  He stood by me when I succeeded in life, he stood by me when I failed. My father gave me many gifts, some good some bad, but the true gift my father gave me was when this brilliant man could no longer remember his name, where he was, nor why he was there.

And when I saw my dad lose his greatest attribute, his memory, his mind, his ability to love my mother…I was mad at God, very, very mad.  Why would God take away my dad’s mind?  I struggled during his so-called declining years, but my Father in Heaven was to teach me through my father on earth, one more very important lesson.

For what got me over the "hump" of my personal struggle with my Dad's condition verses God's ultimate wisdom was this...  It so happened that my mom was being baptized at the age of 81, my sister and niece 3 generations same day, was that which happened on that day.  My dad did not know where he was nor why, but when the time in the service came for the Lord's prayer, he quietly folded his hands and spoke that prayer word for word.  It was a revelation for me, he was not suffering, it was I.  In my world his intellect by which he made his living was gone.  But God provided mercy to me through my father by showing me that faith remains when all else fails.  How blind was I not to see that faith had already made my dad well.  How blind was I to see that my God, my Father in heaven, was showing me mercy through my father here on earth.  The mercy giver, became the mercy receiver.  God turned my world upside down, mercy from the unexpected, mercy from the weak, and even more than that ultimate mercy from a man on a cross.

"What mercy God showed to our race,
A plan of rescue by His grace:
In sending One from woman's seed, The One to fill our greatest need-
For on a tree uplifted high His only Son for sin would die,
Would drink the cup of scorn and dread To crush the ancient serpent's head!"
"The Tree of Life, #561, The Lutheran Service Book verse 3"

     About a month ago in Joplin, Missouri, it was a normal Saturday, except that seniors had just had their graduation commencement at high school. People were shopping or relaxing. Then the biggest tornado in over 50 years in the U.S. hit. Where there was once order, there was now chaos. 200 mph winds flattened houses, stores, school, and offices. Cars were whisked away. A tractor trailer was wrapped around a tree. 154 people died. Many more survived, but lost all their possessions. I'm sure there's a lot of people who said, if there is a God, why does he allow this to happen?

God is a god of order, not chaos. When he created the universe and our world, he moved things from chaos into order. In the creation, God said, “26Let us make man in our image, after our likeness….And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good. And there was evening and there was morning, the sixth day.”

In the beginning the earth was without form and void. God separated the waters into earth and heavens. There was darkness, and God created light. Each of the six days God brought order, to the plants, to the birds and fish, to the kinds of animals on the land. God made people, and gave them authority over the animals.

When he was finished, he looked at everything, and it was very good. He made everything, but he ordered it as he wanted. There weren't any tornadoes, or hurricanes, earthquakes or devastation. We don't see Adam and Eve living in fear of being eaten by lions or dinosaurs. There's no death, no disease, suffering, or fear, for these are the things of chaos, not of order.

God created us to live in relationship with him. He made us able to have relationships with each other. He made us to rule over the animal world and use natural resources. All of this is order.

For over 5000 years we have accepted the idea that God is a God of Order. No one believed that the world was created broken and chaotic. But in the past 150 years a new idea of God has appeared. Instead of order, the theory of evolution preaches a God of chaos. Evolution is an idea. It says that mutations over millions of years explains the origin of all the complexity of life.

Have you ever experienced a mutation? I know some of you have. We usually call it cancer. When cells mutate, it is not a pleasant experience. It almost always causes suffering, disease, and death. Yet evolutionists say that given enough time, mutations are the reason for the order we see in the world around us.

Some people say that God used evolution to create the world we see over millions of years. Why then did God look at the world and say it is good, when for millions of years it has suffered disease and death? If God used evolution to create, then he is the author of death. When something like the great tornado of Joplin happens, or when a man looses his mental ability, it shows us that the world is no longer the way God created it. Sin, disobedience to God's order, caused disorder in the created world. Chaos has broken through, and chaos brings suffering and death.

Perhaps you've experienced the effects of chaos in your life. Sin brings disorder between us and God, between us as individuals, and disorder into our personal lives. We grow angry, discontented, and selfish. We live in conflict with God, and with each other. We lose sight of God's order and settle for chaos.

God revealed himself in the Holy Trinity by acting to restore our lives and creation, so that once again they are very good. You can see the Holy Trinity working in the Creation account. "Let us make man in our image." The Spirit moving across the face of the waters. The Gospel of John says of Jesus that "All things were made through Him[Jesus]."

The nature of the Holy Trinity was fully revealed when the Father sent the Son into the world to be conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.  Jesus, through suffering and death, restored the image of God to us. By His resurrection he began the new creation where God's good order is restored and the chaos of sin is removed. 

    Whether your earthly father is here or in heaven, whether you have good memories or bad of that man, know that you have a loving Father in heaven.  One who gave His only Son for you, and you of that love through the Word by the work of the Holy Spirit.

And so rejoice that you are a new creation. You have a new birth and renewal by baptism. "Make disciples of all nations, baptizing in Name of Trinity, the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.”

There will continue to be chaos in the world. storms, fires, and calamities, wars and bloodshed. There will be earthly father’s who love, and those who make dreadly mistakes.  But also know that when the Jesus comes again, we will experience an ordered creation again when Christ raises us from death and restores creation.

I hope you can see that the Lord made the world a very good place. It was ordered according to God's will. The fall and sin brought chaos into our lives and all creation. But God acted in Jesus to restore order. When Jesus became one of us, He revealed the Holy Trinity—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, when He saved us. Through that Triune Name and water God has made us His children right now in Baptism. While we live in a world of disorder we also look forward to the Last Day and to the resurrection.  And while it would be heavenly to play another game of chess or ping pong with my Father, or to meet and enjoy any of those people whom I love who have proceeded me in the faith, the joyous reality is that we will all be too busy worshipping our Lord and Father as we live and serve our Father who is in heaven, with the Son and the Holy Spirit forever and ever. 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+

The Day of Pentecost - June 12, 2011

The Church Season of Pentecost
The Day of Pentecost, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 12, 2011)

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

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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 Gospel lesson, from St. John the 14th chapter, especially the following verses:

John 14:23-31 (ESV)

23 Jesus answered him, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 Whoever does not love me does not keep my words. And the word that you hear is not mine but the Father’s who sent me. 25 “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. 26 But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. 27 Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid. 28 You heard me say to you, ‘I am going away, and I will come to you.’ If you loved me, you would have rejoiced, because I am going to the Father, for the Father is greater than I. 29 And now I have told you before it takes place, so that when it does take place you may believe. 30 I will no longer talk much with you, for the ruler of this world is coming. He has no claim on me, 31 but I do as the Father has commanded me, so that the world may know that I love the Father. Rise, let us go from here.

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

“This is the history of the day. The festival we call Pentecost originated thus: When God led the children of Israel out of Egypt, he had them to celebrate the Easter festival the same night, and commanded them to celebrate it annually, as a memorial of their exodus out of Egypt. Counting from that day, they journeyed in the desert for fifty days, to Mount Sinai, where the Law was given to them by God, through Moses. Hence they celebrated the festival we call Pentecost. For the little word "Pentecost" meansthe fiftieth day. It is to this festival that Luke has reference. When the fifty days after Easter were past and the disciples had celebrated the event of God's having given the people the Law on Mount Sinai, then the Holy Spirit came and gave them a different law. We celebrate the festival, not because of the old, but because of the new event, because of the sending of the Holy Spirit. Therefore we must offer a little explanation and show the difference between our Pentecost and the Pentecost [of the Old Testament].”(Luther – House Postils)

The Israelites walked for 50 days after the Day of the Passover.  And at the end of those 50 days they found themselves at the foot of Mt. Sinai. There the Israelites received the Law from God, they named it the “Festival of Weeks” and later that was given the name Pentecost or “Fiftieth” day after the Passover.  And that’s not all, it was to be a yearly celebration.  How strange to our  modern ears to think of a yearly party or national holiday set aside to celebrate the extremely stringent rules that God sent to Moses for those people to live by.  Walking 50 days to get new laws to tell you how to live.  Just reminds how lucky you are to be a Christian and a Lutheran as you are reminded in the Small Catechism, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”(SC)  It surely is a good thing each and everyone of you still has that catechism verse memorized.

The Holy Spirit often seems like the shy member of the Trinity because He does not point to Himself.  His role is to point us to Christ.  In this way, the Holy Spirit establishes and strengthens faith in Christ for the forgiveness of sins.  Because the Holy Spirit constantly points us to Jesus, He often seems to fade into the background.

Never the less, on this day, the Holy Spirit lets us know that He is around.  There is the sound of a great wind and the appearance of tongues of fire.  The image of the tongue not only gives us a feeling for the general appearance of these little flames, but it also is symbolic of the organ that will be most affected by this outpouring of the Holy Spirit on this day.  The Apostles will be able to explain the salvation story of Jesus Christ in languages they had never spoken before.  Therefore, on this day, we take some time to consider the person and work of the Holy Spirit.

First of all, the Holy Spirit is not some sort of impersonal force.  For example: The Bible speaks of grieving the Holy Spirit [Ephesians 4:30], and the consequences of lying to the Holy Spirit [Acts 5:3-5].  The Bible regularly portrays the Holy Spirit as a personal being and not as an impersonal force.  The Holy Spirit is a person just like the Father and the Son.

Although we normally talk about creation by speaking about God the Father, the Holy Spirit participated in the creation along with the Son, says so right there in the first chapter of Genesis.  He is a member of the Triune God and fully equal to the Father and the Son in the glory and majesty of the eternal God.  He is not a junior partner in the Trinity.

One of the other misconceptions that some people have about the Holy Spirit is that He didn't really do a whole lot until the day of Pentecost.  In the account that follows today's reading, the Holy Spirit used Peter's sermon to bring the crowd to a state of repentance.  The account in Acts describes the crowd's repentance this way: [Acts 2:37] When they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, "Brothers, what shall we do?" Basically, their sin absolutely terrified them.

Peter then supplied the forgiveness in Jesus' name. [Acts 2:38] He said to them, "Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.  The account goes on to tell us that the Holy Spirit added about three thousand souls to the church that day.  With these signs, the Holy Spirit certified the Apostles as the men chosen by Christ Himself to begin the process of proclaiming repentance and the forgiveness of sins to the nations of the world.

So we see the work of the Holy Spirit.  It is the role of the Holy Spirit to work faith in the heart.  This faith is not just a feeling of peace, but it is trust in Jesus Christ.  Faith is the means by which we hold onto the gifts that Jesus Christ earned for us - the gift of righteousness that Jesus earned with His holy, sinless life - the gift of forgiveness that He earned for us with His holy precious blood and innocent suffering and death - the gift of certainty in the promises of God that Jesus demonstrated with His resurrection from the dead - the gift of eternal life with Him that Jesus promised when He said He would return to take us to Himself.  All these gifts and more belong to us only because the Holy Spirit has worked the miracle of faith in us.

On Pentecost, the Holy Spirit certified the words of the Apostles as the true teachings of Jesus Christ.  With that certification we can know for certain that the Holy Spirit inspired their words so that all of the scriptures are the inspired and revealed Word of God which is completely true and free from error.  We can trust the words of the Apostles, not because they were such great people, but because the Holy Spirit supervised them as they wrote.

By the power of the Holy Spirit, the prophets of the Old Testament and the Apostles of the New Testament provide us with the message of God.  The first part of the message is the Law and it is terrifying, for from the Law we learn of our helpless sinful status before God and the eternal punishment that we deserve because of that sin.  The second part of the message is the ultimate comfort, for it tells us that God did not leave us to suffer but sent His only begotten Son to suffer and die in our place so that whoever believes in Him will not be condemned, but will have life eternal.  This is the message that the Holy Spirit certifies with the wondrous signs of Pentecost.  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+

The Seventh Sunday of Easter - Exaudi - June 5, 2011

The Church Season of Easter
The Seventh Sunday of Easter  - Exaudi
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 5, 2011)
One Year Series

Readings:   
        Ezekiel 36:22-28           
        Psalm 51:1-12       
        1 Peter 4:7-14       
        John 15:26 – 16:4

+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 15th chapter of St. John, especially the following verses.

John 15:26-16:4 (ESV)

26 “But when the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father, the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, he will bear witness about me. 27 And you also will bear witness, because you have been with me from the beginning. 1 “I have said all these things to you to keep you from falling away. 2 They will put you out of the synagogues. Indeed, the hour is coming when whoever kills you will think he is offering service to God. 3 And they will do these things because they have not known the Father, nor me. 4 But I have said these things to you, that when their hour comes you may remember that I told them to you. “I did not say these things to you from the beginning, because I was with you.

Alleluia!  Alleluia! Christ is risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  Amen.

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

Last Thursday we celebrated the Day of Ascension.  When Jesus ascends into heaven, the disciples were full of joy. It is not the reaction we expect. Jesus is gone. He won’t appear among His children the way He appeared those thirty-some years that we read about in the Holy Gospels. The disciples should be sad. All they have are His Words and their memories.

So it is with us when it comes to our Lord’s Ascension. Ascension Day is one of the principal high feasts of Christ. It’s a feast full of joy and anticipation. There is joy because Christ will come again the same way He left us. There is anticipation because the promised Paraclete as it is written in Greek, or translated Helper, or Comforter, He will soon come to kindle the fire of Christ’s love in His bride, the Church.

Yet we treat our Lord’s Ascension as if it’s nothing special. Jesus is gone. Everybody look busy. Now that he’s gone, we can go on living our lives as if He were never here with us. Our Lord promises the Helper. But sometimes we fail to see much help in the Church today. Saint Peter says in the Epistle, be hospitable to one another without grumbling. As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God. Peter pictures a Christian congregation that loves one another. God’s children take care of each other, using the talents He gives them to bear one another’s burdens. Nevertheless, hospitality without grumbling and ministering to each other as good stewards sometimes does not happen. We know when someone isn’t speaking to someone else. We could be helping each other with the talents God gives us, but there’s always the chance that our talents will go unnoticed. On the other hand, perhaps someone will take advantage of our gifts, expecting someone else to bear a burden for good.

The reality is in God’s Holy Church, there is no need of large bank accounts, fancy cars, and continuous revival meetings to see faith in action. This is a Spirit-filled congregation. The Holy Spirit here witnesses not of Himself, but of Jesus Christ. Consider the Helper as one pointing back to our Lord. The Paraclete, the helper, the comforter, does not want to separate “true” Christians from “false” Christians through some sort of miraculous sights and sounds. The Paraclete comes to call us by the Gospel, enlighten us with His Gifts, make us holy and keep us holy in the Christian Church to life everlasting.

There is no better comfort than Jesus Christ. Jesus wins the victory over sin, death, and hell for you. His blood covers your sin, giving you His righteousness. Jesus ascends into heaven so you too might ascend with Him in body and soul on Judgment Day. As Christ reigns in heavenly joy, so shall you live and reign with Him. This joy is yours now through faith. This joy in its fullness is yet to come, when Jesus descends as He ascends. Jesus gives you forgiveness, life, and salvation in His Holy Supper. Jesus goes on your tongue, into your body, and into the world as you live according to your calling in life. He loves us with an undeserved and everlasting love. You show your neighbor this love through works of mercy as evidence that faith lives in you.

But we see that left to their own devices, the disciples were bound to fail. With the Spirit of Truth Who proceeds from the Father, the disciples will witness everything they saw and heard concerning Jesus Christ. They saw everything our Lord did. Their eyewitness account makes them true apostles of Christ. What they saw and what they heard, they will proclaim to the ends of the earth. We walk in their footsteps. None of us, unlike the Apostles, witnessed our Lord doing marvelous signs. We have the sure and certain Word of God that proclaims Jesus’ victory over sin, death, and hell. The Christian Church preaches Jesus Christ and Him crucified. This is the comforting witness the Holy Spirit sends us.

We pray that Christ’s ascension is not a time of worry, doubt, anger, and frustration. Christ’s ascension is a time of expectant joy. As we hear in Psalm 27: “Hear, O Lord, when I cry aloud. Your face, Lord do I seek; hide not Your face from me.” The Lord does not hide.  He shows Himself in Word, water, bread, and wine. When you see these Holy Things, you know and believe the Holy One of God is present not in an “I’ll be here for you” way. He is truly, bodily, certainly present. Jesus is here today to take away your sin and doubt, replacing them with everlasting life. Jesus is here to give you the sure and certain hope of comfort that comes only from the Spirit of Truth.

We pray that the King of Glory would not to leave us without consolation but send us the Spirit of truth Whom he promised from the Father. The promise of the Holy Spirit’s coming on Pentecost is the coming of consolation among the Christian Church. The Spirit’s consolation is Jesus Christ, truly present in preaching, in Baptism, in Absolution, and in His Holy Supper. Instead of sadness, the Church rejoices because Jesus abides with us in the simplest of ways. With His simplicity there is profound joy; the joy of forgiveness and new life, and we hear that through the Holy Spirit who conveys the promise won by Jesus Christ.

Alleluia, Alleluia, Christ is Risen!
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  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+

The Ascension of Our Lord - June 2, 2011

The Church Season of Easter,
The Ascension of Our Lord, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (June 2, 2011)

Readings:   
        Psalm 110
        2 Kings 2:5-15
        Acts 1:1-11
        Luke 24:44-53

+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 as recorded in the 24th chapter of St. Luke, especially the following verses:

Luke 24:44-53 (ESV)

44 Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things. 49 And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high.” 50 Then he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. 51 While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. 52 And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, 3 and were continually in the temple blessing God.

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

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  Amen.

The paschal candle has been lit these forty days since Easter, but today we extinguish it for the rest of the year.  Now this candle will stand next to the Baptismal Font, it will be lit for each Baptism and it will be placed next to a casket for each burial.  All this reminds us that we are baptized and buried into Christ our risen Lord.  Paschal means ”pertaining to the Passover” or “Easter” therefore it is a symbol of the Resurrection, that our Lord has ascended into heaven to bless us from there.

Today we celebrate Jesus Christ’s ascension into heaven.  On that Ascension day Christ led His apostles to Bethany, He blessed them and then He ascended into heaven.  We can only imagine what the apostles were thinking.  We know that good byes are always hard when the person you love is going away.  We have all shed tears when we say farewell to someone we won't be seeing for a while. 

We all recall the loss of a loved one, a mother, father, or other close relative who has passed away.  We can recall the pain of the loss.  We are overcome with tears for the loss of that person, at the same time we rejoice for what God has done for our loved one.  So in those times we are sometimes sad and afraid.

It was surprising for the disciples when Jesus' last days on earth came.  Yes, he had told them ahead of time that was going to be delivered into the hands of rulers, crucified, die, and rise on the third day.  But when it happened they were still surprised and afraid.  Emotions got the best of them, and even the brave ones, like Peter, ran away and denied knowing the Lord. 

Yet, when those same apostles saw Jesus alive, their faith was restored.  Scripture tells us that Jesus, "showed himself to these men and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive.  He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God."  (Acts 1:3) During all these appearances the apostles put their trust in Jesus again and He forgave all their doubts and unbelief. 

Even on the day Jesus ascended to heaven, He was still teaching his followers.  Our text says "he opened their minds so they could understand the Holy Scriptures" (Luke 24:45).  Jesus gave them the ability to understand the Bible, and that He had fulfilled all that was written about the Messiah.  Nothing more needed to be accomplished.  Salvation for the world was complete.  From then on, any person who asked God for forgiveness in the Name of Jesus would get it.  Nothing more can be added to what Jesus had done.

And while Jesus' work was finished, the disciples work was just about to begin.  They were to wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit came to them.  Then they were called upon to preach the message of repentance and forgiveness in his Name to all nations.

And Christ's commission to his disciples continues today.  We must continue to repent of our sin and believe the good news that Jesus forgives and restores us to God the Father.  There is no area of our life that we can allow to be off limits to God's Word.  God's Word cannot be altered, we much preach it just as we receive it from the printed page.

Jesus has ascended to heaven, but He is not distant from us.  He sends us the Holy Spirit through the church's preaching and administering His sacraments.  We ask Jesus to open our minds to understand the Holy Scriptures as He did for the first disciples.  In them we find the meaning we need to guide our lives as servants of God.

At the Ascension of Jesus, the church said goodbye to the face to face contact with Jesus. Now, through the preaching and sacraments which He instituted, the Holy Spirit brings Christ to us in means that are hidden, yet powerful.  We are to use this time God has given us to prepare for Jesus' return.  There are so many souls to be reached, and there is so little time.  While we may weep that Jesus has ascended, His incarnation has won for us joy beyond all understanding.  While we are here we bask in the joy of salvation won, yet that does not mean we should rest and do nothing.  Christ has won salvation for all and graciously we are called to proclaim that salvation to the ends of the earth.  There are no sad goodbyes today.  Yet we still may ask, ‘what of those tears we shed for those family and friends who have gone before us in the faith?’  The answer is that when we join Jesus Christ in His heavenly home He, “will wipe away every tear from [your] eyes.”(Rev 21:4)  No pain of loss or separation will remain.  In fact, there is no separation, for even in Christ’s ascension, He has told us that He will still be “with us even to the end of the ages.”(Mt. 28:20)

So when you see the unlit Christ candle here at the altar, remember that Jesus has indeed ascended to heaven, and there Jesus is our heavenly high priest who brings our prayers to the Father, and He rules over His church with grace and forgiveness.  And for us that grace and forgiveness is the knowledge that Christ’s victory over death is won and He gives to us the promise of eternal life. Amen.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  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+

The Sixth Sunday of Easter - Rogate - May 29, 2011

The Church Season of Easter,
Easter 6, Rogate, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (May 29, 2011)

Readings: 
        Psalm 107
        Numbers 21:4-9
        1 Timothy 2:1-6
        John 16:23-33

+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 Epistle lesson as recorded in the 16th chapter of John, especially the following verses:

John 16:23-33 (NIV)

23 In that day you will no longer ask me anything. I tell you the truth, my Father will give you whatever you ask in my name. 24 Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.

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

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  Amen.

The words from our text are spoken by Jesus on Maundy Thursday, before He went out to the Garden to pray and to be betrayed.  After the Supper, and after Judas had fled to do His dirty work, Jesus had a sort of farewell speech, then He prayed all of John chapter seventeen (called Jesus' High Priestly Prayer), and then they went out to the Garden of Gethsemane.  And so what we hear today is just before Jesus went to pray and He tells His disciples to start praying in His Name, and promises that God the Father will hear and answer their prayers.

The hard part of this text is to remember that Jesus was speaking to His disciples.  While we now also hear these promises, we are not the original audience.  Those disciples were accustomed to Jesus being there with them in the flesh.  This text comes in the middle of Jesus warning them that He was going away, and they would not see Him, and their hearts would know sorrow on account of that.  These disciples were accustomed to asking things of their Lord Jesus Christ and receiving something in response.  They were not accustomed to asking for video games, toys, new cars, or candy bars, but when they asked Jesus a question, He answered.  When they wanted to eat, they ate, sometimes that happened in a miraculous way by the Words of Christ and at His command.

Jesus was telling them that when He left them, they were going to have the same relationship with the Father that they had with Jesus.  They would not be praying to Jesus, but to God, and He would deal with them just as they might expect Jesus would.  He would answer.  Whatever it was that they needed, God the Father would provide.  Jesus even made the point that He wasn't going to have to intercede with the Father for them, in order to get what they needed, but the Father Himself would listen and answer their prayers because He loved them!

But now Jesus was about to go away from them. They weren't understanding that too well, but Jesus knew that they would need to know what He was telling them, and very soon.  So, Jesus tells them to start praying, and He promises them that God will listen and answer, “ask, and you will receive.”

That promise is for you, too.  And, you can pray about anything.  There are times in our lives when things go so well we forget to pray.  Or maybe we remember to pray, but we pray about really "spiritual̓ things because life is going okay.  You can pray.  You need to pray - and not just pious little phrases, but heartfelt cries to God about life and about sin and about all of the things that matter to you, even if they are going just great for the moment.  But let's face it, things almost never go that well, and certainly not for all that long, in this world we have sin and tears.  For those times when things aren't going well, God has given you the divine right of prayer.

But most of you may not have thought of it but you’ve been free to pray all of your life, so perhaps you don't understand how big a deal this is.  You’ve lived in a country where you’re allowed to pray, allowed to worship.  On this day we honor those people who fought for your right to pray.  For those who served our country and gave their life so that we could pray.  Jesus said, “13 Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”(John 16:13)  The men and women who are honored this day, did not know you as a friend, yet they still gave the ultimate sacrifice for their country and we thank God that He gave us those people.  And though too us nothing could seem to be greater than our fellow men and women giving their life, even greater still is that Jesus laid down His life for you, so that you may live.

And so the door for prayer has been opened for you because Jesus died for you, taking your sin from between you and God and opening up the channels of love and blessings and communication.  The cross is the sign that God loves you, and the empty tomb of Easter is your assurance that God will hear you and answer every prayer, and bless you.  That is what praying in Jesus' name means.  It is a result of the Gospel.  By raising Jesus from the dead, God declared that what Jesus had done was sufficient, and even more, and now nothing stands between you the believer and God, so you pray.

We have been given the right of prayer because Jesus died for us.  God will hear us because our sins no longer stand in the way.  God will answer for the sake of the suffering and death of His own Son.  That is at least part of what we mean when we say that we pray in the name of Jesus.  It isn't just saying the words, "and this I pray in Jesus' name", as though they were some sort of magic words.  No, prayer in the name of Jesus is acting on faith, specifically acting on our faith, and the doctrine of our faith — which is to say on the truth of our faith.

But then, Jesus tells us that God doesn't respond just because of what Jesus did, but because of His great love for us.  Jesus doesn't have to intercept our prayers and bring them to His Father, acting as the mediator for the petitioner.  The Father listens to our prayers, and He answers them because He loves us — and He loves us in particular because we have believed in Jesus.

And for those of us who believe, we have God's promise to hear and answer!  We have His invitation to bring all of our troubles to Him.  The words of Psalm 50 remind us to, “Call upon Me in the day of trouble, and I will deliver you!” And St. Peter reminds us, “Cast all your cares on Him, for He cares for you.” 1 Peter 5:7.  These words are God's invitation to you, along with the words of Jesus in our text, to come to Him in prayer in times of trouble; to call upon Him for strength and endurance in times of fear; to give your worries to God and let them go; to pray for help when you are feeling helpless, and to ask God to help you unwind and relax in times of stress. 

In every need, you have the gift of prayer, and you can be utterly certain that God the Father listens to you with compassion and concern because He loves you!  And we know that love is genuine, because of Jesus, because of the cross, where He died for sins we committed, to take the death that we deserve off of our shoulders; and because of the empty tomb which proclaims that God has accepted the sacrifice of His Son in our place.

So, in times of worry, pray.  When it doesn't seem that there is any way out of your troubles or even the greatest predicament of the moment, you can pray.  When sorrow seems as though it will swallow you alive, you can pray.  In every time and in every situation, remember the love of God for you, and the words of Jesus in our Gospel, and, Pray!

Therefore, pray.  Pray often.  Pray with confidence.  Never give up on prayer.  Take advantage of the love of God for you - because that is precisely what He wants you to do. And know that God hears your every prayer, and He has answered your prayer in giving His Son Jesus Christ who delivers you to eternal life.  Amen.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  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+

The Fifth Sunday of Easter - Cantate - May 22, 2011

The Church Season of Easter,
Easter 5, Cantate, One Year Series
Our Savior Lutheran Church, Midland, MI (May 22, 2011)

Readings:   
        Psalm 66, v. 1-8
        Isaiah 12:1-6   
        James 1:16-21
        John 16:5-15

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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 Gospel lesson as recorded in the 16th chapter of St. John, especially the following verses:

John 16:5-15 (NIV)

[Jesus said] 5 “Now I am going to him who sent me, yet none of you asks me, ‘Where are you going?’ 6 Because I have said these things, you are filled with grief. 7 But I tell you the truth: It is for your good that I am going away. Unless I go away, the Counselor will not come to you; but if I go, I will send him to you. 8 When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to sin and righteousness and judgment: 9 in regard to sin, because men do not believe in me; 10 in regard to righteousness, because I am going to the Father, where you can see me no longer; 11 and in regard to judgment, because the prince of this world now stands condemned. 12 “I have much more to say to you, more than you can now bear. 13 But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own; he will speak only what he hears, and he will tell you what is yet to come. 14 He will bring glory to me by taking from what is mine and making it known to you. 15 All that belongs to the Father is mine. That is why I said the Spirit will take from what is mine and make it known to you.

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

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  Amen.

Today's Gospel comes from the upper room where Jesus and His disciples ate the last Passover.  In a few hours they would be in the Garden of Gethsemane.  Jesus would soon be arrested and taken before Annas and then Caiaphas, the high priest.  The next morning, Jesus would stand before Pontius Pilate.  He would spend much of the next day on a cross and in less than twenty-four hours, Jesus would be dead and buried in a borrowed tomb.  Then on the first day of the next week, Jesus would bodily rise from the dead.

We, with our 20 /20 historical perspective, know that all these things will soon happen to Jesus.  Jesus … knew that they would happen.  The disciples … DID NOT.  Jesus had told His disciples that these things would happen, but the disciples weren't ready to understand what Jesus told them.  There is a tension and a drama that arises from the fact that Jesus must prepare His disciples for events that they can't understand until after they have happened.

The Gospel of John brings out this drama and tension as John gives an account of Jesus' words in that upper room.  John the Evangelist dedicates five whole chapters of his Gospel to those words.  Jesus, in His great love for His disciples, is giving them preparation and comfort for the upcoming ordeal.  Even though the disciples don't understand - even though the disciples will endure terror and sorrow during these events - even though the events of the next few days will overwhelm them - the words of Jesus will sustain them through this ordeal.

Today's Gospel begins at an unusual place in those dramatic and comforting words.  Jesus took a few moments to look out beyond the next few days.  He was looking forward to a time when this frightened little band of disciples would be the Apostles of His church.  They would be the ones who transmitted His teachings to the next generation with their speech and, out into the ages, with their writings.  He also knows that they will not be prepared to do this until after they have witnessed His crucifixion and resurrection.  Jesus was looking at the work that the Holy Spirit would do among these disciples. 

Jesus said, "I still have many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now."  It wasn't that Jesus' teaching had been incomplete.  He had taught them everything that they needed to know.  It was just that they couldn't receive the full benefit of that teaching until after they had witnessed His death and resurrection.

Jesus then told the disciples that by the power of the Holy Spirit they would understand the things that Jesus had taught them.  He said, "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth."  With these words, Jesus assured His disciples that the Holy Spirit will cause them to remember everything that Jesus had taught them.  They would remember and, by the power of the Holy Spirit, they would finally understand.  The Holy Spirit would amplify and deepen the things that Jesus had already taught them.

In just a few weeks, we will celebrate that special day of Pentecost, that is the day when the Holy Spirit revealed Himself with miraculous signs.  The words of Jesus we hear today point forward to the day when Jesus began to teach through the power of the Holy Spirit.

It is easy to understand why these words were so important to the disciples, but why are these words important to us?  How does it help us to know that the Holy Spirit deepened their understanding?  How does it help us to know that the faith of these disciples matured under the guidance of the Holy Spirit?

The fact of the matter is that we too must acknowledge the work performed for us in the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.  Just as the disciples doubted, denied, and abandoned their savior, we too, fail to live up to God's commands as we live out our lives.  Just as the disciples repeatedly failed and needed forgiveness, we too, need forgiveness for all our sins.  Jesus earned that forgiveness for us with His perfect life and His suffering and death on the cross.  We have the assurance of that forgiveness through the resurrection of that same Jesus.  We have the comfort of Jesus with us through His ascension.  We have all these things, but they do us no good if we do not know about them.  That is where today's Gospel gives us such comfort.

Jesus has promised that the Holy Spirit will help the disciples, not only for their benefit, but also for our benefit.  We are the recipients of the teachings of those disciples as we read their writings.  Jesus' words in today's Gospel tell us that the teachings of those disciples are the very teachings of Jesus Christ Himself.  They are the teachings of Christ because Jesus Himself tells them, "When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth."  This promise of Jesus to the disciples assures us that their teachings are the truth.

That means that, through their words, we can learn about the holy life that Jesus lived for us.  We can learn about the torture that Jesus suffered for us.  We can learn about His death for us.  We can learn about His resurrection for us.  We can learn about all that God's love accomplished through Jesus Christ for us.  We learn that, although we sin much every day, it is all forgiven for Jesus' sake.

That means that the entire Bible is the Word of Jesus.  Since Jesus is both God and man - that means that the Bible is the Word of God.  Since God is perfect, His Word is without error.  We can trust it.

What is the main message of this Holy Word of God?  Peter said it well at a time when many were abandoning Jesus. Jesus said to the Twelve, "Do you want to go away as well?" (John 6:67-69)  Simon Peter answered him, "Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God."  The Bible is God's love letter to us in which He gives us the words of eternal life.  The Bible does not say, "God so loved the world, that he gave us the Ten Commandments."  The Bible does not say, "God so loved the world, that he showed us how to live."  The Bible does say, "God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

The words of today's Gospel tell us that these words of love and eternal life through the Holy Spirit's gift of faith in Jesus Christ are absolutely trustworthy and true.  We can participate in Jesus Christ and live with Him forever. Amen.

Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen! 
He is risen indeed! Alleluia!  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+