Quasimodo Geniti (Easter 2)

Quasimodo Geniti (Easter 2) – April 16, 2023

Psalm 8; Ezekiel 37:1-14; 1 John 5:4-10

St. John 20:19-31

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

Thomas knows and understands that the forgiveness of sins flows from the wounds of Jesus. He desires to put his fingers in the wounds of the Risen Jesus and his hand into Christ’s riven side because he knows that without these wounds, the Resurrection would mean nothing. If Jesus hadn’t died on the cross, Thomas would still be in his sins and accountable to God. He would be under the Law and knows that he would face eternal damnation. In this way, Thomas is a skilled theologian.

But like many skilled theologians, Thomas misses the forest for the trees. There were many sins committed that first Easter. All the disciples failed to trust the teachings of Jesus. Our Lord was very clear, teaching multiple times that He would be betrayed, executed, and then rise again.^[1] He taught this was necessary for the salvation of the world. He even commanded the disciples to meet Him in Galilee after He is raised from the dead.^[2]

Despite these teachings, the disciples act very confusedly when the tomb is found to be empty. They gather in the upper room behind locked doors. They fear the Jewish leadership will come for them next, forgetting that Jesus promised them that all who believe in Him shall never die, and at the same time, if the Master is persecuted, so shall the disciples be.^[3] The disciples did not go to Galilee. They did not expect the Word of God to be fulfilled.

The difference between the high theology of Thomas and the simple theology of the disciples is the remembrance of another of our Lord’s teachings. “Where two or three are gathered in My name, there I am in the midst of them.”^[4] The other disciples continued together. They may not have gone to Galilee, but they remained united with the Church. Thomas may be looking for the sign of the atonement, namely the wounds of Jesus, but he has abandoned the church while on his quest.

It is inevitable that there are fewer people in attendance today than last week. Thanks be to God so many gathered last week to hear of the Crucified Lord who has won their victory over sin and death. Where are they now? Thanks be to God you are here this week. Where will you be next week? It was not just a coincidence that Thomas missed the appearance of Jesus. He did not just happen to be on a snack run to the corner store and miss his Lord by a few minutes. Thomas specifically chose not to gather with the other disciples.

By not gathering with the disciples, Thomas missed our Lord’s Institution of the Office of the Holy Ministry. On that first night of the Resurrection, Jesus breathed on the Apostles and explained the chief duty of the church on this side of glory, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained.”[5]

Certainly, the Scriptures contain many commands for those born again of water and the Spirit – we are to care for the orphaned and the widowed, submit to our rulers, pray diligently, attend the gathering of the saints in worship, tell others about Jesus, and so on. But the chief duty of the Church is the forgiveness of sins. We are the people who are to be abhorred by our own sins. We are to point out the sins of the world not for the sake of derision, but so that the world would repent of idolatry, blasphemy, and other forms of degeneracy. The purpose of God’s commands is always to point us toward the forgiveness of sins.

When the disciples confronted Thomas about his absence, he made it clear that if Jesus did not prove His resurrection on Thomas’s terms and according to Thomas’s timeline, he would never believe. This is a blasphemous statement. Who is Thomas to give such orders to his Lord and God? Who are you to demand that God obey your wants and desires, giving Him boundaries in which to work or else you will not be satisfied? Thomas clearly says that if God doesn’t do what Thomas demands, he will never believe in the resurrection.

Thomas is tempting God exactly as Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness. He is pretending to have the authority that belongs to God alone. Thomas is tempting God exactly as Satan tempted Adam and Eve. ‘Did God really show you His wounds? I didn’t see it, so I don’t believe.’ Thomas is tempting God just as the Jews tempted Jesus on the cross. ‘If He really is the Son of God, let Him show me by doing as I command.’

The other ten Apostles loved Thomas such that they would show him his sin. They were worried about his eternal salvation. When he responded defensively, as one might have expected, they did not give up on him. They did not exclude him from the gathering of the saints. Instead, they kept a place at the table for him. Thanks be to God, Thomas returned to the church with the Apostles, eight days later.

The written word does not always effectively communicate tone. When Jesus appears in the midst of the Apostles the second time, the tone of His comments is not recorded. I cannot say with certainty but let me offer a suggestion.

Perhaps our Lord’s words to Thomas, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing,” were not as kindly sounding as most of us would like to think. Perhaps, these words were spoken harshly. Perhaps they are not an invitation so much as a rebuke.

Jesus is certainly not giving Thomas what he wanted. When the rich man cries out from hell that Father Abraham would send someone back from the dead to warn his living brothers, Abraham responds, “If they do not hear Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded though one rise from the dead.”[6] In other words, the rich man’s brothers have the words of Scripture, the commandments and the promises, but if those will not turn their hearts, nothing they might see will grant them faith. Faith comes by hearing the Word of God.

Therefore, it is not fitting that Jesus would be giving Thomas exactly what he wanted. In that case, Jesus would be rewarding the blasphemy of Thomas. Rather, it seems almost like Jesus is intimidating Thomas. “You think you know how to strengthen faith? You think you know what you need? I’ll tell you what you need. You need faith. You need to trust Me for I am your Lord and God!”

It is also for this reason that I don’t think Thomas ever touches Christ’s wounds. I think the rebuke of our Lord is sufficient to crush his prideful heart. Thomas wants forgiveness according to his terms and on his timeline. Jesus rebukes his pride and calls him to repentance. Thanks be to God, the Holy Spirit works through the Word of God and turns Thomas’s heart. He immediately falls to his knees and repents. “My Lord and my God!”

The same is true in the Church today. When Jesus instituted the Office of the Holy Ministry, He did so for the sake of the forgiveness of sins. The called and ordained ministers of Christ are called chiefly to bear the keys of the kingdom of God. These two keys, the binding key and the loosing key, are closely related. They both pertain to the forgiveness of sins.

On the one hand, he who is penitent, recognizes his sin, knows his sin is worthy of the wrath of God, is disgusted by his own sin, and desires to be free from it, it is the duty of the called and ordained ministers of Christ to loose this man from his sins. It is not a judgment to be made by the Pastor. He does not forgive sins according to his own will or his desires. He forgives sins according to the Word of God. Just as whosoever’s sins he forgives on earth are forgiven in heaven, so too is it his duty to forgive those sins which the Father in heaven would forgive.

On the other hand, he who is impenitent, who refuses to acknowledge his sin as sin, who denies God’s ability to judge him, or who recognizes his sin but desires to remain in that sin, it is the solemn duty of the called and ordained ministers of Christ to bind him in his sin. The gates to the kingdom of heaven are to be closed to this man. The blood of Christ was still shed for him and forgiveness flows from this blood, but he has chosen to ignore this grace and mercy of God. He is bound in his sin not because of the nature or severity of his sin, but because of impenitence.

Do not overlook that last point. The nature or severity of sin is not the grounds for excommunication or church discipline. The only grounds for the use of the binding key is impenitence. One sad example is those who are impenitent regarding their violation of the Third Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath Day, to keep it holy.” Thomas failed to gather with the Apostles on Easter evening. When our Lord sees him, He commands Thomas to stop unbelieving, but be believing. This tells us that while he was absent from the gathering of the Church, Thomas was in a state of unbelief. He was impenitent concerning his breaking of the Third Commandment.

Those who are physically able to attend the gathering of the saints but refuse to are breaking the Third Commandment. They might be otherwise pious people. They might be very kind and loving. They might read their Bibles every day. They may even send money to the church. But they are still breaking a commandment of God. What is worse, if the Church is able to reach out to these people and they still do not return to the gathering of the saints, they are bearing the fruits of impenitence. If they continue in impenitence, then it is the duty of the church to excommunicate them.  

Do not fear the word, “excommunicate.” The purpose of excommunication is never punishment. The purpose of excommunication is to show someone his sin. It is to bring his sin to the forefront of his mind so that he would know the consequences thereof. If a man does not know that he is sinning but continues in that sin, he is still liable to judgment. The loving thing to do is to call his sin to his attention so that he might repent and be welcomed back into the Church.

Such was the case with Thomas. Had he died during that week between Easter and the following Sunday, Thomas would certainly have found himself in hell. He was an unbeliever. Jesus stood before him and showed him his sin. What’s more, Jesus showed him the consequences of his sin. Jesus also showed him the God who was willing to take on his sin and die for it. Jesus showed Thomas His wounds so that Thomas would receive the forgiveness which flows from them.

Jesus showed Thomas the way of salvation and in so doing, pronounced a blessing upon you. Jesus said, “Thomas, it took me appearing a second time and forcing your eyes upon the bloody wounds caused by your sins for you to repent. Blessed are those who come after you, who receive My Word upon your lips, because they have not seen and yet have believed.”

Blessed are you today for in hearing the Word of God, you have received the forgiveness of your sins. Blessed are you who hear the Word of God, and your heart is turned away from sin and toward the Holy Body and Precious Blood of Jesus. Blessed are you who hear the Word of God and believe it without seeing.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 16:21-23; 17:22-23; 20:17-19; 26:1-2; St. Mark 8:31-33; 9:30-32; 10:32-34; St. Luke 9:21-22; 9:43-45; 18:31-34. See also the “lifted up” statements according to St. John 3:14; 8:28; 12:32.

[2] St. Matthew 26:32.

[3] St. John 11:26; 15:20.

[4] St. Matthew 18:20.

[5] St. John 20:23.

[6] St. Luke 16:31.

Good Friday

Good Friday – April 7, 2023

Hosea 6:1-6; Habakkuk 3:2-4; Exodus 12:1-11; Psalm 140

St. John 18-19

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

It is profitable for one man to die on behalf of the people.[1]

The term “Passion” as we use it to describe the “Passion of our Lord Jesus Christ” refers to something that is experienced, something that happens to someone from the outside, and it usually carries a sense of something evil that is happening. For this reason, “passion” is sometimes equated to “suffering.” In fact, older uses of the term “to suffer” meant “to experience something happening to you,” without the expectation that the experience is evil.

Caiaphas, the illegitimate high priest, declares that it is profitable for one man to die on behalf of the people. In this statement, he is correct. Despite his unbelief, his blasphemy, his hatred of God, Caiaphas speaks the truth. It is profitable for mankind for one man, Jesus Christ, to die on behalf of the people.

It is profitable because only this man, only Jesus Christ, could bear the sins of the world and make atonement for them. Only the blood of this man, Jesus Christ, could appease the Father, who has rightfully judged mankind to be wicked and evil in all his thoughts and ways.[2] Only this man, Jesus Christ, could submit Himself to the bitter scorn, abuse, torture, and death delivered by Judas, Pilate, Caiaphas, and the Jews when at any moment, He could have called five legions of angels to deliver Himself.

The suffering and death of Jesus is profitable because He is God in human flesh. His suffering and death are profitable to you because His holy blood is more precious to the Father than all the blood of beasts. His suffering and death fulfills the debt of every sin from the first taste of the fruit in the garden to the sin born in the flesh of the last child conceived in the womb. And only the body and blood of Jesus is never ending. The blood of a human eventually runs dry. The body of a human eventually returns to dust. The Blood of Jesus is life giving Blood. It never runs dry. It is the source of life for all creation. The Body of Jesus never returns to dust. In Him is life. His living Body encompasses all who believe in Him and this number continues to grow with each passing generation.

Yet if the suffering and death of Jesus has fulfilled your debt to God why is it that you still suffer? The idea that Jesus has taken away the sting of death is commonly heard from Christian pulpits. The thought that death is now a portal for Christians because the death of Jesus has ended eternal death for all who believe is a comforting thought but it is something far off. It is the end of this mortal life and something that we do not necessarily face every day. But every day that we wake up in this life we have some sort of suffering. Much worse is the great suffering which marks life on this side of glory.

The daily suffering we all endure is simply the result of the fall. Aches and pains, annoyances, fits of anger, lust, or greed. All of creation experiences these. They are not unique to Christians. But what of the great sufferings. What of the serious threat of poverty? What of the serious threat of bodily harm? Or significant illness? Or threats of prison, persecution, or execution? What of terrible wrestling with conscience in a world that requires you to participate in your own demise? What of the struggle to raise children in a world that will call you a bigot, racist, or Nazi for choosing to protect your children from degeneracy?

This great suffering is caused by the devil and his ungodly minions because you Christians hold to the Word of God. You hear it, read it, learn it, and practice it. For this, our Ancient Foe would have you scorned, abused, tortured, and killed. Satan is pleased enough if you are killed for your faith but he is far more elated when he can destroy your faith for the sake of his pleasure. You are hated because of the Word of God. Sometimes this hatred is explicit, as in the murder of children and teachers at a Christian school in Tennessee.

Far more common is an implicit hatred for you who love the Word of God. From birth, you are trained to view Christianity as evil and the teachings of Scripture as false. Satan and his ungodly followers love to abuse the truth by giving you only part of it. For example, we have all been taught in school and constantly throughout our lives that slavery is evil. We’ve even been taught that slavery is sinful. And yet, how does St. Paul treat slavery when he writes to Philemon, concerning the runaway slave, Onesimus? Not once does he rebuke Philemon for sinning by having slaves. In fact, he encourages Onesimus to return to his master as a dutiful slave. St. Paul does encourage Philemon to free Onesimus and treat him as a brother in Christ and pay him a wage as a laborer, but he does not rebuke him for the supposed sin of slavery.

Is it possible to commit grievous sins in the name of slavery? Absolutely. It is possible to establish a sinful form of slavery in which man is treated as sub-human, beaten and abused for the pleasure of the master? Of course. It is also possible to establish a marriage in which a man abuses his wife but that doesn’t make marriage sinful.

This digression into the supposed sin of slavery is not the topic of today’s sermon nor the purpose for our gathering today. But it is illustrative of just how skilled Satan is at teaching you to ignore the Scriptures. Take a little truth and spread it thin over a great lie and suddenly you can deceive the masses. Caiaphas said, “It is profitable for one man to die for the people,” by which he either meant, “Killing this one man will return power to me and my fellow Jews, by which the people will be easier to control and have a manufactured peace,” or he was speaking blasphemously and sarcastically. Either way, Caiaphas used a thin veneer of truth to hide his wicked desires.

The suffering caused by the devil and the world is certainly something which we experience, and which comes to us from the outside. However, the suffering of Christians is also caused by God. It is caused by God on account of our own sins.

It would be more fitting to say that such suffering is allowed by God and is caused by our own sins. Again, I am not speaking of the aches and pains of age or the minor frustrations of the world. I speak of the serious suffering which occurs throughout life. This suffering is experienced by Christians on account of our sin. God allows this suffering not just to punish, but to drive us toward Him. Such grievous suffering will produce one of two reactions within man: either we will spurn God and turn away from Him, in which case we are choosing our own damnation, or it will drive us ever more firmly to God and the promise of salvation won by Jesus Christ.

“God is faithful, and he will not let you be tempted beyond your strength, but with the temptation will also provide the way of escape, that you may be able to endure it.”[3] What is our strength? “Thee I will love, my Strength, my Tower; Thee will I love, my Hope, my Joy; Thee will I love with all my power, With ardor time shall ne’er destroy. Thee will I love, O Light Divine, So long as life is mine…for Thou my Redeemer art.”[4] God certainly is faithful and will not let you be tempted beyond your strength because your strength is in Jesus Christ your Lord!

When you are tempted, when you are enduring the greatest suffering you have yet known, the only source of strength you have left is to look to Christ and the promise of salvation. Where do you find this strength? Where do you find this promise? In the Word of God. In your Holy Baptism.

When you are enduring this terrible suffering on account of the devil and the world or on account of your own sin, the only refuge you have in this world is to remember that you are a baptized child of God. The blood that Jesus Christ shed on Calvary has been sprinkled upon you and God has promised never to leave you or forsake you.

What then? Should you stand up in your suffering and say, “This isn’t so bad. Jesus died for me so I can do whatever I want and sure, there will be consequences, but they don’t matter. I can do what I want!” Of course not. You repent. You repent of your sins and cry out to your Father, “Forgive me, Father, for I have sinned! Forgive me for the shed blood of Jesus! Strengthen me to endure the suffering of this world and grant that Your Holy Spirit would strengthen me to hold on to the promise of salvation!”

In this spirit, in the spirit of repentance and endurance, you can then face your suffering and say, “Come what may, I am baptized into Christ. Should all things fall down around me, I am baptized into Christ.” It is in this spirit of repentance and endurance that we can suffer boldly. We can suffer boldly because we know that such suffering is only for a time. Should that suffering result in our earthly death, then we know we have eternity with Christ to look forward to.

God is faithful and has given you the suffering and death of His only begotten Son to bless your suffering, to bless you in your suffering. By the suffering and death of Jesus, the suffering of all Christians has in fact been sanctified. It is not as though your suffering somehow atones for sins. Rather, your suffering is a participation in the suffering of Jesus. Your suffering is following in the footsteps of Jesus Christ. His suffering and death not only atoned for your sins but also set forth the example of a Godly life.

This sanctified suffering is not the suffering of your own choosing. This is the error of the papists and fanatics alike. The papists believe that by forcing themselves to suffer, by inducing a sense of suffering, they can make themselves more holy. They fast and beat their bodies believing this self-chosen suffering will please the Father. They have fallen prey to the deceits of the devil. By inflicting their own pains, they are not suffering. Suffering comes from outside and is experienced. They are doing it to themselves; therefore, it is not suffering.

Christians fast and endure physical disciplines to train the body. Christ expects that Christians would fast not to induce a sense of suffering but to prepare the body for a time when eating the food given to idols might be sinful or when food might be so scarce that feeding your children is more important than satiating your belly.

The fanatics choose all sorts of manmade suffering but worst is the suffering they induce in their own consciences. They believe that God has so ordered their lives that they must work to retain their faith or that they must make all decisions according to some secret plan of God. Their false doctrines concerning the will of God induce unnecessary suffering that does nothing but drive them away from the comfort of the promise of salvation.

The Christian, however, endures the suffering of this world as he walks in the way of Jesus. Christ has promised to do something remarkable with our suffering and thus we have trust that God is faithful.[5] It is among the highest arts in the life of a Christian, which we must all learn, to look to the Word and away from the trouble and suffering that lies upon us and weighs us down. “Even though it hurts, so be it, you have to go through some suffering anyhow; things cannot always go smoothly. It is just as well, nay, a thousand times better, to have suffered for the sake of Christ, who promised us comfort and help in suffering, than to suffer and despair and perish without comfort and help for the sake of the devil.

“You should also accustom yourself to distinguish carefully between the suffering of Christ and all other suffering and know that his is a heavenly suffering and ours is worlds, that His suffering accomplishes everything, while ours does nothing except that we become conformed to Christ, and that therefore the suffering of Christ is the suffering of a lord, whereas our is the suffering of a servant.”[6]

It is truly profitable that this one man, Jesus Christ, True Son of God and True Son of Man, should die on behalf of man, on behalf of Christians, on behalf of you. It is truly profitable that this day we should share in His suffering and death not by our own choosing or by evoking some emotion of suffering, but by receiving His suffering and death in His holy Word and Sacrament.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. John 18:14.

[2] Genesis 6:5.

[3] 1 Corinthians 10:13.

[4] Thee Will I Love, My Strength, My Tower, TLH 399, text: Johann Scheffler, 1657, trans: Catherine Winkworth, 1865, alt.

[5] St. John 16:33; 1 Corinthians 10:113.

[6] Martin Luther, “Sermon at Coburg on Cross and Suffering,” (1530), AE 51:197-208, edited and translated by John W. Doberstein, general editor Helmut T. Lehmann (Philadelphia, PA: Fortress Press, 1959), 208.

Maundy Thursday

Maundy Thursday – April 6, 2023

Psalm 67; Exodus 24:3-11; 1 Corinthians 11:20-32

St. John 13:1-15, 34-35

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

The high priest Aaron had at least four sons whose names are recorded. The first two, presumably the oldest, are Nadab and Abihu. In the Old Testament reading for tonight, we heard how Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and seventy elders of Israel went with Moses up the Mountain of the Lord. This happens just after Moses had received the Ten Commandments and the other judgments of the Lord.

Remember, at the time that Moses ascended the mountain, God had strictly forbidden anyone but Moses from even touching the mountain, lest he should die. All of Israel needed to be cleansed and purified for three days and even then, only Moses ascended the mountain of the Lord.

It seems that at some point, Moses came back down the mountain with a command to bring Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders part-way up the mountain to worship the Lord. At this time, all of Israel swore to uphold whatever laws God commanded. Sacrifices were made and as Moses sprinkled the blood of the sacrifices on the people, he proclaimed, “This is the blood of the covenant which the Lord has made with you according to all these words.”[1]

Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders went up the mountain and shared a meal with the Lord. God did not lay a hand on these children of Israel but dined with them. They saw God.[2]

After Moses returns to the top of the mountain; after the people cry out for Aaron to make them a god to worship; after Moses destroys the golden calf and makes the people drink it; after the Lord gives the Law to Moses a second time; the tabernacle is built and the priests are consecrated. Aaron and his sons are consecrated priests to serve in the House of the Lord.

For two of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, this does not go well. Shortly after beginning their duties, Nadab and Abihu are said to each “take his censer and put fire in it, put incense on it, and offered profane fire before the Lord, which He had not commanded them. So fire went out from the Lord and devoured them, and they died before the Lord.”[3]

Nadab and Abihu were supposed to make the incense offering. They were supposed to use the special incense, prepared by Moses according to the direction of God, and put it on fire taken from the altar of the tabernacle, whose fire is never to go out. Now, they either used incense not created according to the will of God or they placed the incense of God on coals of a fire not taken from the Lord’s altar. Either way, they offered to God a sacrifice He had not commanded. They offered to God something unworthy of Him. They offered to God the filth of this world.

To our ears, the penalty seems far greater than the transgression. They screwed up the offering and God kills them for it. He burns them alive. But if we take a step back, suddenly God’s actions make, at least a little, more sense. The second half of the Book of Exodus, the Books of Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy mostly contain the Law of Moses. God gave this Law to Moses to answer a particularly difficult question: How does a sinful people come to dwell with a holy God? Or in the reverse: How does a Holy God dwell among a sinful people?

The Law of Moses is terribly specific. Some is for the governing of Israel but most of it is to answer this question. God had given to the people of Israel the means for Him to dwell with them. He revealed the entirety of His Law so that God and man could dwell together. What’s more, a careful reading of the Law will bring about the same conclusion we find in the Psalter by David’s hand,

For You, [O Lord,] do not desire sacrifice, or else I would give it;

You do not delight in burnt offering.

The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit,

A broken and contrite heart—

These, O God, You will not despise.

Do good in Your good pleasure to Zion;

Build the walls of Jerusalem.

Then You shall be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness,

With burnt offering and whole burnt offering;

Then they shall offer bulls on Your altar.[4]

The blood of bulls and goats does not appease the wrath of God against man. Only the activity of God, doing good in His good pleasure among His people can soften the heart of man, turning it toward Himself. And then, only a broken and contrite heart is an appropriate sacrifice to God; a heart which knows its sin and grieves over the pain such sin causes the Lord. Such a sinner cries out to God for forgiveness and will not be put to shame.

Only then will God be pleased with the sacrifices of righteousness, with burnt offerings and whole burnt offerings. It is not as though the sacrifices of bulls and goats, of incense and grain, are indifferent to God. He has commanded them to Moses and the children of Israel. But the blood of a bull sacrificed with the black heart content to live in sin is not acceptable to the Lord. It is not a sacrifice of righteousness.

Taking the whole witness of Scripture, we see that Nadab and Abihu got exactly what they deserved. Not only did they offer a sacrifice not commanded by God but they offered it in their sin. They offered it according to either their sloth, their idolatry, their greed, or their pride. Whatever their motivation, it was not to the glory of God. If their offering to the Lord was not to His glory, then it is sin and sin is destroyed in the presence of a holy God.

Which brings us to the Lord’s Supper. Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu, and the seventy elders went part way up the mountain to dine with the Lord. They saw God and shared a meal with Him. Yet the majority of this company would soon worship a golden calf and then at least two would commit such grievous sin that God saw fit to destroy them with fire.

The Lord chose to eat a meal with sinners. He called them up the mountain to dine with Him, knowing they are sinners. So too, our Lord Jesus Christ, called His apostles to a meal, His last meal, knowing they are sinners. One would betray Him. One would deny Him. Three would sleep when He commands them to watch. All would scatter.

In the upper room, just as the upper reaches of Sinai, God dined with His people, Himself being the way for sinful man to dwell with a Holy God. Just as Moses sprinkled the people with the blood of the sacrifice and said, “This is the blood of the covenant,” Jesus raised a cup and said, “This cup is the new covenant in My Blood.”[5] The blood of the bull pointed forward to the Blood of the eternal sacrifice of the Son of God. Just as the Lord told Israel, “This shall be an everlasting covenant for you and for your children,” so Jesus has said, “Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.”[6]

This glorious meal of the Body and Blood of Jesus is given to you for the forgiveness of your sins. It is given to you so that you would be made one with God and that God might dwell with you. It is the most precious substance on earth, more precious than gold or silver, than technology or politics. It is the Holy Body and Precious Blood of God that you might dwell with Him forever.

If it is so precious, why then would we ever deny it to someone? Why keep it from young children or from those who are not members of our congregation or church body? St. Paul says, “For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes. Whoever, therefore, eats this bread or drinks this cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord.”[7] If the Lord showed Himself to take the offering of incense in the tabernacle seriously enough to slay Nadab and Abihu, what might He do to those receiving the Body and Blood of Christ in an unworthy manner? What does it mean to receive it in an unworthy manner?

The simple answer is faith. To be worthy to receive the Eucharist is to have faith in these words, “given and shed for you, for the forgiveness of sins.” But even an ape could be taught to recite these words. Faith is the certainty of something you cannot see.[8] Faith knows this is more than bread and wine, but it is the very Body and Blood of Christ, who died on the cross to satisfy the wrath of God. Faith knows this is not a symbol, nor strictly a matter of personal confession. St. Paul says, “As often as you eat this bread and drink the cup,” you make a public proclamation that you believe the same Jesus who died on the cross of Calvary is giving you His Body and Blood for the forgiveness of your sins.

Such a public proclamation can never be made in isolation. It is never just a statement of what you as an individual believes. Being a public proclamation, it is a statement of what the whole Christian Church believes. Sadly, there are divisions within God’s church. There are some who hold to unbiblical doctrines about the Lord’s Supper, about His death, about His nature. If you are communing at this altar, you are making a public proclamation that what is taught from this pulpit, what is confessed in this congregation, is the truth of Scripture.

And if you believe what is taught from this pulpit and confessed in this congregation but call yourself a member of the Methodist church, or a Baptist church, then your public confession is confused. You are saying one thing and believing something different. Scripture calls this hypocrisy. In this case, come speak to me and we can work toward bringing you into our congregation.

The same goes the other way. If you are a member of this congregation, believe what is preached from this pulpit and confess what we as a congregation believe, then you cannot commune at the Methodist, Baptist, Pentecostal, or Presbyterian church. To do so would be to commit hypocrisy in the other direction. You would be publicly saying you believe and confess what we believe and confess, but sharing in the table fellowship of those who believe differently.

What then of children? When St. Paul says, “Let a person examine himself,” what does he mean?[9] Does he mean every child must pass a written exam? Does he mean once you’ve graduated from confirmation class, your examination is complete? By no means! He means, let every man, woman, and child examine his conscience every time he desired to partake of the Lord’s Supper. Every time you desire to come into the presence of the Holy Body and Precious Blood of Jesus, you are to examine your conscience and find out if you are clinging to the profane fires of your sins rather than seeking the forgiveness of the filthy sins which cling to your flesh.

And so, if a child of seven knows the Ten Commandments, the Creed, and the Lord’s Prayer, knows what Baptism and the Lord’s Supper are, can confess she is a sinner who needs forgiveness, and that Jesus is the only source of that forgiveness, who is to say that she cannot commune? If all of that is true, St. Paul says she can commune.

Who makes the judgment based on her confession, if the child in question can accurately examine herself? “Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.”[10] In other words, consider your pastor as the servant of Christ and the steward of the Holy Sacraments. It is the solemn duty of the Office of the Holy Ministry to administer the Sacraments of God rightly. If they are mishandled; used wantonly; used for the glory of man; then the man in that office has a far worse fate than that of Nadab and Abihu to look forward to. If, however, he treats the mysteries of God as the Holy Things they are, then by his hand is distributed the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation.

So then, as we enter into these most holy three days, let us do so with broken and contrite hearts. Let us enter into the Triduum examining our consciences, to see if we are clinging to our sin or if sin is clinging to us. Then, having faith that the Blood of Jesus was shed to fulfill all righteousness and has been given to you for the forgiveness of sins, let us come together as one in the Body of Christ and dine together on this mountain with our God.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

---

[1] Exodus 24:8.

[2] Exodus 24:11.

[3] Leviticus 10:1-2.

[4] Psalm 51:16-19.

[5] 1 Corinthians 11:25.

[6] 1 Corinthians 11:25.

[7] 1 Corinthians 11:26-27.

[8] Hebrews 11:1.

[9] 1 Corinthians 11:28.

[10] 1 Corinthians 4:1.

Reminiscere (The Second Sunday in Lent)

Guest Preacher: Rev. Kevin Vogts

Reminiscere (The Second Sunday in Lent) - March 5, 2023

Psalm 25; Genesis 32:22-32; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-7

St. Matthew 15:21-28

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Martin Luther says about today’s Old Testament Reading, “This text is one of the most obscure in the Old Testament.”

This strange story of “Jacob at the Jabbok,” the patriarch Jacob wrestling through the night with a mysterious man on the banks of the Jabbok River, is one of the most peculiar and puzzling events in the whole Bible.

Jacob is on his way home, on the other side of the Jabbok River.  But, it is a homecoming fraught with fear and danger.  Today’s Hymn of the Day is really a like a summary of all that happens to the patriarch Jacob in today’s Old Testament Reading: “When in the hour of deepest need we know not where to look for aid . . . days and nights of anxious thought . . . sorely tried, cast down . . . perplexed by fears . . . to You, O faithful God, we cry for rescue in our misery.”

St. Paul says in today’s Epistle Reading: “No one should take advantage of and defraud his brother.”  But, Jacob’s  homecoming is fraught with fear and danger because many years before that is exactly what he had done, when he tricked his older brother Esau, depriving him of his birthright as firstborn son.  Jacob fled from his brother’s anger, to a far-away country. 

It was on that journey Jacob had a dream, a vision of a stairway reaching to heaven, with angels ascending and descending on it—what we call “Jacob’s Ladder.”

In the vision of Jacob’s ladder, the Lord promises that one of Jacob’s descendants will be the Messiah, the Savior of the world: “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your Descendant,” the Lord declares to Jacob.

That promise came true in Jesus Christ.  For, he is the promised descendant of Jacob, conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, Son of God and Son of Man, who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was made man.  “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you and your Descendant.”

All peoples on earth are blessed through him.  “For God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned.”

Your altar window beautifully portrays how by his sacrifice on the cross he suffered the punishment for the sins of the whole world.  In his body on the cross he suffered the punishment for YOUR sins.  Because of his perfect life, his sacrificial death, and his triumphant resurrection, God forgives YOU all your sins.  “Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.”

In the vision of Jacob’s ladder, God also promised to be with Jacob and to bless him.  And God did bless Jacob abundantly in that far-away land to which he fled, giving Jacob great wealth and a huge family.

Now, many years later, Jacob is returning home with a enormous caravan, of flocks, and herds, servants, and family.  But, Jacob is terrified of going home to face his brother Esau, on the other side of the Jabbok.  Will Esau still hold a grudge against him?  Will he pay Jacob back for his trickery and deceit?  Will he steal away Jacob’s flocks, herds, and servants—and then vent his anger on Jacob’s family?

So, Jacob sends messengers ahead to scout the situation, and they return with worst possible news: Esau is on his way, and with him are four hundred armed men.  In great fear, Jacob cries out to the Lord, “Save me, I pray, from the hand of my brother Esau!  For, I am afraid he will come and attack me.”

To help pacify Esau, Jacob sends ahead all his flocks, herds, and servants, as gifts to his brother.  Maybe by bribing Esau this way, at least he and his family can escape with their lives. 

At the Jabbok River, in today’s Old Testament Reading, Jacob and his family stop for the night, and his family crosses the river.  The next morning Jacob will cross over to confront Esau and his army.  Like a nervous soldier the night before a big battle, Jacob is dreading the dawn of day.  “So Jacob was left alone.”  That is how “Jacob at the Jabbok” felt that night: afraid, anxious, alone.

But, Jacob was not alone.  Years before in the vision of Jacob’s ladder, the Lord promised to be with him and to bless him: “I will be with you,” he said, “and will watch over you wherever you go. . . I will not leave you,” the Lord promised.

Do YOU sometimes feel like “Jacob at the Jabbok”: afraid, anxious, alone?  Confronting your own tragedies and troubles in life, that bring you to despair, like Jacob that night?  But, like “Jacob at the Jabbok,” YOU really are not alone.  “Do not let your hearts be troubled,” Jesus says.  “Trust in God; trust also in me. . .  Surely, I am with you always.”

“Jacob at the Jabbok” needs reassurance that dreadful night, reassurance of God’s love, forgiveness, and blessing.  He needs to FEEL God’s presence in a very REAL way.  And, so, God sends him this time, not just a dreamy vision, like when he saw Jacob’s ladder, but this time God sends him a physical presence: “And a man wrestled with him till daybreak.”

Who is this mysterious man who wrestles with Jacob?  Jacob puts it this way

“I saw GOD face to face.”  In this mysterious, enigmatic event, it is God himself who appears like a man and wrestles with “Jacob at the Jabbok.”  It is a physical reassurance to Jacob that God is with him; and an unforgettable confidence builder for Jacob as he crosses the Jabbok River the next morning to face Esau and his army.

All through the night Jacob wrestles with the Lord.  “When the man saw that he could not overpower him, he touched the socket of Jacob’s hip so that his hip was wrenched as he wrestled with the man.”

By simply touching Jacob’s hip, the Lord shows his power.  He could easily have conquered Jacob at any time in this wrestling match.  When he simply touches his hip, it’s wrenched out of place.  But, instead the Lord allows Jacob to win the struggle, even giving him the new name Israel, which means, “to struggle with God.” 

“Then the man said, ‘Your name will no longer be Jacob, but Israel, for you have struggled with God and with men and have overcome.’”

All of this was to reassure Jacob that God is on his side, to build up Jacob’s confidence.  For, if he is able to win THIS struggle against God himself, surely he has nothing to fear the next morning from his brother Esau.  Hebrews puts it this way: “God has said, ‘Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.’  So we say with confidence, ‘The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.  What can man do to me?’”

Like “Jacob at the Jabbok,” do YOU need confidence, reassurance of God’s love, forgiveness, and blessing?  Do you need to FEEL God’s presence in a very real way?

You see, that is why God gave us the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion, and Holy Absolution.  For, in the Sacraments, and Holy Absolution, God gives YOU physical, tangible signs of his presence.

In Holy Baptism, the water with the Word washes away your sins, implanting and strengthening faith in your heart, making you “born again” as a believing child of God.  As St. Paul says in Titus: “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit.”

In Holy Communion, your Savior comes to you physically, inviting you to actually eat and drink his body and blood, in, with, and under the bread and wine, to strengthen you in the true faith unto life everlasting.  As St. Paul says in 1st Corinthians: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ?”

And just as Jacob that night saw the Lord face to face in the form of a man, in Holy Absolution, God still also sends to you a man, to proclaim to you, face to face, in the stead and by the command of our Lord Jesus Christ: “I forgive all your sins.”

Just as the Lord appeared to Jacob that night in the physical form of a man, in the Sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion, and in Holy Absolution, God graciously gives you physical, tangible signs of his presence, to reassure you of his love, forgiveness, and blessing.

At the end of their wrestling match, the Lord also reassures Jacob with his WORD of blessing:  “Then the man said [to Jacob], ‘Let me go, for it is daybreak.’ But Jacob replied, ‘I will not let you go unless you bless me.’”

Jesus once told the Parable of the Persistent Widow, who despite a judge’s indifference kept coming to him with her plea: “Jesus told his disciples a parable to show them that they should always pray and not lose heart.”  Like “Jacob at the Jabbok,” like the persistent widow in the parable, like the Canaanite woman in today’s Gospel Reading who kept following Jesus and crying out for mercy, do not let go of the Lord.

Cling to him for his blessing, wrestle with him in prayer.  Jesus concludes the parable: “And will not God bring about justice for his chosen ones, who cry out to him day and night? Will he keep putting them off? I tell you, he will see that they get justice, and quickly.

And that’s exactly what happens for Jacob the next morning as he crosses the Jabbok River.  God answers his prayers, and all is well.  His brother Esau does not hold a grudge or seek revenge, but he welcomes Jacob and his family with joy.

When you feel like “Jacob at the Jabbok,” afraid, anxious, alone, remember how God comes to you like he did to Jacob, to reassure you of his love, forgiveness, and blessing.  Just as he appeared to Jacob physically in the form of a man, the Lord still comes to you physically in the Sacraments, in the tangible forms of water, bread, and wine. And just as the Lord appeared to Jacob face to face in the form of a man, in

Holy Absolution, God still sends to you a man, in the stead and by the command of our Lord Jesus Christ, to proclaim to you face to face: “I forgive all your sins.”

And finally, just as the Lord left Jacob with his WORD of blessing, he still comes and blesses you through his Word, as you read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest it.

Amen.

Invocabit (The First Sunday in Lent)

Guest Preacher: Rev. Kevin Vogts

Invocabit (The First Sunday in Lent) - February 26, 2023

Psalm 91; Genesis 3:1-21; 2 Corinthians 6:1-10

St. Matthew 4:1-11

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.

Our text is today’s Gospel Reading from the fourth chapter of St. Matthew, the example of Jesus “Fighting Temptation.”

It seems that the very notion of “Fighting Temptation” is passé, old-fashioned, obsolete.  Instead of “Fighting Temptation,” our attitude is, “Don’t fight it.  If it feels good, DO IT!”  Don’t worry about the consequences, DO IT!  Don’t think about the hurt to yourself or others, DO IT!  Don’t consider whether it’s right or wrong, DO IT!  Don’t be bothered by God’s commands, DO IT!    Instead of “Fighting Temptation,” we WELCOME the devil and his wicked ways into our lives. 

Paul warns us in Romans, “The wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all the ungodliness and wickedness of men.”  That is what we deserve on account of our wickedness, the wrath of God.  But, in mercy and love, God does not mete out upon us the punishment our sins deserve.  Instead, our punishment was meted out upon his own Son, as Isaiah says, “He was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon him.”

Today’s Old Testament Reading presents the sad story of humanity’s fall into sin, in the persons of Adam and Eve.  In Romans, St. Paul compares Jesus and Adam and explains how Jesus’ perfect life and sacrificial death saves you: “Consequently, just as the result of one trespass was condemnation for all men, so also the result of one act of righteousness was justification that brings life for all men.  For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.”

Jesus’ resurrection is God the Father’s announcement to the world that he has accepted his Son’s perfect life and sacrificial death as payment in full for the sins of the whole world.  The book of Acts says, “Everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins in his name. . .  Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and you shall be saved.”  Trust Jesus, he is your Savior; he forgives all your sins; he has prepared a place for you in heaven, and he will take you to be with him there.

But, as long as you remain here on earth, St. Peter warns, “Your adversary the devil prowls about like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.  Resist him, standing firm in the faith.”  Jesus shows you the greatest weapon of all for resisting your adversary the devil, the greatest weapon of all for “Fighting Temptation.”  St. Paul calls it “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

When Jesus was tempted, every time he replied: “It is written.”  He fought back!  He fought back with God’s Word.  Martin Luther says in the Large Catechism: “Nothing is so effectual against the devil, the flesh and all evil thoughts as to occupy oneself with the word of God, talk about it, meditate on it. . .  [There is nothing] more potent against the devil than to busy yourself with God’s commandments and words, and to speak, sing, and meditate on them.  This . . . defeats the devil and puts him to flight. . .  For he cannot bear to hear God’s word . . . we must [therefore] use it every day against the daily, unending attacks and ambushes of the devil . . .”  In today’s Hymn of the Day, “A Mighty Fortress,” Luther puts it this way: “One little word can fell him.”

As a follower of Jesus Christ, you will follow his example, “Fighting Temptation” with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”  “Take up the sword of the Spirit” by coming to God’s house to hear his word, in worship, Sunday School, catechesis, and Bible Class. 

And “take up the sword of the Spirit” not only here in God’s house but also in your own house, by your personal devotions, and prayers, and reading and study of God’s word. As a follower of Jesus Christ, you will follow his example, “Fighting Temptation” with “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”

Are you tempted to be absent from God’s house?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Remember the Sabbath Day to keep it holy.”  “I rejoiced with those who said unto me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.”  “Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing.”  “You shall worship the Lord your God and him only shall you serve.”

Are you tempted to neglect reading and study of God’s word?  IT IS WRITTEN: “If you continue in my word, you are truly my disciples.”  “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly.” “Man does not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of the Lord.”

Are you tempted to forget prayer in your daily life?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests.”  “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests known to God.”  “Ask and you will receive, seek and you will find, knock and the door will be opened unto you.”

Are you tempted to ignore Christ’s gracious invitation to his Holy Supper?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Take, eat . . . take, drink . . . THIS DO in remembrance of me.”  “I will take the cup of salvation, and will call on the name of the Lord.”  “For as often as you eat this bread and drink this cup you proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.”

Are you tempted to withhold from the Lord the offerings he is due?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Bring an offering and come into his courts.”  “On the first day of the week each one should set aside a sum of money in keeping with his income, saving it up for the collection.”  “Give to God what is God’s.”

Are you tempted, parents, not to make a priority the spiritual upbringing of your children?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Bring them up in the training and instruction of the Lord.”  “We will tell the next generation the praiseworthy deeds of the Lord, his power and the wonders he has done.”

Are you tempted, children, to be disrespectful to your parents?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Honor your father and your mother.”  “Obey your parents in everything, for this pleases the Lord.”

Are you tempted to gossip?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor.”

Are you tempted to cheat or steal?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not steal.”  “He who has been stealing must steal no longer.”

Are you tempted to lie?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Do not lie to each other. . .  put off all falsehood and speak truthfully to one another.”

Are you tempted to take the Lord’s name in vain, to use curse words and other improper language?  IT IS WRITTEN: “You shall not take the name of the Lord your God in vain.”  “Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths.”  “Nor should there be obscenity foolish talk, or coarse joking.”  “Cleanse yourselves of filthy language from your lips.”

Are you tempted to lust and adultery, to join in the wicked ways of the world?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires.”   “Get rid of all moral filth and the evil that is so prevalent.”  “You shall not commit adultery.”

Are you tempted to anger and hatred, to get revenge and hold a grudge?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger. . . be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.”   “Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge . . . but love your neighbor as yourself.”  “Forgive as the Lord forgave you.” 

Are you tempted to worry and despair?  IT IS WRITTEN: “Do not let your hearts be troubled; trust in God.”  “Cast your burdens upon the Lord, for he cares for you.”  “Fear not, for I am with you.”

“We plead with you,” St. Paul says in today’s Epistle Reading, “not to receive the grace of God in vain. For he says, ‘In the time of my favor I heard you, and in the day of salvation I helped you.’ I tell you, now is the time of God’s favor, now is the day of salvation.”

“We plead with you not to receive the grace of God in vain,” but when you are tempted, resist the devil, standing firm in your faith.  Fight back with the sword of the Spirit, the word of God.  “One little word can fell him.”  And if you fail, when you fall, turn the Lord, confess your sin, receive his forgiveness, and continue the struggle—as a follower of Jesus Christ following his example, “Fighting Temptation.”

Amen.