The Fifth Sunday after Trinity

 The Fifth Sunday after Trinity – July 20, 2025

Psalm 27; 1 Kings 19:11-21; 1 Peter 3:8-15

St. Luke 5:1-11

In the Name of the Father, and of the + Son, and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.[1]

St. Peter’s work as a fisherman does not interfere with his attention to the Word of God, nor does his attention to the Word of God interfere with his work. In fact, they go hand-in-hand. One of the curses of the fall was that ‘by the sweat of his brow shall man eat bread.’[2] This curse of God is not just a punishment. It is, in fact, a barrier to sin. Needing to work in order to eat combats the sins of sloth and envy. It is our sinful nature that turns this barrier to sin into yet another avenue for sin, namely greed.

The reading for today also places the Third and Seventh Commandments into their proper order. St. Peter first loans his boat to Christ and then casts his net into the deep water. Attention to the Word of God must always come before our work. If we are to be fed by the work of our hands, it must be blessed by God. If God is to bless our work, it must be done in faith toward Him and in love toward our neighbor. And in order for this to happen, we must keep the Sabbath holy by gladly hearing, receiving, and learning God’s Word.

Now make no mistake, every day is a Sabbath rest in Christ. Every day is to be kept holy and everything is sanctified, made holy, by the Word of God and prayer. Therefore, the reception of and learning from God’s Word is not an activity reserved for Sunday morning. It isn’t even reserved for your morning and evening devotion. St. Paul commands us to pray without ceasing.[3] The proper understanding of this command is that everything we do should be done in the knowledge that God has placed this work before us. Obedience to the Seventh Commandment relies on obedience to the Third.

If we gain our bread by the sweat of our hands, then why pray, ‘give us this day our daily bread’? The simple answer is that we do not gain our bread by our work. God gives daily bread to all creation even without our prayer. But we pray this petition that God would lead us to recognize that all bread, meat, and possession comes from His hand; and that we would rightly give Him thanks for it. We must work for our daily bread but anything that comes from our work is only delivered by the grace and mercy of God. “Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things shall be added to you.”[4]

Why not spend an additional 30 seconds in your car before going into work for the day, praying that God would bless your work this day? And then the same as you return home from work, giving thanks that you have been able to serve your neighbor in faith? Or why not sing hymns throughout your day, in your head if necessary or out loud if your job allows for it? Imagine what it would be like if you sit down for lunch with your coworkers and rather than starting your conversation with, “how bout them Royals,” you started with, “God really has been good to me that I can sit here and enjoy this meal with you.” Or better yet, “Say, I’ve been thinking about how David ate the showbread when he was running from Saul. What do you think about that?” Now, I understand not everyone has coworkers who are open to, let alone capable of, a conversation about the nuances of the Old Testament. But at the same time, have you ever tried?

Now we also learn from St. Peter that we mustn’t let the Word of God idly bounce off our eardrums, but we must put it into practice. After hearing the teachings of Jesus, when our Lord told him to cast his nets, St. Peter responded, “At Your word I will let down the net.” Remember that in this situation, St. Peter is the expert in the field. Our Lord is a prophet. What does He know about fishing? Yet at the Word of the Lord, St. Peter’s actions are affected. He hears the Word and acts accordingly. If the Word of God takes firm root in our hearts, then we can be certain that our professional activities are pleasing to God. And when I say ‘professional,’ don’t get too bothered. If you are a mother, you are a professional mom. If you are a gardener, you are a professional, no matter what your tax filing says.

“If God’s Word illumines our endeavors, we will recognize that we are unworthy, that we are not worthy of even a crumb of bread. For God’s Word teaches us this, that we are all unworthy of His blessings.

“If God’s Word illumines our endeavors, we will not become impatient and resentful when the Lord God at times delays His blessings and we suffer want.

“If God’s Word shines forth in the work of our calling, we will not ascribe it to our cleverness and efforts when He gives it His blessing. This is taught in God’s Word as well, that we should not kiss the work of our hands nor sacrifice to the ‘net’ of our labors.[5]

“If God’s Word shines forth in our labors, we will not only be courteous to our neighbor but also helpful and compassionate, and turn away from temporal things and seek the treasure and joy of our hearts in God. This is because God’s Word teaches all these things.”[6]

Finally, we must also see St. Peter’s boat as a picture of the Church. Christ is in the boat, and it is from this boat that the Word of God is proclaimed to the world. So too, Christ is present here, amid the gathering of His people, and it is here, in the Church, where His Word is proclaimed for all the world to hear. This alone makes Peter’s boat more precious than the greatest merchant’s ship, laden with gold and jewels.

It is also in this boat that a great haul of fish is caught at the very word of Christ. In the Church, the great nets of heaven are filled with men and women, caught fast by the Word of God.

And just as the nets begin to rip open at the weight and fighting of the fish, so too the Church of God has been rent apart by schism because of false teachings and the vexing spirit of man. The world is a tumultuous sea in which everything swims at random, and there are huge predatory fish who prey on others. But out of the great kindness and mercy of God, His net is cast far and wide to gather men by His divine teaching into the boat of His Church.

Now to be sure, there are fish even in the boat who continue to struggle against that Word. They tear holes in the net and want nothing more than to rejoin the chaos of the sea. The broadly cast net catches fish of all kinds. Even for those fish who submit to their Captor, desiring to remain in the boat, this causes pain and suffering. They may even be caught in the struggle and fall overboard.

Among these stubborn fish, we can see St. Peter, himself. At the first sign of struggle, danger, and even imminent death, he does two things. First, he humbly confesses his sin – both the sins he actively commits and his very sinful nature. But second, he makes that horrible plea that Christ would depart from him.[7]What we do not see Peter do is remain silent. Seeing the tearing nets and the sinking boat, he does not decide to sit down and give up without a word to his fishing companions or to Christ. He goes to the source. He speaks up. He is willing to suffer the humiliation of saying something blasphemous if only to remedy his sorry state.

Peter was right to humbly confess his sins because he is a sinful man. He was wrong to beg Jesus to depart from him. He wanted the blessing of God without the presence of God because it was too difficult for him to bear. And on such a one as this, even when making the wrong statement about the presence of Christ, our Lord has mercy on Him. St. Peter had yet to learn that so long as Christ is present, he had everything he would ever need – be it a time of feast or famine. In the darkness of night, he had caught nothing. In the presence of Christ, he had everything he could ever need, even if it came with a time of suffering.

And so it is with all of you. You are present with Christ in the boat today. The fish have been gathered. Our pews are not full to the bursting, but the haul of Christ’s net is. Aside from your personal struggles, we face financial difficulties and personal strife. Do not be tempted to cast off Christ for the sake of your temporal gain – be it money, possessions, friendships, or relations. Do not be afraid. Christ is in this boat. He has pulled you from the tumultuous sea even as He has dived to its depths. He spent three days in the sea of death that you would never have to face it again.

Is your comfort worth fleeing the net of Christ’s salvation? Is your job worth breaking the Third Commandment? Or are you willing to forsake all and follow Christ? Are you willing to be changed by the blood of Jesus Christ such that you will follow Him in every way, including standing before God and man to say, “I am a sinful man. Lord, if I have You alone, then I expect nothing of heaven and earth. Though both my body and soul were to languish, You, God, are still ever the comfort and portion of my heart.”[8]

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] This sermon is inspired by and follows the general outline of Johann Gerhard, “On the Fifth Sunday after Trinity,” Postilla, Volume 2 (Malone, TX: Repristination Press, 2007), 58-67.

[2] Genesis 3:19.

[3] 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.

[4] St. Matthew 6:33.

[5] Habakkuk 1:16.

[6] Gerhard, Postilla, 63.

[7] St. Luke 5:8.

[8] Cf. Psalm 73:25-26.

Lent Midweek 1

Lent Midweek 1 – March 12, 2025

Psalm 91; 1 Kings 19:3b-8

St. Matthew 12:38-50

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

Hezekiah was the greatest king of Judah during the time of the divided kingdom. He did what was right in the eyes of the Lord, tore down the places of false worship, destroyed the false idol Nehushtan, and walked in the commandments of the Lord.[1] During his reign, Assyria laid siege to Jerusalem and the Lord delivered Hezekiah and his people from their evil oppression. Then came the time when Hezekiah fell gravely ill, and the prophet Isaiah told him that this sickness would be his death. Hezekiah wept bitterly and prayed that God would extend his life. The Lord heard his prayer, saw his tears of repentance, and granted him fifteen more years of life. At that time, Hezekiah asked the prophet Isaiah for a sign that his life would be extended. The Lord gave him a sign by turning back the shadow on a sundial by 10 degrees.[2]

When Hezekiah asked for a sign, he was asking for a small symbol to embolden his confidence in the promise of the greater miracle of his extended life. In a sense, he was asking for a small token, a promissory note, that he could cling to should his faith waver in the Lord’s word of promise. This was granted to Hezekiah.

The scribes and Pharisees of our reading this evening were not asking for a sign the same way that Hezekiah did. They had already seen Christ perform great miracles, fulfilling the words of the prophets when they described the coming of the Christ. They had both His words of promise and many signs by which they could be confident that this carpenter from Nazareth was God in the flesh. Yet they demanded more signs. They were not content with the signs given by God, they demanded more. They wanted signs on their own terms to satisfy their own definition of God.

That is why Christ is severe with them. He calls them an “evil and adulterous generation.”[3] They want a god who acts according to their laws, not the Lord God, creator of heaven and earth, who has ordered the universe according to His will. Christ tells them they will receive no sign but the sign of Jonah and instructs them with three illustrations. He is teaching them concerning repentance, wisdom, and perseverance in the faith once delivered.[4]

When considering the sign of Jonah, we shouldn’t get distracted by the number of days. It is true, Jonah was in the belly of the fish for three days and Christ rested in the tomb for three days. This is a historical fact. But the sign of Jonah is that he was in the belly of the fish only for three days. After that time, he rose again. He came back to life. The sign of Jonah is the resurrection. Christ will spend three days in the belly of the earth, resting in the tomb, but then He will rise again. There is no point in stating how long Jonah was in the fish if he didn’t come out of the fish. So too, there is no point to Christ being in the tomb for three days unless He comes out of the tomb at the end of those three days.

This fact does not escape the Pharisees. They petition Pilate to set a guard at the tomb because they fear that the Christ will rise again on the third day. If He does rise from the dead, their doctrine is proved false. They are shown to be false teachers and are liable to the judgment of God.

This sign of Jonah is followed by three illustrations of judgment against the evil and adulterous generation. First are the Ninevites. The Ninevites were a wicked and perverse generation. Nineveh was an important city of the Assyrian Empire, at various times serving as its capital. We are not told of the specific evils committed by the Ninevites at the time of Jonah, only that “their wickedness had come up before” the Lord.[5] Idolatry and sexual immorality were certainly among their sins. Human sacrifice, specifically the murder of children, was also likely among their transgressions. For their wickedness, the Lord resolved to destroy the city, but before executing His judgment, the Lord sent Jonah to preach repentance to the Ninevites.

And they listened. From the king down to the cows, every citizen of Nineveh sat in sackcloth and ashes, repenting of their sins and crying out to the true God of heaven and earth for mercy. They heard the word of God and saw their own sinful condition. The Word of God entered deeply into their souls and brought about such repentance that has rarely been seen on that scale. They did not seek to avoid the Lord. They did not hide behind a law of their own creation. They did not excuse their sin. They repented and cried out to God for mercy and forgiveness. The Lord heard their cries and forgave the city. He relented of His destruction of Nineveh. By the preaching of His Word, the Lord brought the entire city of Nineveh into the fold of the faithful.

 It is these repentant sinners that Christ says will judge the scribes and Pharisees. These repentant saints of God will sit in judgment over those who would have God bow to their own wills and act according to the will of man.

Then Christ speaks of the queen of the South. This is the Queen of Sheba, who came to Solomon because she had heard of his great wisdom and wanted to learn of this wisdom for herself.[6] Sheba was a kingdom on the southwest tip of the Arabian Peninsula. It was a rich and powerful kingdom but was committed to the worship of false gods. Her journey to Jerusalem was likely as much for economic and military reasons as for curiosity about this wise king to her north.

But once she heard the teachings of Solomon, she couldn’t help but sing the praises of the True God of Solomon. “Blessed be the Lord your God, who delighted in you!”[7] He spoke to her concerning wisdom in this world but certainly told her of the True God who would save this sinful world from damnation. Through the preaching of Solomon, the Queen of Sheba brought the true faith back to her people. Again, a nation of people was saved by the preaching of God’s Word. The Queen repented of her belief in demons and turned toward the True God, who would be born in Bethlehem and save her from her sins.

Christ says that this queen will also sit in judgement over this evil and adulterous generation. She who sought the wisdom of God through Solomon will sit among all the faithful in the day of judgment and pronounce condemnation on scribes and Pharisees, who prefer their own wisdom to the Word of God.

After these historic examples, our Lord provides a sort of parable of a man who has been freed from the possession of a demon.[8] But once he has been freed, the man does not make way for the Holy Spirit. He prefers to remain an empty house, open to all the possibilities of the world. If he is not with Christ, then he is against Him, as the parable shows. The demon returns with seven more powerful demons, who then possess the man, leaving him in a state worse than the first.

This man is the personification of the scribes and the Pharisees, the wicked generation. He has been delivered from the oppression of Satan by the Word of God but does not care about what comes next. He has heard the Word of God but no longer clings to it.

Christ is highlighting the importance of perseverance in the faith. Not long ago we heard the parable of the sower, or more accurately, the parable of the soils.[9] Every field will eventually turn up stones and weeds, becoming unfit for growing crops. It is necessary that the good soil receiving the seed of the Word be tended. When it comes to tending to your soul, it shouldn’t sound like a burden. It is a joy! To be in God’s house, to hear and read His Word, to meditate on His Word, to foster a faithful family and faithful community is the very air the saints of God breathe. It is our lifeblood. Does it involve effort? Can it be difficult? Of course. Anything worth doing involves effort and can be difficult. But the reward is eternal life. In the struggle is the joy of life in Christ! The man in the parable goes to the effort of sweeping his soul clean and putting it in order but he fails to fill it with the Holy Spirit. In the end, he achieves nothing more than creating an ideal home for eight demons.

So then, our Lord’s mother and brothers arrive, wanting to speak with Him. But Christ says that these are His mother, brothers, and sisters, those who do the will of the Father. In this context, the will of the Father is everything our Lord has been speaking about. He is referring to those who repent like the Ninevites; those who seek the wisdom of God like the queen of the South; and those who cling to the faith once delivered, who diligently invite the Holy Spirit into their souls and tirelessly strive to maintain the salvation given to them freely. These are His disciples, His mother, brothers, and sisters. 

In T Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] 2 Kings 18:1-8.

[2] 2 Kings 20:1-11.

[3] St. Matthew 12:39.

[4] Jude 3.

[5] Jonah 1:2.

[6] 1 Kings 10:1-13; 2 Chronicles 9:1-12.

[7] 1 Kings 10:9.

[8] St. Matthew 12:43-45.

[9] St. Luke 8:4-15, the Gospel text for Sexagesima.

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity – July 17, 2022

Psalm 27; 1 Kings 19:11-21; 1 Peter 3:8-15

St. Luke 5:1-11

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

In the sixth chapter of Isaiah, the Prophet is taken to the throne room of God. Immediately, the prophet fell on his face and hid his eyes, proclaiming, “Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts.”[1]

The prophet knew that a sinful man who stands in the presence of God will be destroyed. Sprinkle pepper in a bowl of water, then let a single drop of soap into the middle. Immediately, the pepper will flee to the edges of the bowl. Such is the might of God’s holiness. At His presence, the filth of sin is not only scattered, but destroyed. The serpent, that ancient dragon, will bite His heel, but the Almighty shall crush the serpent’s head.[2]

This is the position in which St. Peter finds himself. Like Isaiah, St. Peter is in the presence of the Almighty God. He knows that he is a sinner and sin is destroyed in the presence of God. But unlike Isaiah, St. Peter bids Christ to depart from him. Isaiah bowed in reverence and awe before God Almighty. Such worship and adoration were met with the hands of an angel, touching a coal from the altar of the Lord to the Prophet’s lips, cleansing his sins. St. Peter does not bow in reverence but bids his Lord to depart.

Such is the heart of man. The good, the true, and the beautiful are always difficult for us to accept. They require a rejection of our love for this world. It is much easier to accept what is in front of us. St. Peter had just been blessed by God with a miraculous catch of fish, thousands of dollars in revenue, but this blessing also threatened his life. The boat began to sink. Rather than cry out for mercy, St. Peter wanted Jesus to leave. “In You, O Lord, is salvation, but I prefer my career and my life.”

Because of the sin humanity has brought into the world, the many blessings of God are, from our perspective, always tinged with suffering. To love someone requires suffering. To love is to submit your will and your needs to the will and needs of another. You deny yourself on behalf of another. This self-denial is a light form of suffering, but the human soul turns this self-denial into resentment.

Scripture always considers children a blessing from God. “Children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb is a reward. Like arrows in the hand of a warrior, so are the children of one’s youth. Blessed is the man who has his quiver full of them.”[3] Yet how easy is it to begin to resent your children? When do you get some ‘me’ time? Why can’t they just learn the first time? Why don’t they know how to behave?

Perhaps we recognize the blessings given to us but we want to choose the amount. “Blessed is the man who fills his quiver? Well, I guess I’ll shrink my quiver to 2.5.” The Word of God is profitable to forgive your sins, strengthen faith, and guide you in the way you shall go all the days of your life. “But reading the bible is boring and Netflix is only a click away.” Or, “One hour is good enough. Why do we need to have other services and events throughout the week? What are we, all pastors?”

Then we might look at the world around us. Like Peter’s sinking boat, our world is collapsing into the depths of the chaotic sea. A country blessed by God, where the freedom of conscience and the ability to worship without the oversight of pagans is a birthright, is seeing its last days. Our freedoms have become the basis for our collapse. Freedom of religion has led to the freedom from religion. It has bred a ‘live-and-let live’ mentality. It was one step into darkness when sodomy was legalized but such deviance became rooted in our nation when we said, ‘what happens in your bedroom has no effect on me, just don’t make me support it.’

We are on a sinking ship. In this same situation, St. Peter told Christ to depart and let him down with the ship. Our Lord would not let that happen. Jesus hears Peter’s confession of sins and rather than obeying the heart of man, Jesus absolves Peter’s sins and refuses to abandon him. It is as though Jesus says, “the only way for you to leave my presence is for you to throw yourself into the darkness of the deep because I will not leave you. Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” Peter has no need to fear destruction because Christ has forgiven his sin. Jesus has taken the sin of Peter upon his own shoulders and called him to be his apostle.

Christ has promised never to leave you nor to forsake you. Because he loves you, because he died for you, because he paid the price for your sin, you are valuable to him. He will fight for you even if it means fighting against your own will. Our Lord, the Heavenly Fisherman, is present with you always but especially in the Heavenly meal given from this altar. Elijah was sustained forty days and forty nights on the Bread of Heaven.[4] You, who receive the Body and Blood of Christ weekly, will likewise be sustained.

You have no need to be afraid because you are forgiven. If the wrath of God has been poured out on Jesus on your behalf, then you no longer need to fear the wrath of God. If you do not need to fear the wrath of God, then you have nothing to fear. Neither height nor depth, neither death nor life, neither lost loved ones or the suffering of this world needs to cause you fear.

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid?”[5] Why resent the blessings of God? Why allow the blessings of God to become wicked in your eyes? Never forget what the Lord has given you. He has forgiven your sins. He continues to forgive your sins. He has given you everlasting life. What could possibly be better than that? Should the Lord call you to forsake your family, your career, your home, or even your life, you still have the better portion. Jesus is gracious to you and answers your prayer. He will not forsake you because He is the God of your salvation![6]

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] Isaiah 6:5.

[2] Genesis 3:15.

[3] Psalm 127:3-5.

[4] 1 Kings 19:8.

[5] Psalm 27:1.

[6] Psalm 27:7, 9, 1.

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity

The Fifth Sunday after Trinity - July 4, 2021

Psalm 27; 1 Kings 19:11-21; 1 Peter 3:8-15

St. Luke 5:1-11

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

            St. Peter’s response to the miraculous catch of fish is puzzling. “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord.” St. Augustine,[1] St. Ambrose,[2] and others see this as an example of the Apostle’s deep humility. St. Peter is confessing his sins to Christ, whom he has only recently met. To this point in Luke’s Gospel, Peter has only shown up once – at the healing of his mother-in-law. But he was not the central figure in that event.

There is no mistaking that Peter is central to this miracle. His name appears 6 times in these short verses. It is his boat above all others which the Lord chooses for his seat while teaching. It is also only Peter whom Jesus commands to “Launch out into the deep.”[3] St. Peter is also the only Apostle recorded to receive a new name from Christ. Simon becomes Peter in this text.[4]

When Simon launches out to the deep, casts his nets at the Word of Christ, brings in a great number of fish such that his nets break and the boat begins to sink, why does he confess his sins to Christ? Peter was in the boat with Jesus as he taught the crowds the Word of God. He heard the proclamation of Jesus and the salvation which had come to man in human flesh. Yet at first, he calls Jesus “Master.” It seems that Peter first recognizes Jesus to be a teacher; a good teacher; perhaps a prophet of God.

After the miracle, as the boat is sinking, he calls Jesus “Lord.” By the miracle, he recognizes this teacher to be the Heavenly Teacher, the Son of God, the Prophet like Moses, promised to his fathers to save man from sin. Therefore, he confesses his sin. He knows this Lord is the only being capable of remitting sin. Even better, Peter does not confess specific sins which he has committed but he confesses that he is a sinful man. He knows that sin has infected his entire being and for this, he deserves punishment.

This leads us to the puzzle of his confession. If Peter recognizes Jesus to be the Christ, his Savior, why command him to depart? Peter falls at Jesus’ knees in the posture of worship and then commands Jesus to depart. Why?

As I said before, many church fathers take this to be an act of humility. In effect, Peter is saying that he is not worthy of God’s presence nor of forgiveness. This is true. No one deserves the love of God. No one deserves forgiveness. That is what makes it love and what makes it forgiveness. Our unworthiness is how we know God is merciful. While you were yet sinners, he gave his son to die for you.

 But I am unwilling to accept humility as the only motivation for Peter to command Jesus to depart. Blessed of a man as Peter is, he is human. Self-preservation must have played a role in his statement. Peter recognized Jesus to be the Christ and a man of tremendous power. Recognizing himself to be a sinful man, Peter remembered his Sunday School lessons that sinful things cannot survive in the presence of God. They are consumed by the fire of his holiness. Peter is making the decision to continue living his earthly life rather than be in the presence of Jesus. This is his sin in this text. It also foreshadows his sin of denial on the night when Jesus is betrayed.[5]

Peter’s experience is common to all Christians. We must all make decisions between what we want and what God has willed. We think we know what we want. We think we know best, even in matters not pertaining to our own sin. “How could God not desire my sister to live? She did not sin to cause her diseased heart.” No, she didn’t, and yet she is dying. We can certainly pray she be spared but even more urgent would be to pray for her faith. God desires that all mankind would repent and believe in Christ. Pray that God’s will would be done, that God would turn her heart so that when she dies, she goes to be with God. And although she will be separated from you for a time and cannot return to you, there will be the day when you will go to be with her.[6]

St. Peter was a professional fisherman and knew the best times and places for fishing. Yet according to his will, they fished all night and caught nothing. Peter was acting in the darkness of his own human sight and the night of this world. In the daylight of Christ and at the command of his Word, Peter catches more fish than two boats could handle.

Yet even this blessing of Christ, the blessing of a multitude of fish, seems to endanger Peter’s life. From Peter’s perspective, he’s been given too much of a good thing that has now become the source of his destruction. He desired to follow the Word of God but did not like the real-world outcome. Therefore, he utters those terrible words, “Depart from me.”

This life is full of suffering. Elijah, a prophet of God who never tasted of death,[7] once despaired of the suffering of this world.[8] Driven into the wilderness, he believed himself to be the only Christian left on earth and no one would listen. He was lonely. His life was being threatened. He was a failure. So, he sat under a broom tree and asked God to kill him. Elijah was tired. He was done.

The Lord sent an angel with food and drink to revive Elijah. He ate the bread and drank the water but then laid down again to die. Then the Angel of the Lord, Christ himself, came to Elijah, touched him, and said, “Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you.” In the strength of that meal, Elijah journey forty days and nights before speaking to God in the still small voice. After assuring Elijah that God is Almighty and works all things to the good of them that love him, he gives Elijah a companion – Elisha.

We each suffer in our own ways. We suffer as we watch our loved ones suffer, which is often worse. Suffering rends our hearts because we were not created to suffer. Our eternal souls cringe at the concept of suffering but such is our lot so long as we live on this side of glory. Suffering will never be easy, but for those in Christ, we know two things: first, there is an end to all suffering;[9] and second, our suffering is little more than the chastisement of a loving Father who desires us to be made holy.[10]

Christ hears Peter’s confession, knows his humility and sinful self-preservation, and refuses to abandon him. It is almost as though Christ says, “the only way for you to leave my presence is for you to throw yourself into the darkness of the deep because I will not leave you.” “Do not be afraid. From now on you will catch men.” Peter has no need to fear destruction because Christ has forgiven his sin. Jesus has taken the sin of Peter upon his own shoulders and called him to be his apostle.

Christ has promised never to leave you nor to forsake you. Because he loves you, because he died for you, because he paid the price for your sin, you are valuable to him. He will fight for you even if it means fighting against your own will. Our Lord, the Heavenly Fisherman, is present with you always but especially in the Heavenly meal given from this altar. Elijah was sustained forty days and forty nights on the Bread of Heaven. You, who receive the Body and Blood of Christ weekly, will likewise be sustained.

You have no need to be afraid because you are forgiven. If the wrath of God has been poured out on Jesus on your behalf, then you no longer need to fear the wrath of God. If you do not need to fear the wrath of God, then you have nothing to fear. Neither height nor depth, neither death nor life, neither lost loved ones or the suffering of this world needs to cause you fear.

Notice we are not told the boat stops sinking, only that they are able to bring it to land. The forgiveness of Peter does not end the suffering but emboldens him to endure. This suffering produced endurance. His endurance informs his character as an apostle. His character as apostle proclaims the Word of God to the suffering world and delivers hope; certain hope of everlasting life.[11]

To hear the absolution, to hear that Christ forgives your sins will not make your suffering immediately go away. Receiving the Holy Body and Precious Blood of Christ, given and shed for the forgiveness of sins will not immediately grant you a peaceful mind. But the Word of God and his Holy Sacraments were given for the consolation of souls – to forgive sins and strengthen our weak hearts. In time, these means of receiving God’s grace will strengthen you in body and soul from now unto life everlasting.

With St. Peter, hear the Word of God taught and proclaimed. Humbly confess your sins and receive the forgiving Word of Christ. Then, with Elijah, arise and eat, for the journey is too great for you, but not for Jesus.

       In + Jesus’ name.  Amen.

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[1] http://www.lectionarycentral.com/trinity05/Augustine1.html

[2] http://www.lectionarycentral.com/trinity05/Ambrose.html

[3] Luke 5:4.

[4] Luke 5:9.

[5] Luke 22:31-34, 54-62.

[6] 2 Samuel 12:23.

[7] 2 Kings 2:11.

[8] 1 Kings 19:1-10. This account occurs immediately before today’s Old Testament Lesson.

[9] Revelation 7:14-17; 14:13; Isaiah 25:8.

[10] Proverbs 3:12; Hebrews 10:2; Luke 6:36.

[11] Romans 5:3-5.