The Easter Vigil

 The Great Vigil of Easter – April 19, 2025

Genesis 1:1-3:24; Genesis 7:1-9:17; Exodus 14:10-15:1; Daniel 3:1-30

St. Matthew 28:1-7

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

The Easter Vigil bridges the gap between the Crucifixion on Good Friday and the Feast of the Resurrection on Easter morning. We began in darkness as we kindled a new flame. This flame is to represent the Light of Christ, by which the Word of God is revealed to us. He is the light shining in dark places and He illumines the Scriptures so that we might understand them. Only in Christ can we understand what it is the Scriptures say to us concerning faith.

Having lit the new flame, we heard four prophecies of God’s great works within creation: Creation and the Fall, the Flood, Israel’s deliverance at the Red Sea, and the Fiery Furnace. Each of these is a description of God’s activity in the world to save His people, His mercy and gracious love toward man. They are at the same time a description of His judgment against sin.

We then entered the service of Holy Baptism, in which we remembered the gracious promises made to us in the waters of Holy Baptism. We repeated the vows and declarations made at Holy Baptism not because they needed to be renewed or strengthened, but to remind ourselves of what Baptism is and what glorious blessings it bestows.

Then there was the Service of Prayer, a unique litany. This service of prayer is a plea to God that the benefits of His salvation would come to us this very night. And during the hymn which followed, our church was transformed. The paraments and altar appointments returned, now clothed in white and gold, the lights came on, and we sang the Gloria in Excelsis, the song of the angels that fell silent 70 days ago. The transition from Lent to Easter is now complete, having heard of Christ’s glorious resurrection from the dead. And soon, we will feast on that very same body that though once dead, is now living.

That first Easter morning, God sent an angel to announce the resurrection of Christ. The women had come to see a tomb, the place of the dead, but the angel gently corrects their intentions. It is not a tomb, not a dead man they seek, but the living Christ. We are going to pay very close attention to the words of the angel’s message this evening.

First, he proclaims, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.”[1] That last part should really say, “Jesus, the Crucified One.” It expresses something that happened in the past but is an ongoing reality. That is not to say that Jesus is still being crucified. Rather, the crucifixion is the defining characteristic of Christ. In this way, He loved us, namely that He bore our sins on the cross and buried them in the grave, so that when He rose again, death would be conquered, and our sins would remain forever in the grave. He is eternally The Crucified because He is eternally our substitute. The Crucified One is the eternal sacrifice given once and for all.

The angel continues, “He is not here; for He is risen, as He said.”[2] Again, this needs clarification. The phrase, “He is risen” should be something like, “He rose.” It expresses a one-time event in the past that is concluded, finished, done, over with. It is as much as saying “He won. Period.” Christ’s resurrection is the final nail in satan’s coffin. It is the seal on your salvation. His resurrection is your resurrection, so much can you place your hope and confidence on Him. If He was raised from the dead, so shall you.

It might seem odd to think that the ongoing characteristic of Christ is that He is the Crucified One while the resurrection is a singular past event. It might seem like they should be the other way around. Yet this is the beauty of the angel’s message. The Crucified One is the all atoning sacrifice for sinners yesterday, today, and tomorrow. He is the sacrificial Lamb who takes away the sins of the world. His forgiveness is not a one-time event. It endures for all time.

His resurrection, on the other hand, needed only happen once and to be done. The death stroke against death is complete, finished. “Satan, you thought you had triumphed when they placed my Lord in the grave, but He rose. You are finished. Christ won. You lost. Period.”

Finally, the angel says, “Indeed Christ is going before you into Galilee; there you will see Him.”[3] Here, the translation of the angel’s message is correct and oh so beautiful. “He is going before you.” Christ is one the move. He did not rise to sit idle. He isn’t fleeing from man. He is on the move, going from place to place, to be with man. He leads and He follows. He goes before the women to Galilee, to bring Himself to the nations, that all who hear His word and receive Christ will receive the benefits of the Crucified One.

So too, He goes before you this evening. He goes before you as your Christ. He goes before you to be with you and to lead you unto your heavenly home. Christ is the Crucified One for you today and always. Christ rose for you, that you would rise with Him. Christ is going before you to show you the way to everlasting life.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 28:5.

[2] St. Matthew 28:6.

[3] St. Matthew 28:7.

The Last Sunday in the Church Year

The Last Sunday in the Church Year – November 24, 2024

Psalm 39; Isaiah 65:17-25; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11

St. Matthew 25:1-13

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

At the end of the year, it is helpful to take stock of how things are going. Businesses do this every year. They must review not only the budget but see how sales went over the last year and based on last year’s trends, they must decide whether to stock more or fewer goods for the coming year. Athletes must take stock of their performance and make decisions on how to adjust their training to meet new challenges, see greater improvement, or manage an injury. Individuals do this when they start making resolutions for the new year. They find a vice they want to stop doing or set a new goal to improve over the coming year.

This is a helpful practice even for Christians. This, the Last Sunday of the Church Year, is a good time to reflect on your own faith and spiritual disciplines. This isn’t for the purpose of feeling bad about what you have failed to do or the sins you’ve committed over the last year, those I’ll address those in a minute. Rather, such an exercise is for the purpose of being honest with yourself. How has your prayer and devotional life been? If it hasn’t been consistent, now is the time to recognize that and renew your effort to engross yourself in Scripture and prayer. How has your attendance at the divine service been? If it hasn’t been great, now is the time to consider what has gotten in the way and renew your efforts to be in the Lord’s House and to be here with joy.

How about your acts of charity toward others? Not just financial charity but simply kindness, conversation, and mutual consolation of the brethren? Now is the time to make an effort to seek out the lonely and offer the right hand of fellowship. Now is the time to feed the hungry, clothe the naked, visit the sick and imprisoned. And more importantly, now is the time to consider how you might make a consistent practice of these blessed activities.

Lest you think this is just a list of things to do, remember that this is the purpose of the parable of the virgins. Our Lord admonishes us, “Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Manis coming.”[1] That word, “watch,” means to take careful notice of or carefully examine, or the phrase I used earlier, “take stock.”

Now the parable of the virgins is a parable concerning the church, specifically the church on earth. We know that it is the visible church on earth because five virgins are wise and five are foolish. All have been invited to the wedding feast of Christ and all are in attendance but five have taken great care of the faith that has been delivered to them and five have not. The five foolish virgins are hypocrites, that is, they have all the outward trappings of Christians, but they do not attend to the flame of faith that was born within them in Holy Baptism. They do not retain the faith once delivered. They are more interested in the outward show of faith. They have all the outward good works of Christians. Perhaps their lamps even shown more brightly than that of the wise, at least at the beginning of the night.

But when the herald’s call comes, they are found without oil, that is, they are found without the faith by which their works are made good before God. They must run to those who sell—in the middle of the night, no less—and try to draw the attention of men, thinking this will also get them attention before the Bridegroom. Even at this last hour, they have deceived themselves into thinking that what impresses man will also impress Christ. This fatal mistake leaves them outside the wedding hall.

In the days of Noah, mankind was given 100 years to repent. Noah preached the Word of God to all around him and built a giant ark, a physical preaching of the Word, and yet the world refused to listen. They shut their ears against God. Then there came a day when all the animals, Noah, his wife, their three sons, and their wives boarded the ark for the last time. And God shut them in, sealing the side of the ark against the sins of the world. So too, when the Bridegroom comes, the door is shut against the sinful world. The five foolish virgins are left outside the wedding hall in the darkness, where there is weeping and gnashing of teeth.

The Lord has great patience and is willing to delay the return of the Bridegroom for the sake of the faithful but even His patience has an end. He has clearly stated that there will be a last day, and no one knows the day or the hour.[2] It will come as a thief in the night and the Bridegroom will return as quick as lightning flashes from the east to the west.[3]

“Watch, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Manis coming.”[4] If, in taking stock of the last year, you find there are sins that burden your conscience, or even the idea of reviewing the last twelve months is a burden on your soul, then flee toward the things of God. Repent of your sins and receive the Holy Absolution. Do not slumber and sleep on your sins. Come to your pastor for confession and absolution. This blessed gift of God will help you to unburden your soul. Conversation with your pastor can help you sort out the confusions regarding your spiritual life that are weighing down your soul.

And you, beloved in the Lord, are not in darkness. You know of the coming of the Lord even if you know neither the day nor the hour. In fact, as you daily pray the Lord’s Prayer, you pray that He would come quickly, that He would return and gather you home.[5] “You are all sons of light and sons of the day.”[6] The coming of the Lord is a joyous occasion for the wise virgins and all the elect, those who endure unto salvation. As those wise virgins, the Lord is encouraging us and admonishing us to remain vigilant, “putting on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet the hope of salvation.”[7]

Whenever we consider the Last Day, we must remember that it is a joyous occasion for Christians. It is the culmination, the consummation of our faith. It is the day when all that we’ve hoped for comes to fruition. Even the blessed saints who have fallen asleep in Christ look forward to that day because their souls will be reunited with their bodies made glorious. The sometimes terrifying descriptions of Scripture are to be used as warning, lest you should fall into the deception of the foolish virgins. The terrifying aspects of that Last Day are terrifying for the unbeliever, the apostate, and the sons of darkness. For the sons of light, they serve as a call to vigilance, but vigilance for the sake of receiving your eternal reward, your eternal inheritance as sons of the Father and brothers of Christ.

After the floodwaters receded, even faithful Noah fell into drunkenness and sinful sleep. His faithful son, Ham, fell into even worse sin. Yet Noah was called back into the fold, back into faith, and repented of his own sin. He remained vigilant in the face of his own sinful flesh, attending to the Word of God and guarding the oil of his own faith. In like manner, we too, will fall to temptation. The Old Adam was drowned in Holy Baptism but is a great swimmer. So we, like Noah and the wise virgins, must watch, take stock, and guard our hearts and minds against sin. We must turn our thoughts, words and actions toward Christ that we too, would be found faithful, vigilant, and heir of the eternal glory that is made ours in Christ.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 25:13.

[2] Isaiah 65:17; St. Matthew 24:36; St. Mark 13:32.

[3] 1 Thessalonians 5:2; 2 Peter 3:10.

[4] St. Matthew 25:13.

[5] “Thy kingdom come;” “Deliver us from evil.”

[6] 1 Thessalonians 5:5.

[7] 1 Thessalonians 5:8.

The Great Vigil of Easter

The Great Vigil of Easter – March 30, 2024

Genesis 1:1-3:24; Genesis 7:1-9:17; Exodus 14:10-15:1; Daniel 3:1-30

St. Matthew 28:1-7

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

Why put in the effort tonight? Why all the ceremonies, long readings, and prayers? It is because tonight we celebrate the heart of our faith. Each prayer is an earnest plea to God for rescue from temptation, sin, and death. Each ceremony is a physical manifestation of that faith, handed down from our forefathers to teach our bodies what it means to confess Jesus Christ as Savior. Each reading focuses our hearts and minds on the singular focus of all Scripture – the salvation of man found in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

There is no room this night for nostalgia, theatrics, or performance. On this most Holy Night, we celebrate the victory of our King. We celebrate His bursting from the bonds of death. We celebrate His victory because it is our victory. It is our victory over temptation, sin, and death.

It is too easy to let phrases like “He is risen!” or “Christ is King” become statements of historic fact or expressions of joyous sentiment unconnected to the Person of Jesus Christ and without impact on your person. The proclamation that Christ is risen means that He was dead. It means that He died for the sins of the world but more importantly, for your sins. Yes, He died for original sin but He also died for the sins you committed this morning, this afternoon, even those you’ve committed since the beginning of this service.

It is a historic fact that Jesus rose from the grave 2000 years ago, but it is far more important that this resurrection brought life to you. He is risen and that means that your sins, which He carried into the grave, remain buried in the tomb. It means that your sins are buried in the earth, never to rise. He is risen and that means that you, too, will rise with Him. You have already risen with Him in the waters of Holy Baptism. You have arisen a new Creation, a new creature, born from above and made in the image of Christ’s righteousness.

It is also a fact that Jesus Christ is King. St. John’s Gospel, especially the Passion as read yesterday in the Chief Service, emphasizes this fact. Again and again, Pilate questions Jesus’ regarding His kingship and never once does Jesus deny being King. But as a historic fact, this is little more important than the fact that Caesar crossed the Rubicon, Charlemagne was crowned Holy Roman Emperor, or Washington crossed the Delaware. These events matter in the course of the world but mean nothing in heaven. When the world is destroyed on the last day, these events will lose all meaning.

It is an entirely different statement to say that Christ is your king. A king is not elected or chosen by his subjects. A king is not under constant threat of deposition by the will of the people. A King is sovereign. A King governs by His will and by His right. Christ is King because He holds all creation in His hands. He is King because He is the very Word by which Creation came to be. And He is your King.

He is your King because He is on your side. He is your King because He has chosen you to be His subject. He is not a King who leads from the rear. He is a King who commands His people to stand in safety while He faces our foes. He is like David, who marches by himself to fight Goliath, the terror of the Israelites and soldier of Satan. Unlike David, your King must lose His life to win the war. Unlike David, your King faced not just the soldiers and power of Satan, but the Adversary himself. And your King won.

The implication for you is that Satan has no power over you. You belong to the King of kings, not to the Ancient Dragon. Temptation, sin, and death constantly seek your life, but your King has ensured victory over them. Should you fall for their lies, you have a King who is strong to save, who has already, before you could fall to sin, devoured your sin in the grave. You are His and He will never leave you, nor forsake you. You are His and His is the victory.

Alleluia, Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.