The Fourth Sunday after Trinity

 The Fourth Sunday after Trinity – July 13, 2025

Psalm 27; Genesis 50:15-21; Romans 8:18-23

St. Luke 6:36-42

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

“Judge not lest ye be judged,”[1] is among the most abused verses of Scripture, if not the most abused. It is taken to mean there is no place for harsh or negative words on the lips of Christians, as though we are commanded to live and let live. ‘Preach only the Gospel.’ ‘Be nice and the hearts of many will be turned.’

But no one who has read the Scriptures can come to this conclusion. The Bible is full of commandments to judge and condemn false doctrine – including sin. “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature. He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who does not believe will be condemned.”[2] Every pastor is commanded not only to forgive sins but to rebuke and warn against them; as well as train up Christians for every good work.[3] This requires making judgements and condemning false doctrine and sin.

This task of judging and condemning is not just given to pastors in their preaching. The Prophet Isaiah says, “Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; Who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!”[4] Psalm 119 goes so far as to command us to “hate every false way.”[5] And Christ commands the sheep to “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.”[6] It would be impossible to discern between a false prophet and a true prophet if you could not judge. And how do you judge this doctrine? By comparing it to the Word of God, the only inerrant and infallible rule and norm by which doctrine can be judged.

Then what is our Lord forbidding in these words, “Judge not, condemn not”? He is forbidding judging hearts, not according to God’s Word but according to our own thoughts, preferences, or opinions. It is judging without love and mercy but according to the passions of our own flesh. The synopsis, or summary, of the Gospel text this morning is “Be merciful, just as your Father also is merciful.”[7] But why should you be merciful as God is merciful? What should move, or motivate, you to be merciful as God is merciful?

First, you ought to be moved by the mercy God has shown toward you. Earlier in the sermon on the plain, Christ told us to do unto others as we would have them do unto us.[8] Here, that command is taken a step further. Do unto others as you would have God do to you. Don’t get me wrong, it is not our mercy that causes God to have mercy on us. It is not our actions that cause God to grant us grace and forgiveness. However, what we do in and with that grace and mercy can certainly cause our Heavenly Father to withdraw the same.

Think of the parable of the unforgiving servant. A servant owes his master 60 million days’ wages, somewhere in the neighborhood of $10 billion, or over 230,000 years of work. The master has compassion on his servant and forgives his debt. But then the servant finds a fellow servant who owes him $16,000, about 5 months of work. Since he can’t pay the debt, the servant has him beaten and thrown in jail. When the master hears what he has done, he throws the unforgiving servant to the torturers and jailers until the debt is paid.

The servant did nothing to earn the compassion of his master but when he failed to show similar compassion to his fellow servant, the master returned his lack of forgiveness upon him with the same measure: pressed down, shaken together, and running over. That servant was forgiven 230,000 years of debt and yet you have been forgiven more. Your Heavenly Father sent His Only Begotten Son to die for your debt of sin and to rise again that you would no longer be a slave but a son, and that you would enjoy this inheritance for all eternity. You have been set free from the punishment of the Law and the sting of death. Such is the sweet mercy of God that has been shown to you. Such is the same mercy you’ve been called to show to your neighbor.

When we say that good works are motivated by the Gospel, this is what we mean. Though we are but frail mortals, incapable of the perfect mercy of God, we who have been set free by such a glorious love are to reflect that love in our mercy toward others. What would it say to God if you refused to show forth the mercy that you’ve been shown? It would tell Him that what He has done means very little to you. It would be an abuse of everything that He has done for and given to you. He gives you life and you would use it in service to death.

Rather, see your forgiveness for what it is. It is a new life, a new beginning, a new existence as a son of God. A son wants nothing more than a father he can be proud of and to be like his father. We have a Father who defines what it means to be a father. As His dear children, our hearts ought to desire nothing less than to be like Him, to walk in His ways and enjoy His favor for all eternity.

I’ve already hinted at the second motivation to be merciful as our Heavenly Father is merciful. It is because of the consequences of not being merciful. When we heard of Lazarus and the rich man, I spoke of how seriously God takes sin. He hates sin. He cannot tolerate sin to stand in His presence. He also provides the antidote to the poison of sin. His great love sends the shed blood of Jesus to be for you the medicine of immortality. As seriously as He takes sin, He equally takes your forgiveness seriously.

So then, how would you like God to consider you? Do you wish that He would overlook your besetting sins, those against which you struggle but still find yourself falling into? Of course! Then you should also be willing to overlook such sins in your neighbor. Do you wish to escape the loveless judgment of hell? Then do not judge your neighbor without love. On the last day, do you want God to commend your righteous and merciful deed to your neighbor, making no mention of your sins, as He does with the sheep at His right hand?[9] Then, whenever you can, speak well of your neighbor to the best of your knowledge. Before others and in your own heart, put the best construction on everything that he does.

Do not wish that God would remember your sins no more, keep no record of your sins nor add them up, turn His anger away from you, smile upon you, and hurl all your guilt into the depths of the sea, then turn around and keep tally of your neighbor’s sins against you so that you can use them against him at the opportune time. With the same measure that you use, it will be measured back to you.

The final motivation to be merciful as our Father is merciful as presented in our text is the burden of our own sin. You know the depth of your own sin. You know which temptations to which you are likely to succumb. In this knowledge, the temptation to lovelessly judge your neighbor is twofold. There is the temptation to judge those with similar sins. The man prone to anger is especially angered by another man prone to anger. One who steals is often the first to judge another thief. The opposite temptation is also true. It is very easy to judge someone who is tempted to sins that you are not tempted toward. Such self-righteous indignation boils over from a lack of sympathy.

Yet to be ever mindful of the burden of your own sin ought to move you to show compassion and mercy toward your neighbor. It is humbling to ponder your own sinfulness. This humility can then drive your attitude toward others. It is a somewhat slight example but think of the person who cuts you off in traffic or quickly pulls out in front of you. How easy it is to condemn them for driving recklessly. And it is true, what they’ve done is dangerous. What you don’t know is their child was just flown into the city for emergency surgery; or he has just learned of the infidelity of his wife; or he is a first responder who just received an emergency call that pulled him out of bed during his time off. And besides, who among us hasn’t missed a stop sign, unknowingly cut someone off, or even purposely broken traffic laws?

The point is that you know what it is to be a sinner, and you know what a sinner needs. A sinner needs to be forgiven. A sinner needs mercy. It is not your duty to determine the eternal fate of every person you encounter, but to love God and serve your neighbor. There is a time and place to judge and condemn false doctrine and sin, but there is also a time to remove the plank from your own eye first. Attending to your own sin prepares you with a humble heart to seek the reproof, correction, and instruction of your neighbor.

Your Heavenly Father has had mercy on you. By right, there is only One who may even call Him His Father, for Christ is the only True Son of the Father. Yet in His infinite grace and mercy, He has given to you everything that is His own, including your adoption as a child of God. In faith toward Him and in fervent love toward your neighbor, be merciful, even as your Heavenly Father is merciful.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Luke 6:37.

[2] St. Mark 16:15-16.

[3] 2 Timothy 3:16-17.

[4] Isaiah 5:20.

[5] Psalm 119:104, 128.

[6] St. Matthew 7:15.

[7] St. Luke 6:36.

[8] St. Luke 6:31.

[9] St. Matthew 25:34-40.

The First Sunday after Trinity

 Trinity 1 – June 22, 2025

Psalm 13; Deuteronomy 6:4-13; 1 John 4:8b-21

St. Luke 16:19-31

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

When it comes to the question of ‘what happens when a man dies?’ the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus is perhaps the largest single chunk of Scripture to provide an answer, especially concerning those who die in their sins. Therefore, we will concern ourselves with the doctrine of hell and how Lazarus is saved and the Rich Man condemned.

Hell was created by God as a prison for the devil and his angels, those demons who rebelled against God alongside the devil. After the fall of man, the jurisdiction of this prison was widened to include all wicked and evil men, those who die without faith in Christ.[1] In one sense, we can say that God is the cause of the existence of hell, for He created it as the place to exercise His just and righteous wrath against the wickedness of the devil. In another sense, we can say that the wickedness of the devil (that is, sin) is the more direct cause as this is what moved God to create such a place of torment.

God created no one and nothing for the purpose of eternal death in hell. As the prophet Hosea says, “You have destroyed Yourself.”[2] Even the devil was created as a holy angel until he rebelled against the Almighty and was cast out of heaven.[3] For this reason, we should not be bothered that God is the remote cause of hell. The sin of satan brought the full wrath of God upon himself and all the angels who followed him. So too, the sin of Adam brought the wrath of God upon all mankind, who now “were by nature children of wrath.”[4] Because God is just, He cannot be anything but angry at apostacy and sin. From this wrath follows the most just and serious punishments for sins, not only temporal punishments but also eternal ones.

That the punishments of hell are eternal, that is without end, is easily shown from the words of Holy Scripture. Isaiah refers to the permanent flames of hell, and that its smoke goes up forever.[5] Ezekiel 26 records the words of God that “I will thrust you down with those who go down into the pit to the everlasting people.”[6] Similarly, when Daniel speaks concerning the resurrection of all flesh, he says, “Some will awake to shame and everlasting contempt.”[7] The New Testament uses phrases like “eternal fire;” “eternal punishment;” eternal death;” eternal destruction;” “eternal chains;” “the smoke of the torments will go up forever;” and the wicked “will be tortured day and night forever and ever.”[8]

Logically, we can also determine, from the witness of Scripture, that the punishment of hell is eternal. God is eternal and infinite, therefore His justice is also eternal and infinite. Then it follows that His judgment against the wicked and His declaration of punishment is likewise eternal, enduring forever.

As for the nature of this punishment, we can describe it in two parts – internal and external. The internal punishments regard crushing despair, the loss of all hope, and loneliness beyond comprehension. This loneliness is also twofold. Those condemned to hell know who God is and that He exists but are eternally separated from His love and His gifts. They are also eternally separated from the comfort and blessings of the saints in glory. There is a great gulf fixed so that the damned cannot even receive comfort from other men.

The external punishments of hell are likewise terrifying. Fire that burns but does not consume and worms that feast but do not devour will be the constant physical torment of the accursed. Then, just as one of the souls in hell grows accustomed to his pain, it will invert to the other extreme. If he finds himself getting used to the heat of the fires of hell, he will immediately be thrust into bone-chilling cold such that the frost touches the bones and the chill cracks the skin. There is no relief in the change of external punishment, only increased torment.

Regarding the location of hell and how it is constructed, Scripture is not specific. It is called a great pit and compared to a gaping mouth. As tempting as it is to imagine hell being at the center of the earth, there is little to support this idea. Hell will last forever and yet the earth will be destroyed on the Last Day, replaced by the new Earth. Just as we think of heaven as being above us but don’t insist on an exact location in the heavenly spheres, we ought to think of hell as being below without insisting on an exact location.

It is not pleasant to think about hell. It is not enjoyable to think of the eternal torment of the damned, but it is necessary. It is necessary because Scripture speaks of hell. It is also necessary as a preventative to sin. What God has revealed about the nature of hell is for the purpose of revealing the severity of sin. God takes sin very seriously and we should, too.

The doctrine of hell is also necessary as a description of God’s justice. His justice does not contradict His mercy. Both exist in the same measure within God, that is, His justice equals His mercy. He is the perfectly holy and Almighty God, who punishes evil. This is a good thing. It means that He is perfectly able to make judgments regarding the righteousness of man. It means that we can trust His Word, especially when He has forgiven your sin. If He takes sin so seriously as to condemn the unrighteous, then His forgiveness is not given lightly. He takes forgiveness just as seriously. His Word of forgiveness is just as relieving, comforting, and pleasurable as His Word of condemnation is terrifying, chilling, and full of despair.

These two sides of the same coin are seen in Lazarus and the Rich Man. Everything Lazarus lacked in this life, he received in orders of magnitude greater than he could imagine in Abraham’s bosom. Everything the Rich Man enjoyed in this life was thrown into a grave, and he received orders of magnitude more in suffering and torment in hell.

The distinction between the two was not the amount of money or stuff they possessed. Details are given concerning how they lived as a reflection of their faith. The Rich Man is not condemned for being rich, but the description of his riches tells us that he trusts in daily, sumptuous feasts and fine clothing. I don’t doubt for a second that he was considered a very pious man by his community, always in the synagogue and giving money to the Temple. But from his interactions with Abraham, we can see that whatever he heard in the sermons of the Pharisees, the Word of God rested on his earlobes, never making it into his heart and mind. Even in the torments of hell, the Rich Man remains impenitent, blaming God for his condemnation. ‘If only there had been greater miracles, I would have believed. This is your fault, God.’

Conversely, Lazarus is depicted as being entirely helpless. He cannot feed himself. He didn’t call the dogs to lick his wounds, something that apparently has medicinal qualities. Or if that isn’t the case, he couldn’t drive them away. Even in death, he doesn’t ascend into heaven but is carried on the arms of the holy angels. And yet it is not his poverty or sickness that saved Lazarus. Father Abraham clearly tells us what is necessary for salvation: to believe the witness of Moses and the Prophets, to believe the Word of God. It is not about an academic understanding of every nuance of the texts but about trust that the Word of God is true; that what it says is true and is true for you. And if you believe it is true, if you trust in this Word of God, understanding will necessarily follow. A lifetime of searching the Scriptures for wisdom and knowledge of the truth will be born of the faith delivered by the Holy Spirit. This is what saved the beggar Lazarus, the Word of God as received by the divine gift of faith.

Every prayer, every canticle, every hymn, every response spoken, sung, and prayed in the church is to be believed. The words used every Sunday, at every Baptism, at every celebration of the Lord’s Supper, every ordination, wedding, or funeral, is spoken because it is true and must be believed. How are these things believed? They are believed by faith. They are received by faith.

Again, this faithful reception is not an esoteric idea of emotions or magic, or even an action of the intellect. The faithful reception of the Word of God is to hear it and believe it. The Christian must consider what is said, sung, confessed, and prayed on Sunday morning each day of his life. If you are to add your ‘amen’ to any statement, you must know what is said and believe it. The prime example of such faith, given by Christ Himself, is children. “Then Jesus took a little child and set him in the midst of them. And when He had taken him in His arms, He said to them, “Whoever receives one of these little children in My name receives Me; and whoever receives Me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me.”^[9] This is faith.

If man does not believe the Word of God, not even if one should rise from the dead will he be convinced. If you treat the Word of God as though it were faerie stories, or pretty words for greeting cards, or little more than nice sentiments which make you feel better, then you do not believe in the Resurrection of Christ. The one who would rise from the dead and yet not convince the brothers of the rich man is none other than Jesus Christ himself. To treat the Scriptures flippantly is to deny the resurrection of Christ. To deny the Resurrection of Christ is to ensure an eternity of torment alongside the rich man.

On the other hand, to make diligent use of the Word of God ensures eternal bliss and rest. Faith which receives the Word of God and trusts in the truth of Scripture is certainty that your name is written in the Book of Life. Faith and trust of the Word of God does not mean you will understand everything. That is not possible for man. Faith desires to be fed even from the crumbs of the Word of God. Lazarus desired the crumbs. So did the Syrophoenician woman and prodigal son. Faith seeks wisdom from our Heavenly Father, even when faith does not comprehend the fulness thereof.

This faith is then born out in love. Trust in the Word of God results in actions which are also in accord with the Word of God. Like blessed Lazarus, these resulting actions do not gain heavenly bliss. His entire life was passive. He did nothing for himself. Yet he believed the Word of God and trusted in God’s promises. Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness. This is our salvation.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 25:41.

[2] Hosea 13:9. See the KJV for this particular translation.

[3] Isaiah 14:12-15; Ezekiel 28:1-11; Revelation 12:7-9.

[4] Ephesians 2:3.

[5] Isaiah 33:14; 34:10.

[6] Ezekiel 26:20.

[7] Daniel 12:2.

[8] St. Matthew 18:8; 25:41; Jude 7; St. Matthew 25:46; St. John 8:51; 11:26; 2 Thessalonians 1:9; Jude 6; Revelation 14:11; 20:10.

[9] St. Mark 9:36-37.

Palmarum (Palm Sunday)

 Palmarum (Palm Sunday) – April 13, 2025

Psalm 22; Philippians 2:5-11

St. Matthew 26-27

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

Christ our Lord rode into Jerusalem to die for the sins of the whole world. Like the wood carried by the donkey up the mountain when Abraham intended to sacrifice Isaac, Jesus is being carried to the altar of the cross on a mountain called Calvary. Our Lord willingly submits to the mockery, torture, and execution of sinful men to redeem even those wicked Pharisees and Sadducees.

Despite dying for the sins of the whole world, the whole world is not saved. There are those blatant pagans, who scoff at the Name of Jesus. They have never believed in Christ and so condemn themselves. What is more difficult for many of us are those who have known the Name of Christ, been baptized and taught from His Word, but through laziness, discontent, or the influence of the world, have abandoned their Lord.

St. Peter and Judas Iscariot are two such people. Judas has been embezzling money from the disciples for some time. It seems the anointing of Christ at Bethany was the last straw for Judas. Sometime after the woman poured the costly perfume on Jesus’ head, Judas ran to the chief priests and said, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver [Jesus] to you?”[2] They handed over 30 pieces of silver and left Judas alone to begin plotting.

St. Peter believes himself to be zealous for the Lord. While he is sorrowful at first, recognizing that he is capable of betraying his Lord, Peter later decides that he will never abandon, let alone betray, Jesus. When the crowd appears, Peter jumps into action, drawing his sword and cutting off the ear of the chief priest’s servant.

In his zeal, Peter has forgotten that the Christ rode into Jerusalem to die. He made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and the likeness of men so that he could be obedient unto death.[3] This death would seal the new covenant in His blood, atoning for the sins of the world. Peter thinks he will defend Jesus from the crowd, not allowing them to take Him away.

When such a power play doesn’t work, Peter follows behind the crowd to the courtyard of the Sanhedrin. I’m sure he was working hard to develop a plan to spring Jesus out of the chief priests’ custody. It is here, in a garden, he denies three times to know Jesus at all. By the time the rooster crowed, Peter realizes his sin. Zealous Peter, who was willing to die with Jesus rather than abandon Him, had denied his Lord three times. The gruesome parts of that Friday, the torture and crucifixion hadn’t even begun, and Peter had already fled like a startled lamb. He ran into the early morning light weeping bitterly.

About the same time, Judas is also having second thoughts. The Sanhedrin condemned Jesus and were now taking Him to Pontius Pilate, the Roman Governor. Judas knew the only reason to take Jesus to Pilate was for a death sentence. He suddenly realizes that his actions have sentenced Jesus to death. His reaction to the situation tells us that he didn’t fully understand the implications of betraying Jesus until he had already set them into motion.

Peter ran away crying.

Judas ran back to the chief priests

Judas confessed his sin before them and gave back the thirty pieces of silver, but the chief priests would not have it. They did not forgive Judas but left him to contemplate his own sin. Then Judas went and hanged himself.

St. Peter disappears for a while. We do not hear about him again until the day of the Resurrection. He hides himself for shame. The former spokesman of the disciples, the recipient of miracles, St. Peter is reduced to a child hiding in his closet after hitting his brother.

The sins of Peter and Judas weighed heavily on their souls. Peter overestimated his righteousness. He overestimated his ability to withstand temptation. Thus, when he fell, he fell hard. It seems a slight sin to have denied knowing Christ, but it is indeed blasphemy. He was denying the very God who took on flesh to die for him.

Whenever you are silent in the face of sin, you too deny knowing Jesus. When you see homosexuality portrayed on television or in the movies and are not disgusted by it, you deny knowing Jesus. For that matter, whenever you watch something, read something, or even visit certain restaurants and think to yourself, “Oh, I can handle watching this. The nudity, language, violence, tight clothing, or other blatant sins won’t affect me;” you may as well proclaim, “Even if all are made to stumble because of You, I will never be made to stumble!” This overestimation of your own righteousness and underestimation of your sinfulness is the sin of Peter in your flesh.

Judas was greedy. His betrayal began with the question, “What are you willing to give me if I deliver Him to you?”[4] Every time you have chosen the respect of the world over the commandments of God, you have bargained for far less than 30 pieces of silver. Submitting to the government because “they said so” or preferring the word of “Science” to the Word of God is appealing to the chief priests. Being annoyed by a long sermon or bible study but being able to sit through a 2-hour movie unperturbed is a sin. At least Judas made 30 pieces of silver. Today, we are happy to betray Christ for 7 minutes of pleasure.

All of you will be made to stumble because of Jesus, for the ancient flesh which clings to you desires nothing more than to scatter the flock of Christ. All of you will betray Christ in word and deed. What then is our hope?

Judas had no hope. He was sorrowful for his sin. He expressed contrition, the first part of repentance. Yet he was without faith. He did not trust that Christ could and would forgive him. He ran to the priests to make atonement for his own sin. He gave back the silver, trying to buy a clean conscience, yet even these wicked men would have none of it. Judas ran outside the city and hanged himself.

Suicide does not automatically condemn you to hell. It is entirely possible for a Christian, possessing faith in Christ for his salvation, to be overcome by a moment of emotion and make a stupid decision. The shadow of depression can pass over anyone and if the shadow is dark enough, it can make us think there is no light, at least for the moment. Such a suicide certainly can be saved.

But we should not take that to mean that everyone who commits suicide is not responsible for his actions, nor that the act of suicide is not inherently sinful. It is. And there are some who commit suicide because they have despaired of Christ. They believe He cannot or will not forgive them. Judas is one of these. Our Lord said of Judas, “woe to that may by whom the Son of Man is betrayed! It would have been good for that man if he had not been born.”[5]

Since the fall, man has confused good and evil. Since the enlightenment, we’ve fooled ourselves into believing the world is never black and white, only shades of gray. And since at least the 1980’s, we have come to celebrate the so-called “anti-hero” in the United States. We cheer for the dark, brooding guy bad guy who is full of wickedness but rises above it, at least for a while, to save the day. Every hero must be flawed so deeply that he constantly questions what is good and what is evil.

What’s more is that we’ve become obsessed with the idea that every villain must have a reason for his evil. He must have an origin story. Someone committed evil against him so he has a reason, a right, to perpetrate his evil acts. Evil is no longer evil. It is the understandable, if inadvisable or regrettable, consequence of a difficult life. Christians must reject this thinking because we know the devil is a liar and the father of lies. He is the source of evil. The sin clinging to our flesh is the source of evil. Evil is never something to sympathize with nor something to be played with.

This tendency in our modern minds has turned Judas into a sympathetic character. Many Christians choose to believe that Judas is in heaven. Jesus says differently. It would’ve been better had he not been born. This is a statement of condemnation. Judas dies in his sin because he dies without faith. He despairs of the forgiveness of God and hangs himself because he thinks he cannot live with what he has done. For the rest of eternity, he will endure not the love of God, but His divine wrath.

There is a note of hope for us in the story of Judas, however. Each time our Lord predicts His betrayal, Jesus is calling Judas to repentance. By the foreknowledge of His divinity, Jesus knows that Judas will ultimately reject this call to repent, but that doesn’t stop Jesus from calling. The worst thing to happen to men on this side of glory is to hear the silence of the Lord. Notice how often Christ is silent before Caiaphas and His other accusers. When God stops speaking to you in His Word and Sacraments, it means He has left you to the passions of your own heart. He did not shut His lips toward Judas. Judas shut his ears to the Word of God. Judas chose the approval of man over the love of God, and seeing that he had lost the approval of man, Judas hanged himself.

This is a note of hope for us because it demonstrates how far Christ will go to keep His sheep in His flock. Being called to repent, being confronted by your own sins does not feel good. It hurts when someone points out your sin. It hurts because the wound inflicted on your soul by sin is being reopened. The call to repentance opens the wound so that the wound may be cleaned out by the confession of your sin. The wound is then healed by the salve of Christ’s Word of forgiveness. The whole life of the Christian is one of repentance because repentance has two parts: sorrow over your sin and faith that God will forgive that sin.

St. Peter is the narrative foil to Judas. He denied Christ and ran away weeping. Wherever he went that Friday morning, we know that he returned to the company of the disciples by Sunday. He is again with the disciples in time to hear Mary Magdalene proclaim the resurrection to him.

Peter was ashamed of his sin, but he did not try to purchase forgiveness. He came back to the place where Christ promised to be. “Where two or three are gathered in My Name, there I am in the midst of them.”[6] Peter returned to the place where he expected Jesus to be, even if he didn’t fully understand Jesus’ prophecies regarding the Resurrection.

For his threefold denial, Christ our Lord gives St. Peter a threefold absolution.[7] Peter demonstrates both sorrow over sin and faith that Christ has overcome even his sin.

Preachers often find themselves trying to help you recognize sins in your daily life. I am quick to point out that utter devotion to a local sports team is akin to offering sacrifice to Yahweh in the morning and Baal in the evening. But sometimes, we all need to remember the severity of grosser sins. Peter denied knowing Jesus. He said, “I do not know Him.” This is like saying, “I am not a Christian!” Judas betrayed Jesus to a murderous mob, resulting in the Crucifixion.

These were not sins of momentary passions. They were wicked, manifest sins. Yet the death of Jesus atones for them. No matter what you have done—from giving more time and attention to the sportsball than to reading Scripture, to sleeping with another man’s wife, murdering a man in the flesh, or denying the Name of Christ for the sake of a job, money, or reputation—the Blood of Jesus has atoned for you.

If a guilty conscience ever seizes you, certainly remember your baptism, but also come to your pastor. Remember your baptism because it was the sure and certain moment in which you were washed in the waters of regeneration and born again of water and the Holy Spirit. You were made a new creation in Christ and an heir of heaven.

But also come to your pastor for absolution. You need to hear that Jesus has forgiven your sin in this very moment. With the hands of the pastor on your head, hear that Christ died for you, for this sin that plagues your conscience, for all the sins you have committed. Do not think you can handle sin on your own, like Peter did. Do not think you can relieve yourself of sin, like Judas did. Confess your sins and trust that Christ forgives them. Meet with Jesus in the place He has promised to be and hear the Word of absolution again and again for your sins.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] The following sermon is a modified version of the sermon preached in 2022.

[2] St. Matthew 26:15.

[3] Philippians 2:7.

[4] St. Matthew 26:15.

[5] St. Matthew 26:24.

[6] St. Matthew 18:20.

[7] St. John 21:15-19.

Vespers - Advent 2

 Vespers on the Wednesday of Populus Zion – December 11, 2024

Psalm 1; Song of Solomon 2:8b-14

St. Matthew 11:11-15

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

The Song of Solomon, or Song of Songs as it is sometimes called, is a love poem, written by King Solomon for his bride, the Shulamite woman. It is written almost like a play or opera, with some parts spoken by the Shulamite, some by her Beloved, and even some by two choruses, one of the Shulamite’s brothers and one of the daughters of Jerusalem.

In the text before us this evening, the Shulamite stands in the house of her parents and gazes out the window. She sees her beloved, her fiancé, leaping upon the mountains and skipping over the hills as he comes for her. He is coming to get her for their wedding, to receive her from her father’s hand and take her into his own household. She compares him to a gazelle or young stag, animals known for their beauty and dexterity. He is gentle yet full of strength. He is swift and sure of foot as he bounds through mountains and hills to come to her.

Her beloved stands outside the walls of the house and peers in through the window, through the lattice and speaks to her, assuring her that the winter has passed and it is time to come with him. Complimenting her with beautiful, poetic language, the bridegroom calls her his love, his fair one, his dove who is resting safely in the clefts of the rock of her father’s home. He bids her to reveal her face and speak to him, for her voice is sweet and her face is lovely.

In a literal sense, we have a description of both an ideal man and an ideal woman. The man seems singularly focused on her, bounding great distances while only having eyes for his beloved bride. He is gentle with her, never presumptuous. He is dexterous, knowing how to navigate the world and the pitfalls therein. He has great strength, shown in the horns of a gazelle or the antlers of a stag, but combat is not their first use. He is capable of violence but does not turn to it hastily. He showers her with praise and poetry, complimenting her on her femininity and reassuring her that he has made her new home a safe refuge. He is promising to care for her, to provide for her, and, in the imagery of new birth in the spring, give her children.

She too, only has eyes for her beloved. She patiently but eagerly awaits her groom. She watches for him and awaits his coming. She has remained in the household of her father, as is proper, but longs for a new home with her beloved. She pays careful attention to his words, as most of our text is taken up by her recounting what he has said. She finds comfort in him and his words, trusting that he will do as he has promised: provide, protect, and produce children.

Now if this poem was only written to express the love of the Shulamite and Solomon, it might retain its beauty, but it would be little different from the thousands of love poems of the ancient world. Rather, as St. Paul says, “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness.”[1] Again, St. John writes, “These things are written,” that is, the Scriptures, “that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.”[2] As such, it is the purpose of the Holy Spirit that we understand the Song to have a spiritual meaning to serve faith.

We, the church, the Bride of Christ, are the Shulamite woman. Our Beloved is Christ Himself. He comes leaping from the mountains, that is, He comes down to us from the Father. He comes to us in the Incarnation. He becomes man, coming down from His everlasting throne in heaven that He would bring us into His own home.

He comes also to us this very day, though He is standing by the wall, that is, we cannot see Him. He speaks through the window, the Words of Holy Scripture. He speaks through the lattice, the lips of the Pastor. His presence is real, spiritual and physical, even though our eyes do not see Him. In fact, Christ sees us through the window and lattice, but our eyes are not as keen as His. He comes to us and gazes upon us; upon our bodies and souls. Even as we wait for Him with both patience and expectation, He comes to us and delivers the consolation of His Word.

In His voice, we hear the call to come to Him, to come with Him. Rise above the cares of this world. Rise above the sins of the flesh. Rise above and come away with Him as His beloved. The winter of our sins, the rule of the Law on our hearts, the death of this world is past. See now that the flowers appear on the earth, the Holy Sacraments as visible signs of the presence of Christ and the forgiveness of sins. The voice of the turtledove is heard in our land, that is the voice of Christians singing the praises of Christ and extolling His wonderful works as a symphony in the doldrums of the world that is passing away.

The blooming of the fig tree is a sign of the coming of Christ and the fruits of faith as they spring forth from the renewed soul of the Christian. Even as the sinful flesh clings to the Christian, the Holy Spirit is at work, creating a new will and desire to fulfill the Law of God and seeks to serve God and neighbor. And as we serve our neighbor, we in fact, serve Christ.[3] These tender grapes give a good smell, pleasing to God.

Even now, we are safe in the clefts of the rock, the secret places of the cliff. On the one hand, this safe place is the Church. She is the rock which Christ has built for the safe keeping of His beloved Christians. On the other hand, the rock and cliff are also Christ Himself. The Church is born from the side of Christ, and we are kept safe within Him, within His body. This is what it means when the Church is called ‘the body of Christ.’ As Moses and Elijah both stand safe in a cleft in the rock when God speaks to them, so too do we stand safe in the rock of the Church, even as we are within the Body Christ, receiving from Him the call to His side in glory.

Truly, your voices are sweet, and your faces are lovely in the eyes of Christ.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] 2 Timothy 3:16.

[2] St. John 20:31.

[3] St. Matthew 25:35-36.

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.