The Ascension of our Lord

 The Ascension of our Lord – May 29, 2025

Psalm 47; 2 Kings 2:5-15; Acts 1:1-11

St. Luke 24:44-53

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

The Ascension of our Lord is one of the chief feasts of the Christian Church and ought to be considered as standing right beside Christmas, Good Friday, and Easter. Every time we confess the Apostles and Nicene creeds; we confess that Christ ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of the Father. It is the capstone of Christ’s activities for your salvation. Tonight, we seek to answer two questions regarding Christ’s ascension: 1) to where did He ascend; and 2) why did He ascend.

The Ascension of Christ took place in an actual upward motion, a gradual rising up of Christ, until a cloud received Him and He passed from human sight.[1] We can’t say much about His motions after being received into the cloud because Scripture doesn’t reveal any details on this point. As for where Christ ascended, we can give two answers. The first answer is to the paradise of the redeemed, that place where those who are His dwell with Him forever. St. Paul speaks of this place in Philippians 1 when he says, I have a “desire to depart and be with Christ.”[2] Christ also speaks of this place when He tells the thief on the cross, “Assuredly, I say to you, today you will be with Me in Paradise.”[3] This is the place we usually call “heaven,” though it is also called the “intermediate state” since it is somewhat temporary, being replaced by the new heavens and the new earth in the Resurrection on the Last Day.[4]

Of all that could be said about this intermediate state, the part that overlaps with the Ascension is that Christ dwells with those in glory as both God and Man. He ascends to the Father in His flesh and so dwells with His beloved in that same flesh. He still bears the marks in His hands, feet, and side as a testament to the saints in glory that their victory over sin has been won in His risen flesh. His flesh in glory is also a promise of the resurrection in that those who are His will follow in His train. “We shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.”[5]

The second answer to the question of where Christ is going is the right hand of the Father, but this is not so much a place as it is an office. Christ “ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.”[6] “The right hand of the Majesty on High”[7] is that office of Christ as Lord and Messiah over all creation. In a sense, Christ’s ascension is His coronation into the full use of His authority over all heaven and earth as both God and Man. Christ is King. He is the ruling Monarch of the universe, seated on His throne of power, as He reigns over all. On Pentecost, St. Peter preaches from Psalm 110, “the Lord said to my Lord, ‘Sit at My right hand, till I make Your enemies Your footstool,” applying these words not to David but Christ, saying “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” [8]

This leads us directly into our second question for this evening, why did Christ ascend? In the first place, it was to assume His seat on the throne of God’s power at the right hand of the Father, that is, to assume His office as King of the heavens and earth.

In the second place, it was to transition from His local presence to His illocal presence. That is, He is no longer in one place at a time such that we can draw a line around His body, but is present in all places. If Christ had not ascended to the Father, even if He was present in all places at all times, which is His divine right, our human minds would find it incomprehensible. Imagine, for a moment, that Christ was still present, in His local body, sitting in every pew. There would still be space in between each of these bodies and would lead our minds to wonder, ‘Is Christ in those spaces, too?’ Or our imaginations would run wild, beginning to think that there were multiple Christs, some better than others. And when we recede into our own minds, because we could see Christ standing next to us, we would begin to wonder if He could really know our hearts and minds, if He really understood the depth of sin hiding in my heart or the pain and sorrow I feel deep in my soul.

By removing His local presence, Christ is, in fact, demonstrating His glorious final words of promise, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”[9] As He becomes hidden to our eyes of flesh, He becomes abundantly clear to our eyes of faith.

He is especially present for us sacramentally in His Word and Sacraments. The flesh of Christ cannot be separated from His Word and the Word cannot be separated from His flesh. He is the Word that was in the beginning, was with God, and is God.[10] So, too, are His Body and Blood given from this altar and the altars of every faithful congregation throughout the world. We needn’t be deceived by our eyes because His Body is not visibly present in other places. We can firmly believe His Words because He has said, “This is My Body,” and where His Word is, there is His flesh.

In the third place, Christ told His disciples that He would go before them to prepare a place for them in the house of His Father.[11] This promise is fulfilled in the Ascension. Christ ascends to the Father in His flesh, meaning that a man sits on the right hand of the Father. He ascended in His flesh to make way for the flesh of all His beloved in the heavenly mansions of His Father. His flesh paved the way for your flesh to dwell eternally with Him. Through His ascension, He is elevating the flesh of man.

Finally, Christ ascends to the Father to prepare His Church for His return. Now ‘return’ is not the most accurate way to describe what Christ will do on the Last Day because it implies that He has been absent throughout the time between the Ascension and the Last Day. A better word is His ‘revealing’ or ‘revelation’ on the Last Day. I hope by now you understand that Christ is not absent after His ascension, rather His mode of presence has simply changed. And He has promised to reveal Himself on the Last Day just as He was removed from the sight of the disciples at the ascension. He ascended into a cloud and will reveal Himself descending on a cloud. By ascending in this manner, He has given the world the very sign by which we will know His return. He will not be born again, lowly and in a cattle stall, but will descend on a cloud to the sound of heavenly trumpets. All eyes (those of flesh and those of faith) will see Him descend and every knee will bow before the King of all Creation.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] Acts 1:9.

[2] Philippians 1:23.

[3] St. Luke 23:43.

[4] Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1.

[5] 1 John 3:3.

[6] Ephesians 4:10.

[7] Hebrews 1:3.

[8] Acts 2:34-36; Psalm 110:1.

[9] St. Matthew 28:20.

[10] St. John 1:1.

[11] St. John 14:2-3.

The Twenty-First Sunday after Trinity

The Twenty-First Sunday after Trinity – October 20, 2024

Psalm 119; Isaiah 25:6-9; Ephesians 6:10-17

St. John 4:46-54

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

The nobleman in our text today went on a journey in three parts.[1] First was his trip from Capernaum to Cana to meet with our Lord. Second, he journeyed back to Capernaum after hearing of the promise that his son lives. Finally, there is the reunion in Capernaum. This three-fold journey will serve as the basis for our understanding of this text.

Although we don’t know for sure where Biblical Cana is located, Scripture indicates that it is about a day’s walk from Capernaum. The nobleman was desperate enough to leave his dying son behind and make a two-day trip to and from Cana to entreat Jesus. We know that this man had heard the Word of God sometime prior to making this trip. Perhaps he had been at the wedding in Cana and knew of Jesus from the miracle performed there. Perhaps he had even returned to Capernaum with Jesus after the wedding, hearing Him teach along the way.[2]

What we know for certain is that this nobleman had faith at the beginning of our text. If he didn’t, he would not have risked leaving his dying son in the care of servants. What kind of faith did he have? We can answer this in two ways.

The tiniest drop of faith is all sufficient for the salvation of man. The newly baptized child has the same faith as Elijah, the great prophet of God who was carried into heaven without experiencing death.[3] The young man newly converted to faith in Christ has the same faith as St. Paul, who endured scorn, beatings, prison, and martyrdom on behalf of Christ.[4] The lonely widow weeping over the death of her son has the same faith as Blessed Luther, risking his life to proclaim the purity of the Gospel against the Pope and his minions. This saving faith is one and the same. There is “one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.”[5] It is not the work of man but the free gift of God, wrought in you by the Holy Spirit through the proclamation of the Gospel – the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins.

At the same time, this faith necessarily needs to grow and be strengthened.[6] It is one thing to possess something. It is something entirely different to care for it, use it, and benefit from it. This faith is exercised in three ways – meditation on the Word of God, prayer, and affliction.[7]

Meditation on the Word of God is best illustrated by a cow chewing her cud. She eats of the grass, chews and swallows into her first stomach, but only a small portion of her nutrition is gained. The grass is brought back into her mouth to be chewed a second time and swallowed again. More nutrition is gained. This continues over and over again until the full measure of nutrition is gained from the mouthful of grass. In this way, we are to chew the cud of the Word of God. The first eating of the grass is hearing and reading the Word of God. Each subsequent chewing is revisiting this Word in contemplation – reading the Word again and again and filling your mind with it. For the cow, there is an end to this process. For the Christian, it is a life-long endeavor.

Prayer exercises faith in taking the spiritual nutrition gained from the Word of God and turning it into action, into words given back to God. The Word of God forms our own words, for we do not know how to pray as we ought, but the Spirit of God gives form to our prayers.[8] Not only is prayer an act of turning our hearts and minds toward God and expecting all good things from Him, but it also trains our flesh to do the same. By turning to God in prayer, we train our flesh for all future times when we find ourselves needing Him. It trains us to turn to Him always; to expect all good things from Him always; and to trust whatever He delivers to us to be for our benefit.

Finally, there is affliction or suffering. Our Lord promised that all who follow Him would suffer in this world. In a sense, our suffering is doubled because we know that we deserve it. When we suffer in this world, we know that it is on account of our sin. We also know that we deserve this suffering because of our sin; even as the beloved children of God. In fact, because we are beloved children of God, we hate our sin and wish to be free from it. We desire that God would purge our bodies and souls of sin, of the love of sinning, and of sin’s effects. And we endure this suffering because we know that God chastens those whom He loves.[9] We know that the suffering of this present age is nothing compared to the joys of the world to come.[10] A wise man loves the rebuke of his Father because he knows by it, he will be wiser still.[11]

As the nobleman journeys to Cana, his faith is weak. He insists that Christ come to his son. He trusts enough to know that Christ’s presence is the one thing his son needs but his faith is weak because it believes that his son will not be healed without the physical presence of Jesus. This is why our Lord rebukes him, “Unless you people see signs and wonders, you will by no means believe.”[12] The nobleman wants a display of the power of God in signs and wonders. He is already suffering the sickness of his son and now he wants a great miracle of God in grand visible gestures.

But he will not receive it. Our Lord offers a second, albeit subtle, rebuke. “God your way; your son lives.”[13] It is as though Jesus is saying, “My Word is enough for you and for your son. Your weak faith needs to be nourished and to grow. Let it be nourished on My Word alone. Go in the promise of this Word and your soul shall be healed.”

The nobleman must now make the journey back to his son. This journey is fraught with more anxiety than the first. He now has a clear Word of God, but he does not necessarily know the meaning. He is like Martha after Jesus said to her, “You brother will rise again.” She answers, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”[14] The nobleman must be meditating over and over again on this Word of Jesus. “When I get home, will my son have breath in his body? Or will he live in the life eternal?”

It is not until the nobleman is almost home that he receives an answer. His servants meet him outside his home and announce the healing of his son. They even repeat the words of Jesus, “Your son lives!”[15] The father recognized that his son had been healed at the very Word of Jesus the night before. He receives confirmation of his joy, and his faith is now praised in the eternal Scriptures.

As we near the end of the Church year and the celebration of Advent, our minds begin to turn toward the last things, toward the time when Christ will reveal Himself to the world for the final time. The three-fold journey of the nobleman can be seen as an allegory for our journey in the church.

The journey from Capernaum to Cana signifies our faith in its infancy. It is complete unto salvation, but it is unformed by meditation, prayer, and affliction. When we encounter suffering, the only outcome we can imagine from God is according to our wishes. It does not occur to us that God’s ways are not our ways. We know what we want from God, and we demand that He give it to us in grand and splendid ways.

Then, as we mature in the Word of God and begin to be formed by meditation, prayer, and affliction, we join the man on his journey home. We know and hear the Words and promises of God, but we do not have visual confirmation of them. Faith has grown and it continues to grow. This is the majority of our life on this side of glory. This knowledge of the Word of God, while it exercises our faith and results in its strengthening, also leads to more frustration and anxiety. This is because Satan wants nothing more than to drive the Words and promises of God from your heart. I’d say the nobleman was in greater danger of losing his faith on the journey home than the journey to Cana. And yet the nobleman endures. He endures because he holds to the Word of God and continues to contemplate it in his heart.

The joyous reunion at Capernaum is the consummation of our faith. It is the glorious revelation of our Lord in glory. It is that day when faith will no longer be necessary because the promises of God will be manifest before your very eyes.[16] It is the reunion with all the faithful in heaven and the Marriage Feast of the Lamb.[17] In that day, there will be no tears, save tears of joy and rejoicing.[18] On that side of glory, you will look back at your time of affliction, your time of suffering, and realize that the joy and bliss of heaven was made yours at that very hour, before you ever set foot on the final leg of your journey home. It was in the Words and promises of God given to you from the very lips of Jesus. 

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] This outline of the text is loosely based on Fred H. Lindemann, The Sermon and The Propers, Volume 4 (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1962), 111-112.

[2] St. John 2:1-12.

[3] 2 Kings 2:11.

[4] 2 Corinthians 11:22-33.

[5] Ephesians 4:5-6.

[6] Hebrews 5:13-14; Proverbs 9.

[7] This is a reference to Martin Luther’s oratio, meditatio, and tentatio.

[8] Romans 8:26-27.

[9] Hebrews 12:6.

[10] Romans 8:18-19.

[11] Proverbs 9:8-9.

[12] St. John 4:48.

[13] St. John 4:50.

[14] St. John 11:23-24.

[15] St. John 4:51.

[16] Job 19:27.

[17] Revelation 19:6-9.

[18] Revelation 21:4.

In Memoriam + Alan Kelvin Viets +

In Memoriam + Alan Kelvin Viets + – November 6, 2022

Psalm 23; Genesis 3:8-21; Revelation 21:1-7

St. John 11:17-27

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

It is typical of Near-Eastern, and hence Old Testament, thinking to view time as a cycle. Perhaps an image more familiar to many of us is an extended slinky. Viewed from the top down, you see only a circle. From the side, this circle becomes a continuous spiral. Having that picture in your head, it is quite easy to apply to time. Seasons come and go, always in a cycle. Months begin and then months end – another cycle. We gather every seven days to celebrate the Lord’s Day. In the smallest sense, each day is its own cycle. There is evening and there is morning, another day.

The Holy Spirit has used this cyclical nature of time throughout the Scriptures to teach us concerning salvation. Aside from the repetition of evening and morning in the days of creation, we are not given an indication of when particular events occur until we hear that the Lord came walking in the cool of the day.

The picture painted for us is of a cosmic day. Everything is created through the Word of God in the beginning, that is, the beginning of the cosmic day. It was then during the heat of the day that the serpent, the Ancient Dragon, deceived Eve. The early to mid-afternoon is a particularly vulnerable time for man. He has been tending the garden all day. It is now halfway between lunch and supper. Stomachs begin to rumble, and it is time for a snack.

It is also, as I said, the heat of the day. While the work of Adam and Eve in the garden was no toil, it was still work. They did not ache from their labors, but they certainly grew hungry. Perhaps they grew tired. Whatever they were feeling, we can be relatively certain that Satan waited until Adam and Eve were at their weakest before tempting them with the forbidden fruit.

Such is the way with Satan and temptation. It makes little sense to tempt the strong. That requires too much work. It is far more opportune to attack the weak. Yet even Satan knows not to look at strength and weakness through the eyes of man. The Pharisees would be seen by man to be strong in faith, yet Satan knew the weakness of their hearts. He knew to tempt them with power over their fellow man. The weakness of the Pharisees is the desire to be like God, commanding men and receiving their worship. Such weakness makes them vulnerable to the temptations of Satan.

Having fallen to temptation, Adam and Eve hide among the trees and bushes as they fashion clothing for themselves. The sun begins to set, and the day has become cool. It is then that God comes looking for His beloved creation. The setting of the sun indicates darkness is creeping over the land. God already knew what had happened, yet for love of man He called out that man might return to the Lord, His God.

The cosmic day continues to turn toward evening as God pronounces judgment upon Satan, promising the day when the Seed of the woman would crush the head of the serpent, and the serpent would strike His heel. He also curses woman with pain in childbearing and desire for the authority of her husband. The land is cursed because of the man, and he is cursed to labor and toil all the days of his life. He will laud his authority over woman and life in strife because of it. The day grows darker.

Yet even in this darkness, there is the light of promise. There is the lamp of the promised Seed, God’s Anointed One, who at the fullness of time would come to save the world. When Jesus is crucified, as He breathes His last, the sky goes dark. This is often seen as creation itself mourning the death of the Son of God. What’s more is that the cosmic day has reached the darkest night. For those three days of rest for Christ in the tomb, the cosmic day sat at midnight. The light of Christ had gone dark in a tomb of stone.

It is not until the first light on the third day that it is revealed that death could not hold Him. Death could not restrain the Son of God. No one lights a lamp to place it beneath a basket. A lamp is lit to be held high, giving light to all who look upon it. Jesus Christ is the light of the world and darkness cannot overcome Him. The darkest night and deepest tomb cannot hold our God because He is the Almighty Word by which creation came into being. By death, He defeated death. By submitting to the darkness of the tomb, He conquered the night. By rising the third day, He has promised everlasting light to all who receive Him, who believe in His name.

At the last, when Christ has returned to gather His faithful as a hen gathers her flock, the heavens and the earth will be consumed by fire. When all has been destroyed, a new creation will arise. This new creation will have no need for sun, moon, or stars; no need for lights, lamps, and fire. The Son of God, sitting on the throne, will be all the light we need. He will shine in glory with the radiance glimpsed by Peter, James, and John on the Mount of Transfiguration. In that day, the faithful will rejoice and sing in the presence of Christ because we shall be like Him, sharing in His glory.

The resurrection of Christ on that first Easter morning was the beginning of a new day. This is the new day of Christ’s church. What was foretold to our fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, has come to pass. A new day has dawned. But this new day is not the final dawn. It is not the final day. This new cosmic day is fast waning. We find ourselves already facing the darkening night of the new day. In this sense, we must look to Christ both as our Redeemer and as our example.

When I say example, I don’t mean that you, too, must be crucified for the sins of the world. Nor by your obedience will you merit eternal life for yourself or anyone else. What I mean is that we must take up our cross and follow Him. We must see that on this side of glory, the life of the Christian is to bear a cross. Suffering has been promised to us. Loss has been promised to us.

Being children of Adam and Eve, death will come for us all, so long as Christ waits to return. Death will come for us, and it is never pleasant. We can fool ourselves into thinking that someone died peacefully in her sleep, or that “that was the way he would’ve wanted to go,” but that is not true. No one wants to go. No one wants to die. Death is terrifying because the experience of death is the tearing apart of body and soul. Death comes for you in the darkness of night.

Death is the outcome of the crosses we bear—our own death and the death of loved ones. We ought to mourn Alan and all who have died in Christ because death is painful. It is not good. But we should never mourn without hope. We mourn with hope because we know that dawn is coming. Like the wise virgins, we are prepared for the coming of the Bridegroom. We are prepared the dawning of the final day.

Martha is prepared for the dawning of the final day. She is confident that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, who has come into the world.[1] But Martha had also fallen asleep. Remember that in the parable of the ten virgins, both the foolish and the wise fall asleep. All ten virgins fall asleep when they are supposed to be watching for the Bridegroom.

Martha has likewise fallen asleep because in focusing on the dawning of the final day, she has forgotten that the Christ, the Son of the Living God is present with her right now. She is standing in His presence. The Resurrection and the Life is standing before her in flesh. With man, it is impossible, but with God, all things are possible.[2]

It is good, meet, and salutary to look forward to the dawning of the final day, when you will be reunited in the flesh with your father, husband, friend, and brother. That will be a glorious day. You will see Alan’s face by the glorious light of Christ, a light that will never fail nor falter. But do not forget to rejoice in the union you presently have with Alan. You are a member of the Body of Christ. In Holy Baptism, you too were made a member of the Body of Christ. You, Alan, and all the Baptized Saints of God are gathered in the One Body of Christ.

Although there is presently a separation in time and space, there is still unity in Jesus. He is the Resurrection and the Life, something both you and Alan possess. This is especially true during the Divine Service. So much of what we sing is borrowed from those portions of Scripture where visions of the worship in heaven is recorded. We are singing the songs of the heavenly host. We are singing the songs of angels and archangels and all the company of heaven. We are singing them together. We never worship God alone for we are members of His body.

Thus, we boldly confess with Martha that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God who has come into the world. We confess that He is the Light of the world, the Light no darkness can overcome. We also confess that this Light is present with us now. As the world turns toward darkness, as suffering on this side of glory grips our hearts and wearies our souls, we look to the coming of the dawn.

We look to the horizon and eagerly await the coming of the Christ because we have His promise that He will come to gather us home. The promise of the return of Christ is as sure and certain as the promise that He would crush the head of the serpent. The certainty of this promise is written in stone such that it is as good as though it had already happened. We can look to the dawning of that first Easter morning to see what our own resurrection will look like.

And since we know the end of the story, since we know the dawn of the final cosmic day will come, we can bear our crosses, endure suffering, mourn with hope, and travel this world of darkening night in joy. We can go about our days in peace and joy. We can remember Alan and all the departed saints in joy because we know they are not dead but living. We are in the near presence of Christ, and they are in His nearer presence. It is now evening and there will be morning, the final, glorious day.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. John 11:27.

[2] St. Matthew 19:26.