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 Second Last Sunday in the Church Year

The Second Last Sunday in the Church Year – November 17, 2024

Psalm 54; Daniel 7:9-14; 2 Peter 3:3-14

St. Matthew 25:31-46

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

The words of our Lord concerning the Sheep and the Goats is not a parable. A parable is an illustrative story that may-or-may-not be true (but generally isn’t), where the people, places, and events stand in for other people, places, and events. Next week, we will hear the parable of the 10 virgins. That parable depicts those within the church who have genuine, saving faith and those within the church on earth who are hypocrites, who give no attention to the faith once delivered to them. However, when Christ returns, there will not necessarily be 10 women waiting by a wedding hall where 5 enter in and 5 do not.

The Sheep and the Goats is not a parable because the division of the nations into the righteous and the wicked will happen, and it will happen as Christ describes it. He calls these two groups “sheep” and “goats” as an illustration and this illustration delivers the key to understanding this teaching of our Lord. The eternal fate of the nations, that is, all people, is not determined by works. It is determined by what they are. Sheep and goats are different animals. To use biblical language, they belong to different kinds. One kind of animal is saved. The other kind of animal is damned.

It is fundamental to understanding the final judgment that you understand this concept. We will get to the judgment of works in a moment, but the separation into the categories of those who are saved and those who are not is determined by what you are. Are you a baptized child of God? Are you a new creation in Christ? Do you find your origin in the living Word of God? Then you belong to one category of man. Are you a citizen of the kingdom of satan? Are you the old creation of Adam? Do you find your origin in the loins of man? Then you belong to the other category of men.

On one of the occasions that the Pharisees challenged Jesus, they claimed to have no father but Abraham.[1] Fundamental to their understanding of the world is that they can trace their blood and their faith from man to man, all the way back to Abraham. What are they saying? They claim that the most important aspect of their salvation is who donated DNA to their existence. They find salvation in their blood heritage. Since the time of Christ, the Jewish people have obstinately continued in this lie.

Compare this to the teachings of Christ who said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.”[2] Jesus is not teaching disobedience to parents. He is boldly stating that the Word of God is more important than blood. We are the true children of Abraham because we have continued in the same faith delivered to Abraham. We are the true children of Adam because we continue in the same faith delivered in Eden immediately following the Fall. We are a different kind of being than the Jew, the Muslim, and the hypocrite.

The nations are divided according to the kind of being. The goat-sons of satan and all who disbelieve the Word of God are set to the Lord’s left. The true sons, of Adam, Abraham, David, and Christ, the sheep in the hands of the Almighty, are set to the Right.

After this division has taken place, our Lord judges the works of the sheep and the goats. After the determination of salvation or damnation, our Lord evaluates their works. The sheep are surprised to learn of what deeds they’ve done. They have no idea that they were serving Christ in all those ways. This is because they are true sons of God. A son does not need to work to gain the love of his father. Born within the son is the desire to be like his father. He wants to become the man who defines masculinity in the eyes of the son.

From the son’s perspective, that usually means trying to find great deeds of heroism to impress his father. But from the father’s perspective, it is the subtle traits of maturity that make him proud; the effort to become a better man that warms his heart. This relationship found in man is a reflection of the Almighty’s relationship with mankind. We distract ourselves with the idea of big, heroic works of righteousness when what our Father sees is our works in secret. He sees the daily acts of love toward our neighbors.

The goats are likewise surprised to learn of what they haven’t done. They believe that they’ve done their best, that they are “pretty good people,” that they did their time in Sunday School and that those things should be enough. Yet the Lord has placed them on His left, sentenced them to eternal perdition. Why? They have rejected the Word of God made flesh. They have rejected the messengers of this Gospel. They have rejected the Church and her true love – the Words and Sacraments of God. If the Church is the Body of Christ, then these have amputated themselves from the body and a limb that has been cut off, shrivels and dies.

Now, it is incredibly significant that although our Lord speaks of the goats last, He concludes His teaching with a statement about the righteous. “The righteous will [will go] into eternal life.”[3] This indicates that whenever we consider the Last Day, whenever we consider the end of times, it is for the consolation of Christians, the comfort of your conscience. When Christ reveals Himself on that Last Day, it will be in glory, as He revealed Himself at the Transfiguration. He will reveal Himself in His glorified flesh, at the sound of angels’ trumpets. And this will be our call home. Like the dinner bell on the farm, or a mother’s whistle into the neighborhood signaling that it is time to come home for dinner, the return of Christ will be a joyous occasion for the righteous. Even before the division between the sheep and the goats, all those in Christ will rejoice that their King has come to dwell with them eternally, to bring them home.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. John 8:33. See also St. Matthew 3:9.

[2] St. Luke 14:26.

[3] St. Matthew 25:46.

Ash Wednesday

Ash Wednesday (Quadragesima) – February 14, 2024

Psalm 57; Joel 2:12-19; 2 Peter 1:2-11

St. Matthew 6:16-21

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

It might seem like our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount is driving toward a simple lesson – a good work done with sincerity is better than a good work done for selfish gain. If that was the case, then Jesus wouldn’t be telling you anything different than any other religion in the world. The Buddha, Mohammed, and Oprah all have access to this teaching. They will all teach you that to give to the poor with a sincere heart is better for the poor man and for you than giving for tax breaks or even for recognition from others. At some point, we’ve all been told that we should do nice things for other people because it makes you feel good.

 They aren’t wrong on this point. Jesus even confirms this teaching is true when He says, “Assuredly, I say to you, they [the hypocrites] have their reward.”[1] He is saying that those who do good works—with or without faith—receive a reward. That reward might be prestige among men. Maybe they will be given an award by the local Chamber of Commerce for going above and beyond their civic duty. Maybe they will be given a large tax refund for their generosity. Maybe they will be given a good reputation by the community in recognition of their good actions. Any kind of objectively good work will receive a reward.

But these rewards are temporal. They are fleeting. They are insignificant when compared to the scale of eternity. If the goal of good works is not rewards and if our Lord is not focused on the sincerity of our works, then what is the role of Good Works in the life of the Christian? What is the main idea of our Lord’s Sermon on the Mount?

In the first place, it is that good works cannot save you. Your works of the Law do not contribute to your salvation. For most of you, this is not a shocking statement. By your working of the Law, you do not gain salvation. By your agreeing to the Law, you do not gain salvation.

There is a crass rejection of the Law of God by which man would create good works of his own choosing. In Martin Luther’s hymn summarizing Psalm 12, he places these words in the mouths of false teachers, “Now, where is he [God], that shall our speech forbid us? By right or might we shall prevail; What we determine cannot fail; We own no lord and master.”[2] Those who would rebel against the very Law written on their hearts deny the right of any authority higher than themselves. “Who would dare to curb our speech? Who would dare tell us we cannot say whatever we want? We will destroy our enemies by asserting our rights and if that doesn’t work, we will use force. No one, not God or man, will be lord or master over us.”

Those who hold to this autonomy seek to create a law of their own choosing. They believe that by living according to their own standards—standards which are inconsistent and move about according to every wind of emotion, hormonal imbalance, and change in the culture—they will be saved. What they will be saved from or who determines what that salvation entails is always vague. It is vague because they are striving against anything objective, anything outside of themselves. It is like someone trying to create their own universe without basing it on God and His creation. The result will either be unintelligible or a vain imitation of that thing they sought to avoid.

It should be obvious that salvation is not gained through such self-made works that seek to avoid God at all costs. There is another type of good work, that which aligns with Natural Law. Natural Law is the order of creation, the “plan” which God has woven into the very fabric of reality. This is the Law written on man’s heart. By nature alone—that is, by Creation alone—human beings can deduce what it means to live virtuously. We can determine what aligns with the order of the world and what does not.

Externally, the works of the repentant Christian and the rank unbeliever might look the same. Both might give alms to the poor, fast from meat, or strive for virtuous living. These look the same because of Creation. Whether Christian or not, man is created by God. Man has been created by God according to His order. Within this order, there are objective truths that must be followed in the world. One does not need to be a Christian to recognize that a man is a man no matter what clothes he wears or the number of surgeries he uses to mangle his body.

There is value in works according to Natural Law. These at least recognize the created order such that there is such thing as objective truth and reality. Conversation can be had regarding virtue and whether one course of action is better than another. Recognition of Natural Law means it can be determined that murdering babies in the womb is wicked while raising children to care for others is virtuous.

But even works according to Natural Law will not save you. Being a “good person” by outward standards is still lacking in the sight of God. A parent should raise children to be virtuous, but the beginning of wisdom is the fear of the Lord. Teaching a child to share or respect his elders is good but it will not save his soul. If that is the bottom line of parenting, then you are raising whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but dead on the inside.

Which raises a third type of good works by which you cannot be saved. Even good works done according to the Word of God will not save you. Remember, the Pharisees were the “good guys” of the first century. They were the example of godly living. They were the example of civic duty and good works toward man. They were the example of biblical scholarship, knowledge, and wisdom. And yet, they too, were whitewashed tombs—beautiful on the outside but dead on the inside.

Even today, you can find those who speak of our works providing consolation to Christ, as though He is pained by our sins and needs us to feed a homeless man for Him to feel better. There is a strain of Christian false teaching that would have you believe that Jesus is held captive to your works—good works mean relief for Him while sins mean Him greater harm. While it is true that Christ rejoices over our faithfulness and mourns our sins, His suffering and death are done and over. We do not provide comfort and consolation to Jesus. He is our comfort. He is our consolation.

The hypocrites who feature in this section of the Sermon on the Mount are striving to keep the Law of God. They are giving to the poor, praying, and fasting. While Jesus highlights that they are doing these things to be seen by men, He does not leave out the possibility that they are also doing them to please God. It is entirely possible that they are sincerely trying to please God by following His Law while simultaneously hoping to be noticed by their fellow man. Even these works of the Law will not save them. They have their rewards on this side of glory.

Searching the Scriptures, even the New Testament, to find the admonitions to godly living and then living in this way, hoping that by them you will be saved, is a futile endeavor. Praying in secret, for your Father hears in secret, will not save you. Laying up treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys, will not save you.

Then what’s the point? Is Jesus crossing His fingers behind His back when He tells you to give alms, pray, fast, and lay up treasures in heaven? Is it all an act? Is it an elaborate illustration to say that everything you do is futile, or that it doesn’t matter what you do because it will be stained with sin and will gain you no reward?

Of course not. The admonitions of Christ are just as sincere as His promises of rewards in heaven. Even the promise of temporal rewards is sincere. Doing a good work for your neighbor does make you feel good, even if that feeling is fleeting and not the goal of your work. Recognition from the community is a reward, even if it is fleeting and not the goal of your work.

The goal of your work is to grow in Christ. The goal of your work is to shine forth the light which has been placed in you by Christ. These works flow from faith. You are a new creature, recreated in Christ through Holy Baptism. This change is true and sincere even if it is not something you feel or understand. It is sincere because God has said it is. It is an objective fact that you cannot deny or prove. And rather than try to prove it, you should rejoice in it! You are baptized into Christ, and this means you are free from the tyranny of the Law.

Having been freed from the tyranny of the Law, you are now free to revel in it. You are free to observe it because it too is spoken by God. Your good works are now fully in accord with Natural Law because they recognize that God is the head of creation. Man is man and woman is woman not just because they are made that way, but because it is God who has made them this way. These are not works of your own choosing, as though you need to design something to please God. They are according to your station in life. They are according to the gifts God has given you. They are the necessary consequence of your new life in Christ.

This freedom reveals another purpose, another use of God’s Law. It is now a tool for you to use to train and restrain your flesh. You are a new creature but the Old Adam clings to your flesh. You know what it is to live without God and the consequences of such life. That knowledge is terrifying because by it, you know how easy it is to fall into temptation. You know how quickly you can go from faithful to faithless.

Thanks be to God that He has not left you to your own devices. It is not up to you to figure out how to live or how to “console” Christ. He has given you the tools for restraining your flesh; for training in righteousness; for focusing your eyes on Him and Him alone.

First and foremost is repentance. The sacrifices of God are a broken and contrite heart. He desires that you would examine your conscience and root out the desires for sin. Such contrition does not make you holy in itself, but it is the upkeep for those desiring to follow Christ. Examining your conscience and repenting of your sins is not a pleasant activity but neither is exercise. To build muscle, you must tear muscle. By doing this, you are growing stronger and more resilient. So too, by examining your conscience, you are learning to grow in righteousness.

Other physical and spiritual disciplines then become tools to support your repentance and faith. Christ especially mentions almsgiving, prayer, and fasting as particularly helpful disciplines. Almsgiving is our weapon against the world and temptations to worldliness. Fasting is our weapon against the flesh and the desires of the flesh. Prayer is our weapon against the devil and all his works and all his ways.

Good works according to your station in life also serve as tools against sin. Fulfilling your responsibility to feed, clothe, nurture, and teach your children leaves little time for sins of idleness. Serving your brothers and sisters in Christ through diligent volunteering in the congregation will prevent sinful gossip and speculation as you become directly involved in the life of the Church.

As we enter the Lenten season, do not fall for the lies that your works do not matter before God. Nor the lie that you are helplessly captive to your sinful nature or that asking “Being justified, how now should I live” is only a question of the Old Adam. You are a baptized child of God and that means something. It means that you have been set free from the tyranny of the Law and invited by the Holy Ghost to participate in the righteousness of God. I say participate in that it is a solemn and joyful duty of every Christian to live according to the Word of God. You have marching orders that no one else in creation has because you are of the household of faith.

In + Jesus’ name. Amen.

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[1] St. Matthew 6:2.

[2] O Lord, Look Down from Heaven, Behold, TLH 260, stanza 3.

Vespers on the Eve of the Commemoration of the Reformation

 Our congregation held a Reformation Celebration (or Oktoberfest) on October 30. A presentation was given, which focused on the teachings of Luther's opponents in the Sacramentarian Controversy, especially Ulrich Zwingli. This sermon was then preached at the Vespers service.

Vespers on the Eve of the Commemoration of the Reformation – October 30, 2021

Psalm 46; Galatians 3:26-4:7

St. Matthew 26:17-30

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

Ulrich Zwingli was right to confess with our Lord, “The flesh profits nothing.”[1] Our flesh profits nothing before the Lord. The Law of God, his will for creation, offers righteousness, eternal life, and salvation, but this offer comes with a condition. The Law offers these wonderful gifts to all who keep the whole of God’s Law without error. “Whoever shall keep the whole law, and yet stumble in one point, he is guilty of all.” You may try to earn salvation by keeping the Law, but it is a great gamble. Stumble in one point, fail in a tiny way, forget one jot, tittle, or iota, and you have transgressed the entire law and are guilty of all sin.

“But what of good works? If we transgress a little but work much good, doesn’t that make up for it?” By no means! Did you not hear that to transgress a little is to be guilty of all the Law? This is the very definition of “redeem.” To redeem is to give one thing in exchange for another. Maybe you have a gift card to Walmart that you redeem for groceries. Maybe you have a paycheck that you redeem for cash. Your good works cannot be redeemed for your righteousness for two reasons.

First, your good works do not have enough value to meet your guilt. No amount of human works will be enough to match the debt incurred by your sin. Remember, to be guilty in one point, makes you guilty of the whole Law. Your debt to God is greater than you could ever imagine. In the parable of the unforgiving servant, the servant owes the master ten thousand talents.[2] That is the equivalent to something between $250 million and $20 billion dollars. The point is that salvation comes at an astronomical cost. Since all the works of man are as filthy rags before the Lord, you simply can never earn enough in works to match the value of your soul.[3]

Second, your good works are not of the correct currency. You cannot walk into Walmart down the road and pay in Euros. Your currency must match what is acceptable to the one holding your debt. The price is in blood. The price is your life, your soul. The original sin of Adam and Eve severed the relationship between man and God. Good works do not heal that rift. Buying your wife a new car does not cancel your adultery. The currency is unacceptable. Good works cannot avert your doom. It is a false, misleading dream that you can keep the Law in its fullness.[4]

Not only do good works not atone for your sins, they also do not retain or strengthen your faith. If your works are responsible for strengthening your faith, if your works are the reason you retain your faith, then salvation is due to your works. Natural man will always fight against God. Every Christian will struggle against sin in this world. If that struggle is overcome by your good works which keep you faithful, then your salvation is again, won by works.

The act of a diligent prayer life, the act of coming to church, the act of forgiving your neighbor, even the act of reading the bible does not, in itself, retain your faith. The life of the Christian is not complete through a checklist of holy living. The Word of God is not a self-help book by which you attain righteousness, salvation, and eternal life.

This is most pointed when we suffer. When the terminal diagnosis comes, we are tempted to pray harder, believing that more diligent prayer will cause God to perform a miracle. The danger in relying on our efforts in prayer is when the prayer is not answered according to our desire. If God does not give us the outcome we’ve prayed for, we’ve worked for, then he must’ve either not heard our prayer, or far worse, denied it. And yet it is God himself who commands us to pray in the 2^nd Commandment and promises to answer our prayers. “God must be unjust. God must be cruel. God must not care.”

Repent of this blasphemy. Repent of relying upon your own works for salvation. Repent of turning a beautiful gift of God, prayer, into a work of your own choosing, by which you hope to persuade the creator of the universe, who has promised to love you, care for you, and deliver to you eternal life. Your flesh cannot abstain from sinning. Keeping the Law for the purpose of salvation, even by good intentions, is a useless task and in vain. None can remove sin’s poisoned dart or purify your own sinful heart, so deep is your corruption.[5]

God is just. God is merciful. God is gracious. The Law must be fulfilled, or else we must die despairing.[6] The Son of God, Second Person of the Holy Trinity, descended from the heavenly throne room into our flesh. He took on the form of a servant. At “the fullness of time, [the Father] sent his Son to be born of a woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.”[7]

True God, Second Person of the Holy Trinity, united himself to human flesh. He became True Man. This God-Man united himself to our flesh such that we can say “God hungered; God thirsted; God was born of a woman; God suffered; God died.” The two natures of Christ must be distinguished for it was by his divinity that Christ was able to keep the Law perfectly and atone for our sins in eternal currency. The divinity of Christ ensured his redemption was of the proper quantity and currency such that his redemption would suffice for all mankind, from Adam to the last baby born.

It was by his humanity that Christ could die. It was by uniting his divinity to his humanity that the Son of God could share this salvation with mankind. It was by uniting human flesh to his divinity that when Christ ascended to the Right Hand of the Father, he could prepare a mansion for all who believe.

These two natures of Christ, divine and human, are forever united in one person. This one person, Jesus Christ, acted for your salvation. His works are good. His works are holy. His works are perfect and eternal. This one person, the God-Man, has united the hiddenness of the divine God within the revealed flesh of creation. This one person has redeemed you through his blood and then guaranteed your eternal life by rising from the grave. His blood is more precious than $20 billion and matches the currency of your salvation.

It is no wonder then, that this God-Man, on the night when he was betrayed, took physical elements, and united them to his body and blood. The very same Body that would die upon the cross for your salvation and the Blood that was shed to redeem your soul are sacramentally united to physical elements – bread and wine. Two elements but one Sacrament. This is a reflection of the unity of God and Man within the person of Christ. Two Natures but one Person.

From the very beginning, God has given himself to man through means. God walked in the Garden and spoke with Adam and Eve in the cool of the day. They could see him, hear him, smell him, touch him. These are the means by which he revealed himself to Adam and Eve. These were not illusions. They were and are truth. So too does his grace come to man through means. “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.”[8] This Word of God comes to us through means – the preaching of men called into the Office of the Holy Ministry and the printed word in the Bible you read, hopefully aloud.

But since man is a physical being and would be tempted to ignore something as ephemeral as the spoken Word, God has united his word to physical means as well. The Word in and with the water, given by the command of Christ and for the purpose of the forgiveness of sin, constitutes Holy Baptism. It is truly a washing, not a symbol of cleansing. The Word of God in, with, and under the Bread and the Wine, given by the command of Christ and given for the forgiveness of sin, constitutes the Holy Communion.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.”[9] The Eternal Word of God is united to human flesh. This same flesh, he has united to bread and the blood which flows through that flesh he has united to wine. In this Holy Body and Precious Blood is found the salvation of the world. The very same Body which hung on the cross and the very same Blood poured out on the earth are given to Christians for the bestowing and strengthening of faith. They are the victory feast of the Church who celebrates with the Victorious Christ who has defeated death and the grave.

What then of our good works? Our flesh profits nothing for salvation. Christ has won salvation for us. Coming to Church, reading the Scriptures, receiving the Holy Sacraments, and fervent prayer are not good works which you do. They are the means of grace by which God delivers himself to you. You do these things not to earn salvation but to receive what God has to give you – righteousness, salvation, and eternal life. These things do retain and strengthen your faith but not because of what you do, its because of what God delivers through them.

Our good works are then also a reflection of what has been done in us. Has God forgiven your sins? Has God delivered to you the righteousness of Christ? Has God given you a clean conscience through the waters of Holy Baptism?[10] Has the very Body and Blood of Christ wrought faith within you, capable of moving mountains? Have you been declared a child and heir of God, no longer a slave to your passions, to sin, to death, and to the Law?

Then you are free to serve God with a joyful heart! No longer are your works that of a slave hoping to earn freedom. You are a son, an heir, whose inheritance is certain. You are now free to pray because you know that your Father in heaven hears and will answer your prayer. You are now free to come to Church, regularly and often, because there you will receive your salvation in Christ. You are free to give to the poor because eternity has been given to you. You are free to raise your children in the way of the Lord because He died for them too.[11] You are free to daily read the Scriptures because there you find your Savior.

The flesh of man profits nothing for our salvation. The flesh of Christ has won our salvation. “I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world…Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him.”[12]

In T Jesus’ name.  Amen.

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[1] St. John 6:63.

[2] St. Matthew 18:21-35.

[3] Isaiah 64:6.

[4] Salvation Unto Us Has Come, LSB 555:1. Public Domain.

[5] Salvation Unto Us Has Come, LSB 555:4. Public Domain

[6] Salvation Unto Us Has Come, LSB 555:5. Public Domain

[7] Galatians 4:4-5.

[8] Romans 10:17.

[9] St. John 1:1, 14.

[10] 1 Peter 3:18-22.

[11] Proverbs 22:6; Matthew 19:13-15.

[12] John 6:51, 53-56.