LSB Lent 4B Sermon -- John 3:14-21

March 18, 2012 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA

[Jesus said:] “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.”

The Exodus people had done it again. Their habitual complaint poured out of their mouths: “And the people spoke against God and against Moses, ‘Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and we loathe this worthless food.” The complaint is voiced against the Lord and His appointed servant. It reveals the people’s doubt and unbelief, as well as their lack of gratitude and thanksgiving.

Had Moses led the people “out of Egypt to die in the wilderness?” No, he had brought them out of slavery to lead them to a land of their own. Had the Lord left the people to their own attempts to fend for themselves? No, He had provided for their daily needs, as well as given them victory over their various enemies—from the Egyptian slavemasters and soldiers to the nations that they encountered along their trek to Canaan.

But none of this was satisfying the people and their sinful wills. So they engage in another bout of rebellion. They spread their seditious statements throughout the company of pilgrims: “Moses, you have led us to our ruin! God, You have not provided what we want! We are tired of this never-ending, circuitous route and this lousy manna we must eat! We’re not following anymore; we will lead ourselves!” And to that sin, the Lord responds: “Then the Lord sent fiery serpents among the people, and they bit the people, so that many people of Israel died.” He answers in action that brings the message: “Take that! If you think that My chosen one Moses has brought you out to die and that My provision is worthless, let Me cut off the flow of blessing and work to your detriment. Let us see where the big talk and complaint ends up!”

When the Lord acts that way, the Exodus people comprehend what they had done. They recognize their sin, their guilt: “And the people came to Moses and said, ‘We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that He take away the serpents from us.’” At that moment, Moses doesn’t seem so bad to the people. Even more than that, they acknowledge his position as the Lord’s chosen leader. At the same time, the people’s loathing the Lord and His provision disappears. They are humbled, brought to contrition. They realize that their only hope is in receiving what the Lord provides. In this way, the circle of repentance is made complete.

In His mercy, the Lord answers the people’s plight. He provides a remedy for them: “The Lord said to Moses, ‘Make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, and everyone who is bitten, when he sees it, shall live.’ So Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. And if a serpent bit anyone, he would look at the bronze serpent and live.” The Lord’s provided remedy directly answers the people’s problem. The fiery serpents brought death, so the Lord provides a serpent that brings life. Believing the Lord’s word of promise connected to this New Serpent, the one that is lifted up and brings life, the people are saved from death.

Centuries after this event in the wilderness, Jesus declares that this is a type that illustrates what He is present in the world to do. He identifies Himself as the remedy for mankind’s plight: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.”

But what is the plight of mankind that Jesus answers? What has happened that requires such a remedy? The issue is the rebellion that all mankind has participated in. The problem is sin. So it has been from ancient days. What the Exodus people did in the wilderness is but one aspect, one episode of the great rebellion that the Lord’s creation has waged against Him. Discontent at what had been provided by the Lord, the desire to be followers of their own way: these thoughts that were voiced by the Hebrews in the wilderness were found in the sin of the first people and throughout the generations.

Mankind has been its own worst enemy. We have brought ruin and destruction to ourselves by what we have done. The situation is as the apostle described: “You were dead in the trespasses and sins in which you once walked, following the course of this world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience—among whom we all once lived in the passions of our flesh, carrying out the desires of the body and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind.” Such description shows the comprehensive nature of mankind’s plight—what man first put itself into and which subsequent generations furthered.

But the remedy is provided for you. That is the Lord’s great act of mercy and love: “God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.” In the wilderness, the fiery serpents brought death, so the Lord provides a serpent that brought life. In the world, man brought death by his sin, so the Lord provides a Man who brings life. That is the meaning of Jesus’ statement: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.”

So the remedy is provided for you. It is in the person of Jesus Christ. He has been lifted up. It happened on Calvary for you. There the Son of Man, the Promised Christ, the only Son of God was hoisted up on a cross to become your salvation. It is the expression of God’s love for you, even while you were engaged in rebellion against Him: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which He has loved us, even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ—by grace you have been saved—and raised us up with Him and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages, He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.”

That is what Jesus achieved for you on Calvary. So it is most appropriate that a place named for that location where the Son of Man was lifted up has a great depiction of it. The crucifix is here, so that you may look on it and remember how the Lord provided the remedy for your sin that kills temporally and eternally. Believing what Jesus did on that day, you are saved by Him. But not only do you have a reminder in a form of art, you have a participation in the act of salvation accomplished for you. You have been baptized into Jesus’ death. The Lord’s declaration of pardon for your sins is spoken here by His appointed leaders with frequency. Jesus’ Body given into death is put before you. And these give your faith more to cling to—many and various ways that you access the merits of Jesus who was lifted up for your salvation.

The Lord has not left you in the wilderness to die, but has come to redeem you. He has brought you from rebellion and unbelief to faith and obedience. So now you are not “children of wrath,” but are “God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them.” You have been remade, reshaped, regenerated, recreated. That is how much the Lord’s remedy has worked in you. You have been drawn to the light of Christ and empowered to do what is good and right: “Whoever does what is true comes to the light, so that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been carried out in God.”

So you now do the good works that the Lord desires you to perform. And the greatest work is to believe in what Jesus has done for you. Your will is brought in line with His, so that you love His ways. No more are you “following the course of the world, following the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience.” This change from death to life becomes the grounds for what you say about the Lord, just as it was for the Exodus people: “Then they cried to the Lord in their trouble, and He delivered them from their distress. He led them by a straight way till they reached a city to dwell in.” You follow the way that the Lord has laid out for you, the path of life, the road that the Holy Spirit leads you on to a heavenly dwelling place.

So from your mouths complaint doesn’t flow, but praise and thanksgiving for what the Lord has done: “Let them thank the Lord for His steadfast love, for His wondrous works to the children of men!” He shows His steadfast love in the remedy that He gives for your plight, the wondrous work that Jesus performed for you: “And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.” Never loathe what He supplies, but always give thanks for how the Lord provides for all your needs of body and soul.

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

LSB Lent 3B Sermon -- John 2:13-25

March 11, 2012 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA

“And making a whip of cords, [Jesus] drove [the vendors] out of the Temple, with the sheep and oxen. And He poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables. And He told those who sold the pigeons, ‘Take these things away; do not make My Father’s house a house of trade.’”

Jesus has a passion for the Temple. It is many times greater than all the athletes who scream about their stadium or arena: “We must protect this house!” The passion that Jesus has is a love for what is sacred and holy. It is a love for His Father’s house, a zeal that flows out of knowing exactly what was meant to occur in the place set apart by the Lord.

The passion that Jesus has for the Temple leads to drastic actions. This is what John the Gospel Writer records. The event that is described takes place at the greatest festival for the ancient Hebrew people: “The Passover of the Jews was at hand, and Jesus went up to Jerusalem.” The Passover Feast marked the time when the Lord had delivered His people from Egypt. It is the great annual celebration of the divine redemption shown to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. The Lord takes them from a foreign enslavement and makes them a strong nation. But the way that the Israelites were freed was not a simple earthly act; the angel of death strikes down the first-born in all of Egypt. Yet, the Lord preserves His people through the spreading of lamb’s blood over the doorways of the Hebrew people’s slave quarters.

The Lord’s awesome act of deliverance at the Passover requires remembrance. He commanded it to be so. But the remembrance is meant to be solemn. The Lord’s power and ability are to be recalled, a presence that brings death but also brings life. There is an encounter with the identification that the Lord makes of Himself: “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery…. I the Lord your God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love Me and keep My commandments.” And when the Lord’s people are situated in their new homeland, they have a place where the Lord’s presence is promised to them. They are promised to have His actions done to forgive their sins. The Temple was the venue for that sacred purpose.

But what solemnity or sacredness was found in the Temple on the day that Jesus arrived? How was the Passover—the time for recalling the powerful actions of the Lord—being remembered in the Temple? The faithful people were there. But they encounter something less-than-holy when entering the Temple grounds: “In the Temple He found those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there.” The place set apart for the Lord to act for His people’s benefit had turned into a marketplace. It had lost its character—the set apart status—that the “jealous God” had given it.

So Jesus begins to restore the Temple’s sacred nature: “And making a whip of cords, He drove them all out of the Temple, with the sheep and oxen. And He poured out the coins of the money-changers and overturned their tables.” The corrupting elements are removed, forcibly removed. They are driven out, just as Jesus had cast out the unclean spirits from people in Galilee. No more was the secular to have reign in sacred space. And Jesus explains His actions: “Take these things away; do not make My Father’s house a house of trade.” Trade between people has no place in the Temple. The Lord reserved the Temple as the location of His actions. So when the Incarnate Lord stands in its grounds, He makes the Temple holy again by removing the profane from it.

Jesus’ drastic actions get the attention of the people: “So the Jews said to Him, ‘What sign do You show us for doing these things?’” But Jesus’ cleansing of the Temple reflects something more than just cleaning up externals. It is a sign of what He Himself is meant to accomplish as the Christ. He is present as the Lord performs the ultimate act of gracious deliverance, a Passover of cosmic significance. This is referred to in the answer that Jesus gives to the question posed to Him: “Jesus answered them, ‘Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up.’” The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world was standing in that Temple. And He was there to bring deliverance to the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—but also the descendants of Aquila, Yadida, and Julius.

Jesus’ sacrifice makes people of all nations holy, set apart for the Lord. It delivers them from slavery to sin, death, and Satan. And the people will receive it in the same way as the ancient Hebrews did in Egypt. There is no transaction made by them, no purchase of freedom. No, deliverance is given through the gracious act performed by the Lord Himself. He makes atonement for sin. He brings life into the place where death rules. He overthrows the usurper who holds His creation in subjection. The Lord is the actor. He achieves this through the death and resurrection of Jesus. The apostle Paul puts it plainly: “God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring to nothing things that are, so that no human being might boast in the presence of God. He is the source of your life in Christ Jesus, whom God made our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”

But the Lord does not stop there. He establishes the ways that His salvation is given to people in all times and places. He institutes a sacred venue where His salvation is given out for people to receive. That is what the Church is today: a place where people gather around the words of Jesus that bring forgiveness of sins. The externals of the building—if there even is a building—do not matter. But having the Lord’s presence in the Gospel that speaks, cleanses, pardons, and feeds does matter. That is what makes this gathering sacred as you come to be taught by Jesus, to be washed by Jesus, to be forgiven by Jesus, to be nourished by Jesus for the forgiveness of sins. Not only is the gathering made sacred, you are made holy.

But all of this is lost if the Church loses its reason for existence, if the Church loses what the Lord gives that makes it sacred. What is found when Christians gather together to celebrate the Sunday festival, the day that recalls the divine act of Jesus’ resurrection that makes people God’s nation? What is seen here? Is there a solemnity, a respect for the “jealous God”, a focus on using His name properly and keeping holy what He deems sacred? Or do we see “those who were selling oxen and sheep and pigeons, and the money-changers sitting there”? Has this congregation or the Church-at-large turned the Father’s house—the place where the Lord is present to act—into “a house of trade” or a venue centered on secular concerns? These are questions about the Church’s essence, about holiness and sacredness. Such questions are what the events in today’s Gospel Reading should bring to our minds.

If our concerns as a congregation or churchbody have become absorbed with the secular, then it’s time for a little table turning and whip wielding. Whenever the Church has become an institution that cannot be distinguished from any other earthly organization, then it’s time for some “zeal for the [Lord’s] house” to consume us. The Lord has not called us to monasticism; He has given you all sorts of callings in the secular realm to fulfill: to be faithful citizens, faithful employees or employers, faithful parents or children, and so on. These are all good callings—divine callings—and must be fulfilled. But here in the Church proper, the calling is to be hearers of His Word and recipients of His grace. The calling is for us to know exactly what the Lord has done for our benefit, to bring us forgiveness, life, and salvation.

The Church has been given the word of God to proclaim, especially the Gospel of salvation that creates, forms, and maintains disciples of Jesus. So that must be the focus of the Church’s functions. Primacy must be given to teaching, preaching, speaking, singing, learning, and hearing the word of God. That is the essence of this institution, what makes it sacred and different from any other organization. If the focus is on this sacred task that the Lord has given, then we will receive the gifts that Jesus’ death and resurrection have earned for us. The apostle’s statement is true: “The word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.” Through our receiving that word of the cross, God becomes “our wisdom and our righteousness and sanctification and redemption.”

And yet, when that essential, sacred task is fulfilled, there are effects in the secular realm: in the home, society, economy, and government. Hearing the Lord’s word of Law also brings you knowledge of this creation that He has established. It tells you what is expected in your other callings that the Lord has given to you, what you are to strive for as you spend the hundred-plus hours outside this building each week. His “Ten Words” from Mount Sinai included statements about living: “Honor your father and your mother. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not steal. You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor. You shall not covet.” These are not vain words; they do give you direction for your life in the world. The Psalmist’s description of them is true today: “By them is Your servant warned; in keeping them there is great reward.”

So as we have heard the Lord’s words this day, a similar zeal as Jesus had in the Temple is created. “We must protect this house!” is a fine motto for us, the Lord’s people. We must protect and preserve the unique gifts and purposes that the Lord has granted to us, the Church. A bit of cleansing and reform to make that so may be needed in our own congregation and in the Church-at-large to put the focus on the specific calling that the Lord gives. But it is eternally worth it, so that we may receive the power of God that saves and not miss out on it. Always recognizing the divine character that the Lord’s words carry, we will be careful not to despise them, but gladly hear and learn them. Then our souls will be revived, we will be made wise to salvation, our hearts will be gladdened, our eyes will be opened to see what the Lord is doing for us, and we will be His righteous people both now and for eternity.

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

LSB Lent 2B Sermon -- Mark 8:27-38

March 4, 2012 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA

“[Jesus said]: ‘For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.’”

Shame at what is said and the person who said it: such feelings arise in the hearts and minds of many. There is the “cringe factor” when hearing people associated with your ideology, organization, political views, or religion make outlandish statements. How many times have you switched the volume down or spun the radio dial when hearing callers’ phone-in on the talk radio stations? Or when a leader makes a gaffe in a speech, have you either mentally or physically shake your head? When something truly offensive is said, even you are quick to disavow any affiliation with the speaker: “How can they say that? They may have the right letters behind their name or the right title on their nametag, but I’m not with them. That isn’t what we in Group X/Party X actually believe or think.”

Shame at what is said and the person who said it: such feelings are shown in the Gospel Reading for this day. But the events in the Gospel Reading did not start with shame. Mark tells us: “And Jesus went on with His disciples to the villages of Caesarea Philippi. And on the way He asked His disciples, ‘Who do people say that I am?’ And they told Him, ‘John the Baptist; and others say, Elijah; and others, one of the prophets.’” In this dialogue, there isn’t a hint of shame at all. While the disciples might disagree with what the people were saying about Jesus, the peoples’ thoughts were not out-of-line. They had recognized greatness in Jesus’ words and deeds. Then the question is put to the Twelve: “And He asked them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ Peter answered Him, ‘You are the Christ.’” And again, there is no shame at all to be found. There may even be some pride at fully knowing Jesus’ identity and being affiliated with Him.

But then the outlandish comment is dropped from Jesus’ mouth: “And He began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again. And He said this plainly.” Jesus tells the Twelve about what He must undergo. He reveals what it essential to His identity as the Christ. Jesus’ words actually reveal how He would accomplish the redemption of the world, including the salvation of the Twelve who sit in front of Him. And yet, it is full of gaffes—or that is what the Twelve think.

You heard how Peter reacted to Jesus’ statements. The “cringe factor” was fully evident: “And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him.” No, no, no. That is Peter’s response to Jesus’ statement about Himself. It is the response of shame at what is said and the Person who said it. The volume dial is turned all the way down. The heads vigorously shake in disagreement. The statements of disavowal are made: “You may think that Jesus, but that is not how the Christ is to be. We in this Messiah Party distance ourselves from any of these statements of suffering, rejection, and death that our Leader has spoken.” But in this case, the problem is not really in what is said, but in those who hear it. What Jesus says cannot be seen as objectionable, if one is to receive the benefit of His actions that He performs as the Christ.

So this shame that Peter shows at Jesus’ words is not left unaddressed. It can’t be. What Jesus says about those ashamed about Him and His words applies to Peter at that moment: “For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” So Jesus moves to restore Peter, to bring his mind in alignment with the Divine Will: “But turning and seeing His disciples, He rebuked Peter and said, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.’” A readjustment is going to be made here. A new setting of the mind must take place, and Jesus must be the actor that makes it so for Peter, so that this disciple and others will receive what the Father’s gracious will has established for them.

This readjustment happens as Peter, the Twelve, and the crowd have Jesus’ words spoken to them. He speaks about discipleship, about this enterprise to which He has called them. Jesus explains what it means to be a follower, to be under His authority: “And He called to Him the crowd with His disciples and said to them, ‘If anyone would come after Me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow Me. For whoever would save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake the gospel’s will save it. For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life?’” Deny yourself, take up your cross, follow: the instructed acts are shameful to those who want to govern themselves, who want autonomy, who want to set their own direction according to what their own wisdom deems expedient. But that is not how salvation will be given. It is not how one will be a recipient of the benefits that Jesus brings. No, to gain from what Jesus does, you must be a dependent, a servant, a subject, even if the world believes that is not good, right, or salutary.

Your salvation is given when Jesus undergoes what seems to be shameful: suffering, rejection, and death. That is how you have been delivered: “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly…. God shows His love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of His Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by His life.” What Jesus reveals about His fate is the method of your salvation.

But are you ashamed of it? Do you cringe at what Jesus says? There are ample opportunities for that. Think of what Jesus has taught and how it runs against the wisdom of man. Sure, there will be those who find some decent things in Jesus’ teachings. You know, the Sermon on the Mount things: the Golden Rule is pretty good; giving your extra coat to someone who doesn’t have one is acceptable; don’t judge anyone by a standard you don’t want to be judged by would make society better. But then there are the teachings of morality that are a bit strict. And then there are Jesus’ claims of exclusivity: “Unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God…. I know that you do not have the love of God within you. I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me…. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you…. I am the Way and the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father except by Me.” What then? Does the “cringe factor” rise at these statements of Jesus?

Yet, those are only the remarks made about what Jesus teaches. Reflect on how you have thought about His statements about His actions of dying and rising again. You claim that they are what bring salvation. But what comes to mind when you hear comments about Zombie Jesus at Easter time? Or the charges of cosmic child abuse leveled at the crucifixion? Or when the remarks are spoken about trusting something that a bunch of backwards nomads in the Middle East made up? How do you feel about the objections about a god of love that actually visits wrath on people? In what direction are the cringes aimed—at what is said in these remarks or at the Person and words of Jesus?

Remember what Jesus has said: “For whoever is ashamed of Me and of My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, of him will the Son of Man be ashamed when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” Has your mind drifted to “the things of man” and set itself on them? If so, then have Jesus speak again to turn you back to “things of God” so that your mind can be set on them. Take the statement that He makes to Peter and apply it to yourselves: “Get behind Me, Satan!” Receive the rebuke that your Lord makes against you. But know that He follows it up with restoration. Jesus’ word of forgiveness follows His admonishment. It was so for Peter and it is so for you.

Through the reception of Jesus’ words and the Holy Spirit’s actions through them, you are brought back to the way of discipleship. They give you the ability to deny yourselves and take up your crosses and follow the way of your Lord. He sets your minds back on the “things of God”. By having that done, you see and know what the world does not recognize in Jesus’ Person and words. It is the gift that He bestows to you: “Through Him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.”

The hope in the glory of God given to you is what leads you away from shame and to delight in what Jesus has done for you. So you will confess Him as Christ. And you will say that His suffering, rejection, and death have atoned for your sins. And you will be found victorious in His resurrection. Not ashamed, but proud in Jesus and His words, you will be recognized at His people when He comes in the glory of His Father.

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

LSB Lent 1B Sermon -- Mark 1:9-15

February 26, 2012 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA

“The Spirit immediately drove [Jesus] out into the wilderness. And He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan. And He was with the wild animals, and the angels were ministering to Him.”

The Voice from heaven rang out over the waters of the Jordan River: “You are My beloved Son; with You I am well pleased.” That is what happened at Jesus’ baptism. The Father confirms Jesus’ identity and character. He is named the Eternal Father’s Son. That was always His identity. And that did not change when He assumed human nature and dwelt among us in human flesh. The Father also testifies to His Son’s character. It is perfect, without any flaw. Again, that was always His character. And that did not change when He assumed human nature and dwelt among us in human flesh. Truly human, yet still truly divine, Jesus stands in the Jordan River as a perfect man, something that had not been seen for ages.

So what happens to that perfect man after receiving the divine commendation from on high? Where is that perfect man placed? Not in an earthly paradise. That’s where the first perfect man dwelt. But he was banished from Eden, along with his consort, after rebelling against God. They had fallen into sin. What James describes as happening in human hearts took place in them: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” So it was with the man and the woman in the beginning. And for that, they were driven out of Eden.

But this time, when the Perfect Man Jesus receives the commendation from His Father, He is not placed in a lush, vibrant garden. No, He is put into the wilderness: “The Spirit immediately drove Him out into the wilderness.” Jesus is driven out into the place where the effects of Adam’s sin and the sin of all humanity are on display. He is out in the venue of death and disorder. The wilderness is where man’s dominion over creation—the order that the Creator had initially established—is not seen. No, this is where creation has power over man. The lack of provisions will kill. And the Gospel Writer includes the detail: “And [Jesus] was with the wild animals.” The beasts of the field that were meant to be governed by mankind now stand as a threat to man’s life. The disorder and chaos that man’s sin brought stands all around Jesus.

Why is Jesus there in the wilderness? He is present in the world to deal with the effects of sin. He is there to offer obedience where Adam and you have not. Jesus is out in the wilderness to begin His struggle to overcome Satan who holds mankind in subjection. That is what Jesus was destined to do. It is His purpose. It is His Father’s will for Him. And so the Spirit drives Jesus into the wilderness. “And He was in the wilderness forty days, being tempted by Satan.” The long-expected Descendant of Eve is there to bring the enmity between her seed and the Serpent’s seed to a head, to bring blessing where curse reigned. The Promised Offspring of Abraham is present to achieve victory: “And your offspring shall possess the gate of His enemies, and in your Offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice.”

So Jesus begins His mission of redemption among the ruins that sin had caused. He starts by being tempted by Satan. The Tempter believes that he can overcome Jesus, this Perfect Man, just as he had brought down Adam. Satan had heard the Father speak about being pleased with a man before, even declaring him to be “very good.” But this time something is different. This time, the Man does not have a desire for anything other than what the Creator wants. That flow from desire to sin to death does not work with Jesus. Instead, His desire is in concert with the Father’s will. For Jesus, His will gives birth to righteousness, and righteousness when it is fully grown brings forth life. So after the forty days of temptation, Jesus is not driven out of Paradise, but regains it. He is not barred by a sword-wielding cherub; instead, “the angels were ministering to Him.”

Where Adam fell, Jesus stands. Where Adam rebelled, Jesus obeyed. Where Adam was victimized, Jesus is victorious. This is what the Father had always desired to take place. It is a phase in the scheme of salvation that He had established. So after the episode in the wilderness, Jesus returns to continue His mission: “Now after John was arrested, Jesus came into Galilee, proclaiming the gospel of God, and saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” Jesus comes proclaiming the news of what He is accomplishing for humanity. Now is the time that the victims of sin and slaves of Satan had longed for. The time of salvation is present. The kingdom of God has come into the world. Hear and believe the news that you are being redeemed.

This is the same message that Jesus has for you today. He knows that words of deception and deceit have led to your death. That is what your forefathers had fallen victim to, and you have as well. The lies of Satan had led to sin in Eden. The imperfections of your ancestors cause your flaws: your lack of love of God or obedience to His will, your natural inclination to sin, your finding pleasure in what is unrighteous. What James described is true about you: “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.”

But there is another word that you are meant to hear. It is the word that Jesus brings to you: “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” This is the word that does not bring death, but creates life instead. It is the word that is spoken by the Father’s beloved Son. It is a word of truth that testifies about what He has done. This word of truth tells you what Jesus has accomplished for your sake. He was driven into the wilderness to restore Paradise for you. He was obedient even when tempted to bring righteousness to you. He was among the wild animals to establish order for you. He was served by angels to deliver aid to you.

This has happened as Jesus has brought you back under the rule of God. The word of truth that Jesus proclaims—“the gospel of God”—brings you new life. It is what His Father desired and what He achieved: “Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights with whom there is no variation or shadow due to change. Of His own will He brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of His creatures.” You have been born out of this word of truth. It has restored you from death to life. It has made you the Father’s beloved children. The good gift and perfect gift is His Son that came down from above, the One who remained steadfast under trial and has made you righteous. Jesus possesses the gate of His enemies, even the keys to death and Hades. He has brought blessing to you and peoples all nations by His obedience, by His death, and by His resurrection.

You have been brought forth by the word of truth that has been spoken to you. It has shown you what is righteous and good: the righteousness that Jesus has, the perfection that He possesses. It also shows you the way of life for you to follow during your time in this wilderness. The knowledge of your own sin, your own unrighteousness, your own evil desires, your own failures, and your own afflictions shows that you are not perfect in yourself. That knowledge and experience drive home the point that you are not yet in the Paradise that Jesus has regained for you.

So you ask for help on the pilgrimage to the way there. You pray for guidance from above: “Make me to know Your ways, O Lord; teach me Your paths. Lead me in Your truth and teach me, for You are the God of my salvation; for You I wait all the day long.” You pray for the forgiveness that the Beloved Son won through the fulfillment of His Father’s will: “Remember Your mercy, O Lord, and Your steadfast love, for they have been from of old. Remember not the sins of my youth or my transgressions; according to Your steadfast love remember me, for the sake of Your goodness, O Lord!” You pray for the victory that only He can provide: “To You, O Lord, I lift up my soul. O my God, in You I trust; let me not be put to shame; let not my enemies exult over me.” These prayers the Father answers according to His will. It is a good gift and perfect gift that He bestows to you.

What you need has been and continues to be provided for you. It is what the Beloved Son Jesus Christ, the One with whom the Father is well pleased, has earned for you. His identity as the Eternal Son and His righteous and perfect character are revealed, so that you may see Him as your Redeemer. Jesus has restored mankind to its rightful place. He has brought divine order into the world’s chaos. It started early in His ministry on earth and continued through His death, burial, resurrection, and ascension. The time is fulfilled; Jesus has brought you into the kingdom of God. You are not eternally banished to wander in the wilderness with all its hazards, but are destined for a place in Paradise with all that is very good. Repent of your sin and believe in the gospel. For that word of truth, which speaks about what the Eternal Son has done, makes you the beloved children of the Eternal Father.

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

LSB Ash Wednesday Sermon -- Psalm 51

February 22, 2012 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA

“Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be justified in Your words and blameless in Your judgment.”

“You’re right; I was wrong.” That statement is made frequently in our midst. Or it should be. It is a statement that acknowledges error. The sentence declares that the words or judgment of the other individual were correct, and it admits that your own actions were not. That is what David does in Psalm 51 that you prayed this Ash Wednesday evening.

Most of you are familiar with what led to the composition of this psalm. David had sinned, but it took the Lord’s actions to convict him of that. Israel’s king, the Lord’s anointed, had committed adultery and had devised a plan to kill his lover’s husband. With Uriah out of the way, David took Bathsheba into his harem of wives. And nothing was thought of it. That was, until the Lord sent Nathan the prophet to confront David and his sin. “You are the man”—the sinful man—Nathan declares. And the prophet’s speaking the Lord’s judgment against David convicts him.

But David does not say: “Lord, you’re incorrect. There is no sin here. No fault is in me. I’ve done nothing wrong.” No, he says: “You’re right; I was wrong.” Or actually, he puts it much more profound words: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your steadfast love; according to Your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin! For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be justified in Your words and blameless in Your judgment.” David practices confession in the words of the psalm: he speaks the same way about himself as the Lord speaks. The Lord had accused him of sin and David agrees with the factuality of that statement.

So you also do this Ash Wednesday evening. This night is a time of confession, of admitting the guilt that is in you and that you have committed, as the Lord has pointed it out to you. It is a time for you to say to the Lord: “You’re right; I was wrong.” There is no place for hiding or disagreeing. It is not a time for you to be defiant or proud. No, you are to speak the same words that David did: “Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You may be justified in Your words and blameless in Your judgment.” You speak the same way about yourselves as the Lord speaks. And your act of receiving ashes shows the penitence that comes from believing what the Lord has said about your sin and mortality.

This confession—this “same-speaking”—that you make is based in the factuality of the convicting statements that the Lord makes against you, just as He did against David. But it is also spoken knowing the truth about other statements that the Lord makes. He has much to say. He does not only speak about your guilt and His righteousness. The Lord does not only talk about His holiness and your lack thereof. He also speaks about other aspects of His character, including His steadfast love and mercy.

These other statements that the Lord makes you have also heard this evening. You have had a prophet speak to you this evening, just as David had Nathan in his presence. You heard the Lord’s statements uttered through the prophet Joel: “’Yet even now,’ declares the Lord, ‘return to Me with all your heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning; and rend your hearts and not your garments.’ Return to the Lord, your God, for He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and He relents over disaster.” The statement is made about the Lord’s character: His compassion and generosity, His willingness not to repay evil with evil, His desire not to have people suffer the calamity of His wrath.

This is what David was made to know. It is why his psalm authored in response to the divine confrontation that Nathan brought included these words: “The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” His spirit was broken by Nathan’s words; contrition flowed from his heart because of the Lord’s conviction. And so David recalls what God had also revealed about His character: “Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your steadfast love; according to Your abundant mercy blot out my transgressions.” In those words, David also speaks the same way about the Lord as the Lord had spoken about Himself. David’s faith was in what the Lord had declared both about sin and salvation.

In faith, believing what the Lord says about Himself, you also speak this way. This evening is a time of confessing sins but also confessing the Lord’s character: “He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love; and He relents over disaster.” You rend your hearts as David did, and you turn to the Lord for salvation. You believe what the Lord has said and agree with it. You perform your acts of contrition trusting the Lord’s words that He will forgive. His words have come to you through the apostle Paul: “In a favorable time I listened to you, and in a day of salvation I have helped you.” And your assent that this is true leads to your belief, your confession of faith in the Lord’s gracious will for you: “Behold, now is the favorable time; behold, now is the day of salvation.”

So this evening, the words of David spoken in faithful response to the Lord’s statements have become your own. They flow from your heart to your mouth and from your lips to the Lord’s ears: “Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow. Let me hear joy and gladness; let the bones that You have broken rejoice. Hide Your face from my sins, and blot out all my iniquities. Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me. Cast me not away from Your presence, and take not Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, and uphold me with a willing spirit.” You speak this way in acknowledgement of your sin, of the Lord’s merciful character, and of the salvation that the Lord offers.

And what is that salvation that He offers? It is the result of the work that the Lord performed for you. This is what you also have been told by Him through the apostle Paul: “We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Your deliverance is found in what the Lord has provided, in the help that He has given in this day of salvation. The Lord has spoken about your sin and about His gracious and merciful character. And you have also been told of His righteousness that is made to be yours because of Christ’s atoning work for you.

The sacrifice for your sins has already been offered. Reconciliation to God has already been set in motion. You are meant to receive the benefits of this. And you do, as you believe what has been spoken. It is yours, as you confess what has been made known: that the Lord’s grace and mercy were shown to you in Jesus Christ, that Jesus’ suffering and death way is how the Lord has relented from your disaster. This will be your confession on this evening—another “same saying”—as you will pray: “By the mystery of Your holy incarnation; by Your holy nativity; by Your baptism, fasting, and temptation; by Your agony and bloody sweat; by Your cross and passion; by Your precious death and burial; by Your glorious resurrection and ascension; and by the coming of the Holy Spirit, the Comforter: Help us, good Lord.”

These words that flow from you are rooted in your belief in what has been revealed concerning Jesus: “For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” And so we will pray in words that express these truths that the Lord has revealed about us, about Himself, and about His salvation: “O God, You desire not the death of sinners, but rather that they turn from their wickedness and live. We implore You to have compassion on the frailty of our mortal nature, for we acknowledge that we are dust and to dust we shall return. Mercifully pardon our sins that we may obtain the promises You have laid up for those who are repentant.”

What you and I say on this night boils down to that basic statement: “You’re right; I was wrong.” We say to the Lord: “Everything that You have said and done is right, but that is not the case for me. You are holy, and I am not. You are righteous, and I am not. But You are also gracious and merciful, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love. This has been shown in what You did for me. So I lament my sin and acknowledge my wretchedness. And I trust that I will receive full pardon and forgiveness from You as You have promised. Let it be done to me as I believe.” Such is the purpose of this Ash Wednesday, this day of salvation.

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