Sunday, February 27, 2011

Epiphany 8A Sermon -- Matthew 6:24-34 (LSB Epiphany 8A)

February 27, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


[Jesus said:] “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.”


In the final portion of the Sermon on the Mount that the Church hears during this long Epiphany Season, Jesus speaks about divided loyalty. A person’s heart cannot be devoted to two masters, especially so when the two masters are in opposition with each other. Hearts do not stay divided, at least not equally. Instead, they will cleave to one object of devotion: “He will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other.”


This observation of Jesus is essential for those who are living in this worldly life. There are many objects of devotion available in this world. They seek to have their own disciples and servants. These objects include earthly possessions, as Jesus says: “You cannot serve God and money [Mammon].” That is why He also says: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” What Jesus includes are numerous items that can be objects of devotion, false gods. And if they become false gods, then they will prevent Jesus’ hearers from serving Him.


Devotion to false gods leads to a terrible end. That is the fate that Jesus is to deliver His people from. He takes their hearts away from things that provide no hope, no eternal good. So He says to His disciples: “Therefore do not be anxious, saying, ‘What shall we eat?’ or ‘What shall we drink?’ or ‘What shall we wear?’ For the Gentiles seek after all these things. . . .” The focus on the earthly, on the temporal is the concern of those who do not have knowledge of what is beyond this life. They are those who have made Mammon their deity. Their acts of piety are to be anxious about money or other earthly goods. Concern for them is an act of devotion.


But the false gods that attract humanity are not simply money or earthly goods. There are people who are concerned with what is beyond this life. To whom do they turn? To someone or something that promises good in the life of the world to come. Yet without knowledge of Jesus and what He provides, their desires are left unmet. The Psalmist describes such people and the gods they have devised: “Their idols are silver and gold, the work of human hands. They have mouths, but do not speak; eyes, but do not see. They have ears, but do not hear; noses, but do not smell. They have hands, but do not feel; feet, but do not walk; and they do not make a sound in their throat. Those who make them become like them; so do all who trust in them.” Even those who do not serve money but who serve other gods are left hopeless. Their trusted ones will not be able to provide what they desire.


Jesus’ work is to draw His people away from false hopes to the certainty that will be provided for them. That certainty is found in the Father whom Jesus makes known to His people. He speaks of the Father not as an impersonal or impotent deity, but God who knows His children and acts for them. Jesus desires that His disciples be completely devoted to the Father in heaven, trusting that He understands their needs and provide for them. So He speaks: “The Gentiles seek after [the concerns of this life], and your heavenly Father knows that you need them all. But seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.” Seek after what is eternal, what is greater than this life, and your Father in heaven give you the minor things as well.


Such trust is what the Psalmist exhorted in the people of Israel. He instructs them to avoid the gods who are the product of human minds and to cleave to the Lord: “O Israel, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. O house of Aaron, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. You who fear the Lord, trust in the Lord! He is their help and their shield. The Lord has remembered us; He will bless us; He will bless the house of Israel; He will bless the house of Aaron; He will bless those who fear the Lord, both the small and the great.” They are not to chase after Baal or Molech or other deities of metal or stone who cannot hear or act for their adherents. Instead, they are to trust in the Lord who called their nation into existence, made covenant with them, and acted to fulfill His promises.


The Lord does not forget or neglect His people. He proves Himself to be a faithful and devout Master who is deserving of His believers’ devotion. Even when His people were exiled, the Lord showed His concern for them: “But Zion said, ‘The Lord has forsaken me; my Lord has forgotten me.’ ‘Can a woman forget her nursing child, that she should have no compassion on the son of her womb? Even these may forget, yet I will not forget you. Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of My hands.’” He answers their needs by raising up King Cyrus of Persia who set them free to go back to their homeland. The exile would end; the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob would again inhabit the Promised Land.


But even more, the Lord sends salvation and deliverance, provisions for what is eternal: “In a time of favor I have answered you; in a day of salvation I have helped you; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages, saying to the prisoners, ‘Come out,’ to those who are in darkness, ‘Appear.’ They shall feed along the ways; on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for He who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them. And I will make all My mountains a road, and My highways shall be raised up. Behold, these shall come from afar, and behold, these from the north and from the west, and these from the land of Syene.” Restoration is promised, but not just for this life. What the Lord provides will be life in a new heaven and new earth where everything perfectly abides by His order.


The Lord who provides such help for His people is a Master who can be trusted. Those who hear and believe Jesus’ words that make known God the Father are led to true devotion to Him. Your Father in heaven institutes and orders His creation to provide for your earthly needs. When this takes place, as people and organizations fulfill their callings, the world receives its daily bread. You are both beneficiaries and benefactors in this grand scheme that He has established. Jesus has taught you to pray to the Father for what you need and the Father has promised to hear and answer.


However, Jesus’ teaching directs you to the greater things that your Father in heaven provides for you. Remember His statement: “Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, nor about your body, what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing?” This reveals an important truth: your life is more than the span of days that you spend on earth and more than the concerns of that time span. No, you are much more than that. Your life includes days beyond the calendar. And your Father in heaven is involved in them, too.


So Jesus says: “Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? And why are you anxious about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is alive and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?” You are greater than the birds and your lifespan is longer than the grass. And your Father in heaven knows that fact about you.


Because He knows that truth about you, He has provided even for eternal things. It is what His Son Jesus was sent to accomplish, as your salvation is engraved in the palms of His nail-pierced hands. The Father has given new birth to you, so that you are born from above, born to live eternally. And to clothe you for this eternity, He has placed upon you the robes of His Son’s righteousness. To feed you for the days without end, He has provided the bread of heaven and the finest of wines that brings forgiveness, life, and salvation. To accomplish this, He has appointed faithful stewards of His mysteries. All this is the measure of the Father’s devotion and care for you, His servant people.


But without the work of His Son making this known, you would not have any understanding of it. So Jesus has revealed this great truth to you. But even worse, devotion to other gods, other concerns will cut you off from what your Father in heaven provides. So Jesus says: “No one can serve two masters, for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money.” He speaks this to correct you, to turn your hearts and minds to what is eternally important. These are the things that your Father in heaven grants to you as you “seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness.” The Father who gives you a place in His eternal kingdom will grant you what you need for daily, earthly life.


The Lord God of Sabaoth is your Father, since He has engraved your names in the palms of His Risen Son and given you His Spirit as a guarantee of His eternal love. So as you hear these words of Jesus, reestablish your allegiance to your benevolent Master who provides all things necessary for your body and soul. Love Him. Be devoted to Him. Seek His kingdom and His righteousness, the life that He grants to you through His Son’s death and resurrection. In Him, the spans of your lives are increased by endless days. In Him, you are given clothes fitting for eternal festivities. In Him, you are fed the greatest banquet and satisfied. That is the type of Master that you have, a Master to be loved forever.


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

Sunday, February 20, 2011

Epiphany 7A Sermon -- Matthew 5:38-48 (LSB Epiphany 7A)

February 20, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“[Jesus said:] ‘You must therefore be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.’”


Perfection is a hard word. It isn’t difficult to understand. Neither is it tough to pronounce. Yet, it is hard. It’s complex. You know what it means: excellence, rightness, exactness, flawlessness. But you know that it is neither easy to find nor to accomplish. And yet, that is what the Lord Jesus requires of you: “You must therefore be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”


Jesus’ statement is not novel. It is very similar to what the Lord demanded of His people in the Old Testament: “And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: ‘Speak to all the congregation of the people of Israel and say to them, You shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy. . . .’” The concept is the same. The Lord has a certain character, and His people are to share it: He is holy; therefore, His people are to be holy. Likewise with Jesus’ statement: the heavenly Father is perfect; therefore, His children are to be perfect.


But how is this so? How does one exhibit perfection? That is what the Lord declared through Moses and what Jesus taught on the Sermon on the Mount. The Lord’s statements given to His people by Moses showed what the Israelites were to do. He gave prescriptions about their behavior: harvesting regulations, business ethics, social mores, procedures of jurisprudence. These commandments would govern the entirety of their communal life. Abiding by them, the people of Israel would reflect the Lord’s character to the world: they would be holy, as He is holy. The people were set apart from all the other nations in the world; their everyday lives would show that fact.


Raised in that faith, the Psalmist longs for the holiness that the Lord established. He knew the prescriptions given by the Lord through Moses. So he prayed to be shaped by them: “Lead me in the path of Your commandments, for I delight in it. Incline my heart to Your testimonies, and not to selfish gain! Turn my eyes from looking at worthless things; and give me life in Your ways.” The Psalmist’s desire was to be holy as his Lord is holy. His life was meant to reflect his Lord’s character. Salvation is found in what was spoken to him: “Turn away the reproach that I dread, for Your just decrees are good. Behold, I long for Your precepts; in Your righteousness give me life!”


Jesus preaches the same to His hearers. Like the Israelites of old, the disciples hear what is required of them. Jesus shows them the character of the Lord that their lives are to reflect. So He says: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” Jesus’ statement sets a high bar for His disciples, just as the Lord did through Moses for the Israelites. Their behavior will show the heavenly Father’s perfection to the world.


What does that behavior look like? It was what you have heard the past several weeks in the Gospel Readings from the Sermon on the Mount. But it culminates with a great command to do what is extraordinary in this world: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you.” You and all of Jesus’ disciples are called to exhibit love to those who are opposed to you. You are not to consider whether an individual is friend or foe before acting for their benefit. No, your behavior is to resemble that of your Father in heaven. By your actions, you make known your identity as His children.


Recall what Jesus said about your Father in heaven: “He makes His sun rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the just and the unjust.” When dealing with His creation, the Father cares for it all. He does not send temporal blessings to His people only. No, the care for His creation is granted to all, whether they fear, love, and trust in Him above all things or not. His care is not like irrigation or greenhouse lamps that provide water and light to specific fields or plants. Instead, the Father’s providence is given to people as a whole, no matter their thoughts about Him. That compassion and generosity which the Father shows to the world is what should be seen in your actions. So you meet what Jesus’ declares: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”


Jesus’ statements about loving enemies and praying for persecutors is followed up by comparisons to the way other people behave: “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? And if you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same?” Tax collectors and Gentiles are not used as positive examples. No, they stand for all those who are opposed to righteousness and justice. They are not the “sons of your Father who is in heaven.” So what they do should not be your expected behavior. Loving friends and greeting relatives: that’s nothing. An adman may say: “It’s so easy, even a caveman can do it.” That type of behavior is the way of the world. But you have been set apart, given a new identity, so what you do should reflect that.


The identity that you have been given is from “your Father who is in heaven.” You have been made His children. St. Paul puts it this way: “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you? . . . God’s temple is holy, and you are that temple. . . . You are Christ’s, and Christ is God’s.” You are not like the tax collectors and Gentiles, because you have been made something greater. The Lord has made you holy, setting you apart from the other nations of this world. It isn’t an earthly citizenship. No, you are His people in this world and the next.


But how was that identity given? It was through the Father’s actions in sending His Son to be your Savior. In fact, what He did is what He calls you to do. Remember Jesus’ words: “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” That is what Jesus does, just as His Father wills it. It is what the Father accomplishes through His Son for you. You were enemies of God. You were separated from Him and His righteousness. You were under His curse. By nature, you knew nothing of His good will. You were rebellious against His order, against His commandments. And still, the Father sends His Son to redeem you. The Father in heaven loved you, His enemies. He reconciled you to Himself through His Son’s actions to redeem you, spending His capital to make you His people.


That generosity is extended further to you. It is seen in what you are given in the Church. Forgiveness of sins is granted when you ask for it. You beg and ask, and your Father in heaven answers you. You seek life—both temporal and eternal—and your Father provides it. He does not do so in exchange for goods or out of reward. No, it is given without any merit or worthiness in you or me. That is your Father’s character. He acts consistently with His identity.


So Jesus instructs you to act. Live in the identity that has been granted to you: “Give to the one who begs from you, and do not refuse the one who would borrow from you.” Those are actions consistent with what you are: God’s children. You have begged and borrowed from Him and He has answered your pleas. When the same is asked of you, the response should be like that of your Father in heaven: “He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust.” By so giving, by so loving, you show yourself to be His children. You are perfect as He is perfect.


That is the heart of Jesus’ words that conclude this section of the Sermon on the Mount. As you follow Jesus’ teachings, so you should abide by these statements. That abiding is not how you are made righteous before God. No, that is what He has done for you. Your works do not make you God’s children: they are the result of His adopting you to be His children, taking you from sinfulness and fault to holiness and perfection. But now in this world, you are given the opportunity to lead the lives that He has bestowed to you. Everything that you do is to show off your identity to the world, to display your sonship. It is what Jesus began with in the Sermon on the Mount: “Let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”


This is the point made by Paul to the Corinthians: “According to the grace of God given to me, like a skilled master builder I laid a foundation, and someone else is building upon it. Let each one take care how he builds upon it. For no one can lay a foundation other than that which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.” You are built on the foundation of Christ’s death and resurrection. That is what made you sons of your Father in heaven. But what you build on top of that foundation matters: “If the work that anyone has built on the foundation survives, he will receive a reward. If anyone’s work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire.” The work that endures is the fulfillment of what Jesus teaches in the Sermon on the Mount, summarized in His statement: “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”


What Jesus declares about you is actually so: you are the sons of the Father in heaven. So you also are God’s temples, the ones in whom the Holy Spirit dwells and through whom He works. You are holy, set apart and differentiated from the other people in this world, just as your Father is holy and different. Let His character shine forth in your lives, acting like He does. Built on the foundation of His Son, Jesus Christ, and empowered by the Holy Spirit, you will. Then what is true about your identity in this earthly life—that you are children of your Father in heaven—will be seen as true in life of the world to come.


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

Sunday, February 13, 2011

Epiphany 6A Sermon -- Matthew 5:21-37 (LSB Epiphany 6A)

February 13, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


[Jesus said:] “You have heard that it was said to those of old. . . . But I tell you. . . .”


In days of old, Moses spoke the Lord’s Covenant to the people of Israel, as you heard in the Old Testament Reading. Before the Israelites took possession of the Land of Canaan, Moses repeats the Covenant to them. They are to remember it, to keep it, as they receive the promise that the Lord had made to them. The Covenant spells out the Lord’s good and gracious will for His people. He desires them to have life in His presence—both now and for eternity.


Moses’ statement summarized this for the people: “See, I have set before you today life and good, death and evil.” The life and good will be found in the Lord’s words spoken to His people: “If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in His ways, and by keeping His commandments and His statutes and His just decrees, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.” Obedience to the Lord will be seen in loving Him, walking in His ways, and keeping what He says. These are more than matters of action and deed; they are matters of faith and the heart.


Likewise, the way of death is also a matter of faith and the heart: “But if your heart turns away, and you will not hear, but are drawn away to worship other gods and serve them, I declare to you today, that you shall surely perish. You shall not live long in the land that you are going over the Jordan to enter and possess.” As faith moves away from the Lord and His ways to other gods and other desires, the Israelites will suffer death. They will experience the Lord’s curse. They will be cut off from the life that the Lord has to give. So Moses says: “Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying His voice and holding fast to Him, for He is your life and length of days, that you may dwell in the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give them.”


This key point that life in the Lord is a matter of faith and the heart, not just a matter of action and deed, leads to Jesus’ statements in the Sermon on the Mount. Jesus presents various commands, statutes, and just decrees that the Lord had spoken: “You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment. . . . You shall not commit adultery. . . . Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce. . . . You shall not swear falsely, but shall perform to the Lord what you have sworn.” These are all words that had been spoken to the Israelites of old. They set good and evil before the people. Adherence to what the Lord says will lead to life; variance from these commands will lead to death.


But what does that adherence require? What is the full extent of these commandments? That is what Jesus puts before the people. His teaching does not simply repeat the letter of the Law. No, it shows what the Lord desires to find in the hearts of His people, what “keeping His commandments and His statutes and His just decrees” really means.


Take the first of Jesus’ statements: “You have heard that it was said to those of old, ‘You shall not murder; and whoever murders will be liable to judgment.’ But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, ‘You fool!’ will be liable to the hell of fire.” Obedience of the Fifth Commandment is more than not taking someone’s life. Jesus shows that it includes what you think about your brother: hatred is murder; insults drawn from that hatred is murder; words spoken against him is murder. So much for keeping the commandment by not taking a neighbor’s life! The evil that comes from your heart and soul, yet never gets put into action, makes you liable.


So it is with the next commandment: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. . . . It was also said, ‘Whoever divorces his wife, let him give her a certificate of divorce.’ But I say to you that everyone who divorces his wife, except on the ground of sexual immorality, makes her commit adultery. And whoever marries a divorced woman commits adultery.” The Law is more stringent than the actual act of adultery. No, lust—a matter of the heart—leads to transgressing this commandment. Breaking the marital arrangement is a sin that causes others to sin. Jesus makes this point clear: “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.” Surely, something that brings the potential of hellfire is sinful, evil, and deserving of curse!


Jesus’ teaching about oaths continues this thought: “I say to you, Do not take an oath at all, either by heaven, for it is the throne of God, or by the earth, for it is His footstool, or by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. And do not take an oath by your head, for you cannot make one hair white or black. Let what you say be simply ‘Yes’ or ‘No’; anything more than this comes from evil.” The issue is not simply the matter of swearing falsely or lying. No, the sin is compounded by taking an oath against what is not yours, arrogating to yourself heaven, earth, Jerusalem, or the ability to change your body. These are the province of the Lord Himself; thinking that you have power or control over them is to make yourself out to be God—a prideful transgression of the First Commandment: “You shall have no other gods before Me.”


Jesus’ teaching points out the full meaning of what Moses set forth as the way of life: “If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you today, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in His ways, and by keeping His commandments and His statutes and His just decrees, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land that you are entering to take possession of it.” His words show that it is not found in you. For you are violate of these commandments. Consider what Jesus declared. Anger, hatred, lust, pride: these all come out of your hearts. Even your thoughts are capable of sin. It is why you confess: “We have sinned against you in thought, word, and deed.”


But the One who spoke about the fullness of the Lord’s Law also fulfills it. The Psalmist declared: “Blessed are those whose way is blameless, who walk in the law of the Lord! Blessed are those who keep His testimonies, who seek Him with their whole heart, who also do no wrong, but walk in His ways!” This speaks of Jesus’ character. He is the One who said: Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. . . . Whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” But not only does Jesus fulfill the Law by loving the Lord your God, by walking in His ways, and by keeping His commandments and His statutes and His just decrees,” He offers Himself for you. Jesus fulfills for you what the Prophet says: “They made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, and there was no deceit in His mouth.” By doing so, Jesus becomes the source of life for you.


That is the key point of Jesus’ statements. He doesn’t simply give you a moral teaching for you to follow. Certainly, you should follow them. The Psalmist’s words should be your desire: You have commanded Your precepts to be kept diligently. Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping Your statutes! Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all Your commandments.” But before this be your desire, you must have Jesus as your Lord and source of life. You must receive what He gives to you through His pure thoughts, words, and deeds. That is what brings you into the kingdom of heaven. It is also what transforms your hearts, minds, and souls from loving of evil to desirous of good.


Moses’ words show that salvation is not found in you, but is found in the Lord: “Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying His voice and holding fast to Him, for He is your life and length of days. . . .” Obeying His voice and holding fast to Him will include truly believing what Jesus says about Himself and His acts of salvation to you. Jesus brings you the righteousness that exceeds the Pharisees and scribes, even the righteousness demanded by the Lord’s Law. Obeying His voice and holding fast to Him includes trusting that He connects you to His death and resurrection through Holy Baptism, that He brings you the merits of His sacrifice in the Lord’s Supper, that He forgives you through the words of absolution. Through these divine acts done for you, you receive the benefits of Him who is your life. So the prayer offered this morning is answered: “O Lord, graciously hear the prayers of Your people that we who justly suffer the consequence of our sin may be mercifully delivered by Your goodness to the glory of Your name.”


Restored by Jesus’ actions, you go out from here striving to do what is required of you. The Psalmist’s prayer becomes yours: You have commanded Your precepts to be kept diligently. Oh that my ways may be steadfast in keeping Your statutes!” Your deeds will not be perfect. Your words will not be innocent. Your thoughts will not be chaste. But you do have the desire to fulfill what the Lord demands. Your imperfect efforts will be considered to be righteous because of what He has done for you. Choose life, not in what you have done, but in what Jesus has done for you, who are “God’s field, God’s building.” Then, what the Psalmist says will be true for you: “Then I shall not be put to shame, having my eyes fixed on all Your commandments.”


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

Sunday, February 6, 2011

Epiphany 5A Sermon -- Matthew 5:13-20 (LSB Epiphany 5A)

February 6, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


[Jesus said]: “I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.”


The bar to entry into the kingdom of heaven has been set very high. It is what the Lord’s Law spells out. Righteousness is required. That is found by fulfilling the Law of God. The Psalmist declared: Blessèd is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments!” Fearing the Lord and delighting in His commandments requires that an individual would recognize His authority and obey His instructions.


That bar to entry presents a problem. For the history of mankind does not present a long record of fulfilling the Lord’s commandments. Instead, the opposite is seen—whether the whole of human history is considered or the lifespan of individuals. This has been true from the very beginning of human life. No matter if the Lord’s commandments have been few or many, His creatures have not obeyed them. And yet, people want to have entry into the kingdom of heaven. They desire to have a share of the greatness that the Lord has.


But instead of acknowledging their fault and recognizing their guilt, humanity has devised ways to convince themselves that they have fulfilled the Lord’s commands. This is the situation that Jesus addresses in the portion of the Sermon on the Mount that you heard this morning. Jesus attempts to correct this type of thinking. He must do so, because the deception of self-righteousness leads nowhere except to eternal condemnation. It drives people away from the Lord and His perfection to themselves and their inabilities.


Jesus begins His corrective teaching by telling His disciples that the Law of God is valid and binding: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” His statement shows that the Law of God cannot be set aside. It is in effect “until heaven and earth pass away.” Nothing will be set aside or disappear. Every little bit—“not an iota, not a dot”—stands until a new heaven and new earth arrives, just as the Lord promised.


Such a statement must be heard by humanity in every age. It must be heard by you. Those words of Jesus tell you about righteousness: the Lord’s commandments are the standard now, just as they were when He first spoke them. If you would know what righteousness is, you can look to what the Lord says. If you would know what is required of you, what your Creator demands of you, you can look to what the Lord says. You cannot set those words aside. You cannot say that they are just something spoken to a particular time or a particular culture. No, “until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” That great cosmic event has yet to happen: the heavens and earth are still here. So what the Lord commanded concerning love of Him and love of neighbor still is valid.


But that Law of God is unrelenting. It always accuses. It always shows your faults. It always reveals your imperfection. And you don’t like that, just like your ancestors didn’t. Righteousness is not found in you, but you want what the Lord presents to those who are righteous. That dilemma leads to people attempting to relax His Law, to take out some of those iotas and dots, so that the lessened requirements can be met. But that simply puts up the veneer of righteousness, a surface level appearance of perfection. Trust in that is the delusion of self-righteousness—achieving a right relationship with the Lord due to your actions.


This was the way of the Pharisees. They had the Law of God. They knew the iotas and dots. But instead of being bound by them, they invented new ones—iotas and dots of their choosing and their capabilities. The Pharisees had many rules and regulations. These were related to the Lord’s Law. But instead of being all-encompassing and demanding of obedience in thought, word, and deed, their rules and regulations were externally achievable. And the Pharisees were teaching that fulfillment of their rules and regulations gained entry into the kingdom of heaven.


This delusion of self-righteousness is what Jesus alludes to: “Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least of these commandments and teaches others to do the same will be called least in the kingdom of heaven, but whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” The Pharisees’ practices and teachings appeared to be placing extra demands. But in reality, what they were doing was relaxing the Lord’s commandments. And they were teaching people to do the same. It is a lesson that has unfortunately been learned well by people in many generations.


But Jesus stands in contrast to the Pharisees and those who would relax the Lord’s commandments and teach that the amended way is the path to entry into the kingdom of heaven. That is why He says: “For I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” Jesus compares the righteousness that the scribes and Pharisees were peddling to what the Lord’s Law demanded. The righteousness accomplished by obedience to the teachings of the scribes and Pharisees was surface level. The externals looked good. The appearance is of holiness. But when the stringent demands of every iota and dot of the Lord’s Law was applied, there was no true righteousness to be found.


Instead of following the humanly-crafted ways of the Pharisees, Jesus takes the people back to what the Lord declared. That is why He says: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” Jesus is telling His disciples that He isn’t a Rabbi who is just putting forward His own devised way of righteousness. No, His purpose, His reason for being present in this world, is to fulfill every single thing that the Law and the Prophets set forth. He says: “Whoever does them and teaches them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven.” And with those words, Jesus testifies about Himself. He will obey every requirement of the Lord’s Law and He will teach His disciples about all the iotas and dots.


That is what the Sermon on the Mount is all about. Jesus goes through a long teaching of what the Lord requires. He will not substitute lesser commands for what came from the Lord’s mouth. Rather, He will show what the basic letter of the Law demands and what the full requirements of the Law are. And yet, Jesus does not give that teaching to His disciples as a path to salvation. Instead, He will give His disciples details of what He will accomplish, a sort of forward-looking résumé.


The Sermon on the Mount is a statement of Jesus’ righteousness, a righteousness that stems from His own obedience of everything that the Lord demands. Jesus’ righteousness will exceed that of the scribes and the Pharisees because He does the Lord’s commandments and teaches them. So He fulfills the demanding statement: “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” He is the One who will be called “great in the kingdom of heaven.” He is the man that the Psalmist described: Blessèd is the man who fears the Lord, who greatly delights in His commandments!”


Jesus reveals this, so that you and all His disciples will not be deluded into self-righteousness. He takes you away from the misguided attempts to try to enter the kingdom of heaven by what you do. Even more so, Jesus drives the thought of attempting to devise your own checklist of rules and regulations and calling them the way of your salvation. There will be no clever gate-crashing the kingdom of heaven by loosening or molding the commandments.


The criterion will remain: “Unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” But that is exactly what Jesus has. His statement is to move you away from yourselves and the appearance of obedience to Himself and the reality of His total perfection. You cannot attain a righteousness that exceeds that of the scribes and the Pharisees, but you can have what Jesus possesses. That is what Jesus bestows upon His disciples—those whom He calls to believe in His identity and work.


Jesus’ righteousness is what you have received. The Lord gives it to you because of Jesus’ work. It is given to you through His words that reveal who Jesus is and what He has accomplished for you through His perfect life, sacrificial death, and glorious resurrection. It is what the Holy Spirit brings to you, just as the Apostle Paul declared: “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual.” Because of what Jesus has done, you have entry into the kingdom of heaven granted freely to you.


Hearing what Jesus says about the righteousness required to enter the kingdom of heaven, you know that it isn’t found in you. But you now know that it is found in Jesus and what He has done. And so, you can hear His other words from the Sermon on the Mount—“You are the salt of the earth. . . . You are the light of the world.”—and know that they are true because of the righteousness that Jesus gives to you. For that is what makes you heirs of the kingdom of heaven. It is what brings you a new life, causing “your light to shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.” This isn’t caused by what you are, but what Jesus has made you. Living in the righteousness that He possesses, you are renewed and given a new identity.


Like the Lord’s commandments, Jesus’ words still stand true today: I tell you, unless your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven.” But thankfully, there is One who has that righteousness and grants it to you: your Lord Jesus Christ who has fulfilled the Law and the Prophets on your behalf. Trust in Him and receive the benefits of what He has done, and the Lord will grant you a place in the kingdom of heaven because of it.


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

Wednesday, February 2, 2011

February 2011 Parish Letter

“Almighty and ever-living God, as Your only-begotten Son was this day presented in the temple in the substance of our flesh, grant that we may be presented to You with pure and clean hearts; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.”

[Collect for the Presentation of Our Lord]


February 2 marks a somewhat forgotten event in Jesus’ life: His presentation to God in the Temple at Jerusalem. Forty days after His birth, Jesus is taken to the Temple. The Lord’s Law demanded that every first-born male living thing be presented to Him. This law applies to the infant Jesus. All first-born Hebrew males belonged to the Lord who saved them from dying on the Passover Night in Egypt. But instead of keeping all those first-born boys as His priests, the Lord set apart the tribe of Levi. Other Hebrew boys could be redeemed—bought back from the Lord for five silver shekels.


Mary and Joseph fulfilled this custom of the Law, presenting Jesus to God. Even as an infant, Jesus is obeying the Law of God—every little part of it. Yet we have no record of Jesus being redeemed with silver. Rather, Jesus is set apart to be a servant of the Lord, to do His will: the reason He came to earth. Jesus will not be bought back from God. Instead, He will give His life to be a ransom for others, buying them back from sin, death, and Satan.


This presentation is different than all the others ever made by Hebrew parents. Different because of the identity of this forty-day old Infant is. Different in purpose and scope Different in what it accomplishes. This is no ordinary Hebrew baby in Jerusalem, but is God-incarnate entering His own Temple. He comes, not to be bought back from God like the other boys, but to present Himself as the Promised One ready to serve the Lord and to redeem His people.


It is the unique nature of this Presentation that causes Simeon to be there in the Temple. His presence is the fulfillment of another divine promise. He will give another testimony of the divine nature and office that Jesus holds, even in His infancy. Simeon’s presence will show that this is an unusual presentation of a baby like no other. St. Luke tells us that Simeon had a divine promise: “It had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, when the parents brought in the Child Jesus, to do for Him according to the custom of the Law.”(Lk 2:26-27)


What did Simeon see? An infant being carried by His mother. And yet, it is to this Child that Simeon is drawn. Only faith in God and His words would lead Simeon to this Child. Only the Spirit would lead him to testify about this Child: “Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, according to Your word; for my eyes have seen Your salvation that You have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to Your people Israel.”(Lk 2:29-32) This Child would fulfill the Old Testament and all of its promises of redemption, leading Gentiles out of the darkness of not truly knowing God and giving help to the children of Abraham who believed like their patriarch did.


For us, this infant Jesus is our salvation. What He accomplished for us on that day and throughout His life is the fulfillment of the Law that we could not keep. The Law our forefathers broke, the Law we have transgressed, the Law our descendants will never keep in totality. Christ’s Presentation in the Temple consecrates Himself to the purpose of redeeming and saving us.


Instead of paying the ransom to be bought from God, Jesus presents Himself to the Lord’s service. He presents Himself to be the Priest of priests, serving God for eternity. He presents Himself as our ransom, not to be bought from God, but to be bought for God. The price is paid not with silver coins, but with the high price of His own suffering and death. The same day that Mary offers up a sacrifice to be made clean, Jesus offers Himself to God to be the sacrifice to redeem all people from the uncleanliness of sin.


The Epistle to the Hebrews describes this work of Christ: “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery.”(Heb 2:14-15) By dying and rising from death, Christ rendered powerless the one who only had the power of death: Satan himself. Jesus was made like us in all things to make propitiation for our sins. He became truly human, subject to and fulfilling all the Lord’s laws, so that He could redeem us and make us His own. Now, in God’s heavenly temple, Jesus is the High Priest constantly making intercession for us.


Even as an infant, Christ was at work to purify us, so that our worship of the Lord will be proper and pure. He has shone the light of truth and salvation upon us, the people who dwelt in darkness. Jesus was presented in the Temple as the Lord’s own to serve Him; now Jesus presents us to His Father so that we, too, may be called holy and serve Him. So we are conformed to Christ’s image so that He may be the first-born among many brothers.


As Christ’s brothers and sisters, we put our trust in Him and what He has done for us—trust and faith that only the Holy Spirit can provide. We believe that He is the Almighty Lord, even as a lowly infant. We believe in His promises that He makes to us: the promise that He has made us His own, holy people through Baptism; the promise that His holy Body and Blood are present in the Eucharist and grant us the forgiveness of sins; the promise that He is our great High Priest, interceding for us before the high altar in the heavenly Temple; the promise that He has fulfilled all things for us, reopening the gates of Paradise to all who believe in Him.


The trust and faith that we have in Jesus Christ allows Simeon’s words to become ours. Led by the Holy Spirit, we confess that Jesus is our Lord. We ask Him to let us depart in peace, according to His word. We know the salvation He prepared before all people. We confess that He is the light to lighten the Gentiles and the glory of Israel. That light and glory is what we will eternally behold. For what is promised to us is not to see an Infant like Simeon did. Rather, we will see our Lord Jesus Christ presented to all the world in His Temple as the King of Creation and Judge of all.