Sunday, April 24, 2011

Easter Day Sermon -- Matthew 28:1-10 (LSB Easter A)

April 24, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“But the angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead, and behold, He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see Him. See, I have told you.’”


The women went to Jesus’ tomb early. Just as the rays of sunrise shone over the Palestinian landscape, these two women traveled the sorrowful road to where their loved one, Jesus, was laid: “Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to see the tomb.” They walked the same path that their ancestors had done before. Generation after generation had seen the tombs of their dead relatives: grandparents, parents, even children. These women knew what to expect, what they were going to behold. Visiting a tomb was a sorrowful, yet ordinary, part of their lives.


But this time, the tomb visit is quite different. Strange events had taken place at Jesus’ tomb: “And behold, there was a great earthquake, for an angel of the Lord descended from heaven and came and rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothing white as snow.” This is no ordinary grave visitor! The angel’s appearance caused great fright, even among hardened soldiers: “And for fear of him the guards trembled and became like dead men.” And now the angel’s gaze was focused on the women who came to grieve and mourn Jesus’ death.


But what does the angel say? “The angel said to the women, ‘Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.’” The angel knows why the women are there. Their motive is not kept secret. They are present to mourn the dead, “Jesus who was crucified.” The angel is not present to do them any harm. The women are not to fear because they are connected to Jesus. They are His followers. No, they are covered by the blood of the slain Paschal Lamb that makes them people of God: “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified.”


Yet, the angel has a message for the women: “He is not here, for He has risen, as He said.” They had come to visit the tomb of the crucified Jesus, but the tomb is empty: “Come, see the place where He lay.” Nothing is in the tomb. There is no body to see, no rotting corpse. Jesus is risen, just as He said and the Scriptures had prophesied: “You will not abandon My soul to Sheol, or let Your Holy One see corruption.” Only three stone walls and an empty slab can be seen by Mary Magdalene and the other Mary. And with that mourning is turned into gladness and joy: “So they departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples.”


But the joy that these women had was not to be theirs alone. No, the angel had given instructions to them: “Come, see the place where He lay. Then go quickly and tell His disciples that He has risen from the dead, and behold, He is going before you to Galilee; there you will see Him.” Mary Magdalene and the other Mary were to repeat what they had heard and seen. They had a witness to bear, a witness that was enhanced by seeing the Risen Redeemer with their own eyes: “And behold, Jesus met them and said, ‘Greetings!’ And they came up and took hold of His feet and worshiped Him. Then Jesus said to them, ‘Do not be afraid; go and tell My brothers to go to Galilee, and there they will see Me.’” Jesus’ disciples and Jesus’ brothers were to see Him alive again. They were not to go to visit the tomb of their loved one, for it was empty!


That testimony is what the nations have been given to receive. Jesus lives, and His disciples are to know that. Jesus lives, and others are to hear that, so they may believe and receive life for themselves. It is the testimony that the chief disciple Peter gives: “And we are witnesses of all that He did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree, but God raised Him on the third day and made Him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with Him after He rose from the dead.” Peter and the others would see the Risen Jesus, even up in Galilee as He said. And because of that, they learn His full identity and accomplishments: “And He commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that He is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name.”


The testimony of Peter and the disciples shows to you what Jesus truly means. It explains what took place in ancient Palestine: the Promised Savior appeared and fulfilled what was foretold about Him. With Jesus, the fate of mankind is changed. Sinful humanity is eternally cursed to die. But this time, a Man without sin dies and Himself comes out of the tomb. Death is not the end for Him. Because of His actions, death is not the end for all men. Instead, the forgiveness of sins that is received through Jesus’ name lifts the eternal nature of that curse. Those who are forgiven now have a new destiny: life beyond the grave. Their relatives will go to visit their tombs, but not only in mourning. Now there is hope, faith in what awaits: the time when there will be nothing to see in their loved ones’ tombs.


This is what Jesus has achieved for you. The witness of Peter and the disciples brings that to your knowledge. So you can say about the Lord: “You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.” The path of life has been shown to you. It is found in the way of discipleship that Jesus has established for you. That way includes dying with Him, which you already have. That way includes rising with Him, which you already have. That is what happens to you and all who are made Jesus’ disciples by being baptized into Him: your souls die and rise with Jesus, so that your bodies may die and rise with Jesus also. That is why another witness of Jesus, the apostle Paul writes: “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”


Christ is arisen and you have been raised with Him! That is the great message of this day. Without an empty tomb, there is no such joy. No, then your fate would be like this: Since you have a dead Lord, you will end up in the same place where He is; you will die and lay in a tomb for all the time that this world has. Your relatives can visit your grave, as long as your name happens to remain in their memory. That’s it. That’s all there is. But this fate is changed with the resurrection of our Lord. The angel’s declaration makes that known: “He is not here, for He has risen, as He said. Come, see the place where He lay.” See the empty tomb. Believe the prophecies that were made about Him. Believe the words that He has spoken about Himself. But also believe the promises that He has spoken about you.


Your Lord is risen and goes before you. Jesus has gone to death before you. He has gone to the grave before you. He has gone to resurrection before you. He has ascended to heaven before you. But Jesus also promises that You will see Him with your own eyes. Like Mary Magdalene and the other Mary, you also will take hold of Jesus’ feet and worship Him. Like Peter and the other disciples, you will eat and drink with Jesus. It is given in part now: you have the opportunity to praise Jesus today; you will dine at His meal this morning. But the greater part awaits you: “When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.” For you will travel the same path as Jesus—death, resurrection, and ascension to everlasting glory. And then you may see Him with your own eyes. You will become eyewitnesses of Jesus.


But until that time, you are called to receive, believe, and repeat the witness of those who did see: Jesus who was crucified is not in His grave, for He has risen, as He said. His disciples and brothers have seen Him. Risen from the grave, Jesus is the one appointed by God to be judge of the living and the dead. But there is the great promise: “To Him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins through His name.” That crucified and risen Jesus is the source of salvation for you and for all who hear the witness about Him. Receiving the testimony of Mary Magdalene, the other Mary, Peter, the Twelve, Jesus’ brothers, and those whom they sent, eternal life is yours. Repeating that witness, eternal life can be given to others.


So hear again the witness, so that you may believe and repeat it: “Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. He is not here, for He has risen, as He said.” He is not in the tomb, for He has risen, just as He said. So you also will not remain in your tombs, for you will rise with Jesus and enter through the gates to everlasting life, just as He said. And so you believe, just as it is said: “For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ who is your life appears, then you also will appear with Him in glory.”


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

Saturday, April 23, 2011

2011 Easter Vigil Homily

April 23, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“This is the Passover of the Lord in which, by hearing His Word and celebrating His Sacraments, we share in His victory over death.” Those words have been spoken to you this evening and on similar evenings in past years. They tell you what this night is all about. The words direct you not just to the past, but to the present reality. Now you hear His Word and celebrate His Sacraments. Now you share in the Lord’s victory over death.


The past is prologue, we say. And that is true. The Lord’s Word tells you what has happened in the past. By the Lord’s Word, the creation was brought into being. By the Lord’s Word, Noah was kept safe from the deluge that drowned those who were opposed to the divine will. By the Lord’s Word, Abraham was made a great nation, especially as his only son was spared from death and a ram offered in his place. By the Lord’s Word, Moses led the Hebrews out of Egypt to the other side of the Red Sea on dry ground. By the Lord’s Word, Jonah was taken from running away from his task to actively proclaiming saving repentance to Nineveh. By the Lord’s Word, Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego were kept faithful in the face of Nebuchadnezzar’s forced idolatry. All this has happened in the past. Each of these events had life given to those who heard and believed the Lord’s Word.


This night shows that you are in a long line of people who have done the same: they remembered what the Lord has said and done in the past, but also received salvation in their present time. Noah believed that the Lord who created the waters could protect him from them. Abraham believed that the Lord who spoke life into existence could bring forth an heir for him. Moses believed that the Lord who made the promise to Abraham would make a great nation out of the freed Hebrew slaves. Jonah believed that the Lord could forgive sins, even his own. Shadrach, Meschach, and Abednego believed that the Lord was greater than any false deity that mankind created. All of them shared in the life that the Lord gives through His Word of promise.


So it is for you. The past is prologue. The same Lord who spoke in the past speaks to you now. Not a new word is spoken, but an old word that has effect in this day and age. For you hear the Lord’s message of resurrection spoken to you: “Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here. See the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going before you to Galilee. There you will see Him, just as He told you.” The victory over death is seen in those words, the report of what has happened to Jesus. He died. He was buried. But He was raised from death. He is not in the tomb. He lives again. His people will see Him.


That Risen Lord’s Word is spoken. You hear it. His Sacraments—the physical acts that have the Lord’s Word that institute and empower them to bring heavenly benefit—are offered. You celebrate them. And so you share in the Lord’s victory over death. The acts of Jesus have happened in the past, but they have effects for you now. So the Apostle Paul writes: “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were buried therefore with Him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with Him in a death like His, we shall certainly be united with Him in a resurrection like His.” And he writes further: “As often as we eat this bread and drink this cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes.”


Jesus died and rose long ago, but you have died and risen with Him here and now. How is that? By being washed in the water combined with the Lord’s word and included in the Lord’s command. Jesus died and rose long ago, but you partake of His death and resurrection here and now. How is that? By eating and drinking the body and blood of Christ which are under the forms of bread and wine set apart by the Lord’s Word. In these ways, you share in His victory over death. You share in that victory by remembering what happened in the past, but receiving the benefits that are part of the present day.


The benefit that you have in this present day includes what the Lord will do for you at the close of this age. Again, past is prologue. The Lord who gives life will give you the ultimate victory over death. The women asked each other: “Who will roll away the stone for us from the entrance of the tomb?” This question was asked of Jesus’ tomb. But it will be asked about your own tomb: “Who will roll away the stone? Who will open up the vault? Who will raise my body out?” And the answer is that the Lord will—the Lord who created the stone, who drowned your sin, who gave His only Son in substitution for you, who freed you from slavery to Satan, who brought you to repentance, and who removed you from the furnace of hell. That Lord will raise you and give you everlasting life. Why? Because you have heard and believed His Word and you have celebrated His Sacraments, so you share in His victory over death.


Hear about the past. Remember what the Lord has done. But also know that He speaks about what is true for you now. Trust His promises of what awaits you in the future. Keep the joyous festival of Easter on this night, remembering that Christ has died and risen from death for you. Live in the new life that your baptisms have given you; proclaim the Lord’s death until He comes. Then look forward to when you will pass over from death to life—in both body and soul—with Christ. For you will share in the Feast of Light that has no end, the celebration of Christ’s victory over death that is meant for all who hear and believe His Word.


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

Friday, April 22, 2011

2011 Good Friday Sermon

April 22, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“Come, let us return to the Lord, for He has torn us, that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live before Him.”


The Lord has torn us and struck us down again. It is deserved, for we have sinned much and angered Him. His wrath concerning sin is shown. That is the truth that the Church confesses on this day. It is why we are here to commemorate Good Friday. The wrath of God concerning sin—your sin, our sin—is shown. It brings death. This is the fate for those who ignore and disobey His commands. It was so from the beginning, when He spoke: “In the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.” The sentence of death has been given against all who sinned. It has been declared by the Lord’s messengers: “I have hewn them by the prophets; I have slain them by the words of My mouth, and My judgment goes forth as the light.”


The Lord’s words go forth from His mouth and speak against you. His words speak rightly: “You have broken My Law. You have sinned. I have measured you and found you wanting. I find guilt all throughout you. Your record of life disgusts Me. Your desires are unholy. Your actions are horrendous. Your words are profane and unclean. There is no good in you. There is nothing in you of any worth or value. Away with you! Get out of My sight! You shall surely die!”


The Lord has torn us and struck us down with those words. So we say rightly the words of the Psalter: “Your wrath lies heavy upon me, and You overwhelm me with all Your waves. . . . Your wrath has swept over me; Your dreadful assaults destroy me. . . . As when one plows and breaks up the earth, so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol. . . . ” It is the deserved fate. It is the rightful wage of sin. It is the judgment and sentence that is spoken against all who do not keep the Lord’s Law.


But the truth of this day is that the divine wrath against sin is actually displayed in what happens to Jesus. Note what takes place to Him: flogging, beating, mocking, piercing, hanging in agony. The words of the Psalter describe this: “My God, my God, why have You forsaken me?” And further: “O Lord, why do You cast my soul away? Why do You hide Your favor from me?” The favor of God is turned off, hidden from Jesus’ face. And in Jesus, mankind was torn and struck down. The Innocent and Righteous One is punished.


Why is this so? Because the Lord is righteous and just, but also gracious and merciful. He does not lie about His Law. His words stand true. Death will come to those who are sinful. Capital crimes will bring capital punishment. Wrath will be visited upon sinful humanity. And yet, it is Jesus who faces it. Why? Because He stands in your place: “He was wounded for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned every one to his own way; and the Lord has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.” A Substitute is given for you, a Scapegoat that bears your sin and iniquity.


See the Crucified Christ. There is the One who bears your sin, who suffers in your stead, who is punished for your guilt. The Second Adam dies in place of the First Adam and for you, his offspring. Jesus is torn and struck down, so that you may be healed and bound up. What the Lord says is also true: “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. Yet it was the will of the Lord to crush Him; He has put Him to grief; when His soul makes an offering for sin, He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in His hand.” In this act, death is visited upon Jesus for you and new life is given as a result.


Yet, Jesus’ actions as your substitute continue beyond Good Friday. Jesus was the Victim, but now He is also the Victor. He bore your sin and iniquity, and His Father honors Him because of it. His willing obedience is recognized in resurrection: “Although He was a Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered. And being made perfect, He became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey Him.” Remember the words you heard: “After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live before Him.” So it is with Jesus. He dies, but is revived. He is buried, but is raised up. In Him, mankind lives in righteousness before the Lord.


So the apostle writes: “For the love of Christ controls us, because we have concluded this: that One has died for all, therefore all have died; and He died for all, that those who live might no longer live for themselves but for Him who for their sake died and was raised.” Jesus’ receipt of punishment becomes the reason to love Him. We recognize Him as Lord and Master. But we also cherish Him as Savior and Redeemer. Because of His work, we are delivered from the divine wrath that we deserve. We make the same statement as Pilate did about Jesus: “I find no guilt in Him.” What He deserved, we get instead: “In Christ God was reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them. . . . For our sake He made Him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.”


Once again, the divine invitation full of promise is given to us: “Come, let us return to the Lord, for He has torn us, that He may heal us; He has struck us down, and He will bind us up. After two days He will revive us; on the third day He will raise us up, that we may live before Him.” Believing in what Jesus has done for us, we answer it. We have come in our penitence and humility. We have come to hear what the Lord has graciously done for us who deserve nothing good. We trust that the same Lord who has torn us and struck us down heals and binds us up, so that we may live before Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness.


That is why we come to commemorate Good Friday. The day is meant for us to see what our sinfulness has earned, how it should be treated and confronted by the Lord’s holiness. We admit our guilt and speak of divine wrath. But this day also shows us what Jesus has finished and completed for us. We cling to the good fate that He provides for us through His death. Jesus spoke the psalm’s words: “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” But the same psalm speaks just as truthfully about Him: “I will tell of Your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will praise You: You who fear the Lord, praise Him! All you offspring of Jacob, glorify Him, and stand in awe of Him, all you offspring of Israel! For He has not despised or abhorred the affliction of the afflicted, and He has not hidden His face from him, but has heard, when he cried to Him.” We praise and honor Jesus who was condemned for our sake, so that we might be freed from condemnation.


And so the psalm’s prophecy is fulfilled: “All the ends of the earth shall remember and turn to the Lord, and all the families of the nations shall worship before You. . . . Posterity shall serve Him; it shall be told of the Lord to the coming generation; they shall come and proclaim His righteousness to a people yet unborn, that He has done it.” We have come and proclaimed Christ’s righteousness. We are again reconciled to God. We will go home justified because of what our Substitute Savior has accomplished for us. The Perfect has been given for us, the imperfect. The sentence of death is set aside. The declaration of pardon and forgiveness is heard in its place: “He trusts in the Lord; let Him deliver him; let Him rescue him, for He delights in him!” Delivered we are, since the Lord now delights in us because of the death of Jesus, whose words about our salvation stand eternally true: “It is finished.”


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

Sunday, April 17, 2011

Palm Sunday Sermon -- John 12:1-43 (LSB Palm Sunday)

April 17, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“The crowd that had been with Jesus when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised Him from the dead continued to bear witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet Him was that they heard He had done this sign. . . . When Jesus had said these things, He departed and hid Himself from them. Though He had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in Him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.”


You heard two statements about belief from St. John’s Gospel. The crowd comes to see Jesus when He arrives to enter Jerusalem. Why? “The reason why the crowd went to meet Him was that they had heard He had done this sign.” They had heard about the raising of Lazarus done in Bethany. Witnesses of the event tell the people of the city about this amazing act. The Passover pilgrim crowds believe the reports, and so they spill out of the city gates to await Jesus’ arrival. But after the parade, when the pomp and circumstance is over, Jesus teaches the same crowd in the Temple. He tells them: “I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself.” This dead-raising Jesus tells the people that He Himself will die. And that will lead to the other statement about belief—or lack thereof: “Though He had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in Him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.”


It is notable what John describes about the crowds’ unbelief and why it is seen. The events taking place around the city of Jerusalem were full of signs meant to create and affirm faith in those who see them. Jesus had recently performed some, including two that you have heard of the past two Sundays. He gives sight to a blind man and raises Lazarus from death. And another sign is given at the beginning of Palm Sunday. Remember how our service began with Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem: “Jesus found a young donkey and sat on it, just as it is written, ‘Fear not, daughter of Zion, behold, your king is coming, sitting on a donkey's colt!’” By climbing on a donkey and riding it into the Holy City, Jesus fulfills a long-standing prophecy meant to identify the divinely-promised king that the Lord’s people should receive.


The people don’t miss that sign. Recall what the crowds’ actions and their shouts of joy were: “They took branches of palm trees and went out to meet Him, crying out, ‘Hosanna! Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord, even the King of Israel!’” What a response to a Man traveling on a donkey colt. What could cause them to say this? Who calls a burro-riding individual a king? Those who link the words of the prophet to what their eyes see do: sign predicted, sign fulfilled, sign believed.


The crowds’ reaction to seeing Jesus is also helped by what they had heard about His works in Bethany days before. Jesus had brought a dead man to life, a dead man that many in the crowd had known. Remember last week, how you heard that “many Jews from Jerusalem had come to Bethany to mourn” with Mary and Martha. They went out to the Jerusalem suburbs to show their sympathy. But while they were there, they saw the sign performed by Jesus, and now they were there to welcome Him to Jerusalem: “The crowd that had been with Him when He called Lazarus out of the tomb and raised Him from the dead continued to bear witness. The reason why the crowd went to meet Him was that they heard He had done this sign.” Once again, a matter of seeing a sign and believing.


But all of this changes. It changes when the signs that Jesus says He will do are not so dramatic and not so impressive. His words begin to confuse and confound. He tells them what will happen, but it is not expected. A triumphant king, a dead-raising miracle worker: the crowds can get behind that. They want to support and believe in that. But Jesus’ prophetic words, the sign that He gives, is less-than-inspiring: “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit.”


Jesus says that He will be glorified. But right after that talks about dying. The statement about grain dying isn’t a non sequitur. He adds to it the description of the seed these words: “Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.” Even more, Jesus adds talk about judgment and even more mention of death: “Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to Myself.”


And when these messages strike their ears, the crowds’ moods swing wildly. There is a change in their response. No more “Hosanna!” No more welcoming the King. No more wild palm waving and cheering. Instead, there is surprise, disbelief, even disappointment. You heard how the people reacted: “Though He had done so many signs before them, they still did not believe in Him, so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfilled.” This would not do. This can’t be Jesus’ destiny. The Messiah isn’t supposed to suffer and die, is He?


Well, actually He is. It’s what Isaiah mentioned in his prophecy about the Christ. The words are placed in the Messiah’s mouth: “The Lord God has opened My ear, and I was not rebellious; I turned not backward. I gave My back to those who strike, and My cheeks to those who pull out the beard; I hid not My face from disgrace and spitting.” Suffering, even death itself, is the destiny of the Messiah. It’s what the Lord has laid out for His Servant to do, to undergo.


But for those who only want the spectacular, the magnificent, the miraculous, a suffering and dying Messiah is not desirable. It isn’t logical for a Savior to suffer and die. How can one rescue people by being betrayed to die? If Jesus is to help us, then how can He be helpless? If He is disabled and killed, how is Jesus capable of anything great? This Man says that He will draw all men to Himself, but crucifixion is about the best way to drive away and lose all support.


So this teaching of Jesus isn’t believed by the crowds. In a matter of days, they will not only desert the Man from Galilee, they will actively call for His death. “Hosanna!” turns to “Crucify Him!” Without the divinely-given faith, the work of the Holy Spirit, no one would put faith in someone like the suffering Jesus. That’s what the prophet Isaiah mentioned, as St. John cited: “He has blinded their eyes and hardened their heart, lest they see with their eyes, and understand with their heart, and turn, and I would heal them.”


But not all is lost. The gospel writer includes a very important detail: “Nevertheless, many even of the authorities believed in Him.” There are people who would see the salvation that Jesus brings through His sacrificial death. The Christ does rescue and deliver by His being betrayed and killed. Through these deadly actions, you find your redemption. But this perceiving isn’t the result of intellectual calculation and reasoning that convinces. Rather, it is the work of God Himself that opens your eyes to see the greatness hidden behind the masks of weakness. That faith leads you to everlasting life.


It is the confession of that faith that you have heard earlier in the service today and which you will make later. The Church prays the words of Scripture: Christ entered once for all into the holy places, by means of His own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. Therefore He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.” By death, Jesus secures eternal redemption. By the sacrifice of Himself, the Christ mediates a new covenant. But this is not done for His profit, to save Himself; rather, it is to bestow benefits to others, including you.


If the events were only seen with your eyes, you would not believe that there is anything positive in them. But when looked upon and beheld by your enlightened minds and spirits, you see something magnificent taking place: the voluntary death of God, the substitution of a divine life for your sinful existence. Remember how St. Paul described this to the Philippians: “Though [Christ Jesus] was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”


And it is in this humbling, in this servitude, the Christ fulfills the purpose that He was born to do: “He will deliver His people from their sins.” Jesus testifies to the people: “For this purpose I have come to this hour.” Jesus humiliates Himself for you. He doesn’t count equality with God something to be clung onto and kept for Himself. Instead, He leaves it behind, so that you can have a share in it. That is what “draws all people to Himself.” Jesus even “hates His own life in this world,” so that you can have a life in eternity. By being “placed into the earth and dying, Jesus bears much fruit,” the fruit of salvation for you to partake.


Yes, there is humiliation. The illogical happens: the Savior is betrayed to others; the Lord of Life dies. But through this, Jesus is exalted: Therefore God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” The same exalted One lifts you up from sin and death to perfection and life. He gives you His name to share, so that you may rule with Him, being part of His eternal kingdom. You believe and trust in this, for it is the Lord’s will that you would be saved. And since it is the Lord’s will for you, He has given you the eyes to see beyond the surface to what is actually taking place for you.


So do not join in the unbelief of the crowd. Rely not on having to see the miraculous to believe. Be not confounded by the statements that do not make sense. Instead, lend your voices to the positive response of those who trust in what the Lord says about His Servant’s humility. Ask that you may always follow the example of Jesus’ great humility and patience and be made partakers of His resurrection. For through this, He answers your cry: “Hosanna! Save us now, Lord!” And so you can say about Jesus: “Blessed are You who humbly and obediently came in the name of the Lord, even to die and rise for me!”


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

Thursday, April 14, 2011

Lent 5 Midweek Sermon -- Psalm 43 (Lent 5H)

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


“Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!”


“Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!” The psalmist’s words fit well into Jesus’ mouth, especially during His time in the Jerusalem Temple. Jesus was teaching during the Festival of Booths, revealing Himself as the Promised Messiah. But that teaching was rejected. The people would not receive it. Instead, they began to accuse Him of lying and worse.


You heard part of the dialogue that Jesus had with the people in the Temple. As the situation ramps up toward great confrontation, Jesus says: “If God were your Father, you would love Me, for I came from God and I am here. I came not of My own accord, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I say? It is because you cannot bear to hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and your will is to do your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, and has nothing to do with the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks out of his own character, for he is a liar and the father of lies. But because I tell the truth, you do not believe Me.” Jesus’ words do not hold back any punches. It is a throw down challenge against the lies that the people believed concerning Him.


And so Jesus ratchets up the confrontation: “Which one of you convicts Me of sin? If I tell the truth, why do you not believe Me? Whoever is of God hears the words of God. The reason why you do not hear them is that you are not of God.” Here Jesus brings in the matter of judging and vindication: the people will not hear, they will not receive the truth, they will do nothing but accuse Jesus of lies. That is seen in their response: “Are we not right in saying that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?” Against this, Jesus rightly can pray: “Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!”


Can Jesus be convicted of sin? Not if He speaks the truth. Not if what He says actually is so. But conviction is what they want. They cry out for it, especially when Jesus makes the great claim about His identity and their lack of faith: “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ But you have not known Him. I know Him. If I were to say that I do not know Him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know Him and I keep His word. Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day. He saw it and was glad.” Their response is of unbelief: “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” And when Jesus reveals His eternal nature—“Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”—they will not receive it: “So they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.”


The Jews had reached their verdict. They had judged Jesus to be a fraud, a liar, a blasphemer. Now they have moved from judge and jury into executioner. Their hands are raised against Jesus. The stones are ready to be hurled. They will be done with this Man from Nazareth who has made Himself out to be God, to be greater than Abraham. No more trickery and lies for them to hear from this blasphemer. And yet, what they intend to do is actually full of deceit and injustice. They are the ungodly people who do not hear the words of God spoken directly to them. Rightly Jesus can say: “Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!”


That vindication and deliverance does come for Jesus. But not before suffering even more indignities and injustices. For Jesus will pray the other verses of the Psalm: “For You are the God in whom I take refuge; why have You rejected me? Why do I go about mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?” It is what Jesus will say when He receives the full brunt of the ungodly opposition, suspended from the crossbeam on Calvary. The mocking will continue. Justice will be denied. Suffering will be endured. Humiliation will come. And yet, it will be done while trusting the Vindicator: “Yet I do not seek My own glory; there is One who seeks it, and He is the judge.” For Jesus is like Isaac, the only Son whom the Father does not withhold. “God will provide for Himself the lamb. . . . On the mount of the Lord it will be provided.” That is Jesus’ fate.


And yet, what will be given to Him as He endures this? The vindication that He seeks. For He does not remain dead, but is raised again. His cause is defended. It is proven to be right. His resurrection is the evidence of the pleasing nature of His work. He is humbled in crucifixion, yet Jesus is correct: “If I glorify Myself, My glory is nothing. It is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’” His Father exalts Him by bestowing the Name above all names, so that whenever “Jesus” is spoken, heads and hearts must bow.


Jesus’ cause is just. And as much as He suffers in death, He also rejoices in the restoration of life. The psalm’s words are His own prayer: “Send out Your light and Your truth; let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your dwelling! Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy, and I will praise You with the lyre, O God, my God.” That light will shine on Easter day. The truth of Jesus’ words will be seen. His fate is not the grave only, but also to be seated in the heavens at His Father’s right hand, to take His place as the true High Priest in the celestial sanctuary.


But all this is done not for His own self-achievement. It is done, so that you also may be delivered. Jesus suffers the indignities and injustices, even from you, so that you may be changed from being the ungodly to God’s own children. Humanity’s deceit and delusion are removed for you, so that you may have Jesus’ words apply to yourselves: “Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word, he will never see death.” Such a fate is given to you because of what Jesus endures and what His Father does to vindicate Him.


Now you are no longer children of the devil. Now you are children of God. The change is given because you also have suffered with Jesus and have been raised with Him. That is what your baptism has granted to you. Jesus’ vindication was a matter of right; yours is a matter of mercy. It is bestowed upon you. But it truly is yours. You will endure the same fate as Jesus in this world; indignities and injustices will come because of your being His disciples. But what has been given to Him also awaits you.


So you may say with Him: “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise Him, my salvation and my God.” The same trust in the Father is found in you. You know what is true: “Whoever is of God hears the words of God.” You are God’s people, born from above, so you hear His words that are most certainly true. You are no longer only to be victims of the deceits and lies of the devil and this world. Instead, you have the Lord’s words of promise, pledge, and guarantee spoken to you. You hear and believe them. You await the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. As you wait, you pray with faith and confidence that the Lord will hear: “Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people, from the deceitful and unjust man deliver me!” And so it shall be given, as the Lord who gives His Son for your salvation provides for you.


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

Sunday, April 10, 2011

Lent 5A Sermon -- John 11:1-53 (LSB Lent 5A)

April 10, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“Jesus said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?’”


The narrative of the Raising of Lazarus has many twists and turns. There is so much that John records of the dialogue and actions that accompany the great sign that Jesus performs in Bethany. But the heart of the matter is resurrection: Jesus shows Himself to be the Lord of Life, the One whose words invigorate and animate. That is what this sign shows for the people in Bethany and for all who hear of it centuries later.


Lazarus’ death happens for a purpose: “Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. . . . So the sisters sent to Him, saying, ‘Lord, he whom You love is ill.’ But when Jesus heard it He said, ‘This illness does not lead to death. It is for the glory of God, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.’” Lazarus’ condition will kill him, but he will not remain dead. Jesus is going to do something about it. That action will bring glory to Himself, as the people learn of His identity and authority through the sign He performs.


So Jesus delays in going to Bethany. But the delay was not caused by hatred or lack of concern: “Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. So, when He heard that Lazarus was ill, He stayed two days longer in the place where He was. Then after this He said to the disciples, ‘Let us go to Judea again.’” Why the delay? Why stay an extra two days while Lazarus lay dying? Because of the sign that Jesus would give. He will show the divine love for Martha, Mary, Lazarus, His disciples, and all who would be witness of the sign He performs. For in receiving the sign, believing what it indicates about Jesus, these people receive the greatest gift that He has to give: everlasting life. They are healed from the illness that does lead to death. So Jesus says: “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”


When Jesus appears at Bethany, Lazarus’ sister confronts Him: “So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met Him, but Mary remained in the house. Martha said to Jesus, ‘Lord, if You had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give You.’” Martha’s statement reveals her belief in Jesus. But what is that belief? That Jesus can heal the sick. Yes. That Jesus has God’s favor upon Him and receives what He asks from heaven. Yes. That Jesus is the Lord of Life and brings resurrection? Well, that is not yet clear.


Martha believes in the resurrection: “Jesus said to her, ‘Your brother will rise again.’ Martha said to Him, ‘I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the Last Day.’” She knows that an afterlife exists, that the Lord has promised life for those who die believing in Him and trusting in His Covenant promises. But there is a great truth that Jesus reveals about Himself, that causes the Son of God to be glorified. That truth is what Jesus first shows in the word of promise He speaks: “Jesus said, ‘I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die.’”


Jesus asks Martha: “Do you believe this?” Her answer confesses her faith: “Yes, Lord; I believe that You are the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” But the great truth of Jesus’ identity will be shown in the sign that He performs. He is the Promised Christ, the One who would bring to fulfillment what the Lord had promised in the Old Testament—the promises that Martha, Mary, and Lazarus trusted in. Now the Son of God will be glorified, as He shows His power over death by raising Lazarus from the grave.


Note what Martha said when Jesus approached Lazarus’ tomb: “Jesus said, ‘Take away the stone.’ Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to Him, ‘Lord, by this time there will be an odor, for he has been dead four days.” Her focus is still on the fact of Lazarus’ death. Jesus must still perform the sign that will show Martha who He really is. This is what Jesus sets up with His question: “Jesus said to her, ‘Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?’” He is taking Martha back to what He had just said: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live. . . .” That is the heart of this event and all of Jesus’ actions. Martha and all others need to believe this, otherwise they will not benefit from Jesus’ work.


So Jesus performs the sign that confirms His words: “So they took away the stone. And Jesus lifted up his eyes and said, ‘Father, I thank You that You have heard Me. I knew that You always hear Me, but I said this on account of the people standing around, that they may believe that You sent Me.’ When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, ‘Lazarus, come out.’ The man who had died came out, his hands and feet bound with linen strips, and his face wrapped with a cloth. Jesus said to them, ‘Unbind him, and let him go.’” Now the truth is seen; the glorifying of the Son of God takes place. Jesus’ description of Himself is fulfilled: Jesus is the Resurrection and the Life. That is what the sign shows. The act accomplishes Jesus’ purpose: “Lazarus has died, and for your sake I am glad that I was not there, so that you may believe.” Belief is given in Jesus’ words, what He has said about Himself, His relation to His Father in heaven, and His mission: “Many of the Jews therefore, who had come with Mary and had seen what He did, believed in Him.”


The sign in Bethany has been given for your benefit. That is why John records it for you, as he says in his gospel account: “Now Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His Name.” The sign is given, so that you may believe in Jesus and be healed of your illness that does lead to death: the illness of sin that brings the curse of damnation upon you. Life is available. But it is only for those who trust in Jesus’ identity: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die.”


Life in Jesus’ Name has been bestowed upon you. You have received it through hearing the witness of the signs that Jesus performed and hearing the testimony of His identity. You believe what Jesus has done. You believe that He is the Son of God who removes the condemnation that your sin brings: “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the Law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, He condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the Law might be fulfilled in us who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”


These words of eternal life have come to your ears. But they are more than syllables of vocal sound; they are the vehicle that carries the Holy Spirit who invigorates and animates you. Before that, you were like Lazarus, dead as a doornail in spirit. You were like the bones in Ezekiel’s vision: dry, with no life in them. But the command that summoned Lazarus from the tomb has been spoken to you. He who died and has risen to life again gives the order for you to be brought to life. He has appointed spokesmen who command the breath of life be given to you: “Come from the four winds, O Spirit, and breathe on these slain, that they may live.” That is what Jesus’ words cause to happen. He speaks to you: “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” His Spirit leads you to give the affirmative answer that brings you life.


Since that has happened, you can pray the words of the psalm this morning: “Out of the depths I cry to You, O Lord! O Lord, hear my voice! Let Your ears be attentive to the voice of my pleas for mercy.” Why would you cry out to Him? Because you believe that He can help, that He is the Lord of Life, the Lord who delivers you. You know your faults: “If You, O Lord, should mark iniquities, O Lord, who could stand?” But you also know the truth of what the Son of God has accomplished for you in His dying and rising again and what He promises for those who believe it: “But with You there is forgiveness, that You may be feared. . . . For with the Lord there is plenteous redemption. And He will redeem Israel from all his iniquities.”


That is what you rely on, believing that Jesus is “the Christ, the Son of God, who is coming into the world.” It is what you are given to know from the word and signs that He has performed. It is what you look forward to receiving, trusting the promises that He has made to you: “Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” Through Jesus’ words of eternal life, the Holy Spirit has brought you faith in Him.


So as you hear of this great sign performed at Bethany, you believe Jesus. His question is posed to you: “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?” That glory is what you will see: “If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you.” His pledge has been given to you in Holy Baptism, the act that sealed you with His Spirit. You have life in the Triune Name placed on your foreheads that marks you as His people. His words have invigorated and animated you to spiritual life. They will also bring you to true life of the body, fulfilling the promise spoken to you: “You shall know that I am the Lord, when I open your graves, and raise you from your graves, O My people. And I will put My Spirit within you, and you shall live, and I will place you in your own land. Then you shall know that I am the Lord; I have spoken, and I will do it, declares the Lord.” On the Last Day when He summons you—“Come out!”—it shall be so, for He is the Resurrection and the Life for Martha, Mary, Lazarus, His disciples, and for you.


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

Sunday, April 3, 2011

Lent 4A Sermon -- John 9:1-41 (LSB Lent 4A)

April 3, 2011 at Calvary Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA


“[Jesus said]: ‘As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.’ Having said these things, He spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then He anointed the man’s eyes with the mud and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which means Sent).”


Leaving the Temple after engaging in a discussion about His identity, Jesus “saw a man blind from birth.” Jesus’ disciples notice this man, too. His presence leads to a question posed to Jesus: “Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he was born blind?” Something must have caused this blindness. Surely, it had to be a sin that his parents committed. Or perhaps there was something the man did while in utero. The blindness must be a divine curse of some sort. So, Jesus, who sinned to cause this blindness?


There are two answers to this question. First, the man’s parents were sinners. They were descendants of Adam, the first man whose sin subjected all creation to frustration and corruption. The man’s parents were sinful from the time their mothers conceived them. By nature they were sinful and unclean. That imperfection was passed down to this man, manifesting itself in the dreadful disability of blindness. But this is much different than a particular curse for a specific sin. And that leads to the second answer, the answer given by Jesus: “It was not that this man sinned, or his parents, but that the works of God might be displayed in him.” The blind man provides an opportunity for God’s works to be displayed. Just as much as the man’s parents brought forth imperfection, Jesus’ actions will show superiority over sin and its effects. His perfection will manifest itself in healing the blind man.


Before Jesus displays the works of God in healing the blind man, He makes a statement about Himself: “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” Jesus’ purpose for existing, for dwelling in this world, was to bring light into the darkness that sin had caused. Remember what you heard on Christmas Day from John’s Gospel about Jesus: “In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.” That light is what Jesus brings to this blind man: “Having said these things, He spat on the ground and made mud with the saliva. Then He anointed the man’s eyes with the mud and said to him, ‘Go, wash in the pool of Siloam’ (which means Sent). So he went and washed and came back seeing.” Helped by Jesus, the man now sees. He sees the light that the sun provides, receiving it through his eyes.


But there is another type of darkness, a more sinister darkness. It is more than a blindness caused by lack of sight. Instead, it is a blindness that is caused by lack of knowing and trusting the Lord’s will and ways. That is the condition all men are born in, including the man in Jerusalem’s Temple. This condition can be described this way, as our Lutheran teaching documents state: “Since the fall of Adam all men begotten in the natural way are born with sin, that is, without the fear of God, without trust in God, and with concupiscence.” The severity of this condition is further described: “This disease, or vice of origin, is truly sin, even now condemning and bringing eternal death upon those not born again through Baptism and the Holy Spirit.”


Yet, it is this greater darkness, the blindness that affects body and soul, which Jesus was to dispel: “As long as I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” Jesus’ actions fulfill what had been prophesied about Him by Isaiah: “And I will lead the blind in a way that they do not know, in paths that they have not known I will guide them. I will turn the darkness before them into light, the rough places into level ground. These are the things I do, and I do not forsake them. They are turned back and utterly put to shame, who trust in carved idols, who say to metal images, ‘You are our gods.’” Jesus brings the light of salvation to those who are blind, as you also heard on Christmas Day: “The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.”


Despite this great work of God that Jesus displays, there are some who still live in the greater darkness. In the narrative of this miracle, the Pharisees are such people. Remember their response to Jesus and the healing He gave to the blind man: “Give glory to God. We know that this Man is a sinner.” The blind man tried to explain, tried to show the Pharisees their error: “Why, this is an amazing thing! You do not know where He comes from, and yet He opened my eyes. We know that God does not listen to sinners, but if anyone is a worshiper of God and does His will, God listens to him. Never since the world began has it been heard that anyone opened the eyes of a man born blind. If this Man were not from God, He could do nothing.” Yet this falls on deaf ears and remains unseen by spiritually blind eyes: “They answered him, ‘You were born in utter sin, and would you teach us?’ And they cast him out.”


The Jews act just as Isaiah prophesied about their forefathers: “Who is blind but My servant, or deaf as My messenger whom I send? Who is blind as My dedicated one, or blind as the servant of the Lord? He sees many things, but does not observe them; his ears are open, but he does not hear.” Jesus’ statement shows that prophecy is true in His day, too: “For judgment I came into this world, that those who do not see may see, and those who see may become blind.” Even with the healing taking place in their midst, they would not believe. They remain in their spiritual blindness, despite their boasting about being experts in God’s ways spoken in the Old Testament: “You are His disciple, but we are disciples of Moses. We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, we do not know where He comes from.” They remain in darkness, not because no light has been shined on them, but because they refuse to receive it: “Jesus said to them, ‘If you were blind, you would have no guilt; but now that you say, “We see,” your guilt remains.’”


But for the blind man, there is salvation. He receives light from Jesus. It heals his lenses, retinas, and pupils. Even more so, it brings healing to his soul, curing the disease caused by lack of fear of God, trust in God, and concupiscence: “Jesus heard that they had cast him out, and having found him He said, ‘Do you believe in the Son of Man?’ He answered, ‘And who is He, Sir, that I may believe in Him?’ Jesus said to him, “You have seen Him, and it is He who is speaking to you.’ He said, ‘Lord, I believe,’ and he worshiped Him.” The works of God are truly displayed in this man, as he is healed and brought to belief in the Promised Christ.


The same works of God are displayed in you, as you have received the testimony about Jesus. Like the blind man, you suffer from the same disease. Some of you suffer from the same physical ailment, the same symptom of imperfection. All of you were born in the same spiritual blindness that plagues all humanity. You did not have fear of God or trust in God. Your desires were to break God’s Law, not keep it. His ways were foreign to you. But all this changed, as you were born from above and the well of living water sprang up in your heart through the work of the Holy Spirit. Hearing of who Jesus is and what He has accomplished, you have been given new life, sight that is greater than 20/20.


St. Paul’s description of the Ephesians testifies about you: “At one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord.” That change is given through the reception of the Holy Spirit’s work through the Word of Christ. The question is posed to you: “Do you believe in the Son of Man?” Like the blind man, you answer: “Lord, I believe,” and you worship Him. That answer is given because the Son of Man has spoken to you through the proclamation of His Gospel. You have His words taught to you. They show Him to you. So you believe.


But the words that you have received today also provide a warning. What Isaiah spoke about concerning the Israelites and how the Pharisees acted are potential hazards for you. The Israelites had heard what the Lord said and knew what He had done. But how are they described? “He sees many things, but does not observe them; his ears are open, but he does not hear.” The Pharisees had the word of the Lord given through Moses, yet they would not receive the One who fulfilled the promises that the Law and the Prophets recorded: “We know that God has spoken to Moses, but as for this Man, we do not know where He comes from.” Even further, there are the temptations to return to the state of not fearing God, not trusting God, and desiring to transgress His Law. So St. Paul exhorts all of Jesus’ followers: “Walk as children of light (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret.”


Failure to receive Jesus’ word, failure to believe in Jesus’ identity, failure to follow Jesus’ teaching: all three are ways to take you back into darkness, to restore the blindness that Jesus has dispelled for you. That is part of the message in this Season of Lent. You have heard how Jesus began His conquest of Satan for you, how Jesus has given you birth from above, how Jesus provides you with living water, and now how Jesus takes away the darkness of your sin. All of these are the works of God displayed for you and in you. But they are all for naught, should you return to Satan’s slavery, renounce your new birth, cut yourself off from the living waters, and shut your eyes to Jesus’ light of salvation.


But that dreadful end need not be. Jesus continues to display the works of God in your sight. They are found in this place, where His Word is still taught and His gifts are still distributed. Instead of reverting to blindness, you can have Jesus’ light given to you again and again. The darkness has not overcome it; it overcomes your darkness. You are light in the Lord. You have heard the Son of Man speak to you. He has anointed your eyes and your souls. You know who He is and believe in Him. As you do believe, then when the Last Day comes, it will not be said: “Your guilt remains with you.” Instead, the Lord will say: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.”


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