June 3, 2012 at Calvary
Evangelical Lutheran Church – Mechanicsburg, PA
“This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being
therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father
the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this that you yourselves are
seeing and hearing.”
“Whoever desires to
be saved must, above all, hold the catholic faith. Whoever does not keep it
whole and undefiled will without doubt perish eternally. And the catholic faith
is this: that we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither
confusing the persons nor dividing the substance…. But it is also necessary for
everlasting salvation that one faithfully believes the incarnation of our Lord
Jesus Christ. Therefore, it is the right faith that we believe and confess that
our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is at the same time both God and man.”
Those are the two key statements from the Athanasian Creed, the confession of
faith that we in the Western Church make concerning God. The point of the
statements is clear: salvation is found through belief in who God is and what
He has done.
While the statements from the
Athanasian Creed are from the Sixth Century, what they confess is as old as the
nascent days of the Church. The Creed repeats the same message that the Twelve
Apostles proclaimed on Pentecost Day, the same message handed to them from
Jesus Himself. Such proclamation is what you heard in this morning’s Gospel
Reading and the Second Reading.
Jesus’ words to Nicodemus speak about
His identity and work. Conversing with the Pharisee, Jesus tells of what His
purpose is in the world. Nicodemus is correct in his assessment about Jesus: “Rabbi, we know that You are a teacher come
from God, for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with him.”
But there is more to Jesus’ identity than that. The more is what Nicodemus—and
all—need to know. That is why Jesus’ conversation with Nicodemus moves into a
discussion about what is needed to enter the kingdom of God: being “born of water and the Spirit.” Even
more, Jesus’ words reveal His purpose: “Just
as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be
lifted up, that whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.”
But just who is this Son of Man? What
is known about Him? Why is His identity unique? The answer is found in what the
Gospel Writer explains: “For God so loved
the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have eternal life. For God did not send His Son into the world to
condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him.”
The link is made. The Son of Man who must be lifted up is the Son of God who
has been sent into the world. Not any faith will do; belief in Him is necessary
for eternal life. This is the point the Athanasian Creed puts forward: “Therefore,
it is right faith that we believe and confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the
Son of God, is at the same time both God and man.”
The necessity of right faith in this
Jesus is also the point of Peter’s proclamation in Jerusalem. Empowered by the
Holy Spirit on Pentecost, the Twelve Apostles begin their witness about Jesus.
They bear witness to the mighty works of God that Jesus had done. They bear
witness to His being lifted up in crucifixion. And they bear witness to Jesus’
resurrection.
What you heard from Peter’s mouth, just
as the Pentecost Pilgrims heard, records that witness: “Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and
wonders and signs that God did through Him in your midst, as you yourselves
know—this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge
of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised Him
up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for Him to be held
by it.” This testimony that Peter gives ties into Jesus’
self-identification statements spoken to Nicodemus. Peter echoes Jesus’ words: “so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that
whoever believes in Him may have eternal life.” He confirms the truth
behind this act: “For God so loved the
world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not
perish but have eternal life.”
Peter’s proclamation concludes with the
confession of the right faith. What must his audience believe? What must they
know for salvation? “Let all the house of
Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus
whom you crucified.” That is right faith to be believed. It is the basis
for the statements made in the Athanasian Creed that not only declare the
necessity of having right faith, but which also confess it: “For as the
rational soul and flesh is one man, so God and man is one Christ, who suffered
for our salvation, descended into hell, rose again the third day from the dead,
ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father, God
Almighty, from whence He will come to judge the living and the dead.”
This knowledge and
confession was not kept concealed or secret, but has been made public. It is
the Triune God’s desire, so that the sinful be forgiven, the unclean be made
pure, the unrighteous be made holy. It is the reason for Jesus’ appearance and
work. His being lifted up in crucifixion and being raised from death are done
so that “whoever believes in Him may have
eternal life.” So Peter speaks publicly about it: “This Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are
witnesses. Being therefore exalted at the right hand of God, and having
received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this
that you yourselves are seeing and hearing.” That is the proclamation
that carries the words of life to those mortally wounded by their own sin.
But this speaking is not just a
First Century event. No, it went on for centuries before the events of
Pentecost and has continued for nearly two millennia since. For what the
Apostles did in Jerusalem is the continuation of what the Prophets of the Old
Testament performed. Both spoke so that the Lord
would give salvation to those who are undone because they have unclean lips and
dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips. The unclean mouths of the
Prophets and Apostles are purified, so that they may speak the life-giving
testimony concerning Jesus. Unclean ears hear and believe, so that their guilt
is taken away and their sin is atoned for. Salvation is granted because of the
divine action that has been done for them. That is the content of the right
faith.
By the outpouring of the Spirit on Prophets and
Apostles, they have made public this testimony concerning the Godhead. So you
have been made to hear it. The same proclamation has come to your midst, so
that you know the identity and work of Jesus. The same confession of faith has
been entrusted to you, so that you worship one God in Trinity
and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the persons nor dividing the substance.
It is the Divine Will that you have this given to you, so that you are born
from above and can see the kingdom of heaven. It is the Divine Will that you
are born of water and the Spirit, connected to the Crucified and Risen Jesus in
Holy Baptism, so that you enter the kingdom of heaven. The love that the Father
has shown to the world in the sending of His Son is not meant for one people,
but for all. You are recipients of that work which the Son of God performed, so
that the world might be saved through Him.
What you yourselves see and hear today
is the fulfilling of that Divine Will. You have been summoned to gather before
the Lord. But your gathering is
not meant solely for the purpose of giving adoration to Him. That is what the
seraphim and the other angelic beings do, as the Psalmist exhorts: “Ascribe to the Lord, O heavenly beings, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength. Ascribe to the Lord the glory due His name; worship the
Lord in the splendor of holiness.”
Instead, you have been gathered to hear what this glorious, strong, and holy Lord has done for you. You are called to
be taken from woe to salvation, from iniquity to atonement. For that is the way
the enthroned Lord bestows His
favor to you: “May the Lord give strength to His people! May
the Lord bless His people with
peace!”
Summoned to receive divine
favor, you are gathered to receive the benefits that the Crucified and Risen
Jesus bestows to you because of His Father’s love for the world. Hearing the
testimony of what Jesus has done, you have the salvation He accomplished.
Through His absolving words, you have the forgiveness He has won. Born of the
Spirit, you have the life that He has brought into this world of death and
decay. Why is this done? Because it is the definite plan and foreknowledge of
God for you. It is the effect that His divine love shown to the world through the
sending of His Son has accomplished for you.
And what is necessary for you to
receive all these benefits? To hold the right faith, the right belief in God
and what He has done: “And the catholic faith is this:
that we worship one God in Trinity and Trinity in Unity, neither confusing the
persons nor dividing the substance…. It is the right faith that we believe and
confess that our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is at the same time both
God and man.” That is the testimony given to you
about God, His Person and Work. It is what Jesus made His sent ones to
understand and proclaim. Receive it, believing the heavenly things done for
your salvation: “This
Jesus God raised up, and of that we all are witnesses. Being therefore exalted
at the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of
the Holy Spirit, He has poured out this that you yourselves are seeing and
hearing…. Therefore know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and
Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
+ In the Name of the Father and
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
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