The Rite of Confirmation was observed in the service today. Three catechumens were scheduled to observe the Rite of Confirmation. Because of exposure to COVID, one of our catechumens was unable to attend and will have his confirmation rescheduled.
ONLY JESUS GIVES PEACE THAT ENDURES.
Cong: He is risen indeed! Alleluia!
In the name + of Jesus.
The Rite of Confirmation will be observed this morning as two catechumens will vow to be faithful to the Scriptures they have learned. For years, these three youth have come to church—for the most part, this church. Why did you come here? The short answer is that this is where your parents brought you. You trust that your parents would not attend a church that misrepresents God’s word, so you had good reason to believe that you were taught the Bible here correctly. But now that you are getting older and you are not far from being independent, you will assess the question again: Why do you come to this church? What reason do you have to come to a confessional Lutheran church?
We have spent several years answering that
question by looking at the Scriptures.
We compared what this church teaches and confesses to what the Bible
teaches us to confess. Today, you are
publicly confessing that you agree with this church’s teachings because you
have found it to be faithful to the Scriptures.
For that reason, you desire to be united with us in our mission, to
partake of holy communion from this altar, to continue to hear God’s word
preached from this pulpit, and to order your life according to the word of God.
The reason you continue to come here is
out of love for the Lord. God has given us plenty of reasons to love him. Even the atheist should find some affection
for God. St. Paul told the citizens of Lystra
why. “[God] did not leave himself without witness, for he did good
by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your
hearts with food and gladness” (Acts 14:17). If you are alive, if you eat and drink, if
you are clothed, then you have reason to care about God.
But you, dear
Christians, have all the more reason to love God. God has revealed his word to you to show you
how he loves you and how he blesses you. Jesus told his disciples, and he tells you
too, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my
Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with
him” (John 14:23). God loved you even before you heard a word of
the Bible, but his word shows you the full extent of his love. God reveals his love to you in Jesus. It is Jesus who has made the atoning
sacrifice for your sins. It is Jesus who
delivers to you peace from God. It is
Jesus who has opened up to you the kingdom of heaven and will raise you up out
of your grave to live forever without any sorrow, shame, or burden. Jesus lived and died for you. His life provides the holiness you need. His death takes away all the guilt you
have. His resurrection is the proof that
you are forgiven, and that God’s peace is yours. Only Jesus gives peace that endures.
If Jesus willingly
suffered undeserved, hellish torment to save you, then you know that everything
else he has to say to you is for your good. Jesus said,
“If anyone loves me, he will keep my word” (John 14:23). The same word which saves you
also directs you throughout your life.
It preserves you from falling back into sin and unbelief. It prevents you from being deceived by fine-sounding
arguments which either distort or deny God’s word. It encourages you to continue to strive for
godly living, and it strengthens you to fight against temptation. This is why you will want to keep his word,
that is, to cling to it, to continue to grow in it, and to cherish it your whole
life long. Only Jesus gives peace that
endures.
Regarding that
peace, Jesus said, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Jesus does not give peace as the world promises
peace. The peace which comes from this world
is fragile at best. Often it is only an
illusion. Social media is the perfect
example of this illusion as people will post the images they want you to see. There is a photo in our family that is legendary,
at least for my wife and me. We were on
a family vacation in Massachusetts. It was
around the 4th of July. We
were at a beach waiting for the sun to go down so we could watch the
fireworks. We have a beautiful photo of
five children stretched out across the beach with the sun setting behind them. They are all smiling cheerfully. If you saw it, you would probably think, “Awww,
what a wonderful day that must have been.”
Laura and I know better. That photo
is a lie. You did not see the two hours
of arguing, teasing, and bickering which led up to that photo.
How easy it is
to be deceived! We think that peace in this
world is secure when life is going our way.
But how quickly it can be taken away!
Wealth can be lost with a bad day on Wall Street. Health can be ruined by a virus. (A COVID test can result in one of our teens
having to reschedule his confirmation rite.)
A tornado in Gaylord just swept away homes and businesses. Friends can let you down. Loved ones die. The blessings we have are all temporary. They can’t guarantee you anything. We can cherish them. We may learn to depend upon them. But if our peace comes from them, they our
peace can be lost in a moment’s notice. Jesus
supplies a peace which cannot be shattered even if your whole world falls
apart. Nothing can cancel Jesus’ life,
so our righteousness is intact. Nothing can
nullify Jesus’ death, so our forgiveness is sure. Nothing can undo Jesus’ resurrection, so our
salvation is certain. Only Jesus gives a
peace that endures.
Every year, the
young people who are confirmed are given a confirmation verse. It is a verse of Scripture to meditate on
their whole lives long. And each year, I
have a theme for the class. The theme this
year is that the Lord is our refuge. The
world may be chaotic, but the Lord is our refuge. The devil may mess with your conscience, but
Jesus is your peace. Think of a refuge
like a castle. In medieval times, when
the enemy came, the people would flee to the castle for safety. The enemy would launch their projectiles at
the castle, and the castle would take the blows. The people remained safe.
Jesus is your
refuge. He has taken the blows of sin,
death, and the devil for you. All the
accusations that Satan makes against you were absorbed by Jesus. The devil cannot harm you. Sin does not condemn you. The grave cannot keep you. Jesus lives and reigns to protect you and to
preserve you. Only Jesus gives peace
that endures.
And you will need
it all the more. As you get older, the
temptations you face will become more frequent, more intense, and more
attractive. The teen years are tough
years. Friends will entice you to adopt
behavior and ideals that are opposed to God.
You will be drawn to your own sinful desires. The world will tell you to do it without hesitation
and without apologies. But if you love
Jesus, if you desire to keep his word, and if God has made his home in you, you
will despise yourself for giving into temptations so easily and so frequently. When that happens, do not flee away from Jesus
because of guilt or shame; flee to Jesus. He is the refuge for sinners. He is your refuge where you find relief from
guilt. He is your refuge even in the face
of death. He assures you, “Peace I
leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you.
Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid” (John 14:27). Your sins might trouble you; Jesus
forgives them. God’s judgment might make
you afraid; Jesus suffered that punishment for you. Only Jesus gives peace that endures.
Jesus told his
apostles, “These things I have spoken to you while I am still with you. But the Helper, the Holy
Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all
things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you” (John
14:25-26). It is important to
remember that Jesus said these things to the apostles. He does not tell us to look to ourselves for truth. Although the Holy Spirit has planted faith in
your heart so that you know and believe his word, sinful desires also arise
from within our hearts. Ideas that sound
great are not always godly ideas.
This is why we
always pay attention to the word of Jesus.
Jesus promised to send his Holy Spirit in order to teach the apostles
all things and to remind them of all that Jesus said. The apostles wrote down these words so that
we can always know what Jesus has said, what he has done, what he promises, and
what he desires. You don’t have to guess
about God’s love or purpose for you. He
tells you. Jesus saw to it that his words
would be recorded for your continued learning, encouragement, and guidance. Continue in these for your own comfort and
confidence in the faith. Confirmation
means you have been strengthened in the faith, not that you have mastered it.
Only Jesus gives peace that endures. Jesus’ words will never deceive you. They will never fail you. They are always for your good. Sometimes they will be hard words of
rebuke. Oftentimes, the world will make
it hard to follow them. Your own flesh
will resist them. But Jesus gives you
his word for your good—for a good life here and for your eternal good. Jesus wants you to be restored to the image of
God; so, he tells you what a godly life looks like. People may mock you for chaste and decent living. They may be baffled by your honesty and humility. They may be confounded when you seek the good
of others, even praying for your enemies and blessing those who curse you.
But you are children
of God Most High. You have been set
apart from a world that is cursed. You
have been given a peace that the world does not know. As long as you are listening to God’s word,
you will remain in that peace. You will
find comfort in your refuge. You will gather
with fellow Christians who will encourage you, pray for you, and delight in
confessing God’s word with you. You will
need them, and they will need you. And
we all need Jesus to preserve us in the one true faith.
Today, two young teens will vow to be faithful to the Lord. But far more important, you know that the Lord will remain faithful to you. The Lord Jesus will sustain and strengthen you through his word. He assures you that you have God’s favor no matter what the world says of you. He assures you that your salvation is secure even if the world is falling apart. If the world becomes chaotic, violent, or stressful, Jesus’ peace remains constant. It is a peace that endures through every emotion, every age, and every circumstance. God is our refuge and strength, and ever-present help in times of trouble. He always has been. He always will be.
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
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