YouTube -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 28, 2025)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, September 28, 2025.

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 28, 2025)

LUKE 16:19-31

ETERNALLY GOOD THINGS COME ONLY THROGH THE SCRIPTURES.

In the name + of Jesus.

    What do you consider the good things in your life?  It’s not a trick question.  We are right to recognize the blessings God has given us so that we can be thankful for them.  Some blessings are near and dear to us, such as parents, a spouse, children, and faithful friends.  God did not owe us these things but has graciously blessed us with them.  When God takes them away, we are usually reduced to tears.

     We enjoy other good things, although we probably won’t cry if they go away.  We have homes that are heated or cooled at the press of a button.  We have indoor plumbing and running water.  We have cushioned furniture and plush carpeting.  Our closets and dressers are filled with clothing for all seasons.  We decorate our homes as it pleases us.  How gracious God has been!  He has supplied us with many good things. 

     Finally, there are good things which are common to all—autumn colors, blue skies, music, laughter, and library books.  The list of good things is practically endless, and we get to enjoy them all.  That’s why God gives them to us.

     Jesus spoke about a man who enjoyed a lot of good things.  In fact, he had more good things than most.  He dressed in fancy clothes.  He dined on sumptuous meals.  He had a gated home and great wealth.  I suppose most people would want the kind of life he had.  By contrast, there was a beggar named Lazarus who “had been laid at his gate.  Lazarus was covered with sores and longed to be fed with what fell from the rich man’s table” (Luke 16:20-21).  The fact that Lazarus had to be laid at the gate of the rich man suggests that he was immobile.  Maybe he was old?  Or crippled?  Either way, he was deposited there with the hopes that a rich man might share a few good things with him.  But Lazarus received no good things.

     In time, both of them died.  We should not get the impression that Lazarus went to heaven because he was poor or ill or ignored.  That is not what the Scriptures teach.  The Scriptures state “a person is justified by faith” (Romans 3:28).  If Lazarus was taken to Abraham’s side, he was saved the same way as Abraham.  “What does Scripture say?  ‘Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness’” (Romans 4:3).  Abraham is the father of all who believe; therefore, Lazarus went to Abraham’s side.  As it turns out, Lazarus did have one good thing, and it was the only thing he needed.  Eternally good things come only through the Scriptures. 

     Not so the rich man.  He died and went to hell—not because he was rich.  After all, Abraham had been rich.  The rich man perished because he did not regard God’s promises as good things.  “In hell, where he was in torment, he lifted up his eyes and saw Abraham far away and Lazarus at his side.  He called out and said, ‘Father Abraham, have mercy on me!’  …But Abraham said, ‘Son, remember that in your lifetime you received your good things’” (Luke 16:23-25).  No matter how many good things the rich man could have boasted about in his life, they all proved to be useless in the end.  They could not provide another moment of life, let alone with eternal life.  No matter how lavish his lifestyle had been, none of it had everlasting value.  Eternally good things come only through the Scriptures.

     As we have already considered, eternal life comes only by faith.  But faith needs to have an object.  You can have faith that tomorrow will be a better day, but the only thing you can base that on is your optimism.  Faith is not a wish.  It is confidence in something reliable, verifiable, and historical.  Even faith in something reliable is not a guarantee.  You can have faith that a plane trip will go well.  You base that on aeronautic engineering and a history of safe flight travel.  Such faith is reasonable, but accidents still happen.

     Saving faith, however, is certain because it comes through the Scriptures.  These are not fairy tales set in a land of make-believe.  The Scriptures record accounts which are historical, verifiable, and reliable.  We believe that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah.  The Old Testament foretold what the Messiah would do, and Jesus did it.  He declared that he would set us free from sin and overcome death by his own suffering, death, and resurrection.  And then, just as he foretold, he did it.  Jesus took our sins away by taking them into himself.  He removed the curse of death by dying the cursed death for us. 

     To prove that his word is true and that his death made the full payment for sins, he rose from the dead.  Once again, his resurrection is historical, verifiable, and reliable.  The risen Savior was seen repeatedly by different witnesses at different times, even by more than 500 people at once.  These witnesses testified to Jesus’ resurrection, preferring a painful death over a retraction of their testimony.  This is what our faith is based upon.  Since the Scriptures are historical, verifiable, and reliable, they do not merely allow us to wish for the resurrection to life everlasting; they guarantee it!  The Savior who was crucified and rose from the dead has promised: “Amen, Amen, I tell you: The one who believes in me has eternal life” (John 6:47).  Faith relies on Jesus Christ who is revealed to us in the Holy Scriptures.  So, eternally good things come only through the Scriptures.

     The Scriptures are consistent with this proclamation: Jesus Christ is the only Savior, and faith in Jesus Christ is the only hope for eternal life.  Jesus stated that clearly: “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life.  No one comes to the Father, except through me” (John 14:6).  There is no other path, no other way, no other Savior.  This can produce some concern for anyone who comes to the Christian faith from either a different faith or from no faith whatsoever. 

     When such a person hears the word of God and believes it, he rejoices in all the blessings it gives.  For the first time, he has relief from his guilt, confidence of a life after death, and the peace of knowing that God’s favor rests upon him at all times.  What a joy to have such good things!  But he may also recognize that he has loved ones who do not believe in Jesus.  He comes to this sad conclusion: “If Jesus’ words are true, my loved ones who have died are in hell.”  Who could not be grieved by that realization?  Some have soured on the Christian faith, thinking, “I would rather be in hell with my family than in heaven without them.”  What do you say to that person? 

     Take heed to what the rich man said when he was in hell.  He five brothers who were still living.  The rich man does not say, “Just wait until my brothers get here!  We are going to have such a good time!  We are going to party and rock and roll forever.”  As far as we can tell, the rich man had no one with him.  Perhaps some of the horrors of hell include having to endure one’s sufferings completely alone.  In any case, the rich man pleaded, “I beg you, father [Abraham], send (Lazarus) to my father’s home, because I have five brothers—to warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment” (Luke 16:27-28).  The rich man did not want his brothers to end up in hell.  So, if you have loved ones who have perished outside of faith in Jesus, or if you are speaking to someone who has, then listen to the rich man’s plea.  No one in hell wants anyone to join them there.  They yearn for their loved ones to avoid it.

     The rich man did not believe the Scriptures when he was on earth.  They were not among his good things.  He still did not believe them when he suffered the torments of hell.  He pleaded, “I beg you, father [Abraham], send (Lazarus) to my father’s home, because I have five brothers—to warn them, so that they will not also come to this place of torment.’  Abraham said, ‘They have Moses and the Prophets.  Let them listen to them’” (Luke 16:27-29).  The rich man’s brothers were not hopeless.  The Lord has given testimony about how one’s sins are taken away and about how there is a Savior who delivers people from eternal damnation.  In fact, this testimony is recorded in the single-most popular book in the history of the world.  It is preached by pastors at churches in many languages and in different nations.  God reveals his love and salvation in the Holy Scriptures.  Eternally good things come only through the Scriptures.

     The rich man still did not believe.  He argued, “If someone from the dead goes to them, they will repent.”  Abraham replied to him, ‘If they do not listen to Moses and the Prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone rises from the dead’”

(Luke 16:30-31).  The rich man thought that God’s word was not sufficient.  Perhaps some gimmick would make it more believable.  But that is not true.  If a man will not listen to God, whose word will he care about?  Besides, when the rich man suggested a resurrected Lazarus would make unbelievers take God’s word to heart, that wasn’t true.  A man named Lazarus was raised from the dead.  Do you know how Jesus’ enemies responded to that?  “The chief priests made plans to kill Lazarus too, because it was on account of him that many of the Jews were leaving them and believing in Jesus” (John 12:10-11).  Even when Jesus rose from the dead, they still would not believe.  Rather, they took the apostles, “beat them, ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus” (Acts 5:40).

     Eternally good things come only through the Scriptures.  The Scriptures do not need our help to make them more appealing.  Many Christian churches have already made concessions so that they will be loved by the world more.  Parts of God’s word are explained away so that people will not feel bad about their sins.  They are not called to repent.  As a result, the Church becomes more like the world rather than the world becoming more like the Church.  Making concessions to the world has not improved or increased the numbers of the Church.  That’s because the world never makes any concessions to God’s word.  The rich man’s strategy fails because it teaches people that the Scriptures need something else to make them good.

     Our Lord provides us with many good things in our lives.  But even the most precious of these are momentary.  Eternally good things come only through the Scriptures—the glory of the Lord, the resurrection to life everlasting, and the Paradise of God.  We have received these good things by faith; soon we will have them by sight.  Then God’s good things will be even better. 

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 8, 2024)

ISAIAH 35:3-7

THE MESSIAH COMES WITH A JOYFUL REWARD.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Unbelievers have always challenged the Bible and the Christian faith.  If you’ve never heard these challenges before, you may become unsettled by them.  Some sound quite compelling, causing even devout Christians to wonder if they have been played for fools who were gullible enough to accept the Bible as truth.  If you ever find yourself questioning the Bible because of these challenges, you need to speak to your pastor.  Just letting these questions linger in your mind will not give you any answers or any peace.  It also allows the devil to stir up more doubt.  You end up listening to the reasoning of unbelievers rather than listening to God and his word.  When you stop listening to God’s word, it is only a matter of time before you reject it.  What’s worse, you will commend yourself for becoming so smart for walking away from the Christian faith, as if you’ve cracked some secret code.  The most outspoken atheists used to be Christians.  It is a very real danger, and you should be on guard against it—especially teens and twenty-somethings.  You are the prime targets.

     The Bible and the Christian faith will always be under attack.  But the Lord himself has given abundant evidence that his word proves to be both true and reliable.  Through the prophet Isaiah, the Lord turns the tables and goes on the attack against his enemies.  He challenges every false god: “Set forth your case, says the Lord; bring your proofs, says the King of Jacob.  Let them bring them, and tell us what is to happen.  Tell us the former things, what they are, that we may consider them, that we may know their outcome; or declare to us the things to come.  Tell us what is to come hereafter, that we may know that you are gods; do good, or do harm, that we may be dismayed and terrified.  Behold, you are nothing, and your work is less than nothing; an abomination is he who chooses you” (Isaiah 41:21-24).  God mocks all false gods: “Do something.  Do anything.  Bring disaster so I have some reason to be afraid of you.  Impress me.”  Of course, false gods can do nothing because they are nothing.

     The Lord does not just lob mockery.  The Lord does what he challenges the false gods to do.  He lays out his plans.  He makes prophecies and issues promises.  If they do not come true, then we can mock God and dismiss him as a fraud.  But since the Lord fulfills his word, we had better pay attention to everything he says.  He proves that he is God.  He proves his word stands.  He proves that he is to be taken seriously.  And he proves himself capable of doing whatever he says he will.

     In our Old Testament lesson, the Lord lays out his plans for the future.  Isaiah proclaims that the Lord himself will come to bring salvation to his people.  The Messiah comes with a joyful reward. 

     As Isaiah speaks of the Lord’s salvation, he is like a man who looks through a telescope at a mountain range.  He sees three peaks in the distance, and they look like they are right next to each other.  So, when Isaiah speaks about the Lord coming to deliver, it seems like the events are simultaneous.  But when you approach the mountain peaks, you realize that they are far apart from each other.  The Lord comes with his joyful reward, but his coming is spread out over three times.

     The first deliverance would follow the Babylonian Captivity.  The Babylonians were still 100 years off, but Isaiah already prophesies Israel’s deliverance to a people who would be crushed in spirit.  The faithful people of God would be few.  They would see their temple burned to the ground, the city of Jerusalem destroyed, and their lives uprooted.  Their hands would be weak.  Their knees would be wobbly.  They would have anxious hearts as they were exiled to a foreign land.  But the Lord would come with his deliverance.  He would bring back a remnant to the Promised Land.  The Lord would restore the temple, rebuild Jerusalem, and reaffirm his promise.  He would come with a joyful reward.  God had foretold it, and God fulfilled it.

     The greater fulfillment of this promise is found in Jesus.  Isaiah gives us a vivid image of how to recognize the Messiah.  “‘Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God.  He will come and save you.’”  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy” (Isaiah 35:4-6). 

     The Old Testament records a few miraculous healings.  Naaman, the leper, was cleansed.  Hezekiah was healed and granted 15 extra years of life.  Even the dead sons of widows were raised by Elijah and Elisha.  But there is no record of the blind receiving sight or the lame walking again.  There are no deaf or mute whose hearing or speech was restored.  When Jesus came and performed these healings, it was unprecedented.  It was, however, foretold.  God had said, “If you want to know the Messiah, this is what he will do.”  And Jesus did it.  The Messiah comes with a joyful reward.  The Lord had foretold it, and the Lord fulfilled it.

     When John the Baptist was in prison, he sent his disciples to Jesus, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another” (Matthew 11:3)?  Jesus told them, “Go and tell John what you hear and see” (Matthew 11:4).  Then Jesus referenced these very words from Isaiah.  God had foretold it, and then God fulfilled it. 

     The Messiah comes with his joyful reward.  Even though Jesus brought healing to many, it was all temporary.  Those who were healed still died.  What keeps people out of the kingdom of heaven is not being blind, deaf, lame, or mute.  These are debilitating, but not damning.  Sin damns.  Sin brings the curse.  Evidence of that curse is experienced in various disabilities and diseases, but the curse is not removed by being cured of those things.  Corrective lenses, hearing aids, and prescription medicine are blessings, and we are grateful that they make life easier, but they do not allow anyone to escape death.  Therefore, the Messiah comes with a reward far greater.  He comes to bring deliverance from death and damnation.

     “Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God.  He will come and save you” (Isaiah 35:4).  Jesus did not come to pour out vengeance upon sinners, but rather he made himself the target of that vengeance.  The Lord cannot overlook sin.  He has declared through St. Paul, “The wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23).  And true to his word, all die because all are sinners. 

     But also true to his word, “the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6).  All our guilt is transferred to Jesus who has intentionally taken it from us.  And since Jesus bears all guilt, he also takes into himself all punishment.  God avenges all sin through his Son who is damned at the cross for us.  Jesus died the death that sinners deserve, and he died it for all sinners.  Jesus suffered the damnation that we had earned, and he was damned on behalf of all.  “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus” (Romans 8:1).  God had foretold it, and God has fulfilled it, just as Isaiah has said, “Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God … will come and save you” (Isaiah 35:4).  The Messiah has come with his joyful reward.

     We have come to two of the mountain peaks, but how far off is that third peak?  The Church has been marching toward it for two millennia, and it seems like the Lord’s deliverance is still a long way off.  The trek is hard.  It is disheartening to see the wickedness around us.  If it is not another school shooting, it is the abandonment of morals.  We have gotten to the point where a man who upholds the vocation of wife and stay-at-home mother as honorable is vilified as a horrible human being.  We have come to a place where people who know the difference between boys and girls could lose their jobs.  We are almost to the point where nothing is regarded as perversion anymore.  It gets hard.  Hands grow weak.  Knees wobble.  Hearts turn anxious.  Since God’s word is forever true and never fails, we know that we are standing on solid ground. 

     This is what the Lord says: “Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees.  Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God.  He will come and save you’” (Isaiah 35:3-4).  Yes, the Messiah will come again.  He will come to judge the living and the dead.  Those who have despised and rejected his word will be cut off from God forever.  It is what they wanted all their lives, and it will be granted to them for eternity.  God will avenge his glory, uphold his word, and execute justice.

     But the Messiah will come with his joyful reward for you.  He will come and save you.  Isaiah’s prophesy might seem a bit obscure.  “Waters break forth in the wilderness, and streams in the desert; the burning sand shall become a pool, and the thirsty ground springs of water; in the haunt of jackals, where they lie down, the grass shall become reeds and rushes” (Isaiah 35:6-7).  The world is under the curse of sin, and we see that in large tracts of land which are uninhabitable.  No one is building cities in the Saraha Desert.  But we look forward to a new heaven and a new earth.  Eden will be restored, and the barren places will be lush with blessings.  On the Last Day, the Messiah will come with his joyful reward—a perfect Paradise free from sin and sorrow and every evil.

     There will always be people who mock God, challenge the Bible, and try to convince you that you are a fool for believing any of it.  They will boast that they are smart, but they are fools who believe that there are no consequences for their actions or attitudes.  They deny their own consciences which bear witness that they are accountable and that a judgment is coming.  And recognize this: Those who would seduce you away from Jesus have no hope to offer you.  They have nothing to atone for guilt and regret.  They provide no escape from death and the grave.  They have no Savior, so they can never have peace. 

     But the Lord has foretold what he would do for sinful mankind.  He repeated his promises and prophecies throughout the Old Testament.  And whatever the Lord said he would do, he did.  The Messiah came with his joyful reward.  The Lord foretold it, and the Lord fulfilled it.  Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God has come and saved you.  Behold, your God will come again.  He will come and save you.  The Messiah will come with his joyful reward.  The Lord has foretold it, and the Lord will fulfill it.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 17, 2023)

Here is the Divine Service from Sunday, September 17, 2023.

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 17, 2023)

GENESIS 50:15-21

FORGIVENESS COMES FULLY, FREELY, AND FERVENTLY.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Our Old Testament lesson is the end of the story.  To appreciate the magnitude of Joseph’s mercy, let’s review.

     Joseph was one of twelve brothers, and clearly the favored son of Jacob.  Jacob gave him a lavish coat, suitable for royalty.  Joseph also gave his father a bad report about his brothers who were tending flocks.  Then Joseph had dreams which foretold that he would reign over his brothers.  All this stirred up Joseph’s brothers to hatred and jealousy.  They planned to murder Joseph, saying, “Come now, let us kill him and throw him into one of the pits.  Then we will say that a fierce animal has devoured him, and we will see what will become of his dreams” (Genesis 37:20).  Cooler heads prevailed as Reuben, the oldest, intended to send him back to his father.  But while Reuben was away, the other brothers sold Joseph to a passing caravan.

     Joseph ended up being sold as a slave in Egypt.  He was falsely accused of raping his master’s wife and was banished to a dungeon.  There, he interpreted the dreams of some prisoners.  Eventually, Pharaoh learned of Joseph’s interpreting skills and called on him to interpret some his dreams.  Joseph told Pharaoh that God was informing him of seven years of bumper crop followed by seven years of famine so severe that no one would remember the good ol’ days.  He advised Pharaoh to appoint a wise man to prepare for the days of famine.  Pharaoh appointed Joseph as that man.

     The days of famine came as promised.  They also afflicted Jacob and his family.  Jacob sent his sons to Egypt to get food.  And who do they buy their food from?  Joseph!  Only they did not recognize him.  He looked like an Egyptian, dressed like an Egyptian, and spoke through an interpreter like an Egyptian.  Besides, they never expected to see Joseph again, let alone ruling over Egypt!  Joseph put his brothers to the test to see if they were the same hateful, petty, jealous men he had known.  Once they demonstrated repentance, he made himself known to them.  He told them to bring their families down to Egypt so they would survive the famine.  After all, if Jacob’s family dies, the promise of the Messiah dies, too.  After decades of separation, Jacob was reunited with Joseph.  Jacob lived for several more decades, and then he died. 

     That brings us to our Old Testament lesson.  Joseph’s brothers reasoned, “Joseph would not dare do anything to us while Dad was still alive.  But now Dad is gone.  There is nothing standing in the way of Joseph getting his revenge.”  So, they sent messages to beg for mercy.  This reduced Joseph to tears.  Rather than seek revenge, Joseph assured them of forgiveness.  Forgiveness comes fully, freely, and fervently.

     First, forgiveness comes fully.  Joseph forgave his brothers with no strings attached.  There was no, “I forgive you this time, but if you cross me again you will pay.”  Joseph did not bear a grudge or harbor resentment.  He did not reduce them to servitude or make them grovel.  He cancelled their debt.  There was no payback at all.

     Joseph also forgave freely.  He did not do this out of any sense of obligation.  He did not say, “Oh, you’re my brothers, so I guess you deserve it.”  Quite the opposite, Joseph told his brothers, “You meant evil against me” (Genesis 50:20).  They did evil, and they meant to do it.  The brothers acknowledged it, too.  No one tried to downplay their sin.

     If you have ever had someone sin against you and then later came to apologize, you may have said, “Oh, it’s okay.”  But it wasn’t okay.  If were okay, no one would have had to apologize.  Sin is never okay.  It is an offense against God, and it inflicts harm upon others.  Besides, no one deserves to be forgiven.  By its very definition, forgiveness is not deserved.  Mercy is never shown because it was earned.  It is simply given.  So, if someone sins against you and comes to confess, do not say, “It’s okay,” rather, tell him, “I forgive you.”  This means that you do not hold anything against him.  You will not bring it up at a future date.  You seek no revenge and hold nothing over his head.  Forgiveness comes fully and freely.

     Joseph’s forgiveness of his brothers is but a glimpse of the mercy that God the Father has shown to us.  Our sins have offended God and harmed others.  We have betrayed confidences.  We have sold out friends by casting blame on them rather than taking responsibility for our own faults.  We have held grudges which have spawned into hatred.  We have assumed God’s forgiveness but have demanded satisfaction from those who have sinned against us.  There is nothing praiseworthy about holding a grudge.  Only in our minds is it considered righteous.  If someone has done evil to you, what is noble about responding with evil toward him?  Repent.

     Forgiveness comes fully and freely.  That is how our Lord delivers forgiveness to you.  Jesus came to release you from all guilt, to cancel all your debt, and to purge your record of any wrong-doing.  Jesus did none of this because you promised better behavior or  because you are sorry now that you’ve seen the harm you’ve done.  You and I should be sorry.  Any promise we would make to God to pay him back for our sins is laughable.  Repay how?  The slave in Jesus’ parable pledged to pay back to his master what amounted to millions of dollars.  On a slave’s wage?  Right!  He could never repay the debt.  Out of mercy, the master simply cancelled the debt—the whole debt.

     God the Father cancelled your debt, fully and freely.  Well, free to you anyway.  Jesus covered the cost for you.  God the Son, in obedience to his Father and out of love for you, came to pay the full price for our sins.  He who is eternal paid the price for all people of all time.  He who is immortal subjected himself to death for us who earned the sentence of eternal death.  He who is from heaven suffered the torments of hell for us.  He who is forever blessed was divinely cursed when he hung from the cross.  Jesus made the full payment for all sin.  Every last one. 

     Forgiveness comes fully and freely.  That is what Jesus’ resurrection from the dead proves.  Jesus’ resurrection assures you that the payment for you is complete.  The wages of sin is death, but the wage has been paid in full.  Therefore, Jesus lives.  Therefore, you will too.  Jesus lives and holds no grudge against you for what he had to suffer for you.  On Easter night, Jesus appeared to his apostles who were hiding in fear, guilt-ridden over abandoning Jesus, ashamed of their failures.  Jesus appeared to that sorry group and declared, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19).  There was no resentment.  There were no strings attached, as if Jesus said, “Peace be with you, but not for long if you don’t shape up.”  Forgiveness came fully and freely.  And it still does for you.

     Forgiveness comes fully, freely, and fervently.  It has to because we are still hounded by guilt and shame.  The devil makes sure that we remember our sins.  He continues to accuse and taunt us over them.  Consider Joseph’s brothers.  Do you think they ever forgot how they treated Joseph?  Could they ever forget selling him into slavery?  Joseph was a teenager when he was shackled to chains and dragged away by a caravan, looking at his brothers in disbelief, crying out for mercy, trying to understand why they would do this to him.  His cries for mercy got quieter and changed to sobs.  The sobs got quitter as the caravan slipped into the distance.  Meanwhile, the brothers coldly counted their money as they even more coldly ignored Joseph’s pleading.  I am sure that day was seared in their minds.  What else could explain their own pleading, falling on their knees before Joseph, and offering themselves as his slaves?

     But listen to Joseph’s response.  Twice he said, “Do not fear” (Genesis 50:19,21).  Then he said, “I will provide for you and your little ones.”  Thus he comforted them and spoke kindly to them” (Genesis 50:21).  I am sure this was not a one-time incident.  Joseph would have assured them again and again, “I forgive you.”  He continued to provide and to care for them.  He continued to demonstrate kindness to them.  His forgiveness was not mere words.  Our Lord does the same.  Forgiveness comes fully, freely, and fervently. 

     See how our Lord pours out his mercy upon you!  It was poured upon you in your baptism where Jesus washed away all your sins and clothed you in his own righteousness.  It is declared to you in the absolution each Sunday.  And for those sins that will not stop haunting you, it is applied personally to you in Private Absolution.  There, Jesus’ voice speaks through the mouth of his minister: “I forgive you in the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.”  He pours it into you again as you eat and drink his body and blood which were given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.  Our Lord comes again and again to sinners to assure you that you are redeemed, restored, and forgiven through Jesus precious blood.  For our Lord desires you to be his and to dwell with him forever.  He tells you so again and again.  Forgiveness comes fully, freely, and fervently.

    Now, if forgiveness has come to you this way, it shall also come from you this way.  Others have sinned against you.  It is not okay.  It is evil.  Perhaps it has left a scar.  Perhaps the wound has never healed.  Whoever has done this to you does not deserve to be forgiven.  But forgiveness is not about being paid back; it is about cancelling the debt fully, freely, and fervently.  It is about having the mercy of our Lord pour over from us so that we are God’s people not only in name, but also in practice.  St. Paul encourages us, “Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice.  Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.  Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children” (Ephesians 4:31 – 5:1). 

     Is that hard?  Yes, because we are not God.  But we are recipients of God’s mercy.  We have the benefits of Jesus’ forgiveness.  We have been relieved of guilt and have had our shame replaced with God’s peace and joy.  What a privilege to bestow those blessings upon others, to reflect the mercy of God, and to release them from fear, guilt, and shame—not because it is deserved, but because it is good.  This is how wounds are healed, burdens are lifted, and broken relationships can be reconciled.  Forgiveness comes fully, freely, and fervently.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 25, 2022)

Here is the service from Sunday, September 25, 2022.  The guest preacher is Rev. Michael Bater who had served for decades at Zion Evangelical Lutheran Church in Lansing, Michigan.  Pastor Bater is retired, but still serves at Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church in Morenci, Michigan.

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 12, 2021)

MARK 7:31-37

THE LORD COMES IN THE FLESH TO TOUCH OUR LIVES.

In the name + of Jesus.

     The Lord Jesus Christ does not seem to have respect for personal space.  “They brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him” (Mark 7:32).  I doubt that he was prepared for Jesus sticking his fingers into his ears.  If you dig into your own ears, some might call it gross.  If you stick your finger in a stranger's ears, you might get smacked.  “And after spitting (Jesus) touched his tongue” (Mark 7:33).  If having Jesus' fingers poking in his ears were not awkward enough, Jesus then stuck his finger into the man's mouth.  It is an invasion of personal space.  Jesus did not care.  Jesus put his fleshly digit onto the man's tongue.  Mark also mentioned spitting, and he did not specify where Jesus spat.  So, this could be even more gross.  Nevertheless, Jesus knew what the man's problem was, and he vividly showed the deaf mute that he knew.  With Jesus' touch and with his “Ephphatha!” came perfect healing.  “His ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly” (Mark 7:35).

     Chances are this miracle makes you uncomfortable.  Wasn't there a more hygienic way to heal the man than to poke fingers into his ears and mouth?  Why not lay on hands?  Why not wash in a pool?  Jesus didn't ask what you would have preferred.  He chose fleshly contact and invasion of personal space.

     We regularly second guess the way God works.  Surely God has better options, right?  If God wants all people to be saved and none to perish, why doesn't he just give an omnipotent decree that all sins are erased and that the gates of heaven can be removed from their hinges?  Why doesn't God declare his “Ephphatha!” over the whole world to eradicate every disease and disability?  Why doesn't God work more effectively in our lives we stop having problems?  With every “Why?” we challenge God's wisdom, power, and love.  We believe we could do a better job, as if we could out-God God.  Repent.  Neither your love nor your wisdom is greater than his.  When he acts, he does not concern himself with what you would have preferred or what makes you comfortable.  But he always knows and does what is best, even if he doesn’t tell you why.

     When the Lord sticks his fingers into our personal space, he has not overstepped his bounds.  If he makes us uncomfortable, it is because we don't want him touching parts of our lives.  Just as we want others to respect our privacy, we hope that God would keep his hands out of certain parts of our lives.  But the Lord does not keep a proper distance.  He invades your space.  He knows what is on your phone and computer.  He hears the words you mutter under your breath.  He knows your opinions, scans your thoughts, and reads your heart.  The Lord knows you intimately, and he knows everything.

     The Lord does not keep his distance.  In fact, he loves mankind so much that he came to correct and to restore all that corrupts mankind.  To do so, Jesus became a man and bound himself to mankind.  He did not try to get around the Commandments by making some divine decree that obedience to the Commandments is not necessary or that sins against the Commandments don't matter.  Rather, he submitted to the Commandments in order to obey them.  Heaven is open only to whomever is holy and obedient.  But now a man has lived a life of holy obedience.  He is the only way that man can now dwell in the presence of God. 

     The Lord came in the flesh to touch your life and to take up your cause.  Even though you have opened your mouth to challenge how or why God does things, Jesus has come to pay the price for it.  He did not question how cruel it was that he would silently suffer for your critical words and boastful speech.  He did not challenge how fair it was that he in his innocence was damned and that you despite your guilt are set free.  Jesus did what he was given to do—to redeem sinners.  He took into his flesh everything that is corrupt in your flesh.  The Lord came in the flesh so that his flesh could be curse, crucified, and killed for you.  Jesus took your space in hell and death to ransom you from them.  But his flesh was not devoured by death.  Rather than be left to decay, your flesh-and-blood Savior rose from the dead.  A man has conquered death and lives and reigns forever. 

     Just as Jesus united himself to you by becoming man, so now you are united to him through your baptism.  Therefore, you are covered by Jesus' perfect obedience.  God judges you to be holy and obedient; therefore, you have a place in the heavenly kingdom.  It is not an invasion into God’s space.  Rather, it is your home.  For, a man has conquered death and you are united to him in baptism.  Therefore, the grave does not get to keep you, and hell cannot have you.  It is not just your soul that he saves.  God has made you flesh and blood, body and soul.  Therefore, the Lord became flesh-and-blood, body-and-soul to save you completely.  What the Lord created, he became.  What the Lord became, he redeemed.  The Lord came in the flesh to touch our lives.  Jesus delivers us from corruption to righteousness, from death to life, and from hell to heaven.

     The man from the Decapolis who was brought to Jesus had the same problem you do; he was a sinner.  He had additional problems; he was deaf and could not speak clearly.  The people brought him to Jesus to correct what sin had wrought in his life.  They were right to do so.  Jesus personally attended to the man's salvation and to his handicaps.  For, when our Lord restores everything sin corrupted, he not only forgives sins, he will also restore bodies to complete perfection.  On the Last Day, Jesus will come and declare his “Ephphatha!” over the whole world.  The graves will be opened.  Those who believe in Jesus will have their bodies raised to live in unending glory.  Our resurrected bodies will have no need for hearing aids, crutches, ibuprofen or Icy Hot.  All will be restored.  All will be made right; for Jesus has come in the flesh to touch our lives.

     Jesus still comes to us in fleshly ways.  Our Lord no longer comes to us himself.  Now he sends his ministers into the world to preach the word and to administer the sacraments.  Through his flesh-and-blood ministers, Jesus bestows the forgiveness of sins, new life, and salvation to flesh-and-blood sinners.  As the word is preached, ears are opened to hear the word of life.  As the Lord's Supper is administered, Jesus puts his body and blood into unclean lips and mouths so that they are purified of sin.  Through his ministers, Jesus absolves the penitent and comforts the fearful.  He then opens your lips so that you may speak clearly and confess the good news of Jesus.  The Lord comes to you in fleshly ways to touch your life with forgiveness, new life, and salvation.

     The Lord Jesus has also chosen you to be the flesh-and-blood people who touch the lives of others.  The Lord was pleased to connect himself with us, and now he has us connect with others.  It is no accident that God puts us in families.  People are put together to bless and to serve one another.  It is by divine design that God also gathers us together as a congregation.  He could have told you, “Here is a Bible.  Stay at home and read it.  Or find a podcast and watch it.  You don’t need more than that.”  Instead, God brings us together into a family of believers.  Flesh and blood people interact with flesh and blood people.  We don’t care for one another in our heads; we care for one another in physical realities.  For sin does not merely affect our souls; it affects our whole lives.  The loss of a loved one, a hospital stay, financial hardship, fear of disease—these are not just bouts of mental or emotional anguish.  They affect our whole being.  That is why we need each other as flesh and blood, real people.  Aid and support that are given in theory do not help in reality.  That is why Jesus came in the flesh.  He is not merely a spiritual Savior.  The Lord comes in the flesh to touch our lives.

     That doesn't mean that it is easy.  People have messy lives.  They carry burdens that we don't know.  They come with baggage that we can't ignore.  They are hurting, struggling, and confused.  Their problems are real.  Their pains are real. 

     That is why Jesus does not deal with us in theories or in empty platitudes.  What comfort is there for a grieving sinner if you hand them a Bible and say, “Read this.  I hope it helps”?  Instead, God works through flesh and blood people who touch our lives and step into our personal space.  Instead of “Take this pamphlet,” it is “Take my hand.”  No text message is better than sitting with someone and praying with them.  No sad emoji will ever replace hugging a person who is mourning.  Zoom sessions cannot replace personal interaction.  Just ask a grandmother if to seeing her grandchildren on Zoom is just as good as having them play in her living room.

     God did not save us by an idea; he saved us by a man.  The Lord came in the flesh to touch our lives.  So also, God uses people to teach his word, to comfort those who are hurting, to encourage those who are struggling, and to hold the hand of the sick and dying.  God sends pastors to give the body and blood of the Lord to body-and-blood people for the forgiveness of their sins and victory over death.  We get to invade each other’s space and to invest our lives into one another.  The blessing of a family is that people are joined to one another for mutual benefit.  A Christian congregation is the same.  We are brothers and sisters united in Christ for eternity.  It may take some effort to change our mindset from “What am I getting out of this?” to “What can I do for you and your good?”  But the effort is worth it; for this is what love does.  This is what Jesus did—he came in the flesh to touch our lives and to redeem them.

     God calls us into a family of believers for a reason.  Our Lord knows that contact with people is important.  It was important that the deaf mute had friends who brought him to Jesus.  It was important that you had parents who taught you about Jesus.  It is important that you are here to benefit your brothers and sisters in Christ.  It is important that Jesus came to invade our personal space—important enough that God became a man to unite himself to mankind, and even important enough to stick his fingers in a man's ears and mouth.  The Lord came in the flesh to touch our lives, and he calls us to touch the lives of others with words of mercy, with acts of kindness, with patience, and with prayer.

     Jesus came in the flesh to touch our lives.  He is a real Savior who touches real sinners and bestows real healing, real hope, and real salvation.  Jesus alleviates real guilt so that you can have true comfort. 

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

YouTube -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 20, 2020)

 Here is the service from Sunday, September 20.

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 20, 2020)

MATTHEW 18:15-20

LOVE WORKS TO PRESERVE OUR NEIGHBOR.

In the name + of Jesus.

      The second table of the Law is summed up, “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  Even unbelievers would admit that this is a noble sentiment.  But how we put that love into practice is where Christians part company with the world.  One clear example of that is in our Gospel lesson today.

     Jesus begins, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.” (Matthew 18:15)  The first thing we notice in this sentence is that we are dealing with a brother, that is, with a fellow Christian.  Jesus uses a word that is more endearing than “someone.”  It is not just “If someone sins against you.”  No, it is “If your brother sins.”  As fellow Christians, we have a special relationship with one another.  We don't always get to know each other as well as we ought.  Part of that is because suburban living has us scattered abroad.  Another part, however, is that we don't put in the work of getting to know and care for our fellow Christians as we ought.  You might know the faces of the members here, but you are embarrassed that you can't put a name to those faces.  And if you can't do that, you certainly don't know their struggles, their fears, or their joys.  

     We are brothers and sisters in Christ.  We ought to recognize that we are not merely bound together by membership of a congregation, we are bound together in Christ for eternal life.  We are equally loved by the Lord.  Although none of us has an inherent right to the kingdom of God, we all have received a place in it by God's grace.  We have all been redeemed by the blood of Jesus who suffered and died to take away our sins.  The Holy Spirit has converted our hearts and minds to confess that God's word is good, God's ways are right, and God's people are beloved by him.  If God deems you worthy of love and makes you a possessor of his kingdom, then I must treat you with great honor.  You are more than a generic “someone,” you are a brother or sister.  Love works to preserve our neighbor, and all the more a family member.  

     The next thing we note is this: Jesus said, “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.” (Matthew 18:15)  Love works to preserve our brothers and sisters.  We can put up with a lot of differences among us.  If someone is quirky or has a different sense of humor, style, or political leanings, perhaps it is annoying to you.  But that only means you need to demonstrate patience and compassion, not that they need correction.  Jesus said, “If your brother sins.” (Matthew 18:15).   These are not mistakes or short-comings.  These are attitudes and actions which oppose the word of God.  To continue in them is to defy God who set the standard of what is right and wrong, good and evil.  Even to tolerate them threatens faith.  So, if you see your brother or sister in Christ who is persisting in sin or embracing it, love will move you to “go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.” (Matthew 18:15)  Love works to preserve our neighbor.

     What's more, love will also work to preserve our neighbor's reputation.  Knowing that someone is persisting in a sin is often cause for gossip.  But what good does it do for our brother to talk to others about him?  This does not preserve his good name; it destroys it.  Therefore, love will work to preserve the reputation of our brothers and sisters.  But love cannot stand by silently to watch a fellow Christian embrace his sins and destroy his faith.  Love must speak up in love and concern.

     This is where Christian love departs from the worldly definition of love.  In fact, the world finds this Christian definition of love to be utterly offensive, intolerant, and hateful.  The world teaches us to keep our distance, mind our own business, and turn a blind eye.  The world sees someone who flaunts disobedience to God's word, and the world cheers them on.  “This is how God made you.  Don't apologize to anyone for who you are or what you do.  You do you!” is the cry.  Anyone who would expose such attitudes and actions as sins or would dare to try to correct them—being sure that they actually are sins—is shouted down and becomes a victim of the cancel culture.

     Now, if you see an unbeliever who thinks and acts like an unbeliever, you don't need to be surprised.  If someone does not know or believe God's word, we should not expect that they would live like they do.  But “If your brother sins,” (Matthew 18:15) this grieves us.  We know the danger they put themselves in—under God's wrath, cut off from God's grace, and if left unrepentant, destined for hell.  This cannot be acceptable to see a brother or sister headed in this direction.  Therefore, love works to preserve our neighbor, and all the more a brother or sister in Christ.

     “If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.” (Matthew 18:15)  This is always our goal and our prayer.  If the Lord does not delight in the death of the wicked, neither would we.  But we do not always see the results we want.  So, “if he does not listen, take one or two others along with you, that every charge may be established by the evidence of two or three witnesses.  If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church.  And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:16-18)   

     Love works to preserve our brother.  But perhaps this does not sound like love to you.  Perhaps it does not seem loving to join together in exposing the persistent sins of a fellow member.  We would rather not hurt someone's feelings than call them to repent.  Often friendship trumps faithfulness to God's word.  But if we keep our distance, mind our own business, and turn a blind eye, we become silent partners with them in their sin.  And if they perish in their sins, they will curse us for watching it and saying nothing to warn them.  Perhaps we could excuse ourselves for not confronting a stranger, but if it is your brother, how can you say nothing?  Love always seeks the good of our neighbor, and it is never good to have someone embrace their sins and to defy God—not a generic “someone,” and certainly not a brother or sister.

     If we follow Jesus' instructions to preserve our brothers and sisters, we ought not be surprised to hear a defensive or a bitter response.  It could be that someone is actually ashamed to be caught in his sin, and he might vigorously protest that he is a good person and does not need your concern.  He might turn on you and say, “You have your own sins to worry about.  Let me alone!”  Or there is the ever-popular, “Whatever happened to, 'Do not judge'?”  But here is what you must remember: You are not the judge.  And you should never claim to be the judge.  Jesus' instructions say this: “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone.” (Matthew 18:15)  The phrase “tell him his fault” could also be translated “bring it to light” or “point it out to him.”  So, how do we bring someone's sin to light?  We compare it to God's word.  “God says this, but you are doing that.”  In this way, God is and remains the judge.  It is God's word that we are upholding as the standard of right and wrong, good and evil.  But if a brother hears God's word and still defends his sin and commits to continuing in it, then we have a new confession.  He is calling God's word a lie.  He is calling God a liar.  And the Bible warns: “Whoever says 'I know him' but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him.” (1 John 2:4)  If one persists in sin and denies that God's word applies to him, he has made his confession.  He is sadly no longer a brother in Christ, and we acknowledge it accordingly.  This is what Jesus means to “be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.” (Matthew 18:18)   

     Our Lord Jesus Christ has brought us into the family of God by his grace.  We are all sinners, and we all have faults that could be flaunted and rubbed in our faces.  But Jesus does not do that.  He has not kept his distance; he became one of us.  He did not mind his own business; it IS his business to save sinners from wrath and hell.  He does not turn a blind eye; his eye is on you and he looks on you in mercy.  He has taken up our sins so that they do not condemn us.  And he does not treat us as mere acquaintances or a generic “someone.”  He tells us that we are children of heavenly Father and that he is our brother.

     The love of Christ did the work to bring us peace and to preserve us in God's favor.  Jesus suffered the hellish torment of God's wrath when he hung on the cross for us.  That is how the Lord deals with our sins.  If our sins are taken away, nothing stands against us.  Nothing.  And now, he continues to address us in his word.  He admonishes us so that we do not go back to our sins.  He encourages us to strive for what is good and right so that we honor him and benefit our neighbor.  He comforts us with the promise that we are his, clothed in his righteousness, and therefore continually pure in the sight of God.

     What Jesus has granted to us, we want given to all.  Love works to preserve our neighbor.  We long to see all people freed from sin, death, and judgment.  Only faith in Jesus and his words provides that.  And we yearn all the more for Christ's redeemed to remain his saving grace.  Only faith in Jesus and his words preserves that—which is why we continue in it, which is why we work to see our brothers and sisters remain in it, and which is why we cling to the words of Jesus.  For Jesus alone strengthens and keeps us in the true faith unto life everlasting.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 9, 2018)

MARK 7:31-37

HERE IS A SIGN

THAT BRINGS SALVATION.

In the name + of Jesus.

     People are often perplexed by Jesus' instructions.  Following this miraculous healing, Jesus charged them to tell no one.  But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. (Mark 7:36)  It seems counter-intuitive.  You would think that Jesus would want everyone talking about him.  The more stories, the more people who want to see Jesus.  The more people who want to see Jesus, the more Jesus gets to preach the Gospel to them.  But Jesus didn't want this publicity.  Jesus charged them to tell no one.  But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it. (Mark 7:36)  Some think that Jesus was using reverse psychology here, but I can't think of a single place in all the Gospels where Jesus used reverse psychology on anyone.  Jesus spoke very plainly and directly so that we do not fail to grasp his meaning. 
     The reason Jesus had charged the people not to talk about his miraculous healing is revealed in the confession the people made about Jesus.  St. Mark wrote: They were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well.  He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” (Mark 7:36-37)  I'm sure it was meant as high praise.  But it fails to confess who Jesus is and what Jesus came to do.  While miracles brought healing, they did not bring salvation.
     700 years before Jesus entered the world, the prophet Isaiah had foretold this: “Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God.  He will come and save you.”  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. (Isaiah 35:4-6)  Isaiah's prophecy tells us what we are to learn from Jesus' miraculous healing.  The miraculous signs that Jesus did were just that: signs.  The miracles were not only acts of mercy, they were signs to announce who he was.  The one who makes the deaf hear and the mute speak is God in the flesh.  Here were signs that bring salvation.  They declared that Isaiah's prophecy had been fulfilled.  God had come to save.
     We aren't any different than the people Jesus spoke to.  When we hear Isaiah's prophecy about what the Lord would come to do, we get excited about the miraculous signs, too.  Like the crowds, we are amazed that Jesus would open the eyes of the blind and the ears of the deaf, and give strength to the legs of the lame and the tongues of the mute.  Who wouldn't be impressed by that?  And who wouldn't want that?  We recognize that disabilities are just that—a lack of ability to see, hear, speak, walk, or whatever.  While we ought not shame anyone who has such a disability, we also know that it is not normal.  We make efforts so that a disability does not become an inability.  We want to love them, aid them, and include them so that anyone with a disability can be assured that they are precious.
     Therefore, the citizens of the Decapolis brought to Jesus a man who was deaf and mute.  This man wanted to hear and to speak, and his friends desired that for him too.  In mercy and in fulfillment of Isaiah's words, Jesus healed him.  And the people praised Jesus for his healing.  “He has done all things well.  He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.” (Mark 7:37) 
     Then how disappointing that such miraculous healings will not be done today.  It is not that God is incapable of healing whomever he wants however he wants.  It is that Jesus' reason for coming is not just to make our bodies whole.  Can you imagine what it would be like if we offered a pill or an elixir that cured every body of its ailment?  We would have lines out the door every single day of people who want to be cured of every disability, disease, ache, or pain they have.  Would you blame them?  The world would praise us for making the deaf hear, the mute speak, the disabled whole, and everyone pain free, just as they praised Jesus in the Decapolis.  But just like the people in the Decapolis, that is where their praises and desires would end.  We all desire pain-free, care-free, stress-free lives.  We look for all kinds of medicines and life hacks to make that happen.  And once our bodies are tended to, we go on our way to find our happiness in this world again—as if the best this world has to offer is the best we can get.
     When Jesus traveled from place to place, the people brought their sick and disabled people to Jesus.  In mercy, Jesus healed them.  But Jesus did not set up a clinic to cure all ills.  In fact, Jesus discouraged the continual talk about his healings.  That is not the reason he came.  Once again, the miraculous signs of Jesus were just that—signs.  They proclaim who Jesus is and what he has come to do.  He is God in the flesh who comes to deliver our flesh from sin and every evil.  Here is a sign that brings salvation.
     Every disability, every disaster, every ache and ailment, every violent and vile act—all of these are signs, too.  They signal that the world has been corrupted by sin, and that we ourselves have been corrupted by sin.  Evil not only dwells around us.  It affects our bodies, and it has corrupted our hearts.  The deaf and mute man who was brought to Jesus was affected by the evils in this world.  His disabilities did not make him a sinner, but they were signs that he was part of a sinful world.  On the other hand, the fact that he was going to die one day was a sign that he was a sinner.  Only sinners die.  And since all are going to die, all are sinners.  Having a disability is not what keeps anyone out of the kingdom of God.  Sin is what condemns us.  Sin makes us cursed and corrupted.
     Here is a sign that brings salvation.  Jesus is God in the flesh who has come to save.  Jesus demonstrated mercy to the deaf and mute man in a very personal way.  Taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue.  And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”  And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly. (Mark 7:33-35)  He has taken a personal interest in you, too.  Just as he took the infirmities of this man into himself to deliver him from his disabilities, so Jesus has also taken every evil of yours into himself to deliver you from the curse of sin.  God came in the flesh to deliver you out of sin and death, and to restore your flesh to what God had originally created mankind to be.  Jesus gave his flesh into death at the cross, and he rose from the grave in his body to show you that your body will also rise from the grave.  On the Last Day, Jesus will declare his “Ephphatha!” to the grave, and every grave will open up for the resurrection of the body.  Jesus will conform your lowly body so that it will be like his glorious, risen body—forever free from sin and death, disease and disability, aches, pains, frailty, and whatever sin has marred us with.
     The healing of the deaf and mute man is a foretaste of the heavenly kingdom in which our Lord will restore all things to perfection.  Jesus fulfilled the prophecy of Isaiah: “Be strong; fear not!  Behold, your God will come....  He will come and save you.”  Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf unstopped; then shall the lame man leap like a deer, and the tongue of the mute sing for joy. (Isaiah 35:4-6)  Here is a sign that brings salvation.  What Jesus did for people for his brief time on earth, he will do for his redeemed for eternity.  Your God has come to save you from the curse of sin—both is condemnation and its consequences. 
     Behold, here is a sign that brings salvation.  If you desire Jesus' salvation, he delivers it to you now.  In Holy Absolution, Jesus sticks his words in your ears to declare you free from your guilt.  In Holy Communion, the body and blood of Jesus which have overcome the grave are given to you now.  Jesus puts them in your mouth to deliver you from sin and death.  At the resurrection of all flesh, Jesus will finally bestow you with a body that will forever be free from every evil.  For, Jesus is the God who saves you.  Jesus has already delivered you from sin's condemnation.  When the Lord comes again, he will deliver you from sin's consequences.  He will make the deaf hear, the mute speak, and the disabled whole—all because he makes the sinner pure.  This is what Jesus desires us to tell others; for, this is what brings salvation.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen. 

Sermon -- 16th Sunday after Pentecost (September 24, 2017)

ROMANS 13:8-10

LOVE DOES NO WRONG 

TO ITS NEIGHBOR.

In the name + of Jesus.

     Imagine a class room of 1st graders.  They love school.  They come home from school each day, raving about how great the day was.  Their parents are delighted to see their children so eager for school.  The teacher is a kind, friendly, and enthusiastic lady.  She loves the children, and they love her.  Everyone is happy.
     But then you find out the reason the children love their teacher is because she brings them cookies every day.  Every paper she grades has a smiley-face sticker on it and an A.  They watch SpongeBob cartoons after lunch.  The children are not learning to read.  They don't know how to add.  Whatever answers they give are deemed close enough.  But the children are happy.  They love getting smiley-face stickers.  And the teacher is happy.  She loves seeing the children so happy.  Parents love it too.  Everyone is happy.
     Then the principal steps in.  He puts a stop to cartoons and cookies.  He insists that the teacher start teaching math correctly.  2 + 2 is not “close enough.”  It is wrong.  The teacher must tell them it is wrong.  He insists the children be taught to read.  It will be hard work for some, but it must be done.  The teacher hates seeing the children upset.  The children miss their smiley stickers.  Some cry.  Parents wonder why their children don't want to go to school anymore.  Before, everyone was happy.  In this new system, it is hard.  Everyone wants to know why the principal is so mean.  They want to know why he hates children.
     That story is hypothetical.  But it illustrates how we have such a faulty, warped view of love.  In the story above, who loves the children?  Is it the people who made life easy and happy?  Or is it the one who made them work?  In our daily lives, we usually argue that the one who loves is the one who gives people what they want to make them happy.  The one who says that some behavior is sinful is called mean.  If you uphold God's commandments, people wonder why you are so full of hate.  People just want to be happy.  They defend whatever makes people happy.  That is regarded as love.
     Love does no wrong to its neighbor.  St. Paul wrote, “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.” (Romans 13:8)  Almost everyone would agree with St. Paul's encouragement.  Even atheists would.  But what does that mean?  The world's definition of love is so warped that it has lost all meaning.  Consider what people say they love.  “I love that movie.”  “I love pizza.”  “I love naps.”  “I love my wife.”  “I love the smell of campfires.”  Now, if “love is love” as we are told, then all of these are the same.  My feeling for my wife is apparently the same as my feeling about pizza.  This is obviously untrue.
     The common thread in the worldly definition of love is that I love whatever I find pleasing—what looks good, what tatses good, what is funny, and what benefits me. The worldly definition of love is selfish, even blasphmous.  When love is defined by what makes me happy, then I get to jugde what is good and bad.  If it makes me or somoene I know happy, then I reject God's word and make myself the judge of all that is good or bad.  That is blasphemous.  Repent.
     God sets the standard of good and bad, right and wrong in the Ten Commandments.  The Commandments show us what is good.  By doing them, we do good to our neighbor.  St. Paul wrote, “The commandments … , are summed up in this word: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.'”  Love does no wrong to a neighbor. (Romans 13:9-10)  Once again, most people would agree with St. Paul's words.  And again, sinners warp these words.  We hear, “Love does no wrong to a neighbor,” but when we actually apply it, we change God's truth to say, “As long as wrong is not done to me, I will love my neighbor.”  When your neighbor is doing what God calls evil but it does not harm you, you are able to say, “Oh, there's nothing wrong going on there.”
     You might think that you are showing love to your neighbor by letting him peacefully persist in sin and finally go to hell.  And chances are, he will be happy in doing this.  But what harm comes to your neighbor by letting him believe he needs no Savior!  Love will not let you suggest that you are superior to him, but love will not let you sit by silently while your friends are rebellious or indifferent to God's word.  How can we sit by silently while they dwell under God's wrath?  What greater harm can come to our neighbor than guilt and damnation?  Love does no wrong to a neighbor, therefore, love compels us to confess God's word.  They may wonder why you are so mean.  They may even ask you why you hate other people so much.  But love will endure this scorn so that some may be saved.
     Worldly love is selfish.  It loves worldly gain and worldly pleasure, and it viciously and attacks whatever stands in the way of a moment's pleasure.  This is not even close to the love God has for sinners.  Love does no wrong to a neighbor, and so God acted in love toward sinners even though it means he tells us we are sinners.  When Adam and Eve sinned against God and God came to them in the Garden of Eden, they went running for cover.  They wanted nothing to do with God, and they would have been happy if God had left them alone forever.  But God loved them too much to do that.  Sure, Adam and Eve would have been happy, but they also would have gone to hell.  So God came to them and exposed their guilt.  He did not do this because he is mean or because he hated them.  He showed them their sin in order to show them their need for a Savior.  Then he promised to send the Savior who would not ignore their sins, but pay for them.  Love does no wrong to a neighbor.  Love seeks a neighbor's good.  And the Lord seeks our highest good by showing us our need for a Savior and by revealing that Savior to us.
     Jesus Christ has come for sinners.  He has come to suffer what sinners deserve.  Jesus was known as a man of sorrows.  He was grieved that people love their sins, and he was grieved that he would have to suffer on their behalf.  But Jesus gave himself into suffering, into judgment, into torment, into hell, and into death for sinners.  He suffered and died for your selfishness, for defending sins of family, friends, and self, for sitting by silently while your loved ones march gladly to hell.  Jesus was damned for us.  He did not do it because he owed us.  He did it because he loves us.  He acted to spare us from judgment and from hell.  He has delivered us from guilt and sin and from divine wrath.
     You are forgiven because Jesus Christ loves you.  He not only delivered you from hell, but he also delivered you into the Father's kingdom.  The Father does not merely tolerate you; he loves you.  He delights in the knowledge that you are his both in this world and in the kingdom to come.  His love for you means that he continues to seek your good.  For, love does not wrong to a neighbor.  So when you do suffer or are hated, or when God confronts you for your sin and exposes your shame, he does all this because he seeks your eternal well-being.  He continues to show you your need for a Savior, and he continues to proclaim Jesus' salvation to you.
     Love does no wrong to a neighbor.  Having received God's love, we hope to reflect that love to others in words and actions.  We confess God's truth, knowing that it will expose sinners for what they are.  And we confess our Savior, knowing that some will crave the salvation we have.  If they remain in their sins, let them rest under God's judgment, not yours.  You keep on loving them, praying for them, and seeking their eternal good.  For, love does no wrong to a neighbor.

In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.