Sermon -- Advent Vespers, Week 2 (December 9, 2015)

MATTHEW 1:6b-11

SEE HOW THE LORD BEGETS THE CHRIST--  

Through Kings.

In the name + of Jesus. 

     When the Virgin Mary was told that she would conceive and give birth to Jesus, the angel Gabriel told her, “The Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David.” (Luke 1:32)  Mary pondered in her heart many events and comments about Jesus, and I am sure that this was one of the points she pondered.  After all, the Davidic kingdom had met its end almost 600 years before Mary heard the angel's words.  Herod was ruling in Jerusalem, and he was an Edomite.  Caesar was ruling in Rome, and he was not interested in the Lord or the Lord's covenant at all.  But now one would come who would be given the throne of his father, David?  That was remarkable, even unbelievable!  But Mary believed the word of the Lord.  The Lord would establish a kingdom through Jesus, the Son of David.
     St. Matthew gives the names of Jesus' ancestors to show that Jesus is indeed from the house and lineage of David.  Matthew traces Jesus' line from King David down through his royal household, right up until the day that kingdom was cut off.  Though David's throne was destroyed and though the line of kings met its demise, the promise was not destroyed.  Great David's greater Son had come.  The Virgin was with child.  His name would be Jesus, and “the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father David.” (Luke 1:32)  See how the Lord begets the Christ through kings.
     When the Israelites first asked for a king to rule them, they did do so with the purest of motives.  They wanted to be like the nations which the Lord had set them apart from.  Nevertheless, the Lord gave them a king.  The first king, Saul, proved himself to be unfaithful.  He did not listen to the word of the Lord.  So the Lord had David anointed to the king after Saul.  Immediately after David was anointed king, Israel was being mocked and threatened by the Philistines.  One Philistine soldier in particular, a formidable warrior named Goliath, defied the Lord and his people.  David volunteered to fight the giant, Goliath.  The Lord's anointed single-handedly went out to battle the enemy of God's people, and he won the battle single-handedly for God's people.
     Great David foreshadowed the work of his greater Son.  Jesus Christ came into the world to do battle against our enemies—sin, death, and the devil.  Though we like to think that we live our lives in complete freedom, that is not true.  There is a throne in the heart of every person.  The only question is who is ruling there.  Again, you think that you call all of the shots in your world.  But you do not.  You are ruled either by sin or by righteousness.  There is no in between.  Either you are on the side of the Lord and do his will, or you are ruled by the devil and do his will.  And this is what the Lord says, “Whoever makes a practice of sinning is of the devil, for the devil has been sinning from the beginning.” (1 John 3:8)  Therefore, if we sin, it is the devil who reigns in our hearts.  And since you and I cannot stop sinning, we are claimed by the devil for his kingdom of sin, death, and hell.
     If you would be free from this, then you need one who will defeat your enemies and deliver you from them.  Great David went out single-handedly and defeated the giant, Goliath.  Great David's greater Son went forth and single-handedly defeated sin, death, and the devil.  Just as David cut off Goliath's head with his own sword, so Jesus crushed the devil's head with his own weapon.  It is sin which produces death and damnation.  Therefore, Jesus took up our sin and gave himself into death for us.  Even though Satan knew that Jesus' death meant the payment for our sins, when he had the chance to put Jesus to death, he could not help himself.  He desired the death of God's Son.  But by his death, Jesus made the payment for our sins.  They no longer condemn us.  Then Jesus rose from the grave and conquered death itself.  Therefore, the grave no longer has its power.  Then Jesus descended into hell to tell the devil to his face that he had conquered, that he lives and reigns, and that he has rescued us from the devil, from death, and from damnation.  Jesus has released you from their grasp so that you have forgiveness, life, and a glorious future in his kingdom.  Your king is no longer a tyrant who wants you damned; he is a merciful God who died to have you saved.  And now the Lord Jesus reigns.  He is King of kings forever and ever.  See how the Lord begets the Christ through kings.
     Of course, King David was a mere shadow of Jesus, and the sons of David were mere shadows of the true Son of David.  The son of David who inherited David's throne was Solomon.  He was begotten through the wife of another man, Uriah.  This adulterous incident is a terrible mark on David's record.  It was not only an illicit affair, it also resulted in the murder of Uriah.  Through this sinful man who acted so shamefully, the Lord begat the Christ.  The son which was born to David and Bathsheba became King.  God granted him astounding wisdom.  Unfortunately, Solomon also turned his heart to the gods of his foreign wives.  Through this idolatrous king, the Lord begat the Christ.  Jesus Christ came into this world through sinful, shameful men not to reward their sins, but to atone for them—to pay the price for people who have chased other women and even chased other gods.  See how the Lord begets the Christ through kings.
     The lives of these kings are recorded in Scripture both to admonish and to encourage us.  These kings—Rehoboam, Abijah, Jehoshaphat, Asa, Joram, and so on—were given the assignment of ruling over Judah and defending God's covenant for his people.  Some were better than others in regards to the economy, politics, or foreign relations, but the Lord judged everyone by the same criterion: Either he did what was right in the eyes of the Lord or he did what was evil in the eyes of the Lord.  Of course, no one ever did everything right in the eyes of the Lord.  All were sinners, and all proved it.  Some proved it better than others, and some even died in their sinful rebellion.  It was from men such as these that the Savior came into the world.  And it is because the world is filled with people like these that the world needs that Savior.
     See how the Lord begets the Christ through kings.  All of these kings were flawed.  None were faultless.  Their reigns were neither permanent nor perfect.  But Jesus Christ has the fulfilled the kingly office by doing everything he was anointed to do.  Jesus was anointed king to lead the battle against our foes, and Jesus won the battle single-handedly over sin, death, and the devil.  Jesus was anointed king to rule for the good of his people, and by his sufferings and death for you, Jesus has achieved your highest good—the forgiveness of your sins.  Jesus was anointed to defend the covenant of God's people.  Through your baptism, Jesus has made in unbreakable covenant with you which means that you are members of his kingdom forever.  Now Jesus dwells on that throne in your heart so that your lives are directed by righteousness and ruled by God's grace.
     See how the Lord begets the Christ through kings.  Jesus has received the throne of his father David.The Son of David now possesses all authority in heaven and on earth, and he employs that authority for your benefit, for your forgiveness, and for your salvation.  Jesus lives and reigns above all.  There is no greater name.  There is no higher power.  Great David's greater Son rules uncontested and in an unending reign.  He is your King, and he lives and reigns for you.

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

MLS Basketball season

Photo from last season.

The Michigan Lutheran Seminary Cardinals basketball season began on Monday (with a thud for the varsity, and a particularly loud thud for the JV).  There is an M-Live article about the MLS-Unionville-Sebawaing-Area game here.  With so many players from last year's varsity team having graduated, it might take a while for this year's team to gel and to find their stride.

I don't know how many games we will get to this year with competing schedules.  We may have to watch more online or in person.  In any case, M-Live seems to think that one player on MLS is going to be worth watching this season.  You can scroll through the whole article and find out about it here.  If you don't have the patience to look through the whole article, then look here.

Go Cardinals!

Sermon -- 2nd Sunday in Advent (December 6, 2015)

PSALM 24

THE KING OF GLORY COMES.

In the name + of Jesus. 

     Although Advent is an ancient season in the Christian Church, there has been a shift in emphasis in recent years.  Understand that in the Church, recent could mean as much as 100 years, or only 5% of the time of the New Testament.  For centuries, Advent was a penitential season.  We heard about John the Baptist in our Gospel who was proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. (Luke 3:3)  Next week's Gospel has John issuing a stern warning for all who will not repent; for whoever does not repent of his sins will perish in them when the Lord comes again.  It is good to keep a penitential spirit in the Advent season.  If we are kept mindful of our sins, we will long all the more for the Savior who will come and deliver us from our sins.
     Nevertheless, Advent has recently undergone a shift in emphasis away from penitence to hope.  Though we are sorry for our sins, we also know the rest of the story: God so loved the world that he gave his only-begotten Son. (John 3:16)  So, we also approach Advent with a degree of anticipation.  For, we know that when this season ends, our Savior has come.
     These two emphases can be seen in our own congregation.  The paraments and our Advent candles are blue, the color of the sky, from which our Lord will return to deliver us from this world of sorrow to the glories of heaven.  But the banners are violet, which is the color of mourning and repentance.  If we seem to be somewhat schizophrenic about this, like we can't make up our minds which emphasis to have, maybe it is just as well.  It is good that we remember our sins and repent of them, and it is also good that we remember the Savior comes to us to deliver us from sin, death, and the devil.  The King of Glory comes, and that news gives us reason both to repent and to watch in expectation.
     Psalm 24 reminds us why the Lord would come to this earth: It is his.  He created it, and he continues to sustain it.  The Lord is not like some frustrated cartoonist who crumples up and discards a sketch which was ruined.  The Lord loves the creation he has made even though it has been corrupted.  He does not discard it even though its inhabitants are sinful.  Even in its corrupted state, “The earth is the LORD's and the fullness thereof, the world and those who dwell therein, for he has founded it upon the seas and established it upon the rivers.” (Psalm 24:1-2)
      Behold!  The King of Glory comes!  But the prophet Malachi asks a worthy question: “Who can endure the day of his coming, and who can stand when he appears?” (Malachi 3:2)  King David asks a similar question in Psalm 24: “Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?  And who shall stand in his holy place?  He who has clean hands and a pure heart, who does not lift up his soul to what is false and does not swear deceitfully.  He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation.” (Psalm 24:3-5)  While we all want blessing from our Lord, we are not people with clean hands and pure hearts.  We have not earned blessing from God, but wrath.  We cannot stand in God's presence.  We cannot dwell in his holy place.  For, we have lifted up our souls to what is false.  We prefer to alter God's word so that we are not condemned by it, or so that we do not have to purge our lives of our sins.  When we warp or twist or reject God's word to do this, we lift up our souls to what is false and trust what is deceitful.  It has become increasingly common for people who profess to be Christians to confess a Jesus who does not enforce God's Law, but rather gives people license to do whatever makes them happy.  That is deceitful, for such a Jesus does not exist.
     You and I are no different.  When we gossip, we do it to vindicate ourselves.  When we lie, we do it to cover our sins.  When we fail to pray, we blame our busy schedules.  We wish our enemies were dead which, we say, is noble because our enemies wish we were dead which, we say, is evil.  Though we sin against God's Law just as others do, we somehow have believed that our sins do not grieve or dishonor or provoke Jesus to anger..  But be warned.  For, people with clean hands and pure hearts do not need to make excuses, nor do they need to fear the King of Glory when he comes on his holy throne with the hosts of heaven to judge the living and the dead.  Repent!
     The King of Glory comes.  Do not seek excuses before him; for Jesus does not buy them.  Indeed, he can't and he won't.  Rather than seeking excuses, seek him; for Jesus comes to make atonement for your sins.  Who shall ascend the hill of the LORD?  And who shall stand in his holy place?  He who has clean hands and a pure heart...  He will receive blessing from the LORD and righteousness from the God of his salvation. (Psalm 24:3-5)  Jesus Christ has clean hands which never did evil against even his enemies.  Jesus Christ has a pure heart which gladly obeyed all of God's commands, even when it meant suffering for the sins of those with wicked hearts.  With his clean hands and pure heart, Jesus earned blessings from God.  He has proven himself righteous.  But he has not come to condemn you in righteousness; he has come to bestow his righteousness upon you.  This is his glory.
     The King of Glory comes!  The earth is his and all who dwell in it, for he has founded it.  He has created it, and he still sustains it.  The Lord loves what he has created, and so rather than discard this world or the people in it, the King of Glory has come to redeem it, to restore it, to cleanse the people in it, and to purify your hearts.  To do this, he who has clean hands and a pure heart ascended the hill called Calvary, where his clean hands were stretched out and nailed to the cross, and where his pure heart was pierced to bring forth blood and water which atones for your sins.  This is where you find blessing and righteousness from God.  In holy baptism, Jesus has cleansed you of all your sin and has purified you of all unrighteousness.  In holy communion, Jesus' holy blood strengthens and keeps you holy and blameless in the sight of God.  Instead of having you rely on excuses that even you don't usually believe, Jesus bestows upon you his innocence and righteousness.  The King of Glory has come to bring you into his kingdom and to promise you a glorious, everlasting life.
     This is why King David leads a song of joyful anticipation about the coming of the King of Glory.  Lift up your heads, O gates!  And be lifted up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.  Who is this King of glory?  The LORD, strong and mighty, the LORD, mighty in battle!  Lift up your heads, O gates!  And lift them up, O ancient doors, that the King of glory may come in.  Who is this King of glory?  The LORD of hosts, he is the King of glory! (Psalm 24:7-10)  He repeats himself at the excitement.  Jerusalem will fling open her gates so that he may come in.  The King of Glory comes!  Who?  Yes, the King of Glory!  And if he comes, he brings salvation with him.
     The King of Glory comes!  Jesus Christ—strong and mighty, a warrior mighty in battle—has single-handedly faced our foes of sin and death, and he has overcome.  Therefore, we remove every impediment which would prevent him coming to us with his blessings.  With penitent hearts we welcome him, knowing that he is merciful, that he loves his creation, that he redeems us, and that we are his.  With joyful hearts we forsake our sins and rejoice that our victorious and glorious King is coming.  Who is he, this King of Glory?  The Lord Jesus Christ.  He comes with blessings.  He is the God of our salvation.  He is the King of Glory.

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

A Pastoral Concern -- Christians, they are challenging your faith.

BuzzFeed videos are supposed to be entertaining snippets about one topic or another, and not all are moral.  Buzzfeed also has offered some vignettes which challenge people's thinking.  They have produced several videos which challenge Christians and their faith.  The most recently one is here.  (Note: If you want to skip the video, most of it is referred to in the article and in the Issues, Etc. interview linked below.)

I fear that the mindset expressed in these BuzzFeed videos is becoming more and more common-- especially by people who claim to be Christians!  In other words, a palpable split is being promoted within the Christian Church.

That is no surprise.  Scripture has warned us that this would happen.  It is grieving, but not surprising.  The pastoral concern comes for the humble Christian who is beseiged by these challenging questions.  At first, we are often dumbfounded by these challenges, because we have never heard them (and their thinly veiled accusations) before.  And since we have no immediate response, we assume that their questions/challenges are valid and that we need to change our beliefs.

Another pastoral concern comes when we strive so hard to be liked and accepted by people who dismiss, reject, and mock parts of the Bible.  All people like to be liked.  Guess what?  Jesus said that the world will hate us because it hates him.  Though this is a minor form of persecution, it is just that.  Those who hate Jesus will not like us unless we abandon Jesus.  We should remember that, and then turn to the Lord all the more when we have to endure such hatred by people who claim their allegedly better and more enlightened Chrisitan faith.  The sad fact is that many of these so-called Christians confess a heavily-edited-for-the-culture faith, which is an abandonment of much of God's word.  We should recognize this, expose it for what it is, and be prepared for the hatred of those who boast of a greater love than we have.

Rev. Hans Fiene, (LC-MS) has written an excellent article in the Federalist to respond to the BuzzFeed video.  You can read it here.  It is at least one way Christians can respond to the challenging questions which are being lobbed against them.  You can also listen to an interview here with Rev. Fiene on Issues, Etc.  (Note: Listen to Issues, Etc. often.  They offer outstanding programing, and it is all archived for your listening convenience.)

Another way to respond is to refuse to accept the premise that comes with each challenge.  Most challenges may have a grain of truth in them, but do they truly represent the Christian faith?  Some Christians might be guilty of the charges, but does that reflect what the Bible actually teaches?  That should be considered before you make any response.

Christians, they are challenging your faith.  Do not give in to them.  Continue to stand on the one, firm foundation which is Jesus Christ and his word.  Though they may hate you for it, Christ will love you, strengthen you, protect you, and finally deliver you.  Meanwhile, love and pray for those who persecute you.  Their future is much more frightening than yours.

Sermon -- Advent Vespers, Week 1 (December 2, 2015)

MATTHEW 1:1-6a

SEE HOW THE LORD BEGETS THE CHRIST. 

Through Patriarchs.

In the name + of Jesus.

     St. Paul wrote in his second epistle to Timothy: “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness...” (2 Timothy 3:16)  It is obvious how some portions of Scripture are profitable for us.  We even have students in Catechism class memorize portions of Scripture which are profitable for them to learn and remember so that they will not be led astray by fine-sounding arguments.  But I suspect that very few Christians in the history of Christendom have committed the first seventeen verses of Matthew's Gospel to memory.  You may even wonder, “Why are these recorded at all?”  But if we believe that all Scripture is breathed out by God (and we do), and if we believe these verses are Scripture (and we do), then there must be something profitable in them for us to consider.

     St. Matthew begins his Gospel by introducing Jesus Christ.  For us, he needs no introduction.  But the audience who first received Matthew's Gospel was likely a Jewish audience.  They knew that they had been chosen to be the people through whom God would send the Messiah, or the Christ.  If it could not be proved that Jesus was of Israelite descent, he could not even be taken seriously.  So, while lists of ancestry might boring to us, it was essential, especially, to the Jews.  Therefore, Matthew begins by introducing Jesus Christ as the son of David, and more than that, the son of Abraham.  Matthew is proclaiming to his audience: See how the Lord begets the Christ.

     Matthew had no need to introduce Abraham to his audience.  The Jews all boasted that they were children of Abraham and heirs with him of the promised Christ.  Abraham holds a remarkable distinction in salvation history.  Prior to Abraham, the Lord's promise was that a Savior would come into the world.  People were left to wonder: Where will he come from?  From what nation?  From what family?  From what city?  From what hemisphrere?  The Lord narrowed down this promise by calling Abraham to be the one through whom the Savior would come.  Abraham, through you and through your offspring “all the families of the earth shall be blessed.” (Genesis 12:3)  Therefore, the focus is put on Abraham, and his son Isaac, and his son Jacob, and so on down Matthew's list.  So, if Jesus is the son of Abraham, then he meets a key criterion as the Lord's Christ.  See how the Lord begets the Christ through the patriarchs.

     When we speak of the patriarchs, we often think of their great faith.  There is a good reason for that.  Abraham was called by God when he was 75 years old.  He and his wife, Sarah, were childless.  They remained that way for the next 24 years.  Yet, they still hoped against all hope, and they still believed that God would give them a son.  Isaac and his wife, Rebecca, likewise had to endure decades of infertility.  No son now meant no Savior later.  Still, they believed that God would send them a son; and he did.  Other patriarchs lived through years of brutal slavery in Egypt, through 40 years of God's judgment against them in the wilderness, and through successive periods of oppression in the days of the Judges.  In all of these times, they still waited for God to fulfill his word and to bring forth the Messiah.  They never saw that fulfillment, but they believed God would be faithful.  See how the Lord begets the Christ through patriarchs.

     Now, you may get the idea that the patriarchs were all but faultless.  That is far from true.  There is nothing new under the sun.  Just as we demonstrate our sinful condition today by regretable and shameful words and deeds, so did they.  We will consider just one.  St. Matthew writes, “Judah (was) the father of of Perez and Zerah by Tamar.” (Matthew 1:3)  As tame as this sounds, this was both immoral and shameful.  Judah had three sons.  The oldest was married to Tamar, but he was wicked and so the Lord put him to death.  Judah's second son was to assume responsibility for his older brother by producing offspring through Tamar for him.  He would not do it, and so the Lord put him to death, too.  Judah sent Tamar back to her father's house until the youngest son was grown up.  But even after his youngest son had grown up, Judah did not set up the marriage.  Some time later, Judah was traveling near Tamar's hometown.  She disguised herself as a prostitute, and Judah, shall we say, “hired” her for the might.  Through that act of adultery came forth twin boys.  One of those boys, Perez, became the ancestor of our Lord.  See how the Lord begets the Christ through the patriarchs.

     That sordid episode sounds beneath our Lord, that he should enter the world through the sinful acts of sinful people.  But it is for people like them that Jesus came into the world.  He did not come for the righteous, but for sinners—like Judah, and Tamar, and you and me.  Like Judah, we, too, have been ensnared by our own lusts—gazing at images that we should not look at, coveting another man's wife or woman's husband, or rejecting God's word which says that fornication and living together outside of marriage is sinful.  We also are affected and corrupted by this world's spirit so that we also cast aside God's commands and adopt the world's morals.  If Judah was not acting in good faith by his adultery, neither do we act in good faith by our sins.  Just as Judah and Tamar were wrong, so are we.  And so are we all worthy of death.  Repent, which is to say, turn away from your sins.

     But see how the Lord begets the Christ through the patriarchs.  The Lord Jesus Christ came through the immoral union of Judah and Tamar.  He did not come because he approved of their immoral union, but to atone for it.  It is just like the woman who gets pregnant and becomes an unwed mother.  Even though she may say how much joy she has because of her child, she and her lover are guilty of sin.  Judah and Tamar were indeed guilty of sin, but their offspring results in great joy, not because he is cute, but because he becomes a sacrifice to pay for the sins of Judah, Tamar, and anyone else who has given themselves over to carnal desires.  Jesus has come to atone for every illicit affair, every regretful word, and every impure thought.  Jesus' life of purity and innocence was given on behalf of our filth and impurity.  His innocence covers up our guilt.  His holy blood cleanses us so that we are reckoned as blameless before God.  No matter what filth has marked you, Jesus Christ has cleansed you of it.  No matter what shame you strive to keep hidden or try to forget, know that the Lord Jesus Christ has covered your shame with his righteousness.  He does not remember your sin, but rather his payment for your sins.  And therefore, he forgives you and calls you to flee from these sinful ways and to live godly lives to his glory.

     See how the Lord begets the Christ through the patriarchs.  The son of Abraham came into this world through sinners and through people who proved themselves to be sinners.  But that's because Jesus came into this world for sinners.  The son of Abraham has come for us, and he has made us all children of God. 

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

Local Tourist -- Scenes from Maybury State Park

The Local Tourist likes going for walks in Maybury State Park.  There are both paved and unpaved trails to walk on.  The trees tend to muffle the noise of traffic, making for some quiet walks and time to ponder on the readings which produce Sundays' sermons.

Below is an assortment of photos taken from October and November.  Fall in Maybury is magnificent!

October 12, 2015
The photo below is from pretty much the same spot, only 2 weeks later.

October 27, 2015

                    

      

   

Advent Vespers -- 2015

We have entered a new church year and the season of Advent.  Advent means "to come to," and we consider the two "comings" of Jesus.  Naturally, we think of his coming at Christmas.  The deadline is on the calendar already -- just a few short weeks away!  But we especially think of Jesus' second coming when he will deliver us from all evil and bring us into his glorious, perfect, peaceful, everlasting kingdom.  The joy Jesus brought at his first coming makes us yearn for his second coming.  He has taken away our sins and has, therefore, prepared us for his kingdom.

As we await the coming of our Lord, we prepare.  We keep watch.  We wait with prayer and humility.  

We will also use this Advent season to slow down for a moment on Wednesday evenings for vespers.  December is hectic enough.  Vespers, an evening prayer service, lets us meditate, pray, and focus on Christ.  

This year's Advent Vespers has the theme: "SEE HOW THE LORD BEGETS THE CHRIST."  Our focus is on the first 17 verses of the Gospel according to St. Matthew.  Chances are, if you read these verses at all, you skim pretty quickly past all the names, most of them unfamiliar.  But if the Holy Spirit thought it important enough to include these 17 verses in Holy Scripture, then they are also worth meditating upon.  We wll do that during these Wednesday Vespers for Advent.

The schedule is as follows.  SEE HOW THE LORD BEGETS THE CHRIST:
          Through Patriarchs. (Matthew 1:1-6a)               December 2
          Through Kings. (Matthew 1:6b-11)                    December 9
          Through Returned Exiles. (Matthew 1:12-17)     December 16

A supper will be served at 6:00 PM.
Vespers begins at 7:00 PM.