Text:
Making Peace
Grace to you and peace from God our
Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
As Jesus rode into
Jerusalem, He
cried. He was coming into the city to save the people from their sins, and they
didn't care. They didn't believe. They did not know the things which would give
them peace—the Son of God dying for sins on the cross. They didn't know the
time of their visitation, when God Himself showed up to save them. Jesus cried
because God in the flesh saves the world from sins, but God's own chosen people
refused to believe it. When the Holy Spirit gathers us in the church, when we
celebrate the Divine Service, God Himself is present. Here in this place, the
Lord stands among you to serve you the gifts of forgiveness, life and
salvation. Here in this place, Christ comes to bring the things that bring you
peace. Here in this place, our Lord is with you to shelter you from His wrath
and to give you eternal life. The water of Holy Baptism; Absolution spoken by
your pastor; preaching and teaching; the body and blood of your Lord Jesus:
these are the things which bring the peace of God to you. Do you know them? Do
you believe that Christ is here and visits you for your good and blessing?
Jerusalem didn't know the things that will
bring it peace! The clergy especially, along with the Pharisees and leaders,
wanted a Savior who comes to do what they want, not one who suffers and dies
for their sins. Over and over, as Jeremiah reminds us, the Lord has called to
His people and they want nothing to do with Him. Jesus then predicted what will
happen to Jerusalem.
If they don't want God's Word, then the Lord won't have them! In 70 AD the
Romans laid their siege against Jerusalem
and destroyed the city. Brothers and sisters in Christ, don't miss this warning
about what happens to those who reject Christ and want nothing to do with His
Word. How long will God be patient with you before He brings you to utter shame
and ruin? Do you know the things which bring God's peace? Do you know the time
of God's visitation? Are God's Word and promises the very thing which give you
peace? Or do you despise them and see the consequences in a life full of
frustration and heartache and turmoil?
The visitation of
God, the things that bring peace, are all there in Christ. Jesus comes to Jerusalem—God Himself.
Over and over He sent prophets like Jeremiah to warn Jerusalem to stop worshiping false gods, to
repent and cling to the Lord's saving promises. Now God has come Himself in the
flesh to save and rescue His people. Jesus goes to the cross and suffers and
dies for the sins of a world that doesn't know Him and doesn't want to know
Him. He dies for His own people who don't want anything to do with Him. He dies
for you and me—people who often put little importance on learning His Word and
receiving the true peace which comes from sins forgiven. But He goes to the
cross to bring an end of your enmity with God. He goes to the cross in your
place as your sacrifice that takes away your sins. Believe that, dear people of
God! Believe that all that Christ is and has done by His death and resurrection
is for your peace.
Brothers and
sisters in Christ, let Jerusalem
serve as a warning, a wake up call that God's Word is not to be treated lightly
or with contempt! Instead, hear again the things that are for your peace: the
Son of God dying on the cross and rising from the dead; the washing of water
and the Word at the holy font; the speaking of forgiveness into your ears by
your pastor; the forgiving feast of Christ’s body and blood at this altar.
These are the things for your peace. You don't have to look anywhere else in
the world to have your sins forgiven, to be made right with God, to have peace
with your neighbor. Though you have despised God's Word and gifts, your sin has
been blotted out by the blood of Jesus. Do not fear that you have neglected
God's Word and promises! Don't be afraid of your sins! They have been answered
for, covered by Jesus. He has come to Jerusalem
for the salvation of the whole world. And now He comes to His Church, in this Divine
Service, to give that salvation to you. These are the things that make for your
peace. In the name of the Father and of the Son (+) and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
The
peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in
Christ Jesus always. Amen.
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