Redeemed and Rewarded
Grace to you and peace from God our
Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.
It
is not at all unusual for us to use our hands when we talk. In fact, in some
cases, it’s almost comical and can certainly be distracting to watch a person
talk who can’t help but gesture wildly with every sentence. But when used
sparingly, a well-timed gesture in a conversation can be an aid to
understanding what the speaker is trying to convey. It can add emphasis to an
important point; it can bring the hearer into closer communication with the
speaker. (As you’ve probably noticed, I’m not very comfortable making gestures
with my hands when I talk. My hands sort of flop around unless I’m trying to
make a point, or unless the flow of the liturgy invites the pastor to gesture
to the congregation.)
Throughout
His ministry, our Lord’s hearers couldn’t help but remark, “He has done all things well.” And that would certainly be true of
His ability to convey His message clearly and with great emphasis. So when our
Lord says, “Come to me, all you who labor
and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest,” you can picture Jesus
spreading wide His merciful arms to welcome the burdened sinner into His
embrace. “Come to me,” He says; and
when you hear that, you know that our Lord has a place set aside for you in His
presence where you will be welcomed with love and compassion and rest for the
weary soul. He invites you to come to Him because He wants you to lay your
burdens upon Him.
As
it is today, so it was during our Lord’s earthly ministry. People had stress
and pressure in life: the stresses of family, of work, of heavy taxes and
oppressive laws and cruel and ruthless authorities. And to top it all off, the
religious leaders of the day—men who should have been speaking the comfort of
God to a weary people—were laying burdens on the people that did not come from
the Word of God but from the imaginations and machinations of the priests, the
Pharisees, the Sadducees, the Scribes, and the other religious leaders. We
experience those burdens ourselves from those who call themselves pastors and
church leaders, but who are really wolves in sheep’s clothing. They tell you
that the life of the Christian is a life without suffering. They tell you that,
if you just believe enough, you will never get sick or poor, and will never
experience any kind of hardship. They tell you that, if only you will just give
them your money, you will be blessed.
It
is in the midst of these false preachers and their greedy fear-mongering that
our Lord stretches forth His hands. “Come
to me…and I will give you rest.” He invites you to bring your burdens to
Him—the weight of the cares of family life, the heavy load of work
responsibilities, the burdens of emotional and spiritual distress—and lay them
in His outstretched arms. He invites you to hide in His embrace, where you will
be guarded from the teeth of the wolves who would pull you away from Him with
their false piety and their false promises. He gives you a place free from
fear, free from the false preachers, free from your guilt.
You
know this is true, for He voluntarily stretched wide His arms on the cross—in
fact, He allowed them to be nailed wide open. He did it for you. In the midst
of your fear, your doubt, your distress, He invites you with outstretched arms
to lay your sins upon Him; to trust Him for the forgiveness of sins and eternal
life with your heavenly Father; to call upon Him when Satan wants you to doubt your
Savior’s work; to return to the waters of your Baptism through the words of
Holy Absolution, where He speaks through the mouth of His called servants to
give you the peace only He can give you.
And
this evening, He invites you to this table, where He welcomes you with open
arms to the eternal wedding feast of His body and blood, given and shed for you
for the forgiveness of your sins. “Come
to me,” He says. He’s here, fully present in this meal. “Come to me.” Come and partake of the
body and blood of your Savior. Be refreshed from the burdens the world places
upon you. And then, having received your rest, return to the world,
strengthened to bear the easy yoke, the light burden of service to the Lord. He
will bear that burden with you, as well. “Come
to me,” He says, His pierced hands outstretched. Come and receive Him. 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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