Sermon for 1/21/24: The Transfiguration of Our Lord

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“Listen to Him”

Matthew 17:1-9

 

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen

 

 

We are gathered together this morning with Peter, James, and John, for a what is, quite literally, a mountaintop experience. On the Mount we see Jesus surrounded by the Law and Prophets in the persons of Moses and Elijah. There we see Jesus, His appearance transformed, His face and clothing outshining the sun, and we realize that we are in the presence of God. This experience comes to us at God’s invitation. With the three disciples, we have become a part of Jesus’ inner circle. We stand on holy ground and hear the voice of the Father: “This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him.”

“Listen to Him,” the Father tells us, because what He has to say to you is as important to you as anything you have ever heard. His words are the words of eternal life, spoken by the One who is the Life and Light of men. His words create and destroy; they kill and make alive; they condemn and absolve; they cast down and raise up. Jesus sustains all of creation by His Word. By His Word He daily provides for all our needs of body and life. By His Word He cares for our souls.

“Listen to Him,” for Jesus is the only One to whom it is really worth listening. “Listen to Him,” because the gruesome death He would suffer was as a sacrifice. He died in your place. You cannot die an innocent death, can you? You are a sinner, and whatever punishment you might have received for your sins was less than deserve. Jesus died to redeem you, a lost and condemned sinner, to pay the blood price you could never pay, to drain the full cup of God’s righteous wrath, so that you might drink only from the cup of salvation.

Jesus has invited you this day to behold “His glory,” as St. John put it, “the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.” As Peter said, “It is good for us to be here.” It really is. But too often we end up like Peter, confusing the rush of the mountaintop experience with the ultimate experience. We prefer the high emotion of the mountaintop. But the problem with the emotion of the mountaintop is that such an experience is all about the emotion; it has very little, if anything at all, to do with Jesus. Such an experience is more likely to draw your eyes away from Jesus and His cross and place your attention on how you feel. Our sinful nature wants a “feel-good” religion because we don’t really like hearing about our sins. We don’t like being told that there is nothing that we can do for ourselves. We want to stay on the mountain because our Lord’s cross and suffering are offensive. Surely there has to be some other way.

We need to stop looking for peace and joy in all the wrong places. When we seek Jesus only on the mountain, we end up rebuked with Peter: “Get behind me Satan! You are a hindrance to me. For you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.” Unless you recognize your sin, you will never see the need for Jesus and His love and sacrifice.

Jesus did not remain on that mountaintop because there was another mountain remaining for Him to climb: the mountain of the cross. He hung on the cross to spare you from having to make that climb. Jesus came down from the light of His glory to hang dead in the darkness of your sin. Jesus came down from the Mount of Transfiguration because His true glory was not in that moment when He shone with heavenly light; His true glory was in being nailed to the throne of His cross, lifted up so that He might draw all mankind to himself. There was no bright light to shine on the cross, no voice from heaven, no disciples but one, because all the rest had run away. There was nothing but the brutalized body of the Son of God, scandalously hanging in darkness on the cross, bearing the weight of the sin of the world—and all of it so that this world might have life. This was His glory, for on the cross, Jesus defeated sin, Satan, and the grave; He brought you out of death to eternal life.

Do you want to see the glorified Jesus? Then behold the Jesus of the Gospels. Listen to Him. God the Father is made known in the preaching of His Son, and Jesus Himself is revealed in the preaching of the cross! Listen to Him, for in His preaching you are called to faith, called to the glory that will most certainly be yours. Listen to Him, and behold Him in the Sacraments, for He is there in His living flesh, crucified, dead, buried, raised, and glorified for you. Listen to Him in the name that He puts on you in Holy Baptism. Listen to Him when He says to you, “Do this in remembrance of me.” Listen to Him, for “faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.” Listen to Jesus, because what He has to say to you is more important than anything else you have ever heard. His words are truth, and they are words of eternal life. What words are these? You have already heard Jesus speak them to you this day: “I forgive you all your sins.” 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.  

Sermon for 1/14/24: Second Sunday After the Epiphany

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SERMON VIDEO coming soon.

Wine for You

John 2:1-12

 

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.  Amen. 

 

 

The clock was ticking. His short ministry had begun, the battle with the devil had been joined, and Jesus was on His way to Jerusalem. He had not yet gathered all of His disciples. He still had much to do. He was not in Cana for pleasure. He was never really anywhere for pleasure. He was there to serve, to fulfill the Law, to endure temptation, to suffer. His hour had not yet come, but the countdown had begun. For Jesus, being baptized by John was not at all unlike being diagnosed with a terminal disease. He had been given a death sentence in Jordan’s waters and had only three years to live. So His time was short, and yet here His mother comes to Him with trivialities. What concern was it of His if some wedding party was not quite as spectacular as the planners had hoped?

His answer to Mary was direct—some might even say He was rude. “What does this have to do with Me?” In other words, “I have more important things I need to be doing.” And did they need more wine? Rare indeed is the man who actually needs more wine, nor by that time were they likely to appreciate it. So whatever it was Mary was hoping for, it seemed that she was denied. Jesus simply told her that her concern was not His at that moment, her request unimportant in the face of His looming betrayal, suffering, and death.

But her response to His rebuke could not have been better. She believed that, despite His seeming rejection of her concern, He would help; He would rescue her and the wedding couple in some way, because that is who Jesus is. That is what He does. He is always rescuing people.

Despite the rejection, she believes that nothing of her concern is really outside her Son’s concern; she believes that no request she makes is trivial; she believes that He hears and answers every prayer. So in faith, she gave the servants the best piece of advice the world has ever heard: “Do whatever He tells you.” And what a surprise He had in store for them! He gave them wine like the world has never known—and more than they could ask or imagine.

God gives His gifts for us to enjoy them. He never gives them with the idea that we will send Him a thank you note or build a statue, nor does He do these things for His pleasure, or because it makes Him feel good to help us. He does them for us, because we have need of them, and because He would see us enjoy the life He has given us. He was not in Cana to enjoy Himself. He was there to give of Himself, to give His blessing, and even to provide wine.

And to this day we rightly pray to Him, just as Mary did. We may not ask for wine as she did, but our prayers echo hers. “Lord, this life is hard. I am tired. I am weak and frustrated. Sometimes I am sad and at other times just plain mad. Lord, I wish that I was happier than I am, and more content, that my spouse was more understanding and would pay more attention to me, that my job was easier, that I wasn’t hassled by people who don’t think I am doing it very well. O God, I wish there was more wine.”

While God may not always answer the prayers the way we want Him to, He never ignores those whom He loves, those for whom He laid down His life. He will do what is good and right. He may well surprise you. So pray away in boldness and confidence. Nothing is insignificant to Him if it is important to you. And if He holds out for now, don’t despair. He provides what He knows you need now, and He knows what you need for eternity. He withholds no necessary gift from you. He provides “all [you] need to support this body and life,” and He provides all you need for eternal life with Him.

God is good. He knows what you want. He knows what you need. He is good and He knows what is good. He will not fail. You will have pleasures amidst your temptations and frustrations and heartache. You will have your wine, and your heart will be glad. In the meantime, while you wait for His goodness, remember Mary’s charge: “Do whatever He tells you.” And what He tells you is this: “Take and eat. Drink of it, all of you. Do this in remembrance of Me.” Eat the body of Jesus and drink His precious blood. Return to your Baptism as you feel sorrow over your sins. Hear the Word of Absolution and have the balm of His resurrection applied generously to your heart. Your Father loves you. He has made you His own child in Holy Baptism. He sent His Son to be the sacrifice that makes you His.

The servants knew who it was who turned the water to wine. The disciples saw it and believed. They knew who was and is responsible for joy and gladness, and indeed for all the gifts enjoyed by men. It is Mary’s unassuming Son, Jesus, lover of our souls, the One who is truly good, the One who fulfilled the Scripture in their hearing. The servants knew. The disciples believed. God grant that we would be numbered among them. 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. 

 

Sermon for 1/7/24: Epiphany of Our Lord

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Gifts
Matthew 2:1-12

Grace to you and peace from God our Father, and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Amen.

 

The Magi went to the logical place, don’t you think? Where else would they go but Jerusalem, the royal city? But they arrived at the party all dressed up and on time, only to find that there was no party. No one seemed to know about this newborn King. So the Magi were confused. “Where is He who has been born King of the Jews?” And to the astonished faces around them, they added: “For we have seen His star in the East and have come to worship Him.”

When word reached Herod that important visitors had come from Eastern lands, asking about the birth of a new King of the Jews, he was understandably troubled. And he was not alone, we are told. All Jerusalem was troubled with him. And some things never change, for the coming of Jesus in human flesh and blood is a troubling thing for those who want to be their own kings, who want to have the say over what they do and how they live. Jesus comes as King. The patriarch Jacob had prophesied of Him long before: “To Him shall be the obedience of the people.” None may call Him Lord and then do as they like without consequence.

Herod was troubled, and Jerusalem with him. But Herod knew where to turn. He called in the chief priests and scribes to ask them where the Christ was to be born. Scripture gave the answer: in Bethlehem of Judea, that insignificant little village whose only claim to fame was that it was the birth place of King David, as the prophet Micah had foretold hundreds of years earlier.

It is significant that the star alone did not lead the Magi to Christ. In the end, they needed the Word of God to tell them where to look. And the same is true for us, too: we do not find Christ in beautiful sunsets or mountain peaks shimmering with snow. Yes, those are all His, to be sure, and they declare His glory. But He will only be found in the Word that He has given: in the Holy Scriptures His Spirit has inspired, and in the Gospel Sacraments where His gifts of life and salvation are delivered.

And how magnificent the grace of God is! After giving them the Word that pointed directly to where the Child was, He added the star again. This time it came and stood right over the place where the Child would be found. And considering what they found, they needed this confirmation. When they got there, they found the poorest of circumstances: a teenage mother with a little baby wrapped not in the silk and velvet of royalty, but in the simplest and most common of materials. Here was the long-promised King of the Jews. Were they disappointed that this King they had sought from so far should be an utterly wretched and ordinary peasant baby?

No. They closed their eyes to what they saw, so that the eyes of their hearts might be fastened on what God’s Word said. They believed, contrary to what they saw. They believed that what God had said was true, that the star had not led them astray, that here was the Babe whose goings forth were from ancient days, even from eternity. They believed that this was the promised King who had come to be the Savior of all people. They believed and placed their hope and confidence in Him. And so they fell down on their knees before the holy Child and worshiped Him! They brought out their gifts and offered them to Him. Gold confessed His kingship, His divine magnificence and glory. Incense confessed that He Is true God, the One who hears the prayers of His people as they rise to Him like incense. And myrrh confessed that He would die as the sacrifice for the sins of all. His whole life was set out before Him in these gifts!

Here is the One who was given for us, to be the bearer of our sin, the sacrifice of atonement for us, so that we might stand before the Father without stain or blemish, a people eternally loved by Him. He came to give us all. And so we desire to give to Him. But what can we really give Him? An old Christmas hymn says, “Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child, make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled, within my heart, that it may be a quiet chamber kept for Thee.” Such is the prayer of those who renounce their own rights over their lives and entrust everything to Him. And with Him is the way it must be. There can be no half-hearted or compromised discipleship. We are all either “wise men” who fall down in worship before the Christ, or we are Herod, out to do away with the King, so that we might retain control over our lives.

Epiphany is the day of gifts! And this Epiphany, to you is given again the gift of forgiveness for all those times you have played the part of Herod and have killed in your heart the voice of Him who calls you away from sin to live under His kingship. He says to you: “Come, My child, and be my own and live under Me in My kingdom in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness. Receive the gifts I have won for you at the cross.” And what will you say to that kind invitation of your King? May your answer be, “Lord, let Your light rise to shine on me, and I will be yours forever.” Then you, too, will truly be filled with exceedingly great joy. 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.