Sermon for 6/29/25: Second Sunday After Trinity

 

No audio recording at this time. Sorry. Stupid technology.

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“The Feast Is Ready”

Luke 14:15-24

 

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

         

The Kingdom of God is not just some far away event in the distant future. The Kingdom is present now. “Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it” now. “Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven” now. “Blessed is he who eats bread in the Kingdom of God” now. The Kingdom of God is already here; God is already present with His grace and mercy.

So Jesus tells this parable about urgency and invitation. Everything is ready…everything, that is, but the invited guests. They have lingering commitments. They have other wants and desires for themselves. The master of the feast is ready, but they are not. And so come the excuses. They don’t come right out and say that they don’t want to come. They just don’t want to come now. Of course, we can clearly see the foolishness of such behavior. We are pleased that the host invites the outcasts of society—the poor, the lame, the maimed, the blind—and still there is room. We are glad because that means there is still room for us.

This is a parable about urgency, about a desperate, current need we have. We might even mock these men in the parable who thought themselves too busy to attend. But what about us? Are we ready for the final summons? Are we eager? I suspect that we’re not quite there yet. You young people, teenagers, and young adults: how do you feel about the Lord possibly returning very soon? You have plans and dreams. You want to grow up and have families and careers. You want to have kids and watch then grow. There are things you want to experience. And you are not alone in that desire. Your parents and grandparents would probably feel just as cheated for the same reasons. The truth is, if it were up to us, many of us would prolong the Lord’s return permanently. We have more important things we want to do and more significant goals we want to accomplish. And we don’t want to be disappointed.

Please forgive my bluntness, but you must understand that this is pure nonsense. No believer will be disappointed on that Day of glory. You will not look back grudgingly on this vale of tears. No matter what your plans or dreams are, no matter what you come to possess, no matter who you leave behind for a time, it is far greater joy to leave behind this life of suffering and frustration and disappointment and be joined to the saints in that perfect and eternal heavenly communion!

It is true, of course, that there are those who are near the end of life—those of great age, perhaps those experiencing great sorrow, illness, or suffering. Their frustration is a different one. They wonder why God keeps them here. They are ready to go; they cannot see any further purpose they can serve here. They don’t know why they go on living. Sometimes I have to tell them I don’t know the reason either. But as St. Paul reminded the Romans, for all who love God and are called according to His purposes, all things work for good—all things without exception. He will take them home soon. And God’s time is perfect. But that plaintive cry, that desire for the end, should be in all of us, regardless of age or health or occupation. What do any of us—husband, wife, farmer, laborer, banker, teacher, or pastor—what do any of us add to this world? God does not need us here. This is not even our home. Eternal life is our destination. “Come, Lord Jesus” should be more than a thoughtless table prayer.

And yet, the sad fact is that, sometimes, we have behaved and thought about eternity as though we might actually be bored in heaven, as though we might have nothing to do there that we enjoy doing. Yes, heaven may not be a utopia of golf courses, or ponds stocked with fish, or limitless perfect games of Bunco or Call of Duty. The truth is, it is far better than any of that. Heaven is the most interesting, the most delightful, the most wonderful place, beyond our ability to imagine. At the Resurrection, we will be free from sin. We will no longer have to deal with affliction, suffering, or the destructive forces of this world. We will stop hurting ourselves and those we love with shameful, selfish behavior. We will bask in the presence of our loving Father as His children perfected in grace. We will have no regrets. Nothing will be lost. Everything will be gained.

But that joy to come, the glory to be revealed, is already here. For those with eyes of faith, we are already God’s beloved children, forgiven by grace, in whom He eternally abides. Already now, already here, He gathers us around Himself in the waters of Holy Baptism, the very center of our lives! He feeds us with food that money cannot buy, with bread that will not waste—with crucified flesh and blood that is not dead but forever alive, with a righteousness that forever satisfies.

Everything is ready. It is all finished. All debts are paid, all sins removed. All shame is forgotten in the death He died once for all, in the resurrection that delivers us to our eternal home. There is nothing left but to receive. The Feast is ready. So come; be filled with Him. As the Psalmist invites: “O taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who trusts in 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.

 

HYMN: O Israel, Bless God the Lord

I hadn't written a hymn text in 2025. It's been a long six months, a busy six months. We've had big changes in the congregation where I serve, especially with the Senior Pastor leaving at the end of January, so I'm doing most of the work of two pastors right now. Whether or not she wants to see me, Faith doesn't get to see me until late in the evening for much of the week. And then the Kornackis moved to a house closer to the church (which has been a great blessing) when our former landlord decided to get out of the landlord business. It's been a crazy time in the life of the Kornacki family, and none of that lent itself to the time or inspiration it takes to write a hymn text.

As always seems to be the case, a church conference or convention afforded me both the opportunity and inspiration to write. I am at the triennial Convention of Iowa District East. So I've wanted to write a text based on the song of Zechariah: the Benedictus found in Luke 1:68-79. I love the Benedictus from the service Morning Prayer (sorry, can't seem to find a video of just the Benedictus from Morning Prayer) in Lutheran Service Book, and. I've spoken the words Zechariah sang directly to John over every the newly-made pastor at every Ordination I've been privileged to participate in through the years. Anyway, I've had probably a dozen aborted starts over the past 15 years. But something this morning popped into my head, and it didn't immediately lead me to a dead end. So here it is: the Benedictus in metric form. The selected tune is familiar from the text "O God of God, O Light of Light." As always, feedback is love.

By the way, I'm pretty sure I've used the name "Israel" as a two-syllable word in other places. In the first line of this text, it is a three-syllable word. I tend to pronounce it "IS-rye-el." (Yes, "rye" like the bread.) Your mileage may vary.

O Israel, Bless God the Lord

1. O Israel, bless God the Lord

Who visits us with saving grace. 

For Christ has come! In flesh, the Word

Reveals the Father’s loving face. 

King David’s Son, the long-foretold

From prophets’ lips in ancient days,

Has broken Satan’s mighty hold;

His murd'rous wrath our Savior stays. 

2. With mercy sweet He visits us

As vowed to all who went before:

His covenant, a gracious trust,

To save us now and evermore. 

Delivered from our fearsome foe,

We serve our Father fearlessly.

In righteousness our days shall go

Before His face eternally. 

3. Now you shall go before the Lord,

And as you go, prepare His way:

To preach His great, forgiving Word

To vessels formed of living clay.

Proclaim the mercy of our God

Who visits us with endless grace:

Not darkened 'neath death's dreadful rod

But guided in the way of peace.

LMD 

O GROSSER GOTT (LSB 810)

Benedictus (Luke 1:68-79)

Sermon for 6/22/25; First Sunday After Trinity

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Temptation and Faith

Genesis 15:1-6

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

 

Several times, St. Paul uses the story of Abraham, his faith, and the promises God made to him, as a proof that we are justified, put right with God, through faith in Jesus Christ. But more than that, these words unpack an important chapter in the spiritual history of the patriarch Abraham, the “father of many nations.” Even after his call from God to leave his homeland and go to the land that would be his inheritance, his life was full of severe temptation. Unfortunately Abraham, failed often before those temptations. But by the help of God, he was eventually able to overcome them. And now, even as Abraham’s call to faith is a picture of our own call into the kingdom of God, so we also find here great truths which still hold firm in the life of those whom God has called by faith into His kingdom.

Abraham faced temptation. We, too, face temptation. Facing temptation is not sin. We can’t avoid facing it in a world that is so corrupt and evil. The question is, what do we do? How do we respond in the face of temptation? The Church is the free-born daughter of heaven; the New Testament makes that abundantly clear. And yet, she was hated and abused in those early days, and she still is, though, perhaps, less overtly so. She is a source of blessing for the whole world, but, to this day, she must submit to oppression and persecution. Just consider the attempts being made to curtail the religious freedom of Christians to live their faith in their daily lives. Consider the many ways, and how rapidly, the societal norms of morality have changed, and how “in your face” many of the practitioners of such evil are. Oppression and persecution, and the temptations that follow, don’t have to be physically violent to be effective. Mental and emotional persecution, the oppression of the mind and heart, can be equally devastating.

And what is true of the Church as a body is also true of Christians individually. The Christian and the cross belong together. Jesus said it: “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself, take up his cross, and follow me.” Whatever form temptation takes, ultimately it is an attack on our faith. Luther called this “anfechtung,” being attacked by the devil! When blinded by temptation, our confidence in the truthfulness of God begins to waver. God’s promises do not harmonize with our present condition—at least, not as we see it. And that is where sin breaks in to steal away our hope and our joy.

There is a pastor’s prayer in which the pastor prays, “Lord, You know that I am not the strong man of God my people think I am...” Every honest pastor must admit this is true. I deal daily with demons which I hope you know nothing about. They try to lead me to give in to doubt and despair; and, more than I care to admit, these demonic temptations are successful. You, too, are afflicted by temptations that lead you into sin. You, too, have sinful thoughts and desires that eat away at your soul, whether or not they have become sins of action. And Satan keeps throwing it in your face, trying to convince you that God will forsake you. What do you do? Abraham appealed to God. “As the father of an ill child once said to Jesus, “Lord, I believe. Help my unbelief!”  

As contrary to reason as it may seem, temptations come so that we might see the loving purposes of God that are hidden within them, and that we might overcome them by the grace of God. Temptation comes so that we might learn of the comfort God promises in the midst of trial. So it was with Abraham. The Lord took Abraham outside and pointed to the stars and promised that Abraham’s descendants would be like those unnumbered stars.

And so it is with us. When we are surrounded by our own doubts and fears, the Lord comes to us in His Word and says, “Fear not, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” He opens our eyes of faith so that we may see the great things He has already given us: countless spiritual blessings as well as daily bread. And then the Lord admonishes us: “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.”

It is written: “[Abraham] believed the Lord, and He counted it to him as righteousness.” What is the nature of faith? Faith is not something we do; faith is a gift, something that comes from outside ourselves. It is a gift of God which allows us cling solely to the almighty and gracious God who offers Himself to us in His Word. This is just what Abraham did. All he had was the promise of God. But Abraham believed that promise and, by faith, he had the consolation and comfort of God and the strength to overcome temptation. And, more importantly, He had the promise of the forgiveness of God when he was defeated by temptation. And so it is for us. Faith expects all help to come from God alone. Faith relies only on His Word. And in this way, your heart is filled with comfort; rest returns to your soul; temptation is overcome. You can joyfully say, “If God is for me, who can be against me?” 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 6/8/25: The Feast of Pentecost

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Babel and Pentecost
Genesis 11:1-9

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

The people of Babel lived just a few generations after the flood. Noah and his descendants had been given the same command by God that was given to Adam and Eve: “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” But the people of Babel didn’t want to fill the earth. They said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth.” These people sought their identity and security not in God’s Word and command but in their own achievements. They made an idol of themselves. They began to build a tower that would be so great, the generations to come would revere their name forever. This tower under construction stood there as a corrupt monument to their rebellion against God.

You are descendants of the people of Babel, and you, too, practice self-idolatry. Your sinful flesh doesn’t seek to find its identity and security in God’s Word, but in your own strength. The Old Adam in you wants to be remembered for generations to come. These things are monuments to a human race which trusts not in God, but in itself. God does not let such rebellion go unpunished. Concerning the people of Babel, He said, “Let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.” Their words and speech were changed so that communication with one another was broken down. They could no longer carry out their plans. Their unity led to evil, and so the Lord scattered them.

Babel is still real today—not only in the many languages still spoken throughout the world, but in the lack of communication that can occur even between people of the same language. It’s not only that fallen people can’t understand one another; they don’t even want to listen to one another. They assume the worst about something that was said or left unsaid. Words and language are used destructively and selfishly. Words are used as a cover for sin: this month the world is celebrating its “pride” in homosexuality and gender confusion; abortion is “the termination of a fetus” or “choice”; living together is called “testing the waters”; assisted suicide is called “death with dignity.” Babel lives on in a world divided by words and speech and language.

But into this fallen world of discord and division comes the gift of Pentecost. At Babel God said in judgment, “Let us go down and confuse their language.” At Pentecost God poured out the Holy Spirit on the apostles. There were people of many different languages in Jerusalem, and the Spirit enabled the apostles to clearly proclaim the Gospel of Christ in the languages of all their hearers. For those who heard the apostles, their ears were opened so that they would understand and receive the forgiveness and salvation which Jesus won for them on the cross. Some didn’t recognize God’s gift and thought the apostles were drunk. But Peter proclaimed, “This is the fulfillment of prophecy; for God promised, ‘I will pour out my Spirit on all peoples.’”

God poured out His Spirit through words and language. The primary working of the Spirit that day was that the Word of God was preached: both Law and Gospel. By the Spirit’s power, the apostles condemned the people for their unbelief in Christ and their wickedness in putting Him to death. Yet the apostles also proclaimed how God accomplished His saving purposes through Christ’s death, and how He raised Jesus from the dead as Lord and Savior of all.

In contrast to Babel, the Spirit took the scattered peoples and brought them together and unified them through the Word of Christ. These new believers devoted themselves to the apostles’ words and teaching, to the Lord’s Supper, and to the prayers. At Pentecost, people were made one in Christ for the glory of God and the good of one another. Though the different languages remain, though forgiven sinners continue to speak and listen with the lips and ears of the Old Adam, the Spirit unites peoples of various places in the one body of Christ through His holy Word.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, Pentecost continues still today. The Holy Spirit continues to do among you the very things He did that day; He calls you to repentance and faith in Jesus through the preaching of the Word. He convicts you of your sin and guilt. And then He proclaims words of mercy and pardon to you in the person of Jesus. As you hear and believe the Spirit’s preaching, you are forgiven, set free from guilt, set right with God. And then the Spirit opens your lips to confess your faith, as Carter and Adam will do this day, and to thank God for His blessings.

The Spirit continues to draw you together through the body and blood of Christ. As you are united with Christ in His Supper, you are also united with one another. You are made one by the Spirit in the Communion of Saints. In the end, the ongoing reality of Pentecost continues to be the undoing of Babel in the Church. Though you come from various places and different backgrounds, the Spirit unifies you in Jesus Christ. In the waters of Holy Baptism, Babel has been overcome for you. 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 6/1/25: Ascension of Our Lord (observed)

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Heaven Opened

Luke 24:44-53

 

Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

 

The Ascension of Our Lord is a celebration not at all unlike the celebration of Christmas. It is a celebration of the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, the One who both was and is “God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God.” He took up human flesh through the virgin Mary. The Holy Spirit overshadowed her, and what was conceived in her, with only God as His Father, was the only-begotten Son of God in human flesh: a Man who is also God. The Father did all this to raise up for Himself a worthy Sacrifice to atone for all the sins of the world. And as a result, those cords that would bind us to eternal death and Hell were severed. By becoming and being Man, the Son of God fulfilled the will of the Father in His dying, in His rising, and in His ascending.

By becoming one of us, becoming a man, the Son of God has elevated human nature. One of the Holy Trinity was, and still is, also one of us. The Son of God has become not only our Savior; He has also become our Brother. Because He took on our human flesh, His Father is our Father. And for the same reason, the Holy Spirit comes to us to be our Defender and our Guide, our Comforter, our Sanctifier. Throughh the Incarnation of Jesus, we enjoy an even greater honor and privilege than Adam and Eve did before the fall, for as wonderful as the Garden of Eden certainly was, heaven is even more wonderful.

The Son of God, still in His human flesh that was mocked and beaten and nailed to the cross, still in the flesh that was raised again to life, has gone into heaven. From there He sends His Holy Spirit: the Spirit of Truth; the One who lives in us by faith and leads us into all truth; the One who bears witness to Jesus and to all that He has said and done. And from there, Jesus continues to intercede for us, for He is our advocate. At the right hand of the Father, Jesus pleads our case based on the wounds in His hands and feet and side. But His Body is now exalted and glorified, for this Man, flesh of our flesh and bone of our bone, the Ransom for our sin, is also God, has always been God, and will never cease to be God. There is no division between His natures. There is but one Christ, who is at the same time both God and Man, and He is capable of all things and of being everywhere. He has no limitations apart from those He set for Himself during the days of His humiliation on earth. So it is that He who ascends into heaven promises His disciples, and us as well, “I am with you always.” And He is.

He ascended in His body…and yet, He is not gone from us. He has promised that He will never leave us nor forsake us. He is present with us in Word and Sacrament. He is present with us in His body in the Holy Communion. He who died, lives. He who went away is here still. This was His dying promise. He said, “This is my body, given for you.” It was given on the cross, a sacrifice for sin and guilt.

And that same body is now given to you as the benefit of that sacrifice: the removal of your guilt. It is the same body of Christ: crucified, risen, and ascended for you. It joins you to Him in this most miraculous way, by His entry into you. It is a most Holy Communion, a uniting of the God/Man to your sinful flesh; and, through His forgiveness, you are pure as He is pure. In Holy Communion, you experience the same blessing as Simeon received in the Temple as he held the Christ Child in his arms and declared that his life had seen its fulfillment. In the Holy Communion, the Feast of Christ’s body, you join with angels and archangels who descend to join with you; you join with the saints and martyrs who went before you. Christ ascended into heaven, but still He is here! He joins you to heaven, to angels, and to all who have gone before you. You are given a glimpse of heaven, though you are still on earth, for you are with Christ and His holy angels. Your sins are removed, forgiven by Divine grace and declaration. You feast on the foretaste of the Feast that will never end.

This is what the Ascension is about. It is not about Christ leaving us, for He has not left. It is about Christ going before us. He goes to prepare a place for us even as He is still with us, still for us, still in us. He who broke down the gates of Hell that would lock us in has also opened the gates of Heaven that would keep us out. His holy, precious blood, and His innocent suffering and death have paved our way and broken the trail before us. He is the Captain of our salvation. He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. There is no one left who can hold our sin against us. There is no more guilt, no more shame, no more regret. Our sins are forgiven.

Death is dead. Life lives. Heaven is now open, for Christ, our Savior and our Brother, has ascended. As we prayed in the Psalmody, “God has gone up with a shout...” Let that shout be: Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

 

The peace of God which passes all understanding will keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus always.  Amen.