Sermon for 6/26/11--First Sunday After Trinity (LSB 1-year)

Exalting the Lowly

Luke 16:19-31

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

As the old saying goes, “Looks can be deceiving.” They were certainly deceiving in case of the rich man and Lazarus. The world looks at the rich man and Lazarus in one way, but God has an altogether different perspective. From the world's point of view it is this nameless rich man who is the blessed man, the man with the good life. After all, he has wealth and power. He lives by the “golden rule”—that is, “He who has the gold, rules.” And he does rule his own little world. Jesus describes his life like this: “There was a certain rich man who was clothed in purple and fine linen and fared sumptuously every day.” He has the image. He is well-dressed and well-fed. This rich man lives in the security of his wealth. It appears that he doesn't need anything. In the eyes of the world he is the model of success.

Then there is Lazarus. Jesus identifies him as a “beggar” who was “full of sores.” Now, Lazarus stands in stark contrast to the rich man. The rich man has his house while Lazarus is laid at his gate. The rich man dines from a full table, while Lazarus is lucky to get the crumbs that fall from his table—the table scraps of half-eaten dishes. The rich man is clothed with expensive attire—“purple and fine linen”—while Lazarus is clothed with sores. No doubt the rich man had friends to grace his parties with their presence. But Lazarus had only the dogs to lick his sores. In the eyes of the world, Lazarus is pitiful and sad. He is seen as a failure.

But the world does not see as God sees. And when God looks on the rich man and Lazarus, He sees something very different. He sees things as they are. What man exalts, God sees as an abomination. What man despises, God sees as blessed. This is the great reversal which Mary sang of in her Magnificat, when she said of our God and Savior:

He has shown strength with his arm,
he has scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts,
he has put down the mighty from their thrones,
and exalted those of low degree;
he has filled the hungry with good things,
and the rich he has sent empty away.

This is what Jesus speaks of in the beatitudes when He says: “Blessed are you that hunger now, for you shall be satisfied. Blessed are you that weep now, for you shall laugh....But woe to you that are rich, for you have received your consolation. Woe to you that are full now, for you shall hunger.”

God's judgment on both the rich man and Lazarus reverses things. Both die. Death made clear what was hidden from human sight in this life. Death made clear how each of these men stood before God. Lazarus' death was a blessed death. He died and was escorted by the holy angels into paradise. Lazarus no longer laid outside the gate. The holy angels carried him through the gates of heaven and into presence of God. He was given rest at “Abraham's bosom.” This hungry man is now satisfied at the heavenly banquet. There are no more tormenting sores for him. Lazarus is revealed to be the blessed man. Indeed, in death the very truth of the name of Lazarus—“the one whom God helps”—is made manifest. In his life human eyes could not see this divine help. It was hidden. But now it is revealed.

Death was also a revelation of how it was with the rich man. The end of His unbelief is hell. He was not condemned because he is rich, but because his riches were his god. He did not draw his life from the Word of God, but from his own wealth. The very “god” that he had “feared, loved, and trusted above all things” in this life was not able to save him from death and God's judgment. Now he is in torment while Lazarus enjoys the riches of heaven. Indeed, the hungry are filled with good things and the rich are sent away empty. The judgment of God is final. The boundaries between heaven and hell are completely closed. Once the day of grace has ended there are no second chances. In vain did the rich man plead for a visit from Lazarus to bring him so much as a cooling drop of water. It is too late.

But Jesus made it clear that this teaching is not so much about riches and poverty as it is about faith in the crucified and risen Lord Himself. The rich man then thought of his five brothers who were still alive and so he made the request that Lazarus be sent back to earth to testify to them, “lest they too also come into this place of torment.” Remember Abraham's answer: “They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them.” God does not use ghosts to bring people to repentance and faith; He uses His Word. If people will not hear the Scriptures, they will not be convinced, “though one should rise from the dead.” Here the Lord spoke prophetically of His own death and resurrection. No sign, not even the sign of Jesus' own resurrection from the grave, will convince those who do not believe the Scriptures.

Jesus says, “Blessed are those who hear the Word of God and keep it.” Your blessedness does not lie in your wealth, your learning, your career, or in your prestige. Your blessedness lies in the faith you received in Holy Baptism, faith which lays hold of Jesus Christ, who suffered and died as the atoning sacrifice for your sins and was raised again to give life to all who look to Him. Apart from Him, all appearances to the contrary, there is only death. But in Him there is life. Lazarus came to know that life. God grant unto us the same blessing. 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 6/19/11--Feast of the Holy Trinity (LSB 1-year)

My ISP is acting up, so I'm having trouble uploading the audio of the sermon. Look for another post if I finally get the podcast up.

What’s In A Name?

John 3:1-17

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

Nicodemus was one of those people who stood on the edge of the New Testament. Obviously, he was not a "leading character" like John or Paul. He was less than a minor figure like Timothy or Titus. We're not told much about Nicodemus. In our text, John identifies Nicodemus as a Pharisee, one of the rulers of the Jews. That means he was a layman who served on the Sanhedrin, that highest of Jewish councils that was dominated by the Sadducees. John also tells us that Nicodemus came to Jesus by night. Perhaps John was making the point that Nicodemus not only came to Jesus "after hours," so to speak, but that he came under the cover of darkness. That is, the fact that Nicodemus came to the Lord by night also pointed to the Nicodemus' spiritual condition. He was still "in the dark," as he had not yet come to see Jesus as the Light of the world. Nicodemus, that man who comes to Jesus by night, will come to walk in the light. At the end of John's Gospel, we read that Nicodemus stepped out of the shadows and joined Joseph of Arimathea, also a secret disciple of Jesus, to prepare the corpse of Jesus for a proper burial. Nicodemus supplied the myrrh and aloes to anoint the Lord's body. Nicodemus might have on the edge of the New Testament, but he is nevertheless significant.

The real significance of Nicodemus is that Jesus revealed Himself to this man; and in doing so, Jesus revealed the Holy Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Nicodemus was a Pharisee, and this revelation from Jesus did not fit into the theology of the Pharisees. These were pious men, dedicated to doing good works. They had vowed to tithe, fast, and keep the Sabbath. But their focus was on their good works, their sincerity. They chose to focus on obedience to the law rather than trust in the mercies of God. It sounds a great deal like today’s popular theology, really.

The first thing that Nicodemus said to Jesus in our Gospel reading points to works. He said, "Rabbi, we know that you are teacher come from God; for no one can do these signs that You do unless God is with Him." To his way of thinking, the miraculous works that Jesus does are indicators that "God is with Him," that is, He is operating under the blessing of the Lord God. Immediately Jesus changed the course of the conversation. He said to His visitor: "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God." Nicodemus was talking about signs and works. But Jesus spoke about rebirth. Nicodemus was confused. He knew that it was impossible to literally be born again. How could a man start his life over? How could a man return to his mother's womb and be "born again"? The answer Jesus gave is important. "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born of the water and the Spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." This new birth is nothing other than Holy Baptism. Baptism is the Lord's doing, for it is done "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit." With the water and the Word, the Triune God Himself puts His name on us and thereby gives us the new birth into His family. Thus Jesus says, "That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit."

The name of God is essential here. When Jesus gives His apostles the mandate to make disciples, He indicates that disciples are to be made by "baptizing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" and teaching them to keep all things that Jesus has given. Now, to understand the full significance of Jesus' words about "baptizing in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" one must go back to the Old Testament. The greatest gift which God gave to the people of Israel was his holy name. In this one gift He included all the other gifts which He ever offered to His people. When God gave His name to the Israelites, He gave them Himself, for by His name they had access to Him personally. He made Himself present for His people. In Numbers 6 God instructs the priests to put His name on the people in the words of the Benediction, the same one which you hear in every Divine Service. Then, after God gives them the words of that Benediction He says, "So they will put my name on the Israelites, and I will bless them." Where God puts His name, He puts His presence and His blessing. In other words, unless God puts His name on you, you cannot enter His kingdom. With His name put on you in the waters of Holy Baptism, you are born again. That is why St. Peter says, "Baptism now saves you."

Even though he is a "teacher of Israel," Nicodemus still needed of some teaching. He asked, "How can these things be?" And Jesus does teach Nicodemus. Jesus in His words He reveals the Holy Trinity to Nicodemus as He testifies of the Father who sent the Son from heaven to be lifted on the cross, just as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so that all who look to Him in faith that is created by the Holy Spirit will not perish by the venom of sin but will receive eternal life, the very life of the Trinity. Jesus directs Nicodemus to the cross, for on the cross the forgiveness of sins was won for the world and that same forgiveness of sins, along with the life and the salvation which forgiveness brings, is given to us in the new birth of Baptism.

It is all in God's name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. That is the Lord's name revealed to you by the Lord Himself. No substitutes will do, for to lose the name of the Lord is to lose the Lord Himself. But to have His name, to cling to His name in faith, is to have everything that God has put in that name for you. We live in a changing world. Only one thing remains sure and certain, and that is the Lord: Father, Son (+), and Holy Spirit. Amen.

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

Fatherhood revisited

Though happy chance, my father is here in Campbell Hill along with my mother this Father's Day. It's been over a year since we've been able to see him, as his new knees kept him from traveling and we had concerns that the Terrors--er, Twins--would be rough on him during his recovery. My dad turned 65 this past year, and it's so strange seeing him age. At 36, I am now the same age he was at when I really started paying attention and remembering things in detail. I remember how, even then, he seemed to be easygoing and had a simple confidence and competence. (How I wish I had received that as a genetic inheritance!) My father has always been a cornerstone in my life, and I pray he is able to continue in that role for some time to come.

The same day I became a husband, I also became a father. Or maybe I became a father seven years ago yesterday, the day I asked Faith to marry me. Alexis was 6 when I met her, and though I had been working with kids since I was pretty much still a kid myself, being a father is something different. Every day since I began to think about asking Faith to marry me, I've tried to figure out the job description of a father. Every day I try to figure out how to be the best father I can be. Every day I look at the kids and try to figure out how God could entrust them to a man with so little patience and skill. As always, God knows what He's doing, but He hasn't explained everything to my satisfaction! Nevertheless, my children have been a great gift from God to me, surpassed in earthly matters only by the gift of my wife.

Watching my own bumbling attempts at fatherhood has helped me to appreciate all the more the heavenly Father. He has marked me as His own child (I gladly say it!) in the waters of Holy Baptism. He has given me all that I need to support this body and life. When in my human weakness I give half-hearted thought to sacrificing my kids to the gods of peace and quiet, it is comfort and joy that the Father spared Abraham's Isaac and my own children and even me, sacrificing instead His own Son, Jesus, for the sake of all the rest of His children. We see in our own fathers--as through a mirror, dimly--the great goodness of the Father.

A blessed and happy Father's Day to all you dads out there--especially to my own Dad and to my grandfathers, one of whom I will meet for the first time in heaven. And Happy Father's Day to the heavenly Father. May I learn to be a father more like You in the years ahead.

Sermon for 6/12/11--Whitsunday: The Feast of Pentecost (LSB 1-year)

Reposted, as I now have an audio link! 

Keep My Word

John 14:23-31

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

You would expect the Church to be loving, right? Well, the Church on earth, especially in our day, has done a lot of strange things in the name of “love”. To prove to the world that the Church acts out of love, many within the Church have abandoned the idea that there is a hell, a place where the unrepentant and unfaithful will dwell in torment for all of eternity. To demonstrate the love the Church is capable of, many within the Church say that Jesus acted and taught the way He did because He lived in primitive times. If Jesus was active today, they say, He would have had female disciples and pastors; after all, it was only because he lived in a woman-hating society that Jesus only had male disciples. If Jesus was preaching today, they say, He would have known that homosexuality is a genetic happenstance, not a product of sin; after all, Jesus lived in the midst of a patriarchal society that valued rugged manhood, and the world is different today. If Jesus was teaching today, they say, He would not condemn abortion; after all, Jesus was all about love and happiness, and He wouldn’t want any woman to suffer the emotional distress of an unwanted pregnancy. Some even go so far as to say that the Jesus portrayed in Scripture is really the product of those patriarchal, woman-hating apostles and evangelists and their disgraceful agenda. In the name of love, surely Jesus would be permissive; and the Church must be the same way, striving to include everyone, if we want to prove how loving we are. In reality, this so-called love which many in the Church teach today will actually love people to their death and eternal damnation.

In truth, Jesus is all about love. But Jesus had something else in mind when He taught about love. He said, “If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word.” And then He said, “He who does not love Me does not keep My words.” Instead of concentrating on the love of the world, Jesus pointed the church to the love, the holy desire for His Word: His teachings and practice, everything He had given them from His Father. Jesus made the connection for the Church between love and doctrine. But this isn’t the only place where He stressed that connection. On the mountain with the apostles, about to ascend, Jesus told them to make disciples by baptizing in the name of the Triune God and “teaching them to observe all things I have commanded you.”

The Church does not love the world with Christ’s love by coddling it, by confirming it in sinfulness and error. Instead, the Church demonstrates the love of Christ by speaking the truth of the Word of God lovingly to a world that does not know Christ or His love. The Church loves the world by not turning a blind eye toward premarital relations or abortion or homosexuality or any other sin, but by speaking the truth that these things are sin, and sin has eternal consequences for those who do not repent before God. It is not an easy message to deliver, and it’s certainly not going to be a popular message. But in I Corinthians 13, his famous “love chapter”, the Apostle Paul wrote that love “does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth.”

How could the disciples presume to deliver such a message? How could they even begin the task of delivering the counsel of God to the world? What if they were to forget something? This is where the Holy Spirit enters the picture. The Father sends the Holy Spirit in the name of Jesus, and the Spirit gives understanding of what Jesus has taught. And more than that, as you heard from the Acts of the Apostles today, the Spirit gave the disciples the ability to speak—giving boldness even to Peter, who had denied Jesus less than two months earlier. On that first Pentecost, Peter confessed Christ boldly, saying, “God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” And when his hearers asked him what they should do, Peter replied, “Repent, and let every one of you be baptized.” Peter received the teachings and gifts of Jesus; and by the Holy Spirit, Peter and the Apostles were made bold to confess what they had received. The Spirit inspired these men and others to record the teachings they had received from Jesus faithfully and without error. And the Spirit sustained Peter and the Apostles in those teachings and the gifts of Christ, even to martyr’s deaths.

So it is today. In Holy Baptism, where you received the Holy Spirit, you too have given the gift of faith so that you may have understanding concerning the teachings of Jesus, teachings which have been handed down to you by the Apostles through the work of that same Spirit. By the Holy Spirit, you are given the faith which clings to the promises of Jesus that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. By the Spirit you are made bold to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, the One who was crucified carrying the burden of your sins, the One who rose again, bringing you to life again with Him. By the faith that is yours from the Holy Spirit, you receive this day in your mouth the very body and blood of Jesus Christ—a gift in which you receive the forgiveness of your sins and the strengthening of your faith.

There is a beautiful prayer in your hymnal—page 308 if you want to read it yourself later—which our old hymnal called the Collect for the Word. “Blessed Lord, You have caused all Holy Scriptures to be written for our learning. Grant that we may so hear them, read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest them that, by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and ever hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life; through Jesus Christ, our Lord.” It is a prayer which pleases God, for in it you ask Him for what He would already so graciously give you. By the Holy Spirit, God has caused all of Holy Scripture to be written. And because He loves you, He wants you to hear that Word, to learn it, and to take it to heart, so that you can embrace and hold fast to the sure and certain hope of everlasting life. He grants you His Holy Spirit, by which you cling to everything you have received from Jesus. By that Holy Spirit, you receive boldness to confess to the world around you concerning all Jesus has said and done for you. And by that Holy Spirit, you receive the gift of the peace of Christ, a peace the world does not have and cannot give, a peace that will sustain you, even should you be called upon to die the death of a martyr for the sake of Christ. “Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle them in the fire of your love. Alleluia!” 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.

My year with LSB

In 2006, the Lutheran Church--Missouri Synod and Concordia Publishing House released a new hymnal: Lutheran Service Book ("LSB" from here on). I'm sure Paul McCain will correct me if my numbers are outdated, but last I'd heard, 70% of the congregations of the LCMS have purchased LSB, and over 1,000,000 (one-million, yes, that's the right number of 0s) copies of the hymnal have been purchased. Those are incredible numbers, numbers which reflect the possibility of an increase in liturgical uniformity across the Synod.

This is the fourth major hymnal the LCMS (officially or unofficially) has utilized in my lifetime. I've used all four for significant periods of time. The Lutheran Hymnal ("TLH") from 1941 is the hymnal I've used most. My home church used TLH until I was 8, and all of my congregations previous to this one used TLH nearly exclusively. My home congregation adoped Lutheran Worship ("LW") right away in 1982, and it was the main hymnal I used until I reached seminary. The sem had LW, and my field work congregation for the first two years of sem had and used both TLH and Lutheran Book of Worship ("LBW"), the hymnal released in 1978, which the LCMS worked on with what is now the ELCA but then did not adopt. (Many congregations in the LCMS, however, anticipating that adoption, pre-ordered LBW and used it.) Using four different hymnals has certainly broadened my horizons, and it has given me a strange perspective on each.

For much of these first five years since the release of LSB, I was not a parish pastor. Though most of the congregations for which I was a guest preacher made the move to LSB during my time in Louisiana, it takes a period of constant use to get a real feel for a hymnal. Last year, Pastor Will Weedon made a post on his excellent blog (a blog I highly recommend, by the way) in praise of one of the hymns they had used in the divine service that day. We'd used the same hymn that day, and I'd made a comment about how angry I was that the text of the hymn had changed from the hymnals I was used to. As you can read in the comments on that post, Pastor Weedon, the liturgist at my Installation here at St. Peter, Campbell Hill, allowed me "ONE YEAR of grousing". He then told me that I must cease and desist at the one-year anniversary of my Installation.

I've been pretty busy the past month since right before that anniversary, so I hadn't had the time yet to formulate my one last grouse. But since that discussion on Pastor Weedon's blog took place in July of last year, I'm between the anniversary of my Installation and the anniversary of that blog post. And I promise not to grouse--at least on my blog, anyway--about LSB after this post is . . . well, posted.

That's the background of this post. All that being said, here's the beef.

General Comments, good and bad

• Unlike its immediate predecessors, TLH and LW, LSB does not include the Collects for each Sunday. I'm sure that space was a consideration in that decision, but it makes LSB into a 3-resource book (hymnal, Bible, agenda/lectionary/Propers book) for devotional use instead of a two-resource book (hymnal, Bible).
• The Psalter, while more complete than those contained in either TLH or LW, is still incomplete. This was not the decision of the committee.
• The Psalter comes before the orders of worship. Having grown up with both TLH and LW (and also LBW for a time), I've seen it both ways. My personal preference is for the orders of worship to come first, but it's not a deal breaker. Having the Psalter first makes it easier to find the psalm you're looking for . . . as long as that particular psalm is in the hymnal, of course.
• Again, this is a nit-picky point, but Divine Service Setting 3 in LSB should probably be Divine Service (DS) Setting 1. This is the service that was p.15 in TLH and was DS1 in LW, so it would have made sense to keep it as DS1 in LSB. It's an easy enough adjustment to make, but for the first month or so, it was a distraction.
• The music of the Litany should be in the Pew Edition of LSB. It was in the hymn section of TLH and it was its own order in LW. Not having it in the pew edition of LSB weakens the hymnal, even if it's included in the Lutheran Service Builder software. On a happier note, the musical setting of the Litany was made available online for free, so it's available even to those who don't have the software, but it would have been better to have it in the hymnal itself.
• Instead of burying the Small Catechism in the middle of the hymnal (p.321), it could have been placed in the very back or very near the front, making the hymnal more friendly for catechesis.
• Though space was already at a premium, it would have been nice to have the Augsburg Confession in the hymnal. But that's just a personal dream. I liked seeing it in Evangelical Lutheran Hymnary used by the Evanelical Lutheran Synod. (Of course, that hymnal has its own problems, but that's another matter entirely.)
• I appreciate the inclusion of the wedding and funeral liturgies in LSB, as they were in LW. That was a strike against TLH. Also a great addition over TLH is the inclusion of the Rite of Individual Confession and Forgiveness!
• I know this was not the fault of the hymnal committee, but the response in the Salutation should never be "And also with you"; instead it should always be, "And with your/thy spirit".
• Though I will list some specific instances (though not all), let me say here that some of the textual changes from TLH and LW to LSB were quite unnecessary.  I've been reading, singing, and worshiping with the old versions for over 30 years and teaching the old versions for over 10. Many of my members had used TLH most or all of their lives before switching to LSB. The changes in hymns and liturgies that have been memorized for 50 or more years can be a huge distraction, and I have members who will just stop singing altogether when the hymn isn't how they remember it. What Luther said in the Preface to the Small Catechism about Bible translations should also stand for translations of the Catechism and the hymnal: pick one and stick with it! (I won't list all the unnecessary changes made in LSB, as I don't want to be here until my second anniversary here.)

Hymnody Issues

• LSB 333--Once He Came in Blessing: vv.2-3 are original to LSB. v.4 is an alteration of Winkworth's translation. The old version (TLH/LW) deals more with justification, conversion, repentance; LSB is more Sacrament of the Altar. The LSB version is good, but this was an unnecessary change.
• LSB 343--Prepare the Royal Highway: "O blest is He that came/ in God the Father's name" flows better than "Hosanna to the Lord/ For He fulfills God's Word". (Yes, I talk about flow. No, I'm not a "New Age hippie".)
• LSB 362--O Sing of Christ: The text and tune are not well-matched. It fits the meter, but it's forced. I have the same problem with a number of the many Starke-penned hymns. As a text-writer myself, I know this is a struggle.
• LSB 372--O Jesus Christ, Thy Manger Is: This new tune to a hymn found in TLH does not have the accompaniment with it in the pew edition. Though the tune was introduced in Hymnal Supplement 98, a new tune to an old hymn should have the accompaniment, especially when it doesn't take up that much more space.
• LSB 383--A Great and Mighty Wonder: This is one of my favorite hymns, and it is a classic. The unnecessary changes are exacerbated by the fact that it had already been changed between TLH and LW. If you can't teach what "for aye" means, at least settle on a substitute! And the refrain is just horrible. Since the text is in the public domain, this will always be sung from a bulletin insert.
• LSB 394--Songs of Thankfulness and Praise: I appreciate the re-introduction of TLH's v.4, which were not included in LW. (And you thought this was going to be all bad, eh?)
• LSB 455--The Royal Banners Forward Go: TLH offers the tune Vexilla Regis. LW offers both Vexilla Regis and Herr Jesu Christ, Wahr Mensch Und Gott. (I REALLY liked using those two tunes antiphonally!) LSB gives Vexilla Regis Nova, a debasing of Vexilla Regis. 
• LSB 615--When in the Hour of Deepest Need: A classic that should not have been changed. Oh, and in v.5 of LSB/v.6 of TLH, should the Lord hide His face or not?
• LSB 672--Jerusalem the Golden: Nit-picky changes that should never have been made to a classic.
• LSB 685--Let Us Ever Walk with Jesus: same as above.
• LSB 700--Love Divine, All Love(s) Excelling: Title change from TLH and LW, but I do like that the tune Hyfrydol is given instead of TLH's O du Liebe.
• LSB 708--Lord, Thee I Love with All My Heart: The changes in Herzlich Lieb actually make it easier to sing this hymn than it was in TLH. Kudos!
• LSB 766--Our Father, Who from Heaven Above: Why is this further altered? As a catechetical hymn, it's so hard to use it for catechesis when it changes from one generation to the next.
• LSB 837--Lift High the Cross: I'm probably the only person in the world who thought this hymn was too long at 5 verses, and LSB adds a sixth. But that's just me.
• LSB 851--Lord of Glory, You Have Bought Us: The removal of TLH's v.4 is a shame.
• LSB 878--Abide with Me: I will miss the 4 extra verses from TLH, but they chose the best 6.
• LSB 940--Holy God, We Praise Thy Name: Though all seven verses appear neither in TLH or LW, I would have loved to have seen all seven appear in LSB to make the Te Deum Laudamus complete.
• LSB 954--We All Believe in One True God: Like LSB 766, the modernization of a classic Luther catechetical hymn is frustrating.

Hymns Missing from LSB

Pastor Rick Stuckwisch on his excellent blog (another one I highly recommend) made a list of hymns that should be included. I don't agree with every decision, but markedly missing from LSB is a great deal of Paul Gerhardt. In addition to the Gerhardt, my not-fully-fleshed list includes:

• Day of Wrath, O Day of Mourning (TLH 607)
• O Jesus, King of Glory (TLH 130)
• O Perfect Love (TLH 623)

Notice that none of my hymns are on that list.

Hymns that SHOULD BE Missing from LSB

Pastor Rick Stuckwisch also made a list of hymns that should never have appeared in LSB. I agree with about 90% of his lists. My list (mostly matters of trite texts or contemporary Christian crap included for contemporary worship proponents who wouldn't be using the hymnal anyway) includes (but is not limited to):

• About 95% of Stephen Starke's hymns: Nothing personal, but the numerous bad marriages of text and tune are VERY distracting.
• Anything Taize: To quote Mark Schlamann, "Don't taize me, bro!"
• LSB 411--I Want to Walk as a Child of the Light: Me, me, me, I, I, I.
• LSB 456--Were You There: Trite, doesn't really say anything.
• LSB 474--Alleluia! Jesus Is Risen: Horrible marriage of text and tune.
• LSB 477--Alleluia, Alleluia! Hearts to Heaven: Enough with the Ode to Joy remakes!
• LSB 479--Christ is Risen, Christ Is Living: A good Spanish hymn that isn't quite as good in English.
• LSB 502--Holy Spirit, the Dove Sent from Heaven: Same thing.
• LSB 550--Lamb of God: Twila Paris? Really?
• LSB 595--O Blessed Spring: The mental associations with "The Water Is Wide" are too much for me.
• LSB 605--Father Welcomes: Trite.
• LSB 669--Come, We That Love the Lord: Watts has other, better stuff.
• LSB 721--Lead Me, Guide Me: Blah. (And yes, I say the same thing about stuff I write.)
• LSB 749--There Is a Balm in Gilead: I have no problem with African American Spirituals of themselves, but this one is . . . folksy.
• LSB 763--When Peace, Like a River: In the interest of full disclosure, I should say right now that I've re-written this with a text of my own. There's just not enough substance to the original.
• LSB 789--Praise and Thanksgiving: Cat Stevens associations are hard to overcome.
• LSB 799--Alabare: The English text (beautiful, by the way) just doesn't work with the tune.
• LSB 806--Give Thanks with a Grateful Heart: Trite.
• LSB 808--O Sing to the Lord: Another instance where an English translation doesn't work with the tune. 
• LSB 817--Earth and All Stars: At the risk of angering my own dear father, it seems like an attempt at combining Psalm 150 with a hymn concerning vocation, and it doesn't quite work.
• LSB 827--Hark the Voice of Jesus Calling (take 2): Unnecessary.
• LSB 879--Stay with Us: The pietist in me likes this hymn very much.
• LSB 910--Now the Silence: Trainwreck-of-thought.
• LSB 911--Lord, This Day We've Come to Worship: Sounds like a bad re-write of "Angels We Have Heard on High; and a little too much about what we do and not quite enough about what He does.
• LSB 939--You Are God; We Praise You: If a liturgical Te Deum Laudamus was to be included in LSB, it should have been the Te Deum from LW's Matins (p.214), not the one from LBW.
• LSB 964--Lift Every Voice and Sing: Can we get any more musical cliches in one hymn? This is like singing the Edelweiss Benediction. In fact, it sounds a bit like someone trying to plagiarize Rodgers and Hammerstein. 

Overall

All that being said, LSB is a treasure. Are there things I'd change? Obviously. Is it perfect? No. Is it a solid resource for corporate worship and personal/family devotions? Definitely. I do believe it's a step (or even two) forward from LW, though LW does have its advantages. I also believe it's a step forward from TLH, though that excellent hymnal has far outlived its intended lifespan. LSB is an excellent hymnal, and I thank God that we have it. I'll ignore or work around the warts, and I will thank God for this fine resource that will (I hope) last the rest of my life. I have no desire to learn a fifth hymnal!

Sermon for 6/5/11--Exaudi: The Seventh Sunday of Easter (LSB 1-year)

I was in the practice of posting my sermon as soon as it was written and edited. Now that I'm recording the service, I can also post a link to the audio file. So that I do not post the same sermon twice, I'll be waiting until the sermon is recorded before I post. CLICK HERE for the audio of this sermon.  (Someone let me know if it turned out okay.)

(The audio will likely be deleted once I run out of online storage space to make room for what will be more recent sermons.)

The Time Is Coming

John 15:26-16:4

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

Today is the Seventh Sunday of Easter, the Sunday After the Ascension of Our Lord. This is a day of transition for the Church. This past week we commemorated the ascension of Jesus. Next Sunday we celebrate the sending of the Holy Spirit. But this Sunday is a transition in the Church calendar. Today the Church finds itself in that time between—that time when Jesus was no longer with the disciples in the way He had been with them to that point, but before the promised sending of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost.

The disciples would not be in that transition period very long. Ten days after the Ascension, the disciples would be gathered in one place, and the Holy Spirit came upon them, even as Jesus had promised them. But even then, things would not be the same for the disciples. The disciples would now be living by faith in Jesus rather than with Jesus before their eyes, and this would require a different way of living. After all, when He was with them and teaching them, He was the one who took all the heat. Nobody really paid all that much attention to the disciples. Jesus was the one with the big target painted on Him. The Pharisees, the Sadducees, and the High Priest all wanted Jesus on a spit in the temple court, dying for the blasphemy of claiming that He was the very Son of God. But the disciples were just the little fish; they wanted the whale.

But in their eyes, they had hit the target; they had slain the whale. In truth, Jesus had risen from the dead and had ascended into heaven. Either way, Jesus was out of their reach. But with the disciples set to take up His cause, they would be next on the list. And that’s what Jesus was preparing them for in our Gospel reading. They’d be kicked out of the synagogue. They’d become targets, and the people aiming for those targets would do so in the name of God. The perversion could go no farther than to murder God’s children in the name of God as an act of worship. Their idea of God and what He would desire of them was so distorted because they didn’t recognize God.

“These things I am telling you, that you won’t be caught unawares,” He told them. They were to share with the world everything Jesus shared with them; and He promised to send the Spirit upon them from the Father so that, even knowing what was to come, they would know the truth of that message and continue to share that message, even to the point of death. “The time is coming,” He said. And as the Acts of the Apostles tells us, the time came. It all happened exactly as Jesus said it would. Each of the apostles would face ridicule and persecution; and with the exception of the Apostle John, eventually each of them would be put to death.

Unlike the disciples, we do not face the same kind of transition period between the departure of Jesus and the sending of the Holy Spirit. Instead, we live in the time which Jesus foretold. The world doesn’t know God. It doesn’t understand the Christians who do know God. What the world does not understand, it fears; and what the it fears, it kills. The time has come. The time has come when you will be made to suffer for the sake of the Gospel. The time has come when clinging to God’s Word will cause some who call themselves Christians to try to remove you from the Church. The time has come when people will seek to persecute you for living according to God’s Word. The time is coming. Faithful pastors are driven from the pulpits they have been called to serve precisely for preaching faithfully. The time is coming and has come when some will even seek to kill you for your faith. Some people consider Christians to be extremists and terrorist threats. Take that to the next step: how long will it be before Christians are locked away or even put to death for belonging to a congregation that preaches Christ? The time is coming. How can we persevere?

That, my brothers and sisters in Christ, is the crux of the matter. Too often, we do not persevere. Too often we find ourselves wilting under the pressure. We look to the heavens, throw up our hands and cry out, “Why, Lord?” Too often we look at the Word of Truth and seek to hedge our bet. “Sure, I believe in Jesus, yeah . . . but I don’t think I need to be part of the Church to worship Him.” “Yes, the Bible is the Word of God . . . but that doesn’t mean God can control what I do with my body.” Too often we look at our various roles in life—parent or child, citizen, worker, or whatever it may be—and we see these as hardships rather than vocations from God. We stumble in our selfishness, unprepared for the trials that come.

This is why it’s so important that Jesus sent the Holy Spirit. The spirit helps you and gives you comfort that goes from today throughout all eternity. After all, the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. This Spirit descended upon you in the waters of Holy Baptism, and He continues to come to you in the Word and in the Holy Supper, giving you that comfort, that aid, and hope for eternity. How can this be? Simply put, the Holy Spirit points you to and gives you Jesus. In the midst of sufferings and trials, sorrows and persecutions, you receive Jesus. Your problems are more than can be solved by reading self-help books or by living a morally upright life. You need a Savior. You need Jesus, and that’s exactly what the Spirit gives you.

The comfort, peace and life which Jesus gives you, things you receive by the work of the Holy Spirit, mean that the struggles you endure, the frustrations you feel, and the persecutions you face as Christians will pass away. The Apostle Paul wrote to the Romans, “I consider that the sufferings of this present age are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.” Christ is in you and you are in Christ, and this means that these tribulations you face on earth will not endure for you. Even if you suffer persecution unto death for the sake of your faith, this will not be the end for you. Heaven awaits you. Jesus has ascended, going before you to prepare a place for you; and He sent the Spirit so that you will be comforted and have the faith to endure.

My brothers and sisters in Christ, today we rejoice in two things. First, we rejoice that Jesus ascended into heaven. And second, we rejoice that He did not leave us to fend for ourselves, but instead sent His Holy Spirit to comfort us and give us peace. We are not alone. Christ is still present with you; and the Holy Spirit has come to you so that you believe, even though you cannot see. Thanks be to God! For even though the time is coming and, indeed, has come, by God’s grace you will endure. 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.

When the going gets tough . . .

. . . the tough call the chaplain.

One of the things about being a pastor that is simultaneously invigorating and frustrating is that he's often called upon to interact with people at the lowest points in their lives: illness, suffering, destruction, and death. On the one hand, he's doing what he's been Called by God to do, and that keeps a pastor moving when it seems like the meetings are endless and the busy work becomes a heap on his desk. On the other hand, a pastor worth his salt tends to get emotionally involved with those he serves, and that can be draining when it's his constant diet.

Pastor Dean Kavouras of Cleveland, Ohio, is very good at walking that ever-so-thin line straddled by service and sanity. He served those who sifted through the remains of the World Trade Center after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. He serves as a chaplain for the FBI and for Cleveland Emergency Services. And He is also a faithful Lutheran pastor to a congregation. Yesterday he sent out what he calls a "Chaplain Field Report" in which he recounts a situation and the pastoral care he offered to those involved in that situation. This is, at times, what it is to be a pastor.

I warn you, the event recorded in this report may disturb you.

 

Chaplain Field Report
Cleveland, Ohio
June 1, 2011

Dear Friends:

The weather turned beautiful in Cleveland today, from a wintry/spring to instant summer.  But the devil also came to Cleveland on this fine day to offset its wonder with full strength dose of evil.  A 31 year old man went to the home of his lady friend and attempted to murder her 10 year old daughter by cutting her throat, and did murder her 5 year old son in the same manner.  The injured girl ran down the street to the nursing home where her mother is employed, and people there called the police.  When police arrived the suspect exited the house with a steak knife in his hand, refused all commands to drop the knife, and charged the officers.  All three discharged their weapons and stopped the suspect who was grievously wounded but is still alive at this time.

The event occurred in Cleveland, but at the last house before the Warrensville Heights border.  WHPD arrived first and did the shooting.  Cleveland police arrived shortly thereafter and so did WHFD, CFD and CEMS.  Because the incident occurred in Cleveland our crime scene unit processed the scene and all involved were understandably distraught.

For my part, I positioned myself in the driveway and spoke with individual officers as they took short breaks, and provided the presence of God via the Office of the pastor.  This brought comfort and the eternal perspective to a scene that desperately cried out to heaven for it.  There was no gallows humor today as there often is at crime scenes.  Instead I listened to people's reflections and gave theological answers and quotes from Scripture in reply.  The general message was that as dark as this situation is, death and the devil have been defeated by Jesus who entered into gruesome death for our sins, and rose again; also that at the end of the day God will sort it all out for us, but until then we will do the work He has given us to do, and lean on Him for comfort and strength at all times and in all places.

Once the process was complete and everyone was ready to leave I asked if anyone would like to gather for prayer.  There was no hesitation. We gathered on the sidewalk in front of the house.  I read the 23rd Psalm "yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and they staff they comfort me."  I also read from St. John's Gospel "Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid, you believe in God believe also in me...peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid."  I then prayed a spontaneous prayer taking in all the concerns that people had voiced.  We all joined the the Lord's Prayer and I gave the benediction.  As I spoke the final amen there was a brief silence and then one officer quipped with a smile: I hope the ACLU doesn't get a copy of this.  The humor was a good sign!

We said our good bye's and from there I went to the WH police station to see if I could be of any assistance to officers there since not all departments have a chaplain.  I spoke with the lieutenant on duty and he filled me in on the situation and condition of his people.  I then asked him where the fire station was since they, too, were knee deep in this incident.  He walked me to the next part of the complex which houses the fire department and met briefly with some of the personnel and heard more of the story from their perspective.  Since a Critical Incident Stress diffusing was scheduled to start soon I left, but on the way out I noticed several people from CEMS who were there early for the diffusing.  I spoke with them, listened to their story and had prayers for them.

From that horrific scene I came home to my 61st birthday party with all my kids and grandkids in attendance and we had a wonderful evening!  My wife, St. Barbara, planned it all out and the kids pitched in to help.  We began the meal by singing "Jerusalem The Golden," one of my favorite hymns and just what the doctor ordered. My son Theo played the piano and all the voices joined in, it was the perfect balm for such a day.  Tomorrow I will follow up with a few people and await the next call.

Thank you for reading.

Rev. Dean Kavouras, Chaplain
Cleveland Emergency Services
FBI - Cleveland Division

We do a disservice to our public servants who put their lives in danger day after day if we ignore the trauma they experience in dire situations, whether or not they themselves experience physical injury. Their service in explosive situations takes its toll on them, just as much as it does on those who are the victims of fires or violence or terrorism. Thanks be to God for men like Chaplain Kavouras whom God has equipped to bring the Word to bear for their sake. (And thanks be to God for the family that helps to sustain the chaplain when he comes home!)

I want to be Pastor Kavouras when I grow up.

Remembering

I am not a solder, nor am I a military veteran. I'm 150 pounds overweight, I have bad knees, and I have a bruised spinal cord, all of which means I will likely never be a soldier or veteran. Simple truths. After September 11, 2001, when I was only 75 pounds overweight and my knees weren't quite as bad (and nine years before I nearly broke my neck), I gave more than a moment of thought to getting myself in shape and joining up as a chaplain. Whether it was doubt that I could get myself in shape, a sense of duty to the congregation to which I was called, the conviction that it was not what God had in mind for me, yellow-bellied cowardice, or whatever it was, I decided not to sign up. That was as close as I ever got to military service.

Despite that, I have a keenly developed sense of patriotism. I love my country. Sometimes that love of country leads in some interesting directions. Sometimes it's engaging in political debates best left to others. Sometimes it's getting misty-eyed at the singing of "The Star-Spangled Banner", a song I love despite that fact that I find it musically and lyrically inane. ("O Canada"--now THAT is a great anthem both musically and lyrically!) Sometimes that patriotism means that I get frustrated, not understanding how some of our leaders can make the decisions they do, decisions which seem to be destroying our country a little bit every day.

But today, that patriotism means that I remember and honor those who have served in our armed forces, especially those who have died in service. Though Memorial Day is meant to be a day of remembrance of those who have died in that service, I also choose to honor today those who served and those who serve now whose time had not yet come, those willing to make that ultimate sacrifice. Though I don't agree with the politics of the individual members of Crosby Stills & Nash, they said it very well when they said, "Find the cost of freedom buried in the ground." Those who served in the American Revolution and all those battles and wars since have fought and often died to win and protect the freedoms we enjoy (and sometimes abuse) today in the United States of America. I am proud of the men and women who have served, who upheld the honor and integrity and freedom of this nation. I am proud of those who serve today, who continue to uphold those virtues we as citizens hold most dear. And I am humbled by and thankful for those who have died upholding those virtues.

For those of you serving in honor today: Thank you.

For those of you who have served in honor in the past: Thank you.

For those of you who have been wounded in the honorable service of our nation: Thank you.

For those of you who have made the ultimate sacrifice in the honorable service of our nation: Thank you.

Thank you for doing what I could not. God help me, I won't forget.

Sermon for 5/29/11--Rogate: Sixth Sunday of Easter

Ask in My Name

John 16:23-30

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

It was the year of our Lord 466. Throughout Europe a series of earthquakes and other natural disasters afflicted the entire continent, and the people were terrified. Bishop Claudius of Vienna, Austria, decreed that the weekdays between the Sixth Sunday of Easter and the Festival of the Ascension should be days when the sufferings of the people should be brought before God in prayer. In particular, prayer was lifted to God for the sake of the crops and all those things that were necessary for the life of man. This eventually became the custom in other places, so that by the end of the sixth century it was a consistent practice among the churches in Europe. And so, this Sunday before the Ascension of our Lord has come to be known as Rogate Sunday, drawn from the Latin word meaning “to pray.” The days of this week that lead up to the celebration of the Ascension are called the “days of rogation,” the days of prayer.

Prayer should be at the very heart of the Christian life. That is what St. Paul meant by his admonition to the Thessalonians: “Pray without ceasing.” Prayer is as vital to the life of the soul as breathing is to the life of the body. Just as you cannot live by taking a breath only now and then, so your souls cannot live by praying only occasionally. Prayer is to be practiced persistently. But if prayer really is that important, why do you tend to be casual or even indifferent about prayer? When the path before you seems smooth, when the way ahead seems to be clear of obstacles, it’s easy to feel self-sufficient. But when those clouds of adversity begin to gather on the horizon, it is only then that you turn to the grace of God in Jesus Christ. It is for this reason that our Savior holds out this wonderful promise: “Ask, and you will receive, that your joy may be full.”

It seems at times that God waits a long time before answering prayers. He even appears, at times, to be unwilling to help. And that leads to impatience and desperation. You pray, and then you pray again, and yet God seems not to be listening. Why? There are things to learn in your praying. He wants to teach you persistence, to keep on praying. He also wants you to know that you can depend on Him. He wants to have you say to Him, “Lord, You must help me. You are the only One to whom I can go. You can do all things. You are faithful and have promised to help all who call on You in faith and who trust in You. You cannot and You will not fail me.”

And more than that, you have the promise of God that, when you pray in Jesus’ name, you will be heard. “Whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.” This is the promise of the eternal, faithful God, and no promise of His can ever fail. And yet it’s so easy to say, “God does not always answer my prayers.” It may well be true that God has not answered your prayers in accordance with your timing. That being said, God does not give His children anything that might prove harmful to them, and He must be the judge of what is good. Those things which seem most desirable and beneficial often may prove the most hurtful in the end. You parents know how it is, or has been, with your children. Just because a toddler might like to wander around the house carrying a sharp knife doesn’t mean you're going to permit it. And yet, you sometimes pray for things that would be just as harmful to your souls and bodies. God is not a careless, indulgent father who gives everything his children ask for. You may ask for riches, or for health, or for the removal of your cares. But how often do you consider that to receive those things might actually lead you away from the things of the Spirit, those things that keep you close to God? Never forget that God in His great mercy sends us certain crosses to bear and then delays in removing them, because that is the way by which we are drawn ever closer to Him and kept on the paths of righteousness. That is how spiritual insight is deepened. That is how faith increases.

Remember our dear Lord Jesus Christ. In the Garden of Gethsemane He prayed that the cup of suffering He was about to drink be removed, if it were possible. But if that cup had passed from Jesus, your redemption would not have been accomplished. Do you see the wisdom of the Father in sometimes not answering our prayers as we would wish them answered? This is the wondrous certainty that is attached to prayer. Everything that you ask of God in faith you shall receive—or something even better.

And when you seek those great blessings of the soul, you know that it is the will of the Father to answer those prayers. When you ask for the remission of sins, for peace for your soul and conscience, for the strength to lead a God-pleasing life, for spiritual strength and courage to meet life’s battles, and for consolation in the hour of death, these things are yours for the asking. He gives them freely: in the water at the font of Holy Baptism, in the bread and wine at His holy table, and spoken from the pastor as by Christ Himself. These things are the outpouring of the Father’s love for you. And so, with His disciples you confess: “Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.” Asking, you shall receive; and receiving, your joy shall be made full. 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.

Running on Empty

Looking out at the road rushing under my wheels
I don't know how to tell you all just how crazy this life feels
I look around for the friends that I used to turn to to pull me through
Looking into their eyes I see them running too
                                    --Jackson Browne, "Running on Empty"

A week ago today was the one-year anniversary of the day I was Installed as Pastor of St. Peter Lutheran Church in Campbell Hill, Illinois.  That means I've been back in parish ministry for a few days over a year now. In many ways, this has been the best year of my life. After over four and-a-half years in the "purgatory" of CRM status, the Lord has brought me to this place and these people to let me serve and love them and to be served and loved by them. The reception my family has received here has been nothing short of familial, which, especially after how Faith was received elsewhere, has been a balm. I'm serving a loving and faithful congregation with a Board of Elders who is supportive and encouraging; and as long as I faithfully preach and teach administer the sacraments, visit the sick and shut-in, and keep the parsonage lawn, things are quiet and peaceful. If I were inclined to complain--and y'all know I am capable of such things--I'd have very little to complain about, other than the cows sometimes being too loud across the alley from the parsonage. But we love "our" cows, especially the white one who stands alone in the herd.

All that being said, I will admit to a certain fatigue. It's been a hectic year. We moved our family and belongings, with me nearly breaking my neck in the process. (And yes, I still have pain and tingling and numbness in my left arm.) To justify the faith placed in me by the St. Peter congregation, I've thrown myself into this Call with a vengeance. But I've been a little stupid about it. I've gotten out of the practice of taking my regular day off, and I know better than that. I learned that lesson in North Dakota when I didn't take a day off between Christmas and Easter during my first year in parish ministry. After over four years away from full-time parish ministry, I wanted to make sure I didn't miss anything. I wanted to cover all the bases, dot the t's and cross the i's, so to speak. I had my mid-week Lenten sermon series written almost a month before Lent began. I've done the visits, written my own Bible study for our Sunday morning class, and preached every week since my Installation, except when we invited Southern Illinois District President Scharr to bring the Word to us. I've been involved in every youth group activity, and we're planning more--much to my delight.

But now I've got a case of the blahs. It's not a bad case of the blahs, but I've got 'em. It's not burnout. It's not depression. (Don't think I haven't considered that possibility.) My diagnosis: Part of it is not taking that regular day off. Part of it is that I'm in sore need of a vacation, and we had to cancel the one we had scheduled (we'd be in Louisiana right now) because of Mississippi River flooding and the opening of the Morganza Spillway, which even now is spewing water towards my wife's hometown. Part of it is that Faith and I haven't been out together since New Year's Eve, and I really miss my wife! Part of it is that I'm not able to regularly exercise because of my neck issues, and I really miss my exercise routine from my time at the Rec. I can swim and walk, and that's it. My knees make walking problematic, and the nearest year-round public pool is . . . Carbondale? (Yeah, this is me making excuses, blah, blah, blah. Get those new sneakers on and just do it.) 

More than those, I think the real problem is that I've not been as faithful in my prayer life as I know I need to be as a parish pastor. I wrote my MDiv thesis on the topic of daily prayer, and I know how important it is for everyone, more than just pastors. My copy of "The Treasury of Daily Prayer" is sitting on my desk as I type. It's not collecting dust--perish the thought! (I keep a notepad on top of it to keep the dust away.) I have numerous hymnals, Gerhard's "Sacred Meditations", "The Brotherhood Prayer Book", Lindemann's "The Daily Office", Loehe's "Seed Grains of Prayer", Dobberstein's "The Minister's Prayer Book", and half a shelf more. The discipline to open and use these resources is what's lacking. "The spirit is willing, but the flesh" and all that.

I don't write this seeking your pity or even your recommendations. I've heard them all. Twice. However, if you are so inclined, your prayers would be appreciated. As always.

"O Lord, open Thou my lips . . ."

Sermon for 5/22/11--Cantate: Fifth Sunday of Easter (LSB 1-year)

“If I depart, I will send Him . . .”

John 16:5-15

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

The Triune God does not necessarily work the way we think the Triune God should work. Once again this week we see Jesus telling His disciples that He must depart from them, that He must “return to the Father”; and the disciples look sorrowful at the thought of the departure of Jesus. Who among them could possibly imagine that they would be better off if Jesus was no longer in their sight? And who could blame them for thinking that way? Have you never imagined your life being different, better, if only Jesus were physically and visibly present with you? Have you never envied the apostles their firsthand witness of the life and acts of Jesus? Certainly it runs counter to reason and logic to believe that you would be better off without the visible presence of Jesus in your life. And yet, that’s precisely the point Jesus made to the disciples in our text. He said to them, “It is to your advantage that I go away; for if I do not go away, the Helper will not come to you; but if I depart, I will send Him to you.” With these words Jesus began to prepare His disciples for His death, resurrection and ascension. He prophesied to them concerning the sending of the Holy Spirit, a sending first in the upper room on the evening of the resurrection, and then on the day of Pentecost. It still seems illogical, though. Why would you need a helper if Jesus would just stay?

As you heard the Sunday after Easter, Jesus spoke to the Apostle Thomas saying, “Thomas, because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.” After the ascension, the Apostles, the sent-ones, would no longer be able to present Christ to the world in a visible way. The Son had disappeared from their sight, promising to be with them always, yet not in the way in which they had grown accustomed. It would be the job of these Apostles to preach the good news, to present the truth of Jesus and His victory over sin and death; but they could not point to the visible presence of Jesus and say, “This is the Christ, the Messiah. Look at His hands, His feet, His side. Look upon Him and believe.” These same men who had run away from Jesus and denied Him would be called upon to give a bold confession of the Christ to the world no less hostile to Jesus than those who came to arrest Him. They would have to confess and stand firm with and rely on a Jesus they could no longer see. By the day of Easter, they had already proved that they could not be relied upon to confess Christ boldly in the midst of persecution of their own power and free will. They could not even understand with their own reason why Jesus had to suffer and die.

This is the state of the world around you, as well. The world is full of unbelief. It’s full of people who believe that Jesus was merely a teacher or a prophet at best, and at worst was just a rebel against the established authority of His day. It’s full of the self-righteous, people who believe that their own good works will earn for them sufficient merit before the almighty Judge—and that’s if they believe that such a Judge exists. It’s full of people who do what is right in their own eyes, who deny that a day of judgment is coming, who deny that a righteous Judge awaits them. Children of sinful Adam, you stand with them. Conceived in sin, you would rely on your own merit and self-righteous works. You doubt the goodness of God in your life. You doubt that you face judgment.

And so Jesus promised He would send to the disciples the Holy Spirit: the Paraclete, the Helper, the Guide. Everything Jesus had said to them, everything Jesus had done for them and for the world, would be made clear to them by the power of the Holy Spirit. And through the Spirit, you yourselves have this victory of Jesus made clear to you. You know this is true because you have the eyewitness testimony of the Apostles recorded in the Gospels: two Gospels written by the Apostles themselves, and two written by Evangelists—all inspired by the Holy Spirit. You have the testimony of the Acts of the Apostles, where you see Peter the denier and Paul the persecutor making bold confession of the Gospel of Jesus Christ across the known world. You have the testimony of the writers of the Epistles. You have the bold confession and faithfulness of the martyrs. You have the daring confession of the Church fathers who formulated the ecumenical creeds which you confess to this day. You have the plain language of the liturgy to guide you in your prayer life. You have the courageous confession of Luther and Chemnitz and the other formulators of the Book of Concord. And you have the preaching of faithful pastors who continue to preach the good news to you.

Look at what Jesus came to do. He came to die, bearing your sins to the cross, and then rise again so that you would have salvation and eternal life through Him. He came to deliver to you His own body and blood. Jesus died and rose again to win the victory over sin and death for you. And by the work of the Holy Spirit, mere mortal men have preached and continue to preach to you the good news of that victory and what it means for your life with God. Jesus won that victory, and the Spirit makes it known to you. You who have never seen Jesus with your eyes, who live only by the faith you have received in Holy Baptism and which is fed by the hearing of the Word, have more benefit from the work of the Holy Spirit than the disciples had from the personal, visible presence of Jesus!

Through the Holy Spirit, the world stands convicted in its unbelief and self-righteousness. Through the Holy Spirit, the prince of this world has been judged. But the Spirit doesn’t stop there. Through the Holy Spirit, you know the judgment that awaits you has been borne by Christ Himself. Through the Holy Spirit, you know that the Old Adam in you has been drowned in the waters of Holy Baptism. Through the Holy Spirit, you know you receive the body and blood of Jesus for your forgiveness and salvation. Through the Holy Spirit, you know that the victory which Jesus won for you is yours forever. 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.

REVIEW: "Fashioned by Faith" by Rachel Lee Carter

I awoke one morning late last year to discover that I was, suddenly, the father of a teen-aged girl. Having never been a teen-age girl myself, there are certain things I will never know. Of course, the greatest of these unknowns is that I will never know how the female mind works. Only slightly behind that is the question of why girls dress the way they do. It seems these days that girls (and even mature women) are taking their fashion cues from prostitutes and sausage casing: "sex sells", and "the tighter, the better". I am fortunate to have a maturing daughter who has developed on her own a certain modesty. Nonetheless, as a Lutheran pastor and father I wish to be of support to her and others in making modest fashion decisions, even if I don't know a thing about fashion myself.

Though it's written with a feminine audience in mind, Fashioned by Faith by international fashion model Rachel Lee Carter is a fine resource for the Christian father who would like insight into the choices their daughters make in clothing. Carter offers three perspectives in each chapter: how boys and men perceive the apparel a girl or woman chooses, her own perspective as a model, and what God's Word says. This is not a trite, lukewarm book. The language is concrete. She addresses topics such as thongs, bra straps, and panty lines, and she talks about how seeing such things affect the minds and hearts of the boys and men who see them. She discusses her battle with bulimia. She talks about self-esteem without sounding like an after-school special, quoting Psalm 139:

For You formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother’s womb. I will praise You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; marvelous are Your works, and that my soul knows very well.

She even includes helpful guidance and suggestions for fitting together the clothing a girl or woman already has into a modest wardrobe. The included discussion and study questions help to guide the reader to God-pleasing thoughts and decisions.

I highly recommend this book--not only to young girls who are struggling with clothing choices and body image in a culture dominated by waif-like shadows who call themselves women, but also to the parents of these girls who love and care for these young girls. Rachel Lee Carter has done all of us a great service in sharing her experiences and insight.  Preview it here.




Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze.com book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Sermon for 5/15/11: Jubilate: Fourth Sunday of Easter (LSB 1-year)

How Long, O Lord?

John 16:16-22

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

Historically, the Fourth Sunday of Easter has been known as Jubilate. This Latin word is the first word of our Introit, in which we sing, “Make a joyful shout to God!” It seems strange, then, that the Church should choose the verses of our Gospel reading—verses recording an event which takes place right before the arrest of Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane the night before His crucifixion—to be read and preached on one of the seven Sundays of Easter. There’s an awful lot of sorrow in this text, and it doesn’t seem quite right in what is supposed to be a season of great joy for the people of God.  In fact, it seemed as though the disciples were already in the midst of their sorrow. Jesus wasn’t even gone yet from them for that little while, and in their confusion regarding His words, it was as though Jesus had already left them. The thing is, Jesus wasn’t delivering the goods the way they expected. They expected an earthly King, an Anointed One who would restore the earthly Kingdom of Israel. This business of Jesus going away for a little while, of Jesus going to the Father—it made no sense in their vision of the Messiah.

Of course, it’s easy for us to look at this text through the lens of hindsight and know exactly what Jesus is saying. In fact, as we look at this text, it might be easy for us to suppose that the disciples are rather foolish and thick-headed. After all, Jesus had told them more than once that He would suffer and die and that He would rise from the grave. This would be the last time Jesus would share this message with them before His betrayal and arrest, trial, conviction and crucifixion. These words would begin to be fulfilled before that day had even ended. It’s obvious to us. But we have the luxury of hindsight and the understanding given to us through the Holy Spirit.

Then again, Jesus doesn’t always deliver the way we think He should, either. Jesus tells us, “You will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice; and you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will be turned into joy.” Sorrow, and anguish, and the cross will define your life; but your cross will yield to the resurrection!  These are wonderful words. But let us be honest: they are not really the words we want to hear. What we want to hear is that the life lived in Christ is a life of ease. We want to hear that being a Christian means that we will always be treated fairly in this life, that others will love us because of who we are. We want to hear that our blessed Lord has not only taken on our sin and died our death, but has also taken away everything that annoys and frustrates and bothers us, every bad thing that can happen to us, every evil word or deed that might be said or done against us. This is why men like Joel Osteen are so popular: they deliver the message we want to hear.

But instead of telling us what we want to hear, our Lord tells us what is true and real. He says: “A little while, and you will not see Me; and, again a little while, and you will see Me, because I go to the Father.” The message is plain for us who live under the burden of the Law and who daily earn the wages of sin. We need Jesus every moment. It is only the presence of Christ in us that allows us to do good works, that gives us true joy, that opens the gates of heaven to us. But we separate ourselves from Him in our sinfulness, and we become mired in sorrow because there is no hope or help or comfort for us apart from Him. Apart from Christ, the sorrow seems endless because the sorrow is endless apart from Christ.

But this is where we see the great blessing of holy absolution. When we find ourselves deep in sorrow over our sinfulness, when it seems as though the despair cannot be conquered, when the world is rejoicing because you have fallen, when it seems that sin and death will have their way, it is then that the Lord says to you, “You now have sorrow; but I will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and your joy no one will take from you.” When you are in sorrow over your sin and crying out, “How long, O Lord?” with King David, Jesus answers you by saying, “A little while.” ‘I will bring your anguish to an end. I forgive you your sin, removing it as far from you as east is from west. My righteousness covers your sinfulness. And I will give you great joy that will never end.’

Even though we may be unable to see the end of our sorrow, our Lord sees it. The suffering in sorrow will end; and until then, He gives us the strength to bear it, nourishing our souls with His body and blood. “A little while,” He says to you. That is all the longer your cross will last. That is only how long it will be until your heartache passes. That is the length of Christian sorrow and pain—only a little while. It may seem like an eternity, as those three days between cross and resurrection surely did to the disciples, and the devil will want to consume your whole life, but it is really only a little while. It will feel as if it is always raining, but after the rain comes the sunshine. And what happens after that little while? Then comes the long while, the unending Day of the Lord. Sorrow and despair lasts but a moment. And then comes the joy which knows no end and the peace which surpasses understanding and the blessing that far outweighs any blessing in this life, the time when the sufferings of this present life can in no way measure up to the glory that our Lord has fully stored up for you.

But first, the little while. Though for now you have sorrow, the Lord even now comes to you when He gives you His life-renewing flesh and pours into you His life-saving blood. Even now the Lord sees you again as He smiles on you with His forgiving Word, even as the angel promised the shepherds when he said, “Behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.” Even now the Lord creates in you a clean heart, and renews His righteous Spirit within you, and restores to you the joy of His salvation.

As St. Peter wrote: “In this you greatly rejoice, though now, for a little while, if need be, you are grieved by various trials.” But even in this little while of grief, your heart rejoices, for you have been plunged into a joy that no one can take from you. You hear a Word of blessing that no devil nor any other enemy of God can undo. And you feed on Jesus, whose life no one now can take from you. Let the world have its rejoicing while you weep and lament; for that joy will only last a little while. In His time, the Lord will grant you joy that will never fade away. 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 5/8/11--Misericordias Domini: Second Sunday After Easter (LSB 1-year)

The Voice of the Shepherd

John 10:11-16

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


Sheep are notorious for getting themselves into trouble, for straying, for ending up lost and confused, subjected to danger and unable to take care of themselves. They’re dirty, smelly animals. Worse than that, though, they’d walk off a cliff without a thought. That’s why they need a shepherd. Sheep may be stupid animals, but strangely enough, sheep know the voice of their shepherd. Sheep hear the voice of their shepherd and everything seems right with the world. They have their shepherd, the one who will keep them safe from predators and lead them away from the cliff’s edge to food and water.

As a favorite saying goes for those feeling rebellious, “People are sheep.” Ask nearly any child or even a teen why they’d want to do something they know will get them in trouble, and you’ll hear something like, “All my friends are doing it.” And then someone will inevitably reply, “And if your friends told you to jump off a bridge, would you do that too?” I hope you younger folk aren’t offended. If it’s any consolation, sheep-like behavior doesn’t end when you turn 20, 30, or even 60. Advertisers know they can put pressure on anyone of any age just by saying, “Your neighbor is better off than you.” Left to our own devices, we will follow the crowd, even when that crowd leads us into hell. That’s why we need a shepherd, too.

In the Scriptures God often describes Himself as a shepherd. You heard that description again today, when God promises in Ezekiel that He will depose the false shepherds of Israel who scattered the flock and fed off the sheep. God says: “Indeed I Myself will search for My sheep and seek them out. As a shepherd seeks out his flock on the day he is among his scattered sheep, so I will seek out My sheep and deliver them from all the places where they were scattered on a cloudy and dark day.” You heard it in the Gospel lesson, where Jesus calls His voice the shepherd’s voice, the one God’s true sheep will know. Jesus is that Shepherd, the One who comes to dwell with His sheep, to feed them, to lead them, to comfort them.

Jesus pays us no compliment by calling us sheep. But that is, in fact, what we are. By nature we walk away from the Good Shepherd right into the jaws of death. As Scripture says, “We like sheep have gone astray, every one to his own way.” This is no temporary disorientation. It is separation and alienation from the God who alone gives us life. Too often we allow other voices to drown out the Voice that really matters. We hear the voice of false preaching, preaching that tells us we can earn our own ticket inside the heavenly gates—and it sounds appealing. The voice of the world is telling us that God really meant to say that homosexuality isn’t sinful. It tells us that abortion isn’t murder. It tells us that God wants us to be prosperous. It tells us that God will keep us from suffering as long as we believe enough. It even tells us that we can do whatever we want as long as it makes us happy. What could be more appealing than that? Of course our shepherd wants us to be happy. Surely He wouldn’t deny us things that would make us happy. Are there thorns in the pasture? Surely not—the grass is so green. We’ve let the hirelings lead us into the thistles, and the den of the wolf is nearby. We are poisoned with the putrid and stagnant water of worldliness with its passing fads that we think will quench our thirst, all the while refusing the streams of living water to which the Good Shepherd beckons us.

Jesus is no cowardly hireling who leads us into the wilderness of sin and then runs away when the old evil wolf comes seeking to condemn and destroy you with your sin. Our Good Shepherd died, as one of our hymns puts it, "for sheep who love to wander." He did not wait for us to find our own way out of the wilderness and back to the sheep pen. He came to us in this world of sin and death and He redeemed us by dying on the cross in our place. Such is the love of the Good Shepherd for His sheep.

The Good Shepherd still calls and gathers a flock by His Word. He says, "My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me." Martin Luther gave us a beautifully simple definition of the Church in the Smalcald Articles: “Thank God, a seven-year old child knows what the Church is, namely, holy believers and sheep who hear the voice of their Good Shepherd.”

So where do we hear His voice today? He speaks to us through pastors, men He raises up to serve as undershepherds. By the grace of God and the guidance of the Holy Spirit, these undershepherds will speak to you with the voice of the Good Shepherd. They will lead you to the still waters of Baptism and the green pastures of the Holy Supper. They will restore your soul with the word of Holy Absolution, spoken by the pastor as from Christ Himself. There are still hirelings out there. People will continue to attempt to lead you astray. But you have your standard against which you can compare anyone claiming to be your shepherd. How does what this person says compare to what my Shepherd tells me? Ask that question, and you will be able to tell the true Shepherd and the true undershepherds from the mere hirelings. Listen to the voice. Does my voice and what I say to you lead you away from the true Shepherd and His gifts? If so, don’t follow me, and don’t listen to another word I say. If anyone steps into this pulpit and preaches anything apart from Christ and Him crucified, don’t follow them, and don’t listen to what they have to say. Kick them out of this pulpit and out of your fellowship. They would lead you away from your Shepherd, the One who would—and did—die to save you.

The Church is where the Good Shepherd is. Where His voice is sounding in Holy Absolution, in the pure preaching of His Word, and in His Baptism and Supper, there you will find the sheep that belong to Jesus. Keep your ears attuned to the voice of the Good Shepherd, for He alone has the words of eternal life. 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 5/1/11--Quasimodogeniti: Second Sunday of Easter (LSB 1-year)

Abundant Life

John 20:19-31

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

We have heard the story of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead. We have heard how he crushed Satan and won salvation for all who believe His Word. This is the victory of God over all the powers of darkness. Yet The disciples are hiding behind closed doors for fear of the Jews. Jesus has risen from the dead, but the disciples are afraid. They afraid of the Jews, they are afraid they are going to be found out, they are afraid that they have put their hope in a dead God. That is how it goes with our faith, too. It’s easy to feel good on Easter morning. The music, the readings, the beauty of the service, everything points to the wonder of Christ’s resurrection from the dead. But what about later? What about after the glow of the resurrection seems to wear off? What about those times when you are alone with your sins? What about those times in your faith-life when you feel like you can get no breath, when you feel like you are choking because it just isn’t in you?

We’ve all been there. Like the disciples, our emotions as Christians ebb and flow. There are times when we feel close to God, but there are other times when we feel far away and distant, unconnected, afraid and alone. That is where the disciples were that first Easter evening. They were there with you. This is how Satan seeks to work on you. The last thing Satan wants you to believe is the connection between Easter and your faith. If He can convince you that Christ’s death and resurrection were just events from a storybook a long time ago, then Jesus’ resurrection from the dead has no meaning. That is Satan’s ploy. He seeks to convince you that you don’t believe. He is willing to lie, deceive, convince, whatever is in His power to draw you away from Christ’s words of forgiveness and life. Left to yourself, you are stuck, right there in league with Satan. But you are not left to yourself. Jesus appears in the midst of them and says, “Peace be with you.” Jesus knows His disciples don’t believe in Him at that time. He knows that they are filled with unbelief and doubt. He also knows they are full of fear at the Law and that they need to hear words of comfort and hope.

So He says to them, “Peace be with you.” Notice how tender these words are in the ears of the disciples. Notice how tender these words are to you. Peace. The wall of separation between God and man was broken when Jesus burst forth from the tomb. God and man are not longer at war with each other. They are at peace. But like prisoners of war, the disciples have not heard the news. They haven’t received the fruit of Jesus’ work on the cross and in the tomb. So Jesus says, “Peace be with you.” They are great words. With those words Jesus comforts you and gives you hope. Jesus died and rose again from the dead to put those words in your ears. Peace be with you. He doesn’t pummel with the Law; he doesn’t mock them or condemn for their unbelief, although I suppose the disciples deserved it, as do we. No, Jesus gives them the only thing that could actually make a difference. He gave them peace. As Jesus uses the word here, it means the same thing as forgiveness. He forgives their sins. They are gone.

But Jesus isn’t satisfied to simply forgive the sins of the eleven some 2000 years ago. No; He then gives them the peace again, and says to them: whoever sins you forgiven, they are forgiven; and whoever’s sins you hold back, they are held back. In Lutheran theology we call this the Office of the Keys. Jesus gives the Keys to the disciples, now called the Apostles or “sent-ones”. He gives them the Keys and says that their work is to forgive sins. They are to release sins, get rid of them, cast them into the depth of the sea, as far as east is from west.

That is the work of the Christian Church. That is why we gather here Sunday after Sunday. God draws you together to this house week after week so that He can say to you, “Peace be with you. I forgive you your sins.” Christ has promised to be where two or three have gathered in His name. When we separate ourselves from the communion of Saints, the Church, the bride of Christ, we miss out on the peace which His presence bestows. But in this place God puts His peace on you. He gives it to you freely, not because of any merit or worthiness on your part, but because of His great and boundless mercy. This is what the world doesn’t get about Easter. For so many, even for many Christians, Easter is about the drama or pageantry of the event. We do make a big deal about Easter, but we do so because Jesus died and rose again for us. Remember again the words from the Creed: “who for us men and for our salvation came down from heaven and was incarnate of the Virgin Mary and was made man.” God came down to earth with a purpose.

The old title for this Sunday is Quasimodogeniti, from the Introit, which begins, “As newborn babes, desire the pure milk of the Word.” The power of Easter lies in the Word of God. For it is in that Word of God that all of Christ’s work on the cross and in the tomb becomes yours. God puts those words of forgiveness in your ears in holy absolution. He puts those words into your ears in pure preaching. He puts those words on your heart in Holy Baptism. And He puts those words of forgiveness in your mouth in His Holy Supper. Open wide, and God will fill you. Receive His Word with thanksgiving, for all of God’s work is now given to you, that you might have life, and have it abundantly. 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.