John 10:22-30; Good Shepherd Sunday; April 25, 2010

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At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father's name bear witness about me, but you do not believe because you are not part of my flock. My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father's hand. I and the Father are one.”

(a homily by Rev. Will Weedon, Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Hamel, IL)

Once upon a time (a real time, mind you, not an imagined one), there was a wolf. He was a fat old thing. You see, he had it pretty easy. Whenever he wanted to eat, he only had to walk his door of his cave and look at the sheep that fed right outside. He’d eye this one or that one. And then he’d go after it and with a pretty minimal struggle, he’d bring the sheep down and eat away. And the more that he ate, the bigger he got, and the bigger he grew, the hungrier he got. He was a wicked old thing; sometimes he’d just poke his head out the door and howl. All the sheep began to shiver at the very sound of him. He’d chuckle to himself. “Yes, you better be afraid, you stupid sheep because one of these days I am going to eat you, and it won’t be pleasant, oh no it won’t. Ha! Ha!” This big, bad wolf, you see, had a name. A name of fear. The sheep had only to think of his name and they’d get wobbly on their knees and some would faint outright. His name, you see, was Death. And Death was always hungry and never satisfied. Always eating sheep and always wanting more. And he stank. The very smell of him was worse than his name or his howl. He was altogether dreadful, let me tell you! He was in charge and all the sheep knew it.

There came a day when he was feeling hungrier than usual. He poked his head out the cave door to roar and he couldn’t believe his eyes. Why, right there in front of his door, on his very door-step almost was the fattest, juiciest sheep he’d ever laid his eyes on. The effrontery of it! He drew in the air to fill his vast lungs and then he let out a stone-splitting howl. All the other sheep in the vicinity turned tail and ran. They were afraid. All but the sheep that grazed still just outside his cave. That sheep paid him no heed at all. Kept on eating, just like it hadn’t even heard him. He was getting mad now. He came bounding out the door and right up to that impertinent animal. Again he sucked the air into his lungs and this time he breathed out right in the sheep’s face. The sheep looked up and blinked as the hideous odor of decay was blasted in its face. Totally unconcerned the sheep blinked and then stared.

Now the wolf was getting himself into quite a tizzy. “Don’t you know who I am?” he snarled. The sheep looked at him and said: “Yes. I know.” Calm, at peace even. The other sheep began to creep back at a distance to watch. They couldn’t believe what they were witnessing. “Well,” snarled the Wolf, “aren’t you afraid?” The sheep looked Death, that old wolf, right in the eyes and said: “Of you? You have got to be kidding!” Now the wolf was so livid with anger that he spoke low and menacing: “You’re for it, lamb chops. You are not going to have it easy. I’m going to take you out slow and painfully.” There was a moment of silence and then the sheep said: “I know.”

The other sheep had all been watching because they’d never heard anything like this before. But the moment that the wolf pounced they turned away. A great sadness filled them. They had thought, well, they had scarcely dared to hope, but it was just possible that, this once, the wolf wasn’t going to get his way. But their hopes were dashed. It was an awful and an ugly sight. The wolf chowed down. It was slow and it was painful, just like he said. And in the end, there was nothing left. He turned his rude face, red with blood to the other sheep, and he belched. They turned tail and ran, knowing that he’d be back for them one day soon.

As the wolf went back to his cave, he took out a tooth pick and cleaned his teeth and he thought that he’d never tasted a sheep that was quite so good before. Nothing tough about that meat. It was tender and rich and really altogether satisfying. The thought hit him with surprise. It was almost as though his insatiable hunger had actually been quenched for once. The thought was a little disturbing. Well, no matter, he thought. And off he went to bed.

When the morning came the wolf wasn’t feeling quite himself. It was almost as though he were getting a bit of tummy ache. Such a thing never happened. He always woke up ravenous and went off to start eating first thing in the morning. At least a dozen or so sheep before the dew was off the grass. But not this morning. His tummy WAS grumbling. By noon he was feeling more than discomfort. He was feeling positively ill. He who had brought such pain on those poor sheep, he was getting a taste of pain himself and it was most unpleasant. He kept thinking back to that impertinent sheep he had eaten yesterday afternoon, the one that had tasted so strangely good. Could it have actually been poisoned or something? It wasn’t long before he stopped thinking altogether. The pain was just too great. He rolled around on the floor of his den and his howled and yammered.

The sheep heard the sound and didn’t quite know what to make of it all. They crept cautiously nearer and nearer to the door of his house and turned their heads listening. What could it mean?
It was sometime in the dark of the night that the wolf let out a shuddering howl. Something was alive and moving inside its own gullet. Something that pushed and poked and prodded until with a sudden burst, the gullet was punctured and hole ripped open. And something, rather, someone stepped right out through the hole, right out of the massive stinking stomach. The wolf felt like he was dying. And I suppose in a way he was.

The figure that stepped out of the wolf’s belly was totally unknown to the wolf. Why, it looked like a shepherd. He’d heard of such a critter, but had never actually met one. With a staff in his hand he walked around and stood facing the wolf. And he began to laugh. He laughed and his laugher burst open the door of the wolf’s house. He laughed and the sheep were filled with bewilderment wondering what was going on in there. He laughed and he looked the wolf right in the eye.

“So, you don’t recognize me, old foe? It was I who ate outside your house three days ago. ‘Twas I that you promised would die horribly and how you kept your promise. But what do you propose to do about me now?”

“You? The wolf gasped. The voice was the same; he recognized it. This shepherd was indeed the sheep whom he had swallowed down. “You. But how? Oh, the pain!” The shepherd smiled and said: “Well, I think you’re pretty harmless now, my friend. Go on and try to eat some of my sheep. I promise you that as fast as you swallow them down I will lead right out through the hole I made in your stomach. And then you’ll never be able to touch them again! Ta!”

The wolf howled in fear and anger and rage, but there was nothing he could do. The Shepherd had tricked him, fooled him good! And the Shepherd then stepped outside the door and called the sheep together. They knew his voice too. They’d heard it before. They stood before the Lamb who had become the Shepherd and they listened as he told them what would happen to them. “You’ll die too. He’ll come out in a few days and be hungrier than ever. He’ll swallow you down. But don’t worry. I punched a hole right through his belly and I promise you I’ll bring you out again.”

Once upon a time, and the time was 2,000 years ago. But the promise still holds: “My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give them eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand.” It is the comfort of the Resurrection that Christ reaches us today in his Supper. Here we may taste the body and blood that went into the wolf’s mouth, but which the wolf could not hold. As you eat and drink you have the same promise: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life!” Let the old wolf howl and snarl all he will. We know about the hole in his tummy. We know about the Sheep who is the Shepherd. Our Good Shepherd. Amen!

John 10:11-18; Good Shepherd Sunday; April 25, 2010

I am the good shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life for the sheep. He who is a hired hand and not a shepherd, who does not own the sheep, sees the wolf coming and leaves the sheep and flees, and the wolf snatches them and scatters them. He flees because he is a hired hand and cares nothing for the sheep. I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd. For this reason the Father loves me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have authority to lay it down, and I have authority to take it up again. This charge I have received from my Father.” (John 10:11-18, ESV)

Dear Christian Friends;

Today is Good Shepherd Sunday. I’m going to do something that I don’t usually do, but it is by request. My daughter loves the story I told last year on Good Shepherd Sunday. And I think it is very much worth hearing again. This story is one I borrowed from Pastor Will Weedon, Saint Paul’s Lutheran Church, Hamel, IL.

(a homily by Rev. Will Weedon, Saint Paul Lutheran Church, Hamel, IL)

Once upon a time (a real time, mind you, not an imagined one), there was a wolf. He was a fat old thing. You see, he had it pretty easy. Whenever he wanted to eat, he only had to walk his door of his cave and look at the sheep that fed right outside. He’d eye this one or that one. And then he’d go after it and with a pretty minimal struggle, he’d bring the sheep down and eat away. And the more that he ate, the bigger he got, and the bigger he grew, the hungrier he got. He was a wicked old thing; sometimes he’d just poke his head out the door and howl. All the sheep began to shiver at the very sound of him. He’d chuckle to himself. “Yes, you better be afraid, you stupid sheep because one of these days I am going to eat you, and it won’t be pleasant, oh no it won’t. Ha! Ha!” This big, bad wolf, you see, had a name. A name of fear. The sheep had only to think of his name and they’d get wobbly on their knees and some would faint outright. His name, you see, was Death. And Death was always hungry and never satisfied. Always eating sheep and always wanting more. And he stank. The very smell of him was worse than his name or his howl. He was altogether dreadful, let me tell you! He was in charge and all the sheep knew it.

There came a day when he was feeling hungrier than usual. He poked his head out the cave door to roar and he couldn’t believe his eyes. Why, right there in front of his door, on his very door-step almost was the fattest, juiciest sheep he’d ever laid his eyes on. The effrontery of it! He drew in the air to fill his vast lungs and then he let out a stone-splitting howl. All the other sheep in the vicinity turned tail and ran. They were afraid. All but the sheep that grazed still just outside his cave. That sheep paid him no heed at all. Kept on eating, just like it hadn’t even heard him. He was getting mad now. He came bounding out the door and right up to that impertinent animal. Again he sucked the air into his lungs and this time he breathed out right in the sheep’s face. The sheep looked up and blinked as the hideous odor of decay was blasted in its face. Totally unconcerned the sheep blinked and then stared.

Now the wolf was getting himself into quite a tizzy. “Don’t you know who I am?” he snarled. The sheep looked at him and said: “Yes. I know.” Calm, at peace even. The other sheep began to creep back at a distance to watch. They couldn’t believe what they were witnessing. “Well,” snarled the Wolf, “aren’t you afraid?” The sheep looked Death, that old wolf, right in the eyes and said: “Of you? You have got to be kidding!” Now the wolf was so livid with anger that he spoke low and menacing: “You’re for it, lamb chops. You are not going to have it easy. I’m going to take you out slow and painfully.” There was a moment of silence and then the sheep said: “I know.”

The other sheep had all been watching because they’d never heard anything like this before. But the moment that the wolf pounced they turned away. A great sadness filled them. They had thought, well, they had scarcely dared to hope, but it was just possible that, this once, the wolf wasn’t going to get his way. But their hopes were dashed. It was an awful and an ugly sight. The wolf chowed down. It was slow and it was painful, just like he said. And in the end, there was nothing left. He turned his rude face, red with blood to the other sheep, and he belched. They turned tail and ran, knowing that he’d be back for them one day soon.

As the wolf went back to his cave, he took out a tooth pick and cleaned his teeth and he thought that he’d never tasted a sheep that was quite so good before. Nothing tough about that meat. It was tender and rich and really altogether satisfying. The thought hit him with surprise. It was almost as though his insatiable hunger had actually been quenched for once. The thought was a little disturbing. Well, no matter, he thought. And off he went to bed.

When the morning came the wolf wasn’t feeling quite himself. It was almost as though he were getting a bit of tummy ache. Such a thing never happened. He always woke up ravenous and went off to start eating first thing in the morning. At least a dozen or so sheep before the dew was off the grass. But not this morning. His tummy WAS grumbling. By noon he was feeling more than discomfort. He was feeling positively ill. He who had brought such pain on those poor sheep, he was getting a taste of pain himself and it was most unpleasant. He kept thinking back to that impertinent sheep he had eaten yesterday afternoon, the one that had tasted so strangely good. Could it have actually been poisoned or something? It wasn’t long before he stopped thinking altogether. The pain was just too great. He rolled around on the floor of his den and his howled and yammered.

The sheep heard the sound and didn’t quite know what to make of it all. They crept cautiously nearer and nearer to the door of his house and turned their heads listening. What could it mean?
It was sometime in the dark of the night that the wolf let out a shuddering howl. Something was alive and moving inside its own gullet. Something that pushed and poked and prodded until with a sudden burst, the gullet was punctured and hole ripped open. And something, rather, someone stepped right out through the hole, right out of the massive stinking stomach. The wolf felt like he was dying. And I suppose in a way he was.

The figure that stepped out of the wolf’s belly was totally unknown to the wolf. Why, it looked like a shepherd. He’d heard of such a critter, but had never actually met one. With a staff in his hand he walked around and stood facing the wolf. And he began to laugh. He laughed and his laugher burst open the door of the wolf’s house. He laughed and the sheep were filled with bewilderment wondering what was going on in there. He laughed and he looked the wolf right in the eye.

“So, you don’t recognize me, old foe? It was I who ate outside your house three days ago. ‘Twas I that you promised would die horribly and how you kept your promise. But what do you propose to do about me now?”

“You? The wolf gasped. The voice was the same; he recognized it. This shepherd was indeed the sheep whom he had swallowed down. “You. But how? Oh, the pain!” The shepherd smiled and said: “Well, I think you’re pretty harmless now, my friend. Go on and try to eat some of my sheep. I promise you that as fast as you swallow them down I will lead right out through the hole I made in your stomach. And then you’ll never be able to touch them again! Ta!”

The wolf howled in fear and anger and rage, but there was nothing he could do. The Shepherd had tricked him, fooled him good! And the Shepherd then stepped outside the door and called the sheep together. They knew his voice too. They’d heard it before. They stood before the Lamb who had become the Shepherd and they listened as he told them what would happen to them. “You’ll die too. He’ll come out in a few days and be hungrier than ever. He’ll swallow you down. But don’t worry. I punched a hole right through his belly and I promise you I’ll bring you out again.”

Once upon a time, and the time was 2,000 years ago. But the promise still holds: “My sheep hear my voice and I know them and they follow me and I give them eternal life and they shall never perish neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand.” It is the comfort of the Resurrection that Christ reaches us today in his Supper. Here we may taste the body and blood that went into the wolf’s mouth, but which the wolf could not hold. As you eat and drink you have the same promise: “Whoever eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life!” Let the old wolf howl and snarl all he will. We know about the hole in his tummy. We know about the Sheep who is the Shepherd. Our Good Shepherd. Amen!

John.21.1-14; Third Sunday of Easter, 2010; April 18, 2010

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After this Jesus revealed himself again to the disciples by the Sea of Tiberias, and he revealed himself in this way. Simon Peter, Thomas (called the Twin), Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, the sons of Zebedee, and two others of his disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, “I am going fishing.” They said to him, “We will go with you.” They went out and got into the boat, but that night they caught nothing. Just as day was breaking, Jesus stood on the shore; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, “Children, do you have any fish?” They answered him, “No.” He said to them, “Cast the net on the right side of the boat, and you will find some.” So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in, because of the quantity of fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved therefore said to Peter, “It is the Lord!” When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on his outer garment, for he was stripped for work, and threw himself into the sea. The other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, but about a hundred yards off. When they got out on land, they saw a charcoal fire in place, with fish laid out on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, “Bring some of the fish that you have just caught.” So Simon Peter went aboard and hauled the net ashore, full of large fish, 153 of them. And although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, “Come and have breakfast.” Now none of the disciples dared ask him, “Who are you?” They knew it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and so with the fish. This was now the third time that Jesus was revealed to the disciples after he was raised from the dead. ” (John 21:1–14, ESV)

“Our God is the God for people who make mistakes.”

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

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

You’ve heard that old joke. Earlier today I was sure I had made a mistake. I wasn’t sure because it is so rare for a guy like me. But upon reflection, after thinking about it for a long time, I realized that I was mistaken. I didn’t make a mistake after all… oh wait; I guess I just made one. Maybe the other thing was a mistake after all? Well, that’s not me. I make mistakes all the time. Lot’s of times the mistakes I make are right out in front of everyone. Have you made a mistake this morning? Preparing to come to church, did you use the wrong toothpaste, use too much hot water in the shower and leave everyone else cold? Make a wrong turn? Say the wrong thing to your spouse?

Really though, those kind of mistakes are one thing, we’ve all made mistakes like those, but we’ve all made another kind, too. I’m talking about the ones that keep you up at night. The ones you have to keep pushing into the back chamber of your mind. I’m talking about relationship destroying mistakes, bridge burning mistakes. Things you did that change your life in ways you never liked. The ones you say to yourself even years later, “If only I had done that differently.” I’m talking about the kind of mistakes that eat away at you in regret. Now they’re not always big mistakes either, sometimes the littlest thing can bubble up in your memory, like a minor offense against a long lost friend that can now never be taken back.

Now before we go on I want to make a point. It would be a mistake to classify all our sin as mistakes. That makes it seem that all our problems are accidental, as if somehow we weren’t to blame because (as we often say) “nobody’s perfect.” That’s just an excuse to try to push the blame away. Let’s be clear. We are sinful people. We live in the sin that we were born with. We can point at our parents and blame them because we inherited our sad state from them, but we have plenty of blame on our own. The mistakes that we make accidentally are only a by-product of that sin. In confirmation class we talk about “not living in a perfect relationship with God.” The First commandment says, “You shall have no other Gods. What does this mean? We should fear and love God above all things.” And we don’t. Primarily we love ourselves above all things. That’s the real nature of sin. We want to be god instead of letting God be god. When our selfishness shatters that part of the law; all the rest, all nine of other commandments, fall down like dominoes. Without a perfect relationship with God, it is impossible to have a perfect relationship with anyone else. Mistakes, especially those in our relationships with other people, are a part of that “not living in a perfect relationship with God.” The regret that we feel, the self inflicted pain that we suffer is the law that is written on our hearts that tells us that things should be different.

Today’s texts are about mistakes. Well to be more accurate they are about God (that’s really the case with the whole bible). These texts are about the God who is the God for people who make mistakes. And talk about regrets, St. Paul had a whole bucket full of them. He had no illusions about where he was before Jesus met him on the road to Damascus. He wrote in his letter to Pastor Timothy:

The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost. But I received mercy for this reason, that in me, as the foremost, Jesus Christ might display his perfect patience as an example to those who were to believe in him for eternal life. (1 Ti 1:15-16, ESV)

When Paul was still called Saul he “breathed threats and murder against the disciples of the Lord…” He didn’t just make life tough for them; he did everything he could to cause them to be killed. When we first see him he is standing among a crowd of angry people, approving of their stoning of Stephen. “I stood watching and approving.” He said later. Paul wasn’t just an enemy of Christ’s Church; he was an outspoken and active persecutor of it. There was real blood on his hands. In some ways it puts our simple regrets to shame. And he had no illusions about who he was. And yet, Jesus met him on the road. Paul, chief of sinners, because Jesus greatest Apostle. Had Paul made mistakes? Yep, did Jesus forgive? Yep. And look at the result.

Now the disciples too were plagued by mistakes. When the soldiers came to arrest Jesus in the garden, they ran for their lives like scared rabbits. They left Jesus alone, even though they knew exactly who he was: They had seen miracle after miracle, and heard every word he spoke. And Peter even more. When he was confronted with being Jesus disciple as a he stood outside at Jesus trial, he denied that he knew the man who he saw walk on water, and who invited him to do the same. “I will lay down my life for you!” Peter told Jesus, but to the woman who accused him of being a disciple, he said with a curse, “I am not!” I think you can see their regret. Remember where they were on the first evening of Jesus resurrection? After they had heard from the women that Jesus was alive? They were huddled together in a darkened room with the doors locked, “for fear of the Jews.” And maybe even for fear of Jesus. They had left him to the cross. Peter had denied. When the news of Jesus alive again reached them I can imagine they really weren’t all that anxious to see him again. “If only I hadn’t done that.” “If only I hadn’t said that.” The minds must have been full of regret. Their actions, their failed courage, their running and hiding and denying, were all mistakes they must have wished they could take back. But as I said Jesus is the God for people who make mistakes. When he appeared to them, the very first time after the resurrection, he said, “Peace be with you.”

John tells us another account of Jesus appearing to them. When they didn’t know what to do they went fishing. It sounded like a good plan. But even though they were accomplished, professional fisherman, they didn’t catch anything. Jesus appeared to them and directed (even though they didn’t know it was him) and directed them to a large catch. I must have seemed just like the old days! Peter swam ashore, and the disciples dragged the net ashore. Jesus allays all their fears and eats with them. It was a sign of forgiveness and acceptance. It was like saying “Peace be with you” again. Jesus appeared to bring them peace, to remove their regrets, to accept them in spite of their mistakes.

Jesus accepts you in spite of your mistakes. But you should know that he doesn’t just sweep them under the rug. Remember the real problem isn’t mistakes it’s “not living in a perfect relationship with God.” That’s our real problem. That the real nature of sin in us. And what we deserve for that is God’s anger. He wants to be in relationship with him and we simply push him away, for our own selfish reasons, because we want to be our own god. Imagine how hurt you’d be if you invited someone to diner and they just said, “No. I won’t come and eat with you.” Well, Jesus takes care of our broken relationship. First, he did live in a perfect relationship with God, the Father. That first commandment that we can’t begin to keep; Jesus did, and all the other nine, too. Perfect, complete, and finished. And then he took stood in our place as God let out all his anger against sinful people. As Jesus hung on the cross dying, he wasn’t just suffering from nail holes and struggling to live, he was suffering what human beings should have suffered. Eternal punishment for their rejection of God. Jesus withstood the punishment of hell for you. Jesus withstood the death of sinful people for you. We are selfish, he was selfless. In love he gave up his life and he suffered punishment for you. Now because he suffered the punishment, we don’t have it to suffer anymore. Through faith in Jesus we are connected to God again. Our imperfect relationship is made a perfect. You see, he doesn’t just sweep aside sin; he deals with it in the only way it can be dealt with. The punishment is received and the relationship is restored.

Since regret and mistakes are only a symptom of the real problem they all go with it. Mistakes, and regret, willful sin and accidents, hurts and pain, trouble and sorrow follow Jesus in death into the tomb. But only life comes out again when he rises from the dead. That’s why he can bring peace to the disciples. The peace he brings evaporates the regret they feel from their mistakes and failures. That’s why he can turn Saul to Paul, and along with a name change a change of heart. Paul’s regrets are done away with and Jesus uses him. And even you, even the regrets that you have… they are done away with by Jesus. Those mistakes that you made are taken care of.

You might well ask the question, why would I want to be a Christian? Why would I want to be religious? Out there every day, and more and more every day, when you leave our little ‘protected’ corner of the world, you are going to find a world that is hostile to your faith. You will be challenged in your faith from every direction. You will have bosses, friends and family who will tell you that your church is old fashioned and doesn’t really know the true nature of things. They will tell you that the world is the result of accidental forces of nature not created by any god. They will tell you that if you believe homosexual behavior is a sin you are some kind of bigot. Your friends and family will tell you that sex outside of marriage isn’t wrong and everyone cheats a little bit. And you will be tempted to keep quiet when you know the truth of God’s Word. And you know what? You are going to make mistakes. You are a sinful person. Life is challenging. Why do you want to be religious? Why is Christianity so important to you today and tomorrow and all the rest of your life? It’s not the reason most people think. It’s not because you’re going to be perfect, or even because you’ll get to be better than anyone else. It’s because you will make mistakes. You will sin. You will fall short of your expectations. But our God is the only true God, He is Jesus Christ, and he is the God for people who make mistakes. He is the only One who has taken the regret that you are going to feel and put it to death, and buried it in the grave right along with the punishment that your sin deserves, right were it belongs. The very same thing that Jesus did for the disciples and Peter on that beach in Galilee, the very same thing that he did for Saul / Paul on the road to Damascus, is what he has done for you. And that’s what it means to be a Christian. That’s what it means to belong to the God who is the God for people who make mistakes. Amen.

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

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

John.20.19-23; Second Sunday after Easter; April 11, 2010

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On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven; if you withhold forgiveness from anyone, it is withheld.” (John 20:19-23, ESV)

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

“Peace be with you.” It was the normal greeting that people shared with one another. It was the everyday “hello” and “goodbye” the people spoke to one another without even thinking about what it meant. Like we say, “How are you?” not really wanting to know. But on the evening of that day that first day of the week, the first Sunday after the crucifixion, the first one after the disciples had heard the incredible, unbelievable news that Jesus had risen from the dead. It was so much more than just that kind of simple greeting. Those words coming from the lips of Jesus was everything to those men huddled together in the darkened upper room.

They were afraid of the Jews, the text says, and with good reason because the Jews that they were afraid of had the ear of the Romans. After all they were able to convince the Romans to crucify an innocent man. And the Romans never just stopped with the leader of a group they considered dangerous. The fear the disciples felt was real, and overwhelming. The Romans used crucifixion as a means of terror. “Don’t do what this guy did or the same will happen to you.” Suffering men and women on crosses made great billboards for the will and power of Rome. The disciples cowering in fear knew that first hand. And they also knew by example what the Jews who hated Jesus were capable of doing. They were afraid of the might be planned for them. And so they locked the doors and hid.

But, there might be more to their fear than just the fear of being crucified like Jesus. You see there was the betrayal to deal with. When Jesus had needed them most they all fled like scared rabbits. The one brief moment of defiance, the cutting off of a servant’s ear, was a lame excuse for a stand. When it mattered most they didn’t say or do anything. And Peter had the added pain of a public denial, “I don’t know the man!” he said with curses. Even though Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss, they were all guilty of betrayal in one degree or another. And now… John and Peter had seen the grave empty. Mary claimed to see Jesus alive. It was difficult to believe. But even more, don’t you think that they were afraid to face Jesus alive, because they had all failed him when He faced death.

So there they were afraid in the upper room behind lock and key. Their ears pursed for marching footsteps. And they were afraid Jesus would come to visit them.

Jesus did come. He stood among them appearing without the door even opening. The disciples must have fled to the corners of the room wanting to escape the deserved wrath of God. He would surely be angry at their betrayal and their denial. Their sin was obvious and their punishment totally deserved. But, Jesus did the unexpected. “Peace be with you.”

That day, that greeting wasn’t the normal “hello” greeting between people. It was in fact very abnormal and especially what the disciples weren’t expecting. Of course there were doubts about the resurrection itself, but more so the doubts that Jesus could forgive them for their sin. In their minds their sins were great, they’re denial complete. They could have no part in Jesus anymore. But Jesus shattered all their fears when he spoke to them “Peace.”

Peace. To the disciples it meant more than the simple word peace means to us. In Hebrew the word is Shalom. Shalom is not just an absence of war. Shalom is a word about relationships. It speaks of wholeness, unity, and restoration. It speaks of completeness, satisfaction, and safety. In that one word Jesus spoke to all the fears of the men he stood before that day. They had broken their relationship with him, they had denied and betrayed him. They had forsaken him and left him for dead (they weren’t even there when his body was buried!). But Jesus restored them, in a word. “No matter what you have done, no matter how evil your thoughts, no matter how selfish, all is well, we are at peace.” It was good news for the disciples, in fact, the best news they had ever heard. Jesus forgave them and restored his relationship to them. They knew what they deserved from God for their betrayal. They deserved the painful death that Jesus died. They deserved the death that would have been theirs if they had not run in fear. But in spite of what deserved, they were forgiven.

Are you at peace with God? Maybe you don’t even remember being at war. “I’m not as bad as other people are. I go to church. I give plenty of money. I haven’t betrayed Jesus like Judas did.” If you think that you’d have done better in the garden than disciples did when they were faced with death or Jesus, I think you are deceiving yourself. But the question isn’t really weather you are better than other people, the question is; are you good enough to live up to God’s standards? God doesn’t just require our best effort, either. “I did the best I could do,” isn’t a defense for sin.

And there is sin in your life. There is sin in my life too. No matter how perfect you try to be you know your failures. “Honey did you forget to take out the trash again?” Your wife repeats with a little sharpness in her voice. You didn’t really forget you were just watching the game, and you put it out of your head. “You know better than that!” Your mother scolds. “I don’t want to see you do that again.” “Dave, that proposal isn’t what I asked for at all. Didn’t you listen to what I said?” “Weren’t you at the meeting?” “Do I have to check over everything you do?” We fall short of our expectations all the time. These are the experiences of sin in our lives. We can’t help it. We try. But we fail.

“Well, at least I don’t betray him, like the disciples did.” You say. “Well, I just don’t know about all this living together stuff.” You neighbor asks. “Things are different now then they used to be. As long as they love each I guess it is ok.” And you keep silent not wanting to cause a stir. “All religions are the same,” you hear, “as long as we are sincere in what we believe.” And the chance to witness to Jesus as the only Savior from sin slips away as you hold your tongue. For fear of rejection, or ridicule, or loss of reputation, or even loss of friendship we don’t speak up when we should. At least the disciples were afraid of death. What’s our excuse? We have none.

But again, we don’t have to deny Jesus or the truth of God’s Word to deserve death, all sin is a betrayal of God and his will for our lives. If you doubt that, just look at what sin leaves in its wake. Broken homes leave devastated children, parents don’t get divorced families do. Unchecked anger leads to violence. Lies lead to more lies and distrust. Alcohol abuse brings death. None of these things are what God wants for his human creatures. It is very much like the destruction of a war. All of it is the result of the denial of God. All of it is the result of sin. All of this is found right in your heart. If you examine yourself with an unbiased eye you see it clearly. You excuse it, minimize it, confine it to the back of your mind, but you know it’s there.

“Peace be with you.” Jesus says. And he is talking to you, “poor miserable sinners” all. You who have sinned against him in “though, word, and deed, by what you have done, and what you have left undone.” “Peace be with you.” Jesus says. “No matter what you have done, no matter how evil your thoughts, no matter how selfish, no matter how often you’ve fallen short of expectations, all is well, we are at peace.” That is the very reason Jesus walked the earth, to bring peace to you. That is the very reason Jesus suffered the shame and scorn of the cross, to bring peace to you. That is the very reason Jesus died the death that you deserved for denying him, to bring peace to you. And most of all, that is the very reason Jesus Christ rose from the dead, to bring peace to you. And you, who once were alienated and hostile in mind, doing evil deeds, [Jesus] has now reconciled in his body of flesh by his death, in order to present you holy and blameless and above reproach before [God]. (Col 1:21-22 ESV) He has restored your relationship with God. Peace is now where there once was hostility. Punishment that was deserved has now been paid. You are at peace with God.

What does it mean to be at peace with God? It means that no matter what, whenever you fail you have a place to go to find peace. Whenever you find yourself cowering in the darkness for fear of the consequences of sin you can run to him instead. Life can be hard when we fail. But God gives peace even in the middle of the darkness of consequences. Whenever you have hurt someone you can find the strength to make peace because God gives you peace. God first restores your relationship with him. The peace he gives you is what you need restore your broken relationships. God’s peace even covers our fear of speaking the truth in the face of charges of being intolerant. God’s peace, the peace that Jesus pronounced to the disciples so long ago is for you, and your life every day.

“Peace be with you,” Jesus says, “you are forgiven.” How often do you need to hear it? Me, I need it lots, because I am still a sinful and weak person. I need to hear it hear every Sunday, in the words of forgiveness spoken for Jesus. I need to hear it in the Lord’s Supper as often as it is available, “given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.” I need to hear it from my family whenever I’ve hurt them. And I need to hear it from you when I fail to live up to the responsibility of being your pastor.

“Peace be with you,” Jesus says, “you are forgiven.” I want you to hear it often, because I know that you need to hear it too. Amen.

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

iMonk Classic: On Christless Preaching

A classic Article by Michael Spencer.  It was articles like this and similar speaking on his podcast on Pirate Christian Radio that drew me to read, and listen and nod.

On Christless Preaching

Here's a few great excerpts:

The Bible is certainly not oblivious to moral issues. The prophetic voices in scripture testify to God’s holy concern with how we treat one another, and how justice is exhibited in society. But the key to scripture is always Jesus, not moral or social reform. In some of his most shocking words, Jesus says that there is a comparison that can be made between religion that helps the poor and the Gospel that commands all men everywhere to repent and believe.


Evangelicals are emotionally–and politically–engaged with cultural battles like homosexual marriage and abortion. They have demonstrated substantial growth in their support of ministries of mercy. But some of this political and moral involvement has been at the cost of Christ-centered preaching. “The Crisis”–whatever it might be–is never the point of our discipleship. We are always followers of Jesus.

Am I being overly theological? (See the coming IM piece on “I Hate Theology.”) Is there really something wrong in speaking of God without centering that proclamation on Christ himself? Yes. If we believe that Jesus makes all the difference between the idolatries of our own opinions and the self-revelation of God in scripture and preaching, then we have to be concerned about preaching and teaching that allows the hearer to decide what Jesus is all about or if Jesus matters at all.

The trend toward Christless preaching is also happening because even educated preachers are not students of scripture, or even students at all. I’ve met several seminary graduates who bragged that they hadn’t read a book since seminary, and never intended to correct that. Christian bookstores are a good measurement of the intellectual muscle of the average pastor. Research tells us that the average younger American is now watching a hundred movies for every book he or she reads. That includes a lot of preachers. This is perpetuating remarkable ignorance, and it is taking away the ability to preach Christ.

And finally a word of admonition! Emphasis mine.

Scripture can’t be replaced, and it must be understood, and the ministry has the responsibility to lead the way. In other words, don’t let your pastor become an idiot.

We will miss you Michael.  

Issues, Etc 24 - I Can't Wait

LCMS Nominations. What Does This Mean?

The LCMS released official nomination numbers for Synod President to be elected this July in Houston

For President (Congregations)

• Matthew Harrison: 1,332
• Gerald Kieschnick: 755 (incumbent)
• Herbert Mueller, Jr.: 503
• Carl Fickenscher II: 5
• Daniel Gard: 3

Only 2 times has the synod not elected the highest nominee. (Since we have used the current system, 1977)

• 1981 Ralph Bohlman defeated Walter Maier. (No incumbent Preus retires).
• 2001 Gerry Kieschnick elected after the death of incumbent Al Barry.

Since 1977 when the incumbent has run, he has received the most nominations and has not been defeated.

This year the incumbent has not received the most nominations.

 

Total number of Nominations this year 2598 which is 42% of congregations (6123).

2598 is higher than only 5 of the 13 conventions since 1977.

What does this mean?

It would be very easy to over analyze these stats.  It seems that this year is unique.  Are all bets off?

1.Cor.15.51-57; Festival of the Resurrection, Sunrise Service. April 4, 2010

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Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. (1 Corinthians 15:51-57, ESV)

Grace and Peace to you from Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Amen.

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! Alleluia!

Alleluia! Today is the day we look our old enemy, our biggest enemy, our most feared enemy, Death in the face and tell it to its face, it doesn't have any power over us any more! That’s what St. Paul is telling us right here. He mocks the very thing we all in our human nature fear. O Death! Where is your victory? O Death where is your sting? You ain’t got no victory any more. You ain’t got no sting any more… because…

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

If you’ve been out to the cemetery with me while we lay the perishable body of one of our brothers or sisters in Christ to await the resurrection, you’ve heard these words of St. Paul. I like how it starts at almost a whisper. Behold! I tell you a mystery. It’s like a movie I saw, one character asks, “What’s going to happen?” the other says, in a whisper, “Something wonderful!” (“2010”) Something wonderful is going to happen to us, so says St. Paul. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed. Changed into something not necessarily different but better, better than we are, and what God has always intended for us to be. He uses words like perishable and imperishable; mortal and immortal to help us to understand what he’s talking about. Now we kind of know what those words mean. Look at the leftovers in your fridge and you know perishable. That pizza you put in there last week has perished. The peas in the little Tupperware bowl that’s gotten pushed to the corner have perished. The bodies of those we’ve placed so lovingly in the ground have perished. We understand what it means to be perishable. And all too painfully we know what mortal means. You and I have suffered the pain of mortality. We’ve gathered in this place and other places in grief and loneliness, looking mortality in the face. It’s just another word for Death. We know what it means, our pets die, our plants die, our friends die, our family members die, and we know that we too will die (unless our Lord comes first). That’s just what we confessed it a few weeks ago, “Remember you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” (Gen 3:19) We know what mortal means. We know what perishable means. We live in their dark shadow every day. We look Death in the face every day. But that’s exactly why we are here today; to stare into death’s face and tell it boldly that it has no power over us; it can’t control us; it won’t have its way with us; it won’t make us live as if it was all there is anymore, because…

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

The sting Paul is talking about is that death is ours because of sin. Sin is ours because of the law. We can’t keep the law because we are sinners. Death is the rightful punishment for those who can’t keep the law. We are mortal and perishable because of sin. And the sin I’m talking about isn’t the things we do. If we could keep the law we’d not have to die. But we can’t keep it. We can’t work harder and harder and get better and better. We can’t do anything to please God. In fact, the harder we try to please God, the more we do stuff for him to try to earn some better standing in his eyes, the more sinful our behavior is. Doing stuff for God so that he does something for us in return is always sinful. It’s trying to manipulate God. It's not trusting in God to save us, its counting on ourselves. The true God of the universe doesn't work that way. That’s just not the God we have. That’s the way the gods that we have invented out of human thinking work. Because that’s the way we work. And I’m sorry, it doesn’t matter if it’s reading our bible, helping an old lady across the street, counting beads, or dropping a hundred bucks into the collection plate, everything you do is done at least a little bit to try to buy God off, or to make you look better to him than you are. And don’t get me wrong, I’m not telling you to stop doing stuff that is good to do, and I’m not telling you that you need to change your motives. It wouldn’t do any good anyway. We are by nature sinful and unclean. We sin against God in thought word and deed. That’s the sting… we are lost and condemned creatures, unable to change who we are and what we think. Who we are means… the sting… perishable… mortal… Death… But…

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

Death, says St. Paul, is swallowed up in victory! And we just said that we can’t have any victory as far as our lives go, because we have no power over our sinful nature. Well, we don’t have to. … thanks be to God, he gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus has won the victory and he gives it to us. He was victorious over death. We just sang it 28 times!

He lives, he lives, who once was dead;
He lives, my ever living head!
He lives triumphant from the grave;
He lives eternally to save;
He lives to silence all my fears;
He lives to wipe away my tears;
He lives and grants me daily breath;
He lives, and I shall conquer death;

Hymn: I Know That My Redeemer Lives;
TLH 200 / LW 264 / LSB 461;
Text and Music in the Public Domain.

In the second service today we’ll read the account from St. Luke where the women go to the tomb and find it empty. Every year when we hear it they are surprised not to find Jesus body there… but we are not. We know the rest of the story… the angel asks them, Why do you seek the living among the dead? We know what to say next…

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

That’s our victory over death. We don’t seek him among the dead, he’s alive! All that sin that we were talking about just a few minutes ago, all that trying to please God in the wrong way, all that trying to buy God off, and impress him, all that was taken to his death. He was crucified dead and buried. He was as dead as dead can be. He looked death in the face and at first it seemed to win. His dead lifeless, perishable, mortal body lay in the coldness and stillness of death. He died. He took the sting. But when the women got there, he was not there to be found anymore. He woke up from death. He came alive again from death. His heart started beating again. He blood started flowing again. He smiled in the face of death and said “you are done!” He was the victor and death went down for the count.

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

And you and I will be raised too. That’s God promise to you. Because he lives I too shall live! That’s what Paul is saying. He says we shall all be changed. It’s going to happen so fast if you blink you’ll miss it, but the change will happen none the less. He describes it in such simple terms. He says the dead will be raised... he’s using words there that are a bit like waking up from deep sleep. In fact that’s how he begins, we shall not all sleep. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable. It’s as simple as waking up and putting on new cloths. The trumpet will sound to wake us up and we’ll put on new cloths; imperishable cloths; immortal cloths; no more decay, no more pain, no more tears, no more anything that goes along with this perishable, mortal body. There will only be laughter and joy.

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia!

It’s for you! How do I know? I know it because it’s God who promises it to you. If it was just my promise, you’d be in trouble. If it was something you did or had to do, you’d be in trouble. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. It’s a gift. You can’t earn it, work for it, pay for it or even steal it. It’s given. It’s given to you through faith in the promises of Jesus Christ. That means, he gives you the cloths and puts them on you. In fact it’s already happened. That’s why at funerals here we use that white cloth, called a pall that covers the casket. It reminds us that we are clothed in Christ. We have his perfect life, instead of our sinful self. We put it over the casket when we read these words:

Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life. For if we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his. (Romans 6:3-5, ESV)

That’s the new cloths; we just can see them yet. They’ve been given and put on, so that when our enemy death comes, we our eyelids close in death, we know they’ll open up again. We’ll awake and put on those new cloths again. This old perishable, mortal body won’t be perishable and mortal anymore. We shall all be changed. Because…

Christ is Risen! He is Risen Indeed Alleluia! Amen.

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