See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!

Sermon for Quinquagesima, February 23, 2020

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

Luke 18:31-43  ³¹ He took the Twelve aside and said to them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.  ³² Indeed, he will be handed over to the Gentiles.  They will mock him, mistreat him, spit on him, ³³ flog him, and kill him.  On the third day, he will rise again.”  ³⁴ They did not understand any of these things.  What he said was hidden from them, and they did not understand what was said.  ³⁵ As he approached Jericho, a blind man sat by the road, begging.  ³⁶ When he heard a crowd going by, he asked what was happening.  ³⁷ They told him that Jesus the Nazarene was passing by.  ³⁸ He called out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”  ³⁹ Those who were at the front of the crowd rebuked him, telling him to be quiet.  But he kept calling out all the more, “Son of David, have mercy on me!”  ⁴⁰ Jesus stopped and ordered the man to be brought to him.  When he came near, he asked him, ⁴¹ “What do you want me to do for you?”  He said, “Lord, I want to see again.”  ⁴² Jesus said to him, “Receive your sight.  Your faith has saved you.”  ⁴³ Immediately he received his sight and began following Jesus, glorifying God.  All the people, when they saw this, gave praise to God. (EHV)

See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!

Dear friends in Christ,

            In the Old Testament, there is a word that pops up again and again in connection with God’s care for His people.  The English language doesn’t have an exact complement for the word, so you see it translated variously as mercy, love, lovingkindness, or steadfast love.  It is how we are to treat others, but that Hebrew word, chesid, expresses God’s completely unselfish, unmerited, covenantal devotion, compassion, and kindness, and that is precisely the kind of mercy the blind man in our text begs for from Jesus.  So, as we look at this miracle, See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!

It is apparent that not everyone in this text could see very well.  Of course, you knew that because there is a blind man in our text, but it appears that he isn’t the only one who couldn’t see.  Jesus took His twelve specially selected disciples aside to tell them, for the third time, what was about to happen to Him in His upcoming visit to Jerusalem, and for the third time they couldn’t understand what He was talking about—maybe not even what man He was talking about. 

Jesus told them, “Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.  Indeed, he will be handed over to the Gentiles.  They will mock him, mistreat him, spit on him, flog him, and kill him.  On the third day, he will rise again.”  Here, Jesus summarizes what we will see in our upcoming Lenten worship.

To the disciples, Jesus’ forecast sounded like nonsense.  They believed Jesus was the promised Messiah who would sit on David’s throne, and they understood that as the Messiah He had the power of God, but along with many of His enemies, the disciples mistakenly assumed that Jesus had come to fight for an earthly kingdom.  They considered the crowds of people who flocked to Jesus to hear Him preach, and saw Jesus heal all the sick, suffering, tormented souls brought to Him, and they just couldn’t understand why Jesus would talk about being betrayed, tortured, mocked, and killed. 

Luke reported that “They did not understand any of these things.  What He said was hidden from them, and they did not understand what was said.”  Those twelve disciples couldn’t see the reality Jesus was facing as our Savior.  God had been promising the Savior from the beginning of time, and all of the Old Testament pointed toward His coming, yet most of the people held misguided ideas of what they would see.  They hadn’t understood that all the Temple sacrifices had been pointing toward the final sacrifice of Christ as the Lamb of God.

So, how about you and me, do we see Jesus properly?  How many people in our world see Jesus for what He really is?  Jesus is widely acclaimed as a great teacher, and many preachers will tell you to study the great prophetic words Jesus spoke to show us how to live right.  Thus, many modern Christians have come to view Jesus, mostly, as a good man to imitate.  We are even told by some that Jesus was nothing more than a great socialist—so compassionate with the suffering and the poor and how we should likewise focus all our efforts on helping the needy.  According to those teachers, we should be focused solely on performing acts of mercy that all people supposedly deserve.  So, just who do we see in Jesus?  A teacher, a hero, a role model?  Or is He something more?

After Jesus finished His brief explanation with the disciples, He set His face resolutely toward Jerusalem, and as you might expect, the crowds were again crowding around Him.  Much like the celebrities of our day, Jesus was continually being crowded by those who wanted to get close to Him for His attention or His healing touch.  It is in connection with one of those crushing mob scenes that Jesus approaches Jericho.  The crowd was likely especially large that day because many Jews were traveling to Jerusalem for the Passover celebration, and it just so happened that a beggar heard the commotion.  Being blind he had to ask about the cause, but after receiving the answer, we see that this blind man was one of the few who saw by faith.

Immediately upon hearing that it was Jesus of Nazareth passing by, the blind man began to cry out, “Jesus, Son of David, have mercy on me!”  Though he couldn’t see with his eyes, the blind man had heard of Jesus and he saw with his heart that Jesus was the promised Messiah whom the prophets had foretold would come to save His people.  By calling Jesus the Son of David, this blind man showed that he knew the Old Testament prophecies, and he believed Jesus was the One God had promised David would reign on his throne forever.  When he heard of the miracles Jesus had done, he had no doubt that Jesus could heal him, too, so by faith, the blind man could See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love. 

That beggar asked for Christ’s mercy, but the way he asked shows that he realized he didn’t deserve it.  He didn’t offer a bunch of reasons why he should be healed.  He didn’t brag about anything he had done for Jesus. He just cried out again and again “Son of David, have mercy on me!”

The crowd didn’t appreciate him.  The people told that poor suffering man to hush himself.  They didn’t want this hurting soul to interfere with their time with Jesus.  We might be reminded of how often we can be like the crowd: maybe we were too busy to help some struggling neighbor, or perhaps we ignored a cry for help, or maybe we didn’t like it when someone else’s baby made noise in church.

Thanks be to God, Jesus wasn’t in too big a rush.  Upon hearing the man’s desperate cries, Jesus stopped and asked for the man to be brought to Him.  Now finally, someone in the crowd could reach out a helping hand to the blind man.  They brought the beggar to Jesus, and Jesus, the King of the Universe with so many things on His agenda to accomplish, takes the time to tenderly ask this poor blind man, “What do you want Me to do for you?” 

The beggar didn’t hesitate.  He answered, “Lord, I want to see again.”  That blind man had no doubt about Jesus’ ability to provide this miracle.  He didn’t, for even a second, doubt that Jesus was willing to help him.  He just asked in humble faith for Jesus’ Merciful, Miraculous Love. 

Jesus did exactly what He was asked to do.  He said, "Receive your sight.  your faith has saved you."  The healing was immediate.  That poor, blind, beggar’s eyes were restored and not only could he see, but he began to follow along with Jesus, giving thanks and praise to his God and Savior.  Even the crowd got excited.  They had seen the healing and praised God for His mercy.

Now, before we get too far from the scene, let’s look at the second half of Jesus’ statement to the beggar.  Jesus said, “your faith has saved you.”  The beggar was cured because he believed in Jesus, but more than that he was saved from sin because of his faith in Christ as the Messiah.  The man received his sight, but most importantly, his eternal salvation was granted to him through the faith God’s prophetic promises had worked in him.  So, we See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!  To a beggar who had nothing to offer except faith in Jesus’ name, God’s love and mercy granted both physical healing and eternal salvation.  The same is true for you and me. 

The first half of this text gives us a look at what is really God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!   There, Jesus taught us that He didn’t come to this world to teach everyone how to be good neighbors, though Jesus certainly was good to all who came to Him.  And though Jesus could have called up many legions of angelic warriors, He didn’t come to restore Israel’s greatness in the world’s political realm.  Though almost everyone around Him expected the Messiah to lead a military conquest, Jesus resolutely set His face toward Jerusalem, submitting Himself to suffer and die in shame, because of all the times we don’t humble ourselves under God’s instruction, and for all the times we don’t obey His Laws, and for all the times we do not take care of the less fortunate as we should.

Jesus told the twelve disciples, "Look, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written through the prophets about the Son of Man will be accomplished.  Indeed, he will be handed over to the Gentiles.  They will mock him, mistreat him, spit on him, flog him, and kill him.  On the third day, he will rise again."  Everything that the prophets had written about the Messiah, Jesus would fulfill.  That included His birth, His life, His demonstration of God’s power through miracles, and His compassion for the poor and lowly.  Primarily, it was the humble way Jesus would suffer and die for you and me.  Then, in final triumphant victory, Jesus would rise again from the dead. 

If Jesus would have just died and not returned to life, it would have been proof that he was only a man full of delusions.  However, the Good News for us and for the whole world is that Jesus did rise from the dead on the third day just as the prophets had foretold, and just as He Himself had promised.  Jesus’ resurrection from the dead proves that He is the Son of God.  It proves that God has accepted Christ’s sacrifice as payment for all our sins.  It proves that the Bible truly tells God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love. 

Dear friends, God loved us even when we were His enemies and completely immersed in sin.  He loved us before we knew of Him or came to believe in Him.  You and I could not come to Him, believe in Him, obey Him, or love Him on our own, but God so loved us that He sent His Son to restore us to His grace.  In His Merciful, Miraculous Love God sent Jesus to deliver us from every woe.

In the coming Wednesday evenings of Lent, we will be following Jesus as The Son of God goes forth to war.  We will see Jesus engage our enemies in the battle for our eternal souls.  However, we will see Jesus armed not with mighty weapons of war, or backed by vast armies of soldiers, either human or angelic, but rather, we will see Jesus win our freedom with humility, obedience, and sacrifice.  

In our lesson this morning, we hear the promise of the greatest act of love and mercy the world has ever known—not Jesus carrying out an act of love for a blind man outside of Jericho, but that His greatest act of love, done for the whole world, came on a cross outside of Jerusalem. 

Look to Jesus for His teaching and for His demonstration of love to all.  But most of all look to Jesus for the forgiveness and salvation that He won for you with His personal sacrifice.  See Him hanging on that cross so that you never have to die for your sins.  Then, see Him also rise in undisputed victory.  In Jesus Christ, See God’s Merciful, Miraculous Love!  Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto everlasting life.  Amen.

God’s Word gives life—everlasting.

Sermon for Sexagesimal, February 16, 2020

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

Isaiah 55:10-13  ¹⁰Just as the rain and the snow come down from the sky and do not return there unless they first water the earth, make it give birth, and cause it to sprout, so that it gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater, ¹¹in the same way my word that goes out from my mouth will not return to me empty.  Rather, it will accomplish whatever I please, and it will succeed in the purpose for which I sent it.  ¹²Yes, you will go out with joy, and in peace you will be carried along.  The mountains and the hills will break out in shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.  ¹³Instead of thorns, a fir tree will grow up.  Instead of briers, a myrtle tree will grow up.  This will make a name for the Lord.  It will serve as an everlasting sign that will not be cut off. (EHV)

God’s Word gives life—everlasting.

Dear fellow redeemed,

            The area in which we live should make this text very real for us.  Every year, the amount of snow and rain that fall upon a thin layer of topsoil goes a long way in determining how successful our local economy will be.  At the same time, because it is such a common thing, water is often taken for granted, even though without it, nothing can survive.  So, pure water is vitally precious for life.

As precious as water is for life on earth, ultimately, there is something far more necessary for true and lasting life.  Though the water produces food to sustain our bodies, we still eventually face death, and if not for God’s grace, that death would be eternal.  But because God has an everlasting love for the people He created, He has provided the means by which we may have everlasting life.  Our sermon text shows us that God’s Word gives life—everlasting.  The Lord God declared:

"Just as the rain and the snow come down from the sky and do not return there unless they first water the earth, make it give birth, and cause it to sprout, so that it gives seed to the sower and bread to the eater, in the same way my word that goes out from my mouth will not return to me empty.  Rather, it will accomplish whatever I please, and it will succeed in the purpose for which I sent it.” 

As the snow melts and spring rains pour down on the land, the grass greens and the trees push out new leaves.  Soon after, new shoots of the crops come bursting up through the ground to produce the food we will eat for the coming year.  All of this is God’s gift to the world, which serves also as a picture.  God’s main focus isn’t on the earthly growth He provides but on our spiritual lives, and just as no plant can grow without water, so saving faith never grows without the water of God’s Word.

The immediate context of this portion of Isaiah is God’s promise to deliver the enslaved nation of Judah from its captors.  For their lack of loyalty to God, His people would be driven out of Judah into slavery in Babylon.  In this, the people of Judah picture all the people of the world.  We all were enslaved by evil forces that led us to sin.  Our own desires opposed God’s will.  Our actions led us into judgment.  At the same time, God used His chosen people to tell the story of the salvation He provides for all people.  After God declared His intention to rescue the Judeans and return them to the homeland He had given them, He confirmed that His words were not just empty talk. 

You and I can look around this planet and see the power of God’s Word.  As He spoke in the beginning, God immediately brought into existence this world and everything in it—everything we so often take for granted, God produced using only His command.  Likewise, everything God spoke through His prophets happened exactly as He said.

For you and me, the declaration made in our sermon text calls us to give special attention to all of God’s Word.  Just like seed that lies in the ground will, without moisture, eventually die.  Thus, without the life-giving water of God’s Word, we too would suffer eternal death.  Our Gospel lesson spoke of the farmer planting seed in his field.  Seeds that landed on a hard-packed path were soon gobbled up, while seed that landed on rock sprouted quickly, but just as quickly was seared to death by dry heat.  Likewise, new sprouts of many other seeds were choked out by things that stole away their water.  Only the good ground retains the moisture that gives life. 

God has declared that He “wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:4)  Through Isaiah, our Lord declares, “My word that goes out from my mouth will not return to me empty.  Rather, it will accomplish whatever I please, and it will succeed in the purpose for which I sent it.”  God promises that His Word gives life wherever it is properly used.  When the Word enters our lives, we are given faith in Jesus which produces spiritual life.  God’s Word is so powerful that St. Paul later declared, “I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16) 

My friends, the power of God’s Gospel brought you to faith in His Son.  That’s also why you are here this morning, to drink deeply from the refreshing water that only Jesus gives.  You and I need regular drinks of the Gospel’s power to refresh our souls and to retain and grow our faith.  We put our salvation in grave danger if we take for granted the hydrating power of God’s Word. 

Years ago, a bicyclist on a regional tour suffered a fatal heart attack.  The autopsy revealed that even though he was in great shape, he hadn’t drunk enough water as he rode his bike on that cool day.  In the cool air and wind of his ride, he never felt the need for a drink, and it cost him his life.  The same thing can happen to our spiritual lives if we neglect to regularly drink deep of the living water of God’s Word through which He continually refreshes us on our journey to heaven.

Jesus once met a woman at a well outside Samaria, and He said to her, " If you knew the gift of God and who it is that is saying to you, ‘Give me a drink,’ you would have asked him, and he would have given you living water." (John 4:10)  Jesus’ living water gives eternal life, and it refreshes us day after day in our journey through this life, so that our eternal lives don’t shrivel away.  That Samaritan woman, and many in her town, heard Jesus’ words and believed in Him as God’s promised Messiah, thus they received salvation through His Word, for God’s Word gives life—everlasting. 

God’s message to us is true for eternity.  Several times throughout Jesus’ earthly ministry, God spoke from heaven saying, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” (Matthew 17:5)  Trusting God’s Word, we know with all confidence that Jesus is God’s one true Son from all eternity.

Jesus said, “The Father loves the Son and has placed everything in his hands.  The one who believes in the Son has eternal life.” (John 3:35-36)  Since we believe that Jesus lived and died for us, and that all our sins are forgiven for Jesus’ sake, we can know with complete confidence that we have an everlasting home waiting for us in heaven, just as Jesus promised when He said, “In my Father's house are many mansions.  If it were not so, I would have told you.  I am going to prepare a place for you.” (John 14:2)

Perhaps, however, you occasionally wonder whether your faith is enough, or is strong enough, for you to have forgiveness and salvation.  Because our corrupt flesh sometimes doubts, Jesus gave us signs to show that our salvation is dependent not upon ourselves, but upon Him, alone.  He gives Baptism so that we may know that through the water and the Word, He has claimed us as His own.  The Holy Spirit gives His word of promise through St. Peter, who wrote:

“Christ also suffered once for sins in our place, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God.  He was put to death in flesh but was made alive in spirit, in which he also went and made an announcement to the spirits in prison. These spirits disobeyed long ago, when God’s patience was waiting in the days of Noah while the ark was being built.  In this ark a few, that is, eight souls, were saved by water.  And corresponding to that, baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the body but the guarantee of a good conscience before God through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.  He went to heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers made subject to him.” (1 Peter 3:18-22)

Jesus wants you to be absolutely sure that your sins are forgiven, so He gives you His body and blood in His holy Supper to assure you that with His life, He has paid the full price for your misdeeds.  In His last supper before He was betrayed, Jesus handed bread to His disciples saying "This is my body, which is given for you.” (Luke 22:19)  And handing them the cup of wine, He said, “This is my blood of the new testament, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.” (Matthew 26:28)  When you come to the communion rail to eat and drink, today, know with full confidence that these words are true for you.  Your sins are forgiven for the sake of Jesus’ precious life sacrificed for you.  In this supper, Jesus is promising that you have eternal life, because He has paid the penalty of death for all sin.  God’s Word gives life—everlasting.  The Lord declared:

"Yes, you will go out with joy, and in peace you will be carried along.  The mountains and the hills will break out in shouts of joy before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.  Instead of thorns, a fir tree will grow up.  Instead of briers, a myrtle tree will grow up.  This will make a name for the Lord.  It will serve as an everlasting sign that will not be cut off.”

In His poetic way, our Lord was telling His people that He would rescue them from the torment and trouble in which they were living.  God’s Word, here, has two fulfillments: first, of course, that the people of Judah would be allowed to return to their homeland in Canaan.  They would return to Jerusalem to rebuild the temple and worship again in the land God had promised to their fathers.  But the ultimate fulfillment of these words is far more important.  You and I, and every believer who ever lives, will be led out of the torment of this dark and troubled world into a home of great blessing and joy.  Because the Tree of Life has grown up from the thorns of this world, “You shall go out with joy, and be led out with peace.”  These words of our Lord stand forever—the promise of His eternal home in heaven, also given to us, in which there will be only peace and joy.

Of course, in heaven, we won’t be worried about earthly water.  The deserts so common on earth won’t be a concern any longer, for we all will drink from “the river of the water of life…as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and the Lamb.” (Revelation 22:1)  The salvation God gives isn’t something to help us only in the world—it rescues us from death and gives us sure hope.  It gives you and me unending life as we are gathered around God’s throne to be eternally at His side.

The people of Judah were afraid that they would never see their homeland again.  Sometimes, when we think of our future at the end of this life, we too feel afraid.  To take away our fears, we have full assurance of life everlasting as the Holy Spirit tells us through St. Paul:

“Who is the one who condemns?  Christ Jesus, who died and, more than that, was raised to life, is the one who is at God’s right hand and who is also interceding for us!  What will separate us from the love of Christ?  Will trouble or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?  Just as it is written: ‘For your sake we are being put to death all day long.  We are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.  No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.’  For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor rulers, neither things present nor things to come, nor powerful forces, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:34-39)

My friends, during any trial or torment, hold on to the promises God gives through His Word.  Every word of the Bible points to one truth: that by His Son, Jesus Christ, you have been made right with God Almighty.  Jesus lived for you and died on the cross in payment for all your sins, and for His sake, each and every one of us stands forgiven—declared righteous—by God Almighty.  This is God’s Word, His promise to you: God’s Word gives life—everlasting.  Amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting.  Amen.

We are rewarded because God is good.

Sermon for Septuagesima, February 9, 2020

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places.  Amen.

Matthew 20:1-16  “Indeed the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.  ² After agreeing to pay the workers a denarius for the day, he sent them into his vineyard.  ³ He also went out about the third hour and saw others standing unemployed in the marketplace.  ⁴ To these he said, ‘You also go into the vineyard, and I will give you whatever is right.’  So they went.  ⁵ Again he went out about the sixth and the ninth hour and did the same thing.  ⁶ When he went out about the eleventh hour, he found others standing unemployed.  He said to them, ‘Why have you stood here all day unemployed?’  ⁷ “They said to him, ‘Because no one hired us.’  “He told them, ‘You also go into the vineyard.’  ⁸ When it was evening, the owner of the vineyard said to his foreman, ‘Call the workers and pay them their wages, starting with the last group and ending with the first.’  ⁹ “When those who were hired around the eleventh hour came, they each received a denarius.  ¹⁰ When those who were hired first came, they thought they would receive more.  But they each received a denarius too.  ¹¹ After they received it, they began to grumble against the landowner: ¹² ‘Those who were last worked one hour, and you made them equal to us who have endured the burden of the day and the scorching heat!’  ¹³ “But he answered one of them, ‘Friend, I am doing you no wrong.  Did you not make an agreement with me for a denarius?  ¹⁴ Take what is yours and go.  I want to give to the last one hired the same as I also gave to you.  ¹⁵ Can’t I do what I want with my own money?  Or are you envious because I am generous?’  ¹⁶ In the same way, the last will be first, and the first, last.” (EHV)

We are rewarded because God is good.

Dear fellow servants of the Lord,

            It doesn’t sound very fair, does it?  Some of those vineyard workers put in a hard, twelve-hour day, while some worked only an hour—yet, they all got the same pay.  To the natural mind, it sounds unfair, perhaps even a bit cruel, especially to the ones who worked the full day.  And, that’s exactly what some of the workers thought.  When the men who worked only a short time received a full day’s wage, those who worked the full twelve hours calculated that they too should be rewarded with an extra benefit.  Consequently, when receiving only the wages they had agreed upon, they felt slighted and they complained.  The question for us to answer is what is truly fair?

To understand this parable, we need to know why Jesus told it.  Immediately before He spoke the parable, Jesus had announced to His disciples that “It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." (Matthew 19:24)  The disciples were astonished by this teaching.  They wondered; how could anyone be saved?  But after hearing Jesus assure them that even this was possible, Peter said, "Look, we have left everything and followed you!  What then will we have?" (Matthew 19:27) 

We can understand Peter’s mindset.  If a rich man couldn’t earn a place in heaven, yet could by God’s grace enter His kingdom, then Peter guessed, perhaps those who gave up worldly things for Jesus would certainly deserve an especially great reward.  Peter was afflicted by worldly thinking.  Therefore, Jesus told this parable to warn His disciples against imagining that what we do can earn some greater reward.  On the contrary, We are rewarded because God is good.

Jesus said, " Indeed the kingdom of heaven is like a landowner who went out early in the morning to hire workers for his vineyard.”  Here is our point of comparison: the kingdom of heaven is not the vineyard, nor is it the workers.  Instead, Jesus equated God’s kingdom to a wealthy vineyard owner.  In His comparison, Jesus wanted to make it perfectly clear that God does not operate under the same principles as the kingdom of the world.  God is far more generous.

So, my question to you is this: “Did the landowner in the parable have to hire these workers?”  The answer is no.  He already had his own servants and regular employees, but out of concern for the wellbeing of these unemployed people, the landowner hired more workers.  He did so each time he went out into the marketplace and discovered more men standing idle there.

Now, we might ask, did those men do anything to cause the owner to hire them?  The answer is nothing at all.  Their employment came about solely because the landowner made the decision to be generous and to put more men to work so he could be kind.

Dear friends, if this parable were about life in this world, we might imagine that an injustice had been done, but it concerns the kingdom of heaven, and the fact is: no one will ever enter the kingdom of heaven because of merit earned.  Therefore, without God’s gracious invitation, we would not only miss out on working in His kingdom, we would never receive a reward.  The Bible declares, “There is no difference, because all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:22-23) 

The kingdom of heaven demands perfect holiness before we can enter it.  This is the warning Jesus is giving His disciples.  When we expect to earn any part of our salvation, we put ourselves in danger of someday hearing our Lord tell us in the Judgment, “Take what is yours and go.”  Relying on personal merit, when we so often fall short of perfection, leaves us in danger of being thrown out of God’s kingdom, as St. Paul warned when he wrote, “You who are trying to be declared righteous by the law are completely separated from Christ.  You have fallen from grace.” (Galatians 5:4)

In this parable, God’s grace is on full display.  It is only by God’s grace—His undeserved love for us—that we are invited to enter His vineyard to help gather His harvest.  Furthermore, it is by God’s grace, alone, that we receive our reward at the end of the day, for we have certainly not “endured the burden of the day and the scorching heat.”  No matter how hard we think we have worked for our Lord, we fall short of the holiness needed to enter His kingdom.  No matter what trials we think we have endured for Jesus, it will never come close to the unimaginable burden and the scorching fire He endured for us.  Even those who suffer martyrdom on Christ’s behalf do not earn God’s grace, but rather, by His grace they are rewarded with a home in His heaven.

Dear Christian friends, notice what the landowner says, “I want to give to the last one hired the same as I also gave to you.  Can’t I do what I want with my own money?  Or are you envious because I am generous?’”  Though we cannot earn the wages of the kingdom of heaven, God freely gives that reward to those whom He chooses.  The riches God gives are the forgiveness, life, and salvation that Jesus earned for us by His perfect life and innocent death on the cross.

By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, St. Paul wrote to the Ephesians, “Indeed, it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” (Ephesians 2:8-9)  We couldn’t have decided to work for God, because before He called us to faith in Jesus, we didn’t even know His kingdom existed.  Yet, in His love and mercy, God came looking, found us, and called for us to enter His service in the vineyard of His kingdom. 

As we look to the front of our church, we see a font through which sinners enter the kingdom of heaven.  Through God’s gracious invitation, at this font or another similar one, we each entered God’s kingdom.  Through the water and Gospel Word of Baptism, sins were washed away as faith in Jesus was given, and by that Spirit-given faith, we are credited as holy before God, and likewise, we have been given the opportunity to serve our Lord and Savior throughout this life and are rewarded with the riches of life in heaven above.  By water and the Word, God called us into His workforce, so that at the end of the day, We are rewarded because God is good.

Apart from faith in Jesus, we could do nothing.  Any work we might, on our own, decide to do would be for naught.  Still, Jesus told His disciples, “Open your eyes and look at the fields, because they are already ripe for harvest.  The reaper is getting paid and is gathering grain for eternal life, so that the sower and the reaper may rejoice together.” (John 4:35-36)  Because He is good, “God our Savior… wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.” (1 Timothy 2:3-4) 

It is to our great joy that God has honored us with the opportunity to work in His kingdom.  Because God is good, He calls humble laborers like you and me into His harvest field.  Because God is good, the wages He pays to us far exceed anything we could ever merit.  You see, God gives us eternal life in heaven, not because we asked for the job or deserved it, but rather, because He is good, and for the sake of the life and death of His Son, Jesus Christ, He calls us into His kingdom.

If we tried to make every little detail of this parable mean something, we might get ourselves in trouble.  What Jesus wants us to take home is understanding of our heavenly Father’s gracious invitation to work in His kingdom, but more so even than that, Jesus wants us to take home the gift of heaven.  It is the most valuable reward any of us could ever receive, and because He is good, God hands that gift through faith to those whom He chooses to bless.  You see, “God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16)

Be assured also, dear friends, that our reward can never be taken away from us, because God calls us to enter His kingdom and blesses us with His gifts, not because we asked for the job, or because He needed us, or because we do such great work; rather, We are rewarded because God is good, and that will never change.  Amen.

The LORD is good.  His mercy endures forever.  His faithfulness continues through all generations.  Amen. 

Shine in the Morning Star’s light.

Sermon for Transfiguration, February 2, 2020

Grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord.  Amen.

2 Peter 1:16-21  ¹⁶To be sure, we were not following cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the powerful appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.  ¹⁷For he received honor and glory from God the Father, when the voice came to him from within the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased.”  ¹⁸We heard this voice, which came out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.  ¹⁹We also have the completely reliable prophetic word.  You do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the Morning Star rises in your hearts, ²⁰since we know this above all else: No prophecy of Scripture comes about from someone’s own interpretation.  ²¹In fact, no prophecy ever came by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were being carried along by the Holy Spirit. (EHV)

Shine in the Morning Star’s light.

Dear Christian friends,

            Why?  How come?  I’m sure most of you are familiar with the way children go through a phase in which they want to question everything.  In our house, the unrelenting why question has come so often the last couple years that it often is tempting simply to reply, “Because I said so!” 

But the truth is, it isn’t just children who question why things are the way they are.  It used to be that many adults were searching for truth, even though often rejecting what is truly reliable.  Today, however, people are more likely to wonder why we think there is real truth?  Why, believe the Bible is truth?  Why believe in Jesus?  Why don’t we operate like the rest of the world’s teachers and just agree that everyone has his own truth?  Why is your way better than someone else’s?  What makes you think you are so smart?”  All of which really just parrot the devil’s age-old question: “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1) 

To answer the questions, the Holy Spirit gives ample evidence that God’s Word is reliable.  In this letter, Peter wrote what is, essentially, his last will and testament.  He expected that he would soon be executed.  Yet, before Peter’s death, the Holy Spirit moved him to write this final testimony to inform and encourage all Christians who would be facing the skeptical questions of the world.  As one of Jesus’ hand-picked eyewitnesses, Peter wrote these words to confirm for people like you and me that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the ancient prophecies God gave.  God wants us to see that we need the light only Jesus brings, so that in the end, we too will Shine in the Morning Star’s light.

Jesus’ apostles faced the same problem we have; they all had opposition from people who didn’t believe their testimony.  Like Jesus, the apostles wanted everyone to believe and be saved, but Peter and the others were also rejected by many.  Paul was even accused of teaching something new, something different than the other apostles.  Yet, all the apostles were comforted by the knowledge that Jesus had warned them that many would reject their witness, but the unbelievers’ rejection was actually rejection of Jesus and His Father in heaven. (Luke 10:16)  Regardless, by their proclamation of the truth about Jesus, the apostles were shining in the Morning Star’s light.

In our text, Peter defended the truth of God’s written word as he wrote, “To be sure, we were not following cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the powerful appearance of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of his majesty.”  So that no one would miss out on Jesus’ entrance into the world as our Savior, God had foretold numerous details of the promised Savior’s life.  In His loving wisdom, God caused both His prophecies, and the eyewitness accounts of their fulfillment, to be written down so that we oft-persecuted believers would have concrete evidence to the truth. 

Yet, what do we see so many people do?  They doubt God’s Word.  They doubt that the prophecies could possibly have been made before the events took place.  They deny the miracles.  They even doubt God’s hand-picked eyewitnesses.  And maybe, these doubts even trouble us at times. 

Jesus chose His disciples from the crowds of His day to be His eyewitnesses of everything He did for us and everything He endured on our behalf.  The Holy Spirit caused every word of the Bible to be recorded just so that we could be saved.  Because he was an eyewitness, Peter was moved by the Holy Spirit to record, once more, the assurance that all of this is from God and is reliable for our salvation.

Today, we are celebrating the transfiguration of our Lord Jesus Christ.  In our Gospel lesson, we heard Matthew’s account of that mountain top event in which Peter, James, and John experienced a brief look at the nature of Christ as true God.  Up until that day, they had seen only Jesus’ human nature, albeit with His divine power occasionally displayed.  But for these few brief moments, Jesus’ full majesty as God’s Son shone for them to see.  The ultimate fulfillment of all God’s Old Testament prophecies was on display on that mountain.  Thus, the three eyewitnesses to the Transfiguration confirm that God’s promises to send a Savior are fully sufficient for the salvation of all people.

In his record of the event, Luke wrote, “As Jesus prayed, the appearance of His face was altered, and His robe became white and glistening.  And behold, two men talked with Him, who were Moses and Elijah, who appeared in glory and spoke of His decease which He was about to accomplish at Jerusalem.” (Luke 9:29-31)  Jesus’ transfiguration is important because in it we get a glimpse of both the background plan and His victory. 

Christ’s mission to save the world was a forgone conclusion.  Jesus was God’s Chosen One, His own dear Son, sent to destroy the devil’s rebellion and rescue you and me from sin.  Peter remembered the event this way: “He received honor and glory from God the Father, when the voice came to him from within the Majestic Glory, saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased."  There was never any doubt in God’s mind that the victory over sin, death, and the devil was won.  Though Satan was fighting against Jesus with everything he had, Jesus’ victory for you and me was sure.  God had promised it, prophesied how it would take place, carried it out through His Son, and picked eyewitnesses to testify, for all who would live in later times and other places, Jesus’ victory over sin and death.

Peter wrote, “We heard this voice, which came out of heaven when we were with him on the holy mountain.  We also have the completely reliable prophetic word.  You do well to pay attention to it, as to a lamp shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the Morning Star rises in your hearts.”  The transfiguration didn’t happen just so that the Father could praise Jesus.  It happened so that all the sinners of the world would have God’s personal confirmation that Jesus is His Son from all eternity, and that He was in this world in human form to deliver us from condemnation.  Peter’s confession about the events on that mountain verify that all of God’s Word, all His prophetic promises, and all the eyewitness accounts are true and reliable for our salvation.  It is good for us when we heed God’s Word, when we read, study, and meditate on it, for it works life and salvation in all who believe. (Romans 1:16)

Now, some may question what is the prophetic word to which Peter was referring?  Certainly, he was referring to all the Old Testament writings, including the books of Moses, the Psalms, the histories, and all the other prophets.  But for you and me, these words should earn our trust in everything the Holy Spirit has recorded for us in all of the sixty-six books of the Bible.  Every word of these Scriptures is given for one purpose, to turn us to God and His Son for our forgiveness and salvation. 

To doubly assure us, Peter tells us that “No prophecy of Scripture comes about from someone’s own interpretation.  In fact, no prophecy ever came by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were being carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  The writers of the books of the Bible didn’t ask for the job.  They didn’t imagine any part of it.  The Holy Spirit is the cause and author of it all.  If any person rejects any of this record, he is fighting against God.  Therefore, we dare not add to, subtract from, or re-interpret any of God’s Word.  We let Scripture interpret Scripture, and we accept it as the whole Word of God.  And, what value does that bring to you and me? 

If you accept God’s Word as it is, “The day dawns and the Morning Star rises in your hearts.”  The Bible isn’t given to us as a rulebook on how to earn our salvation.  Indeed, it tells us we cannot.  Most important, however, it tells us that Jesus has done everything needed to reconcile us with God.  Not only did Jesus win our salvation with His perfect life and innocent death on the cross, His salvation was declared with power at His resurrection, and it is Jesus’ victory over sin and death that is given to people like you and me through faith in Him, gifted to us only through His Word of truth.

Jesus declared, "I am the light of the world.  Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life." (John 8:12)  Isaiah and other prophets foretold His coming.  Angels sang Jesus’ glory at His birth.  The Holy Spirit revealed this truth to Simeon so that he held the baby Jesus in his arms and prophesied that Jesus is “A light for revelation to the Gentiles.” (Luke 2:32)  Three times: at Jesus’ baptism, at His transfiguration, and on the night He was betrayed, the heavenly Father declared that all this is true.  All of these events were put into place so that you and I could know without any doubt that Jesus is our Savior.

Today, though many in our world mock the Bible, and question its reliability, Peter assures us that its every promise is valid.  It is sure and certain that our sins have been paid for in full because everything prophesied about Christ, and declared by His Father in heaven, has eyewitness confirmation.

The message of the transfiguration includes one more important truth for you and me.  Jesus commanded us, “You shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect.” (Matthew 5:48)  That is what is required for us to stand in God’s presence—perfect holiness—but we could not achieve it.  For that reason, Jesus entered this world to be our holiness.  Through Jesus’ perfect life, God’s Law was accomplished.  Through Jesus’ death, the punishment demanded by the Law for the sins of all people was complete.  Now, through faith in Christ, given to us by the hearing of God’s holy Word, we are counted perfect as He is, so by faith, we now Shine in the Morning Star’s light. 

As you live your life in this world, however, you may not always feel so holy.  In fact, we drag around these sinful bodies every day, and we know that we must say with St. Paul, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature.  For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out.  For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.…What a wretched man I am!” (Romans 7:18-24)  To give us hope in spite of our guilty feelings, God gave us the record of Jesus’ transfiguration picturing for us what we will be in heaven because of Jesus.  The disciples didn’t just see Jesus in His glory, they saw Moses and Elijah as they now shine in Jesus’ glory.  Thus, as Paul cried out his anguish for his sin, he also declared the truth of the Gospel, saying, “Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” (Romans 7:24-25)

Dear friends, in Peter’s testimony about the Transfiguration of our Lord, we have hope.  Not hope that we might have salvation or we might someday have peace, but true, certain confidence that we already do.  Through faith in Jesus Christ, we have each been forgiven of all sin.  We each have the promise of life everlasting that no one can take away.  As we suffer the afflictions of our sin in this life, we can be comforted with Peter, knowing that we have a glorious home waiting for us in heaven.   With Peter, we can face the end of our lives with the sure confidence that there is nothing we need to do to gain salvation, because Jesus has accomplished it for us, including bringing us to believe in Him.

Whenever the devil, or anyone in this world, demands that you or I must do something to be saved, we simply declare, along with Peter, the eyewitness testimonies of all God’s prophets and apostles that Jesus is God’s Son in Whom the Father is well pleased.  He is our Savior.  He is our Brother and Friend who gave His life on a cross so that we do not have to pay for the sins that once condemned us.  “Be reconciled to God.  God made him, who did not know sin, to become sin for us, so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21) 

As foretold by Isaiah, spoken of by Simeon, claimed by Christ Himself, and confirmed by the Father on the mountaintop in the transfiguration, our “Morning Star” is Jesus.  That was confirmed for us one final time in the Revelation when Jesus declared to St. John, “I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright and Morning Star." (Revelation 22:16) 

Dear Christian friends, believe in Jesus for forgiveness, life, and eternal salvation, and you, too, will Shine in the Morning Star’s light.  Amen.

The peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus unto life everlasting.  Amen.