Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.

 

Sermon for Easter 2, April 27, 2025

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!  By his great mercy he gave us a new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.  Amen.

John 20:19-31  ¹⁹On the evening of that first day of the week, the disciples were together behind locked doors because of their fear of the Jews.  Jesus came, stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you!”  ²⁰After he said this, he showed them his hands and side.  So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  ²¹Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you!  Just as the Father has sent me, I am also sending you.”  ²²After saying this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.  ²³Whenever you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven.  Whenever you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”  ²⁴But Thomas, one of the Twelve, the one called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came.  ²⁵So the other disciples kept telling him, “We have seen the Lord!”  But he said to them, “Unless I see the nail marks in his hands, and put my finger into the mark of the nails, and put my hand into his side, I will never believe.”  ²⁶After eight days, his disciples were inside again, and Thomas was with them.  Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them.  “Peace be with you,” he said.  ²⁷Then he said to Thomas, “Put your finger here and look at my hands.  Take your hand and put it into my side.  Do not continue to doubt, but believe.”  ²⁸Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”  ²⁹Jesus said to him, “Because you have seen me, you have believed.  Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  ³⁰Jesus, in the presence of his disciples, did many other miraculous signs that are not written in this book.  ³¹But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name. (EHV)

Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

            The signs were all there, but few understood.  Jesus was fulfilling all the prophecies concerning the promised Messiah, but even the leaders and teachers of Judah couldn’t see Jesus for who He is.  Jesus told His disciples time and again that He would suffer at the hands of the authorities, be put to death on a cross, and rise to life again on the third day, but on the third day, those same disciples were hiding without hope because they had seen their Lord dead.

Still today, it seems counterintuitive to believe something we haven’t seen with our own eyes. (Even though our eyes can deceive us.)  We are by nature sceptics, and anyone who believes too readily is considered gullible and foolish.  We want proof for every claim, and we want to see it all ourselves.  Historians and scholars often ignore or mock the Scriptures because they contain so many events, activities, and miracles that seem counter to what we experience in our lives.  Even if something seemingly miraculous happens in our midst, many wonder how God could have anything to do with it.  To all the sceptics of the world, we can confidently say, Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.

On the evening that Jesus rose from the dead, even after hearing the reports of the women who had seen Jesus alive and examining His empty tomb themselves, “the disciples were together behind locked doors because of their fear of the Jews.”  They heard the firsthand testimony and saw with their own eyes that the grave was empty, yet the disciples remained in hiding because they still were unsure that Jesus was alive again.  How could He possibly raise Himself, I am sure they wondered.  Thus, in spite of the evidence, they found it hard to trust that Jesus did as He promised.

Does that sound at all like you, sometimes?  Do we ever worry about the weather, or this year’s crop, the markets, or things being decided in Washington or St. Paul?  What if thieves break in?  What if marauders take our life?  Okay, maybe we don’t think about that last question too often, but how many times have we simply been afraid of something?  How often has that fear really been a lack of confidence in God’s promise to be with us and take care of us?  Even more so, how often does God’s promise that all our sins are forgiven feel impossible?  How often does guilt eat at our conscience even after hearing that Jesus paid for all your sins?  Doubting whether God could forgive a sinner like you or me is what Peter felt.  Most likely the others, also, for they all ran away when Jesus was arrested.

Here, we see how Jesus handled their fear: Jesus came, stood among them, and said to them, “Peace be with you!”  After he said this, he showed them his hands and side.  So the disciples rejoiced when they saw the Lord.  With the living Jesus standing in their midst, how could anyone deny the truth?  Yet, is that faith, or is it simply accepting what your eyes cannot deny? 

St. Paul wrote, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “Hope that is seen is not hope, because who hopes for what he already sees?  But if we hope for something we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with patient endurance.” (Romans 8:24-25)  Granted, Paul was writing concerning our hope of eternal life, but is it any different with faith?  The writer to the Hebrews tells us, “Faith is being sure about what we hope for, being convinced about things we do not see.” (Hebrews 11:1)  Therefore, dear friends, be sure and confident that by His life, death, and resurrection, Jesus has accomplished reconciliation, or peace, between you and God.

Now, what the world calls being gullible is how God brings us into His kingdom of grace.  Indeed, we certainly have evidence in the eyewitness accounts and the very promises of God which always are true and certain to be fulfilled.  At the same time, Jesus told Thomas, when he needed to see Jesus’ wounds with his own eyes before believing that Jesus lives, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  The writer to the Hebrews lists a long line of people throughout history, prior to Jesus entering our world in human flesh, who believed in the promises of a Savior and thus received the due reward of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life based on their faith in a Savior they would never see in this life.  The same is true and certain for you and me, that Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.

Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you!  Just as the Father has sent me, I am also sending you.”  After saying this, he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.  Whenever you forgive people’s sins, they are forgiven.  Whenever you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven.”  What a commission Jesus gave those apostles!  First, Jesus assured them that even though they trembled in fear for their very lives, their sins are forgiven, even their doubts and week faith.  Then, against reasonable expectations, Jesus told them to conquer the world, not with swords or weapons of war, but with the power of the Gospel bringing Good News to the poor, the meek, and the fearful, all the broken-hearted sinners who needed relief from the torment of guilt and the fear of death.  Though those men knew they had disappointed their righteous Savior and Lord, Jesus declared real peace with them.  We might say peace between Jesus and those who betrayed Him, but in truth, it is peace between God and all people. 

It is that message that gives us real peace.  Through faith in Jesus, given to us by the power of the Holy Spirit through the Gospel, you and I were renewed in life and spirit and hope.  Where once, we had no future, we now have an eternity of glory ahead of us.  Where once we trembled at the thought of meeting our Creator and Judge, we now can look forward to that day with eager expectation of being welcomed back into our dear Father’s home, because He has already welcomed us into His grace through the water and Word of Baptism. 

This peace doesn’t by any stretch mean that everything will be peaceful for us here on earth.  As Jesus prayed for His people, including you and me, He prayed, “I am not asking that you take them out of the world, but that you protect them from the Evil One.  They are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.” (John 17:15-16)  When God chose us to believe in Jesus, He chose us to be members of His holy kingdom, not because of any good in us but because of His great mercy and love.  However, because He chose us to believe in His Son, we are no longer part of this cruel and wicked world.  Still, as sojourners, here, the world will hate us, and the curse of sin upon the world will certainly trouble us. 

Yet, in the end, because we have peace with God through faith in Christ Jesus, our everlasting future is only glory, peace, and eternal celebration of the Lamb of God who gave His life on the cross to make us holy and acceptable and righteous in God’s sight.  At the gate of heaven, no accusation will be held against us.  No devil or enemy will be able to stand in our way for Jesus Himself will welcome His people in peace.  Therefore, Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.

In the well-known story of doubting Thomas, we can often see ourselves.  Sceptics that we are, it can sometimes feel like we need proof that God loves us.  Maybe when times are tough, we wonder how God can let bad things happen to people who want to follow His Son.  When those things happen, or we start to wonder about God’s plan, it is time for us to repent, that is to turn around from judging God and His grace and simply trust with all our heart that He has our eternal life in mind no matter what the circumstances may be.

On the other hand, even though skeptical Thomas doubted his fellow disciples’ report, the Holy Spirit has moved us to believe the things we could not witness in person.  St. Paul reminds us, “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)  To that faith given through the Gospel, Jesus adds this assurance: “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”  We are blessed in every way, because through the faith God gives us, we have forgiveness of all sin; we have peace with God and a home in the mansions of heaven.  Furthermore, Jesus tenderly feeds us with His body and blood in His Supper to renew our confidence in the truth that He gave Himself into death to remove the guilt of our sins, fears, and doubts.

On top of all that even, the peace we have unto everlasting life also gives us a measure of peace here on earth, for we can have absolute confidence in God’s care.  Again, St. Paul is moved by the Holy Spirit to give us comfort and confidence as he writes, “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 8:38-39)  Therefore, no matter what trials and hardships might come our way, or even great success or material blessings, our hope is in the Lord, the Maker of heaven and earth, and thus we are comforted and confident in God’s love because Believing, not seeing, brings us peace.  Amen.

Now may the God of hope fill you with complete joy and peace as you continue to believe, so that you overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.  Amen.

Rejoicing in resurrection hope.

 

Sermon for Easter, April 20, 2025

This is the day the LORD has made.  Let us rejoice and be glad in it.  His mercy endures forever.  Amen.

Psalm 51:18-19  ¹⁸As it pleases you, do good for Zion.  Build up the walls of Jerusalem.  ¹⁹Then you will be pleased with righteous sacrifices, burnt offerings and whole offerings.  Then bulls will be offered up on your altar. (EHV)

Rejoicing in resurrection hope.

Dear lambs of the risen Shepherd and Lord,

            Confusion was rampant at Christ’s tomb that first Easter morning.  The soldiers the Jews had so diligently posted to keep the tomb secure, became like dead men when the angel came down to roll away the stone so that the world could see that Jesus had risen from the dead.  After shaking off their immediate terror upon seeing the angel and the earthquake, those guards went to the authorities to tell them what had happened and plead for mercy because Jesus was no longer in the tomb.  The Jews then spread more confusion by broadcasting the preposterous lie that the disciples had stolen Jesus’ body.

However, it wasn’t just Jesus’ enemies who were confused.  The first women to arrive at the tomb were confused by the open door.  Hopeless and frantic, Mary wept as she looked into that open grave wondering where Jesus’ body had been taken.  Even after the women became convinced that Jesus is risen from the dead, the disciples couldn’t believe their ears when the women relayed His message.  Peter and John ran to the tomb to make sure the women weren’t suffering hysterical blindness, but they left just as confused as the others by the amazing event of Jesus rising from the dead.

As outlandish as it seems, there remains a lot of confusion about Jesus’ resurrection yet today.  Vast numbers of historians, teachers, and scholars question everything the Bible records about Jesus, His life, and the miracles He did.  Yet, nothing confuses them more that His resurrection.  How can it be, they ask, that so many people believe that a man, crucified by Roman soldiers, came back to life?  The deniers call it a sham.  Some give credence to the Jewish lie that the disciples stole the body.  Others imagine that Jesus only seemed to be dead but had performed one of the great magic tricks of His time.  Many deny that any of the Scriptures are true. 

Perhaps the greatest danger for us comes when these deniers tempt us to wonder whether we have the truth.  Constantly bombarded by the devil’s allies with their lies, misleading allegations, and outright fantasies, even the strongest believer among us might be tempted to question what the apostles and evangelists passed down to us through the centuries.  Satan’s whispers that we needn’t believe, along with the immoral temptations that come our way in this world, can be an intoxicating brew leading the natural flesh into deadly sin.

On the other hand, there is absolutely nothing about Jesus’ resurrection that isn’t corroborated by numerous eyewitnesses.  Furthermore, there is nothing logical about the many false stories told throughout the centuries and promoted by the doubters.  The most logical conclusion to be drawn based on the evidence in Scripture, and in secular histories, is that Jesus did indeed live, teach, heal, perform numerous great miracles, was regarded as a great Teacher, fulfilled hundreds of Old Testament prophecies that are only fulfilled in Jesus, and especially, that the Man known as Christ Jesus was crucified, died, and was buried.  On top of all that, only a fool will deny that Jesus rose from the dead, because there were hundreds of eyewitnesses who testified to Christ’s resurrection, including many who were willing to die rather than deny Jesus rose from the dead.  Plus, only a fool will deny that God does what God says He does.

Now, if that sounds harsh, so be it.  However, for you and me, all confusion and doubt is erased, because there is more than enough evidence to convince us that our Savior rose from the dead on the exact day He said He would rise, and on top of all of that, we are convinced of this truth, not because we are so smart or wise, but because the Holy Spirit, God Himself, has worked that faith in our hearts so that we have life and peace everlasting.  Paul clarifies this as he writes, “Faith comes from hearing the message, and the message comes through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17)  Because the Spirit works faith in us, we go forth fearlessly, Rejoicing in resurrection hope.

As we contemplated David’s great psalm of repentance this Lenten season, it has led us from despair to joy.  As always, God’s Word breaks down our faulty defenses trying to hide our sins, then turns and gives us forgiveness and a true hope of life everlasting.  Here, David wrote, “As it pleases you, do good for Zion.  Build up the walls of Jerusalem.”  David speaks metaphorically about God building His Church, just as Peter assured early Christians, “As you come to him, the Living Stone, rejected by men but chosen by God and precious, you also, like living stones, are being built as a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, in order to bring spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ.” (1 Peter 2:4-5)

Jesus told a Samaritan woman He met at a well outside the city, “A time is coming and now is here when the real worshippers will worship the Father in spirit and in truth, for those are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks.” (John 4:23)  Zion is often pictured in the Scriptures as our eternal home.  It is God’s kingdom of believing souls in whom the Father and the Son dwell until this world is no more.  Just as the Lord came down to sit in the Most Holy Place of the temple to dwell among the ancient Israelites, so He now dwells in our hearts giving us assurance and real hope of life everlasting.  Jesus promised His disciple, “If anyone loves me, he will hold on to my word.  My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23) 

Likewise, God confirms that salvation is not dependent upon our strength or diligence but upon the power of His holy Word.  Through Isaiah the 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.” (Isaiah 55:11)  Trusting in the power of God’s Good News, St. Paul says, Just as it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news of peace, who preach the gospel of good things!” (Romans 10:15)  What great joy and peace we can bring to others, even those who now reject God, as we share the resurrection of Jesus Christ with those now caught in fear.

Of course, it has never been easy to be a Christian in this rebellious, murderous world.  There are so many temptations and so many tempters who the devil misleads into thinking that there is no Savior.  However, no matter what god they claim to believe, nor even if they trust only in themselves, their tombs will always hold the bodies until Jesus’ returns.  Our Savior, on the other hand, has left us an empty tomb to show the world that though He was dead, He now lives.  Though He sacrificed His own body and blood to pay the penalty the law demands for our guilt, Jesus has conquered sin, death, and the grave so that we not only can have assurance of life, but that we truly are connected to the God-Man who won everlasting life for us.

Furthermore, we have the Holy Spirit’s assurance that we now live forever in our connection with Jesus.  By the inspiration of the Spirit, Paul wrote, “Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him by this baptism into his death, so that just as he was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too would also walk in a new life.” (Romans 6:3-4)  He further assures us, “If we have been united with him in the likeness of his death, we will certainly also be united with him in the likeness of his resurrection.” (Romans 6:5)

This too is the offering we can bring to the Lord, not our gifts of money or goods, but our confident confession of trust in all Jesus has done for us.  Then, as we praise the Lord for His life, death, and resurrection, along with His ascension to live and reign above for our everlasting good, we are bringing our witness to the world of the Good News of God’s love for sinners, so that many more people may believe in Jesus as their Savior and thus be welcomed into His everlasting kingdom with us in heaven. 

Dear friends, wherever the Lord may lead you, and whatever challenges you might face, may the joy of all your sins forgiven, and peace with God granted to all who believe, and the surety of Jesus’ resurrection from the dead, keep you always Rejoicing in resurrection hope.  Amen.

Now may the God of peace who brought up our Lord Jesus from the dead, that great Shepherd of the sheep, through the blood of the everlasting covenant, make you complete in every good work to do His will, working in you what is well pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory forever and ever.  Amen.

Restored by His sacrifice.

 

Sermon for Good Friday, April 18, 2025

The God of love and peace will be with you.  Amen.

Psalm 51:14-17  ¹⁴Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, the God who saves me.  My tongue will shout for joy about your righteousness.  ¹⁵Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.  ¹⁶For you do not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it.  You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.  ¹⁷The sacrifices God wants are a broken spirit.  A broken and crushed heart, O God, you will not despise. (EHV)

Restored by His sacrifice.

Dear broken and crushed hearts,

            Even though he tried desperately to hide it for a time, when confronted by the prophet, Nathan, David finally faced the guilt of his grave sin including the murder of an innocent man.  Brought to repentance by a metaphor of another man’s terrible crime, David could only plead for mercy.  With his spirit crushed by the weight of his guilt, David no longer tried to hide his sin from the Lord.  Bereft of any excuse, David then prayed this prayer.  My friends, that is exactly where we want and need to be.

By nature, the sinner always wants to hide from justice.  No one truly wants to be punished for the wrong he or she commits.  We much prefer to imagine ourselves innocent.  Even if we admit some guilt, our natural inclination is to try to buy our freedom from punishment by lifting up some good thing we might do, an act of charity, perhaps; an act of service to the less fortunate, or by some sacrifice given to honor whatever deity we want to serve. 

Sacrifices offered to the gods were not limited to Israel.  In fact, it never seemed unusual to the Israelite people that God would demand sacrifices at His temple.  However, there always remained a great difference between sacrifices offered to appease idols and the worship God insisted upon among His chosen nation.  The sacrifices God commanded Israel to bring brought God no benefit.  Indeed, He declared through the Psalmist, “I do not need to take a bull from your barn or goats from your pens, because every animal in the forest is mine, the cattle on a thousand mountains … If I were hungry, I would not tell you, because the world is mine, and all that fills it.” (Psalm 50:9,10&12)

Therefore, repentant David was correct in recognizing that our sacrifices never buy forgiveness.  Instead, God instituted sacrifices in Israel to teach the people about the truly atoning sacrifice He would make of His Son.  God gave Jesus, His own beloved, holy Son into cruel death to pay for the sins of the world.  In return, God expects only that we repent of our sins and believe in the Savior Son.  Thus, David wrote, “For you do not delight in sacrifice, or I would give it.  You do not take pleasure in burnt offerings.”  Later, when people asked Jesus what they should do to serve God, He told them, “This is the work of God: that you believe in the one he sent.” (John 6:29)

Like you and me, David deserved God’s wrath.  At the same time, David believed God’s promise that a Savior was coming into the world to redeem him from his sin.  One thousand years later, that promise was effected as Jesus humbled Himself to take our place of suffering and death, so that we can receive the mercy of the God who loves us unreservedly.  God demands no payment from us nor any retribution for the pain we caused Jesus, but rather, in return for His mercy, “The sacrifices God wants are a broken spirit.  A broken and crushed heart, O God, you will not despise.”

David prayed, “Deliver me from bloodshed, O God, the God who saves me.  My tongue will shout for joy about your righteousness.  Lord, open my lips, and my mouth will declare your praise.”  David was a great warrior king.  He had as much power as any ruler on earth, and riches beyond measure, but David couldn’t do anything to make himself right with God.  No sacrifice or service would buy forgiveness.  No price he could pay would free David from condemnation. 

Only God’s mercy could design a way to replace our guilt with the righteousness of His Son.  And, that’s exactly what Jesus accomplished for you and me, and King David, that day on a cross outside of Jerusalem.  As the crowds mocked and jeered and shouted, “Crucify Him!” Jesus silently bore the abuse we deserved.  In His great love for His friends, Jesus made the ultimate sacrifice.  However, when Jesus offered up His life for our guilt, He suffered not just the death of His body, but also the pain of hell, crying out, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” (Matthew 27:46) as His Father in heaven turned His face away from the Son to make Him feel the full wrath our sins had earned.  As His enemies celebrated, Jesus took our sins to the gates of hell and silenced the devil’s claim on us forever. 

Tonight, dear friends, we remember Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross.  We remember the agony He endured in our place.  We remember the grief of Jesus’ mother and the shame of His disciples who ran away.  We remember the blood streaming from His body, the nails driven through His hands and feet, His parched lips announcing, “I thirst.”  We remember Jesus committing His spirit into His Father’s care as He laid down His life, the soldier’s spear piercing Jesus’ side after He drew His last breath, and finally, our dearest, most trustworthy Friend laid in a borrowed tomb after He gave His all to win our freedom forever. 

As we remember all of that, remember even more that Jesus’ death is not the end for Him nor for us.  Remember that because of God’s love for us, and Jesus’ willing embrace of our need for a Savior, that when Jesus declared, “It is finished,” He proclaims to the world that we are Restored by His sacrifice—fully, finally, and forever, forgiven and freed from sin’s curse.  Remember, also, that on the third day, Jesus rose from the dead in triumphant victory over our every enemy, giving undeniable proof in heaven and on earth that we are Restored by His sacrifice.  Amen.

May God be gracious to us and bless us.  May his face shine on us.  Amen.

Renewed through the Gospel.

 

Sermon for Maundy Thursday, April 17, 2025

The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all.  Amen.

Psalm 51:10-13  ¹⁰ “Create in me a pure heart, O God.  Renew an unwavering spirit within me.  ¹¹Do not cast me from your presence.  Do not take your Holy Spirit from me.  ¹²Restore to me the joy of your salvation.  Sustain me with a willing spirit.  ¹³I will teach rebels your ways, and sinners will turn to you.” (EHV)

Renewed through the Gospel.

Dear fellow redeemed,

            In many ways, Maundy Thursday always seems like a somewhat somber occasion.  We are reminded of so many harsh and tragic things that would soon happen in the last days of Jesus’ earthly life, and knowing Jesus as our great Friend, that feels somewhat gloomy.  On top of that, we have been reminded throughout the season of Lent that it is because of us and our sins that Jesus had to face the awful pain of the abuse and crucifixion in our place. 

It might surprise us, then, to be reminded that for Jesus, this night was a high point of His mission.  As Jesus reclined at the table for the supper in that upper room, He said to His disciples, “I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer, for I tell you, I will not eat it again until it is fulfilled in the kingdom of God.” (Luke 22:15-16)  It kind of blows my mind that Jesus eagerly desired to eat that last meal.  He eagerly desired the service and sacrifice He would give to rescue you and me.  Yes, maybe there is more going on there than just eating a meal.

In fact, in the progress of that evening, Jesus was answering David’s prayer in our text: “Create in me a pure heart, O God.  Renew an unwavering spirit within me.”  Whether we realize it or not, David prayed to be Renewed through the Gospel.  Already way back a thousand years before Jesus entered our world or any of the New Testament was written, David understood that he couldn’t fix the damage sin had done in his whole being.  Only God could restore righteousness in David.

There are lots of religions and lots of faithful people who imagine that they can do something to make themselves righteous before God, but as we have been shown throughout this Lenten season, our corruption was total, our depravity too deep for us to repair.  In his letter to the Roman congregation, St. Paul was moved to summarize several of the prophets concerning the condition of man: “There is no one who is righteous, not even one.  There is no one who understands.  There is no one who searches for God.  They all turned away; together they became useless.  There is no one who does what is good; there is not even one.” (Romans 3:10-12)  Not one person among the billions who have lived on this earth, or yet will, is able to make himself holy.  Our only hope comes from above, from the very source of all that is good, “The Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29)

Several hundred years after David wrote this psalm, the Lord would speak through His prophet, “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit inside you.” (Ezekiel 36:26)  The message is consistent throughout the Bible.  It is always telling us how God Himself would remedy our fallen situation.  Though we could never begin to approach God in His holiness, God came down to earth to do for us what needed to be done to save sinners, including you and me.

Now, David used a verb form here that is only used for God’s creating work in making something new out of nothing.  It is the word used when the book of Genesis tells us, “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.” (Genesis 1:1)  David pleaded, “Create in me a pure heart, O God.”  Using the part for the whole, David pleads for God to make him newly holy and wholly righteous.  It is a plea for a complete transformation—a recreation to holiness anew.  Through Jesus, God makes us, who have nothing good in us, a new creation.  Paul wrote, “So then, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.  The old has passed away.  The new has come!” (2 Corinthians 5:17)

The question for us, this evening, is “How is this transformation accomplished?”  In answer, we should understand David’s second plea, “Do not cast me from your presence.  Do not take your Holy Spirit from me.”  Two points I need to make.  First point: God had a plan in place from the beginning to rescue us from condemnation.  Yet, that plan doesn’t follow our impatient timeline.  Before Adam and Eve ever sinned, God knew His plan would have to be accomplished for anyone to have fellowship with Him.  God didn’t ordain sin, but He knew we would.  Still, He desires to have a fellowship of faith, so He had to create mankind with the ability to fail—to sin against God and fall into death, with the provision that through repentance and faith, peace between God and people would be restored. 

Therefore, God doesn’t immediately destroy sinners.  Rather, as Peter explained, “The Lord is not slow to do what he promised, as some consider slowness.  Instead, he is patient for your sakes, not wanting anyone to perish, but all to come to repentance.” (2 Peter 3:9)  God was patient throughout all the ages of history.  His meticulous plans were accomplished exactly as God intended so that His Son, Jesus, would regain righteousness for mankind, and by the work of the Holy Spirit, righteousness is given to us as we are Renewed through the Gospel. 

Through the first half of the Church year, our focus is directed mainly on Jesus coming into the world and all He did to accomplish everlasting peace between God and His people.  During the second half of the Church year, beginning after the Easter season, the focus tends more toward the work of the Holy Spirit in us.  That brings us to my second point of how our transformation from sinner to saint comes about.  It is through the Spirit’s work in us that we are justified by faith through the gift of the Spirit in the Gospel.  Justification always comes with sanctification, and our sanctification is an ongoing process.

After he was brought to repentance, David prayed, “Restore to me the joy of your salvation.  Sustain me with a willing spirit.”  We are restored in the joy of salvation when the Lord pours out on us all the Good News of what Jesus did for you and me and everyone.  It comes to us through the proclamation of the Gospel and the absolution by which (through His messengers) God Himself announces the forgiveness of all our sins so that we are Renewed through the Gospel. 

We are Renewed through the Gospel by the water and Word applied to us in Baptism through which God rescues us from death and restores life to formerly lost souls.  By the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Paul wrote to Titus,

When the kindness and love of God our Savior toward mankind appeared, he saved us —not by righteous works that we did ourselves, but because of his mercy.  He saved us through the washing of rebirth and the renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs in keeping with the hope of eternal life. (Titus 3:4-7)

Even though we are granted new life and membership in God’s eternal kingdom, He doesn’t usually immediately take us out of this world to heaven.  He leaves us in this world to serve the Lord for His ongoing purpose which is to bring life and salvation to all people who will hear, repent, and believe.  How we all fit in that plan is as varied as people are varied.  However, because we live in a sin-damaged world, we need continual sanctification as long as we remain in this hostile, foreign place.  Yes, heaven is our home, but until we get there, we need our Lord’s ongoing care—which brings us to Maundy Thursday.

As I said, in the first half of the Church year, we focus on Jesus’ life on earth.  Tomorrow, we will concentrate on His sacrifice and death to pay for our sins.  On Sunday, we will celebrate Jesus’ glorious victory over sin, death, the devil, and the grave.  Tonight, we rejoice, because Jesus was eager to set in place another way for Him to keep us set apart from the world and purified by His blood.

I suspect that as I read our sermon text, those words seemed quite familiar to you.  That familiarity comes because it is so often our prayer after we have received in the sermon the Gospel of what Jesus has done to save us.  It is often our prayer just before we enter the communion portion of the liturgy.  There, we too pray for God to create new hearts in us and to sustain us along our way.  Jesus was eager to eat that last Passover meal, because He was transforming that Old Testament memorial meal into a new celebration that brings forgiveness and peace to us personally, again and again and again.

“While they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples. He said, ‘Take, eat, this is my body.’  Then he took the cup, gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it all of you, for this is my blood of the new testament, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.’” (Matthew 26:26-28)  As the Passover had so long predicted, Jesus was going to the cross to save us by His death.  In the Lord’s Supper, we eat His flesh in the bread just as the Israelites in Egypt ate the flesh of the Lamb whose blood kept them safe from the angel of death.  In the consecrated wine, we drink Jesus’ blood so that it sprinkles our souls like the lamb’s blood marked the doorposts of Israel protecting those inside the house as God’s chosen people.

My friends, our dear Savior invites us to eat and drink His body and blood often, because He knows we are bombarded daily by the temptations of the devil, the world, and our own weak flesh.  Jesus invites and commands us to come to Him for this healing medicine because it brings in physical form the Gospel of Jesus’ sacrifice for sinners.  Our Lord encourages us to come to Him because He knows we cannot sustain ourselves without His help and power.  Thus, by the Holy Spirit working in us through the Gospel in Word and Sacrament, our eternal lives are kept secure, as by the Lord’s hand and command, we are again and again Renewed through the Gospel. 

When King David prayed this prayer in faith, he recognized that God calls for His beloved people to share His mercy with others in this troubled world.  Like David, as sinners restored and renewed by faith, we too want to serve the Savior who rescued us from sin and eternal condemnation by proclaiming the joy of our salvation to others, so that they learn of Jesus for their forgiveness and peace. 

Eager to see all his people enjoy the grace of God, David declared, “I will teach rebels your ways, and sinners will turn to you.”  David confidently reminds us that there is only one way that anyone we love will enter heaven, and that is by hearing the Gospel of our God, “because it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” (Romans 1:16)  This is how we can bring true joy and everlasting peace to those around us, for through the proclamation of the Gospel and right administration of the Sacraments, the Holy Spirit grants forgiveness and salvation to many more sinners who are made saints as they are Renewed through the Gospel.  Amen.

God will fully supply your every need, according to his glorious riches in Christ Jesus.  Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever!  Amen.

The beloved Servant establishes justice forever.

 

Sermon for Palm Sunday, April 13, 2025

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

Isaiah 42:1-4  Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight.  I am placing my Spirit on him.  He will announce a just verdict for the nations.  ²He will not cry out.  He will not raise his voice.  He will not make his voice heard in the street.  ³A bent reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not snuff out.  He will faithfully bring forth a just verdict.  ⁴He will not burn out, and he will not be broken, until he establishes justice on the earth.  The coastlands will wait for his law. (EHV)

The beloved Servant establishes justice forever.

Dear friends in Christ,

            Over the last few years, the word “justice” has been thrown around in more and more ways.  You hear of social justice, racial justice, gender justice, criminal justice, and a variety of other ways that people seek either retribution, revenge, or in many cases simply to justify their jealousy, greed, or immorality.  Obviously, not all of those cases indicate a desire to see justice in its usual meaning.

According to the dictionary, justice is the quality of being righteous, of being right or fair, and making just judgments.  True justice attempts to rectify evil, or at least, to bring recompense for the one wronged by evil.  Consequently, justice brings deserved punishment to those who have done evil things and frees the innocent from condemnation.  In this text, Isaiah predicts that The beloved Servant establishes justice forever.

The prophet Isaiah was a servant of God.  Indeed, throughout the Old Testament, we read of many servants of God, each serving a special purpose in the plans God had to bring salvation to His people.  Truthfully, also, you and I, as believers in the One true God, are also His servants to do His will on earth.  However, this Servant is someone unique, someone special to God above.  Through the prophet, God said, “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight.” 

Now, many have tried to argue against what we know is true, but God has made it very clear that this chosen Servant, upheld by God, can be none other than the Christ, the Son of the Living God, for the Holy Spirit had Matthew quote this passage in his Gospel in reference to Jesus.  Furthermore, the Lord God Himself put His stamp of approval on Jesus both at His baptism and at the transfiguration of our Lord.  There, the Father spoke from heaven as “a voice came out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is my Son, whom I love.  Listen to him!’” (Luke 9:35)  Therefore, only Jesus can be The beloved Servant sent by God to establish justice forever.

Through the hand of the prophet, God tells us, “I am placing my Spirit on him.  He will announce a just verdict for the nations.”  St. Luke reported that at Jesus’ baptism, “the Holy Spirit descended on him in bodily form like a dove.” (Luke 3:22)  Likewise, St. John tells us, “I saw the Spirit descend like a dove from heaven and remain on him.” (John 1:32)  Having firmly established that this promised Servant can only be Jesus, it is time for us to recognize what the Servant will do for us. 

At the time Jesus was sojourning among the people of Judea, Galilee and Samaria, many of the people were expecting a great King to come from God.  They viewed the Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah as promises of relief from earthly oppressors.  Much like those who call for various kinds of justice today, they felt a desire for comfort and prosperity on earth, but they clearly didn’t at that time, nor again in our time, see the need for the real, eternal justice that God planned to bring for the world through His beloved Servant.  In other words, real justice requires punishment for the sins of the world in order to bring reconciliation between God and mankind.

Ordinarily, for God’s great Servant to announce a just verdict upon the nations, He would have had to declare the whole world guilty and condemned to spend eternity separated from God.  The law allows only death and condemnation for sin, and we all are guilty of many grievous sins.

As we think about those wicked men who falsely accused Jesus and eventually sentenced Him to suffer death on the cross, we might be rightly horrified by their wicked actions.  Today also, we might be horrified as we read of murder after murder, riots in the streets, abuse of women and children, and all kinds of wickedness so rampant in our world, and we might be tempted to think of ourselves as more worthy of a home with God in heaven. 

However, God never, in any way, allowed for degrees of sinfulness acceptable to stand in His presence.  Time and again the law demands that we must and will be holy.  Indeed, the first sin committed was “only” a sin of desire, but have we also not desired things that were not allowed or owned by us?  Are we not just as guilty and worth of death as Adam and Eve?  With feelings of envy, anger, hatred, self-righteousness, and self-justification, do we not also mark ourselves as “deserving of death!”? (Matthew 26:66)  Should it not be all of us who are nailed to the cross to satisfy the just judgment for our sins?

Here is where we see the difference between us and God’s Servant.  Where we might view ourselves too

highly, God’s chosen Servant, Jesus, came to make right our wrongs.  Furthermore, out of His great love for us who deserved nothing but death, Jesus was determined to put Himself in our place to take the punishment for our guilt.  Speaking of the injustice Jesus would endure for you and me, Isaiah foretold, “He will not cry out.  He will not raise his voice.  He will not make his voice heard in the street.  A bent reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not snuff out.  He will faithfully bring forth a just verdict.” 

Here, seven hundred years before Jesus faced His lying accusers, the world was told exactly how He would react.  Jesus rode into Jerusalem that first Holy Week to the shouts of praise from the crowds He knew would soon turn against Him.  As Jesus stood before the high priests and Sanhedrin in that mockery of a trial, Jesus knew that He was being sentenced to die for sins He never committed.  Indeed, as those men accused Jesus of blasphemy, it was they who were blaspheming God Almighty by rejecting His holy Son.  Yet, Jesus never flinched from His chosen duty nor lifted His voice in complaint because through His faithfulness to His Father’s will, The beloved Servant establishes justice forever.

You see, this was exactly God’s plan, that Jesus would represent all of us in that courtroom and before Pilate.  It is precisely to pay for your sins and mine that Jesus endured silently the false accusations, the whipping, beatings, and mockery.  To achieve a righteousness that could stand before God in peace, a righteousness intended for all the people of the world, Jesus willingly accepted His Father’s plan that although Himself perfectly innocent, Jesus carried the sins of the world into death, so that you and I would never have to face God’s wrath for our guilt.

Because we are all guilty, God could never see us as innocent unless the debt of our sin had been covered.  You and I could never hope to pay without eternal condemnation.  Yet, look at the promises God made about His Servant, “A bent reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not snuff out.  He will faithfully bring forth a just verdict.”  The just verdict is death for sin.  Thus, Jesus told His disciples, “No one has greater love than this: that someone lays down his life for his friends.” (John 15:13)  Furthermore, Jesus explained what really happened in God’s plan to save us, as He said, “This is why the Father loves me, because I lay down my life so that I may take it up again.  No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own.  I have the authority to lay it down, and I have the authority to take it up again.  This is the commission I received from my Father.” (John 10:17-18).

The Man, Christ Jesus, was faithful to God in all things for you and me and the world.  Therefore, what we could never do, Jesus did for us.  He lived holiness for us, believed perfectly for us, sacrificed Himself on our behalf, and rose again from the dead, fully and eternally alive, so that we would know how great God’s love is for all who believe in Him. 

Today, our forgiveness and salvation is not dependent upon how good we are, or even how great our faith in Jesus is.  It is dependent solely on the faith that the Holy Spirit works in us to believe that Jesus is God’s Son and the Savior of the world.  Our salvation is solely dependent upon what God did through His Son to deliver us from the verdict of death we had earned and grant to us the verdict that was truly due Jesus instead of death.  Because Jesus was willing to live and die on our behalf, the Father in heaven now says the same thing about those who believe in Jesus that He declared from heaven about Jesus, “Here is my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen one in whom I delight.” 

Isaiah wrote, “He will not burn out, and he will not be broken, until he establishes justice on the earth.”  Because Jesus is true God as well as true Man, nothing on earth, nor in heaven nor hell, would stop Jesus from carrying out His mission.  Those who wanted to protect Jesus from death had to fail.  The devil with his wily temptations was no match for God’s Son, and the wickedness of men who so shamefully abused our dear Friend couldn’t do anything that would deter Jesus from dying on our behalf.  Therefore, by His holy life and by His undeserved but holy sacrifical death, Jesus established peace between God and mankind.  All sin is paid for.  All guilt has been removed from our accounts.  God’s will is accomplished that declared, “I will be merciful in regard to their unrighteousness, and I will not remember their sins any longer.” (Hebrews 8:12)

Finally, Isaiah tells us, “The coastlands will wait for his law.”  As mysterious as this may sound, it really just means that God was not saving only the tribes of Israel.  Instead, God heard the pleas and cries of all people who were caught in the trials and torment of sin.  The word law, here, would be better translated “instruction,” because it includes everything God has taught in His holy Word, both law and Gospel.  Yet, both are for you and me. 

The law brought condemnation, but Jesus brought us peace.  Peace with God here on earth, so He now listens to our prayers and answers them, and peace eternally in heaven, so that we may dwell with God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit forever in company with His holy angels and all the saints who have ever believed in God’s Promised Savior and Redeemer.  Rejoice today, tomorrow, and forever that Jesus lived, died, and rose again for you.  Celebrate God’s goodness and mercy because The beloved Servant establishes justice forever, so that you may enter eternal life in glory and peace.  Amen.

Now, the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.  Amen.

The rejected Son came to receive you.

 

Sermon for Lent 5, April 6, 2025

The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom.  All who do his precepts have good understanding.  Amen.

Luke 20:9-20  ⁹He began to tell the people this parable: “A man planted a vineyard, leased it to some tenant farmers, and went away on a journey for a long time.  ¹⁰When it was the right time, he sent a servant to the tenants to collect his share of the fruit of the vineyard.  But the tenant farmers beat the servant and sent him away empty-handed.  ¹¹The man went ahead and sent yet another servant, but they also beat him, treated him shamefully, and sent him away empty-handed.  ¹²He then sent yet a third.  They also wounded him and threw him out.  ¹³The owner of the vineyard said, ‘What should I do?  I will send my son, whom I love.  Perhaps they will respect him.’  ¹⁴But when the tenant farmers saw him, they talked it over with one another.  They said, ‘This is the heir.  Let’s kill him, so that the inheritance will be ours.’  ¹⁵They threw him out of the vineyard and killed him.  So what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  ¹⁶He will come and destroy those tenant farmers and give the vineyard to others.”  When they heard this, they said, “May it never be!”  ¹⁷But he looked at them and said, “Then what about this that is written: ‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.’  ¹⁸Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and it will crush the one on whom it falls.”  ¹⁹That very hour the chief priests and the experts in the law began looking for a way to lay hands on him, because they knew he had spoken this parable against them.  But they were afraid of the people.  ²⁰They watched him carefully and sent spies, who pretended to be sincere, so that they could trap Jesus in something he said and then deliver him up to the power and authority of the governor. (EHV)

The rejected Son came to receive you.

Dear friends in Christ,

            If there were an indictment for these crimes, there would be an incredible list of charges against those tenants.  The list begins with theft when they refused to turn over a portion of the harvest to the owner.  However, they immediately also escalated their guilt with assault of the servant, and their crimes increased from then on.  Those tenants were obviously guilty of theft but also fraud for not intending to carry out the agreed-upon contract.  Then there were the numerous assaults and the conspiracy leading up to intentional first-degree murder of the vineyard owner’s son.

It really makes for a shameful, disturbing case, and few would blame us for being shocked at the blatant evil displayed.  At the same time, would we really look any better if brought before a judge?  If we go down the list of the Ten Commandments, how many are we guilty of breaking?  Any confirmand will advise you that we are guilty of breaking them all.  We too have been guilty of theft in some way or another.  We too have found ourselves scheming for riches or hating another person.  We too have shamelessly defied our parents and superiors.  We too have lusted after another person, if only secretly.

I know, I know, I shouldn’t accuse anyone without certain evidence, but can any of us honestly deny our guilt?  Here is the deal, however.  Jesus was not indicting a group of tenant farmers for stealing grapes.  Instead, much like Nathan told a story to King David one thousand years earlier in order to convict David of his great sins, Jesus tells this horrific parable to bring the leaders of Israel to repentance.  The parable vividly pictures the wickedness that consumed the scribes, priests, and other leaders God had put in positions of authority over His people, and those leaders “knew he had spoken this parable against them.”

Therefore, we need to understand what the parable is teaching.  Here, the tenants were the leaders of Israel.  The vineyard is God’s Church on earth, and the fruit God expected was a harvest of faithful believers.  God had chosen the descendants of Israel as His people.  He had built a wall of protection around them and poured great care into making that people a productive environment for His kingdom to grow.  Sadly, by Jesus’ day, we have the situation pictured in the parable, in which the leaders were conspiring to kill God’s Son lest they lose control of their power and prominence on earth.  Jesus tells this story, not to ridicule but to call them to repentance, and to teach that The rejected Son came to receive you.

The whole Bible is God’s message of what He has been, is, and will always be doing to work out the salvation of sinners, because God truly desires to save sinners from condemnation.  He sent His own dear Son into this world to accomplish that mission, and He has no desire for any person to miss out on the joy and glory of heaven.  Yet, there is a serious warning here for all people.  There is only one way that anyone can or will be saved, and salvation comes only through believing that Jesus is the Holy One of God and the One and Only Savior and Redeemer from sin and death.

Many of the Jewish leaders in those positions of authority, as Jesus lived among the people on earth, fell into the trap of assuming that peace with God is something they deserved.  Others, like the Sadducees, refused to believe that there is more than this life here on earth, so they were hyper focused on maintaining what they considered their good lives.  They didn’t want to risk their wealth and privilege on believing in this Prophet from Nazareth.  Unfortunately, you and I can be tempted by the same influences.

As we go about our daily routines, it can be all too easy to fall into the temptation of earthly wealth.  The prosperity gospel (which isn’t gospel at all, but Satan’s trap) is truly tempting to the sinful nature that wants to believe God rewards good behavior and pious prayer with riches whether deserved or not.  That same prosperity thinking, however, will also accuse one of being on God’s enemy list whenever things in this broken world aren’t going well.

Likewise, our sinful nature is powerfully tempted to believe the lie that we have to please God in order to have peace with Him.  Yet, that is nothing more than the devilish lie that brought pagan religions onto the world scene.  At the same time, our egos have a hard time processing the truth that there is nothing in fallen humanity that makes God love us.  The sinful nature inherited from Adam and Eve really doesn’t like to face our faults and failures in life.  We would rather hide from God’s law and from His righteous judgment.  Because of all those temptations and traps, it is good and right for us to thank and praise God that The rejected Son came to receive you.

Going back to the parable, we read, “So what will the owner of the vineyard do to them?  He will come and destroy those tenant farmers and give the vineyard to others.”  When they heard this, they said, “May it never be!”  Jesus gives a blunt warning that anyone who rejects Him, rejects also His Father who sent Him to save people like you and me.  Consequently, He boldly shares that they will face eternal damnation for their cruelty and unbelief.

Notice their response, though.  Were they saying, “May God never be so just?”  Or perhaps, “May we never be so unrighteous?”  It appears to be the former rather than the latter, because those same men were already plotting to kill Jesus lest He cause a loss in their earthly positions.  They were jealous of Jesus’ popularity, in addition to being afraid of His righteous words.

So, where does that leave us?  Honestly, we have been saved not because of any good in us, but because God, in His love, was working through the rejection of those leaders to send His beloved, holy Son to the cross to die for all people.  St, Paul later wrote, “When the set time had fully come, God sent his Son to be born of a woman, so that he would be born under the law, in order to redeem those under the law, so that we would be adopted as sons.  And because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts to shout, ‘Abba, Father!’” (Galatians 4:4-6)

The Israelites had been God’s people for thousands of years—sometimes, many of them were very faithful—yet, many times, the majority wandered from believing in the God of their fathers.  Still, this always remained the way that God would bring salvation to all who will believe in Jesus.  Exactly at the right time and involving certain people who so violently opposed the Lord that they would willingly send His Son to death, a death that unbeknownst to them would also pay for their sins.  Thus, they did their dirty deeds, but you and I are among the beneficiaries.  We are granted forgiveness because God planned to win it for us through the sacrifice of His Son, Jesus.  It is because of God’s mercy that Jesus entered the world when He did, and it is because of His love that we are adopted as heirs through faith in Jesus given to us by the Holy Spirit through the Gospel in Word and Sacraments.

Therefore, the message for us to today is not to imagine that we are better than those people, but that God used them to deliver us from a fate worse than physical death.  God rescued us from eternal damnation through everything Jesus did to live and die for us.  Christ Jesus lived the blessed righteousness we need to stand before God in peace, and He carried all our guilt to that cruel, bloody cross to experience the death and separation from His Father that you and I by nature and right deserved.

Then, just as the Lord had been doing in Israel for over fourteen hundred years, God sent His messengers to tell His elect about the peace with God Jesus has won.  That’s truly what the Christian Church is all about.  We are here in this cruel world to share the Good News of what Jesus has done for all people.  We are here to walk among this depraved and often cruel people who don’t yet know Jesus, but not in order to make us suffer or gloat, but rather, so that while we endure the ills and hardships of life on earth, we too are reflecting God’s love upon others, so that they see what Jesus has done to give eternal life.

Dear friends, this peace with God that surpasses all understanding was brought to you through the Gospel and the water and Word of Baptism.  It was shared again and again with you through the proclamation of God’s salvific Word in the Bible.  Through these things, the Holy Spirit granted to you faith in Jesus so that you have become productive branches on Jesus’ vine in God’s vineyard.  Remember Jesus’ words to His faithful followers:

I am the Vine; you are the branches.  The one who remains in me and I in him is the one who bears much fruit, because without me you can do nothing.  If anyone does not remain in me, he is thrown away like a branch and withers.  Such branches are gathered, thrown into the fire, and burned. If you remain in me and my words remain in you, ask whatever you wish, and it will be done for you.  My Father is glorified by this: that you continue to bear much fruit and prove to be my disciples. (John 15:5-8)

Jesus came into this world this first time to redeem us back into God’s vineyard, and to make us productive branches for his Father’s glory.  A day is coming when Jesus will once again return to collect for His Father the bounty of His vineyard by gathering into heaven all those who believe and trust in Jesus as the Son of God and Savior of the world.  Though rejected by many when He came to deliver us, and rejected by many still today, God’s Son paid the price to bring you back into His home of peace and the security of His kingdom.  He is coming soon to judge and dispose of those who refuse to believe, but primarily, The rejected Son will come to receive you into the glory and peace of heaven, where you will dwell for all eternities to come, because The rejected Son came to receive you.  Amen.

The one who testifies about these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”  Amen.  Come, Lord Jesus!  The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with all the saints.  Amen.