Sermon for Easter 7: "Christians in the World" (John 17:11b-19)

LISTEN

Alleluia! Christ is risen and ascended! He is risen and ascended, indeed! Alleluia!

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

 

Jesus said: “I have given them Your Word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world” (John 17:14).

 

“The world needs to change.” How many times have you uttered those words? That is not a statement that would incur much argument. You merely have to read the paper, watch the news, or scroll social media to agree that the world does need to change. But how realistic is that? How is the world going to change?

 

For many people, they believe that we have reached the point of no return. They see the sexual revolution taking over public schools starting in pre-school, as these children receive a “head start” in questioning how God created them. They see the increase in crime. They see the increase in people disobeying authority. It appears to be too late. 

 

To this, Jesus says: “I do not ask that You take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15). Here, Jesus gives us a big clue about the fallen world and about change in this fallen world. The world can certainly change, but this fallen world will never change if Christians just sit back, do nothing, and watch as the world continues changing for the worse. So, the Holy Spirit leads us to bring about positive change in this fallen world.

 

This portion of today’s Gospel lesson records a prayer that Jesus prayed to God the Father right before His arrest in the garden. In this prayer, Jesus is specifically praying for His apostles then – and His disciples now, you and me.

 

The world back then needed to change, too. The Gospel message needed to infiltrate the lives of the people. So, the Holy Spirit was called to lead the apostles and disciples to carry on the work that Jesus had begun. In His prayer, Jesus knew His time was short – and that after His atoning death and bodily resurrection, He would bodily ascend into heaven. To this, Jesus prayed: “Father, help them be the kind of people that we need them to be. Help them be strong witnesses of the Gospel. Help them change the world.”

 

This vocation to change the world is not easy. They – and us – are in the world, but we are not to be of the world, that is, to be one with the world. This is a hard balance to maintain. Remember, those apostles and disciples then, were just like us. They were ambitious. They argued on who was the greatest. They fought with one another.

 

Like us, they too, were politically minded. They wanted rewards for their hard work. They wanted to be approved of and liked by the world around them. For that, they were often lured by the trappings of the fallen world. But unlike the fallen world, they had spiritual weapons. They had the Word of God, prayer, and the power of the Holy Spirit. It was never easy – and Christ said the same – but they did change the world by the Word of God and how they lived their lives in love and service for one another. Slowly, day by day, with the work of the Holy Spirit, they attracted others to Jesus’ love.

 

You too are in the world but are not of the world. For us, this is a hard balance to maintain. The fallen world hates you. This is the title we wear as Christians. As disciples of Christ, we should never be ashamed to be hated, but we ought to be prepared to face the hate of the fallen world.

 

The world will slander you miserably and afflict you on every side. And yet, they will have no accusation or charge to lay against you or any vice to charge you, but only that you possess, preach, and confess Christ’s true Word. You will hear that you are a bigot. You will hear that you are evil and judgmental. You will hear them say, “You are the greatest abomination on earth.” You see, this fallen world cannot tolerate and endure true Christianity.

 

So, the fallen world has nothing else to do with its hatred but to rage against Christians. This fallen world cannot tolerate Jesus, John, Peter, and Paul. This fallen world cannot tolerate you, and especially me.

 

And what have Christians done to the fallen world? We have not robbed or stolen from them. We have not injured them in the slightest. So, what have we done so that the fallen world hates us? We have freely served everyone with great effort and labor, offering and imparting the grace of God, eternal salvation, and every good thing. But what do we get in return? We receive nothing but fierce, bitter anger and hatred.

 

This is the thanks and reward this fallen world gives Christ and all who abide in Him and His Word. And even if we would give in to some of the fallen world’s demands, it would never be enough. What the fallen world and its fallen prince desire is that Christianity cease to exist. Satan wants us all to follow him and his lies and delusions.

 

Wrong can so easily become normalized that it ceases to be wrong. Just look at how Satan’s lies are being promoted on television and movies today. See how much the fallen world has moved the culture into falsely believing that wrong is right. Sexual immorality and theft are encouraged these days. “You be you,” they say, which really means, you be your own god. Fellow Christians, may we never negotiate with evil, for if we do, evil always wins out. In fact, we do like to rationalize the evil we do in our lives. “At least I’m not that other guy.”

 

Jesus knows that living in this fallen world is difficult. Jesus knows our sins and our failures. This is why He suffered the shame and endured the cross, so that He could earn us forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation, which gives us the strength and encouragement to keep us going strong in the one true Christian faith.

 

In Jesus’ prayer, He prayed that we are not taken out of this fallen world, because there is work to be done and through the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, we are the ones to do it. Indeed, the world needs to be changed. And this fallen world can be changed one corner at a time. The world needs to see the difference the triune God can make in the world through His people in our daily vocations as parent, child, friend, student, and co-worker.

 

In this tension that we have as being in the world and not of the world, how do we not act of the world? How do we live in this fallen world, use it for good, yet not bow down to it or be swept away by it? Well, this is surely an everyday, hour-by-hour, minute-by-minute battle in our lives. So, how do your actions and decisions affect your life as a Christian? Will your actions and decisions affect how others see you as a Christian? How do you use your God-given vocations to further the Gospel in this fallen world?

 

The only sure way to not be carried away by Satan and his fallen world is to have regular attendance in the Divine Service where we are fed and nourished with God’s Word and His Sacraments. As you are fed and nourished, the Holy Spirit strengthens your faith and leads you to Bible study and devotions to further strengthen your faith. 

 

It’s all a matter of catechesis. We are all being catechized. So, how are you being catechized? By Satan and his fallen world, which only leads to eternal death and eternal separation from God? Or by the Holy Spirit, which through His Means of Grace, we are given forgiveness of sins, which begets eternal life and salvation.

 

Being a Christian is tough. It’s hard. It’s difficult. Jesus was hated by the world, rejected by the world, killed by the world, so that someday, we, who abide in Him, would be taken out of this fallen world to enter eternal bliss.

 

In the meantime, we live in this fallen world, but, in our Baptism, we are also in Christ, so that everything He won for us through His suffering and death would be ours. So, knowing what is before us, we have the privilege to gladly tell those of the fallen world what Christ has done for them, and thus through the Holy Spirit, we change the world for the better one person at a time. Alleluia! Christ is risen and ascended! He is risen and ascended, indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

Sermon for the Ascension of Our Lord: "Still with Us" (Acts 1:1-11)

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Alleluia! Christ is ascended! He is ascended, indeed! Alleluia!

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

 

“And when [Jesus] had said these things, as they were looking on, He was lifted up, and a cloud took Him out of their sight. And while there were gazing into heaven as He went, behold, two men stood by them in white robes, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:9-11).

 

Just imagine the sight. The apostles and disciples staring off into the sky – gazing up into heaven. They gaze after Jesus until they can no longer see Him.

 

Just imagine what they were thinking. We have some ideas. They just asked Jesus, “Lord, will you at this time restore the kingdom to Israel?” (Acts 1:6) So, is the Ascension the way Jesus will bring back the old days of King David and King Solomon, when the Kingdom of Israel was the greatest? Is this the way Israel would become free from Roman domination and become a world power? You see, this was the hope of many in Israel.

 

To that question, prior to His Ascension, Jesus says to them, “It is not for you to know times or seasons that the Father has fixed by His own authority” (Acts 1:7).

 

So, it was not for them – or us – to know when God would bring His great plan to completion. However, it is enough to know that He has a plan for His kingdom and that His will is gracious and good. God has marked the calendar, and He has marked the day and made a note of the hour. Until that day, no one on this side of heaven knows the day and the hour of Christ’s second coming, the date of Judgment Day.

 

But there is something to note from this exchange. Before His Resurrection, when Jesus was in His state of humiliation, He did not exercise His divine knowledge to the fullest. He had said then that He did not know the day of God’s judgment. He said, “No one knows about the day or hour, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father” (Mark 13:32). But here, Jesus does not say that. Here, Jesus says, “It is not for you to know” (Acts 1:7). In other words, “I know.”

 

From His Word, we know that Jesus’ kingdom is not political, but spiritual. We know that Jesus’ kingdom is not limited to the Jewish people, but includes all who trust in Christ, which is the spiritual Israel. 

 

Again, they are looking intently up into the sky. They stare even as the last clouds fold Him in. What’s next? Has Jesus left them? Has Jesus left us? They gaze after Him, but He is gone. Jesus has vanished.

 

Do you ever have times when you wish that Jesus wasn’t so far away? Do you ever ponder the idea: “Why Jesus, why do you permit all this evil to happen?” Our human understanding of the Ascension can lead us to think that Jesus is far, far away. But is that really the case? Has Jesus really abandoned us?

 

The Ascension was visible for the sake of the apostles. The very moment the clouds hid Jesus from their sight, He was transferred timelessly into the heavenly glory. Jesus is now visible in heaven with the same body, including His scars of triumph over the cross and grave.

 

Suddenly, two angels stood by them and said, “Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking into heaven? This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw Him go into heaven” (Acts 1:11).

 

You see, Christ departed visibly, so He shall return visibly. He ascended into heaven, so He shall descend from heaven. He ascended bodily, so He shall descend bodily.

 

In this in-between time, what does Christ’s Ascension mean to us? St. Paul gives us the answer in tonight’s epistle: Jesus is now seated at the right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named. He has put all things under His feet and is head over the Church (Ephesians 1:20-22).

 

Now, does this mean that Jesus is away from us as He rules in heaven? No! This means that He rules in heaven and on earth. Through His Ascension, Jesus is reigning His death and resurrection over us, which means that He has the power to be everywhere and anywhere. He is no longer bound to a bodily, visible, tangible, and worldly way of life, to time, place, space, or the like. Through His Ascension, Jesus is now present and rules through His power everywhere, in all places and at all times, when and where we need Him. Jesus says, “Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20).

You see, Christ’s Ascension is all about bringing us His Means of Grace. He ascended so that He can distribute His sacrificial gifts to His people everywhere and anywhere. Again, Jesus Ascended so that He would no longer be bound spatially. He Ascended, so that He can truly be with us always to the end of the age in, with, and under His Word and Sacraments.

 

Because Jesus is Ascended into heaven and has all power and all authority, His Means of Grace are no mere symbols or simple remembrances of what He has accomplished on our behalf. No! They are the Means by which Christ gives Himself through His Word and Sacraments. His Means of Grace have both authority and power, right and might to accomplish that for which God has purposed them.

 

What is this purpose? Forgiveness of sins, which begets life and salvation! The Means of Grace created your faith in the Sacrament of Holy Baptism and strengthens your faith through Absolution, the Word, and the Sacrament of the Altar.

 

Through the Means of Grace, we are joined to the very same crucifixion and resurrection in the waters of Holy Baptism. It is a Baptism in which the Holy Spirit gives us faith as we live as God’s holy people.

 

Through the Means of Grace, the cross is placed upon us in Holy Absolution, wherein repentant hearts receive forgiveness of sins.

 

Through the Means of Grace, Christ feeds us His very Body and Blood under the bread and wine, given to us Christians to eat and to drink for the forgiveness of our sins in the Sacrament of the Altar.

 

Being forgiven through the Means of Grace, we mutually forgive one other.

 

So, the Ascension of Our Lord is not a time of mourning. Jesus has not left us. He did not retire when He ascended. He has not deserted us. He continues to be involved and be in charge. His Ascension is all about our comfort, peace, joy, and confidence.

 

While Jesus ascended from His apostles’ and disciples’ sight, being carried up into heaven, He raised His hands in blessing (Luke 24:50). His hands remain lifted to bless us, to bless our witness and our worship.

 

Imagine the awe and delight of the angels and archangels as the Son of God returned as also the Son of Man with all power and all authority in heaven and on earth, where He rules with grace and mercy, where repentance for the forgiveness of sins is preached.

 

Jesus is not absent. He is still with us in His Means of Grace – His Word and Sacraments – where He promises to be until He bodily returns on the Last Day. Alleluia! Christ is ascended! He is ascended, indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

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Sermon for Easter 6: "Life in the Vine" (John 15:9-17)

LISTEN

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

Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen! Dear brothers and sisters in Christ:

 

Jesus said: “As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Abide in My love. If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love” (John 15:9-10).

 

These are the words of Jesus on Maundy Thursday, which are known as His farewell discourse to which we began last week. It is remarkable that in just a matter of hours, Jesus will experience betrayal, abandonment, unlawful arrest, cruel abuse, and execution. Despite knowing what would soon take place, Jesus speaks of both His and His Father’s love for His apostles and disciples. Today, on this Sixth Sunday of Easter, Jesus continues to speak about our relationship to Him.

 

And what is this relationship? Jesus is the true Vine, we are the branches, and God the Father is the Vinedresser. This is a relationship of life in the Vine. A relationship where we, the branches, never chose to be in the Vine, but the Vine chose us out of His love as His branches. For Christ says, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should go and bear fruit and that your fruit should abide” (John 15:16).

 

Jesus never picked us because we were wiser, stronger, wealthier, or smarter than others. He chose you because He loves you. That love has its origin in Jesus being loved by God the Father. And this love’s intention is that we, whom Jesus loves, will also love others.

 

From eternity, Jesus has been loved by the Father. This love is the foundation of all things. Love is the essence of the Holy Trinity. Before there were any created beings to love, the Father was always loving the Son. Love was the basis for creation. God who is love created precious creatures to love, especially the crown of His creation: humanity.

 

This God the Father loving God the Son relationship continued throughout Jesus’ earthly mission. At both Jesus’ Baptism to fulfill all righteousness and at His Transfiguration atop the mountain, God the Father called Jesus His beloved Son. 

In this love, Jesus chose you and me, for He says, “As the Father loved Me, so I have loved you” (John 15:9). Remember, we never chose Jesus. As sinners, we do not have the will or ability to ever choose Jesus because our fallen nature only wants to flee from Him and all that He desires to accomplish with us.

 

Despite our sinful nature, Jesus loves you and me the same way the Father loves Him. So, just as the Father has loved Jesus, Jesus eternally loves us. He displayed this love when He “[laid] down His life for His friends” (John 15:13). Through His death, He won for His friends salvation on that cross! There, He took our dirty, wretched sin onto Himself, forgave that sin, and destroyed sin’s power over His friends. There, on that cross, Jesus chose us who were by nature His enemies and declared us to be His friends – and at the cost of His own life.

 

Jesus has chosen us, who were His enemies, to abide in His love! He says: “As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Abide in My love” (John 15:9). Now, what does abiding in Christ’s love look like? Well, it means that we abide in keeping His commandments.

 

Unlike the Father’s love for Jesus and Jesus’ love for us, our love for God and our neighbor often falls short.

 

Remember, Jesus is speaking these words on Maundy Thursday. Again, He was fully aware of what would soon happen. Christ foresaw how Satan would sow discord, anger, impatience, hatred, and envy among His followers. And unfortunately, Satan has never let up, as this discord, anger, impatience, hatred, and envy still remains. As branches connected to the true Vine, we must constantly be pruned and purged by God’s Law and Gospel, because we are simultaneously saints and sinners. 

 

As branches, we face many daily frailties and shortcomings. Bumps and trials never cease, especially when we are living in this fallen world, which is led by the Father of Lies, Satan. Our flesh is weak. We get caught up in the devil’s poison and suspicion enters our hearts because of a single word or a single glance which stirs up mutual animosity. Satan is the master of this art. He employs his craftiness before anyone is really even aware of it. This is what the devil did in the case of St. Paul and Barnabas, who had a sharp dissention and parted ways (Acts 15:2). Trifles can lead to quarreling and enmity that only results in great harm. The blood begins to boil, then the devil shoots his venomous darts into the heart by means of evil tongues, and finally no one says or thinks anything good about the other. The devil keeps on fanning the flames and is eager to set people against each other and spread misery.

As branches of the true Vine, we must be on guard against Satan’s craft and cunning. We must repel any suspicion and hostility that may be stirred up in us and remind ourselves not to let love depart and die out for this reason but to hold onto love with a strong hand. And if aversion and discord have arisen anywhere, we must restore and improve the love and friendship through forgiveness and reconciliation.

 

Love, on its own is rather easy. Love doesn’t require any great skill, but remaining in love takes realskill and virtue.

 

In marriage, the husband and wife are initially filled with affection and passion, but later, they could become bitter foes. The same happens with fellow brothers and sisters in Christ as they are branches of the Vine. A trivial cause may separate those who should be really bound with the firmest ties, but that trivial cause turns them into the worst and bitterest enemies. This, of course, is to Satan’s delight and joy. You see, Satan strives for nothing else than to destroy love among Christians and to create utter hatred and envy. For Satan knows that Christianity is built and preserved by love.

 

Therefore, Christ admonishes us to solemnly and earnestly hold firm to love as His branches. Again, He places both Himself and His Father before our eyes as the most perfect examples: “As the Father has loved Me, so I have loved you” (John 15:9). Jesus suffered and died for you, so that you would abide in His love.

 

Love is not doing whatever you want. Love is sacrificial. Love is caring. Love is disciplining.

 

As branches of the true Vine, we now abide in Him, lest we be misled by false doctrine and thus be cut off from Jesus. For wherever love and unity are destroyed and schism and discord take root, there pure doctrine disappears, and defection from Christ ensues. The branch cuts itself off from the true Vine.

 

So, we must all examine ourselves. For Christ says, “If you are truly My branches, it will surely become evident that you are My disciples by your fruit. If you refuse to bear fruit, I will not acknowledge you and accept you as My disciples.” So, how do we show ourselves to bear fruit? Well, right along with the Fruits of the Spirit in Galatians 5 are the Ten Commandments: 

§  First, you shall have no other gods.

a.    Do you trust God for your financial security, physical safety, and emotional support?

b.    Do you fear God’s wrath in avoiding every sin?

§  Second, you shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God.

a.    Do you keep all the vows you have made in the Lord’s name, such as confirmation, marriage and legal vows?

b.    Do you carelessly speak or misuse God’s Name?

§  Third, remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it holy.

a.    Do you attend the Divine Service faithfully, or would you rather prefer to be elsewhere? 

b.    Do you pray for and encourage your pastor?

c.    Do you support the church financially?

§  Fourth, honor your father and your mother.

a.    Do you honor all authorities as gifts that God has put over you?

§  Fifth, you shall not murder.

a.    Have you unjustly taken the life of anyone, born or unborn?

b.    Do you hate anyone, or are angry with anyone?

c.    Do you hold grudges or harbor resentment?

§  Sixth, you shall not commit adultery.

a.    Do you look at others lustfully?

§  Seventh, you shall not steal.

a.    Are you selfish, stingy, and greedy with your time and money?

§  Eighth, you shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.

a.    Do you gossip, listen to rumors, or take pleasure in talking about the faults or mistakes of anyone?

b.    Do you speak truth in love, trying at all times to explain everything in the kindest way?

§  Lastly, you shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his manservant or maidservant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.

a.    Do you resent or envy those who have what you do not?

b.    Do you encourage disharmony?

c.    Are you manipulative or controlling?

 

To be good branches of the true Vine, we keep Christ’s commandments. However, all too often, we fail to keep Jesus’ commandment to love.

 

If you have failed to keep Christ’s commandment to love, Christ gives us another fruit of faith. This fruit is repentance. You see, whenever we fail to abide in His commandments, in love Christ calls us to repent. When we repent, it is by God enabling us. He warns us by His Law, but then He makes His loving purpose immediately evident as well. 

True repentance is nothing else than to have contrition and sorrow, or terror, on account of sin, and yet at the same time to believe the Gospel and absolution, that that sin has been forgiven and grace has been obtained through Christ, and this faith will comfort the heart and again set it at rest. So now we are able again to bear fruit and abide by His commandments again.

 

Fellow branches, who are forgiven and saved, the love of Christ is transformational. The evidence of our faith – our fruits of faith – is seen in the changes that take place in our lives. God uses words like “born again,” “rebirth,” and “regeneration” to describe what Christ’s love does to us. Each time we repent, we are indeed “born again” in Christ to live out our lives as good branches that bear fruit.

 

In order to strengthen and increase our faith, love, and obedience, God gives us the Means of Grace – His Word and Sacraments. The Word of God together with the Body and Blood of Jesus under the bread and wine nourish us in love as the Holy Spirit transforms us in the Divine Service. We are transformed into desiring to keep Christ’s commandments, to obedience as evidence of our fruits of faith. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3). This is our life in the Vine. It’s a life of obedience and repentance, as we rejoice in God’s love for us! Alleluia! Christ is risen! He is risen, indeed! Alleluia! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +