"Eyewitnesses of His Majesty" (2 Peter 1:16-21)

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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:

 

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were eyewitnesses of His majesty” (2 Peter 1:16).

 

The attacks of Satan and the fallen world come upon the flock of Christ’s Church sooner or later. And this attack is as old as Eden: “Did God really say?” (Genesis 3:1) asked Satan in the form of a serpent.

 

False teachers under the control of Satan were disparaging the reliability of Peter. And not just Peter, but the other apostles, and even the message of the Old Testament prophets.

 

Thanks be to God that Peter came to realize the deadly peril of these false teachers, since they were denying the power and coming of Jesus the Christ. You see, these false teachers, these heretics, were leading people to doubt that Jesus is fully and completely God, and that Jesus works on the behalf of all people’s lives. These false teachers, these heretics, were leading people to think that Jesus was never coming back and that they were not accountable to Jesus for their beliefs and their own lives. Does this sound familiar? Remember those words of the serpent: “You will not surely die” (Genesis 3:4). But as we know, “the wages of sin is death” (Romans 6:23a).

 

These heretics were making up “cleverly devised myths” (2 Peter 1:16) and they believed that if they would tell these lies long enough and loudly enough, then more and more people would start to believe the lie, no matter how shocking and no matter how outrageous.

 

So, like the Apostle Paul, Peter knew that the foundation of all Christian doctrine was the message of the prophets and the apostles. And without that sure bedrock, the Christian faith would come crashing down.

 

And so, with this in mind, Peter tells of a moment in time that changed his life. Peter tells of the Transfiguration of Our Lord upon that mountaintop. After Jesus went on a retreat by Himself, six days later He “took with Him Peter and James, and John his brother, and led them up a mountain by themselves” (Matthew 17:1). There, Jesus was transfigured before them. Jesus was glowing with the brightness of the presence of God Himself. Jesus’ face shone like the sun. And His clothes shone white; whiter than today’s Clorox could ever bleach them!

 

There, upon that mountaintop, surrounding the shining Messiah was a bright cloud that Peter calls the “Majestic Glory” (2 Peter 1:17).

 

In the Old Testament times, “the glory of the LORD” referred to an appearance of God in cloud and fire to mark a significant moment in His plan of salvation. God appeared to Moses in a burning bush. God appeared to the people of Israel and to the Egyptian army as a pillar of cloud and fire. God appeared in a cloud at the dedication of the temple in Jerusalem. Through this “glory,” God signaled His approval and His presence among His people.

 

There, upon that mountaintop, surrounding Jesus was “a bright cloud” (Matthew 17:5) and from that bright cloud, God the Father demonstrated His approval of His only-begotten Son saying: “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased; listen to Him” (Matthew 17:5).

 

Like a lawyer making his case, Peter declares: “We ourselves heard this very voice from heaven, for we were with Him on the holy mountain” (2 Peter 1:18). In the Greek, Peter is even more forceful than the ESV. Literally, Peter is saying, “We, we heard the voice!” This “hemeis ekousamen” is a double-second-person plural showing further credibility as Peter emphasizes that this voice was not just heard by him, but by also James and John!

 

We, too, also have a problem with our old Adam, our old sinful nature, because, so often, we are not convinced by the Word of God. And Peter, too, fell into this temptation. For after hearing Jesus say that He must be crucified and rise from death, Peter rebuked Him saying, “Far be it from you, Lord! This shall never happen to you” (Matthew 16:22). And after Jesus said Peter would deny that he ever knew Him, what did Peter say? “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death”(Matthew 22:33). But what did Peter end up doing? He denied that he ever knew Jesus and at once a rooster crowed. Then Peter remembered Jesus saying to him: “Before the rooster crows today, you will deny Me three times” (Matthew 22:61). 

 

We, too, are prone to such temptations and such failings. Satan whispers to you: “Can you really trust the testimony of men who lived two-thousand years ago?” Others may say, “Jesus didn’t do enough for you, you must do good works to please God.” Even, others may say, “You know, God is still speaking but only through your feelings and your desires, so don’t trust those old words of the Bible.”

 

We each face so many temptations. And the Old Adam in all of us is often all too willing to listen and deny the eternal truth of which the Bible speaks. We do like to get credit for being a “good Christian” by doing “good works.” We would rather enjoy following those who preach “cleverly devised myths” rather than following the Word of the prophets and the apostles. And when those moments come: repent! Repent and ask Jesus for your forgiveness.

 

Now, Peter was not just an eyewitness. He was also an earwitness. He saw the “Majestic Glory,” but he also heard the voice of God the Father.

 

There were three times in Christ’s earthly ministry where God the Father boomed His voice over His only-begotten Son. First, at His Baptism in the Jordan, where John the Baptist anointed Jesus for His work of salvation. Second, upon the Mount of Transfiguration to the delight of three terrified men and two great prophets: Moses and Elijah. And third, during Holy Week, when God the Father confirmed that Christ’s work was indeed bringing Him glory. 

 

Each time God the Father’s voice was boomed, He forcefully proclaimed His love, His approval, and His pleasure in His only-begotten Son for His determination to go to the cross for sinful mankind.

 

This plan of salvation was not a “cleverly devised myth” of man, but this plan was the will of God from eternity. This plan called for sacrificial blood to be spilled. This plan called for a perfect sacrifice: a sacrifice without sin, stain, or blemish. This blood of the Son of God would become a light to the world, glowing from the very face of Jesus upon the Mount of Transfiguration.

 

This plan of salvation is the will of God the Father and Jesus carries out the plan until it is finished. 

 

For Peter, James and John who witnessed the glory of God’s Son and heard the voice of God the Father, their faith would often become shaky, to put it mildly. They often heard from their Lord, “O you of little faith.” Yours and my faith can also get shaky at times. For we often get disappointed by the subtle, hidden way in which Christ comes: the manger, the cross, in Scripture, the absolution, and the Lord’s Supper. Sometimes, we ask for more. But there He is. Jesus came in lowly form. He died a sinner’s death, yet without sin. We hear His voice in His Word, in the absolution, in the Lord’s Supper. And not only that, we receive Christ’s very body and blood under bread and wine for the forgiveness of our sins and for the strength of our faith.

 

Yes, Peter was blessed to have witnessed and heard what happened that day upon that holy mountain. And He certainly never forgot that moment. And He doesn’t want us to forget either. As soon as Christ, the Son of Man, was raised from the dead, Peter and the other apostles and disciples told of what Christ has done for them, for us, and for our salvation.

 

For us, let us never take for granted the “Majestic Glory” that we witness and hear at each Divine Service as we receive the fruits of Christ’s cross: forgiveness of our sins, life and salvation! God’s plan of salvation is finished! So let us give thanks for what the Lord has done! For His Word is sure and certain. With Peter, we too, are eyewitnesses to His Majesty! Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

 keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

"Preach the Word" (2 Timothy 3:14-4:5)

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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:

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, the Apostle Paul writes to Timothy: “I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom: preach the Word” (2 Timothy 4:1-2a).

 

Today’s text seems pretty simple. It explains itself. What more could I even say to this fantastic text? Afterall, there is a reason this text is always proclaimed at pastoral ordinations and installations. This text appears to have everything we need to hear when it comes to the importance of the Bible and for what the Bible is used for.

 

So, what is the importance of the Bible? Well, it is a unique collection of books, because each book contained in the Bible is “God-breathed.” What makes the Holy Scriptures so important is that they and they alone reveal the way of salvation, which is through faith in Jesus Christ alone. No other book on earth so articulately proclaims the truth of yours and my salvation.

 

The Bible is also unique in that it was written by men through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. So, when you read God’s Word, you are reading words that are divinely inspired. You are reading the very Word of God. So, if you ever wonder what God thinks, just open up your Bible and read.

 

You see, it is the Holy Spirit who brought about these writings. They were willed by God and determined by God. The Holy Spirit moved the writers to write in the way they did for these Scriptures are truly the very Word of God.

 

St. Peter wrote: “No prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation. For no prophecy was every produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:20-21).

 

And since the Bible is the very Word of God, it contains not a single error. The words contained from Genesis to Revelation contain no errors, since God is incapable of ever making a single mistake.

Since God’s Word is true, it is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, so that we would be complete and equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 

The Holy Spirit forms us through God’s written Word. He gives us knowledge. He calls us to repentance over sin. He corrects us through the Word. He trains us through discipline and instruction as we live out the Christian life in repentance and faith. 

 

Each written word in the Scriptures was inspired by the Holy Spirit for our benefit. So may we so hear them, read, mark, learn and inwardly digest them that, by patience and comfort of Your holy Word, we may embrace and hold fast the blessed hope of everlasting life through our Lord Jesus Christ!

 

But there’s a problem. Now, there’s no problem with the Bible. The problem is with you and me. 

 

St. Paul writes to Timothy: “For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:3-4).

 

“For the time is coming.” Here, Paul is looking to the future, a future for which Paul wants to prepare Timothy. Paul is preparing Timothy for the bad times to come. A future in which is our reality today. 

 

For the time is coming when people will not tolerate sound doctrine but will listen to their itching ears for what they want to hear. This time is today.

 

Here, Paul is distinguishing between what people need to hear and what people want to hear. What people need to hear is “sound doctrine.” It is sound because it is what God wants said. “Sound doctrine” comes from God, and it produces spiritual health. 

 

But ever since the Fall of Adam, humanity has tried to usurp control over God’s Word. Satan inferred that God was lying to Adam and Eve, so they tried to take control to be “like God” even though they were already made in His image. All they did was lose God’s likeness when they ate of the forbidden fruit. Likewise, the children of Israel also complained, criticized and condemned the Lord. 

 

We are not too different from our ancestors who nagged and nitpicked God’s grace. Yours and my sinful nature would rather not put up with sound doctrine, because it does not say what we want to hear. It’s because sound doctrine exposes our sin and proclaims condemnation. Sound doctrine does not flatter us with a recital of what great things we have done. So much of God’s sound doctrine does not make sense to our human reason.

 

So, what does sinful humanity do? It does what sinful humanity has always done. It will look for teachers who “suit their own passions” by turning “away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths” (2 Timothy 4:3, 4).

 

So, we look for teachers and preachers who will scratch our itching ears. We become cats or dogs looking for a good scratch. So, we look for teachers and preachers who flatter our egos, who gives credit to man, who satisfies our natural desires and lusts, who preaches to human reason, who reinterpret Scripture to correspond to human reason.

 

And whenever the Church blesses what God condemns, it stops being the voice of Christ. It becomes an echo chamber of the fallen world. You see, the Gospel calls sinners out of darkness, it does not hold the sinner’s hand in that darkness and encourage the sinner to remain in darkness.

 

But Jesus welcomed everyone, pastor! Yes, He did. But He never left anyone unchanged. And that’s the point. He welcomed an adulterous woman, but He said, “Go, and sin no more!” (John 8:11). He dined with tax collectors, but He called them to leave behind their thievery. You see, grace does not re-write sin. Grace redeems the sinner from sin. But sinful man cannot bear this tension. It wants acceptance without repentance; affirmation without transformation.

 

The message goes from take up your cross to drop the cross, because God wants you to be yourself because He made you that way. It goes from repent and believe to affirm and belong.

 

Actual compassion tells the sinner when he is sinning. Actual compassion admits the log in your own eye, because you want to remove the splinter in your neighbor’s eye.

 

Jesus did not die to validate all sinful desires. Jesus wasn’t crucified so that we could all remain in sin. Jesus died to crucify our sinful desires; those desires of the flesh. And Jesus sent the Holy Spirit so that we would not give in to the desires of the flesh.

Today, there are so many ear-scratching teachers and preachers at churches that once proclaimed sound doctrine, but are now teaching what God’s Word so plainly and repeatedly condemns, such as sexual immorality and women’s ordination.

 

God never gave His Church any authority to redefine sin. Christ is still the ruler of His Church. He doesn’t call on pastors to make new rules. His pastors are to simply be His servants as we go about doing what He has said. So, when you hear things like, “We must listen to the spirit of our age,” always remember that the Holy Spirit literally inspired men to write the very Word of God. The Bible was written by God. And He is not going to move in the spirit to our modern age, which is different from the way He wrote the Bible.

 

In short, these ear-scratching teachers and preachers preach anything except God’s revealed truth. So, they will never expose sin and never lead the sinner to any godly change.

 

Thanks be to God that you are here! So, you are like Timothy. Now, you are not a pastor, like me, but you are still like Timothy, because you have not given up. You are enduring. Paul writes to Timothy: “But as for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry” (2 Timothy 4:5).

 

Here, Paul is encouraging Timothy and us, so that we are able to continue in faith as we “continue in what [we] have learned and have firmly believed” – that is, “the sacred writings, which are able to make [us] wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:14-15). Being encouraged, we do as Paul encouraged Timothy: we preach the Word.

 

You see, Jesus has commissioned all of us to make disciples of all nations by teaching all that He has commanded us. He has called us to speak of the hope we have in Christ Jesus to all who have ears to hear. 

 

Now, it is true that we have different emphases on this calling. For I have been given the authority to preach and teach through my calling as an ordained servant of the Word. But you, too, have a similar calling. Yes, I am to proclaim God’s Word publicly. But you have a role, too, as you proclaim your faith through your various God-given vocations in life as father or mother, brother or sister, educator or student, boss or employee, friend and neighbor.

 

But you may say? It’s not the right time. To that, God’s Word says: It’s always the right time. It’s always a good time to proclaim the Word. In season or out of season, because God’s Word is always in season.

 

We preach the Word, because His Word will not return to God empty. For He proclaims: “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall My Word be that goes out from My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11). 

 

This Word is Jesus Christ. He is the One who suffered, died, rose, and ascended to save us from our sinful self, the devil, and this fallen world. So, we preach Christ crucified. For the One who said, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34) forgave us.

 

We preach the Word, because Jesus Christ is that very human divine Word of salvation. Jesus is our foundation, our focus and our source of forgiveness. Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

 keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, our Lord. Amen.  

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

"The Greatest Gift" (Hebrews 1:1-6)

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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:

Merry Christmas!

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son, whom He appointed the heir of all things, through whom also He created the world” (Hebrews 1:1-2).

 

Long ago and at many times, God spoke to His people. He spoke to His people in a partial nature through the prophets.

 

We can think of Moses and the burning bush when an angel of the Lord appeared to Moses in a flame out of the midst of the bush.

 

We can point to visions and dreams like Joseph and Daniel. We can point to the calling of Samuel.

 

“But in these last days He has spoken to us by His Son” (Hebrews 1:2a). The word “but” has a tendency to wipe out what came before it. We say things like, “I’d like to do what you’re asking, but…”

 

However, the “but” here is not set against the sureness of God’s speaking in the Old Testament times, but it is set against its partialness and the variety of its ways: law, history, poetry, prophecy. What the Old Testament believers received from God was only partial and the message of the prophets was incomplete. More was to come, but this more to come did not cancel out what had been divinely recorded but only completes it.

 

Those prophets of old were certainly inspired by God to write and proclaim God’s Word. Through those prophets, God was speaking. Those prophets spoke God’s Word as they clung to God’s Word for their hope of salvation – for they as we, shared in that first sin and needed a Savior. We need a savior from our sin of unbelief and selfish ambition. For “no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). Every word in Holy Scripture is God’s Word, not just words of sinful man. The Holy Spirit inspired the prophets to write them down for us, so that we can always cling to them.

But now – “in these last days” – Jesus has the Last Word, a word that redeems us from sin and death. Today, God is no longer speaking partially through His prophets. Today, He is now speaking fully through Jesus Christ.

 

So, now that we have the Son of God, God has no more to say, since the Redeemer to whom the Old Testament pointed is the ultimate Word and the perfect revelation of God. Today, we have the Final Word of God, which is revealed in His Word, the Bible.

 

Now, some may say today: “If only if I could hear the very Word of God like Moses and Elijah and Isaiah!” Yes, that would have been awesome to hear, but what we have is so much better! They only received snippets, pieces and parts of the various ways God revealed Himself. Today, “in these last days” – God speaks to us through His Son!

 

So, what God spoke through the prophets from Moses to Malachi, we have complete through our Lord Jesus Christ!

 

And Jesus is not just a prophet of prophets. Jesus is God. This Jesus who was born of the virgin Mary is the Creator of the world. This Jesus existed before time existed. This Jesus spoke the world into existence.

 

“In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Here, we have a reference to God the Father. “The Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters” (Genesis 1:2). Here, we have a reference to the Holy Spirit. But where is Jesus? Then God said, “‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that it was good” (Genesis 1:3-4). Jesus is the One who spoke.

 

St. John affirms this in our Christmas Gospel this morning: “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him” (John 1:1-3a). 

 

Jesus is “the radiance of the glory of God” (Hebrews 1:3). You see, the whole array of God’s divine attributes radiates forth in Jesus. Radiance is an inner brightness that shines out like the sun in the sky with its streaming light. To see that light is to see the sun; to see Jesus is to see the God of glory.

 

Jesus is “the exact imprint of [God’s] nature” (Hebrews 1:3). You see, Jesus is an exact image of the invisible God made visible in Jesus. Jesus exactly represents God the Father. So, to know Jesus is to know God’s nature and God’s glory. For as Jesus said, “Whoever has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9) and “I and the Father are One” (John 10:30).

 

Not only was Jesus active in Creation, but He “upholds the universe by the Word of His power” (Hebrews 1:3). You see, we exist today because of Jesus. He keeps everything going. The sun rises each day because of Jesus. “[Jesus] is before all things, and in Him all things hold together” (Colossians 1:17).

 

Jesus is “the purification for sins” (Hebrews 1:3). Sin stains. Sin defiles. Sin damns. Only One could purify and that is God. And only once would God do this. At Calvary’s cross, the Creator and Sustainer became the Sin-bearer. God took upon Himself human flesh for that moment. He was born on this day with the purpose of being the Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world.

 

Then, with the work of redemption done, Jesus “sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3). Today, Jesus is “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion” (Ephesians 1:21a). He has all power and all honor. The ascended Lord holds the scepter in His nail-scarred hands, ruling over all in heaven and on earth.

 

“For to which of the angels did God ever say, ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten you’? Or again, ‘I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son’? (Hebrews 1:5). You see, no one has ever been saved by the name of an angel. But there is a name that saves. “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved”(Acts 4:12).

 

Jesus is superior to the angels, because He was “begotten, not made, being of one substance with the Father” (Nicene Creed). Jesus is superior because from all eternity He is God’s Son, the Second Person of the Triune God, true God with the Father and the Holy Spirit. Jesus is Emmanuel. He is fully God become fully man – for us.

 

But what about that second phrase: “I will be to him a father, and he shall be to me a son”? Those words were spoken originally about Solomon, but these words also have a deeper meaning. You see, they pointed ahead to David’s greater Son, the eternal One whose kingdom would have no end. It is not enough to call Jesus “Son,” but He also calls God “Father.” Never has there been such a divine sonship claimed for the angels.

 

“And again, when He brings the firstborn into the world, He says, ‘Let all God’s angels worship Him” (Hebrews 1:6). On that Last Day, that great day of judgment, He will stand as “the firstborn,” first in rank and position, as all the angels bow down before Him in worship.

 

Today, “in these last days” God continues to speak to us by His Son through apostolic ministry and through His priesthood of all believers. Jesus sent out His apostles to speak His Word. Pastors are called and ordained to speak what Jesus says. You are called to speak the Christmas message to your friends, your family, your neighbor “for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord” (Luke 2:11). Jesus has come to save you and me from the power of sin, death, and the devil. He has come to undertake the Great Exchange as He put on our human frame, and in return He gives us redemption, His glory, and His name. “For while we were still sinners Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). In Christ alone, we are reconciled to God through His death.

 

When God speaks in Holy Baptism, we receive His name and with it everything that belongs to Jesus, including His life that conquers death. When God speaks through pastors and yourselves who say what Jesus says, forgiving one another in His name, we are forgiven. When God speaks “this is My body; this is My blood,” the incarnate Christ’s body and blood are truly present in the Lord’s Supper. When you hear, “The peace of the Lord be with you always,” the Lord’s peace rests upon you. This is the same peace the angels proclaimed at His birth.

 

On this Christmas Day, we see the supremacy of Jesus. We see the radiance of His glory as the exact imprint of God. Through His coming, we have received the Greatest Gift – which is salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ. For there is no greater gift than forgiveness, life and salvation! Merry Christmas! 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 Pentecost 18: "By What Authority?" (Matthew 21:23-32)

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:

As Jesus was teaching on the temple grounds, the chief priests and the elders of the people came up to Jesus and asked Him: “By what authority are you doing these things, and who gave You this authority?” (Matthew 21:23)

 

To give some context to this question on authority, it may be best to know the situation. This is Tuesday of Holy Week. With the Palm Sunday praises of “Hosanna to the Son of David” (Matthew 21:9) still echoing in His ears, Jesus had again entered Jerusalem. Since that Palm Sunday procession, He cleansed the temple as He tossed the tables of the money changers and tossed the seats of those who sold pigeons (Matthew 21:12). Jesus had driven out those buying and selling in the temple. Since then, He has taught in the temple with great power and authority. In this context, the chief priests and the elders come and interrogate Jesus saying, “By what authority are you doing these things?” (Matthew 21:23).

 

For these chief priests and elders, they had the right to challenge the authority of Jesus. For they were the body to which the spiritual care and welfare of the people were entrusted. So, their question was a good question. Afterall, they had seen and heard of Christ’s miracles and the striking authoritative manner that Jesus taught. But even if their question was a proper question, they weren’t asking it in a manner to fully understand. They were, in fact, insincere and treacherous in asking this question as they were asking it with hardened hearts. Again and again, they had a chance to hear the truth of Scripture, and just as often, they kept bringing up their same old and tired arguments against Jesus.

 

And in a way that may seem surprising, Jesus actually answers these Jewish leaders on the question of authority in a way that is most surprising. Again, “by what authority are you doing these things?”This is a question put to Jesus that is also a frequent question in Christ’s Church today. I have heard this question on occasion -- especially from non-Lutherans about Confession and Absolution: “By what authority does a pastor pronounce forgiveness?” Well, it’s not my forgiveness, but God’s forgiveness. 

 

You, see, Jesus works through Means and the pastor is one of those means by which He gives forgiveness through what’s known as the Office of the Keys. 

The Office of the Keys is the special authority that Christ has given to His Church on earth to forgive the sins of repentant sinners, but to withhold forgiveness from the unrepentant as long as they do not repent. For Christ says, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven” (John 20:22-23). So, even as keys lock and unlock, so the authority to forgive sins and retain sins opens and closes heaven.

 

Another question on authority is often: “Who is in charge in the Church?” When we ask a question like that, it is always a heart issue. It’s a matter of pride. If Jesus isn’t in charge, then this fellowship here is no longer the Church, but is more like a club -- a group of likeminded people who choose what is right and what is wrong.

 

Questions such as these can reveal the pride that lurks in our sinful hearts. So, we must be on guard against the assaults of the devil and our flesh in questions on authority. Martin Luther once wrote, “The subtle poison of ambition is just under the surface. This sin has often tripped even those who have grasped God’s Word purely. From this sin, all heresies have arisen; ambition is the mother of all heresies and sects. Against this secret villain we must pray to God daily to suppress our self-esteem” (LW 12:188).

 

So, we must learn that we do not need self-esteem, but humility before Christ, who tries our hearts and knows how full they are with ambition, pride, and selfishness.

 

A case in point on authority is the question on John’s authority and his Baptism. Is Baptism by divine authority or simply by man’s authority? The Baptism of John, was it “from heaven or from man?”(Matthew 21:25) Now, Jesus’ question here to the chief priests and elders is no simple debating tactic. The point of our text is not the skillful use of language by Jesus. Although Jesus is certainly skillful at debating. The real point gets to the heart of the issue: the proclamation of Jesus as the Messiah. 

 

John the Baptist is the one who proclaimed Jesus to be the very Lamb of God, who has come to take away the sins of the world. So, if John’s Baptism was from heaven, his words would be authoritative too, and Jesus must be the Christ.

 

So, like the Baptism instituted by Jesus, John’s Baptism was a Baptism into the remission of sins. John’s Baptism worked regeneration and renounced the works-righteousness of the Pharisees. So, the Baptism of John was not merely “from man,” but “from heaven.” It was a Means of Grace with the power to give the forgiveness of sins. It was from heaven!

But what about our Baptism? What about the other Means of Grace? Are they by heavenly authority or merely by human authority? These questions are great issues in the Church today. 

 

So, are the Sacraments from heaven or from man? Well, what does Jesus say? “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” (Matthew 28:19). In Holy Baptism, God works the forgiveness of sins, He rescues the baptized from eternal death and the devil, and He gives eternal salvation.

 

But what about the Lord’s Supper? Is that of heaven or of man? Well, who instituted the Lord’s Supper? As the disciples were eating on Maundy Thursday, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it, He gave it to His disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” And He took a cup, and when He had given thanks He gave it to them, saying, “Drink of it, all of you, for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins” (Matthew 26:26-28). So, it is only our Lord Jesus Christ’s words that establish the Sacrament of the Altar -- and Christ means what He says. We receive His Body and Blood under the bread and the wine for our forgiveness and strength for our weak faith.

 

Now, what about the Bible? Is it from heaven or from man? Is the Bible inspired by God or is it just ethical teachings from man? If the Bible is just ethical teachings from man, we might as well turn off the lights right now and go home, because if the Bible is from man, what’s the point of being here? If the Bible were of man, there would be no hope, no salvation, no resurrection. But in fact, the Bible is of God, because the Bible is the very Word of God. The Apostle Peter writes, “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit” (2 Peter 1:21). And the Apostle Paul wrote, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

 

Now, did Jesus ever say that the Bible was from heaven? Well, one day Jesus came to Nazareth and as it was His custom, He went to the synagogue on the Sabbath day, and He stood up to read. He unrolled the scroll of Isaiah and read, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me…” Then He rolled up the scroll and sat down. As all the eyes of the men and women were fixed upon Jesus, He began to say to them, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). The Bible is from heaven, since every Word is God breathed!

Like all the Means of Grace - Word and Sacraments - they can only be understood through the eyes of faith. Our trust in their blessings is only dependent on the authority of the One who gave them, Jesus Christ.

 

But getting back to the question of the chief priests and the elders, “By what authority are you doing these things?”, Jesus answers their question by not actually answering the question.

 

In refusing the answer, Jesus is actually asserting His authority by refusing to submit to His interrogators. He is above them because He is from above. He is the Man who is from heaven.

 

So, by the chief priests and the elders asking the question on authority, they are rejecting the authority of the One who has come down from heaven and are demonstrating that they reject the One who is from heaven. You see, their thinking is shown to be from men, from below.

 

Ultimately, Jesus would demonstrate His authority over death and the devil by suffering and dying on the cross and bodily rising from the dead. Therefore, the Means of Grace He instituted are also authoritative! So, His Word, every Word of Holy Scripture, is reliable and certain! The forgiveness He spoke was authoritative, so the sins He forgives are forgiven! The Sacraments He gave His Church truly deliver forgiveness of sins, eternal life, and salvation!

 

Now, Jesus’ authority is not just of times’ past. His authority is still at work today in the Office of the Holy Ministry -- the pastoral office. So, when Jesus’ under shepherds preach His Word, you hear Jesus. As Jesus said, “The one who hears you hears Me, and the one who rejects you rejects Me, and the one who rejects Me rejects Him who sent Me” (Luke 10:16). So, through Holy Baptism, Holy Absolution, and the Lord’s Supper, Jesus’ under shepherds forgive sins by His authority.

 

On this LWML Sunday, we recall the mission work of God’s people. We recall that Christ’s Church is to proclaim the good news of salvation to all people. We do this, not by our authority, but by Christ’s authority: “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:18-20).

 

So, through a little thing such as the widow’s mite (Luke 21:1-4), those offerings that go above and beyond just our congregation’s offerings, these mites support the Church’s mission of making disciples of all nations, both here and abroad.

 

The Church rejoices in the authority of Jesus! For by His authority, we hear His Word, we tell others of His Word, and through His very Word, we are absolved of our sins. Amen!

 

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

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +