"Behold My Servant" (Isaiah 42:1-9)

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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:

“Behold My Servant, whom I uphold, My Chosen, in whom My Soul delights; I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations” (Isaiah 42:1).

 

“Behold My Servant.” With this announcement, Yahweh announces something special, something very important. Of course, Yahweh chose to call many servants. He called Abraham, Moses, David, Caleb, Job, and Isaiah His servants. And oddly enough, God even called heathen kings Nebuchadnezzar and Cyrus His servants, since they carried out His judgment upon God’s unfaithful people. Also included as God’s “servant” are the ancient nation of Israel, whom God often called deaf and blind.

 

All of these servants had a special purpose in God’s plan of salvation. God certainly chose each one for His special task. They either were examples to God’s people, or they were to carry out judgment upon God’s unfaithful people.

 

But there is something different going on here in Isaiah 42. Here, Yahweh is making an announcement of special importance. Here, Yahweh announces this Servant boldly and dramatically: “Behold My Servant, whom I uphold, My Chosen, in whom My Soul delights; I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations” (Isaiah 42:1).

 

It's like God is saying, “Here He is!” No other Servant of the Lord has received such an introduction, so this announcement signals something quite different and important about this Servant as compared to the others.

 

But who is this Servant? There is so much ambiguity in our text. But ambiguity can also enrich our reading. Ambiguity can cause us to meditate on God’s divine Word. So, who is this Servant who fulfills this prophecy?

 

If we were to place everyone whom God calls His servant together and look at them, Yahweh would direct our attention to just this One Servant. For example, if all these servants were placed on a table and spread out like rare coins, Yahweh would be pointing at One of them saying, “Behold My Servant! This is the One!”

In Isaiah 41, one chapter earlier, God provides a contrast to reveal the importance of this Servant. God pointed to the false gods saying, “Behold, they are all a delusion; their works are nothing; their metal images are empty wind” (Isaiah 41:29). What a contrast to the very next verse in Chapter 42! The works of these false gods are nothing, because they are nothing. Now, the Servant introduced here will carry out the Lord’s work.

 

Now that Yahweh has our attention, He tells us why this Servant is so especially important. And certainly, God chose this Servant much like He had chosen other servants, including Abraham before Him. Each of the prophets were chosen for their special role, including David, who sought after God’s own heart, despite his many flaws.

 

But again, this Servant is different. To this Servant, Yahweh endows with special gifts and importance.  This Servant would “bring forth justice to the nations” (Isaiah 42:1d). This Servant would not only serve the single nation of Israel, but also serve the Gentiles – the entire world!

 

Now, this word “justice” is a judgment based on a legal decision. “Justice” is a term that defines the Gospel, which is God’s legal and judicial announcement that He has declared the entire world right, holy, and innocent. This “justice” is good news! This is good news to a world that stands before God’s court convicted of sin. This judgement exists because of the work of this Servant. And God would put His Spirit on this Servant so that He could accomplish His task.

 

But how would this Servant accomplish this task? Although Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus, and David are God’s servants, this Servant will not accomplish this task by force. This Servant would be meek, modest, and mild. This Servant “will not cry aloud or lift up His voice, or make it heard in the street” (Isaiah 42:2).

 

Even Abraham rescued Lot by force, and Moses sent the Levites out with swords drawn to restore order. But not this Servant. This Servant would come into Jerusalem “righteous and having salvation is he, humble and mounted on a donkey” (Zechariah 9:9).

 

Cyrus stomped his way to victory. His coming filled the coastlands with fear. This Servant would be gentle; the people would hope in the words of this Servant. “A bruised reed He will not break, and a faintly burning wick He will not quench; He will faithfully bring forth justice” (Isaiah 42:3).

In Isaiah 11, the prophet wrote that this Servant would be a “shoot” from the stump of Jesse and that “the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him” (Isaiah 11:2). It would be the Holy Spirit who would anoint this Servant to accomplish His tasks. “He will not grow faint or be discouraged till He has established justice in the earth; and the coastlands wait for His law” (Isaiah 42:4). This Servant will accomplish His task of establishing justice on the earth.

 

God’s people longed for the appearance of this Servant. Then, at the appointed time, God removed all questions about this Servant’s identity. “Then Jesus came from Galilee to the Jordan to John, to be baptized by him” (Matthew 3:13). John the Baptizer attempted to prevent Jesus from being baptized, but Jesus said to John, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness” (Matthew 3:15).

 

“Yes,” Jesus says, “It does seem odd to baptize the sinless Lamb of God, but this must be done, so all who will be baptized will receive My righteousness. For this must take place!”

 

You see, God demands righteousness. So, Yahweh had a special reason for choosing His Servant: it was in connection with righteousness. God demands that the entire human race be righteous, but every step the human race takes proves us to be unrighteous. We have even failed obedience to God’s Law in loving God and serving our neighbor that was intended to produce a righteous people.

 

But the triune God devised a plan, a plan from before time. The triune God would send the Second Person of the Trinity to be incarnate to make all people righteous. God Himself would rescue His people through this called Servant.

 

Inspired by the Holy Spirit, St. Paul wrote in Romans 3: “The righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe” (Romans 3:22).

 

As Jesus came out of the water of the Jordan River, two important things happened. First, the Holy Spirit descended on Jesus like a dove, and second, God the Father’s voice rang out saying, “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).

 

At this moment in time, as Jesus came out of the water, it cannot be mistaken who Yahweh’s special Servant is: He is our Lord Jesus Christ. He is God’s Servant who came to carry out His righteousness to deliver righteousness to the people.

 

Now, this Servant’s task would be difficult. He would bring justice, justification, and salvation to the ends of the earth, but it would not be through brute force or by any show of might, but in the humility and shame of the cross.

 

Jesus, the Servant, came to bring atonement between God and man. And this could only be done through receiving a sinner’s baptism – a washing that was not necessary for Him, but surely necessary for us, so that through our baptism into Christ, we receive the fruits of His cross: forgiveness, life, and salvation, and all by His grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, the beloved Servant.

 

Throughout His earthly ministry, this Servant would open the eyes of the blind and free captives who sit in darkness. But these physical realities also refer to spiritual realities. 

 

You see, when you are spiritually imprisoned to sin, your flesh is calling all the shots. You are not in control. Your sin is in control, and you are a slave to it. Whether it’s drugs, alcohol, stealing, sexual immortality. Just name it.

 

When left to our own devises, we are always snared by sin. Because of sin, all humanity remains blind to the truths of God. Because of sin, all humanity remains in bondage. Because of sin, all humanity are slaves to sin and are doomed to eternal punishment.

 

Through Christ alone, the Servant, He would bring release from sin’s bondage and from the dungeon of judgment. Long ago, God destined His Servant to set us free from our evil foes: sin, death, and the devil. Because Christ died for your sins and rose again, triumphing over sin and death, He by faith in Him has set you free from bondage!

 

Today, we can look in awe of this Servant Yahweh foretold in Isaiah 42, because we are the recipients of this Servant’s work. We are among those who have our eyes opened to the light of His grace. We are among those freed from the prison of death. We are among those called out of darkness and into His marvelous light. We are God’s children whom He has chosen as His own. Amen.

 

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding,

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

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

"The Scandal of the Gospel" (Luke 7:18-35)

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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: 

[Jesus said:] “Blessed is the one who is not offended by Me” (Luke 7:23).

 

What does it take for someone or something to offend you? Can you recall the last time you were genuinely offended? What caused the offense? How did it make you feel? Angry? Shocked? Vengeful? What was your response? Was it something like, “How dare you!”? “How dare you question me!”? “How dare you accuse me!”?

 

Jesus was no stranger to “How dare you!” His earthly ministry may have lasted only three years, but it was enough time to offend all sorts of people in all sorts of ways. Some, like the Pharisees, were offended because He disappointed them with the way He demonstrated His messianic calling. The Gospels record how over and over again, people were scandalized or offended by something Jesus said or did, or even by something He did not do.

 

There were times when Jesus’ words were just too hard to swallow. In John 6, Jesus proclaims to the crowd of fellow Jews that He is The Bread of Life. The crowd grumbled about Jesus, because He said, “I am the Bread that came down from heaven” (John 6:42). Later on, Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you” (John 6:53). Because of those words of Jesus, many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with Him. They took offense! They packed up their bags and left.

 

But Jesus didn’t stop there at offending the masses. Later in John 8, Jesus said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am” (John 8:58). Immediately, the crowd picked up stones to stone Jesus to death, but Jesus hid Himself. They took offense! This time they tried to eliminate Jesus for good!

 

In Luke 4, Jesus returned to Nazareth where He had been brought up. It was the Sabbath, so He came to synagogue. As a favorite son of the congregation, He was asked to read, so He unrolled the scroll and found the place where it was written:

 

“The Spirt of the Lord is upon Me, because He has anointed Me to proclaim good news to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim liberty to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor” (Luke 4:18-19). Then Jesus sat down and began to say, “Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing” (Luke 4:21). Then murmuring began, “Is not this Joseph’s son?” (Luke 4:22). The crowd was filled with wrath, and they rose up to drive Jesus out of Nazareth with intentions to throw Him off a cliff. Those synagogue worshipers took offense at Jesus! Again, they too wanted to eliminate Him.

 

But it wasn’t only Jesus’ speaking that caused offense. It was also what He was doing. On a Sabbath, Jesus had the audacity to give sight to a blind man. In response to this sign and miracle, some of the Pharisees said, “This man is not from God, for he does not keep the Sabbath” (John 8:16).

 

Jesus was also judged by the company He kept. And Jesus was well aware of what was being said about Him and His company.

 

After Jesus met with John’s disciples, He began preaching to the crowds concerning John the Baptist, saying, “For John the Baptist has come eating no bread and drinking no wine, and you say, ‘He has a demon.’ The Son of Man has come eating and drinking, and you say, ‘Look at Him! A glutton and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’” (Luke 7:33-34).

 

Just think about how many of the Jewish authorities took offense as Jesus ate and drank and even associated with sinners. The truth is, Jesus ate and drank and associated with these people, because He was always around sinners. He could never escape that fact, for “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). But Jesus never gave tax collectors permission to collect more taxes than authorized to do. Jesus never gave permission to prostitutes to continue selling themselves. Jesus never gave permission to Samaritans to continue worshipping falsely. What Jesus did do was show them their sins so they would repent of those sins and receive God’s forgiveness.

 

But it wasn’t only what Jesus said and did that caused so many to reject Him. For many others, it was what Jesus failed to do that caused the greatest offense. Think back to the First Sunday in Advent when we heard how the people greeted Jesus on that Palm Sunday spreading their cloaks on the road and laying down palm branches as they shouted their “Hosannas”! “Blessed is the King who comes in the name of the Lord! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest!” (Luke 19:38). 

Most on that Palm Sunday believed that Jesus was the conquering hero who would lead them to political and military victory against the Romans. But how disappointed they must have been to see Him riding in on a donkey instead of a warhorse. How disappointed, discouraged, and offended they were when Jesus turned out to be a compassionate and forgiving Messiah, full of mercy and not vengeance. He wasn’t what the crowd was expecting. By Friday, many in that Palm Sunday crowd changed their shout to “Crucify Him!”

 

With so many expectations not fulfilled. With Jesus appearing to be involved in scandal after scandal, John the Baptist, while in prison, sends two of his disciples to Jesus with the question, “Are you the One who is to come, or shall we look for another?” (Luke 7:20).

 

From the man who attempted to prevent Jesus’ baptism saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” (Matthew 3:14) and later witnessed the Spirit of God descend like a dove and rest on Jesus and heard God the Father proclaim from heaven: “This is My beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17) – is this man having doubts? How could he have any doubts?

 

So, why this question of doubt? Is John really wavering in his faith? Or could it be that John desires that his disciples be certain of who Jesus truly is? Jesus wasn’t really living up the expectations of the promised Messiah.

 

So, to clear up any doubts, Jesus directs John’s disciples to His miracles: “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them” (Luke 7:22). Then Jesus concludes saying, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by Me” (Luke 7:23).

 

Those words, “Blessed is the one who is not offended by Me” certainly do ring loud and clear. We certainly do live in a time where many are scandalized by Jesus Christ. Even with the coming Christmas holiday, many people are scandalized today by saying, “Merry Christmas” or even setting foot in a church on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, but they will make sure that they have all their gifts in good order.

 

Even for us today, there are many exclusive claims of Jesus that may even cause you to be offended by Him. Jesus says, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6). 

Well, what about devout Jews? What about those good and sincere people who do many good works in the community, but do not trust in Jesus? Are they bound to hell because they don’t happen to believe and trust in Jesus as their Savior?

 

For many of us, we get caught off guard. We would rather try to rationalize those words of Jesus. Or we can say, “It’s not for me to judge.” Or, “That’s up to God.” Well, it is up to God, but it’s deeper than that. We may be tempted to be too squeamish to defend the Christian truth. But the truth is the truth. Jesus is the only way to salvation! Even now, Jesus doesn’t live up to our expectations.

 

So, why do we often fail to let our Christian light shine? Why do we become so easily discouraged when it comes to matters of Christian faith and Christian hope? Why are we afraid? Are we worried what other people may think of us? 

 

For all the doubts and worries we may have, Jesus says, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). So, repent and confess your sins to God, hand them over to Jesus, and then receive forgiveness by God’s grace.

 

Jesus redeemed you and I when we were lost and condemned. He purchased and won us from all sin, from eternal death, and from the power of the devil with His holy and precious blood and by His innocent suffering and death.

 

Jesus called us by the Gospel. He sent the Holy Spirit to enlighten us with His gifts. He has sanctified and kept us in the one true Christian faith. All this He did out of His fatherly, divine goodness and mercy, without any merit or worthiness on our part.

 

So, blessed are those who are not offended by Jesus! May we always be reminded of His blessings of forgiveness, eternal life, and salvation for which He won for you and me upon the cross !

 

On this Third Sunday in Advent, let us rejoice in Christ’s Means of Grace! Rejoice in your Baptism into Christ! Rejoice in absolution as Christ forgives our troubled consciences! Rejoice in Christ’s body and blood under bread and wine as our medicine for immortality! Rejoice in the Lord always! Blessed is the one who is not offended by Jesus! 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 8: "Competing Voices" (Amos 7:7-15)

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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:

“This is what [the Lord God] showed me: behold, the Lord was standing beside a wall with a plumb line, with a plumb line in his hand. And the Lord said to me, ‘Amos, what do you see?’ And I said, ‘A plumb line’” (Amos 7:7-8).

 

The meaning of this vision is clear. The Lord is picturing Himself as a mason laying brick or stone. The wall represents Israel, the people He created to receive His covenant. The plumb line is His Law, the standard laid down at Mount Sinai for Israel’s life as His covenant people. But this Law, this plumb line, also reveals Israel’s sin. For the people are like a sagging, crooked wall, that is in need of being torn down. 

 

God’s people were crooked as they flaunted their unfaithfulness to the Lord. They were crooked as they abandoned the plumb line of God’s Law. You see, it is only through the Law that we become conscious of sin (Romans 3:20). So, without the Ten Commandments before them, to measure what they thought, said, and did, their lives were “out of line,” like a crooked wall ready to be torn down. So, the prophet Amos pronounces judgment against the perverse worship of the Kingdom of Israel and divine judgment against the house of King Jeroboam. But God’s Word is not heeded but hated. Amos is told to pack his bags and go back to where he came from: Judah. 

 

In our Gospel reading (Mark 6:14-29), John the Baptist has been preaching repentance. He has been calling all people to repent of their sins for the Messiah has come and the reign of God is at hand. Like Amos, John is calling God’s people to repentance. And like Amos, he has called upon a specific person as well, King Herod – to specifically repent of his sin of marrying his brother’s wife, Herodias. But like Amos before him, God’s Word is not heeded, but hated. For his call to repentance, John’s head is cut off and paraded at a party on a platter.

 

Throughout the Scriptures, the triune God reveals an intense concern that His voice, His true and life-giving voice, be heard and heeded. And throughout history, God’s voice has more often not been heeded, but rather hated. Generation after generation, twisted heart after twisted heart, fallen man prefers to listen to any other voice but God’s voice. 

Our fallen nature demands that God’s voice be silenced, be set aside, and moved far off. Our fallen nature would rather see God’s messengers sent back home, cast in a pit, sawn in two, beheaded, and crucified. 

 

Throughout Bible history, God would have His Word be primary and uncontested. In the Garden of Eden, God rebukes Adam, saying, “Because you have listened to the voice of your wife and have eaten of the tree, of which I commanded you, ‘You shall not eat of it,’ cursed is the ground because of you” (Genesis 3:17).

 

Later on, God covenanted with Israel at Mount Sinai saying, “If you will indeed obey My voice and keep My covenant, you shall be My treasured possession among all peoples” (Exodus 19:5). Then what happened? The next thing you know, Aaron is no longer listening to God’s voice, but to the voice of the people, and before you know it, the people are worshipping a golden calf. 

 

Eventually, God’s people desired to be like their pagan neighbors with a king. They demanded God give them a king. They thought a king would surely fight for them and give them desired unity. But by swearing loyalty to an earthly king would only be breaking covenant with their Lord, who was already fighting on their behalf as their King. God warned them that an earthly king would only be for earthly gain, but He grants them an earthly king.

From the start, King Saul feared the people more than he feared God. Saul ignored God’s voice and listened to the voice of the people.

 

Prophet after prophet warned God’s people as they proclaimed God’s Word: “‘Turn from your evil ways and keep My commandments and My statutes, in accordance with all the Law that I commanded your fathers, and that I sent to you by My servants the prophets.’ But they would not listen, but were stubborn, as their fathers had been, who did not believe in the LORD their God” (1 Kings 17:13-14).

 

This theme continues into the New Testament times. When Jesus’ teachings became too difficult, many of his followers turned back and no longer walked with Him. Jesus then asked the Twelve: “Do you want to go away as well?” (John 6:67). Then Peter replied, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life” (John 6:68).

 

So, why is it so difficult to heed God’s Word? Why is it that we would rather hate God’s voice? 

Well, that answer has to do with our evil foes: our sinful nature, the fallen world, and Satan himself. You see, Satan uses our sinful nature and this fallen world to lead us sinners away from hearing the Word of God. He wants to keep you from hearing and taking seriously what God has to say. Satan’s agenda is to prevent you and others from hearing the life-giving voice of your Maker and Redeemer.

 

So, how does Satan do this? Well, just look at today’s reading from Amos. One of Satan’s approaches is to fill the arena with an umpteen number of false voices to drown out or marginalize the true voice of God. Throughout the Bible, we read of false prophets, counterfeit voices. In fact, these false voices outnumbered the true prophets. These false prophets would tell sinners what they wanted to hear, and as a result, they were popular. That way sinners would basically only listen to themselves. The true Word of God is never the only voice in the arena. It was – and still is – a competitive environment. 

 

Besides drowning out God’s voice, another approach by Satan is to silence God’s life-giving and life-saving Word. That is what Satan led Herod to do with John the Baptist. Satan, the ruler of this fallen world, strives to prevent sinners from hearing the true Word of God. He leads people to discount it, to trivialize it, to ignore it, to dismiss it as only human speech and human opinion.

 

In fact, in Amos’ time, the northern kingdom of Israel was more political than religious. The Israelites were only loyal to King Jeroboam. They listened to the voice of their earthly king, rather than to God’s voice. And like that golden calf in Exodus, Jeroboam erected a golden calf at Bethel where he told the Israelites to come and pay their homage. Israelites pilgrimed there to show their loyalty to King Jeroboam.

 

To this false worship, Amos prophesied God’s judgment upon Israel and its king. Would God’s Word be heard and heeded? No, it would be hated, because to proclaim judgment against Bethel was to oppose the king. You see, the king of Israel and the temple at Bethel were united. So, to proclaim against one was to proclaim against the other. The Kingdom of Israel supported and promoted this perverse religion as the false priest Amaziah of Bethel said to Amos: “O seer, go, flee away to the land of Judah, and eat bread there, and prophesy there, but never again prophesy at Bethel, for it is the king’s sanctuary, and it is a temple of the kingdom” (Amos 7:12-13).

 

In other words, “Get out of here Amos! You don’t belone here! You are disrupting the peace! Let us do what we want! Go back where you came from!” Does this sound familiar? 

More and more today, Christians are demanded to keep quiet. To keep our faith secluded from public life. Those who preach and confess God’s Word often face opposition. Christians are opposed by political means and by public opinion. Jesus too, warned us, saying: “A servant is not greater than his master. If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you” (John 15:20).

 

So, as Christians, we must always be prepared to face opposition in heeding God’s voice. We must always heed the Lord’s voice in studying, hearing, and applying His Word in the Bible. Faithfulness to God’s Word should be every Christian’s concern as we train the next generation of Christians. And we must be ready to heed God’s Word against earthly authorities and popular opinion. But all too often, we’d rather listen to competing voices, including your own voice, and refuse to hear God’s voice. We may find God’s voice of Law and Gospel to be irrelevant and boring.

 

So, why does God say that His voice must be heard? Because through His voice, we hear His promises. And His promises are trustworthy and true. The promises of false voices, the promises of this fallen world, only mislead. They direct us to believe in illusions. But only the one true God – the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – fulfills promises. Those are the promises to actually listen to, take to heart, inwardly digest, believe, and trust in. They are true promises given by the Lord God Almighty Himself. 

 

In the fullness of time, every promise that God’s prophets foretold was fulfilled when “God sent forth His Son, born of woman, born under the Law, to redeem those who were under the Law, so that we might receive adoption as sons” (Galatians 4:4-5).  Jesus embodied Israel and went through death just like the Kingdom of Israel. But Christ’s death was more severe as He suffered the just punishment of God against all sinners. God the Father laid upon His Son the iniquity of us all. Jesus suffered in place of sinners and for sinners. He suffered and died in your place. But He conquered the grave three days later!

 

Where we have failed, Jesus has prevailed! Where we have been foolish and slow of heart to believe all that God has spoken, Jesus prevails. So, let us heed God’s voice, not hate God’s voice. Let us not be proud and foolish, but humble and wise. That chastening rebuke of the Law along with His resurrecting Gospel is what this fallen world hates. But let us heed by God’s grace with repentance, faith, and joy. Let us heed His Word and feast on His promises of forgiveness, life, and salvation! 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 2: "Shaped by Jesus" (Matthew 9:9-13)

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:

The Pharisees said to Christ’s disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?” (Matthew 9:11)

 

That’s a good question. Why is Jesus – a Jewish rabbi – sitting at a dinner table with tax collectors and sinners? Doesn’t “bad company ruin good morals”? (1 Corinthians 15:33) Could Jesus be there condoning their sin? Well, that is what the Pharisees’ question is implying.

 

I have heard it often said that Jesus “hung out with sinners” or He “hung out with prostitutes” during His earthly ministry. Is that what Jesus is doing here? Is that what Jesus is being accused of by the Pharisees?

 

Yes, exactly! The whole point of the Pharisees’ question was to slander Jesus and His reputation to make it appear as if Jesus tolerated, accepted, and even embraced sinful behavior. But is that what is going on here? Is Jesus tolerating, accepting, and embracing sinful behavior?

 

Let’s go back to what led to Jesus being invited to this dinner with tax collectors and sinners. Earlier that day, after healing a paralytic, Jesus comes up to Matthew as he is collecting taxes at his tax booth. Jesus walks up to Matthew and says two words to him, “Follow Me” (Matthew 9:9). Amazingly, Matthew picks up his things and follows Jesus. He didn’t think twice. Jesus spoke those words of invitation and he just dropped everything. Matthew abandoned his business and gave up his livelihood. He was willing to lose his life, so that he may save it. Jesus spoke and Matthew followed without any hesitation.

 

So, just as Jesus invited Matthew to follow Him, Matthew thought it well to invite Jesus to his home for dinner. Jesus brings with Him His other called disciples and Matthew invites over some of his friends and associates. This is where things get interesting. This is where the sinful world latches on and joins the Pharisees in accusing Jesus as accepting sinful behavior.

 

The sinful world likes this Jesus who tolerates and accepts sinful behavior. You see, sinful man would rather shape Jesus than be shaped by Him. Sinful man would rather see Jesus as an apathetic hippie who wandered around Galilee flanked by drunks and hookers. Sinful man imagines Jesus sitting on the roadside making small talk and watching the world pass by. With a Jesus like this, He is no longer the Shepherd, but a sheep. This is exactly the kind of Jesus that Satan prefers.

 

But that is not the real Jesus. Christ came to save sinners and not to lead sinners to eternal destruction in hell. He came to give eternal life, not eternal death.

 

So, as Jesus, His disciples, and Matthew’s other invited guests were eating together, some Pharisees walk by and notice this odd arrangement of people. First off, a respectable Jew would never eat with such people. Afterall, as I said earlier, “bad company ruins good morals.”

 

As the Pharisees were watching this, they made their accusation, but they didn’t have the courage to speak to Jesus directly, but instead spoke to His disciples, “Why does your teacher eat with tax collectors and sinners?”

 

Even though Jesus was not addressed directly, He answers them, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick” (Matthew 9:12). Jesus is there to treat the sickness of sin, not to condone the sin. Here, Jesus speaks about why He is there. Here is there as a physician. Physicians treat sick people. These people are sick, and their sickness is sin. They are not free of guilt. Jesus is in no way saying that these people are not responsible for their sin. Jesus is there because they are sick and cannot heal themselves. They all need rescuing from their sins.

 

Here, Jesus tells of His mission: “For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:13b). He has come to rescue every single person from all times and all places of their sin, since there is no such person who has no sin.

 

But who are these people that have caused so much offense to the Pharisees? First off, it’s always good to remember that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23a). But this isn’t exactly what the Pharisees were after. For them, “sinners” were a much narrower group of people. In particular, tax collectors and prostitutes for these were the people who flagrantly and publicly violated the Law of God.

 

You see, tax collectors had the reputation for being dishonest and unrepentant Law breakers, and most tax collectors would scheme on getting wealthier in the process. Pharisees considered them among the worst of sinners, since they were both traitors – in working for the hated Roman government – and liars, since they cheated people out of their money.

 

So, Matthew – a tax collector –was about as likely a candidate for discipleship as Saul of Tarsus, who had taken the lead in the bloody persecution of Christians before Jesus called him and transformed him into one of the pillars of the Church, the Apostle Paul.

 

The sin of tax collectors was greed. They had a reputation for not trusting God to provide, so they just fleeced and extorted the people. They had the reputation as those who had the love of money. For this, the Pharisees considered them among the scum of the earth.

 

What about you? Could you be among these men holding too tightly to your money? We’ve all seen how rising inflation has cut into our income. We can’t get the same value for material goods as we used to. The volatility of the stock market may cause you to worry about your investments and retirement accounts. Money isn't going as far as it used to. You may be feeling anxiety about money: “Am I going to have enough?” When your mind goes there, you begin to hold tight to your money, or it takes hold of you tightly. We sin.

 

Closely related to the tax collectors would be the prostitutes. They too, are considered the scum of society. This sin involves selling your body for money or acceptance or drugs. It could be about anything. But more is going on with this than sexual immorality. Underneath prostitution, we find the loss of the sanctity of marriage. Sex sells and buys, instead of being a sacred gift for a husband and wife.

 

Now, you are likely not a prostitute, but we all live in a time when sexuality and nudity are exploited, exposed, and explicit for us to see every day of our lives. How difficult it is today to keep our desires, our urges, our minds, and our hearts chaste. The internet, movies, television programs, and even commercials, tempt viewers to keep on looking, even fantasizing about what counts as beauty. We are bombarded with these images day in and day out. They catechize us, but in the wrong way. We sin.

 

With the lowest of the low there at the table, there are likely some people there speaking filthy words. Speaking profanity. This is no different than today. Foul language flows into our ears and perhaps flows out of our mouths. What do you say in anger when you lose your temper? How quickly we lash out with mean words, hateful words, words that God never wants us to speak. We sin.

 

There at that dinner table reclining with Jesus are what the Pharisees consider the worst of the worst of sinners. Dishonest men, scandalous women, worriers, and Law breakers. There at that dinner table is Jesus sitting with you and me. 

 

Jesus is there not to accept or tolerate any sinful behavior, but to treat that sinful behavior as any good physician would with any sickness. Jesus said, “Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners” (Matthew 9:12-13).

 

Jesus is not there to merely accompany them, but to bring them to repentance. He is there to heal their sin. These are all guilty people who want to be rescued. Jesus is there to say, “The kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15) and “Sin no more” (John 8:11). Jesus is there because these sinners recognize that they are spiritually poor, and spiritually miserable. He is there because they recognize their personal sinfulness and unworthiness. He is there to give them the remedy for their sins: His forgiveness.

 

Jesus is there for the Pharisees too, but they don’t see any need for a physician for their souls. They are so deluded that they don’t think they need to be saved, since they wrongfully regard themselves as spiritual healthy.

 

The Church is the hospital for sinners and not a club for the righteous. Jesus is the Great Physician who knows just what the sick need – His merciful forgiveness. Jesus never came to an adulterer to approve of adultery, or to the tax collector to approve of his greed and corruption. No, He came to purge them of their sins – and us of ours.

 

He came to treat their illness. He came to treat their sin. He listened as they confessed their symptoms, so that He could give them the remedy.

 

The Law exposes that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23a). We deserve only damnation since not one of us is innocent. Thanks be to God that we have the remedy for sin, justification by His grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus “whom God put forward as a propitiation by His blood, to be received by faith” (Romans 3:25). 

 

Today, and at each Divine Service, Christ is here for you! He is here in this hospital known as Prince of Peace Lutheran Church. He is here to shape you through repentance and faith. He hears your cry for forgiveness. And He comes with the remedy – His Medicine of Immortality, His Word and His Sacraments. Through these Means of Grace, He gives you food to eat as we inwardly digest His Word and receive His forgiveness through His Body and Blood broken and shed for you, so your sins would be forgiven, and your faith strengthened. Then He says, “Go and sin no more!”

 

Whatever your sin, Jesus has taken that sin to the cross for you. He suffered, died, and rose in your place, so that through repentance and faith in Him, you could receive the soothing remedy of His forgiveness that only the Great Physician brings. 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 Easter 5: "The Way, the Truth, the Life" (John 14:1-14)

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:

With nowhere to go, the Children of Israel saw no path. Behind them, they see and hear Pharaoh and his armies drawing near. The Children of Israel were terrified. Death appears to be imminent. Here they are standing on the shore of the Red Sea and there is no way to safety. They see Pharaoh’s armies on one side and the sea on the other side. They are trapped. There is no way out. They need a way out, and they cannot provide a way out by themselves.

 

So, the Children of Israel cried out to the Lord. Then they cried out to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the wilderness? What have you done to us in bringing us out of Egypt? For it would have been better for us to serve the Egyptians than to die in the wilderness” (Exodus 14:11-12).

 

Moses said to the Children of Israel, “Fear not, stand firm, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you shall never see again. The LORD will fight for you, and you have only to be silent” (Exodus 14:13-14).

 

There, upon the shore, the Children of Israel believed all was lost. They believed they were about to experience their demise. When it all appeared desperate, God tells Moses to lift up his staff and stretch out his hand over the sea and divide it, so that the Children of Israel may go through the sea on dry ground. Moses did as God commanded.

 

Suddenly, there was a way. God provides for them the way. The Lord drove the sea back by a strong east wind and made the sea dry ground, and the waters were divided.

 

Even as the Children of Israel walked through the Red Sea on dry ground, doubts did not cease. Many thought, “Could the sea close over us and drown us all in a moment?”

 

Even when they have the way, doubts still haunt them. Doubts haunt us, too. There must be another way, but every other way is a wrong way, a way that leads to only death. They needed certainty. They needed the truth.

And before long, the Children of Israel noticed that Pharaoh’s armies appeared behind them. The same peril they had before the Red Sea divided has returned. Doubts and fears increase. The army is nearing them.

 

But as soon as the last Israelite reaches the shore, following God’s command, Moses stretched out his hand over the sea and the sea fell upon the Egyptians and swallowed them up. The Children of Israel have life.

 

God provided the Children of Israel the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

 

In today’s Gospel lesson, we return to Maundy Thursday. This is Jesus’ farewell speech to His disciples. Knowing this, Jesus is determined to comfort His disciples knowing full well what is about to happen within the next 24 hours: He is going to be arrested, tried, beaten, spit upon, given the crown of thorns, crucified, dead, and buried. 

 

Jesus knows that His disciples will be frustrated, confused, and scared. They have seen Jesus perform miracles and signs – even showing His power over sin and death. But what they are about to witness is going to test them. So, to calm them, Jesus says, “Let not your hearts be troubled” (John 14:1a), since He is going to prepare a place for them. He also says that they know the way to where He is going. This way is as the Lamb of God who will die for the sins of the world. But they don’t understand.

 

Thomas says to Jesus, “Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?” (John 14:5)

 

Like the Children of Israel trapped between Pharaoh’s army and the Red Sea, Thomas and his fellow apostles are lost. They don’t know what to do and where to go.

 

So, Jesus says, “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” (John 14:6).

 

Notice what Jesus says here. He doesn’t say, “I will show you the way,” like a second Moses; but “I am the Way.” Nor “I have the truth,” like another Elijah; but “I am the Truth.” Not only, “I lead to life,” but, “I am the Life.”

 

Jesus is the Way that bridges a chasm. If a bridge lacks as little as an inch of reaching across, it plunges down and becomes rubble. It may have intended to be a bridge, but all it serves as is rubble.

Just as the Children of Israel passed through the Red Sea physically, dry-footed, and unhindered they had no other way. They had no other way to salvation. Jesus provided them the way.

 

Like the Israelites then, we too, need salvation. We may not have Pharaoh’s army chasing us, but we have sin, eternal death, and Satan coming right at us – and from all sides. We need the way to go. Without a Savior from sin, death, and Satan, we are trapped.

 

Satan has convinced the fallen world that there are many ways, and many truths, and that when we die, life is over, so that our only fate is that we will all become worm food.

 

For some people, they hear Jesus’ words – “I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me” – as condemnation. That is unfortunate, since Jesus’ purpose is salvation, not condemnation. For He says, “For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through Him” (John 3:17).

 

For many, Jesus’ claim strikes them as unfair. I recall one episode of the Oprah Winfrey Show. Oprah was discussing salvation and heaven when she went on to say, “One of the mistakes that human beings make is that there is only one way to live, and that we don’t accept that there are diverse ways of being in the world, that there are millions of ways to be a human being, and many paths to what you call God.”[1]

 

This soon led into a discussion with her audience. One lady challenged Oprah by saying that there is only one way to heaven and that way is Jesus. To that, Oprah said, “There couldn’t be just possibly one way. If you are somewhere on the planet and you never hear the name of Jesus, but you live with a loving heart, you live as Jesus would have had you to live, but you are in some remote part of the earth and you have never heard the name of Jesus, you can’t get to heaven? Does God care about your heart, or does He care if you call His Son Jesus?”

 

Well, what about Oprah’s questions? Did God the Father suddenly change the rules and limit salvation to only Christians? When Jesus announced Himself as the Way, was He shrinking the path of salvation? 

No, He was opening the door to heaven. Without Christ, the number saved is zero, since “no one does good, not even one” (Romans 3:12). But with Christ, “everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved” (Romans 10:13).

 

These words of Christ are an invitation. He’s inviting all to trust in Him and find life in Him.

 

But what about those who lived before the coming of Christ? What about those Old Testament believers? Are they doomed? Jesus said to Thomas, “Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed” (John 20:29). These words apply to us now. We haven’t seen Jesus with our eyes, yet we believe and are blessed by faith. The same goes with the faithful of the Old Testament times, since they also did not see Jesus with their own eyes, but they had faith in the promise of a Savior.

 

Satan does his best to lead us away from the one way of salvation. He tries to convince us that there must have been another way for the Israelites beside the miraculous crossing of the Red Sea. Satan wants us all to compromise our way to salvation.

 

Now, there are many issues that we can compromise. We can compromise on the style and color of carpeting. We can compromise on the shade of paint on the walls. We can always compromise on the things that do not particularly matter. There, we can meet in the middle. But some issues, we cannot compromise.

 

There is one area where we can never compromise, and this is truth. Truth is fact. Facts don’t change. Two plus two equals four. The sky is blue.

 

But where is the source of truth? God’s written Word is the sole source of the knowledge of truth. Again, Jesus says, "I am the Way, and the Truth, and the Life." He also says, "If you abide in My Word, you are truly My disciples, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:31-32).

 

Sometimes compromising becomes the worst outcome. One day two women came up to King Solomon, both women gave birth to a child, but one child later died (1 Kings 3:16-28). To the surprise of one of the women, the other woman placed her deceased child with her that night while she was sleeping, and the other woman took the living child to live with her. When morning came, the other woman noticed that the child was dead, but she also realized that this child was not her offspring. 

So, the two came to Solomon for his wisdom. Solomon said, “Bring me a sword.” So, a sword was brought before the king. And Solomon said, “Divide the living child in two, and give half to the one and half to the other.”

 

Then the woman whose son was alive said, “Oh, my lord, give her the living child, and by no means put him to death.” But the other said, “He shall be neither mine nor yours; divide him.” Solomon answered, “Give the living child to the first woman, and by no means put him to death; she is his mother.”

 

Satan deceives the world into thinking that we can compromise on truth. He says we can compromise on the Word of God, but if we did compromise, whose word is it? God’s Word or man’s word? 

 

So, everyone who imagines that they have found the truth apart from Jesus and His Word is deluding himself. Without God, there is no truth. 

 

Last Sunday as I was driving back home from church, my radio was set to WIZM. To my surprise NBC’s Meet the Press was on. The host Chuck Todd asked his guest, “Are you confident that gender is not a spectrum? There is a lot of scientific research that says that gender is a spectrum.”[2]

 

As those were the first words I heard on my radio, I thought, “Would this have even been a question five years ago? We have certainly come a long way in so short of time. Just stating that there is scientific research doesn’t make it fact. Tell me more about this ‘scientific research.’ Prove it!”

 

Also last week, I saw a clip from ABC’s The View where co-host Whoopi Goldberg argued that God would be in favor of gender reassignment surgeries. She said, “What Bible are [they] reading? Because God was really clear!”[3] Just stating that the Bible approves what you want doesn’t make it fact. Prove it. Show me the chapter and the verse!

 

In Scripture, God reveals that He knitted us together in our mother’s womb as male and female (Psalm 139:13, Genesis 1). Jesus, God in human flesh, also affirmed this truth (Matthew 19:4).

We can’t compromise on truth. It’s either a baby or it isn’t. Men cannot become women. Women cannot become men.

 

If a society is no longer based on truth, then what do we have? We have lies and Satan is the Father of Lies.

 

We cannot live by lies. We can only live by Jesus, who is the Way, and the Truth, and the Life. Living by lies can only lead to eternal death. But sometimes, we can get caught up in lies, since lies are so attractive. And when we come to the realization that we have been fooled, we repent and ask God for His forgiveness for which He always forgives.

 

Living only in God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, we have life. Jesus alone provides the assurance of eternal life. Every other “way” leads to eternal death. Jesus assures us of eternal life through His Means of Grace: Word and Sacrament.

 

Here, in this place, Jesus leads us, He teaches us, and He gives us eternal life. Jesus is the only way to true joy and true life. His death on the cross changed everything. His resurrection from the dead is what secures for us the joys that transcend all the changes of this fallen, sinful world.

 

So, when we cling to Jesus and His Word, we cling to none other than God Himself. In Christ, we are certain and secure in a changing world. This is why He continually comforts us and reassures us that He is in still in control as we receive His forgiveness, hear His unchanging Word, and receive His medicine of immortality at the Lord’s Table. Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life of salvation through God the Father. Amen.

 

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

 

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +

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[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=noO_dCWtB1E

[2] https://www.nbcnews.com/meet-the-press/video/april-30-sec-mayorkas-vivek-ramaswamy-and-luke-russert-171913797525

[3] https://www.christianpost.com/news/whoopi-goldberg-appeals-to-bible-in-debate-on-trans-surgeries.html