Sermon for Lent 5: "The Son of Man Came to Serve You" (Mark 10:32-45)

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:] “For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

 

Who here remembers those rubber bracelets from the 1990s? You know those rubber bracelets with those four letters: “WWJD,” which ask, “What would Jesus do?”

 

For a time, I wore one of those rubber bracelets. I thought they were cool. I thought they were hip. I wanted to be just like the crowd. And, whenever I looked down at my wrist, I was always reminded to ask myself, “What would Jesus do?”

 

As inspiring as those “WWJD” rubber bracelets were, there was a flaw. Now, the flaw was not in Jesus, so whatever Jesus would do would always be correct. No, the flaw is in us – you and me.

 

You see, whenever you think to yourself, “What would Jesus do?,” you are likely thinking the things of men; you are likely thinking of yourself. You are thinking from a self-centered point of view. Afterall, how many of us actually searched the Scriptures to find out what Jesus would do? So, of course, Jesus would do whatever you wanted to do. You are putting yourself in the stead of Jesus; you are putting yourself in the stead of almighty God Himself.

 

Just think about the Twelve Apostles. They are prime examples of self-centeredness, even when they were in the presence of God Himself. Earlier in Mark’s Gospel, we find them arguing amongst each other on who is the greatest. Jesus asked them, “‘What were you discussing on the way?’ But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. And [Jesus] sat down the Twelve and said to them, ‘If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all’” (Mark 9:33-35).

 

Later on, John said to Jesus, “Teacher, we saw someone casting out demons in Your Name, and we tried to stop him, because he was not following us” (Mark 9:38). To that, Jesus said to John, “Do not stop him … for the one who is not against us is for us” (Mark 9:39, 40). 

John was curved in upon himself. He thought only those among the Twelve could do awesome things in the Name of Jesus.

 

We have this attitude too. It’s only those who attend the right church that inherit the kingdom of God, right? I’ve heard that all my life. It’s only those LCMS Lutherans. It’s only those Roman Catholics. It’s only those in my denomination.

 

Normally we like to critique Simon Peter, but today it’s James and John’s turn for critique. It’s those sons of Zebedee who are desiring positions of glory in their Lord’s kingdom. They ask Jesus, “Grant us to sit, one at your right and one at your left, in your glory” (Mark 10:37). I can only imagine what the other apostles thought of that question. Peter could have looked over at his brother Andrew and each thought: “Why didn’t we think of that? And, really, this honor should go to us! Jesus called us first!”

 

Like the rest of us sinners, they craved attention and the recognition for their own accomplishments. Like children shoving their siblings out of the way, we want the important people in the world to take notice: “Hey, look at me!”

 

Like the apostles, we get caught up in ourselves. We stop seeing our neighbor as someone to serve and instead look inward and say, “What do I want?” This fractures us. Self-centeredness leads to feuds, divorce, and all other sorts of splinters.

 

So Jesus dismisses the request of James and John. Jesus says to them, “It’s not Mine to grant, but the Father’s. Those positions have already been filled.”

 

Jesus asks James and John: “You do not know what you are asking. Are you able to drink the cup that I drink, or be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” (Mark 10:38) To this, they say: “We are able” (Mark 10:39).

 

It's this request to be Jesus’ right and left hands in His glory by James and John that leads Jesus to say: “For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

 

Now, James and John, as well as the rest of the apostles will drink from Christ’s cup. They will suffer for proclaiming Christ crucified for the forgiveness of sins. None of them would have the celebrity life of a televangelist, the fast cars, the luxury houses, the luxury jet; instead, they would be hated and reviled, stoned, stabbed, poisoned and crucified.

 

§  Did you know that you would be mercilessly ridiculed and derided by the fallen world when you were baptized? 

§  Did you know that when you confessed your Christian faith on your Confirmation Day that you said that you would rather die than to fall away from the one true Christian faith? 

§  Did you know that your confession of faith would exclude you from a fallen world of fleshly delight, from sexual immorality to elective abortion?

 

It's not easy when the tide of the fallen world turns against you, when those shouts of “Hosanna!”change to “Crucify Him!” It’s not easy when those around you pit you against “the science” or “tolerance.”

 

We certainly have our own bitter cups to drink from. It’s hard to choke down the dregs of illness and death, disappointment and heartache that can come from this life. It’s hard, but it’s not impossible. Even unbelievers experience suffering in this life, but we have something else. We have the promise.

 

The fallen world has its false gods of tolerance, fairness and being nice and living life to the fullest, but all that leads to is death. All the good deeds in this fallen world cannot keep us alive. All the tolerance and equity in this fallen world cannot forgive sins or take away your guilt. You will still suffer. You will still die.

 

Jesus is different. Jesus is the Lord of Life. Jesus offers up the cup of salvation. Jesus marches to the cross in order to save you, so He can serve you. Jesus enters Jerusalem to be the Suffering Servant who offers up the once-for-all sacrifice for your sins and for the sins of the whole world. God became man to be that sacrifice, for without the shedding of blood, there is no forgiveness.

 

God became man for a single purpose: to be “wounded for our transgressions” and be “crushed for our iniquities” (Isaiah 53:5). Jesus comes in order to “bear the sin of many, and make intercession for the transgressors” (Isaiah 53:12), because of Him will be laid “the iniquity of us all” (Isaiah 53:6). This is the purpose of Jesus’ mission. He came to “give His life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

 

Besides the Suffering Servant of Isaiah, we have the Passover of Exodus 12. In the Passover, the lamb was killed – sacrificed – in the stead of the firstborn of the people of Israel, ensuring that the destroyer would “pass over” the people of God when the lamb’s blood was spread upon the lintel and the doorposts of their homes.

 

As with Christ, in His sacrifice, He endured the smiting and striking by God the Father as His blood was poured out for the multitudes, so that all who trust in Him would be saved from God’s wrath. To this, St. Paul writes, “For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed” (1 Corinthians 5:7b).

 

So, what would Jesus do? He suffers for you. He dies for you. He does this to save you from bondage. He does this to save you from your self-centeredness. He does this to save you from Satan’s accusations. He does this to save you from this fallen world.

 

Our self-centeredness does not want to deny yourself. Our self-centeredness wants to make yourself your own god.

 

But Christ’s sacrifice on the cross for you and for me wipes that away and causes us to not look inward, but outward, toward God and our neighbor. Jesus’ chief mission, His central issue, was to restore the relationship between God and man. In order to restore this relationship, the dividing wall must be destroyed – and this wall is sin. 

 

Jesus’ focus is the forgiveness of sins. He has come to serve and not to be served. He has come to serve you and He has come to serve me. For this reason, our church services are not called the worship service, but the “Divine Service.” This comes from the German word “Gottesdienst,” which means “service of God.”

This church service is called “Divine Service” because God continues to serve us to this day. He serves us with His Means of Grace – His Word and Sacraments, which give us the forgiveness of sins that Christ won for us upon the cross as our Suffering Servant.

 

So, what would Jesus do? He would suffer. So, we must be prepared to suffer. But He also gives us the fruit from His cup. He has taken away the sin and punishment from you so that the cup you drink at this altar is only His blood, shed for you for the forgiveness of sins, for your salvation and your eternal life.

 

The Son of Man came to serve. He came to serve you! Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Jesus serves you His Means of Grace so He can sustain you to life everlasting. 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 Lent Midweek 4: "Prayer: Our Greatest Weapon - Part 1"

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:

Last Wednesday we finished our series on the Creed. Throughout those weeks, we learned that God does not withhold anything from us. He has given us Himself and His entire creation. And not only that, He gave us the Gospel: His only-begotten Son. And He gave us the Holy Spirit so we would know the Son of God and sanctify us through Word and Sacrament to keep us in the one true Christian faith.

 

Because the Father gave His gifts by creation, the Son by redemption, the Holy Spirit by sanctification, we are now able to run to the Triune God and ask Him for blessings with all boldness and confidence as dear children ask their dear father as He invites us to pray to Him.

 

But what does it mean to pray? Quite simply, to pray is to ask. This is the heart and core of prayer. Now this may sound like we are asking God, “gimme, gimme, gimme.” It may sound like we are self-centered and selfish. But when it comes to our relationship with God, prayer actually reveals something of our standing before God. We never don’t need everything from God. We are never independent from Him.

 

In our series on the Creed, we learned that everything we are and have comes from God Himself. You and I didn’t choose to be born. We did not earn or merit it. God did not owe it to us. Instead, everything we have is a gift. We, you and me, exist solely as gifts of God. And so, our life and our lives are completely dependent upon God. We live from the gifts of God. That’s what it means to be creatures and not the Creator. So, you and I will never not need food and drink, family and friends, good weather, health for our bodies. And so, God tenderly invites us to ask, and to receive all these gifts, and many more, with thanksgiving.

 

At the same time, we are also fallen creatures. We are sinful creatures. You and I stand before God always needing to be cleansed from sin, and constantly restored to God’s favor and grace. Yet, even as sinners, God approaches us and tenderly invites us to call Him “Father.” He extends His hand so that we may take it. We can call God “Our Father,” because of Jesus, who is our Brother. So, as long as we live in this fallen world, there’s not a moment when we do not need to ask for God’s forgiveness and His favor. And we are bold to ask, because of Jesus Christ.

So, what does Jesus give us in the prayer that He has taught us? He has given us seven petitions. Seven requests. Seven weapons against all the spiritual warfare that Satan can throw at us. Tonight, we will look at the first three petitions of the Lord’s Prayer.

 

First, “Hallowed be Thy Name.” God’s Name has been given to us. God gave us His Name when you were baptized in His Name, which makes you His child. So, through the Sacrament of Holy Baptism, God unites us to Him.

 

Now that we have been made His child, what does it mean to hallow the name of God? Well, this goes back to the Second Commandment, which we went over last Lenten season. The purpose of the Second Commandment is so that we do not curse, swear, use satanic arts, or deceive by His Name. So, God’s Name is hallowed when we call upon Him, pray, praise, give thanks, tell others about Him in how He is merciful and helps us in peril and otherwise.

 

So, the First Petition in the Lord’s Prayer is explained by the Second Commandment. In short, when one teaches and lives as a Christian, then that person – you and me – will not curse, swear, use satanic arts, or deceive by His Name.

 

So, in this petition, as Luther says, we can pray against all who preach, teach, and believe falsely, who persecute the Word of God by violence, and against those who lie, deceive, revile, and curse against us, so that His Name may become holy, that the whole world may not curse and swear by His Name, but rather pray and call upon Him, according to the Second Commandment.

 

Now to the second petition, the second request, the second weapon: “Thy kingdom come.”

 

The second need which drives us to prayer is that we pray that God’s kingdom may come. Jesus is teaching us to pray so that we may be a part of the kingdom. But what is meant by “kingdom”? What exactly is the Father’s kingdom, God’s kingdom, the kingdom of heaven?

 

God’s kingdom comes in two ways: first, here, through His Means of Grace – His Word and Sacraments, and secondly, that in the future, eternal life is given to us.

 

The kingdom of heaven has been granted to us through the King of kings, our Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus is the King of righteousness and life against the devil, sin, eternal death, and all evil. He has given us His Holy Word, that it may be preached, in order that we might believe in Him and live holy lives. 

 

Therefore, we pray in this petition that the Holy Spirit may go out into the world with power, that many may come into His kingdom now – through the Church – and learn to believe and thus be partakers of redemption from sin, eternal death, and hell in the life to come.

 

The third request and weapon in the Lord’s Prayer is “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”

 

Prayer is not an easy task. Prayer isn’t easy, because through prayer, we actually place ourselves on the front line in the battle between God and Satan. You see, the moment the Holy Spirit enters our hearts and kindles faith in God, at that moment we then turn to God crying, “Our Father, who art in heaven…” At that moment, we also turn our backs on Satan. And Satan considers that a declaration of war. Nothing infuriates him more than to have someone liberated from his prison and returned home as a child and heir of God.

 

So, when you pray, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,” you have declared war on Satan. For Satan wants to prevent the will of God from being done. The devil cannot endure that the Word should be preached and the people accept it, so he sends his poisoned arrows: the fallen world and our sinful flesh, so that those would hinder God’s will.

 

And what is God’s will? That “everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day” (John 6:40).

 

Because of Satan’s hatred for God and His salvation, he holds nothing back. He undermines the Name and Word of God. He even seeks to keep us from receiving our daily bread, the necessities of life, in peace and thanksgiving.

 

In these first three petitions, we pray that God’s Name be hallowed through His Word and also in us, that we adhere to His Word in His kingdom now and in heaven, and that God would hinder those who oppose His will. As Luther says, until next week “let this be sufficient for this time on these first three petitions.” 

 

We do not stand alone in this battle; we do have Someone who goes into the battle ahead of us and fights for us: Jesus Christ. May Christ’s victory over Satan be also our victory. In the meantime, continue to pray to God for all your needs, for prayer is the greatest weapon against Satan. 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 Lent 4: "The Cross Is A Must" (John 3:14-21)

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 Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15).

 

Where do you look when you have a problem? Where do you go to find a solution? Do you fixate on your troubles, your mistakes, the mistakes of others, or do you look elsewhere for help? 

 

Satan wants us to live in darkness and disease, buried in remorse, anger, guilt, grudge, or condemnation. But today’s Gospel lesson announces a reason to look up. In Christ Jesus alone, there is everlasting light and life that overpowers all darkness and all disease. Jesus says, “The Cross is a must!” He says, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15).

 

Jesus was cursed so that we might live. God states in Deuteronomy 21: “If a man has committed a crime punishable by death and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain all night on the tree, but you shall bury him the same day, for a hanged man is cursed by God” (Deuteronomy 21:22-23a).

 

We like to blame others for our problems. It sure beats the work of self-assessment. Grumbling at God for our predicament comes more naturally than asking Him for help. How quickly we become discouraged and impatient toward our gracious God, as did the Israelites in the desert.

 

God is patient. He is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, but He will not forever put up with those who spurn His love. So, He sent fiery serpents to punish the grumbling Israelites. When bitten by these serpents, the people died. But some of those who haven’t been bitten, repented of their sin, and appealed to Moses saying, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord, that He take away the serpents from us” (Numbers 21:7).

 

So, Moses interceded for them to God. By God’s command, Moses made a bronze serpent and set it on a pole. It looked like the source of death, but by God’s power, whoever was bitten by a fiery serpent, should he look on the lifted-up snake, would live. 

 

The Son of Man was also lifted up. He hung on a criminal’s cross, from all outward appearances, He looked like a sinful person, but He was truly righteous. He took upon yours and my sins to take upon Himself the curse of sin.

 

Again, do you have troubles? Do you fixate on your mistakes? Sin has a way on taking over our lives – as St. James writes, “Desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death” (James 1:15). Sin brings forth more sin, and sin leads to death. Sin shrivels faith. Sin reduces us to anger and unhappiness. So, what can we do? 

 

“As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life” (John 3:14-15).

 

We look up to Jesus and His cross! We look up to Jesus, the sinless One who became sin for you in order to remove the curse and give you new life.

 

Again, Jesus says that His going to the cross is a must. It is a must that the Son of Man be lifted up because as the lifting up of the serpent was a must for the healing of a sinful people, so too, the lifting up of the Son of Man is a must for the salvation for the world.

 

God’s promise of healing and life was given to all who looked upon the bronze serpent lifted upon the pole, so also the promise of eternal life to all who cling to Him in the lifting up of the Son of Man.

 

Eternal life is only found in the crucified Son of Man. Apart from the bronze serpent on the pole, the fatally snake bitten Israelite had no possibility of healing. Likewise, apart from the Crucified, there is no salvation or eternal life. 

 

But Satan does not quit. He still hisses accusations at us. Satan says, “You still feel wretched. And you deserve to feel wretched.”

 

So, just as that bronze serpent made a sport of the fiery serpents, so too, Christ was lifted high upon the cross to silence our accuser.

Thus, we boast in Christ the Crucified. The Son of Man was lifted up on the cross to mock the old serpent, Satan. He made a public spectacle of the defeated devil. “[Jesus] disarmed the demonic rulers and authorities and put them to open shame, by triumphing over them in Him” (Colossians 2:15). Upon that cross, it was as if Satan was nailed to the cross, since through Christ’s death, He defeated Satan’s power to accuse us.

 

Not only does Jesus remove the curse of sin and silence the evil foe, He also heals our hurts and pain. By God’s command and promise, those who looked up at the bronze serpent were healed. Just imagine how those Israelites felt.

 

That bronze serpent’s power was not in itself, but to the reality that it pointed toward: Christ the Crucified. The lifted-up Son of Man heals all who cling to Him from the deadly bite of our evil foes: sin, eternal death and the devil.

 

Between the events of the wilderness and the crucifixion, we have an act of seeing – the bronze serpent – and an act of believing – the Son of Man lifted up; we have physical life and eternal life; and we have the way to the land of promise and Jesus, who is the Way.

 

In Word and Sacrament, look to Jesus in faith. As we read and hear His Scripture, know that those words are His Words. It is Jesus who is speaking. It is Jesus who is speaking Law and speaking Gospel. In Baptism, the Holy Spirit points us to Christ the Crucified. In the Lord’s Supper, we receive the victorious Crucified and Risen Christ’s body and blood under bread and wine, which forgives our sins and heals our faith.

 

In faith, look up to the crucified Christ, now raised and forever glorified! In Him is life everlasting, which overpowers all darkness and disease. For it is “by grace you have been saved through faith” (Ephesians 2:8a). We are saved by the act of believing, believing in the Son of Man, who was lifted up, so that we, by His grace, would have forgiveness of our sins and life everlasting.

 

In this fallen world, we will still face our evil foes. We will still face many bites, but their venom will not poison those who look up to Christ the Crucified.

 

So, come and let us fix our eyes on Jesus, who endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). For Jesus, the cross was a must for us and for our 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 Lent Midweek 3: "I Believe in the Holy Spirit" (The Third Article of the Creed)

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:

Two weeks ago, we heard how the Creator remains present and active in His creation. And despite our ongoing misuse and abuse of His creation, He keeps His creation going. Last week, we heard how God came into His created world to be present and active in a very unique way – as a human being, yet without sin. He came into this fallen world to defeat the power of sin and evil that Satan and we humans brought into it.

 

Tonight, God comes to be present and active in another way. This time, God sends His Holy Spirit into us, into our bodies.

 

Jesus gained His Lordship through death, but how do we come to know Jesus? We no longer see Jesus fully as He is. So, if we have never physically met Jesus, how do we come to know Him? On our own, we are left to saying, “I believe … that I cannot believe” in Jesus as my Lord or come to Him. If Jesus’ redemption remains hidden, then all is lost.

 

To this question, the Third Article of the Creed enters in:  

I believe in the Holy Spirit,

     the holy Christian Church,

          the communion of saints,

     the forgiveness of sins,

     the resurrection of the body,

     and the life + everlasting.

 

So, in order that Christ’s death and resurrection may not remain hidden, the Holy Spirit comes and preaches, that is, the Holy Spirit leads us to the Lord, who redeems us.

 

The Holy Spirit sanctifies us through the following works: through the “forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting.”

 

To this, Luther says, “the Christian church is your mother, who gives birth to you and bears you through the Word. And this is done by the Holy Spirit who bears witness concerning Christ.”

 

In regard to the Holy Spirit, He leads the holy Christian Church, the communion of saints. This “communion of saints” is the Christian church, which is made up of saints, a congregation of saints. And you are in this Church, as the Holy Spirit makes us saints through the preaching of the gospel. It is only through the Christian Church that the Holy Spirit sanctifies us. Otherwise, we would never know or hear about Christ.

 

Then in this Christian Church sanctified by the Holy Spirit, we receive “the forgiveness of sins.” We receive the forgiveness of sins in the following ways: Holy Baptism, Absolution, the Lord’s Supper, hearing the Word preached, and the commendation of the dying. This is where we receive forgiveness. Outside of the Christian Church, there is no sanctification and there is no forgiveness.

 

Thirdly, the Holy Spirit will sanctify us through “the resurrection of the flesh.” So, after our death, sin will have completely passed away and the Holy Spirit will then complete His work. Therefore, after death, there is nothing but eternal life.

 

Outside the Christian Church, there is no sanctification. There is no justification. There is no salvation.

 

Here, in the one holy Christian and apostolic Church, the Holy Spirit preaches. He calls you and makes Christ known to you. 

 

Earlier this week, Elsie surprised Melissa and me. While Melissa was singing “Create in Me a Clean Heart,” the historic offertory from Psalm 51, Melissa paused and without any coaching, Elsie continued the song. That was the work of the Holy Spirit in Elsie. By being immersed in the liturgy week after week, the Holy Spirit inspired Elsie with what to say next. That is the work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. He teaches us the faith through Word and Sacraments.

 

The Holy Spirit breathes into you the faith that through the Sacraments and God’s Word, you will be made free from sin. So, when you die, while remaining in the Church, the Holy Spirit will raise you up and sanctify you wholly.

 

Tonight, we have finished our series on the Second Chief Part, the Creed. Through the Creed, we can each say: “I believe in God, that He is my creator, in Jesus Christ, that He is my Lord, and in the Holy Spirit, that He is my sanctifier.” We can say, “God has created me and given me life, soul, body, and all goods; Christ has brought me into His Lordship through His body; and the Holy Spirit sanctifies me through His Word and Sacraments, which are in the Church, and will sanctify me wholly on the Last Day.”

 

The Creed is different from the Ten Commandments. The Commandments teach us what we should do, but the Creed teaches what we have received from God. The Creed, therefore, gives us what we need, so now, that we know God, we are now able to pray to our dear Father in heaven. 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 Lent 3: "The Word of the Cross" (1 Corinthians 1:18-31)

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 the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18).

 

Today, according to the fallen world, the Ten Commandments – as we heard in today’s Old Testament lesson – seem like foolishness from a time gone by. But they are the wisdom of God for all ages, given in love for the safety of His people. And to each of the Ten Commandments in the Large Catechism, Martin Luther teaches over and over and over again to not regard the Commandments as a joke, because they are no joke to God.

 

To put it into an ever-wider context, to the fallen world, the entire Bible itself is foolishness. Sadly, even many professing Christians would agree with that sentiment. But the Bible is the very Word of God from cover to cover. And through that Bible, the Holy Spirit brings us to faith in the One who is the Savior from sin, eternal death, and the devil.

 

And in our Gospel lesson, the people selling oxen, sheep and pigeons, along with the money changers in the temple show the foolishness of the people – those who turned God’s house into a marketplace.

 

Then in our text from 1 Corinthians 1, the Holy Spirit inspires St. Paul to write about the word of the cross: “For the word of the cross is folly to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God” (1 Corinthians 1:18).

 

The word of the cross is foolishness. It’s foolishness for those who are perishing. To these people, the word of the cross makes no sense to them. We all know family, friends, and neighbors, who see the cross of Christ as utter foolishness. A God who comes to this world where everybody hates Him and everybody wants to murder Him, and this God lets them? Why? Because He loves them? To worldly thinkers, this makes no sense. In fact, it’s downright foolish. Who would humble Himself to that degree? Who would put Himself into that situation with a bunch of ingrates?

 

We all know people who truly believe that the cross is foolishness and that you are a fool for confessing your faith in Christ this day. Whenever you speak to a person who believes you are a fool for talking about Christ, you usually get that look. You know that look. The look that says, “This is a waste of time. This is foolishness.”

 

I have gotten that look more times than I can count and even from close friends and relatives. “You mean, you believe that marriage is only between one man and one woman? You’ve got to be kidding.” “You mean, you believe that the Bible is written by God? You know, it was only written by men.” “You mean, Jesus is the only Savior? You’ve got to be kidding.”

 

We’ve all been there. The word of the cross is foolishness. It’s foolishness for those who are perishing.

 

For the Jews, they see the crucifixion of the Messiah as a stumbling block because anyone killed on a cross was cursed. It was scandalous to think that their God was executed as a criminal.

 

For the Greeks of Paul’s day, the cross is foolishness, absolute nonsense, that displays a senseless act of thinking. It makes no sense. Glory or wisdom or life doesn’t come from a form of execution.

 

The cross may be foolishness for those who are perishing, but we are to tell those who are perishing about Christ anyway, because they, too, need saving. And we do this telling not through compulsion or threat, but through the Holy Spirit as He leads us through our God-given vocations – our stations, or callings – in life as a parent, a child, a sibling, a cousin, employee, teacher, or friend. Now, to those you speak about Jesus, they will think that there is something wrong with you. And there is something wrong. But this problem is not with Jesus or even with the cross. There is something terribly wrong with this world. 

 

You see, ever since Adam and Eve listened to that serpent, we’ve been wired for something different than what God has to offer. So much so, that we think that what God has to offer us is utter foolishness. Our fallen nature says this is naïve. Our fallen nature says that God is just a pipe dream. It’s not worth our time. 

 

What was it that the serpent promised Eve? He promised her wisdom. Wisdom is what Satan was offering her. “So, when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate” (Genesis 3:6). The Fall of man. Eve, the helper, usurped Adam’s place as head of the household, and Adam let it all happen. God’s Order of Creation became topsy-turvy; it became upside-down. The Fall happened because of Satan’s promise of wisdom. “You’ll be just like God.” 

 

Wisdom. All you have to do is to set your own agenda, forget God’s Law and everything He has told you, and listen to someone else, which so happens to be Satan. This is the world’s wisdom.

 

Paul asks, “Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age?” (1 Corinthians 1:20). 

 

The fallen world says: Wow them with what you know; wow them with your arguments. It doesn’t even have to be true. Evil is good. Good is evil. Up is down. Down is up. Men can be women. Women can be men. All it needs to be is persuasive. It doesn’t even need to be true. This is the world’s version of wisdom. If you say enough lies, the lies will become all too seductive and replace truth. This worked pretty well with Eve. And Satan knows what he’s talking about. “Did God actually say?”(Genesis 3:1). With one bite she chose to listen to Satan and his version of wisdom. She ate from the forbidden tree. And she gave that fruit to Adam and he ate.

 

Only another tree could save Adam and Eve. And this tree would not be any tree in the Garden of Eden. Adam and Eve would be banished from Eden for their own protection. So, it would have to be another tree. A tree planted thousands of years later outside that Garden. This tree would be the tree of life on which the Son of God would die for what Adam and Eve did so long ago as they brought sin and pride upon creation. Upon that cross, the Son of God would also die for those sins of thought, word, and deed that you and I have done all do recently.

 

The tree that brought death to our Lord brought life to the world. Upon this tree was nailed Jesus, the Lord of Life, of which we eat every time we come to the Lord’s Supper. We receive the fruit of that tree: the body and blood of our Lord given and shed for you and me for the forgiveness of our sins.

 

The tree of the cross is truly the tree of life for you and for me and for all who cling to the “God who so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life” (John 3:16). God the Father gave His only-begotten Son on that tree to remedy our sin and rebellion and our chasing after the world’s wisdom.

 

But again, for those who are perishing, that wondrous cross of which we glory is still embarrassing. It’s nothing but foolishness. 

 

The word of the cross is foolishness for those who are perishing, but we ought not give up on telling others about what Christ’s crucifixion, His bodily resurrection, and His bodily ascension into heaven mean for you and for them. It means that we have salvation and all by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. And that He is still with us to the end of the age (Matthew 28:20b). For us who are being saved, the word of the cross is not foolish; it is the power of God.

Now, the word of the cross may sound foolish to the worldly wise. We do preach Christ crucified, which is a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but for those who are saved, Christ is “the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men” (1 Corinthians 1:24-25). Amen.

 

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

 

+ SOLI DEO GLORIA +