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The Urgency of the Banquet

6/29/2022

Brunswick Monogramist, circa 1525. Pubic Domain.

Gospel: Luke 14:12-24
12 [Jesus] said also to the man who had invited him, “When you give a dinner or a banquet, do not invite your friends or your brothers or your relatives or rich neighbors, lest they also invite you in return and you be repaid. 13 But when you give a feast, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, 14 and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the just.”
15 When one of those who reclined at table with him heard these things, he said to him, “Blessed is everyone who will eat bread in the kingdom of God!” 16 But he said to him, “A man once gave a great banquet and invited many. 17 And at the time for the banquet he sent his servant to say to those who had been invited, ‘Come, for everything is now ready.’ 18 But they all alike began to make excuses. The first said to him, ‘I have bought a field, and I must go out and see it. Please have me excused.’ 19 And another said, ‘I have bought five yoke of oxen, and I go to examine them. Please have me excused.’ 20 And another said, ‘I have married a wife, and therefore I cannot come.’ 21 So the servant came and reported these things to his master. Then the master of the house became angry and said to his servant, ‘Go out quickly to the streets and lanes of the city, and bring in the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’ 22 And the servant said, ‘Sir, what you commanded has been done, and still there is room.’ 23 And the master said to the servant, ‘Go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in, that my house may be filled. 24 For I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.’

Trinity 2
Luke 14:12-24
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
June 26, 2022

Tortured for Christ is an autobiographical book written by Richard Wurmbrand, a Christian pastor who spent fourteen years being tortured in a Communist prison. Wurmbrand was born a Jew in Romania in 1909 and in his youth, he was a staunch atheist. As a young man he was converted to Christianity and became a Lutheran pastor. He described in the book that when he first became a Christian, he was filled with joy, yet he was brought to tears at the thought of so many people, who did not know Christ Jesus as their Savior. Wurmbrand devoted his life to preaching the Gospel and thereby invited people to the Lord’s heavenly Banquet. When the Communists took over Romania, Wurmbrand continued to preach the Gospel to his own peril and the peril of his family. And what is even more remarkable, many people believed the Gospel and became Christians, even though accepting the invitation to this Banquet came with great suffering. Being a practicing Christian behind the atheist Iron Curtain was dangerous. You could lose your job, your property, your family, your freedom, and your life. Yet, people would lose all these in order to accept the invitation to Christ’s Banquet. Even Communist soldiers and prison guards, who formerly arrested and even tortured Christians would be converted and find themselves imprisoned next to the Christians they once harmed.

This is remarkable, yet it makes sense. Jesus says immediately after this parable, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. … any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 24:26-27, 33) The Gospel of Jesus Christ is worth losing everything for. If a person is wise, he’d be willing to lose everything in order to accept the invitation to the Lord’s Banquet. Yet, that is not how Jesus’ parable goes.

In Jesus’ parable, those invited to the banquet make excuses. One just bought a field, and for some reason that compels him to miss the banquet. Another bought five yoke of oxen and can’t find another time to test them than during the banquet. Another man has married a wife, and so he claims that he cannot come. They refuse the invitation to the banquet. No one is threatening them. The man’s farm will still be there. The oxen can wait. The man could bring his wife. Yet, they say things like, “I have need” and, “I cannot come.”

And this is far more common when it comes to people being invited to Christ’s Banquet. While some will lose everything and suffer greatly in order to accept the invitation to the Banquet, most turn down the invitation like it is nothing important.

But before we go further, what is this Banquet to which God invites us? The Banquet is the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The master sends his servant to tell those invited, “Come, for everything is now ready!”, that is, everything is prepared! What has been prepared? Jesus Christ for us. God sent forth his Son, who is true God from eternity, to be born of a virgin and take on our human flesh. This God-man lived under the Law for us. He obeyed what we ought to have obeyed. And he fulfilled every demand of the Law. And so, Jesus was prepared as the Sacrifice to end all sacrifices. He was without spot or blemish. No stain of sin had touched him, because he loved perfectly. And this sinless man died for our sins, suffering the anguish of hell on the cross. How could one man bear the sins of the whole world? How could his death be a sufficient price? Because this man is God. His death makes full satisfaction for the sins of the whole world. And he proved that he paid for every last sin of every last sinner by rising from the dead on the third day.

That is what is prepared for us at the Banquet to which God invites us. Jesus says, “I am the bread that comes down from heaven.” (John 6:41) And “My flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink.” (John 6:55) But a banquet is no good if you don’t come to it, sit down, and eat. So, Jesus sends out his servants to invite people to his Banquet. Those who accept this invitation do so through faith. Jesus says, “Whoever comes to me shall never hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.” (John 6:35) And “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. Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day.” (John 6:53-54)

So, God prepares a meal for us that grants us eternal life. And he invites those who cannot pay him back to come and feast. And we feast on this meal through faith, believing the promise of forgiveness and eternal salvation for the sake of Christ’s suffering and death. Right here on this earth we have a foretaste of the heavenly feast to come. We receive the forgiveness of sins here today. We learn that we are God’s children now. Christ has even prepared for us a meal, whereby we eat and drink his body and blood for the forgiveness of our sins, strengthening of faith and love, and certainty of eternal life.

The Lord’s Supper is Christ’s body and blood, the same body and blood which was nailed to the cross and poured from his wounds; the same body which was laid dead in the tomb and rose victorious Easter morning; the same body, which ascended to the right hand of God the Father with sin, death, and hell under his feet. That is what we participate in in the Lord’s Supper. We don’t bother ourselves with how this can be, how we are able to eat his body and blood without destroying it, how he can be present here and in so many places. Jesus is God and man. He can do far more than we can ask or think. We believe his promise.

And so, Christians have been gathering every week on the day on which Jesus rose from the dead to accept the invitation to this heavenly Banquet and to taste a foretaste of it. In fact, we commune with Christ himself and all who have accepted this invitation, both those in heaven and those still on earth. The foretaste of this Banquet gives us certainty that our seat is reserved in heaven. The foretaste of this Banquet, which is the proclamation of the Gospel and the blessed Sacraments, gives us the faith we need to arrive at that heavenly Banquet, where there is eternal life, joy, peace, and rest. There we will see Christ as he is and our bodies will be like his, imperishable, without sickness, pain, or death. We will live forever and we will never sin again. And Jesus our Savior and God will be our Friend and eternal Companion.

So, you can see why people would risk losing their families, being tortured and killed, in order to accept this invitation. But most will not. Most will refuse the invitation. And they’ll refuse the invitation to Christ’s banquet in order to pursue things on this earth. When invited to church, they will say things like the men in Jesus’ parable, “I must go” and see to something else. “I can’t come.” Many try to convince themselves that going to church to hear the Word of God and receiving Christ’s Sacrament is not necessary to go to Christ’s heavenly Banquet in heaven. They think that refusing to partake of the foretaste of the feast over and over again will have no ill effect on their faith, which is necessary to enter into the feast. But they behave foolishly. Have you sinned this week? Have you lusted, hated, spoken ill of another, coveted what isn’t yours? Have you loved God with your whole heart? Has Satan tried your faith? Is Jesus and the eternal life he grants you less important than your job, your wife, your money, and your leisure?

We should have a sense of urgency when it comes to going to church to hear the Gospel and commune with Christ. “I tell you, none of those men who were invited shall taste my banquet.”, says the Lord.   Those who refuse to believe in the Gospel will be forever locked out of the heavenly Banquet. That means they will be cast into hell. You cannot believe in the Gospel unless you hear it. And refusing to hear the Gospel and to commune with Christ is a sign of profoundly weak faith, which borders on death. If that isn’t a warning that you need to hear the Gospel and be strengthened in faith, I don’t know what is. When you don’t think you need to go to church, that is when you need to go the most!

Why don’t people go to church? It’s simple. They don’t think they need it. But they think they need a lot of other things. They’ll drive an hour to go to work each morning, but the drive to church each week is too much. They’ll get up early and take their kids to a sports tournament, but bringing them to hear the words of eternal life is less important. But they’re wrong. They need Jesus.

The master told his servant to gather in the poor, crippled, blind, and lame, so that he might fill his house. People don’t think they’re poor, crippled, blind, and lame. They think they’re okay. They think they don’t need the Banquet, at least, not that badly. But the truth is, we all desperately need this Banquet. Without it, we have no life. We’re sinners. We’re poor. We’ve got nothing to offer God. We’re in debt that an eternity in hell cannot pay off. We are crippled and lame. We can’t even do what is right when we know what is right. Our actions are riddled with sin. We’re blind. We don’t even see how sinful we are. People don’t come to church and they don’t accept the invitation to the heavenly Banquet, because they don’t know how poor, crippled, blind, and lame they are.

But thanks be to God, the Good Master orders his servant to go out to the highways and hedges and compel people to come in. Compel. How do God’s servants compel us to come to his banquet? They do this by preaching the Law to us, which exposes our sin. Through preachers, who preach the Law from the Bible, God compels sinners by calling them sinners. St. Paul said, “I would not have known what it is to covet, if the Law had not said, ‘You shall not covet.’” And so, the Law exposes you as a sinner. Do you love the Lord your God with all your heart soul and mind? Do you call upon his name with prayer and thanksgiving? Do you enjoy learning his Word? Do you love your neighbor as yourself? Do you seek to help others and pray for your enemies? Are you chaste, or do obey your lusts? Have you ever cheated or damaged another person’s property? Do you always tell the truth and seek to protect the reputations of others? Are you content with what God has given you? God’s Law exposes us as idolaters, fornicators, thieves, liars, and murderers.

Yet, the preaching of the Law alone cannot compel anyone into the Banquet. Then the preacher must preach the Gospel, that Christ Jesus has died for all your sins, that though your sins were as scarlet, he has made them white as snow, that though you can never pay him back, he invites you to dine with him for eternity.

If the Law has had its affect and convinced you that you are a sinner, then the Gospel will give you joy that God forgives your sins for Christ’s sake. If the Law has done its job and shown the danger of your sin, then the Gospel will assure you that God has saved you from eternal hell. This is how God compels sinners, who don’t even know what they need, to enter into his heavenly Banquet through faith. And that is why we should never neglect the foretaste of this Banquet, but gladly hear the Gospel and receive the Sacrament whenever it is offered.

Amen.

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What's at Stake

6/20/2022

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Meister des Codex Aureus Epternacensis, Parable of the Rich Man and the Beggar Lazarus, circa 1035-1040. Public Domain.

Trinity 1
Luke 16:19-31
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
June 19, 2022

What is at stake? When discussing matters of religion, what is at stake? Jesus tells us. The rich man died and found himself in fiery anguish. The poor man died and angels carried him to the bosom of Abraham.   There is no middle ground. When you die, you either go to heaven or hell. Jesus teaches you clearly that you should fear eternal punishment if you do not repent.

The rich man went to hell. Lazarus went to heaven. There is no other option when you die. And heaven and hell are forever. Jesus says in Matthew 25, “And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.” There is a great chasm between heaven and hell. No one can pass from one to the other. So, the only time we have to prevent spending an eternity in hell is now. Once you die, it is too late. The stakes are high. We should not fool around with matters of religion. Rather, we should pursue the truth. We must know how we go to heaven and not to hell.

Why did the rich man go to hell? Why did poor Lazarus go to heaven? It’s not that the rich all go to hell and the poor all go to heaven. Abraham was rich, and we see that he went to heaven. And poor people can certainly go to hell. We find our answer by the fact that poor Lazarus is carried by angels to Abraham’s bosom. Abraham’s bosom is an image of heaven, because God gave the Gospel promise to Abraham and he believed it. God told Abraham, “In your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed.” (Genesis 22:18) The promise which will bless all nations is in Abraham’s offspring, that means, it comes from Abraham’s body. This means that Jesus Christ would be born a descendent of Abraham, and that all who believe in him will be eternally blessed. How do we know that those who believe in him will be blessed? Because Abraham himself believed the Lord and it was counted to him as righteousness (Genesis 15:6).

Not only did the promise concern Abraham’s body, because God promised that the Savior would come from Abraham’s body, but the promise concerned Abraham’s faith, because Abraham believed the promise. This shows that the true children of Abraham are those who believe the promise. St. Paul explains this in Galatians chapter 3, “Abraham ‘believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’? Know then that it is those of faith who are sons of Abraham. And the Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, ‘In you shall all nations be blessed.’ So then, those who are of faith are blessed along with Abraham, the man of faith.” (vss. 6-9)

Yet, how do we know that the rich man did not have faith in the promise of Abraham? And how do we know that Lazarus did? Abraham tells us. He told the rich man that he received good things in his lifetime, but Lazarus received bad things. What this means is that the rich man stored up treasures on earth where moth and rust destroy, and which are lost to you when you die, but Lazarus stored up his treasures in heaven and remained poor in spirit on earth. It’s not just that the rich man was rich, but that the rich man worshipped his riches. He served mammon rather than God. And it was not just that Lazarus was poor. He was poor in spirit. He desired only to be clothed and fed, otherwise, he was content. His treasure was in heaven, from which he eagerly waited for his Savior.

The rich man lacked love. St. John tells us, “But if anyone has the world’s goods and sees his brother in need, yet closes his heart against him, how does God’s love abide in him?” (1 John 3:17) The rich man had the world’s goods. His brother was in need right at the gate of his very house. Yet, his heart remained closed to poor Lazarus. So, we must conclude that the love of God did not abide in the rich man.

St. John again teaches us, “We love because [God] first loved us.” (1 John 4:19) Of course, God loves the whole world (John 3:16). So, what this means is, those who receive God’s love through faith will love, but those who do not know God’s love will not love. Jesus says this very thing in Luke chapter 7, when he speaks of the sinful woman who washed his feet, “Therefore I tell you, her sins, which are many, are forgiven—for she loved much. But he who is forgiven little, loves little.” (Luke 7:46) He then turns to the woman and says, “Your faith has saved you.” The woman had faith in the forgiveness of sins, so she loved much. But a person who does not believe in the forgiveness of sins, who does not accept God’s love through Christ Jesus, will not love much.

It is important that you get this in the right order. Some people think that you go to heaven and are saved, because of how you love. Many even think that faith in Jesus is not important, as long as you love. But Scripture makes clear that you cannot love unless you first have faith in God’s love. And it is not possible to please God unless you have faith (Hebrews 11:6). This is very offensive. People don’t want to hear that they can’t love. Love is so personal. “Are you saying that if I’m not a Christian that I don’t love my wife or my children or my dog?” Yet, when people say things like this, they ignore the fact that we are by nature sinful. As Jesus says, “Out of the mouth come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander.” (Matthew 15:19) So, even if unbelievers do show outward acts of love, which they do, their love is tainted with sinful desires. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. No one loves purely. And without faith, the love we show is not pleasing to God.

Yet, if you have faith in Christ, you must bear good fruits of love. It is not optional to love. “If anyone says, ‘I love God’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” (1 John 4:20) If you have faith in God, you love God. And if you love God, you love your neighbor, because God loves your neighbor. When you love your neighbor, you confess God’s love for his creation.

The word love has been greatly perverted, so it is important to remember that love is God’s Word. God is love (1 John 4:16). And God demonstrates love in this way, by giving his Son to die for us so that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have everlasting life (John 3:16). So, the love we then show should mirror the love God shows to us. Our love should be selfless and for our neighbor’s good. This is why we should seek to clothe the naked, feed the hungry, and visit the sick. We should seek to preach the Gospel to those who have not heard it, so that they may escape their sins.

There is a catchphrase, which says, “Love is love,” which is meant to defend all forms of sexual immorality. But there is a big difference between love and sexual infatuation and lust. Love is not lust. Love does not seek to do harm to a neighbor or rejoice in wrongdoing (Romans 13:10; 1 Corinthians 13:6). So, defending or promoting sexual immorality in any of its forms is not loving in the least bit. Sexual immorality focuses a person in on himself and his own lusts. It does not seek out the good in the neighbor. And sexual immorality is not only damaging to the body, but it is destructive to the soul. Scripture warns, “Do not be deceived: neither the sexually immoral, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor men who practice homosexuality, nor thieves, nor the greedy, nor drunkards, nor revilers will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 6:9-10) And so it is loving to call fornication, homosexuality, adultery, pornography, narcissism, drunkenness, and all other sins which are now celebrated, sins. We should warn people of the dangers of sin, call them to repent and to believe in the Gospel. Those who are currently celebrating pride in sexual perversions need to be called to repentance and they need to know that Jesus died for their sins, so that they too may be saved.

Three times the rich man from hell called Abraham his father. He no doubt was a Jew, who could trace his lineage back to Abraham. But in fact, Abraham was not his father. If Abraham were the rich man’s father, then the rich man would have done what Abraham did. Abraham listened to the word of God and believed the Lord. Abraham offered food and shelter to strangers and helped those in distress. St. Paul says in Romans chapter 9, “Not all are children of Abraham because they are his offspring, but ‘Through Isaac shall your offspring be named.’” This means that we are children of Abraham when we believe in the promise of Jesus Christ, the descendant of Isaac. And children of Abraham prove that they are his children by how they love one another.

Most of us are probably not physical descendants of Abraham, but we who believe in Jesus Christ as our Savior are certainly children of Abraham through faith. Abraham is our father. And this also serves as a good message for fathers on Father’s Day. Any man can become a father. What makes a good father? Well, it must be spending time with your children, sharing your interests with them and taking an interest in theirs; it must be to teach them how to catch and throw a ball, take them fishing, and tell some good “Dad jokes.” And that’s all fine and all, but that is not what makes a man a good father. There is one thing that is indispensable to being a good father, and that is teaching your children the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Abraham told the rich man that his brothers needed to listen to Moses and the Prophets, that is, to Holy Scripture in order for them to be converted. The rich man disagreed. He thought a dead man rising could scare them into faith. But that’s not how it works. Faith comes by hearing and hearing through the word of Christ (Romans 10:17). The only way for these brothers of the rich man to become children of Abraham, was for them to listen to the promise of Jesus Christ. We aren’t scared into faith, but we are converted by the promise that Christ has paid for all our sins and that whoever believes in him will be saved. This is also why fathers should teach their children the Gospel at home and bring them to church to hear Moses, the Prophets, and the Apostles, who all proclaim Jesus.

Our communities would be much better off if fathers would be married to the mothers of their children, and if fathers would work hard, yet still spend quality time with their kids. But the stakes are much higher than living in a nice community and having good memories here on earth. The stakes are eternal damnation and eternal salvation. This is why every father should acknowledge his duty to be a spiritual father to his children. Scripture says, “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord.” (Ephesians 6:4) The most important thing for a Christian father to pass on to his children is the saving faith, that all who repent of their sins and trust in Christ Jesus for forgiveness, will be saved. That is the most loving thing a father can do for his children. And if he believes in the Lord Jesus, he will strive to do it.

God grant all Christian fathers the strength to carry out this sacred task and grace to their children to keep the faith. Amen.

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The Evangelical Trinity

6/15/2022

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The Holy Trinity, Peter Paul Rubens, 1616-17. Public Domain.

Trinity Sunday
Romans 11:33-36
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran Church
June 12, 2022

Once a year on Trinity Sunday the Church confesses the Athanasian Creed. You’re familiar with the Apostles’ Creed. The Apostles’ Creed was confessed when you were Baptized. You were taught it in Catechism Class. It should be a part of your daily prayers at home along with the Ten Commandments and the Lord’s Prayer. You’re familiar with the Nicene Creed. The Church confesses the Nicene Creed every Divine Service where Holy Communion is offered. If you attend Church regularly, you probably don’t need to look at your hymnal to recite the Nicene Creed with the congregation. Yet, the Athanasian Creed is different. We don’t say it too often. It’s long. And it’s repetitive. And with its tedious language and assertion that whoever does not believe it whole and undefiled will perish eternally, it makes some people uncomfortable.

But in fact, the Athanasian Creed is a wonderful Confession, which every Christian should hold dear. It is named for St. Athanasius, a fourth century Bishop of Alexandria in Egypt, who was a staunch defender of the teaching of the Holy Trinity. Athanasius suffered much for his defense of the doctrine of the Trinity, frequently being exiled and unjustly removed from his position as bishop. Yet, the Church holds Athanasius in high esteem for his defense of the truth. Some might think that Athanasius was deposed and exiled so frequently, because he was a cantankerous old curmudgeon, who didn’t know how to compromise. But in fact, Athanasius suffered so readily for the doctrine of the Trinity, because he was so devoted to the truth of Scripture and to the Gospel of Jesus Christ, which alone saves.

Over the first several centuries of the New Testament Church, the Church produced and edited a number of Creeds, articulating its teaching of the Holy Trinity. This has caused many to assert that the doctrine of the Trinity was invented by the Church, that it evolved over time. But that is not so. The Church continued to articulate and clarify the teaching of the Trinity, because this teaching has been so viciously attacked. And the teaching of the Trinity has been so viciously attacked, because it conflicts with human reason. How can God be one, yet there be three persons. Either there are three gods or the three persons are not all God, or the three persons are not three persons. This is how human reason thinks. But Scripture says, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” (Romans 11:33) It is not our job to judge the teaching of Holy Scripture or determine whether what God teaches in it is rational. Rather, it is our job to hear the Word of God and keep it. It should not surprise us that there are things about God and his ways, which are past finding out. To have faith does not mean that you understand everything. To have faith means that you trust what God says, even when you do not understand it.

The Athanasian Creed expands on the teaching of the Apostles’ and Nicene Creed. It teaches that there is one God, yet three persons. and that one of these three persons, who is God, became man and suffered, died, and rose for our salvation. The Athanasian Creed calls itself the catholic faith, which might surprise some Lutherans. But the word catholic simply comes from two Greek words meaning, “according to the whole.” This means that the Athanasian Creed claims to be the faith that has always at all places and at all times of the Christian Church been taught. So, even we Lutherans can call ourselves catholic, because we believe our faith is the faith passed on by God himself through the prophets and apostles.

The teaching of the Trinity is catholic, not because it was invented by the Church, but because it is taught in Holy Scripture. There is only one God. Deuteronomy 6:4 states, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” Yet, Scripture also makes clear that the Father is God, the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God. Yet, the Father is not the Son. Jesus tells us that the Father gave his Son to die for us (John 3:16). And the Father is not the Holy Spirit. Jesus tells us that the Father sends us the Holy Spirit (John 14:26). And the Holy Spirit is not the Son. Jesus tells his disciples that he will send them the Holy Spirit (John 16:17). So, you cannot say that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are the same person, because Scripture makes clear that they are distinct from one another.

Yet, there is only one God. And the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is God. The Father is not greater than the Son or the Holy Spirit. Neither is one before or after another. None is mightier than another. All three are equally infinite, eternal, and almighty. In fact, they share one substance. That means that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is each one-hundred percent God. Yet, there remains only one God.

This teaching is incomprehensible, yet it is clearly taught in Scripture. If you read Scripture, you will find that there is only one God. And you will find that the Father is God, that he is infinite, eternal, and almighty. You will find the same for the Son and the Holy Spirit. And you will find that though they are one, they are distinct, just as the Old Testament calls both the LORD and the Angel of the LORD God (Genesis 22:11-12; Exodus 3:2-6; Judges 13:21-22). This is why the angels in Isaiah 6 cry, “Holy, Holy, Holy, LORD God of Sabaoth.” The LORD is thrice Holy for his three persons. This is why St. Paul writes, ‘For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.” (Romans 11:36) There are three Hims, yet there is only one Him. This is why Jesus says, “We speak of what we know and bear witness to what we have seen.” (John 3:11) Who is we? The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is why Jesus commands the Church to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). The only reason to deny the teaching of the Holy Trinity, is because it offends our human reason. Well, let God be true and every man a liar. To God alone be glory. His ways are past finding out. Yet, he has revealed in his Holy Word, that he is three in one!

The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is so important, not simply because it is right. You can be wrong about things and still be saved. The doctrine of the Holy Trinity is so important, because only the Triune God saves. Those who deny the Holy Trinity, deny the God of the Bible. And those who deny the Holy Trinity, invariably deny that a sinner is saved by grace, that is, as a free gift through faith alone. Yet, those who hold fast to the teaching of the Trinity hold fast to the Gospel by which the Trinity saves.

Only God the Father sent his Son to save sinners. No other god could or would do that. And the Son he sent was not an honorary son. God didn’t send an angel. He didn’t send any created being. He sent him, who was from the beginning with him, him by whom all things were made and without whom nothing was made (John 1:1-3, 14). Our God sent God to take on our human nature, to fulfill the Law in our place, and to suffer and die in our stead. This is why St. Paul is able to say that they crucified the Lord of Glory (1 Corinthians 2:8) and why St. Peter was able to tell the Jews in Jerusalem, “You killed the Author of Life!” (Acts 3:15), and how St. Paul again is able to declare that God purchased the Church with his own blood (Acts 20:28). Now how can the Lord of Glory die? How can they kill the Author of life? How can God have blood to shed? Because, the Son, who is true God became man. God the Son is united in one person with human flesh, so the man who died and rose for our sins is indeed our God.

This of course gives us confidence in our salvation! Are you troubled by your sins? Do you lament with the Psalmist, “For my iniquities have gone over my head; like a heavy burden, they are too heavy for me.”? What is greater than God’s own blood? The Triune God has granted you certainty of salvation through Jesus Christ, the God-man, who has died and is risen for you.

Although the doctrine of the Holy Trinity is taught throughout the Old Testament, it is most clearly taught in the New Testament, because Jesus reveals the Trinity to us. We see this in Jesus’ Baptism when the Holy Spirit descends on him like a dove and the Father calls him his beloved Son from heaven. We hear it in Jesus’ teaching of the work of the Father and the Holy Spirit and in his command to baptize in that name. Jesus tells us that if we have seen him, we have seen the Father (John 14:9). Jesus tells us that he is the way, the truth, and the life, and that no one comes to the Father except through him (John 14:6). We can only know the Father’s love for us through Jesus whom he has sent to die for us.

The divinity of the Holy Spirit is of great comfort to us as well. Do you have difficulty believing? That is not surprising, because it is in fact impossible for you to believe. You are born of the flesh. That which is born of flesh is flesh. If you are to believe in the Holy Trinity, then you must be born again. And God has sent the Holy Spirit to cause this new birth in you. When you are baptized, you are born again of water and the Spirit. God did not send an angel to try to convert your sinful flesh. He hasn’t sent you a mere helper to guide your way. God has sent God, the Holy Spirit, to cause you to be born again after the image of Christ, so that you might be a new person, washed free from sin. This should give you confidence to believe and something to throw against all doubt. You cannot believe, but the Holy Spirit, who works through the Word of Christ certainly can make you believe. He is God. He is all powerful.

Finally, some are troubled by the words of the Athanasian Creed, which say, “At His coming all people will rise again with their bodies and give an account concerning their own deeds. And those who have done good will enter into eternal life, and those who have done evil into eternal fire.” This might sound un-Lutheran, but it is not. This is what Jesus says in John chapter 5, “For an hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come out, those who have done good to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of judgment.” (vss. 28-29) But neither Jesus nor the Athanasian Creed says that those who have done good earn their salvation, but rather, those who enter into salvation have done good. Jesus also says in John chapter 5, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life. He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.” (vs. 24) But it is important to remember that it is impossible to do good unless you are born again of the Spirit. And if you are born again of the Spirit, then you will do good. This does not mean that you will earn your way to salvation, but rather that God is pleased with you for Christ’s sake and the Holy Spirit is working good through you.

On Trinity Sunday, we celebrate the God, revealed in Scripture, who alone saves us by his grace. He alone has the power to save. He alone made the plan to save us. And he alone has revealed that plan to us. In the Athanasian Creed, we see a beautiful summary of the Christian faith, and how our God is invincible to save us.

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All Who Call Upon the Name of the Lord will be Saved

6/8/2022

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Pentecost, Giotto, 1304-1306. Public Domain.

Pentecost 2022
Acts 2:1-21; John 14:23-31
Pastor James Preus
Trinity Lutheran church
June 5, 2022

What was the greatest miracle the Holy Spirit did on Pentecost? There were many. On Pentecost the Holy Spirit rushed upon the disciples and caused divided tongues of fire to rest on each of the heads in whom the Holy Spirit dwelt. They spoke languages they had never learned. St. Peter, quoting the Prophet Joel, lists the mighty works the Holy Spirit accomplished on that day: young men see visions, old men dream dreams, men and women prophesy. And of course, the Holy Spirit continued to work with them. The apostles cured the sick and healed the crippled. They were bitten by venomous snakes and drank poison and were not harmed. They even raised the dead! So, which of these marvelous works that Holy Spirit began to accomplish on that Pentecost is the greatest miracle that the Holy Spirit performed? The fire, the speaking in tongues, the prophecies, the healings?

Verse 41 of Acts 2 gives us the answer: “So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls.” And the Holy Spirit didn’t stop that day. He continued his work. This chapter closes, “And the Lord added to their number day by day those who were being saved.” (vs. 47) The greatest miracle the Holy Spirit did on Pentecost was to save souls from everlasting perdition and grant them eternal life. And this is a miracle, which the Holy Spirit continues to accomplish in our midst today!

This salvation of souls is the greatest miracle for two reasons. First, it is the most difficult miracle to accomplish. Second, it is the most wonderful, long lasting, and desirable gift to receive. The salvation of souls is the most difficult miracle to accomplish. Speaking in tongues is remarkable. But what is so remarkable about it is not the ability to speak in other languages, but rather that they spoke in languages they had never learned. But there are millions and millions of people who can speak multiple languages fluently. It just takes time and effort. The miraculous healings are certainly difficult. However, God has provided other means through medicine and other treatments to bring sick people to good health, to heal the crippled, even the blind and deaf can have their sight and hearing restored in some cases with today’s modern medicine.

Yet, to be saved is impossible. To be saved, you must have faith in Christ. And that is not something that you can do on your own. Scripture tells us that no one can say “Jesus is Lord” except in the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). St. Paul tells us that all of mankind is by nature dead in trespasses and sins (Ephesians 2:1-3) and that the natural person cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God (1 Corinthians 2:14) and that those set on the flesh, that is those who think according to their sinful flesh, cannot please God (Romans 8:8) This is why Jesus says that no one can enter the Kingdom of God unless he is born again of water and the Spirit (John 3:3-6), and that no one can come to him unless the Father draws him (John 6:44).

It is far more possible to heal diseases, make a paralyzed man walk, cause the blind to see and the deaf to hear, to speak in other tongues, yes, even to raise the dead, than to save a person. It is impossible to turn an unbeliever into a believer, to turn a sinner into a righteous person. It is impossible. Only God can do it, because he can do the impossible. The Holy Spirit is God. His greatest work is to cause unbelievers to be believers. His greatest work is to save souls.

To save souls is the greatest miracle the Holy Spirit does because it is the most wonderful work he does. To give sight to the blind is pretty good. I certainly don’t want to be blind. Oh, how I’d love to speak many languages fluently. That would be great. To take pain away, heal the sick, even raise the dead? Marvelous! But what happened to all those blind, deaf, crippled, and dead people, whom Jesus and his Apostles healed and raised? They eventually died! They’re not here today to tell us about it. But what happened to all those souls the Holy Spirit saved? They are in paradise! They are awaiting the glorious resurrection of dead, when all who have died in Christ will rise first to imperishable life! They hunger no more, neither thirst anymore. The sun does not strike them, nor any scorching heat. They are shepherded by Christ Jesus and God has wiped away every tear from their eyes. (Revelation 7:16-17) And that is what we can expect, who trust in the Lord Jesus Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit.

The Prophet Joel declared, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” Yet, no one can call upon the name of the Lord unless the Holy Spirit grants him faith. Well, how does the Holy Spirit grant saving faith? St. Paul answers this question in Romans chapter 10. He writes, “For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’ How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach good news!’ But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?’ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”

The Holy Spirit works through the Word of Christ, that is, through the Gospel. The crowds marveled that these Galileans spoke in each of their native tongues “the mighty works of God.” They heard what God had done for them through Jesus Christ; how God sent his Son to be the descendent of David, so that he might fulfill the Law in our place and suffer and die for our sins. They proved from Scripture that the prophets spoke of Christ, who died for all sins, yet, who rose from the dead, not seeing corruption. Their preaching brought many who were hostile to Christ to repentance, so that they were cut to the heart and cried, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter answered, “Repent and be baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” And many were baptized, repented of their sins and confessed Christ Jesus as Savior, and were saved.

There is no other way for the Holy Spirit to come to you than through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the Comforter, who teaches. He teaches and comforts by relaying Christ’s promises to you. During Jesus’ last night with his disciples before he was crucified, he told them that the Holy Spirit would bring to their remembrance all that he had said to them. This is how we know that what we read in Holy Scripture are the very words of Jesus. The Holy Spirit carried the Apostles, just as he carried the Prophets, to write down the very word of God (2 Peter 1:21). This is why St. Paul says that the household of God, which is the Holy Christian Church, is built on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets, Christ Jesus being the cornerstone (Ephesians 2:19-20). The Holy Spirit builds up the Church of Christ by the preaching of the Gospel, which must always be grounded in Holy Scripture. Through this preaching, we confront our sins, doubts, and unbelief regularly. And through this preaching, the Holy Spirit accomplishes a work more miraculous than the feeding of the five thousand, speaking in tongues, or even raising the dead. Through this preaching, the Holy Spirit grants us saving faith in Christ Jesus our Lord. This is why St. Paul instructs Pastor Timothy, “Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers.” (1 Timothy 4:16)

This is why we Christians continue to learn God’s Word. Why we should not only go to church every Sunday, but attend Bible class, read the Bible daily, and ask questions. Learning what Holy Scripture has to say about the Holy Trinity, Jesus’ divine and human natures, the sacraments, sin, righteousness, heaven, hell, forgiveness, and redemption is not only very fascinating, but it is how the Holy Spirit saves us, by bringing us to trust in Christ Jesus for salvation.

Jesus said in our Gospel lesson for this Sunday, “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word, and my Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.” (John 14:23) You can only love Jesus if you have faith in him. And you can only have faith in him, if you hear his word. And if you have faith in Jesus, then you will love him. You cannot love Jesus without having faith in him and you cannot have faith in him without loving him. And none of this is possible without the Holy Spirit working through Jesus’ word. Jesus says that if you love him, you will keep his word. The word Jesus uses for keep means to guard, to pay attention to, to watch over. We keep Jesus’ word out of love for him, because it is our greatest treasure. Jesus’ word is how we know who Jesus is and that we have him as our Savior. Jesus Word is how we have access to the Holy Spirit and are confident that he joins us to Jesus. Without Jesus’ Word, we are in doubt. Our sins trouble us. Our mind wanders. We believe lies. We doubt God’s promises. We grow distant from God and cold toward one another. And eventually, our faith dies. So, Jesus says to those who love him, “If you love me, you will keep my word.” That is, you won’t stop listening to it or learning it, but you will strive ever more to grow closer to Christ.

Many seek the gifts of the Holy Spirit today, hoping for the gift to speak in tongues or to prophesy, or to heal diseases. However, St. Paul has told us that these gifts will pass away (1 Corinthians 13:8). But even if they did continue today, they would be but secondary gifts to the gift of salvation the Holy Spirit still grants us today through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. What is speaking in tongues compared to eternal salvation? What could a new prophesy do for you? What good would a cure for cancer do if the Holy Spirit did not save your eternal soul by granting you faith in the blood of Jesus Christ? This Pentecost, we celebrate the greatest miracle the Holy Spirit has worked on earth. And we rejoice that he continues to work this miracle in his Church on earth today. The Holy Spirit saves sinners by granting them faith in Jesus Christ our Savior. Amen.

Let us pray:
Shine in our hearts, O Spirit, precious light;
Teach us Jesus Christ to know aright
That we may abide in the Lord who bought us,
Till to our true home He has brought us.
Lord, have mercy! Amen.

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Christ Ascends to Be with Us

6/1/2022

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Ascension of Christ, Dosso Dossi, 16c. Public Domain.

Ascension Observed
Mark 16:14-20
Pastor James Preus
May 29, 2022

St. Luke tells us in Acts 1 that when Jesus ascended into heaven, a cloud took him out of their sight. I wonder then. Where did he go? Had the cloud not obscured their vision, for how long would they have seen Jesus ascend? And if they had aviation back then, could they have followed Jesus up into the sky and found out where he went? St. Mark tells us that Jesus sat down at the right hand of God. Well, where is the right hand of God? Will we someday develop a spacecraft so advanced that it could find Jesus sitting on his heavenly throne?

Well, of course, these questions are silly. No one can take a spaceship to the right hand of God. Jesus ascended beyond this physical world where mortals cannot go in this life. Yet, if Jesus’ heavenly dwelling is beyond this physical world, how did Jesus go there in his physical body? The same Jesus, who lived and spoke, ate, slept, and wept with his disciples before he was crucified, died, and buried; this same Jesus showed his disciples his hands and feet and side, pierced by the nails and spear as he hung upon the cross; this same Jesus ascended to heaven and sits at the Father’s right hand. Yet, why can Jesus’ body go where our bodies in this life can never go?

Because while Jesus is indeed truly a man, he is also true God. And where ever he is and whatever he is doing, he does as both man and God. This is why Jesus was able to exit the tomb before the stone was rolled away; why he was able to vanish from the two disciples’ sight at their dinner in Emmaus; why he was able to enter the room where his disciples hid even while the doors remained locked. By virtue of his divine nature, Jesus’ human body is not limited by the laws of physics that our bodies are. This is how Jesus is able to ascend bodily to the right hand of God in heaven, where rockets and airplanes cannot follow him.

It is of the utmost importance that we believe that Jesus is both God and man wherever he is and in whatever he does. First, because the Bible clearly teaches it. Secondly, because if this were not so, we could not be saved. If Jesus is not God as he hangs on the cross dying for our sins, then his death is just the death of an innocent man, and by no means a sufficient price for the sins of the whole world. But since Jesus is both God and man as he dies on the cross, his blood washes away all sins. If Jesus only ascends into heaven as God and not as a man, then he cannot make intercession for our sins before God the Father in heaven. Then we have no confidence that we will be raised to be with God in heaven. But since Christ Jesus is the man who mediates between God and mankind (1 Timothy 2:5), and who indeed intercedes for us today (Romans 8:34), then we know that we have a Redeemer in heaven who is preparing a place for us (John 14:2).

And this also means that although Jesus has bodily ascended far beyond human reach, yet, he is still with us today. In fact, Jesus is closer to us now that he has ascended. This is why Jesus said in the Great Commission, “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:20) Jesus is with us. Not in a sentimental way. We don’t simply hold him in our hearts or in our memory as we do our dearly departed loved-ones. Jesus is with us body and soul, as true God and true man, today.

Some think that Jesus is with us here on earth only in his divine nature, but his human nature is as far from us as the heavens are from the earth. But if that were true, then he would not be with us as our crucified and risen Savior. But Scripture makes no illusion that we have only half of our Lord Jesus with us here on earth. Rather, Jesus says in Matthew 28, “I am with you always.” And St. Mark declares, “The Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.” St. Paul tells us in Ephesians 4, “He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.”

The God-man Jesus Christ has ascended far above all worlds and heavens. And the God-man Jesus Christ is with us here today. He has promised us, “Wherever two or three are gathered in my name, there am I in the midst of them.” (Matthew 18:20) That means that he is with us her and now, in body and soul. When Jesus commanded that the Gospel be preached to every creature with the promise that whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, he was not giving instructions on what to do in his absence. Rather, he was telling his Church how he would continue to be with them and work with them. St. Mark makes this clear when he writes that after the Lord Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, “the Lord worked with them.” He worked with them all the way. And the Lord is working with us here today as well.

When you say your morning and evening prayers, when you do your Bible reading, when you pray before and after you eat, Christ Jesus the God-man is with you. When you were baptized into the Holy Name according to Christ’s command and promise, Christ Jesus the God-man baptized you. When the pastor declares that your sins are forgiven, it is Christ your risen Lord who is present forgiving you. When you confess the Gospel to your friend and when you teach your children about Jesus, Christ Jesus in body and soul, as man and God is present with you.

This is why we insist that we eat the true body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Altar. Our Lord clearly says, “This is my body; this is my blood shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” Most say that this is impossible. Yet, we have a Christ who is able to be with every Christian as both God and man, throughout the world at the same time, while also being enthroned in heaven, without dividing his body. He’s God. He can do all things. He can even feed us his very body and blood. And we receive it for our forgiveness, life, and salvation, so that we may be stronger Christians, believe in God more earnestly and love each other more fervently.

A bitter pain sunk into the pit of every American’s stomach this week when it was revealed that an evil man killed 19 children and two teachers in an elementary school in Texas. We know the world is very evil. We know that evil dwells in each of us. We’re born with original sin, depraved of God’s righteousness until we are born again. Yet evil is not this static thing that always remains the same. There are greater and lesser evils. This mass murder is especially evil. And that it isn’t an isolated incident tells us that we have a serious problem with evil. Young men in our country are becoming increasingly violent, sadistic, and callous to the pain of others. Yes, evil always exists. But where evil is permitted to grow unabated, it grows worse. That is why the first use of the Law is the curb, which punishes and resists outbreaks of evil.

And so, these outbreaks of evil in our land show that our nation has forsaken God’s Law. Our nation as a whole must return to him. We must repent for ignoring his commandments. Fathers must teach their children at home how to behave and exemplify for them what it means to be an adult. They need to bring their children to church and teach them to pray. We need to stop pretending that destroying the family, rejecting marriage, and glorifying the passions of the flesh have no negative effects on our neighbor. How many of these mass shooters or gang-bangers in the inner cities actually have fathers married to their mothers setting an example for them. Not many. Our country needs good fathers, who fear God, love their wives, and set good examples to their children, who teach young men not to sit around mindlessly on the internet, playing violent video games, viewing pornography, and doing drugs, but rather to work hard, serve others, and to fear God.

Above all, what our nation needs is Jesus. If the citizens of our country would forsake their licentious ways and try to follow God’s Law, then we certainly would have less of these violent outbreaks. But that wouldn’t and never could be enough. We need Jesus. Only Jesus gives us the will to love our neighbor and truly do what is right. And only Jesus can heal the wounds of violence. Every gang member and twisted young soul fantasizing about inflicting suffering on others needs Jesus. They need to be rescued from their slavery to sin and to hear of the forgiveness and love God has won for them.

This national tragedy teaches us how fragile life is. Parents lost their babies. What can we do to protect ours? You’d do anything, right? You’d run into the face of gunfire to rescue your kid. I would! Yet, we can never keep our children one hundred percent safe. Parents who lose their children don’t love them less than parents whose children are kept alive. Tragedy strikes. Cancer, car accidents, drownings, and yes, maniac killers. Yes, the vast majority of our kids will make it to adulthood. By God’s grace they’ll live long lives and have children and grandchildren of their own. Yet, they’re still going to die. If this tragedy has taught us anything it is that we do not have a grip on death. With all our smart phones, fancy cars, and best medical care in the world, we still can’t keep ourselves alive forever. We’re sinners. We are born with the same evil that matures to commit murder and other heinous crimes. The wages of sin is death. (Romans 6:23) And those wages get paid to everyone. We need him who conquered death. Our children need him.

You’d do anything to save your loved one when death draws near. We’re living in the valley of the shadow of death now. Yet, we have him who conquered death. He’s not far away. He’s at the right hand of God the Father, which means that he is right here with us. Where you have the Gospel of Jesus Christ, you have Christ the God-man, body and soul with you. And so, your children, after praying their nighttime prayers with you sleep with Jesus watching over them. When they say, “Come, Lord Jesus be our guest,” before eating lunch at school, Christ Jesus sits with them. When they carry in their heart the Gospel preached to them at church on Sunday, they walk with Jesus all the way. And when Jesus is with you, no harm can come upon you. Even if you die, Christ Jesus takes you from death to life. Amen.
Let us pray.
I walk with Jesus all the way,
His guidance never fails me;
Within His wounds I find a stay
When Satan’s pow’r assails me;
And by His footsteps led,
My path I safely tread.
No evil leads my soul astray;
I walk with Jesus all the way. Amen.

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"For faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ." ~ Romans 10:17

The Urgency of the Banquet

What's at Stake

The Evangelical Trinity

All Who Call Upon the Name of the Lord will be Saved

Christ Ascends to Be with Us

Rev. James Preus

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