Blog Posts

The Evangelical Trinity

6/7/2020

William Brassey Hole, Jesus and Nicodemus, commons.wikimedia.org, Public Domain

Trinity Sunday
John 3:1-15
June 7, 2020

Today is Trinity Sunday. Our Church is named Trinity Evangelical Lutheran Church. We call our church, Trinity, because we believe in the Triune God. Tri means three. Unus means one. Our God is three in one; three Persons, yet one God. The words Trinity and triune are not in the Bible, yet the teaching of the Holy Trinity is indeed in the Bible.
There are a few examples in the Bible where the Holy Trinity, Father, Son and Holy Spirit is revealed in a few short passages, for example when Jesus is baptized and the Father from heaven calls Jesus his beloved Son as the Holy Spirit descends upon him, and when Jesus commands that his disciples baptize in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. But really, the teaching of the Holy Trinity is constantly and continually taught throughout the entire Old and New Testament, so that, the more you read the Bible, the more you recognize the Holy Trinity on every page.
God is one. Deuteronomy 6 states, “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one.” Yet, God is three persons. The Father is God. The Son is God. And the Holy Spirit is God. And although these three Persons are distinct from one another, they are not three gods, but one God. The Bible calls the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit God. The Bible records how the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are worshipped by both angels and humans. The Bible tells us that the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are eternal, all-powerful, all-knowing, and omnipresent. The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit do things that only God can do; they create, forgive sins, heal, raise the dead, and give eternal life. They are indeed three distinct persons. The Father begets and sends the Son. The Father and the Son send the Holy Spirit. Yet, Scripture declares that these three are one God. The Bible teaches the Holy Trinity and all Christians everywhere at all times have confessed the Holy Trinity. If you believe in the Bible, you believe in the Trinity.
We call our church Evangelical. Evangelical means Gospel. Gospel means good news. Our Church is dedicated to the preaching of the Gospel, the good news, as St. Paul declared, “Woe is me if I do not preach the Gospel.” (1 Corinthians 9:16). That is why we call ourselves Evangelical.
And of course, to be evangelical means to be Trinitarian. The Father sends his Son. The Son dies on the cross for the sins of the whole world. The Holy Spirit proclaims this message of forgiveness and salvation to the whole world through the proclamation of the Gospel, even working rebirth in the hearts of sinners, so that they can believe this good message and be saved! The Holy Trinity is an evangelical God!
This is why it is necessary for every church that claims to believe in the Holy Trinity to proclaim the Gospel that God saves sinners through the sacrificial death of Jesus Christ. Whoever believes in this Gospel will be saved. Yet, if the Church is to proclaim the Gospel, she must first proclaim the Law. The Law is the love that God commands of us as Scripture says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your strength and with all your mind and love your neighbor as yourself.” This command of love is taught in the Ten Commandments. The commands, “You shall have no other gods; Honor your father and your mother; You shall not murder; You shall not commit adultery; You shall not steal” are all commands to love God and your neighbor.
God’s Law is good! How wonderful would it be if people would actually try to live according to God’s Law; if people considered the needs of others before their own and did unto others as they would have them do unto them, no matter whether they were black or white, rich or poor, young or old! We would have less violence, riots, and looting, that’s for sure. If men stopped fornicating and instead got married and supported their wives; taught their sons how to be men; to work hard and be honest and protect the vulnerable; to set an example to their daughters of what type of men they should marry. Yes, if more people in our nation would try to live according to God’s Law, we would have less violence, less injustice, less poverty, in short, a better country to live in.
Yet, that is not the main reason why churches must preach the Law. God did not give us his Law, so that we could be a safer and more prosperous country. God gave us his Law to show us our sin and need for a Savior. God’s Law doesn’t simply want you to improve. Rather, God’s Law says, “You must be perfect, as your Heavenly Father is perfect.” "All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” (Romans 3:23) That is the Law. It condemns you to hell, so that you look not to yourself, but to God for salvation. “And are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus” (Romans 3:24) That is Gospel. The Gospel does not require works from you, but bids you to believe that God is merciful to you for Christ’s sake. Evangelical churches proclaim the Law, so that sinners know their need for the Gospel. And evangelical churches preach the Gospel to sinners, whose consciences are stricken by the Law.
God uses the Law and Gospel to bring sinners to faith throughout the Old and New Testament. Jesus himself uses the Old Testament account of Moses lifting up the serpent in the wilderness to preach Law and Gospel. In Numbers chapter 21, the people of Israel grumbled against God and Moses, so God sent fiery serpents to bite them, so that many died. The serpents were the law. “The sting of death is sin and the power of sin is the law.” (1 Corinthians 15:56) Yet, when the people cried out to Moses, God told Moses to make a fiery serpent and set it on a pole, so that whoever looked at it would not die. So, Moses made a bronze serpent. The bronze serpent was the Gospel; it represented Christ. It was in the form of the curse which killed them, yet it saved them. Likewise, Christ Jesus took the form of our curse to save us. Scripture says, “Cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the Book of the Law, and do them.” (Galatians 3:10) We fail to keep the Law, so we are cursed. Yet, Scripture says, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’” (Galatians 3:13) Therefore, whoever believes in Jesus has eternal life, just as whoever looked at the bronze serpent survived his snake bite.
This is the Law and Gospel. Salvation is received as a free gift to those who know from the Law that they need salvation as a free gift. And salvation is a free gift. We heard in our Epistle lesson, “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” God doesn’t give you salvation, because he owes it to you. He gives you salvation, because he loves you.
We call our church Lutheran. The Lutheran reformation began about 500 years ago, but the teaching of the Lutheran Church is grounded in Scripture and has been confessed from the founding of the Church. We confess the Holy Trinity with the ancient Church as it is taught in the Bible. And we are evangelical! We know the mission of the Church is to proclaim the Gospel. The main focus of the Lutheran Church has always been that sinners are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone. Yet, the underlining reason that Lutherans split from Rome had to do with authority. Lutherans believe that the Scriptures alone are the source of all Church teaching. The Holy Spirit works through the teaching of the Bible to create faith. The Roman Catholic Church did not follow Scripture alone, but rather saw Scripture as a part of the greater tradition of the Church which shared its authority with councils and traditions of men.
Nearly 500 years ago, another group attempted a reformation in Europe. They were called the Socinians. They too claimed that all of their teachings came from Scripture. Yet, they denied the Holy Trinity and they denied the Gospel that Jesus made atonement for our sins, but rather taught that Jesus was a human example for us to follow. How could a group that claimed to follow the Bible stray so far from the Bible’s teaching? Because they insisted that the Bible would not contradict their own reason. If they’re reason could not understand how something in Scripture could be, they explained it away.
The Socinians should have paid closer attention to Jesus’ discussion with Nicodemus. Nicodemus was a smart man, but he could not understand how one could be born again. Yet, Jesus points out to him that he doesn’t even understand earthly things. Do you know where the wind is going or where it came from? No? Then why are you interrogating God on how he accomplishes heavenly things? That which is born of flesh is flesh. Our human reason cannot understand the things of the Spirit of God, because it is corrupted by sin. This is why we must be born again by water and the Spirit. Faith in the Gospel is a gift that is received by those who have received rebirth by the Holy Spirit. God designed for this rebirth to happen in Baptism, where the promise of the Spirit is joined to water. Don’t ask how this can be. This is from God! Our job is not to question how, but believe what God tells us!
We believe in the Holy Trinity and that we are saved by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, not because it makes perfect sense to our sinful and weak minds, but because Scripture clearly teaches this. And those who have been reborn by the Spirit accept the words of the Spirit with renewed minds. To be Lutheran does not meant to follow some smart German, who lived 500 years ago. To be Lutheran means to believe the teachings of the Holy Spirit in Scripture, having been born again by water and the Spirit.
We call ourselves a church. Martin Luther wrote, “Thank God, today a seven-year-old child knows what the Church is, namely, the holy believers and lambs who hear the voice of their Shepherd.” That sounds like heaven. Indeed, church is heaven on earth, because heaven is to be with Jesus. We don’t believe in a God far away from us. We believe in the Triune God, who shepherds us here on earth with his Gospel until he leads us to our eternal home prepared for us by Jesus. May God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit keep our congregation faithful to her name, so that He may dwell with us today and we may dwell with Him in eternity. Amen.

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The Holy Spirit Gives Us Jesus

5/31/2020

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Pentecost 2020
John 14:23-31
The Holy Spirit Gives Us Jesus
May 31, 2020

Pentecost is the day we remember the Holy Spirit being given to the Church as tongues of fire rested on the disciples’ heads and they preached the Gospel in languages they had never learned. This was a mighty miracle of God! Yet, what was a much greater miracle was what they preached. They preached how Jesus suffered and died for the sins of the people and how God raised him from the dead. Their preaching was so powerful that Scripture tells us that about three thousand souls were added to the Church that day. For this reason, Christians prize the Holy Spirit. Where the Holy Spirit is, there is salvation! Where the Holy Spirit is, there the Church grows!
So, we must ask the question: How do you receive the Holy Spirit? Many obsess over this question. In fact, some call themselves Pentecostals, because of how much they emphasize the gifts of the Holy Spirit, who was given on Pentecost. And to be sure, how you receive the Holy Spirit is just about the most important question you can ask! It is akin to asking, “How am I saved.”
Yet, there are a lot of wrong ideas about how you receive the Holy Spirit. And all of the wrong ideas center on you and what you do. I actually googled the question, “How do you receive the Holy Spirit?” and I came upon two answers from two very different branches of Christianity that were pretty much the same. One person from a Pentecostal background quoted Acts 2:38, where St. Peter says, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” The man then concluded that you must first repent in order for God to give you his Holy Spirit. But until you repent, God will not give you his Holy Spirit. So, whether God gives you his Holy Spirit or not is up to you. “The decision is yours.”
Yet, there is a serious problem here. Unless you have already received the Holy Spirit, you cannot repent. St. Paul tells us that we are naturally dead in our sins. (Ephesians 2) In 1 Corinthians chapter 2 he writes, “Now we have received not the spirit of the world, but the Spirit who is from God, that we might understand the things freely given us by God. And we impart this in words not taught by human wisdom but taught by the Spirit, interpreting spiritual truths to those who are spiritual. The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned.” (vss. 12-14)
What St. Peter means by “repent” here in Acts 2 is not simply to turn from sin, but to turn to Christ Jesus in faith! This can only be accomplished by the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit was already working in these people and in their hearts to cause them to repent, that is, to turn them from unbelief to faith in Jesus Christ. This is what Jesus says in our Gospel lesson, “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” The Holy Spirit teaches by bringing to remembrance the words of Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit, who creates faith in your heart through Jesus’ word as Scripture also says, “Faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” (Romans 10:17)
In another video I found a Roman Catholic priest explain how we receive the Holy Spirit. He cited Acts 5:32, where St. Peter writes, “And we are witnesses to these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him.” So, the priest concluded that in order to receive the Holy Spirit, we must be obedient to God and live according to his word. Now, we certainly should be obedient to God and live according to his word, but we cannot do this unless we first have received the Holy Spirit! We do not live according to God’s word in order to receive the Holy Spirit, but rather, we receive the Holy Spirit so that we can live according to God’s Word. Again, this priest said that we receive the Holy Spirit by our own works. Yet, what does Scripture say?
St. Paul writes in Galatians 3, “Let me ask you only this: Did you receive the Spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish? Having begun by the Spirit, are you now being perfected by the flesh? Did you suffer so many things in vain—if indeed it was in vain? Does he who supplies the Spirit to you and works miracles among you do so by works of the law, or by hearing with faith—just as Abraham ‘believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’?”
St. Paul makes clear that we receive the Holy Spirit through hearing with faith, that is, by hearing and believing the Gospel. And he makes clear that it is the Holy Spirit who both begins and finishes this work in you. What St. Peter means by obedience in Acts 5:32 is the obedience to the Gospel, that is, being convinced of the reliability of God’s promise. And only the Holy Spirit can convince you.
So, how do you receive the Holy Spirit? Through hearing the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit works through the preaching of Christ to enliven your heart to believe in the forgiveness of sins won by Christ, so that you may be saved! It is the Holy Spirit who brings you to true repentance. It is the Holy Spirit who makes your heart obedient to the Gospel by convincing you of God’s grace. You do not receive the Holy Spirit by your own preparation. And the Holy Spirit does not come to you apart from proclamation of the Gospel.
This is also why Baptism gives you the Holy Spirit. Baptism is a proclamation of the Gospel. It is not just plain water, but it is water included in God’s command and combined with God’s word. Many think that Baptism is our work that we do in obedience to God as a condition to receive the Holy Spirit. But this is wrong. Baptism is God’s work, not ours, as St. Paul says in Titus 3, “He saved us, not by works done by us in righteousness, but according to his own mercy through the washing of regeneration and renewal of the Holy Spirit, whom he poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior.” Baptism is Gospel, because its power is in the word and promise of Christ and its benefits are received through faith.
How do you know whether you have the Holy Spirit? Again, there are many wrong answers to this that all focus on you instead of Jesus Christ. Those who say that you receive the Holy Spirit by being obedient teach that you know you have the Holy Spirit by whether or not you are obedient. Well, do you think you have been obedient enough to keep the Holy Spirit within you? Are you confident that you have the Holy Spirit based on how you have conducted yourself as a Christian? Jesus calls the Holy Spirit the Comforter. Is it comforting to know that the Holy Spirit will remain with you just so long as you maintain your obedience to God’s law?
Others say that you know that you have the Holy Spirit if you display gifts of the Spirit like speaking in tongues, prophesying, or healing. In fact, some teach that you do not have the Holy Spirit unless you speak in tongues! And this leads many to babble incoherent sounds while lying to their hearts that they are speaking some unknown language. And it causes others to despair that the Holy Spirit has not come upon them.
Yet, this too is a misunderstanding of Scripture. Jesus did indeed promise that his disciples would speak in tongues and do many other mighty works, but he did not promise that these things would continue forever. Rather, St. Paul explicitly says in 1 Corinthians 13, “As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease...” And Jesus never said that all Christians would display these gifts of the Spirit, but rather that they would be performed as signs confirming the work of apostles, as St. Paul writes, “The signs of a true apostle were performed among you with utmost patience, with signs and wonders and mighty works.” (2 Corinthians 12:12) Yet Scripture does list fruits of the Spirit that will be produced by all Christians forever, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
Yet, it is important to note that these are fruits of the Spirit. You must be a good tree before you can bear good fruit. You do not try to produce these fruits in order to have the Holy Spirit, but rather, if you have the Holy Spirit you will produce these fruits. We love, because he first loved us. We cannot finish with the flesh what the Holy Spirit has begun. Jesus says, “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. Whoever does not love me does not keep my word.” (John 14:23-24)
So, how do you know whether you have the Holy Spirit? By whether you believe the Gospel! St. John writes, “By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the World. Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God abides in him, and he in God. So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us.” (1 John 4:13-16)
You know you have the Holy Spirit through faith in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. If you focus on yourself and what you do, you will always doubt whether God’s Spirit abides in you. But if you focus on Christ and his Gospel which the Holy Spirit teaches you, you have confidence that the Holy Spirit dwells in you by grace as a gift.
Finally, what is the greatest treasure the Holy Spirit gives you? The peace, which the world cannot give. Jesus says, “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. Not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your hearts be troubled, neither let them be afraid.” (John 14:27) The Holy Spirit delivers this peace to us through the preaching of the forgiveness of sins for Christ’s sake. When Jesus rose from the dead, he said to his disciples, “Peace be with you. Receive the Holy Spirit.” and he then gave his church the authority to forgive sins. Scripture says in Romans 5:1, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The Holy Spirit gives us peace with God, which Jesus Christ won for us by dying for our sins and taking God’s wrath away. The Holy Spirit continues to give us this peace by convincing us through the proclamation of this Gospel that God is at peace with us for Christ’s sake. Pentecost is not about your works or your preparation. It is not even about speaking in tongues or doing miracles. Pentecost is about the Holy Spirit convincing you that God is at peace with you for Christ’s sake. Pentecost is about the Holy Spirit giving Jesus to you. Amen.

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The Lord Works in The Preaching of The Gospel.

5/24/2020

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Ascension of Our Lord (Observed)
Mark 16:14-20
May 23, 2020
For additional readings, please go to: https://sanctus.org/2020/05/21

So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs. ~ Mark 16:19-20
Jesus ascended to the right hand of God the Father, yet St. Mark tells us that he continued to work with his disciples. This is difficult for us to understand. If Jesus has ascended into heaven and is seated at God’s right hand, how can he be with his Church here on earth? Many try to reconcile this by saying that Jesus’ human body is up in heaven at God’s right hand, but his divine nature can be anywhere. So, while Jesus’ body must stay up in heaven, Jesus’ divine spirit can be with us down here on earth. This is the conclusion of many, because Jesus is a human and a human can only be in one place at one time.
Yet, this creates serious problems. We confess one Lord Jesus Christ, not one Lord Jesus who is human and another Lord Jesus who is divine. The divine Lord Jesus and the human Lord Jesus are one and the same Lord Jesus. John’s Gospel tells us that “the Word became flesh.” (John 1:14) The divine Word did not simply possess human flesh for a while, but became flesh. The Son of God assumed human nature, so that he truly is and always will be a human being. This is why the angel Gabriel told Mary that the child to be born to here will be called, “the Son of God.” (Luke 1:35) The Virgin Mary gave birth to God’s Son.
When we speak of Jesus Christ, we always speak of him as both human and divine. He is a man and he is God. Whatever he does as a man, he also does as God. And whatever he does as God, he also does as a man, whether that is being born, healing the blind, dying on the cross, rising from the dead, or ascending into heaven. This is why St. Peter tells the Jewish leaders in Jerusalem, “You killed the Author of Life.” (Acts 3:15) The Author of Life is none other than God himself. God cannot die, yet Jesus Christ who is true God died. Therefore, we rightly say, “Our God died upon the cross.” And St. Paul, speaking to the pastors in Ephesus, refers to God’s blood when he says, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to care for the Church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.” (Acts 20:28) Now, God is a Spirit and spirits do not have blood. Yet, God became a human being, so God indeed has blood which he shed for us on the cross.
If Jesus Christ is not a human being, then he could not take our place under the Law nor could he die on the cross in our place. And if Jesus Christ is not God, then his death for our sins would not be a sufficient price to pay for our sins. Unless Jesus is both God and man, we cannot be saved. So, we need a divine and human Jesus Christ at the Father’s right-hand interceding for us at all times and we need a divine and human Jesus Christ working with us here on earth at all times if we are to be saved.
But how can Jesus be both at God the Father’s right hand and here on earth? Well, first you need to understand that God’s right hand is not a place up in the sky that you can find with a satellite. Rather, God’s right hand is his right hand of power (Luke 22:69; 1 Peter 3:22). That Jesus is at God’s right hand does not mean that he is stuck in one place, but rather that he is filled with unlimited power and authority. Psalm 139 emphasizes that God’s right hand is everywhere when it says, “If I take the wings of the morning and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea, even there your hand shall lead me, and your right hand shall hold me.” And St. Paul speaks of Jesus’ ascension in Ephesians chapter 1 when he says God raised Christ, “and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come. And he put all things under his feet and gave him as head of all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all.” and again in chapter 4 he writes, “He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.”
That Jesus is at God’s right hand means that all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to him. It means that he is with us always even to the end of the age. Jesus’ human nature does not limit him in any way. Jesus our God has the power to be in all places at one time in his body while remaining human. This means that Jesus can be and is indeed with us in his Church here on earth.
Jesus is everywhere, but he is not everywhere for you in the same way. St. Mark tells us that the Lord continued to work with them. What did he work with them to do? He worked to confirm the message he sent them to preach. Jesus said to them,

“Go into all the world and proclaim the Gospel to the whole creation.”

Jesus works with the proclamation of the Gospel. Where can Jesus be found? Where his Gospel is preached. The Gospel is the good news that Jesus died on the cross to save sinners. And where did Jesus send his disciples to proclaim this message of good news? He sent them into all the world. Every human being needs to hear this Gospel. This is an urgent command our Lord gives his Church before his departure and it is a task that He continues to work with in His Church even today.
That the Gospel is a message that God’s own Son had to take on our human flesh and die for the sins of the entire world and that it is necessary that this message be proclaimed to everyone in the world, tells us that the world needs this Gospel. All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Everyone needs his sins forgiven. Everyone needs to be rescued from the wrath of God and eternal condemnation. This is the greatest problem we all face. And so, we all need this Gospel above anything else.
You might try to deny that your sin is such a big deal that you need this Gospel above all things. You can ignore your own sins by making excuses and justify everything you think, say, and do. You can ignore God’s Law, so that your conscience doesn’t feel guilty. You can cut people out of your life who make you feel uncomfortable, whom you’ve hurt or who’ve hurt you. You can take pills to take away the pain in your body that reminds you that you are indeed mortal. You can ignore the death around you by plugging yourself into Netflix or Amazon Prime and watch your shows, which distract you from reality. You can block out your conscience and God’s word from your heart with banal conversations about things that do not matter. You can do all these things and more to try to keep the reality of your sin from making you uncomfortable. But eventually the reality of sin will strike. You’re going to die. And judgment comes after.
Jesus’ final command to proclaim the Gospel to the whole world emphasizes to us what is most important. We need this Gospel. We need what Jesus gave his life for on the cross and what he continues to work to give us today: the forgiveness of sins and eternal peace with God.
We need to turn from our sins. In St. Luke’s account of this story, he says that Jesus declared that “repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in [Christ’s] name to all nations.” To repent means to turn. When we think of repenting, we think of saying sorry for our sins. And that is good. We should be sorry for the wrong we’ve done. Yet, there is a misconception about repentance. Many think that when you repent you then try to make up for the wrong you’ve done in order to be accepted by God. But Christian repentance does not mean that you turn from your sins to your own works in an attempt to appease God’s wrath. Rather, repenting means that you turn from your sins to God’s grace for forgiveness for Christ’s sake. This is why Jesus declared,
“Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.”
Jesus does not say, whoever does enough good works to make up for his sins will be saved. Jesus does not say, whoever lives a perfect life will be saved. Jesus says, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved.” What are we to believe? That Jesus died on the cross for our sins and rose again for our justification. God forgives us and is at peace with us on account of Christ. This is the Gospel that Jesus commanded to be proclaimed to the whole earth.
There must be something else! Certainly, our eternal salvation cannot hinge simply on whether or not we believe a promise from God! Yes, indeed it does. When you believe the promise from God that your sins are forgiven for Christ’s sake, you receive forgiveness and eternal salvation. To make it abundantly clear that Jesus demands nothing else in addition to this faith for our salvation he then says, “Whoever does not believe will be condemned.” Not, whoever does not prove to be a good enough Christian will be condemned. Not, whoever is the worst criminal will be condemned. Rather, whoever does not believe will be condemned. Unbelief is the only damnable sin, because unbelief throws away God’s salvation, which he offers you through Christ. It is just as Jesus said in John chapter 3, “Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”
So, it is irrefutable that faith alone saves. Yet, what is this talk about Baptism? Is Baptism some work required by us in addition to our faith to save us? No. Rather, Baptism is God’s work which joins us to Christ. And just as with the proclamation of the Gospel, Baptism does us no good unless we believe. Through faith we receive the benefits of Baptism, which include forgiveness of sins and rescue from death and the devil. Baptism gives us these benefits, because it is not just plain water, but water combined with the words and promise of God. Baptism carries with it the power and authority of Christ himself, who commands Baptism. When a child is baptized, although it looks like a pastor pouring on water, it is Jesus Christ himself from the right hand of God the Father who is cleansing that child of sin.
God lavishes the Gospel on us in multiple ways; through preaching, Baptism; also, through the Absolution and the Lord’s Supper. When the pastor forgives your sins in the stead and by the command of Christ, you must believe that Christ himself, who sits at the Father’s right hand is forgiving you with all the authority of heaven. When you eat the Lord’s Supper, you must not believe that this is mere bread and wine, but that Jesus who fills all things is present with his body and blood in order to forgive your sins and strengthen your faith. Baptism, Absolution, the Lord’s Supper, the preaching; these are all Gospel and their benefits are all received through faith in God’s promise.
Jesus seems far away from us, but at the Father’s right hand he is able to be with us in his Gospel with the authority and power to give us eternal life through faith. And he who worked with the first disciples to confirm their word with signs still works with us to produce fruits of faith that glorify God. Christ Jesus is at God the Father’s right hand; therefore, he is with his Church here on earth. Amen.

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Ask the Father

5/19/2020

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Evening Prayer, Anna Ancher, 1888, Public Domain

Rogate Sunday (Easter 6)
John 16:23-30

You probably are familiar with the story of when Martin Luther decided to become a monk. He was returning to school in Erfurt, Germany after a visit home. As he walked, he got caught in a thunderstorm and lightning stuck quite close to him. He cried out for help to St. Anne and promised to become a monk. And of course, Luther went on to become a monk, priest, doctor of theology, and finally a professor in Wittenberg where he began the Lutheran Reformation.
But why did Luther cry out to St. Anne? Why didn’t he pray to our gracious Father in heaven as Jesus instructs us when he says, “Truly, truly, I say to you, whatever you ask of the Father in my name, he will give it to you.”? The answer is quite simple. He lacked faith. This is why anyone would pray to some saint in heaven instead of our dear Father in heaven. They lack faith. Faith is simply believing the promise that God gives. Jesus, our Lord and God, promised us that whatever we ask the Father in his name, he will give it to us. But many doubt this promise of God.
People lack faith. They think they are unworthy to ask God for anything, so they look to some saint in heaven. “The saints certainly must be worthy. They have done so many good works. If I were to ask God for anything, he might get angry. But if one of his saints asks him, surely, he will listen to his prayer! So, I will ask the saints to intercede for me on my behalf.” This is how many people think, especially within the Roman Catholic Church. Yet, it is not only those who pray to saints who lack the faith to pray directly to God the Father. Many Christians suffer from a lack of faith, so that they are afraid to pray to God.
St. James writes, “If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask God, who gives generously to all without reproach, and it will be given to him. But let him ask in faith, without doubting, for the one who doubts is like a sea that is driven and tossed by the wind. For that person must not suppose that he will receive anything from the Lord.” (James 1:5-7) Yet, it’s difficult to feel confident to pray when you have a guilty conscience! When the sin you’ve committed is so fresh in your memory, you want to put some space between your prayer and your latest vice. You want to let the grass grow over a bit before you can feel confident to ask God for anything, or else he might be too angry to listen to you. But no amount of grass can cover your past sins! Only the blood of Jesus Christ can cleanse your conscience and make you worthy to cry out to your heavenly Father for help! If you try to earn the right to pray to God, you will never be worthy!
Only the Gospel of Jesus Christ gives you the faith needed to pray to God. The Law demands works from you. But those works are never complete. And although you might feel more confident to pray to God when you don’t have any particular sin on your mind and you’ve had a productive and seemingly pious day, your feelings are not what determine whether you are worthy to pray. True faith is not feeling worthy to pray. True faith is knowing that God will answer your prayer for Christ’s sake even when you feel utterly unworthy to pray.
Don’t turn to your works in order to be worthy to pray. Don’t put off prayer until you’ve adequately reformed your life. Rather, listen to the promise of Jesus Christ: whatever you ask the Father in his name, he will most certainly give you. Listen to the Gospel of the forgiveness of sins and believe it. Only that will make you worthy to pray to God the Father directly for help.
Jesus says, “In that day you will ask in my name, and I do not say to you that I will ask the Father on your behalf; for the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.” Now, Jesus does not mean by this that he does not ask the Father on our behalf at all. As a matter of fact, Jesus is constantly asking the Father on our behalf! Scripture says in 1 Timothy 2, “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all, which is the testimony given at the proper time.” (vss. 5-6) At all times Christ Jesus is at the Father’s right hand presenting to him his pierced hands and feet, proving that he has won for us salvation through his precious blood and innocent suffering and death. Christ Jesus is forever interceding for us to the Father.
And this is why Jesus says that the Father himself loves them. Those who believe in Jesus and believe that he was sent from the Father to die for our sins, know that Jesus is their Mediator. We pray directly to God the Father with the certain hope that he is pleased with us on account of Jesus, who is at all times interceding for us as our High Priest, who has once and for all paid the ransom for our sins.
And this is what it means to pray in Jesus’ name. Although many of our prayers conclude, “in Jesus’ name” or “through Jesus Christ our Lord,” you do not need to even say Jesus’ name in order to pray in Jesus’ name. The Lord’s Prayer is a prayer in Jesus’ name, but it doesn’t say his name. We call it the Lord’s Prayer, because our Lord Jesus taught us the words to this prayer.
In the Lord’s Prayer Jesus teaches us to pray directly to the Father, calling him, “Our Father.” In Luther’s Small Catechism he teaches us that this means that “God tenderly invites us to believe that he is our true Father and we are his true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask him as dear children ask their dear father.” Luther obviously found inspiration for these words from Jesus’ promise in our Gospel lesson. Jesus tells us that the Father himself loves us. He loves us through Jesus Christ. When we call God our Father according to Jesus’ command and promise, we pray in Jesus’ name. This is why St. Paul writes, “He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will ne not also with him graciously give us all things? (Romans 8:32)
The Lord’s Prayer is intended to be prayed at least every day. This is why we say, “Give us this day our daily bread.” Jesus wants us to depend on God anew each day. This means that Jesus teaches us to pray at least every day, “Forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us.” Luther explains this petition in the Small Catechism, “We pray in this petition that our Father in heaven would not look at our sins, or deny our prayer because of them. We are neither worthy of the things for which we pray, nor have we deserved them, but we ask that He would give them all to us by grace, for we daily sin much and surely deserve nothing but punishment. So we too will sincerely forgive and gladly do good to those who sin against us.” This petition shows us what it means to pray in Jesus’ name. We deserve none of the things for which we pray, but we pray that they would be granted to us for Jesus’ sake!
Having faith in Jesus means that you can pray to God even when you know you are unworthy of the things for which you pray, because of your sin. Yet, this does not mean that your sin is not a big deal. Your sin is the biggest deal! Your sin offends the almighty God! Your sin hurts your neighbor! Your sin sends you to hell! Of all the problems you have in this life, none of them ever surpasses your sin in the urgency to deal with it! Do not think that your careless words or your lustful thoughts are a small matter. Scripture clearly teaches that any transgression causes you to fall short of the glory of God and to deserve hell. This is why you must always turn to Jesus! He alone washes away your sins! He alone forgives you and gives you confidence to speak to God. It is for Jesus’ sake that God forgives you your trespasses every day and gladly hears your prayer.
Some doubt that God answers prayers, because he doesn’t give them anything they want. But when you pray in Jesus’ name, you don’t just ask God for whatever your sinful flesh desires. You ask God for what he promises to give you. The Lord’s Prayer lists everything that God promises to give us in seven petitions. The first and greatest petition is, “Hallowed be Thy name.” Luther’s Small Catechism explains this petition, “God’s name is certainly holy in itself, but we pray in this petition that it may be kept holy among us also. How is God’s name kept holy? God’s name is kept holy when the Word of God is taught in its truth and purity, and we, as the children of God, also lead holy lives according to it. Help us to do this, dear Father in heaven! But anyone who teaches or lives contrary to God’s Word profanes the name of God among us. Protect us from this, heavenly Father!”
The reason this petition is the most important is because unless God’s word is taught in its truth and purity and we God’s children believe it, then we cannot know God or ask him for anything! We only know God and his love for us through his holy Word! This is why Jesus says, “If you abide in my word, you are my disciples indeed, and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:31-32)
Erynn, Kendall, Lucas, and Joe, in your confirmation vows you are going to be asked, “Do you intend to hear the Word of God and receive the Lord’s Supper faithfully?” and you will respond, “I do, by the grace of God.” This is exactly what you are praying for when you pray, “Hallowed be thy name.” You are praying that God will keep you faithful to this vow. And it is by faithfully hearing God’s Word and receiving the body and blood of Christ that Jesus will continue to forgive your sins and keep you in the true Christian faith until you die.
Yet, this is the most tragic thing. Although everyone who has ever been confirmed in the Lutheran Church has promised this very thing, to faithfully hear the Word of God and receive the Lord’s Supper faithfully, many break this promise almost immediately after making it. It is common for youths after they are confirmed to come to church less and less until they finally stop coming all together. Of course, this is no small matter. Neglecting to hear the Word of God is breaking the Third Commandment. But promising to God that you intend to faithfully hear his Word and receive his Sacrament when you have no such intention is to misuse the name of the Lord your God. These are wicked sins that destroy saving faith.
Obviously, the Church takes this very seriously. What can be done to keep confirmands from breaking this vow? How can we keep them faithful? Perhaps if we introduce some new rules, it will increase Church attendance? But, in fact there is only one thing that will keep you four (or anyone) from rejecting this promise: Faith in Christ.
If you believe the promise that Christ Jesus gives you in his word, you will regularly come to hear the Word of God and receive the Lord’s Supper faithfully. You will come, because you desire to have your sins forgiven; to be taught by Christ; to pray to your Father in heaven; to eat the very body and blood of Jesus, which is indeed the only medicine of immortality. If you believe the promise of Christ that through his Word you receive salvation from sin, death, and hell, then you will come to abide in that Word. Only the Gospel of Jesus Christ can draw you to faith. And only faith in this Gospel will give you confidence to draw near to God and call him your Father. Amen.

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The Holy Spirit Guides Us in the Truth

5/11/2020

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Cantate 2020
John 16:5-15
May 10, 2020

Sorrow has filled the disciples’ hearts. They are sorrowful, because Jesus is going to depart from them. In fact, by this time of the night in which Jesus would be betrayed, the disciples have caught on that Jesus is going to go and die. That is what Jesus means when he says that he is going to the Father; he will go to the Father by way of the cross. Yet, Jesus says that it is to their advantage that he go away, because if he does not go away, the Helper will not come to them. The Helper is the Holy Spirit. Why will the Holy Spirit not come to them unless Jesus go away? Because if Jesus does not go away, the Helper will have nothing to bring the disciples in order to comfort them.
Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will take what belongs to Christ and give it to his disciples. But unless Jesus depart and go away, the Holy Spirit cannot do this. Jesus goes to bear the sins of the whole world, to suffer punishment we deserve, to die our death, and to rise from the dead. Unless Jesus does this, our sins are still on us. Unless Jesus go to the cross our debt is not paid. Unless Jesus suffer and die, then God’s wrath is still on us. There is no victory for the Holy Spirit to give to us from Christ unless Christ go and win that victory!
It has become popular among many so-called Christian theologians to downplay the importance of Jesus’ crucifixion on the cross. It seems too barbaric and primitive for our modern age. How can we believe in a God who demands sacrifice? How can Jesus’ suffering satisfy our God’s wrath? But such voices refuse to be taught by the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit proclaims to us the crucifixion, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. And the Holy Spirit teaches us that this suffering, dying, and rising is what makes peace between God and us sinners. This is why the Holy Spirit caused St. Paul to write, “For Jews demand signs and Greeks seek wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to the Jews and folly to Greeks, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.” (1 Corinthians 1:22-24)
The Holy Spirit takes what belongs to Christ and gives it to his Church. We see this happen in John chapter 20, when Jesus returns from the grave alive and says, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven. If you withhold the sins of any, they are withheld.” This authority to forgive sins is rooted in Jesus’ work of redemption, when he paid the price for our sins on the cross. The Holy Spirit gives the Church this authority, because Jesus Christ has earned it himself. The Holy Spirit takes what is Christ’s and declares it to us. Yet, if Jesus does not die for our sins, they cannot be forgiven and the Holy Spirit cannot forgive our sins.
This is why the Church must always preach Christ crucified as an historical event. This isn’t a myth or a legend. It really happened on this earth. Jesus’ blood poured into the ground. His soul departed from his body. And God’s wrath against all sin was satisfied. On the third day Jesus rose from the dead as Scripture declares with many witnesses. On the basis of these facts the Holy Spirit gives to us what belongs to Jesus: forgiveness of sins, adoption by God, the Kingdom of God as our inheritance, and eternal life.
Jesus tells his disciples that the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin by convincing the world with words. In fact, the Holy Spirit will speak through these very disciples in order to convince the world concerning sin, righteousness, and judgment. Jesus spoke earlier on this same night, “But the helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you.” (John 14:26) After Jesus’ death and resurrection, the Holy Spirit brings to remembrance all that Jesus taught his disciples. And he gives them boldness to preach what Jesus taught them. We see this when we contrast how St. Peter denied Jesus three times on the night when Jesus was betrayed, yet boldly preached Christ’s resurrection to a large crowd on Pentecost having been filled with the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit convinces the world of sin, because they do not believe in Jesus. Unbelief is the greatest and indeed the only damnable sin. This is exactly what Jesus says in John chapter 3, “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” (vss. 16-18)
Unbelief is the only damnable sin, because Jesus has paid for the sins of the whole world. He purchased salvation, so that it might be given to all who believe in him. But if you do not believe, you reject the gift. When you look at the passion of Christ, you see God’s wrath against sin. You see the true weight of our trespasses; the depravity of our sinful hearts. When the Holy Spirit proclaims the cross of Christ, he convinces the world of the seriousness of its sin and the necessity to believe in Christ’s passion for it. Christ’s passion on the cross brings to light the sin of the world.
Unbelief is the root of all sin. Idolatry, disobedience, murder, adultery, theft, slander, covetousness: all these sins are committed, because people do not believe in a God who provides, who loves, and who judges. Yet on Christ’s cross, this God is revealed with all his providence, love, and judgment.
The Holy Spirit convinces the same world of righteousness. This is quite remarkable, because righteousness and sin are polar opposites. How can this be possible? Because Jesus went to the Father by way of the cross. Jesus made atonement for all sins. If you believe this, then you are righteous. If you reject this, you are still in your sin.
St. Paul writes, “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and are justified by his grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.” By the proclamation of the suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus the Holy Spirit persuades the world that God declares her righteous, because Jesus has removed the punishment which she rightly deserved for her sin. The same people the Holy Spirit convinces of sin, He then convinces of righteousness by the merits of Christ to be received as a gift through faith.
The Holy Spirit convinces the world of judgment because the ruler of this world is judged. The ruler of this world is Satan. He leads all people into sin and unbelief. He lures us to follow our basest and most depraved passions. And then he accuses us in order to convince us that we can expect nothing of God but judgment and damnation. The Holy Spirit convinces the world by the proclamation of Jesus’ suffering and death that Satan has lost, he’s judged and condemned. Satan bruised Jesus’ heal, but Christ crushed Satan’s head.
All who join Satan in sin and unbelief will join him in judgment and condemnation. The world is judged for following its leader. But all who believe in Christ do not come into judgment, but pass from death to life (John 5:24). There is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1).
The Holy Spirit uses true words that tell of historical events and eternal truths in order to convince the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. He opens our eyes and gives us ears to hear; he enlightens our minds, which were darkened by sin, so that we might recognize truth for truth and believe in Jesus’ death and resurrection for us. This is how the Holy Spirit our God works among us.
“Pastor, I think God is speaking to us.” I’ve heard this many times in the past couple of months in regard to this current virus and how it has practically made the world stop on its axis. And I agree! God is indeed speaking to us! There is a message from God in relation to this virus. But how do we know what that message is? There are many different things you could conclude by just looking at the world around you. But to find the answer, you must look to Scripture. St. Peter writes, “Knowing this first of all, that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone's own interpretation. For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.” (2 Peter 1:20-21) And St. Paul likewise wrote, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” (2 Timothy 3:16)
It is popular for people to claim that the Holy Spirit is speaking through them or leading them. But, unless they are listening to what the Holy Spirit says in Holy Scripture, they’re lying. It is common for Christians in an effort to have the Holy Spirit lead them, to fold their hands and pray for the Holy Spirit’s guidance. Yet, they leave it at that without actually turning to where the Holy Spirit speaks to them! If you are going to pray that the Holy Spirit guide you, then you better listen to the Holy Spirit when he speaks to you. He speaks to you through his Word! And the Holy Spirit’s Word is recorded in Holy Scripture. This is why preachers must be able to back up everything they preach with Scripture.
God is indeed sending us a message with this virus. But you will not know what that message is unless you listen to what God says in Scripture. No, I don’t mean for you to comb through the book of Revelation or pull passages of the Prophets out of context to find some fulfilled prophecy. I’m saying that whenever disaster strikes we should listen to what the Holy Spirit says. The Holy Spirit says that death is the result of sin. The Holy Spirit convinces the whole world of its sin. Yet, the Holy Spirit also convinces the whole world of righteousness, because Christ Jesus has gone to the Father by way of the cross. This is what you need to hear more than anything; more than the evening news. This is what you need more than a vaccine, more than a job, more than life! The righteousness that the Holy Spirit convinces you of by the preaching of Christ’s cross.
Is this virus God’s judgment against sin? Yes. All death is judgment against sin. Repent. Judgment will come upon the whole world. In fact, the ruler of this world will be judged! But those who believe in Jesus will not enter into judgment. God is speaking to us through this virus, you bet. And what he is telling you is to listen to him.
It’s Mother’s Day. It is good to honor mothers. When you were in your mother’s womb God formed your eyes, ears, and brain along with all of your organs. God did this by means of your mother’s body through the food she ate. God gave you life by means of your mother. Mothers even have the ability to nourish their children after they are born entirely with their own bodies throughout infancy! And throughout life God uses mothers to feed, nurture, and protect children. This is one of the greatest works of man. God honors women by giving them this task.
Yet, the eyes God forms in your mother’s womb are blind to God’s truth; the ears are stopped from the truth; the mind is darkened by sin. The body that is born is corrupted with sin and will die. And no matter how much a mother nurses, snuggles and kisser her child, she cannot give him eternal life. But Christian mothers know this. That is why they bring their children to Church. The Church is our heavenly mother. In the Church the Holy Spirit works through God’s Word to open our ears and eyes, to enlighten our minds, to give us a new spiritual birth, and grant us nourishment that lasts into eternal life.
As we thank God today for the help and comfort our mothers have given us throughout our lives, let us also give thanks to God for the help and comfort he sends us through his Holy Spirit in the Church. By the convincing power of the Holy Spirit we will believe the truth of Jesus Christ and be members of his Church forever. Amen.

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

The Evangelical Trinity

The Holy Spirit Gives Us Jesus

The Lord Works in The Preaching of The Gospel.

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The Holy Spirit Guides Us in the Truth

Rev. James Preus

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