Tonight, we look again to the manger and rejoice in the goodness and love of God revealed to us there. We give glory to the God who came to us wrapped in swaddling clothes and lying in the manger.
And we also give glory to the God who comes to us again this night wrapped in the humble trappings of bread and wine of Holy Communion. Here in these things is God’s peace on earth. Here is his good will toward all. Here is the gift of salvation. Here is God for you.
The story of Joseph shows us that an ordinary man can be used by God in extraordinary ways, when that man remains faithful and trusts God in the midst of the most difficult times.
Perhaps you can relate to Joseph’s story a bit. Maybe your life’s been turned upside-down by unexpected events, or maybe God’s taken you on a journey in life that you didn’t expect; be it a physical journey, or a spiritual journey, or both.
And maybe while you were on that journey God was able to use you in an extraordinary way.
In our gospel lesson this morning, Jesus is exhorting not to miss out on our relationship with him.
And yet, it’s easy for us to lose sight of him and allow him slip into our blind spot.
Just as folks did back in Noah’s day, we tend to get consumed with the busyness of life and the worries over this and that. And so we it’s possible for us to forget to notice that while all these other things are going on, Jesus is right here with us hidden in our blind spot.
The Temple was the place where God communicated with his people, and where they sacrificed their offerings to him. They saw the Temple as God's revelation of Himself on earth; it was where God dwelt with them.
So what a shock it must have been when Jesus said, “As for these things that you see, the days will come when not one stone will be left upon another."
Brain teasers get us interested in something that has nothing to do with the solution, so that we’ll go about trying to solve the wrong problem or trying to find an answer to a question that no one asked.
The Sadducees ask Jesus a brain-teaser with the hope of verbally humiliating him andmaking him look bad in front of his followers.
We, and all the saints, look forward to the day when God will wipe the tears from our eyes; that day when death, and mourning, and crying, and pain shall be no more.
This is the hope and expectation of all the saints.
How did we become sons and daughters of God?
The short answer is because God said so.
Just like in creation God said, “Let there be light” and there was light, so it was in the waters of our baptism that God said, “You are my beloved child,” and sure enough we were made his beloved daughter or son.
It was nothing we did. And so the ability we have to call God, Father, is a pure gift; the gracious work of God.
The contrasts between the judge and God are many. The judge doesn't care about justice. God does
The judge is self-centered and only cares about himself. Whereas God is self-less and his primary care is us.
What may not be so obvious, is the contrast to be made between the widow and us. But there’s one very important difference between us and the widow. She had a case. We don't.
Our gospel this morning contains several important lessons; any one of which could fill a sermon.
There’s the lesson about being faithful in doing what the Lord has given us to do.
As well as the lesson about the importance of giving thanks to God for using all the blessings he gives us
And finally, there’s the lesson of salvation; and more specifically about how we are saved through faith.
Like Lazarus, we are poor beggars at the doorstep of our Lord. But unlike the rich man in the parable our Lord is gracious and generous. He binds up our wounds by forgiving our sins, and cleanses us from all unrighteousness.
And unlike the rich man in the story this morning who ignored Lazarus day after day and refused him all even a scrap of bread from his table; day after day, our Lord richly feeds us with his own body and blood in the bread and wine of Holy Communion.
He invites us into his home to share in his abundant and never-ending feast.
Our Gospel lesson this morning is a bit challenging. Because it seems that Jesus is holding up a crooked and corrupt manager as the example we should follow.
Is Jesus saying that the children of light should be corrupt? That we should learn how to bend the rules and beat the system?
No, of course not.
Our gospel lesson this morning gives us unique insight into the joy God experiences when we repent.
The parables of the lost coin and the lost sheep are really about the diligent ones who search and seek to find their lost possession - the man with the sheep and the woman with her coin - and the joy they experience in finding what they’ve lost.
This is the joy our heavenly Father experiences at our repentance.
Are we really thankful for this gospel lesson? Jesus tells us that if we want to become his disciples we must hate our families and our lives give up all our possessions, too.
Is this really the good news that we came to hear this morning?
Well, my hope is that by the time we're done this morning this will seem like good news; news for which we’ll gladly say, "Praise to you, O Christ!”
Bum Phillips once said: “There are two types of coaches in the NFL; them that have been fired and them that are gonna be fired.”
And we might say that our lesson this morning reminds us that there are two types of people in the world; those who’ve been hurt and those who will be hurt.
We can’t escape it. We can’t avoid it. At some time or another all of us get hurt. Being a Christian doesn’t exempt us from it.
What being a Christian does give us, however, is the ability to hope even in the midst of our hurting.
This cloud of witnesses are the saints who inspire us and encourage us to faithfully run the race set before us.
They whisper in our ears when we grow discouraged or when we feel like we can’t endure another day –
They inspire us to fight the good fight and finish the race well.
Sometimes there are parts of scripture that we’d rather not
hear, and today’s lesson is one of those.
Sure, we’re glad to hear the first part; where Jesus tells
us that the Father has chosen to give us the kingdom, but the second part?!
Well, that’s another story.
Jesus can’t be serious when he tells us we need to sell our
possessions and give all our money away? Can he?!
The Rich Fool's problem is that he doesn't recognize the source of his blessing, and as a result he puts his trust in the blessing rather than in the One who blesses.
We, too, must admit that at times we measure our worth by the abundance of our possessions, rather than in the true wealth given to us by God in Christ Jesus.
Today, Jesus not only teaches how to pray, his prayer also teaches us about our relationship with God. The problem for us is, as God's children, we often ask for things that are not good for us.
We're going to look at the parable of the Good Samaritan in two different ways.
The first way we’ll call the way of the Law: the way of thinking we need to do something to earn our salvation.
The second way, we’ll call the way of the Gospel: the way that reminds us that we can’t do anything to earn eternal life, because it’s a gift God has freely shared with us in our baptism.
Our forefathers may have declared us free from the Britain and every other foreign power, but their Declaration of Independence could not free us from our most dangerous and oppressive enemy: Sin.
Our Declaration of Independence may guarantee us the right to life, but it does not guarantee us freedom from sin and death. Only Jesus Christ can do that. And he has done it for us.
By his death and resurrection h declared his independence from sin, death, and the power of the grave. And in our baptism he shared that independence with us.
The key to understanding this difficult passage is to understand the "journey" that Christ is on. None of us is able to make the journey with him of for him, and that's the point.
This is Christ's journey, and only he can make it. That's what makes him our Savior. He walked the path for us, and when He was done he laid down his life for us and on the third day he rose again. And upon rising, he declared us his perfect disciples. Ultimately, the cost of discipleship is not what we pay. It’s what Christ has paid for us.
We’re not the Gerasene demoniac, but without Christ we’re like him.
Without the power of Christ in our lives, our natural tendency is to give into the self-destructive temptations of the world, the devil and our own sinful selves.
Apart from Christ, whether quick or slow, our lives devolve into a living hell. But there is hope.
One day, two friends were walking down a crowded city sidewalk together. Suddenly, one of them said, “Listen to the lovely sound of that cricket,"
His friend listened, but, try as he might he couldn’t hear the cricket.
So he asked his friend, “How can you hear a cricket when there’s so much other noise from all people and traffic?”
The friend who’d heard the cricket didn’t say anything. Instead, he reached into his pocket, pulled
out a large handful of pennies, and proceeded to toss the coin out on the
sidewalk.
Instantly, a dozen people heard the coins clinking and clanking
as the hit the ground, and they began scrambling around looking for them. Even in the midst of all the other sounds they’d
heard the coin.
And as the two friends watched the people looking around for
the coin, the one who’d heard the cricket turned to the other and said, “We
hear what we listen for.”
The last three Sundays we’ve been hearing stories about what
happened with Jesus and his disciples after the Resurrection. We saw him appear to Thomas in the upper room
and eat breakfast with his disciples by the sea. The last three Sundays have been stories
confirming the fact that Christ did rise from the dead.
But now this morning we go back in time to before Jesus’
death and resurrection to be reminded of the fact that Jesus predicted all
this. He’d told people he was the Son of
God. He’d told them he would die and
rise again after 3 days. And yet still
the resurrection came as a surprise to everyone.
And the reason for that is given in our lesson today: it’s
because people didn’t listen; they wouldn’t hear what he told them.
Again, we hear what we’re listening for, and they weren’t listening
for Christ.
In our lesson this morning the Jews ask Jesus, “How long
will he keep us in suspense? If you’re the Christ, tell us plainly."
And Jesus answers them, “I have told you but you do not
believe.”
Like the cricket in the story, Jesus had been speaking, but
they had not heard him.
And the question we need to ask ourselves this morning is: what
are we listening for?
There are a lot of voices competing for our attention: the
voices of our families and friends, the voices of the media and pop culture and
the internet, the voice of books and magazine, and on and on …
And in some of these voices we can hear the voice of Christ
when he speaks to us through them.
While other voices don’t want us to hear the message of
Christ; the message of the Resurrection; the message of hope, forgiveness, and
eternal life.
These other voices want us to believe a different message, a
message of fear, guilt, uncertainty, and death.
That’s certainly the message the bombers in Boston wanted us
to hear this past week. Theirs was a
message of terror and hatred and despair.
Voices such as these are compete with Christ for our
attention. And when we let them fill us
with fear or hatred or despair, they are victorious.
And so this morning, Jesus wants to make sure that we hear
his voice and his message.
“My sheep hear my voice,” he says, “and they follow me. I give them eternal life and they’ll never perish, and no one will
snatch them out of my hand.”
This is the message his voice speaks to us this morning in
his words and Sacrament; a message of encouragement and assurance and hope.
The life he’s given us in baptism is eternal. Death cannot defeat it because the resurrected
Christ is our Good Shepherd and nothing in all creation – not even death itself
– can snatch us away from him.
This is Christ’s message for us today and every day.
But are we listening for it?
Are we listening for Christ’s voice and that message in the
midst of all the other noisy voices competing for our attention? Or has it gotten drowned out?
Again, we hear what we’re listening for.
And as our gospel reminds us this morning, if we’re not
hearing the voice of Christ it’s not because he’s stopped speaking, it’s that
we’ve stopped listening.
Christ’s voice and his message are always there for us. He’s always calling out to us like that
cricket on the busy sidewalk. All we
have to do is focus our ears on hearing him.
And so if you’ve been having trouble hearing Christ’s voice in
the midst of all the other voices in your life, if you’ve found yourself
overwhelmed by messages of hopelessness anger, guilt or despair, then I would
encourage you to use our worship this morning to once again tune your ears into
Christ; listen to his voice speak to you in his Word and in his Sacrament. Listen to his message of hope, forgiveness and
life.
“My sheep listen to my voice,” he says to us again this
morning, “I know them and they follow me and I give them eternal life. They
shall never perish because no one can snatch them out of my hand.”
Once there was a man who was the member of a certain church. He’d been attending services regularly for quite some time, but recently he’d stopped going.
There was nothing wrong. No health issues. No family issues. He just didn’t feel like going anymore.
So after a few weeks, a member of the church council decided he’d
pay the man a visit. It was a chilly evening and when the council member arrived
at the man's home and he
found him sitting alone before a blazing fire.
Guessing the reason for the council member’s visit, the man welcomed
him in and
led him to a comfortable chair near the fireplace. Then the
man sat in his chair by the fire and waited for the councilman to
speak.
But
there was only silence.
The councilman settled into his chair …
And made
himself comfortable …
But
he said nothing.
There was
only a grave silence –
The councilman contemplated the flames …
As they danced
around the burning logs –
Several minutes passed.
Then, the councilman took a pair of fire tongs …
And
carefully picked up a brightly burning ember …
And
placed it on one side of the hearth -- all alone.
And then
settled back into his chair.
The host watched in quiet fascination.
It wasn’t long before the one lone ember flickered …
And then
with a final momentary glow –
Its
flame went out …
And
it lay cold and dead on the hearth.
Still the councilman and the man said nothing –
They just
sat in silence-
Not a word had been spoken since their initial greeting.
Finally, the councilman was ready to leave –
Before standing up –
He took
hold of the tongs once again …
And
picked up the cold, dead ember …
And
placed it back in the middle of the fire.
Immediately, it began to glow with the light and warmth …
Of the
burning coals around it.
At the door, the host clasped the councilman’s hand –
And with
tears pouring down his cheeks, he said:
“Thank
you –
“Thank
you so much for your visit –
“And
especially for the fiery sermon!
“I will be back in church next Sunday.” +++++
And when they had finished breakfast –
Jesus said
to Simon Peter:
“Simon
son of John, do you love me?”
Simon Peter
replied:
“Yes,
Lord; you know that I love you.”
And Jesus
said to him:
“Feed
my sheep.”
Today's Gospel shows us that Jesus' followers …
Didn't know
what to do with the resurrection of Jesus –
Since that first Easter evening …
They’d been
having incredible experiences of the Risen Christ.
Jesus appeared to them in rooms with locked doors –
Along a
public road, and then disappeared from their sight –
But what were they supposed to do?
What was
supposed to happen next?
Well, eventually they decide it's time to go back …
To what
they’d been doing before Jesus called them into discipleship –
They go back to the sea of Galilee –
Also known
as the sea of Tiberias –
And
take up fishing again –
But Jesus has other plans for them –
Three times
he gives Peter the direction for their future –
He says to him:
“Feed my
lambs,
“Tend
my sheep,
“Feed
my sheep."
So why this emphasis on tending sheep?
What's
going on here?
Jesus is concerned about the future life of his followers.
He knows
they need tending –
And so he directs Peter –
And the rest
of the disciples –
To undertake the task of tending –
Feeding –
Nurturing
–
And
caring for Jesus' followers
And why did Jesus command this?
Because he knew that the impact of even the most incredible
experience …
Would
dissipate over time unless the person who experienced it …
Was
cared for –
Heck, as our gospel shows us –
Even the
impact of the resurrection –
Without
a doubt the most incredible experience of all time –
Even its
effect dissipated over time –
I mean, why else would the disciples have gone back to
fishing!?
Jesus knew that his followers needed to be cared for –
He knew
that our faith needed to be fed –
That’s why he sent Ananias to find Paul in our first lesson
this morning –
Jesus used
Ananias to strengthen Paul’s faith –
Just
like he wanted Peter to strengthen the other disciples’ faith –
Jesus knew that if the church was going to survive down
through the centuries …
The impact
of the resurrection …
And
the fire of faith …
Must
not be allowed to go out –
It must be
tended and stoked –
Just
like the ember in the story I told a moment ago –
As that story reminds us –
Without the
proper care …
Anyone's
spiritual life can fade away –
In fact, it’s not at all uncommon …
For someone
to have a deeply moving spiritual experience …
And then, in a matter of weeks –
Or perhaps months
–
Or
maybe even years –
The impact of that experience diminishes –
Till it
becomes just a distant memory –
The desire for God lessens –
And the fire
of faith goes out –
The un-tended Christian life …
Is bound
for extinction –
That’s why God sent Ananias to Paul in our second lesson
this morning –
And it’s
why Paul spent several days with the disciples …
After
his conversion –
God used
that time to strengthen his faith –
That's why Jesus tells Peter to:
“Feed my sheep.”
Because that’s how we remain strong in our faith as
Christians –
By
strengthening one another –
By
nurturing each other –
By tending
one another’s faith –
+++++
And so Jesus gives us the same directive today –
“Do you
love me?” he asks us –
Of
course we do, we tell him –
“Then feed
my sheep,” he says –
“Tend
the fire of faith in them –
“Nurture
their belief –
“Encourage
them to remain rooted in me.”
Is there someone you haven’t seen at church in a while?
Do you have
a friend or relative who needs their faith rekindled?
Then reach out to them …
As the
councilman reached out to the man in the story –
Go to them …
Just like
Ananias went to Paul in our second lesson this morning –
You can invite them to church –
But
sometimes that can be scary for them –
So maybe start by telling them how Jesus is working in your
life –
Or ask them
to tell you how Jesus has been active in their life –
