A Mountain that Won't Kill You

First Sunday in Advent

November 27, 2016

Isaiah 2:2

A Mountain that Won't Kill You

In the name of the Father and of the ☩ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Most mountains try to kill you. You could fall. You could freeze. You could suffer from acute mountain sickness and have trouble breathing or worse. I always get a kick out of Christian-ish posters that show Mount Everest or K2 with a line from the Psalms overprinted: “Our God is an awesome God!”

God is everywhere, this is true, but He only wants to be found in Christ through His Church where is Gospel is heard and eaten. And so the prophet Isaiah describes a mountain that won't kill you:

²It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of the Lord’s house will be established as the chief of the mountains. It will be raised above the hills, and all nations will flow to it. ³Many peoples will come and say, “Come, let’s go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob. Then He will teach us from His ways, and we will walk in His paths.” For from Zion the law shall go out, and the Lord’s word shall go out from Jerusalem.

Isaiah 2:2-3 + Evangelical Heritage Version

This mountain is Mt. Zion and it is alternate name for the city of Jerusalem. Zion at first specially meant a certain part of the city, a rocky hill near where the Temple was built. In the Psalms, Zion's meaning shifted to mean the Temple mount itself. And over time, Zion became another name for Jerusalem.

And here Zion and Jerusalem go beyond the Old Testament and show us the future. Here is God's city, because His Word is there. And it go out in the world calling God's chosen people home. In our home war and weapons will be out of place because Jesus will rule all His people.

This prophecy shows us our everlasting life in heaven, but it also shows us how things are now. This is a prophecy of the Church on earth. In the Church force and coercion are out of place; our “weapon” is the Word of God. The Law of God accuses us of our wickedness and shows us our sin: carousing, drunkenness, sexual sin, wild living, strife, and jealousy (Romans 13:14).

And our sin quickly crops up because you are thinking, “I don't carouse . . . at least not anymore.” We sin as much as we can or at least as much as we can get away with, so the fact that you like to go to bed at 9:30 instead of 2 am doesn't say much that is good about us.

Others may be thinking, “I never caroused.” But it's only because no one would carouse with you, yet you secretly were jealous of those who partied hard and never seemed to suffer any ill effects.

The Law shows us that we sin as much as we can. The answer to sin isn't to run away from it; the answer is Christ. He is coming to be our judge, but for those who live on Zion, in the Church now, who do not despise preaching and God's Word, but gladly hear and learn it, there is fear and there is love. Just outside Jerusalem Christ was crucified, the fearful punishment for our sin and wonderful mercy of our Lord that washes our sin away.

The Law: we sin as much as we can;

the Gospel: Jesus forgives all our sin.

Most mountains kill you, if you give them enough time. But not God's mountain, not Zion, not His Church, because there is where He wants to be found. There is where He comes and speaks to you, His accusing Law and His forgiving Gospel.

Advent means that Jesus comes. He comes in three ways. He has come in Bethlehem, God in the flesh. He comes to you now in Baptism, Absolution, and Communion, washing, speaking, and eating. And He is coming again at an hour when you do not expect Him. It is true that we should expect His final advent today, but whether or not He comes today, we are one day closer to the everlasting mountain because we are already on the Mountain. Jesus is with us.

It is already the hour for you to wake up from sleep, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.

Romans 13:11 + Evangelical Heritage Version

For even the Son of Man did not come to be Served, but to Serve, and to Give His Life as a Ransom for Many. Amen.

Fighting over the Scraps

Thanksgiving

November 24, 2016

Luke 12:13-15

Fighting over the Scraps

In the name of the Father and of the ☩ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!

Jesus is not a probate judge. He is the judge of the world, but on the Last Day He won't be probating your will, He won't be dividing up who gets what stuff. Frankly, He doesn't care about your stuff.

¹³Someone in the crowd said to Him, “Teacher, tell my brother to divide the inheritance with me.” ¹⁴Jesus replied, “Man, who appointed Me a judge or an arbiter between you?” (Luke 12:13-14)

But He does care about you. So when a man asked Jesus to help him get a fatter chunk of his dad's inheritance, Jesus wasn't interested.

It's true that Jesus always helps those who are desperate: terrified Jairus, sinking Peter, the humble Canaanite mother. But He didn't help Inheritance Man. He answered him essentially, “Man, this isn't My job.” And He went on to identify the sin that so often drives disputes over inheritance: greed. Jesus said:

“Watch out! Be on your guard against all kinds of greed; a man's life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.” (Luke 12:15)

Jesus doesn't want us to fight over the scraps of this world. And although there are lots of good things in this world, anything that pushes Jesus and His death and resurrection to the side is a scrap. Anything of this world that we hang on to for hope instead of Jesus' cross is a scrap.

Some scraps are easy to identify. But many scraps are in our blind spot.

America isn't going to save you.

The President isn't going to save you.

Lots of toys for Christmas isn't going to save you.

Cheap gas isn't going to save you.

A good harvest isn't going to save you.

A great house isn't going to save you.

The joy of family togetherness isn't going to save you.

A treasured family recipe isn't going to save you.

America, presidents, toys, energy, crops, houses, families, and food are all gifts from Jesus. But He didn't give them to us to save us; He sent Himself. And even though He knows that we turn these scraps into idols, He still gives us these things because He knows that we need them.

So don't fight over the scraps of this world. Use them; enjoy them, but don't hold on to them.

Instead cling to Jesus, the Giver of all good things. And above all the things He gives us, He gives us Himself. He gave His life on the cross to be punished for our love of scraps. He rose to life and left the tomb to speak peace to us. And even now He continues to serve us. With His water. With His words. With His body. With His blood.

For the Son of Man did not come to be Served, but to Serve, and to Give His Life as a Ransom for Many. Amen.

Ready for the Return of Our King

Last Sunday of the Year

November 20, 2016

Luke 12:35-40

Ready for the Return of Our King

In the name of the Father and of the ☩ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!

When some of you were being born or still watching Blue's Clues, one fine December afternoon I drove from our Seminary north of Milwaukee to Madison's finest and only IMAX theatre. I met my brother there for an event: watching all three Lord of the Rings movies in one sitting. This took about 10 hours.

As the hours rolled by and the first movie ended and then the middle movie began, I began to get sleepy. I had already gone to classes in the morning, worked my part-time job, and driven a couple of hours to get to the movie event. And I had already seen these movies before. But I wanted to stay awake for the very first minute of the third and new and final film of the trilogy. If I missed that arrival of the King of Middle-earth, the whole night would have been a failure.

In a very small way, this waiting for the big moment is like our wait for our Savior Jesus. So many of the days are our waiting seems like we're watching the same day over and over, so we get bored and sleepy. The big moment of our Master's return seems far away, so it seems like time for a nap. But Jesus said:

³⁵“Be dressed ready for service and keep your lamps burning, ³⁶like men waiting for their master to return from a wedding banquet, so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him.” Luke 12:35-36 NIV 1984

Jesus is coming back and He always wants us to be ready. This is why it's wise to assume that today will be the day of our Master's return, the return of our King. How do you stay ready for service? The key to this question is that the greatest good work there is isn't what we do for our King, but what we receive from Him. Jesus said:

“It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. I tell you the truth, he will dress himself to serve, will have them recline at the table, and will come and wait on them.” Luke 12:37

He comes and waits on us. This is what heaven is, Jesus serving us. But it is also our lives now. Jesus said:

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

What do you receive when you come to a table and are waited on? Food. And Jesus' food is His own body and blood.

So how do you stay dressed and ready for service? Receiving Jesus, listening to the Words He has left for us, eating and drinking His body and blood under bread and wine. And Jesus makes us strong to keep our lamps burning, that is, to stay awake.

All those years ago, I did fall asleep, but I didn't miss the beginning of The Return of the King. Can you guess why? My brother woke me up. In the same way, one of our greatest ways to serve others is to keep them awake for Jesus' return by talking Jesus to them. Every day you think about Jesus, you talk Jesus, you discuss Jesus with those close to you, your brothers and sisters in Christ, which are your parents and your kids or your actual siblings.

For example, when you call your Mom or your Daughter, talk Jesus with her. Ask her about what her pastor talked about in Bible class. Ask her what “Honor your father and mother” means. Ask her how she knows she saved. She'll either help you or you'll help her. Or both! It might be the last time you speak to each other, because Jesus is probably back today. This isn't scary, but rather wonderful news! Jesus said:

³⁸It will be good for those servants whose master finds them ready, even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night. ³⁹But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief was coming, he would not have let his house be broken into. ⁴⁰You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect Him.” Luke 12:35-40 NIV 1984

Jesus is the Son of Man crowned King with a crown of thorns, who saved His subjects by dying for them on a cross. And then three days later He rose to proclaim His kingdom, which has now come to you. And He's coming back, which is wonderful, because you belong to Him.

When's the very last time you'd expect our King to return? Right now, right! So today you receive and speak Jesus. Today.

For the Son of Man did not come to be Served, but to Serve, and to Give His Life as a Ransom for Many. Amen.

Christ Gives Us More Than a “Better Place”

Festival of All Saints

November 6, 2016

Revelation 21:4

Christ Gives Us More Than a “Better Place”

In the name of the Father and of the ☩ Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen!

There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away. (Revelation 21:4)

These are beloved words that we cling to when someone we know and especially someone we love dies. This promise from Jesus is the foundation for the words often spoken about the dearly departed to the grieving survivors: “They are in a better place now.”

It's better because they aren't dying anymore. They aren't sick anymore. They aren't tired anymore.

But to tell the whole truth, they also aren't grumpy anymore. They aren't insensitive anymore. They aren't lazy anymore. In short, they aren't sinners anymore.

This sinfulness that afflicts the lives of every human being from the very beginning of life must be talked about at the end of life. If it isn't, than heaven is just a better place. 

“Better place” funeral sermons that don't explain why your grandfather or mother or brother is dead is a bad sermon. And in a sermon like that, if and when Jesus is mentioned, He is only making a cameo.

Our loved ones are dead because they were born sinners. And they proved it with empirical evidence that was their lives. They spent their lives sinning in public and private ways. And these sins are very close to home. They held grudges, just like you. They gossiped, just like you. They were greedy, just like you. They lived most days without stopping to examine their sin and the wages of their sin, which is death.

However, every now and again, they would. They didn't have a choice. These days were days when they went to church on a Tuesday morning for a funeral. And there they saw it: Death.

If the preacher was bad, Death and Sin were never mentioned. The preacher would try to flower over the stink of Death, and praise the dead with their good deeds and their place in the community. But this kind of preaching only kills us more. What good are our good deeds before God? He demands perfect deeds with perfect intent and perfect execution all the time, not good deeds once in a while and always tainted with selfish interest. Preaching like this is like trying to mask the stench of overflowing garbage filled with dirty diapers and rotting fruit with a pumpkin candle. You can pretend for a while, but the rot is always there.

So to continue this smelly picture, you can't take out your trash. But Jesus does. He goes through your whole house—your heart and soul—and finds all the hidden garbage—your sin and your sins—and picks it up and takes it all outside and dumps it on Himself. All those dirty diapers, rotting food, and every other old and disgusting thing. He is covered and smeared with our sin. On the cross Jesus was our sin and He was punished for our filth by His heavenly Father. He did this for you; He did this for your dearly departed.

Good Christian funerals always are about our sin and Jesus' mercy. Good funeral preaching is always about His sacrifice on the cross and His washing of the sinners in Holy Baptism. In short, good preaching is about God's deeds, not yours. And because Jesus' good deeds are credited to you as though they are your own, your death will usher you into heaven. So our dearly departed saints are saved by Jesus and live and sing at this moment.

Indeed in our liturgy it is rightly said that when we sing “Holy, holy, holy Lord God of heavenly host: heaven and earth are full of Your glory. Hosanna!” we are joining with all the saints on earth and the hosts of heaven. The hosts of heaven are our sainted grandfathers, grandmothers, aunt, uncles, mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, babies, cousins, friends, and others, sainted, made holy by the blood of Christ. They are not in a better place, but they are in the best place, because forever with Jesus is the best place to be.

For even the Son of Man did not come to be Served, but to Serve, and to Give His Life as a Ransom for Many.

Mark 10:45