Grace Evangelical-Lutheran: April 2014

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

1. Corinthians 15,19-28. Easter Sunday

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

1. Corinthians 15,19-28 2514

Ostersonntag 034

Sulpicius and Servilianus, Martyrs at Rome 117

Johannes Bugenhagen, Pastor at St. Mary’s Church in Wittenberg, ✠ 1573

20. April 2014

1. Rejoice now, all you heavenly choirs of angels; rejoice now, all creation; sound forth, trumpet of salvation,and proclaim the triumph of our King. Rejoice too, all the earth, in the radiance of the light now poured upon you and made brilliant by the brightness of the Everlasting King; know that the ancient darkness has been forever banished. Rejoice, O Church of Christ, clothed in the brightness of this light; let all this house of God ring out with rejoicing, with the praises of all God’s faithful people (Exsultet; Altar Book 533). Amen.

2. »If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at His coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when He delivers the reign to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death. For »God has put all things in subjection under His feet.« But when it says: »all things are put in subjection,« it is plain that He is excepted who put all things in subjection under Him. When all things are subjected to Him, then the Son Himself will also be subjected to Him who put all things in subjection under Him, so that God may be all in all.«

3. In our Gospel Lection for Easter Sunday we heard: »When the Sabbath was past, Mary Magdalene, Mary the mother of James and Salome bought spices, so that they might go and anoint Jesus. And very early on the first day of the week, when the sun had risen, they went to the tomb. And entering the tomb, they saw a young man sitting on the right side, dressed in a white robe, and they were alarmed. And he said to them: „Do not be alarmed. You seek Jesus of Nazareth, who was crucified. He has risen; He is not here.« (Mark 16,1-,5-6). Jesus’ teaching had been fulfilled, for three times He had taught His apostles and disciples: »Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the Prophets will be accomplished. For He will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon, And after flogging Him, they will kill him, and on the third day He will rise« (Luke 18,31-33). That final phrase: »and on the third day He will rise« is what the women experienced in Mark 16 and what we confess every Divine Service, especially on this day of Easter Sunday.

4. That first Easter, however, did not begin in the hope of Jesus’ resurrection. The women had gone to the tomb to finish giving Jesus a proper burial, complete with spices and oils. Their biggest concern was how would they be able to roll away the heavy stone that sealed up the tomb. While the women and all the disciples believed in the resurrection of the body, they didn’t expect it to happen on Easter Sunday but some time way far in the future. The Apostle Paul dealt with a different understanding of the resurrection with the Corinthian Christians twenty years later. After the Apostle Paul had preached the gospel of Jesus resurrection to them, there remained a morbid belief among the Corinthians that there was no such thing as the resurrection of the body. Here, the Corinthians were falling back to their default Ancient Greek philosophical upbringing that did not expect, nor want, a resurrection of the body. What Paul told them also applies to the women in Mark 16 and each of us today. The Apostle Paul says of the Easter resurrection: »How can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? but if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that He raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.« The apostle says the resurrection of Jesus is a historical fact; His resurrection is not fiction or fantasy or delusion or lie or anything else. Paul says Jesus truly rose from the grave, and he himself saw and spoke to this risen Christ on the Damascus Road.

5. The women at Easter dawn did not see or speak to the risen Christ. They only saw the empty tomb, the discarded burial cloth and an angel seated where Jesus had been placed. This angel told the startled women: »Do not be afraid. Jesus has risen. Go, tell His disciples and Peter that He is going to Galilee. You will see Him there, just as He told you« (Mark 16,6-7). The angel points the women back to Jesus’ teaching that He must be delivered over to the Gentiles, be killed and rise on the third day (Luke 18,31-33).

6. But as the Gospel according to Mark draws to a close, the women flee from the tomb in fear and don’t tell anyone what they had just witnessed. The other Gospels tell us that the women did indeed get over their initial shock and fear and later that morning did go and tell the disciples what they had seen and heard at the tomb. Matthew records: »So the women departed quickly from the tomb with fear and great joy, and ran to tell His disciples« (Matthew 28,8). Luke tells us: »And the women remembered Jesus’ words, and returning from the tomb they told all these things to the Eleven and to all the rest« (Luke 24,8-9). John records that: »Mary Magdalene told Peter and John about the empty tomb« (John 20,2).

7. Mark ends his Gospel as he did for a specific reason, and in doing so he answers the question that Christians have asked since the first generation of Christians died and joined Jesus in Paradise. That question is: „Wouldn’t it be easier to believe in Jesus if we had some proof?“ Mark’s answer is „It was ever thus. If you had been there it would not have been any easier than it is today. The evidence would have been ambiguous, even with your Lord. What you have is what the disciples and the women had, also on that Easter morning: you have the promise of his Word, a Word that is ever sure“ (Voelz 61). The only proof we have from Mark is that the tomb is empty, an angel told the women that Jesus has risen and they go and tell the apostles. But this word is a sure word for it is a word founded upon the reality of Jesus’ resurrection and a word founded upon the Very Word Himself, Jesus Christ our Lord.

8. The Gospel according to Mark leaves us with the women fleeing the tomb in fear, with the word of the resurrection in their hearts and minds. It did not take them long to overcome the initial shock of seeing the angel at the empty tomb before they go and tell the disciples that Jesus has risen from the grave. These women serve as the first witnesses to the empty tomb and the resurrection. You have heard their report; now what will you do with it? Will you believe the words given to them to profess? Will you shrug it off and doubt? The women believed and their faith encourages us to believe as well.

9. The tomb was empty on Easter Sunday, and the Apostle Paul proclaims what the empty tomb means: »For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive.« In these two sentences, the apostle highlights the importance of Christ crucified and risen. On the cross, Jesus atoned for all our sin; and with the empty tomb, Jesus is the first fruit of those to rise from the dead. His atonement and resurrection are ours through Baptism and received by faith.

10. The apostle continues: »Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: »Death is swallowed up in victory (1) [Isaiah 25,8]. O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting? (2) [Hosea 13,14]« The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ« (1. Corinthians 15,51-57).

11. Jesus had preached to His disciples: »Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the Prophets will be accomplished. For He will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging Him, they will kill him, and on the third day He will rise« (Luke 18,31-33). On Easter Sunday, His final phrase was done, and the women witnessed it when they saw the tomb empty and heard the angel’s proclamation. The Apostle Paul tells us that »The last enemy to be destroyed is death.« The empty tomb is what victory looks like, first Christ’ victory and then yours, for in Baptism you have been united to Christ, His resurrection and victory. The women saw this victory first at Easter dawn, and we have heard this victory proclaimed again this day. The Lord’s Table is ready for you to eat and drink this victory in the Sacrament of Holy Communion. Receive and rejoice in Christ’s victory of death and the grave, for He did it for you and gives you its blessing in both His Word and Sacraments. Amen.

11. Jesus has redeemed all the world back to our Heavenly Father. Easter Sunday is a glorious day of victory. Christ is risen from His grave! You have been baptized into Jesus’ resurrection, and He promises that on the last day He will likewise raise you up from your grave. We are heirs of the gospel proclamation made by Mary Magdalene, the apostles and all bishops and pastors who continue to preach this gospel heritage. Rejoice and be glad for your sins are forgiven and everlasting salvation is yours through the risen Christ Jesus. The women saw the empty tomb, heard the angel’s proclamation, believed and told others. You believe, too, and may go and tell others that Christ is risen; He is risen indeed. Amen.

12. Let us pray. O Lord Jesus, make us joyful of Your resurrection and fill us with delightful hope so that whether we live or are awaiting death we are nevertheless assured of the resurrection of the dead. O Lord Christ, You were once dead but have become alive again so that You have the keys of Death and the Grave, therefore we sing our Hosannas and our Hallelujahs for You are our propitiation both in the hour of our parting and in our resurrection! By Your death and Your resurrection, we live! Amen. (Löhe 6 §7).

To God alone be the Glory

Soli Deo Gloria

✠

All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4. Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27. Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

(1) »Yahweh will swallow up death forever. κατέπιεν ὁ θάνατος ἰσχύσας (Isaiah). Κατεπόθη ὁ θάνατος εἰς νῖκος« (Paul).

(2) »O Death, where are your plagues? O Sheol, where is your sting? ποῦ ἡ δίκη σου θάνατε ποῦ τὸ κέντρον σου ᾅδη (Hosea). ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ νικος; ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ κέντρον⸃;« (Paul).

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Easter Sunday

Χριστός ἀνέστη! Ἀληθῶς ἀνέστη!

Christ is Risen! He is risen indeed. Hallelujah!

그리스도는 부활합니다! 그는 실제로 증가하고 있습니다!

Cristo ha resucitado! Él ha resucitado!

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Easter Vigil

Beloved in the Lord, on this most holy night, in which our Lord Jesus passed over from death to life, we are gathered here in vigil and prayer. This is the Passover of the Lord in which, by hearing His Word and celebrating His Sacraments, we share in His victory over death.

In this most holy night our Savior, Christ, the Lord, broke the power of death and by His Resurrection brought life and salvation to all creation. Let us praise the Lord, for He truly keeps His Word. The sun of righteousness has dawned upon us who have sat in darkness and in the shadow of death.

»Do you not know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? We were therefore buried with Him through Baptism into death in order that just as Christ was raised through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life. If we have been united with Him in His death, we will certainly also be united with Him in His Resurrection. For we know that our old self was crucified with Him so that the body of sin might be rendered powerless, that we should no longer be slaves to sin because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with Him. For we know that since Christ was raised from the dead, He cannot die again; death no longer has mastery over Him. The death He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life He lives, He lives to God. In the same way, count yourselves dead to sin but alive to God in Christ Jesus« (Romans 6,3-11).

Isaiah 53,1-12. Good Friday

✠ We preach Christ and Him crucified ✠

Iesus Nazarenus rex Iudaeorum

Isaiah 53,1-12 2413

Karfreitag 031 schwarz

Wicterp, Bishop of Augsburg, 8. century

18. April 2014

1. O Silent, blessed Good Friday! O Evening after a hard day’s work, O Lovely Evening Star after darkness filled the day! O Divine Rest for sinners! O Hope of eternal life, O Blessed End of suffering, passion and tears! O Lord, have mercy on us in Your reign and keep us in Your great peace from which all joy and hope grow. O Lord Jesus, have mercy on us and grant us Your peace (Löhe 157). Amen.

2. »Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed? For He grew up before Him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; He had no form or majesty that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we esteemed Him not. Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on Him the iniquity of us all. He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth. By oppression and judgment He was taken away; and as for His generation, who considered that He was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of My people? And they made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death, although He had done no violence, and there was no deceit in His mouth. Yet it was the will of Yahweh to crush Him; He has put Him to grief; when His life makes an offering for guilt, He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days; the will of Yahweh shall prosper in His hand. Out of the anguish of His life He shall see and be satisfied; by His knowledge shall the Righteous One, My Slave, make all to be accounted righteous, and He shall bear their iniquities. Therefore I will divide Him a portion with everyone, and He shall divide the spoil with the strong, because He poured out His life to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet He bore the sin of everyone, and makes intercession for the transgressors.«

3. The Prophet Isaiah, writing 800 years before Jesus was born, describes His crucifixion in great detail. Isaiah did this as a prophet of Yahweh by Divine inspiration. These 12 verses are rich in Christology, so let us unpack some of it for our Karfreitag meditation.

4. Isaiah is often called the Fifth Evangelist because several of his later chapters speak in great detail about the Suffering Servant, who is Jesus Christ. He tells us that »He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces He was despised, and we esteemed Him not.« Here the Prophet proclaims that Jesus would suffer at the hands of His people. Judas betrayed Him. Peter denied knowing Him. All the apostles, save John, abandoned Him to be crucified in agony. The Pharisees incited the crowd to reject Him and demand for Barabbas’ release. The chief priests, the scribes and the elders mocked Him while He hung on the cross: He saved others, but now he cannot even save himself (Matthew 27,41-43). Even those crucified at His right and left reviled Him (Matthew 27,44).

5. »Surely He has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed Him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But He was pierced for our transgressions; He was crushed for our iniquities; upon Him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with His wounds we are healed.« Here Isaiah tells us that the Christ bore our griefs, sorrows and sins when He was crucified. He was pierced and wounded for our transgressions. Whipped and beaten, given a crown of thorns, hands, feet and even ribcage all pierced with nail and spear – all this as the one who bore our chastisement. In all this, Jesus suffered vicariously, taking upon Himself the punishment we all rightly deserved from God the Father. Christ’s Passion is our peace, and His wounds are our well-being.

6. Lets examine His suffering a bit more closely. The Roman legionnaires had beaten Jesus to a bloody pulp: twenty lashes from a whip formed deep cuts in an „x“ pattern across His back, and then nineteen more lashes across His chest. This Roman cat-of-nine tails was fashioned with broken pottery, bits of metal and even nails to tear into the condemned’s flesh. A crown with 6-inch long thorns cut deep lacerations into Jesus scalp. Then Jesus was forced to carry an 100 pound cross beam out to Calvary where He would be stripped naked and crucified. On the cross, Jesus reeked of sweat mingled with blood, urine and other bodily releases. His body was bloody and His joints probably dislocated.

7. At Calvary the Romans stretched out Jesus arms and nailed each hand to the horizontal cross beam. Then His feet were nailed together on the vertical beam so that His body formed a T. „As the crucified slowly sagged down with more weight on the nails in the wrists, excruciating, fiery pain shot along the fingers and up the arms to explode in the brain. As he pushed himself upward to avoid this stretching torment, he placed his full weight on the nail through his feet. Again, there was searing agony as the nail tore through the nerves between the metatarsal bones of his feet. Hanging by the arms, the pectoral muscles were paralyzed and the small muscles between the ribs were unable to act. Air could be drawn into the lungs, but could not be exhaled. The crucified fought to raise himself in order to get even one short breath. He suffered hours of limitless pain, cycles of twisting, joint-rending cramps, intermittent partial asphyxiation, and searing pain as tissue was torn from his lacerated back from his movement up and down against the rough timbers of the cross. Another agony was a deep crushing pain in the chest as the sac surrounding the heart slowly filled with serum and began to compress the heart. The compressed heart struggled to pump heavy, thick, sluggish blood to the tissues, and the tortured lungs were making a frantic effort to inhale small gulps of air“ (Dr. C. Truman Davis). Jesus suffered this way for six grueling hours. Truly Isaiah was right when he proclaimed: »He had no form or majesty so that we should look at Him, and no beauty that we should desire Him.«

8. »All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and Yahweh has laid on Him the iniquity of us all.« Isaiah gives the verdict: we are the sinners who turned away from our Loving God. Adam and Eve were the first insurrectionists, and every generation and offspring of theirs follows their sinful, rebellious path. God judged us guilty and deserving of eternal separation from Him when we die. And yet, God does not punish us with this verdict, for Someone else stepped forward and received our condemnation in our place. God mercifully put all our sinfulness upon His Only Son so that when He died on the cross, He died as one bearing all the iniquity of the world.

9. »He was oppressed, and He was afflicted, yet He opened not His mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so He opened not His mouth.« Before Pilate, Jesus did not plea His innocence. Rather, He willingly received from Pilate the judgment of the Roman State: crucifixion as an enemy of the State and a blasphemer in Israel. On the cross, He did not revile those who mocked Him. Instead, He spoke words of mercy, love and forgiveness. He told the insurrectionist crucified next to Him that he would enjoy Paradise that day with Him (Luke 23,43). Although Jesus was calm and silent, nature was not. Nature convulsed in agony over the suffering and death of its Dear Creator. Darkness shrouded the midday for three hours (Matthew 27,45). An earthquake punctuated His death (Matthew 27,51). People were in awe and fear at the cries of anguish nature shed for Jesus’ suffering and death (Luke 23,48).

10. »They made His grave with the wicked and with a rich man in His death.« Jesus was buried in haste so as not to defile the Sabbath. He had no grave, so the wealthy Joseph of Arimathea buried his rabbi and friend in his own tomb (Matthew 27,60). When the stone closed shut grave’s door, Jesus’ life was truly ended.

11. Too often, Christians and churches ignore the reality of death. And when they do speak of Christ’s death it is sanitized. Christ was crucified for sinners, and Karfreitag does not let us shy away from the horrors of death, the grave and the end of life. Karfreitag forces all Christians and churches to look upon death, yes, the death of Jesus, and ponder it.

12. The Gospels tell us how Jesus suffered, and how He died when He yielded up His life by His own accord (John 19,30). Let us not avoid this death, but let us look it straight in the eyes, for the death of Jesus Christ on the cross at Calvary is the stake in the heart of sin, death and the grave. Let us confess the whole truth here too. On Karfreitag, God died. We don’t think of God being capable of dying because He is immortal and omnipotent. Thus Jesus took upon Himself mortal human flesh and blood so He could suffer and die as the sacrificial lamb for the salvation of the world. Behold, the Son of God crucified, and the Lamb of God sacrificed for the sin of the world, yes, for all your sins! Christ crucified is the costly ransom that paid in full all our sinfulness. Behold, there is Jesus, the King of the Jews, and He suffered, died and was buried in a tomb!

13. But Isaiah will not let us cry in anguish at Jesus’ tomb. »It was the will of Yahweh to crush Him; He has put Him to grief; when His life makes an offering for guilt, then He shall see His offspring; He shall prolong His days; the will of Yahweh shall prosper in His hand.« Friday drew to a close with Jesus dead and buried. Our sins had been, and even now are, atoned for, but as Friday night approached, the Lamb of God is still dead. The dark night of Friday covers the land and our hearts, for our Redeemer has died in our place, but the dawn of Sunday is about to arise in full Easter glory. »The Righteous One makes all to be accounted righteous, and He shall bear their iniquities.«

14. Jesus’ crucifixion, death and burial means that there can be no doubt that God loves each and every fallen, sinful man and woman. Three years before He was crucified, Jesus told Nicodemus: »For God loved the world so much that He gave His Only Son so that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life« (John 3,16). God desired to save the world from sin, death and hell, so He sent His one and only Son as the vicarious sacrifice to redeem the world. God did not spare Himself, but rather He sent His very best for you and your salvation. Thus Jesus preached: »And taking the Twelve, Jesus said to them: „Behold, we are going up to Jerusalem, and everything that is written about the Son of Man by the Prophets will be accomplished. For He will be delivered over to the Gentiles and will be mocked and shamefully treated and spit upon. And after flogging Him, they will kill him, and on the third day He will rise“« (Luke 18,31-33). This (Christ crucified) is what a life with purpose looks like. This is what a victorious life looks like. This is what obedience looks like. This is what God being lifted up looks like. This is what the Glory of God looks like. This is what God’s blessings to you look like. This is what a love looks like. This is what your salvation looks like. Go in peace on this night of salvation, for your sins have been paid off in full and you have that forgiveness in your Holy Baptism. Yes, you died and were buried with Christ in your Baptism (Romans 6,3-4). Jesus has been buried, but there is one more phrase in His sermon and we now await that glorious gospel of Easter Sunday to be proclaimed, for that is what victory looks like. Amen.

15. Let us pray. We beseech You graciously to behold this Your family, for which our Lord Jesus Christ was content to be betrayed, given up into the hands of sinners and to suffer death upon the cross (The Book of Common Prayer 121) so that by His holy and righteous merit we, by virtue of His penal substitution, His vicarious atonement and the blessed exchange, receive, by faith in the gospel, the promise of everlasting salvation. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

✠

All Scriptural quotations are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, 4th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

Hebrews 2,10-18. Holy Thursday

this is My body and My blood of the new testament ✠

Hebrews 2,10-18 2314

Gründonnerstag 030 weiß

Anicet, Bishop of Rome, Martyr 173

17. April 2014

1. O Lord Jesus Christ, who has given us the joy of Your bread to eat and Your cup to drink in remembrance of Your sufferings, we pray, enlighten us so that by true self-examination we may worthily receive that Sacrament, in true discernment of Your presence. Amen.

2. »For it was fitting that God, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. For He who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying: »I will tell of your name to My brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.« [Psalm 22,22] And again: »I will put My trust in Him.« [Isaiah 8,17] And again: »Behold, I and the children God has given Me.« [Isaiah 8,18] Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, Jesus himself likewise partook of the same things, so that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. For surely it is not angels that He helps, but He helps the offspring of Abraham. Therefore He had to be made like His brothers in every respect, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For because He Himself has suffered when tempted, He is able to help those who are being tempted.«

3. Tonight, on Maundy Thursday, we begin the pinnacle of the Church Year and remember die große Heilsgeschichte (the great salvation history) of our Lord Jesus Christ. The final three days of Holy Week (Maundy Thursday, Good Friday and Easter Saturday) constitute what the Church calls the Triduum, and they take us through the final hours of Jesus’ precious life, His humiliation, suffering and death on the cross.

4. There is a continuity between the testaments, as the Epistle to the Hebrews informs us. In the 2 Chapter, the apostle gives three Biblical verses that Jesus fulfilled. The Church and her bishops have always taught that the old testament prepared the way for Jesus and the new testament He gave. The bishops received this teaching from the apostles who themselves had received it from Jesus Himself.

5. The great feast in the old testament was the Passover meal that is now celebrated by Jewish families as the Seder meal. The Passover recounts Yahweh’s redemption of Israel from Egyptian bondage by sending His angel to pass through the land killing all the firstborn of men and cattle. This exodus lead Yahweh’s people to the promised land of Canaan. Each year the Jews celebrate this event and remember the great act of deliverance they had received from Yahweh’s hand.

6. The great feast in the new testament is the Lord’s Supper. Jesus and His apostles were celebrated the Passover with a meal together. During this Seder, Jesus gives His Church the new testament that is founded not on the blood of lambs but rather on the the blood of the Lamb, yes, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world (Isaiah 53,7; John 1,29). On the night before His death, Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper and celebrated it with His apostles. He took bread and wine, that were used throughout the Passover meal, and instituted a new meal. This Abendmahl (evening meal) is the first Sacrament delivered unto Christ’s Church. Jesus tells us that this bread is His body and this wine is His blood. Which body and blood is this? The very body of Christ that would be crucified tomorrow, and the very blood of Christ that He would shed on the cross. Thus the Church teaches the Real Presence of Jesus in the Sacrament of the Altar. This (bread) is the body of Christ; this (cup) is the blood of Christ. When we partake of the Lord’s Supper, the Apostle Paul teaches that we participate in the body and blood of Jesus. Thus we participate in Christ’s death and our redemption. »This cup is the new testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the forgiveness of sins« (Matthew 26,28). »For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the Lord’s death until He arrives« (1. Corinthians 11,26).

7. The Epistle to the Hebrews tells us that Jesus took unto His Divine Nature our very human flesh and blood. He undertook this incarnation in order to partake of life as we do. He was without original sin, but nevertheless He suffered and died like any other man or woman. But Jesus suffered and died to destroy death, the devil and hell itself. The apostle explains it this way: »Jesus had to be made like His brothers in every respect, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.«

8. Propitiation is an English word that has fallen into disuse in the 21. century, but it is nevertheless an important word in our ecclesiastical language and we keep it active in our Christian theology and preaching. A propitiation is when one appeases God and atones for sin by sacrificing Himself (Luke 18,13; Hebrews 2,17). Christ proclaims Himself to be the world’s Propitiator when He institutes the Lord’s Supper and says: »This is My body given for you; this is My blood shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.«

9. Forgiveness has been propitiated on the cross, but we don’t receive that forgiveness from the cross. Jesus gives us the forgiveness He propitiated in the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper, and this is why He tells us to eat and drink at this altar for in doing so we are eating and drinking our forgiveness. This is why He tells us to celebrate this Sacrament often. Jesus assures us through this Holy Meal that God the Father has a friendly heart toward us, a heart that if full of compassion, love, mercy and forgiveness upon His fallen creation and sinful mankind.

10. If you desire the forgiveness of your sins, then come to the Lord’s Supper and receive the absolution that Jesus paid for with His very own body and blood. Receive Him in this Sacrament through faith and believe that in this Sacrament Jesus gives you what He has promised and merited for you on the cross, namely, the forgiveness of all your sins.

11. „Dearly beloved, in God’s behalf, ... according to mine Office, to administer to all such as shall be religiously and devoutly disposed the most comfortable Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ; to be by them received in remembrance of His meritorious Cross and Passion, whereby alone we obtain remission of our sins, and are made partakers of the reign of heaven. Wherefore it is our duty to render most humble and hearty thanks to Almighty God our Heavenly Father, for that He has given His Son our Savior Jesus Christ, not only to die for us, but also to be our spiritual food and sustenance in that holy Sacrament. Which being so Divine and comfortable a thing to them who receive it worthily, and so dangerous to them who will presume to receive it unworthily; my duty is to exhort you in the mean time to consider the dignity of that holy mystery, and the great peril of the unworthy receiving thereof; and so to search and examine your own consciences, and that not lightly, and after the manner of dissemblers with God: but so that you may come holy and clean to such a heavenly Feast, in the marriage-garment required by God in Holy Scripture, and be received as worthy partakers of that holy Table“ (The Book of Common Prayer 245-6). Amen.

12. May the Almighty and Merciful God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, by the Holy Spirit, accomplish this in you and me. You have been invited by Christ Jesus Himself to His Heavenly Father’s glorious banquet of eternal life. This Lord’s Supper of Christ’s Body under the bread and His Blood under the wine are a foretaste of that heavenly feast to come. Do not excuse yourself from Christ’s invitation and Supper, but receive His invitation with joy and thanksgiving for He has established and instituted this Supper for your blessing. The Supper has been set; join me in receiving it for our salvation and forgiveness. Amen.

13. Let us pray. O Christ Jesus, You have caused Your wonders to be remembered; You are gracious and merciful. In this Sacrament of the Altar You give us Your true body and blood in the true bread and wine for the forgiveness of our sins. Help us to rightly remember all You have done for us in Your Passion whereby You merited the forgiveness of each and every sin we have or will commit, for Your forgiveness is properly given to us through this new testament Passover meal we call Holy Communion, so that we may always know and believe that we are at peace with You on account of Your holy merit that has been applied to us as our own merit and we thus receive it by faith in You. Amen.

Which is poured out for everyone.

✠

Friday, April 18, 2014

Behold, the Lamb of God, who took away the sin of the world!

Monday, April 14, 2014

Holy Week Schedule

Maundy Thursday Divine Service with the Lord's Supper, 17. April at 7:30 p.m.

Good Friday Service of the Seven Words from the Cross, 18. April at 7:30 p.m.

Easter Sunday Divine Service, 20. April at 11:00 a.m.

Holy Week is the culmination of the Triune God's salvation history to redeem all men and women. The Holy Gospels devote a majority of their pages to this one week-phase of Jesus' ministry. Our church highlights Thursday with the institution of the Lord's Supper, Friday with Jesus' vicarious sacrifice on the cross with special evening services for our worship and meditation and Sunday with the joyous celebration of Jesus' resurrection.

We offer a hearty welcome to all who would like to celebrate these definitive events in Jesus' life with us. Please join us for our Word and Sacrament Divine Services and Vespers this Holy Week.

-- Pastor Peter

John 12,12-19. Palmarum

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

John 12,12-19; Hebrews 12,1-3 2214

Palmarum (6. Sonntag der Passionszeit) 029 „Palms“

Heremenegild, prince, Martyr 586

6. April 2014

1. O Almighty and Everlasting God, who of Your tender love towards mankind, has sent Your Son our Savior Jesus Christ, to take upon Him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the cross, so that all mankind should be redeemed by His great humility; mercifully grant, so that we may both look to His cross where salvation was purchased, and also be made partakers of His resurrection. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer 95-96).

2. »Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus, the Founder and Perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider Him who endured from sinners such hostility against Himself, so that you may not grow weary or fainthearted.«

3. On this day we remember and celebrate Jesus’ entry into Jerusalem. The liturgical name for this day is Palmarum (Palm Sunday) and it receives its name from today’s reading from the Gospel according to John, where the holy evangelist and apostle writes: »They took the branches of the palm trees and went out to meet Jesus« (John 12,13). John, along with the three Synoptic Gospels known as Matthew, Mark and Luke, declares that the Son of Man rode into Jerusalem on a colt.

4. Jesus entered Jerusalem on an ass in the spirit of King Solomon who also rode up to Jerusalem on an ass for his coronation as David’s successor (1. Kings 1,33.38). On Palm Sunday, a colt is blessed to bear upon his young back the Son of Man. Jewish tradition dating back to the Old Testament kings reveals that it was the common practice for the Jews to carry green palm branches and to place their garments before the king at public celebrations (Gerhard 286; 2. Kings 9,13; Nehemiah 8,15). Christ’s entry into Jerusalem began on the Mount of Olives, and thus it is probable that some of these palms were olive palms. Olive branches signify peace (Gerhard 291; Genesis 8,11). Palms also signify victory and conquest (Gerhard 292). The usual cry was „Hosanna!“ for they were welcoming in their king, a son of David. „Hosanna“ means „O Yahweh, help us!“

5. The Jewish people and Jesus’ disciples really wanted a triumphant Messiah-King, and on Palmarum they finally received what they wanted all along. The Prophet Zechariah portrayed the Messiah as the Triumphant King who rides in justifying and saving (Zechariah 9,9). The disciples and the crowd believed Jesus was fulfilling the Prophet Zechariah, and so they joyously sang: »Blessed is He who arrives in the Name of Yahweh! We bless You from the house of Yahweh. Yahweh is God, and He made His light to shine upon us«. (Psalm 118,26-27a).

6. Throughout His ministry, Jesus had patiently taught His disciples that the Messiah truly goes up to Jerusalem to suffer, die and rise again, but His disciples really didn’t buy this. It was inconceivable to them that their Triumphant Messiah-King would be betrayed by the leaders of Israel, condemned to death and executed as an enemy of God and the Jewish religion. They rightly felt proud as their rabbi was joyfully welcomed into the holy city with accolades due His messianic claims. This is how it should be, after all, and it perfectly fit their messianic anticipation.

7. Isn’t this how we reason as well? Jesus should be given the royal treatment and acclaimed the Messiah-King. Let all His disciples and subjects gladly bow before Him in due reverence as their kindly, gracious Prince of Peace, but woe to all His enemies who stand in His way for they will have a King as „beautiful and terrible as the Morning and the Night! Fair as the Sea and the Sun and the Snow upon the Mountain! Dreadful as the Storm and the Lightning! Stronger than the foundations of the earth. All shall love [Him] and despair!“ (Tolkien 356). The Jews wanted a fierce Messiah-King who would drive the pagan Greeks and Romans out of Judea and re-establish a Davidic reign of peace and temple worship. We might pine for a Conservative King who imposes Christian morality in our land that is fast abandoning the moral framework of the Church. On Palmarum it appears that we truly and rightly get the Messiah-King we long for. Even the Pharisees began to resign themselves to the fact that Jesus was destined to restore Israel’s fortunes, for they despaired that the entire world has gone after Him.

8. Getting is not the same as wanting. Often times when we get what we want it is far different from what we imagined or were promised. The ideal of healthcare for all people in America is a lofty and humane pursuit, but I daresay, whatever side of the political spectrum you fall on, the healthcare we have imposed upon us is a far cry from what was promised and envisioned by well-intentioned politicians. Likewise, getting a Messiah-King would not be in our best interests. Yes, the sword and the law are supported when applied against those obstinate sinners who are outside our camp, but what happens when that same sword and law turns inward against us? We begin to squirm and fear the holiness of Yahweh and His law when it shines upon our corrupt, sinful hearts to reveal that we are no better than those who fervently oppose Him and His reign.

9. After His triumphant entry on Palmarum, Jesus set about the affairs of His reign. His first act was not to drive the Romans out of the temple courtyard, but the Jews. It was not the pagan Roman presence that had tarnished the temple, but Yahweh’s own people had turned the temple from a house of prayer into a den of insurrectionists. God’s people need to understand that it is not just the other person who needs redemption but they themselves. Jesus arrived to cleanse His temple, redeem His chosen people and even suffer for the sins of the pagan nations, including the Romans. Jesus arrived not merely to be the King of the Jews, but to be the King of the world for the Psalmist proclaims: »All nations will go and worship You, O Yahweh, for they will glorify Your Name« (Psalm 86,9).

10. Thus the Prophets acclaimed that the Messiah-King would justify and save sinners like you and me, and Zechariah proclaimed Jesus to be a Righteous Savior. Jesus rightly describes Himself in the Gospels as a Suffering Servant and not a Vengeful King. The people wanted a Messiah-King, but Jesus gave them a Messiah-Servant who really would suffer, die and rise again as He taught this to His disciples again and again and again in the Holy Gospels. Thus the Epistle to the Hebrews proclaims: »look to Jesus who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despised the shame and is now seated at the right hand of the throne of God« (Hebrews 12,12).

11. On the first Palmarum »the Pharisees said to one another: „Behold, the world has gone after him.“« (John 12,12-19). Let us strive to make their cry a reality in our midst. Try to bring at least one person with you to the Gottesdienst (Divine Service) next week on Easter Sunday. Resolve to get at least one other person to hear the wonderful gospel of Jesus who has taken away the sin of the world.

12. On Palmarum, the people saw a Messiah-King, but they received a Messiah-Servant who would at the end of the week pay for their sins, make them clean and open up heaven to all people. Those who believe in and receive this crucified Jesus have what He purchased for them: forgiveness, salvation and eternal life.

13. Martin Luther liked to say that „Our salvation does not depend on the fact that we believe Christ to be the Savior of the godly, but that He is a Savior to us and has become our own“ (Luther 1,21). „It is not enough that Christ saves us from the rule and tyranny of sin, death, hell and thus becomes our King, but He offers Himself to us for our possession, so that whatever He is and has may be ours“ (Luther 1,27). Christ’s righteousness is your righteousness; His blessedness is your blessedness. He is your King, your Messiah, your Servant and your Son of Man crucified for you so that you are now redeemed back to your Heavenly Father. Jesus arrived in the Name of Yahweh, and He is blessed. He brings with Him the Reign of David, and it is a blessed reign of forgiveness and justification that Christ freely gives to us in His Word and Sacraments that is received by faith. „That’s why all of us should truly welcome this Christ-King, recognizing Him as our Righteous Helper, and by the power of the Word, Sacraments and faith, enjoy Him now and forever!“ (Luther 5,370). So with the disciples we acclaim this Palmarum: »Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is He who arrives in the Name of Yahweh! Hosanna in the highest!« (Matthew 21,9). And with the psalmist we affirm: »Not to us, O Yahweh, not to us, but to Your Name give glory, for the sake of Your steadfast love and Your faithfulness!« (Psalm 115,1). Yahweh’s glory is Christ Jesus who faithfully entered Jerusalem on an ass to show us God’s loving-kindness and His redemption of the world. Amen.

14. Let us pray. O Christ Jesus, the Son of Man who was lifted up on the cross, in Your Word and Sacraments pour upon us grace and mercy so that we who believe in You will have eternal life. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

Soli Deo Gloria

✠

Löhe, Wilhelm. Seed-Grains of Prayer: A Manual for Evangelical Christians. Wartburg Publishing House, Chicago circa 1912. Concordia Publishing House; Concordia on Demand.

Monday, April 7, 2014

Hebrews 13,12-14. Judica

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

Hebrews 13,12-14 2114

Judika (5. Sonntag der Passionszeit) 028 „Judge“

Coelestine, Bishop of Rome, ✠ 432

Lucas Cranach, ✠ 1553, Albrecht Dürer, ✠ 1528, Michelangelo, 1564, Artists

6. April 2014

1. We, beseech Thee, Almighty God, mercifully to look upon Thy people; that by Thy great goodness they may be governed and preserved evermore, both in body and soul. Amen. (The Book of Common Prayer 94).

2. »So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to make the people holy through His own blood. Therefore let us go to Him outside the camp and bear the reproach He endured. For here we have no lasting city, but we seek the city that is to come.«

3. In today’s Introit, we cried out with the Psalmist: »Vindicate me, O God, and defend my cause against an ungodly people; deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man! For You are the God in whom I take refuge« (Psalm 43,1-2a). Our first thought here may be that of someone standing before a judge to hear his verdict. There are only two possible decisions: 1. the judge declares you guilty, or 2. he pronounces you not guilty. If we stand before God the Father who is the Divine Judge without an advocate or a defense lawyer, then our verdict would be certain and unbearable. If we stand before the Judge with all our sins upon us, we stand before the Judge guilty and condemned. Yahweh spoke His covenant to Israel at Mount Sinai, and began by giving His people the Ten Commandments. In the First Commandment He thundered from the mountain: »I Yahweh your God am a Jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation of those who hate Me, but showing steadfast love to thousands of those who love Me and keep My commandments« (Exodus 20,5-6). After these Commandments had been spoken, Israel’s response was: »Now when all the people saw the thunder and the flashes of lightning and the sound of the trumpet and the mountain smoking, the people were afraid and trembled, and they stood far off and said to Moses: „You speak to us, and we will listen; but do not let God speak to us, lest we die.“« (Exodus 20,18-19). This is what it means to stand before Yahweh the Judge, for His Commandments reveal our utter sinfulness.

4. Yet, the Psalmist exhorts Yahweh to »Judge me and defend my cause against an ungodly people; deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man!« The verb „to judge“ can also mean „to vindicate me and clear me of guilt“. How can we get from the Condemning Judge to the Vindicating Judge?

5. Our Gospel Lection for this morning provides the Bridge as it concludes with this statement by Jesus: »For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for everyone« (Mark 10,45). The Epistle to the Hebrews expounds upon this service of Jesus by saying: »Jesus suffered outside the gate in order to make the people holy through His own blood.«

6. This act of redemption carried out by Jesus should not be a surprise for people who read and know the Holy Scriptures. The Prophet Isaiah devoted chapters in his book where he described the Christ as the Suffering Servant who redeems His people. We can go back even farther, such as to Abraham in our First Lection for today. Yahweh had told Abraham to sacrifice Isaac and offer him up as a burnt offering to Him. Abraham was devoted to this course of action because he knew that Yahweh keeps His promise, and Yahweh had promised Abraham that through Isaac he would build a great nation; since Isaac had not married or begotten children as of the events in Genesis 22, Abraham firmly believed that Yahweh would raise up the ashes of Isaac back to life because Yahweh fulfills His promises. But at the very moment Abraham is about to slit Isaac’s throat, the Angel of Yahweh appears and commands Abraham to stop and instead offer up the ram caught in the nearby thicket. That Angel was none other than the pre-incarnate Christ who Himself would 2000 years later be the New Isaac, the ram offered up for sacrifice and the Only Son of God the Father who this time would not stay His hand as Jesus offered Himself up as the sacrifice for the world’s sin.

7. The Apostle Peter explains what this means in his epistle: »For Christ also suffered once for sins, the Righteous One for the unrighteous ones (that would be all of us), so that He might bring us to God, being put to death in the flesh but made alive in the spirit« (1. Peter 3,18). What Peter so profoundly preaches in his epistle is that the whole weight of the sin of the world comes down on the Christ (Nagel 103,7). Jesus is one lump with all sinners (Nagel 103,7). He is slave to all sins’ enslavement—judged and damned (Nagel 103,7). But what comes of this horrible suffering and condemnation experienced by Christ Jesus? Salvation comes of it: yours and all the world’s! Jesus has unshackled us from the chains of sin, death and hell that once bound and restrained us. Jesus has now vindicated us and opened up everlasting life in His glorious presence! This is nothing else than redemption.

8. Jesus said He would give His life as a ransom for all people. Ransomer is Redeemer, go’el, and the price is His life (Nagel 103,8). For everyone, as in Isaiah 53, Jesus speaks His disciples into that everyone, as He does also when He gives His body to eat and His blood to drink into our mouths this morning (Nagel 103,8). His blood is shed for the world for the forgiveness of sins (Nagel 103,8). Jesus’ own last will and testament promise is: »This is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for everyone« (Mark 14,24).

9. Our liturgy follows Luke at this point and says: »For you« (Nagel 103,9). The phrase »for you« evokes faith (Nagel 103,9). „Amen, we say, as Jesus gives into us His body and His blood. Those to whom our Lord gives His body and blood can pray, »Judge me, O God.« If He tosses you out, He is tossing out the body and blood of His Son—and He cannot do that“ (Nagel 103,9).

10. „God did the judgment on you when He did the judgment for your sins on Jesus. That death for your sin was given to you. It is yours at your Baptism. His cup, His Baptism—yours. There was a putting of you to death in your Baptism by words and water and a new „you“ was born, a you no longer enslaved to sin. »I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave Himself for me« (Galatians 2,20). It is no dead, inert stuff that the Lord gives into your mouth this morning. As He forgives and enlivened you with His body and His blood, His body and blood are alive in you in the same way when He spoke of them as the ransom for many, for you, not to be served but to serve“ (Nagel 103,10).

11. The apostolic preaching rings loud and true: »Jesus suffered outside the gate in order to make the people holy through His own blood.« Now that we are holy, we are heirs of Christ Jesus. Our inheritance is the city that is to come, New Jerusalem that will descend from heaven, the very dwelling place of the Triune God and His host of angels and Christians where we will dwell with them in unending light and salvation.« Amen.

12. Let us pray. O Jesus Christ, the Son of Man who serves mankind; help us to trust Your precious gospel that teaches us that You gave Your life as our ransom from sin so that we may endure the rants and ridicule of this world toward those who believe in You as their Savior. Amen.

To God alone be the Glory

Soli Deo Gloria

✠

Löhe, Wilhelm. Seed-Grains of Prayer: A Manual for Evangelical Christians. Wartburg Publishing House, Chicago circa 1912. Concordia Publishing House; Concordia on Demand.

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Sunday, April 20, 2014

Saturday, April 19, 2014

Friday, April 18, 2014

Monday, April 14, 2014

Holy Week Schedule

Monday, April 7, 2014