Psalm 148,1ff; Psalm 119,89-90. 20. Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

Psalm 148,1.2.3.5-6.12-13; Psalm 119,89-90a 5317

20. Trinitatis  065; Gedenktag der Reformation   095 (observed)

Narcissus, Bishop of Gerona in Spain, Martyr 307 

29. Oktober 2017 

1. O Lord, the eyes of all look to You, open Your hand in blessing, so that You satisfy our desire for the gospel of Christ crucified.  Amen. (Gradual). 

2. Forever, O Lord, Your Word is firmly fixed in the heavens. Your faithfulness endures to all generations. Praise the Lord from the heavens; praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon, praise Him, all you shining stars! Let them praise the Name of the Lord! For He commanded and they were created. And He established them forever and ever; He gave a decree, and it will not pass away. Young men and maidens together, old men and children! Let them praise the Name of the Lord, for his Name alone is exalted; His majesty is above earth and heaven. 

  3. The Lutheran Reformation 500 years ago centered on restoring the certainty of salvation (Heilsgewißheit) in the Church. The 500 years prior to 1517 had seen a gradual erosion of proclaiming the pure gospel as such proclamation was replaced by other means to assure people of God’s mercy. The indulgences that Luther famously railed against in his 95 Theses were but the latest ecclesiastical erosion the pure gospel to the distraught Christian. The Medieval Church in Luther’s day was a Church in exile: the absolution that your sins are fully and freely forgiven by Jesus Christ was rarely heard; coin and hard work might grant you a morsel of that absolution, but what are a few crumbs to a person starving from the guilt of their sins? Jesus was portrayed more often as a stern judge rather than a Merciful Savior, so the saints, their relics and penance were used to help appease this angry Jesus on your account. 

4. What happens when these paltry morsels of absolution fail to appease one’s guilty conscience? You get a Martin Luther, a man who represents every Christian (Jedermann) who’s guilty conscience wasn’t satisfied with these morsels. Luther did every thing Medieval Christianity told him to do: he went to confession and made temporal restitution for his sins, he revered the holy relics, he went on pilgrimages and yes, young Luther also purchased some indulgences for his relatives. None of this eased his conscience, and there were many men and women in that same boat with Luther. 

5. Medieval Christianity, however, also came to young Luther’s rescue, and it arrived in a man named Johann von Staupitz; he was the dean of the Augustinian monastery where Friar Luther resided. Staupitz saw Luther’s daily distress and concluded: the only thing that will help poor Martin is the Word of God, for he knew what the Psalmist knew: »O Lord, Your Word is forever fixed firmly in the heavens and Your faithfulness endures to all generations.« Staupitz reasoned that if Martin spent time studying, teaching and preaching the Holy Scriptures, then he would finally find the cure for his burdened conscience. So in 1511 Staupitz told Luther: you are going to Wittenberg to earn a doctorate in theology. It is safe to say that we could push the traditional date of the Reformation back a few years to that momentous decision in 1511. Luther went to the newly established [1502] Wittenberg University where he diligently studied, earned his doctorate, taught university students and preached at the University Chapel known as All Saints (Allerheiligen) aka the Castle Church (Schloßkirche). St. Mary’s is the Stadtkirche. During that time Luther finally understood the pure gospel while preparing his lectures on the Epistle to the Romans, as St. Paul says: »The righteousness of God is revealed in the gospel from faith in faith, as it is written The righteous will live by faith« [Habakkuk 2,4] (Romans 1,17). »The angels, all the host of heaven, the sun, moon and stars praised the Lord« for the gospel light was again shining forth upon the darkness that had befallen the Medieval Church. 

6. Luther writes about that glorious moment: „First I saw this well, namely, that the free gift is absolutely necessary for obtaining the light and the heavenly life, and I worked anxiously and diligently to understand the well-known statement in Romans 1,17: »The righteousness of God is revealed in the Gospel.« Then I sought and knocked for a long time (cf. Matthew 7,7), for that expression »the righteousness of God« stood in the way. It was commonly explained by saying that the righteousness of God is the power of God by which God Himself is formally righteous and condemns sinners. This is the way all teachers except Augustine had interpreted this passage: the righteousness of God is equated to be the the wrath of God. But every time I read this passage, I always wished that God had never revealed the Gospel—for who could love a God who is angry, judges, and condemns?—until finally, enlightened by the Holy Spirit, I weighed more carefully the passage in Habakkuk (2,4), where I read: »The righteous shall live by his faith.« From this I concluded that life must come from faith. In this way I related the abstract to the concrete, and all Holy Scripture and heaven itself were opened to me. At this time, however we see that great light very clearly, and we may enjoy it richly. But we despise and disdain this jewel and heavenly treasure. Accordingly, if one day it should be taken away again, we shall cry and knock once more, as Christ says about the foolish virgins in the parable (cf. Matthew 25,11). But we shall cry and knock in vain. Therefore let us fear God and be grateful. Above all, however, my own example and the example of others should move you. We lived in death and hell and did not have the blessing so abundantly as you have it. Therefore occupy yourselves diligently with the doctrine of the blessing, and think about it, in order that you may be able to keep it yourselves and also to make it known to others. As for ourselves, we have done our duty“ (Luther 158; WA 43,537). 

7. The Apostle Paul described the gospel in his Epistle to the Corinthians: »The gospel is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. This gospel of Christ crucified is a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to the Greeks, but to those who are called to faith, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God« (1. Corinthians 1,23-24). Luther’s 62. Thesis is the cornerstone of his 95 Theses; it declares: The true treasure of the Church is the Most Holy Gospel of the glory and grace of God. 500 years later the Church continues to proclaim this bright light of the gospel. 

8. The bright beam of the gospel gave Luther the certainty of salvation (Heilsgewißheit) his guilty conscience had been craving; it lead him to proclaim: „Anyone who regards God the Father as angry is not seeing Him correctly, but has pulled down a curtain and cover, more, a dark cloud over His face. But in Scriptural language to see His face is to recognize Him correctly as a Gracious and Faithful Father, on whom you can depend for every good thing. This happens only through faith in Christ“ (Luther 21,37). And so Luther writes in his famous hymn: „Jesus Christ is the Valiant One who fights for us whom God Himself elected“ (A Mighty Fortress 2). »The Lord’s Word is forever firmly fixed in the heavens; the Lord’s faithfulness endures to all generations.« 

9. Absolute certainty of forgiveness is the hallmark of Christ and His gospel. We have this certainty because Christ on the cross has redeemed us from God’s wrath and His condemning judgment. The gates of hell are now barred and closed to you, and the doors into heaven are unlocked and wide open for you because the gospel of Christ Jesus crucified and risen for you and your sinfulness justifies you: all your sins have been paid for and you are now righteous before God the Father. The gospel sanctifies you: the Holy Spirit daily works in you to create good works by which your neighbors are blessed. The gospel is revealed by faith and received by faith. You are saved. You are righteous. You are sanctified. Christ has made it so. The gospel proclaims it. Believe it, for the gospel is the power of God the Son working in your life through the Holy Scriptures, Holy Baptism, the Lord’s Supper and Absolution. The gospel is yours by grace and it is free all on account of Christ. You can be certain of it, for Christ alone is your Righteousness. 

10. Luther’s Reformation of the Church didn’t stop at rejecting the issuance of indulgences; once the light of the gospel shone brightly again other practices were reformed. In Luther’s day, the laity received only the bread at communion, for just the priest and bishops received both the bread and wine. This practice was only 300 years old, a rather recent change, in the Church’s long history. Luther re-established the Sacrament as Jesus had given it: all who partake are to receive the bread and wine. Latin was the official Church language in the 16. century. The liturgy, hymns and sermon were all said or sung in Latin. While everyone learned Latin as children, many ordinary Christians simply had a remedial grasp of a language they didn’t use day to day in their lives. Luther reformed the Divine Service (Gottesdienst) so that the liturgy, hymns and sermons were said and sung in the language the people understood. The parishioners ceased to be observers of the worship and became participants who now heard the gospel in their native tongue. Luther also shifted the focus off of the saints and onto Christ alone. He urged the people to take their petitions and prayers to Jesus and not to the saints, because Jesus truly is a loving, merciful Savior who wants to help you. Now the saints merely serve as examples to follow in their faith and works, they are to be respected as Christian men and women who loved Jesus and role models of how to live out our faith in this temporal life. 

11. Jesus is a God who saves fallen humanity; the gospel shows how this salvation history (Heilsgeschichte) unfolds and where we find the certainty of salvation. 

℣ Jesus Christ is the | Light of the world: * [John 8,12] 

℟ the Light no darkness can | o - ver - come. [John 1,5] 

The light of Christ and His gospel is summarized in Paul’s Epistle to the Romans: »The righteous shall live by his faith« (Habakkuk 2,4; Romans 1,17). Jesus comforts us with the gospel and it’s absolute certainty. The gospel proclaims that we are forgiven, loved and redeemed by God. The threats of the law have been silenced. The condemnation of the law has been commuted. Jesus is our Substitute. He took our place under the law, lived it perfectly, suffered its condemnation for us in our place and rose from the grave in glorious victory. The gospel for terrified sinners who are burdened by the law or seeking a way to live a better life in Jesus is: Christ has done it all for us and He gives us His righteousness. Christ has found us and has restored our fortunes: this is the pure gospel, and thus this is the proclamation in the Sermon and the Sacrament. You are saved. You are righteous. You are sanctified. Christ has made it so. You hear it with your ears and receive it with your mouth. Believe it, for the gospel is the power of God the Son working in your life through the Scripture and Sacrament. The gospel is yours by grace and it is free all on account of Christ. You can be certain of your salvation, for Christ alone (solus Christus) is your Righteousness.   Amen. 

12. Let us pray. O Lord Jesus Christ, the Very Gospel of our Heavenly Father, may the light of the gospel always shine brightly from Your Church; so that distraught sinners may see and believe that they are redeemed by You alone.  Amen. 

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^th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27^th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.  

All quotations from the Book of Concord are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using Die Bekenntnisschriften der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche, 12. Edition © 1998 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.  

Luther, Martin. Luther’s Works, Vol. 5: Lectures on Genesis, Chapters 26-30. „Preface to the New Testament“. Jaroslav Pelikan, Ed.; Walter A. Hansen, Ed. Copyright © 1968 Concordia Publishing House. 

Luther, Martin. Luther’s Works, Vol. 21 : The Sermon on the Mount and the Magnificat.  J. J. Pelikan, H. C. Oswald and H. T. Lehmann, Ed. Copyright © 1956 Concordia Publishing House. 

Psalm 32,1-3.5b; Psalm 34,17. 19. Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever 

se cwide þæs béaggiefan ábireþ ferhþ

Psalm 32,1-3.5b; Psalm 34,17  5217

19. Sonntag nach Trinitatis  064 

Cordula, Virgin, Martyr, 453

22. Oktober 2017 

1. О Lord Jesus Christ, Thou who hears our prayers, send forth Thy Spirit and comfort us, so that we are at peace with Your will in our lives.  Amen. (Gradual) 

2. The Lord speaks to His people: When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles. Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit. For when I kept silent, my bones wasted away through my groaning all day long. I said: „I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,“ and You forgave the iniquity of my sin. 

  3. Our Introit begins with this verse: »The Lord speaks to His people: When the righteous cry for help, the Lord hears and delivers them out of all their troubles.« The Lord certainly responded to the cry for help in today’s Gospel pericope. Jesus was at His home in Capernaum preaching to the Galilean Jews. His home was full of eager listeners, so full that a paralyzed man’s friends could not get him near Jesus. They had hoped Jesus would heal him, but they were not deterred: they climbed onto the roof of the house, removed part of the roof and lowered the paralytic down before Jesus. 

  4. These 5 men were determined to see Jesus. Now, they didn’t destroy Jesus’ roof by knocking a hole in it. Rather, most Jewish houses in that day had flat roofs that doubled as an upper deck. The roofs were made in sections and not normally nailed down, so the owner could simply undo a simple binding and easily move a small section of the roof to gain access to the top or to lower himself below. This is simply what these 5 men did as well.  

5. It probably surprised the crowds when they saw part of the roof opened and a man lowered down. Jesus then used it to preach on the topic of faith and forgiveness. Mark tells us: »And when Jesus saw their faith, He said to the paralytic: My son, your sins are forgiven« (Mark 2,5). Such a statement does not phase us, but in Jesus’ day it was unheard of; and so some scribes who were hearing Jesus preach took offense at Jesus’ absolution. »Why does this man speak like that? He is blaspheming! Who can forgive sins but God alone?« (Mark 2,7). Jesus taught with authority, but the  scribes did not teach as those having authority (Mark 1,22). Jesus taught and spoke as if He were the author of the Holy Scriptures and that they were His own words; the scribes could not, and would not, teach with such authority for such Scriptures are the words and authority of the Lord; they merely said: thus saith the Lord in His Word. The scribes are uncomfortable because Jesus sure seems to be speaking with authority as if He were the Lord Himself. To claim to be the Lord or to speak with such authority as if the Lord’s words are your own words is blasphemy: only the Lord has the authority to forgive sins. 

6. Judaism in Jesus’ day grounded forgiveness upon animal sacrifices. The priest declared sins forgiven because a scapegoat had given its life as the ransom payment. Such was the Lord’s law and thus forgiveness spoken as the Lord has spoken by accepting the sacrifice vicariously. The scribes and rabbis have no authority to speak forgiveness apart from the sacrifice and the Scriptures, thus forgiveness was grounded upon the Lord alone. The Psalmist declares: »Blessed is the one whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man against whom the Lord counts no iniquity, and in whose spirit there is no deceit.« Only the Lord can speak the absolution forgiveness, or speak it through the one He has sent to speak in His name, thus the priests absolved by the command and in the stead of the Lord. Jesus forgave the paralytic by His own authority; He declared: your sins are forgiven.  

7. At the beginning of His ministry Jesus had made a Divine claim: He has the authority to forgive sin. Jesus gives us only 2 choices here: 1. He is the Lord, or 2. He is a blasphemer; if He is the Lord, then He is to be praised, but if He is a blasphemer, then He is to be punished. Most of the scribes judged Jesus to be a blasphemer; the penalty for blasphemy, claiming to be the Lord or to falsely speak in the Name of the Lord, is death (Leviticus 24,13-16). The scribes were among those seeking the arrest and death of Jesus (Mark 11,18) which they finally were able to carry out at the end of Holy Week. Jesus rightly judged them:  »Beware of the scribes, who like to walk about in long robes, like greetings in the marketplaces, have the best seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at feasts, who devour widow’s houses and for a pretense make long prayers. They will receive the greater condemnation« (Mark 12,38-40). Jesus called the scribes hypocrites, blind guides, fools, unclean, snakes and vipers (Matthew 23,11-36). Their greater condemnation is to be sentenced to Gehenna (Matthew 23,33). Jesus chose a very particular noun that we translate as hell (3 different Greek words for hell are used in the New Testament); He consigns the scribes to the abode of the damned which exists after the final resurrection and judgment on the last day; their worm never dies and the fire is never quenched in Gehenna (Mark 9,48). Jesus associate the scribes with their ancestors who persecuted and killed the prophets, magi and true scribes whom He had sent to call them to seek the Lord’s forgiveness and welcome His salvation. Jesus stood in their midst as the Forgiver and Savior of all men and women. 

8. The Psalmist promises: »I confess my transgressions to the Lord, and He forgave the iniquity of my sin.« The Psalmist was looking forward to Jesus who forgives the sin of the world (John 1,29). Jesus brings to the world the certainty of salvation (Heilsgewißheit); He wants every man and woman to know and believe that He is merciful to them and that He has now purchased their forgiveness. Hell (Tartarus) is the abode created for the Deil and the angels who rebelled against the Lord; Gehenna is not where Jesus wants us to spend all eternity separated from His love and grace; Jesus says: your proper abode is in Paradise with Me and the holy angels. This is why Paul writes in his Epistle to the Romans: »I am not ashamed of the gospel, for the gospel is the power of God for salvation to every one who believes, for in the gospel the righteousness of God is revealed: The righteous shall live by faith. For if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, then you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved« (Romans 1,16-17; 10,9-10). 

9. Jesus desires every one to be saved and abide with Him forever. So adamant is His desire that He Himself became our sacrifice of atonement and by shedding His blood on the cross shows that His Father’s anger and punishment on us and our sin has been born by Him so that God’s wrath has passed over us (Romans 3,25). There is therefore no condemnation to Gehenna for those who are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8,1), and here is the certainty of salvation: Jesus gives us forgiveness and eternal life for free! Jesus is gracious to us and we receive His mercy by faith. Salvation is grounded solely upon Jesus. Salvation is not grounded upon us because if it were then we would always have that terrified vote that would wake us up at 3 am and fret: I haven’t done enough! I didn’t give enough offerings. I forgot to confess this sin or that sin. I should have gone to church more often. Woe is me; I’m doomed! And that is when Jesus assures us in His Word: Don’t look at yourself, rather look at Me, only Me. I did everything to save you. I, Jesus, forgive you. I have saved you. You have an everlasting fellowship with Me because I am your Savior. 

10. The crowds were amazed in Mark 2 because they saw Jesus say and do things that assured them all is well because He says and makes it well. Such is our great heritage as Christians: we have Jesus, therefore we have everything, life, salvation, forgiveness, all that and more is ours because Jesus is the Christ and He tells us: your sins are forgiven.  Amen. 

11. Let us pray. O Lord, Your steadfast love endures forever; and by this promise we know that we have forgiveness and eternal life by Jesus alone.  Amen. 

To God alone be the Glory 

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

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. 

ELKB. Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. www.bayern-evangelisch.de/www/index.php. Copyright © 2013 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. 

The Sunday Sermons of the Great Fathers, Vol. 4. © 1963 Henry Regnery Co. 

VELKD. Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. www.velkd.de. Copyright © 2013 Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. 

Psalm 1,1-3; Psalm 106,3. 18. Trinity

 ✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

Psalm 1,1-3; Psalm 106,3 5117

18. Trinitatis  063

Teresa of Avila, Spain. Virgin ✠ 1582 

15. Oktober 2017 

1. O Lord, our Peace and Security, guard our hearts and minds with the pure gospel, so that our trust is always and only on Jesus.  Amen. (Gradual). 

2. Blessed are they who guard judgement, who do righteousness at all times! Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers; but his delight is in the torah of the Lord, and on His torah he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.

  3. The Psalmist begins today’s Introit with these words: »Blessed are they who guard judgement, who do righteousness at all times!« The Hebrew concept of of judgement was two-fold: punish the wrong-doer and vindicate the person wronged; as such, it is similar to our concept of justice. Many of the laws in the Mosaic covenant dealt with specific cases of injustice and what the prescribed judgement should be. The laws of restitution were practical applications of justice. Stolen livestock required restitution 4 or 5 times more that was stolen, stolen money required restitution double that was stolen and damaged farm crops required a 1:1 restitution from the best of one’s crops (Leviticus 22,1-7). These and many more laws sought to ultimately restore the bond of neighborly love that had been severed. These laws also served as a guide for moral holiness and virtue, for the Lord declared: »Sanctify yourselves and be holy, for I you Lord am holy« (Leviticus 11,44). Sanctification and holiness is righteousness language. The Lord is righteous, therefore you be righteous. The Psalmist, however, is not calling for woks-righteousness whereby a person is merited righteous because of all the good, moral things he/she does and says. The Lord’s people are moral, holy and righteous because He declares them as such; He is our Lord we are His people, therefore we are righteous. 

4. The Lord grounded this righteousness upon a particular action: His redemption of Israel from Egyptians slavery (Leviticus 11,45); He has set Israel apart from all others (Leviticus 20,26). The Lord dwelt among His people and delivered them through Moses and Aaron. We know the checkered history of Israel: they would worship the Lord, but then fall away, back and forth, pious then wicked, and the Lord sent Prophets to call them back to His promise and covenant with them: I redeemed you and declared you righteous, now live as holy people. Finally, the Prophet Malachi declared: »Behold, the day is approaching, burning like an oven, when all the evil-doers will be stubble; the day that is approaching shall burn them up, but for you who honor the Name of the Lord, the Sun of Righteousness shall rise with healing in His wings« (Malachi 4,1-2). How did John the Baptizer prepare the way for Jesus? He spoke like the Prophet Malachi: »Repent, for the reign of heaven is in your midst. I baptize you with water for repentance, but one who is more powerful than me is arriving after me, He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand, and He will clear His threshing floor and will gather His wheat into the granary, but He will burn the chaff with unquenchable fire« (Matthew 3,2.11-12). When Jesus began His ministry, His first sermon was simply: »Repent, for the reign of heaven is in your midst« (Matthew 4,17). 

5. Jesus stands in our midst like the Tree of Life. The Psalmist declares: »Blessed is the one who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, but rather his delight is in the Torah of the Lord and on His Torah he meditates day and night.« The Word of the Lord is a Lamp to our feet and a Light to our path (Psalm 119,105). His Word teaches us about His character and nature, rebukes us of sin, exhorts us to walk upon the moral path and promises us forgiveness and salvation; in short, the Word of the Lord teaches us wisdom and knowledge. The Apostle John affirms that Jesus is the Word of the Lord made flesh who gives us eternal life (John 1,4.14).  

6. The Psalmist promises that those who meditate upon the Word of the Lord, upon Jesus, are fruitful trees who prosper. Faith confesses Jesus to be the Christ and thus receives the gospel of salvation through Jesus, then faith yields a bountiful harvest of good works that benefit our neighbors. From faith springs forth love, patience, kindness and generosity (Galatians 5,22-23). With this faith and works we guard judgement and do righteousness that is pleasing to the Lord and is helpful to our neighbor. 

7. »The Lord watches over the way of the righteous« (Psalm 1,6). »For the Lord has destined us for salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ who died for us, so that whether we are awake or asleep we shall live with Him« (1. Thessalonians 5,9-10). »May the Lord of peace sanctify you, and may your spirit, soul and body be kept sound and blameless at the advent of our Lord Jesus Christ. The one who called you is faithful, and He will do this. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you« (1. Thessalonians 5,23-24.28).  Amen. 

8. Let us pray. O Lord, our Faithful Friend, teach us to fear, love and trust You, so that in all our doings and all our days we may remain focused on you with our faith and works for Your praise and our neighbor’s benefit.  Amen. 

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^th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27^th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.  

All quotations from the Book of Concord are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using Die Bekenntnisschriften der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche, 12. Edition © 1998 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.  

Psalm 86,3-5.11; 86,9. 17. Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever 

se cwide þæs béaggiefan ábireþ ferhþ

Psalm 86,3-5.11; Psalm 86,9  5017

17. Sonntag nach Trinitatis  062 

Pelagia, penitent of Antioch, Turkey, 5^th c.

8. Oktober 2017 

1. О Lord Jesus Christ, Thou who brings into His Church from all nations, send us forth to proclaim Your gospel, so that our neighbors will also be chosen and Your heritage.  Amen. (Gradual) 

2. O Lord, all the nations You have made will go and worship before You, and will glorify Your Name. Be gracious to me, O Lord, for to You do I cry all the day. Gladden the soul of Your servant, for to You, O Lord, do I lift up my soul. For you, O Lord, are good and forgiving, abounding in steadfast love to all who call upon You. Teach me Your way, O Lord, so that I may walk in Your truth; unite my heart to fear Your Name. 

  3. It is the Lord’s desire for all men and women to acknowledge and worship Him. In fact, the Psalmist proclaims that this will indeed happen: »O Lord, all, the nations You have made will go and worship before You, and will glorify Your Name.« The Prophet Micah proclaimed the same 700 years later: »It shall happen in the latter days that many nations will go to Mt. Zion, and say: „Arise, let us go up to Mt. Zion so that the Lord may teach us His ways and that we may walk in His paths.“« (Micah 4,1.2). The Apostle Peter proclaimed at Pentecost: »In the last days God will pour out His Spirit on all the nations« (Joel 2,28; Acts 2,17). And also the Apostle James declared: »Peter has related how God first visited the nations to take from them a people for His Name« (Acts 15,14). 

  4. Today’s Gospel pericope highlights God’s mercy to the Gentiles: He healed the daughter of a Canaanite woman (Matthew 15,22.28). Jesus is Israel’s Messiah but He is also gracious to the nations. In fact, Jesus confirms that even Gentiles can have faith in the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Matthew 15,28). This is quite a powerful statement given the historic animosity between Jews and Canaanites. The Canaanites were living in Palestine, the Promised Land, when Joshua lead the Israelites in to the land promised to Abraham’s descendants. The Canaanites at that time were wicked and depraved: they practiced a heinous form of idolatry: sacrificing their children to Moloch by burning them (Deuteronomy 18,10-11). The Canaanites in Jesus’ day still bore that stigma among many Jews: clearly Canaanites cannot have faith in our God and the fact that this girl is possessed clearly shows the Jews that her mother must practice the vile idolatry of her ancestors. 

5. Yet, Jesus shows that He is gracious to those who cry to Him for help, whether they be Jew or Gentile. Jesus shows this same grace to people, to us, today. The Psalmist comforts us with these words: »The Lord is good and forgiving; He abounds in steadfast love to all who call upon Him.« When His people needed deliverance from their enemies, the Lord sent them judges and kings; when they sinfully strayed from His Word, He sent them prophets. Finally, they Epistle to the Hebrews tells us: »Long ago God spoke to our fathers in many and various ways by the Prophets, and now in these last days He has spoken to us by a Son« (Hebrews 1,1-2). This Son is the promised Christ; Jesus called the people back to the Scriptures, told them to repent of their sin and He then forgave them. In Jesus, the mercy of His Father is physically manifested in flesh and blood, for the angels sang at His birth: »To you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among men with who He is pleased« (Luke 2,11.14). Again, the Epistle to the Hebrews tells us: »And without faith it is impossible to please God, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who seek Him« (Hebrews 11,6). Faith in Jesus is pleasing to God the Father, and this Jesus is gracious to us for as His Father is pleased with Him then so He is pleased with us. 

6. The Psalmist prays: »O Lord, teach me Your Way, so thatI may walk in Your Truth.« Jesus is the fulfillment of this verse, for He says: »I am the Way, the Truth and the Life« (John 14,6). The Canaanites woman’s faith was great because her faith was in Jesus. Yes, all nations will confess Jesus to be the Christ, and our little church is a microcosm of different nations who share a common faith in Jesus. The Holy Spirit creates similar Christian microcosms throughout our State, our nation and even the world. The gospel has no national or cultural boundaries, for it is able to create faith in all who hear the Truth of Christ’s crucifixion and resurrection. 

7. This gospel is to be shared with our neighbors. Jesus tells us: »You are the light of the world. A city built on a hill cannot be hid. No one after lighting a lamp puts it under the bushel basket, but rather puts it on the lampstand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let you light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven« (Matthew 5,13-16). Yes, let others see your faith, let them bear witness to your good works, so that in seeing and hearing the love and mercy of Jesus in your lives they may also believe in Him too.  Amen. 

8. Let us pray. O Heavenly Father, whose  steadfast love endures forever; guide the words of our lips and the deeds of our hands so that we may encourage and build the faith of others.  Amen. 

To God alone be the Glory 

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

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. 

ELKB. Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. www.bayern-evangelisch.de/www/index.php. Copyright © 2013 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. 

The Sunday Sermons of the Great Fathers, Vol. 4. © 1963 Henry Regnery Co. 

VELKD. Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. www.velkd.de. Copyright © 2013 Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. 

Psalm 30,1-3a.4-5; Psalm 16,10.114. 16. Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever

Verbum Domini Manet in Aeternum

Psalm 30,1-3a.4-5; Psalm 16,10.11 4717

16. Trinitatis  061

Remigius, Bishop of Reims, France. Apostle of Franconia, Bavaria ✠ 533 ✠ 

1. Oktober 2017 

1. O Jesus Christ, whose Name is Faithful, build up Your Church and adorn her with Your Glory, so that all the nations may be blessed by her.  Amen. (Gradual). 

2. For You, O Lord, will not abandon my life to Sheol, or let Your Holy One see corruption. You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore. I will extol You, O Lord, for You have lifted me up, and have not let my enemies rejoice over me. O Lord my God, I cried to You for help, and You have healed me. O Lord, You have brought up my soul from Sheol; You restored me to life Sing praises to the Lord, O you His saints, and give thanks to His Holy Name. For His anger is but for a moment, and His mercy is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy arrives with the morning. 

3. The Psalmist declares: »O Lord, You will not abandon my life to Sheol, or let Your Holy One see corruption.« The concept of Sheol is one probably not well-known to many of us. Sheol is an old Hebrew understanding about death in the old testament. It is simply the condition of physical death; we could also say Sheol is the grave. At death, the soul resided in one of two places: hades (hell), a place of torment, or Abraham’s abode (Sheol/hades), a place peaceful rest. Sheol was a temporary rest area where the righteous stayed until the resurrection of the body and full entrance into Paradise. Thus the Psalmist believes that Sheol is a temporary residence and an even better existence is to be eagerly anticipated. 

4. The Psalmist continues: »O Lord, You make known to me the path of life; in Your presence there is fullness of joy; at Your right hand are pleasures forevermore.« For the Jews, this path of life was connected to Abraham and Moses: boys got circumcised, the people learned the Scriptures, offered sacrifices at the temple for forgiveness awaited the arrival of the Messiah. The new testament explains how Jesus fulfilled the expectations of the old testament: Jesus was circumcised, taught the Scriptures to the crowds, offered Himself up as the sacrifice for the world’s sin and proclaimed Himself to be the Messiah, that is, the Christ. Jesus Himself declares: »I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one approaches the Father except through Me« (John 14,6).  He then told His disciples: »In a little while, you will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy and no one will take your joy from you. Take heart; I have overcome the world« (John 16,16.20.22.33). 

5. The sorrow Jesus spoke of was His impending betrayal, arrest, condemnation and execution on the cross. Jesus hung on the cross as one cursed (Galatians 3,13). The disciples fled in fear at being rounded up and punished for having Jesus as their teacher. Good Friday was a sad day for them, for they believed everything Jesus was had been thwarted and defeated. The joy Jesus spoke of was His impending resurrection on Easter Sunday. This event proved Jesus is the Christ and that sin, death and hell have been conquered. The gates of hades have been torn down and the gates of heaven flung wide open!  

6. The Apostle Paul tells us that »in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might arrive to the Gentiles, so that we might receive the promised Spirit through faith« (Galatians 3,14); and also: »All of us who have been baptized into His crucifixion were therefore buried with Him by baptized into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in the newness of life« (Romans 6,3-4). Through Christ, in Holy Baptism, »the Lord has lifted us up and has not let our enemies rejoice over us.« This is one of the themes repeated over and over again throughout the Bible: God sweeps aside His enemies and lifts up His people. He cursed the Devil, but promised salvation to Adam and Eve. He drowned the world in a Flood, but saved Noah and his family. He swept Pharaoh’s army aside, but spared Israel. He punished His Only Son on the cross, and forgave us all our sin. »The Lord hears our cry for help and He saves us.«

7. The Prophet Ezekiel proclaims: »The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases; His mercies never draw to an end; they are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness« (Lamentations 3,23). Once again, on this the Lord’s day, we comforted by the very words of Jesus: »I am the Resurrection and the Life. Whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet he will live« (John 11,25). This declaration by Jesus is the promise we cling to; it is our certainty when trials and tribulations afflict our souls. Our Lord’s mercy has been exhibited before our eyes yet again this morning with three precious Baptisms. God calls people into His family, and He has don so again publicly this morning. In response to His goodness »we sing praises to the Lord, and give thanks to His Holy Name.« We also acknowledge God’s presence in each of our lives, for as His children we are heirs to His heavenly good fortune. The Apostle Paul speaks of this fortune, writing: »God gave us a spirit not of fear but a spirit of power, love and self-control, which now has been manifested through the appearing of our Savior Jesus Christ, who abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel« (2. Timothy 1,7.10) and this gospel assures us that we are right now justified before God, for whoever has Jesus has eternal life (1. John 5,12-13). God does not abandon us; He sent Jesus to redeem us and open up the glories of heaven for us. Trust in Jesus and rest in His promise.  Amen. 

8. Let us pray. O Lord, Thou Redeemer of all the Earth; send forth the grace of Your Testament, so that all who hear and receive are blessed.  Amen. 

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^th Edition © 1990 by the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27^th Edition © 1993 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.  

All quotations from the Book of Concord are translations done by The Rev. Peter A. Bauernfeind using Die Bekenntnisschriften der evangelisch-lutherischen Kirche, 12. Edition © 1998 by Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht.  

Psalm 127,1-2; 128,1; 1, Peter 5,7. 15. Trinity

✠ One Message: Christ crucified and risen for you ✠

The Word of the Lord Endures Forever 

se cwide þæs béaggiefan ábireþ ferhþ

Psalm 127,1-2; 128,1; 1. Peter 5,7  4817

15. Sonntag nach Trinitatis  060 

Gerhard Sagredo, Bishop in Hungary, Apostle to Hungary, Martyr in Hungary, ✠ 1046 

24. September 2017 

1. О Lord Jesus Christ, our Trustworthy Refuge, keep us safe from the perils and tribulations of this fallen world, so that we may praise You and be of help to our neighbors when they are in need.  Amen. (Gradual) 

2. Cast all your anxieties on God, because He cares for you. Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain. It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; gives to His beloved sleep. Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways! 

  3. The Apostle Peter exhorts in today’s Introit: »Cast all your anxieties on God because He cares for you.« Our world is full of anxieties brought about by hurricanes, wildfires, earthquakes, terrorism, nuclear brinksmanship and a host of other events. The Apostle Peter encourages us to put our trust in God, and he himself heard this from the very mouth of God. Jesus teaches in today’s Gospel pericope: »Do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat or drink, nor about your body and what you will put on. Look at the birds of the air: they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your Heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they?« (Matthew 6,25-26). Jesus’s question expects an affirmative answer: Yes, we are of more value than the birds, therefore know with certainty that God provides for us too. 

  4. It is possible to live a life in this world apart from God. Billions of people do so day in and day out. Not all of them are anxious worriers. People put their trust in something or someone to assuage their anxiety: their own wisdom or wealth, the government, a philosophy or a religion that helps them cope with all the tribulations in the world. The Psalmist declares that any reliance other than God is ultimately futile. You can build a house without the Lord, but you labor in vain. You can remain vigilant without the Lord, but you stay alert in vain. You can burn the candle at both ends to advance your career, but again you do so in vain. King Solomon wisely teaches: »All is vanity! What does a man gain by all the toil which he labors under the sun? I have seen everything that is done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and striving after wind« (Ecclesiastes 1,2-3.14). A life lived apart from God is ultimately a life that is vain. What do we leave behind? Perhaps some wealth and wisdom for those who knew us. Some philanthropists have left great endowments to benefit generations later. But there is no certainty that such wealth, wisdom or endowment will be utilized, respected or further  the betterment of others. People can reject or appreciate gifts given to them; they can also squander or utilize the opportunities afforded to them. This temporal life is a vain and tenuous existence. 

5. Today’s Introit brings hope in the midst of vanity: »Blessed is everyone who fears the Lord, and walks in His ways!« That verse nicely summarizes the message of the Bible. Many of the stories and events in the Bible revolve around a person undertaking a trek in discovery of God. Sometimes they failed miserably and at other times they succeeded beyond measure; in every instance God’s mercy and grace is on display in  their lives, never giving up on them, calling people out of the darkness of their sin and oppression into the light of God’s forgiveness and loving-kindness. Thus, Jesus exhorts us: »Seek first the reign of God and His righteousness« (Matthew 6,33), for »where your treasure is, there your heart will be also« (Matthew 6,21). Solomon realized that the wisdom of the world is ultimately futile and leads to a nihilistic philosophy because worldly wisdom cannot answer the longing of the soul for its Creator. Is there more to this life than merely accumulating knowledge and stuff? What happens when I die? What is the meaning of it all? Solomon says there is something more to this life than simply obtaining worldly wisdom; he says to seek God for He answers the futility of wisdom; true wisdom is the fear of the Lord (Proverbs 9,10); Jesus taught the same. Jesus is God and the Righteous One of His Father. Jesus simply says: Seek Me and My righteousness, for I am the Way, the Truth and the Life (John 14,6). Cast Your anxieties upon Jesus for His yoke is easy and His burden is light (Matthew 11,30). You are created in the Image and Likeness of God; you are more valuable to Him than lilies and birds. He provides for you, watches over you and has redeemed you. Jesus lived and died for you; He declares you righteous by the very merit of His righteousness. Your life has meaning and value, for your life is connected to Jesus who loves the world and saved the world. Blessed is the one who fears, loves and trusts Jesus, for He is the Wisdom of God who makes you wise unto salvation in His Name.  Amen. 

6. Let us pray. O Heavenly Father, Thou Faithful and Benevolent God; bless us as our Refuge and Fortress, so that we remain at peace and safe in this world with its fallen perils.  Amen. 

To God alone be the Glory 

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

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. 

ELKB. Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. www.bayern-evangelisch.de/www/index.php. Copyright © 2013 Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche in Bayern. 

The Sunday Sermons of the Great Fathers, Vol. 4. © 1963 Henry Regnery Co. 

VELKD. Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands. www.velkd.de. Copyright © 2013 Vereinigte Evangelisch-Lutherische Kirche Deutschlands.