Grace Evangelical-Lutheran: 1. John 1,1-4. 1. Sunday after Christmas

Saturday, January 8, 2022

1. John 1,1-4. 1. Sunday after Christmas

1. John 1,1-4 0722

1. Sonntag nach dem Christfest 9

Abel. Genesis 4,1-2,8
Seth. Genesis 4,25

Johann Konrad Wilhelm Löhe, Pastor, ✠ 1872

2. Januar 2022

1. ℣ Lord, now lettest thou Thy servant depart in peace:

℟ For mine eyes have seen Thy salvation (Luke 2,29-30).

O Almighty God, we heartily pray Thee, grant that we may know and praise Thy dear Son as did St. Simeon, who took Him up in his arms and spiritually knew and confessed Him. Amen. (Luther 53,132).

2. »That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we looked upon and have touched with our hands, concerning the word of life—the life was made manifest, and we have seen it, and testify to it and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was made manifest to us—that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you too may have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father and with His Son Jesus Christ. And we are writing these things so that our joy may be complete.«

3. The Apostle John proclaimed that Jesus is the Word of Life. John furthermore says Jesus is the Word of eternal life, and he preaches that salvation is only by Jesus’ Name. Mary and Joseph name her firstborn Jesus; this is the name the angel told them to give Him. The angel told Mary: »You shall call His name Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. And the Lord God will give to Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of Him kingdom there will be no end« (Luke 1,31-33). Shortly thereafter the angel told Joseph: »Mary will bear a son, and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins« (Matthew 1,21).

4. God the Father’s wonderful and merciful gift to the world, however, is dismissed and rejected by many. Part and parcel with this rejection is one’s underlying philosophy. There are 2 main philosophical schools that Westerners have been taught and educated in:

i Modernism: no need for Divine revelation; we can know God by reason;

ii Postmodernism: no need for Divine revelation; we cannot know God by reason but we know Him by positive or negative emotional experiences.

Because many hold as truth that they do not need God’s revelation of Himself to mankind in the Bible, it follows that Jesus whom He sent will likewise be disregarded, particularly because Jesus and the Church consistently point people back to the Scriptures. Without the Bible as a foundation, men and women default to either reason or emotional experience to either make sense of God or to completely remove Him from reality. When God and the Scriptures are removed it then becomes an inevitable, and sometimes fast-paced, destination to a person taking the place of God by exerting their own will as the standard by which all things are established and measured. In the end, any talk of compassion, tolerance or equity falls by the wayside because the drive for power and control is the underlying foundation in the heart of every fallen man and woman.

5. Into this fallen, corrupted world bent on power and exercising one’s will over everyone else God sent His Son. Whereas humans attempt to exercise their power and will in the world, God actually projects His power and will in the world. He does so completely out of goodness, love and mercy. He tells Mary that she is going to bear the Son of God, and she is told what name to give Him. There is salvation in no one other than Jesus, for it is only Jesus who has the power and will to save the fallen human race.

6. As the old calendar year has changed over to a new year, we begin 2022 hearing that Jesus saves us, and His name literally means Yahweh saves: ישוע ;יהושע —> Ίησους —> Iesus.

7. The Old Testament ends by saying: »Behold, I will send you Elijah the Prophet before the great and awesome day of Yahweh arrives. And he will turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the land with a decree of utter destruction« (Malachi 4,5-6). The New Testament begins by saying: »The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham« (Matthew 1,1). The Old ends promising the advent of the Messiah and the Prophet who would prepare His way; the New begins by saying the Old is fulfilled in the birth and presentation of Jesus, who is the same yesterday, today and forever (Hebrews 13,8).

8 We enter 2022 knowing that Jesus is our Savior, He has purchased our forgiveness and He is a Merciful God. Whatever 2022 has in store for us on this planet Earth, we are certain that Jesus is with us and will be with us the whole year through with His gospel of grace and salvation.

9. Rejoice, dear Christians, all around,

Sing praise to God with a clear sound,

Yes, sing with thankfulness and rhyme

To the Lord in your heart at all times (lsb 382,1 Freut euch, ihr lieben Christen all). This is most certainly true.

10. The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus (Philippians 4,7). Amen.

11. Let us pray. O Almighty and Eternal God, every good and perfect gift comes from You. We thank You for all Your benefits, spiritually and physically, which You have given us in the past year. In Your goodness, grant us a favorable and joyful new year, defend us from all dangers and adversities, and send on us the fullness of Your blessing. Amen. (Ober-Lausitz Agende, 1695 p. 282.3; Stratman 31-32).

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 28. Revised Edition © 2012 by Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

Grace Evangelical-Lutheran

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

Saturday, January 8, 2022

1. John 1,1-4. 1. Sunday after Christmas

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