Grace Evangelical-Lutheran: July 2023

Monday, July 31, 2023

Matthew 7,15-23. 8. Trinity

Matthew 7,15-23 3823

8. Trinitatis 54

Abdon and Sennen, Martyrs at Rome 250 (Emperor Decius’ persecution 249-51)

Robert Barnes, English Lutheran Reformer, Martyr ✠ 1540

30. Juli 2023

1. ℣ We have thought of Thy merciful steadfast love, O God:

℟ In the midst of Thy people (Psalm 48,9).

O Yahweh, our Rock of refuge; save us, so that when we flee to You for safety we may never be put to shame. Amen. (Psalm 31,2.1 Gradual).

2. »Jesus taught them: „Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are ravenous wolves. You will recognize them by their fruits. Are grapes gathered from thorn-bushes or figs from thistles? So, every healthy tree bears good fruit, but the diseased tree bears bad fruit. A healthy tree cannot bear bad fruit, nor can a diseased tree bear good fruit. Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. Thus you will recognize them by their fruits. Not everyone who says to Me: ‘Lord, Lord,’ will enter the reign of heaven, but the one who does the will of My Father who is in heaven. On that day many will say to Me: ‘Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy in Your Name, and cast out demons in Your Name, and do many mighty works in Your Name?’ And then will I declare to them: ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you workers of lawlessness.’“«

3. Jesus uses the phrase reign of heaven in today’s Gospel pericope; in Mark and Luke Jesus uses a variation: reign of God. Matthew records 48 times this phrase reign of heaven/God. The phrase forms the central content and the focus of Jesus’ preaching and His entire ministry (Gibbs 48). This is summarized in Matthew 4,23: »And Jesus began to go around throughout all of Galilee teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the reign and heal every disease and ever ailment in the people.«

4. The message of the reign of God in Jesus is tantamount to the proclamation of the saving Gospel (Gibbs 48). The reign of God is in Jesus (Gibbs 49). The reign of God reveals that God is active redemptively in order to reestablish His rule over and among men (Gibbs 49). „This reign of God is already, and it is not yet. Faith looks to the already; hope longs for the not yet“ (Gibbs 51).

5. Jesus warns that false prophets will seek to draw people off the path of the reign of God. By outward appearance, they will seem to be from Jesus, but their words and teachings will reveal they are not Christ. »Who is the false prophet but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the false prophet, he who denies the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father. Whoever confesses the Son has the Father also« (1. John 2,22-23). Here He commands and gives all Christians the power to be judges of all doctrine, and He gives them power to judge what is right and what is not right (Luther 236).

6. The reign of God is manifested in Jesus Christ. True prophets and preachers point to Him alone. Those who do the will of God the Father is one who believes in and follows Jesus (Gibbs 658). We do the will of the Father when we confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Father, who has come to redeem the world, for redemption is the goal of the reign of God (Matthew 18,14). Luther writes in his Small Catechism: God’s will is done when He breaks and hinders every evil plan and purpose of the Devil, the world and our sinful nature, which do not want us to hallow God’s Name or let His Kingdom come; and when He strengthens and keeps us firm in His Word and faith until we die. This is His good and gracious will (3. Petition).

7. The reign of God and the will of God culminates with Jesus drinking the cup of His Father’s wrath (Gibbs 1436); this is a cup of suffering and judgment. The Psalmist says of this cup: »For a cup is in the hand of Yahweh: the wine is undiluted and is fully mixed; He pours out from it, and all the sinners of the earth shall drink it down to the dregs« (Psalm 75,8 lxx).

8. We deserved this cup, for we have sinned against God and disobeyed His law. We rebel against His will and reject His love. We fail to love God and our neighbor. We lie, cheat and steal. We are proud, greedy and envious. We are sinners, and it is sinners who must drink in full the cup of God’s wrath.

9. But if we are forced to drink this cup, then our end is nigh. Justice upon sin is punishment and death. The words of the Prophet Ezekiel strike deeply at our hearts: »The soul that sins shall die« (Ezekiel 18,20 lxx). Paul concurs in his Epistle to the Romans. »None is righteous, no, not one« (Romans 3,10). »For all who have sinned without the law will also perish without the law, and all who have sinned under the law will be judged by the law« (Romans 2,12). »Who will deliver us from this body of death?« (Romans 7,24)

10. Jesus Christ delivered us from this body of death! (Romans 7,25) We deserved the cup of God’s wrath, but Jesus took it, drank it and emptied it! The reign of God is God’s Heilsgeschichte (salvation history) fulfilled: God’s Son stands in front of us and receives the suffering and death we rightly deserved. On the cross Jesus bore the wrath of His Father, and in doing so God’s wrath upon the sinner and sin was sated; the price in blood has been paid. Redemption has been secured. The Son of God became our brother so as to become our Redeemer.

11. »There is therefore no condemnation/penalty for those in Christ Jesus« (Romans 8,1). Since God is for us, no one can be against us (Romans 8,31). God did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up for all of us; He will also graciously give us all things (Romans 8,32). No thing and no one shall separate us from Christ (Romans 8,35). Jesus has brought the reign of God into our midst, and He is the manifestation of that Godly reign.

12. God the Father gave Jesus the cup of wrath to drink, and Jesus gives us the cup of communion to drink for our blessing. He gives us His body in the bread and His blood in the cup; they are for us, and we eat and drink in remembrance of Him (1. Corinthians 11,23-25), for as often as we eat this bread and drink the cup, we proclaim the Lord’s death until He shall arrive again (1. Corinthians 11,26). Taste, and receive the merciful steadfast love of Christ, for He brings the reign of God into our midst once more today.

13. Sun of Righteousness,

In our time arise;

In Your Church shine,

For the world to opine.

Have mercy, Lord. (Sonne der Gerechtigkeit elkg 297,1 2021 Christian David (1728) 1741).

This is most certainly true.

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

15. Let us pray. Bless, O Lord, this house and all who dwell in it, as Thou wast pleased to bless the house of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, that within these walls may dwell an angel of light and that we who dwell together in it may receive the abundant dew of heavenly blessing and through Thy tenderness rejoice in peace and quiet; through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. (8. Trinitatis, 2. Vespers Collect. The Daily Office.)

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 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart, Septuaginta, Vol. I and II 2. Revised Edition © 2006 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart and the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 28. Revised Edition © 2012 Deutsch Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart.

Thursday, July 27, 2023

Romans 6,19-23. 7. Trinity

Romans 6,19-23 3723

7. Trinitatis 53

Apollinaris, Bishop of Ravenna, Italy, Martyr 69

23. Juli 2023

1. ℣ O clap your hands, all ye people!:

℟ Shout unto God with the voice of triumph (Psalm 47,1).

O Yahweh, Almighty God; teach us to fear, love and trust You, so that we are never ashamed and condemned but joyful and redeemed. Amen. (Psalm 34,11.5 Gradual)

2. »I am speaking in human terms, because of your natural limitations. For just as you once presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness leading to more lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness leading to sanctification. For when you were slaves of sin, you were free in regard to righteousness. But what fruit were you getting at that time from the things of which you are now ashamed? For the end of those things is death. But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.«

3. The Apostle Paul writes to the Corinthians: »For our sake God the Father made Christ to be sin who knew no sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God« (2. Corinthians 5,21). From this verse, Martin Luther composed one of his famous phrases the wonderful exchange:

And this is the rich mystery of the grace of God for sinners, that by a wonderful exchange our sins are no longer ours, but Christ’s, and the righteousness of Christ is not Christ’s, but ours. For He emptied Himself, that He might put on and fill us with them, and He filled Himself with ours, that He might empty us of the same, so that now Christ’s righteousness is not only objectively (as they say), but also formally, just as our sins are not only objectively Christ’s, but also formally. For in the same way that He suffers and is confounded in our sins, in this way we rejoice and glory in His righteousness, but He really and fundamentally suffers in them, as we see here. And I, although only lxx of all interpreters do with me, I almost prefer to be called ‘the words of my transgressions’ than ‘the words of my roar’. For here the bridegroom and the bride become one flesh, which sacrament can never be sufficiently said, preached, heard, thought and understood, in view of the greatness of its riches and glory, hidden from all the wise and wise of this age, and revealed only to little ones, to whom it is a constant memorial of the sun, in which they live, rejoice and glory. In comparison of which it is most disgustingly dirty, dung and loss is the righteousness which is from the law, even proceeding without questioning, as it is said in Colossians 2 (Luther 5,608.6). [1]

4. For many in our day and age, they cannot fathom the seriousness and depravity of sin before God. They have difficulty comprehending why some has to be punished for our wrongdoing. Our sin violates God’s law. By sinning we trample His law and good Word given to us, break it apart, curse it and scatter it hither and yon. Sin is an offense against God’s holy and righteous character, thus He cannot ignore and overlook our sin, otherwise He would compromise His own holiness and righteousness. The essence of our sin is to corrupt us to no longer fear, love and trust God. The Prophet Ezekiel records the blunt words of Yahweh: »The soul who sins will die« (Ezekiel 18,4). This is the cold, hard fact of God’s Word.

5. But that is not the final word on this charge. Yahweh later says through Ezekiel: »Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, and not rather that he turn from his way and live?« (Ezekiel 18,23). »As I live, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but that the wicked turn from his way and live; turn back, turn back from your evil ways« (Ezekiel 33,11). God also said to Isaiah: »Seek Yahweh while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near; let the wicked forsake his ways, and the unrighteous man his thoughts; let them return to Yahweh that He may have mercy upon him, and to our God, for He will abundantly forgive« (Isaiah 55,6-7).

6. When Yahweh gives Moses and Israel the law at Sinai, He also gives them the gospel — the instructions regarding the tabernacle/temple and the sacrifices describe how He will cover and forgive sin. After David captured Zion and Jerusalem he desired to build the temple on Mount Zion (740 m/2428 ft high; 2. highest point on Zion) so that the temple would tower above the land for all to see. One could see the temple from as far away as 12 km/7.45 mi from certain locations, and thus see where God dwells and the place where His forgiveness was given. God told Isaiah: »I am Yahweh; I have called you in righteousness; I will take you by the hand and keep you; I will give you as a covenant for the people, a light for the nations. … And nations shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising.« (Isaiah 42,6; 60,3).

7. Jesus declared that He is this temple and thus He is the source of forgiveness, compassion and pardon; and thus Paul proclaims: »For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord« for both Jew and Gentile (Romans 6,23).

8. Once we were in bondage to sin, but in Christ we are forgiven and now bound to Him. Once we lived in the darkness of spiritual ignorance, but in Christ we live in the light of His Word. Christ has justified us, and from justification flows the fruit of sanctification and good works. He has done well for us all / And reconciled us with Himself / He has made the great exchange / And put on us His garment / And led us to God. [2]

9. A Christian man is the most free lord of all, subject to none.

A Christian man is the most dutiful servant of all, subject to everyone (WA 7,21.1-4, 49.22-25; AE 31,344). [3] Justification makes us free, and in our sanctification we serve our neighbor.

10. Behold, charity and joy flow forth from faith in the Lord, and from charity a cheerful, willing, free soul to voluntarily serve the neighbor, so that it has no reason for gratitude, ingratitude, praise and blame, profit or loss. For he does not do this in order to make men unworthy of him, nor does he distinguish between friends and enemies, nor does he regard the gratified or the ungrateful, but he scatters himself and his possessions very freely and willingly, whether he loses them among the ungrateful or earns them. For thus also does his Father, distributing all things abundantly and freely to all, causing His sun to rise on the good and the bad [Matthew 5,45].

You see, then, if we recognize the things that have been given to us, the greatest and most precious, as Paul says, soon through the spirit diffused in our hearts charity, by which we are free, joyful, omnipotent operators and conquerors of all tribulations, servants of our neighbors, nevertheless, lords of all (WA 7,66.7-20; AE 31,367). [4]

11. Lord Jesus Christ, my faithful shepherd is,

Come, entertain me with Your mercies.

With you alone I find salvation and live;

What I lack You to me can give.

Kyrie eleison.

Your little sheep You will joyously feed

Them on Israel’s mountains and will lead

Them to the fresh water,

Where life is flowing ever.

Kyrie eleison. (Herr Jesu Christe, mein getreuer Hirte selk 232,1 2021 Johann Heermann 1630)

This is most certainly true.

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

14. Let us pray. Most loving Father, on whose bountiful providence we do wholly depend, give us daily at Thy pleasure whatsoever the necessity of this life requireth; but above all feed our souls with spiritual food, with the bread of life from heaven. Amen. (7. Trinity, Vespers Collect 1. The Daily Office. Copyright © 1965 Concordia Publishing House.)

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

[1] Atque hoc est mysterium illud opulentum gratiae divinae in peccatores, quod admirabili commertio peccata nostra iam non nostra, sed Christi sunt, et iustitia Christi non Christi, sed nostra est. Exinanivit enim se illa, ut nos ea indueret et impleret, et replevit se nostris, ut exinaniret nos eisdem, ita ut iam non modo obiective (ut dicunt) sit nostra Christi iustitia, sed et formaliter, sicut non tantum obiective Christi sunt peccata nostra, sed et formaliter. Quo modo enim ille in nostris peccatis dolet et confunditur, hoc modo nos in illius iustitia laetamur et gloriamur, at ipse revera et fonnaliter in illis dolet, ut hic videmus. Et ego, licet soli LXX mecum faciant ex omnibus interpretibus, pene malim dici ‘verba delictorum meorum’ quam ‘verba rugitus mei’. Hic enim sponsus et sponsa fiunt una caro, quod sacrameutum nunquam satis dici, praedicari, audiri, cogitari intelligique potest prae magnitudine divitiarum et gloriae eius, absconditum prorus omnibus saeculi huius etiam prudentibus et sapientibus nec revelatum nisi parvulis, quibus solis assiduum est memoriale, quo vivunt, gaudent et gloriautur. In cuius comparatione foedissime sordet, stercus et detrimentum est iustitia, quae ex lege est, etiam sine quaerela incedens, ut Coloss. 2. dicitur (Martin Luther, Werke Weimar, 1883, 5: 608 6-22).

[2] Er hat uns allen wohlgetan / Und uns mit sich versöhnet / Er hat den großen Tausch getan / Und uns sein Kleid angetan / Und uns zu Gott geführet.

[3] Eyn Christen mensch ist eyn freyer herr über aller ding und niemandt unterthan.

Eyn Christen mensch ist eyn dienstpar knecht aller ding und yderman unterthan (WA 7,21.1-4).

Christiaus homo omnium dominus est liberrimus, nulli subiectus.

Christianus homo omnium servus est officiosissimus, Omnibus subiectus (WA 7,49.22-25).

[4] Ecce sie fluit ex fide charitas et gaudium in domino et ex charitate hilaris, libens, liber animus ad sponte serviendum proximo, ita ut nullam habeat rationem gratitudinis, ingratitudinis, laudis ac vituperii, lucri aut damni. Neque enim agit hoc, ut homines sibi demereatur, nec inter amicos inimicosque discernit, nec gratos nec ingratos suspicit, sed liberrime libentissimeque dispergit se et sua, sive ea perdat in ingratis sive mereatur. Sic enim et pater eius facit, omnibus omnia distribuens abundanter et liberrime, faciens solem suum oriri super bonos et malos, Ita filius nihil nisi gratuito gaudio, quo in deo per Christum delectatur, tantarum rerum largitore, facit et patitur.

Vides ergo, si cognoscimus ea, quae nobis data sunt, maxima et preciosa, ut Paulus ait, [Rom. 5,5] mox per spiritum diffundi in cordibus nostris charitatem, qua liberi, hilares, omnipotentes operatores et omnium tribulationum victores, proximorum servi, nihilominus tamen omnium domini sumus. (WA 7,66.7-20).

Monday, July 17, 2023

Isaiah 43,1-7. 6. Trinity

Isaiah 43,1-7 3623

6. Trinitatis 52

Ruth 11^th c. bc

16. Juli 2023

1. ℣ Yahweh is the Strength of His people:

℟ He is the saving Strength of His anointed (Psalm 28,8).

O Yahweh, Thou Everlasting God; have pity upon Your servants, so that we remember that You are our dwelling place. Amen. (Psalm 90,13.1.2c Gradual).

2. »But now thus says Yahweh, He who created you, O Jacob, He who formed you, O Israel: „Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are Mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you; when you walk through fire you will not be burned, and the flame will not consume you. For I am Yahweh your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Savior. I give Egypt as your ransom, Cush and Seba in exchange for you. Because you are precious in My eyes, and honored, and I love you, I give men in return for you, peoples in exchange for your life. Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east, and from the west I will gather you. I will say to the north: Give up, and to the south, Do not withhold; bring My sons from afar and My daughters from the end of the earth, everyone who is called by My Name, whom I created for My glory, whom I formed and made.“«

3. In chapter 42 of Isaiah we hear the Prophet speak about the Servant of Yahweh, in whom God has chosen and delighted in. Who is this Servant, how does He fulfill His mission and what does this mean for us?

4. Throughout the Old Testament, the term servant applies to different people in different contexts. There are at least 60 references where God refers to someone as My Servant: Abraham (Genesis 26,24), Job (1,8; 2,3; 42,7), Jacob/Israel (Isaiah 41,8.19; 43,10; 44,1; 49,3; Jeremiah 30,10; 46,27; Ezekiel 28,25; 37,25), Moses (Numbers 12,7; Joshua 1,2.7; 2. Kings 27,8; Malachi 4,4), David (21 times), Isaiah (20,3), even the Gentile pagans Nebuchadnezzar (Jeremiah 25,9; 27,6; 43,10) and Cyrus the Great [Persian king 559-30 b] (Isaiah 44,28)—Cyrus is even called God’s anointed/messiah (Isaiah 45,1).

5. The Servant of Isaiah speaks of is the Messiah—Jesus Christ. He is Judah’s Redeemer. In the Old Testament, a redeemer is a close family member responsible for helping other family members who had lost their property, liberty or lives by buying them out of their bondage or avenging their death. By Isaiah’s day, Judah had become ensnared by idols; in doing so they had forfeited their possession of the land given to them by Y. Isaiah says the people will be exiled into captivity for their idolatry (Isaiah 5,13; 43,14).

6. Yahweh is Judah’s Redeemer who would deliver them from Babylonian Captivity. He restored them to the land 70 years after their banishment. He promised them: »I will bring you from the east and gather you from the west.«, and He fulfilled His promise in 538 bc (2. Chronicles 36,22-23; Ezra 1,1-4; Cyrus Cylinder [1]).

7. 700 years after Isaiah, Judah is still living in the land, but they are a province in the Roman Empire. They had a local king, but that king and the people ultimately answer to a Roman prefect. The people longed for true independence and awaited for their Messiah to liberate them from Rome.

8. God the Father sent His Son to be Judah’s Messiah. Jesus taught that the Messiah is for the blessing of Judah and the Gentiles (Matthew 15,24; 28,19-20). He came to seek and to save the lost (Luke 19,10). He is still the Messiah and Christ for Israel and the Gentiles today. People still have sins that bear a heavy burden upon them. People still have trials and tribulations that afflict them. Nations still act wicked and oppress other nations and people. Mankind’s inhumanity to man still runs rampart across the face of the earth. This is the fallen world in which we live and suffer.

9. The apostolic gospel is short and sweet. You were lost, but Jesus found you. You were in exile, but Jesus brought you home. You were tossed about on the stormy sea of life, but Jesus has calmed the raging storm. You were orphaned, but Jesus adopted you. You had no name, but Jesus gave you His name. You were condemned to hell, but Jesus saved you. This gospel is for both Jews and Gentiles, the righteous and the sinner, the wise and the foolish, the knowledgeable and the uneducated and the rich and the poor. This gospel is for all people and all nations, for Jesus desires to save everyone and thus redeemed everyone. Jesus has redeemed you, called you by name and has declared you to be His (43,1).

10. You are dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus (Romans 6,11) and your righteousness exceeds that of the scribes and Pharisees, for Jesus has given you His righteousness (Matthew 5,20). Jesus has redeemed you, He has called you by name, and given you His name, in Holy Baptism and you are His. No one snatches you from His hands. No one.

11. With great joy I shall proclaim:

Baptized into Christ I am,

Though my human frailties remain

Yet a child of God I am.

I need no earthly treasures,

Since I possess in fullest measure

Which gives me salvation freely

And blesses me eternally. (Lasset mich voll Freuden sprechen elkg 214,1 2021 Erdmann Neumeister 1718).

This is most certainly true.

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

15. Let us pray. O God the Father, good beyond all that is good, fair beyond all that is fair, in whom is calmness, peace and concord, do Thou make up the dissensions which divide us from each other, and bring us back into a unity of love, which may bear some likeness to Thy Divine Nature; and as Thou art above all things, make us one by the unanimity of a good mind, that through the embrace of charity and the bonds of affection we may be spiritually one, as well in ourselves as in each other; through that peace of Thine which maketh all things peaceful, and through the grace, mercy and tenderness of Thy Son, Jesus Christ. Amen. (6. Trinitatis, 2. Vespers Collect. The Daily Office.)

To God alone be the Glory

Gode ealdore sy se cyneþrymm

✠

[1] From [Babylon] to Aššur and (from) Susa, Agade, Ešnunna, Zamban, Me-Turnu, Der, as far as the region of Gutium, the sacred centers on the other side of the Tigris, whose sanctuaries had been abandoned for a long time, I returned the images of the gods, who had resided there, to their places and I let them dwell in eternal abodes. I gathered all their inhabitants and returned to them their dwellings. In addition, at the command of Marduk, the great lord, I settled in their habitations, in pleasing abodes, the gods of Sumer and Akkad, whom Nabonidus, to the anger of the lord of the gods, had brought into Babylon. (lines 30-33)

Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church

Monday, July 31, 2023

Matthew 7,15-23. 8. Trinity

Thursday, July 27, 2023

Romans 6,19-23. 7. Trinity

Monday, July 17, 2023

Isaiah 43,1-7. 6. Trinity