Sermon for Lenten Midweek 1: "Abram's Exodus before the Exodus"

 + Lenten Midweek 1 – February 24, 2021 +

Genesis 12:10-20

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

There goes Abram, heading down to the land of the pyramids. But isn’t that the wrong way? Didn’t the Lord tell him to settle in the land of the Jordan? Indeed, He did. But Abram had hungry mouths to feed and there was a famine in the land. So, he headed down to Egypt.

 

There goes Abram, revealing his plan to his beautiful wife, Sarai. “Tell these foreigners you’re my sister,” he says, “or they might try and kill me.” How romantic. Such chivalry! Once again, it appears that Abram is going the wrong way, trying to pull one over on the Egyptians.

 

And there goes Pharaoh, whisking away this beautiful woman – another man’s wife – into his harem. Pharaoh’s going the wrong way too, isn’t he? He most certainly is, as he’ll soon find out. For this woman is no Jane Doe, but the patriarch’s wife – she from whose womb is to come forth the promised seed Isaac. Unbeknownst to him, Egypt’s king just stirred up a heavenly hornet’s nest.

 

So there comes the plagues, crashing in on Pharaoh’s house causing all kinds of chaos. Unlike a much later Pharaoh, however, this king doesn’t need ten plagues to get the message God is sending. He escorts Sarai to her home, though quite incensed at Abram for hiding the fact that Miss Sarai was actually a Mrs. “Why did you say,‘She is my sister,’ so that I took her to be my wife? Now then, here is your wife. Take her and go!” 

 

And Abram goes. He leaves Egypt for good. But he doesn’t leave empty handed. For Sarai’s sake, the king opened his wallet, giving Abram sheep, oxen, donkeys, servants, and camels. Protected by grace, enriched by Egypt, and blessed by God, Abram heads home to the Promised Land, where God has left the light on for him.

 

Rather amazing, isn’t it? And perhaps what’s most amazing of all is that all these things happened, Paul says, and were written down for our sake, upon whom the end of the ages has come. For the story of Abram – later renamed Abraham – is Israel’s story, and Israel’s story is the story of Jesus, and the story of Jesus is your story. The narrative of your exile and return to the God of salvation. 

 

What happened to father Abraham happened because of his sons, yet to be born. Not three generations would pass before  grandson Jacob and great-grandsons Joseph and his eleven brothers would all wind up in Egypt because of a famine. In time, they too would get in hot water with Pharaoh. God would send plagues – ten of them. Finally, the king would knuckle under divine pressure and let God’s people go, but not before Egypt emptied their wallets again as Israel left Egypt freed from slavery. So there go the Israelites – protected by grace, enriched by Egypt, and blessed by God – finally homeward bound, where God had left the light on for them as well. Second verse same as the first.

 

But still the song goes on. For who is Abraham and who are the Israelites but those who blazed the path we now tread? For no matter what city and state are inscribed on your birth certificate, the truth is, we are all conceived and born in Egypt – a far worse Egypt than Abraham entered, ruled by a far worse tyrant than Pharaoh, under a slavery far, far worse than that suffered by Israel.

 

For what is Egypt but a picture of the land of the shadow of death, the country called sin? And who is Pharaoh but the devil’s puppet? He is like the serpent in Eden, the outward mask of the inward demon, who rules the land of sin with a rod of iron forged in the flames of Hades. And what is the slavery suffered in Egypt of old but the image of the shackles that bind man and woman, infants and elderly-the servitude to sin that leads to the grave and plunges into the lake of fire?

 

God calls us sons and daughters of Abraham to repentance. Far worse than being born in the land of sin, we keep returning to it. Worse than the fact that we were enslaved to sin, we have so often preferred the chains and shackles, enjoying our servitude to lust, greed, power, wealth, and whatever other poisonous weeds that grow so well in Egypt’s soil. God calls us to leave the devil’s harem and flee into the arms of our heavenly Bridegroom. To wash Pharaoh’s stench from our flesh in the holy waters of repentance and forgiveness. Come to your true home; to Zion, the city of the living God, to the promised land of Jesus. Come home, for God has left the light of his grace shine on for you, shining in the face of him who is Light of light. 

 

Abraham’s story is Israel’s story, and Israel’s story is the story of Jesus, and the story of Jesus is the story of your salvation. In his wonderous grace, God protected Sarah from Pharaoh, that Jesus might be born for you. From Abraham’s seed came Isaac through the womb of Sarah; from Isaac’s seed came Jacob through the womb of Rebekah; from Jacob’s seed came Judah through the womb of Leah; and finally, from no man’s seed, but conceived by the Holy Spirit, the promised Seed himself came through the womb of the Virgin Mary. He for you, to make you sons and daughters of Abraham by faith.

 

And there goes Jesus, coming down out of heaven to the Egypt of sin and death, all to redeem you and make you his own. And not only you but Abraham and Sarah, and yes, Pharaoh and all his concubines, Mary and Joseph – all of them and all of us. For Jesus goes head to head with the Egypt of sin and death, the pharaoh of hell itself, and he wins by losing, lives by dying, saves by letting himself be condemned in our place. 

 

For one and for all, the bad and the worse, Jesus is born into our Egypt, suffers the plague of divine wrath to fall upon him, and in doing so smashes the chains that bind you. 

 

Dear Christian, rejoice! You are free! You are redeemed! You are no longer an exile from God’s promised land. You are a citizen by grace, by the One who bought your citizenship with the gold of his body and the silver of his blood. He has led you forth from the place of captivity and death, washed clean in the Red Sea waters of the font, and filled your body and soul with the riches of the kingdom of heaven. The light is on for you, for you stand in the light of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

 

For by his grace, Jesus leads you from captivity and death to stand in the light of his glory. 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

Sermon for Lent 1: "Jesus in the Wilderness"

 + Lent 1 – February 21, 2021 +

Series B: Genesis 22:1-18; James 1:12-18; Mark 1:9-15

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

The Spirit immediately drove him out into the wilderness. 

 

Not exactly what we would expect to have happened to Jesus immediately following his baptism in the Jordan River. No ticker tape parade or feast for the beloved Son of God. After the marvelous and mysterious divine revelation at the Jordan, still dripping with droplets of Jordan River water, the same Spirit who rested upon Jesus in the river now drives, literally throws Jesus out into the wilderness.  

 

In our day, the wilderness is seen as idyllic, a destination on tourist brochures, an escape from the hustle and bustle, rest and relaxation and so forth. Not so in biblical days. In the Scriptures, the wilderness is a place of desolation. A place of preparation. A place of testing and temptation. The dwelling of sin and Satan. A place where your only hope is the grace of YHWH.

 

In the wilderness, YHWH appeared to Moses in the burning bush, preparing him to lead God’s people from slavery to freedom. 

 

In the wilderness, YHWH led and prepared and tested his people Israel for forty years, preparing them to enter his promised land.

 

In the wilderness, the prophet Elijah journeyed forty days to Mt. Horeb, sustained by heavenly bread and water.

 

In the wilderness, Isaiah foretold and John fulfilled, God’s voice announcing the Messiah, the Servant of YHWH who was YHWH in human flesh, the kingdom of God had come at last. The very same Messiah who, after his baptism in the Jordan River, goes into the wilderness as Israel in one man, and as one man for all Israel and for all people, and for you.

 

And whenever someone is in the wilderness in Scripture, you know that God is up to something. 

 

And what exactly is God up to in the wilderness this time? In his rapid-fire style, St. Mark tells us. St. Mark is a master of brevity and depth all at once. He packs Jesus’ whole ministry into a few short verses. Jesus is baptized. Jesus begins his journey to Jerusalem. Jesus battles Satan. 

 

Jesus’ baptism reveals who Jesus is - the beloved Son of God, the kingdom of God incarnate – and his mission he has come to accomplish. Already in the Jordan Jesus is anointed for death. A baptism of water foreshadowing his greater baptism by fire and blood on the cross. And his rising from the baptismal waters a preview of his greater resurrection from the tomb on Easter Sunday. It’s a preview of the new creation Jesus brings in his life, death, and resurrection. That seems to be the best explanation that I have found for why Mark tells us that Jesus is with the wild animals in the wilderness in verse 13. Only Mark mentions that. Jesus has come as Isaiah and the prophets long foretold. And with the coming of Jesus the Messiah, comes a new creation. In his death and resurrection all creation is redeemed, restored, renewed. His dwelling with the wild beasts in the wilderness is a preview of that great day. And we must not forget, the wilderness is not Jesus’ final destination, but the beginning of the journey. 

 

In the Jordan, Jesus’ itinerary is set. His journey to Jerusalem begins. That is why the Spirit throws him out into the wilderness. To get to the promised land Israel had to go through the wilderness. Jesus is no different. To get to Jerusalem, to guarantee our entrance into the promised land, Jesus goes through the wilderness on our behalf. Wherever Israel goes, Jesus goes. Israel journeys in the wilderness. So does Jesus. Israel is tested in the wilderness. So is Jesus. Tested. Tempted. For forty days.

 

Only this time something new happens in the wilderness. Israel in the flesh overcomes. Jesus passes the test. Where Israel failed and fell into temptation, Jesus overcomes. Jesus battles Satan and wins. Jesus triumphs. For Israel. For all. For you. It’s a preview of what Jesus will do at his journey’s end on the cross in Jerusalem. Where he will destroy death by dying. Defeat Satan by suffering. Conquer sin by becoming sin for us. 

 

This is good news for us, for we find ourselves living in the wilderness as well. The wilderness and wasteland of this fallen world. And in this wilderness, we too are tempted. 

 

Tempted to forsake Christ for something else – some other source of peace, comfort, or happiness. Tempted to satisfy our own hunger and appetites. Tempted to test the Word of God. Remember how Eve was tempted. First there was doubt. “Did God really say?” Then she was tempted by her appetites. She saw that the forbidden food was beautiful and delicious and oh so satisfying. Then she was tempted by her reason. It could make you wise, and who wouldn’t want that. And then she bit into the notion of good and evil and being like God sounded like a good thing to her and to Adam and to us.

 

If it’s up to us to journey through the wilderness, we’re doomed. We’re no match of the devil. In fact, our old Adam, our natural inclination, is to be on the devil’s side. That’s why God must “make enmity,” God must act, God must intervene. That’s why the Spirit drove Jesus into the wilderness after His Baptism. Not for Jesus’ faith but for ours. Not for Jesus’ sake but for ours. This was the prelude to the cross where the battle was waged and won for you. This was the opening round of a war that would end in Jesus’ hunger and thirst on the cross in the wilderness of Sin and Death where with one last word “it is finished,” He put an end once and for all to the works of the devil.

 

Yes, in this life we walk the wilderness way, the way of testing and trial, the way when the devil seems so real and God seems so hidden you would think He was absent. We must walk this way to the promised land of eternal life. It’s called the way of faith. But you do not walk it alone. Your Savior, our Lord Jesus, has gone the way ahead of us and leads us through it.

 

This Lenten season there is life in this wilderness. Life in your Baptism. Life in Jesus crucified and risen for you. 

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

Sermon for Ash Wednesday: "The Ashes of Paradise Lost"

 + Ash Wednesday – February 17, 2021 +

Genesis 3

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

 

For 40 days and 40 nights the floodgates of the heavens and the springs of the deep were opened in the days of Noah. For 40 years Israel wandered in the wilderness before entering into the promised land. For 40 days Jesus was in the wilderness, fasting, overcoming Satan’s temptations, and succeeding where Israel and Adam and you and I had failed.

 

Today the season of Lent begins. And it’s no accident that it’s 40 days long. Like the biblical seasons of 40, this season of Lent is a time of testing. Of repentance. Of renewal in the Lord’s promises. Of reflection upon Jesus saving work. A time of exile and return. So, during these midweek services over the next forty days, we’ll be taking a closer look at the exoduses of Scripture.

 

On this Ash Wednesday we begin Lent by going back to the beginning, to the first exodus in Genesis 3, as we glance over our shoulders to the Garden called Eden and the ashes of paradise lost.

 

“By the sweat of your face,” God told guilty Adam, “you shall eat bread, till you return to the ground, for out of it you were taken; for you are dust, and to dust you shall return.” Adam to ashes, Eve to dust. So began the exodus of death for our first parents. And for us who live east of Eden. Down into sadness. Down into sin, tumbling pell-mell from the mountaintop paradise that was ours to the jungle of mortality far, far below.

 

O Adam, what have you done? O Eve, why have you done it? In love the Father created you both in his own image and likeness, so that as he is in heaven, so were you on earth. Was that not good enough for you? In love the Father gave you bodies and souls, wisdom and beauty, innocence and purity. Were these gifts not enough? In love the Father planted a Garden called Eden, a piece of heaven on earth. Was this not enough? In love, the Father gave you to one another, man to woman and woman to man that you might live in wedded bliss. Was this not perfect enough? In love the Father gave you every single tree of Eden for food save one. Was he holding out on you by keeping you from eternal harm? O Adam what have you done? O Eve, why have you done it?

 

It’s a question we must ask ourselves too, sons of Adam and daughters of Eve. For we cannot remove the speck from our first parents’ eyes while our eyes are a logjam of sinful, selfish desires. How often have we, like our first parents, looked for our comfort, well-being, and every good from creation rather than our loving Father and Creator? Are his gifts not enough? How often have we sought peace and comfort in the wisdom and wealth of this world rather than in our Father’s word and promises? Has he not declared that he is our peace and rest? How often have we, like Adam and Eve, given into temptation of that which looks pleasing to our eyes and ears instead of the good things God gives us? 

 

And so on this Ash Wednesday, our Lord calls us to repentance. Return to the Lord. Rend your hearts in repentance, the prophet Joel calls out. Return to the good and gracious God who formed us and breathed the breath of eternal life into us by the Holy Spirit. Return to your Father who satnds daily, gazing out the window, eagerly waiting for us prodigal sons and daughters to come home. Come home, sons of Adam and daughters of Eve, to the garden kept and prepared for you.

Do you fear the anger of the almighty judge who exiled us along with Adam and Eve from the Garden? Fear not, for his anger has been spent upon His Son, the second Adam who accomplished his exodus in the grave for you.

 

Do you fear the cherubim, who were posted at the gates of Eden long ago with flaming swords in their hands? Fear not, for these angels have hammered their swords into trumpets announcing your return from exile as we rejoice that in Christ the last enemy of Death is destroyed forever. In Jesus’ death and resurrection, a new paradise stands wide open for you. And the angels who once guarded its way, now lead the way with praises of Glory to God in the highest and holy, holy, holy upon their lips.

 

Do you fear the ancient serpent. Who beguiled Eve and defiled Adam and who sank his poisonous fangs into all humanity? Fear not, for the God of peace will soon crush Satan under our feet. Indeed, the heel of the woman’s seed, Jesus himself, has already smashed the skull of that slithering devil from atop the tree of the cross. His blessed heel has absorbed the venom of sin and walked out of the tomb three days later.

 

Fear not. For your exile from Eden has come to an end in Jesus. “Today,” he says from the cross, “you will be with me in paradise.” The same was said at your baptism where you were buried into Christ’s death and rose again with him in his resurrection. And now, he remembers you when he comes into his kingdom. 

 

Today we wipe the jungle mud of this fallen world off our feet. For you are washed in the absolving river that flows from the heart of Eden. Here in the Eden of the Church, you are truly at home. God prepares a table before you beneath the branches of the tree of life. Take, eat, dine on the fruit and be filled with the life of the One who gave his life for you on its branches. Take, drink, slake your thirst in the crimson fruit of his vine. Here is a forgiving feast of Paradise regained, restored, renewed.

 

By the sweat of his face, with drops of blood, Christ our second Adam, has won for you the bread of life. In love, he has earned your way back into the Eden of God’s presence. In love, he has crushed the head of the serpent. In love, he has bid the angels sheath their swords. In pure and perfect love, he has made everything ready for you, his beloved bride, his Eve, his Church. Come to him who is bone of your bone and flesh of your flesh. Welcome back from exile. Welcome back to Eden. Paradise was lost, but now in Jesus paradise is regained. 

 

A blessed Ash Wednesday to you…

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

 

 

Sermon for Epiphany 5: "Announcing Good News"

 + 5^th Sunday after Epiphany – February 7, 2021 +

Series B: Isaiah 40:21-31; 1 Corinthians 9:16-27; Mark 1:29-39

Beautiful Savior Lutheran

Milton, WA

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

 

In the hospital my son Jonah was born in, there was a button on the wall from the delivery to the recovery room that would play a little lullaby, a short melody that played all over the hospital, announcing that a child was born.

 

At our family reunions my dad’s side of the family announces important events with a little song: “announcements, announcements, announcements.”

 

You see, when something’s important, it needs to be announced. In fact, you could sum up the whole life and work of Jesus with that word, announcement. 

 

The prophets announced God’s coming Messiah. Gabriel announced this Messiah’s birth to Joseph and Mary. The angel chorus announced Jesus’ birth to the shepherds. John the Baptist announced to the crowds in the wilderness that this Messiah, Jesus, is the Lamb of God who comes to take away the sin of the world. 

 

Today’s Gospel reading in Mark 1 is full of announcements as well. The announcement that Peter’s mother-in-law was sick and the announcement of Jesus’ healing with a simple touch of his hand upon hers. The announcement that brought the crowds of sick and demon possessed to Jesus to be healed by him. And Jesus’ own announcement to his disciples, “Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out.”

 

Yes, Jesus came to heal, to cast out demons, but all of that centers on, is anchored in, and grounded upon his preaching. That is why he came. To preach. Now, most of the time when we hear someone using that word “preach” it’s thought of like a moralistic game of whack-a-mole hammer, “Don’t preach at me!” “Practice what you preach!” “It was just too preachy.”

 

But that’s not at all what Jesus means when he says he must go to other towns and preach there as well. So, it’s time for a quick Greek verb lesson this morning. The word Mark uses when Jesus preaches is kerusso. The word means, to “make known,” “to proclaim out loud,” in other words, “to announce.” 

 

This is what the Gospel is, God’s announcement that Jesus has come to save you, live for you, die for you, rise for you, announce his forgiveness to you. Proclaim his grace to you. Declare his righteousness to you. To preach his good news to you.

 

For the people in Capernaum, Jesus’ preaching, his announcing, came at just the right time. Many, like Peter’s mother-in-law, lived in disease. Others were possessed by demons. Life seemed shrouded in darkness.

 

And Jesus’ very presence in Capernaum – along with his words and actions – announced to the people in that town that the Messiah had come. The one the prophets announced had arrived at last. God’s salvation was here in the person of Jesus. In his healing touch. In his casting out the devil. In his preaching, his announcing good news.

 

In Capernaum we see a picture of what he will do for the whole world in his death and resurrection. Jesus casts out the devil by his death on the cross just as he cast out the demons in Capernaum. Jesus takes us by the hand, heals us from the sickness of sin, and one day, will raise us up from the grave just as he raised up and healed Peter’s mother-in-law from her illness. Jesus brings the light of his presence and his word into the darkness of this fallen world. 

 

But of course, Jesus didn’t come only to heal and cast out demons in Capernaum. “Let us go into the next towns, that I may preach there also, because for this purpose I have come forth.” 

 

So here we are, centuries later, in one of those “next towns” where Jesus comes and preaches, announces his good news to us. And his good news of life and salvation comes at just the right time. For we too find ourselves - like Capernaum – surrounded by disease and the devil. The darkness is much deeper than the world around us – though there’s plenty to be troubled by there. But Jesus’ preaching digs down deeper within each of us. His Law uncovers our doubts and despair within. Our fears and worries that draw our hearts and minds away from Christ and his promises. Our guilt and shame that overwhelms us.

 

We might be tempted to think – certainly the devil would have us think – that all of this darkness within is reason enough for Jesus to skip us, pass over this town, and go on to the next. But we’d be wrong. Nothing could be further from the truth. 

 

For this is why Jesus came. For Capernaum. For Peter’s mother-in-law. For those nameless people he healed. And for you. 

 

This is why Jesus had to leave Capernaum and go on to the next town and the next town after that, and on until Jerusalem. The town where all his announcements in Capernaum and everywhere along the way point to. Jesus’ greatest announcement of all on the cross. “It is finished.” Christ is crucified for you. 

 

Jesus came to preach to us by his words and deeds, by his life and death, that you are saved. Jesus came to declare that in his death, death itself is destroyed, and you are declared righteous in his sight. Jesus came to make known the glory of his resurrection and give that glory to you, that in him you will rise from the grave as well. Jesus came to announce the good news that you receive this day: Jesus announces that you are forgiven all your sins. That our doubt, despair, and darkness are cast out by the Light of Christ’s word of forgiveness announced today. That Jesus announces your healing in his body and blood. And all our guilt and shame are covered by his healing, crucified, and risen hands.

 

This is why Jesus came out. To preach, proclaim, and announce: you belong to him. You are safe and saved in him. You are loved and alive in him.

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. 

 

 

Sermon for Epiphany 4: "Onward, Christian Soldiers"

 + 4^th Sunday after the Epiphany – January 31, 2021 +

Series B: Deuteronomy 18:15-20; 1 Corinthians 8; Mark 1:21-28

Beautiful Savior Lutheran Church

Milton, WA

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

 

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, we are at war. Not political, germ, or cyber warfare. As St. Paul writes, we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age. It is a war of words and a war of worlds. A war of God’s Word of truth versus the lies of Satan. A cosmic battle between good and evil. 

 

From the outset of Mark’s Gospel, this battle ensues. Jesus is led by the Spirit out into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil, where He overcomes the devil in the opening salvo. 

 

And again, several verses later in Mark 1, Jesus is in Capernaum. In the synagogue. On the Sabbath day. Teaching with authority. The authority that is his from all eternity now revealed in his word and teaching and in casting out an unclean, evil spirit.

 

This synagogue in Capernaum quickly becomes a battleground. Now there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit. 

 

Knowing who is present in this synagogue, the unclean spirit dares to speak. He cried out,  saying, “Let us alone! What have we to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Did You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!”

 

Up until this point, the people hearing Jesus’ teaching have been amazed at his authority. Now, as the demon speaks, they find themselves on the front lines of a cosmic battle. It is a battle of words and of worlds. And at first it appears that the unclean spirit has the upper hand. A man is possessed. The unclean spirit speaks. Demanding Jesus leave him. Making a claim that this man and this synagogue belonged to the unclean spirits. 

 

So it seems for us in this world too, doesn’t it. So often we witness great evil in the world and see the wickedness of men; we see our own sinful thoughts, words, and deeds, and it sure looks like the darkness is too deep. The enemy is too strong. It’s tempting to think the devil has won. And if the battle were up to us, if we fought with our feeble strength and weapons, that would be true. 

 

But for us fights the valiant one. No sooner had the unclean spirit spoken, than Jesus unsheathed the sword of his own authoritative word. Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!”

 

Jesus is more than a man from Nazareth. More than a teacher with authority. He is the cosmic Christ. This is His synagogue. These are His people. His rule is over all things, visible and invisible. His power is without equal. He has come into this world to fight against Satan and to defeat him. He will set free all the people Satan claims as his own.

 

Jesus tells the demon to “shut up and come out of him.” And he does. He doesn’t want unclean spirits preaching who He is. Even though what they say about him is true, it is truth in service of the Lie. Jesus is the Holy One of God, this is true. But He knows and the devil knows that this can be used in all the wrong ways by people who want to exploit Jesus for their own purposes and power. Jesus is the Holy One of God come to die. He is the Holy One of God come to do battle with Death and Sin and devil. He is the Holy One of God who not only drives the demons from people but who casts out the devil from this world. And gives you his victory over sin and death and the devil.

 

And that is good news for us who find ourselves daily entrenched in this battle. The devil is still alive and well today, a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. He’s on a leash now and restrained, but that doesn’t mean he still can’t work great mischief. And the greatest mischief he can work is unbelief, doubt, despair. He’s the one who says, “I know who you are, and you can’t possibly be a Christian. I know who the Holy One of God is and you’re definitely not holy.”

 

That’s the devil’s best work. He’s in the doubt business. He’ll use anything to create doubt – your reason, your conscience, sickness, adversity, evil. He’s like the kid who subversively starts fights on the playground and then runs to the principle to report all the fighting that’s going on. He loves to play games with your conscience, your inner critic, reminding you of how much of a religious failure you are. And it’s all largely true, just as it was true that Jesus is the Holy One of God. But in the devil’s mouth, even the truth becomes a lie.

 

Yes, it’s true; we are sinners. God’s Law tells us this clearly, and so that we don’t miss it, the Law even magnifies our sin. But that doesn’t mean you’re not holy. The devil hates paradox, by the way, and loves to make you decide. Which is it? A or B? Are you a sinner or a saint? Are you a child of Adam or of God? Come on, one or the other, you can’t be both, that’s nonsense. That’s devil talk.

 

The good news is “one little word can fell him.” In this morning’s text, the word is “shut up.” I know you parents want your kids to be polite and not say that, but the devil doesn’t deserve politeness. 

 

We are at war. And it’s a battle for your soul, your life, your faith. Christ has claimed you in Baptism, clothed you in the armor of God, and the devil hates that and will stop at nothing to drive you from Christ, keep you from His Word, get some distance between you and the Lord’s Supper, estrange you from the company of believers, isolate you in your feelings and guilt and shame. There is nothing more vulnerable to a wolf than an isolated, straying sheep.

 

The devil prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone to devour. “Resist him,” Peter says. He is resistible. How? “Standing firm in the faith.” Not resting on your words and work, but on the solid rock of Jesus’ word and work. Jesus’ death and resurrection for you. Jesus’ forgiveness in his body and blood for you. Jesus’ word of forgiveness.

 

“As a called and ordained servant of Christ and by His authority, I forgive you all of your sins.” 

This is God’s great “shut up” to the devil, to your troubled conscience, to the Law that condemns you rightly for your sins. That is why we come to this place - an outpost of heaven on earth; a haven and a safe harbor in this war – to hear God’s Word, pray, praise, give thanks, and eat and drink Jesus’ body and blood.

 

And the next time you are troubled by the devil, by the world, by your own conscience and you begin to doubt your holiness in Christ, you just tell them all to shut up in the name of Jesus and go away.

 

Jesus Christ is Lord, the Holy One of God, and He says you are forgiven and holy and justified. That’s a Word you can count on. That’s a Word you can die with. That’s a Word with authority.

 

In the Name of the Father and of the + Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.