Sermon for Pentecost 12: "Who is Jesus?"

+ Pentecost 12 – August 27^th, 2017 +

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

Series A: Isaiah 51:1-6; Romans 11:33-12:8; Matthew 16:13-20

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

Identity is one of the buzzwords of our day. Businesses and institutions promote their identity to consumers. Identity politics runs wild on both sides of the political aisle. Many of us have online identities of our real selves on social media. Still, many others self-identify as something or someone else they desire to be. In many ways society is going through a collective identity crisis. Who am I? Who are you? Who are we?

And the more the world continues its death spiral, the more often we, the body of Christ, his baptized people, find ourselves asking similar questions. What is the Church’s identity?

But if we are to know our identity as Christ’s bride, the Church, we must first know the identity of our bridegroom Jesus. If we look to ourselves for answers, we’ll only come up empty, but if we look to Jesus crucified and risen…as St. Paul says, all God’s promises find their yes in Jesus.

And so Jesus asked his disciples:

Who do people say that the Son of Man is?

If you walked around Jerusalem, conducting one of those late-night talk show “Man on the Street” style interviews, you’d have plenty of material. The disciples’ initial answer to this question reminds me of that old joke about opinions and peoples’ noses. Everybody has one.

The rabbis of Jesus’ day would say that the “son of man” is a mysterious figure in the Old Testament; some say it’s just another name for human being, while others say it’s a more Messianic title. In the general population, answers would vary even more. Some thought the Son of Man was a great prophet like Jeremiah, Isaiah, or John the Baptist come back from the dead; others thought the Son of Man was a priestly figure, a new Moses or Aaron. Still, others looked at the Son of Man like royalty: Hosanna to the King of David!

If we asked Jesus’ question today, many would answer: “Well, he’s a moral example, an obedient Jew, a miracle worker, an exorcist, a wise teacher, a liar, a lunatic.” Some have even made the ridiculous distinction between the Jesus of history - the carpenter rabbi who was crucified - and the Christ of faith, the guy the church made up. But that’s rubbish. As St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians, if Christ is not crucified and risen from the dead, then we are of all people most to be pitied. The “historic Jesus” is the “Christ of faith.”  They are one and the same.

If you think about it, a person’s answer to this question will tell you a lot about what they believe (or what they don’t); it’ll tell you a lot about where their faith, hope, and trust are grounded.

Jesus’ question confronts the disciples with the very essence of the Christian faith. Who is Jesus? Is Jesus just another moral teacher or is he, as he claims, the Son of God come in human flesh to save us from sin and death?

Think about it another way…if you’re drowning in the middle of the ocean, do you need Olympic gold medal swimmer, Michael Phelps, to give you some tips on how to swim a better butterfly stroke? No. You need a big orange Coast Guard helicopter to drop a rescue swimmer, and save you. So, in this world of guilt and shame, sin and death, do you need a life-coach, a guru, or a guide to show you how to save yourself? No. You need Jesus who was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried for you.

We need rescue. We need the real Jesus that Peter confesses to save us from our real sin and death.

Jesus turns to the disciples more pointedly and asks. Who do you say that I am? And like that one kid in class who’s always first to raise their hand, Simon Peter speaks up for the disciples, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

Though he doesn’t know the full weight of his words, nor understand entirely what Jesus is doing until after his death and resurrection, Peter makes a faithful confession.

And Peter says a lot in this short confession. You are the Christ. You are God’s anointed, his chosen One. You are the Messiah, foretold by the prophets. You are the fulfillment of all God’s promises in the Old Testament for his people Israel and for the world. You are like Moses and the prophets, but greater, for you are the One, true Mediator between God and man. You are the Word of God made flesh, the Son of the living God. You are like Aaron the priest, only greater, for you yourself will be the sacrificial Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. You are like David the king, only greater, for you will reign forever as King of kings from your throne on the cross to the throne room of heaven.

And like all of God’s servants in the Old Testament – the prophet Moses, Aaron the priest, and King David – Jesus is God’s anointed. And this means Jesus is anointed to for a purpose. Peter not only confesses Jesus’ identity – that he is true God and Man – but also that Jesus has come to reveal what the Christ must do, for Peter and for all. To die and rise again for Peter, for you, and for all.

This makes Peter’s confession our confession too. “To confess” means to say back what you have heard, to say the same thing. So, we confess our sins – saying what God says about our sins is true. We confess the Creeds – saying for ourselves and our neighbor what the Scripture teaches and what we believe, teach, and confess as Christians. We confess in our hymns, prayers, bible studies, and preschool, and everything we do in this church and school – Jesus crucified for you. And confession is always God’s gift, just as it was for Peter.

Peter didn’t come to this conclusion by his own reason or strength. Jesus declared, Blessed are you Simon bar Jonah, for flesh and blood has not revealed this to you, but my Father who is in heaven.

We say the same thing in the Small Catechism: I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ my Lord or come to Him. But the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with his gifts, sanctified me in the one true faith.

But we don’t always confess this do we? No. We do the opposite. We deny. We deny Christ both with our lips and with our lives. With our lives by our attempts to justify ourselves, to be Christ for ourselves, to live as though God did not matter and as if all that mattered was Me. We deny Christ with our lips when we refuse to sing His praise, to confess His Name, to pray, praise and give thanks for what He has won for us. When our worship and prayers falter. We deny Christ in our thoughts, words and deeds.

For these, and for all our sins, we need Peter’s confession. After all, Peter’s confession wasn’t for Peter alone, but for the whole Christian church, for you.

On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

Peter’s confession, like his later work as an apostle and the letters he wrote, points us to Jesus, the foundation of our confession and Peter’s. Jesus, our Savior, Redeemer, the Christ, the Son of the Living God. Jesus is crucified and not once does he deny us, but takes all our denial, and Peter’s, along with him to the cross. Jesus, the Christ is anointed to be our sacrifice for sin, so that we would be chosen and called children of God in his cross, through our Baptism into his death and resurrection. Jesus is enthroned on the cross for us so that his kingdom would come to us in his saving word, his comforting absolution, and his healing body and blood.

These words, this saving message gives you a new identity. No longer are you a son of Adam or a daughter of Eve, but you are God’s own baptized child. No longer does God look at you and see denial, sin, and death...no, in Jesus, the Father sees the blood of his only Son, shed for you. Jesus’ crucified is the key that opens paradise for you, and for all. This is your identity: baptized, redeemed, and beloved by our Lord.

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

Sermon for Pentecost 10: "The Divine Drama"

+ 10^th Sunday after Pentecost – August 13^th, 2017 +

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

Series A: Job 38:4-18; Romans 10:5-17; Matthew 14:22-33

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

If you’ve ever been to see a play – perhaps at the Gem Theater – there’s a familiar pattern. The scene is set in the beginning – like Dorothy in Kansas. The following acts and scenes lead the audience to the finale – a romantic tragedy like Romeo and Juliet or a joyous ending like Beauty and the Beast.

In many ways, Matthew’s account of Jesus walking on the water is like a well-crafted drama. But unlike the stories we enjoy at the theater or read about in books, the divine drama happened, not in a galaxy far far away, but in the playhouse of human history. All the world’s a stage, and in Jesus, the playwright became entered his own play to save man from the great tragedy of sin and death.

And so, Matthew’s purpose isn’t entertainment or to teach a moral lesson. Rather, Matthew reveals who Jesus is and what he has come to do: to save sinners incapable of saving ourselves. Matthew wants us to see how utterly foolish, weak, and dead in sin we are so that in Jesus crucified we might see the fullness of God’s glory, his boundless grace and mercy to save even us.

And so, Matthew sets the scene:

After hearing the news of his cousin John’s beheading, Jesus looked for solitude and prayer. Finally, the crowds are gone. The disciples row their boat. Jesus is alone. Then a notorious evening wind kicks up on the Sea of Galilee. The water is white capped and wind chopped. The disciples struggle against the wind and waves, 3 strokes forward, 2 strokes back. The harder they pull the oars, the harder it is to move. Perhaps life feels that way some days. As Dr. Rosenbladt used to say, “the hurrier I go the behinder I get.”

Already Matthew has introduced the plot and direction of this event. It begins with separation and distance – Jesus on the mountain and his disciples in the boat on the sea – and it will end with nearness and worship.

Meanwhile, the disciples row, row, row their boat wearily in the sea. Exhausted. Fatigued. Then afraid. Around the “fourth watch of the night” (3 AM our time), they see a figure walking on the water towards them.

Now, the disciples were sane and rational men. Four of them were experienced fishermen, not the type to scare easy. They knew that men don’t walk on water. “It is a ghost!” they cried out in fear. Can you blame them? Alone in a boat. In a storm. With a strange figure walking towards them on the water. Who of us wouldn’t be afraid?

Well, seeing isn’t believing, but hearing is. As the apostle Paul reminds us, “faith comes by hearing the word of Christ.” Take heart. It is I. Do not be afraid.

This isn’t Jesus saying, “Hey you guys! It’s me, chill.” No, these are important, often lost in translation. When Jesus says It is I, he’s saying Ego eimi in Greek. Jesus uses the divine name of YHWH. I AM. The one who appeared to Moses in the burning bush. I AM who I AM.

Jesus is saying, “Have courage. I AM the Lord. Don’t be afraid. And he says it immediately. Take heart. I AM the Lord. Do not be afraid. YHWH in human flesh – whom the wind and waves obey – is Jesus, their Master. In his reassuring word, Jesus gave them everything they needed. Jesus’ Word is enough.

That’s something the church today needs to hear as well. Jesus’ Word is enough. Jesus’ Word and promise in Holy Baptism. Jesus’ liberating verdict of forgiveness in Holy Absolution. Jesus’ presence and salvation in his body and blood. Jesus’ Word is enough.

And yet, like Peter, we doubt his word. We want something more. For Peter, Jesus’ word was not enough. He wanted something more bizarre than Jesus walking on water. Peter answered Jesus and said, “Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.”

What would it take for Peter to believe? Headstands on water? Surfing without a board? No. Jesus’ Word is enough. What does it take for us to trust Jesus’ Word? A church where all the pews are full and the offering plates are spilling over? A bank account full of money and a house full of stuff? A healthy body, good self-esteem, and a perfect spiritual life?

Jesus’ Word is enough.

Jesus spoke one word to Peter. “Come.” But this was no ordinary word. It is the Word from the Word Incarnate. The Word that laid the foundation of the earth, that shut the sea behind its doors, that made the clouds, and said to the proud waves of the Deep “thus far shall you come and no farther.”

So, when Jesus says to Peter “Come” that’s all it takes to bring him out of the boat and walk to Jesus on the surface of the deep.

The sea is a personification of Death, the abyss. In Israel, fishermen feared the sea. The sea was full of the great sea monsters, the Leviathan. It was a picture of death that swallowed you up whole and didn’t spit you out again. So when Jesus walks on the water, He shows not only His lordship over creation but also His lordship over Death.

“Come.” Jesus said. That one word carried Peter from the boat, across the water, to Jesus.

Now don’t try this in your swimming pool or down at Bolsa Chica. We don’t have that word from Jesus. But you have a better word spoken in your Baptism. Justified. Declared righteous before God. Forgiven. Holy. Jesus word does what he says. You don’t walk on water, you live in the water of your Baptism. Drowned in forgiveness. And raised to new life. Jesus’ word in your Baptism is as sure as the word that propelled Peter out of the boat to Jesus across the choppy Sea of Galilee.

And there was Peter, standing next to Jesus, defying everything that Archimedes ever said about floating objects. He looked around at the white caps, and heard the wind. He was afraid. He started to sink. The first time Peter doubted whether it was really Jesus; this time he doubted whether Jesus could do what he said.

This is what happens when we turn away from God’s Word. We sink into Death. Keep your eyes fixed on Jesus. That’s where Peter’s eyes needed to be – on Jesus. Not the wind, waves, or boat. Jesus. Nothing but Jesus.

Same for us. Look at the world around us, inside yourself, and doubts will rise, fear will grow, and we’ll sink like a stone. That’s why we’re here every Sunday to hear the Word, to receive the Supper. Life is full of countless distractions. Sinking doubts. Paralyzing fears. The folly of our sin. When we lose sight of Jesus in His Word, His Supper, in the gathering in His Name, then we drown.

We drown in despair, in guilt, in fear. We drown in our doubts, our skepticism, our failings and weaknesses. We drown in Sin and Death.

Lord, save me. That’s all Peter could say… That’s the best thing he could’ve said.

That’s all we can say too. Lord, save me. And he does. Immediately, Jesus reached out His hand and took hold of Peter. Whose grip matters the most? Jesus’ hands. The hands that pull you out of the abyss of the grave by being pierced and crucified for you.

Jesus doesn’t say to Peter, “Well, you did ok for a while; but what you really need to do next time is trust me more and have a little more faith.”

Jesus does rebuke Peter, but gently. Oh you of little faith, why did you doubt?

We’re no different than Peter. We’re doubt, despair, and are afraid. Does God’s Word really work? If Jesus is Lord over the wind and sea, will he save me when I call upon him? What if I doubt or despair and have little faith like Peter? What if my faith isn’t even the size of a mustard seed? Will let me sink and give me what I deserve?

No he won’t give us what we deserve; it’s the other way around. Jesus gives us what we don’t deserve: Jesus saves you, like Peter, by grace.

You see, Peter’s faith isn’t given as an example to follow but rather to show that he is weak and sinful like us, so that Jesus’ identity and his grace and mercy are seen more clearly.

And now, the story that began in separation and distance ends in nearness and worship. The disciples worshiped Jesus. Truly you are the Son of God. Jesus would not let the disciples sink or Peter drown.

Jesus won’t let you drown either. Take heart. It is I AM. Do not be afraid.

Jesus comes to us in the fourth watch of our day, when we are weakest. When we can’t pull our oars any longer. When the depths of Death overwhelm us. And He speaks a sure and powerful Word to us: Forgiven. You are God’s own beloved child. You stand justified before God’s judgment seat because He says so. The same Word who caused Peter to walk on the water will raise you up to dance on Death and the grave. You can count on it. You have Jesus’ Word; and that’s enough.

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

Funeral Sermon for Charles L. Gralewski: "Life in Jesus' Word"

+ Funeral Service for Charles Louis Gralewski: November 4, 1936 – July 1, 2017 +

Isaiah 43:1-3, 25; Romans 5:1-11; John 3:16-18

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

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

For Chuck, words were his life. Like the prophet Isaiah and the apostle Paul, Chuck spent many years preaching and teaching God’s Word. In his 43 years of sales he used words as he served others in the food industry. And he never tired of reading and studying God’s word, whether it was something from Dietrich Bonhoeffer, or inwardly digesting God’s Word in the book of Romans.

More recently, he shared his love and joy of words with Audrey in their daily life together, their love of receiving God’s Word together, and their conversations and adventures to Hawaii, among many other places. And of course, Chuck’s unforgettable, joyous words of greeting, “Hey, brother!”

Yes, Chuck had a love and joy of words. And yet, as great as these words were, God’s Word was his greatest joy.

That’s because he believed, taught, and confessed, as Dietrich Bonhoeffer once said, that “There is no human word of comfort strong enough to those who have been afflicted by death. It is God’s own word alone which helps us to the right vision of things and which gives us a brave and quiet heart in such troubled times.”[1]

In life and in death, God’s Word was Chuck’s life. The Scripture readings we hear today proclaim God’s salvation, promise, comfort, and life that belongs to Chuck, and to each of you, in his Word. 

God’s Word calls us by name, just as he did Chuck. By water and the Word, God placed his saving name - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – upon Chuck in Holy Baptism, as he does in your Baptism. As the Lord created and formed us in the womb giving us earthly life, so too, he creates and forms us to be his children giving us eternal life in body and soul in those blessed baptismal waters. In Baptism you are, as Chuck is, a new creation in Christ. As the prophet Isaiah declares to Chuck and to you: Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine.

God’s Word calls also us to a life of repentance of our sin while revealing our Savior from sin in Jesus, just as St. Paul declares in Romans 5:

For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 

Chuck knew that God’s word had plenty to say about our sin; that it separates us from God and from each other; that the wages of sin is death; that we indeed are great sinners. But he also knew that God’s Word had even more to say about our salvation in Jesus, a Savior greater than our sin. A Savior who took our weakness, failures, sin, and death upon himself. The cross is the path to victory. The cross is his triumph over suffering [and our sin and death] (Bonhoeffer, Cost of Discipleship, p. 92).

For Chuck, and for you, “God is a God who bears. The Son of God bore our flesh, he bore the cross, he bore our sins, thus making atonement for us. In the same way, his followers are also called upon to bear…and that is precisely what it means to be a Christian” (Bonhoeffer, Cost of Discipleship, 92).

For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

This was the confession Chuck made at his confirmation, throughout his life, and at the end of his life. God’s Word gave Chuck life.

And yet, that is not the end of God’s promises for Chuck or you. God’s Word will continue to be Chuck’s life as well. As God’s Word declares in John 3:

God loved the world in this manner, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 

God’s Word is eternal life for Chuck and you as well. For God’s Word is unlike any other word. I may command the lights to turn on but they won’t; I may yell at the stoplight or the referees on TV but it won’t turn green any faster and the ref won’t reverse their call because of my word. But God’s Word, on the other hand, well, his Word does what he promises. God’s Word says let there be light; God’s Word calms the storms, heals paralytics, and raises the dead. And it happens. Jesus speaks and gives life to Chuck and to you.

God’s Word is Chuck’s life and yours yesterday and today…but also tomorrow and every day after, even to eternity.

God’s Word and promise of eternal life is the hope that Chuck died in, and the Word that will raise him and all the faithful in Christ on the Last Day. Everything Jesus did, he did for Chuck, and for you. He died to set you free from sin and death. He rose so that in him you will rise again. And just as the Lord called Lazarus forth from his tomb by his Word, so too, he will call Chuck and each of us from death to life…by his Word.

To quote Bonhoeffer once more…“The fact that Jesus Christ died is more important than the fact that I shall die, and the fact that Jesus Christ rose from the dead is the sole ground of my hope that I, too, shall be raised on the Last Day…I find no salvation in my life history, but only in the history of Jesus Christ…Only in the Holy Scriptures do we learn to know our own history.”[2]

This is our hope and comfort. We live our life together under the Word of the cross awaiting with our dear brother Chuck, and all who rest from their labors, the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting, that great and glorious endless day. And in the meantime, God speaks and delivers his strength, healing, and life in his Word; hope, comfort, and salvation in God’s Word; pardon, peace, and promise in God’s Word.

God’s Word is Chuck’s life, and yours - today, and always.

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

---

[1] Dietrich Bonhoeffer, vol. 13, Minneapolis: Fortress Press, 2007, p. 409.

[2] Bonhoeffer, Life Together, NY: Harper Collins, 1954, p. 54.

Sermon for Pentecost 5: "Christ Crucified is Our Rest"

+ 5^th Sunday after Pentecost – July 9^th, 2017 +

Series A: Zechariah 9:9-12; Romans 7:14-25; Matthew 11:25-30

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

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

Now that summer is here I can finally rest and relax. Now that I’m retired, I’ll have plenty of time to rest. Now that the weekend is here I’ll be able to rest after a busy week.

We’ve all had these or similar thoughts before. But then the family calendar fills up with road trips and adventures; retirement proves to be busier than a 40-hour work week; and the weekend is always too short to finish the to-do list.

When we feel like we need a vacation from our vacation; or when we’ve had a particularly long or stressful week at work; or when family, friends, or dear brothers or sisters in Christ suffer illness or die - we grow weary. We long for rest.

Rest for our body and mind is important for our physical and mental health and we pray for this in the Lord’s Prayer when we pray “give us this day our daily bread”. We pray for our heavenly Father to provide all we need for this body and life. And he does, daily without any merit or worthiness in us, out of his pure, fatherly divine goodness and mercy.

But we also pray for daily bread from the Lord’s table, healing, strength, and sustenance for our spiritual well-being as well. Rest for our soul.

This is the kind of rest our heavenly Father gives us in the Lord’s house on the Lord’s day as we receive the Lord’s gifts.

But right about then our sinful flesh chimes in with a lame excuse like, “I just love to rest and be close to God on the beach” or wherever. Problem is, Jesus never promised eternal rest, forgiveness, life, and salvation to be given on the beach with our toes in the water and rear-end in the sand. Jesus promises to be with us in the word and water of Holy Baptism, the forgiveness of Absolution, the body and blood of the Lord’s Supper.

We rest in the grace, mercy, and peace of Jesus crucified for you. In the rest and peace of sins forgiven. In the rest Jesus provides: As the Psalms say… As the deer pants for streams of water, so my soul pants for you, my God. (Ps. 42:1)

My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the Lord; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God. (Ps. 84:2)

Or, as St. Augustine once wrote, “Our hearts are restless, O Lord, until we find our rest in Thee.” The rest we need - the rest we long for - Jesus promises: Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Israel longed for an eternal Sabbath rest. They were weary from from sinful rebellion, burdened by false teachers and idolatry; they were dead tired and dead in sin when the prophet Zechariah declared words of hope and promise for Israel and for all...Rejoice greatly, Daughter Zion! Shout, Daughter Jerusalem! See, your king comes to you, righteous and victorious, lowly and riding on a donkey, on a colt, the foal of a donkey.

St. Paul also longed for rest from his daily war with his own sinful flesh. For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. Oh wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?

Paul found rest – not in himself - but in Christ Crucified. Thanks be to God, who delivers me through Jesus Christ our Lord!

The disciples too, longed for rest. As Jesus spoke of rest in Matthew 11 they were already beginning to feel the heavy laden cross of discipleship.

Like Israel, St. Paul, and the disciples we long for and need rest. Like Israel we’re daily surrounded by idols - both without and within - that threaten to lead us astray from Jesus crucified to the Jezebels and Delilahs of the world. The world offers ever increasing pleasures with an ever diminishing return. Hope and longing quickly turn to disappointment, despair and distrust.

Like St. Paul, we wrestle daily with (what Luther called) our maggot sack of the sinful flesh. St. Paul wrote Romans 7 when he was a Christian. He understood our heavy burden of sin. Paul doesn’t give us a spoonful of sugar with the Law. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing. What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body that is subject to death?

It’s not pretty, popular, or palatable, but it’s true. This body of death. That’s why we’re so weary and tired. It’ all symptomatic of our sinful heart of darkness within. Our conscience is heavy laden with the weight of our sins in thought, word, and deed, with what we have done and left undone. Who will rescue me from disease, disaster, despair, and death? Thanks be to God who gives us the victory in Christ Jesus our Lord.

And like the disciples, Jesus must reveal his easy yoke to us. It comes only by grace, through the cross. Jesus teaches them, and us in these words, that the way to find rest is to trade the heavy burden of our failure, weariness, and sin for Jesus’ easy yoke.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

It’s worth noting that the noun for disciple and the verb “to learn” in this section are from the same root word in the Greek. It’s a reminder that the disciple - and that includes us - is always learning. And what are we to learn? Jesus’ promise:

Learn from me, that I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. Jesus crucified is the refuge of the weary. For the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many. Jesus’ death on the cross for you is our resting place. On the cross Jesus labored under the weight of our sin, bore the yoke of the cross, God’s punishment for sin, and the grave for you. Jesus exchanges the heavy burden of

our sin for his light and easy yoke of forgiveness, life, and salvation. Jesus had no place but the cross and the grave to rest his head so that you receive eternal rest in him.

Like Israel, our rest is found in King Jesus, who gives us his righteousness and victory over sin and death in the Absolution.

Like St. Paul, we find the end of our war against our sinful flesh in the flesh of Jesus crucified for us, given to us in his body and blood given in the Lord’s Supper.

Like the disciples, Jesus promises not to take us out of the world, but to overcome the world for us, and call us into his family by adoption through grace in Holy Baptism.

We may not always find lasting rest in this life. But the rest we need and long for is given just as Jesus promises: in his word, water, body and blood, we have an eternal Sabbath.

Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.

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

Sermon for Trinity Sunday:

+ Trinity Sunday – June 11^th, 2017 +

Series A: Genesis 1:1-2:4; Acts 2:14, 22-36; Matthew 28:16-20

Confirmation Day

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

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

In Disney’s Toy Story trilogy, the toys who are the main characters belong to a boy named Andy. And like most young boys, Andy loves his toys, so much in fact, that he writes his name on the foot of each one. To be one of Andy’s toys, to have his name written upon their foot, means they are loved, they are treated more like family than toys; and above all, they are Andy’s own prized possession, they belong to Andy and no one else.

So, what does Toy Story have to do with Trinity Sunday and Confirmation day? Well, it’s not because of the famous Pixar trio of Buzz Lightyear, Woody, and Jesse.

It’s all in the name. No, not Andy’s name.

The Name. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

Today as we celebrate Trinity Sunday and Confirmation day we hear Jesus’ command and promise to his disciples, his church, and to you.

 “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

Baptize. Teach. This is what Jesus calls his church to do. Nothing else matters: baptize in Jesus’ name and teach Jesus’ Word. Receive Jesus’ baptism washed over you. Hear Jesus’ absolution declared to you. Take, eat and drink, Jesus’ body and blood given and shed for you. Everything else we say or do in this place exists to serve, support, and deliver God’s gifts.

That’s why our catechumens and families are here today. That’s why we’re here today. Not to witness a graduation from confirmation. There’s no such thing. Rather, to receive the Lord’s gifts in the Lord’s house on the Lord’s day, and in the Lord’s name: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. 

To continue to receive his gifts in water, word, body and blood is how we remain faithful to his command and live in his promise in Matthew 28.

Like our catechumens, you are baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We have a new identity. Beloved. In Holy Baptism, you are loved; you are no longer slaves to sin, but sons of righteousness; God writes his name – not on your foot – but upon your forehead and heart with the blood of his cross to mark you as one redeemed by Christ crucified. You are God’s own chosen people; you belong to him and no one else: not sin, death, or the devil.

Today, Jesus gathers us to receive his gifts in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. This Name by which we enter God’s family is the Name by which we enter his house. We’re called to read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures as his inspired Word, to confess the doctrine of the Scriptures summarized in the Small Catechism, to receive the Lord’s Supper faithfully, and to suffer all even death rather than fall away from Christ’s church.

To do this faithfully means to confess that we are unfaithful. To believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe, but only by the Holy Spirit. I do, by the grace of God!

For like our catechumens, we’ve confessed before our brothers and sisters in Christ that we intend to live according to the Word of God in faith, word, and deed…and yet we haven’t.

That’s why the most important vows and promises made on Confirmation Sunday aren’t the ones spoken by the catechumens, past or present. More important by far is Jesus’ Word, who by his Word keeps his vows to save you in his death and resurrection for you. As good as our confirmation vows are, Jesus’ promise to each of you in Holy Baptism is the greatest promise of all.

Like the disciples, the first catechumens, we have doubts, fears and, anxieties. There will be days when we fail to keep our vows and sin against the Lord, just as the disciples did. But there will never be a day when Jesus forsakes you. The love of Jesus crucified is with you always.

Behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.

A blessed Trinity and Confirmation Sunday to each of you.

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

Sermon for Easter 7: "Kept in the Name"

+ 7^th Sunday of Easter – May 28^th, 2017 +

Redeemer Lutheran, HB

Series A: Acts 1:12-26; 1 Peter 4:12-19, 5:6-11; John 17:1-11

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

Names are important. Huntington Beach is known around the world as Surf City, USA. Parents choose their children’s names with meaning, family history, or the way a name sounds: Zoe is the Greek word for life in the New Testament; Jonah is Hebrew for dove and Jesus names Jonah when he gives the sign of Jonah predicting his own resurrection. We name our instruments, cars, boats, and airplanes, as our own Steve Snyder has written about. Names are important in everyday life.

And even more so in Scripture. Adam means earth for he was created from the dust. 

Abraham means father of many nations, for from his offspring comes one who will bless all nations. Even God has a name he gives his people to call upon: YHWH, the Lord, Jesus (which means YHWH saves), and many more.

As we pray in the confession every Sunday: Our help is in the Name of the Lord, who made heaven and earth.

Along with Jesus’ many names, he has many titles. He is prophet, fulfilling and proclaiming God’s Word as the Word made flesh. He is King, who rules and reigns in his death, resurrection, and ascension for us.

And in today’s Gospel reading we hear Jesus in his priestly role, praying to the Father, praying for his disciples, praying for you, that you would be kept in the name of the Lord. In his high priestly prayer in John 17, Jesus prays:

Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.

This is the Name God revealed to Moses in the burning bush in Exodus 3. “I am who I am.” “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’”

YHWH. I AM WHO I AM. This is God’s personal name. The Name of YHWH was a reminder that this God, and he alone, was their God, their redeemer and savior. With the Name of YHWH came his power and authority. Later in Exodus when YHWH instructs Moses to build a tabernacle for the sacrifices for sin, he declares:

In every place where I cause my name to be remembered I will come to you and bless you.

Wherever YHWH’s name is, there is his peace, presence, and blessing. Miriam and the host of Israel sang of God’s salvation by the shores of the Red Sea: “I will sing unto YHWH (the Lord), for he has triumphed gloriously, the horse and rider he has thrown in to the sea.” God kept Israel safe and saved them by his name.

The Psalms are full of similar songs of praise, such as Psalm 100: YHWH is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. God promises to keep us in his steadfast love by his name.

Many centuries later, the prophet Isaiah declared that YHWH would also be known by another name…

Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.

Immanuel, God with us. Through the prophets, and down through the centuries, God kept his promise by his name and revealed his name in yet another way. No longer would the Name of the Lord be seen in the burning bush. No longer would the tabernacle and temple be the place of God’s dwelling. Now YHWH’s glory, peace, presence, promise, salvation, blessing, and his Name, would be made known to you in the God-man Jesus.

As the angel told Joseph concerning Mary, “She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

That’s what the name of Jesus means: YHWH Saves.

This is what the Father sent His Son to do, save you, me, and the world by his name. It’s good that Jesus gives us an example of prayer, as he does in the Lord’s prayer. We pray hallowed be Thy name. But even the best examples God gives us still reveal our sin. Because even though it’s true that God’s name is holy in itself, we don’t always keep God’s name holy among us. We curse, swear, or deceive by his name. We fail to call upon his name in every trouble, pray, praise, or give thanks to him. We live contrary to God’s name and the name he baptized us into in our thoughts, words, and deeds.

Jesus prays that we would be one, and yet we quarrel and bicker with our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ, we sow discord and despair with our words to others. We see the church in this country and around the world plagued by false teaching that profanes the name of the Lord in the church and among the unbelieving world.

As St. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 6, And such were some of you. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

This is why Jesus prays for his disciples and for you. That you would be kept in the Father’s Name. It’s good that Jesus gives us an example of prayer in the Lord’s Prayer. But it’s also good that Jesus prays for us, to keep us in the name of the Lord.

That’s Jesus’ work as our great high priest; he is constantly praying for us, intereceding on our behalf, showing the Father his wounds that cover our sin, pleading with the Father to look, not at the filth of our sin, but at the blood of his cross. Jesus is enthroned forever as God and man, your advocate, so that you hear in this place that your sins are forgiven in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Holy Father, keep them in your name…

This Lord who keeps you in his name also calls you by name, writes your name in the Lamb’s book of life.

Jesus reveals God’s name for you, YHWH saves. Jesus saves you.

Jesus gives you faith in his Word, that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:19-20).

Jesus joins you to his own death and resurrection; he keeps you in the ark of his church in Baptism where you are washed with water and word in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus promises that wherever two or three of us are gathered in his name, he is with us in the water, word, body and blood where he promises to dwell with us and for us.

As we come to the Lord’s table to receive his body and blood for our forgiveness we sing, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! 

We come into God’s presence in Divine Service in his name, and we are sent out again into the world, into our vocations in his name at the end in the benediction as well.

Jesus sends his church into the world to teach his Word and baptize in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, promising to be with us always, to keep us in his name.

Jesus calls us in our Baptism to honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you.

As Jesus prayed for his disciples and sent them out, so too, he prays for us and sends us out into the world to declare the name of the Lord, who called us out of darkness into his marvelous light.

Holy Father, keep us in your Name.

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