Lord and Christ

Peter’s Pentecost sermon – which a portion of it is our first reading today, the full sermon is in Acts 2:14-41 – is worth pondering deeper.

What gives Peter the opportunity to preach? Something has happened. We know from reading the story that what was happening is the Holy Spirit has come, but nobody else understands that. In fact everyone else, all good Jews who have gathered in Jerusalem for one of the travel holidays, think that what has happened is something scandalous and embarrassing. Peter and the disciples are drunk at 9 AM. The modern environment of the church can be described as being surrounded by good Jews to the extent that Americans right now seem to be in a moralistic and judgmental mood. There are unwritten rules of society that gets enforced in quite extreme ways. You can find yourself canceled. And what the church has to say on many things is scandalous and embarrassing. This is the work of the Holy Spirit. Jesus told those disciples this before the passion. “And when [The Holy Spirit] comes, he will convict the world concerning sin, and righteousness and judgement. (John 16:8).” It is the work of the Holy Spirit in what from the world’s perspective are scandalous things that is the opportunity to proclaim the good news.

How does Peter’s sermon start? He grounds his proclamation firmly in the prior works and words of God. Peter quotes a long passage from the prophet Joel, an apocalyptic passage. What do I mean by apocalyptic? I mean in the simplest definition of that word, a revelation. God has revealed himself. Any time God reveals himself is in an apocalypse. And there are all kinds of apocalypses. There are personal revelations. When the sinner is convicted of their sin, it is an apocalypse. All the way up to the final apocalypse, when every knee shall bow at the revelation of Jesus Christ in all his glory. When the man comes around. The church’s message is always grounded in the self-revelation of God.

What particular revelation is Peter bringing before his audience? “Jesus of Nazareth, a man attested to you by God with mighty works and wonders and signs that God did through him in your midst, as you yourselves know.” The greatest of these signs is his crucifixion and resurrection. You killed him, but God raised him up. Whatever prior revelation you are holding onto. In the case of those Jews Peter assumes it is the Davidic promises. We all might have revelations that we are holding onto. Like Peter himself wanting to build booths on the mount of transfiguration. These are all insignificant compared to the bare facts of the passion and resurrection. “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that the Father has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”

That proclamation is both law and gospel. It is law to the extent that I and my sin crucified him. To the extent that I want to keep my revelation about him, it is a judgement. But it is also the sweetest gospel. This Jesus whom we know is Lord and Christ. The Lord is not Caesar or any other tyrant, but Jesus. The Messiah, the one we have been looking for, is not some political personage or charismatic movement, but Jesus. This Jesus whom we crucified, but who prayed for our forgiveness. Being convicted of sin is also being convicted of righteousness. My sin killed him, but His Grace has given me his righteousness.

Being convicted the crowd asks, “what shall we do?” Peter’s simple answer is “repent and be baptized in the name of Jesus. Receive the Holy Spirit.” This revelation is not just for some Jews. This revelation is for you and for your Children. This revelation is for all who are far off whom God is calling to himself.

Peter’s sermon has new relevance in our world. The church scandalizes the world. But the church is still a revelation. It reveals to the world its sin, its righteousness and its judgement. It places before the world Jesus Christ. Here is your Hope and Salvation.

Unbelief to Believing

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Biblical Text: John 20:19-31

At the word cloud would tell you, this is “Doubting” Thomas Sunday. But there are really two things in the text. The Thomas story is one of unbelief to belief and the things that stand in the way. The biggest of them I think is simply shame. The sermon goes into that in the 2nd half. The first half is the commissioning of the disciples. We believe, how then do we live? Jesus gives some directions here. The first half of the sermon looks at what it means to be sent as Christ was sent and the role of the Holy Spirit.

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Quasimodogeniti

Did anybody read the Hunchback of Notre Dame? See the cartoon? Does anybody remember what his name was? Hint: It wasn’t “Hey, hunchback.” Insert Jeopardy theme….

Ok, we are back. What was your answer? The right answer is Quasimodo. Which is a strange name. Anybody care to hazard a guess where that came from?

Every Sunday of the church year has what are called propers. They include the introit which is the entrance hymn/chant, the prayer of the day, the appointed readings and a few other things. If you were doing a choir led mass, the propers are all the parts that the choir and minister would probably chant. The congregation itself would probably be relatively non-participatory, the high church version of the worship band. The Lutheran Reformation gave to the congregation the role of the choir. With angels, and archangels and all the host of heaven, we laud and magnify the name. But the important proper of the day for this pastor’s corner is the introit.

The same way that people used to sign letters “On the Feast Day of St. X” or something like that to date correspondence, the weeks were actually known by their introits. Specifically the first word of the introit, in Latin because that is what the church used and many propers even after the reformation would remain in Latin for a long time. If you have an old copy of The Lutheran Hymnal (TLH) published in 1941 lying around, you can see that those old names are still on the church calendar for many weeks – the weeks after Transfiguration, the weeks of Lent, the weeks of Easter. Easter 2 was known as Quasimodogeniti. Quasimodo the hunchback was born on this Sunday and given the name from the Introit.

When the propers went to a three year cycle many of those old names were broken. They had already been strained when everything went into the vernacular as long time ago. But the Introits are meant to carry a theme for the service and the week, which they do very well in the Sundays after Easter. Quasimodogeniti is Latin for “as newborn infants.” As newborn infants, long for the pure spiritual milk, that by it you may grow into salvation, if indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Easter 2 in the church year is a day of infancy on the faith. Thomas hasn’t seen, so he won’t believe, until he places his fingers in the holes in the hands. We start reading from the Epistle of First Peter which tells us that we have come into our inheritance in the resurrection. “He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ.” And as such infants, “long for the pure spiritual milk.”

What is that pure Spiritual Milk? The Introit’s answers are: “Give thanks to the Lord, call upon his name, make know his deeds among the peoples, sing praises to him.” Thanksgiving, prayer, proclamation and adoration. What are the things that allow us to grow up into that full inheritance of the resurrection? Hearing the word proclaimed and believing it. Returning in proper thanks for all the Christ has done for us. Trusting in the Lord in prayer. “Seek the Lord and his strength, seek his presence continually.” Never forgetting the proper adoration due to God Almighty. “Glory in His Holy Name!” These are the things of pure spiritual milk that you might grow up to salvation.

And unlike our physical selves who outgrow milk, the Kingdom of God is a land flowing with milk and honey. Every Sunday one can return to that pure spiritual milk: the word, thanksgiving, prayer, and adoration. If indeed you have tasted that the Lord is good.

Link to the Propers for Easter 2

A Simple Story

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Biblical Text: Matthew 28:1-10

I love the Easter story in Matthew. It is just such a living memory. Not that the other Gospel aren’t, but as this sermon starts out, the meaning you attach to a story changes, deepens, layers, over time. The resurrection in Matthew is such an early memory. The meanings haven’t really started to accrue. It’s just bragging, let me tell you what happened. That’s what this sermon attempts to do. Tell the story. Invite you to the meaning slowly.

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To Ask the Question (Good Friday)

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Good Friday service as I typically do it is a full reading of the passion story from the Gospel of the Year by the members of the congregation. It is broken up into seven segments or scenes. Each scene gets a meditation. After which a candle is doused. So, the recording hasn’t been edited. It includes the hymns sung. It’s a service that never fails to move me.

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Covenants Require Blood (Maundy Thursday)

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Biblical Texts: Exodus 24:3-11, Hebrews 9:11-22, Matthew 26:17-30

Maundy Thursday is the night where Christ gave his disciples the meal we celebrate as the Lord’s Supper. It is also the night that he washed his disciples feet and gave them a new command. That new command was to love one another and is where the Maundy comes from, the latin Mandatum (think mandate.) There are other Christian traditions that focus on those latter two, but I’ve always titled to the sacrament. In the full service I pull out the full versions of some elements that get compressed or skipped in a regular service. We do a confessional address and a long form of confession and absolution. It is a full examination of ourselves before we receive. We “pass the peace” which is not just some hippy leftover (although it is usually that), it stands at the place where Jesus would say if you have something against your brother leave your sacrifice and go make peace with him. Then come back. We make peace with our brothers and sisters before receiving. And at the end of the liturgy we strip the altar and it is left there cold and bare in an empty upper room. So what you have recorded here is the readings and the sermon, but it is one of those nights where the liturgy carries more of the story. That isn’t to say the work is not put in or that the preaching is unimportant. It is. It is just to say that Holy Week services are something different. Something you can’t even begin to capture digitally.

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Resurrection Life (Pastor’s Corner for Easter Sunday)

A Happy Easter to Everyone.

One of the things that Luther found helpful in his spiritual life was a work he thought was written by Tauler, the Theologia Germanica. It’s a work of medieval mysticism. You might consider it something like “The Imitation of Christ” by Thomas a Kempis. Or even later maybe the “Spiritual Exercises” by Ignatius Loyola. Calvin, being the strictly logical lawyer, rejected it completely. The more radical reformation picked it up and much mischief was done. Those two facts are probably what fed Protestantism’s allergy to even slight mysticism. Of course since it was a Luther favorite, it was eventually banned by the Catholic church in 1612. Although they removed the ban in the 20^th century.

I bring that up for two reasons. First, I know that I wouldn’t bring up mysticism inflected things into the pulpit, so in a week that I need three sermons it is safe to use for this article. Second, I do think that a bit of mysticism is healthy for the soul. One of my sources of this is the sayings of the desert fathers. These sayings and honestly their entire lives are just so radically different than ours trying to ponder what they say puts me way out of my comfort zone.

On Easter, pondering the resurrection, I wanted to share a story that strangely enough is repeated in the collection of sayings. The first one by Macarius the Great. He was a monk around 390 AD. The entire movement was inspired just a bit earlier by Anthony the Great. Many men and women born to great families and wealth would give it all up to live in the Egyptian desert. Macarius’ story is of meeting a distraught widow. Her husband had taken a deposit of money on trust and hidden it. But he had died and not disclosed to her where it was. Their children would have been taken in slavery if she could not produce it. Macarius asks where the man was buried and tells her to go home. He proceeds to the tomb and asks the corpse, “Where is it hidden?” The corpse replied. Macarius then tells the man to return to resting until the final resurrection. He tells the widow where it is, and she frees her children.

The second version is about Abba Spyridon. A young girl had been entrusted with a valuable ornament that she hid. But she too died soon after without telling anyone where it was. The depositor came asking for it and pressed the girl’s father. Abba Spyridon went to the girl’s tomb and asked God, “show me, before the time, the resurrection promised her.” His hope was not disappointed as she appeared alive to her father and named the place.

What do I say about these? Well, that is part of what mysticism is about, I don’t exactly know. And it is probably different for you anyway. But this is what I would say. We live in time and are worried about many things. Like where our treasure is buried. The truth is that our treasure is buried with Christ. And Christ is risen. Nothing that we think is lost is truly gone. It is with Christ. Whatever we entrust to him we have for eternity. And that is an eternity that starts today. Do we all have resurrection appearances to us? No. And in our skeptical age I’m not sure we’d see even if we did. But the desert Fathers were open to such things. We are all one in Christ. And Christ is not dead, but lives. He lives to make us free.

The Trial of Pontius Pilate

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Biblical Text: Matthew 27:11-26

Capturing this sermon in a simple paragraph is hard. The driving question is why would the Christians remember Pontius Pilate in the creed? And it is a question that has some maybe surprising contemporary impact. It has been one of those weeks where I feel that years have passed. This sermon directly addresses some of those things, because with Pilate as the source, they are appropriate.

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The Path of Evil

There are six things that the LORD hates,

seven that are an abomination to him:

haughty eyes, a lying tongue,

and hands that shed innocent blood,

a heart that devises wicked plans,

feet that make haste to run to evil,

a false witness who breathes out lies,

and one who sows discord among brothers.

– Proverbs 6:16-19

Proverbs as a book is part of the wisdom literature. The Hebrews have a three-fold segmentation of the Old Testament: the Torah, the Prophets and the Writings. The Torah is the first five books of Moses. The prophets are the history books and the individual prophetic books prior to the exile. The writings are the Psalms, the wisdom literature and any book that came during or after the exile. Part of the purpose of the division is a statement on the authoritativeness of the work. The Torah or the law was deadly serious. Think the 10 commandments carved in stone by the finger of God himself. The prophets are authoritative, but they are also influenced by their specific situation. The writings are even more free. It is all the word of God, but the Spiritual Insight to directly apply something from Proverbs is much higher than from the Law. Christians have often followed something similar in the New Testament. Everybody accepts the binding nature of the Gospels, Paul’s Major Letters and 1 Peter, 1 John, and James on the Christian life. Likewise the Pastorals and 2 Peter, 2-3 John are solid counsel. But as much as Revelation fascinates us, you don’t base any dogma of the church on that apocalyptic work alone. Saying the scriptures are readable by the common man, is not also saying that every reading is appropriate or that there aren’t better and worse readers of the Scriptures.

I saw someone quote the above in an interesting way. They essentially asked: how does Satan work in this world? There are certainly ways that Satan works against individuals, but Lewis’ Screwtape is interesting in this. Individuals are left to minor tempters like Wormtongue or Screwtape himself. The demonic hierarchy is focused on longer term projects. They are always attempting to build the Tower of Babel. So how is that done? According to this interpreter here is the devil’s playbook in this world.

It starts with “haughty eyes.” The old King James translators said “a proud look.” It is something of an idiom in the original that we don’t really have an analog for. Or maybe we do, but it’s rather crude. Someone whose “farts don’t smell.” If you had an Alexa around an 8 year old you know that “Alexa, make a fart noise” was one of their favorite things. Likewise the movie Minions gave them “the fart gun.” Scatological humor is something that kids get, because they aren’t worried about pride. They know we are ridiculous creatures made of dust. Satan’s first act is to get us to think much more of ourselves than those giggling kids. To enter the Kingdom is to be like a child.

Lying and pride go hand in hand. We lie to protect our own picture of ourselves. We might even go so far as to kill someone to protect the lie. Imagine an entire nation engaged in pride, and a lie that leads to bloodshed of the innocent.

The progression of evil is from the heart that devises wicked plans to those who run to carry them out. It starts with a single heart that despises the order of God. It ends with partisans and armies hastening to build concentration camps and gulags and security states. The modern Towers of Babel.

But we aren’t stupid. How do we get led down such paths? The bold lies. The false witnesses. The big lies. Whose purpose is to sow discord among brothers. Those who should feel the bonds of fraternity and fellowship are set against each other.

There are six things the LORD hates, seven that are an abomination. It’s from the book of Proverbs. It is not the gospel that assures of our eternal salvation in Christ. It is wisdom for living this life. It is the Word that might help us find the “you are here” marker. You know a tree by its fruit. Is it producing innocent blood, evil works and discord?

Do I Still Have Flesh?

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Text: Chirstian Questions and Their Answers 19-20

This is the conclusion of the six week Lenten Mid-Week series. The self-examination ends with a couple of practical questions. For the believers it ends with both a reminder of why we desire the sacrament and the encouragement to seek it frequently. The final question is more perplexing in that it addresses the situation where maybe the prior 19 have fallen on deaf ears. What if I don’t feel the need? The answer is something has captured your soul. This is your chance to free it.

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