In today’s Gospel text, Jesus teaches us to address the Father as our Father. Even as He has taught us to begin the Lord’s Prayer this way: “Our Father who art in heaven.” What does this mean? With these words, God tenderly invites us to believe that He is our true Father and that we are His true children, so that with all boldness and confidence we may ask Him as dear children ask their dear father.

A child speaks boldly to his or her father when they say that they are hungry. The child cries out boldly when they are in trouble, expecting their father and mother to help him. Even before they are able to speak, they boldly ask for what they need, and they confidently expect their parents to know exactly what they are asking for, even though their parents can’t make out what they want through the mumbling baby-talk gibberish. Yet, this confidence of a child is the model given to us on how we should pray.

We should pray to God with such boldness and confidence. But how can we pray to God with such boldness? It is because God speaks to us in His Word…in boldness. He promises to hear us with boldness. In His Word, and in the Word made flesh, Jesus Christ, He tells us with clarity and plainness what He has done for us and that He loves us. Our prayers therefore rest upon this clear promise of our Father in heaven that He will hear us and give to us all good things for the sake of Jesus Christ.

Jesus told His disciples that He was going to speak to them plainly about the Father. First, it means that they would be able to pray directly to the Father in Jesus’ name. He then clarifies, just so they understand, that this means that they themselves will be talking to God the Father when they pray. They will be addressing the Father, asking Him for anything they need, confident that He will hear them for the sake of His Son.

Why will the Father hear them? Why does He hear your prayers? Simple. It’s because He Himself loves them and you. They love Jesus. Christians believe that Jesus is the only begotten Son of the Father. Therefore, they can know that the Father loves them. As Jesus had already told them, “Whoever receives me receives the One who sent me.” If you believe in Jesus, trusting in Him, loving and embracing His words of life, then you have the very testimony within that faith that God the Father, who sent His Son to die for you, hears your prayers.

Jesus then plainly explained that He came from God, He has come into the world, and He would be departing the world to return to God. Jesus is the eternally begotten Son of the Father, true God in the flesh. He has come to earth in order to bear the sins of all mankind. He has come in obedience to God, an obedience we all fail to meet up to. He was obedient in our place. He died for our sins. He was raised from the dead, because death could not hold Him. He returned to the Father, demonstrating that he is one God with the Father. He sits at the right hand of the Father with sin, death, and all powers under His feet. He intercedes for us in the glory of the Father. As surely as He is risen from the dead, as surely as His Word is true, it is just as sure that our prayers are heard by God.

Therefore, Jesus promises, “Most assuredly, I say to you, whatever you ask the Father in My name He will give you.” Ask anything, Jesus says. Whatever you ask the Father in His name, He will give you. Jesus teaches us this in the Lord’s Prayer. There is nothing you can pray for that is not promised in the Lord’s Prayer. He promises you daily bread, everything for the support of your earthly life. He promises to forgive you your sins, even as He calls you to forgive those who sin against you. He even promises to lead you out of any temptation to sin. He promises to protect you from all evil and guard and defend you from all danger. He teaches you to say Amen, which means, “Truly, truly, I believe it!” He teaches you, in other words, to be confident and bold, convinced that God will answer you.

Yet, from our eyes, it doesn’t seem to happen. It certainly doesn’t happen all at once. But Jesus still teaches us to pray. Ask, and it will be given to you. Knock, and the door will be opened. Seek, and you will find. Don’t stop asking, knocking, and seeking. He doesn’t promise that it will happen all at once. But He does promise this. He promises that your joy will be complete. As surely as Jesus cried out from the cross, “It is finished,” He assures you that when you pray to the Father in His name your joy will be complete. This is because the peace by which your conscience is at rest is already complete in the wounds of Jesus. Your righteousness is already complete in the resurrection of Jesus.

When you pray, you are simply relying on His promise. You are resting on His boldness to take your sins on Himself and to promise you the resurrection of your body and the life everlasting. St. Paul says: All things are made holy by the Word of God and prayer.” It is the Word of God, which cannot be separated from prayer. The Word creates faith in your heart. Faith cries out in true hope to God, resting on the very Word which created it in the first place.

The word Jesus uses for plainly can also be translated as boldly. He spoke plainly/boldly about the Father. He boldly proclaimed the truth even at His death. And it is upon this bold truth that your prayers rest in true boldness.

It was because of Christ’s boldness that His disciples became bold. They said, “See, now You are speaking plainly, and using no figure of speech! Now we are sure that You know all things, and have no need that anyone should question You. By this we believe that You came forth from God.” This is what the boldness of God’s Word does. It gives us boldness to confess. And this is what happens when you confess the Word of God with boldness. It emboldens your fellow Christians to speak with the same boldness, to pray with confidence, and to have confidence that God hears, with the assurance that He will answer in His own time in the way that is best.

When you must confess the Word in the midst of afflictions or persecutions we need His boldness. It’s a hard thing to confess the truth when people are speaking against it. In fact, it’s impossible to do with your own reason and strength. Many times you and I fail, but we repent and are restored and forgiven for the sake of Jesus Christ. The Holy Spirit, working through the Word of God, emboldens you again to confess it. When you confess the truth in the face of hostility, then this emboldens your fellow Christians to do the same. Listen to what St. Paul said to the Philippians. After writing about the suffering he had to go through because of his preaching of the gospel, he wrote:
“But I want you to know, brethren, that the things which happened to me have actually turned out for the furtherance of the gospel, so that it has become evident to the whole palace guard, and to all the rest, that my chains are in Christ; and most of the brethren in the Lord, having become confident by my chains, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.” (Phil 1:12-13)

When you stand up to your friends, your family, your children, and your grandchildren, telling them that sex outside of marriage between a man and woman, abortion, disrespecting God and despising His Word are sins, when you confess Christ as the only truth and His Word as the only source of truth, then most people, even your family members and closest friends, might deem you to be out of your mind, unreasonable, and mean. When you tell your friends that there is nothing more important for them than that they also know Christ, His baptism, His death, His resurrection, and His righteousness, then they might look at you as a crazy religious nut. Don’t be discouraged. You are confessing the Word of God and it will not return to Him empty.

And pray. Let your requests be made known to God. Let your petitions rest upon the sure promises of Him who called you out of darkness. Yes, remember that God’s Word never returns empty. The faithful hear it. They are encouraged by it. They are emboldened by it. They are moved by it to confess it with you and to call upon God for all they need. God is pleased by such boldness.

So, also, at the Sacrament of the Altar we boldly confess the truth of Jesus Christ crucified and raised and all His teachings besides. Here we encourage one another as Christ comes and encourages and strengthens us with His sacrificial body and blood for us to eat, drink, be forgiven and give thanks.

As boldly as God speaks to you through His Scriptures and His sacraments, just as boldly does He hear your prayers. So, pray with this same boldness. Even when you feel unworthy, even when you find that you have been influenced by the world, stumbled into sin, fallen away from attending church as you should, remember that God’s Word is a promise. It is a sure promise. It is a bold promise. Rest on this Word of promise in Christ. Call upon God in the day of trouble. He will deliver you, and you will glorify Him now and for always, for the sake of and in the name of Jesus Christ. Amen.

Pr. Aaron Kangas

Last week we heard Jesus talk about what would happen in a little while. But while Christians are waiting that little while for Jesus to come back in all His glory what is going to happen in the meantime? Well today, Jesus told His disciples, and also the Church, that He would send His spirit, the Holy Spirit. But when Jesus described the work of the Holy Spirit, He did not refer to His work in the exact same way as we confess in the creeds. Or does He? In the Gospel lesson, He doesn’t speak of the Holy Spirit calling, gathering, enlightening, or sanctifying. Jesus said that He’s going to send the Holy Spirit to “convict” people in the Truth.

 Convict: That’s a harsh word to our ears. We usually think of “convict” like when a person is convicted of a crime in a court of law, and that person is then a “convict”. When we say that “we are convicted”, we usually mean that we admit our guilt.

What is Jesus saying here? The word that Jesus uses here (in the original Greek) is elegxo, which we translate as “convict”. A better translation would be “convince.” So, the Holy Spirit’s job (as sent by Jesus) is to “convince”? Convince of what? Jesus answers that question. He says that the Holy Spirit will elegxo (convince/convict) people in the Truth. His job is to convince/convict in the truth of sin, righteousness, and judgment.

It is important to understand that all of this convincing/convicting finds its source in the cross of Christ. The crucified Christ is the origination and destination of this holy conviction. It either moves one to faith or rejection of God’s gift. The cross is the central destination and purpose of Jesus. John makes this clear in his Gospel. Christ is anointed with/receives the Holy Spirit in baptism. Three years later, Jesus is telling His apostles here (at the Last Supper) that He will send His Spirit of Truth so they [the disciples] can understand. They can’t understand what’s about to happen.  But…Jesus will send His Holy Spirit of Truth later on, and then they will understand. Three chapters later (John 19), and Jesus is hanging on the bloody cross, mere moments away from breathing His last. John tells us that Jesus, knowing that all of the Father’s plan for salvation was now complete, each and every sin atoned for; the full wrath of the Father against sin for all time paid for in full, declares victoriously, “It is finished!” He then gives up the Spirit. So often this is simply translated/understood as Jesus “gave up the ghost.” That is, He merely breathed out His last breath. End of story. But…the way the Greek reads is that Jesus gives up and sends out/breathes out “the Spirit.”

I want you to think about that, because this is important. The Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Truth—proceeds forth from Christ at the moment of His death on the cross; at that singular moment of our eternal, vicarious satisfaction, of reconciliation between God and mankind. Divine Truth—the Spirit of God’s condemning, life-giving Truth—flows forth from and finds its source at the cross of Jesus Christ. This is the central point of all Holy Scripture, of all time and history: Law and Gospel in one moment!

Three days later the resurrected Jesus, who had completely conquered sin, death, and the devil for all time—stood among these same apostles and breathes on them as we heard a couple weeks ago. “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of anyone, they are forgiven. If you withhold forgiveness, it is withheld.” Notice again that this specific giving of the Holy Spirit—the Spirit of Christ’s Truth—is all about forgiveness of sin flowing from the crucified/resurrected Christ. There is forgiveness of sin nowhere else! 

Now…did these men fully understand all this? Not immediately. They wouldn’t (and didn’t) understand the necessity of the brutal death of Jesus. They didn’t understand the necessity of the cross. Or the resurrection for that matter. When they encountered the resurrected Christ, they were in disbelief. They were joyous—yes—but St. Luke tells us that they “disbelieved for joy.” Even atop that ascension mount, they still didn’t fully comprehend.

When Jesus was about to ascend, they were still thinking in terms of “worldly kingdom” and “earthly rule and power”. They asked, “Lord, are you now going to restore the kingdom of Israel?” So, like humans who only see the here and now. Only the Holy Spirit could bring about a faithful understanding… Pentecost is when they FINALLY understood and believed (through the working of the Holy Spirit). 

Why did God send His only-begotten Son? To take our place and die for our sins; to do what we cannot do; to save us from our justly-deserved wage for sin: death and judgement. This is where the work of “convincing/convicting” is focused: On the cross of Christ. All have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and our sin is so great that God Himself had to die for it. We cannot save ourselves, no matter how hard we try. We cannot understand this by our flesh and blood, therefore we need the Holy Spirit to convince us and give us saving faith in the knowledge that we need a Savior: this Savior, Jesus Christ. Faith believes this truth, despite what the devil, the world, and our sinful flesh tell us. Faith also looks to this same cross and rejoices because faith (wrought by the Holy Spirit) believes Christ when He victoriously declares, “It is finished!” this all-redeeming righteousness is won for them. 

Look at this [the crucifix]. To earthly eyes, this crucifix doesn’t look like victory, does it? But saving faith (brought forth by the Holy Spirit) is convinced of this singular all-redeeming Truth. A firm conviction that this is for you: for me. Saving faith is convicted and convinced of its sin and need for salvation, and here it sees the answer to that sin: Christ’s righteousness. It is finished. Because of this [the crucifix] we are redeemed, once and for all time. The faithful one has a firm conviction of their sin and judgment, yet, a believer does not fear or doubt or worry whether they’re good enough. Baptized into Christ’s all-redeeming death and resurrection; holding fast in faith to this all-atoning death and resurrection, the believer stands firm in the sure and certain conviction that God has already judged them “innocent,” as righteous in God’s eyes: Justified…not because of who they are or what they’ve done, but solely because of who Jesus is and what He has done for them in their place.

Then by the Holy spirit we see the cross as a place of hope and joy. Our sins upon the body of Jesus crucified. Then we are moved by the Holy Spirit in joy and gratitude to live and move by the Spirit of Truth to produce His fruits. We see the fruits of this Holy Spirit produced in our midst, in our brothers and sisters in Christ and in us from baptism to funeral and everything in between. In baptism, we see the faithful parents, convinced of what our Lord says regarding “all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God” and “the wage of sin is death,” faithfully bring their little child dead in sin to the life-giving Good Physician so that He can breathe His Holy Spirit into that precious little one and give them the gift of eternal life. We see this in the funeral, as the baptized child of God who has fallen asleep in the faith is brought before the altar and we remember that person’s baptism when they were covered by the white pall of Christ’s all-availing righteousness and how they lived in that faith by that Spirit and now have been received into His everlasting presence. Even as we grieve the death of our departed loved one, we grieve differently. We don’t grieve like those who have no hope. We grieve in the joyous hope and firm conviction of blessed reunion before the heavenly throne of God; reunion with them, and more importantly, reunion with Christ in all glory and peace.

We see the work of the Holy Spirit during the “little whiles” of this life as we are moved to repent, to receive absolution, to be brought here to study and hear God’s Word and be built up together by God’s Word which has its power and completion in Jesus Crucified in victory over sin, death, and the devil. Here He comes to you with His body and blood in the bread and the wine, so that you are encouraged as His Spirit works though it so you may confess His truth, in thought, word, and deed. You have been baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection! This is a peace that surpasses all understanding; a peace that can only be known and understood in the conviction of Spirit-born faith.

No matter what befalls you on this side of eternity; no matter what crosses you bear as you make your way through this shadowy valley we refer to as “life,” you are completely covered over in Christ’s perfect righteousness. Live by that faith, live in that faith as God continues to send you His Spirit to encourage and strengthen you by His Word and sacraments, through faithful pastors, brothers, and sisters. Though you may not always understand everything, by His Spirit, you may trust and be convinced, and be saved and have hope and peace.

Look to Him, to Jesus Christ where your sins are placed. Be humbly convicted and convinced of God’s love and His desire for your salvation now and always in Jesus Christ. Amen.

Pr. Aaron Kangas

Today, Jesus teaches us how to wait for the coming of His final kingdom. He says, “A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while and you will see me.” At this time, Jesus was going to be taken away from his disciples, condemned, crucified, and buried. But on the third day He would rise from the dead, and they would see Him again. A little while they would not see Him, and again a little while they would see Him. His death and resurrection remain the very foundation for the Christian life. We continue to live by this teaching of Jesus: His teaching of “a little while”. Our life on this earth is only a little while. To God the span of our life is like a breath. But our true and everlasting life is hidden in Him with our crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ. We don’t live for ourselves. Instead, we live for Him who died and rose as we look forward to His glorious return.

The death and resurrection of Jesus are the foundation for our life as Christians. Since we have been baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection, it follows that our entire life here on earth is one of dying and rising. Repenting of our sins with faith in God’s promise, the old sinful nature in us is crucified every day and our new man comes forth, alive in Christ Jesus. This is a daily dying and rising.

This “dying and rising” shapes the way we see life here on earth. It shapes the way we see our earthly duties. In our stations in life. Your job as a father or a mother is only for a little while. Your children are a gift of God, whom he entrusts to you for a little while. Any kind of authority you carry out in this life is for a little while. Any kind of authority you submit to in this life is for a little while. Any afflictions you must bear, any temptations you must fight against, any sadness or happiness, honor or praise, enjoyment or disappointment – this is all for a little while. You look to something much greater. You look to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come. He is coming soon.

Any duty you carry out in this life is a duty you know will only last for a little while. Of course, this doesn’t mean that your work is unimportant. No, in fact, this means that it is much more precious and meaningful than you could know. When you raise your children, you are not just feeding them, clothing them, and helping them to succeed in this life. Much more, you are commending them to Him who died and rose to give them life. You are teaching them that nothing lasts forever except for the Word of their Savior. And when they are going through temptations, when they are being bullied, when they are suffering from a guilty conscience or a heavy sickness, you teach them that these things are only for a little while. You teach them to bear these pains for Christ’s sake, looking eagerly for His return.

When you put in your hours are work, you learn from Jesus that when He returns all the works of this world will burn up. But again, this doesn’t take value away from your work. Jesus isn’t teaching you that you shouldn’t even try because it’s going to break anyway. No, Jesus is teaching you to value the work he has given you while it is day before the night comes when no one can work. And He is teaching you that the value of your work is not in how long you can make it last. The value isn’t found in how much bacon it puts on the table. Instead, the value of your work is found in love for God and your neighbor. Such love flows from faith and a good conscience. God is pleased with your work because it is done by faith in Christ.

Even if you were to spend hours a day working on a building project, making sure that everything is sustainable and up to standard. The day after the construction is finished, Jesus returns. No one will live or work in your building. Was your labor in vain? To the world, this would seem to be the case. But a Christian doesn’t see it this way. A Christian knows the whole time that his labors are for a little while to His glory regardless of the labor’s outcome.

When the children of Israel were traveling through the wilderness God had them set up the tabernacle. It was a huge project involving many workers. When God’s glory cloud moved, they would tear down the tabernacle and follow God’s glory until it rested in another location. Then they would build up the tabernacle again. Sometimes the tabernacle would stand for many days. Sometimes it would stand only a few days. But every time the glory of God moved, they would tear it down again, and when the glory of God rested they would build it up again. This is how God was teaching them to wait for his Salvation. It is through dying and rising, tearing down and building up, being humbled and being exalted. And so are we.

God gives you your work to do in this life, because he loves you. He wants you to serve your neighbor and the living God. And as much as He Himself has prepared these works for you to walk in, He also teaches you through these works that you cannot rely on them. Things break. Dreams shatter. Goals are often not met. Your body fails. Your kids get sick. Your sins get the better of you. These are all things you learn while you work. God is teaching you to die to yourself and to find your life in Christ. When He returns He will prove that your works done in faith were not in vain. As Isaiah says in chapter 65, you will build houses and live in them; you will plant vineyards and enjoy their fruit (Is 65:21). St. Paul gives these encouraging words in 1 Corinthians: “Be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labors are not in vain. (1 Cor 15:58)”

In today’s epistle, St. Peter tells us to be subject, for the Lord’s sake, to every human authority. He tells us to honor everyone. Honor everyone in the station God has given him. Honor the emperor, the policeman, your employer, your teacher, your father and mother. This honor comes from knowing that all authority is given by God. Notice that Peter does not tell us to fear the earthly rulers. No, we are only to fear God. God has the authority to kill and make alive. He has the authority to condemn or free the soul, not just the body. He has given honor to various human authorities to serve a purpose for a little while here on earth. But only for a little while. So, honor them. Pay your taxes. If you vote, think about protecting your neighbor. Think about the unborn and the dignity of marriage and the family. Think about the poor and your neighbor’s livelihood. They will always be with you in the little while of this life. Your true inheritance is not in this world. So whatever duty God has given you, do it in fear and faith toward Him, trusting that He will preserve you in the faith until you die.

And love your fellow believers. Peter literally says, “Love the brotherhood.” This is what the church is. It’s a brotherhood, brothers and sisters bearing one another’s burdens, forgiving each other, covering up a multitude of sins. This is the life of the Christian church as we receive forgiveness, life, and salvation from the Lord Jesus himself. Such love, which flows from faith and a good conscience, is not only for a little while. To love your fellow Christians, to share with them the compassion your Lord has shown you, will last forever. This isn’t because of how valuable or enduring your work is. It is because it flows from faith in the crucified and risen Lord Jesus Christ. Your best efforts will ultimately fail. But the love, which God has poured into your heart, which compels you to serve your neighbor, will prove on the last day that your faith in Jesus was true and genuine.

The world doesn’t mourn over what Christians mourn over. Jesus tells his disciples that when they weep and lament the world will rejoice. While the disciples were weeping over their Lord, the Roman soldiers tortured and mocked him, and the Jewish leaders accused and taunted him. Christians are sad when God’s Word is denied and attacked. Christians mourn when love for Jesus from His sheep grows cold. The world can’t mourn over these things. The world will mourn over natural disasters, death, injustices, and other outward evils. But this is not a sadness that leads to repentance and life. Instead of seeking comfort and joy in the eternal Lord, they seek it in things that last for only a little while. They rejoice over the election of a new politician, the passage of a new law, the victory of their preferred party, or the rise of a new hero. And while we should certainly thank God when he gives us just and competent leaders, we know that these are only for a little while.

It doesn’t always seem like a “little while”. The pain a mother goes through when she’s giving birth seems like it will never end. The battle against your sinful desires, which wage war against your soul, rages on in this life. Your sadness over death or your pains of body and soul make your time slow. But Jesus calls it only a little while. It is by faith in Christ who has conquered death that you can call your afflictions light and momentary. As a new mother forgets her pain for the joy of her newborn child, the joy of the gospel overwhelms the sadness of this life.

Jesus says that no one can take this joy from you. It is joy in knowing that your Savior is risen from the dead and that you will see him face to face. And it is the joy in knowing that whatever work you have to do in this life was given to you by God. So even if it seems to be in vain, it can’t be. God gave it to you. He counts every tear. He hears every prayer in Jesus’ name.

We do our duties while it is day. And sometimes the darkness comes before we expect it. But whether our life span is a “long” day or a “short” day, we are always blessed when we look to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come which will be forever in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.

Pr. Aaron Kangas

This Sunday in Easter is oftentimes called “Good Shepherd Sunday”. Therefore, today we sang Psalm 23 and a portion of John 10, along with the Shepherd references in the Old Testament and Epistle readings. John 10 and the 23rd Psalm contain passages that many consider their favorite. Our readings used that beautiful imagery of Jesus and God as the Good Shepherd who searches for and guides the sheep, meaning members of the church, His flock. We often use these texts to comfort ourselves when we are suffering, hurting, near death, and at funerals. Many of you I am sure even have the 23rd Psalm committed to memory. If you do, that is wonderful; if you don’t have it memorized, it might be helpful to do so. Why would it be helpful? Because when the time comes that you will be in need, you may not have access to a Bible. It will then be good to have this psalm with you in your memory to comfort you, to remember that the Lord is your Good Shepherd whom we need especially during difficult times.

Very often we have thought of shepherds during Bible times as these peaceful, caring, good, hard working types. Perhaps at Christmas Eve we might hear in a sermon that shepherds were smelly and were considered by the rest of society as being rather low in social status, but in many ways, it was actually worse. In fact, shepherds actually had a nasty reputation as being untrustworthy. In a Rabbinical list of thieving and cheating occupations, we find “shepherd” to be included. A Jewish Midrash/sermon on Psalm 23, the good shepherd psalm, comments: “No position is so despised as that of shepherd.”

Often, when the hired shepherds (the hirelings) would be sent to sell sheep to interested buyers, they would return to their master and tell them that some of the sheep had died, therefore the sale was less than expected but what they had really done was pocket the extra money. Since the hired shepherds had no real stake in the flock, if a wild predator would come and seize one of the sheep, that hired shepherd would not risk his life to save the sheep from the jaws of death.

These hired hands, these unfaithful traveling shepherds, remind us all too well of the world and its trickery, cruelty, and self-interest. By the way, the word: “Pastor” means “Shepherd”. Perhaps you have been the victim of such wily and worldly unfaithful religious “shepherds” who have seized every opportunity to take advantage of you or who have not been faithful in protecting your spiritual needs, but only look for popularity and prosperity for themselves from the backs of the sheep.

Sadly, this is the state of the world. There are many people, in business, politics, education, or even in “so called religious professions”, in any position of trust, who do not fulfill their obligation to be faithful. Many who are in the position where they are called upon to protect, yet, instead of protecting the weak, take advantage of and abuse the weak, and when trouble comes, they seek only to protect themselves.

But let us be honest here, though we can think of examples of those pastors or people who have taken advantage of us, let us not forget how often have we taken advantage of others. How often have we pushed our advantage over others to get our way? How often have we lapsed in our faithfulness to do our duty as an employee or employer, as a citizen, as a student, as a parent, as a child, as a member of the church: a pastor or as a lay person?

There are all these problems in the world because there is something wrong with each human: an illness, a disease which is the source of all sorrow, all sickness, all betrayal, all selfishness, greed, lust, laziness, gossip, narcissism, abuse, and danger. This condition which all humanity shares is, of course, sin. It is a condition which we have inherited from our fathers and mothers. Sin is a rebellion against God. Yet God is a good shepherd, the best. He is the one who created each and every one of us and each and every person in this world and loves them. Yet all we like sheep have gone astray each one to his or her own way. That selfish way that we have pursued is a way of death, of destruction, of faithlessness and pain. We feel this pain in our weak bodies, in our broken relationships, in our fears and doubts, in our toil and failures, and in the pain we have given to others when we have taken advantage of them and when others have taken advantage of us. It is our adversary, the devil, who takes advantage of this rebellion and the resulted vulnerability to consume whomever he can, to bring them not only death, fear, and misery here on earth, but to an eternal destruction.

But, our Lord is indeed a good shepherd, a shepherd: faithful, loving, caring, and self-sacrificing. Jesus the Christ is the fulfillment of Psalm 23. Jesus said that He is the good shepherd, but Jesus did not claim this as a means to take advantage, but because He is. It is to our advantage that He is the Faithful and Good Shepherd. He took this job, this responsibility of loving care seriously, yes, all the way to the cross.

The Good Shepherd, the Word of God made flesh, came down from heaven and used His sinless incarnate body as the tool of salvation. Jesus, the Son of God, humbled Himself to be born among the sheep, to become as a sheep, Himself. To seek and to save His sheep by being the perfect sheep that the sheep could not be. He came to be the Good Shepherd who actually lays down His life so that the sheep who loved to roam and rebel would be redeemed and rescued from the wild beasts of the devil, the world, and their own flesh. He became sin for His sheep, He took the punishment for sin so the sheep would not have to receive an eternal punishment for their sin. Jesus the Good Shepherd laid down His life, destroying the choke hold of sin upon the sheep. Jesus contended with Satan in His crucifixion and by it defeated the devil’s power to accuse people of their sin. At the same time that He did this in His death, He also destroyed the final enemy which is death itself. Death could not defeat the perfect sacrifice which took away the power of death which that disease of sin. Therefore, Jesus was raised triumphant over death. The Good Shepherd has redeemed His sheep!

The image of the Good Shepherd is powerful. He overcomes the enemies which would destroy us, having sought us, and then gathers us into the sheepfold of the Church. There we behold Him crucified upon the cross, we hear His Voice by His Word and in His powerful absolution and see Him feed us in His body and blood given for us for the forgiveness of sin. His heroic actions for us testify by His Spirit that we sheep can trust Him: A truly loving and Faithful Shepherd. Yes, He will rebuke and exhort us when we do wrong, but for our good. He will forgive, He will pick the nettles out of our wool, bind up the wounds that we incurred by our own wanderings, forgive us, and then heal us, and make us right. Not just right, but righteous and holy in thought, word, and deed by His Holy Spirit. In the green pastures of His Word and sacrament He nurses you, me, and all His sheep back to health. He whispers assurances to us: that in Him and His cross, the devil and death cannot harm us any longer. In the daily battles that we have against sins, accusations, and our temptations He says, “stay by me, this is my battle, I am the answer for you.”

In the midst of suffering, we are tempted to ask, “Why has this happened?” Know that it is because of our sin. Instead of asking, “Where are you, God?” See Him sharing your suffering at the hands of the world, the devil, the flesh. Behold Him coming to you triumphant over your sin in His Word and Sacrament. He has won for you your final deliverance. Find comfort in His promise: ‘I will never leave you nor forsake you’ (Hebrews 13:5 and Deut. 31:6).

From Holy Baptism where we were first washed as His little lambs He leads us forth to the place of eternal rest in heaven. We follow Him who is the “Good Shepherd”, “the Great Pastor”, “the Faithful Overseer and Bishop” of our souls: He who has laid down His life for His sheep and took it up again so that you and I can have forgiveness of sins, and victory over sin, death, and the devil.

Jesus Christ makes all the hopes and promises of the beloved 23rd psalm come true throughout our lives. He shall always provide for us so that we have no true want. He allows us to be restored and refreshed in the green pastures and still waters given in this Divine Service of His Word and in His Holy Supper as we receive forgiveness of sins, life and salvation from His hand. When you are tempted to hear and listen to voices of unfaithful shepherds and the world, resist them. Listen faithfully and learn the voice of the One who has defeated your enemies and given you the victory so that you fear no evil even in the valley of death.

As He prepares a table for His sheep here, He anoints us with joy and mercy and heals us of our sin as we drink the overflowing cup of blessing in Jesus’ blood for the forgiveness of sins. We see that truly God’s mercy and goodness shall follow us as we dwell in the house of the Lord now on earth and forever in eternity. All this through Faith in our Faithful Good Shepherd Jesus Christ, Christ is Risen….Alleluia! Amen.

Pastor Aaron Kangas

The last 40 years have seen a great increase of persecution of Christianity in the middle East, Africa, Asia, Europe, Canada, even here in the United States. Although we see and hear the growing threat to Christians confessing the truths of Christianity here, we still have not experienced persecution to the point of having to deny Christ or be put to death. This kind of persecution is also on the rise around the world by Islamic terrorists, atheists, or corrupt governments.

How are they able to have such a strong and vibrant faith to confess their Lord and Savior even under the threat of extreme torture and death? Could you or I stand up to it? Might we or our children have to experience the ultimate persecution? The flesh is weak, but the power of God is greater.

Take the Apostle Thomas, as an example of God’s power overcoming weakness and unbelief. While the Bible doesn’t tell us much about what happened to Thomas after Pentecost, extra-Biblical histories indicate that Thomas did missionary work to the East.
In fact, historical artifacts place Thomas in the area of Mylapore, India at the time of his death. Thomas died when four soldiers pinned him to the ground with four spears. Before he died, he preached the Word and the Holy Spirit converted many through that Word, so that when the Portuguese arrived in the 15th century they were surprised to find a small Christian community that had survived and spoke of Thomas and even had biblical artwork in their churches. Though it was otherwise unknown by the rest of Christendom, it was not forgotten by the Lord and the power of His Word kept them in the faith during that time.

In spite of all the wonderful work God did through the Apostle Thomas, the world will always remember Thomas as Doubting Thomas. As we heard in today’s text, Thomas had missed the appearance of Jesus on that first Easter evening, and he refused to consider the eye witness account of his fellow disciples. 

“Doubting” is not the right word to describe Thomas. He actually said, “Unless I see in his hands the mark of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into his side, I will never believe.” Thomas did not say that he wasn’t sure. He said: “I will never believe.” Thomas did not merely doubt. He did not believe. 

But let us remember the state of all the followers of Jesus. Grief, fear, sadness, doubt and despair was all their food. Even when the two Marys and Joanna/Salome saw the empty tomb, heard the voice of the angel, and Mary Magdalene saw Jesus and reported these things to the disciples, “these words seemed to them an idle tale, and they did not believe them.” So, all the disciples were unbelievers lost in their grief and fear until Jesus revealed Himself to them. Therefore, the first time Jesus showed Himself to the disciples, He was showing Himself to despairing unbelievers. 

Jesus would have had the right to show up and scold the disciples. “Hey, I told you over and over and over again that I was going to rise on the third day. You are not my disciples! I am done with you!” Jesus had the right to say that, but He did not. Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” They deserved judgement, He gave them peace. Peace to calm their troubled hearts. Peace which is far greater than the peace promised in the politics and materials of this world. It was peace in Jesus Christ. Peace in His presence. Peace in His wounds. Peace from God by the forgiveness of sins. This is the peace of God which can still heavy and burdened consciences. His victorious sacrifice and His love can break through the most hardened unbeliever.

That is why Jesus showed them the wounds of the cross in His hands and side: they were the source of the peace He was bringing. The Law fulfilled. God’s righteous wrath received in Him so that peace could be given to the disciples. So that those disciples, you, me, and all people who have doubted, denied, or disbelieved Jesus could be saved. Though we have deserved judgement, Hell and all misery that could be experienced here and for an eternity, Jesus stands among us here and speaks peace by the forgiveness of sins. Freeing and loosing us from the chains of sin, by His voice of forgiveness; the voice of the crucified and raised conquering son of God and Son of Man. Now despair, unbelief, grief, sadness, ignorance, wrath, and any other anxiety or trouble could be and would be defeated in Him.

Jesus has come to bring you peace between you and God by the forgiveness of your sins, to bring to you eternal life in the midst of death, hope in the midst of despair. This is the most important news of all times and places. This is news that everyone needs to hear. It is this news that can make believers out of unbelievers apologists out of skeptics.
How did Jesus plan to spread this good news throughout the world? Right after He showed Himself to His disciples, Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” To send someone is to make them an apostle. Jesus basically told the disciples, “Up until now, I have been the apostle of the Father.  Now, you are to be my apostles.”

Wait! These same men who argued over who was the greatest? The cowards who fled when Jesus was arrested? The ones who refused to be comforted or believe that Jesus had been raised until a moment before? Yes.

Then, as if sending these guys out as His Apostles wasn’t strange enough, He gave them even more authority. He breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.” That forgiveness which Jesus just finished earning by His suffering and death a few days ago is now to be administered in Jesus’ name by these men who had lost their faith in Jesus’ promises.

God regularly works in these strange ways … ways that make no sense from a worldly point of view. When Moses was forty years old and was all fired up to be the great liberator of Israel, and killed the Egyptian, God could have called Him to deliver the Israelites then, but Moses showed that His faith was in doing it himself, not letting God do it. God instead sent him out into the wilderness.  When Moses was 80 years old and did not want to go, that is when God sent him to Pharaoh. A Pharisee named Saul was arresting Christians for trial and consenting to their executions. Then Jesus knocked him to the ground on the road to Damascus and called him to proclaim the Gospel.

It seems as though God goes out of His way to scrape the bottom of the barrel of humanity in order to find His servants. In every case, God took away any chance of boasting of “worthiness” on the part of the human being. In every case, the odds of human success were so low, that it was absolutely necessary that a miracle of God would have to provide success. The absolute helplessness of God’s servant shows the power of God’s Word of salvation.

God could have set aside a few legions of angels to do His preaching. Yet, that is not what God does. He places foolish, sinful men into the office of preacher. He puts the administration of the forgiveness of sins into the mouths of those same foolish, sinful men. When He needs to proclaim salvation, He sends sinners to proclaim it.

The comfort for Christians in all ages is that no matter how odd or weird or boring or whatever their pastor is, their faith should not be in the man, but in the message from God when it is preached in truth and purity. The effectiveness of the Word does not depend on the pastor. It is God Himself who deserves all the credit for our salvation. Jesus Christ earned it on the cross. The Holy Spirit delivers it in Word and Sacrament. I, as your pastor am merely the servant who administers the gifts God gives to you from the cross of Jesus Christ. In this way, Jesus comes among us here in Baptism, Absolution, Divine Service, the Lord’s Supper, and wherever His Holy Word is proclaimed and taught in its truth and purity. He comes to His people wearied by the world, their sins, their doubts, unbelief, disbelief, and anxieties and says, “Peace to you!” Do not disbelieve anymore but believe! He doesn’t just wish you peace, He actually gives you peace by giving you faith even as He gives you the forgiveness of your sins. God confirms you in that Word of peace as He uses the physical instruments working with the Word to deliver this Grace, this gift of love and mercy to you and me from Himself by His Holy Spirit. As Christ comes to us here in His Word and Sacraments He proclaims His peace and in Christ we freed from the troubles and fears which would overwhelm us.

Then having received from Him mercy and forgiveness in the absolution, having witnessed the crucified body and blood of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the altar, we too can be witnesses to the world of Him wherever we are. This is the message of Easter, the message of God’s Passover in Jesus Christ. Forgiveness and hope in Jesus Christ. This message of Christ crucified and raised to pay for our sins in the defeat of sin, death, and Satan turns cowards and unbelievers into believers, martyrs, and apostles. Some witnesses He makes into pastors, but others He calls into lay vocations to reach the world serving the Lord, abiding in Jesus Christ and receiving His gifts and then speaking to people where you are called. You are called by God into His forgiveness, to bear the joyous message of life, the message of forgiveness in Jesus Christ wherever you go. You do not realize how much God can and will work through you as you are strengthened and centered by His peace here given. Do not be afraid. Believe and Rejoice! No persecution can defeat this message of Jesus Christ crucified and risen. He has given you His victory to live in His peace and forgiveness in this world until we live eternally His perfect peace in His heavenly kingdom in Jesus Christ’s name, Amen.

Pr. Aaron Kangas