Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

What has bowed your head down, recently? It seems that especially during Advent, people have their heads bowed down more than at other times of the year. They could be just watching their step, because with less than a moment’s notice, you could find yourself flat on the ground, and Christmas is no fun when you’re spending it in the hospital. Maybe you have your head down right now as you are examining your list of countless things to do and to prepare before that holiday comes in a week’s time, ready or not. Perhaps that particular bell-ringer at the store entrance has a knack for locking in too-direct of a gaze and you just don’t want to make eye contact when you’ve got a busy schedule and no spare change… best to look down!

Do you perhaps have your head down in a different way, because you feel beaten, defeated with tension in your family, hurt because someone sinned against you and won’t admit it? Or maybe you want to clear the air and admit your fault with someone whom you hurt with your words and they refuse to forgive? Our heads ought to be down, at least in a spiritual sense, because we must daily repent of our sins against God and against all our various neighbors in our lives.

You know our world has its head down—you can tell the signs of that are all around us. The difference, however, is that our world’s head is down not in repentance but in self-worship. Those whom we see in this world who reject our only Lord and Savior, are instead worshiping the only deity that they hold most dear—themselves. Their heads are down only because they would rather stare in absolute wonder at their own belly-button! It’s all about my life, my needs, my body, my political party, my set of values, my wants. You are tempted to have your head down in that way, also, as am I.

You know what happens, though, when someone walks around too long with their head down all the time. It could lead to a funny bump on the head when she walks into a pole, or a quite frightful and deadly thing when he gets run over in the street. You are unaware of what is vitally important when you are not alert, and there is no way for you to tell what is right there in front of you. The more you stay bent down, the harder it is for you to get yourself straightened up again. I’m always getting told not to slouch over; I guess I’m not very easy to train in the fine art of good posture.

There was someone else who had his head down. Once again, we are talking about the designated preacher for the season of Advent, John the Baptist. This time, the Gospel records a moment once he had been thrown into prison, somewhere near the Dead Sea, we think, and he sent some loyal disciples of his to ask Jesus a question. It is quite a shocking question, considering that it came to Jesus from the courageous John the Baptist. After all, he was the one who pointed our Lord out and said, Behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world! Whether he was discouraged, and had his head down in that nasty dungeon, or his disciples were concerned, and John wanted to send them, heads down in their own disappointment, straight to the source to get the final word from Christ Himself, both would be answered in the same way. Jesus gave the perfect response to raise any head that might be bowed down with pain, repentance, sin, and sorrow.

Lift up your heads! So says the Psalm, and a few Advent hymns sing it, as well. Yes, there is a time to bow down in repentance and to sacrifice your personal desires and the world’s self-worship that entices you. However, there is also a time to lift up your heads, to straighten up and see your salvation coming ever nearer. We already heard that when you witness the many frightful signs of the end of the world, those are actually the indicators that your Savior is about to rescue you. What Jesus says to John’s disciples will raise up their—and John’s own—heads. Are you the promised Messiah, the Christ? Or should we be looking for another? Should we keep our heads down and ignore our vain hopes that God is going to fulfill His Word right here in front of us? It is getting tougher, from our human perspective, to believe that Jesus will help us in our day. The world is just getting worse and life as a committed Christian believer and family and within the blessing of a Christian marriage seems impossible. Our heads are down because we feel alone.

Lift up your heads! Look with eyes of faith that trust in the mighty works of our Lord Jesus Christ. Receive the everlasting joy upon your heads, as Isaiah predicted. He who healed the sick, cleansed the lepers, raised the dead, gave sight to the blind and hearing to the deaf—He it is who has come into your midst right here this very day. You have heard His Word of forgiveness before, and you have it as your very own gift once again today. You couldn’t lift up your own head, for all of the sin, pain and death that had kept it down. But He raises up your head, since He bowed down His own head in death on the cross for your forgiveness and eternal life. He gave up His Spirit in utter agony and shame so that you would breathe in the blessings of your lasting inheritance in His kingdom. He lifted up His head again to new physical life on the third day so that resurrection for your physical body would be certain. Your weak knees will be strengthened, as Isaiah sings, you of anxious heart– “Be strong” in the strength of the Lord and not in your own strength. You are now known as the ransomed ones, belonging to the Lord forever. He has come through for you to restore what sin and its curse had taken away. Your head is raised up with confident faith, since the Blood of Christ your Savior was shed on the cross to pay for your release, and to ease all of your hurt.

Rejoice, so we hear on this Third Sunday in Advent, and we light the pink candle on our Advent wreath. And you know that this is more than simply to put out an effort to “remember the reason for the Season,” as important as that is. A happy stream of mere thoughts on how I can bring peace on earth, would not do that much good for John the Baptist, locked up in prison. They don’t seem to last that long for you or me, either. You need the flesh and blood forgiveness that Jesus gives you today. That’s the only joy that lasts. You are here for the mighty works of God that happen in front of your face, and give you a reason truly to rejoice. No one else, including yourself, can replace the joy that Christ our Lord came to bring, and we look forward with repentant joy to that Great Day when our heads will be lifted up in everlasting glory, never to be bowed down in sorrow again.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Is. 35:1–10 Strengthen the weak hands, and make firm the feeble knees…the ransomed of the LORD shall return
Psalm 146 do not put your trust in princes
James 5:7–11 be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord.
Matt. 11:2–15 Go and tell John the things which you hear and see

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

No shepherd would choose to lead his flock of sheep into a barren wilderness. That is because at least a good and faithful shepherd is continually concerned about their health and safety. They are his sheep, they are precious to him, and he would not for all the world want anything to happen to them. If sheep were ever led into the desert, it would be almost certain that they would starve to death. Even if they were able to get by on the sparse wilderness plants for their food, then their lives could be claimed by the heat of the sun, or they might fall prey to wild animals and robbers lurking in the wasteland. If you were going to feed sheep, you wouldn’t want to do it in the wilderness.

The Bible attaches a deeper, spiritual meaning to the wilderness. It is the place where the devil lives, the place of sin and of temptation. We’re talking about a place that is obviously not the land of milk and honey. People who live out there include the man who was possessed by several demons, and he was clearly a menace to peace-loving society. After Jesus was baptized, He was sent starving into the wilderness so that He would do battle against Satan himself. It is the exact opposite of the Garden of Eden. Instead of the tree of life and streams coming up from the ground, it is a tree-less place of dryness and death. It stands as a reminder not of God’s rich goodness, but rather of what sin and unbelief has brought into the beautiful world that God created. The desert was where God’s people, led by Moses, wandered for 40 years because of their unbelief against God, and if they could have taken the direct route instead, they would have gotten to Canaan in less than two weeks! The wilderness is a harsh reminder of sin and rebellion against God. You would be hard-pressed to find God’s children living for very long apart from His Word in the wilderness.

Yet God, like the psalms say, is the Shepherd of Israel, even as the Lord is your shepherd, and to the amazement of all, God decided to place a shepherd to do His work of preparation in none other than the wilderness, of all places. Our readings from God’s Holy Word today tell us this shepherd is the famous prophet John the Baptist, and his title Baptist simply means “one who baptizes.” Everyone seems to think that the strange thing about John is his wardrobe and diet. Yes, he wore camel-hair clothes and ate locusts and wild honey, that’s the vivid picture we have of him. Yet the prophet Isaiah, who lived 6 centuries before, and the holy Gospel itself both tell us that John was, above all things, a “voice crying out in the wilderness.” Through this eccentric man, God was feeding His sheep in the desert with His Word. John’s preaching was actually the voice of God Himself, and God’s people of all times and places hear His voice and follow Him, even, strange enough to say, into the wilderness.

This faithful shepherd in the wilderness preaches “a baptism of repentance,” not a religious sounding speech, but real preaching dripping wet with forgiveness. This preaching of his really does something. It leads people to turn away from their sins and receive God’s forgiveness that is freely given in the waters of Holy Baptism. All who listen to this preaching are pointed to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. John preaches to you, too. Repent, be ready to receive Jesus. This is why the season of Advent prepares you for Christmas. The world around you is nothing but wilderness, and your own sinful nature within you is likewise a spiritual wasteland, full of unbelief and despair inside. If you let that sin within you have its way, and we often do, then you also deserve John’s rebuke, “You brood of vipers. You must repent!” Because the word of God coming from the mouth of John is the food and drink of forgiveness and salvation that you need to live in the wilderness of this world, the desert of your struggle against sin. And so, repent, confess your sins and receive Jesus who comes to you today, and who will come again at the Last Day.

Remember, John does not only have bad things to say. Isaiah informs you that this preacher in the wilderness has a wonderful Gospel word for you: “Comfort, comfort, ye My people” God says through His appointed servant. Be comforted, you who mourn. Be comforted, you who are anxious and in need of our Lord’s loving hand. For you cannot deceive yourself into thinking that things will get better all on their own. You cannot imagine that you can pull yourself up, dust yourself off and start all over again. You are attacked daily by the devil’s sharp arrows accusing you of your sins and trying to convince you that God does not care. By yourself you could not withstand such a barrage. Be comforted, God does care for you, and not because you now finally do what God wants you to do, but because He has reached out in mercy to you, poor miserable sinner that you are.

God will comfort you, this you can know for certain. However, be aware that you will not in this earthly wilderness of life feel comfortable. Remember, it is the Lord’s comfort, not the comfort you expect from this world; Jesus the Prince of Peace, brings a true peace that the world despises and cannot give you. You can work and struggle to achieve a comfortable way of life for you and your family. You could plan ahead on everything so that you could get through this hectic holiday season or you could look for comfort in all sorts of things that you think will make your life more fulfilling, but in the end it’s all an illusion. You won’t reach lasting comfort in these things—only God out of His undeserved mercy and love—only He gives you true comfort in His Word.

But consider the comfort that He proclaims to you—it sounds strange falling on human ears. He talks about iniquity, that’s the guilt that accompanies or is left over from sin. It is the sense of God’s judgment hanging over you, it produces that nagging heaviness in your heart because the Almighty Lord is righteous and holy and you are sinful and unclean. Talking about your sin surely doesn’t give you any comfort. Who wants to be reminded of the wrongs they have done in the past? God’s call to repentance sounds harsh, too. Turn away from your sins, you haven’t lived with the constant attitude that God is first in your life. Too often, other things have taken His place, but your complete trust needs to be in Him alone. At first hearing, the comfort of God doesn’t sound comforting at all.

In all this talk of sin and iniquity and the need to repent, God is making a straight, level road in the rocky, forbidding wilderness where you are. The reason why you need to hear and admit that you are by nature sinful and unclean is so that you would be truly comforted with these words: Your sins are forgiven. Your iniquity is pardoned. You are the spiritual inhabitants of the New Jerusalem, the holy mountain where this poetic scene comes true: the animals that once ate each other up for dinner now lie down together, the lion and the lamb, leopard and goat, all of them eating plants just like they did in Eden. No one will harm or destroy; the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord. Believe me, there is no government around that will be able to make this world perfect like that. But then again, they don’t have to. You have the promise from Jesus, the shoot that sprouted from the stump of Jesse, father of King David, ancestor of your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. That image means that although the glorious tree God had planted was cut down because of sin and the sheep rejecting their shepherd, the merciful Father’s promise will still spring up like a shoot or sucker from a stump. And that promise came true when Jesus came to this earth and was planted in the womb of the Virgin Mary to be born as the sacrifice for your forgiveness, and to be your King for all ages.

And so you have found food in the comforting words of God’s forgiveness given to you through Jesus Christ. The Lord is your shepherd; he is feeding you in the wilderness, just as He fed His people of old. The same baptism of repentance that John preached, the baptism that forgives your sins, this is what you can claim for your very own inheritance. This baptism is none other than the Lord’s comfort to you that sins are forgiven and you as God’s people are rescued from the devil’s wilderness, saved from the deadly snare of unbelief.

Your Lord Jesus gives you real food and drink every time you kneel at this altar and eat His Body and drink His true blood. This is not spiritual “comfort food” or merely a fine reminder that everything will be all right. This food brings true comfort, the comfort that comes from sins that are forgiven and a heart that is turned so that you love and trust in God above all things. This is the food that sustains you in the wilderness, and prepares you for the coming of your Savior. Though you may find yourself at times in a spiritually barren wasteland, attacked by the constant temptations of the devil and plagued with worry and despair, you will not starve, you will not be harmed. The Lord is your shepherd and you shall not want—you shall lack no good thing. You are His sheep, and you are precious to Him because He has washed you in the saving waters of Baptism and made you His own. God is constantly concerned over the health and safety of your soul and body. He will not let go of you. And He will guide you with His Word and promises in the paths of righteousness, through the wilderness of this life, that you may dwell in the house of the Lord forever.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Is. 11:1–10 A Rod from the stem of Jesse … the wolf will dwell with the lamb
Psalm 72:1–7 He will bring justice to the poor of the people
Rom. 15:4–13 whatever things were written before were written for our learning
Matt. 3:1–12 the voice of one crying in the wilderness

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

“Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord!” Let us make our way in a pilgrimage of faith to Zion, one of the Bible’s many names for the Church who firmly believes and trusts in our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Advent has begun and you and I both know that Christmas is in the air all around us, but first, while we still have an opportunity to give it our attention, we need to remind ourselves of this important fact: “Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed.” Believe it, O Daughter of Zion! Awake from your sleep, O children of God! This is big news for you! What does it mean that salvation is nearer to you now? It’s not to say that you have to work to make yourself closer to being saved. It’s not that Jesus deceived you into thinking that you were saved, because His perfect and unbreakable promise remains: Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved. No, salvation is nearer to you now, means that the time is getting ever closer and closer to the Day when you will see the salvation that you already have. Faith will be replaced by sight. Trusting only in His Word will soon make room for you to experience that Word of God in utter fullness. Advent is just as much a reminder of Christ’s glorious return as it is a preparation for the celebration of His birth in long-ago Bethlehem.

This is why Advent begins with Palm Sunday. I’ll admit, it doesn’t sound like a very Christmas-y story, but I count as many as eight hymns in our hymnal’s Advent section that refer in some way to Palm Sunday. On the first Palm Sunday in the city of Jerusalem, the crowds gathered to greet the arriving Messiah. The golden setting sun was shining on the face of Jesus as He was riding on that donkey that had never been ridden before, meandering down into the shady valley as He got closer to the base of the city wall. Then, as the road turns back up the steep hill toward the city gate the cheering crowd lined both sides of the dusty street, threw off their expensive outer garments, leaving on their plain- looking robes that they were wearing underneath. The people held palm branches in their hands, symbols of victory a little bit like the wreath of olive branches that the Greeks used to place with honor on the heads of Olympians and valiant soldiers.

The words of praise from their lips bounced off that imposing Jerusalem city wall: “Hosanna! Blessed be the Son of David! Peace in heaven and glory in the highest! Hosanna, blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord.” The Prince of Peace entered the reputed City of Peace, fully aware of the Price of Peace, that for your forgiveness and mine to be a reality, His holy Blood must be shed and handed over. The exultant crowd of pilgrims and disciples will disperse and soon another crowd will assemble to shout in a mad rage, “Crucify Him!” As unlikely as it sounds, these events are exactly the way the Lord has chosen to raise up, in the words of Isaiah, the Mountain of the House of the Lord, namely, the Church, so that it will be the highest of all the mountains. Before swords can be reshaped into farm implements, and spears used for tree and vine trimming, Christ the Savior must be lifted high on the cross. As our brand-new church year will unfold for us yet again, we will relive all those moments that make for our own story of salvation.

But the Palm Sunday that you and I participate in today is not merely a reliving of a past event. It is so much more. “Come let us go up to the mountain of the Lord!” Our spiritual pilgrimage to Zion that we are walking in our hearts this morning is not meant for us to see Jesus die yet again, because that was done once and for all. Instead, we are called together today to receive the fruits of that holy Cross, most especially the forgiveness of sins.

The night of your blindness to the wrongs you have done and the “rights” you have left undone—that night is far gone; the day is at hand. Your lack of love for your neighbor, your quarreling and jealousy, whether spoken or left in the darkness of your thoughts, must now be abandoned! Those who were there that first Palm Sunday took off their fancy overcoats. You instead on this First Sunday in Advent, take off all from this world that covers you, all that you use to make yourself impressive in the eyes of this world, and leave what remains underneath, a simple garment of repentance, a spiritual garment that Jesus has washed white with the forgiveness you received in your baptism.

Let the light of a new day, a fresh start, shine on your face with the blessing that comes with God’s face, His countenance that shines with favor upon you and gives you peace. Though there will be days when you must pass through a time of shadow, the road will be steep, and the walls will seem imposing that seem to keep you outside of the borders of God’s love, you will keep the simple prayer “Hosanna” on your lips, for your King will truly save you when you call on Him. You will one Day hold the palm branch of victory, as John’s vision in Revelation 7 shows—see, that’s you, you’re there somewhere in that massive crowd that he saw! That’s the Palm Sunday to end all Palm Sundays!

For now, as St. Paul instructs us, walk properly as in the daytime through this new church year and for the rest of the pilgrimage of your life in Christ. Put on the Lord Jesus Christ, feed your soul with pure spiritual food of all those fruits of love that are pleasing to God, and withdraw all provisions, starve out the sinful flesh that pesters you for self-gratification. You’ll find that it would be better to owe no one anything, other than to love them sincerely, since focusing just on earthly obligations will only distract you from what is truly most important in this spiritual pilgrimage that you are walking in faith this day until the Day you see Jesus with your own, resurrected eyes.

Prepare our hearts for Christmas? Yes, we will do that this Advent. Marvel in the prophets’ words over centuries coming true in the womb of the Virgin Mary? Most certainly we shall. But for now, “Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord!” Salvation is nearer now than when we first believed, so today let us take hold of that Salvation. Eat and drink that Body and Blood that has already paid the Price of your Peace. Rejoice and praise your true King who comes in the name of the Lord, for blessed is He, indeed!

Let us pray our Hosanna to the Son of David once again: Stir up your power, O Lord, and come to rescue us from the threatening perils of our sins, and save us by Your promised deliverance; for You now live and reign with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Is. 2:1–5 They shall beat their swords into plowshares
Psalm 122 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem
Rom. 13:8–14 he who loves another has fulfilled the law
Matt. 21:1–11 your King is coming to you … sitting on a donkey
Matt. 24:36–44 as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

Yes, in fact you did hear a few moments ago a reading from the Evangelist Luke’s account of the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus Christ. Yes, Easter is still quite a ways away. Today is the Last Sunday in the current Church Year. Next week, Advent begins, giving us four Sundays of spiritual preparation for the celebration of the Holy Incarnation of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. At the end of the Church Year, the main topics that we hear about are the End of the World, the Last Judgment, and the Life Everlasting. Sometimes the title Christ the King is appropriate for this day, in order to emphasize the Savior’s status as King over His threefold kingdom of Power, kingdom of Grace and kingdom of Glory. For centuries, men have complained that our King is slow in His coming, but St. Peter reminds us, writing from the dreariness of his prison cell, that the Lord is not slow to fulfill His promise, He is patient toward His Church, and when the Lord’s final Day comes, it will come like a thief in the night. (2 Peter 3)

If anyone could teach us Christians a little more patience, it would be an apostle of the Lord locked up in chains waiting for his inevitable execution in Rome. His perspective, and those of all the other Christian martyrs both of ancient times and those who up to this very day have put their lives at risk for the sake of Jesus, should make us reflect on what really matters for the congregation of saints living now in these End Times. But for Peter, as well as for all the apostles and other followers of Jesus, it wasn’t only that they suffered themselves. Sure, going through that experience certainly would change you psychologically. But what really mattered is that these witnesses saw or heard firsthand what you and I only read and hear about in our yearly services in the church year. They witnessed the crucifixion of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, done once and for all in ancient Jerusalem about nineteen hundred eighty years ago.

It was this holy Crucifixion that serves as a window for us into the End Times. A little bit of the future, a preview of the destruction of this sinful world that we see portrayed in symbols by the Apostle John in Revelation, this is what broke into the contemporary world in the days of Pontius Pilate. The Almighty, absolute Judge of all the earth was displayed whipped and thorn-crowned to a bloodthirsty crowd as an innocent man, yet sentenced to the most severe torture and death ever devised by man or by demon. As our Lord was driven along the Way of Sorrows to Calvary’s hill, the eyewitness Evangelists dutifully copied down and documented every step of Christ, since every step He took was for the world’s salvation. He comforted the weeping women with the same Word that comforts His holy church today, the church who weeps in repentance for sin but faithfully follows Christ who bore that sin. Because Jesus made that march to the cross on that hideous day, we have the privilege to look forward in faith to His joyous procession in which He will return on the Last Day. As you hear this holy, Biblical account of the crucifixion this very day, the Holy Spirit strengthens you and prepares you not only for the Lord’s Supper in this life, but for the eternal feast that we will share with all the saints in the life of the world to come.

And when the world’s Savior was raised up on that cross, fulfilling Moses’ raising the serpent in the wilderness back in the days of the Exodus, that’s when Final Judgment truly was executed. If we were to be precise in our legal terms, the Last Judgment, as it is described for us in God’s Word, is really part of the sentencing phase. The Verdict was already handed down: Jesus the Holy Son of God—guilty of death; you the poor, miserable sinner—innocent because of His substitution in your place. You were the one who hurt or harmed your neighbor in thought, word or deed. Jesus was the one lashed and scorned in shame, hung on a tree. You were the one who disappointed your family. He was the lonely one who cried out in extreme anguish to His Father, “Why have you forsaken Me?” You committed the crime and found yourself imprisoned. But He served your time in full so that you would be set free. You who hear the Good News now have this release from bondage handed right to you. At this Communion Rail, salvation is placed square into your mouth in that same Body and Blood that was given and shed for your forgiveness. The outcome of eternal life is your birthright now, though you must wait until the End to experience it in full. And Christian patience and perseverance will be tried in these latter days, but the promise of life, the final outcome of the End Times that started on the Cross, that time will come suddenly like a thief.

And speaking of a thief, recall the Almighty Judge’s first pronouncement, from the bench, as it were, was over His own bloody shoulder to the repentant thief who pleaded to the King of all Kings for His remembrance. May the reply ring in every dying sinner’s ear from now till the end of time: “Today, you will be with Me in Paradise.” For you, the sinner, are in the place of that blessed criminal. You were transferred from the punishment you deserved in the domain of darkness to the Son’s kingdom of everlasting light, the Paradise that the world’s parents Adam and Eve had lost in the beginning. It wasn’t enough for your heavenly Father just to forgive your sins. You weren’t merely brought back up to neutral. You have been declared holy by God’s abundant, undeserved grace. You are His child and heir. You have joined the faithful cloud of witnesses, some of them your own loved ones whom you dearly miss. Eden’s flaming sword now gives way to you, for the Tree of Life is now your personal property. I really do mean to say “now” you are in heaven for you are with the Lord by faith in Him, even though for now you suffer and struggle with sin. But be assured of your Savior’s victory over sin and death, because you triumphed with Him and soon, when the End finally comes, you will see that Paradise for which your heart yearns in faith. For Jesus, having enthroned Himself in His kingdom on the cross, has remembered you to this very day in your Baptism.

So even though this is the end of the Church’s liturgical year, and Lent is still all of 13 weeks away, (you don’t have anything to do until then, right?) take a look at the End Times through the eyes of St. Peter and all the others who were witnesses of Jesus’ crucifixion. Recall that the Holy Judgment to end all judgments was rendered on that cross and your forgiveness was paid in God’s own human Blood.

And finally, revel in the abundant grace that is bestowed on you in addition to your forgiveness. For it is by that same grace and Divine Promise that you enter Paradise with Christ your King. Be not dismayed by His apparent delay in return, but rejoice that all His blessings are yours now. And by God’s grace alone, you may believe it with all your heart.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Mal. 3:13–18 you shall again discern between the righteous and the wicked
Psalm 46 There is a river
Col. 1:13–20 the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation
Luke 23:27–43 today, you will be with Me in Paradise

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

What comforting signs God has in mind for you who are living in these end-times! But they look pretty scary at the same time. Judgment Day is near, as Jesus promises, and along with it come the signs: armies laying siege, people fleeing Jerusalem, great distress on the earth, wrath against this people, signs in sun and moon and stars, distress of nations from the sea and the waves, people fainting in fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. Sounds like an apocalyptic thriller movie, or a news release out of the Middle East! And these are the signs with which Jesus wants to encourage you?! Listen again to what He says: “Now when these things begin to take place, straighten up and raise your heads, because your redemption is drawing near.”

But why is it so important for today, to know so much about what will happen in the future? What use can you make of these “highway signs” while you are so intent on the present-day road that you and yours are traveling in life? It would seem to be enough these days to juggle school, home and work schedules, run to endless meetings and get-togethers, handle the occasional crises that come up, keep up on your e-mails and phone calls. Then, if all that weren’t enough, you add a few big holidays coming up, with shopping, cooking, traveling and cleaning that’ll make you crazy. Anyway, the point is clear: it’s so easy to get engulfed in cares and concerns of the present, that you lose sight of the goal of our precious Christian faith, that is, our eternal salvation.

That’s why these signs are so scary-looking. That’s probably why the Bible says only a few things about what the full glory of heaven will be like. It’s all designed, quite intentionally, to shake you out of the present-day worries and needs and fleeting pleasures. You have fallen for the strangle-hold of the here-and-now. The people were amazed at those massive temple stones. In the very same way, you are enthralled by anything that steals your attention from Jesus and His glorious coming. The passing, temporary things of this life remain the most important to you, even though you’re objecting even now, thinking: I’ve got my priorities straight, I’m doing my part. And although you can give one testimonial after another about how God has blessed you in your life, showing everyone else how thankful you are to Him, your Lord still knows your heart. He sees when you begrudge the difficult times that you’re facing. You cave in to your secret weaknesses because that’s so much easier than to remain strong. He has created in you a clean heart, and you don’t waste a moment getting it dirty again with sinful thoughts, words and deeds.

Of course, it is easier for a Christian to think of the heavenly things when there is very little to hope for on this earth. That explains the stories of death-bed conversions or renewals of faith. It brings to life what Jesus says— that it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God. The more faith that you have invested in the things of this world and the here-and-now, the less faith you have to put in the resurrection of the dead and the life of the world to come.

If your earthly life were in danger every day, like it is right now for many believers around the world (I’m thinking especially about those Christians who face persecution at the hands of Muslim governments and armies); if you were in their situation, then you would be bowed down, crushed to the ground in despair since you cannot count on any blessings that you can see. And yet that moment, when you give up on everything you hope for in this life, that’s an opportunity for the Lord to raise your head in true hope of your redemption, that is, your heavenly rescue that is just around the corner.

So you who live in the comfortable, freedom-loving United States of America, although you may just be getting by in a state like ours, yet you still have food and shelter and a few of what you call the “necessary comforts,” you who may even have some of the nice things that money or plastic can buy: what hope is there for you? You are not persecuted, you are not homeless, or suffering a complete lack of adequate medical care (at least not yet!). Sorry if I’m making it sound like a bad thing, but you may not have anything going on in your life so utterly drastic that it’s automatically built-in to force you to appreciate the true, heavenly joy that is already hidden in the forgiving word of God, the everyday water in the baptismal font, the common bread and wine that is seen upon this table. It can be bad because many other desires of your heart can get in the way. And even though you are often tempted to look for that heavenly joy in emotionally touching and entertaining worldly things, the gift remains yours without anything you have to do for it. This free gift also means that you are completely transformed by the grace of God that was given to you in your Baptism. He sets you at war against your own sinful human nature, but it is a war that He will win for you.

Because the decisive victory in that battle wasn’t your decision to follow Jesus. It wasn’t when you stood up in public and confessed the Christian faith, as exhilarating as that may have felt. If you only had to rely on the strength of your faith or those emotional mountain-top experiences, then you’ll be left with nothing when those things fade during difficult times. No, the decisive victory in the war you face every day was already won for you when Jesus suffered for your sins and died on the cross to give you eternal life. That remains the only hope you have, whether you are barely getting by, or living on Easy Street. And in the end, especially at the end of this temporary world, that is all that matters to you. For that humble Savior who died unjustly under the Divine curse, is the same Son of Man who is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity, and will return soon in a cloud with power and great glory.

So, when terrifying events take place, when suffering and hardship come along for no good reason, even if you are treated shamefully because of the Lord in whom you believe, straighten up, Jesus says, and raise your heads. Listen attentively to the precious, powerful words of eternal life that are entering your ears. Thank the Lord for washing you clean in Baptism. Kneel with all the others at this table who have publicly confessed total agreement with each other, and with the saints whom we cannot see but who are safe in the Lord’s care, then open your mouth to eat and drink the holy Body and Blood of Christ given and shed for you.

These gifts are all the preparation you need for those scary-looking end-times. In fact, these gifts bring you the good parts of the end of the world that you are looking forward to as your inheritance. You just get it in a hidden form for now. Though chaos and violence against the Christian faith boils all around you, the Lord still brings you through. These sacramental signs in which your Jesus hides Himself are not as fearful as the other signs of the end of the world, but they are definitely more important, because they connect you to Jesus, the true source of comfort that your soul needs. Since you the Church have the Father’s promise that your name is written in His book, be sure to encourage one another as you see the great Day approaching, and as you are filled with the Lord’s heavenly gifts, you too shall stand firm to the end and be saved.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

The Readings:
Mal. 4:1–6 The Sun of Righteousness shall arise with healing in His wings
Psalm 98 Let the sea roar, and all its fullness, The world and those who dwell in it
2 Thess. 3:1–13 that they work in quietness and eat their own bread.
Luke 21:5–36 then they shall see the Son of Man coming in a cloud with power and great glory

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

The Sadducees said there was no resurrection, and that’s why Jesus paid attention to them, and answered their silly, make-believe marriage question. He didn’t criticize their political crony-ism, which was utterly corrupt. He didn’t chide them for hoarding their wealth and neglecting the poor, which many of them did. He didn’t even call them out for their rejection of the prophets who came after Moses. They said there was no resurrection, and Jesus wanted to make sure He addressed that, so that their Greek, New-Age style teachings would not remove the Gospel’s comforting words from the hearts of the people who truly believed in Him.

They said that death should be thought of as a good thing, a separation of a pure soul from a vile, earthly body. A resurrection that joined a soul back with its body on the Last Day, they falsely ridiculed as repulsive. God’s Word teaches that body and soul were created good together and that their separation was the result of sin and death. In this context of ancient Jerusalem, just like what happens today, evil was called good, and the good creation of God—a human body—was degraded and treated like trash. I know that Christians today have varying opinions on this, but historically speaking, you must admit, the practice of cremation did not originate from any Christian teaching, but rather it came from an idea similar to what the Sadducees held, that the body was worthless at death and worthy of nothing but to be tossed aside when you’re done with it. God says altogether different things about the human body that He specially designed and gave to you and blessed as it was to be the temple of the Holy Spirit.

Now that we are in the portion of the church year that follows All Saints’ Day, and the themes of the Church that emphasize the events that will take place at the End of the world, we do well to follow what Jesus is saying about the resurrection of the body, too. He knew that the ludicrous question that the Sadducees asked Him about a widow marrying seven brothers was only meant to trap Him. We today have lots of strange questions thrown at us as traps—including certain questions about marriage and using bathrooms that nobody ever thought about as a problem even 5 years ago. With regard to those Sadducees, Jesus knew He wasn’t going to change their mind, but He was, and He always is, eager to proclaim His comforting truth to you, so that you remain convinced of the truth that you have come to know and love and claim as your very own, that is, the truth of the resurrection of your body when the life of the world to come finally arrives with His glorious return.

Our Lord reminds you that you live in two distinct ages. Jesus spoke of, on the one hand, “sons of this age” and “sons of God,” even “sons of the resurrection” on the other hand. It’s like you are standing on a cosmic threshold, with a foot in one world and the other foot in a different world. This is what it’s like for you now, but sooner or later, it will become different for all of us. For now, you have relationships and obligations and contracts, and discerning what in your life is temporary and what is eternal can at times be quite confusing and complicated. But Jesus helps you sort it all out.

There was one situation, you might recall, in which Jesus had to ask a man, “Who made Me an arbiter over your dispute with your brother?” Jesus the Son of the Most High God possessed every right to weigh in as Judge on whatever decision was made, however, He had already handed over the authority to some other human judge, while He was going to stay focused on His salvation mission. In the verses just before this Gospel reading from Luke 20, Jesus gave the well-known advice, “Give to Caesar what is Caesar’s, and to God what is God’s.” Marriage is a truly blessed gift, but the contract parts of it are limited only to this life. God made male and female, and no amount of surgery or personal self-feelings can remove that from each of our identities. As valuable as these Biblical teachings are about the things that belong to this world, don’t allow these debates to stray your focus from the matters that impact eternal life.

Sure, you have concerns related to this age—I’m not here to dispute that, nor am I saying that you would be betraying your Lord if you were paying attention to earthly things like your work, school, family, community, and friends. In fact, God is pleased that you tend to your vocations that He has given you in these areas. The Amish are only one well-known example of people who approached daily earthly life with the same mistake in judgment that the Sadducees made about the physical body, thinking all of it was evil and needs to be avoided. Jehovah’s Witnesses think the same about celebrating birthdays and holidays. They don’t. Martin Luther as a monk at one time thought that he was entering a holy life vocation in order to avoid all that worldly sin, but later reflected that he had been deceived by a lie.

The Lutheran Christian, guided only by the truth of Scripture alone and confident of salvation by grace alone, has the privilege and also the burden, of remembering that your baptism has placed you into another age, one that lasts forever and will not fade away with this world. You have been born into the age of the resurrection even though for a while you have remained a part of the age in which the earthly, temporary things still take place. Jesus later spoke about your situation as being in the world, but not being of the world. What counts for eternity is worthy of greater attention than what is before you day to day, although for now the day to day is not totally excluded. All Saints’ Day on the Church calendar can be useful to remind us how important this age of the resurrection is for us, since we don’t always experience the death of a loved one or a national tragedy like 9/11, yet even when these things do happen, we automatically turn to the only strength that can pull us through, and that is the strength of God’s promise that we belong to Him now, and not to this temporary, passing away world.

Your loved ones whom you don’t see anymore are already fully part of that inheritance of the resurrection, and so are you. Jesus said He and His heavenly Father, together with the Holy Spirit are together the God of the living, not of the dead. I AM the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, simultaneously at the same time as He is the God of Moses, King David, Mary and Joseph, St. Paul, Martin Luther, David Stirdivant, Paul Hall, Bill Saulnier, Dean Hickox, and Clara Riedel. He is, and He remains, their God, even though they died. It doesn’t matter how they were buried. Their sins, just like yours, don’t hold them back from any spiritual blessing, because forgiveness has conquered over sin. They aren’t married or given in marriage anymore, but something greater than that has remained for them, a permanent, eternal relationship with Christ and membership in His everlasting kingdom. The resurrection that awaits them, and you, and all of God’s saints, that resurrection at the last Day will only confirm that which is already true. Though you don’t see them anymore, they are with you, especially since the whole company of heaven fills this place every time the Divine Service with Holy Communion takes place.

How can we deny such a great blessing to those we know should be here in Church with us? How can you allow your cares for the earthly life dominate over this higher, greater gift that is the age of the resurrection that you so treasure? You must confess that it is all too easy to worry more about something temporary, to want your friends to like you, to get distraught over how our country is changing, to wonder when it will be more difficult or too costly to operate as a church as we’re used to. You aren’t like those people questioning Jesus, trying to trap Him with unbelief, but you are staring at things of this life that can cause great fear at times, and you wonder if everything really is going to be all right.

But do not fear! The crucified and risen Lord Jesus has had mercy on you. He takes your sins and shortcomings and weaknesses that died with Him on that cross and instead He creates in you a new heart. He made you worthy to attain to the age of the hope of the resurrection for your body. He gives the Word of life that each day converts your sinful heart and strengthens your soul. You were not worthy of God’s grace, yet He has chosen to make you worthy for the sake of Christ.

You truly live in Him, just as Jesus said, while for the time being you participate in the world with your neighbors whom you love and serve. He is your living God and, my friends in Christ Jesus, you are heirs of the promise of the resurrection, heirs along with all those Christians of the past who died in faith, of your loved ones who fell asleep in Jesus and the souls who await the resurrection of their bodies so that as complete persons, body and soul, we all will enjoy the presence of our gracious and living God forever. This is a real promise—not a fantasy or a vain dream that is meant only to make you feel better—Jesus said the Lord your God is the God of the living and not the dead. He will give you the victory. The Sadducees said, there was no resurrection. No, there is a resurrection, Jesus proved it by rising from the dead Himself and thanks to Him, that resurrection is yours!

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Ex. 3:1–15 the bush was burning with fire, but the bush was not consumed.
Psalm 148 Praise the LORD from the heavens
2 Thess. 2:1–8, 13–17 the truth, to which He called you by our gospel
Luke 20:27-40 not the God of the dead but of the living

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

At the Reformation, God began to shine a light of Gospel truth that for a long time had gone excessively dim. Luke chapter 18 began with Jesus asking the question we heard last week, “When the Son of Man comes, will He find faith on earth?” With the world in which Martin Luther and other reformers lived, the situation for the Church of our Lord’s faithful was just as bleak. And it wasn’t just the political intrigue of the popes and the emperors, the indulgence-sellers and the relics-superstitions. Was there any faith left? Would God build His Church amid all this works-righteousness? Our Lord answered His own question when He told this parable: two men went up to the Temple to pray. One man came back down the hill to his house justified.

The first was a Pharisee, a professional believer, proud of his perfect record. Christians who are like this man today tend to come from a long, pious and upstanding heritage. He would not be a recently converted believer, and he will make that abundantly clear to you. What is more, there are probably tons of fellow church-workers in his family tree. His moral life would have been pristine, an excellent example of good stewardship and a very productive asset toward making the church grow. He would be convinced that those like himself who do not steal or cheat or commit adultery are held in high esteem by their neighbors and even deserve a little recognition every now and then. He would be the exemplary Christian man, publicly making his firm commitment to be loyal to his wife and family and God and making sure you know all about that, too. He would tell you over and over again that if you don’t covet, you’ll become content with what you have, that charity enriches the giver, store up treasure in heaven, you know, he’d say all the right things, and truly mean them with all his heart.

This Pharisee was perfectly satisfied and happy with the way he fulfilled the law. He had found righteousness in this life by his own good works. He received honor and glory among his own people, and he deserved it. He had his reward. And he was such a nice man, that in his kindness, he looked for ways to help others achieve this peace that he had with God. He wanted others to read the Bible as diligently as he did, and to pray as impressively as he could. He wanted others to feel as close to God as he felt, and he was grateful to the Lord that he was not some miserable person without a clear purpose in life like that tax collector.

That was the second man in the Temple whom Jesus mentions. He was a traitor to his people, he oppressed them, actually he helped a foreign world-superpower government called the Roman Empire, and they oppressed his people, which was what made them consider him a traitor. Today you would find this cheating low-life at some dumpy used-car lot or pawn shop. He cheated his own flesh and blood and he knew it. He was not at all satisfied or happy with himself. He was ashamed of his behavior, of the selfish, hurtful choices he had made, of the disgrace he had become. His life was a total mess. No one trusted him. He was a sinner, the worst of them all. He knew it, and because of that, he felt alone and afraid. How could he find a gracious God to smile on him?

So this tax collector came to the Temple, to the House of Prayer for all people, to the place of sacrifice and the holy Ark of the Covenant, in order to pray. Twice a day an animal was sacrificed there during what was called an atonement sacrifice, a morning sacrifice and an evening sacrifice. At both times it was allowed for God’s people to lift up their hands in prayer to the Lord who promised a Savior to make the final, one-and-only atonement sacrifice. And so this poor man, who was materially rich from his unfair tax-collecting fees, stands on animal blood-stained pavement, standing at a distance from the other people and from the curtain that hid the Ark, hid God’s holy presence, from his sight. In that Ark were the very tablets on which God Himself wrote the law for Moses to proclaim. It was the law that condemned this man. It is the same law that condemns you.

But over that Ark of the Covenant, between the magnificent golden cherubim (the angels), God promised to place Himself. He shielded His people from His own law. He was there on the “mercy seat,” because that was the location where the God of mercy sat to remove this man’s judgment. He protects you from the Law’s condemnation; He satisfied the law’s demands on your behalf. He ushered in the Gospel that gave great power to the Reformation that went viral after that fateful day, October 31, 1517.

The tax collector in Jesus’ story came to the Temple, at the time of the atonement sacrifice in order to obtain that mercy from God. That’s what the Reformers were looking for in their day, as well. This man came to wrestle with God in prayer, he held God down to His Word. He pleaded for God to be true to Himself, to be merciful to him, a sinner, the worst of sinners. He had nothing to hope for but for God to be forgiving, to be satisfied with the sacrifice of Christ in his place, and to keep His never-ending promise of salvation. And you know what? God kept His promise to that man. For the sinner, the unworthy tax collector, and not the long-time professional believer, went home justified. As far as God is concerned, the tax collector was righteous, holy, innocent and pure, without any shame, regret, and even his sinful past no longer existed anymore.

This parable was spoken to some people who trusted in themselves, that they were righteous and had despised others. But those who would find mercy with God, must rather despise themselves. For as God’s law reveals in you, you are unrighteous, sold as a slave to sin. Your only hope is to trust in Jesus, who alone is righteous and holy, and God has already promised to have mercy on you. Here is where you see the irony of the Christian Faith: those who are without sin, those who have been baptized, declared to be God’s child, and forgiven, you know, people like you and the believing tax collector, you feel your sin. If anyone felt the pain of sin, it was Martin Luther, for sure! He had personal experience with the pain of sin. It hurts you inside. You don’t feel like a Christian. It is shameful and awkward as you struggle with it. But those who are in sin, who embrace it and seek to justify themselves in the eyes of other people, like the Pharisee, they are the ones who are satisfied and happy with their lives. The devil doesn’t bother them.

That is how it is in the Kingdom of God. It is a kingdom of ironies and opposites: God became Man, Death brought you Life, He who knew no sin became sin. The cross made from dead wood that brought extreme torture and bloody death was the Tree of Life and the new “mercy seat” on which the merciful God sat enthroned in ironic glory. The King in this heavenly Kingdom does not send soldiers off to die in wars that only benefit Himself and His subjects, like what happens in this world. Instead, this King, the Good Shepherd, lays down His own life! He dies in order to enrich the rebels and traitors who spoke against Him and wanted Him to die. He allows His enemies to destroy Him, and pleads to His Father to forgive them and accept His death as payment for their crime.

His life is given as the one and only atonement sacrifice that the repentant tax collector claims as his only hope, and what you claim as your only hope: because you pray every week for forgiveness for the sake of the holy, innocent, bitter sufferings and death of your beloved Son Jesus Christ, to be gracious and merciful to me, a poor, sinful being. This is how the Lord will answer His own question, how He will find faith on the earth, that is, He will find it in the most undeserving or unlikely people, namely tax collectors, sinners and infants who hardly can make any contribution on their own. He’ll find faith, even in your heart, because by His Holy Spirit in Baptism He put it there in the first place. A true Reformation only happens when once we come to terms with how far astray we have roamed in our sin.

It is only the blind who are given sight. Only the sick are healed by your great Physician of Body and Soul. Only the dead are given life, and only the repentant are forgiven. Sinners like you are the only ones whom God sees as saints for the sake of Christ and therefore you too go back to your homes justified. Come, then, O Sinners! Participate in your own Reformation! Come to the Holy of Holies in this place at this Table to feast on Christ the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world. Come like that tax collector, bring your pain, your fear, your worries, and shame, and loneliness, your failures and disgrace. Come to where God promises to be, where He extends His mercy, where He gives Himself to you. The Lord has shone the light of the Gospel to illuminate your heart, when you read that you are saved by the Grace of Christ Alone, received through Faith Alone, as it is found in Scripture Alone. Come to the Temple that is made without human hands, the Temple Jesus who was torn down by men on the cross, but raised in three days from the tomb. For Jesus, the propitiation and payment for your sins, He and His generous forgiveness comes this day to your ear and in Holy Communion comes right into your mouth. You the sinner now have been reformed into the pure Temple of the Holy Spirit. Go home this day justified, for you are in the good company of Luther and all the Reformers, yes, the Church of all places and ages.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Rev. 14:6–7 worship Him who made heaven and earth
Psalm 46 There is a river whose streams shall make glad the city of God
Rom. 3:19–28 a man is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.
John 8:31–36 you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
or Matt. 11:12–19 there has not risen one greater than John the Baptist

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

When you read and study the Bible, are you looking for advice on how you should live your life? As you search the Scriptures, do you seek insight into making difficult decisions? Many people look to God’s Word for only those reasons. The only thing they hope for from the mouth of God is the law. At least when you’re trying to fulfill the law, and live a Christian life, you’re still in control, even though you try to convince others and yourself that the Lord is. Bookstore shelves are overflowing with twelve-step programs, testimonial stories, and money-management tips that the authors claim are drawn right out of the Old and New Testaments. The only reason Jesus may be mentioned by name is because He could portray a model of effective leadership, or give some helpful etiquette tips. And if you happen to hear of His miracles, or His death and resurrection, those all-important events of faith take a back-seat to the overemphasis on His teachings concerning love and dispute-resolution, or what have you.

Now, when you look in the Bible for examples of moral living, there are a few characters who make you a little uncomfortable to mention in mixed company. Jacob is one of those people on whom you probably had to keep a pretty watchful eye. His name means “ankle-grabber” and it was given to him because that’s what he was doing to his twin brother Esau when they were born. Later in life, Jacob became notorious for his deceptive tactics, and was prodded on by his mother to steal his father’s blessing of inheritance with a simple meal. Later, his father-in-law deceived him and switched out one daughter on Jacob and tricked him into working for the other one. Before all is said and done, Jacob ends up with twelve sons and at least one daughter by four women! So much for Jacob being an example of good morality—he’d be a better case of behavior that you should avoid. And yet you may be surprised to hear that this story of Jacob is one of the best examples God has given of prayer.

And prayer is another well-covered topic, because it often falls into the category of the law. It’s something you should be doing, and if you would do more of it, things would turn out better for your life. You feel compelled to discourage a little child from being selfish in bedtime prayers as he or she is running through a whole list of things they want from God. And yet right afterward you go and do the same thing: if only my job could be more secure, if only my family and friends would like me, I would be happy if we brought in just a little more each month. And prayer is where you often turn for help because you want to get stuff. That might make prayer a popular thing to do for a while, but then the reality of life hits you and you either suppose that you didn’t pray the right way or that God has actually abandoned you, left you high and dry, and you feel totally helpless. Then it is often easy to become disenchanted with prayer, and you eventually drop it in hopes of something else more effective.

So, how is the deceptive, conniving, polygamist Jacob an example of prayer? Rather than looking at what Jacob does, you must instead turn your attention to what Jacob believes. For what he does is more or less up to him and it’s an all too common fact that like you, Jacob’s sinful, selfish nature often is what wins out in everyday life. But what he believes, that is not up to him, it was not anything he could take credit for. That is, Jacob’s faith, just like your faith, is completely a gift of God placed in the heart. And prayer is the sometimes joyful, sometimes agonizing struggle that exercises this God-given faith and puts it to work.

Prayer is a struggle? Absolutely, and not only prayer, but all of your Christian life is a struggle. And not a struggle merely with yourself, you know, saint versus sinner and so on. You are locked in a daily wrestling match with the Lord, just like Jacob was. The only difference is in the sort of wrestling moves you are using in your struggle. Instead of an exchange of physical blows or shifting your center of gravity, trying to force each other flat on their back, rather these are what your moves might be like, listen carefully:

God says: you have sinned. You respond: Yes, but you love sinners and you desire for me to be saved. God says: you deserve punishment. You respond: Yes, but Christ has taken that punishment for me on the cross. God says: you shall surely die. You respond: But in Jesus’ resurrection you, Lord, have guaranteed my resurrection to eternal life!

Do you notice what is going on in this struggle that I’ve just described? Your wrestling opponent is giving you all the moves you need to pin Him down to the mat! He sets you up to win this match that’s called prayer. That’s what’s even more strange than thinking of prayer as a struggle with God, is that He makes sure you beat Him through His promises. You pin your hope to one of His unchangeable promises, and thus you’ve pinned your heavenly Father. Sure you may come out of it a little beat up with life’s persecutions or surrendering some of the sinful world’s passing comforts, but wasn’t it better for Jacob, who was renamed Israel, to enter the Promised Land with a limp than for him with limber joints to run the opposite direction and live only for himself? Jesus said something like that before: it will be better to enter life lame, blind or crippled than with a whole body to suffer in hell. You prevail in your wrestling match of prayer with God the same way: with a few occasional difficulties now, but you’ve pinned God to His promise that He will bless you eternally in Christ Jesus.

That was exactly what I said happened when the Gentile woman asked Jesus for healing and said even the little dogs eat crumbs that fall from the Master’s table. That was her wrestling move! She had faith, God-given faith, that reminded God of His own promise to save all people, that even a crumb from the heavenly table would be enough for eternal salvation. And so Jesus said to her, just as He says to you: your faith has saved you. You see, this is not because you said the right prayer, or that you believed with great fervency and strength, but because you rubbed God’s face in the promise that He’s already made to you ever since you were baptized. He cannot go back on His promise, so He’s pinned. And you know what: nothing could delight Him more! Sure He commands you to pray, and yet it’s not a requirement. He’s simply inviting you to contend in a match in which He’ll guarantee you’ll win. And the prize for the winner? Forgiveness of sins, life and eternal salvation!

And so when you read or study the Bible, when you hear God’s Word being proclaimed, don’t just search for helpful tips for everyday life. Don’t perk up your ears merely for matters of the law. Morality is definitely important, and it must be an integral part of us as well-disciplined Christians. But here’s the big secret: the law never gives you the important wrestling moves you need in prayer. You’ll never fulfill God’s demands that He makes in the Ten Commandments. What you’ll need to listen very closely for are His promises. The Gospel, the good news of salvation by believing in Jesus Christ the crucified: that’s how you’re going to pin your Lord down every time. The Gospel writer Luke reports to you that Jesus is so many times better than the unjust judge for this purpose, remember what it said?: “to the effect that [you] ought always to pray and not lose heart.”

At this altar, you have the true Body and Blood of the Son of God who came down briefly to wrestle with Jacob long ago, but who also came later on in your own human flesh to take away your sin and lead you, the true Israel, to the ultimate Promised Land. No better assurance exists in all the world of God’s promise to your body and to your soul. In these precious gifts that you receive in your ear and in your mouth, He has given you the gift of saving faith to prevail in the struggle of prayer. And whether in this short life you’ll become a good leader, an effective parent, a millionaire, or simply a better help to someone in need, let Him take care of all that.

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Gen. 32:22–30 Your name shall no longer be called Jacob, but Israel
Psalm 121 The LORD shall preserve your going out and your coming in
2 Tim. 3:14—4:5 All scripture is given by inspiration of God … Preach the word!
Luke 18:1–8 parable of the unjust judge

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

The Old Testament book of Ruth begins with death, disgrace, abandonment and a critical decision. The prophet Samuel, who is believed to be the author, ends this divinely-inspired short story with life, a new identity, love and the promise of God’s eternal kingdom. All of this drama is covered in a mere 85 total verses. Ruth is a hero of faith in that she willingly denounced her home country and pagan religion, faced an uncertain future in Israel at the side of her mother-in-law, all because of her devotion not only to Naomi, but most especially was she devoted to the one true God. For this act of selfless faithfulness we have a holy obligation to praise the Lord for His mighty work through lowly Ruth, and yet, God is doing much more through this young woman than giving us a good example.

The story of Ruth is also a genealogy, a family tree. A crisis of huge proportions lies just under the surface of this little book of the Old Testament. When Naomi’s husband and sons die, there is more in trouble than just an inheritance of land and carrying on the family name. God made a promise to the family line of Judah that He would provide the promised Messiah as their own flesh and blood. Naomi’s husband Elimelech is Judah’s direct descendant. Once he and his sons die, where then will our Savior come from? How then will the world’s history get to King David and the realized promise of eternal life in God’s kingdom? God Himself will provide the unbroken family tree, here in the time of the Old Testament book of Judges. Matthew chapter one points this out: the foreigner Ruth is listed there as an ancestor of Jesus Christ. Her marrying Boaz is in order to fulfill God’s will that ultimately brings forth the Redeemer of the whole world.

What a monumental weight to place on anyone’s shoulders! Not to mention a woman who was born outside of the Lord’s people. As a Moabite woman, Ruth had inherited not the promise given to Abraham, but rather her bequest consisted of the series of unfortunate events that came to Abraham’s nephew Lot. I will remind you of the history, from Genesis 19. Hundreds of years before the time of Judges, Lot had separated from Abraham and chose to live in the valley, while Abraham roamed the hills [Genesis 13]; he then had to escape Sodom and Gomorrah when those places were destroyed. His wife looked back and became a pillar of salt, and he and his daughters ended their days living in a cave out of fear. Why he does not join back together with Uncle Abraham, the Bible never tells us. His daughters felt alone and desperate living in that cave, even though Lot had catechized them always to be faithful to the Lord, even while they were living in that faithless smut-pot of homosexual sin known as Sodom. They felt, nevertheless, that the only way they would have children would be if the seed (to put it mildly) came from their own father. And so, they may have escaped the fire and brimstone, but sin’s curse still got the best of them, and the consequences pulled them away from God’s gracious promises. Each daughter had a son, one called hers by the name Ben-Ammi which means “son of my father”, who became the father of the Ammonites, but the elder daughter had a son named Moab, which means “from the father.” The Moabites descended from a man whose dad was also his grandpa! That’s certainly no proud pedigree for Ruth to brag about as a Moabite woman. Her people became despised enemies of the people of Israel, much like the Samaritans were during the time of Jesus. It wouldn’t make sense to carry on the royal line of the Messiah with horribly sinful baggage like that.

But Ruth, as a young widow walking along with her widowed mother-in-law, was not concerned about anything that made sense. She had a sister-in-law named Orpah who listened to Naomi’s urgings to go back. Ruth wouldn’t budge. Not a hope existed for her to get another husband of the same blood as the deceased. Even if Naomi should have a baby late in life just like Sarah and Abraham did, would Ruth wait to marry a man whom she would likely help Naomi raise from infancy? Impossible! Yet Ruth clung on, making a solemn vow that called down God’s very judgment upon herself if she should break her promise. The best anyone could imagine would be a life of poverty for two widows who only have the support of each other. Not a smart plan for the future; any professional advisor could tell you that.

What faith would be worth anything if it is not tested, tried and purified by the difficulties that you face, the crosses that you bear in this world? If for this life only we have hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, we are to be the most pitied. For you aren’t a Christian to make your life in this sinful world any easier. It may be quite easy to talk about “blind faith” but it’s a whole other thing to carry it out. All the sensible advice in the world can’t justify or cover up the sinful, selfish desires that come to you naturally. Sure, you’re impressed by the faithfulness and dedication of someone like Ruth, but when it comes to those critical moments in our lives, haven’t we acted as the children of light that we are only at the times when it suits us? Think of the man with whom Boaz confers in Ruth chapter 4. This other man was the one who was better suited to buy back Naomi’s land. And he was ready to do it, until he hears of the obligation to marry Ruth that went along with it. That wouldn’t help his investment strategy. He would have to put up his own inheritance to purchase property that won’t end up passing on to his heirs after all. It’s too risky, so he gives up his right to Boaz. Let him take the hit. Not only Ruth, but Boaz also acts by faith rather than by sight.

So Ruth and Boaz marry, without regard to sense, in spite of better judgment, and without guarantee of any measurable success. But God has been working all along; He always has the bigger picture in mind. He works all things together for your good as well. For as the genealogy of Ruth attests, their marital union was blessed and the family tree of King David was preserved. And from David’s line would be born the Messiah, Jesus the truly Faithful One who has made foolish the wisdom of this world. He poured out in sacrifice not only His heavenly inheritance as the Son of God but also gave His very life and suffered terribly for your sake. Though you find yourself counting the cost and following good worldly sense, He set it all aside so that He could redeem you for His very own. You were bought at a price, and when our Lord rose from the dead victorious, He pulled you out of your sinful human family line of death and claimed you as His pure, forgiven bride, washed in baptismal water and given a new name as a child of God.

Like Ruth’s ancestor Lot, you also have been vindicated in your trials and struggles. His disgraceful, last days living in a cave eventually brought about a loving, faithful young woman who was devoted to the Lord, and through her Lot’s family line did in fact rejoin that of Uncle Abraham, after all. The disgrace you may have to bear because of the name of Christ will be exchanged for heavenly glory. Jesus, the Son who truly came Mo-Ab “from the Father,” He who was the despised and rejected Moabite descendant, He who described Himself as the Good Samaritan, He clings to you without turning His back. He promises to feed you His own flesh and blood so that your faith in Him will not go hungry. And when your pilgrim journey on this earth comes to its end, your Savior will be there, ready to lavish you with an everlasting inheritance beyond your mind’s ability to comprehend. What a happy ending that will be!

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Ruth 1:1–19a Your people shall be my people, and your God, my God.
Psalm 111 The works of the LORD are great, Studied by all who have pleasure in them.
2 Tim. 2:1–13 if we died with Him, we shall also live with Him
Luke 17:11–19 ten lepers healed … but where are the nine?

Rev’d Mark B. Stirdivant, Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yucaipa, California
✝ sdg ✝

The prophet Habakkuk admitted that he was a complainer. He didn’t care about that label being put on him. Once there was a group that called themselves the complaint-free church, and they gave out purple bracelets to everyone who promised to live a complaint-free life. Habakkuk wouldn’t have worn that purple bracelet! Everyone else around this prophet had caved in to pressure to reject the true God and worship idols, but he did not. In his lifetime the officials who had been set in office to render just decisions and ensure the honest rule of law were actually paralyzing the law and making justice go forth perverted. But Habakkuk was not going to be shamed into silence. He was no politically-correct talking head. You could see him out getting involved and making his message heard, not to puff himself up, but to call attention to the truth. He said, as plainly as he could, the nation was headed for ruin, and as it turned out, that ruin came for Judah within 10 or 20 years when the Babylonian army conquered them. You see, even though he always complained, Habakkuk really did care about something. What God’s prophet cared about in these trying times was faith. And he’s going to bring that concern bald-faced and lay it out before the only one he knew who would listen to him. Habakkuk minced no words when he dumped his complaint out into the lap of God the Lord of heaven and earth.

For God Himself gave the assuring promise: My answer will come, “it will not lie. If it seems slow, wait for it; it will surely come; it will not delay.” It’s exactly like what is written in another place of Scripture: Vengeance is mine, saith the Lord, I will repay. And whether it’s 600 BC or 2019 AD, the Lord requires patience. Are you frustrated with God’s slowness? That’s the way it looks, doesn’t it? That God’s going to take His own sweet time in fulfilling what He has promised for you. That everyone else can have a better or easier time, but not you. You catch yourself saying, I’m tired of this life I lead. I have to suffer. I’m the one everybody ridicules or walks over. I have to go through some experience that other people think they can understand, but they don’t. When all is said and done, I’m alone on this one, and I just have to accept that. You end up focusing so much on what is troubling you that it becomes for you a twisted form of meditation. It occupies your every thought. It grows and grows within you like a nasty spiritual tumor that puffs up and you start getting a clue in some way or another that things are not right.

Now, at this critical point you could go one of two ways: you could cut everything off and say I’d rather do without God, or anyone else, thank you very much. I’m only going to listen to myself, and my wants and desires are going to take first place. I’m tired of this guilt trip that God’s Law seems to place on me. I do my best and it never seems to be good enough, so I’m through with it! I’ve got many more things to do with my time than to bother to pray or worship or wait around for Him to do anything for me. You could even feel this way as you’re sitting here, in church, looking like you’re doing the right thing, but your heart is far from heeding the words of your Lord that are being spoken to you from His Word and handed out in the Lord’s Supper. Perhaps you had felt this way in the past or you know someone who has cut ties with anything to do with church. You lift them up in prayer, like you’re supposed to do, but in the back of your mind you are anxious that this person might never come around. I have to tell you something: this is not faith! This anxiety is cutting yourself off from God and it is serious trouble! This is putting yourself in Christ’s place and Satan would love nothing more than for that spiritual cancer to keep growing and spreading within you, until he has completely taken over and you are left truly alone in your despair.

But that does not have to happen! Whether it’s for you or for your loved one, the assurance came straight from the Lord through the prophet Habakkuk: the just shall live by faith. That’s a word of life-giving Gospel truth. Only God your creator can make life, and He has offered that life freely to you, no strings attached. The crushing condemnation of the Law, that word of God that rightly condemned you, now it is completely removed. The gates of heaven are opened, and you can be assured that you have a place prepared for you there.

Wait a minute, what just happened? What happened to all my problems that I was complaining about? What of this spiritual danger that I’m facing? Doesn’t this Gospel sound just a bit too easy? And for another thing, don’t you have to be just to live by faith? Yes, and it is also true that your heavenly Father justifies the wicked. That’s how you are going to live- not by your efforts, not by your trusting in yourself, not in your anxious nights of fretting, either. The just shall live by faith!

But to settle the complaining mind and heart and for you to draw true comfort and peace from that verse that’s tucked away in an obscure prophet’s writings, you know, in one of those lesser known books of the Bible, you’re going to need to know a little bit more about faith. The word faith in “The just shall live by faith” comes from the Hebrew word Amen. When you think about Amen, you probably consider it only as the ending of a prayer. It’s the first Hebrew word you’ve ever learned, and you’ve probably never learned that it means “faith.” You may remember that the Catechism teaches that Amen, amen means “Yes, yes, it shall be so,” but that in fact is what faith is: faith believes that what God says is and ever shall be so. You have received that gift.

In some places of the Old Testament, the response “Amen” is an essential part of a binding contract or covenant. When certain curses were laid out before the people as consequences of breaking the covenant, [as in Deuteronomy 27,] the people responded by saying “Amen.” This meant that they were now on the hook. They had no way to back out of their end of the deal. They had to remain true to their word, or else they would be disowned as the chosen people of God. Although they and we have sinned against the Lord and spurned His love toward us, our holy and righteous God Himself made an Amen promise toward us. The Father vowed to send His own dear Son into our flesh, so that the Amen curse would not fall on you but on Him instead. When God says Amen, He lets you know that He bound Himself to His promise to rescue you. Your Savior is the one on the hook, and He willingly fulfilled His promise out of His great love for you. Jesus, who is even known as “The Amen,” [Revelation 3:14] was faithful and true in all that He did, all the way to the point of suffering for your sin, dying your death, and achieving your everlasting forgiveness and eternal life. The just shall live, and it’s because of the Amen faithfulness of Jesus who took your place, and now you have all the blessings of heaven that are yours by faith.

Your Amen response not only agrees with God that His Law assessment of your sins is accurate, not only does it admit that you know the information that is contained in the Gospel message, but most especially your Amen says that you believe it for yourself. It means that you have come to the realization, by the power of the Holy Spirit working in you, that you have nowhere else to go than to Jesus your Savior and Lord. You confess with all seriousness that this is no game. Pay attention to yourselves, Jesus warns. Eternity is on the line and in Christ’s name that gift of eternal life is yours. As it is with the Lord’s Supper, so it is with all matters of faith: the words of the Gospel “for you” require all hearts to believe. When you say Amen, that means that the Holy Spirit has done His mighty work of creating faith in your heart. Your prayer echoes that of those disciples who pleaded with Jesus, “Increase our faith!” and your prayer is answered.

Do you have a complaint? Do not be ashamed, for your loving, heavenly Father will hear your complaint, just like He heard the complaint of Habakkuk. Be sure that you don’t meditate on it, however, so that the complaint sits inside you and grows into self-pity or worry, for those things can kill your faith. Instead, lay all your complaint out before the Lord in prayer; with meditation on the Bible bring it to Him like the prophets and many psalms do right there in the Scripture that you read. Trust in the Lord’s answer in His own perfect timing, for it will surely not delay for your deliverance. Though the world and all other enemies you may face might seem like they are winning, take heart, because you are not alone. Entrust your loved ones to Him as well; even commend to the Lord those whom you see as your enemies, those who have not come to you and asked for forgiveness yet, and ask that He may lead them to repentance also. You have your Amen, the true and faithful God, your Savior Jesus Christ, who bound Himself with love to the cross for you, and He will strengthen and keep you steadfast in your Amen confession of the truth in the face of all lies and attacks of the Evil One. Because of Christ, God has declared you just. Therefore, you shall live by faith!

In the Name of the Father and of the ✝ Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Readings:
Hab. 1:1–4; 2:1–4 Write the vision And make it plain on tablets
Psalm 62 Truly my soul silently waits for God
2 Tim. 1:1–14 Stir up the gift that is in you
Luke 17:1–10 faith as a mustard seed