Stop Climbing: He Comes To You

Text:  Mark 11:1-10

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

Over the last several weeks we have been hearing scripture passages that point us forward to the second coming of Christ, when Christ will come again at the end of the age.  These texts have called us to be ready for this second coming, to be alert, and to be awake.  These texts create anticipation in us.

Today though, we begin a new church year as we celebrate the first Sunday in Advent.  Now, keep in mind that the word ‘Advent’ means coming.  Thus, with the first Sunday in Advent, we are shifting gears a bit from anticipating and looking forward, to the theme of Jesus actually ‘coming’ to us. 

In thinking about this theme of ‘coming,’ we must also make note that the coming of the Lord is a very prevalent theme in the all of the scriptures.  For example, ever since Adam and Eve fell into sin in the Garden of Eden, the Lord promised them that salvation would come to mankind through one who would crush the head of the Evil One.  Therefore, the people of the Old Testament lived in anticipation as they awaited the coming of the Messiah.  With that said, how did the Messiah come to the people of the Old Testament?  He came to them in a manger, in the small town of Bethlehem. 

Like the people of the Old Testament, today we remember in our Advent services this same coming of Jesus in the manger, for this coming was not only a coming of the Messiah to the people of the Old Testament, but a coming of the Messiah for the whole entire world.

Furthermore, during this Advent Season we not only recall that Jesus came some two-thousand years ago, but we remember and confess that He will come to us at the end of the age to resurrect us.  Therefore, we live in between these two book ends: His first coming in a manger and His second coming in glory to judge the living and the dead. 

All of this said, there is another aspect that we are forgetting, and that is, the Lord continually comes to us in the here and now through His Word and Sacraments.  That’s right, we have a Lord that came to us, presently comes to us, and will come to us again.  Indeed, we have an active Lord; a Lord that invades history, time, and space. 

Understanding that we have a Lord that comes to us, it now makes sense why the Gospel reading for us today is on Jesus riding on a donkey towards Jerusalem.  You see, as Christ rode on the donkey, He was riding and coming towards us.   Permit me to explain a bit more. 

Two-thousand years ago Jesus Christ approached your sin in His birth and He approached your sin on the donkey as He rode into Jerusalem towards Calvary’s Cross.  Yes, at the cross there was a holy collision as Jesus came towards our sin, sin that resulted in His death—a death that should have been for you and for me.  Indeed, Jesus came towards our cross and encountered our sin, bore it upon Himself, was forsaken by the Father, endured hell, and then said, “It… Is... Finished!” 

Truly, we have a coming Messiah.  He came to us in the manger, came to us on a donkey to the cross, will come again to us in the second coming, and comes to us here in this church through His Word and Sacraments because He is for you and is for me.

Simply stated, the arrow is from the Lord to us.

Tragically the temptation for you and for me is that we can lose sight of this coming Lord.  We can invert the arrow, believing the myth that the arrow goes from us to the Lord.  Otherwise stated, we can begin to believe the error that we must come to Him.  As a result, we begin to believe that we have to construct metaphoric ladders between us and the Lord, so that we can industriously ascend up each step of the ladder closer and closer to the Lord.  (I call this ladder theology)  Whether we disbelieve the good news that the Lord comes to us or if we stubbornly want to be involved in drawing near to the Lord by our own efforts, the result is the same: we invert everything.  Yes, instead of seeing the Lord as one coming to us, we begin to convince ourselves that we must ascend to the Lord in order to draw closer to Him so that we can be whole. 

One of the ways that we do this is that climb our metaphoric ladder to God through developing, increasing, and perfecting our morals and standards.  We believe that if we become more moral, it will allow us to ascend a little higher.  We tell ourselves, “Every good deed draws me that much closer to the good Lord.”[1]

Another way we attempt to climb to the Lord is that we chase meaningless spiritual experiences.  We tell ourselves that if we can just woo our emotions or conjure up spiritualized feelings to make our hearts tingle with mystical feelings that we are somehow closer to the Lord.  We tell ourselves, “If I can experience and feel God, then I must be close to Him.  The more I feel spiritized feeling, the higher I must be.”[2]

Finally, but not least, we can attempt to draw close to the Lord through the pursuit of reflective rationale and being thoughtful of philosophical logic.  We tell ourselves that the key to drawing closer to the Lord is through intellectualizing God and logically figuring Him out.  We tell ourselves, “The more that God can be reasoned in our mind, the closer we must be to Him.” [3]  

Tragically, “All three of these conventional approaches to spirituality involve human beings’ expending strenuous effort to reach God, who is, by implication, an impassive observer, far above the fray, a goal that must be attained, a treasure that must be sought, discovered and earned.”[4]

Alas, this way of thinking is damning and futile at best.

Frankly put, if it is up to us to storm heaven’s gates and if it is up to us to come to the Lord, how will we know if we have an adequate amount of morality?  How will we know if our mystical experience is genuine enough?  How will we know if our reason is enlightened enough?  In looking at this ladder spirituality—this idea that you and I must climb to God in order to come to Him—you and I will never, I repeat, never have enough assurance.  If it depends on our climbing, how high do we have to climb and what happens when we slip, for we surely will?

Dear friends, if you are attempting to climb to the Lord, if you are attempting to come to the Lord through your own moral, mystical, and/or intellectual schemes, please listen: 

Repent, there is no ladder. 

Repent, you cannot climb. 

Repent, the arrow is not from you to the Lord, but from the Lord to you.

Repent, for you cannot by your own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ or come to Him.[5] 

You may be saying to yourself now,

“That makes sense Pastor, we do not climb to God but He comes to us.  However, how is that a good thing?  For I know deep down inside of me, that I am full of sin.  I also sin in thought, word, and deed.  So how is this good that the Lord comes to us and invades my world of sin and failure?  In fact, the more I think about the Lord coming to me, the less I want to climb and the more I want to run and hide.  Yes, I want to run and hide like Adam and Eve did when the Lord came to them after they sinned.  It is terrible to be in the hands of an angry God.”

Baptized Saints, take a moment and consider our Gospel reading for today.  The Lord came to Jerusalem humble and on a donkey.  He also wept over rebellious Jerusalem.  Furthermore, consider this Advent Season: He came to us in a manger as a babe.  Yes, Jesus came to you and me in a manger and on a donkey; He came to the cross to meet our sin in humility and compassion.  Yes, His first coming some two-thousand years ago was not in judgment but a coming of grace and mercy; a coming to replace the terror of sin with the joy of righteousness.    

Truly, the Messiah was born and came to die.  He came to die—for you.  He came to suffer—for you.  He put on human flesh so that He could take—your place on the cross.  He came to accomplish forgiveness—for you.   

What this means is that the coming of our Lord is not bad news, but good news.  It is a coming of redemption; it is a coming of forgiveness of sins.  Therefore, the coming of the Lord means that we don’t have to be terrified, that there is no ascending, that there is no need to construct ladders, and that there is absolutely no need to meet the Lord half-way.  He came fully for you; the mission was accomplished and He is coming back again to take you home.

Not only did He come some two-thousand years ago in a manger and upon a donkey and not only will He come at the end of the age, as previously mentioned He also comes to you right here and right now.  He comes to you in His Word, in the Waters of your baptism, and He comes to you in His flesh and blood as you eat that very flesh that He sacrificed for you on the cross and the very blood that He shed for you on the cross—for the forgiveness of your sins.

The Lord came, comes, and will come—for you.  This Advent Season we remember, hear, and confess that we have a Lord that comes to us.  He is not an impassive observer far above the fray or a goal that we must attain.  He is alive and active, one who enters into the present aeon to accomplish salvation and deliver us His gifts.   

Furthermore, we do not limit His coming to Christmas only but believe, teach, and confess that He comes to us continually in His Word and Sacraments in His Church—in this church—until He finally comes again to resurrect us unto Himself.

The Lord come; He comes for you.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] Adolf Koberle, The Quest for Holiness: A Biblical, Historical, and Systematic Investigation (Eugene, OR: WIPF and STOCK Publishers, 2004), 2.
[2] Ibid.
[3] Ibid.
[4] Gene Edward Veith Jr., The Spirituality of the Cross: The Way of the First Evangelicals (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1999), 23.
[5] Portion of the Small Catechism’s Explanation of the 3^rd Article of the Apostles Creed.

Thankfulness: You Are Not At A Distance, For Jesus Reached Out To You

Text:  Luke 17:11-19

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

During this time of year millions of people are making trips to gather together with family and friends. This great gathering of people is to celebrate thankfulness.  Yes, with Thanksgiving we gather together with the intent and purpose to express gratitude.  More specifically, we express appreciation for our health, our material blessings, our good fortune, our families, and so forth. 

Keep in mind though that most of the things that we are grateful for, are a result of a combination of things.  Things like: good family genetics, a little bit of luck, hard work, being in the right place at the right time, and the blessings of other people.  Therefore, it could be technically stated that we express this gratitude with a tip of the hat to the luck of the draw, as well as a tip of the hat to ourselves.  Otherwise stated, each and every Thanksgiving we esteem the feeling and character of ‘gratitude;’ with a very superficial understanding of gratitude.  Yes, our gratitude—to a certain extent—is not totally dependent on the gifts that we receive, but relies heavily upon our luck, our work, and our doings. 

Now, I am certainly not attempting to sabotage your Thanksgiving holiday.  I am surely not attempting to be the Grinch who stole Thanksgiving.  No, my friends, what I am merely attempting to do is to show you that as baptized-forgiven-blood-bought-saints you have so much more to be thankful for.  Yes, as people in Christ you have something to be thankful for, something that is given to you as pure gift, something that brings ultimate gratitude. 

While it would be easy to exhort you now to be more thankful or to simply urge you to express more gratitude as a Christian, I am afraid that merely telling you to be grateful without showing you what you have to be grateful for is futile at best.  To state this in a different way consider our Gospel reading.

In our Gospel reading we are faced with a contagious and hereditary disease.  We see a disease that is easily transmitted and can be conveyed to the third and fourth generations of a family.  It was a disease that produced sores on the skin; it impacted a person’s joints.  It has been said,

“Life still lingers amid the desolation of this disease.  The joints, hands, and feet lose their power; and the body collapses or falls together in a form hideous and awful-ness.”

What am I talking about?  I am talking about the disease of leprosy.  I am talking about leprosy that existed during the first century, a disease that there was no curable treatment for. 

Not only did leprosy dramatically impact individuals, but it had sociological implications as well.  By Law lepers were not able to come near people who were healthy.  The Laws separated them into camps outside the cities.  In fact lepers would be beaten if they came into cities like Jerusalem.  Indeed, lepers were cut off from society.  They could not associate with people and had to yell out the word “UNCLEAN,” so as to warn others that they were passing by.  Many perceived that these lepers were sick due to some mistake that they had made; they were viewed as cursed by God.

But what does leprosy have to do with Thanksgiving and what does it have to do with the idea of gratitude and thankfulness?  Are we to be thankful that we don’t have leprosy?  Well, yes, but there is more to consider in our text.

In our Gospel reading we encounter lepers being healed by Jesus.  After the healing, one of the lepers returns to Jesus with a thankful response.  In story we have a simple and plain picture of the Christian life.  Permit me to explain.

Tragically lepers were ostracized from society and family as they stood at a distance, while rotting away in utter and complete hopelessness.  Leprosy made the individuals stand afar off.  Their defilement distanced them from everyone and everything.  Yet, in our Gospel reading there is one that bridges that gap.  Yes, we even see in the Gospel of Matthew chapter eight that when Jesus encountered another leper that he reached out His hand and touched the man. 

Did you hear that?

Jesus reached out and touched a leper; He bridges that gap. He acknowledges the lepers who stand afar off.  He, who is perfectly clean, perfectly righteous, and perfectly holy, reaches out and touches the man with leprosy saying, “Be Clean!”  In our Gospel text for today, He cleanses lepers, as well. 

Consider how Jesus crosses the great leper divide.  In the New Testament Christ touches and interacts with sinners, tax collectors, lepers, prostitutes, and the dead, while often times becoming ceremonially unclean Himself from touching those who were sick or dead.

Otherwise stated, the Lord Jesus Christ gives everything freely to these lepers and does not take nor seeks anything for it.  Furthermore, the lepers receive Christ’s work freely and pay nothing for it. 

Dear friends, like the lepers, mankind is set far off from God because of sin.  We too are unworthy and unable to do anything about our predicament of sin.  We have inherited it, it is contagious, it spreads to our children, and it wreaks havoc on our relationships, and leads to destruction.  We cannot cure our sin problem.  We cannot cleanse our body and souls.  We cannot prevent the rotting.  Thus, mankind hides in the shadows or attempts to cover sin with spiritual cosmetics.

The Lord Jesus Christ though bridges this gap.  He reached out and not only touched sin, but bore it upon Himself at the cross.  Like a person who becomes unclean due to touching a leper, Jesus, for our sake, was made to be sin, so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.

Ponder for a moment the great event of Mount Calvary.  While on the cross, our mighty Lord took the leprosy of sin upon Himself.  More specifically,

“When he took the sins of the whole world upon himself, Christ was no longer an innocent person. He was a sinner burdened with the sins of a Paul who was a blasphemer; burdened with the sins of a Peter who denied Christ; burdened with the sins of a David who committed adultery and murder, and gave the heathen occasion to laugh at the Lord. In short, Christ was charged with the sins of all men, that he should pay for them with his own blood. The curse struck him. The Law found him among sinners. He was not only in the company of sinners. He had gone so far as to invest himself with the flesh and blood of sinners. So the Law judged and hanged him for a sinner.”[1] 

Yes, Christ Jesus not only reached out and touched leprosy; He ultimately took the sin-leprosy of the entire world upon Himself, while hanging on the cross, thus making Himself ostracized for a time.  Due to sin, the Father distanced Himself from Jesus as Christ bore hideous sin and while this sin collapsed in on Him.  Indeed, “the Father compelled by His own holiness, distanced Himself from His Son—a distancing more commonly called damnation.”[2] 

In due course, this leprosy of sin crushed Jesus.

What does this mean for you and for me? 

Whenever you feel remorse for your sin or see sores of sin-leprosy, look to Christ on the cross.  Yes, the faith that has been given to you by the Holy Spirit through the Word goes to meet Jesus, “for it knows itself in the reality of truth to be unworthy of [the Lord’s] goodness, and has nothing on which to depend, except [the Lord’s] highly renowned and loudly praised goodness.”[3]  Yes, faith cries out, “Lord Jesus, Master, have mercy on me!” 

And what meets this cry of faith? 

Pure grace and mercy are there, for Christ Jesus not only reached out and touched leapers but went into the domain of sinners; died; and through this death devoured sin so that the God the Father will never stand afar from you again.  Faith receives the Word of God that cleanses you.

The leper’s word of ‘unclean’ is met with the Lord’s Word ‘clean.’

Now, this is all good news. However, we have yet to talk about gratitude and thankfulness.  Ah, but wait?  Have we not been talking about thankfulness and gratitude?  Yes we have.

Thankfulness and gratitude are rooted and dependent on something outside of themselves, they are dependent on what has been given or bestowed upon us.  And what has been given and bestowed upon us?  Indeed, you have been given Christ; the Savior who is for you.  Yes, Jesus healed the leper; He reached out and touched lepers; He reached out and touched sinners.  Today, we hear that Jesus does the same—for you!  Yes, you are not at a distance.  Yes, the Word declares you clean.  Yes, Jesus bridged the gap for you.  All of this is done for you. 

Baptized Saints, you have a better reason to give thanks than any other group of people.  You have Christ. 

You have eternal life.  You have peace with God.  “We Christians have all this, not because of any special merit or worthiness on our part, but because of the Father’s grace for the sake of His Son Jesus Christ.  We have this because Jesus finished the journey to Jerusalem and to the cross.”[4]

“Enjoy all the riches of God.  Enjoy both the earthly riches and the heavenly treasure.  They are all gifts from our dear Father in Heaven who loves us and sent His Son to save us.  We have good reason to give thanks … not just tomorrow … but every day.  In fact, we look forward to giving thanks for eternity.”

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] Martin Luther, Galatians Commentary.

[2] Francis Rossow, Gospel Handles: Finding New Connections in Biblical Texts (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2001), 241.

[3] Martin Luther, Complete Sermons of Martin Luther: Volume 3 (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 1905), 67.

[4] James T. Batchelor, “Thanksgiving Eve Sermon” http://lcmssermons.com/index.php?sn=3944  (11 November 2014).

You Are Not A Goat, But A Sheep

Text: Matthew 25:31-46

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

It will be a terrible sight to see for some eyes!  Yes, at the end of the age, eyes will see God’s angels and the great Judge coming in full glory, might, and power.  After the great Judge and angels come, individuals will be put on trial and the verdict of hell and destruction will be boldly proclaimed.  Power, beyond human imagination, will be wielded.  Indeed, all nations will be brought before the great Judge, every knee will bow, and there will be no room for resistance.  Truly, there will be a great reckoning when Jesus comes in uncovered glory—when He comes not as a suffering servant but as the powerful, mighty, Lord. 

Dear friends are you ready for this coming judgment, for it is coming?  I kid you not!  I ask you again, are you ready for that great and powerful day of glory?  Are you ready to meet the great Judge?

Maybe a better question to ask is this, “What must one do in order to be ready to meet the great Judge?”

Looking to our Gospel reading from today to glean answers to this question, we see that the great Judge addresses two different groups of people.  He praises one group of individuals for applying clothes, for giving food, and for compassionately caring for the sick.  These are the sheep. 

On the other hand, we see the Judge addressing a different group, not with praise, but with condemnation.  The condemned are those who did not feed the hungry, those who did not cloth the naked, and those who did not care for the sick.  This group is referred to as the goats.

These two separate groups and the Judge’s two different verdicts upon their actions may lead us to conclude that in order to be ready, we must make sure that our ethics are in line, our morality is in tune, and our humanitarian concerns are heightened, for we want to be sheep and not goats.  In other words, if we are going to stand before the great Judge, we could conclude that we have to have everything in order.  We do not want to be damned for our failure to do the right thing. 

Considering this great judgment that Jesus speaks of—this judgment where the deeds of the sheep and goats are recognized—certainly puts things into perspective, does it not?  This final judgment has a way of making us sober and alert as it demonstrates that we will be accountable.  It shows us that we truly exist in a morally significant universe.  Otherwise stated, all of our thoughts, and words, and deeds are not morally insignificant, that is to say, morally neutral.  Yes, these thoughts, words, and deeds have ramifications; they matter.  To put it another way, there is such a thing as right and wrong.  Even though we live in a morally gray world, the final judgment shows us that there is such a thing as black-and-white morals.  That means that even if a sinful choice or action is kept to oneself and does not impact anyone, it still is counted by the Judge.  The Judge knows all things, nothing is hidden before Him.  This means there will be no debating the judge nor will there be cross examination of our thoughts, words, and deed.  Rather everything thought, said, or done will be laid bare before the Judge and a sentence will be passed.  Mankind will have to give an account and the Judge’s hammer will slam down a heavy verdict without any exceptions.

Practically speaking, what this all means is that if there is no Judge and if there will be no final judgment, people can do whatever is right in their own eyes.  Bluntly stated, if there is no Judge and no final judgment, then people can do whatever the hell they want because this ideology indeed leads to hell and is hellish at its core.     

On the other hand, because there will be a final judgment and a final Judge, we can confess that what we do here and now matters and is important.  Things like: respecting authority and honoring parents - matters; preserving the gift of life - matters; honoring marriage and the sanctity of sex - matters; valuing the property of others - matters; defending a neighbor’s reputation - matters; cherishing God’s Word, respecting the Lord’s name, and having no other gods - matters.  It all matters because there is a great judgment coming and a great Judge who will indeed judge all things.  We live in a morally significant world, a world that will be brought to account for its thoughts, words, and deeds.    

We can affirm all of this, for Jesus promises that He will come back to judge the living and the dead.  We can even long for the coming Kingdom of God for justice will be served and things will be made right.  However, all of this talk of the end and being held accountable still doesn’t address the questions of,

 “Will I be ready to stand trial?  Will I be a sheep or a goat?  Have I adequately fed the poor, have I clothed the naked, have I helped the sick enough?” 

Without a doubt, considering the final judgment can most definitely incite fear in us as we too will face the great Judge at the final judgment.  In fact, we can rightly confess that we appreciate and want to uphold what is right and true according to God’s Holy Divine Ten Commandments, while at the same time confessing the harsh reality that we too fail in keeping God’s commandments.  As much as we want to feed the hungry, care for the sick, and cloth the naked, we simply do not do this to our fullest potential.

This can lead to only one conclusion:  we must be goats or quite possibly we are on our way to becoming goats.

Baptized Saints—you, who have ears, stop and listen—you are ‘not’ goats.  You are ‘not’ goats, but sheep! 

But you may say,

“Pastor, how on earth can I be a sheep?  I have not loved the way that I ought; I have failed in thought, word, and deed.  I have not loved my neighbor as myself!  How can I be a sheep for I have not done all of these good works to perfection?  What on earth will I be commended for?”

Baptized Saints, take a moment and consider the sheep’s reaction in our text when the Judge commends them for all of their good works:

·        They hadn’t counted or categorized their deeds.

·        They did not have their works in their memory nor were they aware of these good works.

·        These deeds were not done to gain honor among men or used as a bargaining chip at the great judgment. 

·        There was no pride in their works at all.

·        Essentially, they had no idea that they were serving Christ when they were doing these simple acts of love towards their neighbor.

·        Their works were completely unknown to them!

What does all of this mean? 

It means that at your baptism you were baptized into Jesus' death and resurrection; you were joined to the Lord.  Thus, like the sheep in today’s story, not a single sin of yours or mine will be mentioned or remembered by the Judge at the great judgment!  Not-a-single-one!  The reason why?  The one who will judge you also redeemed you.  Yes, your redemption is in Jesus and yes, it is perfect and complete.  As blood-bought-redeemed-and-ransomed-children-of-God you are forgiven and it is impossible for Jesus to judge you guilty, for the pronouncement of guilt was laid on Jesus already.  Jesus was judged and damned so that He wouldn’t have to judge and damn you!  Because Jesus was judged and damned, He can’t judge and damn you!

But what of all the good works that the Judge compliments the sheep for?  Get this, the Lord only remembers the good works of believers and does not remember their sin.  Yes, because the Lord has created good works for you to walk in and because the Lord forgives you of all of your sins and credits you the righteousness of Christ: what will remain at the great judgment is Jesus Christ crucified for you, as well as everything that the Lord enabled you to will and to do—everything that is good, right, and salutary. 

Baptized Saints, God the Holy Spirit enlightens you, keeps you, and sanctifies you as sheep.  The Lord creates good works for you to walk in, good works that follow you into eternity.  Like salvation, these are the Lord’s gifts to and through you. 

And as previously mentioned, the Lord will not remember your sin but will remember and commend you for every single good work that ‘He’ produced in you, as He led you and guided you. 

Baptized Saints, you who have not done anything; you who will be oblivious at the great judgment to the good works that the Lord is doing in and through; you will receive credit for good works that you did not produce and don’t remember. 

Furthermore, you will not be judged by a judge who is your enemy, but a judge who is your friend, one who bled and die—for you. 

Finally, you are not a goat who will someday accuse, bicker, and argue with the Judge that the goat has done enough; you are not a goat that will attempt to unsuccessfully justify ‘self’ unto damnation. You are not a goat, you are a sheep by grace; a sheep of the King.  That is who you are, which means that the Kingdom of God comes for you, and that is a very, very, good thing to anticipate and look forward to.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

The Master Is Not A Stingy, Harsh, Rough, Jerk!

Text:  Matthew 25:14-30 

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

In today’s Gospel reading we encounter another parable from Jesus.  In this parable, that is (to say) this story, we hear of a master who is planning on going on a long trip.  However, before leaving, the master entrusts his talents—his wealth and assets—to three particular servants.  He gives five talents to one servant, which would be about $5,000,000 in our day and age.  He then gave two talents to another servant, which is about $2,000,000.  And finally he gave one talent to the last servant, which is about $1,000,000. 

Yes, he entrusts these talents—these monetary units of wealth—to three servants, until he would return from his long trip. 

After returning from his long trip, he calls these servants to give an account of what they did with his resources.  The first man showed that he doubled the master’s talents.  The second man came forth and showed that he doubled the talents as well.  The third man, however, came forth and gave the master the original talent that was entrusted to him.  This talent, unlike the other talents, was a bit different.  It was different because it was covered in dirt.  You see, upon originally receiving this talent the servant tossed it in a hole to hide it.  In other words, this third man decided to conceal the talent in the ground for safe keeping.  He didn’t lose a cent, it was returned completely to the master, though it was a bit dirty from being buried in the ground. 

It would be easy for us at this point to grab a hold of our calculators and spreadsheets to compare the amount of worth given to each of these servants, rank their financial returns on these assets, and focus on their profit increase.  Otherwise stated, it would be easy to debate who was the wisest investor among the three servants.  Thus, we could make the main point of this parable sound something like this,

“How much did the servants multiple the master’s resources; how much are you multiplying the Lord’s talents?” 

Yes, it would be easy to make the main focus of this parable focus on how much we have been given by the Lord and how much we are putting these spiritual and physical talents to use. 

There are two problems with this focus though. 

First, it is very tempting to get a yardstick out or a scale and start measuring, comparing, and categorizing the gifts that we have been given and received by faith.  It would be easy to rush to accounting principles to gauge, record, and document everything that we have been given without realizing that five talents, two talents, and one talent are all tremendous amounts already.  In other words, we need to recognize that whether we are dealing with five talents, two talents, or one talent, that a talent is no small chunk of change for an unworthy servant.  Indeed, the Master’s talents, that is (to say), the Lord’s salvation and various gifts that have been given to you and me are poured out upon who?  Yes, upon us sinners; sinners who do not deserve a single talent, let alone deserve to be even classified as a servant; we don’t deserve anything.  Thus, to have any talents at all is tremendous!  When we start comparing the amount of talent we tread upon foolishness.    

The second problem is that this parable is not primarily about the amount of return that was produced by the servants.  You see, was not the servant who gained 2 talents praised equally with the servant who gained 5 talents?  Yes, they were equally praised even though their gain was different! 

So, if this text is not mainly about the amount of talents given and the amount of talents returned, what can we glean from today’s Gospel reading?

Dear friends, do you realize that the Lord loves to pour out grace upon grace, for that is what is done in the parable and that is what is done for us.  Yes, we see that the main point in this parable is the master simply handing over eight-million-bucks to his servants as they await His return.  In other words, the Lord is a tremendous, marvelous, and remarkable giver of talents, a remarkable giver of salvation and other gifts to you and to me.  Truly, truly, salvation is poured out upon you at your baptism, it is spoken to you in the Word, and delivered to you on our tongues in the Lord’s Supper.  Furthermore, you are entrusted with gifts in our vocations to use and to enjoy, and gladly show what we make and do with these great gifts!  

This was the case of two of the servants.  They received talents as a gift to manage and they invested the wealth, even though they were not commanded to invest it.  Truly, these servants were honored and entrusted with this great wealth and property because the master in his generosity turned it all over to them.  When the master returned from being away I get the impression that these two servants were excited to share all that happened as a result of the master’s generous entrusting of gifts to them.

As you have already heard, this was not the case with the one servant though.  No, he hid the treasure, it was stuck in a hole in the ground.  Why did this servant do this?  Listen to his justification,

“Master, I knew you to be a harsh man, reaping where you did not sow, and gathering where you did not scatter seed; so I was afraid and I went and hid your talent in the ground.” 

Did you hear that?  This servant saw the master as a stiff, stingy, rough, harsh, jerk.  Furthermore, because of the way that he saw the master he became afraid, wanted to protect himself, and played it safe.  Think about this for a moment.  The master lavished over $8,000,000 upon his servants; he entrusted this great wealth to them and comes home to hear,

“I played it safe master because you are a stingy, harsh, rough, jerk of a master who I don’t trust and I didn’t want to tic you off any more than you already naturally are.” 

What an insult to the master! 

My friends, lest we become too judgmental of the foolish and wicked servant, may I remind you and me that this is an exact picture of us.  You and I are that man.  Oh, yes, the Lord pours out grace upon grace upon us.  As a result, “Such a bounty is hard to bear for shriveled sinners who won’t be given to but who insist on taking over and getting control.”[1]  Otherwise stated, instead of receiving gifts from the Lord freely and joyfully, we resort to the disposition of the one wicked servant.  Inevitably what happens is that we receive grace and gifts from the Lord—gifts that seem too good to be true—which then results in us taking out yardsticks to measure how much we have received, comparing our stash of gifts to other people, and then insist on getting control over these gifts, as if they are our own personal possessions.  We measure, tally, catalog, and quantify what we receive from the Lord because we begin to believe that we are spiritual and physical owners of the Lord’s gifts rather than receives of the Lord’s gifts.  We think to ourselves,

“The Lord can’t possibly be ‘that’ generous; surely there are limits on His gifts.  Thus we better preserve, monitor, catalog, and conserve what we have been given.  In fact, why don’t we just claim these gifts as if they are our own, that way we can have more control over them; that way we can keep a closer eye on ‘our’ possessions!  Yes, ‘our’ possession; that sounds so much better! 

Dear friends, the Lord is a great giver of gifts.  Everything that we have—including salvation—is pure and total gift from Him.  This means that we are terribly mistaken when we fail to remember that all of these gifts and talents are the Lord’s; we create a different God and break the First Commandment when we do not believe that the Lord lavishes and entrust talents to us to receive, enjoy, and often times use.  Indeed, we do not see the Lord correctly when we hijack the Lord’s gifts and talents as if they are our own possessions and when we fail to see that the Lord is truly a generous, kind, and great master.

Frankly put, “If you make [God] into a hard man who infringes your rights, who demands what He has the right to demand, then that is how you will get it from Him. . . . We make God our enemy when we clutch what we have as our own for ourselves.  Then [God becomes] a threat to us.  Others are, too, against whom we must protect ourselves and what we have.”[2]  This is the way of the servant who hid the talent.  He lived in fear and protected the talent, which resulted in a slothful, idolatrous, hand clinching sinful disposition.  This is the spirit of Cain, the nature of our sinful flesh, it is the way of the old Adam. 

Baptized Saints this is not what God wants.  It is not who God is.  It is not who you are as blood-bought-baptized-washed-beloved-forgiven-servants. 

Baptized Saints our Lord God does not operate like Wall Street.  Our Lord God is not stingy in His gifts to us.  The Lord’s salvation flows freely from Calvary to you, which means that there is no end to His grace, no condition to His grace.  With forgiveness and grace there is no empty bottom to fear.    

“The reason Christ gives gifts to people lie in the fact that He Himself was delivered—delivered into death and damnation for our sins. . . .  As a result of His deliverance into death for our sins, Jesus has ‘delivered us from so great a death’ (2 Cor. 1:10) and ‘has delivered us from the power of darkness’ (Col. 1:13).”[3]

Indeed, this parable really has more to do about how we see the Master than the rates of return that we get for the Master.  It has more to do about the character and disposition of the master towards His servants.

Giver of all we have, forgive us and help us to recognize that truly everything that we own belongs to you.  Teach us to use Your gifts wisely, so that we may be a blessing to others.

What all of this means is that the Lord is not harsh and you do not have to be afraid.  Surely, no need to panic, for Christ-crucified and His gifts are given to you.  No need to be driven by dread, for Christ-crucified and His gifts are free. No need for a yardstick, for Christ-crucified and His gifts cannot be measured, they are too big.  No need to compare with your neighbor, for Christ-crucified and His gifts are yours.

Gifts, gifts, gifts, to you and me.  Small gifts, big gifts, gifts of salvation, gifts in our vocations, all different and unique—all for you.  The Lord “gives so many, so we can share His joy of giving for using and sharing together.  [You who have ears,] enter into the joy of our Lord!  To Him be all our joyful praise through happy, giving, sharing days.”[4]         

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

---

[1] Norman Nagel, Selected Sermon of Norman Nagel (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2004), 252.

[2] Ibid, 252-253.

[3] Francis C. Rossow, Gospel Handles: Finding New Connections in Biblical Texts (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2001), 93.

[4] Norman Nagel, Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel, 254-255.

What Is A Pastor?

Text: Ezekiel 2:1-5

Grace and Peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen.

God is giving Ezekiel a task, setting him apart; He is calling Ezekiel to go to Israel and proclaim the Word.  Basically stated, the Lord established Ezekiel as a prophet. 

Now, with that stated, we need to understand what a prophet is.  I think a common misunderstanding in our day and age is that a prophet is one who solely “tells the future.”  While we certainly see that happening in the Old Testament, a much better description of a prophet is simply one who is sent to proclaim a message, a message on behalf of God. 

Yes, God is consistently in the business of calling people to proclaim His Word, His message.  Moses was called to bring a message to Egypt.  Jonah was called to proclaim a message to Nineveh.  Isaiah was called too and so forth, you get the picture.

As we think about this in two-thousand-fourteen, does God still speak through prophets?  Yes he does, however, not in the way that we would probably think.

As we look to the New Testament we see that the scriptures speak of churches, that is (to say), groups of Christians who call and ordain pastors for the local church.  Furthermore, we see in the scriptures the duties of the Pastor laid forth.  As a result, churches call and ordain pastors to serve in the local church; this has happened for the past two-thousand years.  Thus we can say that the office or role of the pastor is a divinely instituted office prescribed by scripture.  The office is laid forth for the church to have and for men to fulfill. It is laid forth for the Lord’s Word to go forth.   

But what makes a pastor a pastor?  Very simply, a pastor does not become a pastor because of some intrinsic worth or core power.  In other words, pastors do not have special DNA or special divine powers.  Pastors are no closer to God than laity and are sinners like any member of the congregation, if not more.  So what then makes a pastor?  What makes a pastor a pastor is a calling on behalf of the local church.  Churches, as the bride of Christ, call. 

You my friends, as believers, make up the church.  The church is not a building but the gathering of believers around the Word and Sacraments of God.  You therefore, as the Church of God, located in various places have the responsibility and power to call a person to the office of pastor.  Thus, a pastor is only a pastor when they have been called by a local church to be a shepherd.  Therefore my friends, there is no such thing as self-appointed pastors. 

When I was starting seminary, someone asked me why I was going to seminary and I replied to them saying, “I was called.”  Responding they said, “You are not called for you haven’t been called by a church.”   This offended me greatly, but do you know what?  They were right!  Just as God called the people directly in the Old Testament to be a messenger of the Word, God works through His church, to call pastors to proclaim the Word to the flock & beyond. 

So, now that we understand that prophets of the Old and Pastors today need to be ‘called,’ what are they called to?

In my humble opinion, the expectations of a pastor are some of the most misunderstood things in the church today.  Just what does a pastor do and what is he called to?  I came across a very funny job description for the ideal pastor.  Here is what it says,

The ideal pastor preaches exactly twenty minutes with an hour's content.  He condemns sin, but never offends anyone.  He works from 8 am to midnight, and also serves as the church janitor. He makes $40 a week, wears good clothes, and donates $30 a week to the church.  He is 29 years old and has 40 years of experience.  He is a strong leader, yet also follows everyone's advice.  He can effectively relate to all teenagers and spends all of his time with the elderly.  He is tall and short, thin and heavyset, and has one brown eye and one blue eye.  He makes 15 house calls a day, regularly visits the hospital, and is always in his office.

Now, we can all get a good chuckle out of the previous job description.  I am sure many of you can relate to similar expectations in your own field of work.  However, in all seriousness though, what is the pastor called to?  If we could summarize the office of pastor into a simple idea, theme and job description, what would it look like?  What was the primary thrust of the prophet of the Old Testament?  Simply put, the pastor is to be the shepherd of the sheep.  He shepherds, protects and feeds them not by his own strength or wisdom but feeds the sheep and directs the sheep by the Word.  A pastor’s main job is to be a servant of the Words of God, God’s Word as printed in the Bible. 

An older pastor once sent out an email to a bunch of young seminarians. (Note: seminarians are those that are in training for ministry). David Petersen said to them,

You are a servant of the Word.  Follow Jesus.  The Way of the Cross is a lonely, narrow path but it leads to heaven.  Be more afraid of God than you are of the people.  It is not the one who signs the check who provides daily bread.  Do the right thing.  Tell the Truth.  Suffer the consequences.  That is what a servant of Christ does.  

It is the Preaching Office.  Don't forget that.  Your relationship to the congregation is the same as the prophets to Israel.  Work on teaching and converting your own people-- which includes scores of folks not on the books.  Preach the Gospel to them -- from the pulpit, the podium, the bedside, and behind the desk.  They come looking for marital advice?  Tell them about Jesus dying for them.  They come looking for sympathy and a listening ear?  Tell them about Jesus dying for them.  They have a new baby, lost their jobs, are afraid of retirement?  Tell them about Jesus dying for them.  No matter what the circumstances, what the situation, you preach Christ crucified.  Never compromise the simple Truth that has saved you.

Believe your own preaching.  Jesus died also for you.  He called you to this Ministry.  He knows what he is doing.  As good or as bad as it gets, it will not last forever.  He is coming back to claim His own.

Indeed, the main job of a pastor is to proclaim the Word of God to his flock.  He is to proclaim the Word, not his opinion.  The pulpit is tied to the Word of God and the pastor is called to preach the Word.  The pastor only has authority when he is preaching the Word of God and not the opinion of man.  Furthermore the pastor has no jurisdiction apart from the Word. 

There is a temptation in the church these days to excuse the spoken Word in exchange for deeds.  The cry is, “We don’t want creeds/words, but deeds.”  My friends, while it is important for us to serve our neighbor, we can never forsake the Word of God.  As human beings we are prone to wander and prone to leave the God that we love.  Therefore, we need to hear daily and especially in the midst of the church, God’s Word.  We need the Word to stand from the outside—in, speaking to us about our human condition of sin and also God’s solution, the forgiveness of sins found and purchased in Christ for us.  We need someone to give us a report from the Word, we need the authoritative Word to stand outside of us and above us to tell us how things actually are. 

That’s right, we don’t need good advice, good techniques and good ideas to make us better parents, better spouses and better friends, for if a pastor’s message centers solely on telling parishioners to: yield more, pray more, care about unbelievers more, read the Bible more, get involved in the church more, love their spouse and kids more…, parishioners will develop the following narrative, ‘I wonder how I am doing in my life, my yielding, my memorization work, my prayers, my zeal, my sermon application and my witnessing?’ Even though these are good virtues, the narrative is turned inward to self and the Gospel is assumed.  Therefore, Christ’s church needs to be pointed outward to Christ. 

Indeed, we need a word outside of us.  We need God’s Word of Law announced to us to reveal sin, show us where we have been deceived and indicate to us where we have injured our neighbors.  We also need God’s Word of Forgiveness declared to us so that we might hear that we are forgiven, that we are declared righteous for Christ’s sake, that the guilt has been removed, that there is no condemnation for us in Christ, etc… 

The reason why the church calls pastors to proclaim the Word is that the message of the Cross is the power of God.  In Genesis chapter 1 we read and see that God is speaking the World into existence out of nothing.  God speaks, “Let there be….” And there was.  Out of nothing God makes something and He does so by simply speaking, His Word.  Through God’s Word He makes all things out of nothing.  There is power in the Word of God!  The same word that created the world is the same Word that creates and grants faith to you and me. (Rom. 10:17)  The same Word that created the world is the same Word that creates and sustains the church. 

Pastors are called to proclaim the Word because in the Word of God everything hinges.  Therefore, my friends hear this Word today, this Word that is for you:

• “Be of good cheer, my son. Your sins are forgiven.”
• “The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.”
• “Fear not, little flock. It is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”
• “Come to Me, all you who are heavy laden. Take My yoke upon you, for My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”
• “And He, when He comes, will neither break the bruised reed, nor quench the smoldering wick.”
• “When You return, remember me.” “I tell you, this day you shall be with Me in paradise.”
• “It is finished!”
• “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us . . .”
• “. . . He Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree . . .”
• “God made Him to be sin who Himself knew no sin . . .”
• “. . . for in Christ Jesus you are all sons of God, through faith. For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ.”
• “For by grace you are saved, through faith, and that [faith in Jesus is] not of yourselves, but it is a gift of God, lest any man should boast.”
• “And to the man who does not work but trusts the One who justifies the wicked, his faith is counted as if it were righteousness.”
• “For we maintain that a man is justified by faith, apart from works of the law.”
• “. . . knowing a man is not justified by works of the law but through faith in Jesus Christ.”
• “But now a righteousness of God has been manifested apart from the law, . . . the righteousness of God through faith in Jesus Christ for all who believe.
• “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
• “There is now, therefore, no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”

May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.