Uncomfortable Words

Text: Mark 7:31-37 and Romans 10:9-17

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

They brought a deaf and tongue-tied man to Jesus and asked Jesus to lay His hands on him.  So, fulfilling the request, Jesus put His fingers in the man’s ears and saliva on the man’s tongue, and said, “Be Opened!”  And at the command of Jesus’ word, the man’s ears were immediately opened to hear, and his tongue was immediately freed to speak.  

Now, this amazing miracle should not catch us off-guard for this is not the first time that Jesus – by His spoken Words – did the impossible.  For example, in the fourth chapter of Mark, we read about Jesus rebuking the raging sea, saying, “Peace! Be still!” And that wild sea bowed to the command of Jesus’ Word. 

And who can forget that encounter Jesus had with the man who was demon possessed.  Like the mighty raging sea, and the deafness of the man, these demons too encountered the powerful Word of Jesus and were kicked out of the demon possessed man. 

The point being is this: when Jesus speaks, things happen.  Waves bow down, demons shutter, diseases run, and sickness submits!  That is right; the Word of Christ does stuff!  The Word of Jesus is powerful.

 

And here is a key point for us to take note of: the same Word of Jesus that was spoken to the sick, the demoniacs, and the storms in the New Testament, is the same Word spoken by the prophets in the Old Testament.  Indeed, Jesus is the author of all of the Scriptures, which means that the Word of Christ was not only spoken in the Old Testament and New Testament times, but also spoken today in our time, as Pastors and Christians simply preach, teach, and confess the Bible. 

But if this powerful Word of Christ is accessible in our day and age, why are we Christians in America sometimes so hesitant to proclaim the Word of Jesus and so resistant to hearing it?  Why is it that we have more Bibles now, than ever before in history and are Biblically illiterate?  If Jesus’ powerful Word comes to us in the Bibles and in sermons in churches, why the neglect; why the apathy?      

I believe the answer is quite simple.  We would rather have our ears tickled.  Yes, we would rather have our ears tickled than challenged.  We would rather have our ears entertained than confronted.  We would rather have our ears comforted than dared. 

You see, we all like to hear things that make us happy. We like to hear things that produce satisfaction for us.  We want to hear things that allow our thinking to be reinforced.  We want to remain unchanged. We do not want to be interrogated, and we do not want to be shaped by a word or a message that contradicts us.  So, we either cover our ears in protest, or we run from a challenging message to escape. Sometimes we even attempt to replace a thought-provoking message with something else that tickles and entertains our ears.  In other words, we want to hear things that agree with us – messages that tell us what we already think.  Nobody likes to be wrong, and nobody likes to be judged.   

Now, we can somewhat accomplish this selective hearing when it comes to politics or sports.  We can simply tune out the television or radio programs that disagree with us. However, the reality is that the Word of Christ comes to us contrary to our thinking and contrary to our ambitions, whether we like it or not.  You see, the Word of Christ is not our Word but Christ’s Word and because it is Christ’s Word, it will not always agree with us and it will not always make sense to us.  And it may even rub us the wrong way.       

  

And so we make sure not to share the Word of Christ because if it makes us uncomfortable, it will surely make our neighbors uncomfortable.  And if they are uncomfortable, they will think that we are weird. 

And as far as hearing the Word of Christ?  If we are not closing our ears to the Word or running away from it, we become clever by trying to tone it down.  In other words, we petition and request that we update the Bible’s language to a more twenty-first-century mindset.  You know what I am talking about.  We want the language softened a bit – to make it less offensive.  For example, instead of the word ‘sin,' we want to use the word ‘mistake’ instead.  And the word ‘hell,’ that makes us squirm, so we replace it with the words, ‘place of the dead.’ And what about the word, ‘suffering?’ That word is replaced with the word, ‘inconvenience.’  These are just a few examples.  The point being is that we end up substituting different words for Biblical Words, to tame the Word of Christ – to tone it down.  We change it to make it more palatable.      

The only problem with this is that when we change Christ’s Word, we are not merely toning it down but we are actually exchanging Christ’s Words for our words.  As a result, we do not end up preaching, teaching, and hearing the Word of Christ, but end up hearing the word of men.  And unlike the Word of Christ, the words of men are not powerful in the way Christ’s Words are powerful.   

Frankly stated, without the Word of Christ, faith is not possible.  And if faith is not possible, there is no salvation.  And if there is no faith and no salvation, there is no church, but just a bunch of people gathered together listening to the ramblings of mankind – words that simply sound religious but are nothing more than empty pious noises. 

. . .

Dear friends, Christ’s powerful Words do not allow our thinking, ideas, and opinions to stand but destroy and scatter everything.  The Word of Christ takes everything captive. It destroys and crucifies whatever is in us that is not of His Word.  He does not allow anything to remain in us, which is all very good, even though it sometimes hurts. 

. . .

Christ’s powerful Words do not leave us utterly destroyed and scattered, though.  There is more! Yes, there is more to the Word of Christ.  The Word of Christ not only destroys, but it also creates.  The Word of Christ creates faith in us! 

Think about this for a moment.  The Lord who spoke the world into existence in the Book of Genesis – created the World through speaking – is the same Lord who spoke healing and faith into that poor-deaf-mute man.  And the same Lord, who spoke faith and healing into the deaf and mute man, is the same Lord (with the same Word) who spoke faith into existence in you! 

You see, we have all been where the deaf man was.  We were deaf to the Word of Christ, and our tongues were tied too.  But someone loved us enough to bring us to Jesus, to place us before Jesus and beg Jesus to heal our deafness and release our tongues.  And so, for many of us, this happened in our Baptisms when our parents picked us up and placed us under the waters of Baptism, where the mighty Word of Christ and the name of our Triune God was spoken over our lives.  And so, as helpless babes, we were given ears to hear and tongues to confess. Nothing would ever be the same again. 

Baptized Saints, this is why we are people of the book.  This is why we are about Christ’s Word! This is why all of our ministries are centered around the Word – the Bible – and never apart from the Word.  You see, whenever the Word of Christ is spoken to you – whether in a sermon, a devotion, a hymn, or straight from the Bible – Jesus Himself is present and speaking His powerful Word to you.  And the very Word of Christ that can open the ears of a deaf man is the same Word that creates and sustains special ears of faith in you, so that you might hear rightly!  Yes, to hear of your sin and to especially hear that for Christ’s sake all of your sins are forgiven, is what the Word does for you.  The Word grants you repentance and creates and sustains faith in you!

And because faith comes from hearing the Word of Christ and not from the words of mankind, we are captive to Christ’s Word.  Yes, as Christians and as a church, we are captive to the Bible, for we know that through the Bible, Christ speaks to us, opening our ears to hear and opening our mouths to confess His praises.   

This is the beauty of the Word of Christ!  Faith comes from hearing.  Through the proclaimed Word we are cleansed.  

 

It is the Word, always the Word of Christ, for you and for me. 

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

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Death Is Dead

Text: Mark 16:1-8

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

The women who came to the tomb of Jesus that Sunday morning long ago, left with a combination of emotions.  They were trembling; that is to say, physically shaking with fear and amazement.  In other words, they were trembling in ecstasy and their mind was thrown out of its normal state.  Their whole disposition was one of being alarmed and in terror, so much that they fled the tomb with a combination of reverence and awe.   

Now, this may strike us as a bit odd, but if you and I put ourselves in their shoes, it makes sense. 

You see, two days earlier the women had just witnessed death devour and chew upon Jesus Christ in a most horrific way.  He was flogged.  He was beaten.  The sky turned black.  He was crucified.  He was pierced.  The earth shook.  And then after all of the events of Good Friday, Jesus was put into a peaceful tomb.  That is, until they came that Easter morning.  When they came to the tomb, the large stone had been rolled back.  And they encountered an Angel of the Lord with the news that Jesus had risen.  Then in that instant, they were faced with the reality that all the harshness of death was undone.  The nails, the flogging, the cross, the crown of thorns, the beatings – all of these tools of death were undone and rendered useless, for Jesus was raised from the dead.  The news of the resurrection along with the angel and the empty tomb and the reality of death’s undoing were such an extreme change and such a great adjustment to their eyes and minds that it drove them to an overwhelming terror mixed with amazement and awe.

We must keep in mind this day that overcoming death is no small matter.  Death is a big deal.  Death devours people in this world one by one and enjoys the fear that it produces.  Death bites into children, men, women, grandmas, grandpas, healthy and unhealthy people alike.  Death shows no mercy; it shows no favoritism.  And when it bites down, it does not let go.  It tears into mankind; laughing while it destroys and smiling at the grief that it causes. 

Death is a sure thing in this life.  We all know what happens when it strikes.  There is finality.  There is an end.  Death is the great period of life.  There is no surviving death.  There is no escape from death.  There is no reversing death in this life under the sun.   

BUT!  Things are different with Jesus Christ and that is what the women were confronted with when they came to the tomb that Easter Sunday long ago.  In other words, as we heard on Good Friday when death bit into Jesus, it thought that Jesus was just like anyone else; however, little did death know that Jesus was sent into the world to destroy death.  Yes, Jesus was sent to undo the power of death – to change everything forever.  

So how did Jesus change death forever?  He changed everything forever by offering Himself up to death.  He gave up His spirit.  He gave Himself into the jaws of death.  And so, death took Jesus.  Death chomped down hard on Christ.  However, never had death bitten down on such a deadly person though.  You see, Jesus was no ordinary man.  He was not just some ordinary religious teacher, but He was the God-Man.  That means that death bit down on not just a mere mortal, but death bit down on the God-Man Jesus Christ and then it tried to swallow and digest the God-Man Jesus.

Sometime on Saturday night, though, death began to feel unsettled.  This Jesus whom death devoured was different.  He did not sit quite right in the belly of death.  Indeed, things were certainly not right.  The gut pains increased for death.  The aches and grumbling in death’s stomach got worse and worse until death grabbed its stomach and yelled out in pain, for there in death’s stomach ruptured a large hole.  Yes, death’s stomach ruptured; it ripped open. And from that hole in death’s stomach, Jesus Christ came forth – alive, victorious, and as the victor! 

Dear friends, today we hear that the stone was rolled away and that the tomb was empty.  We hear with the women of that Easter Sunday long ago that Jesus is not in the stomach of death!  Jesus is not dead.  Jesus rose.  Jesus defeated death.  Jesus is alive.  Death does not have the final word.  Life is the final word! 

There has never been a better announcement in the history of the world than this news: Jesus Christ is risen; He is risen indeed!  He is not dead, but alive!   

Take a moment and consider this news. 

Let this news come into your ears and consider what it means. 

Hear this news that Jesus has been raised from the dead – hear it with the women who heard it that Easter Sunday for the first time long ago.

Do not just let it slide over your mind… but pause… and consider the ramifications of this news.  Jesus died on the cross, but death could not keep Him.  Death was powerless to keep Jesus. 

Dear friends, because your Jesus is risen, your death is undone! 

Because your Jesus is risen, death has a huge hole in its stomach. 

Because your Jesus is risen, death’s jaws are fractured. 

Because your Jesus is risen, you and I can confess with boldness today:

Death has been swallowed up in victory![1] 

Oh, and it gets better!  We can also taunt death!  Yes, we can taunt and mock death.  No, we must taunt and mock death this Easter Sunday! Because Jesus is risen we can ask of death:

“O death, where is your victory; death, where is your sting?”[2] Christ is risen and you are abolished, where is your power now!  Christ is risen and the demons are cast down, where are your fans O death?  Christ is risen and the angels rejoice.  Christ is risen, and life is freed, what are you going to do about that O pathetic death?    

We can even laugh at death! Yes, we can laugh at death!  Because Jesus is risen, we can laugh at death saying: 

O Death, "I admit that I deserve death and hell, what of it? For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction on my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, Son of God, and where He is there I shall also be!”[3]  You’ve got nothin’ on me, for I am baptized into Christ!

Blessed Baptized Saints, because Jesus is risen, we do not have to be afraid of death anymore.  Even though we return to ashes when we die, we know that because of Jesus, we have the sure and certain hope that we will be resurrected to eternal life.  The Lord Jesus Christ “will change our lowly bodies so that they will be like His glorious body!”[4]  You and I can count on that!    

And so this day, we rejoice that our Lord Jesus is risen.  We rejoice that the tomb is empty.  We rejoice that Jesus has defeated death and we even mock and laugh at death this day. 

All of this is the sure confidence of a Christian – this is your sure confidence!  Because our Jesus is risen, we know that nothing living or dead, angelic or demonic; nothing today or tomorrow, high or low, thinkable or unthinkable – absolutely nothing can get between us and God’s steadfast and sure love.  

Blessed Baptized Saints, Alleluia! Alleluia! Christ is risen!  He is risen indeed!  Alleluia! 

---

[1] The Apostle Paul (1 Corinthians 15:51-57)

[2] Ibid.

[3] Martin Luther quote.

[4] Pastoral Care Companion (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2007), 134.


Picture by: www.fullofeyes.com

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Giggling At Death, For We Are God's Own Children

The following 'Funeral Sermon' is posted with family permission.  May the Lord give to the family of Joyce McDaniel, and all who mourn, comfort in their grief and a sure confidence in the Lord's loving care. 

Text: Mark 10:13-16

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

Well, dear friends, it appears that we are back to where we started.  At least that is true for Joyce.  Yes, with Joyce we are back to where she started.  You see, right before we came into the sanctuary, the family placed a white funeral pall on the casket, much like the white dress that was most likely put on Joyce when she was first baptized; a white pall and a white dress that represent the cleansing of baptism.  And then we had a prayer in the fellowship hall recalling the fact that Joyce was baptized.  And then as we entered the sanctuary, we sang a song focusing on the gift of baptism.  And then here in the sanctuary, we read from Romans chapter 6, in remembrance of baptism.  Indeed, it is almost as if we were intentionally returning to October 5^th of 1930 when Joyce received the gift of Holy Baptism.  It seems that we are making a full circle in today’s service going from 2017 back to 1930 when Joyce was baptized as a little baby.   It seems we are going back to where everything started for Joyce.

While it may seem like we are circling around – going back to 1930 – truth be told when Joyce was baptized there was never an immediate benediction after her baptism as if her baptism was some sort of event trapped in history.  In other words, after Joyce’s baptism, there was never a nice neat little bow placed at the end as if to communicate that the work and effects of baptism were done.  But rather, in Joyce’s baptism service things were left open.  What this all means is that today’s funeral service picks up right where things left off on October 5^th of 1930. It is almost as if all of this is intended to show that baptism runs all the way through a person’s life.  Dear friends this is the whole point that I wish to make, baptism does run through a person’s whole life, from the cradle to the grave. 

And so today we remember that the Lord God who saved and rescued Joyce from the condemnation of sin in that baptism in 1930 is the same Lord God who has held her for 86 years and rescues her now from the sting of death in 2017; all because He claimed her as a child in baptism and kept her as His child unto her last breath. 

Now, not only is this good news for Joyce, but it should grant all of us a tremendous amount of assurance this day.  Assurance that the Kingdom of God belongs to children, that is to say, it belongs to those who receive the Kingdom of God like a little child. 

Dear friends, Joyce is in the Kingdom of God, because she is a baptized child of God.  And to be a child of God is to know that we have absolutely nothing to offer God, but our sin. That is to say; to be a child of God is to have nothing but emptiness for God to fill.  To be a child of God is to be helpless, not to be able to do anything but to simply receive what is giving as a gift. 

I think Joyce’s favorite hymn – Rock of Ages – captures what this means best, what it means to be a helpless child. The 3^rd Stanza says,

          Nothing in my hand I bring;

          Simply to the cross I cling.

          Naked, come to Thee for dress;

          Helpless, look to Thee for grace;

          Foul, I to the fountain fly;

          Wash me, Savior, or I die.

Being a child of God is not about being innocent, but it is about being a helpless sinner who is clothed in the righteousness of Jesus.  It is about us knowing that there is nothing that any of us can do to inherit the Kingdom of God, but rather that we simply receive it like little children.  And as we know, little children have not done anything to earn the Kingdom of God. 

In case you might be worried, you should know that the Lord Jesus is well aware of the fact that we are helpless and inferior.  He is well aware of the reality that we sin in thought, word, and deed.  He is well aware that we are spiritually poor-oppressed-beggars.  He is well aware that we can’t pull ourselves up by our bootstraps.  He is well aware that we are powerless to overcome the great sting of death.  However, because of His compassion, He looks at Joyce, He looks at me, and He looks at you, and in His eyes, sees children of extraordinary great value.  We are so valuable to Him that He dies for sinners like Joyce, He dies for sinners like me, and He dies for sinners like you… and considers it well worthwhile. 

Indeed, Jesus dies for us, and then during one of the times when we were most helpless, the Lord God places His name upon us in baptism.  Yes, when we were unable to do anything, as poor helpless babies, the Lord God snatches us from the kingdom of darkness and puts us into the Kingdom of His Son by washing us and clothing us in the robe of Christ’s righteousness that covers all of our sins.  

But as we have already heard, the Lord God does not stop there.  He abides with us and then before we know it, in the most dangerous times of our entire life – on our death beds – the Lord does not forsake us in our helplessness.  Oh no, He does not disqualify us from the Kingdom, but rather, because we are buried with Him in baptism and raised anew in Him, death cannot end our gladness.  Yes, because we are baptized into Christ sin can disturb our soul no longer.  Because we are baptized into Christ, when we die we inherit paradise.    

And so, today we can smile with assurance, not because we have lost Joyce, but we can smile because we know that baptism has the divine strength to give immortal life to Joyce and us.  We can even laugh and giggle like little children who have just won a championship game – we can laugh and giggle at the devil because his power has become unraveled.  We can stare into the deep cold grave and snarl our faces in a childish rebellion because we know that death does not have the final word, for we are God’s own children. 

God’s own children, we gladly say it, for we are baptized into Christ. 

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

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Why Was Jesus Born (Part 1)

 Text: Mark 10:42-45

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

Why was Jesus born?  Yes, why was Jesus born?

It is a simple question to ask this evening. It is not only a simple question but an important question for us to consider, especially during this Advent Season.  Indeed, it is a question that should be asked every Christmas Eve as we celebrate and ponder the story of Mary and Joseph, the journey to Bethlehem, the manger, and the birth of Jesus. 

Considering this simple question a bit more, it can be a difficult question to answer at times. For example, people try to personally answer this question for themselves and end up with all sorts of different answers.  One of the answers that may come to our minds is that Jesus came to be worshipped and adored and served!  Isn’t that what the wise men came to Jesus to do?  Does not our modern nativity art depict the animals and shepherds in the stable bowering before the babe in reverence? 

While it is true that the wise men and shepherds worshiped Jesus, it is not correct to say that Jesus came to humanity to be served.  But rather, it is the other way around.  Jesus came to serve humanity.  Remember how it was, on the night when Jesus was betrayed, that our Lord wrapped a towel around Himself, took water and washed His disciples feet? That is shocking, that the Lord would take upon Himself such a role of humility. The Apostle Peter is offended that the Lord would do such a thing. Peter and the disciples should be serving Jesus, not the other way around, but this is not how it is with Jesus.

So, because Jesus came not to be served, but to serve us, we still have only answered a portion of our question of why Jesus was born.  We know that He came to serve, but how does He serve us?  In answering this some believe that Jesus was born to serve us by giving encouragement to humanity’s pursuit of whatever makes a person happy – to be like a Christian Mascot.  Others believe that Jesus was born to impart wise tips for wise living – to be nothing more than a very good religious teacher.  Others believe that Jesus was born to reduce things like sadness, un-fulfillment, and stress – to be some therapist for them.  Some think He was born to help with the liberation of oppressed people from unjust economic, political, and social systems.  If not all of these, then maybe He was born to be that shining example of what the good moralistic life looks like – some moral example to inspire us.  Or maybe He was born to give new laws and rules – rules that are more up-to-date than the Old Testament Ten Commandments.  Maybe all of these examples are wrong and maybe Jesus was born to be that comfort blanket for humanity – to be a safe space where people can run to when life gets them down or when they are triggered. 

So who is right?  What is the answer to ‘Why was Jesus born?’  Was He born to be a mascot, a wise teacher, a therapist, a social and political liberator, a shining example, a safe space for triggered people, or something else?

Truth be told, the question of ‘why was Jesus born’ is not a question for you or me to answer, but rather, it is a question that is answered by the testimony of the Holy Scriptures.  And frankly, as the Holy Scriptures answer this question, we find out that Jesus was not born to serve as a mascot or a wise teacher or a therapist or a social and political liberator or a shining example or a safe space for triggered people.  None of these are correct.  The reason why none of these are correct is that none of these views of Jesus see Him serving mankind by giving His life as a ‘ransom,’ as we have heard in our Gospel reading.  None of these views understand Christ as one who deals with the predicament of sin, death, and the devil.

Dear friends, you and I – along with humanity – need a Savior to serve us by ransoming us from sin, death, and the devil.  We do not need a mascot or a therapist or a social and political liberator or a shining example, for these views of Jesus do nothing about humanity’s predicament!  We are in need of a Savior who will serve us by forgiving us of our sins – rescuing us from the hell that we deserve!  As was previously mentioned, all of these other views of Jesus do not portray a Savior who came to pay for our sins and rescue us from sin, death, and the devil. 

Therefore, why was Jesus born?  He was born not to be served but to serve you and me by being a ransom.  He was born to die and rise from the grave.  He was born to accomplish forgiveness for you. He was born to accomplish a resurrection for you. 

More specifically, this Jesus was born so that He could stand in your place.  He was born so that He could walk through the wilderness of depravity on your behalf. He was born so that He could conquer the temptations that you so easily succumb to. He was born so that He could stand in your place in every way, drinking the vile cup of your suffering and sin. He was born so that He could stumble up a lonely hill and be displayed on a bloody cross. He was born so that His body could be pierced, so that blood and water could be poured out for you… for each and every one of you. He was born so that the earth might quake and so that the curtain could be torn in two.  He was born so that He could declare from His cross, ‘It is finished!’ All your sins have been atoned for.

Indeed, Jesus was born to serve you and me.  That is what Jesus came to do. He came to serve us, to save us, to rescue us but the Lord does not stop serving us there.

After the Lord Jesus gave His last will and testament, the Lord’s Supper, He asks His disciples a question, “Who would you rather be: the one who eats the dinner or the one who serves the dinner?”  We know the answer to this; the customer is always right.  We know that the servant is there to serve, to give you what you need. And that is the profound truth about Jesus.  He came to serve us on the cross and He is still among us as the one who serves us in the Word and Sacraments, every single time that we open his Word, hear His Word preached, and receive His body and blood in, with, and under the bread and wine. 

This is the Jesus who serves you.  He is the Servant that you and I do not deserve, but certainly need. He is the Servant who is for you. He is the one who has drawn near to you in His Word to reveal Himself to you, so that you might receive Him by faith and that you might be His own. This is the one who was born for you: Christ crucified and resurrected, the only one who forgives sin and grants everlasting life.

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

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A Savior For The Helpless

The following 'Funeral Sermon' is posted with family permission.  May the Lord give to the family of Vicent Olson, and all who mourn, comfort in their grief and a sure confidence in the Lord's loving care.

Text: Mark 10:13-16

Donna, Robert, Crystal, Roger, Darci, Debra, Rodney, Sandy, grandchildren, family, and friends, grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are assembled this morning because of one man; a man known by many of us, a man who loved many, and a man who especially embraced the helpless, the needy, the insignificant, and the sinful.  That man is obviously, Jesus Christ. 

Yes, we are gathered here this day because Jesus Christ has redeemed our brother Vince Olson.  Jesus has forgiven Vince of all of his sin, claimed Vince as His own, and promised to resurrect Vince from the grave at the last day.  We are here this day because we need to hear in this moment of our grief that Jesus Christ has not, will not, and cannot forsake Vince that Jesus was with Vince in his earthly life and is with him in death. 

This last Saturday, Vince took his last breath and his heart slowly drifted away; however, as this happened, Christ Jesus took our beloved Vince into His arms, laid His hands upon Vince, and blessed Him with rest of His soul in paradise. 

The reason why we can know this to be true is that Jesus Christ Himself has told us that the Kingdom of God belongs to little children, children like Vince. 

But we may say to ourselves; Vince was 91 years old; he was hardly a child.  Yes, it is true that Vince was removed from childhood by about 90 some years; however, we hear in the Gospel of Matthew chapter eighteen that we adults are to change and become like little children if we are ever to enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  Indeed, unless we change and become like children, we will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven. 

What does this mean, though?  Dear friends, it means that it is not the strength of our faith, the power of our good works, the splendor of our reputations, or the supremacy of our abilities that gain us access to the Kingdom of God, but rather, it is childlike helplessness.  That is to say; Jesus chooses to redeem, forgive, and save those that become like helpless children – that is to say, those who know that they are sinners in need of a Savior.  It is most certainly true; the Lord chooses not to forsake helpless sinners like me, like you, and like Vince.

As you all know, Vince was a gentle soul.  He had a kind disposition and a quiet, compassionate voice.  I say this not to draw attention to Vince’s character, but to draw attention to Vince’s helplessness.  You see, Vince knew that He was a sinner in need of a Savior.  He knew that he could not make it through this life on his own.  He knew that he was like a child – a child that needed help to make it to and through those pearly gates – as they say.  So, Vince in his childlike helplessness trusted in another.  He trusted in Jesus Christ, the Savior of sinners, the Lord of life – His Lord, His Redeemer, His refuge, His strength. In fact, in the last moments of his life, Vince did not boast about himself.  He did not look to his past accomplishments. He did not even look to the power of his will, but rather, he sang on his death bed with his beloved Donna. With a throat that had been damaged by hospital tests, he sang the following,

And when I think that God, his Son not sparing, sent him to die, I scarce can take it in, that on that cross my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin.  Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee: How great Thou art!  How great thou art!

Indeed, we are here this day at this funeral service because we need to hear about the surpassing value of knowing Christ.  We need to hear, believe, and trust in the same Savior that Vince trusted in – Jesus Christ.  We need to hear the same thing that Vince heard on his death bed, that we have a righteousness, not of our own, but a righteousness found in Jesus Christ – a righteousness given to those in need of grace. We need to hear about Jesus Christ and the power of Jesus’ resurrection – a resurrection that guarantees our resurrection.  We need to hear all of this as children of the heavenly Father. 

What we learn from our brother Vince and our scripture lessons this morning is that we need to be brought to the status of childlike faith.  We need to be stripped of our attempts of being self-sufficient and be reduced to a helpless, dependent, and needy childlike status, for this is so very good.  Why is this good, though?  This is good because when we are brought from a position of strength and self-sufficiency to a position of helplessness, we are then freed to look outside of ourselves.  When we are brought to a position of realizing that we can do nothing about our sinful condition and death itself, we can then hear that we have a heavenly Father who cares for us, who has absolved our sins, and who has triumphed over death. 

Our brother Vince was a child of the heavenly Father.  He did not have to struggle to get himself in a good position for having a relationship with God. He did not have to craft ingenious ways of explaining his position to Jesus. He did not have to create a pretty face for himself, and he did not have to achieve any state of spiritual feeling or intellectual understanding before the Lord.  All Vince did was happily receive Jesus and Jesus’s love.  All Vince did was receive the gift of the kingdom, for Jesus came to Vince and received Vince into His arms at his baptism and held him some 91 years – especially at the very end. 

Dear friends, those who insist that they are not helpless sinners will never enter the Kingdom of Heaven.  On the other hand, those who are helpless, dependent sinners – those who are empty handed children depending on the Lord – are the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven, for the Lord does not loathe children, and He does not despise childlike faith.  Oh no, He does not reject empty handed childlike sinners, but in His mighty arms, He accepts them and envelops them in His mighty strength. 

Dear friends, you who feel helpless this day, you who feel the pain of loss this morning, you who have been brought to the status of a child with empty hands, hear and receive the good news of the Gospel, news that is especially for you this day: neither life nor death shall ever sever children like Vince and you from the Lord, for you are given the Lord’s grace. 

Hear and receive this day the good news of the Gospel: though the Lord giveth and the Lord taketh, the Lord God does not abandon his children, for they are the center of His love. 

Hear and receive this day the good news of the Gospel: the Lord gathers His children in this life and especially at death to preserve them pure and holy.

Hear and receive this day the good news of the Gospel: the Lord promises a resurrection of His children.  At the last day, a trumpet shall sound, and Vince will rise alive with a new body, unto life everlasting.

Take comfort this morning dear friends.  Our beloved Vince did not have to climb.  He did not have to huff and puff. He did not have to try and earn the Kingdom of God, but rather, it pleased our Father to give him the kingdom, and it pleases the Father to give you the kingdom this day as well, through the promises of His Word. 

Take comfort this morning that the Lord does not leave his children – children like Vince –, but He meets His children to lavish grace upon grace so that we might all sing,  ‘Then sings my soul, my Savior God, to Thee: How great Thou art!  How great thou art!’

Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling and to present you blameless before the presence of his glory with great joy, to the only God, our Savior, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and forever. Amen.

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