But Pastor, I Don't Need To Go To Church To Have Faith!

Text: Isaiah 55:10-13

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

We all know how significant rain is in the life of farming.  Every summer after seeding, it is the same.  Farmers look to the skies for dark blue clouds.  Indeed, after the seeds are planted, there is an anticipation for the smell of rain.

However, when rain does not come, that anticipation can turn to worry and even fear.  I hear it every year, “Pastor, pray for 2-3 inches, we are starting to need it really bad.”  And then when the rain comes I hear, “Well Pastor, we are fine for the time being.” 

Now, whether you are a farmer or not, I think it is safe to say that by simply living in North Dakota, we all understand just how important rain is to our economy, our small towns, the crops, and our very livelihood. Without rain, there would be no growing of corn, beans, and wheat.  With rain, the crops grow, harvest happens, and people are fed. 

Considering all of this, we can say with certainty that no rain returns void.  That is to say; every little bit of rain helps and is essential, for when the rain falls, the yield increases.  Every drop of rain, no matter how small, causes the needed growth.  The rain produces a good crop. 

Now, why do I mention all of this?  Well, God uses this idea of rain and its affects in our Old Testament reading from Isaiah the fifty-fifth chapter.  Only, instead of rain, God speaks of the power of His Word.  Indeed, the Lord says wherever His Word rings forth in sermons and church services and hymns, wherever His Word is taught in its truth and purity in Confirmation Classes and Bible Studies and Kids’ Clubs, wherever people are unafraid of proclaiming what the Word says, well… God will work faith in those who hear.  This is not a ‘possibility,’ it is not a ‘maybe,’ and it is not an ‘if’ – God’s Word will do what God wishes.  God’s Word shall not return to Him empty, but the proclaimed Word shall accomplish that which God purposes, and the Word will succeed in the thing for which God sent it. 

And what is that very purpose of God sending His Word?  It is bringing the Salvation of Jesus to every one of you. 

It is like this: Jesus lived, died, and rose again so that you would be forgiven of all your sins.  He did all of this so that you would have life and be His people.  And to get the benefits of His life, death, and resurrection to you, the Lord Jesus comes to you in the Word.  Yes, the work of Mount Calvary is brought to your ears, so that you might hear and believe.  The Word of God comes to you in this church service from the liturgy, hymns, and sermons to work faith in you.  The Word does what God wishes.  The Word accomplishes the Lord’s will to save sinners like you and me too. 

But do we trust that Jesus and the power of his Word can really do all of this saving work?  Tragically, we do not.  Instead, we have our own ideas about how God is going to work.  So we say things like this, “The pastor needs to preach more exciting sermons with more jokes and stories,” as if the exciting and funny part of the sermon is more important than the part where God’s Word is proclaimed.  Or we say, “We need to sing more exciting hymns and do so with more energy,” as if the style and beat of the song were more important than God’s Word in the songs.  Or we say, “The Pastor shouldn’t read his sermon in the pulpit but should shoot from the hip and let the spirit lead him,” as if a sermon is more powerful if it is improvised.

Dear friends, the problem with all of this is that we think that we can or have to add something to God’s Word to make it work.  Frankly, stated, whenever we try to add our human ideas and schemes to God’s Word, we are making things worse, not better.  Adding to God’s Word is like a farmer saying, “That rain was nice, but not enough.  I think I’ll go spray down the field with some gasoline to help things grow.”  Gasoline does not help crops grow, and our human ideas and tricks do not help the Word of God do its work, but more often than not, hinder it.    

There is another side to this as well.  Unfortunately, I have talked with many people who think they can get by without God’s Word at all.  It has been said to me before, “Pastor, I don’t need to go to church, I’m a Christian without wasting my Sunday mornings.  I don’t need to go to Bible Study.  I don’t need to participate in the life of my fellow Christians, I know what I believe,” as if knowledge were the only thing that mattered in the faith. 

Dear friends, the problem with this kind of thinking is that there is no such thing as faith apart from God’s Word.  In fact, saying that one does not need the Word of God would be like a farmer saying, “I know how the crops grow, I don’t need any rain to make it happen.”  Or even saying, “It rained last year that should be fine for this year’s crop.”  No, my friends, this is foolish!  It is naïve.  It is dangerous.  It is crazy to think this way.  This is not the voice of the Christian, but it is the voice of the old Adam who looks for every excuse in the book not to hear God’s Word.  You see, just like a farm needs the rain to come often, so we too need to hear God’s Word regularly. 

Dear friends, we need the Word of God often, because without the Word and the Sacraments, our faith will not be strengthened, and we risk falling away into unbelief and damnation.  Yes, we need the Word of God, and we need it more than we think.  And God be praised that He gives His Word to us often. 

Think about this a moment! 

Our Divine Services are dripping with the Word – even if your pastor preaches a bad sermon – the Word is in the liturgy and hymns.  And all of the hymns and liturgy tell you that Jesus has died for you and accomplished salvation for you.  And when that Word proclaims your forgiveness, it brings you that forgiveness and your faith is sustained and strengthened for the days to come.  Indeed, you have precisely what the Word says, and you have it in all of the church services given to you at your church – Zion Lutheran.  This means that church services are not an inconvenience or a nuisance or a drag, but a divine gift.   

 

Dear Baptized Saints, the Word will accomplish what God promises in you – faith, faith that clings to Jesus’ promises.  Faith that believes Christ has died for you.  You have faith because God’s Word has worked in you, and will continue to work in you.

Dear Baptized Saints, as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall God’s word be that goes out from His mouth; it shall not return to Him empty, but it shall accomplish that which He purposes – your salvation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. 

Amen.

This sermon is borrowed in part and indebted to Rev. Adam Moline’s sermon on Isaiah 55:10-13.  

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What is God Like?

Text:  Isaiah 6:1-7 and Romans 11:33-36

In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit: Amen.

What is God like?  Yes, what is God like?  Being asked this question, I am assuming that your first inclination is probably not to recite and share the Athanasian Creed.  Yes, I assume that you are not thinking about answering this question with the long creed that we confessed today as a part of our Divine Service.  But rather, you are most likely thinking about ways to define God by using a metaphor or a simile or an example.   

But there is a problem.  No matter how we try to define God or visualize God, we can only partly understand God.  The reason why?  We are finite and small and mortal, whereas God is infinite and big and immortal.  In other words, God is not like a product that we can hold in our hands and then examine with our naked eye.  God cannot be put under a microscope or dissected so that we can then write a description and a review about Him.  No way; no how!  We are not big enough, smart enough, or supreme enough to be able to put God into our hands and then think that we can fully grasp and understand Him.  Frankly stated, we are supremely arrogant if we think that we have fully discovered the mysteries of God. 

So, what do we know about God then by our natural reasoning?  Well, we can glean several things, but that is about it.  We can look to this world that we live in and see the fingerprints of a creator in nature and our eco system – we are not here because of an evolutionary mutation or a biological accident.  We can also examine our own bodies and conclude that our bodies are extremely complex and are evidence that we have been knit together by someone greater than ourselves.  Simply stated, by viewing the beauty of creation and the complexity of life – how wondrously constructed and wisely arranged everything is – a person cannot help but conclude that all of this is ‘not’ the handiwork of mankind or the byproduct of chance, but the work of God.  Only the fool says in his heart, “There is no God.” 

Now considering this, if God is the Creator and Master of all that there is (i.e., the creator of mankind, the world, and the universe), we can then conclude that we are nothing more than a small drop in the bucket.  Compared to the grand scheme of things, we are nothing more than a small pawn.  Or, we could say that we are nothing more than a small insect compared to God.  Indeed, if God holds this world in His hands, in comparison, we are nothing more than small tiny insects that inhabit this earth.  No wonder why we can’t fully fathom and understand the complexities and depths of God.  No wonder why we live in fear of God’s wrath as human beings – we are afraid of being crushed. 

 

We humans though can try and offset our fear of God and our tininess in the face of God, through acting big and tough and unafraid.  We can construct our buildings, create our nations, and stand tall; however, we are all wiped to dust when earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes destroy us.  We really are nothing before God.  We are here today and gone tomorrow; civilizations rise one century and fall apart the next, only to be remembered in the pages of dusty books lying on shelves. 

So what is God like?  Well, God is not like us and apart from owing our existence to God, we find ourselves living in fear of God, because He is big and we are small.  He is in charge and we are not. 

But certainly we should be able to know more about God than just this, right?  That is the problem though.  How can we know more about God when we are like a bunch of tiny insects trying to understand one who is bigger, grander, and more supreme than we can comprehend? 

Dear friends, I do not say this to be mean or rude or to cause you discomfort, but you and I cannot comprehend God.  Our minds are too small, our vision is too weak, and our arms are too short to wrap around God, which leaves us with the limited understanding that we have been created and that we should be afraid of God. 

All of this stated there is another way though.  Yes, there is another way for us to understand and know God.  That is to say, instead of us trying to get to know God on our own terms and by our own efforts and by our own limited intellectual reasoning, what if God came to us and revealed Himself to us?  My dear friends, this is what God did.  He came to us. 

So, when we are asked the question, ‘What is God like?’ our answer is that God is like Jesus of Nazareth.  In Jesus we have “a man who claimed to be God, said things that only God can say, did things that only God can do, and accepted worship that belongs to only God.”[1]  Yes, Jesus is God confronting us as a man.  Jesus is God expressed in human terms.  To know Jesus is to know God. 

This changes everything, does it not?  God became man – He became one of us and dwelt in our midst.  He taught, lived, and moved among us, which means that we can behold His glory, glory as of the only-begotten of the Father full of grace and truth. 

As we behold God in the flesh – Jesus Christ – what should then grasp us then is that this God-Man did not come to be served by us insignificant peons, but rather, He served us!  He served us by going to the cross of Mt. Calvary.  Do not look over this too quickly.  The God of the universe died for ungodly people like you and me and considered it well worthwhile.  He died for sinners. 

Indeed, Jesus gives us the answer of what God is like.  He shows us God is holy and just and also merciful and forgiving.  Jesus shows us that God does not take sin lightly, yet still cares for us because He chose to do something about that very sin – it’s called the cross. 

Furthermore and towards the theme of today’s service, Jesus also shows us that God is Triune.  Yes, from Jesus we hear about the Heavenly Father and the Holy Spirit – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, one God now and forevermore.  Not three gods and not three substances, but three persons.

Now, I would by lying to you if I said that this is easy for us to understand, for it certainly is not.  Again we are back to where we were before, as mere mortals we cannot totally understand the complexities of God; however, we confess these complexities of God as true because Jesus confesses them as true… and Jesus is right because He rose from the dead.  That is to say, there is no Heavenly Father for us other than the Heavenly Father of the Lord Jesus Christ.  There is also no other Holy Spirit for us other than the Holy Spirit that is sent by Jesus. 

What this all means for us this morning on this Trinity Sunday is not it is necessary to wrap our finite minds around the nature of God – to figure Him out and domesticate Him – but rather to know that God – as revealed by Jesus and the Scriptures – is living and active for you and for your salvation.  That is to say, for today’s Trinity Sunday Service we do not confess the Athanasian Creed – the doctrine of the Trinity – for the sake of merely saying it, but we use this doctrine properly when we believe and know that our Triune God is active for us, all three persons active for you and for me.  Indeed, today we have heard from the lessons and readings and the prayers that our God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – is alive and active towards us. 

Dear Baptized Saints, consider this! 

You were baptized into the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit – one name, three persons; three persons who are active for you and for your good! 

God the Father created you.  He has given you your body and preserves you.  He provides for you and protects you from evil.  All of this is done out of fatherly and divine goodness, without any of your worthiness. 

God the Son has redeemed you a lost and condemned human being.  He has purchased you and freed you from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver but with his holy precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death.  He has done this in order that you may belong to Him and live under Him in His kingdom. 

And God the Spirit has called you through the Gospel, enlightened you with His gifts and made you holy and kept you in the true faith in the Christian church.  The Holy Spirit abundantly forgives you of your sins through the Word and Sacraments and on the Last Day will raise you and all the dead to eternal life. 

Truly, our Triune God reveals Himself to us in the Word.  We cannot understand Him by our own reason or strength, but He makes Himself known to us and shows us what He is like and gives to us what Christ has accomplished. 

Today we confess and believe upon God; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit: one God now and forevermore – for you and for me. 

Amen. 

---

[1] Norman Nagel, Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel: From Valparaiso to St. Louis (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2004), 153-154.

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Who Is This Child Born Unto Us?

 Part 2 of Zion Lutheran's Midweek Advent Series

Isaiah: 9:2-7

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

In last week’s midweek Advent message, we took a moment and leaned forward towards Christmas Eve, in order to gaze into the manger and see the child that was born unto humanity. 

As we gazed into the manger, we acknowledged that not everyone sees the babe in the manger the same.  That is to say, as the church and as the culture lean forward and peer into the manger this coming Christmas Season, many will not see the genuine Jesus.  Sure they will see a child lying in the manger wrapped in swaddling clothes, but they will see Him with all sorts of misconceptions and misunderstandings.  They will not see the Christ-child for whom He was and is, but will see Him the way that they want Him to be for themselves. 

Regardless how the world sees the baby in the manger, we believe, teach, and confess that Jesus was not born to be our Christian Mascot.  He was not born to be a good moral example.  He was not born to make us healthy and wealthy – full of money and material possessions.  He was not born to bring us new laws of God.  He was not born to be a political figure.  He was not born to be a mamby pamby Savior.  He was not born to avoid the cross of Calvary.  He was not born unto us for any of these reasons, but as the prophet Isaiah said, He was born unto us as the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace.

Indeed, there is only one Jesus who was laid in the manger, who was born unto us.   If we gaze into the manger and do not see the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace, we do not see Christ correctly; we do not see the genuine Christ. 

Do not fear though, for in tonight’s reading from the prophet Isaiah we heard about the genuine Christ-child.  More specifically, we heard these majestic names spoken of the child in the manger.  In other words, the prophet Isaiah shares the genuine identity of this child in the manger.    Isaiah shares this not by leaning forward towards Christmas to see for himself, but He reveals this through a prophetic word.  Isaiah’s prophecy gives you and me a clear and complete picture of the Savior and His work, even though Isaiah recorded these words some 700 years before the birth of Christ.

So who is this child born unto us? 

First, Isaiah says that “the child will have the government on his shoulders.  He will have all power in heaven and earth in order to govern, protect, sustain, and control all things [for you and for me].  . . . Clearly this is not a reference to the worldly power one might find in the Roman Empire at the time of Christ. . . . [but rather] Isaiah’s description here asserts the deity of the child.”[1]  Isaiah’s description reveals to us that despite the circumstances of life, the powers of the world and even the powers of hell cannot overcome and will not overcome the Christ-child born unto us. 

Secondly, Isaiah says that “the child will also be a wonder.  He will be extraordinary, a marvel, a miracle beyond what any human might think or imagine.  He will exceed what is possible for any human child.  This child is God and man in one special extraordinary person – a wonder, a miracle!  We cannot fathom the mystery of the child who is almighty God and at the same time a little child born of a virgin.  We can only stand in awe of the miracle of God in human flesh with us and among us [and for us].”[2]

Thirdly, this child is a wonderful counselor.  “He does not need to surround himself with advisors as every human ruler does.  He already knows all things.  His counsel, or advice, is the grace of God, the plan by which God would rescue all the world from sin, death, and the devil.”[3]

“The child is also ‘Everlasting Father,’ which refers to the work and business of this king, not his person.  . . . He leads more and more people to believe in him. [This child born in the manger has] the heart of a father toward his own people.  He cares for his followers [- He cares for you -] tenderly, faithfully, and wisely.”[4]

“Finally, the child is the ‘Prince of Peace.’ . . . Humanity has longed for peace through the ages!  Peace, in human terms, will always be [vague and unattainable].  As long as the world endures, there will be war, rumors of wars, discord, and strife.  The messiah [though,] came to give a different kind of Peace.  Jesus said, ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you.  I do not give to you as the world gives.  Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.’”[5]

What Isaiah said about the Christ-child born unto us and laid in the manger, is true.  Regardless how people view the Christ-child, we must keep in mind that Jesus is not easily defined by the opinions of mankind.  Jesus does not act according to our own sinful definitions of who we think He is, or who we think He ought to be.  This Advent and Christmas Season, even though we see a babe in the manger, we mustn’t forget that He is Lord and we are not.  Our opinions, hopes, and dreams of who we think the Christ-child should be, as we look into the manger, do not matter.  He is not handcuffed to our religious undertakings, our hopes, and our aspirations of Him.  Like the Lion Aslan in C.S. Lewis’ books, The Chronicles of Narnia, the Lord that lay in the manger is not tame or safe, but He is good.  Indeed, He will not be tied down by our definitions, ambitions, and desires; He must not be pressed for He is the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Prince of Peace. 

As your Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Prince of Peace who was laid in the manger, you and I believe, teach, and confess that Jesus Christ is true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary.  You and I believe, teach, and confess that the babe in the manger is our Lord, who goes from the cradle to the cross in order to redeem you and me, lost and condemned persons.  At the cross, He purchased and won you and me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death.  Yes, He went from the cradle to the cross so that he could purchase and win you and me in order that we may be His own and that we may live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity.[6]

For unto us a child is born, the Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Prince of Peace. 

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

---

[1] John A. Braun, People’s Bible Commentary: Isaiah 1 (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2002), 128.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid, 128-129.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid, 129-130.

[6] Martin Luther, Luther’s Small Catechism, (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1986), Explanation of The Second Article of the Apostle’s Creed.

Lean Forward And Look Into The Manger

Part 1 of Zion Lutheran's Midweek Advent Sermon Series

Text: Isaiah 9:2-7

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

Isaiah the prophet said in our Old Testament reading, “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given.”  These words from the prophet’s mouth are spoken in order to lay forth a promise and a prophetic word that a child will be born.  This is no ordinary child to be born on earth, but this child is someone special – someone unique. 

But more specifically who is this child?  We recognize that this child is Jesus; we recognize that this child spoken of from the days of old is Jesus who was laid in a manger. 

Now, with that said, as we gaze this Christmas Season into the manger and look upon the child who was born in Bethlehem, we must acknowledge that there is only one genuine Jesus.  In other words, there is only one distinct Jesus born into poverty from the Virgin Mary for humanity – only one Jesus who lay in the manger.  Yes, there is only one Jesus who fulfills Isaiah’s prophecy.  However, we would be foolish to believe that everyone sees the baby in the manger correctly.  That is to say, as the church and as the culture leans forward and peers into the manger this coming Christmas Season, many will not see the genuine Jesus.  Sure they will see a child lying in the manger wrapped in swaddling clothes, but they will see Him with all sorts of misconceptions and misunderstandings.  They will not see the Christ-child for whom He is, but will see Him the way that they want Him to be for themselves.

 

For example, some will look through the cool air breeze and into the manger to see Jesus as nothing more than a Christian mascot born for humanity.  They will not see a mighty Savior, but a false jesus who cheers people on to love themselves first and to gratify their worldly desires.  They will see a false jesus that is all about serving mankind’s will above God’s will.  They will falsely see a jesus who waters down the words of the Bible to avoid offense, overlooks sin, never corrects, and is always there to positively cheer mankind on.  They will not see Him correctly.

As other eyes gaze into the manger, they will look upon the child and see nothing more than a spiritual guru born for humanity.  As a spiritual guru, they will falsely see jesus not as ‘the’ way, ‘the’ truth, and ‘the’ life, but merely as ‘a’ way, ‘a’ truth, and ‘a’ life.  They will see this jesus as a spiritual guru that sends all people to heaven, while dismissing hell.  They will see an all-tolerant baby in the manger.  They will not see Him correctly. 

Others will gaze into the manger and not see the genuine Jesus, but will see nothing more than a good moral example in which mankind is to emulate.  They will see Jesus as nothing more than a good rabbi.  They will not see Him correctly.

Driven by money and power, some will look into the manger and will not see a Savior but will see dollar signs.  They will see a false jesus who is all about giving them health, wealth, and prosperity.  They will see a jesus who will supposedly grant health or wealth to those whose faith in him reaches the level it should.  They will not see Him correctly.

It gets worse; there are some who will stare into the manger and see the baby as a New Moses, as a new lawgiver born for humanity.  To them, this baby is all about giving new and improved laws for mankind to live their best life now.  They will not see Him correctly.

Driven by politics, some will regard the child in the manger as a beacon of hope for a political party.  They will see the false jesus as a political sanctifier of any campaign wanting the votes of the religious right.  They will not see Him correctly.

Looking into the manger, others will see a baby that is mild, soft, and gentle and will assume that this baby will grow up to cuddle little lambs and accentuate emotions.  They will see a false jesus who exalts emotions, extols experiences, and lifts up personal opinions above sound teaching. They will not see Him correctly.

Finally, some will look into the manger and see a baby who is whole, healthy, sound, and without pain.  They will attempt to keep it that way by imagining that Jesus was not born to die on a cross.  For these people the blood, wounds, and suffering is simply too much, which means that they will see the child in the manger like a Precious Moments figurine.  In other words, they will imagine a false jesus who has been sanitized from the messy blood and scary looking cross, and hope to keep it that way.  They will not see Him correctly.

Indeed, many people will gaze upon the genuine Jesus in the manger – many have – and there will be a large assortment of false and counterfeit and mistaken identities of who this baby is.  They will not see Him correctly.

The problem with all of these mistaken identities is that Jesus was not born to be our Christian Mascot.  He was not born to be a good moral example.  He was not born to make us healthy and wealthy – full of money and material possessions.  He was not born to bring us new laws of God.  He was not born to be a political figure.  He was not born to be a mamby pamby Savior.  He was not born to avoid the cross of Calvary.  If we gaze into the manger and see any of these things, we do not see the genuine Christ.  We are not seeing Christ correctly.    

Dear friends, Jesus was born as a gift to humanity.  He was born for farmers and bankers, students and grandparents, young and old, male and female.  He was born for all – born for you. 

He was not born in heaven; He was not born for the angels; He was not born to save demons.  But rather, He was born for you – on this earth.

He descended to us; He dived down from heaven to be the only genuine Savior.   As the genuine Savior, He is an all-powerful, all-knowing, and all-sufficient bleeding-dying-rising-Savior for you and me. 

Dear friends, there is only one Jesus who lay in the manger: the Jesus who would undergo great suffering, rejection, and be killed and rise again after three days. 

There is only one Jesus who lay in the manger: the Jesus who is our Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, and Prince of Peace.  He is God with us.    

There is only one Jesus who lay in the manger: the Savior who came to deliver mankind from sin, death, and the devil.

Take a moment and lean forward towards Christmas Eve.  Look into the manger.  The baby that lies in the manger will not shrink from His course on earth.  He is not afraid, nor is He hesitant.  He was born unto you for this.[1] 

Take a moment and lean forward towards Christmas Eve.  Look into the manger.  The baby that lies in the manger will grow up and face persecution from the religious leaders.  They will not take His life; He will lay it down in order to have you.  He was born unto you for this.[2]

“And out of the grave He will spring back to life, a man, body and soul, . . . the Savior, who was born unto you, alive out of death, to redeem and save you on earth.” [3]

Unto you a child is born, to you a son is given.

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

---

[1] David Petersen, God With Us: Advent, Christmas and Epiphany Sermons (Fort Wayne, IN: Emmanuel Press, 2007), 86-87.

[2] Ibid.

[3] Ibid.

Christ Experienced Fury, Wrath, And Damnation - For You

Text: Isaiah 53:1-12

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

There is a popular phrase that is used in evangelism in American Spirituality these days.  It is the term, “saved.”  It is common for an Evangelist to ask the question, “Are you saved.”  It is a question to discern whether or not one is a Christian or not.  However, this question begs us to ask the next question, “Saved from what?”  Indeed, “Christians speak of ‘being saved, ‘but all too often don’t follow the phrase to its logical reply: ‘Saved from what?’”[1]

If I were to ask you this question tonight, “Are you Saved?,” I am sure that you would reply that you are indeed saved.  If I were to ask you the next question, “Saved from what?,” I am sure that many of you would say that you are saved from sin, death, and the devil.  This is indeed true.  However, there is also one more thing that we are saved from, and the answer might surprise you.  What is that answer?  The answer is that we are saved from God and His wrath.  Yes, saved from wrath. 

What is wrath though?  Wrath is the outpouring of anger and indignation.  It is punishment for a wrong.  It is a verdict against a wrong.  It is rejection.

This idea that we are saved from God’s anger, indignation, punishment, and rejection is a contested and popular idea in our day and age.  A recent popular evangelical pastor and author named Rob Bell is pushes against the idea of God’s wrath.  He recently stated,

“What is God like?  Because millions and millions of people were taught that the primary message is that God is going to send you to hell unless you believe in Jesus.  So what gets subtly taught is that Jesus rescues you from God, but what kind of God is that, that we need to be rescued from this God?  How could that God ever be good?  How could that God ever be trusted?  How could that ever be good news?”

On the other side of the extreme there is a church called Westboro Baptist Church that is led by Fred Phelps.  It is a fundamentalist church that can often be seen holding signs saying, “Thank God for 911; God hates America; The Jews killed Jesus; or Thank God for Dead Soldiers.”  This church is the church that has been in the news over the last couple of years due to their protesting the funerals of dead soldiers. 

With both of these examples, we can see an obvious problem; we find ourselves at an impasse.  If we embrace the teaching of Rob Bell, where God does not have wrath against sin, then God is not just.  If there is no wrath against sin from God, then there would be no demand for Jesus Christ to die on the cross.  If God does not have an issue with sin, then what’s the point of the cross?  On the other side, if God is totally wrath and He has no love then it would’ve been pointless for Christ to suffer and die.  Furthermore, if God is only wrath, where is our solution?  How hard do we have to try to get on God’s good side and avoid His heavy hand of wrath?   

So, who is right?  How do we solve this?

As we look to scripture we see that God indeed has wrath and a verdict toward sin.  God is an all-consuming fire and it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.[2]  God’s attitude towards sin is one of anger and indignation.  God’s disposition isn’t a warm fuzzy feeling towards sin.  Sin deserves to be punished.  Paul says in his letter to the church in Rome that the wages of sin is death.[3]  The prophet Ezekiel says that the soul who sins shall die.[4]  In fact, one who has sin is under a curse.  This curse is God’s pronouncement of guilt.[5]  Sin makes a separation between you and your God; your sins have hidden God’s face from you so that he does not hear you.[6]  Yes, God does indeed have wrath.

You may ask though, “Can’t God just ease up and chill out?  Can’t God sweep this sin under the carpet, and ignore the errors?”  My friends, if He did do this, He would no longer be just.  God cannot relax His character; He cannot withdraw His punishment of sin for this would be unjust and unreasonable.  Otherwise stated, for God to be just, fair, orderly, and so forth, He has to release vengeance on sin.  To not do so would violate His very character of being a Holy, Just, Supreme, all-knowing God. 

This leads you and me down a difficult path.  How can we function with the knowledge of God being rightly angry with us due to our sin?  We can barely function when a neighbor, a friend, or a family member expresses anger towards us.  How will our conscience ever be at rest knowing that God curses sin?  How will we face the battles and struggles of life knowing that we are forsaken and reject?  How can we derive any assurance and comfort from God in this life when He is holy and we are not?  This leads us to fear, doubt, and uncertainty. 

The good news of the old rugged cross, this cross that we are focusing on during our Wednesday Night Lenten Services, is that at the cross there is a declaration that God’s wrath is not the final word for you and me.  You see, at the old rugged cross we have the end of God against us and the beginning of God for us.  Yes, at the cross, as our reading from tonight says, the Lord crushed the suffering servant.  Yes, Jesus was put to grief, His soul made an offering for sin.  This was the Father’s will, to crush the Son.  Did you hear this?  In Christ, God’s wrath was spent, not withdrawn.  It was the Father’s will to crush Christ, to spend His wrath, judgment, and vengeance upon Christ.  God does not withdraw His wrath thus becoming unjust but He spends it and unleashes it all upon Christ, our substitute.  Jesus, doesn’t cancel the wrath of God, but He absorbs it.  Christ on the cross experienced the full fury, wrath, and damnation from the Father and He did it for you!  This is the power of the old rugged cross for you.  Because of the old rugged cross, God’s wrath was satisfied upon Jesus for us, which means when we have Christ we don’t have to fear.  Because of the old rugged cross, the curse of sin has been satisfied.  No longer do our consciences have to be troubled spiritually speaking; Christ drank the poison for us and was damned for us.  Because of the old rugged cross, God will never leave us nor forsake us.  His face is towards us with favor and love because Jesus appeased and satisfied justice.

My friends you have been crucified with Christ, buried with Him in your baptism, established in Him, and saved from the wrath of God.

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

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[1] R.C. Sproul, “Saved From What?” http://www.amazon.com/Saved-What-R-C-Sproul/dp/1433513420, 11 March 2014.

[2] See Hebrews 10:31, 12:29.

[3] See Romans 6:23.

[4] See Ezekiel 18:4.

[5] See Galatians 3:10 & Deuteronomy 27:26.

[6] See Isaiah 59:2, 64:7.