He Grabbed Not For Power, But For Sinners

Text: Philippians 2:5-11

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

Over the last 300 years, we have witnessed the tragedy of power – brute force imposed on people to secure power. 

In the eighteenth-century we saw how Europeans enslaved Africans, putting them into slavery by force.  In the nineteenth-century we witnessed the conflict with Native Americans, resulting in many Native Americans being uprooted by power.  And who can forget the twentieth-century?  In the twentieth-century, Nazis Germans declared the Jews as disloyal to the modern nation, superstitious, and irrational, leading to some 6 million Jews executed, while Hitler and his regime rose to power.  And there was Stalin and Mao, along with the millions of dead victims who stood in the path of their power.      

Now, this quest for power, dominance, and majesty was not just a phenomenon in the past centuries but continues even to this day.  For example, we see ISIS attacks, North Korean missile tests, international currency wars, and so forth.  All of this is the mad rush of mankind to be king of the hill, to have power, control, and majesty at all costs.    

There is no doubt about it; mankind has a large appetite for power and majesty.  Instead of fearing, loving, and trusting in God above all things, a person will attempt to get everybody and everything to fear, love, and trust themselves.

And so, we humans grab for power.  We have an appetite for majesty.  We look out for ourselves – we are number 1, and everybody else is number 2.

But this is not how it is with Jesus, though. Praise be to God that Jesus is not like mankind.  You see, according to our Epistle lesson from Philippians, Jesus took the form of a servant by ceasing to use His powers as God. 

We must pause a moment and be careful to note that Jesus never ceased to be the Son of God, not even on the Cross.  But He did abstain from using His full powers as God, while He was on earth.  For example, sometimes, Jesus did not know certain facts, even though at any time He could have used His unlimited knowledge as God.  And sometimes, Jesus was tired or hungry or thirsty, even though God by nature is never tired or hungry or thirsty.  And get this, God does not bleed.  God does not suffer.  God does not die.  But Jesus, who is true God ‘and’ true Man, bled and died for you because He took the form of a servant.

You see, unlike humanity, Jesus does not have some unhealthy appetite for majesty.  While walking this earth, Jesus did not grab at power, for He already had power  Indeed, instead of grabbing for power, what Jesus did was to abstain from using His power, as He came in humility to serve mankind.  He acted as if He were not God by laying His majesty down so that He could carry the heavy burdens that belonged to us.  Specifically, those burdens of sin, death, and damnation.  That is to say; Jesus did not need to suffer. These burdens were not His to carry.  However, He chose to carry these burdens; He chose to suffer.  Christ Jesus, the only Man who could choose not to die, chose the worst death possible, to save you and me.

What a contrast from sinful mankind! Instead of stomping upon sinful mankind in a selfish pursuit of power, Jesus claimed sinful mankind, even though mankind would stomp on Him.   Yes, even though He was holy and sinless, Jesus still claimed us.  Jesus willingly made Himself one of us.  In other words, Jesus lived among us for about thirty years.  He was one of us, even though His divinity was incredibly far above us.  And on the Cross, Jesus embraced all of mankind, so that all of our sins and the weight of our guilt fell upon Him. 

But what does all of this mean though, concerning Palm Sunday? 

Today we heard in our Gospel reading that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey.  However, this was Jesus as a servant.  This was Jesus coming in humility, just like we heard in our Epistle lesson from Philippians.  Yes, when Jesus came into Jerusalem on a donkey, He was abstaining from His power and majesty, for He could have ridden upon the backs of mighty angels into Jerusalem. 

Furthermore, Jesus also rides into Jerusalem to present Himself to God the Father as the sacrifice to atone for the sins of the world.  He is the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.  In other words, Jesus lowers Himself to the level of a dumb animal whose only purpose is to be slaughtered.  Jesus lowers Himself – humbles Himself to death – to be slaughtered for you and me.    

And there is more. At the same time that Jesus suffers at the hands of sinful men, Jesus is also preserving their lives and the lives of all living creatures. As the nails and thorns are driven into His holy flesh, the Son of God is keeping the universe from collapsing into chaos.

The lowly Son of Man who looks like nothing but a pathetic, dying carpenter's son, is the great God who protects and defends the world, even when that world turns upon Him and kills Him. 

Dear friends, Jesus did not grab for power because He was already all-powerful.  And yet, even though He was all-powerful and majestic, He laid it all down to serve you and me.  And because of this, God the Father exalted Jesus. 

Now resurrected from the dead, Jesus is seated at the right hand of the Father.  Yes, Jesus remains a Man, and also remains the Son of God.  That is how He will be forever. 

And so today, we hear about our humble servant coming into Jerusalem to accomplish our salvation, while at the same time knowing that Jesus is no longer in the form of a servant.  That is right; Jesus is now highly exalted. 

As highly exalted, the saints and angels in heaven bow before the glorious Him, as Jesus shines before them in the unveiled form of God.  And we too, here on earth do the same.  We come before the Lord in His sanctuary, confess our sins, bow our heads, sing praises to Him, and receive Jesus’ presence in the Holy Supper because He is out mighty, majestic, and powerful Lord.    

Dear Baptized Saints, Jesus could have remained as He was before the Creation of the world: the glorious Son of God who had no flesh and no sufferings.  Even when He became Man, Jesus did not have to suffer or diminish His glory in any way.  He could have remained in majesty and power.  But He chose the form of a servant.  He chose weakness, pain, and death.  He chose all of this for you and for me.  He grabbed not for power, but He grabbed sinners.  He grabbed sinners like me and you to redeem and give us His majesty – the forgiveness of sins, life, and salvation. 

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

This sermon has been borrowed in part from Rev. Andrew Eckerts sermon, titled, “The Form of a Servant.”

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And So We Shout...

Text: Zechariah 9:9-12

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

It is tough to shout for joy when we have not had much to rejoice over lately.  As you already know, we have come through several very difficult sermons in the Season of Lent.  Furthermore, since Ash Wednesday, we have had Lent with its theme of sorrow, repentance, and somberness hovering over top of us.  Besides this, as you know, mankind is at war with God.  God is our natural enemy.  Our sin and guilt make us hate Him, and He is utterly offended by us and by our sin.  He is HOLY, and we are not.  That is why we look over our shoulder when we are engaged in activities of which we are clear that we ought not to be involved, and we silently blame God when things seem to go wrong one after the other.  When trouble comes, we often feel that we have done a particular sin for which God is now dealing harshly with us. 

Indeed, our sins are an awful offense to the righteousness which is the very nature of God.  We deserve anything and everything that God can throw at us!  We deserve pain and misfortune in this life and eternal condemnation in the next.  Our guilty consciences know that!  So much for joy; so much for shouting for joy!   

And yet, Zechariah calls for us to shout aloud in joy in our Old Testament reading.  And in our Gospel reading, we hear the people going out to meet Jesus and shouting! 

Now, all of this shouting may catch you and me a bit off guard today since we have seemed to be in the quietness of Lent for the last six weeks.  Indeed, since Ash Wednesday we have been in the spirit of Lent with its theme of sorrow, repentance, and somberness.  But today, it is as if we have switched the light on and we have gone from sorrow, repentance, and somberness to shouting and joy! 

To make sense of all of this, we need to understand why our Old Testament reading calls for great rejoicing and shouting!  And that reason is that the King comes with salvation.  Indeed, the calling is to shout and to rejoice for the King comes with peace and freedom and double restoration.  In other words, this Old Testament prophet spoke some 500 years before Jesus about the Messiah that would come upon a donkey.  And that King is none other than Jesus Christ entering into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday where people went out to meet Him and shouted out,

  

“Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest!”   

What all of this means is that because of King Jesus riding into Jerusalem, we can know that all the sin that was uncovered, all the guilt that we confessed, all the tough sermons that exposed our sin during the Season of Lent – all of this – is what Jesus came to deal with upon the cross of Calvary.

Dear friends, Jesus did not leave humanity in the pit of sin and the prison of death – He did not leave you.  Indeed, like Jeremiah, Daniel, and Joseph of the Old Testament, we need to be rescued out of pits of our choosing.  We have dug our pits and from these pits, there is no escaping.  We hear that the Messiah comes to us.  He comes to set us free.  He comes to grant us peace.  He comes to release us from these hopeless pits of sin, death, and the devil.  He comes to give us everything we have lost twice over. . . . And so we rejoice this day, and we cheer, we may even shout because the King comes to us. 

We are not left to fend for ourselves!

We are not alone!

He comes for those of us who have tilted halos; He comes for sin-sick people such as ourselves.  He comes to sinners – to die for sinners – so that we might be forgiven.  And this is why we shout and rejoice this day! 

Please keep in mind, though, that this Palm Sunday is not just some emotional exercise where we are to get worked up into an emotional frenzy.  No, that is not the point.  I am not interested in trying to manipulate your emotions or in trying to go the way of theatrics. I also do not mean to create the impression that today we must rejoice and shout because somehow this Palm Sunday makes our Christian lives become blissful walks on the beach.  I am not calling you to rejoice and shout aloud because somehow marriages are going to blossom or health is going to flourish, or careers are suddenly going to soar.  This shift from sorrow, repentance, and somberness, to shouting and rejoicing, is not because miracles and conversions and victory are about to happen in your lives.  But rather, the point is that when Jesus rode into Jerusalem that Palm Sunday long ago, the church would forever remember Jesus’ faithfulness and Jesus’ triumph.  The church would forever remember and recall like we are doing right now, that the great King Jesus rode into Jerusalem bringing not temporary victory, but eternal victory of salvation, peace, freedom, and double restoration. 

And so, today we rejoice, and we shout aloud!  We rejoice and shout aloud because the King of the Palm Sunday coronation ride endured the fear, the sorrow, the pain, and that horrid death in our place.  He took our sin so that we might share in His righteousness.  Indeed, Jesus ended the war – He silenced the sounds of battle and laid the apparatuses of war to rest. 

Dear Blessed Saints, God is no longer angry with us, and we are to be terrified of Him no longer!  God has reconciled us to Himself by the blood of His Son Jesus Christ - shed for us on the cross.  Therefore, this day rejoice with me and shout aloud,

“Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!  Blessed is the Lord Jesus Christ who comes to redeem and forgive a poor miserable sinner like me!” 

There is more too this as well.  There is another aspect.  As we heard from Zechariah about the King coming and as we heard from the Gospel of Matthew about the King coming into Jerusalem, we also think about the great truth that this Jesus Christ has promised to come again.   

Christ Jesus went to the cross to conquer sin, death, and the devil – to bring down the forces of evil to unconditional surrender.  He rose again from the tomb – which we will hear about next Sunday – and He promises to come again for you and for me.  But when He comes again in His second coming He will not come quietly on a donkey.  He will not come in meekness!  Oh, no, He will come upon the clouds of heaven to claim His undisputed rule.  He will come again and stand upon the earth in which every knee will bow to His authority. 

And so, we will cheer on that day as well.  All Christians will rise that day when the Lord comes for His people.  We will rise and shout ourselves hoarse in exploding enthusiasm, for our Lord God – Jesus Christ – will have resurrected us from the dead and will usher us into the new heaven and the new earth.       

Indeed, we will shout until our voices become hoarse.  Just like we shout at sporting events when that last second buzzer shot is made or when that Hail Mary Pass is caught, we will shout in joy because we will be in the presence of the resurrected Jesus – freed from sin, death, and the devil.  Yes, there will be shouting and rejoicing.  It won’t be contained. 

Christ Jesus rode into Jerusalem to conquer sin, death, and the devil, so we shout aloud and rejoice this day with all the people that Palm Sunday, saying,

“Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord!  Hosanna in the highest!”   

And we will shout with joy someday with all the saints in glory,

“Hallelujah! For the Lord our

God, the Almighty, reigns.”

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

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Plunged Into Suffering And Death - For You

Text:  Matthew 21:1-9

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

Within American Christianity, many thousands upon thousands, and quite possibly millions, of Christians see Christianity as an individualized journey of trying to get to the goal of God.  To them, God is off in the distance; He is passive, unresponsive, and stagnant, which means that it is up to the Christian to somehow and someway either get God’s attention or get closer to Him.  Since God is this immovable and uncaring goal to be reached, the task of trying to get closer to Him can take all sorts of forms.  Regardless of the method or technique or strategy of getting closer to God, one thing is for sure, it demands a tremendous amount of effort and religious zeal on behalf of the individual Christian.

More specifically let me give you an example.  According to this way of thinking, all of us Christians are stranded on a deserted island – called earth.  We are surrounded by miles upon miles of deep dark water, which means that we are trapped.  The goal though is for us to escape this island.  We can escape this island – earth – by building some sort of raft and then paddling with all our might to the goal, that goal being God.  Only those who have enough faith and are strong enough for the journey, really have a chance, for one would have to paddle hard enough and long enough through the treacherous waters.  Yes, if you have enough faith and are strong enough, you may then possibly escape the deserted island and reach the goal, which is the heavenly dwelling of God.  In other words, if we Christians ever stand a chance of getting off the deserted island (earth), we must set our sights towards the goal of heaven and get their by our own strenuous efforts. 

Now, if Christianity is all about us Christians setting out on our heavenly pilgrimages by our own strength and cleverly devised plans, then the church must become a rallying place for all of us to encourage one and another in our heavenly pursuits.  Yes, church services will become large pep rallies where we can talk about the challenges set before us and try to convince each other that we can make the journey off the island.  Furthermore, the sermons of the church become simply pep talks or messages that are meant to give pointers on how to build a raft, that is to say, ways to get from earth to heaven.

Dear friends, is this why we gather here at this church today?  Are we here to encourage each other in our heavenly pursuit of working to get from this life to the next?  Should I be giving you pointers on how to build your metaphoric rafts and how to paddle off of this island towards the goal? 

You and I might be tempted to believe this way, since so many Christian Churches teach this; however, our Gospel from the Gospel of Matthew undoes all of this.  Yes, our church service this morning actually overthrows this whole notion of us having to get off of the island by our own tireless and vigorous efforts.   

Today, my friends, is Palm Sunday – it is the day our Lord Jesus Christ rode ‘into’ Jerusalem on a donkey.  It is the day that they waved palm branches and shouted, “Hosanna to the Son of David!  Blessed is the one who comes in the name of the Lord.”  It is a day that serves as a gateway to Holy Week.  It is a day that we get to hear the story about the triumphal entry of Jesus into Jerusalem, the same story that we heard the first Sunday of Advent.

Now, let us just pause here for a moment. 

Do you realize what is going on here?

The story of Jesus coming into Jerusalem on a donkey is the exact same story that we heard during the first Sunday in Advent, right before Christmas.  In other words, within the church’s calendar, we focus on this story of Jesus riding on the donkey, each Easter Season (at the beginning of Holy Week) and we also focus on this story at the beginning of the Advent Season (right before Christmas).  But why do we hear this story of Jesus on the donkey two times a year and why do we hear it during the Christmas and Easter seasons?  Why is it significant to hear right before Jesus birth and Jesus’ death?  Why should we Christians learn and treasure this story?  The answer is this: this story is really at the heart of the Christian faith. 

Dear friends, consider this, at Christmas time we hear about the Lord Jesus Christ, “Very God of Very God,” coming down from heaven and being born of the Virgin Mary.  In other words, Advent and Christmas are all about the Lord coming to earth – coming to this island for you and for me.  Indeed, Advent and Christmas are all about the God of the universe not being content to leave us helpless and alone in our sins, but rather about the Lord God pursuing us and coming right into our very midst.  It is about the Light coming into darkness – into the world.  And today’s Palm Sunday Service is about that same Lord coming for humanity’s sin.  The Lord came down from heaven and plunged Himself into a manger; the Lord came to Jerusalem and plunged Himself into suffering and death.  We do not have a stagnant, uncaring, and passive Lord, but quite the opposite.

Do you see what is going on here?  The Lord comes to helpless and sinful humanity.  He comes to Bethlehem.  He comes to Jerusalem.  He comes to the cross. 

Why does this matter?  It matters because there could be no life for you and for me without the Lord coming to us.  We cannot paddle hard enough and our rafts are not sturdy enough.  The water is too deep; the waves are too big.  There is no way off the island – this earth – by our own reason or strength.  We are too sinful and too spiritually sick to arise to the challenge.  Left to ourselves the only option is death on the island – on this earth.  Ashes to ashes; dust to dust.  Therefore, there is only one option; the Lord must come to us.  He must come to this earth and must come and meet our sin… which He has already done. 

Jesus, the promised Messiah came to pay that debt of sin.  He came to us in His birth and He came to us in His death.  Riding on the donkey into Jerusalem, Jesus was riding into death where the sins of the world would be strapped to Himself – your sin and mine.  In Jerusalem, Jesus would be plunged into death – death on a cross. 

There is more though. 

The Christ who came to the manger during that Christmas Season long ago and the Christ who came to the cross that Palm Sunday long ago, comes to you this day as well. 

You, who have ears, hear this!  His purpose of coming long ago was to accomplish salvation for you; His purpose of coming today to you in His Word is to deliver that very salvation to you. 

Indeed, the Christ who comes to you today and this week in the Word and Sacraments was the same Christ who came to Bethlehem and was swaddled in cloths and laid in a manger.  The Christ who comes to you today and this week in the Word and Sacraments was the same one who came on a donkey into Jerusalem, so that He could sit with a “shabby, dirty, soldier’s coat on His bleeding back and a crown of thorns set sideways on His head; with a mock scepter in His hand and the spittle of drunken soldiers running down His face.”[1]

Dear friends, do not deceived, the Divine Services here at your Zion Lutheran Church are not times for you to rally together and somehow paddle to heaven.  We do not gather here to try and plot how to get off of the island – off of earth by our own reason and strength and might and power.  But rather, these Divine Services at your Zion Lutheran Church are times where the Lord comes to you.  This service today and the services this week and the services for the upcoming months are times where the Lord comes to be in the midst of His people – to be with you. 

Oh, the goodness of this news.  We are not alone.  He comes to be in the midst of our lives, our pains, our struggles, and our deaths… He comes to give you and me faith that we might not become weary or disheartened or fearful.  The Lord promises to be with us to the very end of the age.      

Dear blessed Baptized Saints, we are not left alone in this world to fend for ourselves.  We are not detached from the Lord.  He came and comes for you and for me.

Yes, the Lord came to you and joined you to Himself in your baptisms – you are baptized into Christ’s death and resurrection.  You are bound to Christ and He is bound to you. 

The Lord also comes to you in His Word to speak the powerful words of forgiveness – you are forgiven; I will neither leave you nor forsake you. 

Finally the Lord comes to you in, with, and under the bread and the wine – take and eat, take and drink, this is my body and my blood for the forgiveness of all of your sins.  You are partakers of a heavenly meal.     

Just as the Lord did not hold back in coming to us in His birth and just as the Lord did not hold back in coming to our sins in His death, He never tires of coming to you and me today.  He never tires coming. 

Today is Palm Sunday.  The Savior came to Jerusalem to save the world from sin.  He comes today to reign in our hearts and minds as well.  Let the cry of Hosanna loudly go forth.  Salvation belongs to our God, salvation that is delivered into our hearts and minds and souls.  Praise be to the Christ, the Messiah, the Promised one, who came and comes for sinners with forgiveness, life, and salvation. 

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

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[1] Fred H. Lindemann, The Sermon and The Propers: Volume II (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 1958), 99.

How Can This Be Glory? It Does Not Look Like, Sound Like, And Feel Like Glory

Text:  John 12:20-43

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

On this day we wave palm branches and sing boldly in honor of Jesus coming into Jerusalem.  We join with those from long ago to acclaim the Son of David as our King, for He is most surely a King. 

He is a strange King though: riding on a donkey, no magnificent chariot, no fireworks, no powerful swords lifted upward, no battle cries, and no demonstration of flexing muscles, just a modest procession of the Son of David on a donkey.

Needless to say, there was excitement in the air that first Palm Sunday, for Jesus performed all the signs of the Messiah.  The blind received sight, the lame walked, lepers were cleansed, the deaf heard, and the dead were raised to life.  Thus, it makes sense that the people expected more of the same.  Would Jesus rally the people to overthrow the Roman Empire?  Was there some great plan that Jesus had hidden, underneath His humble entrance into Jerusalem?  What was He planning?  What would happen?  What could they anticipate?  They, like us, stood on the edge of Holy Week, on the edge of greatness and glory.

The disciples must have felt the same sense of anticipation as Jesus continually said to the disciples over three-and-a-half years,

“My time has not yet come.  My hour has not yet come.  It is not my time yet.  No, not now my disciples; the time is later.” 

Yes, there were countless occasions where Jesus was either almost arrested or taken by force to Jerusalem to make things happen, but it simply did not occur because the time was not right.  The hour of Jesus’ glory had not yet arrived. 

However, in our Gospel reading from this morning, things are a bit different.  Otherwise stated, right after Jesus came into Jerusalem on a donkey, after all the palm branches, after the great welcome and yelling of, “Hosanna, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” we hear that Jesus is interacting with His disciples and a group of Greeks.  He then says to them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.” 

What? 

Yes, after all the countless times of saying that it was not His time, here in today’s Gospel reading, Jesus is now saying that it is His time.  Now is the time for Jesus to reveal His glory. 

We can just imagine the reaction of the disciples and others when they heard this news from Jesus:

“It is about time.  Now, we will see things happen.  Yes, the timing is just right Jesus; now we are going to see something really spectacular.  Let’s capture the buzz and excitement and funnel it towards Jesus as He unleashes His glory.  Yes, Jesus you healed, gave sight, and imparted health; now you are going to drive out the Romans, restore the temple, and make Jerusalem great.  Hold on and fasten your seatbelts for we are in for a ride!”

 

Yes, Jesus said that the hour had come for the Son of Man to be glorified!  “What earthly glorious pictures those words must have called up in the minds of the disciples. They were flushed with the glory of the palms and hosannas of Palm Sunday. This, they thought, was the real Jesus, the royal Jesus. This was Jesus coming into His own. The kingdom was about to be established.”[1]

Surely, glory is about to be revealed.  The disciples and followers were on the edge of glory; they were about to experience and see glory in Jerusalem.

For you and me today, we stand on the edge of Holy Week, the edge of glory as well.  We lean forward and are able to looking into the events of this next week.  But what does this glory exactly look like?  What do you think glory looks like as we stand on the verge of Holy Week anticipating the glorification of Jesus?

Well, you may believe that glory is the accumulation of power and status.  You may believe that glory is the gathering of money, health, and influence.  You may believe that glory is acquiring first place and having a list of achievements, achievements that provide a platform for boasting.  You may believe that glory is using God’s divine power to make your life a little bit easier here on this earth.  You may be convinced that victory, prestige, health, money, power, influence, confidence, status, boasting, control, and beauty are all words that are attached to and communicate the word ‘glory.’

Thus, is this what we will see in Jesus?  Is this what we can anticipate this next week as we hear about Jesus being glorified during Holy Week?  As we have been journeying towards Holy Week during Lent, has our slow journey been a steady uphill climb towards the flashing glitter and power of glory that anchors itself above the troubles of suffering?  As we come closer to Good Friday will we find that the Roman Empire has been destroyed, that the Pharisees have been silenced, and that Jesus sits in power and control on a mighty golden throne?  We may hope.  Will we find ourselves sitting on Jesus’ right and left established in health, wealth, and happiness?  Oh, how blissful that would be having our problems and enemies under our feet!

My friends as you step into Holy Week you will most definitely hear and see Jesus in glory.  However, the glory that you and I will see is quite a bit different from the glory that you and I anticipate.  It is different from what the disciples anticipated as well.  You will not see Jesus overcome and destroy the Roman Empire, but Christ destroyed, bloodied, and beaten on a Roman execution cross.  You won’t see Jesus correcting a crooked justice system, but you will see a Kangaroo court enacting perverted justice upon a truly sinless man.  You won’t see a halo, but a crown of thorns.  You won’t see a radiant Jesus sitting on a golden throne, but rather you will see a suffering servant spit upon, beaten to mush, and crucified.  This week you and I won’t see anything of renown, honor, beauty, respect, delight, splendor, and adoration.  It seems that Jesus’ definition of glory is quite different from our definitions of glory. 

Yes, instead of rising out of the Lent Season to a glittery and flashy glorious Holy Week, it seems that we will encounter an entirely different kind of glory; we are going to travel much deeper and darker to a place called Golgotha, the place of the Son of God’s death.    

But how can this be glory you may ask?  It does not look like glory.  It does not sound like glory.  It does not feel like glory. 

I want glory. 

I need glory. 

This sounds depressing; culture says that I have a right to be happy.  This sounds too negative and too pessimistic; culture says that goodness comes to those who speak positive. 

Stop, I don’t want to know what happens when we plunge deeper and further away from what I perceive glory to be like.  Hold the show, I don’t want to follow Jesus any deeper or go any darker into the valley of death.  I want positive and encouraging thoughts; I want happy feelings; I don’t want the cross.  I don’t want to see the crown of thorns; I want a Precious Moments halo.  I don’t want to be spit upon; it is not sanitary.  I don’t want to hear the hammer and nails colliding with flesh; I want glorious fireworks and cannons.   I don’t want blood to be spilt upon me; I want celebratory champagne spilt on me.  I don’t want suffering; I want that euphoric feeling of awesomeness.  Where Jesus goes, I cannot go… …Thus, my friends, Jesus goes alone; abandoned by His disciples, abandoned by the crowd, and abandoned by you and me.  Jesus goes to the cross on His own solidarity.  Jesus goes to this anti-glorious place to be lifted up on a cross.

When the Christ is lifted up on the cross—after being spit upon, bloodied, mocked, betrayed, and forsaken—the scriptures say that He draws all men to Himself.  Yes, in this anti-glorious place; in this dark, ugly, low place of shame and death, Jesus drags and pulls the weight of sin from the world—from you—unto Himself.  Do you and I truly hear this?  Jesus chose the crown of thorns—for you.  He chose the hammer and nails—for you.  He went into the darkness—for you.  He chose the cross—for you.  He drank the cup of wrath and He drags and pulls the weight of sin, your sin and mine, into this anti-glorious place Golgotha where He finds death!  It is finished. 

“On Good Friday, when you see Christ dying on the cross, being cut off from God for sin, say, ‘That is my death for my sin.’  When Christ rises out of the whelming waters of death to life, say, ‘That is my rising to life.’  ‘I am crucified with Christ, nevertheless, I live; yes not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God who loved me, and gave Himself for me.’(Galatians 2:20)”[2]

As you step into the events of Holy Week remind yourself that Jesus was fighting a different war, His tactics were different; His definitions of glory were different.  Indeed, this is the week that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey as God’s anointed warrior prince—the very Son of God in the flesh—who is on His way to do battle for your soul and the souls of mankind.  This is the week of war; the hour had come for a war that had eternal consequences, a war against sin, death, and the devil.  Yes, we stand on the edge of war, on the edge of glory, for Jesus must die and will die in order to win—all for you.  

This – Is – Glory.  This – Is – The – Glorious – One – At – Work – For – You! 

Have a blessed Holy Week, dear Baptized Saints, as we journey to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Resurrection Sunday!

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

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[1] Norman Nagel, Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel (St. Louis, MO: Concordia Publishing House, 2004), 106.

[2] Ibid, 108. 

Golgotha, The Place Of The Skull: This Is Glory

Text:  John 12:20-43

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

For the last 40 days or so we have been in the season of Lent.  Our Wednesday Lenten Services and our Sunday Morning Services have intended to slow us down, help us contemplate ourselves and Christ, and gradually funnel us towards Holy Week.  Indeed, we have spent some 40 days moving a little closer and closer to Holy Week with a sense of soberness, with a sense of being keenly aware of our sin, and with a sense of seriousness.  And now, we are here.  We have arrived.  We stand at the edge of Holy Week today, this Palm Sunday.  This is indeed the week where things are supposedly going to get going.  We have been patiently waiting, anticipating, and looking for Christ’s glory.  Do we sense that we are on the brink of hearing and seeing Christ’s glory this Holy Week? 

In our Gospel reading the disciples must have felt the same sense of anticipation as Jesus continually said to the disciples over 3 ½ years, “My time has not yet come.  My hour has not yet come.  It is not my time yet.  No, not now my disciples; the time is later.”  Yes, there were countless occasions where Jesus was either almost arrested or taken by force to Jerusalem, but it simply did not happen because the time was not right.  The hour of Jesus’ glory had not yet arrived. 

However, in our Gospel reading from this morning, things are a bit different.  We encounter an event that happened right after Jesus came into Jerusalem on a donkey.  After the palm branches, the great welcome and yelling of, “Hosanna, Hosanna, blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord,” we read in our Gospel reading that Jesus is interacting with His disciples and a group of Greeks.  He then says, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified.”  What?  Yes, after all the countless times of saying that it was not His time, here in our text, Jesus is now saying that it is His time.  Now is the time for Jesus to reveal His glory. 

Do you realize that this could not have come at a better time?  Jesus is in Jerusalem, the capital city!  They have given Him a hero’s welcome.  The city of Jerusalem is packed with people for the annual Passover Celebration.  There are so many people in Jerusalem that people are camped everywhere in and around the city.  There is a great buzz of energy in the air as the people of Israel remember and celebrate how God rescued them from the oppression of Egypt in the days of Moses.  And here in our Gospel reading Jesus says, “The hour is here.  The time is now; it is time for the Son of Man is to be glorified.”

We can just imagine the reaction of the disciples and others when they heard this news from Jesus.  “It is about time.  Now, we will see things happen.  Yes, the timing is just right Jesus; now we are going to see something really spectacular.  Let’s capture the buzz and excitement and funnel it towards Jesus as He unleashes His glory.  Yes, Jesus you healed, gave sight, and imparted health; now you are going to drive out the Romans … restore the temple … and make Jerusalem great.  Hold on and fasten your seatbelts for we are in for a ride!”

 

Yes, Jesus said that the hour had come for the Son of Man to be glorified!  “What earthly glorious pictures those words must have called up in the minds of the disciples. They were flushed with the glory of the palms and hosannas of Palm Sunday. This, they thought, was the real Jesus, the royal Jesus. This was Jesus coming into His own. The kingdom was about to be established.”[1]

Surely, glory is about to be revealed.  The disciples and followers were on the edge of glory; they were about to experience and see glory in Jerusalem.

For you and me today, we stand on the edge of Holy Week looking forward knowing that we will hear and celebrate Jesus’ glory as well.  But what does this glory exactly look like?  What do you think glory looks like as we stand on the verge of Holy Week anticipating the glorification of Jesus?

Well, some believe that glory is the accumulation of power and status.  Glory some others is the gathering of money, health, and influence.  Yet glory for another group may be acquiring first place and having a list of achievements, achievements that provide a platform for boasting.  Victory, prestige, health, money, power, influence, confidence, status, boasting, control, and beauty are all words that are attached to and communicate the word ‘glory.’

Thus, is this what we will see in Jesus?  Is this what we can anticipate this next week as we hear about Jesus being glorified during Holy Week?  As we have been journeying towards Holy Week during Lent, has our slow journey been a steady uphill climb towards the flashing glitter and power of glory that anchors itself above the troubles of suffering?  As we come closer to Good Friday will we find that the Roman Empire has been destroyed, that the Pharisees have been silenced, and that Jesus sits in power and control on a mighty golden throne?  Will we find ourselves sitting on Jesus’ right and left established in health, wealth, and happiness?

My friends as we step into Holy Week we will most definitely hear and see Jesus in glory.  However, the glory that we will see is quite a bit different from the glory that you and I anticipate.  It is different from what the disciples anticipated as well.  We will not see Jesus overcome and destroy the Roman Empire but Christ destroyed, bloodied, and beaten on a Roman execution cross.  My friends, we won’t see Jesus correcting a crooked justice system but we will see a Kangaroo court enacting perverted justice upon a truly sinless man.  My friends we won’t see a halo, but a crown of thorns.  My friends we won’t see a radiant Jesus sitting on a golden throne but rather we will see a suffering servant, spit upon, beaten to mush, and crucified.  This week we won’t see anything of renown, honor, beauty, respect, delight, splendor, and adoration.  My friends, it seems that Jesus’ definition of glory is quite different from our definition of glory. 

Yes, instead of rising out of the Lent Season to a glittery and flashy glorious Holy Week, it seems that we are going to travel to a place called Golgotha; the place of the Son of God’s death. 

But how can this be glory you may ask?  It does not look like glory.  It does not sound like glory.  It does not feel like glory.  I want glory.  I need glory.  I don’t want to know what happens when we plunge deeper and further away from what I perceive glory to be like.  I don’t want to follow Jesus any deeper or go any darker into the valley of death.  I don’t want the cross.  I don’t want to see the crown of thorns.  I don’t want to be spit upon.  I don’t want to hear the hammer and nails.  I don’t want blood to be spilt upon me.  I don’t want suffering.  Where Jesus goes, I cannot go. Thus, my friends, Jesus goes alone.  Abandoned by His disciples and abandoned by the crowd, Jesus goes to the cross on His own solidarity.  Jesus goes to this anti-glorious place to be lifted up on a cross.

When the Christ is lifted up on the cross—after being spit upon, bloodied, mocked, betrayed, and forsaken—the scriptures say that He draws all men to Himself.  Yes, in this anti-glorious place; in this dark, ugly, low place of shame and death, Jesus drags and pulls the weight of sin from the world unto Himself.  Do you and I truly hear this?  Jesus chose the crown of thorns.  He chose the hammer and nails.  He went into the darkness.  He chose the cross.  He drank the cup of wrath and He drags and pulls the weight of sin, your sin and mine, into this anti-glorious place, called Golgotha, where sin finds death, where sin is finished for you and for me.  

This. Is. Glory.  This. Is. Glory. 

This is the glorification of Jesus Christ: going where no other person would go and doing what no other person could do, taking the world's sin upon Himself and considering it well-worthwhile.

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

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[1] (Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel (p. 106) for Palm Sunday, preaching on John 12:20-29)