Why Isn't Tolerance A Christian Virtue?

Text:  Revelation 2:18-29

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

You may notice that the message that Christ sent to the pastor and the church in Thyatira has a similar feeling to the message that He sent to the pastor and church in Pergamum.  That is to say; in last week’s sermon, the Lord brings forth the Old Testament people of Balaam and Balak to prove a point about the problems in Pergamum. Well, in tonight’s reading about the church of Thyatira, the Lord brings up another Old Testament person, one is shameful.  That person is named Jezebel.

Jezebel was the wife of an Old Testament King named, Ahab.  And the reason why Jezebel is not looked upon with favor in the Bible is because she brought to the Israelites a bunch of pagan practices.  Yes, she brought false worship of false gods and the seduction of sexual immorality into the midst of the Nation of Israel. Now, I wish I could tell you that King Ahab stood against Jezebel’s paganism and sexual mischievousness, but unfortunately, Israel adopted these practices alongside their own Israelite practices. 

Jezebel wreaked havoc by introducing all of this paganism into midst of Israel and then to make things worse, she eventually tried to put all of the Lord’s prophets to death.

Now, considering all of this, if we fast forward approximately 900 years, from the Old Testament to the book of Revelation, we hear mention of the name Jezebel.  While it is true that Jezebel had been dead for centuries, it is also not true that her ways and tactics had stopped working among God’s people.  In other words, during the time of the church of Thyatira, her name and significance lived on, for Jesus used Jezebel’s name to say that there was teaching in the midst of the church of Thyatira which was seducing people to practice sexual immorality and to embrace pagan practices. 

And so, we can see that Jezebel is a symbol of churches and people that want to mingle pagan religion and the Christian faith together, much like we heard last Wednesday with the church of Pergamum. 

And much like the church of Pergamum, the pastor and the congregation of Thyatira go the way of tolerance.  Yes, the pastor and congregation are tolerating the tactics and ways of Jezebel in the church.  They are tolerating sexual immorality and getting cuddly with pagan gods.     

Now, as you know, tolerance has become a very popular word in our culture.  It has seen a drastic increase in use; the increase started in the 1950s and had reached a record high in our last decade. It is a word that is positive and good, at least we are told.  It is what our schools teach, what our presidents promote, what music and movie stars encourage, and what people, in general, say that we need more of.  But here the Lord, whose eyes are as flames of fire and whose feet are like burnished bronze, is not promoting tolerance. He is opposing it. He warns against it.  The reason why? The answer, because tolerance is the opposite of repentance.

Dear friends, we must keep in mind that tolerance is not a Christian virtue.  We have heard this before. It actually is a pagan one. (Believe it or not, it was actually Ghandi, not Christ, who coined some form of the phrase, "hate the sin, not the sinner.") Indeed, the idea of tolerance is an ancient pagan idea, in fact, it is at least as ancient as Jezebel herself.  To the point, though, consider a moment how tolerance brought into Israel by Jezebel backfired. Consider how dangerous tolerance is. In other words, at first Jezebel’s pagan practices were permitted. Then they were accepted. And then anyone who dared challenge her pagan practices was killed.  Tragically, this is how false doctrine and pagan practices work.  Indeed, error typically emerges into the church and a culture in three stages.

Permit me to elaborate.    

First, false doctrine and pagan practices and worshipping false gods begin by asking for tolerance. (Let’s just call all these things ‘error’ for the sake of simplicity)  So, the friends and supporters of error say to the majority of the people, who are not upholding error, this:

“You need not be afraid of this error; we are few, and weak; only let us alone; we shall not disturb the faith of the others. We know that the Church has her standards of doctrine; of course, we shall never interfere with them; we only ask for ourselves to be spared interference with our private opinions.”

As a result, error is tolerated. It is given space and room to breathe.  Error is given a pat on the head.   

Time goes by, though, and error is not content with merely being tolerated, but then wants equality.  More specifically, instead of being on the opposite side of truth, error wants to be on the same side as truth.  Error wants to stand side by side with truth and be respected as good, right, and salutary.  So, error demands equality with truth. And anyone who would dare to try and keep error on the opposite side of truth is deemed as closed minded, unloving, and a suppressor.     

And so error, as we can see, has just traveled from a minority position where it was tolerated, to being accepted as equal to truth.  But as expected, error is not content to merely be equal with truth; it must go on to its natural end, which is to assert supremacy.  Error does this by attacking and eliminating truth.

Do you see how this works my friends?  When error is tolerated, it then wants equality, and once it has equality, error seeks to snuff out the truth so that it can be on top.[1]  All of this is why Jesus comes down so hard on Thyatira for being tolerant.  He said,

“Do not hold this teaching, do not learn what some call the "deep things of Satan."

Indeed, my friends, we must reject this pagan idea of ‘tolerance’ especially in the church, for tolerance is self-centered. It is promiscuous. It destroys both itself and others, for tolerance in the end climbs to the top with error – past equality – to supremacy and then becomes entirely intolerant.  Intolerance is the opposite of repentance – it is an enemy of the Gospel. 

Dear Baptized Saints, love and tolerance are very different views of the world from very different sources. The world operates with tolerance, the church though operates with love. Love is not the same as tolerance, for love actually cares. Love is very intentionally intolerant, both of sin, and of its terrible consequences. Love is willing to suffer to serve the other. How different and incompatible are Jezebel and Jesus and how destructive it is to confuse these two, to mingle them.

In Jezebel, we do not see love, but we see tolerance gone wild. We see a strong, domineering character that was self-willed and forceful.  She demanded that her gods have at least equal rights with God, and in the end, she went after the prophets of God to have them killed.  This is fanatical hate, clothed in the pious words of so-called tolerance. 

On the other hand, in Jesus, we do not see tolerance, but we see love.  If Jesus would have gone the way of tolerance, He would ‘not’ have gone to the cross but would have left us in our sins.  And if we were left in our sins, we would be left with damnation.  So much for the way of tolerance!  But because of His great love for us and His rich mercy, Jesus could not tolerate our sin.  Indeed, the Son of God could not tolerate our sin, so He was compelled to the cross – in love – to do something about it.

Therefore, beloved Saints, in light of all that we have heard, hold fast to what you have in repentance. Hold fast what you have from Christ until He comes. Do not bend to the winds of cultural tolerance that excuses and celebrates sin.  Do not become a reed blowing in the wind of trying to blend errors and Christianity together – as if all religions are the same.  Do not bounce upon the waves of popular opinions that are here one day and gone the next. Be aware of false doctrine.  Be sober minded regarding the seduction of false teachers and lousy ethics.  Remember who you belong to.  Remember who you are in your baptisms.  Remember that the Father has taken you from the dominion of darkness and placed you into the Kingdom of His Son. 

And if the world calls you intolerant, count it a blessing, for you know that love and tolerance are far from synonyms.

Remember, as you hold steadfast to Christ, error will push back against you claiming that you must tolerate it and accept it, but do not budge, for you know this day that what error does not tell you is that it will eventually persecute you and kill you.  Regardless of the way of all the Jezebels in the church and our culture, though, you shall not fear or budge for you have a true lover of mankind in Christ, one who gives us His works, His victory, and also His purity. He truly loves and forgives and sustains you.

Dear Baptized Saints, again, do not tolerate the seductions of Jezebels outside or inside the church.  But rather, believe that Jesus died for you. Believe that because Jesus died for you, that He has not left you to fend for yourself, He is here with you now.  He stands by your side upon the plain as you struggle and fight against the devil, the world, and your own sinfulness.  When you are weak Christ is strong.  When you fall, He stands.  When you confess, He forgives.  Indeed, though you and I are unfaithful, He is faithful to you and me.

Dear Blessed Saints, hold fast, hold fast indeed.  Hold on to Christ, the one who holds on to you.   

In the name Jesus: Amen.

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[1] The three stages of error comes from Charles Porterfield Krauth (The Conservative Reformation).

This sermon is borrowed in part from Rev. Sean Daenzers sermon on Revelation 2:18-29. 

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You Can't Have Your Cake And Eat It Too

Text: Revelation 2:12-18

In the name of Jesus: Amen.

The city of Pergamum was a bustling city. It had many shrines to many pagan gods, chief among them was a pagan god named Baal.  And like many other places in the world of that day, the people worshiped the emperor as god. 

Jesus, though, does not give Pergamum a four-star rating but calls this place the very throne of Satan.  

But, what can be said about the small church in the city of Pergamum?  Well, the church had held fast to Jesus’ Name and not denied the faith.  That is right; they did not deny the faith even though a Christian named Antipas was put to death for his Christian confession and for his refusal to worship false gods. 

Now, even though they did not deny the faith entirely, there were still problems in this church.  All of their problems could be summed up like this: there were some in the church who thought that they could have it both ways.  They thought that they could live in peace and offer sacrifices to false gods and practice sexual immorality and then still remain true to God and His Word. 

We all know the common phrase, “You can’t have your cake and eat it too.”  This phrase is basically used to express the impossibility of having something both ways.  And well, some in the church of Pergamum were doing just that.  They were having their cake and eating it too.  As previously mentioned, they were trying to live in peace and offer sacrifices to false gods and practice the sexual immorality that was common among the pagans of Pergamum, and still remain true to God and His Word.  They were living as if falsehood and Truth could actually stand side by side. Frankly stated, they were straddling the fence.  They were two-faced.  They were speaking out of both sides of their mouth.  They were two timing.  They had one foot in the pagan culture and one foot in the church.  They were drinking the Kool Aide of the culture and were drinking the wine from the church’s chalice. 

To make things worse, though, the pastor of this church did not try to correct this but tolerated it.  He turned a blind eye to this blatant double-dealing. 

As a result, Jesus calls to account the pastor of the church who tolerated those in his congregation who believed this way.  He calls to account the congregation too, for they had accepted and believed the lie. He calls them to repentance, to turn away from worshipping idols and craving the things of the pagan world; He calls them to repentance for their acceptance and even adoption of the sexual immorality that was all around them.  He says,

“Repent, lest I come myself and stand in front of you and war against you with the Sword of the My Mouth, just as I did when I stood against Balaam and sent a plague on Israel.”

Dear friends, we are separated from the church and culture in Pergamum by about two-thousand years; however, the spirit and ways of Pergamum live on in our culture.  Indeed, the Christian church in the twenty-first-century still exists in the place where Satan has his throne.  And sadly, churches and Christians are easily tempted to double dip.  It is easy to get wrapped up into this tolerance and acceptance of what is false, even though deep down we know that what is false actually infects and poisons God’s people.  It is easy to not sweat the supposed small stuff and to try and make peace between the culture and the church.  

We may be tempted to say that the church in the twenty-first-century is not like the church in Pergamum in order to help ourselves sleep better at night; however, we need to ask ourselves this, how many Christians think that they can have it both ways? Do we think that we can have it both ways? That is to say; is it believed that a Christian can accept and even participate in the godless things of this world and yet be faithful to the true God and His Word?  Ask yourself this, how many people think that they can separate what they believe and how they live?  At best, this is spiritual schizophrenia, at worst it is blatant hypocrisy.  Regardless, though, it is dangerous and the reason why?  One cannot claim the title of Christian and at the same time embrace teachings that attack and undercut the person and work of Christ.  One cannot confess the Christian doctrine of the sanctity of life and then advocate for a women’s right to choose an abortion of a precious child in the womb. One cannot confess that God is the giver of all great gifts and then hold our wallets with a tight fist claiming that our resources belong to us and only us. One cannot confess the importance of the family while also supporting same-sex marriage, which undercuts the family.  One cannot work towards the removal of gender distinctions and then celebrate that we are created uniquely by God.  One cannot uphold the importance of the Bible and then cut the legs out from underneath the Bible by promoting the ideas of evolutionary biology.  One cannot actively fight against everything Jesus teaches in the Bible and then in the next breath claim the title of Christ follower.  The reason why this can’t be done?  There is no middle ground.  Either we are a part of the kingdom of Satan or the Kingdom of God.  If we think that we can ride the fence, if we think that we can have it both ways, well… then we have actually moved into the church of Satan. 

James says it well in his epistle,

“You adulterous people!  Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God?  Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God.” 

What does all of this mean? It means that you and I need to repent.  It is a clear solution.  We need repentance.  Repentance stops the actions.  It acknowledges that there is no middle grown.  Repentance acknowledges that we can’t have our cake and eat it too.  Repentance stops the lies, it stops the false doctrine, it stops the hurt, and it removes all of this nonsense and deception from life, and in faith turns to the one and only Christ and His mercy. 

And as we consider Jesus in the midst of our mess, we see that Jesus came into His creation and gave His life that all people would be justified before God.  In that moment of the cross God has no more enemies. 

“Father forgiven them, forgive them all, for they do not know what they are doing.” 

And because the Son dies in the place of God’s enemies and for their many sins, the Father indeed forgives them.  But not all have received His gift because not everyone is content with what the Lord offers.  Many still seek after other treasures.  Many have turned aside from the Gospel.  Many still run to the kingdom of darkness. Many want to cozy up to the world and still try to be buddies with God, which is not an option but a cop out and an insult to the Lord.  You see, either we are sinners who are buried deeply in the wounds of Jesus for the forgiveness of sins or we are dancing with the devil in the lies of the world. There is no middle ground.    

Dear friends, what God has ordained and blessed, man cannot curse and destroy.  To those who deliberately go on sinning after receiving the knowledge of truth, well… there no longer remains a sacrifice for their sins but a fearful expectation of judgment and a fury of fire that will consume them, for they have spurned the Son of God, profaned His blood and outraged the Spirit of grace.[1]  However, to those who listen to God and His judgment against their sins and renounce the Devil and all his works and all his ways; to those who beat their breast confessing, “I am a poor miserable sinner!”; to those who trust in Jesus’ forgiveness and cling to His cross and His blessings by the power of the Holy Spirit; to those – yes to you – Jesus gives of the heavenly manna, of His own body and blood. 

You, who have ears, hear this, Jesus has washed you clean in Holy Baptism, He gives a white stone, the token of admittance to His feast.  And to you, who hear His Word, He gives a new Name, a holy Name written on your stony heart; His own Name, the only Name given under heaven by which men must be saved.

You Baptized Saints do not belong to the devil.  His throne is not over you.  You shall not tremble, and you shall not fear the evil foe; he can do you no harm.  He is judged; he is done, for you belong to another – Jesus Christ. 

And just so you know, because of the Cross, you have been crucified in relation to the world, set free from the stifling atmosphere of pleasing others and fitting into their little patterns that they dictate.[2] 

Yes, there is no middle ground for you, for you are in Jesus; you belong to Him.

In the name of Jesus: Amen.   

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[1] Hebrews 10:26-29.

[2] Paraphrase from Eugene Peterson’s, “The Message,” on Galatians 6:14. 

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Clothed In White, With The Palm Of Victory In Her Hand

The following 'Visitation and Prayer Service Sermon' is posted with family permission.  May the Lord give to the family of Ashley Ann Anderson, and all who mourn, comfort in their grief and a sure confidence in the Lord's loving care.  To listen to the 'Funeral Service Sermon,' CLICK HERE.

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

Ashley Anderson:
Born a Child of Man on August 12, 1987,
Asleep in Jesus on March 17, 2015

In tonight’s reading from the New Testament book of Revelation, we heard about a great multitude from every nation, from all tribes and all people and all languages.  There they are, standing before the throne and before Jesus—the Lamb of God who has taken away the sin of the world.  This vast crowd does not stand empty handed or in with ordinary attire, but they stand clothed in white, with the palm of victory in their hands, as they sing a song that ascribes their salvation solely to their God and to the Lamb.

These faithfully departed Saints know they have nothing to boast of on their own.  Why would they, for they have only been given to.  They know that their robes are white only because they have been washed in the blood of the Lamb - because the Lamb, Jesus, bled and died to redeem them and set them free to stand before the throne holy and pure.

Furthermore, these blessed departed Saints are always there, day and night, never departing from God’s presence, delighting to offer him an endless worship of praise...

They live in God’s temple - protected from all harm and danger.  In that act of awesome gentleness, He reaches out His nail-scared hand to wipe away every tear from their eyes.  Their sorrows are gone.  No pain.  No suffering.  No anguish.  They have eternal joy.

Just to ensure that we are all on the same page thus far, who are these people that are portrayed in our Reading from Revelation?  Who are these people seen in this vision of heaven?  They are the ones who have come out of the great tribulation, or the great sorrow.  These are people like you and me:  People who have had their share of heart-ache and pain; people who sometimes had to struggle day by day just to hang on and keep going; people for whom faith never came easy.  They are people who struggled to trust in the Lord and to believe that in the midst of their troubles, the Lord was still there and still in control and still loving them… Who are they?  Well, among them are those that you have known and loved; fellow sinners who were baptized into the name of the Lord.  They are fellow sinners declared righteous for Christ’s sake.  They are fellow sinners who put their hope in Jesus’ words.  They are fellow sinners who have gone before us and died. They are people like Ashley.  They are people like Ashley who died in Christ’s care.  That’s who they are.  They’re the Church, that bunch of forgiven sinners whom Christ has already gathered to Himself.

With that said, what do we make of the rest of us in the here and now?  Yes, you and I sitting right here and right now?  You and I are those who are in this vale of tears.  We are the Church that struggles still. 

If this is the case, does this mean that there are two churches?  Is there a church on the earth and a church in heaven?  No, we are not two churches:  we’re one Church, one communion.  Otherwise stated, there are not two churches: one in heaven and one on the earth.  We do not have two Lords, but one Lord.  Christ Jesus does not have two brides, but one.  We are baptized into one name; those who are in the vale of tears and those who are with the Lord, yet all of us belonging to the Lord.

 

The reality that there is one church can be a big comfort and encouragement for us.  When we gather for worship on Sundays, it’s not just those of us in the room that are gathered together.  Oh, no!  If we only had the eyes to see it, we would discover that we never gather with less than a few million at a time.

Listen to what Hebrews says of this One Church: 

“But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect, to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling that speaks better things than that of Abel. (Heb 12:22-24).”

You have come to all this, the sacred writer reminds the people.  So when we gather for worship here on Sundays or in your churches across the South East of North Dakota, it’s never just you in the sanctuary.  It’s also the angels in heaven, the spirits of just men and women made perfect, that is, the saints in heaven with their blood-washed white robes—saints like Ashley—and most of all Jesus with His blood, that established the new covenant of forgiveness

We’re always a mega-church when we’re at worship.  And the song of those that triumph, the voice of them that feast, gives us the courage and strength to go on, and muddle through, and know that in the end, our God will take us out of the great sorrow and bring us into eternal sunshine, when we will see with our eyes those who have gone before us, those like Ashley, and we will lift our voices in song with their voices forever.

So tonight and tomorrow we’re not just remembering those who died in the faith, like Ashley.  We’re worshipping with them.  At the same throne.  Before the same Lord...  Surrounded by the same angels.  Clothed in the same righteousness of Jesus.

We can’t see them with the eyes of the body yet, but that’s only because our vision is so poor.  It’s a reality none the less.  Together with them, together with Ashley, we cry out:

"Salvation to our God who sits upon the throne and to the Lamb!" 

Painting by Stephen C. Dawson

Indeed, this evening we remember Ashley, while “trusting in that forgiveness won on Mt. Calvary by the Lamb who was slain. [We remember that] it is He, [Christ Jesus,] who is our judge, He who answered for our sins on Calvary. What Christ did is given us as ours, His death for us, His life for us, and so we are forgiven and righteous with His righteousness, holy, saints. That is all ours from the Lamb, and the Lamb who is our judge cannot deny Himself or what is ours from Him… We are justified by grace through faith for the Lamb’s sake”[1] just as Ashley was and is.

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

Note: This sermon is indebted to Rev. Bill Weedon's "All Saints Day Sermon."

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[1] Excerpted from Norman Nagel’s All Saints’ Day sermon preached at Valparaiso University on November 1, 1981 by the Reverend Dr. Norman Nagel “Selected Sermons of Norman Nagel,” pp. 315-16.

Christ's Cross Breaks And Destroys Sin's Shame And Guilt - For You

Text: Ephesians 1:7-8 & Revelations 1:1-6

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

Several hundred years ago archers would shoot at targets.  When they missed the target, the judge standing next to the target would yell out the word, “SIN.”  Indeed, sin is the result of missing the target for an archer. 

But how does the Bible use this word ‘sin?’  Like in the case of the archer, sin is every thought, desire, word, and deed that misses God’s Law.  Sin was brought into the world by the devil in tempting Adam and Eve, who of their own free will yielded to temptation, they intentionally missed the target.  Thus, from our parents, Adam and Eve, we have learned to know that sin is our ‘turning inward’ on self; it is turning to our own desires, our own wisdom, and our own preferences.  It is ‘us’ wanting to become our own gods, desiring to be like God and thus not only totally missing the mark but attempting to eliminate the mark altogether. 

Not only are there dramatic eternal and spiritual consequences to sin, but there are also intense consequences of sin in the here and now.  In Psalm chapter 32 we receive an accurate picture of sin; sin that was un-confessed.  King David communicates to us that sin creates excessive grief; it can weigh down upon a person with deteriorating effects, as if bones decay.  Sin can figuratively wear out a skeletal structure.  Because of the guilt of sin, there can be tightness of throat; one becomes like a plant without moisture, being constantly exposed to the heat of sin’s guilt and shame.  Indeed, sin produces guilt, shame, and it drives us to fear, the feeling of being overwhelmed.

As a result of sin, we humans go to great lengths to handle and manage the guilt and shame of sin.  We deny sin (i.e., I didn’t do anything wrong); we legalize sin (i.e., well I haven’t done anything as bad as so and so); we shift blame for sin (i.e., the devil made me do it); we suppress the guilt of sin through substance abuse (i.e., we drink until we become numb); and we attempt to overcome the guilt of sin through our works righteousness (i.e., we coat our sin with spiritual cosmetics, good works).  All of these are merely band aids that ignore the much greater internal problem of the conscience, a conscience that has been damaged and condemned by sin.  Truly, these tactics are all intended to suppress the weight and avoid the effects of sin.  Left to self, this management of sin can consume a person’s whole life as they seek peace, absolution, and reconciliation to their sin and guilt. 

As we contemplate sin, does the Old Rugged Cross of Christ have anything to say to this issue of sin?  Yes, the Old Rugged Cross does speak to this issue of sin.  In Ephesians chapter 1 it says that we have redemption; Christ has purchased us out of slavery; through the blood of Christ we have the forgiveness of our trespasses according to the riches of His grace.  Indeed, we are granted forgiveness, due to Christ’s cross.  Yes, forgiveness that is applied to us because of Christ. 

There is a hint of scandal with this incredible forgiveness though.  Now, let us consider the scandal.  Upon hearing this you may find yourself saying, “That is too easy; it doesn’t cost the sinner anything.  Should not the sinner have to earn this forgiveness or put just a little forth as a good faith down payment?  I mean, this forgiveness is a little too cheap!  This grace is a little too cheap if it is simply that easy and that free.”  My friends, you are correct that this forgiveness doesn’t cost you and me anything, but it cost the Father everything.  Yes, let us consider how much this forgiveness cost our Lord!  For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son.  Indeed, this is expensive forgiveness purchased at the cost of the blood of the Lamb.  God the Father unleashed His vengeance upon Christ and then gives up His ‘right’ to unleash vengeance upon us for our sins.  This. Is. Forgiveness.  It is expensive forgiveness for us. 

Consider the following declarations for a moment. Isaiah 43:25 says, “I, I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake, and I will remember your sins no more.”  Psalm 103:12 proclaims, “As far as the east is from the west, so far does he remove our transgressions from us.”  Psalm 32:5 says, “I acknowledged my sin to you and I did not cover my iniquity; I said ‘I will confess my transgressions to the Lord,’ and you forgave the iniquity of my sins.”  1 John 1:9 states, “When we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”  Yes, forgiveness is the removal of vengeance, it is the yielding of judgment, and it is the letting go of a wrong.  How is this possible?  Because your sin has already been judged upon Christ, the Father does not and cannot hold the debt of sin against you; your sin is forgotten.

What this means is that you are freed from the burden, guilt, and stronghold of sin upon you.  The word freed, carries with it the meaning of: to loose, to break; to destroy; to dissolve.  It can also communicate the idea of ‘washing.’  Simply put, the wage or result of sin as expressed by the Apostle Paul in the epistle of Romans is death.  However, through this Old Rugged Cross we are forgiven and freed from the verdict and stronghold of sin.  Through the Old Rugged Cross the eternal consequence of sin is destroyed and dissolved; sin does not dictate our eternal destiny.  In the cross of Christ, we are washed, the stain is lifted; sin no longer has damning authority over you and me. 

Baptized Saints, in Christ, you are forgiven; in Christ your sins have been cast into the ocean depth; in Christ your sins are distanced from you; in Christ you are totally and wholly forgiven. 

So, when the devil, the world, and your conscience throw your sins in your face declaring that you deserve death and hell, thus bringing forth shame and guilt, tell them this: “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, where He is there I shall also be!  He bled and died for me to grant me forgiveness.  Sin, your damning eternal power has been destroyed for the nailed scarred hands of Jesus are the proof of that.”[1] 

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

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[1] Note: A paraphrase and adaptation of a Martin Luther quote.