GOOD EATS!

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My sermon today is entitled, “Good Eats!” and my focus is our Gospel (Luke 24:36-49). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

One of my favorite shows was entitled Good Eats! If you never saw it, Host Alton Brown explores the origins of ingredients, decodes culinary customs, and presents food and equipment trends. Punctuated by unusual interludes, simple preparations and unconventional discussions, he brings you food in its finest and funniest form.[1] I mention this cooking show because of Jesus’ question, “Have you anything here to eat?” The question leads to three points about food: in Luke, the Lord’s Supper and the Church today.

First, Luke. After the Risen Lord greeted his disciples with peace, they became startled and frightened because they thought that they were looking at a ghost. Stories of ghosts and other phantoms of the night abounded in Jesus’ time, but one point worth noting is that ghosts lack material substance. You can't shake hands with a ghost or invite him to eat dinner with you.

In this Resurrection account, the disciples were startled and frightened precisely because they thought they were seeing a ghost. So, Jesus invited them to touch Him, underscoring his point by reminding the disciples that His glorified Body has flesh and bones.

To deepen this point, Jesus asked his bewildered disciples for something to eat. This was a sign that he was indeed raised from the dead – body and spirit. Recall that Jesus instructed Jairus and his wife to give their girl something to eat after he had raised her to life. Only the living require food to eat.

But there is something more important here than good eats. In Jesus’ culture dining with someone indicated solidarity with that person. To eat with someone meant you identified with that person. To take a meal with another was to offer that person the right hand of fellowship in the deepest sense of the term.

Meal fellowship is an appropriate image for an incarnational Christianity. Meal scenes and meal imagery (including parables spoken at or about a meal) serve as a “main course" here. There are ten meal scenes in which Jesus eats with others in Luke. Three of them have parallels in the other gospels; seven, however, can only be found in Luke, and are integral to and reflective of Luke’s theological interests.

Now, when it comes to sizing up Jesus' table companions, one has to speak in terms of his democratic eating habits. For Jesus it was not the food but the people he ate with that mattered most. His dining partners were diversified and inclusive. Every meal was a shared meal. Jesus never ate alone, and where Jesus was present, salvation was also. That said, there is no better image for salvation than a feast, the major metaphor for salvation.

Lastly, Luke speaks of the eucharist in a story of meals and journeys with Jesus. Unlike foxes who have dens and birds who have nests, the Son of Man had “nowhere rest his head” (9:58). His entire life was one great journey in which meals and simple hospitality played a critical part for him as well as for his followers. Jesus, his disciples, all who would follow later, and the church itself are a people on a journey, a people of hospitality, both offered and received. The eucharist is the supreme expression of that hospitality, sustaining them and us on the journey to the kingdom of God.[2]

With that, we move from my first point, food in Luke, to my second, the Lord’s Supper. Every time we receive the Body and Blood of Christ, it is like we are with his disciples, sitting at table with Jesus. We receive Him, Body and Blood, Soul and Divinity. What we receive is no phantom ghost, but the very substance of the Son of God Himself. Other Christians do not believe this. Some confess that because Christ is at the right hand of the Father in heaven, He cannot possibly be present in Communion. Others believe that the Lord’s Supper is simply a memorial service. That is not to say that they are unworthy to take the receive the Body and Blood of Christ, but to share the Lord’s Supper requires one to be in fellowship with that Church.

Those of you who were present for Maundy Thursday know that I spoke of Mark’s account of the Last Supper. I am not going to repeat what I taught from Luther’s Small Catechism or The Formula of Concord, however, I am going to cite an even earlier work that I recently re-read.

The Jerusalem Catechesis was one of the first catechisms of the undivided Christian Church. Its 24 teachings, given sometime around 350 AD, reflect the deep, sacramental understanding of the early Christian Church, the meaning of Baptism and all the Sacraments and the beauty of our participation in the life of the Trinity through our participation in the Church, the Body of Christ, of which we are members.

Its use of the word symbol means much more than we westerners tend to think. It means an actual participation by grace. That said, the instruction to newly baptized Christians that “it is with complete assurance that we receive the bread and wine as the body and blood of Christ. His body is given to us under the symbol of bread, and his blood is given to us under the symbol of wine, in order to make us by receiving them one body and blood with him. Having his body and blood in our members, we become bearers of Christ and sharers … in the divine nature.

Do not, then, regard the eucharistic elements as ordinary bread and wine: they are in fact the body and blood of the Lord, as he himself has declared. Whatever your senses may tell you, be strong in faith. You have been taught and you are firmly convinced that what looks and tastes like bread and wine is not bread and wine but the body and the blood of Christ.”

My friends, through grace Christ invites us to his holy meal to eat his Body and Blood. Through God’s grace and our belief as a Church body and members, we share in the divine nature. What does it mean for us? With that, we move from my second point on the Lord’s Supper to the Church today.

The Gospel passage we heard today is the last meal story in Luke. In each of the previous nine, Jesus was the host. In this one, the Church is the host. The previous passage, the Road to Emmaus, is one which speaks clearly of hospitality. It is hospitality that is vital to the Church today, and to speak to the Church today, I return to one of the Church Fathers recognized by the Synod, Gregory the Great of the 6^th century. Usually, Gregory’s sermons were detailed exegetical commentaries. Here, he dispensed with that which gave him the opportunity to sing the praises of the great virtue of hospitality.[3]

We know that the two disciples were walking on the road and, while not believing in Christ, spoke of him. The Lord “exchanged a few words with them, reproached them with their slowness in understanding, explained to them the mysteries of Holy Scripture concerning him, and yet, their hearts remaining foreign to him for lack of faith, he pretended to go further. … It was necessary to test them to see if, not yet loving him as God, they were at least capable of loving him as a traveler. Truth journeying with them, they could not remain strangers to love: they offered him hospitality, as one does for a traveler.”

Gregory points out that they begged, urged, pleaded, pressed or constrained Jesus to stay with them. He continues, “This example shows us that we should not only offer hospitality to travelers, but to accept it. The disciples set the table, offer food; and God, whom they did not recognize in the explanation of Holy Scripture, they recognize it in the breaking of bread.”

“As you can see, the Lord was not recognized when he spoke, but he deigned to be recognized when he was given food. Love, dear brothers, hospitality, love works inspired by charity.”

Hebrews reminds us, “Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for thereby some have entertained angels unawares” (Heb 13:2) As does Peter, “Show hospitality to one another without grumbling” (1 Pet 4:9), and Matthew, “I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me” (Mt 25:35). 

After citing these passages, Gregory said, “What great virtue is hospitality. Receive Christ at your tables, to deserve to be received by him at the eternal banquet. Give shelter today to Christ who presents himself to you as a stranger, so that in the day of judgment you are not for him as strangers whom he does not know (cf Lk 13:25), but that he receives you as his own in his Kingdom.”

My friends, I am sure each of us has pressed strangers in our midst to accept our hospitality. It may have been one who was a stranger in our country or community. It may be one who was a stranger to God or the Christian Faith. At times, simply offering is met with resistance or refusal. Perhaps people are reluctant to receive hospitality. Perhaps they think that they must reciprocate a gracious act. But our salvation, as we know, is a free gift from God. That is why we should and do offer hospitality to strangers in our midst – to be channels of God’s free grace to them that they too may receive and enjoy salvation through Christ.

I was thinking about this point because periodically, I stop by the church during the week, and notice a car drive up to the Blessing Cupboard. People come when no one is around to notice, take what food they need and leave. For all I know, they are strangers in our midst to whom we offer hospitality. A while back Barb Kraynie explained the history of the Blessing Cupboard. Most of you know it, but it bears repeating.

“The blessing cupboard was started in May 2017. I had seen a Facebook page called blessing box. I thought there are many people in our area that could use the help but are not comfortable letting people know. With the cupboard they could come any time anonymously and take whatever they need. It also gives other people the ability to donate any amount anytime that is convenient for them. Not only church members but many people in the community stock the cupboard. We do not keep records of donations and what we give out. Linda has been instrumental in expanding our giving with the Christmas boxes the past few years. She also has used her contacts to get donations from Blackhawk schools and Boy Scouts. When I was working, I drove by the church every day. I would stop and check if food needed stocked. I was amazed the amount that came and went on a daily basis.”

Friends, this is a wonderful Christian ministry we provide for the community. As we move through this great Season of Easter, open yourself to God’s grace poured into your hearts. Open yourself to divine hospitality, and may the grace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] https://www.foodnetwork.com/shows/good-eats

[2] Eugene LaVerdiere, Dining in the Kingdom of God, p. 9.

[3] https://sites.google.com/site/aquinasstudybible/home/luke-commentary/gregory-the-great-homily-23-on-the-gospels

Christ Matters

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My sermon is entitled Why Christ Matters, and my focus is our Epistle (1^st John 1:1-2:2) Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

Homer. Google Homer and three results populate your screen. First, a fictional character in an animated television series, The Simpsons. Next, a fishing city in southwest Alaska. Finally, the ancient Greek author of the Iliad and the Odyssey. Fishing aficionados and animation fans aside, the ancient Greek author who had a lasting effect on classical literature impacts our culture today more than the longest running American sitcom. Homer, I will save for my final point and open with an introduction of John’s Letter and its meaning to our church.

John’s letters emerged from an environment of conflict and appear to provide a window into the history of the early church where John served as pastor. Unfortunately, since our knowledge of his church is vague, we cannot reconstruct a precise picture.

The surface issue appeared to be the proper understanding of Jesus. The abiding center of life and unity in John’s Gospel became the focal point of dissension and division. Those who shared fellowship and friendship in the Fourth Gospel[1] clashed over the proper understanding of Jesus. Mutual excommunication challenged the infant church’s identity and existence.

Unlike Paul’s letters that encouraged Christians, John’s First Letter warned the community against the views of dissidents. John’s contrast between light and darkness distinguished believers from dissident evildoers. Believers walked in the light; evildoers preferred darkness.

John based his image of believers walking in the light from the attributes of God: light, fidelity and righteousness. He wrote, “God is light, and in him is no darkness … He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”[2] Believers walked in the light, claimed fellowship with God and one another, and lived lives free of sin.

John opened with a phrase that echoed the Gospel and Genesis – the beginning. He then captured the listener’s attention and interest; stated his purpose for writing; and divulged his essential plan. He did this by claiming to be an eyewitness, which underscored that he personally heard, saw and touched Jesus – the eternal Word. Then John set before his readers this: Life is in Jesus Christ. He advanced nothing new, visionary or imagined; rather, made his focus that which eyewitnesses heard, saw and handled. In short, John established that no faith was certain unless its object, foundation, origin and end are from the beginning.

No faith is certain unless its object, foundation, origin and end are from the beginning. John said, if you have fellowship with us – eyewitnesses, tradition-bearers, apostles – you have fellowship with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ, the Eternal Word. Fellowship is not simply a conglomeration of people with some things in common; fellowship is grounded in what the eyewitnesses saw and heard. In creating fellowship or church, John did it in order that OUR joy may be complete.[3]

John wrote that phrase as the last of the apostles in the last of his days. He sought to preserve the integrity of the apostolic message. Knowing those in fellowship with him believed and lived right, John strengthened their resolve to continue their beliefs and lifestyles, and warned them about the very real possibility of sin, that is, committing apostasy and wandering off into the dark as some did already.

Secessionists who committed apostasy and wandered into the dark were deceived by the day’s deadly philosophies. One danger that influenced Christians was to view the physical world, including one’s body as intrinsically alien to one’s true self. Those who embraced this philosophy actively disdained all things material and denied the reality of the incarnation and any need for blood atonement. Their remedy to overcome sin was to flee this material world, to escape this sinful world of flesh and blood. To counter this, John wrote, “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. … [Jesus Christ] is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”[4] Therefore, the sinner should not fear, for the sinner’s friend is Jesus, the righteous one, the Son of God who is love. With that in mind, as Christians, we walk by faith. In fellowship with the Apostles, we walk as children of the light, and our joy is complete.

Walking as children of the light in fellowship with the Apostles, we recognize that we are still sinners who need forgiveness. Regarding this, Martin Luther observed, “We should always be suspicious of ourselves and fear and grieve that perchance some puffing up of the mind be in us still. For who will boast that he is pure spirit and does not still have the flesh in opposition to the spirit? … If you have flesh and are in the flesh, then certainly this pride is also with you and you in it, until this body becomes altogether spiritual. Always, therefore, we sin, always we are unclean. And if we say that we have no sin, we are liars, because we deny that we have the flesh, when yet the flesh is all around and has with it these evils in order to attack the spirit.”

In another place, Luther said, “Those who are truly righteous not only … plead for the grace of God because they see that they have an evil inclination and thus are sinful before God, but also because they see that they can never understand fully how deep is the evil of their will and how far it extends. [They] believe that they are always sinners, as if the depth of their evil will were infinite. Thus they [humble themselves, plead and cry] until they are perfectly cleansed – which takes place in death. This, then, is the reason why we are always sinners.”

The Lutheran Service Book reminds us that to confess our sins is not merely to benignly admit to them. Rather, it is to acknowledge them as justly deserving of temporal and eternal punishment, knowing our unworthiness, and confessing all we did in thought, word, and deed – including the good we failed to do – as that which contributes to a deadly bondage from which we are unable to free ourselves.

We are unable to free ourselves; but Christians differ from other people in that sin does not rule them. Christians must accuse sin and fight against it throughout life.[5] For that reason, we find these words in Luther’s Morning Prayer: “I pray that You would keep me this day from sin and every evil, that all my doings and life may please you.” … It is important to me to recognize the reality of sin in my life and pray this way daily. Otherwise, I too may become a sinful secessionist.

Having examined John’s Letter and our Lutheran tradition, what might John say to us today? What practical application does John’s Letter have for today’s Christian?

For assistance, I turn to Homer. Adam Nicolson’s book, “Why Homer Matters,” rediscovers and re-presents the ancient Greek poet, best known for the “Iliad” and “Odyssey.” Homer’s epic poems ask eternal questions about individual and community, honor and service, love and war, and tell us how we became who we are.

I mention Nicolson’s work because I want you to think about who influences your life today. Who shapes you? Who acquires you? Who’s your daddy? Ask yourself these questions because in our world, as in John’s, Homer mattered and Christ mattered. Homer influenced his world’s philosophers and teachers, legislators and leaders. Likewise, the Risen Christ influenced people then and now.

Homer influenced men like Plato, Socrates and Aristotle. In turn, their work in the fields of logic, ethics, metaphysics, scientific method, politics and religion profoundly influenced people like Alexander the Great and Greeks for centuries before Christ. 1^st century Christians and pagans put stock in the teaching of the Ancients, which forced John to open with “That which was from the beginning ...” No faith is certain unless its object, foundation, origin and end are from the beginning.

Today, we may not consider the influence of Homer and other thinkers on our personal formation but consider their influence on our culture. Francis Bacon: scientific method. Confucius: social relationships. Machiavelli: politics. Thomas Paine: individual rights. Adam Smith: economics. Tolstoy: anarchism. Thoreau: civil disobedience. Nietzsche: religion. C.S. Lewis: apologetics. John Stuart Mill: utilitarianism. Dewey: pragmatism and progressivism. Calvin: predestination. Thomas Hobbes: social contract. Albert Schweitzer: reverence for life.

Ask ten people who influence them. Most will say parents. Some might say siblings, spouse, relatives or mentors. Few say pastors or theologians like Luther, Walther or Pieper. On second thought, a number might add Jesus. However, when you consider the big picture, that is, our culture, ideas proposed by thinkers thousands of years, centuries and decades ago, influence it more profoundly than parents do. Homer matters more than we think. …

Christ matters more than we think. For the ideas of men may control cultures, but apart from the one who is the propitiation for our sins and … the sins of the whole world,”[6]who offers salvation?

Homer Alaska or Homer Simpson may sway me more than great Greek minds; but as a Christian in this culture, how often do I consider what Jesus Christ did for me? How often do I consider that I may be walking in darkness because I am influenced not by Christ and His teachings, but by other teachings? How often do I consider that I may not have fellowship with Apostolic teaching, but with false philosophies? How often do I say, “I have no sin”?

The Law shows me my sin. It convicts me rightly to condemnation. The Gospel frees me of my sin. Christ “is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world.”[7]

Jesus paid my debt with the only payment that can forgive me of my sins – his blood. Jesus paid the world’s debt with the only payment that can forgive it of its sins. He is propitiator and propitiation. … How often do I consider that Good News?

Let us give Homer and others their due for their great ideas but let us give God glory for His great deed. Let us give God glory in one word: forgiveness. Forgiveness is the greatest act of love I can show to my enemy and my fellow man. When challenged by Pharisees for keeping company with sinners, Jesus quoted Hosea, “Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’”[8] When scoffed on the cross, Jesus pleaded, “Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do.”[9] When bestowing the Holy Spirit upon his disciples, Jesus instructed, “If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”[10]

Tell me, friends in Christ, whom shall I not forgive? If Christ was crucified for my sins and the sins of the world, who in this world is not deserving of forgiveness, my forgiveness? If my Risen Lord instructed me to forgive sins, who in this community is not deserving of my forgiveness?

Employees who embezzled my profits? Siblings who got what I wanted from my parents’ estate? Students who lied about me? Neighbors who gossiped about me? Teachers who failed me? Coaches who made an example of me? Principals who punished me? Pastors who reprimanded me? Police officers who ticketed me? Bosses who fired me? The list is as endless as God’s forgiveness.

Forgiveness distinguishes Christians in this world from everyone else, but forgiveness is not an idea to discuss like fishing holes, sports teams, politics or economics. Forgiveness is an act practiced daily. Forgiveness shapes you, acquires you. If you are a child of the light, forgiveness is your daddy.

Friends, know Christ forgives you and the sins of the world. Believe the Risen Lord grants you peace and forgiveness. Share the Good News of Christ’s Resurrection and what His forgiveness means to you when you are forgiving the undeserving. Praise God when you forgive and know that our joy will be complete.

You may never propose new ways of thinking or post 95 Theses. You may never craft epic poems or create a Homer Simpson, but if you forgive the unforgiveable and love the unlovable, you will make a difference – and you will give God the glory. And your joy will be complete. For that, children of light, pray to our Holy Trinity, and may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.

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[1] See John 15:1-17:26

[2] 1 John 1:5, 9.

[3] 1 John 1:4

[4] 1 John 1:9; 2:2

[5] Ibid, 144.

[6] 1 John 2:2

[7] 1 John 2:2

[8] Matthew 9:13

[9] Luke 23:34

[10] John 20:23

Easter!

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My sermon is entitled What Are You Doing Here? and my focus is our Gospel (Mark 16:1-8). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

Everyday we meet people we know in likely settings – the grocery store is always a place where we would see a family member, friend or neighbor and never think to ask, “What are you doing here?” There are places where we would ask that question – the hospital would be one. A few years ago, when I was working for Jubilee Soup Kitchen managing a program for mothers incarcerated at the Allegheny County Jail, I was approaching the door of the jail when out walks a friend of mine and his wife. Each of us asked the obvious question – What are you doing here?

Of course, my response was work. My friend’s response was, “My son’s here.” My friend explained the circumstances leading up to his incarceration. I open with that incident because it is a good question that helps us examine our Gospel today and allows me to ask you, “What are you doing here?”

What were the women doing at the tomb? Mary Magdalene, and Mary the mother of James the younger and of Joses, and Salome were all present when Jesus died. They were among the women looking on from a distance when Jesus breathed his last. And as the last verse of chapter 15 tells us, the two Mary’s saw where the tomb was.

In the first verse of chapter 16, Mark reports that the three of them bought spices to anoint him, indicating the reader already knows who he is. Obviously, Mark does not have to explain that the time in between the burial of Jesus and the opening verse of our passage was Passover. What were the women doing between Friday afternoon and Sunday morning? Well, at first, nothing. No one was working. No markets were open. They simply observed Passover and bided their time until the feast had ended. During their first opportunity, the women bought spices from the merchants, and prepared them to anoint Jesus’ body.

 What was Jesus doing? He was dead. What was happening? I mean, what happens when people die? They decompose. After 4 minutes decomposition begins. If you want to read more about this, check my sermon footnotes.[1] My point is that the women hurried to the tomb. The tomb was not right around the corner. It was outside the city. Our best guess is that Jesus’ tomb was several miles outside Jerusalem. If you are young and jog, how much time would it take you and a couple of friends to travel there at night while carrying spices and cloths?

So, the women were preparing to anoint Jesus’ decomposing body, travelling on foot to his tomb. My follow-up question, “What else were they doing?” is more about what we all do when someone dies. We grieve. We cry. We want to be alone or we seek support. In short, these women were among the many who followed Jesus and ministered to him while he was alive. They were part of his entourage that entered the city triumphantly. By Sunday morning, they were an emotional trainwreck. No one could have ever prepared them for what they were to experience when they reached Jesus’ tomb. Jesus’ prophecy of his resurrection eluded their grasp, just as it did their male counterparts.

At one point, it dawned on them that none of them would be able to move the stone. This then became their preoccupation because all together they could not budge this huge stone. Miraculously, the stone had been rolled back, and they step inside. What would you expect to see and smell? Certainly not a young man dressed in a white robe! Of course, they were alarmed. Who was he? How did he get here? What was he doing here?

To answer the first question, we must return to chapter 15. The moment Jesus was arrested, all of his disciples fled, but vv 51-52 tell us that “a young man followed [Jesus], with nothing but a linen cloth about his body. And they seized him, but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked.” And here he sat in radiant, intensely white clothes (Mk 9:3). Revelation tells us that those who were slain for the word of God and for their witness were each given a white robe. Those who stood before the throne and the Lamb were clothed in white robes (6:11; 9:3).

Mark does not identify this young man, but given the Evangelist’s gift for linking examples, such as the inability of the disciples to perceive Jesus’ teaching and the ability of a blind man to suddenly see, it’s no stretch to believe that these two passages are about the same man.

What was he doing here? He was proclaiming the heart of the Church’s preaching: Jesus of Nazareth, the crucified … has been raised! His message stresses the reality of Jesus’ passion: it is the same Jesus who truly suffered and died on the cross, who now is truly risen from the dead.[2] Jesus’ agonized question on the cross, “My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” has received its answer. God did not forsake his beloved Son but vindicated him with a triumph far greater than any of his enemies could have imagined, an everlasting triumph over death itself. Jesus did not escape death any more than any of us will, but Jesus destroyed death from within it. As an ancient hymn goes, by trampling on death by death.

Back to the women. The women were told to look at the empty tomb, in itself not as proof, but as a sign received in faith, confirming testimony that Jesus did rise from the dead (Acts 13:30-35; Rom 10:9; 1 Pet 1:21). The faithful women are divinely called to be the first witnesses of the resurrection, and sent as apostles to the apostles.

Now it seems that they thwarted Jesus’ promise that after he would be raised up that he would go before his disciples to Galilee (14:28) because they fled and said nothing to anyone because they were astonished and afraid. They were seized by a holy awe at the overwhelming power of the resurrection. The irony is that where Jesus imposed silence on those he healed (1:44; 5:43; 8:26), which was sometimes ignored (1:45; 7:36), now that the time had come for the mystery to be made known, the response is silence.

Now that we have some understanding of what these people were doing at the tomb of Jesus, let me ask you: What are you doing here? But before we can address that question, we must ask why this Gospel’s original ending is marked with silence? Its ending brings us face to face with the announcement of Jesus’ resurrection, and leaves us to ponder how we have responded.

Have you remained silent? Have you announced to others that Jesus Christ has been raised from the dead? The first Christians proclaimed the Gospel to an empire that killed people for doing so. We live in a culture that only cancels people for their beliefs. So, what will you do – remain silent or proclaim your belief that Jesus Christ is risen? Jesus kept his promises for you and me, for us as Church. His promises were fulfilled not because the women succeeded in carrying out their mission, but by the power of God who is able to overcome every human failure – yours, mine, ours. And now, you are invited to accept in faith the testimony to his resurrection through the life you live.

So, what are you doing here? There are many good reasons for being here. In addition to attending church with family on Easter, you may have other reasons. Maybe some miracle occurred recently in your life. Maybe a tragedy struck your family and you are asking God for a miracle. Some of us are here because we are almost always here on Sunday mornings. I may be here because it’s about time I started attending church. In a word, we are all here to worship.

What is worship? Showing honor and reverence for God. As Lutherans, what are we doing here? Those of you who have been attending our Small Catechism classes know that our worship occurs through the means of grace, that is, God gives us gifts. The gifts God gives us when we worship are the forgiveness of our sins and the promise of eternal life. What we do when we gather here for worship is simple: we receive gifts.

When we receive those gifts from God because of the Paschal Mystery, the suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, we experience joy deep in our souls. We may not act as excited as my grandchildren act whenever we give them gifts on Christmas or their birthdays, but receiving forgiveness of our sins and eternal life when we hear a pastor proclaim the Words of Absolution, or the Word of God, or the words he speaks when he takes bread and wine and gives us Christ’s Body and Blood to eat and drink – all of this – renders a deep, satisfying joy in our souls. And all we have to do is receive.

Being Lutheran is simple. We do not have to get emotional. We don’t have to weep or shout, wave our arms or clap our hands. Being Lutheran is knowing that when we worship together it is all about receiving God’s gifts through the means of grace (Baptism, Confession, Absolution, Holy Communion). It is all about God and what God does for us. You don’t need a pastor to entertain you. You don’t need a praise band or magnificent choir. You don’t need a youth minister dressed as an Easter bunny.

Knowing that, what do want to be known for? I ask that because we become known for what we do. For example, Mary Magdalene was the first to share the Good News of Jesus’ Resurrection, and she is known for that. Peter was the one who denied knowing Christ, but repented, and then led the Church. The women in our Gospel today are known for their faithfulness. They are all known for what they did. Numerous others are known for what they did – Paul, Philip, Martha, Mary, Timothy, Titus and on and on.

But you? What will you be known for? Here’s an example from a blessing service of a woman who died in Swissvale 30 years ago. I was asked to conduct the blessing service at Nied Funeral Home in Swissvale for the aunt of a man who was employed there. The woman’s nephew, Tony, was in his 60s, and rather brusque even on his best days. After reading the Gospel and commenting on the passage, I asked if anyone in the small crowd would care to say anything about the deceased. After a moment of silence, Tony spoke up. He said, “I guess not.” We erupted in laughter.

My point is, that could be you. That could be any of us. We could be remembered for nothing. At the end of our lives, people will remember us for nothing or something. Depending on what we do, we can be known for nothing or for something. What do you want to be known for, not only as individuals, but also as a congregation? Now, there’s a question to discuss over Easter dinner.

Let’s focus not on the past, but on the future. We have been in this building for one year. I ask you to consider what do you want to be known for today? In a year? In a decade? I can offer some ideas, but not a definitive answer. We can be known for being faithful. We can be known for living by the Spirit (Gal 5:25) or known for living the fruits of the Spirit (5:22-23) because we who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. (5:24) There’s something to consider. There’s something to be known for. But to be known for that, each of us has to be about doing or living the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.

If we want to be known for that, we can simply receive God’s gifts and ask the Holy Spirit to guide us into a life lived according to its fruit. To be known for that, I must answer the question – What are you doing here? – with “Living the fruits of the Holy Spirit.”

Live that, and may the Resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead mark your Easter and your life, and may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] https://australian.museum/about/history/exhibitions/death-the-last-taboo/decomposition-body-changes/

[2] Healy, 329.

Repulsive Attraction

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My sermon is entitled Repulsive Attraction and my focus is our First Lesson (Isaiah 52:13-53:12). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

Periodically, we are faced with a lectionary passage that is complex. It raises questions and leaves us wondering why the scribe was inspired by God not only to write these words, but also to place them where they are. Our passage from Isaiah today is one of those. Rather than preach in my typical style, this evening, a bit of teaching to try to make sense not only of Isaiah, but also Christ Crucified on a Good Friday and what all of this might mean for our lives as individuals and as a congregation.

Today’s passage is a poem about God’s Servant. There are four Servant poems in Isaiah (42:1-4; 49:1-6; 50:4-9; 52:13–53:12). You should read them together and aloud because poems are intended to be read aloud. Each is inserted in the text for a particular reason, but we have to excavate the text to understand why it is there.

The second half of Isaiah, aka The Book of Consolation, often speaks of Israel as a servant of Yahweh, chosen, saved, and set apart to be God’s witness before nations. But the second song distinguishes the Servant from Israel. We read in 49:5-6: “And now the Lord says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him—for I am honored in the eyes of the Lord, and my God has become my strength—he says: ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’”

These verses and others contrast the Servant from the nation of Israel by highlighting qualities showing the Servant to be a particular individual. The Servant is called from the womb of his mother and named by God (49:1). God also put his spirit on this Servant (42:1), made him a disciple and opened his eyes (50:4-5) so that establishing justice on earth (42:1,3), he may instruct mankind (42:4; 50:4), and sort and judge humanity by his word (50:10-11). All this he performs gently and without display, as we read in 42:2-3: “He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will faithfully bring forth justice.” In the end, he even appears to have failed. He says “I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with the Lord, and my recompense with my God.” (49:4)

I make the point that the Servant is an individual because to argue that the nation of Israel is the Servant, as some do, means that we would have to pay no attention to what the Word of God says in these poems. Serious Christians do not turn a blind eye or a deaf ear to God’s Word.

This Servant is also suffering. His suffering begins to cast its shadow on him in the second song and continues into the third. It wounds and bruises the one who bore the sins of others. When we reach the fourth and final song – we begin to see clearly who this Servant is, although Isaiah never names him.

I have said this before. Sometimes you go to Bible class, and sometimes Bible class comes to you. So, we begin with verse 13. Behold, my servant shall act wisely; he shall be high and lifted up, and shall be exalted. The Lord promised to be personally present to his people, and in his Servant fulfills this promise. To act wisely means that the Servant knew exactly what to do in order to bring about the intended result. And the threefold exaltation expresses a dignity beyond any other. It is impossible not to be reminded of the resurrection, ascension and the heavenly exaltation of Jesus Christ.

14 As many were astonished at you—his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the children of mankind. Here astonishment is similar to how appalled, shocked and shattered we were on 9/11. It is akin to what a bereaved wife feels at the sudden death of her husband. He was so marred, so disfigured far beyond what The Passion of the Christ portrays that you would instinctively step back in horror and wonder aloud not “Is this the Servant?” but “Could this possibly even be human?!”

15 So shall he sprinkle many nations. Kings shall shut their mouths because of him, for that which has not been told them they see, and that which they have not heard they understand. The Servant’s work is holy, and like the priest performing his ministerial duty, he sprinkled blood on many nations. The silence of the kings is inexplicable. We are reminded of Job’s reply to God, “I am unworthy—how can I reply to you? I put my hand over my mouth.” (40:4)[1] I am sure that at times you found yourself speechless. Compound that moment exponentially and you begin to understand who Isaiah was describing.

The poem continues into chapter 53. Who has believed what he has heard from us? And to whom has the arm of the LORD been revealed? Who believed? No one. Why? Because there is no belief before divine revelation. There is no human reason to desire this ordinary looking Servant during the time of Isaiah or at some time in the future. Yet, the arm of the Lord is the Lord himself who acts even when you can’t see Him.

The reason no one believed is found in verse two. For he grew up before him like a young plant, and like a root out of dry ground; he had no form or majesty that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. This person had an earthly look. How could a mere man born of natural means be the arm of the Lord? Of course, this is what was said of Jesus. “Isn’t this the carpenter’s son? Isn’t his mother’s name Mary?” (Mt 13:55) Isaiah was saying that this Servant had no distinctive look. Yet, the prophet’s imagery pointed to the truth for those who had eyes to see.

The Servant was not well built, impressive or handsome, and so we can actually feel what Isaiah was doing when we recall how people dismissed Jesus’ Messianic status because he came from Nazareth and not Bethlehem (Jn 7:41-42). Because it was not easy to believe that he could be the Lord to come, people shunned him, as we read in v. 3.

3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces he was despised, and we esteemed him not. Isaiah’s realistic and descriptive image of the Servant showed that people were mockingly dismissive towards him. Yet, we should not think that he was an incessant sorrower and sufferer in himself but was so only because he took on our sorrows and weaknesses as his own.

That the Servant is of no esteem, a big fat zero, according to Isaiah, is actually a reflection of us. Those who see the Servant and find no beauty in him reveals how bankrupt our human emotions are. We are not attracted to him. He is repulsive to us. To spend time with this Servant and then reject him exposes one’s misguided human will and collapsed human mind both corrupted by sin. In other words, we will never arrive at Truth through reason and will. “Nothing but divine revelation can make the Servant known to us and draw us to him.”[2]

4 Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. Notice how Isaiah placed the words he and we. He acted as a substitute and carried our sorrows. He dealt with everything that alienates us from God. He dealt with all that deserved wrath and fulfilled the will of God. He was truly the Lamb of God. Obversely, we long for more – a longer life, a healthy, comfortable life so that we can retire with no financial worries. I include myself in this. We do not long for what the Servant experiences – to be humbled and humiliated. Yet, that is what he accepted.

5 But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed. He was pierced fatally because we deliberately flouted the Lord and His Law; and our fall from grace resulted in an ever-flowing fountain of sin. In order to secure and restore our peace with God, his punishment was necessary. Why? Because we strayed.

6 All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned—every one—to his own way; and the LORD has laid on him the iniquity of us all. Straying sheep summarizes our inadequacy and errant nature; and so, the Lord laid upon this Servant our sins. This verse expresses common culpability and individual responsibility. We cannot blame a herd instinct. Hence, by divine act the Servant was the meeting point for all of our sins.[3]  Each sin of every sinner is a separate wound in the heart of this man of sorrows. If that does not bring us to our knees, I don’t know what will.

And so, the Servant lets it happen to him. In these next verses we see his procession (7), execution (8) and burial (9). He was oppressed, and he was afflicted, yet he opened not his mouth; like a lamb that is led to the slaughter, and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent, so he opened not his mouth. The Servant offered no physical or verbal resistance at all. He knew well and went to his death with a calm, thoughtful submission.

Isaiah was a priest who knew the efficacy of the altar and the sacrifices which God appointed. During his vision in the Temple, he cried, “Woe is me! For I am lost; for I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts!” Then one of the seraphim flew to me, having in his hand a burning coal that he had taken with tongs from the altar. And he touched my mouth and said: “Behold, this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away, and your sin atoned for.” (6:5-7) Isaiah’s idea for Substitution is theologically and biblically brilliant. Isaiah knew that the blood of animals could never take away our sins. We see that in Hebrews 10:4: “It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.” Even when the priests offered these mandated sacrifices, they looked forward to the perfect sacrifice yet to come. The Servant did not deserve to die but volunteered to die for our benefit because only a person can substitute for personal sin, and this one with knowing submission went forward to die for us.

8 By oppression and judgment he was taken away; and as for his generation, who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living, stricken for the transgression of my people? The Servant endured the punishment which should have fallen upon “my people” (God’s people), indicating that the speaker here is God. He is struck by God in our place.

9 And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death, although he had done no violence, and there was no deceit in his mouth. Now dead, no violence or deceit could ever be found in the Savior. Yet, his burial place is among all – the wicked and the rich.

10 Yet it was the will of the LORD to crush him; he has put him to grief; when his soul makes an offering for guilt, he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days; the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand. We find that it was not only the Lord’s will to crush the Servant, but also His delight. The Servant made his soul, his whole being a guilt offering for us. Death ushered the Servant into sovereign dignity and power. His life, now ended on earth, continues in reality and effectiveness. God restored the Servant on the far side of the grave where the dead are alive. As we read earlier in Isaiah, “Thus says the LORD, who redeemed Abraham, concerning the house of Jacob: ‘Jacob shall no more be ashamed, no more shall his face grow pale. For when he sees his children, the work of my hands, in his midst, they will sanctify my name; they will sanctify the Holy One of Jacob and will stand in awe of the God of Israel.’” (29:22-24)

11 Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied; by his knowledge shall the righteous one, my servant, make many to be accounted righteous, and he shall bear their iniquities. The Servant’s death is not simply something that happened, but it is a purposeful act.  This verse is one of the fullest statements of atonement theology ever written. The Servant knew the needs that had to be met and what had to be done. He was fully acceptable to the God our sins offended and was appointed by God to complete this task. He was righteous – free from every contamination of our sin – but personally identified himself with our sin and our need, and totally committed himself to the role of the Suffering Servant, accomplishing it fully.

12 Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many, and he shall divide the spoil with the strong, because he poured out his soul to death and was numbered with the transgressors; yet he bore the sin of many, and makes intercession for the transgressors. Only the victors divide the spoil.

That said, let me ask you two questions. What attracts you? What repulses you? In regards to the Suffering Servant and Christ Crucified, what attracts you and repulses you?

Let me give only one example that makes sense to me. When I served as a pastor in Canonsburg, I was temporarily assigned to be the chaplain of Western Center. The facility is no longer there. It’s now Southpointe. If you ever saw the opening scene of Silence of the Lambs, Western Center’s Administration building served as a backdrop to where Hannibal Lecter was imprisoned. In its day, Western Center was home to hundreds upon hundreds of men and women with severe physical and mental disabilities. Some were immobile and lived their lives in giant cribs. They were placed under the care of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, and even though they were loved by parents and siblings, a good number were neglected or abused by staff. Why? Because sinful people saw God’s children as repulsive human beings not created in the image of the Almighty. Repulsive is how people saw and see Christ crucified.

The Gospel of John which we heard this evening sees as attractive what the world saw and sees as repulsive. Christ crucified was not, is not the bloody end for Jesus and the Gospel. Christ crucified is the glorious achievement of Almighty God. It is God’s moment of glory.

I close by paraphrasing Francis Chan, an evangelical pastor, who recently asked his listeners, “If you could name your wishes, what would they be?” He then asked if anyone wished to see God’s glory.

Friends, if you have not, add that to your bucket list. And if you wish to see God’s glory, look to Christ Crucified. That is God’s glory because we know what happens next. This repulsive attraction between Christ Crucified and Christ Risen keeps us going like a magnetic force. Keep that in mind until Easter morning when I will ask another question. Until then, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Amen.

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[1] Also see Job 21:5; 29:9.

[2] Motyer, 429.

[3] Motyer, 431.