Give glory to the Lord your Savior (Luke 1:39-55)

Dear friends in Christ.

How many of you are simply amazed to realize that there are merely four days left until Christmas Eve, and eleven days left until New Year’s Eve? How many of you have found yourselves wondering what happened to 2009? How many of you are simply relieved that this year is nearly over and are looking forward to a new start in 2010? If you are, I’m not surprised, after all 2009 was a difficult year for most of us. It was a year filled with four very difficult and emotional funerals for our congregation as well as a number of emotional and unexpected funerals for good friends around town. It was a year filled with economic hardship, layoffs, decreased hours, decreased salaries, and quite a few jobs lost. It has been a year where we have seen more and more people coming in to make use of the food shelf to help them make ends meet. It’s been an up and down year with quite a number of different things going on, and yet, it has been a year in which we were able to give glory to the Lord our God, just as Mary and Elizabeth were able to do in our text today.

For them, it had also been an incredibly busy year as so many things had happened for them! Joseph had asked Mary to be his wife. The angel Gabriel had appeared to Zachariah while he was performing his priestly duties in the Holy Place of the Temple, while the people were praying outside, announcing to Zachariah that his wife would soon give birth to a son, who would be the forerunner of the Messiah. Zachariah had been struck with speechlessness as a sign of the truth of the message Gabriel had brought, all while Joseph was busy preparing to bring Mary into his home as his wife. It was during that time, in the sixth month of Elizabeth’s pregnancy, that the Angel Gabriel appeared in Nazareth, to Mary, announcing that she would be the mother of the coming Messiah. In that simple moment, Gabriel made known to Mary that all of God’s promises would be culminating in the birth of her son, Jesus! She was the woman that God had chosen for the honor for which so many women had hoped! She was the virgin about whom Isaiah had prophesied nearly 700 years before, and she gave glory to the Lord by simply believing that what the Lord said to her would be accomplished.

It was at that time, as our text tells us that “At that time Mary got ready and hurried to a town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered Zechariah’s home and greeted Elizabeth. When Elizabeth heard Mary’s greeting, the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. In a loud voice she exclaimed: “Blessed are you among women, and blessed is the child you will bear! But why am I so favored, that the mother of my Lord should come to me? As soon as the sound of your greeting reached my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy. Blessed is she who has believed that what the Lord has said to her will be accomplished!” (Luke 1:39-45, NIV)

What excitement Elizabeth must have felt as Mary’s greeting met her ears and the baby in her womb leaped for joy at the presence of the Messiah growing in the womb of Mary. What excitement Elizabeth must have felt, as the Holy Spirit filled her heart, giving her the opportunity to glorify the Lord for the coming of the Messiah, even before Mary had the opportunity to tell Elizabeth what had happened. What joy must have filled Mary’s own soul as the Holy Spirit filled her heart and moved her to cry out: “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.” (Luke 1:46-55, NIV)

Well that same joy that Mary and Elizabeth experienced in our text can be ours as well! For as we bring our Christmas preparations to a close this morning, we are taking this opportunity to glorify the Lord God, our Savior because he has indeed fulfilled all of his promises. We are glorifying the Lord God our Savior today, because he is the one who has showered us with his mercy. We are glorifying the Lord our God today, because he has established his eternal kingdom of Grace in our hearts through the faith created there by the Holy Spirit! In his great mercy, it is the Lord who has not treated us as our sins deserved, but called us to faith in Jesus Christ our Savior. In his great mercy, it is the Lord who has called us to be his own and taught us the precious truths of salvation, through the pages of the Scriptures. In his great mercy, the Lord has revealed the many promises that he made to his people Israel; promises about the coming Savior who would free his people from their sins, call them back to himself, and be their shepherd under whom they would live in safety. Just as Micah prophesied in our first lesson, when he said, “But you, Bethlehem Ephrathah, though you are small among the clans of Judah, out of you will come for me one who will be ruler over Israel, whose origins are from of old, from ancient times." Therefore Israel will be abandoned until the time when she who is in labor gives birth and the rest of his brothers return to join the Israelites. He will stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they will live securely, for then his greatness will reach to the ends of the earth. And he will be their peace.” (Micah 5:2-5a NIV)

Just as Mary glorified the Lord because he had been mindful of the humble state of his servant, so also we glorify our God because he has chosen us to be his own. Just as Mary glorified the Lord because the Lord had done great things for her in making her the mother of the Savior, so also we glorify the Lord because he has done great things in calling us to faith. Just as Mary glorified the Lord because he did not treat Israel as they deserved, but mercifully acted on behalf of Abraham and all his descendants, continuing to issue promise after promise of the Savior, forgiving sins, and establishing his line and up holding it even through captivity and many other difficult struggles, so also the Lord continues to act in mercy on our behalf. Even though it has been and up and down year for us, the Lord has not been up and down with our forgiveness, but has been constant in his assurance of our forgiveness through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior. Even though we have experienced some difficult situations in our work place with reduced hours, unusual shifts, layoffs, and unemployment issues, the Lord has not reduced the grace and mercy that he continually showers upon us. Rather, the Lord has continually stood beside us in every situation we have faced. The Lord has continued providing for our needs in every area of our lives. The Lord has constantly defended us from danger and worked out even the worst situations we’ve faced so that they would ultimately serve our good. It is because of this that we have gathered to give glory to the Lord our God today, who graciously and mercifully fulfilled all his promises of a Savior when Immanuel, the Christ, was born in Bethlehem to Mary—the virgin Isaiah spoke about, the one in labor as Malachi prophesied, the one whose soul glorified the Lord and whose spirit rejoiced in God, her Savior.

As Mary said, “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior, for he has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. His mercy extends to those who fear him, from generation to generation. He has performed mighty deeds with his arm; he has scattered those who are proud in their inmost thoughts. He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble. He has filled the hungry with good things but has sent the rich away empty. He has helped his servant Israel, remembering to be merciful to Abraham and his descendants forever, even as he said to our fathers.” (Luke 1:46-55, NIV)

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church Le Sueur, MN

Rejoice, O Daughter of Zion (Zephaniah 3:14-17)

Of all the reformers and church leaders of history, we are most familiar with Martin Luther, simply because every year we are reminded of how the Lord used him to bring back the truth of the Gospel to churches in Germany. Yet, there is another church leader who his just as famous in England as Luther is in Germany. That man's name is John Wesley, the founder of the Wesleyan Church. When John Wesley was about 21 years of age he went to Oxford University. He came from a Christian home, and he was gifted with a keen mind and good looks. Yet in those days he was a bit snobbish and sarcastic. One night, however, something happened that set in motion a change in Wesley's heart. While speaking with a porter, he discovered that the poor fellow had only one coat and lived in such impoverished conditions that he didn't even have a bed. Yet he was an unusually happy person , filled with gratitude to God. Wesley, being immature, thoughtlessly joked about the man's misfortunes. "And what else do you thank God for?" he said with a touch of sarcasm. The porter smiled, and in the spirit of meekness replied with joy, "I thank Him that He has given me my life and being, a heart to love Him, and above all a constant desire to serve Him!" Deeply moved, Wesley recognized that this man knew the meaning of true thankfulness. Many years later, in 1791, John Wesley lay on his deathbed at the age of 88. Those who gathered around him realized how well he had learned the lesson of praising God and rejoicing in every circumstance. Despite Wesley's extreme weakness, he began singing the hymn, "I'll Praise My Maker While I've Breath." (Copied from http://www.sermonillustrations.com/a-z/p/praise.htm. Accessed 12/11/09 Adapted.)

In the same way that John Wesley was able to praise God and rejoice in him, even on his death bed, so also we can rejoice in the Lord, just as Zephaniah encourages us to do in our text today. He writes, “Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away your punishment.” (Zephaniah 3:14-15 NIV).

When God’s people heard these words, the believers must have shouted for joy right then and there, because when Zephaniah first delivered these words, those who had remained faithful to the Lord and who were eagerly looking forward to the coming Messiah were living in a nation that was falling apart spiritually. Many of the Israelites had been led away from the worship of the true God and had begun to make sacrifices to idols and false gods. Some of them had been led down this path simply because they had intermarried with the heathen nations around them. Others had been led down this path because many of their kings had turned away from the Lord, embraced the false gods of the nations around them, and encouraged the people to do the same. Because of this, the Lord had sent the prophets like Zephaniah, Jeremiah, Nahum, Habakkuk, and many others to proclaim his harshest law so that the people might see their sins and turn to him in repentance, but too many of the Israelites had not listened. Even when King Josiah was working to reform the religious life of the Israelites, it was not enough, as the majority of Israel continued to walk the path of the Lord’s punishment. Not merely the punishment that would bring the Babylonians in to conquer them, but also the punishment of eternal death and damnation for those who refused to listen to the Lord’s warning and turn to him in repentance. Yet even in the midst of a message of harshest law, the Lord also delivered a joyful message of forgiveness as Zephaniah called to the people and said, “Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy,” (Zephaniah 3:14-15 NIV).


Well, that same message of the Lord’s removal of our punishment is the message that causes us to rejoice today as well. Though we are living in a nation where so many people have turned away from the worship of the Almighty God to serve idols of greed, selfishness, and self-indulgence we are still able to rejoice in Lord. Though we are living at the beginnings of an economic recession the likes of which very few of us have ever experienced, we can still praise our Lord. Though we are living in a time when more and more churches are proclaiming a message that resembles, but is completely unlike the Word of God, we can still rejoice because we know that we are part of Zion. We can still rejoice because we know that we are members of God’s chosen people, we can still rejoice because we know that through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior, the Lord our God has removed our punishment from us and placed it upon his Son, our Savior. In his great love for us, the Lord our God sent his Son to the cross where he endured the flames of hell as he was rejected by his father in heaven. He watched as his Son, who is true God from all eternity, who as true God cannot die, he watched as his Son died to pay for our sins.

It is because of this that we rejoice today! We rejoice in the Lord who removed our punishment that we deserved and brought us into a right relationship with him. We rejoice in Jesus our Savior who willingly gave his life in our place so that he might free us from that punishment forever. We rejoice in the Holy Spirit who now lives in our hearts creating and sustaining the faith that we have in Jesus Christ our Savior, and we rejoice in our Savior who turned back our enemy by his resurrection from the dead so many years ago.

What greater reason could there be for us to rejoice today, even as we prepare ourselves to celebrate the birth of our Savior? What greater reason could there be for us to rejoice today than the knowledge that Jesus turned back our enemy by his willing death and his triumphant resurrection. For it is satan who has been our enemy from the beginning! Already back in the Garden of Eden he reared his ugly head and enticed Adam and Eve to sin against the Lord’s commands. It was satan who brought disaster on Job and inflicted his body with boils and sores hoping to make him to turn against God. It was the devil who tempted David to break the Sixth Commandment and commit adultery with Bathsheba. It was satan who tempted Jesus in the wilderness, hoping to cause Jesus to stumble and fall into sin so that he could no longer be our Savior. And it is the devil who tempts us still today. He is the one who whispers in your ear trying to convince you that what your doing really isn’t a sin if you don’t get caught. He’s the one who is sitting right next to you, trying with all his might to distract you from God’s Word. He is the one who constantly seeks to distract you by reminding you of all the things you could be accomplishing if you didn’t have to sit here in worship. He is the one who is constantly seeking a way to turn us away from the Lord, cause us to grow angry with him, curse him, and simply turn our backs on the Lord our God. He is the one whom Peter calls a roaring lion prowling around looking for someone to devour, and he would have devoured us years ago had it not been for Jesus.

Yet it is because of Jesus that we rejoice today since we know that Jesus is the one who has defeated the devil and turned back our enemy. Already back at the beginning, shortly after he had completed the creation of the world, it was Jesus who turned back satan, our enemy, when he tried to mutiny against the Lord and take over heaven. It was Jesus who cast satan out of heaven and watched him fall, like lightning, to the earth below. It was Jesus who sent satan running when satan tried to tempt Jesus in the wilderness. It was Jesus who endured all the pains and anguish satan threw at him as Jesus hung on the cross. It was Jesus who crushed satan’s power when he died. It was Jesus whose victory march through the heart of hell showed satan that he was done for, and it was Jesus’ resurrection which publicly declared to the world that he had turned back our enemy for good. Though satan tried to defeat the Lord Jesus in heaven and he lost. Though satan tried to defeat Jesus on earth, he lost. Though satan tried to take Jesus out even while he was on the cross, satan lost. Though he continues in his effort to defeat Jesus at every turn, we can still rejoice because we know that the Lord, our Savior, has not only turned back our enemy, but he is always with us, just as Zephaniah tells us: “Sing, O Daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O Daughter of Jerusalem! The LORD has taken away your punishment, he has turned back your enemy. The LORD, the King of Israel, is with you; never again will you fear any harm. On that day they will say to Jerusalem, "Do not fear, O Zion; do not let your hands hang limp. The LORD your God is with you, he is mighty to save. He will take great delight in you, he will quiet you with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing,” (Zephaniah 3:14-17 NIV)”

What beautiful words these must have been for the people in that day. For with these words, the Lord was reminding his people that no matter what happened, he was with them. Even if the nation of Israel turned away from the Lord to worship idols, the Lord would remain with his faithful people. Even though they might face death and destruction at the hands of the Babylonians and other nations who attacked them, the Lord, the King of Israel was with them. Even if all the world turned against them, through faith in the Savior whom the Lord had promised to send, they had a promise from the Lord their God that he would stand beside them and be with them through all things.

The same is true for each and every one of us today! The Lord, our God, is with us! He is with us right now as we have gathered to praise his name. He will be with us as we gather in the narthex to talk with each other. He will be with us as we travel on our way home. He will be with us as we sit down to dinner, and he will be with us as we crawl into bed tonight and rest ourselves for our work tomorrow. No matter what happens the Lord is with us. Even if we should face an economic turn for the worse, the Lord will be with us. Even if we should feel the hardship, frustration, and worry of fishing for a job in a lake with no fish, the Lord is still with us. Even if we should be assailed by the swine fu this season, the Lord will continue to stand by us. No matter what we face in this life, we do not need to be afraid, we do not need to worry, because the Lord our God is with us today, tomorrow, and forever. Just as he promised his disciples that he would be with them to the end of the age, he has promised that he will be with us to the end of the age. Not only to the end of our age. Not only until the end of the world, but he will be with us until the end of eternity, because we are his chosen people. We are the daughter of Zion, and for that we rejoice today.

What a comfort to know that as Christians we can rejoice in any and every situation in life, because we belong to the Lord. We can rejoice, just as that porter did as he spoke with John Wesley. We can rejoice, just as John Wesley did on his death bed. We can rejoice, because we are the Daughter of Zion, from whom the Lord has removed punishment; for whom the Lord has turned back our enemy; and with whom the Lord continually dwells.

Amen

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church--Le Sueur, MN

Let the Lord's Messenger Clear the Way (Malachi 3:1-4)

Dear friends in Christ.

I think it was about this time last year when we began talking about the construction project that took place in St. Peter this past summer. I remember hearing people saying things like, “I wonder how they’re going to do it?” and “That’s sure going to be a mess.” Already back around Easter Time. Then sometime in April or May we saw semi trailers positioned all around St. Peter, with their Discover 169 banners, proclaiming that the down town would still be open during the construction. There were articles in the newspaper and even pictures of what it would be like when the project was completed. In short there were quite a number of messengers clearing the way and preparing us for the project that was to come. In our text today the Lord did the very same thing for us and for his people as he sent the Prophet Malachi as the Lord’s Messenger to begin the process of clearing the way for the Lord. In fact, nearly 400 years before the Savior was to be born, the Lord began clearing the way for the Savior through his messengers, just as Malachi wrote in our text: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.” (Malachi 3:1-4 NIV).

Now, when Malachi first spoke these words, he was speaking to the people of Israel a little more than 100 years after they had returned from their Babylonian captivity. Though the people had originally been very excited about returning to the land, rebuilding their homes, the city of Jerusalem, and even the temple of the Lord, by this time, the Israelites had become very apathetic toward the Lord and his worship. Rather than bringing to the Lord the first and the best of their livestock for their offerings, they were keeping the best for themselves and offering to the Lord the blind, the lame, and the crippled animals from their flocks and herds. But the worst part of all of this was the fact that the Levites were accepting these animals and offering them to the Lord on behalf of the people! The very people whom the Lord had established as the spiritual leaders of the community and put in charge of worship were disregarding the Lord’s commands by their actions. They were mocking the Lord by accepting these sub-standard offerings, and they were allowing the people to feel at peace as they continued in their sinful lives.

Because of this, as Malachi begins to clear the way for the coming Savior, he reveals that coming Lord would be the one to refine and purify the Levites so that they might once again bring acceptable offerings to the Lord! And as we know, this is exactly what the Lord Jesus our Savior did. For already with John the Baptist, the messenger whom Malachi promises will prepare the way for the Lord, the Lord began his refining the Levites and the people Israel. For as a refinery will pass precious metals like gold or silver through an extremely hot fire so that the impurities might be melted out of them, the Lord began this refining process with the fiery preaching of John the Baptist. As the people came to him by the Jordan River, he did not wink at their sins, but he stood before them proclaiming the truth of God’s Law. Unlike the Levites of Malachi’s day, John breathed the fire of God’s Word, designed to burn away the impurities of sin, and to purify the people of Israel by assuring them of the forgiveness that the Lord offered them through Jesus the Lamb of God. Even when the self righteous Pharisees and Teachers of the Law came to him, he did not hold back, but unleashed the flame thrower of God’s Word at them, going so far as to call them a brood of vipers so that even their sins might be burned away and so that they might turn to the Lord in repentance, receive his forgiveness and pass through to the other side as God’s refined people.

It was in this way that the Lord used John as his messenger to prepare the way for the coming of Jesus so that when Jesus did come to his people he would be able to not only continue refining, but add fuel to the refiners fire so that it might burn even hotter. And that is exactly what Jesus did, for he is the one who traveled throughout all of Israel proclaiming the message, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” He is the one who continually went head to head with the self-righteous religious leaders of the day. He answered every challenge they gave him and continually used his word to burn away stubbornness and sins so that he might forgiveness. Though there are very few recorded instances of religious leaders turning to Jesus and following him on the way that had been prepared, through his preaching and teaching, there were many in Israel who were convicted of their sins, turned to him in repentance, and received the forgiveness that he offered them. There were even some from the Sanhedrin, like Nicodemus and Joseph of Arimathea, who were refined by the Lord’s Word and brought from their self-righteous ideas to the forgiveness that Jesus provided.

Just as the Lord Jesus traveled the road that his messengers had prepared him and then served as a refiner and purifier of his people, so also the messenger of the Word has been doing the same thing for you and me. In fact, for the past few weeks, we have been reminded again and again of how our Savior will return on the Last Day. We have heard the Word of our Savior proclaiming to us our need to repent of our sins, draw near to him, and receive the gift of his forgiveness. In many ways the Lord has used that message of his imminent return as a flint and stele to light our hearts on fire so that the impurities or our sins might be burned away so that we might receive his forgiveness and pass through to the other side as God’s refined people! Just as Malachi said in our text: “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before me. Then suddenly the Lord you are seeking will come to his temple; the messenger of the covenant, whom you desire, will come,” says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of his coming? Who can stand when he appears? For he will be like a refiner’s fire or a launderer’s soap. He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver; he will purify the Levites and refine them like gold and silver. Then the LORD will have men who will bring offerings in righteousness, and the offerings of Judah and Jerusalem will be acceptable to the LORD, as in days gone by, as in former years.” (Malachi 3:1-4 NIV).

This is exactly what the Lord has done for each and every one of us! Through the messengers he sent, messengers like Malachi and John the Baptist, the way was cleared for Jesus to enter our hearts and create faith there. Through messengers like Malachi and John, the way was clear for Jesus to enter our hearts and assure us that through his perfect life lived on our behalf that we are now without sin in God’s eyes. It was through God’s messengers that we have are now assured that when our Savior went to the cross, he not only carried the full weight of our debt on his shoulders, but he went so far as to replace our guilt with his innocence. Now, through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior, we have been refined and purified before him and the Lord for all our days. Through faith in Jesus Christ we have come to enjoy our daily trips through the fire of his Word. We have come to enjoy our daily trips because we know that it is only through his law that the impurity of our sins is melted away, and we are purified before the Lord. We enjoy those trips because we know that once purified through our sorrow over sins and the repentance to which the law moves us, we are once again molded into God’s holy people through the press of the gospel.

Now, because of all the work done by the Lord’s messengers, to prepare the way before him, we look forward to the Lord’s appearing with nothing less than joy. Since we know that he is the one who came as a little child so that he might free us from our sins forever, we joyfully look forward to the celebration of his birth. Because we are so familiar with every aspect of Jesus’ life, death and resurrection through which we have been made righteous before the Lord our God, we give praise to the Lord who loved us so much. Because we know that we have been made righteous before the Lord through faith in Jesus Christ, we not only reflect on the fact that he will return, but we look forward to it with all our hearts. We look forward to that grand and glorious day, because when Jesus does return we will be refined and purified one last time. For on that day, as all believers are gathered before the Lord, all the world will hear that we who believed in him are his holy people. We have been declared not guilty through faith in him, and all people will see as we are made righteous forever!

How well we have been prepared for that day! In the same way that the messengers prepared the way for the construction project through St. Peter, so also the Lord’s messengers have prepared the way for our Savior to enter our hearts. We have heard the call to repentance, we have been refined by the fire of God’s law and formed into his people through the gospel, and we are now looking to our Savior’s appearing as the baby in Bethlehem as well as his reappearing on the last day. Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church Le Sueur, MN

Prepare for the coming Savior (Isaiah 11:1-10)

Dear friends in Christ.

Several centuries ago, a Japanese emperor commissioned an artist to paint a bird. A number of months passed, then several years, and still no painting was brought to the palace. Finally the emperor became so exasperated that he went to the artist's home to demand an explanation. Instead of making excuses, the artist placed a blank canvas on the easel. In less than an hour, he completed a painting that was to become a brilliant masterpiece. When the emperor asked the reason for the delay, the artist showed him armloads of drawings of feathers, wings, heads, and feet. Then he explained that all of this research and study had been necessary before he could complete the painting. Well, in the same way that the artist spent years preparing himself to paint a picture for his emperor, so also we as Christians spend all our lives preparing ourselves for the coming of our Savior. In fact, during the next few weeks of this Advent season, not only will we be preparing ourselves for the return of our Savior on the Last Day, but we will also be preparing ourselves for the birth of the Savior in Bethlehem, just as Isaiah prophesied hundreds of years before he was even born when he wrote, “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse; from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.” (Isaiah 11:1 NIV).

Now, when Isaiah spoke these words, he was actually speaking both a threat and a promise. For in Isaiah’s time, the family tree of Jesse, which had begun to grow when David became king, had indeed grown tall and wide as each succeeding generation yielded king after king to sit on the throne of Israel. But even though that family tree had grown tall and wide, it had not grown strong in the Lord. In fact, just the opposite had happened. The farther removed the kings were from Jesse and his son, David, the more wicked each king became. For years the Israelite Nation had suffered under one wicked king after another, and now, as Isaiah spoke these very words, there were maybe six kings left who would sit on the throne of Israel before the Lord would cut down tree of Jesse, leaving it as nothing more than a stump—a stump from which no other king would come for over 600 years. And that is exactly what the Lord accomplished when the Babylonians came and conquered Jerusalem.

For when the Babylonians came in and conquered the Israelites, the Lord set in motion the very events that would leave Israel without their own king for hundreds of years, and leave the mighty house of Jesse as nothing more than the stump of a tree. For after the Babylonians came the Persians. After the Persians came the Greeks. After the Greeks came the Hasmoneans, and after the Hasmoneans came the Romans. Yet, it was in the time of the Romans that the Lord caused a shoot to come up out of the stump of Jesse. In the same way that a seemingly dead tree stump will suddenly send out a shoot that will quickly grow into a branch, Jesus was suddenly born as the shoot that came up from the stump of Jesse. In the same way that shoot in your back yard will slowly grow, adding twigs and leaves and finally becoming a new trunk for the tree that had been cut down, Jesus grew into a new tree. Jesus grew into that new tree as the branch of Jesse that would bear much fruit. He was the one who was born in fulfillment of the promise. He was the one who came as the Savior of the world. He is the one who has produced us as the fruit which the Lord our God is harvesting for eternal life. He is the one in whom we place our hope and our trust. He is the one who to whom we look for our Salvation and he is the one for whom we prepare, Jesus, the branch of Jessethe Righteous Savior of the world.

When that Japanese artist in our introduction was commissioned to paint a bird for his emperor, he spent the next years of his life studying every aspect of birds so that when the time came for him to produced the commissioned work, he would be completely prepared to offer his emperor his very best work. During the Season of Advent, we Christians do much the same thing as that Japanese artist. We continue to prepare ourselves for the coming of our Savior, so when our Savior finally does arrive, we are, through faith, prepared to meet him. Even though we do not know exactly when that day will be we are looking forward to it, because we know on that day we will meet our righteous Judge and Savior, and until that time comes we prepare ourselves for his arrival. We prepare ourselves for his arrival by preparing ourselves for the coming of our Savior as the Christ Child in Bethlehem. Even though we know that Jesus was born some 2000 years ago, we look forward to the night when we celebrate Jesus coming into this world, because we know that when Jesus came as our righteous Savior, he fulfilled the very words that Isaiah had prophesied about him when he said; “The Spirit of the LORD will rest on himthe Spirit of wisdom and of understanding, the Spirit of counsel and of power, the Spirit of knowledge and of the fear of the LORDand he will delight in the fear of the LORD. He will not judge by what he sees with his eyes, or decide by what he hears with his ears; but with righteousness he will judge the needy, with justice he will give decisions for the poor of the earth. He will strike the earth with the rod of his mouth; with the breath of his lips he will slay the wicked. Righteousness will be his belt and faithfulness the sash around his waist.” (Isaiah 11:2-5 NIV) .

Now, when Isaiah spoke these words, they would have been a great comfort to those who were still clinging to the Lord their God in faith. For as I have already said, the kings who served after David grew more and more wicked, the farther removed they were from David. In fact, of the five kings who reigned in Isaiah’s time, only two of them sought to act in accordance with the Lord’s Righteousness. So when Isaiah prophesied that the Lord would send his own king who would rule in righteousness, the people were glad to prepare themselves for the coming of their Righteous Savior. And that is what Jesus was, for when he came to earth, he fulfilled every single word of this prophesy. He was the one upon whom the Spirit of the Lord rested, when he was baptized in the Jordan river. He is the one who delighted in the fear of the Lord. There was never a time when he did not do what the Lord wanted him to do because he always followed the Lord’s will. Never did he judge on the basis of how someone looked or decide a matter on what people said. Rather, he judged with his righteousness through the use of the Law and the Gospel, just as he still does today.

For all we have to do is glance in the direction of the Ten Commandments, and we know that we have sinned. We know that we have not lived up to the Lord’s standard of Righteousness, because we have not only broken every one of his commandments, we have shattered them into thousands of tiny pieces by our inability to keep even one of them perfectly. But even though most would be terrified by the prospect of a righteous judge coming into the world, we welcome him gladly and prepare for his coming because we know that he is the one who came to save us. We know that when Jesus was born, he was born as the one who would be sacrificed to pay for the sins of the entire world. He was the one who gave his life that we might be forgiven of all the wrongs, which we have done. He is the one whose blood has washed our hearts and made them clean. So now through faith in Jesus Christ, the Lord’s righteousness becomes our own. For through his death and resurrection, our Righteous Savior has declared us to be righteous. He has declared us not guilty of any of the sins we have committed. He has made us righteous through the blessing of his righteousness which he himself has given us. Now, as we prepare ourselves this Advent season for the coming of our Righteous Savior, we take comfort in his righteousness and look forward to the peace that he will bring.

As we prepare ourselves this Advent season for the coming of the Christ child, we cannot help but notice that there are countless Christmas specials and TV shows that seeking to bring us peace in the Holiday season. They are talking about peace on earth and good will toward men. They are seeking peace in countries like Iraq, Iran, Israel, and Palestine. Though we might be seeking some of the same types of peace for ourselves while here on earth, the true peace, which Jesus brings is the peace we have in the forgiveness of sins and the promise of life forever with him in heaven. This is the peace which Isaiah was describing as he prophesied concerning our homes in heaven. “The wolf will live with the lamb, the leopard will lie down with the goat, the calf and the lion and the yearling together; and a little child will lead them. The cow will feed with the bear, their young will lie down together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox. The infant will play near the hole of the cobra, and the young child put his hand into the viper's nest. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain, for the earth will be full of the knowledge of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” (Isaiah 11:6-9 NIV).

This is the peace we have already in the forgiveness of sins that Jesus has given us. For through that gift, we are now living at peace with God our Father. Through that peace, which Jesus has brought to us, we have the confidence that we can approach our heavenly Father with all of our prayers and requests. We know that he will hear us, and we are certain that he will answer. But this peace that we have in the forgiveness of sins is but a foretaste of the peace in which we will live in our heavenly home. For there, in heaven, the peace that Jesus brings will be complete! There will never again be any who harm or destroy on all of God’s Holy Mountain. Those who may have once been mortal enemies because of color, race, or even geographic region will live peacefully and securely in the Kingdom of our God’s salvation. This is the peace for which we look forward this Advent season as we prepare ourselves for the coming Saviorthe peace which only Jesus can bring to us.

During the next few weeks we will take a little more time than we normally do to prepare ourselves for the coming of our Savior. We will be reminded of how our Savior has already come to the earth and how he will soon be coming again. We will look forward to his second coming as we begin to prepare ourselves to celebrate his arrival in Bethlehem so many years ago. But it is in this way that we will prepare ourselves for our coming Savior as the Righteous Branch of Jesse who will bring us his lasting and endless peace.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church Le Sueur, MN

Give Thanks to the Lord (Psalm 136:1)

Dear friends in Christ.

Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever. These beautiful words from the first verses of Psalm 136 are some of the most beautiful and well known verses in all of Scripture. They are some of the most beautiful words of all Scripture because they are words that so clearly remind us that the great love of the Lord our God is not something that will simply endure for only a day, or a week, or even for just a single year. Instead, these words assure us that the great love of the Lord our God never fails! The great love of the Lord our God is something that has endured since the beginning of eternity, and it is something that will continue to endure until the end of eternity. In fact, this is the very thing that we are confessing each and every time we speak these well known words as part of our common table prayer. For if you think about it, how often don’t you speak these words as one of your meal time prayers? How often don’t you speak these words silently in your heads either before or after you eat? How often don’t you speak these words with your family giving thanks to the Lord either for the food you are about to receive, or giving thanks to the Lord for the food that you have received? In fact, how many of you will be using these very words as one of your prayers as you sit down with friends or family for your Thanksgiving celebration?

Yet even as we gather to worship the Lord and give him thanks on this Thanksgiving eve, it almost seems that there are fewer reasons for us to give thanks to the Lord our God this year. After all, we still find ourselves in the mist of unusual weather: a spring filled with rain at the wrong times, a summer cooler and drier than expected, a fall filled with rain delays for harvesters, and the beginnings of a winter season with warmer than usual temperatures and a lot less snow than we usually have by this time of year. (Not that I’m complaining about a scarcity of ice and snow.) Not only that, but we find ourselves in a church filled with less than our normally bounty of fall decorations, simply because our own personal harvests yielded a lot less than we expected. We are living in an economy that is moving much slower than it has for a long time, and many of us are either struggling to find a job, struggling to keep a job by working longer and harder than we ever have before, or find ourselves somewhere in the middle of that tug of war. Add to that the reports we hear about governmental health care, and it doesn’t matter if you are for it or against it, the back and forth battle between legislators and public opinion is both daunting and exhausting, even for someone who is just a casual bystander and getting their information from the local paper.
Because of all of this, there seems to be a subdued air about America as we prepare ourselves for our Thanksgiving celebrations. Even among our own members I have seen worry and dread, doubt and anxiousness. I have even heard some wondering just what there is for us to be thankful for this year; especially considering everything that is going on in our world. Well the answer to that question is simple. We have every reason to give thanks to the Lord our God today and everyday because we know the one to whom we belong. We have every reason to give thanks to the Lord our God because we know that through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior, we belong to him as his dearly loved children. We have every reason to give thanks to the Lord our God, because we know that it was his great love for us that moved him to create us in the first place. We know that it was his great love for us that moved him to send his Son to be the Savior of the world. We know that because of his great love for us, he chose us to be his own and called us to faith in Jesus Christ who freed us from our sins by his death and resurrection. We know that because of his great love for us, one day, when our Lord determines, he will call us out of this life and bring us into his heavenly kingdom where we will live by his side forever and ever. This is the great love that the Lord our God has lavished upon us, this is the great love that has endured since the beginning of eternity and will endure for all time, and this is the great love that moves us to give thanks to the Lord our God, even in the midst of the hardships and frustrations we are seeing today.

So no matter what hardships, frustrations, or personal setbacks we might be enduring today, we can still give thanks to the Lord our God, because his love does indeed endure forever. Even though we might be dealing with a strange year for weather and smaller personal harvests, we can still give thanks to the Lord who provides for all our needs, because we know that his love will endure forever. Even though we may be struggling through the tug of war of employment—looking for jobs that aren’t there, or struggling to hold on to one that is—we can still give thanks to the Lord our God, because in his forever enduring love, he will continue to provide for all our needs. Though we may not have as much money as we would like, or we may have bill upon bill eating away at our pocket change, we can still give thanks to the Lord, because in his great love for us, he has never failed to provide us with all that we need and even more than that.

In fact, though we may not always be consciously aware of it, whenever we speak the beautiful words of our text today as a prayer, we are giving thanks to the Lord for the fact that no matter what has happened in our lives his goodness and his love have never failed us. Whenever we speak these beautiful words as a prayer to the Lord, we are giving thanks to him for all the goodness and love that he has poured out on us throughout our lifetime. When we speak these beautiful words as a prayer, we are reminding ourselves of the fact that there is nothing in all creation that can ever separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord. No matter what we fact in this life we are victorious in the Lord our God because of our Savior, Jesus Christ. No matter what we might endure, our God has promised that he will work all things out for good for those who love him. No matter what we may have already faced this past year, we have every reason to give thanks to the Lord our God today and always, because as the Psalmist assures us, his love endures forever.

Such simple words, “Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good. His love endures forever” yet such beautiful words filled with fathoms of meaning. Though you may use a couple different words when you pray this prayer at mealtimes, as I do, and though you might say them so quickly that you barely pay attention to them as you say them, as I too often do; now, we have something more to think about when we pray this prayer. For with these words we are truly giving thanks to the Lord for his goodness and his love which he showers upon us each and every day. So, as you sit down at your thanksgiving feasts this weekend, if you should choose to use these words as your prayer, take a moment and think about all that they mean. Take a moment and consider all that is wrapped up in these simple words, “Give thanks to the Lord for he is good. His love endures forever.”

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church Le Sueur, MN

Jesus is our King of Glory (John 18:33-37)

Dear friends in Christ.

In a 1983 Gallup poll Americans were asked "who do you think Jesus is." 70% of those interviewed said Jesus was not just another man. 42% stated Jesus was God among men. 27% felt Jesus was only human but divinely called. 9% stated that Jesus was divine because he embodied the best of humanity. Though I searched for a more recent edition of this poll, I did not find one, and I’m not really surprised. I’m not really surprised, because there is a great deal of confusion about who Jesus Christ is. Some say that Jesus was just a man like Confucius, who lived on the earth many hundreds of years ago, gave great advice and taught people ways to be nice to each other and how to get along. Others say that Jesus was just a regular man, born to his mother, and as he grew, the Christ consciousness, came upon. While that consciousness rested on him like a spirit dwelling inside of him, he was able to do miracles and healings, but when Jesus went to the cross, the Christ consciousness left him before he died. Some believe that Jesus is merely a son of God or one of many sons of God rather than the one and only Son of God. Others believe that Jesus Christ is not really the Son of God, but he is actually the archangel Michael, the defender of his people. But what do we believe? How can we possibly know who Jesus truly is? How can we find out exactly who this person is whom we are worshiping today? Well, we’ll take a look at what the Bible has to tell us. We’ll take a look at our text for this morning, our Gospel lesson from John 18:33-37. John writes:

Pilate then went back inside the palace, summoned Jesus and asked him, "Are you the king of the Jews?" "Is that your own idea," Jesus asked, "or did others talk to you about me?" "Am I a Jew?" Pilate replied. "It was your people and your chief priests who handed you over to me. What is it you have done?" Jesus said, "My kingdom is not of this world. If it were, my servants would fight to prevent my arrest by the Jews. But now my kingdom is from another place." "You are a king, then!" said Pilate. Jesus answered, "You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me." (John 18:33-37 NIV)

Now, when Jesus spoke these words, he was on trial for his life before the Roman Governor, Pontius Pilate. He had been arrested by the Jews in the Garden of Gethsemane only hours earlier. He had been dragged before the High Priest Annas, then before Caiaphas, and now he was standing trial before Pilate. The Jews had just accused Jesus of subverting the nation, opposing payment of taxes to Caesar, and claiming to be Christ, a king. Now, as Pilate stood before Jesus, looking at him as a common criminal, Jesus, our King of Glory took charge of this conversation and told Pilate that he truly was a king. But he was not an earthly king, for if he was his servants would have fought to prevent his capture and arrest; if he was an earthly king, Jesus’ servants would have been fighting right now to procure Jesus’ release from the Roman governor. But nothing like that was happening. There were no servants fighting for Jesus’ release, because as Jesus had said, “My kingdom is not of this World…My kingdom is from another place.”

With these powerful words spoken to Pontius Pilate, Jesus is assuring us that he is none other than the King of Glory about whom Daniel wrote in our First Lesson when he said, “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.” (Daniel 7:12,14 NIV) He is the one about whom John wrote in our second lesson, "Grace and peace to you from him who is, and who was, and who is to come, and from the seven spirits before his throne, and from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth…Look, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of him. So shall it be! Amen. “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”" (Revelation 1:4,5,7,8, NIV)

As Jesus stood before Pilate, Pilate fully understand what Jesus was telling him, but he was intrigued by Jesus’ answer. He was intrigued because by his answer, Jesus showed that he understood the charges being leveled against him, while at the same time he never denied that he was a king, so Pilate continued: “‘You are a king, then!’ said Pilate. Jesus answered, ‘You are right in saying I am a king. In fact, for this reason I was born, and for this I came into the world, to testify to the truth. Everyone on the side of truth listens to me,’” (John 18:37 NIV).

As our King of Glory who had come into this World, Jesus’ mission was clear! He was the one who had come to proclaim the truth of salvation through faith in him, the Savior of the world. And that is what he did. No matter where he went he spread the message of repentance and forgiveness to all who heard him. Even as he stood before Pilate, Jesus continued testifying to that truth by extending the healing hand of the gospel, which could call Pilate to faith in Jesus the King of Glory. But Pilate refused to listen to what Jesus had to say, and sadly, that’s the way things are going more and more often in our day and age.

Although Jesus, our King, has returned to heaven, he is still proclaiming the message of repentance and forgiveness to all the nations through the pages of the Scriptures. He has used Pastors all over the world to proclaim that truth through the lessons read in worship and even through the words spoken in sermons. He has used people just like you to proclaim that truth as you have spoken with friends, family, and even complete strangers about Jesus, your King of Glory and the message of his salvation. He has used things like radio and television to broadcast the truth of the gospel into nations where missionaries simply aren’t able to go. He is even using social networking sites like facebook, myspace, and youtube to proclaim the message of salvation in ways that neither we or our parents ever imagined. Take for example that video clip I showed you last week. I discovered it because one of my friends posted it on his facebook page. From that posting I was able to link over and view the video on youtube. While on youtube I found that this particular video clip has been viewed over 12 million times in a three year period. It has been copied and posted on other video sites. Different groups have performed this skit and up loaded their own videos. But the most incredible thing is, I know of five people who have come to faith in Jesus all because they saw that powerful video, understood the truth of the message it was proclaiming, and sought after the truth of salvation from the pages of the Scriptures. How incredible that Jesus, our King of Glory is still proclaiming the truth of salvation to countless people throughout the world in so many different and amazing ways.

But sadly, even though the truth of God’s Word is more accessible today that it has ever been in the past, it seems that more and more people are taking it for granted. It seems that more and more people are acting like Pilate and turning their backs on it. It seems that more and more people are being swayed by any number of the myriad of lies of satan. Take for example Islamic countries. Very often speaking about Christ is punishable by death and celebrating Christmas can put your life in serious jeopardy. Why? Because in Islam the Triune God has been replaced by Allah, Jesus, the Savior has been replaced by Mohammed the prophet, and the Bible has been replaced by the Koran. Much the same thing is true in Israel. Though speaking about Christ may not be punished by death, there are a fare few who will mock you, ridicule you, or even be ready to beat you simply because of the centuries of bad blood between the religious leaders and the Lord. Though Jesus himself was a Jew, he has been reduced to a mere man and the Old Testament, which so clearly proclaimed his coming is thought to be predicting a Messiah who is yet to come.

But what about closer to home? Are there others who have ignored the truth, to which our King of Glory testifies? Quite sadly, yes. There are the Jehovah’s Witnesses who believe that Jehovah is the name of the only true God…and as such, he is worthy of our worship and devotion. Though they believe that Jesus is the Son of God, they also believe that Jesus never claimed equality with God and is thus not a part of the Trinity. There is the Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints, The Mormons, who hold the Book of Mormon in higher regard than the Bible and believes that Jesus, who is one of many sons of God the Father, was once a man who earned his godhood by so perfectly following his Father’s will. There is the Catholic Church where the teachings of the Pope are so often held in higher regard than the Scriptures, and where Mary and other saints are invoked in prayers as they are asked for protection, forgiveness, and even asked to carry prayers and requests to the Son or even the Father. There is even the Lutheran Church, specifically the ELCA where homosexuality has officially been accepted as God pleasing if couples are joined in and acting in love for one another. There is our own government which is beginning to openly seek to rid this country of any teaching of the truth of Jesus Christ as the King of Glory who gave his life on the cross and rose again from the dead to free us from our sins so that we could live with him forever in eternal life.

But even though there are so many forces out there seeking to sway us, and lead us to put down the truth of our Glorious King so that we might pick up and embrace any number of satan’s lies, it is the Lord Jesus, our King of Glory who speaks to us with his truth. He is the King of Glory about whom John wrote in his great Revelation: “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war. His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself. He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God. The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean. Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. ‘He will rule them with an iron scepter.’ He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty. On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16).

This is the truth which our King testifies to. He testifies that he is the Son of God; that he is our King of Glory; that his is our only Savior. Though there may still be a lot of confusion in this world as to who Jesus really is, we know that he is our one and only Savior. He is our King of glory. He alone hears our prayers, answers our requests and removes our sins forever. This is the truth which Jesus came to the earth to testify to, and this is the truth that he testifies to us in the Bible, that he alone is our King of Glory, who had conquered sin and death, who truly has risen, and who will share with us his heavenly kingdom.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church Le Sueur, MN

We are Victorious in Christ! (Romans 8:28-39)

Dear friends in Christ.

General Dwight D. Eisenhower was once quoted as saying, “There are no victories at discount prices.” As a veteran of World War I and as the Supreme Commander of Allied Forces in Europe during the Second World War, this would be something he knew first hand. He knew the amount of work, effort and sacrifice that each country gave as they struggled on to win the victory against their enemies. As Christians, we know the same thing to be true! We know that there are no victories at discount prices. There are no victories without sacrifice, and yet, we are able to celebrate today, because through faith we are already victorious in Jesus Christ our Savior! We are victorious in Christ Jesus our Savior! What more incredible statement could there be for us to hear today than this! What more incredible truth could there be for us today than the truth that no matter what situation we might face in our lives we are already victorious in Christ! We are victorious in Christ, because we know that through faith in him, our God is working for good in our lives, our God is fighting for us, our God has promised that there is nothing in all creation that can ever separate us from his love.

In fact, this is the very assurance that the Apostle Paul gives us as he writes in our text this morning: “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:28-39, NIV)

With these words, Paul is assuring us that as we worship the Lord our God this morning, we have the absolute assurance that we are victorious in Christ! We have the absolute assurance that we are victorious in Christ because we are the very ones whom God chose to be his own. Even before the creation of the world it was God who knew us and chose us to be his own. Even before God knit us together in our mother’s wombs, he predestined us to be conformed to the likeness of his Son. For it was the Lord our God who loved us so much that he did not even spare his one and only Son! Rather he handed over his one and only Son as a sacrifice of atonement so that through his death and resurrecting we might be freed from our sins. Not only did the Lord God hand over his Son to be a sacrifice of atonement, but it was the Lord our God who decided to crush him, and determined that he would suffer under the weight of our sins and the sting of the whips and the scourges. It was the Lord our God who sent his one and only Son to the cross, watched him as he was mocked and beaten, bruised and bloodied, betrayed, denied, and rejected by men. It was the Lord our God who watched as the soldiers drove the nails through his hands and feet and forgave their actions by the prayer of his Son. It was the Lord God who saw the suffering, the agony, the pain, and the anguish that Jesus endured, and it was the Lord God who turned away—rejecting his Son in the moment of his greatest need. It was the Lord God who spent all his righteous anger and rage as he punished his Son—delivering him over to the torments of hell as punishment for our sins!

All of this is what God the Father did to his one and only Son so that he would never have to do it to you and me! All of this is what God the Father did to Jesus Christ so that we could be forever victorious through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior; just as Paul writes, “What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? …No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:31-35, 37-39, NIV)

It is because of the Lord’s great love that we are here today. It is because of the Lord great love that we now trust in him. It is because of the Lord’s great love that we have gathered this morning to worship and praise his name. It is because of the Lord’s great love that we can say, “We are victorious in Christ Jesus, our Savior!” It is because of the Lord’s great love that we know we belong to him and there is nothing in all creation that can ever separate us from his love, which connects us to him through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior. Even though this world is filled with temptations that are designed to lead us away, we are victorious in Christ by the forgiveness he bestows upon us through the faith he created in our hearts by the Holy Spirit. Even though we are constantly being tempted away from the Lord by our lust and greed, it is the Lord who is constantly calling us back to himself and reminding us of his forgiveness. Even though there may have been times when alcohol or even drugs have wrapped their tendrils around our hearts seeking to choke out our faith, it is the Lord our God who has watched over us, pruned them away and shined the Light of his Gospel into our hearts assuring us of his forgiveness and the victory that is ours as his children. Even though there may have been times when we have sought after beauty through the soft light of a computer monitor, or the pressures of attaining the perfect body have led us to eating disorders that only weaken us and seek to separate us from our Savior, it is the Lord our God who draws us back to himself and assures us of the victory that is ours through Christ our Savior. Though there may have been times when doubts, despair, or even thoughts of harming ourselves with barbiturates, blades, or even bullets, have crept into our lives not even these things can separate us from the Love of our God, because it is our God who is always calling to us. It is the Lord our God who is always seeking to draw us to himself. It is the Lord our God who is always seeking to remind us of the victory that is ours through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior.

Now, I’d like to illustrate this whole point with brief video clip. However, I would say that this clip has a rating of about PG-10 as one of the characters will introduce the feelings of depression, despair and even self destructive behaviors. Because of this, my wife is willing to take any of our young children to the mother’s room while we view this illustration. So, if you would like to send your children with her she will take them with her and then bring them back after the clip is over. Though what I am doing today is completely out of the ordinary, I was so impacted when I saw this video for the first time that I decided right there and then I had to share it with you, and it fit so perfectly with our text today.

The video clip used in the sermon today can be found on youtube at:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cyheJ480LYA&feature=fvw

How many of you have been there? How many of you have been trapped in a sin? How many of you have had to struggle your way back to God? How many times has it happened to you, that even though you knew of the victory that was yours through faith in Christ Jesus your Savior, you kept finding yourself spinning your wheels and sliding so easily back into the sins you were so diligently struggling to avoid? How many times have you felt like that young woman, that you were fighting your way back to God while all the sins and temptations of your life were clawing at you, grabbing at you, and throwing you backward until you felt so far away from the Lord that you were ready to give up? How many of you are feeling that right now you are in the end of your rope and or you feel that you have no options left to you? If you feel this way for any reason, be assured that, even now, you are victorious in Christ through faith. Even now, because of his great love you, God is calling you back to himself. Or how many of you feel that you are in the midst of that struggle because of some particular sin or external circumstance? Be assured that you are victorious in Christ your Savior and by his great love the Lord your God is drawing you back to himself even through this difficult struggle. Or how many of you are feeling like you’ve been struggling against your sins for so long that your strength is almost gone and you are wondering why the Lord hasn’t stepped in to intervene and fight for you as he did in the video? Be assured that you are victorious in Christ your Savior through faith, and the God who has already defeated all our enemies will step in at just the right time and give you the comfort, the assurance, and the peace of sins forgiven and a right relationship with him.

Though on this side of heaven, it may not always feel like we are victorious, through faith in Christ the victory that he won is ours. Through faith in Christ we know that the Lord our God is fighting for us. Though there may be times when the struggle grows more intense than we expected, those are the times when the Lord is still fighting for us in ways we may not see or even be able to comprehend. Those are the times, that as he is drawing us back to himself, he is allowing us to struggle our way through that gauntlet of temptation so that we might come to realize that it is not by our own might or power that we are victorious. Rather, our victory depends on the one who has already defeated all our enemies. Our victory depends on the one who is now drawing us ever closer to himself. Our victory, though it may never fully come in this life, is the victory that one day we will receive eternal life through faith in Jesus—eternal life where no temptations can ever hurt or harm us again. So, no matter what you may have done, you are forgiven. No matter what sins you may be struggling against, it is the Lord who is drawing you to himself. No matter what may be trying to separate you from the Lord your God, you are already victorious in Christ Jesus your Savior, because as Paul has already told us, “If God is for us, who can be against us?”

So now comes the question, “How many people do you know that do not know this victory?” How many people do you know who need to know this great message of God’s love and forgiveness? How many co-workers, friends, classmates, or even family do you know who need to know this great message of victory through faith in Jesus Christ? How many people do you know that are in such pain that they have turned to drugs, alcohol, or other substances in an attempt to numb the pain? How many people do you know that are so miserable because they have bought into the worlds ideas of ultimate beauty and are struggling with guilt, horror, and revolution every time they see a plate of food set in front of them. How many people do you know who are destroying their strength, their families, even their marriages, because they are trapped in the warm glow of beauty enticing them from the screen of a computer? How many people do you know that in such pain that they are actually cutting on themselves in an effort to relieve some of their pain? How many people do you know who are in such despair that they are beginning to believe that a bullet is the only answer? How many people do you know who need to know the incredible victory that is ours through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior?

These are the people who need you! These are the people who need you to tell them of the victory that is theirs through Jesus Christ, their Savior. These are the people who need you share with them the comforting message of salvation! They need you to tell them because you may be the only person within their circle of friends who knows that glorious victory that is ours through Christ Jesus our Savior. They need you to share with them the beautiful message that Paul is proclaiming to us today: “We know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose. For those God foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the likeness of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. And those he predestined, he also called; those he called, he also justified; those he justified, he also glorified. What, then, shall we say in response to this? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who is he that condemns? Christ Jesus, who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? As it is written: “For your sake we face death all day long; we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:28-39, NIV)

Though there are no victories at discount prices, we have already received the victory through Christ Jesus our Savior. He is the one who paid the price so that we could be victorious in him. For through faith in him, we are now victorious in Christ our Savior.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church -Le Sueur, MN

Surely the Day Is Coming (Malachi 4:1,2)

Dear friends in Christ.

I don’t know if you had a chance to read the bulletin yet, or maybe you just started reading it and haven’t gotten to the announcements yet, but when I was writing those announcements I was amazed by how many holiday announcements there are. I mean, did you see them? Not only are there two announcements talking about Thanksgiving related events, there are also four different announcements about Christmas events going on in December; five even if you count the poinsettia insert! Now, I don’t know about you, but I can hardly believe that Thanksgiving is right around the corner! Even though I heard my first Christmas Carol over the sound system at Target last Sunday afternoon, and I know that today is November 8, I am amazed to realize that there are only 17 more days until Thanksgiving Day and only 45 more days until Christmas Eve. Even though it is hard to fathom just how quickly these days are coming, we know that they are coming none-the-less. Even though it may be difficult to accept the fact that these two holidays are so rapidly approaching the thresholds of our lives, nevertheless these days are approaching just as quickly as the Lord’s Day of Judgment is approaching us today. It is that day about which the Prophet Malachi speaks in our text today when he writes, “‘Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them.’ ‘But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.’” (Malachi 4:1,2)

Now, when Malachi carried those words to the People of Israel, the Israelite’s spiritual house was in great disarray. Though they had returned from their captivity in Babylon many years earlier and they had rebuilt their homes, the city wall, and even the Lord’s temple, all was not well in Israel. The priests who served as Israel’s spiritual leaders were openly showing contempt for the Lord and his worship as they allowed the people to bring sub-standard offerings to the Lord. The priests, who should have refused to offer such animals as sacrifices to the Holy One of Israel, simply closed their eyes as they accepted maimed, crippled, blind, and even diseased animals as sacrifices on the Lord’s holy altar. The priests, who should have been calling the people to account and judging them by the full measure of God’s Holy Law were the ones who were simply allowing the people to get by, and by doing so, they were allowing the people to grow arrogant in their feelings toward the Lord. They were allowing the people to grow selfish as they kept back the best for themselves and offered the leftovers to the Lord. They were allowing the people to continue on in their sins and by doing so, they were allowing the people to do evil in the eyes of the Lord their God. Add to that the fact that the people were intermarrying with the nations around them and involving themselves in worship of false gods that were not the Lord; Add to that the fact that evildoers were being trumpeted as people who were loved by God, and those who followed the Lord’s commands were thought of as weak, foolish, snobbish, and even intolerant bigots, then it becomes clear why the Lord sent Malachi to tell the people, “‘Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them.’” (Malachi 4:1)

Yet, if we really get right down to it, is 2009 any different than 415 BC when Malachi was prophet? Is our Spiritual house any better off than the Israelite’s spiritual house? For years now the Leaders of our Nation have been working overtime to make sure that the First Amendment’s protection of our Freedom of Religion actually protects us and gives us the assurance that we can and will be forever free from religion. For years, the “Priests” of our nation—Pastor’s, Evangelists, Religious Leaders of every denomination—have shown contempt for the Lord as they have fallen into scandals of every kind. They have shown contempt for the Lord by preaching human thoughts and ideas rather than preaching the Truth of God Holy Word. Rather than standing on the front lines, calling people to account and judging them by the full measure of God’s Law, they have allowed people to simply get by. They have met people where they are, embraced sinners in love, which is exactly what we are to do, but then they proceeded to teach that sin wasn’t the problem, because there was nothing wrong with them; God loved them exactly the way they are. Thus, in their arrogance, they have removed the True God from the lives of millions and replaced him with the god of love, or rather Love as god. Thus, sin is now touted as god pleasing if it is done in love, and those who stand up for what the Lord says are called weak, foolish, and intolerant haters. Is there any wonder why the Lord sent Malachi to proclaim even to the American people, “‘Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them.’” (Malachi 4:1)

Yet, before we become too arrogant in our Pharisaical WELS way, thinking that we are the only holy ones left in the world because we work so hard to preserve, protect, and proclaim the absolute truth of God’s Word, we must realize that these words are for us as well. These words, which the Lord delivered to his people through the lips of Malachi, are the very words he is delivering to us as a warning today! For with these words, the Lord is reminding us of the very thing our sins deserve. With these words, the Lord is telling us that we are no better than the arrogant evildoers who have lived throughout history. With these words, the Lord is telling us that when we hold back our offerings out of greed, selfishness, or just plain laziness, we are no better than the Israelites who did the same with their healthy animals, bringing instead their sub-standard offerings. With these words, the Lord is telling us that when we do not put him first in every aspect of our lives, we are no better than the Israelites who followed after foreign gods rather than the one true God. With these words the Lord is telling us that when we feel superior to others because of our fine faith, or keep the message of salvation because we have prejudged them as unworthy of salvation, then we too become the arrogant people whom Malachi spoke about when he said, “‘Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them.’” (Malachi 4:1)

Yet, even as Malachi delivers his harsh message of God’s Holy Law as a warning for us to heed as we turn to the Lord in repentance, he does not leave us without the comfort of God’s love and forgiveness. As he says in verse 2 of our text, “‘But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.’” (Malachi 4:1,2)

When Malachi delivered this message to the Israelites, I can just imagine the collective sigh that ran through the nation. Though many of the Israelites had turned away from the Lord, these words were sweet comfort and grace to those who had remained faithful to him, as well as those who had returned to the Lord and repented of their sins because of Malachi’s message. Though Malachi was the last Prophet in Israel until the days of John the Baptist, he proclaimed the joy that would be theirs on that day when the Savior came. Though it was nearly 400 years until the Savior would be born in Bethlehem, they knew the day was coming when the sun of righteousness would rise with healing in its wings. They knew that through faith in that Savior, they would receive the forgiveness of sins, the assurance of life, and the blessing of salvation by their Savior’s side forever. They knew that through faith in their Savior, they did not need to fear the Lord’s Day of Judgment because they knew that on that day, through faith in their Savior, the sun of righteousness would rise on them. They knew that on that Day of Judgment, they would finally and forever be healed of their sins when the Lord moved them to the pasture land of heaven. They knew and believed as Malachi had said, “‘For you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.’” (Malachi 4:1,2)

Well we know and believe the same thing! We know and believe that they day is coming when the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. Though we are still living in the night of sin and unbelief, through faith in Jesus who has already freed us from our sins, we can see the warm glow of the dawn of that day on the horizon. Though we do not know exactly when that day will come, we know that it is coming just as certainly as Thanksgiving and Christmas swiftly approaching. Though we do not know exactly when that day will come, we are waiting for it as eagerly as school children wait for the final bell of the day. For on that day, when the sun of righteousness rises in the east, and the arrogant and evil are burned away, we will feel the warmth of our Savior’s righteousness permeate every join of our bodies. We will feel that warmth finally and completely melt away the ice of sin that had clung so tenaciously to our hearts, and we will go out and leap in joy as we are released from the stall of this world to the pasture of eternal life.

What a day that will be when our Savior returns in glory and judgment! Though we do not know exactly when it will be, we know that it is approaching as certainly as Thanksgiving and Christmas are growing ever nearer this year. Though that day may not come for another week, another year, or for many more years to come, we know that one day it will be here, just as Malachi prophesied, “‘Surely the day is coming; it will burn like a furnace. All the arrogant and every evildoer will be stubble, and that day that is coming will set them on fire,’ says the LORD Almighty. ‘Not a root or a branch will be left to them.’ ‘But for you who revere my name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings. And you will go out and leap like calves released from the stall.’” (Malachi 4:1,2)

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church -Le Sueur, MN

Praise the Lord, O you, his Saints! (Revelation 7:9-17)

Dear friends in Christ.

So what did you do last night? Did you enjoy a quiet evening at home with your family? Or did you go out and enjoy a Halloween style celebration? Did you dress your kids up and lead them around town for a fun evening of collecting treats from the neighbors? Or did you, perhaps, dress up yourselves, for an evening of fun, frivolity, and maybe even a little fear?

Well, an evening of fear was undoubtedly the exact thing that a 34 year old man was facing as he prepared to post his 95 statements for debate on the door of the castle church in Wittenberg. Fear was undoubtedly what Martin Luther was facing as he went out on that Halloween evening 492 years ago to post his theses for debate. But why, you may ask, why did Luther choose the night he did? What moved him to go out on that All Hallows Eve? Why, out of all of the days in the calendar, why did he choose Saturday, October 31, for the posting of his theses? Well, he chose that night, because he knew that on the next morning a large crowd of people would be gathering for mass at the castle church. He chose that night, because he knew that on Sunday morning, November 1, all the members of the church would be present to join in the celebration of All Saints Day, and thus his invitation to debate those 95 points would be most effective. In short, he chose the evening of October 31, because he knew that the celebration of All Saints Day on November 1 was a Holy Day of Obligation. It was a day that attendance of the mass was required unless a person was simply too elderly or too ill to come. It was a Holy Day that had been celebrated since the days of Charlemagne in the early 300’s. It had been established as a day of Obligation during the reign of Pope Gregory III in the middle 700’s, as a day on which to honor all the Saints, known and unknown, because “They continually intercede with the Father for us.” (See: Catechism of the Catholic Church Paragraph 956 accessed online at http://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2B.HTM October 27, 2009.)

If this is the case; if this is the history behind All Saints Day, then, “Why, in all the world, are we celebrating it today?” Well, even though this may be the history behind the day, this is not the reason we have gathered to celebrate today; for on this All Saints Day, we have come, not to worship the Saints who are now at rest in the heavenly kingdom. Rather we have come to give praise to the Lord our God who has made each and every one of us his saints through faith in Jesus Christ, our Savior. We have come to worship the Lord our God who has given us the sure hope that one day, each and every one of us will receive his gift of eternal life forever by his side in his heavenly kingdom. We have come to worship the Lord our God for all the Saints whom he has already called out of this life, who are already living by his side and resting from all their labors, because they believed in Jesus Christ as their one and only Mediator, Intercessor, and Savior. We have come to worship the Lord our God, and praise him as his saints because he is the one who assures us that one day through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior, we too will go to join the multitudes from every nation who have already been gathered before the throne of God and in front of the Lamb.

This is the very picture that John paints for us in our text as he writes, “After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people and language, standing before the throne and in front of the Lamb. They were wearing white robes and were holding palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: “Salvation belongs to our God, who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.” All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying: “Amen! Praise and glory and wisdom and thanks and honor and power and strength be to our God for ever and ever. Amen!”" (Revelation 7:9-12)

With such beautiful words, the Lord our God gives us every reason to praise him as we celebrate this All Saints day. For with this incredible vision, the Lord our God reminds us that he is the one who has made us his saints through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior. He is the one who has been populating his heavenly kingdom with his saints since the beginning of time. He is the one who has called his saints, his faithful people who have believed his promises of salvation; he is the one who has called his faithful people, his saints from every nation, tribe, people, and language. He is the one who has assembled an innumerable multitude of his saints who are now gathered before his throne and serve him day and night in his holy temple as they now rest from all their labors. He is the one who called them to be his saints because they trusted in his promise of salvation, and he is the one who also calls us his saints because we have trusted in his promise of salvation—the salvation that is ours through faith!

It is this gift of salvation through faith for which we give praise to the Lord our God today, because it was through this gift of his salvation, which the Lord himself bestowed upon us that we have been made his saints. This was not something that we were able to earn. It was not something that we were able to rent, until we had paid enough rent to own it. It wasn’t even something that we could put on layaway. It wasn’t something that we could win by playing the lottery, signing up for a raffle, or even sitting down to a friendly bingo game. Rather, the salvation which the Lord our God has bestowed upon us was a gift given to us by the Lamb who was slain. It was a gift, addressed to us with his love. It was sealed and stamped with his forgiveness. It was signed in his own hand with his own blood. In short, this gift of the Lord’s salvation, gives us the complete and absolute assurance that through faith in the Lamb of God, our Savior, we are his saints even as we live here on earth. We are his saints who continually praise him for his gift of salvation as we ever look forward to the day when we will be gathered before the Lamb to be united forever with all God’s saints in his heavenly home.

I’m not exactly sure what it is, but there is just something about our homes that is special to us. It is a place of warmth and comfort on a cold and rainy fall afternoon. It is a place of rest and relaxation after a long hard day of work. It is the place we long for when a vacation has been too full or simply gone on too long. In many ways, this was the very picture that John was painting as he continues in our text, “Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?” I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.”" (Revelation 7:13-17)

As we praise the Lord our God who made us his saints, we are ever looking forward to the home of glory to which he will one day call us. We are looking forward to that home of glory where we will dwell as God’s saints with all the saints who have gone before us. Though here on earth we must linger in the great tribulation of this sin-filled world, through faith, our eyes are always focused on the home of glory with which we have been blessed. Though here on earth we constantly feel the hot breath of our enemy striking the back of our necks, it is our Savior who sends the cool breeze of his gospel to give us strength. Though our enemy is constantly driving his SUV through the puddles of temptation, seeking to drench us in the muck and mire of sin, it is our Savior who provides the bleach of his blood and washes us clean from every spot and stain of our sins. For we know that through faith in Jesus, we will be called out of the great tribulation of this sin-filled life to live with the Lord in his heavenly kingdom, forever! We know that when Lord calls us to fill out the final change of address forms of death, and he takes us, as his saints to his heavenly kingdom, we will be washed one last time in the wash basins of the Lamb’s blood. There we will be washed clean of every spot and stain of our sins, through Jesus’ blood. We will be dressed in the white robes of his righteousness, which he, himself, has provided for us, and we will make our dwelling with the Lord, who will spread his tent over us!

In that day, when we are united with all the saints who have gone before us, we will raise our hearts and voices in praise of the Lord our God for the great gift of his heavenly home. In that day, we will raise our hearts and voices in praise of the Lord our God because never again will we face hunger. Never again will we deal with thirst. We will never again deal with the frustration of weather that is beautiful when we have no time to do outside work and is terrible when we have made plans to spend the day in the yard. Never again will we face any of these things, because the Lamb at the center of the throne will be our shepherd. He will lead us to the springs of living water, and the Lord, who spread his tent over us, will completely wipe away every tear from our eyes.

This is the home of righteousness to which we are looking forward, and this is the reason why we have gathered as God’s saints to celebrate All Saints Day. We have not come together because this is a day that we are required to be in church, nor have we come together to worship, honor, venerate, or give glory to anyone who has gone before us. Rather, as I said earlier, we have come to give praise to the Lord our God who has made each and every one of us his saints through faith in Jesus Christ, our Savior. We have come to worship the Lord our God who has given us the sure hope that one day, each and every one of us will receive his gift of eternal life forever by his side in his heavenly kingdom. We have come to worship the Lord our God for all the Saints whom he has already called out of this life, who are already living by his side and resting from all their labors, because they believed in Jesus Christ as their one and only Mediator, Intercessor, and Savior. We have come to worship the Lord our God, and praise him as his saints because he is the one who assures us that one day through faith in Jesus Christ our Savior, we too will go to join the multitudes from every nation who have already been gathered before the throne of God and in front of the Lamb.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church -Le Sueur, MN

Celebrate Your Heritage! (Philippians 3:7-14)

Dear friends in Christ.

What was the last big event that you and your family celebrated? Was it a wedding, where you had the opportunity to celebrate the joining of a new couple in wedded bliss? Was it maybe a family reunion, where you had the opportunity to connect with any number of relatives that you hadn’t seen for a long time. Was it maybe a baby shower, where you had the fun of celebrating with the new and expecting mother to be? Was it perhaps a birthday, where you got a chance to shower one of your children with a few gifts and make him or her special for the day? No matter what it was, it seems that we need very little reason to celebrate events no matter how big or small they might be. Well, this morning as we celebrate the Festival of the Reformation, we will have the opportunity to celebrate with each other as we celebrate the heritage that we have together.

But what, some of you may be asking, is our heritage? Well, our heritage is a solid adherence to the teachings of the Bible. Our heritage is the time we spent unified with the Missouri Synod growing more and more conservative in our understanding of God’s Word until the time came when our paths split in the early 60’s. Our heritage goes back to 1850, almost 160 years ago when 3 German-American Pastors got together in Milwaukee, Wisconsin and formed the Wisconsin Synod. And yet, our heritage goes back even farther than that, because we can trace it back to October 31st, 1517, the night on which Martin Luther stealthily approached the doors of the castle church in Wittenberg and nailed his 95 theses—his 95 points for discussion or debate—to the door and set into motion the events that we celebrate as the Reformation. But that isn’t even the beginning of our heritage because we can trace our heritage all the way back to the first promise of a Savior delivered to Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, just shortly after they had fallen into sin. It is that promise, fulfilled in the birth of our Savior, some 2000 years ago, that is the root and the source of the heritage that we are celebrating today! Today we are celebrating the fact that Jesus is our heritage, because Jesus is the one who freed us from our sins by his perfect life, his innocent death, and his glorious resurrection. We are celebrating the fact that when Jesus gave his life in our place and took it back again on the third day, by his actions he declared that you and I were completely innocent of any of the sins that satan had leveled against us. By his actions Jesus declared that we were completely righteous in his sight through the faith that he himself had created in our hearts. In fact, it is that very heritage of righteousness that the Apostle Paul is celebrating in our text as he writes, “But whatever was to my profit I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ--the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith.” (Philippians 3:7-9).

Though there had been a time in Paul’s life that he actually though he could earn his own salvation, once he had been called to faith in Jesus Christ, he realized that the righteousness he had was not of his own making, rather it was the heritage that Jesus himself had bestowed upon him as a gift through the faith created in Paul’s heart by the work of the Holy Spirit.

Well, the same thing is true for each and every one of us today! Though there may have been a time when we counted our good deeds as something that we could lay at Jesus’ feet and somehow gain eternal life by our own efforts, now that we have been declared righteous by our Savior’s death and resurrection, we consider all that stuff as loss. We consider it to be completely worthless; as useless to us as the garbage that we put out at the curb each week so that the garbage men can haul it away. In fact, when we compare all our own efforts to the surpassing greatness of our Christian Heritage of faith in Jesus Christ, our own works are no useful than that of burned up newspaper. In fact, when we are reminded how Jesus completed the transaction of our salvation with the payment of his blood, it makes all the more clear how our righteousness is his declaration to us—not as a result of our own actions, but as his gift to us through the heritage of faith. A gift which he himself bestowed upon us as he declared to be innocent and now, through faith, makes us perfect.

What an incredible heritage we have! For, today, as we celebrate the heritage that we have in Jesus Christ our Savior, we find that it is Christ our Savior who makes us perfect. It is Christ our Savior who makes us perfect in the eyes of our God—not merely acceptable, passing, good enough, sufficient, or even above average! It is Christ our Savior who makes us perfect in the eyes of the Lord our God through the faith he created in our hearts; the faith through which he applied to us the power of his resurrection and the righteousness that he won for us in the World Series of Calvary. This, in fact, is the very heritage that the Apostle Paul was celebrating as he wrote in our text, “I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already been made perfect, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 3:10-14).

As Christians, this is the goal to which we are pressing. This is the heritage we celebrate in Jesus Christ our Savior—the perfection that will be ours when God our Savior calls us heaven ward in Christ Jesus. We are looking forward to the day when our Lord Jesus will finally and forever make us perfect when he calls us out of this world of sin to our lives by his side in his heavenly kingdom. Though we have not yet achieved it, we know that through faith the day is coming when we will never again experience sin. We will never again deal with frustration. We will never again face suffering or pain. We will never again face any of these things because on the day when we are made perfect by our Savior’s side in heaven, we will have escaped the sorrows of this life. On the day when we are made perfect in our Savior’s kingdom, we will gather around the throne of our God and serve him day and night in his holy temple. On that day when we are called to live in perfection with our Savior, we will rest from all our labors and we will enjoy the gift of eternal life that our Savior longs to bestow upon us.

This is the Christian heritage we are celebrating today; the heritage that has been passed down to us since the days of Adam and Eve. It is the heritage of the forgiveness of sins won for us by Christ our Savior through which we have been declared completely innocent and will one day be made perfect in eternal life. Though the celebration may not be the same as a Birthday party, wedding, or even baby shower, it many ways our celebration today is like that of a great family reunion—a family reunion to which we have all been invited though faith in our brother, Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Pastor David M. Shilling
Grace Evangelical Lutheran Church -Le Sueur, MN