+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Matthew 11:19
Theme: In The Company of Sinners
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Jesus keeps company with sinners. It was true in the beginning. Thankfully it is still true today. If Christ were to receive us on our own merits we would be forever shut out of the presence of God. But the Holy Spirit gathers God’s people and welcomes them with divine gifts unavailable anywhere else. That is why we are here.
Today Jesus addresses His opponents with this rhetorical question: “To what can I compare this generation?”1 It was a means of conviction implying the prevalence of unbelief. “They are like children sitting in the marketplaces and calling out to others: ‘We played the flute for you, and you did not dance; we sang a dirge, and you did not mourn.’”2 What on earth does this mean?
Music and dancing marked joyous celebrations such as weddings. Dirges struck the tone of grief at funerals. Each statement is directed symbolically against John the Baptist and Jesus respectively. John was accused of being too serious in His preaching of repentance leaving little room for joy. Christ, on the other hand, was accused of hob-knobbing with sinners, eating, drinking, and celebrating with them and thus not practicing sobriety in the holy things of God. Yet both personified the in-breaking of God’s kingdom into the world through the person of His Son as foretold by the prophets. This is exactly what the authorities of the day would not tolerate.
There was no pleasing the religious leaders of the time? The phrase we still use is: “There’s just no pleasing some people.” Dear friends, in the broadest sense, we’re those people. But in the context here it refers to all who resist the truth and mission of Christ. John the Baptist was martyred by beheading; Jesus was crucified. Today too, bold proclaimers of the truth are marginalized, ridiculed, and even silenced. The threat to the autonomy of the human will is too great. As long as the sun rises and sets upon the earth this reality will never change. People prefer to direct their own destiny, make their own decisions, moving to the next life being no exception.
Of course this rash foolishness will one day be frighteningly exposed. We cannot control God, much less usurp His authority. This is the height of self-righteousness. Ignoring Him won’t help either. So why is it so common? Firstly, that is the nature of sin and we are all sinners. Secondly, there is strength in numbers and we can be overwhelmed by the sentiment of the masses. Of course with the disproportional influence of the modern media those masses may not be nearly as large as they are made to appear. But fear is a powerful motivator. The Lord warned the prophet Isaiah not to follow the way of the people saying, “Do not call conspiracy everything that these people call conspiracy; do not fear what they fear and do not dread it. The Lord Almighty is the one you are to regard as holy, He is the one you are to fear, he is the one you are to dread.”3 All the combined gloom and doom and desperate fatalism of humanity could never dampen the spirit of hope embodied in Christ. He lives and even death cannot undo what He has done.
If the church seems out of sync with the prevailing ideals of society there is a probably a very good reason for it. The world is never eager to hear or live by truth that isn’t transparently beneficial to the individual. Forgiveness, unconditional compassion, and self-sacrifice have never been the mottos of secular society. They never will be. But if the church is out of touch with peoples’ needs, their pains, their hardships, their struggles then that indicates a problem. The church doesn’t exist for its own sake. It is the salt and leaven of Christ in the world. The church is the beacon of light and truth. It is to mirror Christ’s forgiveness and reconciliation.
These things- truth and forgiveness- are not merely attendant circumstances; they constitute the church and maintain it. People may be drawn into a fellowship through hospitality and mutual interests. But they are not likely to remain unless anchored by something deeper. What anchors people to the church is the forgiveness of sins present and offered through the crucified and risen Jesus. The sacrament of Holy Communion is not under private jurisdiction. Christ offers His sacrificial body and blood in the public gathering. What must anchor people is the objective and unchanging promises of the ancient Spirit working through the creating and redeeming Word. We are new creations in Christ because ancient covenants have been honoured and are still kept.
If you were to come to God’s house as the only attendee and the pastor proclaimed to you alone the remission of all your sins, you would still have the assurance of knowing you are in fellowship with the one, holy, Christian and apostolic church. You are not baptized into a ritual membership or religious organization. In your baptism you become a co-heir with Christ of the eternal inheritance. You are in fellowship with the Father, Son and Holy Spirit and the entire company of saints. This is of greater worth than any circle of friends or assembly of support you have in this life that is estranged from or ignorant of the wisdom of God in Christ. Indeed, we are to make the most of worldly friendships, but without becoming friends of the world.4
Each day of bearing the cross is a reminder of our temporary, mortal existence. There is no let up from Satan and even the temptations of the sinful nature change as we mature. Paul expresses the struggle well in His famous words today, “I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For what I do is not the good I want to do; no, the evil I do not want to do- this I keep on doing…What a wretched man I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? Thanks be to God-through Jesus Christ our Lord!”5
Yes, we are nothing in and of ourselves. We are everything in Christ. Our self-image maybe constantly over-inflated, habitually under-stated, or sporadically lurching and tossing everywhere in between; but is has no basis, no grounding, no legitimacy apart from our identity as redeemed servants of the Crucified. It has no sense of bearing apart from reference to the cross. Like a compass that always faithfully pointing north, the cross always gives us our bearings. Jesus said, “Come to Me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.”6
So relax here in the company of sinners. Christ became the greatest sinner of all. He did it for you and your salvation. Enjoy this company of sinners, who in God’s sight are already saints by faith. You are in good company. You are in God’s company.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Third Sunday After Pentecost
3rd July, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Matthew 11:16
2 Matthew 11:17
3 Isaiah 8:12-13
4 See 1 John 2:15
5 Romans 7:18-19, 24-25
6 Matthew 11:28-29
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
First Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2011
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Matthew 28:18
Theme: Authority Over Heaven and Earth
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God the Father spoke creation into existence. And He did it with the participation of Christ and in conjunction with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is not a created being designated by God for a mighty mission. Christ is the eternal Son of the Father. He was present at and participated in creation. He completed our salvation and will rule for eternity. He has been vested with all power and authority. These miracles are foundational Christian truths and must be recognized as such.
“The universe was formed at God’s command,”1 so says Holy Scripture. Creation from nothing is the point where the logical has no room to coexist with the miraculous. To make the jump from nonexistence to existence, to go from empty space to this building, the trees outside; to go from a nonentity to our bodies and minds, even to the tiny molecules of air that we breathe, that requires something fundamentally more than eons of time and countless random combinations of events. It requires a creative power that defies logic. It requires God and God requires faith.
The arguments are often misrepresented. The evolutionist must acknowledge the pre-existence of some mysterious and immeasurable power. Many label it the “big bang”. Christians acknowledge the pre-existence of God. But to use the big bang theory to describe how the universe came into existence is to make a statement of faith. You are saying you believe the cosmos, matter and life in all of its forms, spontaneously appeared. That is not science. It is conjecture. And it’s a big leap of faith. There is absolutely no proof that life was able to organize itself out of a cloud of dust.
The Christian, of course, takes a leap of faith too. But it is trust in a powerful, creative and compassionate God. God creates life and He orders the life He has created. The implications are enormous. Human beings are invested with moral capacity. The consistent materialist, the denier of God’s creative work, must maintain a morally neutral position of human beings in relation to a higher power. One’s status before God is then of little concern.
Perhaps this is already the default position of a society with waning Christian influence and has infected our spiritual understandings also. Have you noticed that sin isn’t much of a worry to people today except in so far as it impacts negatively on their life experiences? That is, if we are laboring under the pain of broken relationships, feeling ostracized, or inadequate among our peers; if we sense resistance or face shame or correction directly resulting from our dishonesty, shortcomings, or wrong doing then some restoration is desirable.
But is it understood to involve guilt for which we need forgiveness? Or is our sense of sinfulness governed only by the negative feedback we receive from those around us? Do we otherwise believe our transgressions need not be reckoned with? If so, our repentance will be shallow or even nonexistent- perhaps a Sunday ritual, lip-service without substance. The Bible confronts us with a much more serious perspective. It calls us to account for our unchecked selfishness, our jealousies, or lack of compassion and generosity, our apathy about truth and the gospel. It indicts us not only for the uncharitable things we say or do but for the very desires that show we are sinful to the core. And then it tells us in no uncertain terms that we are deserving only of judgment and punishment. “Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin.”2
And that leaves us in a very different place than those who erroneously believe in moral neutrality. It makes access to the forgiveness of sins a top priority. It is why you come to the Lord’s house. It is why you come to Holy Communion. It is why you can’t settle for half-truths or hollow depictions of Jesus. It is why therapies or philosophies posing as solutions to your deepest pains will never do. What you need was hung upon a cross. What you need was poured out on Pentecost. What everyone needs is the promise of the Word-become-flesh. The gracious heavenly Father doesn’t fail to give us all we need.
You see we must have all of Christ- the divine Son of the eternal Deity and the Jesus born of the Virgin Mary- we must have this complete God-man, or in the end we might as well have none of Him. Without His perfect humanity- His flesh and blood, law-fulfilling, living breathing, perfect obedience offered as a sacrifice in His body on the cross- we would have no sufficient substitute to cover the guilt of our sins. And without His perfect divinity- the Son of God, Second Person of the Godhead, almighty and omnipotent- death would not have been defeated, Satan conquered, and hell vanquished. This Christ, the crucified and risen Saviour and Redeemer, is your sole comfort when you draw your final breath.
He says to His disciples today, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”3 Our God of faithfulness in the past is the One present with us now and He promises to guide the future. As members of His body, the church, He recruits us to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.
Making disciples of all nations includes passing the faith to the next generation. Parents especially, but also grandparents and members of the supporting community must ask themselves why they want the faith passed on to their children. Is it mostly a family custom, or for a good moral foundation? Is it to tick all the boxes and fill in all the blanks of religious education? Our motives will determine the resources we invest and how that investment is made. What sacrifices will we make and what compromises will we avoid? Children too can recognize the voice of the Shepherd. Where the gospel is proclaimed purely and the sacraments administered rightly the Holy Spirit gathers His people. Baptism initiates one into the family of God.
But life in God’s family is not a matter of leisure. It comes with great privilege and responsibility. Everything a Christian does is important in its own context. It’s like the ssenator in a restaurant when the waiter brought over the rolls, but no butter. "May I have some butter, please?" The waiter gives a slight nod and wanders off. A few minutes later, still no butter. The senator catches the waiter’s eye." May I have some butter, Please? "Still the vaguest of responses, and after ten more minutes, still no butter." Finally the senator stops the very busy waiter and says, “Maybe you don't know who I am. I'm a Princeton graduate, and a Rhodes scholar. I'm currently chairman of the International Debt Subcommittee of the Senate Finance Committee and a member of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee for the defense of the nation." To which the reply came, "Maybe you don't know who I am," said the waiter. "I'm the guy who's in charge of the butter".
Dear friends you know whose you are and you know your charge. In your vocation as parent or child, husband or wife, teacher or farmer, mentor or friends, tend to those people and resources in your charge to the best of your ability. Do it with humility, generosity, compassion, and above all for peoples’ spiritual well-being. You may not be the mayor, or the principal, the pastor, or the head of the P&F, but you step into the fray each day as an agent of the kingdom. You may be the one in charge of the butter. Every moment you will influence people by your words, your actions and the commitments you devote your time, money, and energy to. People soon learn the things we value.
On this Trinity Sunday, may the Father who created you in uniqueness, and the Son who redeemed you with His blood, and the Holy Spirit who called you to faith in Christ and sustains that faith, richly bless in body and soul to life everlasting. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
First Sunday After Pentecost
Holy Trinity
19th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Hebrews 11:3
2 Galatians 3:22
3 Matthew 28:19-20
Text: Matthew 28:18
Theme: Authority Over Heaven and Earth
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God the Father spoke creation into existence. And He did it with the participation of Christ and in conjunction with the Holy Spirit. Jesus is not a created being designated by God for a mighty mission. Christ is the eternal Son of the Father. He was present at and participated in creation. He completed our salvation and will rule for eternity. He has been vested with all power and authority. These miracles are foundational Christian truths and must be recognized as such.
“The universe was formed at God’s command,”1 so says Holy Scripture. Creation from nothing is the point where the logical has no room to coexist with the miraculous. To make the jump from nonexistence to existence, to go from empty space to this building, the trees outside; to go from a nonentity to our bodies and minds, even to the tiny molecules of air that we breathe, that requires something fundamentally more than eons of time and countless random combinations of events. It requires a creative power that defies logic. It requires God and God requires faith.
The arguments are often misrepresented. The evolutionist must acknowledge the pre-existence of some mysterious and immeasurable power. Many label it the “big bang”. Christians acknowledge the pre-existence of God. But to use the big bang theory to describe how the universe came into existence is to make a statement of faith. You are saying you believe the cosmos, matter and life in all of its forms, spontaneously appeared. That is not science. It is conjecture. And it’s a big leap of faith. There is absolutely no proof that life was able to organize itself out of a cloud of dust.
The Christian, of course, takes a leap of faith too. But it is trust in a powerful, creative and compassionate God. God creates life and He orders the life He has created. The implications are enormous. Human beings are invested with moral capacity. The consistent materialist, the denier of God’s creative work, must maintain a morally neutral position of human beings in relation to a higher power. One’s status before God is then of little concern.
Perhaps this is already the default position of a society with waning Christian influence and has infected our spiritual understandings also. Have you noticed that sin isn’t much of a worry to people today except in so far as it impacts negatively on their life experiences? That is, if we are laboring under the pain of broken relationships, feeling ostracized, or inadequate among our peers; if we sense resistance or face shame or correction directly resulting from our dishonesty, shortcomings, or wrong doing then some restoration is desirable.
But is it understood to involve guilt for which we need forgiveness? Or is our sense of sinfulness governed only by the negative feedback we receive from those around us? Do we otherwise believe our transgressions need not be reckoned with? If so, our repentance will be shallow or even nonexistent- perhaps a Sunday ritual, lip-service without substance. The Bible confronts us with a much more serious perspective. It calls us to account for our unchecked selfishness, our jealousies, or lack of compassion and generosity, our apathy about truth and the gospel. It indicts us not only for the uncharitable things we say or do but for the very desires that show we are sinful to the core. And then it tells us in no uncertain terms that we are deserving only of judgment and punishment. “Scripture declares that the whole world is a prisoner of sin.”2
And that leaves us in a very different place than those who erroneously believe in moral neutrality. It makes access to the forgiveness of sins a top priority. It is why you come to the Lord’s house. It is why you come to Holy Communion. It is why you can’t settle for half-truths or hollow depictions of Jesus. It is why therapies or philosophies posing as solutions to your deepest pains will never do. What you need was hung upon a cross. What you need was poured out on Pentecost. What everyone needs is the promise of the Word-become-flesh. The gracious heavenly Father doesn’t fail to give us all we need.
You see we must have all of Christ- the divine Son of the eternal Deity and the Jesus born of the Virgin Mary- we must have this complete God-man, or in the end we might as well have none of Him. Without His perfect humanity- His flesh and blood, law-fulfilling, living breathing, perfect obedience offered as a sacrifice in His body on the cross- we would have no sufficient substitute to cover the guilt of our sins. And without His perfect divinity- the Son of God, Second Person of the Godhead, almighty and omnipotent- death would not have been defeated, Satan conquered, and hell vanquished. This Christ, the crucified and risen Saviour and Redeemer, is your sole comfort when you draw your final breath.
He says to His disciples today, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”3 Our God of faithfulness in the past is the One present with us now and He promises to guide the future. As members of His body, the church, He recruits us to be His witnesses to the ends of the earth.
Making disciples of all nations includes passing the faith to the next generation. Parents especially, but also grandparents and members of the supporting community must ask themselves why they want the faith passed on to their children. Is it mostly a family custom, or for a good moral foundation? Is it to tick all the boxes and fill in all the blanks of religious education? Our motives will determine the resources we invest and how that investment is made. What sacrifices will we make and what compromises will we avoid? Children too can recognize the voice of the Shepherd. Where the gospel is proclaimed purely and the sacraments administered rightly the Holy Spirit gathers His people. Baptism initiates one into the family of God.
But life in God’s family is not a matter of leisure. It comes with great privilege and responsibility. Everything a Christian does is important in its own context. It’s like the ssenator in a restaurant when the waiter brought over the rolls, but no butter. "May I have some butter, please?" The waiter gives a slight nod and wanders off. A few minutes later, still no butter. The senator catches the waiter’s eye." May I have some butter, Please? "Still the vaguest of responses, and after ten more minutes, still no butter." Finally the senator stops the very busy waiter and says, “Maybe you don't know who I am. I'm a Princeton graduate, and a Rhodes scholar. I'm currently chairman of the International Debt Subcommittee of the Senate Finance Committee and a member of the Senate Select Intelligence Committee for the defense of the nation." To which the reply came, "Maybe you don't know who I am," said the waiter. "I'm the guy who's in charge of the butter".
Dear friends you know whose you are and you know your charge. In your vocation as parent or child, husband or wife, teacher or farmer, mentor or friends, tend to those people and resources in your charge to the best of your ability. Do it with humility, generosity, compassion, and above all for peoples’ spiritual well-being. You may not be the mayor, or the principal, the pastor, or the head of the P&F, but you step into the fray each day as an agent of the kingdom. You may be the one in charge of the butter. Every moment you will influence people by your words, your actions and the commitments you devote your time, money, and energy to. People soon learn the things we value.
On this Trinity Sunday, may the Father who created you in uniqueness, and the Son who redeemed you with His blood, and the Holy Spirit who called you to faith in Christ and sustains that faith, richly bless in body and soul to life everlasting. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
First Sunday After Pentecost
Holy Trinity
19th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Hebrews 11:3
2 Galatians 3:22
3 Matthew 28:19-20
Sunday, June 12, 2011
Day Of Pentecost A (2011)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Acts 2:1-21
Theme: The Spirit Outpoured
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
We participate in the life of Jesus through the Holy Spirit. Through the same Spirit we are adopted as sons, heirs, of the heavenly Father. Faith has no existence apart from the Spirit. Without the Spirit, sent from the Father, by and through the Son, the human soul has no connection with the divine life. This is the supreme significance of Pentecost.
Pentecost validates the sacrifice of Jesus. The final era had already been ushered in with the coming of Christ. Pentecost didn’t mark the beginning of a new era, but the intentional and unlimited presence of the triune God with His church through the Son and the Holy Spirit. The difference now is believers have access to the crucified and risen Jesus. The sacrifice of redemption is complete. Not until it was could the Holy Spirit be fully outpoured. It’s not that the Father or the Holy Spirit hadn’t previously been present or hadn’t intervened in human affairs. But at the cross reality was altered radically. The fallen creation no longer marches towards destruction without hope of rescue.
Never in the course of His ministry did Jesus claim to be a Maverick or lone-ranger. He was labeled as a heretic, a madman, and a tragic hero. He was finally deserted even by His closest followers. But never did He claim to be instituting His own agenda. He is the Son of God, sent from the Father and anointed by the Spirit. The sending of the Spirit we especially recognize today.
At Pentecost the Spirit’s work parallels His work at creation. In the beginning He set in order the chaotic mass of creation. He brought light and symmetry from darkness and commotion. He does the same spiritually. Only the Holy Spirit can bring order to the heart ruled by the chaos and darkness of sin. The prophet Jeremiah reminds us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”1 Here we have a call to repentance. What will you find when you search the deepest recesses of your heart? Selfishness? Dishonesty? Betrayal? Anger? Resentment? Apathy? Will you find there a person you loathe? Are you afraid to face the dark truth? Or do you look in and see only a well of generosity and a storehouse of good intentions? Do you see only what you want to see?
Dear friends, only the Holy Spirit can allow you to see with the eyes of faith more than what’s within you or what you can grasp outwardly with your senses. The Holy Spirit brings us past a barrier we could never cross. With Luther we confess, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”2 “Holy Scriptures ascribe conversion, faith in Christ, regeneration, renewal, and everything that belongs to its real beginning and completion in no way to the human powers of the natural free will, be it entirely, or one-half or the least and tiniest part, but altogether and alone to the divine operation and the Holy Spirit.”3
Faith is not a matter of organizing your spiritual powers or concentrating your spiritual energy on God’s commands. It doesn’t consist of simply maintaining religious connections in your life. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit. Faith, while not denying the value of human wisdom in earthly affairs, completely rejects human wisdom as of being any value for one’s eternal status before God. It seems like a win-win situation: Christians get to benefit from philosophy in their earthly affairs while benefitting from faith in spiritual things. But this is hardly the case. You see, worldly wisdom is ALWAYS trying to usurp the jurisdiction of faith. The two do not live compatibly side-by-side. Human nature cannot help but do this because it wants to play the role of God. Reason and intellect can become the greatest barriers to salvation.
But the Holy Spirit doesn’t take orders. He is not beholden to human or angelic power. He concedes to no persuasion that we might possess. We might note the example of the traveling evangelist of yesteryear who always put on a grand finale at his revival meetings. When he was to preach at a church, he would secretly hire a small boy to sit in the ceiling rafters with a dove in a cage. Toward the end of his sermon, the preacher would shout for the Holy Spirit to come down, and the boy in the rafters would dutifully release the dove. At one revival meeting, however, nothing happened when the preacher called for the Holy Spirit to descend. He again raised his arms and exclaimed: "Come down, Holy Spirit!" Still no sign of the dove. The preacher then heard the nervous voice of the small boy call down from the rafters: "Sir, a yellow cat just ate the Holy Spirit. Shall I throw down the yellow cat?" Do not worry; no one from the balcony will throw down a yellow cat. Nor will we attempt to dramatize the Holy Spirit in that way.
Sometimes the Bible describes conversion also by its results or fruits. The person converted by the Holy Spirit turns from the former way of life. He or she seeks to do the will of God. Believers seek a life of love and service following God’s commands. The pursuit of a godly life is properly called sanctification but often the initial “turning” is included in the biblical picture. Conversion, properly defined, is only the Holy Spirit’s doing as He works through the gospel. Just remember that the living of the “post-conversion” life, the baptismal life, is always a work in progress and never perfect or complete in this life. Think of the woman who studied the New Testament thoroughly to investigate the claims of Christianity. Several months later she was baptized. Immediately following the baptism she said enthusiastically, "I know the Holy Spirit must have descended on me. I'm glad I've finally got religion. I can see things differently now. Like that uncle of mine whom I hated passionately. Once I vowed I would never go to his funeral. But now I'll be happy to go to his funeral anytime."
No, you can never be certain of your own motives. But you can always be certain of Christ’s intentions. He has washed you with baptismal water. He feeds you with heavenly manna. He promises you the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul describes the work of the Spirit in this way, “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”4
Why do Christians, who must have the Spirit from the time of baptism to be believers in the first place, still pray that they are given the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is not a possession we can keep locked away in a safe place. He abides in the hearts of believers, but not as a motionless resident. Faith is the dynamic of a relationship and like all proper relationships the one is not strictly possessed by the other. The Spirit communicates the blessings of Christ to us and through them strengthens our faith. We have the supreme comfort of Jesus’ words, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever- the Spirit of truth.”5 He has kept this promise. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Day of Pentecost
12th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Jeremiah 17:9 2 Luther’s Small Catechism
3 Solid Declaration II, 25 4 Titus 3:5-7
5 John 14:1617
Text: Acts 2:1-21
Theme: The Spirit Outpoured
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
We participate in the life of Jesus through the Holy Spirit. Through the same Spirit we are adopted as sons, heirs, of the heavenly Father. Faith has no existence apart from the Spirit. Without the Spirit, sent from the Father, by and through the Son, the human soul has no connection with the divine life. This is the supreme significance of Pentecost.
Pentecost validates the sacrifice of Jesus. The final era had already been ushered in with the coming of Christ. Pentecost didn’t mark the beginning of a new era, but the intentional and unlimited presence of the triune God with His church through the Son and the Holy Spirit. The difference now is believers have access to the crucified and risen Jesus. The sacrifice of redemption is complete. Not until it was could the Holy Spirit be fully outpoured. It’s not that the Father or the Holy Spirit hadn’t previously been present or hadn’t intervened in human affairs. But at the cross reality was altered radically. The fallen creation no longer marches towards destruction without hope of rescue.
Never in the course of His ministry did Jesus claim to be a Maverick or lone-ranger. He was labeled as a heretic, a madman, and a tragic hero. He was finally deserted even by His closest followers. But never did He claim to be instituting His own agenda. He is the Son of God, sent from the Father and anointed by the Spirit. The sending of the Spirit we especially recognize today.
At Pentecost the Spirit’s work parallels His work at creation. In the beginning He set in order the chaotic mass of creation. He brought light and symmetry from darkness and commotion. He does the same spiritually. Only the Holy Spirit can bring order to the heart ruled by the chaos and darkness of sin. The prophet Jeremiah reminds us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?”1 Here we have a call to repentance. What will you find when you search the deepest recesses of your heart? Selfishness? Dishonesty? Betrayal? Anger? Resentment? Apathy? Will you find there a person you loathe? Are you afraid to face the dark truth? Or do you look in and see only a well of generosity and a storehouse of good intentions? Do you see only what you want to see?
Dear friends, only the Holy Spirit can allow you to see with the eyes of faith more than what’s within you or what you can grasp outwardly with your senses. The Holy Spirit brings us past a barrier we could never cross. With Luther we confess, “I believe that I cannot by my own reason or strength believe in Jesus Christ, my Lord, or come to Him; but the Holy Spirit has called me by the Gospel, enlightened me with His gifts, sanctified and kept me in the true faith.”2 “Holy Scriptures ascribe conversion, faith in Christ, regeneration, renewal, and everything that belongs to its real beginning and completion in no way to the human powers of the natural free will, be it entirely, or one-half or the least and tiniest part, but altogether and alone to the divine operation and the Holy Spirit.”3
Faith is not a matter of organizing your spiritual powers or concentrating your spiritual energy on God’s commands. It doesn’t consist of simply maintaining religious connections in your life. It is a gift of the Holy Spirit. Faith, while not denying the value of human wisdom in earthly affairs, completely rejects human wisdom as of being any value for one’s eternal status before God. It seems like a win-win situation: Christians get to benefit from philosophy in their earthly affairs while benefitting from faith in spiritual things. But this is hardly the case. You see, worldly wisdom is ALWAYS trying to usurp the jurisdiction of faith. The two do not live compatibly side-by-side. Human nature cannot help but do this because it wants to play the role of God. Reason and intellect can become the greatest barriers to salvation.
But the Holy Spirit doesn’t take orders. He is not beholden to human or angelic power. He concedes to no persuasion that we might possess. We might note the example of the traveling evangelist of yesteryear who always put on a grand finale at his revival meetings. When he was to preach at a church, he would secretly hire a small boy to sit in the ceiling rafters with a dove in a cage. Toward the end of his sermon, the preacher would shout for the Holy Spirit to come down, and the boy in the rafters would dutifully release the dove. At one revival meeting, however, nothing happened when the preacher called for the Holy Spirit to descend. He again raised his arms and exclaimed: "Come down, Holy Spirit!" Still no sign of the dove. The preacher then heard the nervous voice of the small boy call down from the rafters: "Sir, a yellow cat just ate the Holy Spirit. Shall I throw down the yellow cat?" Do not worry; no one from the balcony will throw down a yellow cat. Nor will we attempt to dramatize the Holy Spirit in that way.
Sometimes the Bible describes conversion also by its results or fruits. The person converted by the Holy Spirit turns from the former way of life. He or she seeks to do the will of God. Believers seek a life of love and service following God’s commands. The pursuit of a godly life is properly called sanctification but often the initial “turning” is included in the biblical picture. Conversion, properly defined, is only the Holy Spirit’s doing as He works through the gospel. Just remember that the living of the “post-conversion” life, the baptismal life, is always a work in progress and never perfect or complete in this life. Think of the woman who studied the New Testament thoroughly to investigate the claims of Christianity. Several months later she was baptized. Immediately following the baptism she said enthusiastically, "I know the Holy Spirit must have descended on me. I'm glad I've finally got religion. I can see things differently now. Like that uncle of mine whom I hated passionately. Once I vowed I would never go to his funeral. But now I'll be happy to go to his funeral anytime."
No, you can never be certain of your own motives. But you can always be certain of Christ’s intentions. He has washed you with baptismal water. He feeds you with heavenly manna. He promises you the Holy Spirit. The apostle Paul describes the work of the Spirit in this way, “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Saviour, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life.”4
Why do Christians, who must have the Spirit from the time of baptism to be believers in the first place, still pray that they are given the Holy Spirit? The Holy Spirit is not a possession we can keep locked away in a safe place. He abides in the hearts of believers, but not as a motionless resident. Faith is the dynamic of a relationship and like all proper relationships the one is not strictly possessed by the other. The Spirit communicates the blessings of Christ to us and through them strengthens our faith. We have the supreme comfort of Jesus’ words, “I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Counselor to be with you forever- the Spirit of truth.”5 He has kept this promise. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Day of Pentecost
12th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Jeremiah 17:9 2 Luther’s Small Catechism
3 Solid Declaration II, 25 4 Titus 3:5-7
5 John 14:1617
Sunday, June 5, 2011
Seventh Sunday of Easter A (2011)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 17:15
Theme: Protection From The Evil One
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Heaven is the dimension of God’s glorious presence that is inaccessible to humans under the corruption of sin. The two states of existence are wholly incompatible. Though God occupies every domain, people are limited by the constraints of this time and space. That is, until the resurrection of believers from the dead. Yet, Jesus prays for His disciples today saying, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one.”1All things in their time and according to God’s good pleasure.
Thursday marked the ascension of Christ and 40 days since His resurrection. Our concern is not that the ascension involved an upward movement of Jesus- though that was clearly the orientation as He departed from His disciples- but that Jesus was enthroned in the place of His Father’s honor and power. Christ “sits at the right hand of God, the Father, Almighty.” This means that as true God and true man He fully exercises His divine power over all things. It means that the Jesus who was born of the Virgin Mary has been received by the Father as “the atoning sacrifice…for the sins of the whole world.”2 The implications are enormous.
Dear friends, many things are sent to try us. Yes, trials, hardships and testings of a physical, emotional, and spiritual nature. Sent- but sent by whom? God? Yes, by God, but often planned by Satan and then filtered by God. God does send us things to test us but there are far more evils that He intercepts to protect us. He does this through Christ in the Spirit’s power. Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail.”3 The you here refers to all the disciples. By extension it applies to us.
Satan shoots his precise and fiery darts but the shield of faith4 extinguishes them. Satan launches his hang-grenades but Christ causes them to drop harmlessly to the ground. You have trials and they can be severe- pain, loss, loneliness- as a result of the power and effect of sin. But we need not deny that God sends His own or filters Satan’s according to His will. He does this for the exercise of our faith. To the unbeliever such trials can only cause one to doubt God, hate Him or despair. But the believer is led to a deeper trust, a more naked faith in the One who reveals His love through the cross. The Holy Spirit nurtures the faith first given in baptism by continually withdrawing comforts, pleasures, or accomplishments by which our self-righteousness is built up and resting us back on the righteousness and grace of Christ.
So we exercise ourselves daily in the word of the crucified and risen Lord. He prays today for us, “Sanctify them by Your truth, Your word is truth.”5 Faith is bound up with Christ who is all in all. If faith is lost even a lifetime of love comes to ruin. You are forgiven by the sheer promise of Christ’s mercy, nothing else. In the past the Reformers fought hard to maintain this truth. Of their opponents they said, “They teach us to be confident that we obtain forgiveness of sins because of contrition and love.”6 Such ideas are alive and well today. Here the subtleties of Satan easily deceive people. Our repentance- the honest recognition of our sinfulness- doesn’t trigger the release of God’s mercy. The forgiveness of sins cannot be acquired through the genuineness of a heart poured out to God. This puts this onus right back on us. It makes the gracious favour of God dependent on our ability to move His heart.
We gravitate to this practice because it puts us in charge and leaves us in control. It’s a sort of spiritual game we play with God; a type of plea bargaining. We admit our fault, yes, but then make an extra effort to prove our devotion, and in exchange we hope to receive a quieted conscience and peace of mind. After all, if God is so loving is He not obligated to recognize both our humility and our commitment! The Lutheran Confessions say, “This is nothing but teaching the Law, the Gospel being blotted out, and the promise about Christ being abolished.”7 We can never move the heart of God. Christ does this. We don’t rely on our efforts, but Christ’s sacrifice.
It is clear that one of the purposes of Jesus’ prayer today was to unify His disciples for their coming ministry. They would have to rely on each other as they went to the ends of the earth with the gospel. There is a story about an out-of-towner who drove his car into a ditch in remote area. Luckily, a local Amish farmer came to help with his big strong horse named Buddy. He hitched Buddy up to the car and yelled, "Pull, Nellie, pull." Buddy didn't move. Then the farmer hollered, "Pull, Buster, pull." Buddy didn't respond. Once more the farmer commanded, "Pull, Jennie, pull." Nothing. Then the farmer nonchalantly said, "Pull, Buddy, pull." And the horse easily dragged the car out of the ditch. The motorist was most appreciative and very curious. He asked the farmer why he called his horse by the wrong name three times. The farmer said, "Oh, Buddy is blind, and if he thought he was the only one pulling, he wouldn't even try!"
How true it is to our human nature. We often don’t have the confidence or courage to try things on our own, even if we know it’s the right thing to do. Or we are tempted to follow the way of the world. God doesn’t tell us to look around and see what the people of the world are doing so that we might imitate them. We are to be blind to the evil and unbelief of the world. This doesn’t mean we remain ignorant or simple-minded. It means to be very intentionally discerning. Christ said to be “wise as serpents, but innocent as doves.”8 Yes, we must be savvy to the way the world operates so we know both how to approach the unbelieving culture with the gospel and to learn to be alert to its temptations.
The Holy Spirit will exercise us in these things. And they won’t always be comfortable. But He won’t fail to absolve us with His forgiveness, buoy us with His promises and feed us with the sacrament of His body and blood. The Incarnate Word does this as the One who ascended and is ruling eternally at the Father’s side. The prophet Daniel witnessed the ascension and enthronement of Christ many centuries before it took place. “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 worshipped Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”9 God grant us participation in that kingdom for all eternity. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Seventh Sunday Of Easter
5th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 17:15 2 1 John 2:2
3 Luke 22:31-32 4 See Ephesians 6:16
5 John 17:17 6 AP XII (V) 194, 75 Reader’ Edition
7 ibid 8 Matthew 10:16
9 Daniel 7:13-14
Text: John 17:15
Theme: Protection From The Evil One
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Heaven is the dimension of God’s glorious presence that is inaccessible to humans under the corruption of sin. The two states of existence are wholly incompatible. Though God occupies every domain, people are limited by the constraints of this time and space. That is, until the resurrection of believers from the dead. Yet, Jesus prays for His disciples today saying, “My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that You protect them from the evil one.”1All things in their time and according to God’s good pleasure.
Thursday marked the ascension of Christ and 40 days since His resurrection. Our concern is not that the ascension involved an upward movement of Jesus- though that was clearly the orientation as He departed from His disciples- but that Jesus was enthroned in the place of His Father’s honor and power. Christ “sits at the right hand of God, the Father, Almighty.” This means that as true God and true man He fully exercises His divine power over all things. It means that the Jesus who was born of the Virgin Mary has been received by the Father as “the atoning sacrifice…for the sins of the whole world.”2 The implications are enormous.
Dear friends, many things are sent to try us. Yes, trials, hardships and testings of a physical, emotional, and spiritual nature. Sent- but sent by whom? God? Yes, by God, but often planned by Satan and then filtered by God. God does send us things to test us but there are far more evils that He intercepts to protect us. He does this through Christ in the Spirit’s power. Jesus said to Peter, “Simon, Simon, Satan has asked to sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you, Simon, that your faith may not fail.”3 The you here refers to all the disciples. By extension it applies to us.
Satan shoots his precise and fiery darts but the shield of faith4 extinguishes them. Satan launches his hang-grenades but Christ causes them to drop harmlessly to the ground. You have trials and they can be severe- pain, loss, loneliness- as a result of the power and effect of sin. But we need not deny that God sends His own or filters Satan’s according to His will. He does this for the exercise of our faith. To the unbeliever such trials can only cause one to doubt God, hate Him or despair. But the believer is led to a deeper trust, a more naked faith in the One who reveals His love through the cross. The Holy Spirit nurtures the faith first given in baptism by continually withdrawing comforts, pleasures, or accomplishments by which our self-righteousness is built up and resting us back on the righteousness and grace of Christ.
So we exercise ourselves daily in the word of the crucified and risen Lord. He prays today for us, “Sanctify them by Your truth, Your word is truth.”5 Faith is bound up with Christ who is all in all. If faith is lost even a lifetime of love comes to ruin. You are forgiven by the sheer promise of Christ’s mercy, nothing else. In the past the Reformers fought hard to maintain this truth. Of their opponents they said, “They teach us to be confident that we obtain forgiveness of sins because of contrition and love.”6 Such ideas are alive and well today. Here the subtleties of Satan easily deceive people. Our repentance- the honest recognition of our sinfulness- doesn’t trigger the release of God’s mercy. The forgiveness of sins cannot be acquired through the genuineness of a heart poured out to God. This puts this onus right back on us. It makes the gracious favour of God dependent on our ability to move His heart.
We gravitate to this practice because it puts us in charge and leaves us in control. It’s a sort of spiritual game we play with God; a type of plea bargaining. We admit our fault, yes, but then make an extra effort to prove our devotion, and in exchange we hope to receive a quieted conscience and peace of mind. After all, if God is so loving is He not obligated to recognize both our humility and our commitment! The Lutheran Confessions say, “This is nothing but teaching the Law, the Gospel being blotted out, and the promise about Christ being abolished.”7 We can never move the heart of God. Christ does this. We don’t rely on our efforts, but Christ’s sacrifice.
It is clear that one of the purposes of Jesus’ prayer today was to unify His disciples for their coming ministry. They would have to rely on each other as they went to the ends of the earth with the gospel. There is a story about an out-of-towner who drove his car into a ditch in remote area. Luckily, a local Amish farmer came to help with his big strong horse named Buddy. He hitched Buddy up to the car and yelled, "Pull, Nellie, pull." Buddy didn't move. Then the farmer hollered, "Pull, Buster, pull." Buddy didn't respond. Once more the farmer commanded, "Pull, Jennie, pull." Nothing. Then the farmer nonchalantly said, "Pull, Buddy, pull." And the horse easily dragged the car out of the ditch. The motorist was most appreciative and very curious. He asked the farmer why he called his horse by the wrong name three times. The farmer said, "Oh, Buddy is blind, and if he thought he was the only one pulling, he wouldn't even try!"
How true it is to our human nature. We often don’t have the confidence or courage to try things on our own, even if we know it’s the right thing to do. Or we are tempted to follow the way of the world. God doesn’t tell us to look around and see what the people of the world are doing so that we might imitate them. We are to be blind to the evil and unbelief of the world. This doesn’t mean we remain ignorant or simple-minded. It means to be very intentionally discerning. Christ said to be “wise as serpents, but innocent as doves.”8 Yes, we must be savvy to the way the world operates so we know both how to approach the unbelieving culture with the gospel and to learn to be alert to its temptations.
The Holy Spirit will exercise us in these things. And they won’t always be comfortable. But He won’t fail to absolve us with His forgiveness, buoy us with His promises and feed us with the sacrament of His body and blood. The Incarnate Word does this as the One who ascended and is ruling eternally at the Father’s side. The prophet Daniel witnessed the ascension and enthronement of Christ many centuries before it took place. “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 worshipped Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”9 God grant us participation in that kingdom for all eternity. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Seventh Sunday Of Easter
5th June, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 17:15 2 1 John 2:2
3 Luke 22:31-32 4 See Ephesians 6:16
5 John 17:17 6 AP XII (V) 194, 75 Reader’ Edition
7 ibid 8 Matthew 10:16
9 Daniel 7:13-14
Wednesday, June 1, 2011
Sixth Sunday of Easter A (2011)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 14:16
Theme: Another Counselor
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God lends and God gives. He lends us worldly goods but He gives us heavenly treasures. The good things of His creation are on loan to us but His own Son, the uncreated One, is the keeper of our eternal inheritance. Here we are stewards. In heaven we will be nobles. But already we are saints. We have His word. We have His Spirit. We have His life. What we have now by faith we will one day have by sight.
We should not be surprised that people are searching for a deeper meaning to life in all the wrong places. That is proven by recent events: Claims to be the Messiah and predictions for the end of the world. The Bible warns about false prophets and false prophecies. They have always been around. They always will be. Those dealing with crises in their lives are easy targets. Widespread biblical illiteracy makes people more vulnerable still. People cling to false hopes and pursue vain ambitions.
The most powerful of false hopes is the illusion that somehow people will be able to negotiate eternity on their own. Whether it’s the belief there will be no judgment at all or the conviction that we’re already worthy of immortality, humanity is prone to constructing its own schemes of rescue. The illusion that God can be fooled is exactly as old as the sin of Adam and Eve. Not with cunning, or strength or claims of virtue can we ever exonerate ourselves before God. We are guilty, sinners-every last one of us.
Consider the story of a defendant who was on trial for murder. There was strong evidence indicating guilt, but no body was found. In the defence's closing statement the lawyer, knowing that his client would probably be convicted, resorted to a trick. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I have a surprise for all of you," the lawyer said as he looked at his watch. "Within one minute, the person presumed dead in this case will walk into this courtroom." He looked toward the courtroom door. The jurors, somewhat stunned, all looked on eagerly. A minute passed. Nothing happened. Finally the lawyer said, "Actually, I made up the previous statement. But, you all looked on with anticipation. I therefore put to you that you have a reasonable doubt in this case as to whether anyone was killed and insist that you return a verdict of not guilty." The jury, clearly confused, went to deliberate. A few minutes later, the jury returned and pronounced a verdict of guilty." But how?" inquired the lawyer. "You must have had some doubt; I saw all of you stare at the door." The foreman of the jury replied, "Oh, we looked, but your client didn't."
Dear friends, our guilt is not in doubt; but neither is the grace of God in Christ. Note what the Lord says today. He will send the Holy Spirit, whom He also calls “the Spirit of truth” but, “The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him.”1 Why can the world not accept the Holy Spirit? Why can unbelievers not come to God under their own power and through their own choice? Because all people are born naturally blind and dead in original sin. The unregenerate cannot but remain in disobedience and ignorance. But when the gospel is proclaimed, when people are condemned in their sins and directed to the grace and merits of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit promises to be present. Through the word of truth the Holy Spirit engenders faith. Everything changes. The struggle then ensues between the selfish sinful nature and the new life in the Spirit. This struggle is the very dynamic of living from and in the baptismal promise. The Spirit leads this struggle.
The Holy Spirit is referred to as a Counselor or Comforter or Advocate. The Spirit draws us to the Father through the Son. He also is an intercessor. He bends our hearts and minds to God’s will. The message of Jesus to His disciples today is clear, “If you love Me, you will obey what I command.”2 The believer endeavors to follow the will of God. He calls us to have the mind of Christ.3 St. Paul states the matter like this, “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice and the God of peace will be with you.”4 Are Christians still trained to think this way? Is the church devoted to such endeavors? First on the apostle’s austere list is truth. Could this be a coincidence?
Are we committed to bringing our best resources to bear on the subject of things true and holy? Do we fear that too much openness and honesty will turn off those who may be seekers and even drive away those who are already in the church? Do we speak clearly about things we think everyone will agree with but avoid topics that may be controversial? Are we happy to speak of God’s patience, tolerance, and general love, but avoid topics like abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, and the exclusive way of salvation in Jesus? God’s truth shapes our life and witness concretely. When God speaks we cannot be silent. When He is silent we have the glorious freedom to live as best serves our neighbour. May the Holy Spirit quickly call us to account and lead us to repentance whenever and wherever we sacrifice biblical truth to serve human agendas.
The context of today’s gospel reading is the Upper Room on Maundy Thursday. Jesus will soon be crucified. Because they were worried about going it alone or making their own way the Lord comforted His followers saying, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit.”5 And then came these powerful and comforting words, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long the world will not see Me anymore, but you will see Me. Because I live, you also will live.”6
Dear friends this Christian life of faith endures, is revived and flourishes, only through the continual bestowal of the forgiveness of sins. The means of grace- word, water, bread and wine-bring us into contact with the living Jesus. The gospel has resurrection power. It has vivifying power. It is a life-giving word because Christ conquered death in His crucifixion. Because He lives we are not trapped here on an endless merry-go-round of change and uncertainty. Paul said today, “He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.”7 Christ breached our time and space. The Creator stooped down to the level of His creation. “When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law.”8 His presence sanctifies our moments, hours, and days. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Sixth Sunday Of Easter
29 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:17 2 John 14:15
3 See 1 Corinthians 2:16 4 Philippians 4:8-9
5 John 15:16 6 John 14:18-19
7 Acts 17:31 8 Galatians 4:4-5
Text: John 14:16
Theme: Another Counselor
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God lends and God gives. He lends us worldly goods but He gives us heavenly treasures. The good things of His creation are on loan to us but His own Son, the uncreated One, is the keeper of our eternal inheritance. Here we are stewards. In heaven we will be nobles. But already we are saints. We have His word. We have His Spirit. We have His life. What we have now by faith we will one day have by sight.
We should not be surprised that people are searching for a deeper meaning to life in all the wrong places. That is proven by recent events: Claims to be the Messiah and predictions for the end of the world. The Bible warns about false prophets and false prophecies. They have always been around. They always will be. Those dealing with crises in their lives are easy targets. Widespread biblical illiteracy makes people more vulnerable still. People cling to false hopes and pursue vain ambitions.
The most powerful of false hopes is the illusion that somehow people will be able to negotiate eternity on their own. Whether it’s the belief there will be no judgment at all or the conviction that we’re already worthy of immortality, humanity is prone to constructing its own schemes of rescue. The illusion that God can be fooled is exactly as old as the sin of Adam and Eve. Not with cunning, or strength or claims of virtue can we ever exonerate ourselves before God. We are guilty, sinners-every last one of us.
Consider the story of a defendant who was on trial for murder. There was strong evidence indicating guilt, but no body was found. In the defence's closing statement the lawyer, knowing that his client would probably be convicted, resorted to a trick. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, I have a surprise for all of you," the lawyer said as he looked at his watch. "Within one minute, the person presumed dead in this case will walk into this courtroom." He looked toward the courtroom door. The jurors, somewhat stunned, all looked on eagerly. A minute passed. Nothing happened. Finally the lawyer said, "Actually, I made up the previous statement. But, you all looked on with anticipation. I therefore put to you that you have a reasonable doubt in this case as to whether anyone was killed and insist that you return a verdict of not guilty." The jury, clearly confused, went to deliberate. A few minutes later, the jury returned and pronounced a verdict of guilty." But how?" inquired the lawyer. "You must have had some doubt; I saw all of you stare at the door." The foreman of the jury replied, "Oh, we looked, but your client didn't."
Dear friends, our guilt is not in doubt; but neither is the grace of God in Christ. Note what the Lord says today. He will send the Holy Spirit, whom He also calls “the Spirit of truth” but, “The world cannot accept Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him.”1 Why can the world not accept the Holy Spirit? Why can unbelievers not come to God under their own power and through their own choice? Because all people are born naturally blind and dead in original sin. The unregenerate cannot but remain in disobedience and ignorance. But when the gospel is proclaimed, when people are condemned in their sins and directed to the grace and merits of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit promises to be present. Through the word of truth the Holy Spirit engenders faith. Everything changes. The struggle then ensues between the selfish sinful nature and the new life in the Spirit. This struggle is the very dynamic of living from and in the baptismal promise. The Spirit leads this struggle.
The Holy Spirit is referred to as a Counselor or Comforter or Advocate. The Spirit draws us to the Father through the Son. He also is an intercessor. He bends our hearts and minds to God’s will. The message of Jesus to His disciples today is clear, “If you love Me, you will obey what I command.”2 The believer endeavors to follow the will of God. He calls us to have the mind of Christ.3 St. Paul states the matter like this, “Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praiseworthy-think about such things. Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me-put it into practice and the God of peace will be with you.”4 Are Christians still trained to think this way? Is the church devoted to such endeavors? First on the apostle’s austere list is truth. Could this be a coincidence?
Are we committed to bringing our best resources to bear on the subject of things true and holy? Do we fear that too much openness and honesty will turn off those who may be seekers and even drive away those who are already in the church? Do we speak clearly about things we think everyone will agree with but avoid topics that may be controversial? Are we happy to speak of God’s patience, tolerance, and general love, but avoid topics like abortion, euthanasia, homosexuality, and the exclusive way of salvation in Jesus? God’s truth shapes our life and witness concretely. When God speaks we cannot be silent. When He is silent we have the glorious freedom to live as best serves our neighbour. May the Holy Spirit quickly call us to account and lead us to repentance whenever and wherever we sacrifice biblical truth to serve human agendas.
The context of today’s gospel reading is the Upper Room on Maundy Thursday. Jesus will soon be crucified. Because they were worried about going it alone or making their own way the Lord comforted His followers saying, “You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you to go and bear fruit.”5 And then came these powerful and comforting words, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. Before long the world will not see Me anymore, but you will see Me. Because I live, you also will live.”6
Dear friends this Christian life of faith endures, is revived and flourishes, only through the continual bestowal of the forgiveness of sins. The means of grace- word, water, bread and wine-bring us into contact with the living Jesus. The gospel has resurrection power. It has vivifying power. It is a life-giving word because Christ conquered death in His crucifixion. Because He lives we are not trapped here on an endless merry-go-round of change and uncertainty. Paul said today, “He has set a day when He will judge the world with justice by the man He has appointed. He has given proof of this to all men by raising Him from the dead.”7 Christ breached our time and space. The Creator stooped down to the level of His creation. “When the time had fully come, God sent His Son, born of a woman, born under law, to redeem those under law.”8 His presence sanctifies our moments, hours, and days. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Sixth Sunday Of Easter
29 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:17 2 John 14:15
3 See 1 Corinthians 2:16 4 Philippians 4:8-9
5 John 15:16 6 John 14:18-19
7 Acts 17:31 8 Galatians 4:4-5
Sunday, May 22, 2011
Fifth Sunday Of Easter A (2011)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 14:10
Theme: The Father Working Through His Son
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The God who saves is the God who was crucified. All other interests in deities have a “use-by date”. Christ is in the Father and the Father is in Christ. The Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son and directs people always to the crucified and risen Saviour. These foundational, biblical, and creedal truths are not abstract or only academic Christian teachings. They are the facts of how the triune God redeems and relates to the fallen world. Today, “Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.’”1 Philip wanted to “see the goods”. The request to see the Father was a request for proof; a validation that the eternal glory of heaven was really in Jesus’ possession.
The skeptic in us has a profound desire to witness the unmistakable power of the Almighty. We’re not talking here about the godly desire to see the face of Christ and to rest in His compassion for eternity. Skeptical yearnings are not borne of faith that is content to let events in life unfold according to the mercy and wisdom of God. It is not the unconditional trust that the promises of God will be fulfilled. It is borne rather of the suspicion that God is too distracted, self-involved, or powerless to intervene even when it seems absolutely necessary. It originates in the doubt about whether Christ is the all-powerful Son of God. It is an expression of our doubt about whether God really knows or cares. Let Him prove it! Let Him give us a sign!
Dear friends, neither the completeness of your skepticism nor the strength of your faith can disprove or validate the existence of God. Do you want to see God? Do want to behold Him while still in your mortal, sinful flesh? Then do not search in vain for signs or premonitions. Do not seek to validate the divine presence through human avenues. An emotional reflection on the moment will not draw your soul deeper to God. Sentimentality will not prove His love. A contented sense of self-satisfaction is not an indication you are saved. Christ saves you. He does this alone, independently of your help. He declares the sinner righteous by grace; a blessing received through faith. Hear His voice. The Spirit speaks through the sacred writings.
The struggle of each and every person is his or her recipient status in relation to God. The rub involves our beggarliness. We aren’t worthy recipients. We can’t even make a valid case for charity. We are spiritually mendicant, destitute, bereft of any intrinsic or self-obtained capital; beggars. God’s demands drive us to an acknowledgement of our need for forgiveness. Recognize then, that the sinful nature in you is never readily satisfied with what God gives. God gives faith. He grants spiritual life. But we foolishly try to live by sight2. So when you try to move on from God’s gifting in Christ your assessment of these realities is always on shaky ground at best.
You see, far more certain than your own self-reflection on your faith- whether it is strong, or weak, clear or confused- is the fact of your baptism. The water was used. The words were spoken. The Spirit was present. More definite than your feeling of love (or lack thereof) is His compassion extended to you through bread and wine. The consecration occurs. The elements are received. Pardon is bestowed. More reliable than your varied attempts to give and receive forgiveness is His word of promise to the sinner through the minister, “Your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
You will not find spiritual certainty in the zeal of your obedience. You will not find it in the depth of your knowledge. You will not find it in the purity of your emotions or intentions. You will not find it in the integrity of your witness. Yes, all of these are the pursuits of true believers. All are the effects of faith. They are the fruits of the Spirit. They are evidence the Holy Spirit is at work among His people. Only of the Incarnate One is it said, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”3 His love is unfailing and unfading.
What does this mean for us now? Practicality often drives our schedules. We don’t have time for everything. But too often our priorities are misplaced. People often don’t have time for the things of God because they don’t seem useful. When the agenda of the church is driven by the limitations of practicality or demands to cater peoples’ perceptions and desires the priority of the gospel is easily lost sight of. The Good Shepherd is not governed by the sheep. We forget who is in charge. We even forget who our enemies are. We become confused about what is true and apathetic about defending it. In our less respectable moments we pursue self-righteousness rather than reconciliation.
Like the situation with Jim and his wife Louise who finally went on a long-awaited safari. But Jim’s mother-in-law insisted on going along. Jim could think of nothing worse than going on a trip with this battle-ax, but he was afraid to say no. One evening, Louise discovered that her mother was missing from their camp. She woke up Jim and insisted they search the surrounding jungle for her mother. Jim grabbed his hunting rifle and charged into the jungle with Louise. In a clearing not far from the camp, they came upon a chilling sight: His mother-in-law and a large male lion stood facing each other only a few paces apart. Louise cried, "Jim, what are we going to do?" "Nothing," he said. "The lion got himself into this mess; let him get himself out of it."
Dear friends, the Holy Spirit continually re-orientates the perspective of the believer. God is not your enemy. Your neighbour is not your adversary. In faith you see things that to unenlightened hearts and minds could make no sense. The work of Christ is decisive. The crucifixion was repugnant. It was revolting not only in regards to what confronts the senses- the sight, the sounds, the smells, the foulness of it all- but especially in regards to the higher sensibilities. The inhumanity of a crucifixion is palpable and offensive. It is the very antithesis of all that is to be considered sacred, high, and holy. The hallowed and holy Son of God is immersed in all that is abominable and abhorrent; the Son of heaven sieved through the gauntlet of hell. It is alsofor exactly this reason that the event of the cross is decisive. It is the definitive revelation of God.
Think deeply about this for you can never exhaust its blessing. Luther once said, “The cross alone is our theology.”4 Believers participate in the life of the crucified Deity, Jesus in-the-flesh, baptismally. The baptismal water is both our spiritual grave and womb. It is our portal to the death and resurrection of Christ. The divine command effects what it promises rescuing the believer from the domain of darkness and death and bringing him into the fellowship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who dwells in inaccessible light.5 Believers also participate in His life eucharistically. We ingest the very body and blood of Him who shed that blood to atone for our sins.
St. Peter reminds us of our extraordinary privileges, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”6 The Lord Himself makes this unassailable promise, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me…I am going…to prepare a place for you.”7 What greater comfort could we have? What greater motivation to live our time in view of eternity! Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday Of Easter
22 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:8 2 See 2 Corinthians 5:7
3 Hebrews 13:8 4 WA 5,176,32
5 See 1 Timothy 6:16 6 1 Peter 2:9
7 John 14:1-2
Text: John 14:10
Theme: The Father Working Through His Son
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The God who saves is the God who was crucified. All other interests in deities have a “use-by date”. Christ is in the Father and the Father is in Christ. The Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son and directs people always to the crucified and risen Saviour. These foundational, biblical, and creedal truths are not abstract or only academic Christian teachings. They are the facts of how the triune God redeems and relates to the fallen world. Today, “Philip said, ‘Lord, show us the Father and that will be enough for us.’”1 Philip wanted to “see the goods”. The request to see the Father was a request for proof; a validation that the eternal glory of heaven was really in Jesus’ possession.
The skeptic in us has a profound desire to witness the unmistakable power of the Almighty. We’re not talking here about the godly desire to see the face of Christ and to rest in His compassion for eternity. Skeptical yearnings are not borne of faith that is content to let events in life unfold according to the mercy and wisdom of God. It is not the unconditional trust that the promises of God will be fulfilled. It is borne rather of the suspicion that God is too distracted, self-involved, or powerless to intervene even when it seems absolutely necessary. It originates in the doubt about whether Christ is the all-powerful Son of God. It is an expression of our doubt about whether God really knows or cares. Let Him prove it! Let Him give us a sign!
Dear friends, neither the completeness of your skepticism nor the strength of your faith can disprove or validate the existence of God. Do you want to see God? Do want to behold Him while still in your mortal, sinful flesh? Then do not search in vain for signs or premonitions. Do not seek to validate the divine presence through human avenues. An emotional reflection on the moment will not draw your soul deeper to God. Sentimentality will not prove His love. A contented sense of self-satisfaction is not an indication you are saved. Christ saves you. He does this alone, independently of your help. He declares the sinner righteous by grace; a blessing received through faith. Hear His voice. The Spirit speaks through the sacred writings.
The struggle of each and every person is his or her recipient status in relation to God. The rub involves our beggarliness. We aren’t worthy recipients. We can’t even make a valid case for charity. We are spiritually mendicant, destitute, bereft of any intrinsic or self-obtained capital; beggars. God’s demands drive us to an acknowledgement of our need for forgiveness. Recognize then, that the sinful nature in you is never readily satisfied with what God gives. God gives faith. He grants spiritual life. But we foolishly try to live by sight2. So when you try to move on from God’s gifting in Christ your assessment of these realities is always on shaky ground at best.
You see, far more certain than your own self-reflection on your faith- whether it is strong, or weak, clear or confused- is the fact of your baptism. The water was used. The words were spoken. The Spirit was present. More definite than your feeling of love (or lack thereof) is His compassion extended to you through bread and wine. The consecration occurs. The elements are received. Pardon is bestowed. More reliable than your varied attempts to give and receive forgiveness is His word of promise to the sinner through the minister, “Your sins are forgiven in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”
You will not find spiritual certainty in the zeal of your obedience. You will not find it in the depth of your knowledge. You will not find it in the purity of your emotions or intentions. You will not find it in the integrity of your witness. Yes, all of these are the pursuits of true believers. All are the effects of faith. They are the fruits of the Spirit. They are evidence the Holy Spirit is at work among His people. Only of the Incarnate One is it said, “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”3 His love is unfailing and unfading.
What does this mean for us now? Practicality often drives our schedules. We don’t have time for everything. But too often our priorities are misplaced. People often don’t have time for the things of God because they don’t seem useful. When the agenda of the church is driven by the limitations of practicality or demands to cater peoples’ perceptions and desires the priority of the gospel is easily lost sight of. The Good Shepherd is not governed by the sheep. We forget who is in charge. We even forget who our enemies are. We become confused about what is true and apathetic about defending it. In our less respectable moments we pursue self-righteousness rather than reconciliation.
Like the situation with Jim and his wife Louise who finally went on a long-awaited safari. But Jim’s mother-in-law insisted on going along. Jim could think of nothing worse than going on a trip with this battle-ax, but he was afraid to say no. One evening, Louise discovered that her mother was missing from their camp. She woke up Jim and insisted they search the surrounding jungle for her mother. Jim grabbed his hunting rifle and charged into the jungle with Louise. In a clearing not far from the camp, they came upon a chilling sight: His mother-in-law and a large male lion stood facing each other only a few paces apart. Louise cried, "Jim, what are we going to do?" "Nothing," he said. "The lion got himself into this mess; let him get himself out of it."
Dear friends, the Holy Spirit continually re-orientates the perspective of the believer. God is not your enemy. Your neighbour is not your adversary. In faith you see things that to unenlightened hearts and minds could make no sense. The work of Christ is decisive. The crucifixion was repugnant. It was revolting not only in regards to what confronts the senses- the sight, the sounds, the smells, the foulness of it all- but especially in regards to the higher sensibilities. The inhumanity of a crucifixion is palpable and offensive. It is the very antithesis of all that is to be considered sacred, high, and holy. The hallowed and holy Son of God is immersed in all that is abominable and abhorrent; the Son of heaven sieved through the gauntlet of hell. It is alsofor exactly this reason that the event of the cross is decisive. It is the definitive revelation of God.
Think deeply about this for you can never exhaust its blessing. Luther once said, “The cross alone is our theology.”4 Believers participate in the life of the crucified Deity, Jesus in-the-flesh, baptismally. The baptismal water is both our spiritual grave and womb. It is our portal to the death and resurrection of Christ. The divine command effects what it promises rescuing the believer from the domain of darkness and death and bringing him into the fellowship of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit who dwells in inaccessible light.5 Believers also participate in His life eucharistically. We ingest the very body and blood of Him who shed that blood to atone for our sins.
St. Peter reminds us of our extraordinary privileges, “You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His wonderful light.”6 The Lord Himself makes this unassailable promise, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God; trust also in Me…I am going…to prepare a place for you.”7 What greater comfort could we have? What greater motivation to live our time in view of eternity! Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday Of Easter
22 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:8 2 See 2 Corinthians 5:7
3 Hebrews 13:8 4 WA 5,176,32
5 See 1 Timothy 6:16 6 1 Peter 2:9
7 John 14:1-2
Monday, May 16, 2011
Fourth Sunday Of Easter A (2011)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 10:3
Theme: The Lone Voice
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Holy Spirit reigns in a believer’s life. He does so with constant grappling to revitalize battle-weary souls. The sinful nature is powerful. At times it lulls us into a false sense of security. At other times it overcomes us with apathy. The Spirit revives what unbelief and unruliness suppress. He does this by gifting us with Christ. The divine law can pester us, harp at us, nag us, burden us, and even crush us. It can drive us into a corner or wrangle from us some desired outcome. But it can only do this in the face of resistance.
The law can never inspire proper, godly motivation. It can never grant freedom or hope. Only the gospel can do this. If we remain under the burden of the law one of two things eventually happen: We are driven to despair because we see no hope; or we become self-righteous- if not outwardly, at least inwardly- because we believe we have accomplished the laws’ demands. Either way is a dead end. But the Scripture says, “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”1
Often in Jesus’ teaching, His examples and parables, He refers to Himself as more than one part of the analogy. Today we see Jesus is both the gate for the sheep and the shepherd of the sheep. He is both the portal to eternity and the One who brings us there. His analogy is simple but that makes it no less relevant or important. It was not uncommon for a number of flocks of sheep, consisting of perhaps 40 or 50 each, to be kept in the same walled pen together at night. In the morning each shepherd would come and take his sheep to pasture. Our Scripture says, “He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”2 The sheep, though mingled together at night would follow the voice of their particular shepherd in the morning. A strange voice they would not follow.
The spiritual intention is clear: The dangers are many and the competition is fierce. There are many thieves. There are many false shepherds. There are many alluring voices- temptations and ideologies. Though we endure the dark hours of this life mingled with the evil and selfish-minded of the world, the Holy Spirit draws us to the light of Christ. His voice pulls us through His word. The Scripture says, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”3
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.”4 Christ is the gate. He is the door. He is the portal. He is the way and the truth and the life. We cannot pass from here to heaven except thorough Him. We cannot access eternal pastures except we be guided by the Good Shepherd. He says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”5 Believers have a full life because they life by faith in Christ. We have a complete life because the holiness of Christ is an extensive covering for sin, an absolute shield against Satan, and a comprehensive protection against the assaults of the world. But we are still in the fray.
Contrary to what we are often taught, a life of ease is not an inalienable right. The comfortable decision is not always the most selfless or most godly decision. The path of least resistance is not always the course of purpose and meaning. We must penetrate beyond the mundane and the profane as we consider the import of living as Christ-bearers in a fallen world. We must always have high and holy purposes.
How can you rise up and enter into the fray each day? How can you face the conflicts of family, the pressures of work, the struggles of health? How can you face doubt, skepticism, and despair? How can you keep from losing sight of meaning and purpose, of objectives and principles? Fix your eyes on the cross. Tune out the demanding voices of the world. Centre your life on the means of grace and everything else will come into order accordingly. Note again the description of early Christian communities, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”6 The Holy Spirit promises forgiveness, comfort, and guidance through the word and sacraments. It’s not a protocol for happiness or success per se. And it certainly doesn’t mean life will be easy or carefree. But it gives a security to which this world is blind.
The integrity of the Christian Church is founded on the apostolic teaching. It is nothing less than the message of the world redeemed by Christ. It is the truth of a broken and sinful world rescued by its Creator. Those who love the truth will not be denied by Him.7 Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied.8 Those who come in remorse over their sin will never be turned away. We must learn to pour out our hearts to the Heavenly Father who is eager to hear our prayers. The Psalms are full of such petitions as is the whole of Scripture. The Spirit says in Isaiah, “He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as He hears it, He answers you.”9
Yet instead of beseeching God we often fret and agonize. We waste needless time in worry. We look for secular answers and human help. Our calls for aide are too frequently misguided, like Larry and Elmer who got lost while hunting in the woods. Trying to reassure his friend, Larry said, "Don't worry. All we have to do is shoot into the air three times, stay where we are, and someone will find us." They shot in the air three times, but no one came. After a while, they tried it again. Still no response. When they decided to try once more, Elmer said, "I hope it works this time. We're down to our last three arrows." Yes, we will wait in vain for human assistance when divine support is required. “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you,”10 says the Lord.
His deliverance begins with our baptism. His sustaining power is given through His body and blood. His cheering word greets us with the forgiveness of sins. These are gifts of life, essential because we know what we face. Death creeps up on us. You know it. You feel it. The loss of capacities; the frailty of body and mind; the realization that previous skills and energies will not be recovered. These bitter realizations are often denied by us. Or we make light of them because we can’t bear to face them. We begin to live vicariously, indirectly through the lives of others- children, grandchildren, the young and promising. To some extent this is God’s blessing to sustain us. The vigor of the young gives joy to the fragility of the ageing.
But it does not spare us from the truth. We cannot be saved by the actions or intentions of others. “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son of God has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”11 Christ’s is the only promise that can carry us through the final gauntlet of mortality. Only the One who has conquered death can convey us straight past eternal death. He is the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep. Little lambs are tucked safely into His fold. Believers are transferred from the community of the redeemed to the community of the glorified; from earth to heaven. But it is the same community. In heaven we will fully appreciate what it means to live in complete harmony and mutual love with the Good Shepherd and His sheep. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday Of Easter
15 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Romans 10:4 2 John 10:3
3 John 6:44 4 John 10:7
5 John 10:10 6 Acts 2:42
7 See Matthew 10:32, John 18:37 8 See Matthew 5:6
9 Isaiah 30:19 10 Psalm 50:15
111 John 5:11-12
Text: John 10:3
Theme: The Lone Voice
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Holy Spirit reigns in a believer’s life. He does so with constant grappling to revitalize battle-weary souls. The sinful nature is powerful. At times it lulls us into a false sense of security. At other times it overcomes us with apathy. The Spirit revives what unbelief and unruliness suppress. He does this by gifting us with Christ. The divine law can pester us, harp at us, nag us, burden us, and even crush us. It can drive us into a corner or wrangle from us some desired outcome. But it can only do this in the face of resistance.
The law can never inspire proper, godly motivation. It can never grant freedom or hope. Only the gospel can do this. If we remain under the burden of the law one of two things eventually happen: We are driven to despair because we see no hope; or we become self-righteous- if not outwardly, at least inwardly- because we believe we have accomplished the laws’ demands. Either way is a dead end. But the Scripture says, “Christ is the end of the law so that there may be righteousness for everyone who believes.”1
Often in Jesus’ teaching, His examples and parables, He refers to Himself as more than one part of the analogy. Today we see Jesus is both the gate for the sheep and the shepherd of the sheep. He is both the portal to eternity and the One who brings us there. His analogy is simple but that makes it no less relevant or important. It was not uncommon for a number of flocks of sheep, consisting of perhaps 40 or 50 each, to be kept in the same walled pen together at night. In the morning each shepherd would come and take his sheep to pasture. Our Scripture says, “He calls his own sheep by name and leads them out.”2 The sheep, though mingled together at night would follow the voice of their particular shepherd in the morning. A strange voice they would not follow.
The spiritual intention is clear: The dangers are many and the competition is fierce. There are many thieves. There are many false shepherds. There are many alluring voices- temptations and ideologies. Though we endure the dark hours of this life mingled with the evil and selfish-minded of the world, the Holy Spirit draws us to the light of Christ. His voice pulls us through His word. The Scripture says, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him, and I will raise him up at the last day.”3
Jesus said, “I tell you the truth, I am the gate for the sheep.”4 Christ is the gate. He is the door. He is the portal. He is the way and the truth and the life. We cannot pass from here to heaven except thorough Him. We cannot access eternal pastures except we be guided by the Good Shepherd. He says, “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.”5 Believers have a full life because they life by faith in Christ. We have a complete life because the holiness of Christ is an extensive covering for sin, an absolute shield against Satan, and a comprehensive protection against the assaults of the world. But we are still in the fray.
Contrary to what we are often taught, a life of ease is not an inalienable right. The comfortable decision is not always the most selfless or most godly decision. The path of least resistance is not always the course of purpose and meaning. We must penetrate beyond the mundane and the profane as we consider the import of living as Christ-bearers in a fallen world. We must always have high and holy purposes.
How can you rise up and enter into the fray each day? How can you face the conflicts of family, the pressures of work, the struggles of health? How can you face doubt, skepticism, and despair? How can you keep from losing sight of meaning and purpose, of objectives and principles? Fix your eyes on the cross. Tune out the demanding voices of the world. Centre your life on the means of grace and everything else will come into order accordingly. Note again the description of early Christian communities, “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread and to prayer.”6 The Holy Spirit promises forgiveness, comfort, and guidance through the word and sacraments. It’s not a protocol for happiness or success per se. And it certainly doesn’t mean life will be easy or carefree. But it gives a security to which this world is blind.
The integrity of the Christian Church is founded on the apostolic teaching. It is nothing less than the message of the world redeemed by Christ. It is the truth of a broken and sinful world rescued by its Creator. Those who love the truth will not be denied by Him.7 Those who hunger and thirst for righteousness will be satisfied.8 Those who come in remorse over their sin will never be turned away. We must learn to pour out our hearts to the Heavenly Father who is eager to hear our prayers. The Psalms are full of such petitions as is the whole of Scripture. The Spirit says in Isaiah, “He will surely be gracious to you at the sound of your cry. As soon as He hears it, He answers you.”9
Yet instead of beseeching God we often fret and agonize. We waste needless time in worry. We look for secular answers and human help. Our calls for aide are too frequently misguided, like Larry and Elmer who got lost while hunting in the woods. Trying to reassure his friend, Larry said, "Don't worry. All we have to do is shoot into the air three times, stay where we are, and someone will find us." They shot in the air three times, but no one came. After a while, they tried it again. Still no response. When they decided to try once more, Elmer said, "I hope it works this time. We're down to our last three arrows." Yes, we will wait in vain for human assistance when divine support is required. “Call upon Me in the day of trouble; I will deliver you,”10 says the Lord.
His deliverance begins with our baptism. His sustaining power is given through His body and blood. His cheering word greets us with the forgiveness of sins. These are gifts of life, essential because we know what we face. Death creeps up on us. You know it. You feel it. The loss of capacities; the frailty of body and mind; the realization that previous skills and energies will not be recovered. These bitter realizations are often denied by us. Or we make light of them because we can’t bear to face them. We begin to live vicariously, indirectly through the lives of others- children, grandchildren, the young and promising. To some extent this is God’s blessing to sustain us. The vigor of the young gives joy to the fragility of the ageing.
But it does not spare us from the truth. We cannot be saved by the actions or intentions of others. “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son of God has life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have life.”11 Christ’s is the only promise that can carry us through the final gauntlet of mortality. Only the One who has conquered death can convey us straight past eternal death. He is the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep. Little lambs are tucked safely into His fold. Believers are transferred from the community of the redeemed to the community of the glorified; from earth to heaven. But it is the same community. In heaven we will fully appreciate what it means to live in complete harmony and mutual love with the Good Shepherd and His sheep. Amen.
+ in nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday Of Easter
15 May, 2011
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Romans 10:4 2 John 10:3
3 John 6:44 4 John 10:7
5 John 10:10 6 Acts 2:42
7 See Matthew 10:32, John 18:37 8 See Matthew 5:6
9 Isaiah 30:19 10 Psalm 50:15
111 John 5:11-12
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