+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 2:49
Theme: Christ Still With Us.
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The date for our celebration of Christmas has come and gone, but Christ has gone nowhere. Jesus was not a temporary visitor. The infant of the manger, the escapee to Egypt, the boy teacher in the temple is the Immanuel- God with us. The incarnation- the coming of God’s Son in human flesh is a permanent reality. When Christ ascended to heaven, He didn’t leave His body behind. He didn’t revert back to a spirit-only state. He rules heaven, earth, and hell as God and Man. The same Christ is present for communicants in the body and blood of the Lord’s Supper. “The word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”1
Dear friends, the Holy Spirit did not deem it necessary to record information about Jesus’ childhood. After the nativity in Bethlehem Mary and Joseph flee with the infant Saviour to Egypt. Herod’s jealousy puts His life in danger. The slaughter of the innocent baby boys in Bethlehem was a dark tragedy. Yet, it was a preview of things to come. It was inevitable that the powerful people of the world would come into conflict with the legitimate King of the universe. The Scripture will continue to be fulfilled that says, “He has brought down rulers from their thrones but has lifted up the humble.”2 The narrative will endure until He comes again in glory. Western society is undergoing rapid secularization and does not want to hear about God’s condemnation of sin and unbelief.
Returning from Egypt the Holy Family takes up residency in Nazareth. Nazareth was where Jesus grew up in fulfillment of the prophecy, “He will be called a Nazarene.”3 Joseph worked as a carpenter. We know little else until Jesus was twelve years old and accompanied His family to the temple in Jerusalem for the Passover celebration. Our gospel for today covers this episode in Jesus’ life. Mary and Joseph assumed that on their return journey Jesus was among their wider group of family and friends. Their search took them back to the temple in Jerusalem where they found Him after three days. They were understandably upset. “Son, why have you treated us like this? Your father and I have been anxiously searching for you.”4
Yet, there were much bigger questions to be answered than whether or not Jesus was being a thoughtless 12-year-old-boy. His response was, “‘Why were you searching for Me?...Didn’t you know I had to be in My Father house?’ But they did not understand what He was saying to them.”5 Jesus was giving an overt indication about what the future would hold. His mission was to make the Feast of the Passover obsolete. The Israelites were delivered from slavery in Egypt, but the Messiah would soon deliver God’s people from the greater bondage of sin and death. The blood of the Passover lamb was shed as a type and a foreshadowing. Jesus, the Lamb of God, would shed His own blood to atone for the transgressions of the world. These events were on the cards, but it was too soon for Mary and Joseph to comprehend what Jesus meant.
And so, they were looking for Jesus but didn’t really know who He was when they found Him. Perhaps, like Mary and Joseph, you’ve found yourself anxiously searching at times? Maybe you’ve been looking for a different Jesus than the Bible portrays; one who will be at your beck and call. Maybe in the hustle and bustle of the season you’ve paused to consider whether your priorities are right? Maybe you see that you’ve been over-indulged or have been over-indulging others? Maybe your fear of sin has been feeble and your repentance artificial. Maybe, if you’re candid, you can admit you don’t really see the need for Christ’s forgiveness in your life? Maybe your religious connections this Christmas have just been cultural associations and have had nothing to do with a living faith?
Well, rest assured, that Christ came for sinners and you are among them. He didn’t come by coincidence. He came out of necessity. Joseph and Mary were concerned for the whereabouts of their son Jesus, the holy Son of God. Do you recognise God’s presence in your life or would you rather keep Him at a distance? The Father’s house was the place for God’s Son and it’s the place for us who are coheirs with Him of the Father’s kingdom. All who are baptized into His name are part of a family that spans the dimensions of time and space. The Child of Bethlehem endured the cross of Calvary. He rose again on the third day. He did these things for you and for your salvation.
As we face a new calendar year, what kinds of doubts fill our minds and hopes fill our hearts? Do we fear the future, or do we embrace it? Is it a mixture of both? Remember, you are gifted with the greatest treasure imaginable. The gentle infant has conquered the brutal power of death. He has overthrown the lordship of Satan. Jesus was hung on a cross and rose again from the grave. The piercing accusations of your unworthiness that the devil would lift before the Judge of all have been silenced. They have been completely drowned out by the declaration of pardon the Saviour has made for you. You came into possession of these gifts at your baptism. No one can take them from you.
Christmas is a season for giving. Each year at this time generosity receives its annual promotion. But Christians know that self-sacrifice is part and parcel of living the baptismal life. Each day is gifted to us- we have no right to it- and through our actions and attitudes we offer it back to our Maker. The apostle encourages us today saying, “Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.”6
Jesus is love incarnate. There is nothing that we have, or can give, or may lose that the Lord won’t restore to us 100-fold and more. The blood that flows through your veins, your sense of sight, taste, and smell, your capacity to enjoy, your ability to think- all are gifts from the Creator that will be perfected when you are raised again in glory. Then every fret and worry will have long since vanished.
May the Almighty God open you ears and your hearts so that you treasure the Christmas gospel anew. May He anchor your soul to the unshakeable truth of God-with-us, Emmanuel so that through the stormy seas of life you will be spared from Satan’s fury. Christ is still with us. Nothing and no one are out of His reach. He didn’t linger long at the manger or in the grave but in His Father’s house He will reside forever. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
First Sunday After Christmas
30 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 1:14
2 Luke 1:52
3 Matthew 2:23
4 Luke 2:48
5 Luke 2:49-50
6 Colossians 3:12-14
Sunday, December 30, 2018
Wednesday, December 26, 2018
Christmas Day 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 2:11
Theme: The Reason Christ Came
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Excepting God Himself, everything has a cause. Sometimes causes are easy to pinpoint. Other times they are mysterious, complex, or in this life, simply unknowable. There is a reason also for the incarnation of the Son of Man. Now, I suppose, the assurance that God is present with us is enough to justify the incarnation in one sense. However, God walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day and we have no evidence they lacked certainty about His presence with them1. The pre-incarnate Emmanuel was with His people from the beginning.
Christmas is about more than the spirit of giving or even God’s presence per se, regardless of how endearing or sentimental our images of the nativity may be. The Messiah came for the unique and grueling task of rectifying sin- our sin. So, you see, It’s not actually a pleasant thing- the reason for Christmas. It’s not surprising that many efforts are made, even by Christians, to push it aside, to just reference it passing. Why dwell on the negative after all? We’re supposed to be celebrating! Our hearts are supposed to be filled with merriment and ‘the spirit of the season.’ And indeed, they should be! Yet, Christ became enfleshed because we are sinners.
The Spirit knows exactly which sins we need to be convicted of. He knows our well-disguised habits as well as our more candid transgressions. Imagine if our sins were displayed like ornaments on a tree? Imagine if each decoration represented a fault, a failure, a faux pas? What would be the garland? What sins would shine like lights, twinkling, flashing, drawing attention to the whole spectacle? And what would be the star? What would crown the top of our display of unrighteousness? What incidences of betrayal would be prominent? What examples of selfishness would stand out?
For many the Christmas tree itself is more or less, a symbol of affluence, self-indulgence or simply a cosmetic accoutrement of the season. But, decorations of sin and shame are not what our Saviour allows to adorn the believer’s life. He exchanges our unrighteousness for His holiness. He takes all of our sins off the tree and He carries them to another tree. He leaves not a single bulb, ornament, or decoration. He leaves no strands of lights or a shred of tinsel. He removes the symbol of idolatry that crown the top- the guilt that is the consequence of all efforts to establish ourselves as worthy human beings apart from the grace of the Almighty. He strips our trees of sin and shame bare, and He carries everything to His tree. His tree is not very pretty. It doesn’t twinkle with lights. It’s not decorated with tinsel. Gifts are not piled up at its base. It is not attractive in the eyes of the world. It is repugnant to human sensibilities. It is the tree of death.
But it is the beautiful tree, the blessed tree. It is the means for securing the only gift that matters in the end. The Scripture says, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’”1 And again, “God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having cancelled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; He took it away; nailing it to the cross.”2 This Christ died for you in the flesh. He rose bodily from the grave in the flesh. He ascended to the Father’s hand of power in the flesh. The apostle says, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”3
So, celebrating we are indeed! God IS present with His people. The love which became incarnate in the manger could not be conquered by the grave. He lives! He reigns! The Christmas tree is a symbol. All the images of crosses we have are symbolic. But the crucifixion was not symbolic. It was the event that made Christmas more than an event of passing significance. On that blessed tree the Son of God was sacrificed for the salvation of the world. The tree of death was the means to life. The tree that stood on the hill of Calvary surpassed the one that stood in the middle of the Garden of Eden. Their purpose was the same- to support and sustain life; life that is undying, life that is ever new.
We enjoy that new life now, today. We have been absolved of our sins. Our baptismal inheritance is secure. The Christmas feast is before us. The Bread of Heaven is our food on this high and holy day. The blood of Emmanuel carries His grace and forgiveness. He said, “Take and eat; this is My body…drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant.”4 Only this food can nourish our souls, and when our souls are well fed our entire wellbeing is on solid footing. When we participate in this meal- a sacred fellowship of holy things- we celebrate with the whole host of heaven. The same angels who joined in the announcement of the nativity saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased.”5 are the same angels that attend the triune God in His majesty.
Yes, Christmas has a cause, and we have reason to celebrate. Sin cannot win the victory over us. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”6 Angels sing. Shepherds bend the knee. Magi come later bearing gifts. But He is gifted to us. “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; He is Christ, the Lord.”7 May your hearts be filled with His profound peace and exuberant joy during this holy season and beyond. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
The Nativity of our Lord
Christmas Day
25 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Galatians 3:13
2 Colossians 2:13-14
3 John 1:14
4 Luke 26:26-28
5 Luke 2:14
6 Isaiah 9:6
7 Luke 2:10-11
Text: Luke 2:11
Theme: The Reason Christ Came
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Excepting God Himself, everything has a cause. Sometimes causes are easy to pinpoint. Other times they are mysterious, complex, or in this life, simply unknowable. There is a reason also for the incarnation of the Son of Man. Now, I suppose, the assurance that God is present with us is enough to justify the incarnation in one sense. However, God walked with Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden in the cool of the day and we have no evidence they lacked certainty about His presence with them1. The pre-incarnate Emmanuel was with His people from the beginning.
Christmas is about more than the spirit of giving or even God’s presence per se, regardless of how endearing or sentimental our images of the nativity may be. The Messiah came for the unique and grueling task of rectifying sin- our sin. So, you see, It’s not actually a pleasant thing- the reason for Christmas. It’s not surprising that many efforts are made, even by Christians, to push it aside, to just reference it passing. Why dwell on the negative after all? We’re supposed to be celebrating! Our hearts are supposed to be filled with merriment and ‘the spirit of the season.’ And indeed, they should be! Yet, Christ became enfleshed because we are sinners.
The Spirit knows exactly which sins we need to be convicted of. He knows our well-disguised habits as well as our more candid transgressions. Imagine if our sins were displayed like ornaments on a tree? Imagine if each decoration represented a fault, a failure, a faux pas? What would be the garland? What sins would shine like lights, twinkling, flashing, drawing attention to the whole spectacle? And what would be the star? What would crown the top of our display of unrighteousness? What incidences of betrayal would be prominent? What examples of selfishness would stand out?
For many the Christmas tree itself is more or less, a symbol of affluence, self-indulgence or simply a cosmetic accoutrement of the season. But, decorations of sin and shame are not what our Saviour allows to adorn the believer’s life. He exchanges our unrighteousness for His holiness. He takes all of our sins off the tree and He carries them to another tree. He leaves not a single bulb, ornament, or decoration. He leaves no strands of lights or a shred of tinsel. He removes the symbol of idolatry that crown the top- the guilt that is the consequence of all efforts to establish ourselves as worthy human beings apart from the grace of the Almighty. He strips our trees of sin and shame bare, and He carries everything to His tree. His tree is not very pretty. It doesn’t twinkle with lights. It’s not decorated with tinsel. Gifts are not piled up at its base. It is not attractive in the eyes of the world. It is repugnant to human sensibilities. It is the tree of death.
But it is the beautiful tree, the blessed tree. It is the means for securing the only gift that matters in the end. The Scripture says, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us, for it is written: ‘Cursed is everyone who is hung on a tree.’”1 And again, “God made you alive with Christ. He forgave us all our sins, having cancelled the written code, with its regulations, that was against us and that stood opposed to us; He took it away; nailing it to the cross.”2 This Christ died for you in the flesh. He rose bodily from the grave in the flesh. He ascended to the Father’s hand of power in the flesh. The apostle says, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.”3
So, celebrating we are indeed! God IS present with His people. The love which became incarnate in the manger could not be conquered by the grave. He lives! He reigns! The Christmas tree is a symbol. All the images of crosses we have are symbolic. But the crucifixion was not symbolic. It was the event that made Christmas more than an event of passing significance. On that blessed tree the Son of God was sacrificed for the salvation of the world. The tree of death was the means to life. The tree that stood on the hill of Calvary surpassed the one that stood in the middle of the Garden of Eden. Their purpose was the same- to support and sustain life; life that is undying, life that is ever new.
We enjoy that new life now, today. We have been absolved of our sins. Our baptismal inheritance is secure. The Christmas feast is before us. The Bread of Heaven is our food on this high and holy day. The blood of Emmanuel carries His grace and forgiveness. He said, “Take and eat; this is My body…drink from it, all of you. This is My blood of the covenant.”4 Only this food can nourish our souls, and when our souls are well fed our entire wellbeing is on solid footing. When we participate in this meal- a sacred fellowship of holy things- we celebrate with the whole host of heaven. The same angels who joined in the announcement of the nativity saying, “Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom He is pleased.”5 are the same angels that attend the triune God in His majesty.
Yes, Christmas has a cause, and we have reason to celebrate. Sin cannot win the victory over us. “For to us a child is born, to us a son is given; and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”6 Angels sing. Shepherds bend the knee. Magi come later bearing gifts. But He is gifted to us. “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. Today in the town of David a Saviour has been born to you; He is Christ, the Lord.”7 May your hearts be filled with His profound peace and exuberant joy during this holy season and beyond. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
The Nativity of our Lord
Christmas Day
25 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Galatians 3:13
2 Colossians 2:13-14
3 John 1:14
4 Luke 26:26-28
5 Luke 2:14
6 Isaiah 9:6
7 Luke 2:10-11
Christmas Eve 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 2:11
Theme: Fulltime Saviour
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Christmas can be frenetic for the average person. The expectations of family, friends and society can become too much. The quiet stillness the Prince of Peace brings is sacrificed. Yet, Christmas also lends itself to escapism. Christmas has the power of arresting the turbulence of life, of holding it in suspended animation. It enables people to temporarily push aside many of the pressing headaches, the heartaches, and the anxieties that dominate our attention so regularly. The resolution or collapse of other things can wait a little bit longer…if we can just pause to enjoy the season.
And yet the desire of God’s Son is not that we pause for a moment to peer reverently into the manger. He seeks to enter right into the turbulence of your life and accompany you over the peaks and through the valleys. He didn’t come to provide a brief distraction from the daily grind. He didn’t come so we could add another public holiday onto the annual calendar. He came to bear sin and conquer death. He came to journey with us all the way to the grave and beyond. So, Christmas is not really an opportunity to escape per se. It’s an opportunity to embrace the presence of God in human flesh. "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel (which means, God with us).”1
Our society is moving away from objective truth in preference to validation of the experience of the individual. The implications are far-reaching. Therefore, the historical grounding of the Christmas narrative is important. The modern tendency is to ask, “What does Christmas mean to you?” And then to answer that with any number of subjective responses. They may focus on the gathering of family, of activity and indulgence, of tightly held traditions, both religious and secular. None of these are necessarily wrong in and of themselves. But they may be incomplete. They may be skewed. They may be naive.
The intention of the angels, of the shepherds, of the evangelist is not to communicate what Christmas might mean for individuals, but what it does mean for all humanity. Our personal views, ideas, and tendencies must be filtered through the prism of truth. We can’t see clearly until we see through the lens of faith. The Child lying meek and mild is strong and mighty. The Child in the manger is our flesh and blood. The Scripture says, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.”2
The manger is filled with gentleness, but it is also filled with strength. It is hallowed with purity but is not an ivory tower for an aloof Lord. The Child of holiness will immerse Himself into the filth of sinfulness. Bethlehem is His portal to the fallen world. A cross will soon cast a shadow over the manger.
Dear friends, the meaning, the message, and the truth of the nativity gospel is that God came to stay, He’s playing for keeps. So, if you have a God that’s only present in your happiness you only have a “fractional” God, a part-time deity. He may or may not get passing or partial credit for your prosperity. Other times you take credit for your own success or call it good fortune. God is then left sitting in the background. The Holy Spirit calls us to repent of such ideas because a part-time deity is really no God at all.
And if You only have a God who’s present in your joy, you only have a half-time God. He’s conveniently absent in the difficult times. The Scriptures tell you that you have a God who is present in your darkness. He is present in your mountain peaks of joy and in your deep valleys of sorrow. He is present in your struggles and failure, there in our deep disappointments. He is the only one that can truly understand grief. This God, your God, the Child of Bethlehem and Redeemer of Calvary: The Wonderful Counsellor and Prince of Peace3 is 24/7 all in, all of the time.
It was a difficult Christmas in the year 1524 for one particular family. Katie and Martin Luther’s daughter, Magdalena had died in September of that year. She was the tender age of thirteen. The grief was palpable. Yet, the Luther’s had the quiet, firm confidence that Child born in the manger would raise their daughter from the sleep of death. They would see her again because the Boy of Bethlehem is also the resurrection and the life4. Hope is never lost when it’s placed rightly.
Maybe this is your most difficult Christmas? Maybe it is your most relaxed, your most lavish, or your most peaceful? Maybe it is none of the above, just an average Christmas for you and your family? If your heart is filled with anxiety hear the word of the angel, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.”5 If you are skeptical about God’s presence hear the ancient word of the prophet long since fulfilled in Bethlehem, “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”6 May the newborn ChristChild fill your hearts with joy, your minds with peace and your lives with love. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
The Nativity of our Lord
Christmas Eve
24 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Matthew 1:23
2 Hebrews 2:14
3 See Isaiah 9:6
4 John 11:25
5 Luke 2:10-11
6 Psalm 46-5, 7
Text: Luke 2:11
Theme: Fulltime Saviour
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Christmas can be frenetic for the average person. The expectations of family, friends and society can become too much. The quiet stillness the Prince of Peace brings is sacrificed. Yet, Christmas also lends itself to escapism. Christmas has the power of arresting the turbulence of life, of holding it in suspended animation. It enables people to temporarily push aside many of the pressing headaches, the heartaches, and the anxieties that dominate our attention so regularly. The resolution or collapse of other things can wait a little bit longer…if we can just pause to enjoy the season.
And yet the desire of God’s Son is not that we pause for a moment to peer reverently into the manger. He seeks to enter right into the turbulence of your life and accompany you over the peaks and through the valleys. He didn’t come to provide a brief distraction from the daily grind. He didn’t come so we could add another public holiday onto the annual calendar. He came to bear sin and conquer death. He came to journey with us all the way to the grave and beyond. So, Christmas is not really an opportunity to escape per se. It’s an opportunity to embrace the presence of God in human flesh. "Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel (which means, God with us).”1
Our society is moving away from objective truth in preference to validation of the experience of the individual. The implications are far-reaching. Therefore, the historical grounding of the Christmas narrative is important. The modern tendency is to ask, “What does Christmas mean to you?” And then to answer that with any number of subjective responses. They may focus on the gathering of family, of activity and indulgence, of tightly held traditions, both religious and secular. None of these are necessarily wrong in and of themselves. But they may be incomplete. They may be skewed. They may be naive.
The intention of the angels, of the shepherds, of the evangelist is not to communicate what Christmas might mean for individuals, but what it does mean for all humanity. Our personal views, ideas, and tendencies must be filtered through the prism of truth. We can’t see clearly until we see through the lens of faith. The Child lying meek and mild is strong and mighty. The Child in the manger is our flesh and blood. The Scripture says, “Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death He might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.”2
The manger is filled with gentleness, but it is also filled with strength. It is hallowed with purity but is not an ivory tower for an aloof Lord. The Child of holiness will immerse Himself into the filth of sinfulness. Bethlehem is His portal to the fallen world. A cross will soon cast a shadow over the manger.
Dear friends, the meaning, the message, and the truth of the nativity gospel is that God came to stay, He’s playing for keeps. So, if you have a God that’s only present in your happiness you only have a “fractional” God, a part-time deity. He may or may not get passing or partial credit for your prosperity. Other times you take credit for your own success or call it good fortune. God is then left sitting in the background. The Holy Spirit calls us to repent of such ideas because a part-time deity is really no God at all.
And if You only have a God who’s present in your joy, you only have a half-time God. He’s conveniently absent in the difficult times. The Scriptures tell you that you have a God who is present in your darkness. He is present in your mountain peaks of joy and in your deep valleys of sorrow. He is present in your struggles and failure, there in our deep disappointments. He is the only one that can truly understand grief. This God, your God, the Child of Bethlehem and Redeemer of Calvary: The Wonderful Counsellor and Prince of Peace3 is 24/7 all in, all of the time.
It was a difficult Christmas in the year 1524 for one particular family. Katie and Martin Luther’s daughter, Magdalena had died in September of that year. She was the tender age of thirteen. The grief was palpable. Yet, the Luther’s had the quiet, firm confidence that Child born in the manger would raise their daughter from the sleep of death. They would see her again because the Boy of Bethlehem is also the resurrection and the life4. Hope is never lost when it’s placed rightly.
Maybe this is your most difficult Christmas? Maybe it is your most relaxed, your most lavish, or your most peaceful? Maybe it is none of the above, just an average Christmas for you and your family? If your heart is filled with anxiety hear the word of the angel, "Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, who is Christ the Lord.”5 If you are skeptical about God’s presence hear the ancient word of the prophet long since fulfilled in Bethlehem, “God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved; God will help her when morning dawns. The LORD of hosts is with us; the God of Jacob is our fortress.”6 May the newborn ChristChild fill your hearts with joy, your minds with peace and your lives with love. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
The Nativity of our Lord
Christmas Eve
24 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Matthew 1:23
2 Hebrews 2:14
3 See Isaiah 9:6
4 John 11:25
5 Luke 2:10-11
6 Psalm 46-5, 7
Sunday, December 23, 2018
Fourth Sunday of Advent (C) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 1:42
Theme: Blessed To Be A Blessing
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Lord works in mysterious ways. An obscure First Century Judean woman was chosen to be the mother of God. She wasn’t the daughter of a king. She wasn’t part of the royal establishment. She had no special notoriety. And why endure gestation and childhood anyway? Why not just rend the heavens and appear as a mature man? Yet the mystery of the incarnation is the means of our salvation. The virgin birth is not an optional part of Christian truth. It’s not coincidentally mentioned in the historic creeds. The Man who is “begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God”, was also “incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary.” 1
When Mary greeted Elizabeth the Bible says, “the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.”2 We’d be hard-pressed to find a Scripture verse more relevant to the sanctity of life than this one. John the Baptist is blessed by Jesus in utero. He responds with a gymnastic expression of faith. It’s a fantastic reminder that human life begins at conception, a truth that advancements in science are continually making clearer. The presence of the Emmanuel is just as vital to the newly conceived as it is to mature saints on their deathbed.
Mary’s response, also known as the Magnificat, understandably found its place in the liturgical life of the Christian church. The words are lyrical, and it’s quite possible Mary herself sung them. They express profound gratitude for the mercy of God. The Messiah, through the Holy Spirit, will become incarnate in her womb. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is His name.”3
The enormity of the matter defies description. The entire biblical witness is dedicated to understanding it. How could the incomprehensible deity, the One who is eternal, omniscient, and almighty be contained in this small human form? The Creator of the universe takes up residency in the flesh and blood of the man Jesus. As the Scripture says, “For in Christ all the fulness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”4 Christmas is a celebration of the divine mystery of the incarnation. But the purpose of the incarnation wasn’t just to give humans something to marvel at. Jesus Christ came in the flesh to tackle the crisis of sin.
Christ came to judge, but for the purpose of restoration. Jesus did not come to destroy life; He came to redeem it. He did not come to abolish those made in the divine image but to affirm them. He didn’t come to publicly wash His hands as Pilate did, but to openly immerse Himself into the sinful milieu of fallen humanity- to embrace it and to redeem it.
You’ve probably heard it said, “God hates the sin but loves the sinner.” It’s worth considering whether the claim holds up to biblical scrutiny. Separating the sin from the sinner is an impossible task for humans. All attempts are doomed to fail from the start. Efforts at impartiality are impossible due to the total depravity of sin. The blind cannot argue about the clarity of what they see. The deaf cannot debate the quality of sound. The dead cannot discuss the conditions of life. Those who are in the eye of the hurricane cannot assist others in avoiding the storm.
So, the task must be left to Him who is immortal and undefiled. But, if it’s our hope that God will judge our sin and not ourselves as sinners, we’d better stop and think about what that really means. There is no sin apart from the sinner. Sin is not a self-existing reality. It does not have independent existence. It does not have a life of its own. Sin is transgression of God’s holy will. It is disobedience, lawlessness. It is both the condition (like a disease) and the act of self-assertion against God’s rule.
But doesn’t God forgive our sin? Absolutely! But more to the point, He forgives repentant sinners. Baptism, like absolution, doesn’t is set sin aside, ignore it or leave it unaccounted for. It means the guilt and punishment is removed from the eternal experience of the sinner. The Bible says, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”5 The punishment for the sins of believers is remitted in the next life. That is very, very, good news. It is rightly the central cause for our joy. It is the foundation of our conviction. It is secured by the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Whether or not the punishment for sin is remitted in this life is another matter. God must discipline as He sees fit. Our sanctification does not happen accidentally or haphazardly. The Holy Spirit attends to us according to the specifics of our circumstance. The Spirit condemns and convicts as well as comforts. That means our sins have consequences that may involve punishment. Repentance, no matter how heartfelt, does not eliminate this reality. So, if it’s your plan to plea-bargain with God in order to avoid being chastised, whether it involves embarrassment, shame, or dealing with the fall-out from the tangled web you weave, you should understand that God doesn’t work that way. He may choose to punish your sin. But that doesn’t mean you’re not forgiven. God disciplines those He loves6.
Advent reminds us to throw ourselves on the mercy of God. He will not forsake you. The repentant person can never fall so hard or so quickly as to not land on Christ. Christmas assures you that you won’t be landing on a theoretical concept or a philosophical idea, you’ll be landing in the strong arms of Him who was born in Bethlehem and stretched out those arms on the cross. The angels sang of Him. The shepherds worshipped Him. The Magi presented Him with royal gifts. Later, skeptics jeered Him, and all of our sins pinned Him to the cross. Still, the miracle of Christmas did not come to naught because the Lord of life triumphed on Easter morning.
When the shepherds knelt at the manger did, they know they were kneeling on the threshold of heaven? When we kneel at the altar we intrude upon the easement of Christ’s kingdom. But believers are not trespassing. We are honoured guests. We are His baptized. Mary was an ordinary woman of her time and place. Yet God graced her with a matchless privilege. Through those events He honours us, ordinary people, and makes us extraordinary members of His kingdom. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday of Advent
23 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 The Nicene Creed
2 Luke 1:41
3 Luke 1:46-49
4 Colossians 1:9
5 Romans 8:1
6 See Hebrews 12:7
Text: Luke 1:42
Theme: Blessed To Be A Blessing
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Lord works in mysterious ways. An obscure First Century Judean woman was chosen to be the mother of God. She wasn’t the daughter of a king. She wasn’t part of the royal establishment. She had no special notoriety. And why endure gestation and childhood anyway? Why not just rend the heavens and appear as a mature man? Yet the mystery of the incarnation is the means of our salvation. The virgin birth is not an optional part of Christian truth. It’s not coincidentally mentioned in the historic creeds. The Man who is “begotten of His Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God”, was also “incarnate by the Holy Spirit of the Virgin Mary.” 1
When Mary greeted Elizabeth the Bible says, “the baby leaped in her womb, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit.”2 We’d be hard-pressed to find a Scripture verse more relevant to the sanctity of life than this one. John the Baptist is blessed by Jesus in utero. He responds with a gymnastic expression of faith. It’s a fantastic reminder that human life begins at conception, a truth that advancements in science are continually making clearer. The presence of the Emmanuel is just as vital to the newly conceived as it is to mature saints on their deathbed.
Mary’s response, also known as the Magnificat, understandably found its place in the liturgical life of the Christian church. The words are lyrical, and it’s quite possible Mary herself sung them. They express profound gratitude for the mercy of God. The Messiah, through the Holy Spirit, will become incarnate in her womb. “My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Saviour, for He has been mindful of the humble state of His servant. From now on all generations will call me blessed, for the Mighty One has done great things for me- holy is His name.”3
The enormity of the matter defies description. The entire biblical witness is dedicated to understanding it. How could the incomprehensible deity, the One who is eternal, omniscient, and almighty be contained in this small human form? The Creator of the universe takes up residency in the flesh and blood of the man Jesus. As the Scripture says, “For in Christ all the fulness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”4 Christmas is a celebration of the divine mystery of the incarnation. But the purpose of the incarnation wasn’t just to give humans something to marvel at. Jesus Christ came in the flesh to tackle the crisis of sin.
Christ came to judge, but for the purpose of restoration. Jesus did not come to destroy life; He came to redeem it. He did not come to abolish those made in the divine image but to affirm them. He didn’t come to publicly wash His hands as Pilate did, but to openly immerse Himself into the sinful milieu of fallen humanity- to embrace it and to redeem it.
You’ve probably heard it said, “God hates the sin but loves the sinner.” It’s worth considering whether the claim holds up to biblical scrutiny. Separating the sin from the sinner is an impossible task for humans. All attempts are doomed to fail from the start. Efforts at impartiality are impossible due to the total depravity of sin. The blind cannot argue about the clarity of what they see. The deaf cannot debate the quality of sound. The dead cannot discuss the conditions of life. Those who are in the eye of the hurricane cannot assist others in avoiding the storm.
So, the task must be left to Him who is immortal and undefiled. But, if it’s our hope that God will judge our sin and not ourselves as sinners, we’d better stop and think about what that really means. There is no sin apart from the sinner. Sin is not a self-existing reality. It does not have independent existence. It does not have a life of its own. Sin is transgression of God’s holy will. It is disobedience, lawlessness. It is both the condition (like a disease) and the act of self-assertion against God’s rule.
But doesn’t God forgive our sin? Absolutely! But more to the point, He forgives repentant sinners. Baptism, like absolution, doesn’t is set sin aside, ignore it or leave it unaccounted for. It means the guilt and punishment is removed from the eternal experience of the sinner. The Bible says, “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.”5 The punishment for the sins of believers is remitted in the next life. That is very, very, good news. It is rightly the central cause for our joy. It is the foundation of our conviction. It is secured by the death and resurrection of Jesus.
Whether or not the punishment for sin is remitted in this life is another matter. God must discipline as He sees fit. Our sanctification does not happen accidentally or haphazardly. The Holy Spirit attends to us according to the specifics of our circumstance. The Spirit condemns and convicts as well as comforts. That means our sins have consequences that may involve punishment. Repentance, no matter how heartfelt, does not eliminate this reality. So, if it’s your plan to plea-bargain with God in order to avoid being chastised, whether it involves embarrassment, shame, or dealing with the fall-out from the tangled web you weave, you should understand that God doesn’t work that way. He may choose to punish your sin. But that doesn’t mean you’re not forgiven. God disciplines those He loves6.
Advent reminds us to throw ourselves on the mercy of God. He will not forsake you. The repentant person can never fall so hard or so quickly as to not land on Christ. Christmas assures you that you won’t be landing on a theoretical concept or a philosophical idea, you’ll be landing in the strong arms of Him who was born in Bethlehem and stretched out those arms on the cross. The angels sang of Him. The shepherds worshipped Him. The Magi presented Him with royal gifts. Later, skeptics jeered Him, and all of our sins pinned Him to the cross. Still, the miracle of Christmas did not come to naught because the Lord of life triumphed on Easter morning.
When the shepherds knelt at the manger did, they know they were kneeling on the threshold of heaven? When we kneel at the altar we intrude upon the easement of Christ’s kingdom. But believers are not trespassing. We are honoured guests. We are His baptized. Mary was an ordinary woman of her time and place. Yet God graced her with a matchless privilege. Through those events He honours us, ordinary people, and makes us extraordinary members of His kingdom. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday of Advent
23 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 The Nicene Creed
2 Luke 1:41
3 Luke 1:46-49
4 Colossians 1:9
5 Romans 8:1
6 See Hebrews 12:7
Sunday, December 16, 2018
Third Sunday of Advent (C) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 3:4-6
Theme: God’s Living Will
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Advent builds momentum as it presses forward. Expectation grows. Like a woman in pregnancy, there’s no going back. The matter must come to resolution. Sin must be accounted for. Unbelief must be judged. Faith must be rewarded. The coming of Christ in glory will bring all these things to finality. Meanwhile, these things are continually being sorted out as we speak. One person comes to repentance and faith. Another falls away in unbelief. One by one we reach the limits of our mortality. Each of us must meet our Maker. The moment of truth cannot be avoided. In the process the will of God is either fulfilled or rejected.
John the Baptist comes proclaiming the will of the Lord today. He does it with clarity and conviction. What is the will of God? The answer is a simple as it is profound; as straightforward as it is complex. The prophet calls people to repentance. He condemns their hypocrisy. He instructs them in their sanctity. It is the will of God that we turn from our sins. It is the will of God that we have eternal fellowship with Him. What could be more important?
Throughout all seasons of the Church Year we are not only celebrating the accomplished activities of God- as we do in Christmas celebrations- we are being challenged, convicted, shaped, formed, and blessed by His presence. The Holy Spirit is not deceased. Christ is not aloof. God’s will is dynamic and pervasive. The will of God, of course, can only be discerned on the basis of Scripture. There are clear absolutes. There are also situations, though these don’t put our salvation risk, where the will of God is not so easy to discern.
Consider just one example in the life of the Saint Paul. In Acts 16 we find these words, “They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.”1 Why on earth would the Holy Spirit prevent His eminent apostle from preaching the word of God anywhere? Paul preached in prison and from prison, to Jew, Gentile, and Greek, to the receptive and unreceptive, to the apathetic and the riotous. Why on earth would Asia be excepted? I’m afraid I won’t be able to answer that one for you. The task, apparently, was for another person at another time.
Consider a more modern moral dilemma. In 1939 Albert Einstein wrote a letter President Roosevelt warning him the German government had plans to develop a nuclear weapon. He proposed the Americans look into their own research. Though Einstein never played an active role he struggled with the moral implications of nuclear capability. He later regretted his decision to even write the letter. The Manhattan Project was the code name for the development of the atomic weapon that effectively ended World War II. Was it the will of God that so much destruction could be unleashed by a single device? Was it the will of God that some of the best scientific minds of the age were employed to such an end? Now, if you think I’m going to answer that question satisfactorily for you, don’t get too excited.
In discussing the will of God in vexatious circumstances, we don’t mean to say that the Bible is unclear or that we can change the parameters. The biblical teaching on both sin and grace are very clear. It is God’s will, for example, that husbands be faithful to wives and wives be faithful to husbands. There is nothing unclear or uncertain about God’s commands. The Sixth Commandment, like all commandments is not a rough moral guideline. Our subjective opinions are not decisive. The commandments carry the threat of punishment because their intent is to protect, preserve, and promote life.
Just as clear as God’s commandments are His acts of mercy. His will is not in doubt. We can say with absolute certainty that it was the Father’s will to send His Son to the cross. No teaching of the Bible is more undeniable than the gospel. Jesus Christ was sacrificed upon the cross to atone for the sins of the world. He was our substitute in death. He rose bodily from the grave on the third day. He did these things for us and for our salvation. The Scripture says, “It was the Lord’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer.”2 And again, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”3 The Father willed His Son to be the sacrifice of reconciliation and the Son willingly submitted to the Father.
We can also say with certainty it is the will of God that our faith is expressed in actions. The crowds asked John the Baptist what they should do, and he offered very practical advice. Be generous with your resources. Don’t resort to dishonesty. Don’t abuse your authority, are a few examples of how John exhorted them to follow God’s will. Faith is active in love. Follow God’s will. Obey His commands. Believe His promises.
God never says this will be easy. Our faith will be refined and our character proven time and time again. What were the Israelites doing for 40 years in the desert? They were being tested and tried. They were being prepared to cross into the Promised Land. And so it is with our pilgrimage on this earth. Do you think it is God’s will to test us and try us before we enter into the promised land of heaven? Yes, it must be so because our sinful nature cannot subdue itself. It never wants to take the narrow road, but the broad, easy road. The Old Adam has no ability for self-regulation. All of the feedback loops are broken. The sinful nature must be crucified and raised to life again, as the Scripture says, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”4
Luther says in the Large Catechism that if you could see how many knives, darts, and arrows are at every moment aimed at you, you would be glad to come to the Sacrament as often as possible. He was speaking of Satan. He wasn’t fear-mongering, He was simply communicating biblical realism. As the Scripture says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.”5 That is the message of Advent. How do we resist him? We come to the Lord’s Table. In that meal we are strengthened, and he is weakened, we participate in Christ’s victory while Satan is reminded of his own defeat. The body and blood of Christ is the food of immortality. It is a foretaste of the feast to come.
Dear friends, advent is a time for serious but joyful expectation. We are frail, but our strong God comes to us. We are sinners, but the Righteous One comes to clothe us in His majesty. It won’t be painless. That’s why Jeremiah pleads, “Correct me, O LORD, but in justice; not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.”6 The Child of Bethlehem is the Redeemer of Calvary. He will bring the Father’s will to completion. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Third Sunday of Advent
16 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Acts 16:6
2 2 Isaiah 53:10
3 Acts 2:23
4 Romans 8:13
5 1 Peter 5:8-9
6 Jeremiah 10:24
Text: Luke 3:4-6
Theme: God’s Living Will
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Advent builds momentum as it presses forward. Expectation grows. Like a woman in pregnancy, there’s no going back. The matter must come to resolution. Sin must be accounted for. Unbelief must be judged. Faith must be rewarded. The coming of Christ in glory will bring all these things to finality. Meanwhile, these things are continually being sorted out as we speak. One person comes to repentance and faith. Another falls away in unbelief. One by one we reach the limits of our mortality. Each of us must meet our Maker. The moment of truth cannot be avoided. In the process the will of God is either fulfilled or rejected.
John the Baptist comes proclaiming the will of the Lord today. He does it with clarity and conviction. What is the will of God? The answer is a simple as it is profound; as straightforward as it is complex. The prophet calls people to repentance. He condemns their hypocrisy. He instructs them in their sanctity. It is the will of God that we turn from our sins. It is the will of God that we have eternal fellowship with Him. What could be more important?
Throughout all seasons of the Church Year we are not only celebrating the accomplished activities of God- as we do in Christmas celebrations- we are being challenged, convicted, shaped, formed, and blessed by His presence. The Holy Spirit is not deceased. Christ is not aloof. God’s will is dynamic and pervasive. The will of God, of course, can only be discerned on the basis of Scripture. There are clear absolutes. There are also situations, though these don’t put our salvation risk, where the will of God is not so easy to discern.
Consider just one example in the life of the Saint Paul. In Acts 16 we find these words, “They went through the region of Phrygia and Galatia, having been forbidden by the Holy Spirit to speak the word in Asia.”1 Why on earth would the Holy Spirit prevent His eminent apostle from preaching the word of God anywhere? Paul preached in prison and from prison, to Jew, Gentile, and Greek, to the receptive and unreceptive, to the apathetic and the riotous. Why on earth would Asia be excepted? I’m afraid I won’t be able to answer that one for you. The task, apparently, was for another person at another time.
Consider a more modern moral dilemma. In 1939 Albert Einstein wrote a letter President Roosevelt warning him the German government had plans to develop a nuclear weapon. He proposed the Americans look into their own research. Though Einstein never played an active role he struggled with the moral implications of nuclear capability. He later regretted his decision to even write the letter. The Manhattan Project was the code name for the development of the atomic weapon that effectively ended World War II. Was it the will of God that so much destruction could be unleashed by a single device? Was it the will of God that some of the best scientific minds of the age were employed to such an end? Now, if you think I’m going to answer that question satisfactorily for you, don’t get too excited.
In discussing the will of God in vexatious circumstances, we don’t mean to say that the Bible is unclear or that we can change the parameters. The biblical teaching on both sin and grace are very clear. It is God’s will, for example, that husbands be faithful to wives and wives be faithful to husbands. There is nothing unclear or uncertain about God’s commands. The Sixth Commandment, like all commandments is not a rough moral guideline. Our subjective opinions are not decisive. The commandments carry the threat of punishment because their intent is to protect, preserve, and promote life.
Just as clear as God’s commandments are His acts of mercy. His will is not in doubt. We can say with absolute certainty that it was the Father’s will to send His Son to the cross. No teaching of the Bible is more undeniable than the gospel. Jesus Christ was sacrificed upon the cross to atone for the sins of the world. He was our substitute in death. He rose bodily from the grave on the third day. He did these things for us and for our salvation. The Scripture says, “It was the Lord’s will to crush Him and cause Him to suffer.”2 And again, “This Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men.”3 The Father willed His Son to be the sacrifice of reconciliation and the Son willingly submitted to the Father.
We can also say with certainty it is the will of God that our faith is expressed in actions. The crowds asked John the Baptist what they should do, and he offered very practical advice. Be generous with your resources. Don’t resort to dishonesty. Don’t abuse your authority, are a few examples of how John exhorted them to follow God’s will. Faith is active in love. Follow God’s will. Obey His commands. Believe His promises.
God never says this will be easy. Our faith will be refined and our character proven time and time again. What were the Israelites doing for 40 years in the desert? They were being tested and tried. They were being prepared to cross into the Promised Land. And so it is with our pilgrimage on this earth. Do you think it is God’s will to test us and try us before we enter into the promised land of heaven? Yes, it must be so because our sinful nature cannot subdue itself. It never wants to take the narrow road, but the broad, easy road. The Old Adam has no ability for self-regulation. All of the feedback loops are broken. The sinful nature must be crucified and raised to life again, as the Scripture says, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”4
Luther says in the Large Catechism that if you could see how many knives, darts, and arrows are at every moment aimed at you, you would be glad to come to the Sacrament as often as possible. He was speaking of Satan. He wasn’t fear-mongering, He was simply communicating biblical realism. As the Scripture says, “Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. Resist him, firm in your faith.”5 That is the message of Advent. How do we resist him? We come to the Lord’s Table. In that meal we are strengthened, and he is weakened, we participate in Christ’s victory while Satan is reminded of his own defeat. The body and blood of Christ is the food of immortality. It is a foretaste of the feast to come.
Dear friends, advent is a time for serious but joyful expectation. We are frail, but our strong God comes to us. We are sinners, but the Righteous One comes to clothe us in His majesty. It won’t be painless. That’s why Jeremiah pleads, “Correct me, O LORD, but in justice; not in your anger, lest you bring me to nothing.”6 The Child of Bethlehem is the Redeemer of Calvary. He will bring the Father’s will to completion. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Third Sunday of Advent
16 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Acts 16:6
2 2 Isaiah 53:10
3 Acts 2:23
4 Romans 8:13
5 1 Peter 5:8-9
6 Jeremiah 10:24
Monday, December 10, 2018
Address to confirmees (Dec 9, 2018)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Philippians 1:9-11
Theme: Knowledge of Truth
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Dear candidates for confirmation; Kye, Riley Darcy, Keely, Quinn, Bryce, Reese;
Knowledge…in the Bible reading from Philippians St. Paul prays that believers would, “abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”1 But what kind of knowledge is he talking about? There is practical knowledge- how to do things and get places. There is academic knowledge, information about math, sciences literature, history…and the list is endless. There is vocational knowledge, the ability to be competent in your career. What about depth of insight? There are different kinds of insight too. Insight into how to properly manage relationships. Sensitivity to the struggles others are going through. When we want a quick answer to things today what do most people do? They Google it! The Bible is on Google too. That’s good news.
But we can’t obtain the knowledge and insight Paul is talking about simply by googling. St. Paul is speaking about knowledge of salvation and the wisdom of God.
In a few moments you will each be asked a series of questions and the final one you will be asked to respond to is this: “Do you intend faithfully to conform all your life to the divine Word, to be faithful in the use of God’s Word and sacraments, which are his means of grace, and in faith, word, and action to remain true to God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, even to death?” Now that’s a big promise and if you take it seriously it will not be an easy promise to keep. Why?
Firstly, God knows you. That is bad news in a way. He knows that you are sinners. He knows you will constantly be tempted to think of yourself first and forget about what God says. No one knows exactly where life will take any of you, but we do know where Satan and the unbelieving world would like to take you: As far away from God’s word, His truth, His house, and His kingdom as possible. The devil has proven to be very effective at this in recent times. Also, the world is filled with darkness. It is deep and sinister, but it is often disguised in a way that appears attractive and appealing.
Secondly, remember God knows you and that is also very, very good news. Christ went to the cross where He shed His blood for you. He overcame death and the grave for you. Crucified and risen He lives to intercede for you. He promises to never leave you or forsake you. There is nothing that will come your way in life that is too difficult for God to handle, even, and especially, death itself.
To know God isn’t just a matter of knowing some facts about Him. You’ve learned the Apostles’ Creed the Ten Commandments and much more. But knowing God involves a relationship. It involves communication, reception, commitment. You cannot make God into someone or something else. As soon as you try to do so you have made an idol. But God can and has and will make/made you into someone else. The Holy Spirit gives you faith and as He grows you in that faith. He shapes you into a unique person with a unique place of service in His kingdom.
The Bible is the only source of knowledge that matter in the end. It is God’s love letter to you. Each of you has been assigned a Bible verse on this day of your confirmation and that’s just one little piece of God’s knowledge and insight. The vow you are making to day is like signing a blank piece of paper, having it notarized and trusting in God to fill in whatever He thinks if best. Your focus isn’t on what great adventures, what hardships, or what joys God may fill in that blank space. Your focus is on Him, His trustworthy character, His promise. He loves you more profoundly than you’ll even know. But the cross does give us the closest picture we have.
Christ is light. He is forgiveness. He is salvation. Confirmation is not graduation. It is just one step in your life-long baptismal journey. And it is a journey you never travel alone. May God bless each of you now and from this day forward and may the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, your Saviour, keep you strong until the day you meet Him face to face. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Second Sunday of Advent
Rite of Confirmation
9 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Philippians 1:9
Text: Philippians 1:9-11
Theme: Knowledge of Truth
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Dear candidates for confirmation; Kye, Riley Darcy, Keely, Quinn, Bryce, Reese;
Knowledge…in the Bible reading from Philippians St. Paul prays that believers would, “abound more and more in knowledge and depth of insight.”1 But what kind of knowledge is he talking about? There is practical knowledge- how to do things and get places. There is academic knowledge, information about math, sciences literature, history…and the list is endless. There is vocational knowledge, the ability to be competent in your career. What about depth of insight? There are different kinds of insight too. Insight into how to properly manage relationships. Sensitivity to the struggles others are going through. When we want a quick answer to things today what do most people do? They Google it! The Bible is on Google too. That’s good news.
But we can’t obtain the knowledge and insight Paul is talking about simply by googling. St. Paul is speaking about knowledge of salvation and the wisdom of God.
In a few moments you will each be asked a series of questions and the final one you will be asked to respond to is this: “Do you intend faithfully to conform all your life to the divine Word, to be faithful in the use of God’s Word and sacraments, which are his means of grace, and in faith, word, and action to remain true to God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, even to death?” Now that’s a big promise and if you take it seriously it will not be an easy promise to keep. Why?
Firstly, God knows you. That is bad news in a way. He knows that you are sinners. He knows you will constantly be tempted to think of yourself first and forget about what God says. No one knows exactly where life will take any of you, but we do know where Satan and the unbelieving world would like to take you: As far away from God’s word, His truth, His house, and His kingdom as possible. The devil has proven to be very effective at this in recent times. Also, the world is filled with darkness. It is deep and sinister, but it is often disguised in a way that appears attractive and appealing.
Secondly, remember God knows you and that is also very, very good news. Christ went to the cross where He shed His blood for you. He overcame death and the grave for you. Crucified and risen He lives to intercede for you. He promises to never leave you or forsake you. There is nothing that will come your way in life that is too difficult for God to handle, even, and especially, death itself.
To know God isn’t just a matter of knowing some facts about Him. You’ve learned the Apostles’ Creed the Ten Commandments and much more. But knowing God involves a relationship. It involves communication, reception, commitment. You cannot make God into someone or something else. As soon as you try to do so you have made an idol. But God can and has and will make/made you into someone else. The Holy Spirit gives you faith and as He grows you in that faith. He shapes you into a unique person with a unique place of service in His kingdom.
The Bible is the only source of knowledge that matter in the end. It is God’s love letter to you. Each of you has been assigned a Bible verse on this day of your confirmation and that’s just one little piece of God’s knowledge and insight. The vow you are making to day is like signing a blank piece of paper, having it notarized and trusting in God to fill in whatever He thinks if best. Your focus isn’t on what great adventures, what hardships, or what joys God may fill in that blank space. Your focus is on Him, His trustworthy character, His promise. He loves you more profoundly than you’ll even know. But the cross does give us the closest picture we have.
Christ is light. He is forgiveness. He is salvation. Confirmation is not graduation. It is just one step in your life-long baptismal journey. And it is a journey you never travel alone. May God bless each of you now and from this day forward and may the Good Shepherd, Jesus Christ, your Saviour, keep you strong until the day you meet Him face to face. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Second Sunday of Advent
Rite of Confirmation
9 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Philippians 1:9
Second Sunday of Advent (C) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 3:4-6
Theme: Grounded In History
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Your salvation is grounded in history. The means and substance of the forgiveness of your sins were not immaterial and conceptual. Christianity is not a state of mind. Christ’s blood was shed. His body was broken. Believers are reconciled to God not on the level of theoretical concept but of tangible accomplishment. To be sure these things remain mainly hidden to sinful eyes, but these substantive realities do not drain our faith of its mystery but rather highlight it. The physical resurrection of the dead will bring all these things to light. Advent directs believers to just such expectations.
The historical detail Luke uses today is significant. The circumstances surrounding the ministry of Christ are described in relevant historical terms. Unlike the mythical gods and goddesses of Greek and Roman history no embellishment or imaginary context is needed. Idols require props and ornamentation but Jesus is grounded in real and verifiable history. Judea, Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, Herod, Caiaphas, John the Baptist were the chosen places and personalities involved in the setting for Christ’s work of redemption.
The promise of Bethlehem must come to fulfillment. At that time and place, under those rulers and circumstances God prepared people for His entrance into human existence in a manner never seen before. Yes, God walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. He visited Abraham before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. He appeared to Moses in the burning bush. He manifested Himself in the holy of holies by a cloud. He intervened with power, might, judgment, majesty, and mercy in human affairs whenever He deemed it necessary. But never before had He identified so intimately with His creation. In Jesus God became man. In Jesus God became man so that people could be with God. The child in a manger would soon be a victim on the cross.
A fiery preacher named John is burdened with announcing the Messiah’s arrival. In His ministry he pulls no punches. The utterly wayward creation must come to recognition of its sin. That which is uneven must be leveled. All that is crooked must be made straight. Such frankness is still necessary to confront the sinner today. Though outwardly we might put on an appearance of readiness God sees the filthiness of the heart. He knows the crookedness of our ways and the deep ravines caused by our selfishness. The specific goal of His word of warning is to provide the avenue for the Holy Spirit to convict the heart. Repentance happens in this way. Before Christ’s death means anything to us we must be shown how desperate our situation is.
Those under the power of the law and doomed to the judgment of the world have no other rescue, no other help, no other hope. Nor do they need any other. Jesus’ sacrifice alone is sufficient to cover the sins of the entire human race. Christianity is not a religion of the ghetto or a devotion limited to certain peoples of particular times or ethnic backgrounds. Isaiah says, “The glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.”1 The gospel is the universal liberator, the global message of emancipation, the only comprehensive power that brings true freedom to every soul bound in Satan’s chains, overcome by sin’s weight and suffocated by an atmosphere filled with falsehood and deceit.
Christ offers a divine gift that no human can duplicate. The forgiveness of sins is the heart of the gospel. It is this blessing that truly determines our standard of living. We have affluence. We have medicine. We have technology. Material comforts cushion our lives. Medical technology looks after our health. Electronic communications of all types facilitate our careers and dominate our leisure. But what are all these without the forgiveness of sins? What help are these without the reconciliation of Christ? We have money but we can’t buy love, compassion and forgiveness. We have medicine but it can’t revive the withered soul. We have hi-tech communication but we often can’t manage the simplest relationships. All these things will pass away with the fallen creation.
But the words of Christ will never pass away. The apostle Peter says of believers,
“You have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”2 The Holy Spirit takes this seed, which is the word of God, and germinates it in peoples’ hearts. In this sense Christianity is truly miraculous and supernatural and not one bit reasonable and rational. If the seed were to wait for the human will and heart to embrace it with warmth it would remain cold, inert, and unmoved. Scripture testifies that humans are born spiritually blind and dead, that is the meaning of original sin. And no human or worldly influence that acts upon us from without- whether it is the most enlightened philosophy or the most generous kindness-can change that state of existence. And neither can any power we can muster from within at any age or in any circumstance revive a spirit that’s cold, hard, and dead. Any definition of original sin the fails to recognize the complete spiritual incapacitation that every human is born into falls short of the Bible’s teaching. No one possesses inherent goodness from within; we are gifted with Christ’s alien righteousness from without.
You see, grace either conquers all or it concedes to everything. That is, either grace alone accounts us righteous before God, grace alone makes us worthy to pass through heaven’s gates, grace alone gives us the peace that passes understanding; or it is at best only a supplement to what we must bring to the table. And then it is no longer grace. Grace stands alone or it does not stand. Faith only receives this gift. Good works then show that faith exists. The Scripture says “Abraham believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”3 The apostle says, “To the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness.”4
Dear friends, in this time and place the grace of God continues to be historically relevant for you. Your sins are forgiven, here, now, in this context, in this place. Baptized believers are part of the church’s history and the history of the Messiah, who has come, suffered, died, risen, ascended and will come again. Christians have the highest standard of living regardless of poverty or sickness or tough economic times because we have divine blessings. We enjoy the best food; His body and blood, we are part of the royal family; baptized into Christ’s kingdom, and we have the most secure future; a heavenly home ruled by the Lord of deliverance and compassion. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Second Sunday of Advent
9 December 2018 (from Dec 6th, 2009)
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Isaiah 40:5
2 1 Peter 1:23
3 Genesis 15:6
4 Romans 4:5
Text: Luke 3:4-6
Theme: Grounded In History
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Your salvation is grounded in history. The means and substance of the forgiveness of your sins were not immaterial and conceptual. Christianity is not a state of mind. Christ’s blood was shed. His body was broken. Believers are reconciled to God not on the level of theoretical concept but of tangible accomplishment. To be sure these things remain mainly hidden to sinful eyes, but these substantive realities do not drain our faith of its mystery but rather highlight it. The physical resurrection of the dead will bring all these things to light. Advent directs believers to just such expectations.
The historical detail Luke uses today is significant. The circumstances surrounding the ministry of Christ are described in relevant historical terms. Unlike the mythical gods and goddesses of Greek and Roman history no embellishment or imaginary context is needed. Idols require props and ornamentation but Jesus is grounded in real and verifiable history. Judea, Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate, Herod, Caiaphas, John the Baptist were the chosen places and personalities involved in the setting for Christ’s work of redemption.
The promise of Bethlehem must come to fulfillment. At that time and place, under those rulers and circumstances God prepared people for His entrance into human existence in a manner never seen before. Yes, God walked in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. He visited Abraham before the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. He appeared to Moses in the burning bush. He manifested Himself in the holy of holies by a cloud. He intervened with power, might, judgment, majesty, and mercy in human affairs whenever He deemed it necessary. But never before had He identified so intimately with His creation. In Jesus God became man. In Jesus God became man so that people could be with God. The child in a manger would soon be a victim on the cross.
A fiery preacher named John is burdened with announcing the Messiah’s arrival. In His ministry he pulls no punches. The utterly wayward creation must come to recognition of its sin. That which is uneven must be leveled. All that is crooked must be made straight. Such frankness is still necessary to confront the sinner today. Though outwardly we might put on an appearance of readiness God sees the filthiness of the heart. He knows the crookedness of our ways and the deep ravines caused by our selfishness. The specific goal of His word of warning is to provide the avenue for the Holy Spirit to convict the heart. Repentance happens in this way. Before Christ’s death means anything to us we must be shown how desperate our situation is.
Those under the power of the law and doomed to the judgment of the world have no other rescue, no other help, no other hope. Nor do they need any other. Jesus’ sacrifice alone is sufficient to cover the sins of the entire human race. Christianity is not a religion of the ghetto or a devotion limited to certain peoples of particular times or ethnic backgrounds. Isaiah says, “The glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all mankind together will see it.”1 The gospel is the universal liberator, the global message of emancipation, the only comprehensive power that brings true freedom to every soul bound in Satan’s chains, overcome by sin’s weight and suffocated by an atmosphere filled with falsehood and deceit.
Christ offers a divine gift that no human can duplicate. The forgiveness of sins is the heart of the gospel. It is this blessing that truly determines our standard of living. We have affluence. We have medicine. We have technology. Material comforts cushion our lives. Medical technology looks after our health. Electronic communications of all types facilitate our careers and dominate our leisure. But what are all these without the forgiveness of sins? What help are these without the reconciliation of Christ? We have money but we can’t buy love, compassion and forgiveness. We have medicine but it can’t revive the withered soul. We have hi-tech communication but we often can’t manage the simplest relationships. All these things will pass away with the fallen creation.
But the words of Christ will never pass away. The apostle Peter says of believers,
“You have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable, through the living and enduring word of God.”2 The Holy Spirit takes this seed, which is the word of God, and germinates it in peoples’ hearts. In this sense Christianity is truly miraculous and supernatural and not one bit reasonable and rational. If the seed were to wait for the human will and heart to embrace it with warmth it would remain cold, inert, and unmoved. Scripture testifies that humans are born spiritually blind and dead, that is the meaning of original sin. And no human or worldly influence that acts upon us from without- whether it is the most enlightened philosophy or the most generous kindness-can change that state of existence. And neither can any power we can muster from within at any age or in any circumstance revive a spirit that’s cold, hard, and dead. Any definition of original sin the fails to recognize the complete spiritual incapacitation that every human is born into falls short of the Bible’s teaching. No one possesses inherent goodness from within; we are gifted with Christ’s alien righteousness from without.
You see, grace either conquers all or it concedes to everything. That is, either grace alone accounts us righteous before God, grace alone makes us worthy to pass through heaven’s gates, grace alone gives us the peace that passes understanding; or it is at best only a supplement to what we must bring to the table. And then it is no longer grace. Grace stands alone or it does not stand. Faith only receives this gift. Good works then show that faith exists. The Scripture says “Abraham believed the Lord, and He credited it to him as righteousness.”3 The apostle says, “To the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness.”4
Dear friends, in this time and place the grace of God continues to be historically relevant for you. Your sins are forgiven, here, now, in this context, in this place. Baptized believers are part of the church’s history and the history of the Messiah, who has come, suffered, died, risen, ascended and will come again. Christians have the highest standard of living regardless of poverty or sickness or tough economic times because we have divine blessings. We enjoy the best food; His body and blood, we are part of the royal family; baptized into Christ’s kingdom, and we have the most secure future; a heavenly home ruled by the Lord of deliverance and compassion. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Second Sunday of Advent
9 December 2018 (from Dec 6th, 2009)
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Isaiah 40:5
2 1 Peter 1:23
3 Genesis 15:6
4 Romans 4:5
Thursday, December 6, 2018
Funeral of Clarence Joppich (4 December 2018)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 11:25
Theme: The Resurrection and the Life
Dear family, friends, and loved ones of Clarrie; Christine, Lynn, Paul, Denise, Elizabethand especially you, Melva
Words, even human words, can be powerful. They can be devastating (“I’m sorry, your cancer is terminal”), or they can be revitalizing (Congratulations, you have a healthy baby girl!”). Still, human words are a medium with limited facility. Divine words, however, have the capacity to command and create what they convey. And those are the words we are interested in at this hour. Jesus said to the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with Me in paradise.”1 That’s exactly what the Saviour said to Clarrie last Tuesday. Clarrie is at peace. He has been crowned with life. Jesus also said, “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”2 And Clarrie will be there too, at the bodily resurrection on that spectacular final day. Thanks be to God for His immeasurable love!
As we reflect on Clarrie’s call to glory its fitting that we reflect on our own mortality. To do that constructively requires considering our own status before God. Words of confession are also powerful when they correspond to truth. Only particular words will prove true. When it comes to being worthy to live in God’s presence all of us must say, “I am not,” otherwise we are arrogant, naïve, or in denial. I am not sinless. I am not faithful. I am not flawless. I am not blameless. I’m not a model husband. I’m not a perfect mother. I’m not a devoted friend. I do not, and cannot, and will not ever meet the standard of holiness necessary to impress the Almighty. That cold hard truth doesn’t leave us in a comfortable position before God. Clarrie was also one of the “am nots”. He understood. Sin is no trivial or temporary predicament.
But there was One, and One only, who is not included among the “am nots”. Jesus said, “I am.” I am the good shepherd, the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”3 “I am the living bread that come down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever.”4 “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”5 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”6 “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”7
Clarrie Joppich believed those words of the Saviour. Clarrie had determination. (Some might use even stronger descriptions) Anyone who didn’t know that didn’t know him very well. He wasn’t afraid to voice his opinion. He had a passion to share God’s word, recording many worship services and other seminars and distributing them. He was a faithful attender in God’s house right up until the end. In his daily prayers Clarrie regularly offered to the Father in heaven those words given to us by the Son, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”8. God’s will has now come to fulfillment. It was not His desire that Clarrie spend another Christmas here. It was His will that Clarrie begin his eternal celebration of Easter. Like all of us, Clarrie was challenged by God’s will many times in his life. No one loses a daughter at the tender age of ten and isn’t gutted by grief.
Melva, Clarrie’s remains will be laid to rest not far from here. Undoubtedly his gravesite will become a focal point of your grieving. Legitimately so. Yet, as members of Him who is the God of the living, not of the dead9, you can be no nearer to Clarrie than when you partake of Holy Communion. In the mystery of that blessing believers share in the holy things of God unhindered by time and space. The sacrament is a meal that gives us a foretaste of eternity. It takes us to the boundary of earth and heaven. When we kneel before the altar we intrude on the easement of Christ’s kingdom. Yet, we are not trespassing, we are honoured guests, more than that, we are heirs. Clarrie was promised a baptismal inheritance. God will not disappoint him.
Dear friends, it’s often coldest right before dawn. The length of night takes its toll on the warmth of the day, draining it of its strength. Yet when the sun breaks over the horizon, the fear of night is quickly dispelled. And so, it is in our journey in this life. The shadows of our mortality lengthen, the darkness encroaches, our vitality is spent. Yet, in an instant the Son of righteousness shines upon us. The Spirit says, “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperisahble.”10 And then He who is the resurrection and the life will animate us with peace and joy beyond imagination. Our resurrected bodies won’t be unfamiliar to us, but our capacity to appreciate the Holy Trinity will be profound.
I had the privilege of speaking the Word of God to Clarrie shortly before he drew his last breath. Some might say that’s the moment of truth, the end of the journey when mortality is faced with no strength or capacity to stave it off any longer. Confession, conviction, hope, fear, mystery; all are validated or eviscerated. But it’s not necessary to collapse all the drama into that point. Yes, Satan is busy casting shadows of darkness and doubt, but God doesn’t forsake His beloved in the hour of need. “The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”11 It isn’t necessary to collapse all the drama into that moment, because faithful Christians build immunity to the threats of Satan right throughout their baptismal live. It’s part and parcel with the Spirit’s work.
The Son of God shed His blood on the cross for Clarence Joppich, for you, for me, for every person. He cancelled our debt of sin. He rested a short time in the grave before rising to life. Believers need not fear closing their eyes the final time. In a moment we are in the brightness of the eternal day. Weakness is turned to strength, sorrow is turned to joy, sickness is replaced by health. Fear of what may lie beyond disappears in the experience of comfort and peace. In the presence of the Saviour we will be utterly in awe but completely at ease. In the presence of the Trinity we will be enthralled beyond description, but we will be fully relaxed. All paradoxes will be resolved, and all mysteries will be revealed. Let us rejoice that the Lord has called Clarrie home! Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Clarence Martin Joppich
4 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Luke 23:43 2 John 6:40
3 John 10:11 4 John 6:51
5 John 8:12 6 John 14:6
7 John 11:25-26 8 Matthew 6:10
9 See Mark 12:27 10 1 Corinthians 15:51-52
11 John 1:5
Text: John 11:25
Theme: The Resurrection and the Life
Dear family, friends, and loved ones of Clarrie; Christine, Lynn, Paul, Denise, Elizabethand especially you, Melva
Words, even human words, can be powerful. They can be devastating (“I’m sorry, your cancer is terminal”), or they can be revitalizing (Congratulations, you have a healthy baby girl!”). Still, human words are a medium with limited facility. Divine words, however, have the capacity to command and create what they convey. And those are the words we are interested in at this hour. Jesus said to the thief on the cross, “Today you will be with Me in paradise.”1 That’s exactly what the Saviour said to Clarrie last Tuesday. Clarrie is at peace. He has been crowned with life. Jesus also said, “My Father’s will is that everyone who looks to the Son and believes in Him shall have eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day.”2 And Clarrie will be there too, at the bodily resurrection on that spectacular final day. Thanks be to God for His immeasurable love!
As we reflect on Clarrie’s call to glory its fitting that we reflect on our own mortality. To do that constructively requires considering our own status before God. Words of confession are also powerful when they correspond to truth. Only particular words will prove true. When it comes to being worthy to live in God’s presence all of us must say, “I am not,” otherwise we are arrogant, naïve, or in denial. I am not sinless. I am not faithful. I am not flawless. I am not blameless. I’m not a model husband. I’m not a perfect mother. I’m not a devoted friend. I do not, and cannot, and will not ever meet the standard of holiness necessary to impress the Almighty. That cold hard truth doesn’t leave us in a comfortable position before God. Clarrie was also one of the “am nots”. He understood. Sin is no trivial or temporary predicament.
But there was One, and One only, who is not included among the “am nots”. Jesus said, “I am.” I am the good shepherd, the good shepherd lays down His life for the sheep.”3 “I am the living bread that come down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread he will live forever.”4 “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”5 “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”6 “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”7
Clarrie Joppich believed those words of the Saviour. Clarrie had determination. (Some might use even stronger descriptions) Anyone who didn’t know that didn’t know him very well. He wasn’t afraid to voice his opinion. He had a passion to share God’s word, recording many worship services and other seminars and distributing them. He was a faithful attender in God’s house right up until the end. In his daily prayers Clarrie regularly offered to the Father in heaven those words given to us by the Son, “Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven.”8. God’s will has now come to fulfillment. It was not His desire that Clarrie spend another Christmas here. It was His will that Clarrie begin his eternal celebration of Easter. Like all of us, Clarrie was challenged by God’s will many times in his life. No one loses a daughter at the tender age of ten and isn’t gutted by grief.
Melva, Clarrie’s remains will be laid to rest not far from here. Undoubtedly his gravesite will become a focal point of your grieving. Legitimately so. Yet, as members of Him who is the God of the living, not of the dead9, you can be no nearer to Clarrie than when you partake of Holy Communion. In the mystery of that blessing believers share in the holy things of God unhindered by time and space. The sacrament is a meal that gives us a foretaste of eternity. It takes us to the boundary of earth and heaven. When we kneel before the altar we intrude on the easement of Christ’s kingdom. Yet, we are not trespassing, we are honoured guests, more than that, we are heirs. Clarrie was promised a baptismal inheritance. God will not disappoint him.
Dear friends, it’s often coldest right before dawn. The length of night takes its toll on the warmth of the day, draining it of its strength. Yet when the sun breaks over the horizon, the fear of night is quickly dispelled. And so, it is in our journey in this life. The shadows of our mortality lengthen, the darkness encroaches, our vitality is spent. Yet, in an instant the Son of righteousness shines upon us. The Spirit says, “We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound and the dead will be raised imperisahble.”10 And then He who is the resurrection and the life will animate us with peace and joy beyond imagination. Our resurrected bodies won’t be unfamiliar to us, but our capacity to appreciate the Holy Trinity will be profound.
I had the privilege of speaking the Word of God to Clarrie shortly before he drew his last breath. Some might say that’s the moment of truth, the end of the journey when mortality is faced with no strength or capacity to stave it off any longer. Confession, conviction, hope, fear, mystery; all are validated or eviscerated. But it’s not necessary to collapse all the drama into that point. Yes, Satan is busy casting shadows of darkness and doubt, but God doesn’t forsake His beloved in the hour of need. “The light shines in the darkness and the darkness has not overcome it.”11 It isn’t necessary to collapse all the drama into that moment, because faithful Christians build immunity to the threats of Satan right throughout their baptismal live. It’s part and parcel with the Spirit’s work.
The Son of God shed His blood on the cross for Clarence Joppich, for you, for me, for every person. He cancelled our debt of sin. He rested a short time in the grave before rising to life. Believers need not fear closing their eyes the final time. In a moment we are in the brightness of the eternal day. Weakness is turned to strength, sorrow is turned to joy, sickness is replaced by health. Fear of what may lie beyond disappears in the experience of comfort and peace. In the presence of the Saviour we will be utterly in awe but completely at ease. In the presence of the Trinity we will be enthralled beyond description, but we will be fully relaxed. All paradoxes will be resolved, and all mysteries will be revealed. Let us rejoice that the Lord has called Clarrie home! Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Clarence Martin Joppich
4 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Luke 23:43 2 John 6:40
3 John 10:11 4 John 6:51
5 John 8:12 6 John 14:6
7 John 11:25-26 8 Matthew 6:10
9 See Mark 12:27 10 1 Corinthians 15:51-52
11 John 1:5
Monday, December 3, 2018
First Sunday of Advent (C) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 21:33
Theme: Advent Promises
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The One who first came in humility will come again in glory. Advent means ‘coming’. Advent is a time for preparation. It is a time for repentance. It is a time for renewal and refocus. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.”1
The business of advent gets in your face and won’t be brushed aside. It’s foolish to compartmentalise the Second Coming into a separate section of your beliefs. Denial won’t distance you from the reality. The imminent return of Christ must shape, and reshape, your entire worldview.
Today the Saviour issues a clear warning about the false sense of security that can build when we become over-occupied with the busyness of this world. But complacency is not easily overcome by the re-introduction of self-discipline. Precedent is a powerful mentor. Constancy teaches the mind that things will continue to be as they always have. When the evidence seems lacking that change will come abruptly it’s difficult to stay prepared. The challenge is not unique to the current times. “Scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, "Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation."2 Is the attitude of the culture any different today?
No wonder the Lord Himself is so diligent about calling us to remain spiritually sober. He says, “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot-they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all- so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.”3
And so, it will be in our times. Looking back, it will be said, “They were eating and drinking, not for necessity but for indulgence. They were occupied with making money, building reputations, establishing legacies; they debased marriage, practiced sexual immorality, even lost track of their gender. They devalued the life of the unborn, the aged, and the otherwise, unwanted. Some of these things they did out of selfishness and arrogance, others with high-minded intention of promoting liberty and progress, and then… judgment came. Judgment will come and woe to those who think that by their own virtue they will be able to stand in the judgment! No one is holy. Not one is righteous.
The announcement of advent is that God intervenes for the benefit of sinners. The Righteous One comes for the unrighteous. He brings forgiveness, hope, and salvation. He transforms hearts, bends wills, and changes minds. He doesn’t pass through for a visit but stays with His people. The Holy Spirit’s work never ceases in this life. He continually attends to us through the word and sacraments, not simply to educate our minds, but to cleanse our souls. Luther says it is the Holy Spirit’s work “daily to dispense forgiveness, until we attain to that life where there will be no more forgiveness, but only perfectly pure and holy people, full of godliness and righteousness, removed and free from sin, death, and all evil, in a new, immortal, and glorified body.”4 Imagine it, the life where the need for forgiveness will be obsolete! We will be freed from all the constraints, limitations, and punishments of this fallen existence. The coming Saviour promises these blessings to us. He has secured them.
Dear friends, one of the marks of our times is crisis a regarding the source and reliability of truth. The secular world has largely turned to scientism. Science has been made into an idol. But science properly understood, is just the investigation of God’s wonderful creation. Science has nothing to say about spiritual and eternal things. Nevertheless, there is much confusion. Yet, the gospel is never characterised by ambiguity. Any redefinition or reinterpretation is a falsification. The Scripture says, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”5 The Scriptures warn us regularly to be aware of false prophets and false teachings.
Governments around the world constantly employ new measures to prevent their currencies from being counterfeited. It’s often not easy to tell the difference between a fake and the real thing. The US Department of Treasury estimates there is about 70 million US dollars’ worth of counterfeit money in circulation. It’s a small percentage of the total. Since the creation of the Euro, counterfeiting has been a much bigger problem there.
The same danger faces us with the gospel. The best way to identify fake money is to know the real thing very well. Constant immersion in the Word of God is the best way to determine a falsified gospel. The Holy Spirit equips us for that task through regular contact with the truth. Anything that calls into question the integrity of the Holy Scriptures will, sooner or later, cast doubt on the teachings found therein. We’ve been seeing the results in the West for a long time now.
The gospel itself cannot be preserved apart from the authority of the Bible. People will question again, as they have in the past “Was Jesus really the Son of God? Was He able to die for my sins? Did He really rise physically from the grave? Is sin really so terrible that I face eternal condemnation for it anyway?” When niggling doubt turns to open scepticism faith is lost. Advent is a season for the renewal of faith. Today it is the beginning of a new Church Year. The One whose birth in the manger we will celebrate in coming weeks is the same Messiah who will come again in glory. He died on the cross. He rose again from the grave. This magnificent news has not changed, and people still need it- we need it- as much as ever.
The divine wrath has been appeased. The debt of sin has been relieved not by any process of negotiations or contribution from sinners. Jesus, the incarnate Son of God gave Himself, willingly, freely, and fully to atone for all your transgressions. You were washed with baptismal water, cleansing your soul from every guilt, spot, and stain. You are children of the Father, fed at His holy table. The Holy Spirit dwells in, with, and among you. He is your companion, your advocate, and your intercessor. Satan cannot control you. Death need cause you no anxiety. All of the menacing, or residual darkness and doubt of this mortal life will vanish like a shadow when the light of His immortal face beams upon you. Advent makes to us some powerful promises. Not one of them will fail. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
First Sunday of Advent
2 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Luke 21:33 2 2 Peter 3:3-4
3 Luke 17:26-30 4 Large Catechism
5 Galatians 1:8
Text: Luke 21:33
Theme: Advent Promises
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The One who first came in humility will come again in glory. Advent means ‘coming’. Advent is a time for preparation. It is a time for repentance. It is a time for renewal and refocus. Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away.”1
The business of advent gets in your face and won’t be brushed aside. It’s foolish to compartmentalise the Second Coming into a separate section of your beliefs. Denial won’t distance you from the reality. The imminent return of Christ must shape, and reshape, your entire worldview.
Today the Saviour issues a clear warning about the false sense of security that can build when we become over-occupied with the busyness of this world. But complacency is not easily overcome by the re-introduction of self-discipline. Precedent is a powerful mentor. Constancy teaches the mind that things will continue to be as they always have. When the evidence seems lacking that change will come abruptly it’s difficult to stay prepared. The challenge is not unique to the current times. “Scoffers will come in the last days with scoffing, following their own sinful desires. They will say, "Where is the promise of His coming? For ever since the fathers fell asleep, all things are continuing as they were from the beginning of creation."2 Is the attitude of the culture any different today?
No wonder the Lord Himself is so diligent about calling us to remain spiritually sober. He says, “Just as it was in the days of Noah, so will it be in the days of the Son of Man. They were eating and drinking and marrying and being given in marriage, until the day when Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. Likewise, just as it was in the days of Lot-they were eating and drinking, buying and selling, planting and building, but on the day when Lot went out from Sodom, fire and sulfur rained from heaven and destroyed them all- so will it be on the day when the Son of Man is revealed.”3
And so, it will be in our times. Looking back, it will be said, “They were eating and drinking, not for necessity but for indulgence. They were occupied with making money, building reputations, establishing legacies; they debased marriage, practiced sexual immorality, even lost track of their gender. They devalued the life of the unborn, the aged, and the otherwise, unwanted. Some of these things they did out of selfishness and arrogance, others with high-minded intention of promoting liberty and progress, and then… judgment came. Judgment will come and woe to those who think that by their own virtue they will be able to stand in the judgment! No one is holy. Not one is righteous.
The announcement of advent is that God intervenes for the benefit of sinners. The Righteous One comes for the unrighteous. He brings forgiveness, hope, and salvation. He transforms hearts, bends wills, and changes minds. He doesn’t pass through for a visit but stays with His people. The Holy Spirit’s work never ceases in this life. He continually attends to us through the word and sacraments, not simply to educate our minds, but to cleanse our souls. Luther says it is the Holy Spirit’s work “daily to dispense forgiveness, until we attain to that life where there will be no more forgiveness, but only perfectly pure and holy people, full of godliness and righteousness, removed and free from sin, death, and all evil, in a new, immortal, and glorified body.”4 Imagine it, the life where the need for forgiveness will be obsolete! We will be freed from all the constraints, limitations, and punishments of this fallen existence. The coming Saviour promises these blessings to us. He has secured them.
Dear friends, one of the marks of our times is crisis a regarding the source and reliability of truth. The secular world has largely turned to scientism. Science has been made into an idol. But science properly understood, is just the investigation of God’s wonderful creation. Science has nothing to say about spiritual and eternal things. Nevertheless, there is much confusion. Yet, the gospel is never characterised by ambiguity. Any redefinition or reinterpretation is a falsification. The Scripture says, “But even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.”5 The Scriptures warn us regularly to be aware of false prophets and false teachings.
Governments around the world constantly employ new measures to prevent their currencies from being counterfeited. It’s often not easy to tell the difference between a fake and the real thing. The US Department of Treasury estimates there is about 70 million US dollars’ worth of counterfeit money in circulation. It’s a small percentage of the total. Since the creation of the Euro, counterfeiting has been a much bigger problem there.
The same danger faces us with the gospel. The best way to identify fake money is to know the real thing very well. Constant immersion in the Word of God is the best way to determine a falsified gospel. The Holy Spirit equips us for that task through regular contact with the truth. Anything that calls into question the integrity of the Holy Scriptures will, sooner or later, cast doubt on the teachings found therein. We’ve been seeing the results in the West for a long time now.
The gospel itself cannot be preserved apart from the authority of the Bible. People will question again, as they have in the past “Was Jesus really the Son of God? Was He able to die for my sins? Did He really rise physically from the grave? Is sin really so terrible that I face eternal condemnation for it anyway?” When niggling doubt turns to open scepticism faith is lost. Advent is a season for the renewal of faith. Today it is the beginning of a new Church Year. The One whose birth in the manger we will celebrate in coming weeks is the same Messiah who will come again in glory. He died on the cross. He rose again from the grave. This magnificent news has not changed, and people still need it- we need it- as much as ever.
The divine wrath has been appeased. The debt of sin has been relieved not by any process of negotiations or contribution from sinners. Jesus, the incarnate Son of God gave Himself, willingly, freely, and fully to atone for all your transgressions. You were washed with baptismal water, cleansing your soul from every guilt, spot, and stain. You are children of the Father, fed at His holy table. The Holy Spirit dwells in, with, and among you. He is your companion, your advocate, and your intercessor. Satan cannot control you. Death need cause you no anxiety. All of the menacing, or residual darkness and doubt of this mortal life will vanish like a shadow when the light of His immortal face beams upon you. Advent makes to us some powerful promises. Not one of them will fail. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
First Sunday of Advent
2 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Luke 21:33 2 2 Peter 3:3-4
3 Luke 17:26-30 4 Large Catechism
5 Galatians 1:8
Saturday, December 1, 2018
John Platten Funeral (December 1, 2018)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Revelation 7:14
Theme: Freed By The Blood Of The Lamb
Dear family, friends, and loved ones of John, Terry, Karen, Denise, and especially you; Dorothy,
Time waits for no man. And death waits only until its divinely appointed hour. Then, the inevitable must come to pass. Instantly the threshold is crossed. Soul and body are severed, and as the Scripture says, “The dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.”1 The last breath is taken. The eyes close for the final time. The believer wakes to the brightness of the eternal realm. The angels rejoice, and God receives back His own. John has been released from all worry, care and anxiety. He is freed from all pain, suffering, and fear. He has been crowned with life. He is in the presence of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thanks be to God!
As we reflect today upon the life God granted to John it’s fitting for us to be mindful of our own mortality. A Christian funeral isn’t one-dimensional. It’s not merely an occasion to stop and honour the life that was. Our purpose here isn’t restricted to looking back over the horizon of John’s earthly life alone. The entire objective of Christ’s intervention into our fallen world is to restore what was meant to be. John now enjoys unending life. He has taken his final place in that mystical communion of God’s people that transcends time and space.
Death was not in the original equation. Death is the consequence of rebellion against God. All must face the guilt of their sins. Sin separates from God. But eternal separation was never God’s intention. Of course, people still chose it for themselves, decide to go their own way. Yet only Christ could atone for the sins of others, only He could overcome death. Therefore, the Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”1 So, this existence is not the be all and end all. It’s a difficult message to advocate in our self-indulged, here-and-now-focused society.
Yet, it’s a message that’s needed as much as ever. There is only one way to cross from this mortal life into the heavenly kingdom and none of us holds it in our power. We are saved by grace, though faith or not at all. Christ was crucified for our sins. He was raised to bring us life. The apostle summarizes saying, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”2
It’s difficult to comprehend how much society changed during John’s lifetime. John first came to Loxton with a horse and cart. Imagine trying that today! The practical differences in the way we live our daily lives compared to 60 or 70 years ago are profound. Think only of the advances in medicine, transportation, and communication. Yet, people are fundamentally no different in any age. We are sinners in need of the grace of God. John was born, just like everyone else, in a state of alienation from God. But in baptism the Holy Spirit claimed him as a child of God granting him faith and the promise of the forgiveness of sins in Christ.
John adapted to the changes over the decades mostly with determination and good humour.
John’s dad was in the army. That reality alone tends to produce a mature perspective on life at an earlier age. John was resourceful in negotiating his way through life. That doesn’t mean he didn’t have challenges, struggles, and even regrets. Sometimes no one can say what regrets, if any, a person may have had in his or her life, what confessions are uttered to God on the deathbed. We often hold them tightly in our possession either too wise to trouble those who may be hurt by them, or too ashamed to let them be resolved by those who would readily forgive us. Sometimes both motives are at play. But God knows. Our deepest secrets are open before Him.
We should consider carefully those things which we should take to our graves. What are our motives? What are our fears? Who might be helped? Who might be hurt? Like repentance toward God, pursuit of reconciliation with others should never be put off until conditions seem more favourable. Maybe it will require decisive humility? Maybe you can muster nothing more than a strained plea to the Almighty that He take in hand what you don’t have the strength or integrity to do?
God forgives. He is full of grace. He is quick to pardon. He hurries to embrace us like the father rushing to his prodigal son. He seeks our reconciliation like the Good Shepherd looking for the lost sheep. The Saviour didn’t go to the cross for nothing. He doesn’t poor out His blood without purpose. Recipients of divine forgiveness are privileged to offer that forgiveness to others. The Scripture says, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”3
Some months back now I ran into John in the Berri Plaza. It was the first time I had really had a decent chat with him. He spoke honestly and transparently about his health struggles. I could tell it was more than just a casual conversation. I believe John knew already then, that God was preparing him to be called home relatively soon. From God’s perspective it was exactly the right time. It was not the will of the Lord that John enjoy another Christmas here. Now he experiences an unending Easter. Time waits for no man, but eternity takes no thought of time. Ceaseless enjoyment of the company of Christ hardly registers with us now even with our best efforts at imagining. But faith accepts the mystery on the authority of God’s promise.
Dorothy, more than sixty years of marriage is a feat that will not be matched by nearly as many couples in the coming generation. It truly was, ‘til death do you part.’ No one will be able to replace John as a husband, or a as a father or grandfather. It’s appropriate to cherish those memories as you grieve. You’ve already grieved through the loss of a daughter together. But grief is not the final word. Our hope in God is not misplaced. The Holy Spirit will not forsake believers. His truth is indestructible. Christ has broken the power of death. The tomb could not hold Him. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”4
John has been freed by the power of Christ’s blood. Thanks be to God that He has received John into the place prepared for him by the Saviour. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of John Evan Platten
1 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Ecclesiastes 12:7 2 Romans 9:9-10
3 Colossians 3:13 4 John 11:25-26
Text: Revelation 7:14
Theme: Freed By The Blood Of The Lamb
Dear family, friends, and loved ones of John, Terry, Karen, Denise, and especially you; Dorothy,
Time waits for no man. And death waits only until its divinely appointed hour. Then, the inevitable must come to pass. Instantly the threshold is crossed. Soul and body are severed, and as the Scripture says, “The dust returns to the earth as it was, and the spirit returns to God who gave it.”1 The last breath is taken. The eyes close for the final time. The believer wakes to the brightness of the eternal realm. The angels rejoice, and God receives back His own. John has been released from all worry, care and anxiety. He is freed from all pain, suffering, and fear. He has been crowned with life. He is in the presence of Almighty God, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Thanks be to God!
As we reflect today upon the life God granted to John it’s fitting for us to be mindful of our own mortality. A Christian funeral isn’t one-dimensional. It’s not merely an occasion to stop and honour the life that was. Our purpose here isn’t restricted to looking back over the horizon of John’s earthly life alone. The entire objective of Christ’s intervention into our fallen world is to restore what was meant to be. John now enjoys unending life. He has taken his final place in that mystical communion of God’s people that transcends time and space.
Death was not in the original equation. Death is the consequence of rebellion against God. All must face the guilt of their sins. Sin separates from God. But eternal separation was never God’s intention. Of course, people still chose it for themselves, decide to go their own way. Yet only Christ could atone for the sins of others, only He could overcome death. Therefore, the Bible says, “The wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”1 So, this existence is not the be all and end all. It’s a difficult message to advocate in our self-indulged, here-and-now-focused society.
Yet, it’s a message that’s needed as much as ever. There is only one way to cross from this mortal life into the heavenly kingdom and none of us holds it in our power. We are saved by grace, though faith or not at all. Christ was crucified for our sins. He was raised to bring us life. The apostle summarizes saying, “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”2
It’s difficult to comprehend how much society changed during John’s lifetime. John first came to Loxton with a horse and cart. Imagine trying that today! The practical differences in the way we live our daily lives compared to 60 or 70 years ago are profound. Think only of the advances in medicine, transportation, and communication. Yet, people are fundamentally no different in any age. We are sinners in need of the grace of God. John was born, just like everyone else, in a state of alienation from God. But in baptism the Holy Spirit claimed him as a child of God granting him faith and the promise of the forgiveness of sins in Christ.
John adapted to the changes over the decades mostly with determination and good humour.
John’s dad was in the army. That reality alone tends to produce a mature perspective on life at an earlier age. John was resourceful in negotiating his way through life. That doesn’t mean he didn’t have challenges, struggles, and even regrets. Sometimes no one can say what regrets, if any, a person may have had in his or her life, what confessions are uttered to God on the deathbed. We often hold them tightly in our possession either too wise to trouble those who may be hurt by them, or too ashamed to let them be resolved by those who would readily forgive us. Sometimes both motives are at play. But God knows. Our deepest secrets are open before Him.
We should consider carefully those things which we should take to our graves. What are our motives? What are our fears? Who might be helped? Who might be hurt? Like repentance toward God, pursuit of reconciliation with others should never be put off until conditions seem more favourable. Maybe it will require decisive humility? Maybe you can muster nothing more than a strained plea to the Almighty that He take in hand what you don’t have the strength or integrity to do?
God forgives. He is full of grace. He is quick to pardon. He hurries to embrace us like the father rushing to his prodigal son. He seeks our reconciliation like the Good Shepherd looking for the lost sheep. The Saviour didn’t go to the cross for nothing. He doesn’t poor out His blood without purpose. Recipients of divine forgiveness are privileged to offer that forgiveness to others. The Scripture says, “Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you may have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you.”3
Some months back now I ran into John in the Berri Plaza. It was the first time I had really had a decent chat with him. He spoke honestly and transparently about his health struggles. I could tell it was more than just a casual conversation. I believe John knew already then, that God was preparing him to be called home relatively soon. From God’s perspective it was exactly the right time. It was not the will of the Lord that John enjoy another Christmas here. Now he experiences an unending Easter. Time waits for no man, but eternity takes no thought of time. Ceaseless enjoyment of the company of Christ hardly registers with us now even with our best efforts at imagining. But faith accepts the mystery on the authority of God’s promise.
Dorothy, more than sixty years of marriage is a feat that will not be matched by nearly as many couples in the coming generation. It truly was, ‘til death do you part.’ No one will be able to replace John as a husband, or a as a father or grandfather. It’s appropriate to cherish those memories as you grieve. You’ve already grieved through the loss of a daughter together. But grief is not the final word. Our hope in God is not misplaced. The Holy Spirit will not forsake believers. His truth is indestructible. Christ has broken the power of death. The tomb could not hold Him. Jesus said, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”4
John has been freed by the power of Christ’s blood. Thanks be to God that He has received John into the place prepared for him by the Saviour. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of John Evan Platten
1 December 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Ecclesiastes 12:7 2 Romans 9:9-10
3 Colossians 3:13 4 John 11:25-26
Tuesday, November 27, 2018
Last Sunday of the Church Year (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 5:22
Theme: Entrusted To The Son
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
You will be summoned. On that great and awesome day when the trumpet sounds, and the angels stride forth attending the Son of Man in His glory. You will be there, present with that great gathering of mortals in the company of celestial beings. We cannot now fathom the nature of that assembly. It has no precedent. It will not be duplicated. It will be a time of terror. It will be an occasion of joy. It will unveil mysteries too profound to describe until then. It will be the end of all history. It will be the consummation of our eternal union with the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, saints and angels.
At the coming of Christ in glory we will witness the judgment and acknowledgment of all accomplishments and all failures; of the great and the small. Every Tower of Babel will be revealed for what it is. Every idol will be demolished. As the Scripture says, “And the idols shall utterly pass away”.1 But each monument to the merciful Lord will be honoured. Every holy work will be exalted. Every selfless sacrifice throughout the history of time will be extolled. The people of God will be rescued. The faithful will receive the crown of life. “Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'”2
No one will stand to challenge His authority. No one will question His decrees. The words of the Psalmist will come to fruition, “The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.”3 And what is the nature of His authority? He is the Sovereign of the universe. Listen again to the words of the Risen Lord, “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom He is pleased to give it. Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son…For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself. And He has given Him the authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.”4
Imagine the shock of those who failed to believe that every sin will be brought into judgment? Imagine the horror of being condemned for transgressions the world labelled as good deeds? No wonder the Scripture says, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.”5 The very thought should drive us to repentance and cause us to confess every iniquity to the One who alone has the power to pardon or condemn. There will be no second chances on the Last Day.
When will that day come? We do not know. But we do know life is a pilgrimage. We’re not sitting around twiddling our thumbs until Christ returns. We are hard-pressed by Satan every hour. The temptation of sin is ever before us. Even in our frailty we are ambassadors of truth and light in a world often mired in darkness and falsehood. We are givers and receivers of love and faithfulness in our varied vocations as husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees, friends, and neighbours.
The challenge is to never lose sight of what matters in the end. The nonessentials in life cannot be allowed to squeeze out holy truth. To His good friend Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary."6 Maybe it’s a long way to the bottom of the list of things that cause you anxiety? Maybe you’re so overwhelmed you don’t know where to start? Or maybe it’s one thing? Perhaps a singular vexing trouble that consumes your time and energy like a black hole? Maybe it’s a cluster of unhealthy cycles in relationships? Maybe it’s a serious or nagging health issue? Maybe you’re struggling with lack or purpose or meaning in life? Maybe you’re just trying to survive from one day to the next? If any of these are true for you, you are not alone. The holy God journeys with you every hour.
Consideration of our mortality is confronting therefore many prefer to avoid the subject entirely. Fear of the darkness beyond can be immobilising. But that doesn’t change reality. How can sinners cross into the heavenly light? They can and do, as the Redeemer says, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”7
Christ was not afraid to enter the darkness. He did not turn away because of the enormity of the task. He was not deterred by self-absorption or side-tracked by lesser tasks. He journeyed straight to the cross. Only three years of public ministry were needed to bring things to a head. He didn’t try to avoid trial. He didn’t seek to escape the authorities. He didn’t challenge His unjust sentence. He didn’t resist His cruel torturers. He carried His own cross as far as He could. And there, on Calvary, when He met His death He tasted death for all of us as the Scripture says, “… He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.”8 You see, that’s the miracle of the gospel: The Son of God went to Calvary for you, on your behalf, in your place. He slammed shut the portal to hell so that you could be spared from its horrors. He rose again on Easter morning.
The apostle John, in his great vision of the heavenly realm had an angel speak to him who said, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are the true words of God."9 These words the Spirit had recorded for our encouragement. Blessed are those who are invited. Blessed are you, guest of the King. Honoured are you, cherished child of God. Here, in His house, you dine with the King of kings and Lord of lords. But you are no stranger to His house. You are no occasional guest in His palace. You are adopted into His family. You have a permanent place in His dynasty.
Today is the final Sunday in the Church Year. The promise of the Coming One rings out with clarity. You will be summoned. But you will not be forsaken. Your inheritance is among the baptized. The creator of all that exists will come again in His glory. You will be there. None will miss the spectacle. The prince as well as the pauper, the master and the servant, the highborn and those of humble birth, your friends, and those at enmity with you; all will behold His face. The wicked will suffer separation. Believers will be received into that paradise beyond knowing. “I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.”10 “For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.”11 Thanks be to God! Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Last Sunday of the Church Year
25 November 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Isaiah 2:18 2 Matthew 25:34-36
3 Psalm 50:1 4 John 5:21-22, 26-27
5 Revelation 1:7 6 Luke 10:41-42
7 John 5:24 8 Hebrews 2:9
9 Revelation 19:9 10 John 5:25
11 1 Corinthians 15:52
Text: John 5:22
Theme: Entrusted To The Son
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
You will be summoned. On that great and awesome day when the trumpet sounds, and the angels stride forth attending the Son of Man in His glory. You will be there, present with that great gathering of mortals in the company of celestial beings. We cannot now fathom the nature of that assembly. It has no precedent. It will not be duplicated. It will be a time of terror. It will be an occasion of joy. It will unveil mysteries too profound to describe until then. It will be the end of all history. It will be the consummation of our eternal union with the triune God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, saints and angels.
At the coming of Christ in glory we will witness the judgment and acknowledgment of all accomplishments and all failures; of the great and the small. Every Tower of Babel will be revealed for what it is. Every idol will be demolished. As the Scripture says, “And the idols shall utterly pass away”.1 But each monument to the merciful Lord will be honoured. Every holy work will be exalted. Every selfless sacrifice throughout the history of time will be extolled. The people of God will be rescued. The faithful will receive the crown of life. “Then the King will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.'”2
No one will stand to challenge His authority. No one will question His decrees. The words of the Psalmist will come to fruition, “The Mighty One, God the Lord, speaks and summons the earth from the rising of the sun to the place where it sets.”3 And what is the nature of His authority? He is the Sovereign of the universe. Listen again to the words of the Risen Lord, “For just as the Father raises the dead and gives them life, even so the Son gives life to whom He is pleased to give it. Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all judgment to the Son…For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself. And He has given Him the authority to judge because He is the Son of Man.”4
Imagine the shock of those who failed to believe that every sin will be brought into judgment? Imagine the horror of being condemned for transgressions the world labelled as good deeds? No wonder the Scripture says, “Behold, he is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who pierced him, and all tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.”5 The very thought should drive us to repentance and cause us to confess every iniquity to the One who alone has the power to pardon or condemn. There will be no second chances on the Last Day.
When will that day come? We do not know. But we do know life is a pilgrimage. We’re not sitting around twiddling our thumbs until Christ returns. We are hard-pressed by Satan every hour. The temptation of sin is ever before us. Even in our frailty we are ambassadors of truth and light in a world often mired in darkness and falsehood. We are givers and receivers of love and faithfulness in our varied vocations as husbands and wives, parents and children, employers and employees, friends, and neighbours.
The challenge is to never lose sight of what matters in the end. The nonessentials in life cannot be allowed to squeeze out holy truth. To His good friend Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary."6 Maybe it’s a long way to the bottom of the list of things that cause you anxiety? Maybe you’re so overwhelmed you don’t know where to start? Or maybe it’s one thing? Perhaps a singular vexing trouble that consumes your time and energy like a black hole? Maybe it’s a cluster of unhealthy cycles in relationships? Maybe it’s a serious or nagging health issue? Maybe you’re struggling with lack or purpose or meaning in life? Maybe you’re just trying to survive from one day to the next? If any of these are true for you, you are not alone. The holy God journeys with you every hour.
Consideration of our mortality is confronting therefore many prefer to avoid the subject entirely. Fear of the darkness beyond can be immobilising. But that doesn’t change reality. How can sinners cross into the heavenly light? They can and do, as the Redeemer says, “I tell you the truth, whoever hears My word and believes Him who sent Me has eternal life and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.”7
Christ was not afraid to enter the darkness. He did not turn away because of the enormity of the task. He was not deterred by self-absorption or side-tracked by lesser tasks. He journeyed straight to the cross. Only three years of public ministry were needed to bring things to a head. He didn’t try to avoid trial. He didn’t seek to escape the authorities. He didn’t challenge His unjust sentence. He didn’t resist His cruel torturers. He carried His own cross as far as He could. And there, on Calvary, when He met His death He tasted death for all of us as the Scripture says, “… He suffered death, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.”8 You see, that’s the miracle of the gospel: The Son of God went to Calvary for you, on your behalf, in your place. He slammed shut the portal to hell so that you could be spared from its horrors. He rose again on Easter morning.
The apostle John, in his great vision of the heavenly realm had an angel speak to him who said, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb." And he said to me, "These are the true words of God."9 These words the Spirit had recorded for our encouragement. Blessed are those who are invited. Blessed are you, guest of the King. Honoured are you, cherished child of God. Here, in His house, you dine with the King of kings and Lord of lords. But you are no stranger to His house. You are no occasional guest in His palace. You are adopted into His family. You have a permanent place in His dynasty.
Today is the final Sunday in the Church Year. The promise of the Coming One rings out with clarity. You will be summoned. But you will not be forsaken. Your inheritance is among the baptized. The creator of all that exists will come again in His glory. You will be there. None will miss the spectacle. The prince as well as the pauper, the master and the servant, the highborn and those of humble birth, your friends, and those at enmity with you; all will behold His face. The wicked will suffer separation. Believers will be received into that paradise beyond knowing. “I tell you the truth, a time is coming and has now come when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God and those who hear will live.”10 “For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.”11 Thanks be to God! Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Last Sunday of the Church Year
25 November 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Isaiah 2:18 2 Matthew 25:34-36
3 Psalm 50:1 4 John 5:21-22, 26-27
5 Revelation 1:7 6 Luke 10:41-42
7 John 5:24 8 Hebrews 2:9
9 Revelation 19:9 10 John 5:25
11 1 Corinthians 15:52
Monday, November 19, 2018
Twenty-Sixth Sunday After Pentecost (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Mark 13:7
Theme: Do Not Be Alarmed
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“Do not be alarmed.”1 These are the strong and comforting words of our Lord. And why does He speak them? Because He knows the propensity of the human heart to be flooded with anxiety in the face of even the smallest threat. The matters He is discussing with His disciples today are by no means trivial. He says, “And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.”2 The end WILL come. It’s a matter of when, not if. The Lord will bring all history to conclusion.
Speculation about when (and sometimes, how) the end will come has raged since the beginning of time. Many modern cult and sect leaders have used predictions of a coming apocalypse to gather and galvanise followers. Other doomsayers have pointed to nuclear holocaust or environmental catastrophe as a certain cause for the end of civilisation and even all life on the planet. As believers, we need not worry about religious zealots, alien invasions, or other conspiracy theories about the end of the world. God doesn’t leave unattended business. The same God who put the original creation in order will transform His creation for eternity.
We’re now entering that time of the Christian calendar in which we are more deliberate about focusing on the Second Coming of our Lord. The end of the Church Year and the Season of Advent strike similar themes. The Mighty One declares, "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."3 Everything is moving towards a conclusion. Existence on this earth is not open-ended and indeterminate. A date has been set by the Father when the children of God will be rescued from all dangers and perils forever.
Jesus warns us about unrest, violence, and mass events that take the lives of or injure many people. Such things are happening in our world all the time. They always have been. But we now have more instant and vivid coverage through improved technology. People generally have a much greater appetite for bad news than for good news. Good news doesn’t sell. It’s a result of one of the darker qualities of sinful human nature. The news is typically a litany of the crimes, deception, and violence perpetrated each day. Where would we be without coverage of the weather and sports? What would be left?
But we can’t lay all the blame on the media for the content they cover. Media is a business. They need customers, consumers. Their coverage, in some measure, reflects the market, the interests of the population. Of course, efforts are made also, to create consumer attitudes and control them. Modern media does make it easier to stoke the fear of the masses. Our sinful nature causes us to think of what benefits us first and to fear any challenge to the attainment of the same. All we, like sheep, have gone astray. Acknowledgement that the world will end one day, and certainly that we must all come to terms with our own mortality is a call to repentance. In the end, sinners cannot have it their way.
The world will always exist in a measure of anxiety and turmoil. Conflicts in this life will never completely cease. Yet, what does Jesus say? Do not fear. Do not be alarmed. These things will happen. These are just the beginning of the birth pains. When things are bad, we should be mindful they could still get a lot worse. Knowing this drives us more intensely to rely on the mercy of God in Christ. All of our crutches must be knocked out from under us. Our idols of self-generated security; money, possessions, career, accomplishments, reputation- all must be collapsed under the irrefutable truth that nothing that we have or are can save us from the judgment of sin. Christ alone can do that. There is nothing we can contribute that could make His sacrifice more valid or more effective. He died a repugnant death on the cross for our sins. He rose victoriously from the grave to secure life.
Each of us is a work in progress, but the end goal is not in doubt. The Holy Spirit doesn’t leave unattended what He begins. As the Scripture says, “I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”4 You are His baptized. He feeds you with His own flesh and blood because you are His own flesh and blood. He will not forsake you. Daniel reminds us that the righteous and the wicked will be separated at the final judgment and in eternity. “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”5 We confess this truth in one of the creeds every Lord’s Day.
Jesus finishes everything He starts. He is not incapable of fulfilling His promises. He is not unwilling to make good on His word. Yes, even those most vexing, haunting, intractable traumas that you have given up all hope of ever having resolved. Those guilt-ridden memories we’d like to erase forever from our minds - these too will be sifted through the transforming sieve of Christ’s redeeming love. He doesn’t condone, or excuse, or reinterpret the sin. He parts the sin from the sinner and cleanses the believer’s soul. Your past will not, it cannot be held against you because the Son of God has received the punishment for your transgressions. There is nothing so evil, so sinister in your past that the Saviour would turn His face away from you.
The world will have upheaval. In the midst of it… we have peace. Jesus is our Prince of Peace. The world will have doubt. In the midst of it… we have hope. “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”6 The world will remain in bondage to selfishness and sin. In the midst of it… we have freedom. “For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”7 The world will never be free of falsehood. Nevertheless…we have truth. Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”8 The world will always struggle with hatred. Nevertheless…we have Christ’s unconditional love. God is love.
The end will come, either when human history reaches its divinely appointed termination or when we meet our own personal mortality. But do not fear. Christ will not leave us hanging. We can say with the Psalmist, “The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.”9
+ In nomine Jesu +
Twenty-Sixth Sunday After Pentecost
18 November 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 13:7 2 Mark 13:7-8
3 Revelation 1:8 4 Philippians 1:6
5 Daniel 2:12 6 Romans 15:4
7 Romans 8:2 8 John 14:6
9 Psalm 138:8
Text: Mark 13:7
Theme: Do Not Be Alarmed
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“Do not be alarmed.”1 These are the strong and comforting words of our Lord. And why does He speak them? Because He knows the propensity of the human heart to be flooded with anxiety in the face of even the smallest threat. The matters He is discussing with His disciples today are by no means trivial. He says, “And when you hear of wars and rumors of wars, do not be alarmed. This must take place, but the end is not yet. For nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be earthquakes in various places; there will be famines. These are but the beginning of the birth pains.”2 The end WILL come. It’s a matter of when, not if. The Lord will bring all history to conclusion.
Speculation about when (and sometimes, how) the end will come has raged since the beginning of time. Many modern cult and sect leaders have used predictions of a coming apocalypse to gather and galvanise followers. Other doomsayers have pointed to nuclear holocaust or environmental catastrophe as a certain cause for the end of civilisation and even all life on the planet. As believers, we need not worry about religious zealots, alien invasions, or other conspiracy theories about the end of the world. God doesn’t leave unattended business. The same God who put the original creation in order will transform His creation for eternity.
We’re now entering that time of the Christian calendar in which we are more deliberate about focusing on the Second Coming of our Lord. The end of the Church Year and the Season of Advent strike similar themes. The Mighty One declares, "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."3 Everything is moving towards a conclusion. Existence on this earth is not open-ended and indeterminate. A date has been set by the Father when the children of God will be rescued from all dangers and perils forever.
Jesus warns us about unrest, violence, and mass events that take the lives of or injure many people. Such things are happening in our world all the time. They always have been. But we now have more instant and vivid coverage through improved technology. People generally have a much greater appetite for bad news than for good news. Good news doesn’t sell. It’s a result of one of the darker qualities of sinful human nature. The news is typically a litany of the crimes, deception, and violence perpetrated each day. Where would we be without coverage of the weather and sports? What would be left?
But we can’t lay all the blame on the media for the content they cover. Media is a business. They need customers, consumers. Their coverage, in some measure, reflects the market, the interests of the population. Of course, efforts are made also, to create consumer attitudes and control them. Modern media does make it easier to stoke the fear of the masses. Our sinful nature causes us to think of what benefits us first and to fear any challenge to the attainment of the same. All we, like sheep, have gone astray. Acknowledgement that the world will end one day, and certainly that we must all come to terms with our own mortality is a call to repentance. In the end, sinners cannot have it their way.
The world will always exist in a measure of anxiety and turmoil. Conflicts in this life will never completely cease. Yet, what does Jesus say? Do not fear. Do not be alarmed. These things will happen. These are just the beginning of the birth pains. When things are bad, we should be mindful they could still get a lot worse. Knowing this drives us more intensely to rely on the mercy of God in Christ. All of our crutches must be knocked out from under us. Our idols of self-generated security; money, possessions, career, accomplishments, reputation- all must be collapsed under the irrefutable truth that nothing that we have or are can save us from the judgment of sin. Christ alone can do that. There is nothing we can contribute that could make His sacrifice more valid or more effective. He died a repugnant death on the cross for our sins. He rose victoriously from the grave to secure life.
Each of us is a work in progress, but the end goal is not in doubt. The Holy Spirit doesn’t leave unattended what He begins. As the Scripture says, “I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.”4 You are His baptized. He feeds you with His own flesh and blood because you are His own flesh and blood. He will not forsake you. Daniel reminds us that the righteous and the wicked will be separated at the final judgment and in eternity. “Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt.”5 We confess this truth in one of the creeds every Lord’s Day.
Jesus finishes everything He starts. He is not incapable of fulfilling His promises. He is not unwilling to make good on His word. Yes, even those most vexing, haunting, intractable traumas that you have given up all hope of ever having resolved. Those guilt-ridden memories we’d like to erase forever from our minds - these too will be sifted through the transforming sieve of Christ’s redeeming love. He doesn’t condone, or excuse, or reinterpret the sin. He parts the sin from the sinner and cleanses the believer’s soul. Your past will not, it cannot be held against you because the Son of God has received the punishment for your transgressions. There is nothing so evil, so sinister in your past that the Saviour would turn His face away from you.
The world will have upheaval. In the midst of it… we have peace. Jesus is our Prince of Peace. The world will have doubt. In the midst of it… we have hope. “For whatever was written in former days was written for our instruction, that through endurance and through the encouragement of the Scriptures we might have hope.”6 The world will remain in bondage to selfishness and sin. In the midst of it… we have freedom. “For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death.”7 The world will never be free of falsehood. Nevertheless…we have truth. Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life.”8 The world will always struggle with hatred. Nevertheless…we have Christ’s unconditional love. God is love.
The end will come, either when human history reaches its divinely appointed termination or when we meet our own personal mortality. But do not fear. Christ will not leave us hanging. We can say with the Psalmist, “The LORD will fulfill his purpose for me; your steadfast love, O LORD, endures forever.”9
+ In nomine Jesu +
Twenty-Sixth Sunday After Pentecost
18 November 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 13:7 2 Mark 13:7-8
3 Revelation 1:8 4 Philippians 1:6
5 Daniel 2:12 6 Romans 15:4
7 Romans 8:2 8 John 14:6
9 Psalm 138:8
Monday, October 1, 2018
Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Esther
Theme: God of Providence
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is not remote. His ways are largely hidden to our natural senses. But He is not absent from any aspect of our lives. He not only provides for the daily needs of the body, He also secures our eternal future. Often, we attribute the causes behind events to planning, or chance or accident. But really, God is at work providentially. Today’s Scripture from Esther offers a fine example to consider. Esther had an exceptional vocation. She was an orphan Israelite girl, who by the providence of God, became the queen of the Medes and Persians.
What does the providential work of God look like? Is it visible to our eyes? We still use and hear the phrase “God willing.” Is that an expression of our deeply held convictions or more of an expression of wishful thinking? Do we believe God is always at work whether He is acknowledged or not? God’s providential work is as tangible as the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the clothes we wear.
The providence of God is His active foresight, supervision, and governance of the activities of life that result in certain outcomes. The notion applies cosmically and locally. The sun does not continue to shine apart from the providence of God nor does rain fall on the local crops. The same truth pertains to human affairs. Nations and leaders do not prosper without the countenance or concession of God, nor do individuals.
Providence relates to God’s sovereignty. An unbalanced view of God’s providence can easily lead to the false teachings of fatalism and determinism. If God makes all the decisions, aren’t we just puppets, pawns in a cosmic chess match? Fatalism can be the cause of despair or lawlessness. If God has pre-determined everything, what meaning can my life have? Why not pursue my own selfish agenda and blame any failure on God? Sinful humans are always happy to blame someone else for their transgressions. The call to repentance is not made obsolete by God’s providence.
Let’s consider now the case of Esther. It’s clear that her attractiveness made her the target of a world ruler. The Bible says, “Esther was lovely in form and features.”1 and that “the king was attracted to Esther more than any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval.”2 We have no evidence that Esther chose to be the queen of King Xerxes. But she did not make herself offensive to him. The account says, “Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.”3 God worked through the situation for the benefit of His people. Esther carefully followed the wisdom and advice of her cousin Mordecai. Mordecai had raised her in the absence of her parents.
The crux of the story comes when it is revealed that one of the nobles named Haman planned to destroy the Jews, and Mordecai their leader. Haman was jealous of Mordecai and the honour he had been receiving from the king. King Xerxes did not know in the beginning that Esther was Jewish. Esther’s intervention allowed the Jews to be spared and Haman to be executed. A number of plot-twists and not a little intrigue preceded the final resolution of the matter. So, who was finally most instrumental in the outcome? Was it Esther’s decisiveness or God’s providence? Was it both?
What is the relationship between the sovereignty of God and the freedom of the human will? Are we only pawns and puppets fated to the decisions of the Almighty? Do our decisions only appear as such? The Lutheran Confessions help us make an important distinction, “In secular and external matters affecting the nurture and needs of the body, man is indeed very clever, intelligent and busy. In spiritual and divine things, however, which concern the salvation of his soul, man is like a pillar of salt, like Lot’s wife, yes, like a log or a stone…”4
So, humans make all sorts of choices and decisions each day that may benefit or endanger their well-being. The rational mind is decisive in these matters. (That doesn’t mean, however, that decisions are necessarily well-considered. Often, they are driven by feeling or emotion.) Regarding spiritual things, however, the Bible teaches that humans are incapable of apprehending divine truth apart from the Holy Spirit. That means, left to our own rational thinking, we would never come to a correct understanding of God. The unenlightened intellect is powerless to know God properly or trust in Him.
But God doesn’t abandon us in our incompetence. He comes to us. He not only makes Himself known providentially, He makes Himself known salvifically. He reveals Himself as the God who came to save through the person of His Son. The gospel is not an extrapolation of the general goodness of God. The gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has by His own death and resurrection redeemed sinners from sin, death, and the power of the devil. It is underpinned by the specific historical realities of His suffering under the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and His physical resurrection from the grave seen by many eye-witnesses.
Dear friends, it would have been easy for Esther to adopt the culture and values of the Medes and Persians. She landed in the lap of luxury. She was given a privileged status. Yet, Esther remained firm in her integrity. Her people were in grave danger. They were at the mercy of superior powers. It would have seemed an impossibility that events could have turned out as they did. Her part in their rescue proved pivotal. She was uniquely positioned to influence the king and God used that to serve the well-being of His people.
Each of us is uniquely positioned to serve the well-being of others also. The circumstances may not be as regal, or the situations as dramatic, but to the person served the outcome is just as important. God works providentially in our lives and also through our lives to support others. Our faith is active in love. The convictions we hold and the decisions we make not only affect ourselves and those closest to us, but also all with whom we have any meaningful interaction.
God is not a concept. For God to be a providential God He must be a living God. He is not subject to the forces of the universe. The Scripture says Christ is constantly, “sustaining all things by His powerful word,”5 and that “all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”6 It says, “In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.”7It was no accident that God sent His only-begotten Son. It was no mistake that He was delivered over to be crucified. It was not by chance that He appeared alive on the third day. St. Peter says, “This Man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross. But God raised Him from the dead, freeing Him from the agony of death.”8
Jesus Christ is risen from the dead never to die again. That truth is not luck or probability. It was no coincidence that Esther become the queen of Persia and dined at the royal table. It’s no coincidence either that you are baptized into the name of Christ and eat at the table of the King of kings. He’s not simply working behind the scenes. He’s at the centre of all things. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost
30 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Esther 2:7 2 Esther 2:17
3 Esther 2:15 4 SD, II
5 Hebrews 1:3 6 Colossians 1:16-17
7 John 1:4 8 Acts 2:23-24
Text: Esther
Theme: God of Providence
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is not remote. His ways are largely hidden to our natural senses. But He is not absent from any aspect of our lives. He not only provides for the daily needs of the body, He also secures our eternal future. Often, we attribute the causes behind events to planning, or chance or accident. But really, God is at work providentially. Today’s Scripture from Esther offers a fine example to consider. Esther had an exceptional vocation. She was an orphan Israelite girl, who by the providence of God, became the queen of the Medes and Persians.
What does the providential work of God look like? Is it visible to our eyes? We still use and hear the phrase “God willing.” Is that an expression of our deeply held convictions or more of an expression of wishful thinking? Do we believe God is always at work whether He is acknowledged or not? God’s providential work is as tangible as the food we eat, the air we breathe, and the clothes we wear.
The providence of God is His active foresight, supervision, and governance of the activities of life that result in certain outcomes. The notion applies cosmically and locally. The sun does not continue to shine apart from the providence of God nor does rain fall on the local crops. The same truth pertains to human affairs. Nations and leaders do not prosper without the countenance or concession of God, nor do individuals.
Providence relates to God’s sovereignty. An unbalanced view of God’s providence can easily lead to the false teachings of fatalism and determinism. If God makes all the decisions, aren’t we just puppets, pawns in a cosmic chess match? Fatalism can be the cause of despair or lawlessness. If God has pre-determined everything, what meaning can my life have? Why not pursue my own selfish agenda and blame any failure on God? Sinful humans are always happy to blame someone else for their transgressions. The call to repentance is not made obsolete by God’s providence.
Let’s consider now the case of Esther. It’s clear that her attractiveness made her the target of a world ruler. The Bible says, “Esther was lovely in form and features.”1 and that “the king was attracted to Esther more than any of the other women, and she won his favor and approval.”2 We have no evidence that Esther chose to be the queen of King Xerxes. But she did not make herself offensive to him. The account says, “Esther won the favor of everyone who saw her.”3 God worked through the situation for the benefit of His people. Esther carefully followed the wisdom and advice of her cousin Mordecai. Mordecai had raised her in the absence of her parents.
The crux of the story comes when it is revealed that one of the nobles named Haman planned to destroy the Jews, and Mordecai their leader. Haman was jealous of Mordecai and the honour he had been receiving from the king. King Xerxes did not know in the beginning that Esther was Jewish. Esther’s intervention allowed the Jews to be spared and Haman to be executed. A number of plot-twists and not a little intrigue preceded the final resolution of the matter. So, who was finally most instrumental in the outcome? Was it Esther’s decisiveness or God’s providence? Was it both?
What is the relationship between the sovereignty of God and the freedom of the human will? Are we only pawns and puppets fated to the decisions of the Almighty? Do our decisions only appear as such? The Lutheran Confessions help us make an important distinction, “In secular and external matters affecting the nurture and needs of the body, man is indeed very clever, intelligent and busy. In spiritual and divine things, however, which concern the salvation of his soul, man is like a pillar of salt, like Lot’s wife, yes, like a log or a stone…”4
So, humans make all sorts of choices and decisions each day that may benefit or endanger their well-being. The rational mind is decisive in these matters. (That doesn’t mean, however, that decisions are necessarily well-considered. Often, they are driven by feeling or emotion.) Regarding spiritual things, however, the Bible teaches that humans are incapable of apprehending divine truth apart from the Holy Spirit. That means, left to our own rational thinking, we would never come to a correct understanding of God. The unenlightened intellect is powerless to know God properly or trust in Him.
But God doesn’t abandon us in our incompetence. He comes to us. He not only makes Himself known providentially, He makes Himself known salvifically. He reveals Himself as the God who came to save through the person of His Son. The gospel is not an extrapolation of the general goodness of God. The gospel is the good news that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, has by His own death and resurrection redeemed sinners from sin, death, and the power of the devil. It is underpinned by the specific historical realities of His suffering under the Roman governor Pontius Pilate and His physical resurrection from the grave seen by many eye-witnesses.
Dear friends, it would have been easy for Esther to adopt the culture and values of the Medes and Persians. She landed in the lap of luxury. She was given a privileged status. Yet, Esther remained firm in her integrity. Her people were in grave danger. They were at the mercy of superior powers. It would have seemed an impossibility that events could have turned out as they did. Her part in their rescue proved pivotal. She was uniquely positioned to influence the king and God used that to serve the well-being of His people.
Each of us is uniquely positioned to serve the well-being of others also. The circumstances may not be as regal, or the situations as dramatic, but to the person served the outcome is just as important. God works providentially in our lives and also through our lives to support others. Our faith is active in love. The convictions we hold and the decisions we make not only affect ourselves and those closest to us, but also all with whom we have any meaningful interaction.
God is not a concept. For God to be a providential God He must be a living God. He is not subject to the forces of the universe. The Scripture says Christ is constantly, “sustaining all things by His powerful word,”5 and that “all things were created by Him and for Him. He is before all things, and in Him all things hold together.”6 It says, “In Him was life, and that life was the light of men.”7It was no accident that God sent His only-begotten Son. It was no mistake that He was delivered over to be crucified. It was not by chance that He appeared alive on the third day. St. Peter says, “This Man was handed over to you by God’s set purpose and foreknowledge; and you, with the help of wicked men, put Him to death by nailing Him to the cross. But God raised Him from the dead, freeing Him from the agony of death.”8
Jesus Christ is risen from the dead never to die again. That truth is not luck or probability. It was no coincidence that Esther become the queen of Persia and dined at the royal table. It’s no coincidence either that you are baptized into the name of Christ and eat at the table of the King of kings. He’s not simply working behind the scenes. He’s at the centre of all things. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Nineteenth Sunday After Pentecost
30 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Esther 2:7 2 Esther 2:17
3 Esther 2:15 4 SD, II
5 Hebrews 1:3 6 Colossians 1:16-17
7 John 1:4 8 Acts 2:23-24
Wednesday, September 26, 2018
Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Mark 9:35
Theme: Servant of All
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Jesus asked the question. He didn’t need to, of course. He already knew the answer. But He also knew it would be instructive for His foolhardy disciples. “What were you arguing about on the road? But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.”1 And there it is; a candid window into the mind of the heart! No one can completely escape the innate desire to have a privileged status before others and before God. It is an irrepressible mark of sin. Jesus’ ability to be the lone exception- transparently, authentically, unfailingly humble- is beyond our comprehension. It is a mark of His divinity. It is an article of faith. “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”2 Christ is the servant par excellence.
Honestly, we’d rather be served by others. And pride is but one expression of our sinfulness. Today James reminds us that selfish motives drive immoral behavior. “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want…You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you many spend what you get on your pleasures.”3 We see that these 1st century believers, who would have had very limited material blessings, were still prone to the misuse of them.
How applicable is the lesson for us! Are we willing to step back and consider how the pursuit of affluence is one of the great idols of our time? Can we see clearly its spiritual effect on our communities, our families, and our own personal lives? James convicts us for misusing God’s blessings. Over-indulgence is rife in our culture. Consumption can become a fulltime lifestyle. It hardly harmonizes with the biblical call to humility and servanthood. Jesus said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”4 The model for greatness is servanthood, not self-promotion.
Dear friends, we can recognize that the world provides many fine examples of philanthropy and models for good stewardship and service to others, but for believers it’s always God’s word that is decisive. This is true for all matters of faith and life. At the upcoming synod the LCA will again take up the topic of ordaining women to the pastoral office. The broader and deeper issue that underlies the discussion is Scripture’s authority and how it is interpreted. It’s no secret that deciding questions of value, ethics, morality, and truth based on the word of God is not looked upon as favorably by the culture of our day as it was in times past. We shouldn’t be shocked that the world has a different mindset. If this surprises us, we are well-advised to adjust quickly. The world settles things on the basis of reason and natural law. Thankfully, natural law shares much in common with God’s law. But the Lutheran church resolves things on the basis of God’s word; the Scriptures. The biblical approach is now struggling against the tide of culture which is threatening to become a tsunami.
But Jesus was never reluctant to swim upstream and we are privileged to follow in His wake. Only He will get us safely to the shore. Jesus’ disciples were fearful and flummoxed when He said today, “The Son of man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill Him, and after three days He will rise.”5 What would that mean for them? It would be Pentecost before they began to understand. They would become servants of the highest order.
So, what should our serving look like? We must get out of our heads the idea that Christian service must be extraordinarily noteworthy to be valid. Only flashy things are considered newsworthy by society, but God notices simple, faithful efforts. God doesn’t demand that you drop everything, and head oversees to the mission field. The opportunities to serve are right before you. Anyone who’s claiming lack of prospects doesn’t understand the Christian teaching on vocation. ‘Love God above all things and love your neighbour as yourself’ is not a hollow slogan. When we try to do it, we’ll find no shortage of challenges and opportunities. The Holy Spirit must attend us constantly or we’d accomplish nothing at all.
You’ve probably heard it said many times that getting old is not for sissies. The decline of physical vitality and mental capability brings sobering challenges. There’s no way to bypass or opt out of the ageing process. It can become very taxing. It reminds us how vulnerable we really are. It drives us to a deeper reliance on the Lord. A helpful comparison can be made here to Christian living. Whether we call it living the sanctified life, the baptismal life, or bearing the cross, the Scripture makes it clear that it’s not for sissies either. Christ doesn’t lead us down easy street. He takes us on the high road. The high road is also the narrow road. Marginalization, ostracization, and persecution are the warnings from the apostolic witness.
Satan is leading the attack on civil discourse in our society. Shouting down and public shaming are becoming more common as a means to ‘win’ an argument or simply bully the opponent. The trend is an ominous omen for the future. The implications for Christianity are likely to be substantial. The Bible calls us to be considerate defenders of the faith. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience…”6
Without overdramatizing we might consider the public reaction at the time of Stephen’s stoning. Acts 7 gives us these details, “When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven…’Look,’ he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him…”7 Let’s pray this is not where we’re headed in our culture. Nevertheless, the clear, strong voice of the Lord overpowers all the chaotic cries saying, “Take heart! I have overcome the world.”8
Jesus says of Himself, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give His life as a ransom for many.”9 The prophet Isaiah describes His saving work in this way, “He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.”10 So broken was our relationship with the Father, so unserviceable was our debt of sin, so uncrossable was the chasm of death, so insurmountable was the ascent to heaven that the crucifixion of the holy Son of God, the Immanuel, the sacrificial Lamb, was necessary to secure our redemption. Jesus, the Christ, willing surrendered His life in substitution for ours. He rose from death, securing life, so that we can now live without fear. In baptism we’re assured that Christ obliterates that fear because He demolishes death’s ultimate power. When you receive His body and blood in humble faith you can be assured that His immortal life is being extended to you.
The Lord of all, the Creator of everything, the Immortal Son who reigns with unequaled power, is the Servant of sinners. He is the One who stoops. He is the One who humbles Himself. He is the One who carries the load. He is the One who tirelessly, unceasingly, and flawlessly intercedes for the benefit of His people. It is a privilege to be in the service of the Servant of all. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost
23 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 9:33-34 2 Mark 9:35
3 James 4:1-3 4 Mark 9:35
5 Mark 9:31 6 1 Peter 3:15-16
7 Acts 7:54-57 8 John 16:33
9 Matthew 20:28 10Isaiah 53:5
Text: Mark 9:35
Theme: Servant of All
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Jesus asked the question. He didn’t need to, of course. He already knew the answer. But He also knew it would be instructive for His foolhardy disciples. “What were you arguing about on the road? But they kept quiet because on the way they had argued about who was the greatest.”1 And there it is; a candid window into the mind of the heart! No one can completely escape the innate desire to have a privileged status before others and before God. It is an irrepressible mark of sin. Jesus’ ability to be the lone exception- transparently, authentically, unfailingly humble- is beyond our comprehension. It is a mark of His divinity. It is an article of faith. “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”2 Christ is the servant par excellence.
Honestly, we’d rather be served by others. And pride is but one expression of our sinfulness. Today James reminds us that selfish motives drive immoral behavior. “What causes fights and quarrels among you? Don’t they come from the desires that battle within you? You want something but don’t get it. You kill and covet, but you cannot have what you want…You do not have because you do not ask God. When you ask, you do not receive, because you ask with wrong motives, that you many spend what you get on your pleasures.”3 We see that these 1st century believers, who would have had very limited material blessings, were still prone to the misuse of them.
How applicable is the lesson for us! Are we willing to step back and consider how the pursuit of affluence is one of the great idols of our time? Can we see clearly its spiritual effect on our communities, our families, and our own personal lives? James convicts us for misusing God’s blessings. Over-indulgence is rife in our culture. Consumption can become a fulltime lifestyle. It hardly harmonizes with the biblical call to humility and servanthood. Jesus said, “If anyone wants to be first, he must be the very last, and the servant of all.”4 The model for greatness is servanthood, not self-promotion.
Dear friends, we can recognize that the world provides many fine examples of philanthropy and models for good stewardship and service to others, but for believers it’s always God’s word that is decisive. This is true for all matters of faith and life. At the upcoming synod the LCA will again take up the topic of ordaining women to the pastoral office. The broader and deeper issue that underlies the discussion is Scripture’s authority and how it is interpreted. It’s no secret that deciding questions of value, ethics, morality, and truth based on the word of God is not looked upon as favorably by the culture of our day as it was in times past. We shouldn’t be shocked that the world has a different mindset. If this surprises us, we are well-advised to adjust quickly. The world settles things on the basis of reason and natural law. Thankfully, natural law shares much in common with God’s law. But the Lutheran church resolves things on the basis of God’s word; the Scriptures. The biblical approach is now struggling against the tide of culture which is threatening to become a tsunami.
But Jesus was never reluctant to swim upstream and we are privileged to follow in His wake. Only He will get us safely to the shore. Jesus’ disciples were fearful and flummoxed when He said today, “The Son of man is going to be betrayed into the hands of men. They will kill Him, and after three days He will rise.”5 What would that mean for them? It would be Pentecost before they began to understand. They would become servants of the highest order.
So, what should our serving look like? We must get out of our heads the idea that Christian service must be extraordinarily noteworthy to be valid. Only flashy things are considered newsworthy by society, but God notices simple, faithful efforts. God doesn’t demand that you drop everything, and head oversees to the mission field. The opportunities to serve are right before you. Anyone who’s claiming lack of prospects doesn’t understand the Christian teaching on vocation. ‘Love God above all things and love your neighbour as yourself’ is not a hollow slogan. When we try to do it, we’ll find no shortage of challenges and opportunities. The Holy Spirit must attend us constantly or we’d accomplish nothing at all.
You’ve probably heard it said many times that getting old is not for sissies. The decline of physical vitality and mental capability brings sobering challenges. There’s no way to bypass or opt out of the ageing process. It can become very taxing. It reminds us how vulnerable we really are. It drives us to a deeper reliance on the Lord. A helpful comparison can be made here to Christian living. Whether we call it living the sanctified life, the baptismal life, or bearing the cross, the Scripture makes it clear that it’s not for sissies either. Christ doesn’t lead us down easy street. He takes us on the high road. The high road is also the narrow road. Marginalization, ostracization, and persecution are the warnings from the apostolic witness.
Satan is leading the attack on civil discourse in our society. Shouting down and public shaming are becoming more common as a means to ‘win’ an argument or simply bully the opponent. The trend is an ominous omen for the future. The implications for Christianity are likely to be substantial. The Bible calls us to be considerate defenders of the faith. “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience…”6
Without overdramatizing we might consider the public reaction at the time of Stephen’s stoning. Acts 7 gives us these details, “When they heard this, they were furious and gnashed their teeth at him. But Stephen, full of the Holy Spirit, looked up to heaven…’Look,’ he said, ‘I see heaven open and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God.’ At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him…”7 Let’s pray this is not where we’re headed in our culture. Nevertheless, the clear, strong voice of the Lord overpowers all the chaotic cries saying, “Take heart! I have overcome the world.”8
Jesus says of Himself, “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and give His life as a ransom for many.”9 The prophet Isaiah describes His saving work in this way, “He was pierced for our transgressions, He was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.”10 So broken was our relationship with the Father, so unserviceable was our debt of sin, so uncrossable was the chasm of death, so insurmountable was the ascent to heaven that the crucifixion of the holy Son of God, the Immanuel, the sacrificial Lamb, was necessary to secure our redemption. Jesus, the Christ, willing surrendered His life in substitution for ours. He rose from death, securing life, so that we can now live without fear. In baptism we’re assured that Christ obliterates that fear because He demolishes death’s ultimate power. When you receive His body and blood in humble faith you can be assured that His immortal life is being extended to you.
The Lord of all, the Creator of everything, the Immortal Son who reigns with unequaled power, is the Servant of sinners. He is the One who stoops. He is the One who humbles Himself. He is the One who carries the load. He is the One who tirelessly, unceasingly, and flawlessly intercedes for the benefit of His people. It is a privilege to be in the service of the Servant of all. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Eighteenth Sunday After Pentecost
23 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 9:33-34 2 Mark 9:35
3 James 4:1-3 4 Mark 9:35
5 Mark 9:31 6 1 Peter 3:15-16
7 Acts 7:54-57 8 John 16:33
9 Matthew 20:28 10Isaiah 53:5
Thursday, September 13, 2018
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: James 2:14
Theme: Faith and Deeds
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Life always gives evidence of its existence. The fact that we are here is evidence of the Creator- the Life-giver. Similarly, living faith is always expressed in activity. And the evidence cannot be forged. If you take fresh apples and pin them on an apple that it is dead, the tree will not come to life. A healthy tree produces fruit. A dead tree produces nothing. Again, James says today, “What good is it my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?”1
James is clearly teaching here about integrity: Those who talk the talk should walk the walk. The wool cannot be pulled over God’s eyes. If we stand here in God’s house and simply go through the motion of confessing our sins and then go out and act with hard-heartedness towards our neighbour then our repentance is a sham. We are hypocrites. It’s easy to pacify our consciences by piously appearing to confess before God. Our lack of genuine remorse can be hidden from others by anonymity. Seeking forgiveness from the person we have hurt is much more difficult if our heart isn’t truly convicted. So, we must ask ourselves if our practice of repentance is habitually duplicitous.
Remember, any sin against our neighbour is firstly a sin against God. The key is understanding that we must act on knowledge of the truth, not on our feelings. Let’s say I have wronged someone, but I don’t feel particularly remorseful. Immediately I think of ten things I consider more sinister that that person has committed against me. I begin to justify my lack of remorse using my own standards our fairness. An inevitably biased tit-for-tat dynamic governs my thinking. In my own mind my excuses are a sufficient defence. The fact remains, however, that I have transgressed against this person. I am under obligation to apologize and seek forgiveness.
The will of God takes precedence over my opinion. What does Christ say? “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”2 The practice of reconciliation is the exercise of our baptism. If you still don’t feel regret, pray that the Holy Spirit would give you enough maturity of faith to apologize graciously. And remember that the forgiveness you receive from Christ is valid even when it doesn’t evoke any particularly happy emotions. God’s pardon can be rejected through unbelief, but it is not invalidated by our ineptness in fully appreciating it. More on this in a minute.
Dear friends, our understanding of what Christianity means goes awry when we practice it as the human attempt to curry favour with God and thus obtain certain benefits from Him. If through the acquisition of knowledge, the observance of morality, or the practice of charity (all things which are proper fruits of faith) we seek to pull God closer to us, then we have turned Christianity on its head. We can be driven by coercion to do many things. Fear is a powerful motivator as is self-indulgence. But self-giving, self-sacrificing love cannot be motivated by fear. Fear stifles true reciprocity and thus cripples godly relationships.
The proper relationship between faith and its activity is explained comprehensively in the Lutheran confessional writings. A couple of excerpts will suffice for now. “In the preaching of penitence it is not enough to preach the law, the Word that convicts of sin. For the law works wrath; it only accuses; it only terrifies consciences. Consciences cannot find peace unless they hear the voice of God, clearly promising the forgiveness of sin. Therefore it is necessary to add the Gospel promise, that for Christ’s sake sins are forgiven and that by faith in Christ we obtain the forgiveness of sins.”3 And again, “God pronounces righteous those who believe Him from their heart and then have good fruits, which please Him because of faith and therefore are a keeping of the law.”4
Faith and good works are not pitted against each other. Christ has accomplished our salvation. We cannot achieve it, but only receive it. Only Christ suffered and died to atone for sins. Only He had the power to rise again from the dead. The Holy Spirit enables us to trust in these life-altering truths. We call this faith. The Holy Spirit then inspires us to live accordingly, serving others and modelling the humble life of our Saviour.
So, if you fear that your faith is in the doldrums, that you underappreciate all that Christ has accomplished for you and what it means; seek the increase of your faith. After hearing the Lord’s instruction on the necessity of forgiving those who come to you in repentance, “The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’”5 The father of the son who Jesus freed from an evil spirit said, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”6 Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”7 If your faith is bold, pray that God would prevent it from becoming arrogant. If your faith is timid, pray that God would prevent it from being cowardly. If your faith is compromised by the skepticism of the human intellect, pray that God would refine it to be like that of a child. If your faith is childish, pray that God would tutor it to maturity.
Seeking the increase of our faith necessarily entails seeking the Spirit. Jesus said, “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”8 But if we already have the Holy Spirit (from the time of baptism) why do we still seek Him? Because the Holy Spirit is not a personal possession. He is not an inanimate object. He dwells in believers, but they do not own Him.
Seeking the Spirit necessarily entails desiring the Word. The two are never parted. The Spirit, the Word, and faith are inseparable realities. The Spirit and the Word exist independently from us, but faith cannot exist apart from the first two.
Desiring the Word necessarily entails desiring the sacrament. Belief that Holy Communion is simply auxiliary to the well-being of our faith is a tragic misunderstanding of its meaning and purpose. It’s not simply a remembrance of the final meal Jesus had with His disciples. It’s not a religious rite intended to facilitate proper decorum. Jesus says, “This is My body given for you…This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.”9 He says, “…which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”10 Holy Communion nurtures and invigorates faith because it communicates to the believer Christ’s power. His body and blood are life-giving and life-sustaining. Moreover, the sacrament is a far greater gift than we could ever merit or deserve. Only when we learn to be grateful for crumbs from the Master’s table can we really understand what it means that we actually sit at the royal banquet.
Dear friends, faith can move mountains; not because you or I are anything at all, but because with Christ all things are possible. The Spirit says, “Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”11
+ In nomine Jesu +
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
9 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 James 1:14 2 Matthew 5:23-24
3 AP IV 4 i.b.i.d.
5 Luke 17:5 6 Mark 9:24
7 Luke 11:9 8 Luke 11:13
9 Luke 22:19-20 10Matthew 26:28
111 John 5:5
Text: James 2:14
Theme: Faith and Deeds
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Life always gives evidence of its existence. The fact that we are here is evidence of the Creator- the Life-giver. Similarly, living faith is always expressed in activity. And the evidence cannot be forged. If you take fresh apples and pin them on an apple that it is dead, the tree will not come to life. A healthy tree produces fruit. A dead tree produces nothing. Again, James says today, “What good is it my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him?”1
James is clearly teaching here about integrity: Those who talk the talk should walk the walk. The wool cannot be pulled over God’s eyes. If we stand here in God’s house and simply go through the motion of confessing our sins and then go out and act with hard-heartedness towards our neighbour then our repentance is a sham. We are hypocrites. It’s easy to pacify our consciences by piously appearing to confess before God. Our lack of genuine remorse can be hidden from others by anonymity. Seeking forgiveness from the person we have hurt is much more difficult if our heart isn’t truly convicted. So, we must ask ourselves if our practice of repentance is habitually duplicitous.
Remember, any sin against our neighbour is firstly a sin against God. The key is understanding that we must act on knowledge of the truth, not on our feelings. Let’s say I have wronged someone, but I don’t feel particularly remorseful. Immediately I think of ten things I consider more sinister that that person has committed against me. I begin to justify my lack of remorse using my own standards our fairness. An inevitably biased tit-for-tat dynamic governs my thinking. In my own mind my excuses are a sufficient defence. The fact remains, however, that I have transgressed against this person. I am under obligation to apologize and seek forgiveness.
The will of God takes precedence over my opinion. What does Christ say? “If you are offering your gift at the altar and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there in front of the altar. First go and be reconciled to your brother; then come and offer your gift.”2 The practice of reconciliation is the exercise of our baptism. If you still don’t feel regret, pray that the Holy Spirit would give you enough maturity of faith to apologize graciously. And remember that the forgiveness you receive from Christ is valid even when it doesn’t evoke any particularly happy emotions. God’s pardon can be rejected through unbelief, but it is not invalidated by our ineptness in fully appreciating it. More on this in a minute.
Dear friends, our understanding of what Christianity means goes awry when we practice it as the human attempt to curry favour with God and thus obtain certain benefits from Him. If through the acquisition of knowledge, the observance of morality, or the practice of charity (all things which are proper fruits of faith) we seek to pull God closer to us, then we have turned Christianity on its head. We can be driven by coercion to do many things. Fear is a powerful motivator as is self-indulgence. But self-giving, self-sacrificing love cannot be motivated by fear. Fear stifles true reciprocity and thus cripples godly relationships.
The proper relationship between faith and its activity is explained comprehensively in the Lutheran confessional writings. A couple of excerpts will suffice for now. “In the preaching of penitence it is not enough to preach the law, the Word that convicts of sin. For the law works wrath; it only accuses; it only terrifies consciences. Consciences cannot find peace unless they hear the voice of God, clearly promising the forgiveness of sin. Therefore it is necessary to add the Gospel promise, that for Christ’s sake sins are forgiven and that by faith in Christ we obtain the forgiveness of sins.”3 And again, “God pronounces righteous those who believe Him from their heart and then have good fruits, which please Him because of faith and therefore are a keeping of the law.”4
Faith and good works are not pitted against each other. Christ has accomplished our salvation. We cannot achieve it, but only receive it. Only Christ suffered and died to atone for sins. Only He had the power to rise again from the dead. The Holy Spirit enables us to trust in these life-altering truths. We call this faith. The Holy Spirit then inspires us to live accordingly, serving others and modelling the humble life of our Saviour.
So, if you fear that your faith is in the doldrums, that you underappreciate all that Christ has accomplished for you and what it means; seek the increase of your faith. After hearing the Lord’s instruction on the necessity of forgiving those who come to you in repentance, “The apostles said to the Lord, ‘Increase our faith!’”5 The father of the son who Jesus freed from an evil spirit said, “I do believe; help me overcome my unbelief!”6 Jesus said, “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.”7 If your faith is bold, pray that God would prevent it from becoming arrogant. If your faith is timid, pray that God would prevent it from being cowardly. If your faith is compromised by the skepticism of the human intellect, pray that God would refine it to be like that of a child. If your faith is childish, pray that God would tutor it to maturity.
Seeking the increase of our faith necessarily entails seeking the Spirit. Jesus said, “If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”8 But if we already have the Holy Spirit (from the time of baptism) why do we still seek Him? Because the Holy Spirit is not a personal possession. He is not an inanimate object. He dwells in believers, but they do not own Him.
Seeking the Spirit necessarily entails desiring the Word. The two are never parted. The Spirit, the Word, and faith are inseparable realities. The Spirit and the Word exist independently from us, but faith cannot exist apart from the first two.
Desiring the Word necessarily entails desiring the sacrament. Belief that Holy Communion is simply auxiliary to the well-being of our faith is a tragic misunderstanding of its meaning and purpose. It’s not simply a remembrance of the final meal Jesus had with His disciples. It’s not a religious rite intended to facilitate proper decorum. Jesus says, “This is My body given for you…This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you.”9 He says, “…which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”10 Holy Communion nurtures and invigorates faith because it communicates to the believer Christ’s power. His body and blood are life-giving and life-sustaining. Moreover, the sacrament is a far greater gift than we could ever merit or deserve. Only when we learn to be grateful for crumbs from the Master’s table can we really understand what it means that we actually sit at the royal banquet.
Dear friends, faith can move mountains; not because you or I are anything at all, but because with Christ all things are possible. The Spirit says, “Who is it that overcomes the world except the one who believes that Jesus is the Son of God.”11
+ In nomine Jesu +
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
9 September 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 James 1:14 2 Matthew 5:23-24
3 AP IV 4 i.b.i.d.
5 Luke 17:5 6 Mark 9:24
7 Luke 11:9 8 Luke 11:13
9 Luke 22:19-20 10Matthew 26:28
111 John 5:5
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