+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 12:49-53
Theme: Plundered Peace
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“All who draw the sword will die by the sword,”1 these are the words of Jesus, the Lord of the church, spoken to Simon Peter, apostle of the church. Jesus never used force, violence, or coercion to institute His kingdom. The law of God certainly convicts the human heart and threatens temporal and eternal punishment, but no one is compelled to bend the ear or bow the knee to the Servant King. Nevertheless the ministry of Jesus brought division and it continues to do so. It is instructive to understand why.
Jesus said, “Do you think I came to bring peace on earth? No, I tell you, but division.”2 Here we seem to reach an impasse- or at least a paradox- concerning Jesus’ purpose and work. How can we reconcile these words of conflict from the mouth of the Prince of Peace? They are neither gentle, nor meek, nor timid, nor cajoling. They are frank, direct, and condemning. The crowds were strongly rebuked for their steadfast rejection of Jesus as the Messiah. Christ wanted no misgivings or misunderstandings about the nature of His mission.
Jesus Christ did not come to facilitate a confluence of philosophies, ideas, and beliefs about all things spiritual, mystical, and religious. He is not the great guru of assimilation. He is not a broker of various paths to enlightenment. He never claimed harmony in society, or concord among earthly kingdoms and powers was at the top of His agenda. Efforts at human concord are worthy in their own right. But the remedy to sin’s pernicious power must be more trenchant. A small bandage will not remedy terminal cancer. Cosmetic enhancements will not address internal infections.
Through His death and resurrection Christ does bring peace between God and sinners. Yet the conflict with unbelief and Satan will necessarily cause division between humans. Many people look to others as their ultimate security and thus make idols out of them. And people do not give up their idols easily. Some will be offended at Christ and seek to undermine His cause. Jesus came to clarify truth and elucidate the only way of salvation. Truth necessarily initiates conflict with those who have vested interest in falsehoods that underpin power structures which serve their agendas.
Only Christ can take us beyond the limitations of this fallen world. There will never be any technology, discovery, or progress that will make us capable of controlling the consequences of sin and its mature expression-death! What came of the great humanistic hope that mankind had collectively progressed beyond degrees of evil that could any longer render sweeping damage to the human race? World War I and World War II utterly crushed such unrestrained optimism. It has never been recovered. Outward actions can be curbed and even taught but the heart is not so easily tamed. The prophet reminds us “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure.”3A perennial underestimation of sin’s effects remains.
How does the Lutheran Church of Australia take seriously these words of the Lord as it seeks to give faithful witness in a society increasingly at odds with Christian teaching? Do we capitulate to the spirit of the age for the sake of peace? Will we find courage in the promise of Christ and the freedom of the gospel? Are we willing to endure ridicule and risk being ostracized for the sake of His name? We find great inspiration from the saints of old mentioned in Hebrews today. About those who were persecuted for their faith the Scripture says, “The world was not worthy of them.”4 What matters is being made worthy by the blood of the Lamb.
The challenge of every generation is to assess, understand and engage the culture of the day for the sake of the gospel. How is Christ perceived and how do we articulate better? The name of Christ does still command some respect even in the civil sphere. In the state of Tennessee this week a judge ruled that a couple who had named their baby Messiah had to change it saying, “The word Messiah is a title and it's a title that has only been earned by one person and that one person is Jesus Christ.” The couple said they hadn’t chosen the name for religious reasons but because they liked the way it sounded. So even through such unusual circumstances the Saviour’s name gets some publicity.
Of course Jesus is not concerned about publicity. He is not seeking spectators but followers. He is not calling for onlookers but witnesses. He offers forgiveness to the repentant not the curious. His teaching is not the material of innocuous debate but of life, death and immortality. Every day we face temptation. Every hour the Holy Spirit leads us in the struggle. History tells of a soldier who was wounded at the battle of Shiloh during the American Civil War and was ordered to go to the rear. The fighting was fierce and within minutes he returned to his commanding officer. "Captain, give me a gun!" he shouted. "This fight doesn’t have any rear!" And so it is with the very real struggle of living the baptismal life- life under the cross. We are always in the fray. We always need the protection of His promise and the refreshment of the gospel.
Luther said, “If you could see how many knives, darts, and arrows are every moment aimed at you, you would be glad to come to the sacrament as often as possible.”5 He doesn’t say this in order to panic us but to encourage us to cherish the sacred treasure that is offered in the Lord’s Supper. The forgiveness of sins is no trivial gift. We can have no certainty apart from it. Without it we cannot be assured of a gracious God. Remember, you are baptized into the name and kingdom of the Living God.
Dear friends, you do not come to God’s house to show that you are holy. The Holy Spirit draws you here because you are still a sinner. The more you believe this the greater your appreciation of His grace will become. The more fully will you see that the sacrifice made for you on the cross was the most profound act of love ever expressed. The more fully will you participate in the spiritual resurrection you already have because of Christ’s resurrection and look forward to day body and soul are resurrected to glory. Do not pull away even when in His house struggle confronts you. It shows your faith is active. Peace is a gift. Divine peace is one of the “spoils” of war. The struggle for the faith is still intense but Christ has won the war. Satan’s kingdom has been plundered. You are a participant in His victory. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Matthew 26:52
2 Luke 12:50
3 Jeremiah 17:9
4 Hebrews 11:38
5 Large Catechism of Martin Luther
Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost
18 August 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, August 18, 2013
Sunday, August 11, 2013
Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 12:35-40
Theme: Vigilant Faith
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The actions of Christ defy our instincts. His teaching refutes human logic. In His admonition to be watchful today Jesus reverses the normal course of events. The retuning master will gird himself and serve the household slaves. Christ is the Master who came not to be served but to serve. Our God is humble to the point of absurdity. But that doesn’t mean He is feeble or tentative. Christ speaks with unqualified resolve. Christianity that holds to its foundations claims the absolute truth which Jesus proclaimed. The world is offended precisely at this point.
By and large society can accommodate those aspects of Christ’s teaching which are amenable to, or at least not restrictive of, its goals and perspectives. The call to charity, generosity and self-sacrifice is hardly unique to Christianity. A moral platform of honesty and responsibility is shared by humanists and most of the major and minor religions of the world. But the inflexible decree that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”1 and can be justified and reclaimed only through this one man who is God-in-the-flesh- this is offensive to human sensibilities. It is sheer folly to those who have constructed their idols on the so-called certainties of human knowledge and achievement.
Therefore, the hopes of the baptized remain a mystery to the unbelieving world. God assesses things differently than we humans. Civil respectability is no measure of one’s faith. Was the Pharisee more righteous than the criminal crucified at Jesus’ side? Is the self-indulged, arrogant professional more righteous than the petty criminal who lives by taking what he can? Faith is a gift by which we receive the mercy of God in Christ. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”2 With these words the Holy Spirit describes the nature of Christian belief. Our trust stands firmly on God’s promises in Christ. Bombarded with the world’s “evidence” that “might makes right” and life is a fevered pursuit of materialism and pleasure; we nevertheless cling to the “foolishness” of the cross. Life has meaning because Christ was crucified for us and for our salvation. Christianity does not merely accommodate this truth but draws its very life and breath from it.
Today the Lord addresses the challenges of remaining vigilant in the faith. He does so by reminding us of His return. When the biblical teaching of Christ’s Second Coming- embedded in the creedal confessions of the faith, such as in the Nicene Creed, “He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead,” - is neglected the church is tempted to immediately and persuasively become focused mainly on temporal concerns. It does so to its peril. It does so to the peril of souls. Without robust belief that Christ’s return in glory is both expected and inescapable the witness and mission of the church is compromised. Earnestness is not easily driven by uncertainty. Passion for souls and zeal for having people rescued from the power of sin, death, and Satan are not easily maintained by an indefinite conviction about the end of all things.
Of course no one knows the hour of Christ’s return. Therefore the resolution to this challenge must also be considered from the personal perspective of mortality. Indeed, from the standpoint of our spiritual future meeting the returning Christ and facing our physical death have the same implications. Here too, we see the profound impact of a prevailing philosophy that everyone and everything will somehow turn out alright in the next life. Evil will be overlooked. Guilt will be forgotten. Judgment will be dissolved. Unbelief will be ignored. Harmony and peace will just exist as a matter of course. The idea is called universalism. As powerfully appealing as the concept is, it has no foundation in the teaching of the prophets, Christ or the apostles.
Christians too can intentionally or unwittingly give scope and credibility to this falsehood. Do we give the impression, even if it’s from genuine soft-heartedness that on their deathbed everyone is indiscriminately handed a free-pass to heaven? Is Christ only a deliverer from current woes? Is He only a temporary companion for the often dark journey of life?
At what point do faith, the Spirit’s work, the struggle against temptation, and finally the sacrifice of Jesus for the sins of the world become essentially meaningless? At what point is grace no longer the favour of God obtained by the blood of Christ but just a nice religious word conveying God’s tolerance of anything and everything? These are serious questions that are directly relevant to millions today searching for meaning to their existence. Is the call to take up one’s cross and follow the Saviour just a game that serves as a possible way to deal with our own personal angst?
Dear friends, faith can never exist aloof from its object or apathetic in its resolve. Faith’s activity cannot be suppressed. Luther says, Faith “is also a very mighty, active, restless, busy thing, which at once renews a man, gives him a second birth, and introduces him to a new manner and way of life, so that it is impossible for him not to do good without ceasing.”3 Was the faith of Noah a reflective faith? In the face of scorn and ridicule he prepared for God’s judgment as the ark was built. Was Noah quaintly brushing aside the attacks from every corner? Was his struggle of faith not great? Was there a greater struggle of faith- except that of the Crucified One- than that faced by Abraham! Was the faith of Abraham a pensive, navel-gazing speculation as he went about sacrificing his son Isaac? Was the faith of David a balancing of moral prescriptions and prohibitions? Was he merely trying to satisfy God enough to remain in power?
The Bible says, “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.”4How blessed are we in comparison to live after the accomplished acts of Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension! Yet, not unlike the saints of old our faith looks forward. We yearn to be released, resurrected, and restored. St. Paul says, “Or citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”5 That same Saviour comforts His people today saying, “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”6
We have these gifts of the kingdom already. His body and blood are a foretaste of the kingdom but they also renew your faith here and now. Strengthened by sins forgiven you can have the confidence to face all that the world hurls at you. You do not face it alone. Christ has come to serve. He has girded Himself with strength and compassion. His gifts are yours in time and in eternity. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Romans 3:23
2 Hebrews 11:1
3 WA 10.3:285
4 Hebrews 11:13
5 Philippians 3:20
6 Luke 12:32
Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost
11 August 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Luke 12:35-40
Theme: Vigilant Faith
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The actions of Christ defy our instincts. His teaching refutes human logic. In His admonition to be watchful today Jesus reverses the normal course of events. The retuning master will gird himself and serve the household slaves. Christ is the Master who came not to be served but to serve. Our God is humble to the point of absurdity. But that doesn’t mean He is feeble or tentative. Christ speaks with unqualified resolve. Christianity that holds to its foundations claims the absolute truth which Jesus proclaimed. The world is offended precisely at this point.
By and large society can accommodate those aspects of Christ’s teaching which are amenable to, or at least not restrictive of, its goals and perspectives. The call to charity, generosity and self-sacrifice is hardly unique to Christianity. A moral platform of honesty and responsibility is shared by humanists and most of the major and minor religions of the world. But the inflexible decree that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,”1 and can be justified and reclaimed only through this one man who is God-in-the-flesh- this is offensive to human sensibilities. It is sheer folly to those who have constructed their idols on the so-called certainties of human knowledge and achievement.
Therefore, the hopes of the baptized remain a mystery to the unbelieving world. God assesses things differently than we humans. Civil respectability is no measure of one’s faith. Was the Pharisee more righteous than the criminal crucified at Jesus’ side? Is the self-indulged, arrogant professional more righteous than the petty criminal who lives by taking what he can? Faith is a gift by which we receive the mercy of God in Christ. “Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.”2 With these words the Holy Spirit describes the nature of Christian belief. Our trust stands firmly on God’s promises in Christ. Bombarded with the world’s “evidence” that “might makes right” and life is a fevered pursuit of materialism and pleasure; we nevertheless cling to the “foolishness” of the cross. Life has meaning because Christ was crucified for us and for our salvation. Christianity does not merely accommodate this truth but draws its very life and breath from it.
Today the Lord addresses the challenges of remaining vigilant in the faith. He does so by reminding us of His return. When the biblical teaching of Christ’s Second Coming- embedded in the creedal confessions of the faith, such as in the Nicene Creed, “He will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead,” - is neglected the church is tempted to immediately and persuasively become focused mainly on temporal concerns. It does so to its peril. It does so to the peril of souls. Without robust belief that Christ’s return in glory is both expected and inescapable the witness and mission of the church is compromised. Earnestness is not easily driven by uncertainty. Passion for souls and zeal for having people rescued from the power of sin, death, and Satan are not easily maintained by an indefinite conviction about the end of all things.
Of course no one knows the hour of Christ’s return. Therefore the resolution to this challenge must also be considered from the personal perspective of mortality. Indeed, from the standpoint of our spiritual future meeting the returning Christ and facing our physical death have the same implications. Here too, we see the profound impact of a prevailing philosophy that everyone and everything will somehow turn out alright in the next life. Evil will be overlooked. Guilt will be forgotten. Judgment will be dissolved. Unbelief will be ignored. Harmony and peace will just exist as a matter of course. The idea is called universalism. As powerfully appealing as the concept is, it has no foundation in the teaching of the prophets, Christ or the apostles.
Christians too can intentionally or unwittingly give scope and credibility to this falsehood. Do we give the impression, even if it’s from genuine soft-heartedness that on their deathbed everyone is indiscriminately handed a free-pass to heaven? Is Christ only a deliverer from current woes? Is He only a temporary companion for the often dark journey of life?
At what point do faith, the Spirit’s work, the struggle against temptation, and finally the sacrifice of Jesus for the sins of the world become essentially meaningless? At what point is grace no longer the favour of God obtained by the blood of Christ but just a nice religious word conveying God’s tolerance of anything and everything? These are serious questions that are directly relevant to millions today searching for meaning to their existence. Is the call to take up one’s cross and follow the Saviour just a game that serves as a possible way to deal with our own personal angst?
Dear friends, faith can never exist aloof from its object or apathetic in its resolve. Faith’s activity cannot be suppressed. Luther says, Faith “is also a very mighty, active, restless, busy thing, which at once renews a man, gives him a second birth, and introduces him to a new manner and way of life, so that it is impossible for him not to do good without ceasing.”3 Was the faith of Noah a reflective faith? In the face of scorn and ridicule he prepared for God’s judgment as the ark was built. Was Noah quaintly brushing aside the attacks from every corner? Was his struggle of faith not great? Was there a greater struggle of faith- except that of the Crucified One- than that faced by Abraham! Was the faith of Abraham a pensive, navel-gazing speculation as he went about sacrificing his son Isaac? Was the faith of David a balancing of moral prescriptions and prohibitions? Was he merely trying to satisfy God enough to remain in power?
The Bible says, “All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance.”4How blessed are we in comparison to live after the accomplished acts of Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension! Yet, not unlike the saints of old our faith looks forward. We yearn to be released, resurrected, and restored. St. Paul says, “Or citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour from there, the Lord Jesus Christ.”5 That same Saviour comforts His people today saying, “Do not be afraid, little flock, for your Father has been pleased to give you the kingdom.”6
We have these gifts of the kingdom already. His body and blood are a foretaste of the kingdom but they also renew your faith here and now. Strengthened by sins forgiven you can have the confidence to face all that the world hurls at you. You do not face it alone. Christ has come to serve. He has girded Himself with strength and compassion. His gifts are yours in time and in eternity. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Romans 3:23
2 Hebrews 11:1
3 WA 10.3:285
4 Hebrews 11:13
5 Philippians 3:20
6 Luke 12:32
Twelfth Sunday After Pentecost
11 August 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, August 4, 2013
Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 12:13-21
Theme: All Things In Christ
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Money makes the world go round. Have you heard that phrase before? It expresses a fundamental truth about culture and the nature of what makes people tick. Around the acquisition and retaining of material goods human society has constructed a system of value that it refines and defends vigorously. Such definitions of worth pervade every aspect of human existence, even the spiritual. No one is exempt from confronting these influences. Jesus says, “One’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”1 May the Spirit grant us the strength to believe this whole-heartedly!
We are only custodians of God’s gifts and our stewardship consists of assessing and meeting the needs of others. But Jesus is hardly just beating the drum of generosity and advising that all things be done in moderation. He is warning of spiritually fatal obsession with material wealth. He is cautioning against loss of faith and finally, eternal life. Paul echoes the same with His well-known admonition, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith.”2
The day of reckoning will come. It’s not a possibility. It’s a certainty. Each of us will face our Maker. Avoidance or denial will not change the reality. Facing mortality is the issue in today’s Scripture from Luke. In answer to an inheritance dispute Christ warns about the dangers of greed. His parable of the rich fool speaks directly to contemporary life. The man was not foolish in the world’s eyes, but spiritually. In a worldly sense he may well have been known as a shrewd and successful businessman. Such praise from society is a powerful motivation for the pursuit of success.
How worthless are our material riches in comparison with the value of the soul! It’s one thing to hear the preacher say that, it’s another thing for people to believe it. Little effort is needed to convince people why we so easily get caught up in the desire for wealth. There is always a perpetual and resilient belief among the majority of people that money is the key to happiness. The pursuit of material wealth and security dominates the interests and energies of many people. It is vigorously argued that a certain amount of money secure contentment. In truth, contentment is the key to handling money.
Chasing after money causes terrible stress even from a worldly perspective. It can control a person’s mindset and compromise their health. Greed and jealously ruin friendships and even divide families. Lottery winners are often more unhappy after their ‘windfall”. God knows your temptations, your weaknesses and your blatant sins when it comes to money and material possessions. He knows when you’ve been stingy, dishonest, selfish, and jealous. These transgressions are not to be excused, or defended, but confessed.
We are naturally quick to judge others and colour the situation in our favour. We all know the tendencies of a self-righteous attitude. When other people take a long time to do something, they're slow; when we take a long time, we're thorough. When they don't do something, they're lazy; when we don't, we're too busy. When they succeed, they're lucky; when we do, we deserve it. It’s no wonder the news media are known for using spin; it’s built into our genes. But God sees us as we are. The struggle of the Christian life is to live as such.
The Russian author Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run; knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost. As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared. He immediately collapsed. In a few minutes he was dead. Afterwards, his servants dug a grave on his land. It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide.
Through the parable of the foolish farmer the crowd was being strictly advised about the genuineness of their faith. Faith cannot exist in name only. It is not positive thinking or moral respectability. Action characterizes faith, showing it to be either alive or dead. Faith does not have independent existence. It depends on the Holy Spirit and lives in connection with Christ. Faith exists in repentance. It lives in struggle. You cannot measure your faith by gauging its effortlessness or ease. Faith grapples with God’s promise to provide daily bread. It wrestles with the action of sacrificing for others. Faith is active in love- not only those from whom we expect reciprocation- but particularly the love of those who are unable to return our generosity.
Christ is the example par excellence. The Scripture says, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich.”3 It wasn’t His meager material comforts during His earthly sojourn that speak most clearly of His profound compassion but His act of immersing Himself in the muck of sinful humanity. Christ’s greatest humiliation did not involve harsh treatment or unfair rebuke but rather His willingness to become as one of us, flesh and blood, so that He might bear the burdens of our sins. He bore our guilt all the way to the cross and laid it to rest in the grave. His resurrection opened the way for us to serve in freedom. We are released from death’s curse.
Through baptism you have become a participant in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. In this covenant He binds Himself inseparably to you. The apostle says today, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”4 The motivation of materialism dies in a Christian because he or she believes these blessings are just a means to an end.
But because this belief is flatly rejected by the world Christians are risk-takers in the highest sense. Fidelity to the teachings of Christ runs the risk of opposition, discrimination, and even persecution from the world. This is not a one-off possibility, but the constant reality of living the faith. Yet this taking on of risk is not optional for the believer. It is part and parcel of identifying with Christ’s name. St. Peter says, “Let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.”5
Luther never tired of reminding people that in comparison to what God has prepared for His people all of our challenges in life- even the most severe trial- are trifles. Even our greatest pleasures are mere shadows and previews. To teach this is to do nothing less than preach the Good News of eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. God has greater riches in store for you than you could ever accumulate or even enjoy in the life. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 11:5
2 1 Timothy 6:10
3 2 Corinthians 8:9
4 Colossians 3:1-3
5 1 Peter 4:19
Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost
4 August 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Luke 12:13-21
Theme: All Things In Christ
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Money makes the world go round. Have you heard that phrase before? It expresses a fundamental truth about culture and the nature of what makes people tick. Around the acquisition and retaining of material goods human society has constructed a system of value that it refines and defends vigorously. Such definitions of worth pervade every aspect of human existence, even the spiritual. No one is exempt from confronting these influences. Jesus says, “One’s life does not consist in the abundance of his possessions.”1 May the Spirit grant us the strength to believe this whole-heartedly!
We are only custodians of God’s gifts and our stewardship consists of assessing and meeting the needs of others. But Jesus is hardly just beating the drum of generosity and advising that all things be done in moderation. He is warning of spiritually fatal obsession with material wealth. He is cautioning against loss of faith and finally, eternal life. Paul echoes the same with His well-known admonition, “The love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith.”2
The day of reckoning will come. It’s not a possibility. It’s a certainty. Each of us will face our Maker. Avoidance or denial will not change the reality. Facing mortality is the issue in today’s Scripture from Luke. In answer to an inheritance dispute Christ warns about the dangers of greed. His parable of the rich fool speaks directly to contemporary life. The man was not foolish in the world’s eyes, but spiritually. In a worldly sense he may well have been known as a shrewd and successful businessman. Such praise from society is a powerful motivation for the pursuit of success.
How worthless are our material riches in comparison with the value of the soul! It’s one thing to hear the preacher say that, it’s another thing for people to believe it. Little effort is needed to convince people why we so easily get caught up in the desire for wealth. There is always a perpetual and resilient belief among the majority of people that money is the key to happiness. The pursuit of material wealth and security dominates the interests and energies of many people. It is vigorously argued that a certain amount of money secure contentment. In truth, contentment is the key to handling money.
Chasing after money causes terrible stress even from a worldly perspective. It can control a person’s mindset and compromise their health. Greed and jealously ruin friendships and even divide families. Lottery winners are often more unhappy after their ‘windfall”. God knows your temptations, your weaknesses and your blatant sins when it comes to money and material possessions. He knows when you’ve been stingy, dishonest, selfish, and jealous. These transgressions are not to be excused, or defended, but confessed.
We are naturally quick to judge others and colour the situation in our favour. We all know the tendencies of a self-righteous attitude. When other people take a long time to do something, they're slow; when we take a long time, we're thorough. When they don't do something, they're lazy; when we don't, we're too busy. When they succeed, they're lucky; when we do, we deserve it. It’s no wonder the news media are known for using spin; it’s built into our genes. But God sees us as we are. The struggle of the Christian life is to live as such.
The Russian author Leo Tolstoy once wrote a story about a successful peasant farmer who was not satisfied with his lot. He wanted more of everything. One day he received a novel offer. For 1000 rubles, he could buy all the land he could walk around in a day. The only catch in the deal was that he had to be back at his starting point by sundown. Early the next morning he started out walking at a fast pace. By midday he was very tired, but he kept going, covering more and more ground. Well into the afternoon he realized that his greed had taken him far from the starting point. He quickened his pace and as the sun began to sink low in the sky, he began to run; knowing that if he did not make it back by sundown the opportunity to become an even bigger landholder would be lost. As the sun began to sink below the horizon he came within sight of the finish line. Gasping for breath, his heart pounding, he called upon every bit of strength left in his body and staggered across the line just before the sun disappeared. He immediately collapsed. In a few minutes he was dead. Afterwards, his servants dug a grave on his land. It was not much over six feet long and three feet wide.
Through the parable of the foolish farmer the crowd was being strictly advised about the genuineness of their faith. Faith cannot exist in name only. It is not positive thinking or moral respectability. Action characterizes faith, showing it to be either alive or dead. Faith does not have independent existence. It depends on the Holy Spirit and lives in connection with Christ. Faith exists in repentance. It lives in struggle. You cannot measure your faith by gauging its effortlessness or ease. Faith grapples with God’s promise to provide daily bread. It wrestles with the action of sacrificing for others. Faith is active in love- not only those from whom we expect reciprocation- but particularly the love of those who are unable to return our generosity.
Christ is the example par excellence. The Scripture says, “For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sake He became poor, so that you by His poverty might become rich.”3 It wasn’t His meager material comforts during His earthly sojourn that speak most clearly of His profound compassion but His act of immersing Himself in the muck of sinful humanity. Christ’s greatest humiliation did not involve harsh treatment or unfair rebuke but rather His willingness to become as one of us, flesh and blood, so that He might bear the burdens of our sins. He bore our guilt all the way to the cross and laid it to rest in the grave. His resurrection opened the way for us to serve in freedom. We are released from death’s curse.
Through baptism you have become a participant in the crucifixion and resurrection of Christ. In this covenant He binds Himself inseparably to you. The apostle says today, “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your minds on things above, not on things that are on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”4 The motivation of materialism dies in a Christian because he or she believes these blessings are just a means to an end.
But because this belief is flatly rejected by the world Christians are risk-takers in the highest sense. Fidelity to the teachings of Christ runs the risk of opposition, discrimination, and even persecution from the world. This is not a one-off possibility, but the constant reality of living the faith. Yet this taking on of risk is not optional for the believer. It is part and parcel of identifying with Christ’s name. St. Peter says, “Let those who suffer according to God’s will entrust their souls to a faithful Creator while doing good.”5
Luther never tired of reminding people that in comparison to what God has prepared for His people all of our challenges in life- even the most severe trial- are trifles. Even our greatest pleasures are mere shadows and previews. To teach this is to do nothing less than preach the Good News of eternal salvation in Jesus Christ. God has greater riches in store for you than you could ever accumulate or even enjoy in the life. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 11:5
2 1 Timothy 6:10
3 2 Corinthians 8:9
4 Colossians 3:1-3
5 1 Peter 4:19
Eleventh Sunday After Pentecost
4 August 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Monday, July 29, 2013
Tenth Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 11:13
Theme: Eager To Respond
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is always eager to listen. He is just as ready to willingly respond. Christ fills us with great courage in our life of prayer. “Ask, seek, and knock,”1 He tells us. The heavenly Father will not fail to give- especially the Holy Spirit to His people. This is more than a motivational mandate of divine origin. This is the incarnate Son of the inaccessible Father passionately positioning His pupils at the throne of grace. Here we are given courage to petition the Almighty who desires to speak to us as dear children.
Now what makes this prospect of inquiry anything more than a pious platitude? What makes prayer anything more than desperate demonstration of grasping at straws? Dear friends, in order to nay-say the privilege and power of prayer you will need an impressive arsenal of defence. You will need to reckon with the command and promise of God, the example of Christ and the witness of the faithful across the ages. Oh, yes, it’s easy to be dismissive when you think you have the world by the tail. It’s easy to flippantly discount prayer as being irrelevant when your job is secure, your bank account is fat and you’re in the prime of your life. It’s easy to be apathetic if you’ve mistaken God for an uninterested and incapable observer. It’s easiest of all to trivialize prayer when you believe God either won’t judge or that you’re beyond the pale of His condemnation. Sin causes us to boast in just this way.
But even the demons know better. Even the demons begged Christ not to denounce them. They knew and they still know, and they feared and they still fear because they do not believe. But faith does not operate in this way. Faith is always in need of God’s mercy. Faith is always seeking more insight, more knowledge, more comfort, more assurance. There is no contradiction between contentment and the yearning of faith. In faith we recognize our mortality as readily as we acknowledge Christ’s supremacy. We are beset with ageing, sickness, fear and regret because we are sinners. But He is vested with immortality, vitality, courage, and hope because He is the victor over sin.
Our prayers often betray both the lack of understanding of our need and the abundance of God’s grace. The nine year- old girl prayed, “Dear God: Please help me in school. I need help in spelling, math, history, geography and writing. I don't need help in anything else.” Are we any less naïve? We often pray just for those few things we think are pressing us at the time often not realizing which things are really most critical.
What does Jesus’ story about the friend who goes to the other friend in the night for a loaf of bread teach us? Christ intentionally proposes an absurd example. A true friend will, of course, help another friend in time of need. But if, for argument’s sake, the person won’t help just because they are a friend, they will help because of the other’s persistence; and to avoid abandoning the expectations of the community. They will not fail to practice hospitality. How much more so God in heaven!
Dear friends, God is serious about His love for us. It is not a theoretical love. Remember what the apostle says today, “In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”2 The infant child of Bethlehem is the eternal Son of the uncreated Father. In Him humanity is “re-made”. He is the new Adam. He wrests us back from the power of Satan and ushers us into His own everlasting kingdom. He seals you with His blood, “Having been buried with Him in baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.”3 Your baptism was a spiritual resurrection from the dead. Every time you repent and receive the forgiveness of your sins you are revisiting the power of that resurrection. Forgiveness is the only regular nourishment that can sustain us. That is why He makes it available to us so liberally: In the gospel proclaimed, the body and blood of Christ given in the sacred meal, and the baptismal covenant.
We pray because we are baptized. We pray because we are part of the family of God. God is not stingy. Now you may regard that statement to be contestable. Perhaps you feel slighted, neglected or cheated? Perhaps you think you have been given a raw deal. Yet God owes you nothing. And there is nothing you have earned but admonition. Still, He looks away from His only-begotten Son and turns His face toward you. “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”4
The Lord’s Prayer is the prayer of believers. It is the language of faith. Praying it properly is a matter of adopting Christ’s perspective. Christians have a different viewpoint than the unbelieving world. The mercy of God is largely hidden from the unenlightened. A man read an ad in the newspaper, "Hunting dog for sale, $5,000, but well worth it." He called the number and the man told him that he had to see the dog in action. The next morning they met and went hunting early. The dog flushed two birds from a clump of bushes and when they fell into the water, he walked on top of the water, grabbed the birds, and walked back, again on top of the water. The man was amazed, and bought the dog on the spot. The next day he persuaded his brother to go hunting with him. They flushed a couple of birds and the dog again walked on top of the water, retrieved the birds, and walked back to their boat on top of the water. He asked his brother what he thought of the dog and the brother replied, "I can’t believe you bought a dog that can't swim."
We don’t believe because we see; we see because we believe. What more can we ask Christ to do for us than what He has done? He condescended to take our human nature to Himself. He walked in our footsteps, was anointed by the Holy Spirit for His unique mission, remained faithful to the heavenly Father, and lived perfectly under the law- all on our behalf. He was mistreated, scandalized, unfairly sentenced, beaten, mocked, and was crucified. He hung on a Roman cross between criminals. His body was laid in a tomb. He walked out of the grave three day later. He didn’t perform a magician’s trick; He was resurrected. He walked among His own before He ascended. He promises to resurrect us on the Last Day. Lord, help us to pray boldly, even as, in our weakness, we trust the Holy Spirit to pray for us5. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 See Luke 11:9
2 Colossians 2:9
3 Colossians 2:12
4 Hebrews 4:16
5 See Romans 8:26
Tenth Sunday After Pentecost
28 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Luke 11:13
Theme: Eager To Respond
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is always eager to listen. He is just as ready to willingly respond. Christ fills us with great courage in our life of prayer. “Ask, seek, and knock,”1 He tells us. The heavenly Father will not fail to give- especially the Holy Spirit to His people. This is more than a motivational mandate of divine origin. This is the incarnate Son of the inaccessible Father passionately positioning His pupils at the throne of grace. Here we are given courage to petition the Almighty who desires to speak to us as dear children.
Now what makes this prospect of inquiry anything more than a pious platitude? What makes prayer anything more than desperate demonstration of grasping at straws? Dear friends, in order to nay-say the privilege and power of prayer you will need an impressive arsenal of defence. You will need to reckon with the command and promise of God, the example of Christ and the witness of the faithful across the ages. Oh, yes, it’s easy to be dismissive when you think you have the world by the tail. It’s easy to flippantly discount prayer as being irrelevant when your job is secure, your bank account is fat and you’re in the prime of your life. It’s easy to be apathetic if you’ve mistaken God for an uninterested and incapable observer. It’s easiest of all to trivialize prayer when you believe God either won’t judge or that you’re beyond the pale of His condemnation. Sin causes us to boast in just this way.
But even the demons know better. Even the demons begged Christ not to denounce them. They knew and they still know, and they feared and they still fear because they do not believe. But faith does not operate in this way. Faith is always in need of God’s mercy. Faith is always seeking more insight, more knowledge, more comfort, more assurance. There is no contradiction between contentment and the yearning of faith. In faith we recognize our mortality as readily as we acknowledge Christ’s supremacy. We are beset with ageing, sickness, fear and regret because we are sinners. But He is vested with immortality, vitality, courage, and hope because He is the victor over sin.
Our prayers often betray both the lack of understanding of our need and the abundance of God’s grace. The nine year- old girl prayed, “Dear God: Please help me in school. I need help in spelling, math, history, geography and writing. I don't need help in anything else.” Are we any less naïve? We often pray just for those few things we think are pressing us at the time often not realizing which things are really most critical.
What does Jesus’ story about the friend who goes to the other friend in the night for a loaf of bread teach us? Christ intentionally proposes an absurd example. A true friend will, of course, help another friend in time of need. But if, for argument’s sake, the person won’t help just because they are a friend, they will help because of the other’s persistence; and to avoid abandoning the expectations of the community. They will not fail to practice hospitality. How much more so God in heaven!
Dear friends, God is serious about His love for us. It is not a theoretical love. Remember what the apostle says today, “In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”2 The infant child of Bethlehem is the eternal Son of the uncreated Father. In Him humanity is “re-made”. He is the new Adam. He wrests us back from the power of Satan and ushers us into His own everlasting kingdom. He seals you with His blood, “Having been buried with Him in baptism and raised with Him through your faith in the power of God, who raised Him from the dead.”3 Your baptism was a spiritual resurrection from the dead. Every time you repent and receive the forgiveness of your sins you are revisiting the power of that resurrection. Forgiveness is the only regular nourishment that can sustain us. That is why He makes it available to us so liberally: In the gospel proclaimed, the body and blood of Christ given in the sacred meal, and the baptismal covenant.
We pray because we are baptized. We pray because we are part of the family of God. God is not stingy. Now you may regard that statement to be contestable. Perhaps you feel slighted, neglected or cheated? Perhaps you think you have been given a raw deal. Yet God owes you nothing. And there is nothing you have earned but admonition. Still, He looks away from His only-begotten Son and turns His face toward you. “Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.”4
The Lord’s Prayer is the prayer of believers. It is the language of faith. Praying it properly is a matter of adopting Christ’s perspective. Christians have a different viewpoint than the unbelieving world. The mercy of God is largely hidden from the unenlightened. A man read an ad in the newspaper, "Hunting dog for sale, $5,000, but well worth it." He called the number and the man told him that he had to see the dog in action. The next morning they met and went hunting early. The dog flushed two birds from a clump of bushes and when they fell into the water, he walked on top of the water, grabbed the birds, and walked back, again on top of the water. The man was amazed, and bought the dog on the spot. The next day he persuaded his brother to go hunting with him. They flushed a couple of birds and the dog again walked on top of the water, retrieved the birds, and walked back to their boat on top of the water. He asked his brother what he thought of the dog and the brother replied, "I can’t believe you bought a dog that can't swim."
We don’t believe because we see; we see because we believe. What more can we ask Christ to do for us than what He has done? He condescended to take our human nature to Himself. He walked in our footsteps, was anointed by the Holy Spirit for His unique mission, remained faithful to the heavenly Father, and lived perfectly under the law- all on our behalf. He was mistreated, scandalized, unfairly sentenced, beaten, mocked, and was crucified. He hung on a Roman cross between criminals. His body was laid in a tomb. He walked out of the grave three day later. He didn’t perform a magician’s trick; He was resurrected. He walked among His own before He ascended. He promises to resurrect us on the Last Day. Lord, help us to pray boldly, even as, in our weakness, we trust the Holy Spirit to pray for us5. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 See Luke 11:9
2 Colossians 2:9
3 Colossians 2:12
4 Hebrews 4:16
5 See Romans 8:26
Tenth Sunday After Pentecost
28 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, July 21, 2013
Ninth Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 10:42
Theme: The Good Portion
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
When it comes down to things of pivotal importance, Jesus is always the giver. He is always the host. When sin is confronted, when mortality is faced, when life hangs in the balance- the presence, and promise, and purpose and power of Christ are decisive. Everything else is a reflection, a shadow, an imitation or a sham- even our greatest and finest efforts contribute no weight on the scales of divine justice. Just one drop of His blood pays the debt, makes the sacrifice- reconciles the sinner. The believer’s entire life is nothing but a continual reception of and response to this truth.
What can we learn from the sisters of Bethany today? What are we to make of the example of Mary and Martha? Martha was undoubtedly a diligent, gracious, and dutiful host. She was an exemplary model of hospitality seeking to serve the many that had come to hear her honoured guest. Jesus was in the house and preparing to serve Him was her first priority. In this regard she was upset with Mary for not assisting her and she was not afraid to show some frustration with the Lord. She was bold enough even to give Him a directive, “Tell her to help me!”1 Yet Martha had made a fundamental miscalculation. She wrongly assumed that she was the host, when in fact, it was Jesus.
The tenderness of His response is indicated by His repetition of her name. “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.”2 His rebuke is gentle, intended to instruct those gathered to listen. Only the word of God is indispensable. If we are bereft of all other comforts and necessities we must still rejoice to have God’s truth. Yet how few do! If we were to possess every comfort and the highest level of earthly riches, yet had not the gospel, we would still be doomed to perish for eternity. Death will come to us all. Apart from Him who is the victor over sin and death all is darkness. If we have not a resurrected and living Christ we have not hope.
Jesus says that Mary has chosen the better ‘part’, ‘share’, or ‘portion’ indicating that He is using a play on words that refers to a portion of food. She chose the good portion. Martha was busy with all the serving of food but Mary was receiving the most important part of what was on offer. She was dining at the royal banquet. Christ’s word was true nourishment. Mary was the perfect model of listening. Focused on Christ, she was a receptive vessel. Spiritually speaking, listening to God’s word is as closely linked with eating as it is with learning. Physical eating is not an exercise that occupies the brain per se, but it does provide energy for the mind to work. Spiritual eating does both: It nourishes our faith and exercises our faith at the same time. The Scripture says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.”3
Our faith originates in Christ alone. Our assent, or our articulation of what we believe, or our confession is only a response, a recognition of what exists. Faith doesn’t come into existence by the verbalization of our thoughts, feelings, or opinions. It isn’t created by our efforts. Born in sin we are dead to all spiritual truth. Faith is engendered purely by the action of the Holy Spirit through the gospel.
Biblical faith then brings equal blessings to all. The faith of the newly baptized infant is no less complete or legitimate than the faith of a mature Christian. This assertion may seem illogical, even absurd, but it is expressive of the nature of the divine gift. The faith of the neophyte may be simple while the faith of the mature person complex. The newly Christened may have fragile faith while an experienced person’s faith is robust. Yet, just as a baby is no less a person than an octogenarian, so too, fresh belief is no less genuine than tested conviction. The critical truth is that genuine faith receives the full blessings of salvation. There is no piecemeal or apportioned inheritance. Baptism promises the fullness of the kingdom. In these promises we know God’s love.
The greatest drive we have is survival. But the greatest need we have is love. To survive or exist without the knowledge or experience of love is to exist cut-off from the Creator and His creation. To be absent love is soon to be encompassed, embraced, and inundated by sin. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”4 “God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him [Christ], and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things…by making peace through His blood, shed on a cross.”5
Dear friends, our acts of service are always responses to His embrace. The diligent devotion of Martha is not to be disdained. It only needed to be rightly ordered. The fact that she voiced complaint to Jesus shows that she wasn’t trying to impress Him with false humility. She genuinely desired to serve Him. She only needed to understand that at that time Mary was rendering the greater honour by being served by Him. Still, in her serving Martha probably did better than most. Often ulterior motives betray us.
John Galbraith was an economist and public intellectual whose influence spanned the presidential terms of Roosevelt through to Lyndon Johnson. In his autobiography, A Life in Our Times, he illustrates the devotion of his family's housekeeper: It had been a wearying day, and I asked Emily to hold all telephone calls while I had a nap. Shortly thereafter the phone rang. Lyndon Johnson was calling from the White House. "Get me John ‘Ken’ Galbraith. This is Lyndon Johnson." "He is sleeping, Mr. President. He said not to disturb him." "Well, wake him up. I want to talk to him." "No, Mr. President. I work for him, not you. When I called the President back, he could scarcely control his pleasure. "Tell that woman I want her here in the White House." Does our service and obedience depend on who’s watching, who’s taking notice, and who we are trying to impress? When we are serving Christ we are not concerned with recognition from others. We are always answerable to the Almighty God, first and foremost.
There is a time for contributing and a time for receiving. One night in Bethany Christ ate from Martha’s table. But Mary feasted on finer food. Like physical food the benefits of His truth are multifaceted. It grants us comfort, inspiration, encouragement, and instruction. It checks our rebelliousness, clarifies our confusion, and lifts our hopes. God’s word, particularly His absolving word, gives us spiritual strength and healing. In things essential Christ is always the host. At this table He is both the sacrifice and the One who serves. He is the Saviour. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 10:40
2 Luke 10:41-42
3 Luke 10:37
4 Romans 5:8
5 Colossians 1:19-20
Ninth Sunday After Pentecost
21 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Luke 10:42
Theme: The Good Portion
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
When it comes down to things of pivotal importance, Jesus is always the giver. He is always the host. When sin is confronted, when mortality is faced, when life hangs in the balance- the presence, and promise, and purpose and power of Christ are decisive. Everything else is a reflection, a shadow, an imitation or a sham- even our greatest and finest efforts contribute no weight on the scales of divine justice. Just one drop of His blood pays the debt, makes the sacrifice- reconciles the sinner. The believer’s entire life is nothing but a continual reception of and response to this truth.
What can we learn from the sisters of Bethany today? What are we to make of the example of Mary and Martha? Martha was undoubtedly a diligent, gracious, and dutiful host. She was an exemplary model of hospitality seeking to serve the many that had come to hear her honoured guest. Jesus was in the house and preparing to serve Him was her first priority. In this regard she was upset with Mary for not assisting her and she was not afraid to show some frustration with the Lord. She was bold enough even to give Him a directive, “Tell her to help me!”1 Yet Martha had made a fundamental miscalculation. She wrongly assumed that she was the host, when in fact, it was Jesus.
The tenderness of His response is indicated by His repetition of her name. “Martha, Martha, you are worried and upset about many things, but only one thing is needed.”2 His rebuke is gentle, intended to instruct those gathered to listen. Only the word of God is indispensable. If we are bereft of all other comforts and necessities we must still rejoice to have God’s truth. Yet how few do! If we were to possess every comfort and the highest level of earthly riches, yet had not the gospel, we would still be doomed to perish for eternity. Death will come to us all. Apart from Him who is the victor over sin and death all is darkness. If we have not a resurrected and living Christ we have not hope.
Jesus says that Mary has chosen the better ‘part’, ‘share’, or ‘portion’ indicating that He is using a play on words that refers to a portion of food. She chose the good portion. Martha was busy with all the serving of food but Mary was receiving the most important part of what was on offer. She was dining at the royal banquet. Christ’s word was true nourishment. Mary was the perfect model of listening. Focused on Christ, she was a receptive vessel. Spiritually speaking, listening to God’s word is as closely linked with eating as it is with learning. Physical eating is not an exercise that occupies the brain per se, but it does provide energy for the mind to work. Spiritual eating does both: It nourishes our faith and exercises our faith at the same time. The Scripture says, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.”3
Our faith originates in Christ alone. Our assent, or our articulation of what we believe, or our confession is only a response, a recognition of what exists. Faith doesn’t come into existence by the verbalization of our thoughts, feelings, or opinions. It isn’t created by our efforts. Born in sin we are dead to all spiritual truth. Faith is engendered purely by the action of the Holy Spirit through the gospel.
Biblical faith then brings equal blessings to all. The faith of the newly baptized infant is no less complete or legitimate than the faith of a mature Christian. This assertion may seem illogical, even absurd, but it is expressive of the nature of the divine gift. The faith of the neophyte may be simple while the faith of the mature person complex. The newly Christened may have fragile faith while an experienced person’s faith is robust. Yet, just as a baby is no less a person than an octogenarian, so too, fresh belief is no less genuine than tested conviction. The critical truth is that genuine faith receives the full blessings of salvation. There is no piecemeal or apportioned inheritance. Baptism promises the fullness of the kingdom. In these promises we know God’s love.
The greatest drive we have is survival. But the greatest need we have is love. To survive or exist without the knowledge or experience of love is to exist cut-off from the Creator and His creation. To be absent love is soon to be encompassed, embraced, and inundated by sin. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”4 “God was pleased to have all His fullness dwell in Him [Christ], and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things…by making peace through His blood, shed on a cross.”5
Dear friends, our acts of service are always responses to His embrace. The diligent devotion of Martha is not to be disdained. It only needed to be rightly ordered. The fact that she voiced complaint to Jesus shows that she wasn’t trying to impress Him with false humility. She genuinely desired to serve Him. She only needed to understand that at that time Mary was rendering the greater honour by being served by Him. Still, in her serving Martha probably did better than most. Often ulterior motives betray us.
John Galbraith was an economist and public intellectual whose influence spanned the presidential terms of Roosevelt through to Lyndon Johnson. In his autobiography, A Life in Our Times, he illustrates the devotion of his family's housekeeper: It had been a wearying day, and I asked Emily to hold all telephone calls while I had a nap. Shortly thereafter the phone rang. Lyndon Johnson was calling from the White House. "Get me John ‘Ken’ Galbraith. This is Lyndon Johnson." "He is sleeping, Mr. President. He said not to disturb him." "Well, wake him up. I want to talk to him." "No, Mr. President. I work for him, not you. When I called the President back, he could scarcely control his pleasure. "Tell that woman I want her here in the White House." Does our service and obedience depend on who’s watching, who’s taking notice, and who we are trying to impress? When we are serving Christ we are not concerned with recognition from others. We are always answerable to the Almighty God, first and foremost.
There is a time for contributing and a time for receiving. One night in Bethany Christ ate from Martha’s table. But Mary feasted on finer food. Like physical food the benefits of His truth are multifaceted. It grants us comfort, inspiration, encouragement, and instruction. It checks our rebelliousness, clarifies our confusion, and lifts our hopes. God’s word, particularly His absolving word, gives us spiritual strength and healing. In things essential Christ is always the host. At this table He is both the sacrifice and the One who serves. He is the Saviour. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 10:40
2 Luke 10:41-42
3 Luke 10:37
4 Romans 5:8
5 Colossians 1:19-20
Ninth Sunday After Pentecost
21 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Monday, July 15, 2013
Eighth Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 10:34
Theme: Fingerprints of Faith
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The hands of the priest were stained with blood; the Levite likewise. It was the blood of the wounded. It was the blood of guilt. Their hands never touched the victim. They never left any prints. But their hearts were sullied, their consciences were condemned. “Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”1 asked the Lord. The question wasn’t difficult; but it was incriminating. The expert in the law had no choice but to commend the normally despised Samaritan at the expense of His own colleagues. Christ condemned hypocrisy without direct reference it its perpetrators. Often this is most effective.
The Holy Spirit convicts the hearts of the guilty. To do so He doesn’t require explicit evidence. He can prick the conscience with a surprise word or image and often does so when least expected. The Holy Spirit doesn’t do this work of convicting deceitfully, but He does it cleverly and masterfully. The priest and the Levite made themselves arbitrators of God’s commands. In self-righteousness they chose not to risk becoming ritually unclean by approaching the man but in refraining they defiled their souls.
We are not at liberty to pick and choose which of God’s laws we follow. Our devotion in following some does not excuse our neglect of others. Devoutness doesn’t accumulate credit that we can spend on other failures. God doesn’t judge us on whether or not we are on the balance breaking even in some spiritual trading account. When we operate in this manner the conscience relies on a false premise. We cannot bargain with God. Grace knows nothing of reparation. Mercy is destroyed by remuneration. The favour of God cannot be reciprocated. God declares sinners to be righteous and does so with no contribution on their part.
The word good is not found in the parable of the ‘Good’ Samaritan. That doesn’t mean it has been mislabeled. Still, its use only as a moralism misses the major emphasis. The parable is ultimately about Christ. It is not about achieving God’s favour by out-doing those whom we would expect to do God’s work. Goodness is not achieved by enhancing our natural qualities. Your piety can never validate God’s word. Your sanctity can never legitimize God’s truth. It makes no difference how intense your passion or strong your feeling. It makes no difference if you feel anything at all. What matters is that He was conceived, was born of a Virgin, suffered, was crucified, rose on the third day, ascended and intercedes for you.
Christ is for you and that frees you to be for your neighbour. Christ traveled on the dark side of humanity’s thoroughfares; through the back alleys and along forsaken lanes. He traveled not for curiosity’s sake, but to search out the downtrodden, the wounded, and the frail. He came not to be served but to serve. Do we find ourselves on the ‘other side’; avoiding obligations, evading responsibilities? Or does pity interrupt our travels? Is there flexibility in our routines to assist those in need? Will entire schedules be rearranged when the hardship of those laboring in darkness cries out for mercy? Are the fingerprints of faith left as evidence of our presence? Or do we more often have blood on our hands?
The hands of the Great High Priest were stained with blood, flowing from the nails; dripping down on the wood of the cross. His was the blood of sacrifice. It was the price of redemption. His was life-giving blood; soul-reviving blood, wrath-appeasing blood. It was blood shed for the Samaritan, but also for the expert in the law, the priest and the Levite. It was blood shed for you. It was not just shed altruistically; it was shed to save. Christ justifies you by that blood and you receive His grace by faith. There is no other way to cross the threshold into God’s eternal presence.
The prophet Isaiah powerfully and vividly describes the wrath and the redemption of the Messiah using the language of this blood-theme. “Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forth in the greatness of His strength? ‘It is I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save.’ Why are Your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? ‘I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with Me. I trampled them in My anger and trod them down in My wrath; their blood spattered My garments and stained all My clothing.’”2 His blood-stained clothing acquired our holy garments of salvation. The baptized wear His righteousness. His fingerprints cover our souls.
Yet, lest we get too engaged in looking for Christ’s “fingerprints”, that is, in looking for evidence that He made His mark on the world (for proof so we can invest in Him without faith) we remember the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. The shepherds knew Christ at the manger. The disciples knew Him as they grew under His tutelage. The 5000 knew Him as they ate bread and fish. The blind, the mute, the deaf, the lame, the demon-possessed knew Him as they were healed. But who knew Him at the cross? The crucifixion is where God shows that He is not to high and mighty to know you, to be seen with you, to care for you. Hidden under the apparent tragedy of the cross is the true grace and power of God. There Satan is disarmed. Death is undone. Sin is drained of its power.
The consequences are dramatic, as the apostle says today, “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”3 Fingerprints are clues. They are indications. They are pointers. The very same blood He shed we now receive in the Lord’s Supper, a pointer to the heavenly banquet and evidence of the very presence of the Son of God. The Good Samaritan left his fingerprints on the wounded. Christ has done the same for us. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 10:37
2 Isaiah 63:1-3
3 Colossians 1:13-14
Eighth Sunday After Pentecost
14 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Luke 10:34
Theme: Fingerprints of Faith
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The hands of the priest were stained with blood; the Levite likewise. It was the blood of the wounded. It was the blood of guilt. Their hands never touched the victim. They never left any prints. But their hearts were sullied, their consciences were condemned. “Which of these three do you think was a neighbour to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?”1 asked the Lord. The question wasn’t difficult; but it was incriminating. The expert in the law had no choice but to commend the normally despised Samaritan at the expense of His own colleagues. Christ condemned hypocrisy without direct reference it its perpetrators. Often this is most effective.
The Holy Spirit convicts the hearts of the guilty. To do so He doesn’t require explicit evidence. He can prick the conscience with a surprise word or image and often does so when least expected. The Holy Spirit doesn’t do this work of convicting deceitfully, but He does it cleverly and masterfully. The priest and the Levite made themselves arbitrators of God’s commands. In self-righteousness they chose not to risk becoming ritually unclean by approaching the man but in refraining they defiled their souls.
We are not at liberty to pick and choose which of God’s laws we follow. Our devotion in following some does not excuse our neglect of others. Devoutness doesn’t accumulate credit that we can spend on other failures. God doesn’t judge us on whether or not we are on the balance breaking even in some spiritual trading account. When we operate in this manner the conscience relies on a false premise. We cannot bargain with God. Grace knows nothing of reparation. Mercy is destroyed by remuneration. The favour of God cannot be reciprocated. God declares sinners to be righteous and does so with no contribution on their part.
The word good is not found in the parable of the ‘Good’ Samaritan. That doesn’t mean it has been mislabeled. Still, its use only as a moralism misses the major emphasis. The parable is ultimately about Christ. It is not about achieving God’s favour by out-doing those whom we would expect to do God’s work. Goodness is not achieved by enhancing our natural qualities. Your piety can never validate God’s word. Your sanctity can never legitimize God’s truth. It makes no difference how intense your passion or strong your feeling. It makes no difference if you feel anything at all. What matters is that He was conceived, was born of a Virgin, suffered, was crucified, rose on the third day, ascended and intercedes for you.
Christ is for you and that frees you to be for your neighbour. Christ traveled on the dark side of humanity’s thoroughfares; through the back alleys and along forsaken lanes. He traveled not for curiosity’s sake, but to search out the downtrodden, the wounded, and the frail. He came not to be served but to serve. Do we find ourselves on the ‘other side’; avoiding obligations, evading responsibilities? Or does pity interrupt our travels? Is there flexibility in our routines to assist those in need? Will entire schedules be rearranged when the hardship of those laboring in darkness cries out for mercy? Are the fingerprints of faith left as evidence of our presence? Or do we more often have blood on our hands?
The hands of the Great High Priest were stained with blood, flowing from the nails; dripping down on the wood of the cross. His was the blood of sacrifice. It was the price of redemption. His was life-giving blood; soul-reviving blood, wrath-appeasing blood. It was blood shed for the Samaritan, but also for the expert in the law, the priest and the Levite. It was blood shed for you. It was not just shed altruistically; it was shed to save. Christ justifies you by that blood and you receive His grace by faith. There is no other way to cross the threshold into God’s eternal presence.
The prophet Isaiah powerfully and vividly describes the wrath and the redemption of the Messiah using the language of this blood-theme. “Who is this, robed in splendor, striding forth in the greatness of His strength? ‘It is I, speaking in righteousness, mighty to save.’ Why are Your garments red, like those of one treading the winepress? ‘I have trodden the winepress alone; from the nations no one was with Me. I trampled them in My anger and trod them down in My wrath; their blood spattered My garments and stained all My clothing.’”2 His blood-stained clothing acquired our holy garments of salvation. The baptized wear His righteousness. His fingerprints cover our souls.
Yet, lest we get too engaged in looking for Christ’s “fingerprints”, that is, in looking for evidence that He made His mark on the world (for proof so we can invest in Him without faith) we remember the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing. The shepherds knew Christ at the manger. The disciples knew Him as they grew under His tutelage. The 5000 knew Him as they ate bread and fish. The blind, the mute, the deaf, the lame, the demon-possessed knew Him as they were healed. But who knew Him at the cross? The crucifixion is where God shows that He is not to high and mighty to know you, to be seen with you, to care for you. Hidden under the apparent tragedy of the cross is the true grace and power of God. There Satan is disarmed. Death is undone. Sin is drained of its power.
The consequences are dramatic, as the apostle says today, “He has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son He loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.”3 Fingerprints are clues. They are indications. They are pointers. The very same blood He shed we now receive in the Lord’s Supper, a pointer to the heavenly banquet and evidence of the very presence of the Son of God. The Good Samaritan left his fingerprints on the wounded. Christ has done the same for us. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Luke 10:37
2 Isaiah 63:1-3
3 Colossians 1:13-14
Eighth Sunday After Pentecost
14 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, July 7, 2013
Seventh Sunday After Pentecost (C) 2013
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Luke 10:3
Theme: Into the Fray
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
True joy is a gift. It cannot be purchased, manufactured, or even taught; at least not in this life. There is no blueprint, no program; no protocol. The wealthy are often more discontented than the poor. The comedian is often more unhappy than his audience. The politician is often more pessimistic than her electorate. The doctor is sometimes even more unhealthy than his patient. Joy can only be gifted and received for the gift that it is.
Christian joy has a direct and inverse relationship with sin. Sin stimulates our sinful natures but winds up leaving us hollow and empty. The forgiveness of sins acquires for us true joy. But it is not obtained without struggle. Repentance is the gift of cutting ties with our self-interests (our idols) and trusting in the one true God. Of course it’s not logical or natural for the unbelieving world to see it this way. So the Christian enlisted in the venture of the gospel is necessarily sent out into the fray. In the contest we receive battle scars. You know what yours are. But Christ says, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.”1
Today Jesus sends out the 72 on their mission saying, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” 2 What is the harvest potential today? Many need to hear the gospel but how receptive will they be? The era of Christianity being a dominant influence in our culture is quickly fading. We can no longer assume even a common basis of morality. Cultural tenets about sexuality and marriage, the sanctity of life, the care of the earth and even the existence of humanity are being profoundly impacted by philosophies that compete with or directly oppose Judeo-Christian truth. This is nothing new but it is an increasingly radical departure from the recent past. The 72 were sent out like lambs among wolves. Should we expect anything different?
When God’s word is proclaimed the Holy Spirit convicts people in their sin and unbelief. His truth will cause confrontation and even offence. Christ makes it clear that if the 72 were not welcomed they were to serve warning, “Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you.”3 He gave the same advice to the apostles. One commentator explains it this way, “The dust from any place that does not receive their preaching is profane, to be shaken off, lest it stain God’s people and be brought into God’s house as they enter the presence of the ‘new temple.’”4 Exactly such action had to be taken in Acts 135. It was a preview of Jesus’ strong words later, “The one who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.”6
Until the law of God does its work there is no appetite for the gospel. Those who are not sinners don’t need a Saviour. The mission of the church is not to refine the masses so that the effects of unbelief are more palatable and civilized. Unbelief is finally a denial of the consequences of sin. God’s intent is to crucify the sinful nature with all its attendant ways and grant new life in Christ. This is not a one-off action but the continual work of the law and the gospel in the lives of believers. Your sin is no more, but no less condemning than it was the day you were baptized.
We must learn to be measured in our judgments and sensitive in our approach. St. Paul says, “If someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.7 The goal of spiritual care is always to restore and nurture. Remember what the Lord says, “There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”8
Joy always accompanies the true reception of the gospel but the challenges of investing in those opportunities can be significant. A missionary in Africa was once asked if he really liked what he was doing. His response seemed shocking. "Do I like this work?" he said. "No. My wife and I do not like dirt. We have reasonable refined sensibilities. We do not like crawling into vile huts through goat refuse...But is a man to do nothing for Christ he does not like? God pity him, if not. Liking or disliking has nothing to do with it. We have orders to 'Go,' and we go. Love constrains us." His response may be a little crass, but it brings across an important point. Life isn’t all about personal happiness. Christianity involves a commitment to a greater cause. It requires that we get down into the trenches. It entails getting entangled in the muck and mire of people’s lives. It means constantly assessing whether or not we are just living by our own benchmark or whether we are living in Christ.
What exactly this entails is different for each individual and each congregation. It may incur financial cost. It may involve emotional turmoil. It may require the sacrifice of our preferred priorities. It may involve surrender of our short-term goals and long-term dreams. It may end in a complete transformation of who we are and what we thought we were all about. Though uncertain of what it may cost there is no doubt what it promises. It always rests on the promise of the Word. It always holds to the hidden mystery of our baptismal inheritance. It always awaits the advent of the Saviour. It always yearns to be clothed with life immortal. It continually takes leave of the past and advances into the future.
Are we only looking for fleeting happiness when God offers us enduring joy? Paul said today, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and, and I to the world.”9 Christ died and rose again that we might have abundant life.
Here is joy- in the baptismal water that grafts one into a family where they will never be forgotten.
“Take they our life, Goods, fame, child, and wife;
though these all be gone, yet have our foes not won;
the kingdom ours remaineth.”10
Here is joy- in the absolution declared in the name of the triune God. The iniquities that haunt you and the failures that accuse you- they are wiped away, forgiven. You have a clean slate, here and now. Here is joy- in this morsel of bread and sip of wine that conveys to you the immortal body and blood of the crucified and risen Lord. All the riches in the world are not worth as much as these sacred delicacies. Drenched with the Spirit they convey to you the power and presence of the unremitting mercy of God.
Dear friends, believers now march into strong headwinds. But that means the opportunities are plentiful. You are Christ’s hands and feet to someone. All find their place under Christ the head. So, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”11 Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Seventh Sunday After Pentecost
7 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Matthew 5:11-12
2 Luke 10:2
3 Luke 10:11
4 Arthur Just, Concordia Commentary
5 See Acts 13:51
6 Luke 12:9
7 Galatians 6:1
8 Luke 15:10
9 Galatians 6:14
10 LW, 195
11 Hebrews 12:2
Text: Luke 10:3
Theme: Into the Fray
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
True joy is a gift. It cannot be purchased, manufactured, or even taught; at least not in this life. There is no blueprint, no program; no protocol. The wealthy are often more discontented than the poor. The comedian is often more unhappy than his audience. The politician is often more pessimistic than her electorate. The doctor is sometimes even more unhealthy than his patient. Joy can only be gifted and received for the gift that it is.
Christian joy has a direct and inverse relationship with sin. Sin stimulates our sinful natures but winds up leaving us hollow and empty. The forgiveness of sins acquires for us true joy. But it is not obtained without struggle. Repentance is the gift of cutting ties with our self-interests (our idols) and trusting in the one true God. Of course it’s not logical or natural for the unbelieving world to see it this way. So the Christian enlisted in the venture of the gospel is necessarily sent out into the fray. In the contest we receive battle scars. You know what yours are. But Christ says, “Blessed are you when people insult you, persecute you and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven.”1
Today Jesus sends out the 72 on their mission saying, “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few.” 2 What is the harvest potential today? Many need to hear the gospel but how receptive will they be? The era of Christianity being a dominant influence in our culture is quickly fading. We can no longer assume even a common basis of morality. Cultural tenets about sexuality and marriage, the sanctity of life, the care of the earth and even the existence of humanity are being profoundly impacted by philosophies that compete with or directly oppose Judeo-Christian truth. This is nothing new but it is an increasingly radical departure from the recent past. The 72 were sent out like lambs among wolves. Should we expect anything different?
When God’s word is proclaimed the Holy Spirit convicts people in their sin and unbelief. His truth will cause confrontation and even offence. Christ makes it clear that if the 72 were not welcomed they were to serve warning, “Even the dust of your town that sticks to our feet we wipe off against you.”3 He gave the same advice to the apostles. One commentator explains it this way, “The dust from any place that does not receive their preaching is profane, to be shaken off, lest it stain God’s people and be brought into God’s house as they enter the presence of the ‘new temple.’”4 Exactly such action had to be taken in Acts 135. It was a preview of Jesus’ strong words later, “The one who denies Me before men will be denied before the angels of God.”6
Until the law of God does its work there is no appetite for the gospel. Those who are not sinners don’t need a Saviour. The mission of the church is not to refine the masses so that the effects of unbelief are more palatable and civilized. Unbelief is finally a denial of the consequences of sin. God’s intent is to crucify the sinful nature with all its attendant ways and grant new life in Christ. This is not a one-off action but the continual work of the law and the gospel in the lives of believers. Your sin is no more, but no less condemning than it was the day you were baptized.
We must learn to be measured in our judgments and sensitive in our approach. St. Paul says, “If someone is caught in a sin, you who are spiritual should restore him gently. But watch yourself, or you also may be tempted.7 The goal of spiritual care is always to restore and nurture. Remember what the Lord says, “There is rejoicing in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents.”8
Joy always accompanies the true reception of the gospel but the challenges of investing in those opportunities can be significant. A missionary in Africa was once asked if he really liked what he was doing. His response seemed shocking. "Do I like this work?" he said. "No. My wife and I do not like dirt. We have reasonable refined sensibilities. We do not like crawling into vile huts through goat refuse...But is a man to do nothing for Christ he does not like? God pity him, if not. Liking or disliking has nothing to do with it. We have orders to 'Go,' and we go. Love constrains us." His response may be a little crass, but it brings across an important point. Life isn’t all about personal happiness. Christianity involves a commitment to a greater cause. It requires that we get down into the trenches. It entails getting entangled in the muck and mire of people’s lives. It means constantly assessing whether or not we are just living by our own benchmark or whether we are living in Christ.
What exactly this entails is different for each individual and each congregation. It may incur financial cost. It may involve emotional turmoil. It may require the sacrifice of our preferred priorities. It may involve surrender of our short-term goals and long-term dreams. It may end in a complete transformation of who we are and what we thought we were all about. Though uncertain of what it may cost there is no doubt what it promises. It always rests on the promise of the Word. It always holds to the hidden mystery of our baptismal inheritance. It always awaits the advent of the Saviour. It always yearns to be clothed with life immortal. It continually takes leave of the past and advances into the future.
Are we only looking for fleeting happiness when God offers us enduring joy? Paul said today, “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me and, and I to the world.”9 Christ died and rose again that we might have abundant life.
Here is joy- in the baptismal water that grafts one into a family where they will never be forgotten.
“Take they our life, Goods, fame, child, and wife;
though these all be gone, yet have our foes not won;
the kingdom ours remaineth.”10
Here is joy- in the absolution declared in the name of the triune God. The iniquities that haunt you and the failures that accuse you- they are wiped away, forgiven. You have a clean slate, here and now. Here is joy- in this morsel of bread and sip of wine that conveys to you the immortal body and blood of the crucified and risen Lord. All the riches in the world are not worth as much as these sacred delicacies. Drenched with the Spirit they convey to you the power and presence of the unremitting mercy of God.
Dear friends, believers now march into strong headwinds. But that means the opportunities are plentiful. You are Christ’s hands and feet to someone. All find their place under Christ the head. So, “Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.”11 Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Seventh Sunday After Pentecost
7 July 2013
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Matthew 5:11-12
2 Luke 10:2
3 Luke 10:11
4 Arthur Just, Concordia Commentary
5 See Acts 13:51
6 Luke 12:9
7 Galatians 6:1
8 Luke 15:10
9 Galatians 6:14
10 LW, 195
11 Hebrews 12:2
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