+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 19:35
Theme: All or Nothing
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“It is finished.”1 Just three little words (only one in the Greek), but they embrace the totality of the divine plan of redemption. The entirety of the Father’s love, the enormity of the Son’s sacrifice, the completeness of the Spirit’s affection; all are distilled into these last words of the Saviour. It was an epic journey; unique, peerless, and redemptive. What humans could never achieve in eons of combined effort, Christ did in this singular act of sacrifice. In one moment, God who dwells in timelessness, healed what sin’s sword has severed. God’s wrath was appeased. The debt of sin was pardoned. The ammunition of Satan was destroyed. Reconciliation was achieved.
It’s not so much at the manger, but at the cross that we see how precious life is. The heart-warming sentimentality of the stable is exchanged for the gut-wrenching spectacle of the crucifixion. There on the Hill of the Skull the holy Son of God is given in sacrifice for wayward children of Adam. Human life, in all of its filth, its darkness, and its depravity is deemed worth saving by God. How marvelous and mysterious that our God- who owes us nothing, but whom we depend on for everything- does not yield to the failure of humanity but perseveres in restoring life. He could have washed His hands in a much more righteous way than Pilate did and declare Himself through with the exasperating failure of humanity. Instead, we are redeemed.
Good Friday is an excellent time to reflect on what you value in life. Does the way you invest your time, energy, and resources align with your core convictions? Everyone’s life tells multiple stories. What stories is your life telling other people? Are they stories of selfishness, arrogance, or apathy? Are they chronicles of integrity, reliability, and honesty? Are they tales joyfulness, optimism, and hope. We are saints and sinners, so the complexities of our lives cannot be defined too narrowly. We can be as fickle as we are loyal, as hopeless as we are helpful. Undying devotion and manifest selfishness can be displayed in the same person concurrently. When all the fleeting things of life are stripped away, what permanent things do we hold on to? When hardship, or illness, or age, or finally, mortality robs us of both our pleasures and our possessions, what do we have that remains unshakeable? What do we possess that’s non-negotiable?
A prosperous entrepreneur was enjoying his success and good fortune as he neared middle age. Suddenly, his wife fell sick and died. Several years after the death of his wife, their two children were killed in an accident while travelling together. The next year he contracted a debilitating illness. He was forced to resign as CEO of the company and accept regular home nursing visits, so he could still live on his own. Over time, he adjusted to his diminished affluence and the limitations on his physical abilities. In the beginning he was bitter and resentful. God’s name was taken in vain. Surely, he thought, God’s cold-hearted compliance or apathetic ineptness must be at least partially to blame. Spiteful and angry, he regularly took out his frustration on others. Few people liked to be around him.
Then something happened. It was gradual at first. He started to notice how other people handled suffering; people of much lesser means, people without privileged backgrounds, people with lives also touched by grief. He reflected on how in the past he had turned a blind eye on the down and out. Some humility and remorse were conceived within him. He began to look differently at the meaning of life. Looking for truth, he recognized that many of his former convictions were hollow and false.
Dear friends, the truth is, God isn’t absent from suffering; He is right in the middle of it. Jesus hung suspended from the tree. Either it was a pathetic miscarriage of justice. Or, the suffering God is the greatest truth ever revealed! In the end, it’s all or nothing. Pontius Pilate cynically asked, “What is truth?”2 Jesus humbly provided the answer. Truth is not always where we think it is. Nothing more earth-shattering will ever be revealed than this truth: Christ crucified and raised for the sins of the world.
Idolatry has many altars on which the truth and wisdom of God are sacrificed. Truth is sacrificed on the altar of greed. In 2002 a British man named John Darwin faked his own death. He and his wife collected 25,000 pounds in insurance money and paid off their mortgage. He was discovered five years later and sentenced. New York man Raymond Roth tried to have his son Jonathan help him fake his death in 2012 but was foiled when he was picked up for speeding in South Carolina. The death of Jesus was not fake.
Truth is sacrificed on the altar of popularity. A study in Psychology Today revealed that less than ten percent of children in primary school consider popularity important, but by high school it was more than one third. How strong is the human need to be liked? Think of the dynamics of human relationships facilitated by social media. People mistake popularity with genuine love and care. Jesus cared nothing for popularity.
Truth is sacrificed on the altar of fear. King Saul feared David’s popularity with the people and that he would lose his throne. He became so obsessed about it, the matter consumed him for the rest of his life3. He hoped David would be killed by the Philistines in battle and devised schemes in hopes of achieving it4. How many foolish and harmful decisions are made every day out of fear! Jesus was not driven by fear.
So now, here at Calvary, we see the greatest irony and the greatest paradox. Truth Himself is sacrificed on the altar of the cross. But it is not done in vanity. He dies as the substitute for all of our lies and falsehoods. Not just our petty lies and our failures due to ignorance, but the sinister deceptions with which we try to appear as people we’re not before God and before others. “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.”5 Nothing highlights the autonomous work of God as clearly as the crucifixion. Christ goes it alone. The Son of God immerses Himself in the darkness of our fallen world and single-handedly disarms Satan and defeats evil. The disciples didn’t even have the courage to stand with Him at the cross. At the cross we see the weight of sin. If sin were a trivial matter, it’s scarcely thinkable that Christ would have died. It was all or nothing, and Christ did not fail.
We might be tempted to quickly move on from the crucified Jesus. After all, who likes to linger in the macabre-ness of death? The victorious, resurrected Lord presents a decidedly more cheerful appeal. But dwelling on the crucifixion of Jesus is not a fixation on death. It is recognition of truth. The resurrection doesn’t render the crucifixion obsolete. It immortalizes it as the power by which forgiveness transforms unbelievers into children of God. This is what St. Paul meant when he said, “Don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death?”6 In the crucifixion and burial of Jesus the power of Satan to accuse us over our sins, and the just wrath of the heavenly Father against our disobedience were laid to rest in the grave. Your baptism is a celebration of these victories, even as it is a source of strength in your daily fight against temptation.
The crucifixion was an all-or-nothing event. Everything hung in the balance. That’s not to deny the necessity of the resurrection. But if sin had remained un-atoned for, reconciliation with the Father could not have been achieved. The crucifixion and burial marked the end of Christ’s humiliation, but not the end of His servanthood. He not only understands suffering, He gives the ultimate hope and the final victory to all who trust in Him. Today can only be called Good Friday in relation to the benefit that resulted for us. It was all or nothing. Our souls weren’t left wanting. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Good Friday
30 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 19:30 2 John 18:38
3 See 1 Samuel 18:29 4 See 1 Samuel 18:17
5 Isaiah 53:5 6 Romans 6:3
Thursday, April 5, 2018
Wednesday, April 4, 2018
Maundy Thursday 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Matthew 26:28
Theme: For the Forgiveness of Sins
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Not all meals are equal. Some are more significant because of the occasion. Fast food eaten on the go hardly compares with a wedding banquet. Some have more nourishing food than others. A meal packed with nutrients and substance will offer a different benefit than one containing hollow calories. The Lord’s Supper is a meal without comparison. It is a celebration of the Bridegroom’s love for His Bride, the church. He is both the host of the meal and its content. Received in faith, it promises both physical and spiritual blessings.
The Lord’s Supper is instituted in the context of the Passover. The Passover celebrated God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt. Christ was about to accomplish a new and greater deliverance. It was not the Red Sea or the Jordan River that would be crossed, but the threshold of heaven. It was not human oppression that would be overthrown, but Satan’s kingdom of darkness. Christ, the high priest would enter into the holy of holies according to the Scripture, “When Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) - he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.”1
So, gathered with His disciples in the Upper Room, He washed their feet, teaching them humility and servanthood. He dealt with the betrayal of Judas and the reluctance of Peter. Then, He transformed the meal of the Passover into the sacrament of Holy Communion. The Scripture says, “Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”2 In the intimate company of the Twelve, He gifted the church with this means of grace.
Dear friends, it’s important to recognise what we are dealing with here. The presence and power of Christ alone determine the validity of this sacrament. Neither our belief, nor our ignorance, nor our scepticism, nor our approval make God’s treasures what they are. Our misuse of God’s means of grace-the word, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper- does not drain them of their power. Rejecting God’s gifts in unbelief only means we are condemned rather than forgiven, convicted rather than absolved. We should always be fearful, therefore, of making light of God’s truth. The Scripture says, “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.”3 Rain can refresh a thirsty crop, but too much can drown it. It is still rain. Fire can warm the cold house or burn it down. It is the same fire. God’s holy presence means judgement for the unrepentant sinner, but mercy for the penitent soul. The same medicine can give life to the dying person or bring death to the living person.
Yet, we can have the greatest confidence in knowing that God will richly bless all who humbly seek His grace. The Father never turns away a child with a penitent heart. The Jesus who hosts us at the Lord’s Table is the same one who endured the gauntlet of suffering and death. God’s word says, “In him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.”4 And again the Scripture says of Christ, “…and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross.”5 There is no other means of access into the presence of the Father. But another means is not needed. The risen Lord has swung the gates of heaven wide open. The cherubim guarding the way back into the Garden of Eden have been relieved of their duty. The flaming sword has been sheathed6. In Christ, salvation is secure. He has risen. He is living. His blood makes it certain.
The thief on the cross was saved by it. The apostle and the peasant, the prince and the pauper, the politician, the drug addict, the petty criminal and the honoured citizen, the man of ill repute and the woman of stellar reputation, the courageous one and the coward, the rebel and the devotee, high and low, rich and poor, all, no exceptions, no exclusions, are cleansed by this blood. That includes you. It includes me. And all who are not remain unclean. That’s why the mission of the gospel is always critical. The terminally ill can’t heal themselves. Sinners cannot cleanse their own souls. That’s why the saints in heaven are described as the ones “who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”7
Now, what a marvellous, mysterious, miracle it is that this blood is gifted to believers in the simple but sacred meal of the Supper. The blood of the sacrifice is now the blood of the sacrament. The atonement has been made and no more blood need be spilled. But it is now the church’s treasure in perpetuity until Christ returns and escorts us to the heavenly banquet. It is pure, undeserved gift. It is grace supremely bestowed. Here, in this modest meal, the profundity of God’s love is present. It’s no wonder the apostle exclaims, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?"8
When Jesus and the disciples left the Upper Room, the crucifixion was only hours away. The disciples were still mired in the complexity of confusion. Jesus, however, understood exactly what He faced. Excruciating suffering awaited Him. His body would be pushed passed its limits. But it was even more harrowing for His soul. The dark loneliness of death would consume Him. He went forth into the darkness without flinching; the Holy One as the substitute for sinners. Tonight, we celebrate the fruits of His passion. He is the true Vine9. Our celebration isn’t a mere remembrance. It is a participation in the spoils of His conquering love. This sacred blood is given for you. This blood of the cross is the life-giving blood of the living God. It is vital food unmatched by any other blessing that sustains us. It is the medicine of immortality. Take and eat. Take and drink. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Maundy Thursday
29 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Hebrews 9:11-12 2 Matthew 26:26-28
3 1 Corinthians 11:27-29 4 Ephesians 1:7
5 Colossians 1:20 6 See Genesis 3:24
7 Revelation 7:14 8 Romans 11:33-35
9 See John 15:1
Text: Matthew 26:28
Theme: For the Forgiveness of Sins
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Not all meals are equal. Some are more significant because of the occasion. Fast food eaten on the go hardly compares with a wedding banquet. Some have more nourishing food than others. A meal packed with nutrients and substance will offer a different benefit than one containing hollow calories. The Lord’s Supper is a meal without comparison. It is a celebration of the Bridegroom’s love for His Bride, the church. He is both the host of the meal and its content. Received in faith, it promises both physical and spiritual blessings.
The Lord’s Supper is instituted in the context of the Passover. The Passover celebrated God’s deliverance of the Israelites from Egypt. Christ was about to accomplish a new and greater deliverance. It was not the Red Sea or the Jordan River that would be crossed, but the threshold of heaven. It was not human oppression that would be overthrown, but Satan’s kingdom of darkness. Christ, the high priest would enter into the holy of holies according to the Scripture, “When Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) - he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.”1
So, gathered with His disciples in the Upper Room, He washed their feet, teaching them humility and servanthood. He dealt with the betrayal of Judas and the reluctance of Peter. Then, He transformed the meal of the Passover into the sacrament of Holy Communion. The Scripture says, “Now as they were eating, Jesus took bread, and after blessing it broke it and gave it to the disciples, and said, "Take, eat; this is my body." And he took a cup, and when he had given thanks he gave it to them, saying, "Drink of it, all of you, for this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.”2 In the intimate company of the Twelve, He gifted the church with this means of grace.
Dear friends, it’s important to recognise what we are dealing with here. The presence and power of Christ alone determine the validity of this sacrament. Neither our belief, nor our ignorance, nor our scepticism, nor our approval make God’s treasures what they are. Our misuse of God’s means of grace-the word, baptism, and the Lord’s Supper- does not drain them of their power. Rejecting God’s gifts in unbelief only means we are condemned rather than forgiven, convicted rather than absolved. We should always be fearful, therefore, of making light of God’s truth. The Scripture says, “Whoever, therefore, eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty concerning the body and blood of the Lord. Let a person examine himself, then, and so eat of the bread and drink of the cup. For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body eats and drinks judgment on himself.”3 Rain can refresh a thirsty crop, but too much can drown it. It is still rain. Fire can warm the cold house or burn it down. It is the same fire. God’s holy presence means judgement for the unrepentant sinner, but mercy for the penitent soul. The same medicine can give life to the dying person or bring death to the living person.
Yet, we can have the greatest confidence in knowing that God will richly bless all who humbly seek His grace. The Father never turns away a child with a penitent heart. The Jesus who hosts us at the Lord’s Table is the same one who endured the gauntlet of suffering and death. God’s word says, “In him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of His grace.”4 And again the Scripture says of Christ, “…and through Him to reconcile to Himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of His cross.”5 There is no other means of access into the presence of the Father. But another means is not needed. The risen Lord has swung the gates of heaven wide open. The cherubim guarding the way back into the Garden of Eden have been relieved of their duty. The flaming sword has been sheathed6. In Christ, salvation is secure. He has risen. He is living. His blood makes it certain.
The thief on the cross was saved by it. The apostle and the peasant, the prince and the pauper, the politician, the drug addict, the petty criminal and the honoured citizen, the man of ill repute and the woman of stellar reputation, the courageous one and the coward, the rebel and the devotee, high and low, rich and poor, all, no exceptions, no exclusions, are cleansed by this blood. That includes you. It includes me. And all who are not remain unclean. That’s why the mission of the gospel is always critical. The terminally ill can’t heal themselves. Sinners cannot cleanse their own souls. That’s why the saints in heaven are described as the ones “who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”7
Now, what a marvellous, mysterious, miracle it is that this blood is gifted to believers in the simple but sacred meal of the Supper. The blood of the sacrifice is now the blood of the sacrament. The atonement has been made and no more blood need be spilled. But it is now the church’s treasure in perpetuity until Christ returns and escorts us to the heavenly banquet. It is pure, undeserved gift. It is grace supremely bestowed. Here, in this modest meal, the profundity of God’s love is present. It’s no wonder the apostle exclaims, “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways! For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor? Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?"8
When Jesus and the disciples left the Upper Room, the crucifixion was only hours away. The disciples were still mired in the complexity of confusion. Jesus, however, understood exactly what He faced. Excruciating suffering awaited Him. His body would be pushed passed its limits. But it was even more harrowing for His soul. The dark loneliness of death would consume Him. He went forth into the darkness without flinching; the Holy One as the substitute for sinners. Tonight, we celebrate the fruits of His passion. He is the true Vine9. Our celebration isn’t a mere remembrance. It is a participation in the spoils of His conquering love. This sacred blood is given for you. This blood of the cross is the life-giving blood of the living God. It is vital food unmatched by any other blessing that sustains us. It is the medicine of immortality. Take and eat. Take and drink. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Maundy Thursday
29 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Hebrews 9:11-12 2 Matthew 26:26-28
3 1 Corinthians 11:27-29 4 Ephesians 1:7
5 Colossians 1:20 6 See Genesis 3:24
7 Revelation 7:14 8 Romans 11:33-35
9 See John 15:1
Palm Sunday 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Mark 11:9
Theme: Expectations!
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”1 He comes not in self-importance or in pomp and circumstance. He comes as the One “Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!”2 He comes out of concern for every human soul. He comes because He must.
Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. It was hardly a regal entrance. He had no kingly retinue. Still, a long trail of miracles, signs, and wonders attended Him. He was locally famous. His miracles were incontestable. Herod wanted to see one and some Jewish leaders tried to attribute them to demonic power. On different occasions His disciples and the crowds had witnessed Him elude arrest and capture by the authorities. He did so not by hiding out, or by a show of force, but through the mystery of His divine elusiveness. Peter cut off Malchus’s ear in the Garden of Gethsemane, but Jesus told him to sheathe His sword3. The time had come for the Son of Man to be glorified. His kingdom would not be bound to earth’s dimensions of time and space. Spiritual wars are not won in the same way physical wars are.
Palm Sunday primes us for the contrast and harmony between expectation and fulfillment. The peaks and valleys of Holy Week were extraordinary for the followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Hope, joy, doubt, fear, disappointment, grief, despair, surprise, astonishment, rapture, and elation are some of the emotions that filled the hearts and minds of those who witnessed the journey. The moment of truth was at hand. What would happen with this itinerant preacher from Galilee? On Palm Sunday expectations were high, by Good Friday they were all but dashed.
Expectations are something that must be managed throughout life. It’s healthy to regularly assess whether our handling of expectations is reasonable and godly. What are our expectations of God? What are our expectations of others? What are our expectations of ourselves? And what are these expectations based on? Now, it should come as no surprise to anyone that expectations are frequently unreasonable, misguided, and uninformed. Nor should it be surprising that expectations are often biased towards the one who anticipates a certain outcome. Owning this truth is to do nothing more than confess our own self-centredness; an obligation for honest Christians.
The starting point is, of course, our relationship with the God who comes to us in the person of Jesus and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Many First Century followers of Jesus expected Him to institute a kingdom generally in line with their preconceived ideas. Instead, He accomplished something different but much more significant. All of our expectations in life will be fatally skewed if we don’t understand that Jesus came because we are sinners. The coming King calls us to repentance with good reason and we should expect nothing else.
Our knowledge of our own sinfulness would end badly if we didn’t also know that God doesn’t leave to fend for ourselves. We can expect that God is being true to His word when His Spirit opens our hearts to the promises of the gospel. The Bible says, “No matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.”4 Maturity in life involves managing expectations in a godly way whether trivial matters are at stake or big issues are on the agenda. How do we react when our expectations aren’t met?
Two police officers in nearby towns set up separate ‘speed traps’ near their respective public schools one Saturday afternoon. In line with statistical averages both expected to nab a certain number of offenders over a four-hour period. Both knew a sporting event was taking place in the one town and expected celebrations to go on well into the night. The first policeman, in the town where the event was held, was surprised to catch only one offender. The second was even more surprised to note nearly every second person racing past the limit. The reason was due to an approaching hailstorm. The locals had a short trip to shelter. The others were desperate to reach their garages in the next town. Expectations of both officers were blown.
When He sees fit, God completely disregards the law of averages too. He blows our expectations out of the water. He can calm the storm, heal the sick, and raise the dead. God can cure cancer completely. But He might also choose to send it into remission or let it run its course. God can bring someone unharmed through an horrific accident, but He might also bring them to the day of judgment. In every case He is being just and holy even when we can’t see it. And God never acts inconsistently with His will as revealed in the Scriptures. We need not speculate about God’s opinion regarding anything to do with our ultimate welfare. We have it in His word.
Hopeful and expectant people waved palm branches and spread their cloaks on the road to welcome their Messiah into Jerusalem. By the end of the week He would be fixed like a criminal to that gruesome instrument of Roman retribution known as a cross. The people of Jerusalem cheered hosanna as He entered their city. It’s a plea meaning ‘Lord, please save us.” Hosanna is not part of the language of our age. Yet the truth it expresses is timeless. We might learn to find substitutes for biblical words like hosanna. Luther would be the first to say that God’s word must be made available to people in their language. But he would also be the first to insist the message itself not be changed. Cultures and societies will always be in a state of flux, but the unchanging Word of God transforms individuals within societies of every age. A ‘gospel’ that’s changed by the culture is no longer the gospel. We should expect that people of faith see the world from a different perspective and think, speak, and act accordingly.
Dear friends, the gospel doesn’t mean God has lowered His expectations of us. His will for us to live selfless, sacrificial lives doesn’t change. The gospel doesn’t mean that God has discounted the significance of sin. There is no schedule of depreciation for the cost of sin. The good news of Jesus’ sacrificial death is that the heavenly Father makes no concessions at all. He doesn’t lower His expectations. Christ meets them all. We are valued, freed, and forgiven, God’s incomprehensible mercy is the reason and nothing else. We are justified by grace, not by any efforts or accomplishments.
Jesus once referred to His passion as a baptism. He asked James and John (who were eager to share in His glory), “are you able…to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”5 The baptism of water and the Spirit that believers receive would be without power or lasting effect had Jesus not undergone His baptism of fire. Rejoice, sisters and brothers! Your baptism is vested with the strength and blessing of Jesus’ own passion and resurrection. You have forgiveness. You are at peace with God. In prosperity or adversity, you can be certain that Jesus has gone to prepare a place for you6. He gives you, even now, a foretaste of the banquet to come when you receive His body and blood in the Lord’s Supper. It is manna from above.
Remember, Jesus came to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. It was a special celebration of reflection and thanksgiving for God’s deliverance from slavery and subsequent gifting of the Promised Land. The angel of death passed over the homes of the Israelites marked with Lamb’s blood7. It’s no coincide that Jesus will now facilitate a new and greater deliverance at this time. Dear friends, what good is it for anyone to have their temporal life spared if their soul is lost for eternity? Christ comes to deliver from eternal death, hell, and damnation. Could there be a better reason to join the refrain, saying, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”8 Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday In Lent
18 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 11:9 2 Philippians 2:6-8
3 See John 18:9-10 4 2 Corinthians 1:20
5 Mark 10:38 6 See John 14:3
7 See Exodus 12:23 8 Mark 11:9
Text: Mark 11:9
Theme: Expectations!
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
“Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”1 He comes not in self-importance or in pomp and circumstance. He comes as the One “Who being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made Himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death- even death on a cross!”2 He comes out of concern for every human soul. He comes because He must.
Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. It was hardly a regal entrance. He had no kingly retinue. Still, a long trail of miracles, signs, and wonders attended Him. He was locally famous. His miracles were incontestable. Herod wanted to see one and some Jewish leaders tried to attribute them to demonic power. On different occasions His disciples and the crowds had witnessed Him elude arrest and capture by the authorities. He did so not by hiding out, or by a show of force, but through the mystery of His divine elusiveness. Peter cut off Malchus’s ear in the Garden of Gethsemane, but Jesus told him to sheathe His sword3. The time had come for the Son of Man to be glorified. His kingdom would not be bound to earth’s dimensions of time and space. Spiritual wars are not won in the same way physical wars are.
Palm Sunday primes us for the contrast and harmony between expectation and fulfillment. The peaks and valleys of Holy Week were extraordinary for the followers of Jesus of Nazareth. Hope, joy, doubt, fear, disappointment, grief, despair, surprise, astonishment, rapture, and elation are some of the emotions that filled the hearts and minds of those who witnessed the journey. The moment of truth was at hand. What would happen with this itinerant preacher from Galilee? On Palm Sunday expectations were high, by Good Friday they were all but dashed.
Expectations are something that must be managed throughout life. It’s healthy to regularly assess whether our handling of expectations is reasonable and godly. What are our expectations of God? What are our expectations of others? What are our expectations of ourselves? And what are these expectations based on? Now, it should come as no surprise to anyone that expectations are frequently unreasonable, misguided, and uninformed. Nor should it be surprising that expectations are often biased towards the one who anticipates a certain outcome. Owning this truth is to do nothing more than confess our own self-centredness; an obligation for honest Christians.
The starting point is, of course, our relationship with the God who comes to us in the person of Jesus and through the power of the Holy Spirit. Many First Century followers of Jesus expected Him to institute a kingdom generally in line with their preconceived ideas. Instead, He accomplished something different but much more significant. All of our expectations in life will be fatally skewed if we don’t understand that Jesus came because we are sinners. The coming King calls us to repentance with good reason and we should expect nothing else.
Our knowledge of our own sinfulness would end badly if we didn’t also know that God doesn’t leave to fend for ourselves. We can expect that God is being true to His word when His Spirit opens our hearts to the promises of the gospel. The Bible says, “No matter how many promises God has made, they are ‘Yes’ in Christ.”4 Maturity in life involves managing expectations in a godly way whether trivial matters are at stake or big issues are on the agenda. How do we react when our expectations aren’t met?
Two police officers in nearby towns set up separate ‘speed traps’ near their respective public schools one Saturday afternoon. In line with statistical averages both expected to nab a certain number of offenders over a four-hour period. Both knew a sporting event was taking place in the one town and expected celebrations to go on well into the night. The first policeman, in the town where the event was held, was surprised to catch only one offender. The second was even more surprised to note nearly every second person racing past the limit. The reason was due to an approaching hailstorm. The locals had a short trip to shelter. The others were desperate to reach their garages in the next town. Expectations of both officers were blown.
When He sees fit, God completely disregards the law of averages too. He blows our expectations out of the water. He can calm the storm, heal the sick, and raise the dead. God can cure cancer completely. But He might also choose to send it into remission or let it run its course. God can bring someone unharmed through an horrific accident, but He might also bring them to the day of judgment. In every case He is being just and holy even when we can’t see it. And God never acts inconsistently with His will as revealed in the Scriptures. We need not speculate about God’s opinion regarding anything to do with our ultimate welfare. We have it in His word.
Hopeful and expectant people waved palm branches and spread their cloaks on the road to welcome their Messiah into Jerusalem. By the end of the week He would be fixed like a criminal to that gruesome instrument of Roman retribution known as a cross. The people of Jerusalem cheered hosanna as He entered their city. It’s a plea meaning ‘Lord, please save us.” Hosanna is not part of the language of our age. Yet the truth it expresses is timeless. We might learn to find substitutes for biblical words like hosanna. Luther would be the first to say that God’s word must be made available to people in their language. But he would also be the first to insist the message itself not be changed. Cultures and societies will always be in a state of flux, but the unchanging Word of God transforms individuals within societies of every age. A ‘gospel’ that’s changed by the culture is no longer the gospel. We should expect that people of faith see the world from a different perspective and think, speak, and act accordingly.
Dear friends, the gospel doesn’t mean God has lowered His expectations of us. His will for us to live selfless, sacrificial lives doesn’t change. The gospel doesn’t mean that God has discounted the significance of sin. There is no schedule of depreciation for the cost of sin. The good news of Jesus’ sacrificial death is that the heavenly Father makes no concessions at all. He doesn’t lower His expectations. Christ meets them all. We are valued, freed, and forgiven, God’s incomprehensible mercy is the reason and nothing else. We are justified by grace, not by any efforts or accomplishments.
Jesus once referred to His passion as a baptism. He asked James and John (who were eager to share in His glory), “are you able…to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?”5 The baptism of water and the Spirit that believers receive would be without power or lasting effect had Jesus not undergone His baptism of fire. Rejoice, sisters and brothers! Your baptism is vested with the strength and blessing of Jesus’ own passion and resurrection. You have forgiveness. You are at peace with God. In prosperity or adversity, you can be certain that Jesus has gone to prepare a place for you6. He gives you, even now, a foretaste of the banquet to come when you receive His body and blood in the Lord’s Supper. It is manna from above.
Remember, Jesus came to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover. It was a special celebration of reflection and thanksgiving for God’s deliverance from slavery and subsequent gifting of the Promised Land. The angel of death passed over the homes of the Israelites marked with Lamb’s blood7. It’s no coincide that Jesus will now facilitate a new and greater deliverance at this time. Dear friends, what good is it for anyone to have their temporal life spared if their soul is lost for eternity? Christ comes to deliver from eternal death, hell, and damnation. Could there be a better reason to join the refrain, saying, “Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!”8 Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday In Lent
18 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 11:9 2 Philippians 2:6-8
3 See John 18:9-10 4 2 Corinthians 1:20
5 Mark 10:38 6 See John 14:3
7 See Exodus 12:23 8 Mark 11:9
Sunday, March 18, 2018
Fifth Sunday in Lent (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 2:21
Theme: Jesus Now and Forever
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Everything in God’s time. Birth, death, resurrection, each moment of each hour; all are in God’s hands. It’s the safest place our lives can be. Anyone who had been following the storyline of John’s gospel would recall repeated references to the fact that Jesus’ time had NOT yet come. To His mother at the wedding in Cana Jesus said, “My hour has not yet come.”1 To His brothers who asked why He wasn’t going up to the feast, Jesus replied, “My time has not yet fully come.”2 While teaching in the temple, the Pharisees could not seize Him because “His hour had not yet come.”3 It is therefore quite significant when Jesus says that His time has now come. It was time for the Son of Man to enter into His glory. That is, it was time for His suffering and death, His being lifted up on the cross4. Ransom from the powers of sin, death and Satan could happen in no other way.
So, in response to this request, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus,”5 comes an unexpected, but weighty answer. Jesus foregoes any pleasantries of polite discourse. He thrusts right to the heart of the matter. The time for curiosity is over. These Greeks may have considered Jesus to be a novelty, a rarity, or a marvel, but what matters now is that He is revealed to be the Saviour. We don’t know if these Greeks ever got to meet Jesus face to face. But we do know that if they followed Jesus during the week of His passion they would have been brought face to face with God’s undying love.
The reality is however, many people didn’t recognize God even when they saw Him face to face. But, He was veiled in humility. He seemed to be an ordinary man with some supernatural skills. Even after the resurrection many had doubts. So, we must understand beyond all confusion and doubt that no amount of human effort or ingenuity can persuade or entice someone to believe. No skill of argumentation, or perseverance of negotiation can bring a person to faith in Jesus Christ. The most carefully crafted and generously funded program will not accomplish it. The Holy Spirit alone, convicting the conscience through the word of law can convict people of their sins. The Holy Spirit alone, comforting the heart through the promise of the gospel can engender faith. That being said, we are in no way exempt from deliberately, purposefully, and genuinely making known the truth of Christ both to those who don’t believe, and to those who do. Witnessing is part of our normal activity. We are God’s people.
We’re still sinners, though. Concern with the present is what often consumes us on a regular basis. The pressures of daily existence, of making ends meet tend to put us in survival mode. In survival mode we are less likely to learn from the past or consider wisely the future. We can become so wrapped up in the present that it controls us. We find ourselves just trying to get through the next day. It is both a delight of Satan and a craving of our sinful natures to be enslaved to our present needs and desires. But the believer lives continuously and lives presently in a state of grace.
Not only was God with us in the past, not only will He be with us in the future, He is with us now. God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit, is not with us as a remote observer. He is with us in His full power to intercede, to create, to destroy, to sustain, to comfort. What is remarkable about this is that God actively and dynamically dwells with sinners; yet only in and through and because of Christ. Because the Father forsook His Son, we are never forsaken as His children. On the cross Jesus said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”6So that He could say to His disciples, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”7Christians are not in bondage to the fallen creation, they are free to serve the Creator.
The pressures to live in the present are often matched by anxieties about the future? What if this happens? What if that happens? Will I be protected from this or prepared for that? These common questions must be left to the care and wisdom of God. Worry is a sin because it betrays a lack of confidence in the Almighty. Jesus says, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear……For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.”8 And the apostle says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”9 Christ has laid out the future and He will not fail to bring us safely into it.
Dear friends, as a believer, it is a profound privilege that you live your life in time under the auspices of eternity. Time and eternity are not really comparable. Time is of the finite creation. It will cease. Eternity is undiminished fellowship with the triune God. We are creatures that are elevated to share with the Creator because sin is vanquished. We are time-bound beings freed for eternity. That is the outcome of everything Christ came to do. It is the meaning of today’s Scripture, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified…The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, My servant also will be.”10
He was and is the crucified, risen and living Lord for all eternity. At the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the dimension of time was reconciled with the dimension of eternity. The entire created sphere was reconciled with the eternal realm. And regardless of how many more days this earth will exist, the crucifixion will always remain the portal to eternity. And this portal is opened wherever and whenever the gospel reaches and changes the heart, wherever and whenever the forgiveness of sins is received in true faith, wherever and whenever the Holy Spirit works through baptismal water, wherever and whenever the body and blood of Christ is received in humble trust. For in all these things, but only in these things do we receive Christ with all His blessings for our timeless salvation. “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”11 That request has been answered. Now we see with the eyes of faith, then in full vision. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday In Lent
18 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 2:4 2 John 7:6
3 John 7:30 4 See John 3:14
5 John 12:21 6 Mark 15:34 (cf Psalm 22:1)
7 Matthew 28:20 8 Matthew 6:25, 32
9 Philippians 4:6-7 10 John 12:23, 25-26
11 John 12:21
Text: John 2:21
Theme: Jesus Now and Forever
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Everything in God’s time. Birth, death, resurrection, each moment of each hour; all are in God’s hands. It’s the safest place our lives can be. Anyone who had been following the storyline of John’s gospel would recall repeated references to the fact that Jesus’ time had NOT yet come. To His mother at the wedding in Cana Jesus said, “My hour has not yet come.”1 To His brothers who asked why He wasn’t going up to the feast, Jesus replied, “My time has not yet fully come.”2 While teaching in the temple, the Pharisees could not seize Him because “His hour had not yet come.”3 It is therefore quite significant when Jesus says that His time has now come. It was time for the Son of Man to enter into His glory. That is, it was time for His suffering and death, His being lifted up on the cross4. Ransom from the powers of sin, death and Satan could happen in no other way.
So, in response to this request, “Sir, we would like to see Jesus,”5 comes an unexpected, but weighty answer. Jesus foregoes any pleasantries of polite discourse. He thrusts right to the heart of the matter. The time for curiosity is over. These Greeks may have considered Jesus to be a novelty, a rarity, or a marvel, but what matters now is that He is revealed to be the Saviour. We don’t know if these Greeks ever got to meet Jesus face to face. But we do know that if they followed Jesus during the week of His passion they would have been brought face to face with God’s undying love.
The reality is however, many people didn’t recognize God even when they saw Him face to face. But, He was veiled in humility. He seemed to be an ordinary man with some supernatural skills. Even after the resurrection many had doubts. So, we must understand beyond all confusion and doubt that no amount of human effort or ingenuity can persuade or entice someone to believe. No skill of argumentation, or perseverance of negotiation can bring a person to faith in Jesus Christ. The most carefully crafted and generously funded program will not accomplish it. The Holy Spirit alone, convicting the conscience through the word of law can convict people of their sins. The Holy Spirit alone, comforting the heart through the promise of the gospel can engender faith. That being said, we are in no way exempt from deliberately, purposefully, and genuinely making known the truth of Christ both to those who don’t believe, and to those who do. Witnessing is part of our normal activity. We are God’s people.
We’re still sinners, though. Concern with the present is what often consumes us on a regular basis. The pressures of daily existence, of making ends meet tend to put us in survival mode. In survival mode we are less likely to learn from the past or consider wisely the future. We can become so wrapped up in the present that it controls us. We find ourselves just trying to get through the next day. It is both a delight of Satan and a craving of our sinful natures to be enslaved to our present needs and desires. But the believer lives continuously and lives presently in a state of grace.
Not only was God with us in the past, not only will He be with us in the future, He is with us now. God, in Christ, through the Holy Spirit, is not with us as a remote observer. He is with us in His full power to intercede, to create, to destroy, to sustain, to comfort. What is remarkable about this is that God actively and dynamically dwells with sinners; yet only in and through and because of Christ. Because the Father forsook His Son, we are never forsaken as His children. On the cross Jesus said, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?”6So that He could say to His disciples, “Surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”7Christians are not in bondage to the fallen creation, they are free to serve the Creator.
The pressures to live in the present are often matched by anxieties about the future? What if this happens? What if that happens? Will I be protected from this or prepared for that? These common questions must be left to the care and wisdom of God. Worry is a sin because it betrays a lack of confidence in the Almighty. Jesus says, “Do not worry about your life, what you will eat or drink; or about your body, what you will wear……For the pagans run after all these things, and your heavenly Father knows that you need them.”8 And the apostle says, “Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”9 Christ has laid out the future and He will not fail to bring us safely into it.
Dear friends, as a believer, it is a profound privilege that you live your life in time under the auspices of eternity. Time and eternity are not really comparable. Time is of the finite creation. It will cease. Eternity is undiminished fellowship with the triune God. We are creatures that are elevated to share with the Creator because sin is vanquished. We are time-bound beings freed for eternity. That is the outcome of everything Christ came to do. It is the meaning of today’s Scripture, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified…The man who loves his life will lose it, while the man who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life. Whoever serves Me must follow Me; and where I am, My servant also will be.”10
He was and is the crucified, risen and living Lord for all eternity. At the crucifixion of Jesus Christ, the dimension of time was reconciled with the dimension of eternity. The entire created sphere was reconciled with the eternal realm. And regardless of how many more days this earth will exist, the crucifixion will always remain the portal to eternity. And this portal is opened wherever and whenever the gospel reaches and changes the heart, wherever and whenever the forgiveness of sins is received in true faith, wherever and whenever the Holy Spirit works through baptismal water, wherever and whenever the body and blood of Christ is received in humble trust. For in all these things, but only in these things do we receive Christ with all His blessings for our timeless salvation. “Sir, we would like to see Jesus.”11 That request has been answered. Now we see with the eyes of faith, then in full vision. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fifth Sunday In Lent
18 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 2:4 2 John 7:6
3 John 7:30 4 See John 3:14
5 John 12:21 6 Mark 15:34 (cf Psalm 22:1)
7 Matthew 28:20 8 Matthew 6:25, 32
9 Philippians 4:6-7 10 John 12:23, 25-26
11 John 12:21
Thursday, March 15, 2018
Midweek Lent #2(2018)
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 19:18
Theme: They Crucified Him
Dear followers to the cross,
They crucified Him. Most thought that was the tragic end of the matter. He would be recorded by the Romans as a failed revolutionary, though Pilate didn’t see Him as any great political threat. His own followers would lament Him as the one who they thought would restore Israel to independence and glory. So there He was, hanging between two criminals on public display: A pathetic and stomach-turning sight. The dirty deed was done, and hope seemed lost.
Soon to come was the darkness (explained by naturalists as an eclipse of the sun), and then the earthquake. The same explanation was offered, but the centurion on duty was still roused to a confession, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”1 The customary precautionary measures were taken before the bodies were removed. The soldiers did not find it necessary to break Jesus’ legs. They only pierced His side with a spear. What would one last wound matter for a man who was to be forever entombed?
Lent rehearses these events not only for the purpose of revising our knowledge, but for renewing our faith. Calvary, Golgotha, the Hill of the Skull, was not an end for Christ, but for Satan. The angel of darkness would, himself, fall into shadow. He would reel under the specter of the cross. It was necessary to lay the body of the sin-bearer in a tomb, so that the power of sin to entomb could be laid to rest, so that the power of Satan to accuse could be consigned to the grave.
The Christian cannot escape identification with the crucifixion- that messy, bloody, politically incorrect business- it is an inescapable distinctive of our persona in Christ. And don’t think for a moment that it’s not politically incorrect even in many so-called religious and Christian circles. The whole idea of blood sacrifice and substitution is thought to be draconian and uncivilized. “Enlightened” ideologues press upon us a sanitized theory of love and tolerance achieved by human agreement and sensitivity. To achieve any measure of plausibility it requires an emasculation of sin and a ‘humanization’ of grace. Sin becomes nothing more than poor choices made by uniformed individuals. Grace is little more than the inalienable right to pursue happiness on one’s own terms. It’s like building artistic sand castles on the beach on a perfect sunny day while a storm looms on the horizon. Sand castles will provide no refuge.
Dear friends, it’s hardly credible that Christ, the holy Son of God, would have shed His blood under those circumstances. The reality of evil is so profound it cannot be proven to anyone by tangible means. Yes, we are first-hand witnesses to wicked intent, scandalous and deceitful words, and immoral and malicious deeds. We feel our own faults, foibles, and flaws. We observe them in others. We harm and are harmed. We cause pain to others and endure pain from them. Still, we are called upon to take it on faith that the entire situation is unresolvable and irredeemable apart from the merciful intervention of the Almighty.
Faith sees that the One being held up by a rough-hewn assemblage of wood is Himself holding up the universe. He who’s body collapsed with that final breath is the One who breathed life into the soul of the first body. The One who was sinless died as the greatest sinner. Why could Jesus not just have suffered, but still lived? Why was there need for a resurrection? Because without a death the sacrifice was not complete and there would have been no finality to the Father’s plan. Human souls are not of such little value that redemption could be cheap. The crucifixion is an indication of what it means that Adam and Eve were created in God’s image and likeness2.
Lent is a time of going forward by revisiting origins. Living water is sourced from only one well. The only way we can be empowered to live our faith is to keep returning to the source. We return to Christ, His word, His promises, His forgiveness, His sacraments. There is no power, strength or refuge in the law. There is no aid in human might or ingenuity. And though we will get no appreciation from the world for living our faith, we do have the promise the Holy Spirit will never be taken from us. The Scripture says, “The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make people holy through His own blood. Let us, then, go out to Him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace He bore. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.”3
People who thought they could keep finding God in Jerusalem were mistaken. The curtain of the temple was rent in two4. Christ fulfilled the old covenant. God is found where His means of grace are administered, where the gospel is proclaimed, where baptismal waters flow, where His body and blood is consecrated. God is present with, in, and among His people wherever two or three are gathered5. Christ is our only place of safety. He is our only place of rest.
And so, we are mistaken if we look for hope and comfort in the wrong places in this world. We have no enduring city here. That is not what living our faith is about. We are pilgrims in this life living sacrificially for others. We live our faith both inwardly and outwardly. Regarding the inner activity, Luther writes, “The life of a holy person consists more in taking from God than in giving, more in desiring than in having, more in becoming pious than in being pious; as St. Augustine says: Faith acquires what the Law requires. For this reason asking and seeking constitute the real mode of life of the inner man.”6 Regarding the outward expression, the Scriptures says, “Let us continually offer to God, a sacrifice of praise- the fruit of lips that confess His name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”7 We can do so without fear, even enduring personal loss. There is nothing that we might forfeit that God can’t furnish in abundance. The apostle says, “He who did not spare His Own Son, but gave Him up for us all- how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”8
They crucified Him. The worst thing imaginable, was, for us, the greatest plan ever conceived. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Midweek #5 in series Lent 2018
14 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 15:39
2 See Genesis 1:26
3 Hebrews 13:11-14
4 Matthew 27:51
5 See Matthew 18:20
6 Martin Luther, Anthology #697
7 Hebrews 13:15-16
8 Romans 8:32
Text: John 19:18
Theme: They Crucified Him
Dear followers to the cross,
They crucified Him. Most thought that was the tragic end of the matter. He would be recorded by the Romans as a failed revolutionary, though Pilate didn’t see Him as any great political threat. His own followers would lament Him as the one who they thought would restore Israel to independence and glory. So there He was, hanging between two criminals on public display: A pathetic and stomach-turning sight. The dirty deed was done, and hope seemed lost.
Soon to come was the darkness (explained by naturalists as an eclipse of the sun), and then the earthquake. The same explanation was offered, but the centurion on duty was still roused to a confession, “Truly this man was the Son of God!”1 The customary precautionary measures were taken before the bodies were removed. The soldiers did not find it necessary to break Jesus’ legs. They only pierced His side with a spear. What would one last wound matter for a man who was to be forever entombed?
Lent rehearses these events not only for the purpose of revising our knowledge, but for renewing our faith. Calvary, Golgotha, the Hill of the Skull, was not an end for Christ, but for Satan. The angel of darkness would, himself, fall into shadow. He would reel under the specter of the cross. It was necessary to lay the body of the sin-bearer in a tomb, so that the power of sin to entomb could be laid to rest, so that the power of Satan to accuse could be consigned to the grave.
The Christian cannot escape identification with the crucifixion- that messy, bloody, politically incorrect business- it is an inescapable distinctive of our persona in Christ. And don’t think for a moment that it’s not politically incorrect even in many so-called religious and Christian circles. The whole idea of blood sacrifice and substitution is thought to be draconian and uncivilized. “Enlightened” ideologues press upon us a sanitized theory of love and tolerance achieved by human agreement and sensitivity. To achieve any measure of plausibility it requires an emasculation of sin and a ‘humanization’ of grace. Sin becomes nothing more than poor choices made by uniformed individuals. Grace is little more than the inalienable right to pursue happiness on one’s own terms. It’s like building artistic sand castles on the beach on a perfect sunny day while a storm looms on the horizon. Sand castles will provide no refuge.
Dear friends, it’s hardly credible that Christ, the holy Son of God, would have shed His blood under those circumstances. The reality of evil is so profound it cannot be proven to anyone by tangible means. Yes, we are first-hand witnesses to wicked intent, scandalous and deceitful words, and immoral and malicious deeds. We feel our own faults, foibles, and flaws. We observe them in others. We harm and are harmed. We cause pain to others and endure pain from them. Still, we are called upon to take it on faith that the entire situation is unresolvable and irredeemable apart from the merciful intervention of the Almighty.
Faith sees that the One being held up by a rough-hewn assemblage of wood is Himself holding up the universe. He who’s body collapsed with that final breath is the One who breathed life into the soul of the first body. The One who was sinless died as the greatest sinner. Why could Jesus not just have suffered, but still lived? Why was there need for a resurrection? Because without a death the sacrifice was not complete and there would have been no finality to the Father’s plan. Human souls are not of such little value that redemption could be cheap. The crucifixion is an indication of what it means that Adam and Eve were created in God’s image and likeness2.
Lent is a time of going forward by revisiting origins. Living water is sourced from only one well. The only way we can be empowered to live our faith is to keep returning to the source. We return to Christ, His word, His promises, His forgiveness, His sacraments. There is no power, strength or refuge in the law. There is no aid in human might or ingenuity. And though we will get no appreciation from the world for living our faith, we do have the promise the Holy Spirit will never be taken from us. The Scripture says, “The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make people holy through His own blood. Let us, then, go out to Him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace He bore. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.”3
People who thought they could keep finding God in Jerusalem were mistaken. The curtain of the temple was rent in two4. Christ fulfilled the old covenant. God is found where His means of grace are administered, where the gospel is proclaimed, where baptismal waters flow, where His body and blood is consecrated. God is present with, in, and among His people wherever two or three are gathered5. Christ is our only place of safety. He is our only place of rest.
And so, we are mistaken if we look for hope and comfort in the wrong places in this world. We have no enduring city here. That is not what living our faith is about. We are pilgrims in this life living sacrificially for others. We live our faith both inwardly and outwardly. Regarding the inner activity, Luther writes, “The life of a holy person consists more in taking from God than in giving, more in desiring than in having, more in becoming pious than in being pious; as St. Augustine says: Faith acquires what the Law requires. For this reason asking and seeking constitute the real mode of life of the inner man.”6 Regarding the outward expression, the Scriptures says, “Let us continually offer to God, a sacrifice of praise- the fruit of lips that confess His name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.”7 We can do so without fear, even enduring personal loss. There is nothing that we might forfeit that God can’t furnish in abundance. The apostle says, “He who did not spare His Own Son, but gave Him up for us all- how will He not also, along with Him, graciously give us all things?”8
They crucified Him. The worst thing imaginable, was, for us, the greatest plan ever conceived. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Midweek #5 in series Lent 2018
14 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Mark 15:39
2 See Genesis 1:26
3 Hebrews 13:11-14
4 Matthew 27:51
5 See Matthew 18:20
6 Martin Luther, Anthology #697
7 Hebrews 13:15-16
8 Romans 8:32
Tuesday, March 13, 2018
Fourth Sunday in Lent (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 3:17
Theme: To Save, Not Condemn
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Our very existence is profound evidence of God’s patience. He not only continues to tolerate sinners but seeks to redeem them. His patience is not to be challenged, though. Unbelief will be judged. We are foolish to mistake God’s mercy for apathetic lenience. God is not patient because He doesn’t care but because He passionately “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”1
Today the topic of vital truth comes to the fore in the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus was an educated Pharisee. He would have been well-instructed in the Torah, the Books of Moses. He knew the history of God’s people. Jesus gives him a point of reference, the one we heard read from Numbers. “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.”2 As a cure for their self-inflicted punishment, the Israelites were given a point of focus. It was a bronze snake lifted up on a pole. It gave them a fixed point of concentration. All who were bitten by snakes were to look towards it, trusting God would spare their lives, which He did. It presaged greater things to come. The lifting up of Jesus on the cross was the macrocosm of God’s plan of salvation. All the prophecies, all the predictions, all the analogies carefully articulated referred to Him. He is Light and Truth.
Dear friends, the great truth of Christianity is that it doesn’t involve a legalistic system in which humans must earn salvation through obedience to certain laws. But that doesn’t mean God’s will is unimportant. It just means we must be diligent in distinguishing how God speaks to us. People endlessly seek to circumvent human laws. We shouldn’t think it would be any different with God’s law. Never has a law been enacted and enforced in any society, at any point in history that has enjoyed full compliance. Someone will always claim the law is unjust, unfair, inadequate, or not applicable to them.
In human courts of law things can get pretty crazy. The lengths people will go to to avoid culpability are sometimes extraordinary. A few humorous examples will suffice. Questioning the witness, an attorney asked, “Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?” “No”. “Did you check for blood pressure?” “No.” “Did you check for breathing?” “No.” “So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?” “No.” “How can you be so sure, Doctor?” “Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.” “But could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?” “Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practising law somewhere.” A defence lawyer queried a distressed woman on the witness stand asking, “What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke up that morning?” “He said, ‘where am I, Cathy?’” “And why did that upset you?” “My name is Susan.” In 1871, a Pennsylvania man sued Satan and his minions for putting obstacles in his life and causing his downfall. The case was thrown out of court on the grounds that the defendants did not reside in the state.
Dear friends, all we need remember is that all such vainglory is pointless before God. He knows the truth. His gaze penetrates the most heavily shielded soul as if it were exposed to the noonday sun. We can engage in the most complicated and persistent spiritual jurisprudence we can muster but we will never outwit Him or outlast Him. “Let God be true, and every man a liar.”3
The are no laws, divine or otherwise, that can curb the desires of the heart. Threats and punishments may serve to limit sinful actions, but they cannot change a person’s motivations from unrighteous to godly. Sinful motivations must be transformed to holy ones and only the gospel can do that. A spiritual death and resurrection is required. Evil desires are put to death, crucified with the effectiveness of Jesus’ own crucifixion. New spiritual life is created from the ashes of contrition. The Holy Spirit conceives this life in the hearts of believers. Faith is the Spirit’s gift of a reconciled relationship with the Father. That relationship is nurtured through the word of promise and the sacrament of Christ’s body and blood.
Imagine what a mind-blowing thing it was for Nicodemus to learn that Jesus was the only way to heaven. Claims are often made that Christian churches are too restrictive and oppressive. Certainly, legitimate criticism must be taken on board. Churches are collections of sinners and can collectively be self-centred and short-sighted. Hypocrisy and self-righteousness, understandably does untold damage to many reputations. But the case can also be put that large segments of Christianity don’t take themselves seriously enough. Kierkegaard warned centuries ago that being a Christian in Europe was already too easy. It required nothing more than a casual and half-hearted affirmation of the prevailing sentiments of society at the time. Christianity was the flavour of the day and no sacrifice was required to be associated with it.
Similar assessments are worthy of our attention. Is the church in the West in decline partly because it’s too hard to be a Christian, or too easy? Is the church too restrictive of peoples’ views, not allowing enough latitude in opinion, and therefore unappealing to people? Or is the church unappealing because it has largely surrendered its core convictions. Is it losing its identity and therefore becoming less effective at witnessing to the new identity believers have in Christ?
In reality, Christian truth is the most authentically emancipating power that exists. Much of what passes for freedom today (even in reference to spirituality) is actually bondage. What good is it to be taught that we can be self-determining beings- choosing our own moralities and destinies without consequence- when it’s not really true? The claim that truth can be whatever we want it to be is itself a great deception. Sin, its guilt and consequences, don’t magically dissolve just because we’ve tried to reinterpret pain and suffering in the world through a different paradigm. Sin must still be reckoned with, and only Christ can do it.
What can be more liberating than to know that we are freed from the eternal condemnation of God’s wrath? What can be more freeing than the certainty that death itself has no final power over the believer? In the knowledge of Christ’s redeeming love all of our darkness and gloom is finally dispelled by the radiance of His presence. Our sorrow will be replaced by joy, our doubt with certainty, and our anxiety with peace. Our pain will be relieved, and our scars healed. The Suffering Servant who was nailed to a cross and buried in a tomb also rose again victoriously on the third day.
This good news will never be surpassed. “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”4 And St. Paul says today, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast.”5 We are gifted with a new identity through baptism. Therefore, we no longer seek to circumvent the God’s law. God’s commands to us are the boundaries of love. The apostle continues, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”6 There is nothing that God planned in the beginning that Christ hasn’t completed in the end. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday In Lent
11 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 1 Timothy 2:4 2 John 3:14-15
3 Romans 3:4 4 John 3:17
5 Ephesians 2:8-9 6 Ephesians 2:10
Text: John 3:17
Theme: To Save, Not Condemn
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Our very existence is profound evidence of God’s patience. He not only continues to tolerate sinners but seeks to redeem them. His patience is not to be challenged, though. Unbelief will be judged. We are foolish to mistake God’s mercy for apathetic lenience. God is not patient because He doesn’t care but because He passionately “desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”1
Today the topic of vital truth comes to the fore in the conversation between Jesus and Nicodemus. Nicodemus was an educated Pharisee. He would have been well-instructed in the Torah, the Books of Moses. He knew the history of God’s people. Jesus gives him a point of reference, the one we heard read from Numbers. “Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the desert, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes in Him may have eternal life.”2 As a cure for their self-inflicted punishment, the Israelites were given a point of focus. It was a bronze snake lifted up on a pole. It gave them a fixed point of concentration. All who were bitten by snakes were to look towards it, trusting God would spare their lives, which He did. It presaged greater things to come. The lifting up of Jesus on the cross was the macrocosm of God’s plan of salvation. All the prophecies, all the predictions, all the analogies carefully articulated referred to Him. He is Light and Truth.
Dear friends, the great truth of Christianity is that it doesn’t involve a legalistic system in which humans must earn salvation through obedience to certain laws. But that doesn’t mean God’s will is unimportant. It just means we must be diligent in distinguishing how God speaks to us. People endlessly seek to circumvent human laws. We shouldn’t think it would be any different with God’s law. Never has a law been enacted and enforced in any society, at any point in history that has enjoyed full compliance. Someone will always claim the law is unjust, unfair, inadequate, or not applicable to them.
In human courts of law things can get pretty crazy. The lengths people will go to to avoid culpability are sometimes extraordinary. A few humorous examples will suffice. Questioning the witness, an attorney asked, “Doctor, before you performed the autopsy, did you check for a pulse?” “No”. “Did you check for blood pressure?” “No.” “Did you check for breathing?” “No.” “So, then it is possible that the patient was alive when you began the autopsy?” “No.” “How can you be so sure, Doctor?” “Because his brain was sitting on my desk in a jar.” “But could the patient have still been alive, nevertheless?” “Yes, it is possible that he could have been alive and practising law somewhere.” A defence lawyer queried a distressed woman on the witness stand asking, “What was the first thing your husband said to you when he woke up that morning?” “He said, ‘where am I, Cathy?’” “And why did that upset you?” “My name is Susan.” In 1871, a Pennsylvania man sued Satan and his minions for putting obstacles in his life and causing his downfall. The case was thrown out of court on the grounds that the defendants did not reside in the state.
Dear friends, all we need remember is that all such vainglory is pointless before God. He knows the truth. His gaze penetrates the most heavily shielded soul as if it were exposed to the noonday sun. We can engage in the most complicated and persistent spiritual jurisprudence we can muster but we will never outwit Him or outlast Him. “Let God be true, and every man a liar.”3
The are no laws, divine or otherwise, that can curb the desires of the heart. Threats and punishments may serve to limit sinful actions, but they cannot change a person’s motivations from unrighteous to godly. Sinful motivations must be transformed to holy ones and only the gospel can do that. A spiritual death and resurrection is required. Evil desires are put to death, crucified with the effectiveness of Jesus’ own crucifixion. New spiritual life is created from the ashes of contrition. The Holy Spirit conceives this life in the hearts of believers. Faith is the Spirit’s gift of a reconciled relationship with the Father. That relationship is nurtured through the word of promise and the sacrament of Christ’s body and blood.
Imagine what a mind-blowing thing it was for Nicodemus to learn that Jesus was the only way to heaven. Claims are often made that Christian churches are too restrictive and oppressive. Certainly, legitimate criticism must be taken on board. Churches are collections of sinners and can collectively be self-centred and short-sighted. Hypocrisy and self-righteousness, understandably does untold damage to many reputations. But the case can also be put that large segments of Christianity don’t take themselves seriously enough. Kierkegaard warned centuries ago that being a Christian in Europe was already too easy. It required nothing more than a casual and half-hearted affirmation of the prevailing sentiments of society at the time. Christianity was the flavour of the day and no sacrifice was required to be associated with it.
Similar assessments are worthy of our attention. Is the church in the West in decline partly because it’s too hard to be a Christian, or too easy? Is the church too restrictive of peoples’ views, not allowing enough latitude in opinion, and therefore unappealing to people? Or is the church unappealing because it has largely surrendered its core convictions. Is it losing its identity and therefore becoming less effective at witnessing to the new identity believers have in Christ?
In reality, Christian truth is the most authentically emancipating power that exists. Much of what passes for freedom today (even in reference to spirituality) is actually bondage. What good is it to be taught that we can be self-determining beings- choosing our own moralities and destinies without consequence- when it’s not really true? The claim that truth can be whatever we want it to be is itself a great deception. Sin, its guilt and consequences, don’t magically dissolve just because we’ve tried to reinterpret pain and suffering in the world through a different paradigm. Sin must still be reckoned with, and only Christ can do it.
What can be more liberating than to know that we are freed from the eternal condemnation of God’s wrath? What can be more freeing than the certainty that death itself has no final power over the believer? In the knowledge of Christ’s redeeming love all of our darkness and gloom is finally dispelled by the radiance of His presence. Our sorrow will be replaced by joy, our doubt with certainty, and our anxiety with peace. Our pain will be relieved, and our scars healed. The Suffering Servant who was nailed to a cross and buried in a tomb also rose again victoriously on the third day.
This good news will never be surpassed. “God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him.”4 And St. Paul says today, “It is by grace you have been saved, through faith- and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God- not by works, so that no one can boast.”5 We are gifted with a new identity through baptism. Therefore, we no longer seek to circumvent the God’s law. God’s commands to us are the boundaries of love. The apostle continues, “For we are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”6 There is nothing that God planned in the beginning that Christ hasn’t completed in the end. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Fourth Sunday In Lent
11 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 1 Timothy 2:4 2 John 3:14-15
3 Romans 3:4 4 John 3:17
5 Ephesians 2:8-9 6 Ephesians 2:10
Monday, March 5, 2018
Third Sunday in Lent (B) 2018
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: Exodus 20:1
Theme: He is OUR God!
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Ten Commandments were written by the finger of God. Etched in stone (twice) they were given through Moses. These decrees of God do not come without context, however. They are not arbitrary regulations of a jealous and short-sighted Deity. The prologue of God’s directives through Moses is important., who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”1 In other words, there’s already history between God and His people. God initiated the relationship in the beginning and now He’s renewing it in dramatic fashion. He is a God who rescues, saves, and redeems.
So, God speaks to His people in love. Believers are redeemed, but we still live in a fallen world. Remember, when it comes to your propensity to sin, it’s not likely you are exceptional or special. The commandments weren’t written because you’re the only one whose mind gets flooded with lust, heart gets overcome with greed, conscience gets overwhelmed with worry, or whose will is stubbornly arrogant and self-centred. God has seen it all. Opportunities to participate in ungodliness take on a new look with every new technology that comes along, but the motivations of the human heart remain unchanged. We are conceived in sin and without God’s intervention would continue along that trajectory.
Don’t think for a moment, though, that you can achieve anonymity by morphing into the crowd or blending into the multitudes. Comparison to others is an age-old way to alleviate guilt. The refuge of comparison is a popular one. Yet, any pacification of the conscience is hollow. Just because you feel you’re meeting society’s standard of morality doesn’t excuse your guilt before God. Repentance that involves shifting the blame is not weighted with true contrition. The Holy Spirit breathes fresh air into the life of the soul that is truly penitent. When we try to hide our sins, we’re just playing games with God.
It’s important to remember that God has not given us the Ten Commandments to restrict our enjoyment of life. Again, they are not arbitrary rules, nor are they obsolete. The Ten Commandments are the parameters of God’s will for our wellbeing. They are perfect guidelines of love. We can only be certain that our attitudes, words, and actions are godly when they are within these dynamics of love. Still, even our best efforts fall short of God’s standard of holiness. There is no ‘close enough’ when it comes to following God’s will. Willful disregard of God’s will is certain to have consequences. We require forgiveness and restoration.
Christ meets our need in two important ways. Firstly, He kept all of God’s law perfectly and He credits His fulfilling of the law to believers. Secondly, He makes payment for our sins by offering His own life in sacrifice in place of ours. This is the core truth of our faith, and it is expressed in many ways throughout the Scriptures. St. Paul writes today, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”2 The apostle calls God’s saving work foolishness to the perishing. That is, it is illogical and unintelligible to the unbelieving mind.
But in what way is it illogical? While anyone can grasp the basic concepts of love and even sacrifice, and most can understand the martyrdom of someone for a cause, it’s impossible for the human mind, without the aid of the Holy Spirit, to appreciate what grace really means. The gospel is counter-intuitive and counter-cultural. It will always be counter-cultural because it doesn’t originate from humans but from God. It doesn’t matter if there are a million different cultures that change countless times over the course of human history, the gospel will never be innately understood. It must be proclaimed, taught and received as a gift. It is the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.
The gospel isn’t just an abstract decree of God, though. Jesus said today, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”3 It was a provocative statement, and, in the minds of the Jews, arrogant, They have a logical response, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and You are going to raise it in three days?”4 The conversation is so important, St. John gives us an explanation, “But the temple He had spoken of was His body. After He was raised from the dead He disciples recalled what He had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.”5
Of course, dear friends, without the resurrection, the passion of Jesus becomes a tragedy. All the unjust suffering, the unwarranted accusations, the unrighteous condemnations that Jesus endured, His excruciating humiliation and death would just be a footnote in the history of religion had He not risen from the dead. Without the resurrection the plan of salvation would have failed, and all the effort invested would have mostly gone to waste. Having the risen Jesus doesn’t mean we can downplay the suffering and sacrifice of Jesus. The two events are one seamless reality like the two sides of a single coin. The power of the gospel to enlighten darkened minds and convert unbelieving hearts is sourced from these events. Your baptism has the authority of God’s covenantal promise because through it you participate in the death and resurrection of Jesus. This bread and wine carries forgiveness because His body broken and raised empowers it.
We cannot submit God to the rules of plausibility. If we could, He wouldn’t be God. What kind of God would it be who was unable to contravene the observable laws of nature? What kind of God would it be who is unable to find the lost, heal the sick and raise the dead? What kind of God can’t be present wherever and whenever He pleases, especially in this sacrament? We can compose all kinds of theories about God and debate them, but we’re not finally interested in speculations. Jesus is the hard evidence of God among us. “They will call Him ‘Immanuel’ – which means, ‘God with us.’”6 “In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”7 And again, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”8 Think of Peter’s Pentecost sermon, “Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him… 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.”9
The Almighty begins the Ten Commandments by saying, “I am the Lord your God.”10 We can stake our confidence in that. Lent is the journey of understanding God’s deliverance. Jesus makes good on all of God’s promises. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Third Sunday In Lent
4 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Exodus 20:2 2 1 Corinthians 1:18
3 John 2:19 4 John 2:20
5 John 2:21-22 6 Matthew 1:21
7 Colossians 2:9 8 John 1:14
9 Acts 2:22-24 10 Exodus 20:2
Text: Exodus 20:1
Theme: He is OUR God!
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The Ten Commandments were written by the finger of God. Etched in stone (twice) they were given through Moses. These decrees of God do not come without context, however. They are not arbitrary regulations of a jealous and short-sighted Deity. The prologue of God’s directives through Moses is important., who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.”1 In other words, there’s already history between God and His people. God initiated the relationship in the beginning and now He’s renewing it in dramatic fashion. He is a God who rescues, saves, and redeems.
So, God speaks to His people in love. Believers are redeemed, but we still live in a fallen world. Remember, when it comes to your propensity to sin, it’s not likely you are exceptional or special. The commandments weren’t written because you’re the only one whose mind gets flooded with lust, heart gets overcome with greed, conscience gets overwhelmed with worry, or whose will is stubbornly arrogant and self-centred. God has seen it all. Opportunities to participate in ungodliness take on a new look with every new technology that comes along, but the motivations of the human heart remain unchanged. We are conceived in sin and without God’s intervention would continue along that trajectory.
Don’t think for a moment, though, that you can achieve anonymity by morphing into the crowd or blending into the multitudes. Comparison to others is an age-old way to alleviate guilt. The refuge of comparison is a popular one. Yet, any pacification of the conscience is hollow. Just because you feel you’re meeting society’s standard of morality doesn’t excuse your guilt before God. Repentance that involves shifting the blame is not weighted with true contrition. The Holy Spirit breathes fresh air into the life of the soul that is truly penitent. When we try to hide our sins, we’re just playing games with God.
It’s important to remember that God has not given us the Ten Commandments to restrict our enjoyment of life. Again, they are not arbitrary rules, nor are they obsolete. The Ten Commandments are the parameters of God’s will for our wellbeing. They are perfect guidelines of love. We can only be certain that our attitudes, words, and actions are godly when they are within these dynamics of love. Still, even our best efforts fall short of God’s standard of holiness. There is no ‘close enough’ when it comes to following God’s will. Willful disregard of God’s will is certain to have consequences. We require forgiveness and restoration.
Christ meets our need in two important ways. Firstly, He kept all of God’s law perfectly and He credits His fulfilling of the law to believers. Secondly, He makes payment for our sins by offering His own life in sacrifice in place of ours. This is the core truth of our faith, and it is expressed in many ways throughout the Scriptures. St. Paul writes today, “The message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.”2 The apostle calls God’s saving work foolishness to the perishing. That is, it is illogical and unintelligible to the unbelieving mind.
But in what way is it illogical? While anyone can grasp the basic concepts of love and even sacrifice, and most can understand the martyrdom of someone for a cause, it’s impossible for the human mind, without the aid of the Holy Spirit, to appreciate what grace really means. The gospel is counter-intuitive and counter-cultural. It will always be counter-cultural because it doesn’t originate from humans but from God. It doesn’t matter if there are a million different cultures that change countless times over the course of human history, the gospel will never be innately understood. It must be proclaimed, taught and received as a gift. It is the wisdom of the Holy Spirit.
The gospel isn’t just an abstract decree of God, though. Jesus said today, “Destroy this temple, and I will raise it again in three days.”3 It was a provocative statement, and, in the minds of the Jews, arrogant, They have a logical response, “It has taken forty-six years to build this temple, and You are going to raise it in three days?”4 The conversation is so important, St. John gives us an explanation, “But the temple He had spoken of was His body. After He was raised from the dead He disciples recalled what He had said. Then they believed the Scripture and the words that Jesus had spoken.”5
Of course, dear friends, without the resurrection, the passion of Jesus becomes a tragedy. All the unjust suffering, the unwarranted accusations, the unrighteous condemnations that Jesus endured, His excruciating humiliation and death would just be a footnote in the history of religion had He not risen from the dead. Without the resurrection the plan of salvation would have failed, and all the effort invested would have mostly gone to waste. Having the risen Jesus doesn’t mean we can downplay the suffering and sacrifice of Jesus. The two events are one seamless reality like the two sides of a single coin. The power of the gospel to enlighten darkened minds and convert unbelieving hearts is sourced from these events. Your baptism has the authority of God’s covenantal promise because through it you participate in the death and resurrection of Jesus. This bread and wine carries forgiveness because His body broken and raised empowers it.
We cannot submit God to the rules of plausibility. If we could, He wouldn’t be God. What kind of God would it be who was unable to contravene the observable laws of nature? What kind of God would it be who is unable to find the lost, heal the sick and raise the dead? What kind of God can’t be present wherever and whenever He pleases, especially in this sacrament? We can compose all kinds of theories about God and debate them, but we’re not finally interested in speculations. Jesus is the hard evidence of God among us. “They will call Him ‘Immanuel’ – which means, ‘God with us.’”6 “In Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form.”7 And again, “The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us.”8 Think of Peter’s Pentecost sermon, “Jesus of Nazareth was a man accredited by God to you by miracles, wonders, and signs, which God did among you through Him… 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.”9
The Almighty begins the Ten Commandments by saying, “I am the Lord your God.”10 We can stake our confidence in that. Lent is the journey of understanding God’s deliverance. Jesus makes good on all of God’s promises. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Third Sunday In Lent
4 March 2018
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 Exodus 20:2 2 1 Corinthians 1:18
3 John 2:19 4 John 2:20
5 John 2:21-22 6 Matthew 1:21
7 Colossians 2:9 8 John 1:14
9 Acts 2:22-24 10 Exodus 20:2
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