+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 11:25
Theme: Resurrection and Life
Dear family, friends and loved ones of Rosemary; Deb, Kym, Brenton, and especially you; Rod,
The struggle has ended; the celebration has only begun. Today the Spirit can temper our sense of grief and loss with a genuine appreciation for the blessings Rosemary now enjoys. As the apostle says, she now sees God “face to face.”1 Rosemary is at peace. We have it on the highest authority, the very decree from heaven, “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘they will rest from their labour, for their deeds will follow them.’”2 Of course, Rosemary’s rest doesn’t mean inactivity. Undoubtedly the vitality she possessed on earth is even more magnified in heaven.
Dear friends, death is as common as the rising of the sun; a regular occurrence that collides with our daily routines and throws them decidedly, if only temporarily, out of balance. Even though death is commonplace- and we all must face it- it is always momentous. Something much more than a physical life reaching its conclusion is involved. Eternal things are at stake. Death brings us face to face with the big questions of existence, the deepest mysteries and the thorniest conundrums.
When reflecting on the death of a loved one honesty compels us to consider our own mortality. Nothing in this earthly realm is more final than death. It is an invincible power. We are defenceless to stand against it. We do ourselves no favours by ignoring it or brushing lightly past it. Death is not child’s play. It is deep, dark, and sinister. Death is not natural. It has a malicious cause. The Holy Scriptures say, “The wages of sin is death.”3 Because all are sinners all must face it. We live in a fallen world
Into this fallen existence comes an infant in a manger who grows up to be nailed to a cross. God sent His Son, in the flesh, to suffer and die. Divine intervention was required to rescue the human race. Here is where the skepticism of the world is met head on. Who wouldn’t have been filled with skepticism when Christ replied to the distraught Martha saying, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies; and whoever lives and believes in Me will never die.”4 They were filled with more doubt and even derision as He stood outside the grave of Lazarus- a man four-days dead- and called, “Lazarus, come out!”5 But the proof was in the pudding. And it was only a preview of His own victory over the grave. Christ is the immortal God who has conquered death itself. Easter is the bedrock of Christian truth. Rosemary held this conviction firmly and with transparent honesty.
Rosemary wasn’t pretentious in any way. She was a straight shooter; always calling a spade a spade. She was full of life, vitality, and good humour. Her laugh was always recognizable. She had a cheery disposition, determination, and tenacity. Her perseverance in overcoming the incapacitation of her stroke was remarkable. She fought on for five years not in bitterness but embracing her life in its altered dimensions. A stroke crippled her body but it could not cripple her spirit. She was a devoted wife and loving mother and nana.
On her last full day on this earth I asked Rosemary if she had any fears about going to heaven. Without hesitation her face grimaced in a fashion which indicated I had asked a pointless question and then she said emphatically, “None at all, the sooner the better!” She wasn’t just telling the local pastor what she thought he wanted to hear. She was filled with conviction. The time had come and she was ready. She looked forward to being relieved from the burdens of her deteriorating body. She longed to be freed from the mental and emotional strain of the daily grind. She had no reservations; believing that she lived a blessed and full life.
What could give her such confidence? Rosemary wasn’t silly, and her mind certainly wasn’t failing. Her trust rested not on hollow promises but on the fact Christ could not be held in the grave. She knew this meant that His crucifixion had freed her from the guilt of sin, that forgiveness was valid; that death does not have the final say. She received the sacrament of Christ’s body and blood insisting that the head of her bed be raised to what she considered a more reverent position. Nurtured one more time by His gifts and promises she was even more at ease. Though a sinner like all of us she knew she was saved by grace.
Rosemary was a flower in her little patch of God’s garden. Colourful in personality she added flavour to the lives of many. Her season in this short span of time we call temporal life has ended. The Scripture reminds us, “The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever.”6 Her soul has been gathered into the fellowship of the faithful in the presence of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit where she awaits with us all the great resurrection of the Last Day. Secured in God’s eternal fortress no harm can reach her. No stroke can cripple her, no pain can burden her; no worry can trouble her. And there is nothing to subdue her laughter. The promise of her baptism has come to fulfillment.
And this is our only source of true comfort. The Holy Scripture says, “God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with Him.”1 Thessalonians 5:10 She now enjoys the communion of God in a manner that is beyond the widest limits of our imagination. Rod, the days ahead for you cannot be scripted. The journey of grief is unique to each of us. But as you reflect on the gift that Rosemary was to you as a wife and as a mother to your children take comfort in knowing that she is whole again; healed and restored never to be afflicted. Rosemary now rests from her labours. She has received the crown of everlasting life. Thanks be to God for His immeasurable love. Amen
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Rosemary Jennifer Ziersch
14 November 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 1 Corinthians 13:12
2 Revelation 14:13
3 Romans 6:23
4 John 11:25
5 John 11:43
6 Isaiah 40:8
7 1 Thessalonians 5:10
Friday, November 14, 2014
Monday, November 10, 2014
Twenty-Second Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Amen +
Text: Matthew 25:10
Theme: The Door of Heaven
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The shadows of the Church Year are lengthening. We are nearing the end of the cycle that celebrates the gracious intervention of God into our lives through His Son, Jesus Christ. The Scriptures through which the Holy Spirit speaks to us today prepare us for the end of time and the commencement of eternity. The Bible leaves little to doubt about the Lord’s intention. “The Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”1 May God prepare us for this hour of glory.
Today Jesus seeks to jolt His hearers out of apathy through the parable of the ten virgins. The context is a First Century Jewish wedding in which it was customary for the groom and his attendants to process to the house of the parents of the bride. They would be joined by the bride and her family and then process to the groom’s home where the wedding would take place and the celebration, typically a week in length, would commence. Like today, weddings were announced well in advance and involved much preparation by everyone involved. Our story involves five ‘wise’ virgins and five ‘foolish’ ones. All went with their lamps to meet the groom but when he was delayed they fell asleep. When the call went out the foolish ones were found to be out of oil for their lamps. When they went out to buy some the bridegroom came and the wise virgins went into the wedding celebration.
Now we reach the critical juncture. The Bible says, “The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.”2 This is the turning point of the parable: The door was shut. When the foolish virgins return later, they say, “Lord, Lord, open the door for us! But He replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’”3 Were this a typical wedding celebration the response would have been almost unthinkable. How could the bride’s attendants be denied entry! It now becomes crystal clear that the final coming of Christ, the Bridegroom, is spoken of. The foolish virgins say, “Lord, Lord!” But the time is already past. He does not know them. That is, they were not true believers who endured in faith to the end. When God drops the curtain on history there will be no curtain call.
The door was shut. The foolish virgins were on the outside of God’s eternal grace. The shutting of the door is the final chapter in the book of history, the final act in the divine drama of judgment and salvation. But is should not come as a surprise. It is not without preview, precedent, or parallel. In a previous chapter of the history of redemption we are reminded that when Noah’s family and the animals were on the ark, “The Lord shut him in.”4 The ark was the sole place of salvation. Everything shut outside perished. The earth was purged of sin and Noah and the creatures emerged to inhabit a new and transformed world. Not surprisingly St. Peter says that it symbolizes baptism in which God washes us clean and makes us new.
Sin seals shut the door of heaven. We are powerless to unlock it or break it down. The essence of repentance is to recognize that we need help. There exists One more powerful than all humanity combined. His blood covers all sin. His death sustains all life. His life overcomes all death. Of Him the Scripture says, “These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open.”5 Christ is the door of heaven.
It is difficult when studying this parable to know exactly what symbolism is intended. The virgins appear to be the same except for their preparedness in regards to the oil and the lamps. Does the oil represent faith, love, or perhaps the Holy Spirit? Nevertheless the main point is unmistakably clear, “Keep watch, because you do not know the day or hour.”6 Such watchfulness involves perseverant faith and it can only take place under the shadow of the cross. The wisdom of the world laughs at the meaning of Jesus’ crucifixion but for Christians it is the wisdom of salvation.
We must understand beyond all doubt that for every man, woman, and child on the face of this earth the door has not yet been shut. In fact, in this life, until we die or until the Lord comes again, the door is only shut by our own unbelief. No one can be saved except by the Lord’s doing. Yet, no one can perish except by their own fault. The grace of Christ is universal. He died for all. No sin is left un-atoned for. No sinner is left without hope. Yet those who deny the need for His grace begin swinging the door shut. And once they have driven the Holy Spirit away the door latches. It is not within our power to open the door. But, rest assured, Christ never turns away the repentant soul.
Inside the banquet hall the eternal wedding feast of the Bridegroom has already begun. The banquet hall is lit by God’s own radiance. The saints feast on sumptuous fare. Their souls are white as the driven snow. Yet even now we participate in the glory of that celebration. The Holy Spirit lights our paths. The bridegroom gives us of His own body and blood. The words of salvation sink into our ears and fortify our hearts. Our baptismal robes of righteousness cover our sin-soiled souls.
The reality that St. John saw has been secured for us, “After this I looked, and there was before me a door standing open in heaven.”7 Jesus said, “I am the door of the sheep…I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved.”8 As the shadow of the Church Year’s approaching end fades to the dawn of Advent may the Holy Spirit fill you with peace and joy as you look forward to the celebration of the wedding feast unencumbered by the weight of sin. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17
2 Matthew 25:10
3 Matthew 25:11-12
4 Genesis 7:16
5 Revelation 3:7
6 Matthew 25:13
7 Revelation 4:1
8 John 10:7, 9
Twenty-Second Sunday After Pentecost
9 November 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Matthew 25:10
Theme: The Door of Heaven
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The shadows of the Church Year are lengthening. We are nearing the end of the cycle that celebrates the gracious intervention of God into our lives through His Son, Jesus Christ. The Scriptures through which the Holy Spirit speaks to us today prepare us for the end of time and the commencement of eternity. The Bible leaves little to doubt about the Lord’s intention. “The Lord Himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever.”1 May God prepare us for this hour of glory.
Today Jesus seeks to jolt His hearers out of apathy through the parable of the ten virgins. The context is a First Century Jewish wedding in which it was customary for the groom and his attendants to process to the house of the parents of the bride. They would be joined by the bride and her family and then process to the groom’s home where the wedding would take place and the celebration, typically a week in length, would commence. Like today, weddings were announced well in advance and involved much preparation by everyone involved. Our story involves five ‘wise’ virgins and five ‘foolish’ ones. All went with their lamps to meet the groom but when he was delayed they fell asleep. When the call went out the foolish ones were found to be out of oil for their lamps. When they went out to buy some the bridegroom came and the wise virgins went into the wedding celebration.
Now we reach the critical juncture. The Bible says, “The virgins who were ready went in with him to the wedding banquet. And the door was shut.”2 This is the turning point of the parable: The door was shut. When the foolish virgins return later, they say, “Lord, Lord, open the door for us! But He replied, ‘I tell you the truth, I don’t know you.’”3 Were this a typical wedding celebration the response would have been almost unthinkable. How could the bride’s attendants be denied entry! It now becomes crystal clear that the final coming of Christ, the Bridegroom, is spoken of. The foolish virgins say, “Lord, Lord!” But the time is already past. He does not know them. That is, they were not true believers who endured in faith to the end. When God drops the curtain on history there will be no curtain call.
The door was shut. The foolish virgins were on the outside of God’s eternal grace. The shutting of the door is the final chapter in the book of history, the final act in the divine drama of judgment and salvation. But is should not come as a surprise. It is not without preview, precedent, or parallel. In a previous chapter of the history of redemption we are reminded that when Noah’s family and the animals were on the ark, “The Lord shut him in.”4 The ark was the sole place of salvation. Everything shut outside perished. The earth was purged of sin and Noah and the creatures emerged to inhabit a new and transformed world. Not surprisingly St. Peter says that it symbolizes baptism in which God washes us clean and makes us new.
Sin seals shut the door of heaven. We are powerless to unlock it or break it down. The essence of repentance is to recognize that we need help. There exists One more powerful than all humanity combined. His blood covers all sin. His death sustains all life. His life overcomes all death. Of Him the Scripture says, “These are the words of Him who is holy and true, who holds the key of David. What He opens no one can shut, and what He shuts no one can open.”5 Christ is the door of heaven.
It is difficult when studying this parable to know exactly what symbolism is intended. The virgins appear to be the same except for their preparedness in regards to the oil and the lamps. Does the oil represent faith, love, or perhaps the Holy Spirit? Nevertheless the main point is unmistakably clear, “Keep watch, because you do not know the day or hour.”6 Such watchfulness involves perseverant faith and it can only take place under the shadow of the cross. The wisdom of the world laughs at the meaning of Jesus’ crucifixion but for Christians it is the wisdom of salvation.
We must understand beyond all doubt that for every man, woman, and child on the face of this earth the door has not yet been shut. In fact, in this life, until we die or until the Lord comes again, the door is only shut by our own unbelief. No one can be saved except by the Lord’s doing. Yet, no one can perish except by their own fault. The grace of Christ is universal. He died for all. No sin is left un-atoned for. No sinner is left without hope. Yet those who deny the need for His grace begin swinging the door shut. And once they have driven the Holy Spirit away the door latches. It is not within our power to open the door. But, rest assured, Christ never turns away the repentant soul.
Inside the banquet hall the eternal wedding feast of the Bridegroom has already begun. The banquet hall is lit by God’s own radiance. The saints feast on sumptuous fare. Their souls are white as the driven snow. Yet even now we participate in the glory of that celebration. The Holy Spirit lights our paths. The bridegroom gives us of His own body and blood. The words of salvation sink into our ears and fortify our hearts. Our baptismal robes of righteousness cover our sin-soiled souls.
The reality that St. John saw has been secured for us, “After this I looked, and there was before me a door standing open in heaven.”7 Jesus said, “I am the door of the sheep…I am the door; if anyone enters through Me, he shall be saved.”8 As the shadow of the Church Year’s approaching end fades to the dawn of Advent may the Holy Spirit fill you with peace and joy as you look forward to the celebration of the wedding feast unencumbered by the weight of sin. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17
2 Matthew 25:10
3 Matthew 25:11-12
4 Genesis 7:16
5 Revelation 3:7
6 Matthew 25:13
7 Revelation 4:1
8 John 10:7, 9
Twenty-Second Sunday After Pentecost
9 November 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, September 28, 2014
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Amen +
Text: Matthew 21:32
Theme: The Way of Righteousness
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The authority of Jesus was often questioned. That should not surprise us. Christ came to overturn some of the most deeply held beliefs of human society. He came to shatter the understanding of how humans are reconciled to God. He did it not through coercion but through sacrifice. He challenged the power structures of the world but not on their terms. Pilate, the civil authority, allowed a miscarriage of justice. But it was the religious rulers who sought Jesus’ demise. It could be no other way because Jesus came to show the way of righteousness, a way diametrically opposed to the one they were determined to follow. The gospel is not a new program of human achievement. It is pure grace and true freedom from sin’s condemnation.
The problem of sin is underestimated when guilt is only associated with outward actions. Most people can readily agree with just condemnation for obvious sins, even when they themselves are implicated. The spouse that is violated because of unfaithfulness, the family that is ruined because of addiction, the life that is terminated because of abortion, the countless numbers who are wronged by deceit, dishonesty and calculated crimes people perpetrate against one another; these all cry out for justice. When these are no longer recognized for what they are then we are just playing games and risk swift judgment from God. Sin and sinners must be dealt with. And thank God that Christ came to die lest we all be without hope.
But a great danger lies in confining our understanding of sin to particular actions or circumstances. This is especially true for Christians. Refraining from participating in such open sins does not thereby absolve us. The problem is much deeper. Do the words of our confession “I have deeply displeased you and deserve your punishment in time and eternity” pass quickly over our lips and prick neither our hearts nor our consciences? The law-abiding Christian can easily be lulled into thinking personal guilt before God is no longer a serious problem. After all, we go to church. Soon our outward righteousness is confidently held up for God to examine. Save for giving formal lip service to the fact of our sinful nature, we assume all is covered.
But dear friends, to put it starkly, we are damnable not because we sin, but because we are sinners. And to believe that this is what Christ came to address is the core of the issue. The way of righteousness is the way of repentance. Repent and you will live. God resurrects those who are spiritually helpless. The teaching of Christianity, the doctrine of Jesus Christ, is counterintuitive to the wisdom of the world because it reverses things. In Christ, the wise are foolish, the strong are weak, the exalted are humbled. In Christ, the humble are lifted up, the frail are strengthened, the disenfranchised are empowered.
The god of Islam rewards those who are strong. The gods of Hinduism favour those who are persistent. All religions of the law, including all misguided interpretations of Christianity offer hope only to those who exhibit some human capacity to achieve spiritual benchmarks. Our God attends to the weak, the frail, the helpless, and those on the brink of losing hope. The true God is worshipped not by proudly presenting Him with our credentials, but humbling receiving His gifts. Before God we are always beggars before a king, penitents before a judge, beneficiaries before a sovereign, and finally revelers before a Saviour.
Repentance is the way of Christianity. It is not a starting point or an occasional activity. It is a continual way of relating to God. It is to be cultivated as a mindset, a habit, a way of thinking and acting. Repentance relates not to a single point in time, but a continuum of existence. It is not as though we have turned away from sin and are now finished with that. We are always turning away from sin. It is not as though we had believed in Christ’s forgiveness, but then moved past that necessity. We are always believing; yearning, and aching for Christ’s forgiveness.
In today’s gospel Jesus speaks of a man who had two sons. He asked them both to go and work in the vineyard. “‘I will not,’ [the first] answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.”1 Which son’s relationship most closely resembles your relationship with the heavenly Father? The first son had his heart convicted and repented. The second son, despite his words, was hardened in heart. What mattered was not what was said, but what was done. Repentance is evidenced by the integrity of its actions.
The biblical understanding of repentance involves turning. It involves a rejection of the former way and turning to a new direction. Now it must be made clear that the Bible’s understanding of repentance it not merely a matter human decision or the opportunity to choose from valid options. The rejection of the former way entails recognition it was the wrong way. It means sorrow and acceptance of guilt over disobedience towards God’s will. This is worked only by the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the new direction entails trust that Christ is the only hope for deliverance. This too is the work of the Holy Spirit involving the gift of faith.
If the Holy Spirit did not turn us around and keep us on the right path human ability could never accomplish it. But the gospel can and does change things. Consider the magnitude of how Jesus concludes today, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did.”2 Here we have remarkable words; stinging in their condemnation of the self-righteous but full of hope for the humble. There is no darkness in your life that is so deep that Christ’s light cannot penetrate it.
Dear friends, the way of righteousness is not a program for self-improvement or a scheme to boost our morality. The way of righteousness is the way of Christ. In complete humility He became a human being and “became obedient to death- even death on a cross.”3
You have been redeemed by His sacrifice- a price sufficient to cover the sins of the world. In His resurrection you have present and future life. You are washed by baptismal waters and fed with sacred food. The baptismal promise is never revoked. The menu at His sacramental table never says “no longer available.” Jesus’ authority will continue to be contested, believers will be refined in the crucible, but these are just temporary trials and travels in darkness that will quickly fade at the dawn of the resurrection. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Matthew 21:29-30 2 Matthew 21:31-32 3 Philippians 2:8
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
28 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Matthew 21:32
Theme: The Way of Righteousness
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The authority of Jesus was often questioned. That should not surprise us. Christ came to overturn some of the most deeply held beliefs of human society. He came to shatter the understanding of how humans are reconciled to God. He did it not through coercion but through sacrifice. He challenged the power structures of the world but not on their terms. Pilate, the civil authority, allowed a miscarriage of justice. But it was the religious rulers who sought Jesus’ demise. It could be no other way because Jesus came to show the way of righteousness, a way diametrically opposed to the one they were determined to follow. The gospel is not a new program of human achievement. It is pure grace and true freedom from sin’s condemnation.
The problem of sin is underestimated when guilt is only associated with outward actions. Most people can readily agree with just condemnation for obvious sins, even when they themselves are implicated. The spouse that is violated because of unfaithfulness, the family that is ruined because of addiction, the life that is terminated because of abortion, the countless numbers who are wronged by deceit, dishonesty and calculated crimes people perpetrate against one another; these all cry out for justice. When these are no longer recognized for what they are then we are just playing games and risk swift judgment from God. Sin and sinners must be dealt with. And thank God that Christ came to die lest we all be without hope.
But a great danger lies in confining our understanding of sin to particular actions or circumstances. This is especially true for Christians. Refraining from participating in such open sins does not thereby absolve us. The problem is much deeper. Do the words of our confession “I have deeply displeased you and deserve your punishment in time and eternity” pass quickly over our lips and prick neither our hearts nor our consciences? The law-abiding Christian can easily be lulled into thinking personal guilt before God is no longer a serious problem. After all, we go to church. Soon our outward righteousness is confidently held up for God to examine. Save for giving formal lip service to the fact of our sinful nature, we assume all is covered.
But dear friends, to put it starkly, we are damnable not because we sin, but because we are sinners. And to believe that this is what Christ came to address is the core of the issue. The way of righteousness is the way of repentance. Repent and you will live. God resurrects those who are spiritually helpless. The teaching of Christianity, the doctrine of Jesus Christ, is counterintuitive to the wisdom of the world because it reverses things. In Christ, the wise are foolish, the strong are weak, the exalted are humbled. In Christ, the humble are lifted up, the frail are strengthened, the disenfranchised are empowered.
The god of Islam rewards those who are strong. The gods of Hinduism favour those who are persistent. All religions of the law, including all misguided interpretations of Christianity offer hope only to those who exhibit some human capacity to achieve spiritual benchmarks. Our God attends to the weak, the frail, the helpless, and those on the brink of losing hope. The true God is worshipped not by proudly presenting Him with our credentials, but humbling receiving His gifts. Before God we are always beggars before a king, penitents before a judge, beneficiaries before a sovereign, and finally revelers before a Saviour.
Repentance is the way of Christianity. It is not a starting point or an occasional activity. It is a continual way of relating to God. It is to be cultivated as a mindset, a habit, a way of thinking and acting. Repentance relates not to a single point in time, but a continuum of existence. It is not as though we have turned away from sin and are now finished with that. We are always turning away from sin. It is not as though we had believed in Christ’s forgiveness, but then moved past that necessity. We are always believing; yearning, and aching for Christ’s forgiveness.
In today’s gospel Jesus speaks of a man who had two sons. He asked them both to go and work in the vineyard. “‘I will not,’ [the first] answered, but later he changed his mind and went. Then the father went to the other son and said the same thing. He answered, ‘I will, sir,’ but he did not go.”1 Which son’s relationship most closely resembles your relationship with the heavenly Father? The first son had his heart convicted and repented. The second son, despite his words, was hardened in heart. What mattered was not what was said, but what was done. Repentance is evidenced by the integrity of its actions.
The biblical understanding of repentance involves turning. It involves a rejection of the former way and turning to a new direction. Now it must be made clear that the Bible’s understanding of repentance it not merely a matter human decision or the opportunity to choose from valid options. The rejection of the former way entails recognition it was the wrong way. It means sorrow and acceptance of guilt over disobedience towards God’s will. This is worked only by the Holy Spirit. Likewise, the new direction entails trust that Christ is the only hope for deliverance. This too is the work of the Holy Spirit involving the gift of faith.
If the Holy Spirit did not turn us around and keep us on the right path human ability could never accomplish it. But the gospel can and does change things. Consider the magnitude of how Jesus concludes today, “I tell you the truth, the tax collectors and the prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God ahead of you. For John came to you to show you the way of righteousness, and you did not believe him, but the tax collectors and the prostitutes did.”2 Here we have remarkable words; stinging in their condemnation of the self-righteous but full of hope for the humble. There is no darkness in your life that is so deep that Christ’s light cannot penetrate it.
Dear friends, the way of righteousness is not a program for self-improvement or a scheme to boost our morality. The way of righteousness is the way of Christ. In complete humility He became a human being and “became obedient to death- even death on a cross.”3
You have been redeemed by His sacrifice- a price sufficient to cover the sins of the world. In His resurrection you have present and future life. You are washed by baptismal waters and fed with sacred food. The baptismal promise is never revoked. The menu at His sacramental table never says “no longer available.” Jesus’ authority will continue to be contested, believers will be refined in the crucible, but these are just temporary trials and travels in darkness that will quickly fade at the dawn of the resurrection. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Matthew 21:29-30 2 Matthew 21:31-32 3 Philippians 2:8
Sixteenth Sunday After Pentecost
28 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Thursday, September 25, 2014
Christian Burial of Marjorie Eustice 25 September 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti + Amen.
Text: John 14:2
Theme: A Place For You
Dear family, friends and loved ones of Marj; and especially you Kaye, Susan, Bruce and Betty,
The place of Mar Eustice is now filled. Christ planned it in eternity. He secured it through His redeeming death. He guaranteed it from the moment of her baptism. And He has now received her into eternal rest. Therefore, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”1 Marj has been crowned with eternal life. Thanks be to God for His indescribable love! Were we privy to the blessings she now enjoys our tears of sorrow would be turned instantly into tears of joy.
But, alas, we are still humans laboring under the weight of our own mortality. So as we reflect on this occasion in which sorrow is mixed with joy, sadness mingled with hope, a sense of loss blended with relief we do well to recognize the complexity of confronting such a serious thing as death. We do ourselves no favours by ignoring it or brushing lightly past it. Death is not child’s play. It is deep, dark, and sinister. Death is not natural. It has a malicious cause. The Holy Scriptures say, “The wages of sin is death.”2 All must face it.
Short of willful denial it’s impossible not to have some belief about death. There are only two possibilities. Either people just cease to exist or they live on. If they live on; on what basis and under what circumstances? So where do we look for hope? Are we content with none at all; to resign ourselves to a purely material, purposeless understanding to the universe and human life? A universe without a creator? A world without aim, design, or intent? A human race without ancestry or meaning, or future? Can the soul be reduced to only the emotional or psychological aspect of an individual? Many Christians have surrendered to just such a world view.
The greatest sin is always unbelief; to utterly abandon all hope in God. Often this happens not in any formal way. Gradually, almost imperceptibly the sheep stray beyond the voice of the Shepherd and eventually they are lost. Little by little people look to other things for security and seek to find meaning and purpose only in the fleeting things of life. But time does not favour transitory pursuits. Only God can ordain certainty and if He does not do so there is no certainty at all. What can be more certain than that God must be true to Himself? The Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?”3
The great failure of our time is not that we expect too much of God, but too little of Him. Christ isn’t a convenient little solution for our fear of what lies beyond the grave. He’s not a prop, or a fine-looking façade behind which there is just empty space. He is the immortal God who has conquered death itself. Easter is the bedrock of Christian truth. The grave was empty, not His promises. Let’s not be too quick to assume that the ancients were ignorant or that they naively followed religious notions that had no credible foundation. Could the apostle state the pivotal issue more clearly? “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.”4
“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead!”5 Therefore, “Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”6 Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies.”6
Marj Eustice did not have a stagnant or shallow faith- if such a faith can really even exist. Her trust was deeply anchored in the promise that God is merciful. Her trust in His mercy was tested mightily. She suffered the death of their 12 year old son Robert. Few things test the resolve and resilience of a parent more than the death of a child. She spent many long and difficult years tending to Murray in his convalescence. She had many reasons to feel worn out or give up. She could have cried “Unfair! It’s all too much!” Yet by the grace of God she persevered and was a loving and exemplary wife and mother.
In her latter days she may have forgotten many of her former acquaintances and experiences. Why God allows this to happen is beyond the boundaries of proper speculation. But she was not forgotten by her Lord. Now the promise of her baptism has come to fulfillment. She has been released from the power and decay of sin. She has received the inheritance. In perfect peace she awaits the resurrection of all flesh. We celebrate her homecoming today.
Like each of us Marj had her faults and imperfections. Like each of us she lived in a fallen world. But she was redeemed. She was made worthy to enter into the presence of God by the Lamb whose blood covered her sins. She was saved by grace, and through faith freed from the sentence of condemnation. She was God’s cherished child and faithful servant. She regularly received strength from His body and blood at this altar and was lifted by the promises of the Spirit.
Dear friends, it’s not with childish fantasy that the apostle Paul writes, “I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”7 Marj is no longer exposed to the power of decay and she’ll never be separated from the presence Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Suffering has ended. Death has been conquered. Satan has been denied. Peace is now hers. Her time here is done. In heaven it’s just begun. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Marjory Estelle Eustice
25 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:2
2 1 Corinthians 15:19
3 Romans 8:31-32
4 1 Corinthians 15:17-19
5 I Corinthians 15:20
6 John 11:25
7 Romans 8:38-39
Text: John 14:2
Theme: A Place For You
Dear family, friends and loved ones of Marj; and especially you Kaye, Susan, Bruce and Betty,
The place of Mar Eustice is now filled. Christ planned it in eternity. He secured it through His redeeming death. He guaranteed it from the moment of her baptism. And He has now received her into eternal rest. Therefore, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”1 Marj has been crowned with eternal life. Thanks be to God for His indescribable love! Were we privy to the blessings she now enjoys our tears of sorrow would be turned instantly into tears of joy.
But, alas, we are still humans laboring under the weight of our own mortality. So as we reflect on this occasion in which sorrow is mixed with joy, sadness mingled with hope, a sense of loss blended with relief we do well to recognize the complexity of confronting such a serious thing as death. We do ourselves no favours by ignoring it or brushing lightly past it. Death is not child’s play. It is deep, dark, and sinister. Death is not natural. It has a malicious cause. The Holy Scriptures say, “The wages of sin is death.”2 All must face it.
Short of willful denial it’s impossible not to have some belief about death. There are only two possibilities. Either people just cease to exist or they live on. If they live on; on what basis and under what circumstances? So where do we look for hope? Are we content with none at all; to resign ourselves to a purely material, purposeless understanding to the universe and human life? A universe without a creator? A world without aim, design, or intent? A human race without ancestry or meaning, or future? Can the soul be reduced to only the emotional or psychological aspect of an individual? Many Christians have surrendered to just such a world view.
The greatest sin is always unbelief; to utterly abandon all hope in God. Often this happens not in any formal way. Gradually, almost imperceptibly the sheep stray beyond the voice of the Shepherd and eventually they are lost. Little by little people look to other things for security and seek to find meaning and purpose only in the fleeting things of life. But time does not favour transitory pursuits. Only God can ordain certainty and if He does not do so there is no certainty at all. What can be more certain than that God must be true to Himself? The Scripture says, “If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him graciously give us all things?”3
The great failure of our time is not that we expect too much of God, but too little of Him. Christ isn’t a convenient little solution for our fear of what lies beyond the grave. He’s not a prop, or a fine-looking façade behind which there is just empty space. He is the immortal God who has conquered death itself. Easter is the bedrock of Christian truth. The grave was empty, not His promises. Let’s not be too quick to assume that the ancients were ignorant or that they naively followed religious notions that had no credible foundation. Could the apostle state the pivotal issue more clearly? “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied.”4
“But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead!”5 Therefore, “Say to those who have an anxious heart, ‘Be strong; fear not! Behold, your God will come with vengeance, with the recompense of God. He will come and save you.”6 Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me will live, even though he dies.”6
Marj Eustice did not have a stagnant or shallow faith- if such a faith can really even exist. Her trust was deeply anchored in the promise that God is merciful. Her trust in His mercy was tested mightily. She suffered the death of their 12 year old son Robert. Few things test the resolve and resilience of a parent more than the death of a child. She spent many long and difficult years tending to Murray in his convalescence. She had many reasons to feel worn out or give up. She could have cried “Unfair! It’s all too much!” Yet by the grace of God she persevered and was a loving and exemplary wife and mother.
In her latter days she may have forgotten many of her former acquaintances and experiences. Why God allows this to happen is beyond the boundaries of proper speculation. But she was not forgotten by her Lord. Now the promise of her baptism has come to fulfillment. She has been released from the power and decay of sin. She has received the inheritance. In perfect peace she awaits the resurrection of all flesh. We celebrate her homecoming today.
Like each of us Marj had her faults and imperfections. Like each of us she lived in a fallen world. But she was redeemed. She was made worthy to enter into the presence of God by the Lamb whose blood covered her sins. She was saved by grace, and through faith freed from the sentence of condemnation. She was God’s cherished child and faithful servant. She regularly received strength from His body and blood at this altar and was lifted by the promises of the Spirit.
Dear friends, it’s not with childish fantasy that the apostle Paul writes, “I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.”7 Marj is no longer exposed to the power of decay and she’ll never be separated from the presence Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Suffering has ended. Death has been conquered. Satan has been denied. Peace is now hers. Her time here is done. In heaven it’s just begun. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
Christian Burial of Marjory Estelle Eustice
25 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
1 John 14:2
2 1 Corinthians 15:19
3 Romans 8:31-32
4 1 Corinthians 15:17-19
5 I Corinthians 15:20
6 John 11:25
7 Romans 8:38-39
Monday, September 22, 2014
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Amen +
Text: Matthew 20:13
Theme: Beyond Fairness
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Christ did not come to make life fair but to redeem sinners. He did not come to cater to our sense of inequity but to reconcile us to the heavenly Father. Misplaced are all hopes that the main task of Christianity is to establish a utopia on earth. Without question compassion for the most vulnerable of society, regardless of status or belief, is one of the great strengths and legacies of Christianity. But the God who was born in a manger and hung from a cross offers something far beyond fairness. He has plumbed the depths of hell on our behalf. That truth transcends all human ideologies and pursuits.
Today’s parable illustrates how human thinking fails to understand the mind of God. The story is one of a vineyard owner who hires workers for his vineyard. The topic is about the nature of grace. Grace is a particularly divine quality. It is a fundamental concept in understanding the person of Christ. The workday starts when the owner agrees with the workers for the day’s wage and sends them out early in the morning. As the day progresses he keeps sending out more people he finds standing around with nothing to do. He does this at 9:00AM, noon, and 3:00PM. He even sends some out at five in the afternoon. The workday ended at six. The last workers worked only one hour in the vineyard.
The crux of the story comes when it is time to give the wages. The owner tells the foreman to call in the workers. We note a reversal of protocol when he says to pay those who were hired last first and proceed to paying those who were hired first, last. This alerts the hearer of Jesus’ word to something significant coming up. Typically, those hired first would be paid first. But now these first ones hired are there to witness what the others receive for pay. To their great surprise they receive the same pay, one denarius, as everyone who worked the entire day. This does not sit well with the first group and they cry “unfair.” But the owner explains that they were receiving the wage they agreed to. What reason do they have to be upset because the owner generously decides to give the others the same amount?
So here were learn something fundamental about the nature of God. His love towards humanity transcends human understanding. He is not fickle, unfair or whimsical in his treatment of us: He is gracious. The nature of His activity towards us is such that it is without preference. He makes us into nothing so that in Him we may have everything. The Word of God is a dynamic entity which acts upon us in a purposeful way. God’s intent is always that we be beneficiaries of His grace.
But if truth be told, we don’t always want others to receive as much grace as we do. And to not want this is to misunderstand who God is; as the workers in the vineyard story indicates. Spiritually, God must crush us before He can revive us. The law of God is the great equalizer. The judgment of God against sin makes no exceptions or preferences. We are all lumped together in the category of the condemned with no distinction. If we are honest we know that this is repulsive to us- down to the core of our being. How humiliating, how insulting, that a supposedly discerning God says that you and I are no better than the criminal sentenced for unspeakable crimes! How unfair that we should be labeled with those who have no conscience about breaking the law! How unreasonable that our honest efforts to be spiritually upright would not be recognized! We are stripped of status, rank and privilege! Under the crushing hand of the law you and I are no one of consequence. In fact, we must repent for who we selfishly strive to be.
But in as much as the law of God is the great equalizer, the great leveler, so much more is the grace of God the great compensator. The grace of God pardons the most unspeakable of crimes. The grace of God is absolutely unreasonable from a human perspective because it does not take into account any merit, worth, value or desirability. God’s grace is completely undiscerning and unprejudiced about the value of its object. The Scripture says we “are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”1 Christ plays no favourites. He never closes His ears to the cries of the penitent.
Dear friends, God’s compassion to you embraces both present and future dimensions. Baptism assimilates us into both of these realities. Baptism cuts us into the inheritance. And it does so not by some sort of artificial charity catering to the idea that everyone deserves the experience of heaven. We are only recipients of the baptismal inheritance because Christ reconciled the Father to us. We were estranged, cut-off, under condemnation and exile. Now we are adopted and become co-heirs with Christ. Our names are written in heaven.
But don’t think for a moment that faith is like an heirloom. It is not an inert entity that magically maintains its value and vibrancy. Faith is a dynamic, living, breathing; relationship which if not exercised and fed will die. Just as we can’t eat once and expect to live on that sustenance indefinitely; we can’t treat baptism like once-off event that is soon relegated to the historical past. Its power and blessings are exercised daily; yet it remains a gift.
Think of the parable today. The daily wage buys daily bread. We learn to pray for it regularly and give thanks for the same. But lasting sustenance must come from a divine source. We cannot work for it, barter for it, or otherwise acquire it. Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread he will live forever…Your forefathers at manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.”2
That’s why Holy Communion is mature food. It is not for the self-righteous, for the Scripture says, “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.”3 It is not to be received in a prideful manner or taken lightly. Thus believers should always pray that the Holy Spirit would work genuine repentance in their hearts before partaking of this sacred meal. Christ’s blood is a holy vintage, a divine gift.
The generosity of the vineyard owner is just one more illustration of the benevolence of our heavenly Father. Satan incites us to cry unfair and even question God’s judgment. But the Spirit points us to a cross and there all questions of unfairness are answered. The Scripture says, “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made live by the Spirit.”4 We too have been made alive by the Spirit and even now participate in the resurrected life of Christ. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Romans 3:24 2 John 6:51, 58 3 1 Corinthians 11:27
4 1 Peter 3:18
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
21 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Matthew 20:13
Theme: Beyond Fairness
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
Christ did not come to make life fair but to redeem sinners. He did not come to cater to our sense of inequity but to reconcile us to the heavenly Father. Misplaced are all hopes that the main task of Christianity is to establish a utopia on earth. Without question compassion for the most vulnerable of society, regardless of status or belief, is one of the great strengths and legacies of Christianity. But the God who was born in a manger and hung from a cross offers something far beyond fairness. He has plumbed the depths of hell on our behalf. That truth transcends all human ideologies and pursuits.
Today’s parable illustrates how human thinking fails to understand the mind of God. The story is one of a vineyard owner who hires workers for his vineyard. The topic is about the nature of grace. Grace is a particularly divine quality. It is a fundamental concept in understanding the person of Christ. The workday starts when the owner agrees with the workers for the day’s wage and sends them out early in the morning. As the day progresses he keeps sending out more people he finds standing around with nothing to do. He does this at 9:00AM, noon, and 3:00PM. He even sends some out at five in the afternoon. The workday ended at six. The last workers worked only one hour in the vineyard.
The crux of the story comes when it is time to give the wages. The owner tells the foreman to call in the workers. We note a reversal of protocol when he says to pay those who were hired last first and proceed to paying those who were hired first, last. This alerts the hearer of Jesus’ word to something significant coming up. Typically, those hired first would be paid first. But now these first ones hired are there to witness what the others receive for pay. To their great surprise they receive the same pay, one denarius, as everyone who worked the entire day. This does not sit well with the first group and they cry “unfair.” But the owner explains that they were receiving the wage they agreed to. What reason do they have to be upset because the owner generously decides to give the others the same amount?
So here were learn something fundamental about the nature of God. His love towards humanity transcends human understanding. He is not fickle, unfair or whimsical in his treatment of us: He is gracious. The nature of His activity towards us is such that it is without preference. He makes us into nothing so that in Him we may have everything. The Word of God is a dynamic entity which acts upon us in a purposeful way. God’s intent is always that we be beneficiaries of His grace.
But if truth be told, we don’t always want others to receive as much grace as we do. And to not want this is to misunderstand who God is; as the workers in the vineyard story indicates. Spiritually, God must crush us before He can revive us. The law of God is the great equalizer. The judgment of God against sin makes no exceptions or preferences. We are all lumped together in the category of the condemned with no distinction. If we are honest we know that this is repulsive to us- down to the core of our being. How humiliating, how insulting, that a supposedly discerning God says that you and I are no better than the criminal sentenced for unspeakable crimes! How unfair that we should be labeled with those who have no conscience about breaking the law! How unreasonable that our honest efforts to be spiritually upright would not be recognized! We are stripped of status, rank and privilege! Under the crushing hand of the law you and I are no one of consequence. In fact, we must repent for who we selfishly strive to be.
But in as much as the law of God is the great equalizer, the great leveler, so much more is the grace of God the great compensator. The grace of God pardons the most unspeakable of crimes. The grace of God is absolutely unreasonable from a human perspective because it does not take into account any merit, worth, value or desirability. God’s grace is completely undiscerning and unprejudiced about the value of its object. The Scripture says we “are justified freely by His grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.”1 Christ plays no favourites. He never closes His ears to the cries of the penitent.
Dear friends, God’s compassion to you embraces both present and future dimensions. Baptism assimilates us into both of these realities. Baptism cuts us into the inheritance. And it does so not by some sort of artificial charity catering to the idea that everyone deserves the experience of heaven. We are only recipients of the baptismal inheritance because Christ reconciled the Father to us. We were estranged, cut-off, under condemnation and exile. Now we are adopted and become co-heirs with Christ. Our names are written in heaven.
But don’t think for a moment that faith is like an heirloom. It is not an inert entity that magically maintains its value and vibrancy. Faith is a dynamic, living, breathing; relationship which if not exercised and fed will die. Just as we can’t eat once and expect to live on that sustenance indefinitely; we can’t treat baptism like once-off event that is soon relegated to the historical past. Its power and blessings are exercised daily; yet it remains a gift.
Think of the parable today. The daily wage buys daily bread. We learn to pray for it regularly and give thanks for the same. But lasting sustenance must come from a divine source. We cannot work for it, barter for it, or otherwise acquire it. Jesus said, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats this bread he will live forever…Your forefathers at manna and died, but he who feeds on this bread will live forever.”2
That’s why Holy Communion is mature food. It is not for the self-righteous, for the Scripture says, “Whoever eats the bread or drinks the cup of the Lord in an unworthy manner will be guilty of sinning against the body and blood of the Lord.”3 It is not to be received in a prideful manner or taken lightly. Thus believers should always pray that the Holy Spirit would work genuine repentance in their hearts before partaking of this sacred meal. Christ’s blood is a holy vintage, a divine gift.
The generosity of the vineyard owner is just one more illustration of the benevolence of our heavenly Father. Satan incites us to cry unfair and even question God’s judgment. But the Spirit points us to a cross and there all questions of unfairness are answered. The Scripture says, “Christ died for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, to bring you to God. He was put to death in the body but made live by the Spirit.”4 We too have been made alive by the Spirit and even now participate in the resurrected life of Christ. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Romans 3:24 2 John 6:51, 58 3 1 Corinthians 11:27
4 1 Peter 3:18
Fifteenth Sunday After Pentecost
21 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Sunday, September 14, 2014
Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Amen +
Text: Matthew 18:21-35
Theme: The Nature of Mercy
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is merciful. Perhaps you’ve heard that so many times it doesn’t really register. You just block it out. Perhaps you’re waiting for evidence, remaining skeptical until God proves Himself to you. Maybe you think those are fine-sounding but essentially hollow words? Or maybe you pretend to think God is gracious, you try to say all the right things and nod your head approvingly when appropriate, but inwardly you are gripped with doubt and even anger. Efforts to convince you are likely to be pointless. The Holy Spirit must do what no human can. The divine witness must speak for itself.
Forgiveness is always an act of UNDESERVED grace. Jesus teaches this vividly today in Matthew. The storyline is straightforward. A king wanted to settle accounts. Each debtor was brought before him in turn. The relevant debtor for this illustration owed him the equivalent of millions of dollars. He was not able to repay. The king ordered what was customary for the time: Total liquidation of his assets, plus sale of himself and his family into slavery. The ruler is not depicted as a tyrant. He has already been lenient by not requiring payment earlier. He is only rendering justice. The man pleads for mercy and has all of his debt cancelled. The ruler is shown to be magnanimous. The freed servant, however, goes out and denies mercy to a fellow debtor who owed him only a small sum. His hypocrisy is revealed.
Modern parallels to today’s parable are not hard to find. Common is the hypocritical person who pleads for leniency on some occasion that turns right around and dictates unfairly to someone at their mercy. Jesus uses an example that applies to economics. But the principle applies to all situations. And it applies to all of us. Unwillingness to give and receive forgiveness is one of the clearest symptoms of our sinfulness.
The Scripture says to forgive from the heart1. But how is this possible? What if we don’t feel inclined to forgive? To be merciful? Can it be forced? Forgiveness certainly does involve a movement of the heart. But when proper sentiment is lacking, forgiveness is firstly an act of the will. It’s helpful to recognize the complex dynamic between the heart and the will. Often the intellect knows the right thing to do is to forgive, but the heart is unwilling. We know the Scriptures, we know the command of God, but our heart is in the grip of resentment. Nothing is more treacherous than the human heart. The Bible says, “The heart is deceitful above all things...who can understand it.”2
The core of the problem relates to our natural desire to want to play God. The true reason people don’t forgive is because they don’t believe the offending party deserves forgiveness. Put the other way, people don’t forgive because they believe they are justified in withholding pardon. The key element is belief. That doesn’t mean the evidence is unimportant. If there is no evidence of repentance, no desire to be forgiven on the part of the offending party then the offended person may be forced to leave the matter with God alone. But, assuming the person does honestly seek forgiveness, then whether or not the person deserves forgiveness becomes moot for the Christian. Forgiveness is always unmerited grace. Trust in God’s promise becomes paramount.
A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. "But I don't ask for justice," the mother explained. "I plead for mercy." "But your son does not deserve mercy," Napoleon replied. "Sir," the woman cried, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is what I ask for." "Well, then," the emperor said, "I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's son.
The debtor today was so desperate he begged for mercy. But he was still not humbled. His motives were not pure. Not every desperate-looking act means the soul is ripe for spiritual healing. The law of God must do its proper work. It’s a mirror for us in our own relationships. What is our motivation? Is it selfishness? Is it fear? Is it anger? This man was about to lose his whole way of life. Is it concern for the well-being of others? Is it gratitude? Is it love of the truth? These are the works of the Spirit.
Two brothers went to their rabbi to settle a longstanding feud. The rabbi got the two to reconcile their differences and shake hands. As they were about to leave, he asked each one to make a wish for the other in honour of the Jewish New Year. The first brother turned to the other and said, "I wish you what you wish me." At that, the second brother threw up his hands and said, "See, Rabbi, he's starting up the feud again!"
Dear friends, a year one student may understand forgiveness better than a mature pensioner. But not because it’s a natural inclination or kids are naturally innocent. It’s only because they haven’t been as thoroughly scarred by the experiences of life. The more often we’re hurt the more likely we are to become jaded. That makes the gospel all the more essential. It alone has the power to transform us. It has the power to heal us. Such healing is only possible because Christ has addressed the root of the problem.
Forgiveness never makes light of the sin. It doesn’t whitewash it. Forgiveness recognizes that a restored relationship is more important than hostility and estrangement, even when that must be taken on faith. God doesn’t pretend. He doesn’t just turn a blind eye as if our transgressions were of no consequence. Rather, He assigns to them great weight. The punishment for them was endured at the cross. Nothing we do can influence the value of His forgiveness. And God doesn’t forgive us on account of our sorrow for sins. He doesn’t wait until we’ve done something worthy of earning His pardon. It’s a matter of sheer grace. That is His promise to you. There is no chasm that His death and resurrection can’t bridge.
Yes, we might like to see the Red Sea parted3 as the Israelites did today; but haven’t we seen greater things with the eyes of faith? The Saviour was nailed to a cross and laid in a tomb. We see in the crucifixion the means by which our sins are forgiven. We see profound love and compassion. Three days later He rose triumphantly from the grave.
Dear friends, repentance and forgiveness become habitual for the Christian. Even more, this dynamic of seeking and receiving grace characterizes the lives of the baptized. We hear His promise in the words of the gospel. We are washed by the cleansing waters of baptism. We taste His divine favour in Holy Communion. When you eat and drink the body and blood of Christ you are ingesting forgiveness. The Holy Spirit continually revives, restores, and renews us in the promise, presence, and power of Christ. That’s how the heart is changed. That’s how the soul is moved to extend pardon to others. That’s how we are clothed with spiritual armor. That’s how we exist as living stones in His temple and living sacrifices for His kingdom. Finally, that’s how we maintain our confidence even in the face of death. The Scripture says, “None of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”4
Christ is the embodiment of mercy. Philosophical arguments won’t convince you of that. His record speaks for itself. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 See Matthew 18:35 2 Jeremiah 17:9 3 See Exodus 14:19-31
4 Romans 14:7-8
Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost
14 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Matthew 18:21-35
Theme: The Nature of Mercy
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
God is merciful. Perhaps you’ve heard that so many times it doesn’t really register. You just block it out. Perhaps you’re waiting for evidence, remaining skeptical until God proves Himself to you. Maybe you think those are fine-sounding but essentially hollow words? Or maybe you pretend to think God is gracious, you try to say all the right things and nod your head approvingly when appropriate, but inwardly you are gripped with doubt and even anger. Efforts to convince you are likely to be pointless. The Holy Spirit must do what no human can. The divine witness must speak for itself.
Forgiveness is always an act of UNDESERVED grace. Jesus teaches this vividly today in Matthew. The storyline is straightforward. A king wanted to settle accounts. Each debtor was brought before him in turn. The relevant debtor for this illustration owed him the equivalent of millions of dollars. He was not able to repay. The king ordered what was customary for the time: Total liquidation of his assets, plus sale of himself and his family into slavery. The ruler is not depicted as a tyrant. He has already been lenient by not requiring payment earlier. He is only rendering justice. The man pleads for mercy and has all of his debt cancelled. The ruler is shown to be magnanimous. The freed servant, however, goes out and denies mercy to a fellow debtor who owed him only a small sum. His hypocrisy is revealed.
Modern parallels to today’s parable are not hard to find. Common is the hypocritical person who pleads for leniency on some occasion that turns right around and dictates unfairly to someone at their mercy. Jesus uses an example that applies to economics. But the principle applies to all situations. And it applies to all of us. Unwillingness to give and receive forgiveness is one of the clearest symptoms of our sinfulness.
The Scripture says to forgive from the heart1. But how is this possible? What if we don’t feel inclined to forgive? To be merciful? Can it be forced? Forgiveness certainly does involve a movement of the heart. But when proper sentiment is lacking, forgiveness is firstly an act of the will. It’s helpful to recognize the complex dynamic between the heart and the will. Often the intellect knows the right thing to do is to forgive, but the heart is unwilling. We know the Scriptures, we know the command of God, but our heart is in the grip of resentment. Nothing is more treacherous than the human heart. The Bible says, “The heart is deceitful above all things...who can understand it.”2
The core of the problem relates to our natural desire to want to play God. The true reason people don’t forgive is because they don’t believe the offending party deserves forgiveness. Put the other way, people don’t forgive because they believe they are justified in withholding pardon. The key element is belief. That doesn’t mean the evidence is unimportant. If there is no evidence of repentance, no desire to be forgiven on the part of the offending party then the offended person may be forced to leave the matter with God alone. But, assuming the person does honestly seek forgiveness, then whether or not the person deserves forgiveness becomes moot for the Christian. Forgiveness is always unmerited grace. Trust in God’s promise becomes paramount.
A mother once approached Napoleon seeking a pardon for her son. The emperor replied that the young man had committed a certain offense twice and justice demanded death. "But I don't ask for justice," the mother explained. "I plead for mercy." "But your son does not deserve mercy," Napoleon replied. "Sir," the woman cried, "it would not be mercy if he deserved it, and mercy is what I ask for." "Well, then," the emperor said, "I will have mercy." And he spared the woman's son.
The debtor today was so desperate he begged for mercy. But he was still not humbled. His motives were not pure. Not every desperate-looking act means the soul is ripe for spiritual healing. The law of God must do its proper work. It’s a mirror for us in our own relationships. What is our motivation? Is it selfishness? Is it fear? Is it anger? This man was about to lose his whole way of life. Is it concern for the well-being of others? Is it gratitude? Is it love of the truth? These are the works of the Spirit.
Two brothers went to their rabbi to settle a longstanding feud. The rabbi got the two to reconcile their differences and shake hands. As they were about to leave, he asked each one to make a wish for the other in honour of the Jewish New Year. The first brother turned to the other and said, "I wish you what you wish me." At that, the second brother threw up his hands and said, "See, Rabbi, he's starting up the feud again!"
Dear friends, a year one student may understand forgiveness better than a mature pensioner. But not because it’s a natural inclination or kids are naturally innocent. It’s only because they haven’t been as thoroughly scarred by the experiences of life. The more often we’re hurt the more likely we are to become jaded. That makes the gospel all the more essential. It alone has the power to transform us. It has the power to heal us. Such healing is only possible because Christ has addressed the root of the problem.
Forgiveness never makes light of the sin. It doesn’t whitewash it. Forgiveness recognizes that a restored relationship is more important than hostility and estrangement, even when that must be taken on faith. God doesn’t pretend. He doesn’t just turn a blind eye as if our transgressions were of no consequence. Rather, He assigns to them great weight. The punishment for them was endured at the cross. Nothing we do can influence the value of His forgiveness. And God doesn’t forgive us on account of our sorrow for sins. He doesn’t wait until we’ve done something worthy of earning His pardon. It’s a matter of sheer grace. That is His promise to you. There is no chasm that His death and resurrection can’t bridge.
Yes, we might like to see the Red Sea parted3 as the Israelites did today; but haven’t we seen greater things with the eyes of faith? The Saviour was nailed to a cross and laid in a tomb. We see in the crucifixion the means by which our sins are forgiven. We see profound love and compassion. Three days later He rose triumphantly from the grave.
Dear friends, repentance and forgiveness become habitual for the Christian. Even more, this dynamic of seeking and receiving grace characterizes the lives of the baptized. We hear His promise in the words of the gospel. We are washed by the cleansing waters of baptism. We taste His divine favour in Holy Communion. When you eat and drink the body and blood of Christ you are ingesting forgiveness. The Holy Spirit continually revives, restores, and renews us in the promise, presence, and power of Christ. That’s how the heart is changed. That’s how the soul is moved to extend pardon to others. That’s how we are clothed with spiritual armor. That’s how we exist as living stones in His temple and living sacrifices for His kingdom. Finally, that’s how we maintain our confidence even in the face of death. The Scripture says, “None of us lives to himself alone and none of us dies to himself alone. If we live, we live to the Lord; and if we die, we die to the Lord. So, whether we live or die, we belong to the Lord.”4
Christ is the embodiment of mercy. Philosophical arguments won’t convince you of that. His record speaks for itself. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 See Matthew 18:35 2 Jeremiah 17:9 3 See Exodus 14:19-31
4 Romans 14:7-8
Fourteenth Sunday After Pentecost
14 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Monday, September 8, 2014
Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost (A) 2014
+ In nomine Patris et Filii et Spiritus Sancti Amen +
Text: Exodus 12:1-14
Theme: Christ, Our Passover
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The blood of Christ spares us from the judgment of God. The background for understanding this is recorded in Exodus. God said, “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.”1 He was talking about being spared by the angel of death. The tenth and final plague was a decisive judgment on idolatry. Every plague was a leveling of judgment against the false gods of pagan religion. So ingrained was the superstition, the worship of created things rather than the Creator, and the moral depravity that came with trying to appease the deities, that, though the Israelites were liberated from Egypt they could not be fully delivered from such deception. An entire generation perished in the desert. Forty years of purging was required before they could enter the Promised Land. And even then they were vulnerable to the falsehoods and practices of the people around them.
The devastating consequences of unbelief should never be taken lightly. Outwardly life can appear vibrant while spiritually the soul comes under the domination of selfishness, arrogance, and apathy that leads to loss of purpose and hope. The disease itself prevents proper self-diagnosis. Sin afflicts real people and brings real problems. We should never think of God’s condemnation of sin as an abstract activity unrelated to life in the here and now. God judges idolatry in all its modern forms and the punishment is rendered according to His pleasure. Our response is not diplomacy but repentance. Only then can we cherish Christ’s work. Deliverance from sin’s power is not only a future promise but a present blessing.
We are privileged to be witness to a long history of God’s blessings. The church did not arise out of a vacuum. The significance of the Passover shed light on this truth. The spiritual foundations of God’s covenant with His people of old could not be grasped without understanding the meaning of Passover and the Sabbath. The Passover was the key event of deliverance previewing the greater rescue of the Messiah; the Sabbath was the hub around which the wheel of spiritual life revolved.
God rested from His work of creation on the seventh day, the Sabbath. The Jews believed the Sabbath was to be strictly honoured as a day of rest. Yet they also held that God Himself continued to do two types of work on the Sabbath: He gave life because babies were born, and He judged because people died- both on the Sabbath. Christ continued that work. Birth accepts no postponements and death takes no holidays. Both are under the jurisdiction of God alone.
Think, dear friends, of what we often now treat so flippantly: The miracle of birth and the poignancy of death. Dare we claim to understand these mysteries? Even if science describes many of the biological processes of life; who can probe the mystery of the human soul? Even if medicine offers a more painless conclusion to the human journey, who can reveal the moment mortality is fulfilled? These are in the providence of God alone. Human intellect will never solve them. Christ alone reserves these mysteries to be revealed in the hereafter.
Jesus’ activities on the Sabbath were the cause of long-running contention with the Jews. Resolving where Jesus stood over against the day of rest was critical in understanding His claim to be the Messiah and the Son of God. Often Jesus healed on the Sabbath and did what was necessary for people’s well-being. He wasn’t transgressing the holy day but raising it to its intended purpose and fulfilling it. Therefore Paul could say, “Do not let anyone judge you…with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or Sabbath day. These are a shadow of things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”2
Reconciliation with the Father is the crux of Jesus’ work. It was foreshadowed long before His birth. “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.”3 The result is peace. Christ has turned away the vengeance of God. His vengeance is not a capricious resentment but a godly jealousy. He pursues us with tireless determination and bears with us with long-suffering patience. He is zealous for the purity and holiness of His people. Christ endured His wrath so that we might be purged of sin’s condemning power. The blood was painted on the doorframes as sign that the inhabitants should be spared. God was present with His people.
In Christ’s presence we have nothing to fear. He is never too busy with other things to attend to us. God’s ability is not limited. Our situation is not like the story of the small boy going to sleep. One summer night during a severe thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small son into bed. She was about to turn the light off when he asked in a trembling voice, "Mother, will you stay with me all night?" Smiling, the mother gave him a warm, reassuring hug and said tenderly, "I can't dear. I have to sleep in Daddy's room." A long silence followed. At last it was broken by a shaky voice saying, "The big sissy!"
Now we can live in freedom from fear, but only through a living relationship with Him. The Bible says, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”4 If we are not regular in our contact with God’s word and sacraments, if the Divine Service is not the starting point of our week, then we quickly get out-of-sync with God’s intended rhythm for our lives. The Holy Spirit moves to the cadence of God’s drum. He is preparing us, His people, for bodily resurrection in Christ. Believers are bound not to the instinct and arbitrariness of nature but to the purpose we have in Christ. We are participants in high and holy things. We’re not to be governed by worldly mammon but by spiritual food.
The Scripture says, “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival [with] the bread of sincerity and truth.”5 In one place the sun sets while in another it is rising. In one place the faithful say their evening prayers while in another they offer their morning praise, and so the litany of God’s love is in continual progression. “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.”6
Dear friends, we don’t gather merely for historic remembrance. God is active among us. The Child of Bethlehem, the Suffering Servant of Calvary, He who is the Resurrection and the Life says, “I am with you always.”7 Christ meets us here and now with His absolving word. Forgiveness is the lifeblood of the soul. Without it we become spiritually crippled and die. Christ meets us here and now in the cup of blessing. He gives us His body broken and distributed in the holy meal. He is present in Holy Communion to offer us pardon for our sins, healing for tired bodies and aching souls, and comfort in our time of need. Christ meets us here and now. He walks with us in the present. He leads us into the future. Eternal death will pass us over because we are freed by the blood of the Lamb. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Exodus 12:13 2 Colossians 2:16-17 3 Exodus 12:13
4 Galatians 5:25 5 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 6 Psalm 113:3
7 Matthew 28:20
Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost
7 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Text: Exodus 12:1-14
Theme: Christ, Our Passover
Dear friends in Christ Jesus,
The blood of Christ spares us from the judgment of God. The background for understanding this is recorded in Exodus. God said, “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you.”1 He was talking about being spared by the angel of death. The tenth and final plague was a decisive judgment on idolatry. Every plague was a leveling of judgment against the false gods of pagan religion. So ingrained was the superstition, the worship of created things rather than the Creator, and the moral depravity that came with trying to appease the deities, that, though the Israelites were liberated from Egypt they could not be fully delivered from such deception. An entire generation perished in the desert. Forty years of purging was required before they could enter the Promised Land. And even then they were vulnerable to the falsehoods and practices of the people around them.
The devastating consequences of unbelief should never be taken lightly. Outwardly life can appear vibrant while spiritually the soul comes under the domination of selfishness, arrogance, and apathy that leads to loss of purpose and hope. The disease itself prevents proper self-diagnosis. Sin afflicts real people and brings real problems. We should never think of God’s condemnation of sin as an abstract activity unrelated to life in the here and now. God judges idolatry in all its modern forms and the punishment is rendered according to His pleasure. Our response is not diplomacy but repentance. Only then can we cherish Christ’s work. Deliverance from sin’s power is not only a future promise but a present blessing.
We are privileged to be witness to a long history of God’s blessings. The church did not arise out of a vacuum. The significance of the Passover shed light on this truth. The spiritual foundations of God’s covenant with His people of old could not be grasped without understanding the meaning of Passover and the Sabbath. The Passover was the key event of deliverance previewing the greater rescue of the Messiah; the Sabbath was the hub around which the wheel of spiritual life revolved.
God rested from His work of creation on the seventh day, the Sabbath. The Jews believed the Sabbath was to be strictly honoured as a day of rest. Yet they also held that God Himself continued to do two types of work on the Sabbath: He gave life because babies were born, and He judged because people died- both on the Sabbath. Christ continued that work. Birth accepts no postponements and death takes no holidays. Both are under the jurisdiction of God alone.
Think, dear friends, of what we often now treat so flippantly: The miracle of birth and the poignancy of death. Dare we claim to understand these mysteries? Even if science describes many of the biological processes of life; who can probe the mystery of the human soul? Even if medicine offers a more painless conclusion to the human journey, who can reveal the moment mortality is fulfilled? These are in the providence of God alone. Human intellect will never solve them. Christ alone reserves these mysteries to be revealed in the hereafter.
Jesus’ activities on the Sabbath were the cause of long-running contention with the Jews. Resolving where Jesus stood over against the day of rest was critical in understanding His claim to be the Messiah and the Son of God. Often Jesus healed on the Sabbath and did what was necessary for people’s well-being. He wasn’t transgressing the holy day but raising it to its intended purpose and fulfilling it. Therefore Paul could say, “Do not let anyone judge you…with regard to a religious festival, a New Moon celebration or Sabbath day. These are a shadow of things that were to come; the reality, however, is found in Christ.”2
Reconciliation with the Father is the crux of Jesus’ work. It was foreshadowed long before His birth. “The blood will be a sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you. No destructive plague will touch you when I strike Egypt.”3 The result is peace. Christ has turned away the vengeance of God. His vengeance is not a capricious resentment but a godly jealousy. He pursues us with tireless determination and bears with us with long-suffering patience. He is zealous for the purity and holiness of His people. Christ endured His wrath so that we might be purged of sin’s condemning power. The blood was painted on the doorframes as sign that the inhabitants should be spared. God was present with His people.
In Christ’s presence we have nothing to fear. He is never too busy with other things to attend to us. God’s ability is not limited. Our situation is not like the story of the small boy going to sleep. One summer night during a severe thunderstorm a mother was tucking her small son into bed. She was about to turn the light off when he asked in a trembling voice, "Mother, will you stay with me all night?" Smiling, the mother gave him a warm, reassuring hug and said tenderly, "I can't dear. I have to sleep in Daddy's room." A long silence followed. At last it was broken by a shaky voice saying, "The big sissy!"
Now we can live in freedom from fear, but only through a living relationship with Him. The Bible says, “Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit.”4 If we are not regular in our contact with God’s word and sacraments, if the Divine Service is not the starting point of our week, then we quickly get out-of-sync with God’s intended rhythm for our lives. The Holy Spirit moves to the cadence of God’s drum. He is preparing us, His people, for bodily resurrection in Christ. Believers are bound not to the instinct and arbitrariness of nature but to the purpose we have in Christ. We are participants in high and holy things. We’re not to be governed by worldly mammon but by spiritual food.
The Scripture says, “Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival [with] the bread of sincerity and truth.”5 In one place the sun sets while in another it is rising. In one place the faithful say their evening prayers while in another they offer their morning praise, and so the litany of God’s love is in continual progression. “From the rising of the sun to the place where it sets, the name of the Lord is to be praised.”6
Dear friends, we don’t gather merely for historic remembrance. God is active among us. The Child of Bethlehem, the Suffering Servant of Calvary, He who is the Resurrection and the Life says, “I am with you always.”7 Christ meets us here and now with His absolving word. Forgiveness is the lifeblood of the soul. Without it we become spiritually crippled and die. Christ meets us here and now in the cup of blessing. He gives us His body broken and distributed in the holy meal. He is present in Holy Communion to offer us pardon for our sins, healing for tired bodies and aching souls, and comfort in our time of need. Christ meets us here and now. He walks with us in the present. He leads us into the future. Eternal death will pass us over because we are freed by the blood of the Lamb. Amen.
+ In nomine Jesu +
1 Exodus 12:13 2 Colossians 2:16-17 3 Exodus 12:13
4 Galatians 5:25 5 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 6 Psalm 113:3
7 Matthew 28:20
Thirteenth Sunday After Pentecost
7 September 2014
Reverend Darrin L. Kohrt
Subscribe to:
Comments (Atom)