Palm Sunday - The King of All Didn’t Practice Social Distancing - Philippians 2:5-11
Palm Sunday - The King of All Didn’t Practice Social Distancing - Philippians 2:5-11
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The King of All Didn’t Practice Social Distancing
Philippians 2:5-8 – April 5, 2020
When was the last time you left your house? Was it yesterday? Has it been a week? Two weeks? Maybe you’re starting to think you’ll never leave home again. It wasn’t too long ago, on one of my days off, that I was thinking, “What would it be like to never leave the house?” I could spend all my time with my family. I could order everything I needed from Amazon or DoorDash. It’d be interesting to see what that’s like. I guess my question’s been answered.
We’re practicing social distancing right now to keep each other healthy. We’re doing our part so we don’t get sick, and so we don’t spread the disease to others. Wash your hands. Stay six feet away. Don’t go out except to buy groceries. We’re trying to stay away from the infected and ultimately prevent our own deaths.
Today, we see that Jesus didn’t practice social distancing. Even though he is the King of all, the God who could’ve isolated himself up on his throne in heaven, he broke social distancing protocol.
I. From the infected
The time has now come. Jesus’ journey is coming to its end. It’s a journey that began long before he raised Lazarus from the dead. Before he gave sight to the blind man. Before he revealed his glory on the Mount of Transfiguration. Before he was tempted, baptized, or born. It’s a journey that began in eternity.
In eternity, God planned to save his children. God didn’t want his children to sin against him, but he knew they would. He didn’t create robots programmed to love and serve him. What kind of love would that have been? He created Adam and Eve with free will so that they could choose to love and serve him instead of forcing them to love him.
But God, knowing all things, knew they would disobey. Now, an unmerciful God would say, “That’s it. You blew it. No second chances.” A sadistic God would have created human beings just hoping they would fail so he could punish them. An uncaring God would leave the sinful world alone to spin to its doom.
That’s not the God we have. The King of all didn’t practice social distancing. As Paul wrote in the his letter to the Philippians, “Christ Jesus, … being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” Instead of staying home in heaven, Jesus came to earth to be a human being just like us. Instead of washing his hands of this sinful world, Jesus lived among us filthy sinners.
Throughout his whole life, Jesus didn’t keep his distance from sinners. When Zacchaeus the tax collector invited Jesus to his house, Jesus gladly accepted even though he knew what people would say about him: “He has gone to be the guest of a sinner.” When a man who had leprosy came to him, Jesus didn’t reel back and say, “Stay away from me.” When the leper said, “Lord, if you are willing, you can make me clean,” Jesus said, “I am willing. Be clean!” Jesus ate with tax collectors and “sinners,” and when people called him out, he said, “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”
Jesus didn’t practice social distancing from the infected world. He didn’t want to. He loved the world too much to stay away. He didn’t need to. Jesus is too holy to be infected by our sin. Instead of catching our disease of sin, when Jesus comes to us, he brings his holiness and healing.
This is good news for you, since you’re infected, too. The infection of sin has passed down from Adam and Eve, all the way to your parents and, through them, to you. The Holy Spirit says through King David in Psalm 51, “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me.” He says through the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 15, “In Adam all die,” and in Romans 5, “Through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners.”
Your infection has symptoms. It isn’t asymptomatic like Covid-19 can be. Infected by sin, you commit sin. You lie. You hate. You doubt. Sin shows up in your mouth. In your hands. In your mind. Your sin affects your relationship with God, your relationship with your family, your relationship with everyone else. How could anyone not keep their distance from you?
But the King of all does not practice social distancing. He will not stay away from you. He rides on in majesty into your life through his Word and sacrament. He enters your heart with his love and forgiveness. As the prophet Isaiah wrote, “He took up our infirmities and bore our diseases.” Jesus, the King of all, comes near to heal you.
II. To prevent his death
The time has now come for Jesus’ journey to end. When Jesus was going to Bethany to raise Lazarus from the dead as we heard last week, his disciples said, “Rabbi, a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?” Don’t you know they want to kill you, Jesus?
Jesus could have stayed away from Jerusalem. In his hometown of Capernaum, he would have been safer. If he just stayed home, only going out when necessary, he could have kept on living. If he just stayed away from Jerusalem, he wouldn’t have to die. Maybe he could even move to another country. Start over. Keep on teaching and preaching and healing. But Jesus didn’t come to earth to live here forever. He came to die.
And so, the King of all willingly rides the donkey up the Mount of Olives and into Jerusalem. For a moment, he is treated as the King he is. The people sing his praises, “Hosanna to the Son of David! Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord! Hosanna in the highest heaven!” They lay down cloaks and palm branches before him. But their praise is prelude to the chants of “Crucify him! Crucify him!” Instead of cloaks and palm branches in his path, a purple robe on his shoulders and a crown of thorns on his head. Nailed to a cross.
Jesus doesn’t keep distance from his doom. He willingly enters it. He runs to the front lines in the war with sin. He “humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!”
It seems foolish for a man so respected, so loved, so helpful, so loving to give up his life. There’s so much more he could have done. What a waste! Only 33 years old. Cut down in the prime of life. Why not send someone else to die? He was the King of all. Why does he have to go?
There’s a little part of us that wants Jesus to prevent his death. To socially distance himself from the cross. We’re like Jesus’ disciple Peter, who once said, “Never, Lord! This shall never happen to you!” We’re like the people who followed Jesus after he fed 5,000 men. They said about him, “Surely this is the Prophet who is to come into the world.” They intended to make him their earthly king.
We’re often like those followers of Jesus. We think, “If only I can latch myself onto the king’s coattails, then life will be good.” If I just show enough loyalty to Jesus, he’ll reward me with a good life. If I wave my palm branch wildly enough, maybe the King will notice me.
Jesus had to say to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me; you do not have in mind the concerns of God, but merely human concerns.” He had to tell those kingmakers, “Very truly I tell you, you are looking for me, not because you saw the signs I performed but because you ate the loaves and had your fill. Do not work for food that spoils, but for food that endures to eternal life.”
Aha! And that’s the key. Jesus hasn’t come to make earthly life better. The Christian life is no guarantee of earthly happiness. Any happiness we have here spoils eventually. The food goes bad. The clothes get holes in them. The car breaks down. The house begins to leak. The friendships break up. The memories fade. Pandemic spreads. People die.
“If only for this life we have hope in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied,” says the Apostle Paul. Jesus must get down from the donkey. He must go up the cross. There he must pay our price for sin. He must pay the price to set us free forever. He goes to the cross to give us eternal life. And eternal life is where the happiness doesn’t. Where memories don’t fade. Where no one ever dies.
Paul’s words we’re studying today are encouragement for us to love during this time when it can be hard to love. He says, “In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus.” Now, the Holy Spirit isn’t asking us to break social distancing guidelines. But he is encouraging us to think of others during this time. How can we still show our love? How can we think about the interests of others? Don’t bunker down completely. Don’t severe the bonds of love. Jesus broke social distancing protocol for us to bind us together as his body to show love whether we’re together or apart.
Katelyn and I were in a long distance relationship for most of our pre-marriage life. It wasn’t always easy for us to show each other how much we loved each other. We called each on video chat in the morning. We watched movies and TV shows long distance. We called each other at lunch. We sent each other funny pictures we found. Did I mention we called each other?
Right now, it can be easy to think of ourselves first. But remember your Christian brothers and sisters, too. Give them a call. Ask how they’re doing. Let them know you can help them. If you need something, reach out to them for help. Jesus has broken down and forgiven the natural selfish social distancing between us and brought us together.
Jesus isn’t calling us to break social distancing guidelines. But thank God, he did. He took on the nature of a servant, he became a human being like us, to heal our infection. He didn’t consider death—even death on a cross—too low for him. The King of all, the Lord of life, didn’t practice social distancing so that he could bring us eternal life and bind us together with him forever. Amen.
On the Way out of Gethsemane… Forgive Us for our Fearful Lack of Trust! - Matthew 26:55,56/Mark 14:48-52
John M. Koelpin – Lenten Rotation 2020 Matthew 26:55,56/Mark 14:48-52
Hymns: Service Folder
On the Way out of Gethsemane… Forgive Us for our Fearful Lack of Trust!
1. Foiled by a bound Jesus
2. Exemplified by fleeing disciples
Dear friends in Christ,
Jesus’ time in Gethsemane has not been the most pleasant. For one reason, Gethsemane is that place where Jesus, up to this point in his life, has felt the cross most powerfully. What I mean is this… can you think of those times in life when you anticipated something intense – a test at school or maybe a test at the doctor’s office? The anticipation was worse than the test. You waited in limbo. You just wanted the time for the test to come. And, in fact, once that time came, you met it with bravery and confidence. But in the moments leading up to it, the anxiety was severe. That’s Jesus in Gethsemane!
In addition, Jesus has had to deal with:
The arrogance of Peter
The inattention of the disciples
Three hours of agony in prayer during which he felt the pangs of death and the sweat drops of blood
The temptations of the devil
The betrayal of Judas
The scuffle with Peter and the guards, and
His unlawful arrest
We wouldn’t have begrudged Jesus for a moment if he’d have been happy to leave Gethsemane. But he’s not going to leave the free man he was when he entered. Nor are the pains that have marked his stay in Gethsemane going to end. Even as we entered Gethsemane with a plea for God’s forgiveness for the kind of pride expressed by Peter and the other disciples, so we also make our way out of Gethsemane with a plea for God’s forgiveness… this time, however, for the opposite of pride. On the Way Out of Gethsemane… Forgive Us for our Fearful Lack of Trust!
1. Foiled by a bound Jesus
2. Exemplified by fleeing disciples
1. Forgive Our Fearful Lack of Trust! Foiled by a bound Jesus
The good news of Jesus’ death and resurrection is that he has foiled – or thwarted – the damage inflicted by our fearful lack of trust in God. But that is not the sense in which I am using “foil”. “Foil” can also mean “to enhance by contrast” as in “the black velvet foils – or enhances by contrast – the beauty of a fine pearl necklace”. As we watch Jesus leave Gethsemane with hands bound and under the control of his enemies, it looks like his mission is finished and failed. But Jesus is calm, willing, bold and assertive. He knows that this is just what his heavenly Father ordered. He knows this is exactly that path he must go if his mission is to continue and succeed. Jesus’ trusting words and actions stand in sharp contrast to the fearful lack of trust of his disciples – and us. When we see him, we can only fall in the ashes of our own penitence and beg, “Father forgive our fearful lack of trust.”
Jesus’ hands have just performed their last miracle. With tender touch Jesus healed the ear of Malchus, the only casualty of war on the enemies’ side. Now those hands lay uncomfortably bound, as John’s Gospel reports, “So the band of soldiers and their captain and the officers of the Jews seized Jesus and bound him.” These hands, which Jesus had so often lifted up to his Father in heaven to ask for his blessing on a sinful world; these hands, which he had so often laid upon the sick and suffering with help and healing; these hands, which once laid the foundations of the earth and spread the canopy of the heavens above – these hands he now lifted willingly before his captors so that they could fasten them tightly with rope and lead him from one mock trial to another and eventually to his death. He didn’t say a word. He offered no resistance. He gave himself up willingly.
How could he do this? Didn’t he know that his enemies only wanted to stop his mission and ministry? Didn’t he know that their rage and fury wouldn’t end until he was dead? Didn’t he know that he was the Son of God and could do something about all this nonsense? Of course, he knew. But despite all the evidence before him, Jesus trusted his Father in heaven. Yes, to human eyes the events of Jesus’ life seem to go THE OPPOSITE of where we think they should if he is to defeat our spiritual enemies. But bound hands were the Father’s will. Bound hands were part of the plan for Jesus’ victory. And Jesus had NO fearful lack of trust. He trusted the Father completely. He trusted the Father would give him victory even though everything seemed to look like defeat.
Jesus didn’t say a word – at least not until after his hands were bound. Only then, as the bound captive, did Jesus ascend his pulpit for a sermon that revealed his utter trust and confidence in his Father – and the mission his Father had given him. “‘Am I leading a rebellion,’ said Jesus, ‘that you have come out with swords and clubs to capture me? Every day I was with you, teaching in the temple courts, and you did not arrest me. But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.’” What words of utter divine glory and mercy! Jesus speaks to his enemies who have illegally bound an innocent man, and yet there’s no back-talk, there’s no resistance, there’s no verbal barrage of expletives or threats of violence or lawsuits. They curse him; he blesses them. They reach out to bind him; he reaches out to save them.
Look at how his sermon is aimed at their hearts, hoping to prick their consciences and lead them to repentance. “Why all the military might? When, ever, have I tried to push my will forward with weapons? Examine your motives, my dear captors.” Jesus knocks with tender love on the doors of their hearts reminding them of the Word of repentance and mercy he had spoken and how open he has always been with his purpose and mission to forgive and save. Yes, Jesus intends on being the Savior of his captors, too. Even in these last moments, he seizes the opportunity to reach them with his mercy. To the end, Jesus trusted the mission his Father had given him; he trusted the power of the Word to reach human hearts; he trusted the will of his Father to save even those sinners who put him to death.
People don’t react like Jesus did when they are arrested… just watch the TV show “COPS” sometime. Jesus’ words and actions at his arrest are SO UNLIKE MINE, that I can’t help but see the magnitude of my distrust foiled by his complete confidence in his Father. Oh, dear Father, forgive me! Forgive me fearful lack of trust in your mercy and might!
Dear friends, he has forgiven us! Listen to the last word of Jesus’ sermon, “But the Scriptures must be fulfilled.” What Scriptures? The Scriptures in Isaiah that predicted he would be led to his death like a lamb led to the slaughter. The Scriptures that prophesied he would drink a cup as bitter as this. The Scriptures that foretold how all the sheep would scatter when the enemy stuck the shepherd. This is what Jesus loved – the Word of his Father. This is what Jesus yearned to fulfill – the Word of his Father. This is what Jesus trusted up to and through his dying breath – the Word of his Father. And to what were all those Scriptures pointing? What was the thing that the Father wanted fulfilled? What did Jesus trust his Father would do? TO FORGIVE YOUR SINS AND MINE! Jesus binds himself into the hands of his enemies in a moment that looks like nothing but sheer defeat – because he trusted his Father to provide, protect and secure the prize of redemption through the cross.
Few things can highlight our fearful lack of trust like the willingness of Jesus to be bound by his enemies. But see beyond the foil. Jesus’ purpose in trusting his Father isn’t to make us look bad. Jesus’ purpose in trusting his Father is to save us from our fearful lack of trust. Those same hands bound themselves to the cross because he loved you and wanted to pay the curse of your sins. Those same hands bound themselves to your heart at your baptism, at which Christ himself tenderly washed you clean of all sin. Those same hands bind themselves to you when he reaches out to you in his very body and blood, in his Supper, with the assurance that your fearful lack of trust – and every other sin that stands against you – stands forgiven in Christ.
2. Forgive Our Fearful Lack of Trust! Exemplified by fleeing disciples
It’s bad enough having Jesus remind us what we’re not. It’s even worse having the disciples remind us what we are. If Jesus is the foil that highlights our fearful lack of trust by his unwavering confidence, the disciples are the mirror that show us our fearful lack of trust by their “by-now-to-be-expected” lack of faith. “Then everyone deserted him and fled. A young man, wearing nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving his garment behind.”
Do you remember the bravado these disciples once bellowed in their leader’s presence? Months earlier, when Jesus announced his intention to venture into enemy territory to raise Lazarus from the dead, the disciple Thomas “said to the rest of the disciples, ‘Let us also go, that we may die with him.’” Just a few days ago, when Jesus asked James and John if they could drink the bitter cup of suffering and death that awaited his followers, the boldly answered, “We can!”. And only hours ago, when Jesus told Peter he had prayed for him, Peter blurted out, “Lord, I am ready to go with you to prison and to death.”
But now that they had to put that bravado into practice, where were all those disciples. “Then everyone deserted him and fled.” Such big talk, but such fearful lack of trust. It was easy to talk big when Jesus was doing miracles (Thomas). It was easy to talk big when your thinking about a place of honor in Jesus’ kingdom (James and John). It was easy to talk big when Jesus had just told you that you were going help judge the tribes of Israel (Peter). Seeing doesn’t require much trust. Faith, however, is “being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see.” In the Garden Jesus didn’t look so glorious or powerful or charismatic. He looked weak as he prayed with bloody sweat. He looked powerless as he gave up his hands to be bound. He looked uninspiringly normal as his own disciple betrayed him with a kiss. Now that they couldn’t see, trust gave way to doubt and bravery was replaced with fear.
Oh disciples! Had Jesus ever failed you in the past? Had Jesus ever left you before to fend for yourselves? Had Jesus ever fallen short of lending his divine hand in time of need? Three years of powerful words and powerful works weren’t enough to rid them of a fearful lack of trust in Jesus or his Father. Why, so frightened is this band of followers that a curious onlooker runs from the scene without his clothes rather than stand by his Jesus – who, incidentally, was certainly standing by his Father in complete trust and confidence.
This would be a sad enough picture if it were the only time followers of Jesus displayed a lack of trust. But it is, unfortunately, a picture painted again and again by the generations that have followed. It is a picture – most unfortunately – that I have painted with my own fearful lack of trust – and so have you. Listen to the bravado with which I once stood before my Lord, my pastor and my congregation and bellowed:
Do you intend to continue steadfast in this teaching and to endure all things, even death, rather than fall away from it? I do, and I ask God to help me.
Do you intend faithfully to conform all your life to the teachings of God’s Word, to be faithful in the use of the Word and sacraments, and in faith and action remain true to God – Father, Son, and Holy Spirit – as long as you live? I do and I ask God to help me.
Will you support with your prayers, time, talents, and offerings the work our Lord has given to this congregation? I will, and I ask God to help me.
Where is that bravado now? I’ve not even come close to death on account of my faith and yet I have abandoned my Jesus in my sins more often – in a day – than I care to admit. I promised to conform my life to the pattern of God’s Word but what has happened when the temptations that came seemed to promise things more enticing than my Jesus, than his Word, than his promises? I fled to the comforts of sin rather than face the crosses of service and trust. I promised to support the work of God’s kingdom, but since God doesn’t send me a bill, it’s so easy to cut him out first when I give of my time, my energies, and my offerings. Oh, dear Father, forgive me! I am just like those disciples and rather than trust you through cross and temptation, I have fled. Forgive my fearful lack of trust, dear Father in heaven.
My dear friends, you have the sure hope that the Father does forgive you, because over this dark picture of flight and betrayal shines the bright rays of our divine King and merciful high priest. Those disciples who abandoned Jesus and fled for their own safety – not one of them was lost! Jesus, the Good Shepherd, went after them and claimed them again for his flock. With special care he visited them on Easter to announce, “Peace be with you.” With singular tenderness he pulled Peter aside and assured him of his place among the disciples. With divine attention to detail Jesus called Mark – the most likely candidate for that “insignificant” and un-named disciple who left his garment in Gethsemane – Jesus called Mark as a companion of Paul and Peter and the writer of the second Gospel. This is the divine love and trust put into practice – Jesus seeks and saves that which was lost!
Jesus doesn’t plan on abandoning or losing any of you. Even now, he paves the road of your life with promises meant to bolster your trust in him so you do not flee but fall into his merciful arms. When, then, the waters of anxiety and trouble flood over your soul, listen to the unwavering voice of your true Savior say, “Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have summoned you by name; you are mine.” And when your tender conscience rails against you and your own heart condemns you, listen to the sure promise of your merciful Savior say, “I have swept away your offenses like a cloud, your sins like the morning mist. Return to me, for I have redeemed you.” And finally, when your last hour draws near and the devil tests you by reminding you of all the times you fled in fearful lack of trust, listen to the pleadings of your great high priest as he says, “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because you loved me before the creation of the world.”
Yes, this is the reason why Jesus trusted – because he knew we wouldn’t and couldn’t. This is the reason why Jesus willingly offers his hands to his enemies – because this was the way he would secure the Father’s answer to our prayer “Father, forgive our fearful lack of trust.” And that answer is… “I will, and I have.” Amen.
Christ’s Solution for a Contaminated World - John 11:17-27,38-45
Christ’s Solution for a Contaminated World
John 11:17-27,38-45
Now a man named Lazarus was sick. He was from Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. 2 (This Mary, whose brother Lazarus now lay sick, was the same one who poured perfume on the Lord and wiped his feet with her hair.) 3 So the sisters sent word to Jesus, “Lord, the one you love is sick.”
4 When he heard this, Jesus said, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.” 5 Now Jesus loved Martha and her sister and Lazarus. 6 So when he heard that Lazarus was sick, he stayed where he was two more days, 7 and then he said to his disciples, “Let us go back to Judea.”
8 “But Rabbi,” they said, “a short while ago the Jews there tried to stone you, and yet you are going back?”
9 Jesus answered, “Are there not twelve hours of daylight? Anyone who walks in the daytime will not stumble, for they see by this world’s light. 10 It is when a person walks at night that they stumble, for they have no light.”
11 After he had said this, he went on to tell them, “Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep; but I am going there to wake him up.”
12 His disciples replied, “Lord, if he sleeps, he will get better.” 13 Jesus had been speaking of his death, but his disciples thought he meant natural sleep.
14 So then he told them plainly, “Lazarus is dead, 15 and for your sake I am glad I was not there, so that you may believe. But let us go to him.”
16 Then Thomas (also known as Didymus) said to the rest of the disciples, “Let us also go, that we may die with him.”
17 On his arrival, Jesus found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. 18 Now Bethany was less than two miles from Jerusalem, 19 and many Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them in the loss of their brother. 20 When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went out to meet him, but Mary stayed at home.
21 “Lord,” Martha said to Jesus, “if you had been here, my brother would not have died. 22 But I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.”
23 Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”
24 Martha answered, “I know he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.”
25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; 26 and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?”
27 “Yes, Lord,” she replied, “I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, who is to come into the world.”
28 After she had said this, she went back and called her sister Mary aside. “The Teacher is here,” she said, “and is asking for you.” 29 When Mary heard this, she got up quickly and went to him. 30 Now Jesus had not yet entered the village, but was still at the place where Martha had met him. 31 When the Jews who had been with Mary in the house, comforting her, noticed how quickly she got up and went out, they followed her, supposing she was going to the tomb to mourn there.
32 When Mary reached the place where Jesus was and saw him, she fell at his feet and said, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”
33 When Jesus saw her weeping, and the Jews who had come along with her also weeping, he was deeply moved in spirit and troubled. 34 “Where have you laid him?” he asked.
“Come and see, Lord,” they replied.
35 Jesus wept.
36 Then the Jews said, “See how he loved him!”
37 But some of them said, “Could not he who opened the eyes of the blind man have kept this man from dying?”
38 Jesus, once more deeply moved, came to the tomb. It was a cave with a stone laid across the entrance. 39 “Take away the stone,” he said.
“But, Lord,” said Martha, the sister of the dead man, “by this time there is a bad odor, for he has been there four days.”
40 Then Jesus said, “Did I not tell you that if you believe, you will see the glory of God?”
41 So they took away the stone. Then Jesus looked up and said, “Father, I thank you that you have heard me. 42 I knew that you always hear me, but I said this for the benefit of the people standing here, that they may believe that you sent me.”
43 When he had said this, Jesus called in a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!” 44 The dead man came out, his hands and feet wrapped with strips of linen, and a cloth around his face.
Jesus said to them, “Take off the grave clothes and let him go.”
45 Therefore many of the Jews who had come to visit Mary, and had seen what Jesus did, believed in him.
Jesus had the solution for Lazarus’ problem. Martha knew it. Mary knew it. That’s why they sent for him before he died. They had heard about, maybe even seen for themselves how Jesus healed the sick, gave sight to the blind, and cast out demons. They knew the power he wielded. When he finally does arrive after Lazarus has already been dead for four days, they both say to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.” He could have stopped this. He could have healed Lazarus. But Jesus wanted to show he had an even greater power than just taking away disease. Before he left for Bethany, he told his disciples, “This sickness will not end in death. No, it is for God’s glory so that God’s Son may be glorified through it.”
Even in her sadness, Martha recognizes Jesus can bring Lazarus back. She tells him, “I know that even now God will give you whatever you ask.” It would have been one thing for Jesus to take away Lazarus’ illness. It was a much bigger ask to raise him from the dead. And yet, Martha knew Jesus could do it.
Jesus, Martha, and Mary, along with all the other people mourning with them, go to Lazarus’ tomb. Jesus has some people roll the stone away from the entrance. Then he cries out to the man already four days dead, “Lazarus, come out!” And wrapped like a mummy, the dead man walks out of the tomb.
What an incredible sight! The people at the tomb were shocked. Many of them had seen Lazarus dead. This wasn’t a hoax. It wasn’t a clever trick. Their own eyes had seen the lifeless body wrapped in linens and carried to the tomb. But here he was, walking and talking as if he never even was sick.
Jesus proved his power over death right here at Lazarus’ tomb. He can even bring people back to life. And if he can do that, he can heal all kinds of sicknesses and diseases.
Right now, with the coronavirus pandemic, we need this reminder. If God can bring people back from the dead, he can heal people from Covid-19. And it’s not just Covid-19 he can heal. It’s your cancer. It’s your heart disease. It’s your depression. There aren’t many Christians who would deny what God can do out loud. But it’s not the mouth that doubts. It’s the heart. It’s the soul. When sickness or problems come to us and our world, deep down we wonder if God is really in control.
It’s one thing to say, “God's got this.” It’s another thing to actually believe it. That’s a lot harder. You might hear people saying that and wonder, “How can they be so sure? How can they be so confident?” We naturally think God is out to get us. We know deep down we deserve whatever comes to us. And with good reason. All the sickness, all the disease, all the death, all these come because we are sinful people who live in a sinful world. You can look at a person and think, “Wow, they’re really good.” But you can’t answer the question, “If they were so good, then why did they die?” The answer is: Because they were a sinner.
No one is excluded from this. How many people do you know who haven’t ever gotten sick? Or whose bodies have never had any problems? How many people do you know who haven’t died or will never die? It’s not even a handful. Paul says in Romans 5, “Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned.”
Our world is contaminated. Not just with the coronavirus. Not just with all kinds of diseases or problems or pollution. Our world is contaminated with sin.
At Lazarus’ tomb, Jesus shows he has the power to take away all those effects of sin during our lifetimes. Now, think of all the times you’ve been sick in the past. How many times God has allowed you to be healed. How many broken bones you’ve recovered from. How many near-death experiences you’ve had. God has brought you through all of them. What we see Jesus do for Lazarus isn’t unique. He has also saved you from death in many more ways than you can count.
During this pandemic, continue to trust in God's healing power. He can save you from it. He has the power to save you from cancer, from diabetes, from the aches and pains of an aging body. Ask him for his blessing. Make use of what he provides for healing: medicine, doctors, nurses, first responders, everyone he uses to help you. God's got more than this. He’s got you.
Jesus did bring Lazarus back from the dead. But the Bible gives no indication that Lazarus is still alive. It could have been many years, but eventually Lazarus would re-enter the tomb. The same is true for all Jesus’ healings, whether the man born blind we read about last week, or the man lowered down through a roof by his friends. Even Jairus’ daughter and the widow at Nain’s son whom Jesus raised from the dead would eventually die.
Jesus had to bring a permanent solution to death. That’s why he says to Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” All the people Jesus healed died. But to everyone who believes in him, Jesus gives this promise, “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.”
This is what Jesus came to do. He didn’t come just to be a healer. He didn’t come just to extend life on earth a little longer. He came to bring a permanent solution to our sin-contaminated world. He had to take the sin of the whole world on himself and kill sin itself.
If you’ve seen the movie Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows with Robert Downey, Jr., it gives a picture of what Jesus has done. Sherlock confronts Professor Jim Moriarty on a balcony overlooking a waterfall. It’s snowing. Both want the other dead. They both play through the scene in their heads. There is only one solution. Sherlock blows ash from his pipe in Moriarty’s face, grabs a hold of him, and throws them both over the balcony.
To defeat death for us, Jesus gave himself to death. He took on our sins and threw himself over the waterfall. He let himself be nailed to a cross so that sin and death would die forever. Sherlock Holmes, the fictional character, eventually comes back from the dead. Jesus Christ, the real Son of God, rises from the dead after three days because death has been defeated. He himself is the resurrection. He himself is life.
You may get Covid-19. And, Jesus may heal you. You may have cancer. Jesus may heal you from that as well. If God heals you from whatever disease or illness you have, then his name be praised. But unless Jesus comes back first, you will die someday. Even if he doesn’t heal you from the illness you have now, you have this promise, “The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die.” After you die, you will live! And once you have died believing in Jesus, you can never die again!
And because you can never die again, that means all signs pointing to death are gone. No more disease. No more cancer. No more Covid-19, 20, 50 or 99. In heaven with Jesus, you will have life. Death will have to stay much farther than six feet away from you.
We are all being much more cautious right now. We’re taking extra steps to promote good hygiene. But as you wash your hands, remember this: You have been washed in the blood of the lamb. Your sins are forgiven. When you take off clothes that you wore outside the house and put on uncontaminated clothes, remember that Jesus has taken off your sinfulness and given you a robe of righteousness. When you hear reports saying, “The world is dying,” remember Jesus’ solution, “I am the resurrection and the life.” Amen.
2 John Discussion Questions
Discuss how we see a lack of focus on truth in our day and age.
Discuss how we see a hunger for truth in the people around us.
Discuss how we see a lack of true love defined by Scripture in ourselves.
Agree or disagree. John is too uptight about the truth.
Give examples of how truth mixed with error usually seems to lead to error winning out rather than truth.
Discuss why people (including us) often want to “fill in the blanks” of Scripture.
Give specific areas of our life where we want to be careful not to share in spreading false teaching.
Discuss why John treasures face-to-face community more than communicating by letter.
The Suffering of Jesus’ Soul - Matthew 26:36-46
Songs:
The Suffering of Jesus’ Soul
Matthew 26:36-46
Silence strangles the courtroom. The jury is filing in, ready to give their decision. Monique Kitts is on trial for hiring a hitman to kill her husband. Judge Robin Free waits expectantly for the last juror to take their place and asks, “Has the jury reached a verdict?” “We have, Your Honor,” replies the foreman. “In the case of the State of Louisiana v. Monique O. Kitts, how do you find?” “We the jury find Monique Kitts…” and you can’t even hear the verdict over the wailing coming from the defense table. “Guilty.”
If you know my brother and me, you might be surprised to know we didn’t always get along. Or maybe that doesn’t surprise you. And as sometimes happens with brothers, playing goes a little too far. Little brother gets hurt. And what does big brother say? “Don’t tell mom! Just hit me back.” I didn’t want Mom to find out because I was afraid of getting in trouble.
Tonight, we see Jesus suffering in the garden. It’s not yet time for the bruises or the lashes or the spitting in the face. That will come. But already in the garden, Jesus has begun to suffer from guilt and fear. Tonight, we ponder the suffering of Jesus’ soul.
Jesus brings his disciples to the Garden of Gethsemane. He tells eight of the eleven remaining disciples, “Sit here while I go over there and pray.” He takes Peter, James, and John with him. He chose these three for some of the highest points of his life on earth. They were with him when he said to Jairus’ dead daughter, “Little girl, I say to you, get up!” They were there on that mountain when Jesus’ face shone like the sun and his clothes were as bright as the light. When Moses and Elijah appeared. When a voice came from the cloud saying, “This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased. Listen to him!”
What a change in Jesus since that time! No longer shining with glory. No smile on his face. He began to be sorrowful and troubled. His words match his face. “My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.” He is so anguished, so churned up inside, that he feels like he can’t even go on.
Already Jesus feels the fires of hell lapping his cheeks. He carries the weight of the world’s sins on his shoulders. Picture the guilt you feel when you’ve hurt someone close to you, when you’ve secretly sinned to hide your shame, when you’ve turned your back on God. Now multiply that guilt and multiply it again. The sins of the world weigh on Jesus’ heart as he takes on their guilt as his own. As he anticipates the coming punishment, a punishment he does not deserve.
With his suffering over our guilt, he also suffers fear. Fear of the whippings, the beatings, the mocking. Fear of the crown of thorns pushed down over his head. Fear of being nailed to a cross. And that’s only the worst human beings can do to him. God will inflict his own punishment on his Son. All the tortures of hell as indescribable as they are. The fire that does not go out. The worm that does not die. God forsaking him.
What little relief he may have found in his disciples, they do not offer him. These men, who said they would die with him, do not even stay awake long enough to suffer alongside him. Even now, they have already failed to do their part. To bear even a little bit of Jesus’ sufferings.
But this is the way it must be. Christ alone must carry the cross. The only relief he may find is in his Father. “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.” He makes no demand of his Father. He does not shirk his mission. He only asks if there is another way. Surely, his Father will find one if there is.
But there is not. “My Father, if it is not possible for this cup to be taken away unless I drink it, may your will be done.” Always conforming his will to his Father’s. Trusting his Father. Though guilt and fear fill his soul, he presses on. A third time he prays, “Your will be done.” An angel comes to strengthen him. For soon physical pain will be added to the anguish of soul. “Rise! Let us go! Here comes my betrayer!”
This is your guilt he carries. It’s the guilt that washes over you when for no reason you remember something you did years ago. And even though it happened a long time ago, your face still flushes, your heart still aches. It’s the guilt you feel when you see that face you’ve hurt. It’s the guilt you haven’t been able to let go of no matter how many times you’ve heard the words, “All your sins are forgiven.”
This is your fear he carries. The fear of punishment whether by God or by someone else. The fear you try to hide by thinking you’re getting away with it. The fear of knowing what your deeds truly deserve.
Here in the garden, Jesus carries this guilt and this fear for you. We may think it is our duty to carry the guilt and fear we’ve brought on ourselves. But look at the disciples. They couldn’t share in Jesus’ suffering. Neither can you. Jesus does not ask you to punish yourself by holding onto your guilt and fear. No, he takes them from you. He bears them for you. He takes them to their end by receiving the punishment your guilt deserves.
The suffering of Jesus’ soul proclaims peace to yours. His suffering soul tells your soul, “Rest, my child. I have taken your guilt. The memory of your past sins, I have carried their weight. The fear of punishment, I too have felt and have borne the sentence for you.”
Jovan Jackson awaited the verdict. He was on trial for possession of marijuana and selling it for a profit. The jurors filed back into the jury box. The judge asked, “In the case of the People v. Jovan Jackson, how do you find?” The foreman responded, “We find the defendant, Jovan Jackson, not guilty.” Tears streamed Jovan Jackson’s fate. He was not guilty. He didn’t have to fear the punishment of that crime.
What joy a not guilty verdict brings! What further peace Jovan would’ve had if he’d known the verdict beforehand. No need to dread a guilty verdict. No need to fear punishment. This is what we have. By faith in Jesus, we know that we are declared not guilty.
Tonight, give your guilt and fear to Jesus. He bears the cross for you. Let go of your guilt and fear. Rest in the assurance that because he has borne your guilt and your fear in his soul, your soul is now at peace with God.
Jesus Opens Our Eyes to See - Psalm 27
Hymns:
Jesus Opens Our Eyes to See
Psalm 27 – March 22, 2020
We don’t know when David wrote this psalm exactly. Other psalms give historical details, but not this one. But it seems like David just like us wants to be at God's temple but can’t. Something is keeping him from gazing on the beauty of the Lord in his temple.
There were several occasions like this in David’s life. Before he became king, David had to run from his predecessor, King Saul. He couldn’t stay in Jerusalem. He couldn’t go to the Lord’s tabernacle. He was fleeing for his life. And one of these times, David says to Saul, “Why is my lord pursuing his servant? What have I done, and what wrong am I guilty of? 19 Now let my lord the king listen to his servant’s words. If the Lord has incited you against me, then may he accept an offering. If, however, people have done it, may they be cursed before the Lord! They have driven me today from my share in the Lord’s inheritance and have said, ‘Go, serve other gods.’”
Another time, after David became king, his own son Absalom drove him out of the city. Absalom wanted to be king, and he turned many people against his Father. David had to leave the city behind. Even worse for David, he couldn’t go to the tabernacle. He couldn’t go where the Lord was. He felt cut off from God.
Of course, David knew that the Lord was with him wherever he went. He wrote in psalm 23, “Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for you are with me; your rod and your staff, they comfort me.” He knew that the Lord would be with him even on the run from Saul and Absalom.
But for David, it was even better to be in the Lord’s house. He says, “One thing I ask from the Lord, this only do I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze on the beauty of the Lord and to seek him in his temple.” Out of all the things David could ask the Lord for, whether protection, power, or peace, he asks to be able to dwell in the Lord’s house all the days of his life.
When Absalom drove David out of Jerusalem, it was a consequence of David’s earlier sins. After David slept with another man’s wife, had that man killed, and lied about it, God did forgive David. But there would be consequences. Through the prophet Nathan, God told David, “Out of your own household I am going to bring calamity on you.” When David’s own son turned on him, David could have wondered if the Lord was cutting him off. He longed to “gaze on the beauty of the Lord,” that is, to contemplate and reflect on his kindness and goodness and love. David needed reassurance from God that God still loved him, still forgave him. He wanted to be able to go to the Lord’s temple where he could “sacrifice with shouts of joy” and “sing and make music to the Lord.”
I’m guessing many of you feel the same way David did. The current calamity has kept us from being able to come together at God's house. Right now, you feel like you can’t even get together with other Christians. Sure, you can email and text and call, but those can’t replace face-to-face interaction. Singing the hymns to pre-recorded music without other voices around you just doesn’t feel the same. Listening to the Word and the sermon online maybe even feels a little cheap. When I watched the video from last Wednesday on YouTube, the next suggested video was called “The DUMBEST Plays in Sports History.” For a time, we can’t even gather around the Lord’s table to receive his body and blood. We feel cut off.
I’m hoping many of you are also realizing how you’ve been taking worship at God's house for granted. You’ve filled your Sunday mornings with other priorities. It could be sports, social activities, or sleep. Unlike David, the one thing you’ve asked from God isn’t to be in his presence. The one thing you’ve asked is, “Just wait for me, God, until I come back.” You’ve thought, “Well, there’s always next Sunday.” Right now, we don’t know the next Sunday we will be able to worship here.
And it’s not just those of you who haven’t been in church. Even if you’ve come to church every Sunday since the day you were born, you can take it for granted. By coming to church only because that’s what you’re supposed to do. If that’s your normal attitude, then today your first thought might have been, “Hey! I don’t have to get up and go to church today.” You can take coming to God's house for granted by trusting in the fact that you “haven’t missed a Sunday” instead of in Christ and his cross. Or by doing what James describes in his letter where he writes, “Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like someone who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like.” And to be honest with you, when you take public worship and the gifts God offers you here for granted, you’re taking God for granted.
But there’s a third group of you God wants to speak to today. Some of you haven’t been in church, not because you don’t want to, but because it’s too painful to come. You know you’ll just break down. It could even be because you don’t feel worthy enough to come into God's presence. And now, you maybe even feel like this is a sign from God that you shouldn’t come. And you cry out like David in this psalm, “Do not hide your face from me, do not turn your servant away in anger; you have been my helper. Do not reject me or forsake me, God my Savior.”
It is hard now that we can’t come to God's house together. Not having that chance to come to a place specifically centered around God and his Word can make it feel like there’s a great distance between him and you. We need Jesus to open our eyes to gaze on God's beauty again.
In the Gospel we read last week, Jesus said, “Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks.”
God's Word works wherever it is read or heard. The Holy Spirit’s power isn’t limited to a church building. God doesn’t say, “The only place to receive my gifts and worship me is at 4412 Legacy Dr. Plano, TX.” That means the Word you’re hearing right now through your speakers or you’re reading on your computer screen is powerful and effective. It strengthens your faith by reminding you your sins are forgiven by Jesus and that you have peace with God.
And yet, even though we can receive God's Word wherever we are, Jesus encourages us to come together. He sets the example by regularly joining with other believers in the synagogue and by going to festivals. And even more than that, he has won forgiveness for us for the times we haven’t made God a priority. He never took God for granted, and through faith in him, God doesn’t take us for granted.
By faith in him, Jesus opens our eyes to see what a blessing it is to come to worship. It’s not just a time for us to pay our respects to God. It’s called a church service for a reason. The one serving is God! He builds us up through his teaching. He feeds us our souls with his supper. He forgives our sins. He uses us to encourage others and to be encouraged.
If you’ve stayed away from church because it’s too painful to come to God, he wants to give you this encouragement: When we can worship together again, come. Not to check off a box for God. Not to keep up appearances. Here God gives you his healing grace. Be fed by his Word. Take, eat, and drink his body and blood for the forgiveness of your sins. Be encouraged by your brothers and sisters who love you. Come and gaze on the beauty, the kindness, the delight that is the Lord.
As David fled from Absalom, he said to the priest named Zadok, “Take the ark of God back into the city. If I find favor in the Lord’s eyes, he will bring me back and let me see it and his dwelling place again. But if he says, ‘I am not pleased with you,’ then I am ready; let him do to me whatever seems good to him.” He was confident in the Lord’s forgiveness. He knew he would see God's goodness again.
God is calling all of us to repentance and to trust in his Son for the forgiveness of sins. At Jesus’ baptism and on the mount of Transfiguration, he said, “This is my Son whom I love; with him I am well pleased.” By faith in Jesus, God is pleased with us. We find favor in the Lord’s eyes for Jesus’ sake. We will gaze upon his beauty again.
Especially now, we need that hope of meditating on God's kindness to us. The world is panicking. Even if you think the disease is overblown, you recognize that the reaction to this pandemic is going to leave lasting effects. You maybe wonder if you’re going to be swept away, if not by the disease, then by the fallout.
David wrote this psalm thinking of his enemies. He says, “Do not turn me over to the desire of my foes, for false witnesses rise up against me, spouting malicious accusations.” And yet, even when the wicked advance against him, David is confident. He says, “It is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Though an army besiege me, my heart will not fear; though war break out against me, even then I will be confident. … For in the day of trouble he will keep me safe in his dwelling; he will hide me in the shelter of his sacred tent and set me high upon a rock. Then my head will be exalted above the enemies who surround me.”
How could David be so confident? He was often outnumbered. Enemy kings and enemy sons wanted him dead. Here was the key: The Lord opened his eyes. Even when everyone else rejected him, even if his father and mother forsook him, David knew one thing: The Lord would receive him. He had this confidence because he had gazed on the Lord’s beauty in his temple. In his Word, God told David his sins were forgiven. Through the promises God gave, David knew he was right with God. Because of this, David knew he would see the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living. Whether it was the land of the living on earth, or the land of the living in heaven, David knew he would not be separated from God's goodness whether in life or in death.
We can share in David’s great confidence. We have gazed on the beauty of the Lord in his temple. Jesus has opened our eyes to see that our God is not a spiteful tyrant, but a loving Father. He promises, “Never will I leave you, never will I forsake you.” He says, “Be still and know that I am God.” Because of Jesus, we know we will continue to see the goodness of the Lord while living in this land, and when we join him forever in the land of the living.
We’re living in the days of quarantine. You might be stuck at home. Your kids might be starting to get cabin fever. Maybe you’re just getting lonely. But God willing, these days won’t last forever. In the meantime, continue studying his Word. Call me to set up an appointment to receive the Lord’s Supper. Reach out to Christian friends for support. But most of all, wait. “Wait for the Lord; be strong and take heart and wait for the Lord.” Amen.
Drink Deeply From the Well - John 4:5-26
Drink Deeply From the Well
Pastor David Strucely’s sermon on John 4:5-26.
Gospel of John, living water, repentance, forgiveness, salvation, gospel, good news, Texas, Lutheran, Plano, WELS, Wisconsin Synod, Atonement, love, hope, peace, grace, Jesus
Jesus and Judas - Matthew 26:47-50
Jesus and Judas
Pastor Brad Taylor’s sermon on Matthew 26:47-50.
Gospel of Matthew, Lent, betrayal, Judas, repentance, salvation, gospel, good news, Texas, Lutheran, Plano, WELS, Wisconsin Synod, Atonement, love, hope, peace, grace, Jesus
The Same Old Story - John 3:14-17
The Same Old Story
Pastor David Strucely’s sermon on John 3:14-17. The Same Old Story—God So Loved the World; Whoever Believes in the Son Shall Have Eternal Life.
Gospel of John, Nicodemus, repentance, salvation, gospel, good news, Texas, Lutheran, Plano, WELS, Wisconsin Synod, Atonement, love, hope, peace, grace, Jesus
Vimeo:
On The Way To Gethsemane - Matthew 26:30-35
On The Way To Gethsemane
Pastor David Strucely’s sermon on Matthew 26:30-35.
Gospel of Matthew, Lent, Garden of Gethsemane, betrayal, denial, Peter, Judas, repentance, salvation, gospel, good news, Texas, Lutheran, Plano, WELS, Wisconsin Synod, Atonement, love, hope, peace, grace, Jesus