In the Name of Christ the Crucified +
I Mm the bread of life, he who comes to Me will never go hungry.
I Am the light of the world. Whoever follows Me will not walk in darkness, but have the light of life.
I Am the door; if anyone enters through Me will be saved.
I Am the Good Shepherd.
I Am the resurrection and the life, whoever believes in Me, though he die, yet shall he live, and everyone who lives and believes in Me shall never die.
I Am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except by Me.
I Am the vine, you are the branches. Whoever abides in Me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit.
These are the words that our Lord came preaching, these are the truths which He declared about Himself. He has come to give life and light and salvation to His people whom He loves. And yet, there He hangs, upon a cross. There He suffers. There He thirsts. There He bows His head and gives up His Spirit.
I Am is dead.
This is what John records for us in all its gory detail. “So the soldiers came and broke the legs of the first, and of the other who had been crucified with him. But when they came to Jesus and saw that he was already dead, they did not break his legs. But one of the soldiers pierced his side with a spear, and at once there came out blood and water. He who saw it has borne witness— his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth.” John is adamant – Jesus has died… the Roman Soldiers, the profession killers, they knew He was dead. They stabbed Him just to make sure and out seeped water and blood – already separating out. John saw. The soldiers saw. He is dead.
What to make of this then? What is to be our response to this? I Am, Christ Jesus, True God and True Man, who told us so much about Himself, who made so many great promises to us, He has died. Shall we thus despair? Shall we treat this as though it was just a fleeting dream, nice while it lasted? No, no, not at all. Listen to John again – “He who saw it has borne witness— his testimony is true, and he knows that he is telling the truth— that you also may believe. 36 For these things took place that the Scripture might be fulfilled: “Not one of his bones will be broken.” 37 And again another Scripture says, “They will look on him whom they have pierced.”” What we have here today in Good Friday is for you. John bears witness to it, tells you that Jesus died and fulfilled the Scriptures, the promises of the Old Testament, so that you might indeed know that His promises to you are indeed true.
Christ Jesus told you that He is the bread of life, that whoever believes in Him will never go hungry. Hunger is a sinful, fallen world sort of thing. It’s something that comes because sin has ravaged the world and left it broken, it’s something that comes because death destroys the harvest, blights come and wipe things out. Christ Jesus, I Am, had seen that – and so He came to destroy death, to destroy wickedness and lack… He Himself hungered and died so that by His death death might be undone. In chewing on Christ, death had a meal it couldn’t handle, and it is destroyed. I Am has died for you.
Christ Jesus told you that He is the light of the world, that we need not walk in darkness but have life. As He is put upon the cross, darkness comes – the sun is blotted out as Satan tries to blot out the Son of God. Know this for what it is – Christ Jesus draws all evil, all sin, all vice unto Himself, and upon the Cross in those hours of darkness, He destroys darkness. He closes His eyes in death so that when our eyes are opened in the Last day we will see only His light. His death secures that promise. I Am has died for you.
Christ Jesus has said that He is the door, that if we enter through Him we will be saved. Know what He is doing upon the Cross. Death had staked its claim on us, said we belonged to it. And we had, but Christ Jesus would not stand for it. And so, Christ Jesus took over death. He swallowed up death, robbed it over its victory. And we are attached to Christ, joined to Him in Holy Baptism. St. Paul writes, “Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? 4 We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” He is the door – and by His death not even death can separate us from Him, indeed, we have already died, we have already gone through death with Him. I Am dies so that we might live.
Christ Jesus has said that He is the Good Shepherd. Did He not tell you that the Good Shepherd lays down His life for the sheep? This is what He is doing, this is what He has done. Satan came pouncing for you, to snatch you away – and the Good Shepherd jumped in Satan’s way. I Am lays down His life for you; He lays it down so that He may take it up again and give you life.
Christ Jesus has said that He is resurrection and the life. He will prove it. Does Death still frighten you, terrify you? Then look to Christ Jesus. See, He dies… and He rises. He is the resurrection, and thus you know that the power of death is shattered, and that He is all in all. His promise to you remains – even though you die, like Christ you shall live, for He too has died and risen for you.
Christ Jesus has said that He is the Way, the Truth, and the Life. This is the way we are restored to the Father – the truth, the harsh weight of sin, it’s burden, death, all of it comes crashing down upon Christ Jesus, it nails Him to the tree, it scourges Him. Yet He Himself is life… and so when He has taken up death, yes, He will live again, live again for your sake, live so that you might live with Him, live so that you might dwell in the mansion of the Father to which He brings you.
Christ Jesus has said that He is the Vine, that you are His branches. We heard last night that a branch that is pruned bears much fruit. Christ Jesus takes up in Himself the full brunt of that pruning, so that He might bear fruit in you, so that you might blossom and grow to life everlasting. He suffers all so that you might grow and have life, that your joy may be complete.
John saw it. He heard our Lord cry out “It is finished.” All the work needed to be done to win you salvation, all the righteousness that needed to be fulfilled, all the struggle against Satan and his kingdom – it is done. Finished. Put to an end by Christ. And having done what is needed, Christ dies, so that His promises to you might take effect. This is for your good, your good now, your good even unto life everlasting. And this is why John is so adamant that he saw Jesus die. I Am has died for you, has given His own life for you – what more would be needed? What could possibly have been left undone? What burden would be left to you? None – your salvation is won by this Christ the Crucified – and in Him you have life. He has died, but His promises hold true – and all that remains is for the day of joy to break forth where we see this in full. Come quickly, Lord Jesus. In the Name of Christ the Crucified +
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Lent 1 - 2012
(Note, there's no communion this Sunday, so I don't go as hard pointing to the Lord's Supper as I could -- but I do that with Ash Wednesday preaching about the bread of life)
In the Name of Christ the Crucified +
Mankind had started out in a garden, where things were lush and verdant and vibrant. Indeed, there was no hint of death anywhere. Four rivers watered this garden, and over abundance of water, and growth, and life. And it was good. But then the Serpent came in, and he told the man, told the woman, that if they just listened to him, that things would be even better. And so, Adam and Eve ate, and they fell. That’s how we normally think of Genesis 3 – when we hear “The Fall” we think of it first and foremost in terms of Adam and Eve falling. We think of it in terms of morality, in terms of spirituality. We also need to think of it in physical terms – and not just for Adam and Eve. Yes, they died… but the world died with them. Their eating of the fruit became the gateway for death – “cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.” The earth no longer gladly yields her bounty of life – the earth itself has been stuck by sin, and now instead of simply roaming a lush garden, Adam is going to farm, and it’s going to be hard work. And even then, there will be some places in the earth so touched, so blighted by the impact of sin that nothing will grow there. There will be deserts, there will be wilderness.
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” Immediately after His baptism in the Jordan, Jesus leaves behind that watered area and He goes out into the wilderness. This is most fitting. Adam had sinned, and the garden was lost, the world was lost – and so Jesus goes to where that impact of sin upon the world was most obvious – the wilderness. And there stands True God and True Man, on a barren landscape. There stands God, who had said, “Let the earth sprout forth vegetation, plants yielding seed and fruit trees bearing fruit” and yet all He sees there in that place are thorns and thistles at best. Our Lord thus begins His direct confrontation against sin and death and the devil. He enters into that place where the impact of sin is most seen, and there He prepares to make things right. “And after fasting 40 days and 40 nights, He was hungry.” Again, there’s more Old Testament imagery here. When the floods came, when wickedness was so severe on the earth that it would be wiped out, that lasted 40 days and 40 nights. Or perhaps even more to the point – for 40 years the people of Israel wander the desert due to their grumblings, due to their complaining about food. So there you have Jesus, and see where He is at. He places Himself in the under the full weight, the full pressures that sin and its impacts can bring to bear – tired, sore, hungry, and off in a lifeless place alone. As rough as it can get for one who is still alive, that is where Christ is.
“And the tempter came and said to Him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’” Understand the temptation. Satan isn’t questioning whether or not Jesus is God. Satan knows. Rather this – if you are the Son of God, why are You of all people suffering hunger this way? Why, at Your Word these stones could become bread and You could satisfy Yourself. And Satan is right – Jesus could. He could simply and with ease satisfy Himself. But that is not why Christ Jesus is in the wilderness, that’s not why He came down from heaven. He did not come down to serve Himself, but He came down to rescue mankind from sin and death – and that is not done by serving the belly. “But He answered, ‘It is written: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Mere bread is not life, Satan. A full belly doesn’t undo the curse Adam and Eve got themselves into. Adam worked hard in those fields and he ate his share of bread, and he still died, and the deserts remained, and the weeds continued to grow. No, Satan, man doesn’t live simply by bread, and man will never live if he listens to you. Man lives by the Word of God, lives by My Word which created him, and man will live again when I beat down every trial and temptation in His place, when I face you down and die and rise again for Him. I am not here to serve Myself, but to fulfill that Word I spoke long ago that said I would crush your head.
Satan tries again. “Then the Devil took Him to the Holy City and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to Him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written: He will command His angels concerning you, and: On their hands they will bear You up, lest You strike Your foot against a stone.’” I know who you are Jesus, and I know the Word that You have spoken. Alright – show that Word to be true. Jump. It will be alright. You Yourself has said that it will be okay, that the angels will come. Aren’t you truthful? Can’t you do it? “Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written: You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Oh Satan, I am not here to prove how wondrous I am, I am not here to show off signs and wonders to make the people marvel. I’m here to fix thing – for years and years these people have put Me to the test, have tried Me, have demanded signs and wonders – and they will again. But that is not why I am here – I am here to put and end to testing, indeed, I am here to put an end to your testing, Satan. I will not do things your way, Satan. My Father and I know what must be done, and while my foot will not strike a stone, it will be bruised, bruised when it lands on your head in full – and you will not distract Me from that.
One more try for Satan. “Again, the Devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these I will give You, if you will fall down and worship me.’” It seemed like a fair offer. Satan’s domain was sin and the power of death, and all the kingdoms of the world were under that, all were tainted and enshadowed by Satan. And so Satan tries to cut a deal – if you want them Jesus, fine. We don’t need to fight, we don’t need to argue – and more importantly, You don’t need to suffer. You’ve taken on a body, You’ve become man, and You won’t like suffering. You don’t like it now – we can work around it, we can prevent the suffering. Simply give in to me, worship me, and I’ll let you run things the way you want. You can have them… just let me have You. One last bid at the ancient power play, where Satan would be on top and God would be beneath him. Jesus will have none of it. “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Be gone, Satan! For it is written: You shall worship the LORD your God and Him only shall you serve.” I have come not to simply rule over people, but to free them from bondage to you, to free them from the fear of death. How can that be done if I too worship you, if I too fall into their boat? No – there is One God, and they will worship the True God who has won them redemption and deliverance from You. Your temptations have failed, Satan.
And there, in that wilderness, in that lifeless area, Jesus Christ, not only true God but also true Man, did what Adam and Eve failed to do, did what you and I fail to do – He perfectly resisted the temptations of the Devil. There, in that rocky, lifeless place Jesus Christ was shown to be truly alive – showed that He was living as man was meant and created to be alive, without the fear of Satan. The Lord, the Giver of Life has walked into Satan’s domain and declared that He would not yield an inch of creation to Satan. “Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to Him.” And Satan has no choice but flee before Christ… and then the angels come. That dead, desolate place becomes holy and sacred – we can miss this. Where is the place where God dwells with the angels ministering to Him? We sing part of it on Communion Sundays – this is Isaiah 6 stuff – “In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” And there, in the wilderness, far from the that temple where Isaiah had His vision, far into the domain and rule of Satan – there is the LORD of hosts with His angels, and His glory is there.
Redemption is coming. Salvation is coming. The destruction of sin and death is coming. With the temptation, Christ Jesus begins His active ministry, He strides forth into Satan’s domain and He begins dismantling it. He has resisted the Devil, and the Devil has no choice but to flee before Him. And over these coming weeks in Lent we will see Christ invade another domain which Satan thought was his, and we will see our Lord crush Satan there… even onto Good Friday itself, where Christ will enter death itself to defeat it. It is an awesome thing to behold God fighting for you, God Himself seeking to free you from sin and death, see Christ fighting the battle you could not. Let us watch and hear with humility and thanksgiving. In the Name of Christ the Crucified + Amen.
In the Name of Christ the Crucified +
Mankind had started out in a garden, where things were lush and verdant and vibrant. Indeed, there was no hint of death anywhere. Four rivers watered this garden, and over abundance of water, and growth, and life. And it was good. But then the Serpent came in, and he told the man, told the woman, that if they just listened to him, that things would be even better. And so, Adam and Eve ate, and they fell. That’s how we normally think of Genesis 3 – when we hear “The Fall” we think of it first and foremost in terms of Adam and Eve falling. We think of it in terms of morality, in terms of spirituality. We also need to think of it in physical terms – and not just for Adam and Eve. Yes, they died… but the world died with them. Their eating of the fruit became the gateway for death – “cursed is the ground because of you; in pain you shall eat of it all the days of your life; thorns and thistles it shall bring forth for you; and you shall eat the plants of the field.” The earth no longer gladly yields her bounty of life – the earth itself has been stuck by sin, and now instead of simply roaming a lush garden, Adam is going to farm, and it’s going to be hard work. And even then, there will be some places in the earth so touched, so blighted by the impact of sin that nothing will grow there. There will be deserts, there will be wilderness.
“Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” Immediately after His baptism in the Jordan, Jesus leaves behind that watered area and He goes out into the wilderness. This is most fitting. Adam had sinned, and the garden was lost, the world was lost – and so Jesus goes to where that impact of sin upon the world was most obvious – the wilderness. And there stands True God and True Man, on a barren landscape. There stands God, who had said, “Let the earth sprout forth vegetation, plants yielding seed and fruit trees bearing fruit” and yet all He sees there in that place are thorns and thistles at best. Our Lord thus begins His direct confrontation against sin and death and the devil. He enters into that place where the impact of sin is most seen, and there He prepares to make things right. “And after fasting 40 days and 40 nights, He was hungry.” Again, there’s more Old Testament imagery here. When the floods came, when wickedness was so severe on the earth that it would be wiped out, that lasted 40 days and 40 nights. Or perhaps even more to the point – for 40 years the people of Israel wander the desert due to their grumblings, due to their complaining about food. So there you have Jesus, and see where He is at. He places Himself in the under the full weight, the full pressures that sin and its impacts can bring to bear – tired, sore, hungry, and off in a lifeless place alone. As rough as it can get for one who is still alive, that is where Christ is.
“And the tempter came and said to Him, ‘If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become loaves of bread.’” Understand the temptation. Satan isn’t questioning whether or not Jesus is God. Satan knows. Rather this – if you are the Son of God, why are You of all people suffering hunger this way? Why, at Your Word these stones could become bread and You could satisfy Yourself. And Satan is right – Jesus could. He could simply and with ease satisfy Himself. But that is not why Christ Jesus is in the wilderness, that’s not why He came down from heaven. He did not come down to serve Himself, but He came down to rescue mankind from sin and death – and that is not done by serving the belly. “But He answered, ‘It is written: Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that comes from the mouth of God.’” Mere bread is not life, Satan. A full belly doesn’t undo the curse Adam and Eve got themselves into. Adam worked hard in those fields and he ate his share of bread, and he still died, and the deserts remained, and the weeds continued to grow. No, Satan, man doesn’t live simply by bread, and man will never live if he listens to you. Man lives by the Word of God, lives by My Word which created him, and man will live again when I beat down every trial and temptation in His place, when I face you down and die and rise again for Him. I am not here to serve Myself, but to fulfill that Word I spoke long ago that said I would crush your head.
Satan tries again. “Then the Devil took Him to the Holy City and set Him on the pinnacle of the temple and said to Him, ‘If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down, for it is written: He will command His angels concerning you, and: On their hands they will bear You up, lest You strike Your foot against a stone.’” I know who you are Jesus, and I know the Word that You have spoken. Alright – show that Word to be true. Jump. It will be alright. You Yourself has said that it will be okay, that the angels will come. Aren’t you truthful? Can’t you do it? “Jesus said to him, ‘Again it is written: You shall not put the Lord your God to the test.’” Oh Satan, I am not here to prove how wondrous I am, I am not here to show off signs and wonders to make the people marvel. I’m here to fix thing – for years and years these people have put Me to the test, have tried Me, have demanded signs and wonders – and they will again. But that is not why I am here – I am here to put and end to testing, indeed, I am here to put an end to your testing, Satan. I will not do things your way, Satan. My Father and I know what must be done, and while my foot will not strike a stone, it will be bruised, bruised when it lands on your head in full – and you will not distract Me from that.
One more try for Satan. “Again, the Devil took Him to a very high mountain and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world and their glory. And he said to Him, ‘All these I will give You, if you will fall down and worship me.’” It seemed like a fair offer. Satan’s domain was sin and the power of death, and all the kingdoms of the world were under that, all were tainted and enshadowed by Satan. And so Satan tries to cut a deal – if you want them Jesus, fine. We don’t need to fight, we don’t need to argue – and more importantly, You don’t need to suffer. You’ve taken on a body, You’ve become man, and You won’t like suffering. You don’t like it now – we can work around it, we can prevent the suffering. Simply give in to me, worship me, and I’ll let you run things the way you want. You can have them… just let me have You. One last bid at the ancient power play, where Satan would be on top and God would be beneath him. Jesus will have none of it. “Then Jesus said to him, ‘Be gone, Satan! For it is written: You shall worship the LORD your God and Him only shall you serve.” I have come not to simply rule over people, but to free them from bondage to you, to free them from the fear of death. How can that be done if I too worship you, if I too fall into their boat? No – there is One God, and they will worship the True God who has won them redemption and deliverance from You. Your temptations have failed, Satan.
And there, in that wilderness, in that lifeless area, Jesus Christ, not only true God but also true Man, did what Adam and Eve failed to do, did what you and I fail to do – He perfectly resisted the temptations of the Devil. There, in that rocky, lifeless place Jesus Christ was shown to be truly alive – showed that He was living as man was meant and created to be alive, without the fear of Satan. The Lord, the Giver of Life has walked into Satan’s domain and declared that He would not yield an inch of creation to Satan. “Then the devil left Him, and behold, angels came and were ministering to Him.” And Satan has no choice but flee before Christ… and then the angels come. That dead, desolate place becomes holy and sacred – we can miss this. Where is the place where God dwells with the angels ministering to Him? We sing part of it on Communion Sundays – this is Isaiah 6 stuff – “In the year that King Uzziah died I saw the LORD sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up; and the train of His robe filled the temple. Above Him stood the seraphim. Each had six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called to another and said: ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts; the whole earth is full of His glory!” And there, in the wilderness, far from the that temple where Isaiah had His vision, far into the domain and rule of Satan – there is the LORD of hosts with His angels, and His glory is there.
Redemption is coming. Salvation is coming. The destruction of sin and death is coming. With the temptation, Christ Jesus begins His active ministry, He strides forth into Satan’s domain and He begins dismantling it. He has resisted the Devil, and the Devil has no choice but to flee before Him. And over these coming weeks in Lent we will see Christ invade another domain which Satan thought was his, and we will see our Lord crush Satan there… even onto Good Friday itself, where Christ will enter death itself to defeat it. It is an awesome thing to behold God fighting for you, God Himself seeking to free you from sin and death, see Christ fighting the battle you could not. Let us watch and hear with humility and thanksgiving. In the Name of Christ the Crucified + Amen.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)