Peace Lutheran Church
Posts Tagged "2024"
Fourth Sunday after the Epiphany
January 25, 2024
Text: Deuteronomy 18:15-20
Theme: One like Moses
Outline: Hey! Listen
1. One like Moses, proclaim the Word of God
2. One Greater than Moses, Word made Flesh
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
My dear beloved flock, the text for our meditation is the Old Testament Lesson Deuteronomy chapter eighteen verses fifteen through twenty.
Boys and Girls, I pray that you are dong well today. When I was your age, I loved to play video games. One of my favorite is the Zelda series. In it, a helper appears to give you help. Whenever it appears it says, “Hey, Listen! Hey Lisen!” In our text for today, the Lord tells the people of Israel to listen. To listen to the prophet like Moses and the other prophets that He sends. Who is this prophet like Moses? How do we listen to God today? Ponder those questions as you hear the rest of the sermon. You may go back to your seats and those who love you.
3. One like Moses, Similar in Prophetic Role, proclaim the Word of God
In our text, Moses is talking to the new generation of Israel. Their parents have died in the many years wandering in the desert. Now their children are about the enter the Promised Land. Moses gives the people the Law again before he dies and before they enter the Promised Land.
He reminds the people that their parents did not want to listen to the Lord at Mount Saini. There they saw the might and power of the Lord as He descended in a cloud and fire. The entire mountain shook in awe and terror as the Creator descended upon it. The people were terrified. They did not want to even approach the mountain.
They said, “Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God or see this great fire any more, lest I die ” In Exodus we read, “when the people saw the thunder and lightning and heard the trumpet and saw the mountain in smoke, … they stayed at a distance and said to Moses, ‘Speak to us yourself and we will listen. But do not have God speak to us or we will die’ ” (Exodus 20:18, 19) They no longer wanted to see the Lord. They no longer wanted to hear the powerful voice of the Lord. They told Moses to go, hear the words of the Lord, and, tell them to the people. This was a part of Moses’ role. To be the spokesman of the Lord and proclaim His Word to the people.
Yet, the people do not often listen. They act the same as their parents. They complain, “We have no food or water. Let’s go back to Egypt. It is better to be slaves.” They do not listen to what the Lord has done for them. They are afraid to enter the Promised Land. Only two, Joshua and Caleb, are faithful and survive. The rest die in the wilderness. Thus why the Lord raises up His prophets. To proclaim His word to the people again and again. To call them to repentance and to listen to Him.
1. One Greater than Moses, Word made Flesh
Are we any more perfect than they? No, we still fall short of God’s perfection. We fall time and time again. We, like they did at Sinai, stand in terror before an Almighty God who abhors sin and law-breaking. We do not want to listen to the Word of God. How often have we not done private devotions because we have gotten too busy? How easy is it to deny being in worship because it is easier to sleep in or go to sporting events? How much have we shut our ears to God’s Word when it is too hard to understand or put into practice? How often do we go, ‘Pastor that is not the Word of God, that is merely your opinion on it. You have yours, I have mine. End of discussion’ We often shut our ears to God’s Word. Like Israel of old, we do not want to hear it. We put our fingers in our ears and go lalalala, I cannot hear you.
Thanks be to God that He promises, and sends One greater than Moses. One that we cannot deny because the Lord puts His words in His mouth. Who is this One? This is Jesus.
Jesus as God in the flesh for you, stands between a sinful people and a Holy and Just God. Yet, He is greater than Moses. Moses merely speaks the Word of the Lord. Jesus is that very Word made flesh for you. As the Obedient Son of the Father, He perfectly says and does the will of the Lord. Everything He said would happen to Him happened. Jesus was betrayed into the hands of sinful men. He was beaten, scourged, crucified, and died. The Word made flesh died that you might have new life. All your sins forgiven.
Jesus gives to you His Holy Spirit that you can continually listen to Him. As His people, we strive to listen to Him. How does He speak to us today? In and through His holy Word. He comes to us in the readings, both publicly in worship, as well as when we read privately. That is why we rise in honor of the reading of the Holy Gospel. Through His Holy Spirit, we strive to be faithful to the Word He has given to us. Even if all the world is against us, we strive to hold onto and do what His Word commands. We listen to our Pastors and the counsel and comfort that they provide from His Word. We read His Word. We hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it. As we pray in the Collect, we read, mark, learn, and inwardly digest it.
Hey, Listen! Listen to the Word made flesh as He suffers and dies for you. Listen to the Pastors that He sends to proclaim His Word to you. Continue to hold to His Word, read it, listen to it! God grant that we continue to hold His word and gladly listen to it.
The Peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard and keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
T
Third Sunday after the Epiphany
January 18, 2024
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
My dear beloved flock, the text for our meditation today is the Epistle lesson of Saint Paul’s letter to the church in Ephesus chapter two, verse ten.
Boys and girls, I pray that you are doing well today. What do I have here? I have a pencil. This pencil was made for a very important purpose. It was made to write and draw. The same for the clothing that you wear. It was made for the purpose of clothing you. So are you. You were created by God in love. Created because God loves you, created because Mom and Dad love each other. You are not a random creation. God created you for a purpose. What is your purpose? Ponder that question as you hear the rest of the sermon. You may go back to your seats and those who love you.
All created things have a purpose. Think about it. There is no created thing that was built without purpose in mind. These intentional designs extend from the obvious to the less obvious. Everyone knows the purpose of a shovel or a chair or a pencil. They were created for digging, sitting, and writing. Even those things in our world that seem pointless, like the hole in the tab of a pop can, are made for a purpose. (Who knew that those holes were created to be twisted over the mouth of the can to be a straw holder?) Humanity’s ability to purposefully create is truly impressive. Even when the outside observer may not be able to discern an item’s purpose, like the purpose of the appendix, that does not deny that the item has a purpose. That is a discernment problem, not proof of purposelessness.
If humanity possesses the ability to create with purpose, it is therefore not a stretch to argue that humanity itself was created for a purpose. The reality is that we have a Creator. We live in a time and place where the mention of a Creator may be unpopular. But that denial does not satisfy the a priori, the on its face, assertion that created things have a designer. Just look around you! We see beauty in creation, in the flowers, trees, bees, whales, all over creation. It’s a reasonable assertion that a Creator exists. We are part of creation; therefore, we too have a Creator.
Who is this Creator? As Christians, we confess that this Creator is the God who revealed Himself in the Bible, and that He has fashioned men and women for a purpose.
But many today doubt that assertion. Statistics show we are suffering from a pandemic of purposelessness. According to a study conducted by Monitoring the Future, nearly 45% of middle and high school students say that their life is not useful. This is a stark increase from the year 2000, in which 25% of students of the same demographic answered similarly. And it is up nearly 10% from the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic. This is not limited to teenagers. The data reveals a mindset that has led youth and adults alike to suffer depression and other insecurities. Devaluation of the human person has led many to self-harm and other destructive behaviors and addictions. The consequences of this are tragic, and sadly, they hit close to home for many. A soul unconscious of his or her purpose inevitably faces futile disappointment.
In contrast to this, God assures readers of His Word that they indeed have a purpose. In Ephesians, Paul says to those redeemed by Christ, “We are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10).
In this single verse, God declares to us something incredible. He says that human beings, created in His image, redeemed by the blood of Christ through faith, are His workmanship.
This God, who created the world and all that exists by speaking it into existence, is the same God who created us in Christ Jesus. Through His Word, He calls us who were dead in trespasses and sin to life through faith in Christ Jesus. In Genesis, when God created the world, He called each work of His hand “good” (cf. Genesis 1:10, 12, 18, 21, 25). When He created Adam, He called him “very good” (Genesis 1:31). Our Father, through the redeeming work of His Son, Jesus, now bestows upon believers that same declaration of approval. Because we are God’s workmanship, we can rest in the certainty that we are not a mistake, not an accident, not a blob of cells, not a bag of chemicals reacting to create an illusion of purpose. Believers in Jesus Christ are the choice, carefully handcrafted treasure and apple of God’s eye—His creative masterpiece. From the moment you were being knitted together in your mother’s womb (Psalm 139:13), God began his careful construction of His chosen jewel of redemption.
There is tremendous value, meaning, and purpose in being God’s masterpiece. Imagine traveling back in time to witness one of the great artists like da Vinci, Michelangelo, or van Gogh creating one of their masterpieces. There is not one of us who, while witnessing the master attend to his craft, would walk up to him and say, “I think you could use another star in that sky,” or “Perhaps you should consider taking just a bit more stone from that part of the sculpture.” Nor would we, once they were finished, attempt to add our own brush strokes or chisel marks to the finished piece. We would simply enjoy the opportunity to witness the master at work, and when he was done, we would take in the beauty of the work he created—that is to say, we would appreciate its intended purpose. Yet many who would give one of their limbs for such an opportunity can look in the mirror at God’s masterpiece and fail to see the beauty of what He has made. In Christ, we are God’s workmanship, and we are called to recognize that truth.
We know that as God’s creative masterpiece, we were created for a purpose, and the text tells us what that purpose is: He created us for good works. Christians have sometimes confused good works as a means by which to obtain the favor of God, but the text does not allow for this interpretation. God’s favor is achieved before the works are assigned. The workmanship is completed, so the good works can be accomplished. Just as the instrument cannot produce music until its construction is complete, the believer’s works are not good until the Master has accomplished His masterpiece. Good works are the fruit of the Master’s labors.
This truth illustrates what good works are: God’s purposes being fulfilled through us. God creates vessels to accomplish His work, in His way, on His behalf. Believers accomplish good works by serving their neighbors as the hands and feet of Jesus. Lutherans call this the doctrine of vocation. This concept isn’t new, but it is transformational.
The doctrine of vocation describes the believer’s purpose. The word vocation carries the idea of calling, and in the case of Christian vocation, the callings come from God. Everyone has these callings in the areas of society, family, and the Church. Being a child is a calling. Being a parent is a calling. Being a student is a calling. Being a citizen is a calling. Each so-called occupation is a calling. The role one fills in one’s church is a calling. As God crafts each of us in our callings, He places us in the presence of neighbors whom we are to love on His behalf.
For example, take the calling of motherhood. In this calling, mothers are given neighbors to love, namely their children. As mothers serve their children by feeding them, dressing them, changing their diapers and potty training them, disciplining them, and comforting them, they act as Jesus to their children. And according to Matthew 25:40, in being faithful to her duties, the mother is also serving Jesus, who is “hidden” in her child.
Although this may sound simple, it is world shattering. When people search for purpose and meaning in their lives, they tend to look for extraordinary future goals they are to accomplish—the next mission trip opportunity, the new promotion at work, the philanthropic venture. These are good things and are certainly ways to love our neighbors, but they account for a very small portion of the callings God’s gives to believers. The doctrine of vocation teaches that in even the most mundane aspects of life, as masterpieces of the Almighty, we have a purpose. We are to be faithful in our callings.
This is what Paul means in our text when he says that God has good works for us to do, what He has “prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (Ephesians 2:10). The Creator, who chose us before the foundation of the world (Ephesians 1:4), had a planned purpose for who we were to be. He knew our callings and prepared them for us as He knitted us together in the wombs of our mothers (Psalm 139:13). He knew the neighbors who would need His love—physically, spiritually, emotionally—and He prepared us to be vessels of that love and service. He also knew that in fulfilling our purposes, we would see Him hidden in our neighbors.
These callings are not something we chose. They are placed in the paths on which God calls us. We “walk in them,” as the text says. In the ordinary and sometimes boring stations of life, we are called to be faithful. We do not always have the privilege of seeing the final product of what our work is accomplishing. We see the proverbial back of the tapestry. We see the messy incompleteness. But as we walk in the paths God calls us down, faithfully practicing good as we seek to love our neighbor, we are assured that God is working all things “together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose” (Romans 8:28).
Brothers and sisters, in Christ you are God’s masterpiece. You were created for a purpose. You are the hands and feet of Christ demonstrating His love in a world that desperately needs it. Live out that purpose in the strength that comes from Him and wait joyfully for the day when we get to see His finished product.
The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard and keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
Second Sunday after the Epiphany
January 11, 2024
Video can be viewed at:
https://youtu.be/1IfUAgguEWU?t=1730
Transcript:
1 Samuel 3:1-20
Sermon Outline
JESUS SPEAKS TO US FROM HIS HOUSE, IN HIS PERSON, SO WE CAN SPEAK FOR HIM.
I. Where will the Lord call to you? God speaks from his house.
II. How will the Lord call to you? God speaks to us in his person.
III. What will the Lord call you to do? God calls us to speak for him.
Sermon
Grace, mercy, and peace be to you from God our Father and our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.
My dear beloved flock, the text for our meditation today is the Old Testament lesson of First Samuel chapter three verses one through twenty.
Boys and Girls, I pray that you are doing well today. Which do you enjoy better, hearing mom or dad’s voice when they come home or the great big hug that they give you? I am sure it is the great big hug. You enjoy the physical presence of your parents. The same is true in our text for today. The Lord calls to Samuel. Three times the Lord speaks, the text simply says the Lord called Samuel (1 Sam 3:4, 6, 8). The fourth time, the Lord comes and stands before him (1 Sam 3:10). There is great significance to the visible presence of God as the preincarnate Second Person of the Trinity. How does God call to us today? How does He stand before us, leading us and guiding us? Ponder those questions as you hear the rest of the sermon. You may go back to your seats and those who love you.
Samuel was one of God’s great ones. Four hundred years after Moses led God’s people to the Promised Land, the Lord called Samuel to christen Saul and then David, the first of Israel’s kings. Samuel was God’s power behind their throne. Already with his birth story, we learn that Samuel was a gift straight from God. When he was only age 3, his grateful mother, Hannah, gave Samuel back to God. He grew up with the Lord’s priest Eli, serving at the Lord’s tabernacle.
When I was a Sunday Schooler, I loved this story. The boy Samuel, now twelve or so, helps Eli, about eighty and nearly blind. And what a surprise! By name, Samuel clearly hears the Lord calling to him. Would you not love to hear the Lord’s own voice personally calling to you?
This Samuel story stands as a tender, touching tale of trust. Samuel shows himself to be the obedient son that Eli’s own sons were not. His bond with Eli is based not on family line but on shared faith, shared service to the Lord.
But today, I love this story especially for God’s clear call to Samuel. By name, no less, he calls: “Samuel! Samuel!” I want to hear God’s call so loud and clear. Don’t you? Where will God call to us? How will he call? What will he call us to do? I love this Samuel story, for it opens our ears. Yes, God does call to us! Listen! Do you hear?
JESUS SPEAKS TO US FROM HIS HOUSE, IN HIS PERSON, SO WE CAN SPEAK FOR HIM.
I.
Where will the Lord call to us? Wherever he pleases! He could call to us in some place crowded with unbelievers. Abraham, father of all the faithful, was with the moon worshipers in Syria. Or God could call to us in some deserted wasteland. Moses was alone shepherding his flock at desolate Mount Sinai when God called him. In today’s Gospel, Nathanael had been under the fig tree when he came to hear the Lord’s voice. The Lord will call to us wherever, whenever he knows best.
But we can expect much more. Where has the Lord promised to call to us? Same as for Samuel, the Lord has promised to call to us in his holy house.
The text says, “Now the boy Samuel was ministering to the LORD in the presence of Eli” (v 1a). Samuel was right there at God’s tabernacle, the Lord’s worship home. “And the word of the LORD was rare in those days; there was no frequent vision” (v 1b). Did God have nothing to say? Or was he opening the ears of a new servant?
“At that time Eli, whose eyesight had begun to grow dim so that he could not see, was lying down in his own place” (v 2). The aged priest was becoming helpless. Worse, he was going spiritually blind. The previous chapter tells how Eli was honoring his sons, Hophni and Phinehas, above the Lord! He was letting them continue to serve as priests even though they used their calling to hurt the helpless.
So Eli “was lying down in his own place. The lamp of God had not yet gone out” (vv 2b–3a). Against the darkness, the Lord always continues shining!
“Samuel was lying down in the temple of the LORD, where the ark of God was” (v 3b). See this! Where will the Lord call to you? God speaks to us from his house.
Late, late that night, as Samuel sleeps, the calling wakes him. “Here I am,” he answers. He runs to Eli. “You called.” “I did not call you. Go back to bed.” So Samuel goes back, lies down.
Again comes the call. “Samuel.” Again he gets up and dashes to his mentor. “Here I am. You called me.” Again the old man pries open his dim eyes. But he’s not cranky at the boy. “I did not call, my son. Back to bed.” Poor Eli. Has he no hope? Does the old priest believe God has finished calling out to his people?
“Now Samuel did not yet know the LORD, and the word of the LORD had not yet been revealed to him” (v 7). Samuel had been learning Moses’ Scripture. But until now, he had not personally experienced God’s direct calling.
“Samuel,” comes the call the third time. The lad rises and goes to Eli. “Here I am. You did call me.”
At last it dawns on the high priest. Who was this calling, calling, calling for Samuel? Samuel has been sleeping in the courtyard, by the Lord’s tabernacle tent. Could the voice be coming from the very ark of God? The throne of the Lord! Into that gold-plated box, four hundred years before, Moses had placed the twin stone tablets of the Ten Commandments. Every year since, on the one Day of Atonement, the lone high priest had poured over the ark the warm blood of the sacrificed lamb. Just so, God’s mercy covers his justice.
In all his years as high priest, forty years ruling Israel, had Eli once heard the voice of the Lord? Had Eli expected the Lord to speak up? But there God had promised to be for his people!
Where has God promised to speak to us? Where but in his holy house? “Where two or three are gathered” in his name (Mt 18:20), there God has promised to call to his faithful people.
Eli tells the boy, “Go, lie down, Samuel. And when next he calls you, say, ‘Speak, LORD, for your servant hears.’ ”
What a prayer for you and me today! Lord, you have gathered us here in your name. Open our ears to hear you speaking, to listen to your words calling to us. So Samuel goes back to lie down. At the Lord’s worship home, he restfully waits for the Lord’s word.
II. How will the Lord call to us here? However he pleases! To Abraham he called in some vision (Gen 15:1). To Moses he called from the strange burning bush. To Nathanael he came as the stranger from nowhere Nazareth. The Lord will call to us in whatever way he knows is best.
But we can count on much more than that. The Lord has told us where to listen. How has he promised to call? Same as for Samuel, the Lord has promised to call to us in his own person!
The text amazes me. The fourth time, Samuel did not simply hear the Lord’s voice. It says, “The LORD came and stood” there calling, “Samuel! Samuel!” (v 10a). The almighty Lord, he who had promised to be present with his people invisibly. He, who hovered enthroned above the ark of the covenant. For Samuel, he wraps himself in some human form. He “stands there” to call the boy!
Do you see him? Is this some dream, Samuel? Is this some hoax? Or is it the living Lord you see?
Has not God promised to do even more for us! Not just for the moment pretending to be human, so that we might hear his call. God’s Word actually “became flesh and dwelt among us.” The Christmas text still fills me with wonder. John’s Gospel marvels, “The Word was made flesh. He tabernacled, he tented, among us!” (cf. Jn 1:14).
This same Jesus—he who showed himself to Samuel, who was born our Brother, who called Nathanael. He who promises to be here where two or three gather in his name. For us, he will come, stand here with us.
And Jesus’ standing with us is every bit as real as it was with Samuel that night. Truth is, we today understand far more clearly why he stood with Samuel—and with us. The Lord didn’t come to Samuel because he was any less sinful than Hophni or Phinehas or Eli. He came because the sins of Samuel—and Hophni and Phinehas and Eli and you and me—the sins that made the word of the Lord rare in those days, that would in fact have made impossible any communication between sinful us and the holy God—those sins have been taken away. Christ Jesus came to stand with in order to stand in—to stand in for us under the punishment of all sin. That was the cross.
So now we await the last call: “My sister, my brother, rise up! My beloved, come home!” And we will see him, flesh and blood, our risen Lord!
Can’t you wait? You don’t have to! Already today, in this house, he’s promised to speak to us. How? By his Book. By his Word proclaimed even from this pulpit. His Word here is for all.
You want him to call you by name? Already today, in this house, he’s promised to name you. How? By his water. He calls, “Stephen Earl. By name, you, you, I baptize you. By the power of my name, Father, Son, Holy Spirit.”
But you want him be here for you today, your real Brother, all alive? Already this day, in this house, he has promised. By his bread, his wine, he calls! “This is my body, this my blood, for you!”
If we don’t hear the Lord’s call to us, it’s not as if he’s gone mute. His voice is an open Book! If we don’t hear the Lord’s call to us, we have gone deaf to his Word.
That’s why we keep coming to worship. That’s why we set aside time for private devotions, Portals of Prayer, and family devotions. That’s why we gather together for Bible study and to speak of our faith with friends. We live to hear God’s call to us, the living voice of Jesus!
III. Ours is a surprising God. Who could guess where and how he promises to call to us? In his house, in his person, he calls us! Ours is a surprising God. Who could believe for what purpose he’s called us? What will he call you to do?
Well, whatever he wants! Abraham, at age 75, God called to move to the other side of his world, and at age 99, to father new nations. Moses, the fugitive murderer after forty years, still hiding from Egypt, God called to go straight back to Egypt to lead his enslaved people free. Nathanael, awed at his first sight of Jesus, Jesus called to see and believe still more. Whoever we are, however long or foul our history, God will call us to do whatever he knows is best.
But we can expect much more than that! Same as for Samuel. What will the Lord call you to do? God calls us to speak for him.
The Lord called Samuel to speak a hard word. “Eli, your sons, disobedient all these years and deaf to the LORD’s word—they will be cut off as priests. Your family’s service to the LORD is finished.” The only Good News was that the Lord—no matter how blocked his priests’ ears, no matter how faithless his people’s hearts—the Lord will break through anew to make his Word known.
Sometimes, the Lord does call us to speak a hard word. We do our friends no favor when we leave them wallowing in sin’s quicksand. But even when we must shout warnings, the Lord calls us to throw to the sinking his lifeline, Jesus’ death for their forgiveness. His Word rescues. His Word gives life.
The Federal Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that today’s average American before age 50 has worked more than eleven jobs. Count also your other important callings—your roles at home, at play, and at church. In every area of our lives, God calls us to serve others in that vocation. We get to love and serve with his strength, just as he loves and serves us. He has placed you in the world just where he needs you.
What has the Lord called you to do? St. Peter says, “You are God’s chosen people, the King’s priests, the nation he makes holy, his own treasure, so that you may tell others about the marvelous deeds of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light” (1 Pet 2:9, paraphrase).
Like Samuel the first and second and third time, maybe we did not recognize that the Lord was calling to us. Yet he does call. He calls to us gathered here in his home. He calls through his living Word. He calls us to sing his praises everywhere.
Like Samuel, will we answer with humble, heartfelt faith? “Speak, Lord, for your servant hears!”
The Peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard and keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.