Things Are About to Change

[n.b. This is Pastor McDermott's final sermon as regular pastor of St. Peter.]

 

 

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.

Things are about to change. This is the way of things in this world – they change. You are not the same as you were yesterday, and neither is the world around you or the things in your world. Things are changing.

Today's lessons speak about change in what appear to be very different ways, but they parallel each other in a few key points.

The Lord Came

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son” (Hebrews 1:1-2). The Word of the Lord has gone out into every generation of man, in many and various ways, but remarkably always through the mouth of men. Today you have heard about one such man, a boy really, and how the Lord called him to be His messenger to the people of Israel.

The Old Testament lesson begins by recording that “the young man Samuel was ministering to the Lord under Eli.” Samuel, from his conception, was devoted to the Lord. His name means “heard of God”, because God heard the cries of his mother Hannah and granted to her a son. Therefore, she gave him to the Lord to minister in the tabernacle. Samuel from a young age was brought up in the Lord's house, and he honored the Lord, even though he did not yet know Him. For this, the same is said about Samuel as would be said about our Lord: “Samuel continued to grow both in stature and in favor with the Lord and also with man.” (1Sam. 2:26)

And yet, for spending his childhood in the house of the Lord, Samuel did not yet know the Lord.

Taking Baptism Seriously

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The examination of the Baptism of our Lord today prompts one to ask this question: How have you treated your own Baptism?

In Baptism, you have a mighty work of God, by which your sinful nature is drowned, and a new man in the image of Christ is brought forth. So Baptism is not merely a minor event that happened in your past. It is a great treasure with deep meaning for your life as a Christian.

Have you treated your Baptism as a sacred thing? Or not?

Where He May Be Found

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

The prophet Isaiah proclaims, “Seek the LORD while He may be found, call upon Him while He is near.” In today's Gospel lesson, these words find a sort of fulfillment.

St. Luke records that when Jesus was twelve years old, He went with His family to Jerusalem to celebrate the Passover, just like they did every year. They went to the Temple like good Jews. They sacrificed their Passover lamb like good Jews. They said the ritual prayers and ate the ritual Passover meal like good Jews. And they recalled the history of God delivering His people out of slavery in Egypt like good Jews.

Mary and Joseph, and the others in their entourage, were good, pious Jews. They did what the Law required of them in terms of their worship “according to the custom of the feast,” as St. Luke records. That is, they did the religious things that had become habit for them. In this, they are not unlike most church-going people, or observant people of whatever religion. Why are you here this morning? Is it because of a burning desire to hear some guy in fancy robes drone on? Or is it because you are accustomed to coming here at this time on this day of the week and doing these things?

In Christ

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As we review the year coming to a close – how have we used it? “Is there one commandment we have not transgressed? Is there one day in which we have not sinned?” Is there one gift for which we have been perfectly thankful and used always and only as God intended? Is there one day where our mouths have poured forth only prayer and praise? “Is there one rescue from trouble for which we have offered the proper praise to God” (Walther)? Is there one sermon we have heard (or preached) that we have fully applied and taken to heart? Is there one neighbor whose needs we have seen to completely and joyfully?

As this year comes to a close, we can only cry out, “God, be merciful to me, a sinner!” And for those good things we have done, we can only say, “We are but unprofitable servants; we have only done what was our duty.”

“His Own Received Him Not”

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

He came unto His own and His own received Him not. It is not merely wicked Herod, but all of Jerusalem with him, that is deeply troubled at the coming of the wise men from the East. The wise men want to know where the King of kings, that Prince of Peace, is to be born. These wise men are wise by virtue of Daniel who prophesied in their country. And yet, they have more of the Scriptures, more of God’s wisdom, than merely Daniel. By God’s Grace they also have Moses. From Moses they have Balaam’s promised sign of a star. They have seen it fulfilled and with faith, with trust that the God of Moses has fulfilled these things and provided a Savior, they come to worship the One thereby announced.

But they do not have everything.

The Christmas Gift

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today is opened before you a gift of inestimable worth. It is a gift spoken of from in many and various ways, by prophets and patriarchs, by kings and poets. But it is not a new and strange thing. The New Testament contains this great gift. For the New Testament is nothing more than a revelation of the Old Testament. It is as though someone had sealed a letter long ago, and it is just now broken open. So the Old Testament is the testamentary letter of Christ, which He has commanded broken open after His death and proclaimed to the whole world through the preaching of the Gospel.

The fulfillment of the Scriptures is brought forth today, wrapped in swaddling cloths. What was formerly wrapped in shadows and mysteries, known only to seers and prophets, is now revealed to the whole world. The mystery is broken open, the gift is given, the will is read. God is no longer hidden in cloud and smoke; He is present in flesh and blood.

Unto You

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

This evening we gather to hear the words of St. Luke, recording the birth of our Lord, and the angel's proclamation to the shepherds of the great tidings. Listen again:

Fear not; for behold I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, which is Christ the Lord.

One might say that this was the first Christmas sermon ever preached. It was delivered from heaven to earth by the angelic messengers of the Lord Himself. And the angel's message continues to be preached year after year, because we can never get enough of hearing it.

Emmanuel Shall Come

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today is the day in the Church Year, every year, when we get the privilege of adding our voices to the ancient choirs who sing throughout the ages the hymn “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel.” We sing the haunting melody and the words of the supplications to the God who is coming to us. So let us take a moment to consider the supplications we offer:

Come and teach us the way of prudence.
Come with an outstretched arm and redeem us.
Come quickly to deliver us.
Come and rescue the prisoners who
     are in darkness and the shadow of death.
Come and enlighten those who sit
     in darkness and in the shadow of death.
Come and save us all, whom You formed out of clay.
Come and save us, O Lord our God.

God Gives His Divine Service

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

If there is one thing that all religions have in common, it is the notion of sacrifice. Something or someone must offer or be offered as a sacrifice to appease the deity or universe or nature, or whatever. Sacrifice is a concept so familiar, one might almost say that it is ingrained in the human psyche.

Therefore, one often does not stop long to consider the meaning of the sacrifices, and what God is commanding, in a passage like Deuteronomy 12. God commands the Israelites to destroy the pagan worship sites in their land, left over from the Canaanite peoples they have conquered. Then, they are to go to the place which God will choose, and offer there the sacrifices, offerings, and tithes, which the Lord has commanded.

So that would make it seem as though the Lord is appeased by the slaughter of domestic animals and the incineration of pantry staples. That is the end of the thing, right?

Or is it?

Witness to the Light

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Last week we heard the preaching. Today we consider the preacher. “There was a man sent from God, who name was John.” Who was he, this strange man of the wilderness, dressed like an Old Testament prophet, subsisting on wilderness food? In Matthew, Mark, and Luke, John is a prophet, sent in the spirit of Elijah. In fact, he is Elijah, says Jesus, if you believe that Jesus is the Christ. He is Elijah come to prepare the way of the Lord.

But it is different in the Gospel according to St. John. John puts the question right up front in the opening verses. Why? Many think that it is because John was written at a time when disciples of John the Baptist were still around, even claiming that he was the messiah, or at least one of the messiahs, a prophetic one. That would kind of make sense. But John sets the record straight. The word that describes John in the Gospel according to St. John is not prophet but witness. John was sent from God as a witness, to bear witness to the light, that all might believe through him.

God Gives the Church

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Why does the Church exist? What is the driving force behind this institution? Every institution exists for some purpose, some underlying cause – whether it be social interaction, support of a common cause, shared belief, or whatever – and if it does not, or ceases to, then the institution crumbles.

In the 19th Century, the German theologian Friedrich Schleiermacher asserted that the Church is “a fellowship created by the voluntary actions of men.” That is, men and women come together and form this sociological body that we call the Church for purposes of mutual assurance and affinity. And of course, if the mutual assurance and/or affinity changes or ceases, then the assembly is free to mutate in order to restore it, or else simply to disband – whatever is most expedient for the group.

But is that really what the Church is all about?

Funny-Looking Angel

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

This time of year seems to bring out all kinds of stories about strange-looking characters. There is the kid's story that now seems like a classic, the Elf on a Shelf. Now, someone has come up with a Jewish counterpart – the Mensch on a Bench. St. Nicholas Day was yesterday, so children around the world have have a round of presents delivered, if they were good little boys and girls. In some countries, St. Nick is a rather bizarre, wizened character. And, if the children were not good, on 5 December Krampus came around to do all manner of mischief and mayhem. We still have Santa Lucia Day coming next week, when those of Italian or Scandinavian extraction celebrate the eyeless young maiden who comes with a wreath of candles on her head.

Legend and history is not the only source for funny-looking characters. Today's Gospel lesson introduces us to John the Baptist, the Forerunner of our Lord. Mark introduces him by quoting from the prophet Malachi, who says, literally, “Behold, I send My angel before your face, who will prepare Your way.” John is a funny-looking angel.

God Gives His Word

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Advent is a season of preparation. For much of society, it is simply a pre-Christmas; it gives an excuse to put up the tree, spend gobs of money, and go to parties. A preponderance of the talk, thought, and advertising this time of year is devoted to giving gifts. You must find the perfect gift for everyone on your list. You must determine the best place to buy said gift. You must beat the rush, the crowds, and your own budget to get the best deal. And you expect everyone else to do the same for you.

But this Advent, we will take some time to meditate upon the Gifts that God gives to us.

Rend the Heavens

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Sometimes, people are not grateful when you do something nice for them. Of course, there are the tongue-in-cheek anecdotes about the New York City greeting being an expletive. But sometimes it is more clear even than that.

Have you ever changed a baby's poopy diaper? You walk into the nursery to find a child screaming for attention, and you pick him up, and the odor coming from his backside is unmistakeable. So you set him down on the changing table, undo his clothes, and he starts squirming. You undo his diaper and he starts crying. You start wiping away the muck, and he tries to crawl away, jump off the table, or anything other than lie there and let you clean his bottom. Then, when you have him cleaned up, re-diapered, and re-dressed, he screams because you changed him instead of feeding him.

Mercy and Thanksgiving

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Mercy - the word only has five letters, but it has a lot of meaning. The ten lepers in today's Gospel lifted up their voices, saying, "Jesus, Master, have mercy on us." Blind men cried aloud saying, "Have mercy on us, Son of David." A woman whose daughter was demon possessed cried aloud, saying, "Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David" All these people and many more came to Jesus and asked for help with the words "have mercy." Sometimes they expressed their need, but other times as in today's Gospel, they simply asked for mercy and left the expression of that mercy up to Jesus.

Mercy often partners with grace. Grace gives something wonderful that you do not deserve. Mercy holds back something bad that you do deserve. In some ways mercy is sort of the opposite of grace. Grace gives. Mercy holds back. In other ways mercy and grace complete one another. We usually receive grace and mercy together and we are better off for it.

Hospitality

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Today's text confuses a lot of people, even a lot of Lutherans. It seems to be contradictory to everything else that we believe, teach, and confess. All that business about salvation by grace through faith in Christ alone – that looks like it gets chucked out the window with this passage. After all, the King is basing His judgment on the works done by those on His right and left. This seems to lend itself to the idea that you will be judged on the works you have done, whether you have done enough to merit the favor of the King.

The Church of Rome reads this discourse in just such a fashion. To them, this passage is all about hospitality that you must show to your neighbor. Your faith is formed by your love, which is worked out in your service to your neighbor. This passage is straightforward Law: do this, and go to heaven; fail, and go to hell. Salvation cannot possibly be grace through faith alone; Jesus commend these faithful for their works of hospitality and service.

Perception

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

It has often been said that "perception is reality." Basically, how I perceive things to be is how they really are. If I think someone is a jerk, so be it. He is a jerk. It does not matter what else he does in life. It does not matter what anyone else says. My perception is my reality. Of course, we know this is not always true. Perception is not always reality. I perceive the world to be flat, therefore the world is flat. I perceive that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west, therefore the sun must surely revolve around the earth. You can certainly argue with me and tell me that the world is round and that we orbit the sun and so on, but my perception is my reality. I think you are wrong! Nowadays, we would just have to "agree to disagree." Truly, perception is not always reality.

Keep Your Lamps Ready

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

“Then the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went to meet the bridegroom.” That is, the kingdom of heaven is like those who are turned out to meet the King when He comes, from every sort, every walk of life, all holding their lamps.

“Five of them were foolish, and five were wise. For when the foolish took their lamps, they took no oil with them, but the wise took flasks of oil with their lamps.” In this assembly, all waiting for the Bridegroom, there are wise and there are foolish persons.

This is the nature of the Church on earth.

It Is Not A Forced-Choice Test

In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

In today's Gospel, the Pharisees want to talk about taxes. Well, what they really want to talk about is how to trap Jesus in His words, which is ridiculous, because you cannot trap God. Nevertheless, they come to our Lord and ask Him about whether Jews ought to pay taxes. Should the faithful people of God do such a thing? Should we obey pagan leaders when they exercise their authority over us?

Often, in Christian circles, this exchange is portrayed as something of a forced-choice test, a broken dichotomy between God and Caesar. In other words, you must give to God His due, and to Caesar his due, and ne'er the twain shall meet. It is as though God inhabits certain corners of your life, and Caesar inhabits other corners, and you can put yourself into various boxes or pigeon-holes, depending on the moment.

But this is not a forced choice.