The Law and Salt and Light

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

The Law of God is good and wise

And sets His will before our eyes,

Shows us the way of righteousness,

And dooms to death when we transgress.

How many times do parents hear that dreaded whine: “But Moooommmm!”, “But Daaaaad!” Why can't I have a cookie now? Oh, please... just this once? But Billy's mom lets him do it, so why can't I do it too? Children would often like their parents to relax the rules, just for a little bit, or just this once. And for the five-year-old screaming in the grocery store, many a parent has considered it, if not given in on account of embarrassment. I remember a children's book with a little boy who hated to take baths. Finally, his parents gave in and said that he did not have to take a bath anymore, which lasted for awhile, until a potato grew in the dirt caked in the boy's filthy hair. Then he begged to be bathed and cleaned up, and never protested bath time again.

"What Does the Lord Require of You?"

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

Sometimes it feels as though everyone is trying to take the fun out of life. That new sports car will do 0-60 in four seconds and top out at 120mph, but the state trooper is strategically stationed to make sure you get nowhere near that on the road. Desserts taste so much better with fresh cream, but the government says everything must be pasteurized and homogenized and sterilized and blasted beyond recognition, in the name of food safety. You savor the taste of sausages and rich soups and luscious desserts, but the doctor says that you have to cut back, cut out, cut down.

Sometimes it feels as though the Lord is trying to take away all your fun, too. You can't swear, can't sleep in on Sundays, can't join in the wild parties, can't do all kinds of stuff that looks like so much fun, at least on TV and online. The Lord does not allow you to say whatever you want to whomever you want. The Lord says you cannot keep all of your hard-earned money and possessions all to yourself. The Lord says that you have to respect the government and follow the laws of the land. The Lord says that you cannot believe whatever you want or worship whatever or whomever your heart desires. No man or woman, no bottle, no car, no child, no job is supposed to take the Lord's place in your heart. Kinda makes the Lord God sound like a big party-pooper. After all, why did God make all this fun stuff and tell us not to use it?

Jesus Calls His Disciples

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

Again we hear the proclamation of Jesus' ministry on earth in today's lesson: “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand!” This is the message of Jesus in a nutshell, proclaimed then to the Jews and the would-be disciples, and still to us today. Repent, turn away from your sins, because the reign of God is drawing near to you. And indeed, the reign of God has come near, and is here among us.

There is a split in the understanding of Jesus' statement, often expressed as “now, but not yet.” Two thousand years ago, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee, the kingdom of heaven had come. The reign of God stood upon that bank, in the person of Jesus, as He proclaimed salvation to all the people of Israel. The kingdom of God drew near to Andrew and Simon that day as they were drawing their nets, and as they heeded the call and left their nets in the boat and became fishers of men.

The Boundary of History

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

Twice in today's Gospel lesson, John the Baptist identifies Jesus as the Lamb of God. The first time is to the Jews, and the second to John's disciples. But what does it mean that John repeatedly identifies Jesus with this title? What does it signify that John points to Jesus with this particular phrase, over and over again?

In this lesson, we see a condensed version of all of sacred history. Our lesson today picks up mid-conversation, as John the Baptist is speaking to the Jews about the coming Messiah. Just as the last and greatest prophet is declaring the Word of the Lord to the people of God, the Word of God Incarnate appears in their midst. This is the first day of history.

Then, the next day, John identifies Jesus in the same way to his disciples. John points to the One whom He had said would be greater than he. This is the second day of history.

Finally, on the third day of sacred history, John is not there to point to Jesus, but there is no need, for the whole world sees Jesus high and lifted up upon the cross. This is the third day, the rest of history.

You Are Those Who ARE Baptized!

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

John would have prevented him, saying, “I need to be baptized by you, and do you come to me?” But Jesus answered him, “Let it be so now, for thus it is fitting for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Why did Jesus come into the flesh? Why did Jesus come to the Jordan? Why did Jesus come to John to be baptized? He had no sin of His own. He is the perfect, holy, spotless, innocent Son of God. So why did he need the ritual confession of sins and washing of forgiveness?

Why did Jesus do anything that He did? He did all that was necessary to fulfill all righteousness, as Matthew records. Jesus came to earth and was incarnate by the Holy Spirit and was made man in the Virgin's womb to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus was circumcised, named, and presented in the temple according to the precepts of the Law, to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus was brought to the temple for His first Passover, and there questioned the teachers of the Law, to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus came to the Jordan and was baptized by John to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus went to Calvary, was crucified, died, and was buried to fulfill all righteousness. Jesus rose triumphant from the grave, ascended to heaven, and sits at the right hand of the Father to fulfill all righteousness.

A Voice is Heard

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

The voice of one crying in the wilderness, prepare the way of the Lord. The voice of the angels proclaiming the Savior's birth. The voice of the shepherds telling the whole town of the strange and glad tidings they heard and saw. Voices of joy and mirth. Voices of praise and thanksgiving.

And then the voice of Rachel, crying in Ramah. The voices of the mothers of Bethlehem, weeping and wailing over their slain baby boys. The voices of the subjects of Herod crying out against the violence and bloodshed committed in fear and anger.

This Little Babe

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

This little babe so few days old,
is come to rifle Satan's fold;
All hell doth at his presence quake,
though he himself for cold do shake;
For in this weak unarmed wise

the gates of hell he will surprise.

“The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.” The very Word of God, the Light of the World, the Creator of the Universe, on this day, has become flesh and took up residence among us men. The God of God, Light of Light, very God of very God, took on human flesh and blood and was born a baby in a stable in Bethlehem.

Think of a newborn baby. So soft, so warm, so innocent, so vulnerable. So cute and huggable and nice. A newborn baby is worlds away from what God should be, according to the minds of this world. What god would appear as a baby, so easily hurt, so easily killed? What god would expose himself to that sort of weakness and vulnerability?