It is very easy in the church, in our lives, and in the world to major in minors.  What I mean by this is that sometimes we can get so caught up in the details, that we can overlook the whole point of the matter.  How many people do you know, for example, that at the end of their life lamented how much time they had spent with their family?  Or how many businesses are there that make a conscious decision to spend less time or work making sure the customers are happy?  Or how many churches are there in the world that spend so much time on the things of today, that they forget they exist in order to bring Jesus Christ to their people?

This is what we have with our Lord in the text this morning.  Jesus is drawing near to Jerusalem, the city of peace, God’s city, the holy city, and rather than rejoice over it, he weeps.  Jesus sees a city and a people so immersed in the things of this world, that they miss the most important event of their lives.  They miss God’s gracious visitation.  God Himself was coming into their midst, into their flesh and blood, walking among them, teaching and healing in the Temple, and they would act as if nothing had happened.  As a result of their unbelief and stubbornness, there would come a time not far in their own future, when the city would be level, and not one stone would be left upon another.  It is a sad picture.

But the picture gets even more tragic.  Jesus then goes to the Temple, the very place where God had promised He would dwell, and what does He see there?  He sees the work of the sacrifices turned into a bustling business.  He sees this magnificent building, which all pointed to God’s reconciling love, turned into a place for the select few to make a buck.  It is no wonder He wept.  It is no wonder he drove the hucksters and hustlers out of the Temple.  Jesus wept, and He was right to do so.  Remember, this is the same Jesus who said before, “Jerusalem, Jerusalem…, how often have I wanted to gather your children as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing” (Luke 13:34).

But He does not only weep for them.¹ He weeps for you.  That word “visitation” is a variation of the word we usually translate as “bishop” or “overseer,” or what we in Lutheran terms would call pastor.  God’s oversight of the world, both the mysterious, hidden presence throughout history, and His oversight at the Last Day, is that of the Good Shepherd.  He comes into your midst to lead you away from the life that leads to death and destruction, and leads you into into paths of righteousness.  But when we think about God, look at His presence in our midst, our pride makes it so that we cannot see Him as the Shepherd, but rather as an angry judge.

What I mean is this.  It is nearly impossible for us to separate the presence of God from the judgment of God.  We do not by nature think in terms of a God of love.  What is the first thing that pops into your head if I were to say to you that God is present here, in the flesh, right now?  Fear.  That is the first thought, or nearly the first thought.

One preacher put it this way:

Going into the temple, he drives out all who sold and bought in the temple, overturns the tables of the money changers and the seats of those who sold pigeons, and says to them, “My house shall be called a house of prayer, but you make it a den of robbers.” His episkope – his visitation, his gracious shepherding and bishoping of creation – once again asserts itself. Of all the places in the world that should have stood witness to grace and truth, the temple was that place; but the world has infected even it, and there is nothing to be done with such a ship of fools but to pronounce upon it the judgment it deserves. Nevertheless, even after he parabolically acts out that judgment, his visitation remains one of grace: “and the blind and the lame [losers all] came to him in the temple, and he healed them” (Matthew 21:14).

Luther once described the Gospel as a passing rain shower that comes to a place for a time and then leaves.  You never know how long it will stay, or when it will go from the place.  The mediterranean world, particularly Jerusalem and Palestine, were the birthplace of Christianity, but within a few centuries that had changed.  There was a time when Europe was the center of Christianity, but no more.  There was a time when the United States was the heartbeat of Christianity, but I fear that is fast leaving us.  What this really comes down to is a people refusing to recognize God’s presence in their midst.

So today, my challenge to you is this.  What are the things that prevent you from receiving God’s mercy?  Is it money?  Family?  Friends?  The things of this world?  Do you see God’s hand at work in your life, drawing you into His gracious presence, forgiving your sins, giving you life where there is none and hope where it is absent?  Repent of all of your ties to falsehood, your desire that the things of today become your gods.

Repent, and believe.  Believe that Jesus is your Good Shepherd.  Believe that He comes as your judge, and that He judges you innocent of all because of His own death on the cross for your sins.  Believe that God comes to you even now, humble and lowly, weeping for you, longing to gather you into Himself.  God is in your midst.  Right here.  Right now.  He is a God of love, nor fear.  He loves you more than life itself.  Christ Jesus is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes (Romans 10:4).  Be free of the burden of your sin.  Be free, and live as free people, one, holy, and righteous because of His death and resurrection.

It is easy to major in minors.  It is easy to let the things of this life really take on a life of their own.  But Christ is your life.  Live in Him, for He lives for you.  Believe it for Jesus’ sake.  Amen.

—————————

¹ Taken from Fr. Capon

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM

Messiah Lutheran Church

Kenosha, Wisconsin

Epiphany II (January 17, 2010)

John 2:1-11; Ephesians 5

TITLE: “Jesus Came to the Marriage”

Grace to you and peace from God our father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text for this morning is from the Gospel just read, Jesus comes to the marriage.

St. Paul in our epistle talks quite a bit about husband and wives, and how we are to relate to one another. He uses all sorts of peculiar language like submit and love and sanctify and headship all sorts of things. After talking about how the husband is a picture of Christ and the wife is a picture or image of the Church, Paul goes on to quote Genesis two about how a man shall leave his father and mother and cling to his wife, and that the two shall become one flesh. Paul then makes a beautiful statement:

“This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.” (Ephesians 5:32 ESV)

Now I will be the first to admit that the mystery of Christ’s love to the church is profound, but I don’t think we should pass over the lesser mystery so quickly, because it will lead us into this great mystery. The mystery of which I speak is the mystery of husband and wife, or if you prefer, the mystery of the family.

Families are mysterious. By that I mean if you are looking at a family from the outside, you will probably never completely get to the bottom of what that family is all about. There are layers we just can’t see from the outside. Gunk. Beauty. Joyful moments. Days of deep sadness. Days when you can hardly get everyone together. Days when you can hardly stand to be apart. There are days when it hardly seems like any two members of the family can stand to talk to each other. Families are a great mystery.

Think for a moment about the most famous families in the Scriptures. Adam and Eve. Pristine, primeval, and messed up from near the beginning. They fought. Their oldest son killed their second son. What a mess.

Or think of Jacob. Let’s see. He had two wives and children from two of his servants. So you had a blended family with sons and daughters from four different women. They all lived under the same roof, too. Several of the sons sell the second youngest into slavery, after they decide not to kill him. Yeah, great role model family.

Or how about David? He had children by his wife, then he takes another man’s wife, murders him, marries the second woman, and has children by her as well. They struggle and fight their whole lives long, and one of David’s sons tried to have him killed so that he could take over the throne.

That’s just three examples from the Bible, but we could come up with many more. Abraham and Sarah. Isaac and Rebekah. Judah and Tamar. Even the holy family did not start out in the most glorious of beginnings.

Of course, our own families are really no better. How many of you have dark secrets in your household that you really hope don’t get out? Hidden sadness, anger, bickering and fighting between children and parents, husband and wife. Of course, this bickering and fighting isn’t limited to those who live under the same roof. Absence may make the heart grow fonder, but it can also lead to misunderstandings and a whole host of other trials and troubles in our lives.

The sad reality is that our families are a mess. We love each other. We sacrifice for each other all the time. But it is chaotic at best, that’s for sure. I can certainly understand and relate to our collect this morning, where we ask that God would grant us peace through all our days. Peace at home is a treasure that is sadly more rare than we would like to admit.

Of course, there are also other ways that we can talk about the family. St. Paul says that the Church is a family. We are talking about the mystery of Christ and the Church. We, here sitting together, are a family. We love one another, but don’t always like each other. We judge one another, compete with each other, and look down the nose at the other members of the family who don’t seem to be pulling their weight, doing their part of the work.

So what are we to do? Our families are broken and confused, our church is troubled inside and out. What is the missing piece of this puzzle? How do we unravel the mystery of Christ and the Church?

A part of what God gives to you this day is that He frees you from the need to understand everything. It’s a mystery! Let it be as God would have it. How God holds families together is His holy work. That doesn’t let us off the hook, but it does free us from thinking we have to figure everything out. Jesus came to the marriage for that couple in Cana. He came. That’s the mystery.

In the middle of all of the chaos of our lives, Jesus enters into our family. He blesses us with His gracious presence. He brings divine food and drink to this marriage in His own body and blood. He enters in, and He makes things anew. That doesn’t mean we see all of the changes now. In fact, we won’t. But Jesus’ coming changes everything.

This is true for earthly families, but this is all the more true for Christ’s Bride, the holy Christian Church. Jesus gives up everything for us. He loves us as He loves Himself. He draws us into His holy embrace, and promises that he will never leave us nor forsake us.
God cares for you completely, utterly, and without holding anything back. He gives you the peace that passes all understanding, by suffering the violence of the cross for you. That is His love for you, His Bride.
Every family is a mystery. But God’s mercy shines through all of our messes and enlightens every dark corner with His love. Believe it for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

And now the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith to life everlasting. Amen.

Almighty and everlasting God, who governs all things in heaven and on earth, mercifully hear the prayers of Your people and grant us Your peace through all our days; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM
Messiah Lutheran Church
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Luke 2:41-52
Epiphany I (January 10, 2010)

TITLE: “The Lord Comes to His Temple”

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text for today is the Gospel just read from St. Luke chapter two, the Lord comes to His Temple.

King Solomon completed the Temple that his father, David, had promised to make. This Temple was one of the great wonders of the ancient world, probably more ornate and beautiful than any of us have ever seen.

The chief purpose of this Temple was the worship of God. There were sacrifices made in thanksgiving and to atone for the sins of the people. The place would have smelled more like a farm to us than a church, with all of the animals coming and going and being slaughtered. The sights and smells would have been overpowering to us.

Solomon built this Temple because it was where God was to dwell. God had promised to be present with His people. For many years they had traveled with a Tabernacle, or a portable tent, that was God’s dwelling. But now Israel had a king and a palace, and it wasn’t right for God to dwell in a tent when everyone else dwelt in their nice new homes. So the Temple was built, and God’s glory descended upon the Temple in the form of a cloud.

If you were to ask an Israelite in Solomon’s day, or in Jesus’ day, where God was, they could tell you quite easily. He dwells with His people, in the Temple, in the Holy of Holies. That’s where God promised to be, and that’s where He is. This place was the center of everything in their common life together in Israel. We really don’t have an equivalent in our culture of the centrality of this space. Maybe it’s the TV in all of our living rooms.

So fast forward to Jesus’ day. He is now twelve years old, and like a good Jew, every year His family would make the long trek from Nazareth up to Jerusalem at the feast of the Passover. The Passover was that annual festival where the children of Israel remembered how God had delivered them from the hands of Pharaoh. It was a feast day to celebrate and rejoice in how God takes care of His people through all things.

Jesus, being twelve years old now, makes the trip with His parents. He went up according to custom. They travel up to Jerusalem with aunts and cousins and relatives galore. It’s as much a family reunion as it is a trip. You can imagine all of the cousins playing together as they make this trek together. The time comes for them to go home, and so this large family of David’s descendants make the trip down the mountain and on their way home. Three days into the trip home, they realize that Jesus isn’t with them! Can you imagine the fear they must have felt? Amber alert! Talk about frantic. I can almost hear Mary’s heart racing as she asks everyone on the road, “Have you seen Jesus? Do you know where He is?” They shake their heads and trudge on.

So like good parents, Mary and Joseph retrace their steps. What would your child do if they were lost? Where would they go? What would be home base for them? Who would they talk to to find their way? So they go and eventually they find him in the most unusual of places. He is in the Temple. Not only is He in the Temple, but Jesus is talking with the teachers of the Law. This would be somewhat like expecting a ten year old to carry on a conversation with the Supreme Court while they’re on coffee break. It just didn’t happen. Mary understandably is upset, and asks Jesus why he has done this and caused them such heartache. Jesus replies, “”Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (Luke 2:49-50 ESV)

Where do you think you would find God? God is in His house, doing His work. And what is God’s work? Saving you. God’s work is fulfilling the Law. God is right where He promises to be, doing right what He promises to do. He draws you into His house, forgives you all your sins, and promises that He will be with you every day.

We of course do not receive this as much as we ought all the time. Are you in your heavenly Father’s house as you ought? Not all the time. Not as you should. But Jesus does it in your place. Do you treasure every word and deed of our Lord, as Mary His mother did? Certainly not. We take God and His holy work for granted. But God, who is rich in mercy and love for you, continues to draw you into His house, slowly, patiently, with with great love and delight for your soul.

This day God draws us to His house, to the new Temple not made with hands. Jesus Christ is the new Temple of God, flesh and blood for you and for your salvation. Trust in Him. Believe that God’s promises are for you, and that He will keep you in His Temple today and always. Believe it for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith, unto life everlasting. Amen.

16 11. Christ always had this majesty according to the personal union. Yet He abstained from using it in the state of His humiliation, and because of this He truly increased in all wisdom and favor with God and men. Therefore, He did not always use this majesty, but only when it pleased Him. Then, after His resurrection, He entirely laid aside the form of a servant, but not the human nature, and was established in the full use, manifestation, and declaration of the divine majesty. In this way He entered into His glory [Philippians 2:6–11]. So now not just as God, but also as man He knows all things and can do all things. He is present with all creatures, and has under His feet and in His hands everything that is in heaven and on earth and under the earth, as He Himself testifies [in Matthew 28:18], “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me” [see also John 13:3]. And St. Paul says in Ephesians 4:10, “He … ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.” Because He is present, He can exercise His power everywhere. To Him everything is possible and everything is known.

The Formula of Concord: Epitome, art. viii, par. 13

TITLE: “Cross+Words: Redeemer”

In the name of the Father and of the † Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our text for the beginning of our series on Cross+Words is taken from Isaiah chapter 43 and 1 Peter chapter 1.

Redeemer and redemption are words that we are quite used to using all the time, but don’t actually appear all that often in the Bible. There are a few instances of redemption that come to mind from the Scriptures. Ruth and Boaz. The slave Onesimus and his release negotiated by St. Paul in the book of Philemon. In the Old Testament the word redeem is most commonly used in connection with the Exodus, how God saved His people with a mighty arm from the hand of Pharaoh and cruel Egypt. Most of the time when we think of the word redemption, we basically mean either save or deliver or something along those lines.

But Luther latches on to something else about redemption. It doesn’t just mean to deliver or to save. Listen again to Luther’s explanation to the Second Article of the creed:

I believe that Jesus Christ, true God, begotten of the Father from eternity, and also true man, born of the Virgin Mary, is my Lord. Who has redeemed me, a lost and condemned person, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil; not with gold or silver, but with His holy, precious blood and with His innocent suffering and death, that I may be His own and live under Him in His kingdom and serve Him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as He is risen from the dead, lives and reigns to all eternity. This is most certainly true.

Notice what the key thing for Luther is when it comes to who Jesus is and what He does for us in redeeming us. For Luther the key element of redemption is the price. Jesus delivered us by paying the price. Luther really quotes almost verbatim our Epistle for this evening from I Peter:

“…knowing that you were ransomed from the futile ways inherited from your forefathers, not with perishable things such as silver or gold, but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot.”

(1Peter 1:18-19 ESV)

Your ransom, your redemption, cost something. There is no simply forgetting about the debt we owe to God because of our sin. God doesn’t just say “nevermind” or “it’s okay, it doesn’t matter”. Your salvation comes with a price. And the price of your redemption is the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son.

There is Law in this, because this reminds us of our sin and shows us our great need. But more importantly, there is sweet Gospel. You see, dearly beloved, God has pay the price. Your redemption is secure. There is no questioning whether or not you will be set free. The blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son, cleanses us from all sin. This is the ultimate price of redemption. God has put up a tremendous price for your salvation and freedom.

This night and every night we can rest in peace, because the price of redemption is paid. You are free because of the blood of Jesus Christ, God’s Son. Be at peace. You have been bought with a price. In Jesus’ name.

Messiah Lutheran Church

Kenosha, Wisconsin

Populus Zion – Advent II (December 7, 2008, revised from 2003)

Luke 21: 25-36

For an audio MP3 of this sermon, CLICK HERE

TITLE: “Watching for the Coming King”

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. Amen. Our text for today is the Gospel lesson just read, with focus on the words of Jesus, But take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and that Day come on you unexpectedly.

We are all creatures of habit, you and I. When it comes to this season, and preparing for Christmas, we are all creatures of habit. You know exactly what you will do with the Christmas lights. You know what cookies you will bake, how you will decorate your house, and when family and friends will be coming to your house for the holidays. And yet it is this very constancy, this fact that you know what this month should be like in your mind, that can often be the source of frustration and tension. You have to spend more time at work than you want, and so you don’t have the time to prepare you wish. The kids are, well, being kids, and it means that your life is always a roller coaster. Somehow it even seems as though things break more in December than any other month of the year. And so we spend our lives trying to grasp for the white Christmas that is never exactly what you just know you your head that it is supposed to be like.

Our text this morning really speaks to our temptations this time of year. Jesus warns us to take heed, lest our hearts be weighed down with parties, food and drink, and the cares of this life. Why? Because these things distract us from what really matters, what is really important in our lives. Jesus even warns us that the cares of this life can make it so that the Last Day may come upon us unexpectedly, and we won’t be ready.

If Jesus were to return tomorrow and Judgment Day were upon us, would you be ready? How would you receive Him? Would you receive Him with faith and joy at His return, or would you be so focused on the things of this day that you wouldn’t even notice? Or, as Jesus Himself asked the question, Do you think that when the Son of Man will come, that He will also find faith on the earth? (Luke 18:8).

I think that’s what we find so frustrating and distracting about texts like this one this morning. Jesus warning today is against, by and large, the very things that this world tries to make this season all about. Food. Drink. The things of this world. Gifts that don’t last. The love of money. These are the things that Jesus warns you about this morning.

Now I will be the first to admit that this doesn’t fill me with a lot of Christmas cheer. I am especially not happy about this warning over food and drink. How can things like food and drink be spiritual? What does this have to do with God at all? That’s what we ask, not only about food and drink, but about everything in our lives. Why does God care how I spend my time? Why does He care what I do with my money or how I take care of my family?

God cares about these things because He knows you. He knows your very soul. He knows how Satan seeks to tear you away from Him by getting you looking at yourself and your possessions so much that you can’t lift up you heart to see the Son of Man coming with healing in His wings. And if Satan can use things like food and drink and toys big and small to tear you away from Christ and His Word of forgiveness, then that is exactly what he will seek to do.

So God’s warning for you today is clear and to the point. Repent. Repent of believing that your life can be found in cookies or hot chocolate or cars or parties or food or drink or friends. Repent, because God has much bigger and better plans for you than these things, which come and go like the wind. That’s God’s Law, and God always gives His Law to you because he wants to give you something even better.

Repent and believe that God offers you something today that is far greater than the temptations of this world. Our Lord says through Malachi the prophet:

But to you who fear My name
The Sun of Righteousness shall arise
With healing in His wings;
And you shall go out
And grow fat like stall-fed calves.
You shall trample the wicked,
For they shall be ashes under the
soles of your feet
On the day that I do this,

For our Lord, you see, has a banquet planned for you. He has a banquet planned for you that will fill you up, both body and soul. You don’t have to escape from your troubles with food or drink or whatever it is that turns you on. Christ Himself is coming, and He will take away all of your troubles, by taking them in Himself. Christ is coming, and His work of life and forgiveness will give your life meaning and purpose that none of the things of this world could ever give.

Now to make this point, Christ uses the story of the fig tree. I kind of appreciate how he uses a food story to warn us about overindulgence. How do you know when a tree is ripe? You know a tree is ripe when there are buds on the branches. That’s the sign that its coming. The fruit, the flowers are on the way. You know what’s coming because you can see the buds.

That is how our Lord wants us to look at the end of the world. When you see trials and heartache, when you see the world obsessed with food and drink and carousing and self-absorption, when you see these things coming, then that is the sign that our Lord is on the way. That’s the sign. And that sign is for you a very good thing, because it means that Jesus is coming back, and that when He comes back, all of our troubles will be gone forever. We suffer through trials and heartaches now because we know that they are here and gone, but that the Word and promise of the Lord endures forever.

So repent and rejoice! Christ is coming soon, and He sustains you this day by Word and Sacrament, so that you may be found worthy to receive Him at His return. We pray in the liturgy every Sunday that God would lift up our hearts to Him so that we may receive His body and blood. God will draw you out of the cares of this world into Himself. Believe it for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith, unto life everlasting. Amen.

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM
Messiah Lutheran Church
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Trinity 7 (July 6, 2008, revised from 2005)
Mark 8:1-9

For an audio MP3 of this sermon, CLICK HERE

TITLE: “Compassion”

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  Amen.  Our text for this morning is the Gospel lesson just read, the feeding of the 4000.

Compassion is such a great word.  Don’t you think?  Compassion means that your guts are moved to help another person.  It means that you can’t help yourself but to help the other person.  Compassion means you are so focused on the needs of the other person that you don’t even care about your own needs.  You are willing to give up whatever you need to give up in order to take care of them.  It means you care more about them than you care about yourself.  It is a great word.  It’s a Gospel word.  It is a word for you today.

Jesus had been out in the wilderness with the multitude for three days.  They had been hearing Jesus preach and teach about the kingdom of God.  Jesus said that he had compassion on them, because they had been with Him for three days and had nothing to eat.  He was going to take care of them, even if the disciples couldn’t understand how Jesus could do it.  They even ask the question, How can one satisfy these people with bread here in the wilderness?

The disciples are betraying their own sinfulness here, just as you and I do.  They looked at all of these people and their hunger, and they couldn’t get past it.  In a word, they worried.  They worried that God wasn’t God.  They worried that Jesus couldn’t take care of these people and their needs.  They were in the desert and in the wilderness, and they forgot that when God is present with His people, all things will be taken care of in their own time and just as God sees fit.  Worrying means forgetting that God is God and believing that you must control everything in your life.  That is what they forgot.

Now I don’t know about you, but you’d think that I love to worry, with the amount of time that I waste on it.  The more you look at the problems and trials in your life, the lives of your family members, and certainly in turning on the television, you can shorten your life by worrying.  If London, why not Kenosha?  If not cancer, what next?  Heart attacks, job security, even the simple act of putting bread on the table may easily become a cause for worry.  The more you look at these things apart of the God who created the world, the more likely you are to forget who you are, just like Adam and Eve.

In our Old Testament reading for this morning, we hear how God breathed into Adam, and Adam became a living being.  He had a soul.  God had breathed life into Adam.  Adam was God’s creation.  Adam and Eve were really the pinnacle of God’s creation, not just one of many, stamped out on an assembly line.  No, everything God had created in heaven and on earth was for them.  Think of that for a moment.  God’s love and care for Adam and Eve was such that He literally made the world for them and He made them for each other.  That is the level of God’s care for them.  He placed them in the Garden, and provided for everything they would ever need.

If that is God’s care and love for Adam and Eve, does He love you any less?  Of course not.  God loves you as much as He loved them, and so God’s providential care extends to the whole world, and that most certainly includes you.

So when Jesus looks upon this multitude, what He really wants to do for them is breathe into them once again, just like what happened at creation.  In fact, that is God’s continual work.  Perhaps you remember the words from the catechism.  I believe that God has made me and all creatures, that he has given me my body and soul, eyes, ears, and all my members, my reason and all my senses, and still takes care of them…

We often forget that little line.  God still takes care of you.  He takes care of you just like He took care of Adam and Eve in the Garden.  He provides for all our needs of body and soul.  He feeds and clothes us.  He gives us jobs and homes and families.  He gives us friends and neighbors.  He gives us all things.  But like those people in the desert so many years ago, it is easy at times to look at the drought, and to forget that God has everything under control.

In the Garden with Adam and Eve, everything was fresh and new and beautiful and obvious, but they in their sin forgot God and went their own sinful way, the way that led to death.  But on that day when Jesus fed the 4000, everything was reversed.  They were in the desert, in the wilderness, a land where it looked like God had abandoned them.  But it was not so.  For Jesus was there, in their midst.  And when Jesus is in the midst of them, all things are right.

Now it shouldn’t surprise you too much, but this isn’t finally a story about bread and fish.  It’s a story about faith in Jesus Christ.  What Jesus came to give the disciples and the multitudes was Himself, the very Kingdom of God come into their midst.  And when Jesus gave them of Himself by Word and deed, they received everything else.  The needs of their body fell right into place, because Jesus was there, taking care of them, both body and soul.  Listen again to the words of our collect for this morning:

O God, whose never-failing providence orders all things both in heaven and earth, we humbly implore You to put away from us all hurtful things and give to us those things that be profitable for us; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.  Amen.

Jesus comes to you today just as He did to those people in our account from Jesus’ life.  Jesus comes to you today with words of hope and comfort, and He comes to you with the very Bread of Life.  Jesus comes to you today to give you His very body and blood, hidden under bread and wine.  When Jesus gives you today is not simply food to feed your body.  No, Jesus gives you something far, far greater.  Jesus orders everything in this life, so that you will be cared for, body and soul together.  It all really comes to a focal point in the Lord’s Supper, because here we see how when Jesus feeds your body, He also feeds your soul, comforts your conscience, and orders all things for your good.

We began this sermon with the word compassion, and that is where it ends.  God has compassion on you, for the sake of His Son Jesus Christ.  He will take care of you.  Believe it for Jesus’ sake.  Amen.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith, unto life everlasting.  Amen.

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM
Messiah Lutheran Church
Kenosha, Wisconsin
Wednesday of Invocabit
Genesis 18:16-33; Matthew 26:36-46
For an audio MP3 of this sermon, CLICK HERE

TITLE: “Side by Side”

In the name of the Father and of the † Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen. Our text for tonight is the Passion of our Lord in the Garden of Gethsemane, as well as Abraham interceding for Sodom.

It takes a pretty bold person to bargain with God, but that’s what Abraham does. God had seen the wickedness of Sodom. He knew their evil deeds. Their sins were many: greed, avarice, idolatry, adultery, and sodomy. You know a city is evil when they have a sin named after them. So in order to protect Abraham and the nation that was in his loins, God purposed to destroy the city of Sodom with fire and brimstone, so that nothing would be left, not one stone upon another.

But Abraham would not let go. What if there are fifty righteous in the city? What if there are forty-five, forty, twenty, or even ten? For the sake of ten I will not destroy it, said the Lord. Abraham, who knew he was but dust, was willing to risk all, even the wrath of God, for the sake of Lot and any others in the city who would repent and believe the Gospel. So He was bold to pray and intercede for those whom he may not have even known.

Abraham is a picture of our Lord this night. Just as Abraham interceded for Lot and any of the righteous in that wicked city, so too our Lord intercedes for us. He stands between you and God the Father, and is willing to risk all, even the cruel death on the cross, so that we might be saved. He knew the cost of His prayers for us. Even as He prayed let this cup pass from me, so too He prayed if this cannot pass unless I drink it, your will be done.

This is your God, dearly baptized. He prays for you with tears of blood, and is willing to stand before God and faithfully pray for you and for me. Abraham wasn’t bold; he knew that God is merciful, and so he counted everything as loss for the sake of the mercy of God.

Yes, this is your God, the God of Abraham, the God who stands with you in your darkest hours, who prays by your side when you are alone or in the midst of the congregation. This is your God who prays for you when you cannot pray for yourself. He knows your desires before you ask them. He knows what you need better than you know yourself. So we are bold to pray before our heavenly Father, because our heavenly Brother is at our side, interceding for us.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Todd A. Peperkorn, STM
Messiah Lutheran Church
Kenosha, Wisconsin
The Presentation of Our Lord (trans. to Feb. 3, 2008, rev. from 2003)
Luke 2:22-32
For an audio MP3 of this sermon, CLICK HERE

TITLE: “Jesus Presents You Pure and Cleansed to God”

Grace, mercy, and peace to you from God our Father and from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! Amen. Our text this morning is the Purification of Mary and the Presentation of our Lord in the Temple.

The Law of God given to Moses required that a woman, after giving birth, would be set apart for forty days. She could not go to any holy place or touch any holy thing for forty days after giving birth to a son. This was called the period of her purification, because giving birth, even in the best of circumstances, always involves pain and blood. All the way back at the Garden of Eden, the Lord told Eve that she would suffer in child-birth. Even in the giving of life itself, there was an understanding that death is at the door. And death is a very unholy thing, for it is born from sin.

It’s really hard for us to understand the idea of uncleanness and purification as the Scriptures teach. We just don’t think in those categories today. How could Mary be impure because she gave birth to a Son? It’s offensive to think about this. What could be more natural than giving birth? What could be more normal than that?

Of course giving birth and bearing children is a good and salutary thing. Children are always a gift from God and blessing of the Lord. But because of the sin of Eve and Adam, with this blessing from God comes a cross. Let’s face it. Children are messy. They start out messy, and it only gets messier as they get older. The messes just change. And the messiest child of all is what we commonly call an adult. Our lives are full of messes, ones that we cause or ones that seem to fall into our laps. Life this side of the grave is messy business thanks to this common sin which infects us all.

The Scriptures understand this very well, and so every mother at forty days was to bring a lamb to the Temple for a burnt offering and two turtledoves or pigeons for a sin offering. In this way she was cleansed by the death of these animals, and made pure once again. The only way that a mother could be made clean was by death and sacrificed. That was the only way it happened.

The same was true for the son. From the time of Mount Sinai, every firstborn male child of the sons of Israel was holy to the Lord, and dedicated to service in the Temple of God. But since the tribe of Levi were the tribe of the priests, all of the other firstborn sons were redeemed, or bought back from Temple service forty days after their birth. The price for the redemption of a firstborn son was five shekels of silver.

So this forty days was a time of purification for Mary and preparation for Jesus to be presented at the Temple of the Lord. Jesus, the true Temple of God, came to visit the earthly Temple. So it is that this young girl, Mary by name, was purified for forty days after the birth of her Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. At the end of this time, she and Joseph brought Jesus to the Temple, along with two turtledoves to make sacrifice, as the Law of Moses required. They were a Jewish couple doing what new families do, to purify the mother and present the Son in the Temple and redeem Him from sacrifice. But this time it was different. This time Mary does not simply bring two turtledoves for her own sacrifice. This time she brings the sacrifice, the one sacrifice of all time, which would cleanse and purify all of us from sin and death forever.

Now this is a bit of a culture shock for you and I. We just don’t think this way. But it is true. Jesus is presented at the Temple of God in Jerusalem and so fulfills the Law of God. They bring the two pigeons to fulfill the Law for Mary His mother, but they do not bring the five shekels of silver for Him. Like the prophet Samuel many, many years before, Jesus will serve the Temple of God. Only this time, Jesus will be the Temple of God, for He is the very Son of God in the flesh.

This is what that old man, Simeon, saw in the little infant Jesus. Simeon picked Him up in his arms, blessed God and said:

“Lord, now You are letting Your servant depart in peace, According to Your word; For my eyes have seen Your salvation Which You have prepared before the face of all peoples, A light to bring revelation to the Gentiles, And the glory of Your people Israel.”

Simeon could now depart in peace, because the very Temple of God was now in the flesh of Jesus Christ. And He got to hold Jesus in his very arms. What a blessing indeed! The salvation and redemption of God’s people did not finally lie in turtledoves and temples and shekels and lambs. All of these things were but a shadow that pointed to the One. God’s salvation, the light for the Gentiles like you and I, and the true glory of Israel, came in that little baby that would one day die for the sins of the whole world. Only He could make Simeon whole. And when Simeon held Him in his arms, then he could go home and depart this world in peace.

But that’s not even the most miraculous part of this wonderful story. When do we sing these words, “Lord, now you let your servant depart in peace….”? We sing them right after receiving the very body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ in Holy Communion. That is no coincidence. What Simeon held in his arms, you take in your mouth. Simeon longed to be in the presence of God, and you take that Real Presence of our forgiving Lord into your very mouth and soul. Take and eat, take and drink, the very body and blood of Christ, given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins.

Incredible, isn’t it? More than incredible. Simeon longed his whole life to have what you receive every week right here, in the Lord’s Supper. Here He cleanses you body and soul. Here He forgives your sins. Here He makes right everything that is wrong and messed up on your life. I said earlier that children are messy, even the adult variety. It is that very messiness which Christ our Lord takes on for you. The Epistle to the Hebrews puts it this way:

“Therefore, in all things He had to be made like His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.”

He was made to be like you, so that He could remake you to be like Him. What a wonderful gift and treasure our Lord gives you in His body and blood! He comes into that messiness, that mire and muck of your life, and cleanses you from all sins. We may truly pray with the hymn:

Jesus, by your presentation,
When they blessed you, weak and poor,
Make us see your great salvation,
Seal us with your promise sure;
And present us in your glory
To your Father, cleansed and pure. (LSB 519:3)

Believe it for Jesus’ sake. Amen.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in true faith, unto life everlasting. Amen.

Why Indeed?

Wisdom from children

So this morning we’re doing chapel, and our text is Matthew 19:1-12, Jesus’ teaching on divorce and marriage (and eunuchs). I ask the kids why God instituted marriage. A kindergartner, the daughter of another blogger, responds, “So that Jesus could be born.”

Hmmmmm….not what I was expecting. Of course, that’s what I get for expecting anything when it comes to children. Sometimes they have far deeper theological insight than we give them credit for understanding.

So why did God institute marriage? We know the easy answers. A helpmeet for Adam. To be fruitful and multiply. Etc. But where does Jesus fit into the picture? Could God have instituted marriage so that Jesus would be born.

The answer, of course, is absolutely yes. It’s always tricky asking what is the reason why God did something. However, as Lutherans we must always ask the question, “What does this have to do with Jesus?” Our Lord would not have been born, lived, died and rose again without God’s holy institution of marriage. In many respects we could say that our Lord’s birth sanctified marriage as a holy estate, because through it our Lord was born of a woman.

So I’ve learned my theological lesson today from a kindergartner. I wonder what tomorrow will bring?

-LL