Fifth Sunday after Easter

The Grace and Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Jesus said, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in me that does not bear fruit he takes away, and every branch that does bear fruit he prunes, that it may bear more fruit.”

Let’s join in a word of prayer: Loving Holy Spirit of God, we are gathered so that you can reveal your presence in our lives to mould us into the people that we are destined to become as baptised children of God. God our Father, guide our time together this morning, that we may recognise your working in our lives in word and sacrament, to prune away all that is not of Christ Jesus. Lord Jesus Christ, as we rejoice over your presence with us, and continue to live in the glory of your resurrection, we pray in your name. Amen.

One of our favourite places to visit is the Hunter Valley. Looking over the vineyards, and the beauty of the area. Tasting the wines, olives, and other fruit produced in that area. This week, I was drawn to the illustration that Merrill Tenney provides in his discussion of John’s Gospel, about vines branches and fruit.

‘In pruning a vine, two principles are generally observed: first, all dead wood must be ruthlessly removed; and second, the live wood must be cut back drastically. Dead wood harbors insects and disease and may cause the vine to rot, to say nothing of being unproductive and unsightly. Living wood must be trimmed back in order to prevent such heavy growth, that the life of the vine goes into the wood rather than into fruit.

The vineyards in the early spring look like a collection of barren stumps; but in the autumn the new branches are filled with luxuriant grapes. As the vinedresser wields the pruning knife on his vines, so God cuts dead wood out from within His saints, and often cuts back living wood so far that His method seems almost cruel. Nevertheless, from those who have suffered the most, there often comes the greatest fruitfulness. ^{(Merrill C. Tenney, John: The Gospel of Belief, Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, pp. 227-28.)}

While a tree or vine is dormant, it’s difficult for most people to see which branches are alive and which branches are dead. But I’m told that this is the best time to do the pruning.

When things seem to be going really good in our lives, most people have a sense of confidence. Whether that confidence is in God or in ourselves. I suspect that God, working through his Holy Spirit, finds this the most difficult of times to prune away all that is not of Christ Jesus and effect real change.

But in those times of our lives when things are going from good to bad to worse, people of faith often confront what needs to change in our lives and allow the Holy Spirit to effect those changes. So that we can regain a sense of joy and peace in living God’s way.

In our lives, I accept that the difficult times are times of pruning. Clearing away the things in our lives that threaten our existence in Christ Jesus. Painful times that bring self-reflection, repentance, redirection, and rededication. We can be sure that the work of the Holy Spirit is preserving the fruitful branches in each of us, nurturing our living faith.

I discovered that when a tree or vine awakens from being dormant. Some of the branches begin to show new life. Leaves, new shoots, and flowering fruit begin to appear. While other branches remain lifeless. It is during this time that the difference between the branches become noticeable.

It is during this time that the dead branches can be pruned away to make way for the living, growing, fruitful branches. It’s clear to me that those around us will see the fruit growing on our branches before they notice the vine that is Christ Jesus. The only way I can tell an orange tree from an apple tree is to notice the fruit. The question we ask ourselves is “do we want others to notice the dead branches in our lives or the living fruitful branches.”

Christ Jesus says: “I am the vine; you are the branches. Whoever abides in me and I in him, he it is that bears much fruit, for apart from me you can do nothing.”

The Apostle John tells us that ‘if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us. By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.” As we abide in Christ Jesus, and live in his love, our Lord bears much fruit in us by his Holy Spirit. Fruit of “Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control”.

We see all this being worked out in the Deacon Philip who lived through a time when things went from bad to worse. A time when Stephen, his fellow deacon, was stoned for proclaiming the Good News of Christ Jesus. Persecution that arose against Christians from both Roman and Jewish circles.

The Bible tells us that as the persecution grew, ‘those who were scattered went about preaching the word. Philip went down to the city of Samaria and proclaimed to them the Christ.’ ^{(Acts 8:4–5 ESV)}

Through the persecution, God was pruning away the fear and anxiety, allowing the fruitful growth of courage and faith through the Gospel message.

As Philip lived that faith, showing the world the fruit of the Spirit, the Lord led him to one who was returning from Jerusalem. One who had gone there to learn more about the God he found in the Scriptures. One who would have been rejected at the Temple, and who would have left the city unfulfilled, but still curious. So God touched the lives of both Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch as he brought them together.

One, abiding in Christ Jesus as a fruitful branch, and one seeking to be grafted into Christ Jesus to live as a fruitful branch. What we learn from this is that we too can make a difference in someone’s life, just as Philip made a difference in the life of this eunuch.

I’m not sure that Philip was excited or even prepared to present Christ Jesus to a Gentile, a foreigner, a eunuch. But Philip was prepared through God’s gift of Baptism and the precious Gospel message, and also the pruning of the Holy Spirit, to respond to the call of God when it was needed, in just the way it was needed.

And so it is for us. Most of us wouldn’t be prepared to stand on a street corner shouting the Scriptures, or even to sit with a group of people gently sharing the Gospel. But I am convinced that each of us is prepared to follow the leading of Christ Jesus in whom we abide. To witness the fruit of the Holy Spirit in our attitudes, actions and words, as we engage with those around us every day. That is all the Lord expects of us. As we abide in Christ Jesus by the faith he gives us, we can live in the confidence of our right relationship with God our Father, with God the Son and with God the Holy Spirit.

And, if we are ever confused about whether we are connected to Christ Jesus, in whom we abide, we can take a moment to contemplate our own navels.

Our belly button is a constant reminder that we all started life abiding in another human being. God’s Holy Spirit is the constant witness that we are abiding in Christ Jesus, by that feeling, deep in our gut, that we are not alone. That we are loved.

As branches, grafted onto the vine, Jesus calls us to be fruitful witnesses of the miracle of forgiveness and love, right here in the Mid North Coast. To demonstrate our connection to each other by showing our forgiveness, and our connection to God by showing our love. To join our hearts with a new sister in Christ through the gift of baptism, praising our Savour.

And so, the grace and peace of God keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus, the Saviour of all. AMEN.

Rev David Thompson.

Fourth Sunday after Easter

(Good Shepherd Sunday)

John 10:11-18

“I LOVE YOU.”

Each sheep is precious to the shepherd. He knows each sheep personally. He was there when it was conceived, and at the moment it was born. He knows its parents, and its genetic make-up. Each lamb is different with its own name and each recognises and responds to the voice of their shepherd.

This is the way God knows us. Each one of us is different. We each have our own unique DNA (unless we have an identical twin!). We have different personality traits, and different gifts and abilities. We too have a Good Shepherd. We are all precious to him- there’s no favouritism or heirarchy. The Good Shepherd is prepared to fight for his sheep and protect them from all evil.

Jesus fights for his people. There are three evil enemies who would attack us and leave behind only skin and bones.

Firstly, there is the evil within us that would destroy us. Like an evil virus in our computers that would cripple us and leave us empty. A symptom of this evil might be a bout of depression. One sees no way ahead. One feels helpless. One gives up on the future. But the Good Shepherd is always out in front. He knows the way ahead, even when we don’t. He knows the way and will lead us through anything that comes. Jesus is the way ahead.

Jesus knows we need times to rest and recuperate. He leads us to rest in the green pastures, during our times of grief and sorrow. A time of sickness when he reaches out to us through the caring hands of doctors and nurses can also be a time of rest. He gives us these special times of rest, because he loves us.

He can give us rest from guilt. Jesus gives us a peace of heart and mind the world can’t give. Perhaps there is a particular sin we are ashamed of. We try and keep a lid on it so no one knows about it. We hide it deep inside ourselves. We repress it. And the Good Shepherd knows all about and he says in love, “You are too weak to overcome it. It will destroy you. Give it to me and I will fight it. I’ll cover it over and wipe it away with my own blood.” So he makes it disappear from God’s eyes. We can all have a clean sheet and enjoy a time of rest from our guilt. Enjoy the green pastures of life he has led us to.

So the Good Shepherd deals with our first enemy – our sin and guilt. Out of love He cleans it up so we can run as smoothly as a brand new computer!

The second enemy is the Evil One. He wants to separate the sheep from their Shepherd. He wants to put something or someone else in front to lead us astray. If Jesus is not out in front leading us on, then who or what is? Could it be what others think? Could it be our status, urging us on to impress others. Is it Popularity? Or maybe it could be the latest fashions. Sheep follow one another! They love to follow the rest of the mob.

The Good Shepherd assures us we will get all the food and clothes we need. We can trust him, like lamb relies on the shepherd for food, and a safe place to sleep.

It is the Evil One’s work to separate us from the Shepherd’s voice so we don’t hear the words of Jesus. How does he do this? The Evil One comes in disguise, dressed up as a sheep. We might have friends whom he uses to separate us from the Good Shepherd. They get us far enough away in life from the Shepherd so we don’t hear his voice, his tender loving call, or his words of warning.

The scary thing is that just like we don’t see an evil virus coming in an email, we also don’t see the enemy, or his cunning, or see the wolf behind the sheep’s clothing. But Jesus does. Jesus recognises the Evil One and takes him on. We aren’t a match for the evil powers and forces that would lead us astray, separate us from Jesus, and destroy us. We are hardly aware of them, they are so well disguised. But Jesus recognises them and knows them. He fights the evil and cunning ones for us. He warns us.

When we stay close to Jesus we are safe. There will be times when we think we don’t need a shepherd at all. The Evil One will also assure us we are safe with him. He comes with his lies to entice us to leave Jesus and follow someone or something else. He will promise us the world, just as he offered Jesus the whole world. But Jesus knocked him back. Jesus is out in front. Out of love and care He invites us to follow closely behind him so we will be safe.

Thirdly, there is the evil of death. It is natural that even the mere thought of dying can frighten us. We avoid talking about it. We don’t know what is on the other side.

Jesus knows the other side. He comes from there. It is his home. He came to visit us out of loving care and concern, like a Good Shepherd. “Don’t be afraid!” he assures us. He rules over there too. In this world he had no place to call his own home. The other side is his home and he wants to take us there to be with him in safety.

Jesus leads his sheep home in the evening, through the dark valleys of the shadows of death. Jesus puts his arms round us. If necessary he picks us up and carries us over the line, like a shepherd carries a tiny lamb: the way you might carry a pet that you love to a place of safety at your own home.

It is not death that we need to fear. It is being cut off from Jesus, on the other side. If that happened we would be unloved, forever. Never accepted, never satisfied. We would have no name and no love. We’d be helpless and completely under the power of evil. Being separated from God is what hell is.

Jesus fights death and destroys its power to separate us from our Good Shepherd. Death can’t separate us from God and his love.

It is God who is love. His love is even greater and deeper than a mother’s love. God has designed mothers to love us too, no matter who we are. “I Love You”. We need to hear those words from our mothers and our families. But most of all we need to hear it from our God.

May the peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Third Sunday after Easter

The Text: Luke 24:36-48

Do the words of today’s Gospel reading sound familiar: “Jesus himself stood among them and said to them: ‘Peace be with you’”? If that sounds familiar it is probably because we heard these same words last Sunday in the Gospel reading from John 20. The context of that passage was twofold. First, it was the evening of Jesus’ resurrection; the first Easter day. Second, John also progresses to a week later, when the risen Jesus again appears to his disciples the following Sunday. It makes sense, then, for a reading that focuses on events the week after Jesus’ resurrection to be used in church the week after Easter Sunday.

We seem to be going backwards to the first Easter Sunday. Shouldn’t it be time to move on to something else? After all we know the Easter story well; maybe even too well. Every year that we celebrate Easter we become a little more familiar with it. Maybe the risk is to be so familiar with it that we do start to think of it as a story like those we might have read to our children, and don’t stop to reflect on the depth of the reality of what took place for us.

It is hard for us who are separated by thousands of years and thousands of kilometres to comprehend what that first Easter was really like for those disciples. It was an anxious enough time for them as it is, with the authorities promising the same fate to anyone who declared allegiance to Jesus and confessed him to be the Christ. Last week John told us that the disciples had gathered under the cover of darkness with the doors locked. So just imagine how startled and frightened they would have been when all of a sudden Jesus came and stood among them, hearts racing and throats dry, utterly confused about what was happening, thinking they had seen a ghost.

But it is not a ghost there with them; it is Jesus. He holds out his hands and points to his feet to show them the punctures in his flesh from where the nails were driven through to the wood of the Cross. “It is I myself!” He says. “Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have.” Just imagine being there, right in front of Jesus! What would you do? Perhaps you might slowly and cautiously reach out with your trembling hand, touching the hand of your Maker and Redeemer. As you make contact you feel the same human flesh that you have. Imagine the blur of emotions the disciples must have felt and all the thoughts running through their mind—one moment gripping fear, the next joy and amazement because it seems too good to be true. But it is true! This is Jesus with them. He has actually, bodily risen. He physically eats some fish, right there with them. The crucified Jesus is now the risen, crucified Jesus!

Easter is not just a story—it is real. God didn’t turn from pain and suffering, injustice, grief, and brokenness but in Christ he faced it and fully absorbed it. Those wounds the risen Christ showed his disciples are real. They encompass everything he endured: his betrayal and handing over to be crucified, the horrific depths of injustice; all the mocking and spitting, the ridicule and bullying, the abuse and brutality, the emotional torment and physical pain and the anguish of being God-forsaken that Jesus suffered. His wounds encompass the grief of a mother losing her son and the fear of those who loved Jesus being persecuted themselves. They are bottomless holes in which all the disciples’ own failings are hidden: the doubts about what Jesus said, the public denial of him. They are wounds that absorb their squabbling about who would be the greatest, their lack of faith, their incomprehension of his ministry and unreliability in it, the rebuke of Jesus when he revealed his mission and of going to the Cross, their inability to stay awake and keep watch with Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane and keep watch, their denial of him, their inability to recognize him after his resurrection and their unbelief of the women’s testimony on Easter morning.

How deep their fright and fear must have been…not only to see Jesus but then to fear what he might say to them. We share in the same failings and inadequacies of the disciples. We know too well the reality of guilt and shame as Satan comes to attack us with the fiercest of condemnations. It’s an intolerable burden and try as we might all the self-justifications and blaming others and even God—and relabelling what we’ve done or failed to do—doesn’t take that experience of gnawing guilt away. Although Satan is overcome by Christ’s victory, he tries to do whatever damage he can with the limited opportunity he has until Christ returns to make all things new. The devil tempts us to go against God’s word, and even to decide what that word is, thereby denying Christ rather than ourselves.

If we’re honest, we’ve seen that in the 14 days since Easter Sunday in our family arguments, or when we lose our patience with others, maybe even our brothers and sisters in the congregation. In fact it’s often in the congregation we know this most acutely, when we hurt others and they hurt us, because we have judged a matter that is important to them as trivial to us. We can become fixed on what we see in front of us and dismiss what others see around us. We might work harder at preserving our pride than preserving love, which overshadows the desire to gladly hear and learn God’s word and the desire to serve others. We might talk of the church and its worship in terms of consumer language; what we have a right to and how our needs should be met, as if God doesn’t know how to meet human needs. It’s14 days since we celebrated Easter, but the secret thoughts and attitudes of the heart are still there. We still sin, we still have guilt, we still need peace.

The devil loves nothing more than to lead us into temptation and then heap condemnation and guilt upon us when we fall. Then, having fallen, he drives us to look inwardly on how to justify ourselves. But we can’t justify ourselves. It isn’t what we do or say but what Christ does and says that makes us right with God and brings us divine peace. That’s why we need to hear the same words from last week all over again: on the first Easter day as Jesus came and stood among them and said: “Peace be with you”. Like the disciples, we also acutely know that we need God’s forgiveness and peace. Jesus came to bring the benefits of his death and resurrection to his disciples personally by telling them in four short words that their past failings are not held against them and they are in a right standing before God: “Peace be with you.”

If only we could go to that house where the disciples were and see Jesus too and hear his words. Was this experience just for the disciples and the women at the tomb and the 500 people he appeared to? If only we could go back there, somehow. Maybe that’s why the Lectionary compilers take us back to the first Easter three weeks in a row—because we can’t go back there. There is no going back, some 2,000 years ago to Jerusalem so far away.

But in Christ, God has brought Easter to us. We received and share in all of the benefits of Christ’s saving death and resurrection when we were baptised into his death and resurrection, and the one true God, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, put his name on us so that we are his very own dear children who belong to him forever.

That is why we can rejoice with the apostle John and say: “See what love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God. And that is what we are!” God lavished his love on us in Jesus his Son, who is with us, in our lying down in the evening and our rising in the morning. He is with us when we eat breakfast, lunch and tea (whether that’s broiled fish or not). He is with us in our work place, at our school, in our study course. He is with us while we wait in the doctor’s surgery. He is with us while we wait for test results, or as we lie in hospital. He is with us as we travel, with us in our leisure. He is with us in our fears and trials. He is with us even though others sin against us. He is with us as others help us, and with us in our helping of others too. And in church he is with us here in a special way for a particular purpose that he is nowhere else. The risen Christ is here to meet with us and bless us, bestowing divine peace upon us.

We can’t go back to that house where Jesus opened the minds of his disciples to understand the scriptures, so Jesus comes here for us every Sunday as he leads us through the liturgy, as we listen to the readings, as we hear the proclaimed word. The repentance and forgiveness of sins that will be preached in Christ’s name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem, has even made it all the way to us here. We can’t go back to the house the disciples were in some 2,000 years ago to hear Jesus proclaim peace…so the risen Christ comes in our time, in this space, to this house. He stands among us, his baptised people, as we share the peace of the Lord with one another: “Peace be with you”.

Amen.

Second Sunday of Easter

The Text: John 20:19-31

Humans are suspicious creatures.

We don’t immediately believe everything new thing we hear.

We measure it against what we know to be true.

We evaluate it by what we have experienced.

We ask questions.

Does it sound possible?

Is it logical?

Ultimately, we like to see this new thing for ourselves, get our hands on it and check it out.

Those who visited Jesus’ tomb three days after His burial could not believe what they saw and what they heard.

Early on that first Easter Day, Mary Magdalene saw the stone rolled away from Jesus’ tomb and immediately went and told Peter and John that Jesus’ body was gone. That was new.

No one had heard of the dead coming alive before.

Oh sure they had witnessed Jesus raising people from the dead, but they believed that His body was in a sealed tomb with soldiers guarding the entrance.

Peter and John are shocked and they run to the now open tomb to see this new thing for themselves.

What were they to make of this strange sight?

After all the pain and grief of Jesus’ torturous death, now His body is missing.

Peter and John went to their homes. Mary went back to the tomb, back to the last place she knew Jesus to be.

And there, the risen Lord Jesus revealed Himself to be alive.

His body was not been stolen.

He was not missing.

Jesus is alive and that was the new message Mary takes to the disciples.

But they did not believe Mary’s words (see Mk 16:11).

The disciples are suspicious.

They cannot believe that Jesus is alive.

They probably didn’t know what to believe, given that it is not common place for people to just come back from the dead.

Sadly though, they didn’t trust Mary’s words, even though she spoke the truth, and her words fitted with what Jesus had told them many times.

The only way they would believe is if they could see and touch Jesus for themselves.

Why were their hearts so hard?

Was God’s Word so far from them they could not believe Jesus is risen from the dead?

Was their grief so great that they could not recall Christ’s own words fore-warning of the events of those three days past?

We might criticize the disciples for their dullness in not putting together the words of Jesus and the events of His death and open tomb.

But we do so to our judgement, for we are not so great at trusting His promises and keeping His Word.

Later that day, in the evening, the disciples gather behind locked doors. They were no doubt discussing all that had taken place that day.

They were afraid that the Jews might now be after them, so they locked the door.

Huddling together in fear and confusion Jesus came and stood among them and said to them: “Peace be with you.”

Peace is what they lacked.

Those men were frightened for their lives, confused at what Mary’s words could mean, overwhelmed with guilt for deserting Jesus, afraid what would happen next, uncertain what they were to do.

Jesus comes and gives them what they lack.

Before they can say or do anything, Jesus speaks.

He is not there to condemn or seek revenge for abandoning Him.

Jesus came to grant them the deep abiding peace of God.

He has not deserted them, but comes to show them that He is alive and that He lives to grant peace to forgive their sins.

He is there to take away the barrier that exists between them and God.

By coming to them in the evening, Jesus has given them time to act according to faith.

He was giving them opportunity to trust in His words and understand that He was not dead, or missing, but raised from death to life.

They failed to trust in the Word.

They couldn’t see hand of God at work bringing about the salvation of sinners.

So, Jesus comes to show them that their sins have been atoned for.

He shows them His hands and His side. He invites them to touch Him, to feel the wounds by which they have been redeemed.

Hearing the Good News that Jesus was alive they did not believe it.

But in seeing Him for themselves and touching their risen Lord, they believe.

Mary’s words make sense.

Jesus words about “rising again” make sense.

He needed to die and be raised to life to bring God’s plan of salvation for all mankind into reality.

They were understanding in new ways, who Jesus truly is and what He came to do.

He is the flesh and blood God come to save the world through dying and rising again.

But one of the Twelve, Thomas, was not there, and when the others told him about Jesus’ appearing among them in the flesh, like them, he did not believe.

In fact, Thomas made this firm vow, “Unless I see in His hands the marks of the nails, and place my finger into the mark of the nails, and place my hand into His side, I will never believe.”

One week later, Thomas got the opportunity to make good on his vow.

The apostles again gathered behind locked doors and Christ came and stood among them, to again bestow peace upon them.

He invited Thomas to touch and feel and believe that He is indeed alive.

Thomas saw, he believed, and he confessed Christ as his Lord and God.

What about us?

We don’t get a chance to see and touch and believe?

We can’t place our finger into the wounds of Christ.

What we do have is just as sure,

we have the word of those who saw and believed.

We trust in the witness of Mary, Peter, Thomas and the other apostles.

We learn from Thomas that the witness of others can be relied on.

We get to hear and believe and listen to those who saw and confessed Jesus to be alive, to be the Lord.

They are faithful witnesses.

Their words are true, and with eyes of faith we confess Christ Jesus crucified and risen for our salvation.

This ultimate Good News of Jesus conquering sin and death brings us peace.

Christ’s words grant us peace and forgiveness just as He forgave the apostles.

And He comes to us in His Supper to speak His peace to us and grant us His peace in bread and wine.

The words of Jesus are preserved in the liturgy of the Sacrament.

After the Words of Institution, the pastor proclaims to us, “The peace of the Lord be with you always.”

Jesus is our peace with the Father.

His forgiveness is the peace we enjoy.

He invites us to the feast of peace—His body and blood—so that we would know without doubt that we have the peace of God

Jesus places His flesh and blood in our bodies to make us holy as He is holy.

God calls us to faith on the basis of His Word, on the witness of Mary and the apostles.

We are those of whom Christ spoke when He said, “blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed”.

We are blessed with faith to see that Jesus is our flesh and blood Saviour.

He has overcome sin and death for us. He gives the Holy Spirit to open our eyes to trust in Christ.

We meet Him in His own words, in the washing of Baptism, in His own Supper.

He comes to give us life, His life.

And it doesn’t matter what we have done, Jesus comes to forgive us.

He forgave the disciples that abandoned Him, and denied even knowing Him.

He forgave the apostles for doubting Him to accomplish salvation through His cross and resurrection.

If they are forgiven, then we are forgiven too.

John says as much when he says of his gospel account; these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in His name.

We all have a doubting Thomas lurking deep inside, a part of us that struggles to believe what Christ’s resurrection means for us personally.

When we have doubts about it all being true, or if sin prevents you from believing that Christ died even for us, don’t try and go to the cross in your thoughts.

He is no longer there.

Go where Christ is found and where He desires you seek Him:

in His Word,

in the promises of Baptism,

in the feast of Eucharist,

in His words that grant us forgiveness and life.

God’s Word is given to us as an anchor in the storms of life.

An immovable rock on which we stand against the temptations of the flesh, the doubts in our mind and this non-believing world.

Christ is our life, and He gives His life through the physical means of His Word and Sacrament.

Get into the Word, receive the Sacrament in faith for the strengthening of our body and our salvation.

We are in Christ and He is in us.

As the bearers of Christ’s body and blood we are His words of grace to those burdened with sin.

We are God’s touch of compassion to those who hurt.

We are witnesses to the power of Jesus’ cross and resurrection.

Our neighbours meet Jesus in our words and actions, in the way we live differently from everyone else.

Jesus is alive, risen from the grave to give us His forgiveness and life through His Word and Sacraments.

Christ has defeated death,

He has defeated hell and sin, and He gives the gift of life and salvation freely to all who believe and are baptized.

With that in mind,

May the peace of God, which passes all human understanding, guard our hearts and minds through Jesus Christ.

Amen.

Easter Sunday

Acts:10:34-43; 1 Corinthians: 15:1-11; St John:20: 1-29

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is the central truth of the Christian faith. It is also the most offensive element of the Christian faith for those who are not Christian. Many think that Jesus was a good man and taught some important ethical maxims which are as relevant today as they were there and then. But stumble at the thought that this good man who was crucified for his teaching was revealed in His resurrection as the Son, the only Son, of the eternal God through whom the world came to be. Who post his resurrection was given the title Lord, (which was the Greek translation of the Old Testament name for God. ( יהוה Translated as Yahweh but written as an unpronounceable word by the human larynx in Hebrew to safeguard God’s holiness from defilement.) The early Christians addressed this man in prayer as Lord

During the 40 days after His resurrection the disciples came to see that He had been always with them as the Lord God, in a form that was veiled for them. During the 40 days the presence of God in the man Jesus was no longer a paradox to them He was no longer the hidden God. But now they see as St Paul declares, ‘God was in Christ’ (2 Cor 5:19) He had been veiled as he had moved among His disciples, but now he was unmistakably revealed to be who He is, as the only Son of the Father. Their doubts and unbelief were dispelled, never to return.

For the disciples this was not a discovery of their own, the resurrection for them was not a self-evident truth. It was a conviction that went entirely against the grain for them . This is made abundantly evident in the resurrection narratives that they have given to us. The resurrected Jesus not only speaks with binding authority and effectiveness, but with truth and power. Such that his speech was able to overcome, the fears the grief, the bewilderment and doubts, the unbelief of the disciples. They came to see and believe that the resurrection was not a resuscitation of a miracle worker but a creative act whose only parallel is the creation of the world. It was a creation out of nothing of the dead body of the man Jesus who as the veiled Son of God had died with the desperate cry of dereliction upon His lips ‘My God, My God, how have you forsaken Me?’ (Matthew 27:46) Being in this way the representative human for all sinners since the creation of Adam. And so, St Paul unhesitatingly declares in (1Cor 15:17) that if this dead Son of God is not raised from the dead the Christian faith is vain. It has nothing to say to the world caught is the deadly web of its sin and estrangement from God. If there is no resurrection you are still in your sins and of all people Christians are the most miserable and of all people most to be pitied. (vs. 17-19)

One of the striking things about the New Testament’s account of the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is that in the most artless way its writers do not attempt to give a coherent account of it. They do not in any way attempt to say what the resurrection as an event is. They tell us of the signs associated with it, such as the empty tomb, but remain silent as to the nature of the resurrection as such. Their historical narratives as we have them in the New Testament cannot be reconciled as to chronology or geography; and no one thought it appropriate or necessary in the early church to reconcile, to iron out these differences, to cover up these discrepancies. In this manner they simply point in their own way to their own incomprehension concerning the event to which they bear testimony

The gospel (St John 20) speaks of Mary and Thomas in relation to the appearance to the disciples of the risen Lord. The doubt of Thomas with which his name has become associated, doubting Thomas; his doubt is no wit different from all the other disciples in relation to Jesus’ resurrection. As was Mary’s confusion about the stranger who greeted her on the first resurrection day

All the accounts of Jesus post resurrection appearances demonstrate the fact that Jesus created the disciples’ faith. We can speak of the disciples’ faith in the risen Lord only in the sense in which their unbelief is overcome by the action of Jesus. So, St. Thomas’ doubt and his subsequent faith is not a unique experience in respect to the other apostles. The circumstances in which Thomas comes to faith are his, but Jesus creates his faith, like that of all the other disciples as he overcomes doubt by His own action. Jesus’ resurrection far from being a belief created by the disciples’ ability to believe the unbelievable, it in itself is the foundation of their faith.

Jesus says they are blessed who unlike Thomas ‘have not seen and yet believe.’ The blessedness of which Jesus speaks is the fact that all those, apart from the apostles, who are not witnesses of the resurrection have no possibility of touching or handling Jesus the resurrected One, as they did. The blessedness of which Jesus speaks is that all others, that includes us, apart from the apostles, have simply the Apostolic word of testimony and the promised Holy Spirit as the basis of their faith, their union with Jesus.

Unlike Thomas and the other disciples including Mary of Magdala, these others of whom Jesus speaks do not face the temptation to which they were subject. This is the temptation, it consisted in their wanting to know that the truth of their faith in Jesus as the risen Lord could be established for them by something other than Jesus own word of promise. Their request to touch the resurrected Jesus indicates their desire to settle the truth of their belief in Jesus Lordship by their ability to trust their physical sense of touch.

But also, Mary Magdalene, whom Jesus met in the garden near the tomb, there we read, Jesus refused to let her touch Him, to have a direct relationship with Him, this meeting also speaks to us of the same question., faced by Thomas on that evening in Jerusalem so long ago when, on that first Easter Day where the disciples gathered behind closed doors for fear of the Jews. The temptation of Thomas and Mary consisted in their wanting to know that the truth of their faith in Jesus as the risen Lord could be established for them by something other than Jesus own word of promise.

The apostles, and Thomas and Mary in particular, show how they were caught in the natural dilemma of wanting to seek a foundation for their faith in something other than Jesus’ word of promise to them concerning Himself.

They sought the veracity of their belief in the truth of their experience, their belief in their belief as the basis of faith, and in this way, give faith a basis of certainty in themselves. Thomas and Mary in their own way are the examples of an affliction that affected all the disciples, as they became witnesses of the resurrection.

We, on the other hand, hear a word of promise that comes to us from the apostolic witness of the scriptures. This word invites us to place our confidence in the One to whom they testify as the Lord of life. We are invited to obey the promise of this One whose word bears witness to Himself, that He is the risen victor of Gethsemane and Golgotha. This word of promise invites us to believe that Jesus is who He is for us; and that this is the only basis for understanding the truth of our faith. The certainty of our faith lays precisely in the uncertainty that we have in our selves. Certainty consists in the veracity of the word of promise that we hear from the One speaks it to us, as it is given to us in the scriptures. He it is who alone creates for us the basis and certainty of faith. Unlike St. Thomas we have no possibility of establishing our faith by believing in the veracity our senses by touching Jesus and thus, like Thomas, attempt to find an independent point of reference for the truth of Jesus word.

It is for this reason that Jesus calls those who have not seen or touched him blessed. ‘Blessed are those who have not seen and yet believe’ (John 20:29); we unlike Thomas are given the freedom to obey the Word of Jesus as the sole basis of faith. In this word and nothing else we find the truth of our life. This truth is no abstract proposition, but the truth of our life before God and each other, as grounded in Him who was raised by God for our sake. This means we recognise the truth of our life before God and each other is established not by us but for us. That means Another establishes our faith as Christians: it is the Lord who promises Himself to us as the One who lives and pleads our cause as the crucified One. It is as we acknowledge His truth to be our truth that Jesus says we are blessed. It is this mystery of grace that we celebrate today by the means Jesus has given to us. His very body and blood which, given and received, makes us to be what we are not naturally, beloved children of the Father upon whom for the sake of His risen crucified Son, He has set his love.

Dr. Gordon Watson.

Good Friday

Good Friday Sermon.

The Grace and Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all. Let’s join in a word of prayer: Loving God and Father, today we gather with all those who

mourn over the fall of humanity. Sin that required the sacrifice of a sinless Son of God, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Help us to experience, in a tangible way, Your presence in our lives and our worship today. Open our hearts and minds to your plan for our lives that has been worked out through Christ Jesus our Lord, in whose name we pray. Amen.

Recently, I revisited Max Lucado’s book “He chose the nails”. Max encourages us to encounter the mysterious gifts that Jesus chose to give us through his sacrifice. The gifts of Good Friday and Easter Morning are the most precious gifts any person could ever receive because they cost God so much to give. The Apostle John records those words of John 3:16: ‘God loved the people of the world so much, he gave his only son, so that everyone who believes in him will have everlasting life and not perish.”

God did this for us—just for us—because he loves each one of us so much.

When Jesus was taken from his disciples, abused and bound, he knew the humility that sin binds to all people. Yet Jesus chose to become one of us.

When Jesus stood falsely accused before the chief priests and teachers of the law, he knew the guilt that sin cries out against all people. Yet Jesus chose to forgive us.

When Jesus stood before the crowd in the hands of the soldiers of the Roman Governor, he knew the rejection and isolation that sin brings upon all people. Yet Jesus chose to invite us into his holy presence in eternity.

When Jesus felt the hatred of those crying out for him to be crucified, he knew the cruel sentence that sin brings upon all people. Yet Jesus chose to love us forever.

When Jesus suffered the lash and the cross, he knew the awful suffering that sin casts upon all people. Yet Jesus chose to give us the victory in his own crucifixion.

And yet, as Chad Bird writes in his book: Finding God in the Most Unexpected Places:

The glory of God was revealed on the cross of crucifixion. And yet ‘seeing God on the cross, we do not see. That is, unless our spiritual eyes have been transferred to our ears. Unless we see him through the prophecies of Isaiah about the Servant who would be “despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief; and as one from whom men hide their faces”. (Isa 53:3)

The Servant who would be “pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed.” (v 5) If the Word of God, not the vision of our eyes, defines what is real, then we shall really see God on the cross. We shall bask in the glory where no glory is to be seen. On the cross and only on the cross, the scales shall fall from our eyes so that we finally get it: ‘God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the wise; God chose what is weak in the world to shame the strong; God chose what is low and despised in the world, even things that are not, to bring in the presence of God’. (1 Cor 1:27-29)

The Cross is God’s veiled unveiling. It is his absent presence. It is heaven dressed up as hell. The cross defines how God has always worked and always will. This is radical life-changing realization. Beginning in Genesis, and continuing even now in our own lives is the God of the cross. … He conquered the cosmos by suffering defeat in death. He made his life our own, by letting humanity murder him’. ^{(‘Your God is Too Glorious – Finding God in the most unexpected places’ by Chad Bird, Baker Books, page 24)}

So here we are together, honouring the sacrifice of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, Son of the Living God. A sacrifice through which Jesus offers the precious gifts witnessed by this holy week.

We didn’t see the star in the sky on the night he was born in our humanity. We didn’t hear the witness of shepherds about the visit of angels. We didn’t see him turn water into wine, or calm a storm, or feed 5000 with two fish and five loaves. We haven’t seen him teaching and healing in the Temple. We haven’t seen him being questioned by the religious leaders, and the Roman Governor. We haven’t seen him being whipped for our transgressions. We haven’t seen him ridiculed by the pagan soldiers. We haven’t seen him hanging lifeless on a cross. And yet, we believe. As Jesus would say to Thomas after his resurrection, “You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me.” ^{(John 20:29 NLT)}

We have learned from the ancients of faith, that God prepared the world through his prophets for the arrival of a Saviour, a Messiah. The arrival they only hoped for. The arrival we have heard about from the Scriptures that witness what we have not seen, and yet believe.

We have received the encouragement from the Apostles that the faith we have in our Saviour is as precious, as valid, as powerful, as important as the faith of the Apostles, the Prophets, the Ancients of the Faith.

We have cherished the reality of Scripture, received from our nearer forefathers of the Reformation, that we are in a right relationship with God our Father, through the faith we have in Christ Jesus who offered forgiveness from the cross.

When Jesus whispered from the cross that “It is finished,” we can be assured that it was the end of the old. And a new beginning of God’s presence among us. The beginning of life in the presence of God’s eternity. The call to discipleship, and the unfolding of history into the future from creation to Apostles to modern Christianity.

As Jesus said, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it. If anyone is ashamed of me and my message, the Son of Man will be ashamed of that person when he returns in his glory and in the glory of the Father and the holy angels.” ^{(Luke 9:23–27 NLT)}

The gifts that Jesus chose to give us in his death and resurrection show us the unfolding plan of God for us all. With a sure conclusion of the utter defeat of the devil; and the ultimate victory of God’s plan. A plan for those through time and place who receive Christ Jesus, those who believe in his name, those to whom God has given the right to become his children.

We are part of God’s ultimate plan in the ultimate victory of Christ Jesus. Because Jesus Christ fulfilled God’s plan for salvation, as he cried, “My Father, if it is possible, may this cup be taken from me. Yet not as I will, but as you will.”

For us now, in our generation, in our time, and in our place, we are called to be faithful in living the faith we have received by the Holy Spirit working in word and sacrament.

We are warned from Hebrews, ‘Without wavering, let us hold tightly to the hope we say we have, for God can be trusted to keep his promise. Think of ways to encourage one another to outbursts of love and good deeds. And let us not neglect our meeting together, as some people do, but encourage and warn each other, especially now that the day of his coming back again is drawing near.’

As we approach the conclusion of our age, and the revealed victory of God’s plan for life, we are given the task to hold onto the faith we have received. To witness that faith by our actions, our attitudes and our words, as we live out our part of God’s plan as children of God who can be trusted. To encourage each other, as we all face those times when we are tempted to doubt God’s care for us.

To find enjoyment, fulfillment, and purpose in meeting together in fellowship as our hearts sing together the praises of our Saviour who died for us.

This is especially important now that we are closer to our Lord’s return than ever before in history. When we witness events and hostilities that surely point to the end of times. As one sign recently said, ‘one in hundred years drought, fire, flood and pandemic, all in 18 months.’ And yet, we realize as Jesus tells us clearly that only the Father knows when he will wrap up this age, and usher in a new age of peace and love. And that will be wonderful.

Because of Good Friday, we can hear the words of Hebrews with a new direction in our life, ‘dear brothers and sisters, we can boldly enter heaven’s Most Holy Place because of the blood of Jesus. This is the new, life-giving way that Christ has opened up for us through the sacred curtain, by means of his death for us.’

And so, today, as we grieve the suffering and death of our Saviour, and we prepare to celebrate His awesome resurrection, let’s hold onto these words of Hebrews, ‘without wavering, let us hold tightly to the hope we say we have, for God can be trusted to keep his promise.’ And may the grace and peace of God keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. AMEN.

Rev. David Thompson.

Maunday Thursday

The Text: John 13

John chapter 13 is a popular reading with many people, Christian and non-Christian alike. There’s something heart-warming about a leader getting on his knees and serving his followers. The love that Jesus preaches tonight, that He enacted with His disciples, and that drove Him on to the cross, is made of quite different stuff than what the world defines and knows as love. In fact the love that Jesus preaches, enacts and suffers himself is so selfless that it cost him his own life.

Jesus had just been welcomed into Jerusalem to the shouts of the crowd. Expectations were running high. The opportunity for Him to spark a popular rebellion and topple the Roman authorities was very real. The chance for Him to reclaim the throne of Israel was before Him.

But what did He do? He gathered in an upstairs room and quietly gives his disciples bread and wine and declares that it is His true body and blood given for the forgiveness of sins. And if that weren’t confusing enough, He then gets up and does the work of a slave. Humiliating Himself as He washes the feet of those who should be looking after Him.

But in this act of love, Jesus gives a clear indication as to the nature of His mission. It was not to be one of earthly glory and fame, but one of service and love. And in this lowly task of cleansing their feet, Jesus was pointing to a far greater cleansing about to be take place on the cross. The foot washing was a symbol, only a picture of Jesus’ ultimate humility, his ultimate gift. Jesus humbles himself to death on the cross for all the disciples, for us, to make us clean from all our sin.

Maundy Thursday helps us remember that Jesus overcomes the world, our sin and the Devil, not through an all-out offensive attack. But through love. A love that is actively at work. A love so deep and profound that it is unconcerned about humiliation. Unconcerned about other’s opinions. Unconcerned about expectations of power and victory and honour. This is the love that was hinted at in the humble act of washing the disciples’ feet, but was finally poured out for all to see on the cross. A love so deep and so astonishing, that it still causes offence even among Christians.

How many of us want to picture Jesus slaying the devil in a mighty battle? How many of us want to see Jesus punishing those who are the worst of sinners? How many of us want to see Jesus take control? But He doesn’t do these things. Instead He kneels down before His disciples and lovingly washes their feet – even the feet of the one who is about to betray Him.

Jesus loves you and me in the same way. It is the same love that has washed over us in holy baptism. That simple act that connects us to Jesus’ death and resurrection. That simple act that continues to cleanse us right through to the core. It is the same love that speaks tenderly to us as we hear those golden words –your sins are forgiven in Jesus’ name. It is the same love that is placed in our very mouths as Jesus’ body and blood is given for our forgiveness and life. As Jesus took the place of a servant and washed the feet of His disciples, He revealed how He would continue to serve us until we are called home.

The foot washing is an example of Jesus’ humble and loving service. And Jesus makes it clear that as we have been loved and served by Him, so we are to love one another. His example is a call for us to a love that never stops, a love that doesn’t quit when it’s hard to love, a love that includes all—spouse, children, parents, brothers and sisters, neighbours, friends, enemies, fellow Christians, and the lost. It’s a compassionate, giving love that gives time, effort, and money. It’s tough love when saying no is the most loving thing you can do.

What motivates us? Where do we get the strength? “We love because he first loved us”. His gift of love calls us to repentance, it forgives us – even when we’ve failed to love as we should, and it draws us to follow him and love others as he did, to the end.

Now some of you might be disappointed tonight because you figure you’ve heard it all before. But this is no small matter for those of us who call Jesus our Lord and Saviour. Jesus considered it a big enough deal to die for. And so we are called to love – especially our brothers and sisters in Christ – so that our life together may be a beacon of hope to this lost world. We are called to leave behind all attempts to have power and control and to seek the way of love and mercy and service. We are called to live out our faith in real, practical and down to earth ways – and mark my words – the unbelieving world is watching.

There is no greater scandal among God’s people than when we fight and lack love for one another. And there is nothing more powerful in bringing people to Jesus than when Christians follow His example and love as He has called us to. One of the early church fathers noted that unbelievers became fascinated with the Christian faith not because Christians appeared so holy, but because of the way they loved each other. It was written that “despite periods of harsh persecution, the witness of generations of Christians living the “new commandment” of Jesus to “love one another,” helped the church to grow and spread across the Roman empire, and led some to proclaim, perhaps with disbelief, “see how they love one another.”

People often show their faith by wearing crosses around their necks. Others post confessions of faith on social media, say grace before meals and refusing to blaspheme. Now as good as these things are in bearing witness to our faith, the only advertisement that Jesus calls us to tonight is to love one another. And in this simple act, inspired by His sin-consuming love, all people will know that we are His disciples. And His love will continue to change the world – one love drenched soul at a time. Amen.

Fifth Sunday after Lent

The Text: Mark 11:1-11

This coming week we will be commemorating the greatest week in the history of our world. The events of the first Holy Week are still being re-enacted and remembered all over the world because of the lasting impact they’ve had on the lives of so many people. Can you remember a pre-Easter week that stands out in your memory still today? The atmosphere of today, Palm Sunday, anticipates the even greater joy of Easter Sunday, the greatest Sunday of the Church Year. Our Lord’s opponents were concerned that, if they didn’t get rid of Him, everyone might come to faith in Him. Such was Jesus’ impact on huge numbers of people. The Pharisees and their supporters said, “What are we to do? This man is performing many miraculous signs. If we let Him go on like this, everyone will believe in Him (John 11:48).” They then plotted to put Jesus to death.

Jesus was aware of what His enemies planned to do with Him. He could therefore have easily entered Jerusalem quietly. Instead, He deliberately enters the centre of opposition to Him publicly to reveal who He really is. So He enters the city with immense courage, in order to make one last appeal to the people there to believe in Him. People might not bother listening to Jesus, but they could hardly fail to see the humble way He was coming to them. No doubt Jesus was remembering Zechariah’s prophecy: “Your king comes to you … humble and riding on a donkey (9:9).”

Kings rode on donkeys when they came in peace. Jesus enters Jerusalem claiming to be our King, but as the King of Peace, to bring us peace such as this world can never give us. He enters Jerusalem deliberately refusing the role of a political saviour. He came appealing for a throne; the throne of our hearts. He is in control of the events of this special day. He sends two of His disciples to borrow a young donkey that had never been ridden before. Jesus regularly sends His followers on errands, two of them together, no doubt to cheer each other up and support each other, and then to share the load of the task. Each and every Christian needs the support and encouragement of a fellow Christian. When Jesus’ disciples are asked why they want to borrow a donkey they reply “The Lord needs it.” The fact that Jesus needs it was reason enough to agree to their request.

Your Lord needs you too. No one else can replace you. Jesus needs you, your time, your talents and gifts, and above, your prayers for others. Please don’t be tempted to say to Jesus: “I’m not very gifted. After all, what difference can an ordinary individual like me make?” Christ’s cause in this community is suffering because of those who think they have nothing worthwhile to contribute to the work of His Kingdom. Jesus needs the contribution of every one here today. To paraphrase J.F. Kennedy, “Ask not what your church can do for you, but rather what you can do for your church.”

This week is a superb time to pray for the return to God’s House of your prodigal relatives, family members and friends who have drifted away from worshipping God. Pray that they will be sitting here with you Thursday evening, Friday or Sunday. Not only does Jesus need your loving devotion and service, Jesus loves it when you need Him more than anything else. He treasures your company and loves listening to your prayers and praises. Your Lord will multiply with His blessing whatever you do for Him or give to Him. Treasure the fact that He needs you and your unique contribution.

In an age when people around us are reluctant to commit to anything long-term, lifelong commitment isn’t praised and commended as much as it deserves to be. It’s so easy in our modern environment to be lukewarm about life’s most important matters. Jesus wants you to be fair dinkum about your faith. Whole-hearted commitment to Christ can work wonders for Him. We fulfil God’s plan and purpose for us when we’re committed to Him, “for better, for worse, in sickness and in health, as long as we live.”

Recall a time when you were full of enthusiasm for Jesus Christ. Wouldn’t it be great if that could happen again this Holy Week? Why is it, for example, considered to be okay to be enthusiastic about your favourite sport or hobby but not about your Saviour Jesus Christ? Enthusiasm for Jesus has a wonderful way of diminishing your worries and anxieties. “Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say, rejoice!”

There was no shortage of joy and jubilant acclamation on that first Palm Sunday. Those round Jesus spread their garments on the road before the donkey He was riding. To do so was considered an act of homage to a King, as also were the waving and spreading of palm branches on the way ahead. The people shouted a royal acclamation from Psalm 118, a psalm every child learned back then: “Blessed is the One who comes in the name of the Lord.” “Hosanna!” is a petition to God to “save us now!” It could even be translated as “three cheers for Jesus!” The crowd was so enthusiastic because it saw Zechariah’s prophecy, “Shout aloud, O daughter Jerusalem. Lo, your King comes to you” being fulfilled before their eyes.

The story is told of an American travelling on a bus in Sweden. He was bragging to the Swedish man sitting next to him, how accessible, in theory, the American president was to his citizens. After the Swede got off the bus, someone else said to the American: “In Sweden, its King rides on a bus with his subjects.” The American tourist had been talking to the King of Sweden.

Jesus is a humble King, who loves spending time with those who need His healing power and help most of all. He is as accessible to us as that Swedish King riding on a bus was to his people. Jesus lets Himself be vulnerable to ridicule and rejection Instead of being aloof and above the hassles and frustrations we face from week to week, He is thrilled to be with us amid the mess and muddle of daily life. Jesus redefined kingship in terms of loving service, humility and accessibility.
He is
“the Servant King
He calls us now to follow Him
to bring our lives as a daily offering
of worship to the Servant King.”

If our Lord enters Jerusalem with a ragtag group of tax collectors, poor people and fishing folk, who can tell with whom He might associate next? He’s likely to be with the most unlikely of people, those neglected by the high and mighty but greatly treasured by Him. He shares common cause with them and doesn’t act as if He’s better than they. He went out of His way to go to the remote towns of the land to meet the needs of the disabled and the mentally distressed, to widows uncared for by others. All these people saw in Jesus their only hope for a better future.

Gandhi, the great leader of India, was asked, “If you were given the power to remake the world, what would you do first?” Following Jesus’ example, Gandhi replied, “I would pray for the power to renounce that power.” He preferred to be a servant of his people rather than a power-broker, and operate by the power of love.

So then, the best title for our Palm Sunday King is “the Friend of Sinners.” Jesus’ friendship with you makes you one of His Church’s living treasures. He invites you to treasure those He calls you to serve and see them as His gifts to you. Make the joyful discovery of how, as you help others carry their burdens, your own become lighter. May you be Jesus’ “donkey” carrying Him to the people who need Him the most.

Jesus has promised to remain faithful to you, even when you find being faithful to Him tough going. Faith and faithfulness belong together like a lock and a key. Acts of faithfulness like regular prayer, worship, receiving Holy Communion, keep faith alive and thriving. It is faithfulness in these things, rather than success, that our Lord looks for from us. Jesus has promised that the blessings received from our faithfulness will be infinitely greater than all our acts of faithfulness. As far as our Lord is concerned, faithfulness in small things is indeed a great thing.

This Palm Sunday let the words of The Prayer of St. Francis be your prayer of recommitment to your Lord:

Make me a channel of your peace: where there is hatred, let me bring your love; where there is injury, your pardon, Lord, and where there’s doubt, true faith in you. Make me a channel of your peace: where there’s despair in life, let me bring hope; where there is darkness, only light, and where there’s sadness, ever joy.

O Master, grant that I may never seek so much to be consoled, as to console, to be understood, as to understand, to be loved, as to love with all my soul.

Make me a channel of your peace; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned, in giving to all men that we receive, and in dying that we’re born to life.

We pray:
Come, Lord Jesus, come.
Come to us through the word of the cross, the word of reconciliation, and the Gospel of peace.
Come to us with wisdom from above to enlighten and inspire us, so that all we say or do may be solely to Your glory, in Your holy name. Amen.

Fifth Sunday after Lent

The text: John 12:20-33

Glory – on God’s Terms

What would you see as the most glorious thing that could happen to you? Receiving an Australia Day award? Being praised in the presence of others? Gaining recognition in the newspaper for something you’ve done? One of our daily newspapers has a 15 Minutes of Fame column. A person was randomly chosen by a reporter who wrote up a brief sketch of that person’s life for the newspapers. But human fame and glory is quickly forgotten.

God’s idea of glory is totally different. Prior to their wedding day, a pastor was discussing marriage vows with a young couple. The man objected to the words in the vow “’til death do us part”. “Can’t you change the words?” he asked. “I don’t want death mentioned on my wedding day.” For God, death and glory aren’t incompatible. Nothing brings God greater glory than the death of His Son Jesus Christ for us. Jesus wanted God to be glorified by His perfect obedience to the will of God, no matter what the cost.

God doesn’t seek glory by means of a spectacular, sensational public relations stunt. Instead, God hides His glory in the life, suffering and death of Jesus our Saviour. Our world glorifies power, success, strength and affluence. God reveals Himself most fully in the humiliation, vulnerability and weakness of the Cross. The cross of Christ is the hiding place of God’s saving power and glory. We see our Saviour’s glory in His suffering because it shows how much He loves each and every one of us; we see His love in His excruciating agony on the Cross, as it reveals how He sacrificed everything for us. We cannot really understand Jesus apart from His Cross. It is central to why He came to our earth to be one of us, with us.

The Cross of Christ is the climax of His identification with us as mortal men and women. There, Christ carried out His mightiest work of salvation for us. The Cross both reveals and condemns our sin and guilt, and takes it away. We are eternally indebted to Jesus for what He did for us there. In the words of the famous hymn, Rock of ages:

“Nothing in my hand I bring Simply to Your cross I cling.” (LHS 330)

In this morning’s text, some Greek visitors come to Jesus’ disciple Philip, perhaps because of his Greek name, and ask him: “Sir, we wish to see Jesus.” What a praiseworthy request! Philip is so excited that folk from the most intellectual and artistic nation of the time come to make contact with Jesus, that he quickly shares the news with his friend Andrew. At last Jesus is going to be recognised as a celebrity! They can’t wait to tell our Lord. Jesus responds that the great hour of His life has arrived.

These Greeks represent us, the Gentiles of the world. Their arrival anticipates Christ’s post-Pentecost mission. Jesus isn’t the latest philosopher or newest religious guru with a trendy recipe for self-advancement or self-enlightenment. Like a wheat crop, before there can be a harvest, grain must be buried in the ground. Jesus compares His mission to a grain of wheat. Before there can be the fruit of mission, of many people being won for Christ, He must sacrifice His life for us.

The sacrifice of His life on the Cross for each of us, and for all people of every race, has and will continue to draw more men and women to Jesus than all His miracles or unsurpassed moral teaching. Jesus wants us to be drawn to Him because of His suffering with and for us, and the sacrifice of His life instead of us, rather than because of His amazing miracles. We’re so reluctant to think or talk about our own or anyone else’s death. Jesus, however, views His death, as the greatest thing He’s done for us. We read in John 15:13, “No one has greater love than this, to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. You are my friends.”

At the same time, giving His life for us wasn’t at all easy for Jesus. For us, often the anticipation of something painful, like going to the dentist, is worse than the event itself. Jesus doesn’t hide the anguish His imminent sacrifice of Himself for us was causing Him. The thought of it filled Him with deep agony: “Now my heart is troubled, and what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour?” was His painful plea as He anticipates his awful agony in the garden of Gethsemane. Who wants to die at the age of 33? Jesus’ obedience to God’s will came at great personal cost. But as today’s second Bible reading says, “He learnt obedience from what He suffered.” His private agony is transformed into a public confession of His obedience to God: “Father, save me from this hour? No, it was for this very reason I came to this hour.” (v27)

By His obedience to God the Father, Jesus came to undo and repair the damage caused by Adam and Eve’s disobedience to God. Nothing less than the future of all of us, of all humankind, was at stake. At any moment, Jesus could have said “no” to the Cross. But for our sakes, He was “obedient unto death, even death on a cross.” This gift of sacrificial love gives us a hope nothing can destroy. Martin Luther King Jr has said, “There are some who still find the Cross a stumbling block, others consider it foolishness. I am more convinced than ever that it is the power of God to social and individual salvation.”

We focus on the Cross of Christ during Lent because it speaks to us primarily of a fellow-sufferer who understands what it’s like for us to suffer and to be afraid of dying. Jesus hears your pain from His cross and not from the cosy comfort of an armchair. Jesus shares your suffering, physical or emotional, however great or small, in ways you can only begin to imagine. Your Saviour’s Cross means you can trust Jesus with your suffering, and discover that trusting Him is life-transforming. Jesus didn’t come to our world to answer your questions about why you’re suffering, but to fill it with His life-changing presence. No other sacrifice has changed as many lives as has Christ’s sacrifice for us. His sacrifice of Himself on the Cross attracts our gratitude because it was so undeserved. Jesus said, “When I am lifted up from the earth, I’ll draw all kinds of people to me (v32).” His death is the magnetism of an utterly selfless sacrifice. There’s something deeply moving about self-giving love, isn’t there?

Life without sacrifice is a mean existence. We can either hoard what we have or sacrifice it in love for someone else. Jesus invites us to follow Him on the path of sacrificial service. “Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, my servant also will be. My Father will honour the one who serves me (v27).” What a marvellous incentive to join Jesus on the path of sacrificial service. God will exceedingly honour such service. What’s more, Jesus calls those His friends, who serve Him in a way that sacrifices their preferences, their priorities and their inclinations. He says in John 15:15, “I do not call you servants any longer, because the servant does not know what the master is doing, but I have called you friends, because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from My Father.” To be called Jesus’ friend makes all we do for Him and for each other so very worthwhile, and fills life with meaning and purpose.

Jesus’ cross has transformed how we view life. Life isn’t about what we can get out of it for ourselves, but what we can give for the sake of others. Think of how much poorer our world would be without all those selfless folk whose first concern is always the welfare of others. They invite you to share their discovery, that “life’s happiest hours are those of self-forgetfulness.” We can lose ourselves in serving Jesus because He will never forget us.

Amen!

Fourth Sunday after Lent

The text: Ephesians 2:1-10

“By grace you have been saved”—one of the most well-known verses in the church, especially amongst us Lutherans. Or is it?

What does being saved by grace mean?

The assurance of salvation by grace was the message that Duke George of Saxony heard in July 1517.

He had requested a “learned and eloquent preacher” to preach in the castle chapel at Dresden.

Who was sent? None other than Martin Luther! Luther preached on the assurance of salvation.

In his sermon he said: “Our salvation must ever remain our foremost concern.

Man can obtain it only through faith in Christ Jesus, not by his own good works.”

Later that day at the dinner table, Duke George asked his wife’s attendant, Barbara von Sala: “How did you like the sermon?”

“Ah” she replied, “let me hear just one more like it, and I can die in peace!”

But Duke George was not impressed. In fiery indignation he exclaimed:

“I’d give much money not to have heard it.

It makes men secure and reckless in sin!”

I’m not sure that being ‘secure and reckless in sin’ was what Barbara von Sala was advocating, and Luther certainly wasn’t either.

In fact, Barbara wanted the opposite. If Barbara was secure and reckless in sin, she wouldn’t have cared for the gospel at all and have longed for the comfort and peace of God’s promise of forgiveness and righteousness with him.

“Let me hear just one more [sermon] like it, and I can die in peace!”

Barbara said. She had heard the gospel and it had given her such great joy.

The gospel message Barbara von Sala rejoiced in is summarised by today’s verse in Paul’s letter to the Ephesians:

“It is by grace you have been saved through faith—and this is not of yourselves; it is the gift of God—not by works so that no-one may boast.”

It is a verse that is at the heart of the reformation and at the identity, theology and culture of the Lutheran church.

But what is the gospel?

Paul gives us a key word in today’s text:

The gospel is that we have been saved.

Someone who has been saved can’t save themselves; they need another to save them.

Often the gospel is explained this way: because of sin we are separated from God, but God throws a life buoy to us—Jesus—and when we grasp hold of him, we are saved.

But in today’s text Paul says: “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins.”

We weren’t only drowning with one arm above the waves reaching for a life buoy.

We had already drowned, as it were—we were already spiritually dead, at the bottom of the sea of human sin.

Now someone who’s dead can’t do a whole lot.

They can’t raise themselves to life and contribute anything to change their situation.

Paul says that’s what the natural human condition is like.

The only life we had was in sin, and we followed the ways of this world and the ruler of the spirit who is now at work in those who are disobedient, gratifying the cravings of our flesh and following its desires and thoughts.

Amazing that what Paul writes centuries ago is the exact diagnosis of society today — a society which mere humans create God in their image and who even want to be God, being the final authority and worshipping the self.

No wonder Paul says we were objects of wrath. God’s sentence of death for our transgressions is just. Why?

Because sin is not restricted to a particular culture or time, but entrenched in what it means to be a human being after the Fall.

Sin is a spectrum that we are all part of.

When God’s law shows us the ways in which we sin it shows us, at the same time, that we are no better than the society we lament over.

The Ten Commandments show us how God wants us to live in every area of life, in our spiritual life, family life, work life, in all our interactions with God and neighbour.

There’s no such thing as a little lie. It’s a lie.

Or, as Jesus taught, just thinking about something sinful but not following through in action is no better than actually doing the wrong thing.

We are truly among those who need saving because we cannot save ourselves and we need saving from ourselves.

Barbara von Sala knew that—that’s why she cherished the gospel she heard that day in the Dresden castle chapel.

It’s the same gospel we need to hear too, and we hear it in our text today: “we have been saved.”

For it was while we were dead in our sins that God showed his rich and unconditional mercy and lavish love to us through his Son.

It was while the human race was unable to reach out to Jesus that God reached out to us by sending Jesus into the world, not to condemn the world—but to save the world through him.

Jesus kept the law for us perfectly then traded places with us to take the Father’s wrath on our sin for us and save us from his just sentence of death that we might have his very own righteousness.

This was a past event that has already happened for us, a complete gift, totally undeserved: “by grace you have been saved.”

We could never do anything to deserve God’s love, never contribute anything to life with God or earn a pat on the back from him.

We are not saved because of our kindness to our neighbour or by our service in the church or how often we donate to community service programs or by how much we put in the offering plate.

We are not saved because of our faith as if our faith were a work by us that is pleasing to God;

we are not saved because of any decision we make,

or our piety,

or the eloquence

or frequency of our prayers,

but faith is itself an undeserved gift from God brought into effect by the Holy Spirit as he speaks to us through the Scriptures to enlighten us to see we are saved by Christ and because of Christ, and we receive all his saving work through faith.

But what of Duke George’s response to Luther’s sermon?

Remember what he said?

“I’d give much money not to have heard it. It makes men secure and reckless in sin!”

Duke George’s concern, Christians abusing their freedom, is a valid one, even though I feel he misunderstood what Luther had said.

For the gospel is certainly not the reason to discard the law, but only to strive harder to keep it.

The danger in the church is the temptation to think that because we are saved apart from the Law, we should disregard the Law and don’t need to strive daily to lead a holy life.

That because good works aren’t necessary for salvation that they aren’t necessary at all.

They were thoughts the church at Rome entertained.

But in chapter 6 of his letter to the Christians there, Paul insists:

“What shall we say then?

Are we to continue in sin that grace may abound?

No way!

How can we who died to sin still live in it?” (v1-2).

And in today’s text he says: “For it is by grace you have been saved through faith—and this is not of yourselves; it is the gift of God—not by works so that no-one may boast.

For we are God’s workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which he has prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them” (v8-10).

We’re not saved by good works but saved for good works.

The gospel doesn’t mean a doing away with the law, but upholding it.

That’s really what we ourselves confessed again this morning.

Did you notice the careful wording and order of the questions of confession?

Having been redeemed by Christ from all our sins means that we will strive daily to lead a holy life.

We don’t strive daily to lead a holy life that God might redeem us—in Christ, he already has.

And we can’t daily strive to lead a holy life apart from Christ, who has already brought us to share in his holiness that we may walk in it.

What does walking in holiness look like?

How do we know what the good works are that God has called us to do?

Again, God’s law shows us.

The 10 commandments show us God’s design for what good works are to be.

We are to use God’s name to pray,

we are to desire His word and gladly hear and learn it.

We are to honour and respect our parents and all those in authority.

We are to help our neighbour in all their needs.

We are to uphold God’s design for marriage so that in matters of sex, our words and conduct are pure and honourable and husband and wife love and respect one another.

We are not to gossip but defend our neighbour and speak of them in the kindest way possible and help them protect and even increase what is theirs, and to be satisfied with what God has blessed us with, and to use it to bless others.

This is all completely different to the way of the world but it is what God rescued you for.

So, we can say that Lent and the Christian life is all about good works.

And we can even say it is about being saved by good works—that is, Christ’s good works.

He is the one who perfectly kept the commandments for you and showed both perfect submission to his Father’s will and perfect love and compassion, even to the point of laying down his own life on the Cross for you, to free you from sin, death and Satan.

Grace is not cheap, for the ransom price God paid to make you his very own was the holy and precious blood of his Son Jesus.

Then he actually made you his own at your baptism, where the crucified, risen, exalted Christ stood in the sanctuary space in the church here on earth, baptising you in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, to make you who were once dead now alive, with him.

In your union with Christ you already share in Jesus’ own enthronement and have a place of belonging and permanency in heaven, so that while you wait for the day he comes again, you already receive every spiritual blessing that comes from your Father in heaven through Jesus.

In union with Christ you are indeed covered in his holiness, and walk with him as his holy priests for the sake of the world, partners with him in his mission of prayer for it, and service to it through the good works he prepared for you beforehand.

Why has God done all this for you?

Simply because of his love for you, and because he was determined to shower the inexpressible riches of heaven in Christ upon you.

May the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Amen.