The Lord's Chosen Servant - Part 2
Isaiah 42:2-3
01/09/2024
2 He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or
make it heard in the street;
3 a bruised reed he will not break, and a faintly
burning wick he will not quench; he will
faithfully bring forth justice. (ESV)
Many congregations celebrated Jesus' baptism last Sunday,
the First Sunday after the Epiphany. Jesus was baptized by John,
the forerunner of Christ, so to place Himself under the Law. In
so doing, He took upon Himself our transgressions and willingly
bore them to the cross.
God freely offers His love, mercy, and grace to all people.
He invites us to accept the gift He gives, the forgiveness of our
sins for the sake of the suffering, death, and resurrection of
Jesus. For this reason Jesus was born, was revealed to the Magi,
was baptized, was crucified, and rose again.
This offer of God's grace is a gentle invitation, not
demands where He comes with might and force to impose His will on
all people. Isaiah wrote of the Lord's Chosen Servant:
He will not cry aloud or lift up his voice, or make it
heard in the street; a bruised reed he will not break,
and a faintly burning wick he will not quench; he will
faithfully bring forth justice.
The weakest faith in Jesus Christ as our Savior from sin and
death is saving faith. We are given eternal life because of
God's love, not because of our heroic deeds or great strength.
God gives us the forgiveness of sins for Christ Jesus' sake even
when we do not live the perfect, holy life. The truth is simple,
each Christian daily sins, is spite of our desire not to go
against God's law. Yet each day we are given the assurance that
Jesus took upon Himself our failures and has given us His
righteousness.
May our Lord continue to comfort us with the truth of His
grace, love, and mercy. Amen.Author: admin
The Lord’s Chosen Servant – Part 1: 01/08/2024
The Lord's Chosen Servant - Part 1
Isaiah 42:1
01/08/2024
1 Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in
whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon
him; he will bring forth justice to the nations.
(ESV)
Last Saturday the western Church celebrated the Feast of the
Epiphany, the revealing of Jesus as the Savior of the Gentiles as
well as the Jews. For the next several weeks our readings will
focus on Jesus being revealed as both true God and true Man, sent
by our heavenly Father to bear the guilt of our sin.
One of the traditional readings early in the Epiphany season
is the account of Jesus' baptism in the Jordan River by John the
Baptizer. Here the three Persons of the Trinity are present as
Jesus is anointed with water to take upon Himself the sins of the
world.
The Old Testament lesson for this week, from the forty-
second chapter of Isaiah, introduces the Servant of the Lord, a
prophesy about Jesus. As in the accounts of Jesus' baptism,
Isaiah speaks of the Trinity.
Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my
soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him; he will
bring forth justice to the nations.
When Jesus was baptized, the Father said from heaven, ``This
is my beloved Son, with whom I am will pleased,'' and the Holy
Spirit descended upon Jesus in the form of a dove.1 Jesus would
bring justice and righteousness to the nations by bearing the
sins of all people. Yet He brings salvation, not by force, but
by gentle invitation. ``Repent, for the kingdom of Heaven is at
hand,'' we heard both from John the Baptizer and Jesus, Himself.
The Kingdom He brings is of God's love, the gift of forgiveness
and eternal life.
May our Lord grant that we see in Jesus the Servant of the
Father who is revealed to us through the working of the Holy
Spirit. Amen.
____________________
1. Matthew 3:16-17The Gentiles’ Christmas — 01/05/2024
The Gentiles' Christmas
Isaiah 60:1-3
01/05/2024
1 Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the
glory of the LORD has risen upon you.
2 For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and
thick darkness the peoples; but the LORD will
arise upon you, and his glory will be seen upon
you.
3 And nations shall come to your light, and kings to
the brightness of your rising. (ESV)
Tomorrow is the Feast of the Epiphany when the Church
celebrates the Wise Men visiting Jesus. Epiphany comes from the
Greek word meaning sunrise or dawning. As such it has come to
mean an unveiling, a showing, or appearance of something
previously hidden. How fitting the meaning when the Old
Testament reading from Isaiah is remembered,
Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of
the LORD has risen upon you. For behold, darkness
shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples;
but the LORD will arise upon you, and his glory will be
seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light,
and kings to the brightness of your rising.
The day is called the ``Gentiles' Christmas'' because it is
the first time that the Bible records people outside the Jewish
community worshiping Jesus. Luke had recorded that Jewish
shepherds sought Jesus in the stable the night of His birth.
Simeon and Anna, both devout Jews, adored Jesus on the fortieth
day of His life when He was presented at the Temple. Now,
however, Jesus is shown as the Redeemer of all people, not simply
the biological descendants of Abraham.
Trinity Lutheran in Slayton and Saint Paul Lutheran in Fulda
are gathering tomorrow evening, January 6, at 7:00 p.m. to
celebrate this important Feast in the Church Year. Please join
us in this celebration.
We also invite you to join us on Sunday morning at Trinity
Lutheran in Slayton at 9:00 a.m. for the Divine Service where we
will commemorate the Baptism of Jesus.
May our Lord grant you the peace of knowing of His love,
grace, and mercy as found in Christ alone. Amen.The Righteous Branch — Part 4: 01/04/2024
The Righteous Branch - Part 4
Isaiah 11:5
01/04/2024
5 Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and
faithfulness the belt of his loins. (ESV)
Isaiah wrote: ``Righteousness shall be the belt of his
waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins.'' What do we mean
when we say God is righteous. In all things, God seeks that
which is good and rejects that which is evil.
The will of God is for all people to be saved, to come to
the knowledge of the truth of salvation by grace through faith
for the sake of Christ. Jesus, as the Messiah, did everything
towards the goal of earning for you the forgiveness of sins and
life everlasting.
The triumph of Jesus was overcoming the evil which clings to
our nature, which is passed from Adam through each father to each
child. Because Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit, because
He had no human father, Jesus did not have the original sin with
which we are born. In this way, Jesus is like Adam before the
fall into sin, being in the image of God, perfect and holy.
The Messiah was truly righteous, perfect in every way. He
overcame the temptations of the flesh, unlike our first parents.
He fully trusted in His heavenly Father, even when it cost Him
His life. He burst forth from the tomb on the third day after
His crucifixion because sin and death had no hold on Him.
Jesus exchanged our sin for His righteousness. Although we
still struggle with sin, although we will experience the sleep of
temporal death, we are declared holy in God's sight for the sake
of Christ. His righteousness overcame sin, death, and the power
of the devil. His righteousness is our hope and our salvation.
May our Lord grant you the peace of knowing you have been
given the righteousness of Christ. Amen.The Righteous Branch — Part 3: 01/03/2024
The Righteous Branch - Part 3
Isaiah 11:3-4
01/03/2024
3 And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord.
He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide
disputes by what his ears hear,
4 but with righteousness he shall judge the poor,
and decide with equity for the meek of the earth;
and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his
mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall
kill the wicked. (ESV)
Isaiah continued his description of the Messiah, the One God
sent to redeem His people from sin and death.
And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. He
shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide
disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness
he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the
meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with
the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips
he shall kill the wicked.
There are two things which stand out. First, Jesus delights
in respect, awe, reverence, and trust in His heavenly Father.
The fear of the Lord is not terror, but an acknowledgment that He
is our creator and the One who sustains us.
Second, as a judge, Jesus does not look at the external
evidence only. There is frequently an appearance of justice that
does not take into account the heart and soul of those involved.
This means, we will be surprised at some of the people we see in
heaven, and surprised at some of the people excluded. We see
actions, evidence of faith; our Lord sees the faith itself.
The Messiah seeks to help the poor, those with physical
needs, as well as those who are weak in spirit. His delight is
in saving all people from sin, death, and the power of the devil.
May our Lord grant us the strength of faith to trust in Him
for our redemption. Amen.The Righteous Branch — Part 2: 01/02/2024
The Righteous Branch - Part 2
Isaiah 11:2
01/02/2024
2 And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him,
the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit
of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and
the fear of the Lord. (ESV)
This week, as we prepare for Epiphany, also known as the
``Gentiles' Christmas,'' the readings which we heard in the
Divine Service tell us about the identity of Jesus. We know that
Jesus, as truly human, was a descendant of King David, which
fulfilled several prophecies written half a millenia before His
birth.
Jesus is also the Son of God, as we are reminded in one of
the most famous verses in the Bible, ``For God so loved the world
that He gave His only-begotten Son, that whosoever believes in
Him should not perish but have everlasting life.''2
Isaiah wrote of the Messiah, Jesus, the promised Savior:
``And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of
wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the
Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord.''
Jesus was full of the Holy Spirit, being one with Him as
part of the Trinity. Therefore, Jesus had complete knowledge of
God, and understood all the mysteries of God. He was present at
creation and all things were made through Him. As a result, with
perfect understanding, with the creative power of God, Jesus as
true man lived perfectly according to God's law. Only as true
God could Jesus perfectly keep the law. Only as true man could
His keeping of the law redeem us from sin and death.
May our Lord grant us the grace to know, accept, and trust
in Jesus as the incarnate Son of God who has earned for us the
forgiveness of our sins. Amen.
____________________
2. John 3:16
The Righteous Branch – Part 1: 01/01/2024
The Righteous Branch - Part 1
Isaiah 11:1
01/01/2024
1 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of
Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear
fruit. (ESV)
Today is the eighth day of Christmas, the day the church
remembers that Jesus was circumcised and named according to the
ceremonial laws given by God to Moses. As Jesus shed His first
drops of blood on our behalf, He took upon Himself the guilt and
punishment of our sin. Even on the eighth day of His life, Jesus
was our Savior from eternal death.
Seven hundred years before Jesus was born, the prophet
Isaiah spoke of the Savior as coming from the family of Jesse,
King David's father. Even though the events which followed
Isaiah's prophecy seemed to show that King David's dynasty was
obliterated, there remained descendants of the King who were poor
and humble.
Isaiah wrote: ``There shall come forth a shoot from the
stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots shall bear fruit.''
Both Matthew and Luke show that Jesus was descended from David.
The angel Gabriel told the virgin Mary, ``And behold, you will
conceive in your womb and bear a son, and you shall call his name
Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most
High. And the Lord God will give to him the throne of his father
David, and he will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of
his kingdom there will be no end.''1
Happy New Year, the long-promised Savior is born and has
taken on your sins and mine. May our Lord grant you a blessed
new year, and may you grow in faith towards God. Amen.
____________________
1. Luke 2:31b-33 (ESV)Lent / Easter — 2024
This year our Lenten series will focus on the fruits of faith as found in Galatians 5:22-23, “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.”
We will have Wednesday services at 12:00 p.m. with Responsive Prayer, and at 7:00 p.m. with Vespers. The sermon videos will be available on this website (Service Videos) the following afternoon. As always, the sermon manuscripts are available on the day of the service under Sermons and Publications.
Lent / Easter Special Services
This year our special services (Lent midweek, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunrise) built on the theme of the hymn of the day. Congregational singing is part of the rich heritage of the Lutheran Church. Not only are our teaching built strictly on the Bible, but we do not seek to hide any point of doctrine or practice.
With this in mind, Luther and the other reformers began writing hymns to explain salvation by grace through faith for the sake of Christ. These hymns clearly spoke of the grace of God, the history of salvation, and the chief parts of Christian doctrine. Such hymns as Salvation Unto Us Has Come and Dear Christians, One and All, Rejoice joined Luther’s catechetical hymns.
One hundred years later, in 1618, began the Thirty Years War, which was devastating to the German people. Millions of people died as a result of the war, famine, and plague. Yet from this period in history came some of the greatest hymns of comfort. Several of the hymns we studied this year were composed during his dark period of human history.
We chose the hymns to study based on the LCMS “Hymn of the Day” suggestions for the Lutheran Service Book. Although we could have used popularity or personal preference or some other criteria, we knew that this list of suggested hymns gave a good cross-section of Lutheran hymnody.
You can find the videos of the sermons on these hymns in the Lent Midweek — 2023 page of this website. I recorded some of the sermons in my office, others were recorded during the church service.
Throughout the Easter season we will continue to use the hymn of the day as the basis for the sermon. After all, these hymns are chosen because they help explain the Gospel reading or other readings of a given Sunday. By taking the time to explore what the hymn teaches about Jesus Christ, our Redeemer, we help reinforce the theme of the day.
Thank you for viewing these sermons. I look forward to your feedback.
The Lord’s Supper Revisited
The topic of the Lord’s Supper and Closed Communion came up today in several different contexts. With several people asking the same question, maybe it is time to revisit the topic and our practice.
Our bulletin announcement says:
“Holy Communion is celebrated this Sunday at Trinity Lutheran Church in the glad confidence that our Lord, as His Words say, gives not only bread and wine, but also His true Body and Blood for us to eat and drink for the forgiveness of sins. Our Lord invites to His table those who believe He is truly present, repent of all sin, and set aside any refusal to forgive as He forgives us. Because Saint Paul reminds us that we can receive the Lord’s Supper to our judgment, we are very careful to administer the Sacrament only to those who are properly prepared. When we receive Holy Communion, we publicly declare our agreement with the teachings of the church from which we receive it. Therefore, if you are not yet a member of this congregation, a sister congregation of the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod and if you have not previously spoken to the Pastor about Holy Communion, please refrain from coming forward to receive Communion until you have first spoken with the Pastor.
If you cannot receive the Lord’s Supper but desire a blessing, please join us at the Communion rail and cross your arms over your chest to tell the pastor of your intent.”
=======================================================
With this being said, we certainly practice closed Communion. Yes, the most important part of the Lord’s Supper is that which we receive from Christ Jesus. We receive His true body and true blood (doctrine of the Real Presence) for the strengthening of our faith and for the forgiveness of our sins. At the same time we are confessing a common faith, not only in Christ Jesus, but in all aspects of doctrine. Thus we are confessing that we are saved by grace alone, not by works. Thus we are confessing that the Bible is the Word of God, inspired and inerrant, and that the Law condemns certain actions such as abortion, homosexuality, and same gender marriage which are legal but immoral.
We believe, teach, and confess that Christ Jesus is sacramentaly present in, with, and under the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper. When Jesus said, “This IS my body,” He meant exactly what He said. This sacramental presence mirrors the incarnation of Jesus as true God and true man.
We also take very seriously Saint Paul’s admonition in 1 Corinthians 11:27 and following where we are warned that it is possible to take the Lord’s Supper to our judgment. Not all Christian congregations confess the Real Presence of Christ’s body and blood in the Supper, therefore we are careful not to give to those who doubt Jesus’ words the opportunity for their harm.
What about those who had been confirmed in the LCMS, and at one time made the good confession of faith? However, based on their spouse’s desires, or their own doubt, they left the LCMS and joined another church body. Their confession of faith is not what they said at confirmation, but they repudiated that when joining in a church body that teaches other than the Real Presence. They repudiated their confirmation when they joined a church body that dismisses some or all of the Bible. The confession of your church is your public confession. If your public confession is not in agreement with the LCMS, we would be helping you to bear a false witness of your faith. If you do privately agree with the Lutheran teachings, then you are lying about your confession when you commune at your home congregation. Either way, this is not a good thing.
In 1983, and again in 1999, the Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod published documents about the Lord’s Supper. These were prepared by the Commission on Theology and Church Relations (CTCR) to answer questions about our doctrine and practice. You can find both documents here: (https://www.lcms.org/about/leadership/commission-on-theology-and-church-relations/documents/lutheran-doctrine-and-practice).
All CTCR documents, as well as all Lutheran doctrines and writings, must stand under the clear Word of God. These statements explain our position concerning both the theology and practice of the Lord’s Supper in light of the Bible.
As a brief summary: We believe, teach, and confess that Jesus’ body and blood are truly present in, with, and under the bread and wine of the Lord’s Supper. He gives us this gift for the forgiveness of our sins and the strengthening of our faith. If someone who disagrees publicly with the doctrine of the Lord’s Supper, or the Christian faith in general (salvation by grace through faith for the sake of Christ), we cannot commune them until they repent of their false doctrine.
There is additional criteria for determining who I may commune, but that is outside the scope of this article.
If you desire to talk about our doctrine and practice, please feel free to contact me.