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Rev. Steven S. Billings
Epiphany 6
Sermon
2-11-2007

1 Corinthians 15:1-20

^{1 Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, 2 by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. 3 For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, 4 and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, 5 and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. 6 After that He appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep; 7 then He appeared to James, then to all the apostles; 8 and last of all, as it were to one untimely born, He appeared to me also. 9 For I am the least of the apostles, who am not fit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. 10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and His grace toward me did not prove vain; but I labored even more than all of them, yet not I, but the grace of God with me. 11 Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed. 12 Now if Christ is preached, that He has been raised from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? 13 But if there is no resurrection of the dead, not even Christ has been raised; 14 and if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain. 15 Moreover we are even found to be false witnesses of God, because we witnessed against God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise, if in fact the dead are not raised. 16 For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised; 17 and if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins. 18 Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. 19 If we have hoped in Christ in this life only, we are of all men most to be pitied. 20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep.}

 

The stage was set for the conflict. In tiny infant flesh the Lord of life had come to taste of death. But there was no need to feel sorry for Him. He wasn't a helpless pawn in the hands of the power brokers of this world. The stakes were much higher than that. This was a cosmic battle, and Jesus would come out on top. It was a fight to the death, and Jesus would win the victory by His death. For once the Victim would emerge as the Victor. The cross would not be a tragedy but a triumph – the crowning achievement of the King of Glory clothed in human flesh.

But let's backtrack to some of the earlier events that led up to and foreshadowed our Lord's victory on the cross. One event of particular importance was the arrival of the wise men from the East. Just exactly who they were, we don't know. Some say they were astrologers, some, stargazers, some, religious gurus. Tradition calls them the "Three Kings," but there's nothing to support the idea that there were only three of them, and it's highly unlikely they were kings. The only thing we know for certain is that we know very little. It's significant, however, that they simply appear out of nowhere and throw Herod into a tailspin.

Herod was the kind of ruler who would be threatened with news of foreign visitors seeking another King to worship. Herod was a paranoid, power_hungry ruler who arranged the assassination of several of his own sons to protect his throne. So it should come as no surprise that he could plot the death of the infant Christ. When the Magi came to him for help he piously pleaded for them to bring him news of Christ's whereabouts so he could also go and worship. But he was lying in his teeth, and the slaughter he later arranged for all the infant boys in Bethlehem revealed his real intent.

Thus the cross cast its shadow over the Lord of life already in His infancy. Death loomed ahead for Christ. You might even say it was His "job description." A death sentence hung over all humanity, and the death of God was the only way out from under it. Mankind was in bondage to death, so death had to die. But life itself was the price – the life of God embodied in human flesh. There was no way out. The cross was Jesus' ultimate and inescapable destiny. Of His own free will He came "to give His life as a ransom for many."

The next time we see His destiny unfolding is by the Jordan River, where John had set up his center of operations and was preaching a "Baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins." Clothed in camel’s hair and leather and eating locusts and wild honey, he was the very picture of the prophet Elijah who had called Israel to repentance in the days of wicked King Ahab. John identified himself as the "voice calling in the desert," as the one who was to prepare the way of the Lord. So, there in the desert along the Jordan, John was preaching his fiery message of repentance in anticipation of the Lord's coming. Centuries earlier Isaiah had predicted that just such a messenger would appear, so the people were ready to heed what he had to say. And after they heard him they came in droves to receive his Baptism.

But when Jesus stepped up to be Baptized, John objected, saying, "I need to be Baptized by You!" And we know what he meant. After all, Jesus had no sins of His own to confess, how could He qualify for John's Baptism? To his objections Christ replied, "It is proper for us to do this to fulfill all righteousness." You see, Jesus needed to do this for us, for his Baptism was not His own, it was ours. By His Baptism Jesus took upon Himself the obligation of the sins of the world. There He took up His cross as realistically as when Pilate's soldiers laid the crossbeam on His shoulders. There at the Jordan the sinless Son was made to be sin for us. The die was cast, His destination sealed, and in the water of His Baptism the Lord of life stepped heroically into our death.

In Adam all die, the Apostle reminds us, and that's the tragic consequence of the infamous Temptation in the Garden. On the surface it was a simple act – eating forbidden fruit. But on a deeper level, much more was at stake. Adam and his wife fell for the devils' favorite tactic – they chose their own prestige over the Word of God. "You must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil," the Creator had told them, "for when you eat of it you will surely die." "You will not surely die," the devil argued. "For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil." As is true with almost everything the Devil says, this was half_true. Before, Adam and his wife had known only good. Now, they would know evil as well. They would learn that when you aspire to be like God you lose something – you lose life – you end up with death. And that's exactly what happened – not only to Adam and Eve, but to every human being since.

"A liar and the father of lies," is what Jesus called Satan, and He should know from personal experience. For like Adam, Jesus also went head to head with him. In Eden the tempter conquered Adam, but in the Jordan desert the tables were turned. It was a new scene, but the same drama. At Calvary Jesus won the victory over Satan, but that victory began in the Jordan. There the New Adam gained the upper hand. God in human flesh, stood toe to toe with the devil – but this time the devil lost.

It wasn't as though Satan didn't try. In fact, he threw every trick in the book at our Lord. Though Jesus was fresh from the water of His Baptism and was headed for the cross, the devil thought perhaps he could cause Him to abandon His mission. But our King stood His ground. He met every temptation head on. He would not be deterred from the cross, for the wages of sin is death, and Jesus had come into this dying world determined to pay that debt. From the beginning in Jordan to the end at Calvary He had only one resolute purpose. It's here that we see the unbreakable link between Jordan and Calvary, water and blood, river and cross. And that link is death, the death of God for the life of the world.

That ought to be great news in the midst of our dying world, but for some reason the cross has lost much of its punch. When so many crosses hang on so many of our walls, adorn so many of our necks, and appear in so many of our Sanctuaries, St. Paul's claim that "the message of the cross is foolishness" seems strangely out of place. Even in our Lord's day the curiosity seekers saw nothing new or unique at Calvary. They'd seen it all before. There was a sordid routine to every execution in that day. There was the stripping, then the flogging, and finally the nailing. In the end they all looked pretty much the same – jagged, bleeding human flesh nailed up to die a horrible, agonizing death. And so, at least on the surface, Jesus' crucifixion was just like all the rest.

Stripped of His clothing, He was nailed up to die a shameful death, and the governor's official indictment – that He was the King of the Jews – was hung over His head in bitter mockery. The jeering mob thought they had the last laugh when they cried, "He saved others, but He can't save Himself!" But that's precisely the point. He didn't come to save Himself. He came to save us! Gladly, He laid down His life. Willingly, He bore our sin. Joyfully, He embraced our shame – and that's really the heart and soul of the matter, for while there's certainly guilt connected with sin, shame is the real killer. We can pass off our guilt on someone else, but there's no way to rid ourselves of shame. It lies there, deep inside the human heart, an ugly, festering wound within. And Jesus has not ignored it.

In fact, He removed it. Though He was God, He made Himself nothing. Taking the very nature of a servant, He humbled Himself and became obedient to death – even death on a cross. In His naked, shameful death, the Lord of life not only embraced sin's guilt, but its shame, as well. He bore the biting pain of our shame in His very body, and by His wounds we are healed. So, in spite of outward appearances, there was more going on there at Calvary than meets the eye. Pilate's biting parody proclaimed an ironic truth; though He governed no real estate and commanded no earthly armies, the King of the Jews, was, in fact, hanging there, dying. The mysterious Magi had been the first to introduce God's awesome saga, and here was its final chapter. The promised King had come, but His kingdom was not of this world. God in human flesh, had come to die. The Cosmic King had laid down His own life for the life of the world.

Here then, is the true sacndal of the cross – that God died for the sins of the world – for when Jesus died, God died! It's as simple – and as mind_boggling as that. Every complex theological argument or intellectual debate has to step aside in the face of the cross. You can't argue your way to this truth. You can't arrive at this conclusion by any rational debate. Human wisdom will always consider this message foolish and weak, but as Paul reminds us, "The foolishness of God is wiser than man's wisdom." And so this foolish, weak cross is the heart and center of the Christian Faith. All reality flows from it. We have no hope other than the cross of Christ and its message – the death of God for the life of the world.

From the day of Adam's rebellion, this life_filled world has always been on the brink of death. Dying to live, we're all dying just the same. But in the midst of death there is life. It's the life of Jesus Christ, whose very flesh embodies life. In His death on His cross, this living Lord brought life to our dying world, for His death means the death of death itself. On Calvary God shattered our shackles of bondage and defeated our most dreaded enemy. There on that site called the "Place of The Skull," the Lord of life snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. "It is finished," Jesus called out with His dying breath – and it was. All the power of sin and death died with Him. In His death Jesus Christ swallowed up death forever – and that's why the cross brings life.

Dear friends, there's no road to life apart from Jesus Christ. But there's also no need to live apart from Him either, for He's given His Church in every age a genuine link with His saving work. That link is Baptism. Baptism is what connects Jordan with Calvary – the river where He first confronted our death with the cross where He ultimately triumphed over it – by His own death. Sharing in His death by our Baptism, we also share in His resurrection. The link between our dying world and the living Lord is the washing He's given His Church. It's a life_giving water, because it's our link with the crucified and risen Savior. "As many of you as were Baptized into Christ have put on Christ," the Apostle writes, and so, in the midst of our dying world every Baptized child of God has a share in His never_ending life. By Baptism we die in Christ, and by Baptism we live in Christ. There's life in that death of His, and so also there is life in His washing – and that life is the very life of God. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
5^th Sunday After Epiphany
Sermon
2-4-2007

Luke 5:1-11

^{1 Now it came about that while the multitude were pressing around Him and listening to the word of God, He was standing by the lake of Gennesaret; 2 and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake; but the fishermen had gotten out of them, and were washing their nets. 3 And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon's, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the multitudes from the boat. 4 And when He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, "Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch." 5 And Simon answered and said, "Master, we worked hard all night and caught nothing, but at Your bidding I will let down the nets." 6 And when they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish; and their nets began to break; 7 and they signaled to their partners in the other boat, for them to come and help them. And they came, and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. 8 But when Simon Peter saw that, he fell down at Jesus' feet, saying, "Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!" 9 For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken; 10 and so also James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon. And Jesus said to Simon, "Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men." 11 And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.}

 

Like some of you, Jesus would rather be fishing. But not for that delicious lake perch or wall eye pike. Jesus would rather be fishing for people. He wants to take people out of the kingdom of darkness and bring them into the kingdom of light. He wants to take sinners and put them in His church where they receive the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation. He not only wants to do it, He does it and His apostles and His church do it.

"You will catch men" Jesus said to Peter and the others . . . and they did. They brought thousands of lost sinners into the church. But you know, Jesus is still saying, "You will catch men" . . . and we do. The Church is still bringing in lost sinners and giving them the gifts of Christ: the forgiveness of sins, the Holy Spirit and the promise of life everlasting.

The question for us to consider this morning is: how? How will we catch men? If you want to catch fish you have to have the right tools, and so it is with fishing for people. Our rod and reel, our box of tackle, is the Word of God.

It all begins with the Word of God. "One day as Jesus was standing by the Lake of Gennesaret, with the people crowding around him and listening to the word of God . . . "

"Listening to the word of God." Again and again the Scriptures exhort us to "listen" or "hear" the word of the Lord. Now that doesn’t mean just letting the words hit our eardrums. It means to meditate on it, to chew it up, to swallow it down, so that it gets into our brain and into our being.

Jesus spent most of His ministry teaching and preaching, which tells us that we should spend the most important part of our time listening and hearing. His Words are spirit and they are life.

Among those listening to the teacher were the future apostles. At this point they were fishermen who had come in from a night of fishing and were now on the shore cleaning their nets.

Jesus wanted a better podium from which to preach, so He got into Simon’s boat and asked him to put out a little from shore, and there in the boat Jesus kept right on teaching the Word to those who would hear it.

Everything about our Christian faith and life begins with and is dependent upon hearing the Words of Jesus. A disciple is first and always a hearer of the Word. This is necessary because faith comes from hearing and without faith it is impossible to please God. It's impossible to fish for men without the living faith that comes from the Words of Christ.

The Book of Acts tells us that the early church devoted themselves to the Apostle’s Doctrine and they did this by listening to their preaching and teaching. They became fishers of men because they sat in the school of Jesus and devoted their ears to His Words.

To demonstrate the power of His words, Jesus directed Simon and the others to "Put out into deep water, and let down the nets for a catch." Simon answered, "Master, we’ve worked hard all night and haven’t caught anything. But because you say so, I will let down the nets." Peter had his doubts about; nevertheless, "Because you say so," he said, "I will let down the nets."

You see, listening to the Words of Jesus necessarily involves believing the words of Jesus, and to believe the words of Jesus means to do the words of Jesus. Jesus said: "Go out in the deep water and let down the nets," and skeptical though he was, Peter listened. And "When they had done so, they caught such a large number of fish that their nets began to break."

In fishing for people, the net is the Gospel, for the Gospel is the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. When the Gospel net is dropped according to God's command, sinners are brought into the church. And in the boat of the church there is forgiveness of sins and fellowship with Christ.

Peter exemplifies this point. "When Simon Peter saw this, he fell at Jesus’ knees and said, ‘Go away from me, Lord; I am a sinful man!’ For he and all his companions were astonished at the catch of fish they had taken." In the boat of the Church, the eyes of sinners, like Peter’s eyes, are opened to the truth that they are sinners in the presence of God. The Law is preached, our eyes are opened to the horror of our sins, and we are terrified at our predicament. We are sinners in the presence of a Holy God. I wonder how many of us stop to consider this. Do you think we fully comprehend what it means to be sinners in the presence of a Holy God?

I don't know. We seem to approach the Lord's house so casually anymore. The way we dress, the kinds of conversations that take place before and after the service. So many don't even bother to come with any regularity, and others, if they make it in time for the sermon, they're doin' pretty good! Now, please, don't be offended. I don't mean to be critical, but don't you think that our laxity – and you must confess that it is laxity – don't you think it says something about our understanding of who and what we are in relation to God? I think it does. I think it says a great deal about that understanding. And I could be wrong, but what it says to me is that we take our salvation much too lightly, much too much for granted.

We need the Lord to open our eyes in order to grasp what is taking place here. We poor sinners are in the boat with God! Holy and Majestic is His name! Who was, who is, and who is to come, Almighty and Eternal is He. And if we have one fraction of a hint of who and what He is, we must cry out like Peter in abject despair: "Depart from me, Lord, for I am a sinful man!"

But the Holy One in the boat isn't just the mighty God; He is also the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. If you look closely at His holy hands you will see that He was wounded for our transgressions. Together with the holes in His feet, His side, and His brow, these wounds set our hearts at ease, saying: "Don’t be afraid; from now on you will catch men." "Don’t be afraid" is pure absolution. It is the voice of God saying, "your sins are paid for. Come, be with me, spend time with me; listen to my Word always and you will catch men."

Hopefully, we are concerned about catching people for Christ, for bringing them into the church. And I hope and pray that our goal is not simply to have more members for our congregation, more bodies to help share the workload, more wallets and purses to fill our offering plates. God help us if our desire is not first and foremost for more listeners, for more hearers of the Word, more Peter’s bewailing their sinful state, and then hearing the Savior say, "Do not be afraid."

This is what Jesus came for and this is what His church is here for – not so that we may rest easy with our storehouses full of grain. The church is not a storehouse; it's a lighthouse. And we have the great privilege of shining the light of Christ into this community.

Let us, therefore, devote ourselves to the Words of Jesus. For this is what will catch people for His Kingdom. Peter and the others followed their own reason and the result was a dark, fruitless night. And so it will be with us unless we pay heed to His Word.

To live by faith means to close the eyes of reason and say, "Because You say so, Lord, we will let down the nets." Because He says so, we will continue to use the tools He has given us. Because He says so, we will continue to teach, to preach and to administer His holy sacraments. And because He says so, we will catch men. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Epiphany 4
Sermon
1-28-2007

St. Luke 4:31-44

 

31 And He came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee. And He was teaching them on the Sabbath; ³² and they were amazed at His teaching, for His message was with authority. ³³ And there was a man in the synagogue possessed by the spirit of an unclean demon, and he cried out with a loud voice, ³⁴ "Ha! What do we have to do with You, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are-- the Holy One of God!" ³⁵ And Jesus rebuked him, saying, "Be quiet and come out of him!" And when the demon had thrown him down in their midst, he came out of him without doing him any harm. ³⁶ And amazement came upon them all, and they began discussing with one another saying, "What is this message? For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out." ³⁷ And the report about Him was getting out into every locality in the surrounding district. ³⁸ And He arose and left the synagogue, and entered Simon's home. Now Simon's mother_in_law was suffering from a high fever; and they made request of Him on her behalf. ³⁹ And standing over her, He rebuked the fever, and it left her; and she immediately arose and waited on them. ⁴⁰ And while the sun was setting, all who had any sick with various diseases brought them to Him; and laying His hands on every one of them, He was healing them. ⁴¹ And demons also were coming out of many, crying out and saying, "You are the Son of God!" And rebuking them, He would not allow them to speak, because they knew Him to be the Christ. ⁴² And when day came, He departed and went to a lonely place; and the multitudes were searching for Him, and came to Him, and tried to keep Him from going away from them. ⁴³ But He said to them, "I must preach the kingdom of God to the other cities also, for I was sent for this purpose." ⁴⁴ And He kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

 

Words have meanings. When used in the right context, words carry weight. This past week has seen a rush of hats thrown into the ring for those who wish to be President of the United States. We will listen to their words carefully. They may all say the same words, but it is up to each of us to decide whose use of these words carries the most weight. Right now these buzzwords are but promises. If elected, these promises may be deliver, or they may not. The candidates have no power in and of themselves. But should they be elected to the highest office in the land, their words can carry great authority and power, for the office has the authority and power, as our nation’s Constitution allows, to make good on promises made and to make new promises as well. The person who occupies the office of President has this power and authority because we the people grant it every four years.

Certain words have power only when the one uttering them has power himself. Such is the case in our text. No words have greater power than those spoken by the Lord Himself. No words have greater power than those that come from the One who created the world simply the word of His mouth. The One who said, "Let there be light" (Gen. 1:3a) is the same One who commanded the demonic spirit, "Be quiet, and come out of him!" (v. 35a) and is the same One who tells us, "You are forgiven." The Word of the Lord is absolute. Light came to be, the demonic spirit departed, and we are forgiven. We join the crowds in our text who "were all amazed and spoke among themselves, saying, ‘What a word this is! For with authority and power He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out’" (v. 36). The Lord came with authority and power, not with the authority that the scribes carried, for all the authority they had was in their reading and interpretation of the Law. They did not have the authority of the One who wrote and would later fulfill the Law from which they read, Jesus of Nazareth, the Holy One of God. The One who with a word commanded the waves to be still commands us to be still and know that He is God.

By a single word the Lord rebuked the demon that was in the man in the synagogue. By a single word the Lord rebuked the fever that infected Peter’s mother-in-law. By a single word the Lord rebukes the sin that infects us. Our sins are in need of the Lord’s rebuke so that they depart from us. We are also in need of the Lord’s rebuke, for we are by nature sinful and unclean. Our heavenly Father looks at us in the light of His Law, and with a single word He calls us sinners. He declares us guilty. By a single word He pronounces us condemned and worthy of eternal death and punishment. When Peter rebuked the Lord for predicting the crucifixion, the Lord rebuked Peter with a single word: "Get behind Me, Satan!" (Mk. 8:33b), which is the word He has for all those who "are not mindful of the things of God, but the things of men" (Mk. 8:33c).

We pray, "Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven." This means that "the good and gracious will of God is done even without our prayer…. God’s will is done when He breaks and hinders every evil plan and purpose of the devil, the world, and our sinful nature, which do not want us to hallow God’s Name or let His kingdom come…" (Third Petition). Yes, our sinful nature does not want us to keep God’s Name holy, nor does our sinful nature want to let God’s kingdom come. Our sinful nature does not want God’s will to be done. It doesn't even want to listen to the Word and will of God. Our sinful nature is content to listen to itself, to make itself our god. We utter many words, but none of them has the power to free us from the bondage and curse of sin, no matter how many words we use in denial of our dreadful condition. By a single word of ours we can only condemn ourselves. By a single word of ours we can only drive ourselves further into despair. By a single word of ours we cannot join the angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven, but can only join the demonic spirits and fevers that the Lord rebuked and cast out. They were forbidden to speak, for they knew that the Lord is the Holy One of God. The Lord would not have the forces of evil confess His Name, for they would only make a mockery of it. The great Church Father, Athanasius, once said, "Even when the demons spoke the truth, for they spoke the truth when they said, ‘Thou art the Son of God,’ the Lord Himself silenced them and forbade them to speak. He did this to keep them from sowing their own wickedness in the midst of truth. He also wished us never to get used to listening to them, even though they seem to speak the truth." The Lord Jesus Christ, the Son and Holy One of God, will not allow those who do not believe in Him as Savior and Lord to confess His Name. This includes the devil and his band of demons, the world, and our own sinful flesh. You see, our words have no power because we are not the Creator, but merely creatures who have fallen into sin. Another Church Father, Cyril of Alexandria, said, "He would not permit the unclean demons to confess Him. It was not right for them to usurp the glory of the apostolic office or to talk of the mystery of Christ with polluted tongues."

But by a single word the Lord can declare the unclean to be clean. The prophet Isaiah saw the face of God in a vision and believed he was going to die. Isaiah wrote, "Woe is me, for I am undone! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts" (Is. 6:5). An angel of the Lord touched Isaiah’s lips with a burning coal from the altar and said to him, "Behold, this has touched your lips; your iniquity is taken away, and your sin purged" (Is. 6:7b). In our Old Testament reading, the young Jeremiah, called by the Lord, claimed to not know how to speak, for he was but a youth. The Lord, by His Word, set Jeremiah aside as His called and ordained prophet: "Before I formed you in the womb I knew you; before you were born I sanctified you; I ordained you a prophet to the nations. … Behold, I have put My words in your mouth" (Jer. 1:5, 9b). The ascended Lord spoke to Peter in a vision and said, "What God has cleansed you must not call unclean" (Acts 10:15b).

By the Word of the Lord we are no longer called unclean, but cleansed, no longer called imperfect, but perfect, no longer called unholy, but holy, no longer called sinners, but saints. What is this Word of the Lord that has such power? It is the word the crucified Lord spoke from the cross, where He said, "Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they do" (23:34a), and again, "It is finished!" (Jn. 19:30b). By this word the Lord announced to the world that He had won forgiveness for sins and healing for the whole world. Christ, the Lamb of God, has taken away the sin of the world, has mercy upon us, and grants us His peace.

These words from the Lord’s lips and His act of salvation are the central message of the Gospel. God loved us in such a way that He sent His only-begotten Son, so that we who believe in Him will not perish but have everlasting life. This is the Word that the Lord came to proclaim. Before the Word became flesh, He sent His prophets to announce His coming, so that the people of God would place their trust in Him. He came into the flesh and declared that today is the day of salvation. Following His death, resurrection, and ascension, the Lord sent His apostles to proclaim the Good News, so that Jews and Gentiles alike would place their trust in Him who was, who is, and who is to come. For this reason He has sent me, His called and ordained servant in this place, to preach His Law and Gospel. He has sent me to announce to you the day of the Lord’s favor, to declare to you that you are forgiven by His simple word. Of course, you have heard these words before. You heard these words in the absolution this morning, and they are just as valid and certain, even in heaven, as if Christ our dear Lord dealt with us Himself. The Lord has given me a simple word to speak to you, but it is a word packed not with the power of my promise, but of His: "Upon this your confession, I, by virtue of my office as a called and ordained servant of the Word, announce the grace of God unto all of you, and in the stead and by the command of my Lord Jesus Christ I forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Ghost" (TLH, p. 16).

Soon you will hear His word of comfort again as He invites you to His Table: "Take and eat; this is My body, which is given for you. … Take and drink; this cup is the New Testament in My blood, which is shed for you for the remission of sins." Faith clings to these words and craves what they offer. They bring you healing for the sins that plague and terrorize your conscience. You need not fear. Though Satan may assail you, he has been defeated. In the words of Cyril of Alexandria, "The bystanders, witnesses of such great deeds, were astonished at the power of His word. He performed His miracles, without offering up a prayer, asking no one else at all for the power to accomplish them. Since He is the living and active Word of God the Father, by whom all things exist, and in whom all things are, in His own person He crushed Satan and closed the profane mouth of impure demons." We too are astonished at the power of God’s Word—astonished, but not ashamed, as St. Paul writes, "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes…" (Rom. 1:16). The Gospel is the power, for the Lord has filled it with His death and resurrection. Through the very word of the Gospel we are forgiven, restored, and made clean.

As we depart in peace today from our Lord’s house, He will again restore us with His Word, placing His Name upon us, even as He commanded His servants Moses and Aaron to do, saying: "This is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them: ‘The Lord bless you and keep you; the Lord make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.’" So they shall put My Name on the children of Israel, and I will bless them’" (Num. 6:23b-27). This is the Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God! In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Epiphany 3
Sermon
1-21-2007

St. Luke 4:16-30

 

16 And He came to Nazareth, where He had been brought up; and as was His custom, He entered the synagogue on the Sabbath, and stood up to read. ¹⁷ And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book, and found the place where it was written, ¹⁸ "THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR. HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE DOWNTRODDEN, ¹⁹ TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD." ²⁰ And He closed the book, and gave it back to the attendant, and sat down; and the eyes of all in the synagogue were fixed upon Him. ²¹ And He began to say to them, "Today this Scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing." ²² And all were speaking well of Him, and wondering at the gracious words which were falling from His lips; and they were saying, "Is this not Joseph's son?" ²³ And He said to them, "No doubt you will quote this proverb to Me, 'Physician, heal yourself! Whatever we heard was done at Capernaum, do here in your home town as well.'" ²⁴ And He said, "Truly I say to you, no prophet is welcome in his home town. ²⁵ "But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land; ²⁶ and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow. ²⁷ "And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian." ²⁸ And all in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; ²⁹ and they rose up and cast Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. ³⁰ But passing through their midst, He went His way.

 

Jesus stood up in the Temple and preached good news to the poor. He announced that He had been sent to heal the brokenhearted. He proclaimed freedom for the prisoners, recovery of sight for the blind, and release for the oppressed. And when He proclaimed this unmerited favor of God, this grace, this peace that surpasses and defies all understanding, "the people drove Him out of town, and took Him to the brow of the hill on which the town was built, in order to throw Him down the cliff" (Luke 4:29).

What is it about grace that exposes such sordid passions in the hearts of men? Is it simply that grace defies the human compulsion to attain things by our own merit? Is it the cynical notion that there's no such things as a free lunch? Is it that God's grace in Christ Jesus is all-inclusive, that is to say, that it is for all people? Or, is it that grace presupposes its own need? In other words, is it that grace presupposes the existence of sin, the all-consuming justice of God, and the need for repentance? What is it about grace that it exposes such contemptible notions in the hearts of men?

When Jesus read from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, He concluded His reading by saying, "today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing." Even as He offered them grace, the people accused Him of blasphemy!! As surprising as that may seem, it demonstrates very well a divine truth concerning the depravity of the human condition. Strangely enough, the sound of grace, at least to our human ears, IS blasphemy!! We don't take kindly, you see, to the acquittal of the guilty. In fact, we consider such a thing to be a miscarriage of justice, an INjustice. Ingrained into the very fabric of our hearts is the notion that someone has to pay, someone has to atone for every last wrong perpetrated upon the innocent. "Blessed (writes the Psalmist) are those who keep justice, and he who does righteousness at all times" (Ps. 106:3). Robert Durst, the heir to a New York real estate fortune, was acquitted of murdering his neighbor Morris Black. It seems quite remarkable, doesn't it, that a man could take a human life, dismember the body, and yet, be acquitted of any wrong-doing? Right or wrong, innocent or guilty, the whole incident stirs passions over the issue of justice. Is there justice in this world of ours? Can we expect a day of reckoning for the guilty?

The cry for justice is indelibly written on our hearts. Someone has to pay. Someone has to atone for every last wrong perpetrated upon the innocent. And so, as Jesus proclaimed that "the year of God's favor had come," and in that favor "prisoners would be set free," He was accused of espousing a despicable doctrine. Grace, you see, by human standards, is a scandalous proposition, precisely because it is free, and because it serves to acquit the guilty. And yet, we are "saved by grace through faith." When does grace cease to offend, so that it takes hold of a person and they begin to look in faith to Jesus Christ for their hope and salvation? Earlier I said that grace presupposes its own need, that it presupposes the existence of sin, the all consuming justice of God, and the need for repentance. Jesus said: "do not give what is holy to the dogs; nor cast your pearls before swine, lest they trample them under their feet, and turn and tear you in pieces" (Matt. 7:6).

The Gospel, the grace of God in Christ Jesus conveyed upon a lost and condemned world, is the very pearl upon which the swine will trample if the way has not been properly prepared. A short time ago a retired Lutheran pastor was attacked on the street by another man. What was it that brought on such an attack? The pastor walked up to the man and asked him if he knew that Jesus Christ loved him and that He died for him.

Jesus said, "I have been anointed to preach good news to the poor." This, of course, isn't simply a reference to those who are poor financially. After all, He wasn't sent to simply preach good news to the monetarily challenged. (How's that for politically correct speech?) No, He was sent to preach good news to the "poor in spirit." God's Law, you see, properly applied, will leave each and every one us grasping for hope, looking for some tidbit of comfort to set our hearts at ease. The Law never relents!! It always demands!! It always commands: Do this or die!! What does God require of you? Well, Jesus clearly told you in His Sermon on the Mount. "Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father in heaven is perfect." That is the standard. That is the haunting demand of God's Law. And yet, as the Apostle Paul says, "what I am doing, I do not understand. For what I will to do, that I do not practice; but what I hate, that I do." (Romans 7:15) And so, as God's Law pushes you down, and you look further and further into your own heart for that morsel of comfort, you will find, rather, a poverty of spirit that has nothing, absolutely nothing, to offer.

In Seven Great Statesmen, Andrew D. White tells of the death of Hugo Grotius, the great Dutch and Swedish political figure of the early 1600s. His account touches the deep places of the heart. On his way home from a journey Grotius was shipwrecked on the Pomeranian coast. Gravely ill, he managed to get as far as Rostock. There the famous scholar, jurist, and diplomat lay on his deathbed. The local Lutheran pastor, learning of his presence, came to see him. He greeted the dying man kindly, then simply read to him our Savior's parable of the Pharisee and the publican, ending with the words "God, be merciful to me, a sinner!" At that the dying statesman opened his eyes and exclaimed, "Dear Lord, I am that publican!"

Such is the confession of the "poor in spirit." But then, Jesus steps forth in His Temple and offers you Himself, that the sordid passions of your heart that fight and war against grace might instead be overcome by it. Jesus, who proclaims good news to your impoverished, desperate soul, becomes the all-consuming riches of your life, for without Him there simply is no life. Scripture says, "for you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though He was rich, yet for your sakes He became poor, that you through His poverty might become rich" (2 Cor. 8:9).

Jesus, the very One who gives His own riches to make the poor in spirit wealthy, also proclaims "liberty for the captives." Since the demand for justice is indelibly written on our hearts, it is quite understandable when we sense that we are cheated when justice is not served. And yet, in this one instance, we rejoice in being so cheated!! In this instance, you see, justice prevails, but not at the expense of the unjust. Rather, it prevails through the sacrifice, through the atonement, of someone else. And so, in the end, the scandalous proposition of grace would finally triumph, for Jesus would win the victory over sin, death and the devil in the scandal of the Cross!! The Innocent would die that the guilty may go free!!

 

"Since Christ has full atonement made
And brought to us salvation,
Each Christian therefore may be glad
And build on this foundation.
Your grace alone, dear Lord, I plead,
Your death is now my life indeed,
For you have paid my ransom."

 

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

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Epiphany 2
Sermon
1-14-2007

St. John 2:1-11

1 And on the third day there was a wedding in Cana of Galilee, and the mother of Jesus was there; ² and Jesus also was invited, and His disciples, to the wedding. ³ And when the wine gave out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, "They have no wine." ⁴ And Jesus said to her, "Woman, what do I have to do with you? My hour has not yet come." ⁵ His mother said to the servants, "Whatever He says to you, do it." ⁶ Now there were six stone waterpots set there for the Jewish custom of purification, containing twenty or thirty gallons each. ⁷ Jesus said to them, "Fill the waterpots with water." And they filled them up to the brim. ⁸ And He said to them, "Draw some out now, and take it to the headwaiter." And they took it to him. ⁹ And when the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, ¹⁰ and said to him, "Every man serves the good wine first, and when men have drunk freely, then that which is poorer; you have kept the good wine until now." ¹¹ This beginning of His signs Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, and manifested His glory, and His disciples believed in Him.

 

"And when they ran out of wine, the mother of Jesus said to Him, 'they have no wine.'" The occasion, of course, was a wedding. It took place in the little village of Cana, in the province of Galilee. One of the worst things that could have happened at a wedding feast would be to run out of wine. And that's precisely what happened here. Mary pointed out the faux pas to see what Jesus would do about it. As she did, the other guests must have looked on with great anticipation and expectation, wondering what, if anything, He would do.

Jesus told the servants to take the six stone waterpots that were there for the Jewish rite of purification, or ceremonial washing, and fill them up with water. Each pot, we are told, would hold about twenty or thirty gallons. And so, with Jesus' instruction, the servants went off to draw something like 120 to 180 gallons of water. When the pots were filled they brought them to Jesus.

"Draw some out now (Jesus said), and take it to the headwaiter." And when the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from, he said to the bridegroom: "Every man serves the good wine first, and when men have drunk freely, then that which is poorer; you have kept the good wine until now."

Prohibitionists and pietists would argue that Jesus would never provide wine simply so that hearts could be made merry. And yet, God's Word has already declared that wine is among God's many and varied gifts, given to "make glad the heart of man." (Ps. 104:15) And so, He who would give His own blood, "in, with, and under" the fruit of the vine to gladden our hearts with salvation, here gives the good wine, so that the hearts of those gathered to celebrate the joining of a man and woman in the sacred bond of marriage might be made glad. Jesus, you see, is not above celebrating the Father's good gifts. His piety, in other words, the way in which He lives out his life includes celebration, joy and laughter.

This is the first of the signs that Jesus performed during the three years of His Galilean ministry. John records in his gospel, a number of other "signs," or key miracles, revealing Jesus as God_in_the_flesh. I would like to refer now to this first "sign" and the last "sign," as we consider this morning the grace of God in His "Power and Will to Give."

Let's begin with the last "sign" in John's gospel. And from there we'll work our way back to this first sign, in which Jesus turned water into wine. In the 11th chapter of his gospel, John tells us about the raising of Lazarus from the dead. Martha had pleaded with Jesus to come to her house because her brother Lazarus was greatly ill. When Jesus arrived at the house, He found that Lazarus had already died, and in fact, He found that he had been dead and in the tomb for four days. John tells us that when Jesus came to the tomb of His friend "He groaned in His spirit," and that "He wept." In other words, Jesus cried over the loss of such a close and dear friend.

And then, all at once, His power to give life and salvation was revealed. At the sound of His voice, even death and the grave had to submit and give up its prey. "Lazarus," (Jesus said) come forth!" "And he who had died came out bound hand and foot with grave clothes, and his face was wrapped with a cloth. And Jesus said 'Loose him, and let him go.'" What a phenomenal sign of Jesus' power!! "I am the resurrection and the life (He said). He who believes in Me, though he may die, yet shall he live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die."

It is this same Jesus, dear friends, whose power reigns over death and the grave, who forms your faith and life. Death's power to bind you in misery has been trumped, for God's power is far greater than the fear of life's last gasping breath. A noble Christian woman, as she lay dying, overheard the doctor whisper, "She's sinking fast." The dying woman smiled and replied, "I'm not sinking; I can't sink through a Rock." Death has met its match in Christ, the Rock upon whom the church is built. Death, Scripture says, "has been swallowed up in victory." Death has been consumed by Jesus, even as it consumed Him on the cross.

It is this power of God to give life and salvation which makes us so incredibly confident. Seldom do we doubt that God can do what He promises. Our doubt, indeed, the sin of which we must continually repent before God, involves not so much our trust in His power to give, but rather, our trust that He is willing to give. We've fallen prey to the tempter, who first plagued Adam in the Garden with the notion that God could not be trusted with the direction of our lives. And so, we wonder if our needs, our cries, our pleas, are of any consequence or concern to Him. We wonder if His all_sufficient power to save extends beyond the great spiritual struggles and battles of life to the everyday, mundane things that fill our days. We wonder if God is as attentive to us in the still small hours of the night as He is when we gather here before His altar.

In our sin, we come again to the sign of the good wine at the wedding in Cana of Galilee, for He who spared the good wine to the last, has spared, and poured out, for us also the good wine, that we might have the forgiveness of our every sin. As you, friends, consume this good wine, poured out for you here, you are again brought to trust that, just as there is no limit to God's power to give you His salvation, neither is there a limit to His will to give. Here you learn again and again how freely and confidently you may take your petitions to God in prayer, knowing that even the little mundane things of your life are important to Him. "God will cause all things to work together for good to those who love Him and have been called according to His purpose." Everything in your life, you see, is significant to God as He takes you from this vale of tears to the heavenly home that He has already prepared for you.

Consider if you would, what it was that first moved Jesus to reveal His glory to the world. Remember, this incident at the wedding in Cana is the first "sign" of Jesus' glory. So, what was it that first moved Him to reveal His glory? Of all things, it was the danger of embarrassment for the host of a wedding feast, wasn't it? Well, it was that, plus His concern for the gladdened hearts of the guests!! You might be inclined to wonder what possible interest Jesus could have in such seemingly trivial things. And yet, in such wonder, you come precisely to the point û "Come, my soul, with every care, Jesus loves to answer prayer; He Himself bids you to pray, Therefore will not turn away. You are coming to your King, Large petitions with you bring; For His grace and power are such None can ever ask too much." (LW 433)

God's power and His will to give. To consider God's will to give is really to look into the heart of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. God willed that His Son suffer and die in your place. He willed that you be declared righteous as His Son was declared sinful. Come today, beloved, and take what God wills to give you. The good wine has been poured once again. "He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall he not with Him also freely give us all things?" (Rom. 8:32) In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Epiphany Sunday
Sermon
1-7-2006

St. Matthew 2:1-12

 

1 Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, magi from the east arrived in Jerusalem, saying, ² "Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we saw His star in the east, and have come to worship Him." ³ And when Herod the king heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. ⁴ And gathering together all the chief priests and scribes of the people, he began to inquire of them where the Christ was to be born. ⁵ And they said to him, "In Bethlehem of Judea, for so it has been written by the prophet, ⁶ 'AND YOU, BETHLEHEM, LAND OF JUDAH, ARE BY NO MEANS LEAST AMONG THE LEADERS OF JUDAH; FOR OUT OF YOU SHALL COME FORTH A RULER, WHO WILL SHEPHERD MY PEOPLE ISRAEL.'" ⁷ Then Herod secretly called the magi, and ascertained from them the time the star appeared. ⁸ And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, "Go and make careful search for the Child; and when you have found Him, report to me, that I too may come and worship Him." ⁹ And having heard the king, they went their way; and lo, the star, which they had seen in the east, went on before them, until it came and stood over where the Child was. ¹⁰ And when they saw the star, they rejoiced exceedingly with great joy. ¹¹ And they came into the house and saw the Child with Mary His mother; and they fell down and worshiped Him; and opening their treasures they presented to Him gifts of gold and frankincense and myrrh. ¹² And having been warned by God in a dream not to return to Herod, they departed for their own country by another way.

 

The Feast of the Epiphany on January the 6th originated among the Christians of the East, as a triple celebration of the Nativity, the Baptism, and the first Miracle of Christ. In each case, the focus of the Day was the incarnate manifestation of Divine Glory, the appearance of God in the flesh.

Western influence has moved the Nativity to its familiar location in December, and the Epiphanies of our Lord are celebrated among us in the course of a Season. Ideally, this provides an opportunity to consider more thoroughly the significance of the Word-made-Flesh. At any rate, it does allow the Visit of the Magi to stand alone on center stage on its own day, which we, as in many congregations, transfer to the nearest Sunday. And well it should stand alone, for the worship of the Magi in the House of Christ is a beautiful portrait of our own confession: a recognition of His incarnate Deity (God in Man made manifest). In this respect, the Magi are the perfect hinge between Christmas and Epiphany, because they teach us the proper response to the Nativity and prepare us for the Season now dawning.

It is clear that Saint Matthew has recorded this story, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, in such a way as to proclaim and teach the theology of Christ. Dr. Martin Luther, for example, was pleased to see these Magi from the East as a fulfillment of the Prophecy from Isaiah (in which case we know more about these foreign visitors from the Old Testament than the New). Also suggestive are parallels with the visit by the Queen of Sheba to the earlier son of David, King Solomon; indeed, Jesus Himself will call attention to that narrative at some point later in the Gospel According to Saint Matthew. But one greater than Solomon is here!

Indeed, the Almighty and Eternal Son of the living God is here revealed in the human flesh and blood of Jesus. The fact that the Magi come to worship Him as such demonstrates their faith in His Divinity. "For thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and Him only shalt thou serve." But notice how carefully Saint Matthew describes the object of their worship as "the young Child with His Mother." It is the true-God-in-the-Flesh to Whom they pay homage, that is, the Child born of Mary.

Let's give the Magi credit, then, for such astute theological insight. They didn't have the benefit of Nativity scenes and Christmas pageants to guide their steps; there was no script for them to follow. Their prostrate worship in the presence of a poor little infant is an astounding confession of faith. Would that we, with all our Bibles and theology, had less pride and more reverent humility in the presence of Christ Jesus (who is here with you, even now, in His human flesh and blood). For "the Word became Flesh and dwelt among us." Only in this way have we "beheld His glory, the glory of the one and only Son." Only in this way has He "revealed the Father to us."

But there is more to it than even this astounding revelation of God in the Flesh. In contrast to the worship of the Magi, those who hear the Gospel from Saint Matthew already know what Herod really has in mind for the Christ Child, and how he will slaughter the Holy Innocents in his vain attempt to destroy the newborn King of the Jews. And even though the Christ Himself will be delivered from that menace, you see and hear in this the foreshadowing of His Cross.

Thus did He come to His own, but His own did not receive Him; He was in the world, and the world was made by Him, but the world did not know Him. Rather, He is under attack from the start, and, as such, the Epiphany of His Divine Glory is manifested under persecution, suffering, and the pain of death. It's all foolishness to the world; but for you, by faith, it is the grace and power of salvation.

Even the description of Christ as the "King of the Jews" foreshadows the epitaph on His Cross. Indeed, it is precisely there, on the Cross, that He will conquer the kingdoms of this world and take His throne as the everlasting King of Jews and Gentiles alike – the Lamb once slain for sinful men.

Christians from at least the second century onward saw all of this revealed in the gifts presented to Christ by the Magi. So also Martin Luther, for example, who interpreted the gifts in this way:

 

"The sacrifice of gold signifies the confession of the Magi that Christ is a King; the frankincense, that He is a Priest between God and man; the myrrh, that He died and was buried. These three aspects apply to the humanity of Christ, but in such a way that He is God and that all of this happened to Him in mortal flesh because of His Divinity."

"For He could not be the King over all things for our good, if He had not first reconciled God with us and quieted our conscience, so that He might rule and do His work within us in peace and quiet, as in His own Kingdom. Therefore He also had to be our Priest. But if He was to be a Priest and reconcile us with God, He had to satisfy God's righteousness for us. But no other satisfaction was possible than for Him to offer Himself and die and in His own Person conquer sin together with death. Thus, in dying He became our Priest, and through His Priesthood He received the Kingdom."

 

All of this our dear Lord Jesus Christ has suffered and achieved for you and for me. That is to say, in Him, "God became Man, so that man might (by grace) become divine (in Christ)." He became like you in every way, only without any sin of His own. He lived a human life on your behalf (under the Law, and under the burden of your sin); and by His sacrificial death, He destroyed forever the power that death and the devil held over you. Therefore, also, by His bodily Resurrection from the dead, and by His Ascension into heaven as the One who remains (now and forever) true Man, He has raised you up with Himself to the everlasting Life and Salvation.

This is the great "Mystery" of the Christian faith (as described by St. Paul): the forgiveness, life, and salvation of Christ, especially in His incarnational revelation of the true Divine Glory – certainly, in the Incarnation itself, and most especially by the Cross, but so also in His Church on earth, in the preaching of the Gospel and in His Holy Sacraments. Thus, the "Mystery of Christ" has been revealed to His New Testament Apostles and Prophets, including Saint Paul; and these, in turn, have made known the Mystery of Christ to His Church.

Such is the grace and mercy given by the Spirit of Christ to His Ministers of Preaching and the Sacraments down to our own day, as well. And this is no small thing, that the human proclamation of the Gospel is in fact a bodily manifestation of the full Divine Glory in Christ; that the pastoral administration of such earthly things as water, bread and wine – with nothing but a few simple Words – is a very real participation in the unsearchable riches of Christ.

However foolish and humble all of this might appear to human eyes, it is a demonstration in the Church of Divine Wisdom, which makes the principalities and powers sit up and take notice. For in Christ, you have access to the heights of Divine Glory, where even the holy angels dare not tread.

But now, as someone who is given to follow in the footsteps of Christ, the incarnate Son of God, you should also understand that to share in His Divine Glory (in this life on earth) means precisely nothing more and nothing less than to share in His Cross and suffering. For now, your participation in His glory is not "in spite of" the Cross, but rather in the Cross itself (first of all), and then, by extension, in your sacrificial love and service to others. For these (the Cross and sacrifice) are the true glory of Christ and the manifestation of His full divinity as the only-begotten Son of the Father.

Consider the example of the Magi. Though they saw nothing but a rundown shack and a poor young Mother with her poor little Babe – not much of a king; more pitiful than one of their own servants – still, they did not falter; but with a great, strong faith, they cast out all the misgivings of common sense, and, following nothing but the Word of a Prophet and the witness of a star, they accepted Him as a King, fell on their knees, worshiped Him, and presented their treasures.

Do not be offended, therefore, by the lowly estate of your neighbors (and of the Christian Church, for that matter), but rather see Christ in them. For the everlasting Kingdom of Christ is found among the lowly and the despised, in persecution, misery, and under the Cross. Those who look for Christ anywhere else will never find Him. The Magi discovered Him – not at Herod's court, not with the high priests, not in the great city of Jerusalem – but in that little town of Bethlehem, with lowly folk, with Mary and Joseph. In a word, they found Him where no one in all the world would ever have expected.

Like the Magi, you are granted to recognize the true Divine Glory in the Cross of Christ, and in His humble flesh and blood, solely by the revelation of His Word (received by faith alone). For though the star attracted the attention of the Magi, it was nevertheless what the Word of God said about that Star (the Prophecy of Balaam in Numbers 24) that set them on their way to Jerusalem. And it was not the star at all, but the Prophecy of Micah, that finally sent them to the Child in Bethlehem.

So, aside from the historical fact of the star (as an astronomical phenomenon), let us be far more attentive to the theological implications contained in the words of Saint Matthew and the Magi. The real "Star" of the story (pardon the pun) – the Star of true significance – is the Morning Star now rising in your heart by His grace. It was the Child, after all, and not the star, which the Magi sought and worshiped. In Him are the Prophecies of Balaam and Micah fulfilled and made more sure.

Thus, the startling contrast in this Holy Gospel: The chief priests and scribes know where the Christ is born – and they certainly know (or they ought to know) more than pagan Magi who and what this Christ will be – and yet, they are content with their knowledge, content to stay at home in Jerusalem with their Bibles, while the very Christ of God waits less than ten miles away (in the flesh). . . .

The Magi, on the other hand, receive the Word of God as it is meant to be received, in such a way that it drives them and compels them to seek out the Christ, their Savior and their God-in-the-flesh, to find Him and worship Him. The Magi rely on the Word, to be sure, but they are not content with Scripture for its own sake. They cling to it solely for the sake of Christ, to Whom it points and leads.

Those in our own day who think it sufficient (or even preferable) to stay at home with their Bibles and forsake the Divine Service of Christ in His Church have missed the whole point. They search the Scriptures, because they think that in them they have eternal life; but they do not find it, because they don't allow themselves to be led by the Word to the Word-made-Flesh.

But, No! Like the Magi, follow the guidance and direction of the Word to the place where Christ is present for you; enter the House of Christ, and see Him cradled in the bosom of His Church. And here, in this "Bethlehem" (in this "House of Bread"), receive His holy presence with thanksgiving.

It is not simply a matter of architecture, but a truly theological proclamation of Divine grace, when Saint Matthew writes that the Magi "entered the House and saw. . . ." Called by the Word and Spirit of God into the House of the Lord, they are enlightened by His grace and grafted into the true house and lineage of Abraham (the children of Abraham by faith in Christ). Their lives are fundamentally changed; they return to their earthly homes by an entirely different way – having been called away from the false belief and treachery of Herod (who is, by the way, no longer described as "the king").

No longer are these Magi guided by the majesty of heaven, but rather by the Star Who has risen for them – in the flesh – here on earth. They had come to worship Him and offer gifts, but He has blessed them with the richest gift of all: a participation in His Divine Life. Sacrificing themselves by repentance and faith, they have received all things in heaven and on earth from Christ the King.

So also for you: Your too-frequent failure to believe the Word, to follow the Star, to worship the Lord as you should – your tendency to live far more like Herod than the Magi – is resolved and forgiven, not by greater efforts or "New Year's" resolutions on your part, but solely by the ultimate Epiphany of God in the Flesh: His sacrificial death upon the Cross in your stead, for your salvation.

It is by that Divine Glory that He comes to dwell with you this evening, in this place – giving you the very flesh and pouring out for you the precious blood of His holy Passion. God grant you His grace, that you may follow the example of the Magi in receiving these gifts . . . confessing the Divine Kingship of Christ, your Lord and Savior, and praising His goodness with your lips and with your lives. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
New Year's Eve
Sermon
12-30-2006

Romans 8:31b-39

 

31 If God is for us, who is against us? ³² He who did not spare His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how will He not also with Him freely give us all things? ³³ Who will bring a charge against God's elect? God is the one who justifies; ³⁴ who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is He who died, yes, rather who was raised, who is at the right hand of God, who also intercedes for us. ³⁵ Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? ³⁶ Just as it is written, "FOR THY SAKE WE ARE BEING PUT TO DEATH ALL DAY LONG; WE WERE CONSIDERED AS SHEEP TO BE SLAUGHTERED." ³⁷ But in all these things we overwhelmingly conquer through Him who loved us. ³⁸ For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, ³⁹ nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

 

A letter appeared not long ago in Good News magazine, which read as follows:

 

I want to talk to you about my brother, who was baptized, confirmed, went to church until he got out on his own, but now does not go to church. Some people have suggested that he might no longer be saved. My concern is whether he is or not. Good News magazine talks about how baptized people are saved, but my brother now has nothing to do with the Church. Please clear up my confusion.

 

The response from the editor was this:

 

Of course, I will not attempt to determine for you whether or not your brother is a believer in our Lord Jesus Christ. I will, however, give you a way of thinking about God's gift of Baptism that I pray will be helpful not only in your own understanding, but also as you continue to speak about God's gift of salvation with your brother.

First of all, you are right that God most certainly creates faith and salvation in His gift of Baptism. The Scriptures not only call Baptism a "washing of rebirth" (Titus 3:5) and a "washing away of sins" (Acts 22:16), but God's Word also declares, "Baptism now saves you" 1 Peter 3:21). Your heavenly Father also adds His promise that no one can take away from you the salvation He gives. As St. Paul wrote:

"I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39).

With these words, God assures us that His gift of salvation cannot be taken away from us by any enemy or power – not even the most elemental powers of the universe!

However, the Scriptures also make it clear that a Christian can throw away the gift of salvation that God gives. David fell from the Christian faith when he committed adultery and murder (2 Samuel 11), and he needed to be re-converted again by the Holy Spirit working through the word of Nathan's preaching (2 Samuel 12). This is how Martin Luther described David's situation:

"It is necessary to know and teach that when holy people – aside from the fact that they still have and feel original sin and also daily repent of it and struggle against it – somehow fall into public sin (such as David, who fell into adultery, murder, and blasphemy against God), at that point faith and the Spirit have departed. The Holy Spirit does not allow sin to rule and gain the upper hand so that it is brought to completion, but the Spirit controls and resists so that sin is not able to do what it wants. However, when sin does whatever it wants, then the Holy Spirit and faith are not there. As St. John says [1 John 3:9]: 'those who have been born of God do not sin, and cannot sin.' Nevertheless, this is also the truth (as the same St. John writes [1:8]): 'If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth of God is not in us'" (Smalcald Articles, part 3 article 3.43-45, emphasis added).

With these words, Martin Luther follows the Scriptures and distinguishes between two types of sinners: repentant sinners and unrepentant sinners. Everybody always has sin, and sin remains inescapable, even for Christians! (Luke 5:8; Romans 7:15, 18-24; 1 John 1:8-9). Those who by the power of the Holy Spirit daily repent of their sin and wish to be free of it are counted righteous before God for the sake of Christ (Psalm 32:3-5, Proverbs 28:13, 1 John 1:9). The unrepentant – those who are no longer bothered by their sins, or refuse to take them seriously – forfeit every blessing that God gives in Baptism. This includes forgiveness, life and salvation. For this reason, the early Lutheran Reformers wrote simply and clearly: "Rejected here are those

who teach that whoever has become righteous cannot fall again" (Augsburg Confession, Article XII).

Here are some analogies to help you think about what Baptism is and what it is not. I hope and pray that these will especially be helpful to you as you speak to your brother about God's wonderful gift of eternal life that comes through Baptism.

What Baptism is Not: * Baptism is not a prison cell, in which you become confined against your will. * Baptism is not a magical incantation, like Abracadabra, that turns you into something you might not want to be. * Baptism is not a tool you carry around just in case you need it, like the ice scraper underneath your car's front seat.

What Baptism Is: * Baptism is your passport or your entry visa that allows you to enter a place that you could never enter on your own – God's eternal life. * Baptism is a coat or a shirt that God places on you to cover your sins so that they no longer can be seen by Him. * Baptism is like the oxygen tank worn by the person suffering from emphysema – it sustains every moment of your life.

By way of another analogy, think about the loving grandmother who gives her grandchild a brand new suit for Christmas. The suit is his, given freely by the grandmother's love. However, the suit will do the boy no good if he hangs it in his closet and forgets about it, never even putting it on!

In the same way, Baptism is God's gift of salvation (1 Peter 3:21), given freely by His great love for us (John 3:15, 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 1:3). However, the gift will do us no good if we "hang it in the closet," forgetting about it and never wearing it!

Here is one last analogy: During the 1960s, when Cold War fear gripped our nation, the United States government built an impenetrable bomb shelter at the Greenbriar hotel in White Sulphur Springs in West Virginia. Because the United States Senate and House of Representatives were to be hidden there in the event of a nuclear attack, the bunker was buried under 20 feet of dirt. Its concrete walls were two feet thick, reinforced with steel. Special doors were made of concrete and steel, and the locking mechanism was placed on the inside of the doors. Once the doors closed, the bunker became impossible to enter. The only way the doors could open was if someone on the inside opened them and let the enemy in.

God's gift of Baptism is a lot like that congressional bunker in West Virginia. Baptism is your impenetrable fortress, created by God Himself, in which you will be kept safe and sound from every evil attack. This is why St. Paul can so confidently say:

"I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39).

Yet, just like the congressional bunker, you can "open" those safe and secure baptismal "doors" that protect you and you can let the enemy in! You can even walk out of the "bunker" of your Baptism, as it were, and allow all your spiritual enemies to devour you. As the Small Catechism warns, when these enemies are given the opportunity, they will lead you into "false

belief, despair, and other great shame and vice" (Lord's Prayer, Sixth Petition).

If I were to have the opportunity to speak to your brother about his Baptism, I would emphasize for him the miraculous gift that God gave to him so many years ago when he was baptized. On that great day, God dressed a sinner in a suit of righteousness and perfection, covering over every sin and blemish with the precious blood of Christ. When your brother was

baptized, God "resuscitated" – or better, He resurrected – a person who was once dead in sins (Ephesians 2:1) and now made alive in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:5). When your brother was baptized, God placed him in an impenetrable fortress of salvation that no enemy will ever be able to destroy.

If, for some reason, your brother has opened the doors of the fortress and let the enemy in, I would call him to repentance by warning him of the great dangers to which he has exposed himself: the devil, the world, and his own sinful nature. These dangers, unguarded by the forgiveness of God which comes through His Word and through Baptism, will end only in your brother's eternal condemnation.

Then, with as many exhortations and Bible passages as he allows me to show him, I would proclaim to him again the salvation that Christ has prepared for him through suffering and death. I would call upon your brother to return to the blessings of his Baptism, God's impenetrable fortress and God's passport to eternal life. Through His gift of Baptism, God makes St. Paul's words into your brother's words and your words and my words:

"I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor any other created thing, will be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 8:38-39).

As we look to a new year, may we all remember the wondrous work our God has performed for us, and how He shields us with Himself through the great gift of Holy Baptism, so that whatever this year brings, we know that nothing that transpires will be able to separate us from His love. In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Christmas Day
Sermon
12-25-2006

St. Luke 2:1-20

 

1 Now it came about in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. ² This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ And all were proceeding to register for the census, everyone to his own city. ⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, ⁵ in order to register, along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. ⁶ And it came about that while they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her first_born son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. ⁸ And in the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, and keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; ¹¹ for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² "And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger." ¹³ And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ¹⁴ "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased." ¹⁵ And it came about when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us." ¹⁶ And they came in haste and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. ¹⁷ And when they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. ¹⁸ And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

 

The non-Christian world is looking forward to the start of a new year in about a week, but for the Church, we are already four weeks into our annual pilgrimage through the life of Christ and His people. Every year, we begin with the remembrance of Holy Advent, a time of anticipation, of looking to how Christ came and how He will soon come for us...and how He comes to us today through the Gospel and the Sacraments to bring us forgiveness, life, and salvation, to make us ready for His return.

We go through this cycle each year because the hardness of our hearts demands it, because we are so quick to forget, so easily lead away by other concerns, so unable to remember each day and moment what our dear Lord Christ has done for us...so feeble in our attempt to serve, obey, and praise Him. And, if we understand this purpose of the Church Year, we thank God for it, we thank Him for this repetition that the Lutheran Church goes through each year, because instead of hammering us incessently for what we do wrong, it enlightens us to why we can delight in what Christ has done right...how His perfect life was lived in our place and how His bitter suffering and death paid for our sins, so that eternal life is ours! In this, we have comfort and a reason to desire to thank and praise the Triune God at all times.

Really, what this yearly observance does – and what all the feasts and holy days, such as this Feast of the Holy Nativity – what they do for us is to keep us from getting 'too adult' to receive grace, too involved in civil and social religion to have a childlike faith, the sort of faith that Jesus praised, saying that it is of those who believe like little children that the Kingdom of God consists. A day like today ought to bring us to awe, and the festivals that follow should keep us in awe of what an incredible thing God has done so that He could be our God and so that we could be His people. To hear what St. Luke records is never a thing that can be done without growing childlike; the more we understand it, the smaller we become and the greater the grace and mercy of God become. How could He do such a thing for a sinner like me?

For sinners Christ came; for sinners, God took on human flesh and human responsibility, to fulfill the Law while sin and death and temptation surrounded Him. As a Man, God lived and walked and worked for us...and suffered and died for us. Here He comes as a tiny infant, the Creator of all things, making Himself utterly dependent upon the institutions He had set up at creation: the parents upon whom He relied for sustenance, the government upon whom He relied for protection, the Church upon whom He relied for instruction in the Word...and all of these failed Him! Yet, He remained faithful; He kept the Law; He redeemed all whom He created, living for each one of us from the very start. Even His infant breath was lived in perfection, with no selfish thoughts or desires...perfectly faithful, to make up for the times that we are faithless.

We get sentimental at Christmas...and this can be a good thing or a bad one. If our sentimentality, if our warm feelings, are so wrapped up in humanity that we neglect the awe and wonder of God taking on our flesh, coming in the form of a servant, we put ourselves in violation of the First Commandment, no longer fearing, loving, and trusting in Him above all things. God grant that, instead, we learn from the words of the poet to have the same awe as the shepherds, to have the need to have our fear at being confronted by God soothed through the message of the angel, "Fear not, for I bring you glad tidings of great joy that shall be to all the people!"...for herein, in the birth of a Savior in the city of Bethlehem, herein is God's glory apparent in highest measure, as in human flesh He appears to bring us peace, to rest His favor upon us.

The English poet John Betjeman encourages us well:

 

["Christmas" by John Betjeman]

 

The holly in the windy hedge
And round the Manor House the yew
Will soon be stripped to deck the ledge,
The altar, font and arch and pew,
So that the villagers can say,
"The church looks nice," on Christmas Day.

 

Provincial public houses blaze,
And Corporation tramcars clang,
On lighted tenements I gaze
Where paper decorations hang,
And bunting in the red Town Hall
Says, "Merry Christmas to you all."

 

And London shops on Christmas Eve
Are strung with silver bells and flowers
As hurrying clerks the City leave
To pigeon-haunted classic towers,
And marbled clouds go scudding by
The many-steepled London sky.

 

And girls in slacks remember Dad,
And oafish louts remember Mum,
And sleepless children's hearts are glad,
And Christmas-morning bells say, "Come!"
Even to shining ones who dwell
Safe in the Dorchester Hotel.

 

And is it true? And is it true,
This most tremendous tale of all,
Seen in a stained-glass window's hue,
A Baby in an ox's stall?
The Maker of the stars and sea
Become a Child on earth for me?

 

And is it true? For if it is,
No loving fingers tying strings
Around those tissued fripperies,
The sweet and silly Christmas things,
Bath salts and inexpensive scent
And hideous tie so kindly meant,

 

No love that in a family dwells,
No caroling in frosty air,
Nor all the steeple-shaking bells
Can with this simple Truth compare--
That God was Man in Palestine
And lives today in Bread and Wine.

 

[British poet John Betjemen, 1906-84]

 

The poet pauses in wonder, because this final truth is too great to take in: that God would once be willing to lie in a manger, and that, seeing our lives that speak rejection of Him in volumes, He would yet be willing to come to us again and again, His body and blood being made present in, with, and under the bread and the wine that come from this altar to be received by us...or, possibly, to once again be abused by us. "Is it true?" the poet asks, and we have no reason to doubt that he believes it, believes with childlike faith...but he asks because he sees in himself, as in all men, the tendency to live as if it were not so, or as if there were other truths and other realities that could validly compete with it.

No, he and we rightly conclude, there is nothing that can compare with this truth: that God was willing to come in human flesh, to be Man in a far more excellent way than we ever could, to make up for all our failings and to win for us salvation...and to come to us every week in His body and blood, to come to us even though we do not always come to Him when He presents Himself: even though we fail to hear His Word, to treasure His dear Supper, still He comes, all gracious and in deepest humility, to serve His servants, to wash the feet of those whom He has Bathed, so that the dirt of this world and the weariness it brings might again be removed from us, all our sin taken away.

 

Yes, 'tis true--it is true!
This most tremendous tale of all,
The Baby in the ox's stall!
Maker of stars and seas of blue
Became a Child on earth for you!
Let nothing in your life or care
Be thought to with this Truth compare--
That God was Man in Palestine
And comes to you in Bread and Wine.

 

1. All praise to Thee, eternal God,
Who, clothed in garb of flesh and blood,
Dost take a manger for Thy throne,
While worlds on worlds are Thine alone.

 

3. A little Child, Thou art our Guest
That weary ones in Thee may rest;
Forlorn and lowly is Thy birth
That we may rise to heaven from earth.

 

8. Welcome to earth, Thou noble Guest,
Through whom the sinful world is blest!
Thou com'st to share my misery;
What thanks shall I return to Thee?

 

13. Ah, dearest Jesus, holy Child,
Make Thee a bed, soft, undefiled,
Within my heart, that it may be
A quiet chamber kept for Thee.

 

14. My heart for very joy doth leap,
My lips no more can silence keep;
I, too, must sing with joyful tongue
That sweetest ancient cradle-song:

 

15. Glory to God in highest heaven,
Who unto us His Son hath given!
While angels sing with pious mirth
A glad new year to all the earth.

 

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

Rev. Steven S. Billings
Christmas Eve
Sermon
12-24-2006

St. Luke 2:1-20

 

1 Now it came about in those days that a decree went out from Caesar Augustus, that a census be taken of all the inhabited earth. ² This was the first census taken while Quirinius was governor of Syria. ³ And all were proceeding to register for the census, everyone to his own city. ⁴ And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, ⁵ in order to register, along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child. ⁶ And it came about that while they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. ⁷ And she gave birth to her first_born son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn. ⁸ And in the same region there were some shepherds staying out in the fields, and keeping watch over their flock by night. ⁹ And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. ¹⁰ And the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; ¹¹ for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. ¹² "And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger." ¹³ And suddenly there appeared with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, ¹⁴ "Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased." ¹⁵ And it came about when the angels had gone away from them into heaven, that the shepherds began saying to one another, "Let us go straight to Bethlehem then, and see this thing that has happened which the Lord has made known to us." ¹⁶ And they came in haste and found their way to Mary and Joseph, and the baby as He lay in the manger. ¹⁷ And when they had seen this, they made known the statement which had been told them about this Child. ¹⁸ And all who heard it wondered at the things which were told them by the shepherds. ¹⁹ But Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart. ²⁰ And the shepherds went back, glorifying and praising God for all that they had heard and seen, just as had been told them.

 

Dear highly favored ones, do not be afraid, for I bring you good tidings of great joy, which is for all people. Today, a Savior has been born to you; He is Christ the Lord. So, if I say a thing or two tonight that troubles or upsets, remember how the angels spoke that evening to the shepherds. It is not for fear that angels show up, speaking to poor sinners. It is not for dread, despair or any other shameful thought that comes to mind that pastors open up and speak the way they do. Don't be afraid! It is all Good News for you to hear what must be said this evening! And it is all the better that it comes through one like me! A sinner. No better, and most likely, somewhat worse than all of you.

It occurred to me to speak this way, not long ago, when I was corresponding with a Christian brother in the Virgin Islands, and he asked me if in America we had, well - how did he put it? - HEALTHY women, winged and dressed in white atop our Christmas trees. You see, he wondered . . . Where are the men in black? The "fallen" guys God gives to His people? The ones with collars on, not halos? The ones whose feet, not wings, are talked about in Holy Scripture: "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation."

My friend was pointing out a problem in our day. The Bible never speaks of lady angels. Always men, with names like Michael and Gabriel. Don't ask me how we got it turned around. I'm just glad to see it straightened out a bit on TV where some angels – four of them – show up – all guys – in little albs – with headsets on and flying in formation by each tire. It's a car commercial. The angels there are air force types, high tech and highly trained and dedicated to protection.

Tonight, there isn't any talk of angels standing guard or going off to fight for us. They do that, the Bible says. But tonight, the Holy Ones show up as preachers. Ministering spirits speaking God's Good News, and pointing out the Savior, where He is, and how He may be found. And there's singing. That's great news for all of us, for you and I can join them, with all the heavenly chorus, singing: "Glory to God in the Highest, and on earth, peace, goodwill toward men."

If an angel came to you this evening, how would he speak? What would he say? We know that well enough already, don't we? You heard it when I opened up my mouth and said: "Don't be afraid. I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all people."

Even in the beginning, when an angel showed up in the Garden, with a flaming sword in hand, that was not for fear and dread and the despairing of God's people. It was so that Adam and Eve would not turn again and eat from the Tree of Life, and live forever in their sin. It was for salvation! So, when the angels speak – when the Glory of the Lord shines round about us – showing us how much above our ways are God's, how different are His thoughts than ours – that is not to drive us to despair.

It will, of course! Just let the angels sing their Holy, Holy, Holy in the throne room of our God, let heaven shake a bit and fill with smoke, and any sinner's gonna tremble! Isaiah, in the 6th chapter of his prophecy admits it: "Woe is me! I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips, and my eyes have seen the King, the Lord Almighty!"

Tonight, we need not have the heavens part to get a picture of the woe that we are due! The Holy Scriptures tell us: "For the grace of God that brings salvation has appeared to all men. It teaches us to say 'No' to ungodliness and worldly passions, and to live self-controlled, upright and godly lives in this present age, while we wait for the blessed hope – the glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us to redeem us from all wickedness and to purify for Himself a people that are His very own, eager to do what is good."

How much would one of God's Most Holy angels have to add to that, before we start to tremble? Before we learn repentance? To confess our sins? Our love of what is wrong? Our wallowing in wickedness?

Tonight, if we DON'T learn to tremble at our sins, then angels are for nothing but our judgment. Read your Bible. It tells us that the angels wield the sword in wrath as well!

So, what would one of them proclaim right now – to sinners like us; who leave too much undone, who do too much that we should simply stop; who go on saying 'yes' to things we should say 'no' to? There isn't any doubt. He would say: "Do not be afraid!" It is GOOD News that the angels bring, even when they're pointing out our sin! Even when they're telling us about our love of wickedness, our love of evil, our shameful going on as if God didn't matter and as if we mattered most, our giving in to what can only bring us misery – even when the angels tell us that all of that can only drag us off to hell – it is not for our destruction. It is for our life!

Go back and read Isaiah 6, how one of God's Most Holy Ones brought coal – a fiery brand – from off God's Altar, the place of Sacrifice – and carrying it in tongs (for even angels cannot touch the Holiness of God!) – the angel put it to Isaiah's lips, a sinner, saying: "See, this has taken away your guilt; your sin is atoned for!"

Do not be afraid, therefore, dear sinners. God has come to earth; the highest, most Holy, most Glorious God – from Whom the angels hide their faces! But He has come to earth FOR YOU! The Glory of God in the Highest brought low for the peace of the earth; for peace ON earth, good will to men!

You and I do not flee wickedness the way we should. We should perish for that. Many will, but not because their wickedness is any worse than ours. Men will die the death that they deserve because of this: They will not have the Peace God bri