Jesus Wins—Resurrection Renewal

Jesus Wins—The Renewal of Resurrection Expectation

Gods Word for us on this Day of Resurrection comes from Acts 10, where the apostle Peter says: "We are witnesses of all that [Jesus] did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people, but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead." This is the Word of the Lord.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia!

The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is our confidence; it is the foundation of the holy Christian Church. As the apostle Paul put it in 1^st Corinthians, "If Christ has not been raised, our preaching is useless and so is your faith…if Christ has not been raised, you are still in your sins. But Christ has indeed been raised from the dead…" This message makes the Christian faith absolutely unique, and that is precisely why skeptics and false teachers of every era have aimed their biggest guns at Jesus' resurrection—they figure that if they can destroy the credibility of Jesus' rising from the tomb, then they have effectively destroyed Christianity. The thing of it is, they're right, as Paul reminds us. "If Christ has not been raised…your faith is useless."

And so the Church has endured attack after attack on the reality of the resurrection, and I'm not going to honor those viewpoints today by getting into specifics. But the bottom line is this: if the anti-Christian scholars and other world religions and cult groups are right, then the Biblical account of the resurrection is the biggest hoax of all time. If, on the other hand, Christianity is factually reliable, the resurrection is the greatest single event the world has ever seen.

So is the resurrection of Jesus factually reliable? Or do we just have to "take it on faith?" To help answer these questions, I'd like for you consider the change that took place in the followers of Jesus. What happened in the wake of Jesus' resurrection is unprecedented in human history. In the span of a few hundred years, a small band of seemingly insignificant people succeeded in turning an entire empire upside down. As a poet once wrote, "they faced the tyrant's brandished steel, the lion's gory mane, and the fire of a thousand deaths." Why? Why did they do it? Because they were utterly convinced that they, like their Master, would one day rise from the grave. As Peter reports, they ate and drank and spent time with someone who had died and come back to life. Because of Jesus, they lost their fear of death.

Now here's a key question. Does anyone think that the disciples of Jesus would have faced torture, persecution, and cruel death for what they knew to be a lie?

Dr. Simon Greenleaf didn't think so. Dr. Greenleaf was a Professor of Law at Harvard, and was considered the greatest American authority on common law evidence of the 19^th century. Examining the evidence for the resurrection, he wrote: "As one [apostle] after another was put to a miserable death, the survivors only prosecuted their work with increased vigor and resolution. The annals of military warfare afford scarcely an example of such heroic constancy, patience, and unblemished courage. They had every possible motive to carefully review the grounds of their faith, and the evidences of the great facts and truths which they asserted were pressed upon their attention with terrific frequency. It was therefore impossible that they could have persisted in affirming the truths they had narrated, had Jesus not actually risen from the dead, and had they not known this fact as certainly as they knew any other fact."

As Professor Greenleaf says, the disciples of Jesus were thoroughly transformed by the resurrection. No one is a better example of this than Peter. Good old shoot-first-ask-questions-later Peter; old open-mouth-insert-foot Peter, old jump-out-of-the-boat-get-scared-and-start-to-sink Peter. The same man who once was afraid of being exposed as a follower of Jesus and who denied it vehemently was transformed after the resurrection into a bold leader and preacher, and would go before the same council that had put Jesus to death and say, "I cannot help but speak about what I have seen and heard." Church historians tell us Peter went on to suffer a martyr's death. It was Peter who stood up and delivered the message we heard in our first reading today; a message that we recognize twenty centuries later as the saving gospel of Jesus Christ. Here's what he said, "We are witnesses of all that [Jesus] did both in the country of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They put him to death by hanging him on a tree, but God raised him on the third day and made him to appear, not to all the people but to us who had been chosen by God as witnesses, who ate and drank with him after he rose from the dead. And he commanded us to preach to the people and to testify that he is the one appointed by God to be the judge of the living and the dead. To him all the prophets bear witness that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name." (Acts 10: 39—43)

What are we to make of this? Peter was totally changed, and every other witness of Jesus' resurrection appearances was totally changed. They had seen life come out of death, and so had no fear of death any longer. Their one concern was to spread the news of Jesus' life, death, and resurrection to anyone who would listen. They had nothing to gain, from the world's perspective. By sticking to this message, they risked losing their lives. And that was the entire point. They had seen with their own eyes a new kind of life—life that death cannot touch—and they went for that life with every ounce of their being, no matter what the world threw at them—the life found only in Jesus.

Because Jesus rose, He still lives; and because Jesus lives, His new kind of life is still available to you. Pursue this new kind of life that death cannot touch with every ounce of your being. The resurrection of Jesus is still changing the world; let it change you. Let it change the way you handle death; let it change the way you look at life. Let it overwhelm you with the truth: that your forever life with God has already begun.

Jesus lives! And now is death/But the gate of life immortal; This shall calm my trembling breath/When I pass its gloomy portal./Faith shall cry, as fails each sense,/Jesus is my confidence! Amen. (TLH # 201, st. 5)

Good Friday—The Renewal of Faith

Chances are you have heard someone describe pain they are experiencing as "excruciating." You may be familiar with excruciating pain yourself. It may not surprise you, then to learn that the word "excruciating" comes directly from the Latin word excruciates which means, "out of the cross." When someone describes pain as excruciating, they're really saying that it is like being crucified.
It's hard to imagine a more painful way to die than crucifixion. And yet, one thing I fear is that Jesus' death on the cross has become a type of Christian cliché. You hear it so often: "Jesus died for your sins." Those words can be spoken so easily. Are we becoming numb to the crucifixion of Jesus? I pray not. The greatest act of love is displayed by the man on that cross. In Jesus' bloody death lies our salvation. In Jesus' crucifixion lies our escape from the pit of hell. Let's not be in a hurry to leave the scene of the cross.

Although the Romans did not invent crucifixion, they perfected it as a means of capital punishment. It was designed to produce a slow death with a maximum of pain and suffering. In some places, it was customary to tie the crucified to the crossbar with ropes. The Romans preferred to use nails. Archaeological digs have indicated that these nails were tapered, square-shafted iron spikes about 5 to 7 inches long. With arms outstretched, but not taut, the wrists were nailed to the crossbar. The driven nail would crush or sever the large median nerve, producing bolts of fiery pain in both arms.
The feet were usually fixed to the front of the cross, and again, the Roman practice was to use an iron spike. The knees would be bent. The spike was placed on top of the leading foot between the second and the third toe, and the blow was delivered.
The major effect of crucifixion, beyond the blinding pain, was a tremendous interference with normal breathing. The weight of the body, pulling down on the outstretched arms and shoulders, would fix the muscles in an inhaling state. In order to exhale, one would have to push up on the feet and flex the elbows and shoulders. That move would put the entire weight of the body on the feet and cause searing pain. The wrists would also pay a terrible price for that maneuver. Each effort at breathing would become more agonizing and exhausting and would eventually lead to asphyxiation. If the crucified lingered on too long, the executioners could speed the process considerably by breaking the legs below the knees, which is what happened to the thieves on either side of Jesus.
This is what we mean when we say, "Jesus died for your sins." We're talking about iron spikes, forged in the fire of human sin, causing catastrophic damage to Jesus' body. We're talking about his muscles straining beneath the suffocating weight of our disobedience. At the moment of Jesus crucifixion and death, all of the righteous anger of God was focused on his Son with laser precision. The nails became agents of God's justice.

Can you hear this and allow it to pass into the realm of "Ho-hum, Jesus died for you, yeah, we know, we've heard this a thousand times before"?

Can you hear this and not grieve? Grieve for Jesus, sure, but even more so, grieve the fact that my sin caused this horrible event? Our sin nailed him to that cross.

Can you hear this and not be moved to say: "It should have been me. I deserved this punishment, not Jesus. I know what I have done—the temptations I've given into; the terrible ways I've treated people; the greed and the lusts that consume me. I know what I haven't done: I haven't loved my neighbor as I do myself; I haven't fulfilled my responsibilities to my family; nor have I put God first in every area of my life or come close to serving him as I ought. It's only right that I should pay for those sins; for all my sin. It should be me."

And God says: "No. My Son will pay for you. He will be your substitute. He will stand in for you on this cross. He will know what hell is really like; so that you will never have to know. Though you deserved punishment, I will punish my dear Son instead. You are spared. The price is paid. You are free."

The relief and gratitude that you feel at the hearing of this news is nothing less than the renewal of faith in the gospel of Jesus Christ, powered by the Holy Spirit. Yes, this is what we're talking about when we say, 'Jesus died for your sins."

Maundy Thursday—The Renewal of Christian Unity

The Renewal of Christian Unity

Let's begin with the end in mind: The Lord's Supper is nothing less than being touched by God Himself. Here in this church, Jesus serves us with His body and blood. We come here to be forgiven in a way that involves all of our senses. In Holy Communion, we come into contact with Christ, and we are changed. We can never be the same again.

At least that's what the Lord's Supper is supposed to be like. But how often is it that way for you?

Have you ever come to the Lord's Table with no thanks in your heart? How often have you sung, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Sabaoth, heaven and earth are full of your glory" like a dirge—with no lifting up of your heart—with no joy of sins forgiven?

Do you sense a closeness with Jesus as you commune? Do you open yourself up to him here?

One of the saddest, most misinformed views of the Lord's Supper is from the person who says, "I don't go to the Communion unless I've really been improving in my spiritual life; unless I've really cleaned up the things I've done wrong, and have really become worthy of going to communion." While it's true that Saint Paul urges us to examine ourselves that we might receive the Sacrament in a worthy manner, that 'worthiness' has nothing to do with what we bring to the table. The 'worthy manner' of Paul is a simple trust that Jesus is hidden in bread and wine, and that He comes to this table to forgive our sins. The 'worthy manner' of Paul is an admission of our unworthiness and the belief that Jesus comes to feed unworthy sinners, to pass along the forgiveness He purchased on the cross.

As the hymnwriter Augustus Toplady once wrote: "Nothing in my hand I bring/Simply to thy cross I cling." I bring nothing to the table, yet Jesus still meets me there to give me what I need most. In a blessing that only faith can comprehend, you participate in the body and blood of your Lord Jesus, an idea so important that Paul says it twice in 1 Corinthians chapter 10.

For that reason, the Lord's Supper is intensely personal. At the same time, we need to grasp the powerful community experience that's happening here, too. Again, as Paul writes, "Because there is one loaf, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one loaf."

Maundy Thursday—the Thursday when Jesus gave the mandate "Do this in remembrance of me"—is a time for renewal of Christian unity. It is a time for renewal in the mission we share of communicating Jesus to our community. It is a time to share our joys and sorrows. It is a time to take a stand together against Satan. We will not be such easy prey for our Enemy when we stay in fellowship with one another, and our fellowship is strengthened every time we come to the Lord's Table together. There really is no such thing as a solo Christian. We need each other. Alone, we stumble. United in Christ, we move ahead, doing far more together than we could ever do by ourselves.

A little girl once got lost in a large cornfield. It was winter, and the temperature was far below freezing. Rescuers searched for her for hours, but to no avail. Finally, one person suggested that the group start at one end of the field, and holding hands, survey the field in a systematic way. Finally, they found the child, who was in very serious condition. The father cried out to God, "Dear Lord, why didn't we join hands before?"

"Why didn't we join hands before?" Isn't it time to do that? It is time for renewal of our Christian unity. When we join hands, we do much better at finding the lost. Jesus will renew us in that unity at His Table. He will come and fill us with His gifts. He will come and make us a body of Christians who take Him out into our world. Our participation in the body and blood of Jesus will always lead to action. That's just how Jesus is.

One more thing needs to be said about the community experience of the Lord's Supper. Not only do we share the joy of Jesus' presence as we commune with our Christian family, but we also stand in mystical fellowship with all those who have died in the Lord—a fellowship that is heightened at the moment you commune.

Have you ever been in a church that had a semi-circular communion rail going halfway around the altar? Its design is meant to illustrate that the circle is completed as it goes around the altar and up around the throne of God as we sing with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven, "Holy, Holy, Holy Lord God of Sabaoth! Heaven and earth are full of Thy glory! Hosanna in the Highest! Blessed Is He that Cometh in the name of the Lord!"

They sing with us—the great saints of ages past—your grandparents—your parents—your spouse—your brother or sister—your child—all of your loved ones who have fallen asleep in Christ. At the moment you commune, you come as close as you'll ever come in this life to doing what they're doing right now—enjoying direct contact with your Lord God Almighty, and praising Him endlessly.

Aware of that circle that extends into heaven, we have joy and peace. It's an intensely personal experience, for when you eat and drink at the Lord's Table, He enters you and changes you with His forgiving love. It's also a community experience, for you are bound together with others here in time and there in eternity in our living Lord Jesus.

So come, with all your sin; with all your burdens; with all your weakness. Come, with all your happiness; with all your thankfulness and joy. Come hungry for the forgiveness of your sins and the renewal of this family of faith. Come trusting in your Lord's promise that his body and blood were given and shed for you for the forgiveness of your sins. Come and feast at the heavenly banquet prepared for you. Amen.

What Do You Expect?

One major problem people face in relationships is when expectations are not clearly communicated—if they are communicated at all. Most people are not mind readers. We need to know what our spouse expects of us—what our parents expect of us—what our boss expects of us—what our teachers expect of us—even what our friends expect of us--so we have something to shoot for. It isn't fair to punish someone for not living up to expectations that have never been stated—but that doesn't stop it from happening all the time.

Expectations are a part of life. You call 9-1-1, you expect help to come. You go to a movie, you expect to be entertained. You go to church, you expect to hear about Jesus. You'd have a right to be disappointed if those expectations weren't met.

And so it is that some of you came here today with the expectation that you would hear about the events of Palm Sunday. You would hear about Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the back of a donkey. You would hear about people waving palm branches and shouting "Hosanna!" which means "Save us now!" You would hear about people laying their garments on the road and the Pharisees voicing their disapproval. Now, make no mistake, this is a victory parade—the King has come to the city of peace in fulfillment of Zechariah's prophecy. At the same time, it is worth asking: what were the expectations of the people who were waving the branches and cheering for Jesus? What were they expecting Him to do?

The Palm branches for which this day is named provide a major clue. Palm fronds were a symbol of triumph. Today we would wave a flag or a sign. But during the years of the Roman occupation, the palm branch took on even more symbolic value. Dr. Paul Maier writes that "the palm was the national emblem of an independent Palestine. These were Jewish flags!" Having seen Jesus do the miraculous, many were convinced that He would use His power to break Roman rule and turn back the clock to the glory days of King David. When they shouted, "Hosanna/Save us now," they were shouting: "save us from these rotten Romans." When Jesus is blessed as the King of Israel, the people have a political kingdom in mind. Their expectations of Jesus were colored by their circumstances, and when their Messiah-led rebellion seemed to end in utter failure at the cross, well, we don't hear anyone shouting "Hosanna" at Calvary, do we? In less than a week's time, those Messianic expectations were dashed to pieces.

Expectations. What expectations do you have of Jesus? Could it be that our expectations are similar to those held by the people on the Palm Sunday parade route? Those folks wanted Jesus to lead them straight to glory, to get rid of what they perceived to be their biggest troubles, and many abandoned Him when He did not. Don't we want a Palm Sunday Jesus? Don't we often expect Jesus to answer all our prayers with a "yes"? Don't we expect God to only improve our quality of life? Don't we tend to pull away from Him a little (maybe a lot) when He doesn't do things our way? The God we want is one that will guarantee us victories in life—that with a little bit of God, not too much, mind you, our general mood will be better, our relationships will be more fulfilling, we'll feel better about ourselves, maybe find a better job, have more money to go around, we'll have more security and prosperity in our lives. Are those expectations right? Is that why Jesus went to Jerusalem that day?

Jesus' own expectations were always crystal clear. He told his disciples in straightforward language that he was going to Jerusalem to die and rise again on the third day. His disciples were confused by this and you may remember that Peter tried to talk Jesus out of it. There is irony to the shouts of "Hosannas" and "Save us nows" of that first Palm Sunday, because that's exactly what Jesus had come to do—just not in the way anyone expected.

Jesus did not ride that donkey into Jerusalem to improve our lives but to save them. The King of Kings did not ride into Jerusalem to replace Roman rulers but to rescue the human race. Jesus did not endure the agony of the cross to change the political landscape, but to fundamentally change us. Instead of marching immediately to a throne, Jesus stumbled up the hill of Calvary and was executed. This was not some miscalculation on Jesus part—it was the plan. It had been all along. God had a choice—he could either punish you for your sin, or He could punish someone else instead of you. His own Son Jesus was that "someone else." Jesus answered the Hosanna request. We are saved now because Jesus took our death sentence. The King took the punishment His people deserved. This was not the salvation that anyone was expecting. It's not always what we're looking for from God. But what Jesus has done meets our deepest need. You can know you are loved. You can know that you are forgiven. You can know that God is for you, not against you.

Jesus did not go straight to glory on Palm Sunday—the cross came first—but Jesus would be glorified. That would happen three days after His death, when He would physically resurrect and live again. I think it's safe to say that no one in Jesus' inner circle really expected this to happen, even though Jesus had told them in advance. But here we see God delighting in doing the unexpected and, indeed, the impossible. He lives after dying. He leaves the grave behind. If you believe that Jesus rode into Jerusalem to go to the cross and then live again, and that He did it to benefit you, then you will also leave the grave behind. You can expect to be with the Lord forever because of Jesus' actions on your behalf. This is the Christian faith in its most purest form. "Whoever believes in Jesus will not perish, but have eternal life." Everything else that happens to you in your life, whether wonderful or terrible, happens around the core of this expectation. The greatest joys we experience in this life are blessings, to be sure, but they cannot compare with heaven and the life of the re-created world to come. The pain and sorrow of life and the grief and terror of death are balanced by Jesus' suffering and death and overturned by His resurrection.

Whatever your expectations of Jesus were when you entered this building today—please hear me on this: Jesus has died your death and offers you a brand new life. You are forgiven of all your sin. You have eternal life starting right now. Jesus is alive and He is with you in your pain as well as your joy. He has joined Himself to you in Holy baptism and is absolutely faithful. He will never leave you or forsake you.

To which we can say: "Hosanna! Save us now, Lord Jesus!" Amen.

The Renewal of Witness

Several students were walking across the campus of a large university just as the bell tower chimed five o'clock in the afternoon. At that precise moment a fellow student on the sidewalk dropped full length on the ground to the amazement of those who had been walking behind him. After the initial shock, the students realized that he had not stumbled or fallen, but was a Muslim going through his ritual of prayer.

Whatever you may think about Islam, that man was not ashamed of his religion. How many of us are not ashamed to let the world know we are Christians? How many of us play it "close to the vest" when it comes to expressing our faith? When we "clam up;" when we leave the name of Jesus unspoken, we essentially join Peter in denying our Savior. Although we may feel inadequate in our witnessing; although we may fear other's opinions of us, Jesus can remove our fear and replace it with boldness and commitment.

The Word of God is clear; Deny Christ in your life with the explicit rejection of Peter, and Christ will say on the last day, "I never knew you." Or, deny Christ by keeping a zipper on your lip about your faith, and on the last day Christ will say, "I have nothing to say for you, either!"

In Jerusalem, there are certain places of worship where the incense is very heavy. As worshippers return to their homes or meet friends on the street, other people can tell where they've been, just by the scent.

Can other people tell where you have been, where you are coming from, and where you are going? Does your life give off the scent of a holy God?

A truck driver once came to a pastor and told him about a man who went to his church who lived in the same apartment complex as the truck driver. Because of the example of that man's faith, the truck driver wanted to join the Lutheran church. "That man has a faith to live by," the driver said. "I want that faith." Could people say that about you?

When we examine ourselves, we must admit that we can be like Peter. We live lives that say, "I don't know the man." We need to repent and get back on solid ground with God. Fear makes us quiet Christians, but Jesus can replace our fear with boldness and commitment. If Jesus really means "good news" to us, we are going to share Him. It's just that simple.

Many preachers and their listeners never get beyond talking about the need to share the good news. Everyone nods their heads and says, "Yeah, I should witness more." Then they go home and nothing happens. Now don't misunderstand; I'm not saying that we need to imitate other religious groups that go door to door, up and down the streets of our town. I'm not saying you have to go to a class and learn the quote-unquote "right way" to witness. What I am saying is this: if Jesus is good news to you; more than that; if you have been led by Word and Spirit to the conclusion that you owe your life to Jesus, how in the world are you going to hide that? How could you? I'm not saying that we all need to become the next Billy Graham; but I am saying that if you truly believe Jesus rescued you from the jaws of hell, then your life is going to give off the scent of your Savior. In other words, people will see Jesus in you. Your faith will show naturally in your everyday life. And you won't have a problem talking about the person who did all this for you, namely, Jesus, the Son of God.

In a book called Why People Join the Church, Edward Rauff lists the reasons people find a place in a Christian congregation: the search for community; a personal crisis; the journey toward truth; a church program or special event; the influence of a pastor; but the number one reason people come to church and stay there is that a friend or family member invited them. Other polls and studies have come to the very same conclusion: churches grow and people come to saving faith when Christians are inviting their family and friends to "come and see." Your witness can be renewed when you begin to see yourself as an "inviter." Maybe that describes who you already are. The invitation to come and see God at work is a great gift. Can you think of someone, anyone, right now that you would like to give this gift to?

The ability to do this comes from the Holy Spirit. If you're going to invite others to come to Jesus, you're going to have to tap into the Holy Spirit. The good news there is that it isn't complicated. It's like putting a plug into a wall socket. Plug into the Word of God. Plug into Jesus' body and blood given in His holy supper. Tap into these things and the Holy Spirit will give you what you need to be an inviter.

Dr. Howard Kelly, a famed surgeon in Baltimore, was seldom seen without a beautiful rosebud on the lapel of his coat. The flower remained fresh for a long time, and there was a reason. When people asked him the secret, he turned his lapel and showed them a little glass vial containing water. The stem of the rose went through the buttonhole into the water, keeping it fresh for a longer time. Dr. Kelly would then tell those who asked that the secret of living a fragrant Christian life lies in drawing refreshment from the water of life, Jesus Christ.

That water of life is yours—and always has been—in your baptism. Now invite someone you know to that same refreshment, in the name of Jesus. Amen.

Life For Dry Bones

Have you ever felt like a "bag of bones"—lifeless, empty, alone? Today's Old Testament lesson tells us a story about dry bones. But it also tells us how we can be made alive again—how dry bones can be made into living flesh—by God the Holy Spirit, who revives us daily and resurrects us for the life to come.

This word from the prophet Ezekiel is actually a prophetic vision of how God will resurrect the children of Israel from a grave of bondage to the Babylonian people. Notice how this dramatic scene builds up. God takes Ezekiel to the middle of a valley covered with bones. They are dry because they have been there a long time. In this scene of utter hopelessness, God gives a word of hope. He promises that His people will rise again. But this resurrection will happen only by the Word of the Lord, by the power of God speaking it into existence.

The Lord can do the same in your life today. But sometimes it is so hard for us to see.

A man lies on a hospital bed. "I feel so useless," he says. "I feel cut off from reality here." Do you feel like that man? A woman says, "My children are grown. My husband has his work. I spend many hours alone. What's the purpose of my life now?" Are you that woman?

A young person says, "I'm not sure who I am, or what to do with my life. Where am I going? Do my friends really like me, or do they just say they do? Do you feel like that?

A parent says, "I have no time for myself. Life is the same thing day after day. I had such different hopes and dreams for the future. My life is busy, but empty." Can you relate? Are you a bag of bones—dry, lifeless, dead inside? Are you cut off from life as it was meant to be?

God's Word has answer for these things—and it's a bit radical. God's Word tells you and me that it is time to repent, time to "get real" with God. It is time to admit that we have failed to see God as our source of life. We have failed to trust in Him more than we trust ourselves. We have failed to use the power supplies He has given us. And we have failed to really believe that Jesus will raise our dry bones on the Last Day.

I am convinced that this is our greatest problem. We don't really repent before the Lord, nor do we faithfully drink the living water He pours out for us.

Nevertheless, God promises, "Do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand" (Isaiah 41: 10). God is discoverable. He wants us to be open to his Holy Spirit. He wants to turn our dry bones into living flesh. How does that take place?

It takes place when we make use of God's Word. A little girl once picked up a dust-covered Bible sitting on the coffee table. "Mommy, whose book is this?" she asked. "Oh, it's God's book," the mother said in very religious tones. "Well," the girl replied, "we'd better send it back to Him, because we're sure not using it."

Maybe we ought to start leaving our Bibles open at home. That way we might actually be inclined to pick it up and start reading. Or if that's not your style, there are countless audio Bibles on tape, and on CD and even online or in podcast format that you can listen to just about anywhere. The point is, you have to find a way of feeding yourself God's Word. It is "the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes" (Romans 1:16). It puts spiritual muscle on our bones and breathes joy into an otherwise sagging spirit. But it's not going to happen magically—you've got to pick it up and do it. It's like preparing a good meal. There's some work and preparation involved because the food is not just going to show up on your plate fully cooked. But as you start the process, you learn to enjoy it, especially when you get to enjoy the final product. If that is true of the food that comes out of your kitchen, it's even more true of the spiritual food that comes out of the Bible, and that's the food that gives and sustains a life of faith.

The Holy Spirit turns dry bones into living flesh when we remember what God did for us in Holy Baptism. You may not be able to remember your baptism—I sure don't—but remembering that you are baptized can make all the difference in the world. Baptism established your identity with God. It forged a powerful link between you and Jesus, and He now shares everything with you. His suffering and death; His resurrection and victorious life all apply to you, and baptism created that bond. What better to revive dry bones than the water and promise of baptism?

And still there's more. The Holy Spirit gives life to dry bones when we gather around the table of our Lord Jesus Christ. He is the host as well as the meal that breathes life into our souls. With the bread and the wine, you and I are given the body and blood of Jesus. His suffering and death on the cross reaches through time and touches us, forgiving us completely of our sins. Knowing what is offered here in the Lord's Supper, how could we possibly stay away?

Years ago, a ship on the Atlantic was in distress because its supply of fresh water had run out. The crew started to imagine a horrible death from dehydration, ironically with water all around them. When hope was almost gone, they saw a ship approaching them. At once they hoisted distress signals. But the answer they got back was, 'Dip it up."

"Dip it up?" Was that some kind of sick joke? They signaled again and got the same answer. Finally, in despair, they lowered a bucket. To their amazement and joy, the water turned out to be fresh water. The sailors had overlooked the fact that they were at the mouth of the Amazon River, whose fresh water flows far out to sea.

God's fresh, living water is always there in His Word. It is always there in what Baptism did for you. It is always there with the bread and the wine of Holy Communion. Why do we despair? Dip it up! Fill your bucket! Isn't that what we're doing here? Isn't that why Jesus established a thing called church on earth? We're here because this is where Jesus fills your bucket—this is the mouth of the river of God's fresh forgiveness and mercy. And we need it, so badly. We need to keep dipping it up until the time when all of God's promises come true.

We have a picture of that time in Ezekiel's vision; a time when dead bones will rise from their graves; a time when the power of Jesus' resurrection will sweep through every cemetery and mausoleum, uniting souls with bodies again; a time that goes beyond time, in which God's faithful people will enjoy His new creation without end. We get closer to that time with each passing day. By God's gracious choice and the actions taken by Jesus, you will be included in this forever life.

So get ready. Get your bucket. Your bones need not be dry. The Spirit of God is here. This is the mouth of the river—the source of forever life with Jesus. Dip it up! Amen.

The Renewal of Obedience

The Renewal of Obedience

"Life is difficult." Those are the first words of a book by Dr. M. Scott Peck called "The Road Less Traveled." And he adds, "The tendency to avoid problems and the emotional suffering inherent in them is the primary basis for all human mental illness."

In a certain way, life is particularly difficult for the Christian. God calls us to total obedience to His design for our lives and regularly tests our faithfulness to Him.

A woman was lying on a hospital bed in great pain. As her pastor left, he said, "Cheer up! God isn't dead!"

"Yeah, I know," she replied. "But I just wish He'd lay off for a little while."

In our emphasis on the grace and love of God, we sometimes forget that we are supposed to obey God. We are to do what He commands and avoid what He forbids. The Christian life is not only a matter of comfort and help. It is also a matter of daily obedience, of humbling ourselves, and even persevering through suffering. In fact, the apostle Peter equates obeying God with humbling ourselves under God's mighty hand. Peter's words are a vivid call for a renewal of our obedience.

If "life is difficult," obedience is even more so. This really comes to bear in the relationship between child and parent. Every conscientious parent knows how hard it is to exercise their God-given authority over their children. The delicate balance of being tough yet tender is not easy to maintain. I'm reminded of the mother who wanted to have the last word, but couldn't handle the hassle that resulted whenever she said 'no' to her young son. After an especially trying day, she threw up her hands and shouted, "All right, Billy, do whatever you want. Now let me see you disobey THAT!"

The idea of obedience is at odds our human nature. We are much more in tune with "Nobody's going to tell me what to do," and we bring this into our relationship with God, without even thinking about it. If I were being obedient to God, I would be ready and willing to take a servant's posture in my relationships with others. How are you doing with that? If I were being obedient to God, I would be forgiving others with the forgiveness I have received from Jesus. How is that working for you? If I were being obedient to God, I would be intentionally putting Him first in every area of my life—no exclusions. We are more than happy to receive God's love and His blessings and answered prayers, but then to actually obey Him? To humble ourselves by doing things God's way instead our own? Come on now; let's not get crazy!

But the thing about obedience is: there's nothing crazy about it. What's crazy is thinking that we can ignore God and live life on our own terms and everything's going to be fine. Thinking that we know better than God gets right to the heart of what sin is. So, from time to time, God will let us learn the hard way that we are pretty lousy at His job. We find evidence of this everywhere, even places like the football field.

Roger Staubach, who led the Dallas Cowboys to the World Championship in 1971, admitted that his position was a source of trial for him. You see, Coach Tom Landry called every single play. He told Roger when to pass, when to run, and when to hand off. Only in emergency situations could he change the play (and he had better be right!). Even though Roger considered Coach Landry to have a "genius mind" when it came to football strategy, his pride said that he should be able to run his own team.

In this respect, we are no different than that Hall of Fame quarterback. Pride says: I should be able to run my own team. Pride says: I should be able to run my own life. Pride says: No one is going to tell me when to run or when to pass. No one is going to call the plays for me. I'm smart enough to figure this out on my own. No one is going to tell me what to do.

Here's where we have frightening, terrible power, because God will not force you to obey Him. If you want to reject His Lordship, He will let you. If you don't want Him to call the plays, He won't. He will let you be your own coach. He'll let you pretend to be god. That also means He will let you deal with the consequences of your decision, and they won't be good. At their most benign, you'll have an aching emptiness inside that can't be filled no matter how hard to you try; the more malignant consequences include the destruction of marriages and families; substance abuse; isolation; violence; hatred of oneself and others. But hey, you wanted to call the shots.

Thanks be to God that His opinion of us does not rest on how well we obey Him! In order to change rebellious hearts; in order to change you and me, He practiced perfect obedience. Jesus humbled Himself by becoming human. God the Creator became God the creature. Jesus gave up the holiness of heaven for the burden of this world. He obeyed the law of love without a mistake. And in perfect obedience to His Father's plan, He laid down His perfect life as a sacrifice on the cross. Jesus was horrified at the thought of having his skin lashed open and having nails driven into His body and so he prayed in agony, "Father, if you are willing, take away this cup of suffering. But do what you want, not what I want." And then He walked right into that suffering. This is the obedience that saves you. This is the obedience that offers you redemption, not your obedience, but Jesus' obedience. His perfect life, sacrificed on the cross and raised again, will cover the debt of your sin. Just believe that it counts for you, and it counts for you. God credits your account with full forgiveness.

Back to Roger Staubach. The Cowboys quarterback who chafed at the idea of the coach calling all the plays later said, "I faced up to the issue of obedience. Once I learned to obey there was harmony, fulfillment, and victory."

If there is a "secret" to obedience, that is it. Sinful human nature tells me that obedience is somehow going to hurt me or hold me back. But let this new idea open up to you: Once you learn to obey God, there is harmony, fulfillment, and victory. Trusting fully in the obedience of Jesus, I can now see that obedience to God brings blessing into my life. When you do things God's way, good things happen, and you feel better. That's no accident! And that isn't to say that all your problems will disappear when you obey God; in fact, there may be a personal cost to pay for your obedience to the way of Christ. The apostle Peter was up-front about that when he wrote: "If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you." But even so, when I look at how Jesus obeyed His Father, and what that obedience did for me, I am moved to pray, "Father do what you want, not what I want. Help me to want what you want. Cause me to live in harmony with you. Give me the fulfillment of living life your way. Be merciful to me and share your Son's victory with me. Help me to trust and obey." Amen.

But Now I See

For 51 years Bob Edens was blind. He couldn't see a thing. His world was a black hall of sounds and smells. He felt his way through five decades of darkness. And then, one day, he could see. A skilled surgeon performed a complicated operation and, for the first time, Bob Edens had sight. He found it overwhelming. "I never would have dreamed that yellow is so...yellow," he exclaimed. "I don't have the words. I am amazed by yellow. But red is my favorite color. I just can't believe red. I can see the shape of the moon--and I like nothing better than seeing a jet plane flying across the sky leaving a vapor trail. And of course, sunrises and sunsets. And at night I look at the stars in the sky. You could never know how wonderful everything is."

That's just what I would expect to hear from someone who has been given the gift of sight. When I look through the gospels and look at all the people Jesus healed, my expectation is the same. People who were blind can see; people who couldn't walk are running and dancing; people with no hope are now filled with hope and faith and love. Their lives are changed for the better, and they all get a happy ending.

But not so fast. Maybe my expectations are off. Like in today's gospel, for example. Here we have a man who has been blind since birth. Jesus comes into this man's life and gives him the gift of sight! Now he can be amazed by yellow and see the shape of the moon and the stars in the sky! His life has been changed for the better, but wait a minute. The religious leaders, the pillars of the community, the Pharisees, are intensely interested in his story. He's more than willing to tell them what happened. But for some reason, his story upsets them. It agitates them. They send him away. They get his parents involved. They send for him again. There's more questions, almost all of them about the man who opened his eyes. The tension grows. Finally, the man says, honestly, "I know only one thing—I used to be blind, and now I can see. If this Jesus were not from God, He couldn't do anything." Well, that was evidently not what the Pharisees wanted to hear, because they proceeded to kick him out of the synagogue. Because a person he barely knew had put mud on his eyes and caused him to see, he was now excommunicated from his congregation. That's not quite the happy ending we expect.

And it's not the end. For when Jesus hears what happened to the man he healed, he goes looking for him, and when he finds him, he gives him sight a second time. This time, it is spiritual vision. Jesus asked him, "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" "Who is he, sir?" he asked. "I want to believe in Him." "You've seen him," Jesus told him. "It is He who is now talking to you." "I do believe, Lord," he said and bowed down to worship him. The man has what he needs now—spiritual sight to complement his eyesight. Faith "sees" Jesus as the Son of Man—the god-man of the prophet Daniel's vision. Here's where the phrase "Son of Man" comes from: Daniel 7: 13: "I saw One coming with the clouds of the heavens like a son of man, and he came to the Old Being and was presented before him. And he was given glory, power to rule, and a kingdom, so that all peoples, nations, and those of every language should serve him. His authority is everlasting and will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will not be destroyed." The man born blind now believes that Jesus is this Son of Man. He has true spiritual sight. He still has a bunch of problems in his life and some new ones to boot. But he has everything. He has Jesus. The Son of Man is his Lord and King and Healer.

The story of the man born blind holds a message for us that is just real. The fact that it is realistic means we can trust it. The Bible's not teaching us fairy-tale solutions to life's problems. The message is that Jesus gave that blind man physical and spiritual sight. That made his life better, infinitely better, but it did not make his life easier. That's a tension that this newly sighted Christian would learn to deal with.

And it's the tension that all Christians must learn to live with. Jesus has given us spiritual sight. The Holy Spirit has given birth to faith in our hearts. We "see" Jesus as our Rescuer, who saved us from eternal punishment in hell. We "see" Jesus as our Lord who rules our lives with compassion. We "see" Jesus right here in His Church as he delivers forgiveness to us. He makes our lives infinitely better—both for now and for eternity. But that does not mean that life right now is any easier. In fact, just like the man born blind, we may suffer because we bear the name "Christian." You may have to suffer the eye-rolling of a friend who just doesn't "get" your dedication to Jesus. You may have to suffer the pressure of family members who want you to think and act like they do, and who cares what the Bible says. You may have to suffer the pain of being singled out as one of "those Christians" by someone who just doesn't understand. And that may tempt you to tone it down; to keep your faith something private and unspoken.

I love the way that formerly blind man in today's gospel handles the pressure. He knows what the Pharisees want to hear. They want to hear him renounce Jesus. They want him to suggest that Jesus' power to heal is some kind of voodoo witchcraft, or that this whole thing is just a public relations stunt. But this man will not sell Jesus out. He simply reports the facts: "I know only one thing," he says. "I used to be blind, and now I see. If this Jesus were not from God, He couldn't do anything." He simply says: "Here's what Jesus did for me-- you can't take it away from me." Oh, the Pharisees try to take what they can. They erase his name from the synagogue directory. They used him as a public example, I'm sure. But they couldn't make him blind again. They couldn't stop him from seeing. They couldn't put blinders on his newfound faith. Nothing and no one can.

Nothing and no one can take away from you what Jesus has done by living for you; suffering for you; dying for you and rising for you. Nothing and no one can make you blind again. By faith, you see Jesus, the shape and the color of love that lasts forever. Amen.