Robert Smith – Page 34 – What Does This Mean?

Elijah’s Mantle on Elisha Cast

Encore Post: Elijah knew his ministry was nearing the end. At Mount Sinai he complained to God that all his ministry, including fire called from heaven, was useless. He believed he was alone. God showed his prophet his glory in wind, earthquake and fire. As Moses did in the same place, Elijah hid his eyes from the glory of God — this time with his cloak, the symbol of his call as a prophet. Yet even after seeing the glory of God, Elijah was unmoved. So, in a quiet voice, God told his faithful prophet he was far from alone. To Elijah he gave a final commission: to appoint his successors.

God sent Elijah to call Elisha to be his successor. Their names sound very close in English, but are very different in Hebrew. Elijah means, “Yahweh is God.” Elisha means, “God saves.” Elisha’s name is very close to Joshua’s name. Joshua means, “Yahweh saves.” Elijah threw his cloak over Elisha, who did not miss the meaning of that gesture.

When it was time for Elijah to go, he and Elisha went to Gilgal. There the people of Israel had first camped when they came into the promised land, were circumcised as God’s people, celebrated the Passover, saw the end of the coming of Mana and the departure of the pillar of fire by night and cloud by day. There the Angel of the Lord commissioned Joshua. Then they went to Bethel, where Jacob had dreamed of the angels coming and going from heaven. Finally, they went to Jericho, where Joshua struck the first blow against the gods of Canaan.

When the two prophets arrived at the Jordan River, Elijah rolled up the cloak into a staff like Moses’s. He struck the River and it parted — just as it did in the same place for Joshua. Like Moses, Elijah would depart this world from just outside the promised land. As the chariot of fire carried Elijah into heaven in a whirlwind, Elisha caught his cloak. The new prophet struck the Jordan with it and it parted. God had made Elisha the heir of Elijah’s ministry.

Nearly two thousand years later, Moses and Elijah met with Jesus as those the Messiah would send watched. The new Joshua (Jesus’ name is the Greek form of Joshua’s name) would suffer, die and rise again to defeat sin, death and the power of the devil. Rising from the dead, he breathed the Holy Spirit on his appointed prophets. From generation to generation, one generation’s prophets have laid their hands upon those who would take up their stoles after them. God of the prophets, bless the prophets’ sons, Elijah’s mantle on Elisha cast. Make each one nobler, stronger than the last.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Jesus and the Money Changers

Encore Post: When Jesus entered Jerusalem, it was through a gate that opened into the temple. In the Court of the Gentiles, he saw many businessmen in booths they set up to sell goods to the pilgrims arriving for Passover. In Jesus’ day, the High Priestly family allowed businessmen to sell sacrificial animals there, just outside the temple proper. They would, of course, do this for very high prices and pay the High Priestly family for the privilege.

Another business, money changing, also went on in this area. Roman money bore images of the Emperor and pagan gods. These could not be carried into the temple, the High Priests ruled, since they broke the first commandment. Naturally, these moneychangers would charge a fee to change money into temple money.

When Jesus arrived, he saw this going on. He saw it for what it was — stealing from God’s people as they came to worship. He drove these people out of the temple with a whip made of cords. This made a deep impression on the people — and stiffened the resolve of the priests to see him killed.

After he did this, Jesus and his disciples returned to Bethany, likely to spend the night with Mary, Martha and Lazarus.

Rev. Robert E. Smith

Concordia Theological Seminary

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Sermon on John the Baptizer (Mark 1:1–8)

Second Sunday in Advent
Our Hope Lutheran Church
Huntertown, Indiana

‌‌Text: “The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, “Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way, the voice of one crying in the wilderness: ‘Prepare the way of the Lord, make his paths straight,’ ” John appeared, baptizing in the wilderness and proclaiming a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins. And all the country of Judea and all Jerusalem were going out to him and were being baptized by him in the river Jordan, confessing their sins. Now John was clothed with camel’s hair and wore a leather belt around his waist and ate locusts and wild honey. And he preached, saying, “After me comes he who is mightier than I, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to stoop down and untie. I have baptized you with water, but he will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.””‌

Introduction: It had been over four hundred years since Malachi, the last prophet before John, spoke. Malachi had predicted that God would send the prophet Elijah to purify his people for the coming Messiah. John the Baptist came in the spirit and power of that greatest prophet. But the people just didn’t get it. He was not the Messiah, but the one who revealed the Messiah.‌

I. John the Baptist was the Last and Greatest Prophet

‌A. He was a Son of Aaron, heralded in the temple, born to the barren, living like Elijah, maybe even son of David…

‌B. They thought he was a kind of Super David.

‌C. He was instead God’s witness, the last and greatest Old Testament prophet, the one to point to Emmanuel – God with us.

‌D. He showed us where God is – on the cross.

‌II. In the midst of our troubles, we ask, “Where is God?”

‌A. Yes, our world is filled with sorrow, death, disaster, persecution, sin and disease.

‌B. Pagans tell us God is not there or is not at all interested in us or that we have angered Him.

‌C. Often they try to appease or bribe their gods or fix the problems with their own wits.

‌D. We are tempted to join them and ask, “Where is God?” looking in all the wrong places.

‌III. Emmanuel is by our side, with His good gifts and Spirit.

‌A. Even though we don’t see Him, He’s by our side on the battlefield, with His good gifts and Spirit.

‌B. Emmanuel saw our suffering and was moved with compassion.

‌C. He became flesh and lived with us.

D. He took it all to the Cross where He paid for it and broke its power forever.

‌E. Today, He is still with us and one day will bring it all evil to an end.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Born of the Virgin Mary

Encore Post: Mary of Nazareth, mother of Jesus, goes by many titles in the Christian Church. The Scripture given her two of these: “Blessed” (Luke 1:28, 48) and “Virgin” (Isaiah 7:14, Matthew 1:23;; Luke 1:26-27) To these the church has added “Saint” (Holy One) and “Mother of God” (θεοτόκος in Greek — literally the God Bearer). The last title sounds very strange to the ears of Protestants, who rightly reject the cult of Mary that continues in the Roman Catholic Church today. They worry that calling Mary Mother of God makes her a part of the Godhead, when she is, in fact, a Christian just like us. Yet the title was given to emphasize that the Son of God was truly born, lived, suffered and died for our sins.

Just as the nature of God as one God in three persons is a doctrine that is beyond human understanding, the nature of Jesus Christ is also impossible to understand. So, what the Bible teaches us about the nature of our Lord seems to be filled with statements that contradict each other. Yet they all are true because it is God himself who teaches them in Holy Scripture. Like the doctrines of the Trinity, discussions during the first five centuries of church history helped Christianity sharpen its understanding of the person of Jesus.

During the last few centuries of the Roman Empire, the Greek philosophy of Plato shaped its culture. Plato believed that the spiritual world was good and the physical world evil. Therefore it was impossible for God, who is everything pure, to pollute himself by becoming human. The could imagine the Word of God, the Logos, adopting a human body in order to impart wisdom to humans, but not to become a man. Various heresies had the Son of God living in a human body, but not becoming man, as the Bible teaches. They could bring themselves to calling the Blessed Virgin Mary to be the mother of the human nature, the Mother of Christ, for short. But never the nature of Jesus as God.

The church realized that the result would be two Christs, not one. They came to the conclusion that there was one, unique being in Jesus Christ. He is the God-Man — one person with two natures. What the Scripture teaches about the human nature of Jesus, then, it teaches about his nature as God as well. So, then, since the person of Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary, she should be called the Mother of God.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Blog Post Series

Is Christmas Based on a Pagan Holiday?

Encore Post: As we discussed in an earlier post, non-Christian scholars, liberals and some conservative Christians, believe that the church created the celebration of Christmas to displace pagan celebrations. The reason for this conclusion is that Christians did not universally celebrate the birth of Jesus on December 25th. Yet the Emperor Aurelian did declare that the day be celebrated as the Birthday of Sol Invictus (the Unconquered Son). These scholars theorized that the Church decided to replace this pagan holiday with the celebration of Christ’s Birth to keep people out of the temples of this popular pagan god.

When Julius Caesar reformed the Roman calendar, December 25th fell on the winter solstice. The word solstice means “The Sun stops.” On this day, the northern hemisphere has the least amount of daylight. From this point on until the summer solstice, the Sun would seem to gain strength. So December 25th was celebrated as the beginning of its return.

Most pagan societies worship the sun as a god and Rome was no exception. Beginning with Nero Caesar, Roman emperors associated themselves with the Sun God Sol and its Greek equivalent, Ἕλιος (Helios). This god became a favorite of the Roman armies. As Christianity became more widely believed in Rome, pagan Emperors increased the persecution of the Church. Aurelian promoted the worship of Sol as a kind of pledge of allegiance and promoted December 25th in the same kind of way Americans celebrate July 4th. When Constantine the Great came to be Emperor, he ended the government sponsorship of the worship of Sol.

So, did the Church decide to put Christmas on December 25th to counter the worship of the Sun? Not exactly. There is no reference to the celebration of Sol Invictus in the works of the Early Church fathers related to the date of Christmas. It appears that the reverse is the case, that the Emperor instituted the pagan festival in order to counter the rise of Christianity and the first celebrations of Christmas on the date.

The early church did associate the metaphor of the Sun with Jesus, but not because of the Roman holiday. The Prophet Malachi had prophecies of the Messiah that he would be “The Sun of Righteousness” who would rise with healing in his rays. In the earliest Christmas sermons, this theme was often used. The church did use the occasion to its advantage, but not always successfully. Christians would retain ancient customs, but would pour new meaning into them. Over time, Jesus would become the reason for the season.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Church Words #31: Eschatology

Encore post: Some days, our world can be quite unpleasant. Sickness, pain, suffering, grief and death are often a part of our life. Wars and rumors of wars shout at us from every television, computer and cell phone. One person shooting another, collapse of bridges, decay of our morals and rule of law, tornados, hurricanes, ice storms — everything seems out to get us. So it is no wonder we worry about when it will all end. When and how will our days come to an end? When will the end of the world come? What’s next for all of us?

In theology, this subject is known as Eschatology. The word comes from the Greek word ἔ̣σχατον (Last, final; last things) and means the study of last things. It covers both the last things for you and me (the end of our time) and the last things for the world (the end of all things) Because God is the cause of both end of things, there is much we cannot and will not understand. We should expect this: God is our creator and we are creatures. Although we are redeemed by the blood of Christ, adopted as his children in Holy Baptism, have a New Adam or New Eve living within us, we still struggle with our Old Adam or Eve. So, anything that involves him or describes him will be beyond our understanding. Death, heaven and hell, the Second Coming of Christ — all these things — are filled with such subjects.

So, as we consider such things, there are some things to keep in mind. First, is God knows all this. Second, God does not leave us to figure it all out. He sent his prophets, evangelists and apostles through whom he spoke to us. They recorded these words in Holy Scripture. These words are trustworthy above all things. He tells us in it what we can know about last things. Sometimes these things don’t fit together according to human logic. When truths seem contradictory, we believe both are true, trusting in the God who loves us and gives us both truths to comfort us and lead us to everlasting life.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Holy Cross Day

Encore Post: Shortly after she joined her son Constantine’s Roman imperial household, she came to faith in Christ. Her son commissioned her to tour the holy lands and identify places connected with the life and ministry of Jesus. From 326-328 AD, she toured Syria and Palestine at the empire’s expense, interviewing residents and Christian leaders to learn what she could. Almost all the sites on modern tours were identified by her. She had churches built on the location of the birth of Jesus and his ascension.

On the spot traditionally believed to be his tomb, a pagan Roman emperor had a temple built to Jupiter. Helena had it demolished and excavated. According to tradition, on September 14th, there she found the remains of the cross on which Christ died. At the command of Constantine, a basilica was constructed that by and large remains to this day. It was dedicated on September 14th. From that day forward, the Christian Church has celebrated September 14 as Holy Cross Day.

Lutherans favor this minor festival because it calls attention to the means of our salvation. On the cross, the wisdom of God defeats all the wisdom of human beings. Our modern scientism insists something is not real unless it can be measured. You have to be able to see it, touch it, taste it, hear it or smell it — directly or by instruments we can sense. So a God who is invisible cannot be real. Our contemporary focus on feelings makes us the center of the universe. My truth is real for me, your truth is true for you. My feelings are king. If I am convinced I am female although I am objectively male, no one may contradict me. A God who makes me and redeems me offends me. Our spirituality, which makes only abstract, mystical thoughts valid, is offended by the idea that God who made the world would become man, much less die for us. The idea that we have anything to be forgiven is itself foolish.

Yet God’s wisdom is wiser than the wisdom of humanity. God is not the watchmaker, who made the world, wound it up and lets it do its work. He is not a high God who leaves the world to its own devices. God loved us, got down on his hands and knees to fashion us from the dust and breathe life into us. Knowing we would sin and be lost forever left on our own, he chose us to be his and rigged things so that we would be saved. In the person of Jesus Christ, he became a man, lived the perfect life he demands in our place, suffered and died to pay for our sins and rose again so that one day he will call us from our graves to live forever.

So it is that we preach Christ crucified and glory in it, because it is the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

How Lutherans See Worship

1 — Lutheran theology teaches that worship is Divine Service (In German, Gottesdienst). God comes to us to give us his gifts: He puts his name on us (Invocation), forgives our sins in confession and absolution. He creates and strengthens our trust in him to keep his promises in the reading, reciting, preaching of his word in sermons and song. He gives us the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation in the Lord’s Supper, where he gives us his body with bread to eat and his blood with wine to drink. We respond in thanksgiving with our praise, offerings and the dedication of our lives to his service.

2 — Because God is absolutely holy and we are sinners, we cannot stand in his presence and live. So, because he loves us, while we are still living in a sinful world, God comes to us wearing masks. He became man in the womb of the Virgin Mary. Before his birth, he appeared in the form of the Angel of the Lord. He spoke to us through his prophets. He gives his grace through means — His Word, Baptism, the Lord’s Supper and absolution. He uses the voice and the hands of men he calls to be Pastors to draw us to him, to sustain our faith and escort us to the hands of the angels who will carry us on our last day to be with Jesus forever. In Divine Worship, he literally comes to us, especially in the Bread and Wine of the Lord’s Supper, where he is really present to gives us his body to eat and his blood to drink for the forgiveness of sins, life and salvation.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Sunday School: Solomon Builds the Temple

In ancient times, temples were built as places where people could make sacrifices to their gods to win a favor, to convince a god to leave them alone or to obtain the power they wanted to get an edge over fate or their enemies. Most pagan temples contain a golden image of the god or goddess to which the worshipper bowed down or made a sacrifice.

Often priests would communicate with the god for the worshipper, obtain a prediction of the future for them, or engage in ceremonies that would act like magic While God’s temple was similar in shape and style to Phoenician temples, its purpose was quite different Here God Himself lived in the form of the Shekinah Glory — the pillar of cloud that followed the people of Israel during the Exodus. His people would make sacrifices for the forgiveness of sins — sacrifices that point to the sacrifice of God’s Own Son. People did not come to the temple to bribe God, but to strengthen their relationship to Him.

Yet that sacrifice was still in the future. God was separated from His people because of sin. Only priests could enter the temple itself. Everyone else stood outside. Even the priests could not ordinarily enter God’s presence in the Holy of Holies — only the High Priest entered once a year. For the rest of the year, a thick curtain separated the world from its God.

When Jesus completed the final sacrifice on the cross, the temple curtain was torn from top to bottom. God now lives with His people. In our churches, therefore, there is no barrier between the altar and the pews. God comes to be with us and lives with us each week. He gives us the forgiveness of sins in baptism and the Lord’s Supper. He feeds us with His Word. Now the gifts of God come to us first and without strings attached. Our gifts now are given with thanksgiving, so that God may use them to bless others. In a real sense, though, our churches are not temples. Our hearts our God’s temple. Churches are places we gather with God and each other.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Sermon on Baptizing Infants

A Thirty-Five year old sermon outline I found going through my papers:

Baptism of Wesley and Lucas Smith
Sermon on Mark 10:13-16
Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost
October 9th, 1988
St. Luke Lutheran Church
Winamac, Indiana

Text: “People were bringing little children to Jesus to have Him touch them, but the disciples rebuked them. When Jesus saw this, He was indignant. He said to them, “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. I tell you the truth, anyone who will not receive the kingdom of God like a little child will never enter it. And He took the children in His arms, put His hands on them, and He blessed them.”

Baptism is for little children too.
a. Little children have a place in the heart of Jesus.
b. Above everything else, infants are people who trust.
c. God is the one who acts in baptism.
d. Baptism begins the life of faith in the heart of the Christian.
We sometimes keep children from coming to Jesus.
a. We adults are temped to make a career of telling children what they cannot do, because it is easier for us that way.
b. When we do bring children to baptism, we sometimes do not follow through on our promises to God to raise them as Christians.
c. We often undermine a child’s trust by our “experience” and by our failures.
d. We must take our responsibility to raise our children seriously, for He will call us to account.
Yet God calls children own in Baptism.
a. In baptism, God children as His own.
b. In the waters of Baptism, they are united to Jesus in His death and resurrection.
c. God has promised to care for them by His Spirit and keep them in the faith.
d. From these assurances, we draw the strength to bring our children to Jesus.
e. In all this, we can look forward to the day we are together with him forever.

Rev. Robert E. Smith
Concordia Theological Seminary
Fort Wayne, Indiana

Second Sunday in AdventOur Hope Lutheran Church Huntertown, Indiana

Baptism of Wesley and Lucas SmithSermon on Mark 10:13-16 Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost October 9th, 1988St. Luke Lutheran ChurchWinamac, Indiana

Second Sunday in Advent
Our Hope Lutheran Church
Huntertown, Indiana

Baptism of Wesley and Lucas Smith
Sermon on Mark 10:13-16
Twentieth Sunday After Pentecost
October 9th, 1988
St. Luke Lutheran Church
Winamac, Indiana