“We believe in one God… And in one Lord Jesus Christ… God of God…” the Christian church confesses every Sunday. We love God, worship him, study his word and meditate on it. We want to understand God, but no matter how hard we try, one God in three Persons does not make sense to us. And that is a good thing, too.
God is our Creator, so there is always something about him we will not comprehend.( Romans 11:33-36) Because God knows this, he spoke to us in the Bible and revealed himself to us in his son.(Hebrews 1:1-2) He tells us exactly what we should know about him in our language and in ways we can understand. The trouble comes when we try to put it all together with human reason, which is limited by time and place. This will happen every time we deeply consider God’s qualities and characteristics. (His attributes) if you find you fully understand an attribute of God — worry. You are likely making over God in your image.
The way to come to peace with these limits is to believe exactly what the Bible tells us — even if it seems you can’t logically believe all of it at the same time. For example, the Bible tells us there is one God, but three persons are God, that Jesus is both God and man at the same time, that we are saved because God chose us before he made the world, but if we end up in hell, it is because we turned our axis on God and walked away from him. Because God Himself says all these things are so, we can believe them all and be at peace.
Dear saints, today we hear of a time a teacher of God’s people comes to Jesus by night. Nicodemus is an educated man. Because of his position, he is revered and has power. Yet we also see fear and hesitancy in him. After all, he does not come to Jesus in broad daylight. He wants his meeting with Jesus to remain covered by the night and unseen by his peers. In the conversation, we see some basic understanding from him. He says that he and the others realize that Jesus is from God. This is quite the statement. They recognize the power that Jesus has and that this power comes from God. So, they are trying to reconcile a man with power and authority from God – like a prophet – in a time where prophets were thought to have vanished.
Now it could be that Nicodemus is not sincere in what he says. He may be just trying to butter Jesus up. But whether Nicodemus is sincere or not does not matter. Either way, Jesus cuts right to the point: “Unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”
Understandably, Nicodemus is taken aback by this. He is a Pharisee. To use the language of today, he is a part of the Church. Not just a part, but a leader in it. He’s what people would consider a good person. He keeps the Law and the Tradition. He and those like him, of all people, would certainly see the kingdom of God!
We heard of another this morning who had an encounter with God in the His throne room. In the sixth chapter of Isaiah, we hear of his call to be a prophet of God. He sees the Lord sitting on a throne and a robe that filled the temple. It truly had to be a frightening sight! Seraphim with six wings; earthquake and smoke; a Trinitarian call of Holy, holy, holy…. It is no wonder that Isaiah reacts as he does: “Woe is me! For I am lost; for 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.”
Now think about these two accounts. Both Nicodemus and Isaiah come face to face with the Lord. They both are confronted with the fact that they are unworthy to be where they are. They both look their God in the eyes and should realize that they deserve nothing but condemnation right then and there. But I also want you to notice the difference in their reactions to this truth.
Isaiah is brought to the Lord that he would be called as a prophet. He sees the glory and majesty and knows he doesn’t measure up. He isn’t worthy to be there and, erroneously, thinks that God is about to condemn him. Nicodemus comes to Jesus under the cover of darkness unsure of exactly who Jesus is. When Jesus tells him that he cannot see the kingdom of God unless he is born again; born from above, Nicodemus is either confused or playing dumb. He asks how a man could literally be born again from his mother. He thinks the kingdom is already his.
Here we see a stark difference between these two men. One is a faithful Israelite who, when confronted with the glory of God, is afraid of wrath and judgment. He knows that he is hopeless if it is left up to himself to stand righteous before God. The other thinks himself righteous because of his works and status and Tradition. I suppose it isn’t too much of a mystery why each reacts as they do.
Isaiah cries out in despair. He knows he deserves judgment because he knows he has not kept the Law with all his heart, mind, soul, and strength. Yes, he believes in the Lord. But he also knows he constantly sins against him. But condemnation isn’t why the Lord brought Isaiah into his throne room. To show this, one of the seraphim takes a lump of burning coal and touches it to Isaiah’s lips. Through the sacrifice burning on that altar, Isaiah is purified and made righteous.
On the other hand, Nicodemus doesn’t get it. He doesn’t see that he is a ‘dead man walking.’ He doesn’t get that even the best of his deeds are a blight in the eyes of God, for they are done without faith. But that doesn’t mean that Jesus has come to condemn Nicodemus. Not at all. Jesus seeks a rebirth even for Nicodemus.
“Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.” This is why Jesus responds to Nicodemus as he does. Jesus is showing him that he isn’t righteous for his status and deeds. Rather, he is fallen, sinful, and wretched because he is born of the flesh. “That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit.” We are by nature sinful and unclean, as we confessed together this morning. We are naturally far from God and his kingdom. And worse, there is nothing we can do to make things right. Note the word born is passive. It is not something you choose to do or not do. It is done to you.
If we were to find ourselves in the throne room of God right now, we would recognize our sinfulness and iniquity just as Isaiah did. We would think we would be ruined. But we wouldn’t have coal put to our lips. Why? Because we have been born from above.
Yes, we were conceived in sin. Yes, we are by nature sinful and unclean, by nature creatures of wrath like the rest of mankind. Yes, we deserve to be cast into outer darkness where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
But we are washed. We are sanctified. We are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God. Just as Isaiah is declared righteous by the coal from the sacrifice on the altar, you and I (and Isaiah!) are made righteous by the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. There on the cross, Jesus has carried your sinful weight on his shoulders and born the weight of your flesh. He died in your place and was put in a tomb because of our rebellion and sin.
“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.” Just before Jesus dies, he cries out,“It is finished.”Only after all has been completed does he yield and hand over the Spirit. That Spirit descends at Pentecost and some 3,000 are born again; born from above.
Nicodemus leaves Jesus that night, but not before he is given more insight into who Jesus is. Jesus tells Nicodemus that not only does God love the world, but exactly how he loves the world: he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.
We don’t know when Nicodemus began to trust in Jesus for his righteousness rather than himself. It may have been as he left that night. It may have been by the time he seeks a fair hearing for Jesus in John 7. It may have been during Jesus’ trial, for he is at the tomb with 75 pounds of myrrh and aloes.
What we do know is that Nicodemus believes and is not condemned. He is born of the Spirit. So are you. Baptized in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, you are washed clean in the blood of Christ. You are born not only of the flesh, but that flesh is redeemed in your birth by the Spirit. Look, therefore, to the cross. See your Savior hanging there suspended on the pole. Stay firm and believe that in him you have been saved. Amen.
Rev. Brent Keller Peace Lutheran Church Alcester, SD
Encore Post: God the Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, hovered over the dark chaos before the world began. (Genesis 1:2) When God the Father spoke and God the Son acted, He joined in the work of laying the foundation of the Creation. With the Father and the Son, he deliberated the creation of man and woman. (Genesis 1:26-27) Sent by the Father and the Son, he inspired the prophets to speak and to write the Holy Scriptures and spoke through them.
When the time was right, (Galatians 4:4-5) the Holy Spirit came to the Virgin Mary and conceived in her womb the Son of God Made flesh. (Luke 1:35) With the Father, he witnessed the baptism of the beloved Son — the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. (Matthew 3:13-17, John 1:29 ) It was the Holy Spirit that Jesus promised to send to us. He saves us through the hearing of the Gospel and the waters of baptism. He is our companion and counselor. He leads us to know the truth (John 16:13). He lives inside of everyone who trusts in Christ. (Romans 8:9-11, 1 Corinthians 3:16, 2 Timothy 1:13-14) More than that, when we pray, he prays with us. When we cannot pray, he intercedes for us.
Encore Post: As you take a vacation trip and visit new churches along the way, you may notice that the Scripture passages read seem a lot like the ones being read at your church at home. You are probably right. Most Lutheran churches and other Christian traditions use a Lectionary — a list of readings agreed upon by a group of Christian Church bodies.
This is nothing new — the first lectionaries were used by synagogues before Jesus was born. The church continued that tradition, adding readings from the Gospels and a variety of letters and sermons written by the apostles and other early church fathers. Those recognized by the church as God’s Word eventually became a part of the lectionary proper and joined other Scriptures read regularly in worship.
The readings eventually settled down into a standard rotation. These became traditional lessons for the same Sunday in the Church Year. This pattern is used to this day — with some small adjustments — in the historic one year lectionary. Its advantage is that our ancestors heard these passages read — even Martin Luther and those before him.
Beginning in 1974, Protestant churches together developed a three-year lectionary, which reached its final form in 1983. Called the Revised Common Lectionary, it is used by most Christians in the United States. The three-year lectionary in Lutheran Service Book is based on this Lectionary. Its advantage is that more of the Scripture is read in worship and preached upon.
If you want to prepare for worship on Sunday during the week before, why not consult your congregation’s lectionary? The list of readings is available online at: the LCMS’ lectionary page?
Encore Post: We use his name several times each time we worship. He is responsible for the faith in our hearts and the good works we do. Yet most Christians know very little about him. The Holy Spirit has been called the quiet member of the Trinity, God’s secret agent or thought of as shadowy as his name. The words Spirit, wind, and breath are all good translations of the Hebrew word רוּחַ (Ruach) and the Greek word πνεῦμα (Pneuma). In fact, beginning in the Earliest days of the Church, non-Christian movements have declared that the Holy Spirit is not a person at all, but a force or power.
The reason why the Holy Spirit gets so little attention is that he wants it that way. The Holy Spirit’s role in our lives is to create faith in Jesus and point us to the Son of God. (John 16:13-15) The Holy Spirit knows everything, even the mind of God. (1 Corinthians 2:10-11) He teaches God’s people. (John 14:26) He gets angry when his people betray him. (Isaiah 63:8-10, Hebrews 10:29) The Holy Spirit prays for us (Romans 8:26) and spoke to his people. (Acts 8:29, Acts 10:19-20) So, the Scripture does speak about the Holy Spirit in such a way that it is clear he is not only a person, but also God. (Acts 5:3)
In May of 1845, One Hundred and Seventy-Five years ago, the General Synod gathered in Philadelphia. The General Synod was a loose federation of regional Lutheran church bodies — Synods, Ministeriums and Conferences. It promoted what it called an “American Lutheranism,” which left behind what it saw as European culture and doctrine for one which was in harmony with American denominations of a Reformed heritage. Among the things discarded were the liturgy, the saving nature of Baptism and the real presence of the body and blood of Christ in the Lord’s Supper. It promoted “new measures,” revivalist worship styles, evangelistic techniques and camp meetings.
When Friedrich Wyneken came to America, he fit well in the General Synod. He was a part of the Germans Awakening, a pietist movement concerned that Christians cultivated a personal relationship with Jesus and lived a holy life. He was not alone — most of the fathers of the Missouri Synod were pietists in their youth. In a war of words with German Methodists and with time to think on a voyage to Germany, he became convinced that Confessional Lutheran doctrine was more faithful to the Word of God. As he traveled Germany, recruiting pastors to serve in America, he told everyone how Lutherans in America had abandoned Lutheran doctrine to embrace Reformed and Arminian teaching and practice.
When he returned to America, Wyneken implemented Confessional Lutheran practice and taught according to the Lutheran Confessions in his parishes. Before his own Synod of the West, he argued for the truth of the Lutheran Confessions and won them over. The Synod of the West sent him as a delegate to the next General Synod convention.
Wyneken arrived late to the convention. He challenged the body to answer concerns about their orthodoxy by sending copies of works which represented their theology to Lutheran leaders in Germany. After much debate, the proposal failed. Wyneken then introduced a second resolution, that the Synod reject as heterodox those works. This measure also failed. After that, he left for home. Wyneken was to remain a member of the Synod of the West until it dissolved in 1846.
Dear saints, many people and businesses in our Union are beginning to come out of either self- or government-imposed lockdowns. Churches around the country that have been empty for weeks, if not months, have begun to come together again. When we look at our reading in Acts, it appears that the disciples were still in a type of lockdown. It makes sense. After Jesus is arrested, the disciples scatter, and when they see their Rabbi put into a grave, they go into hiding. When he is reported as risen from the dead three days later, they remain locked up.
The locks kept other men out, but it did not keep our Lord from entering. When he does, he gives them his peace. Before his betrayal and death, he teaches and prepares the disciples. He tells them he is going away and will return. This comes to pass quickly. And then for forty days, he continues to teach them and prepare them for another type of leaving. This occurs at the Ascension. Though Jesus takes his physical and bodily leave, he does so with the promise that the Holy Spirit would soon be sent.
The disciples are told to stay in Jerusalem until the Spirit comes, and so this morning we find them together in one place. Perhaps locked up in the Upper Room. And suddenly there came from heaven a sound like a mighty rushing wind, and it filled the entire house where they were sitting. And divided tongues as of fire appeared to them and rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
The commotion drew a crowd. And since it was Pentecost, one of the three major feasts which required a pilgrimage to Jerusalem for worship, men from numerous nations were present. The crowd of these many nations and different tongues each hear simple Galileans speaking in their own language. No wonder they were amazed and astonished. Some ask, “What does this mean?” while others mocked them, even saying, “They are filled with new wine.”
But Peter speaks up. He addresses the crowds gathered for the feast and then around the commotion. As he begins to speak, he quotes the prophets of old and speaks the first sermon of a newly born Church. The reading this morning culminates, “And it shall come to pass that everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.”
That Peter, or any of the apostles, would speak or preach or proclaim the Word of God at Pentecost shouldn’t surprise us. Jesus had told them to stay in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit had come, and from there they would take the Gospel to the ends of the earth. This is why they had remained in Jerusalem. And when the Spirit comes, what Jesus says is fulfilled: “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you. Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.”
I think we all catch the obvious miracle. Everyone sees that it is a miracle that an Egyptian can hear a Greek-and-Aramaic-speaking Galilean in his native language. Especially when the Mede and Libyan and Phrygian can do the same. This is a great miracle. It’s not that the curse of Babel is reversed, but rather that all languages are sanctified. The gospel will now be carried to all nations for all people.
And this brings us to the greater miracle the Holy Spirit works on this day. Just before our Lord ascends, he tells them the Holy Spirit would come and fill them with power from heaven. It is true the disciples spoke in tongues through the power of the Holy Spirit. But the power spoken of here by Jesus is the power of salvation for all who believe. It is how St. Peter ends the section of the sermon we read today. Everyone who calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.
Everyone who believes upon the name of the Lord has the peace that he leaves with and gives to the disciples. We won’t have the peace the world gives, a peace that is fickle and simply ‘forgets’ something for a time, only to be brought up and used against you later. Nor is it the political peace that is tenuous and can crumble at any time. The Peace we have with God is a Peace of remembrance. A Peace of reconciliation with God. For this peace is based upon and is secured for you through the death of Christ on the cross. It is sealed in death – Christ’s on the cross and yours in your baptism. It is guaranteed in his rising from the grave. And it is known to you in the sending of the Holy Spirit to the church and to you.
I expect no wind today other than that of the air conditioner. But the Holy Spirit still works today as he did on Pentecost. You simply need to look in the right places. Look at the Word and the Sacraments. He speaks to you in the Word. He acts in the washing of Baptism. He feeds you Christ in the Holy Supper. Hear the peace brought to you in them and in the absolution: You are forgiven in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.
What amazing peace we have. What glorious grace we are shown. To know that the promise of God is attached to simple water and was put on you to cleanse you and unite you in a death and a resurrection like Christ’s. To hear his words, “Take and eat; This is My Body. Take and drink; This is My Blood. Given and shed for you for the forgiveness of sins.” and know that is exactly what takes place.
Jesus tells the disciples in the Upper Room that the ruler of this world is coming. He has come and he has been defeated. But he still fights as if he can win. This is because he can still tempt and trick and deceive. He has the world, and so he sets his sights on you. He wants you. So remember that you have been claimed. Remember the Name that is placed upon you and who is placed upon your tongue. Remember and keep his commands, pleading his mercy and forgiveness when you fail.
After all, dear Christian, Christ has died for you. He has conquered sin, death, and the devil already. This is your peace. Rest and rely and fix your eyes upon him. In doing so, what’s the worst that can happen? Ridicule on Facebook? Losing your job? Catching a virus? Trust in Christ and the ‘worst’ thing he can do to you is cause you to awake in the very presence of your Savior. As if that is a bad thing.
In your baptism, you have a peace that can never be taken from you. No matter your station in life: young or old, healthy or sick, depressed or lonely, rich or poor…whatever…you belong to Christ. The Name of the Almighty God is placed upon your head and your heart and He has marked you as one redeemed by Christ the Lord. And nothing can take that away from you. Amen.
Rev. Brent Keller Peace Lutheran Church Alcester, SD
Giovanni de ‘Medici was the second son of Lorenzo “the Magnificent” de’Medici, ruler of the Florentine Republic. As was customary for second sons, Giovanni was groomed for a career in the church. His father was one of the great patrons of the Italian Renaissance and very adept at the very volatile politics of late medieval Italy. While playing the part of the first citizen, he gained for his family near royal powers, prestige and riches. Much of that power came from the family business, running one of the major banks in Europe. Giovanni thus received one of the finest educations of his time and became a lover of the finer things of life — especially the arts and hunting. Think of father and son as princes of the type described by the father of political political science — Niccolò Machiavelli — who grew up to be a Florentine diplomat and a lieutenant of the Medici family .
He was consecrated a Deacon and a Cardinal at age 13, although not allowed to function as a Cardinal until he was of age. He studied theology and canon law at the University of Pisa from 1489 to 1491. In 1492 he joined the College of Cardinals, but had to move back to Florence at the death of his father. In 1494, when politics in Florence turned against the Medicis, he went into exile, traveling throughout Europe until 1500 when he moved to Rome. When his older brother Piero died, he became the head of the Medici family. In 1512, when his younger brother regained Medici rule in Florence, Giovanni was the actual power behind the throne. The rest of his life, he would leverage family power to promote his relatives in gaining control throughout Italy.
In 1513, Giovanni was elected pope, even though he was not a priest. In the following days, he was first ordained, then consecrated a bishop and then coronated as Pope Leo X. As a pope, he was a relatively moral shepherd. He spend his own, his family’s and the papacy’s money on turning Rome into the center of the Renaissance for his time. He commissioned one of his father’s clients — Michelangelo — to paint the Sistine Chapel ceiling in St. Peter’s Basilica. He skillfully played France and Spain off against each other, maintaining a percarious balance that kept Italy relatively free of war during his reign.
However, he is remembered chiefly for underestimating Martin Luther and the thirst for reform in Western Christendom. During the critical years in which the Reformation took root, he first thought of it as a squabble between the rival monastic orders — Luther’s Augustinians and Eck’s Dominicans. He was not concerned (until 1520!) about most of the issues raised by Luther. He alternately tried humoring him, getting his superiors in the order and his prince to rein him in and issuing dire threats. The one sticking point for him goes to his nature as a Medici — Papal authority which Luther’s theology threatened. His last card he played on June 15 — the bull Exsurge Domine.
The Day of Pentecost comes on June 9th, but we have already been working up to it with the last few weeks of the season of Easter. Jesus promises to send the Paraclete, that is the Holy Spirit (John 14:25-31, John 16::1-15).
Pentecost was originally was a harvest festival, the ingathering of the winter wheat. In the Old Testament, it is called the Feast of Weeks. The feast began fifty days after Passover. It was also a day to celebrate again Moses receiving the Law and God’s Covenant made at Mt. Sinai in Exodus 19-24, where there was wind and fire.
In Acts 2, Luke records the first Pentecost after Jesus’ death, resurrection, and ascension. Just like the events at Mount Sinai, there was a great, mighty rushing wind, God’s Word, and a harvest. Only this time the fire came in flaming tongues over the disciple’s heads. They declare God’s Word and each person in attendance heard the mighty acts of God proclaimed in their own language. Faith was created by hearing. The Holy Spirit made this possible, and also created the faith in each person that they might make this eternal truth their own: that Jesus died on the cross to take away “MY” sins.
This is something that the Christian ought to do, for remembering the Sabbath is commanded by our Lord. Yet it is truly for our own benefit to hear God’s Word for by hearing we are brought to repentance and faith in Christ for our salvation, just like those 3000 that first Pentecost Day.
Rev. Jacob Hercamp St. Peter’s Lutheran Church La Grange, MO
Five Hundred years ago, Martin Luther completed his Treatise on Good Works, explaining several of the key insights of Lutheran theology. It went to the printers sometime from the middle to the end of May 1520 and was in the hands of Philip Melanchthon by June 8. Originally, the reformer intended it to be a sermon for his Wittenberg parish, but grew into a little book at the urging of his prince, Frederick the Wise through his secretary, Georg Spalatin, Luther’s good friend.
Luther feared that, as much as he had already published, it would not be read. He was very much mistaken. It was reprinted eight times by December 1520 and six more times in 1521. Before long it was translated into Latin. very quickly it appeared in English, French, Dutch, and Low German. This treatise has received very little attention, given that, very shortly after it was published, Luther produced a work that denied the Pope was the vicar of Christ, followed by others that taught all Christians were priests and had a leadership role in the church, that there were only two, or maybe three, sacraments and that Christians were at the same time free and subject to no one, but slaves of all, subject to all.
In this work, Luther explains that salvation and faith are not earned by good works, but that good works flow from salvation and faith. Because Christians naturally love God and want to please him, they do good works without giving them a second thought. No work done apart from faith is truly good. And for a Christian, living in the vocation that God has given to him or her, everything they do is truly a good work.
Martin Luther also redefined in this treatise what “Good Works” actually were. In the Middle Ages, good works came to mean religious actions such as attending mass, making pilgrimages to holy sites, prayers, purchase of indulgences, pledging to God that you would remain celibate and a host of other spiritual exercises. Dr. Luther explains that none of these things that were recommended by the church, impressive in the eyes of people as they were, are not good works at all. At best, they distracted from performing true good works — those commanded by God.
The Treatise on Good Works took the form of an extended commentary on the Ten Commandments. Many of Luther’s observations in it will sound very familiar to Lutherans — Dr. Luther would repeat many of them a decade later in his Large and Small Catechisms.
One comment the reformer made sounds strange to Lutheran ears. He teaches that faith is the first and greatest work a Christian does. In it are all other works. Theologian Norman Nagel used to explain that early on “Luther was not a Lutheran. the goose is in the oven, but he is not quite cooked yet.” And so it was. Luther and his friends would soon come to understand faith as purely a gift of God, created in the heart of believers by the Holy Spirit when he saves them in the waters of Holy Baptism and by the power of his word. Faith, we now believe is a Christian’s trust in God to keep his promises.
