Door to the Year

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My sermon is entitled Door to the Year. My focus is our Gospel (Lk 2:40-52). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

January, from ianua, Latin for door, since January is the door to the year, and from Janus, Roman god of beginnings and transitions, depicted with two faces, looking to the future and past. January is a time to reflect and treasure all things in your heart.

January’s first Gospel offers an opportunity to look to the past and future, an opportunity to treasure things in our hearts and a reminder to seize the moment. Hence, we look at the past – Luke and our Lutheran tradition, the future – our legacy, and the present – our lives today.

First, Luke and our Lutheran tradition. Luke included the only boyhood story of Jesus to complete his infancy narrative. This was the second of three trips Jesus made to Jerusalem’s Temple.

In the first trip, Mary and Joseph took Jesus to fulfill the Law. Two Old Testament saints, Simeon and Anna, greeted them. Simeon caused confusion and anxiety with his somber words to Mary, “This child is why many people in Israel will be condemned and others will be saved. He will be a sign that will expose the thoughts of those who reject him. And a sword will pierce your heart.” The other feature of that first story is that wisdom came from the parents observing the Law.

In the second story we heard today, Jesus again accompanied his family to Jerusalem’s Temple. This time Jesus himself caused confusion and anxiety when he was lost. His somber words to Mary compounded the situation when he said, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” … Talk about a sword piercing your heart! This time wisdom came from Jesus as a teacher of the Law. He could not remain with his family because it was necessary to be with his Father.

The third journey to Jerusalem was with Jesus’ new family, his disciples. Again, he went there to celebrate the Passover. His journey began in chapter 9 where we read, “When the days drew near for him to be taken up, he set his face towards Jerusalem.” During this journey, Jesus celebrated the Passover, was lost – that is, dead and buried – and was found after three days. This loss also caused confusion and anxiety. And again, wisdom came from Jesus who explained to his new family members who were searching for and found him that it was necessary to be with his Father.

Our Lutheran tradition cited our Gospel in The Formula of Concord regarding the Person of Christ. It focused on the majesty Christ possessed, and yet dispensed with, in the state of his humiliation. I quote, “’For this reason he grew in stature, wisdom, and grace before God and other people.’ Therefore, he did not reveal his majesty at all times but only when it pleased him, until he completely laid aside the form of a servant – but not his human nature – after his resurrection.”

Centuries later, Francis Pieper wrote that Scripture clearly taught that Christ is God and Man, knew himself to be God and Man, and had a divine consciousness. I quote: “The very first recorded utterance of Jesus when He was twelve years old, clearly reveals Him as being conscious of His divine estate: ‘Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?’ And his subjection to His earthly parents shows that He was conscious at the same time of His human estate.”

From Luke and our Lutheran tradition to our future, our legacy. … A lesson I learned in fundraising was to show people how to leave a legacy that outlives them. Whether you love art, education, medicine or religion, you can leave a legacy. You need not be a Carnegie, Ford, Mellon or Rockefeller. You can leave as much or as little as your estate can afford.

People leave legacies based on what they love, and people remember them for what they love. Who will remember you? Guaranteed your parents, spouse and children will remember you. Periodically, your siblings, grandchildren, nieces and nephews will think of you. Realistically, no one else will remember you fondly unless you leave a legacy of love.

Jesus’ disciples remembered him because his love led him to the cross and grave. The loving Father raised him from the dead and they imparted the Holy Spirit on the first Christians. That Holy Spirit is with us today as we remember Jesus and how he loved. Our legacy will be remembered in how we love. Whether or not our love leads to martyrdom or old age is not our choosing, but we should pray – as I do each time I open a sermon – that we love deeply as Jesus loved.

We love deeply as Jesus loved because we believe what he taught. We believe in his wisdom and that led us to baptism and the Lord’s Supper. If we love deeply as Jesus loved, people will know our legacy. More importantly, the Trinity will know.

If you want to leave a legacy of love, know this: Satan will do his best to foil you. Satan exploits your weakness. … Now, let us move from our legacy to our lives today. From the future to the present.

With sympathy to football widows, we are in the playoff season, and January 5^th is the birthday of the only NFL coach ever to win four Superbowls and not lose one. Here is how Steeler Running Back Rocky Bleier remembered Chuck Noll, who passed away in 2014.

Bleier said, “I remember in 1974 … we went out to Kansas City to play the Chiefs. They had the main players from their recent Super Bowl team, including Lenny Dawson. We ran the ball well, we sacked Dawson three times, and we beat them. On Monday we’re going over the game film, and I was expecting Chuck to congratulate us on a great game. But not Chuck. Chuck said the reason we won this game was because of the lack of good habits formed by one person.

Chuck had a theory that we all eventually subscribed to: Habits are created every day in practice, and they carry over to the game—whether it’s 102 degrees on the field or 30, whether it’s raining or snowing, whether you have a 300-pound defensive tackle in front of you … or no one at all. In the third and fourth quarter, you don’t think; you react.

Chuck said, “The reason we won this game, gentlemen, is because of the lack of habits formed by Kansas City’s left guard. The reason why we had the sacks and forced passes and why they had no running game was because of the habits formed by the left guard.”

I was dumbfounded. For a man to lead a team, the players have to accept and buy into what he’s teaching. I thought, this man has that whole game broken down to one player. He must know everything. I bought in.”

I bought in. Are you buying in? Did you buy in to Jesus and his teaching? I believe you did. I also believe Satan exploits your weaknesses and poor habits. Folks, if a coach can detect and exploit the poor habits a player forms, think how easily Satan exploits your weaknesses and poor habits.

Friends, you are sinners saved by Christ, but Satan can exploit saved sinners. That is why you must form good habits. We are no better Christians than those Paul addressed in Corinth when he wrote of the need to forgive so “that we may not be exploited by Satan for we are not ignorant of his schemes.” They formed good habits.

We are no better Christians than those Peter addressed when he wrote, “Be sober and alert. Your enemy the devil, like a roaring lion, is on the prowl looking for someone to devour. Resist him, and be strong in your faith.” They formed good habits.

We are no better Christians than those James addressed when he wrote, “Submit to God. Resist the devil and he will flee from you. Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. … Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.” They formed good habits.

Beginning today, buy in to what Jesus taught. Treasure in your heart what he taught and how he lived and died for you. His death was not peaceful, but a tortuous, violent, bloody, ignominious death for our benefit – for our salvation, eternal life and life here and now.

As we begin 2022, form good habits. Pray daily. Read scripture. Meditate. Read the Small Catechism. Listen to the Lutheran Hour and Daily Devotions podcasts. Attend Sunday School. Ask friends to point out your weaknesses so Satan cannot exploit you easily. Leave a legacy. Love.

Your legacy will not be that you read Scripture and prayed daily. But the grace of God leads you to the Word and to prayer. The grace of God changes you, and because you know God loves you – and you love God – you form good habits that make it difficult for Satan to exploit you.

When you allow God’s grace to enter your heart; when you treasure in your heart Jesus’ teaching; when you open yourself to God’s Word and Sacrament, you do not win Superbowls, you win the crown of life.

It is January, a time to reflect on the past to see how God’s grace has been poured forth into your heart and has washed away your sins through the blood of Christ on the Cross. It is time to look to the future – eternal life with Christ. It is time to start living for Christ and his Kingdom today. Beginning today, resolve to treasure deeply God’s love in your heart, and when you do may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding keep your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Nunc Dimittis

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. … My focus is the Nunc Dimittis in Luke: “Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.”

Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

Christmas offers an opportunity to reflect upon important parts of life – family and faith. On those, I hang today’s sermon. Three Bs – baby, body and beauty. The baby Jesus beheld by Simeon; the body of Christ we receive; and the beauty we behold.

First, the Baby Jesus beheld by Simeon. … Grandparents and parents frame pictures of their grandchildren and children. Similarly, in our Gospel, Luke framed pictures of Baby Jesus. Luke framed Jesus around the faithfulness of his parents who fulfilled the commands of the Torah as they brought him to the temple. As He entered, two Old Testament saints, waiting in the temple for the Messiah to arrive, greeted him.

Joseph and Mary fulfilled the Torah by bringing Jesus to his true home. Being poor or of humble state, they sacrificed two pigeons because they could not afford a lamb; however, no lamb was necessary, because at 40 days, Jesus himself was the lamb brought to the temple.

Although Luke did not indicate Simeon’s age, he portrayed him like the other Old Testament saints in the infancy narrative – Zechariah, Elizabeth, Mary and Joseph. Like them, Simeon, a righteous member of Israel, received and announced the consolation of Israel.

There are two parts to Simeon’s words. He began by intoning a canticle that sounded like the Old Testament, but was filled with New Testament themes announcing the presence of God’s salvation in Jesus. The Holy Spirit inspired his song about the messiah for whom he was waiting.

His canticle echoed Zechariah’s Benedictus, but he directed it at Baby Jesus and not Baby John. His song was a beautiful example of the immediate response to the inauguration of God’s consolation and redemption in the Christ Child. Simeon is now set free to depart in peace according to the Lord’s word for Jesus freed him – as he did others – through his presence in the world.

God opened Simeon’s eyes to the salvation cloaked in the 40-day-old Jesus, still wrapped in infant’s clothing. His opened eyes referred not to physical vision, but an understanding of Jesus’ work. Throughout his gospel, Luke wove the metaphor of closed and opened eyes for the motifs of minds closed or opened to the preaching of a crucified and resurrected Jesus.

Luke used the eyes as the means of illumination, and ended his gospel by telling us that his disciples walked in the light straight into the Book of Acts. Conversely, he ended Acts with Paul reciting Isaiah’s prophecy. “This people’s heart has grown dull, and with their ears they can barely hear, and their eyes they have closed.”

Simeon’s eyes were opened to salvation, a salvation that is a light of revelation to all nations, but as he blessed the parents, he sounded a somber note when he said to Mary, “This child is why many people in Israel will be condemned and others will be saved. He will be a sign that will expose the thoughts of those who reject him. And a sword will pierce your heart.”

Simeon’s words coupled to the angels’ message to shepherds – “a baby wrapped in swaddling cloths lying in a manger” – are dual signs of humility and poverty. That perfect image of humility and poverty, an infant wrapped in swaddling clothes, foreshadowed Jesus’ crucifixion, the ultimate manifestation of humility and poverty. The world rejected Christ because he did not meet human expectations.

Jesus echoed Simeon’s words to the scribes and Pharisees in his final parable. “‘The stone that the builders rejected has become the cornerstone.’ Everyone who falls on that stone will be broken to pieces, and when it falls on anyone, it will crush him.”

Jesus’ word passed through Israel like a sword, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy that said, “He made my mouth like a sharp sword,” and he compelled people to reveal their secret thoughts.

Every participant in Jesus’ life, including his mother, experienced sharp pain because of his teaching and death. Simeon’s announcement shocked readers who did not expect Jesus to lead people to conflict and upheaval and reveal their hearts.

Because of sin, people were – and are – scandalized and crushed by Jesus’ words and death, but through his death, his Father displayed the ultimate sign of revelation, the Resurrection.

Luke summarized the Law and Gospel in a brief song sung by Simeon. You now know why Simeon sung his canticle. Now, we explore why we sing it. We move from the baby Jesus beheld by Simeon to the Body of Christ we receive.

In some Lutheran congregations, it is customary that after people receive the Body of Christ, they sing Simeon’s Canticle. Have you ever wondered why Christians sing Simeon’s Canticle, also known as the Nunc Dimittis? Nunc Dimittis comes from the Latin of the Vulgate Bible, which reads: “Nunc dimittis servum tuum, Domine, secundum verbum tuum, in pace.” Because Simeon’s canticle implies fulfillment, peace and rest, the church viewed it as appropriate for the ending of the day. Since the 4^th century, the church used it in evening worship services – Compline, Vespers and Evensong.

Thomas Jefferson used the canticle in official correspondence. Novelists and poets T. H. White, T. S. Eliot, Joseph Brodsky, Ezra Pound and John LeCarre employed it in their works.

Within the context of our liturgy, it appears we take Simeon’s words out of context. After all, what does his experience have to do with ours? How can Holy Communion compare to Simeon's unique honor of holding the infant Jesus in his arms during the child's first visit to the temple?

Of course, we would love to have been in the temple and shared in the experience with Simeon. We would give anything to have been the first – along with the shepherds – to see the infant Jesus, or to be with the Magi as they offered him their gifts. However, as Luther insightfully taught, we do not find Christ in those places.

Through the events of his incarnation, birth, crucifixion and resurrection, our Lord accomplished our salvation; but the benefits of his saving work – forgiveness, life and salvation – are distributed to us through Word and Sacrament, his means of grace. We cannot go back to stand with Simeon, but the good news is that we do not have to. Christ is present here.

So, when, following the reception of the Lord's Supper, one sings Simeon's canticle, nothing could be more appropriate. Our eyes saw his salvation, and better yet, we tasted and saw that the Lord is good. So, what could be better than holding the infant Jesus in our arms? How about eating and drinking his body and blood given for the forgiveness of our sins? This truly is heaven on earth, because here we have Jesus and all his benefits.

We have Jesus and all his benefits because we believe and receive. That is the beauty of pure Christianity as expressed in the Lutheran tradition. We believe what we receive – Word and Sacrament. That in itself is pure beauty. Hence, my third point, the beauty we behold.

We define beauty as the combined qualities in a person or thing that gives pleasure to the senses or pleasurably exalts the mind or spirit. What pleases us? The literature of Shakespeare or Luther, sculptures of Michelangelo or Rodin, glasswork of Chiluly or the Cathedral of Chartres, music of Beethoven or Chopin, mom’s apple pie or dad’s grilled steak. The list is endless.

Then, there is nature. We are pleased to gaze at stars in the midnight blue or puffy clouds, to smell freshly cut grass or ocean’s breeze, to hear children playing or words of forgiveness, and to taste the fruit of the vine. In the words of Poet Gerard Manley Hopkins, “The world is charged with the grandeur of God.”

As I said earlier, the beauty of Christmas is that it shifts our senses to the important parts of life – family and faith. Unfortunately, for some, Christmas is the fourth quarter of the calendar year – a period to calculate whether retail business can survive another year. For others, it is just another day. My brother, a self-employed handy man, told me on Christmas Day some guy called him to repair his washer. For many, Christmas is just a busy season to shop, bake and party – void of the reason Christians observe Advent, the Incarnation and Epiphany.

For me, Christmas is a marvelous time to meditate on God’s beauty; and an essential function of beauty is to give humanity a healthy shock! Whether beauty appears in talent, nature or an act of love – an infant cradled to its mother’s bosom or a dying man slumped in the arms of a Mother Teresa – it shocks us back to what is important in life and creates an ineffable moment we experience but cannot sometimes name. That is why we recall the Spirit-filled moment of a Simeon. In the moment and presence of true beauty, he responded, as we would love to respond.

The beauty of the first Christmas – the beauty of the first encounter with God incarnate – is enough of a healthy shock for a lifetime, and it leaves the shocked struggling for utterance. God entered our world as a human being, and in our world, God has places where he can hide and reveal himself.

In the beauty of art and nature and human relationships, God hides and reveals himself. In the people God put in your life, God hides and reveals himself. Where love and mercy are withheld, God hides. Where love and mercy are communicated, God appears.

In the Baby Jesus and in the Body of Christ, love and mercy are communicated. In the means of grace, given to you through Word and Sacrament, love and mercy are communicated.

When you communicate love and mercy to the people God put in your life, He is present. In that moment, when relationships are reconciled, like Simeon, you too can cry your own Nunc Dimittis to God for the beauty of His presence has set you free.

And so, I close with a request, and humbly ask you to consider it. … God gave you this Christmas to realize the blessing of forgiveness that comes to us through his means of grace. The Baby Jesus, the Body of Christ and a beautiful moment reflect God’s love, God’s mercy.

God gave you Christmas so that your eyes may be opened and you may be set free from any sin that binds you. If you have the benefit of family for Christmas, take a moment and embrace each person in your arms, and if there is an opportunity to offer forgiveness, please do. I guarantee you that when you offer another family member love and mercy, the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, will keep your heart and mind in Christ Jesus. Amen.

In a Manger

 

        Do you know the song, Away in a Manger? The first verses go: Away in a manger, no crib for his bed. The little Lord Jesus lay down his sweet head.

Jesus slept in a manger. It’s called a manger because it’s related to our mandible or jawbone. We move our jaw or mandible to chew food. Cows do the same. So, a manger is the box where farmers put food for their cows.

        Most churches and homes have a little manger display like ours. Often, we see a stable, barn or cave with Jesus in the manger, Joseph and Mary on each side of him, and an ox, donkey and sheep. Some have angels, shepherds and wise men holding gifts.

        Churches did not always have nativity scenes like this. A man named Francis of Assisi created the first nativity scene. He asked real people to bring their animals to a cave near his home in central Italy 800 years ago. There they acted out the birth of Jesus. And soon, these nativity scenes were everywhere.

        I think it’s interesting that Jesus was born in a manger because it is a feeding box, and God feeds us through His Word. Jesus is the Word of God, and He feeds us by teaching us the Word of God.

        We love and obey Jesus, who feeds us the Word of God, and we also remember that He feeds us His Body and Blood in Holy Communion.

        Before you eat your Christmas meal, make sure you take a few minutes and feel deep in your heart the love you have for Jesus as an infant and adult who feeds our hearts, minds and souls every time we hear His Word and take His Body.

And now, let us pray. Heavenly Father, from whom all fatherhood in heaven and earth is named: Bless all children, and give their fathers and mothers the spirit of wisdom and love, so that the homes in which they grow up may be to them an image of Your Kingdom, and the care of their parents a likeness of Your love. We pray in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Christmas 2021

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. Merry Christmas …  My sermon is entitled “Origin and Meaning” and focus is the Gospel of Matthew. … Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’”[1] Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

A question we often ask someone when we initially meet is, “Where are you from?” Because I have lived in Pennsylvania, Michigan, New York, California, Texas, Oklahoma and Illinois, I often tell people, “I’ve Been Everywhere.”

We are familiar with Johnny Cash’s version of “I’ve Been Everywhere” because Choice Hotels aired it for years. Without going into detail[2], I use the song to introduce my sermon – origin and meaning.

We are generally interested in people’s origins, that is, where they are from. While few people consider it rude to ask the question, most of us are quite comfortable answering it. As one who has lived in six houses in the five years I have been married, I am quite comfortable listing the places I have been.

When we ponder the longer history of our origins, the narrative of our personal history reads like the genealogy of Jesus in the first seventeen verses of Matthew. As I ponder the genealogy of my grandchildren, I am fascinated how they might turn out. Will they have their parents’ penchant for sports? Our interest in religion? Their extended family members’ dispositions? I would be fascinated to know extensive details about fourteen or more generations of their ancestors. Would that read like Matthew’s genealogy, complete with irregularities in marriage and ethnicity? So, we turn to Jesus’ origins.

Our passage begins with “Now the birth of Jesus Christ,” or in some versions, “This is how Jesus Christ came to be born.” We wonder if Jesus was born in a stable, cave or barn, and if shepherds visited the birthplace. While some sentimentalize, commercialize or politicize the account, and moved so far from the reason Matthew wrote two chapters of Jesus’ origins, we must ask why Matthew prefaced Jesus’ public ministry with two chapters of his origins. To understand Matthew’s nativity narrative, we must explore it in terms of the entire Gospel.[3]

We know the Gospel is about Jesus of Nazareth from conception and birth to death and resurrection. Matthew’s account, like every story, has a beginning, middle and end. He introduced Jesus; recounted his public ministry; and relayed the account of his suffering, death and resurrection. Matthew placed the conception and birth story immediately after the genealogy to highlight the rest of the story. For in these first two chapters, we find suffering, death and new life.

The key to understanding how the story of Jesus’ birth relates to the rest of the story lies in the interpretation of a little word in verse 18 – the Greek word genesis. Genesis has a wide range of English meanings, depending upon the context of where we find it. Most translators prefer the English word birth, but we can also translate it as origin.

Origin has a broader scope than birth because it implies relationships to parents, grandparents and a line of ancestors. If we consider the Christmas story in relation to the first 17 verses, Matthew summons us to reflect upon not only Jesus’ relationship to Mary and Joseph, but also the lineage of David, Abraham and God.

Matthew calls us to accept the virginal conception and the fulfillment of prophecy regarding Jesus’ birth; and as our narrator, he seamlessly relates the Christmas story to Jesus’ human and divine origins in the 17 verses that precede it and the 27 chapters that follow it. To illustrate that relationship, Matthew focused on the child’s three names and titles: Christ, Emmanuel and Jesus.

In verse 18, Matthew raised the claim that the child is the Christ, the most prominent title. The name Emmanuel fulfilled the divine prophecy of Isaiah.[4] Yet, the high point in naming the child is the angel’s declaration to Joseph in a dream. “You shall call him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”[5] The name Jesus calls attention to salvation. In Jesus, God saves. In Jesus, God is salvation. And so, after Joseph awoke, he did what the angel commanded and named the child Jesus.

Why did Matthew reference three names? He highlighted these names for us to ponder Jesus’ identity and his relationship to his heavenly Father, his spiritual ancestors and us.

As Jesus, he saved his people from their sins. As Emmanuel, one saw in him God’s hand at work. As the Christ, the child’s primary title, one understood that he was privy to the “thinking of God.” Recall Jesus’ words after rebuking Peter, “You are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of man.”[6] As sinful man, Peter was not privy to the thinking of God, but settled on the thinking of men. His Lord knew the difference for only he was privy to the thinking of God.

In two paragraphs, Matthew informed readers of the identity and ancestry of his hero’s origin, ministry and significance. He then filled in the details and related this to the rest of the story.

What does the account of Jesus’ origin mean to me? To answer that, I suggest we ask not only how we relate to our familial and spiritual ancestors, but also focus on what we do at Christmas.

We exchange presents, and our exchange is reciprocal. We give to those who give to us. We give presents to family and friends, employees and beauticians, teachers and pastors. Gift giving at Christmas is unequivocally Christian, but not in the way that we necessarily practice it today.[7] Some of us give to ease fears and feelings of inadequacy, but according to the familiar account in Matthew, the main reason for our custom stems from the presents given to Jesus by the Wise Men: frankincense, gold and myrrh. They presented gifts to him, but he gave them – and us – a greater gift.

The Incarnation and Jesus’s sacrificial gift of his own life on the Cross are the greatest gifts to humanity. When I count as gift God with us and salvation unto eternal life, as well as my own life, I cannot help but thank God.

When you think about it, everything is God’s gift to me. I had no choice regarding when and where I was born. That was God’s gift to me. The color of my eyes and hair – God’s gifts to me. My parents and siblings, the language I speak and my sense of humor – God’s gifts to me. The schools I attended and my classmates – God’s gifts to me. My wife’s family and my grandchildren – God’s gifts to me. Everything is God’s gift.

My friends, if you have a few quiet moments this Christmas, spend it not watching the NBA or cable news, but ponder all that God has given you as gift. When you do, pray these words: Take, Lord, and receive all my liberty, my memory, my understanding, and my entire will – all I have and call my own. You have given all to me. To you, Lord, I return it. Everything is yours; do with it what you will. Give me only your love and your grace. That is enough for me.

When you pray those words, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

---

[1] Psalm 122

[2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I've_Been_Everywhere

[3] Jack Dean Kingsbury, The Birth Narrative of Matthew in The Gospel of Matthew in Current Study. David E. Aune, editor. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans Publishing Company (2001), 154-165.

[4] Isaiah 7:14

[5] Matthew 1:21

[6] Matthew 16:23

[7] http://www.christianitytoday.com/women/2013/december/what-we-get-wrong-about-gift-giving.html?paging=off

Advent Angels

 

Do you think that there are angels? The word angel means messenger, and most people do think that there are angels. The Bible teaches that angels were made by God during the six days of creation, although it doesn’t say on which day.

They do not have a body, but angels are powerful, intelligent spirits. Good angels guard and protect God’s children (Ps.91:11ff), but evil angels hold unbelievers captive (Luke 11:21f; Eph.2:2). Believers, however, can resist the temptation of evil angels through the power of God (Eph.6:10-17).

There have lots of books and songs and movies and shows about angels. As Lutherans, we sing about angels. Our songs include: The Angel Gabriel from Heaven Came; Angels from the Realms of Glory; and Hark! The Herald Angels Sing. Do you know any of those? Maybe your parents know them. … Some people say that they have seen angels and talked to them, but none of them has ever had a conversation with an angel like Mary did.

In our Gospel, the Angel Gabriel greeted Mary and told her that God chose her to give birth to a baby. Mary believed the angel and asked how this would happen. Gabriel told her that she should name her baby, Jesus. Jesus would be her son, and the Son of God.

 As important as angels are to God, do you know who is more important to God? You! God made you even higher than the angels. God loves you so much that He gave you His Son as your Savior. So, while it’s important to believe in angels, it is even more important to believe in Jesus and carry Him in your heart like Mary did because Jesus gives you life with God in Heaven.

And now, let us pray. Heavenly Father, from whom all fatherhood in heaven and earth is named: Bless all children, and give their fathers and mothers the spirit of wisdom and love, so that the homes in which they grow up may be to them an image of Your Kingdom, and the care of their parents a likeness of Your love. We pray in the Name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Magnificat, Martin and Mentor

 

God’s grace, peace and mercy be with you. My sermon has three M’s My focus is our Gospel (Luke 1). Let us pray. Heavenly Father, the psalmist wrote, “I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘Let us go to the house of the Lord.’” Now that our feet are within your gates, we rejoice to hear your Word. As we listen, may your Spirit enlighten our minds and move our hearts to love deeply as Jesus loved. This we pray to you, Most Holy Trinity. Amen.

By now, you know that my sermons usually have three points. Now, in Advent, a usual serving of three M’s: Magnificat, Martin and Mentor. Mary’s Magnificat, Martin Luther and our mentors.

First, Magnificat. Luke’s canticle of Mary’s prayer, known as the Magnificat, is based on the first word of the Latin translation. The English translation reads, “My soul doth magnify the Lord.”[1] In Latin, “Magnificat anima mea Dominum.” To magnify comes from the Latin word magnificare. It means to increase the size. As Luke understood the word, he wrote “to declare the greatness of.”[2]

Hannah’s prayer and many other Old Testament passages inspired the form and content of Mary’s Magnificat. In 1st Samuel, we read, “Hannah prayed and said, ‘My heart exults in the Lord…’”[3] Both canticles declared God’s holiness at their beginning and end.

The Magnificat’s opening statements focus on what Mary experienced personally. God’s choice of her to be the mother of Christ began a pattern of divine action that recurred throughout the Gospel. In other words, in this classical statement of God’s activity: the lowly are raised and the lofty are brought low.[4] As a mighty challenge to the existing structures of power and oppression,[5] the Magnificat states that God bypassed those at the center of power in favor of the marginalized and the lowly, including the lowly yet blessed Mary.[6]

Moving on from her own experience to that of her own people, Mary announced this reversal in values, echoing the Beatitudes and a major theme of Luke’s Gospel. Israel’s devout, poor and lowly clung to the ancient promises and longed for the time of salvation. The Magnificat ends with Mary acknowledging that this longed-for era arrived, and invites Israel to join her in her song and make her experience of salvation their own; for to speak of what God has done is to announce what God will do.[7]

In summary, the passage notes two characteristic Old Testament ideas. First, God comes to help not the rich and powerful but the poor and simple.[8] We read this throughout the Scriptures, but the Prophet, Zephaniah, expressed it best. “Seek the Lord, all you humble of the land, who do his just commands; seek righteousness; seek humility; perhaps you may be hidden on the day of the anger of the Lord.”[9]

The second idea is that ever since Abraham received God’s promises, Israel has been God’s favored one. Recall the passage in Genesis which reads, “The word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: ‘Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.’ … And he brought him outside and said, ‘Look toward heaven, and number the stars. …So shall your offspring be.’”[10] Deuteronomy repeated the promise. “You are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth. … because the Lord loves you and is keeping the oath that he swore to your fathers.”[11]

Mary’s Magnificat simply described the mighty arm of God that scattered the proud and arrogant, and remembered His promises.[12] And so, we move from Magnificat to Martin.

Among other things, Martin Luther criticized the Catholic Church in the 16th century for its promotion of devotions to the saints. His complaint was with misguided, ignorant, greedy priests who preached something other than pure Gospel which careless or self-seeking bishops promoted or tolerated.

But first, we must distinguish between Luther’s criticism of certain practices and his thoughts on Mary, Mother of Christ. While Luther attacked externalism in religion, the absence of sincerity in worship, and the gap between professing lips and unfaithful hearts, he was not against Mary or singing the Magnificat.

Luther believed it was a fine custom to sing the Magnificat in all the churches daily at vespers. Note that the Lutheran Service Book includes the Magnificat in Evening Prayer. (Anglicans and Roman Catholics include it as well.) Note further that we proclaim this Gospel on the Feast of the Visitation (July 2).[13]

In Luther’s words, the Magnificat’s opening reminds us that God “does nothing but exalt the lowly and lower the exalted. … He breaks whatever is whole and makes whole whatever is broken.”[14] … “Great things are nothing less than she became the Mother of God … for on this there follows all honor, all blessedness, and her unique place in the whole of mankind, among which she has no equal, namely, that she had a child by the Father in heaven.”[15]

When people praise and honor us, Luther wrote, “we ought to profit by the example of the Mother of God and at all times arm ourselves with [the Magnificat] to make the proper reply and to use such honor and praise correctly.”[16]

At one point, Luther reflected, “It needs to be pondered in the heart what it means to be the Mother of God … Her sole worthiness to become Mother of God lay in her being fit and appointed for it, so that it might be pure grace and not a reward.”[17]

Finally, with Philip Melanchthon, Luther cited the purification account in Luke, writing, “She was purified according to the Law of Moses in keeping with the custom of all women. Although she was not bound by such a law, nor was there need for her to be purified, she submitted herself to the law voluntarily and in unbound love. She was not … justified by this work, but having been justified, she did it freely and without coercion. … [We do not] act for the sake of being justified, since, having been justified by faith, we ought to do all things freely and cheerfully for others.”[18]

Martin Luther said much more about Mary and the Magnificat, but as I move from Martin to mentor, remember that last phrase: do all things freely and cheerfully for others.

The story of Mentor comes from Homer's Odyssey. Odysseus, King of Ithaca, fought the Trojan War and entrusted his son, Telemachus, to a teacher and overseer named Mentor.

After the war, Odysseus wandered vainly for ten years trying to return home. Telemachus, now grown, searched for his father. Mentor accompanied Telemachus on his quest. After father and son reunited, they cast down would-be usurpers of Odysseus' throne and Telemachus’ birthright.

The word Mentor evolved to mean trusted advisor, friend, teacher and wise person. Mentoring is a fundamental form of human development where one person invests time, energy and personal experience to assist another person’s growth and ability.[19] Examples of mentoring relationships include Socrates and Plato, Haydn and Beethoven, Freud and Jung. In the Bible, we see these relationships between Jesus and His disciples, Barnabas and Paul, Paul and Timothy, Naomi and Ruth, Elijah and Elisha, Moses and Joshua, and Elizabeth and Mary.

The essential qualities of a mentor are personal credibility and experience. Mentors look for “teachable moments” that expand or realize the potentialities of the people they lead.

The most common mentoring techniques in business include accompanying, sowing, catalyzing, showing and harvesting. Mentors ask the key questions: “What did you learn?” and “How useful is it?”

I could say more about mentoring. It is my last point for this reason: As mature adults, we see ourselves as mentors to younger protégés. We value the benefits of mentoring younger adults in the corporate, collegiate and clerical spheres, among athletes, actors and artists, for musicians and military personnel. We even value reverse mentoring – learning from younger people how to program our smart phones and computers.

I am sure we agree that everyone benefits from mentoring, but have I incorporated mentoring into my spiritual life? As I grew in age, did I grow in wisdom and grace? Can I grow in wisdom and grace without seeking advice or guidance from a spiritual mentor? Can young adults and teens grow in wisdom and grace without spiritual mentors?

Serena Pace, a DCE in Arlington, Texas, addressed spiritual mentoring in a doctoral dissertation that addressed the problem of teens and young adults leaving the Lutheran Church.[20] Pace concluded that younger people benefit from an older person who walked similar life patterns. “An older person can share life experiences from a credible standpoint and offer wise counsel and guidance.”[21] Mentors extend beyond pastors and church workers to mature men and women who have walked life’s roads and traveled its journeys with the Spirit.

Mature men and women can offer wise counsel and guidance, but only if they themselves continue to seek counsel and guidance from others who journeyed before them. That is why we turn to Martin Luther and Mary’s Magnificat. That is why Martin turned to Johann Von Staupitz, Mary to Elizabeth, the disciples to Jesus, Paul to Barnabas, and so on. In every age and culture, young men and women need an older person who walked similar life patterns.

Throughout my years in the seminary and ministry, I sought spiritual guidance and counsel from men and women who practiced and pondered their faith. Now, at 64, I benefit by listening to seasoned men and women who walked with God. I benefit by reading about sinner-saints who journeyed with the Spirit.

To whom do you turn? An elderly relative living out her days in a nursing home? A retired pastor with decades of education and experience? The writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer or C.S. Lewis? Do you turn to Martin Luther or Mary Mother of God when life presents situations that challenge your integrity and loyalty – not for intercession, but for wise guidance? Can Martin or Mary mentor us?

As the Gospels, the Cross of Christ and the Magnificat served as mighty challenges to the existing structures of power and oppression in another age and culture, do they serve the humble and oppressed who pin their hopes on God’s promises today?[22] As Mary invited a new Israel to join her in song, do we dare to sing with Mary, Zechariah and Simeon what God has done for us? Do we celebrate with them the arrival of a longed-for Kingdom?

The Magnificat is a commentary on Mary’s status as a feminine servant, in her submission to the word of the Lord as a representative of those characterized by humility. We know that God’s selection of Mary and her submission were not hindered by, but in fact were facilitated by, the lowliness of her condition.[23]

As mentors or servant-leaders, we keep that lowliness in mind. Christian leadership cannot assume the ways of human power for it affects the quality of Christian nourishment at the Lord’s table.[24] Brothers and sisters, having been justified by faith, we ought to do all things freely and cheerfully for others.[25] When we do, may the peace of God that surpasses all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.[26]

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[1] Luke 1:46.

[2] Herbert G. May and Bruce M. Metzger, Editors, The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Expanded Edition, Revised Standard Version. New York: Oxford University Press (1977), 1242.

[3] 1 Samuel 2:1ff.

[4] Fred B. Craddock, Luke. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox Press (2009), 30.

[5] Brendan Byrne, The Hospitality of God: A Reading of Luke’s Gospel. Collegeville, MN: The Liturgical Press (2000), 26.

[6] Byrne, 25f.

[7] Craddock, 30.

[8] Alexander Jones, General Editor, The Jerusalem Bible. Garden City, NY: Doubleday and Company, Inc. (1966), 93.

[9] Zephaniah 2:3.

[10] Genesis 15:1-5.

[11] Deuteronomy 7:6-8.

[12] Arthur A. Just Jr., Luke 1:1-9:50. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House (1996), 85.

[13] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnificat#Lutheran_Service_Book_.282006.29

[14] Edward M. Plass, What Luther Says. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House (1959), #2094.

[15] Plass, #4006.

[16] Plass, #3425.

[17] Plass, #4006.

[18] Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon, Christian Freedom: Faith Working Through Love. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House (2011), 74f.

[19] http://www.learningservices.emory.edu/mentor_emory/mentorstory.html.

[20] Serena Alexandria Pace, Young Adults Leaving the Church: The Tie to Intentional Spiritual Mentoring Among Lutheran Church Missouri Synod Teens Through Youth and Confirmation Ministry, Portland, OR: George Fox University (2013). See http://digitalcommons.georgefox.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1112&context=dmin.

[21] Pace, 120.

[22] Byrne, 26.

[23] Just, 83.

[24] Eugene LaVerdiere, Luke. Wilmington, DE: Michael Glazier, Inc. (1980), 23.

[25] Martin Luther and Philip Melanchthon, Christian Freedom: Faith Working Through Love. St. Louis: Concordia Publishing House (2011), 74f.

[26] Philippians 4:7. Lutheran teaching on Mary: http://cyclopedia.lcms.org/display.asp?t1=m&word=MARIOLOGY; and http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luther%27s_Marian_theology; Luther on the Magnificat by Donal Flanagan http://www.esbvm.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/Flanagan01.pdf and Works of Martin Luther, The Magnificat: Translated and Explained 1520-1521  http://www.godrules.net/library/luther/NEW1luther_c5.htm