Sermon for Fifth Sunday in Lent - Judica

                                                                                                Lent 5

                                                                                                Heb 9:11-15

                                                                                                4/6/14

            We have been using the chalice in the Divine Service at Good Shepherd for several months now, and I think it is safe to say that we have arrived at a comfortable rhythm in using it.  I personally had never celebrated the Sacrament using a chalice, since my previous congregation did not have one either.  It’s one thing to think about the mechanics of how you are going to do things at the altar, it’s another thing to actually do them and then feel comfortable.  The latter only occurs over time through repetition.  Yet after a few months, things now feel quite natural.

            I think the addition of the chalice has added to the reverence and richness of the celebration of the Sacrament.  As we follow our Lord’s institution of the Sacrament and how he took the cup, it is beneficial that we actually have a cup too.  The presence of the chalice has allowed for the elevation of Christ’s body and blood.  This is an action that confesses what Jesus’ words have just said, namely that the pastor holds the true body and blood of Jesus Christ.  And it has allowed the presentation of the host over the chalice to the congregation during the singing of the Pax Domini. The pastor sings, “The peace of the Lord be with you always” as he holds up before the congregation the reason we have peace – the body and blood of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of our sins. And just as these words also remind us of the need to be at peace with one another as we prepare to receive the Sacrament, so the presence of a common up serves as a symbol of the Sacrament’s unique nature – that it is the sacrament of unity as Jesus joins us together.

            Now these are all good things.  But we should not lose sight of the fact that use of the chalice has meant more work for the ladies of the altar guild.  Naturally it has involved dealing with more vessels.  And something that may not realize is that it has meant more washing and cleaning of linens. 

            The purificators that are used during distribution to wipe off the rim of the chalice must be washed after they are used on Sunday.  And then, while we are all very careful, drips do occur during the set up and the administration of the sacrament.  The corporal on which the communion vessels sit, and even the white fair linen that covers the top of the altar sometimes need to be cleaned in order to remove stains.

            Now I greatly appreciate the extra effort the altar guild ladies are providing so that we can use the chalice at Good Shepherd.  Yet at the same time, when I describe the cleaning that is sometimes necessary, we get insight into how different worship is under the new covenant inaugurated by Jesus Christ.  The worship of the first covenant – the old covenant – was a bloody, gory business.  It involved the slaughtering of animals and all the mess that entails.  It involved the actual sprinkling of blood.  In the worship of the tabernacle and temple this messy enterprise is something that had to go on day after day, year after year.  It did until Jesus Christ appeared and brought the consummation of the age as he offered himself once and for all as the sacrifice for our sin.

            In our text this morning, the writer to the Hebrews is in the process of describing how Jesus Christ is the high priest of a new and better covenant.  One of the ways that he does this is by contrasting the nature of the sacrifice offered and how it was presented to God.

            When I look out this morning, I enjoy seeing the carpet that we now have in the sanctuary.   I think it looks great and is such an improvement.  But as many of you know, it is not as if the replacement of the carpet was a swift decision.  Oh, we all knew that we wanted to get rid of the old carpet with all of its stains in the back of the nave.  But how exactly to do that was a matter of much discussion and indecision in the congregation.  It took a long time before we decided on what we were going to put in – though I am told that this was accomplished faster than the decision about buying a lawn mower.

            The Israelites did not face any such indecision when it came to the setting of their worship … because they had no decision to make.  Instead, God told them exactly how it was going to be.  In Exodus chapter 24, God enters into the covenant with Israel at Mt. Sinai.  Then at the beginning of chapter 25 we read, “And let them make me a sanctuary, that I may dwell in their midst. Exactly as I show you concerning the pattern of the tabernacle, and of all its furniture, so you shall make it.”

God gave them the pattern for the tabernacle and the items used there, and in four chapters of Exodus we then find God’s description of them. What is more, we learn later that God chose a man named Bezalel from the tribe of Judah and filled him with the Spirit of God and knowledge to make these things.

            We learn in 1 Chronicles that something very similar happened again when it was time to build the temple in Jerusalem.  David gave Solomon the plan for the temple that he had received from the Lord.  In both, the structure and its furnishings followed God’s pattern – a pattern that reflected the heavenly reality here on earth.

            From the time of Moses until the coming of Christ sacrifices were offered.  The blood of animals was used daily in the rites God had commanded.  Once a year on the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the inner portion, the Holy of Holies, and sprinkled blood on cover of the Ark of the Covenant.

            This went on day after day, year after year … until Good Friday.  For on that day the sacrifice occurred in which all of the Old Testament sacrifices found fulfillment.  When this happened, Jesus Christ did not use the blood of animals.  He did not do not offer a sacrifice that would need to be repeated.  And he did not offer it in a copy of the heavenly reality.

            The writer to the Hebrew tells us in our text, “But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption.”  Jesus Christ offered himself once and for all as the sacrifice on the cross. He offered his own blood as the sacrifice to redeem us from sin.  And it was an offering presented before God himself in heaven. By this unique and one time event, our Lord began a new covenant that fulfills, and yet moves beyond the first covenant with Israel.

            A little later in this chapter, we read, “Thus it was necessary for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these rites, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has entered, not into holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true things, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf. Nor was it to offer himself repeatedly, as the high priest enters the holy places every year with blood not his own, for then he would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world. But as it is, he has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”

            Jesus Christ has put away sin and brought the new covenant by his death and resurrection.  He has brought the new covenant about which God said through Jeremiah, “For I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.”  He has brought the new covenant that includes Jew and Gentile – that includes you.

            This message of forgiveness is one that you need to hear, because you have sins.  You aren’t all that different from ancient Israel.  You may not worship a bronze calf or a Baal or an Asherah pole, but you worship things other than the one true God.  You put other things first in your life and at times they become your true God such as wealth, hobbies, sports and leisure.  Just as the Israelites selfishly looked out for themselves and neglected or even harmed others and were condemned by the prophets for this, so also you put yourself and your needs ahead of those around you.  Just as Israel failed to teach God’s word diligently to their children and failed to make God’s word the focus of their life at home, so do you.

            Because this describes our sin as fallen people, we continually need comfort.  We need encouragement. And that’s what God gives us in his word this morning.  Indeed our text goes on to say, “For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God.”

            The sacrifice for your sin has been offered once and for all.  Jesus Christ through the eternal Spirit offered himself to God as the sacrifice without blemish for you.  He didn’t do it in some copy, but instead he presented his sacrifice in the presence of God himself.  And so his blood makes you holy before God.  You are forgiven.

            You know this because you are baptized. And because you know this, the writer to the Hebrews says that you can approach God in the confidence of faith.  He writes in the next chapter, “Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the holy places by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.”

            This is what God has done for you in Christ Jesus.  This is what God has made you to be.  And therefore, through the work of the Spirit we find the courage to continue to confess the faith in the world.  And we also seek act in love towards those around us. The writer to the Hebrews put it this way as whe summed up what the forgiveness we have received in Christ means for us: “Let us hold fast the confession of our hope without wavering, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how to stir up one another to love and good works, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day drawing near.”

           

                 

Mark's thoughts: A dead Messiah is no Messiah - Jesus and Jewish messianic expectation

“From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised” (Matthew 16:21).  This is the first passion prediction in the Gospel of Matthew.  It occurs after Peter confesses that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God (16:16).  Our Lord goes on to predict His passion two more times before He arrives at Jerusalem and Holy Week (Matthew 17:22-23; 20:18-19), and the last of these is the most specific: “See, we are going up to Jerusalem. And the Son of Man will be delivered over to the chief priests and scribes, and they will condemn him to death and deliver him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified, and he will be raised on the third day” (Matthew 20:18-19).

In spite of this preparation, when the events finally arrive the disciples are totally unprepared for it.  They are not ready for his death and they do not expect his resurrection. It is puzzling.  After all the disciples believe He is the Son of God and Jesus does many miraculous things such as even raising the dead.  So why don’t Jesus’ multiple predictions of His death and resurrection register with them?

There are probably several reasons, and some of them have to do with the basic struggle against sin and unbelief.  However, when we consider the historical setting of first century A.D. Judaism it is not hard to recognize one very significant reason.  They do not understand because of the way Jesus contradicts expectations that Jews of this time had about the Messiah.

I. Old Testament background

The disciples believe that Jesus is the Christ (Messiah in Hebrew, which means “anointed one”).  The Old Testament provides the foundation for understanding the Messiah.  We find there that the Messiah is the fulfillment of God’s promise that David will never lack a descendant on the throne (2 Sam 7:12-16; 1 Chr 17:11-14; cf. Jer 33:17; Ps 89:3-4, 34-36; 132:10-12).  This Davidic descendant is Yahweh’s “son” (2 Sa 7:14; Ps 2:7) and the Messiah (Ps 2:2) is the one who subdues and possesses the nations (2:8-12; cf. Ps 72:8-17; 110:1).

Isa 11:1-9 provides a remarkable description of the Messiah and it would exert a great influence on later messianic contemplation.  The Messiah is described as a descendant of David and the one upon whom the Spirit rests in a unique way (Isa 11:1-2).  He will rule and judge righteously (Isa 11:3-5), and he will destroy the wicked: “He shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked” (11:4). His impact extends beyond humanity as he brings peace to creation itself (11:6-9).

This same figure is also clearly described in verses that don’t actually include the term “Messiah.” Jeremiah says that God will raise up for David a righteous Branch (צֶמַח צַדִּיק), and tells of how he shall reign as king and deal wisely, executing justice and righteousness in the land. (cf. Jer 33:15; “Branch” Zech 3:8; 6:12).  Ezekiel says that Yahweh will raise up his servant David (34:23; 37:24-25) who is a prince (נָשִׂיא) (34:24; 37:25) and will be their shepherd (34:23; 37:24). He will deliver them from the nations (34:27-29). In the same way Zechariah describes how this one will bring peace and will rule “from sea to sea, and from the River to the ends of the earth” (Zech 9:9-10).

A Jew living in the second temple period (fifth century B.C. to first century A.D.) who looked to God’s Word found a fairly clear impression about what the Messiah would look like.  The Davidic Messiah was the warrior king who would destroy the enemies of Israel and institute an era of unending (cosmic) peace and righteousness.

When we consider Jewish messianic expectation in the second temple period, it is necessary to immediately emphasize that we are really talking about expectations.  Earlier scholarship had believed there was a fixed system of messianic belief and expectation.  They created a messianic synthesis from later texts and viewed the first century A.D. through that lens.  However more recent scholarship has demonstrated that there was no one messianic belief.  A range of beliefs were present in second temple Judaism at the same time.  In fact, we can identify five of them.

II. No messianic expectation

The first belief will probably surprise us.  It appears that some Jews had no messianic expectation.  There is virtually no extant evidence that indicates the presence of messianism from the early fifth to the late second century BC.  Considering the sporadic nature of available texts, we can ask whether the absence of evidence means that there was an absence of messianic expectation.  Surely there must have been people like Simeon and Anna.  No doubt there were.  But at the same time we cannot dismiss the fact that nobody talked about it in the texts we have and so it seems unlikely that it was a pressing hope or expectation among those who produced these texts.  This probability is strengthened when we note that the appearance of evidence for messianic expectation corresponds to the rise of Hasmonean rule (164-63 BC), as individuals who did not descend from David (and never made any such claim) began to rule an independent Israel after the revolt against the Seleucids.

III. Davidic King

The second belief was the expectation of a Davidic king. The Psalms of Solomon (post 63 BC) ask God to raise up a son of David to rule Israel and “to purge Jerusalem from Gentiles … to smash the arrogance of sinners like a potter’s jar; to shatter all their substance with an iron rod; to destroy the unlawful nations with the word of his mouth” (17:22-23).  This Messiah (17:32; 18:5, 7) will reign as king in a just and righteous rule.

He will purge Jerusalem and make it holy (17:30) even as He judges the peoples and nations (17:29) and “will have the gentile nations serving him under his yoke” (17:30).  Rather striking from a Christian perspective is the assertion that the Messiah will be free from sin (17:35).  The Psalms of Solomon is usually viewed as reaction to both Hasmonean rule and Pompey’s conquest of Palestine in 63 BC.  It is easy to see how it reflects the basic orientation of the Old Testament.

A very similar, though far more eschatologically orientated expectation, is found at Qumran.  The Damascus Document (CD) says that “Messiah of Aaron and Israel” will appear at the end of days (12:23; 14:19; 19:10 [B]; 20:1) and inaugurate the eschaton.  The text 4Q285 (related to the War Scroll) mentions Isa 11:1 and then adds how the Branch of David (cf. Ez 34:24; 37:25) and the Prince of the Congregation (cf. Ez 34:24; 37:25) will go into battle.  Florigelium (4QFlor) uses 2 Sa 7:12-14 and identifies David’s offspring in this text as the Branch of David who will arise to save Israel (4QFlor 1-13)

The Damascus Document CD 7:19 (A) also quotes Num 24:17 and describes the scepter in the verse as the prince of the whole congregation who arises to destroy the sons of Seth.  At Qumran a Davidic king was expected who would slay the wicked and the nations in an eschatological war, and usher in an era of peace and justice.

IV. Priestly Messiah

The third belief was the expectation of a second Messiah who would be a priest.

The Damascus Document (CD) says that the “Messiah of Aaron and Israel” will appear at the end of days (12:23; 14:19; 19:10 [B]; 20:1) It was noted by scholars that linguistically it was possible to read this as two messiahs.  This reading was confirmed when the Community Rule (1QS) was discovered which explicitly referred to the “Messiahs of Aaron and Israel” (9:11).  In 1QS the priestly messiah plays a more central role in the eschatological war and banquet (he takes the bread and wine before the Messiah of Israel; 1QSa2:17-22).

If we ask regarding the basis for this expectation, we first note that priests were anointed in the Old Testament (Lev. 4:3, 5, etc.).  In the post-exilic book of Zechariah there is a reference to “two sons of oil” (Zech 4:11-12). Though this is a challenging text, it may have played a role.  There is diffuse evidence that such a belief was present in Judaism (though some of it is quite problematic). In Jubilees 31:11-20 (second century B.C.) both Levi and Judah are singled out for a blessing and Levi is blessed first.

Aramaic Levi (a precursor to the Testament of Levi in Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs) seems to attribute messianic functions to Levi.  Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs (which is laced with Christian interpolations) has two messianic figures in T. Levi 18 and T. Judah 24.  This appears to be a pattern that developed in the post-exilic period when a high priest was present but there was no king as Israel was ruled by foreign powers.  Though it may have existed elsewhere, the one place where have certain and clear evidence for this belief is Qumran.  Binary messianism of priest and king (Aaron and Israel) is usually taken to be the norm at Qumran, and is the most distinctive feature of Qumran messianism.

V. Prophetic Messiah

The fourth belief was the expectation of a prophetic Messiah.  There are several Old Testament texts that speak about an eschatological prophet or invite this understanding. In Deut 18:15 Moses describes himself  as a prophet and says that the Lord will raise up for them a prophet like him from among Israel.  The Pentateuch ends by noting that such a prophet had not yet arisen (Deut 34:10-12).   Mal 3:1 states, “Behold, I send my messenger, and he will prepare the way before me. And the Lord whom you seek will suddenly come to his temple” and then Mal 4:5 adds, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.”  However, apart from Sirach 48:10 (which says that Elijah will calm God’s wrath and turn the heart of parents to their children), Malachi’s prophecies were rarely cited in the Hellenistic period. Expectation of this Elijah existed, but we do not have evidence that it was widespread.

Unlike kings and priests, prophets were not usually anointed.  However, Yahweh did tell Elijah to anoint Elisha (1 Ki 19:6).  This provided a precedent for describing a prophet as an “anointed one” (a messiah).  Sirach 48:8 says, “You anointed kings to inflict retribution, and prophets to succeed you.” The Dead Sea Scrolls also call prophets “anointed ones” (CD 2:12; 6:1; 1QM 11:7).  A most intriguing piece of evidence from Qumran is 4Q251 (fragment 2 ii).  It begins by saying “heaven and earth will obey his messiah” (1).  Then it goes on to state “The Lord will do as he s[aid] for he will heal the wounded, give life to the dead and preach good news to the poor” (11-12) (cf. Isa 61:1, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me, because the LORD has anointed me to bring good news to the poor.”).  The parallel with Isa 61:1 and habit of calling prophets “messiahs” seems to indicate that the messiah of line 1 is the anointed eschatological prophet.

We have seen that Moses spoke of how God would raise up a prophet like him (Deut 18:15).  This may provide the background for a number of figures who have been described in scholarship as “sign prophets.” Josephus recounts a series “false prophets” (also called “charlatans” and “impostors”) who showed up in Israel. Theudas at the time of Fadus promised to part the Jordan River (Ant. 20.97-98). There were individuals at the time of Felix who led people into wilderness promising tokens of deliverance (Ant. 20:167-168).  An Egyptian at the time of Felix promised to make the walls of Jerusalem fall (Ant. 20.169-171).  Finally, an individual at the time Festus told people to come into wilderness  where he would give them rest (Ant. 20.188). All of these figures promised some kind of recapitulation of God’s mighty action in the exodus.  They appear to have anticipated some kind of eschatological redemption. Nothing in Josephus’ account indicates they claimed to be “messianic.” However, Josephus has his own agenda because of the way he had “prophesied” about his captor and patron Vespasian.  It is entirely possible that these individuals considered themselves to be anointed by the Spirit in the manner described by Isa 61.

VI. Heavenly Messiah

The fifth belief was the expectation of a heavenly Messiah. The Old Testament background for this is Dan 7:13, “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man (כְּבַר אֱנָשׁ ), and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.” The Similtudes of Enoch (1 Enoch 37-41) (first century AD) contains numerous references to “son of Man” (46:3; 48:2; 62:5, etc.).  This same figure is also called “Chosen One” (39:6, 40:5; 45:3, 4, etc.), “Righteous One” (38:2; 53:6) and “Anointed One” (48:10; 52:4).  In these texts “son of Man” is not yet a title.  At the same time the “son of Man”/Messiah is clearly divine.  He is pre-existent (48:3; 62:7), sits on God’s throne (61:1; 62:5) and is the object of worship (48:5; 62:9). He is a powerful figure who judges fallen angels (55:4), angels (61:8), kings (62:3ff) and removes kings from their thrones (46:4-5).

This same expectation is found in two documents that date to the end of the first century AD after the destruction of the temple in 70 AD.  4 Ezra (post-70 AD) suggests that “my son the Messiah” is pre-existent (7:28).  This Messiah reigns for 400 years and then dies (7:29-33).  After seven days of primeval silence the resurrection occurs (7:31-32). In the Eagle vision (ch. 11) and the Man from the Sea vision (ch 13) we learn that the Messiah descends from David, and will defeat Rome and those who oppose him.  The Man from the Sea vision has strong parallels to Dan ch. 7.  If we ask how the Messiah can be pre-existent and also descend from David, we find the only answer to be that apocalyptic literature is not known for its logical consistency.

In 2 Baruch the Messiah is pre-existent (29:3).  He initiates a messianic interregnum of abundance (29:3-8).  When the time of the Messiah has been fulfilled he returns to God with glory and then the resurrection occurs (30:1-5).  We learn that the Messiah will destroy the fourth evil kingdom (ch 39).  This figure judges kings and nations, and protects his people (ch 40; 70:9-73:7).

VII. A historical example

We have a historical example of what this messianic expectation could look like in the Bar Kochba revolt (132-135 AD).  Simon Bar Kosiba led a revolt that was prompted by Hadrian’s plan to make Jerusalem into pagan city (Aelia Capitolina), his ban on circumcision and also perhaps by economic factors.  We learn that Rabbi Akiba explained Num 24:17’s “a star (kochba) shall go forth from Jacob” as “Kosiba goes forth from Jacob” and hailed him as, “This is the King Messiah” (jTa^canit 68d). 

We do not know for certain whether Simon Bar Kosiba consider himself to be the Messiah.  Some coins minted by the revolt bear a star and documents and coins call him “prince of Israel” (which had  a long history as messianic title).  The Romans eventually put down the revolt in action that produced heavy loss of life for both sides. Simon was killed in a last stand.  Instead of calling him Bar Kochba (“son of the star”), later Jewish tradition calls him “Bar Koziba” (“son of the lie”) as a false messiah.

VIII. The paradox of Jesus the Christ

While there is great diversity in these expectations, they share some significant common themes that were true in first century AD Judaism.  First, the Messiah was an eschatological figure.  Second, the Messiah was expected to triumph over all opposition on behalf of Israel or God’s elect, and to inaugurate peace and justice for God’s people.  Third, it was very easy for Jews in the first century AD to recognize a false messiah.  This status became apparent when the Romans killed him.  The fact was clearer still if the Romans captured and crucified him since in this time period the curse of Deut. 21:23 was applied to individuals who were crucified (cf. Gal 3:13, “Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming a curse for us—for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who is hanged on a tree’”).

Therefore, when Jesus predicted that he would suffer and die by crucifixion it contradicted all of the basic assumptions that first century AD Judaism held about the Messiah.  The paradox of Jesus the Christ is that the Davidic Messiah and the Suffering Servant of Isa ch 53 are the same individual.  There was nothing in the expectation of this time that would have led his hearers to connect these two (cf. 1 Pet 1:10-12).  It was only when the death and resurrection had been accomplished and Jesus Christ revealed this to his disciples (cf. Luke 24:13-27, 44-49) that this could be understood.

The unity of these two roles was found in the descent of the Spirit at Jesus’ baptism (Matt 3:17) (explicitly described as an “anointing” in Acts 10:38).  In chapter one Matthew has demonstrated that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of David.  Now, God puts his Spirit upon the shoot from the stump of Jesus as Isa 11:1-2 had described.  Yet at the same time, in doing so, he identifies Jesus as the Servant in fulfillment of the words, “Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him” (Isaiah 42:1 ESV) (cf. Matt 12:18).

The unity of roles also existed because of the manner in which both Israel and the Messiah were God’s son.  God had described Israel as his son in Exo 4:22 and had called the Messiah his son in 2 Sa 7:14.  Jesus is not just God’s “son” in an adopted sense but in fact is God’s Son in the full ontological sense of the Holy Trinity.  As the Davidic Messiah (the Christ), he is God’s Son.  Yet he is also God’s Son in that he is Israel reduced to One.  Matthew explicitly makes this point when he quotes Hos 11:1 (a text which speaks about Israel) and applies it to Jesus’ presence in Egypt: “This was to fulfill what the Lord had spoken by the prophet, “Out of Egypt I called my son” (Matthew 2:15).  Just as Israel is the Servant (Isa 41:8), so also Jesus the Christ is the Servant who goes to the cross as the suffering Servant of Isaiah chapter 53 and fulfils the words: “But he was pierced for our transgressions; he was crushed for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace, and with his wounds we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5).   

At the same time, as the resurrected Lord who will return in glory on the Last Day he is the fulfillment of the mighty description found in Isa ch. 11.  He is the One who will judge righteously and destroy the wicked (Isa 11:3-5).  He is the One who brings the cosmic peace of the renewed creation (Isa 11:6-8; cf. Matt 19:28).  He brings the day when, “They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain; for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (Isaiah 11:9).

Culture news: Exposing the Myths of Recreational Sex

One can ignore God's ordering of creation, but that doesn't mean a person escapes from the consequences of doing so. Janice Shaw Crouse shares three truth's about recreational sex: 1) Recreational sex has produced dramatic increases in sexually transmitted diseases 2) Recreational sex leaves young people alone and lonely 3) Recreational sex makes girls the losers.

Sermon for fourth mid-week Lent service

                                                                                    Mid-Lent 4

                                                                                    Mt 5:27-32

                                                                                    4/2/14

            A number of you know that last February I started a blog on the internet.  Named – appropriately enough – “Surburg’s blog,” it was intended to be a way to share news items and articles that relate to the Church and her life in the world.  It was also intended to be a way to share things I write with a broader audience.  I enjoy writing articles for the theological journals of our seminaries, but those pieces reach a limited audience and must deal with narrow topics.  I wanted something that would allow me to share things that are often more than a church newsletter, but less than a journal article.  I had the goal of being able share my thoughts in a way that would reach a wider audience of Lutheran pastors and lay people.

            The experiment has succeeded beyond my wildest expectations. As of yesterday when I was writing this sermon, the blog had been viewed 109,000 times.  Now that’s a lot of mouse clicks!  And perhaps even more remarkable has been the source of those viewers.  While naturally, the majority are in the United States it has been amazing to see the blog viewed regularly by people all over the world in places like Germany, Russia, France and China.

            I have fairly basic computer and internet skills, and so my blog is nothing fancy from a technical standpoint.  I use the basic Blogger platform provided by Google.  Blogger allows you to see the nations in which viewers are located.  It also enables you to see the websites that are the source of viewers.  It is always interesting to see how other websites and blogs refer people to my blog.  During the course of last year it was one way that I could tell that the blog was establishing itself as something people consider to be a useful resource.

            When I see that a number of page views have come from a website that I don’t recognize, I will click on the link and find out what it is.  And on one occasion this provided a huge shock. I noticed that thirty or forty views had come off a website with an innocuous name like “meetone.com.”  So I clicked on the link and when the page opened, there was a picture of a completely naked woman in what we will just call a very provocative pose.  I was flabbergasted and my instant reaction was to close the page as quickly as possible, as I nearly spilled my coffee reaching for the mouse.  I think what had happened was that I had recently posted the link for an excellent article about how the use of pornography actually alters the brain, and this must have attracted attention from some viewers who are not my usual audience.

            The enormous presence of pornography on the internet illustrates why Jesus’ words tonight are so important for the world in which we live.  Once again, Jesus takes a commandment and show us the deeper meaning that fulfills God’s will.  He shows us how sin pervades our life, and because we have received the reign of God in him, he calls us to live in ways that reject it.

            In our text Jesus says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery.’ But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman so as to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”  Once again, Jesus takes up the commandment and the manner in which it was normally understood by the scribes and Pharisees of his day.  They read it in a very straightforward manner: “Don’t commit adultery.”  If you were married and you didn’t have sex with someone other than your spouse, then you were keeping the Sixth Commandment.

            However, yet again, Jesus takes things deeper.  He declares, “But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman so as to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”  Jesus says that to look at a woman and lust for her is to break the Sixth Commandment – and of course the same thing is true of a woman looking at a man.  There is an ambiguity in Jesus’ words that encompasses different ways this can happen.  It covers both looking with the intent of lusting, and also a looking that prompts lusting.

            Our Lord’s point is that sin is about the heart.  It’s not just a matter of the deeds we commit.  It includes the very thoughts and motives that are found within us.  Later in the Gospel, Jesus will say, “Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person.”

            As fallen people, this sin is found within us.  And it does indeed prompt sinful actions.  Because of this sin that cuts us off from the holy God, our heavenly Father sent his Son into this world.  He sent him to bring the reign of God – to bring God’s salvation.  During Lent we are preparing to remember again that Jesus Christ brought the forgiving reign of God by dying on the cross.  Our Lord said, “the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.”  He gave himself as the ransom for us, and then on the third day he rose from the dead.  Because he did this, we know that we are forgiven and have been freed from eternal death.

            You have received this saving reign.  You received it in your baptism as you were born again of water and the Spirit and came to share in Jesus’ saving death.  You stand before God forgiven because of Jesus Christ.  And now, Christ’s Spirit is at work in you, helping you to live in ways that follow God’s will.

            The old man is still there – and he will be there until you die or Christ returns.  And so living under God’s reign means struggling against sin.  That is what our Lord emphasizes in our text tonight when he says, “If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body be thrown into hell. And if your right hand causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than that your whole body go into hell.”

            Now this of course, hyperbole, a figure of speech that Jesus uses to emphasize his point.  He is not promoting self-mutilation, especially since sin is a matter of the heart.  Yet by this language our Lord alerts us to the seriousness of the struggle and the way we are to engage in it.

            God created man as male and female.  He created Eve from Adam as the helper corresponding to him.  And then we learn in Genesis 2, “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.”  Man and woman were created to be complementary to one another physically and emotionally.  God created marriage as the lifelong union of a man and a woman – a union that is established and expressed in the one flesh union of sex.  Jesus teaches us in the latter portion of our text that this union of marriage is intended to be for life.

            Because this is God’s will and created design for his gift of sex, we are not to use it outside of marriage.  We are to be sexually pure.  This means that Christians who are not married are not to have sexual intercourse.  This means that Christians who are married are only to have sexual intercourse with their spouse.  And it means that all Christians are to avoid those things that prompt and provide the opportunity for lust.

            In our text, Jesus places the emphasis on looking – on what we see. And it is on this front that we face great challenges.  When I was a young teen temptations of sight were the glimpse of the cover of a Playboy magazine at the book store, or looking at the Sports Illustrated swimsuit issue.  Yet today, anyone with a computer, tablet or smart phone can access a limitless range of pornography anywhere they are.  We are immersed in a deluge of sexually explicit television shows, ads and pictures.  And when we look, we invite lust.

            The answer then for those who live under the reign of God through the work of the Spirit is very straightforward: Don’t look; turn away. Take the app off your phone.  Get rid of the bookmarks on your computer.  Put software on your computer that blocks sexual content.  Don’t turn for the second glance at the attractive man or woman.

            This won’t remove the presence of sin from your heart. It will still be there until you die or Christ returns.  Lustful and sinful thoughts will still spring up, but if you don’t look you aren’t prompting them and you aren’t promoting them.  Bernard of Clairvaux was once asked about lustful thoughts and what a person can do about them.  He said that you can’t keep the birds from flying over your head.  But you can keep them from building a nest in your hair.