Commemoration of Clement of Rome, Pastor

Today we remember and give thanks for Clement of Rome, Pastor.  Clement (ca. A.D. 35–100) is remembered for having established the pattern of apostolic authority that governed the Christian Church during the first and second centuries. He also insisted on keeping Christ at the center of the Church’s worship and outreach. In a letter to the Christians at Corinth, he emphasized the centrality of Jesus’ death and resurrection: “Let us fix our eyes on the blood of Christ, realizing how precious it is to His Father, since it was poured out for our salvation and brought the grace of repentance to the whole world” (1 Clement 6:31). Prior to suffering a martyr’s death by drowning, he displayed a steadfast, Christ-like love for God’s redeemed people, serving as an inspiration to future generations to continue to build the Church on the foundation of the prophets and apostles, with Christ as the one and only cornerstone.

Collect of the Day:

Almighty God, Your servant Clement of Rome called the Church in Corinth to repentance and faith to unite them in Christian love.  Grant that Your Church may be anchored in Your truth by the presence of the Holy Spirit and kept blameless in Your service until the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Sermon for the Last Sunday of the Church Year - Isa 65:17-25

                                                                                                      Last Sunday
                                                                                                      Isa 65:17-25
                                                                                                      11/20/16

How old do you expect to become? How long do you think your life will be? Social Security says that if you are 65 years old today, you can expect to live to 84.3 years if you are man and 86.6 years if you are a woman. Life expectancy in general in our country is about 75 years if you are a man and 80 years if you are a woman.

Lord willing, I am expecting to have a long life. My Grandma Stahlke lived to be 99. My Grandma Surburg lived to be 97. Grandpa Surburg died when he was 92. Only my Grandpa Stahlke died in his early 80’s after having a stroke, and Amy tells me that if the same event happened today, the outcome would have been quite different because of advances in medicine.

You can appreciate the blessings we have when you consider that life expectancy in other parts of the world: in Sierra Leone it is 50.1 years; in Angola it is 52.4; in Chad it is 53.1. Great advances have occurred in our own country. In 1935 the life expectancy for a man was 59.9 years and for a woman was 63.9 years. Needless to say, Social Security’s retirement age of 65 meant that it was not intended to support people for two decades or more.

In the ancient world, life expectancy was much lower. Infant and child mortality was extremely high. Up to half of all children died before the age of 10. For this reason, in ancient Egypt the average life expectancy was between 20 and 30 years. If you could make it past age ten, you had a good chance of reaching your thirties, but few people lived beyond 40. By the time of the first century A.D. in the Roman empire the life expectancy was 35. If you lived past age ten, you had decent change of living into your fifties.

It is this background that helps us to understand Isaiah’s words in our text today when he says, “No more shall there be in it an infant who lives but a few days, or an old man who does not fill out his days, for the young man shall die a hundred years old, and the sinner a hundred years old shall be accursed.” In poetic language the prophet describes a future that is not even something we experience. For the person living in the eighth century B.C. it was unimaginable. Today is the Last Day of the Church Year. The end of the Church Year focuses our attention on the end. It holds before us the return of Jesus Christ and the Last Day. Yet to think about the end is really to think about the beginning. It is to think about the beginning of the salvation that God has promised. In the description of that final salvation we find an incredible contrast with what we now experience. And when we consider how great this difference is, we can begin to understand the magnitude of Jesus Christ’ saving work.

Yahweh declares at the beginning of our text, “For behold, I create new heavens and a new earth, and the former things shall not be remembered or come into mind.” He describes something new in the future. And by the time the readers of Isaiah have reached this point, we know why something new is needed. It is needed because of sin.

In his prophecy, Isaiah has dealt with sin and the ways that it has perverted Israel, Judah and all the nations. Certainly he addresses a variety of sins. But the one that comes to the fore again and again is idolatry. The people of God have put other gods first. Yahweh complains,” I spread out my hands all the day to a rebellious people, who walk in a way that is not good, following their own devices; a people who provoke me to my face continually, sacrificing in gardens and making offerings on bricks; who sit in tombs, and spend the night in secret places; who eat pig's flesh, and broth of tainted meat is in their vessels.”

We find a description here that certainly sounds religious. It’s about involvement in the paganism of the Near Eastern world during the eighth century B.C. And that makes it sound very strange and far removed from us. But the thing to recognize is that the practices of paganism were what everyone else was doing. It was God’s people who didn’t fit in – who did things in a way that was different. To turn away from Yahweh was to fit in with the world. And that should sound very familiar. For whether it is a fixation on wealth and all the bells and whistles that go with it, or the priority we give to other activities over receiving God’s Word, or the use of pornography, or taking God’s name in vain, they are always things that everyone else is doing; they are things that fit in with the world.

In the second half of the book, Isaiah has described how the Servant of the Lord will address sin. In some of the most important words written in Scripture we are told about Him: “Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. 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.” We learn that God will act in the Servant of the Lord to take away sin – to provide forgiveness.

Yet God’s answer will do more than just give us forgiveness as we stumble in sin. It will fundamentally change existence in this world. And in the first half of the book we learn that he will accomplish this through the Messiah descended from King David. In Isaiah 11 we learn that God will put his Spirit upon him. We are told about the Messiah, “And his delight shall be in the fear of the LORD. He shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide disputes by what his ears hear, but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall strike the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall kill the wicked. Righteousness shall be the belt of his waist, and faithfulness the belt of his loins. The wolf shall dwell with the lamb, and the leopard shall lie down with the young goat, and the calf and the lion and the fattened calf together; and a little child shall lead them.”

In this New Testament era, we understand the good news that Jesus the Christ is both of these. Designated as the suffering Servant of the Lord at his baptism he suffered and died for sin in our place. Yet Jesus is also the Messiah – the Christ, anointed with the Spirit at that same baptism. He is the One who began the Last Days in his resurrection from the dead. He is the One who brings the peace Isaiah describes.

In Christ we already have forgiveness and peace. St. Paul told the Romans, “Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Through faith in the crucified and risen Lord we know that we are already justified. This means that we already know of the verdict of the Last Day when we will stand before the judgment seat of God. It is: Innocent, not guilty. Those in Christ through baptism and faith already have peace with God – a peace which carries though the Last Day and into eternity.

But it takes just a moment to glance around at our lives and world and recognize that we do not yet have peace in every part of our lives. Forgiven, yes – but sin and its consequences continue to be present for us. And that is the reason we look towards the return of Jesus Christ in hope.

Hope is one of the most powerful forces in human life. Hope gives people the ability press on the in the face of great challenges. The hope that we have as Christians is the future that Isaiah sets before us in our text. He says, “But be glad and rejoice forever in that which I create; for behold, I create Jerusalem to be a joy, and her people to be a gladness. I will rejoice in Jerusalem and be glad in my people; no more shall be heard in it the sound of weeping and the cry of distress.”

God describes the future of his people which is now the Church and includes Jew and Gentile. And the note that rings out is joy and gladness! God’s people rejoice and are glad in the salvation God has provided, and God rejoice and is glad in his people. What is absent is weeping and the cry of distress.

And why would there be? Isaiah describes a future of long and blessed life. He describes something that exceeded anything that a person in the ancient world could imagine. And of course, because of God’s revelation in other parts of Scripture we know that this life has no end – it will be eternal life in God’s new creation. It will be eternal life with God, and as he says in our text, “Before they call I will answer; while they are yet speaking I will hear.”

This future – this hope that we have in Christ – is summarized in the last verse of our text where we hear: “‘The wolf and the lamb shall graze together; the lion shall eat straw like the ox, and dust shall be the serpent's food. They shall not hurt or destroy in all my holy mountain,’ says the Lord.” This is a description of the salvation and peace that Jesus Christ will bring in the new creation – a creation renewed and freed from sin and its consequences.

It is a future in which creation itself will once again be at peace with itself and with man. It is a future in which the evil serpent – the devil – has been defeated and never again poses a threat to God’s people. It is the future that has been guaranteed to us by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

And so we press on in faith. We press on because of the hope we have in Christ. We press on in the confidence that the Lord who has defeated death is still with us, strengthening us in faith and guarding us in his salvation through his Means of Grace. We press on in faith that our Lord will return just as he has promised. We press on in the hope of the future that God will give us. And so we pray in faith, “Maranatha. Come Lord Jesus!”

Commemoration of Justinian, Christian Ruler and Confessor of Christ

Today we remember and give thanks to God for Justinian, Christian Ruler and Confessor of Christ.  Justinian was emperor of the East from A.D. 527 to 565 when the Roman Empire was in decline. With his beautiful and capable wife, Theodora, he restored splendor and majesty to the Byzantine court. During his reign the Empire experienced a renaissance, due in large part to his ambition, intelligence, and strong religious convictions. Justinian also attempted to bring unity to a divided church. He was a champion of orthodox Christianity and sought agreement among the parties in the Christological controversies of the day who were disputing the relation between the divine and human natures in the Person of Christ. The Fifth Ecumenical Council in Constantinople in A.D. 533 was held during his reign and addressed this dispute. Justinian died in his eighties, not accomplishing his desire for an empire that was firmly Christian and orthodox.

Collect of the Day:

Lord God, heavenly Father, through the governance of Christian leaders such as Emperor Justinian, Your name is freely confessed in our nation and throughout the world.  Grant that we may continue to choose trustworthy leaders who serve You faithfully in our generation and make wise decisions that contribute to the general welfare of Your people; through Jesus Christ, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever.

Sermon for the Twenty-fifth Sunday after Trinity - 1 Thess 4:13-18

                                                                                                 Trinity 25
                                                                                                  1 Thess 4:13-18
                                                                                                 11/13/16

Well, after eleven days, I think we have to conclude that it is just not going to happen. And that comes as a shock to many. Now I know that Jesus said no one knows the hour of his return. Nonetheless, the history of Christianity has been filled with people who have tried to predict the day Jesus is going to return. They have tried again and again.

So why should we be surprised that some people thought that the Chicago Cubs winning the World Series would signal the return of the ascended Lord? After all, the Cubs had not won the World Series since 1908. My Grandpa Surburg was born in 1909 and died in 2001. He lived ninety-two years and never saw it happen.

And it’s not just the length of time, but the way they did it. After winning back to back titles in 1907 and 1908, the Cubs won the National League and then lost in the World Series seven times. The 1945 World Series loss saw the so called “curse of the goat” invoked upon them, and it seemed to take. Prior to this season they had not made it back to the World Series. Their collapses have been memorable; the divisional lead blown in 1969; the 1984 and 2003 National League Championship series where they had a commanding lead and lost as balls went through the legs of infielders and the fan Steve Bartman interfered with a play. Last year, after beating the St. Louis Cardinals in the Division Series they were the media darling in the League Championship series … and then were swept by the New York Mets.

This year they entered the season as the favorite. They went wire to wire during the regular season as the best team in baseball. And then they actually went on to win the World Series! I mean, it was like it was meant to be. A great ninth inning rally gave them the win over the San Fransisco Giants when it seemed that once again the Cubs were going to choke. Down two games to one, they came back to win three straight to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers and advance to the World Series. Down three games to one, they came back against the Cleveland Indians and forced a game seven.

Up by three runs in the eighth inning, they blew the lead. The game was tied after nine innings and it seemed that yet again the Cubs were going to choke. But then … of all things … rain forced a seventeen minute delay. The Cubs used that time to regroup and won the game in the tenth inning. The rain delay helped the Cubs win the World Series. And you know who controls the rain…. Surely, this was it. The Lord Jesus would return.

But he didn’t. And after eleven days I think it is safe to conclude that there is no link between Chicago Cubs baseball and the Last Day. I wish it were otherwise. I think even St. Louis Cardinal fans would have been willing to trade a Cubs World Championship for the return of Jesus Christ.

After all, we live in very disturbing times. The Sexual Revolution has turned loose a host of forces that destroy marriage and families. Economic issues related to unemployment, underemployment and health care costs create great worry. Meth and other drugs destroy lives around us. Basic beliefs about truth and error are rejected, and we have entered some kind of alternate reality where a man is “really” a woman and you are a bigot if you insist on pointing out the obvious problem with this. And indeed, many of these issues were summarized in the most bizarre presidential election that we have ever experienced. Two of the least desirable candidates we have ever seen ran for the President of the United States. Many people found themselves voting solely against a candidate instead for someone, and no one really knows what we are now going to get.

These circumstances instill fear. They prompt worry and doubt about the present and future. While we aren’t usually inclined to think about it this way, the reality is that such fear and worry is sin. It breaks the First Commandment. It is, after all, a failure to fear, love and trust in God above all things. The Christians in Thessalonica were apparently experiencing fear and worry. They seem to have been concerned about their fellow Christians who had died, and yet Jesus Christ had not returned. What did it mean for these believers if they were not alive on the Last Day? Would they miss out on the salvation Paul had preached to them when he shared the Gospel?

Paul says that the Thessalonians had been an example for others in the way they received the Gospel. He said, “And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia.” The apostle described how everyone knew that the Thessalonians had “turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.”

They were awaiting Jesus’ return. But this raised concerns about those who had already died. And so in our text Paul writes, “But we do not want you to be uninformed, brothers, about those who are asleep, that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.” The first thing that should catch our attention is the way Paul describes death – he calls it “sleep.” He does this because sleep is a temporary condition. You go to sleep and then you wake back up. It’s not permanent.

Paul says that the Christian will not think about death in the same way as the unbeliever – as the person who had no hope. Death has been caused by sin. It is not the way God made his creation – it is not very good. And therefore it is a source of grief and sorrow. But the apostle says the Christian has a completely different outlook because we do not grieve as those who have no hope.

The reason is very simple. Paul goes on to explain, “For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so, through Jesus, God will bring with him those who have fallen asleep.” Jesus Christ died on the cross for you to win forgiveness. But then, he rose from the dead. And since Jesus, the first fruits of the resurrection did this, he will do the same for all who believe in him. 

In our text, the apostle tells us that those who are alive when Jesus returns in glory on the Last Day will not leave behind those who have died in the faith. In fact they won’t even precede them. Instead, the moment of the resurrection will be announced with complete certainty. Paul tells us, “For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the sound of the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.”

First Jesus will raise those who died in the Lord. Then, all of the Christians will be meet the Lord in the air. Now this language has helped to give rise to the silly notion of the “rapture” –a teaching unheard of in the church before it was invented in the nineteenth century. What we must understand is that Greek word translated as “to meet” described what happened when the emperor or the governor came to a city. The people went outside the city to greet the dignitary as a sign of honor, and then they escorted him back into their city. This is not a movement away from God’s creation, but instead one of greeting the ascended Lord who is coming to this world.

After providing this description Paul adds the comforting statement, “and so we will always be with the Lord. Therefore encourage one another with these words.” The apostle declares that end of the story is resurrection life with Jesus. That’s where all of this is going. And because of this fact we have hope. We have comfort.

And we also have expectation. Right after our text Paul goes on to say, “Now concerning the times and the seasons, brothers, you have no need to have anything written to you. For you yourselves are fully aware that the day of the Lord will come like a thief in the night. While people are saying, ‘There is peace and security,’ then sudden destruction will come upon them as labor pains come upon a pregnant woman, and they will not escape.” 

Paul calls us to live as those who are fully aware that the Lord’s return will be sudden and unexpected – like a thief in the night. But he reminds us that because we have faith in Jesus Christ the risen Lord we are ready. He says, “But you are not in darkness, brothers, for that day to surprise you like a thief. For you are all children of light, children of the day. We are not of the night or of the darkness.”

And since this is true, we need to live like we are ready. As the apostles adds, “So then let us not sleep, as others do, but let us keep awake and be sober. For those who sleep, sleep at night, and those who get drunk, are drunk at night. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.”

We know how it will end. We know that already now through baptism the end belongs to us. We are saints. Our sins have been washed away. We are ready for the Last Day – we are ready for the judgment. And because through baptism we have shared in the death of the risen Lord, we know that we will be raised too.

And so we live as those who are ready. We put on that “equipment” that enables us to live in the present as God’s people who are ready for the return of Jesus Christ. We wear the breastplate of faith and love. We have a constant faith in Jesus Christ as our crucified and risen Lord. And because we have received the saving love of God in Christ, through the work of the Spirit we now we have love for another. In fact in the third verse of this letter Paul referred to the Thessalonians “labor of love.” Love works. It does. It serves because Jesus is the One who rose from the dead – the One who will raise us from the dead.

And we put on for a helmet the hope of salvation. The thing that protects us from fear; the thing that protects us from worry is the hope of salvation that God has provided to us in the resurrection of Jesus Christ. This hope builds on what has already happened. Jesus died on the cross. He rose on the third day. He ascended into heaven. And therefore we know he will return and raise us up, just as he promised.

That’s the truth. That’s the way it is. And so Paul concludes this section of his letter by saying, “For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died for us so that whether we are awake or asleep we might live with him. Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.”