Who Do You Say That I Am: A Homily for Lent 2

Mark 8:27-38

2nd Sunday in Lent

4 March 2012

St. John's, Chicago, IL

In the Name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Who do people say that I am? Imagine Bruce Wayne asking that question. Some say a billionaire playboy. Some say a spoiled orphan. Some say a great philanthropist. "But who do you say that I am?" he asks Commissioner Gordon. "You are Batman, the Dark Knight."

"Who do people say that I am?" This time, and infinitely more importantly, it is Jesus who asks. Some say John the Baptizer. Some say Elijah. Some say one of the other prophets. "But who do you say that I am?"

"You are the Christ, of God!" St. Peter is quick and bold to confess. This is no ordinary Man before him. Not just some great prophet either. Jesus of Nazareth is the Savior. God-in-the-flesh, having come for you! The Son of David and Son of God.

Simon Peter could not just make this up, or come up with that answer himself. God the Father revealed it to him -- gave him the knowledge and wisdom to declare that great statement of faith. Human knowledge, human strength, and human courage would not have been so bold, or even so correct, for that matter.

And yet, look and listen. No sooner does St. Peter declare that this is God he is speaking with, face to face, than he tells Jesus, "You don't know what You're talking about!" "Jesus, what do you mean, You are going to be arrested, and suffer and die?! No way! You can't do that? Are you insane?!" Now let that sink in some more. Peter has just admitted that Jesus is Christ --God--and the he turns around and tells Him that He doesn't know what He is talking about. Seriously?! Do you see how ridiculous that is?

"You are the Christ, of God!" When it comes down to it, this confession flows right out of the very purpose of building and maintaining Lutheran schools. God blesses us to have a school in which many children and youth are brought to the saving knowledge of Jesus, being taught and formed in faith the Holy Spirit to believe and confess that Jesus of Nazareth is indeed "the Christ, of God!"

Yes, we are blessed with rigorous academics that exceed most elementary schools around. And yes, most of our students end up in the high schools of their choice. Many will even tell you that their freshman year was easy, after eighth grade at St. John's. But if that is why we exist, simply to be an academically excellent school, we have abandoned our purpose.

Yes, this is a safe environment for our students. A caring faculty and staff that know the students, with everyone promising to work together in a bully-free zone, is a marvelous thing. And it is a blessing. Yet if the reason we are here is safety, in and of itself, we turn our backs on the Lord.

Yes, this school is an enriching place, nurturing talent, honing skills, and supporting a desire to dabble in a great many things. Having so many and various clubs, athletic activities, and enrichment opportunities at an elementary level is almost unheard of. That is a tremendous blessing too. Yet, again, if that is the main reason we exist, we have missed the point, and we grieve our Lord.

All of these are indeed blessings, but they are results of the true purpose for which this and other Lutheran schools exist: to teach and proclaim Jesus, the Christ, of God! When He is central to all that is taught and learned and experienced in a Lutheran school, many other blessings follow.

National Lutheran Schools Week is a brief time to pause and reflect, and thank God for this precious gift -- the gift of a school in which Jesus is clearly proclaimed and taught to be who He is: the Christ, of God!

Do not reject your Lord and demote Him to a good and loving Rabbi. Do not dismiss Jesus as some great prophet. Stop hearing Him, and then turning around like Peter and saying that He doesn't know what He is talking about. When you do this, you reject God and refuse His forgiveness and salvation.

But thanks be to God, for your sake, He who IS the Christ, of God, takes away the sin of the world. He removes your guilt and looses you from your sin. As the Christ, He is anointed to bear your sin and be your Savior. God in the flesh, making you righteous!

For every time that you have thought you know better than God, He reaches out in love and releases you from that sin of arrogance. As you have heard or read His Word and then said, "He can't really mean that!" or "Well, that is only an opinion," you have joined the chief priests, the elders, and scribes in rejecting Him and killing Him. But He has called you to repentance and repeatedly pours out His forgiveness, erasing any marks of doubt or disparaging on your part. Why? Because He loves you!

The very death that He suffered at the hands of the chief priests and scribes is the cause of your forgiveness. The fact that He rose on the third day professes to the world that this death took care of it all, paying the price completely for your sin.

Jesus takes your mind off the things of man. He has made you His restored and renewed children, placing in your hearts and minds the things of God. And first and foremost of this things, is the gift of knowing that Jesus is indeed the Christ, of God! Amen.

Foreshadowings of Christ: A Homily on the Sacrifice of Isaac

Genesis 22: 1-18

29 February 2012

Midweek for Lent 1

St. John’s, Chicago, IL

In the Name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

But, God! You PROMISED! You made me wait 100 years for a son, and now this?! I am supposed to take him on that mountain, stretch him out on the wood that this only son had carried, and let him die!? By my own hands?! This is too much to bear!

You can’t even imagine the horrible anxiety going through Abraham’s mind, along with the shock. After all, the true God had never demanded human sacrifice. Yet here he was, having heard the Lord clearly. He was to sacrifice his son, his only son Isaac.

How many would be truly willing to give up a family member to the Lord? Not many. That hits very close to home for the people of St. John's Lutheran Church in Lanesville, Indiana, on this February 29th. Four years ago today, on the last Leap Day, Emma was on her way home on the interstate, when she suddenly found herself behind a broken down semi. The SUV in front of her had just swerved, and when she discovered the truck was not moving, it was too late. She braced for impact.

The Lord sent His holy angels, and spared Emma's life.

That night, when her husband retrieved their children from our home, he was "white as a ghost." The events of the day had sunk in, and he was overwhelmed -- and horrified. He had seen the remains of Emma's car and all he could say was, "By all rights, I should be a single dad right now."

The Lord worked through this to remind the congregation of God's precious gift of life. He showed His mercy in sparing her, just as he had spared Isaac. Just as He has spared each of you, with His own dear Son taking your place and paying the price of your sin, to release you and let you live in abundant forgiveness and mercy.

There is a death, though, that this gift of life due to God's free mercy and grace, which we also commemorate this day. About five hundred years ago, Patrick Hamilton was a professor at the University of St. Andrew's in Scotland, at the time of Luther. He became convinced of the rediscovery of the pure Gospel among Luther and his companions. Eventually, Patrick was arrested and tried for "the various heresies of Luther." Patrick was dragged out into a public square of the university, and burned at the stake.

A tragic end to an earthly life and ministry. Yet, for Patrick Hamilton, the 29th of February became his birthdate into heaven. God kept His promise of forgiveness and life for this faithful servant.

Yes, God! You PROMISED! You let the human race wait several thousand years for Your Son, and now this! They took Him up that mountain, stretched Him out on the wood of the cross that this only Son had carried, and let Him die!

That's right! The truth is, while God telling Abraham to sacrifice Isaac and then stopping him is a true event in history, in the end it is not about Abraham and Isaac at all. It is about Jesus! It is the Lord God foreshadowing the sacrifice of His Son, His only Son, Jesus. The Father in heaven revealing to us that the Law demands our death, but that God Himself would provide the Lamb. Not just a ram caught in a thicket, but the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!

How amazing! Not quite 2,000 years earlier, the Lord was teaching Abraham what He Himself would do to save Abraham and his descendants—in fact, all people. Christ endured being that Sacrifice and dying on the wood of that cross, so that He might rescue and deliver you. The only Son willingly shed His blood and gave Himself into death, to bring righteousness to you and all the world.

Dear friends in Christ, this evening you may go down from this mountain of the sacrifice, knowing that all is made right with God. Your sins are forgiven. The only Son has died and risen for you! And all the earth is blessed through this Seed of Abraham, who was sacrificed and now lives and reigns for you. Amen.

Leaping for Life

Leap Day is not just simply a time to thank God for an extra day. For those who know the Oberdieck family, it is a time to thank God for EVERY day. A day to remember that every day is a precious gift from the Lord of Life.

Four years ago this afternoon, the Lord sent His holy angels to stop the car that Emma Oberdieck was driving, at precisely the inch necessary. She was driving in the "fast lane" of I-64, returning to Lanesville, IN from her work in Louisville, KY. The SUV in front of her swerved suddenly, revealing a broken down semi, stopped in that "fast lane." With no time to react, Emma's vehicle crashed into the tailgate of the semi.

One inch more would have meant that her earthly life was over, and she would have gone to the Lord that day. (And while it would have been joyful for her, it would have been tragic to her husband, her three sons, family, and all of us at that time at St. John's Lutheran in Lanesville.)

As it turned out, bruising, a broken knee, some shattered glass in her scalp, and multiple fractures in her wrist were the worst of the physical results. (Oh, and her new coat from Christmas that had to be cut to get her out of the crushed car.)

We are so thankful for the protection of God's holy angels, thankful for the gift of life, and thankful for our friend, Emma. Happy Leap Day, Emma!

(Not a) Bummer of a Birthmark: A Homily on Lent 1

Mark 1:9-15

1st Sunday in Lent

26 February 2012

St. John's, Chicago, IL

In the Name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

A number of years ago, Gary Larson drew a Far Side cartoon that had two deer standing in the woods. As it was pure fantasy fiction, and in true Far Side fashion, they were standing on their hind

Yes, the buck had a birthmark shaped like a bullseye. A terrible predicament once hunting season started! He would be the obvious target! legs. One of them had a series of concentric circles on his chest, which looked like a bullseye. The other remarked to him, "Bummer of a birthmark!"

Once He was baptized in the Jordan by John, Jesus became this obvious target. The devil set his sights on the Lord, and would unleash everything he had to try and stop the Savior. He had been a target all along, and Satan knew that this was the Son of God. But now, He was baptized, and His ministry was commencing. More than ever, it would be important to Satan to put an end to this saving mission of God.

So the old evil foe takes Jesus on. He confronts our newly baptized Lord and tempts Him. Satan the accuser twists and turns and manipulates the Word of God, providing temptation for Jesus to endure for forty days in the wilderness.

There He was, the new Adam, with the wild animals, just like our first father was with the animals in Eden. Only in that lush Garden, the first Adam fell for Satan's manipulation of God's Word to tempt him. Now in the wilderness, the New Adam, not so much -- in fact, not at all!

This whole event sets the stage and serves to foreshadow this showdown between Satan and Jesus. Here Christ refutes the devil and stands firm against temptation. He is defeating sin. And later, at the cross, the Lord brings that defeat of sin to completion, crushing sin, death, and the devil by His own suffering and death!

But wait. "Sure," you say, "that's easy for Jesus!" But what about you? How do you do in the face of temptation?

You see, at your baptism, you received a birthmark too. And it also was a target! But this target is cross-shaped. "Receive the sign of the holy cross, both upon your forehead and upon your heart, to mark you as one redeemed by Christ the crucified." As you received new birth and were washed into God's kingdom, you became an enemy of Satan. The tempter became your sworn opponent at that moment, and wants nothing more than your eternal suffering and death, since he hates Jesus and everyone in His Church. Satan knows that Jesus defeated sin, but he and his minions still will do anything they can to tempt you to misunderstand or outright reject God and His Word.

The thing is, sometimes it is not as easy as you think. Temptation can be strong, especially when it involves the things or people we love. The Lord commanded Abraham to sacrifice his only son, Isaac. But he loved Isaac. This was his son, promised by God, and given brith when Abraham was already 100 years old! Did God really say "sacrifice your son, your only son, Isaac?" I'm sure He really didn't mean that. Abraham would have been tempted not to listen to God. If Abraham had given into the temptation to refuse God, it would be a rejection of the Lord.

Sometimes temptation can seem to come in the guise of pity or actually helping someone. Did you see WGN's recent story on a man named Dan Kruse? Dan has been a quadriplegic since a car accident 25 years ago. He is pretty depressed, and now wants to die. He is tempted to take his own life, but physically cannot do it. Others may be tempted to end his life. After all, he is wishing for it. Look at his so-called "quality of life." Yet, death is not imminent. Removing his ventilator would be actively killing him, and thus, a sin. Society would call that a "mercy killing." God calls it murder.

Sometimes temptation can come regarding good and wholesome things, or friends and family you love. These people and things may be blessings from God. Yet when you end up placing them at the top of your priorities, and love or trust them more than God, you change the blessing into a curse. The person you love can be manipulated into an obstacle to faith.

Abraham was tempted to place the son he loved above all else and say that he was a blessing from God, so he should not do as told. Instead, we see God's plan unfold as He teaches Abraham what He himself will someday do: give up His Son, His only Son, Jesus Christ, to be sacrificed. God Himself will provide the Lamb. And He did. And when He did, Isaac was spared, just as you are spared.

When Abraham was at the point of sacrificing his only son, Isaac, the Angel of the Lord called out to him and stopped him, delivering God's Word to him. When Jesus endured temptation, Satan the fallen angel was harassing our Lord, But holy angels came and ministered to Him. They served Him and helped Jesus. When you are tempted, you have the blessing of knowing that His holy angels are ministering to you too. They protect you, and guard you, body and soul, fending off the old evil foe.

Dear friends in Christ, your baptism and the cross traced upon you at that moment are not a "bummer of a birthmark." No, that cross has given you a most blessed birthmark that is a witness to you and others, reminding you of all that the dear Lord Jesus did for you, as the only Son, sacrificed to take away the sin of the world. He has endured temptation and remained sinless. He washes you in that guiltlessness in Baptism, gifting you with the new life of the Son of promise.

Be comforted, dear tempted ones. God is your Mighty Fortress. He is the trusty Shield and Weapon that helps you free from every need that has you overtaken. He fights temptation for you. He fends off Satan and his fellow fallen angels, preserving you in the one, true faith. Because you are baptized, the kingdom yours remaineth! Amen.

Transfigured King: A Homily on the Transfiguration

Mark 9:2-9

Transfiguration of Our Lord

19 February 2012

St. John's, Chicago, IL

In the Name of the Father and of the +Son and of th Holy Spirit. Amen.

This month the Boy Scouts of America celebrated the 100th anniversary of the Eagle Scout award. The Boy Scouts had been in the United States for about two years when this all came to pass. The same can be said for our British counterparts.

In 1909, at the urging of Lord Robert Baden-Powell, King Edward VII of Great Britain created the King's Scout award for the two-year-old scouting organization. When the reigning monarch is a male, this is the name of the highest award in scouting in the nations of the United Kingdom. In a way, it corresponds to the United States of America's Eagle Scout, as each of these awards are given as the ultimate recognition of service to God and country. The King's Scout is honored as one who is a leader, a good citizen, one learning many skills, and a fine servant of the King. But in the United States, you have no king. Or do you?

You have no earthly king. Instead, God has given this nation the structure of a democratic republic. You elect many leaders; no individual is your monarch. At least, no mere human.

And that is the way you have been brought up. You tend to be a typical American, with an aversion to the monarchical form of government. You'd agree with the old Schoolhouse Rock cartoon, "No more kings." It carries over to spiritual choices. You fancy yourself as self-governing, or at least cooperating with other people. Often, you don't even appreciate the elected leadership! That is why entertainment such as Saturday Night Live is popular when they mock presidents, dignitaries, and last night -- history in the making -- even the president of The Lutheran Church -- Missouri Synod! But a King? That's not for you! So you think. You reject the idea of the true and everlasting King, and end up refusing Christ THE King.

Your King is the One who reveals Himself as He speaks with Moses and Elijah. Your King is bearing witness to His glory -- a glory that does not have its source in light or power, but a glory foreshadowed here, as the Old Testament bears witness and converses with the New, and directs our attention to the coming exodus.

What exodus? Exodus means, "going out." Jesus would soon suffer and die and rise again, and in that great event of Good Friday through Easter Sunday, He would be going out of death to life, and from this world to the heavenly realms. In His death and resurrection, the King of kings and Lord of lords shows His ultimate, perfect, righteous, holy glory!

That is the moment depicted in the beautiful stained glass window that faces Montrose Avenue. It is the Transfiguration. Moses and Elijah are on either side of Jesus. The artist did something a little unusual, combining themes, though, and instead of the transfigured Jesus, places our Good Shepherd in the center pane of the window. Still, the image reminds us of the Old Testament confirming and conversing with the New. That they were speaking of Jesus' death and resurrection all along. And that in those marvelous events, Christ comes as you King and serves you.

That is the beauty of the new cross that adorns this chancel. At one and the same time, it proclaims to your eyes the glory of Christ in both the cross and resurrection. The King Himself has given everything and suffered and died for you. He revealed His glory as He redeemed you on Calvary. Then He continued to reveal that glory as He rose. Your King is risen and victorious! And now He delivers the fruits of that victory to you as He serves as your priest, bringing you forgiveness and life through His sacraments. A picture is worth a thousand words. This picture of Jesus keeps speaking thousands of words to you, without end!

This King you see before your eyes is the King who was transfigured to comfort the apostles in the days ahead. As they witnessed the frightening events of Good Friday, even though they still did not understand, Jesus had the apostles "Be prepared." He readied them for Holy Week. He blessed them to see that He is God in the flesh.

The King does the same for you. Still. Now. Only not in the same way. You do not see Him with His clothes gleaming whiter than any bleach or launderer's soap could get them. You do not hear some booming voice from heaven.

Christ reveals His glory now in the miraculous gift of Baptism, Absolution, the preaching of His Gospel, and in His Holy Supper. The voice from heaven now comes to you through your pastor. The glorified Christ now comes to you through water, words, bread, and wine. And in these gifts, Jesus Christ makes you King's Scouts in His kingdom, gifting you to "Be Prepared" for His death and resurrection, this coming Lententide, and always. He prepares you for life everlasting with Him, as you come down from the mountaintop and go out into daily life, nourished, forgiven, and strengthened by the Lord. Amen.

Outcast: A Homily on Mark 1:40-45

Mark 1:40-45

6th Sunday after Epiphany

12 February 2012

St. John's, Chicago, IL

In the Name of the Father and of the +Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

As if having this disease was not bad enough, the reaction of others compounded it. Fear and contempt would issue from the eyes of the beholders. You were "unclean" in body, and contact with you would make anyone else unclean ritually, unable to participate in the liturgies and sacrifices at the Temple.

Once you had become a leper, you were cut off. Unclean. Unable to enter the presence of God in His house. Unable to gather for worship with others. Unable to even be with others, so long as you had leprosy. And since there was no real cure, aside from a few miraculous healings over the centuries, it usually meant life as an outcast.

Being outcast cannot be purely blamed on a disease, though. Just like our first parents in the Garden, you deny and defy the Lord, embracing the sin that cuts you off, making yourself outcast.

But Jesus is helping the outcast here. He beholds the overlooked. He lifts up the downtrodden. He cleanses the filth and makes all things new. Here is a man who is looked down upon by all of society, and Jesus comes to Him and delivers Him.

You are right there with this leper. As a faithful Christian, you are looked down upon by society. The national news has made that clear this week. There are those who are increasing their blatant defiance of Christ and His Church, and the compassion and conscience that accompany the Church. And they look down on, and some even despise you sad Christians.

Has it been too much for you? Do you give in to pressure? Is it easier for you to go along with the surrounding chaos and culture, rather than sticking with Christ-like principles?

Or have you even been the one making others to be outcast? Are your lips loose and unchristian, spreading gossip and breaking the eighth commandment? Do you antagonize, give glaring looks, and make others feel unwelcome? Then you are acting like those who held lepers at bay, and making others into outcasts, and you must repent! As a Christian, you are to be living a life of love and acceptance, defending the defenseless, helping the hurting, and being God's love and mercy in action.

Are you being outcast? Do not be overwhelmed. And do not give in to the pressures of the devil and the world, who say you are not realistic or current. If you have, repent! For you have been no better than they who are attacking Christ's Church.

They may label you as "old fashioned," "extreme," or even "uncaring about women's health." Yet nothing can be further from the truth. In Christ, you are filled with His compassion and love -- compassion and love that stand up to protect from the dangers and horrors of abortion and secular abandonment of God.

Yes, you are with Jesus, who Himself became the ultimate Outcast, being led out of the city and stripped, humiliated, and suffering a criminal's death on a cross. It was the soldier's whip, rather than a biological disease that ate away at His flesh; yet He endured all this so that you would not be outcast by the Lord God.

Jesus Christ took on the leprosy, the blindness, and the lameness -- anything that would make others outcast -- and bore it all in His body. He drew to Himself your sin and guilt, and claimed it as His own, paying for it all. Yes! Jesus was outcast for you, so that you would never suffer being outcast by Him! He was cut off, so that you would be welcomed into the assembly of God's people, receiving His grace.

Dear baptized and beloved, your Jesus has taken on this on Himself. He removes your guilt, and has borne your sin to be your Savior. You are freed from your outcast condition, and welcomed into the family of God, newly born into life with Him. Our Epiphany Lord has restored and renewed you, no longer an outcast, but a welcomed and cherished child of God! Amen.

Planned Parenthood and the Susan G. Komen Foundation: What's the Big Deal?

Last week we saw a large scuffle in the news regarding Planned Parenthood and the Komen Foundation over a grant. But what was really going on?

From a Christian point of view, one would hope that the threatened end to the grant was over the moral issue of abortion. Abortion is the major money-maker for Planned Parenthood. Supporters of PP point out that there are many other services, which aid many impoverished, unemployed, and under-employed women. That is not the point of debate here. The sad statistic is, that about 11% of the women served by PP are there getting abortions.

Eleven percent. Sad. But is that so awful? I mean, it’s only 11%. That is what the world is saying.

Eleven percent of the women served by Planned Parenthood each year, however, is somewhere above 300,000. That is right, 300,000 babies destroyed each year in the name of “birth control” and “helping women.” (If you estimate the average of 50/50 male/female population, that means PP is helping women, by killing about 150,000 women each year, before they are even born.)

In the end, while some shy away and pretend this is a political issue, the Lord of Life sees things differently. He says, “Let the children come to me; do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God” (Mark 10:14 ESV.) Christ welcomes little ones, and knows them, making them their own individual selves from the moment of conception.

Sadly, the SGK Foundation gave in to pressure from Planned Parenthood and their media allies. It turns out that the motivation was not so much the moral issue, but a policy that said grants should go to groups that actually provided services. (PP simply makes referrals for mammograms, they do not actually perform them.) So SGK apologized and is trying to make up with PP.

Of course, the irony of the connection between abortion and the onset of breast cancer has been completely ignored in the media coverage I have seen. While disputed for a while, this connection is once again supported. Women having had abortions, especially in their younger years, are more likely to develop breast cancer. Why on earth would the Susan G. Komen Foundation support an organization that commits actions that conflict with SGK’s mission?

Pray for all involved. Pray for honesty in the reporting of these events. Pray for health and healing for those suffering from breast cancer. Pray for those who are tempted and hurting, considering abortion. Pray for those who deal with the guilt of having committed this sin, that they may repent and receive the loving forgiveness of Jesus! Pray for Christ to work through His Gospel to give forgiveness and healing to all, and open the hearts of all to humbly receive Him.