Easter 6 (29-May-11)

A lay-reading sermon on 1 Tim 2 by Pastor John Kleinig was read at both services.

Easter 5: Audio Sermon (22-May-11)

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Easter 5 [John 16:5-15] (22-May-11)

This sermon was preached at St Paul's Lutheran Church, Darnum (9am, lay reading), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon (10am), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Yarram (2pm), and St John's Lutheran Church, Sale (4pm).

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Text: (John 16:5-15)

Nevertheless, I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, the Helper will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.

Kä cäŋ ɛ jɛn inɔ, ɣän la̱tdä yɛ ruac in thuɔ̱k. Kä gɔaaɛ kɛ kui̱dun ɛn ɣöö jiayä, kɛ ɣöö mi /cä bi wä, /ci Cuum dee ben kä yɛ. Kä mi wa̱a̱ wä, bä jɛ jäkä yɛ.

Prayer: Sanctify us with the truth, Lord. Your word is truth. Amen.

There are two things that pastors are supposed to preach in the church. The first thing is the Law. And the second thing is the Gospel.

The Law of God is what he expects of you. The law of God is the 10 commandments. It tells you what you should do and what you shouldn’t do. It leaves no room for interpretation. It says: Do this, don’t do this. And when the law is preached to us, it shows us our sin, and it shows us that we deserve nothing but to die. That is what the law does: it finds us, and it kills us. People who think that they have done everything that God expects of them is a liar, or at least they are deluded so much that they think they are the Angel Gabriel himself who have no need of Christ to die for they, and so are not Christians.

And the law makes people angry. It makes people grumble against God, and hate God, because there’s no escape. Any person, any pastor, any church, any single human being who tries to soften God’s expectations of you simply says: “Did God really say you must not eat of any tree in the garden?” The law of God is the law of God. It punishes, it judges, it condemns. Anyone who wants to change it will be punished in some way. Anyone who escapes it will be punished. Anyone who ridicules it will be punished, as St Paul says: God is not mocked.

The law locks people out of heaven who think they are good people. It locks everyone out who thinks they have ticked all of God’s boxes. The law of God allows no one to enter the kingdom of God if they think there is any one thing in their life with which they seek to impress God. God says in Jeremiah: Is not my word like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces? The law says: All your righteousness is like a filthy rag.

So that’s the first thing pastors are supposed to preach in the church. The second thing that pastors are supposed to preach in the church is the Gospel.

The Gospel is the good news about what God has done in Jesus Christ for you. The Gospel teaches you what Christ has done for you, by taking on human flesh for you, being born for you, suffering for you, dying for you, rising again for you, and giving all his gifts in the church through the gift of the Holy Spirit.

The Gospel says: I forgive you all your sins.

The Gospel says: Baptism now saves you.

The Gospel says: This is my body given for you.

The Gospel says: God so loved the world that he gave his only son.

+++

So firstly, in our reading Jesus shows us that the Holy Spirit is a preacher of the law of God. In fact, he is the true preacher, who preaches through every pastor, and despite every pastor.

Jesus says: “When [the Holy Spirit] comes, he will convince the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

Sin, righteousness and judgment. Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin, righteousness and judgment. When you personally are convicted of these things, you know then that it is the Holy Spirit.

Jesus says: “concerning sin, because they do not believe me.”

You often hear it said that this person or that person deserves to go to heaven, because they did a pretty good job in life. He was a good bloke. He was decent. She was a lovely lady. These people should deserve heaven.

But Jesus doesn’t say that the Holy Spirit will convict bad people of sin. He says that the Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin, because they do not believe me.

You know then, if you are a citizen of the world, then you fall under God’s judgment over sin. If you are a part of the world, then you know that you do not believe Jesus.

The Holy Spirit will convict the world of sin, because they don’t believe me.

St Paul says: Everything that does not proceed from faith is sin.

Anything outside of faith is sin.

And you might say, But I believe in Jesus? Yes, but do you believe in Him as you

should? I’m a Christian, aren’t I? I go to church, don’t I?

That bring us to our next part, where Jesus says that the Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer.

Yes, you are a Christian. Yes, you do go to church. And if you think that’s something to brag about, then you’re trusting in your own righteousness. And your righteousness is nothing but filthy rags, remember? If you’re such a great believer, why do you do the same things that unbelievers do? Jesus died and rose again for you: why do live as if Jesus were still dead?

What does “righteousness” mean, though? What are we talking about? Righteousness has to do with how you are able to stand before God, for what reason God will accept you and not condemn you.

There is no other righteousness that is acceptable before God apart from the righteousness that belongs to Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ is the only perfect human being, who offered one perfect sacrifice for sin, and who reconciled us to God. Jesus is our Righteousness. When we come before God, both in church, in prayer, and in the final judgment, we can only come before him standing in Jesus shoes. We simply must point away from ourselves and to Jesus Christ, our Saviour, or otherwise there will be no hope for us.

If you have not yet discovered that everything you do is tainted and corrupted by sin, then it means that you still believe that you’ve got a plan B in case Jesus’ death might not work. If you think you are worthy of anything from God, if you think you deserve something from God, then you stand under God’s anger, and there’s simply no hope. To people like this, Jesus says: Woe to you, hypocrites! There’s no point in showing to God one little insignificant leaf that you think looks nice: God knows what the root of the tree looks like and he will pull it up, roots, branches, trunk and all.

If you think it’s OK to sin sometimes, or that you don’t sin all the time, then it’s time for you to change.  It’s time for you to repent, change your mind, change your attitude, change your life. Look to Jesus dying on the cross for you while there is still time. Jesus took on a human body so that he could die for you as a whole person. Every part of you is tainted, and but every part of Jesus is holy and pure.

St Paul says: God has consigned everyone to sin, so that he might have mercy on all.

There is no other name under heaven, [the name Jesus] by which we can saved. The only righteousness that is pleasing to God is the righteousness of Jesus Christ himself. He went to the Father and we see him no longer. He died on the cross and rose again and ascended into heaven. He needed to go the Father, because he needed to give to his Father the payment of his blood for the sin of the whole world.

So the Holy Spirit has come to convict the world concerning sin, because they do not believe me; of righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; and of judgment, because the ruler of the world is judged.

How do you judge yourself? Do you judge yourself by what other people think of you? Do you judge yourself by what your friends think of you? Are you worried about what people might say about you?

This is what people in the world think of Christians. This is the judgment that the world makes: They hate Christians. There is nothing worse for people than that someone should “preach” Christianity to them. There is nothing worse for people than that Christians should impose their truth on other people. Christians are misguided, stupid, arrogant, bossy idiots, and all of the world’s problems come from religion. “Imagine no religion”, “Imagine what a wonderful world it would be without Jesus”: That’s the judgment of the world upon you.

So why is it so important what the world thinks about the fact that you are a Christian? The Holy Spirit will convict the world concerning judgment, because the ruler of the world is judged.

People say, everything is acceptable except Christianity. Everything saves except Christianity.

Each will receive his commendation from God. The judgment of the world is false. If Jesus were living among us in the same way that he lived among his disciples 2000 years ago, the world would do the same thing to him. They would crucify him. And if they really understood what your faith is about, they should crucify you too. All of history is full of false verdicts on the prophets, our Lord Jesus Christ, the apostles, the martyrs. And on the last day, the record will put straight, and all people will know what in actual fact was true all along.

[The Holy Spirit] will convince the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgment; concerning sin, because they do not believe me; concerning righteousness, because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.”

So believe in Jesus, because you are a sinner.

Repent and trust in Jesus, because he is your only righteousness, and you can only be saved through him.

Don’t join in with the world in persecuting, judging and condemning innocent Christian people. Do not judge or you will also be judged.

+++

But Jesus also says: I tell you the truth: it is to your advantage that I go away, for if I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you…When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth.

The Holy Spirit has come to convict you. And once you are convicted, he comes to preach to you a different message. The second thing that Jesus teaches us today is that the Holy Spirit is a teacher of the Gospel.  The Holy Spirit is the Comforter, the Helper. The Holy Spirit takes what belongs to Jesus and preaches it to you. He says: “Comfort, comfort, my people. Speak it tenderly to Jerusalem, that the warfare is over.”

Our reading today is part of a long conversation which Jesus has with his disciples, a long sermon, on the night he was betrayed. He is calling his disciples together before he dies to give them a farewell speech.

Just like an old person about to die, he calls his children together to bless them, just like Isaac, and Jacob and Joseph.

He says: Now I am going to him who sent, and none of you asks me, “Where are you going?” But because I have said these things to you, sorrow has filled your heart.

Jesus is present with them here in a physical, bodily, visible way. His apostles see him face to face. They can touch him. And there’s a certain comfort that comes with that. It’s nice to be with Jesus. It’s great to be taught by him. But he’s going, and sorrow fills their hearts.

But then Jesus says: “If I do not go away, the Comforter will not come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you.”

Jesus says: Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.

We can’t see Jesus – and when we’re alone with our sin, our weak faith, our false righteousness, and our desire to want to please the world, it can be a lonely world.

But Jesus had to go. He had to go and die for you, he had to go and rise again from you, and he had to ascend into heaven and sit at God’s right hand so that he could be in all those places throughout the world where two or three are gathered in his name.

And the Holy Spirit then comes and comforts us, and says: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.”

The Holy Spirit says: “Do not be afraid, I am with you. I have called you by your name and you are mine.”

The Holy Spirit shows you where Jesus is: in holy baptism, in the forgiveness of sins given in the church, in the Lord’s Supper.

He declares to you what is to come: The resurrection of your body and everlasting life.

And that is the comfort that comes by hearing. It is the comfort that the world doesn’t listen to. The world doesn’t believe it.

But the Holy Spirit is taking what belongs to Jesus, and is preaching it to you. The Holy Spirit is taking the blood of Jesus and applying it to you. The Holy Spirit is taking the death of Jesus, the resurrection of Jesus and applying it you, covering you, forgiving you. That’s what it means that the Holy Spirit is our Comforter. The Holy Spirit is preaching to you the holy Gospel.

I bring you good news of great joy which will be for all people. All people includes you.

Jesus is hidden from our eyes. But he has risen from dead, ascended into heaven and has come to stand among us just as he did with his disciples on those first Sundays after Easter. And Jesus still sends us the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit then reveals to you that you are standing in the presence of your risen Lord Jesus.

And then the gardener calls you by name, and you recognise him. When you recognise him as your Lord, your God, your Saviour who will never let you be snatched out of his hand, you know for certain that the Spirit of truth, the Holy Spirit, has led you into all truth: You know that the Holy Spirit is in fact your Comforter.

Sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvellous things!

Amen.

Come Holy Spirit, and convict us of sin, righteousness and judgment. But also, come and comfort us with the sweet words of the gospel. Comfort us with the forgiveness of sins, and shower us with your gifts. Fill us with the true spiritual comfort, which can never be taken away from us. Amen.

Funeral of Rupert Schubert: Audio Sermon (20-May-11)

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Funeral of Rupert Schubert [Revelation 14:13] (20-May-11)

This sermon was preached at St John's Lutheran Church, Sale, 1pm.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Text: (Revelation 14:13)

And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from the labours, for their deeds follow them.”

Prayer: May the words of my mouth, and the meditations of our hearts, be acceptable to you, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. Amen.

There is nothing in the whole world and throughout your whole life that you should desire more than that these words should be fulfilled in you: “Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord.”

There should be no hindrance, no thing, no person, no philosophy, no world-view, no lifestyle, no want or lack of anything that should hold you back from desiring this one thing, that you should die in the Lord.

If we really think about it what it means that Jesus Christ is risen from the dead, if we grasped just a tiny bit what this would imply for our lives, that Christ will also raise us up, then nothing will keep you back, nothing will hinder you, nothing will drag you down from attaining your desire and achieving your goal to die in the Lord and rest from your labours.

“Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from the labours, for their deeds follow them.”

St Paul says: Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword?... No in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Today, as we come to bury Rupert, we suffer a very great temptation. And we have to beware especially today that what we speak is the truth.

There is no doubt that the man we have come to bury today, Rupert Schubert, was a very special man: and a very special man to many people, not just to his family, but to the many people he came to know throughout his long life living in this area, to his friends, and to his fellow believers in the faith, especially in the Lutheran church here in Sale, and the Lutherans churches throughout Gippsland. There is no doubt that the death of Rupert has brought about a kind of end of an era.

But the temptation for us will be for us on this day, and in remembering him, to do away with the entire Christian faith completely, and say: this man was a great man, and that is the reason why he deserves to be in heaven. This man did many good things, many good works, so God should love him because of those things.

If we say this, we have denied the faith. There are plenty of people who will say things like this, and they do nothing but lead people into a delusion. There are plenty of people who instead of letting God be their judge, would much rather be their own judge, and who would much rather be the judge of other people. These people are not Christians, and do not speak the truth.

If we carry on like this, and say that God must receive and accept those people who do good things and good works, then we end up with two different temptations. The first temptation is that we don’t take sin seriously, we don’t weigh our own actions properly, and we become our own judges, and our own gods. But the second temptation is when we are in trouble, and feel that we are in the presence of the true God, and our risen Lord Jesus Christ, when death is near and we want to die in peace, suddenly, we begin to think that there’s no hope for us because we haven’t lived the way we should have, even by our own standards, let alone by God’s standards.

Even if we make ourselves judges and little mini-gods, we still don’t judge ourselves well. We can’t live up to what we know to be right, because the true living God, when he created you, has written his law on our hearts. It’s part of being human being, it’s part of our existence, our very being, that we should know what is right and wrong (even if our minds and hearts are clouded and muddy and weak). When we learn the 10 commandments and hear the law of God, what God expects of us, then we come to a much fuller and deeper clarity of what is right and wrong, and we also come to a deeper and fuller realisation of what it means to be a sinner.

But we are not saved by works. We are not saved by how good a person we are. We are not saved because of all the good things we do, and how good a life we’ve lived. We are saved because God sent his Son into the world, to suffer and die for our sin, in our place, and to rise again from the dead so that we will rise with him too, and now he is ascended into heaven, not so that he can be stuck up in the clouds somewhere for the rest of eternity, but so that he can be in the church himself, so that he can stand in this very sanctuary among these very people, and preach the forgiveness of sins, which he has bought for you and won for you, into your own ears. Jesus comes and stands among us, praying for us, baptising us with the water and the Holy Spirit, he gives his body and blood to us in the Lord’s Supper, and he forgives us our sins through his holy and precious, gracious words.

When we die, it will be a time when the things which we believed to be true, and we believed to be present in the church, we will finally see for ourselves, and touch with our own hands.

When we are baptised, and when day after day we bring our sins to God and lay them at the feet of the cross of Jesus, we are dying every day. When then a Christian actually passes out of this life, it is not an end of them, it’s not an end of the Christian himself, or herself, it’s only an end of their labours. A Christian death does not bring an end to the person’s life, it only brings an end to their suffering, to their sin, to their temptations, to their labours.

Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord, for they will have rest from their labours.

To die in peace, and to die as a Christian, is not to look back on your life’s achievements and to tell God how great you are. To die a Christian death is to acknowledge that you are not perfect, that you have in fact lived a sinful life, and have not always done what is right, but nevertheless, thank God that he is your judge and not you. He has given you a Saviour, he has given you a Jesus, he has given you a living hope, and he promises you the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. That is the Christian faith.

This is the faith that Rupert believed and confessed, and he believed nothing more than this. There are many things which we can look to from his life and take courage for our own. And each of us who are here today will have our own memories of Rupert which encourage us and strengthen us.

That’s why the Holy Spirit in the reading today says: “Blessed are those who die in the Lord, that they may have rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them.”

Listen to those last words. “Their deeds follow them.” No – this does not mean that people are saved by works. (That’s a real problem, you know. Everytime we turn around we always want to be saved by works!)

When the text says: “Their deeds follow them”, it does not mean we can be saved by works, and the good things that we do. There’s no contribution that we can make to God that is going to measure up to his standard, and is going to impress him. We can’t walk into heaven with an ace of spades up our sleeves. The words “Their deeds follow them” means that when people have died in the faith, the things that they have done give strength to us in our lives, to us who are still struggling along with all our various problems and temptations. So let’s not forget what an example Rupert was to many of us in being a defender and keeper of the true Christian faith. And often a person’s strength in faith corresponds with the suffering that they receive. Rupert knew what is was like to live in poverty sometimes, and to be hungry sometimes – and many of us have never had to experience these sorts of things. It’s not like Rupert always had an easy life.

But the Spirit says, “their labours have ended.” Today is not a day to be sad, it is not even a day to look back at the past and remember what has been. But it is a day to acknowledge what has now taken place, and will take place.

The verse says: “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed”, says the Spirit, “that they may have rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them.”

When we come to commemorate a Christian death, and the death of a Christian, we celebrating a victory. A victory in that there is no more labour, no more sin, suffering, and temptation for the person who has died. Why should we be sad, when all the desires of the person who has died have been fulfilled? Why should we be sad, when the little boat, in which Rupert was travelling over rough seas, has finally come in to shore?

I know that Rupert had often said to me that it had always been his great desire that this little church should be filled with people. Even today that earthly desire of his is now fulfilled. Why should we be sad now that all of his heavenly desires should also be fulfilled? Why should one man’s death cause us so much sadness, if it is the source of so much joy and happiness and blessedness for him?

We should remember also that our churches are always filled with people, because we always join together in the divine service with the angels, the archangels and all the company of heaven. The people who are gathered here today in this church are only but a drop in the ocean, just a little sniffling, of the chorus of heavenly hosts who are also gathered here, and who watch with bated breath and with awe and with trembling at everything that takes place in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. We should never forget that.

In the meantime, it is time for us to also prepare ourselves for a holy death. Not a death which makes ourselves the judge, but a death which is forgiven and blessed by our heavenly Father who sent to us his Son Jesus Christ, to suffer, to die and rise again from the dead for us. If we based our Christianity on what we see taking place in ourselves, we would never have any hope. We would only despair. But Christianity is not a navel-gazing religion, it only trusts with beggars hands, with open hands, with broken hearts, that Jesus Christ is the Way, the Truth, and the Life, and that no-one can come to the Father except through him.

So write this! Write this on your hearts, your minds, your souls: Blessed are those who die in the Lord. Blessed indeed, says the Spirit, that they may have rest from their labours, for their deeds follow them!

Blessed are those who mourn for they will be comforted.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Amen.

And the peace of God which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds safe in Christ Jesus, our risen Lord. Amen.

Easter 4: Audio Sermon (15-May-11)

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Easter 4 [John 16:16-22] (15-May-11)

This sermon was preached at St Paul's Lutheran Church, Darnum (9am), Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon (11am) and Holy Trinity Lutheran Church, Bairnsdale (3pm). 

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Text: (John 16:16-22)

Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy… You have sorrow now, but I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Ɛpuc ɛpuc, ɣän la̱rä jɛ yɛ, bia wiee, kä bia pa̱r, kä bi ji̱ ɣɔaa lo̱ckiɛn tɛɛth. Bia tekɛ bɛ̈c lɔaac, kä bi bɛ̈c lɔaacdun rɔ̱ loc ni tɛ̈th lɔaac... Ta̱yɛ kɛ jiath lɔaac täämɛ, duundɛ ɣöö bä yɛ nyɔk kɛ nën, kä bi lo̱ckun tɛɛth, kä thilɛ ram mi bi tɛ̈th lɔaacdun ka̱n kä yɛ.

Prayer: Sanctify us with the truth, Lord. Your word is truth. Amen.

Each one of us has a place in life. We are placed by God in a particular circumstance, at a particular time, in a particular place. This is called our “station”. It’s the place where we stand. And in that place we have a particular calling from God: this is called our “vocation”.

Now have a think about it: where are you placed by God? In the Small Catechism, when Luther teaches people to examine themselves before confessing their sins, he says, “Consider your place in life according to the Ten Commandments?” Consider your place in life. And Luther says: “Are you a father, mother, son, daughter, husband, wife, or worker?”

There’s your place. So when I think about my place in life, my station if you like, I say: I’m a father, I’m a husband, I’m a pastor. That’s my basic place in life. I’m also a son, a grandson, a citizen of Australia, and things like that.

Think about your place in life. Think about your family relationships, and think about your place of work. That’s where God has put you, and that’s where God has promised that you will flourish as a Christian. Some people will have stronger responsibilities in one thing than in another. But that’s where God has given us our calling, our vocation.

It is always a great temptation to want to escape from those places, to escape from that place where God has put us in life. That is always the great temptation. It’s a temptation for husbands to escape from their wife and children, and it’s a temptation for wives to escape from their husbands and children, it’s a temptation for children to want escape from their parents, it’s a temptation for workers to want to escape from their work. It’s a temptation for us to want to escape from the confines of the body: when people want drugs, or alcohol to dull themselves, or even religious practices to escape the boring old realities of life. Pretty much every serious temptation for us is the temptation to want to escape from where God has placed us. But God hasn’t placed us in a prison: he hasn’t stuck us on a chain, but St Paul says:

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

Isn’t that a strange text? He says we are free. And then he says: Stand. Stand still, stand firm where God has placed you. Where God has placed you, that is where you will find true freedom.

I often think about the horse in the back paddock over my back fence. That horse is free, but there’s a fence around it. It’s not restrained just because it lives within a fence, but what would happen if someone went and demolished the fence? It would go galloping off into the great sunset, and probably be hit by a car halfway to Morwell. It’s not slavery that there’s a fence around the horse, it’s freedom. Freedom within the fence. It would slavery if the horse’s hooves were chained in one spot, but they’re not. But if there were no fence, he wouldn’t be free either, he’d be lost.

We’re not lost, either – we’re free and God has put us in a place. He’s given us a station, a place in life – and he’s given us a calling to fulfil in that place, a vocation.

All our sins are committed there within that fence, and everything is forgiven within that fence.

For freedom Christ has set us free; stand firm therefore, and do not submit again to a yoke of slavery.

+++

The same goes for us in our private, inward spiritual life.

From the mediaeval times, there was such a thing called “Lectio Divina”. This was the way in which monks and nuns read the bible, and in the Roman Catholic Church it still happens, and it’s become quite popular in other denominations too.

So this was the way in which monks and nuns read the bible, and many Christians did it like this. And there were four basic things that people were encouraged to do.

First of all, they read the bible. This was called “lectio” (which means reading). Then they meditated on the passage, taking a few words and thinking them over. This was called “meditatio” (which means mediation). Then they prayed about what they had read. This part was called “Oratio” (which means prayer). And the last thing was “contemplatio” (contemplation) which was where they simply focussed on the loving presence of God, with no words.

So you had these four things: Reading, Mediation, Prayer and Contemplation.

Sounds quite good, don’t you think? But there’s a little problem. It encourages you to escape. You start with the bible, then you put the bible down, and you pray, then you transcend into the lofty, mystic heights.

Luther challenged this way of reading scripture. And he came to a different understanding of this after reading Psalm 119. Instead, he suggested three things which make a theologian, which train a person in the Christian faith: “prayer, meditation, and temptation.”

Instead of putting reading first, he put prayer first. This was prayer for the Holy Spirit to give enlightenment. Then the second thing was meditation. Notice that he didn’t have “reading the bible” as a separate category. This was because reading the bible is meditating on it. Meditation is not a response to reading the word of God. Meditation is the actual working of the word of God on you. Jesus says: “My words are Spirit and life.” Meditation is the Holy Spirit working on you as you read the bible, and as you think over it. Then the third one, temptation.

Instead of making people escape from life, Luther puts people right back into the middle of it. This is because now that we have prayed and read the bible, the devil wants to take it away from us and destroy us. But then when we’re tempted and when we receive spiritual attack, and when we receive hardship and suffering, where are we led? Back to prayer! Back to meditating on the Scripture! So it’s a cycle. And that’s how we live our lives.

And we live our lives, praying, meditating, and receiving attack in our places in life. In our stations. We’re standing in our places, and then the arrows are fired, the spears are thrown. And the arrows are destroyed through prayer, and through the sword of the Spirit, the bible. Prayer and meditation.

Even now, in church, we experience these things. We pray, we begin our service with prayer. In fact, everything in the beginning of the service, all the things we sing and say lead up to the prayer of the day as we prepare to hear the word of God. Then we listen to the word of God in the bible and in the sermon. We think about it, we churn it over. We meditate, even day-dream about it. And then we are tempted. We are convicted of sin, or we think about what we we’re doing during the week that we didn’t like. We’re thrown back into our lives being tempted all the time. But we do it, having received the body and blood of Christ, and Christ’s blessing on everything we do. “The Lord bless you and keep you.”

Now you might have realised by this point in the sermon, that I haven’t even mentioned anything to do with our text today, yet!

One more story. There’s an interesting story about a boy who was scared about an evil spirit or a ghost or something that he wanted to run away from home. People came to Martin Luther to ask his advice about it. What do you think he said? He said, “Tell that boy to go home, because the devil wants to take us away from our calling, our place in life. And if the boy is harassed by the devil, he should say, ‘You can’t scare me, because this is where God has placed me.’”

It was so important for Martin Luther that the boy stay in the place where God had placed him.

+++

In our text today, Jesus gives us one of the most comforting passages in the whole of Scripture.

He says: “A little while and you will not see me, and again a little while you will see me.”

The first thing this is referring to is that Jesus dies and is buried, and disciples don’t see Jesus. And then they see him again when he is raised from the dead.

He says: “Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.”

Listen to those words again: Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament.

You might think, “Those words aren’t comforting at all!” But they are! Because what it means that every piece of suffering that you experience, Jesus has prophesied in advance. He has given it to you, and he is with you.

The most comforting thing Jesus ever did was to lay his life down on the cross for us. And when suffering comes to us as well, when we weep and lament, when we are sorrowful, we know that we are with Jesus. In fact, when times are good, we often forget to give thanks to God, and we become lazy. Australia has it very good, and Christianity isn’t exactly our national religion!

When we are in our day-to-day lives and we’re living life, normal life, doing our normal thing, and we suffer a bit, we find our work hard, we find our work boring, we find our situation tiresome, or heavy, or exhausting, then we can say: “Jesus has prophesied this would happen. He has said: “Truly truly, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice.” He has said: “You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy.” This bit of suffering, hardship, poverty, sickness, whatever, is a down-payment for the joy of heaven that will never be taken away. Thank God for every time you have some hardship and say with St Paul: I rejoice in my suffering. I boast of my suffering. Every time you realise that you have sinned, thank God that the Holy Spirit has been sent to you to lead you to trust that forgiveness of sins even more than you did beforehand. Even sometimes in our vocations, in the places where God has put us, we might think that we’re even in a prison: St Paul says: “We felt that we received the sentence of death. But that was to make us rely not on ourselves but on God who raises the dead.”

Jesus says: “When a woman is giving birth, she has sorrow because her hour has come, but when she has delivered the baby, she no longer remembers the anguish, for joy that a human being has been born into the world. So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.”

And so, as we leave the church today, we will go back to where God has placed us, and there will be temptation. But the words “The Lord bless you and keep you” will be written all over it. The body and blood of Christ which you have received for the forgiveness of sins will be strengthening you all the way through it.

There will be temptations, there will be hindrances, but God promises to roll away every stone from the door of the tomb by his holy angels, if we only keep standing firm where we are placed. When we suffer, we think we’re going to do nothing but anoint the dead body of Jesus with a whole heap of spices. But remember that those women when they went to the tomb found the tomb empty, the body gone, and their risen Lord calling them by name.

And so Jesus says to us: Truly, truly, I say to you, you will weep and lament, but the world will rejoice. You will be sorrowful, but your sorrow will turn into joy… You do have sorrow now, I will see you again and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.

Amen.

In you is gladness in all our sadness, Jesus, joy of every heart; by you are given blessings from heaven, true Redeemer, our delight. Our sins you've taken, our bonds you've broken; trusting you surely, we build securely, we stand for ever. Hallelujah! Our hearts are turning to you with yearning, on you relying, living or dying, we're yours for ever. Hallelujah! Amen.

Thanksgiving Service: Audio Sermon (14-May-11)

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Thanksgiving Service [Psalm 103:1-5] (14-May-11)

This sermon was preached at Good Shepherd Lutheran Church, Traralgon, 1pm.

Grace, mercy and peace be to you from God our Father, and from our Lord Jesus Christ.

Text: (Psalm 103:1-5)

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your [sin], who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, ji̱n puɔ̱nydä kɛɛliw, liak ciötdɛ min rɛl gɔɔydɛ rɔ. Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, kä /cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc. Jɛn pälɛ ɣä dueerkä diaal, kä jakɛ liawkä kä gɔw, kä cɛ tëkdä luɛl kɔ̱k, kä cɛ ɣä kum kɛ nhökdɛ min thil pek kɛnɛ kɔ̱a̱c lɔaac. Kä jɛn cɛ ɣän ro̱ŋ kɛ ti gɔw, kɛ ɣöö bä kula ŋuɛ̈t mi bum ce̱tnikɛ cuɔɔr.

Prayer: May the words of my mouth and the meditations of our hearts be acceptable to you, O Lord, our Rock and our Redeemer. A ruacdä kɛnɛ ca̱r luaacdä la ti gɔw waaŋdu, lö pämdä kä käändä ni Kuoth Nhial. Amen.

In Ephesians, St Paul says: Be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Kä a thiäŋ ni yɛn kɛ Yiëë, ruacɛ kamnikun, kɛ diit puɔnyä kɛnɛ wɛ̈ɛ̈ni kɛ diit yieekä. Kieetdɛ kä liakɛ Kuäär kɛ lo̱ckun. Ni ciaŋ la̱rɛ Kuoth in la Gua̱a̱rä tɛ̈th lɔaac kɛ ti diaal kɛ ciöt Kua̱ran ni Yecu Kritho.

So today, we gather together to give thanks to God for safely bringing these two girls, Nyacudieer and Nyanom safely to this country. But also, we have come here today to receive the Holy Spirit.

Today we have heard the Word of God spoken to us. This is the same Word of God that created the world. And when we hear this word of God, we receive the Holy Spirit.

And without the word of God, there is no Holy Spirit.

And St Paul also says to us to be filled with the Spirit and speak to each other with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Kä a thiäŋ ni yɛn kɛ Yiëë, ruacɛ kamnikun, kɛ diit puɔnyä kɛnɛ wɛ̈ɛ̈ni kɛ diit yieekä.

So today I am preaching to you the word of God from the book of Psalms, Bok diit puɔnyä kɛnɛ pal. When we speak to each other from the psalms, St Paul says that we are filled with the Spirit, a thiäŋ ni yɛn kɛ Yiëë.

So in the psalm today, let’s listen to these words again.

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, who forgives all your [sin], who heals all your diseases, who redeems your life from the pit, who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy, who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, ji̱n puɔ̱nydä kɛɛliw, liak ciötdɛ min rɛl gɔɔydɛ rɔ. Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, kä /cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc. Jɛn pälɛ ɣä dueerkä diaal, kä jakɛ liawkä kä gɔw, kä cɛ tëkdä luɛl kɔ̱k, kä cɛ ɣä kum kɛ nhökdɛ min thil pek kɛnɛ kɔ̱a̱c lɔaac. Kä jɛn cɛ ɣän ro̱ŋ kɛ ti gɔw, kɛ ɣöö bä kula ŋuɛ̈t mi bum ce̱tnikɛ cuɔɔr.

Now these words were written by King David. [Dit Dee-bid]. When King David died, this is what he wrote about himself. The oracle of David, the son of Jesse, [Rieet Dee-bid gat Jɛthi ti thil tho̱l], the oracle of the man who was raised on high [rieet raam mi ca kap nhial], the anointed of the God of Jacob [ram mi ca kuany ɛ Kuoth Je-kɔb], the sweet psalmist of Israel [keet din I-thɛ-rɛl ti gɔw]: The Spirit of the Lord speaks by me; his word is on my tongue. [Ci yiëë Kuɔth Nhial ruac kɛ thokdä, te rieetkɛ lɛpdä.]

So these words from the psalms [Diit] are also the words of the Holy Spirit. St Peter says no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried long by the Holy Spirit.

[Thilɛ ruac go̱o̱kä mi ci met tuɔɔk kä raan, duundɛ ɣöö ɛ Yiëë in Gɔaa in Rɛl Rɔ ɛn min kämkɛ ruac Kuɔth.]

So when we read the psalms too, we are reading words which are from the Holy Spirit.

Also, we know that when we pray the psalms, that Jesus is also praying the psalms too. He is a child from the lineage of King David.

The whole new testament, what is called [Ruac Kuɔth in Thia̱k] begins with the words, This is book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of Daivd, the Son of Abraham. [Warɛgak gua̱ndɔɔŋni Yecu Kritho, gat Dee-bid, gat A-bɛ-ram.]

When Jesus was on the cross he prayed from the book of psalms: He said, “Into your hands I commend my spirit”. [Cä tëkdä la̱th tetniku] And he also said, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me? [Kuothdä, Kuothdä, ɛŋu ci ɣä ba̱ny piny ɔ?] When Jesus prayed in Gethsemane, we also read that he sang a psalm or a song. It says: When they had sung a hymn, they went out to the Mount Olives. [Kä mëë cikɛ dit Kuɔth kɛt, cukɛ wä wi̱i̱ Pa̱a̱m Ɔ-lip.]

So when we read the book of Psalms, these words are the words of King David, they are the words of the Holy Spirit, and they are also the words of Jesus Christ himself. And even today, Jesus Christ is not far away, he is close by. He is standing right in the midst of us. Jesus says: I am with you always until the end of the age. [Ɣän a kɛɛl kɛ yɛ ni ciaŋ amäni guut ɣɔaa.] And also we read after Jesus was raised from the dead, he came and stood among his disciples and said “Peace be with you.” [Yecu ben cuɔ̱ŋ dääriɛn, kä cuɛ kɛ jiök i̱, "A mal tekɛ yɛ."]

And the same is happening today. Jesus comes and stands right in the middle of the church. He is not far away. He is close by. In Jeremiah it says: Am I a God at hand, declares the Lord, and not a God far away? [Ɛ ɣän Kuoth mi te thiekä, a /ci mua Kuoth mi te nänä?] Notice that Jesus says, “I will be with you”. He doesn’t say “the Holy Spirit” will be with you [Yiëë in Gɔaa in Rɛl rɔ a kɛɛl kɛ yɛ], but “I will be with you.” [Ɣän a kɛɛl kɛ yɛ]. But then Jesus comes in the middle of the church, and he breathes out his Holy Spirit. It says: When Jesus had said this he breathed on them and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” [Kä mëë cɛ mɛmɛ lar, cuɛ kɛ ŋök yiëë, kä cuɛ kɛ jiök i̱, "Ka̱nɛ Yiëë in Gɔaa in Rɛl Rɔ."]

Jesus comes and stands here and he breathes out his Holy Spirit. He breathes it out by speaking his Word to us. Psalm 33 says: “By the word of the Lord the heavens were made, and by the breath of his mouth all their host.” [Cu Kuoth Nhial pua̱a̱r cak kɛ ruacdɛ, cuɛ nyin puɔ̱ɔ̱rä diaal la̱t kɛ yiëëdɛ.] Word and Spirit [ruac, yiëë] they go together. No word, no Holy Spirit.

If we want to receive the Holy Spirit, it doesn’t come to us straight to our hearts, it doesn’t come straight to our minds. It comes to us through our ears. We hear the word of God [ruac Kuoth] and we receive the Holy Spirit [Yiëë in Gɔaa in Rɛl Rɔ]. That’s the way the Virgin Mary got pregnant – she got pregnant through her ears. The angel spoke to her and she became pregnant. The same for us: we hear the word of God, and we become pregnant with the baby Jesus, Jesus comes and lives in us, and we are filled with the Holy Spirit. Jesus says, “Receive the Holy Spirit”. [Ka̱nɛ Yiëë in Gɔaa in Rɛl Rɔ]. When there’s no word of God, there’s no Jesus, and there’s no Holy Spirit. If we say we follow Jesus, but we don’t listen to the words of Jesus and believe them, then we’re not a Christian. We hear the word of God, Jesus speaks his word and we are filled with the Holy Spirit.

So let’s listen to this word of God, this Prayer of Jesus, from the psalms:

Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! [Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, ji̱n puɔ̱nydä kɛɛliw, liak ciötdɛ min rɛl gɔɔydɛ rɔ.] Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, [Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, kä /cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc.] He forgives all your [sin] [Jɛn pälɛ ɣä dueerkä diaal], he heals all your diseases [kä jakɛ liawkä kä gɔw], who redeems your life from the pit [kä cɛ tëkdä luɛl kɔ̱k], who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy [kä cɛ ɣä kum kɛ nhökdɛ min thil pek kɛnɛ kɔ̱a̱c lɔaac], who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. [Kä jɛn cɛ ɣän ro̱ŋ kɛ ti gɔw, kɛ ɣöö bä kula ŋuɛ̈t mi bum ce̱tnikɛ cuɔɔr.]

There are two things that I would like to point out.

First, “bless the Lord.” [Liak Kuoth Nhial]. Give thanks to the Lord.

And second, “do not forget” [/cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc].

Maybe there have been times in the last few months and years when we have forgotten how good God has been to us. Sometimes he has given us happiness, joy, and sometimes he has given us suffering and sadness.

But God has never left you. When you suffer, it is not a sign that Jesus has gone away and has left you alone, by yourself.

Remember, Jesus is our Lord and God. Thomas says to him, “My Lord and my God.” [Cu Tɔ-mäth ɛ loc i̱, "Kuäärä, kä Kuothdä."] And Jesus says to us, “Am I a God at hand, and not a God far away?” [Ɛ ɣän Kuoth mi te thiekä, a /ci mua Kuoth mi te nänä?]

Jesus says: “So also you have sorrow now, but I will see you again, and your hearts will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you.” [Ta̱yɛ kɛ jiath lɔaac täämɛ, duundɛ ɣöö bä yɛ nyɔk kɛ nën, kä bi lo̱ckun tɛɛth, kä thilɛ ram mi bi tɛ̈th lɔaacdun ka̱n kä yɛ.]

So when Jesus gives to us a time of happiness, he is giving a little window into the time when we will see Jesus face to face. This week two girls have travelled across the world to be with their family – there will also be a day when we will arrive safely to be in the arms of Jesus.

Now we see in a glass dimly, but then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I have been fully known. [Kɛ ɣöö ɛn täämɛ, guɛcnɛ rɔ̱ rɛy neenä ɛ mi̱r mi̱r, kä duundɛ ɣöö banɛ Kuoth guic agɔaa. Täämɛ ŋäcdä tëëkɛ diw, kä bä ŋɔak ŋa̱c kɛn diaal, ce̱tkɛ mëë ca ɣä ŋa̱c ɛ Kuoth.]

St Paul also says: If in Christ we have hope in this life only, we are of all people most to be pitied. Kä mi ŋa̱thdan rɛy Kritho ɛ kui̱ teekä mɛmɛ kärɔa, kä ba par ni kɔn ɛlɔ̱ŋ kä ji̱ ɣɔaa ɛmɛ diaal.

So Bless the Lord, and forget not all his benefits. [Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, kä /cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc.] When we are sad, Jesus is with us. When we are happy, Jesus is with us, and gives us a little taste of what heaven will be like. Psalm 34: Taste and see that the Lord is good! [Ɣɔ̱n Kuoth Nhial bi gɔɔydɛ nɛn!]

Today we come to give thanks to the Lord, to bless the Lord. [Liak Kuoth Nhial]. And we come to prepare ourselves for that time when we will join our family in the company of heaven, with all the angels, and look back on our whole life and say: Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless his holy name! [Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, ji̱n puɔ̱nydä kɛɛliw, liak ciötdɛ min rɛl gɔɔydɛ rɔ.] Bless the Lord, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits, [Liak Kuoth Nhial lö tieeydä, kä /cu gɔɔydɛ päl ruëëc.] He forgives all your [sin] [Jɛn pälɛ ɣä dueerkä diaal], he heals all your diseases [kä jakɛ liawkä kä gɔw], who redeems your life from the pit [kä cɛ tëkdä luɛl kɔ̱k], who crowns you with steadfast love and mercy [kä cɛ ɣä kum kɛ nhökdɛ min thil pek kɛnɛ kɔ̱a̱c lɔaac], who satisfies you with good so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s. [Kä jɛn cɛ ɣän ro̱ŋ kɛ ti gɔw, kɛ ɣöö bä kula ŋuɛ̈t mi bum ce̱tnikɛ cuɔɔr.]

And so as we sing, and give thanks to the Lord, the whole of heaven joins in with us, the angels, the archangels and all the company of heaven.

Psalm 103 says:

Bless the Lord, O you his angels, you mighty ones who do his word, obeying the voice of his word! [Liakɛ Kuoth Nhial yɛn ja̱a̱kɛ, kä puanyɛ jɛ yɛn nɛy tin bum tin la̱tkɛ la̱tdɛ, yɛn nɛy tin luɔ̱thkɛ ruacdɛ.]

Bless the Lord, all his hosts, his ministers who do his will! [Liakɛ Kuoth Nhial yɛn ji̱ nhial diaal, yɛn nɛy diaal tin la̱tkɛ lätkɛ.]

Bless the Lord, all his works, in all places of his dominion. [Liakɛ Kuoth Nhial yɛn tin diaal tin cɛ cak, puanyɛ jɛ gua̱thni diaal tin ruecɛ thi̱n.]

Bless the Lord, O my soul! [Liak Kuoth Nhial, lö tieeydä.]

Amen.

And the peace of God which passes all understanding keep our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus our Lord. [Mal Kuɔth min leny ni ŋäc ŋɔaani nath, bɛ lo̱ckun amäni ca̱r wuɔ̱thnikun tit rɛy Kritho Yecu.] Amen.