Rejoice in the Lord at All Times and in All Circumstances

The Season of Advent awaits and anticipates the coming of Christ Jesus, whose Way St. John the Baptist prepares, calling sinners to repentance that they might escape the wrath to be revealed when the same Lord Jesus comes in Glory for the final Judgment. It is a penitential time of patient perseverance in the confidence of the Cross and in the hope and promise of the Resurrection.

Advent prepares you to receive the coming Christ, now as then, by the preaching of the Law and the Gospel unto repentance and faith in the forgiveness of sins. Such preaching returns you to the significance of your Holy Baptism. It teaches you to confess your sins and to seek the Word of Holy Absolution. And it leads you to the Body and Blood of the Lamb who saves you at His Altar.

Because He comes to save you, here and now, by the preaching of His Word and by His means of grace, your Advent repentance is not without rejoicing. Especially this Third Sunday in Advent calls you to rejoice in the Lord, because He is at hand with His mercy and His great Salvation.

It is for the sake of this rejoicing that our Advent candle for this Sunday is rose-colored instead of purple. It signifies that true Light that was coming into the world, like the rose-colored hews of an early morning sunrise. It would have you look at life through the rose-colored glasses of faith, that you should remember the Incarnation of your Lord, receive His Body born of Mary and His Blood poured out for you from the Cross, and rejoice in the expectation of His glorious coming.

All of which is fine and good. And of course, you might say, as Christians we rejoice in Christ. Then again, you may not feel like rejoicing this morning or at many others times, especially in view of your own sins and the sins of others against you, and given the consequences of sin that dog you all year long and really never do let up in this mortal life. The so-called holidays can be some of the most depressing and difficult days, because they aggravate your envy and jealousy of others, and they make all the more painful your loneliness and the absence of those you have lost. So many expectations, as to what you must do to get ready for Christmas, it’s a struggle to rejoice when you’re stressed out and wondering how on earth you are going to meet all your expenses.

Despite the faith and life to which the Lord has called you by His Gospel, and notwithstanding your confession of His Word, there are days when He seems so far away, and you may wonder if your faith has been too optimistic. Does Jesus really care? Does He even know your name? Or has He just given up on you and written you off altogether on account of your sins and failings?

Perhaps you would compare yourself to poor St. John the Baptist, imprisoned by King Herod, no doubt wondering what’s going to happen next, and probably tempted to question the glorious promises of God. There he sits, the Forerunner of the Lord Himself, but left to rot in prison. Left to rot, that is, until his head will finally be removed by order of the king. How about that?

As he waited in prison for death, John sent his disciples to ask Jesus: “Are you the Expected One, the Christ who is to come, or should we be watching and waiting for Another?”

Of course, St. John the Baptist knew that Jesus is the Christ, the Lord’s Anointed. For even though Jesus, the Son of God, always possesses the Holy Spirit, He also received a special anointing of the Spirit at His Baptism by St. John in the Jordan, the inauguration of His own Ministry on earth. The Holy Spirit came upon Him as a dove, and the Father declared Him to be His beloved Son.

St. John knew that Jesus is the Christ, because he had seen the Lord anointed with the Holy Spirit. It was part of his own preaching to others, even as he pointed to Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world. But for all of that, St. John also needed to hear the preaching of the Gospel for himself. He needed Christ Jesus to set him free — not from Herod’s prison, nor even from his executioner — but from the dungeon of his own sin and its deadly consequences.

What are your expectations of the Lord Jesus Christ? What are you watching for and waiting to receive from Him? Is it rescue and redemption from your sins, from death and the damnation you deserve? Or would you rather He fulfill your hopes and dreams for this body and life right now?

Bear in mind that the Son of God is not a means to some other end, as though He were coming to give you a leg up on your personal ambitions. Neither is the salvation He brings a matter of facts in your head or feelings in your heart. It’s not enough to know this or that about Jesus, and all the warm fuzzies in the world are not going to set you free from death and hell or bring you to God.

Like St. John, what you need is the Word of Christ Jesus: The Word that He speaks into your ears, into your heart, mind, and body. The Word that forgives your sins, and gives you life, and fills you up with Christ and His Spirit, even in the midst of the most dire and desperate of circumstances.

That is what He does and gives by the preaching of His Word, beginning with St. John himself, the Forerunner of Christ who was sent to preach repentance and forgiveness of sins in His Name.

And now in this case, in this Holy Gospel, the same Lord Jesus Christ does the same thing and provides the same help and comfort for His servant, St. John. He preaches His Word to His preacher of repentance, that John be delivered from all doubts and fears and rejoice in the Lord.

As great as St. John was, and as much as he suffered for his faithfulness, even unto death, it is not John but Jesus Christ who gives to you divine, eternal Life in place of your death and damnation. He is the almighty and eternal Son of the Living God, the King of kings and Lord of lords, who became Flesh of your flesh and Blood of your blood, conceived and born of the Woman; who then also made Himself least in the Kingdom of Heaven, so that He suffered and died in the stead and for the sake of sinners — for John the Baptist, for you, and for all people. So it is not by your keeping of the Law, but by His, and not by your repentance, but by His Cross and Resurrection, that Christ Jesus has first of all obtained and now bestows the free forgiveness of all your sins.

He proceeds in every case by sending His messenger before His face to prepare His Way by the preaching of His Word with His own Voice, and to work His works of repentance and faith with His own authority: Isaiah the Prophet, and John the Baptist, who is more than a Prophet because he ushers in the Christ. Then, in the footsteps of Christ Jesus come His Holy Apostles, who speak and act for Him as the shepherds of His Church on earth, and following after them, the pastors who feed and care for His lambs and sheep with His Holy Word and with His Holy Sacraments.

It is by this ongoing Ministry of His Gospel in every age that He brings forth streams of water in the desert and prospers His Church with milk and honey, bread and wine, and every good thing.

Even so, as beautiful and wonderful as this providence and promise of the Gospel is — that the Holy Triune God should send to you, as to His Church in every time and place, His messengers to speak with His Voice and to preach good news in answer to your every need — the fact is that your circumstances may not improve in this life. They might just go from bad to even worse!

To frail flesh and blood there is an evident contradiction between the promises of God and your actual experience in the world; between the hope of the Resurrection and the present reality of the Cross that you bear and carry in this vale of tears. It is especially hard when the wicked prevail and appear so powerful on earth, whereas the righteous of the Lord suffer and perish on the way.

Consider, for example, that St. John remained in the captivity of his prison until he was beheaded. So, too, in this life, no matter how much you may receive and trust the Gospel — the forgiveness of your sins and the free gift of eternal life in Christ — you may yet suffer all manner of difficulties and atrocities, as do many of your fellow Christians throughout the world. Sometimes you bear the temporal consequences of your own sins, that you should be disciplined in love by your dear Father and called to repentance by His Spirit. But you are also given to bear and carry the Cross as a disciple of Christ Jesus, who was born of the Virgin Mary to suffer under Pontius Pilate.

It’s all too easy to be scandalized by this sort of Christ, who comes in such lowly meekness and humility, born in a stable, living homeless, riding on a donkey, and then condemned and put to death on the Cross. Not exactly impressive credentials. And His followers and supporters fare about as badly, beginning with St. John the Baptist, who was more than a Prophet and the greatest of those born of women, but who finishes his days on earth in Herod’s dungeon. One might well expect more and better from the Savior of the world. It’s no surprise that even John wondered and chose to ask:  Are You the One, Jesus, or not? And, if so, where are You now when I need You?

It is only by the grace and blessing of God, by His Word and Holy Spirit, that you are not offended by Christ and His Cross, by His messengers and means of grace, and by the way that He rules and governs the Kingdom of His Church in this world, that is, in lowliness, meekness, and humility. And it is only by the grace and blessing of Christ the Crucified — by the preaching of His Word, and by the administration of His Body and His Blood in remembrance of Him — that you believe and trust His promises, even while you sit and wait in your own dungeon for the final axe to fall.

Now take this to heart: Your God-given confidence in Christ, which is not offended by His Cross or scandalized by His Gospel, will not by any means be disappointed. The suffering and death of His Cross is not the last and final Word for Him or you, but it is the end of sin, death, and the devil. For by the Cross of Christ sin is forgiven, death is destroyed, and the devil’s kingdom is routed.

Satan still rages and taunts, he hinders and afflicts, not least of all through tyrants like Herod, but all to no avail. Actually, the Lord your God uses even the devil’s wickedness, against the devil’s will, to call you and others to repentance and to drive you back to the Cross. And as always, that old dragon, the devil or Satan, is defeated by the Cross. Your salvation is made certain in Christ Jesus, who preaches the victory of His Cross and the righteousness of His Resurrection to you.

It is this profound privilege that we your pastors are given, that is, to preach and teach the Word of Christ into your ears, knowing that His Word alone is steadfast, eternal, unchanging, and true.

We are sent to you — as St. John the Baptist was sent — to call you to repent and to forgive you all your sins in the Name of the Lord. We are sent to announce and proclaim the presence of Christ and His Kingdom, here and now among you, in the very Word that we preach to you by His authority, and in His flesh and blood, given and poured out for you to eat and to drink unto the resurrection of your body and the Life everlasting of your body and soul.

We do not speak and act for ourselves. But with the Voice of Jesus — by virtue of this Office, as called and ordained servants of His Word — we declare to you that He is the Christ who is coming. That blind unbelief is here replaced by the sight of holy faith. That deaf ears are opened to hear the Word of God. That the leprosy of your sin is cleansed by the waters of Holy Baptism. That death has been destroyed by the death of Christ, and those who were dead in their trespasses and sin are raised up with Him by His Holy Absolution. That for two-thousand-plus years the Gospel has never failed to be preached to the joy and edifying of Christ’s holy people, and so also to you and to your children, and to your children’s children.

So, then, while weeping and sadness remain for a night, rejoicing will yet come in the morning.

Rejoice, therefore! Rejoice in the Lord at all times and in all circumstances. Again I will say it, Rejoice! Your own dear Lord is at hand. He is a very present Help in times of trouble. Be anxious for nothing, for He is faithful and just. He will never leave you or forsake you. And the Peace of God, which surpasses all human understanding, will guard your heart and mind in Christ Jesus.

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

The Lord Is with You Where the Wild Things Are

Well, then, what are you waiting for?  What have you come here to see?  And what do you want?  What are you hoping to find, to hear and receive?  What do you expect to happen?

You have heard of the works of the Lord Jesus Christ — but what has He done for you lately?  Where do you find yourself now?  What circumstances and challenges are you dealing with?

Beloved, wait upon the Lord.  Not by laziness or lethargy, but wait upon the Lord by seeking out His Word and the preaching of it, and by gladly hearing it and learning it.  Wait upon the Lord by confessing His Word, and by praying in accordance with His Word, in faith, hope, and love.

Wait patiently in this hard life under the Cross, not grumbling, groaning, or complaining, neither against the Lord your God, nor against His servants, nor against your neighbors in the world.  Do not harden your heart against faith and love by rehearsing bitterness or resentment, but persevere in prayer and confession.  Speak and sing what is good and right and true, even when you can’t feel it, because God has spoken to you by His Son, who sings to you so sweetly with His Gospel.

It is better to be comforted by the Gospel in your misery, in the midst of sin and death, than to be comfortable and at home in this world that is perishing.

The world is so impatient, precisely because it is dying.  Its time is short.  But you, dear brothers and sisters of the Son of God, Christ Jesus, wait patiently upon Him and rejoice in the Lord.

Watch for Him, and wait upon His coming, and do not worry.  Though you find yourself under His Cross, strengthen your heart by His Word.  For He is near, a very present help in trouble — though you be imprisoned by one means or another; though you be deaf, mute, or blind; though you be leprous or lame; though you are mortal, and you mourn your family, friends, and loved ones.

Wait patiently on the Lord, and trust that He will open up His hand to satisfy your every need of body and soul, for this life and forever.  Trust that He will do as He has promised and provide you with all good things, despite the fact that you are impoverished in one way or another, and though you would prefer to be wealthy and rich, dressed in fine clothing, and living in a royal palace.

It is true that, in this body and life, you do live under the curse of sin and death.  But the Lord Jesus has turned that very curse into the blessing of His Cross, for you and for all the children of man.

Therefore, this desert wilderness in which you find yourself is not a death trap, not really.  It is a journey of repentance — from death to life, from slavery to freedom, from Egypt into Canaan.

The Lord disciplines you here in the wilderness, not to be mean, but because you are His own dear child, His beloved son or daughter.  He puts you to death by the cross in order to catechize you in His way of life, in the faith, hope, and love of Christ Jesus, in His Cross and Resurrection.

He teaches you to hunger and thirst for Him alone.  He teaches you patience and faith.  He teaches you to call upon His Name and to wait upon Him in hope.

Your journey through the wilderness with Christ is a kind of classroom, so to speak.  But it’s not like a semester of lectures, nor even a science lab.  It isn’t like reading a book, reviewing your notes, writing a research paper, or preparing for your final exams.  It’s more like the school of hard knocks, a chance to gain some real street cred.  But it’s definitely not a do-it-yourself program.

The journey and its catechesis of faith and life do require listening, experience, and preparation.  But you are not able to prepare yourself, leastwise not by any reason or strength of your own.

It is rather that the Lord sends His messenger before His face.  He comes to you in the wilderness and walks with you there in the way of the Cross, to prepare the way of the Lord, and to prepare you for His coming.  It is by the preaching and Baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins.

That preaching, that Baptism, that repentance and forgiveness are your preparation for the Christ, by which the Lord prepares you for Himself.  It is His good work, His good and gracious gift.

He does not simply preach it and teach it, nor does He merely offer it and give it to you, but He Himself receives it, undergoes it, and fulfills it for you in human flesh and blood like your own.

So it is that the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence at the hands of sinful men.  The Prophets and Apostles suffer violence, because they preach the Christ, the Crucified One.  St. John the Baptist suffers violence, because he is the Lord’s own Forerunner, who points not only with his words but with his whole body and his life to the sacrificial Lamb of God.  And Christ the Lord Himself suffers violence, every last bit of it — all that you suffer, all that you deserve, and all that you inflict upon your neighbors — so that, by His suffering and death, by His Holy Cross and Passion, you are brought through suffering, sickness, death, and the grave, into the Kingdom of Heaven.

The fact is that the curse of sin and death has been laid upon childbearing and childbirth, and upon every child born of a woman.  It is laid upon you, because you are a sinful son or daughter of the first Adam and his wife.  And it has been laid upon the second Adam, Jesus Christ, the Son of God and of St. Mary, because He has come in love and voluntarily subjected Himself to that curse, in order to redeem all the sons and daughters of Adam & Eve from sin, death, the devil, and hell.

And now His Church, His own beloved Bride, in the waters of Holy Baptism gives birth to the children of God in His Kingdom — through the bloody labor of His Cross and by the delivery of His Resurrection from the dead.  Whoever is born from that womb is greater even than St. John.

So then, do not take offense at the Cross and Passion of Christ Jesus.  Certainly not in the historical facts of the matter, but neither in His preaching to you now, nor in your own life as His disciple.

It is the last of these that is heaviest and hardest to bear, that is, the Cross you are given to carry.

Even so, wait patiently upon the Lord under the Cross, not complaining but rejoicing in His Word and promise of the Gospel.  Rejoice at all times and in all places, in whatever circumstances you may find yourself, in the sure and certain hope of the Resurrection.

Rejoice in the Lord, for He does set prisoners free.

Rejoice, for He does cleanse lepers and heal the lame; He casts out demons and cures diseases.

Rejoice, for He does feed and clothe, shelter, and protect the poor; He provides for all their needs.

And again I say it: Rejoice.  For He does raise the dead from the dust of the earth to live forever and ever in body and soul, glorious like unto His own glorious Body in the Kingdom of Heaven.

All of this He has experienced, He has done it and accomplished it for you — in Himself — in His own patient waiting on the Lord, His God and Father — by His Cross and in His Resurrection.

And He gives it to you all by grace — into your ears, into your hands, into your mouth, and into your body.  He gives it to you by the preaching of His Gospel, by the preaching of His Cross and Resurrection, by the preaching of repentance for the forgiveness of all your sins in His Name.

It is in this way that He makes His Advent and draws near to you — in your own prison, and in your desert wilderness.  He is the Coming One, who comes to you now by this preaching of His.

His Word to you is the crescendo of His grace and glory as the crucified and risen Christ.  It does and gives exactly what He says!  Spoken by and from His Cross, His Word makes all things new!

His preaching opens your ears to hear, and your heart to believe, and your mind to comprehend.

His preaching opens your lips and your mouth to pray and confess.

And His preaching opens up your blind eyes to recognize Him by faith in the hidden Mysteries of His Cross.  Thus do you recognize Him and His Victory in the water and the Word of His Holy Baptism, and you recognize His Body and His Blood in the bread and wine of His Holy Supper.

It is the preaching of His Word that provides you with water in the wilderness, with streams and pools of cool clear water in the desert.  The waters of your one Baptism for the forgiveness of sins and His ongoing Word of Holy Absolution cleanse you and refresh you in both body and soul.

By the preaching of repentance for the forgiveness of your sins He continues to prepare His way before His face, to prepare you for His coming, to lead you in His paths of righteousness by faith, and to keep you on the straight and narrow “Highway of Holiness.”  To be sure, there are dangers aplenty on your right and on your left.  And yet, because you are ransomed and redeemed by the Lord, reconciled to God, and righteous in His sight through faith in His Word, the roaring lion who is always on the prowl, always seeking to devour you, and the vicious beasts that would destroy you — they are all kept at bay.  The wild things cannot harm you, because the Lord is with you.

It often may not seem that way at all in your present experience.  For here and now, in this body and life on earth, you still suffer harm and heartache, hurts and hungers, death and the grave.

But have you not heard?  Christ Jesus Himself has also suffered all of these things and more, and everything that you suffer.  He has spent His time in the wilderness, where the wild things are.

Indeed, He has also died your death.  And yet, God raised Him from the dead for you!  Therefore, no hurt or harm, no heartache or hunger, no suffering, sickness, or death shall have you forever.

Rather, taste and see — right here and right now — in the House and at the Table of the Lord, in His Kingdom on earth as it is in heaven, even in the face of sin, death, the devil, and hell — taste and see the great Feast to which the Highway of Holiness leads you by the Cross of Christ Jesus.

With His Body and His Blood, crucified and risen, the Lord Jesus answers all your questions and concerns.  He answers all your prayers, too, with this resounding “Yes!” and “Amen!”

Though you were born of a woman under the Law, under the curse of sin and death, you are now born again of the free woman, the heavenly Jerusalem, the Bride of Christ, the daughter of God.  So it is that, now and forever, you are His dear child and heir and a royal citizen of His Kingdom.

Though you have been shaken and stirred by a fierce wind, even so, you are not bent or broken or blown away.  Your dimly burning wick is not snuffed out.  The Lord stands fast on your behalf.

Though you have been naked and ashamed and are rightly garbed in sackcloth and ashes, here, instead, you are dressed in the fine clothing of your Baptism, which is the righteousness of Christ.

And even though for now you still sojourn through a real desert wilderness, here you also live and abide in the true King’s Palace, in perfect Peace and Sabbath rest at His Festal Board.

Here, then, beloved of the Lord Jesus, eat, drink, and rejoice.  For He is with you, and all is well.

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