Wednesday, March 30, 2011

Sermon for 30 March 2011, Wednesday of Lent 3: Venite


The Rev. Paul J Cain
Psalm 95:1-7
Venite
Wednesday of Lent 3, 30 March 2011
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, WY

Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth! Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. [Amen.]
 Psalm 96:1-2 ESV.

O come, let us sing to the Lord;
 let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.

Like the Benedictus, last Wednesday’s canticle, the Venite, most of Psalm 95, is sung at the beginning of Morning Prayer or Matins. You can see it for yourself in Lutheran Service Book on page 235 and following. We have been practicing it during Sunday School Opening this Lent.
Brief liturgical psalm-like phrases, Antiphons, introduce and conclude the canticle:
Antiphon (Common),  LSB 235
L       Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C       O come, let us worship Him.

Eventually, the Pastor’s part of the Antiphon changes according to the season. The congregation continues singing, “O Come, let us worship Him.”
“Venite” is Latin for our English words, “O Come.” The Lutheran reformers used Latin alongside German for centuries. Latin faded with the switch to English, but is making a comeback in schools like ours as a help in medicine, science, church work, and better understanding English.
C       O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Now that the Lord has opened our lips according to the words of Psalm 51 at the beginning of Matins or Morning Prayer, we sing and make a joyful noise to the Lord. Our choirs sing and play beautifully. The most important thing is to make a joyful noise to the Lord. We can always work on pitch! Faith in Christ our Savior always sounds best to God!
!       Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise.

We are in God’s presence this evening. He is present with us according to His promises. Heaven and earth intersect every time Christians worship. No wonder we make a joyful noise with songs of praise to our Creator.

@       For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
!       In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are His also.
@       The sea is His, for He made it; and His hand formed the dry land.
!       O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our maker.

The middle verses point to the Lord’s caring hand in creation. He is a king above all “gods,” whether those small-g gods are angels, human beings, or idolatrous pretenders to the True God’s throne.
He is our Father twice over: by means of creation and by means of redemption in Christ.
@       For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
C       Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.  Amen.

As this portion of Psalm 95 concludes, we confess that we are His sheep, His people, those redeemed by the blood of the Lamb who is also our Good Shepherd.
Antiphon (Common),  LSB 237
L       Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C       O come, let us worship Him.

Our young scholars at Martin Luther Grammar School sing Morning Prayer, including this version of the Venite and last Wednesday’s Benedictus each Wednesday morning at 8:05 when school is in session. We will begin using Morning Prayer as one of our non-communion Sunday liturgy options coming up in June.
Amen.
O come, let us sing to the Lord;
 let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.       The Lord has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. [Amen.]
Psalm 98:1-2 ESV
Antiphon (Common),  LSB 235
L       Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C       O come, let us worship Him.

Venite,  LSB 236
C       O come, let us sing to the Lord; let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation.
!       Let us come into His presence with thanksgiving; let us make a joyful noise to Him with songs of praise.
@       For the Lord is a great God and a great king above all gods.
!       In His hand are the depths of the earth; the heights of the mountains are His also.
@       The sea is His, for He made it; and His hand formed the dry land.
!       O come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our maker.
@       For He is our God, and we are the people of His pasture and the sheep of His hand.
C       Glory be to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit; as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.  Amen.

Antiphon (Common),  LSB 237
L       Give glory to God, our light and our life.
C       O come, let us worship Him.


Acknowledgments
Morning Prayer from Lutheran Service Book
Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2006 Concordia Publishing House.

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Sermon for 27 March 2011, Lent 3C


The Rev. Paul J Cain, Jr.
St. John 4:5-26
The Lion of the Tribe of Judah
Third Sunday in Lent, 27 March 2011
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, Wyoming

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Introduction
            “Are you not thirsty?” said the Lion.
            “I’m dying of thirst,” said Jill.
            “Then drink,“ said the Lion.
            “May I--could I--would you mind going away while I do?” said Jill.
            The Lion answered this only by a look and a very low growl. And as Jill gazed at its motionless bulk, she realized that she might as well have asked the whole mountain to move aside for her convenience.
            The delicious rippling noise of the stream was driving her nearly frantic.
            “Will you promise not to--do anything to me, if I do come?” said Jill.
            “I make no promise,” said the Lion.
            Jill was so thirsty now that, without noticing it, she had come a step nearer.
            “Do you eat girls?” she said.
            “I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms,” said the Lion. It didn’t say this as if it were boasting, nor as if it were sorry, nor as if it were angry. It just said it.
            “I daren’t come and drink,” said Jill.
            “Then you will die of thirst,” said the Lion.
            “Oh dear!” said Jill, coming another step nearer. “I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.”
            “There is no other stream,” said the Lion.
            This excerpt from one of the Narnia Chronicles (The Silver Chair, pp. 20-21) by C. S. Lewis sheds some light on our text, the account of Jesus and the Samaritan woman. The story is not a perfect parallel to John Chapter 4, but there are some fascinating similarities. Jill and the woman both ask the wrong questions-because of the wrong assumptions. And Our Lord Himself acts like a Lion.

            So [Jesus] came to a town in Samaria called Sychar, near the plot of ground Jacob had given to his son Joseph. Jacob’s well was there, and Jesus, tired as he was from the journey, sat down by the well. It was about the sixth hour.
            Our Lord is “on the prowl,” so to speak. He initiates a conversation by asking a simple question.
            When a Samaritan woman came to draw water, Jesus said to her, “Will you give me a drink?” (His disciples had gone into the town to buy food.)
            The Samaritan woman said to him, “You are a Jew and I am a Samaritan woman. How can you ask me for a drink?” John provides some necessary background in another footnote. (For Jews do not associate with Samaritans.)
            But the Lion of the Tribe of Judah had already crossed the cultural barrier. He was now in another’s prideland, foreign territory--the land of the tribes of the sons of Joseph.
            Jesus answered her, ”If you knew the gift of God and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he would have given you living water.”
            Jesus’ original question is turned on its head. He offers her a drink.
            “Sir,” the woman said, “you have nothing to draw with and the well is deep. Where can you get this living water? Are you greater than our father Jacob, who gave us the well and drank from it himself, as did also his sons and his flocks and herds?”
            Greater than Jacob? A challenge! Does the Lord’s gentle purr become a growl? No. Our Lord brushes aside her words with a royal paw.
            Jesus answered, “Everyone who drinks this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
            We are optimistic about her next response. Does she understand, or does she mistake Our Lord’s words for the sounds of an animal--unintelligible?
            The woman said to him,  “Sir, give me this water...”
            So far so good. But then she continues, “Sir, give me this water so I won’t get thirsty and have to keep coming here to draw water.”
            She doesn’t understand. Yet. As a lion studies his prey, He circles around the other way.
            He told her, “Go, call your husband and come back.”
            “I have no husband, “ she replied.
            Jesus said to her, “You are right when you say you have no husband. The fact is, you had five husbands, and the man you now have is not your husband. What you have just said is quite true.”
            This is no tame lion. He calls a spade a spade, an antelope an antelope, a cheetah a cheater.... The jaws of the law pierce flesh.
            “Sir,” the woman said, “I can see that you are a prophet. Our fathers worshiped on this mountain, but you Jews claim that the place where we must worship is Jerusalem.”
            Another misconception is batted away with a strong, yet velvety paw.
            Jesus declared, “Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth.”
            The woman said, “I know that Messiah” (called Christ) “is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.”
            Then Jesus declared, “I who speak to you am he.”
            Forgive me for the pun, but “the cat is out of the bag.” The Lord has revealed Himself. This is not some devilish lion looking for someone to devour, but such a Lion, such a Lord that He wants to give His gifts so much that He overcomes misconceptions about Himself.

            Be honest. You may have thought it irreverent, even blasphemous, or just plain wrong to compare Christ Jesus to a lion. Let’s contemplate the biblical data.
            Consider Proverbs 20:2. A kings’ wrath is like the roar of a lion; he who angers him forfeits his life. God truly is the king of kings.
            Not convinced? Think about Jeremiah 49:19 or 50:44. Like a lion coming up from Jordan’s thickets to a rich pastureland, I will chase Edom from its land in an instant. Who is the chosen one I will appoint for this? Who is like me and who can challenge me? And what shepherd can stand against me?
            Ponder upon Hosea 11:10. They will follow the Lord; he will roar like a lion. When he roars, his children will come trembling from the west. We are getting a clearer picture, but I have been saving the better evidence for last.
            Revelation 5:5. See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah....has triumphed. This title is taken from Genesis 49:9 where Judah is named a lion’s cub and is promised the right to rule “until he comes to whom it belongs.” This verse has been fulfilled in Judah’s descendant David and David’s descendant Christ! The Lion of the tribe of Judah has triumphed, giving us living water. This living water was paid for with His blood on the cross, blood that flowed along with water from His riven side. He triumphed nearly 2000 years ago, but gives you life now and living water through the Holy Spirit that wells up to eternal life.
            A few chapters later, Revelation (7:17) draws our attention to living water. The Lion of Revelation 5 is the Lamb of Revelation 7. For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water.
            How about it? Our Lord could be described as a lion. It isn’t a complete picture, for God surpasses our understanding, but the picture has merit. Do you have a different perception now of this lion imagery?

            So far we’ve been talking about Jesus as a Lion. Consider your own perceptions of Jesus. What kind of Jesus do you believe in? Is He just a good moral teacher? Merely one option among many? An excellent example to follow? Someone you hear all about on Sundays but never consider during the rest of the week? Is He Someone to fear, especially on Judgment Day?
            The Samaritan woman had inaccurate, incomplete ideas of the promised Messiah. In the Narnia story, Jill asked the wrong questions. For example, “Do you eat girls?” revealed her mis-understanding of the Divine Lion. We are not exempt from shaping Jesus in our own sinful, unclean image.
            With His Word, the Lord brushes off misconceptions and offers truth about Himself. He explains Himself to us. He is the Truth and the Life. He gives living water.
            “[W]hoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.””
            It may be theologically negligent to ignore the obvious here. With all this “living water” overflowing from the text, who would not be reminded of Holy Baptism? The text speaks of the water that Jesus gives becoming “a spring of water welling up to eternal life.” This is not the major focus of the text, yet this is most certainly true. Baptism is a gift of God working forgiveness of sins, rescuing from death and the devil, and giving eternal salvation--eternal life--to all who believe this as the words and promises of God declare.
            “[W]hoever drinks the water I give him will never thirst. Indeed the water I give him will become in him a spring of water welling up to eternal life.”
            The Lord Jesus is greater than Jacob. Jesus is the well of living water, giving drink to all His flocks and herds and sons: Jews, Gentiles, Samaritans, Christians. He is living water that quenches our thirst for righteousness. He is living water that drowns our doubts about Him and misconceptions of Him. He is the Messiah, the Son of God, our Lord,
who was conceived by the Holy Spirit,
born of the virgin Mary,
suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died and was buried.
He descended into hell.
The third day he rose again from the dead.
He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty.
From thence he will come to judge the living and the dead.

Amen.
            The peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.
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Sermon for 23 March 2011, Wednesday of Lent 2: Benedictus


The Rev. Paul J Cain
Luke 1: 57-80
Benedictus
Wednesday of Lent 2, 23 March 2011
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, WY

Oh sing to the Lord a new song; sing to the Lord, all the earth! Sing to the Lord, bless his name; tell of his salvation from day to day. [Amen.]
 Psalm 96:1-2 ESV.

Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has come to His people and redeemed them.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of His servant David.

Last week’s canticle, the Agnus Dei of John 1:29, was said about Jesus by John the Baptist. Tonight’s canticle from Luke 1 was said about Jesus and John the Baptist by John’s father, Zechariah.
You’ve heard the history: An angel told Zechariah that his wife Elizabeth would give birth to a son who would prepare the way for the Christ. John would be filled with the Holy Spirit even from his mother’s womb. Zechariah didn’t believe the angel and was rendered mute. At John’s birth, Zechariah’s mouth was opened and he praised the Lord for the Christ who was on His way:
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has come to His people and redeemed them.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of His servant David.

Zechariah knew that John’s birth was a miracle and all that God promised would come true. The forerunner, the one like Elijah had been born, so the Christ would not be far behind, the one born of the line of King David. Now is the time of fulfillment. All that was promised to Abraham and through the prophets is coming to pass before Zechariah’s own eyes!

Through His holy prophets He promised of old
that He would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant.
This was the oath He swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship Him without fear,
holy and righteous in His sight all the days of our life.

The Lord promised and delivered salvation, not only from temporal enemies, but from the old evil foe himself! In Christ, all the families of the earth will be blessed according to the oath and promise the Lord made to Abraham. And even so, we worship the Lord in spirit and truth, in reverent awe, true fear of the Lord, but not afraid of Him. In Christ, we are holy and righteous in His sight.
Part two of the canticle is usually sung by a pastor or kantor.

L       You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare His way,
to give His people knowledge of their salvation
by the forgiveness of their sin.
In the tender compassion of our God,
the dawn from on high shall break upon us
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.

Here, Zechariah speaks specifically about the vocation and work of John the Baptist, his son. The Lord’s angel told him what John would be given to do. The Lord loosed Zechariah’s tongue to further prophesy about John’s message and work. Prepare the way. Give knowledge of Salvation. Proclaim the forgiveness of sin. Shine in darkness and death. Guide into the way of peace. Such is the Gospel message. And that is why this song is eternally relevant and universally loved by Christians at prayer.
The Benedictus is called by the Latin of its first word, “Blessed.” It is an alternate canticle in Matins for Lent and Advent. In Morning Prayer, a second musical setting of Matins, it is the primary Gospel canticle, sung after the sermon and before the offering and prayers.
Amen.
Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has come to His people and redeemed them.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of His servant David.
Oh sing to the Lord a new song, for he has done marvelous things! His right hand and his holy arm have worked salvation for him.       The Lord has made known his salvation; he has revealed his righteousness in the sight of the nations. [Amen.]
Psalm 98:1-2 ESV
Benedictus,  LSB 238
C       Blessed be the Lord, the God of Israel;
He has come to His people and redeemed them.
He has raised up for us a mighty Savior,
born of the house of His servant David.
Through His holy prophets He promised of old
that He would save us from our enemies,
from the hands of all who hate us.
He promised to show mercy to our fathers
and to remember His holy covenant.
This was the oath He swore to our father Abraham:
to set us free from the hands of our enemies,
free to worship Him without fear,
holy and righteous in His sight all the days of our life.
L       You, my child, shall be called the prophet of the Most High,
for you will go before the Lord to prepare His way,
to give His people knowledge of their salvation
by the forgiveness of their sin.
In the tender compassion of our God,
the dawn from on high shall break upon us
to shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death
and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
C       Glory be to the Father and to the Son
and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now,
and will be forever.  Amen.


Acknowledgments
Morning Prayer from Lutheran Service Book
Unless otherwise indicated, all scripture quotations are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Created by Lutheran Service Builder © 2006 Concordia Publishing House.

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Monday, March 21, 2011

Sermon for 20 March 2011, Lent 2C


The Rev. Paul J Cain
John 3:1-17
Baptism and More
Second Sunday in Lent, 20 March 2011
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Sheridan, WY

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Just about everybody loves Jesus. Eighty percent of Americans claim to be Christian. Of those nominal Christians, nearly half call themselves “born again.” But what does that mean?
The Lutheran answer might begin, “We should fear and love God…” and would be a very good start. Beyond that, I would rather ignore modern sociological definitions of “born again” and go right to the Bible text that gives us the phrase, John Chapter 3.
Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. 2 This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” 3 Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” 4 Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?”
You hear the disconnect. Nicodemus was a Jewish ruler, what we might call a Senator, part of the Jewish Sanhedrin, the ruling body that would later put Jesus on trial. What he says early on makes sense. Then, he can make no sense of being born again. Or born from above. The Greek here is ambiguous and can mean both “born again” and “born from above.” Such is the beauty, depth, and challenge of the Gospel according to St. John.
Many readers of John Chapter 1 know what Nicodemus hasn’t figured out yet by faith: 12 But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, 13 who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. [1]
Compare that text to Jesus’ answer here in Chapter three:
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. 6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ 8 The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.”
Born again. Born from above. Those two phrases mean the same thing. And both of them mean the same thing as “Born of water and the Spirit.”
Does John 3 talk about Holy Baptism? Yes. There is another question we should ask if we’re being responsible Bible scholars: Does John 3 only talk about Baptism? No. Jesus speaks of Baptism and more!
Can a Christian come to faith before baptism? Certainly! Many adults and children hear the Word and the Spirit, who blows where and when He wills, brings some to faith. Others resist. Sadly, some never hear of the promise to Abraham fulfilled in Jesus. Some never hear the Gospel. And the Spirit doesn’t work with thin air.
God the Holy Spirit delivers the gift of faith. He works through means God has promised to use, including God’s Word, as mentioned before, and Holy Baptism. The Holy Spirit delivers the gift of the Holy Spirit, faith, and the forgiveness of sins in Holy Baptism. Read it for yourself in Acts 2, at the end of Peter’s Pentecost sermon.
Yes, John 3 is a great Baptism text, but it also speaks of the faith given to the thief on the cross, the man to whom Jesus said, “I tell you the truth. Today you shall be with me in paradise.” The Spirit delivered faith to that man. And shortly after, when Jesus’ body was pierced, water poured from His side. That man was born again from above by water and the Holy Spirit.
Nicodemus’ questions continue.
9 Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” 10 Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? 11 Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. 12 If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? 13 No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. 14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, 15 that whoever believes in him may have eternal life.
Lifted up. That’s what the serpent in the wilderness was: lifted up. The promise Moses gave the people from God was pretty simple. Look to the bronze serpent and believe the Lord can heal you. Some still died of their snake bites. They couldn’t or wouldn’t believe in such a cure.
The Law says “do” and “don’t do.” The Law always leaves room for doubt if enough has been done. The Gospel says, “It is finished.” The Gospel proclaims Christ’s Calvary work for you in your place. The Gospel says, “Believe this” and “This Is.” And John 3:16 and following speak of this Gospel:
16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. [2]
Kosmos. That’s the Greek word used here for world. You’ve heard it in English. It is an inclusive word that doesn’t leave anyone out. That’s Gospel. That’s how big the love of God and the promise to Abraham was. Christ will return on the Last Day as Judge, but His incarnate coming was to accomplish, proclaim, and deliver salvation.
In Jesus, all are blessed: Abraham, Moses, Nicodemus, and you, born again from above by water and the Holy Spirit. Amen.
In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

[1] The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Jn 1:12–13). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
[2] The Holy Bible : English standard version. 2001 (Jn 3:1–17). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.
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