Sermon for 06 April 2011, Midweek of Lent 4: Sanctus

The Rev. Paul J Cain

Isaiah 6:3; Matthew 21:9

Sanctus

Wednesday of Lent 4, 06 April 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.

Holy, holy, holy Lord God of Sabaoth adored;

Heav'n and earth with full acclaim shout the glory of Your name.

Sing hosanna in the highest, sing hosanna to the Lord;

Truly blest is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

In addition to the service called Morning Prayer, this summer we will also begin regularly using another musical setting of Divine Service, number Four in Lutheran Service Book, which begins on page 203. Music supporting the texts in this setting consists of singable hymn tunes. It also sounds very appropriate and reverent on piano or organ.

The first canticle of the second half, the Service of the Sacrament, is the Sanctus. That Latin word means “Holy,” in English, and is related to the word “sanctification.”

Isaiah hears the angels in heaven sing the three-fold Trinitarian “Holy, holy, holy.” The angels Isaiah saw look little like our culture’s common depiction. They have six wings each—or six pair of wings each—the Hebrew is ambiguous. They fly, cover their feet, and cover their faces with these wings. Their holiness is palpable. And Isaiah knows that he is a sinner and is of a sinful people. The holiness is applied and given to Isaiah in the purification of a burning coal. His sin is covered by the Lord Himself.

The God who atoned for Isaiah’s sin and our sin is Lord God of Sabaoth. Don’t mistake Sabaoth for the other commonly-used two-syllable Hebrew word, “Sabbath.” “Sabbath” means rest, particularly the Day the Lord rested at the Creation. Sabaoth, on the other hand, is a three-syllable word that means our God is Lord of “heavenly hosts” or “angel armies.” Teaching that word in the context of Isaiah 6 always helps.

Angels help lead the praise of heaven and earth in song to the Lord our God. At worship, heaven and earth intersect. Angels, archangels, and all the company of heaven are here with us and the Lord Himself. You are never closer to your loved ones in Christ than when you are at the Lord’s Table. All saints, including those on earth and those in heaven, are connected to Christ in Holy Baptism. In Christ, we are then connected to one another.

Christ is the key to understanding the Sanctus. It is a marriage of Isaiah 6:3 and Matthew 21:9, from Palm Sunday. The Matthew text has another Hebrew word: Hosanna. “Hosanna” means, “save us now.” It is an appeal to heaven by the Palm Sunday crowds.

“Save us now” is an appeal that could only be made to God inheaven. And the prayer is made to Jesus. That says something. The people likely didn’t understand the full significance that we do as Christians because we can understand things better because of our time in history.

The crowds openly confess Jesus as the promised Messiah and son of David. They were blessed by His coming, even though it took an Easter Sunday Resurrection to make Good Friday good.

We are blessed by Jesus’ coming. We invoke His presence at the beginning of Divine Service. Tonight, we called on He who is the Light of the world. We also regularly ask Him to open our lips and help us to rejoice in the day He has made.

And when we sing the Sanctus to Carl Schalk’s scale-like tune beginning this summer, we will confess our joy at the coming of Christ according to the words His own Testament in His very Body and Blood for the forgiveness of our sins.

Amen.

Holy, holy, holy Lord God of Sabaoth adored;

Heav'n and earth with full acclaim shout the glory of Your name.

Sing hosanna in the highest, sing hosanna to the Lord;

Truly blest is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

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

Sanctus,  LSB 208

C       Holy, holy, holy Lord God of Sabaoth adored;

Heav'n and earth with full acclaim shout the glory of Your name.

Sing hosanna in the highest, sing hosanna to the Lord;

Truly blest is He who comes in the name of the Lord.

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.