GOSPEL: John 2:1-11

Reading:

And the third day there was a marriage in Cana of Galilee; and the mother of Jesus was there: And both Jesus was called, and his disciples, to the marriage. And when they wanted wine, the mother of Jesus saith unto him, They have no wine. Jesus saith unto her, Woman, what have I to do with thee? mine hour is not yet come. His mother saith unto the servants, Whatsoever he saith unto you, do it. And there were set there six waterpots of stone, after the manner of the purifying of the Jews, containing two or three firkins apiece. Jesus saith unto them, Fill the waterpots with water. And they filled them up to the brim. And he saith unto them, Draw out now, and bear unto the governor of the feast. And they bare it. When the ruler of the feast had tasted the water that was made wine, and knew not whence it was: (but the servants which drew the water knew;) the governor of the feast called the bridegroom, And saith unto him, Every man at the beginning doth set forth good wine; and when men have well drunk, then that which is worse: but thou hast kept the good wine until now. This beginning of miracles did Jesus in Cana of Galilee, and manifested forth his glory; and his disciples believed on him.

Commentary:

This reading shows how Jesus honors and supports marriage, and it is not sinful (at all) for Christians to marry, nor is celibacy commanded by God or somehow a more holy way to serve God.  The presence of Christ, and His great miracle of changing the water into the wine, shows His joy and support of the man and woman who seek the blessing of Christ in their marriage.  The invitation of Jesus to the marriage is like that of the Christian couple who marries in church, has the ceremony filled with God’s Word, and so by faith seeks to keep Christ at the center of their marriage.  The good wine which Jesus gave at the wedding not only shows there is nothing wrong with drinking alcohol (in moderation), but its richness in taste reminds us of how all of God’s temporal blessings are good and sweet and to be enjoyed in faith.  When you eat and drink with joy, knowing all you possess is God’s unmerited blessing which He is happy to give, life becomes more joyful, knowing the goodness of the Lord. “Whether therefore ye eat or drink or whatsoever ye do, do all to the glory of God.”

EPISTLE: Romans 12:6-16

Reading:

Having then gifts differing according to the grace that is given to us, whether prophecy, let us prophesy according to the proportion of faith; Or ministry, let us wait on our ministering: or he that teacheth, on teaching; Or he that exhorteth, on exhortation: he that giveth, let him do it with simplicity; he that ruleth, with diligence; he that sheweth mercy, with cheerfulness. Let love be without dissimulation. Abhor that which is evil; cleave to that which is good. Be kindly affectioned one to another with brotherly love; in honour preferring one another; Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord; Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer; Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality. Bless them which persecute you: bless, and curse not. Rejoice with them that do rejoice, and weep with them that weep. Be of the same mind one toward another. Mind not high things, but condescend to men of low estate. Be not wise in your own conceits.

Commentary:

Let’s look at these gifts individually.  Prophesy concerns the preaching of the Word, so such should be done only according to the “proportion of faith” which is that faith of Scripture (none should ever teach contrary).  Concerning the gift of ministry, this is any serving office in the church (office of elder, secretary, trustee, etc.). “He that teacheth, on teaching” so all teachers should diligently focus on teaching only God’s Word. Exhortation is one who corrects or edifies another, encourages another.  He should exhort then “with simplicity”, a willing heart and clear and simple words.  If we have an office in church with authority, we should rule with diligence.  Likewise mercy should always be shown, and love should be without “dissimulation”, lacking genuine love.  The rest of this reading is beautiful, showing the proper Christian spirit we should have at all times toward one another and the stranger.

OT: Psalms 53:1-6

Reading:

The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.  Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread: they have not called upon God. There were they in great fear, where no fear was: for God hath scattered the bones of him that encampeth against thee: thou hast put them to shame, because God hath despised them. Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.

Commentary:

“The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.” The Fall of Adam and Eve into sin, was the total corruption of all mankind. This original sin still infects every human, so that we are not neutral regarding good and evil, nor do we have a good will to choose between the two.  Rather we are positively corrupt. “God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.  Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.” Even after conversion this corruptness remains within us (the Old Adam), though God has given us His grace and Spirit to know our blessed salvation in Christ.  Thus the Psalmist finally says (with an eager heart), “Oh that the salvation of Israel were come out of Zion! When God bringeth back the captivity of his people, Jacob shall rejoice, and Israel shall be glad.” Old Testament believers longed for the day Christ would come and save them from sin.

SERMON: Isaiah 61:1-6

Reading:

The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn; To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the LORD, that he might be glorified. And they shall build the old wastes, they shall raise up the former desolations, and they shall repair the waste cities, the desolations of many generations. And strangers shall stand and feed your flocks, and the sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers. But ye shall be named the Priests of the LORD: men shall call you the Ministers of our God: ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.

The Prophetic Office of Christ

Beloved of the Lord......From our catechism we should all remember that Jesus is our Prophet, Priest, and King. Today’s lesson concerns only one of these three, namely the Prophetic Office of Christ. In our minds now let’s consider what exactly a prophet is, and how is Christ our prophet? Well a prophet is a spokesman for God. The work or office of a prophet is to declare to the people God’s Word and God’s will. In the Old Testament God sent many prophets to His people, with various messages from God, and those who heard God’s Word and obeyed were blessed, but those who despised God’s Word were punished.
As for Christ THE Prophet, He was different from all the Old Testament prophets, for He truly was the Son of God, God incarnate….in the flesh. He was like the other Old Testament prophets in that He was true Man, but at the same time He was True God, even coming forth from the bosom of the Father. John 1:17 and 18 tell us, “the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by Jesus Christ. No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.” Moses was a prophet and Christ was and still is a prophet, but Christ far exceeded Moses because Moses was born from the womb of His mother, but Jesus came forth from the bosom of the Father. When the Son of God spoke God’s Word upon earth, God Himself was speaking, having come forth from the heart of God Himself. This also is why when Jesus was baptized, the Father’s voice spoke from heaven saying, “This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased, hear ye him.”
That’s why we’re here today. We are here to listen to, to hear the words of our blessed prophet speak, whose name is Jesus Christ. And that’s another quick point, whenever and wherever in this world the Gospel of Jesus Christ is preached or spoken by any man, woman, or child, Jesus our Prophet is speaking through those words because Jesus said “He that heareth you heareth Me.” He is not merely a prophet who is gone and lifted up to heaven, but this prophet comes to us today by preaching and teaching grace into our hearts. And if you listen carefully to all Jesus says, you will hear God Himself speaking to you from His heart, even from the bosom of God the Father. Thus Jesus said, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted.” Blessed are they who hear God’s Word, the words of Jesus our Prophet, and so believe.

I. “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me.” Let’s begin first this morning by noticing certain words. Note the words: meek, brokenhearted, captives, them that are bound, all that mourn, the spirit of heaviness. All these words and phrases concern the broken sinner whose heart is penitent. A meek person is not proud but humble, submitting to God’s will. One whose heart is broken, fears God’s wrath saying, “What is God going to do to me because of this sin!” As for the word captive, these are they who feel the captivity of sin and so long to be free of their sins. Those that mourn concerns those who have experienced sorrow in their hearts over sin. These regret what they have done and so have a spirit of heaviness within. How can you be joyful when you feel sin’s guilt in your heart? So let’s make a very crucial point: the grace and forgiveness Jesus brings to us in His words cannot be received in our heart, unless our heart has experienced the fear of God’s wrath. If we have never experienced in our heart true fear of God or terror in our conscience, the love Jesus shows us through the cross can never properly be received! Grace is something that needs to be received by faith alone, and if not received man dies in terror and without hope. The purpose of the Law hence is to smite, break, and destroy that natural and wicked pride we all have, so we become trembling sinners, penitent, happy to hear the Gospel when it comes. Simply put, we need the Law. If in our heart we find little reason to go to church, or only a little love for Jesus the Son of God, or if when its time to commune there is no strong urge within to receive the body and blood of Christ, that’s a sure sign we need to get back into the Law of God and study His commandments. Let’s remember again how far we have fallen short of God’s glory. Psalm 53 says, “God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God. Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.”
That brings us back again to our precious Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. Listen carefully now to Jesus who is speaking to you, and listen to what He is saying in a resolute and determined voice. He says, “The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me; because the Lord hath anointed me to preach the good tidings unto the meek.” This is the Prophetic Office of Christ, His work, His calling as He was anointed by the Father to do. He was anointed also by the Holy Ghost, for it was according to His human nature, that He was filled with the Holy Ghost, eager to give and preach forgiveness to those who lived in darkness. Even so Jesus said, “I am come a Light into the world, that whosoever believeth on Me should not abide in darkness.” Just think of the Baptism of Christ, and how the Holy Ghost descended upon Christ in the form of a dove. The Spirit thus anointed Christ to go forth and preach the Gospel. Yet before this happened the Bible says the Spirit drove Christ into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. For our sake Jesus overcame every temptation and was victorious, and after this Jesus traveled to His home town Nazareth, and on Saturday the Sabbath He went into the synagogue.
Do you know what He did there? He went to the front of the church, sat down, and because it was His turn to read, He took the Bible and read Isaiah 61, verses one and two. In front of the congregation Jesus solemnly said, “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek.” After reading these words the Bible says, “He closed the book, and he gave it again to the minister, and sat down. And the eyes of all them that were in the synagogue were fastened on him.” They were looking upon Him with wonder, because He just told them by Isaiah’s prophecy He was indeed THE Messiah, THAT Prophet, anointed by the Holy Ghost to preach the good tidings of remission of sins. Sadly they didn’t believe Him, yet this formal began His three short years of public ministry. The rest, as they say, is history.
Again, this is how Jesus is our Prophet, for He was not only the Priest who sacrificed Himself for our salvation, but also the prophet thereafter whose duty it was to preach this sweet remission of sins to all the world. He came to set all captives free by saying, “Thy sins be forgiven thee, go in peace” and “Son be of good cheer, thy sins be forgiven thee!” This is freedom, true liberty from the devil’s power. When a person tries to earn forgiveness of sin by good works and deeds, they are living under the spell of Satan’s power. But when Christ preaches His forgiveness and grace is free to mankind by His blood shed on the cross, those who believe are no longer under Satan’s power. We still sin, though we don’t want to, yet we know by faith even these sins are forgiven, and heaven is still our home. The devil can vex us and tempt us, but he has no real power as long as our faith is in Christ the Lamb. Our sins were buried in the tomb of Christ, and we know the devil cannot unbury them and place them back upon us. No! Christ has removed them, erased them, even drowned them all in the depths of the sea. Even so the prophet Micah said, God “will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea.”
But let’s look at our text again. In verse two Jesus came “To proclaim the acceptable year of the LORD, and the day of vengeance of our God; to comfort all that mourn.” This does not mean the door to heaven is open only one year, but every year all the way to the Last Day, we sinners through Christ are acceptable to God by the remission of sins. The entire New Testament is that “acceptable year of the Lord.” Jesus sinners doth receive. It then will be a “day of vengeance” only to those who do not believe, but actually despise the Gospel. Do you despise and loathe in your heart the blessed news that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who came forth from the bosom of the Father to save you from sin? If you do not despise that its because you believe it, and “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”
Going further the Bible says, Jesus gives to those that mourn “beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning” even “the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness.” How beautiful this is! By way of our sins naturally we must return to dust and ashes, but Jesus gives us beauty to replace these ashes. This is His own beauty and holiness, hence our song “Beautiful Savior, King of Creation, Son of God and Son of Man.” Sinners find all beauty in Jesus, for by the words He has spoken we see the pure grace and love in His heart He has for us, though we don’t deserve it. Even so He gives us “the oil of joy” which is the spirit of happiness and song because the Holy Ghost comforts our hearts. Isaiah then calls us “trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that He might be glorified.” The Hebrew word behind tree here implies strength, particularly an oak tree. We are strong trees because we possess the righteousness of Christ. If the devil is like a lumberjack he has no ax, saw, or chainsaw strong enough or sharp enough to take us down, because Jesus is the Lord our Righteousness. We are holy in God’s sight, a tree which cannot fall, because our roots are anchored deep in the Rock of Jesus Christ. He alone is our glory! Finally….

II. The Gospel of Christ continually builds His Church. The Bible now says, “they shall build the old wastes….the former desolations.” “They” here are the believers of the New Testament, who by preaching and teaching build the Church, Christ being the cornerstone. In verse five you see the words strangers and aliens. These are the Gentile masses who once were outside the Church, but by the power of the Gospel came into the Church by faith believing with much joy. In verse 5 Isaiah says, “strangers shall stand and feed your flocks” and the “sons of the alien shall be your plowmen and your vinedressers.” This means the Gentiles would become the priests and ministers who would serve the Jews God’s Word by preaching. In the New Testament it is mostly Gentiles who become preachers and teachers of the gospel, and we of the New Testament know that every Christian is a priest.
Finally “Ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.” This does not mean the Jews of today will be given physical wealth from Gentiles, nor are the Jews today still somehow God’s chosen people as Reformed churches often teach. But we “eat the riches of the Gentiles” when we in the Christian Church simply become servants of one another, ministers of one another by faith. Regardless of our name, Jew or Gentile, Black or White, Asian, African, American, we are all redeemed by the same blood, so we give our riches to one another, by the good works we do loving Jesus who loved us first. To put it into perspective, on any given Sunday, if we light the candles, change the flowers, change the altar clothes, clean the kitchen, serve the hotdogs, wipe down the tables, assemble to meet and make decisions, namely whatever we do in love and service for one another, we really are enjoying the riches of one another, the riches of grace which moves within each believer to perform such good works. Indeed it is written, “Ye shall eat the riches of the Gentiles, and in their glory shall ye boast yourselves.” Jesus Christ is our boast. Jesus Christ is our glory. Amen.

What Luther Says...The Flech Needs to be Bridled

The Commandments are necessary, not that we should be justified through their works but that we, as those who are already justified, may know in which way our spirit should crucify the flesh and direct us in the affairs of this life, so that the flesh may not turn wanton and, snapping the reigns, throw the rider, the spirit of faith. The reins must be put not on the rider but on the horse.

What Luther Says, #2386

GOSPEL: Luke 2:41-52

Gospel Reading

Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the passover. And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. But they, supposing him to have been in the company, went a day's journey; and they sought him among their kinsfolk and acquaintance. And when they found him not, they turned back again to Jerusalem, seeking him.  And it came to pass, that after three days they found him in the temple, sitting in the midst of the doctors, both hearing them, and asking them questions. And all that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers. And when they saw him, they were amazed: and his mother said unto him, Son, why hast thou thus dealt with us? behold, thy father and I have sought thee sorrowing. And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father's business? And they understood not the saying which he spake unto them. And he went down with them, and came to Nazareth, and was subject unto them: but his mother kept all these sayings in her heart. And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.

Gospel Commentary

Let’s look only at the last verse. “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man.” God cannot increase in wisdom, but Jesus did. This is according to His human nature. Just as our children grow in their knowledge of Bible stories and doctrine, our God Jesus as a true child grew in His understanding of Scripture (again according to His human nature).  His understanding grew so greatly that at the age of twelve, “All that heard him were astonished at his understanding and answers.” May our children grow in like manner! For “These things are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name.”

EPISTLE: I Corinthians 1:20-31

Epistle Reading:

Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world? For after that in the wisdom of God the world by wisdom knew not God, it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stumblingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness; But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. Because the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men. For ye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the flesh, not many mighty, not many noble, are called: But God hath chosen the foolish things of the world to confound the wise; and God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty; And base things of the world, and things which are despised, hath God chosen, yea, and things which are not, to bring to nought things that are: That no flesh should glory in his presence. But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: That, according as it is written, He that glorieth, let him glory in the Lord.

Epistle Commentary 

As a rule, the smartest people of the world are usually fools when it comes to knowing the Lord.  Hasn’t “God made foolish the wisdom of this world?” God makes fools of the worldly wise, by giving true faith to the lowly who simply hear the Word and believe.  So “it pleased God by the foolishness of preaching to save them that believe. For the Jews require a sign, and the Greeks seek after wisdom: But we preach Christ crucified.” The wise of the world say “who wants to believe in a weak God who was crucified on the cross for sins?”  The “worldly wise” have great gifts and intellectual power, but they cannot bow the knee before their crucified Lord.  They deny Him!  Yet “the foolishness of God is wiser than men; and the weakness of God is stronger than men.” He wasn’t weak on the cross but strong.  The Almighty God was there paying for our sins, and this is the truth which humbles every believing heart.  Usually then we do not find in a true Bible teaching church, many mighty or noble, for “God hath chosen the weak things of the world to confound the things which are mighty.” Remember the Pharisees who complained when children sang praises to Jesus! Don’t you hear what they’re saying Jesus? Jesus answered, “Yea; have ye never read, Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings thou hast perfected praise?” In the eyes of our Lord, a child who believes in Christ is far wiser then the Einsteins of this world.