Sermon for Easter V

Via, Veritas, et Vita!

John 14:1-14

Fifth Sunday of Easter, A 2011

Baptism of Henry James Polley

Zion Lutheran Church

Mount Pleasant, Michigan

Pastor Jonathon Bakker

Grace to you and peace from God our Father and from the Lord, Jesus Christ, amen. The Holy Scripture for our consideration this day is the Gospel reading from St. John.

“Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and the way you know.” Thomas said to him, “Lord, we do not know where you are going, and how can we know the way?” Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also; and from now on you know him and have seen him.” Philip said to him, “Lord, show us the Father, and it is sufficient for us.” Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you so long, and yet you have not known me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; so how can you say, ‘Show us the Father’? Do you not believe that I am in the Father, and the Father in me? The words that I speak to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does the works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father in me, or else believe me for the sake of the works themselves. Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in me, the works that I do he will do also; and greater works than these he will do, because I go to my Father. And whatever you ask in my name, that I will do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son. If you ask anything in my name, I will do it.”

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, I wasn’t really expecting any of us to be left here today, what with the supposed ‘rapture’ set to happen last night at 6pm. Either none of us are true believers, or Harold Camping and his Family Radio network can now add themselves to the long list of false teachers who have repeatedly tried to predict Christ’s return. If I’d been paying attention to how big a news item this would become, he would have been an excellent example for last Sunday’s Gospel reading. Camping makes a strong contrast to the Good Shepherd. The Good Shepherd is the door for his sheep to abundant, everlasting life; but those who do not use the door are thieves and robbers. Camping teaches a different Gospel, which is no Gospel at all.

Still, the Lord always has the most incredible ways of teaching us his lessons. My own family has very recently learned a lesson from the Lord. We have been under considerable stress at home this week with the total failure of our septic drain field. As a pastor, I know that the house needs to be built on the solid rock; but as a pastor with a failing septic system, I have learned that the house also needs to be built near some sand! Of course, faith in Jesus as the way, the truth, and the life is the real rock upon which the house of our everlasting salvation is built.

Those who followed and supported Harold Camping and Family Radio have also learned a lesson. Jesus was serious when he said that, ‘of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.’ Now, there are reports of families that stopped working, stopped saving, and even some that stopped preparing for childbirth, believing that they would be in heaven long before the baby arrived all because of Camping’s idea. I admit that I’ve had more than my share of ‘rapture’ jokes this past week, but the truth is that false teaching is no laughing matter. It has tragic consequences.

We do not prepare for the return of Jesus by trying to predict it; we prepare by believing in his Son who came to die for our sins and who rose from the dead. We are to be ready at all times, and by the grace of God, he makes us ready through faith. No matter when Jesus returns, the only thing that will matter is whether or not we are his Father’s children through the adoption of baptism and faith.

The Gospel for today could not be more appropriate for our times. Even though I was certain that Jesus would not return last night, I still found myself wondering, ‘what if?’ What if he comes back really soon? What will it be like? What will happen? Harold Camping claimed that it would be the rapture, a false teaching that the true believers would be taken away while the non-believers would be left behind to suffer punishment for a period of time before finally being sent to the real torment of eternal damnation. What the Bible actually teaches is quite different.

The Gospel from John paints the true picture of what Jesus has in mind for us in the end. ‘Let not your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me.’ Faith comes first, and calms our hearts in the face of all trouble. After all, there are many mansions in Jesus’ Father’s house. We can take his word for it. Jesus told his disciples about this as he was preparing for his passion. His death would make full payment for the sin of the world, while his resurrection would be the ultimate victory over death and the devil. Through that passion, Jesus secured a place for us with him in eternity. It is another reason for us to take heart when the grief and sorrows of this world attack.

He will come back; our Lord will return. None of us knows the day or the hour, but he will return, and that is also comforting. After all, why would Jesus have done what he did and suffered what he suffered if not for the sake of making us his own? He took on flesh, lived a sinless life, died for the sin of the world, and rose from the dead out of his great love for all of humanity and because he knew that it would accomplish our salvation. If any of us were to be with him and his Father and Holy Spirit forever in heaven, Jesus alone could do it.

As our Lord taught this to the disciples, he told them that they knew where he was going, and that they also knew the way to get there. They did not understand, however, and Thomas said so. ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going, and how can we know the way?’

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life. It sounds simplistic, but what our Lord says is utterly true. He alone is the true God-man, the establisher of the world, and its Savior. His is the life which alone gives life to all who believe in him, and just as he is the door that lays itself down for the sheep, faith in him is the way to everlasting life. No one comes to the Father except through him.

These are among the most criticized of Jesus’ words. Many would rather that John had not included them in his Gospel. They exude arrogance and exclusivity. In no day or age, including the present, are they received by the masses with great joy or comfort.
To God’s people, however, to the sheep of the Good Shepherd, these words give wonderful peace and calm the troubled heart. When the changes and chances of life afflict us, this sentence from Jesus reminds us of the constancy of his great love. When selfish pride overcomes us, it also reminds us of our place in the world. Jesus alone establishes us in the Gospel and he alone brings it to completion at the last day.

And that last day will come, with Jesus returning in glory, to judge the living and the dead. We do not know when it will be, but with the comforting words from Jesus that he is the way, the truth, and the life, we do not need to be tormented by what we do not know. ‘Nobody knows the day or the hour,’ but God does not abandon us.
In this world there will be temptation upon temptation, and there will always be someone seeking to gain influence or power for themselves by claiming to have this or that secret knowledge from God or the Scriptures. Always go back to Jesus’ words here – I am the way, the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father except through me.

We cannot predict when Jesus will return to judge the world, but I can tell you when he will be here next; Jesus will be present among us just as he has promised. He is here in the preaching and reading of his Word; in the speaking of the absolution; in the water and word of Holy Baptism, and he comes among us with his body and blood in the Lord’s Supper. Hear his voice and follow him; follow him all the way to eternal life!

To Christ alone be all the glory, forever and ever, amen.

The peace of God that passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus, our Lord, amen.

June 2011 Newsletter Article

“For it is the God who commanded light to shine out of darkness, who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.”

2 Corinthians 4:6

Brothers and sisters in Christ, warnings about false teachers are prevalent these days. Two months ago there was a lot to be said about Grand Rapids pastor Rob Bell, whose book, Love Wins, teaches a Christian universalism that basically includes all people in God’s salvation, whether they believe that Jesus Christ died for their sins or not. In the last month, Bell’s form of universalism gave way to Harold Camping’s prediction that Jesus would return May 21st, taking all the true believers to heaven with him, and instituting a 153 day time of tribulation, which would basically be God’s judgment upon all that are left behind on the earth. Sure enough, the sun still rose Sunday May 22nd and we rejoiced in the Lord at worship, hearing God’s Word of Law and Gospel and receiving his forgiveness in Word and Sacrament.

In a strange twist, Camping has since come out with yet another date with a new prediction. He still believes that Jesus came back on May 21st, but he twisted his own teaching now, saying that this recent return and accompanying judgment were actually invisible to all. So invisible, in fact, that no one noticed Jesus coming back, nor did anyone feel any retribution for sin or unbelief! According to Camping we now have until October 21st of this year before the end of all existence. That is a Friday this fall, and let me say that I look forward to seeing all of you in church with me on Sunday, October 23rd!

False teaching and the prominence it is receiving in the media of late gives us reason to pause – how is the average Lutheran supposed to understand and interpret every religious thing that we see or hear on the internet, TV, radio, or newspaper? We certainly do not blindly accept as true every single thing that claims to be Christian, but we likewise must be careful before dismissing everything out of hand. The sure and certain measure of truth for us is always the testimony of Holy Scripture. Still, there are as many different ways to read and understand Scripture as there are churches and sects in the world. How many church bodies distinguish themselves from one another over important differences in how they interpret Scripture? Are all readings equally true, or is there a right way and a wrong way to understand Scripture?

Irenaeus of Lyons, a 2nd Century pastor and theologian faced this dilemma in an ongoing debate within the church. To put it simply, there were two main factions – those who held that the God who created the heavens and the earth is different from the Father of Jesus, and that Jesus Christ is not truly incarnate, but rather solely a spiritual being (the Gnostics); and those who held that Jesus’ Father is the very same God who created all things, and that Jesus Christ is true God and true Man. Both camps argued for their positions using the verses of Holy Scripture, but Irenaeus recognized that opposing positions about the very nature of God cannot both be correct.

In response to the Gnostics, Irenaeus could not discredit or undermine the very Scriptures to which he himself appealed for support. Instead, he focused his attention and argument on the way the Gnostics interpreted the Scriptures. It is difficult to encapsulate the nuances of Irenaeus’ arguments, but here is one example that I find extremely helpful. To begin, Irenaeus understood Scripture as having one fundamental plot line – the creation and salvation of humanity through Jesus Christ. All of Scripture supports this plot, and any deviation from this plot is not only a misrepresentation of the Scripture, but a distortion in the understanding of Jesus Christ. He likens it to a mosaic:

[The Gnostic’s] manner of acting is just as if one, when a beautiful image of a king has been constructed by some skilful artist out of precious jewels, should then take this likeness of the man all to pieces, should rearrange the gems, and so fit them together as to make them into the form of a dog or a fox, and a poorly executed one at that; and should then maintain and declare that this was the beautiful image of the king which the skilful artist constructed, pointing to the jewels which had been admirably fitted together by the first artist to form the image of the king, but have been with bad effect transferred by the latter one to the shape of a dog, and by thus exhibiting the jewels, should deceive the ignorant who had no conception what a king’s form was like, and persuade them that the miserable likeness of the fox was, in fact, the beautiful image of the king.

When the passages of Scripture are taken from their rightful spot in the plot line, and reassembled in another fashion, they tell a different story. Each verse may be intact, but taken out of proper context, they tell and different story, and, ultimately, proclaim a different Jesus.

This, finally, is the serious danger of false teachers – they promote a different Christ, and those unprepared or unaware of the difference can be led astray without knowing it until much later. St. Paul says the same thing at the top of this article; the knowledge of the glory of God is in the face of Jesus Christ. I exhort you to continue to increase in faith and knowledge of that glory of God that is in the face of Jesus Christ. Study that face by studying Scripture; get to know it as well as you know your own face; in doing so you will protect yourself from those who teach falsely and from their false teachings. Those who do so will not be sorry; when a false teaching is presented to them, it will be as Irenaeus says, ‘although he will acknowledge the gems, he will certainly not receive the fox instead of the likeness of the king.’ God grant that you always know and love the true King of Kings and Lord of Lords, your Savior, Jesus Christ!

To Christ alone be all the glory, forever and ever, amen.

Pastor Bakker

Wisdom from Gregory the Great

"Thus is was that Nathan the Prophet, come to chide the king, to all appearance asked his judgment in the case of a poor man against a rich man.  The king first was to deliver judgment and then to hear that he was the culprit.  Thus he was completely unable to gainsay the just sentence which he had personally delivered against himself.  Therefore, the holy man, considering both the sinner and the king, aimed in that wonderful manner at convicting a bold culprit first by his own admission, and then cut him by his rebuke.  For a short while he concealed the person whom he was aiming at, and then at once struck him when he had convicted him.  His stroke would, perhaps, have had less force, if he had chosen to castigate the sin directly the moment he began to speak; but by beginning with a similitude, he sharpened the rebuke which he was concealing.  He came like a physician to a sick man, saw that his wound had to be incised, but was in doubt about the endurance of the patient.  He, therefore, concealed the surgeon's knife under his coat, but drawing it out suddenly, pierced the wound, that the sick man might feel the knife before he saw it, for if he had first seen it, he might have refused to feel it."

- St. Gregory the Great, 'Pastoral Care' Part III, Chapter 2.

Holy Week Schedule

Greetings friends,

Tomorrow is the start of Holy Week, and I wanted to be sure to post this info for anyone interested!

Zion Lutheran Church is located at 3401 E River Rd., Mt. Pleasant, MI.

Christ The King Lutheran Chapel (CTK) is at 1401 S Washington St., Mt. Pleasant, MI

Palm Sunday - April 17
8:00am @ Zion - Service w/ Holy Communion (this is also the Confirmation service)
9:15am @ Zion - Confirmation Reception instead of usual Bible study
10:15am @ Zion - Service w/ Holy Communion
11:45am @ CTK - Service w/ Holy Communion
7:00pm @ CTK - Student Bible Study
8:00pm @ CTK - Lutheran Student Fellowship meeting w/ officer elections

Wednesday April 20
7:30pm @ CTK - Spoken Service w/ Holy Communion
8:00pm @ CTK - Student Bible Study on Hebrews 11

Maundy Thursday - April 21
4:30pm @ Zion - Maundy Thursday Service w/ Holy Communion
7:30pm @ CTK - Maundy Thursday Service w/ Holy Communion

Good Friday - April 22
1:00pm @ Zion - Good Friday Service
3:00pm @ CTK - Good Friday Service

Easter Sunday - April 24
7:00am @ Zion - Sunrise Service w/ Holy Communion
8:00am @ Zion - Zion Youth Group hosts Easter Breakfast
10:15am @ Zion - Easter Service w/ Holy Communion
11:45am @ CTK - Easter Service w/ Holy Communion
7:00pm @ CTK - Student Bible Study

Myths about Death

One of my classmates from seminary wrote a fantastic article for the current Lutheran Witness on why Easter matters.

You can find it here.

It was a few church newsletter articles ago that I spoke of death and the issue of Christian funerals, and this certainly says it better than I did.  Please go have a look for yourself!

Newsletter article for April 2011

“Christ has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us

(for it is written, ‘Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree’).”

Galatians 3:13

Brothers and sisters in Christ, in the Gospel of Matthew, our Lord warns us to be on the watch for false prophets who come to us in sheep’s clothing (Mat. 7:15). In the epistle to the Romans, St. Paul instructs us to mark and avoid those who cause divisions, who put up obstacles, and who teach contrary to the teachings of the apostles (Rom. 16:17). To put it simply, false teachers and their false teachings are spiritually dangerous for God’s people, and Scripture takes them very seriously.

A lot of false teaching about God is quite simple to spot. When the creation displaces the Creator as the center of worship, false teaching is present. When words are added to or removed from Holy Scripture, false teaching is present. When Scripture is twisted to justify sinful behavior, and what is evil is treated as if it were good, false teaching is surely present.

Unfortunately, not all false teaching reveals itself so plainly to God’s people. The opposite of the truth is certainly falsehood, but when it comes to the Christian faith, the issue of error is not simply a two-way street. The ancient word the church has used for false teaching is heresy, a Greek word meaning ‘choice’. To the early Christians (and to us!) it is not a matter of choice. There is only one Christ – one way, one truth, one life – and no one comes to the Father except through him.

False teaching often points to and quotes the Scriptures for support. Just a few weeks ago in Sunday’s Gospel reading on the Temptation of Jesus, the devil himself quoted Scripture in an attempt to lead Jesus into sinning against his Father in heaven. Jesus’ better knowledge of Scripture refuted the devil, but it also reveals the cunning depths to which Satan will go in search of prey.

The reason I am writing about false teaching is to bring to your attention a particular teaching that is becoming more and more mainstream in Christianity, even though it is ultimately a false teaching. This newer teaching is a refinement of classical universalism. Classical universalism claims that all people will end up in the same place when we die because of a universal reconciliation between humanity and the divine, regardless of what anyone believes about the divine. While there is no simple label for this new teaching (perhaps, ‘Universalism through Jesus’), the major difference is that it is more specific in its teaching that classical universalism. In this new teaching, Jesus’ death and resurrection is the universal reconciliation between humanity and the divine, and all will go to heaven because of Jesus, regardless of whether or not they have faith in Christ. For us in the Lutheran church, faith in Christ is essential to salvation. Through faith, we are saved by grace (Eph. 2:8-9). This new teaching is appealing, especially to those who have less experience discerning false teachers and their teachings. Even those theologically trained can be lured into it, because it is so focused on God’s love and forgiveness.

I mention this because this new teaching has found a very strong and influential voice in Rob Bell, the founding pastor of Mars Hill Bible Church in Grand Rapids, a non-denominational church which over 10,000 people attend on a weekly basis. A brief search on the internet will bring forth multiple reviews and opinions on Bell’s books and teachings, both positive and negative. I encourage you to read some of them for yourself as they go into greater depth than we can in a newsletter article.

For now, here is an example from Bell’s teaching. When it comes to answering the question, ‘Why did Jesus die?’ St. Paul in Galatians teaches that Christ became a curse for us by hanging on the tree (the cross). Bell answers, ‘You don’t confront corrupt systems of power without paying for it.’ As one of my seminary professors put it, Bell treats Jesus’ death as an ‘execution,’ but not a judgment from God against sin. It is close to the truth, but not quite the truth. When it comes to the meaning of the resurrection, Bell teaches that, ‘God has not given up on the world,’ and we are therefore to, ‘trust resurrection.’ Lutherans would say that we are to trust Jesus, whose resurrection from the dead opens the door of eternal life to all who believe.

Bell and his extremely media-savvy congregation have become, for many churches, the ‘go-to’ source for youth ministry resources such as videos, Bible studies, and books. It is for this reason that I draw your attention to Bell’s teachings – I encourage our children, youth, and college students to take advantage of Bible study opportunities whenever they can. Sometimes that means going with their friends to another church for youth group or Vacation Bible School. However, Lutheran parents may want to consider taking some time to talk with their children about what they learn at other churches. Is Rob Bell’s teaching prevalent at this church? You will not know unless you ask. What better way to speak with your children about what you believe and why you believe it? As always, your pastors are always available to help out!

To Christ alone be all the glory, forever and ever, amen.

Reason #439 why LUTHERAN Campus Ministry matters...

Have you ever wondered where young Lutherans disappear to when they leave the church and don't come back?  There's not one simple answer or place, but here's an example worth checking out.
This quotation speaks for itself:

It was during my sophomore year of college when my life changed forever. That year, I began to attend an on-campus Christian fellowship group—His House Christian Fellowship. I had been baptized as a baby into the Christian faith by Bethlehem Lutheran Church, but because this baptism was done before I understood what it meant to be a Christian, I had myself baptized a second time at age 20 to make a personal commitment to God.

How have we failed this young man?  I met him once, when he stopped by the chapel hoping I would read his book (I haven't, yet), and possibly hoping I'd recommend it to others.  He claimed to be Lutheran, but how do you reconcile rebaptism with Lutheran theology - either he understands one or the other.

I don't have a lot of time to theologize what happened, but here's a man raised in an LCMS congregation who attended a university with a thriving LCMS Campus Ministry *right in the middle of campus*.  You can walk from the church he mentions in his testimony to the chapel I serve in about 12 minutes.  For some reason, however, he began attending another church (I don't know whether he ever attended Christ The King Lutheran Chapel) and began believing what this other church teaches (in other words, he fell for the anabaptist heresy condemned in the Concordia).  I can't speculate as to the reason(s), there could be many.  If he reads this, perhaps he will respond, who knows.  I had long been searching for his story after seeing it once years ago, and am glad to have found it and hope it finds its way to other Lutherans so that they see what we are up against.