Month: May 2020

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Sunday after Ascension (Psalm 68:1–10)

We long for the end, for God to display His victory over His enemies. The Psalm we spoke earlier brings to mind pictures of God triumphantly establishing His Kingdom, driving out the Devil more and more, and bringing the righteous to shine and become stronger each day.

1   God shall arise, his enemies shall be scattered;
and those who hate him shall flee before him!

2  As smoke is driven away, so you shall drive them away;
as wax melts before fire,
so the wicked shall perish before God!

3  But the righteous shall be glad;
they shall exult before God;
they shall be jubilant with joy!

But what we experience right now is more like what Peter describes: “12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you.”…insult…suffering…being humbled and anxious.

It’s not what we want, but what we find is weakness.  So what does that say about Christ’s triumph and His ascension?  What now, while Jesus has left the world, and we are still in the world?  It means that though we wish God would display more of His victory, show more of His triumph in His saints, what we see now is not what will be.

In the Epistle on Ascension Day, St. Paul prayed that the “Father of Glory may give you the Spirit of wisdom…having the eyes of your hearts enlightened.” (Eph 1:17-18)  What do the eyes in our head tell us right now?  The country’s in a terrible position and sliding downhill, people are scared to be around each other, there’s anger, disappointment, and fear about what’s being billed as a “new normal” all over one virus.  There’s a tug of war between churches and governments, with people picking sides and congregation members torn between a concern for safety and their desire to come together again, grateful for worship over distance but realizing it’s a thin substitute.  Pastors trying their best to minister to whole congregations of shut-ins, but finding that there aren’t enough hours in the day to give them the care he wants.

But what do the eyes of our enlightened hearts see?  St. Peter brings it into focus through the cross of Christ:

12 Beloved, do not be surprised at the fiery trial when it comes upon you to test you, as though something strange were happening to you. 13 But rejoice insofar as you share Christ’s sufferings, that you may also rejoice and be glad when his glory is revealed. 14 If you are insulted for the name of Christ, you are blessed, because the Spirit of glory and of God rests upon you.

This is not a “new normal”; it’s the way it always has been and will be until the Last.  The trials and sufferings only take on different outward forms, but they are always with us.  These are not strange disasters that beckon us to throw everything we’ve learned aside and react to this latest shock.  But, that’s the way our natural eyes see trials, and we want to rid ourselves of the discomfort as quickly as possible.

The eyes of faith, on the other hand, see that Jesus never really left His Church when He ascended into heaven.  He shares in our sufferings, and we share in His.  He is no stranger to our suffering, and we are most certainly heirs of His resurrection.  In this world of pain and weakness is God Himself is caring for us:

9 I am praying for them. I am not praying for the world but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours. 10 All mine are yours, and yours are mine, and I am glorified in them. 11 And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.

Our comfort is that Jesus prays for us.  And when He prays, it happens.  Just as when all things were made through Him, when He speaks, it comes to pass.  When we look naturally at how things are, we see impossibilities, failures, and no way through.  That’s humanly speaking—and where there might be a lot we can do—that’s not the heart of belonging to Jesus.  Jesus is glorified in His people, even as we are in the world.  God does not promise to keep us from trouble and pain, but to keep us in His Name; to keep us in the bedrock gifts of our Baptism.

So while being in His Name doesn’t mean the overt victory we wish it would sometimes, no matter what may pass, we have the sure power of God our Savior upon which to rest.  Rejoice in trials, blessing in insult, glory in suffering for Christ—this is what life with the Name of God looks like.  This is what your life is regardless of what’s happening in the world this moment, because inheritance God gives you with His Name is eternal.

We face the fiery trials with a God-given peace, and remember the instructions of Peter:

6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you. 8 Be sober-minded; be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour. 9 Resist him, firm in your faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout the world. 10 And after you have suffered a little while, the God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you. 11 To him be the dominion forever and ever. Amen.

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The Ascension of Our Lord (Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:1-11)

In the Name + of Jesus. Amen.

Times of uncertainty, fear, and disappointment leave us grasping for something sure.  Dr. Bruce Hartung highlighted this at a pastor’s meeting on Tuesday where he was addressing the effects of the pandemic on mental health.  These kinds of situations leave people vulnerable to clinging to any confident sounding voice, or anyone who has a radical interpretation to offer.

That’s because as human beings we need something sure and certain.  We’re not able to sustain in a constant state of flux, not knowing what to expect the next day.  So if someone comes along saying they’ve got it all figured out, that’s what we want (and in a way, need) to hear.

The Ascension of Jesus was a turning point in the life of the fledgling Church.  He had spoken about it many times in His upper room discourse. He said, “I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you. 19 Yet a little while and the world will see me no more, but you will see me. Because I live, you also will live” (John 14:18-19) And, “A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me.” (John 16:16) And finally praying to His Father, “And I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name…now I am coming to you, and these things I speak in the world, that they may have my joy fulfilled in themselves.” (John 17:11, 13)  Now here it was, 40 days after His resurrection and time for Him to depart from their sight.

How would His followers know what to expect in the future?  With such a fundamental change in their discipleship, how would Jesus continue His work among them and in the world?  It would be by a sure and certain word from the One to whom “all authority in heaven and on earth” had been given (Matt. 28:18).  So, He says,

“These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, 47 and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things.”

Everything that has happened thus far has been God’s eternal purpose, right down into the grave in which Christ laid, and from which God had raised Him.  Now going forward, the Scripture with the preaching of His death and resurrection will bring forth the repentance and forgiveness of sins to its hearers.  Yes, His Ascension means “a cloud took him out of their sight” (Acts 1:9), but it did not leave them alone and without confidence.  His words which He spoke to them would continue His ministry, not only for those who stood on the Mount of Olives that day, but for generations to come.

That’s what’s in mind as Luke begins the Acts of the Apostles,

In the first book [the Gospel of Luke], O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach, 2 until the day when he was taken up, after he had given commands through the Holy Spirit to the apostles whom he had chosen. 3 He presented himself alive to them after his suffering by many proofs, appearing to them during forty days and speaking about the kingdom of God. (Acts 1:1-3)

Jesus gave many proofs of His resurrection, and continued to teach His disciples, and that witness was to be recorded and handed down, from the Apostles and Evangelists, so that we would have an authoritative Word in ever more uncertain times.  It’s no wonder that the Church has suffered false teachers through the centuries, who came claiming to have some special certainty previously unknown.  But what has rescued the Lord’s flock from these wolves has always been the Scriptures.

It is that foundation that we still have in these days where our grasp on stability ebbs and flows.  One of the lessons of this time is how fragile our lives and livelihoods are, yet even with that stark reminder, our Lord has given us something more sure.  Think about where Jesus has been in this worldwide disaster?  He is very present even if unseen, strengthening His disciples with His Word, using these circumstances to awaken the call for repentance, and continuing the forgive all of our sins—the ones which come ordinarily and the ones which flare up under pressure.  His word of “Peace be with you” continues to sound in our ears throughout the Church this day.  He is with us in that word of the absolution, and in His Body and Blood given and shed for you.

Unseen for now, Christ sits at God’s right hand, ruling over this creation and all that happens in it.  He has the power to keep us through whatever comes in the future, because He has built a foundation for our life that nothing in this creation can overturn.  But most of all, He is ruling there from God’s right hand for His people.  He is present with us to forgive our sins, help us bear the cross, and navigate through the future to bring us to share in the Kingdom prepared for us from the foundation of the world.  Christ, the Almighty, ascended Lord guard you always!

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

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Sixth Sunday of Easter (Acts 17:16-31)

In the Name of Jesus. Amen.

Paul had entered a context in Athens that was not entirely foreign to us today.  It was a very diverse city, with metropolitan people of diverse opinions and philosophies.  Athens had a reputation as being the seat of many great thinkers: Socrates and Antisthenes, Plato and Epicurus.  These were their hometown philosophic heroes, but that didn’t necessarily mean they were adverse to debating other views.  As Luke comments, “All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there would spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new.”

Now, even the message which Paul brought was not entirely outlandish.  For the past 500 years, the cult of Dionysus had been a regular part of society.  According to legend, Dionysus, the god of wine and madness, crops and fertility, was killed by the Titans who ate all but his heart.  Athena took the heart back to Zeus, who gave it to his lover Semele.  She ate it and gave birth again to Dionysus.  So, death and resurrection was not the strange part of Paul’s message.  There was something else about it—that there was only one true God and that His Son had been born, executed by people who were still living, and that He had risen from the dead.

Gods who had origins of long ago, who lived atop high mountains they could handle.  Those gods had influence over their lives, and any who chose could appeal by sacrifice to the god whose help was needed.  Hera for family, Poseidon for sea and storm, Demeter for the earth, Athena for wisdom, and so on.  Some of the great philosophers like Socrates had challenged the gods of Athens and paid dearly for impiety. But for the most part you could live peacefully whether you devoted yourself to the gods or not.

The divinity which Paul was preaching about didn’t fit into Athenian way of life.  Not that he was preaching about living as a hermit in a clay pot on the street (Diogenes, a cynic philosopher), but One who to know would change a person’s outlook on every facet of life.  One who exposed the darkness of idol worship, the degrading reality of debauchery, the God who justly consigned all to disobedience that He might have mercy on all. 

But Paul preached to them from within their understanding of the world.  He complimented their devotion to deities, the virtues they praised, and their quest for a good life.  Someone, likely not officially sanctioned, had set up an altar, “To the unknown god”—the “Agnosis god,” the god of which we do not know.  What they sought from this unknown god can’t be clear, but it was in this opening that Paul explained of Whom he was speaking.

He corrected their errors, commended them for the glances of truth they had, and then preached the call for personal devotion of every person.  The true God made heaven and earth, and is not limited to temples, statues, or objects that fell from the sky.  They served their deities with offerings which brings the god down to a human level. Instead, it is God who not only created all, but gives life and breath to us.

They still had a glimpse of what their Creator was like, but learning more fully what He is like, they ought not to continue in ignorant (agnostic) ways.  The hour has come for all people to acknowledge not gods of their own imagination, but their Creator who lovingly gave them life and still preserves it, who out of sheer grace gave the sacrifice which answers for the sins of all, and who is coming again to judge on the basis of the righteousness of faith.

It was not Paul’s eloquent speech upon the Areopagus which reached their hearts.  It was God doing it with His Word.  Just as Jesus the Lord had promised, Paul preached repentance unto forgiveness of sins—and some believed (v. 34). This is a wonderful example of the witness a Christian makes in the company of those who are grasping in darkness.

We believe in God who raised Jesus from the dead, and who gives life to our mortal bodies. No matter what cancer or a virus might do to them, God will raise us with Christ at the last.  This fills us with hope because no matter what calamity happens to us now, we have eternal life and resurrection guaranteed by God.

We believe in the forgiveness of Christ upon the cross, given for the whole world.  Outside of Christ all people can see is cries for justice and revenge.  We hold grudges, and try to let go of them for pragmatic reasons, it’s only in the blood of Jesus that there is peace and forgiveness.  Covered with the blood of Christ, we pray for those who abuse us (Luke 6:28).

We love our neighbors not just for “the good feels” it gives or because we’ve been threatened into performing well, but because we have been born anew and are being restored in the image of our Creator. This same Creator is the one who loves even His enemies and seeks their good to the end.

We have joy and perseverance whether the country is wealthy or poor because we have a Father in heaven who cares for us.  For so many happiness depends solely on whether they can keep their standard of living comfortable, or have enough sedatives on hand to numb the pain.  But we “know how to be brought low, and how to abound. In any and every circumstance, [we] have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. 13 I can do all things through him who strengthens me.” (Philippians 4:12-13)

The future does not terrify us, because we await from heaven our Savior who said that these very things would happen.  While the rest of the world may be crippled with fear over pestilence, weather patterns, famine, and so forth. we continue steadfast because it means our Lord’s return grows close.  We know that the One who commanded wind and waves to still, demons and death to depart, will give command to the angels and gather us in and remove every cause of sin and all lawless people (Matt. 13:41).

Our faith which we’ve received from God, delivered in the Scriptures, changes the way Christians live in the world. It transforms the way we think, for with the Holy Spirit, we are “transformed by the renewal of [our] minds” (Rom. 12:2).

As Christians in a pandemic, God has put us in a critical place to witness.  We can see the idols of our age—science and medicine, and the almighty dollar and we know their weakness.  It is a human weakness which is fallible and can only save so far.

Of course, we can commend the good things of our country—charity, dedication, honor, self-sacrifice.  But as servants of God, we know that all those virtues which do our country so much good come from the true God.  Former times He has overlooked our ignorance, but if we hear this call to repentance and this eternal gospel and cling to our idols, it would be better for Sodom and Gomorrah than for us.  With all confidence, we can confess that God  has appointed a day when He will judge each person—not as people judge each other with outward worth—but how they received this Word of life.

And like Paul standing in that pagan forum, God’s Word will go out and accomplish that for which He sends it.  This same Word has the power to overcome unbelief and quell rebellion.  As Paul later wrote to Corinthian believers, “The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh but have divine power to destroy strongholds. 5 We destroy arguments and every lofty opinion raised against the knowledge of God, and take every thought captive to obey Christ.” (2 Cor. 10:4-5) 

Our calling is merely to live out our faith in the grace He gives, and pray for those opportunities where our life will be a witness of the hope that is within us.  May God grant that hope to be theirs too.

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

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Fifth Sunday of Easter (John 14:1-14)

In the Name of + Jesus. Amen.

 Jesus says, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers” (vv. 1-5).

            Let’s test that out.  I’m going to read an excerpt from a sermon, and you tell me if it is the voice of the Shepherd, or of a stranger.  Here goes:

That’s the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren’t exactly graceful flowing music. However, with the hand of the Master, our life’s work truly can be beautiful…

Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, or small feats, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master—the voice of our Mother/Father God—and feel God’s loving arms around you.  Know and trust that those strong hands are there helping you, helping us all, to turn our feeble attempts into true masterpieces. [1]

Was that the voice of the Shepherd?  I hope not! Unless you were baptized in the name of the some androgynous god.  The Good Shepherd does not call Himself a conductor, tuning and polishing what is beautiful in us.  The true Shepherd does not direct you to your best efforts, because even your best efforts are sin in the sight of God [Isa. 64:6]. This impostor preaches a so-called gospel of ‘you’re good enough and God accepts you as you are.’  She does not enter through the Door, which is Christ.  Instead, she speaks platitudes about a god (whatever “he” or “she” is), rather than giving Christ’s sheep what they need: the healing that comes only by His wounds [1 Peter 2:24].

Here’s another one, and this is going to be harder:

The Gospel that proclaims that we are, like it or not, let off scot-free… You’re washed. You’re forgiven. You’re free. No law condemns you. No celestial finger is wagging at you. You walk in the liberation of the Spirit, Who lives in you, is active in you, and works relentlessly to mute the voices of guilt that still growl inside you…

The Good News has nothing to do with us, but everything of the Gospel is given to us. We are like beggars on the street corner. Jesus pulls us and drops a million dollars in our outstretched hands. Just like that. Not because we’re excellent panhandlers but because he’s got the money and wants to give it away to those who would never have it otherwise.

All we have is His love. And that’s all we need. Because His love is who He is. When we have Him, we have everything.[2]

            This one is harder because it’s gushing with all the right-sounding stuff.  But unlike the first example, a not a matter of using the right words.  It’s in the application of the Gospel.  What this message says is that you should just mute the guilt that nags in the back of your head.  Write it off as the devil.  Why? Because you have been forgiven.  But it’s in that subtly that our weak and wicked flesh wants to plug its ears to the Law’s accusations, even when it’s right.  This is the creeping error of antinomianism, of the Gospel replacing the Law for a Christian. Where it gains the most traction is among Christians who have a checkered past, and whose on-going weakness—thorns in the flesh [2 Cor. 12:7]—haunt them.  They earnestly want to lead a godly life, but they keep finding nothing but sin and death in the mirror.  The answer, though, is not to silence the accusation of the Law, but to confess that God is right [Ps. 51:4] and seek the Lord’s forgiveness and the Spirit’s continued work in confession and absolution and the Body and Blood of Christ.

As children, we learn to be afraid of strangers, because we don’t know their intentions for us.  This is a good warning, because there are many strangers in this world who mean us harm.  False shepherds are no exception.  What they preach is not the voice of the Good Shepherd.  Instead, they speak in the voice of that ancient serpent, the Devil.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.”

Our Lord calls them thieves and robbers.  Thieves, because they come craftily, sometimes doing such a good job that it fools the sheep.  It’s easy to spot messages of empty platitudes, but Gospely-messages that are laced with cyanide are harder to spot. The thief, like the Devil, quotes Scripture, but through a theological funhouse mirror so that the original intent or full meaning is corrupted.  By a sham gospel, you are led to trust in a different shepherd—one who minimizes the seriousness of sin, or praises you for how much you “do for the Lord,” or who focuses you on how spotless your life is.  But all the time, he steals confidence in Christ’s work from you and replaces it with doubt in your own.  The more that Satan can turn your focus away from the cross of Christ, the better he has set you on the road to hell with him.

There are also the robbers, who like Barabbas [John 18:40], are brazen in stealing sheep away from the Lord.  The robbers work within the bounds of the Church on earth.  Here you find open attempts to undermine the trustworthiness of God’s Word, and being told that we all worship the same “god.”  Here it’s easier for the well-catechized sheep to spot something destructive going on, but the weak are tossed to and fro by these suggestions.

Any teacher who comes to you apart from Jesus can do nothing but thieve and rob.  Recognizing them isn’t a matter of choosing the right name.  Sometimes those who turn out to be thieves have the very best of intentions, be well-educated, and loving people.  They may have even been faithful shepherds in the past.  “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.” (Ps. 146:3)  Put your trust your Good Shepherd and hearing His voice.  Even St. Paul put himself under this same strict judgment: “even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” (Gal. 1:8)  The message for the flock is to endeavor to hear only His voice through regular meditation and study of His Word and faithful witnesses to it throughout the centuries.  This is how we can be certain of hearing the voice of our Shepherd, and being cared for by Him.

Why is this important?  Because Satan cannot offer what the Good Shepherd gives.  Thanks be to the true God that He has sent us His Son, because in Him, we are not stolen away, killed, and destroyed.  To us, who have been smothered by evil and death, we bask in what our Good Shepherd gives His sheep:

“The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out… Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep… If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture…I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

It is true, we can be confident of hearing our Shepherd’s voice, because He has called His Church with His voice.  He seeks us out, gathers us into His fold.  His rod defends us against our enemies and His staff guides us through this treacherous world.  And He will lead us out, calling us by name as He gave us His own in the waters of Baptism.  He is with us in the valley of the shadow of death, all the days of our life.  And in Him we have life that abounds beyond present sin and death, endures forever.

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

[1] http://www.newcastleucc.org/Sermons/20110213ReceiveTheSpirit-Womens%20Sunday-SusieCraig.pdf

[2] “Gospel Phobia” by Chad Bird. https://www.1517.org/articles/gospel-phobia (accessed 5/2/20)

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Fourth Sunday of Easter (John 10:1-10)

In the Name of + Jesus. Amen.

 Jesus says, “The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out…they know his voice. A stranger they will not follow, but they will flee from him, for they do not know the voice of strangers” (vv. 1-5).

            Let’s test that out.  I’m going to read an excerpt from a sermon, and you tell me if it is the voice of the Shepherd, or of a stranger.  Here goes:

That’s the way it is with God. What we can accomplish on our own is hardly noteworthy. We try our best, but the results aren’t exactly graceful flowing music. However, with the hand of the Master, our life’s work truly can be beautiful…

Next time you set out to accomplish great feats, or small feats, listen carefully. You can hear the voice of the Master—the voice of our Mother/Father God—and feel God’s loving arms around you.  Know and trust that those strong hands are there helping you, helping us all, to turn our feeble attempts into true masterpieces. [1]

Was that the voice of the Shepherd?  I hope not! Unless you were baptized in the name of the some androgynous god.  The Good Shepherd does not call Himself a conductor, tuning and polishing what is beautiful in us.  The true Shepherd does not direct you to your best efforts, because even your best efforts are sin in the sight of God [Isa. 64:6]. This impostor preaches a so-called gospel of ‘you’re good enough and God accepts you as you are.’  She does not enter through the Door, which is Christ.  Instead, she speaks platitudes about a god (whatever “he” or “she” is), rather than giving Christ’s sheep what they need: the healing that comes only by His wounds [1 Peter 2:24].

Here’s another one, and this is going to be harder:

The Gospel that proclaims that we are, like it or not, let off scot-free… You’re washed. You’re forgiven. You’re free. No law condemns you. No celestial finger is wagging at you. You walk in the liberation of the Spirit, Who lives in you, is active in you, and works relentlessly to mute the voices of guilt that still growl inside you…

The Good News has nothing to do with us, but everything of the Gospel is given to us. We are like beggars on the street corner. Jesus pulls us and drops a million dollars in our outstretched hands. Just like that. Not because we’re excellent panhandlers but because he’s got the money and wants to give it away to those who would never have it otherwise.

All we have is His love. And that’s all we need. Because His love is who He is. When we have Him, we have everything.[2]

            This one is harder because it’s gushing with all the right-sounding stuff.  But unlike the first example, a not a matter of using the right words.  It’s in the application of the Gospel.  What this message says is that you should just mute the guilt that nags in the back of your head.  Write it off as the devil.  Why? Because you have been forgiven.  But it’s in that subtly that our weak and wicked flesh wants to plug its ears to the Law’s accusations, even when it’s right.  This is the creeping error of antinomianism, of the Gospel replacing the Law for a Christian. Where it gains the most traction is among Christians who have a checkered past, and whose on-going weakness—thorns in the flesh [2 Cor. 12:7]—haunt them.  They earnestly want to lead a godly life, but they keep finding nothing but sin and death in the mirror.  The answer, though, is not to silence the accusation of the Law, but to confess that God is right [Ps. 51:4] and seek the Lord’s forgiveness and the Spirit’s continued work in confession and absolution and the Body and Blood of Christ.

As children, we learn to be afraid of strangers, because we don’t know their intentions for us.  This is a good warning, because there are many strangers in this world who mean us harm.  False shepherds are no exception.  What they preach is not the voice of the Good Shepherd.  Instead, they speak in the voice of that ancient serpent, the Devil.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who does not enter the sheepfold by the door but climbs in by another way, that man is a thief and a robber.”

Our Lord calls them thieves and robbers.  Thieves, because they come craftily, sometimes doing such a good job that it fools the sheep.  It’s easy to spot messages of empty platitudes, but Gospely-messages that are laced with cyanide are harder to spot. The thief, like the Devil, quotes Scripture, but through a theological funhouse mirror so that the original intent or full meaning is corrupted.  By a sham gospel, you are led to trust in a different shepherd—one who minimizes the seriousness of sin, or praises you for how much you “do for the Lord,” or who focuses you on how spotless your life is.  But all the time, he steals confidence in Christ’s work from you and replaces it with doubt in your own.  The more that Satan can turn your focus away from the cross of Christ, the better he has set you on the road to hell with him.

There are also the robbers, who like Barabbas [John 18:40], are brazen in stealing sheep away from the Lord.  The robbers work within the bounds of the Church on earth.  Here you find open attempts to undermine the trustworthiness of God’s Word, and being told that we all worship the same “god.”  Here it’s easier for the well-catechized sheep to spot something destructive going on, but the weak are tossed to and fro by these suggestions.

Any teacher who comes to you apart from Jesus can do nothing but thieve and rob.  Recognizing them isn’t a matter of choosing the right name.  Sometimes those who turn out to be thieves have the very best of intentions, be well-educated, and loving people.  They may have even been faithful shepherds in the past.  “Put not your trust in princes, in a son of man, in whom there is no salvation.” (Ps. 146:3)  Put your trust your Good Shepherd and hearing His voice.  Even St. Paul put himself under this same strict judgment: “even if we or an angel from heaven should preach to you a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, let him be accursed.” (Gal. 1:8)  The message for the flock is to endeavor to hear only His voice through regular meditation and study of His Word and faithful witnesses to it throughout the centuries.  This is how we can be certain of hearing the voice of our Shepherd, and being cared for by Him.

Why is this important?  Because Satan cannot offer what the Good Shepherd gives.  Thanks be to the true God that He has sent us His Son, because in Him, we are not stolen away, killed, and destroyed.  To us, who have been smothered by evil and death, we bask in what our Good Shepherd gives His sheep:

“The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out… Truly, truly, I say to you, I am the door of the sheep… If anyone enters by me, he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture…I came that they may have life and have it abundantly.”

It is true, we can be confident of hearing our Shepherd’s voice, because He has called His Church with His voice.  He seeks us out, gathers us into His fold.  His rod defends us against our enemies and His staff guides us through this treacherous world.  And He will lead us out, calling us by name as He gave us His own in the waters of Baptism.  He is with us in the valley of the shadow of death, all the days of our life.  And in Him we have life that abounds beyond present sin and death, endures forever.

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

[1] http://www.newcastleucc.org/Sermons/20110213ReceiveTheSpirit-Womens%20Sunday-SusieCraig.pdf

[2] “Gospel Phobia” by Chad Bird. https://www.1517.org/articles/gospel-phobia (accessed 5/2/20)