bible – Page 7 – From the Pulpit

Posted on September 29, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

The Devil is Powerless Against You

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St. Michael and All Angels
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
September 29, 2024
Daniel 10:10-14, 12:1-3, Revelation 123:7-12, Luke 10:17-20

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What would it be like to be, right now, in the presence of God — with the angels and the archangels and all the company of heaven? As we read in Daniel 7:9–10 (ESV) 9 “As I looked, thrones were placed, and the Ancient of Days took his seat; his clothing was white as snow, and the hair of his head like pure wool; his throne was fiery flames; its wheels were burning fire. 10 A stream of fire issued and came out from before him; a thousand thousands served him, and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him; the court sat in judgment, and the books were opened.” In God’s presence there are countless angels all around the throne of God.

If you ever had to go to court as the defendant, what kind of representation would you want? Would you want a lawyer who believes you are totally guilty and who keeps telling the judge how guilty you are and if given the opportunity you will do worse? Because that is what it would be like to have that fallen angel, the devil, representing you before the throne of God. In the Old Testament in Job and Zechariah we see the devil accusing God’s saints, Job and Joshua, the high priest. The devil once had a place in the council of angels before the throne of God… and then everything changed.

2,000 years ago God the Son leaves heaven to take on human flesh in the womb of the Virgin Mary. God takes on flesh and the devil sees an opportunity to defeat the Son of God while He is a vulnerable human.

The book of Revelation is full of prophetic picture language, but we can clearly see the battle between light and darkness, good and evil, in Revelation 12:4–6 (ESV) 4 [The dragon’s] tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, 6 and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.”

The woman is Mary — and the Church. Satan uses Herod the Great to try to destroy the Christ child in Bethlehem, but Joseph, Mary and Jesus flee in the middle of the night to Egypt. After returning to Nazareth, Jesus grows to adulthood. At age 30 He begins His ministry and fulfills His mission of being the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world in Jerusalem on that awful Friday we call Good. The devil uses the Jewish leaders, Jesus’ disciple Judas, Jewish crowds, and the Roman governor to carry out his evil plan to nail Jesus to the cross to die in utter humiliation. As Jesus declares, “It is finished,” and breathes His last, the devil thinks He has won… but Jesus does not stay dead. On Sunday morning His tomb is empty. Jesus descends to Hell to preach a victory sermon and He appears to His disciples and over 500 others. Jesus is victorious over sin, over death and over the devil. Forty days later Jesus ascends to heaven from the Mount of Olives and arrives at the throne of God. The devil tried to get rid of the Christ and establish himself as the prince of angels, but he is defeated. Jesus wins the right to represent fallen humanity and He is the one, Revelation 1:5 (ESV) 5 … who loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood”

In a war of words, Michael and his angels throw Satan and His angels out of heaven and down to earth. Michael means, “Who is God?” The answer is, “Jesus is God; the devil is not.”

There is great joy in heaven at the devil’s eviction. Revelation 12:10–12 (ESV) 10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. 11 And they have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. 12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!”

There is a cosmic battle of good versus evil; light versus darkness. The battle in heaven has been won and the evil one and all his angels have been thrown down. The devil tries to destroy the church, but God’s Church is protected by the Lord. The Church is built on the rock that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God, and the gates of hell will not overcome Christ’s Church. Who is God? Jesus is God.

The devil cannot destroy Jesus. The devil cannot destroy the Church. So the devil is going after you. Revelation 12:17 (ESV) 17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus…”

You know the devil is a liar. He wants to convince you that you can work off your sins, but you know, Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV) 8 … by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

The devil is furious and he is coming after you with his accusations and his lies. The devil will hold up your evil deeds in front of you and declare that you are a sinner who deserves death and hell. The devil will tell you that God cannot love you because of your sin, but you can work your way back into His favor by being good enough; that it is all up to you. Also, the devil will try to convince you that sin is okay, everyone is doing it; you can decide for yourself what is sin and what isn’t. The devil is clever and the devil is furious, but for a follower of Jesus, the devil is powerless. For a Christian, the devil is like a 2-year-old having a temper tantrum; lots of bluster — amounting to nothing. Because you know the truth. You know that you are a sinner, you readily admit that. You get on your knees each week as we begin worship and confess you are a sinner who deserves death and hell thus rendering the devil’s accusation powerless.

You know the devil is a liar. He wants to convince you that you can work off your sins, but you know, Ephesians 2:8–9 (ESV) 8 … by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast.”

The devil wants you to embrace sin because sin does not matter, but you know sin is real, and sin is serious because the wages of sin is death, and that is why Jesus had to die for you. The devil is a furious, powerless liar. He only has power if you give him power. You do not belong to the devil. You belong to Jesus.

We read in 1 John 2:1 (ESV) 1 My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.”

The devil wants to act like he has some control; like he has some influence; like he has some power. But that is the great good news of our reading from Revelation today. When Jesus ascended to heaven to be your advocate with God the Father, the devil was kicked out of heaven. The devil cannot accuse you to God. The devil has no access to God. Jesus speaks to God the Father on your behalf. Jesus is your advocate with the Father. He is your defense attorney and He is the one who paid the penalty. He also is the prosecutor and the judge. There is no one in heaven to accuse you, because you are covered by the righteousness of Jesus. He is the one who has washed you clean and presents you Ephesians 5:27 (ESV) 27 … in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that [you] might be holy and without blemish.”

The devil tries to accuse you and lie to you, but he is just babbling nonsense. Don’t listen to him. Do not give him any power. You don’t belong to the devil. Like he did with Eve, the devil wants you to believe that you can be like God, but you cannot be like God. Remember what the angel Michael’s name means. “Who is God?” God is God, and you His beloved creation. You are the apple of His eye. You belong to Jesus.

Jesus has declared that your sins are forgiven and you are holy, innocent and blessed. Jesus is at the right hand of God declaring this about you to God the Father. The lying devil is powerless unless you give him power. Stay alert for his lies. Ignore his accusations. You belong to Jesus. Jesus’ angels defend you. Let His holy angel be with you, that the evil foe may have no power over you.

In Martin Luther’s hymn “A Mighty Fortress” there is a stanza about the devil that fits so well with our lesson today.

3     Though devils all the world should fill,
    All eager to devour us,
We tremble not, we fear no ill;
    They shall not overpow’r us.
This world’s prince may still
Scowl fierce as he will,
    He can harm us none.
    He’s judged; the deed is done;
One little word can fell him.

One little word. “Liar!” Amen

Posted on September 22, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

What were you discussing on the way?

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Pentecost 18, 2024, Proper 20
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
September 22, 2024
Pastor Kevin Jud
Jeremiah 11:18-20, James 3:13-4:10, Mark 9:30-37

The old saying is, “Winning isn’t everything, it’s the only thing.” You want to win. You want to be successful. You want to overcome obstacles and accomplish your dreams.

We love rags to riches stories. We love to hear about people, who, through hard work and perseverance, accomplish great things. It is the American dream. Work hard and achieve greatness.

We compare ourselves to others in order to see how we are doing. We keep score so we know we are keeping ahead of others.

In school we keep score with grades, friends, trophies, clothes, electronics, and the number of likes on Instagram. As we get older we keep score with houses and cars and paychecks. Parents keep score by the progress of their children. “My child learned to walk at 7 months. He already has 8 teeth.” Pastors keep score by the size of their congregations and the number of new members.

With whom do you compare yourself? How do you keep score? How do you know that you are doing better than others?

Jesus is walking with his disciples coming back from the Mount of Transfiguration on their way to Capernaum. Along the way Jesus drives out an unclean spirit from a boy after the disciples were unable to do it, and then they continue on their way. As they travel, Jesus teaches the disciples for the second time about what is going to happen to Him. Mark 9:31-32 (ESV) 31 … “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill him. And when he is killed, after three days he will rise.” 32 But they did not understand the saying, and were afraid to ask him.”

The disciples are following this great teacher Jesus; He is wise, He is powerful, He can do miraculous things. He is really going places. The disciples are following Jesus right to the top.

Jesus tells them what is going to happen, but they are confused. This doesn’t sound like success. Taken prisoner, killed, rise again. Jesus is amazing and powerful and great; so, obviously, He must not know what He is talking about with this getting arrested and getting killed stuff.

So the disciples ignore this second teaching about Jesus’ arrest, death and resurrection because they know better and they have more important things to worry about…like which of them is the greatest.

How do you think the disciples keep score? Maybe it’s who gets to sit next to Jesus at dinner? Maybe who gets to walk next to Jesus? Who gets to hold the money bag? Who Jesus talks with the most? Which of them is the greatest?

Likely, in this conversation, Peter, James and John are arguing that “who is the greatest” is based on who got to go with Jesus up on the mountain of transfiguration. The disciples are keeping score. They want to know where they stand. They are a lot like us.

Jesus ignores their conversation as they walk along but after they arrive back at the house in Capernaum Jesus asks, “What were you discussing on the way?”

The disciples are silent. They realize their conversation was selfish and self-centered and they are worried that Jesus may have heard them. They think they understand Jesus, but they do not yet really understand. Like Adam and Eve hiding from God, the disciples think they can do things and say things without Jesus knowing.

Jesus sits down and calls the silent twelve to Himself and says, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” Wait…what? That does not sound right. To be first you have to be last? To be first you have to be servant of all? What is that about? The disciples must be thinking, “Uh… Jesus. Uh… we are here because we want to be near your power and greatness because we want power and greatness; so what is all this servant talk?”

Jesus’ teaching is all backwards. It is all backwards for the disciples and it is all backwards for you and me. We want to be great. We want success. We want to be winners. We want to be number one. But Jesus says that to be first you must be last. To be number one, you must become servant of all. Jesus then takes a little child and puts the child in the center of the group and hugs the child. “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

Now, at Jesus’ time children have no status. They are helpless, dirty little tots who have no value until they are old enough to do some work, and due to lack of good medical care, half of them won’t even live to see adulthood. Children are fragile, whiny, and needy, and yet Jesus is saying that we are to receive the children in His name.

The disciples must think, “Children are not great, they have not achieved anything. We are so much more important than some stupid child…oh…that is the point Jesus is making…we are not more important than a child.” The disciples are not more important. You are not more important. You are a humble servant. You are a humble servant because the Lord is a humble servant. Jesus serves you. Jesus purchased and won you from sin, death and the power of the devil, not with gold or silver but with his holy, precious blood and his innocent suffering and death.

In the cleansing waters of baptism Jesus sets you apart from the world and calls you to be a servant of all, and as you keep reading the Gospel you see Jesus live this out by being servant of all as He goes to the cross to die for you…to die for the whole world.

By nature you want to succeed. You want more than others. You want to be better than others. You want it to be about me, me, me. Jesus calls you to give up on greatness and humbly follow Him.

Against your nature you are called to be a servant. You want to be great. You want to know you where you stand with others. Like so many of us, the disciples argue about who is the greatest.

In our Epistle reading from James we see this very thing warned against. (James 4:1-7 ESV) 1What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? 2You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. 3You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. 4You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. 5Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? 6But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.” 7Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.”

By nature you want to succeed. You want more than others. You want to be better than others. You want it to be about me, me, me. Jesus calls you to give up on greatness and humbly follow Him.

You have been marked by the cross of Christ. You have been baptized into Christ. You belong to Jesus. You don’t have to do anything to make yourself great because you have been given the riches of the Kingdom of Heaven. You are destined to live forever in the presence of the Lamb of God basking in His light in the Heavenly City of New Jerusalem.

Jesus promises that one day you will live in His presence forever, but for now, you live here on earth in love and service for one another. You support each other. You work hard in service to your family; to your brothers and sisters in Christ, to your neighbor. You work hard — not to achieve greatness, but in service to others. You give of your time for others. You give your money for others. You give your life for others. You are called to be a servant to all because you are already a child of God.

Success, greatness, and winning, these things are important to the world, but they are not important to God.

Many churches have become quite large and many pastors have become quite wealthy by preaching about how to achieve success and greatness in the world; which is exactly what peoples’ itching ears want to hear. But this is not Jesus’ teaching. This is the world’s teaching.

You are right now in the Kingdom of Heaven because the work of salvation has already been done for you by Jesus. As a follower of Jesus, you live and work in humble service. “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” Amen.

Posted on September 15, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

I believe, Help my Unbelief

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Pentecost 17, 2024 Proper 19
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
September 15, 2024
Isaiah 50:4-10, James 3:1-12, Mark 9:14-29

What is a disciple? What is an apostle? What do these terms mean? In the Gospel of Mark the terms are pretty clear. Disciple means follower. Apostle means sent one. The word “disciple” is used 42 times in the Gospel of Mark; the word “apostle” is only used twice. The first in Mark 3:14–15 (ESV) 14 And [Jesus] appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach 15 and have authority to cast out demons.”

In the beginning of Mark 6 we read, Mark 6:7 (ESV) 7 And [Jesus] called the twelve and began to send them out two by two, and gave them authority over the unclean spirits.” They return at the end of Mark 6. Mark 6:30 (ESV) 30 The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught.”

The apostles were sent by Jesus with authority over unclean spirits and they returned and reported to Jesus. They were sent on a mission and then the mission was finished.

Later, in Mark chapter 8 Jesus tells the disciples what is going to happen to Him, Mark 8:31 (ESV) 31 And he began to teach them that the Son of Man must suffer many things and be rejected by the elders and the chief priests and the scribes and be killed, and after three days rise again.” This appears to be a big change in Jesus’ mission and the disciples are greatly troubled.

Six days later Jesus takes Peter, James and John up on a high mountain and He is transfigured before them and Elijah and Moses appear with Him and they are overshadowed by a cloud and the voice of God says, Mark 9:7 (ESV) 7 …“This is my beloved Son; listen to him.”

While Jesus and the three disciples are up on a high mountain, what are the other nine up to? As Jesus, Peter, James and John are coming down the mountain they see a large crowd gathered around the disciples and the scribes who are arguing. Coming down the mountain to this scene of chaos conjures up memory of Moses coming down from Mt. Sinai with the 10 Commandments and hearing the chaotic sound of the gathered crowd worshiping the golden calf they built.

Jesus comes down from the Mount of Transfiguration to find His disciples arguing with the scribes and a whole crowd of people is gathered around. What is going on? It turns out that the disciples have been trying to drive an unclean spirit out of a boy but are unable to do it. Perhaps the disciples are remembering all that they had done when Jesus gave them authority and sent them to drive out unclean spirits. Maybe they are thinking that doing this in front of a crowd and the scribes will really show everyone the disciples’ power. It will show everyone the disciples’ greatness. But what happens? Nothing happens. The disciples are unable to drive out the unclean spirit. This must cause incredible delight for the scribes who are looking to discredit Jesus and His followers. Jesus has told the disciples that He will be rejected by the scribes. You can almost hear their taunting, “What’s wrong?! Is the demon too strong for you? You work for the devil; you’d think he would cooperate. We knew it. You all are just a bunch of phonies.” Maybe they start to stir up the crowd to denounce the disciples or even attack them. It appears that the disciples and the scribes are battling about who is the greatest? Who is the best? They are caring not so much about God but, rather, about themselves.

There is great temptation to make being a Christian be all about yourself and who you are and what you do. It can be all about how good you are, how dedicated you are at prayer, how much you read the Bible, how often you attend church, how much you serve, how much you give. You tell yourself, “I may not be perfect, but I am doing a lot better than that other guy. I have my little pet sins, but I am not like those really bad people.” It is a great temptation to make Christianity all about you. But then it would not be Christianity it would be Youianity. Youianity. The religion all about you.

Being a follower…being a disciple of Jesus is all about Jesus. And yet we see here the disciples trying to show off their power; trying to demonstrate their greatness. They currently do not have the authority to drive out unclean spirits, but they are going to try to do it anyway.

Now the father of this boy possessed by an unclean spirit just wants his boy to be better. He’s heard about Jesus and came to his disciples, but the disciples could not drive out the demon and now he and his boy have become the center of an argument between the scribes and Jesus’ disciples. The disciples and the scribes are going at as to who is better, all the while the boy is still possessed by an unclean spirit. There is a lot of noise and confusion and anger and it is helping no one. The father is losing hope.

Jesus arrives and the father explains what is happening and how he asked the disciples to cast it out and they were not able. Mark 9:19-20 (ESV) 19 And [Jesus] answered them, “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring him to me.” 20 And they brought the boy to him. And when the spirit saw him, immediately it convulsed the boy, and he fell on the ground and rolled about, foaming at the mouth.” The father tells Jesus that this has been going on since childhood and the spirit has cast the boy into fire and into water trying to destroy him. The hopeless father begs Jesus, Mark 9:22 (ESV) 22 …But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” The father has experienced nothing but failure with freeing his son from this evil spirit and he wants to believe that Jesus can help, but he is not too sure.

Mark 9:23-24 (ESV) 23 And Jesus [says] to him, “ ‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” 24 Immediately the father of the child [cries] out and [says], “I believe; help my unbelief!”

The father has heard what Jesus can do. He wants to believe it is true. He believes Jesus can help, but then he still has doubts. And yet we see here that he is oriented in the right direction. He is not seeking additional strength from within — he is asking Jesus for help. “I believe, help my unbelief.”

This is a wonderful short prayer that you can use over and over in your struggles. “I believe, help my unbelief.” The simple prayer of this father can also be paired with the simple prayer of the thief on the cross. “Luke 23:42 (ESV) 42 … “Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom.” “I believe, help my unbelief.” Both of these short prayers orient you to receive from Jesus rather than trying to find comfort in yourself.

When you seek forgiveness you do not look to yourself; you look to Jesus. What we do as a church is not from us, it is from Jesus

It seems that the crowd watching the argument between the disciples and the scribes now notice that the boy and his father are over a ways talking with Jesus and the crowd comes running towards them. Jesus immediately rebukes the unclean spirit, Mark 9:25 (ESV) 25 … “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” The demon comes out of the boy and it appears the boy is dead, but Jesus takes him by the hand and lifts him up and he is fine.

Later, Mark 9:28–29 (ESV) 28 …when he had entered the house, his disciples asked him privately, “Why could we not cast it out?” 29 And he said to them, “This kind cannot be driven out by anything but prayer.”

This is a puzzling declaration. What does Jesus mean? Well, prayer directs the disciples away from themselves. Prayer forces the disciples to quit looking at themselves and instead look to Jesus. Prayer shows it is not about the disciples being powerful or great. Prayer orients you, in faith, away from yourself and toward Jesus. Christianity does not bring you power and greatness…power and greatness is from Jesus.

When you seek forgiveness you do not look to yourself; you look to Jesus. What we do as a church is not from us, it is from Jesus. By nature, you are drawn to be curved in on yourself; to be most concerned about your emotions, your feelings, your ideas, your desires. Jesus calls you away from yourself to live in love for God and love for your neighbor. Being a follower of Jesus is not at all about being powerful and great, it is about following Jesus.

This lesson is valuable for all of us, but it is very important for the guy up front wearing the white robe and green stole who is called to teach and preach. As we learn from our epistle lesson, James 3:1 (ESV) 1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” Along with Jesus’ first disciples, pastors and teachers need great humility and constant prayer to remember that all that we teach and preach is from Jesus — and about Jesus. It is about Jesus and not about me. It is not about you. It is about Jesus for you.

And so…as a disciple of Jesus…follow Jesus. And when you struggle…pray…“I believe, help my unbelief.” Amen.

Posted on August 11, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

Idolatry or Christ?

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Pentecost 12, 2024
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
August 11, 2024
1 Kings 19:1-8, Ephesians 4:17-5:2, John 6:35-51

Idolatry or Christ?

The children of Israel in the Northern Kingdom at the time of King Ahab and his wife Jezebel have a big problem. They have given up on worshiping YHWH, the true God, and instead are worshiping the local gods Baal and Asherah, fertility gods with sexual perversion as part of their worship.

The prophet Elijah summons 450 prophets of Baal to Mt. Carmel where there is a showdown between YHWH and Baal and YHWH wins. Israel needs a clean break from idolatry. After Baal’s defeat, 1 Kings 18:40 (ESV) 40 …Elijah said to them, “Seize the prophets of Baal; let not one of them escape.” And they seized them. And Elijah brought them down to the brook Kishon and slaughtered them there.”

Idolatry or Christ? Elijah makes a clean break from idolatry by slaughtering the prophets of Baal. He is clearly on the side of YHWH. Elijah is forced to flee the wrath of Queen Jezebel. Rejecting idolatry can have it costs.

You were born into a perverse and idolatrous world. What Paul says in Ephesians about the people of the world is still true today. They walk… Ephesians 4:17–19 (ESV) 17 … in the futility of their minds. 18 They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart. 19 They have become callous and have given themselves up to sensuality, greedy to practice every kind of impurity. Idolatry or Christ?

You have made a clean break from this world. In the waters of baptism God stripped away from you the filthy garments of your old sinful self and has given you the robe of Jesus’ righteousness made white in the blood of the Lamb of God. He has delivered [you] from the domain of darkness and transferred [you] to the kingdom of his beloved Son. In baptism, the Old Adam in you, the old sinful self, is drowned and dies. You are given a clean break from idolatry. You are in Christ. As a baptized child of God you are kept safe and secure in the holy ark of the Christian Church, being separated from the multitude of unbelievers and serving God’s name at all time with a fervent spirit and a joyful hope.

Idolatry or Christ? You have made a clean break from life in the world. You have made a clean break from the devil; the god of this world. As the community of Christ, at a baptism we renounce the devil, and all of his works, and all of his ways. We disown the devil. We give up life in his world to live life in the kingdom of God. Life in the kingdom of God is life lived, in community, with the people of Christ. It is life lived in the Church of Christ. It is life lived together in Christ.

What does life in the Kingdom of God look like?

In the Kingdom of God you are… Ephesians 4:22–24 (ESV) 22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, 23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, 24 and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.” Put off your old self. Put on the new self.

In our Epistle reading Paul teaches about life together as the Church. As followers of Jesus, set apart from the multitude of unbelievers, how should you live together knowing that the devil desperately wants to tear you apart through disputes and anger and bitterness and sin. How should you live together? Ephesians 4:25 (ESV) 25 Therefore, having put away falsehood, let each one of you speak the truth with his neighbor, for we are members one of another.” You all belong to one another, so speak the truth in love. Pastors must teach the truth of God and not let the lies of the world creep into the teaching of the church as so many pastors are doing. Megan Basham’s has a new book entitled, “Shepherds For Sale: How Evangelical Leaders Traded The Truth for a Leftist Agenda.” In this book it is reported that influential leaders in evangelical churches have been paid off by far left influencers to stop teaching the truth of God’s word and instead adapt their teaching to be compatible with the ways of the cultural elites. This is a well-organized, well-funded movement in order to influence the political voting of the members of their churches.

Idolatry or Christ? Speak the truth.

Ephesians 4:26–27 (ESV) 26 Be angry and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.” This is an interesting verse. It is actually a quote from Psalm 4:4 (ESV) 4 Be angry, and do not sin; ponder in your own hearts on your beds, and be silent.”

The danger of this verse is I think it can lead us to believe that it is okay to get angry, at least to a certain extent, and we use this verse to justify our anger. However, the word “angry” in Psalm 4 can be translated “be agitated,” or even “tremble.” You can feel agitation and trembling when you are getting angry. As a situation grows more stressful you can feel the anxiety building, and you can begin to physically shake; maybe just your hands… maybe your whole body. Your temper is building and getting ready to blow. What are the triggers for you losing your temper? Some of my triggers for feeling like this are automated customer service help lines where you dial a number and answer a bunch of questions by voice and push a bunch of buttons and then it puts you back to the beginning and you have to start over and it will not let you speak to a real person. Or when the copier won’t work, or the computer is not cooperating. I am doing exactly what I have done before, but this time it is not working. Or trying to login to a website and it keeps rejecting the password I know is correct and my anger rises. Another time I get agitated is when I am eating out and have finished the meal and ready to head home and the waitress disappears. I just want to get the check and go but they have me trapped. This agitates me. It can make me tremble. Jeannette surely has many more examples.

Be agitated, and do not sin. Anger is a problem for children, teenagers, adults, seniors. We all struggle with anger, some more than others. As a child of God, control your anger… because when you lose your temper you sin. You do things and say things that you need to repent of. Losing your temper can permanently break relationships. You hurt others. The devil loves to get you angry. Don’t give the devil a foothold. Take a break. Call a timeout. Go for a walk. Take some deep breaths. Regain control over yourself. Self-control is one of the fruits of the Spirit.

Anger is dangerous in marriages, in families, and in congregations. Anger gives the devil a foothold to take over your life and pull you away from Christ into idolatry. The devil wants nothing more than for church members to get angry with each other. An angry church member or an angry pastor can do great harm to the Body of Christ. Anger is not a Christian virtue and yet so many Christians are angry. Control your emotions. Rejoice in the Lord. Rejoice in your salvation. Be on guard and do not let the sun go down on your anger. Repent of your anger. Before you go to bed, reach out to the one you are angry with and make amends. Apologize for losing your temper. Apologize for your anger. Ephesians 4:26–27 (ESV) 26 Be [agitated] and do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and give no opportunity to the devil.”

Ephesians 4:28 (ESV) 28 Let the thief no longer steal, but rather let him labor, doing honest work with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with anyone in need.” Repent of your wrongdoing and do good. Not just for yourself, but so that you can help others.

Ephesians 4:29–30 (ESV) 29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. 30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.” You are a baptized child of God. You are redeemed. You have the gift of eternal life. Your body is a temple for the Holy Spirit. Live out your Spirit-filled identity in Christ. Does Christ tear others down? Does He talk trash about others? Does Jesus tell dirty jokes? Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. You are a new creation in Christ filled with the Holy Spirit. Live out your life in Christ.

It is a daily struggle, as a vessel of the Holy Spirit, to live out your identity. Ephesians 4:31 (ESV) 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Ephesians 4:32 (ESV) 32 Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

Forgiveness is key to life in Christ as a temple of the Holy Spirit. When someone wrongs you, you have the right to get even. You have the right to take revenge. God has the right to punish you for your sins. You are a sinner. The wages of sin is death. You deserve death and hell. God has a right to punish you but He gives up that right. Jesus is punished instead and you are forgiven. Forgive one another, as God in Christ forgave you.

After our reading today Paul goes on to warn about sexual immorality and covetousness and filthy talk. These are the ways of the world. But you are no longer of the world.

Idolatry or Christ? You have renounced the devil. In baptism you have been set apart from the multitude of unbelievers. You belong to Jesus. You are a community in Christ. You are the body of Christ. Ephesians 5:1–2 (ESV) 1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

Walk in love because you are in Christ. Amen

Posted on July 29, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

God’s Promises

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Pentecost 10, 2024
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
July 28, 2024
Genesis 9:8-17, Ephesians 3:14-21, Mark 6:45-56

Have you ever seen a doomsday movie where the hero emerges from an underground shelter to the new, post-apocalyptic world? The unlikely hero blinks at the light and looks around at the destruction and then tries to overcome the challenges of life in the harshness of the new world.

For Noah and his wife and his sons and their wives it is no fiction. For a year they have been sealed up in a coffin-shaped ark filled with the sounds and smells of the most complete zoo of all times. For an entire year they have been confined in a floating menagerie 450 feet long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high.

God has destroyed the earth with a flood because of the sins of man. In that ark is all that is left of humanity as well as the birds and land animals that will repopulate the earth.

The story of Noah’s Ark is an incredibly harsh story, but I think sometimes we can get distracted by the perceived cuteness of the ark and the animals. There are children’s nurseries decorated in a Noah’s Ark theme with two elephants coming down the gangplank and two giraffes’ heads sticking out of the top of an adorable little boat which appears to be a terribly overloaded bathtub toy. In the background, there is a rainbow.

Animals are cute and all but I think that may mask the reality. The story of Noah’s Ark is a story of worldwide extermination. It is God’s wrath coming down upon sinful humans in the complete devastation of a deadly, worldwide flood.

The world’s population is reduced to eight souls closed up in a tiny speck of a boat on the vast, endless ocean. After what must have been a very long year, the waters finally recede and the land emerges. The ark comes to rest on a mountain and the eight people and all the creatures come out of the ark.

How strange it must be for Noah and his family emerging into an empty world. There is no one else around; everyone is gone, drowned in the deluge. The eight survivors likely feel very vulnerable in the aftermath of God’s wrath and any rain storm may now trigger horrible memories and fears.

God speaks to Noah and his family and makes a promise to them that He will never again destroy the earth with the waters of a flood. This promise is to Noah and his wife and his sons and their wives and their offspring, including you. It is a promise to every living creature coming off the ark, God will never again destroy the earth with water. And God gives Himself a sign to remember His promise. God sets a bow in the cloud as a sign of the covenant. The bow, a rainbow, is a sign for God that will remind Him that when He sends rain He will never again use it to destroy the earth. And it is a sign to us of God’s covenant promise. So, perhaps in the nursery of one of Noah’s great-great grandchildren, a scene of his Ark and the rainbow is a good reminder of God’s promise.

It is an awesome thing to see a rainbow, all those amazing colors painting the sky. I have heard that in days past children were taught to say the Lord’s Prayer when they saw a rainbow. I don’t remember doing that. At my house, growing up, my mom would give us a Popsicle to celebrate a rainbow. When you see one, you want to share it with others. Rainbows are special.

But the true meaning of the rainbow lately has gotten obscured. We have tales of the Leprechaun’s pot of gold at the end of the rainbow, we have Judy Garland singing “Over the Rainbow” in the “Wizard of Oz”. Gay rights groups resonated with Garland’s rough and tumble battles in life and adopted a rainbow flag as a symbol of their movement. And so now if you see a rainbow symbol at a church it is not clear what it means.

Interestingly, the pride flag has only six colors whereas God’s rainbow has seven. Six is the number of man, seven, the number of God. God’s rainbow is the sign of His promise to you as the offspring of Noah. And that promise is still in effect today; never again a great flood.

And you can see evidence of that great flood all around you. The stones of this building are full of fossil evidence of the flood. As you look at the rocks and see fossil remains of countless animals buried in rock layers, you are reminded that where you sit today was the bottom of an ocean thousands of feet deep. When you see the fossil remains of an animal, you are reminded of God’s judgment at the time of Noah.

And when you see a rainbow in the sky, remember God’s promise to never again destroy the earth with a flood. Never again with a flood…but the earth will be destroyed. God has promised to destroy the earth on the last day… with fire. The judgment day is coming and even then there will be a rainbow.

In the Revelation of John we see the rainbow surrounding the throne of the Lamb of God, the Lord Jesus. Jesus sits on the judgment seat surrounded by a rainbow and this is good news.

But how can the judgment throne of God be good news? God is perfect and you are flawed. God is Holy and you are a sinner. When Martin Luther was a monk he feared the judgment throne. Luther writes, “For I did not believe in Christ; I regarded Him only as a severe and terrible Judge, portrayed as seated on a rainbow.”[1]

But after Luther discovered the Gospel he looked forward to the Day of Judgment with joy, “Therefore we who come to Christ want to have Him as a gracious Lord. The rainbow on which He sits enthroned does not terrify me; it appears for my salvation. We do not look upon Him as a judge. He will call for us. He will not reject us. He will also protect us against the devil.” [2]

God has made a promise to you in Christ Jesus. You need not fear the judgment because you are covered by the grace of Jesus. You still have the sign of the rainbow that God will not destroy the world with water. Now He saves with water. As we hear in 1 Peter 3:20–21 (ESV) 20 … they formerly did not obey, when God’s patience waited in the days of Noah, while the ark was being prepared, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through water. 21 Baptism, which corresponds to this, now saves you, not as a removal of dirt from the body but as an appeal to God for a good conscience, through the resurrection of Jesus Christ…”

You have water as a sign and method of salvation through Holy Baptism. How do you know you are saved? Because you have been baptized into Jesus’ death and resurrection.

And you have the sign and method of salvation in Holy Communion. How do you know Jesus died for you and promises you salvation? Because He has given you His flesh to eat and His blood to drink.

You have the sign of the holy cross showing you how Jesus saves you, as Luther writes, “To us in the New Testament, Baptism and the Eucharist have been given as the visible signs of grace, so that we might firmly believe that our sins have been forgiven through Christ’s suffering and that we have been redeemed by His death. Thus the church has never been deprived to such an extent of outward signs that it became impossible to know where God could surely be found.”[3]

God has promised to save you. He gives you baptism. He gives you Holy Communion. Trust God.

When you see a rainbow, take a moment to ponder what Noah and his family must have been thinking when they emerged from the Ark, and what an amazing promise God made to them with the rainbow. When you see water, remember the promise of your baptism. When you see bread or wine, remember God’s promise to you in Holy Communion. When you see a cross remember you are forgiven in the blood of Jesus. Remember you are free in Christ. Amen.

[1] (Luther’s Works 24), S. 24:24

[2] (Luther’s Works 23), S. 23:61

[3] (Luther’s Works 1), S. 1:248

Posted on July 7, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

Jesus is Your Brother and Lord

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Pentecost 7 2024, Proper 9
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
July 7, 2024
Ezekiel 2:1-5, 2 Corinthians 12:1-10, Mark 6:1-13

You have a great friendship with a co-worker who shares your work space. You get along great, laugh at each other’s jokes, you commiserate about what a jerk the department boss can be. Often you go for a drink together after work, your families love to get together, it is a great friendship. And then the boss retires and your friend is promoted to fill the spot. Now your friend — is your boss. Being the boss and a friend is a tough balance because familiarity can breed contempt. When you know someone very well it is hard to respect their authority.

In the military it is against regulations for officers to fraternize with enlisted personnel so not to prejudice good order and discipline. Familiarity can breed contempt.

Jesus is unknown to the people of Capernaum and He is received at the synagogue there with astonishment at His new teaching with authority. The people are amazed that He is able to command unclean spirits and heal the sick and disabled. The more Jesus teaches and heals the bigger and bigger the crowds grow. There is some opposition from the scribes and Pharisees, because they see Jesus going against traditional Jewish teaching. They call in reinforcements from Jerusalem to try to stop Jesus, but the movement keeps growing and growing in Capernaum and the surrounding area. Even Jairus, the synagogue ruler in Capernaum, comes to Jesus when his daughter is sick and dying and Jesus raises Jairus’ daughter from the dead.

Jesus’ fame spreads throughout the surrounding region of Galilee all the way to Nazareth 40 miles to the southwest. Jesus’ family hears about what is going on and they come to Capernaum to save Jesus from Himself. Mark 3:21 (ESV) 21 And when his family heard it, they went out to seize him, for they were saying, “He is out of his mind.” They come to Capernaum and stand outside sending word to Jesus. Mary certainly knows who Jesus is, but it must be confusing when He suddenly goes from being a normal carpenter from Nazareth to a famous religious teacher drawing large crowds and causing turmoil all the way to Jerusalem. Jesus’ brothers do not seem to understand what is going on and they want to stop Jesus before He causes too much trouble. Word passes and the crowd tells Jesus, Mark 3:32–35 (ESV) 32 … “Your mother and your brothers are outside, seeking you.” 33 And he answered them, “Who are my mother and my brothers?” 34 And looking about at those who sat around him, he said, “Here are my mother and my brothers! 35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.”

In today’s Gospel reading Jesus has left the adoring crowds in Capernaum and the region around the Sea of Galilee and with His disciples has walked to Nazareth. On the Sabbath He begins to teach in the synagogue and the initial response is very much like in Capernaum. The people are… Mark 6:2 (ESV) 2 … astonished, saying, “Where did this man get these things? What is the wisdom given to him? How are such mighty works done by his hands?”

The people have heard about all the miracles Jesus has done and about His authoritative teaching, and now He is right here in their midst. “He is amazing…He is incredible…He is…hey! Hold on just a minute!! Let’s not get all carried away with the momentum of this Jesus movement. Don’t forget. We know Jesus. He is Jesus of Nazareth. This town of Nazareth only has about 400 people, so everyone here knows everyone else and we know this Jesus fellow. So, we don’t care what He has done, we don’t care what He has taught, because we have known Jesus His whole life. He is a shameful man. His parents were not married until after His mother Mary was already pregnant so no one knows who Jesus’ father really is. And He is not a priest, or a teacher, or a religious leader, or even a respected member of the community. He is a craftsman. He works with His hands, not with His mind. Why is this illegitimate construction worker teaching in the synagogue? He is way out of His depth.” And the people of Nazareth reject Jesus out of their familiarity. Mark 6:3 (ESV) 3 Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary and brother of James and Joses and Judas and Simon? And are not his sisters here with us?” And they took offense at him.”

Familiarity breeds contempt. Mark 6:4 (ESV) 4 And Jesus [says] to them, “A prophet is not without honor, except in his hometown and among his relatives and in his own household.”

Because the people think they already know Jesus, His work in Nazareth is fairly fruitless. As we learn in the parable of the sower and the seeds, Mark 4:14–15 (ESV) 14 The sower sows the word. 15 And these are the ones along the path, where the word is sown: when they hear, Satan immediately comes and takes away the word that is sown in them.”

Jesus is sowing the seeds of the Word of God but it is rejected because the people of Nazareth think they already know all they need to know about Jesus. Even though they have heard of all that Jesus has done, that cannot overcome what they think they already know about Jesus.

Familiarity breeds contempt. Too often people think they know who Jesus is and therefore they can dismiss His teachings. We are tempted to think we can know about Jesus because Jesus is human and we are human and we can understand human things. Jesus has a body, I have a body. Jesus was born, so was I. Jesus died, and so will I. We can think we know Jesus because we understand how things work in this world and we decide Jesus must fit into the natural law of the world; that He was conceived and born in the normal way, and that when He died He stayed dead because that is natural law. By viewing Jesus as just another human, folks feel quite empowered to adjust His teaching to fit their understanding.

Some believe Jesus was just a good teacher who gave us instruction about how to love one another and care for the poor. Some see Jesus as an inspirational leader whose teachings can motivate people to achieve great things in life. Others believe Jesus is just a fraud; another messianic figure who claimed to be God but wound up dead. So very many people have constructed their own Jesus. This Jesus they can control because He is a product of their own imaginations. So, when these folks hear something from the Bible that challenges the familiar Jesus of their own imaginations they are offended and they reject the truth and choose unbelief. Entire church bodies are voting to reject the truth and follow their own understandings. These churches are choosing unbelief because they are offended by Jesus.

Thomas Jefferson edited the Bible to fit his understanding of Jesus. Jefferson literally made his own cut and paste Bible called “The Life and Morals of Jesus of Nazareth,” in which, using a razor blade and glue, he cut the Bible down to 86 pages, getting rid of anything referring to the miracles of Jesus and most supernatural mentions. Jefferson ends the book with Jesus dead in the grave. Like so many of His time, and so many of our time, Jefferson saw Jesus as a good teacher, but not as God.

The people’s initial reaction at the synagogue in Nazareth is our proper reaction to Jesus – astonishment; astonishment at Jesus’ teaching and wisdom and works. Be continually astonished by Jesus because, despite His appearance, Jesus is not a familiar, fellow man. Jesus is God in flesh. Despite appearances, Jesus is not just another guy. As we will soon confess, Jesus was conceived by the Holy Spirit. Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary. Jesus was crucified, died and was buried. On the third day Jesus rose from the dead. Jesus is God in flesh. Christ is risen! He is risen indeed, alleluia!

Jesus has brought you close He has made you family. You are His brother, you are His sister and Jesus is Lord. Jesus is your servant and Jesus is your King.

In order for us to take control it is so tempting to reduce Jesus to a familiar, regular, manageable, fellow man, but that is not the truth. Jesus is God. He teaches with authority because He is the author of life. So do what He says. Mark 1:15 (ESV) 15 … “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.”

Jesus is not a familiar, ordinary, fellow man, but Jesus has brought you close to Him. You, a baptized follower of Jesus, gathered here with fellow believers to hear the Gospel and to receive Jesus’ gifts — you are a part of Jesus’ family. As Jesus teaches, Mark 3:35 (ESV) 35 For whoever does the will of God, he is my brother and sister and mother.” You are Jesus’ sister. You are Jesus’ brother.

Jesus has brought you close He has made you family. You are His brother, you are His sister and Jesus is Lord. Jesus is your servant and Jesus is your King. Jesus is God incarnate and He has redeemed you with His blood; He has forgiven you all your sins. You are one with Him through the Holy Spirit. He is your Savior because you cannot save yourself. Jesus is your loving brother but you know who this brother is and you are in awe. He is your caring brother, and you are astonished at what He has done for you. Your brother, the Lord God almighty, has washed you clean and brought you into the Kingdom of God, to be with Him, now and forever. Amen.

Posted on June 16, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

Small, Plain and Ordinary

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Pentecost 4 2024 Proper 6
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
June 16, 2024
Ezekial 17, 22-24, 2 Corinthians 5:1-17, Mark 4:26-34

This is a beautiful church building. We have been blessed by those who were here in the 1940s that they chose a classic style and durable materials to build our Romanesque style church modeled after St. Bernard church in Cincinnati. This is a beautiful space in which to have the divine service.

When Jeannette and I were in Europe in April we visited cathedrals and churches, and monastery chapels in Germany, Austria and Hungary. The cathedrals and chapels were incredibly large, towering, ornate monuments to the architectural styles of their time. In the Baroque style cathedral in Passau Germany, there is a gigantic golden pulpit with figures of Jesus and angels and the four gospel writers and the last supper and so much more. It is magnificent. So large, so beautiful, so ornate. What would it be like to preach from a pulpit like that? Wow! People must be impressed with a sermon from a golden pulpit. Now, I love my pulpit here, but it is plain and ordinary compared to European cathedrals.

Jesus is plain and ordinary. This must be what the disciples think about Jesus and His ministry compared to the Temple in Jerusalem with its magnificent tall pillars and gold and decorations. The priests adorned in amazing robes with golden threads in white linen. By contrast, Jesus is a homeless teacher wandering around the backwater areas of Galilee with a rag tag band of followers including fishermen and even a tax collector. Sometimes Jesus teaches in the synagogues but mostly outdoors on a hill or by the lake. Jesus is not even just plain and ordinary, He is poor and lowly and weak and insignificant. Dressed like a normal person, He preaches and teaches and heals the sick and casts out demons but it does not look like much. The healings and exorcisms are remarkable, but Jesus does not make a big deal about them, he even tells folks to keep quiet about being healed. There are crowds following Him to be healed and to hear the teaching but it a crowd of poor, lowly people. When the rich, powerful, important people come around Jesus they are offended by Him; they oppose Jesus. They look to trap Jesus because they want to destroy Him. They see the good Jesus is doing and accuse Him of being in league with the devil. Plain, ordinary Jesus just keeps doing what He is doing; He does not care what the cool kids think of Him.

Jesus tells the disciples a couple of parables to steady them as they follow Jesus. The first is about the Kingdom of God being like a man scattering seed on the ground and the seed sprouts and grows all on its own. While the man goes about his life, the earth produces automatically until the harvest. Jesus spreads the Word and it produces on its own without human assistance. Jesus’ Word produces fruit in the lives of His followers all by itself.

Like the disciples, we really want to believe that faith, and forgiveness, and the Kingdom of God is about us and what we do — but it is not about you, it is about Jesus for you. There is a terrible infection afflicting church bodies that causes folks to believe that God needs our help. There is a thought that God’s Word is good and everything, but we really need find more and more clever ways to present it so people will believe. In churches there is a thought that, “if we can just…whatever,” then everything would be better. If we can just…have a better Sunday School program. If we can just… build a better building. If we can just…. have the youth more involved. If we can just… do more with senior ministry. If we can just… reach out better to the people in the neighborhood. If we can just… find the right program at the right time. If we can just…do whatever it takes to help God. We are looking for a silver bullet fix to whatever ails the church, but there are no silver bullets. God’s Word is sufficient. Isaiah 55:10–11 (ESV) 10 “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout, giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, 11 so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose, and shall succeed in the thing for which I sent it.”

This is humbling for pastors. God does not need me. The Kingdom of God will grow by the power of God. I am called to proclaim the Word of God. It is not about me being ingenious; it is about God’s Word succeeding without my assistance.

Jesus continues with a second parable. Mark 4:30–32 (ESV) 30 And he said, “With what can we compare the kingdom of God, or what parable shall we use for it? 31 It is like a grain of mustard seed, which, when sown on the ground, is the smallest of all the seeds on earth, 32 yet when it is sown it grows up and becomes larger than all the garden plants and puts out large branches, so that the birds of the air can make nests in its shade.”

Now when you think of kingdoms you think of splendid castles and throne rooms and ornate robes and crowns. Jesus here teaches about the Kingdom of God; the reign and rule of God, and it is like, it is like — a mustard seed. I bought a pack of mustard seeds to see what they look like. They are tiny, brown and round; just about 1 millimeter in size; small, plain and ordinary. I put a few mustard seeds in every pew this morning, but I doubt anyone noticed. You would have trouble finding them even if you looked. A mustard seed is tiny, plain, ordinary and almost invisible. The Kingdom of God begins quite small, plain and ordinary there in Galilee and Jerusalem, but it grows and grows and grows. Now the reign of God in Christ Jesus has spread all over the world, but it still appears to be small, plain and ordinary.

The Word of God is the only source of salvation and eternal life but it is so plain and ordinary and folks are not impressed by plain and ordinary. People want something exciting and entertaining. The news media will report all sorts of meaningless stories about rich, famous, powerful, important people, but they ignore what God is doing.

God is here today, in this place, to forgive your sins and feed you the food of eternal life. Jesus, the source of eternal life, is here with you and people act like nothing is going on. They just ignore it because it is plain and ordinary and boring.

Far too many church bodies have grown weary of the Word of God and have moved on to preach and teach what people’s itching ears want to hear. They constantly adjust their teachings so that the cool kids of society will not look down on them. So many churches will fall all over themselves to change what they teach to fit whatever is the latest and greatest rejection of God’s Word put forth by the cultural elites in New York, and D.C., and Los Angeles. They care so much what the cool kids think that they have given up on God. They have rejected the Word of God, and forgiveness, and eternal life so they can fit in with people who change their beliefs as often as their clothes.

Not so for you. You are a follower of Jesus Christ. You are bound to the Word of God. You cannot care what the cool kids think. You cannot adjust your life to fit their perverse teachings. As the Church of Christ, you stand firm on the plain and ordinary Word of God and reject false teachers. You are warned about this in the book of Jude. Jude 4, 8 (ESV) 4 For certain people have crept in unnoticed who long ago were designated for this condemnation, ungodly people, who pervert the grace of our God into sensuality and deny our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ …these people also, relying on their dreams, defile the flesh, reject authority, and blaspheme the glorious ones.”

Trust God’s Word because God’s Word will not return empty. The plain and ordinary Word of God is effective and the seed planted will grow by itself by the power of God. Trust the Gospel; the Good News of forgiveness of sins through the life death and resurrection of Jesus. Trust the power and promise of your baptism. Trust Jesus’ words of pardon for sin. Trust the forgiveness given in the Lord’s Supper. Trust…even though it is plain, ordinary water combined with the Word of God. Trust the plain, ordinary words of absolution. Trust the plain, ordinary bread and wine combined with the Word of God. Trust that God works as He has promised.

Trust the Gospel to accomplish what it promises. Follow God — obey God — not out of fear of punishment — the punishment was taken by Jesus; not out of hope of reward–you have already been given eternal life. Follow God — obey God — out of love for God because of what He has done for you through Jesus and the Holy Spirit.

It can be difficult because obeying God out of love is messy. We are so much more comfortable with punishment and reward. Do this and you get this in return. Don’t do this or else you will be disciplined.

Living in the plain, ordinary love of God is messy… wonderfully messy. Your sinful side so much wants to be in control…but you are not in charge. God is in charge, and the Word of God is working in you, and the day of harvest will come and Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead and you will be declared righteous, pure and holy because Jesus’ robe of righteousness covers all your sin.

It does not matter how foolish the cool kids think you are. It does not matter how foolish they think Jesus is. It does not matter how small and plain and ordinary Jesus’ Church is. God’s Word does not return empty. We so much want to have some kind of spiritual experience that we can point to, some exciting happening, some spiritual high, but we get God’s plain and ordinary promises and that is good.

It can be difficult because obeying God out of love is messy. We are so much more comfortable with punishment and reward. Do this and you get this in return. Don’t do this or else you will be disciplined.

So follow Jesus…trust Jesus…live in the messiness of His love for you. Obey God out of love. Repent when you get distracted by the world and give in to temptation. Receive His forgiveness…over and over and over.

As Jesus’ Church we do what God has given us to do. We make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching. Even though it is not exciting and entertaining we pronounce the forgiveness of sins, preach the truth of God’s Word, administer the Lord’s sacrament of His Body and Blood, and we trust God’s Word to do what God has promised it will do.

It does not matter if the pulpit is golden, or wooden, or no pulpit at all, the Word of God is effective. Trust in the promises of God regardless of what the cool kids think. Amen.

Posted on June 9, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

What is the Opposite of God?

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“What Is the Opposite of God?”
Vicar Matthew Kinne
6/9/24
Texts: Mark 3:20-35; Genesis 3:8-15; 1 Corinthians 4:13-5:1

Hear Jesus’ words from our Gospel reading today:

“If a kingdom is divided against itself, that kingdom cannot stand. And if a house is divided against itself, that house will not be able to stand.”

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

What is the opposite of God? If you were to ask this question to a room full of people hearing about God for the first time, what do you think the responses would be? I can tell you from experience some may say “Well, if God is good, that means His opposite is evil.” Okay… this would be a logical response as we are creatures that appreciate the scales of counterparts to be balanced. We like the idea of Ying & Yang. Think of any story, myth, movie, or book that encounters good versus evil other than the Bible. It seems like there is always an equal opposite to the protagonist. There is always a chance that good will prevail and classically we call that comedy; the good guy wins in the end. It gives us a good feeling inside. But there is also a chance that evil will win. The good guy either dies or becomes corrupt himself. We call this tragedy, and some believe that this is just as acceptable to let evil win. In some ways, we are programmed to believe that if there is a righteous character then there must be an equally evil character. One cannot exist without the other.

Of course, God is good and there is evil, so there must be some form of truth to the answer. But if it is the case that God has some equally corrupted counterpart, what would that mean for your salvation? It would mean that there is no promise and no guarantee for your eternal life. It would be a 50/50 chance: a flip of a coin. Good versus evil would never be resolved, and you would be in a prison of limbo forever. Does that sound like a good time to you? Is that really how the story of our great and mighty God goes? I hope not. And in fact, by faith through the Holy Spirit and the confirmation of witnesses in the Scriptures, I know it is not.

Sometimes we forget that the evil in this world came from the weak and rebellious will of creatures. When God created man, He gave him the ability to choose God’s way or his own way. And to our mystery today, as the story is told in Genesis, man was weak and listened to the tempter that came in the form a serpent. We do not know much about the origin of the tempter, but we do know that just like man, he chose to oppose his Creator. We know that he is a fallen angel as Jesus says in Luke’s account, “I saw Satan fall like lighting from heaven”. But just because he opposes God does not make him God’s equal opponent. Satan is still a creature, one that is defeated just when he thinks he is on the cusp of victory by getting Jesus on a cross. He did put up what he thought was a good fight but God, who is the author of this life, binds up Satan and crushes His head at the foot of the cross where Jesus Christ is glorified. Satan’s own battle strategy kills his own kingdom in the end. Satan’s pride is his own demise!

Without the knowledge that the Holy Spirit gives through God’s Word, it is easy to be influenced by and even sympathize with the citizens of the tempter’s kingdom. It is certainly more comfortable to accept the evil that surrounds us every day than to swim against the tide and be at odds with friends and family members who follow the ways of the world. But do you realize Satan has us right where he wants us? In the land of the free and the home of brave, we are given the right to worship our God by the said freedom of our county’s constitution. But where man has the freedom to follow God in our country, man also has the equal freedom to fall away and uplift evil in this land. It is a nation divided.

The flag that once stood for freedom, hope, and prosperity, is now often replaced or redesigned by a perverted rainbow flag movement which teaches people to believe that the church is built on hate. The claim “all are welcome” sounds beautiful and righteous. But that welcome sign is a work of the devil when it is not a welcome to repent because the reign of God is at hand. It is a work of the devil when it rejects the Word of God and follows the way of man. That is because, just like the serpent, the will of man opposes the standard of life made by his Creator.

Let’s focus the magnifying glass a little closer to home. Just like Adam and Eve, and even the Pharisees, it is easy for us in the church to point the finger at others. It is not hard to find a quote of scripture and tell someone else “you are wrong”. God does tell us to use His word for reproof, and to understand the standard of what is right and what is wrong. But can you go one day without breaking a commandment? Can you live up to the righteous standard of God on your own?

If you say you can live without sinning and you can save yourself by being better than everyone else, you are living a life of deception. The truth is not in you. The sin against the Holy Spirit, the sin of unbelief, is at large in you if you believe this. And if you think the church gathers because we are better than those who parade in city centers opposing God’s gift of marriage and life, you again would be wrong. The purpose of the church is not to be a political platform of this earthly kingdom. It is to be a place where the sick are tended to by their physician. It is where forgiveness is given to sinners who naturally oppose our Creator. God’s Word is where we find the standard of holy living, but it is more importantly the place where we read about God’s redemption of mankind for living in sin.

The answer to the question, “What is God’s equal opposite?” is… nothing. And maybe that is more than the truth. Maybe a better way to say it is that without God, there is no existence. The opposite of creating man, however, is man decomposing. Without God we are hopeless, dying beings desperate for meaning. We are creatures sustained by the graces of our God. Our God is not a tyrant God, not one who demands our praises, not one who demands good works. But rather a loving God, who sustains and comforts us. Because of that we sing praise about our God to others, and lead lives of active service to our neighbor.

The only place to find life is in God’s presence. He is the one who gives life and maintains life. When man chooses his own pride and sin over God, he walks in the direction of death. He steps away from God. That is not God’s fault. It is man’s fault. Man’s most grievous fault. And for that, man is humbled before a righteous God who wants all people to repent of their sin and be reminded that we are part of His kingdom in the baptism He bestows on us.

Satan’s kingdom is divided. He cannot win. Do not follow him or even listen to him. Drive him out of your life! If you feel like he is knocking at your door, yell “Be gone Satan! My God has defeated you. Go back to dark and foul hole you came from!”

Satan wants you to also believe that God’s kingdom is a mess and is divided into a thousand pieces. God’s kingdom, however, is forever because it is not divided. Now, it is easy to think the church is not unified. When you drive downtown Hamilton count how many steeples there are. There are so many buildings, confessions, hymnals, translations, and political views pulling apart the church on earth. But these things are not what the church stands upon. These are things built and produced by the hands of sinful man. The church is instead built on the foundation of Christ’s constitution, which is not written in ink on paper, but by His blood writing into the wood of the cross from the nails piecing His hands and feet.

A bridge to God once existed in the garden, but it was burned up by man’s sin. God had to rebuild this bridge using Jesus’ perfect body. Jesus’ incarnation bridged heaven and earth together. God’s Word lives among us. His Kingdom was brought back into this world by His birth in Bethlehem where His perfect little body lie in a manger. This same body and blood that we take in, is the foundation of Christ’s church. His body, though put to death, was never broken. It was never divided. He was put into a grave, but He conquered death three days later. He never let evil prevail. The good guy not only won, but never had a chance to lose. God the Father called all the shots of His Son’s death and resurrection. And since Jesus wins, you win. Because He died, your sinful Adam dies. Because He lives, you also will continue to live into eternity with Him.

We just sang about this glorious victory in our hymn today. If you turn in your service bulletin to page 8, look at stanza one. See how the confession of the Church is not divided! The works of Satan is conquered through the work of our Emmanuel. If you’d like to sing it with me one more time, feel free to join.

668 Rise! To Arms! With Prayer Employ You

Text and tune: Public domain

Even though it may feel like Satan has the upper hand in this world because he influences the hearts of divided and sinful man. God is victorious! The church stands outside of any government in this world, it does not proudly parade sinful ideals, it does not give into catchy slogans or earthly philosophies. It stands on the Word of God, and this is what gives us strength to live together as the church until our Lord’s comes back to take us to Himself in heaven. It is then we will celebrate with all the saints that God’s kingdom was never divided and that His mighty hand saved us. Amen.

Posted on June 2, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

Weaponizing the Law

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Pentecost 2 2024 Proper 4
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
June 2, 2024
Deut 5:12-15, 2 Cor. 4:5-12, Mark 2:23-28 (3:1-6)

You wake up to the sound of the alarm. You just want to turn it off and roll over, but you need to get up and get going, there is lots to do. Life is very busy. It seems there is always more to do than time to do it. The calendar is jammed packed. You feel like a hamster on a wheel, always running but never getting anywhere.

You need a break.

Imagine being a part of a family of subsistence farmers 3,000 years ago trying to scratch out a living from the land. If you don’t work, you don’t eat. And food preparation is all from scratch meaning that to make bread you start with kernels of wheat that your family harvested and threshed and winnowed and now you have to grind into flour. You work from first light to sunset with barely enough to eat, and you go to bed exhausted. You work and work and never get ahead.

You need a break.

God knows you need a break and so he gives the gift of the Sabbath day to His people. God created the world in six days and then His work was completed and He rested on the seventh day. The Israelites’ work is never completed so they need the Sabbath to receive renewal and restoration from God. God gives the children of Israel this gift of rest in the Ten Commandments as we see in our Old Testament reading. Exodus 20:8 (ESV) 8 “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.”

Now, as rebellious people, the commandments of God can feel like a burden or a threat. It can seem like God’s law is your nemesis holding you back. That it is something you need to find a way around, but the law of God is God’s gift to you — for your good. This is literally expressed in the fourth commandment. Exodus 20:12 (ESV) 12 “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be long in the land that the Lord your God is giving you.”

God’s law curbs your bad behavior, and God’s law shows you are a sinner, and God’s law is a gift to you to offer you a better life. God gives the children of Israel the Sabbath for their own good. He gives them a time each week for physical rest, and time to receive renewal and restoration from God. God gives penalties for those who intentionally abuse the Sabbath so that the Sabbath remains a gift to the people. God wants His people to have this gift of renewal and restoration.

Over the years the Jewish religious leaders become more interested in how to keep the Sabbath instead of why did God give the Sabbath. This is still an issue today. When I was in Israel in January of 2023 we got to observe Sabbath regulations in practice. There was a Sabbath elevator that stopped on every floor of the hotel. It was permissible to ride in the elevator, but not to push the buttons. You could open a room door with a key, but not with a key card. There was even a self-flushing toilet with a sign that said it did not conform to Sabbath regulations.

In our Gospel reading we see the Pharisees seemingly all concerned about protecting the Sabbath day…but what are they really trying to do? They are using the rules about how to keep the Sabbath in order to try to get Jesus in trouble. They want to get rid of this Jesus fellow who just suddenly showed up in Galilee and now is causing all sorts of issues. The people listen to Him rather than the Pharisees and other religious leaders. Somehow this Jesus has authority over unclean spirits and disease, even leprosy and paralysis. He is not like other so-called prophets and teachers. And if that was not bad enough, he does things that are just unheard up. He calls a tax collector to be one of His followers and then has dinner at the tax collector’s house and eats there with other tax collectors and sinners. The Pharisees do not even associate with Gentiles, tax collectors or openly sinful Jews, let alone eat with them. Jesus comes to renew and restore sinners, but the Pharisees do not want sinners renewed and restored. Jesus’ care for others angers the Pharisees and they start to look for ways to get rid of Him, but they just grow more frustrated.

The Pharisees question Jesus as to why His disciples do not fast and He calls himself the bridegroom at the wedding feast. He tells them that He is new cloth and new wine; He does not fit in the old ways. The Pharisees look to trap Jesus and discredit Him. They go after Jesus because His disciples are plucking heads of grain on the Sabbath so they could have a little snack. Jesus turns the discussion away from the Sabbath and onto authority. He tells of how David, the anointed King of Israel, eats the holy bread reserved for the priests. David was the anointed king — Jesus is greater than David. He tells them, Mark 2:27–28 (ESV) 27 … “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. 28 So the Son of Man is lord even of the Sabbath.” Now the Sabbath was commanded by God and Jesus claims to be lord of the Sabbath. So that means Jesus is….the Lord God. Now the Pharisees are really upset.

Next, Jesus is at the synagogue and there is a man there whose hand is disfigured. The Pharisees watch with bated breath to see what Jesus will do. It is the Sabbath day and the Pharisees have weaponized the Sabbath to try to destroy their enemy. The Sabbath is a gift from God for renewal and restoration. The Sabbath is supposed to be good for the people — the Pharisees are using it as a club. The Pharisees, on the Sabbath, are scheming and plotting against their enemy. They are trying to trap Jesus into healing on the Sabbath so they are at the synagogue watching Him. Here is Jesus. Here is the man with the withered hand. Will He do it? Will He help this man on the Sabbath? What is going to happen?

Jesus knows what they are doing and He wants to make sure everyone understands what is going to happen. He tells the man with the crippled hand, “Rise up, come here.” The Sabbath is God’s gift for renewal and restoration. Jesus wants to do good to this man and heal him. The Pharisees want to harm Jesus. They want to kill Jesus. Jesus lays this out, Mark 3:4 (ESV) 4 And he [says] to them, “Is it lawful on the Sabbath to do good or to do harm, to save life or to kill?” But they [are] silent.”

Jesus wants to do good and heal someone. The Pharisees want to do harm and kill Jesus. The Pharisees are using the law not to keep order; not for good, but to attack Jesus and destroy their enemy. They are using the Sabbath as a weapon against their opponent.

Jesus looks at the Pharisees with anger. He is sad that their hearts are so hard as to abuse God’s law for evil. And Jesus does not back down. He says to the man who has stood up and come to Him, Mark 3:5 (ESV) 5 …“Stretch out your hand.” He [stretches] it out, and his hand [is] restored.”

Jesus does not do anything. With just the power of His word Jesus heals the man’s withered hand. The man is renewed and restored by the power of Jesus’ Word. This is incredible. This is a miracle and it happens in front of everyone at the synagogue. How do the Pharisees react? Mark 3:6 (ESV) 6 The Pharisees [go] out and immediately [hold] counsel with the Herodians against him, how to destroy him.”

Their reaction to a miracle of healing is anger and murderous thoughts. The Pharisees are so mad that they unite with their enemy, the Herodians, against their common enemy, Jesus. The enemy of my enemy is my friend. I am not sure if they think they are doing God’s will or are just using the idea of God to protect their positions. The truth is that they hate God and are trying to kill God.

God’s law is still in effect today. You still have the gift of God’s law and it is still a gift to you for your good. God’s law is for good, but there is a great temptation to use the law as a weapon against your enemies rather than as a tool to keep peace. This happens more than we would like to admit. How often do kids tattle on each other simply to get the other person in trouble? Not to protect them, or help them, just to get them in trouble? Adults also are tempted to use the rules to try to control others rather than for the good of others? We are tempted to use the law to criticize, blame, or punish someone in a vulnerable position. We have a cute expression for this. We call this throwing someone under the bus. Used properly the law is good. In the wrong hands the law becomes a weapon to attack others. In the church this can take the form of angry Christians whose joy of salvation is stifled by always being on high alert for other people doing something wrong and then trying to correct them.

You go to church because it is good for you, not because it is good for God.

The Third Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath Day by keeping it Holy,” is still in force today although it has been updated in Jesus. Instead of the Sabbath being the center, Jesus is the center. Jesus is the source of rest and restoration. Jesus says, Matthew 11:28–30 (ESV) 28 Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 29 Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. 30 For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”

Jesus’ Word is the source of rest for your souls. Martin Luther’s explanation of the third commandment is, “We should fear and love God so that we do not despise preaching and His Word, but hold it sacred and gladly hear and learn it.” We gather for worship to receive from God renewal and restoration. We are not to hate God’s Word of renewal, or grudgingly hear it, but rather treasure it. Just as Jesus said, Mark 2:27 (ESV) 27 … “The Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath,” we might say, “God has provided Christian worship for the benefit of man…He did not create man simply for the sake of Christian worship.”

You go to church because it is good for you, not because it is good for God.

In the busyness of your life you need rest and rejuvenation. In your battle against sin and temptation you need renewal and restoration. You gather here once a week to receive renewal and restoration from God in baptism, and in His Word, and in Holy Communion. In this place you hear that your sins are forgiven and you are fed with heavenly food. You rest in Jesus because it is good for you. Take time to rest in Jesus. Take time to reflect that you are indeed, by nature, sinful and unclean and you need Jesus. Take time to reflect that you are poor in spirit and Jesus blesses the poor in spirit and gives you the Kingdom of Heaven.

You are blessed to be here. You come here feeling like the man’s withered hand, battered and hurting, and you stretch out your guilt and shame by confessing your sins, and receive restoration from the Lord Jesus. Rest in the gifts of Jesus. And not just an hour and fifteen minutes on Sunday morning but each day rest in Jesus in prayer and scripture reading. Rest in Jesus; be renewed and restored and refreshed so you are able to serve others in all your various vocations. Amen.

Posted on May 26, 2024 by pastorkevinjud

God loves in this way

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Trinity 2024
Immanuel Lutheran Church, Hamilton, Ohio
Pastor Kevin Jud
May 26, 2024
Isaiah 6:1-8, Acts 2:14a, 22-35, John 3:1-17

In our Gospel reading today we get that all so familiar passage of John 3:16 (ESV) 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.”

This is likely the most familiar verse in the whole Bible and the one that more people have memorized than any other. It is called the Gospel in a nutshell. You all know it quite well, but it can be familiarity that can at times empty something of its meaning as you think, “I already know this. I am not going to gain anything more from this verse.”

So, let’s take a little time this morning and slow down and dig into this verse. I got my undergraduate degree in print journalism and we were trained to ask the familiar questions, Who, what, where, when, why and how?

Who? Who is this verse talking about? John 3:16 (ESV) 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.” God the Father gave God the Son on behalf of the world that whoever — meaning anyone in the world — believes in him will have eternal life. In just this one verse you learn that God is complex beyond your comprehension. How does God the Father have a Son? God the Father does not have a body yet begets, generates, God the Son — from eternity. Jesus has always been. We learn this in John 1:1 (ESV) 1 In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” John 1:14 (ESV) 14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.”

And not only is there God the Father and God the Son, but Jesus teaches about the Holy Spirit just before this, John 3:5 (ESV) 5 Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.”

We have God; Father, Son and Holy Spirit. One of the proofs that Christianity is true is that the Trinity does not make sense. How can God be three persons and one God? When people make up a religion they mostly make up gods that make sense. Gods that are a lot like us. Gods that act like we do. Gods that make demands and give you a list of things you must do to appease them. The true God is different. He is incomprehensible. Three persons, one God — who freely gives you grace and mercy.

Who is involved here? God — Father, Son and Holy Spirit, and the world — all people, everywhere. That is a big who.

What? What is happening? A Pharisee, Nicodemus, comes to Jesus secretly at night. Nicodemus knows some things about Jesus, but has come to learn more. Jesus tells him that he needs to be born again of water and the Spirit. Then Jesus tells Nicodemus how people will have eternal life. John 3:14–15 (ESV) 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.”

What? What is happening is that God the Father gives His only Son to be lifted up.

Where? Where will this happen? We are not told that here with Nicodemus. When? When will it happen? We are not given specifics as to when.

Why? Why does God send His Son to be lifted up? It is a one word answer. Love. God loves the world. God loves with a selfless love. He loves with a love that does not count the cost. God’s love for you is beyond comprehension. In baptism you are born again by water and the Spirit into this love of God as we got to see once again this morning with the baptism of little David. God’s love envelopes little David. God’s love envelopes you; covers you. You live surrounded by the love of God. Paul describes this love in Ephesians 3:17–19 (ESV) 17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith—that you, being rooted and grounded in love, 18 may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, 19 and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.” You are rooted and grounded in the incomprehensible love of God. You are filled with the fullness of God.

Why? Because God loves you.

Who, what, where, when, why and how? How? This is an interesting question. We hear, “For God so loved the world” and it can sound like, because God loved the world soooo much. Indeed it is true that God loves sooo much. God’s love is beyond understanding. But, “For God so loved the world,” means God loves the world in this way…God so loves…God loves in this manner. How does God love the world? He gives His only son to be lifted up.

God wants all people to be saved. God knows the problem of sin and God gives the solution. How does God love? In this manner — He sends Jesus to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

John 3:14–15 (ESV) 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.

In the book of Numbers, after God sends fiery serpents among the complaining Israelites in the wilderness God instructs Moses to put a bronze serpent on a pole that whoever looks upon it will be healed from snakebite. How does looking a snake statue cure snakebite? It does not make any medical sense, but that is what God said to do, and it worked.

Jesus, the Son of Man, given by God the Father, will be lifted up. In our reading today Nicodemus does not yet know what this means — to be lifted up — but we know what this means Jesus will die on the cross at Golgotha to save sinners. How does Jesus’ death on a cross save sinners? This does not make sense. How can Jesus’ brutal death grant us eternal life? It is not the way I would do it. But you know it is true because God said it is true. John 3:16 (ESV) 16 “…whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

God wants all people to be saved. God knows the problem of sin and God gives the solution. How does God love? In this manner — He sends Jesus to be the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world.

God wants all people to be saved because He loves all people. God the Father gives Jesus to be the sacrificial Lamb of God to take away the sins of the world. The gift of eternal life is for all people. How utterly heartbreaking it is when one of God’s beloved children who is loved with God’s incomprehensible love, rejects that love. How tragic when someone rejects God’s gift of eternal life in order follow a made up god with a checklist of demands. How awful when someone follows their own do-it-yourself spirituality that adapts to their every whim and desire. How senseless that someone lets the cares of this world and the busyness of life choke out God’s love for them. How evil when someone chooses darkness over the light. John 3:19–20 (ESV) 19 …the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their works were evil. 20 For everyone who does wicked things hates the light and does not come to the light, lest his works should be exposed.”

The eternal fire is prepared for the devil and his angels and yet so many love the darkness rather than the love of God and choose to go to the eternal fire with the Devil.

God does not send people to hell. They choose hell. God wants everyone to be saved and offers the gift to all. 1 Timothy 2:4 (ESV) 4 [God] desires all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.”

God knows the world needs to be saved from the darkness and He saves it, out of love, despite the cost.

God loves the world with incomprehensible, selfless love. He loves the world — in this way — by giving His Son to be lifted up on the cross, and lifted up from the grave, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life. God loves you with incomprehensible, selfless love so that you have eternal life in Him. Amen.