Listen here.

Mark 9:30-37

³⁰ They went on from there and passed through Galilee. And he did not want anyone to know, ³¹ for he was teaching his disciples, saying to them, “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.

³³ And they came to Capernaum. And when he was in the house he asked them, “What were you discussing on the way?” ³⁴ But they kept silent, for on the way they had argued with one another about who was the greatest. ³⁵ And he sat down and called the twelve. And he said to them, “If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.” ³⁶ And he took a child and put him in the midst of them, and taking him in his arms, he said to them, ³⁷ “Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

From our Epistle Text, Jam. 4:1-6, ¹ What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? ² You 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. ³ You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. ⁴ You 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. ⁵ Or 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”? ⁶ But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”

Jesus shows how jealously God yearns over you. Jesus is on His way to Jerusalem. Jesus will be delivered into the hands of men, and they will kill Him. Like Jeremiah in our Old Testament text (Jer. 11:18-20), Jesus knew the deeds of the scheming, wicked men, and Jesus knew that God judges righteously. Like Jeremiah, Jesus committed His cause to Yahweh. Jesus not only saw God’s vengeance upon the wicked, Jesus experienced it. Jesus stepped between God’s wrath and the wicked. Jesus took on their sins and received God’s wrath, vengeance, and punishment for their transgressions. He suffered, bled, and died. And three days later, He rose again. The crucifixion shows that Jesus opposes your proud, sinful ways. The resurrection reveals that God does indeed give grace to the humble.

Your sin, no matter how big or how little, separates you from God. Your sin earns you God’s wrath and hell. Of course you can choose to hold onto that sin. You can persist in unrepentance and unbelief. But by doing so, you refuse the free gift of Jesus’ forgiveness and righteousness.

But that doesn’t change the fact that Jesus has taken all your sin, all your death, and all your damnation. Jesus bore all of it in His body on the cross. Your sin no longer belongs to you – Jesus took it and answered for it. Your sin does not condemn you – Jesus atoned for it. Believer, because of Jesus, your sin cannot harm you.

Because of Jesus your sin is forgiven and gone. Because of Jesus, you are no longer in your sins. Eternal life and peace with God is yours. Jesus’ Good Friday dying and His Easter rising make you right with God.

Jesus has done all of this for you. And yet, like the disciples, we argue and fight. We jockey for position and go behind each other’s backs in order to become great and powerful. Are you kidding me?

Here is Jesus, indisputably the greatest and first of all. He has come to serve the least, the last, the lowest, the lost, the little, and the dead by shedding His holy and precious blood on the cross. You have Jesus for you. Who cares who’s the greatest?

If you want to be great, live in the freedom of the Gospel which releases you from your fighting, from your quarreling, from your sin. Because of the freedom God has given you in the Gospel, you do not have to do anything to make yourself right with God. Jesus has already made you right with God. So in that freedom, live not for yourself but for others. Care for the little ones, the most needy, the least in the world. Care for those who need help. Jesus says, “Whoever receives one such child in My name receives Me, and whoever receives me, receives not Me but Him who sent Me. If anyone would be first, he must be last of all and servant of all.”

Brothers and sisters, you have been made right with God. You have been washed clean in your baptism. You have been declared to be forgiven, just, and holy in the absolution. You are fed Jesus’ righteousness in the Lord’s Supper – a foretaste of the eternal banquet that awaits you. Go. Serve. Slavishly serve those God places into your life and who need that service.

Such a life of service doesn’t fight, doesn’t quarrel, and doesn’t keep score because it doesn’t need to because Jesus has become last for you. Because Jesus has redeemed you. Because Jesus has saved and restored you.

You need not fret about being great because God has already given you a new heart, a new desire, and a new delight – He has given you Himself. And when you have Jesus, you have all the desires of your new heart. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 9:14-29

¹⁴ And when they came to the disciples, they saw a great crowd around them, and scribes arguing with them. ¹⁵ And immediately all the crowd, when they saw him, were greatly amazed and ran up to him and greeted him. ¹⁶ And he asked them, “What are you arguing about with them?” ¹⁷ And someone from the crowd answered him, “Teacher, I brought my son to you, for he has a spirit that makes him mute. ¹⁸ And whenever it seizes him, it throws him down, and he foams and grinds his teeth and becomes rigid. So I asked your disciples to cast it out, and they were not able.” ¹⁹ And he 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. ²¹ And Jesus asked his father, “How long has this been happening to him?” And he said, “From childhood. ²² And it has often cast him into fire and into water, to destroy him. But if you can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.” ²³ And Jesus said to him, “‘If you can’! All things are possible for one who believes.” ²⁴ Immediately the father of the child cried out and said, “I believe; help my unbelief!” ²⁵ And when Jesus saw that a crowd came running together, he rebuked the unclean spirit, saying to it, “You mute and deaf spirit, I command you, come out of him and never enter him again.” ²⁶ And after crying out and convulsing him terribly, it came out, and the boy was like a corpse, so that most of them said, “He is dead.” ²⁷ But Jesus took him by the hand and lifted him up, and he arose.

²⁸ And 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.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

If you were reading through the Gospel of Mark, coming to this text would be like hitting a brick wall. You would see a high, lofty moment followed by this discouraging scene. Immediately preceding this text, Jesus is transfigured. His clothes turned radiantly white – brighter than the sun glaring off freshly fallen snow. Jesus’ face shined more brightly than if He had swallowed the sun. The voice of the Lord God Almighty spoke from the cloud, “This is My beloved Son, listen to Him.” From that high, great, glorious place, Jesus and Peter, James, and John descend from the mountain to this chaotic scene. What is going on?

At the foot of the mountain, the other nine disciples are dealing with a crisis. A man had brought his demon possessed son to them, but they were unable to cast that demon out. These disciples had previously been commissioned by Jesus with authority to cast out demons, and they did (Mk. 6:7-13, 30). However, this demon stumps the disciples, and the scribes are having a field day with this. If Jesus is so great, then why are His disciples so insignificant? If Jesus is so powerful, why are His disciples so powerless. If Jesus is so mighty, why are His disciples so weak? So they argue back and forth. Meanwhile this father stands around helpless as he listens to the disciples squabble with the scribes.

Now, imagine this man. He has watched his son being tormented by the demon his whole life. What had this done to his marriage? How did he explain all of this to his other children? How many times had this father been burned by fire and how often did he jump into the water to save his son? What sacrifices had he made to bring his son to Jesus only to have the disciples fail him? Who has suffered more, the son or the father? It’s a close call.

Jesus enters into this scene like a parent stepping in between fighting children. “What are you arguing about?” The father steps forward and tells his story. At this story, Jesus sighs in frustration against the disciples, the scribes, and possibly even at this father. “O faithless generation, how long am I to be with you? How long am I to bear with you? Bring the boy to me”

The demon shows off – convulsing the boy, making him roll around on the ground and foam at the mouth. The father prays an iffy prayer to Jesus, “If, if You can do anything, have compassion on us and help us.”

“If you can? Of course I can! You wouldn’t be here if you thought I was unable to help. You wouldn’t have brought your son to Me, away from your family.” But with the inability of the disciples and the questioning of the scribes, this father’s faith is faltering. So Jesus encourages his faith, “All things are possible for the one who believes.”

The question is, Believes what? Faith by itself is worthless. We believe all sorts of things that simply will not happen. You could believe with all your heart, soul, mind, and strength that the chair you are sitting in right now will be able to take you to Sydney Australia, but it can’t. Faith is only as good as the object it is placed in. Faith always has an object. To simply say, “I believe,” is incomplete. When you say, “I believe,” the proper question should be, “You believe what?”

Spiritually speaking, the only faith worth having is faith in Jesus because Jesus is the only God worth having. All things are possible for the one believing in Jesus because all things are possible for Jesus. And so Jesus says, “All things are possible for the one who believes.” These words from Jesus cause the father to pray another petition – and what a prayer it is. It is the constant prayer of all followers of Jesus: “I believe; help my unbelief.”

This is the prayer of the desperate father. This is the prayer of every Christian. And this is the prayer of you who cannot stand on your own. This is the prayer of you who are wavering in your doubt about what Jesus can do and has promised to do for you. “I believe; help my unbelief.”

You see, the father’s problem wasn’t the demon and the torment of his son. And your problem isn’t always what is apparent. Your problem is not sickness, disease, grief, or pain. Jesus has already shown that He can take care of those things. Your problem isn’t even death. Jesus has no problem with death. Jesus is on His way to the cross where He will meet death on death’s battlefield, and Jesus will win. Jesus will strike down death with a killer blow making death a harmless, conquered enemy.

Your real problem, and this father’s real problem is unbelief. Your unbelief is on full display whenever you face troubles and try everything in your power before finally, in desperation, turning to prayer and God. Of course Jesus can help. Of course Jesus will have mercy upon you. He always does. Just as he does for this boy.

This boy’s story is your story. You too have been under the power of the devil your whole life. You too have been deaf to Christ’s word. You too have been unable and unwilling to sing His praise. You too have been unwilling to submit to Jesus. Yet, you were brought to Jesus, and He took you by the hand and raised you up by the power of His Spirit. But you are also like this father. You continue to fall back into your original problem of unbelief. Because you constantly fall back into the same sins over and over, you begin to doubt and wonder if Jesus has had mercy on you and helped you. In the Spirit, you believe. Left to yourself, you do not. In the spirit you pray. Left to yourself, you do not. On and on it goes. You constantly waver, but Christ will always have mercy on you because He has had mercy upon you as He suffered, bled, and died.

Brother and sister, your even though you constantly and continually waver between faith and unfaith, your faith in Jesus is never in vain. Your faith in Jesus is not empty. Your faith in Jesus is not worthless because the Jesus you trust in is not vain, empty, or worthless. Jesus is the One who can and does break the darkness, free the prisoners, and brings you from death to life, from unbelief to faith. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 7:31–37  

³¹ Then he returned from the region of Tyre and went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, in the region of the Decapolis.  ³² And they brought to him a man who was deaf and had a speech impediment, and they begged him to lay his hand on him.  ³³ And taking him aside from the crowd privately, he put his fingers into his ears, and after spitting touched his tongue.  ³⁴ And looking up to heaven, he sighed and said to him, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened.”  ³⁵ And his ears were opened, his tongue was released, and he spoke plainly.  ³⁶ And Jesus charged them to tell no one. But the more he charged them, the more zealously they proclaimed it.  ³⁷ And they were astonished beyond measure, saying, “He has done all things well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

“Christ has died on the cross for you, and your sins are forgiven.” That is the Gospel message. That is the Good News that Jesus has given His Church to proclaim to the ends of the earth (Lk. 24:26-27). God’s grace and mercy extends to the whole world, and it extends to you. Because Jesus died and rose again, God finds no fault, no spot, no wrinkle, no blemish in you. Because of Jesus, when God looks at you, He sees the perfect, total, complete obedience of Jesus. Who wouldn’t want to hear that message? The unrepentant, the sinner, the very one who needs grace and mercy, sadly, doesn’t want to hear about God’s love.

Why is this? Because our sin has infected us so thoroughly, because we are by nature sinful, we do not want mercy because we do not want to need mercy. We would rather try to work our own way to righteousness than to receive the free gift of Christ’s righteousness.

To give you an example: I’ve been following Planned Parenthood on Twitter since the undercover videos started surfacing. They tweeted a story entitled, “Thank God for My Abortion.” In the article, the author speaks of the kindness of people who helped her abort her unborn child. Her story was full of self-justifying phrases. She was young. She was stupid. Since she couldn’t even take care of herself, she knew she couldn’t take care of a baby. She concludes the article in what sounds like a final attempt at justifying herself, she says, “I suspect this was the one rational decision I made the whole of that year. In short: thank god (note lower case) I had an abortion.” She encourages other women to share their abortion stories and “own” their abortion.

So, I tweeted her back. “Own your abortion, and repent. There is forgiveness in Christ, even for abortion.” She responded, “Um, news flash; I’m not a fundamentalist Christian.” She didn’t even want to hear about the forgiveness that Christ has to offer her. She would rather justify herself, but that will never happen. She doesn’t want forgiveness because she doesn’t want to admit she needs forgiveness. Her conscience will haunt her until she either drowns it out completely or repents. She shut her ears to the Gospel because, to her, the Gospel is only a reminder that she needs forgiveness. It is incredibly sad to see.

To sinners, and too often even to us Christians, the call to repent doesn’t sound like good news. Too often, we are like children thinking mom is trying to take away our toys when all she is doing is calling us to dinner. You see, Biblical repentance has two aspects, two sides if you will – Law and Gospel, contrition and faith. The first side, the Law side, the contrition side, is what we are most familiar with. The Law side of repentance says, “You have done something terrible, something evil. You have broken God’s Law, and you need to feel sorry about it.” That is exactly what all sinners do not want to hear.

We do not want to hear that we have sinned. We do not want to hear that we have offended God and hurt our neighbor. But that is why there is a second aspect of repentance – that is the Gospel, faith, and forgiveness. Yes, you have done something evil and wrong, but God has already forgiven that sin by Jesus’ death on the cross.

Because our sin is so powerful, our ears are completely muffled. You know that you have sinned and you can’t stop thinking about all the transgressions you have committed. So you come to church and hear that Jesus has taken away your condemnation, and the only words you hear are, “your condemnation.” The word that is meant to give you comfort only causes more guilt. You read your Bible and hear that Jesus has taken away the death sentence that was placed upon your head, and all you think of is your death sentence. A voice in your head tells you that this good news, this Gospel, is not for you and can not be for you because you keep giving in to the same temptations over and over again.

Imagine this deaf and mute man responding to Jesus’ word, “Ephphatha,” that is, “Be opened,” by saying, “Stop reminding me that I can’t hear and speak. I haven’t been able to hear and I won’t be able to hear no matter what you say.” That sounds ridiculous, but according to your sinful nature, that is exactly what you do. You fear and you doubt and you close your ears to Jesus. When Jesus says to you, “I forgive you all of your sins,” a demonic voice enters into your head and says, “No. That isn’t true.” And so you are deaf to the word of forgiveness that the Scriptures declare to you. And until that deafness is taken away by the Holy Spirit working through the Word, that deafness will always remain. So what do we do?

We need to shut up and listen to the Word of God. We need to let Jesus’ Word wash over us. We need to stop being so afraid. We need Jesus to do exactly what He did in our Gospel text. We need Him to open our clogged ears, and Jesus’ Word really is that powerful.

This miracle of Jesus is so fascinating. There are plenty of miracles where Jesus simply speaks and healing takes place. He speaks to a lame man, “Rise,” (Mk. 2:11), and the lame man does it. He says to a blind man, “Go your way; your faith has made you well,” (Mk. 10:52). But the lame and the blind are able to hear, they are able to understand and process what Jesus is saying. But here, Jesus speaks to deaf ears – ears that are unable to hear or comprehend what He is saying. But His Word still works. The Word of Jesus works on these deaf ears just as it worked on Lazarus’ dead, deaf ears.

Jesus’ Word works even on dead, deaf ears because that is the very nature of God’s Word. The same creative power which spoke into the chaos and nothingness, “Let there be light,” is in Jesus’ Words. God can speaks into the void, and that which does not exist obeys.

We need Jesus to open our ears to hear His Gospel. 1 Co. 2:14 ¹⁴ The natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are folly to him, and he is not able to understand them because they are spiritually discerned. Hearing and believing Christ’s Word is the work of the Gospel. Ro. 10:17 ¹⁷ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.

As weird as it is, Jesus stuck His actual fingers into that man’s ears and mouth. But He comes here now to stick His actual body and blood into your mouth and your body. Jesus has been crucified as a ransom for your sins. He has bought you back by paying off the devil. And He is risen, alive, out of death for your justification. Jesus comes to you now in this holy Supper to remove your doubt that this is for you. Jesus comes now to drive away all your evil. He comes to you placing His Body into your body. He binds you to Himself. He clears out your ears and loosens your tongue so that you can confess Him clearly and be saved.

Brothers and sisters, “Ephphatha.” Be opened, and do not be afraid. Jesus opens you not destroy you, but to fill you. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 7:14-23

¹⁴ And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: ¹⁵ There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.”

¹⁷ And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. ¹⁸ And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, ¹⁹ since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) ²⁰ And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. ²¹ For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, ²² coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. ²³ All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

What is wrong with the world? We have seen our country celebrate a man mutilate himself in his desire to become a woman. The highest court in our land decided that homosexual relationships can be called ‘marriage.’ Last week, millions if not billions of hard-earned dollars were wiped out as the stock markets crumbled. We have viewed the horror of babies being ripped from their mothers’ wombs only to be torn apart, chopped up, and sold for their organs and tissue. On Wednesday, a reporter and her cameraman were shot to death in cold blood on live television. Shortly after the murders, the shooter released a video showing his first-person view of the horrifying scene. Friday night, a Houston police officer was shot execution-style after he had pumped gas into his patrol car. What is wrong with the world?

The world’s problem is not the transgenders, the homosexuals, the Supreme Court, or China. The world’s problem is not the Republicans, Democrats, the abortionists, criminals, or murderers. So what is wrong with the world? G. K. Chesterton hit the nail on the head several decades ago. Supposedly, the London Times once asked several writers and philosophers, “What is wrong with the world?” Chesterton replied in the briefest of letters. “Dear Sir, I am.”

The words of our Lord, “From within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within.”

The problem with the world is me. And I hope and pray that you, in all honesty, can say the same. The evil in the world is not something outside of us, something that we can hunt down and destroy. The evil in the world is what is inside of us. It is, in fact, us. Our hearts, our minds, our thoughts, our actions are the problem. I am, we are, “by nature sinful and unclean.” I have, we have, “sinned against [God] by thought, word, and deed” by the evil we have done and by the good we have left undone.

Nothing outside of you defiles you. Whatever goes into you goes out again. What you put into yourself passes through you and goes into the toilet. Yes, Jesus uses bathroom talk here. There is nothing you can put into yourself that makes you defiled. Nothing. So, why does God find fault with you, since nothing you have put into yourself makes you defiled? God finds fault with you and with me because we are sinners. You and I are sinners, but not because we do sinful things. You and I do sinful things because we are sinners. We are unclean because we are unclean – sinful from the time we are conceived.

The source of your problem is your heart. Your heart, my heart, is an idol factory. Your heart, my heart, is the source of sin. Because of our hearts, we are finally brought to a deserved death. Our hearts separate us from God and defile us.

So often today, the advice is given, “Follow your heart,” or you hear people say, “I just need to follow my heart.” That is the worst advice you can give and the worst thing you can do. “The heart is deceitful above all things and desperately sick” (Jer. 17:9). The world is in the shape that it is in precisely because we have followed our hearts. We have done what it in us, and we reap the evil fruit of the wickedness we have sown. We are the problem. We are what is wrong with the world.

Praise be to God that Jesus has come into the world. In Christ, God was reconciling the world to Himself. Jesus entered into the evil dominion we have made this world. He didn’t shy away from touching the unclean and defiled. He didn’t shrink back from those who were possessed with wickedness. He didn’t avoid evil and sin; instead, He became sin for us (2 Cor. 5:21). In Christ, God entered into the world that we have defiled in order to redeem and to sanctify, to make holy, what we have made damnable.

When we see all the the things that are wrong with this world, we are tempted to ask God, “Why did You allow this evil?” God will simply not answer that question. His thoughts and ways are too far above us. Do not ask God, “Why did You allow evil to happen?” Instead when you see all the tings that are wrong with this world, ask, “God what are You going to do with that evil?” because that question is answered already.

God has pierced that evil, that sin, and all the problems of this world in Jesus’ hands and feet. God has drowned our evil in the blood of Jesus and buried it in His tomb (Rev. Fiene). When we see the mess we have made of this world, God points us to Jesus on the cross and says, “Look. That evil you have made, that defilement you have brought to the world, that uncleanness you have within you, look. I am here defeating it.”

Jesus takes your defiled heart of stone and throws it in the trash where it belongs. He washes you clean in His blood and makes you a new creation. Then, He turns around and gives you a new heart, a heart of flesh. A heart that longs for the forgiveness, mercy, and righteousness that comes through God speaking to you and creating you anew. He runs to you and throws His loving arms around you. He makes a feast celebrating His own love and mercy for you. And He promises that you have a seat at His feast at the marriage supper of the Lamb who was slain, a seat in the eternal kingdom of His new creation. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 7:1–13

¹ Now when the Pharisees gathered to him, with some of the scribes who had come from Jerusalem,² they saw that some of his disciples ate with hands that were defiled, that is, unwashed. ³ (For the Pharisees and all the Jews do not eat unless they wash their hands properly, holding to the tradition of the elders, ⁴ and when they come from the marketplace, they do not eat unless they wash. And there are many other traditions that they observe, such as the washing of cups and pots and copper vessels and dining couches.) ⁵ And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” ⁶ And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written,

‘This people honors me with their lips,

but their heart is far from me;

⁷      in vain do they worship me,

teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’

⁸ You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.”

⁹ And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition! ¹⁰ For Moses said, ‘Honor your father and your mother’; and, ‘Whoever reviles father or mother must surely die.’ ¹¹ But you say, ‘If a man tells his father or his mother, “Whatever you would have gained from me is Corban”’ (that is, given to God)— ¹² then you no longer permit him to do anything for his father or mother, ¹³ thus making void the word of God by your tradition that you have handed down. And many such things you do.”

In the name of Jesus.  Amen.

Imagine that you got hired at a large company – let’s say Apple™. You show up for your first day. Your supervisor introduces you to your co-workers. You are given an orientation on the company. Your supervisor leads you to your desk, and you begin your first day on the job. Suddenly, you feel a hand on your shoulder and look up to see Tim Cook (the CEO of Apple). Of the thousands of co-workers he could be talking to, he talks to you. He welcomes you to the company and says, “The thing that I look at most is punctuality. I will not tolerate you being late. Do good work, but above all, be on time.”

What might you do? You have several options: You can make sure you leave your home every morning so that even if there is traffic, or you get a flat tire, you will still be clocking in on time. But then, you think to yourself, “What if my car breaks down completely? What if something outside of my control happens that makes me late. Tim Cook told me to be on time, so I need to be on time.” So you come up with a plan to simply live at your desk. You abandon your family and never see them. You miss all your kids’ soccer games, school plays, and birthdays. You never spend time with your spouse. You are consumed and haunted by the CEO’s words, “Be on time.”

So here you are living at work. You have to hide your blanket, pillow, and spare clothes because you don’t want people to know that you are so scared of disappointing the CEO that you are living at work. You dodge the security personal at night hoping that their flashlights won’t find you and reveal how consumed you are with making sure that you punch your time-card at the right time.

This analogy falls somewhat short of what is going on in our text, but hopefully it gives you an idea of what was going on in the Pharisees’ minds. God had given the Ten Commandments, and the Pharisees were terrified of breaking them. The Pharisees had a bunch of rules that they would teach in an effort to keep people from even getting close to breaking God’s Commandments.

But in doing so, the Pharisees went beyond what God’s Word says. For example: God gave the Third Commandment, “Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.” So the Pharisees determined how many steps you could take on the Sabbath. They made a rule about how much weight you could carry in your hand or pocket. The Pharisees even discussed what you would do if you were holding an apple with your hand out of your window when the Sabbath began. Could you bring your hand into the window? Well, that would be delivering food. Can you drop the apple? Well, that could be planting an apple tree. Apparently, they even had a debate about where you could spit on the Sabbath. If you spit on the dirt, you might be watering a plant, so the Pharisees determined that it was allowable to spit on rocks.

Now, we can laugh at these things, but these were serious debates. They understood that God was serious about His Commandments. He had come down on Mt. Sinai and written these rules in stone – twice. God had told them that He was, “A jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children to the third and fourth generation.” So what the leaders of the people did was to (and this is their words) “set a hedge” around the Law. God wanted them to keep the Sabbath holy, so they decided to make sure that they wouldn’t even get close to breaking His command.

People still do this type of thing today. Since the Bible tells us not to lust after someone who is not our spouse, some say we shouldn’t dance because dancing could lead to lustful thoughts and actions. They have come to believe this so strongly that they say all dancing is sin. There is even the joke, maybe you’ve heard it, that sex before marriage is bad because it could lead to dancing. They do the same with drinking alcohol. Since the Bible says that drunkenness is a sin, some say you should never drink alcohol even though the Bible never says that. In fact, the Bible says that wine is a gift from God to “gladden the hearts of man” (Ps. 104:15). But both of those are easy things to pick on.

The important thing is to realize that all of us do this. We make up our own rules and add to God’s perfect, complete Law in an effort to make God like us better. In all of this, we make ourselves to be God. We invent our own cultural rules and laws and begin to practically say, “Look at me God. I haven’t even gotten close to breaking that commandment. Look at me and love me because of it.” We become like the Pharisee in Lk. 18:10-15. We simply cannot stop ourselves.

Now, let me be clear, it is good to put ourselves in a position to refrain from breaking God’s Law. It is good for people who have a history of alcoholism in their family to refrain from drinking because we know alcoholism is often hereditary. But that doesn’t mean that your brothers and sisters who do not have that problem are less in God’s favor simply because they have a couple of beers or glasses of wine. And let me add this: kids, it is wrong for you to have alcohol if you are not 21 because you are to obey the laws of the land (Ro. 13:1-7).

Brothers and sisters, God’s Law is complete and perfect. By adding our little rules to keep us from breaking God’s Law, we are showing that we desire to be our own little-god. This is exactly what Eve did in the Garden. Eve said that God had commanded her not to “eat of the tree, neither shall you touch it, lest you die” (Gen. 3:3). God never said anything about it being wrong to touch the tree. But, with Eve and the Pharisees in our text, we see what adding to God’s Law does not stop us from sinning. We still break God’s commands. We still sin. We still, by our thoughts and actions, damn ourselves.

For the Pharisees and for us, because of our sin, God’s Law doesn’t always do what God designed it to do. God’s Law always condemns us. If you think you can earn God’s love by following your little rules, you are adding sin to sin. Romans 4:15 says, “The law brings wrath” (cf. Ro. 7:10-25 and Gal. 3:10). God’s Law always “kills, reviles, accuses, judges, and condemns everything that is not in Christ” (Luther). You are always in a dangerous place when you look at God’s Law and think to yourself, “Well, at least I’m keeping that one pretty well.” You may fool others and you may even fool yourself, but you aren’t fooling God. His Law always convicts. God’s Law is intended to cut you open like a sword, so that you watch in horror “as [your] own blood spills out of [you]” (Rev. D. Matyas).

Jesus doesn’t give the Pharisees any Gospel in this text. The Pharisees don’t want mercy; they want to not need mercy.

So to you who are content with your relationship with God, God has nothing for you but His Law. God tells you that not only have you not done what He has commanded, but you have done the opposite. He sees that you are imperfect, yet He demands perfection. Christ demands, “Be perfect as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt. 5:48).

But to you who are convicted of your sin, God has another word. To you who know that you have sinned and offended God in all you say and do, God speaks His word of Gospel. He speaks His words of absolution over you. Brothers and sisters, God has sent His own Son to be sin for you. Jesus took your sins and was run through with God’s sword of the Law. Jesus’ blood was spilt from His head, hands, feet, and side. God punished your sins upon Jesus as He died on the cross, and in return, God gives you the perfect, complete obedience of Christ. Because you are in Christ, because you have been united to Him in baptism, because you believe His words of forgiveness in the absolution, because you are joined to Jesus as you eat His body and drink His blood, God remembers your sins no more (Jer. 31:34). Your sins are separated from you as far as the east is from the west (Ps. 103:12). Your sins have been smashed into nothingness under God’s foot and cast into the depths of the sea (Mic. 7:19).

Because of Jesus, God says to you, “I have blotted out your transgressions like a cloud and your sins like a mist; return to Me, for I have redeemed you” (Is. 44:22). Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

John 6:51-69

⁵¹ “I am the living bread that came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever. And the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh.”

⁵² The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, “How can this man give us his flesh to eat?” ⁵³ So Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you have no life in you. ⁵⁴ Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day. ⁵⁵ For my flesh is true food, and my blood is true drink. ⁵⁶ Whoever feeds on my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. ⁵⁷ As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever feeds on me, he also will live because of me. ⁵⁸ This is the bread that came down from heaven, not like the bread the fathers ate, and died. Whoever feeds on this bread will live forever.”

⁵⁹ Jesus said these things in the synagogue, as he taught at Capernaum.

⁶⁰ When many of his disciples heard it, they said, “This is a hard saying; who can listen to it?” ⁶¹ But Jesus, knowing in himself that his disciples were grumbling about this, said to them, “Do you take offense at this? ⁶² Then what if you were to see the Son of Man ascending to where he was before? ⁶³ It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh is no help at all. The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and life. ⁶⁴ But there are some of you who do not believe.” (For Jesus knew from the beginning who those were who did not believe, and who it was who would betray him.) ⁶⁵ And he said, “This is why I told you that no one can come to me unless it is granted him by the Father.”

⁶⁶ After this many of his disciples turned back and no longer walked with him. ⁶⁷ So Jesus said to the Twelve, “Do you want to go away as well?” ⁶⁸ Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life, ⁶⁹ and we have believed, and have come to know, that you are the Holy One of God.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

In The Silver Chair (one of C.S. Lewis’s books in The Chronicles of Narnia series) there is a scene with a girl named Jill. She finds a stream and is very thirsty. But she is terrified to drink because a huge Lion is in her way. The Lion speaks to her, “If you are thirsty, come and drink.” But she is still too scared, so she doesn’t move. “Are you not thirsty?” the Lion asks. “I’m dying of thirst,” she replies. “Then drink,” says the Lion.

“Will you promise not to – do anything to me, if I do come?” she asks. “I make no promise,” says the Lion. “Do you eat girls?” Jill asks. The Lion responds, “I have swallowed up girls and boys, women and men, kings and emperors, cities and realms.” Jill responds, “I daren’t come and drink.”

“Then you will die of thirst,” says the Lion. Giving up, Jill says, “Oh dear! I suppose I must go and look for another stream then.” The Lion says with finality, “There is no other stream,” If you are familiar with The Chronicles of Narnia, you know that the Lion is a picture of Jesus.

Today’s Gospel text brings us to the grand finale of the last five weeks’ Gospel readings. The crowds that were fed with the fish and the loaves want Jesus to be their bread king who will provide for their physical needs. They do not realize they need more than food to live. Jesus tells the crowds that unless you eat the true bread of His body and drink the true drink of His blood, then they have no life. Jesus’ claim to be the only source of life offended the ears of the crowds. They were so offended that thousands no longer followed Him. Instead, they leave Jesus to starve in the wilderness of sin while they go looking for another stream.

But according to Jesus, there is no other stream. Either drink Jesus’ blood and live, or don’t drink and die. Either eat Jesus’ body and live, or don’t eat and die. There is no other drink. There is no other food. Apart from Jesus, there is no other stream. Jesus tells the crowds, “You need Me – Me alone and nothing else. Unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. There is no other stream. Apart from Me there is no life.”

Yet, we, like the crowds, go looking and striving for life in all sorts of places where Jesus isn’t. Jesus has not promised to give life in the good gifts that God gives us. Our houses, no matter how comfortable, do not give us eternal life. Our careers, no matter how successful, do not give us eternal life. Our families, no matter how supportive, do not give us life. Our achievements, no matter how great, do not give us eternal life. Our commitments to God, no matter how grand, do not give us eternal life. They will all fade into nothingness.

Jesus says, “The Spirit gives life; the flesh is no help at all.” If these words do not offend you, you do not know how sinful you really are. You think you can drink from all sorts of other streams and find life, but there is no other stream. The only stream is Jesus. The only source of life is Jesus. Jesus says, “The bread that I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.”

Jesus gave up His own body, His own flesh, on the cross for the life of the world. His life-giving blood was poured out from His pierced side. On the cross, Jesus has purchased and won your salvation. And, now, He delivers that salvation to you through His Word which is Spirit and life. He delivers that salvation to you in the waters of Baptism where He connects His life-giving Word to the water. Jesus delivers that salvation to you in the Spirit-filled words of the absolution. Jesus delivers that salvation to you as you come to His Supper where, through His Word of promise, He comes to you in body and blood in bread and wine.

Thousands of people left Jesus because of His words that day. They went looking for another stream. But they would find none. They would only find thirst in the desert of sin-parched land.

As they walk away, Jesus turns to the disciples and asks, “Do you want to go away as well?” Maybe they did. Maybe the disciples did want to look for another source of life, another stream. Yet, the Spirit used the Word of Jesus to bind the disciples to Jesus. Peter answered, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You, and You alone, have the words of eternal life.”

To whom shall you go? Go to Jesus. Find Him where He has promised to be. Find Jesus in the waters of your baptism where God united you with Jesus’ death and resurrection (Ro. 6:3-11). Find Jesus in the words of absolution where He, not your simply your pastor but God Himself, declares you to be forgiven of all your sin (Jn. 20:23). Find Jesus in the preaching of His Word because without hearing the Word of God, you will not believe and you will not have life (Ro. 10:17). Find Jesus in His Supper where He gives you His body to eat and His blood to drink (Mt. 26:26-29). Go to Jesus and nowhere else. There is no other stream. There is no other life. But where Jesus is, there is life, life eternal. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

John 6:22-35

²² On the next day the crowd that remained on the other side of the sea saw that there had been only one boat there, and that Jesus had not entered the boat with his disciples, but that his disciples had gone away alone. ²³ Other boats from Tiberias came near the place where they had eaten the bread after the Lord had given thanks. ²⁴ So when the crowd saw that Jesus was not there, nor his disciples, they themselves got into the boats and went to Capernaum, seeking Jesus. ²⁵ When they found him on the other side of the sea, they said to him, “Rabbi, when did you come here?”

²⁶ Jesus answered them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you are seeking me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate your fill of the loaves. ²⁷ Do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you. For on him God the Father has set his seal.” ²⁸ Then they said to him, “What must we do, to be doing the works of God?” ²⁹ Jesus answered them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in him whom he has sent.”

³⁰ So they said to him, “Then what sign do you do, that we may see and believe you? What work do you perform? ³¹ Our fathers ate the manna in the wilderness; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’” ³² Jesus then said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, it was not Moses who gave you the bread from heaven, but my Father gives you the true bread from heaven. ³³ For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.” ³⁴ They said to him, “Sir, give us this bread always.” ³⁵ Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life; whoever comes to me shall not hunger, and whoever believes in me shall never thirst.”

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

You could sit down at lunch today and stuff your face until you have to be rolled away from the table in a wheelbarrow. But do you know what you will be tomorrow? Hungry. Your teeth, stomach, and intestines will have done their thing. The nutrients, vitamins, and calories will do to your body what God has designed them to do. And you will wake up in the morning and need to eat again.

These crowds who are coming to Jesus had eaten their fill. The five loaves and two fish had become a banquet that filled all their bellies. After eating, they wiped their mouths and decided to make Jesus their king – their bread king – by force (Jn. 6:15). With a king like Jesus, they would never face starvation or famine again. With a king like Jesus, they would never fear again. With a king like Jesus, there would be no more suffering in this earthly life. But Jesus won’t have it. Jesus did not come to be a bread king; He came to be a crucified King. So He dismissed the crowds and quietly walked across the sea to meet up with the disciples.

Our text begins the day after. The crowds have empty stomachs again, so they search for Jesus. Now, of course, it is good to seek Jesus when you are in any need. It is good to pray to God when you have a lack. But they are looking for Jesus to meet a particular type of lack, a very temporal lack. But Jesus refuses to give the crowds even one crumb. Yesterday, Jesus had compassion on the crowd – they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd (Mk. 6:34). He fed the crowd’s souls with the word of His teaching. And when the day grew late, Jesus, in His mercy, filled their stomachs with the bread and fish. But today, He refuses to give one measly morsel to munch on.

Had Jesus’ love and compassion for the people stopped? The crowd probably felt like It had. But of course Jesus still loved the people. But Jesus’ love is shown to be even greater today in His refusal to feed them. The people had failed to see the sign. They refused to believe that Jesus was truly the God in the flesh who provided manna for their fathers in the wilderness, and they refused to believe that Jesus was the God who wanted to feed their souls for eternity.

Jesus loves the people enough to disappoint them by telling them that He won’t be the bread king they want Him to be. He loves the people enough to speak the truth which would be hard for them to hear. Jesus says, “You want Me for a bread king. I could be that for you. But what good is feeding your stomach for a day or even a lifetime if you remain damned in your sin? I’m not going to fill your belly with bread while your souls are still malnourished and starving for God’s mercy. So do not work for the food that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life, which the Son of Man will give to you as a free gift.”

We all waste so much time and energy and worry about the things of this world that perish. All the food, clothes, house, home, and luxuries that God is providing – it all will perish. Do not work for the stuff that perishes, but for the food that endures to eternal life.

The work of God is not really a work at all. The work of God is that you believe in the One whom He has sent. Faith in Christ is everything. When you have faith that the death and resurrection of Christ is for you for the forgiveness of sins, everything else falls into place. You could own the whole world, but without Christ it would mean nothing. Jesus says He is the bread that comes down from heaven and gives eternal life to the world and whoever believes in Him will never hunger or thirst.

At this point, we know Jesus is not talking about normal food anymore. You could be in perfect health, you could never be hungry or thirsty, but you will still die. We know that the things of this creation can fill us up temporarily, but we will always want more if this is all there is. As they wandered in the wilderness, the people ate manna from heaven, and they all died. But Jesus claims that He is the true bread, and if you eat Him in faith, you will never hunger or thirst. The question is this: is Jesus enough? Can Jesus really satisfy all your needs? Jesus says that He is the bread of life, but is He enough?

The answer is, “Of course He is.” His death covers your sin. No action you have done is able to escape His forgiveness. Jesus’ word of forgiveness is for you. He invites you to eat His true Body and Blood. With His life-giving food within you, you will rise from the dead just as He rose from the dead. There is nothing else you need. His body is broken, Jesus says, for you. His blood is shed, Jesus says, for you. It is all for the forgiveness of your sins. Even the sin of working and worrying for the food that perishes. Even the sin of thinking that you need something more than simple faith in Jesus. Even for the sin of thinking that you have to do something to earn it.

In this supper, here is Jesus. Here is your Savior. Here is His gift to you. Come and receive – it is free. Everything is provided. Here is the food that will sustain you until the day when you take your place at the marriage supper of the Lamb in the kingdom that has no end. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 6:45-56

⁴⁵ Immediately he made his disciples get into the boat and go before him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while he dismissed the crowd. ⁴⁶ And after he had taken leave of them, he went up on the mountain to pray. ⁴⁷ And when evening came, the boat was out on the sea, and he was alone on the land. ⁴⁸ And he saw that they were making headway painfully, for the wind was against them. And about the fourth watch of the night he came to them, walking on the sea. He meant to pass by them, ⁴⁹ but when they saw him walking on the sea they thought it was a ghost, and cried out, ⁵⁰ for they all saw him and were terrified. But immediately he spoke to them and said, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid.” ⁵¹ And he got into the boat with them, and the wind ceased. And they were utterly astounded, ⁵² for they did not understand about the loaves, but their hearts were hardened.

⁵³ When they had crossed over, they came to land at Gennesaret and moored to the shore. ⁵⁴ And when they got out of the boat, the people immediately recognized him ⁵⁵ and ran about the whole region and began to bring the sick people on their beds to wherever they heard he was. ⁵⁶ And wherever he came, in villages, cities, or countryside, they laid the sick in the marketplaces and implored him that they might touch even the fringe of his garment. And as many as touched it were made well.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

God’s steadfast love endures forever. The goodness of God knows no limits. His steadfast love endures forever. His love and His mercy are endless. His steadfast love endures forever. The steadfast love of the Lord extends to the heavens. His steadfast love endures forever.  His faithfulness to the clouds. His steadfast love endures forever. His righteousness is like the mighty mountains. His steadfast love endures forever (Ps. 136, 36:5-6).

Today’s Psalm (136) makes that abundantly clear. If you don’t get it the first time, that Gospel refrain repeats in each of the 26 verses. In more places than Ps. 136, Scripture makes it very plain that the steadfast love of God endures forever. Scripture says it, and it is true. However, how often do we forget it?

When we have troubles, we question God’s love for us. When we face difficulty, we begin to search for some specific sin that maybe we forgot about and left unconfessed. When we feel the weight of this world pressing down upon us, we begin to wonder if God is so loving after all. We look at our lives that are filled with all sorts of pain and varying degrees of death, and we begin to doubt God’s goodness, mercy, and love.

Now, God’s goodness and mercy toward us doesn’t mean that our lives are perfect. Too often, we buy into the lie that Christianity is about having our best life now. We think that once Jesus is in our lives, everything is going to be peaches and cream. Because we believe these lies, we put on an act that everything is good and life is hunky-dory. The worst is when we believe that our story as Christians is that we are good people who are getting better every day. But that is not what Christianity is about.

Christianity is about bad people being told they have failed to be good. Christianity says, “You are a sinner. You deserve pain. You deserve punishment. You deserve God to stand there and watch as you perish with all the other sinners in the ditch of death.” That’s the Law. But Christianity also says that Jesus takes your place, and the place of all sinners. Christ took your pain and punishment and death. Christianity says that God leaves Jesus in the ditch of death right alongside of you and all sinners.

Because of God’s enduring, eternal steadfast love, God doesn’t just reach down into your pain, into your suffering, into your doubt, and into your death. Instead, God takes your very nature. He becomes flesh and blood, just like you, and Jesus enters into the midst of suffering and death with you and with all sinners.

Neither you nor anybody else can know what God thinks about you based on your experience in the past, present, or future. The only place that reveals what God thinks about you is the cross. The cross, where Jesus interceded for you. The cross, where Jesus steps in to the mess you and I have made of this world. The cross, where Jesus not just takes the brunt of God’s wrath, but drinks the cup of God’s wrath against your down the the dregs (Is. 51:22, Jn. 18:11). That is where you see God’s love. God fully reveals His enduring, eternal steadfast love in Jesus who comes into the midst of your suffering, conflict, and pain.

Today’s text picks up right where we left off last week. Jesus had brought the disciples to a to a place of suffering – to a desolate, desert place (Mk. 6:31-32, 35). The disciples didn’t think that the five loaves and two fish would be enough to feed the crowd. They think that Jesus has to remove the crowd from that place of suffering and desolation in order to provide for them. But Jesus reveals that because He is there, even in the midst of pain and desolation, that He can provide for His people. Because Jesus is there in the midst of pain, the five loaves and two fish became a banquet that filled the stomachs of the 5,000 men plus women and children. Not only that, but there were twelve baskets full of leftovers. Yes, because Jesus was there in the midst of suffering, there was more food left over than there was for the original meal.

Now, the disciples are separated from Jesus, and notice who causes that separation. Jesus sends them off in the boat while He dismisses the crowds. Jesus is the one who sends the disciples off in the boat and, eventually, into the storm to struggle against the wind and the waves without Him. But notice the disciples aren’t scared of the storm. They have been in this place before. They think that this trouble and turmoil that they are in is something they can deal with on their own. They have dealt with this type of trouble before, and they will do it again. So they are not scared of the wind and the waves. What scares them is Jesus showing up. Right there, in the midst of their troubles, is Man who is God. And they are terrified.

Jesus came to them in their hardship. The text says that Jesus “intended to pass by them.” This is the same language that is used when God “passed before” Moses and revealed His glory (Ex. 33:18-34:9). Remember how God places Moses in the cleft of the rock and defined His name, “Yahweh, a God merciful and gracious. Slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness.” Well, here is Jesus was revealing His divine glory to the disciples. But seeing the divine in the midst of their troubles, knowing that God was present in the midst of their suffering, creates terror because their hearts were hardened and they did not understand the nature of Jesus even after the banquet earlier that day. Seeing Jesus’ reveal His divinity by walking on the water (see Job 9:8, Ps. 77:19, Is. 43:16) sends the disciples into a frenzied fear.

But Jesus doesn’t leave them in their fear. Instead, in His mercy, Jesus speaks to calm their terror, “Take heart; it is I. Do not be afraid. Here I am with you in your suffering. Here I am delivering you with My words. Here I am to be with you. I am still your God. I am still in control of the situation.”

Jesus is here for you now, and He is with you in the midst of all your suffering and pain. You do not ever suffer alone. You do not die alone. There is Jesus right beside you, bringing you, safely through pain and death. Scripture does not teach that Jesus saves you from all suffering and death. God has never promised to do that. Rather, Scripture teaches that Jesus pulls you through all your suffering and death safely to the other side. So in the midst of your suffering don’t underestimate the goodness of God. Always remember that God would rather destroy His own Son than destroy you.

Christ will pull you through the mess you have made of your life, through the pain of this sinful world, through the death that you rightly deserve. He pulls you through all of that to the resurrection of the body and the life everlasting. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 6:30-44

³⁰ The apostles returned to Jesus and told him all that they had done and taught. ³¹ And he said to them, “Come away by yourselves to a desolate place and rest a while.” For many were coming and going, and they had no leisure even to eat.

³² And they went away in the boat to a desolate place by themselves. ³³ Now many saw them going and recognized them, and they ran there on foot from all the towns and got there ahead of them.

³⁴ When he went ashore he saw a great crowd, and he had compassion on them, because they were like sheep without a shepherd. And he began to teach them many things.

³⁵ And when it grew late, his disciples came to him and said, “This is a desolate place, and the hour is now late. ³⁶ Send them away to go into the surrounding countryside and villages and buy themselves something to eat.” ³⁷ But he answered them, “You give them something to eat.” And they said to him, “Shall we go and buy two hundred denarii worth of bread and give it to them to eat?” ³⁸ And he said to them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.” And when they had found out, they said, “Five, and two fish.” ³⁹ Then he commanded them all to sit down in groups on the green grass. ⁴⁰ So they sat down in groups, by hundreds and by fifties. ⁴¹ And taking the five loaves and the two fish he looked up to heaven and said a blessing and broke the loaves and gave them to the disciples to set before the people. And he divided the two fish among them all. ⁴² And they all ate and were satisfied. ⁴³ And they took up twelve baskets full of broken pieces and of the fish. ⁴⁴ And those who ate the loaves were five thousand men.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Jesus is going to take care of you. Everything that you need for this life and for the next, Jesus has, is, and will continue to provide. As I was preparing this sermon, I asked my wife the other day, “What does God care about more, your body or your soul?” She responded well, she said, “I think this is a trick question.” She said she wanted to answer that God cares about her soul more, but she knew that God cares for both. As her pastor, I was proud of her.

We are all tempted to think that God cares more about our soul than our body. But the God who created your soul also created your body. Jesus death on the cross saves you from your sins, but your sins don’t just effect your soul. They also destroy your body. But Jesus came to die on the cross for you – all of you, soul and body. And in this text today, we see Jesus proving that He cares about all of you – soul and body.

The disciples needed a break. Jesus had sent (lit. ‘apostled’) them with authority over unclean spirits. In the power of Jesus, they preach Jesus’ message of repentance and faith. They cast out many demons and healed many who were sick. Now, they are back excitedly telling Jesus everything they had done and taught. Jesus decides that it is time for them to have a break. Jesus says that He is going to make them rest,  “You guys have been working so hard lately, you haven’t even had time to eat. Come away by yourselves to a desert place and rest a while.” Time for a vacay!

Jesus and the disciples hop into the boat and head to their hot, sandy getaway. However, the people noticed. The frenzied fans see where they are going and leg it to the same place. By the time Jesus and the disciples arrive, the red carpet is ready to receive them. You can imagine the disciples’ disappointment. Their vacation in desolation has been ruined. But notice Jesus’ response. He steps out of the boat, sees the crowd, and has gut-wrenching compassion on them. These crowds were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Jesus, God-in-the-flesh, sees this pitiful crowd and doesn’t tell them to wait. He doesn’t dismiss them even for a measly hour while He and the disciples grab a bite. Instead, He immediately begins to teach them. He feeds their souls.

To every person in that crowd, Jesus gave exactly what was needed. Whether they had problems with their marriage, fights with their kids, struggles to make ends meet, death in the family, or fear of what the future might hold, Jesus knew their need. He taught them, and His words fed their souls. When Jesus teaches, He isn’t merely giving facts, not just describing God, not giving steps to a better life, a better marriage, or better relationships with others. Instead, when Jesus teaches, He gives the words of life. In other words, when Jesus teaches the Word of God, He gives Himself. Jesus gives the Law to expose sin for what it is, and He gives the Gospel – the full and complete release of sin. Jesus steps in as Shepherd, and the lost sheep are made into a flock. But Jesus still isn’t done. He is going to take care of their bodies too.

The day is coming to a close, and the disciples are impatient. All that stuff that Jesus had said about getting away has been interrupted. So they say to Jesus, “Hey Jesus, we’re here in this desert. Do You remember why You had us come here? Send the people away. It’s getting late, and this crowd needs to go get something to eat. Tell the people to go and get some food for themselves.”

Recognize that Jesus is going to feed this crowd no matter what. Even if Jesus had sent the crowd away to spend their hard-earned money on food, He still would have been providing for them. The food they could have bought in the markets came from bakers who get their ingredients from farmers whose crops grew because of God’s gracious provision. The fish in that market were brought there by fishermen who caught those fish from the sea that God sustains. Everyone’s food comes from God.

Jesus will feed you today too. Your food doesn’t come from the fridge or the waitress. Your food doesn’t even come from the grocery store or the farm. Your food finally and ultimately comes from God. But God is happy to use middle-men to provide the needs of your body.

Jesus will feed this crowd no matter what. But here He decides cut out the middle man. Jesus commands the crowd to sit down in the green grass. Hear that echo of Ps. 23, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, makes them “lie down in green pastures.” Even though Jesus, the disciples, and the crowd are in a desert place, there is green grass. Don’t miss that part of the miracle. Jesus gives thanks, maybe from Ps. 145:15-16, “The eyes of all look to You, and You give them their food in due season. You open Your hand; You satisfy the desire of every living thing.” Jesus hands the bread and fish out to the disciples who, in turn, serve that crowd of 5,000 men plus women and children. They feast. There in the desert wilderness is a banquet prepared by Jesus Himself. He is their shepherd, and they do not lack anything good. And neither do you.

The God who daily provides abundantly for all the needs of your life also provides for all the needs of your soul. God gives you everything you need for this life and the next. He provides for all your bodily needs as well as for all your soul’s needs.

Yahweh is your Shepherd. You lack nothing. He makes you lie down in green pastures. He leads you beside still waters. Through the death and resurrection of Jesus, He restores your soul. He leads you in paths of righteousness for His name’s sake. Even as you walk through the valley of the shadow of death, you fear no evil because you are already delivered from death. God is with you. His rod and staff comfort you. Even in the midst of your enemies, He prepares a banqueting table before you. He anoints your head with oil, and your cup overflows. God’s goodness and mercy pursue you all the days of your life. And because Christ’s death is your death and His resurrection is your resurrection, you will dwell in His house forever. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.

Listen here.

Mark 6:14-29

¹⁴ King Herod heard of it, for Jesus’ name had become known. Some said, “John the Baptist has been raised from the dead. That is why these miraculous powers are at work in him.” ¹⁵ But others said, “He is Elijah.” And others said, “He is a prophet, like one of the prophets of old.” ¹⁶ But when Herod heard of it, he said, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”

¹⁷ For it was Herod who had sent and seized John and bound him in prison for the sake of Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife, because he had married her. ¹⁸ For John had been saying to Herod, “It is not lawful for you to have your brother’s wife.” ¹⁹ And Herodias had a grudge against him and wanted to put him to death. But she could not, ²⁰ for Herod feared John, knowing that he was a righteous and holy man, and he kept him safe. When he heard him, he was greatly perplexed, and yet he heard him gladly.

²¹ But an opportunity came when Herod on his birthday gave a banquet for his nobles and military commanders and the leading men of Galilee. ²² For when Herodias’s daughter came in and danced, she pleased Herod and his guests. And the king said to the girl, “Ask me for whatever you wish, and I will give it to you.” ²³ And he vowed to her, “Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my kingdom.” ²⁴ And she went out and said to her mother, “For what should I ask?” And she said, “The head of John the Baptist.” ²⁵ And she came in immediately with haste to the king and asked, saying, “I want you to give me at once the head of John the Baptist on a platter.” ²⁶ And the king was exceedingly sorry, but because of his oaths and his guests he did not want to break his word to her. ²⁷ And immediately the king sent an executioner with orders to bring John’s head. He went and beheaded him in the prison ²⁸ and brought his head on a platter and gave it to the girl, and the girl gave it to her mother. ²⁹ When his disciples heard of it, they came and took his body and laid it in a tomb.

In the name of Jesus. Amen.

Herod the Tetrach doesn’t really know what to think. He is hearing reports about this Jesus fellow. The man is wandering the countryside preaching, “The time is fulfilled, and the reign of God is at hand. Repent and believe the gospel.” This Jesus is wandering through the country, casting out demons, healing the sick, calming the storms, even raising the dead. This dude is now sending others out to the towns and villages to do the same thing. Many come to the conclusion that John the Baptizer was raised from the dead with divine, miraculous powers. Herod is worried. He believes with dismay, “John, whom I beheaded, has been raised.”

Herod had had an interesting relationship with John. Herod knew that John was a righteous and holy man. But his new wife, well, she had a grudge against John. Here’s the situation:

Herod the Great, the ruler when Jesus was born, the one who had all the infant boys in Bethlehem under age two killed, had several sons. One of those sons was named Phillip. Phillip was Herodias’s husband. Herodias was Herod the Great’s granddaughter. In other words, Herodias married her uncle Phillip. The Herod of our text was another one of Herod the Great’s sons and the half-brother of Phillip. This Herod convinced Herodias to divorce Phillip and marry him. To do so, Herod had to divorce his wife. Herodias didn’t like the fact that John the Baptizer told them that this wasn’t exactly kosher. So, Herodias convinced Herod, her second uncle-husband, to arrest John. But it seems that Herod was keeping John safe from death. He even liked to talk with John even though he didn’t quite understand him.

But there was that fateful night of Herod’s birthday bash. Herod had invited all his noblemen and commanders came to his birthday party, and things got a little out of hand. Too much drinking, and maybe a few too many drugs were passed around. However it happened, Herod called in Herodias’s daughter. (If you are keeping track, this girl would have been Herod’s great-niece according to his father, niece according to his brother, and stepdaughter according to his wife.) He had her brought into this all male party. Now, women were not allowed at parties like this (notice she has to leave the party to talk to her mother). The only women at this type of party were a particular type of woman. Now, some legalists will use this text as proof that dancing in and of itself is sinful. But this was not some normal wedding reception or prom dance. This was the type of dance that would happen at a particular place with a pole and a lot of dollar bills. This dance “pleased” Herod and his guests. That most likely means they were more than they were just entertained – in all likelihood, they were “satisfied.”

So Herod, this intoxicated idiot, offers her whatever she wishes up to half his kingdom. The girl goes out to talk to her mother, and her mother suggests asking for the head of John the Baptizer. But this girl adds a sadistic little twist of her own. It is a dinner party after all. So she tells Herod to give her the head of John on a platter. Herod was more worried about keeping up appearances with his guests than doing the right, honorable thing. So he sends the executioner to John’s cell. And John becomes a head shorter.

This story is so despicable, so disgusting, what are we to do with it?

Remember that Herod didn’t know who this Jesus was. His seared conscience led him to believe that the man who had been preaching against him and his wife was raised from the dead. Herod couldn’t erase that night out of his head. He was worried because he didn’t want to hear any more sermons calling him to repent, especially after this little incident.

But you know who Jesus really is. He isn’t John the Baptizer raised from the dead. He is the Savior of the world. Yes, even the Savior of Herod. Jesus died for Herod’s sick, twisted immorality just as He died for all your sick, twisted, and wicked ways as well. Jesus has come to save sinners – even ones as bad as us here at Christ the King. We know, deep down we know, that we are no better than Herod. And so we are here, gathered together in Jesus’ name, to find shelter in the blood that Christ shed for all our sins.

Jesus’ blood has washed you clean in your baptism. Jesus gives you the new birth that you need. No sin is so great that it escapes Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. Hear that again. No sin is too big to escape Jesus’ forgiveness. Not one sin has been missed by His blood. So, don’t hold any of your sins outside of Jesus’ forgiveness. If you do, you have to atone for it yourself, and you never will be able to. Instead, Jesus, the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, now owns your sin. He dumped all your sin into the black hole of His empty tomb.

You can live knowing that there are worse things than being maligned for believing the Scriptures. There are worse things than being called “old fashioned” and “backwards” for opposing what the world wants to define as “normal.” There are even worse things than having your head lopped off. The worst thing of all is unbelief. Unbelief will cause you to imagine that, somehow, your sin escapes the all-encompassing grace and mercy of God which is found in the cross and empty tomb of Jesus. Holding on to your sin will buy you a one-way ticket straight to hell.

Confess Jesus as your Savior, and let the world do what it will do. Confess Jesus as your Savior, and let the world say what it will say. Confess Jesus as your Savior, and come what may. As the Epistle text said (Eph. 1:3-14), you have been chosen by God from before the foundation of the world to be holy and blameless. You are God’s own beloved child. You have heard the Scriptures, the Word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. You have been sealed with the Holy Spirit who is the guarantee of your inheritance until you acquire possession of it. Amen.

The peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus. Amen.